May 23rd News and Events

1940 U.S.A. "I'll Never Smile Again" 23rd May 1940 : "I'll Never Smile Again" was recorded by Frank Sinatra and Tommy Dorsey and the Pied Pipers. The song was the first #1 hit on the weekly Billboard Best Selling Singles chart. Since then, it has been a popular standard for many artists in a variety of genres.

1929 Australia Gold Rush 23rd May 1929 : A new gold rush is starting in Australia as gold has been found just 3 feet below the surface and claims are now being made all over the area in South West

1934 U.S.A. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow 23rd May 1934 : Bank robbers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were ambushed and gunned down with over 100 rounds of ammunition by police in Black Lake, Louisiana. Following the deaths of Bonnie and Clyde slain in Louisiana by federal agents, their bodies are being transported back to Texas and are to be buried in separate graves in different parts of Dallas. They were inseparable in life committing robberies and murders side by side across the nation but in death Bonnies mother has stated Clyde took her daughter away from her but she will take her daughter back in death against bonnies last wishes.

Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were notorious during the great depression years as outlaws, they were featured in newspapers through out the country because of their escapades robbing banks , small stores and gas stations. They became notorious not because they robbed and killed so many but because of the authorities inability to catch them. Many thought them as heroes because of their status as a modern day "Robin Hood" but reality is they killed ordinary people and did not "Give To The Poor".
While researching for this piece I came across one of Bonnie Parkers Poems and I have included a few of the verses below this was written just a short time before her death
Written in 1934 by Bonnie Parker
You've read the story of Jesse James--
Of how he lived and died;
If you're still in need
Of something to read
Here's the story of Bonnie and Clyde.
Now Bonnie and Clyde are the Barrow gang.
I'm sure you all have read
How they rob and steal
And those who squeal
Are usually found dying or dead.
There's lots of untruths to these write-ups;
They're not so ruthless as that;
Their nature is raw;
They hate the law--
The stool pigeons, spotters, and rats.
They call them cold-blooded killers;
They say they are heartless and mean;
But I say this with pride,
That I once knew Clyde
When he was honest and upright and clean.
They know that the law always wins;
They've been shot at before,
But they do not ignore
That death is the wages of sin.
Some day they'll go down together;
They'll bury them side by side;
To few it'll be grief--
To the law a relief--
But it's death for Bonnie and Clyde.

1937 U.S.A. John D. Rockefella 23rd May 1937 : John D. Rockefella the American industrialist once the worlds richest man before he gave his millions away has died at 97 yrs old, he went from a $4.50 clerk to the worlds richest man only to give most of it away in the last 30 years for philanthropic deeds.

1941 World War II British Warships Mediterranean 23rd May 1941 : The Axis powers of Germany and Italy have claimed to have sunk or badly damaged 26 British warships in an all out banish to British warships from the Mediterranean

1945 World War II Heinrich Himmler 23rd May 1945 : Heinrich Himmler, Hitler's second in command, committed suicide while in Allied custody by using a tiny vial of poison in his mouth at the time of his capture.

1953 U.S.A. Flooding in Lake Charles Louisiana 23rd May 1953 : Following the flooding in Lake Charles Louisiana which is now starting to recede the threat of Typhoid is increasing which could increase the death toll caused by the flooding and medical teams are on hand to provide typhoid shots.

1966 Great Britain Nationwide Seamen's Strike 23rd May 1966 : The British government declares a state of emergency following the start of the nationwide seamen's strike one week ago. The state of emergency will allow the Royal Navy to take control and clear the ports and lift restrictions on driving vehicles to allow for the free movement of goods.

1977 Netherlands Children Hostage 23rd May 1977 : South Moluccan militants armed with machine guns hold 105 children and six teachers hostage in a primary school in northern Holland. A second band of gunmen held about 50 persons on a train about 10 miles from the school in Bovensmilde.

1981 Syria Warns Israel 23rd May 1981 : Syria has warned Israel that if it attacks Syria or Lebanon it will attack in the heart of Israel and was prepared to go to war to protect it's country, and could lead to a full scale middle east war.

1992 Italy Judge Giovanni Falcone Assassinated 23rd May 1992 : Judge Giovanni Falcone is assassinated he was a senior anti Mafia prosecutor .

1993 Bosnia-Herzegovina Muslim Safe Havens 23rd May 1993 : A Proposal has been put forward by Washington to create safe havens in Bosnia-Herzegovina , but the Muslim president has said his people are not willing to be put "in Reservations" .

1998 Northern Ireland Referendum Good Friday peace agreement 23rd May 1998 : A referendum on the Good Friday peace agreement held in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic yesterday ended with 3 to 1 support. The Good Friday peace agreement paves the way for devolution from Westminster with a new all-inclusive Northern Ireland Assembly.
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United Kingdom 2005 United Kingdom BBC Workers Go On Strike 23rd May, 2005 : BBC workers staged a twenty-four hour strike over nearly four thousand proposed job cuts. The BBC stated that the broadcast unions had nearly forty-percent of workers join the walkout, and although many services were diminished, much of the television and radio news and entertainment organization was able to function at a minimal level. The BBC called on unions to resume talks.

Brazil 2008 Brazil South American Countries Create Union 23rd May, 2008 : Twelve South American countries agreed to form a union to bolster economic and political ties when they signed a treaty at a summit in Brazil. The treaty created the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) linking Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

China 2010 China Landslide Derails Train 23rd May, 2010 : Nineteen people are killed in a crash when a landslide derailed a passenger train in Jiangxi. Another seventy-one people were injured in the accident when the train crashed into rocks and mud debris that blocked the tracks.

United States 2011 United States Devastating Tornado Hits Missouri 23rd May, 2011 : A devastating tornado cutting a six mile path through the city of Joplin in Missouri. The tornado left much of the city with out power and damaged nearly two-thousand buildings. There were reports of over one-thousand injuries and at least one-hundred and fifteen people were found dead with many more unaccounted for. The city with a population of 50,000 people was expected to receive disaster relief, as the Missouri Governor, Jay Nixon, declared a state of emergency in the state.