December 10

"Dec 10" redirects here. For the computer known as the "DEC 10", see PDP-10.

December 10 is the 344th day of the year (345th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 21 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 1041 – The son of Empress Zoë of Byzantium succeeds to the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire as Michael V.
• 1317 – The "Nyköping Banquet" - King Birger of Sweden treacherously seizes his two brothers Valdemar, Duke of Finland and Eric, Duke of Södermanland, who were subsequently starved to death in the dungeon of Nyköping Castle.
• 1508 – The League of Cambrai is formed by Pope Julius II, Louis XII of France, Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor and Ferdinand II of Aragon as an alliance against Venice.
• 1510 – Portuguese conquest of Goa: Portuguese naval forces under the command of Afonso de Albuquerque, and local mercenaries working for privateer Timoji, seize Goa from the Bijapur Sultanate, resulting in 451 years of Portuguese colonial rule.
• 1520 – Martin Luther burns his copy of the papal bull Exsurge Domine outside Wittenberg's Elster Gate.
• 1541 – Thomas Culpeper and Francis Dereham are executed for having affairs with Catherine Howard, Queen of England and wife of Henry VIII.
• 1652 – Defeat at the Battle of Dungeness causes the Commonwealth of England to reform its navy.
• 1665 – The Royal Netherlands Marine Corps is founded by Michiel de Ruyter
• 1684 – Isaac Newton's derivation of Kepler's laws from his theory of gravity, contained in the paper De motu corporum in gyrum, is read to the Royal Society by Edmond Halley.
• 1799 – France adopts the metre as its official unit of length.
• 1817 – Mississippi becomes the 20th U.S. state.
• 1861 – American Civil War: The Confederate States of America accept a rival state government's pronouncement that declares Kentucky to be the 13th state of the Confederacy.
• 1861 – Forces led by Nguyễn Trung Trực, an anti-colonial guerrilla leader in southern Vietnam, sink the French lorcha L'Esperance.
• 1864 – American Civil War: Sherman's March to the Sea: Major General William Tecumseh Sherman's Union Army troops reach the outer Confederate defenses of Savannah, Georgia.
• 1868 – The first traffic lights are installed, outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they use semaphore arms and are illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps.
• 1869 – The Kappa Sigma Fraternity is founded at the University of Virginia.
• 1877 – Russo-Turkish War (1877–78): The Russian Army captures Plevna after a 5-month siege. The garrison of 25,000 surviving Turks surrenders. The Russian victory is decisive for the outcome of the war and the Liberation of Bulgaria.
• 1884 – Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is published.
• 1896 – Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi premieres in Paris. A riot breaks out at the end of the performance.
• 1898 – Spanish–American War: The Treaty of Paris is signed, officially ending the conflict.
• 1899 – Delta Sigma Phi fraternity is founded at the City College of New York.
• 1901 – The first Nobel Prizes are awarded.
• 1906 – U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt wins the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in the mediation of the Russo-Japanese War, becoming the first American to win a Nobel Prize.
• 1907 – The worst night of the Brown Dog riots in London, when 1,000 medical students clash with 400 police officers over the existence of a memorial for animals that have been vivisected.
• 1909 – Selma Lagerlöf becomes the first female writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature
• 1927 – The phrase "Grand Ole Opry" is used for the first time on-air.
• 1932 – Thailand becomes a constitutional monarchy.
• 1936 – Abdication Crisis: Edward VIII signs the Instrument of Abdication.
• 1941 – World War II: The Royal Navy capital ships HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse are sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy torpedo bombers near Malaya.
• 1941 – World War II: Battle of the Philippines: Imperial Japanese forces under the command of General Masaharu Homma land on Luzon.
• 1946 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 12 relating to Greek Question is adopted.
• 1948 – Human Rights Day commemorating the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly.
• 1949 – Chinese Civil War: The People's Liberation Army begins its siege of Chengdu, the last Kuomintang-held city in mainland China, forcing President of the Republic of China Chiang Kai-shek and his government to retreat to Taiwan.
• 1955 – Mighty Mouse Playhouse premieres on American television.
