December1949Historical Events

Dec 1 MLB announces attendance for the season is 20.2 million, down from 20.9 in 1948; New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians each finish with over 2.2 million, but the St. Louis Browns fall to 270,000
Dec 1 WBNG TV channel 12 in Binghamton, NY (CBS) begins broadcasting
Dec 1 WKTV TV channel 2 in Utica, NY (NBC) begins broadcasting

Dec 3 14th Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 14-13 in Birmingham
Dec 3 KRLD (now KDFW) TV channel 4 in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas (CBS) begins broadcasting
Dec 4 Bob Gage ties NFL record of a 97 yard touchdown run
Dec 4 Duncan Stewart, 2nd British Governor of Sarawak is fatally stabbed in the streets of Sibu by Malay student Rosli Dhoby with help from Morshidi Sidek with the goal of helping neighbouring Indonesia to take over British Sarawak
Dec 7 15th Heisman Trophy Award: Leon Hart (end), Notre Dame

Chiang Kai-shek Flees

Dec 7 Chinese Nationalist leaderChiang Kai-shek flees to Taiwan

Chinese Military and Political LeaderChiang Kai-shek

On the Town

Dec 8 "On the Town", the film adaptation of the Broadway musical, starringGene Kelly,Frank Sinatra, Ann Miller andVera-Ellen, premieres

Dec 8 Chinese Nationalist government moves from Chinese mainland to Formosa

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Dec 8 Jule Styne and Leo Robin's musical "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes", starring Carol Channing, opens at Ziegfeld Theater, NYC; runs for 740 performances

Academy and Tony Award-Winning SongwriterJule Styne

Dec 9 House of Representatives of The Netherlands accepts Indonesian sovereignty
Dec 9 NFL merges with AAFC; Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers & Baltimore Colts join league intact, other teams in New York and Los Angeles are merged with existing units
Dec 11 Chicago Bear Johnny Lujack passes for 6 touchdowns vs Chicago Cards (52-29)
Dec 11 Cleveland Browns beat SF '49ers 21-7 in final AAFC championship game
Dec 11 WOAI (now KMOL) TV channel 4 in San Antonio, TX (NBC) 1st broadcast
Dec 12 AL votes 7-1 rejecting legalizing the spitball
Dec 13 AL votes down proposal to revive spitball
Dec 13 Knesset votes to transfer Israel's capital to Jerusalem

The Just Assassins

Dec 15 Albert Camus' play "The Just Assassins (Les Justes)" premieres in Paris

Dec 16 Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget, later knows as SAAB, is founded in Sweden.
Dec 17 Burma recognizes People's Republic of China

Regina

Dec 17 Marc Blitzstein's musical drama "Regina", based onLillian Hellman's play "The Little Foxes", closes at 46th St Theatre, NYC. after 56 performances and 2 Tony Awards

A Streetcar Named Desire

Dec 17 Tennessee Williams' stage drama "A Streetcar Named Desire", starringJessica Tandy,Marlon Brando, and Kim Hunter, and directed byElia Kazan closes at Ethel Barrymore Theatre, NYC, after 855 performances, winning a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize

Dec 18 National Football League Championship, Philadelphia Eagles beat Los Angeles Rams, 14-0; played in driving rain that caused field to become a mud pit
Dec 19 Luxury passenger ship Aquitania demolished in Gareloch, Scotland
Dec 19 WJW TV channel 8 in Cleveland, Ohio (CBS) begins broadcasting

Beauty And The Beast

Dec 20 Maurice Ravel and John Cranko's ballet "Beauty And The Beast" premieres

Samson and Delilah

Dec 21 "Samson and Delilah", directed and produced byCecil B. DeMille, starringHedy Lamarr and Victor Mature, premieres in New York

Dec 21 Dutch 1st Chamber accept sovereignty of Indonesia

A Christmas Carol

Dec 25 First television adaptation ofCharles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" debuts in American syndication; low budget 30-minute production stars Taylor Holmes and is narrated by Vincent Price

Event of Interest

Dec 27 Queen Juliana of the Netherlands grants independence to Indonesia

Dec 28 20th Century Fox announces it will produce TV programs
Dec 29 1st UHF television station operating regular basis Bridgeport, Connecticut
Dec 29 Hungary nationalized its industries
Dec 30 India recognizes People's Republic of China
Dec 31 18 countries recognize Republic Indonesia