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December 22 December 22 is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 9 days remaining. Events 1700-1899 1775 - The United States Navy is formed 1807 - The Embargo Act, forbidding trade with all foreign countries, is passed by the United States Congress, at the urging of President Thomas Jefferson 1809 - The Non-Intercourse Act, lifting the Embargo Act except for the United Kingdom and France, passes the United States Congress 1849 - The execution of Fyodor Dostoevsky is canceled at the last second 1864 - Savannah, Georgia falls to General William Tecumseh Sherman 1885 - Ito Hirobumi, a samurai, became the first Prime Minister of Japan. 1894 - The Dreyfus affair begins in France when Alfred Dreyfus is wrongly convicted of treason. 1900-1999 1937 - The Lincoln Tunnel opens to traffic 1944 - German troops demand the surrender of United States troops at Bastogne, Belgium. See Battle of the Bulge 1964 - Comedian Lenny Bruce is convicted of obscenity 1974 - Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli vote to become the independent nation of Comoros. Mayotte remains under French administration. 1989 - After a week of bloody demonstrations, Ion Iliescu takes over as president of Romania, ending Nicolae Ceauşescu's Communist dictatorship. 1989 - Berlin's Brandenburg Gate re-opens after nearly 30 years, effectively ending the division of East and West Germany. 1990 - Lech Wałęsa sworn in as President of Poland 1999 - The Spanish Civil Guard finds near Calatayud (Zaragoza) another van loaded by ETA with 750 kg of explosives [see related event on December 21, 1999]. 2000-2099 2001 - Richard Reid attempts to destroy a passenger airliner by igniting explosives hidden in his shoes. Births 1600-1899 1639 - Jean Racine, dramatist (other sources report December 21st as his birth date) (d. 1699) 1666 - Guru Gobind Singh, (d. 1708) 1694 - Hermann Samuel Reimarus, German philosopher and writer (b. 1768) 1723 - Karl Friedrich Abel, German baroque composer (d. 1787) 1805 - John Obadiah Westwood, British entomologist 1858 - Giacomo Puccini, composer (d. 1924) 1860 - Austin Norman Palmer, populiser of handwriting style 1862 - Connie Mack, baseball executive, manager (d. 1956) 1866 - Käthe Paulus, Germany's first female parachutist (d. 1935) 1869 - Edwin Arlington Robinson, American poet (d. 1935) 1874 - Franz Schmidt, composer (d. 1939) 1876 - Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, poet and editor (d. 1944) 1883 - Edgar Varèse composer (d. 1965) 1887 - Srinivasa Aaiyangar Ramanujan, Indian mathematician (d. 1920) 1888 - J. Arthur Rank, producer (d. 1972) 1899 - Gustav Gründgens, actor and film director (d. 1963) 1900-1999 1905 - Pierre Brasseur, actor (d. 1972) 1905 - Kenneth Rexroth, American poet (d. 1982) 1907 - Dame Peggy Ashcroft, actress (d. 1991) 1907 - Doris Miles Disney, writer 1912 - Lady Bird Johnson, First Lady of the United States 1917 - Gene Rayburn, game show host (d. 1999). 1922 - Barbara Billingsley, actress 1922 - Jack Brooks, American politician 1922 - Ruth Roman, actress (d. 1999) 1944 - Steve Carlton, Baseball Hall of Famer 1945 - Diane Sawyer, journalist 1946 - Rick Nielsen, musician (Cheap Trick) 1948 - Lynne Thigpen, actress (d. 2003) 1949 - Robin Gibb, musician (The Bee Gees) 1949 - Maurice Gibb, musician (The Bee Gees) (d. 2003) 1951 - Charles DeLint, writer 1951 - Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, Duke of Westminster 1962 - Ralph Fiennes, actor 1967 - Dan Petrescu, English Premiership club Chelsea and Romanian football (soccer) player. 1969 - Myriam Bédard, biathlon athlete 1977 - Brent Belecki, goalie Corpus Christi Rayz Austin Ice Bats 2000-2099 2001 - Cc the cat, first cloned pet Deaths 1600-1899 1603 - Mehmed III, Ottoman Emperor (b. 1566) 1738 - Constantia Jones, British prostitute (executed) 1828 - William Hyde Wollaston, noted English chemist (b. 1766) 1880 - George Eliot, writer (b. 1819) 1884 - John Chisum, cattle baron 1899 - Dwight L. Moody, American evangelist (b. 1837) 1900-1999 1902 - Richard von Krafft-Ebing, sexologist (b. 1840) 1936 - Dragutin Gorjanovic-Kramberger, Croat paleontologist (b. 1856) 1939 - Ma Rainey, blues singer (b. 1886) 1940 - Nathanael West, writer (b. 1903) 1942 - Franz Boas, German cultural anthropologist (b. 1858) 1943 - Beatrix Potter, writer (b. 1866) 1965 - Richard Dimbleby, journalist and broadcaster (b. 1913) 1969 - Joseph von Sternberg, director 1979 - Darryl F. Zanuck, producer (b. 1902) 1980 - Karl Dönitz, Nazi politician (b. 1891) 1989 - Samuel Beckett, writer, winner of the Nobel Prize in literature 1969 (b. 1906) 1995 - Butterfly McQueen, actress 2000-2099 2002 - Desmond Hoyte, President of Guyana 1985-1992 2002 - Joe Strummer, musician (b. 1952) 2003 - Dave Dudley, singer (b. 1928) Holidays and observances The winter solstice, sometimes known as Yule, occurs on or very close to this date. It is an important festival in the Chinese calendar. In the Southern Hemisphere the summer solstice occurs around this time. December 21 - December 23 - November 22 - January 22 -- listing of all days ast:22 d'avientu Most Popular Articles: Music    Musical Instruments    Guitar    Classical Music    History    Music Definition    Country Music    Rock Music    Pop Music    Hip Hop    Rap    DJ    Video Games    Casino Games    Poker    Blackjack    Casinos    Real Estate    Loan    Auction    eBay    Marketing    Search Engine Optimization    File Sharing    MP3    Music Industry    Kazaa    Internet    Supermodel    Fashion    Fashion Designers    Erotica    Modeling    Clothing    Boots    Shoes    Diamond Engagement Rings    Diamond    Rugs    Gospel Music    Affiliate    E-Commerce    Radio This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_22