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What happened in history on this day: December 17?
On December 17 in ...
- 283 - Saint Gaius begins his reign as Catholic Pope.
- 695 - Begga, ancestress of the Carolingians/saint, dies.
- 1187 - Gregory VIII [Alberto de Morra] Italian Pope (1187), dies.
- 1195 - Boudouin V count of Hainault/Flanders (Boudouin VIII), dies.
- 1213 - Jean de Matha French saint, dies at age 53.
- 1471 - Isabella of Portugal duchess of Burgundy, dies.
- 1493 - Birth of Philippus A Paracelsus Swiss physician/alchemist (Liber paramixum).
- 1526 - Ferdinand of Austria chosen as King of Bohemia.
- 1526 - Pope Clemens VII publishes degree Cum ad zero - forms Inquisition.
- 1538 - Pope Paul III excommunicated England's King Henry VIII.
- 1554 - Birth of Ernst of Bayern prince/bishop of Liege/archbishop of Cologne.
- 1572 - Spanish army begins fires in Haarlem Netherlands.
- 1587 - Earl Leicesters army leaves Netherlands.
- 1611 - In Sweden, the Riksdag declares Gustav Adolf to be of age to become King. His title is Elected King and Hereditary Prince of the Swedes, Goths, and Vandals.
- 1638 - Birth of Johann Ulrich Sultzberger composer.
- 1638 - French/Swedish troops occupy Breisach on the Rhine.
- 1679 - Don Juan, ruler of Spain, dies.
- 1706 - Birth of Gabrielle Châtelet [La belle Emilie] French writer (Voltaire).
- 1711 - Arnold Moonen vicar/literature (Defeated German Spraekkunst), dies.
- 1718 - England declares war on Spain.
- 1728 - Congregation Shearith Israel of New York purchases a lot on Mill Street in lower Manhattan, to build New York's first synagogue.
- 1734 - Birth of William Floyd US soldier/signer (Declaration of Independence).
- 1745 - Bonnie Prince Charlie's army retreats to Scotland.
- 1749 - Birth of Domenico Cimarosa Italian composer (Il Matrimonio Segreto).
- 1751 - Kilian I von Dientzenhofer Czechoslovakian master builder, dies at age 62.
- 1777 - France recognizes independence of English colonies in America.
- 1778 - Birth of Humphrey Davy; discovered several chemical elements.
- 1788 - Russian army of Grigorij Potemkin occupies Ochárov.
- 1790 - Aztec calendar stone discovered in México City.
- 1791 - New York City traffic regulation creates first one-way street in America.
- 1792 - The US Mint strikes first coin patterns, copper cents with silver centers.
- 1792 - Opening of first legislative assembly of Lower Canada in Québec City.
- 1797 - Birth of Joseph Henry; US scientist/inventor/pioneer of electromagnetism.
- 1800 - Birth of Gergely Czuczor; Hungarian/Czechoslovakian poet/translator (Great Hungarian dictionary).
- 1801 - Birth of Johan; King of Saxon (1854-73), translated Dante's Divina Commedia.
- 1803 - Louisiana Purchase formally transferred from France to US for $27 million.
- 1807 - Birth of John Greenleaf Whittier; US poet (Snow-bound).
- 1819 - Birth of Samuel Jones; Major General (Confederate Army) (dies 1887).
- 1819 - Congress of Angostura establishes Colombia's independence from Spain.
- 1820 - Birth of Frederick Tracy Dent; US Brigadier-General (Union volunteers) (dies 1892).
- 1821 - Birth of Frederick West Lander; US Brigadier-General (Union volunteers) (dies 1862).
- 1821 - Kentucky abolishes debtors prisons.
- 1824 - Birth of John Kerr in Ardrossan, Scotland; physicist (electro-visually Kerr-effect).
- 1824 - Birth of Manning Ferguson Force; US Brevet Major General (Union volunteers) (dies 1899).
- 1824 - Birth of Thomas Starr King in New York City, New York, USA; Unitarian clergyman (Christianity and Humanity).
- 1830 - Birth of Jules de Goncourt in France; novelist (Germinie).
