February 28: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

February 28, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1922, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “KHARKOV, UKRAINIAN REPUBLIC, FEB. 27 — President [Christian] Rakowsky of Ukrainia has issued a statement to the newspapers making it clear that the Ukraine is a free and independent republic which conducts its own foreign affairs. Nevertheless, he professed great loyalty to the Moscow government. Heretofore, the relations between Ukrainia and the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet republic have been a matter of considerable speculation. The army, railways, post, telegraph and telephones of the Ukraine are under Moscow supervision. [Leon] Trotsky, Russian War Minister, is in supreme command of the military operations in the Ukraine, but Ukrainia has its own general staff. The transportation and communications systems of the Ukraine and the Moscow government interlock in such a way that general direction is necessary from Moscow, but the Kharkov government is extremely independent in interpreting directions and Moscow handles it with gloves.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1949, the Eagle reported, “The Kings County District Attorney’s office declared open war on teenage gangs in Brownsville today following the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy and subsequent discovery of a veritable arsenal in homes of half a dozen boys and youths last night. The warning came in Felony Court, when four of the eight youths arrested were arraigned on charges of violating the Sullivan Law. Assistant District Attorney Lewis Joseph, remarking that the other four arrested were juveniles, told Magistrate Thomas H. Cullen: ‘We’re sending word out to the Brownsville gangs that this sort of thing will not be tolerated.’ A hoard of weapons, including rifles, pistols, knives and ammunition, was being checked over carefully for clues that might lead to more members of at least two gangs police said have been feuding in the area.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1952, the Eagle reported, “Mayor [Vincent] Impellitteri remained noncommittal today on the subject of the city’s bigger subway deficit, turned up by the State’s fiscal experts in Albany yesterday. He had no immediate explanation as to why he had predicted a $30,000,000 transit deficit for the fiscal year beginning next July 1, whereas the State expects, on the basis of figures which the Mayor himself, seeking $200,000,000 additional State aid for his record budget, had given them, came out with $67,500,000, or a jump of $37,500,000. Meanwhile, speculation was rife in City Hall circles and elsewhere as to whether all this belaboring of the transit deficit did not point to another subway fare raise in the offing. A simple upping of the present 10-cent fare (raised not so long ago from the once sacrosanct nickel) to 15 cents, or two for 25, might be the most direct method of wiping out that part of the city’s budget deficit attributable to transit operation.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1958, the Brooklyn Record reported, “Assemblyman Alfred A. Lama proposed that the city and state convert Ebbets Field into a giant Youth Athletic Arena to help prevent juvenile delinquency. Lama made his proposal in letters to Governor [Averell] Harriman and Mayor [Robert] Wagner. He said the stadium should be used to run various athletic events for youngsters throughout the year. During the summer months thousands of teenagers could take part in baseball tournaments. In addition, football, boxing, outdoor basketball, track and field, and a host of other sports could be run under the supervision of the state and city. At the conclusion of each season, teenage Olympics and all-star games could be run. High schools could participate in the sports program, Lama said. Lama’s plan envisions the government purchasing the stadium and providing appropriations to operate the program. Minimum admissions could be charged for the major events to partially defray the costs.”

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Bernadette Peters
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include architect Frank Gehry, who was born in 1929; actor and director Tommy Tune, who was born in 1939; International Motorsports Hall of Famer Mario Andretti, who was born in 1940; “Gilmore Girls” star Kelly Bishop, who was born in 1944; “The Jerk” star Bernadette Peters, who was born in 1948; Oscar-winning actress Mercedes Ruehl, who was born in 1948; “The Bronx is Burning” star John Turturro, who was born in Brooklyn in 1957; “The Color Purple” star Rae Dawn Chong, who was born in 1961; “House” star Robert Sean Leonard, who was born in 1969; Hockey Hall of Famer Eric Lindros, who was born in 1973; “Heroes” star Ali Larter, who was born in 1976; “Anger Management” star Noureen DeWulf, who was born in 1984; former N.Y. Yankees pitcher Aroldis Chapman, who was born in 1988; and Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Carlos Dunlap, who was born in 1989.

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THE WAR IS OVER, PART 1: The last episode of “M*A*S*H” was broadcast on this day in 1983. Based on the 1968 novel and the Oscar-winning 1970 feature film, the show premiered in 1972 and became one of the most beloved and honored TV series of all time. Concluding a run of 11 seasons and 255 episodes, the 2 1/2-hour finale was the most-watched TV show at that time, with 77 percent of all viewers — 125 million people — glued to their sets.

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THE WAR IS OVER, PART 2: The first Gulf War came to an end on this day in 1991. A coalition of 35 nations led by the U.S. responded to Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s August 1990 invasion and annexation of Kuwait. Aerial and naval bombing began on Jan. 17, 1991. The ground assault, which began on Feb. 24, ended 100 hours later with a ceasefire and the liberation of Kuwait. A ticker-tape parade for veterans of the conflict took place along Broadway that June.

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

Quotable:

“I wanted to be a brain surgeon, but I had a bad habit of dropping things.”

— comedian Gilbert Gottfried, who was born on this day in 1955