This Day In History

December 31

Event

• 1924 – Edwin Hubble announces existence of distant galactic systems
• 1935 – Charles Darrow patents the Monopoly board game.
• 1997 – Microsoft buys the Hotmail E-mail service.

Birthdays

• 1720 – ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ Charles Edward Stuart – The English pretender to throne is born.
• 1943 – Ben Kingsley – Was born in Scarborough, Uk he later became an acclaimed actor and portrayed Gandhi in the film of the same title and starred in Betrayal and Maurice.
• 1959 – Val Edward Kilmer – Was born in Los Angeles, California and became an actor, he starred in The Saint, Top Gun and The Doors, plus many more.

December 30

Events

• 1879 – Gilbert & Sullivan’s “Pirates of Penzance” premieres in New York.
• 1918 – John E Hoover decides to be called J Edgar Hoover.
• 1987 – Premier Mugabe elected President of Zimbabwe.

Birthdays

• 1865 – Rudyard Kipling – Was born in Bombay and became an author who was to write the famous Jungle Book.
• 1945 – David ‘Davy’ Jones – Was born in Manchester, UK he became a singer and actor with the Monkees.
• 1975 – Tiger Woods – Was born in Cypress, California and became a the most successful golfer, with winnings estimated at over $90 million.

December 29

Events

• 1862 - Bowling ball invented, although it can be traced back to the early Egyptians who used stones as balls.
• 1940 – Germany begins dropping incendiary bombs on London during World War II.
• 1967 – Star Trek’s “The Trouble With Tribbles” first airs.

Birthdays

• 1800 – Charles Goodyear – Was born and became an inventor , he developed the process of vulcanisation process for rubber.
• 1928 – Bernard Cribbins – Was born in Oldham, UK, he became an actor and musical comedian.
• 1947 – Ted Danson – Was born in San Diego, California he became an actor and starred as Sam Malone in Cheers, also 3 Men & a Baby.

December 28

Events

• 1065 - Westminister Abbey opens in London, it started to be built in 1042.
• 1942 – Robert Sullivan becomes the first pilot to fly the Atlantic 100 times.
• 1968 – The Beatles White Album goes to number 1 & stays there for 9 weeks.

Birthdays

• 1934 – Dame Maggie Smith – Was born in Ilford, Uk, she became an actress and starred inDeath on Nile and Clash of Titans, plus many more.
• 1954 – Denzel Washington – Was born in Mount Vernon, New York. He became a famous actor playing Dr Chandler in St Elsewhere and playing Malcolm X.
• 1956 – Nigel Kennedy – The English violinist was born.