Google doodles

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Dec 9, 2015

Whina Cooper’s 120th Birthday




When she was 18, Whina Cooper organized her first demonstration, rallying a small group to protest the leasing of land where the Maori people traditionally fished. When she was close to 80, Cooper led another protest, this time organizing thousands of people on a landmark march from the Far North to Parliament in Wellington to publicly decry the loss of millions of acres of Maori land. Not only did the march unite many different groups--a major feat at the time--, but it also attracted significant national attention, taking public awareness of Maori land rights to new heights.

Whina Cooper was an activist for most of her life. She fought tirelessly for the rights of Maori people, especially women, serving as the first president of the Maori Women’s Welfare League. In recognition of her efforts, she was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1981, and a member of the Order of New Zealand in 1991. Today, on what would have been her 120th birthday, we honor Dame Whina Cooper with a Doodle that pays tribute to her most historic achievement, that famous land march. Doodler Olivia When took inspiration from photos of the time, highlighting the fact that the march involved people of all ages, all brought together by a passionate and tenacious leader: Whina Cooper.

[9A]

December 12, 2012

50th Anniversary of Bonne Nuit les Petits





Bonne nuit les petits is a French television series created by Claude Laydu that started airing on December 10 , 1962. The show is about a bear [Nounours] visiting two children each night before bedtime. He inquires about their day, their worries or tells them a story and, before returning to his cloud, tells them "Good night little ones, have sweet dreams!". It is one of the most popular source used in French Youtube Poops [[YTP] fr].

[9A]

December 12, 2014

100th anniversary of Platero y yo




Platero and I, also translated as Platero and Me [Spanish: Platero y yo], is a 1914 Spanish prose poem written by Juan Ramón Jiménez. The book is one of the most popular works by Jiménez, and unfolds around a writer and his eponymous donkey, Platero ["silvery"]. Platero is described as a "small donkey, a soft, hairy donkey: so soft to the touch that he might be said to be made of cotton, with no bones. Only the jet mirrors of his eyes are hard like two black crystal scarabs."


Platero remains a symbol of tenderness, purity and naiveté, and is used by the author as a means of reflection about the simple joys of life, memories, and various characters and their ways of life.

[9A]

December 12, 2011

Gustave Flaubert's 190th Birthday





Gustave Flaubert was a French novelist. Highly influential, he has been considered the leading exponent of literary realism in his country. According to the literary theorist Kornelije Kvas, "in Flaubert, realism strives for formal perfection, so the presentation of reality tends to be neutral, emphasizing the values and importance of style as an objective method of presenting reality". He is known especially for his debut novel Madame Bovary [1857], his Correspondence, and his scrupulous devotion to his style and aesthetics. The celebrated short story writer Guy de Maupassant was a protégé of Flaubert. On the occasion of Flaubert's 198th birthday, a group of researchers at CNRS published a neural language model under his name.

[9A]

December 12, 2011

Robert Noyce's 84th Birthday





Having earned the nickname "The Mayor of Silicon Valley," it is no wonder why we had to honor Robert Noyce with a Google doodle. He was responsible for the invention of the early microchips and laid the ground work for all the innovative companies to spring from the Bay Area [including Google!]

I knew that I had to celebrate his birthday in a geeky but accurate way-- the problem was that, as I sat down to draw, I realized I had no idea how motherboards and microchips differ.

It wasn't until I visited our own hardware lab at Google and spoke with Noyce's wife, Ann, that I began to understand what I was trying to draw. With their help I was able to both identify a microchip and honor Noyce accurately!

Posted by Jennifer Hom

[9A]

Dec 13, 2013

Antoni Tapies 90th Birthday





Antoni Tàpies i Puig, 1st Marquess of Tàpies was a Spanish painter, sculptor and art theorist, who became one of the most famous European artists of his generation.

[9A]

December 13, 2013

Emily Carr's 142nd Birthday





Emily Carr was a Canadian artist and writer who was inspired by the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. One of the painters in Canada to adopt a Modernist and Post-Impressionist style, Carr did not receive widespread recognition for her work until she changed subject matter from Aboriginal themes to landscapes—forest scenes in particular. As a writer Carr was one of the earliest chroniclers of life in British Columbia. The Canadian Encyclopedia describes her as a "Canadian icon".

[9A]

December 13, 2016

Türkan Saylan’s 81st Birthday



“You, my dear daughter, stop asking yourself, ‘Why am I born a girl?’ and aim at becoming the best you can be.”

Türkan Saylan, one of Turkey’s first female dermatologists and a champion of women’s rights, wrote these words to the young girls of her native country. The message, which was part of a book she authored, perfectly describes her approach to life.

