Blognewsandmore

Democracy in Video Pills - Don't Ask Don't Tell

2007-05-24T13:33:00.000-04:00

Offered by:

Democracy in Video Pills: The Gas price well over $3 a Gallon

2007-05-24T09:04:00.000-04:00

Offered by:

acy in Video Pills: DemocrThe truth about Weapons of Mass Destruction

2007-05-24T08:52:00.000-04:00

Offered by:

Officials: Smith's death caused by overdose

2007-03-26T12:09:00.000-04:00

Offered by:

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (CNN) -- An accidental drug overdose killed former reality TV star and Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith, Seminole tribal police Chief Charlie Tiger said Monday.

Tiger said there was no evidence of foul play.

"We are convinced, based on extensive review of the evidence, that this case is an accidental overdose with no other criminal element present," Tiger said Monday.

The medical examiner's office had said on March 7 that the cause of Smith's death had been determined, but it would not be announced for one to two weeks to give police time to finish the investigation.

Broward County Medical Examiner Joshua Perper wanted to make sure none of the investigators' findings change any of his own findings, his office said then.

Perper said Monday that Smith was taking nine different kinds of medication in the days before her death, including a sleeping aid.

Tiger said Monday the case was now closed.

Smith, 39, was pronounced dead February 8 after being found unconscious in her hotel room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino near Hollywood, Florida.

(to see the entire article, click on the title).

Eye To Eye: Gore And Branson

2007-02-11T21:09:00.000-05:00

Super Bowl XLI - Bears Vs. Colts

2007-02-01T13:16:00.000-05:00

Offered by:

Will iPhone keep its promises? Watch the videos and think about them

2007-01-11T09:50:00.000-05:00

Offered by:

What happened this coming weekdays (Events): January 8th - 12th

2007-01-11T00:26:00.000-05:00

Offered by:

January 8th

871 - Battle of Ashdown - Ethelred of Wessex defeats a Danish invasion army.
1198 - Innocent III becomes Pope.
1297 - Monaco gains its independence.
1499 - Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany.
1734 - Premiere of George Frideric Handel's Ariodante at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
1746 - Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.
1790 - George Washington delivers the first State of the Union Address address in New York City.
1806 - Cape Colony becomes a British colony.
1811 - Unsuccessful slave revolt led by Charles Deslandes in St. Charles and St. James, Louisiana.
1815 - War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans - Andrew Jackson leads American forces in victory over the British.
1838 - Alfred Vail demonstrates a telegraph using dots and dashes (this is the forerunner of Morse code).
1863 - American Civil War: Second Battle of Springfield
1863 - Yorkshire County Cricket Club is founded at the Adelphi Hotel in Sheffield, England.
1867 - African American men granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia.
1877 - Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their last battle with the United States Cavalry (Montana).
1889 - Herman Hollerith receives a patent for his electric tabulating machine.
1900 - United States President William McKinley places Alaska under military rule.
1906 - A landslide in Haverstraw, New York, kills 20 people due to the excavation of clay along the Hudson River.
1908 - A train collision occurs in the Park Avenue Tunnel in New York City killing 17 people, injuring 38 and leading to increased demand for electric trains.
1912 - The African National Congress was founded.
1916 - World War I: Allied forces withdraw from Gallipoli.
1918 - President Woodrow Wilson announces his "Fourteen Points" for the aftermath of World War I.
1920 - The Czechoslovak Hussite Church was founded by Dr. Karel Farský.
1922 - The Social Democratic Youth League of Norway is founded.
1926 - Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud becomes the King of Hejaz and renames it Saudi Arabia.
1935 - Arthur C. Hardy patents the spectrophotometer.
1953 - René Mayer becomes Prime Minister of France.
1956 - Operation Auca: Five U.S. missionaries are killed by the Huaorani of Ecuador shortly after making contact with them.
1958 - Fourteen-year-old Bobby Fischer wins the United States Chess Championship.
1959 - Conquest of Cuba by Fidel Castro is completed with the conquest of Santiago de Cuba.
1959 - Michel Debré becomes Prime Minister of France.
1962 - Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time (National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.).
1962 - Harmelen train disaster kills 93 people in The Netherlands.
1964 - President Lyndon B. Johnson declares a "War on Poverty" in the United States.
1973 - Watergate scandal: The trial of seven men accused of illegal entry into Democratic Party headquarters at Watergate begins.
1975 - Ella Grasso becomes Governor of Connecticut, becoming the first woman to serve as a Governor in the United States who did not succeed her husband.
1977 - Soviet space mission Luna 21 is launched.
1979 - The tanker Betelgeuse explodes in Bantry Bay, Ireland (The Betelgeuse incident).
1982 - AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions.
1987 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains 8.30 to close at 2,002.25 -- The Dow's first close above 2,000.
1989 - Kegworth air disaster kills 47 people in Great Britain.
1989 - Beginning of Japanese Heisei era.
1994 - Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov on Soyuz TM-18 leaves for Mir. He will stay on the space station until March 22, 1995, for a record 437 days in space.
1996 - An Antonov 32 cargo turboprop powered plane crashes into the central market in Kinshasa, Zaire killing more than 350 people.
2004 - RMS Queen Mary 2, the largest passenger ship ever built, was christened by her namesake's granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.
2006 - A magnitude 6.9 earthquake epicentered just off the Greek island of Kythira hits much of the country and is felt throughout the entire eastern Mediterranean Sea.

January 9th

475 - Byzantine Emperor Zeno is forced to flee his capital at Constantinople.
1349 - The Jewish population of Basel, Switzerland, is rounded up and incinerated, believed by the residents to be the cause of the ongoing bubonic plague.
1431 - Judges' investigations for the trial of Joan of Arc begin in Rouen, France, the seat of the English occupation government.
1760 - Afghans defeat Marathas in Battle of Barari Ghat.
1768 - Philip Astley stages the first modern circus (London).
1788 - Connecticut becomes the fifth state to join the United States.
1793 - Jean-Pierre Blanchard becomes the first to fly in a balloon in the United States.
1816 - Sir Humphry Davy tests the Davy lamp for Miners at Hebburn Colliery.
1822 - The Portuguese prince Pedro I of Brazil decides to stay in Brazil against the orders of the Portuguese king João VI, starting the Brazilian independence process.
1839 - The French Academy of Sciences announces the Daguerreotype photography process.
1857 - The Fort Tejon earthquake of California occurs, registering an estimated magnitude of 7.9.
1858 - Anson Jones, the final President of the Republic of Texas, commits suicide.
1861 - American Civil War: The "Star of the West" incident occurs near Charleston, South Carolina. It is considered by some historians to be the "First Shots of the American Civil War.")
1861 - Mississippi becomes the second state to secede from the Union before the outbreak of the American Civil War.
1863 - American Civil War: the Battle of Fort Hindman occurs in Arkansas.
1878 - Umberto I becomes King of Italy.
1880 - The Great Gale of 1880 devastates parts of Oregon and Washington with high wind and heavy snow.
1882 - Oscar Wilde gives his first lecture on "The English Renaissance of Art" in New York.
1894 - New England Telephone and Telegraph installs the first battery-operated telephone switchboard in Lexington, Massachusetts.
1900 - S.S. Lazio is founded in Rome, Italy.
1903 - Hallam Tennyson, 2nd Baron Tennyson, son of the famous poet Alfred Tennyson, becomes the second Governor-General of Australia.
1905 - According to the Julian Calendar which was used at the time, Russian workers stage a march on the Winter Palace that ends in the massacre by Czarist troops known as Bloody Sunday, setting off the Russian Revolution of 1905.
1912 - United States Marines invade Honduras.
1916 - The Ottoman Empire prevails in the Battle of Çanakkale, as the last British troops are evacuated.
1917 - World War I: the Battle of Rafa occurs near the Egyptian border with Palestine.
1923 - Juan de la Cierva makes the first autogyro flight.
1929 - The Seeing Eye is established in Nashville, Tennessee, with the mission to train dogs for assisting the blind.
1945 - The United States invades Luzon in the Philippines.
1951 - United Nations headquarters officially opens in New York City.
1960 - Construction of the Aswan Dam begins in Egypt.
1964 - Several Panamanian youths try to put up the Panamanian flag on the US-controlled Panama Canal Zone, during the fight the Panama flag is torn, setting off four days of fighting between US armed forces and civilian Panamanians around the country. This day is known as Martyrs' Day.
1965 - The Hope Slide in British Columbia kills 4 people near Hope, British Columbia.
1972 - RMS Queen Elizabeth is destroyed by fire in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong.
1977 - The Oakland Raiders defeat the Minnesota Vikings 32-14 at Super Bowl XI. Wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff is named Most Valuable Player.
1986 - After losing a patent battle with Polaroid, Kodak leaves the instant camera business.
1991 - The Soviets storm Vilnius to stop Lithuanian independence.
1995 - Valeri Poliakov completes 366 days in space while aboard the Mir space station, breaking a duration record.
1997 - A Comair Embraer 120 crashes during approach into Detroit Metro Airport, killing 29 people.
2002 - The United States Department of Justice announces it is going to pursue a criminal investigation of Enron.
2005 - Elections are held to replace Yasser Arafat as head of the Palestine Liberation Organization. He is succeeded by Rawhi Fattouh.
2006 - The Phantom of the Opera surpasses the record set by Cats for the title of longest running show on Broadway.
2006 - The first The Howard Stern Show via Sirius Satellite Radio is broadcast.

