On this day

1946 – The popular Christmas film It's a Wonderful Life is first released in New York City.

1951 – The EBR-1 in Arco, Idaho becomes the first nuclear power plant to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.

1955 – Cardiff is proclaimed the capital city of Wales, United Kingdom.

1968 – The Zodiac Killer kills Betty Lou Jenson and David Faraday in Vallejo, California.

1977 – Djibouti and Vietnam join the United Nations.

1984 – The Summit tunnel fire is the largest underground fire in history, as a freight train carrying over 1 million litres of petrol derails near the town of Todmorden in the Pennines.

1988 – The United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances is signed in Vienna.

1989 – United States invasion of Panama: The United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega. This is also the first combat use of purpose-designed stealth aircraft.

1995 – NATO begins peacekeeping in Bosnia.

1996 – NeXT merges with Apple Computer, starting the path to Mac OS X.

1999 – Macau is handed over to the People's Republic of China by Portugal.

2004 – A gang of thieves steal £26.5 million worth of currency from the Donegall Square West headquarters of Northern Bank in Belfast, Northern Ireland, one of the largest bank robberies in UK history.

2005 – US District Court Judge John E. Jones III rules against mandating the teaching of "intelligent design" in his ruling of Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District.

2007 – Elizabeth II becomes the oldest ever monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years, 7 months and 29 days.

1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

1844 – The Rochdale Pioneers commence business at their cooperative in Rochdale, England, starting the Cooperative movement.

1872 – Challenger expedition: HMS Challenger, commanded by Captain George Nares, sails from Portsmouth.

1879 – World première of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen.

1883 – The first Permanent Force cavalry and infantry regiments of the Canadian Army are formed: The Royal Canadian Dragoons and The Royal Canadian Regiment.

1907 – The Chilean Army commits a massacre of at least 2,000 striking saltpeter miners in Iquique, Chile.

1910 – An underground explosion at the Hulton Bank Colliery No. 3 Pit in Over Hulton, Westhoughton, England, kills 344 miners.

1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.

1937 – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theater.

1946 – An 8.1 Mw earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Nankaidō, Japan, kill over 1,300 people and destroy over 38,000 homes.

1962 – Rondane National Park is established as Norway's first national park.

1968 – Apollo program: Apollo 8 launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.

1969 – The United Nations adopts the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.

1994 – Mexican volcano Popocatepetl, dormant for 47 years, erupts gases and ash.

1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.

2004 – Iraq War: A suicide bomber killed 22 at the forward operating base next to the main U.S. military airfield at Mosul, the single deadliest suicide attack on American soldiers.

(21-12-2012 14:44 )skully Wrote:  1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.

There were a number of notable casualties of the Lockerbie bombing. Paul Jeffreys, former bass player with Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel, was killed along with his new wife Rachel. Also killed was UN commissioner Bernt Carlsson, the CEO of Volkswagen America James Fuller and four CIA agents (possibly five, but this has never been confirmed by the US authorities).

Just as notable were the number of well known people who cheated death that day by a variety of circumstances. South African Foreign Minister Pik Botha had been scheduled to be on board, but his connection arrived early and he was able to travel on to New York on an earlier flight. The then world number 1 tennis player Mats Wilander had changed to a later flight, as had “Sex in the City” actress Kim Cattrell, who wanted more time in London for shopping. The American R&B group The Four Tops had spent all the previous night in a recording studio and managed to sleep late and John Lydon (aka former Sex Pistol Johnny Rotten) missed the flight after being stuck in traffic.

Astonishingly, three of the 259 people on board initially survived the explosion and fall from almost six miles up. The inquest heard that two of them would have stood no chance as their injuries were too severe, but the third, one of the Flight Attendants, might well have lived had he been found sooner and if specialist medical facilities had been available nearby.

the world DIDNT end

1823 – A Visit from St. Nicholas, also known as The Night Before Christmas, is published anonymously.

1893 – The opera Hänsel und Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck (1854 – 1921) is first performed.

1913 – The Federal Reserve Act is signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson, creating the Federal Reserve.

1919 – Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 becomes law in the UK.

