THE ARCHIVES

100 years ago

The death has occurred in Tuscany of Signor Leoncavallo, the famous composer. Ruggiero Leoncavallo was born at Naples on March 8 1858 and in 1892 produced the opera I Paggliacci, followed in 1893 by I Medici and others later. Few living men have had a more adventurous career than Leoncavallo. At the age of 20 he went to Egypt and became private musician to Mahmond Hamdy. At the time of the Egyptian War, worn out and penniless, he arrived in Paris before travelling to Milan, a turning point in his career.

50 years ago

Bel Air, California, police yesterday clamped down on information about the grisly “ritual” murders of actress Sharon Tate and four others, leaving at least one important question unanswered: did the killings result from a party in Miss Tate’s house or from a separate party in the home of her houseboy who was arrested on five charges of murder? The bodies of Miss Tate, eight months pregnant, and three house guests were discovered inside her hilltop house and on the front lawn. Miss Tate was married to director Roman Polanski.

25 years ago

Dundonians were given fresh hope last night when Royal Bank of Scotland chairman Lord Younger of Prestwick revealed the city had not been discounted as the location for a new specialised 200-job mortgage centre. Following discussions with Lord Provost Tom McDonald at the official reopening of the bank’s chief Dundee office in High Street, senior bank officials are to meet representatives of the council’s economic development department today to investigate options for the centre.

One year ago

A new railway station could be built on the outskirts of Perth. The park and ride scheme would link the 1,500-home Oudenarde village, proposed for Bridge of Earn, with Perth, Fife and Edinburgh. A separate study will examine a rail halt at Newburgh. The Scottish Government has allocated £97,000 towards the Oudenarde appraisal to be carried out by Tayside and Central Scotland Transport Partnership (Tactran) and Perth and Kinross Council.