On this day, Oct. 7, in 1974, U.S. Park Police pulled over Rep. Wilbur Mills and striptease dancer Fanne Foxe, who leapt from the car and jumped into the Tidal Basin. The spectacle would lead to the downfall of Mills, considered one of the most powerful men in Congress. Police stopped Mills’ car at 2 a.m. because its headlights were off. Mills had been drinking and his face was cut from a scuffle with Foxe, whose real name was Annabella Battistella. Nevertheless, Mills won re-election. On Nov. 30, 1974, a seemingly drunk Mills held a news conference in Foxe’s dressing room at a seedy burlesque house in Boston to dispel rumors he was having an affair with Foxe, also known as the “Argentine Firecracker.” It had the opposite effect. Mills soon checked into an alcohol treatment center. He devoted his time to helping alcoholics. He died in 1992 at age 82.
— Scott McCabe
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