MILESTONES: December 18 birthdays for Christina Aguilera, Charles Oakley, Ray Liotta
NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Keith Richards (The Rolling Stones), who was born in 1943; Oscar-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg, who was born in 1946; film critic Leonard Maltin, who was born in 1950; “Goodfellas” star Ray Liotta, who was born in 1954; former White Lion drummer Greg D’Angelo, who was born in Brooklyn in 1963; former N.Y. Knicks forward Charles Oakley, who was born in 1963; Oscar-winner Brad Pitt, who was born in 1963; “Muriel’s Wedding” star Rachel Griffiths, who was born in 1968; International Tennis Hall of Famer Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, who was born in 1971; “Chandelier” singer Sia, who was born in 1975; “Dawson’s Creek” star Katie Holmes, who was born in 1978; “Beautiful” singer Christina Aguilera, who was born in Staten Island in 1980; and “Bad Guy” singer Billie Eilish, who was born in 2001.
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TRAILBLAZER: Benjamin O. Davis Jr. was born on this day in 1912. The World War II hero was born in Washington, D.C., to the Army’s first black general. He was the first African-American to graduate from West Point in the 20th Century; he led the first all-black air unit, the 99th Pursuit Squadron (the Tuskegee Airmen) in World War II; he helped plan the integration of the U.S. Air Force in 1948-49 and he was its first black general (1954). He died in 2002.
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’.