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What happened in history on this day: December 22?
On December 22 in ...
- 69 - Death of Emperor Aulus Vitellius in Rome, commandant of Rhine and seventh emperor of Rome, executed after defeat by forces of Vespasion.
- 401 - Saint Innocent I begins his reign as Catholic Pope.
- 856 - In Damghan, Iran, an earthquake with estimated magnitude 7.9 occurs, causing estimated 200,000 deaths.
- 1135 - Stephen, Count of Blois, son of William the Conqueror's daughter Adela, is crowned King of England.
- 1216 - Pope Honorius III delegates degree "Religiosam vitam eligentibus".
- 1337 - Daito Kokushi leader of O-To-Kan Rinzai school in Japan, dies at age 54.
- 1400 - Birth of Luca della Robbia Italy, sculptor (Madonna of Rose Garden).
- 1419 - John XXIII [Baldassare Cossa] Italian Pope (1410-15), dies.
- 1428 - Birth of Richard Neville Warwick second earl of Salisbury.
- 1440 - Bluebeard pirate, executed.
- 1452 - Birth of Jakob Obrecht Brabant, composer.
- 1459 - Birth of Djem Sultan son of Turks sultan Mehmed II.
- 1465 - Peace of Saint Truiden: Louis van Bourbon becomes bishop of Luik.
- 1515 - Birth of Mary of Lorraine France, pro-French Regent of Scotland.
- 1523 - Birth of Charles "Cardinal" of Bourbon archbishop Rouen.
- 1536 - English scholar Reginald Pole appointed cardinal.
- 1573 - Birth of Ernst Casimir count of Nassau-Dietz/mayor of Frisia/Groningen.
- 1596 - Ferryboat Meuniers crashes in Paris, 150 die.
- 1603 - Mehmed III sultan of Turkey (1595-1603), dies at age 37.
- 1639 - Birth of Jean-Baptiste Racine French dramatist (Andromaque) (baptized).
- 1641 - Maximilien de Béthune duke of Sully Prime Minister of France, dies at age 81.
- 1642 - Pope Urbanus VIII publishes degree In eminente.
- 1643 - Birth of Rene-Robert Cavelier La Salle France, French explorer (Louisiana).
- 1668 - Stephen Day first British colonial printer, dies.
- 1684 - Birth of Johann J Dillenius [Dillen] German botanist (Historia Muscorum).
- 1689 - Heavy earthquake strikes Innsbruck.
- 1696 - Birth of James Oglethorpe England, general/author/colonizer (Georgia).
- 1700 - Birth of Egbert de Vrij Temminck Amsterdam regent.
- 1702 - Birth of Jean E Liotard [Turk] Swiss painter (Madame d'Epinay).
- 1715 - English pretender to the throne James III lands at Peterhead.
- 1721 - Nathaniel Hawes tortured and executed in England for robbery.
- 1723 - Jacques Basnage French/Dutch historian/vicar, dies at age 70.
- 1727 - Birth of William Ellery signer of the Declaration of Independence.
- 1728 - Birth of Charles Frederick Baden, liberal ruler of Baden.
- 1731 - Dutch people revolt against meat tax.
- 1753 - Birth of Dugald Stewart Edinburgh Scotland, philosopher (Scottish common sense).
- 1764 - Birth of Barbara Juliane Krudener Latvia, mystic visionary renounced nobility.
- 1767 - Birth of Andreas Hofer South Tirol, military leader (fought Napoleon's France).
- 1772 - Moravian missionary constructs first schoolhouse west of Allegheny.
- 1775 - Continental navy organized with seven ships.
- 1790 - Russian troops occupy Ismail on Turks.
- 1795 - Birth of Thomas Ainsworth; English/Netherlands industrialist (Twentse textile).
- 1803 - Birth of Joseph King Fenno Mansfield; US Major General (Union volunteers) (dies 1862).
- 1807 - Congress passes the Embargo Act, prohibiting all international trade to and from American ports.
- 1808 - Birth of Thomas Cook in England; tour director (Thomas Cook and Son).
- 1809 - Birth of Benedict Augustin Morel in Vienna; French psychologist (dementia praecox).
- 1810 - British frigate Minotaur sinks, killing 480.
