1240 – Mongols led by Batu Khan occupy and destroy Kyiv after an 8 day siege; out of 50,000 people in the city only 2,000 survive
1862 – US President Abraham Lincoln orders hanging of 39 Santee Sioux Indians
1876 – 1st crematorium in US begins operation, Washington, Pennsylvania
1896 – D T Suzuki found the awakening at Engakuji temple, in Kamakura
1941 – NYC Council agrees to build Idlewild (Kennedy) Airport in Queens
1986 – 52nd Heisman Trophy Award: Vinny Testaverde, Miami Fla (QB)
1987 – Christa Rothenburger skates female world record 500m (39.39 sec)
2008 – 13th Big 12 Championship Game: #4 Oklahoma beats #19 Missouri, 62-21
2008 – 4th ACC Championship Game: Virginia Tech beats #18 Boston College, 30-12
2012 – Typhoon Bopha’s death toll rise to 418 with 318 missing and 179,000 displaced
Author: gil7
Today in History for 6th December 2022
Historical Events
1060 – Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary
1957 – AFL-CIO votes to expel Teamsters (readmitted in October 1987)
1975 – Balcombe Street Siege: for 6 days, four Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers hold two hostages at an apartment in London, England
1991 – “Les Miserables” opens at Circustheater, Scheveningen
2002 – “Adaptation” directed by Spike Jonze, starring Nicolas Cage and Meryl Streep premieres
2010 – Record price for a printed book when a first edition of “The Birds of America” by John James Audubon auctioned at Sotheby’s, London, England, for £7,321,250
Famous Birthdays
1887 – Lynn Fontanne, British actress (Peter Pan; The Guardsman), born in Woodford, Essex, England (d. 1983)
1896 – Ira Gershwin, American lyricist (“Embraceable You”; “I Got Rhythm”; “They Can’t Take That Away From Me”), born in NYC, New York (d. 1983)
1930 – Wojciech Zabłocki, Polish fencer (4 x World C’ship gold team; Olympic silver team sabre 1956, 60; bronze 1964), born in Warsaw, Poland (d. 2020)
1943 – Mike Smith, British rock singer and keyboardist (Dave Clark Five – “Glad All Over”), born in London, England (d. 2008)
1949 – Doug Marlette, American editorial cartoonist (Kudzu), born in Greensboro, North Carolina (d. 2007)
1986 – Matt Niskanen, American NHL player (Philadelphia Flyers), born in Virginia, Minnesota
Famous Deaths
1550 – Pieter Coecke van Aelst, Flemish painter, dies at 48
1562 – Jan van Scorel, Dutch painter and architect, dies at 67
1746 – Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish songwriter (b. 1665)
1991 – Ann Sorg Coston, actress (Anna-Aldrich Family), dies at 62
1994 – AJ Bronkhorst, vicar/theologist (Reform The Netherlands), dies at 80
2020 – Jack Scarbath, American College Football Hall of Fame quarterback (Uni of Maryland; Washington Redskins, Pittsburgh Steelers), dies at 90
Famous Deaths for 5th December 2022
1624 – Gaspard Bauhin, Swiss botanist (b. 1560)
1886 – Peter Hofstede de Groot, Dutch reformed theologist, dies at 84
1963 – Karl Amadeus Hartmann, German composer, dies at 58
1971 – Hugh Wakefield, British actor (The Man Who Knew Too Much, Blithe Spirit), dies at 83
1995 – Victor Collin Matthews, British businessman, dies on 76th birthday
1995 – Robert Charles Evans, mountaineer/doctor, dies at 77
2006 – David Bronstein, Ukrainian-born chess grandmaster, dies at 82
2008 – Patriarch Alexy II of Russia, head of the Russian Orthodox Church (b. 1929)
2008 – Nina Foch, Dutch-American actress (The Ten Commandments, Spartacus, An American in Paris), dies from complications of myelodysplastic syndrome at 84
2021 – Bob Dole, American politician (Senate Republican leader, 1985-96, Presidential candidate in 1996), dies of lung cancer at 98
Historical Events for 5th December 2022
1360 – The French Franc is created
1456 – Earthquake strikes Naples; about 35,000 die
1920 – Dimitrios Rallis forms a government in Greece.
