1. The very first iteration of Ronald McDonald was created by Willard Scott in 1963: 2. The two people depicted in Grant Wood's "American Gothic" actually exist. This is what they looked like: 3. This is Margaret Gorman, the woman who won the very first Miss America competition in 1921: 6. This is Conrad Veidt, the man whose performance in the 1928 film The Man Who Laughs inspired the look of the iconic villain the Joker:
Today is Tuesday, Dec. 23, the 357th day of 2025. There are eight days left in the year. Today in history: On Dec. 23, 1972, in an NFL playoff game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Oakland Raiders, Steelers running back Franco Harris scored a game-winning touchdown on a deflected pass with less than 10 seconds left. The Immaculate Reception, as the catch came to be known, is often cited as the greatest NFL play of all time.
When 15-year-old Shurina is cast as a kamikaze pilot in her school play, she embarks on an unexpected journey through history and loss. As she travels across Japan, she visits World War II memorials and hangs paper cranes in memory of schoolgirls forced to end their lives during the war. In Okinawa, as her final performance approaches, Shurina seeks the courage to honor the voices of the past.
Dictators like to move people around. Stalin, for instance. From the summer of 1941 through the fall of 1942, with the Russian front facing massive bombardment and Nazi troops on the ground, he decided to relocate civilians, and entire industries, to safer regions in the eastern Soviet Union. The Urals, Siberia, the middle Volga, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan eventually received sixteen million evacuees, perhaps the most ever moved across land by a single directive.
Her name was Iva Toguri D'Aquino, and she was born in Watts to Japanese parents in 1916 and had a degree in zoology from UCLA. She wanted to be a doctor. But she traveled to Tokyo in 1941 to care for a sick aunt, with disastrous timing. She made the trip without a passport, which doomed her desperate efforts to board a ship home as the war erupted.
This year's Remembrance Day, which is held every Nov. 11 to honour those who have served and are currently serving in the military, marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Tuesday will also mark the 100th anniversary of the Toronto Cenotaph at Old City Hall. The memorial for those who died at war has been a site of remembrance since 1925.
British Asian families are being urged to record the experiences of relatives who fought for Britain for future generations as data reveals half the British public don't know that Indian members of the armed forces served in the second world war. The My Family Legacy project, backed by the Royal British Legion, is building an online archive of Asian veterans' experiences to raise awareness of the shared histories and sacrifices of Britain's diverse communities.
Boeing played an integral role in World War 2. The B-17 Flying Fortress and B-29 Superfortress bombers, both produced by Boeing, became iconic symbols of American air power. These aircraft delivered devastating blows to Axis forces, with the B-29s dropping the atomic bombs on Japan. Aside from bombers, Boeing also manufactured fighter planes, reconnaissance aircraft, and transport planes.
On 26 January 1944, a 23-year-old US pilot was flying a mighty P-47 Thunderbolt on a wartime training exercise when it crashed in Essex. Locals witnessed the horror of 2nd Lt Lester Lowry's aircraft diving to the ground and bursting into flames. Lowry was not seen to bail out and he has remained missing in action (MIA) for more than 80 years.
Aircraft carriers have been central to the U.S. Navy, and over the years they have only increased in importance since their introduction in World War 2. Each new generation has pushed the limits of range, aircraft capacity, and survivability. The Yorktown, Essex, and Midway classes would set the stage for the modern Navy we know today. These carriers acted as mobile airbases that allowed the U.S. to strike deep into enemy territory.
On Oct. 23, 2001, Apple released the iPod. An estimated 450 million iPod devices were sold before the line was discontinued in 2022. Also on this date: In 1915, an estimated 25,000 women marched on Fifth Avenue in New York City in support of women's suffrage. In 1942, during World War II, Britain launched a major offensive against Axis forces at El Alamein (el ah-lah-MAYN') in Egypt, resulting in an Allied forces victory.
In 1924, while imprisoned at Landsberg Prison following the failed Beer Hall Putsch, a 35-year-old political agitator named Adolf Hitler began writing his manifesto, Mein Kampf. In it, he called for the destruction of the Treaty of Versailles, the creation of a new German Reich through territorial expansion, and the removal of Jews from German life. Fourteen years later, on September 30, 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain returned from Munich to cheering crowds after concluding a meeting with the same Hitler.
The M4 Sherman was the backbone of Allied armored forces in World War II. It devastated German armor and infantry across North Africa and Europe, leaving an indelible mark on tank design and military doctrine for generations. This tank was mass-produced in greater numbers than any other American tank of the era, and it was prized among the Allies not just for a single breakthrough feature but for a reliable mix of production practicality and firepower on the battlefield.
