New Jersey Inducts First 15 Into State's Hall Of Fame

TRENTON, N.J. — Fifteen prominent New Jerseyans were inducted into the state's new Hall of Fame on Sunday night _ even though the actual hall doesn't exist yet.

Bruce Springsteen, Yogi Berra, Toni Morrison and Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf were among the many honorees on hand for the ceremony at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

The hall is one of many endeavors aimed at improving the reputation of the oft-maligned Garden State, which Springsteen referred to in his acceptance speech.

"Rise up, my fellow New Jerseyans. We are all members of a confused but noble race," the rocker said. "Even with this wonderful Hall of Fame, we know there's another bad Jersey joke just around the corner."

Others attending the red-carpet event included Gov. Jon S. Corzine, Newark Mayor Cory Booker and Tina Sinatra, whose father _ the late crooner Frank Sinatra _ was among the inductees.

Two inductees, actress Meryl Streep and former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley, were unable to attend. They have asked that the presentation of their awards be held until they can receive them in person.

The Hall of Fame exists only as a virtual entity now, but officials are raising money to build a permanent museum. The first class was chosen through an online vote after 25 finalists were announced in 2006.

All inductees must have lived in the state for at least five years, though organizers made an exception to that rule for Underground Railroad pioneer Harriet Tubman.

Comments

[Stanley]

11:21 AM on 05/05/2008

Grover Cleveland
Tom Cruise
Stephan Spielberg
Jon Stewart
John BonJovi
Danny Devito
Albert Einstein

All qualify for the list.

[CountryBeforeParty]

09:05 AM on 05/05/2008

For all of you folks who keep throwing out other names.

It's just the first year of the Hall of Fame. If we put everybody in now then it wouldn't be much fun now would it?

[CountryBeforeParty]

08:54 AM on 05/05/2008

West Orange, NJ here. Class of '87

Exit 145 & 15W

[jetlit]

02:39 AM on 05/05/2008

No Joe Piscopo?

[way2muchsense]

09:01 AM on 05/05/2008

Joe Piscopo made a career of telling the sort of bad Jersey jokes Bruce Springsteen was talking about.

[citizenofmars]

02:27 PM on 05/05/2008

I agree- a major oversight. Piscopo's "Are you from Joisey? What exit?" is STILL a major catch phrase all these decades later. I'm sure they'll recognize this oversight eventually...

[rpence]

01:32 AM on 05/05/2008

There should be a Hall of Fame reserved entirely for Bruce and the E Streeters (rest in peace Danny Federici).

[bar1ed]

11:34 PM on 05/04/2008

where and what is New Jersey ?

[elcojonu]

11:58 PM on 05/04/2008

It's in Secaucus, wanna go there ?

[sco8d]

03:44 AM on 05/05/2008

New Jersey is the Europe of America asswipe! No death penalty, sane gun laws, paid family leave for a new baby or sick relative, an effective if a little late open space policy and unions for gay couples. Yes we have our warts but we are moving forward at a much faster and progressive rate than the rest of the country. Oh, also a couple towns over is the Quaker settlement of Moorestown, the best place to live in the country the last few years in a row. It's also the weirdest state in the country, and I mean that in a good way. Check out google earth and look at some of the crazy stuff, south Jersey is the strangest. bar1ed is just jealous to be from the boring part of the country.

[wmbear]

08:23 AM on 05/05/2008

NEXT UP...

Can you please fix your highway system? Last time I was there it nearly drove me crazy.

[way2muchsense]

09:03 AM on 05/05/2008

Went to South Jersey last year. Beautiful place. Would definitely go again. A+++.

[Guitarsandmore]

11:07 PM on 05/04/2008

I understand Bruce Springsteen but I would have thought Jack Nickolson to be at the top of the list.

.Easy Rider
.As Good as it Gets
.One flew over the cuckoo's nest
.Five Easy Pieces
.Batman
.Witches of Eastwick
.Goin South

...and the list goes on

[elcojonu]

11:59 PM on 05/04/2008

You're sooo right.

[lodipete]

12:08 AM on 05/05/2008

What about Paul Robeson,Joyce Kilmer or John Basilone?

