“Advice on Performance Reviews”
Career Crossroad---By Emily Fitzpatrick/RII

Do you have any advice regarding performance reviews?

The majority of employees will have to go through “the quarterly, sixth month and/or annual Performance Review” AKA Employee Evaluation or Performance Appraisal.  Even if you are confident you are doing well, the anticipation often causes stress.  By approaching the review as a career tool, it can be a positive experience; just be prepared.  Obviously, you have an idea if you have done well or not. Ideally you always want to meet or exceed your targets/goals set forth by your Manager.  If you haven’t, be prepared for a negative review; if you have, make sure to prepare documentation to back up your successes. 

Purpose
Reviews are vehicles for positive or negative feedback and will showcase your outcomes and accomplishments; were goals were reached, missed or exceeded. They can also be utilized to create a plan for success, to determine raises and promotions, and to ascertain whether termination is warranted.  
You will not have a lot of control over the situation; however, there are a few things you can do:

Know your Company’s Process:
 Find out what to expect
Conduct a Self-Review: 
Make a list of your achievements and accomplishments; if you have kept track of them, this should be simple … track down documentation to back up claims
After:
Think of it as a learning opportunity; if you received criticism, figure out how to make improvements, etc…

There are Many More Steps You Can Take to Prepare | Contact us for Further Advice

If Your Review is Negative

Wait, Read & Analyze:
Take time to think about your review, set your feelings aside so you can be objective
Make an Appointment: 
When you meet with your manager, you will need to either explain why you disagree with the assessment, or if it is a fair one, present your plan for improving performance
Follow Up: 
Send an email that reiterates your discussion, and the improvement plan you came up with; keep evidence that you are taking the right steps to do a better job

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

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

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The Housing Crisis Is Great News for America
"Inventory Low in Many Markets"

by Akin Oyedele, www.businessinsider.com

Danville, California

There's a part of the new housing crisis that tells us good news about the US economy.

Right now, inventory levels are not enough to service potential homebuyers in many markets.

This imbalance has contributed to a rise in home prices that is locking many out of homeownership. San Francisco is probably the poster child of this problem.

But the demand side of the equation is reason to remain bullish on the outlook for the housing market.

On Friday, the National Association of Realtors said that existing-home sales kept their momentum in April, rising 1.7% at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.45 million.

NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said that the biggest gains were in the most affordable Midwest — indicative of where the activity really is.

Still, the trend in the West, where low supply and high prices are hurting buyers the most, is not widespread enough to be bearish on the overall housing market.

"The good news is we've actually seen the number of new listings coming onto the market this year rise rather significantly from last year," said Budge Huskey, CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate, which transacts in nearly 50 US cities.

"It's just that whenever [listings] come on the market, they're selling quickly 'cause the demand is there," he told Business Insider.

Deutsche Bank's Joe LaVorgna recently wrote that he remains optimistic about the housing market partly because credit standards for buyers creating this demand have tightened.

Specifically, as BI's Bob Bryan noted, banks and lenders have improved mortgage standards, shutting out many first-time buyers with lower credit scores.

"The individuals who are driving the demand in these markets are doing so based on real money, real income, real capabilities, and they are true buyers," Huskey said.

He continued: "This is very much different from the mid-2000s, where many of the buyers in these markets that tended to overheat things were only in the market and only buying because of the availability of financing that was probably less than responsible."

Improved access to loans and higher wages should support housing's contribution to growth for the remainder of the cycle, LaVorgna said.

But the most desirable outcome, according to Huskey, would be that home-price gains become tied to economic and wage growth, while sales gains reflect increases in household formation.

"Despite the fact that prices have accelerated at that pace, there is more than sufficient demand based on individuals who are qualified and have the income to purchase," Huskey said. "So I'm not sure that we're even at the point where it begins to compromise overall sales activity."

 

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

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American Financial Services Association (AFSA)
  Added to Equipment Leasing and Related Finance Associations

American Financial Services Association (AFSA)
919 18th St., NW, Suite 300
Washington, D.C. 20006
info@afsamail.org

They are celebrating their 100th Anniversary Annual Meeting, October 24-26, 2016 at the Breakers Palm Beach, Palm Beach, Florida.

AFSA’s 350 members include consumer and commercial finance companies, vehicle finance/leasing companies, mortgage lenders, credit card issuers, industrial banks and industry suppliers. The association was founded in 1916 as the American Association of Small Loan Brokers. The group formed to promote state laws that would make small loans more readily available to average Americans, who had few options at the time to receive small personal loans.

Many on the Board of Directors appear to represent the vehicle
finance industry.
https://www.afsaonline.org/About/-Leadership/Board-of-Directors

AFSA is also on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube
https://www.afsaonline.org/

Leasing News Equipment Leasing and Related Finance Associations
http://www.leasingnews.org/associations.htm

Secured Transactions: Control Agreement for Bank
Account May Have Account Number Discrepancies

By Tom McCurnin
Leasing News Legal Editor

To Perfect an Interest in a Bank Account, Secured Creditors Use
Control Agreements.  Court Rules That Discrepancies in Account Number Do Not Invalidate Security Interest If the Mistake is the Debtor’s

In re SE. Stud & Components, Inc., No. 14-32906-DHW, 2015 WL 7750209 (Bankr. M.D. Ala. Dec. 1, 2015).

Everyone should know that in order to perfect an interest in a bank account as collateral for a loan or lease, the secured creditor and bank must enter into a control agreement, similar to what is done for stock accounts. But typically, security agreements have to be very detailed and accurate. In today’s case, the court was faced with a control agreement that had different account numbers than the ones actually used by the debtor. Did that fact invalidate the security interest? Surprisingly, the answer was no. The facts follow.

The Mill Steel Company, Mill Steel Birmingham loaned SE Stud an undisclosed sum of money. Mill Steel took SE Stud’s accounts at Sterling Bank as collateral for the loan. The proper way to perfect a security interest in bank accounts is by way of a control agreement between the secured creditor and the bank, giving the secured creditor the right to control the accounts in the event of a default. 