January 10th

49 BC - Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signaling the start of civil war.
236 - Saint Fabian begins his reign as a Catholic Pope.
1072 - Robert Guiscard conquers Palermo.
1475 - Stephen III of Moldavia defeats the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Vaslui.
1776 - Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense.
1806 - Dutch settlers in Cape Town surrender to the British.
1810 - Marriage of Napoleon and Josephine is annulled.
1811 - African-American slaves in Louisiana rebel in two parishes.
1861 - American Civil War: Florida secedes from the US.
1863 - The first section of the London Underground Railway opens, between Paddington and Farringdon Street.
1870 - John D. Rockefeller incorporates Standard Oil.
1901 - The first great Texas gusher, oil discovered at Spindletop in Beaumont, Texas.
1920 - League of Nations holds its first meeting and ratifies the Treaty of Versailles ending World War I.
1922 - Arthur Griffith is elected President of the Irish Free State.
1923 - Lithuania seizes and annexes Memel.
1927 - The film Metropolis by Fritz Lang premieres.
1929 - Tintin, a comic book character created by Hergé, makes his debut. He went on to be published in over 200 million comic books in 40 languages.
1941 - Lend-Lease is introduced into the US Congress.
1946 - First General Assembly of the United Nations opens in London. Fifty-one nations are represented.
1957 - Harold Macmillan becomes the prime minister of the United Kingdom.
1962 - Apollo Project: NASA announces plans to build the C-5 rocket booster. It became better known as the Saturn V moon rocket, which launched every Apollo moon mission.
1969 - After 147 years, the last issue of The Saturday Evening Post is published.
1982 - The lowest ever UK temperature of -27.2°C was recorded at Braemar in Aberdeenshire. This equaled the record set in the same place on February 11, 1995. The record would be equalled again at Altnaharra on December 30, 1995
1982 - The Catch - Dwight Clark of the San Francisco 49ers made a leaping catch from Joe Montana with 58 seconds to play to defeat the Dallas Cowboys 28-27 in the NFC Championship Game at Candlestick Park.
1984 - The US and the Vatican establish full diplomatic relations after 117 years.
1989 - Cuban troops begin withdrawing from Angola.
1990 - Time Warner is formed from the merger of Time Inc. and Warner Communications Inc.
1999 - The Sopranos airs its pilot episode on HBO.
1999 - A large piece of the chalk cliff at Beachy Head collapsed into the sea.
2000 - America Online announces an agreement to buy Time Warner for $162 billion, the largest corporate merger in history.
2001 - Wikipedia starts as part of Nupedia. It becomes a separate site five days later.
2005 - A mudslide occurred in La Conchita, CA killing 10 people, injuring many more and closing the Highway 101, the main coastal corridor between San Francisco and Los Angeles, for 10 days.
2007 - Start of the 12th ASEAN Summit and 2nd East Asia Summit in Metro Cebu, Philippines. Meetings involve heads of the 10 member states and 6 dialogue partners with major discussions on relevance, diplomacy, security, economy and free trade and other important global issues.

January 11th

314 - Pope Miltiades ends his reign as the Catholic Pope.
532 - Nika riots in Constantinople.
1158 - Vladislav II becomes King of Bohemia.
1569 - First recorded lottery in England.
1571 - Austrian nobility is granted freedom of religion.
1693 - Mt. Etna erupts in Sicily, Italy.
1759 - In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the first American life insurance company is incorporated.
1779 - Ching-Thang Khomba crowned King of Manipur
1787 - William Herschel discovers Titania and Oberon, two moons of Uranus.
1794 - Robert Forsythe, a US Marshal was killed in Augusta, Georgia when trying to serve court papers, the first US Marshal to die in action.
1805 - Michigan Territory is created.
1861 - Alabama secedes from the United States.
1863 - American Civil War: Battle of Arkansas Post - General John McClernand and Admiral David Dixon Porter capture the Arkansas River for the Union.
1867 - Benito Juárez becomes Mexican president again.
1879 - Anglo-Zulu War begins.
1880 - Total solar eclipse blackens the sky of San Francisco one day after the funeral of Emperor Norton.
1902 - Popular Mechanics magazine was published for the first time.
1908 - Grand Canyon National Monument is created.
1912 - Lawrence textile strike begins in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
1919 - Romania annexes Transylvania.
1922 - First use of insulin to treat diabetes in a human patient.
1923 - Troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area to force Germany to pay its reparation payments.
1935 - Amelia Earhart is the first woman to fly solo from Hawaii to California.
1938 - Frances Moulton is the first woman to become president of a U.S. national bank.[citation needed]
1942 - Japan declares war on the Netherlands and invades the Netherlands East Indies.
1942 - The Japanese capture Kuala Lumpur.
1943 - The United States and United Kingdom give up territorial rights in China.
1946 - Enver Hoxha declares the People's Republic of Albania with himself as dictator.
1946 - Porfirio Barba-Jacob's ashes go back to Colombia.
1949 - First recorded case of snowfall in Los Angeles, California.
1957 - The African Convention is founded in Dakar.
1960 - Chad declares its independence.
1962 - Eruption of the Huascaran volcano in Peru; 4,000 deaths.
1963 - The Whisky a Go Go night club in Los Angeles, the first disco in the USA, is opened.
1964 - United States Surgeon General Luther Leonidas Terry reports smoking may be hazardous to health. First such statement from U.S. government.
1972 - East Pakistan becomes Bangladesh.
1973 - Beginning of the Watergate burglars trial.
1974 - The world's first surviving set of sextuplets are born to Susan Rosenkowitz in Cape Town, South Africa.
1980 - Nigel Short, 14, is the youngest chess player to be awarded the degree of International Master.
1982 - A cold snap sends temperatures to record lows in dozens of cities throughout the Midwestern United States.
1986 - The Gateway Bridge, Brisbane in Queensland, Australia is officially opened.
1990 - 300,000 march in favor of Lithuanian independence.
1992 - Paul Simon is the first major artist to tour South Africa after the end of the cultural boycott.
1994 - Irish Government announces the end of a 15-year broadcasting ban on the IRA and its political arm Sinn Féin
1995 - The WB Television Network begins operations.
1996 - Haiti becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
1998 - Sidi-Hamed massacre in Algeria; over 100 people killed.
2001 - The Federal Trade Commission approved the merger of AOL and Time Warner to form AOL Time Warner.
2003 - Illinois governor George H. Ryan announces decision to grant clemency to all inmates of death row.
2005 - Black Tuesday bushfires swept across the southern Eyre Peninsula in South Australia.

January 12th

475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople.
1528 - Gustav I of Sweden crowned king of Sweden.
1592 - Titus Andronicus first staged at the Rose Theatre.
1773 - The first public Colonial American museum opens in Charleston, South Carolina.
1777 - Mission Santa Clara de Asís is founded in what is now Santa Clara, California.
1838 - In order to avoid prosecution under laws banning polygamy, Joseph Smith, Jr. and his followers leave Ohio for Missouri.
1848 - The Palermo rising in Sicily rises against the Bourbon kingdom of the Two Sicilies
1866 - Royal Aeronautical Society is formed in London.
1872 - Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first imperial coronation in that city in over 200 years.
1875 - Kwang-su becomes emperor of China.
1898 - Ito Hirobumi begins his third term as Prime Minister of Japan.
1908 - A long-distance radio message is sent from the Eiffel Tower for the first time.
1915 - The Rocky Mountain National Park is formed by an act of U.S. Congress.
1915 - United States House of Representatives rejects proposal to give women the right to vote.
1926 - Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll premiere their radio program Sam 'n' Henry, a precursor to Amos 'n' Andy; possibly the first situation comedy.
1932 - Hattie W. Caraway becomes the first woman elected to the United States Senate.
1940 - World War II: Russia bombs cities in Finland.
1942 - President Franklin Roosevelt creates the National War Labor Board.
1945 - World War II: The Soviets begin a large offensive in Eastern Europe against the Nazis.
1964 - Rebels in Zanzibar begin a revolt known as the Zanzibar Revolution and proclaimed a republic.
1966 - Lyndon B. Johnson states that the United States should stay in South Vietnam until Communist aggression there is ended.
1966 - Batman the TV series debuts on ABC.
1967 - Dr. James Bedford becomes the first person to be cryonically preserved with intent of future resuscitation.
1969 - Led Zeppelin's debut album released.
1970 - Biafra capitulates, ending the Nigerian civil war.
1971 - All in the Family debuts on CBS.
1971 - Harrisburg Six: The Reverend Philip Berrigan and five others are indicted on charges of conspiring to kidnap Henry Kissinger and of plotting to blow up the heating tunnels of federal buildings in Washington, DC.
1976 - UN Security Council votes 11-1 to allow the Palestinian Liberation Organization to participate in a Security Council debate (without voting rights).
1986 - Space Shuttle program: STS-61-C mission - Space Shuttle Columbia takes-off with the first Hispanic-American astronaut, Dr. Franklin R. Chang-Diaz. It was the last successful mission before STS-51-L.
1991 - Persian Gulf War: An act of the U.S. Congress authorizes the use of military force to drive Iraq out of Kuwait.
1992 - A new constitution, providing for freedom to form political parties, is approved by referendum in Mali.
1995 - Malcolm X's daughter, Qubilah Shabazz, is arrested for conspiring to kill Louis Farrakhan.
1998 - Nineteen European nations agree to forbid human cloning.
2005 - Deep Impact (space mission) launches from Cape Canaveral by a Delta 2 rocket.
2006 - The foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany declare that negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program have reached a dead end and recommend that Iran be referred to the United Nations Security Council. (ABC)
2006 - A stampede during the Stoning the Devil ritual on the last day at the Hajj in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills at least 362 Muslim pilgrims. (BBC)
2006 - Turkey releases Mehmet Ali Ağca from jail after serving 25 years for shooting Pope John Paul II. (BBC)
2006 - The French warship Clemenceau reaches Egypt and is barred access to the Suez Canal. Greenpeace activists board the ship. (BBC)

What happened this coming weekend: January 6th and 7th

2007-01-05T18:09:00.000-05:00

Offerd by:

