The following events occurred in September 1975:
September 1, 1975 (Monday) The Republic of the North Solomons was declared on Bougainville Island, two weeks before Papua New Guinea was to become independent from Australia. District Commissioner Alexis Sarei was named as President. After failing to get recognition from any other nation, the North Solomons would agree to return to Papuan control on August 7, 1976, with some autonomy for Bougainville.K. R. Howe and Robert C. Kiste, Tides of History: The Pacific Islands in the Twentieth Century (University of Hawaii Press, 1994) p. 217 The Turnhalle Constitutional Conference began in Windhoek between white, black and coloured residents to discuss the future of South West Africa (now Namibia).Max Du Preez, Pale Native: Memories of a Renegade Reporter (Zebra Books, 2003) p. 92 During an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the government of Ecuador, 30 people were killed and at least 80 wounded. The Armed Forces Chief of Staff, General Raul Gonzalez Alvear, and his brother-in-law General Alejandros Solis, led the early morning uprising against President Guillermo Rodríguez Lara, attacking the Presidential Palace in Quito with 10 tanks. Rodríguez Lara had been able to escape his residence before the attackers arrived, fled to Riobamba and rallied the Air Force and Navy to make a counterattack at midday."Ecuador Chief Crushes Revolt", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 2, 1975, p. 2 Rodríguez Lara would be forced out of office four months later, on January 11, 1976.George M. Lauderbaugh, The History of Ecuador (ABC-CLIO, 2012) p. 134 USAF Lieutenant General Daniel "Chappie" James was promoted, becoming the first African-American four-star general. General James, who was named the commander of NORAD, and would retire on February 2, 1978. He died 24 days after his retirement.Paul Finkelman,Encyclopedia of African American History, 1896 to the Present: From the Age of Segregation to the Twenty-First Century (Oxford University Press, 2007) p. 10 Space: 1999, a syndicated science fiction program, produced in the United Kingdom by ITC Entertainment and the Italian company RAI, made its first appearance worldwide. Authorized for release worldwide in the month of September, the show was broadcast on some television stations on the first day of the month, including WGAN, channel 13 in Portland, Maine, which premiered it at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time.TV section, Bangor (Maine) Daily News, August 30, 1975, page 4 According to ITC, the show was distributed to 101 nations and was syndicated to 148 U.S. television markets alone."Space: 1999, a syndicated series, is bumping off some big network shows", Baltimore Sun, September 1, 1975, p. B5 In most of the United Kingdom, Space: 1999 debuted on September 4 at 7:00 p.m. on some of the regions in the ITV network.Apts Guardian, The Guardian (Manchester), September 1, 1975, p. 6 The crash of an East German Interflug Airlines TU-134 jetliner killed 26 of 34 people on board, most of them West German businessmen who were on their way to Leipzig for a trade show."26 Die in German Plane Crash", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 2, 1975, p. 3 The Concorde became the first airplane to cross the Atlantic Ocean four times in a single day. The supersonic aircraft flew the 2,375 miles from London to Gander, Newfoundland in 2 hours, 19 minutes, refueled and received maintenance, and flew back. The double crossing was completed 13 hours and 59 minutes after it began."Concorde logs 4 round trips", Bangor (ME) Daily News, September 3, 1975, p. 28 The "Sinai II" agreement was initialed by Egypt's President Sadat, the day after it had been initialed by Israel's Prime Minister Rabin.Henry Kissinger, Years of Renewal (Simon and Schuster, 1999) p. 452 Ursus arctos horribilis, the North American brown bear, more commonly known at the grizzly bear, was placed on the U.S. Endangered Species List as a "threatened species".Robert H. Busch, The Grizzly Almanac (Globe Pequot, 2004) p. 189 Frank Zeidler who had served as Mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1949 to 1961, was nominated as the presidential candidate for the Socialist Party USA."Socialists Tap Zeidler for President", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 2, 1975, p. 1 Born: Natalie Bassingthwaighte, Australian actress and singer, in Wollongong
September 2, 1975 (Tuesday) The Finnish opera Viimeiset kiusaukset (The Last Temptations), authored by Joonas Kokkonen and one of Finland's most distinguished national operas, was given its first performance.Edward Jurkowski, The Music Of Joonas Kokkonen (Ashgate Publishing, 2004) p. 99 The aircraft units of the Canadian Armed Forces (Air Defense Command, Air Transport Command, Mobile Command, Maritime Command and Training Command) were merged into one national air force, referred to as the Canadian Forces Air Command and more commonly called AIRCOM. On August 16, 2011, AIRCOM would be renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force to reflect the branch of the services that had existed before the 1986 merger."Navy and air force to be royal once again", CBC News The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum was opened in Hanoi so that the Vietnamese public could see the embalmed body of North Vietnam's founder, Ho Chi Minh, who had died in 1969.Christina Schwenkel, The American War in Contemporary Vietnam: Transnational Remembrance and Representation (Indiana University Press, 2009) p. 124 The World Football League owners voted 10–1 to revoke the franchise of the Chicago Winds, after two of the team's investors withdrew deposits of $350,000."It's 'Wind with the gone'; Chicago loses franchise", Spokane (WA) Spokesman-Review, September 3, 1975, p. 22 The struggling American pro football league was left with ten teams, and would survive only until October 22.
