Today in News History

On July 12, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1789, Jacques Necker is dismissed as France's Finance Minister sparking the Storming of the Bastille. In 1916, Mortimer Caplin, American tax attorney, educator, and IRS Commissioner (died 2019) was born. In 1937, Pai Hsien-yung, Chinese-Taiwanese author was born. In 1968, Michael Geist, Canadian journalist and academic was born. In 1973, Varig Flight 820 crashes near Paris on approach to Orly Airport, killing 123 of the 134 on board. In response, the FAA bans smoking in airplane lavatories. In 1990, Oka Crisis: First Nations land dispute in Quebec begins. In 1991, Nigeria Airways Flight 2120 crashes in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, killing all 261 passengers and crew on board. In 1999, Jan Sloot, Dutch computer scientist and electronics technician (born 1945) passed away. In 2007, Ed Mirvish, American-Canadian businessman and philanthropist, founded Honest Ed's (born 1914) passed away. In 2015, Satoru Iwata, Japanese game programmer and businessman (born 1959) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.