Leasing News - information, news, education and entertainment for the commercial bank, finance and leasing industry

Classified Ads---Senior Management
Seeking New Position

(These ads are “free” to those seeking employment or looking
to improve their position)

Senior-level leasing executive accomplished in sales, finance, operations and marketing. Seeking new opportunity to capitalize on my strategic, ideation, communication and analytical strengths to identify opportunities, formulate solutions and articulate strategies that inspire cross-functional teams to enhance corporate performance and shareholder value. Adept negotiator of multi-million dollar lease program agreements and contracts. Driver of increased sales productivity, incremental revenue, operating expense reductions and customer acquisition/retention.
www.linkedin.com/in/reglindholm
reg.lindholm@gmail.com

Free Posting for those seeking employment in Leasing:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted-post.htm

All “free” categories “job wanted” ads:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted.htm

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(1) Attention Attorneys! New Accounting Rules
May Negatively Affect Lessees
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_23.htm#attention

(2) Alternate Finance Companies - Subprime
Business Loans/Equipment Finance/Working Capital
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_21.htm#alternate

(3) FinTech #102 by Christopher Menkin
Over 600 Community & Regional Banks Now Partners with bizfi
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_21.htm#fintech

(4) 15th Annual Investors’ Conference
By Bruce Kropschot, The Alta Group
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_25.htm#15

(5) New Hires---Promotions in the Leasing Business
and Related Industries
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_25.htm#hires

(6) BSB Reports Fully Staffed Despite Snowstorm in Colorado
Same for Hawaii ---Photos
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_25.htm#bsb_reports

(7) Companies who notify lessee in advance of lease expiration
Updated
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_23.htm#expiration

(8) Top 8 Alternative Small Business Funders Chart
by debanked.com
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_25.htm#chart

(9) Cutbacks in Broker Originations Reported
at Huntington Technology Finance
by Christopher Menkin
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_21.htm#cutbacks

(10) Leasing Portals
(Business to Business including Finance/Leasing)
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2016/03_21.htm#portals

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

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Balboa Capital Tagged for Bait and Switch
on Lease Payoff Quote
By Tom McCurnin
Leasing News Legal Editor

Equipment Lessor Makes Two Mistakes in Successive Payoff Quotes,
One Off By $2,500, and Another Off by $250,000. Will the Court
Bail the Lessor Out of This Self-Created Mess?

Low Country Machinery v Balboa Capital 9:15-CV-04876-RMG (South Carolina 2015)

Payoff quotes are a big deal. When a lessor issues one, it will generally be considered as an offer, which can be accepted by the borrower by wiring the agreed upon amount, which then forms an enforceable contract. In today’s case, the lessor issued an unconditional and unqualified payoff quote and cheerfully received the money. For reasons which are very unclear in the pleadings, the Lessor refused to re-convey the lease obligation and also failed to return the wired monies, landing the Lessor in a South Carolina Court. The facts follow.

Lessee LCR is a construction company in South Carolina and leased equipment (a loader) from Lessor Balboa Capital Corporation in 2013. In 2015, the Lessee desired to trade in the loader and the vendor Low Country Machinery contacted the Lessor for a payoff quote. After expressly stating that the quote included the Lessee’s last payment, the payoff was stated to be $140,000. The Lessee wired this amount to the vendor. So far, so good. The Lessor then claimed an additional $2,500 due, which again the Lessee reluctantly wired.

But 20 days later, the Lessor apparently changed its mind again and stated that the amount was insufficient. According to the Lessor, the Lessor drafted the quote with the idea that it would finance new equipment, and the lease payoff was actually $253,000. The increased amount was because the Lessor realized this was a trade in and the Lessor was entitled to the remaining balance on the lease and the residual value of the equipment. But the quote was unconditional and all encompassing.

The Lessor did not terminate its security interest nor did it return the wired money. The equipment is apparently in the hands of the vendor.

The Lessee sued claiming that the Lessor was bound by the unconditional payoff quote, and that the actions of the Lessor were fraudulent. The Lessor answered and counterclaimed that it was entitled to keep the money, the remaining lease balance and the residual value of the lease. The lessor alleged that the quote was a “wrap quote,” which is an industry term to describe wrapping additional or substitute equipment with a new lease. However, the quote does not contain any conditions or assumptions that the numbers are based on the Lessor wrapping up new equipment. Any claim that the quote was a “wrap quote” would have to be based on oral communications between the Lessee and Lessor—good luck with that.

No adjudication of the issues in this case was made, and trial is set for late 2016. The Court ordered that the parties submit to mediation. I would hope the parties could resolve this matter. Assuming they cannot, what are the takeaways here?

• First, Payoff Quotes Are a Big Deal. I don’t understand how a senior account manager of the Lessor could be so stupid as to issue an unconditional payoff quote that was apparently a mistake—not once, but twice. The quote is issued to the lessee and the lessee, its banks, and vendors are entitled to rely upon the information. The written quote is no less solemn than the written contractual provisions for residual value. The court could very well enforce the quote as between two sophisticated businesses represented by counsel.

• Second, If the Quote Was Issued in Error, Why Didn’t the Lessor Ask for Reformation? Nowhere in the Lessor’s Answer and Counter-Claim does the Lessor use the phrase “mistake.” Can we infer that the Lessor deliberately issued an improper quote? I hope not, but that’s what I’m left with. I actually assumed the Lessor stupidly did not account for some of the payments and the residual or left those amounts out under the unstated assumption that the quote was a wrap quote. I think I would have made a legal claim to reform the quote, which is essentially a new contract based on mistake.

• Third, Admit Mistakes and Act Honestly. Putting aside the facts and legalities, customer service accounts for repeat business, especially with vendors. Get a bad reputation, and the Lessor will lose potential repeat business. The Lessor, after apparently screwing up the quote and getting an additional $2,500 from the Lessee, would not explain to the Lessee why the original quote was incorrect. To add insult to injury, the Lessor had the audacity to place the matter into collection and it so informed the Lessee. After all this nonsense and stupidity, the Lessor claimed the quote was mistaken again—not by a mere $2,500, but by $250,000.

The bottom line to this case is that payoff quotes are a big deal. Courts tend to enforce them, especially when issued by large sophisticated equipment lessors. The actions of this Lessor are not terribly sympathetic. I’ve seen “My Cousin Vinny,” and I wouldn’t count on this Southern Judge pulling Balboa’s chestnuts out of this fire.

