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What happened in history on this day: December 12?
On December 12 in ...
- 627 - Battle at Nineveh: Byzantine emperor Heraclius beats Perzen.
- 884 - Carloman, co-king of France (879, 882-884), dies.
- 1098 - First Crusaders capture and plunder Mara Syria.
- 1112 - Tancred monarch of Galilea/Edessa/Antioch, dies.
- 1204 - Maimonides [Moses Ben Maimon] Jewish philosopher/talmudic scholar, dies in Cairo at age 69.
- 1263 - Hakon IV Gamli, King of Norway (1217-63), dies.
- 1474 - Isabella crowns herself queen of Castile and Aragon.
- 1479 - Jews are expelled from Schlettstadt Alsace by Emperor Frederick III.
- 1524 - Pope Clement VII approves Organization of Jewish Community of Rome.
- 1527 - Composer Adrian Willaert moves from Milan to Venice.
- 1560 - Birth of Maximilien de Béthune duke of Sully/baron of Rosny/Prime Minister of France.
- 1574 - Birth of Anne van Denemarken daughter of Danish King Frederik II.
- 1579 - Captain Francis Drake departs from the Spice Islands, after drafting a treaty for spice trade with England in exchange for naval protection.
- 1600 - John Craig Scottish church reformer/James VI's court vicar, dies.
- 1653 - Barebone-parliament ends.
- 1660 - Birth of Peter Rabus poet/translator (Liberated Britanje).
- 1673 - Birth of Ahmed III 23rd sultan (Turkey, 1703-30).
- 1677 - Brandenburgs army occupies Stettin.
- 1677 - Jacob Binckes/Benckes Dutch admiral (Chatham), dies in battle.
- 1685 - Birth of Lodovico Giustini composer.
- 1700 - Utrecht/Overijssel/Buren/Leerdam/Ijsselstein adopt Gregorian calendar.
- 1712 - Birth of Charles Alexander Duke of Lotharingen.
- 1715 - Russian/Prussian troops occupy Stralsund.
- 1745 - Birth of John Jay diplomat (New York-Governor).
- 1769 - Pope Clement XIV proclaims a universal jubilee.
- 1787 - Pennsylvania is second state to ratify US Constitution.
- 1791 - The Bank of the United States opens for business.
- 1792 - In Vienna, Ludwig van Beethoven (age 21) receives first lesson in music composition from Franz Joseph Haydn.
- 1800 - Washington, District of Columbia, is established as capital of USA.
- 1805 - Birth of Henry Wells; founder (American Express Company, and Wells Fargo and Company).
- 1805 - Birth of William Lloyd Garrison; abolitionist publisher (The Liberator).
- 1806 - Birth of Stand Watie; Brigadier-General (Confederate Army) (dies 1871).
- 1806 - Birth of twin brothers François and Louis Blanc in Courtezon, France; financiers, bankers, casino operators in Luxemburg, Homburg.
- 1812 - The last French troops leave Russia.
- 1818 - Birth of Paul Octave Hebert; Brigadier-General (Confederate Army) (dies 1880).
- 1821 - Birth of Gustave Flaubert in Rouen, Normandy, France; novelist (Madame Bovary).
- 1822 - US government officially recognizes Mexico as an independent nation.
- 1830 - Birth of Joseph Orville Shelby; Brigadier-General (Confederate Army) (dies 1897).
- 1832 - Birth of Abraham C Wertheim; Dutch banker/Member of Parliament (liberal).
- 1833 - Birth of Matthias Hohner; German manufacturer (harmonica).
- 1838 - Birth of Sherburne W Burnham; US astronomer (binary stars).
- 1843 - Willem I Frederik, King of Netherlands (1814-40), dies at age 71.
- 1846 - American chargé d'affaires Benjamin Alden Bidleck signs a treaty with the government of President Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera of New Grenada, which in part guarantees to the US exclusive right of transit across the Isthmus of Panama.
- 1848 - Birth of William Vanderbilt; yachtsman (donated Vanderbilt Cup).
- 1858 - First coins of the Province of Canada, 421,000 1-cent coins, are released to circulation.
- 1859 - Birth of Edward Bradley; horse owner (first to own four Kentucky Derby winners).
- 1859 - Birth of Maurice Donnay; French playwright (Lovers).
- 1862 - Birth of Daniel Halévy; French historian/writer (La fin des notables).
- 1862 - Two electrically-detonated underwater torpedoes sink the USS Cairo ironclad battleship in the Yazoo River north of Vicksburg, Mississippi, CSA.
- 1863 - Birth of Edvard Munch in Norway; painter/print maker (The Scream).
- 1866 - Birth of Alfred Werner; Swiss chemist (Nobel Prize 1913).
- 1871 - Jules Janssen discovers dark lines in solar corona spectrum.
