Brooklyn Today for March 3
Good morning. Today is the 62nd day of the year. In 1930, Prohibition was still the law of the land, although there were more and more calls for its repeal. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle for March 3, 1930, reported that federal agents who raided an elaborately furnished speakeasy (place where illegal liquor was sold) at 1286 Bedford Ave. found that three New York City police officers had cashed their paychecks there. The following year, agents again raided the speakeasy, known as the Bedford Nest, and confiscated $40,000 worth of property. Beer and light wine were legalized in March 1933, and Prohibition was completely repealed in December of that year. Interestingly, the owner of the Bedford Nest, Francis Conly, was himself a former Prohibition agent.
Well-known people who were born today include actress Jessica Biel (“Hitchcock,” “The Illusionist”), football player Santonio Holmes, Olympic athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee, former football player Herschel Walker and radio host Ira Glass (“This American Life”).