Important Events From This day in History March 19th

 

1987 U.S.A. Televangelist Jim Bakker

1987 : Televangelist Jim Bakker resigned as chairman of his PTL ministry organization and hands over control to Jerry Falwell. The PTL ministry had average viewers numbering over twelve million, amid the scandal involving a former church secretary, Jessica Hahn who was paid $279,000 from PTL funds to keep secret her allegation that he had raped her. During the earlier period the PTL ministry organization had raised millions to build Heritage USA a Christian theme park, water park and residential complex which between 1978, and 1986 was one of the top vacation destinations in the country . Following the scandal and large losses "Heritage USA" was forced to close.

In 1989, after a five week trial in Charlotte, the jury found Jim Bakker guilty on a number of accounting fraud and conspiracy charges, and Judge Robert Potter sentenced him to 45 years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine. He was released on Parole in 1993 after serving 5 years and in 1992 Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye Bakker were divorced.

1964 England New Towns Needed

1964 : A study, estimates the country's population will increase by three million by the early 1980s and highlights the need for expansion of existing cities and the creation of three new towns in the South East. The three "new towns" that were created were:

Milton Keynes formally designated as a new town on 23 January 1967 Current Population estimate 184,506.

Milton Keynes was one of the first towns / cities built in the UK that had a grid road system similar to cities in the US ( straight roads North / South and East / West )

Both Havant and Basingstoke did exist prior to 1964 but the number of houses and people living in the area significantly increased over the next two decades as green belt land was released for building.

2001 U.S.A. California Rolling Blackouts

2001 : California officials order the first of a further two days of rolling blackouts.

Rolling blackouts had began on

June 14th, 2000 due to a heatwave

January 17-18, 2001

March 19-20, 2001

May 7-8, 2001

The California electricity crisis which included extremely high prices and Rolling blackouts was a direct result from the manipulation of energy of a partially deregulated California energy system by companies like Enron and Reliant Energy.

1982 England Falkland Islands

1982 : 50 Argentines land at Leith Harbour, on South Georgia a British colony of the Falkland Islands in the south Atlantic and planted their nation's flag. Argentina invades the Falkland Islands on April 2nd and British Marines are deployed to regain the Island on April 25th

1916 U.S.A. First Use Of Air Combat

1916 : The first use of air combat by the US when Eight Curtiss "Jenny" planes of the First Aero Squadron are used in support for the 7,000 U.S. troops who invaded Mexico to capture Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

1918 U.S.A. Daylight Saving Time

1918 : The US Congress approves daylight-saving time. Germany started the use of DST in 1916 and other countries followed suit. Daylight saving time or British summer time is the practice of adjusting clocks forward one hour near the start of spring so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less, and adjusting them backwards in the Autumn by 1 hour. It is not used universally world wide but is common in Europe and North America.

1920 U.S.A. Treaty of Versailles

1920 : The senate voted to refused to ratify the treaty of Versailles that would end the nations war status.

1921 Argentina Wheat Export Tax

1921 : It was revealed that Buenos Aires would not add on a new wheat export tax. It was said that uncertainty of this decision had cause the wheat industry to be unstable for a period of time.

1931 U.S.A. Gambling

1931 : The Nevada state legislature votes to legalize gambling hoping to bring much needed money to the state in the worst of the depression years.

1932 Australia Sydney Harbor Bridge Opens

1932 : The Sydney Harbour Bridge the fourth-longest spanning-arch bridge in the world across Sydney Harbour officially opened. The bridge was designed to carry road traffic, railway traffic and a footpath on each side.

1938 Spain Civil War

1938 : Cabinet members were divided on the issue of whether or not the civil war should end. Fierce fighting occurred while the cabinet convened at the capital building. A fourth of the population of Barcelona had fled into the mountains and set up camp to hide from bombings.

1941 U.S.A. Jimmy Dorsey

1941 : Jimmy Dorsey and his orchestra record the hits "Green Eyes" and "Maria Elena." The album hit the Billboard charts two months later and spent 17 weeks on it, peaking at #1 in mid-June. Both songs eventually hit #1, making the album a major hit.

1945 Japan USS Carrier Franklin

1945 : Japanese aircraft attack the USS carrier Franklin off Japan, killing about 724 of the crew. The ship did not sink and managed to limp back to Pearl Harbor for repairs.