1936 – Colombia becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention copyright treaty.

1947 – The transistor is first demonstrated at Bell Laboratories.

1954 – First successful kidney transplant is performed by J. Hartwell Harrison, M.D. and Joseph E. Murray.

1958 – Dedication of Tokyo Tower, the world's highest self-supporting iron tower.

1970 – The North Tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City is topped out at 1,368 feet (417 m), making it the tallest building in the world.

1972 – The 16 survivors of the Andes flight disaster are rescued after 73 days, having survived by cannibalism.

1986 – Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, lands at Edwards Air Force Base in California becoming the first aircraft to fly non-stop around the world without aerial or ground refueling.

1990 – History of Slovenia: In a referendum, 88.5% of Slovenia's overall electorate vote for independence from Yugoslavia.

2002 – A MQ-1 Predator is shot down by an Iraqi MiG-25, making it the first time in history that an aircraft and an unmanned drone had engaged in combat.

Manhattan Bridge

It was on 31st December 1909 that the Manhattan Bridge opened in New York City, USA. A suspension bridge that stands over the East River, it is a vital connection between Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn - providing 7 transport lanes for cars and 4 tracks for trains as part of the NYC subway system, as well as pedestrian and cycling lanes.

Dimensions and Statistics

- Designed by Leon Solomon Moisseiff;
- Construction began in 1901 and was fully completed in 1915;
- The bridge runs a total length of 6,855 feet;
- The suspension cables are 3,224 feet long;
- 120 feet wide and 326 feet high (at the towers) with a clearance below of 135 feet;
- Carries 7 lanes of road traffic, 4 tracks of NYC subway train system and pedestrian and cycling lanes;
- On average the bridge carries 70,341 units of traffic a day.

Arch and Colonnade

In 1910, a year after the bridge opened, the architectural firm Carrère and Hastings drew up preliminary plans for an elaborate grand entry to the bridge on the Manhattan side, as part of the "City Beautiful" movement. Construction began that year, and plans were finalized in 1912. The arch and colonnade were completed in 1915. The decoration includes pylons which were sculpted by Carl A. Heber and a frieze called "Buffalo Hunt" by Charles Rumsey.

The arch and colonnade were designated a New York City landmark on November 25, 1975. After many years of neglect, and attempts by traffic engineers to remove the structure, the arch and colonnade were repaired and restored in 2000.

Subway trains

The NYC Subway system operates four tracks on the bridge's lower level, namely services B, D, N and Q. Southbound tracks (N and Q trains) connect to Canal Street on the BMT Broadway line with northbound tracks (B and D trains) connecting with Chrystie Street through Grand Street. Once they reach the Brooklyn side, the tracks merge in to a large junction with the BMT Fourth Avenue and BMT Brighton lines at DeKalb Avenue.

Originally, none of the railway tracks on the bridge connected to any others and were operated by the streetcar / tram companies Manhattan Bridge Three Cent Line and Brooklyn and North River Railroad. The connections were made to the main subway system in 1915, although the trams continued to operate after being moved to the upper level. Service with the tram companies wasn't discontinued until 1929.

The bridge's subway connections have seen many changes over the last 80 years. 26th November 1931 saw a connection added to the Montague Street Tunnel bringing two more stations (Fulton and Broad). The Chrystie Street Connection opened on 26th November 1967. Two more stations came with this connection - Grand Street and 57th Street-6th Avenue. Major repairs were done in 1956 to correct the tilting and swaying of the towers caused by heavier and longer trains passing through the outer tracks, and further repairs followed in 1986 to correct structural damage. This latter project required certain services to be closed on the bridge for the next 18 years - finally reopening again in 2004.

The bridge celebrated its centennial anniversary in 2009 with events including a parade on the morning of October 4th followed by a spectacular firework display in the evening. Following the celebrations, the bridge was designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

In Popular Culture

- In the film The Lonely Guy (1984), the bridge is a focal comedy point - it is a popular place for people to commit suicide;

- The bridge is featured prominently in scenes in Once Upon A Time In America (1984) and King Kong (2005);

- In Aftershock: Earthquake in New York (1999) the bridge is one of many NY landmarks to be destroyed by the Manhattan earthquake;

- The 2007 film I Am Legend shows the bridge with the center spans destroyed - a flashback reveals missiles striking them to prevent people leaving the quarantined Manhattan;

- The bridge features in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV. For the game it is renamed Algonquin Bridge.

