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WHAT'S NEW / IN THE NEWS
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QUESTIONS to PONDER while READING
Many educators have asked for a new feature in Awesome Stories. Responding to that request, we have included “Issues/Questions to Ponder” in most chapters of our latest story - “Moneyball.” If you’d like to see more of this - both in new and existing stories - please click here to let us know.
A movie based on The Help, by Kathryn Stockett, is still playing in theaters. We have produced a story, and a lesson plan, based on the book and the film.
Another well-reviewed and popular film, based on the book Moneyball, has opened just in time for baseball’s playoffs and World Series. What does “Moneyball” mean - and - how did the use of baseball statistics (especially by the Oakland A’s, in 2002) change (or not change) the way Major-League players are selected? We have produced a story, and a lesson plan, based on the book and the film.
During the course of the summer, we added many new videos - with detailed descriptions, including targeted Google-Book links - to the video database. Have fun exploring what’s there!
Because it's much easier to share our newsletters with a stand-alone URL (rather than as an email), we have created a separate URL for this month's edition. We will activate the link, reflected above, soon after the email version is sent.
We are using Twitter, between monthly newsletters, to profile current and historical events. To stay on top of things, click the link above, sign up and off you go!
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SITE SIGNUP and LOGIN |
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QUICK CLIPS from the VIDEO ARCHIVES |
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DESEGREGATION RIOTS at OLE MISS As fiercely opposing sides gathered in Oxford, Mississippi - at the campus of Ole Miss - a battle over desegregation intensified. James Meredith was attempting to become the University of Mississippi’s first black student, but many whites opposed his efforts. With federal forces on site - dispatched by President Kennedy - America faced an issue of national significance. This historical newsreel footage depicts the events, as they occurred, in late September/early October, 1962. Henry Ford introduced his Model T on the 1st of October, 1908. More than 15 million of those cars - all of them black - were eventually sold before the model was no longer made. This video, depicting Ford’s assembly line in 1919, shows how so many Model Ts were ultimately produced. NAZI OFFICIALS SENTENCED to DEATH On the 1st of October, 1946, eleven high-ranking Nazis were sentenced to hang, in Nuremberg, for their various crimes. This clip, from Universal Newsreels, portrays the actual moment when those sentences were passed. JUDGMENT at NUREMBERG - THE VERDICT Judgment at Nuremberg, a film about the Nuremberg war-crime trials, reenacts delivery of the verdict in the “Justice Trial.” Spencer Tracy (in the role of Chief Judge) recounts what can happen when otherwise intelligent people succumb to the influence of a madman. IVAN the TERRIBLE CONQUERS KAZAN In this clip, from Sergei Eisenstein's film about Ivan the Terrible, we see the young Tsar leading his new army to Kazan. With the help of his general, Prince Andrei Kurbsky - and the use of Dutch gunpowder - Ivan defeated Kazan. History records that Ivan showed no mercy. Mahatma Gandhi was born on the 2nd of October, in 1869. Learn more about him from this video biography. GANDHI’S SPEECH on NON-VIOLENT RESISTANCE Gandhi opposed racially motivated laws. This video clip dramatizes one of his most famous speeches advocating non-violent resistance. THURGOOD MARSHALL BECOMES U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICE On the 2nd of October, 1967, Thurgood Marshall became an Associate Justice of America's Supreme Court. This clip features highlights of his life before he served on the high court. After Hitler’s troops invaded Poland in September of 1939, the Poles lived under Nazi tyranny. In 1944, people in Warsaw - the country’s capital city - staged an uprising against the occupation. By the 2nd of October, however, the Nazis had totally crushed the rebellion. It is estimated that approximately 250,000 people were killed as a direct result. During the Battle of Mogadishu - in October of 1993 - heavy fighting caused two Black Hawk helicopters to crash. What happened next is the