Leasing Icon Steve Robbins Passes Away
Reportedly Creator of Eastern Association of Equipment Lessors

Founder and President of Tiger Leasing, LLC, New York, NY, Steven Robbins, 59, passed away. He started Tiger Leasing January, 1999. Prior he was Vice President, Sales, Wasco Funding Corp. (1980-1982); Equipment Leasing Officer, United California Bank (1980-1982)
https://www.linkedin.com/in/steverobbins

The company website states:

"Steve began in the leasing business in the summer of 1979. As a summer project before graduate school, Steve was hired by a law firm to start a regional leasing trade association. Steve's "summer project" turned out to be the creation of the Eastern Association of Equipment Lessors. Steve became its first Executive Director.

"Fully committed to the benefits of leasing as an innovative and flexible financing solution, Steve next became an officer of First Interstate Bank of California before beginning a successful 18-year run as Vice President-Sales for Wasco Funding Corp. During his tenure at Wasco, now owned by Citigroup, Steve closed over 8,000 individual transactions totaling in excess of $250 million. Through these experiences, Steve has seen and developed almost every conceivable type of leasing transaction and specializes in customizing each transaction to support every customer's unique path of growth.

"Steve has a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from George Washington University. Steve enjoys competing in Triathlons and open water long distance swimming."
http://www.tigerleasing.com/seniormgmt.shtml

CODA:
An obituary was received late, sent in by Ellie Dylan, wife of Steve Robbins for 34 years. She is Managing Director of Tiger Leasing.

It is included here as a PDF, due to the timing received. It is important - as it was written by Mr. Robbins to be sent to his friends after he passed away.

http://www.leasingnews.org/PDF/StevenRobbins2016.pdf

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Patrick Sponsel Memorial Service
plus his comments on 2013 Las Vegas Conference

"A Celebration of Life service will be held at 6:00 pm, Saturday, March 5 at Best Funeral Services West Valley Chapel, 9380 W Peoria Ave Peoria, AZ 85345. Memorials may be made to the family of Patrick Sponsel, in care of Parkway Bank, 7581 W Thunderbird Road, Peoria, Arizona 85381. Additional details have been posted on Patrick's Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/patrick.sponsel
   (Issued by NAELB on LinkedIn.com)

This is the 25th Anniversary Conference of the National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers. It is being held April 28- April 30, 2016 in Las Vegas.  Ironically, he wrote this for Leasing News, which appeared March 22, 2013:

What's In It For Me?
by Patrick Sponsel, NAELB President

Ah, the age old question asked to determine the outcome of a decision needing to be made. So what is in it for you if you attend the 2013 NAELB Annual Conference in Las Vegas this April 18-20? Besides putting more money in your pocket and closing more deals? How about enhancing your value to your customers and networking with the most professional group in the equipment leasing and financing industry? Not enough?
Here are 10 more answers to that question.

1. Face to face time with decision makers from over 40 funding sources!
2. Relationships established, maintained and enhanced with peers and business partners who are willing to help someone they know (i.e. met in person).
3. Education with and from some of the brightest in this industry. Find out what really works and what doesn't.
4. Discussions, off the record, that may help you facilitate a more profitable business this year
5. Who you hang out with determines who you are. These folks epitomize what's right with this industry. The best of the best attend meetings!
6. Ideas that are generated because you had more than e-mail or phone contact with the individual.
7. Social networking on a physical level. You may learn what sincerely motivates others that will help you to become better now!
8. Funding sources and operational tools to make your business run smoother and more efficiently.
9. It's not what you know. It's who you know that makes you the expert your clients are looking for.
10. It's an investment in the most important person in the world. You. You're worth it. Aren't you?

See you in Las Vegas!
Patrick Sponsel
NAELB President

NAELB 25th Anniversary Conference
April 28 - April 30, 2016
Tropicana Las Vegas
Las Vegas, NV

Brochure
Register
 

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FinTech #102  by Christopher Menkin
BizFi Comes to New York Restaurant Association

FinTech comes to the New York State Restaurant Association’s 2000 members, bringing BizFi 45 partners, including OnDeck, (ONDK), Funding Circle, Kabbage, IMCA Capital, Bluevine, and SmartBiz. Their press release states, "BizFi also participates in funding on the platform. Regardless of what kind of capital is sought from any of the funding partners, the restaurant owner is guided through the process by a BizFi funding concierge." (1)

Their website states:

"$3,000 to $500,000  24 - 72 Hour Funding   3 -24 months Term

"No collateral required
Limited documentation needed
Perfect credit not required
Nearly every industry accepted"  (2)

The BizFi logo is on the restaurant’s website, brings up restaurant supplier discounts and financing available (3), including the BizFi logo which bring up the graphic that “Member Discounts Available.” It also cities "74% of BizFi’s customers have taken out more than one funding solution, each one using them to push their company to the next level."

The concept is unique, offering crowdfunding, and it could also spread to other states restaurant associations. The BizFi platform has access "to multiple types of funding including equipment financing, invoice financing, lines of credit, medium term financing, short-term financing, franchise financing and long-term loans."

Melissa Autilio Fleischut, President and CEO of the NYS Restaurant Association, said, “Some restaurant owners may need capital for inventory or equipment and others may be considering expansion. BofI’s co-branded solution provides NYS Restaurant Association members access to the right financing for their needs.”

The press release states BizFi was founded in 2005 "...and its family of companies have provided in excess of $1.5 Billion in financing to more than 28,000 small businesses in a wide variety of industries across the United States."

An article on the BizFi website quotes an article by the company founder, Stephen Sheinbaum, which appeared in ABA Banking Marking, where he calls for "increase federal regulation of the industry," "increased staffing," "viewing banks as partners", "growing into unstructured data" and "consolidation."
http://ababankmarketing.com/insights/fintech-whats-coming-in-2016/

1. Press Release
   http://finance.yahoo.com/news/york-state-restaurant-association-announces-133000819.html
2. BizFi Website: about company
   https://www.bizfi.com/
3. BizFi Restaurant Financing
    http://www.nysra.org/?page=Restaurant_Financing

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

 

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New Hires---Promotions in the Leasing Business
and Related Industries

KC Beuker was hired as Senior Vice President at TCF Capital Funding,
Chicago, Illinois. "Beuker is based in Chicago and is responsible for new business generation, portfolio administration and underwriting with specific coverage of the greater New York City market." Previously, he was Head of Structured Finance, Central Region, Fifth Third Bank (2011 – January, 2016); Vice President, Fifth Third Bank (December, 2003 – December, 2011). Education: Michigan State University, The Eli Broad College of Business (1994 – 1998).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kc-beuker-4626b8b

Daryl Ching, CFA, was hired as Chief Financial Officer at Northern Coast Inc., Toronto, Canada. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer, Naturale Science International Inc. (September, 2015 – February, 2016); Advisor, Super Rocket Systems Inc. (April, 2015 – December, 2015); Managing Director, The Alta Group (August, 2014 – December, 2015); Director of Finance and Corporate Development, Francium Corp. (January, 2012 – September, 2014); President, Ubequity Specialty Finance Corp., Ubequity Capital Partners (June, 2011 – May, 2012); Senior Vice President, NAAAP Toronto (June, 2009 – December 2011); VP Compliance, Clubb Finance Corp. November, 2009 – October, 2011); Managing Partner, Clarity Financial Strategy (November, 2007 – July, 2008); Principal, Coventree (June, 2005 – September, 2007); Associate, RBC Capital Markets (June, 2001 – June, 2005) Associations: President, Young Professionals Association of Canada (July, 2003 – August, 2008). Certifications: CFA. Education: The University of Western Ontario, Huron University College, Honors Economics (1997 – 2001). Western University (1997 – 2001). Bayview Glen, CFA Institute, CFA Charterholder
Upper Canada College.
https://ca.linkedin.com/in/daryl-ching-cfa-b28b845

Allen Dobbins was hired as President & CEO at Ignite Consulting Partners, Fort Worth, Texas. Previously, he was President & CEO, SecureClose, LLC. (January, 2014 – March, 2016); President & CEO, Sigma Payment Solutions (2011 – January, 2016); President, Autostar Solutions, Inc. (June, 1991 – May, 2015). Education: Texas Christian University, Bachelor of Science, Psychology (1987 – 1989). Texas Tech University (1985 – 1987).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/allen-dobbins-501750b

Gina Downing was hired as Equipment Finance Vendor Relationship Manager at Arvest Bank - Equipment Finance, Fayetteville, Arkansas. Previously, she was Regional Sales Manager, Macquarie Group (September, 2014 – September, 2015); Regional Sales Manager, LEAF Commercial Capital, Inc. (March, 2013 – September, 2014); Midwest, Regional Sales Manager, CIT Vendor Finance (August, 2007 – February, 2013); Vice President Business Development, CitiCapital (July, 2002 – August, 2007); Regional Sales Manager, Fleet Capital Leasing (August, 2000 – July, 2002); Regional Sales Manager, Copelco Capital (April, 1991 – August, 2000).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/gina-downing-ab50b5b

Mark Kennedy was hired as Vice President, Leasing Division at Bank of the Ozarks; based in Merritt Island, Florida.  Previously, he was President, MK Capital Solutions (2014 – 2015); Director, Technology, Business Channel Development, Strategic Equipment Finance, LLC (2009 – 2015); Principal, Contract Consulting/Management Consulting (2000 – 2011); Director of Sales, Infotech Systems, Inc. (2005 – 2009); Sales/Product Manager, Call One, Inc. (1992 – 2000); Director of National Sales, RAAC Technologies (1991 – 1992); District Manager, ADP Dealer Services (1989 – 1991); System Sales Executive/Major Account Executive, GTE (1987 – 1989); Account Executive, Wang Laboratories (1986 – 1987); Sales Representative, Motorola Solutions (1984 – 1985); Marketing Representative, Harris Corporation, formerly Lanier Business Products (1983 – 1984); Marketing Applications, Rep/Sales Rep, Triad Systems Corporation (1980 – 1984). Education:
University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, BA Economics. Activities and Societies: Delta Upsilon International Fraternity, Illinois Chapter.  Board of Directors Economics Department. Tutor Economics Department. Dean's List.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-kennedy-8ba90935

Robert Knudson, CLFP, was hired as Senior Account Manager, TopMark Funding, LLC., Irvine, California.  Previously, he was Senior Account Manager, GoCapital (April, 2013 December, 2015); Senior Account Executive, Nationwide Funding, LLC (April, 2004 - February, 2009). Certifications: Certified Leasing and Finance Professional, Starting September, 2013. Volunteer: Treasurer, H.I.S. House (January, 2014 – Present); Poverty Alleviation H.I.S. House is a Homeless Intervention Shelter assisting homeless families, couples and individuals to regain self-sufficiency through housing, counseling, training and personal support. Education: Cal State Fullerton, Master of Science (MS), Accounting (2009 – 2013). Claremont McKenna College, Bachelor's Degree, Economics, Government, cum laude
(1996 – 1999).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-knudson-clfp-5343919