- 1874 - Birth of Volter A Kilpi; Finnish writer (Alastalon salissa).
- 1875 - Birth of Karl R G von Rundstedt; German general-fieldmarshal (Normandy).
- 1877 - José M de Alencar, Brazilian writer/minister of Justice, dies at age 48.
- 1878 - Joseph Pulitzer begins publishing Saint Louis Dispatch.
- 1879 - Birth of Friedrich Christiansen; German commander Wehrmacht Netherlands.
- 1879 - Birth of Laura Hope Crews; US actress (Camille, Gone With the Wind).
- 1880 - Michel Chasles, French mathematician (geometry), dies at age 83.
- 1882 - Birth of Akiba Rubinstein; Polish chess player (openings theory).
- 1884 - First Cricket Test match played at the Adelaide Oval.
- 1886 - Birth of Owen Moore in County Meath, Ireland; actor (She Done Him Wrong).
- 1889 - Death of Robert Browning at age 78 in Venice, Italy; English poet (Ring and Book, Asolando).
- 1893 - Birth of Edward G Robinson [Goldenberg] in Romania; actor (The Ten Commandments).
- 1897 - Anti-Jewish violence breaks out in Bucharest, Romania.
- 1897 - Rudolph Dirks' first Katzenjammer cartoon strip is published in New York Journal.
- 1898 - First first-class game between New South Wales and Tasmania.
- 1899 - First case of plague on Oahu, Hawaiian Islands.
- 1899 - George F Grant of Boston, Massachusetts, USA patents the wooden golf tee.
- 1901 - Marconi receives first transatlantic radio signal, England to US.
- 1903 - Roger Casement completes report about abuses in Belgian Congo.
- 1904 - Birth of Jim Christy; righty cricket batter (Transvaal, Queensland and South Africa).
- 1906 - Birth of William C Pahlmann; interior decorator (Four Seasons restaurant, New York City, New York).
- 1912 - Luitpold von Bayern, prince-regent of Bayern, dies at age 91.
- 1913 - Painting Mona Lisa is recovered after being stolen from the Louvre Museum in 1911.
- 1913 - Birth of Eve Lister; actress/singer (No Limit, Hyde Park).
- 1913 - Birth of Hal Dickinson; singer ("Modernaires").
- 1913 - Hebrew language is officially used to teach in Palestinian schools.
- 1914 - Birth of Denis Begbie; cricket player (South African batsman in five Tests 1948-50).
- 1914 - The New York Stock Exchange re-opens (was closed four months). The Dow Jones Industrial Average drops from 71.42 to 54, a drop of 24 percent.
- 1915 - First all-metal aircraft (Junkers J.1) test flown at Dessau, Germany.
- 1915 - Aristide Briand forms French war government.
- 1915 - Birth of Francis Albert Sinatra AKA Frank Sinatra in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA; singer/actor (old blue eyes/chairman of board, actor (From Here to Eternity), singer ("Strangers in the Night", "My Way").
- 1915 - Russian troops overrun Hamadan, Persia.
- 1916 - The USA purchases the Danish West Indies, for US$25 million.
- 1917 - Birth of Heinrich Böll in Germany; writer (Group Portrait with Lady, Nobel Prize 1972).
- 1917 - Reverend Edward Flanagan founds Boys Town outside Omaha, Nebraska.
- 1917 - Train derails near mouth of Mount Cenis tunnel in Modane, France; 543 French troops killed; worst train disaster ever.
- 1918 - Birth of Joe Williams in Cordele, Georgia, USA; jazz singer ("Everyday I Have the Blues").
- 1918 - Birth of Nilda Maria Geerdink-Jesurun Pinto; Curaçao writer (Nanzi).
- 1920 - Olive Schreiner, South Africa writer (Healing Imagination), dies at age 75.
- 1921 - Henrietta Leavitt, dicoverer of relationship between cepheid period and luminosity, dies.
- 1922 - Birth of Arthur R Hawkins; US pilot/captain (WWII, downed 14 Japanese planes).
- 1923 - Birth of Bob Barker in Darrington, Washington, USA; game show emcee (The Price is Right).
- 1923 - Raymond Radiguet, French journalist/writer (Ball du Comte), dies at age 20.
- 1924 - Birth of Edward I Koch in New York City, New York, USA; mayor (Democrat-New York, 1977-89), judge (People's Court).
- 1925 - Arthur Heinman coins term "motel", opens Motel Inn, San Luis Obispo, California.
- 1925 - Birth of D G "Dattu" Phadkar; cricket player (pace bowling all-rounder for India).
- 1925 - Birth of Ghulam Guard; cricket player (lefty pace bowler in two Tests for India 1959).
- 1925 - Last Qajar Shah of Persia deposed; Cossack officer/ex-premier Reza Chan becomes Shah of Persia.
