Harold Larwood (1904–1995) was a professional cricketer for Nottinghamshire and England between 1924 and 1938. A right-arm fast bowler, he was considered by many commentators to be the finest bowler of his generation. He was the main exponent of the bowling style known as "bodyline", developed under the guidance of England's combative captain Douglas Jardine as a response to the domination of Australia's leading batsman, Don Bradman. The tactic was used with considerable success in the 1932–33 Test series, but the Australians' description of the method as "unsportsmanlike" soured cricketing relations between the two countries. Larwood refused to apologise for his bowling, as he was carrying out his captain's instructions, and never played for England again. In retirement after the Second World War, he and his family emigrated to Australia, where he was warmly welcomed, in contrast to his cricketing days. He paid several subsequent visits to England, and was honoured at his old county ground, Trent Bridge, where a stand was named after him. In 1993 he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), in delayed recognition of his services to cricket.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Larwood

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1910:

Aviator Eugene Burton Ely performed the first takeoff from a ship (pictured), flying from a makeshift deck on the USS Birmingham in Hampton Roads, Virginia, US. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Burton_Ely

1941:

Second World War: After suffering torpedo damage the previous day, the British aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal (91) sank as she was being towed to Gibraltar for repairs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Ark_Royal_(91)

1970:

Southern Airways Flight 932, chartered by the Marshall University football team, crashed into a hill near Ceredo, West Virginia, US, killing all 75 people on board. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Airways_Flight_932

1984:

Cesar Climaco, mayor of Zamboanga City, the Philippines, was assassinated by an unknown gunman. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesar_Climaco

2010:

Red Bull Racing's Sebastian Vettel won the Drivers' Championship after winning the final race of the season to become the youngest Formula One champion ever. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebastian_Vettel

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

minyan: The minimum number of ten adult Jews required for a communal religious service. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/minyan

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Even if God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him, so Voltaire said … Perhaps that is true, and indeed the mind of man has always been fashioning some such mental image or conception which grew with the mind's growth. But there is something also in the reverse proposition: even if God exist, it may be desirable not to look up to Him or to rely upon Him. Too much dependence on supernatural forces may lead, and has often led, to loss of self-reliance in man, and to a blunting of his capacity and creative ability. And yet some faith seems necessary in things of the spirit which are beyond the scope of our physical world, some reliance on moral, spiritual, and idealistic conceptions, or else we have no anchorage, no objectives or purpose in life. Whether we believe in God or not, it is impossible not to believe in something, whether we call it a creative life-giving force, or vital energy inherent in matter which gives it its capacity for self-movement and change and growth, or by some other name, something that is as real, though elusive, as life is real when contrasted with death.   --Jawaharlal Nehru https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jawaharlal_Nehru