A Year of Anniversaries Awaits
THE OVERLOOK
By Tom Clavin
“The Overlook” appears every Wednesday at tomclavin.substack.com. If you enjoy the column, please "like" it and let me know what you think by commenting. (Check out previous columns while you're at it.) Likes, comments, and shares help with author discoverability on Substack.com, and all support is appreciated. And don't forget to hit the ‘Subscribe’ button – it’s free!
For many people, 2023 is an opportunity for renewal and to look ahead. But it is also the centennial of significant events. What were some of them that occurred in 1923 that might be commemorated in the new year, or at least deserve some attention?
That year, the United States was in the thick of Prohibition and the so-called “Roaring Twenties,” both of which had begun three years earlier. More specifically, the new year began with tragedy, when on January 1, 1923, the Rosewood Massacre began in Florida. Over the course of seven days, a neighborhood of Black residents and businesses would be destroyed.
March was a bit of a mixed bag. On the 2nd. Time Magazine made its debut. On the 23rd, the governor of Oklahoma signed a law that banned the purchase of public school textbooks that included the theory of evolution.
April saw some interesting entertainment news. On the 1st, Harold Lloyd’s landmark silent comedy Safety Last! was released. Three days later, the Warner Bros. film studio was incorporated by Harry, Jack, Sam, and Albert Warner. Also in April, Louis Armstrong cut his first record, “Chimes Blues,” with the King Oliver Creole Jazz Band. This same month will see the centennial of the opening of Yankee Stadium, which happened on April 18, 1923. Not a very busy May 1923, but the boardwalk at Coney Island made its debut.
Let’s fast-forward to the summer. On July 13, the “Hollywoodland” sign was unveiled in Los Angeles. On August 2, President Warren Harding died at 57 from cardiac arrest. His vice president, Calvin Coolidge, became the 30th president of the U.S. On September 4, the U.S. Navy launched its first airship, which contained most of the world’s helium that had been extracted to date. As the summer ended, newspaper printers in New York City were on strike.
Back to the Yankees: Next October, the team will celebrate the centennial of its first world championship, which came from winning the World Series against the New York Giants. The following day, Roy Disney and his brother Walt founded a new entertainment company. Also that October, for you peaceniks out there, the War Resistors League was founded . . . which, thus far, has had less success than the Walt Disney Company.
Who would be celebrating turning 100 years old next year, if they were still alive? Both born in January 1923 were the writers Norman Mailer and Paddy Chayevsky. Born in February was another writer, James Dickey; the gossip columnist Liz Smith; the test pilot Chuck Yeager; and the actor Charles Durning. Centennials in March include the photographer Diane Arbus. For shoppers looking to celebrate a birthday in April, on the 13th Stanley Tanger was born; he would create the Tanger Factory Outlet chain of stores. The 25th is the birthday of the great bluesman Albert King. May 1 will be the 100th birthday of the novelist Joseph Heller.
Moving on to summer: July 22 will be the 100th birthdays of the Kansas Senator Bob Dole and the wrestler the Fabulous Moolah. Two B-movie actresses were born in August 1923, Jean Hagen and Rhonda Fleming. In non-Yankees sports news, the undefeated boxer Rocky Marciano was born on September 1. Two days later was the birth of the cartoonist Mort Walker, known for the “Beetle Bailey” strip. For fast-food aficionados: On the same day, September 3, Glen Bell, who would found Taco Bell, was born.
Autumn births: One of my favorites, Charlton Heston, would have turned 100 next October 4. The composer Ned Rorem was born on the 23rd, and four days later it was the turn of the artist Roy Lichtenstein. The first American in space, Alan Shepard, was born on November 18. Jumping ahead to December, the actress Betsy Blair was born as was the game show host Bob Barker. The 13th is the centennial of Larry Doby, the American League’s first Black ballplayer. And we’ll finish up with two much-honored military men, Admiral James Stockdale on the 13th and General George Patton IV (son of the World War II commander) the next day.
There are only a few days left in this year, so get cracking on preparing for your 2023 centennial celebrations. Make 1923 more than just a Paramount+ television show!
Tom Clavin is the bestselling author/co-author of 18 books, including the just-published The Last Hill, with Bob Drury. To purchase copies, please go to your local bookstore or to Bookshop.org, Amazon.com, BN.com, or tomclavin.com.