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Skyline of George Town

George Town is the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang, encompassing Penang Island and surrounding islets. With a population of 794,313 as of the 2020 census, it is the core city of Malaysia's second-largest metropolitan area, which has a population of 2.84 million. George Town serves as the commercial centre for northern Malaysia. Its technological sector, anchored by hundreds of multinational companies, has made the city the top exporter in the country. It was the first British settlement in Southeast Asia, and its proximity to maritime routes along the Strait of Malacca attracted an influx of immigrants from various parts of Asia. In 1974, the city was merged with the rest of the island, throwing its administrative status into doubt until 2015, when its jurisdiction was reinstated and expanded to cover the entire island and adjacent islets. UNESCO designated the city centre of George Town as a World Heritage Site in 2008. (Full article...)

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Nellie McCoy in around 1912

... that actress Nellie McCoy (pictured) suffered a mental breakdown after her theatre performance was criticized, leading to her being committed to a sanatorium?
... that although the icosian game was advertised as a "highly amusing game for the drawing room", it was too easy to play and not a commercial success?
... that prior to embarking on a music career during the COVID-19 pandemic, the DJ Sim0ne placed fifth on the eleventh series of Britain's Next Top Model in 2017?
... that the architects of the Eldridge Street Synagogue were Catholics who had never designed a synagogue before?
... that Theo Benedet is the first offensive lineman to be named the best Canadian university football lineman two years in a row?
... that Luo Wenzao became the first Catholic bishop from China in 1685, after initially declining the appointment in 1677?
... that the historic mansion Bulgur Palas in Istanbul hosted a birdhouse for hundreds of domestic canaries in one room during its ownership by the Ottoman Bank?
... that women were 33 percent more likely than men to search for clown pornography on Pornhub in 2016?
... that the chief editor of the United States' Telegraph allegedly gouged a rival reporter's eyes inside a Senate office?

In the news

Ebrahim Raisi

The European Union passes the Artificial Intelligence Act, aiming to establish a regulatory and legal framework for AI.
A helicopter crash near Varzaqan, Iran, kills eight people, including President Ebrahim Raisi (pictured) and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
In boxing, Oleksandr Usyk defeats Tyson Fury to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in twenty-four years.
Protests over voting rights changes break out in the French territory of New Caledonia.

On this day

May 24: Aldersgate Day (Methodism)

Eric XIV of Sweden, portrait by Domenicus Verwilt.

1567 – The mentally ill King Eric XIV of Sweden (pictured) and his guards murdered five incarcerated nobles, including some members of the influential Sture family.
1689 – The Act of Toleration became law, granting freedom of worship to English nonconformists under certain circumstances, but deliberately excluding Catholics.
1798 - The Irish Rebellion of 1798 began, with battles beginning in County Kildare and fighting later spreading across the country.
1963 – United States Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy met with African American author James Baldwin in an unsuccessful attempt to improve race relations.
2014 – A gunman involved in Islamic extremism opened fire at the Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels, killing four people.

Robert Hues (d. 1632)
Philip Pearlstein (b. 1924)
Magnus Manske (b. 1974)
Stormé DeLarverie (d. 2014)

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Baz Luhrmann

Elvis, a 2022 biographical drama film directed by Baz Luhrmann (pictured), won 57 awards from 166 nominations, with particular recognition for Luhrmann's direction and Austin Butler's performance, as well as its cinematography, costume and production designs, editing, make-up, and sound effects. It received eight nominations at the 95th Academy Awards, including Best Picture. At the 76th British Academy Film Awards, the film was nominated for Best Film, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Production Design, and Best Sound; and won Best Actor in a Leading Role (Butler), Best Casting, Best Costume Design, and Best Makeup and Hair. (Full list...)

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Ethel Smyth (1858–1944) was an English composer and a member of the women's suffrage movement. Her compositions include songs, works for piano, chamber music, orchestral works, choral works and operas. Smyth's extensive body of work includes the Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra, and the Mass in D. Her opera The Wreckers is considered by some critics to be the "most important English opera composed during the period between Purcell and Britten". This photograph of Smyth was taken in 1922.

Photograph credit: unknown; restored by Adam Cuerden

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