What Happened On
Sandy Hook School Shooting
December 14, 2012
20-year-old Adam Lanza fatally shoots 20 children between 6 and 7 years old, as well as six adult staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Prior to driving to the school, Lanza shot and killed his mother at their Newtown home. As first responders arrived at the scene, Lanza committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.
The shootings occurred over the course of less than five minutes with 156 shots fired - 154 shots from a rifle. Lanza then fired a shot in the hallway from a pistol, then killed himself with another shot from the pistol to his head.
This was the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history. His motive and why he chose this school is still unknown.
However, this was not the worst U.S. school massacre. That was the Bath School Massacre bombing in 1927.
Last Man on the Moon
December 14, 1972
Eugene Cernan reenters the Lunar Module after making the last Moon walk: "…America's challenge of today has forged man's destiny of tomorrow. And, as we leave the Moon at Taurus-Littrow, we leave as we came and, God willing, as we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind. Godspeed the crew of Apollo 17."
World's First Successful Interplanetary Spacecraft
December 14, 1962
Mariner 2 passes within 34,762 kilometers (21,600 mi) of Venus. It recorded the planet's temperature, revealing a very hot atmosphere of about 500 degrees Celsius (900 degrees Fahrenheit).
Photo Credit: Dhodges
Photo Credit: Dhodges
First In-the-Lens Teleprompter
December 14, 1953
An I Love Lucy episode airs in which an "in-the-lens" teleprompter had been used by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz to film a Philip Morris cigarette commercial. The in-the-lens teleprompter allowed the reader to look directly into the lens while reading the text. It was patented by Jesse Oppenheimer, who was the creator of the I Love Lucy show. Prior to that, teleprompters were rolls of printed paper that were positioned near the camera and could be scrolled as the actor read them.
Amundsen and his crew looking at the Norwegian flag at the South Pole
Amundsen and his crew looking at the Norwegian flag at the South Pole
South Pole Reached
December 14, 1911
Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen becomes the first person to reach the South Pole.
Amundsen Quote: "The way in which the expedition is equipped-the way in which every difficulty is foreseen, and precautions taken for meeting or avoiding it. Victory awaits him who has everything in order—luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time; this is called bad luck."
First Balloon Flight
December 14, 1782
Brothers Joseph Montgolfier and Jacques Montgolfier test their first balloon. They built a large box out of thin wood and lit a fire beneath it. The unmanned balloon took off with such force they lost control of it. It floated nearly two kilometers (about 1.2 mi). Joseph had been inspired by the lifting force of smoke from a fire. Upon landing, alarmed villagers attacked it with pitchforks and stones.
They made the first sustained flight of a hot-air balloon the following year.
LAX Bombing Plot
December 14, 1999
An Algerian man living in Canada is arrested at the United States-Canada border in Port Angeles, Washington after crossing by ferry. Customs officials found nitroglycerin and four timing devices concealed in the spare tire well of his automobile. He was planning to bomb LAX airport in Los Angeles, California.
Sidewalk of Stars
December 14, 1993
Radio City Music Hall unveils its "Sidewalk of Stars" in New York, with Liza Minnelli receiving the first star.
Chrysler Odometer Fraud
December 14, 1987
The automaker Chrysler pleads no contest to charges of rolling back odometers on cars and selling them as new.
Around-the-World Flight
December 14, 1986
First nonstop around-the-world flight without refueling begins, by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager flying the aircraft Voyager. The nine-day flight finished on December 23.
First Successful Separation of Siamese Twins
December 14, 1952
Dr. Jac S. Geller of Mount Sinai Hospital, Ohio separates two girls joined at the sternum. Source: Guinness Book of World Records
Glenn T. Seaborg
Glenn T. Seaborg
Plutonium
December 14, 1940
Plutonium is first produced and isolated by deuteron bombardment of uranium-238 in the 60-inch cyclotron, by Glenn T. Seaborg and his team at the University of California, Berkeley. It has the atomic number 94.
Orville Wright piloting their first successful flight 3 days later
Orville Wright piloting their first successful flight 3 days later
Wright Brothers Failed Attempt
December 14, 1903
The Wright brothers attempt to fly their aircraft. However, the engine stalled on takeoff. Wilbur Wright won a coin toss and piloted the attempt.
They would have their first successful flight three days later.
December 14 was the 121st anniversary of the first hot air balloon test flight made by the Montgolfier brothers on December 14, 1782.
The Discovery of Quantum Physics
December 14, 1900
Max Planck presents his quantum hypothesis that any energy-radiating atomic system can theoretically be divided into a number of discrete "energy elements" ε (epsilon) such that each of these energy elements is proportional to the frequency ν with which each of them individually radiate energy, as defined by the following formula: ε = hν, where h is Planck's constant. For this he was awarded the Nobel Prize.
