Day: April 12, 1957

Categories
Television

H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man: Point Of Destruction

  • April 12, 1959

H.G. Wells' The Invisible ManThe 14th episode of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man, based on Wells’ story, airs on ITV; this episode will air in September 1959 in the U.S. on CBS. Lisa Daniely and Deborah Watling (Doctor Who) star. Future Doctor Who producer Barry Letts, an actor at this point in his career, has a small role in the second season premiere.

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Categories
Crewed Spaceflight Vostok

Vostok 1: the first human in space

  • April 12, 1961

Vostok 1The Soviet Union scores another technological victory, launching cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin aboard Vostok 1 into a single orbit of Earth lasting a little over 100 minutes. After that orbit, Gagarin’s Vostok return capsule carries him safely through the atmosphere; he then triggers an ejection seat which punches him out of the capsule, at which point he parachutes to the ground.

Categories
Radio & Audio

Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy: Episode 6

  • April 12, 1978

Hitchhiker's Guide To The GalaxyThe sixth episode of Douglas Adams’ breakthrough radio science fiction comedy series The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy is first broadcast on BBC Radio. This is the second episode co-written by John Lloyd, though his contributions are frequently downplayed by Adams in later years. Due to the unexpected popularity of the six-episode series, the BBC asks Adams for more Hitchhiker’s Guide, but in the interim he has also taken on a new full-time job as script editor of Doctor Who, making it harder to simultaneously write another six-episode radio series.

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Categories
Columbia Crewed Spaceflight Space Shuttle

STS-1: Columbia’s first flight

  • April 12, 1981

ColumbiaSpace Shuttle Columbia lifts off on the shuttle system’s first flight into a space, with Commander John Young (a Gemini/Apollo veteran) and Robert Crippen aboard, the first two-man American crew since the Gemini program’s final flight in 1966. It’s a true test flight in every sense of the word – every previous American manned spacecraft had been flown unmanned first to verify safety and spaceworthiness, making the shuttle’s first flight a case where everything has to go perfectly the first time.

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Categories
Columbia Crewed Spaceflight Space Shuttle

Columbia opens the doors

  • April 12, 1981

ColumbiaSafely in orbit, the cargo bay doors are opened for the first time on Space Shuttle Columbia, revealing that some of the shuttle’s protective thermal tiles are already missing. (A later post-landing inspection reveals that more than 100 tiles are damaged, and 16 tiles are completely lost, all probably due to unexpected vibration during launch.) NASA deems the damage non-critical and gives the go-ahead for a landing, even though it’s impossible to see what damage may have been done to the more critical tiles on the shuttle’s underbelly.

Categories
Crewed Spaceflight Discovery Space Shuttle

STS-51D

  • April 12, 1985

DiscoveryAfter a month of delays due to damage and a change in the flight schedule, Space Shuttle Discovery returns to orbit for a week-long flight. A Canadian communications satellite and the LEASAT-3 satellite are redeployed, but LEASAT continues to malfunction despite multiple attempts to active and launch it. Discovery’s crew on this flight consists of Commander Karol Bobko, Pilot Donald Williams, mission specialists Rhea Seddon, Jeffrey Hoffman and David Griggs, and payload specialists Charles Walker and Senator Jake Garn, the first member of the U.S. Congress to fly in space while in office. This flight’s return to the runway at Kennedy Space Center marks the first time a shuttle orbiter experiences significant damage upon landing, including a blowout of one of its landing gear wheels.

Categories
Television

The Flash: Twin Streaks

  • April 12, 1991

The FlashThe 18th episode of the superhero series The Flash, based on the DC Comics character, airs on CBS, starring John Wesley Shipp and Amanda Pays. Lenny von Dohlen (Twin Peaks, Red Dwarf) guest stars.

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Categories
Television

Mann & Machine: Dating Game

  • April 12, 1992

Mann & MachineThe second episode of the science fiction police series Mann & Machine, co-created by Dick Wolf and Robert de Laurentiis, is broadcast on NBC, starring David Andrews and Yancy Butler. Richard Burgi and Kate Hodge (She-Wolf Of London) guest star.

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Categories
Television

The Outer Limits: Inconstant Moon

  • April 12, 1996

The Outer LimitsPremium cable channel Showtime airs the 33rd episode of The Outer Limits, a revival of Leslie Stevens’ 1960s science fiction anthology series. Michael Gross (Tremors, Family Ties) guest stars in an adaptation of a Larry Niven short story.

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Categories
Television

Crime Traveller: The Lottery Experiment

  • April 12, 1997

Crime TravellerThe seventh episode of the time-travel/crime series Crime Traveller is broadcast on BBC1, created and written by Anthony Horowitz (Foyle’s War), starring Michael French (Casualty) and Chloe Annett (Red Dwarf). Gawn Grainger guest stars.

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