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Michael Jackson, who narrated the album

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is an audiobook and soundtrack companion album for the 1982 blockbuster film directed by Steven Spielberg. Composed by John Williams, the album was narrated by Michael Jackson (pictured), and distributed by MCA Records. The original song "Someone in the Dark", sung by Jackson, bookends the album. The album was released on November 15, 1982 – before Jackson's album Thriller was released later that month – which led to a lawsuit by his label, Epic Records, over the soundtrack being released first. The soundtrack album was withdrawn, and the release of the single "Someone in the Dark" was prohibited. The album also featured a poster of Jackson with an animatronic model of E.T.; the image appeared on the cover of Ebony magazine the following month. Despite its curtailed release, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial reached number 37 on the Billboard 200 and number 82 on the UK Albums Chart. Well-received critically, it won Jackson a Grammy Award for Best Recording for Children. (Full article...)

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Macginitiea gracilis leaf fossil

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In the news

Ruahei Demant

At least six people are killed and 81 others injured in a bombing in Istanbul, Turkey.
In rugby union, the Rugby World Cup concludes with New Zealand defeating England in the final (player of the match Ruahei Demant pictured).
The Democratic Party retains control of the Senate following the U.S. midterm elections.
Six people are killed in a mid-air collision at an air show in Dallas, United States.

On this day

November 15

Detail from Fountain of Time sculpture

655 – Penda of Mercia and Æthelhere of East Anglia were defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria at the Battle of the Winwaed in Yorkshire, England.
1760 – The chapel of the newly constructed Castellania in Valletta, Malta, was consecrated.
1864 – American Civil War: Union Army general William Tecumseh Sherman began his March to the Sea, inflicting significant damage to property and infrastructure using scorched-earth tactics on his way from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia.
1922 – Fountain of Time (detail pictured), in Chicago's Washington Park, was dedicated as a tribute to 100 years of peace between the United States and Great Britain following the Treaty of Ghent.
2012 – Xi Jinping replaced Hu Jintao as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, succeeding as the paramount leader of China.

Malo (d. 621)
Claus von Stauffenberg (b. 1907)
Charles Thomson Rees Wilson (d. 1959)

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Today's featured picture

Wilhering Abbey is a Cistercian monastery in Wilhering in Upper Austria, about 8 km (5 mi) from the city of Linz. The buildings, re-constructed in the 18th century, are known for their spectacular Rococo decoration. According to the German art historian Cornelius Gurlitt, "the abbey church of Wilhering is the most brilliant achievement of the Rococo style in the German-speaking world". This photograph depicts the interior of the church, looking towards the high altar, featuring the intricate ceiling frescoes and stucco work.

Photograph credit: Uoaei1

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