December 14: Raj Kapoor's Birthday, Indian Actor

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December 14 is the 348th day of the year (349th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 17 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

* 1287 - St. Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses, killing over 50,000 people.
* 1542 - Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen Mary I of Scotland.
* 1702 (according to the old calendar; January 30, 1703 by the new calendar) - The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Ōishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master.
* 1751 - The Theresian Military Academy is founded as the first Military Academy in the world.
* 1782 - The Montgolfier brothers first balloon lifts on its very first test flight.
* 1819 - Alabama becomes the 22nd U.S. state.
* 1825 - Advocates of Liberalism in Russia rise up against Tsar Nicholas I and are put down in the Decembrist Revolt in St. Petersburg.
* 1836 - The Toledo War unofficially ends.
* 1896 - The Glasgow Underground Railway is opened by the Glasgow District Subway Company.
* 1900 - Quantum Mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.
* 1902 - The Commercial Pacific Cable Company lays the first Pacific telegraph cable, from Ocean Beach, San Francisco to Honolulu, Hawaii.
* 1903 - The Wright Brothers make their first attempt to fly with the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
* 1907 - The schooner Thomas W. Lawson runs aground and founders near the Hellweather's Reef within the Scilly Isles in a gale. The pilot and 15 seamen die.
* 1911 - Roald Amundsen's team, comprising himself, Olav Bjaaland, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, and Oscar Wisting, becomes the first to reach the South Pole.
* 1914 - Lisandro de la Torre and others found the Democratic Progressist Party (Partido Demócrata Progresista, PDP) at the Hotel Savoy, Buenos Aires.
* 1918 - Friedrich Karl von Hessen, a German prince elected by the Parliament of Finland to become King Väinö I, renounces the Finnish throne.
* 1939 - Winter War: The Soviet Union is expelled from the League of Nations.
* 1941 - German military commander of Kharkiv, Ukraine issues an order, under which the Jewish population was to move to the city periphery within 2 days, into the barracks of the works of a machine factory. In the next days 15,000 Jews are shot at Drobitsky Yar.
* 1941 - World War II: Japan signs treaty of alliance with Thailand.
* 1946 - The UN General Assembly votes to establish its headquarters in New York City.
* 1947 - The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is founded in Daytona Beach, Florida.
* 1955 - Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Portugal, Romania and Spain join the United Nations.
* 1958 - The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first-ever to reach The Pole of Relative Inaccessibility in the Antarctic.
* 1959 - The Motown record label is founded in Detroit, Michigan by Berry Gordy.
* 1962 - NASA's Mariner 2 becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus.
* 1964 - American Civil Rights Movement: Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States - The United States Supreme Court rules that the U.S. Congress can use its Commerce Clause power to fight discrimination.
* 1972 - Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the moon, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final Extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of Apollo 17. This was the last manned mission to the moon of the 20th century.
* 1979 - Punk rock group The Clash release London Calling in the UK, a landmark album in rock music.
* 1981 - Arab-Israeli conflict: Israel's Knesset passes The Golan Heights Law, extending Israeli law to the area of the Golan Heights.
* 1995 - Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
* 2003 - President of Pakistan Pervez Musharaf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.
* 2004 - The Millau viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, near Millau, France is officially opened.

