1620 - English language newspaper "Namloos" begins publishing in Amsterdam

1697 - St Paul's Cathedral opens in London

1804 - In Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte is crowned Napoleon I, the first Frenchman to hold the title of emperor in a thousand years

1814 - Marquis de Sade, writer, dies at 74

1848 - Franz Josef I becomes emperor of Austria and King of Hungary

1853 - David Cameron appointed first Chief Justice of new Supreme Court of Vancouver Island

1859 - John Brown, US abolitionist, hanged in Charles Town WV at 59, on charges of treason, murder, and insurrection

1877 - French physicist Louis Paul Cailletet liquefies oxygen

1887 - Charles Dickens' first public reading in US at NY City

1893 - Lord Aberdeen, Governor General of Canada, officially opens the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal

1901 - King Camp Gillette begins selling safety razor blades

1902 - The first working V-8 engine was patented in France by French engine designer Leon-Marie-Joseph-Clement Levavasseur

1907 - English Professional Football Player's Association forms

1908 - Pu Yi (Hsuan-T'ung) became China's Last Emperor at age 3

1927 - First Model A Fords sold, for $385

1932 - Bing Crosby and Bob Hope appear together for the first time onstage in a show at the Paramount Theater, called The Mask of Fu Manchu

1933 - Fred Astaire's first film, "Dancing Lady" is released

1935 - Albert Kessel, first to die in California gas chamber

1939 - British Imperial Airways & British Airways merge to form BOAC

1939 - New York's La Guardia Airport began operations as an airliner from Chicago lands, 1 minute after midnight

1940 - Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were married.

1942 - Italian physicist Enrico Fermi produces the first nuclear chain reaction at the University of Chicago, Illinois

1951 - Philadelphia sets NFL record of 25 1st-downs rushing

1954 - The U.S. Senate votes 65 to 22 to condemn Senator Joseph R. McCarthy for conduct unbecoming of a senator

1959 - Murray Ross appointed first President of York University in Toronto

1960 - Provincial premiers meet in Quebec City at first Interprovincial Conference of Premiers; discuss national cooperation at provincial level

1961 - First OT Grey Cup game, Winnipeg 21, Hamilton 14

1967 - Cardinal Francis Spellman, archbishop of New York, dies at 78

1969 - First public preview of the Boeing 747 jumbo jet in flight from Seattle WA to New York NY

1970 - James Cross discovered, as police surround house where is held captive; British Trade Commissioner in Montreal kidnapped by FLQ terrorists

1971 Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujeira, Sharjah & Umm ak Qiwain form the United Arab Emirates, with Zayid bin Sultan Al Nuhayyan of Abu Dhabi as President

1971 - Soviet Mars 3 is first to soft land on Mars

1975 - Laos falls to communist forces; King Sisavang Vatthana resigns, Lao People's Democratic Republic proclaimed

1979 - Foots Walker becomes the first Cleveland Cavalier to score a triple-double

1981 - Spanish government requests membership in NATO

1982 - Marty Feldman, comedic actor (Young Frankenstein), dies at 49 of a heart attack in México

1982 - First permanent artificial heart successfully implanted at the University of Utah in retired dentist Barney Clark; lived 112 days with the Jarvic-7 heart

1986 - Desi Arnaz, actor (Ricky Ricardo-I Love Lucy), dies of lung cancer at 69

1987 - "334" club forms as 334 brave Devil fans journey through 20" of snow to attend New Jersey Devils 7-5 victory over Calgary at Meadowlands

1988 - "Naked Gun" premieres, a movie based on TV's "Police Squad"

1990 - First parliamentary election in newly reunified Germany

1995 - [William] Robertson Davies, novelist essayist/dramatist, dies

1995 - Patrick Roy resigns from the Montreal Canadiens; suspended the following day by General Manager Réjean Houle; later traded to Colorado Avalanche

2001 - Houston-based energy company Enron files for bankruptcy. Less than a year before, Enron had ranked seventh among American companies in terms of revenue

 