- 1830 - Death of Simón Jose Antonio de la Santisima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Blanco AKA Simon Bolivar at age 47 in Colombia; political and military leader for independence of Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru.
- 1833 - Birth of James Thadeus Holtzclaw; Brigadier-General (Confederate Army) (dies in 1893).
- 1833 - Kaspar Hauser, German son of grand duke Karel of Bathe, is murdered at age 21.
- 1842 - Birth of Marius Sophus Lie; Norwegian mathematician (continuous groups).
- 1853 - Birth of Herbert Beerbohm Tree in England; actor/theater manager (Trilby).
- 1859 - Birth of Willem C Grünings; Curaçao publisher (People's Friend).
- 1860 - Anaheim Township created in Los Angeles County.
- 1862 - General Ulysses Grant issues order #11, expelling Jews from Tennessee.
- 1873 - Birth of Ford Madox in Ford, England; novelist/editor (The Inheritors).
- 1874 - Birth of William Lyon Mackenzie King; 10th Canadian Prime Minister (Liberal, 1921-30, 1935-48).
- 1875 - Violent bread riots in Montréal, Quebec, Canada.
- 1876 - Birth of Júlio Afrânio Peixoto; Brazilian writer (O esfinge).
- 1878 - Gold and paper money exchangeable at par in USA, ending Civil War inflation.
- 1881 - Birth of Aubrey Faulkner; cricket player (great South Africa all-rounder early 20th century).
- 1881 - Lewis H Morgan, US ethnologist (Iroquois-Indians), dies at age 62.
- 1885 - France declares Madagascar a protectorate.
- 1889 - Birth of Vaslav F Nijinski; Ukraine/US ballet dancer (l'après-midi d'une faune).
- 1891 - Birth of Robertson Hare in London, England; actor (Our Girl Friday, Banana Ridge).
- 1891 - Msiri, king of Garanganja (Katanga), dies in battle.
- 1891 - Omer Bodson, Belgian captain, dies in battle.
- 1893 - Birth of Erwin Piscator; German stage director (Der Stellvertreter).
- 1893 - Levinus T Keuchenius, Dutch Minister of Colonies (1888-90), dies at age 71.
- 1893 - Russia ratifies Duple Alliance with France.
- 1894 - Birth of Arthur Fiedler in Boston, Massachusetts, USA; viola player, longtime conductor of the Boston Pops (1930-1979).
- 1894 - Birth of Hans [Henry] Kramers; Dutch theoretical physicist (quantum mechanics).
- 1894 - Birth of Willem Schermerhorn; Netherlands premier (1945-46).
- 1895 - Anti-Saloon League of America formed in Washington DC.
- 1895 - Birth of David Butler in San Francisco, California, USA; director (April in Paris, Calamity Jane).
- 1895 - George Brownell patents a machine to make paper twine (Massachusetts, USA).
- 1895 - US President Grover Cleveland warns Great Britain of aggressions to Venezuela over boundary dispute with British Guiana.
- 1899 - Frederick "Freddy" Roberts, son of British field marshal, dies in battle.
- 1900 - First prize of 100,000 francs offered for communications with extraterrestrials. Martians excluded - considered too easy.
- 1900 - New Ellis Island Immigration station completed, at cost of $1.5 million.
- 1903 - At 10:35 AM, the first sustained, controlled, powered aircraft flight is made by Orville Wright of Dayton, Ohio, in 12hp Flyer I at Kill Devil Hills, Kittyhawk, North Carolina. The flight lasts 12 seconds, travelling 120 feet. Brother Wilbur Wright then flies 852 feet for 59 seconds.
- 1903 - Birth of Erskine P Caldwell; author (Tobacco Road, God's Little Acre).
- 1904 - Birth of Paul Cadmus in New York City, New York, USA; etcher/painter (Sailors and Floozies).
- 1907 - Kelvin of Largs [William Thomson], British physicist (Kelvin), dies at age 83.
- 1907 - Ugyen Wangchuck becomes first hereditary king of Bhutan.
- 1908 - Birth of Willard Frank Libby; inventor (carbon-14 "atomic clock" (Nobel Prize 1960)).
- 1909 - Birth of Ferdinand H Aus der Fünten; German war criminal (Breda 4).