1935 – First commercial hydroponics operation established (Montebello, California)
1945 – Flight 19 the “Lost Squadron” of 5 torpedo bombers and 14 airmen is lost east of Florida in the supposed Bermuda Triangle
1967 – Pediatrician Benjamin Spock and poet Allen Ginsberg arrested in New York while protesting against the Vietnam War
1988 – Boris Becker beats defending champion Ivan Lendl 5–7, 7–6, 3–6, 6–2, 7–6 in a classic final to win his first of 3 ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis titles at Madison Square Garden, NYC
1993 – The mayor of Wien (Vienna), Helmut Zilk, is wounded by a letter bomb.
2017 – Netflix fires actor Danny Masterson from “The Ranch” after allegations of rape
2019 – Saudi state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco raises a record $25.6 billion in its first public share offering, makes it the world’s most valuable company at $1.7 trillion
Today in History for 5th December 2022
Historical Events
1496 – Jews are expelled from Portugal by order of King Manuel I
1837 – Uprising under William Lyon Mackenzie in Canada
1946 – US President Harry Truman creates Committee on Civil Rights by Exec Order #9808
1978 – Sam Shepard’s “Buried Child” premieres in NYC
2004 – 93rd Davis Cup: Spain beats USA in Seville (3-2)
2021 – First known Hippos tests positive for COVID-19 at Antwerp Zoo in Belgium, with staff putting Imani (14) and Hermien (41) into isolation
Famous Birthdays
1537 – Ashikaga Yoshiaki, 15th Japanese shōgun, born in Japan (d. 1597)
1822 – Elizabeth Cabot Agassiz, American educator and the co-founder and first president of Radcliffe College, born in Boston, Massachusetts (d. 1907)
1891 – Alexander Rodchenko, Russian painter and photographer, born in St Petersburg (d. 1956)
1949 – Lanny Wadkins, American golfer (PGA C’ship 1977), born in Richmond, Virginia
1970 – Thomas Smith, American NFL cornerback (Buffalo Bills), born in Gates, North Carolina
1979 – Nick Stahl, American actor (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), born in Harlingen, Texas
Famous Deaths
1953 – Jorge Negrete [Moreno], Mexican singer and actor (The Rebel, La madrina del diablo), dies of hepatitis at 42
1955 – Paul Harvey, American actor (Spellbound, Calamity Jane, Heldorado, Jamboree), dies at 73
1973 – Robert Watson-Watt, Scottish physicist and developer of the radar and radio direction finding in WWII, dies at 81
1993 – Doug Hopkins, American guitarist and songwriter (Gin Blossoms), commits suicide using a pistol at 32
1994 – Ronald Ridout, English school textbook author (English Today), dies at 78
2016 – E. R. Braithwaite, Guyanese diplomat and writer (To Sir with Love), dies at 104
Famous Deaths for 4th December 2022
1585 – John Willock, Scottish reformer
1909 – Paul-Albert Besnard, French painter and graphic artist (Elle), dies at 60
1969 – Alceo Toni, Italian composer, dies at 85
1983 – Bruce Drake, American Basketball Hall of Fame coach (University of Oklahoma 1938-55, 200-181), dies at 77
1983 – Estelle Omens, American actress (Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds), dies at 55
1997 – Richard Vernon, British character actor (A Hard Days Night; The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; Gandhi), dies of complications from Parkinson’s disease at 72
2005 – Gregg Hoffman, American film producer (b.1963)
2005 – Errol Brathwaite, New Zealand author (b. 1924)
2012 – Jonathan Harvey, British composer (Bhakti; Wheel of Emptiness),educator, and musicologist (Music of Stockhausen), dies at 73
2020 – David L. Lander, American actor (Laverne and Shirley – “Squiggy”), dies of multiple sclerosis at 73
Historical Events for 4th December 2022
1644 – First European peace congress opens in Munster
1682 – First General Assembly in Pennsylvania (Chester)
1947 – In the first cricket Test match between the 2 nations, India is dismissed for 98 by Australia in Brisbane to lose by an innings and 226 runs; fast bowler Ernie Toshack takes 6 for 29 for match figures of 11 for 31
1949 – Duncan Stewart, 2nd British Governor of Sarawak is fatally stabbed in the streets of Sibu by Malay student Rosli Dhoby with help from Morshidi Sidek with the goal of helping neighbouring Indonesia to take over British Sarawak
1951 – Superheated gasses roll down Mount Catarman, Philippines, killing 500 people
1961 – Smallest NY Knick, 49th St Madison Square Garden crowd-1,300 (snowstorm)
1964 – Test Cricket debut of Ian Chappell, v Pakistan MCG, 11, 0-49, 0-31
1984 – Hezbollah militants hijack a Kuwait Airlines plane, killing four passengers.
