SaturdaySat, August 22nd Edition Go Back
Today in the World Countries
- Magal de Touba is being celebrated in Senegal
- People born on this day are Leo as their zodiac sign.
Today in History
On this day in 2023
- EVENTS
- Eight people dramatically rescued from a cable car after 14 hours in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northwest Pakistan.
- DEATHS
- (Salvatore) "Toto" Cutugno, Italian pop singer-songwriter (" L'Italiano" ; Eurovision,1990; "Insieme: 1992"), who died of prostate cancer at 80.
- TV SERIES
- Star Wars: Ahsoka: Season 1 is released. After the fall of the Empire, former Jedi knight Ahsoka Tano investigates an emerging threat to the galaxy.
- GAMING: PC
- WrestleQuest for PC is released. Pro wrestling and RPG fantasy collide in the ultimate pixel powered adventure. "Macho Man"Randy Savage and tons of other icons offer guidance as you powerbomb your way to glory beyond the ring. This hero's journey ain't just an epic quest, it's WRESTLEQUEST!
- GAMING: PLAYSTATION 5
- Fort Solis for PlayStation 5 is released. Fort Solis is a single player, third person thriller experience set on Mars. Responding to an alarm call from a neighbouring base, Jack arrives at a dark and desolate Fort Solis. With storm warnings imminent he heads inside to make contact. As the night grows longer, events escalate, spiral out of control and the mystery of what happened to the crew begins to reveal itself.The storms arrive, limiting Jack’s escape as he looks to hold out until morning arrives.Fort Solis is a condensed narrative thriller set on Mars, with exploration, nerve racking set pieces, and a deep plot to discover.Fort Solis is told across five chapters, each roughly an hour in length.Like a Netflix series, Fort Solis can be binged in one intense session, or played chapter by chapter like an episodic TV show.The vision of Fallen Leaf, an indie team of games industry veterans, was to create a hybrid piece of media, emphasizing narration and immersion.
- GAMING: XBOX SERIES X
- Immortals of Aveum for Xbox Series X is released. Immortals of Aveum is a groundbreaking new single-player, first-person magic shooter, created by Ascendant Studios and released by EA Originals, that delivers a visceral, cinematic campaign. Made by the creators of Call of Duty and Dead Space, Immortals of Aveum is set in an original fantasy universe engulfed in magic, rife with conflict, and on the verge of oblivion.
On this day in 2022
- POLITICS
- Dr. Anthony Fauci announces he will step down as chief medical advisor to the US President and as Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
- SPORTS
- "House of the Dragon", prequel to "Game of Thrones"premieres on HBO, starring Paddy Considine, Matt Smith and Emma D'Arcy.
- Bill Haller, American baseball umpire (AL 1961,63-82; 15 x AL C'ship Series games; 27 x World Series games; 4 x MLB All-Star games), who died at 87.
- " House of the Dragon", prequel to "Game of Thrones" premieres on HBO, starring Paddy Considine, Matt Smith and Emma D'Arcy.
On this day in 2021
- EVENTS
- Tropical storm Henri makes landfall near Westerly, Rhode Island.
- British Open Women's Golf, Carnoustie CC: Anna Nordqvist of Sweden finishes 1 stroke clear of Madelene Sagström, Lizette Salas and Georgia Hall to win her third major title.
- Jerry Allison, drummer from American rock and roll band The Crickets, died from cancer age 82. He was the co-writer of their hits 'That'll Be the Day' and 'Peggy Sue', recorded with Buddy Holly. His only solo chart entry on the Billboard Hot 100 was 'Real Wild Child', issued in 1958 under the name Ivan..
- DEATHS
- Brian Travers, British rock saxophonist (UB40 - "Red, Red Wine"), who died of cancer at 62.
- Alberto Bica, Uruguayan soccer right winger (9 caps; Racing, River Plate, Nacional Montevideo), who died from leukemia at 63.
- Rod Gilbert, Canadian Hockey Hall of Fame right-wing,1960-78 (NY Rangers; first NYR to have # retired), who died at 80.