- 1909 - King Leopold II of Belgium dies.
- 1910 - Birth of Sy Oliver in Battle Creek, Michigan, USA; trumpet player/arranger/bandleader (Tommy Dorsey - "On the Sunny Side of the Street", "Opus One").
- 1910 - Birth of Keki Khursedji Tarapore; cricket player (0-72 in his only Test for India).
- 1911 - Birth of William Roerick in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA; actor (Henry Chamberlain - The Guiding Light TV show, Playhouse 90 TV show, Kraft TV Theatre TV show, Another World TV show, Law and Order TV show).
- 1914 - Austrian troops beat Russians in Limanova, Poland.
- 1914 - Birth of Mushtaq Ali; cricket player (prolific Indian batsman of 1930s and 1940s).
- 1914 - Great Britain declares Egypt a protectorate.
- 1914 - Jews are expelled from Tel Aviv by Turkish authorities.
- 1916 - Birth of Antoine Gerard Theodore Hermans AKA Toon Hermans in Sittard, Netherlands; Dutch entertainer/poet (Kolderliedjes).
- 1919 - Austria parliament approves 8-hour work day.
- 1920 - American League votes to allow pitchers who used the spitball in 1920 to continue using it as long as they are in the league (The National League will do the same - 17 holdover spitballers in all).
- 1920 - Birth of Armin Mueller-Stahl in Tilsit, East Prussia; actor (Kafka, Music Box).
- 1920 - British Empire receives League of Nations mandate to Nauru.
- 1920 - Japan receives League of Nations mandate over Pacific islands.
- 1920 - South Africa receives League of Nations mandate over South West Africa.
- 1922 - Last British troops leave Ireland Freestate.
- 1923 - Greek king George II overthrown by army/republic.
- 1924 - First US diesel electric locomotive enters service, in Bronx, New York.
- 1925 - A N "Monkey" Hornby, cricket player (England captain at Oval 1882), dies.
- 1925 - Birth of Rijk de Gooyer; Dutch actor (Black Rider, Rififi in Amsterdam).
- 1925 - Russia and Turkey sign non-aggresion pact.
- 1926 - Birth of Patrice Wymore in Miltonville, Kansas, USA; actress (The Big Tree).
- 1926 - German Wilhelm Marx government falls due to cooperation with red army.
- 1926 - Lithuanian military state under General Augustine Woldemaras.
- 1927 - Birth of Richard Long in Chicago, Illinois, USA; actor (The Big Valley TV show, Professor - Nanny and the Professor TV show, 77 Sunset Strip TV show, Pantomime Quiz TV show, Bourbon Street Beat TV show).
- 1927 - Donald Bradman scores 118 on first-class cricket debut, 188 minutes 8 fours.
- 1927 - US submarine S-4 sinks after collision, kills all 34 aboard.
- 1927 - Victoria scores 793 in cricket against Queensland, Bill Ponsford scores 437.
- 1928 - John McGraw backs Major League Baseball National League president John Heydler's designated hitter idea.
- 1928 - Birth of Julia Meade; TV commercial spokesperson (Toast of the Town, Your Hit Parade).
- 1929 - Birth of William Safire; political columnist (New York Times)/speech writer (Richard Nixon).
- 1930 - Birth of Julia Meade; actress/TV hostess (Spotlight Playhouse).
- 1930 - Birth of Robert [C J Edward] Guccione; magazine publisher (Penthouse, Omni).
- 1931 - Birth of Yvonne Keuls [Bamberg]; Dutch writer (Jan Rap and Co).
- 1932 - Saint Louis Cardinals trade Jim Bottomley to Cincinnati Reds for Estel Crabtree and Ownie Carroll.
- 1933 - B H Valentine scores 133 on Test Cricket debut, England versus India at Bombay.
- 1933 - Birth of Bruce Morrison; cricket player (one Test New Zealand versus England 1963).
- 1933 - Hans Vaihinger, German philosopher (Side-Studies), dies at age 81.
- 1933 - Lala Amarnath scores century on Test Cricket debut (went on to 118).
