Ken Fussichen's History Of The Day For
December 24th

Home Click on * for the link to the relevant chronology. New Date
640*John IV begins his reign as Catholic Pope.Ref: 5
1046*Pope Clement II [Suitger] begins his reign as Catholic Pope.Ref: 69
1165*The coronation of William the Lyon (of England) by Richard at Scone Abbey.Ref: 16
1294*Cardinal Benedetto Gaetani chosen as Pope Boniface VIII.Ref: 69
1515*Thomas Wolsey appointed English Lord Chancellor.Ref: 5
1565*Compromise of the Nobles closes against inquisition.Ref: 5
1651 John van Riebeeck departs to Cape of Good Hope.Ref: 5
1724*Benjamin Franklin arrives in London.Ref: 5
1784*Methodism was officially organized in the newly independent United States of America, in Baltimore. Francis Asbury was consecrated the first Methodist bishop, a few days later.Ref: 5
1798*Russia & England sign Second anti-French Coalition.Ref: 5
1799*Jakobijns plot against Napoleon uncovered.Ref: 5
1801*The skeleton of a mastodon is unveiled (Charles Willson Peale).Ref: 51
1832*First US Negro hospital founded by whites chartered, Savannah GA.Ref: 5
1851*Fire devastated the Library of Congress in Washington DC, destroying about 35,000 volumes.Ref: 70
1862*(Dakota Conflict) The 38 condemned Dakota are allowed to meet with their families for the last time.Ref: 87
1865*Several veterans of the Confederate Army formed a private social club in Pulaski, TN, called the Ku Klux Klan.Ref: 70
1867*It was Christmas Eve that R.H. Macy’s department store in New York City remained open until midnight to catch last-minute shoppers. The store took in a record $6,000, giving itself a very Merry Christmas.Ref: 4
1871*The Northside Tabernacle in Chicago was dedicated by evangelist Dwight L. Moody. It became the original structure of what is today the Moody Memorial Church.Ref: 5
1874*Pope Pius IX proclaims a jubilee for 1875.Ref: 5
1884*Austria-Hungary admits King Leopold II's Congo Free State.Ref: 5
1894*Scheveningse fishing boats destroyed by storm.Ref: 5
1904*German SW Africa abolishes slavery of young children.Ref: 5
1906*(Shipp) In a unanimous opinion authored by Justice Holmes, the Court announces that it has jurisdiction to try the 26 defendants.Ref: 87
1919*Four men attempt to rob the payroll of the L.Q. White Shoe Company in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. One, later known as the "shotgun bandit", fires at the moving payroll truck. They are unsuccessful and no one is hurt. The would-be bandits escaped.Ref: 87
1920*Govt. of Ireland Act passed partitioning country into 6 counties of N. Eire, and 26 of Southern.Ref: 10
1924 Albania becomes a republic (ex-premier Ahmed Zogoe's coup).Ref: 5
1932*Arturo Alessandri wins presidental election in Chile.Ref: 5
1935*National Council of Negro Women forms.Ref: 5
1937*Dutch government recognizes Italian king Emanuel III as emperor of Abyssinia.Ref: 5
1946*4th French republic established.Ref: 5
1946*US General MacNarney gives 800,000 "minor nazi's" amnesty.Ref: 5
1947 An estimated 20,000 communists, led by guerrilla General Markos Vafthiades proclaim the Free Greek Government in northern Greece. They issue a call to arms to establish the regime throughout the nation.Civil War of PassionRef: 2
1948 Greek government disbands due to state of war, press censorship.Ref: 5
1951*United Kingdom of Libya gains independence from Italy via the UN.Ref: 5
1953*René Coty elected President of France.Ref: 5
1954*Laos gains its independence.Ref: 5
1954 Council for the Children Protection forms in Netherlands.Ref: 5
1956 Ferdinand de Lesseps statue blown up in Port Said Egypt.Ref: 5
1956*African Americans defy a city law in Tallahassee, Florida, and occupy front bus seats.Ref: 2
1960*Dutch bishops question papacy values.Ref: 5
1962*USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR.Ref: 5
1963 Greek & Turks riot in Cyprus.Ref: 5
1963*New York's Idlewild Airport is renamed JFK Airport in honor of the murdered President Kennedy.Ref: 2
1967*China People's Republic performs nuclear test at Lop Nor People's Rebublic of China.Ref: 5
1967 The Greek Junta frees ex-Premier Papandreou.Ref: 2
1968*The crew of the U.S. Navy ship, Pueblo, walks across the Bridge of No Return (between North and South Korea), following their release by North Korea.Ref: 4
1970*9 Jews are convicted in Leningrad for hijacking a plane.Ref: 5