- 1812 - Birth of Johanne Luise Heiberg in Copenhagen, Denmark; actress (Romeo and Juliet).
- 1819 - Birth of George Eliot in England; Victorian novelist (Adam Bede).
- 1826 - Birth of James Scott Negley; US volunteers Major General (dies 1901).
- 1828 - Death of Rachel Donelson Robards Jackson, spouse of (future US President) Andrew Jackson, at age 61.
- 1830 - Birth of Justin M'Carthy in Ireland; Irish politician/novelist (Miss Misanthrope).
- 1831 - Birth of Robert Ogden Tyler; US Brevet Major General (Union Army) (dies 1874).
- 1832 - Birth of Edward Hatch; US Brevet Major General (Union volunteers) (dies 1889).
- 1847 - Birth of Heihatjirô Tôjô in Japan; admiral (Russian-Japanese war).
- 1849 - Birth of Fritz Mauthner in Bohemia; German author/philosopher (skepticism).
- 1856 - Birth of Frank Kellogg; US Secretary of State (1925-29), tried to outlaw war (Nobel Prize 1929).
- 1858 - Birth of Giacomo Puccini Lucca in Italy; opera composer (La Bohème, La Tosca).
- 1861 - Birth of Erich Schaeder; German theologist (Theocentric Theology).
- 1862 - Birth of Connie Mack; Hall of Fame baseball executive/manager (Philadelphia Athletics 1900-1950).
- 1863 - Birth of Jean-Baptiste Marchand in Thoissey, France; soldier/explorer (Sudan).
- 1863 - Michael Corcoran, USA Brigadier-General, dies at age 36.
- 1867 - Birth of Joseph [Maria] Olbrich in Silesia; German architect (Wiener Sezession).
- 1867 - Jean-Victor Poncelet, French mathematician (kinematics), dies at age 79.
- 1868 - Birth of John Nance in Garner, Texas, USA; American politician (Vice-President-Democrat-1933-41).
- 1869 - Birth of Andre[-Paul-Guillaume] Gide in Paris, France; writer (Nobel Prize 1947).
- 1869 - Birth of Edwin Arlington Robinson; US poet (Richard Corey).
- 1870 - Jules Janssen flies in a balloon in order to study a solar eclipse.
- 1874 - Birth of Herman Harrell Horne in Clayton, North Carolina, USA; philosopher (idealism).
- 1875 - Birth of John P "Jan" Musch; Dutch actor (Dead Water).
- 1876 - Birth of Filippo Tommaso Marinetti; Italian writer (Futurism e Futurista).
- 1877 - American Bicycling Journal is first published (Boston, Massachusetts).
- 1879 - Birth of Ralph Hawtrey in Buckinghamshire, England; economist (multiplier).
- 1879 - Birth of Stanislas Bizot; French world checker champion (1925).
- 1880 - George Eliot, Victorian novelist (Adam Bede), dies on 61st birthday.
- 1882 - First string of Christmas tree lights created by Thomas Edison.
- 1883 - Birth of Arthur James Cook in England; union leader (coal miners).
- 1883 - Birth of Edgard Victor Achille C Varèse in Paris, France; composer (Innisation).
- 1885 - Birth of Edgard Varèse in Paris, France; composer (Innisation).
- 1885 - Birth of Joseph Deems Taylor in New York City, New York, USA; composer (Peter Ibbetson).
- 1885 - Pope Leo XIII proclaims extraordinary jubilee.
- 1887 - Birth of Srinivasa Ramanujan; Indies mathematician ('pi'/Notebooks).
- 1888 - Birth of Joseph Arthur Rank; English film magnate/baron.
- 1889 - Birth of Minor Watson in Marianna, Arkansas; actor (Woman of the Year, Viva Cisco Kid).
- 1890 - Birth of Mark Tobey; US abstract painter (Broadway Norm).
- 1890 - Harry Pollitt, chairman British communist (1956-60), dies.
- 1891 - Birth of Edward L Bernays in Vienna, Austria; first public relations agent.
- 1894 - Dutch coast hit by hurricane.
- 1894 - French officer Alfred Dreyfus court-martialed for treason, triggers worldwide charges of anti-Semitism (Dreyfus later vindicated).
