MID-SOUTH MEMORIES
25 years ago — 1996
“Maria Espinosa, where are you tonight?” That’s what Bruce Springsteen called out as he sang about his first kiss during a recent benefit concert in Freehold, N.J., his hometown. The 15-yearold he kissed more than 30 years ago is now Maria Espinosa Ayala, a 48-yearold mother and grandmother. ”I can’t believe he remembers my name,” she told the Asbury Park Press. Espinosa Ayala said she never told anyone about her secret smooch. ”My parents were so strict.
I wasn’t allowed to have a boyfriend so I couldn’t let anyone know what happened,” she said. When Springsteen became famous, she didn’t think anyone would believe her.
Her memories of the tender moment at a dance in downtown Freehold are hazy. ”It must have lasted about a minute,” she said. ”It was good. I dreamed about it afterward.”
50 years ago — 1971
The Professional Golf Association named Lee Trevino Player of the Year for 1971 yesterday. It was the first such designation for the 31-year-old Trevino who has won six tournaments this season, including an unprecedented sweep of the American, Canadian and British Open titles. Trevino, the 1971 Danny Thomas Memphis Classic winner, already has established a record for money won in a single season with $227,243.
75 years ago — 1946
MIAMI BEACH – Earl D. Carpenter, veteran of 30 years as a law enforcement officer, was astounded Tuesday when a man brought in for vagrancy told him: “You can’t do this to me.” The prisoner, Nicholas Joseph Doherty, 26, then proceeded to elaborate. “I’m a Mohawk Indian, and Indians have the right to roam the North American Continent at will.” A quick check with the United States immigration officials revealed that Doherty was right.
100 years ago — 1921
Noah W. Cooper of Nashville, father of the “blue law” movement, was granted five minutes on the floor to speak for the endorsement of his plan to stop all interstate commerce on Sunday. Rev.
J.F. Moreback’s resolution as chairman of the committee on Sabbath observations was passed, after all reference to Mr. Cooper’s bill was eliminated, although the report favors the strict observance of the Sabbath day as a day of rest throughout America. 125 years ago — 1896
WASHINGTON – The War Department has called on leading railroads running to Key West, Fla., New Orleans and other Gulf ports for statements of their capacity to move troops, supplies and heavy war materials.