April 12 ...
 

April 12 467 - Anthemius became Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.

April 12 1633 - The formal interrogation of Galileo Galilei by the Inquisition began.

April 12 1961 - Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man to enter outer space.

April 12 1980 - Terry Fox dipped his artificial leg in the Atlantic Ocean and began his
trans-Canada run towards the Pacific Ocean to raise money for cancer research.

April 12 1981 - Columbia, the first space shuttle, was launched for its first flight.

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Terry Fox continues to own. A great Canadian.

They're commemorating the 25th anniversary of his Marathon of Hope with a statue in St. John's today. Very cool.

historychannel.com is great for this stuff:


April 12

1945 FDR dies


U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt dies of a cerebral hemorrhage in his home at Warm Springs, Georgia, on this day in 1945. The only man to be elected to four terms as president of the United States, Roosevelt is remembered--by friends and enemies alike-- for his New Deal social policies and his leadership during wartime.

Roosevelt was elected to a third term in 1940 with the promise of maintaining American neutrality as far as foreign wars were concerned: "Let no man or woman thoughtlessly or falsely talk of American people sending its armies to European fields." But as Hitler's war spread, and the desperation of Britain grew, the president fought for passage in Congress of the Lend-Lease Act, in March 1941,which committed financial aid to Great Britain and other allies. In August, Roosevelt met with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to proclaim the Atlantic Charter, which would become the basis of the United Nations; they also drafted a statement to the effect that the United States "would be compelled to take countermeasures" should Japan further encroach in the southwest Pacific.

Despite ongoing negotiations with Japan, that "further encroachment" took the form of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, "--a day that would live in infamy." The next day Roosevelt requested, and received, a declaration of war against Japan. On December 11, Germany and Italy declared war on the United States.

Certain wartime decisions by Roosevelt proved controversial, such as the demand of unconditional surrender of the Axis powers, which some claim prolonged the war. Another was the acquiescence to Joseph Stalin of certain territories in the Far East in exchange for his support in the war against Japan. Roosevelt is often accused of being too naýve where Stalin was concerned, especially in regards to "Uncle Joe's" own imperial desires.





1865 Surrender of Mobile, Alabama


The last major Confederate port city falls when Mobile, Alabama, surrenders to Union troops.

I always thought Terry Fox was cool. His mom even came and talked to my Jr High 7 or so years ago. I watched the TV movie about him with Robert Duvall and they protrayed Fox as an whiney asshole. I don't really know if he was like that...But now I second guess everytime I hear something about him. Guess it doesn't really matter. Hes still a great Canadian.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086427/

I think he was allowed to be a whiny asshole after running an average of 42kms a day for 143 days...heh heh.

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