Apparently, the debtor and the bank changed the bank account numbers after the control agreement was executed. Therefore there was a discrepancy between the account numbers listed on the control agreement and the actual account numbers used by the debtor. 

Mill Steel duly filed a UCC-1 Financing Statement disclosing that it held, as collateral, bank accounts of SE Stud. 

SE Stud defaulted and filed bankruptcy. The Trustee of the debtor filed suit against Mill Steel for a declaration that the bank accounts were property of the estate, because Mill Steel had botched the terms of the control agreement. Mill Steel countered with the argument that the account numbers were similar, and close enough is good enough.

The Bankruptcy Court considered the issue and it came down to whether there was a provision in the Uniform Commercial Code that would require the specific accounts to be identified in the control agreement, in order for the creditor's security interest to attach to the bank account. The court could not find any such provision.

Moreover, the debtor and Sterling Bank were aware of the particular accounts to which the control agreement applied. Finally, through a search of the Uniform Commercial Code records, a third party would have found that the security interest of Mill Steel in the deposit accounts of SE Stud. Essentially, this put any third party, including the bankruptcy trustee on inquiry notice. 

The court dismissed the trustee’s suit. The secured creditor won, the trustee lost, and the secured creditor got the funds in the account, over the trustee.

What are the take aways here?

• First, while accuracy is important, the failure to accurately list the account numbers was not the fault of the secured creditor. That said, I’m confident that the secured creditor had actual knowledge of the actual account numbers, and could have corrected its mistake after the execution of the control agreement. Secured creditors should always audit the accounts annually and insure collateral is what it is supposed to be and where it is supposed to be.

• Second, the court bailed out the secured creditor in this case. With another judge, in another jurisdiction, the secured creditor might not be as fortunate.

The bottom line to this case is that accuracy of the account numbers in a control agreement do not matter, if the mistake is due to the conduct of the debtor. 

Southeastern_Stud_and_Components_Inc.  (4 pages)
http://www.leasingnews.org/PDF/SoutheasternStudComponents2016.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

 

(Leasing News provides this ad “gratis” as a means
to help support the growth of Lease Police)

Manchester Terrier Mix
Walnut Creek, California  Adopt-a-Dog

Melville
Manchester Terrier Mix
Male
2 Years Old
$250 Adoption fee

"2-year-old Melville is a sweet thoughtful little pup, and quite the deep thinker. Mel would make a great quiet companion, and may enjoy quieter walks around the neighborhood as he grows more comfortable in his new home. Melville is a little on the shy side, but warms up with sweet words of encouragement and some soft petting. Melville has a positive history with other dogs. We recommend Melville take a Small Dog or Basic Manners class where he can start a new life with you with the best paw forward. He currently weighs 11 pounds.

"Melville's adopter must be at least 18 years old with valid state-issued identification. ARF encourages family members to participate in the adoption process, especially children and family dogs."

Animal Rescue Foundation
2890 Mitchell Drive
Walnut Creek, CA
ARF is a national leader in the animal welfare industry co-founded by Elaine and Tony La Russa in 1991.

Email Inquiry:
http://arf.convio.net/site/PageNavigator/Inquiry/adoption_inquiry_lk14.html

Adoption Hours at ARF
Wednesday & Thursday
Noon - 6 pm
Friday
Noon - 7 pm
Saturday & Sunday
Noon - 6 pm
Early-bird sign-in Wed-Fri at 9 am

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

 

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Attorneys Who Specialize in
Banking, Finance, and Leasing