Mark McCommon was hired as Relationship Development Manager at Wells Fargo Equipment Finance; based in Daytona Beach, Florida.  Previously, he joined GE Capital as Regional Sales Manager (1991- 1994); then SFSI National Sales Manager, Steelcase (June, 1994 -2002).  Rejoining GE Capital as National Sales Manager, December, 2002; promoted to Business Development Manager, July, 2003; promoted to Program Manager, March, 2004; promoted to Sr. New Relationship Development Manager, June, 2009; promoted to Senior Relationship Manager, May, 2012; promoted to Relationship Development Manager, 2013.  Prior, he was Sales Representative
Equitable Lomas Leasing (1988 – 1989).  He joined US Leasing, Regional Sales (1982-1988). Education: Southeast Missouri State University, Harrison College of Business, Master of Business Administration (MBA), Marketing (1978 – 1982). Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, Bachelor of Arts, General Business (1974 – 1978). Activities and Societies: Men's Gymnastics Team '74-'78. Captain of team Junior and Senior Year. All-American team '78.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-mccommon-1956358

Jeff Ochoa was promoted to Assistant Vice President, Pacific Rim Capital, Irvine, California. He joined the firm March, 2010 as Account Executive; promoted May, 2013 to National Sales Manager. Previously, he was Senior Account Executive, Reliance Standard (2008 – 2010); Business Development Director, SafeGuard (2003 – 2008).Education: University of Arizona, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Political Science and Government (1996 – 2000). Minor: Business Administration
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-ochoa-94317013

Michael Riley was promoted to Executive Director, Syndications Manager, JP Morgan Chase; based in Columbus, Ohio.  He joined the firm in 2001 as AVP, Asset Management; promoted, 2009 to AVP, Product Specialist (sales); promoted in 2012 to AVP, Syndication Associates, JPMorgan Chase (Chase Equipment Finance). Education The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business BSBA, Finance (1992 – 1997).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-riley-5b518a12

Neil Saveriano was hired as Vice President, Commercial Lending at Stoneham Bank, Lexington, Massachusetts. "My industry specialties include manufacturing, health care, hospitality, construction and transportation and I successfully formed an independent equipment leasing origination firm."  Previously, he was Vice President, Commercial Lending, Century Bank (September, 2014 –March, 2106); VP, Corporate Banking, Cambridge Savings Bank (May, 2012 – September, 2014). "He holds a Master of Business Administration with a finance concentration from Suffolk University and a Bachelor of Science degree in public administration from University of Massachusetts."
https://www.linkedin.com/in/neil-saveriano-a6714247

Alexander Spielberg was hired as Managing Director at ZRG Partners
Frankfurt Am Main Area, Germany.  “ZRG Partners has a strong product offering for the German market, with the Z Score tools and data analytics products. It is also exciting to be united again with some of my previous Korn Ferry colleagues from around the world that have previously joined ZRG.” Previously, he was Partner Exgeniam Executive Search Personalberatung KG (2014 – 2015); Managing Consultant, GEMINI Executive Search (2013 – 2014). He joined Korn/Ferry International in 2008 as Research Associate Global Industrial Markets; promoted in 2012 as Senior Associate Global Industrial Markets (GIM). Prior, he was Research Analyst, Edward W. Kelley & Partners (formerly A.T. Kearney Executive Search) (2007 – 2008); Internship, Watson Wyatt Worldwide (January, 2002 – November, 2002). Education: University of Düsseldorf (1999 – 2008).
https://de.linkedin.com/in/alexander-spielberg-8988243

Lynn Wilson was hired as CFO, Beacon Rail Leasing, Boston, Massachusetts.  Previously, she was Senior Vice President & CFO, Marlin Business Services Corp (June, 2006 – May, 2015); Manager of Finance, GE Equipment Services, TIP/ModSpace (2002 – 2006); Manager of Finance, GE Equipment Services - TIP/ModSpace (2002 – 2006); Senior Risk Advisor, BankOne Corp. (1996 – 1999); Senior VP and Controller, Northeast Savings (1989 – 1996); Manager,
Ernst and Young (October, 1984 – November, 1989). Associations:
Volunteer/Executive Committee Member, Greater Hartford Open PGA Tour Event (1985 – 1995). Education: Siena College, BBA, Accounting
(1980 – 1984).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynne-wilson-4785624

 

 

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Leasing Industry Help Wanted

 

For information on placing a help wanted ad, please click here:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Hwanted/Hwanted-post.htm

Please see our Job Wanted section for possible new employees.

Leasing News Advisor 
Rosanne Wilson

Rosanne Wilson, CLFP, B.P.B.

A long-time friend and supporter of Leasing News, Rosanne Wilson, CLFPP, B.P.B., joined the Leasing News Advisory Board in 2010.

Rosanne served two terms as President and one term as Vice-President of the CFLP Foundation. She has served on the CLFP Foundation's Board of Directors for 6 years.

Rosanne most recently completed 5 years serving on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers (NAELB); one year as a Director and four years as Treasurer. She remains Chair of the Membership Committee. She has been a Screener on the NAELB applicant screening program since 2008 and a CLFP Special Projects committee member.

Rosanne has been a Certified Lease & Finance Professional for 17 years, serving two years as President of the CLFP Foundation. She is also a “Best Practices Broker”, a Master Member of the NAELB, and an accredited member of the Better Business Bureau for 20 years. She currently serves as the Chair of the NAELB Membership Committee, as well as serving on the Screening Committee and the Funder Task Force. In addition, she is a 24 year member of the Beaverton Chamber of Commerce and is listed in the Who’s Who of Business Leaders. Rosanne enjoys mentoring brokers who are new to the industry as she believes in helping others become successful in this business and instill in them a strong sense of ethics.

Rosanne has been active in the equipment leasing industry since 1985. Rosanne founded 1st Independent Leasing, Inc. in 1990 and is currently celebrating her 24th year in business. Previously, she spent 12 years with Transamerica Financial Services and was the Branch Manager of the Portland, Oregon office.

She is married and has 2 children and 4 grandchildren. She is now a Great Grandmother, with a baby boy born in February, 2015, Aiden Kyle Brandenburg. Her hobbies include travel with her husband, spending time with her family and 3 cats, and gardening.

Rosanne Wilson, CLP
1st Independent Leasing, Inc.
3800 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., Suite 165
Beaverton, OR 97005
(800) 926-0851 or Fax: (503) 626-1631
rosanne@1stindependentleasing.com 
"It's the Lease We Can Do"
www.1stindependentleasing.com

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Beige Report Notes Economic Activity Expanded
Loan Pricing Competitive

Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts continued to indicate that economic activity expanded in most Districts since the previous Beige Book report. Economic growth increased moderately in Richmond and San Francisco and at a modest pace in Cleveland, Atlanta, Chicago, and Minneapolis. Philadelphia reported a slight increase in economic activity, and St. Louis described conditions as mixed. Most contacts in Boston cited higher sales or revenues than a year-ago but mixed results since the previous month. New York and Dallas described economic activity as flat, and Kansas City noted a modest decline in activity. Across the nation, business contacts were generally optimistic about future economic growth.

 

Banking and Finance

In San Francisco, lender competition for qualified borrowers was vigorous. Cleveland reported consumers increasingly turning to non-bank competitors for auto lending.

Loan demand increased in most Districts, although New York and Kansas City reported mixed or steady demand and Philadelphia experienced a slight decline. St. Louis reported strong demand for mortgages and commercial and industrial loans, while demand for consumer loans remained unchanged.  Banks in the Atlanta District reported healthy pipelines in residential lending and increased mortgage refinancing. New York reported mixed loan demand at small-to-medium-sized banks including weakening demand for consumer loans and residential mortgages but rising demand for commercial loans. While lending grew in most categories in Dallas, contacts indicated that low oil prices continued to suppress demand. Contacts in Chicago noted that concerns about slower global economic growth had led to declines in equity markets, wider spreads for asset-backed securities, and an increase in financial market uncertainty, and in Dallas, financial market and monetary policy uncertainty had created concerns about 2016 growth prospects.

Credit standards remained the same for most Districts. In Philadelphia, some contacts noted a tightening of standards, especially for energy-related industries. In St. Louis, credit standards were unchanged to somewhat tighter for all loan categories. Loan pricing was competitive in Atlanta and Chicago. Banking contacts in Philadelphia indicated a competitive lending environment.

• Full Report
• Summary
• Boston
• New York
• Philadelphia
• Cleveland
• Richmond
• Atlanta
• Chicago
• St. Louis
• Minneapolis
• Kansas City
• Dallas
• San Francisco

 

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

CIT Capital Equipment Finance Announces Key Appointments
Expands Team in Originations, Underwriting and Asset Management

NEW YORK--CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT)cit.com, a leading provider of commercial lending and leasing services,  announced that Finance made several key appointments designed to further build a best-in-class originations team focused on creating tailored capital equipment financing solutions for middle market companies.

“I am very pleased to announce the appointment of these industry leaders to CIT Capital Equipment Finance,” said Eric Miller, Group Head and Managing Director, CIT Capital Equipment Finance. “In addition to the deep industry relationships and market expertise these seasoned veterans bring to our team, the elevation of several key members and further expansion of our group will enable us to build a best-in-class originations team committed to meeting the capital equipment financing needs of the middle market. These strategic appointments will expand our direct originations platform and allow us to offer large ticket equipment financing solutions across the entire United States and deliver strong value to our customers.”

The key origination appointments include:

• Steve Bander, Director: Bander is responsible for originations for the Midwest region of the U.S. Prior to joining CIT, he held positions of increasing responsibility at U.S. Leasing Corporation, Heller Financial, Lendx, Merrill Lynch Capital, GE Capital Corporation and Huntington Equipment Finance. He received a BA from Michigan State University.

• Jason Fronheiser, Director: Fronheiser is responsible for originations for the Southwest region of the U.S. Prior to joining CIT, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Fifth Third Bank and GE Capital Corporation where he focused on business development and relationship management and providing equipment finance and working capital solutions to middle market and large companies. Fronheiser received a BA from Penn State University and an MBA from Southern Methodist University Cox School of Business.

• Brandon L. Hannaman, Director: Hannaman is responsible for originations for the Western region of the U.S. He previously served as Senior Vice President at GE Capital Corporation where he covered Northern California and Hawaii specializing in leases and loans for middle market companies. Hannaman has additional financing experience in corporate aircraft, real estate and corporate lending. He received a BS in Business Finance from California State University, Chico.

• Michael Tornichia, Director: Tornichia is responsible for originating large ticket equipment leasing and lending relationships, as well as project finance-related activities within the Northeast region of the U.S. He previously served as Senior Vice President at GE Capital Corporation and held positions of increasing responsibility at Bank of America and Nations Equipment Finance. He received a BA from Lehigh University.

• Edward Ciccone, Director: Ciccone joins CIT as Director and Head of Underwriting for Capital Equipment Finance. Previously, Ciccone was with GE Capital Corporation for 23 years, where his experience included equipment financing, corporate aircraft financing, franchise finance, cash flow lending and credit rating methodologies. He also retains 15+ years of experience in leadership roles, the vast majority of which involved leading and developing credit/underwriting teams. Ciccone received his BBA and MBA from Western Connecticut State University.

• Scott Schumacher, Vice President: Schumacher is responsible for Asset Management reporting to Kelly Lane, who was recently promoted to Director and Head of Asset Management. Schumacher previously served as Vice President at SunTrust Equipment Finance, where he performed Asset Management duties as well as Key Equipment Finance in Superior, Colorado. He has experience in a wide variety of equipment including rail, transportation and intermodal assets. He received a BS in International Business from Colorado Technical University. Schumacher is currently based in Atlanta, but will be relocating to Dallas, Texas.