As a young doctor in the 1970s, Saylan played a lead role in the battle against leprosy. She helped to found both the Turkish Leprosy Relief Association and the International Leprosy Union. She also served as a consultant on the disease for the World Health Organization. Later, she shifted her focus to another cause: bringing education to impoverished young girls. And in 1989, she helped start the Association to Support Contemporary Life, an organization that has built hundreds of schools in rural areas and awarded more than 60,000 scholarships.

Showing Saylan in her lab coat with several young girls in tow, today’s Doodle pays tribute to her incredible life’s work on what would’ve been her 81st birthday.

[9A]

Dec 18, 2016

Steve Biko’s 70th Birthday






Black is beautiful. Steve Biko knew this fully well, and fought to spread this message across South Africa at the height of the apartheid movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

While in medical school, Biko co-founded the Black Consciousness Movement, which rejected apartheid policies and encouraged black people to take pride in their racial identities and cultural heritages. Biko famously said, “Black Consciousness is an attitude of the mind and a way of life, the most positive call to emanate from the black world for a long time.”

In February of 1973, the pro-apartheid government banned Biko for anti-apartheid activism. Under this ban, Biko wasn’t allowed to speak to more than one person at a time, was forbidden to speak in public and to the media, and was forced to stay in a single district. In spite of this, Biko continued to form grassroots organizations and organize protests, including the Soweto Uprising in June of 1976.

On the 70th anniversary of Biko’s birth, we remember his courage and the important legacy he left behind. Thank you, Steve Biko, for dedicating your life to the pursuit of equality for all.

[9A]

December 18, 2018

Paul Klee's 139th Birthday




Influenced by movements such as cubism, surrealism, and expressionism, Paul Klee explored numerous styles to develop his own approach to art-making—both rigorous and childlike—which defies categorization.Today’s Doodle pays homage to his Rote Brücke [Red Bridge], a 1928 work that transforms the rooftops and arches of a European city into a pattern of shapes rendered in contrasting yet harmonious hues. As Klee wrote in his diary, in 1914: “Color and I are one… I am a painter.”

Born in Münchenbuchsee, Switzerland on this day in 1879, Klee was the son of a German music teacher and a Swiss singer. An accomplished violinist, Klee played in a symphony orchestra before dedicating himself to becoming a painter. He brought a musical sense of rhythm to the visual arts.

Sketching landscapes and caricatures even in his early teens, Klee began keeping meticulous records of all his creations in 1911, whether panel paintings, works on paper, graphics, or sculptures. He studied dots, lines, planes, and forms observed from nature—whether from the fish tank he kept at home or the veins seen on leaves or the human body—applying his observations to a vast body of work.

Along with his neighbor, the famous Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky, Klee was affiliated with an influential circle of artists known as Der Blaue Reiter, which lasted from 1911 to 1914. He went on to teach at the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany during the 1920s, and the Pedagogical Sketchbook he wrote for the benefit of his students is still used today.

Klee never stopped pushing his creativity forward, producing a large number of works every year. In the year 1939, near the end of his career, he completed a record 1,239 works. “Some will not recognize the truthfulness of my mirror,” Klee wrote in his diary. “Let them remember that I am not here to reflect the surface... but must penetrate inside. My mirror probes down to the heart.”

Happy Birthday, Paul Klee!

[9A]

Jan 18, 2012

Havoc in Heaven






Havoc in Heaven, also translated as Uproar in Heaven, is a Chinese donghua feature film directed by Wan Laiming and produced by all four of the Wan brothers. The film was created at the height of the Chinese animation industry in the 1960s, and received numerous awards. It earned the brothers domestic and international recognition. The story is an adaptation of the earlier episodes of the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West.

The stylized animation and drums and percussion accompaniment used in this film are heavily influenced by Peking opera traditions.

[9A]

Jan 30, 2012

I.L. Caragiale's 160th birthday




Ion Luca Caragiale was a Romanian playwright, short story writer, poet, theater manager, political commentator and journalist. Leaving behind an important cultural legacy, he is considered one of the greatest playwrights in Romanian language and literature, as well as one of its most important writers and a leading representative of local humour.

[9A]

Jan 31, 2012

Discovery of the Iguacu Falls






Iguazú Falls or Iguaçu Falls are waterfalls of the Iguazu River on the border of the Argentine province of Misiones and the Brazilian state of Paraná. Together, they make up the largest waterfall in the world. The falls divide the river into the upper and lower Iguazu. The Iguazu River rises near the heart of the city of Curitiba. For most of its course, the river flows through Brazil; however, most of the falls are on the Argentine side. Below its confluence with the San Antonio River, the Iguazu River forms the border between Argentina and Brazil.

