What Happened in December 1979

Historical Events

Dec 1 44th Iron Bowl: Alabama beats Auburn 25-18 in Birmingham

Australia vs. West Indies

Dec 1 Australia's World Series Cricket men return to the fold in the drawn 1st Test v West Indies in Brisbane; ex-WSC players Bruce Laird (92), Greg Chappell (74) & David Hookes (33no) provide the scoring on Day 1 in home side's 229/5

Dec 2 Crowds attack US embassy in Tripoli, Libya
Dec 2 Foots Walker becomes 1st Cleveland Cavalier to score a triple-double
Dec 2 USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
Dec 3 11 members of the audience trampled to death during a stampede to claim unreserved seats for a concert by The Who at The Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, Ohio
Dec 3 45th Heisman Trophy Award: Charles White, Southern California (RB)
Dec 3 Christies auctions a thimble for a record $18,400
Dec 3 Iran accepts constitution
Dec 3 Shadow Traffic begins broadcasting in the New York City metropolitan area.
Dec 4 Cleveland Cavaliers retire jersey # 7, Bingo Smith

Chappell, Hughes Rescue Australia

Dec 5 Ex-World Series Cricket combatants Greg Chappell (124) and Kim Hughes (130no) return to rescue Australia on last day of the drawn 1st Test v West Indies in Brisbane

Jack Lynch Resigns

Dec 5 Ireland premier Jack Lynch resigns

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Dec 7 "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" first movie of the series premieres directed by Robert Wise, starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy

Dec 10 Piet Dankert appointed as chairman of European Parliament
Dec 11 Geoff Boycott scores cricket century in a limited-over international
Dec 12 Gold hits record $462.50 an ounce
Dec 12 President of Pakistan, Zia-ul-Haq, confers Nishan-e-Imtiaz on Nobel laureate Dr Abdus Salam
Dec 13 Revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical "Oklahoma!" opens at Palace Theater, NYC; runs for 301 performances
Dec 13 Saudi Arabia raises marker crude price to $24 per barrel
Dec 13 Strikes against price increases in Gdańsk, Poland
Dec 14 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

Bowie on SNL

Dec 15 British rocker David Bowie performs three songs on American television program Saturday Night Live - "The Man Who Sold the World", "TVC-15" and "Boys Keep Swinging"

Trivial Pursuit Developed

Dec 15 Chris Haney and Scott Abbott develop the board game Trivial Pursuit

Co-creator of Trivial Pursuit Chris Haney

Deposed Shah Leaves US

Dec 15 Deposed Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi leaves US for Panama

Dec 15 World Court in Hague rules Iran should release all US hostages

An American Christmas Carol

Dec 16 "An American Christmas Carol" directed by Eric Till starring Henry Winkler premieres in the US

Dec 16 4 British Army soldiers are killed by a PIRA landmine near Dungannon, County Tyrone. Another British Army soldier was killed by a PIRA landmine near Forkill, County Armagh
Dec 16 68th Davis Cup: USA beats Italy in San Francisco (5-0)
Dec 16 Dallas QB Roger Staubach throws 3 TDs and 336 yards in his last NFL regular season game with the Cowboys, a 35-34 win over Washington Redskins at Texas Stadium
Dec 16 Libya raises crude oil prices, joining four other OPEC nations, which has a dramatic effect on the United States
Dec 17 Budweiser rocket car reaches 1190 kph (record for wheeled vehicle, disputed due to measurement methodology used)
Dec 18 Stuntman Stanley Barrett unofficially breaks the land speed record and the sound barrier in his three-wheeled vehicle the Budweiser Rocket (739.666 mph or Mach 1.01). The speed was never officially recorded and the attempt remains controversial.