Birmingham, Alabama The lawyers of Marks & Associates, P.C. have over 30 years experience in dealing with virtually every type of equipment financing and are recognized throughout the industry for prompt, practical solutions and exemplary service. They offer cost-conscious, effective lease enforcement and good counsel.  Email: Barry@leaselawyer.com Website: www.leaselawyers.com	California, National: city: Riverside  Ellen Stern - get results, reasonable pricing; numerous industry contacts, nearly 30 yrs exp.in SoCal, 20 yrs equip.: CFL license specialist, documentation, work-outs, litigated collections, recoveries; deal-maker.  Email: leaselaw@msn.com
Kenneth C. Greene California Leasing and Financial consultant, active in several leasing associations, as well as involved in music and film production inLA.  Mention "Leasing News" for a free consultation. 818.575.9095 Skype: 424.235.1658 ken@kengreenelaw.com	Connecticut, Southern New England:  EVANS, FELDMAN & BOYER, LLC Collections, litigation, documentation, portfolio sales and financing, bankruptcy. We represent many of the national and local leasing companies doing business in this state. Past chairman EAEL legal committee. Competitive rates.  email: rcfeldman@snet.net
Los Angeles/Santa Monica Hemar & Associates, Attorneys at Law Specialists in legal assistance, including debt collection, equipment recovery, litigation for 35 years. Fluent in Spanish.  Tel: 310-829-1948  email: phemar@hemar.com
Los Angeles, Southern CA  Seasoned attorney representing secured creditors in auto finance and truck/equipment lease industry.  Bankruptcy and State Court litigation.   Vincent V. Frounjian (818) 990-0605or email: vvf@pacbell.net.	Encino, California: Statewide “ELFA”  Hemar, Rousso & Heald, LLP 30 yr excellent reputation Lessor representation commercial litigation, debt collection, and bankruptcy. Call Stephen E. Jenkins Esq (818) 501-3800
Los Angeles, Statewide: CA.     "ELFA" Aggressive creditors rights law firm specializing in equipment leasing handling collection matters on a contingency, fixed fee or hourly cbasis. email:RGarwacki@prodigy.net	Los Angeles, Statewide: CA      "ELFA" Practice limited to collections, bankruptcy and problem accounts resolution. Decades of experience. 10-lawyer firm dedicated to serving you. Call Ronald Cohn, Esq. (818)591-2121 or email. Email: rrcohn@aol.com
Los Angeles- Statewide, CA Lawyer specializing in banking and leasing issues statewide. Documents and litigation.  Tom McCurnin, Barton, Klugman & Oetting. Voice: (213) 617-6129  Cell:(213) 268-8291 Email:  tmccurnin@bkolaw.com	California & National Paul Bent – More than 35 years experience in all forms of equipment leasing, secured lending, and asset based transactions. Financial analysis, deal structuring, contract negotiations, documentation, private dispute resolution, expert witness services.  (562) 426-1000 www.paulbentlaw.com pbent@paulbentlaw.com
Illinois   Kevin E. Trabaris: Concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial finance, corporate and business transactions. Extensive experience representing banks, financial companies, equipment lessors, insurers and other funding and intermediary entities and borrowers in connection with thousands of business financing matters. He has handled everything from small ticket transactions to billion dollar syndicated loans, real estate financing to asset-based facilities. Email: ktrabaris@llflegal.com Work: 312.667.1354 Cell: 847.840.4687 http://llflegal.com/attorneys/kevin-trabaris/	Law Firm - Service, Dallas, TX. "ELFA" Mayer regularly practices in leasing, secured financing, project development and finance and corporate finance.  email: dmayer@pattonboggs.com Website: www.pattonboggs.com
Massachusetts (collection/litigation coast to coast)  Modern Law Group focuses its practice on collections, lease enforcement and asset recovery. For the past five years, our attorneys have helped clients recover millions of dollars. We are able to cover your needs coast to coast. Email phone 617-855-9085www.modernlawgroup.com	Michael J. Witt, experienced bank, finance, and leasing attorney, also conducts Portfolio Audits. Previously he was Managing Counsel, Wells Fargo & Co. (May, 2003 – September, 2008); Senior Vice President & General Counsel, Advanta Business Services (May, 1988 – June, 1997) Tel: (515) 223-2352 Cell: (515) 868-1067 E-mail: MWitt@Witt-Legal.com Web: www.witt-legal.com
National:  The OMEGA Network Group-nationwide legal representation of small and mid ticket equipment lessors-flat fee bankruptcy & replevin, contingent collection,  billable litigation (704-969-3280) tong_92@yahoo.com	National: Coston & Rademacher: Business attorneys serving the lease-finance industry since 1980. Transactional, documentation, corporate/finance, workouts, litigation, bankruptcy, portfolio management. Chicago-based national practice. Jim Coston, CLP (Members: ELFA, NEFA).  email: Jcoston@costonlaw.com Website:www.costonlaw.com
St. Louis County , MO. - statewide:  Schultz & Associates LLP., collections, negotiation, and litigation. Also register and pursue recovery on foreign judgments. Contingency and reasonable hourly rates.  Ronald J. Eisenberg, Esq. (636) 537-4645 x108  reisenberg@sl-lawyers.com www.sl-lawyers.com	NJ,De,Pa: Specializing in leased equipment/secured transactions. Collections, replevins/workouts reasonable rates. Sergio Scuteri/Capehart & Scratchard, PAsscuteri@capehart.com / www.capehart.com
New York and New Jersey Peretore & Peretore, P.C. documentation, portfolio purchase & sale, replevin, workouts, litigation, collection, bankruptcy.  Aggressive. Over 25 years experience.www.peretore.com	Thousand Oaks, California:  Statewide coverage Spiwak & Iezza, LLP 20+ years experience,Representing Lessors banks in both State/ Federal Courts/ all aspects of commercial leasing litigation. Nick Iezza 805-777-1175 niezza@spiwakandiezza.com

 

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

News Briefs---

Deere Tightens Terms for Leases as Used Equipment Piles Up from Lease Returns
http://www.wsj.com/articles/deere-reports-less-severe-sales-decline-tops-expectations-1463744428

Unhappy Investors Await Comerica's Recovery Plan
"loans to the oil industry taken a hit and revenue has plunged"
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20160522/NEWS/160529951/unhappy-investors-await-comericas-recovery-plan

US bank branches stay open despite slump in transactions
business customers do in person slumped 10x rate branch closure
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ef20337c-1d27-11e6-a7bc-ee846770ec15.html#axzz49RY7SysA

Moodys, New Securitization Deals Absolve New Age Lenders
   Has the market gone too far in punishing them?
http://debanked.com/2016/05/moodys-new-securitization-deals-absolve-new-age-lenders/

Huntington unveils 5-year, $16.1 billion investment plan
 for underserved communities the focus once deal for FirstMerit
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20160520/NEWS/160529963/
huntington-bancshares-unveils-5-year-16-1-billion-investment-plan

 

Sales Representative San Francisco 2 to 3 Years in Financial Services The keys to success at ATEL include: • Ability to learn quickly and effectively • Money motivated • Competitive, never say die attitude "You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win." - Zig Ziglar For Further Information, click here www.atel.com ATEL Capital Group, headquartered in the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco, is one of the largest independent equipment financing companies in the US serving a wide range of industries, focusing on Fortune 1000 companies and other near investment grade credit corporations. Since 1977 ATEL has priced, structured and negotiated in excess of $30 billion of equipment lease financing transactions

 

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--You May Have Missed It

Should Parents Post Photos of Their Children on Social Media?
http://www.wsj.com/articles/should-parents-post-photos-of-their-children-on-social-media-1463968922

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SparkPeople--Live Healthier and Longer

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

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Baseball Poem

#  1

by  Brendan Awerbach

Baseball is a game,  It has a Hall of Fame.
In Cooperstown, it's there, Getting in is so rare.

Baseball! Doubleday is the father of the game we know,
Or is it really so.
Playing in the late 1800's,
In front of crowds that were smaller then a hundred.
Baseball started in a very small way,
People needed to know how to play.

By the 1920's after the Black Sox scandal,
Baseball was changing and people started to get the handle.

The Yankees of the 30's and 40's started to create quite a sensation,
as baseball fever gripped the eastern part of the nation.

Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Johnson and Young all became the names of the day,
They would be the first to be in the Hall of Fame in a great way.

Baseball from the late 30's to the mid 40's took a back seat to the war,
but in the late 40's and 50's came back with roar.

A new generation of players were around,
Led by Feller, DiMaggio, Williams and Snyder, the stars seemed to abound.

The 60's and 70's gave us more greats,
Koufax, Yastremski, Mays, Aaron, Mantle and Maris,
Baseball was known and played from the US to Paris.

As we entered the 80' and 90's, more stars came around,
Griffey, Ripken, Mcquire, Jackson, Ryan and Smoltz , all are the players that will astound.

The Hall of Fame is where all the greats are enshrined,
To hear their stories and tales can take a lotta time.
To understand baseball is not very tough,

And if you love the game, you can never get enough

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Sports Briefs----

Thunder thrash Warriors, take 2-1 lead in West finals
http://www.sfgate.com/warriors/article/Thunder-thrash-Warriors-take-2-1-lead-in-West-7939094.php

Robert Kraft says team in Las Vegas would be 'good for NFL' if Raiders want to move there
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/raiders/2016/05/20/robert-kraft-oakland-raiders-las-vegas/84677130/

Mike Shanahan apparently has given up on coaching again
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/05/21/mike-shanahan-apparently-has-given-up-on-coaching-again/

Big improvement from 49ers? Vegas doesn't think so!
http://www.sacbee.com/sports/nfl/san-francisco-49ers/article78860762.html

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California Nuts Briefs---

Drought, dead trees add up to big fire danger for California
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Drought-dead-trees-add-up-to-big-fire-danger-for-7534092.php

Petaluma draws new industry, new energy
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/business/5627279-181/petaluma-draws-new-industry-new?artslide=0

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“Gimme that Wine”

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

Get Ready for the Wine World's Richest, Glitziest Weekend
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-20/auction-napa-valley-2016-the-wine-world-s-richest-glitziest-weekend

Mike Grgich’s 'A Glass Full of Miracles' chronicles a remarkable life
http://napavalleyregister.com/wine/mike-grgich-s-a-glass-full-of-miracles-chronicles-a/article_5c72f30d-0485-5e7f-beba-4c0d1879cff8.html

2915 "Vintage of the Century" in Chianti Classico
https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2016/05/2015-the-vintage-of-the-century-in-chianti-classico/

Sandy Weill’s Wine Country Retirement, With Notes of Rue and Chagrin
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/19/business/dealbook/sandy-weills-wine-country-retirement-with-notes-of-rue-and-chagrin.html

Calif. almond yields to increase 6 percent in 2016, survey says
http://www.capitalpress.com/California/20160517/calif-almond-yields-to-increase-6-percent-in-2016-survey-says

