MILESTONES: May 4, birthdays for Erin Andrews, Rory McIlroy, Cesc Fabregas

May 4, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Erin Andrews. AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth

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Greetings, Brooklyn. Today is the 123rd day of the year.

On this day in 1918, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Brooklyn plumed herself today with just cause and strutted just a little bit, for she had taken her place among the honor cities of the nation, and at noon the new flag — which signifies that she did not fail her country in the hour of need — went to the top of the flagstaff over Borough Hall. A great yell went up as it unfolded in the breeze. It is the first time that Brooklyn has flown an honor flag following a Liberty Loan campaign. Brooklyn’s quota was $40,000,000. Her total, up to the time when the exercise at Borough Hall began, was $43,083, 820.

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On this day in 1905, the Eagle reported, “Race Track, Belmont Park, L.I. — A lowering, cloud-hidden sky that threatened to send down torrents of rain at any minute, a wind that was almost a gale in its fierceness and which swept great clouds of thick, blinding dust swirling through the stands, made life miserable for the fast gathering throng. Such were the weather conditions that favored the opening of the new $2,000,000 home of the Westchester Racing Association here this afternoon. Despite the oft-repeated announcements on the part of S.S. Howland, the business manager, that everything at the new track would be in perfect readiness for today’s opening, it was apparent to the early arrivals that a mistake had been made in throwing open the gates at the present time.”

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On this day in 1909, the Eagle quoted Samuel Nelson Sawyer, grand master of Masons of the State of New York, who said, “The work of constructing a Masonic temple in Brooklyn, which has been the hope of Masons for 50 years, has now reached a point which commands not only the attention but the admiration of Masons throughout the metropolitan district, if not of the state itself. During a period of no less than seven years, the devoted brethren of the craft in Brooklyn have accomplished what their ancestors did not … There stands now on the northeast corner of Lafayette and Clermont avenues … a beautiful edifice quite ready for dedication. It represents the expenditure of upwards of $450,000, all of which was obtained by the efforts of our Brooklyn brethren.”

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On this day in 1913, the Eagle reported, “The women suffragists owned New York yesterday. The city — as represented by the male population — that was wont to scoff and jeer in the old days, stood in respectful silence, hat in hand, along the sidewalks of Fifth Avenue, watching the militant sisters marching for the ‘cause.’ It did more than that. It cheered, not grudgingly, as it did two years ago, but generously. The times are changing.”

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On this day in 1949, the Eagle reported, “Borough President Cashmore today drafted a proclamation … calling on Brooklyn citizens to celebrate the 12-day period between now and May 15 as the first anniversary of Israel’s independence … The ’12 Days of Commemoration’ will be marked by a series of celebrations in Brooklyn. They will be formally inaugurated with a dinner to Chaim Weizmann, Israel’s president, in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel tonight.”

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On this day in 1954, the Eagle reported, “The House of Representatives has unanimously passed a bill directing the Interior Department to probe the possibility of establishing a $250,000 memorial in Brooklyn to honor 265 Maryland soldiers who were Revolutionary heroes. The bill, introduced in the House by Rep. John J. Rooney (D-Brooklyn), now goes to the Senate … The 256 Marylanders were killed preventing encirclement of the Continental Army in the Battle of Brooklyn on Aug. 27, 1776.”

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On May 6, 1937, the Eagle reported, “New Yorkers today awaited the German dirigible Hindenburg, which is due to dock at Lakehurst, N.J. at 6 p.m. It was due to arrive over the city at 3 o’clock … Capt. Max Pruss indicated he would fly the ship above Manhattan briefly and then head for Lakehurst.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include sportscaster ERIN ANDREWS, who was born in 1978; soccer player CESC FABREGAS, who was born in 1987; baseball player BEN GRIEVE, who was born in 1976; author DAVID GUTERSON, who was born in 1956; singer JACKIE JACKSON, who was born in 1951; actor RICHARD JENKINS, who was born in 1947; golfer RORY McILROY, who was born in 1989; opera singer ROBERTA PETERS, who was born in 1930; former basketball player DAWN STALEY, who was born in 1970; country musician RANDY TRAVIS, who was born in 1959; editor, columnist and baseball executive GEORGE F. WILL, who was born in 1941; and actress, singer and dancer PIA ZADORA, who was born in 1956.

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AUDREY HEPBURN WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1929. The actress’ first major movie role in “Roman Holiday” won her an Academy Award for Best Actress. She made 26 movies during her career and received four additional Oscar nominations. During the latter years of her life, Hepburn served as spokeswoman for the United Nations Children’s Fund, traveling worldwide raising money for the organization. She died in 1993 in Switzerland.

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FREEDOM RIDES BEGAN ON THIS DAY IN 1961. Civil rights advocates joined James Farmer of the Congress of Racial Equality to conduct “freedom rides” on buses from Washington, D.C., across the Deep South to New Orleans. The trips were intended to test Supreme Court decisions and Interstate Commerce Commission regulations prohibiting discrimination in interstate travel. In several places, riders were brutally beaten by local people and police officers. On May 14, members of the Ku Klux Klan attacked the Freedom Riders in Birmingham, Alabama while local police watched. In Mississippi, Freedom Riders were jailed. They never made it to New Orleans.

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MARIA FELIX WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1914. Referred to by some as the “goddess of Mexico’s golden age of cinema,” she appeared in more than 45 films and was awarded the first Mexico City Prize for a lifetime of distinguished achievement. Felix died in 2002 in Mexico.

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TODAY IS STAR WARS DAY. It is a day celebrated worldwide by fans of the “Star Wars” series. Fans greet each other by saying “May the 4th be with you,” have lightsaber fights and hold other movie-related events connected to the fictional world created by George Lucas.

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

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“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.” — Audrey Hepburn, who was born on this day in 1929