Leasing Industry Job Wanted
Credit/Sales

Credit

Orlando, Florida - Will work remotely
As a Commercial Credit Analyst/Underwriter, I have evaluated transactions from sole proprietorships to listed companies, across a broad spectrum of industries, embracing a multitude of asset types. Sound understanding of balance sheet, income statement and cash flow dynamics which impact credit decisions. Strong appreciation for credit/asset risk.
rpsteiner21@aol.com
407 430-3917

Sales

 San Francisco Bay Area - Able to work remotely 
An experienced sales professional with 11 years total sales experience, 7 of those years which are in the equipment finance and working capital space.  Experience in training, mentoring, and leading team of sales reps.  Consistently a leader in origination volume, gross margin, and deal profitability.  Knowledge of credit and funding processes will allow me to hit the ground running and drive revenue immediately.  Available for immediate hire.
jbp243@gmail.com 
925-698-9327

Each Week Leasing News is pleased, as a service to its readership, to offer completely free ads placed by candidates for jobs in the industry. These ads also can be accessed directly on the website at: http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted.htm

Each ad is limited to (100) words and ads repeat for up to 6 months unless the candidate tells us to stop. Your submissions should be received here by the end of each week.

 

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Leasing News Top Stories
February 25 - March 1

(Stories most opened by readers)

(1) California Tags Lender for Paying Commissions to
         Unlicensed Brokers
By Tom McCurnin, Leasing News Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_25.htm#california

(2) When is a Company a Broker
          or Just a Referral Source?
By Tom McCurnin, Leasing News Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2019/03_01.htm#when

(3) Prequalification Referral Program Held
    to Require a California License, Pays $50,000 Fine
By Tom McCurnin, Leasing News Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_27.htm#pre

(4) New Hires/Promotions in the Leasing Business
          and Related Industries
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2019/03_01.htm#hires

(5) New Attacks Show Signed PDF Documents Cannot Be Trusted
without invalidating their signature, researchers have warned
https://www.securityweek.com/new-attacks-show-signed-pdf-documents-cannot-be-trusted

(6) Funders Looking for Brokers
    TimPayment Updated to Three Lists
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_27.htm#time

(7) Tom McCurnin to Retire
Leasing News Advisor & Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_27.htm#retire

(8) Terry Jennings, CLFP, Promoted to President
Financial Pacific Leasing, Umpqua Bank Subsidiary
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_25.htm#jennings

(9) Finance and Leasing Industry Recruiters
   Updated
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Feb2019/02_27.htm#recruiters

(10) NEFA's National Equipment Finance Summit
- List of Exhibitors Updated  March 12 to March 15, 2019
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Mar2019/03_01.htm#nefa

 

Monitor 100 Lessor in Indiana Nailed for
Making Loans Without a California Lender’s License

By Tom McCurnin
Leasing News Legal Editor

This is the fourth in the series of the aggressive action by the California Department of Business Oversight (DBO). The article will show the DBO is reaching out of the state in its decisions. The company in #4 is a Monitor 100 Company.
- Editor.

How You Handle This Touchy Subject During
the Application Process May Result in a Large Fine

In re United Leasing  60DBO-78996 (December 21, 2018). 

Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the past seventeen years, readers know that if they do loans in the State of California, they have to be licensed.  But what if you’ve been making loans in the State of California for many years while unlicensed, do you disclose that fact to the Department of Business Oversight? The answer is yes and how you handle it may result in a large fine. In today’s case, an Indiana leasing company was fined $20,000 for making unlicensed loans. The facts follow.

United Leasing is an Indiana leasing company in Evansville, Indiana. In 2017, it applied for a California lender’s license.  As part of the application process, it was required to disclose past lending activities in the State of California. It is not clear from the DBO decision whether this was voluntary or after inquiry. In any event, the DBO determined that the lessor made 138 loans while unlicensed. 

Rather than forgive and forget, the DBO stopped the license application process and gave United Leasing two options (1) Either have its application denied; or (2) Enter into a Consent Order agreeing to pay a $20,000 fine. United Leasing wisely chose to enter into the Consent Decree and pay the fine. When my staff does these applications, we often provide a letter that the client was unaware of the license requirement and often provide a letter from its counsel confessing to stupidity. 

The takeaway here is that all lenders making loans in California have to be licensed. Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of this law.  Don’t tell me that you don’t have an attorney who could have checked this out. While I was surprised at the size of the fine, it probably had some relationship to the 138 illegal loans the company made.  Heck, that’s only about $144 per illegal loan. Not a bad deal in my judgment.

The bottom line is this—get licensed. If you’re unsure whether you need a license in a particular state, call a lawyer.  It shouldn’t amount to much, like an hour or so per state. Far less than the $20,000 United Leasing paid. 