- 1933 - NFL starts keeping official statistics as Western Division champs Chicago Bears beat Eastern Division champs New York Giants 23-21 in first championship game, in front of 25,000 spectators at Wrigley Field, Chicago.
- 1933 - Spain's second Government of Lerroux forms.
- 1935 - Birth of Cal Ripken Senior; baseball manager (Baltimore Orioles).
- 1935 - Birth of George Lindsey; actor (The Andy Griffith Show TV show, Mayberry R.F.D. TV show).
- 1936 - Birth of Frank Martinus Arion [F Efraim M] in Antilles; writer (Double Play).
- 1936 - Birth of Roland Sheldon; pitcher (New York Yankees).
- 1936 - Birth of Tommy Steele in London, England; singer/actor ("Half a Sixpence", "Finian's Rainbow").
- 1936 - Ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and dummy Charlie McCarthy make their radio debut on Rudy Vallee's Royal Gelatin Hour.
- 1937 - Birth of Art Neville in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; vocalist (Neville Brothers).
- 1937 - Gerard Vissering, banker/president of Dutch Bank, dies at age 72.
- 1939 - Birth of Eddie Kendricks in Birmingham, Alabama, USA; singer (The Temptations - "My Girl", "The Way You Do the Things You Do" (1964), solo - "Keep on Truckin'", "Boogie Down").
- 1939 - Birth of James Booker in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; rhythm and blues musician (Gonzo).
- 1939 - Birth of Novella Nelson in Brooklyn, New York, USA; actress (Nellie Cole - Chiefs).
- 1939 - (1952 hours) Off the coast of Montevideo, Uruguay, German sailors open seacocks on the pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee, and set off a series of explosions, scuttling the ship.
- 1940 - British troops occupy Sollum.
- 1941 - Two Australian companies and Dutch troops land in Timor under protest of Portuguese governor and government of Portugal.
- 1941 - German submarine U-31 is sunk.
- 1941 - Japanese forces invade Borneo, landing at Sarawak on the north-west coast.
- 1941 - German troops led by Edwin Rommel begin retreating in North Africa.
- 1942 - Allies in London sentence German war criminals.
- 1942 - Birth of Bernard Hill Manchester; actor (Bellman and True, New World, Bounty).
- 1942 - Birth of Paul Butterfield in Chicago, Illinois, USA; blues musician (The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - "Better Days").
- 1943 - Transport 63 departs with French Jews to Germany.
- 1944 - Birth of Ference Bene in Hungary; record 12 soccer goals (Olympics-gold-1964).
- 1944 - Birth of Jack L[aurence] Chalker; American sci-fi author (Charon: A Dragon at the Gate, Saga of Well World).
- 1944 - Green Bay Packers win NFL championship.
- 1944 - US Army announces end of excluding Japanese-Americans from West Coast; Japanese-Americans are released from detention camps.
- 1945 - Birth of Christopher Cazenove in England; actor (Ben - Dynasty, A Fine Romance, Duchess of Duke Street).
- 1945 - Birth of Ernie Hudson in Benton Harbor, Michigan, USA; actor (Ghostbusters, Weeds, Oz, Desperate Housewives).
- 1946 - Birth of Albert Padmore; cricket player (West Indies off-spinner mid-70s).
- 1946 - Birth of Eugene Levy in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; comedian/writer (SCTV).
- 1946 - Donald Bradman and Barnes complete 405 run 5th wicket stand, score 234 each.
- 1946 - US V-2 rocket reaches 183 km at White Sands Proving Grounds, New Mexico, USA.
- 1947 - Birth of Marilyn Hassett in Los Angeles, California, USA; actress (Bell Jar, Other Side of Mountain).
- 1947 - Birth of Wes Studi; actor (Last of the Mohicans).
- 1948 - Birth of Jim Bonfanti; drummer (The Raspberries - "Go All the Way").
- 1949 - Birth of Paul Rodgers in England; rocker (Bad Company - "Feel Like Makin' Love", The Firm).
- 1949 - Burma recognizes People's Republic of China.
- 1950 - Birth of Carlton Barrett; Jamaican reggae drummer (Bob Marley and Wailers).
- 1950 - The US Treasury Department bans the purchase and import of North Korea stamps.
