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Today December 14th 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1287 – St. Lucia s flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses, killing over 50,000 people.
1542 – Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen Mary I of Scotland.
1702 (according to the old calendar; January 30, 1703 by the new calendar) – The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Oishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master.
1751 – The Theresian Military Academy is founded as the first Military Academy in the world.
1782 – The Montgolfier brothers first balloon lifts on its first test flight.
1819 – Alabama becomes the 22nd U.S. state.
1825 – Advocates of Liberalism in Russia rise up against Tsar Nicholas I and are put down in the Decembrist Revolt in St. Petersburg.
1836 – The Toledo War unofficially ends.
1896 – The Glasgow Underground Railway is opened by the Glasgow District Subway Company.
1900 – Quantum Mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.
1902 – The Commercial Pacific Cable Company lays the first Pacific telegraph cable, from Ocean Beach, San Francisco to Honolulu, Hawaii.
1903 – The Wright Brothers make their first attempt to fly with the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
1907 – The schooner Thomas W. Lawson runs aground and founders near the Hellweather s Reef within the Scilly Isles in a gale. The pilot and 15 seamen die.
1911 – Roald Amundsen s team, comprising himself, Olav Bjaaland, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, and Oscar Wisting, becomes the first to reach the South Pole.
1914 – Lisandro de la Torre and others found the Democratic Progressist Party (Partido Demócrata Progresista, PDP) at the Hotel Savoy, Buenos Aires.
1918 – Friedrich Karl von Hessen, a German prince elected by the Parliament of Finland to become King Väinö I, renounces the Finnish throne.
1939 – Winter War: The Soviet Union is expelled from the League of Nations.
1941 – World War II: Japan signs treaty of alliance with Thailand.
1946 – The UN General Assembly votes to establish its headquarters in New York City.
1947 – The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is founded in Daytona Beach, Florida.
1955 – Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Portugal, Romania and Spain join the United Nations.
1958 – The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first expedition to reach The Pole of Relative Inaccessibility in the Antarctic.
1962 – NASA s Mariner 2 becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus.
1964 – American Civil Rights Movement: Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States – The United States Supreme Court rules that the U.S. Congress can use its Commerce Clause power to fight discrimination.
1972 – Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the moon, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final Extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of Apollo 17. This was the last manned mission to the moon of the 20th century.
1981 – Arab-Israeli conflict: Israel s Knesset passes The Golan Heights Law, extending Israeli law to the area of the Golan Heights.
1995 – Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
2003 – President of Pakistan Pervez Musharaf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.
2003 – President George W. Bush announces the capture of Saddam Hussein.
2004 – The Millau viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, near Millau, France is officially opened.
2008 – President George W. Bush made his fourth and final (planned) trip to Iraq as president and almost got struck by two shoes thrown at him by Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi during a farewell conference in Baghdad.
Births
1009 – Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (d. 1045)
1503 – Nostradamus, French astrologer (d. 1566)
1546 – Tycho Brahe, Danish astronomer and alchemist (d. 1601)
1625 – Barthélemy d Herbelot de Molainville, French orientalist (d. 1695)
1631 – Anne Conway, Viscountess Conway, English philosopher (d. 1679)
1640 – (baptism date) – Aphra Behn, English playwright and novelist (d. 1689)
1678 – Daniel Neal, English historian (d. 1743)
1720 – Justus Möser, German statesman (d. 1794)
1775 – Philander Chase, American founder of Kenyon College (d. 1852)
1775 – Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, British admiral (d. 1860)
1784 – Princess Maria Antonia of Naples and Sicily, Princess of Asturias (d. 1806)
1787 – Maria Ludovika of Austria-Este, Empress of Austria and queen of Hungary and Bohemia (d. 1816)
1791 – Charles Wolfe, Irish poet (d. 1823)
1794 – Erastus Corning, American businessman and politician (d. 1872)
1824 – Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, French painter (d. 1898)
1866 – Roger Fry, English artist and art critic (d. 1934)
1870 – Karl Renner, President of Austria (d. 1950)
1881 – Katherine MacDonald, American actress and film producer (d. 1956)
