Ten Ways to Reduce Attorney Fees for Outside Counsel

By Tom McCurnin
Leasing News Legal Editor

Many Institutions Have Already Enacted Some of These Ideas

I was once in-house counsel for a large financial institution and managed outside counsel, which was a little like herding really expensive feral cats. The best attorneys from the larger law firms will generally present the client with the only options that will assure success. They don’t like to cut corners and have never seen an issue that doesn’t need legal research or a party who doesn’t need to be deposed.  But a trained risk manager is hired to take some risks and cut some corners. 

So, when I was asked to develop of list of cost cutting programs, I knew all too well what to include on the list.

1.Delegate Responsibility for Managing Lawyers to Only Those Experienced in Risk Management or Back End Work. Lawyers, by the way, do not make good managers of other lawyers. They will be sucked into the game of not taking any risks and over-litigating cases. Hire a professional who has direct experience with managing lawyers and who will have significant authority to settle cases. 

2. Insist on Up Front Projections and Monthly Budgets. I get it that lawyers cannot predict how much it will cost to litigate or defend a whole case—there are just too many variables. There is nothing wrong, however,  with putting together a list of broad-brush tasks or procedures involved in the case and assigning theoretical number to each. On the other hand, lawyers can, and should, prepare monthly budgets for the upcoming month. This will help the company project costs of the litigation.

3. Depositions Are Expensive, Try to Minimize Them and Other Discovery Issues. Depositions are the most effective discovery tool in the book, but expensive, often $10,000 each. Most cases will need a couple of depositions on each side so the bill for depositions just reached $40,000. Where the possible deponents are third parties, consider soliciting their cooperation and taking a recorded interview. The lawyer won’t be constrained by the form of questions and the content of the deposition will be secret. Apart from rejecting depositions, try to figure out a way to justify the expense while avoiding some of the costs. In addition, serving or receiving 200 interrogatories then battling over content is a sure way of expending $25,000 in a single month. Ask the lawyers if the discovery is really necessary or if it is simply better to answer the questions straight up without objections. 

4. Approve All Costs Over $1,000. If there is a cost item, such as research, an investigative report, or other function which will cost over $1,000, have a provision in your engagement letter that the client must approve all such costs before they are incurred.

5. Insist on Issuing Your Own Policies and Procedures for the Engagement. The client will want no charge for faxes, computer assisted legal research cost expense (Westlaw), multiple lawyer conferences, and phone expenses. Travel should be approved in advance and the lawyer should not bill for travel time, except for a local court appearance, without specific client approval. There are exceptions where the client will want to be fair to the law firm for travel time but have that conversation in advance. Finally, you will want the law firm to have in place adequate security procedures to make sure its servers which have access to the client’s confidential information, cannot be hacked.

6. Billing Should Be Detailed Line Item Billing—No Block Billing. All billing should indicate that date, the hourly rate and the specific item involved. If a combination of things was done, insist on the lawyer breaking down the project into digestible pieces. For example, “Receive and Review Opposition to the Motion for Quasi-Whoits and Discuss the Same with Client” is really two entries: receipt and review of the motion and the lawyer’s discussion with the client. 

7.Consider Dispositive Motions. These include motions to dismiss at the outset of the case, writs of attachment or possession for collection cases, and summary judgment for any case. Most larger firms will recommend all of the above.  Schedule a conference with the lawyers to determine whether such motions will be successful and budget accordingly. 

8. Get Copied on Every Email, Letter and Pleading. The litigation or risk manager may not read everything in detail but perusing a complex pleading is a good thing. Also, it is OK for the litigation or risk manager to ask the lawyers stupid questions, like explaining a legal issue in plain, high school senior English. 

9. Attending Some Hearings and Conference Calls. Judges have personalities and sitting through the judge’s morning calendar is eye-opening event. This will enable the client to make better decisions relative to what strategy might, or might not, be successful with the particular judge.  The client’s appearance will also signal to the judge and other counsel that the litigation manager is a knowledgeable hands on person, commanding respect. This will pay off in settlement discussions.  Many hearings and conferences are done by conference call, and it is always wise for the client to sit in and listen to these. 

10. Never, Ever, Give Up on Settlement. Ask the lawyers to conduct a meeting with opposing counsel (and hopefully the opposing party) at the inception of the case. Ask the court to set settlement conferences and insist that all parties must personally attend. Consider a half day mediation to bring the parties closer together. Consider conference calls amongst counsel to discuss settlement possibilities throughout the litigation. 

The bottom line to managing attorneys is communication up front with projections and monthly budgets coupled with a hands’ on approach to managing the lawyers. 

Tom McCurnin is a partner at Barton, Klugman & Oetting in Los Angeles, California.

Tom McCurnin
Barton, Klugman & Oetting
350 South Grand Ave.
Suite 2200
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Direct Phone: (213) 617-6129
Cell (213) 268-8291
Email: tmccurnin@bkolaw.com
Visit our web site at www.bkolaw.com
Previous Tom McCurnin Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org

Previous Tom McCurnin Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/leasing_cases.html

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Neumann Finance Hires 50 for Philadelphia Office
Now Cutting Back Hiring Plans

The Philadelphia Business Journal writes, "The original plan was to have roughly 80 people there by the end of the year and 120 to 140 by the second year. But a company leader tells the Business Journal it has revised its hiring estimates."

Four photos of new offices available, but full story requires a subscription:
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2018/12/11/equipment-lease-neumann-finance-hiring-sales.html

Neuman Finance Leases Space in Philadelphia
Plans Hiring more than 200 Jobs Next Two to Three Years
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2018/03_16.htm#neuman

 

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No Longer taking Broker/Discounting Business
plus Leasing Companies Out of Business

Companies with an * are no longer in business. The others are companies that were taking broker business, but announced that they no longer are accepting broker business. Many have also down-sized or are managing an existing portfolio.

More details are available in this list by company name:

http://www.leasingnews.org/list_alpha_new.htm

*ABCO Leasing Inc., Bothell, WA
*ACC Capital, Midvale, Utah (lenders running off portfolio residuals, Leasing News receiving Evergreen non-notification complaints, demanding 12 more monthly payments)
Advantage Business Capital, Lake Oswego, Oregon
AEL Financial, Buffalo Grove, Illinois
(No longer taking new broker business)
Agility Solutions Corp., Prescott, Arizona
Allegiant Partners, Walnut Creek, California 
Alliance Financial, Syracuse, New York
*Alternative Capital, Apollo Beach, Florida 
*AMC Funding, Charlotte, North Carolina
American Bank Leasing, Alpharetta, Georgia
*American Equipment Finance, Warren, New Jersey
Balboa Capital, Costa Mesa, California
Bank of Ozark Leasing/Finance, Little Rock, Arkansas 
*Bank of West Indirect Leasing, Dublin, California
*Bank of the West Leasing Indirect, San Ramon, California
*Bank Midwest Leasing, Overland Park, KS 
Bankers Healthcare Group, Weston, FL
*BBVA Compass Equipment Leasing, Houston, Texas
*Blackstone Equipment Financing, Orange, California
*BusinessFinance.com (on line aggregate funder)
*Business Leasing NorthWest, Seattle, WA
*Capital One Equipment Finance, Towson, Maryland 
*CapitalSource Healthcare Finance, Chevy Chase, Maryland
*CapNet, Los Angeles, California
*C and J Leasing Corp, Des Moines, Iowa
*Carlton Financial Corporation, Wayzata, Minnesota
*Chase Industries, Inc., Grand Rapids, Michigan 
*Chesterfield Financial, Chesterfield, Missouri
CHG-MERIDIAN U.S. Finance, Ltd, Woodland Hills, CA
(Sales Management focuses very selectively on certain brokers.) 
*Churchill Group/Churchill Leasing, Jericho, NY
CIT Group (limited)
Citizens Business Bank, Ontario, CA
Columbia Bank Leasing, Tacoma, WA
*Columbia Equipment Finance, Danville, California 
Commercial Equipment Lease, Eugene, Oregon 
Concord Financial Services, Long Beach, California
*Court Square, Malvern, Pennsylvania
*Creative Capital Leasing Group, LLC, San Diego, CA
Crossroads Equipment Lease & Finance, Rancho Cucamonga, Ca 
Direct Capital, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Diversified Financial Service, Omaha, NE
* Dolsen Leasing, Bellevue/Yakima, Washington
Equipment Finance Partners, a division of Altec, Birmingham, Alabama 
Evans National Leasing, Inc., Hamburg, NY
*Enterprise Capital Partners dba Enterprise Leasing, Spokane, WA
Enterprise Funding, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Enverto Investment Group, LLC, West Los Angeles, California
*Evergreen Leasing, South Elgin, Illinois
*Excel Financial Leasing, Lubbock Texas
*First Corp.(IFC subsidiary), Morton Grove, Illinois
First Federal Financial Services, Inc., Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin
First Republic Bank, San Francisco, CA
Frontier Capital, Teaneck New Jersey 
*GCR Capital, Safety Harbor, Florida 
GE Capital, Conn (limited)
Global Funding LLC., Clearwater, FL
*Greystone, Burlington, MA
*Heritage Pacific Leasing, Fresno, CA
*Hillcrest Bank Leasing, Overland Park, KS (Parent bank sold)
Huntington Equipment Finance, Vendor Finance Group, Bellevue, Washington
*IFC Credit Corp., Morton Grove, Illinois
Irwin Financial (Irwin Union Bank), Columbus, Indiana 
Irwin Union Bank, F.S.B. (Louisville, Kentucky)
Lakeland Bank, Montville, NJ
LaSalle Systems Leasing
*Latitude Equipment Leasing, Marlton, New Jersey 
*Leaf Specialty Finance, Columbia, South Carolina
*LEAF Third Party Funding, Santa Barbara, Ca.
Lease Corporation of America, Troy, Michigan
Lombard, part of Royal Bank of Scotland, worldwide
M&T Credit (Bank)
Manufacturer's Lease Plans, Inc., Phoenix, Arizona
*MarVista Financial, Villa Park, California 
*MericapCredit, Lisle, Illinois
*Meridian Healthcare Finance, San Diego, California 
Merrill Lynch Financial
Midwest Leasing Group, Livonia, Minnesota
*Mount Pleasant Capital, Wexford, PA 
National City, Cleveland, Ohio
*Navigator (Pentech subsidiary) San Diego, California
OFC Capital, Roswell, Georgia
Old National Bank, Evansville, Illinois
*Pentech Financial, Campbell, CA
*PFF Bancorp, Inc, Pomona, CA
Pinnacle Business Finance, Fife, Washington
*Pioneer Capital Corporation, Addison, Texas
PredictiFund, a subsidiary of Capital Access Network, Inc
*Podium Financial Group, Inc.,Costa Mesa, CA
Popular Finance, St. Louis, Missouri
Puget Sound Leasing, Seattle, Washington 
Radiance-Capital, Tacoma, WA
Rational Technology Solutions, Rolling Meadows, IL
*Reliant National Finance, Jacksonville, Florida
Sandy Springs, Olney, MD
*Securities Equipment Lsg. (SEL, Inc.), Glendora, CA
*Select Equipment Leasing Co., Concord, CA
* Sharpe Financial Network, Phoenix, Arizona 
Sovereign Bank, Melville, New York
Specialty Funding, Albuquerque, NM
*Studebaker-Worthington Leasing, Corp., Jerico, NY
(part of sale from Main Street Bank to Ascentium Capital)
*Summitt Leasing, Yakima, Washington
Sun Trust Equipment Finance & Leasing, Baltimore, Maryland 
*SunBridge Capital, Mission, Kansas
Suncoast Equipment Funding Corp., Tampa, Florida
TCF Equipment Finance, Minnetonka, Minnesota 
TechLease, Morgan Hill, California
*Tennessee Commerce Bank, Franklin, Tennessee 
Textron Financial
*Triad Leasing & Financial, Inc., Boise, Idaho
*TriStar Capital, Santa Ana, California 
*Union Capital Partners, Midvale, Utah
US Bank, Manifest Funding, Marshall, Minnesota
(new requirement: large yearly funding) 
US Bank, Middle-Market, Portland, Oregon 
Velocity Financial Group, Rosemont, Illinois
VenCore, Portland, Oregon (former company Len Ludwig)
*Vision Capital, San Diego, California
Vision Financial Group, Inc. (VFG Leasing & Finance), Pittsburg, PA 
Wachovia Bank Leasing
*Warren Capital, Novato, California
*Washington Mutual Financial
Western Bank, Devils Lake, ND
*Westover Financial, Inc., Santa Ana, California

(Note: Should a company policy have changed, please contact kitmenkin@leasingnews.org)

Funders looking for new Brokers:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Funders_Only/New_Broker.htm

 

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Sales Makes it Happen by Scott Wheeler, CLFP

Internal Communications

Strong originators in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry are often seen as great external communicators. They spread the word of their company's capabilities to vendors and end-users throughout their territory. They articulate their processes and convince clients to use their services, rather than their competitors.

However, these great communicators often have challenges when it comes to communicating their suggestions, challenges, and frustrations with their internal teams, credit departments, or even their direct managers. I recently coached a high-producing originator who was frustrated and concerned about the direction his company was taking and his role in the new direction. He was considering leaving the company, perhaps even the industry, after a highly successful fifteen-year career with this employer.

I suggested that he meet with the executive team to better understand the company's plans and to voice his concerns to his manager - with concrete reasoning and detailed suggestions. He is a great external communicator; he needed to use his skills to communicate internally. Just as he prepares for a sales call, he needed to prepare for his internal meeting. He needed to approach the situation with confidence and professionalism. His emotions needed to be tapered in order to professionally voice his concerns. Listening was going to be a large part of the process; better understanding of the new direction the company was taking would help him to present his case with more clarity.

Good internal communications help companies to grow and prosper. The veteran originator met with his executive team. He more clearly understood the facts behind the new direction. He voiced his concerns and suggestions for implementing the change. He articulated how he thought he could best contribute to the execution of the plan. Most importantly, he opened an internal communication line between him and the executive team, which never existed in the past. The outcome was excellent. The originator's suggestions were taken seriously and some are being implemented. The originator is re-energized and helping to move the company forward. He enhanced his position within the company by communicating better internally. His personal confidence is helping him to better communicate externally; he is winning more transactions.