1948 Germany Communist Demonstrators

1948 : About 70,000 demonstrators crowded the streets of Berlin. About half of them were supporters of the Communist Party, while others were supporters of the Anti-Communist movement. This event was coordinated by the “Communist-Controlled Socialist Unity Party.” All other political groups of Berlin had boycotted this event.

1953 U.S.A. Academy Awards

1953 : The Academy Awards was televised for the first time with Bob Hope as the host.

1955 U.S.A. Billy Graham

1955 : President Eisenhower and his wife had met Reverend Billy Graham in person. They exchanged cordial greetings and chatted with him after services, which took place at the National Presbyterian Church in Washington.

1967 England Sexism By Judge

1967 : Twelve women were responsible for deciding the verdict of a theft trial. They had determined in 38 minutes that the defendant was guilty. A judge was astounded, and complimented them-saying they were women, but “equal to a jury of 12 gentlemen in arriving at the truth of the matter.”

1970 Germany Leaders Meet for First Time

1970 : The leaders of East Germany and West Germany meet for the first time since the country was divided in 1949 following the end of the second world war.

1971 Turkey Nihat Erim

1971 : Nihat Erim had his work cut out for him as Turkey’s new premier (prime minister). Erim was called upon by President Cevdet Sunay to form a new Turkish government, which was in total crisis. Before Erim became premier of Turkey, he was the head of a conservative group that belonged to the Republicans People Party. His current order of business as prime minister was to form a governmental structure which would satisfy the major political parties of the country. Erim also was responsible for making sure that the new governmental set-up would satisfy military commanders threatening a takeover.

1971 Peru Earthquake

1971 : An earthquake sets off a landslide, flood and avalanche that result in the destruction of the town of Chungar, Peru, and the death of most of the towns people.

1976 England Princess Margaret

1976 : Princess Margaret, the sister of Queen Elizabeth, announced that she and her husband, Lord Snowdon, were separating after 16 years of marriage, they have two children 14-year-old Viscount David Linley and 11-year-old Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones.

1981 U.S.A. Richard E. Burke

1981 : Richard E. Burke, an aid to Senator Edward M. Kennedy admitted that a series of death threats he claimed were not true. About a month prior to this date, Burke had told Secret Service men as well as the Washington D.C. police and FBI that he was almost hit with a bullet while leaving his house. Additionally, Burke claimed that a burglar carrying a butcher knife entered his home. This intruder was said to have narrowly escaped after being stopped by a security alarm. Burke resigned as of this date ( 1981). His major reason for stepping down from his position was because the activities of the most recent campaign had stressed him out. Furthermore, the reorganization of the office had affected him negatively. Soon after this, action was to be taken to determine if Burke would be charged of giving false information to officers.

1990 Germany Unification

1990 : Unification was a hot topic driving free elections in Germany. The Alliance for Germany Party and the Social Democrats won a majority of the seats in the German Parliament. The above-mentioned parties managed to win more of the votes than the other major party-the Communist Party (renamed The Party of Democratic Socialism). Only one major party along with a group of about 20 smaller parties received less votes than the formerly-named Communist ticket.

1992 England Duke and Duchess of York Separate

1992 : The Duke and Duchess of York have announced they are to separate, they have been married since July 1986 and have two children Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie who are fifth and sixth in line to the British throne.

1995 U.S.A. Michael Jordan

1995 : Michael Jordan goes back to play for the Chicago Bulls after deciding to come out of retirement.

2002 Jerusalem Yasser Arafat

2002 : Palestinian Ruler Yasser Arafat had offered very attractive incentives towards cease-fire in the Middle East. Part of an incentive offered by Arafat was that Vice-President Dick Cheney from the United States would meet with Palestinian leader upon the establishing of a truce. This meeting scheduled was intended to provide Arafat’s with the highest-level governmental contact from the United States to date. Furthermore, Israel offered to lift a travel ban on Arafat before the upcoming Arab summit. This travel ban had lasted three months, and had confined Arafat to Palestinian areas.

2003 U.S.A. Iraq Invasion

2003 : President George W. Bush addresses the nation via live television and announces that Operation Iraqi Freedom has begun to rid Iraq of tyrannical dictator Saddam Hussein and eliminate Iraq's ability to develop weapons of mass destruction. The American led coalition launched began with the launch of U.S. cruise missiles and precision-guided bombs aimed at Saddam Hussein near Baghdad.

