On this date in...

1902...The cornerstone is laid for the New York Public Library building at 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue, the former site of the Croton Reservoir. The melding of the Astor, Lennox and Tilden libraries, the facility opens in 1911.

2007...Most of Broadway goes dark due to a strike by the stagehands' union. The strike lasts for 19 days, leaving most shows closed during the always-busy Thanksgiving weekend.

2007...Celebrated writer Normal Mailer dies in Manhattan at age 84.