Jannuary 6th

Events
1066 - Harold Godwinson is crowned King of England.
1205 - Philip of Swabia becomes King of the Romans.
1494 - First Mass celebrated in the New World at La Isabela, Hispaniola.
1540 - King Henry VIII of England marries Anne of Cleves.
1579 - The Union of Atrecht was signed.
1661 - The fifth monarchy men unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London.
1690 - Joseph, son of Emperor Leopold I, becomes King of the Romans.
1720 - The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings.
1838 - Samuel Morse first successfully tested the electrical telegraph.
1853 - American President-Elect Franklin Pierce, wife Jane, and son Ben are involved in a train wreck near Andover, Massachusetts. Franklin and Jane survive but eleven-year-old Ben is killed.
1870 - The inauguration of the Musikverein (Vienna).
1887 - `Abd-allah II of Harar opens the Battle of Chelenqo with an attack on the camp of the Shewan army of Negus Menelik II early in the morning; prepared for the assault, the Negus orders a counter-attack which routs the enemy, resulting with the capture of Harar a few days later.
1893 - Washington National Cathedral is chartered by Congress. The charter is signed by President Benjamin Harrison.
1893 - Ben Lafargues, white, lynched in Avangeles Parish, LA for murder
1893 - black man, identity unknown, lynched in Pocket Township, NC for murder
1893 - Paul Scroggs and Henry Allen, both black, lynched in Brinkley, AK for murder
1897 - Lawerence Brown, black, lynched in Stilton, SC for suspected arson
1900 - Boers attack Ladysmith, South Africa - over 1,000 people killed
1907 - Maria Montessori opens her first school and daycare center for working class children in Rome.
1912 - New Mexico is admitted as the 47th U.S. state.
1921 - Sam Williams, black, lynched in Talbor, GA for unknown offense
1929 - King Alexander of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes suspends his country's constitution (the so-called January 6th Dictatorship, Šestojanuarska diktatura.)
1929 - Mother Teresa arrives in Calcutta to begin a legacy of work amongst India's poorest and diseased people
1930 - The first diesel-engine automobile trip is completed (Indianapolis, Indiana, to New York City).
1931 - Thomas Edison submits his last patent application.
1936 - Supreme Court of the United States rules the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act unconstitutional in the case United States v. Butler et al..
1936 - Porky Pig premieres.
1940 - Mass execution of Poles, committed by Germans in the city of Poznań, Warthegau.
1941 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms Speech in the State of the Union Address.
1941 - Keel of USS Missouri (BB-63) is laid at New York Navy Yard in Brooklyn
1942 - Pan American Airlines becomes the first commercial airline to have a flight go around the world.
1950 - The United Kingdom recognizes the People's Republic of China. The Republic of China severs diplomatic relations with Britain in response.
1961 - A fire at the Thomas Hotel in San Francisco kills 20 people.
1967 - United States Marine Corps and ARVN troops launch "Operation Deckhouse Five" in the Mekong River delta.
1974 - In response to the energy crisis, daylight saving time commences nearly four months early in the United States.
1977 - The music publisher EMI ends its contract with the notorious punk rock group Sex Pistols after reports of abusive behaviour at Heathrow Airport, London.
1978 - The Crown of St. Stephen (also known as the Holy Crown of Hungary) is returned to Hungary from the United States, where it was held after the Second World War.
1994 - Nancy Kerrigan is clubbed on the right leg by an assailant under orders from figure skating rival Tonya Harding.
1995 - A chemical fire in an apartment complex in Manila, Philippines, leads to the discovery of plans for Project Bojinka, a mass-terrorist attack.
2004 - Jaya Bharata Jananiya Tanujate is declared the official anthem of Karnataka
2005 - Mississippi Civil Rights Workers Murders: Edgar Ray Killen is arrested as a suspect for the 1964 murders of three Civil Rights workers.
2005 - First World Congress of Imams and Rabbis for Peace begins in Brussels, Belgium.
2006 - Tropical Storm Zeta (2005) dissipates, ending the notorious 2005 hurricane season.

Births
1367 - Richard II of England (d. 1400)
1412 - Joan of Arc, Roman Catholic Saint and national heroine of France (legendary date) (d. 1431)
1486 - Martin Agricola, German composer (d. 1556)
1488 - Helius Eobanus Hessus, German poet (d. 1540)
1525 - Caspar Peucer, German reformer (d. 1602)
1561 - Thomas Fincke, Danish mathematician (d. 1656)
1587 - Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel, Count-Duke of Olivares, Spanish statesman (d. 1645)
1595 - Claude Favre de Vaugelas, French man of letters (d. 1650)
1617 - Kristoffer Gabel, Danish statesman (d. 1673)
1706 - Benjamin Franklin, American statesman (d. 1790)
1714 - Percivall Pott, English physician (d. 1788)
1745 - Étienne Montgolfier, French inventor (d. 1799)
1793 - James Madison Porter, American politician (d. 1862)
1795 - Anselme Payen, French chemist (d. 1871)
1807 - Jozef Maximilián Petzval, Slovak inventor (d. 1891)
1822 - Heinrich Schliemann, German archaeologist (d. 1890)
1832 - Gustave Doré, French painter and sculptor (d. 1883)
1838 - Max Bruch, German composer (d. 1920)
1848 - Hristo Botev, Bulgarian poet (d. 1876)
1870 - Gustav Bauer, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1944)
1872 - Alexander Scriabin, Russian composer (d. 1915)
1878 - Carl Sandburg, American poet and historian (d. 1967)
1880 - Tom Mix, American actor (d. 1940)
1882 - Fan S. Noli, Albanian bishop (d. 1965)
1882 - Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1961)
1882 - Aleksandra Ekster, Russian painter (d. 1949)
1883 - Khalil Gibran, Lebanese writer (d. 1931)
1898 - James Fitzmaurice, Irish aviation pioneer (d. 1965)
1899 - Phyllis Haver, American actress (d. 1960)
1899 - Heinrich Nordhoff, German automobile engineer (d. 1968)
1903 - Maurice Abravanel, Greek-born conductor (d. 1993)
1905 - Idris Davies, Welsh poet (d. 1953)
1910 - Morris Wright, American writer (d. 1998)
1913 - Loretta Young, American actress (d. 2000)
1913 - Edward Gierek, Polish politician (d. 2001)
1914 - Danny Thomas, American actor (d. 1991)
1915 - Alan Watts, English writer (d. 1973)
1917 - Koo Chen-fu, Chinese negotiator (d. 2005)
1920 - Sun Myung Moon, Korean evangelist
1920 - John Maynard Smith, English biologist (d. 2004)
1920 - Early Wynn, baseball player (d. 1999)
1920 - Doris Stokes, British psychic medium (d. 1987)
1921 - Cary Middlecoff, American golfer (d. 1998)
1923 - Jacobo Timerman, Argentine writer (d. 1999)
1924 - Earl Scruggs, American musician
1925 - John De Lorean, American auto maker (d. 2005)
1926 - Ralph Branca, baseball player
1926 - Kim Dae-jung, President of South Korea and Nobel Prize laureate
1926 - Kid Gavilan, Cuban boxer (d. 2003)
1926 - Mickey Hargitay, Hungarian-born actor and bodybuilder (d. 2006)
1926 - Pat Flaherty, American racecar driver (2002)
1929 - Babrak Karmal, Afghani politician (d. 1996)
1930 - Vic Tayback, American actor (d. 1990)
1931 - Capucine, French actress (d. 1990)
1931 - E. L. Doctorow, American author
1931 - Dickie Moore, Canadian hockey player
1932 - Stuart A. Rice, American chemist
1933 - Oleg Makarov, cosmonaut (d. 2003)
1933 - Emil Steinberger, Swiss comedian
1935 - Nino Tempo, American singer and actor
1936 - Julio María Sanguinetti Coirolo, President of Uruguay
1936 - Rubén Amaro, Sr., baseball player
1937 - Lou Holtz, football coach
1937 - Paolo Conte, Italian singer
1937 - Doris Troy, American singer (d. 2004)
1940 - Penny Lernoux, American journalist (d. 1989)
1940 - Van McCoy, American musician (d. 1979)
1943 - Terry Venables, English football manager
1944 - Bonnie Franklin, American actress
1944 - Rolf M. Zinkernagel, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate
1945 - Allen Appel, American novelist
1945 - Kojo Nnamdi, host on NPR station WAMU
1946 - Syd Barrett, English guitarist, singer and songwriter; formed Pink Floyd (d. 2006)
1947 - Sandy Denny, English vocalist (d. 1978)
1951 - Kim Wilson, American musician
1951 - Don Gullett, Major League Baseball pitcher
1952 - Frank Sivero, Italian-American actor
1952 - Moondog Spot, wrestler (d. 2003)
1953 - Malcolm Young, Scottish-born Australian guitarist (AC/DC)
1954 - Hans Robert Hiegel, German architect
1954 - Yuji Horii, Japanese video game designer
1954 - Anthony Minghella, British director
1955 - Rowan Atkinson, British comedian and actor
1956 - Angus Deayton, British comedian, actor and television presenter
1957 - Nancy Lopez, American golfer
1959 - Kapil Dev, Indian cricketer
1959 - Kathy Sledge, American singer
1960 - Nigella Lawson, British chef and writer
1960 - Howie Long, American football star
1960 - Paul Azinger, American golfer
1962 - Michael Houser, American musician (d. 2002)
1963 - Jazzie B, American musician
1964 - David Wall, Programmer, Public Servant
1964 - Henry Maske, German boxer
1964 - Charles Haley, Former Dallas Cowboy
1964 - Rafael Vidal, Venezuelan athlete (d. 2005)
1964 - Mark O'Toole, British musician
1965 - Muhammed al-Ahari, American Muslim writer
1965 - Konnan, professional wrestler
1966 - Fernando Carrillo, Venezuelan actor
1966 - A. R. Rahman, Indian Music Composer
1966 - Andrew Wood, American singer (Mother Love Bone) (d. 1990)
1968 - John Singleton, American film director
1970 - Julie Chen, American television presenter
1970 - Gabrielle Reece, American volleyball player
1972 - Nek, Italian singer
1973 - Scott Ferguson, Canadian ice hockey player
1974 - Nicole DeHuff. American actress (d. 2005)
1975 - James Farrior, American football player
1975 - Yukana, Japanese seiyū
1976 - Danny Pintauro, American actor
1976 - Richard Zedník, Slovak ice hockey player
1978 - Nikki Einfeld, Canadian opera singer
1980 - Steed Malbranque, French footballer
1980 - Hiromi Oshima, Japanese adult model
1981 - Mike Jones, American rapper
1981 - Jérémie Renier, Belgian actor
1982 - Gilbert Arenas, American basketball player
1984 - AJ Hawk, American footbal player

