Wikipedia:Today's featured article/November 2014

Today's featured article archive

November 1

Daniel "Doc" Adams (1814–1899) was an American baseball player and executive who is regarded as an important figure in the sport's early years. He began his career with the New York Knickerbockers in 1845 and played for the club into his forties (pictured, center, in 1859). Researchers have called Adams the creator of the shortstop position, and as club president six times between 1847 and 1861, Adams advocated rule changes that resulted in nine-man teams and nine-inning games. When the National Association of Base Ball Players was formed in 1858, he led the rules and regulations committee of the new organization. In his role, Adams ruled that the field's bases should be 90 feet (27 m) apart, the modern distance, and supported eliminating the "bound rule", which allowed for balls caught after one bounce to be recorded as outs. Adams' contributions in creating baseball's rules went largely unrecognized for decades after his death, but in 1980 a letter about him appeared in The New York Times and by 1993, researcher John Thorn had written about Adams' role. His nickname came from his medical work; he later became a bank president and member of the Connecticut legislature. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Resurrectionists in the United Kingdom – Peter Warlock – Sonic: After the Sequel

November 2

Roderic Dallas (1891–1918) was an Australian fighter ace of World War I. His official score of aerial victories (39) is generally regarded as the second-highest by an Australian, after Robert Little with 47, but researchers have credited Dallas with totals from 32 to over 50. He also achieved success as a squadron leader, and was an influential tactician and test pilot. Like Little, Dallas flew with British units, rather than the Australian Flying Corps. He travelled to England at his own expense following the outbreak of war and became a pilot in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) in August 1915. Initially flying Caudrons and Nieuport 11s on the Western Front, he was chosen to test one of the earliest Sopwith Triplanes. This became his favourite type, and he achieved many victories with it through 1916–17, earning the Distinguished Service Order, and the Distinguished Service Cross and Bar. Appointed commanding officer of No. 1 Squadron RNAS in June 1917, on the establishment of the Royal Air Force on 1 April 1918 he took command of No. 40 Squadron. Flying Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5s, he achieved further victories before being killed in action on patrol in northern France. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Doc Adams – Resurrectionists in the United Kingdom – Peter Warlock

November 3

The Bivalvia comprise a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. Bivalves include clams, oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops, and numerous other families that live in saltwater or in freshwater. The majority are filter feeders. Most bivalves bury themselves in sediment, where they are relatively safe from predation, though some others lie on the sea floor or attach themselves to rocks or other hard surfaces. A bivalve's shell (giant clam shell pictured) is composed of calcium carbonate, and consists of two, usually similar, parts called valves, which can open and close without becoming disarticulated. Adult shell sizes of bivalves vary from fractions of a millimetre to over a metre in length, but the majority of species do not exceed 10 cm (4 in). Bivalves have long been a part of the diet of coastal human populations, and pearl oysters are the most common source of natural pearls. Bivalves first appear in the fossil record more than 500 million years ago. The total number of living species is approximately 9,200. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Roderic Dallas – Doc Adams – Resurrectionists in the United Kingdom

November 4

Bonshō are large bells found in Buddhist temples throughout Japan, used to summon the monks to prayer and to demarcate periods of time. Rather than containing a clapper, bonshō (example at Ryōan-ji pictured) are struck from the outside, using either a hand-held mallet or a beam suspended on ropes. The bells are usually made from bronze, typically augmented and ornamented with bosses, raised bands, and inscriptions. The earliest appearance of these bells in Japan dates to around 600 CE, although the general design is of much earlier Chinese origin. Their penetrating and pervasive tone carries over considerable distances, which led to their use as signals, timekeepers, and alarms. The sound is thought to have supernatural properties; it is believed, for example, that it can be heard in the underworld. Their spiritual significance means that they play an important role in Buddhist ceremonies, particularly the New Year and Bon festivals. Throughout Japanese history a number of these bells have become associated with stories and legends, both fictional, such as the Benkei Bell of Mii-dera, and historical, such as the bell of Hōkō-ji. In modern times, bonshō have become symbols of world peace. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Bivalvia – Roderic Dallas – Doc Adams