Your Thoughts Count  

Christmas gift

Order via Amazon: https://www.createspace.com/5355516 

Scott A. Wheeler, CLFP
Wheeler Business Consulting
1314 Marquis Ct.
Fallston, Maryland 21047
Phone: 410 877 0428
Fax: 410 877 8161
Email: scott@wheelerbusinessconsulting.com
Web: www.wheelerbusinessconsulting.com

Sales Makes it Happen articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Legacy/index.html

 

CLFP Academy for Lease & Finance Professionals
Attendance Update

The Academy for Lease & Finance Professionals is an educational class offered by the CLFP Foundation, presented by professionals in the industry.. This three-day event is designed to prepare an individual to sit for and pass the Certified Leasing and Finance Professional exam.

The cost to attend the class is varies, but is primarily $750. The cost of the exam is $695. When purchased together, the total is discounted to $1400. Current CLFPs are offered a discounted price of $395 and class attendance satisfies the Recertification requirement.

Thursday, January 03, 2019 
Start: 8:00 AM (UTC-07:00) End: Sat., January 05, 2019 4:00 PM (UTC-07:00
Location: Hosted by Ascentium Capital LLC, 4141 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ

Spaces left: 9
Registered: 16 registrants

Hotel recommendation: 
Scottsdale Marriott Suites Old Town
7325 East 3rd Avenue
Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Thursday, February 07, 2019
Start: 8:00(PST)  End: Sat., February 09, 2019 4:00pm (PST)
Location: Hosted by Financial Pacific Leasing, In. 3455 S.
344TH Way, Federal Way, WA 98001

Spaces Left: 2
Registered: 22

Hotel recommendations:
Marriott Courtyard – Federal Way, WA
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/seafw-courtyard-seattle-federal-way/?scid=bb1a189a-fec3-4d19-a255-54ba596febe2

Hilton Hampton Inn – Federal Way, WA
https://hamptoninn3.hilton.com/en/hotels/washington/hampton-inn-and-suites-seattle-federal-way-SEAFWHX/index.html

Thursday, March 21, 2019
Albany, Minnesota
Start: 8:00 AM (CDT) End: Sat. March 23, 2019 4:00pm
Location: Hosted by Stearns Bank,  500 13th Street
Albany, Minnesota 56307

Registered: For Sterns Employees only
(Note: You can reserve the academyvfor your company/bank employees)

Thursday, April 18, 2019
Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Co-Hosted by Northland Capital/Oakmont Capital Services, LLC
Start: 8:00AM (UTC-06:00  End: Saturday 5:00pm (UTC: 06:00)
333 33rd Avenue South
Suite 100, Saint Cloud, MN 54201

Spaces Left: 6
Registered: 9 Registrants

Hotel Recommendations:
Fairfield Inn & Suites
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/stcfi-fairfield-inn-and-suites-st-cloud/

Holiday Inn & Suites
https://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/st-cloud/stcmn/hoteldetail?cm_mmc=GoogleMaps-_-HI-_-US-_-STCMN

Homewood Suites by Hilton
https://homewoodsuites3.hilton.com/en/hotels/minnesota/homewood-suites-by-hilton-st-cloud-STCMNHW/index.html

Thursday, May 9, 2019
Chicago, Illinois
Start: 8:00 AM (CDT) End: May 11, 2019 
Location: 3400 Dundee Rd, Suite 330
Northbrook, Illinois 60062
Hosted by: ECS Financial Services, Illinois

Spaces Left: 23
Register: 1

Hotel Recommendation:
Marriott Courtyard Chicago-Deerfield:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/chidf-courtyard-chicago-deerfield/
.
For more information, call Executive Director Reid Raykovich, CLFP at (206) 535-6281 or Sandy Vigilia, Executive Administrator (206) 535 – 6281. Visit http://www.CLFPFoundation

 

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The Geography of America’s Distressed Communities
Map with Full Statistics - Visual Capitalist

Full Story
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/america-distressed-communities/

 

 

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##### Press Release ############################

2019 Economic Outlook Forecasts 4.1% Expansion
In Equipment and Software Investment and 2.3% GDP Growth

Washington, DC, – Investment in equipment and software is projected to expand 4.1 percent in 2019 according to the 2019 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook released today by the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation. Equipment and software investment increased at a robust rate in the first half of 2018, driven by more preferable tax treatment and a general upswing in the U.S. economy. However, growth slowed in the third quarter and recent data point to a continuation of this trend, providing a weak jumping off point for 2019. The economy remains generally healthy, yet the strong growth achieved in Q2 and Q3 is unlikely to be repeated in 2019 as headwinds build.

Jeffry D. Elliott, Foundation Chairman and Senior Managing Director of Huntington Equipment Finance, said, “Business conditions in the equipment finance industry remain favorable for the most part, and the majority of equipment verticals should post moderate investment growth for at least the first half of the year.”

Highlights from the study include:

Capital spending has experienced moderate growth in 2018, though equipment and software investment has waned over the course of the year. While sustained economic momentum should carry capital investment into 2019, investment growth may continue to fade next year as the business cycle matures further. Credit market conditions remain healthy, with an increase in the supply of credit in the third quarter and subdued financial stress levels, though demand for credit declined.

The U.S. economy accelerated in 2018, spurred by stronger growth in business investment, a historically healthy labor market, lower tax rates, and increased government spending. Consumers have been the main driver of growth over the past year, and near-record consumer confidence should keep spending levels elevated through at least the first half of 2019. However, residential investment is likely to remain weak, mounting trade frictions will constrain U.S. exports, and the global economy appears to be losing steam. Overall, while the U.S. economy remains healthy, growth is likely to soften in 2019 compared to the previous 12 months.

Looking ahead, the equipment leasing and finance industry appears poised to continue expanding into 2019. However, growth is likely to moderate as the effect of tax cuts wanes and the business cycle matures further, while rising interest rates will continue to put upward pressure on financial stress.

The Foundation-Keybridge U.S. Equipment & Software Investment Momentum Monitor, which is included in the report, tracks 12 equipment and software investment verticals. In addition, the “Momentum Monitor Sector Matrix” provides a customized data visualization of current values of each of the 12 verticals based on recent momentum and historical strength. Several equipment verticals should expect their growth outlook to remain steady in the first half of 2019. Over the next three to six months:

• Agriculture machinery investment growth is likely to slow.
• Construction machinery investment growth should hold steady.
• Materials handling equipment investment is likely to expand at a moderate rate.
• All other industrial equipment investment growth will likely remain weak and may contract.
• Medical equipment investment growth is expected to slow.
• Mining and oilfield machinery investment growth will likely continue to decline.
• Aircraft investment growth should improve.
• Ships and boats investment growth should accelerate.
• Railroad equipment investment growth may increase.
• Trucks investment growth is expected to slow.
• Computers investment growth will likely remain stable.
• Software investment growth should remain solid.

The Foundation produces the Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook report in partnership with economic and public policy consulting firm Keybridge Research. The annual economic forecast provides a three-to-six month outlook for industry investment with data, including a summary of investment trends in key equipment markets, credit market conditions, the U.S. macroeconomic outlook, and key economic indicators. The report will be updated quarterly throughout 2019.