1974 An oil tanker's spill pollutes 1,600 square miles of Japan's Inland Sea.Ref: 2
1976*Takeo Fukuda became prime minister of Japan. He was the political boss until Dec 1978.Ref: 4
1980*Americans remembered the US hostages in Iran by burning candles or shining lights for 417 seconds -- one second for each day of captivity.Ref: 5
1981*Guardian Angels Curtis Sliwa & Lisa Evers marry.Ref: 5
1981*USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR.Ref: 5
1984 Palace coup in Mauritania.Ref: 5
1985*A graying beard, olive-green uniform and Cuban cigar -- once trademarks of Fidel Castro -- were no more. The Cuban presidente announced that he was a non-smoker.Ref: 4
1986*French hostage Aurel Cornea, held in Lebanon for 9 months, released.Ref: 5
1989 Charles Taylor enters Liberia to unseat President Samuel K Doe.Ref: 5
1989*Ousted Panamanian ruler Manuel Noriega, who had succeeded in eluding U.S. forces, took refuge at the Vatican's diplomatic mission in Panama City.Ref: 70
1990*Saddam says Israel will be Iraq's first target.Ref: 5
1991*A day before resigning, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev briefed Russian President Boris Yeltsin on nuclear weapons-firing procedures. Gorbachev also held a farewell meeting with staff members.Ref: 5
1992*President Bush pardoned former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger and five others in the Iran-Contra scandal. (Go to article.)Ref: 70
1994*4 Moslem fundamentalists capture Air France pilot in Algiers.Ref: 5
1996 The streets of Belgrade, Yugoslavia, turned violent as demonstrators traded blows with supporters of President Slobodan Milosevic and then were clubbed by riot police.Ref: 64
1997*First time a Channukah candle is officially lit in Vatican CityRef: 5
1997*Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, the aging revolutionary known as "Carlos the Jackal," was sentenced by a French court to life in prison for the 1975 murders of two French investigators and a Lebanese national.Ref: 70
1998*Most of California's citrus crop is ruined after three straight nights of freezing cold. (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2003)Ref: 83
2002*North Korea ratcheted up its standoff with the US, starting repairs on a long-frozen nuclear reactor and warning that US policy was leading to an "uncontrollable catastrophe" and the "brink of nuclear war". (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2003)Ref: 83
2002*Saddam Hussein said in an address read on television that Iraqis were ready to fight a holy war against the US. (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2003)Ref: 83
2002 Chinese pro-democracy activist Xu Wenli was released from prison in Bejing and flown to the US. (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2003)Ref: 83
1604*Galileo observes a new star (supernova) for the first time. 
1889*Daniel Stover & William Hance of Freeport IL patent bicycle with back pedal brake.Ref: 5
1893*Henry Ford completes his first useful gas motor.Ref: 5
1912*Irving Fisher patents archiving system with index cards.Ref: 5
1936*First radioactive isotope medicine administered, Berkeley CA.Ref: 5
1948 First solar-heated house (first house specifically engineered in Western building construction for solar heat, to be specific)Ref: 5
1966*Luna 13, a Soviet research vehicle soft-lands on the moon.Ref: 2
1968*The "Apollo Eight" astronauts, orbiting the moon, read passages from the Old Testament Book of Genesis during a Christmas Eve television broadcast.Ref: 70
1968*The first pictures of an Earth-rise over the moon are seen as the crew of Apollo 8 orbits the moon.Ref: 2
1979*First Ariane-rocket launched.Ref: 5
2003*British scientists lose contact with the European Space Agency's "Beagle 2" (named after the ship Charles Darwin sailed on) Mars Lander as it attempts to land. Additional attempts to locate the lander will be made via the Mars Express (the mother ship) and the Mars Odessey, a US craft orbiting Mars. (USA Today, p 1A, 12/26/2003)Ref: 13
2003*USA Today reports that two-thirds of the 34 spacecraft sent to Mars since 1960 have ended in failure. (USA Today, p 1A, 12/26/2003)Ref: 13
1476 400 Burgundy soldiers freeze to death during siege of Nancy.Ref: 5
1638 The Ottomans under Murad IV recapture Baghdad from Safavid Persia.Ref: 2
1715 Swedish troops occupy Norway.Ref: 5