Births

* 1009 - Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (d. 1045)
* 1503 - Nostradamus, French astrologer (d. 1566)
* 1546 - Tycho Brahe, Danish astronomer and alchemist (d. 1601)
* 1625 - Barthélemy d'Herbelot de Molainville, French orientalist (d. 1695)
* 1631 - Anne Conway, Viscountess Conway, English philosopher (d. 1679)
* 1640 - (baptism date) - Aphra Behn, English playwright and novelist (d. 1689)
* 1678 - Daniel Neal, English historian (d. 1743)
* 1720 - Justus Möser, German statesman (d. 1794)
* 1775 - Philander Chase, American founder of Kenyon College (d. 1852)
* 1775 - Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, British admiral (d. 1860)
* 1787 - Maria Ludovika of Austria-Este, Empress of Austria and queen of Hungary and Bohemia (d. 1816)
* 1824 - Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, French painter (d. 1898)
* 1866 - Roger Fry, British artist and art critic (d. 1934)
* 1870 - Karl Renner, President of Austria (d. 1950)
* 1881 - Katherine MacDonald, American actress and film producer (d. 1956)
* 1884 - Jane Cowl, American actress and playwright (d. 1950)
* 1895 - Paul Eluard, French poet (d. 1952)
* 1895 - King George VI of the United Kingdom (d. 1952)
* 1896 - Jimmy Doolittle, American General (d. 1993)
* 1897 - Margaret Chase Smith, American politician (d. 1995)
* 1897 - Kurt Schuschnigg, Austrian politician (d. 1977)
* 1902 - Frances Bavier, American actress (d. 1989)
* 1908 - Morey Amsterdam, American comedian and actor (d. 1996)
* 1908 - Claude Davey, Welsh rugby player
* 1908 - Mária Szepes, Hungarian authoress (d. 2007)
* 1909 - Edward Tatum, American geneticist and Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
* 1911 - Spike Jones, American comedian and musician (d. 1965)
* 1913 - Dan Dailey, American actor (d. 1978)
* 1914 - Karl Carstens, President of Germany (d. 1992)
* 1914 - Attila Petschauer, Hungarian Olympic champion fencer (d. 1943)
* 1914 - Rosalyn Tureck, American pianist and harpsichordist (d. 2003)
* 1916 - Shirley Jackson, American writer (d. 1965)
* 1917 - C.-H. Hermansson, Swedish communist leader
* 1918 - James T. Aubrey, American television executive (d. 1994)
* 1918 - B.K.S. Iyengar, Indian yoga advocate
* 1920 - Clark Terry, American trumpeter
* 1922 - Nikolay Basov, Soviet-born Russian physicist and Noble Prize laureate (d. 2001)
* 1923 - Gerard Reve, Dutch writer
* 1924 - Raj Kapoor, Indian actor (d. 1988)
* 1925 - Sam Jones, baseball player (d. 1971)
* 1927 - Richard Cassilly, American tenor (d.1998)
* 1931 - Jon Elia, Pakistani scholar, poet and philosopher (d. 2002)
* 1932 - Charlie Rich, American musician (d. 1995)
* 1932 - Abbe Lane, American singer and actress
* 1935 - Lee Remick, American actress (d. 1991)
* 1935 - Lewis Arquette, American film actor, writer and producer (d. 2001)
* 1938 - Leonardo Boff, Brazilian theologian
* 1941 - Ellen Willis, American journalist (d. 2006)
* 1941 - Karan Armstrong, American soprano
* 1946 - Jane Birkin, British-born actress
* 1946 - Patty Duke, American actress
* 1946 - Michael Ovitz, American film producer
* 1946 - Stan Smith, American former tennis player
* 1946 - Ruth Fuchs, East German athlete
* 1946 - Joyce Vincent Wilson, American singer (Tony Orlando and Dawn)
* 1947 - Christopher Parkening, American guitarist
* 1947 - Linda Sutton, British artist
* 1948 - Lester Bangs, American music journalist (d. 1982)
* 1948 - Dee Wallace-Stone, American actress
* 1949 - Bill Buckner, American baseball player
* 1949 - Cliff Williams, British-born bassist (AC/DC)
* 1951 - Jan Timman, Dutch chess grandmaster
* 1952 - Germain Houde, Quebec actor
* 1953 - Vijay Amritraj, Indian former tennis player
* 1953 - René Eespere, Soviet-born Estonian composer
* 1953 - Mikael Odenberg, Swedish politician
* 1954 - Alan Kulwicki, American race car driver (d. 1993)
* 1954 - James Horan, American actor
* 1954 - Steven MacLean, Canadian astronaut
* 1956 - Hanni Wenzel, Liechtenstein skier
* 1957 - Gary Ferris, American author
* 1958 - Mike Scott, British singer and songwriter (The Waterboys)
* 1958 - Spider Stacy, English musician (The Pogues)
* 1959 - Jorge Vaca, Mexican boxer
* 1960 - Bob Paris, American bodybuilder and gay rights advocate
* 1962 - Ginger Lynn (Ginger Lynn Allen), American adult film actress
* 1963 - Cynthia Gibb, American actress
* 1965 - Craig Biggio, American baseball player
* 1965 - Ken Hill, baseball player
* 1966 - Fabrizio Giovanardi, Italian racecar driver
* 1966 - Bill Ranford, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1966 - Tim Skold, Swedish/American musician
* 1967 - Ewa Białołęcka, Polish writer
* 1969 - Scott Hatteberg, American baseball player
* 1970 - Anna Maria Jopek, Polish singer
* 1970 - Beth Orton, English singer-songwriter
* 1971 - Natascha McElhone, British actress
* 1972 - Marcus Jensen, baseball player
* 1972 - Eric Anderson, American musical theatre actor
* 1973 - Tomasz Radzinski, Polish-born Canadian international footballer
* 1973 - Tia Texada, American actress and singer
* 1973 - Thuy Trang, American actress (d. 2001)
* 1974 - Billy Koch, baseball player
* 1975 - Justin Furstenfeld, American rock singer
* 1976 - Leland Chapman, bounty hunter, son of Duane "Dog" Chapman.
* 1976 - André Couto, Portuguese racing driver
* 1976 - Santiago Ezquerro, Spanish football player
* 1977 - KaDee Strickland, American actress
* 1978 - Kim St-Pierre, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1978 - Radu Sârbu, singer (O-Zone)
* 1979 - Michael Owen, English footballer
* 1979 - Sophie Monk, Australian actress, singer, and model
* 1980 - Frankie J, Spanish singer
* 1980 - Tata Young, Thai-American singer
* 1981 - Amber Chia, Malaysian model and actress
* 1981 - Emilie Heymans, Canadian diver
* 1981 - Johnny Jeter, American professional wrestler
* 1981 - Shaun Marcum, American baseball player
* 1982 - Josh Fields, American baseball player
* 1982 - Steve Sidwell, English footballer
* 1982 - Anthony Way, British singer and actor
* 1984 - Chris Brunt, Northern Irish footballer
* 1984 - Edward Rainsford, Zimbabwean cricketer
* 1985 - Tom Smith, Welsh Rugby Union Player
* 1985 - Nonami Takizawa, Japanese actress
* 1988 - Nicolas Batum, French basketball player
* 1988 - Vanessa Hudgens, American singer and actress
* 1989 - Pedro Roberto Silva Botelho, Brazilian footballer
* 1992 - Tanya Johnson,Indian actor
* 1995 - Princess Olimpia Preslavska of Bulgaria