Download the full report at https://www.leasefoundation.org/industry-resources/u-s-economic-outlook/.

All Foundation studies are available for free download from the Foundation’s online library at http://store.leasefoundation.org/

### Press Release ############################

 

Mutt
Phoenix, Arizona  Adopt-a-Dog

Rudolf
ID # 40287593
Male
3 years
Medium size
Adoption fee $295
Location:  Building 7

 

"I'm a sweet, happy-go-lucky boy who loves to meet new people! I am a smart dog (plus I love treats) so training me will be a breeze! I think I will really enjoy going on all of your adventures with you. Hiking, running, camping, and walking all sound like a blast to me. I'm really looking forward to meeting you! If you think we'd be a perfect match, come to the main shelter to meet me and all of my adoptable friends!"

My adoption fee already includes:

• Spay/Neuter Surgery
• Current on all vaccinations (including Canine Influenza)
• Microchip with free lifetime updates
• A bag of Halo Purely for Pets food
• 15% off AAWL Training classes for the life of the animal
• 4DX testing (dogs 5 months and older)
• 1 take-home dose of Bayer Advantage Multi
• Access to our behavior helpline for the life of the animal
• 30 day trial of pet insurance

Arizona Animal Welfare League
25 North 40th St.
Phoenix, AZ 85034
Phone: 602-273-6852

Hours of Operation
Arizona Animal Welfare League
Monday: Closed
Tuesday: 11:30am to 6:00pm
Wednesday 11:30am to 6:00pm
Thursday 11:30am to 6:00pm
Friday 11:30am to 6:00pm
Saturday 10:30am to 6:00pm
Sunday 11:30am to 6:00pm

Adopt a Pet
http://www.adoptapet.com/

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Bode Ace Menkin Thirteen Years Old
Happy Birthday!

Readers may remember our dog Sammie who passed away December 2003. We had lost Corrie the year before, her sister.

Both died of cancer. We waited a year. Then my idea was to get Sue a dog for Valentine's Day. We were looking for a female as all our dogs the previous twenty years have been female. Sue fell in love with Bode when he came up to her. When she picked him up, he licked her, but discovered he was male! I picked him up, too, and the decision was easy.

What a great dog! He is an "Ace."

With his dad

Latest photo, sitting next to me in the Spa

News Briefs----

Verizon announces 10,400 employees will voluntarily
      leave the company
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/12/11/verizon-employee-buyout/2274529002/

Marriott Data Breach Is Traced to Chinese Hackers
  as U.S. Readies Crackdown on Beijing
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/11/us/politics/trump-china-trade.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

Shipping Christmas gifts this year?
  Here are the deadlines for USPS, UPS and FedEx
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/12/11/christmas-shipping-deadlines-2018-key-dates-usps-ups-and-fedex/2265107002/

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You May Have Missed---

Shopping Center Owners Are Betting Apartments
Could Be the Solution to Their Vacancy Problems
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/commercial-real-estate/moving-mall?utm_source=editorial-promos&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20181211&utm_content=hero-headline

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Football Poem

You Must Not Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit-
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than

It seems to a faint and faltering man;
Often the struggler has given up
Whe he might have captured the victor's cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out -

The silver tint in the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It might be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

---annoymous

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Sports Briefs---

Oakland files lawsuit against Raiders, NFL
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2018/12/11/oakland-files-lawsuit-against-raiders-nfl/

Garçon’s injury likely means 49ers saying adieu
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/sports/9055873-181/gar%C3%A7ons-injury-likely-means-49ers

Reason for length of Roethlisberger absence still not entirely clear
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/profootballdoc/sd-sp-pfd-ben-roethlisberger-ribs-xrays-1211-story.html

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California Nuts Briefs---

Hefty Sierra snowpack more than double last year’s totals,
   surveys show
https://www.sacbee.com/news/weather/article222897855.html

Debris cleanup for November wildfires will cost California $3 billion
https://www.sfchronicle.com/california-wildfires/article/Debris-cleanup-for-November-wildfires-will-cost-13458802.php?src=hp_totn

Butte County moves to stop rogue animal rescue efforts
  as evacuees return and shelters shut
https://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/fires/article222563110.html

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“Gimme that Wine”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

A Snapshot of the American Wine Consumer in 2018
https://www.winebusiness.com/news/?go=getArticle&dataId=207060

Mario Batali’s Restaurants Lost Up to 30 Percent in Business
   After Misconduct Accusations
https://ny.eater.com/2018/12/10/18134187/mario-batali-joe-bastianich-bb-hospitality-nyc

What’s the word? Gallo’s Thunderbird wine is back
    and ready to rock and roll
https://www.modbee.com/news/business/biz-columns-blogs/biz-beat/article222911840.html

Wine Prices by vintage
http://www.winezap.com
http://www.wine-searcher.com/

US/International Wine Events
http://www.localwineevents.com/

Leasing News Wine & Spirits Page
http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/wnensprts.htm