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

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

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

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

        1774 - The Chestertown Tea Party was a protest against British excise duties which, according to local legend, was a response to the British Tea Act. Chestertown tradition holds that, following the example of the more famous Boston Tea Party, colonial patriots boarded the brigantine Geddes in broad daylight and threw its cargo of tea into the Chester River in Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The event is celebrated each Memorial Day weekend with a festival and historic reenactment called the Chestertown Tea Party Festival.    
    1785 - Benjamin Franklin, Philadelphia, PA, writes his friend, George Whately, “I have only to move my eyes up and down as I want to see distinctly far or near” as he describes his invention that day of a bifocal eyeglass. He was annoyed at having to carry two pairs of glasses. He took a frame and equipped it with lenses that consisted of two parts with a different focusing powers. Inasmuch as ordinary spectacles in the colonies cost as much as $100 each, a huge sum of money in those days, his invention did not receive ready popular response, as only the wealthy could afford glasses.
    1788 - By a vote of 149 to 73, South Carolina became the eighth state to ratify the Constitution. The colony originally named in honor of Charles I of England, became one of the United States on this day. The eighth state also has the dubious honor of being the first state to secede at the start of the Civil War in 1861. Its capital city is Columbia. The state bird is Carolina wren. The yellow jessamine (jasmine) is the state flower. It is also called the Palmetto State, after the palm tree that decorates the land.
    1803 - In the Tripolitan War (1801-1805), Commodore Edward Preble was commissioned as commander of a U.S. Navy squadron to be sent against Tripoli. My Dash holds a “plank” from the first voyage on the U.S.S. Preble, an Arleigh Burke –guided missile destroyer.  He left the Navy as
a Chief Petty Officer.
http://www.usspreble.org/commodor.html
http://www.preble.navy.mil/
http://www.navysite.de/dd/ddg88.htm
    1810 - Birthday of Margaret Fuller (d. 1850), journalist and author, born at Cambridge, MA.  She began reading Virgil at age six. Her conversational powers won her the admiration of students at Harvard University and she was befriended by Ralph Waldo Emerson. She shared editorial duties with Emerson on the Transcendentalist quarterly “The Dial,” and was hired by Horace Greely as literary critic for the New York Tribune. Her book “Women in the Nineteenth Century,” the first feminist statement by an American writer, brought her international acclaim. In 1846, as a foreign correspondent for the Tribune, she became caught up in the Italian revolutionary movement and secretly married a young Roman nobleman, the Marquee Giovanni Angelo Ossoli. On July 19, 1950, en route to the US, Fuller and her husband died when their ship was wrecked off Fire Island near New York, NY.
    1824 – Union Gen. Ambrose Burnside (d. 1881) was born in Liberty, IN.  A railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island, he served as Governor and a Senator. As a Union Army general, he conducted successful campaigns in North Carolina and east Tennessee, as well as countering the raids of Confederate Gen. John Hunt Morgan, but suffered disastrous defeats at Fredericksburg and the Battle of the Crater. His distinctive style of facial hair became known as sideburns, derived from his last name. He was also the first president of the National Rifle Association.
    1832 - "I would rather die upon yonder gallows than live in slavery." Jamaican national hero Samuel Sharpe was hung. He was the instigator of the 1831 Slave Rebellion which began on the Kensington Estate in Saint James and was largely instrumental in bringing about the abolition of slavery.
http://www.jamaicaway.com/Heroes/SharpePage.html
    1846 - Arabella Mansfield, born Belle Auerlia Babb (d. 1911) near Burlington, IA, was the first woman admitted to the legal profession in the US. In 1869, while teaching at Iowa Wesleyan College, Mansfield was certified as an attorney and admitted to the Iowa bar. According to the examiners, “she gave the very best rebuke possible to the imputation that ladies cannot qualify for the practice of law.”  Mansfield never did practice law, however, continuing her career as an educator. She joined the faculty of DePauw University, at Greencastle, IN, where she became dean of the schools of art and music. One of the first woman college professors and administrators in the US, Mansfield was also instrumental in the founding of the Iowa Woman Suffrage Society in 1870.
    1864 - The campaign between Union commander Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee, the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, continues southward to the North Anna River around Hanover Junction. In early May, Grant crossed the Rapidan River with the Army of the Potomac and then clashed with Lee's forces in the Wilderness on May 5 and 6 before racing to Spotsylvania Court House for an epic 12-day battle. Grant's continuous pressure on Lee would ultimately win the war, but he was racking up casualties at a rate that was difficult for the Northern public to stomach. Grant believed that Lee could not maintain his position at Spotsylvania because two other Union armies under the command of Franz Sigel and Benjamin Butler were attempting to cut off the Confederate supply line in the Shenandoah Valley and the Rebel stronghold south of Richmond. But both were failing miserably. By 19 May, Grant had had enough of Spotsylvania. He pulled his troops to try another run around Lee to Richmond. Correctly predicting Grant's move, just as he had done two weeks before when Grant left the Wilderness for Spotsylvania, Lee raced the Yankees 30 km south and beat Grant's troops to the North Anna River. The rail center here was crucial to his supplies. At the North Anna, Grant found Lee's position to be even stronger than at Spotsylvania. The river had high banks, and Lee's side was higher than the Union side in several places. Still, Grant made an attempt to dislodge the Rebels. He made two assaults, but neither came close to breaking the Confederate lines. He would try again the next day before moving south to Cold Harbor.
    1865 - Celebration of the end of the Civil War.  For the first time since the assassination of President Lincoln, the American flag was flown at full staff.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/may23.html
    1875 – Alfred P. Sloan (d. 1966) was born in New Haven, CT.  He was president, then chairman of GM from 1923-56.  He shaped the General Motors Corporation into one of the world's largest manufacturing enterprises and has been acclaimed as one of the great captains of industry of his age.  Recognized for his modern managerial skills, he also is noted for the pioneering automotive advances that he oversaw. These included four-wheel brakes, ethyl gasoline, crankcase ventilation and knee-action front springs.       