subject of both a book and a film entitled Black Hawk Down. In this video, people involved in the incident tell us what they experienced. SPUTNIK I - WORLD’S FIRST SATELLITE The Soviet Union shocked the world when they launched Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to circle the Earth. Learn about its background, development and launch on October 4, 1957. The Right Stuff, a film about NASA’s early programs, uses historical information and imagined recreations to depict the U.S. government’s response to Sputnik. Humiliated by the satellite’s successful launch and flight, American intensified “the space race.” SEAMUS HEANEY - NOBEL PRIZE in LITERATURE Seamus Heaney won the Nobel Prize in Literature on the 5th of October, 1995. Known for many great works, including his translation of Beowulf - log-in, to hear that story's narration - the Nobel Laureate here reads one of his most-loved, short poems. It is called Scaffolding. In 1789, bread was an important part of a French person’s diet. Because of an economic crisis in France, however, French mothers had a difficult time buying bread for their children. Fed-up with the situation, about 6,000 women decided to take up the matter with their King by marching to Versailles and demanding an audience with him. What happened next marked a turning point in the French Revolution. The era of “talking motion pictures” began on the 6th of October, 1927, when The Jazz Singer opened. The film actually has very little audible dialogue, but it transitions from silent-to-talking age when the movie’s star, Al Jolson, says (rather prophetically): “Wait a minute! Wait a minute! ... You ain’t heard nothin’ yet!” UPRISING at AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU On the 7th of October, 1944, a group of people attempted an uprising at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Among other things, they tried to destroy a camp crematorium. Their efforts are recreated in this clip from The Grey Zone. People who attempted the Auschwitz Uprising of October, 1944, were called “Sonderkommandos.” Who were they - and - why did they do what they did at Auschwitz-Birkenau? ONE DAY in the LIFE of IVAN DENISOVICH Alexander Solzhenitsyn was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature on the 8th of October, 1970. One of his autobiographical novels, leading to the award, is called One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. This clip, from a 1970 film, closely follows the book. LABORERS in the GULAG - HISTORICAL FOOTAGE This video clip, compiled from various sources, features historical footage of Soviet forced laborers at work. Although Solzhenitsyn’s novel about Ivan Denisovich was welcomed, during the Khrushchev era, by 1974 - four years after he won the Nobel Prize - Solzhenitsyn was arrested and deported. In this clip, he describes what happened and how he reacted to the events which forced him to leave Russia. LAST FLIGHT of the SR-71 “BLACKBIRD” The world’s fastest airplane, the SR-71 - also known as the “Blackbird” - flew its last flight on October 9, 1999. Learn about this amazing plane which could fly at an altitude of 16 miles above ground at more than 2200 miles per hour. Faster than a speeding bullet, it left shock diamonds in its wake. PETER the GREAT - TSAR of RUSSIA Peter the Great became the Tsar of Russia on October 11, 1689. The man who built St. Petersburg, in the most unlikely of places, also accomplished many other feats. Who was he? Nero became Rome’s Emperor on the 13th of October, 54 AD. Who was this man whom so many reviled at the time of his death, fourteen years later? MARIE ANTOINETTE - EXECUTION of a QUEEN CONSORT Nine months after her husband (King Louis XVI) was executed, Marie Antoinette followed him to the guillotine. She was publicly beheaded - on the 16th of October, 1793 - following a trial in which false evidence was presented against her. DEADLIEST AMERICAN FIRE - PESHTIGO BURNS At the same time as Chicago burned - during the Great Fire of 1871 - Peshtigo, Wisconsin was also decimated by a raging inferno. This clip shows what happened to the town, and its people, on October 8-9, 1871. It remains America’s deadliest fire. JOHN BROWN - RAID on HARPERS FERRY John Brown was an American abolitionist who despised slavery. On the 16th of October, 1859, he led a raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry (then Virginia, now West Virginia). Praised by some and reviled by others, Brown was caught, tried and