The name Iguazú comes from the Guarani or Tupi words "y" [ɨ], meaning "water", and "ûasú "[waˈsu], meaning "big". Legend has it that a deity planned to marry a beautiful woman named Naipí, who fled with her mortal lover Tarobá in a canoe. In a rage, the deity sliced the river, creating the waterfalls and condemning the lovers to an eternal fall. The first European to record the existence of the falls was the Spanish Conquistador Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca in 1541.

[9A]

February 13, 2004

Valentine's Day 2004

[9A]

February 29, 2012

Marcela Paz's 110th Birthday






Marcela Paz was the pen name of Esther Huneeus Ramos Falla Salas de Claro, a Chilean writer. She also used the pen names of Paula de la Sierra, Lukim Retse, P. Neka and Juanita Godoy. She was a recipient of the National Prize for Literature.

[9A]

February 29, 2012

Gioachino Rossini's 220th Birthday / Leap Year 2012




Every so often two things happen on the same day that we'd be remiss not to celebrate. In the past there's been St. George's Day and Shakespeare's birthday in the UK, Fourth of July and Rube Goldberg's birthday in the US, and Valentine's Day/Figure skating for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

In this day's case, it's the 220th birthday of Italian composer Gioachino Antonio Rossini and leap year. [Or, if you're only counting actually leap day's for birthdays it's something like Gioachino's 53rd.]

At any count, in the grand tradition of opera singing cartoons, I created an illustration that captures the climatic scene of Rossini's most famous work, The Barber of Seville, as portrayed by a cast of goofy-looking frogs.

A couple of process tidbits... the original frog opera design was going to be much more complicated:



I got really into the chair design for some reason.




My next pass was too unify the color scheme and tighten the drawing:



My team pointed out that this was a little too dark.

And, finally, I lightened the colors up a bit, trimmed the grass, and made Rosina leap:




Hope y'all enjoyed it!

posted by Ryan Germick

[9A]

Mar 1, 2012

300th Anniversary of Spain's National Library




The National Library of Spain [Spanish: Biblioteca Nacional de España] is in Madrid. It is Spain's largest library. It is also one of the world's largest libraries. It was started by King Philip V of Spain in 1712.

[9A]

March 1, 2018

St. David's Day 2018







March 1st is celebrated in the UK as St. David’s Day [Dewi Sant], named after the patron saint of Wales. The musical country earned the title “Land of Song” through its rich history of choral singing, dating all the way back to the 19th century.

Today’s Doodle was created by Sander Berg, an illustrator from Sweden who now makes his home in Wales. It features a woman in historic Welsh dress—now traditionally worn on St. David’s Day—plays the Welsh National Anthem on a Welsh Triple Harp. The harpist plays in front of Mt. Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales, and is surrounded by Cenhinen Pedr [St. Peter’s Leek], also known as the daffodil. As one of the first signs of spring, the cheerful flowers are an important symbol on Welsh National Day, and can be seen popping up in fields and on lapels throughout the country.

Wales boasts several well-known musical institutions, including The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, the Welsh National Opera, the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales, and a myriad of Welsh Male Voice Choirs. Eisteddfod, an eight-day festival of literature, music, and performance, is a common way for Welsh communities around the world to honor their patron saint and celebrate their musical heritage.

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus! Happy St. David’s Day!

[9A]

March 1, 2019

St. David's Day 2019






Today’s Doodle celebrates St. David’s Day, a day that honors the patron saint of Wales, who has been commemorated by Welsh people since Dewi Sant’s canonization in the 12th century. St. David is said to have lived more than 100 years, founding many churches and monasteries before becoming archbishop. The grand medieval St. David’s Bishop’s Palace, located in the coastal city of St. Davids, conveys the enormity of his legacy.

The leek became a national symbol of Wales after St. David recommended that soldiers wear leeks in their caps so they would know who was who on the battlefield. Welsh soldiers still eat raw leeks on St. David’s Day while many citizens pin them on their clothes to mark the occasion and enjoy a traditional meal of cawl cymreig, a tasty stew of leeks and lamb [although St. David was reportedly a vegetarian].

If you find yourself in Cardiff today, don’t miss the National St. David’s Day Parade, a festive procession featuring Y Ddraig Goch, the red dragon seen on the Welsh flag. Y Ddraig Goch also stars in today’s Doodle by UK-based guest artist Lesley Barnes, accompanied by a Welsh girl in traditional garb, proudly holding Wales’ national flower: daffodils.

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus! [Happy St. David’s Day!]