Low Country Machinery Complaint (50 pages)
http://www.leasingnews.org/PDF/LowCountryMachineryComplaint32016.pdf

Low Country Machinery Answer
http://www.leasingnews.org/PDF/LowCountryMachineryComplaint32016.pd

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

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

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

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“Evergreen Clause”—The Danger of Automatic Renewal
Companies with Complaints of Abuse

The inclusion of automatic renewal (or “evergreen”) clauses in true leases has been a fairly common practice from time immemorial. It is included in most company leasing contracts, whether "fair market value," 10% options, or even $1.00 (Yes, companies will continue payments if not notified and there have been several cases where the residual is $1.00)

There is no question that these clauses provide important protections to the lessor to obtain their residual. If the lessee has no intent to renew, the lessor has in interest in knowing it before the end of the term so that he can start planning for remarketing or some other disposition of the equipment.

However, the question of whether a lessee should be reminded by the lessor of the notice deadline in plenty of time for the lessee to react is an entirely different question. These states have statutes requiring commercial equipment lessors to provide a written notice – a fair warning – before the notice deadline date arrives:

This is an unofficial list:
Louisiana
New York
Rhode Island
Texas
Wisconsin

Most of the abuses occur in the small-ticket world. Larger lessees often overlook the notification clause in the contract or do not have “tickler” systems to remind them. Consider the corner dry-cleaner. He signs up for a five year lease in 2014. Does he mark it 90 days before the expiration in his computer calendar for 2019, or more important, did he overlook this as the residual is 10% or a $1.00. And the more apt question is: What possible interest does a lessor have in not voluntarily reminding its customer of the notice deadline – unless it’s to create a chance that the lessee will slip up and get trapped in a renewal it does not want?
-----

Companies who utilize Evergreen Clauses
for Extra Lease Payments

ACC Capital, Midvale, Utah
Balboa Capital, Irvine, California
De Lage Landen, Wayne, Pennsylvania
IFC Credit, Morton Grove, Illinois
Jules and Associates, Los Angeles, California
LEAF Financial Group, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Marlin Business Leasing, Mount Laurel, New Jersey
Marquette Equipment Finance, Midvale, Utah
Mazuma Capital Corporation, Draper, Utah
Onset Financial, South Jordan, Utah
Pacific Western Equipment Finance, Cottonwood Heights, Utah
Republic Bank, Bountiful, Utah
Tetra Financial Group, Salt Lake City, Utah

These companies use language in their lease documents regarding purchase options to confuse, perhaps to deceive, resulting in an automatic continuation for an additional twelve months of payments. Often they win transactions with lower monthly payments as the lessee does not carefully read and prepare for the end-of-lease notification requirement (many are on ACH payments).
Several have continuation of payments and the requirement of replacing the equipment for a new lease. Leasing News has had complaints involving companies who invoke the twelve months on a $1.00 purchase option, as well as on an Equipment Finance Agreements.

Several have appeared in Leasing News "Complaints" Bulletin Board:
http://www.leasingnews.org/bulletin_board.htm

Additionally, Tom McCurnin has written often about Evergreen Clause court cases involving these companies.
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/leasing_cases.html

Two of the companies on this list do a lot of copier leasing, where it is reported manufacturers are now getting a piece of auto-renewals and as well as insisting that they be in the lease as a condition of the business. Leasing News has heard from a very reliable source that some copier manufacturers also give dealers 4-5 months’ notice of a discontinued model and agree to sell it to the dealer at 40% of list price, on the condition that the captive finance division not receive the business. Also buried in the contract on one is a one month rental return fee including an inspection fee at the location specified by lessor and at lessee’s return expense (often not the local dealer who supplied the copier).

Advice for Broker or Lessor
Dealing with a Company that Uses Evergreen Clauses
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Nov2013/11_18.htm#advice

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Leasing Industry Help Wanted

Please see our Job Wanted section for possible new employees.

Sacramento Bee Joins Moonlighting--Every City in the US
The marketplace to hire or be hired! Free.

The Sacramento Bee, Sacramento, California, is partnering with
Moonlighting, promoting its product and app:

"With Moonlighting you will find the right people to get more stuff done instantly and make money. Moonlighting is the perfect place for freelancers, handymen, seasonal help, web and tech workers, and anything else you can imagine.

"The Moonlighting marketplace connects on demand job seekers who are looking to hire or be hired with ease. It can be used in your personal life or for small business. Simply post an opportunity or search for jobs in three clicks or less.

"Download the FREE app and start Moonlighting today! Moonlighting is available to everyone, and for any job type, in every city in the US. There’s opportunity everywhere.

"Key features:

        - Free to sign up & post jobs
        - Create unlimited posts to sell your skills & promote your
             business
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                 you
        - Quick secure payments directly via website and mobile app
        - Instant invoicing to get paid quickly and securely
        - Easily send and receive money from your iPhone
        - Job preference alerts to never miss a job
        - Social media sharing tools
        - Create & share groups to manage connections"

http://www.startmoonlighting.com/mni/The-Sacramento-Bee/

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“I Need to Get Some Good References”
Career Crossroad---By Emily Fitzpatrick/RII

I need to get some good references, to add to my application package. Can you provide some advice?
You have your Resume, Cover Letter, Prepared Questions, and now you need References/Referral Letters to complete your presentation. References can be influential in the application process, “…56 percent of employers have caught a lie on an applicant’s resume …” as such; companies rely on references to back up potential employees’ skills and character (references are checked 98% of the time).

Here are Some Ideas/Tips:
Connect with References ASAP & Ask
Be prepared to start developing your Reference List as soon as you make the decision to start the search process. It is imperative that you connect with these individuals as soon as possible to ask permission first. Accomplish this by reaching out via phone or email – I suggest doing both. Send out your email and follow up with a call within 48 hours. The live call will make gathering your references more personal. In addition, you can respond to their tone, if they give a short reply don’t use them, if they sound positive and upbeat, then provide them as a reference.

Connect with/Provide as Many References as Possible
Most people tend to keep a short list of three to five references and utilize the same list for all positions. Instead, create a large “pool” that you can pick and choose to customize your Reference List based on the position you are applying for.

Make sure to Follow Up and Thank your References
Send a thank you email and make a follow-up call (even if you leave a voice mail) whether they were contacted or not and whether you got the job or not. It will demonstrate your appreciation for their support; you may need them again soon.