- 1894 - United States Golf Association is formed (New York City, New York).
- 1899 - Birth of Gustaf Gruendgens in Duesseldorf, Germany; actor/director (M).
- 1899 - Dwight L Moody, US evangelist (Student Volunteer Movement), dies.
- 1901 - Birth of André Kostelanetz in Saint Petersburg, Russia; conductor (Lincoln Portrait).
- 1902 - Birth of Jacques-Philippe Leclerc in France; WWII hero (liberator of Paris).
- 1902 - Birth of Joe Adonis in Italy; American crime-syndicate boss in New York and New Jersey.
- 1903 - Birth of Barbara Moore; walked across US in 86 days in 1960.
- 1903 - Birth of H Keffer Hartline; US biophysicist (Nobel Prize 1967).
- 1904 - Birth of Louis-Eugene-Felix Neel in Lyon, France; physicist (Nobel Prize 1970).
- 1905 - Birth of Kenneth Rexroth; US poet/critic/translator (Birds in the Bush).
- 1905 - Birth of Pierre Brasseur [Espinasse]; French actor (Enfants du Paradis).
- 1907 - Birth of Peggy Ashcroft in Croydon, England; stage actress (Dear Brutus, Happy Days).
- 1908 - Birth of Giacomo Manzú in Italy; sculptor (Saint Peter, Laurenskerk, Lenin Prize).
- 1908 - Birth of Max Bill; Swiss painter/sculptor/politician (Ruban Sans Fin).
- 1908 - Marie Jungius, Dutch teacher/fairy tale writer, dies at age 44.
- 1909 - Birth of Alan Carney [David Boughal] in Brooklyn, New York, USA; actor (Zombies on Broadway).
- 1910 - Birth of Richard Ainley in Middlesex, England; actor (I Dood It, Above Suspicion).
- 1911 - Birth of Grote Reber; US astronomer (first parabolic radio telescope).
- 1912 - Birth of Claudia A "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson; first lady (1963-1969).
- 1912 - Birth of Doris Duke in New York City, New York, USA; heiress (American Tobacco Company).
- 1912 - Birth of Henry Armstrong; held feather/light/welterweight boxing titles (1938).
- 1913 - Menelik II, King of Ethiopia (1896-1913), dies at age 69.
- 1915 - Organized baseball and Federal League sign a peace treaty at Cincinnati, Ohio.
- 1915 - Federal Baseball League is dissolved.
- 1917 - Birth of Andrew Fielding Huxley in London, England; physiologist (Nobel Prize 1963).
- 1917 - Birth of Gene Rayburn in Christopher, Illinois, USA; TV game show host (Match Game).
- 1917 - Birth of Piet De Somer; Belgian rector (University of Leuven).
- 1917 - Flanders declares its independence, under Pieter Tack.
- 1917 - Francesca Saveria Cabrini, US saint/patron of immigrant, dies at age 67.
- 1918 - Albijn van de Abeele, Flemish author/mayor/painter, dies at age 83.
- 1918 - Birth of Frankie Darro in Chicago, Illinois, USA; actor (Radio Ranch, Valley of Wanted Men).
- 1919 - US deports 250 alien radicals, including anarchist Emma Goldman, to Russia.
- 1921 - Birth of Hawkshaw Hawkins in Huntington, West Virginia, USA; country singer (Ozark Jubilee).
- 1922 - Belgian parliament rejects Dutch University in Ghent.
- 1922 - Birth of Barbara Billingsley in Los Angeles, California, USA; actress (June - Leave it to Beaver).
- 1922 - Birth of James C Wright Junior; American politician (Representative-Democrat-Texas), Speaker of the House (1987-89).
- 1922 - In Egypt, the first official press viewing of Tutankhamen's tomb takes place.
- 1923 - Bill Ponsford and Edgar Mayne make 456 opening stand for Victoria in cricket.
- 1924 - Babe Dye of NHL's Toronto Saint Patricks scores five goals in beating Boston Bruins 10-2.
- 1924 - Birth of Geraldine Page in Kirksville, Missouri, USA; actress (Interiors, Beguiled).
- 1926 - Birth of Peggy Castle in Appalachia, Virginia, USA; actress (Lily Merrill - Lawman).