- 1926 - Jean Richepin, French poet/writer (Contes sans morale), dies at age 77.
- 1928 - Birth of Helen Frankenthaler in New York City, New York, USA; abstract expressionist artist (Arden).
- 1929 - Birth of Doug Ford; cricket wicket-keeper (successful New South Wales of 1950s).
- 1929 - Birth of John Osborne in England; playwright (Look Back in Anger, Luther - TONY 1964).
- 1930 - Baseball Rules Committee greatly revises the rule book, when a ball bounces into stands now a double, not a homerun.
- 1930 - Start of the first Australia versus West Indies cricket Test (at Adelaide).
- 1931 - Birth of Lionel Blair in Montréal, Quebec, Canada; choreographer, tap dancer, headmaster, TV presenter (Spotlight).
- 1931 - Japanese Government of Imukai forms.
- 1932 - Birth of Robert Pettit; NBA star (Saint Louis Bombers/1959 Most Valuable Player).
- 1932 - USSR and China resume diplomatic relations.
- 1935 - Birth of Al Harrington in Pago Pago, American Samoa; actor (Ben Kokua - Hawaii Five-0).
- 1936 - Birth of Iolanda Balas in Romanial high jumper (Olympics-gold-1960).
- 1936 - The British duke of York is proclaimed King George VI.
- 1936 - Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek declares war on Japan.
- 1937 - Alfred Abel, actor (Dr Mabuse, Metropolis), dies at age 57.
- 1937 - Japanese aircraft shell and sink US gunboat Panay on Yangtze River in China. (Japan apologizes and eventually pays US $2.2 million in reparations).
- 1937 - NBC and RCA sends first mobile-TV vans onto the streets of New York.
- 1937 - Washington Redskins win NFL championship.
- 1938 - Birth of Connie Francis in Newark, New Jersey, USA; singer/actress (Where the Boys Are).
- 1939 - Douglas Fairbanks, actor (Zorro, Three Musketeers, Robin Hood), dies at age 56.
- 1939 - Soviet prison ship Indigirka, carrying 2,500 prisoners capsizes in blizzard off Japanese coast; 2,470 die.
- 1940 - Birth of Dionne Warwick in East Orange, New Jersey, USA; singer (Solid Gold, "Way to San Jose").
- 1940 - British troops conquer Sidi el-Barrani.
- 1941 - Birth of Liesbeth List; Dutch actress/vocalist (Theodorakis).
- 1941 - Birth of Terry Kirkman in Salina, Kansas, USA; rock vocalist/keyboardist (The Association).
- 1941 - Birth of Tim Hauser; jazz singer (Manhattan Transfer - "Tuxedo Junction").
- 1941 - European reservists on Java mobilizes.
- 1941 - German occupying army do a house search in Paris, France looking for Jews.
- 1941 - Russian 20th Army recaptures Soljetsjnogorsk.
- 1942 - Birth of Mike Pinder in Birmingham, England; rocker (The Moody Blues).
- 1942 - German offensive in South Western Stalingrad.
- 1943 - Birth of Dave Munden; rock drummer (Brian Poole and The Tremeloes).
- 1943 - Birth of Dickey Betts in West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; guitarist (Allman Brothers - "Ramblin' Man").
- 1943 - Birth of Grover Washington Junior; jazz artist (Mr Magic).
- 1945 - Birth of Karl Edward Wagner; American sci-fi author (Bloodstone, Night Winds).
- 1945 - Special Court of justice convicts NSB-leader Mussert to death.
- 1946 - Birth of Clive Bunker; rock drummer (Jethro Tull - "Aqualung", "Thick as a Brick").
- 1946 - Birth of Emerson Fittipaldi in Brazil; Indy-car racer (over ten wins).
- 1946 - Birth of Marlous Fluitsma; actress (De Prooi, Apart, Alle Dagen Feest).
- 1946 - Ice plant collapses, shearing a tenement building and burying 38.
- 1946 - Johannes L "Jan" Walch, Dutch literary (Abelard and Heloïse), dies at age 67.
- 1946 - United Nations accepts six Manhattan (New York) blocks as a gift from John D Rockefeller Junior.
- 1947 - Júlio A Peixoto, Brazilian writer (Fruta do Mato), dies at age 70.
- 1947 - United Mine Workers union withdraws from AFL.
- 1949 - American League votes 7-1 rejecting legalizing the spitball.
- 1949 - Birth of Ricardo Luís Carreras in New York City, New York, USA; bantamweight boxer (Olympics-bronze-1972).
- 1950 - 16th Heisman Trophy Award: Vic Janowicz, Ohio State (Half Back).
- 1950 - US Major League Baseball owners vote to drop four-year-old bonus and high school rule.
