Brooklyn Boro

November 1: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

November 1, 2021 Brooklyn Eagle History
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ON THIS DAY IN 1918, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Elevated railroad service was crippled today throughout Brooklyn, the Fourth Ave. subway service was hampered, and nearly all trolley lines were suffering from congestion in a marked degree, following the strike order of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers which went into effect at 5 o’clock this morning and which called from work all the B.R.T. elevated and subway motormen and motor switchmen affiliated with the order. At 10 o’clock this morning, L.G. Griffing, assistant grand chief of the brotherhood, and W.J. Orr, one of its organizers, claimed that 350 men were actually out on strike and that their number was being added to hourly … ‘We are in this strike to win and we are positive that we can beat the B.R.T.,’ said Assistant Grand Chief Griffing. ‘You will find in a very short time that our ranks will be augmented to the point where the B.R.T. will have but a handful of men left to operate its trains,’ said organizer Orr.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1937, the Eagle reported, “Leaders in both political camps were today making the usual extravagant election eve predictions in which they claim everything in sight. Meanwhile, newspaper commentators were generally agreeing with the Eagle’s forecast Sunday that Mayor [Fiorello] LaGuardia’s re-election is assured and that if his plurality is large enough — to which signs more and more point — it should sweep in most of his running mates with him. Betting commissioners’ odds on LaGuardia today are 4 to 1 and on [Manhattan D.A. candidate Thomas] Dewey, 8 to 5.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1953, the Eagle reported, “FRANKENSTEIN CASTLE, GERMANY, OCT. 31 (U.P.) — Eight intrepid American soldiers settled down in this gloomy 13th Century castle tonight to await the Frankenstein ghost that walks on Halloween. ‘We’re ready for him if he comes,’ said 23-year-old Pvt. Thomas Pickens of Yonkers, N.Y., who organized the vigil after studying up on the Frankensteins and their monster. He pointed to the group’s three ‘secret weapons’ as ample guards against the ghost of the man-eating monster. They were three dreamy-eyed St. Bernard puppies named K.P., Night Ball and Goof Off, and two monkeys, George and Georgette. ‘They’re all mascots of our outfit — Company G, 18th Infantry regiment,’ said Pickens. The eight GIs are stationed at Aschafenburg, 25 miles from this twin-towered castle … ‘I didn’t even know there was a real Frankenstein castle until last year,’ Pickens said. ‘But it’s true. It was built in 1252 by the Frankenstein family. The monster legend came later.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1962, the Eagle reported, “(UPI) — Only a year after he was picked the toast of baseball, Yankee slugger Roger Maris was picked the ‘Flop of the Year’ by the United Press International. A UPI board of 24 baseball experts singled out Maris as the season’s No. 1 disappointment in a close vote with the Detroit Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals. Six of the 24 experts selected Maris, five picked the Tigers and four chose the Cardinals … The figures tell the story of the difference between the Maris of 1961 and the Maris of 1962. In 1961, Maris established a new home run record of 61 in a season despite the enormous pressure of chasing ‘the ghost’ of Babe Ruth. That performance plus a league-leading total of 142 runs batted in enabled Maris to win a second straight AL most valuable player award. He rose into the $70,000 class as a salaried player and stood alongside Mickey Mantle as a Yankee super star. The only hitch was his .269 batting average — an average which caused some baseball experts to sneer at his 61-homer feat and to predict that he would never again come close to that total. Maris’ 61 home runs made him a marked man in 1962.”

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Penn Badgley
Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP
Sophie B. Hawkins
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include World Golf Hall of Famer Gary Player, who was born in 1935; “Falcon Crest” star Robert Foxworth, who was born in 1941; entrepreneur Mitch Kapor, who was born in Brooklyn in 1950; “Nobody Knows Me” singer Lyle Lovett, who was born in 1957; Apple CEO Tim Cook, who was born in 1960; former L.A. Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who was born in 1960; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Anthony Kiedis (Red Hot Chili Peppers), who was born in 1962; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Rick Allen (Def Leppard), who was born in 1963; “As I Lay Me Down” singer Sophie B. Hawkins, who was born in 1964; former N.Y. Rangers right wing Tie Domi, who was born in 1969; “The Sixth Sense” star Toni Collette, who was born in 1972; “Santa Baby” star Jenny McCarthy, who was born in 1972; and “You” star Penn Badgley, who was born in 1986.

Anthony Kiedis
Kevork Djansezian/AP

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A SHORT STORY: Stephen Crane was born 150 years ago today. The New Jersey native is best known for his Civil War novel “The Red Badge of Courage,” which has been adapted several times for the screen. He was also a short story writer and poet. Crane was only 28 when he died of tuberculosis in 1900.

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THE PUCK STOPS HERE: The hockey mask was first used on this day in 1959. Tired of stopping pucks with his face, Montreal Canadiens goalie Jacques Plante, having received another wound, reemerged from the locker room with seven new stitches — and a face mask he had made from fiberglass and resin. Cliff Benedict had tried a leather mask in the 1920s, but the idea didn’t catch on until Plante wore his. Then goalies throughout the NHL began wearing protective face shields.

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

 

“Sometimes, the most profound of awakenings come wrapped in the quietest of moments.”

— author Stephen Crane, who was born on this day in 1871

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