Historical Events
- Dec 1 55th Iron Bowl: Alabama beats Auburn 16-7 in Birmingham
- Dec 1 56th Heisman Trophy Award: Ty Detmer, Brigham Young (QB)
Latest Wonder of the World
Dec 1 British and French workers meet in the middle of the Channel Tunnel under the English Channel
Event of Interest
Dec 1 Dictator of Chad Hissène Habré flees to Cameroon
- Dec 1 Iraq accepts Bush's offer for talks
- Dec 1 Lithuania, Estonia & Latvia hold their 1st joint session
Sports History
Dec 1 New York Knicks center Patrick Ewing scores career high 22 field goals in his 50 point haul in 113-96 win v Charlotte at Madison Square Garden
- Dec 2 First parliamentary election in newly reunified Germany
- Dec 2 First time 12 people in space at the same time
- Dec 2 US 69th manned space mission STS 35 (Columbia 11) launches into orbit
- Dec 4 An Iraqi official reports that Iraq will withdraw if it can retain control of the Rumailah field and keep Bubiyan and Werbah islands; also says that demands that the Palestinian issue be treated separately would not be surmountable
- Dec 4 Due to Persian Gulf crisis gas hits $1.60 per gallon price in NYC
- Dec 4 Iraq announces it will release all 3,300 Soviet hostages
- Dec 5 Blue Jays trade F McGriff & T Fernandez to SD for R Alomar & J Carter
Event of Interest
Dec 5 British Indian novelist Salman Rushdie appears in public for 1st time in 2 years after Iran called for his assassination
- Dec 5 Former Noriega aide Luis del Cid pleads guilty
- Dec 5 Iraq announces willingness to speak with US about resolving the Persian Gulf crisis
- Dec 6 NHL grants conditional membership to Tampa Bay Lightning
Event of Interest
Dec 6 Saddam Hussein announces release of all foreign hostages
- Dec 6 Shoeless Joe Jackson's signature sells, at aucton, for $23,100
- Dec 7 Iraqi Parliament endorses Saddam Hussein's decision to free hostages
Engagement of Interest
Dec 7 Ted Turner & Jane Fonda announce their engagement
- Dec 8 Indians agree to a lease new ballpark in Gateway (Jacobs Field)
- Dec 8 Spacecraft Galileo flies by Earth at an altitude of 597 miles (960 km) to use the planet's gravity to build speed on its way to Jupiter [1]
- Dec 9 23rd NAACP Image Awards: "Coming to America" wins Outstanding Motion Picture
- Dec 9 Gunda Niemann skates ladies world record 3k ladies (4:10.80)
- Dec 9 Houston scores most points against Cleveland, Oilers 58, Browns 14
Election of Interest
Dec 9 Lech Wałęsa wins Poland's 1st direct presidential election in Poland
- Dec 9 NFL NY Giant Otis Anderson becomes 8th to rush for 10,000th yard
- Dec 10 Hindu-Muslim rebellion in Hyderabad-Aligargh India, 140 die
- Dec 10 Soyuz TM-10 lands
- Dec 10 Space Shuttle STS 35 (Columbia 11) lands
- Dec 11 13 die in 83 vehicle accident in Chattanooga Tn I-75, due to fog
- Dec 11 US 69th manned space mission STS 35 (Columbia 11) returns from space
- Dec 12 US accuses Iraq of dragging its feet on dates for talks
- Dec 12 US ambassador to Kuwait, Nathaniel Howell, leaves Kuwait
- Dec 13 Heavy earthquake strikes Sicily, 18 die
- Dec 13 Revival of Leigh, Charlap, Styne, Comden and Green's musical "Peter Pan", starring Cathy Rigby, opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theater, NYC; runs for 45 performances
Meeting of Interest
Dec 13 South African President F. W. de Klerk meets with Nelson Mandela to talk of end of apartheid
- Dec 13 US Secretary of State Baker questions Iraq's seriousness about Middle East peace
Music History
Dec 14 Louis Jordan's revue "Five Guys Named Moe" premieres in London
- Dec 14 Right to Die case permits Nancy Cruzan to have her feeding tube removed, she dies 12 days later
