Today is Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025 — the 340th day of the year. There are 25 days left in 2025.
On this day in history:
– 2017: President Donald Trump formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and announced plans to relocate the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Other notable events on Dec. 6:
– 1865: Georgia became the 27th state to ratify the 13th Amendment, completing the process to abolish slavery in the United States.
– 1907: A coal mine explosion in Monongah, West Virginia, killed at least 361 men and boys, making it the deadliest mining disaster in U.S. history.
– 1917: The French cargo ship Mont Blanc, laden with explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in Halifax harbor, triggering a massive blast that killed more than 1,700 people and devastated the city.
– 1923: Calvin Coolidge became the first U.S. president to deliver a nationally broadcast address to a joint session of Congress.
– 1957: America’s first attempted satellite launch failed when Vanguard TV3 rose a few feet off the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, then fell back and exploded.
– 1969: A free Rolling Stones concert at the Altamont Speedway in California was marred by violence, including the stabbing death of a concertgoer by a member of the Hells Angels, who had been hired for security.
– 1973: Republican Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as vice president after President Richard Nixon selected him to replace Spiro T. Agnew, who had resigned amid an extortion and tax-evasion scandal.
– 1998: Hugo Chávez, a former lieutenant colonel who had led a failed coup attempt six years earlier, was elected president of Venezuela.
– 2021: Ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi was sentenced to four years (later reduced to two) for inciting public unrest and breaching COVID-19 protocols. She is serving a longer overall sentence after multiple cases brought by the military that seized power from her elected government.
Notable birthdays today:
JoBeth Williams (actor), 77; Craig Newmark (Craigslist founder), 73; Tom Hulce (actor), 72; Steven Wright (comedian), 70; Peter Buck (R.E.M., musician), 69; Nick Park (animator), 67; Janine Turner (actor), 63; Judd Apatow (writer-director), 58; Sarah Rafferty (actor), 53; Giannis Antetokounmpo (NBA star), 31; Stefanie Scott (actor), 29.