1814*A treaty of peace between the United States and Great Britain, terminating the War of 1812, is signed at Ghent, Belgium. The news does not reach the United States until two weeks later (after the decisive American victory at New Orleans).The Battle of New Orleans.Ref: 2
1861*The USS Gem of the Sea destroys the British blockade runner Prince of Wales off the coast at Georgetown, S.C. The Trent Affair.Ref: 2
1862*A Christmas present arrives a day early for the Federal troops at Columbus, Kentucky, in the way of artillery on board the USS New Era.Ref: 2
1864*Battle of Gordonsville VA.Ref: 5
1914*A German 'Taube' monoplane flown by Leutnant Caspar drops the first bomb on British soil (Dover, England)Ref: 49
1914*Over 577,000 Allied soldiers are to spend Christmas as prisoners in Germany.Ref: 2
1917*The Kaiser warns Russia that he will use "iron fist" and "shining sword" if peace is spurned.Ref: 2
1941*First ships of Admiral Nagumo's Pearl Harbor-fleet return to Japan.Ref: 5
1942*First powered flight of V-1 buzz bomb, Peenemünde, Germany.Ref: 5
1942*Red army occupies German airports at Tasjinskaja & Morozowsk.Ref: 5
1943*President Franklin Roosevelt appoints General Dwight D Eisenhower supreme commander of Allied forces as part of Operation Overlord. (XDC, p 4A, 12/24/2000)Ref: 83
1943*Soviets launch offensives on the Ukrainian front.Ref: 36
1964*The U.S. headquarters in Saigon is hit by a bomb killing two officers.Ref: 2
1966*USAF CL-44 military charter crashes near Binh Thai Vietnam kills 129.Ref: 5
1970*Nine GIs are killed and nine are wounded by friendly fire in Vietnam.Ref: 2
1972*Hanoi bars all peace talks with the United States until U.S. air raids over North Vietnam stop.Ref: 2
1979*Soviet forces invade Afghanistan.Ref: 10
1986*Iran offensive against Iraqi islands of Shatt al-Arab.Ref: 5
1998 Ignoring NATO warnings, Serb tanks and troops struck an ethnic Albanian stronghold in Kosovo. (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2003)Ref: 83
1894*Soccer team Achilles '94 forms in Axes.Ref: 5
1924*Notre Dame football coach (1918-1930) Knute Rockne said he opposed elimination of the forward pass since it has helped “to curb the brutality of football.” Knute knew a little something about football. His record for highest winning percentage in Division I-A football (.881) still stands. Oh, they decided not to eliminate the forward pass (just in case you hadn’t noticed).Ref: 4
1940*The Senators trade Ben Chapman to Cleveland for pitcher Joe Krakauskas.Ref: 1
1949*Suffering from alcoholism and epilepsy, Hall of Fame hurler Grover Cleveland Alexander is found unconscious in an alley in Hollywood.Ref: 1
1950*Coach Paul Brown won his fifth straight pro-football championship as Lou Groza kicked a field goal in the final 20 seconds. The Cleveland Browns edged the Los Angeles Rams, 30-28.Ref: 4
1959*The Braves sign 20-year old outfielder Rico Carty.Ref: 1
1961*Houston Oilers beat San Diego Chargers 10-3 in AFL championship game.Ref: 5
1967*While skiing at Lake Tahoe, Boston hurler Jim Lonborg (22-9) tears the ligaments in his left knee. After surgery, the Cy Young Award winner will return at mid-season to post a 6-10 record for the Red Sox.Ref: 1
1969*In a letter to Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, traded Cardinal outfielder Curt Flood states his refusal to report to the Phillies citing he is not a piece of property to be sold. The MLB Players' Association announces support Flood's suit against baseball and will pay legal fees.Ref: 1
1974*Cardinals' Lou Brock is named Sportsman of the Year.Ref: 5
1981*Reggie Jackson picked Christmas Eve to announce that he would join Gene Autry’s California Angels for the 1982 season.Ref: 4
1982*Chaminade, with a student body of only 850 students, beats #1 ranked Virginia 77-72 in a Honolulu holiday basketball classic.Ref: 5
1990*The Expos trade Tim Raines and two minor leaguers to the White Sox for outfielder Ivan Calderon and reliever Barry JonesRef: 1
1995*The Carolina Panthers go 7-9, more than doubling the previous expansion-best mark of three wins. (USA Today, p 3C, 2/02/2004)Ref: 13
2002*In a deal which prompts a Red Sox official to call the Yankees an evil empire, Cuban defector Jose Contreras reaches an agreement New York. The 31-year right-hander, who was considered the top pitcher on Cuba's national team, was declared a free-agent after gaining residency in Nicaragua.Ref: 1
