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Leasing News is a website that posts information, news, and
entertainment for the commercial alternate financing,
bank, finance and leasing industries

kitmenkin@leasingnews.org
   





Friday, June 21, 2019



Today's Leasing News Headlines

ELFF Confidence Drops Lowest in Recent Records
   Down 6.4 ---  59.2 May -  52.8 June
New Hires/Promotions in the Leasing Business
   and Related Industries
Wanted: Credit Analyst with Franchise Experience
  $10,000 Starting Bonus for Experienced. Sales Professional
Social Ads vs. Advertising
  Which is Right for Your Business?
Sales Makes it Happen by Mr. Terry Winders, CLFP
   Niche Marketplaces
Most Common Language Spoken at Home
  Other than English or Spanish - Map
Rocketman/The Dead Don't Die
Greta/They Shall Not Grow Old/Film Trilogy Ingmar Bergman
   Film/Digital Reviews by Leasing News' Fernando Croce
Beagle Mix
   Boulder, Colorado  Adopt-a-Dog
AACFB 2019 Commercial Finance Expo
  September 19-20, Orlando Florida
   Special Price Walt Disney Tickets
News Briefs---
Russia-Linked Hackers Hijack Infrastructure
    of Iranian Threat Group Reports Symantec
Truckers warn of a 'bloodbath' as trucking companies
     go bankrupt and slash profit expectations
'Sully' Sullenberger says he struggled
     to recover Boeing 737 MAX in flight simulation
Pilot ‘Sully’ Sullenberger recommends new training
    for Boeing 737 MAX crews
Meet The New Burger Kings—And The Rest of America’s Best
     (And Worst) Franchises to Buy In 2019
Papa John’s will spend additional $80 million
   on franchisee relief and marketing
Florida City to pay $600K ransom to hacker
  who seized computer systems weeks ago
Apple Says Trump's Tariffs Will Reduce
   Its Economic Contributions and Global Competitiveness
Dell, HP, Intel and Microsoft Join Forces to Oppose Trump Tariff
  hindering their ability to innovate and compete in a global marketplace
The bank branch of the future is coming to Chicago
 with coffee bars, cozy nooks ... and no teller windows

Broker/Funder/Industry Lists | Features (wrilter's columns)
Top Ten Stories Chosen by Readers | Top Stories last six months

www.leasingcomplaints.com (Be Careful of Doing Business)
www.evergreenleasingnews.org
Leasing News Icon for Android Mobile Device


 You May have Missed---
  Poem
  Sports Brief----
   California Nuts Brief---
     "Gimme that Wine"
     This Day in History
      SuDoku
       Daily Puzzle
        GasBuddy
         Weather, USA or specific area
          Traffic Live----

######## surrounding the article denotes it is a “press release,” it was not written by Leasing News nor has the information been verified. The source noted. When an article is signed by the writer, it is considered a “byline.” It reflects the opinion and research of the writer.



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[headlines]

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ELFF Confidence Drops Lowest in Recent Records
Down 6.4 --- 59.2 May - 52.8 June

The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation (the Foundation) released the June 2019 Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI). The three year chart shows confidence in the equipment finance market was 52.8 in June compared to May index of 59.2.

Among the comments:


Michael Romanowski, President, Farm Credit Leasing: “Lack of progress on trade tariffs is beginning to spook the market. Customers are only buying what they need to replace and are hesitant to expand.”


Frank Campagna, Business Line Manager, M&T Commercial Equipment Finance: "Increased economic tensions caused by an uncertain political climate are concerns.”


Quentin Cote, CLFP, President, Mintaka Financial, LLC. : “As unemployment is at record lows and employees are hard to come by, companies will rely more on capital equipment to support business growth and productivity growth from the employees they have. My concern is primarily the trade wars and their impact on the prices of goods. This will eventually weaken the purchasing power of consumers and small businesses.”

Full Report:
https://www.leasefoundation.org/industry-resources/monthly-confidence-index/

 


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New Hires/Promotions in the Leasing Business
and Related Industries


Brian Lee was hired as VP, Business Development, Asset Services, Macquarie Group. He is based in Fairfield, Connecticut.  Previously, he was Managing Director, EquipNet (May, 2015 - March, 2019); EVP, Hilco Global (January, 2011 - April, 2016); Vice President of Sales, GoIndustry DoveBid (June, 2002 – January, 2011), Westport, Connecticut. Education: Colby College, Bachelor of Arts (BA). (1987 - 1990). https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-lee1/


Jennifer "Jen" Martin promoted to Vice President, Leasing and Vendor Program Support at Key Equipment Finance, Superior, Colorado. She is located in Albany, New York.  She joined the firm in 1995, Originations Manager; promoted August, 2013, Senior Project Manager; promoted February, 2007, Communications Chair for the Key4Women, Capital Region Steering Committee; promoted, November, 2013, Senior Product Owner; promoted June, 2014, Vendor Program Development and Originations Controls; Promoted, April, 2018, VP, Originations. She is an investor/promoter for her husband's company Mad Hatter Productions (June, 2009-Present).  She is a Certified Six Sigma Green Belt.  Volunteer: Board Member, Duanesburg Area Community Center (2010). Languages: Sign Languages. Duanesburg Heat AAU basketball, Founder, Treasurer (March 2012 – Present). Additional Organizations: Twin Rivers Council; Boy Scouts of America; Duanesburg Little League. Education:  College at St. Rose, psychology (2001 – 2003), South Colonie (1987 – 1991). https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenmartinkef/


Jennifer Okkerse was hired as Credit Manager, Accord Small Business Finance, Vancouver, Canada.  Previously she was at Dominion Lending Centres, Inc., starting May, 2011, Director of Operations and Business Development for the Leasing Divison; promoted June, 2018, Franchise Support & Operations Administration; Owner/President, Source Capital Corp. (September, 2005 - January, 2011); Owner/General Manager, OMB Capital Corp. (September, 2000 - January, 2011); Broker Services, National Leasing Group (1995 - 2000); Broker Services, AT&T Capital Corp. (1994 - 1997).  Education: Commercial Loan Broker Institute. Commercial Lending and Capital Funding for Businesses. (2017). https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferokkerse/

Lance Rhodes was promoted to Head of Equipment Finance Syndications, BMO Harris Equipment Finance, a subsidiary of BMO Harris Bank, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He is based out of Denver, Colorado. "Rhodes spent the past 12 years at GE Capital in Hunt Valley, Maryland, where he was most recently a Senior Vice President in their Capital Markets group.  Prior to joining GE Capital, Rhodes was a Financial Analyst working in the Mergers & Acquisitions department of HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. in New York City.  Rhodes has a MBA from Loyola College in Maryland and a Bachelor of Science from Villanova University." 


Matt Rudroff was hired as Territory Manager, Caterpillar Financial Services, St. Louis, Missouri.  Previously, he was Vice President, Sales, m2 Lease Funds, LLC. (March, 2018 - May, 2019). He began his career at Graybar Financial Services, starting February, 2003, as Sales Representative; promoted January, 2007, Equipment Finance Sales Manager, Western Region. Education: Webster University, MBA, General (2006 - 2009).  University of Missouri, Columbia, College of Business. Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Business Administration and Management General (1996 - 2000). Activities and Societies: Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-rudroff-7441083/


Tonya (Waden) Single was promoted to Manager, Billing Services, LeasePlan, Alpharetta, Georgia.  She joined the company August, 2011, as Director, Lease Administration.  Previously, she was Cash Management, RaceTrac Petroleum (May, 1995 - August, 2001).  Licenses and Certifications: Leasing JIRA Software (2017).  OneNote 2016 Essential Training. Agile Requirements Foundations (2019). Excel 2011 for the Mac Advanced Formulas and Functions (2019).  Learning Data Governance. Project Management Foundations(2019: Quality. Requirements Elicitations and Analysis (2019). https://www.linkedin.com/in/tonya-single-3530203b/ 

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Help Wanted Ads

 

 

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Social Ads vs. Advertising
Which is Right for Your Business?

FinTech #102 by Alex Vasilakos

Over the past few years alone, social media ads like those shown on Facebook, and pay-per-click search engine ads on Google have changed drastically. Businesses across all industries, and of all sizes, have an accessible way to find their target audiences effectively, without breaking the bank. However, with so many benefits and options from both social media and Google ads, deciding which one is right for your business can be a difficult choice.

Pay-Per-Click Ads Zero in on Their Targets

Pay-per-click ads, such as Google Adwords, allow advertisers to be as broad or specific as they want to be with their marketing. Pay-per-click ads usually drive right through the noise to target leads and potential customers who are serious about making a transaction. Since most serious customers looking for an equipment lease or business loan use search engines to find exactly what they are looking for, pay-per-click ads reach their eyes first. Social media ads, by contrast, may be geared toward a particular audience, but most people use social media more casually, as well as a means of staying in contact with clients.

Social Media Ads Create a Buzz

If you want people to discuss, like, and share information about your services, social media ads are a wise choice. By its very nature, social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter allow for engagement. When people like or talk about your products on social media, those actions show up in their followers’ feeds. Social media ads, pictures, videos, and more can end up spreading out to cast a very wide net to generate a number of leads and conversions.

Reaching Local Markets

Many brokers, lenders, and lessors are so focused on the national and global potential of digital markets that they leave local markets completely untapped. Instead of leaving money on the table, they are using pay-per-click ads to target local markets and rake in sales from customers right in their area. Any business with a local office should consider pay-per-click ads to have a leading presence in local markets. Since most local customers also shop from their computers, smartphones, and tablets, the convenience of being “right there” and targeting people with local pay-per-click ads boosts leads and sales.
There are many who also pick up vendors and clients primarily in their local geographic area.

Establishing a Presence

While pay-per-click ads largely reply on Google searches, social media ads take a different approach. Social media platforms allow businesses to create public-facing pages that are dynamic and engaging. You can establish a presence and actively brand themselves in real time. In a sense, social media ads allow businesses to grow their audiences from day one.

So How Do You Decide?

The first thing you should consider is your marketing strategy. Do you want to establish your brand and promote your business, or are you focused strictly on sales? Do you want to engage your customer base, or do you want to be noticed when people are searching for specific products and services? Sit down and make a list of your answers, along with your goals, and see if they lean more towards social media or pay-per-click ads.

The One-Two Punch

Very few businesses fall entirely one way or the other. There are benefits to both social media ads and pay-per-click ads. Choosing Facebook ads, for example, does not mean you have to give up the advantages of Google Adwords. The truth is that most businesses benefit from a combination of social media and paid search marketing. By using both, businesses can establish a presence and cast a wide net, while simultaneously targeting customers in specific markets. Taking into account your marketing budget also plays a big part in your strategy.

With a little research and planning, you can find an affordable plan that will help you increase your sales as well as increase your ability to create more sales.

Alex Vasilakos
Director of Marketing
The Finance Marketing Group
Alex@financialmarketing.com
Office: 518-591-4645x102 / Fax: 518-677-1071
90 State Street, Suite 1500, Albany, NY 12207
Currently, Alex works exclusively with financial services companies, but his depth of knowledge and experience can help design and implement long-reaching strategies for businesses across all industries.

Alex entered advertising and marketing in 2003, right when the industry landscape shifted from traditional print to digital media. In that time, he has worked with numerous large accounts in both healthcare and financial services, and has helped small and medium-sized businesses grow and flourish in their respective digital markets. He has won countless awards for creative direction and strategy, and is certified by Google Partners in both AdWords and Analytics.

Previous Financial Technology Articles
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/fintech.html

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Sales Makes it Happen 102 by Mr. Terry Winders, CLFP

Niche Marketplaces

New sales people always ask me in what markets they should try to obtain leases. While Google and other Financial Technology is available, my first suggestion is to look at what is common in your area. There are a lot of markets that cover a limited area. On occasion, if you can find a fair grounds or a major hotel that offers trade show facilities, you should get a listing of what shows are scheduled and attend those that offer equipment that you would like to lease.

The beauty of trade shows is the number of manufacturers or distributors that are in one place.
While the major industries are hard to break into, there are lots of smaller markets that congregate in trade shows, so that if you look for gatherings in almost any industry, you may be surprised by what you find. For instance in southern Indiana, there is a lot of furniture manufacturing, so woodworking equipment would be a great market to cover. There is a lot of furniture manufacturing in other parts of the country, but they are usually concentrated in specific areas.

One market I liked to cover in times past was the marina industry. They have house boats, boat lifts, floating docks and rental inventory. They usually are owned by “owner-operators” and you will not find them in Dun & Bradstreet, so it is too small to be approached by the major lessors. Small local markets are the best for new business, and as they grow, you can look for additional business.
Another market I enjoyed was the church market. They lease everything from organs to pews. I have leased them school buses, PA systems and computers.

