December 02
1804
Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned emperor of France in Paris by Pope Pius VII.
1823
President James Monroe outlined his famous doctrine opposing European expansion in the Western Hemisphere.
1859
Abolitionist John Brown was hanged for his raid on Harper’s Ferry.
1942
The first controlled nuclear chain reaction was demonstrated at the University of Chicago.
1954
The Senate voted to condemn Republican senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin for “conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute.”
1970
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established.
1982
Barney B. Clark became the first person to receive an artificial heart in a transplant operation.
1988
Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to head a Muslim nation.
1990
Composer Aaron Copland died at age 90.
1999
A Protestant and Catholic cabinet convened for the first time in Northern Ireland.
2001
Enron Corp., under CEO Kenneth Lay, filed for bankruptcy.
Birthdays
Georges Seurat
1859–1891, French painter.
Peter Carl Goldmark
inventor and engineer (1906)
Maria Callas
soprano (1923)
Alexander Haig
general (1924)
Julie Harris
actress (1925)
Gianni Versace
fashion designer (1946)
Lucy Liu
actor, model (1968)
Monica Seles
tennis player (1973)
Nelly Furtado
singer (1978)
Britney Spears
pop singer (1981)