[9A]

March 1, 2014

St. David's Day 2014

[9A]

Mar 3, 2020

Girls’ Day 2020





Today’s Doodle celebrates Japan’s Girls’ Day, also known as Doll’s Day or Hinamatsuri, an annual celebration of girls in Japan. On the third day of the third month every year, this centuries-old tradition is a time to get dolled up and honor the happiness and health of girls in Japan.

As the peach trees begin to blossom, many families set out ornate dolls dedicated to their young daughters. These dolls are believed to ward off evil spirits while bringing good fortune and prosperity. Some parents and children dress these figurines in the customary kimonos of the Heian Period [794-1185] and display them on tiered platforms with ceremonial red carpet.

The roots of this tradition began with elaborate arrays that are meant to represent a wedding procession of the Heian imperial court. Traditionally, dolls representing an Emperor and Empress—similar to those depicted in the Doodle artwork—sit at the top of these displays and are representative of their roles in Japanese history and culture. Below the Emperor and Empress dolls, also known as the obina [male doll] and mebina [female doll], are other decorative dolls that represent members of the Heian-era court.

In current times, the styles of the dolls displayed have evolved outside of solely representing the Heian time-period. But what has not changed over the years is their meaning. Regardless of the dolls’ new styles, they remain a representation of parents’ wishing for their children’s health and good luck.

The coastal city of Katsuura hosts one of the most dazzling Hinamatsuri celebrations, where residents decorate the town with over 30,000 dolls, the country’s largest Dolls’ Day display.

Happy Girls’ Day, Japan!

[9A]

March 3, 2009

Hinamatsuri 2009

[9A]

March 3, 2012

Girls' Day 2012

[9A]

Mar 5, 2012

Heitor Vila Lobos' 125th Birthday





Heitor Villa-Lobos was a Brazilian composer, conductor, cellist, and classical guitarist described as "the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music". Villa-Lobos has become the best-known South American composer of all time. A prolific composer, he wrote numerous orchestral, chamber, instrumental and vocal works, totaling over 2000 works by his death in 1959. His music was influenced by both Brazilian folk music and by stylistic elements from the European classical tradition, as exemplified by his Bachianas Brasileiras [Brazilian Bachian-pieces] and his Chôros.

His Etudes for classical guitar [1929] were dedicated to Andrés Segovia, while his 5 Preludes [1940] were dedicated to his spouse Arminda Neves d'Almeida, a.k.a. "Mindinha". Both are important works in the classical guitar repertory.

[9A]

Mar 6, 2014

Elizabeth Browning's 208th Birthday



Elizabeth Barrett Browning [née Moulton-Barrett; 6 March 1806 – 29 June 1861] was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime.

Elizabeth's work had a major influence on prominent writers of the day, including the American poets Edgar Allan Poe and Emily Dickinson. She is remembered for such poems as "How Do I Love Thee?" [Sonnet 43, 1845] and Aurora Leigh [1856].

[9A]

Jun 2, 2018

Heinz Sielmann’s 101st Birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the renowned biologist and documentary filmmaker, Heinz Sielmann. Sielmann is also often recognized as ‘Mr. Woodpecker’, a nickname earned after the release of one of his most beloved wildlife documentaries showing the mysterious lives of Woodpeckers—filmed at times from within the bird’s nest.

Heinz Sielmann was born in Germany, in 1917, and moved to East Prussia at a young age where his father opened a business of electrical and building materials. Even in his early childhood, Sielmann had a fascination with the natural world; often waking up early to observe birds before school. At the age of 17, after being given his first camera, he traded in his sketches for photographs of his natural surroundings.

One of Sielmann’s most notable achievements was his development of Carpenters of the Forest which featured the elusive Woodpecker in a degree of depth that had not been seen before. Sielmann placed cameras inside of the woodpecker’s nests and in doing so captured intimate moments between parent and offspring. The film was an enormous success globally and was followed by a book about it’s making. In it Sielmann wrote, “of all the animals that I have worked with, the woodpeckers are my favourites... because I was able to find out many new facts about the biology of these birds.”

In the late 1950’s, Heinz Sielmann released his first feature film, Les Seigneurs de la Forêt [Lords of the Forest], which was commissioned by the King of Belgium and filmed in what was at the time the Belgian Congo. In addition to the wildlife and breathtaking landscapes, Sielmann was of the first to capture the familial and social nature of Gorillas. This film won first place at the Moscow Film Festival and quickly became one of his most revered films—even being translated into 26 languages. Over the following decades, Sielmann continued to make documentary films and series. In 1971 he photographed for the Academy Award winning film The Hellstrom Chronicle, along with Walon Green, about the threat that insects collectively pose to humans and the struggle between the two.

