- 1990 – Ivana Trump was divorced from Donald Trump after 12 years of marriage.
- 1991 – Salman Rushdie, under an Islamic death sentence for blasphemy, made his first public appearance since 1989 in New York, at a dinner marking the 200th anniversary of the First Amendment (which guarantees freedom of speech in the U.S.).
- 1994 – Thousands of Russian troops, armored columns and jets entered Chechnya. The move by Moscow was an effort to restore control the breakaway republic.
- 1994 – The world’s largest free trade zone was created when leaders of 34 Western Hemisphere nations signed a free-trade declaration known as “The Miami Process.”
- 1996 – In Crystal City, VA, “The Art of the Toy” opened. The exhibit was at the Patent and Trademark Office Museum.
- 1997 – Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams became the first political ally of the IRA to meet a British leader in 76 years. He conferred with Prime Minister Tony Blair in London.
- 1997 – More than 270 Tutsi refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo were killed by Juto guerillas in Mudende, Rwanda.
- 1997 – More than 150 countries agreed at a global warming conference in Kyoto, Japan, to control the Earth’s “greenhouse gases.”
- 1998 – Scientists announced that they had deciphered the entire genetic blueprint of a tiny worm.
- 1998 – The Mars Climate Orbiter blasted off on a nine-month journey to the Red Planet. However, the probe disappeared in September of 1999, apparently destroyed because scientists had failed to convert English measures to metric values.
- 1998 – Majority Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee pushed through three articles of impeachment against U.S. President Clinton.
- 2000 – Mario Lemeiux, owner of Pittsburgh Penquins, announced that he would end his three-plus year retirement and become an active National Hockey League (NHL) player again. When Lemieux returned officially he became the first owner/player in NHL history.
- 2001 – U.S. Attorney General Ashcroft announced the first federal indictment directly related to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. Zacarias Moussaoui was charged with six conspiracy charges. Moussaoui was in custody at the time of the attacks.
- 2001 – Ted Turner purchased 12,000 acres in Nebraska for Bison ranches.
- 2001 – It was announced that U.S. President George W. Bush would withdraw the U.S. from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with Russia.
- 2001 – Federal agents seized computers in 27 U.S. cities as part of “Operation Buccaneer.” The raids were used to gain evidence against an international software piracy ring.
- 2009 – The game Angry Birds was released.
- 2013 – Standard & Poors announced that Facebook would join its S&P 500 index “after the close of trading on December 20.”
- 2007 – Insurgency in the Maghreb: Two car bombs explode in Algiers, Algeria, one near the Supreme Constitutional Court and the other near the offices of the United Nations.
- 2008 – Bernard Madoff is arrested and charged with securities fraud in a $50 billion Ponzi scheme.
- 2012 – At least 125 people are killed and up to 200 injured in bombings in the Alawite village of Aqrab, Syria.
- 2017 – New York City attempted bombing: A pipe bomb partially detonates in the New York City Subway, in the Times Square–42nd Street/Port Authority Bus Terminal. Four people are injured, including the perpetrator.
- 2019 – The results of the 2019 Bougainvillean independence referendum are announced. The results are overwhelmingly one-sided. Over 98% voters vote for Bougainville’s independence.
Celebrating Birthday Today
- 1981 – Jason Kennedy, American journalist
- 1981 – Jeff McComsey, American author and illustrator
- 1981 – Paul Medhurst, Australian footballer
- 1981 – Javier Saviola, Argentinian footballer
- 1982 – Pablo Pérez Companc, Argentinian race car driver
- 1984 – Leighton Baines, English footballer
- 1984 – Sandra Echeverría, Mexican actress and singer
- 1984 – James Ellsworth, American wrestler
- 1985 – Karla Souza, Mexican actress
- 1986 – Roy Hibbert, American basketball player
- 1987 – Clifton Geathers, American football player
- 1987 – Alex Russell, Australian actor
- 1987 – Miranda Tapsell, Australian actress
- 1988 – Tim Southee, New Zealand cricketer
- 1990 – Derrick Nix, American basketball player
- 1992 – Tiffany Alvord, American singer-songwriter
- 1992 – Dalton Pompey, Canadian baseball player
- 1993 – Yalitza Aparicio, Mexican actress
- 1995 – Abbi Grant, Scottish footballer
- 1996 – Hailee Steinfeld, American actress, singer and songwriter
- 2000 – Emily Whitehead, artistic gymnast]