December 1


December 1 is the 335th day (336th on leap years) of the year in the
Gregorian calendar. There are 30 days remaining.

Events:

   * 1640 - Portugal regains its independence from Spain
   * 1821 - Dominican Republic declares its independence from Spain
   * 1822 - Dom Pedro crowned as Emperor of Brazil
   * 1913 - Ford Motor Company introduces the assembly line
   * 1917 - Father Edward J. Flanagan founds Boys Town
   * 1918 - Iceland becomes independent from Denmark
   * 1918 - Transylvania unites with Romania
   * 1919 - Lady Astor becomes first female member of the British Parliament
   * 1941 - Civil Air Patrol formed
   * 1955 - Rosa Parks refuses to give her Montgomery, Alabama bus seat to a
     white man, and is arrested
   * 1958 - Central African Republic becomes independent from France
   * 1959 - Antarctic Treaty signed
   * 1973 - Papua New Guinea gains self government from Australia
   * 1991 - Ukraine votes for independence
   * 1991 - Panama Canal comes completely under Panama's jurisidiction

Births:

   * 1743 - Martin Heinrich Klaproth, chemist (+ 1817)
   * 1844 - Queen Alexandra of the United Kingdom
   * 1884 - Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, painter, graphic artist (+ 1976)
   * 1886 - Rex Stout, author (+ 1975)
   * 1893 - Ernst Troller, dramatist (+ 1939)
   * 1895 - Henry Williamson, author (+ 1977)
   * 1911 - Walter Alston, baseball coach
   * 1911 - Calvin Griffith, baseball executive
   * 1913 - Mary Martin, actor, singer (+ 1990)
   * 1923 - Stansfield Turner, American admiral, director of the Central
     Intelligence Agency
   * 1935 - Woody Allen, film director, actor, comedian
   * 1935 - Lou Rawls, singer
   * 1939 - Lee Trevino, golfer
   * 1940 - Richard Pryor, actor, comedian
   * 1945 - Bette Midler, actress
   * 1946 - Gilbert O'Sullivan, singer
   * 1948 - George Foster, baseball star
   * 1950 - Keith Thibodeaux, drummer and actor ("Little Ricky" on I Love
     Lucy)
   * 1961 - Jeremy Northam, actor
   * 1976 - Matthew Shepard, murder victim (+ 1998)
   * 1978 - Brad Delson, lead guitar musician of Linkin Park

Deaths:

   * 1135 - Henry I of England
   * 1934 - Sergei Kirov, Russian revolutionary
   * 1964 - J. B. S. Haldane, British geneticist
   * 1985 - Alvin Ailey, dancer, choreographer
   * 1987 - James Baldwin, author
   * 1973 - David Ben-Gurion, first Prime Minister of Israel

Holidays and Observances:

   * World AIDS Day
   * Ancient Latvia - Barbes Diena observed
   * Romania - Union Day (the national holiday)