- 1951 - Birth of Tatyana Kazankina in the USSR; middle distance runner (Olympics-gold-1976).
- 1951 - Birth of Wanda Hutchison; rocker (The Emotions).
- 1951 - Dutch Communist Party members forbidden to be civil servants.
- 1952 - Birth of Hans Alders; Dutch minister of environment (PvdA).
- 1953 - Birth of Barry Livingston in Los Angeles, California, USA; actor (Ernie - My Three Sons, Sons and Daughters).
- 1953 - Birth of Mark Gane in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; rocker (M+M).
- 1953 - Birth of Sharon White; country singer (The Whites).
- 1953 - Dmitri Shostakovich's 10th Symphony premieres in Leningrad.
- 1953 - US Federal Communications Commission reverses its prior approval of a color television format that favored CBS-TV, instead approving RCA's black and white-compatible color TV specifications, benefitting the RCA-owned National Broadcasting Company.
- 1954 - First fully automated railroad freight yard (Gary, Indiana, USA).
- 1954 - Birth of Bill Pullman; actor (Sommersby, A League of their Own, Independence Day).
- 1956 - Eddie Acuff, actor (Guns of Pecos), dies at age 48.
- 1957 - Birth of Bob Ojeda; pitcher (New York Mets).
- 1957 - Dorothy Leigh Sayers [Atherton Fleming], author (Whose body), dies at age 64.
- 1957 - US successfully test-fires Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile.
- 1958 - Birth of Mike Mills; US pop bassist (REM - "One I Love", "Stand").
- 1959 - Birth of Albert King; actor (BB King and Friends, Blues Alive).
- 1959 - Birth of Michelle Mackall in Washington DC, USA; LPGA golfer (1995 Friendly's-32nd).
- 1959 - Birth of Tammie Green in Somerset, Ohio, USA; LPGA golfer (1989 du Maurier Ltd Classic).
- 1961 - Birth of Sarah Dallin; rocker (Bananarama - "Venus").
- 1961 - India annexes Portuguese colonies of Goa, Damao, and Diu.
- 1961 - Disgruntled employee sets fire to a Niteroi Circus of Rio de Janeiro circus tent in Niteroi, Brazil; 323 die.
- 1961 - Marion Perkins, sculptor (Man of Sorrow), dies at age 53.
- 1962 - Beatles first British TV appearance (People and Places).
- 1962 - Birth of Giulla Boschi; Italian actress (Act of Contrition, Bonus Malus).
- 1962 - Birth of Rocco Anthony Mediate in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, USA; PGA golfer (1991 Doral-Ryder).
- 1962 - Current constitution of Monaco promulgated.
- 1962 - Death of Thomas Mitchell at age 70 from cancer; actor (Outlaw, Uncle Billy - It's a Wonderful Life movie, The Mayor of the Town TV show, Glencannon TV show, Studio One TV show, Lux Video Theatre TV show, Ford TV Theatre TV show, O. Henry Playhouse TV show).
- 1963 - Tsjoi Doo Sun forms government in South Korea.
- 1963 - West and East Berlin sign accord about travel rules.
- 1964 - Birth of Eric Brown in New York City, New York, USA; actor (Buzz - Mama's Family).
- 1964 - Birth of Frank Musil in Pardubice, Czechoslovakia; NHL defenseman (Ottawa Senators).
- 1964 - Birth of Joe Wolf; NBA forward/center (Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets).
- 1964 - Birth of Tyrone Braxton; NFL safety (Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32).
- 1965 - Astrodome opens, first event is Judy Garland and Supremes concert.
- 1965 - Birth of Craig Berube in Calahoo, Alberta, Canada; NHL left wing (Washington Capitals).
- 1965 - Birth of Jeff Grayer; NBA guard (Charlotte Hornets, Olympics-bronze-1988).
- 1965 - Birth of Scott Edward Gump in Rockledge, Florida, USA; PGA golfer (1991 International-second).
- 1965 - British government proclaims end of oil-embargo against Rhodesia.
- 1965 - David Levy begins his search for comets.
- 1965 - Dutch government shuts Limburgs coal mine.