1818*Franz Gruber of Oberndorf, Germany composes the music for Silent Night to words written by Josef Mohr. The traditional song was sung for the first time during Midnight Mass this night.Ref: 4
1860*Joseph Jefferson's "Rip Van Winkle" premieres in New York NY.Ref: 5
1870 Giusseppi Verdi's "Aida" premieres at Cairo Opera, one year after the opening of the Suez Canal, for which it was commissioned.Ref: 5
1871*Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Aida" had its world premiere in Cairo, Egypt, to celebrate the opening of the Suez Canal.Ref: 70
1898 Herman Heijermans' "Ghetto" premieres in Amsterdam.Ref: 5
1900 Herman Heijermans' "Hope of Blessing" premieres in Amsterdam.Ref: 5
1906*Canadian physicist Reginald A Fessenden became the first person to broadcast music over radio, from Brant Rock, MA.Ref: 5
1910*Luisa Tetrazzini sings to 250,000 people at Lotta's Fountain.Ref: 5
1916*Jules Verne's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"opens in NY.Ref: 10
1920*Enrico Caruso gave his last public performance, singing in Jacques Halevy's "La Juive" at the Metropolitan Opera in NY.Ref: 70
1922 BBC sends first British radio play "Truth about Father Christmas".Ref: 5
1922*London Coloseum opens.Ref: 5
1924*Richard Rodgers Theater (46th St Chanin's) opens at 226 W 46th NYC.Ref: 5
1924 First radio transmission of NCRV in Netherlands.Ref: 5
1928*George Abbott Theater (Adelphi, 54 St) opens at 152 W 54th St NYC.Ref: 5
1928 The first broadcast of The Voice of Firestone was heard. The program aired each Monday evening at 8:00. The Voice of Firestone became a hallmark in radio broadcasting. It kept its same night, time (in 1931 the start time changed to 8:30) and sponsor for its entire run. Beginning on September 5, 1949, the program of classical and semiclassical music was also seen on television.Ref: 4
1930 Federico Garc¡a Lorca's "La Zapatera Prodigiosa" premieres in Madrid.Ref: 5
1943 Terence Rattigan's "While the Sun Shines" premieres in London.Ref: 5
1944 The Andrews Sisters starred in the debut of The Andrews Sisters’ Eight-to-the-Bar Ranch on ABC radio. Patty, Maxene and LaVerne ran a fictional dude ranch. George ‘Gabby’ Hayes was a regular guest along with Vic Schoen’s orchestra. The ranch stayed in operation until 1946.Ref: 4
1948*For the first time ever, a midnight Mass was broadcast on television. St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City was the locale.Ref: 4
1951*Gian Carlo Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," the first opera written specifically for television, was first broadcast by NBC TV.Ref: 70
1953*Dragnet, starring Jack Webb as Detective Joe Friday, became the first network program to be sponsored. Dragnet was on NBC-TV, for you who want the facts, just the facts. “Who was the sponsor, you ask?” Fatima cigarettes, that’s who.Ref: 4
1955*The Lennon Sisters debut as featured vocalists on The Lawrence Welk Show on ABC-TV.Ref: 4
1956*"I Love Lucy" Christmas show airs, never put in syndication.Ref: 5
1966*"Joyful Noise" closes at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC after 12 performances.Ref: 5
1970*Walt Disney's "The Aristocats" is released.Ref: 5
1977*The Bee Gees spent Christmas and New Year’s Eve at the top of the music charts. How Deep is Your Love became #1 this day and stayed that way for three weeks.Ref: 4
-3*-BC- Servius Sulpicius Galba 6th Roman emperor (68-69), is born.Ref: 5
1167*John "without a land" king of England (1199-1216), is born.Ref: 68
1564*Abraham C Bloemaert painter/cartoonist/engraver, is born.Ref: 5
1653*Georg Motz composer, is born.Ref: 5
1679*Domenico Natale Sarro composer, is born.Ref: 5
1689*French van Mieris "the Young" Dutch painter/historian, is born.Ref: 5
1714 Rainieri De Calzabigi Italian's literary (1st European Lottery), is born.Ref: 5
1716*Patrice F earl De Nény South Netherlands chairman of Secret Council, is born.Ref: 5
1719*Johann Christoph Altnikol composer, is born.Ref: 5
1726*Johann Ernst Hartmann composer, is born.Ref: 5
1745*(Declaration of Independence) Benjamin Rush, Byberry PA, physician/general (Continental Army, signed Declaration of Independence), is born.Ref: 68
1745*William Paterson, Irish-born American governor of New Jersey, is born.Ref: 70
1754*George Crabbe, Aldeburgh England, poet (Everlasting Mercy), is born.Ref: 5
