The Almanac

Today in history—and how The Nation covered it.

January 27, 1975: The Church Committee Opens Its Investigation of US Intelligence Agencies

January 27, 1975: The Church Committee Opens Its Investigation of US Intelligence Agencies January 27, 1975: The Church Committee Opens Its Investigation of US Intelligence Agencies

The headline of Frank Donner’s open letter to the committee is probably the best The Nation has ever run.

Jan 27, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 26, 1998: President Bill Clinton Denies Having ‘Sexual Relations With That Woman, Miss Lewinsky’

January 26, 1998: President Bill Clinton Denies Having ‘Sexual Relations With That Woman, Miss Lewinsky’ January 26, 1998: President Bill Clinton Denies Having ‘Sexual Relations With That Woman, Miss Lewinsky’

Yes, The Almanac covered the Clinton impeachment trial back on January 7. But the rules are the rules: seventeen years ago today, Bill Clinton looked America in the eyes and lied. ...

Jan 26, 2015 / The Almanac and Richard Kreitner

January 25, 1915: Alexander Graham Bell, in New York, Speaks on the Telephone With Thomas Watson, in San Francisco

January 25, 1915: Alexander Graham Bell, in New York, Speaks on the Telephone With Thomas Watson, in San Francisco January 25, 1915: Alexander Graham Bell, in New York, Speaks on the Telephone With Thomas Watson, in San Francisco

A profile of Bell in The Nation that year reported that the Scot spoke with a "rattling burr that adds piquancy to whatever he says."

Jan 25, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 24, 1965: Winston Churchill Dies

January 24, 1965: Winston Churchill Dies January 24, 1965: Winston Churchill Dies

Not the Winston Churchill who once served on The Nation's editorial board.

Jan 24, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 23, 1973: Nixon Announces a Peace Agreement to End the Vietnam War

January 23, 1973: Nixon Announces a Peace Agreement to End the Vietnam War January 23, 1973: Nixon Announces a Peace Agreement to End the Vietnam War

The Nation had an old China hand, blacklisted in the McCarthy era, reflect on the American surrender in Vietnam.

Jan 23, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 22, 1973: In ‘Roe v. Wade,’ the Supreme Court Legalizes Abortion in All Fifty States

January 22, 1973: In ‘Roe v. Wade,’ the Supreme Court Legalizes Abortion in All Fifty States January 22, 1973: In ‘Roe v. Wade,’ the Supreme Court Legalizes Abortion in All Fifty States

After the Supreme Court legalized abortion on this day in 1973, The Nation published an editorial that seems curiously averse to discussion of the actual debate.

Jan 22, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 21, 1924: Vladimir Lenin Dies

January 21, 1924: Vladimir Lenin Dies January 21, 1924: Vladimir Lenin Dies

The Nation greeted the opening act of the Russian Revolution, in March 1917, with an enthusiasm bordering on glee. But how did it eulogize Lenin when seven years later, with actual...

Jan 21, 2015 / The Almanac and Richard Kreitner

January 20, 1937: FDR Is Inaugurated for the Second Time

January 20, 1937: FDR Is Inaugurated for the Second Time January 20, 1937: FDR Is Inaugurated for the Second Time

“A thin but pleasant sort of rhetoric” suffused FDR’s second inaugural address, The Nation thought.

Jan 20, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 19, 1809: Edgar Allen Poe Is Born

January 19, 1809: Edgar Allen Poe Is Born January 19, 1809: Edgar Allen Poe Is Born

Why does Europe so love Poe? The Nation’s Simeon Strunsky asked on the writer’s 100th birthday. Because in him “she has caught the true voice of the young world b...

Jan 19, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

January 18, 1919: The Peace Conference Convenes at Paris

January 18, 1919: The Peace Conference Convenes at Paris January 18, 1919: The Peace Conference Convenes at Paris

The Nation’s editor reports from the conference, where he laments the absence of women, workers and communists.

Jan 18, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

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