- 1950 - Birth of Billy Smith in Ontario, Canada; NHL goaltender (New York Islanders).
- 1951 - Birth of Caren Kaye in New York City, New York, USA; actress (My Tutor, Blansky's Beauties).
- 1951 - Birth of Steven Alan Hawley in Ottawa, Kansas, USA; PhD/astronaut (STS 41-D, STS 61-C, STS 31, STS 82).
- 1952 - Birth of Ajit De Silva; cricket player (Sri Lankan lefty spinner in four Tests 1982).
- 1952 - Birth of Cathy Rigby McCoy in Los Alamitos, California, USA; gymnast (Olympics-4th-1968, 1972).
- 1952 - Birth of Neil Peart; rocker (Rush - "Working Man").
- 1952 - Birth of Sarah Douglas in England; actress (Conan, Superman II, Falcon Crest).
- 1952 - Dallas Texans (former Boston Yankees) play last game, last original team.
- 1953 - Birth of Bruce Kulick in Brooklyn, New York, USA; rocker (Kiss - "Beth", "Rock and Roll All Nite").
- 1955 - First prototype of hovercraft patented by British engineer Christoper Cockerell.
- 1955 - Birth of Lenore Rittenhouse in Honolulu, Hawaii; LPGA golfer (1983 United Virginia Bank).
- 1956 - Birth of Ana Alicia Ortiz in México City, Mexico; actress (Melissa - Falcon Crest).
- 1957 - Birth of Cy Curnin in London, England; rock vocalist (Fixx - "Sign of Fire").
- 1957 - Birth of Sheila E[scovedo] in San Franciso, California, USA; disco drummer (Krushgrove, Holly Rock).
- 1957 - Jerry Lee Lewis weds his cousin Myra Gale Brown, 13, while still married to his first wife, Jane Mitcham.
- 1957 - Major Adrian Drew flies 1,943 kph in F-101 Voodoo.
- 1957 - US announces manufacture of Borazon (harder than diamond).
- 1958 - Birth of Leo Kenter; Dutch drummer (Tröckener Kecks - "More! More! More!").
- 1958 - Birth of Sheree J Wilson in Rochester, Minnesota, USA; actress (Our Family Honor, Dallas).
- 1958 - Dutch social democratic party-ministers/premier Drees dismissed.
- 1958 - Fergie Gupte takes 9-102 with leggies versus West Indies at Kanpur.
- 1959 - Birth of Belouis Some; rocker (Neville Keighley - "Some People").
- 1959 - Birth of Krishnammachari Srikkanth; cricket player (big-hitting Indian opener).
- 1959 - Birth of Scott D Vangen in Granite Falls, Minnesota, USA; astronaut.
- 1959 - Russell Simpson, actor (Abraham Lincoln), dies at age 79.
- 1959 - United Nations Committee on Peaceful Use of Outer Space is established.
- 1959 - (to December 17) In Bangkok, Thailand, the South-East Asia Peninsula Games are held.
- 1960 - Birth of Amal Silva; cricket player (Sri Lankan wicket-keeper in 9 Tests 1983-88).
- 1961 - Birth of Dale Sanderson; Canadian Football League guard (Hamilton Tiger Cats).
- 1961 - Daiun Sogaku Harada Zen, founder of Sanbo Kyodan lineage, dies at age 91.
- 1961 - Ham radio satellite Oscar 1 launched with military Discoverer 36.
- 1961 - Martin Luther King Junior and 700 demonstrators arrested in Albany, Georgia, USA.
- 1962 - Birth of Holly Gagnier in Los Angeles, California, USA; actress (One Life to Live).
- 1962 - Birth of Nadeem Ghauri; cricket player (bowled in Test for Pakistan vs Australia 1990).
- 1962 - Birth of Ray Brown; NFL guard (Washington Redskins, San Francisco 49ers).
- 1962 - Birth of Tracy Austin in Rolling Hills, California, USA; tennis pro (US Open 1979, 1981).
- 1962 - Sid Saylor, actor (Wally - Waterfront), dies at age 67.
- 1962 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1963 - Birth of Teresa Blake in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; actress (Gloria Marsh - All My Children).
- 1963 - Kenya (formerly British East Africa) declares independence from United Kingdom.
- 1964 - Birth of Haywood Jeffires; NFL wide receiver (Houston Oilers).
- 1964 - Birth of Rockin' Jeff; rocker (The Pasadenas - "Riding on a Train").
- 1964 - Cleveland Browns' Frank Ryan sets club record of five touchdown passes.
- 1964 - H I "Sailor" Young, cricket player (left-arm bowler England versus Australia 1899), dies.
- 1965 - Birth of Laurie Grover-Tavares in Newark, New Jersey, USA; biathlete (Olympics-1994).
- 1965 - Doug Walters makes maiden Test ton in first Test, goes on to 155.
- 1965 - Gale Sayers of Chicago Bears scores six touchdowns, ties NFL record.
- 1965 - Death of Johnny Lee at age 67 of a heart attack; actor (Algonguin J. Calhoun (Amos 'n' Andy radio and TV series).
- 1966 - Birth of Cheryl Dickey in Houston, Texas, USA; 100 metre hurdler.
- 1966 - Birth of Jim Sandlak in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada; NHL right wing (Vancouver Canucks).
- 1966 - US Supreme Court votes 4-3 allowing Braves baseball team to move to Atlanta.
- 1967 - Birth of David Szott; NFL guard (Kansas City Chiefs).
- 1967 - Birth of John Randle; NFL defensive tackle (Minnesota Vikings).
- 1967 - Birth of Masood Anwar; cricket player (one Test Pakistan versus West Indies 1990).
- 1967 - US launches Pioneer 8 into solar orbit.
- 1968 - Birth of Chris Walsh; NFL wide receiver (Minnesota Vikings).
- 1968 - Birth of Kurt Schulz; safety (Buffalo Bills).
- 1968 - Birth of Laurie Williams; cricket player (West Indian ODI all-rounder versus New Zealand 1996).
- 1968 - Birth of Ray Ethridge; wide receiver (Baltimore Ravens).
- 1968 - Birth of Tatianna in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Spanish singer (Baile Commigo, Chicad de Hoy).
- 1968 - Death of Tallulah Bankhead at age 66 of pneumonia; hostess (The Big Show radio show), actress (Black Widow - Batman TV show (1966)).
- 1968 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1968 - Walter Robins, cricket player (19 Tests for England 64 wickets), dies.
- 1969 - Bill Toomey achieves track and field world record-score (8417 points).
- 1969 - Birth of Courtney Hawkins; NFL wide receiver (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pittsburgh Steelers).
- 1969 - Birth of Doug Terry; NFL/WLAF safety (Kansas City Chiefs, Scotland Claymores).
- 1969 - Birth of Frank Dikstaal; soccer player (MVV).
- 1969 - Birth of Jane Robinson; Australian rower (Olympics-1996).
- 1969 - Birth of Kris Wirtz in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada; ice pairs (1994 Skate Canada).
- 1969 - Birth of Sebastian Savage; WLAF cornerback (Rhein Fire).
- 1969 - The ABC TV network resumes airing the The Dick Cavett Show as a 90-minute discussion/variety TV show in the USA.
- 1969 - Bomb attack on bank in Milan, Italy, 14 killed.
- 1970 - Birth of Ivano Newbill; NBA center (Vancouver Grizzlies).
- 1970 - Birth of Jennifer Connelly in Brooklyn Heights, New York, USA; actress (Labyrinth, Rocketeer).
- 1970 - Birth of Madchen Amick in Reno, Nevada, USA; actress (Shelly Johnson - Twin Peaks).
- 1970 - Birth of Orlando Brown; NFL tackle (Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens).
- 1970 - Louis Zimmer Flem, clock maker (Jubelklok, Wonder Clock), dies at age 82.
- 1970 - Polish government proclaims price rise.
- 1970 - Small Astronomy Satellite Explorer 42 launched to study X-rays.
- 1970 - USSR performs underground nuclear test.
- 1971 - Birth of John Sacca; WLAF quarterback (Amsterdam Admirals).
- 1971 - Birth of Tito Wooten; NFL safety (New York Giants).
- 1971 - Birth of Toni Hodgkinson in Auckland, New Zealand; 800 metre (Olympics-1996).
- 1971 - David Sarnoff, US TV pioneer (RCA), dies at age 80.
- 1971 - Frank Wolff, actor (Erotic Illusion, Last Gun), suicide at age 43.
- 1971 - Jack Barnhill, Northern Ireland senator, assassinated.
- 1971 - John A Emmens, art historian/poet (Dog of Pavlov), dies at age 47.
- 1972 - Birth of Greg Randolph in Denver, Colorado, USA; road cyclist (Olympics-74th-1996).
- 1972 - Birth of Jamal Willis; NFL running back (San Francisco 49ers).
- 1972 - Birth of John Walsh; NFL quarterback (Cincinnati Bengals).
- 1972 - Birth of Kara Williams; Miss Texas USA (1996).
- 1972 - Birth of Missy Francis in Los Angeles, California, USA; actress (Little House on the Prairie).
- 1972 - Birth of Oliver Quass; WLAF kicker (Amsterdam Admirals).
- 1973 - Birth of Michael DiVenuto; cricket player (exciting Tasmanian batsman).
- 1973 - Birth of Reinard Wilson; linebacker (Cincinnati Bengals).
- 1973 - Birth of Stanley Pritchett; running back (Miami Dolphins).
- 1973 - Canada begins selling Olympic coins ($5 and $10 silver coins).
- 1973 - San Diego files anti-trust against National League (stopping San Diego Padres move to Washington DC).
- 1975 - Birth of Mayim Winkelman Bialik in San Diego, California; actress (Blossom, Beaches).
- 1975 - Gas stove explodes and starts fire killing 138 (Mecca, Saudi Arabia).
- 1975 - Sara Jane Moore pleads guilty to trying to kill US President Gerald Ford.
- 1976 - Jack [John Joseph Edward] Cassidy, actor (Oscar - He and She, Eiger Sanction), dies in fire at age 49.
- 1976 - Quarterback Joe Namath's last game with New York Jets.
- 1977 - Birth of Bridget Hall in Dallas, Texas; model (Ford).
- 1977 - Clementine O Spencer-Churchill (Hozier), British barones, dies at age 92.
- 1977 - New York Yankees purchase Andy Messersmith from Atlanta Braves.
- 1978 - Death of Fay Compton at age 74, English actress (Othello) (born 1894).
- 1978 - Birth of Derrick Delmore in Camp Springs, Maryland; figure skater (1996 Grand Prix champion).
- 1978 - Clifton Chenier, US accordionist (Bayou Blues), dies at age 53.
- 1979 - NATO decides on a two option policy in the face of the new middle range rockets installed in German Democratic Republic. NATO will begin installation of its own middle range rockets in Federal Republic of Germany, but will agree to remove them if the Soviet Union removes its rockets.
- 1979 - Gold hits record US$462.50 an ounce.
- 1979 - Near the coast of Ecuador, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurs. At least 600 people killed, 20,000 injured. The earthquake was felt strongly in many parts of southern Colombia and northwestern Ecuador. A 3-metre tsunami along the Colombian coast caused deaths and damage on Gorgona Island, and caused extensive damage to most port cities along the coast of Colombia from Buenaventura south.
- 1979 - South Korean Army Major General Chun Doo-hwan orders the arrest of Army Chief of Staff General Jeong Seung-hwa without authorization from President Choi Kyu-ha, alleging involvement in the assassination of ex-President Park Chung Hee.
- 1979 - Rhodesia becomes the independent nation of Zimbabwe.
- 1980 - Apple Computer becomes a publicly held company, selling 4.6 million shares at US$22 per share. More than 40 Apple employees and investors become instant millionaires. This is the largest initial public offering in the US since Ford's in 1956.
- 1980 - Columbia releases the film Stir Crazy to theaters.
- 1980 - American oil tycoon Armand Hammer pays US$5.12 million at auction for a notebook containing writings by artist Leonardo da Vinci, written around 1508. The price is the highest paid for a manuscript to date.
- 1980 - USA's copyright law amended to include computer programs.
- 1980 - The first episode of US TV show Magnum, P.I. airs.
- 1981 - In Pakistan, a magnitude 4.6 earthquake occurs.
- 1981 - Gambia and Senegal sign agreement to be known as Senegambia in February 1982.
- 1982 - US$9.8 million in cash stolen from money transport car in New York City, New York.
- 1982 - 57th Australian Women's Tennis: Chris Evert beats Martina Navratilova (6-3, 2-6, 6-3).
- 1982 - Joanne Carner/John Mahaffey win LPGA J C Penney Golf Classic.
- 1982 - Women's peace protest at Greenham Common: 30,000 women hold hands and form a human chain around the 14.5-km (9-mile) perimeter fence.
- 1983 - A dump truck with 330kg of high explosives crashes through the US Embassy gate in Kuwait City, exploding, killing six. Then five bombs detonate by remote control at other locations in Kuwait. Total 7 dead, 84 injured.
- 1984 - Birth of Daniel Agger; Danish football (soccer) player.
- 1985 - Arrow Air Flight 1285, a Douglas DC-8, crashes after takeoff in Gander, Newfoundland, Canada, killing 256, 248 of whom were U.S. servicemen returning to Fort Campbell, Kentucky from overseeing a peacekeeping force in Sinai.
- 1985 - Death of Anne Baxter at age 62 of a brain aneurism; actress (All About Eve movie, Olga, Queen of the Cossacks - Batman TV show, Myra - Marcus Welby TV show, Victoria - Hotel TV show, Love Boat TV show, Name of the Game TV show).
- 1985 - Ian Stewart, Scottish keyboardist/road manager (Rolling Stones), dies at age 47 (born 1938).
- 1985 - NASA launches space vehicle S-207.
- 1986 - David Boon's fourth Test century, 103 versus England at Adelaide.
- 1986 - James "Bone Crusher" Smith TKOs WBA champion Tim Witherspoon at Madison Square Garden.
- 1986 - Russian Tupolev-134 crashes in East Berlin, 70 killed.
- 1987 - Mookie Blaylock sets NBA record of 13 steals in a game.
- 1987 - Oklahoma sets NCAA record of 33 steals versus Centenary.
- 1987 - Rollermania at Madison Square Garden, Eastern Express beats Midwest Pioneers.
- 1988 - In London, England, three trains collide at the Clapham Junction killing 35 and injuring 132.
- 1988 - John Canning, New York Post managing editor, dies at age 56.
- 1988 - New York City Subway system adds new stations (the Z line).
- 1988 - Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat accepts Israel's right to exist.
- 1990 - US accuses Iraq of dragging its feet on dates for talks.
- 1990 - US ambassador to Kuwait, Nathaniel Howell, leaves Kuwait.
- 1991 - Eleanor Boardman, actor (Crowd), dies in at age 93.
- 1991 - Ken Keltner, US baseball player (Cleveland Indians), dies at age 75.
- 1991 - Lex Karsemeijer, Dutch tenor/choral director (Sweet 16, Pro Musica), dies.
- 1991 - Maastricht Treaty signed to create a European Community.
- 1991 - The Russian SFSR ceases to be a part of the Soviet Union.
- 1991 - New Jersey Nets set NBA record of 22 blocks beating Denver Nuggets 121-81.
- 1991 - Orion Pictures files for bankruptcy protection in the USA.
- 1991 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers' player Dexter Manley retires after failing drug test.
- 1992 - 58th Heisman Trophy Award: Gino Torretta, Miami Florida (quarterback).
- 1992 - In Flores Region, Indonesia, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake occurs. At least 2,200 people killed or missing in the Flores region, more than 500 people injured and 40,000 left homeless. Tsunami wave heights of up to 25 metres.
- 1992 - Bernard Lievegoed, Dutch doctor/psychiatrist/author (Free College), dies at age 87.
- 1992 - Japanese crown prince Naruhito announces engagement to Masaka Owada.
- 1992 - Jasu Patel, cricket player (29 wickets for India, best 9-69 versus Australia), dies.
- 1992 - Julia Kurotchkina, 18, of Russia, crowned 42nd Miss World.
- 1992 - New York Giants lose 19-0 to Phoenix Cardinals.
- 1992 - Death of Suzanne Lilar, Belgian essayist, novelist and playwright (born 1901).
- 1993 - Gerard "Gé" Nabrink, Dutch anarchist/NVSH-founder, dies at age 90.
- 1993 - Jeremiah Sullivan, actor (Soldier, Double-Stop), dies of AIDS at age 58.
- 1993 - Jozsef Antall, historian/premier of Hungary (1990-93), dies at age 61.
- 1993 - Ultra-Nationalists make strong gains in Russian elections.
- 1994 - Antoine Pinay, French Prime Minister (1952)/foreign minister, dies at age 102.
- 1994 - Herman H Felderhof, radio-announcer/head (NRU/NOS Radio), dies at age 83.
- 1994 - Stuart Allen Roosa, astronaut (Apollo 14), dies of pancreatitis at age 46 (born 1933).
- 1995 - Amendment to make it illegal to physically desecrate the US flag turned down by senate 63-36 (need 66 votes).
- 1995 - Andrew Olle, broadcaster, dies at age 48.
- 1995 - CBC announces Radio Canada International service to end on March 31.
- 1995 - David Saul Marshall, diplomat lawyer/politician, dies at age 97.
- 1995 - Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres address both houses of US congress.
- 1995 - James Altgens, photographer (John Kennedy assassination), dies at age 76.
- 1995 - Lindsay Oliver John Boynton, furniture historian, dies.
- 1995 - Mohyedin Alempour, Tajik artist/journalist, dies at age 50.
- 1995 - NBA referees return to work after striking.
- 1996 - Uday Hussein, son of Iraq's Saddam Hussein, is seriously injured in an assassination attempt.
- 1996 - Gerald Ian Lacey, architect/town planner, dies at age 70.
- 1996 - Disney announces the resignation of Michael Ovitz as president of the Walt Disney Company. His total compensation package totals US$140 million.
- 1996 - Jean-Pierre Guerlain, cosmetics pioneer, dies at age 91.
- 1996 - Florida Marlins sign their 6th free-agent since November 22, Moises Alou.
- 1996 - Michael Geoffrey Corcos, medical researcher, dies at age 77.
- 1996 - Vance Oakley Packard, writer (Hidden Perseuders), dies at age 82.
- 1997 - Carlos the Jackal, "professional revolutionary" goes on trial in Paris, France.
- 1997 - Demonstrations in state capitals of Australia against World Trade Organization and International Monetary Fund.
