On December 6, 1961, Syracuse running back Ernie Davis
became the first Black player to win the Heisman Trophy—
college football’s top individual award—beating Ohio State
fullback Bob Ferguson.

Earlier in day, Davis met with President John Kennedy at
the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. "I never thought
I’d ever be shaking the hand of the President of the United
States," he says.

As a senior in 1961, Davis rushed for 823 yards and scored 14 touchdowns. The previous season, he rushed for 877 yards.

Davis was the first pick in the 1962 NFL draft, by Washington,
which traded him to the Cleveland Browns. But he never
played in the NFL. Davis was diagnosed with leukemia later
in 1962, and died on May 18, 1963. He was 23.

Ernie Davis Statue, Syracuse University.

The first Medal of Honor awarded to a U.S. serviceman for
action in Vietnam was presented to Capt. Roger Donlon
of Saugerties, New York, for his heroic action earlier in
the year.

Captain Donlon and his Special Forces team were manning
Camp Nam Dong, a mountain outpost near the borders of
Laos and North Vietnam.

He was wounded three more times, but he continued fighting,
manning a mortar, throwing grenades at the enemy, and
refusing medical attention.

President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded Captain Roger
Donlon the Medal of Honor.

Bo Derek (born Mary Cathleen Collins) is an American actress
and model. She began her career as a child model before
deciding to pursue acting on the advice of a talent agent.     

The sex icon best known for the provocative 1979 rom-com
"10."

Starring Mary Martin as Maria and Theodore Bikel as Captain
von Trapp, the original Broadway production of The Sound
of Music premiered at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November
16, 1959, where it won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical
and Best Leading Actress. It later moved to the Mark Hellinger,
where it would end its lauded run on June 15, 1963 after 1,443 performances.

1959

Arthur William Matthew Carney
(November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003)

Art Carney was an actor and comedian. A recipient of an
Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and six Primetime
Emmy Awards, he was best known for his role as Ed Norton
on the sitcom The Honeymooners (below) (1955–1956).