August 17 Birthday
On August 17, 1962, Peter Fechter, an eighteen-year-old East German bricklayer, attempted to cross the Berlin Wall near Checkpoint Charlie. He was shot and lay bleeding at the base of the wall for an hour. East German guards did not help him. West Berliners shouted at the guards and threw bandages. American soldiers watched but had orders not to intervene — the wall was East German territory. Fechter bled to death. The incident became a symbol of the wall's cruelty. The guards who shot him were prosecuted after German reunification. Robert De Niro, born this day in 1943, gained sixty pounds for Raging Bull, learned to play the saxophone for New York, New York, and drove a cab for a month for Taxi Driver. He has been nominated for seven Oscars and won two. He is a co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival. He is part-owner of the Nobu restaurant chain. His method acting is legendary — he speaks Italian in The Godfather Part II, having learned the dialect of his character's home region. People born on August 17 fall under the zodiac sign of Leo. The birthstone is Peridot and the birth flower is Gladiolus. Historical events on August 17 include 1978: First transatlantic balloon flight completed (Double Eagle II), 1962: East German guards shoot Peter Fechter as he tries to cross Berlin Wall, 1969: Hurricane Camille hits Mississippi Gulf Coast, killing 256. Famous people born on August 17 include Davy Crockett (1786), Marcus Garvey (1887), Robert De Niro (1943).