- 1928 - Birth of Piero Angelo; Italian writer (Control).
- 1929 - Birth of Jan Wiegel; director/producer (Classroom of Anne Frank, Myrada).
- 1929 - Birth of Wazir Mohammad; cricket player (eldest of Pakistan's four Mohammed brothers).
- 1930 - Six West Europe lands signs Convention of Oslo.
- 1930 - Birth of Peter Hall in Suffolk, England; director (Royal Shakespeare Company).
- 1932 - Birth of Joe Clark in Los Angeles, California, USA; WLAF offensive coordinator coach (Amsterdam Admirals).
- 1934 - First flight from Netherlands to Curaçao (Christmas flight 1934).
- 1934 - Miss Theo Trowbridge sets female bowling record 702 pins.
- 1935 - Birth of Oleg Alekseyevich in Protopopov, Russia; pairs skater (Olympics-gold-1964, 1968).
- 1936 - First common carrier license issued by ICC, Scranton Pennsylvania.
- 1936 - Birth of Hector Elizondo in New York City, New York, USA; actor (American Gigolo, Young Doctors in Love).
- 1937 - Birth of Marco J de Castro; Dutch Antillian politician.
- 1937 - Daito Kokushi, Zen founder of Daitokuji, dies in Kyoto, Tokyo at age 55.
- 1937 - Lincoln Tunnel (New York City, New York) opens to traffic.
- 1939 - 125 die in train wreck at Magdeburg, Germany; 99 die in second wreck at Friedrichshafen, Germany.
- 1939 - Donald Bradman scores 138 in South Australia's 7-821 versus Queensland.
- 1939 - Finnish counter-offensive at Petsamo.
- 1939 - Ma Rainey "Mother of the Blues", American blues singer/composer, dies at age 53.
- 1940 - Nathanael West [Weinstein], American writer (Cool Million), dies at age 37.
- 1941 - Japan's invasion leader lands on Luzon, Philippines.
- 1941 - UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrives in Washington DC for a wartime conference.
- 1941 - Tito establishes first Proletarian Brigade in Yugoslavia.
- 1943 - Manufacturers get permission to use synthetic rubber for baseball core.
- 1944 - Birth of Barry Jenkins; rocker (Animals - "House of the Rising Sun").
- 1944 - Birth of Steve Carlton; Philadelphia Phillies' pitcher (Cy Young 1972, 1977, 1980, 1982).
- 1944 - American forces in Bastogne, Belgium, are told by a German commanding officer to surrender or be annihilated. US General Anthony McAuliffe replies "NUTS!".
- 1944 - Harry Langdon, US comic/director (Heart Trouble), dies at age 60.
- 1945 - Birth of Diane Sawyer in Glasgow, Kentucky, USA; newscaster (60 Minutes, ABC Prime Time).
- 1945 - Birth of Joris J C Voorhoeve; Dutch Defense minister (1994-, VVD).
- 1945 - Birth of Marianne van Wijnkoop [Bosscher]; Dutch actress (Les Misérables).
- 1945 - Otto Neurath, Austrian/British philosopher, dies at age 63.
- 1945 - Utrecht: Catholic People's party (KVP) established.
- 1946 - Birth of Rick Nielsen in Rockford, Illinois, USA; rock vocalist/guitarist (Cheap Trick).
- 1946 - Cleveland Browns beat New York Yankees 14-9 in AAFC championship game.
- 1947 - Birth of Brian C Daley; American sci-fi author (Exploits of Han Solo, Tron).
- 1947 - Birth of Dilip Doshi; cricket player (India's main slow lefty post-Bedi).
- 1947 - Italian constituent assembly adopts new constitution.
- 1948 - Birth of Chris Old; cricket player (England medium-pacer of 1970s).
- 1948 - Birth of Lynne Thigpen in Joliet, Illinois, USA; actress (Nancy - Love Sidney).
- 1948 - Birth of Noel Edmonds; British TV personality (Foul-ups, Bleeps and Blunders).
- 1948 - Birth of Steve Garvey; first baseman (Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres).
- 1949 - Birth of Manfred Burgsmüller; WLAF kicker (Rhein Fire).
