On this day in Old New York - Old NY Tours

An Editor is Born

8/31/2015

On this day, August 31st, 1907, William Shaw is born in Chicago, Illinois.
After traveling to Las Vegas and New Mexico as a journalist, Shaw and his wife moved to
New York City in 1932.

Soon after their arrival, Shaw's wife Lucille began a job as a fact checker at the popular magazine, The New Yorker. Shaw became an assitant editor at The New Yorker and oversaw the magazine's coverage of World War II. It was Shaw who persuaded then editor and founder of The New Yorker, Harold Ross, to print John Hersey's Hiroshima. After Ross' death in 1951, Shaw became editor of New York Magazine. He was editor for 53 years.

Leona Helmsley Convicted

8/30/2015

Leona Mindy Helmsley mug shot April 21, 1988

On this day, August 30th, 1989, Leona Helmsley is convicted of tax evasion of more than $1 Million in federal income taxes. Also Known as, "The Queen of Mean", Helmsley serves 18 months in prison.

The hotel magnate was quoted by her housekeeper as saying, "We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes.". In an ironic twist Helsmley was to report to prison on April 15th, 1992, which is of course, tax day.

After her prison sentence, Helmsley led a secluded life. She died in 2007 at the age of age of 87.
She left her Maltese dog, Trouble, a $12 million trust fund. This sum was subsequently reduced to $2 million.

Henry Bergh Born

8/29/2015

Henry Bergh, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing left, between 1870 and 1888. Courtesy Miscellaneous Items in High Demand, Library of Congress, LC-USZ62-120912

On this day, August 29th, 1813, Henry Bergh was born. Bergh founded the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) on April 10, 1866. In 1875, he went on to be co-founder of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC).

Bergh died on March 12, 1888 and was interred in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.

The "Career Girl Murders"

8/28/2015

On this day, August 28, in 1963, Emily Hoffert and Janice Wylie were killed in the Upper East Side apartment that they shared.

The murders were a media spectacle, but the case is best remembered for the fact that the initial person accused was George Whitmore, Jr., a 19 year old with an IQ of less than 100. He had no criminal record, but after 2 days of questioning, he confessed. In the mean time, investigators colected further evidence that exonerated Mr. Whitmore. He also repudiated his confessions three days after he confessed alleging that he had been beaten, and had been denied counsel.

Investigators eventually determined that Mr. Whitmore had actually been in Wildwood, New Jersey at the time of the murder.

In spite of weak evidence, and evidence that directly refuted his guilt, he was eventually convicted in a related case.

Whitmore's wrongful conviction was cited by the US Supreme Court in Miranda v. Arizona, 384 US 436 (1966), as an example of maltreatment by police, and failure of an accused to be advised of his constitutional rights. It also was used by the NY Legislature to restrict and eventually eliminate the death penalty in NY State.

Metropolitan Opera House burns

8/27/2015

Metropolitan Opera House, New York, c1905 Courtesy Detroit Publishing Company, Library of Congress, LC-D401-18319

On this day, August 27, in 1892, the Metropolitan Opera House, located at 1411 Broadway (between West 39th and 40th Streets, was gutted by fire. The Opera house sometimes known as "the old Met" was built nine years earlier.

The fire resulted in the 1892-93 season being cancelled, and the opera house was rebuilt to the same specifications. The opera house continued to operate until April 16, 1966.

Will Shortz born

8/26/2015

Will Shortz after the Pleasantville Crossword Tournament benefit event, October 27, 2006, by "Puzzle Peep" Courtesy Puzzle Peep and Wikimedia.org

On this day, August 26th, in 1952, Will Shortz was born on a farm that raised Arabian Horses in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

He obtained a degree in enigmatology, or the study of puzzles, by way of Indiana University's "Individualized Major Program." He then went on to obtain his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1977. He also holds an honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree from Wabash College in Indiana, that he received in 2010.

Shortz's career began at Penny Press Magazines, a notable crossword puzzle publisher before a 15 year stint at Games Magazine.

Since 1993, Shortz has been the crossword puzzle editor for The New York Times. He is also a regular guest on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday, where he hosts the Sunday Puzzle.

The Great Moon Hoax

8/25/2015

Rough image of en:1835 :lithograph of "ruby amphitheater" described in the New York Sun newspaper issue of en:28 August en:1835: Series four of six

On this day, August 25th 1835, The New York Sun began publishing a series of articles about the discovery of life and civilization on the moon. The findings were falsely attributed to Sir John Herschel a well known astronomer.

The articles described fantastic animals on the Moon, including bison, goats, unicorns, bipedal tail-less beavers and bat-like winged humanoids ("Vespertilio-homo") who built temples. There were trees and oceans and beaches. These discoveries were supposedly made with "an immense telescope of an entirely new principle".
The author of the narrative was supposedly Dr. Andrew Grant, who described himself as the travelling companion of Sir John Herschel, but Dr Grant was fictitious.

The New York Sun published six articles and terminated them due the imaginary telescope being destroyed.

NYSE Invaded by Yippies

8/24/2015

New York Stock Exchange trading floor on Wall Street, New York, NY, by Highsmith, Carol M., between 1980 and 2006. Courtesy Highsmith (Carol M.) Archive, Library of Congress, LC-DIG-highsm-16025

On this day, August 24, in 1967, Abbie Hoffman, and James Fourrat, led roughly 12 self named "Yippies" or Youth International Party, into the New York STock Exchange.

They took advantage of the trading floor gallery being open to visitors since 1939. They scheduled a tour prior to their arrival.

In spite of initial reservations by security personnel, they signed in as "George MEtesky" and friends, after Fourrat identified himself as George Metesky (a/k/a the Mad Bomber who set a series of bombings throught New York City in the 1940s and 1950s) and the group as ESSO, the East Side Servicce Organization (A play on Rockefeller's Standor Oil), the guards led the group to the railing overlooking the trading floor.

Upon arriving at the overlook, the group immediately began throwing fistfulls of dollar bills onto the trading floor. The exact amount thrown was estimated between 30 and 300.

The group was immediately escorted out of the building, at which point, the group formed a circle, while Hoffman lit the edge of a $5 bill as he stood in the middle.

While the prank did not have substantial impact, on the exchange, trading was not even suspended.

The only real result: NYSE installed bulletproof glass panels around the visitors' gallery, with a metal grill ceiling, for "reasons of security" three months later.

Abraham Yates Jr. Born Today

8/23/2015

Abraham Yates, Jr. Taken from http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgkeysearchdetail.cfm

On this day, August 23rd, 1724 Abraham Yates Jr. was born in Albany, New York, the son of Christoffel Yates and Catelyntje Winne.

He was the chairman of the Albany Committee of Correspondence from 1774 to 1776. Yates was also a member of the New York Provincial Congress from 1775 to 1777 and was its chairman in 1776 and 1777.

He was a delegate for New York to the Congress of the Confederation in 1787 and 1788 as well as a New York State Senator from 1777 to 1790, and a member of the Council of Appointment in 1777-78 and 1784.

Yates was a presidential elector in 1792, and cast his votes for George Washington and George Clinton.

Barsimson arrives

8/22/2015

On this day, August 22nd, in 1654, Jacob Barsimson arrives in New Amsterdam.

He is the first known Jewish immigrant to America.
Barsimson had been sent out by the Jewish leaders of Amsterdam, Holland, to determine the possibilities of an extensive Jewish immigration to New Amsterdam.
Barsimson was succeeded by a party of twenty-three Jews, who arrived at New Amsterdam in October, from Recife, Brazil, and established the first Jewish Settlement in the United States.