• 1963 – Zanzibar gains independence from the United Kingdom as a constitutional monarchy, under Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah.
• 1965 – The Grateful Dead's first concert performance under this new name.
• 1968 – Japan's biggest heist, the still-unsolved "300 million yen robbery", is carried out in Tokyo.
• 1976 – The United Nations General Assembly adopts the Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques.
• 1978 – Arab–Israeli conflict: Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin and President of Egypt Anwar Sadat are jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
• 1979 – Kaohsiung Incident: Taiwanese pro-democracy demonstrations are suppressed by the KMT dictatorship, and organizers are arrested.
• 1983 – Democracy is restored in Argentina with the inauguration of President Raúl Alfonsín.
• 1989 – Mongolian Revolution: At the country's first open pro-democracy public demonstration, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj announces the establishment of the Mongolian Democratic Union.
• 1993 – The last shift leaves Wearmouth Colliery in Sunderland. The closure of the 156-year-old pit marks the end of the old County Durham coalfield, which had been in operation since the Middle Ages.
• 1994 – Rwandan Genocide: Maurice Baril, military advisor to the U.N. Secretary-General and head of the Military Division of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, recommends that UNAMIR stand down.
• 1996 – The new Constitution of South Africa is promulgated by Nelson Mandela.

Births

• 1452 – Johannes Stöffler, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1531)
• 1588 – Isaac Beeckman, Dutch scientist and philosopher (d. 1637)
• 1713 – Johann Nicolaus Mempel, German cantor and organist (d. 1747)
• 1751 – George Shaw, English botanist and zoologist (d. 1813)
• 1776 – Archduchess Maria Leopoldine of Austria-Este (d. 1848)
• 1787 – Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, American educator, founded the American School for the Deaf (d. 1851)
• 1804 – Carl Gustav Jacob Jacobi, German mathematician and academic (d. 1851)
• 1805 – Joseph Škoda, Czech physician, dermatologist, and academic (d. 1881)
• 1815 – Ada Lovelace, English mathematician and computer scientist (d. 1852)
• 1821 – Nikolay Nekrasov, Russian poet and critic (d. 1877)
• 1822 – César Franck, Belgian organist and composer (d. 1890)
• 1824 – George MacDonald, Scottish minister, author, and poet (d. 1905)
• 1827 – Eugene O'Keefe, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 1913)
• 1830 – Emily Dickinson, American poet (d. 1886)
• 1851 – Melvil Dewey, American librarian, created the Dewey Decimal System (d. 1931)
• 1861 – Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick (d. 1938)
• 1866 – Louis Bolk, Dutch anatomist and biologist (d. 1930)
• 1870 – Mary Bonaparte, French daughter of Napoléon Charles Bonaparte, 5th Prince of Canino (d. 1947)
• 1870 – Adolf Loos, Austrian architect and theoretician, designed Villa Müller (d. 1933)
• 1870 – Pierre Louÿs, Belgian-French author and poet (d. 1925)
• 1878 – C. Rajagopalachari, Indian lawyer and politician, 45th Governor-General of India (d. 1972)
• 1882 – Otto Neurath, Austrian sociologist and philosopher (d. 1945)
• 1882 – Shigenori Tōgō, Japanese politician, 37th Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 1950)
• 1885 – Marios Varvoglis, Greek composer and conductor (d. 1967)
• 1886 – Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, English field marshal and politician, 17th Governor General of Canada (d. 1969)
• 1886 – Annie Bos, Dutch actress (d. 1975)
• 1886 – Victor McLaglen, English-American boxer and actor (d. 1959)
• 1889 – Ray Collins, American actor (d. 1965)
• 1891 – Arlie Mucks, American discus thrower and shot putter (d. 1967)