In addition, Kevin Ronan was appointed Director, Buy-Desk to originate transactions through financial intermediaries. He will work with Rob Seltzer, who was recently named National Sales Manager. Ronan has more than 25 years of experience in the equipment finance industry and has held various sales leadership roles at GE Capital and RBS Citizens Asset Finance. He received his BA from Pace University.

About CIT Capital Equipment Finance
CIT Capital Equipment Finance is a leading provider of equipment financing solutions for middle market companies in a wide range of industries. CIT Equipment Finance specializes in providing equipment loans and leases for transactions ranging in size from $5 million to approximately $100 million and more. cit.com/capitalequipment

About CIT
Founded in 1908, CIT (NYSE: CIT) is a financial holding company with more than $65 billion in assets. Its principal bank subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A., (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender) has more than $30 billion of deposits and more than $40 billion of assets. It provides financing, leasing and advisory services principally to middle market companies across a wide variety of industries primarily in North America, and equipment financing and leasing solutions to the transportation sector. It also offers products and services to consumers through its Internet bank franchise and a network of retail branches in Southern California, operating as OneWest Bank, a division of CIT Bank, N.A. cit.com

 

(Leasing News provides this ad as a trade for appraisals and equipment valuations provided by Ed Castagna)

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

Prepare for the New Lease Accounting Rules with
New Resources from the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association

Washington, D.C.—The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) has released a host of new user-friendly tools to help lessors and lessees prepare for new lease accounting rules issued recently by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The association is encouraging businesses to prepare now for the new rules, which take effect in 2019 for public companies and a year later for private firms. ELFA’s educational resources provide a comprehensive look at the important elements of the new rules and what lessees and lessors should be doing now to plan for the transition. The resources reveal that although the rules will change how operating leases are accounted for on corporate balance sheets, they won’t diminish the many benefits of leasing and financing equipment.

Ralph Petta
ELFA President/CEO

“Now is the time to prepare for the transition to the new lease accounting rules,” said ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta. “ELFA is pleased to offer new resources to help our members understand and plan for what’s in the rules and educate their sales teams, vendor partners and end-users about the changes.”

Tools for Lessors

The following resources, available on ELFA’s website at www.elfaonline.org/issues/accounting/?fa=LAS, are designed to bring ELFA members and other stakeholders up-to-speed on what’s changing and plan for the transition: 

• FAQ: Answers to Your Questions About the New Rules
• Top 6 Tips for Lessors to Prepare for the New Rules
• White Paper: Navigating the New Lease Accounting Standard – Learn what’s new in the rules; what the implications are; and what lessees and lessors need to do to prepare for the transition.
• White Paper: Changes in Lease Accounting – Understand changes in the new rules; educate your sales teams, vendor partners and end-users about the rules; and allay potential customer concerns about the impending changes.

Tools for Lessees

The following resources, available on ELFA’s end-user website at www.equipmentfinanceadvantage.org/newLAR.cfm, are customer-ready so that ELFA members may share them directly with end-users and other stakeholders:

• FAQ: Answers to Your Questions About the New Rules
• Top 5 Tips for Lessees to Prepare for the New Rules
• Infographic: Top 5 Tips to Prepare for the New Lease Accounting Rules

Events

ELFA has planned a number of events to educate industry participants about the new lease accounting rules, including:
•       Doing Business Under the New Lease Accounting Standard – Attend this March 2 workshop in person or watch the simulcast.
•       Overview of the Final Lease Accounting Standard – Listen to a recording of this Feb. 9 web seminar.
•       Lease and Finance Accountants Conference – Save the date for this annual event, Sept. 12-14 in Baltimore.

About ELFA
The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) is the trade association that represents companies in the $1 trillion equipment finance sector, which includes financial services companies and manufacturers engaged in financing capital goods. ELFA members are the driving force behind the growth in the commercial equipment finance market and contribute to capital formation in the U.S. and abroad. Its 580 members include independent and captive leasing and finance companies, banks, financial services corporations, broker/packagers and investment banks, as well as manufacturers and service providers. For more information, please visit www.elfaonline.org. Follow ELFA on Twitter @ELFAonline.

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

 

Fernando's View
By Fernando F. Croce

A pair of acclaimed, mesmerizing films ("The Witch," "Embrace of the Serpent") makes for a particularly unconventional night at the movies, while DVD releases offer evocative horror ("Crimson Peak"), urgent drama ("99 Homes") and tender discoveries ("A Special Day").

In Theaters:

The Witch (A24): The intriguing recent wave of quality horror releases continues with this haunting psychological drama, set in 17th-century New England. During times of superstition and fear, a family of farmers struggles with the disappearance of their young son. As they search for the missing child, the parents come to blame their oldest daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), whose own situation on the verge of womanhood is seen as dangerously sinful by the strict community. When Thomasin is accused of witchcraft by a pair of siblings, paranoia threatens to engulf every character—but is the maiden as innocent as she says she is? Directed by Robert Eggers with an unnerving touch and a splendid sense of atmosphere that belies the film’s modest budget, this is an exceptionally evocative tale about a nation’s primal horrors.

Embrace of the Serpent (Oscilloscope Pictures): History and legend mix absorbingly in this acclaimed Colombian adventure drama, which sets up a dual, decade-spanning and brain-teasing narrative. In the intertwined stories, set in the 1900s and the 1940s, two anthropologists named Theo (Jan Bijvoet) and Schultes (Brionne Davis) are guided through murky territory by a shaman known as Karamakate (played by Nibio Torres and Antonio Bolivar). The last surviving member of the Cohiuano tribe, Karamakate comes to embody the magical spirit of the jungle, leading these two visitors down an increasingly dreamlike path. Directed by Cirio Guerra and nominated for the Best Foreign Oscar, the film unfolds as a tantalizing voyage into the soul of a mysterious natural world, weaving its spell on the story’s explorers and on audiences alike. With subtitles.

Netflix Tip: A striking eye for nearly five decades, cinematographer Douglas Slocombe (1913-2016) lent his talents to a variety of classics ranging from British dramas to American blockbusters. So hit Netflix for some of his best work, which includes "Kind Hearts and Coronets" (1949), "The Servant" (1963), "The Fearless Vampire Killers" (1967) and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981).

On DVD:

Crimson Peak (Universal): A visually talented filmmaker with a passion for the gothic, Guillermo del Toro (“Pan’s Labyrinth”) luxuriates in this very atmospheric horror picture. Mia Wasikowska stars as Edith Cushing, a young woman who finds herself living in an eerie British manor after marrying the secretive Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston). While staying clear of her severe new sister-in-law Lucille (Jessica Chastain), Edith learns that she can communicate with spirits—a gift that puts her at odds with the Sharpe family, who are determined to maintain the mysteries of the mansion safe from outsiders. With a story that somewhat suggests Hitchcock’s “Rebecca” and is full of nods to other supernatural classics, Del Toro’s sumptuous haunted-house movie offers endless marvels for audiences looking for operatic horror.

99 Homes (Broad Green): Andrew Garfield and Michael Shannon shine in this earnest social critique from writer-director Ramin Bahrani. Garfield plays Dennis Nash, a struggling single father desperately looking for work after his family is evicted from their home. With his mother (Laura Dern) and young son living in motel rooms, Dennis finally succumbs to the demonic charisma of Rick Carver (Shannon), a ruthless businessman who takes him under his wing and teaches him about the lure of unchecked capitalism. As he embarks on a project to foreclose 99 homes, however, his conscience starts acting up. Made with palpable passion and moral commitment, Bahrani's film compensates for its stylistic modesty with a vigorous raid on complacency. The results are urgent, thoughtful, and as brutal as any thriller now out in theaters.

A Special Day (Criterion): Though not as well-remembered as such peers as Federico Fellini or Michelangelo Antonioni, director Ettore Scola carved a honorable niche in Italian cinema with his seriocomic humanism. Few of his films are available on American DVD, which makes Criterion's release of this tender 1977 drama all the more laudable. Set in the late 1930s during a meeting of fascist leaders, the story follows Antonietta (Sophia Loren), a neglected Roman housewife who over the course of a day strikes up a friendship with her neighbor Gabriele (Marcello Mastroianni), a secretive journalist. A romance seems to be building up, but a sudden revelation pulls the rug from under them. Studying the effect of oppression on outcasts while maintaining a light and touching tone, Scola's film lingers as a duet between two of Italy's greatest stars. With subtitles.

Labrador Retriever
Plano, Texas  Adopt-a-Dog

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Age: 8 years
House Trained
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Plano Animal Shelter
4028 Plano Parkway
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The shelter is open Tuesday-Friday 9-6, Saturday and Sunday from 10-4. Visitations and adoptions end 15 minutes before closing. We are closed on Mondays. Please contact the shelter to make sure an animal is available.

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

 

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Information Updated

Leasing/Finance Conferences --- 2016

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March 22
14th Annual IMN/ELFA
Investors Conference
Union League Club
New York, New York

Bruce Kropschot, Senior Managing Director and
Merger & Acquisition Advisory Practice Leader, The Alta Group,
will be covering the Investors Conference for Leasing News.

Agenda

Registration

Description

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April 19 - 21
28th Annual National Funding Conference
Siwssotel Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

Brochure

Schedule

Pricing

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April 28 – April 30, 2016
2016 Annual Conference
25th Anniversary
Tropicana Las Vegas
Las Vegas, NV

Every week until the conference, NAELB will draw the name of a Broker registered to attend the conference to win a free airport transfer by limousine! Register now for your chance to win!!

The National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers, (NAELB), is celebrating its 25th Anniversary in 2016 with some special recognition during its 2016 Annual Conference, Executive Director Joe Casey announced.

“In Celebration of 25 Years of being the only Leasing Industry Association by Brokers, for Brokers, the National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers is excited to invite as many of the Founding and Charter Members and Past Presidents of the association that can participate to the NAELB 2016 Annual Conference being held April 28-30, 2016 at the Tropicana Las Vegas,” Casey said. “While we wish all could attend, we’re grateful to all for their contributions to NAELB and look forward to toasting as many as we can during a 25th Anniversary celebration planned for the opening reception,” he added.

A highlight of the event is certain to be the introduction of NAELB’s Founders & Charter Members, as well as the Past Presidents who shaped the organization into the vibrant association it’s become. An alphabetical listing of these remarkable individuals follows:
 
Founding and Charter Members (*NAELB Past Presidents)
Joel Addison, Jim Blizzard, Bo Bohannan, Jim Borland*, Renee Fox, Fred Leo, Mike Losey*, Tom Madonna, Barry Marks, Jim McKee, Doug Mills, Gerry Oestreich*, Bob Otterbacher*, Dave Pittman, Neal Roth, Bruce
Sciotto, June Sciotto* and Leo Timmerman.

Past Presidents
Bob Bell, Corey Bell, Jim Borland, Bud Callahan, Donna Cole, Gerry Egan, Jack Harvey, Mike Losey,  Mike Meacher,  Joan Modes, Brian Montgomery, Gerry Oestreich, Robert Otterbacher, Spencer Richman, June
Sciotto, Patrick Sponsel, Sonia v.M. Stoddard and Heather von Bargen.

