December 21

Frank Zappa 1940-1993

Events

• 69 – The Roman Senate declares Vespasian as Roman emperor, the last in the Year of Four Emperors.
• 1140 – Conrad III of Germany besieged Weinsberg.
• 1598 – Battle of Curalaba: The revolting Mapuche, led by cacique Pelentaru, inflict a major defeat on Spanish troops in southern Chile.
• 1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
• 1826 – American settlers in Nacogdoches, Mexican Texas, declare their independence, starting the Fredonian Rebellion.
• 1832 – Egyptian–Ottoman War: Egyptian forces decisively defeat Ottoman troops at the Battle of Konya.
• 1844 – The Rochdale Pioneers commence business at their cooperative in Rochdale, England, starting the Cooperative movement.
• 1861 – Medal of Honor: Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln.
• 1872 – Challenger expedition: HMS Challenger, commanded by Captain George Nares, sails from Portsmouth.
• 1879 – World première of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen.
• 1883 – The first Permanent Force cavalry and infantry regiments of the Canadian Army are formed: The Royal Canadian Dragoons and The Royal Canadian Regiment.
• 1907 – The Chilean Army commits a massacre of at least 2,000 striking saltpeter miners in in Iquique, Chile.
• 1910 – An underground explosion at the Hulton Bank Colliery No. 3 Pit in Over Hulton, Westhoughton, England, kills 344 miners.
• 1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.
• 1919 – American anarchist Emma Goldman is deported to Russia.
• 1937 – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theater.
• 1941 – World War II: A formal treaty of alliance between Thailand and Japan is signed in the presence of the Emerald Buddha in Wat Phra Kaew.
• 1946 – An 8.1 M_w earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Nankaido, Japan, kill over 1,300 people and destroy over 38,000 homes.
• 1962 – Rondane National Park is established as Norway's first national park.
• 1967 – Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a heart transplant, dies in Cape Town, South Africa, after living for 18 days after the transplant.
• 1968 – Apollo program: Apollo 8 launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.
• 1969 – The Gay Activists Alliance is formed in New York City.
• 1969 – The United Nations adopts the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
• 1973 – The Geneva Conference on the Arab-Israeli conflict opens.
• 1979 – Lancaster House Agreement: An independence agreement for Rhodesia is signed in London by Lord Carrington, Sir Ian Gilmour, Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo, Bishop Abel Muzorewa and S.C. Mundawarara.
• 1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.
• 1992 – A Dutch DC-10, flight Martinair MP 495, crashes at Faro Airport, killing 56 people.
• 1994 – Mexican volcano Popocatepetl, dormant for 47 years, erupts gases and ash.
• 1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.
• 1999 – The Spanish Civil Guard intercepts a van loaded with 950 kg of explosives that ETA intended to use to blow up Torre Picasso in Madrid.
• 2004 – Iraq War: A suicide bomber killed 22 at the forward operating base next to the main U.S. military airfield at Mosul, the single deadliest suicide attack on American soldiers.