United Leasing  (4 pages)
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/united_leasing2019.pdf

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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(Leasing News has published for years "Current Regulations in United States Not Official, Compiled rom Many Sources." It may not be "up-to-date" as of today and is not intended to give "legal advice."  As Tom McCurnin suggests in his column, see an attorney who specializes in bank, finance, and leasing laws.  Editor

Current Regulations in United States
Not Official, Compiled from Many Sources

Please see your financial attorney for a legal opinion. 
Any up-dates or additions, please send to kitmenkin@leasingnews.org

Alaska: Money Service License. License required to have exemption from usury rates for loans of $10,000 to $25,000, and 24% rate for $850 to $10,000
http://commerce.state.ak.us/dnn/Portals/3/pub/MoneyservicesStatutes.pdf

Arizona: All "advance fee loan brokers" must register annually with the state. Includes "commitment fees." Stiff penalty and on line form for a complaint for the state to investigate. Arizona Revised Statutes, sec. 06-1303-1310 (1996)
Registration process: http://www.azdfi.gov/Licensing/Licensing-FinServ/ALB/ALB.html

Arkansas: All brokers of "a loan of money, a credit card or a line of credit" may not assess or collect an advance fee. In addition, all brokers must register with the Securities Commissioner, post a surety bond of $25.000 and have a net worth of $25,000.
Arkansas Code Annotate sec. 23-39-401 (1995)

California: On September 22, 2016, California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 777 into law, a bill that restores a de minimus exemption to the California Finance Lenders Law (CFLL) to allow a person or entity that makes one commercial loan per year to be exempt from the CFLL's licensing requirement, regardless of whether the loan is "incidental" to the business of the person relying on the exemption.

"In addition to the lending authority provided by the law, the California Finance Lenders Law provides limited brokering authority. A "broker" is defined in the law as "any person engaged in the business of negotiating or performing any act as broker in connection with loans*made by a finance lender." Brokers licensed under this law may only broker loans to lenders that hold a California Finance Lenders license." 
http://leasingnews.org/archives/May2016/05_02.htm#dob

(*any transaction that is not a true rent or meets the accounting and tax rules or is re-sold as a loan or discount or has a nominal purchase option is considered under this nomenclature. ) (2)

Delaware : License required for More Than 5 Loans Per Year.
http://banking.delaware.gov/services/applicense/llintro.shtml

Florida: Brokers of a "loan of money, a credit card, line of credit or related guarantee, enhancement or collateral of any nature" may not assess or collect an advance fee. 
Florida Statues, Chapter 687.14 (1992)

Georgia: A broker of "loans of money, a credit card, a line of credit or related guarantee, enhancement or collateral of any kind or nature" may not assess or collect an advance fee unless such fee is for "actual services necessary to apply for the loan." Official Code of Georgia Annotated, sec. 7- 7-1 (1992)

Idaho: No fee may be collected unless a loan is actually made. 
Idaho Code, sec. 26-2501 (1992)

Illinois: Code, 815 ILCS 175/15-5.03 Under the Act, a" loan broker" means any person who, in return for a fee from any person, promises to procure a loan for any person or assist any person in procuring a loan from any third party, or who promises to consider whether or not to make a loan to any person. 815ILCS 175/15-5- 15(a) specifically excluded from the application of the Act, however, are (1) any bank …regulated by any service loans for the Federal National Mortgage Association… (3) any insurance producer or company authorized to do business in [Illinois], (4) any person arranging financing for the sale of the person's product, (note that this exception does not apply to any person selling someone else's product and only applies to "the" person's product, implying the exception is for the owner of the product arranging for financing), (5) any person authorized to conduct business under the Residential Mortgage License Act of 1987 and (6) any person authorized to do business in [Illinois] and regulated by the Department of Financial Institutions or the Office of Banks and Real Estate. "In the event that the Act is violated by the broker, the Secretary of State is empowered by the statute to make investigations and examinations, suspend or revoke the broker's approval, subpoena witnesses, compel the production of books and records, order depositions and obtain temporary restraining orders and injunctions against the broker. In the vent that a violate is found, the Secretary of State may impose a fine in the amount of $10,000 for each violation and the broker shall be liable to any person damaged in the amount of tactual damages plus attorneys’ fees." This appears as standard language on most states.

Iowa: A broker of loans of "money or property" may not assess or collect an advance fee except for a "bona fide third-party fee" and a broker must obtain a bond or establish a trust account and file required documents with the Commissioner or Insurance.
Iowa Code, sec. 535C (19920)

Kansas: Broker is not exempt. Discounter or Lessor is exempt: " 'Creditor' means any person to whom a loan is initially payable on the face of the note or contract evidencing the loan" is exempt. Anyone who earns a fee or accept a deposit, except a bank, financial institution, discounter or lessor, must be registered.
http://www.securities.state.ks.us/rules/loan.rtf

Kentucky: Brokers of "a loan of money, a credit card, a line of credit or related guarantee, enhancement or collateral of any kind or nature" may not assess or collect an advance fee. 
Kentucky Revised Statutes Annotated, sec. 367.380 (1992)

