Today is December 6, 2009 and the 340th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 25 days left in the year 2009. It is also known as Saint Nicholas Day in honor of the Catholic Bishop who became the inspiration for Santa Claus. In Canada, it is Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Here are five people that share a birthday on this day:
James J. Braddock (1905-1973)
Born in New York City, Braddock was an American world heavyweight boxing champion from June 13, 1935, when he outpointed Max Baer in 15 rounds at the Long Island City Bowl in New York City, until June 22, 1937, when he was knocked out by Joe Louis in Chicago. After a pitiful starting career, filled with injuries, Braddock rose to fame as a heavyweight in a spectacular comeback. Living on relief and seemingly at the end of his pugilistic career, Braddock returned to the ring in 1934 and earned a chance at the heavyweight championship with several unexpected victories; the odds against him in the Baer match, for example, were said to have been about 10 to 1. Because of Braddock’s quick second rise from obscurity to fame, Damon Runyon nicknamed him the “Cinderella Man.” His life story was made into a 2005 movie called Cinderella Man by Ron Howard and starring Russell Crowe.
Baby Face Nelson (1908-1934)
Born Lester Gillis in Chicago, Illinois, Baby Face Nelson was a professional bank robber nicknamed after his youthful appearance. He started in petty crime at the age of 13, and moved on to labor racketeering for Al Capone in 1929. He was dismissed by Capone and other crime bosses in because of the excessive violence of his vicious killings. After teaming up with John Dillinger, Nelson was killed by FBI agents at the age of 26.
Ira Gershwin (1896-1983)
Born in New York City, lyricist Ira Gershwin began his long collaboration with brother George in 1918, creating classics like “The Man I Love” (1924). He also contributed lyrics to ‘Porgy and Bess’ (1935). Later, Gershwin collaborated with composers such as Kurt Weill, Jerome Kern and Harold Arlen.
Elián González (Born 1993)
Born in Cuba, he was the focus of an international political uproar in late 1999 and early 2000 after he was rescued from a boat accident that killed his mother and 10 other Cuban refugees trying to reach Florida in November of 1999. After months of legal squabbling, endless press coverage, and heated demonstrations in both Miami and Cuba, U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno, with the full backing of President Bill Clinton, ordered that Elián’s relatives in Miami surrender him to Justice Department custody. When they refused, Reno ordered a dramatic and controversial dawn rescue mission that unfolded in the early morning hours of April 22, when agents of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, armed with submachine guns, forced their way into the Miami home of Lazáro González and seized a terrified Elián. The boy was flown to Washington, D.C., immediately and reunited with his father. They subsequently returned to Cuba and were greeted with great fanfare.
Otto Graham (1921-2003)
Born Otto Everett Graham, Jr. in Waukegan, Illinois, Graham was a professional football and basketball player for the Cleveland Browns and the Rochester Royals. During World War 2, Graham served in the U.S. Coast Guard where he played football under the coaching of Bear Bryant. He played only one season with the Rochester Royals basketball team in 1945-46, but it was enough to help them to a National Basketball League title. In 1946, he joined the Cleveland Browns as a quarterback and led the team to a League Championship in each of the ten years that he played with them. Graham’s 57-13-1 record as a professional starter represents the highest winning percentage of any quarterback in NFL history (.810).
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