August 8, ‘Flatbush People Lose Express Train Fight’

Brooklyn Today

August 8, 2014 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Tennis great Roger Federer celebrates his birthday today

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Good morning, Brooklyn. Today is the 220nd day of the year.

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ON THIS DAY in 1908, the Brooklyn Public Library published an article titled “Flatbush People Lose Express Train Fight.” The article focused on the public service commissioner at the time denying funding to remove an express train. “The Public Service Commission [today] dismissed the complaint brought by residents of Flatbush to compel the Brooklyn Union Elevated Company to stop its express trains on the Brighton Beach line at the Newkirk Avenue and Kings Highway stations,” the article reported.

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include “Nashville” actor Keith Carradine, who was born in 1950; musician The Edge, born as David Evans in 1961; tennis player Roger Federer, who was born in 1981; Oscar Award-winning actor for “Rain Man” and “Kramer vs Kramer” Dustin Hoffman, who was born in 1937; singer Drew Lachey, who was born in 1976; “Inside Edition” television host Deborah Norville, who was born in 1958; the first female president of the American Bar Association, Roberta Cooper Ramo, who was born in 1942; Brooklyn-born “Hawaiian Eye” actress Connie Stevens, who was born in 1938; singer and songwriter Mel Tillis, who was born in 1932; and “Ugly Betty” actor Michael Urie, who was born in 1980.

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HAPPY BONZA BOTTLER DAY! Bonza Bottler Day is when the number of the day is the same as the number of the month.

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RANDY SHILTS was born on this day in 1951. Shilts was a journalist best known for his reporting during the AIDS epidemic. He was one of the first openly gay journalists to work for a mainstream newspaper. He also wrote “And the Band Played On: Politics, People and the AIDS Epidemic.” He died in 1994.

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SNEAK SOME ZUCCHINI Onto Your Neighbors’ Porch Night is tonight. Annually celebrated on Aug. 8, the holiday was created due to overzealous planting of zucchini.

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THE NATIONAL SCRABBLE Championship begins today in Buffalo, N.Y. The game was invented by the then-unemployed architect Alfred Butts in 1931.

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FOLLOW THE GRAIN Artisanal Production tour will take place Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The tour includes a stop at the Kings County Distillery and the Brooklyn Grange rooftop farm.

A HISTORY DAY will take place Saturday from 1 to 6 p.m. in Coney Island. This is the fourth annual History Day, and main events will take place at Deno’s Wonder Wheel Park and Coney Island History Project. The event is free.

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