• 1891 – Nelly Sachs, German-Swedish poet and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1970)
• 1896 – Torsten Bergström, Swedish actor and director (d. 1948)
• 1903 – Una Merkel, American actress and singer (d. 1986)
• 1906 – Jules Ladoumègue, French runner (d. 1973)
• 1907 – Rumer Godden, English author and poet (d. 1998)
• 1907 – Lucien Laurent, French footballer and coach (d. 2005)
• 1907 – Amedeo Nazzari, Italian actor (d. 1979)
• 1908 – Olivier Messiaen, French composer and ornithologist (d. 1992)
• 1909 – Hermes Pan, American dancer and choreographer (d. 1990)
• 1910 – Ambrosio Padilla, Filipino basketball player and politician (d. 1996)
• 1911 – Chet Huntley, American journalist (d. 1974)
• 1912 – Philip Hart, American lawyer and politician, 49th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (d. 1976)
• 1912 – René Toribio, Guadeloupean politician (d. 1990)
• 1913 – Pannonica de Koenigswarter, English-American composer (d. 1988)
• 1913 – Morton Gould, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1996)
• 1913 – Harry Locke, English actor (d. 1987)
• 1914 – Dorothy Lamour, American actress and singer (d. 1996)
• 1915 – Nicky Barr, Australian rugby player, soldier, and pilot (d. 2006)
• 1916 – Walt Arfons, American race car driver (d. 2013)
• 1917 – Yahya Petra of Kelantan (d. 1979)
• 1918 – Anne Gwynne, American actress (d. 2003)
• 1918 – Anatoli Tarasov, Russian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1995)
• 1919 – Alexander Courage, American composer and conductor (d. 2008)
• 1920 – Clarice Lispector, Ukrainian-Brazilian journalist and author (d. 1977)
• 1920 – Reginald Rose, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2002)
• 1920 – Thanassis Skordalos, Greek lyra player and composer (d. 1998)
• 1922 – Lucía Hiriart, Chilean wife of Augusto Pinochet, 30th First Lady of Chile
• 1923 – Harold Gould, American actor (d. 2010)
• 1923 – Clorindo Testa, Italian-Argentinian architect, designed the National Library of the Argentine Republic and Marriott Plaza Hotel (d. 2013)
• 1924 – Michael Manley, Jamaican pilot and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Jamaica (d. 1997)
• 1925 – Jean Byron, American actress (d. 2006)
• 1925 – Carolyn Kizer, American poet and academic (d. 2014)
• 1927 – Bob Farrell, American businessman, founded Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour (d. 2015)
• 1927 – Danny Matt, German-Israeli general (d. 2013)
• 1927 – Agnes Nixon, American actress, director, and screenwriter
• 1928 – Dan Blocker, American sergeant and actor (d. 1972)
• 1928 – John Colicos, Canadian actor (d. 2000)
• 1928 – Barbara Nichols, American actress (d. 1976)
• 1930 – Wayne D. Anderson, American baseball player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1930 – Michael Jopling, Baron Jopling, English farmer and politician, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
• 1931 – Peter Baker, English-South African footballer and manager (d. 2016)
• 1933 – Philip R. Craig, American author (d. 2007)
• 1933 – Larry Morris, American football player (d. 2012)
• 1933 – Mako Iwamatsu, Japanese-American actor and singer (d. 2006)
• 1934 – Howard Martin Temin, American geneticist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
• 1935 – Terry Allcock, English footballer and cricketer
• 1935 – Jaromil Jireš, Czech director and screenwriter (d. 2001)
• 1936 – Howard Smith, American journalist, director, and producer (d. 2014)
• 1937 – Raphael Maklouf, Israeli-English sculptor
• 1938 – Yuri Temirkanov, Russian viola player and conductor
• 1939 – Dick Bavetta, American basketball player and referee
• 1939 – Barry Cunliffe, English archaeologist and academic
• 1941 – Ken Campbell, English actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
