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On this day in 2023

On this day in 2022

• EVENTS
• Japan announces its biggest military build-up since WWII, amid concerns over China and North Korea.
• American rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer and guitarist Charlie Gracie died aged 86. His biggest hits were ‘Butterfly’ and ‘Fabulous’, both in 1957. Gracie became only the second American rock and roller to bring this new art form to the British concert stage. His two extensive tours in 1957 and 1958 were topped off by headlining the Palladium and the Hippodrome in London. In the audiences, among Gracie's fans, were future rock musicians Graham Nash and members of The Beatles..
• DEATHS
• Charlie Gracie [Graci], American rock pioneer, rhythm and blues singer, and guitarist (" Butterfly" ; "Fabulous"), who died of complications following COVID-19 pandemic at 86.
• Siniša Mihajlovic, Soccer Coach.
• MOVIES: DECEMBER 16 2022
• The Apology is released. Twenty years after the disappearance of her daughter, recovering alcoholic Darlene Hagen (Anna Gunn) is preparing to host her family's Christmas celebration with her best friend Gretchen (Janeane Garofalo). Late Christmas Eve, Darlene's estranged ex-brother-in-law, Jack (Linus Roache) arrives unannounced, bearing nostalgic gifts and a heavy secret. Soon, Darlene finds herself caught between reason and ruthless instinct. Trapped together by a dangerous storm, a battle of wits escalates to a violent game of revenge.
• MOVIES: NOT RATED
• The Quiet Girl is released. Rural Ireland. 1981. Nine-year-old Cait is sent away from her overcrowded, dysfunctional family to live with foster parents for the summer. Quietly struggling at school and at home, she has learned to hide in plain sight from those around her. She blossoms in their care, but in this house where there are meant to be no secrets, she discovers one painful truth.
• The Super 8 Years is released. The French writer and 2022 Nobel Prize awardee Annie Ernaux, whose novels and memoirs have gained her a devoted following (and whose autobiographical L’Événement was adapted just last year into the critically acclaimed film Happening), opens a treasure trove with this delicate journey into her family’s memory. Compiled from gorgeously textured home movie images from 1972 to 1981 – when her first books were published, her sons became teenagers, and her husband Philippe brought an 8mm film camera everywhere they went – this portrait of a time, place, and moment of personal and political significance takes us from holidays and family rituals in suburban bourgeois France to trips abroad in Albania and Egypt, Spain and the USSR. Supplying her own introspective voiceover, Ernaux and her co-filmmaker, her son David, guide the viewer through fragments of a decade, diffuse and vivid in equal measure. The Super 8 Years is a remarkable visual extension of Ernaux’s ongoing literary project to make sense of the mysterious past and the unknowable future.
• MOVIES: PG13
• Avatar: The Way of Water is released. Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, Avatar: The Way of Water begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.
• TV SERIES
• Litvinenko: Season 1 is released. Former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko (David Tennant) was poisoned with polonium-210 in London and his widow Marina (Margarita Levieva) seeks to have the Russian State named as perpetrators by the British government in the four-part drama written by George Kay.
• The Recruit (2022): Season 1 is released. Newly hired CIA lawyer Owen Hendricks (Noah Centineo) discovers a former asset (Laura Haddock) is threatening to expose the agency's secrets unless they clear her for a serious crime in this spy thriller from Alexi Hawley.

