MILESTONES: October 5, birthdays for Neil deGrasse Tyson, Grant Hill, Dillon Francis

October 5, 2018 Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Neil deGrasse Tyson. Photo by Phil McCarten/Invision for the Television Academy/AP Images

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NOTABLE PEOPLE born on this day include actress KAREN ALLEN, who was born in 1951; racecar driver MICHAEL ANDRETTI, who was born in 1962; author CLIVE BARKER, who was born in 1952; actress JOSIE BISSETT, who was born in 1970; Hall of Fame golfer LAURA DAVIES, who was born in 1963; actor JESSE EISENBERG, who was born in Queens in 1983; singer and social activist BOB GELDOF, who was born in 1951; former basketball player GRANT HILL, who was born in 1972; actress GLYNIS JOHNS, who was born in 1923; Hall of Fame hockey player and executive MARIO LEMIEUX, who was born in 1965; actress PARMINDER NAGRA, who was born in 1975; hockey manager and former player PATRICK ROY, who was born in 1965; astrophysicist NEIL deGRASSE TYSON, who was born in 1958; and Oscar Award-winning actress KATE WINSLET, who was born in 1975.

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SHAWNEE INDIAN CHIEF TECUMSEH DIED ON THIS DAY IN 1813. Tecumseh came to prominence between 1799 and 1804 as a powerful orator, defending his people against whites. He denounced as invalid all treaties by which tribes ceded their lands and condemned the chieftains who had entered into such agreements. Although he advocated peaceful methods and negotiation, he did not rule out war as a last resort as he visited tribes throughout the country to speak about stopping white encroachment. He was killed at the Battle of the Thames.

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“MONTY PYTHON’S FLYING CIRCUS” PREMIERED ON THIS DAY IN 1969. The wacky comedy series debuted on BBC-1 in Great Britain and aired until 1974. The cast was made up of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and American Terry Gilliam. John Philip Sousa’s “Liberty Bell March” got the show started, and viewers were treated to surreal animation and such skits as “The Spanish Inquisition” and “The Ministry of Silly Walks.” On Oct. 6, 1974, “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” began airing in the U.S. The cast members also made four films together.

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FLANN O’BRIEN WAS BORN ON THIS DYA IN 1911. Real name Brian O’Nolan, he was born at Strabane, Ireland. O’Nolan, a career civil servant, was incognito a novelist, dramatist and journalist. Best known for At Swim-Two-Birds (1939) and The Third Policeman (1967). Under the name Myles na gCopaleen, he authored a popular satirical and humorous column for the Irish Times. O’Nolan died in 1966 in Ireland.

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THE FIRST JAMES BOND MOVIE WAS RELEASED ON THIS DAY IN 1962. Scottish actor Sean Connery played Ian Fleming’s super-secret agent James Bond, 007, in the first film of a blockbuster franchise.

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

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“The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.” — Neil deGrasse Tyson, who was born on this day in 1958