- Micki Grant [Minnie Perkins], American theater singer, actress, and composer (Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope; Your Arms Are Too Short To Box With God), who died at 92.
- POLITICS
- Josephine Baker will be the first black woman to be interred in the Panthéon in Paris, according to the French government.
- US Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in Singapore to begin a short visit to South East Asia.
On this day in 2020
- EVENTS
- Mexican COVID-19 pandemic death toll passes 60,000, world's third highest.
- Fires burning in Northern California declared Major Disaster with LNU Lighting Complex Fire (341,243 acres) and SCU Lightening Complex Fire (339,968) amongst 3 largest wildfires in state history.
- TV SERIES
- Love in the Time of Corona is released. The two-night, four-part limited drama series filmed remotely follows three married couples and a pair of roommates, as they deal with love and life under quarantine.
On this day in 2019
- EVENTS
- Russia launches Fedor, the first life-sized robot, into space to the International Space Station on a Soyuz rocket from Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.
- South Korea says it is leaving an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan in an escalation of the rift between the two countries.
- Bielefeld in Germany offers €1m prize to anyone in who can prove the town doesn't exit to disprove 25-year-old conspiracy theory.
- DEATHS
- Bobby Dillon, American NFL defensive back (second to record 50 interceptions), who died of dementia at 89.
- GAMING: PLAYSTATION 4
- Life is Strange 2: Episode 4 - Faith for PlayStation 4 is released. The saga picks up in a Humboldt County, California hospital room where Sean, gravely wounded, wakes up to find that Daniel is still missing. Under arrest, and facing tough questions from law enforcement, Sean is running out of options. Only quick thinking and unexpected allies can secure his freedom. “In Episode 4, we re-join Sean at his lowest point. The disaster that separated him from his brother has scarred him for life, and he is lost, alone and in quite a bit of trouble, ” said Michel Koch & Raoul Barbet, Co-Creative Directors of Life is Strange 2. “Sean is already at a breaking point, and now faces some of the toughest situations in his life as he desperately searches for Daniel, whose absence hangs heavy over the whole episode. Considering what happened in that California Redwood forest, even if he can locate his brother – he can’t be sure of who, or what he will find.” Searching for Daniel under the scorching Nevada sun and through freezing desert nights, Sean must make his toughest choices yet. Puerto Lobos and the dream of freedom have never felt so far away. Will Sean’s faith in Daniel be rewarded – or is the younger wolf lost forever?
- GAMING: SWITCH
- Oninaki for Switch is released. Players assume the role of a Watcher named Kagachi, doing battle by “manifesting” the souls of Daemons, which act as the classes found in traditional roleplaying games. Each Daemon has its own unique weapons and skills, and players can shift between them in real time to gain the upper hand in battle. Moving between the Living World and the realm of the dead known as the Beyond, Kagachi must save the souls of the Lost, as the story of life and reincarnation in this wondrous kingdom unfolds.
On this day in 2018
- EVENTS
- Longest ever bull market for Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index at 3,453 days (using 19.9 percent decline in 1990 as the start, usually 20%).
- Forbes say George Clooney made more money in a single year ($239 million) than any actor ever ($239m), due to sale of alcohol company, followed by Dwayne Johnson ($124m).
- Discovery of a bone of a 90,000 hybrid human, half Neanderthal, half Denisovan from Anuy River, Siberia published in "Nature".
- DEATHS
- Ed King, American psychedelic rock musician (Strawberry Alarm Clock; Lynyrd Skynyrd), who died of cancer at 68.
- Edward "Ed" King, American psychedelic rock musician (Strawberry Alarm Clock, Lynyrd Skynyrd), who died of cancer at 68.
- MOVIES: NOT RATED
- John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection is released. John McEnroe: In the Realm of Perfection revisits the rich bounty of 16-mm-shot footage of the left-handed tennis star John McEnroe, at the time the world’s top-ranked player, as he competes in the French Open at Paris’s Roland Garros Stadium in 1984. Close-ups and slow motion sequences of McEnroe competing, as well as instances of his notorious temper tantrums, highlight a ”man who played on the edge of his senses.” Far from a traditional documentary, Faraut probes the archival film to unpack both McEnroe’s attention to the sport and the footage itself, creating a lively and immersive look at a driven athlete, a study on the sport of tennis and the human body and movement, and finally how these all intersect with cinema itself.