1761*SelOm III poet/composer/sultan of Turkey (1789-1808), is born.Ref: 5
1773*Joseph Wolfl composer, is born.Ref: 5
1791*A Eugene Scribe, French dramatist (Bertrand et Raton), is born.Ref: 5
1798*Adam B Mickiewicz Poland, national poet (Pan Tadeusz), is born.Ref: 5
1809*Kit (Christopher) Carson frontiersman: subject of adventure novels; fur trapper, guide, American Indian agent and brevet Union general; is born.Ref: 4
1812*Henry Russell composer, is born.Ref: 5
1813*Henry Wellington Greatorex composer, is born.Ref: 5
1818*James Prescott Joule physicist (discovered conservation of energy), is born.Ref: 5
1822*Matthew Arnold, England, poet/critic (Dover Beach), is born.Ref: 5
1822*Charles Hermite French mathematician (E is Transcendent), is born.Ref: 5
1824*Peter Cornelius composer, is born.Ref: 5
1826*Ignacy Krzyzanowski composer, is born.Ref: 5
1829*Benjamin Ipavec composer, is born.Ref: 5
1829*Jose Rogel composer, is born.Ref: 5
1837*Sissi, Emperor of Austria, is born.Ref: 5
1845 King George I Greece is born.Ref: 10
1859*Roman Statkowski composer, is born.Ref: 5
1867*Manuel de Oliveira Lima Brazilian historian/diplomat, is born.Ref: 5
1867*Tevfik Fikret Turkish poet (Servet-i Fnun, Sis), is born.Ref: 5
1868*Emanuel Lasker Germany, world chess champion (1894-21), is born.Ref: 5
1869*Henriette Roland Holst-van der Schalk Dutch poet (Women in Forest), is born.Ref: 5
1870*Rosario Scalero composer, is born.Ref: 5
1871*Henri Stroethoff Dutch actor (A Chique Little Boy), is born.Ref: 5
1879*Stanislav Pylypovych Lyudkevych composer, is born.Ref: 5
1881*Bronislaw Zygmunt Szulc composer, is born.Ref: 5
1881*Charles Wakefield Cadman composer, is born.Ref: 5
1881*Juan Ramón Jiménez Spain, poet (Distant Gardens, Nobel 1956), is born.Ref: 5
1887*Louis Jouvet, Crozon France, actor (Volpone, Topaze, La Marseillaise), is born.Ref: 68
1888*Michael Curtiz, Hungarian-born American film director, is born.Ref: 70
1889*Vladimir Sokoloff Moscow Russia, actor (Road to Morocco), is born.Ref: 5
1893*Carl Brisson Copenhagen Denmark, actor (Murder at the Vanities), is born.Ref: 5
1893*Ruth Chatterton US actress (Madame X, Sarah & Son), is born.Ref: 5
1893*Harry Warren (Salvatore Guaragna) composer: Song Writer’s Hall of Famer: Best Song Oscars: Lullaby of Broadway [1935], You’ll Never Know [1943], On the Atcheson, Topeka and Santa Fe [w/Johnny Mercer-1946]; You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby, That’s Amore; is born.Ref: 4
1894*Georges Guynemer French WWI pilot, is born.Ref: 5
1898*Baby Dodds, American jazz musician, is born.Ref: 70
1898 Michael Curtiz is born.Ref: 10
1904*Daniel K Womack singer/guitarist, is born.Ref: 5
1904*Herbert D Riley US vice-admiral (WWII, Guadalcanal, Okinawa), is born.Ref: 5
1905*Industrialist Howard Hughes is born.Ref: 4
1905*Howard Hughes industrialist: Hughes Aircraft; pilot [the ‘Spruce Goose’]; Hollywood producer: Jean Harlow’s career; The Front Page, Scarface, The Outlaw; eccentric recluse: long fingernails; is born.Ref: 4
1905*Anna "Ans" van Dike ("the Young") Jewish nazi collaborator, is born.Ref: 5
1906*Franz Waxman Knigshoette, Germany, composer (Day at the Races), is born.Ref: 5
1906 John Walker museum director, is born.Ref: 5
1907*I[sidore] F[einstein] Stone US journalist (IF Stone's Weekly, Columbia Award 1971), is born.Ref: 5
1909*Adam Popovich composer, is born.Ref: 5
1909 Adam Rapacki Polish minister of Foreign Affairs (1956-68), is born.Ref: 5
1910*Mitchell Ayres Milwaukee WI, orchestra leader (Hollywood Palace), is born.Ref: 5
1910*Betty Ann Davies London England, actress (Tough Guy), is born.Ref: 5
1910*Fritz [Reuter] Leiber Jr US, sci-fi author (Bazaar of the Bizarre), is born.Ref: 5
1911*Eric Briault educationalist, is born.Ref: 5
1911*Malcolm MacEwen writer, is born.Ref: 5
1913*Karl Michael Komma composer, is born.Ref: 5
1914*Dorothy Hyson actress (Ghoul, Spare a Copper, Sing as We Go), is born.Ref: 5
1914*Guus Verstraete Sr [August de Graef] Dutch actor/director (Black Magic), is born.Ref: 5
1914*Ralph Marterie ‘Caruso of the trumpet’: musician, bandleader: Pretend, Caravan, Skokiaan; is born.Ref: 4
1920*Dave Bartholomew Louisiana, jazz artist/songwriter (Blueberry Hill), is born.Ref: 5
1921*Bill Dudley NFL halfback (Pittsburgh, Detroit, Washington), is born.Ref: 5
1921*Gerard Thomas Victory composer, is born.Ref: 5