An image of the bridge's full span and Wikipedia link are below.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Bridge

1995: Serial killer West found hanged
Fred West, the Gloucestershire builder charged with 12 murders, has been found dead in his prison cell.
Prison officers discovered the 53-year-old's body hanging from strips of clothing at Winson Green prison near Birmingham at lunch-time today.

Attempts to resuscitate him were made but a prison doctor pronounced him dead at 1330GMT today.

It is believed he committed suicide.

West, whose home became known as the House of Horrors after police found nine corpses concealed there, had been in custody for nearly a year.

He and his wife, Rosemary, who was charged with nine of the killings, were arrested in February last year by police investigating the disappearance of the couple's 16-year-old daughter, Heather, who was last seen alive in 1987.

Heather's remains were found at the couple's home, 25 Cromwell Road, Gloucester, shortly afterwards.

Within days the remains of two more bodies were found buried in the garden and six others in the cellar and bathroom areas.

Three further bodies, those of Fred West's first wife Catherine Costello, his first daughter, and the children's nanny, were later found nearby.

Mrs West, 41, was told of her husband's death by her lawyer who visited her in her prison cell at Pucklechurch prison near Bristol this afternoon.

Questions are now being raised over security and surveillance policies surrounding such high-profile in-mates in prisons such as Winson Green.


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Fred West found hanged in Winson Green prison


Serial killer Fred West found hanged







In Context
Fred West's death was later confirmed as suicide.
Rosemary West was convicted in 1995 at Winchester Crown Court for the murder of nine young women, including her own daughter Heather.

She was also convicted of the murder of Fred West's stepdaughter, Charmaine West. She was sentenced to 10 life terms.

An appeal against her convictions was rejected by the Lord Chief Justice Lord Taylor in 1996.

She launched a second appeal in 2000 but abandoned her plans in September 2001.

She is currently serving her sentence at Bronzefield Prison, near London.


Stories From 1 Jan
1995: Serial killer West found hanged
2000: World celebrates New Millennium
1973: Britain joins the EEC
1978: Newspaper editor flees South Africa
1959: Rebel army drives out Cuban dictator
2002: Celebrations as euro hits the streets



http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1571237.stm

1964 - 'Ring of Fire' by Johnny Cash became the first Country album to go No:1 in th us album chart.

1965 - The Righteous Brothers arrived in Britain for a promotional visit appearing on three TV shows - Ready Steady Go! Scene At 6.30 and Discs A Go-Go.

1967 - The Jimi Hendrix Experience recorded 'Purple Haze' Jimi also signed to the new record label 'Track Records' on this day.

1977 - A London court finds Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones guilty of possession of cocaine and fine him £750. The drugs had been discovered in his car after a traffic accident.

1992 - Paul Simon becomes the first international performer to perform in Johannesburg,South Africa since the lifting of the UN boycott.Simon had violated the UN ban by working with South African musicians years earlier.

1998 - Rolling Stone magazine readers poll picked 'Be Here Now' by Oasis as album of the year.

1964 - Led Zepplin's debut album was released in the UK.
Recorded at Olympic Studios in Barnes,London,the album took only about 36 hours of studio time to complete at a cost of £1,782,most of the tracks being recorded 'live' in the studio with very few overdubs.
The album spent a total of 71 weeks on the UK chart.

1974 - The Steve Miller Band were at No:1 in the US singles chart with 'The Joker' the group's first of three No:1's
It reached No:1 on the UK chart in 1990

1977 - EMI Records issued a statement saying they felt unable to promote The Sex Pistols records in view of the adverse publicity generated over the last two months.

1977 - The Police had their first rehearsal,held at drummer's Stewart Copeland's London flat,with Henri Padovani on guitar.

1992 - Bob Geldolf was arrested after a disturbance on a Boeing 727,which had been grounded for 5 hours at Stansted Airport.

