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August 23 ![]() Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy in 1962 In 1993, about 350 documents were forged by Lawrence X. Cusack III. These papers were supposedly from, or related to, John F. Kennedy. Some of them alleged that Kennedy had a secret first marriage and dealings with organized crime, had bribed FBI director J. Edgar Hoover, and paid hush money to Marilyn Monroe. Cusack, son of a lawyer who had dealings with Monroe's family, claimed to have found the papers in the firm's files. He sold them for between six and seven million dollars. One of the buyers suggested showing them to Seymour Hersh, who was writing The Dark Side of Camelot (1997). Hersh began incorporating them into his book and proposed a television documentary. Checks by the networks uncovered flaws in the forgeries. These included the use of a ZIP Code in a paper dated two years before the ZIP Code was introduced, and the use of typeball that had not yet been invented. Cusack was convicted of fraud, sentenced to nearly ten years in prison and ordered to refund the money to the buyers. (Full article...)
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![]() Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking hands after signing the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
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August 23 ![]() The Red Creek Fir Canada's national forest inventory includes many native conifer species. All except the larches are evergreens. Most are in the pine family, except for yews (in the yew family) and junipers, Alaska cedars and thuja cedars (in the cypress family). Softwood from North American conifers has a variety of commercial uses. The sturdier timber is used for plywood, wood veneer and construction framing, including structural support beams and studs. Milled logs can be fashioned into posts, poles and railroad ties. Less sturdy timber is often ground and processed into pulpwood, principally for papermaking. Resins from sap yield wood tar, turpentine or other terpenes. (Full list...) | |||
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August 24 Anna Lee Fisher (born August 24, 1949) is an American chemist, emergency physician and former NASA astronaut who was the first mother to fly in space. Fisher became an astronaut candidate with NASA Astronaut Group 8 and joined the Astronaut Office for the development of the Canadarm and the testing of payload bay door contingency spacewalk procedures. She was assigned to the search and rescue helicopters for four Space Shuttle missions, then involved in the verification of flight software at the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory and supported vehicle integration and payload testing at Kennedy Space Center. She flew into space on Space Shuttle Discovery for the STS-51-A mission and used the Canadarm to retrieve two satellites in incorrect orbits. Fisher then worked on procedures and training issues for the International Space Station (ISS), was a capsule communicator (CAPCOM) and the lead CAPCOM for ISS Expedition 33, and was involved in developing the display for the Orion spacecraft. (Full article...)
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August 24: Feast day of Saint Bartholomew (Western Christianity); Independence Day in Ukraine (1991)
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August 25 The 24th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Karstjäger was a German mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, the armed wing of the Nazi Party that served alongside, but was never formally part of, the German armed forces during World War II. Formed on 18 July 1944 from a battalion, it was understrength and was soon reduced to a brigade. Its main task was fighting partisans on the rugged frontiers of Yugoslavia, Italy, and Austria, and it consisted mainly of ethnic Germans from Yugoslavia and Italy. It also disarmed Italian troops and protected ethnic German communities in Italy in the wake of the Italian surrender. Members of the division were implicated in the 25 August 1944 murder of 33 people in the village of Torlano near Nimis in Italy, and 22 other major crimes. At the post-war Nuremberg trials, the Waffen-SS was declared to be a criminal organisation due to its major involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity. (Full article...)
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August 26 The black-throated loon (Gavia arctica) is a migratory aquatic bird that primarily breeds in freshwater lakes in northern Europe and Asia. It winters along sheltered, ice-free coasts of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans. First described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it is about 70 centimetres (28 in) long and can weigh from 1.3 to 3.4 kilograms (2.9 to 7.5 lb). In breeding plumage, it has mostly black upperparts, a grey head and hindneck, white and black sides, mostly white underparts and flanks, and a mostly black throat. The loon builds an oval-shaped nest about 23 centimetres (9.1 in) across, in vegetation on or near the breeding lake. It usually lays two eggs, brown-green with dark splotches. Chicks are fed a diet of small fish and invertebrates, contrasting with the mostly fish diet of the adult. Overall, the population of this loon is declining, but the species is not threatened. It is protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 and the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement. (Full article...) |
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August 26: Heroes' Day in Namibia; Women's Equality Day in the United States
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August 26 The discography of Basshunter, a Swedish singer, comprises five studio albums, two compilation albums, 30 singles, five promotional singles and seven remixes. The Bassmachine, Basshunter's debut studio album, was released by Alex Music on 25 August 2004. In April 2006, he signed his first contract with Extensive Music and Warner Music Sweden. His single "Boten Anna" charted at number one on the Danish singles chart, where it stayed for fourteen weeks; it was certified triple platinum by IFPI Danmark. "Boten Anna" also reached number one in the Swedish singles chart and was certified platinum by IFPI Sverige. His second studio album LOL, released on 28 August 2006, charted in the top five in Sweden, Denmark and Finland. The album was certified platinum by IFPI Finland and double platinum by IFPI Danmark. (Full list...) | |||
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August 27 Nadezhda Stasova (1822–1895) was an educator and one of the earliest leaders of the Russian women's movement. She was born into a noble and wealthy family; Tsar Alexander I of Russia was her godfather, and she received extensive private tutoring as a child. In adulthood, she dedicated herself to women's empowerment. Along with Anna Filosofova and Maria Trubnikova, she founded and led several organizations designed to promote women's cultural and economic independence, including a publishing cooperative. In a decades-long effort, they successfully pushed government officials to allow higher education for women, although continual opposition sometimes limited or even reversed their successes. Stasova eventually became the lead organizer of the Bestuzhev Courses for women in 1878, but a decade later was forced to resign under political pressure. She continued her work on women's issues right up until her death in 1895, mentoring and inspiring younger feminists. (Full article...)