"Kramer vs Kramer"

Dec 19 "Kramer vs Kramer" directed by Robert Benton and starring Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep is released (Best Picture 1980)

Dec 20 Garry Sherman and Peter Udell's musical "Comin' Uptown", based on Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", and starring Gregory Hines, opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 45 performances
Dec 20 Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Behn Wilson scores with 4:08 remaining in regulation to earn a 1-1 tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins and equal NHL record for longest undefeated streak of 28 games; go on to break record and extend to 35 games
Dec 21 Garry Unger’s NHL record for consecutive games ends at 914, as his Atlanta Flames lose 5-1 to the St Louis Blues and he is benched by coach Al MacNeil; record eventually broken by Doug Jarvis (964)
Dec 21 New constitution for Zimbabwe agreed
Dec 21 USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
Dec 23 NY Islanders greatest shutout lose (8-0) vs Chicago Black Hawks
Dec 23 USSR performs nuclear test at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in northeast Kazakhstan
Dec 24 1st Ariane rocket launched
Dec 25 9th Fiesta Bowl: #10 Pittsburgh beats Arizona, 16-10
Dec 25 Ballon d'Or: Hamburg's English forward Kevin Keegan wins his 2nd consecutive trophy as best football player in Europe; beats Bayern Munich forward Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Ajax sweeper Ruud Krol
Dec 25 Soviet forces invade Afghanistan to prop up the Communist government, beginning a disastrous and failed ten-year war
Dec 26 Soviet Special forces take over presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Dec 27 After invading Afghanistan two days earlier Soviet forces pull off a coup in Kabul, killing President Hafizullah Amin
Dec 27 Los Angeles left wing Charlie Simmer scores in a Kings' 3-0 shutout of the Quebec Nordiques to extend his modern day NHL goal-scoring streak to 13 straight games (ends next game)
Dec 27 Red Army beats NY Rangers 5-2 at Madison Square Garden

"Pretenders"

Dec 27 Sire Records releases "Pretenders", the debut album of The Pretenders, in US

Singer-songwriter and Musician Chrissie Hynde

Dec 27 Soap Opera "Knots Landing" premieres on CBS-TV
Dec 29 Red Army beats NY Islanders 3-2 at Nassau Coliseum
Dec 30 Rock group, Emerson, Lake & Palmer break up
Dec 30 Togo adopts constitution

Events in 1979

Famous Birthdays

Dec 1 Angelique Bates, American Actress (All That), born in Los Angeles, California
Dec 2 Abdul Razzaq, Pakistan cricket all-rounder (46 Tests, top score 134, 100 wickets; 265 ODIs), born in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Dec 2 Yvonne Catterfeld, German pop and soul singer, and actress, born in Erfurt, East Germany
Dec 3 Daniel Bedingfield, British-New Zealand pop singer-songwriter ("Gotta Get Thru This"), born in Auckland, New Zealand
Dec 3 Rainbow Sun Francks, Canadian actor (Stargate Atlantis), born in Toronto, Ontario
Dec 3 Sean Parker, American entrepreneur who co-founded the file-sharing computer service Napster and was the 1st President of Facebook, born in Herndon, Virginia,
Dec 3 Tiffany Haddish, American comedian and actress (Girls Trip), born in Los Angeles, California
Dec 4 Jay DeMerit, American soccer defender (25 caps; Watford, Vancouver Whitecaps FC), born in Green Bay, Wisconsin
Dec 5 Gareth McAuley, Northern Irish footballer (Rangers), born in Larne, Northern Ireland
Dec 5 Matteo Ferrari, Italian soccer defender (11 caps; Parma, Roma, Genoa, Beşiktaş), born in Aflou, Algeria
Dec 5 Nick Stahl, American actor (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), born in Harlingen, Texas
Dec 5 Niklas Hagman, Finnish ice hockey player, born in Espoo, Finland
Dec 6 Luke Letlow, American businessman and politician, elected to US House of Representatives for Louisiana, but died before taking office, born in Monroe, Louisiana (d. 2020)
Dec 6 Tim Cahill, Australian soccer forward (108 caps, 50 goals; Everton), born in Sydney, New South Wales
Dec 7 Ayako Fujitani, Japanese actress and writer, born in Osaka, Japan
Dec 7 Jennifer Carpenter, American actress (Debra Morgan-Dexter), born in Louisville, Kentucky