 

 

Schedule:

Intro to Advantage 2.0 & alaQuote Training
Presented by: Jim Buckles, Preferred Business Solutions

Broker 101
Presented by: Charles (Bud) Callahan, Jr., CLP, BPB,
National Equipment Leasing, Inc

First-Timers/New Member Orientation
Presented by Sonia v.M. Stoddard, BPB,
NAELB Past President, Stoddard & Associate

Professional Development
Presented by Brian Huey, Lease$ource
and Jaime A. Kaneshina, CLFP, BPB,
The Cambridge Capital Group

Back to the Future Comes Full Circle
Session Type: Change
Moderated by Rodney Blecha, Precision Leasing, Inc.
Panel includes: Donna Cole, Business Capital Leasing,
Gerry Egan, TecSource,
Gary Greene, Lease $mart,
Barry Marks,
Marks & Associates,
Gerry Oestreich, ABC Leasing
and John Winchester, ComCo-One World Equipment Finance

Tools to Detect Fraud
Session Type: Change
Presented by Andrew Alper & Hal Goldflam,
Frandzel Robins Bloom & Csato, L.C.

Stand Out. Sell More. Your Services Are
Not Just Another Commodity.
Session Type: Opportunity
Presented by Richard Farrell, Tangent Knowledge Systems

Small Business Owners Panel
Session Type: Challenge
Moderated by Abbie DeYonge, Channel Partners Capital

Speed Dating/Networking – Session #1
Session Type: Change

Stand Out. Sell More. Your Services
Are Not Just Another Commodity.
Session Type: Opportunity
Presented by Richard Farrell, Tangent Knowledge Systems

There are more sessions and speakers.

Brochure

Register

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May 4 - May 6
36h Annual AGLF Conference
Omni Charlotte Hotel
Charlotte, North Carolina

 

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September 16-17, 2016
2016 Eastern Regional Meeting
Cincinnati Airport Marriott
Hebron, KY
Conference Chair:
Rodny Blecha, Precision Leasing

 

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October 23 -25th
2016  55th Annual Conference
Palm Desert Springs
Palm Desert, California

November 11-12, 2016
2016 Western Regional Meeting
Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Anaheim-Orange County
Orange, CA

 

News Briefs---

Dwolla Fined $100,000 for Way Handles Security
   Misrepresented Security of its Platform
http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/story/ef0d69166c834b1
4afff9534a6b1cdb8/IA--Payments-Network-Fined

Bitcoin Technology Tested In Trial by 40 Big Banks
http://www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2016/03/03/bitcoin-technology-tested-in-trial-by-40-big-banks/#6c610ce63d97

Sports Authority files for bankruptcy and plans to shut or sell 140 stores
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-sports-authority-20160303-story.html

GM Financial completes $2.75B in public offerings In Two Rounds
http://www.autoremarketing.com/subprime/gm-financial-completes-275-billion-securitization

comScore Reports January 2016 U.S. Smartphone
  Subscriber Market Share-Apple/Samsung 72%
http://www.comscore.com/Insights/Rankings/comScore-Reports-January-2016-US-Smartphone-Subscriber-M

Element Financial's CEO Steven Hudson Q4 2015 Results - Seeking Alpha 16 pages
http://seekingalpha.com/article/3949976-element-financials-eleef-ceo-steven-hudson-q4-2015-results-earnings-call-transcript

 

[headlines]
--------------------------------------------------------------

--You May Have Missed It

Small Business Credit Survey
-Summary/Full Report 70 pages
https://www.newyorkfed.org/smallbusiness/small-business-credit-survey-employer-firms-2015

 

((Please Click on Bulletin Board to learn more information))
(Leasing News provides this ad “gratis” as a means
to help support the growth of Lease Police)

[headlines]
--------------------------------------------------------------

SparkPeople--Live Healthier and Longer

Exercising with Your Dog
Pets Can Help Improve Your Health & Fitness
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=519

[headlines]
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Winter Poem

Songs of Myself
             by Walt Whitman

first two paragraphs of “3”

I have heard what the talkers were talking, the talk of the beginning
and the end,
but I do not talk of the beginning or the end.

There was never any more inception than there is now,
Nor any more youth or age than there is now,
And will never be any more perfection than there is now,
Nor any more heaven or hell than there is now.

 

[headlines]
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Sports Briefs----

 Oakland Raiders free agency wish list
http://isportsweb.com/2016/03/02/oakland-raiders-free-agency-wish-list/

Tom Brady’s suspension likely to be restored after rough court day
http://nypost.com/2016/03/03/tom-bradys-suspension-likely-to-be-restored-after-rough-court-day/

49ers, Raiders have more than $100 million
to spend with NFL free agency starting Monday
http://www.insidebayarea.com/sports/ci_29585247/49ers-raiders-have-more-than-100-million-spend

49ers coach Chip Kelly clear on QB’s
   most important attribute
http://www.sacbee.com/sports/nfl/san-francisco-49ers/article63773742.html

Future Super Bowls site to be decided in May
http://www.theredzone.org/BlogDescription/tabid/61/EntryId/55130/Future-Super-Bowls-site-to-be-decided-in-May/Default.aspx

 

Receivables Management LLC John Kenny • End of Lease Negotiations & Enforcement  • Third-Party Commercial Collections john@jkrmdirect.com | ph 315-866-1167 www.jkrmdirect.com

(Leasing News provides this ad as a trade for investigative
reporting provided by John Kenny)

[headlines]
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California Nuts Briefs---

UC Davis chancellor received $420,000 on book publisher’s board
http://www.sacbee.com/news/investigations/the-public-eye/article63917982.html

Rose Broome uses crowdfunding to offer hope to homeless
http://www.sfgate.com/visionsf/article/Rose-Broome-uses-crowdfunding-to-offer-hope-to-6857696.php

 

 

[headlines]
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“Gimme that Wine”

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

Ask a Somm: When Should I Decant Wine?
http://www.eater.com/drinks/2016/3/2/11145528/ask-a-somm-when-decant-wine

Go directly to jail (now a tasting room) on a Maui winery tour
http://www.latimes.com/travel/california/la-trb-hawaii-maui-vineyards-20160301-story.html

Robert Parker: ‘I Like Wines That Say Something Back to Me’
https://grapecollective.com/articles/robert-parker-i-like-wines-that-say-something-back-to-me

Free Mobile Wine Program
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2010/2_26.htm#mobile

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

 