On this day in 2017
- DEATHS
- John Abercrombie, American jazz guitarist, who died of heart failure at 72.
- Rafael "Felo" Ramírez, Cuban-American Spanish language sports announcer (Miami Marlins), who died at 94.
- GAMING: PLAYSTATION 4
- Mages of Mystralia for PlayStation 4 is released. Accompany Zia as she strikes off to train and learn to control her magical abilities that had her exiled. Journey across the lands to meet other exiled mages and uncover runes with magical properties that can be combined into millions of different possibilities, letting you come up with completely new and incredible spells!
- Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Episode 3: More Than A Feeling for PlayStation 4 is released. In the wake of an epic battle, the Guardians discover an artifact of unspeakable power. Each of the Guardians has a reason to desire this relic, as does a ruthless enemy who will stop at nothing to tear it from their hands. From Earth to the Milano to Knowhere and beyond, this five-part episodic series puts you in the rocket-powered boots of Star-Lord in an original Guardians adventure.
- Uncharted: The Lost Legacy for PlayStation 4 is released. The first standalone adventure in Uncharted franchise history led by Chloe Frazer. In order to recover a fabled ancient Indian artefact and keep it out of the hands of a ruthless war profiteer, Chloe Frazer must enlist the aid of renowned mercenary Nadine Ross (from Uncharted 4: A Thief's End). Venturing deep into Indias Western Ghats mountain range, Chloe and Nadine must learn to work together to unearth the artefact and fight their way through fierce opposition to prevent the region from falling into chaos.
- Thimbleweed Park for PlayStation 4 is released. Thimbleweed Park is the curious story of two washed up federal agents called in to investigate a dead body found in the river just outside of town, bloated and pixelated from a death some too soon.
- The Escapists 2 for PlayStation 4 is released. Craft, steal, brawl, and escape. It’s time to bust out of the toughest prisons in the world as you return to the life of an inmate in The Escapists 2. Have you got what it takes to escape?
- ChromaGun for PlayStation 4 is released. ChromaGun is a first-person puzzler about colors. Use your gun (guess what it’s called), to colorize droids and walls. Droids are attracted by walls of the same color, and by cleverly utilizing this mechanic, you’ll try to solve all sorts of puzzles to make it to the exit. The ChromaGun can only shoot red, yellow, and blue – but don’t worry, we have you covered. Shoot a previously colored wall or droid, to mix colors into orange, purple, and green. Be wary of gray, though. Since it’s technically not a color, it loses all its attraction properties, the rascal. [Pixel Mechanics]
- White Day: A Labyrinth Named School for PlayStation 4 is released. When a good deed goes awry you and your fellow students are Locked inside your school at night, hunted by a killer janitor and Haunted by the troubled souls of the dead. Can you remain hidden, solve the clues and uncover the dark secrets of the building's past to survive the deadly threats? or will the after-class horror claim your life before you can escape?
- POLITICS
- Missouri Governor Eric Greitens grants stay of execution for Marcellus Williams in light of possible new DNA eividence.
- SEPERATIONS
- India's highest court outlaws instant divorce for Muslim men (talaq, talaq, talaq).
On this day in 2016
- EVENTS
- American musician Ed King died in his Nashville, Tennessee, home at 68 years of age. He was a guitarist for the psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock and guitarist and bassist for the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1987 to 1996..
- DEATHS
- (Jean-Baptiste) "Toots" Thielemans, Belgian-American jazz harmonica player, guitarist, whistler, and composer, who died at 94.
- Roberto Cassan, Italian-American jazz and folk accordionist, who died of a heart attack at 53.
- Toots [Jean-Baptiste] Thielemans, Belgian-American jazz musician and composer, who died at 94.
- GAMING: PC
- Tempest: Pirate Action RPG for PC is released. Hey Captain - Now that you’ve got the Jolly Roger fluttering in the wind over your ship, you’re ready to rove the seas, take on merchant ships loaded with booty and storm formidable fortresses. Set sail and get your hands on all those legendary treasures that are just waiting for the picking.