• 1941 – Fionnula Flanagan, Irish actress and producer
• 1941 – Tommy Kirk, American actor and singer
• 1941 – Tommy Rettig, American actor and engineer (d. 1996)
• 1941 – Kyu Sakamoto, Japanese singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1985)
• 1941 – Peter Sarstedt, Indian-English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1942 – Ann Gloag, Scottish nurse and businesswoman
• 1944 – Andris Bērziņš, Latvian businessman and politician, 8th President of Latvia
• 1944 – John Birt, Baron Birt, English businessman
• 1944 – Steve Renko, American baseball player
• 1945 – Mukhtar Altynbayev, Kazakhstani general and politician, 3rd Defence Minister of Kazakhstan
• 1945 – George Amon Webster, American singer and pianist (Cathedral Quartet) (d. 2013)
• 1946 – Thomas Lux, American poet and academic
• 1947 – Rasul Guliyev, Azerbaijani engineer and politician, 22nd Speaker of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan
• 1947 – Douglas Kenney, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1980)
• 1947 – Howard Newby, English sociologist and academic
• 1948 – Dušan Bajević, Bosnian-Greek footballer and manager
• 1948 – Jessica Cleaves, American singer-songwriter (The Friends of Distinction and Earth, Wind & Fire) (d. 2014)
• 1948 – Jasuben Shilpi, Indian sculptor (d. 2013)
• 1948 – Muhammad Zaidan, Syrian-Palestinian terrorist, founded the Palestine Liberation Front (d. 2004)
• 1949 – Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Ugandan-English journalist and author
• 1950 – John Boozman, American football player, lawyer, and politician
• 1951 – Ellen Nikolaysen, Norwegian singer and actress
• 1952 – Clive Anderson, English lawyer and television host
• 1952 – Susan Dey, American actress and producer
• 1952 – Greg Mortimer, Australian geologist and mountaineer
• 1952 – Paul Varul, Estonian lawyer and politician, 6th Estonian Minister of Justice
• 1953 – Chris Bury, American journalist and academic
• 1954 – Eudine Barriteau, Barbadian economist and academic
• 1954 – Price Cobb, American race car driver and manager
• 1954 – Jack Hues, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Wang Chung)
• 1954 – Gavin Smith, American businessman (d. 2012)
• 1956 – Rod Blagojevich, American lawyer and politician, 40th Governor of Illinois
• 1956 – Roberto Cassinelli, Italian lawyer and politician
• 1956 – Jacquelyn Mitchard, American journalist and author
• 1956 – Jan van Dijk, Dutch footballer and manager
• 1957 – Michael Clarke Duncan, American actor (d. 2012)
• 1957 – Paul Hardcastle, English composer and producer
• 1957 – Prem Rawat, Indian-American guru and educator
• 1958 – Helen DeMacque, English singer (Pepsi & Shirlie)
• 1958 – Cornelia Funke, German-American author
• 1958 – Kathryn Stott, English pianist and academic
• 1958 – Eva Robin's, Italian actress and model
• 1958 – John J. York, American actor
• 1959 – Mark Aguirre, American basketball player and coach
• 1959 – Kevin Ash, English journalist and author (d. 2013)
• 1959 – Udi Aloni, American-Israeli director and author
• 1959 – Wolf Hoffmann, German guitarist (Accept)
• 1960 – Kenneth Branagh, Northern Irish-English actor director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1960 – Kōichi Satō, Japanese actor
• 1960 – Michael Schoeffling, American model and actor
• 1961 – Mark McKoy, Canadian hurdler and sprinter
• 1961 – Nia Peeples, American singer and actress
• 1961 – Oded Schramm, Israel-American mathematician and academic (d. 2008)
• 1962 – Rakhat Aliyev, Kazakh politician and diplomat (d. 2015)
• 1962 – John de Wolf, Dutch footballer and manager
• 1963 – Jahangir Khan, Pakistani squash player
• 1963 – Ole Amund Gjersvik, Norwegian bassist and composer
• 1964 – Stef Blok, Dutch banker and politician, Dutch Minister of the Interior