Today’s Doodle depicts Heinz Sielmann as he appeared in his popular TV show Expeditionen ins Tierreich, documenting the forest wildlife that surrounds him.

Doodle illustrated by Dieter Braun.

[9A]

June 2, 2017

Lamun Yamakhup’s 112th Birthday





In 1910, five-year-old Laman Yamakhup began learning the art of Thai dance. Her hobby developed into a lifetime passion for dance and theatre. Yamakhup not only mastered the lively and elegant movements of Thai dance, but also went on to study at the Royal Court Theatre at Petchaboon Palace. She also created the dance program at the College of Dramatic Arts in Bangkok.

Today we celebrate Yamakhup's contributions to classical Thai dance and the spirit of innovation she brought to it.

[9A]

June 2, 2020

Italy Republic Day 2020





Today’s Doodle celebrates Italy Republic Day, a time to honor collective Italian pride and remember those that defended the nation. On this day in 1946, a public referendum ended the ruling monarchy in favor of a republican government, and the Republic of Italy was born.

Known locally as Festa della Repubblica, Italy’s Republic Day is a national public holiday celebrated from the Mediterranean shores in the south to the Alps in the north, and everywhere in between. With 20 distinct regions, Italy is home to a wide array of cultural diversity that has developed over the past centuries to make the European nation the melting pot of cuisine, people, and traditions that it is today.

Illustrated in today’s Doodle is the Corona d’Alloro, a laurel wreath laid on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the towering white marble monument that symbolizes Italian freedom in Rome’s center, the Altare della Patria, during the annual Republic Day ceremony.

Buona Festa della Repubblica!

[9A]

June 2, 2012

Queen's Jubilee




The year 2012 marked the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II being the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. The only diamond jubilee celebration for any of Elizabeth's predecessors was in 1897, for the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Victoria.

Following the tradition of the Queen's Silver and Golden Jubilees, commemorative events were held throughout the Commonwealth of Nations.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh toured the United Kingdom and other members of the royal family toured the rest of the Commonwealth as the monarch's representatives. The Jubilee celebrations marked the beginning of the withdrawal of the Duke of Edinburgh from public life and a more prominent role for the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry in Commonwealth affairs.

Numerous events and tributes were held over the year and throughout the Commonwealth, culminating in a jubilee pageant held in London. The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust was set up as a charitable foundation with a mission to leave a lasting legacy across the Commonwealth. Other projects included the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Wood and the issuing of commemorative medals.

[9A]

Jun 2, 2012

Republic Day Italy 2012

[9A]

Jun 9, 2012

Johann Gottfried Galle's 200th Birthday





Johann Gottfried Galle [9 June 1812 – 10 July 1910] was a German astronomer from Radis, Germany, at the Berlin Observatory who, on 23 September 1846, with the assistance of student Heinrich Louis d'Arrest, was the first person to view the planet Neptune and know what he was looking at. Urbain Le Verrier had predicted the existence and position of Neptune, and sent the coordinates to Galle, asking him to verify. Galle found Neptune in the same night he received Le Verrier's letter, within 1° of the predicted position. The discovery of Neptune is widely regarded as a dramatic validation of celestial mechanics, and is one of the most remarkable moments of 19th-century science.

[9A]

June 12, 2015

Valentine's Day 2015 [Brazil]

• Whether a time for a romantic date, to catch up with friends, or catch up on cat videos, Tu B'Av is a good excuse to connect with the world around you. As nerds, the doodle team wanted to sweeten up our homepage with ways in which technology brings people together. The gesture may be as subtle as charging someone else's laptop or as bold as sending an affectionate text, but technology is fully engrained in the ways we express appreciation for one another.
• 
  We hope you enjoy our five quick animations of how love and technology go hand-in-hand!
  
  
  
  Posted by Jennifer Hom, doodler, and Olivia When, doodler

[9A]

June 12, 2017

Philippine Independence Day 2017





The flag of the Philippines is a symbol of national pride, especially today as the country celebrates the anniversary of its sovereignty. In honor of Philippine Independence Day, today’s Doodle is a colorful celebration of both the Philippine flag and the country’s unique island landscapes.

Each component of the flag’s design holds specific meaning. The prominent sunburst has eight rays to represent the eight provinces that began the fight for independence, while the three surrounding stars represent the country’s three island groups: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

With more than 7,000 islands that make up the country, there is no shortage of opportunities to watch the sun rise over the water. The sunrise imagery in the Doodle is meant to capture Filipinos’ optimism in the face of adversity.

In the foreground of today’s Doodle, a group of people gather for a traditional flag-raising ceremony. Accompanied by the Philippine national anthem, these ceremonies are held daily at schools and weekly in government institutions.

