Wikipedia:Main Page history/2021 July 17

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Paper Mario is a video game spinoff series of the Mario franchise, developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for its various video game consoles. The series began when Square took its Final Fantasy franchise to Sony's PlayStation console, leaving Nintendo without a role-playing game (RPG) for the Nintendo 64. The series follows Mario on various quests to defeat one or more antagonists (including Bowser) in worlds created with papercraft materials. The first game in the series, Paper Mario, was released in August 2000. The series has received praise for its writing, characters, and graphics, but garnered criticism for its transition from traditional role-playing to action-adventure, starting with Super Paper Mario for the Wii. The newest game in the series, The Origami King, was released on July 17, 2020. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

New Forest Buckhounds

... that when Queen Anne became too infirm to follow her pack of Buckhounds (examples pictured) on horseback, she had paths cut through Windsor Forest so she could follow the hunt in a carriage?
... that John Aitken first discovered oxidative stress as a major cause of male infertility?
... that the Canadian city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, plans to construct some 57 km (35 mi) of safe cycling routes within its central urban area?
... that Kate Baker arranged to republish the Australian novel Such Is Life by Joseph Furphy after locating half of the original manuscript under some lumber in the offices of The Bulletin?
... that Homobiles has been called "Uber for drag queens"?
... that General Sir Charles Reid shot the celebrated, but probably not man-eating, Leeds Tiger?
... that St Gregory's Church, Sudbury, has the mummified head of Archbishop Simon Sudbury, beheaded by a mob in 1381, preserved in a niche in the vestry?
... that Robert Quackenbush wrote the Henry the Duck books to ease any taunting his son might receive because of his surname?

In the news

Flooding in Valkenburg aan de Geul, Netherlands

Severe floods (pictured) across western Europe leave more than 120 people dead and 1,300 others missing.
In South Africa, protests and subsequent unrest over the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma result in 212 deaths and more than 2,500 arrests.
The Supreme Court of Nepal designates Sher Bahadur Deuba as prime minister.
There Is Such a People wins the most seats in the Bulgarian parliamentary election.

On this day

July 17: Constitution Day in South Korea (1948); World Emoji Day

Damage caused by the Hyatt Regency walkway collapse

1048 – Damasus II began his 23-day-long papacy, one of the shortest in history.
1771 – Dene men, acting as guides to Samuel Hearne on his exploration of the Coppermine River in present-day Nunavut, Canada, massacred a group of about 20 Copper Inuit.
1968 – Led by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party overthrew Iraqi president Abdul Rahman Arif.
1981 – A structural failure caused a walkway at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, U.S., to collapse (damage pictured), killing 114 people and injuring 216 others.

Maurycy Gottlieb (d. 1879)
Mary Osborne (b. 1921)
Florence Fuller (d. 1946)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

At the Seashore is an 1886 oil-on-canvas painting by the Polish artist Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz, depicting a young woman from a fishing village sitting on the sand with her little daughter. The painting presents a realistic scene from a beach located by the English Channel and conveys a profound sense of melancholy. Painted in Pourville, Normandy, the work is a reflection on the recent death of the artist's father, and a close friend. The painting is part of the collection of the National Museum in Warsaw, Poland.

Painting credit: Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.