So you want to have a drink but you aren't sure why? Here are some GREAT reasons to call your friends over and have a party.

December 20th
- Christian Feast Day

- Earliest date for Winter solstice's eve:
Yalda (Iran)

- Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day (Macau)


December 20th
- 2007 - Queen Elizabeth II becomes the oldest ever monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years, 7 months and 29 days.

- 2007 - The painting Portrait of Suzanne Bloch (1904), by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, is stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art, along with O Lavrador de Café, by the major Brazilian modernist painter Candido Portinari.

- 2006 - A judge rules against the death penalty in the case of Naveed Haq, a man convicted in the shooting death and injuries at the Jewish Federation in Seattle.

- 2005 - US District Court Judge John E. Jones III rules against mandating the teaching of "intelligent design" in his ruling of Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District.

- 2005 - The first same sex civil partnerships in Scotland are celebrated.

- 2002 - US Senator Trent Lott resigns as majority leader.

- 1999 - Macau is handed over to the People's Republic of China by Portugal.

- 1996 - NeXT merges with Apple Computer, starting the path to Mac OS X.

- 1995 - NATO begins peacekeeping in Bosnia.

- 1995 - American Airlines Flight 965, a Boeing 757, crashes into a mountain 50 km north of Cali, Colombia killing 160.

- 1995 - The Democratic Social Movement is founded in Greece.

- 1991 - A Missouri court sentences the Palestinian militant Zein Isa and his wife Maria to death for the honor killing of their daughter Palestina.

- 1989 - United States invasion of Panama: The United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega.

- 1988 - The United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances is signed in Vienna.

- 1987 - History's worst peacetime sea disaster, when the passenger ferry Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker Vector 1 in the Tablas Strait in the Philippines, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).

- 1984 - The Summit tunnel fire is the largest underground fire in history, as a freight train carrying over 1 million litres of petrol derails near the town of Todmorden in the Pennines.

- 1977 - Djibouti and Vietnam join the United Nations.

- 1973 - The Spanish Prime Minister, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, is assassinated by a car bomb attack in Madrid.

- 1968 - The Zodiac Killer kills Betty Lou Jenson and David Faraday in Vallejo, California.

- 1960 - National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam is formed.

- 1959 - The Walker Family Murders

- 1955 - Cardiff is proclaimed the capital city of Wales, United Kingdom.

- 1952 - United States Air Force C-124 crashes and burns in Moses Lake, Washington killing 87.

- 1951 - The EBR-1 in Arco, Idaho becomes the first nuclear power plant to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.

- 1942 - World War II: Bombing of Calcutta by the Japanese.

- 1941 - World War II: First battle of the American Volunteer Group, better known as the "Flying Tigers" in Kunming, China.

- 1924 - Hitler: was released from Landsberg Prison

- 1917 - Cheka, the first Soviet secret police, is founded.

- 1915 - World War I: Last Australian troops evacuated from Gallipoli.

- 1860 - South Carolina becomes the first state to secede from the United States.

- 1835 - First signing of the Texas Declaration of Independence at Goliad, Texas.

- 1803 - The Louisiana Purchase is completed at a ceremony in New Orleans.

- 1606 - The Virginia Company loads three ships with settlers and sets sail to establish Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas.

- 1522 - Suleiman the Magnificent accepts the surrender of the surviving Knights of Rhodes, who are allowed to evacuate. They eventually settle on Malta and become known as the Knights of Malta.

- 1192 - Richard the Lion-Heart is captured and imprisoned by Leopold V of Austria on his way home to England after signing a treaty with Saladin ending the Third crusade.

- 217 - The papacy of Zephyrinus ends. Callixtus I is elected as the sixteenth pope, but is opposed by the theologian Hippolytus who accuses him of laxity and of being a Modalist, one who denies any distinction between the three persons of the Trinity.

- 69 - Vespasian, formerly a general under Nero, enters Rome to claim the title of emperor.


December 20th
- 1992 - Ksenia Makarova, Russian-American figure skater

- 1991 - Hunter Gomez, American actor

- 1990 - JoJo, American singer

- 1988 - Andrés Bottiglieri Italian–Argentine footballer

- 1987 - Tariel Zintiridis, Greek judoka

- 1986 - Benjamin Brierley, English-born German rugby player

- 1986 - Anoop Desai, American singer and former American Idol contestant

- 1983 - Jonah Hill, American actor

- 1983 - Lucy Pinder, British model

- 1983 - Darren Sammy, St. Lucian West Indies cricketer

- 1983 - Adrián Varela, Mexican singer

- 1982 - David Cook, American singer, winner of American Idol.

- 1982 - David Wright, American baseball player

- 1982 - David Tavaré, Spanish singer

- 1982 - Keny Arkana, French rapper & singer

- 1982 - Mohammed Asif, Pakistani cricket player

- 1982 - Kasper Klausen, Danish footballer

- 1981 - Roy Williams, American football player

- 1981 - James Shields, American baseball player

- 1981 - Royal Ivey, American basketball player

- 1980 - Ashley Cole, English footballer

- 1980 - Fitz Hall, English footballer

- 1980 - Tony, French-born Portuguese footballer

- 1980 - Martín Demichelis, Argentine footballer

- 1979 - David DeJesus, American baseball player

- 1979 - Michael Rogers, Australian cyclist

- 1978 - Tony Moore, American comic book artist

- 1978 - Geremi Njitap, Cameroon footballer

- 1978 - Andrei Markov, Russian ice hockey player

- 1977 - Saukrates, Canadian rapper

- 1976 - Jang Hyuk, Korean actor

- 1976 - Aubrey Huff, American baseball player

- 1976 - Adam Powell, Neopets creator

- 1976 - Ramon Stoppelenburg, world traveler and Dutch author

- 1975 - Bartosz Bosacki, Polish footballer

- 1975 - Jaydy Michel, Mexican model

- 1974 - Die, Japanese musician (Dir en grey)

- 1973 - Cory Stillman, National Hockey League forward

- 1972 - Anders Odden, Norwegian musician

- 1971 - Roger J. Beaujard, American musician

- 1970 - Nicole DeBoer, Canadian actress

- 1970 - Alister McRae, Scottish rally driver

- 1970 - Grant Flower, Zimbabwean cricketer

- 1969 - Bobby Phills, American basketball player (d. 2000)

- 1968 - Karl Wendlinger, Austrian racing driver

- 1968 - Joe Cornish, British comedian

- 1966 - Matt Neal , British Race Driver

- 1966 - Chris Robinson, American singer (Black Crowes)

- 1966 - Myrra Malmberg, Swedish singer

- 1965 - Robert Cavanah, Scottish actor

- 1965 - Jim Carr (US), Digital Strategist

- 1965 - Rich Gannon, American football player

- 1964 - Mark Coleman, American Mixed Martial Artist, UFC Hall of Famer

- 1963 - Infanta Elena of Spain

- 1963 - Joel Gretsch, American actor

- 1961 - Mohammad Fouad, