July 14 Dateline

Birthdays

1858 - Emmeline Pankhurst, British suffragist, political activist and helper of the British suffragette movement who helped women win the right to vote. In 1999 Time named Pankhurst as one of the 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century, stating "she shaped an idea of women for our time; she shook society into a new pattern from which there could be no going back". She was widely criticised for her militant tactics, and historians disagree about their effectiveness, but her work is recognised as a crucial element in achieving women's suffrage in the United Kingdom

1862 - Gustav Klimt, Austrian symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. He is noted for his paintings, murals, sketches, and other objets d'art. Klimt's primary subject was the female body, and his works are marked by a frank eroticism. In addition to his figurative works, which include allegories and portraits, he painted landscapes. Among the artists of the Vienna Secession, Klimt was the most influenced by Japanese art and its methods. (The Complete Works of Gustav Klimt. Uploaded by Tuen Tony Kwok. Accessed Juky 14, 2019.)

1904 - Isaac Bashevis Singer, Polish-American writer, awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978. He was a leading figure in the Yiddish literary movement, writing and publishing only in Yiddish. He was also awarded two U.S. National Book Awards, one in Children's Literature for his memoir A Day Of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw (1970) and one in Fiction for his collection A Crown of Feathers and Other Stories (1974).

1910 - William Hanna, American animator, director, producer, voice actor, and cartoon artist whose film and TV cartoon characters entertained millions of people. Working at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Hanna met Joseph Barbera. The two men began a collaboration that was at first best known for producing Tom and Jerry (won seven Academy Awards). Hanna-Barbera collaboration became the most successful TV animation studio, creating and/or producing programs such as The Flintstones, The Huckleberry Hound Show, The Jetsons, Scooby-Doo, The Smurfs, and Yogi Bear. They won eight Emmy Awards. Their cartoons have become cultural icons, and their cartoon characters have appeared in other media such as films, books, and toys.

1918 - Ingmar Bergman (born Ernst Ingmar Bergman), Swedish director, writer, and producer who worked in film, television, theatre, and radio. Considered to be among the most accomplished and influential filmmakers of all time, Bergman's films include Smiles of a Summer Night, The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries, Persona, Cries and Whispers, Scenes from a Marriage, and Fanny and Alexander; the last two exist in extended television versions.

1921 - Leon Garfield,  FRSL, British writer of fiction. He is best known for children's historical novels, though he also wrote for adults. He wrote more than thirty books and scripted Shakespeare: The Animated Tales for television.

1926 - Harry Dean Stanton, American actor, musician, and singer. In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton played supporting roles in films such as Cool Hand Luke, Kelly's Heroes, Dillinger, The Godfather Part II, Alien, Escape from New York, Christine, Repo Man, Pretty in Pink, The Last Temptation of Christ, Wild at Heart, The Straight Story, The Green Mile, Alpha Dog and Inland Empire. He was given rare lead roles in Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas and Lucky (2017), his last film. 

 

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More birthdays today, 14 July - On This day.

Historical Events

1789 - Bastille Day. Around 800 Parisians armed with muskets and cannons attack the Bastile, a medieval fortress used as a prison. they wipe the garrison out and free the seven prisoners inside. This even triggers the French Revolution. Today this known as Bastille Day is celebrated to commemorate the event and the forming of the French Republic.

1791 - In Birmingham, England, rioters burn the home and laboratory of Joseph Priestly, the chemist who discovered oxygen, because of his support for the French Revolution. Three yearslater, he leaves for the U.S.A. 

July 13 Dateline

Birthdays

1933 - David Malcolm Storey, English playwright, screenwriter, award-winning novelist, and a professional rugby league footballer. He won the Booker Prize in 1976 for his novel Saville. He also won the MacMillan Fiction Award for This Sporting Life in 1960. Storey's novels Radcliffe and Pasmore were shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

1932 - Per Norgaard, Danish composer and teacher. He discovered the melodic infinity series in 1959 and it proved an inspiration for many of his works during the 1960s. However, it was not until his Voyage into the Golden Screen for small ensemble (1968)—which has been identified as the first "properly instrumental piece of spectral composition" (Anderson 2000, 14)—and Symphony No. 2 that it provided the structure for an entire work (Nørgård 1975,9). The harmonic and rhythmic infinity series were developed in the early 1970s and the three series were first integrated in Nørgård's Symphony No. 3.

1934 - Wole Soyinka (born Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka), Nigerian playwright, poet and essayist. He was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, the first sub-Saharan African to be honoured in that category. As a playwright, he is known for A Dance of the Forests. (A Dance of the Forests by Wole Soyinka (Play Outline). YouTube, uploaded by SparkShares Literature. Accessed July 13, 2020. 

1942 - Harrison Ford, American actor, aviator, and environmental activist. He gained worldwide fame for his role as Han Solo in the 1977 film Star Wars, reprising the role in four sequels over 42 years. He is known for his portrayal of Indiana Jones in the titular film franchise, beginning with the film Raiders of the Lost Ark. He career collaborates with some of the most acclaimed filmmakers. Ford has notably portrayed heroic characters in many films including Witness, The Fugitive, Air Force One, and 42. He has played the literary character Jack Ryan in two films based on novels created by Tom Clancy: Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger; he has also played morally ambiguous and darker characters in films as The Conversation, The Mosquito Coast, and Presumed Innocent, among others. Ford appeared in several romantic comedies and dramas. In addition to his box-office success, Ford is an Academy Award nominee, a four-time Golden Globe nominee, a two-time Saturn Award winner, and the recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award and the Cecil B. DeMille Award.

1944 - Erno Rubik, Hungarian inventor, architect and professor of architecture. He is best known for the invention of mechanical puzzles including Rubik's Cube, Rubik's Magic, Rubik's Magic: Master Edition, and Rubik's Snake.While he became famous for inventing the Rubik's Cube and his other puzzles, much of his recent work involves the promotion of science in education, in particular, Beyond Rubik's Cube, the Rubik Learning Initiative and the Judit Polgar Foundation all of whose aim is to engage students in science, mathematics, and problem solving at a young age.

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More birthdays and historical events today, 13 July - On This day.

 

Historical Events

1643 - The Battle of Roundway Down is fought during the English Civil War. It was a Royalist cavalry success that formed part of the "Royalist Summer," where everything seemed to be going Charles I's way for a time.

1793 - Charlotte Corday, a noblewoman, stabs French revolutionary leader Jean Paul Marat in the heart  whilst soaking in a bath. Corday believes in democracy and that Marat was leading France into anarchy. Four days later, she is executed in guillotine.

1829 - Felix Mendelssohn's Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra is first performed in London. Ignaz Moscheles and the composer are the soloists. (Listen to this performance. Lovely Mendelssohn Concerto for two Pianos and Orchestra. A double enjoyment as I profoundly feel Mozart's presence here. interpreted by Katia and Marielle Labeque, with Simeon Bychkov conducting the London Philharmonia Orchestra.)