1922*Ava (Lavinia) Gardner actress: The Barefoot Contessa, Earthquake, The Long Hot Summer, The Night of the Iguana; once married to Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw, Frank Sinatra; is born in Grabtown NC.Ref: 4
1923*Wilton S Mkwayi South African ANC leader, is born.Ref: 5
1924*[Irving] Lee Dorsey New Orleans LA, vocalist (Working in the Coal Mine), is born.Ref: 5
1924*Willem Drees economist/Dutch politician (DS'70), is born.Ref: 5
1924*Carol Haney dancer: member of Jack Cole dance company, worked with Bob Fosse; in film: Pajama Game; is born.Ref: 4
1927*Mary Higgins Clark Bronx NY, author (A Cry in the Night, Stillwatch), is born.Ref: 5
1927*Teresa Stich-Randall US soprano (Vienna State Opera), is born.Ref: 5
1929*Noel Da Costa composer, is born.Ref: 5
1930*Robert Joffrey [Abdullah Jaffa Anver Bey Khan] US, choreographer (Joffrey Ballet), is born.Ref: 5
1931*Jill Bennett Penang Malay, actress (Lady Jane, Concrete Jungle), is born.Ref: 5
1931*Mauricio Kagel Argentina/German composer, is born.Ref: 5
1931*Ray Bryant pianist, composer: Slow Freight, Little Susie, Cubano Chant, The Madison Time, Sack of Woe, After Hours, is born.Ref: 4
1938*Ralp Inbar Dutch TV host (Banana Split), is born.Ref: 5
1940*Paul Tagliabue NFL commissioner (1989- ), is born.Ref: 5
1940*Anthony Fauci US health official, is born.Ref: 5
1940*Jorma Kaukonen rock guitarist/vocalist (Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna), is born.Ref: 5
1943*Christiane Schmidtmer Heidelberg Germany, actress (Ship of Fools), is born.Ref: 5
1943*Tatton Sykes English baron/large landowner, is born.Ref: 5
1944*Erhard Keller German Federal Republic, 500 meter speed skater (Olympics-gold-1968, 72), is born.Ref: 5
1944*Mike Curb music executive: producer: Oscar-winner: You Light Up My Life [1977]; Curb Records; The Mike Curb Congregation: United We Stand, Sweet Gingerbread Man, is born.Ref: 4
1945*Lemmy [Ian Kilminster] rocker (Hawkwind, Motorhead-Built for Speed), is born.Ref: 5
1945*Cas Banaszek football: San Francisco 49ers OT, is born.Ref: 4
1945*Nicholas Meyer playwright, director: Star Trek 6: The Undiscovered Country, Company Business, Time After Time; playwright: Sommersby, Start Trek 4: The Voyage Home, The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, Invasion of the Bee Girls; director: Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, The Deceivers, Volunteers, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, The Day After, is born.Ref: 4
1946*Sharon Farrell Sioux City IA, (Lori-Hawaii 5-0, Young & Restless), is born.Ref: 5
1946*John Akkerman Dutch guitarist/composer (Focus-Can't Stand Noise), is born.Ref: 5
1946*Judy Tyler Los Angeles CA, playmate (Jan 1966), is born.Ref: 5
1946*‘Mean’ Joe Green Pro Football Hall of Famer: Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle: Super Bowls IX, X, XIII, XIV; Miami Dolphins defensive coach, is born.Ref: 4
1949*Cameron Seward LPGA golfer, is born.Ref: 5
1950*Libbi Larsen composer, is born.Ref: 5
1950*Peter te Bos Dutch singer (Claw Boys Claw), is born.Ref: 5
1951*Johnny Contardo rocker (Sha Na Na-Shannon), is born.Ref: 5
1955*Clarence Gilyard Jr., actor: Walker, Texas Ranger, CHiPs, Top Gun, The Karate Kid, Part II, Die Hard, Big One: The Great Los Angeles Earthquake, Left Behind: The Movie, is born in Moses Lake WA.Ref: 4
1956*Stephanie Hodge comedian/actress (I Madman, Happily Ever After), is born.Ref: 5
1957*Ian Burden keyboards: group: Human League: Don’t You Want Me, [Keep Feeling] Fascination, Mirror Man, The Lebanon, Life on Your Own, Louise, is born in Sheffield England.Ref: 4
1962*Michael Ray rocker, is born.Ref: 5
1963*Mary Ramsey singer (10,000 Maniacs), is born.Ref: 5
1963*Timo Jutila Tampere Finland, hockey defenseman (Team Finland), is born.Ref: 5
1964*Elbert Shelley NFL cornerback (Atlanta Falcons), is born.Ref: 5
1964*Gary Muller South Africa, tennis star, is born.Ref: 5
1964*Marcel van der Net Dutch soccer player (FC Utrecht), is born.Ref: 5
1964*Mark Valley Odgensvurg NY, actor (Days of Our Lives), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Erika von Heiland Angeles City Philippines, US badminton player (Olympics-92,96), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Michael Haynes NFL wide receiver (New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Nancy Reno Elmhurst IL, WPVA volleyballer (Olympics-96), is born.Ref: 5
1965*Winston Moss NFL linebacker (Seattle Seahawks), is born.Ref: 5