Alabama Flag
Alabama Flag
Alabama
December 14, 1819
Alabama becomes the 22nd state. Alabama is from the Alabama people, a Muskogean-speaking tribe whose members lived just below the confluence of the Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers on the upper reaches of the river. Alabama is nicknamed the Yellowhammer State, after the state bird and is also known as the "Heart of Dixie" and the "Cotton State".
American Revolution - First Military Encounter
December 14, 1774
Major John Sullivan leads 400 volunteers in an attack on Fort William and Mary at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. They captured the fort's commander and 100 casks of powder and small arms.
The Second Newspaper in America
December 14, 1719
The Boston Gazette, published by William Booker, is founded. It lasted until 1798.
Birthdays
Jimmy Doolittle (James Harold Doolittle)
Born December 14, 1896 d. 1993
American air-force officer. Winner of the Medal of Honor, Presidential Medal of Freedom, two Distinguished Service Medals, and three Distinguished Flying Crosses. He led the first U.S. bombing raid over the Japanese mainland (1942) during World War II.
In 1929, he made the first blind airplane flight (1929) in which the pilot could not see outside of the cockpit.
Tycho Brahe
Born December 14, 1546 d. 1601
Danish nobleman, astronomer. Known for accurate and comprehensive astronomical and planetary observations, his observations were some five times more accurate than the best available observations at the time. Brahe observed a very bright star (SN 1572), which suddenly appeared in the constellation Cassiopeia. Brahe found the object did not change its position relative to the fixed stars over several months, as all planets did in their periodic orbital motions, and deduced that it was a fixed star in the stellar sphere beyond all the planets. Up to that time, it was believed the stars were unchanging. The following year he published De nova stella, thereby coining the term nova for a "new" star.
In 1566, Brahe lost part of his nose in a sword duel against his third cousin, a fellow nobleman, and wore a metal prosthetic nose the rest of his life. The argument started over who was the best mathematician.
Nostradamus (Michel de Nostredame)
Born December 14, 1503 d. 1566
French astrologer, physician, prophet. He predicted both the date and manner of his death.
Patty Duke (Anna Marie Duke)
Born December 14, 1946 d. 2016
American Oscar-Emmy-winning actress. She portrayed Helen Keller in the Broadway (1959) and film (1962, Oscar) versions of The Miracle Worker. TV: The Patty Duke Show (1963-66, "identical cousins" Patty and Cathy).
She testified before the U.S. Senate that her appearance on The $64,000 Question quiz show when she was 12 years old had been rigged and that she had been coached.
Sidney Sheldon, who developed The Patty Duke Show for her, had noticed she had two distinct sides to her personality and developed the concept of identical cousins with contrasting personalities. In 1987, Duke revealed that she had been diagnosed with manic depression (bipolar disorder), subsequently becoming an activist for mental health causes.
Film: Valley of the Dolls (1967, Neely O'Hara). Music: Don't Just Stand There (1965, #8) and Say Something Funny (1965, #22).
Telma Hopkins with Tony Orlando and Joyce Vincent Wilson (right)
Telma Hopkins with Tony Orlando and Joyce Vincent Wilson (right)
Joyce Vincent Wilson
Born December 14, 1946
American singer. With Tony Orlando and Dawn. Music: Knock Three Times (1971, #1) and Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Ole Oak Tree (1973, #1).
Lee Remick
Born December 14, 1935 d. 1991
American actress. Film: Anatomy of a Murder (1959) and The Days of Wine and Roses (1962).
Phineas Newborn Jr.
Born December 14, 1931 d. 1989
American jazz pianist.
Spike Jones (Lindley Armstrong Jones)
Born December 14, 1911 d. 1965
American musician. Music: All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth (1948, #1).
Morey Amsterdam
Born December 14, 1908 d. 1996
American actor. TV: The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-66, Buddy Sorrel).
Frances Bavier
Born December 14, 1902 d. 1989
American Emmy-winning actress. TV: The Andy Griffith Show (1960-68, Aunt Bee). Film: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951, Mrs. Barley, a guest in the boarding house).
Bavier left a $100,000 trust fund for the police force in Siler City, North Carolina, to provide Christmas bonuses every year for all the police personnel.
Danny Thomas and Sheldon Leonard created The Andy Griffith Show as an episode of The Danny Thomas Show, titled Danny Meets Andy Griffith, with the intention of spinning it off into its own show. During this pilot episode, it was revealed that Opie's mother died when Opie was "the least little speck of a baby." In the first episode, Andy's Aunt Bee comes to help raise Opie, as she had also helped raise Andy.
Margaret Chase Smith
Born December 14, 1897 d. 1995
American politician, former U.S. Senator (R-Maine). She was the first woman elected to both houses of the U.S. Congress. Her opposition to the tactics of Joseph McCarthy earned her the nickname "Moscow Maggie."
Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth
Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt with King George VI and Queen Elizabeth
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George)
Born December 14, 1895 d. 1952
King of England and Northern Ireland (1936-52). He and Queen Elizabeth were the first British Sovereigns to visit the U.S. (1939).
Garrett's Farm
Garrett's Farm
Richard H. Garrett
Born December 14, 1806 d. 1878
American farmer. He owned the farm on which U.S. President Abraham Lincoln's assassin John Wilkes Booth was killed.
Deaths
The Life of Riley Star
William Bendix
Died December 14, 1964 b. 1906
American actor. William Bendix is best known for playing Chester A. Riley on radio (1944-51), film (1949), and TV (1953-58). Riley's exclamation of "What a revoltin' development this is!" became one of the most famous catchphrases of the 1940s.
At age 15, Bendix was a bat boy for the New York Yankees, and became a personal favorite of Babe Ruth. He said he saw Babe Ruth hit more than 100 home runs at Yankee Stadium. However, he was fired after fulfilling Ruth's request for a large order of hot dogs and soda before a game, which resulted in Ruth not being able to play that day. Bendix played Ruth in the 1948 movie The Babe Ruth Story.
Bendix died at the age of 58 as a result of a chronic stomach ailment that brought on malnutrition and ultimately lobar pneumonia.
TV: The Life of Riley (1953-58, Chester A. Riley). Film: The Babe Ruth Story (1948, title role - critics said it was one of the worst movies ever made) and The Life of Riley (1949, Chester A. Riley). Radio: The Life of Riley (1944-51, Chester A. Riley).
Win One for the Gipper
George Gipp
Died December 14, 1920 b. 1895
American football player. Knute Rockne referred to Gipp when he said "win one for the Gipper." According to Rockne, in 1920 while Gipp was on his deathbed with pneumonia, Gipp said the following:
"I've got to go, Rock. It's all right. I'm not afraid. Some time, Rock, when the team is up against it, when things are wrong and the breaks are beating the boys, ask them to go in there with all they've got and win just one for the Gipper. I don't know where I'll be then, Rock. But I'll know about it, and I'll be happy."
In 1928, Rockne used this quote in a halftime speech to inspire Notre Dame to upset undefeated Army 12-6.
Last President of the Continental Congress
Cyrus Griffin
Died December 14, 1810 b. 1748
American lawyer. He was the 16th and last president of the Continental Congress (1788). He resigned after the ratification of the U.S. Constitution rendered the old Congress obsolete, becoming a federal judge (1789-1810, U.S. District Court of Virginia).
George Washington
Died December 14, 1799 b. 1732
American politician. First U.S. President (1789-97). "Father of the Country."
Bess Myerson
Died December 14, 2014 b. 1924
American beauty contestant, actress. She was the first Jewish Miss America (1945). She was also the first Miss New York to win the title. She was charged with bribery and conspiracy as a result of hiring a judge's daughter, presumably to influence the judge to rule favorably toward Myerson's lover in his divorce case. The scandal was known as the "Bess Mess" (1988). She was eventually acquitted of the charges. She was also arrested for shoplifting $44 worth of goods from a drug store (1988), to which she plead guilty and was fined.
Peter O'Toole
Died December 14, 2013 b. 1932
Irish actor. Film: Lawrence of Arabia (1962, title role).
Norman Fell
Died December 14, 1998 b. 1924
American actor, member of the Rat Pack. TV: Three's Company (Mr. Roper, the landlord). He also played a landlord in the movie The Graduate.
Orval Faubus
Died December 14, 1994 b. 1910
American politician, Governor of Arkansas (1955-67). In September of 1957, in what is known as the Little Rock Crisis, he ordered the Arkansas National Guard to prevent nine blacks from entering all-white Central High School in Little Rock. President Dwight D. Eisenhower federalized the Arkansas National Guard removing them from Faubus' control and then sent in elements of the 101st Airborne Division to protect the black students. In retaliation, Faubus shut down Little Rock high schools for the 1958-59 school year, in what is referred to as "The Lost Year."
Myrna Loy (Myrna Williams)
Died December 14, 1993 b. 1905
American actress. Film: The Jazz Singer (1927, as a chorus girl) and The Thin Man (1934, Nora Charles).
Roger Eugene Maris
Died December 14, 1985 b. 1934
American baseball legend, American League MVP (1960-61). He broke Babe Ruth's single-season home run record by hitting 61 (1961).
Elston Gene Howard
Died December 14, 1980 b. 1929
American baseball player. American League 1963 MVP and the first to use a baseball bat with a weight on the end to warm up in the on-deck circle (1969).
John Harvey Kellogg
Died December 14, 1943 b. 1852
American surgeon, invented grain flakes cereal.
Saint John of the Cross (San Juan de la Cruz)
Died December 14, 1591 b. 1542
Spanish mystic and poet. Began writing poetry while in prison. His works outlined the steps of mystical ascent, known as the soul's journey to Christ. He became a saint in 1726.
Adrian II
Died December 14, 872 b. 792
Italian religious leader, 106th Pope (867-872).