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August 27: Independence Day in Moldova (1991)
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August 28 Bäckadräkten is Sweden's first unisex folk costume, designed in 2022 by musician Fredy Clue (pictured) and textile designer Ida Björs. Their mission was to encourage wider participation in folk traditions by providing an outfit that is not restricted to any gender or geographic region. The design merges elements traditionally considered either male or female and borrows heavily from older folk costumes. The release generated international press attention and discussions on social media, much of the latter about the relationship between folk arts and gender. Many welcomed the design, saying it provides an opportunity for non-binary Swedes to be more involved in folk culture. Others reacted negatively, resisting the social change they see as associated with it. Clue released a sewing pattern in 2023 and started taking custom orders by 2024, encouraging users to modify as they see fit, saying: "The real work continues with us learning to listen to oneself and others." (Full article...) |
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August 29 The Cross Temple is a former place of worship in Fangshan, Beijing. Built as a Buddhist temple, it may have seen Christian use during the Tang dynasty (618–907). The temple was used by Buddhists during the Liao dynasty (916–1125) and by Christians during the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), returned to Buddhist use during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), and was sold in 1911. Its first modern mention was in 1919. The Cross Temple was damaged during the Cultural Revolution but recognised as a national-level protected site in 2006. Some scholars consider it to be the only place of worship of the Church of the East (also known as Nestorian Christianity) discovered in China. In the early 20th century, two stone blocks carved with crosses were discovered, one of which had an inscription in Syriac; they are presently on display at Nanjing Museum. Today, the site features two ancient steles (one pictured) dating to the Liao and Yuan dynasties, some groundwork and the bases of several pillars. (Full article...)
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August 29: Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist (Catholicism, Anglicanism)
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August 30 Segundo Romance (Second Romance) is the tenth studio album by Mexican singer Luis Miguel (pictured), released on 30 August 1994 through WEA Latina. Like Miguel's 1991 album Romance, Segundo Romance comprises cover versions of boleros (Latin ballads). It was produced by Miguel with Juan Carlos Calderón, Kiko Cibrian and Armando Manzanero, and recorded in early 1994 at the Record Plant in Los Angeles. Miguel promoted the album with tours in the United States and Latin America from August to December 1994. Four singles were released: "El Día Que Me Quieras", "La Media Vuelta", "Todo y Nada", and "Delirio". The former two reached the top of the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart in the United States. Segundo Romance received positive reviews from music critics and it won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance. By 1995, Segundo Romance had sold more than 4.5 million copies, achieved multi-platinum status in many Latin American countries and Spain, and was certified platinum in the United States. (Full article...)
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August 30: Victory Day in Turkey (1922)
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August 30 ![]() 2017 second-round selection Nicolas Hague The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey franchise located in Las Vegas, Nevada. Founded ahead of the 2017–18 season as an expansion team, they play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Hockey League (NHL). As of 2024, the Golden Knights have made 54 selections in eight NHL entry drafts. The Golden Knights first participated in the 2017 NHL entry draft, where they made Cody Glass their first-ever selection at sixth overall; they also selected Nick Suzuki and Erik Brannstrom later in the first round. 2017 second-round selection Nicolas Hague (pictured) has played the most games for the Golden Knights of any draft pick, with 296 games played as of the conclusion of the 2023–24 NHL season. Hague and 2018 fifth-round pick Paul Cotter were the only draft picks to be inscribed on the Stanley Cup after the Golden Knights' victory in the 2023 Stanley Cup Finals. (Full list...) | |||
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