Tuesday, December 12, 2017

THIS DAY IN HISTORY ― DECEMBER 12

December 12 is the 346th day of the year (347th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 19 days remaining until the end of the year. This date is slightly more likely to fall on a Monday, Wednesday or Saturday (58 in 400 years each) than on Thursday or Friday (57), and slightly less likely to occur on a Tuesday or Sunday (56).

NATIONAL AMBROSIA DAY 

A truck bomb explodes at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait, killing five. Five other explosives were attempted within an hour. An hour later, a car parked outside the French Embassy blew up, leaving a massive 30 foot hole in the embassy security wall. None were killed and only five people were wounded.  


1408 – The Order of the Dragon: The Order of the Dragon was first created on December 12, 1408 by Emperor Sigismund, then King of Hungary, and his wife Queen Barbara of Celje following the battle for possession of Bosnia.

1787 – Pennsylvania becomes the second state to ratify the Constitution.


1812 – The French invasion of Russia under Napolean Boneparte comes to an end.


1871 – Pierre (Jules) Janssen discovers dark lines in solar corona spectrum.


1901 – Guglielmo Marconi sends the first transatlantic radio signal, from Poldhu in Cornwall to Newfoundland.

1914 – The largest one-day percentage drop in the history of the Dow Jones Industrial Average occurs, down 24.39%.


1925 – Arthur Heinman coins the term "motel" and opens the Milestone Inn in San Luis Obispo, CA.


1945 – A Special Court of justice convicts Dutch Nazi leader Anton Mussert and sentences him to death.


1951 – New York Yankee center fielder and future Hall of Fame player, Joe DiMaggio, announces his retirement.


1983 – A truck bomb explodes at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait, killing five. Five other explosives were attempted within an hour. An hour later, a car parked outside the French Embassy blew up, leaving a massive 30 foot hole in the embassy security wall. None were killed and only five people were wounded. 


1988 – On this day in 1980, American oil tycoon Armand Hammer pays $5,126,000 at auction for a notebook containing writings by the legendary artist Leonardo da Vinci.

1995 – A constitutional amendment to make it illegal to physically desecrate the American flag was defeated in the senate by a vote of 63-36 (67 required to pass).


1997 – A federal judge sentences Autumn Jackson, who claims to be Bill Cosby's daughter, to 26 months in jail for trying to extort $40 million from him.


2000 – General Motors declares that it will begin to phase out the 103-year old Oldsmobile, the oldest automotive brand in the United States.

2013 – The United States announces sanctions on the two dozen companies who assisted Iran with their nuclear program.


TODAY'S BIRTHS

1745 – John Jay, American jurist and politician, 1st Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1829)

1805 – Henry Wells, American businessman, co-founded Wells Fargo and American Express (d. 1878)

1915 – Frank Sinatra, American singer, actor, and producer (d. 1998)

1924 – Ed Koch, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 105th Mayor of New York City (d. 2013)

1928 Helen Frankenthaler, American painter and academic (d. 2011)

1952 Cathy Rigby, American gymnast

From Wikipedia and Google.

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