Good morning. It's July 12th — let's begin where we always do: on this very date in history.
📅 On This Day — July 12
🥧 (It's also National Pecan Pie Day — breakfast is a personal choice.)
1543 — King Henry VIII married his sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr.
1962 — The Rolling Stones played their first-ever show, at London's Marquee Club.
1979 — Chicago's Comiskey Park hosted "Disco Demolition Night," a between-games promotion that spiraled into a full-blown field riot.
1984 — Geraldine Ferraro was chosen as Walter Mondale's running mate, becoming the first woman nominated for VP by a major U.S. party.
Now, let's set the dial back to 1986…
⏪ REWIND: 1986
Ronald Reagan is well into his second term, a first-class stamp runs 22 cents, gas hovers around 90 cents a gallon, MTV owns the culture — and the whole country is still riding high off a spectacular Fourth of July in New York Harbor.
📰 The Headlines Just over a week ago, New York Harbor put on the show of the decade: "Liberty Weekend" drew tall ships, fireworks, and President Reagan himself to rededicate a freshly restored Statue of Liberty on her 100th birthday — a four-day, flag-waving celebration that had the whole country feeling good.
🎬 At the Movies Still owning the multiplex two months after opening is Top Gun — Tom Cruise's need for speed turned Naval aviators into movie stars, and by summer's end it'll be the highest-grossing film of the year.
🎵 On the Charts Topping the Hot 100 is "Holding Back the Years" by Simply Red — the British band's soulful ballad just claimed its first No. 1, a slow-burner standing out in a summer otherwise ruled by synths and drum machines.
🏆 In Sports Across the Atlantic, the Tour de France is more than a week into its three-week grind — and a genuine soap opera is brewing between American Greg LeMond and his own teammate, five-time champion Bernard Hinault, who promised to ride in support of LeMond this year. That promise is about to be tested hard once the race hits the Pyrenees and Alps.
🏰 The Disney Vault Ten days into its run and quietly winning people over is The Great Mouse Detective — Disney's Basil-of-Baker-Street adventure, a modest hit that convinced Disney's brass to keep investing in animation. It'll go down as one of the small films that saved the studio's future.
— a couple of quick things before you go —
👟 Step Challenge: the Summer 2026 Step Challenge is rolling — grab the free Pacer app and walk with us: Join the challenge (already have Pacer? Club code E42727228). Every step counts.
💡 Health Snap: Ceiling fans and iced drinks feel nice, but plain water is still the fastest way to cool your body from the inside out — keep a glass going all afternoon.
🎉 Born on a July 12th — or know someone who was?
Forward this to them right now — there's no better "this is the day you were born" gift than a little time travel.
🎂 In good company: July 12 babies include Fleetwood Mac's Christine McVie (1943), Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi (1971), actress Michelle Rodriguez (1978), and activist Malala Yousafzai (1997).
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