- POLITICS
- S. R. [Sellapan Ramanathan] Nathan,6th President of Singapore (1999-2011), who died at 92.
- SEPERATIONS
- American actor and comedian Chris Rock (31) divorces founder and executive director of StyleWorks Malaak Compton-Rock, after 19 years of marriage.
On this day in 2015
- EVENTS
- A vintage Hawker Hunter plane crashes onto the A27 dual carriageway road during the Shoreham airshow in Britain killing at least 11.
- 15th Athletics World Championships open at Beijing, China.
- DEATHS
- Arthur Morris, Australian cricketer (great lefty opening batsman), who died at 93.
- Andy Mapple, English water skier (World Slalom C'ship 1981,89,95,97,99,2001), who died at 52.
- Charles Tomlinson, British poet and translator, who died at 88.
- Eric Thompson, Race Car Driver.
- TV SERIES
- Blunt Talk: Season 1 is released. Gruff British newsman Walter Blunt (Patrick Stewart) moves to Los Angeles with his manservant Harry (Adrian Scarborough) to host a cable news talk show in this comedy created by Jonathan Ames.
- The Unauthorized Full House Story is released. After 2014's The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story, Lifetime returns with one for the 1980s family comedy featuring some stories from Bob Saget's memoir "Dirty Daddy: The Chronicles of a Family Man Turned Filthy Comedian."
On this day in 2014
- EVENTS
- 2nd Ebola death in Nigeria, Africa’s most populated country.
- It was reported that pills seized from the home of Prince contained the dangerously powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl but were mislabelled. Officials investigating the artist's death said the pills were labelled as hydrocodone, a weaker type of opioid.Autopsy results released in June revealed Prince died of an accidental fentanyl overdose..
- WEDDINGS
- California Attorney General Kamala Harris marries lawyer Douglas Emhoff in Santa Barbara.
- DEATHS
- John Akers, American business executive (head of IBM,1983-93), who died of a stroke at 79.
- Ur Ananthamurthy, Novelist.
- MOVIES: NOT RATED
- To Be Takei is released. Over seven decades, actor and activist George Takei boldly journeyed from a WWII internment camp, to the helm of the starship Enterprise, to the daily news feeds of five million Facebook fans. Join George and his husband Brad on this star's playful and profound trek for life, liberty, and love.
- Salvo is released. A hitman for the Sicilian Mafia, Salvo is solitary, cold and ruthless. When he sneaks into a house on an assignment, he discovers Rita, an innocent young blind girl who must stand by powerlessly while her brother is assassinated. What follows is an intense exchange fueled by adrenaline and fear between the killer and his witness, one that changes their two lives in an instant. The darkness is lifted from Rita's eyes just as Salvo decides, against his murderous instincts, to spare her life. From then on, both haunted by their brief encounter, these two damaged souls will attempt to navigate their dangerous next steps side by side. [Film Movement]
- Metro Manila is released. Oscar, a recent emigrant to Manila, gets pulled into a harrowing world of corruption and violence when he takes a job as an armored car driver to support his family.
- Kink is released. Director Christina Voros and producer James Franco pull back the curtain on the fetish empire of Kink.com, the Internet’s largest producer of BDSM content. In a particularly obscure corner of an industry that operates largely out of public view, Kink.com’s directors and models strive for authenticity. In an enterprise often known for exploitative practices, Kink.com upholds an ironclad set of values to foster an environment that is safe, sane, and consensual. They aim to demystify the BDSM lifestyle, and to serve as an example and an educational resource for the BDSM community.