• 1964 – Bobby Flay, American chef and author
• 1965 – Greg Giraldo, American lawyer, comedian, actor, and screenwriter (d. 2010)
• 1965 – J Mascis, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Dinosaur Jr., Witch, Deep Wound, and Upsidedown Cross)
• 1965 – Stephanie Morgenstern, Swiss-Canadian actress, producer, and screenwriter
• 1966 – Rein Ahas, Estonian geographer and academic
• 1966 – Mel Rojas, Dominican baseball player
• 1967 – Narimi Arimori, Japanese actress
• 1968 – Yōko Oginome, Japanese singer, actress, and voice actress
• 1969 – Stephen Billington, English actor
• 1969 – Rob Blake, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
• 1970 – Kevin Sharp, American singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
• 1970 – Bryant Stith, American basketball player and coach
• 1971 – Bill Baroni, American lawyer and politician
• 1971 – Brian Nichols, American spree killer
• 1971 – Carla Sacramento, Portuguese runner
• 1972 – Donavon Frankenreiter, American surfer, singer-songwriter, and guitarist
• 1972 – Puff Johnson, American singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
• 1972 – Brian Molko, Belgian-Luxembourger singer-songwriter and guitarist (Placebo)
• 1973 – Arden Myrin, American comedian and actress
• 1973 – Gabriela Spanic, Venezuelan actress and singer
• 1974 – Meg White, American drummer (The White Stripes)
• 1975 – Steve Bradley, American wrestler (d. 2008)
• 1975 – Josip Skoko, Australian footballer
• 1975 – Kristel Verbeke, Belgian singer and actress (K3)
• 1976 – Shane Byrne, English motorcycle racer
• 1977 – Mr. Águila, Mexican wrestler
• 1977 – Emmanuelle Chriqui, Canadian actress
• 1978 – Anna Jesień, Polish hurdler
• 1978 – Summer Phoenix, American actress
• 1979 – Matt Bentley, American wrestler
• 1979 – Iain Brunnschweiler, English cricketer
• 1979 – Tora Augestad, Norwegian singer and actor (Music for a While)
• 1980 – Massari, Lebanese-Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboard player
• 1980 – Sarah Chang, American violinist
• 1981 – Taufik Batisah, Singaporean singer
• 1981 – Ryan Pini, Papua New Guinean swimmer
• 1981 – Fábio Rochemback, Brazilian footballer
• 1982 – Claudia Hoffmann, German sprinter
• 1982 – Sultan Kösen, Turkish farmer
• 1983 – Lewis Buxton, English footballer
• 1983 – Patrick Flueger, American actor
• 1983 – Habib Mohamed, Ghanaian footballer
• 1983 – Xavier Samuel, Australian actor
• 1983 – Katrin Siska, Estonian singer (Vanilla Ninja)
• 1984 – JTG, American wrestler
• 1984 – Mark Applegarth, English rugby player
• 1984 – Krista Ranillo, Filipino actress
• 1985 – Charlie Adam, Scottish footballer
• 1985 – Scarlett Bowman, English actress
• 1985 – Matt Forte, American football player
• 1985 – T. J. Hensick, American ice hockey player
• 1985 – Trésor Mputu, Congolese footballer
• 1985 – Raven-Symoné, American actress, singer, and dancer
• 1985 – Lê Công Vinh, Vietnamese footballer
• 1986 – Matthew Bates, English footballer
• 1986 – Kahlil Bell, American football player
• 1987 – Gonzalo Higuaín, French-Argentinian footballer
• 1988 – Wilfried Bony, Ivorian footballer
• 1988 – Mitchell Donald, Dutch footballer
• 1988 – Neven Subotić, Serbian footballer
• 1989 – Marion Maréchal-Le Pen, French politician
• 1989 – Tom Sexton, Australian-Irish rugby player
• 1990 – Kazenga LuaLua, Congolese-English footballer
• 1990 – Sakiko Matsui, Japanese singer and actress (AKB48)
• 1990 – Terrell Sinkfield, American football player
• 1990 – Shoya Tomizawa, Japanese motorcycle racer (d. 2010)
• 1991 – LE, South Korean singer-songwriter (EXID)
• 1991 – Eric Reid, American football player
• 1991 – Dion Waiters, American basketball player
• 1993 – Rachel Trachtenburg, American singer and actress (Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players and Supercute!)