Dec 7 Lampros Choutos, Greek footballer, born in Athens, Greece
Dec 7 Sara Bareilles, American pop singer ("Love Song"; "Brave"), born in Eureka, California
Dec 8 Christian Wilhelmsson, Swedish footballer, born in Malmö Municipality, Sweden
Dec 8 Daniel Fitzhenry, Australian rugby league footballer, born in Macksville, Australia
Dec 8 Ingrid Michaelson, American folk-pop singer-songwriter (Lights Out), born in New York City
Dec 8 Johan Forssell, Swedish politician, born in Stockholm, Sweden
Dec 9 Olivia Lufkin, Japanese-American pop singer and songwriter, born in Naha, Japan
Dec 9 Stephen McPhail, Irish footballer, born in City of Westminster, London
Dec 10 Matt Bentley, American professional wrestler (TNA), born in Clinton, Iowa
Dec 11 Colleen Hoover, American author (It Ends with Us), born in Sulphur Springs, Texas
Dec 11 Rider Strong, American actor, writer and director (Boy Meets World), born in San Francisco, California
Dec 12 Nate Clements, American football player, born in Shaker Heights, Ohio
Dec 14 Kyle Shanahan, American NFL coach (San Francisco 49ers 2017-20), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dec 14 Michael Owen, English footballer, 1996-2013 (Liverpool; New Castle United; and 3 other teams), sports commentator, and racehorse breeder, born in Chester, England
Dec 14 Sophie Monk, Australian actress, singer, and model, born in London

Dec 15 Adam Brody, American actor (The O.C.), born in San Diego, California
Dec 15 Eric Young, Canadian professional wrestler
Dec 16 Jessie Ward, American professional wrestler
Dec 16 Mihai Trăistariu, Romanian singer-songwriter ("Tornerò"), born in Constanța, Romania
Dec 16 Trevor Immelman, South African golfer (US Masters 2008), born in Cape Town, Western Cape
Dec 17 Jaimee Foxworth, American actress (Family Matters, 1989-93 - "Judy"), born in Belleville, Illinois
Dec 17 Matt Murley, American NHL ice hockey player (Pittsburgh Penguins, Phoenix Coyotes), born in Troy, New York
Dec 17 Ryan Key, American musician and songwriter (Yellowcard), born in Jacksonville, Florida
Dec 19 Kevin Devine, American singer-songwriter (Brother's Blood), born in Brooklyn, New York
Dec 19 Paola Rey, Colombian actress
Dec 20 David DeJesus, American baseball player, born in Brooklyn, New York
Dec 20 Michael Rogers, Australian cyclist, born in Barham, Australia
Dec 21 Tuva Novotny, Swedish actress, singer, and television director, born in Stockholm, Sweden

Holly Madison (44 years old)

Dec 23 American model and TV personality (The Girls Next Door; Holly's World), born in Astoria, Oregon

Dec 23 Kenny Miller, Scottish football player, born in Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Dec 23 Scott Gomez, American ice hockey player, born in Anchorage, Alaska
Dec 23 Summer Altice, American model and actress, born in Fountain Valley, California
Dec 24 Chris Hero, American professional wrestler, born in Dayton, Ohio
Dec 26 Chris Daughtry, American rock singer, born in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina
Dec 26 Dimitry Vassiliev, Russian ski jumper, born in Ufa, Russia
Dec 26 Fabián Carini, Uruguayan footballer, born in Montevideo, Uruguay
Dec 26 Mzbel [Nana Akua Amoah], Ghanaian singer (16 Years; Saucy Girl), born in Accra, Ghana
Dec 27 Carson Palmer, American NFL quarterback (Heisman Trophy 2002, USC; Pro Bowl 2005, 06, 15; Cincinnati Bengals, Arizona Cardinals), born in Fresno, California
Dec 27 David Dunn, English footballer
Dec 27 Walker Hayes, American country-pop singer-songwriter ("Fancy Like"), born in Mobile, Alabama
Dec 28 Bill Hall, American baseball player, born in Nettleton, Mississippi

James Blake (44 years old)

