CARLATA BRADLEY

John Herbert Gleason (February 26, 1916 – June 24, 1987)

Gleason was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts &
Sciences Television Hall of Fame in 1986. In 2000 a statue of
him as Ralph Kramden (below) was installed at the Miami
Beach Bus Terminal.

Complicated and tension-filled negotiations between the United States and
the Soviet Union finally result in a plan to end the two-week-old Cuban
Missile Crisis. A frightening period in which nuclear holocaust seemed
imminent began to come to an end. 

Since President John F. Kennedy’s October 22 address warning the Soviets
to cease their reckless program to put nuclear weapons in Cuba and
announcing a naval “quarantine” against additional weapons shipments
into Cuba, the world held its breath waiting to see whether the two
superpowers would come to blows. U.S. armed forces went on alert and
the Strategic Air Command went to a Stage 4 alert (one step away from
nuclear attack). On October 24, millions waited to see whether Soviet
ships bound for Cuba carrying additional missiles would try to break
the U.S. naval blockade around the island. At the last minute, the vessels
turned around and returned to the Soviet Union.

Khrushchev                Castro                                 Kennedy

MIKE GRACIA

On this day in 1962, President John F. Kennedy went on radio and television to inform the United States about his order to send U.S.
forces to blockade Cuba. The blockade was in response to the
discovery of Soviet missile bases on the island.

Aerial view of missile launch site at San Cristobal, Cuba.

CARLATA BRADLEY

The Soviet Union began the Berlin Blockade on this day in 1948. It
was one of the first major international crises of the Cold  War. The
Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies’ railway, road, and canal
access to the sectors of Berlin under Western control. (Wikipedia)

CARLATA BRADLEY

The Soviet Union began the Berlin Blockade on this day in 1948.

William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey
(June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983)

Professional boxer and cultural icon of the 1920s, Jack
Dempsey competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as
the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926.

Nicknamed "Kid Blackie" and "The Manassa Mauler".

It was on this day in 1987.

John Herbert Gleason (February 26, 1916 – June 24, 1987)

In 1986, doctors determined that Jackie Gleason was suffering from terminal
colon cancer, which had metastasized to his liver. Gleason was also suffering
from diabetes. He kept his medical problems private, although it had been
rumored that he was seriously ill.  A year later, on June 24, 1987, Gleason
died at his Florida home at age 71.

Jackie Gleason with fellow cast members Art Carney
and Audrey Meadows in The Honeymooners.