December 21: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

December 21, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle History

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ON THIS DAY IN 1892, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle said, “The newspapers daily contain rumors and reports of cabinet appointments made or contemplated by the President elect. That Mr. Cleveland has been since the day of his election profoundly considering the importance of the subject, that he has been carefully weighing and sorting all possible cabinet materials, old and new, and that he means to have the strongest and best cabinet not only his judgment but his conscience can compose, there can be no doubt whatever, but that he has appointed any member of his cabinet or that he has passed the point of consideration is most doubtful. There are some things which render it pretty certain that Mr. Cleveland’s cabinet in all its parts will not cause any of those public spirited and patriotic citizens who by their votes assisted to make him President to repent having placed confidence in his fidelity to the highest principles of good government and the interests of the country. Mr. Cleveland’s character and reputation are assuring things; the fact that he has no further political ambition to foster or entertain imparts the broadest freedom to his right or privilege of selection is another of them; and the similar fact that no man was ever nominated or elected President of the United States freer from pledges, promises, or obligations of any sort to any faction, body of men, or to any man than was Mr. Cleveland, is still another of those guarantees of fit selection of cabinet officers.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1919, the Eagle reported, “At the ninth annual public speaking contest of the Bushwick H.S., on Friday night, Mathilda Sper, whose selection was ‘The Power of Music,’ won in the original orations. Abraham Kramer was first in the dramatic recitations with his ‘Mr. Winkle Goes Skating.’ In the extemporaneous debate on ‘Resolved, That the system of daylight saving as practiced in the United States during the war be made a permanent institution,’ Sidney Maloff was first and Anna Hofer second.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1937, the Eagle reported, “Don’t miss the forthcoming RKO full length cartoon picture, ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,’ by Walt Disney. It is about a lovely little princess who was forced to dress in rags and do hard work around the castle because her wicked stepmother, the queen, who was vain and foolish, wanted to keep her in the background. Of course, a young prince is in search of Snow White, but I don’t want to spoil the plot. Just see it!”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1944, the Eagle reported, “PARIS (U.P.) — Reinforced American troops rallied to stem a potentially disastrous German breakthrough on the northern flank of the Belgian salient today, but the Nazis’ main armored forces to the south were reported rolling forward through the Ardennes at a pace that may already have carried halfway across Luxembourg. A swelling tide of American troops, tanks and guns moved steadily forward to the threatened front and it was indicated that the threat of catastrophe overhanging the United States 1st Army for five days had at least momentarily been averted. An official headquarters statement, suggesting strongly that no major breakthrough had yet been achieved by the Nazis, said any favorable or unfavorable news of ‘sensational’ impact would be released immediately. There was no ‘sensational’ announcement this morning and headquarters clung to its policy of revealing less spectacular developments 48 hours old. It was acknowledged at headquarters, however, that American arms had suffered their worst defeat since the fall of the Philippines in 1942 and that the battle, already one of the bloodiest in the United States’ military history, had still not reached its peak.”

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ON THIS DAY IN 1948, the Eagle reported, “Postmaster Edward J. Quigley issued an appeal today to all Brooklynites to mail late Christmas parcels and cards at once or risk disappointing relatives and friends. He urged use of air parcel post and special delivery to speed up late mailing. The Postmaster pointed out that regardless of weather conditions at LaGuardia Airport and other fields in the metropolitan area, the post office would get air mail to a transmission point. ‘We found traffic conditions much better this year,’ he stated, ‘due to the efficiency of the Sanitation Department in clearing the streets of snow.’ Sixty-six post office trucks were jammed in the snow during last year’s blizzard which broke Dec. 26, but none were stuck in this year’s heavy snowfall.”

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Samuel L. Jackson
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

NOTABLE PEOPLE BORN ON THIS DAY include Oscar-winning actress Jane Fonda, who was born in 1937; “Pulp Fiction” star Samuel L. Jackson, who was born in 1948; former N.Y. Mets outfielder Dave Kingman, who was born in 1948; film producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was born in 1950; International Tennis Hall of Famer Chris Evert, who was born in 1954; “Malcolm in the Middle” star Jane Kaczmarek, who was born in 1955; actor and comedian Ray Romano, who was born in 1957; former N.Y. Rangers right winger Joe Kocur, who was born in 1964; “NewsRadio” star Andy Dick, who was born in 1965; “24” star Kiefer Sutherland, who was born in 1966; “Before Sunrise” star Julie Delpy, who was born in 1969; and “The Walking Dead” star Steven Yeun, who was born in 1983; and “Last Man Standing” star Kaitlyn Dever, who was born in 1996.

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DWARF STARS: “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” premiered on this day in 1937. America’s first full-length, animated feature film was a labor of love for Walt Disney and involved more than 750 artists and 1,500 custom-made colors in four years of development. It features the classic songs “Some Day My Prince Will Come” and “Whistle While You Work.” Disney received a special Oscar for the film, along with seven miniature Oscars.

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CHRISTMAS STARS: The first lunar voyage was launched on this day in 1968. Apollo 8 orbited the moon on Dec. 24 and returned to Earth Dec. 27. Astronauts Frank Borman, James A. Lovell, Jr. and William A. Anders were the first men to see the side of the moon that faces away from Earth.

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

Quotable:

“Whenever I walk off the golf course, I thank God that I’m able to tell a joke. I thank God I’m good at something.”

— comedian Ray Romano, who was born on this day in 1957