executed. Who was he? Thousands of soldiers died in the longest battle of medieval history, fought near Hastings, in 1066. Why did it take place - in October of that year - and what caused Harold II, the last Anglo-Saxon King of England, to lose his throne to a Norman? CORNWALLIS - DEFEAT at YORKTOWN During the American Revolution, Sir Henry Clinton thought his troops could defeat the rebellion in the American South. With people still loyal to the British Crown, perhaps the long and costly war could finally end in Britain's favor. After the fall of South Carolina, Clinton's strategy seemed to be working. However ... with the help of the French, and a stunning convergence of favorable events, the Americans defeated Cornwallis at Yorktown in October of 1781. Long before arriving at Cape Trafalgar, Admiral Horatio Nelson had planned his attack on Napoleon’s fleet. When the great naval battle began - on the 21st of October, 1805 - Nelson’s unconventional tactics led to Britain’s victory. At battle’s end, Nelson was dying aboard his ship, HMS Victory. Was Nelson killed by a skilled marksman’s shot - or - was he felled by chance in the chaos of battle? On the 25th of October, 1415 - during the Hundred Years’ War, between England and France - Henry V of Britain led his forces to victory at the Battle of Agincourt. The battle - featuring the English longbow - remains famous to this day.
SHOWDOWN at the UNITED NATIONS In October of 1962, America had evidence that the Soviets were building missile sites in Cuba. Adlai Stevenson, then-Ambassador to the UN, made the charges which the Soviets denied. This historical footage depicts what occurred then (and later). CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS - AS IT HAPPENED People involved with the Cuban missile crisis of October, 1962, tell the story from various points of view - American, Soviet and Cuban. On the 29th of October, 1929, the U.S. stock market crashed. The Great Depression would follow thereafter. What caused the crash? Could it have been prevented? WAR of the WORLDS - THE RADIO BROADCAST Orson Welles, and his colleagues at Mercury Theatre on the Air, decided to pull a prank on America. On the 30th of October, 1938 - the night before Halloween - Welles aired an adapted version of The War of the Worlds, by H.G. Wells. People throughout the country believed the play was real. WAR of the WORLDS - THE NIGHT AMERICA PANICKED Welles’ production of War of the Worlds was such a compelling radio program on Sunday evening - the 30th of October, 1938 - that many people throughout the U.S. panicked. Worried students from New Jersey, attending various colleges, lined-up to call their parents. They wanted to know whether “the Martians” - who’d apparently landed in their home state - had attacked their families. In this clip, Welles tells what he was up to, and now-grown students explain how they, and their families, reacted. PROTESTANT REFORMATION - LUTHER’S 95 THESES On the 31st of October, 1517, a monk named Martin Luther nailed 95 points of contention - called 95 Theses - on a door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg, Germany. His actions led to the Protestant Reformation. Who was Luther - and - how did his actions change the world? |
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OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS |
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On the 4th of October, 1997 - during a New York City auction - representatives from Chicago’s Field Museum placed the winning bid ($7.6 million plus commission) for a one-of-a-kind item. Learn about the purchase - the largest, best-preserved and most-intact fossil of a T. rex.
The Soviet Union shocked the world when it launched its first satellite - called Sputnik - on October 4, 1957. People in the United States were especially upset when America lost the “first round” of the space race. Learn what happened, see a picture of the satellite, hear its transmitted sound and examine the first “spy photo” ever taken by the U.S.
From the very beginning, Catherine O’Leary and Daisy, her cow, were blamed for starting Chicago’s Great Fire of 1871. Did they really do it? If so, how do we explain America’s deadliest fire which started in Peshtigo, Wisconsin at the same time? If Daisy kicked over the lantern in the O’Leary barn, producing enormous losses in Chicago, what caused the raging fire which devastated Holland, Michigan at the same time? (Log-in, to hear the story's narration.)