• 1994 – Matti Klinga, Finnish footballer
• 2014 – Princess Gabriella, Countess of Carladès
• 2014 – Jacques, Hereditary Prince of Monaco

Deaths

• 949 – Herman I, Duke of Swabia
• 1041 – Michael IV the Paphlagonian, Byzantine emperor (b. 1010)
• 1198 – Averroes, Spanish astronomer, physicist, and philosopher (b. 1126)
• 1508 – René II, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1451)
• 1541 – Thomas Culpeper, English courtier (b. 1514)
• 1541 – Francis Dereham, English courtier
• 1618 – Giulio Caccini, Italian composer and educator (b. 1551)
• 1626 – Edmund Gunter, English mathematician and academic (b. 1581)
• 1665 – Tarquinio Merula, Italian organist, violinist, and composer (b. 1594)
• 1736 – António Manoel de Vilhena, Portuguese soldier and politician (b. 1663)
• 1791 – Jacob Frank, Polish religious leader (b. 1726)
• 1831 – Thomas Johann Seebeck, German physicist and academic (b. 1770)
• 1850 – Józef Bem, Polish general and physicist (b. 1794)
• 1850 – François Sulpice Beudant, French mineralogist and geologist (b. 1787)
• 1865 – Leopold I of Belgium (b. 1790)
• 1867 – Sakamoto Ryōma, Japanese samurai and politician (b. 1836)
• 1896 – Alfred Nobel, Swedish chemist and engineer, invented Dynamite and founded the Nobel Prize (b. 1833)
• 1909 – Red Cloud, American tribal chief (b. 1822)
• 1911 – Joseph Dalton Hooker, English botanist and explorer (b. 1817)
• 1917 – Mackenzie Bowell, English-Canadian journalist and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1823)
• 1920 – Horace Elgin Dodge, American businessman, co-founded Dodge (b. 1868)
• 1922 – Clement Lindley Wragge, English meteorologist and author (b. 1852)
• 1926 – Nikola Pašić, Serbian politician, 46th Prime Minister of Serbia (b. 1845)
• 1928 – Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Scottish architect and painter (b. 1868)
• 1936 – Bobby Abel, English cricketer (b. 1857)
• 1936 – Luigi Pirandello, Italian author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1867)
• 1939 – John Grieb, American gymnast and triathlete (b. 1879)
• 1941 – Colin Kelly, American captain and pilot (b. 1915)
• 1944 – John Brunt, English captain, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1922)
• 1945 – Theodor Dannecker, German captain (b. 1913)
• 1946 – Walter Johnson, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (b. 1887)
• 1946 – Damon Runyon, American journalist and author (b. 1884)
• 1948 – Na Hye-sok, South Korean journalist, poet, and painter (b. 1896)
• 1951 – Algernon Blackwood, English author and playwright (b. 1869)
• 1953 – Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Indian-English scholar and translator (b. 1872)
• 1956 – David Shimoni, Russian-Israeli poet and translator (b. 1891)
• 1957 – Napoleon Zervas, Greek general (b. 1891)
• 1958 – Adolfo Camarillo, American horse breeder, rancher, and philanthropist (b. 1864)
• 1967 – Ronnie Caldwell, American keyboard player (The Bar-Kays) (b. 1948)
• 1967 – Phalon Jones, American saxophonist (The Bar-Kays) (b. 1949)
• 1967 – Otis Redding, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1941)
• 1968 – Karl Barth, Swiss theologian and author (b. 1886)
• 1968 – George Forrest, Northern Irish lawyer and politician (b. 1921)
• 1968 – Thomas Merton, American monk and author (b. 1915)
• 1972 – Mark Van Doren, American poet, critic, and academic (b. 1894)
• 1973 – Wolf V. Vishniac, German-American microbiologist and academic (b. 1922)
• 1974 – Toshinari Shōji, Japanese general (b. 1890)
• 1977 – Adolph Rupp, American basketball player and coach (b. 1901)
• 1978 – Ed Wood, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1924)
• 1979 – Ann Dvorak, American actress and singer (b. 1912)
• 1982 – Freeman Gosden, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1899)
• 1986 – Susan Cabot, American actress (b. 1927)
• 1986 – Kate Wolf, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
• 1987 – Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian-American violinist and educator (b. 1901)
• 1988 – Richard S. Castellano, American actor (b. 1933)
• 1988 – Johnny Lawrence, English cricketer and coach (b. 1911)
• 1990 – Armand Hammer, American businessman, founded Occidental Petroleum (b. 1898)
