Brooklyn Today for March 31
Good morning. Today is the 90th day of the year. On this day in 1901, the International Catholic Truth Society sought an injunction against Margaret Shepherd, also known as Sister Magdalene Adelaide, who had delivered three lectures at Avon Hall at 1217 Bedford Ave. about her alleged experiences in a convent in England. The society alleged that a book Shepherd was selling, “My Life in a Convent,” was “unsuitable for mixed company,” probably meaning that it was sexual in nature. As for Avon Hall, it now houses Concord Family Services.
On this day in 1943, Rogers and Hammerstein’s landmark musical “Oklahoma!’ opened at the St. James Theater on Broadway. “Oklahoma!” is considered significant because it is the first musical in which songs, music and story were integrated into a whole. … Also on this day, in 1959, the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader, fled Tibet after years of harassment by the occupying Chinese government. China had responded to a revolt earlier that year with brutal represession of the Tibetans.
Well-known people who were born today include actor Ewan McGregor, former U.S. vice president Al Gore, actor Christopher Walken, musician Herb Alpert of the Tijuana Brass, Brooklyn-born actor William Daniels (“St. Elsewhere”), Hall of Fame hockey player Gordon Howe, actor Richard Chamberlain (“Dr. Kildare”), Brooklyn-born actor Gabe Kaplan (“Welcome Back, Kotter”), U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) and Brooklyn-born actress Rhea Perlman (“Cheers”).