[jukesgrrl]

12:36 AM on 05/05/2008

Joyce Kilmer has a rest stop on the Jersey turnpike named after him. What else da ya want, huh??

[UncleJimbo]

07:56 PM on 05/04/2008

My Vote goes to Tony Soprano!

[Irons]

12:52 AM on 05/05/2008

Soprano is pure fiction. You think these criminals actually think and act like on TV? LMAO.

[citizenofmars]

02:29 PM on 05/05/2008

no, but Tony DOES remind me of some Sicilian characters I knew in NY-deffinitely..

[fingers]

07:48 PM on 05/04/2008

What about Woodrow Wilson? You know, the President of the United States from New Jersey who led the U.S. through World War I, the War to End All Wars?

[fingers]

07:45 PM on 05/04/2008

Has anybody even heard of Woodrow Wilson? You know, President of the United States who led the nation through World War I, you know, The War to End All Wars?

[helonias]

07:25 PM on 05/04/2008

What we really need is a hall of shame for the manyNJ politicians who committed crimes in office to remind us of how corrupt our Gov is.

And may Bruce could write a sing about it.

[elcojonu]

12:00 AM on 05/05/2008

Come on, give it a rest.
Look at D.C.

[helonias]

09:27 AM on 05/05/2008

Look at the History of Atlantic City, it will give DC a run for corruption.

Google
The Boardwalk Empire a great read

[Izadora]

03:39 PM on 05/04/2008

I miss Sinatra. He sings so beautiful, I even understand any words from his songs. Beautiful English.

Bruce S always seems "constipated!" (with all due respect.)

[castlerider]

02:18 PM on 05/04/2008

I honestly believe Frank Sinatra would have supported Barrack Obama.

McCain's got a temper like Francis had, and they'd have butted heads. No way he'd have endorsed the dame. Smart, deserving of respect, sure, but I don't think Frankie would go there.

But if ya know about Sinatra, you'd know he was fiercely anti-racsist, and would love the fact that for once America has a chance to get over itself, be above all that, and transcend the divisions we've been inflicted with for so long, which Barrack does so effortlessly.
I wonder what his wife Barbara would say.

[castlerider]

02:25 PM on 05/04/2008

Come to think of it, Man, I miss Sinatra. Ya know?

Dennis Hopper did a movie a while back called "All The Way", where he plays Sinatra when he was going through that fiasco he thumped in Australia. A really cool, down to earth story that shows how exceptionally cool the Chairman of the Board was. Has a few little quirks, a little low-budget, but basically a great movie.

[Gasparilla]

05:10 PM on 05/04/2008

It's a stretch to think Sinatra would have endorsed Obama. He turned away from the Democratic party and supported Reagan for both governor and president. Having said that, I am a huge Sinatra fan, have been whether it was "cool" or uncool to like him. Having said that, the greatest New Jerseyite is Thomas Edison. I think born in Ohio though.

[castlerider]

05:41 PM on 05/04/2008

Just as easily as he left the Dem party, I'm sure he'd have felt pretty awkward staying with the rethugs now. Sinatra hated a liar, and always demanded accountability. Vehemently so.

[jadez]

07:13 PM on 05/04/2008

why did he 'turn away" from the dems?

and while you are looking that up i will tell you that Sinatra not only fought for "black" entertainers when there was still segregation but he often refused to work at all if they refused to do the right thing.
no doubt he would have supported Obama ,

if you are a huge Sinatra fan then you should know that.

[pepenero]

01:10 PM on 05/04/2008

Amiri Baraka?
Yogi Berra?
Thomas Edison?
Paul Robeson?
William Carlos Williams?
Muhammad Ali

[CountryBeforeParty]

08:56 AM on 05/05/2008

Yogi was one of the inductees

[gevan]

01:05 PM on 05/04/2008

Where's Major General George B. McClellan? The victor (sort of) at Antietam which allowed President Lincoln to issue his Emancipation Proclamation and 1864 Democratic Party nominee (while living in Orange, NJ) for President (against Lincoln), he served a forgetable term as Governor of NJ later on.