Maligayang Araw ng Kalayaan [Happy Independence Day]!


Illustrated by guest artist, Dan Matutina

[9A]

June 12, 2020

Russia National Day 2020




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by guest artist Olesya Shchukina, commemorates Russia National Day, known locally as Den Rossii. On this day in 1990, Russia became an independent nation following the official adoption of the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Russian Federation, which was then followed by the establishment of the national anthem and flag.

From the Bering Sea in the country’s Asian east, to the shores of the Baltic Sea in the European west, Russia has celebrated June 12th as a public holiday and a time to pay tribute to the country’s identity and heritage since 1992.

Today, Russia’s widely varied cultures and ethnicities are symbolized by historical customs, such as the playing of the country’s many traditional folk instruments. These unique musical instruments include Iozhkis [spoons], buben [tambourines], and accordions, as depicted in today’s Doodle.


С днем России! Happy Russia Day!

[9A]

June 12, 2016

Russia National Day 2016





Хаппи День России!


Today is the national day of Russia, which is aptly called "Russia Day". On this day, many people in Russia will have the day off to spend with friends and family. There will be fireworks and concerts in many different cities — in Red Square in Moscow, the celebration is sure to be lots of fun. From the square you can see both the Kremlin where the President lives and Saint Basil's Cathedral, which is the subject of today's Doodle.

The cathedral was completed in 1561 and its iconic spires and vivid colors set the tone for many other buildings in the square. To capture the authentic Russian feel of the structure, Robinson Wood matched the text and frame of today's Doodle to the architectural style of the cathedral.

[9A]

Jan 9, 2018

25th Anniversary of Rafflesia Arnoldii






If screens emitted scents, you’d be in for quite the stench. The pale green fumes bursting from today’s Doodle evoke the odor of Rafflesia arnoldii, an Indonesian plant that produces the largest flower in the world. This day marks the 25th anniversary of its distinction as a national rarity in its native Indonesia.

Known as bunga bangkai, or “the corpse flower” among locals, Rafflesia arnoldii gives off the aroma of rotting flesh, which baits the carrion flies that pollinate it. Its plump, red-brown petals, freckled with white spots, only emerge from Tetrastigma, the vine-like plants that host it, when it’s ready to reproduce — making it an incredibly uncommon sight. Once in the open, Rafflesia arnoldii grows to around 3 feet [1 meter] in diameter and blooms for just a few days.

But there’s more to this parasitic plant than its pungent perfume. Rafflesia arnoldii was named an Indonesian national “rare flower” in 1993’s Presidential Decree No. 4. This wondrous species is represented in the intricate patterns of traditional Indonesian batik, especially in the Bengkulu province of Sumatra, where it is often found.

Today, we celebrate Rafflesia arnoldii’s special [and smelly] place in Indonesian history!

[9A]

Jan 15, 2014

Josip Vandot's 130th Birthday [born 1884]



Josip Vandot was a Slovene writer and poet who wrote mainly for young readers.

Vandot is best known for the creation of the character Kekec, a brave and clever shepherd boy from the highlands of his home region, the Karawanks and Julian Alps. He wrote three books with Kekec as the main character.

[9A]

Feb 18, 2014

Ertem Egilmez's 85th Birthday [born 1929]




Ertem Eğilmez was a Turkish film director, producer and screenwriter. He is known as the name behind some of the most popular films in Turkish film history. Many of these were produced by his production company Arzu Film.

[9A]

Feb 27, 2014

Dominican Republic Independence Day 2014



In 1697, Spain recognized French dominion over the western third of the island, which became the independent state of Haiti in 1804. After more than three hundred years of Spanish rule, the Dominican people declared independence in November 1821.

Dominican cuisine is made up of Spanish, indigenous Taíno, Middle-Eastern and African influences. Many Middle-Eastern dishes have been adopted into Dominican cuisine such as the "Quipe" that comes from the Lebanese kibbeh.

As in Spain, the largest, most important meal of the day is lunch. Its most typical form, nicknamed La Bandera ["The Flag"], consists of white rice, red beans and meat [beef, chicken, pork, or fish], sometimes accompanied by a side of salad. La Bandera is the Dominican Republicans national dish.

[9A]

February 9, 2010

Natsume Soseki's Birthday




Natsume Sōseki was a Japanese novelist. He is best known around the world for his novels Kokoro, Botchan, I Am a Cat, Kusamakura and his unfinished work Light and Darkness. He was also a scholar of British literature and writer of haiku, kanshi, and fairy tales. From 1984 until 2004, his portrait appeared on the front of the Japanese 1000 yen note.

