October 16: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

October 16, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1940, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “New York City today went about the business of registering an estimated 1,100,000 men for military service with a rush and a minimum of confusion. By 12:30 p.m., five and one-half hours after the registration places had opened, 538,611 men between the ages of 21 and 36 had been listed in the city for the first peace-time draft of the United States. They were being signed up at the rate of 100,000 an hour. Brooklyn, by 12:30, had more than a third of that total, or 190,216. The Bronx came next with 119,121, Queens had 110,091, Manhattan 108,125 and Richmond 11,058. At noon, Brooklyn’s registration had been 160,076 and at 10:30 a.m. 139,277. Col. Arthur V. McDermott, the city’s selective service director, estimated that, if the city should register 1,200,000 men, Brooklyn’s share would be upward of 400,000. There was an early morning dash, as men between the ages of 21 and 36 stopped off on their way to work at schoolhouse registration centers to be listed among those who may be called for the draft. By mid-morning, long lines had been reduced to a trickle. At the noon hour there was another though smaller rush and the late afternoon and evening, it was expected, would bring forth more draft-age men in large numbers.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1942, the Eagle reported, “Thomas E. Dewey, Republican candidate for governor, was back in New York City today for a brief rest between his just completed tour of eight upstate counties and a campaign swing tomorrow through Staten Island. Twelve talks at Republican rallies in Staten Island were on tomorrow’s schedule. In a talk at Syracuse last night, Dewey outlined a five-point wartime farm program designed to guarantee farmers transportation for their products, needed farm machinery and aid in obtaining both trained and seasonal help. He warned that the state faces a decline in farm production in the face of increased wartime needs.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1949, the Eagle reported, “LONDON, OCT. 15 (U.P.) — Philip kissed his wife and son goodbye today and went off to sea. The Duke of Edinburgh, 28-year-old sailor-husband of Princess Elizabeth and father of 11-months-old Prince Charles, left for Malta by air at 10 a.m. to resume sea duty, which he gave up when he married two years ago. He said his goodbyes to his family at their new, sumptuous home, Clarence House, and then drove to the airport. Elizabeth gave a big farewell cocktail party in his honor yesterday, the first time she had played hostess to such a large gathering in her own home.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1962, an Eagle editorial said, “A custom as American as the World Series now has been forbidden in parts of New Jersey. Booing has been banned at athletic events in eight Jersey high schools. Now, we here in Brooklyn are particularly incensed and upset by a regulation that forbids the free and good-natured expression of booing. We like to think the boo was born in Brooklyn. Certainly it was heard at its loudest and happiest at Ebbets Field when the Dodgers were still here. Yet these boos were good-natured, whether aimed at the umpire or a member of the opposing team. The fact that they often were heaped upon one of the beloved Bums proved that the boo is merely the crowd’s way of expressing its mild dislike of what appears to it to be unfair play. And who ever was hurt by the boo? Only the rare prima donna on the field who was too immature to accept criticism. The boo is Brooklyn’s, just as the Bronx cheer belongs to that other borough. Ban it? Not here. If you try, your eardrums will be split by a chorus of You-Know-What!”

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Suzanne Somers
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Cablevision and HBO founder Charles Dolan, who was born in 1926; “Northern Exposure” star Barry Corbin, who was born in 1940; former Yankees and Mets broadcaster Tim McCarver, who was born in 1941; Bachman-Turner Overdrive founder Fred Turner, who was born in 1943; “Three’s Company” star Suzanne Somers, who was born in 1946; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), who was born in 1947; “Airplane!” director David Zucker, who was born in 1947; Oscar-winner Tim Robbins, who was born in 1958; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), who was born in 1962; “For Keeps” star Randall Batinkoff, who was born in 1968; former NFL quarterback Kordell Stewart, who was born in 1972; “Life Goes On” star Kellie Martin, who was born in 1975; and tennis champion Naomi Osaka, who was born in 1997.

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THE DEFINITION OF SUCCESS: Noah Webster was born on this day in 1758. The teacher and journalist compiled the earliest American dictionaries of the English language and was influential in establishing the first major statutory revision of U.S. copyright law. He died in 1843.

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BENCHMARK: William Orville Douglas was born on this day in 1898. The American jurist, world traveler, conservationist, outdoorsman and author served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court for 36 years (1939-1975), longer than any other justice. He died in 1980.

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

Quotable:

“We are rapidly entering the age of no privacy, where everyone is open to surveillance at all times; when there are no secrets from government.”

— former Supreme Court Justice William Orville Douglas, who was born on this day in 1898