December 7: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

December 7, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1904, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The third French lecture in the course given by Professor Andre Tridon before the Brooklyn Institute and the Alliance Francaise took place last night at Adelphi College. The subject was ‘L’art dans la rue a Paris.’ M. Tridon’s ill luck pursued him to the last — first, on Election Day, the audience was small; the second evening he had only three slides to illustrate Notre Dame de Paris and yesterday the lantern was out of order. The pictures gave, as the lecturer wittily said, a very good idea of Paris on a foggy day. It was a pity, as the slides were excellent in themselves and well selected. Professor Tridon gave a short history of the City of Paris, laying great stress on the fact that through the ages up to the present time it had always been the aim of the city government to make it beautiful … In conclusion, M. Tridon said that Paris has often been reproached for being more artistic than practical, but that it was perhaps what would make her immortal, because when the utility of buildings had passed away people would still come to admire their beauty and that in itself had commercial value.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1942, the Eagle reported, “(U.P.) — Pearl Harbor and other Hawaiian defenses are now stronger than they were before the Japanese attack a year ago and our forces there are eager for the Japs to try again, naval and army commanders of our Pacific bastion said in anniversary interviews. In the following interviews, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, and Lt. Gen. Delos C. Emmons, commander in chief of the army’s Hawaiian Department, review the past year of war in the Pacific and report on our present position there. Their conclusions, summarized: 1. Both afloat and ashore, our Hawaiian defenses are far stronger now than a year ago. Damages have been repaired, lost ships and planes have been replaced and strong reinforcements added; 2. Naval victories have cost the Japanese heavily and have restored the confidence of the people of the United States in our armed forces. Close cooperation between the army and navy has been obtained; 3. The Japanese will come again, but this time the defenders of Hawaii are ready and eager for the battle, confident the enemy will be hurled back with disastrous losses.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1948, the Eagle reported, “Producer Lou Bunin arrived in New York aboard the Queen Mary yesterday with a print of ‘Alice in Wonderland,’ the first feature-length movie ever to combine live action with animated puppets. Mr. Bunin, who made the picture in France for Eagle-Lion release, shot it in the Ansco Color process. Aside from a short prologue and epilogue, Alice, as played by England’s Carol Marsh, is the only live character in the cast. The puppets are based on Sir John Tenniell’s illustrations for the Lewis Carroll fable.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1951, the Eagle reported, “CHICAGO (U.P.) — The nation’s millionth traffic victim since the automobile replaced the horse-and-buggy will die a few days before Christmas, the National Safety Council predicted today. The council announced that the traffic death total since the first victim was killed in 1899 has reached 998,100. The 1,900 other Americans are expected to die in traffic mishaps between now and Dec. 23.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1956, the Brooklyn Spectator reported, “The mystery of the Christmas heavens, ‘The Star of Bethlehem,’ is the Dec. presentation of the American Museum-Hayden Planetarium, 81st St. and Central Park West. The planetarium will reproduce the sky as it was over Judea on the night of the first Christmas. The show will also trace the development of traditions and customs associated with the observance of Christmas. It will continue through Jan. 2.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1962, the Eagle reported, “St. John’s University’s Redmen basketball squad starts its first swing through the West tonight, meeting powerful Creighton at Omaha, Nebraska. Tomorrow night they face the tough Oklahoma Sooners at Norman, Oklahoma. The Redmen are fresh from their opening win over the University of Bridgeport, 75-48. St. John’s had four men in double figures and were paced by their captain Don Burks, who was the game’s high scorer with 20 points. The Redmen will have their work cut out for them, though, trying to contain Creighton’s All-American candidate Paul Silas. Despite their early season loss to Michigan, Head Coach Joe Lapchick of St. John’s rates Creighton as one of the top teams in the country. Assistant Coach Lou Carnesecca rates Creighton ‘just a notch below Cincinnati.’ It goes without saying that Creighton will be out to avenge the 72-52 loss suffered at the hands of the New York boys last season.”

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NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Oscar-winner Ellen Burstyn, who was born in 1932; “Compromising Positions” author Susan Isaacs, who was born in Brooklyn in 1943; Baseball Hall of Famer Johnny Bench, who was born in 1947; U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, who was born in 1952; Basketball Hall of Famer Larry Bird, who was born in 1956; “Basquiat” star Jeffrey Wright, who was born in 1965; “Red Dawn” star C. Thomas Howell, who was born in 1966; former N.Y. Yankees first baseman Tino Martinez, who was born in 1967; Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Owens, who was born in 1973; former N.Y Jets guard Alan Faneca, who was born in 1976; former N.Y. Yankees third baseman Eric Chavez, who was born in 1977; “Roswell” star Shiri Appleby, who was born in 1978; “Love Song” singer Sara Bareilles, who was born in 1979; “Dexter” star Jennifer Carpenter, who was born in 1979; “American Gods” star Emily Browning, who was born in 1988; and N.Y. Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, who was born in 1994.

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LAW OF THE LAND: On this day in 1787, Delaware became the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, which it did by unanimous vote. The Constitution became officially binding when it was ratified by New Hampshire on June 21, 1788.

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STORY OF A LIFE: Harry Chapin was born on this day in 1942. The writer of popular “story songs” such as “Taxi,” “W.O.L.D.” and “Cats in the Cradle” spent his teen years in Brooklyn Heights. Before finding fame as a singer-songwriter, he wrote and directed the Oscar-nominated boxing documentary “Legendary Champions.” His musical success in the 1970s gave him a platform to address humanitarian issues, particularly world hunger. He died in a car crash on the Long Island Expressway on July 16, 1981 and was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

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

Quotable:

“Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”

— President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his address to Congress, Dec. 8, 1941