Apollo Amateur Night

Daily Pic (Apollo Theater)

Lucas Vallecillos/Alamy

A showcase for future fame

The now legendary Apollo Theater first opened in 1914 as Hurtig & Seamon’s New Burlesque Theater. It became the Apollo in 1934, when it was opened to black patrons, who by then had transformed Harlem into a thriving center of African American culture. Amateur Night at the theater began the first year the Apollo opened, and it’s been a defining part of the Apollo experience ever since. Amateur Night has also been instrumental in launching the show business careers of numerous stars, including Jimi Hendrix, and on this day in 1934, a teenage Ella Fitzgerald, who won the amateur contest, starting her down a path toward becoming one of the most iconic singing voices of the 20th century. Tonight, the Apollo is hosting its Grand Finale for the 2018 Amateur Night season. Perhaps somebody taking the stage tonight will go on to greater fame?

Daily Pic 11/21/17

© Tui De Roy/Minden Pictures

Galápagos sea lion pups on Santiago Island, Ecuador



Today in History 11/21 (Dayton Agreement)

Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, left, Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic, and Croatian President Franjo Tudjman applaud after an agreement was reached in Dayton, Ohio (© Michael Heinz/AP)(1995) Three warring Balkan states make peace
With US President Bill Clinton brokering the peace plan, Bosnian, Serb, and Croat leaders accept the Dayton Accords, which ends four years of a fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The war, the worst in Europe since WWII, has killed an estimated 200,000 people and included campaigns of ethnic cleansing.
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton–Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, United States, on 1 November 1995, and formally signed in Paris, France, on 14 December 1995. These accords put an end to the 3 ¹⁄₂-year-long Bosnian War, one of the Yugoslav Wars.
President Slobodan Milosevic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, President Alija Izetbegovic of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and President Franjo Tudjman of the Republic of Croatia initial the Dayton Peace Accords. The Balkan Proximity Peace Talks were conducted at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Nov. 1-21, 1995. The talks ended the conflict arising from the breakup of the Republic of Yugoslavia. The Dayton Accords paved the way for the signing of the final “General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina” on Dec. 14 at the Elysee Palace in Paris
President Slobodan Milosevic of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, President Alija Izetbegovic of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and President Franjo Tudjman of the Republic of Croatia initial the Dayton Peace Accords. The Balkan Proximity Peace Talks were conducted at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Nov. 1-21, 1995. The talks ended the conflict arising from the breakup of the Republic of Yugoslavia. The Dayton Accords paved the way for the signing of the final “General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina” on Dec. 14 at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
wiki/Dayton_Agreement
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(1995) Three warring Balkan states make peace.
Also on this day,

1934 | Singing sensation Ella Fitzgerald wins Apollo’s Amateur Night
A 17-year-old Ella Fitzgerald goes to New York’s Apollo Theater to dance on stage for Amateur Night, but opts to sing instead. She wins the competition with her renditions of Hoagy Carmichael’s ‘Judy’ and the Boswell Sisters’ ‘The Object of My Affection,’ and an American music legend is born.
1980 | Fire at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas kills 87 people
In the early morning, a fire breaks out in a ground floor deli at the luxury hotel-casino MGM Grand and quickly spreads as it hits flammable plastics in the casino. Eighty-seven people will die, mainly from smoke inhalation. The fire will rank among the deadliest in the US.
1985 | US authorities arrest Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, a US government intelligence analyst, is arrested on charges of passing classified security information to Israel, a US ally. Pollard is taken into custody outside the Israeli Embassy after he tried to seek asylum, and will later be sentenced to life in prison.

Today in History 11/21/17

Jonathan Pollard speaks during a May 15, 1998, interview at the Federal Correction Institution in Butner, NC (Karl DeBlaker/AP)(1985) US authorities arrest Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, a US government intelligence analyst, is arrested on charges of passing classified security information to Israel, a US ally. Pollard is taken into custody outside the Israeli Embassy after he tried to seek asylum, and will later be sentenced to life in prison.
Jonathan Jay Pollard is a former intelligence analyst for the United States government. In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel. He was sentenced to life in prison for violations of the Espionage Act.
Born: Aug 07, 1954 (age 63) · Galveston, TX
Spouse: Anne Henderson Pollard (m. 1985) · Elaine Zeitz
Parents: Morris Pollard (Father) · Molly Pollard (Mother)
Education: Stanford University · Tufts University
Highlights
  • 1984: Within a few days, in June 1984 Pollard started passing classified information to Sella.

  • 1985: Jonathan Pollard married Anne Henderson Pollard on August 09, 1985.

  • 1986: In late May 1986, the government offered him a plea agreement, which he accepted.

  • 1987: In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel.

  • 1989: In 1989 Pollard's attorneys filed a motion for withdrawal of his guilty plea and trial by jury due to the government's failure to abide by terms of the plea agreement.

  • 2010: The New York Times reported on September 21, 2010, that the Israeli government (again under Netanyahu) informally proposed that Pollard be released as a reward to Israel for extending by three months a halt to new settlements in occupied territories.


Jonathan Pollard
Jonathan Pollard, U.S. Navy I.D. picture. Scanned from Territory of Lies, Wolf Blitzer.

wiki/Jonathan_Pollard
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