• 1991 – Greta Kempton, Austrian-American painter and academic (b. 1901)
• 1991 – Headman Shabalala, South African singer (Ladysmith Black Mambazo) (b. 1945)
• 1992 – Dan Maskell, English tennis player and sportscaster (b. 1908)
• 1993 – Alice Tully, American soprano (b. 1902)
• 1994 – Keith Joseph, English lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Education (b. 1918)
• 1994 – Alex Wilson, Canadian-American sprinter (b. 1905)
• 1995 – Darren Robinson, American rapper and actor (The Fat Boys) (b. 1967)
• 1996 – Faron Young, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1932)
• 1999 – Rick Danko, Canadian singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (The Band) (b. 1942)
• 1999 – Lex Goudsmit, Dutch actor and singer (b. 1913)
• 1999 – Shirley Hemphill, American actress (b. 1947)
• 1999 – Franjo Tuđman, Croatian general and politician, 1st President of Croatia (b. 1922)
• 2000 – Marie Windsor, American actress (b. 1919)
• 2001 – Ashok Kumar, Indian actor, singer, and producer (b. 1911)
• 2002 – Andres Küng, Swedish journalist and politician (b. 1945)
• 2002 – Ian MacNaughton, Scottish actor, director, and producer (b. 1925)
• 2003 – Sean McClory, Irish actor and director (b. 1924)
• 2004 – Gary Webb, American journalist and author (b. 1955)
• 2005 – Mary Jackson, American actress (b. 1910)
• 2005 – Eugene McCarthy, American poet, academic, and politician (b. 1916)
• 2005 – Richard Pryor, American comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1940)
• 2006 – Olivia Coolidge, English-American author and educator (b. 1908)
• 2006 – Augusto Pinochet, Chilean general and politician, 30th President of Chile (b. 1915)
• 2007 – Ashleigh Aston Moore, American-Canadian actress (b. 1981)
• 2007 – Vitali Hakko, Turkish businessman, founded Vakko (b. 1913)
• 2007 – Aqsa Parvez, Pakistani-Canadian murder victim (b. 1991)
• 2008 – Didith Reyes, Filipino actress and singer (b. 1948)
• 2009 – Vladimir Teplyakov, Russian soldier and physicist (b. 1925)
• 2010 – John Fenn, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
• 2010 – J. Michael Hagopian, Armenian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1913)
• 2010 – MacKenzie Miller, American horse trainer and breeder (b. 1921)
• 2012 – Iajuddin Ahmed, Bangladeshi academic and politician, 13th President of Bangladesh (b. 1931)
• 2012 – Antonio Cubillo, Spanish lawyer and politician (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Lisa Della Casa, Swiss soprano (b. 1919)
• 2012 – Bob Munden, American target shooter (b. 1942)
• 2012 – Tommy Roberts, English fashion designer (b. 1942)
• 2013 – The Child of Lov, Belgian-Dutch singer (b. 1987)
• 2013 – Alan Coleman, English-Australian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1936)
• 2013 – Jim Hall, American guitarist and composer (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Don Lund, American baseball player and coach (b. 1923)
• 2013 – Rossana Podestà, Libyan-Italian actress (b. 1934)
• 2013 – Srikanta Wadiyar, Indian politician (b. 1946)
• 2014 – Ralph Giordano, German author and publicist (b. 1923)
• 2014 – Robert B. Oakley, American diplomat, 19th United States Ambassador to Pakistan (b. 1931)
• 2014 – Bob Solinger, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1925)
• 2014 – Judy Baar Topinka, American journalist and politician (b. 1944)
• 2014 – Gerard Vianen, Dutch cyclist (b. 1944)
• 2015 – Ron Bouchard, American race car driver and businessman (b. 1948)
• 2015 – Denis Héroux, Canadian director and producer (b. 1940)
• 2015 – Arnold Peralta, Honduran footballer (b. 1989)
• 2015 – Dolph Schayes, American basketball player and coach (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances

• Alfred Nobel Day or Nobeldagen (Sweden)
• Christian feast day:
  • Eulalia of Mérida
  • Karl Barth (Episcopal Church (USA))
  • Thomas Merton (Episcopal Church (USA))
  • Translation of the Holy House of Loreto
  • December 10 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Constitution Day (Thailand)
• Human Rights Day (International)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• Today in Canadian History