The Surprise Hurricane That Nearly Killed Katharine Hepburn In 1938

Hollywood legend Katharine Hepburn, seen here in a still from the 1940 film 'The Philadelphia Story,' had a brush with death in 1938 when a powerful unnamed hurricane slammed parts of Long Island, New York, as well as parts of Connecticut and Rhode Island. The storm became known as the Long Island Express. (AP Photo)

The year 1938 was anything but a quiet one.

Tensions were mounting in Europe as Nazi Germany eyed the Sudetenland, persecution of the Jews in Germany was escalating, and the Spanish government was nearing the brink of collapse amid the Spanish Civil War.