MILESTONES: November 20, birthdays for Joe Biden, Future, Dierks Bentley

Brooklyn Today

November 20, 2017 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Joe Biden. AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

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Greetings, Brooklyn. Today is the 326th day of the year.

On this day in 1953, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page showed coverage of a double celebration for Brooklyn Dodgers’ catcher Roy Campanella. He and his family celebrated his 32nd birthday and his being named as the 1953 MVP, as he had been in 1951 and would again in ’55, the year he helped the Dodgers win the World Series. Like Jackie Robinson, who had joined the Dodgers in ’47, Campanella (who was Sicilian and black) was subjected to Jim Crow laws. He, Robinson and Don Newcombe had to stay in separate hotels and dine separately from the rest of their teammates. Robinson, Campanella, Newcombe and Larry Doby all made the 1949 All-Stars team.

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On this day in 1922, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported that President Warren G. Harding had decided that Louisiana did not need, nor would receive, assistance from the U.S. government in combating the Ku Klux Klan. That was, of course, unless federal interests were affected. An offshoot group of the white, nationalist group had become particularly active during the 1920s, and Louisiana was an easy target because of its large Creole, Cajun and Roman Catholic population.

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On this day in 1945, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported on the beginning of the Nuremberg Trials (see below). These were a series of military and United Nations tribunals that the Allied forces convened, according to international law. The trials led to the prosecution of war crimes by prominent leaders of Nazi Germany. The decisions handed down became a landmark shift from classical to contemporary international law. The Eagle article stated that on Day 1, Hermann Goering was the first to listen “uneasily” to the 25,000-word indictment “holding them directly responsible for the death and misery of World War II.”

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Today is the 70th wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. On this day in 1947, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page heralded the wedding of Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, himself of Greek and Danish royal blood, in Westminster Abbey. Queen Elizabeth is now the longest-reigning monarch in British history, outpacing Queen Victoria as of September 2015.

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include country singer DIERKS BENTLEY, who was born in 1975; former Vice President of the U.S. JOE BIDEN, who was born in 1942; basketball player CARLOS BOOZER, who was born in 1981; radio personality STEVE DAHL, who was born in 1954; author DON DeLILLO, who was born in 1936; actress BO DEREK, who was born in 1956; rapper FUTURE, who was born in 1983; actress VERONICA HAMEL, who was born in 1943; actress SABRINA LLOYD who was born in 1970; actor RICAHRD MASUR, who was born in 1948; Oscar Award-winning actress ESTELLE PARSONS, who was born in 1927; comedian and folksinger DICK SMOTHERS, who was born in 1939; actress MING-NA WEN, who was born in 1963; and actress SEAN YOUNG, who was born in 1959.

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TODAY IS THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST STATE RETIFICATION TO THE BILL OF RIGHTS. In 1789, New Jersey became the first state to ratify 10 of the 12 amendments to the U.S. Constitution proposed by Congress. These 10 amendments came to be known as the Bill of Rights.

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ROBERT FRANCIS KENNEDY WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1925. The U.S. senator and younger brother of former President John F. Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts. An assassin shot him in Los Angeles in 1968 while he was campaigning for the presidential nomination. He died the next day. Sirhan Sirhan was convicted of his murder.

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TODAY IS TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE. It is a day honoring the memory of those murdered because of anti-transgender prejudice. It was initially observed to call attention to the murder of Rita Hester in 1998.

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GENE TIERNEY WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1920. Known best for the title role in the film “Laura,” actress Gene Tierney was born in Brooklyn. Her other films include “Heaven Can Wait,” “A Bell for Adano,” “Advise and Consent” and her last film, “The Pleasure Seekers.” She died in Houston in 1991.

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THE NUREMBERG WAR CRIMES TRIALS OCCURRED ON THIS DAY IN 1945. The first session of the German war crimes trials started in Berlin, with indictments against 24 former Nazi leaders. Later sessions were held in Nuremberg, starting on this day in 1945. One defendant committed suicide during his trial, and another was excused because of his physical and mental condition. The trials lasted more than 10 months, and delivery of the judgment was completed in 1946. Twelve were sentenced to death by hanging, three to life imprisonment and four to lesser prison terms. Three were acquitted.

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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.

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“Failure at some point in your life is inevitable, but giving up is unforgivable.” — Joe Biden, who was born on this day in 1942