For more advice, please contact info@riirecruit.com
Feel free to view our new Pinterest Board, which will provide further advice and tips gathered from other experts
https://www.pinterest.com/recruitersinter/rii-career-services/

Emily Fitzpatrick
Sr. Recruiter
Recruiters International, Inc.
Phone: 954-885-9241
Cell: 954-612-0567
emily@riirecruit.com
Invite me to Connect on LinkedIn
www.linkedin.com/pub/emily-fitzpatrick/4/671/76
Also follow us on Twitter #RIIINFO
https://www.pinterest.com/recruitersinter/rii-career-services/

Career Crossroads Previous Columns
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/crossroad.html

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Sales Make it Happen by Steve Chriest

“Fast Turn around Time”

If you want to avoid the label of a “me-too” player in your industry, you will want to identify your company's Exclusive Strengths.

Because some customers use your services, you have, at least in their eyes, Exclusive Strengths. These are strengths that are exclusive to your company, are recognized as exclusive by your customers, and for which you have earned bragging rights. Exclusive Strengths can only be claimed by you - they cannot also be claimed by any of your competitors.

In the equipment finance business, the claim of “fast credit turnaround time” can be claimed by so many competitors that the claim isn't even a strength today, it's a requirement for staying in business! The same is true for a claim that your company's people truly care about their customers. You can bet that your competitors are making the same claim to their customers.

So, how do you go about identifying Exclusive Strengths? The process is relatively simple, and deceptively powerful. First, conduct a brainstorming session with everyone involved in the company's revenue generating process. You can do this in an office setting or at a retreat. Ask the participants to answer these questions: What do we have that our competitors cannot offer, or what do we do that our competitors don't do? Once answers to these questions are developed into a list, the qualification process begins.

To qualify as an Exclusive Strength, what you have or what you do must be something your customers care about. For example, if you truly have a system of credit and collection activities that allow you to approve and fund more “D” credits than any industry competitor in a geographical area, and your customers care about this ability, it begins to qualify as an Exclusive Strength. If you can prove your claim to your customers, it will then pass the final test and will qualify as an Exclusive Strength for your company. It's important to note that your claim is an Exclusive Strength only for those customers who are “D” credits or those who provide goods or services to “D” credit customers. “A” credit customers, or those who sell exclusively to “A” credit customers, may have no interest in your sub-prime funding capabilities. In these cases your ability is not seen as an Exclusive Strength because they don't care!

Another, almost failsafe approach to zeroing in on your Exclusive Strengths is to ask your customers! Instead of sending out surveys which ask your customers how you can improve your services, ask them, in person, the following, simple questions: “Why do you do business with us? What do we have or do that distinguishes us, in your eyes, from our competitors?” They will tell you how they see you as different from your competitors, and they'll let you know what else they want from you to remain loyal customers.

Steve Chriest is the CEO of Open Advance and author of Selling to the E-Suite, The Proven System for Reaching and Selling Senior Executives and Business Acumen 101. He recently re-named his company from Selling-Up. He produces video and radio blogs, as well as continues as a columnist for Leasing News.

www.openadvance.com/contact/
925-263-2702
www.openadvance.com/
Sales Makes It Happen Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Legacy/index.htm

Purpose of the Acceptance Form (Certificate)

One of the most misunderstood documents in our business is the Acceptance Form used to begin the lease. It is the trigger that makes the lessee responsible for the lease payments and therefore should not be taken lightly.

I have seen many mistakes when closing a lease that create problems if a default occurs so let’s review the proper procedure to make an effective lease.

An Acceptance Form needs to be signed by an authorized officer or owner of the company to be binding. Usually it should be accompanied by or you should have in your possession a signing authority called a corporate resolution, a partnership agreement or a copy of the company minutes that designates the person who designated to sign loan or lease documents for the firm. On occasion some leasing companies accept a resolution that discusses loans but fails to mention leases. If the resolution fails to mention leases you need to obtain a corrected resolution. If the lease is a bargain option lease such as 10% or a $1 out, even though it is an Article 9 loan and not an article 2A lease, the word “loan” in the document will not allow you to accept a loan resolution because it is a lease.

Next, the signature line should include a typed or printed name so the scribble signature can be identified at a later date. Also the title of the signer should be stated. It may be an officer title, an owner, a partner or a member of an LLC. If the title is missing then it can be confused with a personal signature and not obligate the company.

Occasionally dates can be confusing on an acceptance form so the dates need to be qualified. Three dates are necessary. If you fail to obtain a delivery certificate and plan to use the Acceptance Form as proof that the customer is in possession of the “complete” equipment, then you need a date statement that says: The Lessee warrants that it took delivery/possession of the first piece of the leased equipment on the date specified below for UCC purposes and is currently in possession of the complete equipment as described in the attached Schedule A and create a possession date line. Next you need an acceptance date line with the statement: Lessee authorizes Lessor to enter into the Lease Schedule the date specified below as the acceptance date as the base Term Commencement date of this Lease. Then last you need a date line as to the date this agreement was signed. Acceptance and possession may occur at earlier times.

Regardless of the date a lessee signs the acceptance agreement the lease payment begins on the date specified in the Lease Agreement. This may be on the date of delivery, or the date of acceptance or on some specific date agreed upon by the two parties to the lease.

One very difficult problem is those documents signed prior to the delivery of the equipment or the day the equipment is put into use. The lease payments should coincide with equipment’s use but at no time should acceptance occur prior to this time. Many arguments are successful that the equipment did not live up to manufacturer promises and this is what caused the lessee not to make the lease payments.

Beware of the vendor that forces the lessee to sign the form in advance or they will not deliver. If you accept a pre-signed acceptance form then you are asking for a major headache. Funding in advance is possible with correct documents but it should not be assumed an early acceptance allows you to accomplish completion of the deal.

The acceptance document is the second most important document you need to have a legal transaction so please complete it properly and make sure it is complete.

Previous #102 Columns:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/Leasing_102/Index.htm

((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)

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Leasing News Web App
Download to your Mobile Device

Readers can access the latest edition of Leasing News on their Android mobile device by going to their browser and typing in www.leasingnews.org.

A web app is available for Android smartphones that opens the news edition in Portrait style, versus a landscape (but can be read either way; however, designed for Portrait viewing).

To add the Android Web App, open www.leasingnews in your mobile device, go to this article, and click on the link below:
http://leasingnews.org/items/LeasingNews.apk

Your mobile device has a download section, just as your computer has a download section. Find the .apk file and open it. It will automatically be placed with your other Web Aps. Adjust the size to fit your screen.
You can also ask us to email you the .apk to your mobile device and then follow the directions in the paragraph above: kitmenkin@leasingnews.org

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Devine Jazz Cruise May 6-May 11, 2016
San Francisco to Vancouver on Crystal Serenity

Jeff Rudin invites you to join his leasing friends for the jazz cruise as well as the four golf stops along the way. Sail with jazz musicians Michael Paulo, Gregg Karukas, Ray Parker Jr., Ira Nepus, David Inamine, Garin Poliahu, and songstress Kiki Ebsen.