On this day in 2021

• EVENTS
• Six children die in a bouncy castle accident at a school in Devonport, Tasmasia, Australia.
• DEATHS
• Bill Mahoney, Canadian ice hockey coach (NHL: Minnesota North Stars 1983-85), who died at 82.
• TV SERIES
• Station Eleven: Season 1 is released. Survivors of a flu pandemic try to rebuild in the Patrick Somerville post-apocalyptic limited series based on a novel of the same name by Emily St. John Mandel.
• MacGruber (2021): Season 1 is released. MacGruber (Will Forte) is finally released from jail after 10 years and with help from Vicki St. Elmo (Kristen Wiig) and Dixon Piper (Ryan Phillippe), seeks to stop Brigadier Commander Enos Queeth (Billy Zane) from destroying the world.
• GAMING: PC
• The Gunk for PC is released. The Gunk is a game about two friends who run a small scavenging outfit together, and who travel from one space rock to another in search for resources they can harvest and sell. One day they land on a planet that looks dead from a distance, turns out to be unlike any other they’ve set foot on. A slimy parasite­ — or gunk — covers vast areas and seems to corrupt the otherwise vibrant nature and wildlife. It’s clear that they must fight this gunk to understand what’s happened and to save the dying planet. But this also creates a rift between them; on one hand, the planet will die if we don’t rid the planet of the gunk. On the other, we’ve got problems of our own and surely this isn’t our fight to begin with. So, who cares… right? Do we have to? [Thunderful Group]
• Alfred Hitchcock: Vertigo for PC is released. Ed Miller, a writer, came out unscathed from his car crash down into Brody Canyon, California. Even though no one was found inside the car wreckage, Ed insists that he was traveling with his wife and daughter. Traumatized by the event, he begins to suffer from severe vertigo. As he starts therapy, he will try to uncover what really happened on that tragic day.Prepare yourself for a most disturbing investigation inside the human mind: truth is sometimes worse than madness.An original story about obsession, manipulation and madness, inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece Vertigo.
• Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade for PC is released. FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE takes advantage of the latest generation hardware and includes a wealth of graphical, gameplay and system enhancements for the PS5: * Immerse yourself in the city of Midgar like never before, with improved textures, lighting, and background environments. Players can switch between two game modes:* "Graphics Mode"prioritizes 4K high-resolution graphics* "Performance Mode"prioritizes smooth action at 60 frames per second* Capture and share your memorable moments from the game with a fully customizable "Photo Mode"* Enjoy immersive battles by using the DualSense wireless controller, with its haptic feedback integration, and enjoy dynamic bike racing with its adaptive triggers.* New difficulty settings for 'Classic Mode' provide new ways to play* Jump into the action faster with optimized loading timesAs well as introducing many exciting new enhancements, FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE also includes a brand-new episode featuring Yuffie as the main character. In this new adventure, play as ninja Yuffie Kisaragi as she infiltrates the shadowy Shinra Corporation to steal a powerful materia and restore glory to her homeland. Play alongside new characters and enjoy an expanded gameplay experience featuring multiple new combat and gameplay additions, bringing a new perspective to the FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE story that cannot be missed.

On this day in 2020

• EVENTS
• After nearly 178 days, Twenty One Pilots pulled the plug on the livestream for their 'Level Of Concern' video, which refreshed every 3:40 with new footage uploaded by fans. The band had called on fans to submit video for the visuals, with the fan footage being used to form a constant live stream of automatically generated footage.Every time the song restarted, the footage changed - meaning the video could theoretically go on forever. Guinness declared it the longest music video ever made..
• China blocks imports of coal, from Australia, the world's second biggest market for the world's biggest coal exporter.
• Major winter storm hits US Northeast resulting in at least seven deaths and Binghamton, New York, receiving record 41 inches of snow.
• Nine-year-old girl who died of an asthma attack in 2013 becomes first person in the world to officially have air pollution listed as cause of death.
• 14 people found guilty of 2015 terror attacks on Charlie Hebdo office and supermarket in Paris.
• DEATHS
• Kálmán Sóvári, Hungarian soccer defender (17 caps; Újpesti Dózsa, VM Egyetértés), who died at 79.
• GAMING: SWITCH
• SYNTHETIK: Ultimate for Switch is released. SYNTHETIK is an unforgiving tactical shooter rogue-lite where freedom and experimentation is key. Fight against relentless opponents and unforgiving bosses encased in ever-changing environments. Master the uniquely deep and satisfying weapon mechanics and the unprecedented amount of customization. Discover a seemingly unending amount of weapons, items, perks and character upgrades.
• SPORTS
• US Major League Baseball announces it is elevating the Negro Leagues to Major League status.