- 1949 - Birth of Michael Osborne; rock guitarist/vocalist (Axe).
- 1949 - Birth of Maurice Gibb in Manchester, England; rocker/twin of Robin (Bee Gees - "Saturday Night Fever").
- 1949 - Birth of Robin Gibb in Manchester, England; rocker/twin of Maurice (The Bee Gees - "Saturday Night Fever").
- 1950 - Two self-propelled trains of Long Island, New York, railroad collide, killing 77.
- 1950 - Birth of Rick Nielsen; guitarist/vocalist/keyboardist (Cheap Trick - "Surrender").
- 1951 - Australia cricket all out 82 versus West Indies at Adelaide.
- 1951 - Birth of Charles de Lint in Netherlands; sci-fi author (Moonhear, Mulengro, Yarrow).
- 1951 - Birth of Gerald Grosvenor; English 6th duke of Westminster/billionaire.
- 1951 - Birth of Jan Stephenson in Sydney, Australia; golfer (LPGA Rookie of Year-1974).
- 1952 - French government of Pinay resigns.
- 1953 - Birth of Bernnadette Stanis in Brooklyn, New York, USA; actress (Thelma - Good Times).
- 1953 - Jack Dunn III, owner of Baltimore Orioles in International League, turns name over to newly relocated Saint Louis Browns.
- 1954 - Birth of Derick Parry; cricket player (West Indies off-spinner early 1980s).
- 1954 - Birth of Jayaseelan Naidoo; South African worker's union leader.
- 1955 - Birth of Lynne Thigpen; actress (Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego?).
- 1955 - Len Braund, cricket player (23 Tests for England 987 runs 47 wickets), dies.
- 1956 - Birth of Cojo in Columbus, Ohio, USA; first gorilla born in captivity.
- 1956 - Last British/French troops leave Egypt.
- 1957 - Birth of Lynne Thigpen in Joliet, Illinois, USA; actress (Nancy - Love Sidney).
- 1957 - Birth of Ricky Ross; British rock vocalist (Deacon Blue - "Raintown").
- 1957 - Birth of Susan Powter; diet guru/author/talk show host (Susan Powter Show).
- 1958 - Second Dutch Beel government forms.
- 1958 - Birth of Lenny Von Dohlen in Augusta, Georgia, USA; actor (Love Kills, Electric Dreams).
- 1958 - Fjodor W Gladkow, Russian author (Cement), dies at age 75.
- 1958 - Lion Feuchtwanger, German/US philosopher (Jüdische Krieg, Der falsche Nero), dies at age 74.
- 1959 - Continental League awards its last franchise to Dallas-Fort Worth.
- 1959 - Gilda Gray, actress (Piccadilly), dies of heart attack at age 60.
- 1959 - New York Rangers' goalie Marcel Paille wears a customized mask.
- 1960 - Birth of Jean-Michel Basquiat; Haiti/US graffiti artist/painter (Gray, SAMO).
- 1960 - Birth of Tyrell Biggs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; super heavyweight boxer (Olympics-gold-1984).
- 1961 - Birth of Catherine Oxenberg in New York City, New York, USA; actress (Amanda - Dynasty).
- 1961 - Birth of Yuri Ivanovich Malinchenko; Russian Lieutenant-Colonel / cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-19).
- 1961 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1962 - 1,000,000th NBA point scored.
- 1962 - Birth of Ralph Nathaniel Fiennes in Suffolk, England; actor (English Patient).
- 1962 - Harris County voters approve all-weather stadium for Houston Colt .45s.
- 1962 - USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya.
- 1963 - Birth of Bryan McMillan; cricket player (brilliant South African all-rounder since 1992).
- 1963 - Oakland Raiders' Tom Flores passes for six touchdowns vs Houston Oilers (52-49).
- 1963 - Official 30-day mourning period for US President John F Kennedy ends.
- 1963 - Greek Line's Lakonia cruise ship catches fire north of Madeira island, killing 131 of 1036 on board.
- 1964 - Birth of Mike Jackson in Houston, Texas, USA; pitcher (Seattle Mariners).
- 1964 - Lockheed SR-71 spy aircraft reaches 3,530 kph (record for a jet).
