Born: May 13, 1914 Died: April 12, 1981 Joe Louis, a young Chicago Negro, is suddenly elevated to the rating of Black menace No. 1 in the heavyweight division. The position has long been vacant and there were no candidates in view. The arrival of Joe Louis therefore fills quite a cavity. We must have … Continue reading Joe Louis: “Every so often, without warning, a Negro fighter pops up from nowhere and starts bowling over the white boys”
Lou Gehrig: “Was walloped by a boy who hasn’t yet started to shave”
Born: June 19, 1903 Died: June 2, 1941 Never has there been a high school baseball game that has created as much interest as this combat between public school champions of the two metropolitan cities. To the boys of both teams and to the students of Lane it is as great as a world’s series … Continue reading Lou Gehrig: “Was walloped by a boy who hasn’t yet started to shave”
George Carlin: “These Clean-Cut Youngsters Are Refreshing In Their Attitude”
Born: May 12, 1937 Died: June 22, 2008 KXOL’s George Carlin and Jack Burns have left the station to break in their new comedy act on the West Coast. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas, February 28, 1960 Yep, Carlin began his comedy career as part of a duo with the man who would eventually replace Don Knotts … Continue reading George Carlin: “These Clean-Cut Youngsters Are Refreshing In Their Attitude”
King Kong: “I Found Myself Sympathizing With The Poor Beast”
Born: March 2, 1933 In “King Kong” the striking sight will be to view the huge historic ape on top of the Empire State Building, in combat with dirigibles and airplanes. This is one of the great thrills promised in this imaginative feature … which has been so many months in the making. The Los Angeles … Continue reading King Kong: “I Found Myself Sympathizing With The Poor Beast”
Bette Davis: “She Does Not Look Muscular, But is a Dynamo of Vitality”
Born: April 5, 1908 Died: October 6, 1989 Davis grew up in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of Ruth and Harlow Davis, a patent attorney. Harlow left the family just before little Bette’s 10th birthday. From an early age, Bette was determined to become an actress. It didn’t take long for Davis to make her professional debut … Continue reading Bette Davis: “She Does Not Look Muscular, But is a Dynamo of Vitality”
Denzel Washington: “A Biology Major And Hopes To Become A Doctor”
Born: December 28, 1954 This just might be the first photo of Washington in a newspaper It was as [the] star of television’s St Elsewhere that Denzel Washington began to make a name for himself. Evening Herald, Plymouth, Devon, England, February 2, 1989 St. Elsewhere premiered on October 26, 1982 and was a huge hit in … Continue reading Denzel Washington: “A Biology Major And Hopes To Become A Doctor”
Pablo Picasso: “His canvases fairly reek with the insolence of youth”
Born: October 25, 1881 Died: April 8, 1973 Before he was the world’s most famous artist, Pablo Picasso was just another struggling young artist trying to make a name for himself. The first American showing of his work, which included drawings and watercolors, opened on April 25, 1911, at Photo-Secession, a Manhattan gallery run by … Continue reading Pablo Picasso: “His canvases fairly reek with the insolence of youth”
Eiffel Tower: “What Is This Hideous Thing What the French Have Devised”
Born: March 31, 1889 (the day construction was completed) So far as we can judge, the Eiffel tower seems a mistake, and entirely out of place in a city which claims to be the centre of civilization and the arbiter of taste. Liverpool Mercury, Liverpool , England, February 16, 1887 The now-iconic Eiffel Tower was not … Continue reading Eiffel Tower: “What Is This Hideous Thing What the French Have Devised”
Lenny Bruce: “We Wish He Would Sing More”
Born: October 13, 1925 Died: August 3, 1966 Bruce in 1949 Lenny Bruce (born Leonard Schneider) was only famous for the last few years of his short life. And he received more publicity and press clippings from his arrests, accidents, fights and divorce from exotic dancer Honey Harlow (sometimes billed as Honey Michelle) than his … Continue reading Lenny Bruce: “We Wish He Would Sing More”
Statue of Liberty: “A Colossal Pile On a Spot to Be Seen Only By Weary Mariners and Sea-Sick Travelers”
Born: October 28, 1886 Stories about the Statue of Liberty first began to appear in American newspapers in the fall of 1875, but it would take more than a decade for this gift from the France to be completed and unveiled. As the first few stories appeared, opposition to the creation of Frederic Bartholdi quickly … Continue reading Statue of Liberty: “A Colossal Pile On a Spot to Be Seen Only By Weary Mariners and Sea-Sick Travelers”
From Unknown To Famous 