Also, consider your hobbies or previous employment as giving you knowledge about a product.  Many veteran leasing sales people started out selling a product, including copiers, office supplies, and machinery. They learned leasing sales and decided there was more money in it, specializing in products that they know. You can also find these products and other information, not only from the articles or announcements, but from the advertising in trade magazines.

Here is where you can obtain free trade magazine subscriptions to look for trade shows, events, announcements, and advertising of products: www.tradepub.com

You need to spend some time with business publications that identify what businesses are in your area so you can pick a few and call on them to determine if the equipment that serves their business is good for leasing.

The major markets such as medical, construction, and machine tools are good markets but you will be a “Johnny come lately” and would have to be cheap or have something different to be successful. The smaller markets are better to penetrate, especially if you are new to the business and your firm does not have vendor arrangements already for you to contact. You won’t find many in a Google search but you may meet at a trade show or even an auction.

In addition, the better records you keep, the better chances you have to control your marketing efforts.  Also, don’t make the rookie mistake of going after a very large lease to make up for any lack of sales.  Usually large leases are not only difficult to do, competitive, but full of lessees who have a Champagne taste but a beer budget.



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* Tagalog (Philippines most common)
*Hmong (primarily live in Southern China, Vietnam and Laos
*Gujarati language, State of Gujarati, India

https://www.statista.com/chart/8800/lebanon-has-by-far-the-most-refugees-per-capita/


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Fernando's View
By Fernando F. Croce

A rollicking biopic (“Rocketman”) and a deadpan apocalypse (“The Dead Don’t Die”) make for a contrasting double-bill at the box-office, while DVD releases offer stylish thrills (“Greta”), unique documentaries (“They Shall Not Grow Old”), and a master’s harrowing set (“A Film Trilogy by Ingmar Bergman”).

In theaters:

Rocketman (Paramount Pictures): On the heels of the recent, Oscar-winning “Bohemian Rhapsody,” here’s another equally tune-filed (and considerably more risqué) rock ‘n’ roll biopic. This time the legendary musician at the center is Elton John (energetically played by Taron Egerton), who recounts the ups and downs of his flamboyant life during a therapy session at an addiction clinic. From his childhood in strict 1950s England to the discovery of the power of music, he throws himself wholeheartedly into his new passion. Weathering this rollercoaster of hits and makeovers are his relationship with his manager, John Reid (Richard Madden), and songwriter, Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell). Directed at a rollicking pace by Dexter Fletcher, the film makes up for its often familiar notes with an exuberant abandon that would make its subject proud.

The Dead Don’t Die (Focus Features): Jim Jarmusch, the indie trailblazer behind deadpan classics like “Stranger Than Paradise” and “Dead Man,” tries his hand at the undead subgenre with this characteristically dry and pointed horror-comedy. Set in the fictitious, sleepy town of Centerville, it charts the ghoulish pandemonium that inexplicably begins to happen when a seemingly endless night brings out the zombie side of the local citizens. At its center are a duo of police officers, Cliff (Bill Murray) and Ronnie (Adam Driver), who gradually realize that the calls they’ve been getting amount to something much larger and more dangerous than their usual assignments. Portraying the mayhem by connecting a large ensemble of disparate characters (with a cast including Tilda Swinton and Steve Buscemi), Jarmusch’s satire has quite an apocalyptic bite.

Nextflix: A flamboyant character actress, Sylvia Miles (1924-2019) stole scenes in movies for several decades with her brassy and blowzy presence. So check out Netflix for her best films, which include “Midnight Cowboy” (1969), “Heat” (1972), “Farewell, My Lovely” (1975), and “Crossing Delancey” (1988).

On DVD:

Greta (Focus Features): A specialist in frigid-hot intensity, the redoubtable French actress Isabelle Huppert gets a chance to go deliciously unhinged in this suspenseful thriller, directed by stylishly provocative veteran Neil Jordan (“The Crying Game”). Huppert plays the eponymous Greta, a widowed piano teacher living in New York. Her loneliness is alleviated by a new friend named Frances (Chloe Grace Moretz), a young waitress struggling to cope with a family tragedy. The friendship between the two women quickly escalates into foreboding areas, however, and Greta’s dangerous potential becomes clear when Frances tries to distance herself from her. How far will she go? Though the twists in the plot are hardly new, the film works thanks to Jordan’s pulpy imagination and, above all, to the electric tension between Huppert and Moretz.


They Shall Not Grow Old (Fathom Events): Taking a break from otherworldly fantasies without ditching his fascination with cinematic wizardry, director Peter Jackson (“Lord of the Rings”) tackles one of his most unique and critically acclaimed projects. Working from hundreds of hours of archival footage for a documentary celebration of World War One, he has created a remarkably immersive vision of people in combat. Rather than settling for a study of the past, Jackson aims for immediacy by restoring faded images and interviews and weaving them into a present-tense mosaic. Life and death for British soldiers in the trenches amid barbed wire and mustard gas is harrowingly and movingly evoked, creating a link of identification between modern audiences and people gone but not forgotten. The results are profoundly ambitious and urgent.


A Film Trilogy by Ingmar Bergman (Criterion): Widely regarded as one of cinema’s supreme masters, the late Swedish director Ingmar Bergman reached one of his many peaks with this intense, disturbing trilogy of thematically linked dramas. In “Through a Glass Darkly” (1961), a young woman (Harriet Andersson) descends into visions of madness while trying to recover at her family’s seaside cottage. In “Winter Light” (1963), a lonely pastor (Gunnar Bjornstrand) struggles with finding true meaning in the face of overwhelming despair. And in “The Silence” (1963), two sisters (Ingrid Thulin, Gunnel Lindblom) work out their troubled relationship while staying at an isolated hotel in a strange country. Showcasing Bergman’s remarkable control of the medium and brilliant performances, these classics make for demanding but profoundly rewarding viewing. With subtitles.

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Beagle Mix
Boulder, Colorado  Adopt-a-Dog


CJ

ID A41777031
Female
Age: 11 Years
Weight: 25 pounds
Adoption Fee: $19.00
Here Since: 05/25/2019

"CJ is in top condition for an older dog- she looks like a teenager! CJ hopes to find a family that can take her on nice walks and allows plenty of opportunity to relax. CJ is recommended as the only dog in her next home and, because she is uncomfortable around children, HSBV will only rehome to a family with children 10 years of age or older."