[9A]

Feb 11, 2010

2010 Vancouver Olympic Games - Opening Ceremony

[9A]

Feb 14, 2010

Valentine's Day / 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games - Pairs Skating

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February 14, 2008

Valentine's Day 2008

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February 14, 2013

Valentine's Day and George Ferris' 154th Birthday





Romance and amusement parks often go hand in hand. In many places a carnival, fair or circus is a popular destination for a thrilling and action-packed date. Coincidentally, George W.G. Ferris Jr., the creator of the Ferris Wheel was born on Valentine’s Day in 1859. This year seemed like a golden opportunity to combine our celebration of love with the birthday of the engineer whose mechanical invention has filled so many hearts with wonder.

Early in the process we decided on depicting a scene with two, side-by-side Ferris Wheels among a landscape of other amusement park rides. Then when two Ferris Wheel carts happened to stop across from each other we thought that was the perfect moment for two characters to have a love at first sight moment. We thought this would be the best way to highlight the Ferris Wheel in its natural habitat and provide a clever way to introduce some valentines to each other. Plus, we thought it would be fun to push a big button to generate a whole series of combinations.
The greater challenge turned out to be determining who would be riding these Ferris Wheels. What pairs would we create? How silly should we be? Chocolate and peanut butter? An astronaut and an alien? A blog post and a troll? After they see each other, would they jump out of their carts and ride the roller coaster? Or would we show their life story from youth to old age?

We ultimately decided that our cast of characters should all be animals and the result of their initial encounter should be a date. At first we assigned circus jobs to all the animal characters. For example, the monkey was a clown, the bear was a trapeze artist, the frog was a sword swallower, and so on. But why would they be riding the Ferris Wheel? Shouldn’t they all be performing? And would people understand that the turtle was wearing a helmet and goggles because he was in the cannonball act? In the end, we simplified the characters and focused on making the animals as engaging, colorful and personable as possible without worrying about their day jobs.

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Final animal character illustrations.

For the resulting dates, we used newspaper comic strips and their 3-panel composition as inspiration for style and narrative structure. The comic strip format gave us room to tell a wide variety of stories and the horizontal format worked nicely in our layout. Once we decided on comics, the date scenarios really just starting writing themselves. As always, we had more ideas than time to illustrate and animate.

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The final comic.

We hope you enjoyed the final interactive doodle and perhaps learned a little bit about love, life and Ferris Wheels.

- Brian Kaas, Doodler

[9A]

Mar 4, 2010

Antonio Vivaldi's Birthday




Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was an Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher, impresario, and Roman Catholic priest. Born in Venice, the capital of the Venetian Republic, Vivaldi is regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread across Europe, being paramount in the development of Johann Sebastian Bach's instrumental music. He composed many instrumental concertos, for the violin and a variety of other musical instruments, as well as sacred choral works and more than fifty operas. His best-known work is a series of violin concertos known as the Four Seasons.

Many of his compositions were written for the all-female music ensemble of the Ospedale della Pietà, a home for abandoned children. Vivaldi had worked as a Catholic priest for 18 months and was employed from 1703 to 1715 and from 1723 to 1740. Vivaldi also had some success with expensive stagings of his operas in Venice, Mantua and Vienna. After meeting the Emperor Charles VI, Vivaldi moved to Vienna, hoping for royal support. However, the Emperor died soon after Vivaldi's arrival, and Vivaldi himself died in poverty less than a year later.

After almost two centuries of decline, Vivaldi's musical reputation underwent a revival in the early 20th century, with much scholarly research devoted to his work. Many of Vivaldi's compositions, once thought lost, have been rediscovered – in one case as recently as 2006. His music remains widely popular in the present day and is regularly played all over the world.

[9A]

Mar 7, 2021

Celebrating Masako Katsura




Today’s Doodle celebrates ambidextrous Japanese sharpshooter Masako “The First Lady of Billiards” Katsura, who made history as the first woman to compete for an international billiards title on this day in 1952.

Born in Tokyo in 1913, Katsura picked up billiards at age 12 from her brother-in-law, a game room owner, and by 15 she was the Japanese women’s champion in straight rail—a challenging variation of carom billiards in which the cue ball must hit two balls in a row to score points. After 19, she only competed in men’s tournaments; racking up 10,000 points at one exhibition in a mind-boggling four and a half hour run.

By the time Katsura moved to the United States in 1937, word of her unprecedented talent had reached eight-time world champion Welker Cochran. He came out of retirement to challenge her in a series of three-cushion matches, an even tougher version of carom billiards, depicted in the Doodle artwork, that calls for the cue ball to hit at least three cushions before striking the two object balls for points. Katsura so impressed Welker, he organized the World Championship Billiards tournament in 1952 to watch her compete against world’s foremost billiards aficionados. Katsura upset some of the sport’s best players to finish seventh in the tournament, while the progress she made for women in a traditionally male-dominated game was a first.