This Day in History

     1712 - The South Carolina colony passed a "Sunday Law" requiring "all...persons whatsoever" to attend church each Sunday, to refrain from skilled labor, and to do no traveling by horse or wagon beyond the necessary. Infractions of this law were met with a “10_shilling fine and/or a two_hour lock_up in the village stocks.”
    1745 - Birthday of John Jay (d. 1829), New York, NY. American statesman, diplomat and first Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court (1789-95).  Co-author, with Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, of the influential “Federalist Papers,” a series of 85 articles that promoted the ratification of the new US Constitution. 
http://www.constitution.org/img/judge009.htm
http://www.pojonews.com/enjoy/stories/09239610.htm
(lower part of:  http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/dec12.html)
    1770 - The British soldiers responsible for the “Boston Massacre” were acquitted on murder charges.
    1787 - Pennsylvania became the second state to ratify the US Constitution, by a vote of 46 to 23. One of the original 13 colonies, Pennsylvania is geographically located in the keystone position in relation to the other 12 colonies, earning the nickname, the Keystone State. The state capital is Harrisburg, a city almost midway between Pennsylvania’s two most well-known cites, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Philadelphia is also where the First Continental Congress met and where the Declaration of Independence was signed. Not so famous is the state bird, the ruffed grouse and the state flower, the mountain laurel.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/dec12.html
    1790 - The first Catholic Bible printed in English was a 900-page quarto printed by Carey, Stewart and Company, Philadelphia. It was issued in 49-page sections every Saturday. It was based on the New Testament published in 1582 in Reims, France, and the Old Testament published in Douai, Flanders, in 1609.
    1791 – The Bank of the United States opened.
    1799 - Two days before his death, George Washington composed his last letter, to Alexander Hamilton, his aide-de-camp during the Revolution and later his Secretary of the Treasury. In the letter, he urged Hamilton to work for the establishment of a national military academy. Washington wrote that letter at the end of a long, cold day of snow, sleet and rain that he had spent out-of-doors. He remained outside for more than five hours, according to his secretary, Tobias Lear, and he did not change out of his wet clothes or dry his hair when he returned home. When he became ill, the doctors bled him five times while his condition became worse, as that was the best cure, they thought, in colonial days.
    1800 – Washington, DC was named as the capital of the United States. 
    1805 - Birthday of William Lloyd Garrison (d. 1879), American anti-slavery leader, poet, and journalist, at Newburyport, MA.
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USASgarrison.htm
    1805 - Birthday of Henry Wells (d. 1878), one of the fathers of speed-conscious delivery and banking services. Born in Thetford, Vermont, Wells cut his teeth working as an agent for Harden’s Express in upstate New York. Clearly taken with the express transport business, Wells set up his own shop, Livingston Wells and Pomeroy’s Express, which ferried "goods, valuables, and specie" between Buffalo and Albany. By 1844, Wells sensed that it was time to push his business west of Buffalo, and he joined forces with William Fargo and Daniel Dunning to start Wells and Company, which would service terrain beyond the upper reaches of New York. While this was all fairly ambitious maneuvering, the 1850s saw Wells make an even stronger move to conquer the express market. First, in 1850, ever ambitious, he merged his two concerns into the American Express Company, which initially covered California and the Eastern seaboard (it later stretched to serve Latin America). Then, in 1852, he linked up with Fargo again to form Wells, Fargo and Company, a joint-stock venture that served as a holding company for the Wells Fargo Bank. Along with bankrolling business ventures, Wells used his ever-swelling fortune to aid the plight of chronic stutterers, as well as to establish Wells Seminary (now Wells College) for women.
    1806 - Birthday of Stand Watie (d. 1871) at Oothcaloga, Cherokee Nation (now Calhoun), Georgia.  Cherokee chief who, by signing the treaty of New Echota, surrendered his people’s land in Georgia, forcing their relocation to Oklahoma. Though three other signers were murdered, Watie escaped and went onto initiate the first volunteer Cherokee regiment for the Confederates in the Civil War. Promoted to brigadier general, he was active in destroying property of other Native Americans who supported the Union. He never gave up. 
    1822 – The United States officially recognized Mexico as an independent nation.
    1835 - Sarah Brown Ingersoll Cooper (d. 1896) was born in Cazenovia, NY.  She was director and superintendent of the Gold Gate Kindergarten Association, which incorporated nearly 4,000 pupils in the pioneer learning experience.   Her daughter, Harriett, had quit her teaching job to assist Sarah, but suffered from bouts of depression, especially following the death of her father. Harriet asphyxiated her mother and herself on December 11, 1896, the day after her mother’s 61st birthday.
    1862 - Naval Engagement at Yazoo River MS (USS CAIRO torpedoed)
http://www.nps.gov/vick/cairo/cairo.htm
    1862 - Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia (Marye's Heights) was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, between General Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside. The Union Army's futile frontal attacks on December 13 against entrenched Confederate defenders on the heights behind the city is remembered as one of the most one-sided battles of the Civil War, with Union casualties more than twice as heavy as those suffered by the Confederates.
http://search.eb.com/blackhistory/micro/492/61.html
    1870 - Rachel Crothers (d. 1958) birthday in Bloomington, IL.   She was an American playwright, director, and producer. She triumphed on Broadway with 34 of the 38 plays she wrote in her lifetime, usually doing everything from writing to casting to directing to producing on her way to becoming a legend.   She opened doors for women in the theater before World War II and was also known as a philanthropist and activist. http://dizzy.library.arizona.edu/users/btravers/sabbatical/crothers.htm
http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0189405/
    1870 - Joseph Hayne Rainey of Georgetown, SC, was sworn in as the first African-American to serve in the US House of Representatives. Rainey filled the seat of Benjamin Franklin Whittemore, which had been declared vacant by the House. He also was the first African American to preside over the House, and the longest–serving African American during the tumultuous Reconstruction period. While Rainey’s representation—like that of the other 21 black Representatives of the era—was symbolic, he also demonstrated the political nuance of a seasoned, substantive Representative, balancing his defense of southern blacks’ civil rights by extending amnesty to the defeated Confederates. “I tell you that the Negro will never rest until he gets his rights,” he said on the House Floor. “We ask [for civil rights] because we know it is proper,” Rainey added, “not because we want to deprive any other class of the rights and immunities they enjoy, but because they are granted to us by the law of the land.” He served until March 3, 1879.
http://search.eb.com/blackhistory/micro/492/61.html
http://history.house.gov/People/Listing/R/RAINEY,-Joseph-Hayne-%28R000016%29/
    1878 – Joseph Pulitzer began publishing the St. Louis Dispatch.
    1882 - Portland, OR, was drenched with 7.66 inches of rain, a record 24-hour total for that location. (12th-13th)
    1897 - Rudolph Dirks' first “Katzenjammer Kids” cartoon strip appears in the New York Journal.
    1899 - African-American George F. Grant of Boston, Massachusetts obtained a patent for his invention, the golf tee. It was a wooden tee with a tapering base portion and a flexible tubular concave shoulder to hold the golf ball. As a side note, Grant was the first African-American to graduate from Harvard University.
    1899 – Oahu reported its first case of the plague.
    1900 – Sammy Davis, Sr. (d. 1988) was born in Wilmington, NC.
    1900 - The National League considered going back to 12 teams to counter American League moves into some cities. Club owners invited Ban Johnson to come to the NL meeting, but changed their minds about compromise and left the AL head outside the meeting room…something Johnson never forgot.  The NL awarded the AL's Minnesota and Kansas City territories to the new Western League, even before the AL officially abandoned them.