Deaths
664 - Amr ibn al-A'as, Muslim general (bc. 583)
1088 - Berengar of Tours, French theologian (bc. 999)
1448 - Christopher of Bavaria, King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden (b. 1418)
1537 - Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence (b. 1510)
1537 - Baldassare Peruzzi, Italian architect and painter (b. 1481)
1616 - Philip Henslowe, English theatrical entrepreneur (bc. 1550)
1689 - Seth Ward, English mathematician and astronomer (b. 1671)
1711 - Philipp van Almonde, Dutch admiral (b. 1646)
1718 - Giovanni Vincenzo Gravina, Italian writer and jurist (b. 1664)
1718 - Richard Hoare, English goldsmith and banker (b. 1648)
1724 - Chikamatsu Monzaemon, Japanese dramatist (b. 1653)
1731 - Étienne François Geoffroy, French chemist (b. 1672)
1734 - John Dennis, English critic and dramatist (b. 1657)
1813 - Louis Baraguey d'Hilliers, French general (b. 1764)
1831 - Rodolphe Kreutzer, French violinist, composer and conductor (b. 1766)
1840 - Fanny Burney, English novelist and diarist (b. 1752)
1852 - Louis Braille, French teacher of the blind (b. 1809)
1855 - Giacomo Beltrami, Italian explorer (b. 1779)
1884 - Gregor Johann Mendel, Austrian geneticist (b. 1822)
1885 - Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, Norwegian writer and scientist (b. 1812)
1913 - Frederick Hitch, English Victoria Cross Winner (b. 1856)
1918 - Georg Cantor, German mathematician (b. 1845)
1919 - Max Heindel, Danish astrologer and mystic (b. 1865)
1919 - Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States (b. 1858)
1922 - Jakob Rosanes, German mathematician (b. 1842)
1928 - Alvin Kraenzlein, American athlete (b. 1876)
1937 - André Besette, Canadian religious figure (b. 1845)
1941 - Charley O'Leary, American baseball player (b. 1882)
1942 - Henri de Baillet-Latour, Belgian International Olympic Committee president (b. 1876)
1944 - Ida Tarbell, American journalist (b. 1857)
1945 - Vladimir Vernadsky, Russian mineralogist (b. 1863)
1949 - Victor Fleming, American director (b. 1883)
1972 - Chen Yi, Chinese military commander and politician (b. 1901)
1978 - Burt Munro, New Zealand motorcycle racer (b. 1899)
1981 - A.J. Cronin, Scottish writer (b. 1896)
1990 - Ian Charleson, Scottish actor (b. 1949)
1990 - Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
1993 - Dizzy Gillespie, American jazz trumpeter (b. 1917)
1993 - Rudolf Nureyev, Russian ballet dancer (b. 1938)
1995 - Joe Slovo, South African politician (b. 1926)
1996 - Yahya Ayyash, Palestinian leader (b. 1966)
1997 - Catherine Scorsese, Italian-American actress (b. 1912)
1999 - Michel Petrucciani, French jazz pianist (b. 1962)
2000 - Don Martin, American cartoonist (b. 1931)
2004 - Pierre Charles, Prime Minister of Dominica (b. 1954)
2004 - Charles Dumas, American athlete (b. 1937)
2004 - Francesco Scavullo, American photographer (b. 1921)
2005 - Lois Hole, Lt. Governor of Alberta (b. 1933)
2005 - Louis Robichaud, Premier of New Brunswick (b. 1925)
2006 - Lou Rawls, American singer (b. 1933)
2006 - Hugh Thompson, Jr., decorated Vietnam War helicopter pilot (b. 1943)

Holidays and observances
Christianity
Epiphany
(except Eastern and Oriental Orthodox who follow the Julian Calendar) - Twelfth Day of Christmas, also known as Twelfth Day and Three Kings Day
Public holiday in Spain, Italy and Puerto Rico to mark Epiphany
In the Irish Calendar - Little Christmas (Nollaig na mBan, "Women's Christmas")
Rastafari movement - Celebration of the ceremonial birthday of Haile Selassie
Armenian Christmas (except in the Holy Land where it is on 18 January - old calendar)
Ancient Latvia - Zvaigznes Diena observed

External links
BBC: On This Day
NY Times: On this day
On This Day in Canada

January 7th

Events
1325 - Alfonso IV becomes King of Portugal.
1558 - France takes Calais, the last continental possession of England.
1566 - Pius V becomes Pope.
1598 - Boris Godunov seizes the throne of Russia.
1608 - Fire destroys Jamestown, Virginia.
1610 - Galileo Galilei observes the four largest moons of Jupiter for the first time. He named them and in turn the four are called the Galilean moons.
1782 - The first American commercial bank opens (Bank of North America).
1785 - Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American John Jeffries travel from Dover, England, to Calais, France, in a gas balloon.
1797 - The current flag of Italy is first used.
1835 - HMS Beagle anchors off the Chonos Archipelago.
1894 - W.K. Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film.
1904 - The distress signal "CQD" is established only to be replaced two years later by "SOS."
1922 - Dáil Éireann ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by a 64-57 vote.
1924 - George Gershwin completes Rhapsody in Blue.
1924 - The International Hockey Federation (FIH) is founded in Paris by seven member states: Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Hungary, Spain, and Switzerland.
1927 - First transatlantic telephone call - New York City to London.
1927 - The Harlem Globetrotters play their first game.
1935 - World War II: Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval sign the Italo-French agreements.
1942 - World War II: Siege of the Bataan Peninsula begins.
1945 - British General Bernard Montgomery holds a press conference in which he claims credit for victory in the Battle of the Bulge.
1950 - A fire at the Mercy Hospital in Davenport, Iowa, kills 41 people.
1953 - President Harry Truman announces that the United States has developed a hydrogen bomb.
1954 - Georgetown-IBM experiment, the first public demonstration of a machine translation system, was held in New York at the head office of IBM.
1959 - The United States recognizes the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro.
1972 - Iberia Airlines Caravelle 6-R crashed into Mont San Jose on approach to Ibiza Airport killing all 104 on board.
1979 - Phnom Penh fell to the advancing Vietnamese troops, driving out Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge.
1980 - President Jimmy Carter authorizes legislation giving $1.5 billion in loans to bail out Chrysler Corporation.
1984 - Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
1989 - Hirohito, Emperor of Japan during World War II, dies.
1990 - The Leaning Tower of Pisa is closed to the public due to safety concerns.
1999 - The impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton begins.

[edit] Births
1 BC (O.S.) - Jesus of Nazareth, central figure of Christianity, (date celebrated by Eastern Orthodox churches as Christmas)
1355 - Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester, son of Edward III of England (d. 1397)
1502 - Pope Gregory XIII (d. 1585)
1528 - Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre (d. 1572)
1647 - Wilhelm Ludwig, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1677)
1685 - Jonas Alströmer, Swedish industrialist (d. 1761)
1706 - Johann Heinrich Zedler, German publisher (d. 1751)
1718 - Israel Putnam, American Revolutionary War general (d. 1790)
1768 - Joseph Bonaparte, King of Naples (d. 1844)
1800 - Millard Fillmore, 13th President of the United States (d. 1874)
1827 - Sir Sandford Fleming, Canadian engineer; introduced Universal Standard Time (d. 1915)
1830 - Albert Bierstadt, an German-American painter (d. 1902)
1831 - Heinrich von Stephan, German labor organizer (d. 1897)
1834 - Johann Philipp Reis, German physicist and inventor (d. 1874)
1844 - Bernadette Soubirous, French saint (d. 1879)
1860 - Emanuil Manolov, Bulgarian composer (d. 1902)
1871 - Émile Borel, French mathematician and politician (d. 1956)
1873 - Adolph Zukor, Hungarian producer (d. 1976)
1873 - Charles Péguy, French poet and essayist (d. 1914)
1875 - Thomas Hicks, American runner (d. 1963)
1891 - Zora Neale Hurston, American author (d. 1960)
1896 - Arnold Ridley, British playwright and actor (d. 1984)
1899 - Francis Poulenc, French composer (d. 1963)
1903 - Warren Hull, American actor (d. 1974)
1903 - Alan Napier, English actor (d. 1988)
1908 - Red Allen, American musician (d. 1967)
1910 - Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Pakistani poet (d. (1984)
1910 - Orval Faubus, Governor of Arkansas (d. 1994)
1911 - Butterfly McQueen, American actress (d. 1995)
1912 - Charles Addams, American cartoonist (d. 1988)
1913 - Johnny Mize, baseball player (d. 1993)
1916 - Paul Keres, Estonian chess player (d. 1975)
1922 - Vincent Gardenia, Italian-born actor (d. 1992)
1922 - Jean-Pierre Rampal, French flutist (d. 2000)
1922 - Alvin Dark, baseball player and manager
1923 - Hugh Kenner, Canadian literary critic (d. 2003)
1925 - Gerald Durrell British naturalist (d. 1995)
1928 - William Peter Blatty, American screenwriter
1929 - Terry Moore, American actress
1934 - Charlie Jenkins, American runner
1934 - Jean Corbeil, Canadian politician (d. 2002)
1935 - Kenny Davern, American jazz clarinetist
1935 - Tommy Johnson, American tubist (d. 2006)
1935 - Valeri Kubasov, Soviet cosmonaut
1937 - Paul Revere, American musician
1938 - Roland Topor, French illustrator (d. 1997)
1938 - Rory Storm, British singer (d. 1972)
1938 - Lou Graham, American golfer
1939 - Maury Povich, American TV host
1939 - Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark
1941 - Iona Brown, British violinist and conductor (d. 2004)
1941 - John E. Walker, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
1942 - Vasily Alexeev, Russian weightlifter
1942 - Danny Williams, South African singer (d. 2005)
1942 - Jim Lefebvre, Major League Baseball player
1944 - Arne Scheie, Norwegian sports commentator
1945 - Tony Conigliaro, American baseball player (d. 1990)
1945 - Dick Marty, Swiss politician
1946 - Jann Wenner, American publisher
1947 - Shobha De, Indian writer
1948 - Kenny Loggins, American singer
1949 - Steven Williams, American actor
1950 - Erin Gray, American actress
1950 - Juan Gabriel, Mexican singer and songwriter
1950 - Ross Grimsley, Major League Baseball pitcher
1951 - Helen Worth, British actress
1951 - James Beard, American wrestling referee
1952 - Sammo Hung, Hong Kong actor
1956 - David Caruso, American actor
1956 - Mike Liut, National Hockey League goaltender
1957 - Nicholson Baker, American novelist
1957 - Katie Couric, American television host
1957 - Julian Solis, Puerto Rican boxer
1959 - Kathy Valentine, American musician (The Go-Gos)
1962 - Aleksandr Dugin, Russian politician
1964 - Nicolas Cage, American actor
1966 - Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, American publicist (d. 1999)
1967 - Mark Lamarr, British comedian and broadcaster
1967 - Guy Hebert, American hockey player
1970 - Doug E. Doug, American actor
1970 - Joao Ricardo, Angolan footballer
1971 - David Yost, American actor
1971 - C.W. Anderson, American professional wrestler
1972 - Donald Brashear, American hockey player
1973 - Jonna Tervomaa, Finnish singer
1976 - Eric Gagné, Canadian baseball player
1976 - Alfonso Soriano, Dominican baseball player
1977 - Michelle Behennah, British model
1977 - Dustin Diamond, American actor
1979 - Bipasha Basu, Indian model
1980 - Mariangel Ruiz, Venezuelan actress and model
1981 - Marquis Daniels, American basketball player
1981 - Alex Auld, Canadian hockey player
1982 - Francisco Rodriguez, Venezuelan baseball player
1985 - Lewis Hamilton, British racing driver
1990 - Liam Aiken, American actor
1990 - Elene Gedevanishvili, Georgian figure skater

