On this date the legal legend and Supreme Court justice BENJAMIN CARDOZO was born (d. 1938). Cardozo is remembered for his significant influence on the development of American common law in the 20th century, in addition to his modesty, philosophy, and vivid prose style. Although Cardozo only served on the Supreme Court from 1932 until his death six years later, the majority of his landmark decisions were delivered during his eighteen-year tenure on the New York Court of Appeals, the highest court of that state.

Was Cardozo Gay?

As far as is known, Benjamin Cardozo led a celibate life. The fact that Cardozo was unmarried and was personally tutored by the writer Horatio Alger (who is included in Daily GayWisdom for his own interesting sexual background) has led some of Cardozo's biographers to believe that Cardozo was homosexual, but no direct evidence exists to corroborate this possibility. He never married and rumors abounded about him.

The story that was told was he was "too devoted" to his ailing sister to ever get married. One of Cardozo's biographers talks of how his friends, when describing Cardozo, used words like "beautiful, exquisite, sensitive or delicate." But he certainly didn't allow anyone much evidence to find out. Like many other men in history (Henry James anyone?) Cardozo made sure to have all of his correspondence burned after his death (much to the shock and outrage of scholars).

In truth, most of what was interesting about him went unreported, either because the personal details were not known or because the press tacitly agreed not to print them in deference to Cardozo's sensibilities. Throughout his career Cardozo had politely but finely discouraged aspiring biographers.

The Supreme Court Justice Learned Hand commented that Cardozo "never quite wanted anybody to penetrate into his inner life," Irving Lehman, Cardozo's closest friend and colleague on the Court of Appeals since 1923, phrased it somewhat differently. Shortly after Cardozo's death in July 1938 Lehman eulogized him as follows: "A man of fastidious reticence, he guarded jealously his personal privacy ... Always he selected the field to which he would admit even his chosen friends, when he would disclose to them his thoughts and feelings; always he would reserve for himself fields from which he would gently exclude even his friends. He would be distressed if what he reserved for a friend were exhibited to the world."

Lehman was the man who took care to destroy all of the Supreme Court justice's private letters in a way so thorough one biographer compared the treatment of Cardozo's papers to the treatment Jeanne d'Arc received.

GENE ANTHONY RAY, born on this date. (d: 2003) was an American actor, dancer, and choreographer. He was known for his portrayal of dancer Leroy Johnson in both the 1980 film Fame and the 1982–1987 Fame television series based upon the film.

Born in New York City, in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, Ray grew up in the area of West 153rd Street and later became involved in street dancing at block parties. He performed in a dance class at the Julia Richman High School. He skipped school one day to audition for Fame choreographer Louis Falco. Ray attended the High School of Performing Arts, the inspiration for the film Fame, but was kicked out after just one year.

Ray won the part of Leroy Johnson in the film Fame, which was released in 1980. Much like his Fame character, Ray had little professional training, but he possessed a raw talent that won him his role for the film. Reports USA Today: "Alan (Parker, the director) had to approach him very carefully. His mom was dealing drugs during the filming. It was not pretty."

In 1981, Ray starred as Friday, alongside Michael York as Robinson Crusoe, in the 1981 TV adventure-comedy Vendredi ou la Vie sauvage (alternative title: Robinson Crusoe and Man Friday).

Ray also starred in the television series based on the film, Fame. The series was produced by MGM Television from 1982 to 1987, and syndicated from 1983 to 1987. Also in 1982, Ray danced in The Weather Girls' music video for "Well-A-Wiggy". Additionally, he began touring the U.K. with the other members of the Fame cast as The Kids from "Fame"; they performed at 10 venues, including a sell out performance at Royal Albert Hall.

In 1984, USA Today reports: "Ray was axed from the show after his mother was jailed for running a drug ring, and he failed to turn up for work 100 times." He struggled with addictions to alcohol and drugs, and worked only intermittently once the TV series ended.

In 1987, he won the role of Billy Nolan in the ill-fated musical adaptation of Carrie by Stephen King. Ray played the role in the original opening in Stratford-Upon-Avon, which closed after less than a month. He then transferred to Broadway and continued to play the role until the musical closed after only 21 public performances.

Ray also appeared in the 1995 film Out-of-Sync, which was directed by his Fame co-star Debbie Allen, in the 1996 Whoopi Goldberg comedy Eddie (for which he was also credited as associate choreographer), as well as in commercials for Dr Pepper and Diet Coke. His last video project was a one-hour BBC Fame reunion documentary, Fame Remember My Name, taped in Los Angeles in April 2003.