Golf and Jazz. If you're a golfer, come join Jeff and play some of the finest courses on the West Coast.

TCP Harding Park - San Francisco, California - May 6th
Washington National Golf Club - Seattle, Washington - May 9
Bear Mountain Resort - Victoria, British Columbia - May 10
Northlands Golf Course - Vancouver, British Columbia - May 11

Golf Opportunity Information:
http://www.leasingnews.org/PDF/GolfOpportunitiesJan2016.pdf

Cruise Information
https://www.divinejazzcruise.com/

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

New Survey of Alternate Finance Companies
by Federal Reserve

The Federal Reserve has requested a Survey of Finance Companies as part of the continuing effort to paint a comprehensive view of the range of companies in this sector of the U.S. financial system.

Janet L. Yellen
Federal Reserve Chair

"The availability of credit to consumers and businesses is important to our economy, and finance companies play a very important role in U.S. credit markets," Federal Reserve Chair Janet L. Yellen said in a letter to prospective survey participants.

The survey collects balance sheet data on major categories of household and business credit receivables and liabilities from finance companies. Results of the survey will further the understanding of the finance company industry. The data provide a benchmark for the System's monthly report on the outstanding accounts receivable of finance companies (presented in the Federal Reserve's Finance Companies statistical release) and provide a comprehensive update on these companies' sources of funds. This information in turn becomes an important input to the estimates of total consumer credit (presented in the Federal Reserve's Consumer Credit statistical release) and the Financial Accounts of the United States.

The attached letter from Chair Yellen is being sent to approximately 2,300 companies urging their participation in the survey. Individual responses will be kept confidential. In addition to the Chair's letter, more information about the survey is available at www.federalreserve.gov/financecosurvey.

