December 24: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

December 24, 2023 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1913, the South Brooklyn Home Talk reported, “A series of Christmas tableaux, entitled ‘The Gospel Story of the Nativity’ will be given next Monday and Tuesday evenings in St. Philip’s Church, Eightieth street and Eleventh avenue, Dyker Heights, by the children of the Sunday school, under the direction of the Rev. Henri Sattig, rector. Specially designed costumes have been prepared for the occasion representing the dress of that age. The various characters will be played by the children who will present the tableaux in a large frame made of Christmas greenery, with an illuminated Christmas tree for the background. The tableaux will be interspersed with Christmas carols by the children. At the close of the entertainment a distribution of gifts and candy will be made to the children. Because of the large number of children attending the Sunday school, the two evenings have been arranged in order to give all the opportunity of witnessing the presentation. On Monday evening the members of the infant class and the young children, accompanied by their parents, will attend. On Tuesday evening the older children will be present with their parents and friends.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1923, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “According to the Brookly Edison Profit Sharing Plan, every employee who has been with the company for two years or more shares in the prosperity of the company through a yearly dividend based on salary or wages. This year 2,300 of a total of 6,000 employees received a Christmas present off $227,000.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1941, the Eagle reported, “On the day before Christmas not many creatures are not stirring all through the thousands of houses and streets of Brooklyn. In the bustle combined of the rush for last-minute shopping and the rush for means of transportation by those going out of town for the holidays, the dominant note emerging was that of the thought for others. That the shadow of war anxiety has only emphasized and strengthened this element was evidenced yesterday when it was learned that 30,000 civilian workers at the Brooklyn Navy Yard have offered to work Christmas without pay so that the Government’s shipbuilding program may not be delayed.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1945, the Eagle reported, “BETHLEHEM (U.P.) — The bells of the Holy Land pealed out their first true Christmas message of peace on earth in seven years today, but legions of men in military garb still tramped in the olive groves and market places once trod by Christ. The square in Bethlehem was teeming this Christmas Eve with army vehicles of all kinds. A new electric Star of Bethlehem looked down on the square, replacing the one moved last year to rest camp for American soldiers. The faithful were streaming in from all directions for the Christmas worship on this anniversary of the birth of Christ. The most impressive of the ceremonies will be the midnight masses ushering in the first Christmas Day after the second World War. In the tiny town of Judea, revered by millions, men and women in the uniforms of both the American and British services mingled with the civilians thronging it for the holiday observances. Most of the khaki-clad men were fresh from the battlefields of Europe. They still wore the heavy field boots instead of the soft suede desert shoes customary in this country. But it is to the natives that the Basilica of the Nativity will belong on Christmas Eve. High dignitaries of the Roman Catholic states will arrive early this evening for the midnight mass.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1953, the Eagle reported, “WASHINGTON (U.P.) — President Eisenhower’s Christmas message to the nation and the world today was a public prayer that ‘peace on earth’ on this Christian holiday be made real and everlasting. His deeply-felt prayer for peace was to be broadcast by three radio and television networks (NBC, CBS and ABC) at 5:09 p.m., at the climax of the 30th annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony on the south lawn of the White House. The Voice of America planned to carry his message of good will to every corner of the world with broadcasts in 34 languages. Mr. Eisenhower chose to deliver his four-minute address from the White House broadcast room and then step outside to ‘light’ the 35-foot Norway spruce decked out with 1,700 decorations and 1,000 colored bulbs. The president actually only gives the signal by tapping a small telegraphic key and an electrician closes the large switch at the foot of the tree.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1962, an Eagle editorial said, “To all of you out there in this wonderful borough of ours, we at the Brooklyn Eagle wish a Merry Christmas! We hope the principles of this holy day will invade and, someday, conquer the hearts of people everywhere so that ‘Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men’ will become a reality for all of us all through the year, not just at Christmas time.”

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Stephenie Meyer
Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons

Ryan Seacrest
Glenn Francis/Wikimedia Commons

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include sculptor and printmaker Jonathan Borofsky, who was born in 1942; Focus co-founder Jan Akkerman, who was born in 1946; former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was born in 1946; jazz trumpeter Michael Ray, who was born in 1952; economist Gene Sperling, who was born in 1958; “Empire” co-creator Lee Daniels, who was born in 1959; “Prison Break” star Wade Williams, who was born in 1961; 10,000 Maniacs singer Mary Ramsey, who was born in 1963; “Boston Legal” star Mark Valley, who was born in 1964; “The Drew Carey Show” star Diedrich Bader, who was born in 1966; “Prison Break” star Amaury Nolasco, who was born in 1970; “Livin’ la Vida Loca” singer Ricky Martin, who was born in 1971; “Twilight” author Stephenie Meyer, who was born in 1973; and “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” host Ryan Seacrest, who was born in 1974.