MILESTONES: March 20, birthdays for Spike Lee, Carl Reiner, Fernando Torres

March 20, 2019 Brooklyn Eagle

Watch the 30th anniversary of "Do the Right Thing" by Brooklyn director Spike Lee. Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include Oscar Award-winning actress Holly Hunter, who was born in 1958; actor William Hurt, who was born in 1950; director, producer, writer and actor Spike Lee, who was born in 1957; actor Hal Linden, who was born in 1931; 18th Prime Minister of Canada Brian Mulroney, who was born in 1939; Hall of Fame hockey player Bobby Orr, who was born in 1948; actor, writer and director Carl Reiner, who was born in 1922; basketball coach and former player Pat Riley, who was born in 1945; actress Theresa Russell, who was born in 1957; actor David Thewlis, who was born in 1963; soccer player Fernando Torres, who was born in 1984; and Olympic snowboarder Louie Vito, who was born in 1988.

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FRED ROGERS WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1928. Rogers first began producing TV for children in 1953. His first program, “The Children’s Hour,” was the precursor to “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” which premiered in Canada in 1966 and in the U.S. in 1968. The show ran on public television until Rogers’ death, and he became known worldwide for his dedication to the well-being of children and for his demonstrations of the importance of kindness, compassion and learning. He authored a number of books for parents and children, wrote more than 200 songs and won dozens of awards, including Emmys, Peabodys and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He died in 2003 in Pennsylvania.

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B.F. SKINNER WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1904. The American psychologist was a pioneer in behaviorism and is best known for developing the “Skinner box,” an enclosed experimental environment. He died in 1990 in Massachusetts.

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HENRIK IBSEN WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1828. The Norwegian playwright’s best-remembered plays are “Peer Gynt,” “The Pillars of Society,” “The Wild Duck,” “An Enemy of the People” and “Hedda Gabler.” Ibsen died in 1906 in Norway.

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TODAY IS THE ANNIVERSARY OF A NERVE GAS ATTACK ON THE TOKYO SUBWAY SYSTEM. Twelve people were killed and 5,000 injured in a nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system during rush hour on this day in 1995. Suspected in the attack was the Japanese religious sect Aum Shinrikyo, founded and led by Shoko Asahara. The group, which professes belief in a hybrid of Buddhist-Hindu teachings, predicts an apocalypse. In a raid conducted against the sect’s main compound in Kamikuishiki on March 25, police seized literature that predicted 90 percent of the people in the world would be killed by poison gas. Also seized were two tons of chemicals for making sarin, the poison used in the Mar 20 attack. This cache was reported to contain enough material to kill 5 million people. In a second raid, Asahara was arrested.

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

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“Often out of periods of losing come the greatest strivings toward a new winning streak.” ― children’s TV producer Fred Rogers, who was born on this day in 1928