MILESTONES: February 14, birthdays for Renee Fleming, Jim Kelly, Hugh Downs
NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include journalist Hugh Downs, who was born in 1921; former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala, who was born in 1941; former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who was born in 1942; actor Andrew Robinson, who was born in 1942; journalist Carl Bernstein, who was born in 1944; sportscaster Pat O’Brien, who was born in 1948; magician Teller, who was born in 1948; motivational speaker and former baseball player Dave Dravecky, who was born in 1956; opera star Renee Fleming, who was born in 1959; former quarterback Jim Kelly, who was born in 1960; and former quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who was born in 1972.
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THE CIRCLE OF LIFE: George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. was born on this day in 1859. In response to a challenge to American engineers to create a monument that would dwarf the new Eiffel Tower, he built the Ferris Wheel for the 1893 Chicago World’s Columbian Exposition. After the exposition opened, 38,000 people a day had their ups and downs. Ferris died in 1896.
Brooklyn Boro
View MoreNew York City’s most populous borough, Brooklyn, is home to nearly 2.6 million residents. If Brooklyn were an independent city it would be the fourth largest city in the United States. While Brooklyn has become the epitome of ‘cool and hip’ in recent years, for those that were born here, raised families here and improved communities over the years, Brooklyn has never been ‘uncool’.