MILESTONES: February 8, birthdays for Big Show, Klay Thompson, Bethany Hamilton

Brooklyn Today

February 8, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Big Show. Photo by Paul A. Hebert/Invision/AP

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Greetings, Brooklyn. Today is the 39th day of the year.

On this day in 1920, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported the War Department in Washington was sending up men and machinery to help clean up the mounds of snow from a three-day storm that dumped more than 17 inches on the East Coast. The United States Chemical Warfare Service was bringing in a fleet of flamethrowers, mechanical devices used in the military — and in agriculture — to clear out large areas of land. The Street Cleaning Committee was also consulting on a Canadian method of sprinkling the snow with special oil that would ignite and melt the heaps. There was no word in the next day’s front page about whether the methods worked well.

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On this day in 1917, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported on the sinking of the SS California, just 9 minutes after a German U-Boat had torpedoed the anchor liner. One American onboard, a crew member, was rescued, but nearly all were still missing as of press time for that edition. London’s Central News reported that evacuation and rescue boat operations were calm and organized. The U.S. indicated that while the destruction of the SS California would not of itself force a declaration of war on Germany, such a clash was inevitable.

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On this day in 1931, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported that American aviator Amelia Earhart and publisher George Palmer Putnam had tied the knot. Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, but on that debut trip someone else was the pilot. Later, Earhart would get to fly solo in 1932, and because of inclement conditions, landed safely in Ireland. George Palmer Putnam, grandson of the original publishing magnate, had fallen in love with Earhart and had proposed to her six times before she agreed to marry him. Some said that Earhart bore a striking physical resemblance to another aviator hero, Charles A. Lindbergh Jr.

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On this day in 1935, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page reported that the legal defense team in the murder trial of Bruno Richard Hauptmann rested its case. Hauptmann was being tried for the kidnapping and murder of the Lindbergh baby. In the moment the defense rested, New Jersey state Attorney General David T. Wilentz pounced in with a series of rebuttal witnesses. (The trial was being held in Flemington, N.J.)

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On this day in 1952, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle front page covered the Proclamation of Queen Elizabeth II. The young monarch, who had rushed back to England from Nairobi upon learning of her father, King George VI’s death, took her oath at St. James Palace. Amid great fanfare, Elizabeth was proclaimed “Queen of the Realm.” She asked for God’s help “to discharge worthily this heavy task that has been laid on me so early in my life.” The new queen and her husband Prince Philip then traveled 60 miles to Sandringham Castle, to join her grieving mother (also named Elizabeth and now called the queen mother) and the body of her late father. The coronation would take place the following year, to respect the national period of mourning.

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include actress BROOKE ADAMS, who was born in 1949; WWE superstar BIG SHOW, who was born in 1972; actor SETH GREEN, who was born in 1974; author JOHN GRISHAM, who was born in 1955; surfer BETHANY HAMILTON, who was born in 1990; comedian and actor ROBERT KLEIN, who was born in 1942; journalist TED KOPPEL, who was born in 1940; Hall of Fame basketball player ALONZO MOURNING, who was born in 1970; actor NICK NOLTE, who was born in 1941; actress DAWN OLIVIERI, who was born in 1981; Oscar Award-winning actress MARY STEENBURGEN, who was born in 1953; NBA All-Star KLAY THOMPSON, who was born in 1990; and pianist, conductor and composer JOHN WILLIAMS, who was born in 1932.

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JAMES DEAN WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1931. The American stage, film and television actor achieved immense popularity during his brief career. Dean is best remembered for his role in “Rebel Without a Cause.” He died in a car accident in California in 1955 at age 24.

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JULES VERNE WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1828. The author of “Around the World in Eighty Days,” “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea” and many other novels, he is sometimes referred to as “the father of science fiction.” Verne died in France in 1905.

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MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS WAS EXECUTED ON THIS DAY IN 1587. Mary Stuart, the queen regent of Scotland, was beheaded after being accused of plotting Queen Elizabeth I’s death.

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THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA WAS FOUNDED ON THIS DAY IN 1910. The organization was founded in Washington, D.C., by William Boyce.

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WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1820. As a Civil War general, he is remembered for his devastating march through Georgia during the war and for his statement “War is hell.” Sherman died in New York in 1891.

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OPERA DEBUTED IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES ON THIS DAY IN 1735. The opera was “Flora,” or “Hob in the Well,” written by Colley Cibber and was produced and performed at the Courtroom in South Carolina.

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ELIZABETH BISHOP WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1911. The award-winning poet and author published numerous volumes of poetry, including the acclaimed “Geography III” (1976), and during her career received the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award and National Book Critics Circle Award. Bishop died in 1979 in Boston.

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

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“Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die today.” — actor James Dean, who was born on this day in 1931