    1901 – Marconi received the first transatlantic radio signal.  Using a 500-foot kite-supported antenna for reception, the message was received at St. John’s, Newfoundland as signals transmitted by the company's new high-power station at Poldhu, Cornwall. The distance between the two points was about 2,200 miles (3,500 km).
    1906 - Oscar Straus, the first Jewish cabinet member, was appointed Secretary of Commerce by Theodore Roosevelt. Straus was born in Rhenish, Bavaria in 1850, and graduated from Columbia (B.A., 1871; LL.B., 1873). He practiced law in New York City until 1881 and then went into business with his brothers. He was minister to Turkey (1887–89) under President Grover Cleveland and again (1898–1900) under William McKinley and was ambassador to Turkey (1909–10) under William H. Taft. He was appointed (1902) to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (the Hague Tribunal) and was (1906–9) Secretary of Commerce and Labor under Theodore Roosevelt. This position placed him in charge of the United States Bureau of Immigration. During his tenure, Straus ordered immigration inspectors to work closely with local police and the US Secret Service to locate, arrest and deport immigrants with Anarchist political beliefs under the terms of the Anarchist Exclusion Act…imagine that…enforcing existing immigration laws! He was candidate for governor of New York on the Progressive party ticket in 1912. He wrote several books, including “Roger Williams” (1894), “The American Spirit” (1913), and “Under Four Administrations” (1922).  He died in New York in 1926.
    1912 - Birthday of Henry Armstrong (d. 1988), boxing champion, born Henry Jackson, Jr., at Columbus, Mississippi. Armstrong was the first boxer to hold three world titles simultaneously. He won the featherweight title on October 29, 1937, the welterweight title on May 31, 1938, and the lightweight title three months later.
    1913 – The Mona Lisa was recovered, having been stolen from The Louvre in 1911.
    1915 - Frank Sinatra (d. 1998) born at Hoboken, NJ. While the websites give more history, briefly Frank Sinatra matured from a teen idol to the premiere singer of American popular music and the entertainment icon of the 20th century. He successfully transitioned from big band singer to radio, to movies, to concerts, then to television.  Known as the “Chairman of the Board” to his fans, he made more than 200 albums. His signature songs included “All the Way,” “New York, New York,” and “My Way,” written expressly for him by Paul Anka.  His film career included musicals, “On the Town” and “Pal Joey,” and two gritty films for which he won Oscar nominations:  “From Here to Eternity” and “The Man with the Golden Arm.” One of his many movies is making a revival with stars of the day instead of his “Rat Pack”:  ”Oceans' Eleven” has been followed by “Oceans' Twelve” and Oceans Thirteen.” “Put Your Dreams Away for Another Day.”  It is told that he drank a bottle of Jack Daniel’s every day.
    1917 - Father Edward Flanagan opened Boys Town west of Omaha, Nebraska, as a farm village for wayward boys, and since 1979, for girls too. In 1938, Spencer Tracy played Father Flanagan in "Boys Town," winning an Oscar.
http://www.girlsandboystown.org/aboutus/history/index.asp
    1918 - Birthday of jazz great Joe Williams (d. 1999) at Cordele, GA. The album that turned me onto jazz in the early 1950’s when it came out, “Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings,” is still wonderful today.
http://worksology.com/jazz/blues/williams.htm
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00000476B/
inktomi-musicasin-20/002-6663560-5946468
    1922 – Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert bought out his partner to take full control of the team.  Until his death in 1939, the team went to the World Series ten times, winning 7.  Surprisingly, he was not elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame until 2013, despite laying the foundation for the most successful sports franchise in history.
    1923 – Television game show host Bob Barker was born in Darrington, WA.  He is known for hosting “The Price is Right” from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting “Truth or Consequences” from 1956 to 1974.
    1924 – The late former Mayor of New York City, Ed Koch (d. 2013), was born in The Bronx.  “How’m I doin’?”
    1925 - The first motel opened, called the Motel Inn, San Luis Obispo, California. Arthur S. Heineman was the architect. The building featured a sign with flashing lights that alternated the letters H and M preceding the letters “otel” to spell out “Hotel” and “Motel.”  It had accommodations for 160 guests, individual chalets with garage, bathroom, and telephone. It was designed for motorists to be a “drive-up” hotel.
    1927 – Robert Noyce (d. 1990), co-inventor of the microchip and co-founder of Intel, was born in Burlington, IA.  A wonderful book, “The Idea Factory” chronicles his and the scientific careers of his famous colleagues including William Shockley, at AT&T’s Bell Labs.
    1929 - Jazz pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi born Darien, Manchuria.  She has received fourteen Grammy Award nominations and was the first woman to win Best Arranger and Composer awards in Down Beat magazine's annual Readers' Poll. In 2007, she was named an NEA Jazz Master by the U.S. National Endowment for the Arts.
    1930 – In one of the first ‘game-changing rules,’ Major League Baseball voted that a ball that bounces over the fence is no longer a home run, but a grounds-rule double.
    1937 – Prelude to war?  Japanese aircraft sank a U.S. gunboat Panay on the Yangtze River in China. Japan apologized and eventually paid U.S. $2.2M in reparations. 
    1937 – The Washington Redskins, led by rookie QB-Safety-Punter Sammy Baugh, won the NFL championship, 28-21 over the Chicago Bears.  It was the Redskins’ first season in the nation’s capital after moving from Boston. 
    1937 – NBC and RCA sent the first mobile-TV vans onto the streets of NY
    1938 - Connie Francis birthday, born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero at Newark, NJ.  Francis remains the top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s and perhaps, rock ‘n’ roll’s first female solo star.  Her first big single in the 50s was "Who's Sorry Now."  On January 1, 1958, the song debuted on American Bandstand. By mid-year, over a million copies had been sold, and Francis was suddenly launched into worldwide stardom. In April 1958, "Who's Sorry Now" reached # 1 on the UK Charts and # 4 in the US. For the next four years, Francis was voted the "Best Female Vocalist" by American Bandstand viewers.  She continued with a dozen hit singles and albums including "Where the Boys Are" into the 1960s up to the British invasion. 
http://www.12mb.com/connie/intro.htm
http://www.swinginchicks.com/connie_francis.htm
    1940 – Singer Dionne Warwick was born Marie Dionne Warwick in East Orange, NJ.  Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest hit makers of the entire rock era, based on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles Charts. Dionne Warwick is second only to Aretha as the most-charted female vocalist of all time with 69 of Dionne's singles making the Billboard Hot 100 between 1962 and 1998.  Her collaboration with producers Hal David and Bert Bacharach produced her first hit, “Don’t Make Me Over,” followed quickly by “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” “Walk on By,” and “Do You Know The Way To San Jose?,” weathering the British invasion better than most American artists.
    1941 - *ELROD, HENRY TALMAGE, Medal of Honor.
Rank and organization: Captain, U.S. Marine Corps. Born: 27 September 1905, Rebecca, Ga. Entered service at: Ashburn, Ga. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while attached to Marine Fighting Squadron 211, during action against enemy Japanese land, surface and aerial units at Wake Island, 8 to 23 December 1941. Engaging vastly superior forces of enemy bombers and warships on 9 and 12 December, Capt. Elrod shot down 2 of a flight of 22 hostile planes and, executing repeated bombing and strafing runs at extremely low altitude and close range, succeeded in inflicting deadly damage upon a large Japanese vessel, thereby sinking the first major warship to be destroyed by small caliber bombs delivered from a fighter-type aircraft. When his plane was disabled by hostile fire and no other ships were operative, Capt. Elrod assumed command of 1 flank of the line set up in defiance of the enemy landing and, conducting a brilliant defense, enabled his men to hold their positions and repulse intense hostile fusillades to provide covering fire for unarmed ammunition carriers. Capturing an automatic weapon during 1 enemy rush in force, he gave his own firearm to 1 of his men and fought on vigorously against the Japanese. Responsible in a large measure for the strength of his sector's gallant resistance, on 23 December, Capt. Elrod led his men with bold aggressiveness until he fell, mortally wounded. His superb skill as a pilot, daring leadership and unswerving devotion to duty distinguished him among the defenders of Wake Island, and his valiant conduct reflects the highest credit upon himself and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