Until the 20th Amendment changed the date of the Presidential Inauguration to January 20, Inauguration Day was held on March 4. The first President to be inaugurated on January 20 was Franklin D. Roosevelt for his second term.
    1493 – Columbus arrived in Portugal, aboard his ship Nina, from his voyage to what is now The Bahamas and other islands in the Caribbean. Some believe his real name is Fernandes Zarco, born
in Madeira.
http://lege.net/blog.lege.net/financialoutrage.org.uk/
reformation.org/portuguese-columbus.html
    1629 – England granted a royal charter to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Concerned about the legality of conflicting land claims given to several companies including the New England Company to the still little-known territories of the New World, and because of the increasing number of Puritans that wanted to join the company, leaders sought a Royal Charter for the colony. King Charles I granted the new charter, superseding the land grant and establishing a legal basis for the new English colony at Massachusetts.  The Massachusetts Bay Colony became the first English chartered colony whose board of governors did not reside in England. This independence helped the settlers to maintain their Puritan religious practices with very little oversight by the king, Archbishop Laud, and the Anglican Church.
    1636 - The oldest extant house of the English-speaking colonies, the Adam Thoroughgood House, was built near Norfolk, VA. Its design typified that of the small southern colonial brick farmhouse of the seventeenth century.
http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/virginia/norfolk/
thoroughgood/house.html
    1636 - The oldest surviving timber-frame house in North America, the Fairbanks House, was built at Dedham, Mass.  Jonathan Fairbanke (Fairbank, Fairbanks) came from England to Boston in 1633, and in 1636/37 acquired land and settled in Dedham, Massachusetts, where he built the house on his farm land. The house is likely the oldest dwelling house in New England and the oldest house continuously owned by the builder and his lineal descendants. Since the original purchase, the estate has never had a mortgage upon it.
http://www.fairbankshouse.org/
    1681 - England's King Charles II granted a charter to William Penn (37) for 48,000 square miles that later became Pennsylvania. Penn originally called the land “Sylvania,” meaning woods, but the King wants to honor William Penn’s father and changed the decree
to Pennsylvania. Penn’s father had bequeathed him a claim of £15,000 against the king. King Charles also granted a royal charter, deed and governorship of Pennsylvania to William Penn. Penn later laid out the city of Philadelphia as a gridiron about 2 miles long, east to west, and a mile wide.
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~CAP/PENN/pnhome.html
    1747 - American revolutionary hero Casmir Pulaski was born at Winjary, Mazovia, Poland, the son of a count.  He is also known as the father of the American cavalry. Pulaski’s Legion became the training ground for American cavalry officers including "Light Horse" Harry Lee, the father of Robert E. Lee, and the model for Lee's and Armand's legions. Thirteen Polish officers served under Pulaski in the legion. The best assessment of Pulaski's legion came from a British officer who called them simply "the best damned cavalry the rebels ever had". Reportedly he did not speak English. He was a patriot and military leader in Poland's fight against Russia of 1770-71 and went into exile at the partition of Poland in 1772. He came to American in 1777 to join the Revolution, fighting with General Washington at Brandywine and also serving at Germantown and Valley Forge. Congress acknowledged Pulaski's leadership and bravery and decided to commission him as Brigadier General and gave him command of four light Cavalry regiments. He organized the Pulaski Legion to wage guerrilla warfare against the British. In 1779, Pulaski and his legion were sent south to the besieged city of Charleston where he immediately raised morale and assisted in breaking the siege. A joint operation with the French was planned to recapture the city of Savannah. Against Pulaski's advice, the French commander ordered an assault against the strongest point of the British defense.  Seeing the allied troops falter, Pulaski galloped forward to rally the men, when he was mortally wounded by British cannon shot. He died two days later aboard the warship Wasp on Oct 11, 1779, and was buried at sea. Pulaski was the romantic embodiment of the flashing saber and the trumpets calling to the charge, and that is how history has remembered him. The larger-than-life aspect of his death has often obscured his steadier, quieter, and more lasting services. It was in the drudgery of forging a disciplined American cavalry that could shadow and report on British movements, in the long distance forage raids to feed and clothe the troops at Valley Forge, and the bitter hit and run rearguard actions that covered retreating American armies that slowed British pursuit, that gave Pulaski the title of "Father of the American Cavalry".  Pulaski Day is celebrated on the first Monday of March in Illinois.
http://webinstituteforteachers.org/2001/teams/holidays/pulpage.html
http://www.chipublib.org/003cpl/pulaski.html
http://www.iyp.org/polish/history/pulaski.html
http://webinstituteforteachers.org/2001/teams/holidays/pulpage.html
    1776 - Considered the US Marines’ first military engagement: Captain Samuel Nicholas and approximately 200 marines captured Fort Nassau in the Bahamas. Nicholas was assisted by 50 sailors under Lieutenant Thomas Weaver of the Cabot. This area was a major trading area and seaway to the Americas and a vital first battle, sending a message to European countries the revolution was serious to their commerce. The assault was a surprise attack and the fort surrendered without conflict The Americans captured large military stores, including about 100 cannon, 15 mortars, 5,400 shells, and 11,000 rounds of ammunition, and brought them back to New London, CT, on April 8. This naval expedition, which left the Delaware Capes on February 17, 1776, was under the command of Esek Hopkins of the “Alfred.”
    1776 - The Continental Army fortified Dorchester with cannon, leading the British troops to abandon the Siege of Boston.
    1781 - Birthday of Rebecca Gratz (d. 1869), born into a socially prominent Colonial/American Jewish family in Philadelphia.   Philanthropist and educator, she devoted most of her life to improving the conditions of abused and poor women and children by organizing assistance programs that became models for reform throughout the new country. She organized the Female Association of the Relief of Women and Children in Reduced Circumstances (1801), an orphan asylum (1815), a female Hebrew benevolent society and a Hebrew Sunday school society. She served as the model for Rebecca in Sir Walter Scott's “Ivanhoe” who was, like the real life Rebecca, brave, intelligent and devoted to helping those not as fortunate as she.
http://www.philsch.k12.pa.us/schools/moffet/pa_women/
rebecca_%20gratz.htm
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Gratz.html
    1789 - The first Congress, 9 Senators and 13 Representatives, met at New York, NY, declared the Constitution in effect and The Bill of Rights was adopted.  A quorum was obtained in the House Apr 1 and in the Senate April 5, and the first Congress was formally organized Apr 6. Electoral votes were counted, and George Washington was declared President (69 votes) and John Adams Vice President (34 votes). Although the Continental Congress had set the first Wednesday of March, 1789 as the date for the new government to convene, a quorum was not present to count the electoral votes April 6. Highways were non-existent and travel between states was horrible.  President Washington did not take the oath of office until Apr 30, 1789. All subsequent presidential terms, except successions following the death of an incumbent, until Franklin D. Roosevelt's second term, began Mar 4. The 20th Amendment in 1933 changed the date to noon on the 20th day of January.
    1791 - Vermont became the 14th state. Known as the Green Mountain State, that is also what the French phrase ‘vert mont' means. Montpelier is Vermont's capital city. "Hail Vermont" is the state song which goes right along with the state motto: Vermont, Freedom and Unity. The hermit thrush stands alone as the state bird; and the red clover is the colorful state flower which attracts the state insect, the honeybee. The Morgan horse is the state animal. The state tree is the sugar maple which makes all that famous Vermont maple syrup.
    1791 - Israel Jacobs was elected by Pennsylvania to the House of Congress, the first Jewish congressman.
http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=J000036
    1793 - George Washington was inaugurated in Philadelphia for a second term as President of the United States.  He gave the shortest inaugural address in history, 133 words.
    1794 - The Eleventh Amendment was passed by Congress and it was the first Constitutional amendment adopted after the Bill of Rights. The amendment was adopted following the Supreme Court's ruling that federal courts had the authority to hear cases in law and equity brought by private citizens against states and that states did not enjoy sovereign immunity from suits made by citizens of other states in federal court.
    1797 - John Adams inaugurated as 2nd President of US
    1801 - Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated as the third President of the United States; he was the first to be inaugurated in the new capital of Washington.  The Marine Band performed at a Presidential Inauguration for the first time.     
    1809 - Madison became the first President inaugurated in American -made clothes.
    1811 - The first Bank of the United States was forced to liquidate its assets and shutter its doors after suffering the slings of local bankers and state-centric politicians. Founded in 1791, the creation of the bank had been one of the first acts of the newly formed U.S. Congress. But the bank was an almost instant source of controversy.  Though backed by Federal funds, the bank was essentially a private company, complete with investors, which engendered a loud and powerful chorus of critics. Some feared that the bank would become an all too potent central institution and would be federally based rather that state based. Many merchants hoping to open their own state-based financial institutions carped over the competition from the bank's network of branch offices. The call for dissolution grew louder when it was revealed that the bank's coffers leaned heavily on foreign investments, most notably from British interests. So, even though the bank was profitable and paid out relatively handsome dividends to investors, the critics won out and forced its demise.
   1815 - Educator Myrtilla Miner (d. 1815) was born near Brookfield, NY.   Against considerable opposition, she bravely founded and operated the Colored Girls School in Washington, D.C., in the face of a hostile society. It was supported by the Quakers and donations from abolitionists. Although it changed locations and names - the latest being the District of Columbia Teachers College - it maintained Miner's original intent: to teach teachers who would teach others. Harriet Beecher Stowe gave $1000 of her Uncle Tom's Cabin royalties to the school.
http://www.famousamericans.net/myrtillaminer/
    1825 - John Quincy Adams inaugurated as 6th President
    1826 – The first U.S. railroad was chartered, Granite Railway in Quincy, Massachusetts.  It was built to carry granite from Quincy to a dock on the Neponset River in Milton. From there, boats carried the heavy stone to Charlestown for construction of the Bunker Hill Monument.
    1829 - President Andrew Jackson introduced the ‘spoils system' when he rewarded Simon Cameron with a political appointment for political assistance.
    1830 - John Quincy Adams returned to the House of Representatives to represent the district of Plymouth, MA. He was the first former President to do so and served for eight consecutive terms.
    1837 - City of Chicago incorporates.  The name "Chicago" is derived from a French rendering of the Native American word ‘shikaakwa’, translated by some sources as ‘wild leek,’ ‘wild onion,’ or ‘wild garlic’, from the Miami-Illinoi language.  The first known reference to the site of the current city of Chicago as "Checagou" was by the explorer Robert LaSalle around 1679 in a memoir.  On August 12, 1833, the Town of Chicago was organized with a population of about 200.  Within seven years it grew to more than 4,000 people.
http://www.chipublib.org/004chicago/timeline/inc.html
    1837 - Martin Van Buren inaugurated as 8th President
    1841 - President William Henry Harrison caught a fatal cold while standing hatless without a coat in the drizzle at his own Presidential inauguration. He also had the longest inauguration speech (8,443 words) in history. A month later, he became the first U.S. President to die in office.
    1845 - James K Polk inaugurated as 11th President
    1847 - Pioneer obstetrician and medical educator Anna Elizabeth Broomall (d. 1931) was born in Upper Chichester Township, PA.  The low mortality rate under Dr. Broomall was less than one-tenth of a percent among more than 2,000 mothers. A Quaker, Broomall wore black gowns and had a brisk, quiet nature that was formidable when angry. She was not admitted to the all-male Philadelphia Obstetrical Society until 1892 although her writings were presented to members.  Dr. Broomall was part of the first group of women allowed to attend clinical lectures alongside male students and physicians at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia.  She was chief resident physician at the Woman's Hospital of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania from 1875 to 1883 and instructor of obstetrics from 1875 to 1879. She became chair of obstetrics in 1879, and served as a professor in the department from 1880 to 1903.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Bonnie_Montgomery
/Anna_Elizabeth_Broomall.
    1849 - The US did not have a President for one day.  Senator David Atchison was the President Pro Tempore when Polk's term was to end on March 3rd. History records the term of President James K. Polk ended on Sunday March 4, 1849, and President-Elect Zachary Taylor refused to take the oath of office on a Sunday, so Senator Atchison is said to have been President of the United States for one day. In reality President Polk's term was extended for one day, and David Atchison spent the entire day on which he was supposed to have been President in bed ill.