Humane Society of Boulder Creek
2323 55th Street
Boulder, CO 80301
303.442.4030
info@boulderhumane.org

SHELTER HOURS
Monday - Friday
Adoptions: 11 AM – 6:30 PM
Saturday & Sunday
Adoptions: 10 AM – 4:30 PM


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


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American Association of Commercial Finance Brokers invites you.

Walt Disney World offers something for everyone. Special Tickets available. Don't miss your opportunity to spend a few extra days creating magical memories by taking advantage of specially priced theme park tickets to make the most of your visit:
https://www.mydisneygroup.com/aacfb2019

Exhibitors to Date
http://expo.aacfb.org/exhibitors

Preliminary Agenda
http://expo.aacfb.org/agenda/at-a-glance

Enter EXPO19 to save $50 off registration,
Offer ends July 4

Registration
http://expo.aacfb.org/registration

Hotel
http://expo.aacfb.org/travel-hotel/about-gaylord-palms 

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News Briefs----

Russia-Linked Hackers Hijack Infrastructure
    of Iranian Threat Group Reports Symantec
https://www.securityweek.com/russia-linked-hackers-hijack-infrastructure-iranian-threat-group

Truckers warn of a 'bloodbath' as trucking companies
 go bankrupt and slash profit expectations
https://www.businessinsider.com/truckers-warn-bloodbath-companies-bankrupt-lower-expectations-2019-6

'Sully' Sullenberger says he struggled
     to recover Boeing 737 MAX in flight simulation
https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/19/politics/chesley-sullenberger-boeing-737-max-scenario/index.html

Pilot ‘Sully’ Sullenberger recommends new training
    for Boeing 737 MAX crews
https://nypost.com/2019/06/19/pilot-sully-sullenberger-recommends-new-training-for-boeing-737-max-crews/ 

Meet The New Burger Kings—And The Rest Of America’s Best
     (And Worst) Franchises to Buy In 2019
https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2019/06/19/best-worst-franchises-buy-own/#e1733287d79d

Papa John’s will spend additional $80 million
   on franchisee relief and marketing
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/19/papa-johns-will-spend-additional-80-million-on-franchisee-relief-and-marketing.html 

Florida city to pay $600K ransom to hacker
  who seized computer systems weeks ago
https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/20/us/riviera-beach-to-pay-hacker/index.html

Apple Says Trump's Tariffs Will Reduce
   Its Economic Contributions and Global Competitiveness
https://www.macrumors.com/2019/06/20/apple-urges-against-trump-tariffs-china/

Dell, HP, Intel and Microsoft Join Forces to Oppose Trump Tariff
hindering their ability to innovate and compete in a global marketplace
https://www.industryweek.com/economy/dell-hp-intel-and-microsoft-join-forces-oppose-trump-tariff

The bank branch of the future is coming to Chicago
 with coffee bars, cozy nooks ... and no teller windows
https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-fifth-third-next-generation-bank-branch-20190620-dyl5bqm6jzf6xjweb5ubxhoqte-story.html

 


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You May Have Missed---

Netflix says these are the best TVs for streaming
    — wait for it — Netflix
https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/06/19/netflix-says-these-are-the-best-tvs-for-streaming-netflix/


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Baseball Poem

The Base Stealer

Poised between going on and back, pulled
Both ways taut like a tight-rope walker,
Fingertips pointing the opposites,
Now bouncing tiptoe like a dropped ball,
Or a kid skipping rope, come on, come on!
Running a scattering of steps sidewise,
How he teeters, skitters, tingles, teases,
Taunts them, hovers like an ecstatic bird,
He's only flirting, crowd him, crowd him,
Delicate, delicate, delicate, delicate - Now!

----Robert Francis

 

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Sports Briefs---

Kevin Durant Trade after Signing Warriors Contract 'Being Discussed'
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2841964-windhorst-kevin-durant-trade-after-signing-warriors-contract-being-discussed

Andre Iguodala shares incredible new story about Klay Thompson
https://www.sfgate.com/warriors/article/Klay-Thompson-Andre-Iguodala-ACL-recovery-return-14025324.php

Warriors acquire No. 41 pick in NBA draft from Hawks
https://www.sfchronicle.com/warriors/article/Warriors-acquire-No-41-pick-in-NBA-draft-from-14025600.php

The other U.S. Open winner: Wilson Sporting Goods
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/marketing-media/other-us-open-winner-wilson-sporting-goods

US comfortably beats Sweden and sets
   another Women's World Cup record
https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/20/football/uswnt-swedeNBAn-womens-world-cup-spt-int/index.html

Von Miller sets sights on breaking Bruce Smith's
   NFL record for career sacks
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2019/06/20/denver-broncos-von-miller-sack-record-bruce-smith/1516751001/

Grading the NBA Draft
https://www.theringer.com/nba-draft/2019/6/20/18693649/2019-nba-draft-grades-zion-williamson


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California Nuts Briefs---

California State University stashed $1.5 billion in reserves
    while hiking tuition, audit says
https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/education/article231540798.html?

Santa Cruz ranks as nation’s least affordable city for teachers
https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/06/20/santa-cruz-ranks-as-nations-least-affordable-city-for-teachers/

Asians are now largest group in these two San Francisco
      Bay Area counties, new data shows
https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/06/20/asians-are-now-largest-group-in-two-bay-area-counties-new-data-shows/

Ferry service to Chase Center for Warriors games
   gains momentum with proposal
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Ferry-service-to-Chase-Center-for-Warriors-games-14021167.php



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“Gimme that Wine”

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

A la carte: Barbecue and zin, Oysters and sauvignon blanc,
  and other tasty pairings
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/lifestyle/9696722-181/a-la-carte-barbecue-and

Heitz Wine Cellars purchases 50-acre vineyard in Rutherford
https://www.winebusiness.com/news/?go=getArticle&dataId=215578

Kelowna Winery First One in Canada to be B Corp. Certified
https://www.winebusiness.com/news/?go=getArticle&dataId=215547

Inside the New Winery for Brad Pitt
  and Angelina Jolie's Record-Breaking Rosé
https://www.winespectator.com/articles/inside-the-new-winery-for-brad-pitt-and-angelina-jolie-miraval-record-breaking-rose-unfiltered#