Dec 28 American tennis player, born in Yonkers, New York City

Dec 28 Senna Guemmour, German singer-songwriter (Monrose), born in Frankfurt, Germany
Dec 29 Ariel Schrag, American cartoonist, born in Berkeley, California
Dec 29 Diego Luna, Mexican actor (Andor), born in Toluca, Mexico
Dec 29 Mitsuhiro Ishida, Japanese mixed-martial arts fighter, born in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan
Dec 30 Flávio, Angolan footballer
Dec 31 Bob Bryar, American drummer (My Chemical Romance, Gerardolopoly), born in Downers Grove, Illinois
Dec 31 Elaine Cassidy, Irish actress, born in Raheny, Republic of Ireland
Dec 31 Josh Hawley, American politician (Senator-R-Missouri 2019-), 1st to object to certification of Biden victory, born in Springdale, Arkansas

Born in 1979

Famous Weddings

Liza Minnelli

Dec 4 American singer Liza Minnelli (33) weds (her 3rd) American sculptor Mark Gero; divorce 1992

Stevie Ray Vaughan

Dec 23 American blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan (25) weds Lenora "Lenny" Bailey; divorce in 1988

Famous Deaths

Dec 2 Vasily Pavlovich Solov'yov-Sedoy, Russian composer, dies at 72
Dec 3 Dhyan Chand, Indian field hockey player (Olympic gold 1928, 1932, 1936; birthday 29/8 celebrated as India's National Sports Day), dies at 74
Dec 4 Robert Karnes, actor (Max-The Lawless Years), dies at 62
Dec 5 Sonia Delaunay, Russian-born French artist (Orphism), dies at 94
Dec 7 Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, British-American astronomer and astrophysicist who proposed that stars are composed largely of hydrogen and are not glowing balls of molten rock, dies at 79 [1]
Dec 7 Mari Andriessen, Dutch sculptor (Dock Worker), dies at 82
Dec 7 Nicolas Born, German writer, dies of cancer at 41
Dec 7 Prince Chahryar Shafik, Shah of Iran's nephew, murdered in Paris
Dec 9 Fulton J. Sheen, American archbishop and religious broadcaster (Life is Worth Living), dies in NYC at 84
Dec 10 Ann Dvorak [McKim], American actress (G Men, Life of Her Own, Scarface), dies at 67
Dec 11 Claire Carleton, American actress (Alice-Cimarron City), dies at 66
Dec 11 James J. Gibson, American perceptual psychologist (b. 1904)
Dec 13 Jon Hall, American actor (Ramar of the Jungle), dies at 64
Dec 14 Nirode Chowdhury, Indian cricket medium pace bowler (2 Tests, 1 wicket; Bengal, Bihar), dies at 56
Dec 14 Nirode Ranjan Chowdhury, Indian cricketer (2 Tests for India, avg 205), dies at 56
Dec 15 Bern Hoffman, American actor (Major Dell Conway), dies at 66

Dec 21 Mac Anderson, New Zealand cricketer (Test for NZ 1946, scored five & one), dies at 60
Dec 22 Darryl F. Zanuck, American film producer and President (20th Century Fox), dies at 77
Dec 23 Peggy Guggenheim, American art collector, dies at 81
Dec 24 Dirk Uipko Stikker, Dutch politician, diplomat (Ambassador to Great Britain, 1952-58; Secretary General of NATO, 1961-64), and CEO (Heineken), dies at 82
Dec 24 Rudi Dutschke, German political activist (Socialist Students Union (SDS)), dies from complications of injuries from 1968 assassination attempt at 39
Dec 25 Joan Blondell, American actress (Real McCoys), dies of leukemia at 73
Dec 25 Jordi Bonet, Quebec muralist and sculptor (b. 1932)
Dec 25 Lee Bowman, American actor (Ellery Queen, Miami Undercover, The Impatient Years), dies from a heart attack at 64
Dec 27 Hafizullah Amin, Afghan politician (President of Afghanistan, 1979), killed by Russian forces in a coup during Soviet invasion at 50
Dec 29 Branimir Sakač, Croatian composer (Matrix Symphony), dies at 61

Richard Rodgers (1902-1979)

Dec 30 American composer, mostly for theater (Rodgers & Hart - "Pal Joey"; "Babes In Arms"; Rodgers & Hammerstein - "Oklahoma!"; "South Pacific"; "The King And I"; "The Sound Of Music") and 1st EGOT (Emmy; Grammy; Oscar; and Tony awards winner), dies at 77

On This Day