November 5

Gough Whitlam (1916–2014) was Prime Minister of Australia from 1972 until his controversial dismissal in 1975 by Governor-General Sir John Kerr. Whitlam was first elected to Parliament in 1952 and became leader of the Labor Party in 1967. He won the 1972 election, forming the first Labor government since 1949. His government ended conscription, and introduced universal health care, free university education, and legal aid. With the Opposition-controlled Senate delaying passage of bills, Whitlam called a double dissolution election in 1974 and kept a majority in the House of Representatives. The Senate, still controlled by the Opposition, obstructed the passage of government funding bills in 1975. Whitlam refused to back down, arguing that his elected government should not be held to ransom. The deadlock was broken on 11 November, when Kerr dismissed Whitlam and commissioned Opposition Leader Malcolm Fraser in his place. Labor lost the subsequent election in a landslide. Whitlam stepped down as Labor leader after losing the 1977 election, retired from Parliament in 1978 and later became Ambassador to UNESCO. His dismissal, and his government's legacy, remain a large part of Australian political discourse. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Bonshō – Bivalvia – Roderic Dallas

November 6

Carl Hans Lody (1877–1914) was a reserve officer of the Imperial German Navy who spied in the United Kingdom at the start of the First World War. While working for a shipping line, he agreed to spy for German naval intelligence, and was sent to Edinburgh in late August. He spoke fluent English, and spent a month posing as an American tourist while reporting on British naval movements and coastal defences. He had not been given any espionage training and was detected almost immediately, as he sent his communications in plain English and German to a known German intelligence address in Sweden. By the end of September 1914, a rising spy panic in Britain led to foreigners coming under suspicion; he attempted to go into hiding in Ireland but was quickly caught. Tried in a public court martial in London, he made no attempt to deny his guilt, declaring that he had acted out of patriotic motives. His courage on the witness stand attracted admiration in Britain and Germany. He was sentenced to death by firing squad and on 6 November 1914 he became the first person in nearly 170 years to be executed at the Tower of London. Under the Nazi regime, he was acclaimed as a German national hero. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Gough Whitlam – Bonshō – Bivalvia

November 7

Bob Windle (born 1944) is a former Australian freestyle swimmer. He won the 1500 m freestyle and took bronze in the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and silver and bronze in the 4 × 200 m and 4 × 100 m freestyle relays respectively at the 1968 Summer Olympics. He is the only male swimmer to represent Australia at the Olympics in all freestyle distances from 100 m to 1500 m. During his career, Windle set six world records, won six Commonwealth Games gold medals, and won 19 Australian Championships in all distances from 220 yd to 1650 yd. He won his first national title in 1961 and made his international debut at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. After the 1964 Olympics, Windle enrolled at Indiana University, and converted to sprint swimming. He competed in the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica, winning three competitions, all in world record times. He competed in his second Olympics in Mexico City in 1968, racing the 100 m and 200 m freestyle and the corresponding relays. He retired after the games and worked for Allis-Chalmers in the United States, before being transferred to their Australian division. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Carl Hans Lody – Gough Whitlam – Bonshō

November 8

Pelicans are a genus of large water birds comprising the family Pelecanidae. They are characterised by a long beak and large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped up contents before swallowing. They have predominantly pale plumage, the exceptions being the brown and Peruvian pelicans. The bills, pouches and bare facial skin of all species become brightly coloured before the breeding season. The eight living pelican species (great white pelican pictured) have a patchy global distribution, ranging latitudinally from the tropics to the temperate zone. They frequent inland and coastal waters where they feed principally on fish, catching them at or near the water surface. Gregarious birds, they often hunt cooperatively and breed colonially. Four white-plumaged species tend to nest on the ground, and four brown or grey-plumaged species nest mainly in trees. The birds have been persecuted because of their perceived competition with fishers, and have suffered from habitat destruction, disturbance and environmental pollution. They have a long history of cultural significance in mythology, and in Christian and heraldic iconography. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Bob Windle – Carl Hans Lody – Gough Whitlam

November 9

SMS Emden was the second and final member of the Dresden class of light cruisers built for the Imperial German Navy. Named for the town of Emden, she was completed in July 1909 at the Imperial Dockyard in Danzig, and spent most of her career with the German East Asia Squadron, based in Tsingtao, China. At the outbreak of World War I, Emden captured a Russian steamer and converted her into the commerce raider Cormoran. In October 1914, Emden launched a surprise attack on Penang, sinking the Russian cruiser Zhemchug and the French destroyer Mousquet. Emden's commander, Karl von Müller, then took her to raid the Cocos Islands, where he landed a contingent of sailors to destroy British facilities. On 9 November 1914, Emden was attacked by the Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney, a more powerful ship, and seriously damaged. Müller ran his ship aground to prevent her from sinking. Out of a crew of 376, 133 were killed in the battle. Most of the survivors were taken prisoner, though the landing party commandeered an old schooner and eventually returned to Germany. Emden's wreck was quickly destroyed by wave action, but was not broken up for scrap until the 1950s. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Pelican – Bob Windle – Carl Hans Lody