Dave Matthews Says His New Rosé Is a 'Waking Up Wine'
   — and It Was All His Wife's Idea
https://people.com/food/dave-matthews-launches-rose-dreaming-tree-wine-wife-ashley-idea/


Free Wine App
https://www.nataliemaclean.com/mobileapp/

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

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This Day in History

    1639 – Increase Mather (d. 1723) was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts Bay Colony.  A major figure in the early history of the Colony, he was a Puritan minister who was involved with the government of the Colony, the administration of Harvard College, including its presidency, and the Salem witch trials.  
    1731 - Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (d. 1802), wife of George Washington and the First Lady of the US, was born at New Kent County, VA.  Mrs. Washington joined her husband during the Revolution for all the Continental Army's winter encampments. Before the revolution began, she had kept close to home; during it, she traveled thousands of miles to be with her husband.  General Lafayette observed that she loved "her husband madly."
The Continental Army settled in Valley Forge, the third of the eight winter encampments of the Revolution, on December 19, 1777. Martha Washington traveled ten days and hundreds of miles to join her husband in Pennsylvania.  Primary documents of the Revolutionary period refer to Lady Washington's activities at the site.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/firstladies/mw1.html
http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/served/martha.html
    1768 – James Otis, Jr. offended the King and Parliament in a speech to the Massachusetts General Court. A lawyer, a member of the Massachusetts provincial assembly, and an early advocate of the Patriot views against British policy that led to the American Revolution, he is the one who stated, "taxation without representation is tyranny,” that became the basic Patriot position.  
    1788 - By a vote of 57 to 47, New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution. With this ratification, the Constitution became effective for all ratifying states. The fishing colony, first settled in 1623 and named in 1630 by Captain John Mason after his Hampshire, England home, was a part of the Massachusetts colony. Then, in 1679, it became a separate royal colony. Concord, the capital of the Granite State, was also central to much of the Revolutionary War. The official state bird is the purple finch, and has a matching state flower, the purple lilac.
http://www.visitnh.gov/
    1821 - The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Zion Church was formally constituted in New York City. Nineteen clergymen were present, representing six African-American churches from New York City; Philadelphia; New Haven, CT and Newark, NJ.
    1850 – Daniel C. Beard (d. 1941) was born in Cincinnati.  An illustrator, author, youth leader, and social reformer, he founded the Sons of Daniel Boone in 1905, which Beard later merged with the Boy Scouts of America. 
    1856 - John Durkee of the Committee of Vigilance led a raid on the schooner "Julia" and hijacked the muskets aboard that were destined for the militia at San Francisco. He took the arms to the Committee's headquarters on Sacramento St. State Supreme Court Justice David Smith Terry was arrested by the Committee of Vigilance for stabbing vigilante policeman Sterling A. Hopkins on Jackson St. between Dupont and Kearny. Hopkins, who was the hangman for Cora and Casey, was in serious condition. Hopkins was stabbed when he attempted to arrest a member of the militia who was testifying in court about John Durkee's seizure of arms destined for the militia.
    1858 - Louisiana chess prodigy Paul Morphy arrives in Europe.
He won the first American Championship in 1857 in New York with a perfect score, and then went on to Europe, financed by his admirers, and played the best in Europe and won every match.
http://www.starfireproject.com/chess/morphy.html
http://batgirl.atspace.com/index.html
    1859 - Birthday of Henry Ossawa Tanner (d. 1937), Pittsburgh, PA.  He was one of the first black artists to be exhibited in galleries in the US. 
http://sheldon.unl.edu/HTML/ARTIST/Tanner_H/SSIII.html 
http://www.doupine.com/tanner.htm
http://www.nbmaa.org/Gallery_htmls/tanner.html
    1882 – Birthday of American illustrator Rockwell Kent (d. 1971), Tarrytown Heights, New York.
http://organizations.plattsburgh.edu/museum/kentkent.htm 
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/kent_rockwell.html
http://www.artline.com/galleries/aaron/prints/kent/kent.html
    1893 - On the first day of summer, the temperature at Dodge City, KS, soared to 106 degrees during the midst of a blistering heat wave. The heat wave initiated a severe three-year drought in the Central Plains Region. Ironically, at about the same time, heavy rains in the Mississippi Valley were causing the river to swell to its highest level of record at New Orleans, LA.
    1898 – The US captured Guam from Spain.  During the Spanish-American War, the U.S. Navy sent a single cruiser to capture the island, then under Spanish control since 1668. However, the Spanish garrison on the island had no knowledge of the war and no real defenses. They surrendered without resistance and the island passed into American control. 
    1900 – The Boxer Rebellion was an edict issued from the Empress Dowager Cixi that declared war on the United States, Britain, Germany, France and Japan. By 1900, the Qing dynasty, which had ruled China for more than two centuries, was crumbling and Chinese culture was under assault by these powerful and unfamiliar religions and secular cultures.  An anti-imperialist uprising that took place in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the dynasty was initiated by the Militia United in Righteousness, known in English as the Boxers, motivated by nationalist sentiments, opposition to imperialist expansion and associated Christian missionary activity.  The Boxer fighters, convinced they were invulnerable to foreign weapons, converged on Beijing with the slogan "Support Qing government and exterminate the foreigners." Foreigners and Chinese Christians sought refuge. In response to reports of an armed invasion to lift the siege, the initially hesitant Empress supported the Boxers and issued the declaration of war on the foreign powers. Diplomats, foreign civilians and soldiers as well as Chinese Christians in the Legation Quarter were placed under siege by the Imperial Army of China and the Boxers for 55 days.
    1918 – Steady Eddie Lopat (d. 1992) was born Edmund Walter Lopatynski in New York City.  His 12-year Major League career was with several clubs but he is best remembered as the Yankees’ ‘Junk Man’ during their record-breaking run of five consecutive World Series championships, teaming with Vic Raschi, Allie Reynolds and Whitey Ford as aces of the pitching staff of Casey Stengel.  
    1921 – Jane Russell was born Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell (d. 2011) in Bemidji, MN.  One of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s, Russell moved to California where she had her first film role in 1943 in Howard Hughes’ “The Outlaw.”  She later played opposite Marilyn Monroe in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.”  In 1955 founded WAIF, the first international adoption program.  Also that year with her first husband, LA Rams QB, Bob Waterfield, they formed a motion picture production company that produced for several years.  Her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is at 6850 Hollywood Blvd. 
    1922 - Massacre of strikebreakers by union members began at the Southern Illinois Coal Company's strip mine near Herrin, IL. During a nationwide strike by the United Mine Workers (UMW), a group of recruited strikebreakers arrived at the mine. Fighting broke out and one striker and two strikebreakers were killed. The mine was quickly surrounded by armed UMW members. On June 22, approximately 60 strikebreakers inside the mine surrendered to union members, who marched them to a barbed wire fence and gunned them down. A few who managed to escape were hunted down and slain in a nearby cemetery. Twenty-one strikebreakers and one mine official were killed, and most of the rest were severely wounded.
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/7847/massacre.htm 
http://www.wvculture.org/history/minewars.html
http://www.prairieghosts.com/bloody_will.html
http://www.egyptianaaa.org/SI-HerrinMassacre.htm 
http://www.geocities.com/apwualbany/laborhistory1920.html
    1928 - Mary Pickford cut off her 18”, nearly waist-length, golden curls. She had reigned in films as "America's Sweetheart" for nearly 25 years and wanted to make the transition in films to play more mature roles. At age 35, she put scissors to the tresses that locked her into her film ingénue image, and styled her hair in a more fashionable short bob. Few fans went to see her new, grown-up sound films. After only four sound films, Pickford retired from the screen, knowing that she would never be accepted by the public as anything but the little girl that she had successfully portrayed during the silent film era.

