Today is Wednesday, April 14, the 105th day of 2004. There are 261 days left in the year. On On

Today is Wednesday, April 14, the 105th day of 2004. There are 261 days left in the year. On On this date in 1865, President Lincoln is shot and mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth while attending the comedy "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theater in Washington. (Lincoln dies the following morning.)
In 1759, composer George Frideric Handel dies in London. In 1775, the first American society for the abolition of slavery is organized by Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Rush. In 1828, the first edition of Noah Webster's "American Dictionary of the English Language" is published. In 1902, James Cash Penney opens his first store, called "The Golden Rule," in Kemmerer, Wyo. In 1904, British actor Sir John Gielgud is born in London. In 1912, the British liner Titanic collides with an iceberg in the North Atlantic and begins sinking. In 1931, King Alfonso XIII of Spain goes into exile, and the Spanish Republic is proclaimed. In 1939, the John Steinbeck novel "The Grapes of Wrath" is first published. In 1981, the first test flight of America's first operational space shuttle, the Columbia, ends successfully with a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. In 1986, Americans get first word of a U.S. air raid on Libya (because of the time difference, it is the early morning of April 15 where the attack occurred.)
April 14, 1979: Ralph Nader is demanding that General Motors issue in writing guarantees telling buyers that defects in 50,000 in its new front-wheel drive cars have been fixed. GM says it has found some defects in the new cars, but all are being fixed.
Members of the Ecumenical Coalition of the Mahoning Valley visit seven local "points of suffering" in a modified Good Friday observance of the Stations of the Cross. A cross was left at Campbell Works Stop 14, bearing a sign reading, "5,000 jobs killed."
Dissident steel haulers in Teamsters Local 377 in Youngstown say they will return to work if they get assurances from Frank Fitzsimmons, Teamsters International president, that they will not be shortchanged in a new contract with the trucking industry.
April 14, 1964: Sidney Poitier, a brilliant actor who had trouble getting parts because of his calypso-type British West Indies accent, becomes the first black to win a top movie Oscar, winning best actor award for his role in "Lilies of the Field."
A 5-year-old Austintown boy is in critical condition in South Side Hospital after being dragged a mile and a half under the car of a neighbor, who didn't realize she had struck the boy on his tricycle.
An attorney, two former business associates and a man who stood trial on jury tampering charges with Teamster Jimmy Hoffa are called before a federal grand jury in Cleveland investigating the $1 million estate of murdered Youngstown racketeer Vince DeNiro.
April 14, 1954: Youngstown Police Chief Paul Cress disciplines four policemen for pilfering jail food and laxity in following department regulations. He also issues a warning that he will make an example of anyone caught seeking kickbacks.
Youngstown officials are embarking on a program to eradicate slum housing in the city and the disease and misery that accompany it.
Baseball season in Warren opens with tragedy as a 9-year-old school boy dies after being struck in the head with a baseball bat while playing at Garfield School. David Persin died in Trumbull Memorial Hospital where he was taken after collapsing a day and a half after the accident.
April 14, 1929: Area pilots say they're pleased with a plan to ask the U.S. Department of Commerce, Aeronautics Bureau, to send an engineer to Youngstown to spend a week or more making a thorough study of Lansdowne Field and issue a recommendation as to the next step in the city's airport program.
The leadership of the Youngstown District Soccer League will be at stake at Harrison Field when the Warren United clash with the fast stepping Mahoning Valleys.
The Nile Methodist Church choir, directed by David Thomas, repeats its Easter Cantata, "The Resurrection Song," which was beautifully rendered in its church, at the Mineral Ridge M.E. Church.
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