Today December 7th 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
43 BC – Marcus Tullius Cicero assassinated.
1696 – Connecticut Route 108, one of the oldest highways in the U.S. is completed to Trumbull.
1724 – Tumult of Thorn – religious unrest was followed by the execution of nine Protestant citizens and the mayor of Thorn (Torun) by Polish authorities.
1732 – The Royal Opera House opens at Covent Garden, London.
1776 – Marquis de Lafayette attempts to enter the American military as a major general.
1787 – Delaware becomes the first state to ratify the US Constitution.
1900 – Max Planck, in his house at Grunewald, on the outskirts of Berlin, discovers the law of black body emission.
1917 – World War I: The United States declares war on Austria-Hungary.
1930 – W1XAV in Boston, Massachusetts broadcasts video from the CBS radio orchestra program, The Fox Trappers. The broadcast also includes the first television commercial in the United States, an advertisement for I.J. Fox Furriers, who sponsored the radio show.
1940 – The first prototype Fairey Barracuda flew
1941 – World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor – The Imperial Japanese Navy attacks the US Pacific Fleet and its defending Army Air Forces and Marine air forces at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Because of the time difference due to the International Date Line, the events of December 8 occurred while the date was still December 7 to the east of this line.
1946 – A fire at the Winecoff Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia kills 119 people, the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history.
1949 – Chinese Civil War: The government of Republic of China moves from Nanking to Taipei.
1962 – Prince Rainier III of Monaco revises the principality s constitution, devolving some of his power to advisory and legislative councils.
1963 – Instant replay is used for the first time in a Army-Navy game.
1965 – Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras simultaneously lift mutual excommunications that had been in place since 1054.
1966 – A fire at an army barracks in Erzurum, Turkey kills 68 people.
1970 – The first ever general election on the basis of direct adult franchise is held in Pakistan for 313 National Assembly seats.
1971 – Pakistan President Yahya Khan announces formation of a Coalition Government at Centre with Nurul Amin as Prime Minister and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as Vice-Prime Minister.
1972 – Apollo 17, the last Apollo moon mission, is launched. The crew takes the photograph known as The Blue Marble as they leave the Earth.
1975 – Indonesia invades East Timor.
1982 – In Texas, Charles Brooks, Jr. becomes the first person to be executed by lethal injection in the United States.
1983 – An Iberia Airlines Boeing 727 collides with an Aviaco DC-9 in dense fog while the two airliners are taxiing down the runway at Madrid Barajas International Airport, killing 93 people.
1987 – Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771 crashes near Paso Robles, California, killing all 43 on board, after a disgruntled passenger shoots his ex-boss traveling on the flight, then shoots both pilots and himself.
1987 – Alianza Lima air disaster. A plane crashed killing all Alianza Lima team in Ventanilla, Callao, Peru.
1988 – Spitak Earthquake: In Armenia an earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale kills nearly 25,000, injures 15,000 and leaves 400,000 homeless.
1988 – Yasser Arafat recognizes the right of Israel to exist.
1993 – The Long Island Rail Road massacre: Passenger Colin Ferguson murders six people and injures 19 others on the LIRR in Nassau County, New York.
1995 – The Galileo spacecraft arrives at Jupiter, a little more than six years after it was launched by Space Shuttle Atlantis during Mission STS-34.
1999 – The RIAA files a lawsuit against the Napster file-sharing client, on charges of copyright infringement.
2003 – The Conservative Party of Canada is officially recognized after the merger of the Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.
2005 – Rigoberto Alpizar, a passenger on American Airlines Flight 924 who allegedly claimed to have a bomb, is shot and killed by a team of U.S. federal air marshals at Miami International Airport.
2006 – A tornado struck Kensal Green, North West London, seriously damaging around 150 properties.
2007 – The Hebei Spirit oil spill began in South Korea after a crane barge being towed by tug collided with the Very Large Crude Carrier, Hebei Spirit.
