July 13: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

July 13, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1930, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The fine ruddy coat of sunburn is nowhere near as healthy as it is credited with being. It ruins the skin, produces a prematurely aged skin and, when carried to an extreme, produces an acute toxemia — a systematic poisoning. This is the view of sunburn held by medical science and expressed by Dr. Alfred Potter, professor of skin diseases at the Long Island College Hospital, speaking for the public information committee of the Kings County Medical Society. ‘As much harm as good follows the unadvised use of either natural sunshine or the so-called sunshine lamps. Improper dosages of either are dangerous, and extended abuse will result not alone in the ruining of the skin but will result in an increase in the incidence of skin cancer. Sunshine produces an overstimulation of the skin,’ stated Professor Potter. ‘It dries the skin so that it fails to function in its normal capacity and results in prematurely aged skin and wrinkles. Sunshine is something that should be taken with advice and discretion.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1941, the Eagle reported, “BERLIN, JULY 12 (U.P.) — A special German communique from Adolf Hitler’s headquarters claimed tonight that the Stalin Line had been broken ‘at all decisive points’ and that German troops are advancing upon Leningrad, Kiev and the approaches to Moscow. Radio Berlin, heard in London, reported that the communique announced that ‘north of the Dnieper, German troops already are standing before Kiev,’ capital of the Ukraine. The sensational special communique was released by the High Command after German sources reported that Nazi Storm Troops were cracking into Stalin forts in two key sectors, the northeastern front in the direction of Leningrad, and the central sector, 80 miles west northwest of Smolensk.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1949, the Eagle reported, “If the Major League club owners are looking for an excuse to abandon the annual all-star game — as is often reported — they had their chance to do it today. For in the sorry sunset of the American League’s 11-7 victory over the National League at Brooklyn in what was easily the worst of the 16 mid-season classics ever played, there were very definite excuses for cutting the whole thing out. This might be a handy stopping point because the game, which got its start as a sort of added attraction to the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, now has completed its cycle of Major League parks — a cycle which permitted all the fans in big league territory to see their chosen stars in action. In addition to that, the last of the 16 games was something that reflected no credit upon the players who were supposed to be the best in the business. The National Leaguers fumbled as if in a rank sandlot game. Never before has a team committed as many errors in a single all-star game.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1950, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — The United States is reserving the right to use atomic weapons if some other country starts World War III. There is no inclination among officials here to use the A-bomb against the North Koreans. But if a world war should break out, this country will not feel restricted in any way — even though the enemy might use only conventional weapons like tanks and artillery. This was made clear by Secretary of State Dean Acheson in a new blast at Russia’s ‘spurious’ peace offensive. He warned the American people not to be fooled by Communist-inspired petitions seeking to brand as a war criminal the first nation that uses atomic weapons. ‘This is an utterly cynical begging of the question,’ he told a news conference. ‘The real crime against humanity is aggression, and in particular, the deliberate resort to armed aggression in defiance of the United Nations. The war criminals are the people who sanction such action. The weapons used are quite incidental to the crime.’ Washington officials said Secretary Acheson was keeping the door open for prompt use of atomic weapons should Communist aggression touch off a third world war. Most administration officials, however, cold-shouldered suggestions in Congress that the United States threaten North Korea with atomic attack.”

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Harrison Ford
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include “Jeopardy!” announcer Johnny Gilbert, who was born in 1928; “Picard” star Patrick Stewart, who was born in 1940; “Raiders of the Lost Ark” star Harrison Ford, who was born in 1942; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn (The Byrds), who was born in 1942; game designer Erno Rubik, who was born in 1944; “Grease” star Didi Conn, who was born in Brooklyn in 1951; Olympic gold medalist and former light heavyweight champion Michael Spinks, who was born in 1956; Oscar-winner Cameron Crowe, who was born in 1957; “Community” star Ken Jeong, who was born in 1969; “Jericho” star Ashley Scott, who was born in 1977; “The Vampire Diaries” star Steven R. McQueen, who was born in 1988; and 2019 National League MVP Cody Bellinger, who was born in 1995.

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A SONG IN THEIR HEARTS: “Live Aid” took place on this day in 1985. The concerts in Philadelphia and London were seen by 162,000 attendees and an estimated 1.5 billion TV viewers. Performers included Queen, U2, Madonna, Eric Clapton and a reunited Led Zeppelin, among many others. The event was organized to raise funds for African famine relief and the musicians performed without a fee. Nearly $100 million was pledged toward aid to the hungry.

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KICKSTARTER: The first World Cup soccer competition was held in Montevideo, Uruguay on this day in 1930, with 14 countries participating. On July 30, Uruguay defeated Argentina 4-2 to take the cup.

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

Quotable:

“You know you’re getting old when all the names in your black book have M.D. after them.”

— actor Harrison Ford, who was born on this day in 1942