2006 Iraq Civil War

2006 : Iyad Allawi has said that Iraq is in the middle of a civil war. His television interview said that they had not reached to 'the point of no return,' but if the country fell apart, then sectarianism would spread across the region. The U.S. has repeatedly denied Iraq is having a civil war, but Allawi suggests that there is no other way to describing the sectarian violence that is taking place. 'If this is not civil war, then God knows what civil war is,' he said. President Bush has said that Iraq had not descended into civil war, and urged the nation's leaders to confront the sectarian violence that was taking place. Mr. Bush said Iraqis had 'had a chance to fall apart and they didn't.'

2006 U.S.A. Dallas Cast Reunited

2006 : A number of cast members from the soap opera Dallas have reunited to receive a prize at the TV Land awards ceremony in California. Larry Hagman, who played J.R. Ewing, Patrick Duffy, who played Bobby, and Linda Gray, who was Sue Ellen, attended, along with Charlene Tilton, Steve Kanaly, Susan Howard, Sheree Wilson, Ken Kercheval and Mary Crosby.

2008 Cuba Fidel Castro steps down

2008 : The Cuban leader Fidel Castro has stepped down, forty-nine years after taking power in an armed revolution. This has ended the Cold War fracas that has made him an icon to leftists, and a tyrant to his foes. Castro, 81, who has not appeared in public since undergoing stomach surgery, said he would not be seeking a new term as president or leader of Cuba's armed forces when the National Assembly meets again. His retirement has raised expectations for a post-communist system of government, and calls by the United States for democracy.

2009 Nazi guard is deported from Wisconsin

2009 : The U.S. has deported a former S.S. man to Austria. It says that Josias Kumpf was involved in the killing of some eight thousand Jews, that were shot in a single day and buried in pits. Kumpf, 83, left Austria in 1956, settled in Wisconsin and became a U.S. citizen in 1964. The Justice Department had started the process of stripping him of his citizenship in 2003. On confirming the deportation, Vienna has said he would not be prosecuted in Austria, where the statute of limitations had expired. 'We repeatedly indicated it to the United States,' a Justice Ministry spokeswoman told reporters.

2010 The Pope’s letter to the people of Ireland

2010 : The Pope has sent a special pastoral letter to Irish Catholics on the issue of child sex abuse within the Church. In the Vatican document, Pope Benedict has issued a heartfelt apology to the people of Ireland and to thousands of victims of sexual abuse in past decades by the country's Roman Catholic priests. He has rebuked Irish bishops for 'grave errors of judgement' on the problem, and 'I can only share in the dismay and sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts."

2011 Western Forces Enact No-Fly Zone on Libya

2011 : Planes from France, the United Kingdom, and the United States opened fire on Libyan forces after the United Nations authorizes a no-fly zone over Libya. The resolution called for any necessary measures to stop Libya's leader Gaddafi from harming civilians, short of an occupation of the country. French planes fired the first shots in the country, with planes from the UK and US firing shots soon after.

2012 Gunman Attacks Jewish School in Toulouse, France

2012 : A gunman killed four people after attacking a Jewish school in the southern city of Toulouse in France. Of the four victims, one was a teacher, while the other three were students. The same kind of gun that was used in the attack was used in two separate attacks in the area that killed three soldiers the previous week. Authorities began searching for the killer who turned out to be a twenty-three year old man named Mohammed Merah. The hunt resulted in a thirty-two hour siege that ended when a sniper shot and killed Merah on March 22nd. Before his death, the killer had claimed that he committed the murders to avenge Palestinian children and protest against French military intervention.

2013 Guatemala Ex-Military Leader on Trial

2013 : The trial against ex-military leader Efrain Rios Montt began in Guatemala. Montt was accused of genocide in the country against indigenous people during the 1980s.

2014 Belgium World War I Bomb Explodes

2014 : A World War I weapon buried in Ypres, Belgium exploded, killing two and injuring two others. The two dead were workers trying to dig up the buried weapon. The city of Ypres was heavily attacked during World War I and saw several battles so it is not uncommon to find old weapons buried in the area.

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