At A Glance

12 August 1940 at a glance

Day of the week
12 August 1940 was a Monday.
Top Film of 1940
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1940 was Pinocchio.
Star sign
The star sign for 12 August is Leo.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 12 August 1940 fell in the Year of the Dragon.
Birthstone
The birthstone for August is Peridot.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 12 August 1940 was Waxing Gibbous.

On this day: 12 August

  • 1914 World War I: France, the United Kingdom and the British Empire declare war on Austria-Hungary.
  • 1914 World War I: The Battle of Halen a.k.a. Battle of the Silver Helmets, a clash between large Belgian and German cavalry formations at Halen, Belgium.
  • 1944 World War II: Alençon is liberated by General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, becoming the first city in France to be liberated from the Nazis by French forces.
  • 1960 Echo 1A, NASA's first successful communications satellite, is launched.
  • 1964 South Africa is banned from the Olympic Games due to the country's racist policies.

Famous people born on 12 August

  • Porter Wagoner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (1927–2007)
  • Peter Krause, American actor (born 1965)
  • George IV (1762–1830)
  • Casey Affleck, American actor (born 1975)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Events of 1940 in Ireland

A selection from Wikipedia's '1940 in Ireland'. Not a complete list.

  • 17 January – The Enid (Captain Wibe) of neutral Norway sailing from Steinkjer to Dublin, 10 miles north of Shetland, went to assist SS Polzella which had been torpedoed by German submarine U-25 which then shelled and sank Enid.
  • 7 February – The Munster (Captain R. Paisley) was mined and sunk in the Irish Sea while entering Liverpool.
  • 3 March – Flooding of Poulaphouca Reservoir was begun by damming the River Liffey at Poulaphouca as part of the Electricity Supply Board project to build Ireland's second hydroelectricity generating station, together with an improved water supply for Dublin.

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Famous Faces Born in the 1940s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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