- 349th Day of 2015 16 Remaining
- Winter Begins in 6 Days
- Sunrise: 7:18
- Sunset: 4:52
- 9 Hours 34 Minutes
- Moon Rise: 10:27am
- Moon Set: 9:33pm
- Phase: 19% 4 Days
- Next Full Moon December 25 @ 3:11am
- The Full Cold Moon; or the Full Long Nights Moon – December During this month the winter cold fastens its grip, and nights are at their longest and darkest. It is also sometimes called the Moon before Yule. The term Long Night Moon is a doubly appropriate name because the midwinter night is indeed long, and because the Moon is above the horizon for a long time. The midwinter full Moon has a high trajectory across the sky because it is opposite a low Sun.
- Tides
- High: 1:59am/12:48pm
- Low: 7:04am/7:36pm
- Holidays
- National Cupcake Day
- Cat Herders Day
- Bill of Rights Day
- Constitution Day-Nepal
- Fast of Tebet-Israel
- Kingdom Day-Nederlands
- On This Day
- 1791 --- Virginia becomes the last state to ratify the Bill of Rights, making the first ten amendments to the Constitution law and completing the revolutionary reforms begun by the Declaration of Independence. Before the Massachusetts ratifying convention would accept the Constitution, which they finally did in February 1788, the document’s Federalist supporters had to promise to create a Bill of Rights to be amended to the Constitution immediately upon the creation of a new government under the document.
- 1815 --- Jane Austen's "Emma" was published.
- 1854 --- The first practical street cleaning machine began operation in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A series of brooms attached to a cylinder was turned by a chain driven by the turning of the cart's wheels.
- 1890 --- American Sioux Indian Chief Sitting Bull and 11 other tribe members were killed in Grand River, S.D., during an incident with Indian police working for the U.S. government. When the apocalyptic spiritual revival movement known as the Ghost Dance began to grow in popularity among the Sioux in 1890, Indian agents feared it might lead to an Indian uprising. Wrongly believing that Sitting Bull was the driving force behind the Ghost Dance, agent James McLaughlin sent Indian police to arrest the chief at his small cabin on the Grand River. The Indian police rousted the naked chief from his bed at 6:00 in the morning, hoping to spirit him away before his guards and neighbors knew what had happened. When the fifty-nine-year-old chief refused to go quietly, a crowd gathered and a few hotheaded young men threatened the Indian police. Someone fired a shot that hit one of the Indian police; they retaliated by shooting Sitting Bull in the chest and head. The great chief was killed instantly. Before the ensuing gunfight ended, twelve other Indians were dead and three were wounded.
- 1896 --- The U.S. government awards Patent Number 573,174 to inventor Stephen M. Balzer for a gasoline-powered motor buggy that he built two years earlier. Balzer never mass-produced any of his cars, but his “experimental” vehicle was one of the first functioning automobiles to be built in the United States. Today, the Balzer car is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. It was the first gas-powered car in the museum’s collection.
- 1903 --- Italo Marchiony received U.S. patent # 746,971 for an ice cream cup mold. Initially, he would fold warm waffles into a cup shape. He then developed the 2-piece mold that would make 10 cups at a time.
- 1939 --- "Gone With the Wind," produced by David O. Selznick based on the novel by Margaret Mitchell, premiered at Loew's Grand Theater in Atlanta. The movie starred Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable.
- 1944 --- A single-engine plane carrying U.S. Army Major Glenn Miller disappeared in thick fog over the English Channel while en route to Paris. The true fate of the plane and its passengers has never been determined.
- 1961 --- Former Nazi official Adolf Eichmann was sentenced to death in Jerusalem by an Israeli court. He had been tried on charges for organizing the deportation of Jews to concentration camps.
- 1964 --- Canada adopted the maple leaf as the official symbol for its national flag.
- 1968 --- Grace Slick appeared in blackface when Jefferson Airplane appeared on the "Smothers Brothers" TV show on CBS.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7OSBvKlhUk
- 1969 --- John Lennon gave his last live performance in England. It was a UNICEF benefit in London.
- 1970 --- The Soviet probe Venera 7 became the first spacecraft to land softly on the surface of Venus. The probe only survived the extreme heat and pressure for about 23 minutes and transmitted the first data received on Earth from the surface of another planet.
- 1988 --- Legendary singer James Brown, also known as the “Godfather of Soul” and the “Hardest Working Man in Show Business,” becomes inmate number 155413 at the State Park Correctional Institute in South Carolina. Brown had had several run-ins with the law during the summer of 1988 that landed him on probation, but his reckless spree on September 24 resulted in numerous criminal charges, including assault and battery with intent to kill.
- 1989 --- An uprising in Romania began as demonstrators gathered to prevent the arrest of the Reverend Laszlo Tokes, a dissident clergyman.
- 1993 --- The prime ministers of Britain and the Republic of Ireland (John Major and Albert Reynolds respectively) made the "Downing Street Declaration," stating the basis for trying to achieve peace in Northern Ireland.
- 1993 --- Schindler’s List, starring Liam Neeson in the true story of a German businessman who saves the lives of more than a thousand Polish Jews during the Holocaust, opens in theaters. The film was nominated for 12 Academy Awards and took home seven Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director.
- 1997 --- The San Francisco 49ers retired Joe Montana's number 16 during halftime of a game against the Denver Broncos.
- 1998 --- The U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on the Judiciary releases a 265-page report recommending the impeachment of President Bill Clinton for high crimes and misdemeanors. The subsequent impeachment proceedings were the culmination of a slew of scandals involving the president and first lady Hillary Clinton. The Clintons were suspected of arranging improper real-estate deals, fundraising violations and cronyism in involving the firing of White House travel agents. Added to the mix were stories of Clinton’s extra-marital affairs and a sexual harassment claim filed against him.
- 2001 --- Italy's famous Leaning Tower of Pisa was reopened to the public after almost 12 years of corrective reconstruction and stabilization efforts. It was declared stable for at least another 200 years.
- Birthdays
- Gustave Eiffel
- Cindy Birdsong
- J Paul Getty
- Alan Freed
- Clyde McPhatter
- Tim Conway
- Paul Simonon
- Molly Price
- Nero
- Dave Clark
National Cupcake Day-KALW Almanac-12/15/2015
