Thursday, May 22, 1997
Today's events
The International Coffee Organization holds a two-day
council meeting in London.
An estimated 5,000 athletes are expected to begin
participating in the Senior Olympics in Tucson, Arizona.
The World Economic Forum is scheduled to hold a Southern
African Summit in Zimbabwe.
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On the horizon
On Friday, May 23, presidential elections are to be held in
Iran to elect a successor to President Akbar Hashemi
Rafsanjani.
On Saturday, May 24, Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori is
scheduled to visit Dhaka.
On Sunday, May 25, the first round of French elections are
scheduled to begin.
On Monday, May 26, a preliminary hearing begins at the U.N.
Tribunal for former Yugoslavia of the appeal by Drazen
Erdemovic against a 10-year jail sentence for crimes against
humanity.
On Tuesday, May 27, the 9th annual National Geography Bee is
scheduled to begin in Washington.
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On this day
In 1455, the opening battle in England's 30-year War of the
Roses took place at St. Albans, when the Lancastrians
defeated the Yorkists.
In 1629, the Peace of Luebeck was signed, ending hostilities
between the Holy Roman Empire and Denmark.
In 1897, the Blackwall Tunnel under the River Thames was
opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales.
In 1908, in the U.S. the Wright Brothers patented their
flying machine.
In 1915, the worst train disaster in Britain took place when
a troop train collided with a passenger train at Gretna
Green, Scotland, killing 227.
In 1943, the Third Communist International, known as
COMINTERM, was dissolved by the Soviet Union in a gesture to
the West.
In 1945, U.S. troops captured Yonabaro on Okinawa island,
Japan.
In 1967, fire at the Brussels department store
"L'Innovation" killed more than 320 people.
In 1969, the Apollo 10 lunar module Snoopy came within 9.4
miles of the Moon's surface.
In 1972, President Nixon arrived in Moscow on a week's visit
- the first U.S. president to visit the Soviet Union.
In 1972, Ceylon became a republic within the Commonwealth
under the name of Sri Lanka.
In 1979, in Canada, the 11-year premiership of Pierre
Trudeau ended when the Liberal Party were defeated in a
general election by the Progressive Conservative Party led
by Joe Clark.
In 1981, in Britain, Peter Sutcliffe (the Yorkshire Ripper)
was jailed for life after being convicted of 13 counts of
murder.
In 1989, Soviet authorities announced curbs on the number of
staff at the British embassy and other institutions in
Moscow, from 375 to 205.
In 1990, former Marxist South Yemen and conservative North
Yemen merged into one state.
In 1994, Rwandan rebels seized the key government army
barracks in Kigali, removing the biggest obstacle in their
drive to capture the capital.
In 1996, Japan settled lawsuits which bought to an end the
mercury poisoning case called Minamata, named after the
village where hundreds died between 1953-60 by eating
mercury-tainted seafood.
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Newslink
The NCAA Women's College Softball World Series starts today
at the Oklahoma City Amateur Softball Hall of Fame stadium.
To keep up with all the action, click here.
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Holidays and more
Today is Waisak Day in Indonesia.
Today is Immigrant's Day in Canada.
It's a National Day in Yemen.
Actor Richard Benjamin is 59.
Actor Frank Converse is 59.
Actress Barbara Parkins is 54.
Actor Michael Sarrazin is 57,
Actress Susan Strasberg is 59.
Actor Paul Winfield is 57.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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