- Dec 16 KUSW, Salt Lake City Utah, final shortwave radio transmissions
- Dec 16 Rev. Jean-Bertrand Aristide elected President of Haiti
- Dec 17 KTBN, Salt Lake City Utah, begins shortwave radio transmissions
- Dec 18 Bush reiterates his "no concessions" stance against Iraq
- Dec 18 NL announces Buffalo, Denver, Miami, Orlando, Tampa-St Petersburg, & Washington, D.C. as 6 finalist for 1993 expansion (Miami & Denver win)
- Dec 20 Pentagon warns Saddam that US air power is ready to attack on 1/15
- Dec 20 Robert F X Sillerman purchases WAFL NY-NJ Knights for $11 million
Event of Interest
Dec 20 Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze resigns
- Dec 20 The world's first website and server go live at CERN
- Dec 21 Steve & Mark Waugh complete 464* partnership for NSW v WA
- Dec 22 Iraq announces it will never give up Kuwait
- Dec 22 Israeli ferry capsizes killing 21 US servicemen
- Dec 22 Lech Wałęsa sworn in as Poland's 1st popularly elected president
Sports History
Dec 22 Paul Coffey becomes the second NHL defenceman to record 1000 points, doing so in a record-breaking 770 games
- Dec 23 Comedy "Lettice & Lovage" closes at Barrymore Theater, NYC after 284 performances
- Dec 23 Slovenians vote to secede from Yugoslavia
Baseball Trade
Dec 24 Expos trade Tim Raines to White Sox for Ivan Calderon & Barry Jones
- Dec 24 Saddam Hussein says Israel will be Iraq's 1st target
The Godfather Part III
Dec 25 "The Godfather Part III" directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Al Pacino, Diane Keaton and Andy Garcia premieres
- Dec 25 Ballon d'Or: Inter's German sweeper Lothar Matthäus is named best football player in Europe ahead of Juventus striker Salvatore Schillaci and Inter defender Andreas Brehme
Sports History
Dec 26 Garry Kasparov defeats fellow Russian Anatoly Karpov to retain the world chess championship
- Dec 26 Reggie Williams becomes 1st GM of WLAF's NY-NJ Knights
- Dec 26 Senior Professional Baseball Association folds
- Dec 27 Edmonton Oilers beat the Calgary Flames, 4-1 to record their 500th all-time NHL victory; set in just 915 games for a record of 500-295-120, good for a winning % of .612; best in history upon reaching milestone
- Dec 28 2 die and 188 injured in a NYC subway electrical fire in tunnel near Clark Street, Brooklyn
- Dec 28 Blockbuster Bowl 1: Florida State beats Penn State, 24-17
- Dec 30 "Miser" closes at Circle in Sq Theater NYC after 93 performances
- Dec 30 11th United Negro College Fund raises $10,000,000
- Dec 31 Iraq begins a military draft of 17 year olds
- Dec 31 Sci-Fi Channel on cable TV begins transmitting
- Dec 31 United Somali Congress seizes Presidential Palace
Famous Birthdays
- Dec 1 Chanel Iman, American model (Victoria's Secret Angel), born in Atlanta, Georgia
- Dec 2 Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, Ghanaian soccer midfielder (78 caps; Udinese), born in Berekum, Brong-Ahafo, Ghana
- Dec 2 Gastón Ramírez, Uruguayan soccer midfielder (43 caps; Sampdoria), born in Fray Bentos, Uruguay
- Dec 3 Christian Benteke, Belgian soccer striker (93 caps; Genk, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Aston Villa), born in Kinshasa, Zaire
- Dec 7 Marte Olsbu Røiseland, Norwegian biathlete (Olympic gold women's sprint, pursuit, mixed relay 2022; 11 x World C'ship gold), born in Arendal, Norway
- Dec 8 Jakub Józef Orliński, Polish operatic countertenor singer, and break-dancer, born in Warsaw, Poland
- Dec 9 LaFee [Christina Klein], German pop-rock singer, and actress, born in Büsbach, Germany
- Dec 10 Giulia Boverio, Italian actress
- Dec 10 Teyana Taylor, American singer-songwriter, actress and TV personality (Teyana and Iman), born in New York City
