August 11: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

August 11, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1898, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “As soon as Col. Theodore Roosevelt arrives at Montauk Point with his regiment of Rough Riders he will be waited upon by a committee from the Independent Republican organization, of Manhattan, headed by Col. Lovell Jerome, and asked for consent to allow his name to be used as a candidate for the gubernatorial nomination. It is thought that the Manhattan organization will be joined by a delegation representing Republicans of this county who desire to see the colonel of the Rough Riders head the state ticket. If he consents to be a candidate, a campaign will be inaugurated that will eclipse anything ever projected in this state. Close friends of Mr. Roosevelt say that he will consent to be a candidate if he becomes satisfied that there is a demand for his nomination.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1948, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — Elizabeth T. Bentley said today that Anatol Gromov, first secretary of the Soviet Embassy, gave her $2,000 and told her she had been awarded Order of the Red Star for her services as a spy on the American government. Miss Bentley told the House Un-American Activities Committee that the payoff took place on the New York waterfront on Oct. 17, 1945, while she was under surveillance by FBI agents. At that time, she said, she knew Gromov only as ‘Al.’ Miss Bentley has been the No. 1 witness in a congressional investigation of alleged Red undergrounds and Soviet spy rings in the capital. She said she made periodic trips from New York to pick up wartime military secrets gathered by various government employees for Russia. At the time of the Russian payoff, which has been confirmed by the FBI, she had renounced the Communists and told the FBI her story. But she was pretending still to be working for the Reds.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1952, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — President Truman was under heavy pressure from his own party today to forget about calling Congress back to strengthen price controls — at least until after the November elections. Senator John J. Sparkman, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, publicly declared his opposition to the special session which Mr. Truman said last week he is considering. As several influential Democratic senators had said previously, Sparkman warned that recalling the lawmakers ‘in the middle of a campaign’ would produce a lot of political hair-pulling but no anti-inflation legislation. Gov. Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic presidential nominee, will have a chance to put in his oar on the subject when he attends a White House luncheon with Mr. Truman and the cabinet tomorrow. He has not so far displayed any enthusiasm for the special session idea, which originated with Price Stabilizer Ellis Arnall. Arnall said food prices, which rose a record 1½ percent last month, are threatening to ‘get out of hand.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “At least 30 Brooklyn Democratic primary contests were definitely in the works today — and, in many cases, more than two persons are seeking the same political job. Harassed Board of Election clerks, swamped by a record number of designating petitions resulting primarily from reapportionment, burned the midnight oil at 400 Broome St., Manhattan, late last night to record the data, after closing their doors at 5 p.m. In addition, more designating petitions for the Sept. 14 primary may have to be recorded today, for the postmark deadline for mailed entries was last midnight. Looming on the Democratic primary agenda are one contest for county judge, two fights for congressional seats, four for the State Senate, 12 for the Assembly, and 11 for district leaderships, male and female. The number of insurgents made even the heads of veteran Board of Elections clerks spin.”

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Viola Davis
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include FedEx founder Frederick W. Smith, who was born in 1944; “Star Wars” star Ian McDiarmid, who was born in 1944; columnist and author Marilyn vos Savant, who was born in 1946; “All by Myself” singer Eric Carmen, who was born in 1949; Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Wozniak, who was born in 1950; World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan, who was born in 1953; Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis, who was born in 1965; comedian and podcast host Joe Rogan, who was born in 1967; “Hotel Rwanda” star Sophie Okonedo, who was born in 1968; “Boy Meets World” star Will Friedle, who was born in 1976; “Thor” star Chris Hemsworth, who was born in 1983; former N.Y. Yankees outfielder Melky Cabrera, who was born in 1984; and political commentator and TV host Tomi Lahren, who was born in 1992.

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STAR MAKER: “American Graffiti” premiered on this day in 1973. Written and directed by George Lucas, the coming-of-age comedy documented the cruising culture of the early 1960s. It featured a large ensemble of future stars including Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Cindy Williams and Suzanne Somers. Made on a budget of less than $1 million, it earned more than $50 million in its initial release and gave Lucas the clout to go ahead with another project, the “Star Wars” saga.

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GOLD STANDARD: Carl Lewis attained Olympic glory on this day in 1984. In Los Angeles, the 23-year-old became the second track-and-field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympics, equaling Jesse Owens’ performance in the 1936 Games in Berlin. Lewis even took the gold in the same events: the men’s 400m relay, the 100m dash, the long jump and the 200m dash.

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

Quotable:

“What is the essence of America? Finding and maintaining that perfect, delicate balance between freedom ‘to’ and freedom ‘from.’”

— author Marilyn vos Savant, who was born on this day in 1946