November 10

Highway 401 is a 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario stretching 817.9 kilometres (508.2 mi). The portion that passes through Toronto is the busiest highway in the world, and one of the widest (18 lanes pictured near Toronto Pearson International Airport). By the end of 1952, three individual highways were numbered "Highway 401": the partially completed Toronto Bypass between Weston Road and Highway 11; Highway 2A between West Hill and Newcastle; and the Scenic Highway between Gananoque and Brockville. The route was expanded across the province, and became fully navigable from Windsor to the Quebec border on November 10, 1964. In 1965 it was designated the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway, in honour of the Fathers of Confederation, and it became a freeway for its entire length in 1968. A portion of the highway was designated the Highway of Heroes in 2007, as the road is travelled by funeral convoys for fallen Canadian Forces personnel from CFB Trenton to the coroner's office in Toronto. In 2011 construction began on a westward extension of Highway 401 that will be known as the Herb Gray Parkway and extend to Interstate 75 via a new international crossing. (Full article...)

Recently featured: SMS Emden (1908) – Pelican – Bob Windle

November 11

"Goodbyeee" is the sixth and final episode of the British historical sitcom Blackadder's fourth series, entitled Blackadder Goes Forth. First broadcast on BBC One on 2 November 1989, shortly before Armistice Day, the episode depicts its main characters' final hours before a British offensive on the Western Front of the First World War, and the failed attempts of Captain Blackadder, played by Rowan Atkinson (pictured), to escape his fate by feigning madness. After he cannot convince General Melchett, and Field Marshal Haig's advice is useless, he is resigned to take part in the push. It has a darker tone than other episodes in the series, culminating with the main characters charging into no-man's land under machine-gun fire. The episode's theme of death ties in with the series' use of gallows humour and its criticism and satire of war. Richard Curtis and Ben Elton wrote the episode, and additional material was provided by its cast members. Its slow-motion final sequence showing the main characters going "over the top" has often been voted one of the greatest moments in television. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Ontario Highway 401 – SMS Emden (1908) – Pelican

November 12

Jo Stafford (1917–2008) was an American traditional pop music singer and occasional actress whose career spanned five decades. Admired for the purity of her voice, she achieved by 1955 more worldwide record sales than any other woman artist. Born in Coalinga, California, Stafford made her first musical appearance at age twelve. She was trained as an opera singer before turning to popular music. With her two older sisters, she appeared in Alexander's Ragtime Band in 1938, where she met musicians with whom she formed the The Pied Pipers and became the group's lead singer. Her work with the USO, giving concerts for soldiers, earned her the nickname "G.I. Jo". From 1945, Stafford was a regular host of the NBC series The Chesterfield Supper Club and later appeared on television including two series called The Jo Stafford Show. In 1961, the album Jonathan and Darlene Edwards in Paris won Stafford her only Grammy Award. In the 1970s, she recorded a cover of the Bee Gees hit "Stayin' Alive". Her work is recognized by three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her 1952 song "You Belong to Me" made her the first woman to reach number one on the U.K. Singles Chart. (Full article...)

Recently featured: "Goodbyeee" – Ontario Highway 401 – SMS Emden (1908)

November 13

Sadie Harris is a recurring fictional character from the American television medical drama Grey's Anatomy, played by actress Melissa George (pictured). Introduced in November 2008 as a surgical intern who has an old companionship with the series' protagonist Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), Harris eventually forms a friendship with Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh), and departs after it is revealed she cheated her way into the surgical program. George's original contract included appearances in eight to eleven episodes of season five, with the possibility of becoming a series regular. Harris was originally planned to be a romantic foil for Erica Hahn (Brooke Smith) and Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez), but the role was retooled after the former left. After some speculation about the character's future, it was confirmed that she would not be joining the series; the final episode to include Harris was broadcast in February 2009. In response to assertions that Harris left to "de-gay" Grey's Anatomy, George explained that it was her own decision to leave. The character received mixed feedback from critics, and has been characterized as "naughty", "mischievous", and "nutty". (Full article...)

