From today's featured article

John Gielgud (1904 2000) was an English actor and theatre director who, along with
Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, dominated the British stage for much of
the 20th century. A member of the Terry family theatrical dynasty, he became a s
tar in the West End and on Broadway by the 1930s, appearing in new works and cla
ssics. He began a parallel career as a director, and set up his own company at t
he Queen's Theatre, London. Though he made his first film in 1924 and had succes
ses with The Good Companions (1933) and Julius Caesar (1953), he did not begin a
regular film career until his sixties. He appeared in more than 60 films betwee
n Becket in 1964 (his first Academy Award nomination) and Elizabeth in 1998. As
the acid-tongued Hobson in Arthur (1981) he won the Academy Award for Best Suppo
rting Actor. He earned a Golden Globe Award and two BAFTAs, and had the rare dis
tinction of winning an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Tony. He broadcast more t
han 100 radio and television dramas and made commercial recordings of many plays
, including ten of Shakespeare's. He was knighted in 1953 and was president of t
he Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1977 to 1989. (Fullarticle...)
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Did you know...
Cornell Pulpwood Stacker
... that a steep catwalk leads to the top of the 175-foot (53m) high Cornell Pulp
wood Stacker (pictured)?
... that the Rugrats episode "Mother's Day" addressed the absence of Chuckie Fin
ster's mother by revealing that she had died of a terminal illness?
... that in his 2014 exhibition Using Beauty as a Remedy for Life, Pakistani art
ist Mahmood Hayat questioned whether objective standards of beauty exist?
... that during the Balfour Mission 100 years ago, Arthur Balfour became the fir
st Englishman to address both houses of the U.S. Congress?
... that several buildings by Ellamae Ellis League are listed in the National Re
gister of Historic Places, including the home she built for herself?
... that the Japan Medical Association deployed 6,054 medical and support person
nel during the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami?
... that "'Allein Gott in der Hh sei Ehr" is one of the oldest hymns of the Refor
mation?
... that the big blue octopus often forms a midden outside its den?
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In the news
Salvador Sobral
Salvador Sobral (pictured), representing Portugal, wins the Eurovision Song Cont
est with the song "Amar Pelos Dois".
A large-scale cyber attack involving ransomware causes severe disruptions around
the world.
The Free National Movement, led by Hubert Minnis, wins the Bahamian general elec
tion.
Moon Jae-in is elected President of South Korea.
In the French presidential election, Emmanuel Macron defeats Marine Le Pen to be
come the next President of France.
In horse racing, Always Dreaming, ridden by jockey John Velazquez, wins the Kent
ucky Derby.
Ongoing: Battle of MosulTurkish purgesVenezuelan protests
Recent deaths: Mark ColvinQian QichenGran ApacheGholamreza Pahlavi
On this day...
May 14: Feast day of Saint Matthias and Saint Mo Chutu (Roman Catholicism); Lag
BaOmer (Judaism, 2017)
Edward Jenner
1264 Second Barons' War: King Henry III was defeated at the Battle of Lewes and
forced to sign the Mise of Lewes, making Simon de Montfort the de facto ruler of
England.
1796 English physician Edward Jenner (pictured) began testing cowpox as a vaccin
e against smallpox.
1878 The last witchcraft trial in the United States opened in Salem, Massachuset
ts.
1931 Five people were killed in dalen, Sweden, as soldiers opened fire on an unar
med trade union demonstration.
1940 World War II: The bulk of Dutch forces surrendered to the Wehrmacht, ending
the Battle of the Netherlands.
Mary Seacole (d.1881) Charlotte Auerbach (b.1899) Marjory Stoneman Douglas (d.1998)
More anniversaries: May 13May 14May 15
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