Noted poet Amy Lowell ended her earthly journey 83 years ago today, on the very same day of the very same year that another celebrated wordsmith, future Hall of Fame New York Yankee catcher Yogi Berra, began his.
Does reincarnation exist? It’s hard to prove scientifically, but thanks to some information that is readily available on several online websites, it’s possible to gather enough anecdotal evidence to at least consider the possibility that on the very day one dies his or her soul moves on to occupy a just-born infant’s body.
There are numerous other dates on which a noted individual has died and a person who was to make a significant impact on society was born, and it’s remarkable how often the two people in question had something of consequence in common. For example, on June 6th, 1799 Patrick Henry, the American revolutionary who famously said, “Give me liberty or give me death,” inevitably got the latter of his two choices. That very same day Alexander Pushkin, who was to become a world-famous poet, novelist, and playwright, was born in Moscow, Russia. Each man in his own way passionately advocated for freedom and became renowned for it.
On May 17, 1886 John Deere, the king of agricultural equipment, passed away in Moline, Illinois while half a continent and an entire ocean away the future king Alfonso XIII of Spain was born.
Miller Huggins, a leader who as field manager of the New York Yankees led them to six American League championships and three World Series titles during the 1920’s, died on September 25th, 1929, the same day on which Barbara Walters, a future leader in the as-yet-unborn television industry, was born in Brookline, Massachusetts. On July 22, 1934 John Dillinger, a very wicked man, was shot to death by FBI agents in Chicago, Illinois while in Birmingham, Alabama Louise Fletcher, who played a very wicked Nurse Ratched in the 1975 film One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, was born. On December 21, 1940 in Hollywood literary titan F. Scott Fitzgerald exited the scene as future musical giant Frank Zappa entered it in Baltimore. The Pride of the Yankees, Lou Gehrig, died on June 2nd, 1941 while across the pond that day future Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts began his life. Is it just coincidence that both men entertained millions with the aid of slender pieces of wood?
On April 24, 1942 a star was born in Brooklyn, New York. Barbra Streisand, who was to entertain millions with her voice, took her first breaths while just a few hundred miles away in Toronto Lucy Maud Montgomery, whose books featuring Anne of Green Gables entertained millions of readers, was departing. On December 22, 1943 author Beatrix Potter passed on, while former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz was born. What do these two seemingly unrelated individuals have in common? Well, in addition to the fact that neither ever served in the armed forces, each wrote fiction, although the motivation for Ms. Potter’s creation of Peter Rabbit and his friends was markedly different from Mr. Wolfowitz’s rationale for selling America and its current commander-in-chief on the need for an invasion of Iraq. Baseball commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis, a noted conservative, died on November 25, 1944, as future conservative speechwriter/comedian Ben Stein was being born. On November 21, 1945 Robert Benchley, a very funny writer, expired in a New York City hospital while Goldie Hawn, a very funny actress, was born in Washington, DC. On Christmas 1946 hard-drinking comedian W.C. Fields succumbed in Pasadena, CA and hard-working singer-author Jimmy Buffett was born in Pascagoula, MS.
Actor Gary Cooper died on May 13, 1961, the same date that an actor both on and off the basketball court, Dennis Rodman, was born. On August 5, 1962 entertainment superstar Marilyn Monroe left us and basketball superstar Patrick Ewing joined us. On September 2, 1964 a genuine hero, Sergeant Alvin York (who Cooper portrayed onscreen) died in Nashville, TN while Keanu Reeves, who would grow up to play heroes in the movies, was born in Beirut, Lebanon. Twenty-six days later comedian Harpo Marx died and comedienne Janeane Garofalo was born. On February 20, 1966 superstar model Cindy Crawford was born, the same day that superstar admiral Chester Nimitz died. J. Edgar Hoover, who wrestled with criminals for decades as head of the FBI, breathed his last on May 2, 1972; Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who wrestled prior to launching a film career, was born that day. And there’s more tough guy evidence: on July 20, 1973, the day rugged actor Bruce Lee died in Hong Kong; future hockey superstar Peter Forsberg was born in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden.
This exhaustive research may not conclusively prove that reincarnation exists, but it does indicate that some writers have too much time on their hands.
Andy YoungReturn to main page
Font size: