TODAY IS ... 18 DECEMBER
BIRTHDAYS:
1980 - Christina Aguilera - an American pop musician who first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The New Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994. Aguilera signed to RCA Records after recording "Reflection" for the film Mulan. She came to prominence following her debut album Christina Aguilera (1999), which was a commercial success spawning three number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100.
1978 - Katie Holmes - an American actress who first achieved fame for her role as Joey Potter on The WB television teen drama Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2003. Her movie roles have ranged from art house films such as The Ice Storm to thrillers such as Abandon to blockbusters such as Batman Begins.
1968 - Rachel Griffiths - an Australian film and television actress who came to prominence in the 1994 film Muriel's Wedding. Among her other notable roles, she is particularly well known for her portrayal of Brenda Chenowith in the TV series Six Feet Under (2001–05) and Sarah Walker on the ABC primetime drama Brothers & Sisters (2006–present).
1968 - Casper Van Dien - an American actor, best known for his role as Johnny Rico in Starship Troopers. Other movies include Tarzan and the Lost City, Beverly Hills, 90210, Beastmaster III: The Eye of Braxus, Sleepy Hollow, Titans
1963 - Brad Pitt - an American actor and film producer. He has been cited as one of the world's most attractive men, a label that entices the media to report on his off-screen life. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one.
1954 - Ray Liotta - an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Henry Hill in the crime-drama Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese. He has won an Emmy Award and been nominated for a Golden Globe Award.
1951 – Andy Thomas - an Australian-born American aerospace engineer and a NASA astronaut. He became a U.S. citizen in December 1986, hoping to gain entry to NASA's astronaut program. He is married to NASA astronaut Shannon Walker.
1950 - Gillian Armstrong - an award-winning Australian director of feature films and documentaries. Her feature length film My Brilliant Career (1979), an adaptation of Miles Franklin's novel of the same name, was the first Australian feature length film to be directed by a woman for 46 years. Armstrong received six awards at the 1979 Australian Film Awards, including Best Director. Other movies include the 1994 adaptation of Little Women, starring Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon, and followed with the films Oscar and Lucinda (1997) and Charlotte Gray (2001).
1946 - Steven Spielberg - an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer. In a career spanning over four decades, Spielberg's films have touched on many themes and genres. Spielberg's early sci-fi and adventure films sometimes centering on children, were seen as an archetype of modern Hollywood blockbuster filmmaking. In later years his films began addressing such issues as The Holocaust, slavery, war and terrorism
1916 - Betty Grable - an American dancer, singer, and actress. Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the Life magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World". Grable was particularly noted for having the most beautiful legs in Hollywood and studio publicity widely dispersed photos featuring them. Grable's legs were famously insured by her studio for $1,000,000 with Lloyds of London.
OTHER EVENTS:
2008 – Slumdog Millionaire starring Dev Patel, Saurabh Shukla and Anil Kapoor starts screening in Australia. A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers.
2000 – British music magazine Melody Maker, which began publishing weekly in 1926, publishes its last issue.
1999 - The Spice Girls unveiled their waxwork look-alikes at Madame Tussaud's, London. Each model had cost £35,000 to make
1999 - Malaysia issues a postage stamp for the Universal Postal Union's 125th anniversary depicting a personal computer.
1997 – James Cameron’s Titanic starts screening in Australia. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet , Billy Zane and Kathy Bates, Titanic becomes one of the most awarded movies in recent years. Fictional romantic tale of a rich girl and poor boy who meet on the ill-fated voyage of the 'unsinkable' ship.
1993 - Take That had their third UK No.1 single with the Gary Barlow penned song 'Babe'.
1986 - William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy head the cast for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home which starts screening in Australia. To save Earth from an alien probe, Kirk and his crew go back in time to retrieve the only beings who can communicate with it, humpback whales.
1985 - Beverly Hills Cop became the top movie grosser of the year with $229.9 million in tickets sold. Back to the Future, with Michael J. Fox, was second, followed by Rambo: First Blood, Part 2, starring Sylvester Stallone, gunning its way into third place.
1984 - Madonna's Like a Virgin was the No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit. The song was Madonna's first No. 1 hit.
1982 - UK-based Italian tenor and English girl Renee And Renato were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Save Your Love', the duo's only UK Top 40 hit and this years Christmas No.1.
1981 - About 35 million people watched a Rod Stewart concert via satellite. The broadcast was televised in 23 countries.
1979 - The sound barrier was broken on land for the first time by Stanley Barrett, driving at 739.6 mph, in California.
1975 – The Rocky Horror Show starts screening in Australia. Starring Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, Richard O'Brien and Meatloaf, Rocky goes on to become a cult movie in the annuals of Movie history, A newly engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must pay a call to the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter.
1973 – Soviet Soyuz Programme: Soyuz 13, crewed by cosmonauts Valentin Lebedev and Pyotr Klimuk, is launched from Baikonur in the Soviet Union.
1972 - Helen Reddy received a gold record for the song that became an anthem for women’s liberation, I Am Woman. The song had reached number one on December 9, 1972.
