Important dates to remember

The year 2023 is almost over but there are still many dates to celebrate and stories to tell: for example, stories about great people like John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Gustave Eiffel and Walt Disney. Do you know who they are?

A dream 60 years long

On 28th August 1963, in front of a huge crowd of 250,000 people, Martin Luther King made one of the most famous speeches in history, the one which contained the well-known phrase I have a dream. King was 34 at the time and one of the most important political activists* in the fight for the civil rights of the African American people. His words, full of hope for a freer and more just world, sounded powerful when spoken in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, where crowds of demonstrators* had gathered* at the end of a protest march against racism. The following year, Martin Luther King received the Nobel Peace Prize.

The assassination* of JFK

Just a few months after Martin Luther King’s unforgettable speech, on 22nd November, the President of the United

States of America, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, was shot and killed by three bullets. The President was being driven in an open top car with his wife, Jacqueline, during a visit to Dallas. The terrible, and now historical, images of the assassination were being transmitted live by many television cameras at the time. It was the first time that this had happened. For four days, all the tv channels followed the developments of the tragic event: it was the longest news item ever. JFK is still considered the President most loved by Americans: his assassination shocked the whole world and marked an era.

More than two centuries of great art

It has been 230 years since the opening of the most well-known and most visited museums in the the world. Before it was transformed into a royal palace, it was originally a medieval fortress. Then, in 1793, during the French Revolution, the Louvre opened its doors to the public for the first time, as a national museum, in order to share the art treasures of France with its people. Since then, it has become one of the most important museums in the world. It contains an extraordinary collection of artworks, ancient objects and historical treasures, which includes one of its most famous paintings, the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, and one of its most recognised sculptures, the ancient Greek statue, the Venus de Milo

From Paris to New York

Gustave Eiffel died on 27th December 1923. He was the engineer and creator of the tower of the same name, now the iconic symbol of the city of Paris. It is undoubtedly one of the most famous and most photographed monuments ever, but, at first, the Parisians didn’t like the iron tower and it even risked being destroyed. Not everyone knows that Gustave Eiffel also worked on the interior of the Statue of Liberty, designing a flexible steel structure which allowed the statue to move with the wind, without causing any damage.

Happy birthday, Disney!

This centenary is one of most eagerly awaited anniversaries of 2023! On 16th October 1923, two brothers, Walt and Roy, decided to open the animation film studios, Disney Brothers, in Burbank, California. And so began the adventure with the motto* “If you can dream it, you can do it”. A real and proper dream factory, timeless and innovative, it is now 100 years old. Its unforgettable characters have remained in the hearts of generations of children, past and present: from the original Mickey Mouse to Snow White, from Alice in Wonderland to Cinderella, right up to Pinocchio, Elsa and Anna, Woody and Buzz Lightyear.

Over To You

A United Europe

On 1st November 1993, there came into effect* the Maastricht Treaty*, signed the year before by representatives of the 12 member states of the European Economic Community (EEC). On that day, the European Union (EU), as we know it now, was born. The Maastricht Treaty set precise rules for the future single currency*, foreign affairs and security. In the years that followed, the EU changed even more after more treaties, like the Treaty of Lisbon in 2004, and the entry of new member states, which took the total number to 27.

Choose one of the anniversaries above and write a short summary of one or two sentences below.

Today, the Walt Disney Company has joined with other production companies like Pixar in 2006, Marvel in 2009 and Lucasfilm in 2012, so expanding its universe to include super heroes and the Star Wars galaxies “far far away”.

Glossary

activist: person who acts for a political cause assassination: murder, killing come into effect: start being operational currency: money demonstrator: person who protests publicly with others gathered: come together motto: slogan, saying treaty: agreement, pact