1884 – Jane Cowl, American actress and playwright (d. 1950)
1895 – Paul Eluard, French poet (d. 1952)
1895 – King George VI of the United Kingdom (d. 1952)
1896 – Jimmy Doolittle, American General (d. 1993)
1897 – Margaret Chase Smith, American politician (d. 1995)
1897 – Kurt Schuschnigg, Austrian politician (d. 1977)
1902 – Frances Bavier, American actress (d. 1989)
1908 – Morey Amsterdam, American comedian and actor (d. 1996)
1908 – Claude Davey, Welsh rugby union footballer (d. 2001)
1908 – Mária Szepes, Hungarian authoress (d. 2007)
1909 – Edward Tatum, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (d. 1975)
1911 – Spike Jones, American comedian and musician (d. 1965)
1911 – Hans von Ohain, German/American aerospace engineer (d. 1998)
1913 – Dan Dailey, American actor (d. 1978)
1914 – Karl Carstens, President of Germany (d. 1992)
1914 – Attila Petschauer, Hungarian fencer (d. 1943)
1914 – Rosalyn Tureck, American pianist and harpsichordist (d. 2003)
1916 – Shirley Jackson, American writer (d. 1965)
1917 – C.-H. Hermansson, Swedish communist leader
1917 – June Taylor, American choreographer (d. 2004)
1917 – Elyse Knox, American actress
1918 – James T. Aubrey, American television executive (d. 1994)
1918 – B.K.S. Iyengar, Indian yoga advocate
1920 – Clark Terry, American trumpeter
1922 – Nikolay Basov, Soviet physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2001)
1922 – Don Hewitt, American creator of 60 Minutes
1923 – Gerard Reve, Dutch writer (d. 2006)
1924 – Raj Kapoor, Indian actor (d. 1988)
1925 – Sam Jones, American baseball player (d. 1971)
1927 – Richard Cassilly, American tenor (d. 1998)
1931 – Jon Elia, Pakistani scholar, poet and philosopher (d. 2002)
1932 – Abbe Lane, American singer and actress
1932 – Charlie Rich, American musician (d. 1995)
1935 – Lewis Arquette, American film actor, writer and producer (d. 2001)
1935 – Lee Remick, American actress (d. 1991)
1938 – Leonardo Boff, Brazilian theologian
1939 – Ernie Davis, American football player (d. 1963)
1940 – Lex Gold, Scottish football administrator
1941 – Karan Armstrong, American soprano
1941 – Ellen Willis, American journalist (d. 2006)
1942 – Zoe Laskari, Greek actress
1943 – R. Emmett Tyrrell, American magazine publisher
1946 – Jane Birkin, English-born French actress and singer
1946 – Patty Duke, American actress
1946 – Ruth Fuchs, East German athlete
1946 – Michael Ovitz, American film producer
1946 – Stan Smith, American tennis player
1946 – Joyce Vincent Wilson, American singer (Tony Orlando and Dawn)
1947 – Christopher Parkening, American guitarist
1947 – Linda Sutton, English artist
1948 – Lester Bangs, American music journalist (d. 1982)
1948 – Kim Beazley, Australian politician
1948 – Dee Wallace-Stone, American actress
1949 – Bill Buckner, American baseball player
1949 – Cliff Williams, English bassist (AC/DC)
1951 – Jan Timman, Dutch chess grandmaster
1952 – Germain Houde, French Canadian actor
1953 – Vijay Amritraj, Indian tennis player
1953 – René Eespere, Soviet-born Estonian composer
1953 – Vangelis Meimarakis, Greek lawyer and politician
1953 – Mikael Odenberg, Swedish politician
1954 – James Horan, American actor
1954 – Alan Kulwicki, American NASCAR driver (d. 1993)
1954 – Steven MacLean, Canadian astronaut
1956 – Hanni Wenzel, Liechtenstein skier
1957 – Gary Ferris, American author
1958 – Mike Scott, Scottish singer-songwriter (The Waterboys)
1958 – Spider Stacy, English musician (The Pogues)
1959 – Jorge Vaca, Mexican boxer
1960 – Bob Paris, American bodybuilder and gay rights advocate
1960 – Chris Waddle, English footballer
1960 – Don Franklin, American actor
1962 – Ginger Lynn (Ginger Lynn Allen), American adult film actress
1963 – Greg Abbott, English former football player
1963 – Cynthia Gibb, American actress
1965 – Craig Biggio, American baseball player
1965 – Ken Hill, American baseball player
1966 – Fabrizio Giovanardi, Italian racecar driver
1966 – Bill Ranford, Canadian ice hockey player
1966 – Tim Skold, Swedish/American musician
1967 – Ewa Bialolecka, Polish writer
1969 – Scott Hatteberg, American baseball player
1970 – Nadine Garner, Australian actress
1970 – Anna Maria Jopek, Polish singer
1970 – Beth Orton, English singer-songwriter
1971 – Natascha McElhone, English actress
1971 – Tia Texada, American actress and singer
1971 – Michaela Watkins, American comic actress (Saturday Night Live)
1972 – Eric Anderson, American musical theatre actor
1972 – Marcus Jensen, American baseball player
1973 – Tomasz Radzinski, Polish-born Canadian soccer player
1973 – Thuy Trang, American actress (d. 2001)
1974 – Billy Koch, American baseball player
1975 – Justin Furstenfeld, American rock singer
1976 – Leland Chapman, American bounty hunter
1976 – André Couto, Portuguese racing driver
1976 – Santiago Ezquerro, Spanish footballer
1977 – KaDee Strickland, American actress
1978 – Dean Brogan, Australian rules footballer
1978 – Kim St-Pierre, Canadian ice hockey player
1978 – Radu Sârbu, Moldovan singer (O-Zone)
1978 – Patty Schnyder, Swiss tennis player
1979 – Sophie Monk, Australian actress, singer, and model