- 1965 - Al Ritz, actor (Gorilla, Hi Ya Chum), dies at age 62.
- 1965 - Belgian government shuts six coal mines.
- 1965 - Director David Lean's film Dr Zhivago premieres.
- 1965 - Great Britain sets maximum driving speed at 70 MPH.
- 1967 - Birth of Mike Sullivan; NFL center (Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
- 1967 - Birth of Roland Holder; cricket player (West Indian batsman in ODI's 1993-).
- 1967 - Birth of Sean Foster; WLAF wide receiver (Rhein Fire).
- 1967 - Lee Krieger, actor (Clambake, One Way Wahini), dies at age 48.
- 1968 - Birth of Lauralee "Bug" Bell in Chicago, Illinois, USA; actress (Cricket - The Young and the Restless).
- 1969 - Birth of Andrew Scott; Australian baseball infielder (Olympics-1996).
- 1969 - Birth of Marcie Aguilar in Tucson, Arizona, USA; female infielder (Colorado Silver Bullets).
- 1969 - Donald Foster, actor (Herbert Johnson - Hazel), dies at age 80.
- 1969 - Ilse Steppat, actress (Invisible Terror), dies at age 52.
- 1969 - Josef von Sternberg, Austrian director (Shanghai Express), dies at age 75.
- 1969 - Pete Marovich sets NCAA record of hitting 30 of 31 foul shots.
- 1970 - Birth of Brooks Findlay; Canadian Football League linebacker (British Columbia Lions).
- 1970 - SS Commander Franz Stangl of Treblinka is sentenced to life imprisonment.
- 1971 - Godfried Jan Arnold Bomans, Dutch writer (Eric), dies at age 58.
- 1971 - United Nations General Assembly ratifies Kurt Waldheim as Secretary-General.
- 1971 - USSR performs underground nuclear test.
- 1972 - Birth of Andrew Moore; WLAF tackle (Frankfurt Galaxy).
- 1972 - Birth of Anthony Edwards; Australian rower (Olympics-1996).
- 1972 - Birth of Kirk Maltby in Guelph, Ontario, Canada; NHL right wing (Edmonton Oilers).
- 1972 - Birth of Mike Thompson; NFL defensive tackle (Jacksonville Jaguars).
- 1972 - Birth of Vanessa Paradis in France; model (Channel)/actress (White Wedding).
- 1973 - Birth of Annie Pelletier in Montréal, Québec, Canada; 3 metre diver (Olympics-bronze-1996).
- 1973 - Birth of Jamel Williams; safety (Washington Redskins).
- 1973 - Irna Phillips, creator of five TV soap operas, dies at age 72.
- 1974 - Second cease-fire between Irish Republican Army and British.
- 1974 - Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins, becomes sixth NHL player to score 500 goals.
- 1974 - Referenda in Comoros: three islands vote for independence, one stays French.
- 1975 - Birth of Stanislav Neckar in Pisek Czechoslovakia; NHL defenseman (Ottawa Senators, Olympics-gold-1998).
- 1976 - German Democratic Republic banishes singer Nina Hagen.
- 1977 - 36 die as grain elevator at Continental Grain Company plant explodes.
- 1977 - Birth of Joanna Hughes in Victoria, Australia; gymnast (Olympics-1996).
- 1978 - The pivotal Third Plenum of the 11th National Congress of the Communist Party of China is held in Beijing, with Deng Xiaoping reversing Mao-era policies to pursue a program for Chinese economic reform.
- 1978 - Thailand adopts constitution.
- 1979 - Death of Darryl F. Zanuck at age 77, American film producer (20th Century Fox) (born 1902).
- 1980 - Saint Louis Cardinals release outfielder Bobby Bonds.
- 1980 - Dick Kallman, actor (Hank Dearborn - Hank), murdered at age 47.
- 1980 - US President-elect Ronald Reagan appoints Jean Kirkpatrick (UN delegate) and James Watt (Interior).
- 1981 - Argentine General Leopoldo Galtieri sworn in as president.
- 1981 - Belgium's 5th government of Martens forms.
- 1983 - In Guinea, a magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurs. At least 443 people killed, 200 missing, 150 seriously injured and extensive damage in the Gaoual-Koumbia area, Guinea.