Louisiana: A broker of loans of "money or property…whether such agreement is styled as a loan, a lease or otherwise" must obtain a surety bond or establish a trust account in the amount of $25,000. A broker may not collect an advance fee but may collect an "advance expense deposit for commercial loans" only for actual expenses incurred in obtaining the loan. Louisiana Revised Statutes Annotated, sec. 9:3574 (1993); Louisiana Revised Statutes Annotated, Sec. 51:1910 (1992)

Non-Louisiana leasing companies, with or without offices in the state, must qualify to do business in Louisiana, and are subject to payment of state and local occupational license fees. See: Collector of Revenues v Wells Fargo Leasing Corp., 393 So.2d 1255 (La. App. 1981). Common misunderstanding of Louisiana law. Motor vehicle lessors, with or without offices in Louisiana, additionally are required to be licensed by the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission in order to lease a motor vehicle in the state. (La. R.S. 32:1254(N)) Common misunderstanding of Louisiana law.

Maine: No license required: "the regulation of commercial loan brokers does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection. Transactions involving two businesses are legal/contractual in nature. Therefore, disputes involving a commercial loan between a business and commercial loan provider or broker must be settled in the court system."
http://www.maine.gov/pfr/consumercredit/faqs/loan_broker_faq.htm#j

Maryland: Lending threshold is $6,000 or less, so now need for license if over
this dollar amount

Massachusetts: Lending threshold is $6,000 or less, so now need for license if over this dollar amount.

Minnesota: License required for loans of $100,000 or less
Money Transfer License
http://mortgage.nationwidelicensingsystem.org/slr/PublishedState
Documents/MN-Money-Transmitter-Company-Description.pdf

Mississippi: A broker or loans of money may not assess or collect an advance fee and can be fined up to $5,000 for each violation. Mississippi Code Annotated, sec. 81-19-17 (1997)

Missouri: A broker of loans of "money or property" may not assess or collect an advance fee. Missouri Revised Statues, sec. 367 300 (19920

Nebraska: A broker of loans of money may not assess or collect an advance fee. Nebraska Revised Statutes, sec. 45-189 (1993)

Nevada: Foreign Corporations Foreign corporations engaged in activities in Nevada are subject to the provisions of Chapter 80 of the Nevada Revised Statutes. Specifically, NRS 80.010 through 80.055 set forth the requirements for a foreign corporation to qualify to do business in Nevada. Of primary importance are the statutes that establish (a) the filing requirements to qualify to do business (NRS 80.010); (b) the activities in which a foreign corporation may engage that do not constitute “doing business” so as to require qualification (NRS 80.015); and (c) the penalties to which a foreign corporation will be subject for failing to comply with the qualification provisions (NRS 80.055). The penalties for failure to comply with the qualification statutes include a fine (capped at $10,000) and/or denial of the right to maintain a court action. However, failure to comply will not impair the validity of contracts entered into by a foreign corporation nor prevent such corporation from defending itself in court. Foreign LLCs Foreign LLCs engaged in activities in Nevada are subject to the provisions of Chapter 86 of the Nevada Revised Statutes, specifically NRS 86.543 through 86.549. Foreign LLCs seeking to operate in Nevada must comply with the initial filing and registration requirements in NRS 86.544, and annual filing requirements of NRS 86.5461. The LLC must also maintain certain records, such as a list of current members and managers, in accordance with NRS 86.54615.

Additionally, NRS 86.5483 lists the activities which do not constitute “doing business” in Nevada for purposes of the Chapter. Foreign LLCs that fail to comply with the Chapter risk penalties similar to those facing a non-compliant foreign corporation. Those penalties are outlined in NRS 86.548.
Nevada has no usury statue.

New Hampshire
Any person making small loans, title loans, or payday loans in New Hampshire must obtain a license from the bank commissioner. N.H. Rev. State. Ann. § 399-A:2. This law does not apply to banks, trust companies, insurance companies, savings or building and loan associations, or credit unions. Id. Any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if a natural person, or a felony if any other person. N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann § 399-A:18.Consumer loans must give full interest and cost disclosure (doesn't seem to cover commercial loans).
https://www.doj.nh.gov/consumer/sourcebook/loans.htm

New Jersey: Brokers of "loans of money" may not assess or collect an advance fee. 
New Jersey Rev. Statutes, sec. 17:10B (1992)

Although New Jersey does not require a lessor to obtain a license to conduct a leasing business in the state, the New Jersey Corporation Business Activities Report Act requires foreign corporations to register with the state. See N.J. STAT. ANN. 14A:13-14. In particular, foreign corporations must file a Notice of Business Activities Report with New Jersey's Department of Taxation. Activities that trigger the requirement of a report include: (a) maintaining an office or other place of business in New Jersey; (b) maintaining personnel in New Jersey, even if the personnel is not regularly stationed in the state; (c) owing or maintaining real or tangible personal property directly used by the corporation in New Jersey; (d) owning or maintaining tangible and/or property in New Jersey used by others; (e) receiving payments from residents in New Jersey, or businesses located in New Jersey, that are greater than $25,000.00; (f) deriving any income from any source or sources within New Jersey; or (g) conducting or engaging in any other activity, property or interrelationships with New Jersey as may be designated by the Director of the Division of Taxation. See N.J.S.A. 14A:13-15. Corporations not required to file a report are those which either received a certificate of authority to do business, or filed a timely tax return under the Corporation Business Tax Act, or Corporation Income Tax Act. See N.J. STAT. ANN. 14A:13-16. Reports must be filed annually by April 15th.