September 3, 1975 (Wednesday) Baseball player Steve Garvey began a streak of appearing in 1,207 consecutive MLB games, still a National League record (three other players – Cal Ripken Jr., Lou Gehrig and Everett Scott – all had longer streaks in the American League). Garvey would go until July 28, 1983, when a thumb injury took him out of the lineup.William F McNeil, The Dodgers Encyclopedia (Sports Publishing LLC, 2000) p. 390 Born: Redfoo (Stefan Gordy), American musician and part of duo LMFAO, in Los Angeles Died: Wolfgang Gans zu Putlitz, 76, German-born spy who defected from Nazi Germany to the United Kingdom during World War II, and then from the U.K. to East Germany during the Cold War.
September 4, 1975 (Thursday) The Sinai Interim Agreement was signed in Geneva by Major General Taha Magdoub for Egypt, and Major General Herzl Shafir for Israel, along with the ambassadors to Switzerland from the two nations, after having been initialed earlier in the week by Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Egypt's President Anwar Sadat.Richard Bordeaux Parker, The October War: A Retrospective (University Press of Florida, 2001) p. 355 Under the agreement, a 25 kilometer wide buffer zone was created in the Sinai Peninsula, to be patrolled by United Nations Emergency Force troops, and separating the armies of the two nations.Steve Tulliu and Thomas Schmalberger, Coming to Terms with Security: A Lexicon for Arms Control, Disarmament and Confidence-Building (United Nations Publications, 2003) p. 155 Died: Walter Tetley, 60, American actor whose "perennially adolescent voice" allowed him to portray children on radio shows (The Great Gildersleeve) and in cartoons, most notably as "Sherman" on The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
September 5, 1975 (Friday) In Sacramento, California, Lynette Fromme, a follower of jailed cult leader Charles Manson, attempted to assassinate U.S. President Gerald Ford, but was thwarted by United States Secret Service agent Larry M. Buendorf. Fromme was three feet away from the President as he walked through a crowd near the California State Capitol building at 10:00 am local time, pointed a .45 caliber automatic pistol at his chest and pulled the trigger, but had failed to operate the slide mechanism to put a cartridge into the firing chamber."Attempt on Ford's Life Foiled by Secret Service", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 6, 1975, p. 1 Buendorf would report later that Fromme, realizing her mistake, said, "Oh, shit, it didn't go off; it didn't go off."Philip H. Melanson, The Secret Service: The Hidden History of an Enigmatic Agency (Basic Books, Sep 21, 2005) p. 96 Fromme would serve 34 years in prison, and would be released, at age 60, on August 14, 2009."Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme released from prison", CNN.com, August 14, 2009 The London Hilton hotel was bombed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army, killing 2 people and injuring 63.1975: London Hilton bombed; "London Hotel Blast Kills 2, Injures 62", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 6, 1975, p. 3 Died: Georg Ots, 55, Estonian opera singer Alice C. Evans, 94, American microbiologist
September 6, 1975 (Saturday) A 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck Eastern Turkey at 12:20 pm local time, killing 2,385 people in the Diyarbakır province, mostly (1,500) in the town of Lice."Partial recovery and reconstruction after disaster: the Lice case" , by W.A. Mitchell, Mass Emergencies (journal)(Elsevier Scientific, 1977) p. 236; "Quake Toll Hits 1,800 in Turkey", Milwaukee Sentinel, September 8, 1975, p. 1 Born: Ryoko Tani, Japanese judoka, winner of 7 women's world championships, Olympic gold medalist 2000, 2004, in Fukuoka Died: Shelton Brooks, 89, Canadian-American popular music composer
September 7, 1975 (Sunday)
Number One Observatory Circle was dedicated as the official residence of the Vice-President of the United States. Previously, American vice-presidents either already had homes near Washington, D.C., or rented temporary lodging. The first residents were Vice-President Nelson Rockefeller and his wife Happy Rockefeller."Reporters tour new vice-presidential mansion", Bangor (ME) Daily News, September 8, 1975, p. 10 Niki Lauda clinched the World Driving Championship by finishing in sixth place in the 1975 Italian Grand Prix, with only two races left for the season."Lauda clinches world title in Monza race", Lewiston (ID) Morning Tribune, September 7, 1975, p4B Four American women became the last improperly ordained priests of the Episcopal Church, as Lee McGee, Alison Palmer, Betty Rosenberg and Diane Tickell brought to 15 the number of females to receive authority "to preach the word of God and to administer His holy sacraments"."Four women ordained as Episcopal priests", Spokane (WA) Spokesman-Review, September 8, 1975, p. 3 These women would become known as the "Washington Four". On July 29, 1974, a group of women known as the "Philadelphia Eleven" had been the first to be ordained. At the 1976 General Convention of the church, all fifteen women were approved as priests.Robyn E. Lebron, Searching for Spiritual Unity...Can There Be Common Ground? (CrossBooks, 2012) p. 111 The Timorese Democratic Union (UDT), which had been fighting against Fretilin for control of the colony of Portuguese Timor, issued a proclamation in favor of integration of the area into neighboring Indonesia"Report of the United Nations Independent Special Commission of Inquiry for Timor-Leste" , 2 October 2006, p. 16 after having been promised by the Indonesian government that the Timorese people would have an autonomous government.Constâncio Pinto and Matthew Jardine, Inside the East Timor Resistance (James Lorimer & Company, 1997) pp. 15–16
September 8, 1975 (Monday)