1971 - Harry Nilsson hits US chart with 'Without You', his only No. 1
1971 - Sly and the Family Stone went to No.1 on the US album chart with 'There's A Riot Going On'.
1969 – The Love Bug starring Dean Jones, David Tomlinson and Michele Lee starts screening in Australia. A race car driver becomes a champion with a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own.
1965 - Stevie Wonder's "Uptight" enters the Hot 100 where it stays put for 14 weeks, peaking at number three. It's Wonder's first trip to the top ten since his first smash, "Fingertips Part Two."
1965 - The Beatles enter the Hot 100, again, with both sides of their latest record, "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper." The former is on the charts for 12 weeks making it to Number One while the latter only makes it up to number five.
1965 - Gemini VII splashed down in the western Atlantic Ocean with command pilot Frank Borman and pilot Jim Lovell Jr. on board. They had blasted off Dec 4 on a mission of physiological testing and spacecraft performance evaluation.
1964 - "The Pink Panther" cartoon series premieres
1963 - Australia's Ron Clarke set a world record. He ran 10,000 meters in 28 minutes, 15.6 seconds.
1961 - Sam Cooke records "Twistin' The Night Away"
1961 - Chubby Checker's "The Twist" has now been on the Hot 100 chart for 23 straight weeks, longer than any other disc on the chart.
1947 - Starting to screen in Australia was Miracle on 34th Street starring Maureen O'Hara, John Payne and Natalie Wood. When a nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus is institutionalized as insane, a young lawyer decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real thing
1942 - Disney's Donald Duck short Bellboy Donald, directed by Jack King is released. Donald struggles with his self-control as he deals with rude hotel guests!
1935 – Donald Bradman scores 117 in his 1st Shield cricket match for South Australia
1935 - A $1 silver certificate was issued. It was the first currency to depict the front and back sides of the Great Seal of the United States.
1930 – Donald Bradman scores 258 NSW vs. South Australia, 289 minutes, 37 fours
1917 - Prohibition: The 18th amendment prohibiting intoxicating liquors in the U.S. is sent to the states for ratification. It was in effect from 1920 to 1933.
1903 - The Panama Canal Zone was acquired 'in perpetuity' by the U.S. for an annual rent.
1900 - The Upper Ferntree Gully to Gembrook Narrow-gauge (2 ft 6 in or 762 mm) Railway (now the Puffing Billy Railway) in Victoria, Australia is opened for traffic.
1894 - Women in South Australia gain the unofficial right to vote.
1865 - Slavery was abolished in the United States with the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution being ratified.
1862 - The first orthopedic hospital was organized -- in New York City. It was called the Hospital for Ruptured and Crippled.
1978 - Katie Holmes - an American actress who first achieved fame for her role as Joey Potter on The WB television teen drama Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2003. Her movie roles have ranged from art house films such as The Ice Storm to thrillers such as Abandon to blockbusters such as Batman Begins.
1968 - Rachel Griffiths - an Australian film and television actress who came to prominence in the 1994 film Muriel's Wedding. Among her other notable roles, she is particularly well known for her portrayal of Brenda Chenowith in the TV series Six Feet Under (2001–05) and Sarah Walker on the ABC primetime drama Brothers & Sisters (2006–present).
1968 - Casper Van Dien - an American actor, best known for his role as Johnny Rico in Starship Troopers. Other movies include Tarzan and the Lost City, Beverly Hills, 90210, Beastmaster III: The Eye of Braxus, Sleepy Hollow, Titans
1963 - Brad Pitt - an American actor and film producer. He has been cited as one of the world's most attractive men, a label that entices the media to report on his off-screen life. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one.
1954 - Ray Liotta - an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Henry Hill in the crime-drama Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese. He has won an Emmy Award and been nominated for a Golden Globe Award.
1951 – Andy Thomas - an Australian-born American aerospace engineer and a NASA astronaut. He became a U.S. citizen in December 1986, hoping to gain entry to NASA's astronaut program. He is married to NASA astronaut Shannon Walker.
1950 - Gillian Armstrong - an award-winning Australian director of feature films and documentaries. Her feature length film My Brilliant Career (1979), an adaptation of Miles Franklin's novel of the same name, was the first Australian feature length film to be directed by a woman for 46 years. Armstrong received six awards at the 1979 Australian Film Awards, including Best Director. Other movies include the 1994 adaptation of Little Women, starring Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon, and followed with the films Oscar and Lucinda (1997) and Charlotte Gray (2001).
1946 - Steven Spielberg - an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer. In a career spanning over four decades, Spielberg's films have touched on many themes and genres. Spielberg's early sci-fi and adventure films sometimes centering on children, were seen as an archetype of modern Hollywood blockbuster filmmaking. In later years his films began addressing such issues as The Holocaust, slavery, war and terrorism
1916 - Betty Grable - an American dancer, singer, and actress. Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the Life magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World". Grable was particularly noted for having the most beautiful legs in Hollywood and studio publicity widely dispersed photos featuring them. Grable's legs were famously insured by her studio for $1,000,000 with Lloyds of London.
OTHER EVENTS:
2008 – Slumdog Millionaire starring Dev Patel, Saurabh Shukla and Anil Kapoor starts screening in Australia. A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers.
2000 – British music magazine Melody Maker, which began publishing weekly in 1926, publishes its last issue.
1999 - The Spice Girls unveiled their waxwork look-alikes at Madame Tussaud's, London. Each model had cost £35,000 to make
1999 - Malaysia issues a postage stamp for the Universal Postal Union's 125th anniversary depicting a personal computer.
1997 – James Cameron’s Titanic starts screening in Australia. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet , Billy Zane and Kathy Bates, Titanic becomes one of the most awarded movies in recent years. Fictional romantic tale of a rich girl and poor boy who meet on the ill-fated voyage of the 'unsinkable' ship.
1993 - Take That had their third UK No.1 single with the Gary Barlow penned song 'Babe'.
1986 - William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy head the cast for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home which starts screening in Australia. To save Earth from an alien probe, Kirk and his crew go back in time to retrieve the only beings who can communicate with it, humpback whales.
1985 - Beverly Hills Cop became the top movie grosser of the year with $229.9 million in tickets sold. Back to the Future, with Michael J. Fox, was second, followed by Rambo: First Blood, Part 2, starring Sylvester Stallone, gunning its way into third place.
1984 - Madonna's Like a Virgin was the No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit. The song was Madonna's first No. 1 hit.
1982 - UK-based Italian tenor and English girl Renee And Renato were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Save Your Love', the duo's only UK Top 40 hit and this years Christmas No.1.
1981 - About 35 million people watched a Rod Stewart concert via satellite. The broadcast was televised in 23 countries.
1979 - The sound barrier was broken on land for the first time by Stanley Barrett, driving at 739.6 mph, in California.
1975 – The Rocky Horror Show starts screening in Australia. Starring Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, Richard O'Brien and Meatloaf, Rocky goes on to become a cult movie in the annuals of Movie history, A newly engaged couple have a breakdown in an isolated area and must pay a call to the bizarre residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter.
1973 – Soviet Soyuz Programme: Soyuz 13, crewed by cosmonauts Valentin Lebedev and Pyotr Klimuk, is launched from Baikonur in the Soviet Union.
1972 - Helen Reddy received a gold record for the song that became an anthem for women’s liberation, I Am Woman. The song had reached number one on December 9, 1972.
1971 - Harry Nilsson hits US chart with 'Without You', his only No. 1
1971 - Sly and the Family Stone went to No.1 on the US album chart with 'There's A Riot Going On'.
1969 – The Love Bug starring Dean Jones, David Tomlinson and Michele Lee starts screening in Australia. A race car driver becomes a champion with a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own.
1965 - Stevie Wonder's "Uptight" enters the Hot 100 where it stays put for 14 weeks, peaking at number three. It's Wonder's first trip to the top ten since his first smash, "Fingertips Part Two."
1965 - The Beatles enter the Hot 100, again, with both sides of their latest record, "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper." The former is on the charts for 12 weeks making it to Number One while the latter only makes it up to number five.
1965 - Gemini VII splashed down in the western Atlantic Ocean with command pilot Frank Borman and pilot Jim Lovell Jr. on board. They had blasted off Dec 4 on a mission of physiological testing and spacecraft performance evaluation.
1964 - "The Pink Panther" cartoon series premieres
1963 - Australia's Ron Clarke set a world record. He ran 10,000 meters in 28 minutes, 15.6 seconds.
1961 - Sam Cooke records "Twistin' The Night Away"
1961 - Chubby Checker's "The Twist" has now been on the Hot 100 chart for 23 straight weeks, longer than any other disc on the chart.
1947 - Starting to screen in Australia was Miracle on 34th Street starring Maureen O'Hara, John Payne and Natalie Wood. When a nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus is institutionalized as insane, a young lawyer decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real thing
1942 - Disney's Donald Duck short Bellboy Donald, directed by Jack King is released. Donald struggles with his self-control as he deals with rude hotel guests!
1935 – Donald Bradman scores 117 in his 1st Shield cricket match for South Australia
1935 - A $1 silver certificate was issued. It was the first currency to depict the front and back sides of the Great Seal of the United States.
1930 – Donald Bradman scores 258 NSW vs. South Australia, 289 minutes, 37 fours
1917 - Prohibition: The 18th amendment prohibiting intoxicating liquors in the U.S. is sent to the states for ratification. It was in effect from 1920 to 1933.
1903 - The Panama Canal Zone was acquired 'in perpetuity' by the U.S. for an annual rent.
1900 - The Upper Ferntree Gully to Gembrook Narrow-gauge (2 ft 6 in or 762 mm) Railway (now the Puffing Billy Railway) in Victoria, Australia is opened for traffic.
1894 - Women in South Australia gain the unofficial right to vote.
1865 - Slavery was abolished in the United States with the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution being ratified.
1862 - The first orthopedic hospital was organized -- in New York City. It was called the Hospital for Ruptured and Crippled.
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