Night of January 16th is a play by Ayn Rand inspired by the death of Ivar Kreuger, an industrialist and accused swindler known as the Match King. The play is set in a courtroom during a murder trial and audience members are chosen to play the jury. The court hears the case of Karen Andre, a former secretary and lover of businessman Bjorn Faulkner, of whose murder she is accused. The jury must rely on character testimony to decide whether Andre is guilty; the play's ending depends on their verdict. Rand wanted to dramatize a conflict between individualism and conformity. The play was first produced in 1934 in Los Angeles under the title Woman on Trial. Producer A. H. Woods took it to Broadway for the 1935–36 season and re-titled it Night of January 16th (flyer pictured). It became a hit and ran for seven months. The play has been adapted as a film, as well as for television and radio. Rand had many disputes with Woods over the play, and in 1968 re-edited it for publication as her "definitive" version.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_of_January_16th

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1809:

Peninsular War: French forces under Jean-de-Dieu Soult attacked the British's amphibious evacuation under Sir John Moore at Corunna in Galicia, Spain. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Corunna

1862:

A pumping engine at a colliery in New Hartley, England, broke and fell down the shaft, trapping miners below and resulting in 204 deaths. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartley_Colliery_disaster

1942:

World War II: During the Battle of Bataan, U.S. Army sergeant Jose Calugas organized a squad of volunteers to man an artillery position under heavy fire, an action that later earned him the Medal of Honor. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Calugas

2018:

In Mrauk U, Myanmar, police fired into a crowd protesting the ban of an event to mark the anniversary of the end of the Kingdom of Mrauk U, resulting in seven deaths and twelve injuries. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrauk_U_riot

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

rid: 1. (transitive) 2. (also reflexive) Followed by of: to free (oneself or someone, or a place) from an annoyance or hindrance. 3. (also reflexive) Followed by away, from, or out of: to remove (oneself or someone, or something, that is annoying, troublesome, or unwanted). 4. (now only reflexive) Often followed by from, of, or out of: to free or release, or to rescue or save, (oneself or someone, or something). 5. (archaic) 6. To clear (a place or way); especially, to clear (land) of trees, undergrowth, etc. 7. Sometimes followed by away: to destroy or kill (someone). 8. Sometimes followed by up: to remove obstacles or refuse from (a place); to clean, to clear out; specifically, to clear or empty (the stomach). 9. (Cheshire) Followed by up: to eradicate (something); to root out, to uproot. 10. (Shropshire) Sometimes followed by away or off: to complete or get through (a task, or work). 11. (chiefly US, regional, rare) Often followed by up: to put (a place, such as a room or a table) in order; to clear, to tidy. 12. (obsolete) 13. To dismiss (someone) who has attended on a person; (reflexive) to remove (oneself) from a person's presence after attending to them. 14. To settle (a disagreement). 15. (also reflexive) Followed by of: to deprive (oneself or someone) of something; to strip. 16. (rare) To get away from or get out of (a place); to escape. 17. (intransitive) 18. (archaic) 19. To clear land or some other place. 20. (West Midlands) To clear or empty the stomach; also, to clear the throat. 21. (obsolete, Northern England) Of work: to be completed. [...] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/rid

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Early in life, as a witness to the limitless tragedy of World War I, I felt grow in me a determination to act, to work with others to influence the course of history and not supinely to accept what, in the absence of will and action, might be the world's fate. … For almost five decades I have played some role in the affairs of state, working with others to bend what otherwise might have been called the "inevitable trends of history." Some of the outcomes were wholly satisfactory, some marginally successful, and some were failures — but, on the whole, they were better, I think, than would otherwise have come about.   --Paul Nitze https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Paul_Nitze