Finance Survey Request Form

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

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     1776 - Juan Bautista de Anza, one of the great western pathfinders of the 18th century, arrives at the future site of San Francisco with 247 colonists. Anza established a presidio, or military fort, on the tip of the San Francisco peninsula. Six months later, a Spanish Franciscan priest founded a mission near the presidio that he named in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, in Spanish, San Francisco de Asiacutes. The most northerly outpost of the Spanish Empire in America, San Francisco remained an isolated and quiet settlement for more than half a century after Anza founded the first settlement. It was not until the 1830s that an expansionist United States began to realize the commercial potential of the magnificent natural harbor. In the wake of the Mexican War, the U.S. took possession of California in 1848, though San Francisco was still only a small town of 900 at that time. With the discovery of gold that year at Sutter's Fort, however, San Francisco boomed. By 1852, San Francisco was home to more than 36,000 people. The founder of San Francisco did not live to see it flourish. After establishing the San Francisco presidio, Anza returned to Mexico. In 1777, he was appointed governor of New Mexico
    1788 - Maryland becomes the seventh state in what will become the United States of America. It is named in honor of Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of King Charles I of England.
    1799 - New York State abolished slavery
    1811 - Saint John Nepomucene Neuman (d. 1860), first male saint of the US, was born at Prachatitz, Bohemia. He came to the US in 1836. As Bishop of Philadelphia, he was affectionately known as the "Little Bishop." While Bishop of Philadelphia, Neumann founded the first Catholic diocesan school system in the United States. He was beatified on Oct 13, 1963 and canonized on June 19, 1977.
    1834 - The Senate passed a resolution sponsored by Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky to censure President Andrew Jackson for his handling of the Bank of the United States: "...assumed upon himself authority and power not conferred by the constitution and laws..." President Jackson on April 1 signed a presidential resolution against the Senate for censuring him. He succeeded in having them removed from the Senate journal in the following year.
    1848 - Ohio became the first state to regulate working hours, fixing the maximum of ten hours per day for women and children under 18 years of age. New Hampshire had set a similar provision in 1847, but had a provision that both parties had to agree. As a result, the law was ineffective.
    1862 - At Pigeon's Ranch, a stagecoach stop on the Santa Fe Trail (about 19 miles southeast of Santa Fe, NM), Confederate forces briefly prevailed over Union troops in what some have called the most important battle of the Civil War in the Southwest. It was feared that if Union troops failed to hold here, the Confederate forces would proceed to Fort Union and on to control of the rich gold fields of Colorado and California.
    1881 - P .T. Barnum and James A. Bailey merged their circuses to form the "Greatest Show on Earth."
    1884 - Cincinnati townspeople, unhappy authorities had not handed out a severe enough punishment to confessed murderer William Berner, showed their displeasure by burning down the local courthouse. The State Militia was called out to restore order; in the ensuing battle, 42 were killed and 128 injured.
    1885 - The Salvation Army is officially organized in the United States.
    1890 - Bandleader Paul Whiteman (d. 1967) was born in Denver, Colorado.
http://www.redhotjazz.com/pwo.html
    1892 - Birthday of Frances Reed Elliott (d. 1965), Knoxville, TN.   U.S. nurse and community leader. On July 2, 1918, she became the first African-American woman accepted into the American Red Cross Nursing Service.
    1899 - August Adolphus “Gussie” Busch, Jr., (d. 1989) was born at St. Louis, MO. Busch bought the St. Louis Cardinals in 1953 and became one of the most influential team owners. To date, the Cardinals have the second-most World Series Championships in Major League history, 11, and the most in the National League. He tied the success of the sport to the growth of his brewery’s sales and took great pleasure in both. He simultaneously built the Anheuser-Busch Companies into the largest brewery in the world by 1957 as company chairman from 1946 to 1975.   http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/mar28.html
    1899 – The only NFL head coach to defeat Vince Lombardi in the NFL Championship, Buck Shaw (d. 1977), was born in Mitchellville, IA. Shaw’s 1960 Philadelphia Eagles defeated Lombardi’s Packers, 17-13. Shaw was also the San Francisco 49ers’ first head coach when they formed in the All-American Football Conference and the first Varsity Football Coach at the US Air Force Academy. Shaw played for Notre Dame under Rockne on their first undefeated team.
    1905 – Marlin Perkins (d. 1986) was born in Carthage, MO. He was the longtime host of “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom” (1963-85).
    1908 - Automobile owners lobby Congress in support of a bill that calls for vehicle licensing and federal registration.
    1909 - Novelist Nelson Algren (“A Walk on the Wild Side”) was born (d. 1981), Detroit, Michigan. Grew up in Chicago in a poor Polish neighborhood, served a four-month jail term for stealing a typewriter. Algren joined John Reed Club and was editor of the New Anvil, an experimental magazine. Heavy drinker and gambler, involved with Simone de Beauvoir. “Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Moms. Never sleep with a woman whose troubles are worse than your own.”
http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/nalgren.htm
    1910 – “Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me?” Jimmie Dodd (d. 1964) was born in Cincinnati. Dodd was the MC of the popular 1950s Walt Disney TV series, “The Mickey Mouse Club” and wrote its well-known theme song, "The Mickey Mouse Club March."
    1917 - Thane Creek, AK, reported a snow cover of 190 inches.
    1920 - The worst tornado disaster of record occurred in Chicago as a tornado killed 28 persons and caused three million dollars damage.
    1921 - President Warren Harding names former US President William Howard Taft as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
    1922 - The microfilm reading device was invented by Bradley Allen Fiske of Washington, DC, who received a patent on a “reading machine.” It was known as a Fiskeoscope and could be carried in the pocket. A 2.5-inch newspaper column was reduced to .025 inches and 100,000 words were contained on a 40-inche tape.
    1923 - Trumpet player Thad Jones (d. 1986) was born Pontiac, MI.
http://musichistory.crosswinds.net/jazz/tjones.html
    1926 - Birthday of Harper Lee (d. 2016), perhaps best known recently as a close friend of Truman Capote. She wrote only one novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird” which won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and a cash prize of $500. It was made into a successful Hollywood movie which won Gregory Peck an Oscar and Best Picture of the Year.
    1944 - “Rick” Barry III, broadcaster and Basketball Hall of Fame forward, born Elizabeth, NJ. Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in history by the NBA in 1996, Barry is the only player to lead the NCAA, ABA and NBA in scoring for an individual season. He was known for his unorthodox but effective underhand free throw shooting technique, and at the time of his retirement in 1980, his .900 free throw percentage ranked first in NBA history. In 1987, Barry was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
    1945 - A record heat wave hit the northeast, bringing temperatures of 90 degrees in Rhode Island and 91 degrees in New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland.
    1945 - HEDRICK, CLINTON M., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company I, 194th Glider Infantry, 17th Airborne Division. Place and date: Near Lembeck, Germany, 27-28 March 1945. Entered service at: Riverton, W. Va. Birth: Cherrygrove, W. Va. G.O. No.: 89, 19 October 1945. Citation: He displayed extraordinary heroism and gallantry in action on 2728 March 1945, in Germany. Following an airborne landing near Wesel, his unit was assigned as the assault platoon for the assault on Lembeck. Three times the landing elements were pinned down by intense automatic weapons fire from strongly defended positions. Each time, T/Sgt. Hedrick fearlessly charged through heavy fire, shooting his automatic rifle from his hip. His courageous action so inspired his men that they reduced the enemy positions in rapid succession. When 6 of the enemy attempted a surprise, flanking movement, he quickly turned and killed the entire party with a burst of fire. Later, the enemy withdrew across a moat into Lembeck Castle. T/Sgt. Hedrick, with utter disregard for his own safety, plunged across the drawbridge alone in pursuit. When a German soldier, with hands upraised, declared the garrison wished to surrender, he entered the castle yard with 4 of his men to accept the capitulation. The group moved through a sally port, and was met by fire from a German self-propelled gun. Although mortally wounded, T/Sgt. Hedrick fired at the enemy gun and covered the withdrawal of his comrades. He died while being evacuated after the castle was taken. His great personal courage and heroic leadership contributed in large measure to the speedy capture of Lembeck and provided an inspiring example to his comrades.
