2014 American pet supply retailer PetSmart agrees to be purchased by private equity firm BC Partners for $8.7 billion 2014 Almost 200 nations at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Peru join an emissions reduction accord requiring each nation to post its plan online in 2015; the public can then pressure noncompliant nations to keep and strengthen their commitments 2013 After a long illness, British actor Peter O'Toole, known for playing Lawrence, in 'Lawrence of Arabia', dies at the age of 81 2013 China's first lunar rover, the Yutu, makes the first 'soft' landing on the moon since 1976; Yutu is the third robotic rover in existence 2012 The 2012 'World Soccer' Player of the Year award is given to Lionel Messi 2012 In the U.S. state of Connecticut, a shooter kills 29 people, including 20 children, himself and his mother at Sandy Hook Elementary School 2011 Unemployment in the United Kingdom rises to 2.64 million people 2011 Boris Gryzlov, ally to Vladimir Putin and speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, resigns from his position 2010 Despite concern from the opposition, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez declares he will pass laws by decree for the next six to eighteen months 2010 WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, is released on bail 1997 "View From the Bridge," opens at Criterion Theater New York City 1997 Diners Club Senior Golf Match 1997 Juli Inkster and Dottie Pepper win LPGA Diners Club Matches 1997 Phoenix Coyote Mike Gartner is 5th NHLer to score 700 goals 1996 12th Soap Opera Digest Awards 1996 62nd Heisman Trophy Award: Danny Wuerffel, Florida (quarterback) 1995 "Les Miserables" opens at Cable Hall, Helsinki 1995 AIDS patient Jeff Getty recieves baboon bone marrow transplant 1993 Moslem fundamentalists murder 12 Kroates/Bosnians in Algeria 1992 Lennox Lewis given WBC title, when Riddick Bowe refused to fight him 1991 57th Heisman Trophy Award: Desmond Howard, Michigan (WR) 1991 Ferry boat Salem Express sinks in Red Sea, 476 killed 1990 Louis Jordan's revue "Five Guys Named Moe," premieres in London 1990 Right to Die case permits Nancy Cruzan to have her feeding tube removed, she dies 12 days later 1988 CBS' $1.1 B bid wins exclusive 1990-94 major-league baseball rights 1988 NBA's Miami Heat wins 1st game ever, 89-88 (Clippers), after 17 loses 1988 Spanish General strike to protest austerity measures 1988 U.S. agrees to talk to Palestine Liberation Org (1st time in 13 yrs) 1987 Allan Border scores 205 vs. New Zealand to become Australia's top rungetter 1987 Chrysler pleads no contest to selling driven vehicles as new 1986 Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, took off from Edwards AFB, California on 1st non-stop, non-refueled flight around world 1985 U.S. Foreign Minister George Shultz arrives in West Berlin 1984 Howard Cosell retires from Monday Night Football 1983 "Peg" opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theater New York City for 5 performances 1982 Marcel Dionne, LA, becomes 9th NHLer to score 500 goals 1981 Israel annexes Golan Heights (seized from Syria in war of 1967) 1980 "Onward Victoria" opens/closes at Martin Beck New York City for 1 performance 1980 Anders Kailur scores on 6th Islander penalty shot 1980 At 2 PM EST there is 10 minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon 1980 Minnesota Vikings pass for 456 yards against Cleveland Browns, winning 28-24 1980 Nancy Lopez/Curtis Strange wins LPGA J C Penney Golf Classic 1980 New Orleans Saints end 14 game losing streak, beat New York Jets 21-20 1980 U.S.S.R. performs nuclear test at Semipalitinsk, Eastern Kazakhstan U.S.S.R. 1979 U.S. performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1978 "Ballroom" opens at Majestic Theater New York City for 116 performances 1978 China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor PRC 1978 U.S.S.R. performs nuclear test at Semipalitinsk, Eastern Kazakhstan U.S.S.R. 1977 "Saturday Night Fever,"starring John Travolta, premieres in New York City 1977 Egypt and Israel reps gather in Cairo for 1st formal peace conference 1977 Red Sox trade Fergie Jenkins to Rangers for John Poloni and cash 1977 Test Cricket debut of Abdul Qadir, vs. England at Lahore 1977 War criminal Pieter Menten sentenced in Amsterdam to 15 years 1976 Dutch 1st Chamber condemns Dutch Liberal/social dem abortion laws 1975 "Treemonisha" closes at Uris Theater New York City after 64 performances 1975 6 So Moluccan terrorists surrender, holding 23 hostages for 12 days 1974 Islander Glenn Resch's 1st shut-out opponent-Kings 3-0 1974 Viv Richards scores 1st Test Cricket ton 192 vs. India 20 fours 6 sixes 1972 Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt leave the Moon 1972 Willy Brandt re-elected West German chancellor 1971 Golden Gate Bridge lights out all night due to power failure 1971 U.S. performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1969 "La Strada" opens/closes at Lunt Fontanne New York City for 1 performance 1969 Bishen Bedi takes 7-98 (career-best) vs. Australia at Calcutta 1969 Jackson Five made their 1st appearance on "Ed Sullivan Show" 1967 DNA created in a test tube 1965 "La Grusse Valise" opens at 54th St. Theater New York City for 7 performances 1964 Michael Brown meets Rene Fladen, then writes "Walk Away Rene" 1963 Verne Gagne beats The