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From today's featured article

Tornado that may have inspired the painting

Tornado over Kansas is a 1929 oil-on-canvas painting by the American Regionalist painter John Steuart Curry. It depicts a dramatic scene in which a family races for shelter as a tornado approaches their farm, and has compositional connections to Curry's earlier 1928 painting Baptism in Kansas. The artist was influenced by Baroque art and photographs of tornadoes. He developed a fear of natural disasters and a reverence towards God during his childhood, both of which seem apparent in the painting. Following its 1930 debut, the painting was considered a notable Regionalist work, but native Kansans disliked the choice of subject matter. Although the painting won awards and was lauded by some, others criticized Curry's amateur style of painting. It is among several of Curry's works depicting tornadoes, including a set of 1932 lithographs. Tornado over Kansas has been widely reproduced in publications including Time and Life magazines, and is now among Curry's best-known works. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Lubin employees survey the vault fire's devastation

... that the 1914 Lubin vault fire (aftermath pictured) in Philadelphia destroyed several thousand unique early silent films?
... that Luc Tardif Sr. gained French citizenship in order to further his ice hockey career?
... that "Möge die Straße uns zusammenführen", a German song based on Irish toasts, was ranked fourth in a recent survey of favourite hymns?
... that Kane Ioane finished his playing career at Montana State as the Big Sky Conference's all-time tackles leader?
... that IBM spent US$50 million to develop the PCradio and expected to sell 100,000 units, but ended up selling just under 10,000?
... that Gerd Ruge received a twelve-year entry ban to the Soviet Union for having helped his friend Boris Pasternak financially?
... that the 1905 monument to the King's Liverpool Regiment is inscribed with the words Nec Aspera Terrent ("Difficulties be Damned")?
... that American evangelist J. Charles Jessup was called "The Great Gaspy"?

In the news

SpaceX Crew-3 launch

SpaceX launches (pictured) four astronauts on the Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station.
Former South African president F. W. de Klerk, who negotiated the end of apartheid with Nelson Mandela, dies at the age of 85.
In stock car racing, Kyle Larson wins the NASCAR Cup Series championship.
Kenyans Albert Korir and Peres Jepchirchir win the New York City Marathon men's and women's races.

On this day

November 14: World Diabetes Day; Dobruja Day in Romania

Eugene Burton Ely taking off from USS Birmingham

1680 – German astronomer Gottfried Kirch discovered the Great Comet of 1680, the first comet to be discovered by telescope.
1910 – Aviator Eugene Burton Ely performed the first takeoff from a ship (pictured), flying from a makeshift deck on USS Birmingham in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
1941 – Second World War: After suffering torpedo damage the previous day, the British aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal sank as she was being towed to Gibraltar for repairs.
1965 – Vietnam War: The United States Army and the People's Army of Vietnam engaged at the Battle of Ia Drang.
1975 – With the signing of the Madrid Accords, Spain agreed to withdraw its presence from the territory of Spanish Sahara.

Xavier Bichat (b. 1771)
John Abercrombie (d. 1844)
Neil Heywood (d. 2011)

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Today's featured picture

La Esmeralda is a grand opera in four acts composed by Louise Bertin, an adaptation of the French Gothic novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo, who also wrote the libretto for the opera. This sketch by Charles-Antoine Cambon shows the set design for act 3, scene 2, of the opera, which premiered at the Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique in Paris on 14 November 1836.

Set design credit: Charles-Antoine Cambon; restored by Adam Cuerden

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