TODAY IN HISTORY
TODAY IS FRIDAY, DEC. 25, the 359th day of 2015. There are six days left in the year. This is Christmas Day.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT IN HISTORY: On this date in 1818, “Silent Night (Stille Nacht)” was publicly performed for the first time during the Christmas Midnight Mass at the Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria.
In 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned king of England.
In 1776, Gen. George Washington and his troops crossed the Delaware River for a surprise attack against Hessian forces at Trenton, N.J.
In 1926, Hirohito became emperor of Japan, succeeding his father, Emperor Yoshihito.
In 1931, New York’s Metropolitan Opera broadcast an entire live opera over radio for the first time: “Hansel and Gretel” by Engelbert Humperdinck.
In 1961, Pope John XXIII formally announced the upcoming convocation of the Second Vatican Council, which opened in Oct. 1962.
In 1989, ousted Romanian President Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, were executed following a popular uprising.
In 1990, the World Wide Web was born in Geneva, Switzerland, as computer scientists Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau created the world’s first hyperlinked webpage.
In 1991, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev went on television to announce his resignation as the eighth and final leader of a communist superpower that had already gone out of existence.
TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Actor Dick Miller is 87. Author Anne Roiphe is 80. Actress Hanna Schygulla is 72. Rhythm-and-blues singer John Edwards (The Spinners) is 71. Singer Jimmy Buffett, and Pro and College Football Hall-ofFamer Larry Csonka are 69. Country singer Barbara Mandrell is 67. Actress Sissy Spacek is 66. Former White House adviser Karl Rove is 65. Singer Annie Lennox, reggae singer-musician Robin Campbell (UB40) and country singer Steve Wariner are 61. Singer Shane MacGowan (The Pogues, The Popes) is 58. Actress Klea Scott is 47. Rock musician Noel Hogan (The Cranberries) and singer Dido are 44. Rock singer Mac Powell (Third Day) is 43. Rhythm-and-blues singer Ryan Shaw is 35. Country singer Alecia Elliott is 33. Pop singers Jess and Lisa Origliasso (The Veronicas) are 31.