- 1965 - Largest newspaper - Sunday New York Times at 946 pages (50 cents).
- 1965 - Tito [Raffaele A] Schipa, Italian tenor/composer (Rondine), dies at age 76.
- 1966 - Birth of Hans Visser; Dutch soccer player (MVV, FC Utrecht).
- 1967 - Birth of Alan Nolet in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; gymnast (Olympics-1996).
- 1967 - Birth of Pauline Maurice in Welland, Ontario, Canada; softball outfielder (Olympics-1996).
- 1967 - Birth of Vincent Damphousse in Montréal, Quebec, Canada; NHL center (Montreal Canadiens).
- 1967 - Harold Holt, Australian premier (1966-67), drowns at age 59.
- 1968 - Birth of Curtis Pride in Washington DC; outfielder (Detroit Tigers).
- 1968 - Birth of Jeff[rey] Klepacki in Kearny, New Jersey, USA; rower (Olympics-1992, 1996).
- 1969 - 50 million TV viewers see singer Tiny Tim marry Miss Vicky, on The Tonight Show.
- 1969 - Arturo da Costa e Silva, President of Brazil (1967-69), dies at age 67.
- 1969 - Birth of Dean Wilson in Kaneohe, Hawaii, USA; golfer (1991 Western Athletic).
- 1969 - Birth of Marc Davis in Oceanside, California, USA; 3K steeplechase runner (Goodwill-gold-1994).
- 1969 - Birth of Marty Carter; NFL safety (Chicago Bears).
- 1969 - Birth of Rob Maas; Dutch soccer player (Feyenoord).
- 1969 - Birth of Scott Player; WLAF punter (Frankfurt Galaxy).
- 1969 - US Air Force closes Project Blue Book, concluding no evidence of extraterrestrial spaceships behind thousands of UFO sightings.
- 1970 - Birth of Earl Dotson; NFL tackle (Green Bay Packers-Superbowl 31).
- 1970 - Birth of Michael Mols; soccer player (FC Twente).
- 1970 - Gdansk, Poland shipworkers strike.
- 1970 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1970 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk.
- 1970 - Birth of Sean Patrick Thomas; actor (The District).
- 1971 - James Bond film Diamonds are Forever premieres in theaters in the US.
- 1971 - Birth of Alyson Habetz in Crowley, Louisiana, USA; female pitcher (Colorado Silver Bullets).
- 1971 - Birth of Carl Reeves; NFL defensive end (Chicago Bears).
- 1971 - Birth of Mark Byers; WLAF linebacker (Frankfurt Galaxy).
- 1971 - Birth of Nikki McCray in Collierville, Tennessee, USA; basketball guard (Olympics-gold-1996).
- 1971 - Birth of Sari Kristiina Fisk; ice hockey defenseman (Finland, Olympics-1998).
- 1971 - Birth of Tony Richardson; NFL fullback (Kansas City Chiefs).
- 1971 - Cease-fire between India and Pakistan in Kashmir.
- 1971 - Radio Bangladesh begins transmitting.
- 1972 - Birth of Brian Williams; NFL linebacker (Green Bay Packers-Superbowl 31).
- 1972 - Birth of Dewayne Washington; NFL cornerback (Minnesota Vikings).
- 1972 - Birth of Don Davis; linebacker (New Orleans Saints).
- 1972 - Birth of Ivan Pedroso in Cuba; long jumper (Olympics-4th-1992).
- 1972 - New line of control agreed to in Kashmir between India and Pakistan.
- 1973 - Arab terrorists shoot passengers on Boeing 737 to Kuwait.
- 1973 - Charles G Abbot, US astronomer (Sun Constant), dies at age 101.
- 1974 - Birth of Giovonni Ribisi; actor (Cory - My two Dads, New Leave it To Beaver, Friends, The Wonder Years).
- 1975 - First time New York Islanders shut-out New York Rangers, 3-0-Billy Smith's 5th.
- 1975 - Birth of Milla Jovovich in Kiev, Ukraine; actress (Return to the Blue Lagoon, Chaplin).
- 1975 - Birth of Napiera Danielle Groves; Miss USA-Washington DC (1997, Miss Congeniality).