    1932 - Jack Sharkey won a 15-round split decision over Max Schmelling to capture the world heavyweight championship in a fight in New York. Schmeling had won the title two years before by defeating Sharkey on a foul. Sharkey kept the title for one year before being knocked out by Primo Carnera.
    1932 - Birthday of TV and movie composer Boris Claudio “Lalo” Schifrin, born Buenos Aires, Argentina.  He is best known for his large body of film and TV scores since the 1950s, including the "Theme from Mission: Impossible.”  He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations. Associated with the jazz music genre, Schifrin is also noted for work with Clint Eastwood in the late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, particularly the “Dirty Harry” films.
http://www.schifrin.com/biography.htm
    1936 - Birthday of singer O.C. Smith (d. 2001), Mansfield, LA.  His recording of "Little Green Apples" went to number 2 in 1968 and sold over one million records.
http://home.earthlink.net/~deankay/O.C.Smith.html
http://www.tsimon.com/ocsmith.htm
    1942 - The movie "Little Tokyo, U.S.A." is released by Twentieth Century Fox. In it, the Japanese American community is portrayed as a "vast army of volunteer spies" and "blind worshippers of their Emperor," as described in the film's voice-over prologue.
    1942 - Churchill receives the news of the fall of Tobruk while meeting with President Roosevelt. FDR immediately offers aid and 300 Sherman tanks and 100 self-propelled guns are immediately dispatched to North Africa. The better equipment will make a difference in the British performance at El Alamein where, on 11 November 1942, the Allies captured it after the Second Battle of El Alamein.
    1942 - A Japanese submarine surfaced near the Columbia River in Oregon, firing 17 shells at nearby Ft. Stevens in one of only a handful of attacks by Japan against the US mainland, and the only military installation therein.  The Japanese attack caused no damage to the fort itself, only the backstop of the post's baseball field being destroyed. 
    1943 - Supreme Court rules on the Hirabayashi and Yasui cases, upholding the constitutionality of the curfew and exclusion orders against Japanese-Americans.
http://www.janm.org/clasc/resources.htm
    1943 - Federal troops put down race riots in Detroit, Michigan. Disorders first appeared on southern military posts where white residents clashed with northern black soldiers who failed to proffer the customary subservience. But the most severe race riots occurred in the cities: Harlem; Philadelphia; Mobile, Alabama; El Paso and Port Arthur, Texas; Springfield, Massachusetts; Hubbard, Ohio. A two-day guerrilla war between blacks and whites in Detroit during the summer of 1943 left twenty-five blacks and nine whites dead, 700 of both races injured, and $2 million property damage. The riot only ceased when six thousand troops occupied the city. Two weeks later, during the famous zoot-suit riots in Los Angeles, white servicemen terrorized the city's Mexican-American sections for four days as the city police, the Military Police, and the Shore Patrol all looked the other way. The only factor which kept violence against Japanese-Americans at such a low ebb was their forcible removal. 
http://info.detnews.com/history/story/index.cfm?id=185&category=events 
http://www.detnews.com/history/riot/riot2.htm 
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eleanor/peopleevents/pande10.html 
http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1979/2/79.02.04.x.html 
http://www.newnation.com/Archives/NNN-poll-06.html
    1945 - The Battle of Okinawa ended with American grenades exploding in the background.  Inside the Japanese command cave at Mabuni, the battle for Okinawa was ended when Major General Isamu Cho and Lt. General Mitsuru Ushijima killed themselves in the ceremonial rite of hara-kiri. In the long battle that had begun April 1, the American death toll reached enormous proportions by Pacific battle standards---7,613 died on land and 4,907 in the air or from kamikaze attacks. A total of 36 US warships were sunk. More than 70,000 Japanese and 80,000 civilian Okinawans died in battle. It was this event that lead President Harry Truman to authorize the atomic bomb to end the war with Japan as he realized how many Americans would be lost in the invasion of the mainland.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/jun21.html 
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/okinawa-battle.htm
    1948 - Top Hits
“Nature Boy” - Nat King Cole
“Toolie Oolie Doolie” - The Andrews Sisters
“You Can't Be True, Dear” - The Ken Griffin Orchestra (vocal: Jerry Wayne)
“Texarkana Baby” - Eddy Arnold
    1948 - Columbia Records, Bridgeport, CT, introduced the long-playing microgroove phonograph records at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. CBS engineer Peter Goldmark was the inventor of the non-breakable Vinylite plastic disks, which played at a speed of 33.3 revolutions per minute. One side of a 12-inch “LP” played for 23 minutes, compared to 4 minutes for a one side of a standard 78-rpm record; 78s were quickly supplanted by the new technology. In 1952, I joined the Columbia Record Club and have been a member ever since.
    1955 - Johnny Cash's first single, "Cry Cry Cry," is released.
    1956 - Top Hits
“The Wayward Wind” - Gogi Grant
“I Almost Lost My Mind” - Pat Boone
“Transfusion” - Nervous Norvus
“Crazy Arms” - Ray Price
    1956 - Playwright Arthur Miller, appearing before the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC), refuses to betray his left-wing associates. He will appear again in 1957 and be convicted for contempt, which is overturned on appeal in 1958. John Steinbeck defends Miller in the June 1957 Esquire.
http://ocean.otr.usm.edu/~wsimkins/trial.html
    1958 - Bobby Darin's "Splish Splash" enters the US record charts, where it would reach #3. Bobby would later say that the song only took him about ten minutes to write.
    1962 - The Isley Brothers released "Twist and Shout" which reached number 17 on the Hot 100 and number 2 R&B, staying on the charts for 19 weeks.  The song had been produced for the brothers to teach then-struggling producer Phil Spector how to produce a hit, well before he perfected the “wall of sound” for which he became famous.  
    1964 - James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner left Meridian, MS, at 9AM to investigate a church burning at Philadelphia, MS. They were expected back by 4 PM. When they failed to return, a search was begun. Their murdered bodies were found on Aug 4.