On this day in 2019

• EVENTS
• Mariah Carey's single "All I Want For Christmas Is You" reaches No. 1,25 years after release.
• Drew Brees breaks Peyton Manning's NFL record (539) for career touchdown passes as New Orleans Saints rout Indianapolis Colts,34-7; Brees 29 of 30 for 307 yards & 4 TDs for record 96.7% pass completion.
• DEATHS
• Bill Simpson, Race Car Driver.
• Basil Butcher, West Indies cricket batsman (44 Tests; 3,104 runs @ 43.11), who died at 86.
• Mama Cax, Blogger.

On this day in 2018

• EVENTS
• After some supporters of the #MeToo movement expressed an interest in banning the song 'Baby, It’s Cold Outside, ' a Kentucky radio station decided to show its support for the newly controversial song by playing it on repeat for two hours. The song had faced controversy as people began to scrutinize the situation portrayed in the lyrics. Written in 1944, it describes the exchange between a man and a woman, as the woman expresses her desire to get home and the man tries to persuade her to stay. At one point, the woman even asks, "What’s in this drink?".
• Huge explosion and fire in a restaurant in Sapporo, Japan injures 42.
• DEATHS
• John Ford Noonan, American playwright (A Coupla White Chicks Sitting Around Talking), who died at 77.
• Anca Pop, Pop Singer.
• Colin Kroll, American co-founder of Vine and HQ Trivia, who died of a drug overdose at 34.
• Lee Leonard, American television personality (ESPN, CNN), who died at 89.
• Oribe Canales, Cuban American celebrity hairdresser, who died of cancer at 62.
• TV SERIES
• Springsteen on Broadway is released. The Boss tells personal stories and plays acoustic versions of some of his songs in his one-man show at Broadway's Walter Kerr Theatre filmed July 17 and 18,2018.
• POLITICS
• Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is sworn back into office two months after being removed by President Sirisena.

On this day in 2017

• DEATHS
• Keely Smith [Dorothy Keely], American jazz and pop singer (w/ husband Louis Prima -" That Old Black Magic" ; "I Wish You Love"), who died from heart failure at 89.

