Events Date 1963 December | History by KabAstro

Moro Government

Dec 4 Aldo Moro forms Italian government (1963-1968)

Dec 4 Boston Bruins' right wing Andy Hebenton sets a new NHL record by playing in his 581st consecutive game in 2-2 tie with Chicago Black Hawks; reaches 630 straight games
Dec 4 Pope Paul VI closes second session of 2nd Vatican Council

Johnson's 31 Medal Recipients

Dec 6 President Lyndon B. Johnson confers Presidential Medal of Freedom on 31 recipients selected by JFK, including: contralto Marian Anderson; diplomat Ralph Bunche; cellist Pablo Casals; Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter; labor leader George Meaney; architect Mies van der Rohe; pianist Rudolf Serkin; writers E. B. White and Thorton Wilder; and painter Andrew Wyeth; as well as posthumously to JFK himself, and Pope John XXIII

Dec 6 Test Cricket debut of Graeme Pollock at the Gabba
Dec 6 The Beatles begin a tradition of releasing a Christmas record for fan club members
Dec 7 First use of the instant replay machine invented by CBS in a US Army vs Navy football game
Dec 7 Ian Meckiff no-balled for throwing against the South Africans
Dec 8 "Girl Who Came to Supper" opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 112 performances
Dec 8 Frank Sinatra, Jr is kidnapped at Harrah's Lake Tahoe (Nevada)
Dec 8 Pan Am Flight 214 crashes outside Elkton, Maryland with 81 killed

Donny Osmond Debut

Dec 10 6-year old Donny Osmond's singing debut on Andy Williams Show

Chemistry Nobel to Ziegler and Natta

Dec 10 Karl Ziegler and Giulio Natta receive the 1963 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work on the technology of high polymers

Kaddish

Dec 10 Leonard Bernstein premieres his Third Symphony "Kaddish" with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in Tel Aviv, Israel

Conductor and Composer Leonard Bernstein

Dec 10 Zanzibar gains independenence from Great Britain

Perón Extradition Request

Dec 12 Argentina asks for extradition of ex-President Juan Perón

General and President of Argentina Juan Perón

Dec 12 Frank Sinatra, Jr returned by kidnappersafter his father paid the $240,000 ransom demanded
Dec 12 Kenya (formerly British East Africa) declares independence from the United Kingdom
Dec 13 Capital records signs right of first refusal agreement with The Beatles
Dec 14 Verne Gagne beats The Crusher in Minneapolis, to become NWA champ
Dec 17 Ballon d'Or: Dynamo Moscow goalkeeper Lev Yashin wins award for best European football player; beats Milan midfielder Gianni Rivera and Tottenham striker Jimmy Greaves; first Russian national to win trophy
Dec 17 Tsjoi Doo Sun forms government in South Korea
Dec 17 West & East Berlin sign accord about travel rules

The Pink Panther

Dec 18 "The Pink Panther" film premieres, directed by Blake Edwards, and starring Peter Sellers and David Niven, with theme music composed by Henry Mancini

Dec 18 Muskegon, Michigan gets 3' of snow
Dec 18 Ron Clarke runs world record 10k (28:15.6)

"Contempt"

Dec 20 "Contempt" film directed by Jean-Luc Godard, starring Brigitte Bardot and Jack Palance, is released

Dec 20 Berlin Wall opens for 1st time to West Berliners
Dec 20 Massemba-Debate elected President of Congo-Brazzaville
Dec 20 Trial against 21 camp guards of Auschwitz begins
Dec 22 Cruise ship Lakonia burns 180 miles north of Madeira with the loss of 128 lives
Dec 22 Oakland Raider Tom Flores passes for 6 touchdowns vs Houston (52-49)

Mourning for J.F.K. Ends

Dec 22 Official 30-day mourning period for President John F. Kennedy ends

Dec 23 Fire on Greek ship Laconia, 128 die
Dec 23 The Beach Boys 1st appearance on "Shindig"
Dec 24 Greek & Turks riot in Cyprus
Dec 25 Walt Disney's "The Sword in the Stone" is released
Dec 26 "Double Dublin" opens at Little Theater, NYC; runs for 4 performances
Dec 26 The Beatles release "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and "I Saw Her Standing There" in the US
Dec 26 US furnishes cereal to USSR
Dec 28 "Double Dublin" closes at Little Theater, NYC, after 4 performances

Musical Finale

Dec 28 Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's musical "Jennie", starring Mary Martin, closes at the Majestic Theater, NYC, after 82 performances

US Thrilling Victory

Dec 28 Davis Cup Men's Tennis, Adelaide: American Chuck McKinley beats Australia's John Newcombe 10-12, 6-2, 9-7, 6-2 in the deciding rubber to give US a thrilling 3-2 victory

Tennis Player and Wimbledon Champion Chuck McKinley

"Sing a Sad Song"

Dec 28 Merle Haggard's 1st appearance on country music chart with "Sing a Sad Song"

Country Music Singer and Songwriter Merle Haggard

Clark 1st Scot to Win

Dec 28 Scottish Lotus driver Jim Clark wins his record 7th Grand Prix of the F1 season, the South African event at Prince George Circuit; first Scotsman to win the World Drivers Championship

Dec 29 National Football League Championship, Wrigley Field, Chicago: Chicago Bears beat New York Giants, 14-10; Giants 3rd consecutive championship defeat; played in temperatures under 10 °F (−12 °C)
Dec 30 Congress authorizes Kennedy half dollar, in honor of John F. Kennedy
Dec 30 TV game show "Let's Make A Deal," hosted by Monty Hall, debuts on NBC-TV
Dec 31 Dear Abby show premieres on CBS radio (runs 11 years)