    1946 - The State Department released the Acheson-Lilienthal Report, outlining a plan for the international control of nuclear power. The primary message of the report was that control of atomic energy through inspections and policing operations was unlikely to succeed. Instead, the report proposed that all fissile material be owned by an international agency to be called the Atomic Development Authority, which would release small amounts to individual nations for the development of peaceful uses of atomic energy. In addition, the report proposed that the United States abandon its monopoly on atomic weapons, revealing what it knew to the Soviet Union, in exchange for a mutual agreement against the development of additional atomic bombs. This was to prove too controversial. Although President Truman accepted the report in general, his appointment of financier Bernard Baruch to carry the proposal forward in the United Nations led to demands for punishment for violations, and that those penalties could not be vetoed by the UN Security Council; unrestricted inspections within the USSR, while insisting that the USSR should agree not to develop the bomb. These were modifications that neither Acheson nor Lilienthal accepted. This, combined with U.S. continued insistence on retaining the bomb until they were satisfied with the effectiveness of international control, ultimately led to the plan's rejection by the Soviet Union, to the surprise of no one. The failure of the Acheson–Lilienthal Report has often been seen as a key turning point in the Cold War, as a failure to secure international control of nuclear weapons virtually guaranteed the nuclear arms race that followed. At the time of the report, the Soviet Union was developing their first nuclear bomb, though they would not complete it until 1949.
    1950 - The City College of New York (CCNY) defeated Bradley, 71-68, in the title game of the NCAA basketball tournament, thereby becoming the only team to win both that championship and the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) title in the same year. Ten days before, CCNY had beaten Bradley, 69-61 to win the NIT.   The CCNY point shaving scandal of 1950–51 involved seven schools in all: New York University, Long Island University, Manhattan College, Bradley, University of Kentucky, and University of Toledo. Most of the key players in the scandal were players of the 1949-50 CCNY Beavers basketball team including the champions noted above. The scandal would spread to 33 players and involve the world of organized crime. As a result of the scandal that broke early in the year, Bill Spivey’s MVP Award for the NCAA tournament was vacated after it became known that he was implicated in the point-shaving scandal. CCNY was eventually banned from playing at Madison Square Garden, although the coach, Nat Holman, would be cleared of any wrongdoing. All of those universities cited, excluding Kentucky, have dropped or de-emphasized major college basketball as a result.
    1951 – No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: “If,’’ Perry Como.
    1951 – Top Hits
“If” – Perry Como
“Be My Love” – Mario Lanza
“Mockingbird Hill” –Patti Page
“The Rhumba Boogie” – Hank Snow
    1953 – The man who was called the Greatest Athlete of the Twentieth Century, Jim Thorpe, died in Lomita, CA.
    1953 – MATTHEWS, DANIEL P., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps, Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Vegas Hill, Korea, 28 March 1953. Entered service at. Van Nuys, Calif. Born: 31 December 1931, Van Nuys, Calif. Award presented: 29 March 19S4. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a squad leader of Company F, in action against enemy aggressor forces. Participating in a counterattack against a firmly entrenched and well-concealed hostile force which had repelled 6 previous assaults on a vital enemy-held outpost far forward of the main line of resistance Sgt. Matthews fearlessly advanced in the attack until his squad was pinned down by a murderous sweep of fire from an enemy machine gun located on the peak of the outpost. Observing that the deadly fire prevented a corpsman from removing a wounded man lying in an open area fully exposed to the brunt of the devastating gunfire, he worked his way to the base of the hostile machine gun emplacement, leaped onto the rock fortification surrounding the gun and, taking the enemy by complete surprise, single-handedly charged the hostile emplacement with his rifle. Although severely wounded when the enemy brought a withering hail of fire to bear upon him, he gallantly continued his valiant l-man assault and, firing his rifle with deadly effectiveness, succeeded in killing 2 of the enemy, routing a third, and completely silencing the enemy weapon, thereby enabling his comrades to evacuate the stricken marine to a safe position. Succumbing to his wounds before aid could reach him, Sgt. Matthews, by his indomitable fighting spirit, courageous initiative, and resolute determination in the face of almost certain death, served to inspire all who observed him and was directly instrumental in saving the life of his wounded comrade. His great personal valor reflects the highest credit upon himself and enhances the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
    1955 – Singer, actress Reba McIntire was born in McAlester, OK. When she signed with MCA Nashville Records, she took creative control over her second MCA album, “My Kind of Country” (1984), which had a more traditional country sound and produced two number one singles: “How Blue” and “Somebody Should Leave”. The album brought her breakthrough success, bringing her a series of successful albums and number one singles in the 1980s and 1990s. McEntire has since released 26 studio albums, acquired 40 number one singles, 14 number one albums, and 28 albums have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum. She has sometimes been referred to as “The Queen of Country” and she is one of the best-selling artists of all-time, having sold more than 85 million records worldwide.
   1957 – The first National curling championship competition was held on March 28-30 at the Stadium Club in Chicago, IL, with 10 teams competing. The winner was the Hibbing Curling Club from Hibbing, MN, which won eight games and lost one.
    1958 – Eddie Cochran records “Summertime Blues.” It peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 18 on the UK Singles Chart.
    1958 – Alan Freed’s Big Beat Show tour kicks off the first of its 43 shows at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater with Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Danny and the Juniors, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, The Chantels, The Diamonds, Screaming Jay Hawkins, and more.
    1959 – Top Hits
“Venus” – Frankie Avalon
“Tragedy” – Thomas Wayne
“Come Softly to Me” – The Fleetwoods
“Don’t Take Your Guns to Town” – Johnny Cash
    1963 – One of the American Football League’s original franchises, the New York Titans, changed their name to the Jets. A five-man syndicate, headed by Sonny Werblin, saved the team from certain bankruptcy, purchasing the lowly Titans for $1 million. The new owners hired former Baltimore Colts and back-to-back (1958-9) NFL championship coach Weeb Ewbank as the general manager and head coach.   Werblin set pro football on its ear by signing Alabama QB Joe Namath to an unheard-of $427,000 rookie contract the next year during a signing war with the NFL and, by 1969, became the first AFL team to win a Super Bowl.
    1964 – Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum in London announces the Beatles will be cast in wax, the first pop album stars to be honored.
    1964 – The Beatles’ “Can’t Buy Me Love” enters the charts. The song was the third of seven songs by the Beatles to hit #1 in a one-year period; an all-time record.
    1964 – Jan and Dean’s "Dead Man's Curve" enters the charts. It reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100.