1979 – Michael Owen, English footballer
1980 – Frankie J, American singer
1980 – Tata Young, Thai-American singer
1980 – Didier Zokora, Ivorian footballer
1981 – Amber Chia, Malaysian model and actress
1981 – Emilie Heymans, Canadian diver
1981 – Johnny Jeter, American professional wrestler
1981 – Shaun Marcum, American baseball player
1981 – Liam Lawrence, English footballer
1982 – Josh Fields, American baseball player
1982 – Steve Sidwell, English footballer
1982 – Anthony Way, English singer and actor
1984 – Chris Brunt, Northern Irish footballer
1984 – Edward Rainsford, Zimbabwean cricketer
1985 – Jakub Blaszczykowski, Polish footballer
1985 – Paul Rabil, professional lacrosse player
1985 – Julio Pimentel, Dominican baseball player
1985 – Tom Smith, Welsh rugby union footballer
1985 – Nonami Takizawa, Japanese actress
1985 – Ren Yagami, Japanese actor and singer
1988 – Nicolas Batum, French basketball player
1988 – Vanessa Anne Hudgens, American singer and actress
1988 – Hayato Sakamoto, Japanese baseball player
1989 – Pedro Silva, Brazilian footballer
1992 – Tori Kelly, American singer
1995 – Princess Olimpia Preslavska of Bulgaria
Deaths
1460 – Guarino da Verona (b. 1370)
1476 – Vlad III the Impaler (b. 1431)
1510 – Friedrich of Saxony (b. 1473)
1542 – King James V of Scotland (b. 1512)
1553 – Hanibal Lucic, Croatian writer (b. 1485)
1591 – Saint John of the Cross, Spanish friar and poet (b. 1542)
1624 – Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, English statesman (b. 1536)
1651 – Pierre Dupuy, French scholar (b. 1582)
1713 – Thomas Rymer, English historian (b. 1641)
1715 – Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1636)
1735 – Thomas Tanner, English bishop and antiquarian (b. 1674)
1741 – Charles Rollin, French historian (b. 1661)
1788 – Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (b. 1714)
1788 – King Charles III of Spain (b. 1716)
1799 – George Washington, first President of the United States (b. 1732)
1838 – Jean-Olivier Chénier, French Canadian physician and Patriote (b. 1806)
1860 – George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1784)
1861 – Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, consort of Queen Victoria (b. 1819)
1865 – Johan Georg Forchhammer, Danish geologist (b. 1794)
1873 – Louis Agassiz, Swiss-born American zoologist and geologist (b. 1807)
1902 – Julia Grant, wife of President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant (b. 1826)
1912 – Belgrave Edward Sutton Ninnis, British Army lieutenant (b. 1887)
1920 – George Gipp, American football player (b. 1895)
1927 – Yulian Vasilievich Sokhotski, Russian mathematician (b. 1842)
1935 – Stanley G. Weinbaum, American science-fiction author (b. 1902)
1947 – Stanley Baldwin, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1867)
1947 – Edward Higgins, General of The Salvation Army (b. 1864)
1956 – Juho Kusti Paasikivi, president of Finland (b. 1870)
1963 – Dinah Washington, American singer (b. 1924)
1964 – William Bendix, American actor (b. 1906)
1966 – Shailendra, Indian lyricist (b. 1923)
1970 – Franz Schlegelberger, German Nazi politician (b. 1876)
1971 – Dick Tiger, Nigerian-born boxer (b. 1929)
1974 – Walter Lippman, American writer, journalist, and political commentator (b. 1889)
1975 – Arthur Treacher, English actor (b. 1894)
1978 – Salvador de Madariaga, Spanish diplomat, writer, historian and pacifist (b. 1886)
1984 – Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish writer and Nobel laureate (b. 1898)
1985 – Catherine Doherty, social justice activist (b. 1896)
1985 – Roger Maris, American baseball player (b. 1934)
1989 – Jock Mahoney, American actor and stuntman (b. 1919)
1989 – Andrei D. Sakharov, Russian physicist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1921)
1990 – Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Swiss writer (b. 1921)
1993 – Jeff Alm, American football player (b. 1968)
1993 – Myrna Loy, American actress (b. 1905)
1994 – Orval Faubus, Governor of Arkansas (b. 1910)
1996 – Gaston Miron, French Canadian poet and editor (b. 1928)
1997 – Stubby Kaye, American actor (b. 1918)
1997 – Kurt Winter, Canadian musician (The Guess Who) (b. 1946)
1998 – Norman Fell, American actor (b. 1924)
1998 – Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr., American civil rights activist and author (b. 1928)
1998 – Annette Strauss, American philanthropist (b. 1924)
2001 – W. G. Sebald, German writer (b. 1944)
2003 – Jeanne Crain, American actress (b. 1925)
2003 – Blas Ople, foreign minister of the Philippines (b. 1927)
2004 – Rod Kanehl, American baseball player (b. 1934)
2004 – Fernando Poe, Jr., Filipino actor and presidential candidate (b. 1939)
2005 – Trevanian, American author (b. 1931)
2006 – Anton Balasingham, chief political strategist of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (b. 1938)
2006 – Ahmet Ertegün, co-founder of Atlantic Records (b. 1923)
2006 – Mike Evans, American actor (b. 1949)
Holidays and observances
Monkey Day
Alabama Day
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