December 18
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Featured Event
© Bone Clones, www.boneclones.com
A British Museum paleontologist announced on this day in 1912 that an amateur geologist had discovered the fossil remains of an extinct human species in England. The remains, known as the Piltdown man, were presented as the missing evolutionary link between apes and early human beings, but by the 1950s they had been exposed as a fraud. [Read todayâs edition of Today in History >>]
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
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Born this day in 2001, Billie Eilish became, in 2020, the youngest person ever to win a Grammy for album of the year, for When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Famous Birthdays
More on December 18
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2019
Donald Trump became the third U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives, which charged him with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. He was acquitted by the Senate in February 2020. [Which U.S. presidents have been impeached?]
© haak78/Shutterstock.com
2011
VĂĄclav Havelâwho was president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 to 1992 and of the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2003 and who had been a prominent participant in the liberal reforms of the Prague Spring in 1968âdied. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about famous Europeans.]
Universal History ArchiveâUniversal Images Group/Getty Images
1966
The animated TV adaptation of Dr. Seussâs How the Grinch Stole Christmas! aired for the first time. It quickly became a holiday staple. [Test your knowledge of classic childrenâs books.]
© cinemafestival/Shutterstock.com
1963
Actor Brad Pitt, known for his portrayal of unconventional characters, was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma. [Take our quiz about A-list actors.]
© 1993 Universal Pictures Company, Inc.
1946
Director Steven Spielbergâwho enjoyed sweeping critical and commercial success with movies ranging from Jaws (1975) and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) to Schindlerâs List (1993), Saving Private Ryan (1998), and The Fabelmans (2022)âwas born in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Sven Kaestner/AP Images
1943
Guitarist and songwriter Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones was born in Dartford, Kent, England. [Test your knowledge of all things rock ânâ roll.]
EncyclopĂŠdia Britannica, Inc.
1917
General Erich Ludendorff ordered the consolidation of Germanyâs leading motion-picture studios to form UFA (Universum Film-Aktien Gesellschaft), which made numerous important films during the silent era. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about film.]
© 1966 German Features/German Information Center
1913
Willy Brandtâleader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1964 to 1987, chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) from 1969 to 1974, and recipient of the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1971âwas born in LĂŒbeck, Germany. [Test your knowledge of the Nobel Prize.]
© Mengtianhan/Dreamstime.com
1892
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovskyâs ballet The Nutcracker was first presented at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. [Take our ballet quiz.]
Pictorial Parade
1886
Baseball player Ty Cobb, an excellent hitter and base runner, was born in Narrows, Georgia. [Find out if Ty Cobb made our list of the 10 greatest baseball players of all time.]
NARA
1865
The Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution officially entered into force, abolishing slavery in the United States.
EncyclopĂŠdia Britannica, Inc.
1787
New Jersey became the third state admitted to the United States when it ratified the U.S. Constitution. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about U.S. states.]
Stefano BianchettiâCorbis/Getty Images
1737
Famed Italian violin maker Antonio Stradivari died in Cremona. [Test your knowledge of musical instruments.]