Month: March 2022

Batista Leads a Successful Coup in Cuba (1952)

Fulgencio Batista worked his way up through the Cuban army ranks before participating in a coup to oust the Céspedes government and install Ramón Grau as president in 1933. Just months later, however, Batista forced Grau’s resignation and became Cuba’s de facto ruler. After a period of exile beginning in 1944, Batista returned to Cuba and led a coup to seize power. His second term as president was marked by brutal repression, which sparked several uprisings, including one led by whom? Discuss

Fairbanks Winter Carnival

The Winter Carnival is a week of festivities in Fairbanks, Alaska, highlighted by sled dog races. The carnival opens with the two-day Limited North American Sled Dog Race, and concludes, on the last two days, with the Open North American Sled Dog Race. Other events include dances, a parka parade, a campstove chili contest, a native potlatch, snow- and ice-sculpting contests, snowshoe races and softball, musical and dramatic presentations, and a trade fair. Discuss

Alexander III of Russia (1845)

Alexander III was tsar of Russia from 1881 until his death in 1894. As ruler, he sought to counteract what he considered the excessive liberalism of his father’s reign and pursued a reactionary policy that promoted Russification and the persecution of religious minorities. Still, economic policy during Alexander’s rule enabled rapid industrial development and allowed Russia to begin building the Trans-Siberian Railroad. To which of Alexander’s relatives was his wife, Dagmar, originally engaged? Discuss

The Kit Kat Bar

The original “Kit Kat” comestible was a far cry from the candy bar we know and love today. In the 18th century, mutton pies called kit-cats were served at meetings of London’s political Kit-Cat Club. The popular chocolate bar, with its distinct four-fingered shape, was introduced in 1935, after a worker at British confectionary Rowntree suggested the company create a snack that a man could easily take to work. Before being rebranded the “Kit Kat” in 1937, the treat was marketed under what name? Discuss

The Barbie Doll Debuts (1959)

When Ruth Handler realized that there were no adult-bodied dolls on the toy market, she suggested to her husband—with whom she co-founded the Mattel toy company—that Mattel begin producing one. In 1959, Barbie made her debut. She was based on a German doll called Bild Lilli and was marketed as a “Teen-age Fashion Model.” According to estimates, more than a billion Barbie dolls have been sold worldwide, and many have become collector’s items. Who is the “Barbie” after whom the doll was named? Discuss

Forty Martyrs' Day

The “Forty Martyrs of Sebaste” were Roman soldiers quartered in Armenia in 320 CE; they are greatly revered in the Eastern Orthodox Church. In Greece, special foods are prepared, such as cake with 40 layers of pastry and stew with 40 herbs. In Romania, little cakes called sfintisori (“little mints”) are baked and given to and received from every passerby. Coliva is also traditional. Farm tools are readied for work, and hearth ashes are spread around the cottage to keep the serpent from entering. (Each home is said to have a serpent protecting it). Discuss

Yuri Gagarin (1934)

Gagarin was a Russian cosmonaut who, in 1961, became the first human being to successfully travel into space. Gagarin circled the Earth once during his 1-hour-and-48-minute flight aboard the Vostok 1. His success is believed to have ushered in the modern era of man in space, and Gagarin toured widely to promote the Soviet achievement. Ironically, he died in a plane crash seven years later. What factors did Soviet officials consider when choosing Gagarin for the historic space flight? Discuss