Births
521 – Saint Columba, Irish Christian missionary to Scotland (d. 597)
903 – Abd Al-Rahman Al Sufi, Persian astronomer (d. 986)
1302 – Azzone Visconti lord of Milan (d. 1339)
1545 – Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, consort of Mary I of Scotland (d. 1567)
1561 – Kikkawa Hiroie, Japanese politician (d. 1625)
1598 – Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Italian artist (d. 1680)
1637 – Bernardo Pasquini, Italian composer (d. 1710)
1670 – John Aislabie, English director of the South Sea Company (d. 1742)
1724 – Louise of Great Britain, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1751)
1764 – Claude Victor-Perrin, duc de Belluno, French marshal (d. 1841)
1784 – Allan Cunningham, British poet (d. 1842)
1801 – Johann Nestroy, Austrian dramatist and actor (d. 1862)
1803 – Maria Josepha of Saxony, queen consort of Spain (d. 1829)
1810 – Josef Hyrtl, Austrian anatomist (d. 1894)
1810 – Theodor Schwann, German physiologist (d. 1882)
1823 – Leopold Kronecker, German mathematician (d. 1891)
1847 – George Grossmith, British actor and writer (d. 1912)
1860 – Joseph Cook, 6th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1947)
1862 – Paul Adam, French novelist (d. 1920)
1863 – Felix Calonder, Swiss politican (d. 1952)
1863 – Pietro Mascagni, Italian composer (d. 1945)
1863 – Richard Sears, American department store founder (d. 1914)
1873 – Willa Cather, American novelist (d. 1947)
1879 – Rudolf Friml, American composer (d. 1972)
1887 – Ernst Toch, Austrian composer (d. 1964)
1888 – Joyce Cary, Irish author (d. 1957)
1888 – Hamilton Fish III, American politician (d. 1991)
1891 – Fay Bainter, Academy Award-winning American actress (d. 1968)
1903 – Danilo Blanuša, Croatian mathematician (d. 1987)
1904 – Konstantin Sokolsky, Russian singer (d. 1991)
1905 – Gerard Kuiper, Dutch-born American astronomer (d. 1973)
1907 – Fred Rose, Canadian communist politician (d. 1983)
1910 – Louis Prima, American musician (d. 1978)
1910 – Edmundo Ros, Trinidadian musician
1912 – Daniel Jones, British composer (d. 1993)
1913 – Kersti Merilaas, Estonian author, poet (d. 1986)
1915 – Eli Wallach, American actor
1916 – Jean Carignan, French Canadian fiddler (d. 1988)
1920 – Fiorenzo Magni, Italian cyclist
1920 – Walter Nowotny, Austrian fighter pilot (d. 1944)
1920 – Tatamkulu Afrika, South African poet and writer (d. 2002)
1921 – Pramukh Swami Maharaj, Indian spiritual leader
1923 – Ted Knight, American actor (d. 1986)
1924 – John Love, Zimbabwean Formula One driver (d. 2005)
1924 – Mário Soares, President of Portugal
1925 – Hernando da Silva Ramos, Brazilian racing driver
1927 – Helen Watts, British contralto
1928 – Noam Chomsky, American linguist and political writer
1930 – Hal Smith, American baseball player
1932 – Ellen Burstyn, American actress
1932 – Paul Caponigro, American photographer
1937 – Thad Cochran, American politician, senator from Mississippi
1940 – Stan Boardman, English comedian
1940 – Gerry Cheevers, Canadian ice hockey player
1942 – Harry Chapin, American singer and songwriter (d. 1981)
1942 – Alex Johnson, American baseball player
1942 – Peter Tomarken, American game show host (d. 2006)
1943 – Nicholas Katz, American mathematician
1943 – Göran Lennmarker, Swedish politician
1943 – Bernard C. Parks, Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department
1944 – Jamiel Chagra, American drug trafficker
1944 – Daniel Chorzempa, American organist
1945 – Marion Rung, Finnish singer
1947 – Johnny Bench, American baseball player
1947 – Tony Thomas, American TV and film producer