    1964 - Jim Bunning of the Philadelphia Phillies pitched a perfect game against the New York Mets, winning, 6-0. Since Bunning had previously pitched a no-hitter for the Detroit Tigers, his effort against the Mets gave him a no-hitter in each league. Gus Triandos became the first catcher to catch a no-hitter in each league, having caught Hoyt Wilhelm’s gem against the Yankees in 1958 while with the Baltimore Orioles.
    1964 - Top Hits
“Chapel of Love” - The Dixie Cups
“A World Without Love” - Peter & Gordon
“I Get Around” - The Beach Boys
“Together Again” - Buck Owens
    1965 - Arthur Ashe, tennis champion, leads UCLA to NCAA tennis championship
    1965 - Gary Player won the U.S. Open golf tournament to become only the fourth winner to earn all four top pro golf titles. Player, from South Africa, was the first non-American to achieve the feat. The Grand Slam of golf, incidentally, includes the U.S. Open, the British Open, the Masters and the PGA Championship. The other professional golfers who have won all four events are Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Gene Sarazen, and Tiger Woods. The winningest golfer: Sam Snead.
    1966 - Summer in Haight Ashbury: Shops opening, dances every weekend, HIP merchants, Diggers. Morning Star Ranch, owned by Lou Gottlieb of the Limelighters, along with Ramon Sender, open the land (32 acres) to anyone who wants to live there.
http://www.diggers.org/homefree/hfh_int.html
http://www.ic.org/morningstar/home.html
http://www.napafest.com/limeliters.html
    1967 - Solstice party in Golden Gate Park: an estimated 30-50,000 boogie.
http://www.sftoday.com/enn2/summerlove.htm
    1967 - "First day of summer:" New Buffalo founded near Taos, New Mexico (9 miles south of Lama).
http://www.summeroflove.org/law.html
    1970 - The first Major Leaguer to make seven consecutive hits in seven times at bat in the same game was Cesar Dario Guiterrez, shortstop for the American League Detroit Tigers, who in the second game of a double header with the Cleveland Indians at Cleveland, OH, hit a single in the first, third, fifth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth innings and a double in the seventh inning, Detroit beat Cleveland, 9-8.
    1970 – The largest bankruptcy in the US to that time, the Penn Central Railroad filed a bankruptcy petition under section 77.  The Penn Central was created as a response to challenges faced by railroads in the late 1960s. The northeastern United States, the railroad's service area, was the most densely populated region of the U.S. While railroads elsewhere in North America drew a high percentage of their revenues from the long-distance shipment of commodities, Northeastern railroads traditionally depended on a mix of services, including passenger and commuter rail service and freight.  Another significant problem was the inability of the New York Central and Pennsylvania railroads to respond to market conditions. The railroad industry at the time was heavily regulated by the Interstate Commerce Commission and was unable to change the rates it charged shippers and passengers. Therefore, reducing costs was the only way to become more profitable. Government regulation and agreements with labor unions tightly restricted what cost-cutting could take place. A merger seemed to be a promising way out of a difficult situation, thus, the Penn Central was formed with the merger of the Pennsylvania and New York Central Railroads, then the two largest in the Northeast corridor.  Later other railroads were acquired.  To make matters worse, management insisted on paying dividends to shareholders to create the illusion of success. The company had to borrow more and more to keep operating. The interest on the loans became an unbearable financial burden. Although the Penn Central Transportation Company was put into bankruptcy, its parent Penn Central Company survived.  The coffin nails for long-haul passenger rail service were hammered as a result.
    1972 - Top Hits
“The Candy Man” - Sammy Davis, Jr.
“Song Sung Blue” - Neil Diamond
“Nice to Be with You” - Gallery
“The Happiest Girl” in the Whole U.S.A. - Donna Fargo
    1972 - Hurricane Agnes hit the eastern seaboard for five days, wreaking havoc across seven Atlantic Coast states. Casualties included 118 lives and 116,000 homes, leaving more than 200,000 homeless after Agnes dumped 38.1 million gallons of water over 5,000 square miles.
    1972 - Billy Preston received a gold record for the instrumental hit, "Outa-Space." Preston, who played for gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, back in 1956, was also in the film "St. Louis Blues" as a piano player. He was a regular on the "Shindig" TV show in the 1960s and recorded with The Beatles on the hits "Get Back" and "Let It Be." Preston also performed at "The Concert for Bangladesh" in 1969. Many well-known artists have utilized his keyboard talents, including Sly & The Family Stone and the Rolling Stones.     
    1973 – In Miller v California, the Supreme Court redefined its definition of obscenity from that of “utterly without socially redeeming value” to that which lacks "serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value," or SLAPS.  This established the “Miller test” for obscenity going forward. 
    1975 - The Captain and Tennille's “Love Will Keep Us Together” jumped into the Number 1 slot on Billboard's record charts, and stayed there for 4 weeks.
    1975 - Elton John headlines a bill at Wembley Stadium that also features the Eagles, The Beach Boys, Rufus and Joe Walsh. The crowd favorite was the Beach Boys, who played a 90-minute set.
    1978 – “Evita,” a musical about the life of Argentine popular idol Eva Perón, opened in London. The music was by composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Tim Rice and it was directed by Harold Prince. The play was an instant hit.
    1980 - Top Hits
“Funkytown” - Lipps, Inc.
“Coming Up” - Paul McCartney & Wings
“Biggest Part of Me” - Ambrosia
“One Day at a Time” - Cristy Lane
    1982 - New edition of Stephen Crane's “The Red Badge of Courage” is published, restoring cuts made by his editor in 1895.
http://www.columbia.edu/ cu/libraries/indiv/rare/guides/Crane,S/navigator.html
    1982 – John Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity for the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981.  He remained under institutional psychiatric care until September 10, 2016, and lives full-time at his mother's home.  
    1985 - Ron Howard directed his first music video. The TV star of "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Happy Days" also directed the film "Cocoon," which included "Gravity," the song used in the video. Michael Sembello, a guitarist who played on Stevie Wonder's hits between 1974 and 1979, was responsible for "Gravity."
