December 23 in Pop Culture History

1823 – A Visit From St. Nicholas, also known as The Night Before Christmas, was published. Clement Clarke Moore acknowledged authorship in 1837.

1888 – Suffering from severe depression, Vincent Van Gogh cut off the lower part of his left ear with a razor in Arles, France.

1913 – The Federal Reserve Act was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson, creating the Federal Reserve System.

1947 – Walter H. Brattain and John Bardeen at Bell Laboratories first demonstrated the transistor.

1954 – Dr. John P. Merrill led the first successful kidney transplant between identical twins at Peter Bent Hospital, Boston, Mass. His identical twin, Ronald, donated the kidney to Richard Herrick, 23.

1959 – Early rocker Chuck Berry was arrested for bringing a 14-year-old girl from Mexico to Missouri.

1970 – The North Tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York, New York reached 1,368 feet, making it the tallest building in the world at that time.

1972 – NFL’s “Immaculate Reception” – Franco Harris of the Pittsburgh Steelers grabbed a deflected pass from quarterback Terry Bradshaw to score a touchdown, winning the game for the Steelers 13-7 over the Oakland Raiders.

1986 – Experimental aircraft Voyager landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California, completing the first nonstop flight, just over nine hours, around the globe on a single load of fuel.

1988 – Working Girl, Beaches, Dangerous Liaisons, The Accidental Tourist and Hellbound: Hellraiser II were released in theaters.

1989 – #1 Hit December 23, 1989 – January 19, 1990: Phil Collins – Another Day in Paradise

1989 – To celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall, Leonard Bernstein and an international orchestra & chorus performed in Berlin a version of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, in which Freude (Joy) was changed to Freiheit (Freedom).

1992 – Scent of a Woman was released in theaters.

1994 – Legends of the Fall and Nobody’s Fool were released in theaters.

1997 – As Good As It Gets was released in theaters.

2009 – Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel was released in theaters.

2011 – We Bought A Zoo was released in theaters.

December 23, 2017 – January 26, 2018: Ed Sheeran – Perfect