http://www.galleryofhistory.com/archive/10_2000/master/
david_rice_atchison.htm
http://www.atchison.net/genealogy/drice.htm
http://www.picturehistory.com/find/p/3966/mcms.html
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=4972  
    1857 - Considered by historians as the most famous court case in the long slavery controversy, the Supreme Court ruled that Dred Scott, a slave in Saint Louis, Missouri, was not a citizen and could not sue in the federal courts, and that Congress had no power to restrict slavery in the territories.
    1861 – President Lincoln opened the Government Printing Office.
    1861 - Abraham Lincoln was sworn in as the 16th President of the United States. In a stirring inaugural address, delivered under the watchful guard of riflemen, Lincoln appealed for the preservation of the Union, threatened by the recent secession of seven Southern states opposed to the new leader's policy against the expansion of slavery. Attempting to retain his support in the North without further alienating the South, Lincoln called for compromise, promising he would not initiate force to maintain the Union or interfere with slavery in the states in which it existed. He did, however, vow to retain federal property. One month later, his refusal to surrender or evacuate Fort Sumter in South Carolina, prompted the Confederates to launch the first attack of the Civil War.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/mar04.html
    1865 - The third and final national flag of the Confederate States of America was adopted by the Confederate Congress.
    1865 - President Lincoln inaugurated for his 2nd term as President.
    1867 - Ida Gray Nelson Rollins (d. 1953), the first black woman in the U.S. to hold a D.D.S. degree, was born in Clarksville, Tenn.
http://www.toptags.com/aama/bio/women/drgray.htm
    1869 - Ulysses Grant inaugurated as 18th President
    1880 - For the first time halftone engraving was used in New York City's "Daily Graphic".
    1881 - James A. Garfield inaugurated as 20th President. Eliza Ballou Garfield became the first mother of a United States President to live in the White House, when she moved in with her son.
    1881 - California became the first state to pass plant quarantine legislation
    1884 – National League owners agreed to provide two separate team benches to minimize fraternizing among opposing players during games.   
    1885 - Grover Cleveland was inaugurated as the first Democratic President since Civil War.
    1886 – The National League adopted the stolen base and the four foot by seven foot pitcher’s box. But the NL retained seven balls for a walk and rejected the American League’s rule giving a batter first base when hit by a pitch.
    1888 - Knute Rockne was born at Voss, Norway. Rockne played end at the University of Notre Dame and, in 1918, was appointed head coach at his alma mater. Over 13 seasons, Rockne became a living legend, and Notre Dame Football rose to a position of unprecedented prominence.  He was an early innovator, using shifts before the snap and multiple formations.  He also was among the few, and was the most successful, at using the forward pass in his offense.  His teams won 105 games and three national championships against only 12 losses and 5 ties. His teams were undefeated and untied five times.  He is regarded among the great, if not the greatest college football coaches in history.  Rockne died in a plane crash at Bazaar, KS, on March 31, 1931.1889 - Benjamin Harrison inaugurated as 23rd President.
    1891 – Arthur “Dazzy” Vance (d. 1961), Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher, was born at Orient, IA. Vance “dazzled” opposing teams with his pitching prowess. He won 197 games over 16 years, mostly with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1955.   
     1891 – Birthday of Lois W., born Lois Burnham, co-founder of Al-Anon, in Brooklyn.
    1893 - Grover Cleveland was inaugurated for a second but nonconsecutive term as President. In 1885, he had become 22nd President of the US and, in 1893, the 24th. Originally a source of some controversy, the Congressional Directory for some time listed him only as the 22nd president. The Directory now lists him as both the 22nd and 24th Presidents though some historians continue to argue that one person cannot be both. Benjamin Harrison served during the intervening term, defeating Cleveland in electoral votes, though not in the popular vote.
    1897 - William McKinley inaugurated as 25th President of US.
    1897 – Francis Joseph “Lefty” O'Doul, baseball player, manager, restaurant owner, bon vivant and close friend of Joe DiMaggio, was born at San Francisco. O'Doul switched from pitching to the outfield and became one of the greatest players not in the Hall of Fame. His career batting average was .349 including hitting .398 in 1929 and .383 in 1930.  After retiring in 1934, O'Doul then returned to the Pacific Coast League as manager of the San Francisco Seals from 1935-51, later managing several other teams in the circuit and becoming the most successful manager in PCL history. One of his outstanding accomplishments while managing the Seals was developing the young Joe DiMaggio.  O'Doul refused to take credit for DiMaggio's success, saying "I was just smart enough to leave him alone."  O'Doul was instrumental in spreading baseball's popularity in Japan, serving as the sport's goodwill ambassador before and after World War II.  The Tokyo Giants, sometimes considered "Japan's Baseball Team," were named by him in 1935 in honor of his longtime association with the New York Giants; the logo and uniform of the Giants in Japan strongly resemble their North American counterparts.   The popular restaurant and bar he founded still operates as Lefty O’Doul’s Restaurant and Cocktail Lounge and still serves his original recipe for Bloody Mary. He died at San Francisco, Dec 7, 1969.    
    1901 - President William McKinley inaugurated for 2nd term as President.
    1901 – Charles Goren (d. 1991) was born in Philadelphia.  Goren was a bridge player and writer who significantly developed and popularized the game. He was the leading American bridge personality in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s as "Mr. Bridge."
    1902 - American Automobile Association, AAA, founded in Cleveland, Ohio   
    1903 – Birthday of William C. Boyd in Dearborn, MO.  An immunochemist, with his wife Lyle, during the 1930s, made a worldwide survey of the distribution of blood types. He discovered that blood groups are inherited and not influenced by environment. By genetic analysis of blood groups, he hypothesized that human races are populations that differ by alleles. On that basis, he divided the world population into 13 geographically distinct races with different blood group gene profiles. Boyd co-wrote the book “Races and People” with Isaac Asimov.
    1906 – Charles Walgreen, founder of the pharmacy chain, was born in Chicago.
    1906 - Eloy "Buck" Canel (d. 1980) was born in Argentina when his father was working for the Spanish consulate in that country.  He was an American Spanish language sportscaster of Major League Baseball games for the New York Mets and New York Yankees games during the 1970s over radio station WHOM, which was then a Spanish radio station in New York City. The feeds were occasionally broadcast to Latin American radio stations.  Canel won the 1985 Ford C. Frick Award.
    1909 – Birthday of billionaire Harry Helmsley, best known for his late marriage to Leona Helmsley, in Manhattan.” The best advice I ever got was from my mother," he once noted. "It was simply, 'Buy real estate.' And like a dutiful son, I bought and bought and continue to buy throughout the country." At one point, he owned twenty-seven hotels, 50,000 apartments, and the Empire State Building to boot. Owning real estate proved to be quite lucrative for Helmsley, whose net worth was estimated at $1.7 billion by Forbes magazine in 1996. These far-flung achievements belied Helmsley's rather humble origins: the son of a dry goods salesman, Helmsley opted to skip college to enter the real estate business. However, whatever Helmsley's achievements in the business world, it's likely that he will always be remembered as the husband of the notorious Leona Helmsley. Dubbed the "Queen of Mean," for her domineering rule over the duo's hotel chain, Leona bore the brunt of the scorn and punishment for her and Harry's well-publicized trial for tax evasion in the late 1980s. Leona was slapped with a stiff fine and served eighteen months in prison for her tax crimes, while Harry, who had since decayed into senility, was deemed mentally unfit to stand trial. Harry Helmsley died on January 4, 1997. Leona died in 2007.
    1909 - Though fair weather was forecast, President Taft was inaugurated amidst a furious storm. About ten inches of wet snow disrupted travel and communications. The storm drew much criticism against the U.S. Weather Bureau. 
    1909 - President Taft used what became known much later as a Saxbe fix, a mechanism to avoid the restriction of the Constitution’s Ineligibility Clause.  Taft appointed Sen. Philander Knox as Secretary of State.  In his notes of the Philadelphia Convention in 1787, James Madison expressed the fear that members of Congress would create new federal jobs, or increase the salaries for existing jobs, and then take those jobs for themselves. Madison wrote that corrupt legislative actions, in the form of the unnecessary creation of offices and the increase of salaries for personal benefit, were one of his greatest concerns.  The delegates who were present agreed that no member of Congress should be eligible to be appointed to an executive position while serving in Congress.  Corruption such as previously seen in the British Parliament was a consideration during debate by the framers of the Constitution.  Legal scholars have accorded this clause little attention in their academic writings and there have been no cases which directly applied the clause.  Shortly after the announcement by Taft, the Clause emerged as a problem that caught those involved by surprise:  Knox had been elected to serve a term that would not end until 1911, and during that term, Congress had voted to increase executive branch pay.  Members of Congress considered reverting the fix after the appointed nominee had resigned and assumed the post so that Knox would not have to forgo any emoluments.  Members of Congress also discussed reverting the salaries of all United States Cabinet members.  At the suggestion of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Congress passed a bill reducing only the Secretary of State's salary to the level it had been at before Knox's term began, believing this would cure the problem. The Senate passed the bill unanimously, but there was stronger opposition in the House where the same measure failed to get a required two-thirds vote.  After a different procedural rule was applied, it passed by a 173–115 majority vote and President Roosevelt subsequently signed the bill.  On March 4, the first Saxbe Fix became effective when the salary of the Secretary of State (but not that of other Cabinet members) was reverted from $12,000 to $8,000. The Senate confirmed all of Taft's Cabinet appointees on March 5, and Knox took office on March 6.  The reference to Saxbe gained its name when, in 1973, President Richard Nixon sought to appoint Senator William Saxbe as Attorney General following the ‘Saturday Night Massacre’ during Watergate.
    1911 – The first socialist to be elected to Congress, Victor Berger of Wisconsin, took his seat.  He was a founding member of the Social Democratic Party of America. Born in Austria-Hingary, Berger immigrated to the United States as a young man and became an important and influential socialist journalist in Wisconsin. In 1919, Berger was convicted of violating the Espionage Act for publicizing his anti-militarist views and as a result was denied the seat to which he had been twice elected in the House. The verdict was eventually overturned by the Supreme Court, and Berger was elected to three successive terms in the 1920s.
    1912 - Ground was broken on a new ballpark in Brooklyn.  The $650,000 ballpark is scheduled to be called "Washington Park", but it was renamed for Brooklyn Dodgers president Charles Ebbets. Ebbets Field opened on April 9, 1913 and served as the Dodgers' home until 1957.
    1913 - Woodrow Wilson was inaugurated as the 28th United States president, only the second Democrat since the Civil War.
    1913 – The New York Yankees became the first Major League team to hold Spring Training outside the US when they begin the spring in Bermuda.  This is the first year with the new name, having been known as the Highlanders since moving from Baltimore in 1901.  It is also the Yankees’ first season sharing the Polo Grounds with the New York Giants.
    1913 - Department of Commerce and Labor were split into separate departments at cabinet-level.
    1913 – The first U.S. law regulating the shooting of migratory birds passed  
    1913 – Actor John Garfield was born Jacob Julius Garfinkle in NYC. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood, eventually becoming one of film’s major stars. Called to testify before the U.S. Congressional House Committee on Un-American Activities, he denied Communist affiliation and refused to "name names," effectively ending his film career. Some have alleged that the stress of this incident led to his premature death at 39 from a heart attack. Garfield is acknowledged as a predecessor of such method actors as Brando, Montgomery Clift, and James Dean. 
    1917 - The first female congressional representative was Jeanette Rankin, who was elected as a Republican from Montana and served from March 4, 1917 to March 4, 1919, and from January 3, 1941 to January 3, 1942. Montana women had the vote several years before the 1920 Federal amendment.  She would serve only one term because as a pacifist she voted against the U.S. entry into World War I. Ironically she was sent back to Congress just in time to cast the dissenting vote for the U.S. entry into World War II after the Japanese attack on U.S. installations at Pearl Harbor.
    1922 - F. Scott Fitzgerald's “The Beautiful & Damned” is published.
http://www.sc.edu/fitzgerald/index.html
    1924 - Guitarist Nat Reese born Salem, VA
http://www.wvculture.org/goldenseal/Vandalia2k/natreese.html
http://www.fiddletunes.com/pages/natr.htm
    1924 – “Happy Birthday to You” was first published by Claydon Sunny 