Ray remained a self-described 'frantic partygoer' with a weakness for drink and drugs. As his life fell apart, he slept on park benches, and during a failed attempt to launch a Fame-style dance school in Milan, shared a flat there with a porn actress.

In 1996, he was diagnosed HIV positive. He suffered a stroke in 2003. Flamboyantly camp, he brushed aside questions about his sexuality. He never married. He died of complications of the stroke that same year.

GREG BERLANTI is an American film and television writer, producer and director born on this date. He is well known for his work on the television series Dawson’s Creek, Everwood, Arrow and The Flash. He is from Rye, New York and was married to L.A. Galaxy soccer player Robbie Rogers in 2017.

AMADO NERVO died on this date. (b: 1870) Also known as Juan Crisóstomo Ruiz de Nervo he was the Mexican Ambassador to Argentina and Uruguay, a journalist, poet, and educator. His poetry was known for its use of metaphor and reference to mystoicism, presenting both love and religion, as well as Christianity and Hinduism. Nervo is noted as one of the most important Mexican poets of the 19th century.

In 1898, Nervo founded, along with Jesús Valenzuela, La Revista Moderna (The Modern Magazine). The magazine was the successor to Blue. He was the cousin of the renowned artist, Roberto Montenegro Nervo. His cousin's first illustrations were produced for La Revista Moderna magazine. In 1902, Nervo wrote "La Raza de Bronce (The Bronze Race)" in honor of Benito Juarez, former president of Mexico. In 1919, Bolivian writer Alcides Arguedas used the term in his novel, Raza de Bronce. In 1925, the term was used by Mexican luminary, Jose Vasconcelos in his essay, La Raza Cosmica.

Nervo spent the first years of the 20th century in Europe, particularly in Paris. While there, he was an academic correspondent of the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua. While in Paris, Nervo befriended Enrique Gomez Carrillo and Aurora Caceres for whom he wrote a prologue for the book La rosa muerta.

In November, 2012, the University of Arizona acquired a privately-held collection of manuscripts and letters created by Nicaraguan poet, Ruben Dario. This distinctive collection of archival material contained documents pertaining to Darío’s life and work as a poet, journalist and diplomat.Several of the manuscripts are signed transcripts, written in Darío’s hand, of some of his most important works including “Coloquio de los Centauros,” two versions of “Los motivos del lobo” and “Canto épico a las glorias de Chile,” a manuscript of 76 pages, which was one of Darío’s first long poems.

The documents altered the scholarship on Darío and Nervo. The peer-reviewed “Bulletin of Spanish Studies,” a prestigious academic journal from the United Kingdom, published an article by Professor Acereda in its August 2012 issue based on letters found in ASU’s collection. The article, “‘Nuestro más profundo y sublime secreto’: Los amores transgresores entre Rubén Darío y Amado Nervo,” ("Our Most Profound and Sublime Secret: the Transgressive Love of Ruben Dario and Amado Nervo") reveals for the first time a secret romantic relationship between Darío and Nervo.

ROBERT CALHOUN, was an Emmy Award-winning producer who died on this date (b: 1931). Calhoun was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1931. He attended University of Maryland and later served in the United States Navy. He met his lifelong partner, Farley Granger while serving as the production supervisor for The Seagull in 1963. 

Calhoun was the executive producer of “As the World Turns” when the show was named the outstanding drama series for 1987 at the Daytime Emmy Awards. The show was also nominated in 1986, 1988 and 1989. Calhoun’s from helped to launch the Mark Taper Forum. in Los Angeles to translating Italian film scripts into English while working in Italy in the early 1970s.

Calhoun subsequently moved to Southern California, where he worked on early productions at the Mark Taper Forum. In 1970, Calhoun moved to Italy with Granger, and spent several years living in Rome, where he translated film scripts from Iatlian to English. He went back in the mid-1970s to Southern California and the Mark Taper, where he directed plays for the New Theater for Now program. 

After a few years, he returned to New York to work in daytime television. Calhoun was co-author of Granger’s memoir, “Include Me Out,” which was published in 2007. He died of lung cancer.

ARMISTEAD MAUPIN'S serialized epic Tales of the City makes its debut in The San Francisco Chronicle. That first appearance became a series of seven novels that were originally serialized in the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco Examiner. It has since been transformed into a movie and a musical.

In the United Kingdom, the Conservative government passes Section 28, a clause that bans the "promotion of homosexuality" by local government.

David Cameron subsequently issued an extraordinary apology on behalf of the Conservative Party for legislation banning the promotion of homosexuality in schools. He said the party had 'got it wrong' when it introduced Section 28 in the late 1980s. Yeah...that's one way of looking at it.