New Mexico: New Mexico currently requires Brokers/Lessors to register for Licensing under the NM Mortgage loan Company or Loan Broker Act with the Financial Institutions Division of the State of New Mexico. Banks with Brick and Mortar within the State of New Mexico are exempt. Prior to licensing applicants must submit the Following: 
Articles of Incorporation 
Listing of all principals (including management) 
A full financial Package (to meet their minimum requirements of liquidity) 
Personal financial statements on all principals 
Disclosure of all current or past suits (civil or criminal) 
Attach a corporate surety bond 
Include a $400.00 registration fee renewable yearly

New York: No person or other entity shall engage in the business of making loans in the principal amount of twenty-five thousand dollars or less for any loan to an individual for personal, family, household, or investment purposes and in a principal amount of fifty thousand dollars or less for business and commercial loans, and charge, contract for, or receive a greater rate of interest than the lender would be permitted by law to charge if he were not a licensee hereunder except as authorized by this article and without first obtaining a license from the superintendent.

North Carolina: A broker of "loans of money or property…whether such agreement is styled as a loan, a lease or otherwise" must obtain a surety bond or establish a trust account in the amount of $25,000 and obtain a license. North Carolina General Statutes, sec. 66-106 (1992)
https://www.sosnc.gov/Corporations/pdf/FAQ
TreeLoanBrokerAct20130805.pdf
http://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes
/PDF/ByArticle/Chapter_66/Article_20.pdf

North Dakota: License Required  “Money Broker’s License”. N.D. Cent. Code Ann. § § 13-04.1-02.1 and 13-04.1-01.1 http://www.nd.gov/dfi/regulate/index.html
Brokers may not accept an advance fee unless the broker is licensed. North Dakota Century Code, 13-04. 1-09.1 (1993) Ohio: Department of Commerce, Division of Financial Institutions
(Certificate to engage in the business of a credit services organization in accordance with the provisions of Sections 4712.01 to 4712.14 of the revised code of Ohio, subject to all the provisions thereof and to the regulations of the division.) Ohio Department of Taxation requires a "Vendor's License" under provision 5739.17 of the Revised Code (...is hereby authorized to sell tangible personal property and selected services at the retail location specified below.) This also makes the lessor responsible for all taxes with penalties for not doing so.

Ohio: Ohio law provides that no person may engage in the business of lending money, credit, or choses in action in amounts of $5,000 or less, or exact, contract for, or receive, directly or indirectly, on or in connection with any such loan, any interest and charges that in the aggregate are greater than the interest and charges that the lender would be permitted to charge for a loan of money if the lender were not a licensee, without first having obtained a license from the Division of Financial Institutions. O.R.C. 1321.02. This rule is applied to any person, who by any device, subterfuge, or pretense, charges, contracts for, or receives greater interest, consideration, or charges than that authorized by such provision for any such loan or use of money or for any such loan, use, or sale of credit, or who for a fee or any manner of compensation arranges or offers to find or arrange for another person to make any such loan, use, or sale of credit. O.R.C. 1321.02.

Rhode Island: Any person who acts as a lender, loan broker, mortgage loan originator, or provides debt-management services must be licensed. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14-2(a). The licensing requirement applies to each employee of a lender or loan broker. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14-2(b). No lender or loan broker may permit an employee to act as a mortgage loan originator if that employee is not licensed. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14-2(b) R.I. Gen. Laws § 19-14-2 (2012) No person engaged in the business of making or brokering loans shall accept applications from any lender, loan broker, or mortgage loan originator who is required to be licensed but is not licensed. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14-2(d). There is an exemption from the licensing requirement for a person who makes not more than 6 loans in the state within a 12-month period. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14.1-10. Persons lending money without a license are guilty of a misdemeanor and can be fined not more than $1,000, or imprisoned for not more than 1 year, or both; each violation constitutes a separate offense. R.I. Gen Laws § 19-14-26.

