May 24: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

May 24, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1942, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “Boston’s Lenox Hotel last Monday applied for permission to erect hitching posts outside its entrance in anticipation of a revived carriage trade. Thereby expressed is the general feeling of citizenry along the eastern seaboard after the first Sabbath of individual gas rationing had virtually cleared the customarily crowded highways.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “A five-ship convoy carrying 7,000 American fighting men, the largest group to return from Europe since VE-Day, sailed into New York today with men on a stop-over before making their way to the Pacific, others recently liberated from German prison camps and wounded soldiers — veterans all of some of the hardest fighting of the war. Decorations were plentiful as the men came ashore at Staten Island and Piers 84 and 88, North River, and identified their hoped-for destination by shouting: ‘Greenpoint,’ ‘Flatbush,’ ‘Williamsburg’ in answer to a news photographer’s query of ‘Where are you from?’ One Brooklyn paratrooper, Pvt. Michael Hickey Jr. of 79 Newell St., said he planned to be a ‘surprise package’ to his wife Mildred, who had no idea he was on his way home. Private Hickey, a veteran of four years of service and two combat jumps with the 101st Airborne Engineers, revealed he injured his leg in the last jump over Holland but will be all right soon. ‘I’m OK and I’ve got to get back into the fight,’ he said. Four of Private Hickey’s five brothers are in service.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — The government, its rail system crippled, drove with desperate urgency today for settlement of the coast-to-coast train strike before it brings hunger to cities and wrecks the nation’s industrial life. Presidential adviser John R. Steelman met anew with rail union and management officials. He held out ‘hope’ that the day-old strike could be ended by nightfall. Few shared his faint optimism. The two striking unions — engineers and trainmen, 250,000 strong — and the railroads still were wide apart on their demands. President Truman summoned his cabinet to a morning meeting to analyze the strike. It struck its first staggering blow at 5 p.m. yesterday and, hour by hour, spread like a withering plague across the land until virtually every train came to a standstill. Within six hours the strike was reported nearly 100 percent effective. Only a few passenger trains kept moving. They were manned by irregular crews of supervisors and other non-union engineers and trainmen. … The worst traffic tie-up in the nation’s history stranded thousands of passengers. Commuters were cut off. But these were lesser effects of the first nationwide rail strike in 24 years. The paralysis in freight shipments was more nearly complete. Except for milk trains, little or no freight moved. The government promptly mobilized all of the nation’s planes, buses, trucks and boats to carry the most essential cargo.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1963, an Eagle editorial said, “When Gil Hodges left the Mets to take over as manager of the Washington Senators, he took a piece of Brooklyn with him, and left part of himself in this borough. Gil has always been a ‘Brooklyn boy’ since he played here with the late, and lamented, Dodgers. He has a business in Brooklyn and has thousands of loyal fans. He deserves them; Gil is a gentleman, a good sport and in his day one of the best ballplayers ever to grace the infield of Ebbets Field. It’s funny, isn’t it, that Brooklyn is sometimes accused of not having true hometown spirit. Yet in its sports, to cite only one example, our town is more loyal — and fanatic — in its support of a team than any other city in the United States. We still remember with tears of nostalgia the names and endearing figures of Dazzy Vance, Uncle Wilbert Robinson, Babe Herman, Dixie Walker, Pee Wee Reese, Jackie Robinson, Carl Furillo, Dolph Camilli, Duke Snider, Leo Durocher (yes, even Leo the Lip!) and Charlie Dressen. Gil Hodges will leave us for the Senators, and at least he’ll feel in somewhat familiar surroundings — in the bottom half of the league. We are sorry to see him leave the Mets, but wish him well.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1937, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (A.P.) — The Supreme Court held constitutional today the unemployment insurance provisions of the Social Security Act. Justice Cardozo delivered the momentous opinion which affirmed a ruling in favor of the legislation by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and gave the administration another major victory. Some court observers said his opinion indicated the court also upheld the right of a state to enact supplementary unemployment compensation laws. Justices Butler, McReynolds, Sutherland and Van Devanter — four of the nine justices — objected to at least part of the majority opinion. Speculation immediately began on Capitol Hill as to what effect the administration victory would have on President Roosevelt’s proposal to reorganize the tribunal. Opponents of the plan predicted that it would be defeated. Proponents contended just the opposite.