October 7th in NYC History
Posted: Oct 7, 2012 | 12:42 AM
1765: The Stamp Act Congress convened in New York, where Federal Hall is now. They express colonial grievances against England.
Thirty years before, this place was where Freedom of the Press was established in the British Colonies.
In 1789, this spot will be the first capitol of the United States and where the Bill of Rights is presented.
In 1810, this same space will be the birthplace of Santa Claus.
In 2010, this became the first sight for Jared the NYC Tour Guide's Santa Claus' Bi-Centennial Birthday Tour.
1849: Author Edgar Allan Poe died at age 40.
I love to show where Poe lived and worked on a Greenwich Village Tour. Even better, lets take a NYC Poe tour to also include the Upper West Side and the Bronx.
1904: Columbia's Robert LeRoy wins the national intercollegiate singles tennis championship, beating Penn in Philadelphia.
1916: The Father of American Golf, John Reid, dies at 76 in Yonkers. He founded the appropriately named St Andrews Golf Club there in 1888 and co-founded the USGA in 1894.
1931: Happy Birthday Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nobel Peace Prize winner.
When I was a college student I heard him speak inspirationally at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.
1942: Joy Behar from "The View" born.
1952: The Yankees win their 4th World Series in a row, tying their record from 1936-39. 2nd Baseman Billy Martin dashed to the mound to catch Jackie Robinson's popped up ball when the bases were loaded with 2 outs. The Bronx Bombers broke dem Brooklyn Bums' hearts 4-2 at Ebbet's Field.
1954: The Metropolitan Opera hires Marian Anderson, its first black singer.
1955: Yo-Yo Ma, Cellist celebrates his birthday.
1955: New York's Allen Ginsberg reads "Howl" in San Francisco, which changes literature and establishes the Beats as cultural figures.
1971: The classic NYC action and suspense film "The French Connection" opens in theaters. It was based a real conspiracy and crime fighters. I love the outtakes; they are very gritty. The chase scene is one of the first on location shoots through the Mayor's Office for Film, and the scenes were realistic partially because they were practically killing pedestrians while shooting it.
1976: The Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Decorative Arts and Design opens in Andrew Carnegie's old 1904 mansion at 91st Street and what is now Museum Mile, Fifth Ave.
1982 "Cats," the Broadway musical, plays the first of 7,485 performances, beginning its record run.
1985: Palestinian terrorists seize the Italian cruise ship "Achille Lauro" in the Mediterranean, torturing 400 aboard. Leon Klinghoffer, a wheelchair-bound passenger from New York City is among the hostages. He is murdered the next day when they shoot him and dumped him overboard.
1991: Triple dead heat at Belmont Raceway: Cafe Lax, Scoreboard Harry, and Space Appeal made many bettors happy.
1995: New Yorkers join Pope John Paul II celebrating mass through the mist on the Great Lawn in Central Park. The pope also sang a Polish song from his youth. He later prays at St. Patrick's Cathedral.
1996: Fox News Channel, helmed by Roger Ailes, a Republican campaign luminary, begins.
We see Fox News headquarters while touring midtown.