[edit] Deaths
1400 - Thomas Holland, 1st Duke of Surrey, English politician (executed) (b. 1374)
1451 - Count Amadeus VIII of Savoy (b. 1383)
1536 - Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII of England (b. 1485)
1566 - Louis de Blois, Flemish mystic (b. 1506)
1619 - Nicholas Hilliard, English painter (bc. 1547)
1625 - Ruggiero Giovannelli, Italian composer (bc. 1560)
1658 - Theophilus Eaton, Connecticut colonist (b. 1590)
1694 - Charles Gerard, 1st Earl of Macclesfield, English royalist general (bc. 1618)
1700 - Raphael Fabretti, Italian antiquarian (b. 1618)
1715 - François Fénelon, French catholic theologian and writer (b. 1651)
1758 - Allan Ramsay, Scottish poet (b. 1686)
1767 - Thomas Clap, first president of Yale University (b. 1703)
1770 - Carl Gustaf Tessin, Swedish politician (b. 1695)
1783 - William Tans'ur, English hymnist (b. 1700)
1786 - Jean-Étienne Guettard, French physician and scientist (b. 1715)
1830 - Thomas Lawrence, English painter (b. 1769)
1864 - Caleb Blood Smith, 6th U.S. Secretary of the Interior (b. 1808)
1872 - James Fisk, American entrepreneur (b. 1834)
1878 - François-Vincent Raspail, French chemist (b. 1794)
1892 - Tewfik Pasha, Khedive of Egypt (b. 1852)
1893 - Jožef Stefan, Slovenian physicist, mathematician, and poet (b. 1835)
1913 - Jack Boyle, baseball player (b. 1866)
1919 - Henry Ware Eliot American industrialist and philantropist (b. 1843)
1920 - Edmund Barton, first Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1849)
1943 - Nikola Tesla, Serbian-born inventor and electrical engineer (b. 1856)
1951 - René Guénon, French-Egyptian author (b. 1886)
1964 - Cyril Davies, American musician (b. 1932)
1972 - John Berryman, American poet (b. 1914)
1980 - Larry Williams, American singer, pianist and songwriter (b. 1935)
1984 - Alfred Kastler, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902))
1986 - Juan Rulfo, Mexican novelist (b. 1917)
1988 - Trevor Howard, English actor (b. 1913)
1988 - Michel Auclair, French actor (b. 1922)
1989 - Hirohito, Emperor of Japan (b. 1901)
1990 - Bronko Nagurski, American football player (b. 1908)
1992 - Richard Hunt, American puppeteer (The Muppets) (b. 1951)
1995 - Murray Rothbard, American economist (b. 1926)
1996 - Károly Grósz, Hungarian politician (b. 1930)
1998 - Vladimir Prelog, Croatian chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)
1998 - Owen Bradley, American record producer (b. 1915)
2000 - Gary Albright, professional wrestler (b. 1963)
2002 - Naughtia Childs porn star (suicide) (b. 1979)
2002 - Jon Lee, Welsh drummer (Feeder) (suicide) (b. 1968)
2002 - Avery Schreiber, American actor (b. 1935)
2004 - Ingrid Thulin, Swedish actress (b. 1926)
2005 - Pierre Daninos, French novelist (b. 1913)
2005 - Eileen Desmond, Irish politician (b. 1932)
2006 - Heinrich Harrer, Austrian mountaineer and explorer (b. 1912)

[edit] Holidays and observances
Catholicism - Feast day of St. Raymond of Peñafort.
Christmas Day in the Julian calendar.
European traditional - Distaff day: women's traditional work begins again after Epiphany.
Japan - Nanakusa (Seven Herbs Festival).

[edit] External links
BBC: On This Day
NY Times: On this day
On This Day in Canada

2007 New Years Celebrations Worldwide Coverage

2007-01-02T16:37:00.000-05:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR

What happened on "Christmas Day" and on "New Year's Day"?

2006-12-19T10:53:00.000-05:00

Offered by:

December 25th

Events
274 - Roman Emperor Aurelian has a temple dedicated to Sol Invictus on the supposed day of the solstice and day of rebirth of the Sun.
800 - Coronation of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor, in Rome.
1066 - Coronation of William the Conqueror as king of England, at Westminster Abbey, London.
1223 - St. Francis of Assisi assembles the first Nativity scene.
1261 - John IV Lascaris of the restored Eastern Roman Empire is deposed and blinded by orders of his co-ruler Michael VIII Palaeologus.
1599 - The city of Natal, Brazil is founded.
1643 - Christmas Island founded and named by Captain William Mynors of the East India Ship Company vessel, the Royal Mary.
1776 - George Washington and his army cross the Delaware River to attack the Kingdom of Great Britain's Hessian mercenaries in Trenton, New Jersey.
1818 - The first performance of "Silent Night" takes place in the Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria.
1837 - Battle of Okeechobee: United States forces defeat Seminole Indians.
1868 - U.S. President Andrew Johnson grants unconditional pardon to all Civil War Confederate soldiers.
1868 - Shogunate rebels found Ezo Republic in Hokkaidō.
1914 - World War I: Known as the Christmas truce, German and British troops on the Western Front temporarily cease fire.
1917 - Why Marry?, first dramatic play to win a Pulitzer Prize, opens at the Astor Theatre in New York City.
1926 - Hirohito becomes Emperor of Japan, succeeding the Taisho Emperor.
1932 - A magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Gansu, China kills ~70,000 people.
1939 - Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is read on the radio for the first time (CBS radio).
1939 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is introduced by Montgomery Ward stores.
1941 - World War II: Battle of Hong Kong ends, beginning the Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong.
1947 - The Constitution of the Republic of China goes into effect.
1971 - In the longest game in NFL history (82m40s), the Miami Dolphins defeat the Kansas City Chiefs.
1973 - The ARPANET crashes when a programming bug causes all ARPANET traffic to be routed through the server at Harvard University, causing the server to freeze.
1974 - Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin, Northern Territory Australia.
1974 - Marshall Fields drives a vehicle through the gates of the White House, resulting in a four-hour standoff.
1977 - Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin meets in Egypt with President of Egypt Anwar Sadat.
1987 - In one of the highest-rated episodes in Coronation Street history, Hilda Ogden leaves her home of 23 years to be a char to her doctor in the country.
1989 - Nicolae Ceauşescu, former communist dictator of Romania, and his wife Elena are condemned to death and executed under a wide range of charges.
1991 - Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as president of the Soviet Union (the union itself is dissolved the next day).
2003 - The ill-fated Beagle 2 probe which was released from the Mars Express Spacecraft on December 19, disappears shortly before its scheduled landing.
2004 - Cassini orbiter releases Huygens probe which successfully landed on Saturn's moon, Titan on January 14, 2005.