1993 - Van Morrison failed to turn up at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction dinner,making him the first living inductee not to attend.

2003 - Singer-Songwriter Maurice Gibb from the Bee Gee's died aged 53 in a Miami Hospital,Florida following a heart attack during abdominal surgery.

2004: Serial killer Shipman found hanged
Harold Shipman, the former GP who is believed to have killed more than 200 people, has been found dead in his prison cell.

He was found hanging by a bed sheet strung around the bars of his cell at Wakefield Prison at 0620 GMT. Prison staff tried to revive him but he was pronounced dead at 0810 GMT.

Shipman, who hanged himself in his cell on the eve of his 58th birthday, was one of 563 inmates at the jail, regarded as one of the UK's best high-security prisons.

Prison officials have described his death as an "apparent suicide" and added he was taken off suicide watch 18 months ago. Shipman was on a standard security watch at the West Yorkshire jail at the time of his death.

The Prison Service said Shipman was "showing no signs whatsoever of pre-suicidal behaviour at all". The 57-year-old was behaving normally and there was "absolutely no indication" of the events to come, according to a spokeswoman.

Shortly after 1100 GMT, an undertaker's van took Shipman's body from Wakefield prison to the Medico Legal Centre in Sheffield for a post-mortem and formal identification.

Prisons Minister Paul Goggins said prisons ombudsman Stephen Shaw would carry out an investigation into Shipman's death. A separate police and coroner inquiry will also be carried out.

Shipman was jailed for life at Preston Crown Court in January 2000 for murdering 15 patients.

The murders took place between 1975 and 1998 with the victims dying from lethal injections administered by the doctor. His oldest victim was a 93-year-old woman and the youngest a 41-year-old man.

Dame Janet Smith, who ran the ensuing Shipman inquiry, reported in 2002 that she believed that over a period of 23 years he had killed 215 patients and there was a "real suspicion" that he had killed another 45.


I am shocked and surprised. I think there was a real possibility he would confess.

Bernard Postles, retired Greater Manchester Police detective


Shipman was serving 15 concurrent life sentences and had been told by the government he would never be allowed parole.

He had shown no remorse for - nor ever admitted to - his crimes, insisting he always delivered appropriate treatment to his patients. He was planning an appeal of the convictions when he died.


We have had many calls from our clients and they are in shock. There are more questions raised than answers.

Solicitor Anne Alexander


There have been calls for an investigation into how such a notorious inmate was apparently able to kill himself.

For 23 years, Shipman had convinced people in the close-knit Manchester suburb of Hyde that he was a good family doctor.

The GP preyed mainly on elderly women living alone as his victims and he often administered lethal injections on home visits. He worked for many years as a solo GP, free from the scrutiny of other doctors.

Shipman stockpiled diamorphine by issuing false prescriptions and retaining leftover supplies from patients, helped by an inadequate system for monitoring controlled drugs.

Over Christmas 2003, Shipman was put on "basic privileges" after he was uncooperative with staff. He would have had to wear prison uniform and would have had no TV in his cell. He was moved back to the "standard privilege" level a week before he died.



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Harold Shipman had shown no signs of suicidal behaviour



In Context
An inquest into the death of mass murderer Harold Shipman is due to be held in April 2005.
A spokesman for the coroner said the resumed inquest would be at Leeds Crown Court on April 11, and was expected to last two weeks.

Two post-mortems have provisionally concluded Shipman's death was consistent with being hanged by a ligature.

His body was released for cremation but it has never been retrieved from a mortuary in Sheffield.

Shipman's family are understood to have doubts that he took his own life and believe his corpse has unexplained injuries.

But a Home Office spokesman said: "We can't comment until we receive the results of the coroner's inquest and independent investigation into Harold Shipman's death."


Stories From 13 Jan
1991: Bloodshed at Lithuanian TV station
1964: Riots in Calcutta leave more than 100 dead
2001: Earthquake devastates Salvador
1993: Allies bomb Iraq
2004: Serial killer Shipman found hanged
1972: Ghana PM ousted in bloodless coup
1997: Shots heard at besieged embassy in Peru