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1938, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (A.P.) — Representative [Martin] Dies (D., Tex.) said today a proposed House investigation of un-American propaganda would ‘result in disclosures that will shock the nation.’ His resolution for an inquiry probably will come before the House Thursday. Democratic Leader [Sam] Rayburn of Texas predicted its adoption. ‘We are going to have a thorough inquiry not only in Washington but in New York and Philadelphia,’ Dies said. While the resolution mentions no specific groups, its proponents have said it would center attention on any Nazi, fascist and communist organizations which might be carrying on un-American activities.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “New York City’s muddled mayoralty campaign was thrown into a new political uproar today as District Attorney [William] O’Dwyer’s backers threatened openly to inject his name into the Republican as well as the Democratic city primaries if the big Democratic leaders fail to name him as their candidate for mayor. The threat of a two-party primary fight was hurled into both major party camps by Representative James A. Roe, Queens Democratic leader, who forced a break in his own party’s ranks last week by denouncing Democratic Leaders Frank V. Kelly of Brooklyn and Edward J. Flynn of the Bronx for alleged unwillingness to put Mr. O’Dwyer at the head of their party ticket. Representative Roe, who has made himself the chief spokesman of the O’Dwyer-for-mayor boom, declared in a statement at Washington that Mr. O’Dwyer would return next week from California to announce his candidacy in all the party primaries — Democratic, Republican and American Labor. Mr. Roe has made a series of statements which Mr. O’Dwyer has neither approved nor repudiated publicly.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1948, the Eagle reported, “LAKE SUCCESS (U.P.) — The United States was prepared today to press for branding the Arabs as international aggressors if the 1 p.m. deadline set by the United Nations Security Council passes without a cease-fire from Arab leaders. The United Nations, encouraged by the new State of Israel’s acceptance of the Security Council truce appeal in the Palestine conflict, waited anxiously for the Arabs’ answer. While a ‘yes’ from the leaders of Trans-Jordan, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Yemen would bring about only a temporary halt in the Holy Land war, it almost certainly would be regarded here as a virtual end to the conflict. The cease-fire appeal, voted by the Security Council late Saturday as a mild substitute for a stronger United States proposal, envisaged Arab-Jewish peace talks under supervision of Count Folke Bernadotte of Sweden, the U.N.’s Palestine mediator. The Security Council stood by to meet this afternoon on the Palestine situation if developments warranted.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp, who was born in 1937; “Up in Smoke” star Tommy Chong, who was born in 1938; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bob Dylan, who was born in 1941; “M*A*S*H” star Gary Burghoff, who was born in 1943; “Godmother of Soul” Patti LaBelle, who was born in 1944; “The Naked Gun” star Priscilla Presley, who was born in 1945; Oscar-winning actor Jim Broadbent, who was born in 1949; “Spider-Man 2” star Alfred Molina, who was born in 1953; “The Wheel” singer Rosanne Cash, who was born in 1955; “The English Patient” star Kristin Scott Thomas, who was born in 1960; Basketball Hall of Famer Joe Dumars, who was born in 1963; “Step Brothers” star John C. Reilly, who was born in 1965; former N.Y. Yankees and Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon, who was born in 1973; Basketball Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady, who was born in 1979; and “One Voice” singer Billy Gilman, who was born in 1988.

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SUSPENDED IN TIME: The Brooklyn Bridge opened on this day in 1883. The $16 million East River crossing was designed by John A. Roebling. It took nearly 14 years to build and spans 1,595 feet.

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ABOVE AND BEYOND: The Aurora 7 Mercury space capsule was launched on this day in 1962. Astronaut Scott Carpenter became the second American to orbit the Earth, circling it three times.

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

Quotable:

“He not busy being born is busy dying.”

— musician Bob Dylan, who was born on this day in 1941