Births
For the birth of Jesus, see below.
1250 - John IV Lascaris, Eastern Roman Emperor (d. circa 1305)
1583 - Orlando Gibbons, English composer (d. 1625)
1628 - Noël Coypel, French painter (d. 1707)
1642 (O.S.) - Sir Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician (d. 1727)
1652 - Archibald Pitcairne, Scottish physician (d. 1713)
1665 - Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish songwriter (d. 1746)
1667 - Ehrengard von der Schulenburg, English royal mistress (d. 1743)
1674 - Thomas Halyburton, Scottish theologian (d. 1712)
1700 - Leopold II of Anhalt-Dessau, Prussian general (d. 1758)
1711 - Jean Joseph de Mondonville, French composer (d. 1772)
1716 - Johann Jakob Reiske, German scholar and physician (d. 1774)
1742 - Charlotte von Stein, German friend of Goethe (d. 1827)
1757 - Benjamin Pierce, U.S. politician (d 1839)
1763 - Claude Chappe, French telecommunications pioneer (d. 1805)
1771 - Dorothy Wordsworth, English diarist and sister of William Wordsworth (d. 1855)
1821 - Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross (d. 1912)
1856 - Hans von Bartels, German painter (d. 1913)
1861 - Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Indian founder of Banaras Hindu University (d. 1946)
1863 - Charles Pathé, French pioneer of film and record industries (d. 1957)
1865 - Evangeline Booth, the 4th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1950)
1875 - Theodor Cardinal Innitzer, Austrian archbishop (d. 1955)
1876 - Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan (d. 1948)
1876 - Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus, Nobel laureate (d. 1959)
1878 - Louis Chevrolet, Swiss-born race car driver (d. 1941)
1883 - Maurice Utrillo, French artist (d. 1955)
1884 - Evelyn Nesbit, American actress (d. 1967)
1886 - Kid Ory, American musician (d. 1973)
1887 - Conrad Nicholson Hilton, American hotelier (d. 1979)
1890 - Robert Ripley, collector of odd facts (d. 1949)
1899 - Humphrey Bogart, American actor (d. 1957)
1901 - Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (d. 2004)
1902 - Barton MacLane, American actor (d. 1969)
1904 - Gerhard Herzberg, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1999)
1906 - Lew Grade, Ukrainian-born film producer (d. 1998)
1906 - Ernst Ruska, Nobel laureate (d. 1988)
1907 - Cab Calloway, American bandleader (d. 1994)
1907 - Glenn McCarthy, American oil tycoon and businessman (d. 1988)
1907 - Mike Mazurki, Ukrainian-born actor (d. 1990)
1908 - Quentin Crisp, English author (d. 1999)
1908 - Jo-Jo Moore, baseball player (d. 2001)
1908 - Zora Arkus-Duntov, Belgian-American automotive engineer (d. 1996)
1912 - Tony Martin, American singer and actor
1912 - Natalino Otto, Italian singer (d. 1969)
1913 - Henri Nannen, German journalist (d. 1966)
1915 - Pete Rugolo, Italian-born composer
1918 - Anwar Sadat, President of Egypt, Nobel laureate (d. 1981)
1918 - Ahmed Ben Bella, politician, first President of Algeria
1919 - Paul David, French Canadian cardiologist, founder of the Montreal Heart Institute (d. 1999)
1921 - Zaib-un-Nissa Hamidullah, Pakistani journalist (d. 2000)
1924 - Rod Serling, American television writer (d. 1975)
1924 - Atal Behari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India
1925 - Carlos Castaneda, Peruvian-born author (d. 1998)
1927 - Nellie Fox, baseball player (d. 1975)
1928 - Dick Miller, American actor
1929 - Chris Kenner, American singer and songwriter (d. 1976)
1932 - Mabel King, American actress (d. 1999)
1935 - Al Jackson, baseball player
1936 - Princess Alexandra of Kent
1936 - Ismail Merchant, Indian-born film producer (d. 2005)
1937 - O'Kelly Isley, Jr., American singer (The Isley Brothers) (d. 1986)
1940 - Pete Brown, English poet and lyricist
1943 - Hanna Schygulla, German actress
1943 - Wilson Fittipaldi, Brazilian racing driver
1944 - Jairzinho, Brazilian footballer
1944 - Kenny Everett, British entertainer (d. 1995)
1945 - Noel Redding, English musician (d. 2003)
1945 - Gary Sandy, American actor
1946 - Jimmy Buffett, American singer and songwriter
1946 - Larry Csonka, American football player
1946 - Gene Lamont, American baseball player and manager
1948 - Barbara Mandrell, American singer and actress
1949 - Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister of Pakistan
1949 - Sissy Spacek, American actress
1949 - Joe Louis Walker, American musician
1950 - Manny Trillo, baseball player
1950 - Karl Rove, American presidential advisor
1952 - CCH Pounder, Guyana-born actress
1952 - Desireless, French singer
1954 - Annie Lennox, Scottish singer
1955 - Alannah Myles, Canadian singer
1957 - Chris Kamara, English footballer and commentator
1957 - Shane MacGowan, Irish musician
1958 - Hanford Dixon, American football player
1958 - Rickey Henderson, baseball player
1959 - Michael P. Anderson, astronaut (d. 2003)
1961 - Ingrid Betancourt, Colombian senator
1962 - Dean Cameron, American actor
1964 - Gary McAllister, Scottish footballer
1967 - Jason Thirsk, American bass player
1968 - Helena Christensen, Danish model
1971 - Dido, English singer
1971 - Justin Trudeau, Canadian media personality
1971 - Noel Hogan, Irish musician
1972 - Josh Freese, American drummer
1973 - Alexandre Trudeau, Canadian journalist
1973 - Robbie Elliott, English footballer
1975 - Marcus Trescothick, English cricketer
1976 - Tuomas Holopainen, Finnish keyboardist
1976 - Armin van Buuren, Dutch keyboardist
1978 - Joel Porter, Australian footballer
1978 - Simon Jones English Cricketer
1979 - Jim Greco, American skateboarder
1980 - Marcus Trufant, American football player
1980 - Reika Hashimoto, Japanese actress
1980 - Locó, Angolan footballer
1981 - Katie Wright, American actress
1981 - Willy Taveras, Baseball player
1984 - Jessica and Lisa Origliasso, Australian pop singers
1984 - Alastair Cook, English cricketer
1984 - Georgia Moffett, British actress
1986 - Doug Loft, English footballer

Deaths
795 - Pope Adrian I
1156 - Peter the Venerable, Benedictine abbot of Cluny (b. c. 1092)
1635 - Samuel de Champlain, French explorer and founder of Quebec City (b. 1567)
1676 - Matthew Hale, Lord Chief Justice of England (b. 1609)
1676 - William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle, English soldier (b. 1592)
1683 - Kara Mustafa, Ottoman general (b. 1634)
1758 - James Hervey, English clergyman (b. 1714)
1784 - Yosa Buson, Japanese painter (b. 1716)
1824 - Barbara Juliana, Baroness von Krüdener, Russian writer (b. 1764)
1868 - Linus Yale, Jr., American mechanical engineer and inventor (b. 1821)
1880 - Fridolin Anderwert, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1828)
1916 - St. Albert Chmielowski, Polish Catholic Saint (b. 1845)
1921 - Vladimir Korolenko, Russian writer (b. 1853)
1925 - Karl Abraham, German psychoanalyst (b. 1877)
1926 - Taisho Emperor, Japanese emperor (b. 1879)
1933 - Francesc Macià, Catalonian statesman (b. 1859)
1935 - Paul Bourget, French novelist and critic (b. 1852)
1938 - Karel Capek, Czech author (b. 1890)
1940 - Agnes Ayres, American actress (b. 1898)
1946 - W. C. Fields, American comedian (b. 1880)
1950 - Neil Francis Hawkins, British fascist (b. 1903)
1953 - Patsy Donovan, Irish-born American baseball player (b. 1865)
1961 - Otto Loewi, Nobel laureate (b. 1873)
1961 - Owen Brewster, U.S. Senator from Maine (b. 1888)
1963 - Tristan Tzara, Romanian-born writer (b. 1896)
1971 - Maria Koepcke, ornithologist (b. 1924)
1973 - Ismet Inonu, Turkish statesman (b. 1884)
1973 - Gabriel Voisin, French aviation pioneer (b. 1880)
1977 - Charlie Chaplin, English actor (b. 1889)
1979 - Joan Blondell, American actress (b. 1906)
1983 - Joan Miró, Catalan painter (b. 1893)
1988 - Ooka Shohei, Japanese novelist (b. 1909)
1989 - Nicolae Ceauşescu, Romanian dictator (b. 1918)
1989 - Billy Martin, American baseball manager (b. 1928)
1992 - Monica Dickens, British writer (b. 1915)
1993 - Pierre Victor Auger, French physicist (b. 1899)
1994 - Zail Singh, President of India (b. 1916)
1995 - Dean Martin, American singer (b. 1917)
1997 - Denver Pyle, American actor (b. 1920)
1998 - John Pulman, English snooker player (b. 1926)
1999 - Peter Jeffrey, English actor (b. 1929)
2000 - Willard Van Orman Quine, American philosopher (b. 1908)
2003 - Nicholas Mavroules, American politician (b. 1929)
2005 - Birgit Nilsson, Swedish singer (b. 1918)
2005 - Robert Barbers, Philippine senator (b. 1944)

Holidays and observances
Christmas Day is a Christian holiday on this day celebrating the nativity of Jesus. It is a public holiday in many countries, including almost everywhere in the Americas, most European nations, the Philippines and most of Oceania, some African countries, the Commonwealth of Nations, and various other places. Many non-Christians, including non-theists, celebrate secular aspects of the holiday, such as decorating Christmas trees and exchanging gifts with family and friends. Some Christians celebrate Christmas on January 6, January 7, January 18, or even not at all. The date of Christmas Day is determined by various traditions rather than relying on historical research, which generally points to dates earlier in the year. Of those scholars who believe in a historical Jesus, the vast majority of them agree that the precise birthdate is unknown.
British Isles - a quarter day in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland. (but not in Scotland)
Roman festivals - (re)birth of Sol Invictus, the winter solstice feast in the Roman Empire since 274.
Pakistan - Quaid-e-Azam's Day is celebrated as a national holiday in Pakistan in honour of the birth of Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

External links
BBC: On This Day
The New York Times: On This Day
On This Day in Canada