- 1975 - Birth of Nick Farrell in East York, Ontario, Canada; boxer (Olympics-1996).
- 1975 - Frank Sully, actor (Parachute Nurse, Inside the Law), dies at age 67.
- 1975 - Lynette Fromme is sentenced to life for attempt on US President Gerald Ford's life.
- 1976 - Superstation WTBS in Atlanta goes national.
- 1977 - Bobby Simpson scores 176 Australia versus India at the WACA, aged 41.
- 1977 - France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island.
- 1978 - OPEC raises oil prices 18 percent.
- 1978 - Referendum approves new constitution of Rwanda.
- 1978 - Death of Don Ellis at age 44; jazz musician and composer (The French Connection movie score (1973)).
- 1979 - Birth of Cheri Vivette Alexander; Miss District of Columbia Teen USA (1997).
- 1979 - Birth of Jaimee Foxworth; actor (Judy Winslow - Family Matters).
- 1979 - In the Sumbawa Island region, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurs. Twenty-seven people reported killed, 200 reported injured, and about 80 percent of the homes and buildings were destroyed or badly damaged in Karangasem on eastern Bali.
- 1979 - Stanley Barrett in Budweiser rocket car reaches 1190 km/h (739.666 MPH, record for wheeled vehicle).
- 1980 - Great Britain performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1980 - Mauritania provisional constitution published.
- 1980 - Warner Bros. releases the film Any Which Way You Can to theaters.
- 1981 - Birth of Emma Laaksonen; ice hockey defenseman (Finland, Olympics-1998).
- 1982 - Columbia releases the film Tootsie to theaters.
- 1983 - A Provisional IRA car bomb kills six Christmas shoppers and injures 90 outside Harrods in London.
- 1983 - A discotheque fire in Madrid, Spain, kills 83 people.
- 1984 - New Jersey Devils' first penalty shot-Rocky Trottier scores against Edmonton Oilers.
- 1984 - New Jersey Devils' first shutout, Glenn Resch makes 42 saves beat Minnesota, 2-0.
- 1985 - US President Ronald Reagan signs the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1985 (Public Law 99-185) directing Treasury to issue 0.9167 fine gold bullion coins: $50 (one ounce), $25 (half ounce), $10 (quarter ounce), $5 (tenth ounce). The gold is to be acquired from natural deposits in the US or territory or possession when possible, and when not, from the US reserves. Profits from sales would be used to pay down the national debt.
- 1986 - Mrs Davina Thompson makes medical history by having the first heart, lung, and liver transplant (Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, England).
- 1986 - Birth of Vanessa Zima; actress (Cavedweller, Murder One).
- 1986 - Ron Kass, record company president (MGM), dies at age 52 of cancer.
- 1986 - US Congress forms "Irangate" committee.
- 1986 - Wayne Newton won a $19.2 million judgment against NBC News, which had aired reports linking Newton to mob figures. The reports were proven to be false.
- 1987 - Bernard Cardinal Alfrink, archbishop of Ultrecht, Netherlands, dies at age 87.
- 1987 - Czechoslovakian leader Gustáv Husák resigns as General Secretary of the Communist Party.
- 1987 - Marguerite Yourcenard, author (Memoirs of Hadrien), dies at age 84.
- 1988 - 77th Davis Cup: Germany beats Sweden in Gothenburg (4-1).
- 1988 - Bryan Murray becomes the 17th NHL coach to win 300 games (Washington Capitals).
- 1988 - New York Islanders break 12-game losing streak, beat New Jersey Devils 5-2.
- 1988 - USS Tennessee, first submarine to carry Trident 2 missiles, commissioned.
- 1988 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk.
- 1989 - 78th Davis Cup: Germany beats Sweden in Stuttgart (3-2).
- 1989 - Brazil holds its first free election in 29 years, electing conservative Fernando Collor de Mello president.
- 1989 - Michael Bevan scores cricket century on first-class debut (114 South Africa versus Western Australia).
- 1989 - Patti Rizzo/Mike Hill win LPGA Mazda Golf Championship.
- 1989 - The first full length episode of The Simpsons TV show in the US, "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", premieres on Fox-TV in the USA.
