On This Day…

1883 – The Orient Express departs on its first official journey from Paris to Istanbul.

1927 – Sculpting begins on the face of Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills National Forest of South Dakota.

1957 – On this day in 1957 the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, which orbited the Earth until 1958, inaugurated the space age, and heightened Cold War competition between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S.

1970 – American singer Janis Joplin, who was known for her fierce and uninhibited musical style, died of an accidental overdose of heroin.

1987 – “The Last Emperor” directed by Bernardo Bertolucci and starring John Lone, Joan Chen and Peter O’Toole premieres at the Tokyo Film Festival (Best Picture 1988).

2006 – WikiLeaks is launched, created by internet activist Julian Assange.

Via Britannica / On This Day