April 24: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

April 24, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1928, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “CURTISS FIELD, N.Y. (AP) — Col. Charles A. Lindbergh, the lone eagle of the Atlantic, took to the air today to fly as he never flew before in a race to save the life of a fellow airman, Floyd Bennett. Lindbergh hopped at 3:08, carrying anti-pneumonia serum needed by doctors attending the North Pole flier in Quebec, where he was taken after being stricken with pneumonia while commanding a relief expedition to the marooned transatlantic fliers on Greenly Island. Doctors said that the serum is the only thing that they feel certain can save Bennett’s life. Bennett, who flew to the North Pole with Commander Richard E. Byrd in 1926 and had been appointed second in command for the South Pole flight this fall, contracted his illness while going with Bernt Balchen to the relief of the Bremen’s fliers on Greenly Island.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1931, the Eagle reported, “It will be the George Washington Bridge after all. The Port of New York Authority yesterday settled the controversy that has waged several months over a name for the new span across the Hudson River. It voted 10 to 1 in favor of the Washington idea. Howard S. Cullman dissented. He favored ‘the Hudson River Bridge.’”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1940, the Eagle reported, “HELSINKI, FINLAND (U.P.) — With the simple statement that the ‘Olympic games would not take place this year,’ the Finnish Olympic Committee has officially canceled the 1940 Olympiad, it was announced today.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1946, the Eagle reported, “SAN FRANCISCO (U.P.) — Development of a vaccination against tuberculosis in the near future was forecast today by Dr. H. Corwin Hinshaw, of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Dr. Hinshaw told the California Tuberculosis and Health Association convention that while such vaccination had not been developed fully yet, ‘evidence is accumulating to suggest that some degree of immunity to tuberculosis may be produced by artificial methods.’ He said the new drug streptomycin may prove to have limited success in the treatment of certain types of tuberculosis.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1951, the Eagle reported, “CHICAGO (U.P.) — Charles G. Dawes, the ‘Hell ’n Maria’ Vice President under Calvin Coolidge, died late last night at his suburban Evanston home of a heart attack. He was 85. Dawes’ death came as he was preparing to make one of his rare public appearances in recent years as honorary chairman of the civic committee to welcome Gen. Douglas MacArthur to Chicago on Thursday. His wife, Caro, was with him when he died after a coronary thrombosis attack. His death ended a fiery career — punctuated by his verbal trademark of ‘Hell ’n Maria’ — as lawmaker, banker, diplomat, soldier, politician, author and musician. Another Dawes trademark was his famous underslung pipe. Dawes served under Coolidge from 1925 to 1929 and refused to run for a second term. He was appointed Ambassador to the Court of St. James, in London, where he shocked court circles when he spurned traditional ‘pink tea diplomacy.’ He was author of the ‘Dawes Plan’ for the payment of Germany’s World War I reparations. His efforts won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1925. Since 1932, Dawes had served as chairman of the board of the City National Bank. He went to the office regularly despite his age. His outspoke approach to life — his language was once found too forceful for inclusion in the Congressional Record — was in marked contrast to his beautiful musical composition, ‘Melody in A Major.’ Dawes was born in Marietta, Ohio, August 27, 1865. His father was Rufus Dawes, who fought in the ‘Iron Brigade’ of the Civil War. Another of his forebears was William Dawes, who accompanied Paul Revere on his midnight ride.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1963, the Eagle reported, “LONDON (UPI) — Princess Alexandra of Kent, cousin of Queen Elizabeth, will be married in Westminster Abbey today to Hon. Angus Oglivy, son of the Earl of Airlie, in a ‘family occasion’ that her popularity has turned into the wedding of the decade. One king, four queens and three crown princes will head a record number of 120 members of royalty who will be among the throng of 2,000 crowding the historic abbey for the ceremony … Final rehearsals were held in Westminster Abbey yesterday. Crews for the 60 television cameras which will cover the wedding, the largest number ever used for a broadcast here, rehearsed their positions. Neither the 26-year-old cousin of Queen Elizabeth nor her 34-year-old businessman fiancé attended the rehearsal. They had gone through one at the Abbey Monday.”

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Barbra Streisand
John Salangsang/Invision/AP

Kelly Clarkson
Rebecca Cabage/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Oscar-winning actress Shirley MacLaine, who was born in 1934; Oscar-winning actress Barbra Streisand, who was born in Brooklyn in 1942; music producer Tony Visconti, who was born in Brooklyn in 1944; Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Doug Clifford (Creedence Clearwater Revival), who was born in 1945; The Hooters founder Rob Hyman, who was born in 1950; “Law and Order” star Eric Bogosian, who was born in 1953; Night Ranger singer Jack Blades, who was born in 1954; comedian and actor Cedric the Entertainer, who was born in 1964; “Amistad” star Djimon Hounsou, who was born in 1964; Baseball Hall of Famer Chipper Jones, who was born in 1972; “Lost” producer Damon Lindelof, who was born in 1973; “Supernatural” creator Eric Kripke, who was born in 1974; and “American Idol” winner Kelly Clarkson, who was born in 1982.