    1883 – Actor Douglas Fairbanks (d. 1939) was born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman in Denver, CO.  He was best known for his roles in silent films such as “The Thief of Baghdad,” “Robin Hood“and “The Mark of Zorro,” but spent the early part of his career making comedies.  Fairbanks was a founding member of United Artists. Fairbanks was also a founding member of The Motion Picture Academy and hosted the first Oscars Ceremony in 1929. With his marriage to Mary Pickford in 1920, the couple became Hollywood royalty and Fairbanks was referred to as "The King of Hollywood," a nickname later passed on to actor Clark Gable.  Though widely considered as one of the biggest stars in Hollywood during the 1910s and 1920s, Fairbanks' career rapidly declined with the advent of the "talkies." His final film was “The Private Life of Don Juan” (1934).
    1895 - The main branch of what would become the New York Public Library opened to the public.  New York’s then-governor Samuel J. Tilden was the driving force that resulted in the combining for the private Astor and Lenox libraries with a $2 million endowment and 15,000 volumes from the Tilden Trust to become the city’s library.
(lower half of: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/may23.html)
    1900 - Sergeant William H. Carney of the 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry became the first African-American to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. He was cited for his efforts, although wounded twice, during the Battle of Fort Wagner, South Carolina, June 18, 1863. His commendation is very worthwhile reading: http://www.newbedford.k12.ma.us/elementary/whc.htm
    1903 - Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson of Burlington, VT, a physician, with Sewell K. Crocker of Seattle, WA, as his mechanic, began the first non-professional transcontinental car trip. The same driver also drove the mileage in a 20 horsepower $2,500 Winton, manufactured by the Winton Motor Carriage Company of Cleveland, OH. Jackson and Crocker left San Francisco on May 23 and arrived in New York City on July 26. The average daily run was 25 miles. The trip lasted 63 days, of which 44 were spent traveling and 19 awaiting supplies, as there were very few gasoline stations, Howard Johnson’s or even Seven-11’s along the way.
   1903 - President Theodore Roosevelt , in Seattle, Washington, signed in as the inaugural guest at the Washington Hotel atop Denny Hill and toured Fort Lawton. Two days later he briefly visited North Yakima before heading off to Walla Walla, where he spoke at Whitman College.  Roosevelt won the election and five years later dispatched the U.S. Navy's Great White Fleet from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, where its itinerary included a tour of Puget Sound. When the ships arrived in Elliott Bay on May 23, 1908, many Seattleites beamed with pride upon seeing the USS Nebraska, which had been launched from the Moran Brothers shipyard four years earlier. The Nebraska was the only battleship ever built in Washington State, and its construction was buoyed by $100,000 raised by local boosters.
    1906 - In Oakland‚ the San Francisco Seals played the first Pacific Coast League game in the Bay Area since the earthquake‚ beating Fresno‚ 4-3. The team played their home games at Recreation Park at Harrison and 8th Streets until it was destroyed in the quake. The Seals finished the 1906 season playing home games at Freeman's Park in Oakland. A new ballpark was ready for the Seals by the start of next season.  This version of Recreation Park and Ewing Park in 1914, served as the home field for the PCL San Francisco Seals and the Mission Reds before the latter moved to LA in 1938 to become the Hollywood Stars.  Seals Stadium was built in 1931 to which the Seals and Reds moved.  It was also the home of the San Francisco Giants when they first relocated to the city from New York.
    1908 - John Bardeen (d. 1991) was born Madison, WI.  With William Shockley and Walter Bratton, he invented the transistor, which set the stage for all modern microelectronics. Bardeen was also the only person ever to win the Nobel Prize for Physics twice. Bardeen worked as a physicist for the U.S. Navy during World War II. After the war, he joined Bell Telephone Laboratories, where he worked on the electronic conducting properties of semiconductors. In 1947, his team invented the transistor, which won the group a Nobel Prize in 1956. Semiconductors replaced vacuum tubes in electronic equipment, making electronics progressively smaller, faster, and more durable. Bardeen became a professor of physics at the University of Illinois in Urbana. In 1972, he won a second Nobel Prize, with Leon Cooper and John Schrieffer, for their work on the theory of superconductivity.
http://www.nobel.se/physics/laureates/1972/bardeen-bio.html
    1910 - Bandleader and clarinetist Artie Shaw (d. 2004) birthday, born Arthur Arshawsky in New York City. Shaw formed his first orchestra in 1936, and two years later had a double-sided million-seller with "Begin the Beguine" and "Indian Love Call." One of the most popular artists of the swing era, Shaw is estimated to have sold more than 43-million copies of such records as "Frenesi," "Summit Ridge Drive" and "Dancing in the Dark." Artie Shaw was married eight times - two of his wives were Lana Turner and Ava Gardner. Shaw later became an author and a theatrical producer, and in the 1980's again began fronting a big band.
http://www.parabrisas.com/d_shawa.html
http://www.artieshaw.com/
    1910 - Birthday of singer/guitarist/drummer Scatman Crothers (d. 1986), born Benjamin Sherman Crothers, Terre Haute, IN.
    1920 - Helen O'Connell (d. 1993) birthday, Lima, OH.  Vocalist with Jimmy Dorsey's band from 1939 to 1943. Her duets with Bob Eberly, backed by the Dorsey band, on such songs as "Amapola," "Tangerine" and "Green Eyes" sold millions of records. O'Connell and Eberly also appeared on a 1953 TV show with bandleader Ray Anthony, and for a while during the 1960's, O'Connell was the hostess on NBC's "Today" show.
http://www.parabrisas.com/d_oconnellh.html
    1922 - "Abie’s Irish Rose", opened at the Fulton Theatre in New York City. The play continued for 2,327 performances and numerous revivals as well. It is estimated that some 50,000,000 people have seen the play performed somewhere in the world.
    1928 - Singer Rosemary Clooney (d. 2002) was born in Maysville, Kentucky.  When Clooney was in her junior year in high school, she and her younger sister Betty began performing on Cincinnati radio station WLW. Bandleader Tony Pastor heard them, and soon the sisters were singing, in person and on record, with the Pastor orchestra. Betty tired of the road, and soon after Rosemary began a solo career. She signed with Columbia Records, and, in 1951, had her first number-one hit, "Come On-A My House," a song chosen for her by producer Mitch Miller. Her other hits included "Hey There," "Tenderly" and "This Ole House." Clooney married actor Jose Ferrer in 1953. The marriage was a stormy one that eventually ended in divorce. Her domestic problems and a resulting weight problem took her out of circulation for some years. Her career revived in 1977, when her “White Christmas” co-star, Bing Crosby, asked her to appear with him at a show marking his 50th anniversary in show business. She continued performing until her death.
http://www.rosemaryclooney.com/
    1932 - Birthday of guitarist/flutist Les Spann (d. 1989), Pine Bluff, AR.    
    1934 - Robert Moog (d. 2005) birthday, New York City.  Inventor of the music synthesizer which bears his name.     
http://www.obsolete.com/120_years/machines/moog/
http://remixmag.com/ar/remix_robert_moog/