South Carolina: A broker of "a loan of money, a credit card, a line of credit or related guarantee, enhancement or collateral of any kind or nature" may not assess or collect an advance fee. South Carolina Code Annotated, sec. 34-36-10 91992)

South Dakota: Money Lending License
Required for individuals or corporations to engage in the business of lending money, including creating and holding or purchasing and acquiring any installment loan ("Capital Lease" or EFA), single pay loan, or open-end loan which may be unsecured or secured by personal property. Requires filing a surety bond application. State and national banks, bank holding companies, other federally insured financial institutions, and the subsidiaries of those institutions are exempt from licensure. In addition, SD chartered trust companies are exempt from licensure. Any individual or corporation holding this license is required to pay the bank franchise tax. 
Duration: 1 year
Cost: Application: $600
South Dakota has no usury status

Vermont: In the past, Commercial loan license would apply to EFA and "Capital Leases." Exemptions include transactions over $1 million, and brokers who do not engage in transactions more than $50,000 in one year at rates not exceeding 12 percent per annum. As of May 1, 2017. "Loan solicitation licensees must maintain a surety bond, include a specific disclosure in all advertisements of loans and solicitation of leads, observe record retention requirements, and file an annual report and financial statements with the Commissioner of Financial Regulation."

Full information available here:
http://www.counselorlibrary.com/public/alert.cfm?itemID=2420

Ontario, Canada: General Requirements: 1. Branch Operation If a foreign corporation wants to carry on business via a branch operation, without a Canadian corporate entity, it may have to obtain a provincial license in each province in which it intends to carry on business. Pursuant to the Ontario Extra-Provincial Corporations Act R.S.O. 1990 c. E.27 ("EPCA"), a class 3 extra-provincial corporation (a corporation that has been incorporated or continued under the laws of a jurisdiction outside Canada) is prohibited from carrying on business in Ontario without a license under the Act [s. 4(2)]. Failure to comply with this licensing requirement can lead to a maximum fine of $2,000 for a person and $25,000 for a corporation [s. 20(1)]. Directors, officers and any person acting as a representative of the corporation can be fined up to $2,000 for authorizing, permitting or acquiescing to an offence by the corporation [s. 20(2)]. For the purposes of the EPCA, an extra-provincial business is considered to be "carrying on business in Ontario" if: a. It has a resident agent, representative, warehouse, office or place where it carries on its business in Ontario; b. It holds an interest, otherwise than by way of security in real property situate in Ontario; or c. It otherwise carries on business in Ontario [s. 1(2)]. This last category is a catchall. Recent case law in the area stresses that it is very much a fact-specific analysis hinging on the extent to which business is actually conducted in Ontario. 2. Incorporation: a foreign corporation can also choose to incorporate a subsidiary, either federally or provincially. If a subsidiary is incorporated provincially in Ontario, it may have to obtain an extra-provincial license to carry on business in other provinces. An Ontario-incorporated company does not have to obtain a license to carry on business in Quebec but does have to make annual information filings. 3. Bank Act If the financing company is a bank and intends to carry on business in Canada, it must obtain appropriate approval under the Bank Act 1991 c. 46. Whether an entity will be considered a bank under the Bank Act needs to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, as there are a number of relevant factors.

 

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State Licensing and Usury Laws:
An Updated Overview of a Few Troublesome States
By Barry Marks, CLFP

(Special to Leasing News)

(Leasing News requested Barry, a long time contributor to Leasing News, to update the state usury laws list. He states these are synopsis, pointing out the actual laws for each state should be view.
He also makes a disclaimer:) “This article is not intended to offer legal advice and is no substitute for consultation with a lawyer familiar with the laws of the relevant state.”

State usury and licensing laws differ significantly from state to state. These are just a few examples, there are other laws in other states that bear review.

In general, the factors that determine whether licensing or usury issues are likely to exist include whether leases or loans are offered, whether motor vehicles are being leased or financed, the size of the transaction and how high the proposed rate will be.

Many states also have laws affecting lease and loan brokers and the sale of off-lease motor vehicles.

California: Willful violation of the finance lender licensing laws is punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 and imprisonment for up to one year. Violators can be subject to a civil penalty of $2,500 per violation. Note that brokers are also subject to the licensing requirement and payment of referral fees is restricted. Licensed lenders are exempt from California’s usury limitation: the higher of 10% or a rate tied to the Federal Reserve rate. As Tom McCurnin points out: lenders who violate California’s usury laws are prohibited from recovering any interest and loss of previously paid interest, treble damages and punitive damages are possible.   

Colorado: Charging over 45% interest is a felony and carries a minimum one year prison sentence and a fine of $1,000.00.

Florida: Charging interest at a rate exceeding 18% on loans of less than $25,000 is considered a consumer finance loan and requires a license. In addition, an interest rate exceeding 25% is a second degree misdemeanor and charging an interest rate exceeding 45% is a third degree felony.

Kentucky: Lenders making loans of $15,000 or less or to sole proprietors must have a license and is subject to a usury limitation of 4% over the Fed 90-day commercial paper rate. Failure to obtain the loan license when necessary is a misdemeanor. The statute also provides that any loan contract made in violation of this statute shall be void and the lender shall have no right to collect any principal, charges or recompense whatsoever.”

Maryland: Loans under $15,000 made to a borrower other than a corporation face a 24% usury limitation and require licensing. Failure to obtain the license is a misdemeanor subject to fines and/or imprisonment not exceeding 3 years.

