Today in News History

On July 12, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 937, Rudolph II of Burgundy (born 880) passed away. In 1174, Baldwin IV, 13, becomes King of Jerusalem, with Raymond III, Count of Tripoli as regent and William of Tyre as chancellor. In 1302, Robert II, Count of Artois (born 1250) passed away. In 1914, The US Navy launches the USS Nevada (BB-36) as its first standard-type battleship. In 1916, Mortimer Caplin, American tax attorney, educator, and IRS Commissioner (died 2019) was born. In 1950, Pakistan joins the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank. In 1962, Project Apollo: At a press conference, NASA announces lunar orbit rendezvous as the means to land astronauts on the Moon, and return them to Earth. In 1978, Los Alfaques disaster: A truck carrying liquid gas crashes and explodes at a coastal campsite in Tarragona, Spain killing 216 tourists. In 1979, America's first space station, Skylab, is destroyed as it re-enters the Earth's atmosphere over the Indian Ocean. 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.