    1965 - Martin Luther King, Jr., on TV, calls for boycott buses and trains (I believe) in Alabama. On March 21, he and John Lewis of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC-we pronounced “snick”) started a five-day civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, with 3,200 marchers. I covered part of this by radio from San Francisco, actually speaking with small town police dispatchers who were surprised that a radio station in San Francisco was interested in the "demonstration." At the end, 25,000 gathered in demonstrations at the front of the state capitol in Montgomery. The police and sheriff, and apparently the majority of the citizens were against Dr. King, Jr. and his followers. There was a San Francisco group from SNCC who also would call from telephone booths at the end of the day. The day before Dr. King, Jr.’s appeal on television, Viola Gregg Liuzzo, a civil rights worker from Detroit, was shot and killed in Selma.
http://www.thatsalabama.com/civilwrongs/violaliuzzo/
    1965 - President Lyndon Johnson appeared on television, flanked by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and Attorney General Nicholas Katzenbach, and announced the arrests of four Klansmen in connection with the Liuzzo murder. President Johnson stated: “Due to the very fast and the always efficient work of the special agents of the FBI who worked all night long immediately after the tragic death of Mrs. Viola Liuzzo on a lonely road between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama, arrests were made a few minutes ago of four Ku Klux Klan members . . . charging them with conspiring to violate the civil rights of the murdered woman.” After naming the arrested Klansmen, the President continued: “I cannot express myself too strongly in praising Mr. Hoover and the men of the FBI for their prompt and expeditious and very excellent performance in handling this investigation. It is in keeping with the dedicated approach that this organization has shown throughout the turbulent era of civil rights controversies.”
New York Times, March 27, 1965.
One of the arrested Klansmen, Gary Rowe, later surfaced as an undercover FBI informant. Rumors that one of the Klansmen was an informant began to circulate when a federal grand jury indicted only three of the Klansmen, and were confirmed when the informant testified, under heavy guard, before the Alabama grand jury. On Rowe's testimony, the state grand jury returned murder indictments against the three other men who were in the car.
Three criminal trials resulted from the Liuzzo murder: two murder trials in the state courts and one federal conspiracy trial. Only one of the three indicted Klansmen, Collie LeRoy Wilkins, was tried on the murder charge. His first trial resulted in a hung jury, and the second in an acquittal. All three Klansmen were successfully prosecuted on the federal charge of conspiring to violate Mrs. Liuzzo's civil rights, and, on verdicts of guilty, each received the maximum sentence. Gary Rowe testified at all three trials, and related both the background of his involvement with the Ku Klux Klan and the FBI, and his version of the events which took place on March 25. Rowe testified that he was approached by an FBI agent in 1960 or 1961 and was asked to infiltrate the Klan. His duties, he stated, were to "keep up with" any violent actions, and to report to the FBI on the men whom he met in his undercover work.
http://www.icdc.com/~paulwolf/cointelpro/law/liuzzovus485FSupp1274.htm
Note: A book is available on this: “The Informant: The FBI, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Murder of Viola Liuzzo”
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0300106351/ref=cap_pdp_dp_0/
104-8250829-9266338
    1966 - INGRAM, ROBERT R., Medal of Honor
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as Corpsman with Company C, First Battalion, Seventh Marines against elements of a North Vietnam Aggressor (NVA) battalion in Quang Ngai Province Republic of Vietnam on 28 March 1966. Petty Officer Ingram accompanied the point platoon as it aggressively dispatched an outpost of an NVA battalion. The momentum of the attack rolled off a ridge line down a tree covered slope to a small paddy and a village beyond. Suddenly, the village tree line exploded with an intense hail of automatic rifle fire from approximately 100 North Vietnamese regulars. In mere moments, the platoon ranks were decimated. Oblivious to the danger, Petty Officer Ingram crawled across the bullet spattered terrain to reach a downed Marine. As he administered aid, a bullet went through the palm of his hand. Calls for "CORPSMAN" echoed across the ridge. Bleeding, he edged across the fire swept landscape, collecting ammunition from the dead and administering aid to the wounded. Receiving two more wounds before realizing the third wound was life-threatening, he looked for a way off the face of the ridge, but again he heard the call for corpsman and again, he resolutely answered. Though severely wounded three times, he rendered aid to those incapable until he finally reached the right flank of the platoon. While dressing the head wound of another corpsman, he sustained his fourth bullet wound. From sixteen hundred hours until just prior to sunset, Petty Officer Ingram pushed, pulled, cajoled, and doctored his Marines. Enduring the pain from his many wounds and disregarding the probability of his demise, Petty Officer Ingram's intrepid actions saved many lives that day. By his indomitable fighting spirit, daring initiative, and unfaltering dedications to duty, Petty Officer Ingram reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
    1967 – Raymond Burr starred in a TV movie titled "Ironside." The show, about a wheelchair-bound detective, became very popular as a weekly series in the spring of 1967. Burr, known to millions as determined lawyer, "Perry Mason" (a past TV hit), played the part of Robert Ironside in the new show. He was joined by characters, Detective Sgt. Ed Brown (Don Galloway), Eve Whitfield (Barbara Anderson), Mark Sanger (Don Mitchell) and Commissioner Dennis Randall (Gene Lyons).
http://timstvshowcase.com/ironside.html
    1967 - Top Hits
“Happy Together” - The Turtles
“Dedicated to the One I Love” - The Mamas & The Papas
“There’s a Kind of Hush” - Herman’s Hermits
“I Won’t Come in While He’s There” - Jim Reeves
    1967 - Van Morrison records "Brown Eyed Girl", which will enter the Billboard chart next August and rise to #10. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2007.
    1968 - The controversial rock musical “Hair,” produced by Michael Butler, opened at the Biltmore Theatre at New York City after playing off-Broadway. For those who opposed the Vietnam War and the "Establishment," this was a defining piece of work as evidenced by some of its songs, such as "Aquarius," "Flair" and "Let the Sunshine In."
    1968 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: “(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay,'' Otis Redding. The song reaches No. 1 three months after Redding is killed in a plane crash near Madison, Wis.
    1969 - Joe Cocker played his first American concert. He entertained fans at Bill Graham’s Fillmore East in New York City.
    1970 - Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's "Woodstock" is released. The song, written by Joni Mitchell, peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 in Canada.
    1970 - Vietnam Moratorium Concert: a seven-hour concert at Madison Square Garden at New York City featured many stars who donated their services for the antiwar cause. Among them were Jimi Hendrix; Dave Brubeck; Harry Belafonte; Peter, Paul and Mary; Judy Collins; the Rascals; Blood, Sweat and Tears and the Broadway cast of “Hair.”
    1971 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me),'' The Temptations. It became the third Temptations song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The single held the number one position for two weeks.
    1973 - Wilt Chamberlain retired from the NBA after playing in 1,045 games. During his entire 14-season career, Chamberlain never fouled out.
    1973 - Pink Floyd's LP “Dark Side of the Moon” hits #1
    1974 - A streaker (i.e.: someone running around naked), ran onto the set of "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson". The clever NBC censors decided to blackout the lower half of the TV screen on the videotape to prevent an ‘X’ rating. The streaker was arrested, but released, for "lack of evidence," said Johnny.
    1974 - "Hooked on a Feeling" by Blue Swede turns gold. The band's novel version of the BJ Thomas' 1968 song hits Number One next month.
    1974 - The Raspberries split up. The group's biggest hit is “Go All the Way,'' which went all the way to No. 5 on Billboard's Hot 100 in 1972.
    1975 - Barbra Streisand attends tonight's Elvis Presley show in Vegas and meets the King backstage to discuss offering him the lead role in her latest film project: a remake of the classic “A Star Is Born.” Despite the fact that Streisand's boyfriend, stylist Jon Peters, is slated to produce and direct, Presley is said to be ecstatic about the project.
    1975 - Top Hits
“My Eyes Adored You” - Frankie Valli
“Lady Marmalade” - LaBelle
“Lovin’ You” - Minnie Riperton
“Before the Next Teardrop Falls” - Freddy Fender