January 1st

[edit] Events
45 BC - The Julian calendar first takes effect.
404 - The last known gladiator competition in Rome takes place.
630 - Prophet Muhammad sets out toward Mecca with the army that will capture it bloodlessly.
990 - Kievan Rus' adopts the Julian calendar.
1259 - Michael VIII Palaeologus is proclaimed co-emperor of the Empire of Nicaea with his ward John IV Lascaris.
1438 - Albert II of Habsburg is crowned King of Hungary.
1515 - King Francis I of France succeeds to the French throne.
1600 - Scotland begins using the Julian calendar.
1651 - Charles II is crowned King of Scotland.
1660 - Samuel Pepys starts his diary.
1673 - Regular mail delivery begins between New York and Boston.
1700 - Russia begins using the Julian calendar.
1707 - John V is crowned King of Portugal.
1739 - Bouvet Island is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier.
1772 - The first traveller's cheques, which can be used in 90 European cities, go on sale in London for the first time.
1788 - First edition of The Times of London, previously The Daily Universal Register, is published.
1797 - Albany replaces New York City as the capital of New York.
1800 - The Dutch East India Company ceases to exist.
1801 - The legislative union of Kingdom of Great Britain and Kingdom of Ireland is completed to form the United Kingdom.
1801 - The first known asteroid, 1 Ceres, is discovered by Giuseppe Piazzi.
1803 - Emperor Gia Long orders all bronze wares of the Tay Son dynasty to be collected and melted into nine cannons for the Royal Citadel in Hue, Vietnam
1804 - French rule ends in Haiti. Haiti becomes the first black republic and first country independent in the West Indies.
1806 - The French Republican Calendar is abolished.
1808 - The importation of slaves into the United States is banned.
1818 - Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus is published.
1833 - Britain claims sovereignty over the Falkland Islands.
1845 - The Cobble Hill Tunnel, in Brooklyn, was finished.
1861 - Porfirio Diaz conquers Mexico City.
1863 - American Civil War: The Emancipation Proclamation takes effect in Confederate territory.
1863 - The first claim under the Homestead Act is made by Daniel Freeman for a farm in Nebraska.
1876 - The Reichsbank opens in Berlin.
1877 - Queen Victoria of Britain is proclaimed Empress of India.
1880 - Ferdinand de Lesseps begins French construction of the Panama Canal.
1887 - Queen Victoria is proclaimed empress of India in Delhi.
1890 - The first Tournament of Roses is held in Pasadena, California.
1890 - First use of soccer goal nets in England.
1890 - Eritrea consolidates into a colony by the Italian government.
1892 - Ellis Island opens to begin accepting immigrants to the United States.
1893 - Japan begins using the Gregorian calendar.
1894 - The Manchester Ship Canal, England, is officially opened to traffic.
1898 - New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York. The four initial boroughs, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx, are joined on January 25 by Staten Island to create the modern city of five boroughs.
1899 - Spanish rule ends in Cuba.
1901 - Nigeria becomes a British protectorate.
1901 - The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton is appointed the first Prime Minister.
1901 - The first official Mummers Parade is held.
1902 - The first Rose Bowl game is played in Pasadena, California, with the University of Michigan beating Stanford University by a score of 49-0.
1906 - British India officially adopts the Indian Standard Time
1908 - For the first time, a ball is dropped in New York City's Times Square to signify the start of the New Year at midnight.
1909 - Drilling began on the Lakeview Gusher.
1910 - Captain David Beatty was promoted to Rear Admiral, and became the youngest admiral in the Royal Navy, except for Royal family members, since Horatio Nelson.
1911 - Northern Territory is separated from South Australia and transferred to Commonwealth control.
1912 - The Republic of China is established.
1916 - German troops abandon Yaoundé and their Kamerun colony to British forces and begin the long march to Spanish Guinea.
1925 - The American astronomer Edwin Hubble announces the discovery of galaxies outside the Milky Way.
1927 - Turkey adopts the Gregorian calendar: December 18, 1926 (Julian), is immediately followed by January 1, 1927 (Gregorian).
1934 - Alcatraz Island becomes a U.S. federal prison.
1934 - Nazi Germany passes the "Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring".
1935 - Bucknell University wins the first Orange Bowl 26-0 over the University of Miami.
1937 - The first Cotton Bowl game is played in Dallas, Texas. TCU defeats Marquette University 16-6.
1939 - The first Vienna New Year's Concert is held.
1939 - William Hewlett and David Packard found Hewlett-Packard.
1942 - The Declaration by the United Nations is signed by twenty-six nations.
1946 - The first civil flight from Heathrow Airport occurs.
1947 - The American and British occupation zones in Germany, after the World War II, merge to form the Bizone, that later became the Federal Republic of Germany.
1948 - British railways are nationalised to form British Rail.
1948 - After partition, India declines to pay the agreed share of Rs.550 million in cash balances to Pakistan.
1948 - The Constitution of Italy comes into force.
1949 - The British Nationality Act 1948 comes into force.
1949 - UN Cease-fire orders to operate in Kashmir from one minute before midnight. War between India and Pakistan stops accordingly.
1950 - The state of Ajaigarh acceded to the Government of India.
1956 - The Republic of the Sudan achieves independence from the Egyptian Republic and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
1958 - The European Community is established.
1959 - Cultivars of plants named after this date must be named in a modern language, not in Latin.
1959 - Fulgencio Batista, president of Cuba, is overthrown by Fidel Castro's forces during the Cuban Revolution.
1960 - The Republic of Cameroon achieves independence from France and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
1962 - Western Samoa achieves independence from New Zealand; its name is changed to the Independent State of Western Samoa.
1962 - Decca Records turn down the Beatles
1964 - The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is divided into the independent republics of Zambia and Malawi, and the British-controlled Rhodesia.
1965 - The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan was founded in Kabul.
1966 - A twelve day New York City transit strike begins.
1966 - After a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa assumes power as president of the Central African Republic.
1970 - Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Miles, and Billy Cox are recorded live at the Fillmore East. The resulting album, Band of Gypsys, is the last Hendrix album to be released before his death.
1971 - Cigarette advertisements are banned on American television.
1972 - Austrian diplomat Kurt Waldheim assumes as Secretary General of the United Nations.
1973 - The Kingdom of Denmark, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland are admitted into the European Community.
1978 - Air India Flight 855 Boeing 747 explodes and crashes into the sea off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
1978 - The Constitution of the Northern Mariana Islands becomes effective.
1979 - Formal diplomatic relations are established between the People's Republic of China and the United States of America.
1980 - Victoria is crowned princess of Sweden.
1981 - The Republic of Greece is admitted into the European Community.
1981 - The Republic of Palau achieves self-government though it is not independent from the United States.
1982 - Peruvian Javier Pérez de Cuéllar becomes the first Latin American to hold the title of Secretary-General of the United Nations.
1983 - The ARPANET officially changes to using the Internet Protocol, creating the Internet.
1984 - AT&T is broken up into twenty-two independent units.
1984 - The Sultanate of Brunei becomes independent of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
1985 - The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
1985 - The first British mobile phone call is made by Ernie Wise to Vodafone.
1986 - Aruba becomes independent of Curaçao, though it remains in free association with the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
1986 - The Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic are admitted into the European Community.
1988 - The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America comes into existence, creating the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States.
1989 - The Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer comes into force.
1990 - David Dinkins is sworn in as New York City's first black mayor.
1991 - Republican John Engler assumes as governor of Michigan.
1993 - Dissolution of Czechoslovakia: Czechoslovakia is divided into the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic.
1993 - A single market within the European Community is introduced.
1994 - The Zapatista Army of National Liberation initiates twelve days of armed conflict in the Mexican State of Chiapas.
1994 - The North American Free Trade Agreement comes into effect.
1994 - The European Economic Area comes into effect.
1994 - The International Tropical Timber Agreement comes into effect.
1995 - The World Trade Organization comes into effect.
1995 - The Kingdom of Sweden and the republics of Austria and Finland are admitted into the European Union.
1995 - The Conference for Security and Co-operation in Europe becomes the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
1995 - The Draupner wave in the North Sea in Norway is detected, confirming the existence of freak waves.
1995 - Jean-Claude Juncker assumes as Prime Minister of Luxembourg.
1996 - Curaçao gains limited self-government, though it remains within free association with the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
1997 - The Republic of Zaïre officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Zaïre.
1997 - Ghanaian diplomat Kofi Annan assumes as Secretary General of the United Nations.
1998 - The European Central Bank is established.
1999 - The Euro currency is introduced.
1999 - The Polish administrative region of Opole Voivodeship is created, out of the former Opole Voivodeship and parts of Częstochowa Voivodeship.
2000 - As the world celebrates, no major crisis arises from the dreaded Y2K computer 'millennium bug'.
2000 - Hama Amadou assumes as Prime Minister of Niger.
2001 - Tommy Remengesau assumes as president of Palau.
2002 - Euro banknotes and coins become legal tender in twelve of the European Union's member states.
2002 - Taiwan officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Chinese Taipei.
2002 - The Open Skies mutual surveillance treaty, initially signed in 1992, officially enters into force.
2003 - Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva assumes as the President of Brazil.
2004 - In a vote of confidence, General Pervez Musharraf won 658 out of 1,170 votes in the Electoral College of Pakistan, and according to Article 41(8) of the Constitution of Pakistan, was "deemed to be elected" to the office of President until October 2007.
2006 - Sydney, Australia swelters in 45C heat, a record for the city.