On this day in 2016

• EVENTS
• 5 day pollution red alert declared in Beijing and 21 other Chinese cities, classified by officials as a “meteorological disaster”.
• US State Department increases reward for information on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to $25 million.
• DEATHS
• Rosanna Carter, Movie Actress.
• Dick Zimmermann, Race Car Driver.
• MOVIES: NOT RATED
• Barry is released. A young Barack Obama, known to his friends as Barry, arrives in New York City in the fall of 1981 to begin his junior year at Columbia University. In a crime-ridden and racially charged environment, Barry finds himself pulled between various social spheres and struggles to maintain a series of increasingly strained relationships with his Kansas-born mother, his estranged Kenyan father, and his classmates. [Netflix]
• The Bad Kids is released. Located in an impoverished Mojave Desert community, Black Rock Continuation High School is one of California’s alternative schools for students at risk of dropping out. Every student here has fallen so far behind in credits that they have no hope of earning a diploma at a traditional high school. Black Rock is their last chance. [FilmRise]
• MOVIES: PG13
• Collateral Beauty is released. When a successful New York ad executive suffers a personal tragedy and retreats from life, his friends devise a drastic plan to reach him before he loses everything. Pushing him to the very edge, they force him to confront the truth in surprising and profoundly human ways. From Oscar-winning director David Frankel, this thought-provoking drama explores how even the deepest loss can reveal moments of beauty, and how the constants of love, time and death interlock in a life fully lived.
• Fences is released. In this adaptation of August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play, an African American father struggles with race relations in the United States while trying to raise his family in the 1950s and coming to terms with the events of his life.
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is released. In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire’s ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.
• MOVIES: R
• Solace is released. When FBI Special Agent Joe Merriwether (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is unable to solve a series of homicides, he decides to enlist the help of his former colleague Dr. John Clancy (Anthony Hopkins), a retired physician with psychic powers. The reclusive Clancy, who shuttered his practice and retreated from the world following the death of his daughter and subsequent break-up of his marriage, wants nothing to do with the case. He soon changes his mind after seeing disturbingly violent visions of Joe’s partner, FBI Special Agent Katherine Cowles’s (Abbie Cornish) ultimate demise. When Clancy’s exceptional intuitive powers put him on the trail of a suspect, Charles Ambrose (Colin Farrell), the doctor soon realizes his abilities are no match against the extraordinary powers of this vicious murderer on a mission. [Lionsgate Premiere]
• The Hollow Point is released. A new sheriff of a small town along the U.S. & Mexico border investigates a drug cartel deal that went horribly wrong.
• Neruda is released. Beloved poet Pablo Neruda (Luis Gnecco) is also the most famous communist in post-WWII Chile. When the political tides shift, he is forced underground, with a perseverant police inspector (Gael García Bernal) hot on his trail. Meanwhile, in Europe, the legend of the poet hounded by the policeman grows, and artists led by Pablo Picasso clamor for Neruda’s freedom. Neruda, however, sees the struggle with his police inspector nemesis as an opportunity to reinvent himself. He cunningly plays with the inspector, leaving clues designed to make their game of cat-and-mouse ever more perilous. In this story of a persecuted poet and his obsessive adversary, Neruda recognizes his own heroic possibilities: a chance to become a symbol for liberty, as well as a literary legend. [The Orchard]
• A Kind of Murder is released. In 1960s New York, Walter Stackhouse is a successful architect married to the beautiful Clara who leads a seemingly perfect life. But his fascination with an unsolved murder leads him into a spiral of chaos as he is forced to play cat-and-mouse with a clever killer and an overambitious detective, while at the same time lusting after another woman.
• Two Lovers and a Bear is released. Set in a small town near the North Pole where roads lead to nowhere, the story follows Roman (Dane DeHaan) and Lucy (Tatiana Maslany), two burning souls who come together to make a leap for life and inner peace.
• TV SERIES
• The Man in the High Castle: Season 2 is released. Germany and Japan move closer to war in the second season where Juliana (Alexa Davalos) faces consequences of her actions, Joe (Luke Kleintank) ends up in Berlin, Frank (Rupert Evans) feels closer to the resistance after seeing the films, John Smith (Rufus Sewell) feels conflicted as his son becomes sicker, Trade Minister Tagomi (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) has regrets and Chief Inspector Kido (Joel de la Fuente) seeks to figure out the connections between Julianna, the films and the Man in the High Castle.
• The OA: Season 1 is released. Seven years ago blind Prairie Johnson (Brit Marling) went missing. She returns mysteriously with her sight restored in this drama from Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij.
• ALBUMS
• Stillness In Wonderland was released by Little Simz. The second full-length studio release for the British rapper features guest appearances from Josh Arce´, Bibi Bourelly, Chip and Ghetts, Chuck20, SiR, The Internet's Syd, and Tilla.

On this day in 2015

• EVENTS
• US Federal Reserve raises interest rates by 0.25% for the first time since 2006.
• BIRTHS
• Jasmine Johnson, Family Member, born in United States.
• DEATHS
• Aafje Heynis, Dutch singer (contralto), who died at 91.
• MOVIES: NOT RATED
• Dreams Rewired is released. Dreams Rewired traces the desires and anxieties of today’s hyper-connected world back more than a hundred years, when telephone, film and television were new. As revolutionary then as contemporary social media is today, early electric media sparked a fervent utopianism in the public imagination – promising total communication, the annihilation of distance, an end to war. But then, too, there were fears over the erosion of privacy, security, morality. Using rare (and often unseen) archival material from nearly 200 films to articulate the present, Dreams Rewired reveals a history of hopes to share, and betrayals to avoid.
• The Emperor's New Clothes is released. With a mix of rabble-rousing outrage and audacious comedy, Russell Brand examines how bank bailouts have left the 99% high and dry—taking his message straight to the top as he fearlessly confronts the corporations and political leaders responsible. [IFC Films]
• GAMING: WII U
• Temple of Yog for Wii U is released. A mysterious temple and a developing village have an ancient pact: a life for progress. Tributes are offered, but none survive: sacrifice guaranteed. TEMPLE OF YOG is a roguelike adventure through procedurally generated dungeons that span two screens. Brave the dangerous depths of the Temple for the sake of progress.

