Today is Friday, Dec. 6, the 341st day of 2024. There are 25 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On Dec. 6, 1998, in Venezuela, former Lt. Col. Hugo Chavez (OO’-goh CHAH’-vez), who had staged a bloody coup attempt against the government six years earlier, was elected president.
Also on this date:
In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery, was ratified as Georgia became the 27th state to endorse it.
In 1907, the worst mining disaster in U.S. history occurred as at least 361 men and boys died in a coal mine explosion in Monongah, West Virginia.
In 1917, more than 1,700 people were killed when an explosives-laden French cargo ship, the Mont Blanc, collided with the Norwegian vessel Imo at the harbor in Halifax, Nova Scotia, setting off a blast that devastated the Canadian city.
In 1923, a presidential address was broadcast on radio for the first time as Calvin Coolidge spoke to a joint session of Congress.
In 1957, America’s first attempt at putting a satellite into orbit failed as Vanguard TV3 rose about four feet off a Cape Canaveral launch pad before crashing down and exploding.
In 1969, a free concert by The Rolling Stones at the Altamont Speedway in Alameda County, California, was marred by the deaths of four people, including one who was stabbed by a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club that was hired to provide concert security.
In 1973, House Minority Leader Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as vice president, succeeding Spiro T. Agnew.
Today’s Birthdays:
- Actor JoBeth Williams is 76.
- Craigslist founder Craig Newmark is 72.
- Actor Tom Hulce is 71.
- Comedian Steven Wright is 69.
- Rock musician Peter Buck (R.E.M.) is 68.
- Animator Nick Park is 66.
- Actor Janine Turner is 62.
- Writer-director Judd Apatow is 57.
- Actor Sarah Rafferty is 52.
- NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo (YAH’-nihs an-teh-toh-KOON’-poh) is 30.