[edit] Births
711 BC - Jimmu, emperor of Japan (d. 585 BC) [according to legend]
766 - Ali ar-Rida, Shia Imam (d. 818)
1431 - Pope Alexander VI (d. 1503)
1449 - Lorenzo de Medici, Italian statesman (d. 1492)
1467 - Sigismund I the Old, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (d. 1548)
1484 - Huldrych Zwingli, Swiss Protestant leader (d. 1531)
1511 - The first Henry, Duke of Cornwall (d. 1511)
1516 - Margareta Leijonhufvud, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (d. 1551)
1557 - István Bocskay, Prince of Transylvania (d. 1606)
1600 - Friedrich Spanheim, Dutch theologian (d. 1649)
1614 - John Wilkins, English Bishop of Chester (d. 1672)
1618 - Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, Spanish painter (d. 1682)
1638 - Emperor Go-Sai of Japan (d. 1685)
1648 - Elkanah Settle, English writer (d. 1724)
1655 - Christian Thomasius, German jurist (d. 1728)
1684 - Arnold Drakenborch, Dutch classical scholar (d. 1748)
1704 - Soame Jenyns, English writer (d. 1787)
1711 - Franz Freiherr von der Trenck, Austrian soldier (d. 1749)
1714 - Kristijonas Donelaitis, Lithuanian poet (d. 1780)
1735 - Paul Revere, American patriot (d. 1818)
1745 - Anthony Wayne, American general and statesman (d. 1796)
1750 - Frederick Muhlenberg, 1st Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1801)
1752 - Betsy Ross, American seamstress (d. 1836)
1767 - Maria Edgeworth, Anglo-Irish novelist (d. 1849)
1774 - André Marie Constant Duméril, French zoologist (d. 1860)
1779 - William Clowes, English printer (d. 1847)
1823 - Sándor Petőfi, Hungarian poet and revolutionary (d. 1849)
1833 - Robert Lawson, New Zealand architect (d. 1902)
1848 - John Goff, Irish lawyer (d. 1924)
1854 - Sir James George Frazer, Scottish anthropologist (d. 1941)
1860 - George Washington Carver, American educator (d. 1943)
1863 - Pierre de Coubertin, French Olympic Games initiator(d. 1937)
1864 - Alfred Stieglitz, American photographer (d. 1946)
1868 - Snitz Edwards, American actor (d. 1937)
1873 - Mariano Azuela, Mexican novelist (d. 1952)
1874 - Gustave Whitehead, German-born inventor (d. 1927)
1874 - Frank Knox, American Secretary of the Navy (d. 1944)
1876 - Harriet Brooks, Canadian physicist (d. 1933)
1878 - Agner Krarup Erlang, Danish scientist (d. 1929)
1879 - E. M. Forster, English novelist (d. 1970)
1881 - Vajiravudh, King of Thailand (d. 1925)
1883 - Gabrielle Chanel, French Designer (d. 1971)
1887 - Wilhelm Canaris, German admiral (d. 1945)
1890 - Anton Melik, Slovenian geographer (d. 1966)
1892 - Artur Rodziński, Croatian conductor (d. 1958)
1894 - Satyendra Nath Bose, Indian mathematician (d. 1974)
1895 - J. Edgar Hoover, American FBI director (d. 1972)
1900 - Xavier Cugat, Spanish musician (d. 1990)
1900 - Chiune Sugihara, Japanese diplomat (d. 1986)
1902 - Buster Nupen, South African cricketer (d. 1977)
1904 - Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry, Pakistani politician (d. 1982)
1904 - Ethan Allen, American baseball player (d. 1993)
1905 - Kamatari Fujiwara, Japanese actor (d. 1985)
1906 - Giovanni D'Anzi, Italian songwriter (d. 1974)
1909 - Dana Andrews, American actor (d. 1992)
1909 - Barry M. Goldwater, American politician (d. 1998)
1911 - Hank Greenberg, American baseball player (d. 1986)
1912 - Kim Philby, British spy (d. 1988)
1917 - Jule Gregory Charney, American meteorologist (d. 1981)
1917 - Albert Mol, Dutch actor (d. 2004)
1918 - Patrick Anthony Porteous, Scottish Victoria Cross recipient (d. 2000)
1919 - J. D. Salinger, American novelist
1920 - Virgilio Savona, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
1921 - Isma'il Raji' al-Faruqi, Palestinian-born philosopher (d. 1986)
1922 - Rocky Graziano, American boxer (d. 1990)
1922 - Ernest Hollings, American politician
1925 - Stymie Beard, American actor (d. 1981)
1927 - Vernon L. Smith, American economist, Bank of Sweden Prize winner
1927 - Doak Walker, American football star (d. 1998)
1928 - Ernest Tidyman, American writer (d. 1984)
1930 - Hossain Mohammad Ershad, President of Bangladesh
1933 - Frederick Lowy, Canadian medical educator
1933 - Joe Orton, English writer (d. 1967)
1937 - Adam Wiśniewski-Snerg, Polish author (d. 1995)
1938 - Robert Jankel, British coachbuilder (d. 2005)
1940 - Frank Langella American actor
1942 - Martin Frost, American politician
1942 - Country Joe McDonald, American musician (Country Joe and the Fish)
1942 - Gennadi Sarafanov, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 2005)
1943 - Don Novello, American actor
1943 - Jimmy Hart, Wrestling manager
1944 - Zafarullah Khan Jamali former Prime Minister of Pakistan
1945 - Jacky Ickx, Belgian race car driver
1946 - Rivelino, Brazilian football player
1947 - Jon Corzine, American politician
1947 - Paula Tsui, Hong Kong singer
1948 - Pavel Grachev, Russian general
1951 - Ashfaq Hussain, Urdu poet
1951 - Nana Patekar, Indian Film and Stage Actor
1953 - Greg Carmichael, British guitarist
1954 - Robert Menendez, American politician
1956 - Mark R. Hughes, American enterpeneur (d. 2000)
1957 - Luis Guzmán, Puerto Rican actor
1958 - Grandmaster Flash, Barbados-born musician
1959 - Azali Assoumani, Comorese president
1960 - Adelaide Ferreira, Portuguese singer
1961 - Mark Wingett, British actor
1964 - Dedee Pfeiffer, American actress
1966 - Anna Burke, Australian politician
1966 - Embeth Davidtz, American actress
1967 - Derrick Thomas, American football player (d. 2000)
1967 - John Digweed, English DJ
1968 - Davor Šuker, Croatian footballer
1969 - Verne Troyer, American actor
1970 - Gabriel Jarret, American actor
1970 - Kimberly Page, American actress
1971 - Paul Luscher, singer/songwriter
1971 - Bobby Holik, Czech hockey player
1972 - Neve McIntosh, Scottish actress
1972 - Lilian Thuram, French footballer
1975 - Joe Cannon, American soccer player
1975 - Sonali Bendre, Indian Model and Film Actress
1975 - Robert Westerholt, Dutch guitarist (Within Temptation)
1975 - Eiichiro Oda, Japanese Manga artist
1976 - Caleb Wyatt, American motocross rider
1977 - Hasan Salihamidžić, Bosnian footballer
1977 - Saukrates, Canadian rapper.
1977 - Zachary Quinto, American actor
1978 - Nina Bott, German actress
1978 - Jared Fogle, American personality
1978 - Phillip Mulryne, Northern Irish footballer
1978 - Paramahamsa Sri Nithyananda, Indian spiritual guru
1979 - Brody Dalle, Australian singer (The Distillers)
1979 - Koichi Domoto, Japanese artist
1980 - Elin Nordegren, Swedish model
1980 - Nils-Eric Johansson, Swedish footballer
1981 - Zsolt Baumgartner, Hungarian race car driver
1981 - Abdulkadir Kocak, Turkish boxer
1981 - Eden Riegel, American actress
1982 - David Nalbandian, Argentinian tennis player
1983 - Calum Davenport, English footballer
1984 - Michael Witt, Australian rugby league footballer
1984 - Jose Paolo Guerrero, Peruvian footballer
1985 - Steven Davis, Irish footballer
1985 - Don Paysan, Canadian professional wrestler
1986 - Lee Sung Min, member of Korean boyband Super Junior
1987 - Registered birthday of Xiah Junsu, a member of Korean boyband TVXQ
1987 - Gilbert Brule, Canadian hockey player
1992 - Martin Leung, Canadian trombone player

[edit] Deaths
379 - Saint Basil of Caesarea (b. 330)
404 - Saint Telemachus
874 - Hasan al-Askari, eleventh Shia Imam (b. 846)
898 - Odo, Count of Paris (b. 860)
1204 - King Haakon III of Norway
1387 - King Charles II of Navarre (b. 1332)
1515 - King Louis XII of France (b. 1462)
1554 - Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador (bc. 1500)
1559 - Christian III of Denmark and Norway (b. 1503)
1560 - Joachim Du Bellay, French poet (bc. 1522)
1617 - Hendrik Goltzius, Dutch painter (b. 1558)
1679 - Jan Steen, Dutch painter
1697 - Filippo Baldinucci, Florentine biographer/ historian (b. 1624)
1716 - William Wycherley, English dramatist (bc. 1640)
1730 - Samuel Sewall, English-born judge (b. 1652)
1742 - Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English statesman (b. 1686)
1748 - Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (b. 1667)
1759 - Jacques-Joachim Trotti, marquis de La Chétardie, French adventurer (b. 1705)
1766 - James Francis Edward Stuart, "The Old Pretender" (b. 1688)
1782 - Johann Christian Bach, German composer (b. 1735)
1789 - Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron Grantley, English politician (b. 1716)
1793 - Francesco Guardi, Venetian painter (b. 1712)
1796 - Alexandre-Théophile Vandermonde, French mathematician (b. 1735)
1800 - Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton, French naturalist (b. 1716)
1817 - Martin Heinrich Klaproth, German chemist (b. 1743)
1862 - Mikhail Vasilievich Ostrogradsky, Russian physicist (b. 1801)
1869 - Martin W. Bates, U.S. Senator from Delaware (b. 1786)
1892 - Roswell B. Mason, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1805)
1894 - Heinrich Hertz, German physicist (b. 1857)
1912 - Pyotr Nikolaevich Lebedev, Russian phsyicist (b. 1866)
1919 - Mikhail Drozdovsky, Russian general (b. 1881)
1921 - Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1856)
1931 - Martinus Beijerinck, Dutch microbiologist and botanist (b. 1851)
1933 - Harriet Brooks, Canadian physicist (b. 1876)
1944 - Charles Turner, Australian cricketer (b. 1862)
1953 - Hank Williams, American singer (b. 1923)
1958 - Edward Weston, American photographer (b. 1886)
1960 - Margaret Sullavan, American actress (b. 1911)
1964 - Bechara El Khoury, President of Lebanon (b. 1890)
1971 - Saint Amphilochios, Ukrainian Orthodox Christian Saint (b. 1894)
1972 - Maurice Chevalier, French actor and singer (b. 1888)
1981 - Beulah Bondi, American actress (b. 1888)
1982 - Victor Buono, American actor (b. 1938)
1984 - Alexis Korner, British blues musician (b. 1928)
1985 - Kamatari Fujiwara, Japanese actor (b. 1905)
1986 - Alfredo Binda, Italian cyclist (b. 1902)
1992 - Grace Hopper, American computer pioneer (b. 1906)
1994 - Lord Arthur Espie Porritt, Governor-General of New Zealand (b. 1900)
1994 - Cesar Romero, American actor (b. 1907)
1995 - Fred West, British serial killer (suicide) (b. 1941)
1995 - Eugene Wigner, Hungarian physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1902)
1996 - Arleigh Burke, American admiral (b. 1901)
1997 - Townes Van Zandt, American musician (b. 1944)
1998 - Helen Wills Moody, American tennis player (b. 1905)
2000 - Colin Vaughan, Australian-born political journalist
2001 - Ray Walston, American actor (b. 1914)
2002 - Julia Phillips, American film producer (b. 1944)
2003 - Joe Foss, American politician and fighter pilot (b. 1915)
2005 - Shirley Chisholm, American politician (b. 1924)
2005 - Hugh John Frederick Lawson, 6th Baron Burnham, British newspaperman (b. 1931)
2005 - Bob Matsui, American politician (b. 1941)
2005 - Eugene J. Martin, American painter, artist (b. 1938)
2006 - Harry Magdoff, American magazine editor (b. 1913)
2006 - Bryan Harvey, American musician (b. 1956)

[edit] Holidays and observances

[edit] By Observance
Many countries around the world using Gregorian Calendar - New Year's Day; often celebrated at 0:01 with fireworks.
Last day of Kwanzaa
Public Domain Day in many countries. This is the day on which copyrights expire and works are put into the public domain.

[edit] By Faith
The seventh day of Christmas (and eighth night of same) in Western Christianity.
Roman Catholicism - Feast of the Circumcision (Old calendar).
Roman Catholicism - Holy Day of Obligation in many countries. Final Day of Octave of Christmas, Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God (New calendar).
Roman Catholicism - National Migration Week begins (varying official support by the office of U.S. President, not strictly religious)

[edit] By Country
Cuba Liberation Day.
Haiti Independence Day.
Scotland: First day of New Year public Holiday (the second being January 2). Most shops and businesses closed on this day.
Slovakia: Establishment of Slovak Republic.
Sudan Independence Day.
Taiwan Founding of Republic of China Day.

[edit] By City
New Year’s Day Parade in London, United Kingdom.
Vienna New Year's Concert
Pasadena, California - The Tournament of Roses parade and, traditionally, the Rose Bowl football championship.

[edit] Day of the week
The day of the week of New Year determines the days of the week of 1 March of the previous year through 28 February of the new year, without distinguishing common years and leap years. It is the day before "Doomsday" of the previous year.

links
BBC: On This Day
NY Times: On This Day
On This Day in Canada