    1976 - Media sources reported a potential blockbuster trade between the New York Mets and the LA Dodgers which involves two future Hall of Fame pitchers. According to the rumor, the deal will send Tom Seaver to the Dodgers in exchange for Don Sutton. Mets fans responded negatively to the proposed deal, perhaps influencing management to call off the trade.
    1977 – 49th Annual Academy Awards presentation at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles was hosted by a cast of four: Warren Beatty, Ellen Burstyn, Jane Fonda, and Richard Pryor. "Rocky" collected Oscars for Best Picture (Irwin Winkler, Robert Chartoff, producers); Best Director (John G. Avildsen); and Film Editing (Scott Conrad, Richard Halsey). "Network" hauled in the gold for Best Actor (Peter Finch); Actress (Faye Dunaway); Supporting Actress (Beatrice Straight); and Writing (Paddy Chayefsky). "All the President’s Men" was given awards for Best Supporting Actor (Jason Robards); Art Direction (George Jenkins); Set Direction (George Gaines); Sound (Dick Alexander, Les Fresholtz, Arthur Piantadosi, Jim Webb); and Writing (William Goldman). The Best Music/Song Oscar-winner titles are memorable too: Barbra Streisand (music) and Paul Williams (lyrics) for "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)" from "A Star is Born."
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0149362.html
    1979 - Three Mile Island nuclear reactor complex near Middletown, PA sustained a major accident, the first of its kind. It was the worst accident in U.S. commercial nuclear power plant history. The incident was rated a five on the seven-point International Nuclear Event Scale: Accident with Wider Consequences. Homes in nearby neighborhoods were evacuated. The accident began with failures in the non-nuclear secondary system, followed by a stuck-open pilot-operated relief valve in the primary system, which allowed large amounts of nuclear reactor coolant to escape. The mechanical failures were compounded by the initial failure of plant operators to recognize the situation as a loss-of-coolant accident due to inadequate training and human factors, such as human-computer interaction design oversights relating to ambiguous control room indicators in the power plant's user interface. In particular, a hidden indicator light led to an operator manually overriding the automatic emergency cooling system of the reactor because the operator mistakenly believed that there was too much coolant water present in the reactor and causing the steam pressure release. Cleanup started in August 1979, and officially ended in December 1993, with a total cleanup cost of about $1 billion.
    1980 - Although springtime was starting in the Rocky Mountains, the snow just kept on coming! One foot or more of snow fell over portions of eastern Colorado, southwest Nebraska, northwest Kansas and southeastern Wyoming. Winds reached 40 mph and Valentine, Nebraska received 13 inches of snow. North Platte, Nebraska checked in with 15 inches.
    1983 - Top Hits
“Billy Jean” - Michael Jackson
“Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” - Culture Club
“Hungry like the Wolf” - Duran Duran
“Swingin’ “- John Anderson
        1984 - Mick Fleetwood, whose band, Fleetwood Mac, had the biggest-selling album of all time just seven years earlier, files for bankruptcy. Today
he lives in Lahaina, Hawaii; has a restaurant and still tours with his band.
    1985 - At 10:15 am EST, 6,000 North American radio stations begin playing the all-star benefit single, "We Are The World," written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and performed by a cast of 45 of music's biggest stars, including Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Diana Ross, Billy Joel, Tina Turner, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, and Daryl Hall. Proceeds from the sale of the single and related items -- some $38 million -- go to benefit victims of the recent Ethiopian famine.
    1985 - Bill Cosby broke more records with "The Cosby Show" on NBC-TV. The program was the highest-rated program of any network series since 1983. "The Cosby Show" became the highest-rated series since 1978 when "Mork and Mindy", starring Robin Williams and Pam Dawber, premiered on ABC.
http://freespace.virgin.net/lol.marcus/cosby.htm
http://timstvshowcase.com/billcosby.html
    1984 - Severe thunderstorms in the southeastern US spawned 36 tornadoes which tore paths of devastation across the Carolinas during the afternoon and evening hours killing 59 people and injuring 1248 others. One tornado near Tatum, South Carolina, an F4 on the Fujita scale, was 2.5 miles wide at one point. This outbreak was the worst in the area in 60 years.
    1986 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: “Rock Me Amadeus,'' Falco. The Austrian singer says he was inspired to write the song about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart after seeing the movie “Amadeus.''
    1987 - The second blizzard in less than a week was in progress across the central plains. 16 inches of snow was recorded at Blue Hill, Nebraska and 14 inches piled up at Omaha, Nebraska. 12 to 18 inches of snow was common across northwestern Kansas. Winds gusting up to 70 mph whipped drifts 20 to 30 feet high in some places. The storm took a great toll on cattle as well.
    1989 - Softball pitchers Cathy McAllister and Stefni Whitton of Southwestern Louisiana performed a feat unprecedented in NCAA history by throwing back-to-back perfect games against Southeastern Louisiana. McAllister struck out 10 and won, 5-0, and Whitten struck out 14, winning 7-0.
    1990 – 62nd Annual Academy Awards were staged at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles with Billy Crystal as host. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) members voted "Driving Miss Daisy" the Best Picture of 1989 (Richard D. Zanuck, Lili Fini Zanuck, producers). The Best Director Oscar was won by Oliver Stone for "Born on the Fourth of July". Best Actor was Daniel Day-Lewis for "My Left Foot" and Best Actress was Jessica Tandy in "Driving Miss Daisy" (the 80-year-old actress was a favorite to win). Oscars for Actor and Actress in a Supporting Role went to Denzel Washington ("Glory") and Brenda Fricker ("My Left Foot"), respectively. Best Music/Song winners were Alan Menken (music), Howard Ashman (lyrics) for "Under the Sea" from "The Little Mermaid". You’re probably still humming this tune from that full-length animated film from Walt Disney Studios. Other popular 1989 films that were honored as nominees or winners include: "Field of Dreams"; "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade"; "Back to the Future Part II"; "Lethal Weapon II"; "Batman"; "Dead Poets Society"; "When Harry Met Sally"; and "Sex, Lies, and Videotape".
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0149769.html
    1990 - Jesse Owens receives the Congressional Gold Medal from President George Bush.
    1991 - Top Hits
“One More Try” - Timmy -T-
“Coming Out of the Dark” - Gloria Estafan
“This House” - Tracie Spencer
“Loving Blind” - Clint Black
    1992 - 1.6 inches of snow fell on this date at Syracuse, New York. This brought the seasonal snowfall total to 162.8 inches which set a new all-time seasonal snowfall record for the location. The old seasonal record was 162.0 inches set back in the winter of 1989-90.
    1996 - Williamsport, Pennsylvania recorded 0.8 inches of snow on this day to bring its seasonal snowfall total to 83.9 inches -- the city's snowiest winter ever.
    1996 - Twenty years to the day after first appearing with them on stage as their new lead singer, Genesis front man Phil Collins announces he is leaving the group.
    1996 – Twins OF Kirby Puckett was taken to the Ft. Myers Hospital after he awakes with his vision affected by a career-threatening malady. He has a black dot in front of his left eye and his vision is diagnosed as 20/200. Puckett, who hit .360 in spring training, underwent surgery. After beginning the season on the disabled list, Puckett announced his retirement on July 12, after glaucoma left him essentially blind in one eye. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001 and his number, 34, is retired by the Twins.
    2014 - Southern California suffered an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale; the quake originated about 22 miles southeast of Los Angeles near La Habra.
    2014 – Having just suspended Alex Rodriguez for the entire 2014 season after suspending several other players in the Biogenesis scandal, Major League Baseball agreed with the MLB Players Association on a number of changes that toughen the Majors' PED policy. The penalty for a first offense goes from 50 to 80 games, suspended players will no longer be eligible for the postseason or for full a postseason share, while the number of random tests will be significantly increased.
    2014 - Third baseman Miguel Cabrera signed a 10-year contract with the Detroit Tigers for $292 million, exceeding the 10-year contract signed by Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees in 2007 for $275 million.

NCAA Basketball Champions:
    1942 - Stanford
    1944 - Utah
    1950 - CCNY
    1977 - Marquette

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