Recently featured: Jo Stafford – "Goodbyeee" – Ontario Highway 401

November 14

Harold Larwood (1904–1995) was a professional cricketer for Nottinghamshire and England between 1924 and 1938. A right-arm fast bowler, he was considered by many commentators to be the finest bowler of his generation. He was the main exponent of the bowling style known as "bodyline", developed under the guidance of England's combative captain Douglas Jardine as a response to the domination of Australia's leading batsman, Don Bradman. The tactic was used with considerable success in the 1932–33 Test series, but the Australians' description of the method as "unsportsmanlike" soured cricketing relations between the two countries. Larwood refused to apologise for his bowling, as he was carrying out his captain's instructions, and never played for England again. In retirement after the Second World War, he and his family emigrated to Australia, where he was warmly welcomed, in contrast to his cricketing days. He paid several subsequent visits to England, and was honoured at his old county ground, Trent Bridge, where a stand was named after him. In 1993 he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), in delayed recognition of his services to cricket. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Sadie Harris – Jo Stafford – "Goodbyeee"

November 15

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes is a first-person, action-adventure video game developed by Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the GameCube video game console. It is the seventh published game in the Metroid series, a direct sequel to Metroid Prime, and the first game in the series with a multiplayer feature. Echoes was released in North America, Europe, and Australia in 2004, and in Japan the following year. The story follows bounty hunter Samus Aran as she explores Aether, a planet that is infested with the Ing, an evil race from an alternate dimension. Samus must travel to three temples to ensure the destruction of the Ing, while battling Space Pirates and her mysterious doppelgänger called Dark Samus. Retro decided to make the game different from its predecessor by adding more focus on storyline and including new gameplay elements. The game's single player mode and graphics were praised by critics, while its steep difficulty level and multiplayer components were met less positively. Echoes received several video game industry awards, as well as spots on "top games" lists by Nintendo Power and IGN. Over 800,000 copies of the game have been sold worldwide. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Harold Larwood – Sadie Harris – Jo Stafford

November 16

Hurricane Claudette was the third tropical storm and first hurricane of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. A fairly long-lived July Atlantic hurricane, Claudette began as a tropical wave in the eastern Caribbean. It moved quickly westward, brushing past the Yucatán Peninsula before moving northwestward through the Gulf of Mexico. Claudette remained a tropical storm until just before making landfall in Port O'Connor, Texas, when it quickly strengthened to a strong Category 1 hurricane. Forecasting its path and intensity was uncertain, resulting in widespread and often unnecessary preparations along its path. Claudette was the first hurricane to make landfall in July in the United States since Hurricane Danny in the 1997 season. The hurricane caused one death and moderate damage in Texas, mostly from strong winds, as well as extensive beach erosion. Because of the damage, President George W. Bush declared portions of South Texas as a Federal Disaster Area, allowing the affected citizens to apply for aid. Claudette also caused significant rainfall and minor damage in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, as well as minor damage on Saint Lucia. (Full article...)

Part of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season featured topic.

Recently featured: Metroid Prime 2: Echoes – Harold Larwood – Sadie Harris

November 17

Not My Life is a 2011 American independent documentary film about human trafficking and contemporary slavery. The film was written, produced, and directed by Robert Bilheimer (pictured in Senegal during filming), who had been asked to make the film by Antonio Maria Costa, executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Not My Life addresses many forms of slavery, including the military use of children in Uganda, involuntary servitude in the United States, forced begging and garbage picking in India, sex trafficking in Europe and Southeast Asia, and other kinds of child abuse. Fifty people are interviewed in the film, including Don Brewster of Agape International Missions, who says that all of the girls they have rescued from child sex tourism in Cambodia identify Americans as the clients who were the most abusive to them. The film was dedicated to Richard Young, its cinematographer and co-director, after he died in December 2010. It had its premiere the following month at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. Not My Life was named Best World Documentary at the 2012 Harlem International Film Festival. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Hurricane Claudette (2003) – Metroid Prime 2: Echoes – Harold Larwood