    1941 - The UK declared war on Bulgaria. Hungary and Romania declared war on the US.   India declares war on Japan.
    1946 – The United Nations accepts 6 blocks in midtown Manhattan as a gift from John D Rockefeller, Jr.
http://www.angelfire.com/dc/undersiege/therockefellers.html
    1946 – Tide detergent was introduced.
    1949 - Top Hits
“Mule Train” - Frankie Laine
“I Can Dream, Can’t I?” - The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (vocal: Jack Leonard)
“Don’t Cry, Joe” - The Gordon Jenkins Orchestra (vocal: Betty Brewer)
“Mule Train” - Tennessee Ernie Ford
    1950 - The first woman appointed to perform rabbinical functions in the US, Paula Ackerman, leads the congregation in her first services.
    1952 - Peter J. McGovern becomes the president of the Little League replacing Charles Durban who resigned due to ill health. The league, a non-profit organization based in South Williamsport, PA, started in 1939 with two leagues.  It has now grown to 1,800 leagues in 50 states, several US territories and protectorates, and international sites, organizing local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the U.S. and the world.
    1955 - The largest philanthropic act in the world was announced by the Ford Foundation which gave $500,000,000 to private hospitals, colleges and medical schools.
    1955 - Bill Haley and His Comets record "See You Later Alligator"
    1957 - Top Hits
“Jailhouse Rock” - Elvis Presley
“Raunchy” - Bill Justis
“Peggy Sue” - Buddy Holly
“My Special Angel” - Bobby Helms
    1957 - Willem J Kolff and his team at the Cleveland Clinic removed the heart from a dog and replaced it with a pneumatic pump which kept the dog alive for 90 minutes, proving the viability of the artificial heart.
    1959 - At 22 years and 104 days of age, Bruce McLaren became the youngest driver to win a Grand Prix race as he earned first place at Sebring, Florida.
    1959 - After being overtaken as the best-selling record in the US for a couple of weeks, Bobby Darin's "Mack The Knife" returned to the top spot on the Cashbox chart. It is a feat that is seldom duplicated.
    1961 - Former big band singer with Kay Kyser, Mike Douglas began a variety TV show from Cleveland. The show became most successful when he moved to KYW-TV in Philadelphia from Cleveland. Then, when the Douglas show left Philly for Hollywood, it folded. All things considered, it was a successful syndication effort, nationally, for Westinghouse Productions.
    1962 - Birthday of Tracey Ann Austin at Palos Verdes, CA.  US tennis player, who, at 16, became the youngest person to win the U.S. Open.   Won her second Open in 1981 just before an injury cut short her career.
    1962 – Former NFL defensive lineman, longtime co-host of ESPN’s “Mike and Mike,” and now host of “Golic and Wingo,” Mike Golic was born in Willowick, OH.
    1963 - "John Fitzgerald Kennedy - A Memorial Album" became the fastest-selling record of all time when 4 million copies of the disk, each selling for 99 cents, were sold in six days -- between December 7-12. The memorial tribute was recorded November 22, the day President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.
    1963 - Frank Sinatra Jr returned after being kidnapped
http://www.geocities.com/surfinagain/arch08-1.html
http://www.thejukejoint.com/franksinatrajr.html
    1964 - Bobby Vinton scores his fourth Billboard chart topper with "Mr. Lonely." It was a song that Bobby co-wrote and had added to his Greatest Hits album as filler, but the track was quickly released as a single when it started to get airplay.
    1964 - The Righteous Brothers song "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" is released.
    1965 - Top Hits
“Turn! Turn! Turn!” - The Byrds
“Let’s Hang On!” - The 4 Seasons
“I Got You (I Feel Good)” - James Brown
“Make the World Go Away” - Eddy Arnold
    1965 - Gale Sayers of the Chicago Bears tied an NFL record by scoring six touchdowns in the Bears’ 61-20 win over the San Francisco 49ers. Sayers rushed for four scores, caught an 80-yard touchdown pass and returned a punt 85 yards.  One of the Niners’ defenders was said to have remarked after the game, “It was like trying to tackle fog.”
    1965 – The Beatles’ final concert in the UK was held at the Capitol Theatre in Cardiff, Wales.
    1965 - US Supreme Court votes 4-3 allowing Braves to move to Atlanta. Earlier, the Braves' move to Atlanta was halted by a court order, forcing a lame duck season in Milwaukee. The Braves led the league with 196 homers. In 1966, The Braves and Pirates debuted Major League Baseball's first season in Atlanta on April 12, with Pittsburgh winning, 3-2, in 13 innings. Atlanta was fifth in its initial season, but Henry Aaron hit 44 homers and had 127 RBI to lead the league.
    1968 – Arthur Ashe became the first African-American to be ranked #1 in tennis.
    1969 - The worst tornado of record for western Washington State tracked south of Seattle, traveling five miles, from Des Moines to Kent. The tornado, 50 to 200 yards in width, began as a waterspout over Puget Sound. One person was injured and the tornado caused half a million dollars’ damage.
    1970 - Smokey Robinson and the Miracles' "Tears of a Clown" hits #1
    1970 - Stephen Stills releases "Love The One You're With"
    1971 - Left wing Bobby Hull of the Chicago Blackhawks got the 1,000th point of his NHL career, an assist in the first period of a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota North Stars. Hull finished his career with 1,170 points and entered the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.
    1973 - Top Hits
“Top of the World” - Carpenters
“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” - Elton John
“The Love I Lost” - Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes
“The Most Beautiful Girl” - Charlie Rich
    1975 – Sara Jane Moore pled guilty to trying to kill President Gerald Ford.
    1976 – “Broadway” Joe Namath played his final game as QB of the Jets and was traded to the LA Rams.
    1980 - Oil tycoon Armand Hammer bought a notebook of writings by Leonardo da Vinci for $5.28 million at auction in London. It was the highest price ever paid for a manuscript. It was 36 pages long and dated back to 1508.
    1980 - The U.S. Congress amended the Copyright Act in 1980 to explicitly recognize that computer programs were protected as literary works.
    1980 - Marie Osmond's solo variety series, “Marie,” premieres on NBC.
    1981 - Top Hits
“Physical” - Olivia Newton-John
“Waiting for a Girl like You” - Foreigner
“Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” - The Police
“Still Doin’ Time” - George Jones
    1982 - Known as the “Great Snowplow Play,” the New England Patriots defeated the Miami Dolphins, 3-0, in a driving snowstorm at Foxboro Stadium. The winning points came on a late field goal by John Smith, kicked after a snowplow came onto the field and cleared a spot for Smith and his holder. According to Kimberlee R. Coleman’s husband, the person who cleared the field was a state prisoner out on a work furlough. The Miami Dolphins believe they are robbed in the snowplow game by a 24-year-old man who is serving a 15-year sentence for robbing a house and is now on a work release program from the prison. Late in the fourth quarter, the New England Patriots are preparing to break a scoreless tie with a field goal when coach Ron Meyer waves Mark Henderson onto the field at Foxboro Stadium. Henderson fires up his yellow John Deere (Model 314) and heads for the Miami 23-yard line. Despite screams of protest from the Dolphins, Henderson runs a terrific sweep with his tractor-driven snowplow and clears the area for kicker John Smith. Smith kicks a 33-yard field goal with 4:40 left. After the Patriots' 3-0 victory, livid Dolphins coach Don Shula says, "The officials shouldn't have let it happen." Henderson says, "I figured, 'What's the most they could do? Put me in jail?' "
    1983 - Football’s Jim Brown showed up in "Sports Illustrated" again. This time, he was not on the cover as in September, 1960, but inside the magazine -- a record span of more than 23 years between spreads, as they say in the publishing biz.
    1983 – A truck bomb exploded at the US Embassy in Kuwait.
