Important Events From This day in History August 12th

 

12 Aug, 1981 IBM Releases It's First Personal Computer

12 August, 1981 : IBM released its first PC, or personal computer, the IBM 5150 which sold for around $1,600 as a basic config but to get a fully working PC with with 64 kb of RAM and a single 5 1/4 inch floppy drive and monitor cost $3,005.

Specs for the Original IBM PC:

An Intel 8088 processor running 4.77 MHz, PC-DOS 1.0, Floppy disk or cassette player, Hard Disc (Optional extra as an external 10MB hard disk), Memory 256 KB, TV-compatible video board

Find More What happened in 1981.

12 Aug, 1901 Italy Signor Crispi

1901 : Signor Crispi, a prominent Italian politician, whose career was full of turbulence and hints of scandal died in Naples with his family and close friends in attendance. He was to have a large, public funeral and his memoirs were to be published. Crispi had been elected as prime minister of Italy twice. However, allegations of bank fraud and the selling of military medals surrounded him.

12 Aug, 1921 U.S.A. Buck Jones

1921 : Buck Jones was a famous horse trainer, cowboy, and movie heart-throb who read Alexander Dumas and Charles Dickens books to prepare him for his romantic roles. Jones frequently starred as an often-spurned, but still determined lover on the big screen.

12 Aug, 1930 U.S.A. Al Capone

1930 : In Chicago, Al Capone’s liquor business and headquarters was to be stormed by police on orders from Judge H. Lyle. Also, one of Capone’s king pins, Jack Zuta was gunned down by the law in Wisconsin at a summer resort.

12 Aug, 1944 England Joseph Patrick Kennedy, Jr

1944 : Joseph Patrick Kennedy, Jr the older brother of the future president of the United States President John F. Kennedy is killed with his co-pilot when 21,170 pounds of Torpex explosive in their aircraft explodes over England during World War II.

12 Aug, 1947 U.S.A. Trygve Lie

1947 : Trygve Lie, secretary of the U.N., claimed that the split between the Soviet Union and the U.S. was the culprit for the world’s economic crisis and predicted that World War III was festering and ready to break out. Lie claimed that the global economy was worse than the year before.

12 Aug, 1955 Minimum Hourly Wage $1.00 Per Hour

1955 : The minimum hourly wage is raised in the United States from 75 cents per hour to $1.00 per hour (for a 40 hr week this would provide about $2,000 PER YEAR).

12 Aug, 1959 U.S.A. Clark Gable Affair

1959 : In Hollywood the editor of “Confidential” magazine tattled that actor Clark Gable was having a love affair with brunette, Francase DeScaffe, former wife of actor Bruce Cabot. DeScaffe was found by a court to be guilty of complicity with “Confidential” magazine which was spreading scandalous rumors about the Hollywood stars private lives. After hearing the verdict, DeScaffe slashed her wrists and refused extradition to the States.

12 Aug, 1964 South Africa Barred from the Olympic Games

1964 : Following the IOC conditions including dismantling it's Apartheid Policies which South Africa refuses they are barred from the Olympic Games in Tokyo. South Africa was not allowed back into the Olympics in 1992 after 28 years suspension.

12 Aug, 1976 U.S.A. “Political Hot Air”

12 August, 1976 : Four young people were looking to turn a profit at the Republican National Convention in Kansas city. They spent $1,904 for 1,500 cans of “political hot air”. The cans were patriotic red, white, and blue, with a picture of Washington on them. The labels read, “Hold hot air six inches away from scandal and spray for two seconds. Hot air will immediately begin a cover-up and will also mask any unpleasant stink. If an irritation develops, discontinue use and consult your lawyer.” The joke cans were selling for $2.00 each.

12 Aug, 1984 Four Inch Lobster In Swimming Pool

1984 : An Annapolis, MD man found a four inch lobster in his swimming pool after torrential rain fell. George Messe figures that a water spout must have occurred and thrown the crustacean there.

12 Aug, 1985 Japan Plane Crash

1985 : A Japan Airlines Boeing 747 Flight 123 crashed into into Mount Osutaka 32 minutes after takeoff with the loss of 505 passengers and 15 crew members.

12 Aug, 1990 U.S.A. Tyrannosaurus Rex / Sue

1990 : The skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex is discovered in Cheyenne River Indian Reservation, South Dakota, It turns out to be one of the most complete skeletons of T-Rex ever found and is named after Sue Hendrickson, the paleontologist who found her. Sue ( T-Rex ) can now be seen at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, Illinois.

12 Aug, 1997 U.S.A. Line Item Veto

1997 : President Clinton made history by using his line-item veto power. His veto nixed financial help to farmers, American financial firms, overseas military spending, and New York State. Clinton’s veto may be overturned later and the Supreme Court will have to decide whether or not a president should have this kind of power.

12 Aug, 2000 Russia K-141 Kursk Submarine

2000 : The Russian Oscar-II class nuclear submarine K-141 Kursk and its 118-man crew were lost during naval exercises in the Barents Sea, the cause was believed to have been an explosion on board the submarine which caused the sub to sink to the ocean depths.

12 Aug, 2004 U.S.A. Storm Eye Institute

2004 : Storm Eye Institute in Charleston, Carolina is touted as the top ophthalmology center in America, even outranking Harvard. It was started in 1961 from a huge monetary donation from Mrs. Albert Florens Storm. The Institute has excellent research and clinical facilities for patients who have eye diseases.

12 Aug, 2004 Debate Over Use of Therapeutic Cloning of Embryos

2004 : The continued debate over the use of therapeutic cloning for stem cell research continues to gather pace both in America and other countries of the world . Many believe that the research will lead to medical breakthroughs in Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. Many believe that the research raises serious questions of 'ethics' and embryos have rights to life which is a gift from God not from a scientist in a lab.

12 Aug, 2006 Norwich Provides Free WiFi

August 12, 2006 : Norwich in the UK is piloting a scheme the first in the country to provide free WiFi access in three quarters of the city. The scheme involves more than 200 antennas so far around the city, mainly on lampposts, with more being added all the time to provide blanket wi-fi coverage.

12 Aug, 2007 Hungary 8 Million Year Old Forest

2007 : Archaeologists discovered an eight million year old cypress forest in Hungary. Sixteen preserved tree trunks were found in an open coal mine in Bukkabrany. Scientists hoped that studying these specimens could provide insight into the ancient climate in which they lived.

12 Aug, 2009 Wild Salmon In Seine River

2009 : The Seine river in France has wild salmon fish returning to the river for the first time in nearly one hundred years. The fish returned after an effort to clean up pollution in the river since 1995.

12 Aug, 2011 Passenger Train Derails Injuring Many

2011 : One person died and forty others were injured after a passenger train derailed in central Poland. A total of three carriages came off the tracks but the cause of the derailment was unclear.

12 Aug, 2012 US Men's Basketball Team Wins Over Spain

August 12, 2012 : The US men's basketball team won over Spain in the final at the London Olympics. This was the 14th gold medal won by the USA men's team and they beat Spain in a close game with a score of 107 to 100.

History of Basketball

12 Aug, 2013 Netherlands Prince Friso Dies

2013 : Forty-four year old Prince Friso of the Netherlands died after spending a year and a half in a coma. Prince Friso died after complications following a brain injury he sustained while at an Austrian ski resort. He had been buried by an avalanche for fifteen minutes in February of 2012.

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