Massachusetts: The criminal usury rate is 20%. Violation of the criminal usury statute is punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than ten years or by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Michigan: If the borrower is a “business entity” but the lender is not a bank, credit union or similar institution, the maximum interest rate is 25% and that rate is subject to criminal penalties. Any person guilty of criminal usury may be imprisoned for up to 5 years and/or fined up to $10,000.00.

Minnesota: Loans to sole proprietors are limited to: 
Any person who violates the loan licensing statute is guilty of a “gross misdemeanor” and loans made without a license are void. The borrower is not liable to pay any amount under the loan and can obtain a refund of any money paid on the loan.

New Jersey: Loans for business purposes under $50,000 are limited to 16% interest (or a rate tied to federal rates, if higher). In addition to its civil usury rates New Jersey’s criminal usury rates are: (a) 50% for to loans to corporations, limited liability companies and limited liability partnerships; and (b) 30% to other borrowers Violation of criminal usury laws subjects the lending party to criminal usury liability and a fine up to $250,000.

Rhode Island: The maximum interest rate any entity may charge may not exceed the greater of 21% per annum or 9% above a published index. Violation of the usury statute can result in forfeiture of the entire principal and interest and imprisonment for not more than five years.

Tennessee: Tennessee’s usury rate is a variable published “formula rate”. The willful collection of usury is a misdemeanor punishable by up to eleven (11) months, twenty-nine (29) days in jail or a fine not to

Barry S. Marks, CLFP
Marks & Associates, P.C.
400 Century Park South, Suite 100
Birmingham, AL 35226
Mailing Address: PO BOX 1138
Birmingham, AL 35202
Tel: (205) 251-8303
Fax: (205) 278-8905
Email: barry@leaselawyer.com
www.leaselawyer.com

Leasing Industry Help Wanted

Credit Analyst Norwalk, Ct. Remote Location Considered 2 Years Min. Experience Collateral knowledge of over-the-road trucking assets, construction equipment, material handling, vocational units and machine tools is desired Call Maria Borges-Lopez: (203) 354-6090 or e-mail your resume to HumanResources@nmef.com Please click nmef.com/careers/ for more information www.nmef.com Providing small-ticket equipment financing for businesses across the country through our dedicated referral source network

 

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Customer Service

Sales Makes it Happen by Scott Wheeler, CLFP

Most participants in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry claim to have exceptional customer service and list it among the top attributes of their organization. It is not unusual for employees to claim that their personal service and personal attention to detail is what distinguishes them in the market.

How does an organization become a customer service leader in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry?

• Superior customer service requires all employees to function at the highest level. 
• Superior customer service requires companies not only to react to their customer's needs, but to anticipate and proactively solve their needs.
• Superior customer service requires employees who are empowered to make prompt, informed decisions in the best interest of their customers and their employers.
• Superior customer service requires employees who are knowledgeable about products, objectives, and risk/reward requirements.
• Superior customer service requires integration of departments, products, systems, and processes.
• Superior customer service requires leadership from the top and innovation from every level of the organization. (Some of the best corporate initiatives are originated from the bottom up.) 

The needs and expectations of vendors and end-users are high. They want to conduct business with professionals who understand every aspect of their business; professionals who are non-commodity players in a highly commoditized environment. The industry is quickly changing. The path to success will be measured by superior customer service at every level of the organization. 

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

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

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

 

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 When Apple released the $999 iPhone X in the fall of 2017, many people thought that the company famous for its premium pricing had finally overdone it. No way anyone in their right mind would spend that much money on a smartphone. And yet here we are, one and a half years later and other smartphone brands have followed Apple’s lead, making price tags in excess of $1,000 the new norm for top-of-the-line devices.

This week’s Mobile World Congress has brought us to a new level of smartphone price escalation, however, with both Huawei and Samsung announcing foldable phones that will cost close to or even more than $2,000. While flexible screens certainly are one of the more impressive innovations the smartphone industry has had to offer lately, the prices of the first flexible smartphones suggest that the industry has lost touch with reality.

According to a recent USA Today poll, the vast majority of smartphone users in the U.S. aren't willing to spend more than $750 on a new device. Only 3 percent of the respondents expressed their willingness to spend more than $1,000 on a new phone, with prices of $2,000 or more too absurd to even make it into the survey.

By Felix Richter
Statista

https://www.statista.com/chart/17198/willingness-to-pay-for-smartphones/

 

Reid Raykovich, CLFP
Leasing News Advisor

Reid joined the Leasing News Advisory Board January 1, 2019.

Reid Raykovich, CLFP
Executive Director
Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation
(206) 535-6281
P.O. Box 146, Northbrook, IL 60065
reid@CLFPFoundation.org
www.CLFPFoundation.org

Reid Raykovich, CLFP is the Executive Director at the Certified Lease & Finance Professional Foundation. Reid took over the Foundation in 2012 and has grown the membership by over 350%. In 2014, she was honored with the Foundation’s Cindy Spurdle Award of Excellence.