November 18

The Siege of Godesberg, 18 November – 17 December 1583, was the first major siege of the Cologne War (1583–89). A formidable 13th-century fortress, the Godesburg (pictured c. 1500), sat on top of the Godesberg mountain, towering over the Rhine valley. It commanded the roads leading to Bonn, the Elector of Cologne's capital city, and Cologne, the region's economic powerhouse. By the mid-16th century, the Godesburg was considered nearly impregnable and had become a symbol of the dual power of the Prince-electors and Archbishops of Cologne. Bavarian and mercenary soldiers surrounded the mountain and the village then of the same name, now Bad Godesberg, at its foot. The Godesburg resisted a lengthy cannonade by the attacking army; finally, sappers tunneled into the mountain and blew up a significant part of the fortifications. This killed many of the defenders, but the remainder offered staunch resistance and the Bavarians had to enter the castle's inner courtyard through the latrine system to succeed. The Godesburg's commander negotiated safe passage for himself, his wife and his lieutenant. The others who were left in the keep—men, women and children—were killed. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Not My Life – Hurricane Claudette (2003) – Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

November 19

The Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar was a fifty-cent piece struck intermittently by the United States Bureau of the Mint between 1926 and 1939. The coin was designed by Laura Gardin Fraser and James Earle Fraser, and honors those who traveled the Oregon Trail and settled the Pacific Coast of the United States. Ohio-born Ezra Meeker had traveled the Trail with his family in 1852 and spent the final two decades of his long life publicizing the Trail. In 1926, at age 95, he appeared before a Senate committee, requesting that the government issue a commemorative coin to raise money for markers to show where the Trail had been. The many varieties produced after Meeker's death in 1928 came to be considered ripoffs, and in 1939 Congress ended the series. The Oregon Trail Memorial Association, distributor of the coin, had difficulty in selling them, and they remained available from the OTMA's successor organization as late as 1953. Just over 260,000 of the 6,000,000 authorized coins were struck, of which about 60,000 were melted. The US commemorative coin struck over the longest period, the Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar has been widely praised for its design. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Siege of Godesberg – Not My Life – Hurricane Claudette (2003)

November 20

Vijayanagara literature in Kannada is the body of literature composed in the Kannada language of South India during the Vijayanagar Empire (14th–16th centuries). The Vijayanagara empire was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I. The empire is named after its capital city Vijayanagara, whose ruins surround modern Hampi, now a World Heritage Site in Karnataka (Virupaksha Temple pictured). Kannada literature during this period consisted of writings relating to the socio-religious developments of the Veerashaiva and Vaishnava faiths, and to a lesser extent to that of Jainism. Authors included poets, scholars, and members of the royal family, their ministers, army commanders of rank, and nobility. Writers popularised use of the native metres: shatpadi (six-line verse), sangatya (compositions meant to be sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument), and tripadi (three-line verse). The development of Veerashaiva literature was at its peak during the reign of King Deva Raya II, the best-known of the Sangama Dynasty rulers. The rule of King Krishnadeva Raya of the Tuluva Dynasty and his successors was a high point in Vaishnava literature. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar – Siege of Godesberg – Not My Life

November 21

The Sega 32X is an add-on for the Sega Genesis video game console. It was designed to expand the power of the Genesis and serve as a transitional console into the 32-bit era until the release of the Sega Saturn. Unveiled at June 1994's Consumer Electronics Show, Sega presented the 32X as a low-cost option for playing 32-bit games. Developed in response to the Atari Jaguar and concerns that the Saturn would not be ready by the end of 1994, the product was originally conceived as an entirely new console, but was converted into an add-on to the existing Genesis and made more powerful. To meet the release date of November 1994, development of the new system and its games were rushed. Ultimately, the console failed to attract third-party video game developers and sufficient consumers due to the announcement of the Sega Saturn's simultaneous release in Japan. By the end of 1994, the 32X had sold 665,000 units; it was discontinued in 1996. Initial reception was positive, highlighting the low price and power expansion to the Genesis, but later reviews were mostly negative because of its shallow game library, poor market timing and the resulting market fragmentation for the Genesis. (Full article...)

Part of the Sega Genesis featured topic.

Recently featured: Vijayanagara literature in Kannada – Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar – Siege of Godesberg

November 22

1938 ice hockey game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs

The early history of the National Hockey League (NHL) began in 1917 when it was founded by a majority of the franchises in the National Hockey Association (the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators and Quebec Bulldogs). The NHL's first quarter-century saw the league compete against two rival major leagues, the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and Western Canada Hockey League, for players and the Stanley Cup. The NHL first expanded into the United States in 1924 with the founding of the Boston Bruins, and by 1926 consisted of ten teams in Ontario, Quebec, the Great Lakes region, and the Northeastern United States. At the same time, the NHL emerged as the only major league and the sole competitor for the Stanley Cup. Numerous innovations to the rules and equipment were put forward as the NHL sought to improve the flow of the game and make the sport more fan-friendly. Foster Hewitt's radio broadcasts were heard coast-to-coast across Canada starting in 1933. The Great Depression and World War II reduced the league to six teams by 1942, known as the "Original Six". (Full article...)

