The bombing of Pearl Harbour, on December 7, 1941, was amongst the most significant moments of World War II as it eventually led to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Prior to the attack on Pearl Harbour, the relationship between the United States and Japan had already taken a bitter turn.
Between December 1937 and January 1938, the Nanking Massacre occurred where Japanese soldiers killed 200,000 Chinese people and molested 20,000 Chinese women. The US was against Japan’s aggression in China, and imposed economic sanctions after its invasion. Negotiations between the US and Japan ended with the Hull Note, the final proposal delivered to Japan by the US.
The negotiations did not lead to any concrete results and eventually, about 180 aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked the US Naval base at Pearl Harbour on the island of Oahu in Hawaii — the bombing killed over 2,300 Americans.
Moving on to a lighter note, over in the United Kingdom, where a band of young men gripped the world for decades. Yes, we're talking about The Beatles. The band branched their Apple Corps multimedia company into retail. On December 7, 1967, the Beatles opened up the Apple Boutique at 94, Baker Street in London. This was the Apple store before the Apple stores we know today and instead of fancy electronics, this store sold clothes.
Apple boutique's most striking was a psychedelic painting, designed by The Fools, that graced its outer walls. The store was run by John Lennon's childhood friend and George Harrison's sister-in-law. The store didn't even last a year. Eight months after its opening, on July 31, 1968, the Beatles closed the shop because it was losing too much money. However, the group allowed every customer entering the store on its final day of business to take one item for free.
