MILESTONES: June 24 birthdays for Mindy Kaling, Petra Nemcova, George Pataki

June 24, 2020 Brooklyn Eagle History

Mindy Kaling. Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Share this:

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include astronomer Carolyn S. Shoemaker, who was born in 1929; Basketball Hall of Famer Sam Jones, who was born in 1933; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac), who was born in 1942; “Knots Landing” star Michele Lee, who was born in 1942; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jeff Beck (The Yardbirds), who was born in 1944; former New York Gov. George Pataki, who was born in 1945; “Robocop” star Peter Weller, who was born in 1947; former New York Rangers coach John Tortorella, who was born in 1958; Mazzy Star singer Hope Sandoval, who was born in 1966; “The Office” star Mindy Kaling, who was born in 1979; model and philanthropist Petra Nemcova, who was born in 1979; and former Yankees pitcher Phil Hughes, who was born in 1986.

***

MAN OF FAITH: Henry Ward Beecher was born on this day in 1813. The native of Litchfield, Conn., became pastor of Plymouth Church in Brooklyn Heights in 1847. From the pulpit, he advocated for many of the controversial issues of his era, including temperance, women’s suffrage, Darwinian evolution and, most notably, abolition. His tactics in support of abolition were often sensational and contentious, as was the case when he raised money to provide rifles to antislavery settlers in Kansas in 1856. In the 1870s, Beecher was the subject of one of the biggest scandals of the century when he was accused of adultery by a parishioner and sued in civil court. The trial resulted in a hung jury, and although Beecher was exonerated by two ecclesiastical courts, public opinion about his innocence was divided. He died in Brooklyn on March 5, 1887 and is buried in Green-Wood Cemetery.

***

MERCY MISSION: The Berlin Airlift began on this day in 1948. In the early days of the Cold War, the Soviet Union challenged the West’s right of access to Berlin. The Soviets created a blockade, and an airlift to supply some 2,250,000 people resulted. The airlift lasted for 321 days and brought into Berlin 1,592,787 tons of supplies. Joseph Stalin finally backed down and the blockade ended on May 12, 1949.

***

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

Quotable:

”Every charitable act is a stepping stone toward heaven.”

— Henry Ward Beecher, who was born on this day in 1813