- Dec 11 Alexa Demie, American actress (Euphoria), born in Los Angeles, California
- Dec 12 Victor Moses, Nigerian footballer, born in Lagos, Nigeria
- Dec 19 Sally Fitzgibbons, Australian pro surfer, born in Gerroa, Australia
JoJo [Joanna Levesque] (32 years old)
Dec 20 American pop singer-songwriter ("Too Little Too Late"; "Baby It's You"), born in Brattleboro, Vermont
![JoJo [Joanna Levesque]](/images/people/jojo-joanna-levesque.jpg?w=200)
- Dec 21 Gianluca Buccellati, American record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist (Arlo Parks; Tei Shi,; White China), born in Mount Kisco, New York
- Dec 22 Jean-Baptiste Maunier, French actor, born in Brignoles, France
- Dec 22 Josef Newgarden, American auto racer (Indianapolis 500 2023; IndyCar Series 2017, 19; Indy Lights 2011), born in Nashville, Tennessee
- Dec 23 Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, American actress, model, and singer, born in San Francisco, California
- Dec 26 Aaron Ramsey, Welsh footballer, born in Caerphilly, United Kingdom
- Dec 27 Luis Trujillo, Peruvian Football Player
- Dec 27 Milos Raonic, Canadian tennis player (8 ATP titles), born in Titograd, Montenegro
- Dec 28 David Archuleta, American singer (American Idol runner-up), born in Miami, Florida
- Dec 30 Joe Root, English cricket batsman and captain (HS 254; Yorkshire CCC), born in Sheffield, England
Famous Weddings
John Carpenter
Dec 1 Film director John Carpenter (36) weds producer Sandy King
David Lean
Dec 15 Academy Award-winning director David Lean (82) weds interior designer Sandra Cooke (51)
Natasha Richardson
Dec 15 British actress Natasha Richardson (27) weds British stage and screen producer Robert Fox (37); divorce in 1992
Rod Stewart
Dec 15 British singer Rod Stewart (45) weds American supermodel Rachel Hunter (21); divorce in 2006
Nicole Kidman & Tom Cruise
Dec 24 Actor Tom Cruise (28) marries actress Nicole Kidman (23)
- Dec 29 Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton weds Shannon Kelley
Famous Deaths
- Dec 1 Jan Hendrik de Groot, Dutch co-founder of Vrij Nederland), dies at 89
- Dec 1 Robert Gordon, American child actor (billed as "Bobby" - The Jazz Singer; Mountains of Manhattan), and director (The Joe Louis Story), dies at 77
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit (1900-1990)
Dec 1 Indian diplomat and politician who was the 1st woman to hold a cabinet post in India, dies at 90
Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
Dec 2 American composer (Billy the Kid, Fanfare for Common Man), dies of Alzheimer's disease and respiratory failure at 90
- Dec 2 Robert Cummings, American actor (Love that Bob, Dial M For Murder), dies of kidney failure at 80
- Dec 3 Gavin Reed, actor (Body Beneath), dies at 59
- Dec 4 Edward Binns, American actor (12 Angry Men; Fail-Safe), dies of a heart attack at 74
- Dec 5 Steven Shaw, dies at 25
- Dec 6 Bob Hamilton, American golfer (PGA C'ship 1944), dies at 74
- Dec 6 Pavlos Sidiropoulos, Greek rock singer, songwriter and guitarist (Electric Theseus), dies from a heroin overdose at 42
Tunku Abdul Rahman (1903-1990)
Dec 6 Malaysia's founding father, 1st Prime Minister of Malaya (1957-63) and Malaysia (1963-70), dies at 87
- Dec 7 Dee Clark, American pop singer ("Raindrops"), dies at 52
- Dec 7 Horst Bienek, German writer and director (The First Polka), dies at 60
- Dec 7 Jean Duceppe, Quebec actor (Mon oncle Antoine), dies at 67
- Dec 7 Jean Paul Lemieux, Canadian painter, dies at 86
- Dec 7 Joan Bennett, American actress (House Across the Bay), dies at 80
- Dec 7 Peter Mieg, Swiss composer, dies at 84
- Dec 7 Reinaldo Arenas, Cuban poet and novelist (Pentagonia), dies at 47