To celebrate her historic achievements, Katsura was inducted into the Women’s Professional Billiard Association Hall of Fame in 1976 as one of the sport’s all-time greatest players.

So here’s to you, First Lady of Billiards! Thanks for cueing up this sport for generations of women to come.

[9A]

Mar 10, 2021

Dr. Wu Lien-teh's 142nd Birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 142nd birthday of Chinese-Malaysian epidemiologist Dr. Wu Lien-teh, who invented a surgical face covering that is widely considered the precursor to the N95 mask.

Born into a family of Chinese immigrants in Penang, Malaya [modern-day Malaysia] on this day in 1879, Wu went on to become the first student of Chinese descent to earn his MD from Cambridge University. Following his doctoral studies, he accepted a position as the vice director for China's Imperial Army Medical College in 1908. When an unknown epidemic afflicted north-eastern China in 1910, the Chinese government appointed Wu to investigate the disease, which he identified as the highly contagious pneumonic plague that spread from human to human through respiratory transmission.

To combat the disease, Wu designed and produced a special surgical mask with cotton and gauze, adding several layers of cloth to filter inhalations. He advised people to wear his newly invented mask and worked with government officials to establish quarantine stations and hospitals, restrict travel, and apply progressive sterilization techniques; his leadership contributed greatly to the end of the pandemic [known as the Manchurian plague] by April 1911—within four months of being tasked with controlling its spread.

In 1915, Wu founded the Chinese Medical Association, the country’s largest and oldest non-governmental medical organization. In 1935, he was the first Malaysian—and the first person of Chinese descent–nominated for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work to control the pneumonic plague. A devoted advocate and practitioner of medical advancement, Wu’s efforts not only changed public health in China but that of the entire world.

Happy birthday to the man behind the mask, Dr. Wu Lien-teh!

[9A]

March 10, 2021

Prof. Udupi Ramachandra Rao's 89th Birthday



Udupi Ramachandra Rao was an Indian space scientist and chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation. He was also the Chairman of the Governing Council of the Physical Research Laboratory at Ahmedabad and Nehru Planetarium at Bengaluru and chancellor of the Indian Institute for Space Science and Technology at Thiruvananthapuram. He is known as "The Satellite Man of India." He pioneered India's first satellite launch "Aryabhatta" in 1975.

Rao was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1976, and Padma Vibhushan in 2017. He was inducted into the Satellite Hall of Fame, Washington, on 19 March 2013 at a ceremony organised by the Society of Satellite Professionals International. With this he became the first Indian to be inducted. He was also to be inducted in International Astronautics Federation [IAF] on 15 May 2016. He was also the first Indian again to achieve such a feat.

He is also known as the "satellite man of India"

[9A]

June 24, 2017

2017 World Taekwondo Championships Muju






Integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit — all of these are on display at the 2017 World Taekwondo Championships in Muju, South Korea. Oh, and some pretty impressive knee strikes and reverse round kicks!

The World Taekwondo Championships have taken place every other year since 1973. Outside of the Olympics, they’re the most prestigious event for those who practice the sport — in fact, the seven days feature more competitors from a greater number of nations than does the four-day Olympic event. Many talented athletes will make names for themselves at the championships this year, and their careers will be carefully followed by taekwondo enthusiasts as the Tokyo 2020 Olympics approach.

Though taekwondo is an intensely physical sport, its philosophical roots center on the building of a more peaceful society. By cultivating a foundation of respect, humility, and control in the individual, practitioners of taekwondo aim to inspire this sense of responsibility and spirituality in others through their actions and teachings.

Today’s Doodle was created with community and diversity in mind. Who will emerge victorious in this year’s Worlds? We can’t wait to find out!

[9A]

June 24, 2016

Juan Manuel Fangio’s 105th birthday





As a child, he was El Chueco – ”the bandy-legged one” – due to his gravity-bending soccer skills. But a lifetime of racing victories made him El Maestro – The Master. Such was the transformation of legend Juan Manuel Fangio, who would be 105 today.

A native son of Balcarce, near Buenos Aires, Fangio’s command of the wheel emerged while driving for the military. Post-service, he kept at it, dedicating himself to punishing routines to make up for lost time and compete with his younger opponents. The result: winning the World Championship of Drivers not once, but a record-breaking five times in the 1950s.

Today’s vintage, poster-inspired Doodle commemorates his dedication and commitment to Balcarce, Argentina, and the timeless art of racing.