April 22, 1963: A general election is held in Canada. Following the previous year's election that reduced the Conservative Party's government, led by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, to a minority, forcing it to form a coalition to stay in power, and a vote of no confidence having recently taken place in the House of Commons, Canadians vote the "Tories" out of office, resulting in a minority/coalition government led by the Liberal Party.
Lester Pearson becomes the new Prime Minister. Born in 1897 in Toronto, he was Canada's Ambassador to the United States at the end of World War II. He was named Foreign Minister under the last Liberal government, led by Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent, and had won the Nobel Peace Prize for mediating the Suez Crisis of 1956.
After Diefenbaker won the 1957 election, St. Laurent stepped aside as Leader of the Liberal Party, and Pearson was elected its Leader. He never won a majority, but won a minority election in 1963, and a second minority election in 1965, before stepping aside for Pierre Trudeau in in 1968.
He was Prime Minister for just short of 5 full years, but was one of the most accomplished holders of that office. Beyond the symbolism of overseeing Canada's adoption of the new Maple Leaf Flag in 1965 and the nation's Centennial celebrations in 1967, he introduced the Canada Student Loan Program, the Canada Pension Plan, the Canada Assistance Plan, the Canada Labour Code, and universal health care.
He established royal commissions on bilingualism and biculturalism, and the status of women. He worked with the United States to sign the Auto Pact, but refused to get Canada mixed up in the Vietnam War. (In contrast, another nation in the British Commonwealth, Australia, did.)
Pearson died in 1972. Diefenbaker would outlive him by 7 years, but had already become increasingly erratic and irrelevant in his declining years. More recently, Conservatives have worked hard to revive his memory. He's essentially Canada's Ronald Reagan or Margaret Thatcher, while Pearson was more an Adlai Stevenson who was able to win because never had to run against an overwhelmingly popular Eisenhower. In 1984, Toronto's international airport was named for Pearson.
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April 22, 1963 was a Monday. Football was out of season. The NBA Finals was between Games 5 and 6, and the Boston Celtics would defeat the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6, 2 days later. The hockey season had ended 4 days earlier, when the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings in 5 games for the Stanley Cup.
And these baseball games were played:
* The New York Mets lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-6 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. Phils starter Paul Brown fell behind 3-0, allowing 4 hits and 2 walks, and manager Gene Mauch took him out. Ray Culp pitched the next 7 innings and was the winning pitcher. Tony Taylor went 3-for-4 with a walk and 3 RBIs.
* The Washington Senators beat the Los Angeles Angels, 4-1 at District of Columbia Stadium (later Robert F. Kennedy Stadium) in Washington.
* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Chicago Cubs, 2-0 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Earl Francis allowed 6 hits in 7 1/3rd innings, and Bob Veale and Roy Face finished the 7-hit shutout. Willie Stargell went 1-for-3 with a walk. He was playing right field, giving Roberto Clemente a day off. Ernie Banks (already a star) and Lou Brock (not yet one) each went 1-for-4.
* The Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians were postponed due to cold weather. The game was made up on May 16. The Indians won, 5-3. Max Alvis hit a home run.
* The Kansas City Athletics beat the Detroit Tigers, 6-5 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. Al Kaline went 1-for-4 with 2 RBIs.
* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Houston Colt .45s, 5-2 at Colt Stadium in Houston. Stan Musial, starting his final season, did not play. In 1965, the Houston team moved into the Astrodome, and changed their name to the Houston Astros.
* The Milwaukee Braves beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 10-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Bob Hendley went the distance for the win, while Don Drysdale only went 5 innings. Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews and Denis Menke hit home runs for the Braves. Ken McMullen had 3 of the Dodgers' 6 hits.
* The Cincinnati Reds beat the San Francisco Giants, 7-4 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Frank Robinson, Marty Keough and Jerry Lynch hit home runs for the Reds. Rookie Pete Rose drew a walk as a pinch-hitter. Orlando Cepeda and Tom Haller hit them for the Giants. Willie Mays went 0-for-3 with a walk. Willie McCovey went 1-for-5.
* And the New York Yankees, the Baltimore Orioles, the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins were not scheduled.
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