Crusher in Minneapolis, to become NWA champ 1962 Mariner 2 makes 1st U.S. fly-by of another planet (Venus) 1962 U.S. performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site 1961 Jimmy Dean's "Big Bad John" is 1st country song to get a gold record 1960 Australia vs. West Indies 1st Test Cricket at the Gabba ends in a tie 1960 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) forms 1960 Washington Senators joins American League 1959 USAF Captain Joe B. Jordan reaches 103,395 feet in F-104 jet fighter 1959 Archbishop Makarios proclaimed president of Cyprus 1959 J B Jordan in F-104C sets world altitude record, 31,513m 1957 "Most Happy Fella" closes at Imperial Theater New York City after 678 performances 1957 "Rumple" closes at Alvin Theater New York City after 45 performances 1956 Paul-Henri Spaak appointed Secretary-General of NATO 1955 Dutch Reformed Church condemns woman/wife as vicar 1955 Tappan Zee Bridge in New York opens to traffic 1954 WOAY TV channel 4 in Oak Hill-Beckley, WV (ABC) begins broadcasting 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers sign pitcher Sandy Koufax 1952 KROD (now KDBC) TV channel 4 in El Paso, Texas (CBS) begins broadcasting 1952 R H Shodhan scores 110 on Test Cricket debut vs. Pakistan, Calcutta 1952 Uprising of captives in Pongam South Korea, 82 die 1950 "Bless You All" opens at Mark Hellinger Theater New York City for 84 performances 1950 U.N. General Assembly establishes High Commission for Refugees (Nobel 1954) 1950 Baseball owners choose Lou Perini (Braves), Phil Wrigley (Cubs), Del Webb (Yankees), and Ellis Ryan (Indians) to select new commissioner 1947 Cleveland Browns beat New York Yankees 14-3 in AAFC championship game 1946 "Three to Make Ready" closes at Adelphi Theater New York City after 323 performances 1946 Togo made a trusteeship territory of UN 1946 U.N. General Assembly votes to establish United Nations HQs in New York City 1945 Elmer Rice' "Dream Girl," premieres in New York City 1944 Begin(ning) Liese-Aktion: werving of labor force for Germany 1944 Congress establshes rank of General of Army (5-star General) 1944 German occupiers forbid use of electricity in parts of Holland 1941 1st NFL division playoff, Bears beat Packers 33-14 1941 Premier Winston Churchill travels to U.S. on board HMS Duke of York 1941 U-557 torpedoes British cruiser Galatea 1939 Soviet Union attacks Finland-League of Nations drops Soviet Union 1938 AL permits Cleveland and Philadelphia to play night games 1938 Major leagues agrees on standard ball 1938 Major leagues disagree on increasing rosters from 23 to 25 1938 Will Harridge is elected to a 10-year-term as AL president 1937 Japanese troops conquer/plunder Nanjing 1935 Test Cricket debut of "Chuck" Fleetwood-Smith vs. South Africa, Durban 1934 1st streamlined steam locomotive introduced (Albany New York) 1933 Josephine Baker performs in Amsterdam 1932 French government of Herriot falls 1931 1st assembly of Anton Musserts NSB in Utrecht 1930 New York Giants defeat Notre Dame 22-0 in a charity game 1929 Alexander Zaimis elected President of Greece 1928 2nd Test Cricket Australia vs. England starts with Bradman 12th man 1927 Iraq gains independence from Britain, but British troops remain 1926 Danish Madsen government, forms 1924 Chiang Kai-shek occupies Hankou 1924 Respighi's symphony "Pini di Roma," premieres in Paris 1923 Gerard K "Simon" van het Reve, Dutch writer (Evenings) 1920 Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in 12 for heavyweight boxing title 1918 Giacomo Puccini's opera "Il Trittico," premieres in New York City 1917 UFA, Universal Film AG, forms in Germany 1915 Jack Johnson is 1st black world heavyweight boxing champion 1913 Greece formally takes possession of Crete 1911 South Pole 1st reached, by Norwegian Roald Amundsen 1903 Reg Foster completes 287 England vs. Australia on Test Cricket debut 1901 1st table tennis tournament is held (London Royal Aquarium) 1894 Test Cricket debut of Joe Darling, Ernie Jones, Archie MacLaren 1889 American Academy of Political and Social Science organized, Philadelphia 1882 Henry Morton Stanley returns to Brussels from the Congo 1863 Battle of Bean's Station-Confederacy repulses Union in Tennessee 1849 1st chamber music group in U.S. gives their 1st concert (Boston) 1825 Decembrist uprising in Russia against Tsar Nicholas I begins 1819 Alabama admitted to Union as 22nd state 1798 David Wilkinson of Rhode Island patents a nut and bolt machine 1793 1st state road authorized, Frankfort, Kentucky to Cincinnati 1782 Charleston, South Carolina evacuated by British 1774 Mass militiamen successfully attacked arsenal of Ft. William and Mary 1708 Prosper Jolyot's "Electre," premieres in Paris 1656 Artificial pearls 1st manufactured by M Jacquin in Paris made of gypsum pellets covered with fish scales 1600 Olivier van Noort sinks Sp galleon San Diego at Bay of Manila, 350 die 1582 Zealand/Brabant Netherlands adopt Gregorian calendar, tomorrow is 12/25 1575 Polish Parliament selects Istvan Bathory as king of Poland 1490 Anna van Bretagne marries a proxy Maximilian of Austria 1287 Zuider Zee seawall collapses with loss of 50,000 lives 1124 Theobald Buccapecus elected Pope Coelestinus II (he refuses) 872 John VIII elected as Catholic Pope 867 Adrian II begins his reign as Catholic Pope 644 Osman ibn Affan appointed 3rd kalief of islam