    1934 - Clyde Champion Barrow and Bonnie Parker were shot to death by Texas and Louisiana state police officers as they attempted to escape apprehension in a stolen 1934 Ford V-8 near Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Bonnie and Clyde met in Texas in 1930 when the nineteen-year-old Bonnie was tending bar. At the time, Bonnie was married to an imprisoned murderer. Soon after the two met, Clyde was arrested for burglary and sent to prison. Bonnie smuggled a pistol into the prison, and Clyde broke out. Over the course of their crime spree together, Bonnie and Clyde were believed to have committed thirteen murders and several robberies and burglaries. For over two years, the couple evaded local police officers in rural counties of Texas, Louisiana, and New Mexico. Not until the FBI, then called the Bureau of Investigation, became involved in the case did law-enforcement officials gain ground on Bonnie and Clyde. In the spring of 1934, following tireless investigations, federal agents traced the gang to a remote county in Southwest Louisiana. A certain Methvin family was said to have been aiding and abetting the Bonnie and Clyde gang for over a year. It was learned that Bonnie and Clyde, along with some of the Methvins, had staged a party at Black Lake, Louisiana, on the night of May 21. Two days later, just before dawn, a posse of police officers from Texas and Louisiana, including Texas Ranger Frank Hamer, laid in ambush for Bonnie and Clyde along the highway near Sailes, Louisiana. In the early morning, Bonnie and Clyde appeared in their automobile. The officers reported that the coupe attempted to flee, but more likely, owing to the fact that Bonnie and Clyde had killed five policemen, the posse opened fire without warning. For two minutes, deputies showered the car with bullets. Both Bonnie and Clyde were killed in the barrage. Their bullet-riddled 1934 Ford later became a valuable collectible. Bonnie and Clyde gained a place in popular mythology as dustbowl Robin Hoods. The 1967 film “Bonnie and Clyde,” starring Warren Beatty as Clyde and Faye Dunaway as Bonnie, portrayed a charming and irreverent pair who took their game too far. Examination of the couple's past, as well as an examination of their victims, shows that Bonnie and Clyde were more likely carefree killers. Their popularity owed to the mistrust of the authorities of the Dustbowl during the Depression era, and to the couple's uncanny ability to elude the police for over two years.
    1940 - Frank Sinatra, singing with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, records "I'll Never Smile Again," the first of several No. 1 hits he recorded while performing with Dorsey. The singer had joined the orchestra earlier that year.
    1941 - Buddy Baer was disqualified at the beginning of the seventh round as Joe Louis defended his heavyweight boxing title for the 17th time. Baer’s manager refused to leave the ring when the round was ready to begin. He later became a well-known actor along with his brother, Max.
http://french.imdb.com/Name?Baer,+Buddy
http://www.antekprizering.com/baerbuddysig.html
    1944 – The University of Chicago called it quits to sports when it announced plans to withdraw from the Big 10 Conference of the NCAA and all other athletic competition.
    1944 - *DUTKO, JOHN W., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, 3d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Ponte Rotto, Italy, 23 May 1944. Entered service at: Riverside, N.J. Birth: Dilltown, Pa. G.O. No.: 80, 5 October 1944. citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty, on 23 May 1944, near Ponte Rotto, Italy. Pfc. Dutko left the cover of an abandoned enemy trench at the height of an artillery concentration in a single-handed attack upon 3 machineguns and an 88mm. mobile gun. Despite the intense fire of these 4 weapons which were aimed directly at him, Pfc. Dutko ran 10.0 yards through the impact area, paused momentarily in a shell crater, and then continued his l-man assault. Although machinegun bullets kicked up the dirt at his heels, and 88mm. shells exploded within 30 yards of him, Pfc. Dutko nevertheless made his way to a point within 30 yards of the first enemy machinegun and killed both gunners with a hand grenade. Although the second machinegun wounded him, knocking him to the ground, Pfc. Dutko regained his feet and advanced on the 88mm. gun, firing his Browning automatic rifle from the hip. When he came within 10 yards of this weapon he killed its 5-man crew with 1 long burst of fire. Wheeling on the machinegun which had wounded him, Pfc. Dutko killed the gunner and his assistant. The third German machinegun fired on Pfc. Dutko from a position 20 yards distant wounding him a second time as he proceeded toward the enemy weapon in a half run. He killed both members of its crew with a single burst from his Browning automatic rifle, continued toward the gun and died, his body falling across the dead German crew.
    1945 - SJOGREN, JOHN C., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company I, 160th Infantry, 40th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near San Jose Hacienda, Negros, Philippine Islands, 23 May 1945. Entered service at: Rockford, Mich. Birth: Rockford, Mich. G.O. No.: 97, 1 November 1945. Citation: He led an attack against a high precipitous ridge defended by a company of enemy riflemen, who were entrenched in spider holes and supported by well-sealed pillboxes housing automatic weapons with interlocking bands of fire. The terrain was such that only 1 squad could advance at one time; and from a knoll atop a ridge a pillbox covered the only approach with automatic fire. Against this enemy stronghold, S/Sgt. Sjogren led the first squad to open the assault. Deploying his men, he moved forward and was hurling grenades when he saw that his next in command, at the opposite flank, was gravely wounded. Without hesitation he crossed 20 yards of exposed terrain in the face of enemy fire and exploding dynamite charges, moved the man to cover and administered first aid. He then worked his way forward and, advancing directly into the enemy fire, killed 8 Japanese in spider holes guarding the approach to the pillbox. Crawling to within a few feet of the pillbox while his men concentrated their bullets on the fire port, he began dropping grenades through the narrow firing slit. The enemy immediately threw 2 or 3 of these unexploded grenades out, and fragments from one wounded him in the hand and back. However, by hurling grenades through the embrasure faster than the enemy could return them, he succeeded in destroying the occupants. Despite his wounds, he directed his squad to follow him in a systematic attack on the remaining positions, which he eliminated in like manner, taking tremendous risks, overcoming bitter resistance, and never hesitating in his relentless advance. To silence one of the pillboxes, he wrenched a light machinegun out through the embrasure as it was firing before blowing up the occupants with hand grenades. During this action, S/Sgt. Sjogren, by his heroic bravery, aggressiveness, and skill as a soldier, single-handedly killed 43 enemy soldiers and destroyed 9 pillboxes, thereby paving the way for his company's successful advance.
    1945 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit:  “Sentimental Journey,'' Les Brown Orchestra/Doris Day.
    1951 - Top Hits
“Mockingbird Hill” - Patti Page
“On Top of Old Smokey” - The Weavers (vocal: Terry Gilkyson)
“Too Young” - Nat King Cole
“Kentucky Waltz” - Eddy Arnold