Reid began her career in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry at Great American Insurance where she obtained her CLFP designation. She has also held various positions at McCommon Leasing, Irwin Commercial Finance and Financial Pacific Leasing where she was presented the Above and Beyond Leadership Award. She was also given the Leasing News Person of the Year Award in 2016.

Reid has authored and co-authored several articles regarding certification and continuing education and has spoken on various panels and presented at many industry conference sessions. In 2018, she traveled to Australia and spoke in three cities regarding the certification.

She has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, with a minor in Classics and Business from the University of Washington where she graduated magna cum laude in two and a half years.

In her spare time, she loves crafting and making gifts for others. She has a husband Nick and a daughter Milla who keeps her on her toes.

[headlines]
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Labrador Retriever Mix
Evansville, Indiana  Adopt a Dog

Nicky

Male
Blond/White
Size: Medium
Age: 5 years/2 months
Intake Date: December 21, 2018
Adoption Fee: $110
Location: Dog Adoption B

Vanderburgh Humane Society
400 Millner Industrial Drive
Evansville, IN 47710
812-426-2563

No appointment is needed. All adoptions must be in progress by 5:30 pm.

Viewing and Adoption
Tuesday - Saturday
12:00 - 6:00 PM
Closed Sundays, Mondays

Adoption Application:
https://www.vhslifesaver.org/uploads/files/485a3316e422e987ac5bb5a469fd8f5e7cf39efa.pdf

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

[headlines]
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Manhattan Broker Fair May 6, 2019
Broker Fair 2019 Preshow Party Sells Out

Tickets to the upcoming Broker Fair Conference Preshow Party on May 5th have sold out. The preshow party is being hosted Upstairs at the The Kimberly Hotel, Penthouse Level at 145 East 50th Street in Manhattan from 7-9pm. The party is the kickoff event to Broker Fair 2019 being held the following day on May 6th at The Roosevelt Hotel.

Broker Fair’s room block had also sold out but the conference hosts have procured additional rooms for ticket holders that have yet to book their stay.

Broker Fair 2019 will be the largest gathering of merchant cash advance and business loan brokers in the country. 39 Sponsors have already signed on. The three platinum sponsors are Rapid Finance, National Funding, and Funding Metrics. The event is on pace to sell out entirely.

Two Leasing News Advisors will speak on equipment leasing:

Phil Dushey
Global Financial Services

Edward P. Kaye, Esq.
Access Commercial Capital, LLC
President of Directors
the National Vehicle Leasing Association.

For more information about the Manhattan Broker Fair
presented by deBanked:
https://brokerfair.org/pages/about-conference/

(A little known fact, Sean Murray supplies kosher catering for all the Broker Fairs for Orthodox Jews who attend, a rarity among such meetings. Editor)

News Briefs----

A Blast of Snow and Bitter Cold Across the Nation.
   Oh, Goody.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/weather-forecast-cold-snow.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

America's Trucker Shortage Is About to Hit Consumers
    Where It Hurts
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/america-apos-trucker-shortage-hit-220021059.html

Countdown begins for Congress to raise the debt ceiling
... expects Treasury to run out of money this fall
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/debt-ceiling-when-money-congress-161644008.html

The World's Best Cities for Tech Startups
   Seven Cities Taking Tech Startups to New Heights
https://www.thetechedvocate.org/the-worlds-best-cities-for-tech-startups/

The Controversy Around Stock Buybacks Explained
    Stock Buybacks Surpassed $1 Trillion Last Year
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/stock-buybacks-explained/

 

[headlines]
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You May Have Missed---

Bigger, Saltier, Heavier: Fast Food Since 1986 in 3 Simple Charts
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/business/fast-food-health-salt-calories-portions.html

[headlines]
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To Look Forward to Spring

by Salle Safford

The rains will come
The snow will fall,
A chill in the air
Bitter cold.

The trees will be bare
For the months ahead,
And the world will
Seem drab and old.

But soon the trees
Will bud again,
And the birds will
Begin to sing.

As they pronounce
To the world,
There is hope ahead
And an open door to spring

[headlines]
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Sports Briefs---

Jerry Jones: This is my 30th year,
I don’t have 30 more, I want a Super Bowl now
http://www.theredzone.org/Blog-Description/EntryId/75370/Jerry-Jones--This-is-my-30th-year--I-don-t-have-30-more--I-want-a-Super-Bowl-now

Montez Sweat sets 40-yard dash record
  for defensive linemen at NFL scouting combine
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/draft/2019/03/03/nfl-combine-results-montez-sweat-40-time-record-linemen/3049035002/

Andy Isabella, Randy Moss' 5-9 protégé, ties for top 40 time
   at NFL combine after clarification
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/draft/2019/03/02/nfl-combine-andy-isabella-40-time-randy-moss/3042350002/