Birthdays

1859 - Georges Seurat, Paris France - painter: Un Dimanche d'été à la Grande Jatte, Une Baignade
1863 - Charles Ringling - circus organizer
1875 - Frank Reicher, Munich Germany - actor: King Kong, Son of Kong
1893 - William Gaxton, San Francisco - actor: Destry, Convoy
1894 - Warren William [Krech], Aitkin MN - actor: Cæsar-Cleopatra, Morgan-Go West Young Man
1904 - Donald Woods, Brandon Manitoba - actor: Tammy
1906 - Peter Carl Goldmark, Budapest, Hungary - inventor: developed the first practical color television transmission system; later built a camera that, carried aboard a lunar orbiting vehicle, transmitted very high definition pictures of the moon's surface back to earth
1908 - Robert F Simon, Mansfield OH - actor: Custer, MASH, Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
1908 - Rufe Davis, Oklahoma - actor: Cocoanut Grove, Trail Blazers, Gangs of Sonora
1910 - Robert Paige, Indianapolis IN - actor: Colgate Comedy Hour
1914 - Bill Erwin, Honey Grove TX - actor: Glenn-Struck by Lightning
1914 - Ray Walston, Laurel MS - actor: South Pacific, My Favorite Martian, Damn Yankees
1915 - Randolph Hearst - newspaper publisher
1916 - John Bentley Sparkhill, Birmingham England - actor: The Chair, Hammer the Toff
1917 - Ezra Stone, US - actor/producer: Henry Aldrich
1922 - Leo V Gordon, NY City - actor: Circus Boy, Enos, Winds of War
1924 - Jonathan Frid - actor: Barnabas Collins-Dark Shadows
1925 - Julie [Julia Ann] Harris, Grosse Pt Michigan - actress: Bell Jar, East of Eden, The Belle of Amherst
1934 - Bill McCreary - NHL referee; formerly played for New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Edmonton Oilers, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and St. Louis Blues
1937 - Brian Lumley, England - author: Compleat Crow, Psychomech, Beneath the Moors
1938 - Michael Levin, Minneapolis MN - actor: Ryan's Hope
1940 - Willie Brown - NFL player: Denver Broncos, Oakland Raiders
1940 - Gerry Cheevers - NHL goalie: Boston Bruins
1944 - Cathy Lee Crosby, Los Angeles California - actress: Coach, That's Incredible
1946 - Gianni Versace, Reggio di Calabria, Italy - fashion designer
1952 - Keith Szarabajka, Oak Park IL - actor: Nightlife
1952 - Michael McDonald, St Louis MO - singer: Doobie Brothers
1953 - Jay Dean Haas, St Louis MO - PGA golfer
1954 - Dan Butler - actor: Bob "Bulldog" Briscoe-Frasier
1955 - Dennis Christopher, Philadelphia - actor: Breaking Away, California Dreaming
1956 - Steven Bauer, Havana Cuba - actor: Scarface, Thief of Hearts
1963 - Ron Sutter, Viking, Alberta - NHL player: the New York Islanders, San Jose Sharks
1966 - Kelly Buchberger, Langenburg Saskatchewan - NHL player: Edmonton Oilers
1967 �?Lucy [Alexis] Liu, Queens, New York - actor: Ally McBeal, Charlie’s Angels
1968 - Darryl Kile, Garden Grove CA - baseball player: Houston Astros
1968 - Rena Sofer - actress: Eve-Melrose Place, Rocky-Loving, Lois Cerullo-General Hospital
1969 - Lewis Bush - NFL player: San Diego Chargers
1969 - O J McDuffie - NFL player: Miami Dolphins
1972 - Alan Henderson - NBA player: Atlanta Hawks
1972 - Chris Burns - CFL player: Calgary Stampeders
1972 - James Willis - NFL player: Philadelphia Eagles
1972 - Zack Crockett - NFL player: Indianapolis Colts
1972 - Sergei Zholtok, Riga Latvia - NHL player: Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens
1973 - Kevin Feighery - NFL player: New York Giants, Panthers, Galaxy
1973 - Monica Seles, Novi Sad Yugoslavia - tennis star; In 1990 she became the youngest woman to win a "Grand Slam' singles title this century, winning the French Championship at 16 years 169 days
1975 - Brett Lindros, London Ontario - NHL player: New York Islanders
1976 - Jennifer Robinson, Barrie Ontario - Canadian Figure Skating Champion
1981 - Britney Jean Spears, Kentwood, Louisiana - singer: Baby One More Time, You Drive Me Crazy, Oops I Did It Again

 

 

Christmas

 

Three men died on Christmas Eve and were met by Saint Peter at the pearly gates.

'In honor of this holy season' Saint Peter said, 'you must each possess something that symbolizes Christmas to get into heaven.'

 

The first man fumbled through his pockets and pulled out a lighter. He flicked it on. 'It represents a candle', he said.

 

'You may pass through the pearly gates' Saint Peter said.  

 

The second man reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. He shook them and said, 'They're bells.'

 

Saint Peter said 'You may pass through the pearly gates'.

 

The third man started searching desperately through his pockets and finally pulled out a pair of women's panties.

 

St. Peter looked at the man with a raised eyebrow and asked, 'And just what do those symbolize?'

The man replied, 'These are Carol’s.'  

 

And So The Christmas Season Begins.....