October 31: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

October 31, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1848, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “A soldier in Ireland having got his passport to England, as he went through the wood with his knapsack on his back, being weary, sat down, and fell to eating some victuals. Upon a sudden he was surprised by two or three wolves, who were coming towards him. He threw them scraps of bread and cheese as long as he had any. When the wolves had come nearer to him, he commenced playing a pair of bagpipes which he had with him, and as soon as he began to play, away ran the wolves, as if they had been scared out of their wits. ‘The curse of Cromwell upon ye all,’ said he. ‘If I had known that ye loved music so well, you should have had it before dinner.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1923, the Eagle reported, “J. Malcolm Bird, an editor of the Scientific American, who went to England last year to study psychic manifestations under the guidance of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is convinced that the genuineness of communication between this world and the next has not been established. Mr. Bird’s book, ‘My Psychic Adventures,’ is to be issued this week by the Scientific American Publishing Company. Mr. Bird’s skepticism follows sittings with Evan Powell, the ‘best bet’ of Doyle; John Sloan, Mrs. Osborn Leonard, William Hope and Frau Vollhard, abroad, and in this country, Miss Ada Besinnet of Toledo, George Valentine of Wilkes-Barre and Mrs. Josi F.K. Stewart of Cleveland.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1923, the Eagle reported, “Showing a superior brand of basketball, the quintet representing New Utrecht High defeated the St. Francis five, 19 to 14, yesterday at the Second Naval Battalion Armory. St. Francis took the lead at the whistle, Garvey caging the ball. Garrigan followed with a free throw, making the score 3 to 0. Frankenstein scored first for the Bensonhurst five, pocketing the ball from near the foul line.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1926, the Eagle reported, “CONSTANTINOPLE (A.P.) — In remote districts of Turkey, quaint customs still linger, despite Angora’s vigilant modernizing aim. One of the strangest is in the distant village of Casaree. Whenever a death occurs a public crier shouts the news through the streets. Even though the death occurs in the depths of the night, the crier immediately shouts out the doleful tidings and wakes all the living villagers with his cries. The post of Public Death Crier was established many years ago by the Evkaf, an official organization controlling religious affairs, which still continues to pay the crier a regular salary for the performance of his grisly duty.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1927, the Eagle reported, “Describing Harry Houdini as a man who kept faith with himself and with his fellowmen, former Police Commissioner Richard E. Enright eulogized the late magician in an address made at the grave of Machpelah Cemetery, Queens, yesterday afternoon. The speech was part of memorial services marking the first anniversary of the noted Handcuff King’s death and the unveiling of a monument to his memory.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “One of the longest uninterrupted movie ‘takes’ ever made was shot by producer-director Alfred Hitchcock at the start of his new Technicolor suspense film for Paramount, ‘Rear Window,’ at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater. From the apartment of James Stewart, portraying a photographer invalided with a broken leg, the camera riding high on a boom goes into the courtyard which separates Jimmy’s quarters from the other apartments. It skips from one apartment to another and then backs slowly into Stewart’s apartment, brushing by his face to show him nodding in his wheelchair, catching a thermometer in his mouth, beads of perspiration on his forehead and continuing in the one uninterrupted ‘take’ to show Stewart’s leg in a cast, then back deeper to pick up a smashed 4×5 Speed Graphic camera on the floor, then panning to a photo on the wall showing a racing car’s wheel hurtling straight at the photographer.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1954, the Eagle reported, “A Canarsie resident claimed last night that black widow spiders infest every lot in that area. Sam Spinella, 28, unemployed construction worker, backed up his claim by capturing 11 black widows in less than ten minutes Thursday in a lot on E. 94th St. between Seaview and Remsen Aves. Mr. Spinella took his grim find to the Board of Health, where the spiders were positively identified. After the lot’s ownership has been determined, the Board will order the owner to hire an exterminator to get rid of the spiders. However, a spokesman for the Board said that Mr. Spinella’s claim of black widow spider-infested lots throughout Canarsie would not be checked. The spokesman said that black widow bites are very rarely fatal and that ‘a great many’ bites do not even cause serious illness. A Canarsie resident for over 20 years, Mr. Spinella said he had frequently picked up spiders in lots in the area, primarily under rocks. Normally, he destroys them. Mr. Spinella’s ‘hunting’ equipment consists of a screwdriver and a jar. He slides the screwdriver under the spider and then dumps it into the jar. Mr. Spinella’s find was the latest of several reports of black widow spiders in various parts of the borough including at least two near schools. However, police, school officials and Board of Health authorities are not taking any extraordinary precautions.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include journalist Dan Rather, who was born in 1931; singer-songwriter Tom Paxton, who was born in 1937; “Alias” star Ron Rifkin, who was born in 1939; “Caddyshack” star Brian Doyle-Murray, who was born in 1945; “Interview with the Vampire” star Stephen Rea, who was born in 1946; “Days of Our Lives” star Deidre Hall, who was born in 1947; journalist Jane Pauley, who was born in 1950; football coach Nick Saban, who was born in 1951; “Trapper John, M.D.” star Brian Stokes Mitchell, who was born in 1957; producer and director Peter Jackson, who was born in 1961; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Larry Mullen Jr. (U2), who was born in 1961; Baseball Hall of Famer Fred McGriff, who was born in 1963; former “Saturday Night Live” star Rob Schneider, who was born in 1963; “Coyote Ugly” star Piper Perabo, who was born in 1976; “American Pie” star Eddie Kaye Thomas, who was born in 1980; and singer and actress Willow Smith, who was born in 2000.