Wikipedia:Main Page history/2012 June 14

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Today's featured article
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock is a 1984 motion picture released by Paramount Pictures. The film is the third feature film of the Star Trek science fiction franchise and is the center of a three-film story arc that begins with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and concludes with Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. After the death of Spock (Leonard Nimoy), the crew of the USS Enterprise returns to Earth. When James T. Kirk (William Shatner) learns that Spock's spirit is held in the mind of Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley), Kirk and company steal the Enterprise to return Spock's body to his home planet. The crew must also contend with hostile Klingons, led by Kruge (Christopher Lloyd), bent on stealing the secrets of a powerful terraforming device. Paramount commissioned the film after positive critical and commercial reaction to The Wrath of Khan. Nimoy directed, the first Star Trek cast member to do so. Producer Harve Bennett wrote the script starting from the end and working back, and intended the destruction of the Enterprise to be a shocking development. The film grossed $76 million at the domestic box office and a total of $87 million worldwide. Critical reaction to The Search for Spock was mixed to positive. Reviewers generally praised the cast and characters, while criticism tended to focus on the plot; the special effects were conflictingly received. Roger Ebert called the film a compromise between the tones of the first and second Star Trek films. (more...) Recently featured: Ediacara biota – Boeing 777 – Yorkshire captaincy affair of 1927 Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that the fungus species Hygrophorus olivaceoalbus (pictured) is nearly extinct in France? ... that Australian 2008 Paralympic swimming bronze medalist Annabelle Williams was a stunt double for Charlize Theron? ... that the PZL SM-4 Łątka never flew as its engine was not approved for use in flight? ... that Japanese professional wrestler Antonio Inoki organized the World Wrestling Peace Festival, an international supercard, as a way to promote world peace? ... that although Duke Huan of Tian Qi murdered Tian Yan to usurp the throne of Qi, the two brothers were buried together in the Two Kings' Cemetery? ... that Stanwell Tops had a Black Christmas in 2001? ... that While She Sleeps won the Kerrang! award for Best British Newcomer at the 2012 awards ceremony? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
More than 90 people are killed in a series of car bombings across Iraq. Jon McGregor wins the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award for his novel Even the Dogs. An Australian coroner rules that a dingo was responsible for the death of Azaria Chamberlain in 1980. More than 70 people are buried and presumed dead as the result of two earthquakes in Afghanistan. In ice hockey, the Los Angeles Kings defeat the New Jersey Devils to win the Stanley Cup (Conn Smythe Trophy awardee Jonathan Quick pictured). Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
June 14: Liberation Day in the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (1982); Flag Day in the United States 1645 – English Civil War: In the Battle of Naseby, the main army of King Charles I was defeated by the Parliamentarian New Model Army under Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell. 1822 – In a paper presented to the Royal Astronomical Society, English mathematician Charles Babbage proposed a difference engine (pictured), an automatic, mechanical calculator designed to tabulate polynomial functions. 1940 – World War II: Four days after the French government fled Paris, German forces occupied the French capital, essentially ending the Battle of France. 1985 – The Schengen Agreement, a treaty to abolish systematic border controls between participating European countries, was signed between five of the ten member states of the European Economic Community. 1994 – After the Vancouver Canucks lost to the New York Rangers in ice hockey's Stanley Cup Finals, a riot ensued in Downtown Vancouver, causing C$1.1 million in damage. More anniversaries: June 13 – June 14 – June 15 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now June 14, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811–1896) was an American abolitionist and author, best known for her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, which depicted the life of African Americans under slavery. It reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom. It energized anti-slavery forces in the American North, while provoking widespread anger in the South. She wrote more than 20 books, including novels, three travel memoirs, and collections of articles and letters. She was influential both for her writings and her public stands on social issues of the day.

Artist: Francis Holl after George Richmond

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