On this day in 2014

• EVENTS
• An Army Public School in Pakistan is attacked by Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan militants who kill 145 people.
• BIRTHS
• James Reynolds, Family Member, born in New York.
• DEATHS
• Ernie Terrell, American boxer (WBA champ 1965-7), who died at 75.
• TV SERIES
• Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas is released. The stop-motion animated Christmas special based on the 2003 theatrical movie Elf and its Broadway Musical follows Buddy (voiced by Jim Parsons) as he travels to New York City to meet the father he never knew.
• ALBUMS
• Sucker was released by Charli XCX. The third full-length release (her first was not commercially released) for the British pop artist features songs written and/or produced by such artists as Ariel Pink, Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij, Patrik Berger, Bloodshy & Avant, Cashmere Cat, Weezer's Rivers Cuomo, Markus Krunegård, Greg Kurstin, Justin Raisen, Stargate, and Steve Mac.
• GAMING: PC
• Elite: Dangerous for PC is released. The next game in the Elite series - a space epic with fully multi-player. Carve your own path through a rich gaming sandbox, set against a backdrop of raw anarchy, galactic powerplays and intrigue. Do whatever it takes to upgrade your ship’s hull, engines, weapons, defences, cargo hold; constantly improve your capabilities and influence on your journey towards the most coveted rank in the history of gaming - ‘Elite’.
• GAMING: PLAYSTATION 4
• Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- for PlayStation 4 is released. Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, the newest entry of the Guilty Gear fighting game series, brings its redesigned, extreme style and unique 3D animation to players everywhere.
• Super Mega Baseball for PlayStation 4 is released. Hammer Longballo and a friendly cast of semi-athletic baseball stars invite you to saddle up on the couch with friends for some relaxed solo or co-op play. Or some fierce, relationship-testing competition.
• Loadout for PlayStation 4 is released. Loadout is a new free-to-play take on fast-paced, multiplayer shooters. Players invent and customize their own outrageous weapons to carry into furious, over-the-top shooter action that truly distinguishes itself from the vast array of modern combat titles. Earn new weapon parts, character customizations, equipment, and accessories as you gain prestige and wealth. The more you play, the more you can customize. There are endless possibilities to truly set yourself apart from your opponents. We'll continue to update Loadout with new items, customizations, game-play modes, features and much more.
• GAMING: PLAYSTATION VITA
• Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee HD for PlayStation Vita is released. Munch, the Gabbit with odditude and his sidekick Abe lead an off-beat revolution to save the world. With their sacred land in jeopardy of being destroyed by the greedy Glukkons, Munch and Abe team up to teach those rascals a lesson by using their chanting prowess to control the enemy, arming themselves with wacky weapons, and acquiring power-ups for extra boosts. You can switch between Munch and Abe at anytime to utilize each character's unique abilities and access certain areas.
• GAMING: XBOX ONE
• Tetris Ultimate for Xbox One is released. The world’s most-loved puzzle game arrives on next-gen consoles, and is better than ever in Tetris® Ultimate. With six exciting modes, fun new features, and unique visuals, the evolution of this iconic game is the ultimate must-have on next-gen consoles.
• Forza Horizon 2: Storm Island for Xbox One is released. The Storm Island expansion brings more beauty, more challenge, and more ways to compete with and against opponents.

On this day in 2013

• EVENTS
• It was reported that Miley Cyrus had insured her infamous tongue for $1 million. A source told Heat magazine: "Miley's totally aware of how her tongue is getting more headlines than she is, and getting it insured is just part of her trademarked image. It's not the first time she's done something like this - when she first cut her hair short, she tried to get her new crop patented. She wanted it to become known as The Miley"..
• 79th Heisman Trophy Award: Jameis Winston, Florida State (QB).
• BIRTHS
• Yococono, Blogger, born in Japan.
• DEATHS
• Uthradom Thirunal-Marthanda Varma, Prince.
• Ray Price, American singer, who died from pancreatic cancer at 87.
• Madhusudan Rege, Indian cricket batsman (1 Test; Maharashtra), who died at 89.