Births

• 1118 – Thomas Becket, Lord Chancellor of England and Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1170)
• 1401 – Tommaso Masaccio, Italian painter (d. 1428)
• 1596 – Petru Movila, Moldovan religious figure (d. 1646)
• 1603 – Roger Williams, English theologian and colonist (d. 1684)
• 1682 – Calico Jack Rackham, English pirate (d. 1720)
• 1714 – John Bradstreet, Canadian-born soldier (d. 1774)
• 1778 – Anders Sandøe Ørsted, Danish politician (d. 1860)
• 1795 – Leopold von Ranke, German historian (d. 1886)
• 1795 – John Russell, English parson and dog breeder (d. 1883)
• 1804 – Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1881)
• 1805 – Thomas Graham, British chemist (d. 1869)
• 1811 – Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1882)
• 1815 – Thomas Couture French painter and teacher (d. 1879)
• 1818 – Amalia of Oldenburg, Queen of Greece (d. 1875)
• 1832 – John H. Ketcham, American politician (d. 1906)
• 1840 – Namik Kemal, Turkish nationalist poet (d. 1888)
• 1843 – Thomas Bracken, Irish-born New Zealand poet (d. 1898)
• 1850 – Zdenek Fibich, Bohemian composer (d. 1900)
• 1850 – William Wallace Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1862)
• 1851 – Thomas Chipman McRae, American politician (d. 1929)
• 1859 – Gustave Kahn, French poet (d. 1936)
• 1866 – Maud Gonne, Irish activist (d. 1953)
• 1872 – Sidney Ainsworth, British actor (d. 1922)
• 1872 – Don Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (d. 1956)
• 1872 – Albert Payson Terhune, American author (d. 1942)
• 1873 – Blagoje Bersa, Croatian composer (d. 1934)
• 1876 – Jack Lang, Australian politician (d. 1975)
• 1878 – Jan Lukasiewicz, Polish philosopher and mathematician (d. 1956)
• 1885 – Frank Patrick, Canadian hockey player (d. 1960)
• 1889 – Sewall Wright, American biologist (d. 1988)
• 1890 – Hermann Joseph Muller, American geneticist and Nobel laureate (d. 1967)
• 1891 – John William McCormack, American politician (d. 1980)
• 1892 – Amy Key Clarke, English mystical poet (d. 1980)
• 1892 – Walter Hagen, American golfer (d. 1969)
• 1892 – Rebecca West, British writer (d. 1983)
• 1896 – Leroy Robertson, American composer (d. 1971)
• 1905 – Anthony Powell, British author (d. 2000)
• 1908 – Herbert Hutner, American banker and attorney (d. 2008)
• 1909 – Seicho Matsumoto, Japanese mystery writer and journalist (d. 1992)
• 1911 – Josh Gibson, American baseball player (d. 1947)
• 1913 – Arnold Friberg, American illustrator (d. 2010)
• 1914 – Frank Fenner, Australian microbiologist (d. 2010)
• 1914 – Ivan Generalic, Austro-Hungarian-born Croatian painter (d. 1992)
• 1915 – Joe Mantell, American actor d.2010
• 1915 – Werner von Trapp, member of the Trapp Family Singers (d. 2007)
• 1917 – Heinrich Böll, German writer and Nobel laureate (d. 1985)
• 1917 – Sophie Masloff, American politician
• 1918 – Donald Regan, American civil servant (d. 2003)
• 1918 – Kurt Waldheim, Austrian politician and diplomat (d. 2007)
• 1920 – Alicia Alonso, Cuban ballerina
• 1920 – Bob Bindig, American cartoonist (d. 2006)
• 1920 – Jean Gascon, Canadian actor (d. 1988)
• 1921 – Robert Lipshutz/a>, American attorney and counsel to the Carter Adminisrtation (d. 2010)
• 1921 – John Severin, American comics artist
• 1922 – Itubwa Amram, Nauruan pastor and politician (d. 1989)
• 1922 – Paul Winchell, American ventriloquist (d. 2005)
• 1923 – Intizar Hussain, Urdu writer and columnist
• 1924 – Rita Reys, Dutch jazzsinger
• 1926 – Arnošt Lustig, Czech author
• 1926 – Joe Paterno, American football coach
• 1928 – Ed Nelson, American actor
• 1932 – Edward Hoagland, American essayist
• 1935 – John G. Avildsen, American film director
• 1935 – Lorenzo Bandini, Italian racecar driver (d. 1967)
• 1935 – Yusuf Bey, American activist (d. 2003)
• 1935 – Phil Donahue, American talk show host
• 1935 – Edward Schreyer, Canadian politician, Premier of Manitoba
• 1937 – Jane Fonda, American actress
• 1937 – Donald F. Munson, American politician
• 1938 – Larry Bryggman, American actor
• 1938 – Frank Moorhouse, Australian author
• 1939 – Lloyd Axworthy, Canadian politician
• 1940 – Arvi Lind, Finnish news broadcaster
• 1940 – Ray Hildebrand, American singer (Paul & Paula)
• 1940 – Frank Zappa, American musician (d. 1993)
• 1942 – Hu Jintao, Chinese president
