Browsing: Beth Michaels

A Brief History On August 31st, 1997, Princess Diana died in a Paris hospital after being involved in an accident in which the car she had been riding in had been chased down and harassed by paparazzi before crashing into a wall and pillar of an underground tunnel.  Digging Deeper This article discusses less the actual circumstances of the crash and its aftermath and more the impact Diana’s death had on the author of the article. Just a teenager at the time, the author had grown up with Princess Diana being omnipresent.  From the time Diana got married as the author was a baby…

A Brief History On August 22nd, 1902, Helene “Leni” Riefenstahl was born in Berlin, Germany.  Thirty years later she would meet Adolf Hitler, the man who helped her become the greatest female filmmaker of the 20th century, but that association would nearly destroy her as well. Digging Deeper A talented teenager, Leni (pronounced “Lay-Nee”) was enrolled in dance and ballet classes.  She gained a reputation on the Berlin dance circuit and became a popular entertainer.  Injuries to her feet and knees, however, threatened the future of her dancing career, so she transitioned into acting.  She went on to have a prolific run as…

A Brief History On August 18, 1587, Virginia Dare was born in the Roanoke Colony in what is now North Carolina.  Each year the current residents of Roanoke Island celebrate her birthday with an Elizabethan Renaissance Festival. Digging Deeper Whereas the date of death is often known for many famous people throughout history, their births were mostly insignificant and thus not recorded.  For Virginia the exact opposite is true.  As the first child born to English settlers on the North American continent, her birth is important.  This is largely where her story also ends.  In fact it is unknown if and when…

A Brief History On August 15, 1950, Princess Anne was born to the future Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburg. Though the second child of a reigning monarch, she is only 11th in line of succession. She does, however, hold a title that currently no one else in the entire world is entitled to, namely that of Princess Royal. Digging Deeper The title of Princess Royal is an honorary title awarded to the eldest daughter of the reigning British monarch. It is the highest honor a female member of the royal family can receive.…

A Brief History On August 9th, 1965, Tom Jones’s rendition of “What’s New Pussycat?”, the title song of the movie with the same name, was released in the UK. It was hugely successful in the music charts, having reached no. 3 in the US and no. 11 in the UK and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song. Digging Deeper Two famous German-speaking actresses of the post-war years starred in the film adaptation: Romy Schneider and Ursula Andress. For more on them, please refer to Part 2 of the series. In this article we present German-speaking actresses…