Lakers Odds: LeBron James, LA Favored
    to Miss Playoffs After Loss to Suns
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2823321-lakers-odds-lebron-james-la-favored-to-miss-playoffs-after-loss-to-suns

How much are the Cubs worth? Try $2.15 billion.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-cubs-tribune-media-sale-20190301-story.html

Why Warriors argue Stephen Curry is “underrated”
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2019/03/03/why-warriors-argue-stephen-curry-is-underrated/

[headlines]
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California Nuts Briefs---

Authorities suspend search for woman buried by Fort Funston landslide
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2019/03/03/authorities-suspend-search-for-woman-buried-by-fort-funston-landslide/

Green Book detoured SF Bay Area’s black travelers around racism
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/nativeson/article/Green-Book-detoured-Bay-Area-s-black-travelers-13657510.php

[headlines]
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“Gimme that Wine”

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

Actress Sarah Jessica Parker to Launch Wine Ranger
https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2019/02/actress-sarah-jessica-parker-to-launch-wine-range/?fbclid=IwAR2WAt9YN3P4lFB7if4EHBnl2FUtNUdKu1oet18y-r3iO6mguOZGEnwzlfs

Inside the Greek wine industry
https://www.meininger.de/en/wine-business-international/inside-greek-wine-industry

Portocork America opens bigger Napa wine cork plant
   with Trefinos distribution deal
https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/napacounty/9340358-181/portocork-trefinos-wine-corks-napa

Black Owned Winery in Napa Valley Lands Partnership
  with Delta Air Lines
https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-owned-napa-valley-winery-lands-partnership-with-delta-airlines/

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

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

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

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

This Day in History

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
    1628 – The Massachusetts Bay Colony received its Royal Charter.    
    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 (d. 1779) 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 (d. 1931) 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 (d. 1988), 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 (d. 1969), 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.    
    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 (d. 1983) 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 - 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 (d. 2007), 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-Hungary, 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 (d. 1952) 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 (d. 2012) 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 (d. 2003), 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. 
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 (d. 1991), 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.”
     1932 - Birthday of Miriam Makeba (d. 2008) 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 (d. 2007) 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.  Mt. Davidson is the highest natural point in the city at 928 feet.  It is located near the geographical center of the city.  The first temporary cross was erected in 1923 for a service led by Dean J. Wilmer Gresham of Grace Cathedral.  A second 87-foot high cross was built in 1924 and burned down in 1925.  In 1926, a nearly 100 feet high cross was built and illuminated every night a week before Easter, then burned down in 1928.   In 1929 an 80-foot high wood and stucco cross with lighting was built.  The same year 20 acres at the top of Mount Davidson was purchased by the city of San Francisco for use as a park with funds donated by the Mount Davidson Conservation Committee.  An additional 6 acres on the summit was donated to the city at the same time.  Arsonists burned down the 1929 cross in 1931.  In 1933, Mayor Angelo Rossi, Governor and former Mayor James Rolph, the Easter Sunrise Service Committee, and the Native Sons of the Golden West pledged to construct a permanent cross to commemorate the early California pioneers. The 103-foot high concrete and steel cross was completed the next year with President Franklin Roosevelt lighting the cross via telegraph from the White House on March 24, 1934 – eight days before Easter.  Sunrise services are held at the cross every Easter and were broadcast nationwide by CBS from the 1940s through the 1970s.  
    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 (d. 1996) was born in Nice, France. 
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 - First 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'.  As of 2011, the book had been translated into 39 languages.  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.  In 1990, “Life” magazine named Spock one of the 100 most important people of the twentieth century.  At the time of his death in 1998, it had sold over 50 million copies worldwide.
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/
    1989 - Time Inc. and Warner Communications were merged into Time Warner, Inc., creating the world's largest media company.  On October 22, 2016, AT&T announced an offer to acquire Time Warner for $108.7 billion (including assumed Time Warner debt).   The proposed merger was confirmed on June 12, 2018, after AT&T won an antitrust lawsuit that the US Department of Justice filed in 2017 to attempt to block the acquisition.  The merger closed two days later, with the company becoming a subsidiary of AT&T.
    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.
    1990 – Hank Gathers collapsed on the court and died.  He was a basketball player at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.  Just weeks prior, Gathers collapsed at an LMU home game and he was found to have an abnormal heartbeat.  Beta blockers were prescribed but he reduced his medication because he thought it slowed his play.  On Sunday, March 4, 1990, in Los Angeles, he collapsed again in the first half of the WCC tournament semifinal game against the Portland Pilots after scoring on a dunk.  He attempted to get up, telling the athletic trainers, "I don't want to lay down!" Shortly after, he stopped breathing.  Gathers was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital at 6:55 PM PST.  He was 23 years old.
    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.
    2015 – Scientists uncovered a 2.8 million-year-old jawbone of a primitive human, suggesting that humans may have evolved from hominins, or human-like primates, about 400,000 years earlier than previously thought.