• 1942 – Reinhard Mey, German singer
• 1942 – Carla Thomas, American singer
• 1943 – André Arthur. Canadian radio host
• 1943 – Albert Lee, English guitarist
• 1943 – Jack Nance, American actor (d. 1996)
• 1944 – Bill Atkinson, English footballer
• 1944 – Michael Tilson Thomas, American conductor
• 1944 – Zheng Xiaoyu, Chinese bureaucrat (d. 2007)
• 1946 – Christopher Keene, American conductor (d. 1995)
• 1946 – Carl Wilson, American musician (The Beach Boys) (d. 1998)
• 1947 – Bryan Hamilton, Northern Irish footballer
• 1947 – Paco de Lucía, Spanish musician
• 1948 – Samuel L. Jackson, American actor
• 1948 – Dave Kingman, American baseball player
• 1948 – Willi Resetarits, Austrian musician
• 1949 – Thomas Sankara, Burkinabé military figure (d. 1987)
• 1949 – Nikolaos Sifounakis, Greek politician
• 1950 – Jeffrey Katzenberg, American film producer
• 1950 – Lillebjørn Nilsen, Norwegian singer-songwriter
• 1951 – Nick Gilder, English musician (Sweeney Todd)
• 1952 – Joaquín Andújar, Dominican baseball player
• 1953 – Betty Wright, American singer
• 1954 – Chris Evert, American tennis player
• 1955 – Jane Kaczmarek, American actress
• 1955 – Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, Japanese musician
• 1957 – Tom Henke, American baseball player
• 1957 – Ray Romano, Italian-American comedian
• 1959 – Florence Griffith Joyner, American sprinter (d. 1998)
• 1960 – Louis Demetrius Alvanis, British pianist
• 1960 – Roger McDowell, American baseball player
• 1960 – Andy Van Slyke, American baseball player
• 1961 – Francis Ng, Hong Kong actor
• 1961 – Ryuji Sasai, Japanese video game composer
• 1961 – Del Wilkes, American pro wrestler
• 1963 – Govinda Ahuja, Indian actor and politician
• 1964 – Rob Kelly, English football manager
• 1964 – Fabiana Udenio, Argentine actress
• 1964 – Joe Kocur, Canadian hockey player
• 1965 – Andy Dick, American actor and comedian
• 1965 – Anke Engelke, German comedian
• 1965 – Stuart Mitchell, Scottish Composer
• 1966 – Adam Schefter, American sports journalist
• 1966 – Kiefer Sutherland, British-born Canadian actor
• 1966 – Karri Turner, American actress
• 1967 – Ervin Johnson, American basketball player
• 1967 – Fritz Karl, Austrian actor
• 1967 – Terry Mills, American basketball player
• 1967 – Mikhail Saakashvili, Soviet-born President of Georgia
• 1969 – Julie Delpy, French actress
• 1969 – Jack Noseworthy, American actor
• 1969 – Mihails Zemlinskis, Latvian footballer
• 1971 – Matthieu Chedid, French musician
• 1971 – Fenton Keogh, Australian celebrity chef
• 1971 – Brett Scallions, American singer (Fuel)
• 1972 – Gloria De Piero, English journalist
• 1972 – Latroy Hawkins, American baseball player
• 1972 – Dustin Hermanson, American baseball player
• 1972 – Claudia Poll, Costa Rican swimmer
• 1972 – Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, Indian politician
• 1972 – Erwin Schrott, Uruguayan opera singer
• 1973 – Irakli Alasania, Georgian politician and diplomat
• 1973 – Mike Alstott, American football player
• 1973 – Karmen Stavec, German-born Slovenian singer
• 1974 – Karrie Webb, Australian golfer
• 1975 – Paloma Herrera, Argentine ballet dancer
• 1976 – Mirela Manjani, Greek javelin thrower
• 1976 – Lukas Rossi, Canadian rock singer (Rock Star Supernova)
• 1977 – Toby Rand, Australian singer (Juke Kartel)
• 1978 – Emiliano Brembilla, Italian swimmer
• 1978 – Mike Vitar, American actor
• 1979 – Tuva Novotny, Swedish actress and singer
• 1980 – Royce Ring, American baseball player
• 1981 – Frankie Abernathy, American actress (d. 2007)
• 1981 – Lynda Thomas, Mexican singer
• 1981 – Cristian Zaccardo, Italian football player
• 1982 – Charlie Cox, English actor
• 1982 – Mike Gansey, American basketball player
• 1982 – Erica Hayden, American journalist and radio personality
• 1982 – Philip Humber, American baseball player
• 1982 – Iljo Keisse, Belgian cyclist
• 1982 – Tom Payne, British actor
• 1984 – Darren Potter, Irish football player
• 1985 – James Stewart Jr., American motorcycle racer
• 1987 – Valerie Concepcion, Filipino actress
• 1987 – Brad Howard, Australian footballer
• 1988 – Alexa Goddard, British R&B singer
• 1988 – Yasmin, British DJ and Singer
• 1989 – Tamannaah Bhatia, Indian actress
• 1989 – Mark Ingram Jr., American football player