1947 – Garry Unger, Canadian ice hockey player
1948 – Gary Morris, American singer and actor
1948 – Mads Vinding, Danish bassist
1949 – Tom Waits, American singer, composer, and actor
1952 – Georges Corraface, Greek actor, president of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival
1952 – Susan Collins, American politician, junior senator from Maine
1954 – Mark Hofmann, American forger and bomber
1954 – Mike Nolan, Irish singer (Bucks Fizz)
1955 – Priscilla Barnes, American actress
1955 – John Watkins, Australian politician
1956 – Larry Bird, American basketball player
1957 – Tom Winsor, British lawyer and economic regulator
1958 – Tim Butler, English musician (Psychedelic Furs)
1958 – Rick Rude, American professional wrestler (d. 1999)
1961 – Lisa Fischer, American R&B singer
1960 – Craig Scanlon, English guitarist (The Fall)
1962 – Grecia Colmenares, Venezuelan actress
1963 – Theo Snelders, former Dutch footballer
1964 – Roberta Close, Brazilian model
1964 – Tadao Uematsu, Japanese racing driver
1964 – Peter Laviolette, head coach Carolina Hurricanes
1965 – Colin Hendry, Scottish footballer
1965 – Jeffrey Wright, American actor
1966 – C. Thomas Howell, American actor
1966 – Shinichi Itoh, Japanese motorcycle racer
1967 – Tino Martinez, American baseball player
1968 – Mark Geyer, Australian rugby league footballer
1970 – Carmen Campuzano, Mexican actress and fashion model
1971 – Vladimir Akopian, Armenian chess player
1971 – Chasey Lain, American pornographic actress
1972 – Hermann Maier, Austrian skier
1972 – Tammy Lynn Sytch, American professional wrestler
1973 – Terrell Owens, American football player
1973 – Fabien Pelous, French international rugby player
1973 – Damien Rice, Irish musician
1974 – Nicole Appleton, Canadian-born singer
1974 – Kang Full, South Korean webcomic artist
1975 – Jamie Clapham, English footballer
1976 – Alan Faneca, American football player
1976 – Brent Johnson, Canadian football player
1976 – Georges Laraque, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Vanessa Lorenzo, Spanish fashion model
1977 – Dominic Howard, English drummer (Muse)
1977 – Eric Chavez, American baseball player
1978 – Shiri Appleby, American actress
1978 – Frankie J, Mexican-born American singer
1978 – Chad Dukes, Radio Personality
1979 – Ayako Fujitani, Japanese actress
1979 – Derek Ramsay, Filipino actor and model
1979 – Lampros Choutos, Greek footballer
1979 – Sara Bareilles, American singer
1979 – Jennifer Carpenter, American actress
1980 – John Terry, English footballer
1983 – Fausto Carmona, Dominican baseball player
1984 – Robert Kubica, the first Polish Formula One racing driver
1984 – Aaron Gray, American basketball player
1984 – Luca Rigoni, Italian footballer
1987 – Aaron Carter, American singer and actor
1987 – Baran Kosari, Iranian actress
1987 – Thomas Fiss, American singer (Varsity Fanclub)
1988 – Emily Browning, Australian actress
1988 – Asia Ray Smith, American actress
1989 – Nicholas Hoult, English actor
1990 – Urszula Radwanska, Polish tennis player
2003 – Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands
Deaths
43 BC – Cicero, Roman politician and author (b. 106 BC)
283 – Pope Eutychian
983 – Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 955)
1254 – Pope Innocent IV
1279 – King Boleslaus V of Poland (b. 1226)
1295 – Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Hertford, English politician (b. 1243)
1498 – Alexander Hegius von Heek, German humanist (b. 1433)
1562 – Adrian Willaert, Flemish composer