Deaths

* 1460 - Guarino da Verona, Italian humanist and translator (b. 1370)
* 1510 - Friedrich of Saxony (b. 1473)
* 1542 - King James V of Scotland (b. 1512)
* 1553 - Hanibal Lucić, Croatian writer (b. 1485)
* 1591 - Saint John of the Cross, Spanish friar and poet (b. 1542)
* 1624 - Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, English statesman (b. 1536)
* 1651 - Pierre Dupuy, French scholar (b. 1582)
* 1713 - Thomas Rymer, English historian (b. 1641)
* 1715 - Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1636)
* 1735 - Thomas Tanner, English bishop and antiquarian (b. 1674)
* 1741 - Charles Rollin, French historian (b. 1661)
* 1788 - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (b. 1714)
* 1788 - King Charles III of Spain (b. 1716)
* 1799 - George Washington, first President of the United States (b. 1732)
* 1838 - Jean-Olivier Chénier, French Canadian physician and Patriote (b. 1806)
* 1860 - George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1784)
* 1861 - Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, consort of Queen Victoria (b. 1819)
* 1865 - Johan Georg Forchhammer, Danish geologist (b. 1794)
* 1873 - Louis Agassiz, Swiss-born American zoologist and geologist (b. 1807)
* 1902 - Julia Grant, wife of President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant (b. 1826)
* 1927 - Yulian Vasilievich Sokhotski, Russian mathematician (b. 1842)
* 1935 - Stanley G. Weinbaum, American science-fiction author (b. 1902)
* 1947 - Stanley Baldwin, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1867)
* 1947 - Edward Higgins, General of The Salvation Army (b. 1864)
* 1956 - Juho Kusti Paasikivi, president of Finland (b. 1870)
* 1963 - Dinah Washington, American singer (b. 1924)
* 1964 - William Bendix, American actor (b. 1906)
* 1970 - Franz Schlegelberger, German Nazi politician (b. 1876)
* 1971 - Dick Tiger, Nigerian-born boxer (b. 1929)
* 1978 - Salvador de Madariaga, Spanish diplomat, writer, historian and pacifist (b. 1886)
* 1984 - Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish writer and Nobel laureate (b. 1898)
* 1985 - Catherine Doherty, social justice activist (b. 1896)
* 1985 - Roger Maris, American baseball player (b. 1934)
* 1989 - Andrei D. Sakharov, Russian physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1921)
* 1990 - Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Swiss writer (b. 1921)
* 1993 - Myrna Loy, American actress (b. 1905)
* 1993 - Jeff Alm, American football player (b. 1968)
* 1996 - Gaston Miron, Quebec poet and editor (b. 1928)
* 1997 - Kurt Winter, Canadian musician (The Guess Who) (b. 1946)
* 1997 - Stubby Kaye, American actor (b. 1918)
* 1998 - Norman Fell, American actor (b. 1924)
* 1998 - Annette Strauss, American philanthropist (b. 1924)
* 1998 - Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr., American civil rights activist and author (b. 1928)
* 2003 - Jeanne Crain, American actress (b. 1925)
* 2003 - Blas Ople, foreign minister of the Philippines (b. 1927)
* 2004 - Rod Kanehl, American baseball player (b. 1934)
* 2004 - Fernando Poe, Jr., Filipino actor and presidential candidate (b. 1939)
* 2005 - Dr. Rodney William Whitaker, American author (b. 1931)
* 2006 - Anton Balasingham, chief political strategist of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (b. 1938)
* 2006 - Ahmet Ertegün, co-founder of Atlantic Records (b. 1923)
* 2006 - Mike Evans, American actor (b. 1949)

Holidays and observances

World No-Holiday Day