- 1989 - In Timisoara, Romania, an uprising begins against the communist regime, sparking the Romanian Revolution.
- 1990 - Don Draper, actor (Pepper Agent 00X), dies of AIDS at age 61.
- 1990 - Mieke Verstraete, Belgian/Netherlands actress (Pleasant Settled), dies at age 79.
- 1991 - John Blatnik, American politician (Representative-Minnesota, 1947-75), dies at age 80.
- 1991 - Cleveland Cavaliers beat Miami Heat 148-80, by record 68 points.
- 1991 - Patrick Manning becomes premier of Trinidad and Tobago.
- 1991 - The TV soap opera One Life To Live airs its 6,000th episode.
- 1992 - Death of Dana Andrews at age 83 from pneumonia and congestive heart failure in Los Alamitos, California, USA; actor (Laura movie, Best Years of Our Lives movie, I Was a Communist for the FBI radio show, Bright Promise TV show, Playhouse 90 TV show, Falcon Crest TV show, Ike TV show, Alcoa Premiere TV show, Ben Casey TV show, The Dick Powell Show TV show).
- 1992 - General Suwa finds tooth of 4.4 million-year-old Australopithecus ramidus.
- 1993 - Bangladesh Muslims call for murder of feminist Taslima Nasrin.
- 1993 - Janet Margolin, US actress (Annie Hall), dies at age 50 of ovarian cancer.
- 1994 - Birth of Nathaniel Marvin Wolff, American actor, singer-songwriter/keyboardist (The Naked Brothers Band).
- 1994 - Jan Wiegel, director/producer (Uninhabitable Country), dies at age 64.
- 1996 - At the Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the "Option Red" supercomputer is started up, performing one trillion floating-point operations per second, making it the fastest computer in the world. The US$55 million computer uses 9072 Intel Pentium Pro processors with 600 GB memory and 2 terabyte disc storage.
- 1996 - Stanko Todorov, Prime Minister of Bulgaria (1971-81), dies.
- 1996 - 14 members of the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement takes 500 hostages in the Japanese Embassy in Lima, Peru, to draw international attention to widespread human rights abuses in Peru.
- 1997 - The term "weblog" is coined by Jorn Barger.
- 1998 - Claudia Benton, of West University Place, Texas, is murdered in her house by Angel Maturino Resendiz (his third victim in his third incident).
- 1999 - The United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) is created to replace UNSCOM. The U.N. Security Council once again orders Iraq to allow inspections teams immediate and unconditional access to any weapons sites and facilities. Iraq rejects the resolution.
- 1999 - Grover Washington Junior, jazz saxophonist and composer, suffers a heart attack and collapses after taping four songs for The Saturday Early Show on CBS, dying in hospital in New York City.
- 1999 - Death of Rex Allen, after being accidently run over in his own driveway; singer, published over 300 songs, starred in 19 Republic western movies, narrated dozens of Disney films and TV ashows.
- 2003 - The New York Yankees and Gary Sheffield finalize a US$39 million, three-year deal.
- 2003 - New Line releases the film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King to theaters.
- 2004 - The Seattle Mariners baseball team sign free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre to a $64 million, five-year deal.
- 2007 - Birth of James Alexander Philip Theo in Surrey, England; Viscount Severn, son of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Sophie, The Countess of Wessex.
- 2007 - The International Finance Corporation of the World Bank unveils a US$1 billion health-care strategy for Africa.
- 2008 - OPEC oil ministers agree to cut 2.2 million barrels per day, their deepest output cut ever, effective January 1.
- 2008 - Sammy Baugh, football player who set numerous passing records with the Washington Redskins (1937-1952), dies at age 94 in Rotan, Texas, USA.
- 2011 - Death of Kim Jong-il, Supreme Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (born 1941).
- 2014 - Warner Bros. releases the film The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies to theaters.
- 2014 - U.S. President Barack Obama announces the resumption of normal relations between the U.S. and Cuba.
- 2019 - Shandong, China's first fully domestically-built aircraft carrier, enters naval service.
- 2020 - Death of Pierre Buyoya, 3rd President of Burundi (born 1949).
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Or, visit my Timelines of History page.
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