Marilyn Morawetz stares at the crumbling walls of a historic cafeteria building, still finding beauty in its prairie-style architecture. They're almost never seen in an industrial kind of setting like this, she said. If it goes down, our real fear is that everything will go down and that would be an incredible shame. The 100-year-old building closed in 2008 and sits in disrepair alongside five other heritage buildings that once formed Camp 30, on the edge of the Town of Bowmanville, Ont.
On Oct. 3, 1990, West Germany and East Germany ended 45 years of postwar division, declaring the creation of a reunified country. Also on this date: In 1944, during World War II, U.S. Army troops cracked the Siegfried Line north of Aachen, Germany. In 1951, the New York Giants captured the National League pennant by a score of 5-4 as Bobby Thomson hit a three-run homer off Ralph Branca of the Brooklyn Dodgers, which became known as the Shot Heard Round the World.
After the defeat of Nazi Germany and the liberation of France, Senon joined the CGT union and the Communist Party. She rose up the ranks of the male-dominated trade union movement to head one of the CGT's most important women's sections in Paris. Throughout her life, Senon, who styled herself as an "eternal rebel", never gave up fighting for women's rights.
The 1950s gave us some truly bewildering gelatin-inspired culinary creations, from jellied hamburger loaves to 7-Up cheese aspic, and while it's easy to get smug about how far our food tastes have come, trends need to be understood within their social and historical context. For instance, the widespread appeal of these jiggly, jewel-toned dishes can be traced back to World War II.
Now, that's not to say that books are only good for a hit of escapism though to be clear, they can be terrific at that, as well. This week sees the release of several works of fiction that challenge or outright shrug off the hard rigors of the day-to-day, in pursuit of something far more out there: proof, at least in concept, that other worlds are possible.
When The Repair Shop's Will Kirk recently moved into his new home, he expected little more than a busy spell of renovations and a chance to redesign his garden. But what began with clearing raised beds, chopping back branches, and replacing an old shed quickly turned into an extraordinary piece of living history. Beneath the heart of his outdoor makeover, Kirk unearthed a long-hidden Anderson shelter from the Second World War.
United States President Donald Trump has praised a decision by the prestigious military academy West Point to cancel a ceremony honouring Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks, a frequent critic of Trump. Trump, who has sought to purge critics from government institutions and crack down on dissent, celebrated the move in a social media post on Monday. list of 3 itemsend of list Our great West Point (getting greater all the time!) has smartly cancelled the Award Ceremony for actor Tom Hanks. Important move! Trump said. We don't need destructive, WOKE recipients getting our cherished American Awards!!!
At first glance, these photos are nothing out of the ordinary, considering that a total of 17 million men were called up to fight in the Nazi army between 1939 and 1945. But these photos are unusual because they show citizens of Nazi-occupied Poland wearing the military uniform of the hated enemy's army.
It was underground here that, 80 years ago, one of the world's most infamous villains swallowed a cyanide capsule and fired a bullet into his brain. It was here that Adolf Hitler spent his last living moments. The site is known in German as the Fuhrerbunker, a subterranean bomb shelter that the Nazis built to protect their leader and his top henchmen from air raids during World War II.
Today is Wednesday, Sept. 3, the 246th day of 2025. There are 119 days left in the year. Today in history: On Sept. 3, 1783, representatives of the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the Revolutionary War and recognized U.S. sovereignty. Also on this date: In 1861, during the Civil War, Confederate forces invaded the border state of Kentucky, which had declared its neutrality in the conflict. In 1894, the United States celebrated the first federal Labor Day holiday.
Shortly after the Wright brothers' first successful manned flight in 1903, the potential military applications of aviation technology became increasingly apparent. In 1907, the U.S. Army established the Army Signal Corps, a small division devoted to aeronautics. By 1912, the Signal Corps had nine aircraft and an annual budget of $125,000-about $4 million in current dollars. Investment in the Signal Corps ballooned during the First World War, a conflict defined in part by the deployment of military aircraft for reconnaissance, tactical support,
When the Japanese delegation boarded the Missouri, the proceedings began. The two groups of signatories stood on opposite sides of a table brought from the battleship's mess hall. On the table were two copies of the instrument of surrender: one for the Japanese and one for the Allies. Once the Japanese representatives signed, it was time for the Allies to do the same. The process went smoothly until it came time for Cosgrave to sign.
