Wikipedia:Main Page history/2013 April 12

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From today's featured article

John Le Mesurier (1912–83) was an English actor perhaps best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC situation comedy Dad's Army between 1968 and 1977. He debuted on stage in 1934, and became one of television's pioneering actors when he appeared in The Marvellous History of St Bernard in 1938. From there, Le Mesurier had a prolific film career and appeared in over 120 films across a range of genres, normally in smaller supporting parts in comedies; his roles often portrayed figures of authority such as army officers, policemen and judges. He took a relaxed approach to acting and described himself as a "jobbing actor", a term he used for the title of his autobiography. On one of the few occasions he played the lead role in his career, he received a British Academy of Film and Television Arts "Best Television Actor" award for his performance in the Dennis Potter television play Traitor. He later said that the parts he played were those of "a decent chap all at sea in a chaotic world not of his own making". After his death, critics reflected that for an actor who normally took minor roles, the viewing public were "enormously fond of him". (Full article...)

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Did you know...

From Wikipedia's newest content:

... that in 2013 Kerala High Court judge Manjula Chellur (pictured) refused the plea of the Leader of the Opposition for an early hearing in another investigation of the "Ice Cream Parlour sabotage case"?

... that Mutya Buena's single "Just a Little Bit" contains Motown influences?

... that dozens of baseball players have defected from Cuba during events such as the Mariel boatlift and the 1996 Summer Olympics?

... that while researching his 1964 book The Mare's Nest, David Irving discovered the existence of the Allied programme to break the Enigma code but agreed to keep it secret?

... that Admiral Sir Vernon Harry Stuart Haggard joined the Royal Navy as a youth?

... that the creators of the Kickstarter-funded Star Trek: Renegades hope to use it as a pilot for a new series on CBS?

... that Picasso's poetry has lines like "my grandmother's big balls are shining midst the thistles" and that one of his works depicts Franco as a jackbooted phallus?

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In the news

Margaret Thatcher

Five UN peacekeepers and seven civilian staff are killed in Jonglei, South Sudan, by rebels.

At least 37 people are killed and 850 are injured when a 6.3-magnitude earthquake strikes the Iranian province of Bushehr.

A gunman kills 13 people in a spree shooting in the village of Velika Ivanča, Serbia.

Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (pictured) dies at the age of 87.

Filip Vujanović is re-elected as President of Montenegro.

In horse racing, Auroras Encore wins the Grand National.

More than 70 people are killed in a building collapse in Thane, India.

Recent deaths: Robert Edwards

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On this day...

April 12: Yuri's Night; Cosmonautics Day in Russia

1831 – The Broughton Suspension Bridge in Manchester, England, collapsed, reportedly owing to a mechanical resonance induced by troops marching over the bridge in step.

1910 – The SMS Zrínyi, one of the last pre-dreadnoughts built by the Austro-Hungarian Navy, was launched.

1961 – Aboard Vostok 3KA-3, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin (pictured) became the first man to enter outer space, completing one orbit in a time of 108 minutes.

1968 – Six thousand sheep were killed on ranches near Dugway Proving Ground in Utah as a result of the U.S. Army spraying a nerve agent.

2007 – The canteen of the Council of Representatives of Iraq building was attacked by a suicide bomber, killing one Member of Parliament and wounding 23 other people.

More anniversaries: April 11 – April 12 – April 13

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It is now April 12, 2013 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

The Shy Albatross (Thalassarche cauta) is a medium-sized bird that ranges extensively across the Southern Ocean. It measures 90–100 cm (35–39 in) in length and 210–260 cm (83–100 in) in wingspan, making it the largest of the mollymawks.

Photo: JJ Harrison

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