Today in History for 18th December 2023

[CoM Moderators]

Historical Events

1773 - A skirmish at Grass Cove in Queen Charlotte Sound results in the deaths of two Māori and nine members of James Cook's expedition, New Zealand
1774 - Empress Maria Theresa expels Jews from Prague, Bohemia and Moravia
1980 - Dutch 2nd Chamber accepts minister Van Agts abortion laws
1997 - HTML 4.0 is published by the World Wide Web Consortium
1998 - Romantic comedy film "You've Got Mail", starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, directed by Nora Ephron, and written by sisters Nora and Delia Ephron, is released
2020 - International body Covax, established to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to low and middle income countries, announces deals with vaccine manufacturers and method for countries to share excess vaccines

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Famous Birthdays

1835 - Lyman Abbott, American theologian and author, born in Roxbury, Massachusetts (d. 1922)
1860 - Edward Alexander MacDowell, American composer (Indian Suite), born in New York (d. 1908)
1898 - Jacob Kruijt, Dutch sociologist (d. 1975)
1960 - Yoon Suk-yeol, South Korean prosecutor and President of South Korea (2022-), born in Seoul, South Korea
1971 - Joe Dziedzic, NHL left wing (Pitts Penguins), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
1987 - Miki Andō, Japanese figure skater

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Famous Deaths

1894 - Erastus Flaval Beadle, American publisher (Beadle's Dime Novels), dies at 73
1930 - Clarence Kummer, American Racing HOF jockey (Preakness Stakes 1920, 25; Belmont Stakes 1920, 28; US Champion Jockey by earnings 1920), dies from pneumonia at 31
1931 - Jack "Legs" Diamond, American gangster and bootlegger, murdered at 34
1971 - Aleksandr Tvardovsky, Russian poet and editor in chief (Novyj Mir), dies at 61
1992 - Charles Leatherland, Baron Leatherland, British journalist and Labour Party politician, dies at 94
2008 - Mark Felt, the infamous "Deep Throat", American FBI official and whistle blower during the Watergate Scandal dies aged 95

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