- 1983 - Birth of Jennifer Hawkins; Australian television personality, crowned Miss Universe in 2004.
- 1983 - The national lottery of Spain awards US$73 million as first prize, paying to 46 ticket holders with number 53288.
- 1983 - New York Islanders score three shorthanded goals against Washington Capitals.
- 1984 - Four youths board an express train in The Bronx borough of New York City. They attempt to rob Bernhard Goetz, who shoots them. The event starts a national debate about urban crime.
- 1984 - In Malta, Prime Minister Dom Mintoff resigns.
- 1984 - Test Cricket debut of Craig McDermott, versus West Indies at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
- 1985 - 74th Davis Cup: Sweden beats Germany in Munich (3-2).
- 1986 - Birth of Jeffery Wood; actor (Austin Warren - In The House).
- 1986 - India scores 7-676 versus Sri Lanka at Kanpur in Cricket.
- 1986 - British Liberal Party Member of Parliament David Penhaligon, 42, is killed in a car crash near Truro in Cornwall, England.
- 1987 - Alice Terry [Taaffe], actress (Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse), dies.
- 1987 - Mötley Crue's Nikki Sixx overdoses from heroin.
- 1988 - Two robbers wearing police uniforms rob armored truck of US$3 million in New Jersey.
- 1988 - South Africa signs accord granting independence to South-West Africa.
- 1988 - Tucker Smith, singer/dancer (Cool - West Side Story), dies.
- 1988 - Tug hits oil barge, spreads 231,000 gallons on 300 miles of Western Australia and British Columbia coast.
- 1988 - Brazilian union and environmental activist Chico Mendes is assassinated.
- 1989 - Birth of Jordin Sparks; American singer (American Idol TV show winner).
- 1989 - Ion Iliescu takes over as president of Romania, ending Nicolae Ceausescu's communist dictatorship, who flees his palace in a helicopter to escape inevitable execution.
- 1989 - Chad adopts its constitution.
- 1989 - US cold wave:
- -4 degrees F in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma,
- -6 degrees F in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
- -12 degrees F in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
- -18 degrees F in Denver, Colorado,
- -23 degrees F in Kansas City, Missouri,
- -42 degrees F in Scottsbluff, Nebraska,
- -47 degrees F in Hardin, Montana and
- -60 degrees F in Black Hills, South Dakota.
- 1989 - Two tourist coaches collide on the Pacific highway north of Kempsey, Australia, killing 35.
- 1989 - Samuel Beckett, Irish/French writer (Waiting for Godot, Molloy, Nobel Prize 1969), dies at age 83.
- 1990 - Helene Stanley, actress (Carnival Story, Roar of the Crowd), dies.
- 1990 - Iraq announces it will never give up Kuwait.
- 1990 - Israeli ferry capsizes killing 21 US servicemen.
- 1990 - Lech Walesa sworn in as Poland's first popularly elected president.
- 1991 - One month after Freddie Mercury's death, Queen's re-release of "Bohemian Rhapsody" returns to the top of the British singles charts, 16 years after the original version.
- 1992 - Frederick William Franz, a member of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses and fourth President of Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, dies at age 99 (born 1893).
- 1992 - Libyan MIG-23UB attacks Boeing 727 at Souk al-Sabt, 158 die.
- 1992 - Death of Lord Ted Willis, British television dramatist and author (born 1914).
- 1993 - Don DeFore, actor (George Baxter - Hazel), dies of cardiac arrest at age 76.
- 1993 - Interim South Africa constitution approved by parliament in a 237-45 vote.
- 1993 - Birth of Mark Klein; American singer (The Boogie Kings).
- 1994 - Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi resigns.
- 1995 - Butterfly McQueen, actress (Gone With the Wind), dies in a fire at age 84.
- 1995 - David Cone signs $19.5 million three year contract with New York Yankees.
- 1995 - Death of James Meade, English economist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1907).
- 1995 - Death of Bill Cottrell in Los Angeles, California, USA; cameraman at Walt Disney Company on animation films, first recognized for 50 years service, helped plan and build Disneyland, named a Disney Legend in 1994.
- 1996 - Pittsburgh Steelers' Kordell Stewart runs quarterback record 80 yards for touchdown.