1649 – Charles Garnier, French Jesuit missionary (b. 1606)
1672 – Richard Bellingham, English-born Massachusetts colonial magistrate (b. 1592)
1683 – John Oldham, English poet (b. 1653)
1683 – Algernon Sydney, English politician (b. 1623)
1723 – Jan Santini Aichel, Bohemian architect (b. 1677)
1725 – Florent Carton Dancourt, French dramatist and actor (b. 1661)
1775 – Charles Saunders, British admiral
1793 – Joseph Bara, French revolutionary (b. 1780)
1815 – Michel Ney, French marshall (b. 1769)
1817 – William Bligh, British naval officer (b. 1745)
1842 – Thomas Hamilton, Scottish writer (b. 1789)
1874 – Constantin von Tischendorf, German biblical scholar (b. 1815)
1894 – Ferdinand de Lesseps, French diplomat and entrepreneur (b. 1805)
1902 – Thomas Nast, German-born American cartoonist (b. 1840)
1906 – Élie Ducommun, Swiss journalist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1833)
1913 – Luigi Oreglia di Santo Stefano, Italian Catholic Cardinal (b. 1828)
1917 – Léon Minkus, German-Czech composer and violinist (b. 1826)
1938 – Anna Marie Hahn, German-born American serial killer (b. 1906)
1941 – Notable casualties of the attack on Pearl Harbor
Holidays and observances
1946 – Sada Yacco, Japanese stage actress (b. 1871)
1947 – Nicholas M. Butler, American university president, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1862)
1947 – Tristan Bernard, French playwright and novelist (b. 1866)
1956 – Huntley Gordon, Canadian actor (b. 1887)
1960 – Clara Haskil, Swiss pianist (b. 1895)
1969 – Lefty O Doul, American baseball player (b. 1897)
1969 – Eric Portman, English actor (b. 1903)
1970 – Rube Goldberg, American cartoonist (b. 1883)
1975 – Thornton Wilder, American playwright (b. 1897)
1977 – Peter Carl Goldmark, Hungarian-born American engineer (b. 1906)
1978 – Alexander Wetmore, American ornithologist (b. 1886)
1980 – Darby Crash, American punk-rock musician (b. 1958)
1983 – Fanny Cano, Mexican actress (b. 1944)
1984 – Lee Roy Yarbrough, American race car driver (b. 1938)
1985 – Robert Graves, British author (b. 1895)
1985 – Potter Stewart, American jurist (b. 1915)
1989 – William Calhoun, professional wrestler (b. 1934)
1990 – Joan Bennett, American actress (b. 1910)
1990 – Jean Duceppe, Quebec actor (b. 1923)
1990 – Jean Paul Lemieux, Quebec painter (b. 1904)
1993 – Félix Houphouët-Boigny, President of Côte d Ivoire (b. 1905)
1993 – Wolfgang Paul, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913)
1994 – J.C. Tremblay, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1939)
1997 – Billy Bremner, Scottish former footballer (b. 1942)
1998 – Martin Rodbell, American scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1925)
1998 – John Addison, British composer (b. 1920)
2000 – Vladimir Gotovac, Croatian poet and politician (b. 1930)
2001 – Charles McClendon, American college football coach (b. 1923)
2003 – Carl F. H. Henry American theologian and publisher (b. 1913)
2003 – Azie Taylor Morton, Treasurer of the United States (b. 1936)
2004 – Frederick Fennell, American conductor (b. 1914)
2004 – Jerry Scoggins, American singer (b. 1913)
2004 – Jay Van Andel, American entrepreneur (b. 1924)
2005 – Bud Carson, American football player and coach (b. 1931)
2005 – Lucy d Abreu, Scottish supercentenarian (b. 1892)
2005 – Rigoberto Alpizar, Costa Rican-born American airline passenger (b. 1961)
2006 – Jeane Kirkpatrick, American diplomat (b. 1926)
2006 – Jay McShann, American musician (b. 1910)
2008 – Marky Cielo, Filipino and Igorot dancer and actor (b. 1988)
2008 – Dennis Yost, American musician (b. 1943)
