ON THIS DAY IN 1898, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “MORRIS PARK, N.Y. — The Westchester Racing Association winds up its meeting today with a good card, including the historic Belmont Stakes, for which the mighty Hamburg, game little Previous and the Metropolitan Handicap winner, Bowling Brook, will try conclusions. The track is heavy and holding. It is announced that Ornament will not go to the post in the Brooklyn Handicap if the track is bad.”
✰✰✰
ON THIS DAY IN 1926, the Eagle reported, “PHILADELPHIA (AP) — No effort will be spared to make Philadelphia as arid as a desert during the six months of the Sesquicentennial, which opens Monday, Prohibition enforcement officials announced today. A force of 200 Federal agents will be on duty for the duration of the Exposition, and according to Frederick H. Baird, Prohibition administrator for Pennsylvania and New Jersey, they will leave no stone unturned to dry up the city. Mr. Baird said the agents would go after the ‘big fellows’ first. ‘Our main job,’ he said, ‘will be to go after the sources of alcohol and liquor.’”
✰✰✰
ON THIS DAY IN 1930, the Eagle reported, “FLAGSTAFF, ARIZ. (AP) — Pluto is the name selected by officials of Lowell Observatory here for the recently discovered trans-Neptunian body previously designated as Planet X. Roger Lowell Putnam, trustee of the observatory and nephew of the late Dr. Percival Lowell who predicted the existence of the planet 16 years before it actually was seen, announced that the name Pluto was chosen after a host of suggested names had been narrowed down to three — Minerva, Pluto and Cronus.”
✰✰✰
ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “Ending of the railroad strike yesterday brought almost immediate partial resumption out of Grand Central Terminal, the Pennsylvania Station, Manhattan, and — after some hesitation — out of the Flatbush Ave. Station of the Long Island Rail Road. Normal service at all the terminals was promised for today. At the Flatbush station a sign was posted over the ticket window shortly after 6 p.m. announcing that there would be ‘No Trains Tonight,’ but this was reversed by a statement from the dispatcher’s office in Jamaica, where it was said that normal service would be resumed ‘as quickly as possible, as crews become available.’ The first post-strike Long Island train left the Pennsylvania Station for Hempstead at 7:23 p.m. The first train out of the Flatbush station left for Freeport at 9:29. At 7:30, a Long Island Rail Road spokesman said that 27 crews were at work and that trains were running from both Flatbush Ave. and from Manhattan to Jamaica. For about an hour before announcement of train resumption last night, ticket sellers at the Flatbush Avenue Station declined to sell tickets to prospective passengers, saying that there were ‘no trains tonight.’ A statement by the Long Island [Rail Road] said that freight service would be normal after midnight last night and passenger service after 6 a.m. today.”
✰✰✰
ON THIS DAY IN 1950, Eagle columnist Constantine Brown said, “The administration now is discussing the possibility of sending — in addition to Marshall Plan aid — some assistance in the form of vital war materials to the 450,000 combat forces on Formosa [Taiwan], the last Chinese Nationalist stronghold. This reported change of heart on the part of the White House and State Department is said to have resulted from two factors, one military strategy, the other domestic politics. Ever since the question of help to the Nationalists to save Formosa was raised last year, the military has advocated support of the Nationalist forces. Their views were set aside by their civilian superiors, who decided this country had better cut all ties with the losing side. The Joint Chiefs of Staff pointed out, however, the merit in the views forcefully expressed by General MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers in the Pacific. He has pointed to the serious consequences for our strategy in the Pacific if Formosa falls to the Reds.”
✰✰✰
ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle said, “Johnny Ray has reported to 20th Century-Fox for conferences with producer Sol C. Siegel on his co-starring role in Irving Berlin’s ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business.’ Ray joins a stellar cast including Ethel Merman, Dan Dailey, Marilyn Monroe, Donald O’Connor and Mitzi Gaynor in the CinemaScope-Technicolor musical built around Berlin’s top-hit tunes, both old and specially written for the production.”
✰✰✰
Matt Stone. Photo: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include sportscaster Brent Musburger, who was born in 1939; The Guess Who drummer Garry Peterson, who was born in 1945; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac), who was born in 1948; “Foxy Brown” star Pam Grier, who was born in 1949; “Miami Vice” star Philip Michael Thomas, who was born in 1949; singer-songwriter Hank Williams Jr., who was born in 1949; N.Y. Jets Ring of Honor member Wesley Walker, who was born in 1955; “Independence Day” star Margaret Colin, who was born in
Stevie Nicks. Photo: Charles Sykes/AP
Brooklyn in 1958; “General Hospital” star Genie Francis, who was born in 1962; “Are You Gonna Go My Way” singer Lenny Kravitz, who was born in 1964; Oscar-winning actress Helena Bonham Carter, who was born in 1966; “South Park” co-creator Matt Stone, who was born in 1971; singer-songwriter Lauryn Hill, who was born in 1975; “CSI” star Elisabeth Harnois, who was born in 1979; former N.Y. Rangers left winger Jimmy Vesey, who was born in 1993; and Green Bay Packers linebacker Micah Parsons, who was born in 1999.
✰✰✰
BEST OF THE WEST:John Wayne was born on this day in 1907. For five decades, “The Duke” was the quintessential Western actor, starring in such classic films as “Stagecoach” (1939), “Red River” (1948), “The Searchers” (1956) and “True Grit” (1969), the latter for which he won an Oscar. His advice on acting was to “talk low, talk slow and don’t say too much.” He died in 1979.
✰✰✰
Lenny Kravitz. Photo: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AP
FEVER PITCH: Peggy Lee was born on this day in 1920. She got her start singing on a Fargo, N.D., radio station and was soon hired by Benny Goodman to sing with his band. Known for her simple, jazzy style as well as her sex appeal, her biggest hits were “Fever” (1958) and “Is That All There Is?” (1969). She is perhaps best remembered for the songs she co-wrote and performed for Disney’s “Lady and the Tramp.” She died in 2002.
✰✰✰
Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.
Quotable:
“If you have stage fright, it never goes away. But then I wonder: Is the key to that magical performance because of the fear?” — Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stevie Nicks, who was born on this day in 1948.
SUNSET PARK — “As a resident of Marine Park, one of the great surprises I found biking around Industry City and visiting Japan Village was to discover Bush Terminal Park. I continue to be amazed at the serene hideaways that the city offers in some of the busiest places — and, still, with an iconic view.”
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — ‘A miracle that no one was killed …’ That’s what neighbors are saying about the collapse of the Hotel St. George marquee. Shown in this photograph are workmen beginning the removal and repair of the historic, old neon sign at the corner, referencing a relic of Brooklyn Heights’ past: the St. George Hotel.
ATLANTIC AVENUE — Exhausted shopper with cluster of bags and goods from mall at Boerum Place stops to look at huge construction site across the street. “Is that REALLY going to be a jail??” Her male companion is reassuring, “Nothing like Rikers … this is 21st Century.”
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Overheard in line at one of most popular pastry outlets on Montague Street: “Hope I can get them into a camp …” A mother with two pre-schoolers in tow was showing a friend the Dodge Y flyer for Healthy Kids Day on Saturday, April 18.