During the Korean War, UN troops expanded the conflict - which had been confined inside South Korea - into North Korean territory. Crossing the 38th parallel, on 9 October 1950, UN forces began their attacks as they moved toward the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. In response, China joined the fray as thousands of Chinese soldiers - unseen by UN forces - slipped into North Korea.
It is said that the 14th of October, 1066, changed the course of British history. On that day, exhausted British troops under the command of their king, Harold II, tried to rebuff an invasion by William, Duke of Normandy. The battle of Senlac Hill, near the town of Hastings, was ferocious. It resulted in Harold’s death (by an arrow) and a new king (the Norman, William the Conqueror).
The Bayeux Tapestry, perhaps commissioned by William’s half-brother in the 1070s, artistically tells the story of the Norman victory. Included in its panels is a mysterious star (later determined to be Halley’s Comet) which many people, at the time, believed to be a bad omen. In this story, you will see the Bayeux Tapestry, in animation, together with links which explain both the comet and the famous battle.
A marriage intended to form more healthy relations between France and its former enemies resulted in disaster for a princess named Marie Antoinette. Bad publicity contributed to her ultimate demise. She was guillotined, in Paris, on the 16th of October, 1793. Who was this girl-turned-queen?
FRANCE HELPS AMERICA WIN a WAR
For six years, revolutionary forces battled the British Army as His Majesty’s colonies in America asserted their independence. While progress was made, many historians believe a colonial victory would not have happened without France’s help.
For the first time in weeks, the clouds over Cuba gave way to clear skies. It was October 14, 1962. Major Richard Heyser was about to fly his U-2 on a spy mission over the Caribbean island. What he found brought the world as close as it’s ever come to the brink of nuclear war.
THE “COLOR LINE” and the WORLD SERIES
On the 20th of October, 1924, baseball’s first “Colored World Series” was held in Kansas City, Missouri. Why did “the boys of summer” have separate championships?
No longer Deputy Marshall of Dodge City, Wyatt Earp still recognized a crime-in-the-making. At least ... that’s what he thought. In October of 1881, the former lawman reportedly told Ike Clanton, a Tombstone cowboy: “... if you are anxious to make a fight, I will go anywhere on earth to make a fight with you.” Later, after thirty shots rang out in thirty seconds, Wyatt found himself on the other side of the law. He didn’t have to “go anywhere on earth to make a fight.” He just had to go to the O.K. Corral.
WILLIAM PENN and his MODEL LAWS
William Penn - an Englishman who landed on the river bank of what is now Chester, Pennsylvania in late October, 1682 - knew what it was like to be charged with an unfair law. His jurors knew what could happen if their verdict went against the government’s wishes.
It was a time of utter despair, nearly unimaginable today. On the 28th and 29th of October, 1929, the U.S. stock market crashed, ushering in “The Great Depression.” It wasn’t just stock investors who lost fortunes. Bank depositors also lost their savings since so many banks had invested their holdings in stocks. A domino effect caused businesses to close and people to lose their jobs and homes. COLORED PHOTOS of the GREAT DEPRESSION |
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SEARCHING AwesomeStories
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The site has a blazing-fast search for each database. Choose the one you need (images, videos, audio, etc.), and you will immediately get the "search" feature for that database. "Search," at the top right of the site, is for story text.
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HAVE A GREAT FALL! |
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AwesomeStories
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Biographies
History
- American Colonies
- American Revolution - Highlights
- Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
- Assassination of John F. Kennedy
- Auschwitz: Place of Horrors
- Book Burning and Censorship
Disasters
- America Attacked: 9/11
- Black Death
- Challenger Disaster
- Columbia Space Shuttle Explosion
- Deepwater Horizon: Disaster in the Gulf
- Fatal Voyage: The Titanic
Philosophy
- Bagger Vance and and the Bhagavad Gita
- Bonhoeffer: Martyr of Faith
- C.S. Lewis
- Dead Sea Scrolls
- Easter Story
- Freedom of Religion