- MOVIES: PG
- When the Game Stands Tall is released. Inspired by a true story, When the Game Stands Tall brings to life the incredible winning streak of the De La Salle High School football team: 151 straight victories over 12 years. Along the way, Coach Bob Ladouceur (Jim Caviezel) has always emphasized purpose and significance rather than streaks and titles. But when real-life adversity leaves the team reeling, the Spartans must decide if the sacrifice, commitment, and teamwork they have always trusted in can rebuild what is now disintegrating around them. [Sony Pictures Entertainment]
- MOVIES: PG13
- If I Stay is released. Mia Hall (Chloë Grace Moretz) thought the hardest decision she would ever face would be whether to pursue her musical dreams at Juilliard or follow a different path to be with the love of her life, Adam (Jamie Blackley). But what should have been a carefree family drive changes everything in an instant, and now her own life hangs in the balance. Caught between life and death for one revealing day, Mia has only one decision left, which will not only decide her future but her ultimate fate. [Warner Bros. Pictures]
- MOVIES: R
- Are You Here is released. When his off-the-grid best buddy Ben Baker (Zach Galifianakis) inherits his estranged father’s fortune, womanizing local weatherman Steve Dallas (Owen Wilson) joins forces with him to battle the legal challenge brought by Ben’s formidable sister (Amy Poehler). [Millennium Entertainment]
- 14 Blades is released. Trained in clandestine combat from childhood, the Jinyiwei were masters of the 14 Blades. Above the law and with a license to kill, they devoted their lives and lethal prowess to the service of the Emperor alone. When the Imperial Court is taken over by evil eunuch Jia, the best of the Jinyiwei, Qinglong is assigned to steal a list identifying those still loyal to the Emperor. Unbeknownst to Qinglong, the Jinyiwei have fallen under the control of Jia, and during the mission he’s betrayed and barely escapes with his life. Now the most wanted man in the land Qinglong must seek out and rally the loyalists to rise against Jia and restore the Emperor to power. In his way are the deadliest assassins in the land, his former brethren, the Jinyiwei. [RADiUS-TWC]
- May in the Summer is released. As May’s wedding approaches, she finds herself confronting her family’s turbulent past. [Cohen Media Group]
- Love Is Strange is released. Ben (John Lithgow) and George (Alfred Molina) take advantage of New York's new marriage laws and tie the knot after being together for 39 years. Unfortunately, the Catholic school where George teaches does not approve, and they reluctantly fire him, forcing the couple to split up and stay with friends while they sell their apartment and look for cheaper housing. George crashes with two gay police officers, while Ben, who's a painter, bunks with his nephew's family in Brooklyn—a temporary situation that weighs heavily on all involved. [Sony Pictures Classics]
- Sin City: A Dame To Kill For is released. Sin City's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with some of its more reviled inhabitants.
- The One I Love is released. On the brink of separation, Ethan (Mark Duplass) and Sophie (Elisabeth Moss) escape to a beautiful vacation house for a weekend getaway in an attempt to save their marriage. What begins as a romantic and fun retreat soon becomes surreal, when an unexpected discovery forces the two to examine themselves, their relationship, and their future.
- The Possession of Michael King is released. Michael King (Shane Johnson) doesn’t believe in God or The Devil. Following the sudden death of his wife, the documentary filmmaker decides to make his next film about the search for the existence of the supernatural. Michael decides to make himself the center of the experiment - allowing demonologists, necromancers, and various practitioners of the occult to try the deepest and darkest spells and rituals they can find on him - in the hopes that when they fail, he’ll once and for all have proof that religion, spiritualism, and the paranormal are nothing more than myth. But something does happen. An evil and horrifying force has taken over Michael King. And it will not let him go.
- The Prince is released. A retired assassin is drawn back into the life he gave up when his daughter is kidnapped. To rescue her, he must confront his former rival.
- MOVIES: UNRATED
- Cam2Cam is released. Five Bangkok tourists have been beheaded after making online contact with an unknown party. Newly-arrived Allie Westbrook (Tammin Sursok) meets a pair of ex-pats, Michael and Marit, who perform on a provocative interactive website called Cam2Cam. The dark menace beneath Michael’s easy charm and the strange sexual magnetism of the group's leader, Marit, drive Allie to the brink of madness. In a city where foreigners come to re-invent themselves, Allie learns, too late, that nothing is what it seems. [IFC Midnight]
- TV SERIES
- BoJack Horseman: Season 1 is released. An animated comedy about the struggles of the former sitcom star (Will Arnett) who happens to be half-horse, half-man, while living in Los Angeles.