    1924 - Kenneth Patrick "Kenny" O'Donnell (d. 1977) was born in Worcester, MA and raised in Boston.  He was the special assistant and appointments secretary to President Kennedy. O'Donnell was a close friend of President Kennedy and his younger brother, Robert, and was part of the group of Kennedy's close advisors called the "Irish Mafia".  O'Donnell served as President Johnson’s aide from 1963 to 1965, and was a key campaign advisor for Robert Kennedy's 1968 Presidential campaign.
    1925 - In the first radio broadcast of a presidential inauguration, Calvin Coolidge took the oath of office in Washington DC.  It was broadcast over 21 stations.
    1927 - Trumpet player Cy Touff’s birthday, born Cyril James Touffn Chicago.  He served in the Army from 1944 to 1946 and in the military he played trombone. After the war he switched to bass trumpet and worked with Woody Herman and Sandy Mosse among others. He joined Herman's band in 1953 and in 1954-55 played with a reduced version of the band that also included Richie Kamuca. He and Mosse co-led an octet called “Pieces of Eight” late in the 1950s into the next decade.  He died in 2003
http://music.manumba.com/C/Cy_Touff.html
http://www.jazzinstituteofchicago.org/index.asp?target=/jazzgram/
bronzeville/cytouff.asp
    1929 – Charles Curtis became the first Native-American to be elected Vice-President of the US.
    1930 - ‘The Ole Redhead', Red Barber, began his radio career broadcasting on WRUF at the University of Florida in Gainesville. He would soon become one of the best known sports voices in the United States.
    1930 - The first mosaic pavement, similar to the mosaics of the ancient world, was laid on Canal Street, New Orleans, LA. The mosaic effect was secured by mixing chipped meteorite, Crown Point spar, and mica with the cement, then pouring the mixture into diamond-shaped brass stripped forms, sanding it down and polishing it. It was part of the project referred to as the ‘Beautification of Canal Street.”
http://theoldentimes.com/canal_st.html
http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/dpc/cityscapes/charles.asp
    1930 - In competition sanctioned by the Women's International Bowling Congress in Buffalo, New York, Emma Fahning became the first woman bowler to make a perfect score.
    1931 - Alice Mitchell Rivlin was born in Philadelphia.  U.S. economist.   She was a member of the Federal Reserve Board and director of the Congressional Budget Office which she created to put an end to the piecemeal budgetary enactment by Congress. She also set up long term fiscal planning for Congress. She was the first woman appointed vice chair of the Federal Reserve Board (1996) and was staff member of the influential Brookings Institute. Her other positions included deputy director, U.S. Office Management and Budget (1993-94). She is a self-described liberal Democrat.
    1931 - Robert “Bob” Johnson, hockey player, coach and executive, was born at Minneapolis, MN.  Johnson played college hockey at the University of Minnesota and began coaching high school hockey in 1956. He moved to Colorado College in 1963 and to the University of Wisconsin in 1967. Johnson's Badgers won three NCAA titles. He coached four US National teams and the1976 Olympic team. Johnson became head coach of the Calgary Flames in 1982 and led them to five straight Stanley Cup playoff appearances. He became executive director of the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States in 1987 and coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1990. They won the Stanley Cup a year later. Johnson was named coach of the US team for the 1991 Canada Cup, but surgery for a brain tumor prevented his participation. He was known throughout the hockey world for his favorite saying, “It's a good day for hockey.” Died at Colorado Springs, CO, Nov 26, 1991.
     1932 - Birthday of Miriam Makeba in Johannesburg, South Africa.   vocalist of international fame. She is one of the world's most prominent black African performers of the 20th and 21st centuries. Her best known number in the U.S. was "The Click Song."  http://www.music.org.za/artists/makeba.htm
    1933 - Franklin D. Roosevelt was sworn in as 32nd United States President.  He pledged to pull U.S. out of Depression and said "We have nothing to fear but fear itself."
    1933 - Frances Perkins became the first woman appointed to the president's cabinet when she was appointed Secretary of Labor by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
http://www.undelete.org/woa/woa03-04.html
    1934 - Singer/Actress/Television personality Barbara McNair was born in Chicago.
http://www.barbaramcnair.com/
http://members.tripod.com/SoulfulKindaMusic/bmcnair.htm
    1934 – The Easter Cross on Mt. Davidson in San Francisco was dedicated.
    1936 – The Hindenburg had its maiden voyage.
    1937 - Actor/producer/writer/composer/comedian and this night's host, George Jessel, welcomed the glamorous crowd to the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, the setting for the 9th Annual Academy Awards show. Which film was which, you ask? The envelope, if you please... For the films of 1936: Outstanding Production/Best Picture: "The Great Ziegfeld" (from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer); Best Director: Frank Capra for "Mr. Deeds Goes To Town"; Actor: Paul Muni ("The Story Of Louis Pasteur"); Actor in a Supporting Role: Walter Brennan ("Come and Get It"); Best Actress: Louise Rainer ("The Great Ziegfeld"); Actress in a Supporting Role: Gale Sondergaard ("Anthony Adverse"); Best Song: Dorothy Fields & Jerome Kern for "The Way You Look Tonight" from the movie, "Swing Time".
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0148036.html
    1937 - Saxophonist Barney Wilen was born in Nice, France.  He died in 1996
http://www.loustal.nl/barney_wilen%20cd-audio.htm
http://www.sunnysidezone.com/Artists/wilen.html
        1939 – Pitcher “Fat” Jack Fisher was born in Frostburg, MD.  He gave up two of baseball’s more famous HRs:  Ted Williams’ 521st in his final Major League at bat, in Fenway Park, (September 28, 1960); and Roger Maris’ 60th home run of the 1961 season (September 26, 1961) that tied Babe Ruth’s record.  He also, he gave up the first home run in Shea Stadium history, to Willie Stargell of the Pirates.
    1940 - Bob Chester Band records “Octave Jum'” (Bluebird 10649)
    1941 - Trumpet player Bobby Shew born Albuquerque NM
http://www.bobbyshew.com/bio.html
    1942 - On Okeh Records in Chicago, Illinois, Dick Jurgen's orchestra recorded "One Dozen Roses".
    1942 - Pianist/arranger David Matthews born, Sonora, KY
http://community-2.webtv.net/falconbird/RECENTRELEASESIVE/page3.html
http://www.walterwhite.com/davem.JPG
http://www.dmband.com/index.asp
    1942 - Shirley Temple starred in "Junior Miss" on CBS radio. The show, which was heard for the first time, cost $12,000 a week to produce and stayed on the air until 1954.
    1942 - On West 44th Street in New York, the Stage Door Canteen opened, becoming widely known as a club for men in the armed forces and a place to spend lonely hours. The USO, the United Service Organization, would grow out of the ‘canteen' operation, providing entertainment for American troops around the world.
    1943 - Actress Greer Garson's acceptance speech for the Best Actress Academy award for her role in “Mrs. Miniver”, lasted 5½ minutes, an industry record. As the press poked fun at her talkativeness, the story became more and more exaggerated, and Garson's speech was "remembered" as being a tedious hour-long ordeal. It became an embarrassing Hollywood legend for the talented and elegant Irish actress. Following the incident, time deadlines for acceptance speeches were established by the Academy, which, more often than not, weren't observed by award winners. The 15th Academy Awards presentation drew Hollywood luminaries to the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles to celebrate the great work done during the year 1942. Everybody seemed to like "Mrs. Miniver" (from Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer) better than any other movie that year. That movie was so good that it won William Wyler the Best Director Oscar; Greer Garson the Best Actress statuette; Teresa Wright the Best Actress in a Supporting Role prize; Joseph Ruttenberg the Cinematography/black-and-white Oscar; and George Froeschel, James Hilton, Claudine West and Arthur Wimperis the Writing/Screenplay award. Ah, but there was more to celebrate on that March night in 1943: James Cagney was presented the Best Actor Oscar for "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and Van Heflin was voted Best Actor in a Supporting Role for "Johnny Eager". And one other award is worth mentioning: a guy named Irving Berlin picked up the Best Song Oscar for a little ditty he had written for the film, "Holiday Inn": "White Christmas", the most-played song in the history of popular music.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0148205.html
    1943 - The woeful Philadelphia Phillies announced their new nickname - the Blue Jays. The winning entry was chosen over a number of names ranging from Daisies to Stinkers. The Blue Jays will be the official team name in 1943 and 1944, but will be abandoned in 1945, though the team will still occasionally be referred to in newspaper accounts as the Blue Jays through 1949.
    1943 - The Japanese convoy carrying troops of the 51st Division is again struck by Allied planes from the 5th Air Force. PT-boats join the attacks. Over the course of the three days, all the Japanese transports and 4 destroyers are sunk and at least 3500 troops are lost. Australian and American air forces have shot down 25 planes for the loss of 5 of their own. This is considered a serious defeat by the Japanese and a setback for their defense of New Guinea.
    1944 - *McGILL, TROY A., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Troop G, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. Place and date: Los Negros Islands, Admiralty Group, 4 March 1944. Entered service at: Ada, Okla. Birth: Knoxville, Tenn. G.O. No.: 74, 11 September 1944. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with the enemy at Los Negros Island, Admiralty Group, on 4 March 1944. In the early morning hours Sgt. McGill, with a squad of 8 men, occupied a revetment which bore the brunt of a furious attack by approximately 200 drink crazed enemy troops. Although covered by crossfire from machineguns on the right and left flank he could receive no support from the remainder of our troops stationed at his rear. All members of the squad were killed or wounded except Sgt. McGill and another man, whom he ordered to return to the next revetment. Courageously resolved to hold his position at all cost, he fired his weapon until it ceased to function. Then, with the enemy only 5 yards away, he charged from his foxhole in the face of certain death and clubbed the enemy with his rifle in hand-to-hand combat until he was killed. At dawn 105 enemy dead were found around his position. Sgt. McGill's intrepid stand was an inspiration to his comrades and a decisive factor in the defeat of a fanatical enemy.
    1944 - The U.S. Eighth Air Force launches the first American bombing raid against the German capital. The RAF flew 35 major raids between November 1943 and March 1944 and lost 1,047 aircraft, with an even greater number damaged. Fourteen U.S. bomber wings took off for Germany from England on the evening of March 4; only one plane reached Berlin (the rest dropped their loads elsewhere; few planes were lost to German defenses). In retrospect, the initial American attack was considered "none too successful" (as recorded in the official history of U.S. Army Air Force). Subsequent attacks in March were more effective.
    1945 – Former University of Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams was born in Collingswood, NJ.  In 2001, Williams led Maryland to the first Final Four in school history. In 2002, Williams led the Terrapins to their first and only NCAA National Championship, defeating Indiana 64–52. Williams is the only coach to ever win a national championship without a single McDonald’s All-American on the roster since its inception.
    1947 – “The Two Mrs. Carrolls”, a murder drama starring Humphrey Bogart as a psychopathic artist who paints his wives as Angels of Death then kills them, opened in theaters. The film also starred Barbara Stanwyck, Alexis Smith, and Nigel Bruce.
    1948 – “The Naked City”, an innovative film noir crime drama set in New York City and starring Barry Fitzgerald as the detective in charge, opened in United States theaters. The film's style has been copied countless times over the years, and later served as the basis of a popular television series of the same name.
    1949 – The UN Security Council recommended membership for Israel
    1950 - When Walt Disney released "Cinderella", it was Disney's first full-length, animated, feature film in eight years. It is still one of the top selling movies in both DVD and VHS format.
    1951 - Top Hits
“If” - Perry Como
“My Heart Cries for You” - Guy Mitchell
“Tennessee Waltz” - Patti Page
“There's Been a Change in Me” - Eddy Arnold
    1952 - Ronald and Nancy Reagan's wedding took place at the Little Brown Church in the San Fernando Valley, CA. Ronald Reagan was 41 and Nancy Davis (born Anne Frances Robbins) was 30. They were both actors; William Holden served as best man. This was Reagan's second marriage. His first marriage to actress Jane Wyman in 1940 produced daughter Maureen Elizabeth Reagan in 1941, adopted son Michael Edward Reagan (born 1942), in 1945 and daughter Christina Reagan in 1947, who was born prematurely and died within a few days. Nancy and Ronald have two children: Patricia Ann Reagan (Patti Davis), born in 1952, and Ronald Prescott Reagan, in 1958.  Another trivia answer: he is the first US president who had been divorced. “Love You, Ronnie“ was written by Nancy Reagan.  Ronald Reagan, no matter what else was going on in his life or where he was--traveling to make movies for G.E., in the California governor's office, at the White House, or on Air Force One, and sometimes even from across the room--Ronald Reagan wrote letters to Nancy Reagan, to express his love, thoughts, and feelings, and to stay in touch. Whether you remember him fondly or not, the book is quite revealing about a man who loved his wife no matter how busy he was or where he was; he always thought about his Nancy.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/
103-3975609-1805410
    1952 - Ernest Hemingway writes his publisher that he has finished his short novel “The Old Man and the Sea.” He told him it was the best writing he had ever done. The critics agreed: the book won the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 and became one of his best-selling works. It was first published in “Life” magazine.