Recently featured: Sega 32X – Vijayanagara literature in Kannada – Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar

November 23

Franklin Pierce (1804–1869) was the 14th President of the United States (1853–57), whose inability to calm tensions over slavery kept the country on the path to the Civil War. A northern Democrat from New Hampshire, Pierce served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate and took part in the Mexican–American War as a brigadier general before becoming the Democrats' compromise candidate in the 1852 presidential election. He saw the abolitionist movement as a fundamental threat to the unity of the nation. He was a Young America expansionist who signed the Gadsden Purchase of land from Mexico and led a failed attempt to acquire Cuba from Spain. His polarizing actions in signing the Kansas–Nebraska Act and enforcing the Fugitive Slave Act failed to stem intersectional conflict. Although Pierce expected to be renominated by the Democrats, he was abandoned by his party and failed in his bid to be re-elected. His wife Jane suffered from illness and depression for much of her life, and all of their children died young. Pierce, a heavy drinker for much of his life, died of cirrhosis of the liver. Today he is widely regarded as one of the worst presidents in U.S. history. (Full article...)

Recently featured: History of the National Hockey League (1917–42) – Sega 32X – Vijayanagara literature in Kannada

November 24

The Haflinger is a horse breed developed in Austria and northern Italy during the late 19th century. Relatively small and chestnut in color, they were developed for use in mountainous terrain and are known for their hardiness. The breed traces its ancestry to the Middle Ages, and their current conformation and appearance come from infusions of bloodlines from Arabian and various European breeds into the original native Tyrolean ponies. All Haflingers can trace their lineage to a foundation sire born in 1874. The two World Wars and the Great Depression had a detrimental effect on the breed. In the postwar era the Haflinger was indiscriminately crossed with other breeds, but from 1946 breeders focused on producing purebred Haflingers. Interest in the breed increased in other countries, and numbers grew. In 2003 a Haflinger became the first horse to be cloned, resulting in a filly named Prometea. Haflingers have many uses, including light draft, harness work, and various under-saddle disciplines. They are also used by the Austrian and German armies in rough terrain. The World Haflinger Federation, a confederation of 22 national registries, controls breed standards. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Franklin Pierce – History of the National Hockey League (1917–42) – Sega 32X

November 25

Biscayne National Park is a U.S. National Park in southern Florida, south of Miami, that preserves Biscayne Bay and its offshore barrier reefs (pictured). Ninety-five percent of the park is water, accessible only by boat. It covers 172,971 acres (69,999 ha) and includes Elliott Key, the first of the true Florida Keys. The park protects four ecosystems (mangrove swamp, shallow waters, coral limestone keys and the Florida Reef), providing a nursery for larval and juvenile fish, molluscs and crustaceans, and nesting grounds for endangered sea turtles. Sixteen endangered species including Schaus' swallowtail butterflies, smalltooth sawfish, manatees, and green and hawksbill sea turtles may be observed in the park. The people of the Glades culture inhabited the region about 10,000 years ago before rising sea levels filled the bay. The Tequesta people occupied the area from about 4,000 BC to the 16th century, when the Spanish took possession of Florida. Following the Cuban Revolution, Elliott Key was used as a training ground for infiltrators into Castro's Cuba by the CIA and Cuban exile groups. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Haflinger – Franklin Pierce – History of the National Hockey League (1917–42)

November 26

"The World Is Not Enough" is the theme song of the 1999 James Bond film of the same name, performed by alternative rock group Garbage (pictured in 2012). The song was written by composer David Arnold, who also scored the film, and lyricist Don Black, previously responsible for four other Bond songs. "The World Is Not Enough" was composed in the traditional style of the series' title themes contrasting with the post-modern production technique and genre-hopping sound that Garbage had established on their first two albums. Garbage recorded the majority of "The World Is Not Enough" while touring Europe, telephoning Arnold as he recorded the orchestral backing in London before travelling to England themselves. Afterwards the band finished production of the song in Canada. The lyrics reflect the point of view of the film's antagonist Elektra King, with themes of world domination and seduction. The song and accompanying soundtrack were released by Radioactive Records as the film premiered around the world at the end of November 1999. Upon release, "The World Is Not Enough" was widely acclaimed by reviewers, and reached the top forty of ten singles charts. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Biscayne National Park – Haflinger – Franklin Pierce

