20250919
From today's featured article
Homer Simpson is a character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is the boorish father of the Simpson family; with his wife, Marge, he has three children: Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. Homer embodies several American working-class stereotypes: he is overweight, balding, immature, unintelligent, outspoken, aggressive, lazy, ignorant, unprofessional, and fond of beer, junk food, and television. Despite his flaws, he is fundamentally a good-hearted man and fiercely protective of his family, especially during crises. He was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening and is voiced by Dan Castellaneta (pictured). Homer is one of the most influential fictional characters on television and is widely recognized as an American cultural icon. His catchphrase, the annoyed grunt "D'oh!", has been included in several dictionaries. Castellaneta has won four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance, along with a special-achievement Annie Award for voicing Homer. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that in Ngāti Whātua culture, Neocicindela tuberculata (example pictured) could be the manifestation of the demigoddess Kui?
- ... that the freighter James Gayley is one of the largest undiscovered shipwrecks on the Great Lakes?
- ... that the old defensive walls at New College, Oxford, are examined by the lord mayor every three years in a tradition dating back to 1379?
- ... that Caspar Schmalkalden's 17th-century travelogue describes noises made by animals like the three-toed sloth and the hedgehog fish?
- ... that the Japanese colonisation of Hokkaido was facilitated by the expertise of American advisors?
- ... that Tobias Rahim sold a nude photo of himself to challenge his fears?
- ... that an 1890 short story by the author of Dracula was unknown to scholars until its rediscovery in the 21st century?
- ... that the French Olympic champion Boughera El Ouafi received more coverage from the American press over a few months than from the French press over his entire life?
- ... that a museum in Malaysia has more than 80,000 products from McDonald's?
In the news
- American actor and filmmaker Robert Redford (pictured) dies at the age of 89.
- In television, The Studio wins best comedy and The Pitt wins best drama at the Primetime Emmy Awards.
- After widespread protests, Sushila Karki is appointed interim Prime Minister of Nepal, replacing K. P. Sharma Oli.
- Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro is sentenced to 27 years in prison for his involvement in a coup plot.
On this day
September 19: International Talk Like a Pirate Day
- 1893 – New Zealand became the first country to introduce universal suffrage following the women's suffrage movement led by Kate Sheppard (pictured).
- 1970 – Greek student Kostas Georgakis set himself on fire in Genoa, Italy, as a protest against the military junta of Georgios Papadopoulos.
- 1985 – An earthquake registering Mw 8.0 struck Mexico City, killing at least 9,000 people and leaving up to 100,000 homeless.
- 1991 – Ötzi, a well-preserved natural mummy of a man dating from about 3300 BC, was discovered by two German tourists in the Alps.
- 2023 – Chinese authorities cancelled a run of performances of The Mongol Khan, the first Mongolian play to be performed internationally, forty minutes before its planned premiere in Hohhot.
- Alfonso Litta (b. 1608)
- William Kirby (b. 1759)
- Jackie Collins (d. 2015)
- John Turner (d. 2020)
From today's featured list
The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders are a Triple-A baseball team that has competed in the International League since 1989. The franchise has played under several names—including the Red Barons and Yankees—before adopting the RailRiders name in 2013. The RailRiders have completed thirty-five seasons. As of the 2024 season, the club has qualified for the postseason sixteen times, winning thirteen division titles and two Governors' Cup championships, in 2008 and 2016. They would win in the latter year, winning their first Triple-A National Championship, defeating the El Paso Chihuahuas. (Full list...)
Today's featured picture

Hamm (Westfalen) Hauptbahnhof is a railway station in the city of Hamm in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The station is one of the important InterCityExpress rail hubs in the eastern Ruhr area and is among the high-profile buildings of Hamm. The station opened in 1847 and was rebuilt in 1920. This photograph shows the interior of the station.
Photograph credit: A.Savin