Way back when: Today in history
BY GENE CURTIS
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
1/23/13 at 4:56 AM
1942 - World exec 'drafted'
After America became involved in World War II the government still needed executives to run agencies in Washington. That's where Tulsan L.W. McFetridge fit in: as a $1-a-year executive in the Office of Production Management. McFetridge, 49, who was circulation director of the Newspaper Printing Corp., production agent for the Tulsa World and Tulsa Tribune, was among executives from several companies who were drafted to work for entities like the Office of Production Management and the Office of Price Administration. McFetridge was the only one from Tulsa.
1961 - Pirates seize cruise ship
A band of about 70 rebels seized the Portuguese cruise ship Santa Maria in the Caribbean Sea and threatened to scuttle the vessel with its 620 passengers and 300 crew members if there were any outside interference. After the rebels boarded the ship in Venezuela and Curacao disguised as passengers, a radio message sent to NBC in New York said the ship had been seized as the start of an uprising against the government of Portugal. The leader was identified as Capt. Henrique Malta Galvao, 65, a bitter political opponent of Portugal Premier Antonio Oliveria Salazar. Galvao surrendered to Brazilian officials on Feb. 3.
1964 - Spahn highest paid
Legendary pitcher Warren Spahn, who loved the game of baseball so much that he began playing professionally right out of high school for a salary of $80 per month, signed a contract with the Milwaukee Braves for $85,000, making him the highest paid pitcher in the sport. Spahn said years later "I just wanted to get a chance to play ball. I guess if they'd have agreed to feed me and pay my hotel bill, I'd have been ready to go for nothing." Spahn, who served as manager of the Tulsa Oilers from 1967 to 1971, died Nov. 25, 2003, at the age of 82. He spent his later years running his 2,800-acre cattle ranch near Hartshorne.
1972 - 'New kind' of drink kills 100
At least 100 people died after they consumed methyl alcohol and paint varnish - sold to them by a bootlegger as a substitute for whiskey - to celebrate a wedding in a New Delhi hut camp. The wedding guests had been sent to an unlicensed liquor dealer by the bride's father because he was unable to pay for liquor and a "new kind" of liquor could be had for only seven cents, compared with about a dollar, more than most people earned in a day, for a glass of regular whiskey.
Associated Images:
Pitcher Warren Spahn in 1958 AP file
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