1966*Diedrich Bader, actor: The Beverly Hillbillies [1993], Hercules, Hollywood Squares, Buzz Lightyear of Star Command, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, is born in Washington DC.Ref: 4
1969*Kenny "Damn" Kelly Paterson NJ, rapper (Riff-Judy had a Boyfriend), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Filmel Johnson NFL defensive back (Buffalo Bills), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Marian Smerciak Martin Czechoslovakia, hockey defenseman (Team Slovakia 1998), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Michael Batiste NFL/WLAF defensive tackle (Cowboys, Frankfurt Galaxy), is born.Ref: 5
1970*Romeo Wouden Dutch soccer player (Dordrecht '90, Heerenveen), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Ricky Martin Puerto Rico, singer (Menudo)/actor (General Hospital), is born.Ref: 5
1971*Tamir Bloom New York NY, fencer-epee (Olympics-96), is born.Ref: 5
1973*Eddie Pope Greensboro NC, soccer defender (Olympics-gold-96), is born.Ref: 5
1975*Natalie Ward Australian softball shortstop/2nd baseman (Olympics-bronze-96), is born.Ref: 5
1985*Gregory Scott director, is born.Ref: 5
1069*Godfried II with the Beard, duke of Neder-Lutherans, dies.Ref: 5
1380*John von Neumarkt German bishop/Chancellor Karel IV, dies.Ref: 5
1453*John Dunstable English composer, dies.Ref: 5
1524*Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama -- who had discovered a sea route around Africa to India -- died in Cochin, India at about 55.Ref: 68
1541*Andreas R Bodenstein von Carlstadt radical Lutheran, dies at about 61.Ref: 5
1548*Maximilian of Egmond Dutch count/stadholder of Frisia, dies.Ref: 5
1593*Storm hits Texel: 40 ships hit, 500 killed.Ref: 5
1660*Mary I Henriette Stuart queen of England, dies at 29.Ref: 5
1707*Noel Coypel French painter, dies at 78.Ref: 5
1812*Joel Barlow, aged 58, American poet and lawyer, dies from exposure near Vilna, Poland, during Napoleon's retreat from Moscow. Barlow was on a diplomatic mission to the emperor for President Madison.Ref: 2
1823*Philipp Christoph Kayser composer, dies at 68.Ref: 5
1853*James Gowdy, the first merchant in Xenia Ohio (ca Fall 1805), dies.Ref: 54
1862*Joseph Funk composer, dies at 84.Ref: 5
1863*William Makepeace Thackeray author: Vanity Fair, Pendennis; dies at age 52.Ref: 4
1869*Edwin M[cMasters] Stanton US Secretary of War (1861-65) under President Lincoln, dies at 55.Ref: 5
1873*Johns Hopkins, American merchant; endowed Johns Hopkins University and hospital, dies at age 78.Ref: 70
1875*Philip Henry Stanhope, English politician/historian, dies at age 70.Ref: 70
1885*Louis-Prosper Gachard Belgian historian, dies at 85.Ref: 5
1893*Actress Norma Talmadge dies.Ref: 4
1898*Eugeniusz Pankiewicz composer, dies at 41.Ref: 5
1901*Clarence King mining engineer (geologist), dies.Ref: 17
1904*Juliaan Dillens Flemish sculptor, dies at 55.Ref: 5
1908*Francois-Auguste Gevaert Belgian musicologist/composer, dies at 80.Ref: 5
1909 Nicolaas G Pierson director Suriname/Dutch Bank, dies at 80.Ref: 5
1914*John Muir, the Scottish-born naturalist considered the father of the environmental movement, dies.Ref: 70
1924*School in Babb's Switch OK catches fire, 36 die.Ref: 5
1930 Eduard David German minister (constitution of Weimar), dies at 67.Ref: 5
1930*Oskar Nedbal composer, dies at 56.Ref: 5
1932*Eyvind Alnaes composer, dies at 60.Ref: 5
1933*Paris express train derails & kills 160, injures 300 (France).Ref: 5
1935*Alban Maria Johannes Berg, composer, dies at 50.Ref: 5
1942*Friedrich Klose composer, dies at 80.Ref: 5
1942*Konstantin Dmitrieyevich Balmont Russian poet, dies at 75.Ref: 5
1942*Jean Darlan French admiral, murdered by gaullists.Ref: 5
1944*Joseph Gustav Mraczek composer, dies at 66.Ref: 5
1945*Francisco Pujol composer, dies at 67.Ref: 5
1952*Henry A "Hans" Kramers Dutch theoretical physicist, dies at 58.Ref: 5
1953*2 fast express trains crash head-on, killing 103 (Czechoslovakia).Ref: 5
1953*Wellington-Auckland (New Zealand) express train swept away in flood kills 166.Ref: 5
1955*Nana Bryant actress (Mrs Nestor-Our Miss Brooks), dies at 67.Ref: 5
1957*Norma Talmadge, US actress (sign on bay), dies at age 60.Ref: 68
1961*Guy de Lioncourt composer, dies at 76.Ref: 5
1966*Gaspar Cassado Moreu composer, dies at 69.Ref: 5