November 27

Freedom from Want is the third of the Four Freedoms series of four oil paintings by American artist Norman Rockwell (1894–1978, pictured in his twenties). The works were inspired by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1941 State of the Union Address, known as Four Freedoms. Until then, freedom from want was not a commonly understood or accepted universal freedom. The painting was published in the March 6, 1943, issue of The Saturday Evening Post. It depicts a group of people gathered around a dinner table for a holiday meal, all of whom were friends and family of Rockwell; they were photographed individually and painted into the scene. The painting has become an iconic representation of the Thanksgiving holiday and family holiday gatherings in general and has had a wide array of adaptations, parodies, and other uses. Popular then and now in the U.S., it caused resentment in Europe where the masses were enduring wartime hardship. Artistically, the work is highly regarded as an example of mastery of the challenges of white-on-white painting and as one of Rockwell's most famous works. (Full article...)

Part of the Four Freedoms featured topic.

Recently featured: "The World Is Not Enough" – Biscayne National Park – Haflinger

November 28

Roy King (1894–1941) was a fighter ace in the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) during World War I. He was credited with twenty-six victories in aerial combat, making him the second most successful ace in the AFC after Harry Cobby, and the fourth highest-scoring Australian ace of the war. A civil pilot and engineer between the wars, he served in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) from 1939 until his death. King initially saw active service as a lighthorseman in Egypt in 1916. He transferred to the AFC as a mechanic in January 1917, and was commissioned that year as a pilot. Posted to No. 4 Squadron, he flew Sopwith Camels and Snipes on the Western Front. He scored seven of his victories in the Snipe, more than any other pilot. His exploits earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Distinguished Service Order, and a mention in despatches. Returning to Australia in 1919, King spent some years in civil aviation before co-founding a successful engineering business. He joined the RAAF following the outbreak of World War II and held several training commands, rising to the rank of group captain shortly before his sudden death in November 1941 aged forty-seven. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Freedom from Want (painting) – "The World Is Not Enough" – Biscayne National Park

November 29

George Robey (1869–1954) was an English comedian, singer and actor in musical theatre, known as one of the greatest music hall performers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Robey mixed everyday situations and observations with comic absurdity, and was a popular Christmas pantomime performer. His notable successes during the First World War included the hit revue The Bing Boys Are Here, in which he sang "If You Were the Only Girl (In the World)". Born in London to a middle-class family, he made his debut on stage at age 21 as the straight man to a comic hypnotist. He soon developed his own music hall act. In 1892, he appeared in his first pantomime, Whittington Up-to-date. He starred in the Royal Command Performance in 1912 and regularly entertained before aristocracy. In 1913 he debuted in film, but with only modest success. From 1918, he created sketches based on his character, the Prime Minister of Mirth. He played Falstaff in Henry IV, Part 1 in 1935, and again in Laurence Olivier's 1944 film of Henry V. During the Second World War, Robey raised money for charities and promoted recruitment into the forces. He was knighted a few months before his death. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Elwyn Roy King – Freedom from Want (painting) – "The World Is Not Enough"

November 30

The Natchez revolt was an attack by the Natchez people on French colonists near present-day Natchez, Mississippi, on November 29, 1729. The Natchez and French had lived alongside each other in Louisiana for more than a decade. After a period of deteriorating relations, the Natchez were provoked to revolt when the French colonial commandant, Sieur de Chépart, demanded land from a tribal village near Fort Rosalie (pictured). They plotted an attack over several days and concealed their plans from most of the French. In an armed massacre on the fort and homesteads by the Mississippi River, they killed 230 of the 250 French colonists and burned the fort and homes to the ground. Upon hearing news of the revolt, French leaders in New Orleans feared a broader Native American uprising and ordered an attack on the Chaouacha people, who were not involved in the revolt. Over the next few weeks, French leaders sent two expeditions to besiege the Natchez and recover hostages. Most of the Natchez attackers escaped and sought refuge with other tribes, but their revolt had been a significant setback to the Louisiana colony, and the French retaliation led to the end of the Natchez as an independent people. (Full article...)

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