- Dec 1 Armin Meiwes, German cannibal
- Dec 8 Ann Coulter, American author, political commentator, and attorney
- Dec 11 Marco Pierre White, English chef and restaurateur (youngest chef ever to have been awarded three Michelin stars), born in Leeds, England
- Dec 15 Reginald Hudlin, director (House Party)
- Dec 15 Karin Resetarits, Austrian journalist
- Dec 18 Thomas Strittmatter, writer
- Dec 22 Yuri Ivanovich Malinchenko, Russian cosmonaut (1st person to marry in space), born in Khrushchev, Ukrainian SSR, USSR
- Dec 22 Andrew Fastow, US convicted criminal and businessman (former CFO of Enron), born in Washington, D.C., United States
- Dec 24 Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan Republic, born in Baku, Azerbaijan
- Dec 24 Mary Barra, American CEO of General Motors (1st woman to head a global automotive company), born in Waterford, Michigan
- Dec 25 Ingrid Betancourt, Colombian senator
- Dec 29 Robert Tewdwr Moss, British journalist, born in Congleton, United Kingdom (d. 1996)
- Dec 30 Douglas Coupland, Canadian author
- Dec 30 Bill English, New Zealand politician and Prime Minister (National: 2016-17), born in Lumsden, New Zealand
About December 1961
How Old? 59 years old
Generation: Baby Boomer
Leap Year: No
Chinese Zodiac: Ox
Star Signs: Sagittarius (Nov 22 - Dec 21), Capricorn (Dec 22 - Jan 19)