    1984 - The group known as Band Aid -- 38 of Britain’s top rock musicians -- recorded "Do They Know This is Christmas?" for Ethiopian famine victims. Despite the best of intentions, much of the food raised never got to the starving Ethiopians. In fact, much of it was found rotting on docks, not fit for human consumption. More than a Band-Aid was needed to fix that political mess.
    1985 - On her 45th birthday, Dionne Warwick is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
    1985 – A McDonnell Douglas DC-8 crashed after takeoff in Gander, Newfoundland, killing all 256 people on board, including 236 members of the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division.
    1986 - James ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith became the first college graduate to win the world heavyweight boxing crown. “If I only had a bwain...,” he said, as he beat the brains out of Tim Witherspoon so badly, poor Tim couldn’t count to ten. “One, duh. Eight. Six. Duh. I’m out.”
    1986 - The LA Lakers beat the Boston Celtics, 117-110, to become the first visiting team to win at the old Boston Garden since December, 1985, a streak of 48 straight wins for the Celtics.
    1988 - Cold arctic air spread from the Great Lakes Region to the Appalachian Region. Twenty-five cities, mostly in the northeastern U.S., reported record low temperatures for the date. The low of 12 degrees below zero at Albany, NY was their coldest reading of record for so early in the season. Saranac Lake, NY was the cold spot in the nation with a low of 28 degrees below zero.
    1989 - Top Hits
“We Didn’t Start the Fire” - Billy Joel
“Another Day in Paradise” - Phil Collins
“Don’t Know Much” - Linda Ronstadt (featuring Aaron Neville)
“If Tomorrow Never Comes” - Garth Brooks
   1989 - A winter storm produced snow from northern Mississippi to the Middle Atlantic Coast, with 10.5 inches reported at Powhatan, VA. Heavy snow whitened the Black Hills of South Dakota, with 36 inches reported at Deer Mountain. Thirteen cities in the north central U.S., from Minnesota to Texas, reported record low temperatures for the date, including Duluth, MN and Yankton, SD with morning lows of 22 degrees below zero.
    1992 - The soundtrack from the movie "The Bodyguard" was the #1 album in the U.S. A smash, as they say, it was number one for twenty weeks. The track listing: "I Will Always Love You", "I Have Nothing", "I’m Every Woman", "Run to You", "Queen of the Night", "Jesus Loves Me", all by Whitney Houston; "Even If My Heart Would Break", by Kenny G & Aaron Neville; "Someday (I’m Coming Back)", by Lisa Stansfield; "It’s Gonna Be a Lovely Day", by The S.O.U.L S.Y.S.T.E.M.; "Peace, Love And Understanding (What's So Funny ’Bout)", by Curtis Stigers; "Theme from The Bodyguard", by Alan Silvestri; and "Trust in Me", by Joe Cocker featuring Sass Jordan.
    1994 - IBM said it would halt shipments of Pentium computers because of a flaw in the Pentium chip. The November 7 issue of Electrical Engineering Times announced the "floating point" bug in the Pentium chip, which could produce mathematical errors. Intel officials admitted they had known about the flaw for some time but thought it so unlikely to cause problems that they did not disclose the problem, creating an uproar among computer users. Intel said it would replace flawed chips only if users showed they engaged in computer work that might be affected by the error. Consumers attacked Intel for its position, and later, the company agreed to replace any chips that were returned. Ironically, six months later, only about three percent of customers had requested a replacement chip.
    1995 - The International Olympic Committee announced that NBC had successfully bid a record $2.3 billion for the exclusive U.S. TV (broadcast and cable) rights to the 2004 and 2008 Summer Games and the 2006 Winter Games. $894 million is for the 2008 games alone. And the deal calls for a 50-50 revenue sharing program with the IOC.
    1995 - A severe coastal storm is blamed for five deaths and loss of power to over one million people in Oregon and Washington. Winds at Sea Lion Caves near Florence topped out at 119 mph before problems developed with the anemometer. In Newport, a gust of 107 mph occurred downtown, while Astoria and Cape Blanco also had gusts of over 100 mph. Astoria's air pressure dropped as low as 28.53 inches, an all-time record (and comparable to the central pressure of a Category 2 hurricane!). Gusts in the Willamette Valley exceeded 60 mph.
    1995 – An amendment declaring the burning of the American flag to be illegal failed the 2/3 majority vote in the Senate, 63-36.
    1997 – Boston Red Sox sign Pedro Martinez to record 6-year, $69 million contract.  The contract had been considered a huge risk in the 1997 offseason, but Martínez had rewarded the team's hopes with two Cy Young Awards, and six Top-4 finishes. Martínez finished his Red Sox career with a 117–37 record, the highest winning percentage any pitcher has had with any team in baseball history. During that time, he won two Cy Young Awards and the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series, their first since 1918.  Martínez reached the 3,000 strikeout mark in fewer innings than any pitcher except Randy Johnson, and is the only pitcher to compile over 3,000 strikeouts with fewer than 3,000 innings pitched; his career strikeout rate of 10.04 per 9 innings trails only Johnson (10.61) among pitchers with over 1,500 innings.  He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, his first year of eligibility; his number (45) was retired by the Red Sox in a ceremony two days after his Hall induction. 
    1997 – A Federal judge sentenced Autumn Jackson, who claimed to be Bill Cosby's daughter, to 26 months for trying to extort $40 million from him.
    1998 - The House Judiciary Committee approved a fourth article of impeachment against President Bill Clinton and submitted the case to the full House.
    2000 – The US Supreme Court made it official:  Bush defeated Gore.
    2001 - The state of Nevada declares today Frank Sinatra Day
    2003 - Mick Jagger was knighted by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace. Jagger's 92-year-old father was in attendance to see his son receive the award.
    2008 - A significant ice storm wreaked havoc across New York and New England on December 12, disrupting electricity and leaving over 1 million homes and businesses without power. New Hampshire alone had as many as 320,000 residents without power, which according to reports it was described as the worst outages in 30 years (Reuters). Four fatalities were reported and parts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Maine declared a state of emergency.
    2011 - President Barack Obama asks Iran to return the RQ-170 Sentinel drone that was captured near Kashmar December 4, 2011.  On December 13, 2011, the Defense Minister of Iran dismissed the request and said, "Instead of apologizing to the Iranian nation, it is brazenly asking for the drone back." And the ministry spokesman stated that "it seems he [Obama] has forgotten that Iran’s airspace was violated, spying operations were undertaken, international laws were violated and that Iran’s internal affairs were interfered with. ... Instead of an official apology and admitting to this violation, they are making this request."  Former U.S. Vice President Cheney criticized Obama's decisions on the drone, saying that, after the aircraft went down, the president should have ordered an air strike within Iran: "The right response to that would have been to go in immediately after it had gone down and destroy it. You can do that from the air ... and, in effect, make it impossible for them to benefit from having captured that drone." Instead, "he asked nicely for them to return it, and they aren't going to."  On January 17, 2012, an Iranian company said it would send miniature, pink, toy versions of the captured drone to President Obama as a response to the request for sending the drone back.  
    2013 - The International Space Station suspends some of its non-critical systems after an ammonia cooling pump fails; the station and six crew members aboard were not in danger.
    2013 - Over two dozen companies will have U.S. sanctions imposed upon them as a result of their involvement in aiding Iran with its nuclear program.
    2013 - A spokeswoman for Apple records confirmed the release of 59 rare and unheard Beatles recordings in a bid to stop their copyright protection expiring. EU law protects recordings for 70 years, but only if they get an official release. Otherwise, the copyright period lasts 50 years. In the case of The Beatles, that means the master tape for their 1963 debut album, "Please Please Me," is protected until 2033, but the unreleased session tapes for that album are not.