    1953 - Snow was reported on the island of Oahu in Hawaii.
    1953 - Percussionist Emilio Estefan was born in Havana, Cuba.  He is the husband of singer Gloria Estefan and the uncle of Spanish-language television personality Lili Estefan.
http://www.gloriaheaven.com/emilio7.htm
http://www.gloriaheaven.com/emilio_family.htm
    1954 - Sax player Ricky Ford born, Boston MA
http://www.ejn.it/mus/ford.htm
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000044U32/
inktomi-musicasin-20/102-1682336-8966565
    1954 - African-American scientist and attorney J Ernest Wilkins is named Undersecretary of Labor by President Eisenhower. He was born in Farmington, Missouri. He became a government official and lawyer. He was the son of a Baptist minister. He became an assistant secretary of labor in charge of international affairs. He was the first African-American to hold this position and the second African-American to hold a sub-cabinet post. He was the ranking African-American in the nation’s capital during the Dwight D. Eisenhower administration. He became internationally known for his position. President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Wilkins, a Republican, as vice-chair of the newly established President's Committee on Government Contracts. Vice-President Richard M. Nixon chaired the panel that had been set up by executive order to enforce federal policy prohibiting discrimination due to race, creed, or national origin in employment or promotion of individuals who worked in establishments involved in government business. Wilkins died of a heart attack, January 19, 1959. He lay in state at Foundry Methodist Church in downtown Washington, D.C., the first time an African-American had been so honored. From “Notable Black American Men”
http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/
Mathematicians/Wilkins_Ernest.html
    1955 - 1st radio facsimile transmission sent across the continent
    1957 - The S&P 500 stock market index was introduced, replacing the S&P 90.
    1959 - Top Hits
“Stagger Lee” - Lloyd Price
“Donna” - Ritchie Valens
“Charlie Brown” - The Coasters
“Don't Take Your Guns to Town” - Johnny Cash
    1959 - The winners of the first Grammy Awards were announced. Domenico Modugno's "Volare" was named Record of the Year; Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn" was Album of the Year and The Champs "Tequila" won best R&B performance. Variety magazine seemed to take great delight when it later reported - "The record academy has snubbed the rock. Not one rock 'n' roll record was nominated."
    1959 - Pioneer IV spacecraft missed the Moon and became the 2nd (1st U.S.) artificial planet 
    1960 - It is revealed, in connection with the current congressional investigation into payola, that Federal Communications Chairman John Doerfer took a six-day trip to Florida courtesy of Storer Broadcasting.  A man ahead of his time!
http://64.227.206.20/Music_Orb/MusicOrbdb/musicorbdb_84.html
    1960 – Lucy filed for divorce from Desi.
    1961 - This is the official Commemoration of the founding of the Peace Corps on March 1, 1961 by President John. F. Kennedy. It is observed on the first Tuesday in March.
http://peacecorps.gov/indexf.cfm
    1966 - A severe blizzard raged across Minnesota and North Dakota. The blizzard lasted four days producing up to 35 inches of snow, and wind gusting to 100 mph produced snow drifts 30 to 40 feet high. Bismarck, ND reported zero visibility for 11 hours. Traffic was paralyzed for three days.
    1966 – John Lennon of The Beatles:  “We are more popular than Jesus" 
    1967 - Top Hits
“Ruby Tuesday” - The Rolling Stones
“Love is Here and Now You're Gone” - The Supremes
“Baby I Need Your Lovin'” - Johnny Rivers
“The Fugitive” - Merle Haggard
    1968 - Martin Luther King Jr announces plans for Poor People's Campaign
http://www.howardri.org/MLKing%20Workshop.html
http://www.daveyd.com/mlkdaypolitic.html
    1968 - “The Dick Cavett Show” premiered on television. He began his television career on ABC with a daytime talk show that subsequently became a late-night program competing with Johnny Carson. Cavett, with his Yale background, had a reputation as an intellectual host and was particularly adept at the one-man interview. He has since appeared on the CBS, PBS and USA networks hosting a variety of shows.
    1970 - New York Rangers set then NHL record of 126 games without being shut-out
    1970 – Jacksonville St. became the first college basketball team to average over 100 points per game
    1972 - Badfinger receives a gold record for "Day after Day".
    1974 - Time-Life, now Time-Warner, issued a new magazine called, "People"; which had an initial run of one million copies. It became the most successful celebrity weekly ever published, and had $997 million in advertising revenue in 2011, the highest advertising revenue of any American magazine.  In 2006, it had a circulation of 3.75 million. Mia Farrow was on the front cover.
http://people.aol.com/people/aboutus/magfacts.html
http://people.aol.com/people/index.html
    1975 - Top Hits
“Best of My Love” - The Eagles
“Have You Never Been Mellow” - Olivia Newton-John
“Black Water” - The Doobie Brothers
“It's Time to Pay the Fiddler” - Cal Smith
    1976 - San Francisco Giants were bought for $8 million by Bob Lurie and Bud Herseth from the founding Stoneham family and vowed not to move the team.
    1977 – The first CRAY 1 supercomputer was shipped to Los Alamos Laboratories, New Mexico
    1978 - Chicago Daily News, founded in 1875, publishes last issue http://www.bbbirthday.50megs.com/History/1stpic.gif
    1978 - Andy Gibb hit the top of the music charts with "(Love is) Thicker Than Water", which had a 2 week stay at #1. The Bee Gees also set a record with their single, "How Deep Is Your Love", from the "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack which stayed in the top 10 for an unprecedented 17 weeks. At the age of 30, Gibb died on March 10, 1988, of an inflammatory heart virus in Oxford, England.
http://www.hotshotdigital.com/tribute/AndyGibb.html
    1978 - "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" by Johnny Mathis and Denice Williams, enters the soul chart where it hits Number One next month and stays there for four weeks.
    1978 - The Bee Gees were the hottest act around when they helped their younger brother Andy to the top spot on Billboard's Hot 100 by writing his hit, "(Love Is) Thicker Than Water". Their own tune, "Stayin' Alive" was pushed back to number 2, while another of their compositions, "Emotion" by Samantha Sang, sat at number 4 and "Night Fever" was number 5.
    1978 - The IRS raided Jerry Lee Lewis' home at dawn and repossessed $170,000 worth of automobiles to pay off his tax debt.
    1979 - Voyager I photo revealed Jupiter's rings
    1980 - "Coal Miner's Daughter," the film biography of country singer Loretta Lynn, premiered in Nashville. Lynn was played on screen by Sissy Spacek, who also did all the singing in the movie.
http://www.imdb.com/Title?0080549
    1981 - Forward Guy Lafleur of the Montreal Canadiens scored the 1,000th point of his career, a goal in a 9-02 victory over the Winnipeg Jets. Lafleur finished with 1,353 points and entered the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988.
    1983 - Montana became the first state to ban sex discriminatory rates in all insurance. Under the prevailing discriminatory rate structure, women were paying up to 30% more for the *same* insurance coverage as men whether it was auto, health, disability, or old age income insurance even though actuary tables indicated women were less accident prone and lived longer.
    1983 - Top Hits
“Baby, Come to Me” - Patti Austin with James Ingram
“Shame on the Moon” - Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
“Stray Cat Strut” - Stray Cats
“Why Baby Why” - Charley Pride
    1984 - The Television Academy of Arts and Sciences announced the formation of the Television Academy Hall of Fame at Burbank, CA. The first inductees were Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, Paddy Chayefsky, Norman Lear, Edward R. Murrow, William S. Paley and David Sarnoff.
    1985 - Supreme Court upholds right of Oneida Nation of New York to sue for lands illegally taken in 1795.  Women Oneida activists pushed tribal land claims in the early 20th century. The women worked from their homes in Prattsburg, New York and Oneida, Wisconsin.  Particularly after the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, Linda Winder and her sister reached out to the Oneida of Wisconsin, and both American branches of the nation pushed jointly for their land claim. At that point, the remaining Oneida in New York had no land, and were subject to the Onondaga sharing their reservation.  They were encouraged by passage of the Indian Claims Commission Act of 1946, as before that they were unable to bring claims against the US government.  In 1970 and 1974, the Oneidas of New York and Wisconsin, and the Oneida Nation of the Thames (made up of descendants of people who did not move to Canada until the 1820s), filed suit in the US District Court for the Northern District of New York to reclaim land taken from them by New York without approval of the United States Congress. In 1998, the United States intervened in the lawsuits on behalf of the plaintiffs in the claim so the claim could proceed against New York State. The state had asserted immunity from suit under the Eleventh Amendment of the Constitution.  The Defendants moved for summary judgment based on the Supreme Court’s decision in ‘City of Sherill v. Oneida Indian Nation’ and the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals' decision in ‘Cayuga Indian Nation v. New York.’  On May 21, 2007, Judge Kahn dismissed the Oneida's possessory land claims and allowed the non-possessory claims to proceed.  More recent litigation has formalized the split. It defines the separate interests of the Oneida tribe who stayed in New York and those who relocated to Wisconsin. The Oneida of Wisconsin have brought suit to reacquire lands in their ancestral homelands as part of the settlement of the aforementioned litigation.
http://www.oneidanation.org/index2.shtml
    1985 - "Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care" was published with Dr. Michael Rothenberg sharing authorship with Dr. Benjamin Spock, ‘The Baby Doc'. It was the fifth edition of the book to be published. 30,000,000 copies had been printed -- second only to the Bible in the best seller category.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671537628/
inktomi-bkasin-20/102-1682336-8966565
    1985 - EPA ordered a virtual ban on leaded gasoline.
    1985 - The FDA approved a blood test for AIDS infection, used since then for screening all blood donations in the United States.
    1987 - Rain and high winds prevailed in the northwestern U.S. A wind gust to 69 mph at Klamath Falls, OR was their highest in 25 years, and winds at the Ashland Ranger Station in the Siskiyou Mountains of northern California reached 85 mph.
    1987 - President Reagan addressed the nation on the Iran-Contra affair. He took full responsibility for the affair acknowledging his overtures to Iran had "deteriorated" into an arms-for-hostages deal. Michale Ledeen, Pentagon employee, later authored "Perilous Statecraft: An Insider's Account of the Iran-Contra Affair."
    1988 - Snow and freezing rain made travel hazardous in Ohio and Indiana. A six car pile-up resulted near Columbus, OH, with seven injuries reported. Up to two inches of ice glazed central Indiana. Up to ten inches of snow blanketed northern Ohio.
    1988 - Hot Tuna was the headline act as the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco reopened. Joining group members Jack Casady, Jorma Kaukonen and Paul Kantner for the special occasion were Grace Slick and Papa John Creech. All at one time or another had been members of Jefferson Airplane and-or Jefferson Starship. The Fillmore was one of the leading venues for San Francisco's psychedelic bands in the 1960s.
http://www.hottuna.com/
   1988 - Snow and freezing rain made travel hazardous in Ohio and Indiana. A six car pile-up resulted near Columbus OH, with seven injuries reported. Up to two inches of ice glazed central Indiana. Up to ten inches of snow blanketed northern Ohio.
    1989 - Time Inc. and Warner Communications were merged into Time Warner, Inc., creating the world's largest media company.
    1990 - A Pacific cold front working its way across the western U.S. produced heavy snow over parts of Idaho, Nevada and Utah. Up to eleven inches of snow blanketed the valleys of northwest Utah, while 12 to 25 inches fell across the mountains of northern Utah. Up to six inches of snow blanketed the valleys of east central Nevada, while more than a foot of snow was reported in the high elevations. In Idaho, 6 to 8 inches of snow was reported around Aberdeen and American Falls.
    1991 - Top Hits
“All the Man that I Need” - Whitney Houston
“Someday” - Mariah Carey
“One More Try” - Timmy -T-
“Walk on Faith” - Mike Reid
    1992 - AT&T announced it would close thirty-one offices around the country and replace nearly one-third of its operators with computerized information systems. Some 18,000 operators would be replaced with voice-recognition software, which could provide phone numbers and other information
    1994 - Four Muslim fundamentalists were found guilty of bombing the landmark World Trade Center in New York.
    1994 - Space shuttle STS-62 (Columbia 16), launches into orbit
    1994 – Michael Jordan came to bat for the first time, for the Chicago White Sox.  Playing in a spring training game, Jordan taps back to the mound. Jordan gave it up after one season in the minors and returned to the NBA.
    1998 - The Supreme Court (Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services) ruled that federal laws banning on-the-job sexual harassment also apply when both parties are the same sex.
    1999 - Cher has her first Billboard number one single in 25 years with "Believe." The last time she topped the chart was with 1974's "Dark Lady."
    2002 - Seven American Special Forces soldiers and 200 Al-Qaeda Fighters are killed on a low-flying helicopter reconnaissance mission.    
    2004 – Commissioner Bud Selig announced that Major League Baseball will celebrate "Jackie Robinson Day" in every ballpark on every April 15, the anniversary of his debut that broke the long-standing prohibition to black ballplayers in the Majors. Robinson's number 42 was retired for all time in a ceremony at Shea Stadium in April of 1997 to mark the 50th anniversary of his achievement.
    2011 - The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) states it could save $5.5 billion in 30 years if dollar bills are replaced with coins.