On this day in 1922, Lou Duva was born in New York City. After he completed his unstellar boxing career with a record of 5-7-1, Duva went on to become one of the most well-known trainers in boxing history. Throughout his career spanning five decades, he has trained or managed numerous champions and contenders, including Evander Holyfield, Pernell Whitaker, Joey Giardello, Michael Moorer, Andrew Golota, Zab Judah, Meldrick Taylor and Mark Breland.
On this day in 1995, Christopher Reeve was paralyzed following a horse riding accident in Culpepper, Virginia. The actor, who is best remembered for playing Superman, fractured the uppermost vertebrae in his spine when his thoroughbread, Eastern Express, balked at a rail jump and pitched him forward. When Reeve became concious, he said to his wife, “maybe we should just let me go,” and his wife, Dana, said, “But you’re still you and I love you.”
I had actually RSVP’d to see Reeve speak at an event on Capitol Hill in the fall of 2004, but that never happened because he died on October 10, 2004 (his wife Dana died of cancer in March of 2006).
On this day in 1907, John Wayne, aka Marion Morrison, was born in Winterset, Iowa. Enough said.
Courtesy: Gothamist.com
On this day in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge opened after 13 years of construction. The bridge which connects Manhattan to Brooklyn over the East River, allowed for the expansion of New York City (then mainly centered in Manhattan) and was the first to use steel instead of iron cables. The timeline of the actual construction can be found here.
As with all construction projects during that time, it is important to remember that at least 20 people were killed during the construction of the bridge. Gary Feuerstein has compiled a list of the names of those who died and it can be found here.
Courtesy: USA Today
On this day in 1958, Mitch Albomwas born in Passaic, New Jersey. The author, sportswriter, radio talk show host and frequent on ESPN’s “The Sports Reporters”, is best known for this bestsellers, “Tuesdays With Morrie,” “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” and “For One More Day.” However, in his day-job with the Detroit Free Press, Albom also covered University of Michigan sports and wrote “Fab Five”, the definitive account of the basketball program’s famed recruiting class of Chris Weber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson.
On this day in 2002, Chandra Levy’s body was found in Washington, D.C.’s Rock Creek Park. An intern with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Levy went missing in May of 2001 after going for a jog. The investigation of her disappearance garnered national media attention and revealed that she had an affair with then-Congressman Gary Condit [R-CA]. In March of 2009, police charged Ingmar Guandique, a Salvodaran immigrant, with her murder. His trial will take place in the District of Columbia.
I lived in D.C. when Levy was found and while I remember it being the focus of conversation that evening, the memory that sticks in my head the most is some crazy woman driving down Pennsylvania Avenue, screaming from her car, “They found Chandra! They found Chandra.”
In 2009 before Guandique was arrested, The Washington Post published an excellent series on Levy’s disappareance and investigation.
On this day in 1999, the final report of the United States House of Representatives Select Committee on U.S. National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People’s Republic of China was declassified. Dubbed the Cox report, after its the committee’s chairman, U.S. Representative and future SEC Chairman Chris Cox [R-CA], the report found and stated:
The full report itself can be accessed here.
On this day in 1932, Amelia Earhart landed on the coast of Ireland after a 15 hour and 18 minute trip from Newfoundland, Canada. Her flight was the second solo flight across the the Atlantic, after Charles Lindbergh and the longest solo flight by a woman (2,026 miles).
More on Amelia Earhart can be found here.
Courtesy: ThamesWeb.co.uk
On this day in 1910, the funeral of Britain’s King Edward VII was held at Windsor. The funeral (video below) is the last time the leading figures of European royalty gathered together and is described in vivid detail in Barbara Tuchman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning, “The Guns of August.”
Courtesy: New York Times
On this day in 1989, “Road House” was released in theaters. If you haven’t seen “Road House”, then you haven’t pissed away enough days in front of the television, because it is a cable mainstay. The flick tells the story of Dalton (the late Patrick Swayze), the best bouncer in the business (with a philosophy degree from NYU!) who is hired to clean up a bar called the Double Deuce. Little does he know that taking out the trash at the Deuce means dealing with the town’s gangster/bully Brad Wesley (Ben Gazarra) and his band of redneck thugs. But Dalton is not one to back down from a fight, especially with the town doctor (Kelly Lynch) and Wade Garrett (Sam Elliott), the second-best bouncer in the business, on his side.
“Road House” did not give “Driving Miss Daisy”, the Best Picture winner that year, a run for its money with the critics. In fact, it is listed by Razzie award founder John Wilson as one of the 100 most enjoyably bad movies ever made. Can’t argue there, but being called enjoyably bad is a compliment. Holding someone’s attention for two hours is difficult enough. And let’s not forget that Road House offered many important life lessons. Here’s ten of them (Warning: If you haven’t seen “Road House”, you might not get all of these so don’t get offended):
10. People who really want to have a good time won’t come to a slaughterhouse.
9. If someone calls your mama a whore, you first need to ask yourself, “is she?”
8. If you go into a bar and there is sign hangin’ over the urinal that says, “Don’t eat the big white mint”, turn around and walk out.
7. The word “cocksucker” is two nouns combined to elicit a prescribed response.
6, A man puts a gun in your face, you got two choices- stand there and die or kill the motherfucker!
5. If you’re going into bouncing, don’t expect to get by on brawn alone. Some of the bouncers these days have philosophy degrees from New York University.
4. Nobody wins a fight.
3. Take the biggest guy in the world, shatter his knee and he’ll drop like a stone.
2. All you have to do is follow three simple rules. One, never underestimate your opponent. Expect the unexpected. Two, take it outside. Never start anything inside the bar unless it’s absolutely necessary. And three, be nice.
1. Pain don’t hurt.