History of 17 May
- 1990 – Kelsey Grammer was sentenced to 30 days in jail for DWI.
- 1996 – U.S. President Clinton signed a measure requiring neighborhood notification when sex offenders move in. Megan’s Law was named for 7-year-old Megan Kanka, who was raped and killed in 1994.
- 1997 – Rebel leader Kabila declared himself president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire.
- 1997 – Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin were married in London.
- 1998 – New York Yankees pitcher David Wells became the 13th player in modern major league baseball history to throw a perfect game.
- 1999 – Eric Ford, a tabloid photographer, was sentenced to 6 months at a halfway house, 3 years probation and 150 hours of community service. The sentence stemmed from a charge that Ford had eavesdropped on a call between Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman and then sold a recording of the conversation.
- 1999 – Alex Trebek received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- 2000 – Thomas E. Blanton Jr. and David Luker surrendered to police in Birmingham, AL. The two former Ku Klux Klan members were arrested on charges from the bombing of a church in 1963 that killed four young black girls.
- 2000 – Austria, the U.S. and six other countries agreed on the broad outline of a plan that would compensate Nazi-Era forced labor.
- 2000 – It was announced that Terra Networks SA and Lycos would be merging with the new name to be Terra Lycos. Terra made the deal happen with the purchase of $12.5 billion in stock.
- 2001 – The U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp based on Charles M. Schulz’s “Peanuts” comic strip.
- 2002 – Legoland Deutschland opened in Günzburg, Germany.
- 2006 – The U.S. aircraft carrier Oriskany was sunk about 24 miles off Pensacola Beach. It was the first vessel sunk under a Navy program to dispose of old warships by turning them into diving attractions. It was the largest man-made reef at the time of the sinking.
- 2007 – Trains crossed the border dividing North and South Korea for the first time since 1953.
- 2016 – The U.S. Senate approved legislation that would allow families of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks to sue the government of Saudi Arabia.
Celebrating Birthday Today
- 1981 – Beñat Albizuri, Spanish cyclist
- 1981 – Leon Osman, English footballer
- 1981 – Lim Jeong-hee, South Korean singer
- 1981 – Chris Skidmore, English historian and politician
- 1981 – Giannis Taralidis, Greek footballer
- 1982 – Matt Cassel, American football player
- 1982 – Dan Hardy, English mixed martial artist
- 1982 – Reiko Nakamura, Japanese swimmer
- 1982 – Tony Parker, French-American basketball player
- 1982 – Chloe Smith, English politician
- 1983 – Channing Frye, American basketball player
- 1983 – Chris Henry, American football player (d. 2009)
- 1983 – Nicky Hofs, Dutch footballer
- 1983 – Kevin Kingston, Australian rugby league player
- 1983 – Jeremy Sowers, American baseball player
- 1984 – Christian Bolaños, Costa Rican footballer
- 1984 – Christine Ohuruogu, English runner
- 1984 – Christine Robinson, Canadian water polo player
- 1985 – Teófilo Gutiérrez, Colombian footballer
- 1985 – Derek Hough, American actor, singer, and dancer
- 1985 – Christine Nesbitt, Canadian speed skater
- 1985 – Todd Redmond, American baseball player
- 1985 – Matt Ryan, American football player
- 1986 – Marius Činikas, Lithuanian footballer
- 1986 – Timo Simonlatser, Estonian skier
- 1986 – Jodie Taylor, English footballer
- 1987 – Edvald Boasson Hagen, Norwegian cyclist
- 1987 – Aleandro Rosi, Italian footballer
- 1988 – Nikki Reed, American actress, singer, and screenwriter
- 1988 – Jennison Myrie-Williams, English footballer
- 1989 – Mose Masoe, New Zealand rugby league player
- 1989 – Rain Raadik, Estonian basketball player
- 1989 – Tessa Virtue, Canadian ice dancer
- 1990 – Fabian Giefer, German footballer
- 1990 – Charlie Gubb, New Zealand rugby league player
- 1990 – Katrina Hart, English runner
- 1990 – Guido Pella, Argentine tennis player
- 1991 – Johanna Konta, Australian-English tennis player
- 1991 – Adil Omar, Pakistani rapper and music producer
- 1991 – Abigail Raye, Canadian field hockey player