- 1997 - Federal judge sentences Autumn Jackson, who claims to be Bill Cosby's daughter, to 26 months for trying to extort US$40 million from him.
- 1997 - Florida Marlins release Alex Arias, the last original Marlins player.
- 1997 - Japanese train builders (Maglev) claim world speed record at 332 MPH.
- 1997 - Boston Red Sox sign Pedro Martinez to record six year $69 million contract.
- 1997 - SWAT team shoots John E Armstrong in Florida, freeing two young hostages.
- 1998 - Pitcher Kevin Brown becomes baseball's first US$100+ million dollar man as he signs a seven-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers for US$105 million.
- 1998 - Death of Lawton Chiles, U.S. Senator from Florida and Governor of Florida (born 1930).
- 1999 - President Lieutenant General Umar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir of Sudan dismisses the National Assembly, during an internal power struggle between him and speaker of the Parliament Hasan al-Turabi.
- 1999 - The Maltese-registered tanker Erika breaks up in stormy seas off France's Atlantic shore, dumping about 17 million litres of oil, covering hundreds of kilometres of coast.
- 2002 - Hans Enoksen is elected prime minister of Greenland.
- 2002 - Death of Nikolai Amosov, Ukrainian heart surgeon, inventor, best-selling author, and exercise enthusiast (born 1913).
- 2003 - Death of Geidar Aliev, President of Azerbaijan.
- 2003 - Death of Keiko, Orca whale from Free Willy.
- 2003 - Paul Martin becomes the 21st Prime Minister of Canada.
- 2003 - Olympic Airlines, Greece's new flag carrier, is launched.
- 2003 - Saddam Hussein, former President of Iraq, is captured in Tikrit by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division.
- 2004 - Sony Computer Entertainment releases the PlayStation Portable in Japan. It features Memory Stick port, USB port, UMD drive, 4.3-inch 16:9 ratio 480x272 pixel display, Wi-Fi wireless connectivity, headphone jack, speaker. Batteries power the unit for about four hours. Price is 19800 yen (about US$185). 200,000 units sell out quickly.
- 2005 - Gebran Ghassan Tueni is assassinated by a car bomb.
- 2005 - Scientists announce that they have created mice with small amounts of human brain cells in an effort to make realistic models of neurological disorders.
- 2006 - Peugeot produce their last car at the Ryton Plant in Coventry signalling the end of mass car production in a city that was once a major centre of the British motor industry.
- 2006 - Death of Paul Arizin, American basketball player (born 1928).
- 2006 - Death of Raymond P. Shafer, 38th Governor of Pennsylvania (born 1917).
- 2007 - Election by the Swiss Parliament of Switzerland's highest executive authority, the Swiss Federal Council (seven members). All the sitting members are confirmed, except Christoph Blocher, who in an upset is replaced by Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf. This is only the sixth time in Swiss history a sitting member is not reconfirmed.
- 2007 - The US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Canada, and the Swiss National Bank announce a joint plan to ease liquidity crisis in global money markets.
- 2008 - The Canadian federal government and Ontario reach a deal to offer CDN$3.3 to the auto industry if a proposed US aid package is approved in Washington.
- 2008 - Former chairman of the Nasdaq Stock Market Bernard Madoff is arrested and charged with allegedly running a $50 billion "Ponzi scheme", among the biggest fraud cases ever.
- 2008 - Switzerland becomes the 25th European country to join the Schengen Agreement, whereby cross-border passport checks will be abolished.
- 2008 - The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. The Moon appears to be 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than the year's other full moons.
- 2008 - Death of Avery Dulles, American Roman Catholic Cardinal (born 1918).
- 2008 - Death of Tassos Papadopoulos, Cypriot politician (born 1934).
- 2015 - At the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, 195 country representatives sign an agreement to limit future global average temperature to well below 2 degrees C above pre-industrial levels.
- 2020 - Bhutan and Israel normalise diplomatic relations.
- 2020 - The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes 70 million worldwide.
- 2020 - Death of John le Carré AKA David John Moore at age 89 in Truro, England; British spy, espionage novelist (George Smiley).
- 2020 - Death of Fikre Selassie Wogderess, 9th Prime Minister of Ethiopia (born 1945).
- 2021 - Death of Sir Paulias Matane, 8th Governor-General of Papua New Guinea (born 1931).
- 2021 - Death of Vicente Fernández at age 81 following a spinal injury in a fall in Guadalahara, Mexico; Mexican singer and actor (50 albums, 3 Grammy awards, 8 Latin Grammy awards).
- 2021 - A referendum in New Caledonia votes 96.5% to 3.5% to remain a territory of France.
- 2022 - Death of Stuart Margolin at age 82 of complications from pancreatic cancer in Staunton, Virginia, USA; actor (Evelyn "Angel" Martin - The Rockford Files TV show, Emmy award winner).
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