1971*Peruvian Airlines Electra crashes at headwaters of Amazon, killing all except Juliane Margaret Koepcke found 10 days later.Ref: 5
1972*Charles Atlas (Angelo Siciliano) bodybuilder: 97-lb. weakling who had sand kicked in his face advertisement; dies at age 79.Ref: 4
1972*Ernst Kreuder writer, dies at 69.Ref: 5
1973*Ferryboat capsized off coast of Ecuador, drowning 200.Ref: 5
1974*Tilly Losch actress (Duel in the Sun, Good Earth), dies at 70.Ref: 5
1975*Bernard Herrmann US movie composer, dies at 64.Ref: 5
1975*Otto AP Furst von Bismarck-Schonhausen German diplomat, dies at 78.Ref: 5
1976*Victor Stanitsin actor (War & Peace, Jubilee), dies at 79.Ref: 5
1977*Harriët Freezer Dutch journalist/author, dies at 66.Ref: 5
1979*Dirk Uipko Stikker Dutch CEO (Heineken)/Secretary-General NATO, dies at 82.Ref: 5
1979*Rudi [Rudolf] Dutschke German student leader, dies at 39.Ref: 5
1980*Alec Lafayette Chew Wilder composer, dies at 73.Ref: 5
1980*Karl Donitz German great admiral/Fuehrer (1945), dies at 89.Ref: 5
1982*Louis Aragon French poet (Pour un Realisme Socialiste), dies at 85.Ref: 5
1982*(Green River Killer) (date given as "on or about") Colleen Renee Brockman, 15, is last seen. She is the 14th of 48 women Gary Ridgway admits killing. (USA Today, p 3A, 11/06/2003)Ref: 13
1984*Peter (Sidney Ernest Aylen) Lawford actor: Rosebud, Ocean’s 11, Mrs. Miniver, The Longest Day, Exodus, The Oscar, Harlow; member: Rat Pack; dies.Ref: 4
1984*Ian Hendry actor (Assassin, Get Carter, Repulsion), dies at 53.Ref: 5
1986*Gardner F[rancis] Fox author (Kothar-Barbarian Swordsman), dies at 75.Ref: 5
1987*John M "Joop" de Uyl Dutch social-democratic premier (1973-77), dies at 68.Ref: 5
1991*Walter Hudson 1,025 lb man, dies at 46.Ref: 5
1992 Abdulkadir Widjojoatmodjo Java diplomat, dies.Ref: 5
1992*Pierre Culliford [Peyo] Belgian cartoonist (Smurfs), dies at 64.Ref: 5
1993*Alexander Mackendrick British/US director (Lady Killers), dies at 81.Ref: 5
1993*Yen Chia-kan PM/President of Taiwan (1963-72, 75-78), dies.Ref: 5
1993*Dr. Norman Vincent Peale clergyman: radio ministry; author and syndicated newspaper column: The Power of Positive Thinking; dies at age 95.Ref: 4
1994*John (James) Osborne Academy Award-winning playwright: Tom Jones [1963]; The Entertainer, Look Back in Anger; Tony Award-winner: Luther [1964], dies of cardiac arrest at 65.Ref: 4
1994*Jimmy Buddy Lee Land Ace singer, dies at 57.Ref: 5
1994*John Eastburn Boswell medievalist, dies at 47.Ref: 5
1994*Julie Haydon [Donella Donaldson] US actress (Scoundrel), dies at 84.Ref: 5
1994*Louise H "Lous" Hensen actress (Uncle Wanja, Charlotte), dies at 74.Ref: 5
1994*Nathan I. Daniel inventor (Guitars), dies at 82.Ref: 5
1994*Rossano Brazzi Italian resistance fight/actor (Final Justice), dies at 78. (TWA, 1996)Ref: 95
1994*John Keith Wright English Assistant Secretary of State (1971-84), dies at 66.Ref: 5
1995*A fire breaks out at the Philadelphia Zoo, killing 23 rare gorillas, orangutans, gibbons and lemurs. (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2000)Ref: 83
1995*Geoffrey Pinnington journalist, dies at 76.Ref: 5
1995*Harry McLevy trade unionist, dies at 59.Ref: 5
1996*Edward Leadbitter politician, dies at 77.Ref: 5
1996*Nguyen Huu Tho President of Vietnam (1980-81), dies.Ref: 5
1996*Peter Dormer arts writer, dies at 47.Ref: 5
1997*Alan Fluck musical educationalist, dies at 69.Ref: 5
1997*Anthea Joseph music producer, dies at 57.Ref: 5
1997*James Komack producer (Courtship of Eddie's Father), dies at 67.Ref: 5
1997*Toshiro Mifune, actor: Shadow of the Wolf, Shogun, Winter Kills, 1941, Midway, Paper Tiger, Red Sun, The Bad Sleep Well, Throne of Blood, Samurai series, Rashomon, Drunken Angel; is born in Tsing-tao China, dies at age 77.Ref: 4
1999*Five hijackers seize an Indian Airlines jet with 189 people aboad, forcing the aircraft on a journey across south Asia and into the Middle East. (The eight-day ordeal results in the death of one passenger and India's release of three jailed pro-Kashmir militants in exchange for the rest of the hostages.) (XDG, p 4A, 12/24/2000)Ref: 83
2000*Bombs exploded outside churches in nine Indonesian cities and towns, killing at least 19 people.Ref: 64
2000*Nick Massi (Macioci) musician: bass, singer: group: The Four Seasons: dies.Ref: 4
2001*Harvey Martin football: Dallas Cowboys DE: Super Bowls X, XII, XIII; dies.Ref: 4

Last Update: October 27th, 2005
© 2000-2005   Kenneth Fussichen