MILESTONES: March 23, birthdays for Perez Hilton, Jason Kidd, Mo Farah

Brooklyn Today

March 23, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Perez Hilton. Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

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Greetings, Brooklyn. Today is the 82nd day of the year.

On this day in 1945, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported on a visit by author Helen Keller to patients at the Brooklyn Naval Hospital. “Stopping at the bedside of wounded sailors and marines, she was ‘quick to the draw,’ to quote one patient,” the story read. “To Seaman 1st Class Ralph Dickerson of Roanoke, Virginia, who fractured his spine when he fell down a ship hatch, she said, ‘Were you trying to be part of the cargo?’” Keller also said, “The spirit of the navy is marvelous,” and that she found “the ship” to be the “greatest symbol of conquest over difficulties.”

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On this day in 1909, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle’s front page reported that former President Theodore Roosevelt, who left office on March 4, had set sail for an Africa safari to much fanfare from the public. “If smiles and flowers, crowds and cheers, flags, playing bands and a world of good wishes go to make up a successful departure, then the departure of the former president was all that could be desired,” the Eagle reported. “Mr. Roosevelt and his son Kermit stood on the bridge, and as long as those who watched could see, he still stood there, bowing and waving his hat to those along the shores.”

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On this day in 1921, the Eagle reported that Olympic diver and Brooklyn resident Alice Lord was engaged to Richard Landon, the high jump champion of the world. “The romance of the diving girl and the ‘jumpin’ kid from Yale’ is the first to come to light as a result of the Olympic trip,” the story read. “Miss Lord dispelled all doubts about her romance by showing to a number of her friends a scarfpin and a fraternity pin, two pledges that are enough to tie up any college boy.” Lord, who was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1993, led the procession of American athletes at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Before the 1996 Games, she carried the Olympic torch when it passed through Florida on its way to Atlanta. She died in 2000 at age 98.

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On this day in 1933, the Eagle reported from Berlin that “The Reichstag, with only the Socialists opposing, today passed an empowering act granting Chancellor Hitler’s demand for four years of dictatorial power. In lower Manhattan, “some 5,000 Jewish war veterans and their friends today marched in a solemn parade that was the first open-air protest against the Hitlerite outrages on Jews in Germany.”

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On March 25, 1882, the Eagle published a tribute to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who died the previous day. “It is, of course, impossible to foretell the estimation in which he will be held by posterity,” it read. “Much of the poetry which [was] lauded to the skies is as little to the taste of the present day as the wigs, ruffles and other fancy apparel worn by the fine gentlemen during the reign of Queen Anne … The poet’s death reminds us how few remain of the men who by their genius in the early and middle parts of this century arose to vindicate the intellect of the republic to the world.”

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On March 25, 1905, the Eagle celebrated the legacy of Jules Verne the day after his death, saying he “not only set a fashion in literature, but he was an advance agent of scientific discovery and invention … The submarine boat which made ‘Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea’ sound plausible is now a part of the naval equipment for modern warfare. The dirigible balloon which served ‘Hector Servadac’ is not yet announcing trips and booking passengers, but the experiments of Santos-Dumont have robbed such an outcome of wonder. ‘The Steam House,’ the title of another of Verne’s wonder tales, was merely another name for the militant and triumphant automobile of today.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include comedian and actor LOUIE ANDERSON, who was born in 1953; Olympic runner MO FARAH, who was born in 1983; actor RICHARD GRIECO, who was born in 1965; gossip columnist and blogger PEREZ HILTON, who was born in 1978; singer CHAKA KHAN, who was born in 1953; former basketball player JASON KIDD, who was born in 1973; Tony Award-winning actress AMANDA PLUMMER, who was born in 1957; and actress KERI RUSSELL, who was born in 1976.

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TODAY IS NATIONAL PUPPY DAY. It is a day to celebrate puppies for all the joy they bring to our lives. This day also seeks to educate the public about the horrors of puppy mills and to encourage adoption.

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AKIRA KUROSAWA WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1910. Considered one of the greatest film directors of all time, he is best known for “Rashomon,” “The Seven Samurai,” “Kagemusha” and “Ran.” Kurosawa served as the ambassador of Japanese cinema to the West. He died in Japan in 1998.

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BARNEY CLARK DIED ON THIS DAY IN 1983. Barney Clark died after living almost 112 days with an artificial heart. The heart, made of polyurethane plastic and aluminum, was implanted in Clark at the University of Utah Medical Center in Salt Lake City in 1982. Clark was the first person ever to receive a permanent artificial heart. Clark was 62 when he died.

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JOAN CRAWFORD WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1904. She became a Hollywood star with her performance in “Our Dancing Daughters” and won an Oscar in 1945 for her role in “Mildred Pierce.” Events of Crawford’s life are chronicled in “Mommie Dearest.” Her other films include “The Women,” “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” and “Twelve Miles Out.” She died in New York in 1977.

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TODAY IS WORLD METEOROLOGICAL DAY. It is an international day observed by meteorological services throughout the world and by the organizations of the U.N. system. Each year a different meteorological theme is chosen. This year’s is “Understanding Clouds.”