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You’re fired: How Truman relieved MacArthur of command

Gen. Douglas MacArthur was a hero from two World Wars who had served as the supreme commander of the Allied forces in the Pacific. But after he was put in command of the Allied effort to liberate South Korea, MacArthur learned a difficult lesson: When you work for the president of the United States, you might disagree with him. But if you disagree with him publicly and repeatedly, be prepared to lose your job.

Everything’s Archie: Archie Comics adaptations

Twenty years ago this spring, the Archie comics spinoff movie “Josie and the Pussycats” was released in theaters. To this day, “Josie and the Pussycats” is the only big-screen release of characters from Archie Comics and one of the few comic book-related films that do not feature characters who wear capes. Here’s a look at other Archie Comics adaptations:

The state of movies

2020 will go down in cinematic history as the year disaster flicks were replaced by a real life disaster: COVID-19. The pandemic did a real number on our movie consumption and our favorite theaters. Perhaps the industry will bounce back as major blockbusters are released as this year rolls on.

The games of summer: the Olympics

One hundred and twenty-five years ago, the modern Olympic movement began when 241 athletes from 13 European countries plus the United States gathered in Athens, Greece, for 10 days of competition, fellowship and a celebration of the spirit of athletics.

Tale of the tape: Gonzaga vs. Creighton

Today’s huge Sweet 16 matchup pairs off the undefeated, ferocious Gonzaga Bulldogs and the dainty little songbirds of Creighton University. We don’t need to talk much pregame smack, however. We’ll let the numbers do that.

The adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit”

Brace yourself for your “Do you feel old yet?” moment for today: Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” was released in theaters 20 years ago this December. Here’s a look at all the film and video adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien’s tales of elves and orcs, sorcerers, intrigue, vast armies and some mighty fancy jewelry.

A look at the types of coronavirus vaccines

Have you had your jab yet? Your Fauci ouchie? Your first or second dose of corona- virus vaccine? If not, don’t worry too much: Officials have bought more doses and are getting better at spreading them around the country. Here’s a look at the three vaccines being used now and a couple more that may be on the way.

The building of Grand Coulee Dam

When Woody Guthrie sang that the Grand Coulee Dam was the “biggest thing built by the hand of a man,” he wasn’t far off. One of the largest structures ever built, the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River stands 550 feet high and just under a mile wide and contains 12 million cubic yards of concrete. The project began generating power on this date, 80 years ago. Here’s how it came about:

What causes our seasons

In most of the U.S., our seasons mean the difference between roasting marshmallows over a campfire on a summer evening or shoveling snow for the umpteenth time even as more snow falls around you in the dead of winter. Perhaps it wouldn’t surprise you to learn that our seasons are a fluke of nature: The result of a colossal smashup in space, billions of years ago.

Victims of the great CBS-TV “rural purge” of 1977

You think so-called “cancel culture” is bad now? In fact, it’s nothing new. One of the biggest examples came 50 years ago, on March 16, 1971, when CBS-TV announced its schedule for that fall.

How ‘Arab Spring’ began

Ten years ago, a suicidal protest by a Tunisian street vendor set off a wave of anti-government protests across the Arab world. What came to be called “Arab Spring” resulted in changes in government in several countries, two changes of government in Egypt and sparked civil wars that have plagued Syria, Libya and Yemen ever since.

Perfect seasons over the past 50 years

Zero losses. Zero ties. Nothin’ but wins: The perfect season. Granted, Gonzaga isn’t done yet, but if the Zags can make it through the NCAA Tournament unscathed, they’ll become the first NCAA men’s basketball team to make it through an entire season with zero losses and zero ties since the Indiana Hoosiers did it in 1976.

History of the minimum wage in the United States

The government has been involved in minimum wage rules and legislation ever since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the National Industrial Recovery Act into law on June 16, 1933. At times, the nation’s minimum wage has been set at something that seems reasonable for working-class folks. At other times, perhaps not quite so much.

World’s largest earthquakes

Ten years ago today, a 9.1-magnitude earthquake – and the titanic tsunami it generated – struck Japan. Japan is still struggling with the aftermath.

A history of daylight saving time

Early Sunday, we’ll observe an annual ritual in which we disrupt our natural rhythm to get out of bed an hour earlier in the mornings – all in hopes of prolonging our exposure to the sun.

Celebrating the copy desk on National Proofreading Day

How better to celebrate today as National Proofreading Day than by telling you about The Spokesman-Review’s copy desk? These are the staffers responsible for proofreading the text we write, catching the typos we make, making sure all our facts line up and then squeezing everything onto the pages of your favorite morning newspaper.

116 seasons of Gonzaga basketball

The starting point – Dec. 15, 1905 – was a 40-5 victory over Medical Lake High School at Gonzaga's new gymnasium, the first game of 116 seasons of Bulldogs basketball. But even as recently as 25 years ago, no one could have imagined the program becoming the most remarkable story in college basketball. Here's a look at the Zag timeline, then to now.

Dams of the Northwest

There are more than 60 dams and up to 150 hydroelectric facilities in the quarter-million square miles that make up the Columbia River watershed. On average, there’s a dam every 72 miles of river. The Snake River alone has 20 dams. Our own Spokane River has seven.

The ‘iron curtain’ of Europe

On this date 75 years ago, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill referred to the closing of Eastern Europe by the Soviet Union after World War II as an “iron curtain” that had descended across Europe. This speech is often cited as the uno­fficial start of the Cold War that would affect the world for the next half-century. But, of course, the seeds of the Cold War had been planted much earlier than that.