    1951 - Jill E. Barad birthday, NYC. She became president of chief operating officer of Mattel, Inc. in 1992. She joined Mattel in 1981 as a product manager and became marketing director of the Barbie line in 1982. Under her guidance, Barbie sales moved from $485 million in 1988 to more than $1 BILLION in 1994. Her marketing strategy included Hot Wheels as well as tie-ins with Disney, McDonald's, etc. She made Mattel the largest toy manufacturing company in the world. She also bore two children while making her way to the top, not letting pregnancy slow her down. In fact, one of her major promotions came when she was five months pregnant. Today, there are more Barbie dolls in existence than there are people in the U.S.
http://www.surferess.com/CEO/html/jill_barad.html
http://aol.businessweek.com/1998/21/b3579001.htm
    1953 - Bill Haley and His Comets saw their first release for Essex Records, "Crazy Man, Crazy," enter the Cashbox Best Sellers chart at #19. The success will be short lived however, as the record would fall out of the Top 50 two weeks later.
    1959 - Top Hits
“The Happy Organ” - Dave ‘Baby’ Cortez
“A Teenager in Love” - Dion & The Belmonts
“Dream Lover” - Bobby Darin
“The Battle of New Orleans” - Johnny Horton
    1960 - The Everly Brothers' "Cathy's Clown" hit number one in the US for the first of a five week stay. The duo had also accomplished this feat 1958 when "All I Have to do is Dream" spent over a month at the top position.
    1962 - The National Basketball Association agreed to plans to transfer the Philadelphia Warriors to San Francisco, CA. The team became the San Francisco Warriors (now the Golden State Warriors).
    1962 - Joe Pepitone of the New York Yankees set a Major League Baseball record by hitting two home runs in one inning. The rare feat lifted the Yankees past the Kansas City Athletics by a score of 13-7.
    1963 - Paul Revere and the Raiders sign with Columbia Records where they will have 14 Billboard Top 40 singles between 1965 and 1971.
    1964 - Capitol releases The Beach Boys' "I Get Around" b/w "Don't Worry Baby." "I Get Around" goes on to become the group's first #1 hit, topping the chart for 2 weeks.
    1964 - Millie Small's "My Boy Lollipop," already a hit in the U.K., enters the Hot 100 in the U.S. It stays on the charts for 12 weeks climbing up to Number Two.
    1965 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit:  “Help Me Rhonda,'' The Beach Boys.
    1966 - The Beatles' "Paperback Writer" b/w "Rain" single is released. The A-side was a tune written by Paul McCartney and featured John and George on backing vocals. The B-side was a Lennon song.
    1967 - Top Hits
“Groovin’” - The Young Rascals
“Respect” - Aretha Franklin
“I Got Rhythm” - The Happenings
“Sam’s Place” - Buck Owens
    1972 - Heavy U.S. air attacks that began with an order by President Richard Nixon on May 8 are widened to include more industrial and non-military sites. In 190 strikes, the United States lost one plane but shot down four. The new strikes were part of the ongoing Operation Linebacker, an effort launched in response to the massive North Vietnamese invasion of South Vietnam on March 30. The purpose of the raids was to interdict supplies from outside sources and the movement of equipment and supplies to the North Vietnamese troops in South Vietnam. The strikes concentrated on rail lines around Hanoi and Haiphong, bridges, pipelines, power plants, troops and troop training facilities, and rail lines to China.
    1973 - Clive Davis, president of Columbia Records, was fired by boss Arthur Taylor. Davis wrote a book about his experiences, and later formed Arista Records.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0688028721/fast-bkasin-20/
002-0667839-4443242
    1975 - Top Hits
“Shining Star” - Earth, Wind & Fire
“Before the Next Teardrop Falls” - Freddy Fender
“Jackie Blue” - Ozark Mountain Daredevils
“I’m Not Lisa” - Jessi Colter
    1977 - San Francisco bans electric instruments from all free outdoor concerts, leaving Jefferson Starship to cancel their planned free concert in Golden Gate Park. Years later, Bernie Taupin would write "We Built This City" for the band about this event.
    1979 - The New England Whalers of the National Hockey League changed their name to the Hartford Whalers. The team was an original member of the World Hockey Association and won the first WHA championship, the Avco World Cup, in the 1972-73 season. When the WHA folded following the 1978-79 season, the Whalers were one of four WHA teams taken into the National Hockey League.
    1979 - Sister Sledge's "We Are Family" goes platinum. The album's title track, a #2 hit last month, is the rallying call for baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates, who will go on to win the 1979 World Series in October. Perhaps best remembered in the US version of “The Bird Cage.”
    1983 - Top Hits
“Let’s Dance” - David Bowie
”What a Feeling” - Irene Cara
“Little Red Corvette” - Prince
“Common Man” - John Conlee
 1991 -The town of Forks, Washington, shut down when its citizens traveled en masse to Olympia to protest critical-habitat protections for the northern spotted owl. Three years later U.S. District Court Judge William L. Dwyer upheld the federal government's management plan in a key decision interpreting the National Environmental Policy Act
    1991 - Top Hits
“I Like the Way” (“The Kissing Game”) - Hi-Five
“Touch Me” (“All Night Long”) - Cathy Dennis
“Here We Go” - C + C Music Factory Presents Freedom Williams and Zelma Davis
“If I Know Me” - George Strait
    1994 - Prodigy Services announces a deal with Media General Cable to provide Prodigy access via cable television wires to 200,000 subscribers in Fairfax County, Virginia. Prodigy expected the cable hookup to provide faster speed and enable flashier graphics. At the time, most Prodigy users logged on to the system via 9600-baud modems. Over the next four years, modem speed would increase dramatically, but interest in cable modems would grow as companies like AtHome worked with local cable providers to offer higher-speed bandwidth.
    1994 - Four men convicted in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center are each sentenced to 240 years in prison.
    2000 - Joining Babe Ruth and Ted Williams, Seattle's Rickey Henderson draws his 2,000th career walk.
    2002 - Buddy Guy is among the multiple winners at the W.C. Handy Awards, mounted by the Blues Foundation in Memphis. Guy wins for contemporary male artist of the year and blues instrumentalist of the year (guitar); his "Sweet Tea" is named contemporary blues album of the year.
    2006 - Brad Paisley wins three of the evening's top awards at the Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards. His "Time Well Wasted" (Arista Nashville) is named album of the year, and he also wins the video and vocal event prizes for "When I Get Where I'm Going," a hit collaboration with Dolly Parton.
    2007 - The US Library of Congress hands out the first Gershwin Award to Paul Simon for being a "performer whose lifetime contributions exemplify the standard of excellence associated with the Gershwin’s."
    2011 - Tornado warnings were issued for Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri.  The Joplin, MO death toll rose to 126 people with 1,150 injured by the May 22 tornado.
    2013 - The Skagit River bridge over Interstate 5 collapsed in Mount Vernon, WA, plunging several vehicles into the river, but there were no fatalities.   The cause of the collapse was determined to be an oversized load, striking several overhead support beams on the bridge, which led to an immediate collapse of the northernmost span.