August 12: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

August 12, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1851, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The Advertiser of yesterday published the wonderful intelligence that a shark of immense magnitude was caught the day before at Red Hook Point, and on dissection that the bodies of two boys were found in the stomach. Some of the New York papers of this morning have got the same wonderful intelligence. Some of the reporters have been caught but no shark.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1892, the Eagle reported, “The house to house inspection of the New York tenement districts, which appear to be infected with smallpox, was begun by the inspectors of the health department this morning. The section of the city lying between Canal and Fourteenth streets, west of Broadway, has been divided into twenty districts and an inspector has been assigned to each district. They will make a house to house search for cases of smallpox. The twenty inspectors assigned to this duty received their instructions from Chief Roberts this morning and by 10 o’clock they had started on their tour of inspection. The doctors have instructions to search every apartment in the houses visited by them. When the territory between Canal and Fourteenth streets has been thoroughly inspected, the doctors will go through the district between Fourteenth and Twenty-third streets west of Seventh avenue. One case of smallpox was reported this forenoon.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — The Navy said last night that World War III — if and when — will be a push button, Buck Rogers type of war with pilotless rockets carrying atomic warheads whizzing through the air thousands of miles an hour to ‘sniff out’ targets. Capt. Steadman Teller, chief of the Navy’s guided missile section, reported the Navy now has weapons ‘that would have seemed fantastic even to a highly imaginative comic-strip artist a few years ago.’ An intensive program to develop guided missiles was undertaken on the realization that the giant U.S. Fleet that swept Japan from the Pacific would be inadequate in a few years’ time to defend the United States.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1952, the Eagle reported, “TEHRAN (U.P.) — Martial law ended in Iran today after Premier Mohammed Mossadegh retreated on his demand to extend it. The country has been under martial law at frequent intervals since the crisis over oil nationalization flared last year. The premier withdrew from the Majlis (lower house of parliament) his martial law bill in response to opposition from his own national front supporters to military rule. Meanwhile, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi distributed title deeds to peasants who had purchased parts of royal estates on long-term small-installment plans. The peasants wept, clapped hands and cheered during a ceremony at the white summer palace at Saadabad as the Shah presented 836 deeds to 50 peasants’ representatives who dressed in their best for the occasion.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — President Eisenhower today reported the recent business decline has been stopped and the nation is in a ‘high — or even an improving — state of economic welfare.’ The president said the value of the dollar has remained stable, wages have continued to increase and wholesale and consumer prices have risen only slightly over a year ago. In a mid-year economic report, Mr. Eisenhower declared confidently that historians of earlier days would have described the period as one of ‘great prosperity.’ Mr. Eisenhower’s statement was based on advice from his economic council. The council no longer is issuing a formal mid-year economic report. He admitted that some industries and cities have been seriously affected by economic dips although the declines have been small on an overall, national basis. But he said the administration’s economic program being legislated by Congress will help to reduce unemployment and spur private enterprise.”

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Cara Delevingne. Photo:
Evan Agostini, Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include “Love at First Bite” star George Hamilton, who was born in 1939; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits), who was born in 1949; “Supernatural” star Jim Beaver, who was born in 1950; jazz guitarist and composer Pat Metheny, who was born in 1954; “Thirteen Days” star Bruce Greenwood, who was born in 1956; rapper and producer Sir Mix-a-Lot, who was born in 1963; “Parenthood” star Peter Krause, who was born in 1965; International Tennis Hall of Famer Pete Sampras, who was born in 1971; N.Y. Giants Super Bowl hero Plaxico Burress, who was born in 1977; “Psych” star Maggie Lawson, who was born in 1980; “Face/Off” star Dominique Swain, who was born in 1980; and “Paper Towns” star Cara Delevingne, who was born in 1992.

Plaxico Burress. Photo: Bill Kostroun, AP

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AMERICAN EPIC: Cecil B. DeMille was born on this day in 1881. A film showman extraordinaire known for lavish screen spectacles, he produced more than 70 major films, including “Cleopatra,” “The Plainsman,” “Reap the Wild Wind” and “The Ten Commandments.” He won an Oscar for “The Greatest Show on Earth” in 1953. He died in 1959.
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P.C. CULTURE: IBM released its personal computer on this day in 1981. It cost the equivalent of $3,000 in today’s currency. Although IBM was one of the pioneers in making mainframe and other large computers, this was the company’s first foray into the desktop computer market. Eventually, more IBM-compatible computers were manufactured by the company’s competitors than by IBM itself.
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Special thanks to “Chase’s Calendar of Events” and Brooklyn Public Library.

Quotable:

“When the freedom they wished for most was freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free and was never free again.”
— author and educator Edith Hamilton, who was born on this day in 1867