- Dec 8 Boris Kochno, Russian ballet dancer (La Chatte) and librettist, dies at 86
- Dec 8 Martin Ritt, American actor and director (The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, Slugger's Wife, End of the Game), dies at 76
- Dec 8 Pony Sherrell Metcalf, American singer, dies of heart attack at undisclosed age
- Dec 9 Mike Mazurki, Austrian-American actor and professional wrestler (Some Like It Hot, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World), dies at 82
- Dec 10 Armand Hammer, American industrialist (Occidental Petroleum), dies at 92
- Dec 11 Fernand Collin, Belgian economist and banker, dies at 92
Alice Marble (1913-1990)
Dec 13 American tennis player (US Open 1936, 1938-40), dies of pernicious anaemia at 77
- Dec 14 Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Swiss playwright & novelist (The Physicists, The Visit). dies of heart failure at 69
- Dec 14 Hope Sansberry, American actress (Rats are Coming), dies at 94
- Dec 14 Johannes, 11th Prince of Thurn und Taxis, German businessman, dies at 64
- Dec 15 Betty Warren, British actress (Passport to Pimlico), dies at 83
- Dec 15 Jean Paige, American silent film actress (Capt Blood; Black Beauty), dies at 95
- Dec 16 Douglas Campbell, American aviator and World War I flying ace, dies at 94
- Dec 17 Don Draper, American actor (Pepper Agent 00X), dies of AIDS at 61
- Dec 17 Mieke Verstraete [Maria Augustina De Graef], Belgian-Dutch actress (Pleasantly Settled), dies at 79
- Dec 18 Anne Revere, actress (National Velvet), dies of pneumonia at 87
- Dec 18 Connie Russell, American singer (Club Embassy; Garroway at Large), dies at 67
- Dec 18 Paul Tortelier, French concert cellist, composer, and teacher, dies at 76
- Dec 19 Basil Henson, actor (Change Partners), dies of stroke at 71
- Dec 19 Massimo Amfiteatrof [Maksim Amfiteatrov], Russian-Italian classical musician, known as 'the Cellists' Caruso', dies at 83
- Dec 20 (William) Elmo Tanner, American big band singer, whistler (Ted Weems Orchestra - "Heartaches"), bandleader, and DJ, dies at 86
- Dec 21 Kelly Johnson, American aircraft engineer (Lockheed Skunk Works, Lockheed U-2, SR-71 Blackbird), dies at 80
- Dec 22 Cecil Effinger, American oboist, composer, and inventor of a music typewriter, dies at 76
- Dec 22 Ken Irvine, Australian rugby league winger (31 Tests; NSW 24 games; North Sydney RLFC, Manly-Warringah RLFC; record first-grade career tries–212), dies from chronic myeloid leukaemia at 50
- Dec 23 Frank King, West Indian cricketer (WI fast bowler played 14 Tests 1953-56), dies at 64
- Dec 23 Wendell Scott, American auto racer (first black driver to win a race at NASCAR's premier level [Jacksonville 200 1963]), dies from spinal cancer at 69
- Dec 24 Thorbjørn Egner, Norwegian author (b. 1922)
- Dec 25 Marguerite N Wittenberg, entertainer, dies of cancer at 77
- Dec 26 Nancy Cruznan, accident victim/right-to-die case, dies at 33
- Dec 27 Helene Stanley, American actress (Carnival Story, Roar of the Crowd),and live-action model for Disney animators (Cinderealla; Sleeping Beauty), dies at 61
- Dec 28 Ed van der Elsken, Dutch photographer (Sweet Life), dies at 65
- Dec 28 Kiel Martin, American actor (Hill Street Blues - "Det. LaRue"), dies of cancer at 46
- Dec 28 Lucas Polhaupessy, Moluccan leader, dies
- Dec 28 Walter Burle Marx, Brazilian pianist and composer, dies at 88
- Dec 31 Dalton Cathey, American actor dies of AIDS at 44
- Dec 31 George Allen, American Pro Football HOF coach (NFL Coach of the Year 1967, 71; LA Rams, Washington Redskins), dies at 72
- Dec 31 Vasily Grigoryevich Lazarev, cosmonaut (Soyuz 12, 18A), dies at 62