1992 – Somali Civil War: President George H. W. Bush orders 28,000 US troops to Somalia
2009 – Montreal Canadiens retire Hall of Fame center Elmer Lach’s jersey (No. 16), as part of team’s centennial celebration
Today in History for 4th December 2022
Historical Events
1987 – Defending champion Ivan Lendl of Czechoslovakia wins 3rd straight season-ending ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis title by defeating Mats Wilander of Sweden 6–2, 6–2, 6–3 in the final at Madison Square Garden, NYC
1994 – 83rd Davis Cup: Sweden beats Russia in Moscow (4-1)
1998 – The Unity Module, the second module of the International Space Station, is launched
2014 – The United Nations warns that the world is on course for the warmest year since records began
2019 – 58 migrants drown after a boat sinks off the coast of Mauritania, with 83 saved
2021 – Mt Semeru erupts on Java island, Indonesia, killing at least 14 and injuring 56
Famous Birthdays
1899 – Charlie Spencer, English soccer defender and manager (2 caps; Newcastle United; mgr Grimsby Town 1937-51), born in Washington, England (d. 1953)
1937 – Max Baer Jr, American actor (Jethro-Beverly Hillbillies), born in Oakland, California
1938 – Yvonne Minton, Australian-British soprano, born in Sydney, Australia
1953 – Rick Middleton, Canadian ice hockey right wing (Canada Cup gold 1984; NHL All-Star Game 1981-82, 84; Boston Bruins), born in Toronto, Ontario
1973 – Corliss Williamson, American basketball forward (NBA C’ship 2004, Detroit Pistons; NBA 6th Man of the Year 2002; NCAA Final 4 MOP 1994), born in Russellville, Arkansas
1981 – Andreas Polyzogopoulo, Greek jazz trumpet player (Heart Of The Sun), born in Samiko, Greece
Famous Deaths
1182 – Henry, earl of Gelre/Zutphen (1141/79-82), dies
1649 – William Drummond of Hawthornden, Scottish poet, dies at 63
1893 – Heinrich Göbel, German-born mechanic and inventor, dies at 75
1976 – [Edward] Benjamin Britten, English composer (The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra; Peter Grimes), dies of heart failure at 63
1984 – John Rock, American obstetrician and gynecologist who co-developed the 1st birth control pill, dies at 94
1994 – Geoffery Rudolph Elton, historiographer, dies at 73
Famous Deaths for 3rd December 2022
1882 – Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1811)
1910 – Mary Baker Eddy, American founder of the religious movement, Christian Science (Science and Health), dies at 89
1919 – Pierre Auguste Renoir, French Impressionist painter and sculptor (Bal du moulin de la Galette, Luncheon of the Boating Party), dies at 78
1981 – (Nicolaas) “Cola” Debrot, Dutch lawyer, doctor.author and politician (Governor of the Netherlands Antilles, 1962-70), dies at 79
1993 – Thomas Mogotlane, South African actor (Mapantsula), dies at 40
1999 – John Archer [Ralph Bowman], American actor (Destination: Moon, White Heat, Blue Hawaii), dies of lung cancer at 84
2003 – David Hemmings, English actor (b. 1941)
2009 – Richard Todd, Irish-born British actor (Dorian Gray, Assassin Yangtse Incident), dies at 90
2010 – Abdumalik Bahori, Tajik poet and fiction writer (b.1927)
2021 – Claude Humphrey, American Pro Football HOF defensive end (6 × Pro Bowl, 5 × First-team All-Pro Atlanta Falcons; Philadelphia Eagles), dies at 77
Historical Events for 3rd December 2022
1944 – Temporary merger of 2 NFL teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Cardinals, dissolves at finish of season; WWII ends before start of 1945 season, so both teams resume normal operations
1953 – Premier of Dmitri Shostakovich’ 5th String Quartet
1954 – Samuel Barber’s cantata “Prayers of Kierkegaard” premieres
1957 – 23rd Heisman Trophy Award: John Crow, Texas AandM (HB)
1958 – Indonesian parliament accepts nationalisation of Dutch businesses
1983 – France performs nuclear test at Mururoa atoll
1988 – NY Lotto pays $45 million to twelve winner (#s are 1-8-13-18-28-48)
1992 – The Greek oil tanker Aegean Sea, carrying 80,000 tonnes of crude oil, runs aground in a storm while approaching La Coruña, Spain, and spills much of its cargo
2005 – 14th SEC Championship Game: #13 Georgia beats #3 LSU, 34-14
2020 – “I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation,” warns Dr. Robert Redfield, head of US CDC about the months ahead with COVID-19