- 1996 - Zimbabwe and England draw Bulawayo Test Cricket with England need one to win.
- 1997 - Dawn Steel producer/president (Columbia TriStar), dies of brain tumor at age 51.
- 1997 - Douglas Ranger, surgeon, dies at age 81.
- 1997 - Hugh Edward Conway Seymour, marquis of Hertford, dies at age 67.
- 1997 - Hunter Tylo awarded US$4 million in Melrose Place breach of contract.
- 1997 - Merck baldness pill for men approved by US Food and Drug Administration.
- 1998 - Death of Virginia Graham at age 85 following a heart attack; radio and TV hostess (Weekday radio show, Girl Talk TV show (1963-1969), The Virginia Graham Show (1970-1972), guest on The Tonight Show).
- 2000 - Fox releases the film Cast Away to theaters.
- 2001 - Hamid Karzai is sworn in as head of the interim government in Afghanistan.
- 2001 - A flight from Paris, France to Miami, Florida is diverted to Boston, Massachusetts after passenger Richard Reid attempts to set his shoe, filled with explosives, on fire.
- 2001 - Chan Ho Park signs a five-year, $65 million deal with the Texas Rangers.
- 2002 - In Montenegro, election of new president is held. Under half of the registered voters turn-out, resulting in no election of a new president.
- 2002 - Death of Desmond Hoyte, Prime Minister and President of Guyana (born 1929).
- 2002 - Death of Joe Strummer, British musician and singer (The Clash) (born 1952).
- 2003 - An earthquake shakes up California, killing two people.
- 2003 - Parmalat is first accused of falsifying accounts in the amount of $5 billion, later admitted by founder Calisto Tanzi; observers call it "Europe's Enron".
- 2004 - Universal releases the film Meet the Fockers to theaters.
- 2004 - Armed robbers in Northern Ireland steal over 22 million pounds sterling from the headquarters of the Northern Bank. Unionist politicians and the Police Service of Northern Ireland blame the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and stall the peace process.
- 2005 - An industrial action by bus drivers in Tehran, Iran, leads to the arrest of Mansour Osanlou and several other union activists.
- 2006 - The NASA space shuttle Discovery lands at the Kennedy Space Center, concluding a two-week mission to the International Space Station.
- 2006 - Fox releases the film Night at the Museum to theaters.
- 2007 - Death of Chrysostomos I, Archbishop of Cyprus (born 1927).
- 2007 - Death of Julien Gracq, French writer (born 1910).
- 2007 - Death of Andrew Glyn, English economist (born 1943).
- 2008 - The American Environmental Protection Agency publishes a Clean Water Act General Permit that will allow cruise ships to dump unlimited quantities of untreated "graywater" into the ocean just a mile from U.S. shores.
- 2008 - Death of Lansana Conté, President of Guinea (born 1934).
- 2009 - The US White House appoints former eBay and Microsoft executive Howard Schmidt as its cybersecurity chief.
- 2015 - SpaceX lands a Falcon 9 rocket, the first reusable rocket to successfully enter orbital space and return.
- 2016 - A study finds the VSV-EBOV vaccine against the Ebola virus between 70-100% effective, making it the first proven vaccine against the disease.
- 2017 - The UN Security Council votes 15-0 in favor of additional sanctions on North Korea, including measures to slash the country's petroleum imports by up to 90%.
- 2018 - The United States government enters a second government shutdown, arising over a dispute over funding for the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
- 2018 - A tsunami hits the Sunda Strait, Indonesia, killing at least 430 people and injuring nearly 1,500.
- 2018 - Death of Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi royal and politician (born 1931).
- 2018 - Death of Roberto Suazo Córdova, 29th President of Honduras (born 1927).
- 2020 - Death of Muhammad Mustafa Mero, 62nd Prime Minister of Syria (born 1941).
- 2021 - Annual Christmas lottery "el gordo" in Spain, total US$2.7 billion in prizes.
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You can pick a particular day to view that day's events in history.
Bookmark this URL: http://kpolsson.com/thisday/ and revisit each day.
(this URL will automatically re-direct to the file containing the current day's events)
Or, visit my Timelines of History page.
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