The comic strip The Katzenjammer Kids debuts in the New York Journal

It Happened on
December 12, 1897

One of the first ethnic comic strips, The Katzenjammer Kids, debuted in the funny pages of Sunday newspapers beginning in December of 1897. The comic strip followed the antics of German twins, Hans and Fritz, and their mother, Momma Katzenjammers. It may be viewed as offensive by today’s standards, but during its heyday, The Katzenjammer Kids was thought to be clever in its depiction of the German culture. Let’s take a look at this century old comic strip. (Source: History Daily)

The Katzenjammer Kids is an American comic strip created by Rudolph Dirks in 1897 and later drawn by Harold Knerr for 35 years (1914 to 1949).[2] It debuted December 12, 1897, in the American Humorist, the Sunday supplement of William Randolph Hearst’s New York Journal. The comic strip was turned into a stage play in 1903. It inspired several animated cartoons and was one of 20 strips included in the Comic Strip Classics series of U.S. commemorative postage stamps. [wikipedia]

Meanwhile…

The first issue of the feminist newspaper La Fronde is published by Marguerite Durand in Paris.

280 days later…


born on September 10, 1898 (d. 1986)

Bessie Love

American-British actress Whose career spanned 8 decades

born on February 26, 1877

Rudolph Dirks

Earliest and most noted comic strip artists, well known for The Katzenjammer Kids
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Rudolph Dirks

Earliest and most noted comic strip artists, well known for The Katzenjammer Kids

Galileo’s Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems is published in Florence.

It Happened on
September 22, 1632

"Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems," was written in the form of a dialogue between three characters: Salviati, Sagredo, and Simplicio. While Galileo used this format to present different viewpoints on the heliocentric model of the solar system, with Salviati advocating for Copernicanism and Simplicio representing the geocentric view, the choice of names held deeper significance. Simplicio's character, who often defended the traditional Earth-centered cosmology, was seen by some as a thinly veiled caricature of Pope Urban VIII, who had initially supported Galileo's work. This subtle criticism and the confrontational style of the book likely contributed to Galileo's subsequent trial and condemnation by the Catholic Church for heresy, making "Dialogue" a pivotal episode in the history of the conflict between science and religion.