    1986 - President Ronald Reagan gives speech defending his judicial appointments. On June 17, he had announced that Warren E. Burger would retire as chief justice of the Supreme Court effective July 10. The President named Associate Justice William H. Rehnquist as Burger's successor and Antonin Scalia, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, to the Court. The changes were interpreted as a gain for conservative judicial philosophy.
    1986 - Excedrin is taken off the shelf after being identified as the cause of death of two persons in the Seattle area. Both had taken Extra-Strength Excedrin capsules containing poison. Bristol-Myers, the makers of Excedrin, responded by announcing they were taking all the bottles off the shelves. The person or persons who had broken the seal and poisoned the bottles were never caught.  Bristol-Myers destroyed all bottles, introducing a new seal and plastic wrapping that has become common on all over-the-counter drugs.
    1987 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)," Whitney Houston.
    1988 - Top Hits
“Together Forever” - Rick Astley
“Foolish Beat” - Debbie Gibson
“Dirty Diana” - Michael Jackson
“I Told You So” - Randy Travis
    1988 - The first full day of summer was a torrid one with afternoon highs of 100 degrees or above reported from the Northern and Central Plains to the Ohio Valley. Sixty-nine cities in the north central U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date. The high of 110 degrees at Sioux Falls, SD, was an all-time record for that location. Highs of 103 degrees at Des Moines, IA, 102 degrees at Fort Wayne, IN, 109 degrees at Huron, SD, 108 degrees at Sioux City, IA, and 101 degrees at South Bend IN were records for June
    1989 - Supreme Court rules it's a-ok to burn the US flag as a political expression.
http://recollectionbooks.com/siml/stan/FlagBurner.html
    1992 - Tom Kite fought fellow golfers and the elements as he won the U.S. Open. Scoring records had given way to survival at Pebble Beach, California. Howling winds made the greens as hard as concrete. Kite's final-round even-par score of 72 was enough to give him a two-stroke victory over Jeff Sluman.
    1995 - Microsoft and Netscape officials met at Netscape headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Notes taken by Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen indicate that Microsoft offered to buy a share of its rival if Netscape would stop making Navigator for the Windows market. The Andreessen notes would be used later in the U.S. government's massive antitrust case against Microsoft Corp. Microsoft founder Bill Gates was painted as the master string-puller in a no-holds-barred plan to destroy Netscape Communications Corp. when it refused to collaborate on a plot to divide the market for Internet browser software. The browser was once dominant but lost to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and other competitors after the so-called first browser war, its market share falling from more than 90 percent in the mid-1990s to less than 1 percent in 2006. Netscape is credited with creating the JavaScript programming language, the most widely used language for client-side scripting of web pages. The company is also known for developing SSL which was used for securing online communications before its successor TLS took over.  Netscape stock traded from 1995 until 1999 when the company was acquired by AOL in a pooling-of-interests transaction ultimately worth US $10 billion.  Shortly before its acquisition by AOL, Netscape released the source code for its browser and created Mozilla to coordinate future development of its product.  Mozilla rewrote the entire browser's source code based on the Gecko rendering engine; all future Netscape releases were based on this rewritten code. The Gecko engine would later be used to power the Mozilla Foundation's Firefox browser.
    1997 - The Women's National Basketball Association opened its inaugural season with three games. The Houston Comets beat the Cleveland Rockers, 76-56, the New York Liberty defeated the Los Angeles Sparks, 67-57, and the Sacramento Monarchs beat the Utah Starzz,70-60. Two teams, the Charlotte Sting and the Phoenix Mercury, began their season the following day with Phoenix Mercury began their season the following day with Phoenix defeating Charlotte, 76-59. Each team in the WNBA, a summer league operated by the NBA, played a 24-game schedule.
    1999 - America Online announced its investment of $1.5 billion in DirecTV creator Hughes Electronics Corp. The agreement gave AOL new high-speed options and expanded ties between the world's largest Internet provider and the leading U.S. satellite TV service. A combination of AOL's Internet services and Hughes' digital TV system would help increase DirecTV's subscriber base while boosting the market for AOL's interactive TV and high-speed Internet services.  DirecTV was acquired by AT&T in 2015 while AOL is a subsidiary of Verizon Communications.
    1999 - The album “Millennium,” recorded by The Backstreet Boys, was certified gold.
http://www.thebackstreetboys.com/
http://www.backstreet.net/
    2001 - Returning to Major Leagues after a stint with Newark Bears of the independent Atlantic League, Jose Canseco starts as the designated hitter for the White Sox. The former All Star, who has 446 career home runs (23rd all time), didn't get any offers after being released by the Angels in the spring. In 2005, his book is a “tell all” on how many players were using steroids, he and his teammate Mark McGuire, included, he claims.  It turns out, following the Mitchell Report and subsequent revelations regarding such stars as Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, and others, Canseco was telling the truth.
    2013 – The US officially charged Edward Snowden with espionage.   A computer professional, former CIA employee, and former contractor for the US government who copied and leaked classified information from the NSA in 2013 without prior authorization, his disclosures revealed numerous global surveillance programs, many run by the NSA and the Five Eyes Intelligence Alliance, with the cooperation of telecommunications companies and European governments.  On June 23, he flew to Moscow where he remained until Russian authorities granted him asylum for one year, which was later extended to three years. As of 2016, he was still living in an undisclosed location in Russia while seeking asylum elsewhere.  His asylum has as of January 18, 2017 been renewed for another 3 years, until 2020.  
    2015 - Golfer Jordan Spieth, 21 years old, wins the U.S. Open, making him the youngest to win since Bobby Jones over 90 years ago 

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