Deaths

• 72 – Thomas the Apostle
• 882 – Hincmar, French bishop (b. 806)
• 1295 – Marguerite Berenger of Provence, wife of Louis IX of France (b. c.1221)
• 1308 – Henry I of Hesse (b. 1244)
• 1375 – Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian writer (b. 1313)
• 1504 – Bertold von Henneberg-Römhild, German archbishop and elector (b. 1442)
• 1549 – Marguerite of Navarre, wife of Henry II of Navarre (b. 1492)
• 1579 – Vicente Masip, Spanish painter
• 1597 – Petrus Canisius, Dutch Jesuit (b. 1521)
• 1799 – Philip Affleck, British Admiral and First Lord of the Admiralty (b. 1726)
• 1807 – John Newton, English cleric and hymnist (b. 1725)
• 1824 – James Parkinson, English physician and paleontologist (b. 1755)
• 1869 – Friedrich Ernst Scheller, German jurist and politician (b. 1791)
• 1873 – Francis Garnier, French explorer (b. 1839)
• 1889 – Friedrich August von Quenstedt, German geologist (b. 1809)
• 1900 – Roger Wolcott, American politician (b. 1847)
• 1920 – Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, Somalian nationalist leader (b. 1856)
• 1933 – Knud Rasmussen, Greenlandic polar explorer and anthropologist (b. 1879)
• 1935 – Kurt Tucholsky, German journalist and satirist (b. 1890)
• 1937 – Frank B. Kellogg, American diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1856)
• 1940 – F. Scott Fitzgerald, American writer (b. 1896)
• 1945 – George Smith Patton Jr., American military commander (b. 1885)
• 1957 – Eric Coates, English-born American composer (b. 1886)
• 1958 – Lion Feuchtwanger, German writer (b. 1884)
• 1959 – Rosanjin, Japanese calligrapher, restaurateur and ceramicist (b. 1883)
• 1964 – Carl Van Vechten, American writer and photographer (b. 1880)
• 1963 – Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (b. 1882)
• 1965 – Claude Champagne, Canadian composer (b. 1891)
• 1967 – Stuart Erwin, American actor (b. 1903)
• 1974 – James Henry Govier, British artist (b. 1910)
• 1974 – Richard Long, American actor (b. 1927)
• 1983 – Paul de Man, Belgian-born literary critic (b. 1919)
• 1986 – Bill Simpson, Scottish actor (b. 1931)
• 1987 – John Spence, American musician (No Doubt) (b. 1969)
• 1988 – Nikolaas Tinbergen, Dutch ornithologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1907)
• 1989 – Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Nigerian-born British photographer (b.1955)
• 1990 – Clarence Johnson, American aeronautical engineer (b. 1910)
• 1992 – Albert King, American blues musician (b. 1924)
• 1992 – Nathan Milstein, Ukrainian violinist (b. 1903)
• 1997 – Amie Comeaux, American country music singer (b. 1976)
• 1998 – Roger Avon, Durham actor (b. 1914)
• 1998 – Karl Denver, Scottish singer (b. 1931)
• 1998 – Ernst-Günther Schenck, German physician (b. 1904)
• 2001 – Dick Schaap, American sports journalist (b. 1934)
• 2003 – Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Spanish businessman (b. 1924)
• 2004 – Autar Singh Paintal, Indian medical scientist (b. 1925)
• 2005 – Elrod Hendricks, American baseball player and coach (b. 1940)
• 2006 – Scobie Breasley, Australian jockey (b. 1914)
• 2006 – Saparmurat Niyazov, Turkmenistanian politician (b. 1940)
• 2007 – Ken Hendricks, American businessman (b. 1941)
• 2010 – Enzo Bearzot, Italian football player and manager (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • O Oriens
  • Petrus Canisius
  • Thomas the apostle (pre-1970 Roman Calendar)

• Divalia, in honour of Angerona, (Roman Empire)
• Earliest date for the winter solstice:
  • Earliest date for Yule in the northern hemisphere, and Midsummer in the southern hemisphere. (Neopagan Wheel of the Year)
  • Sanghamitta Day
  • Ziemassvetki (ancient Latvia)
• Forefathers' Day (Plymouth, Massachusetts)
• The first day of Pancha Ganapati, celebrated until December 25 (India)