5 Things to Know Today

Good morning, Bethlehem. Here comes the weekend. Today is Friday, July 15, 2011. Happy birthday , president and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group, which includes this little website you’re reading right here. Also born on this day, Clement Clarke Moore, the poet who wrote “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” and August Gottlieb Spangenberg, the man who succeeded Count Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf as the bishop of the Moravian Brethren.

1. Today marks the 52nd anniversary of a dark day in Bethlehem’s history – the start of the United Steelworkers of America strike of 1959. The bitter work stoppage, which ended after four months, set in motion events that would lead to the decline of the American steel industry generally and Bethlehem Steel specifically. Most importantly, through the sudden, though temporary, disappearance of American-produced steel, other American manufacturers found that they could buy steel more cheaply from producers in Japan and Korea.
2. Road drainage maintenance along Wyandotte Street from Broadway to Fountain Hill will mean flagging, lane restrictions and delays. The same can be said of the brush cutting scheduled along Shimersville Road. The ramp construction for the Hill-to-Hill Bridge continues.
3. The Lehigh Valley IronPigs, still clinging to a 3-game lead in the International League’s Northern Division, finish a short two-day, three-game homestand with the Syracuse Chiefs at 7 p.m. tonight. Fireworks after the game.
4. Guitar fingerpicker and singer-songwriter Jack Williams headlines at tonight. Glenna Bell is the opener at 8 p.m.
5. Even with the Second City improvisational comedy group canceling its appearance, it will still be a big night at the campus. (Actually, how often can we not say that?) Let’s start off by mentioning that Tree of Life, the new film by acclaimed writer/director Terrence Malick -- and starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, premiers with four showings at the Banko Alehouse Cinema. Later on, starting at 11:15 p.m. at the Banko, the Revenge of the Late Night Horror Movie features Duel, Steven Spielberg’s first feature-length film. Of course there will be free music too. The Andrew Pereira Jazz Quartet plays the Town Square stage at 6 p.m., while Eileen Jewel, described as a cross between Norah Jones and Bob Dylan, plays at the starting at 7:30.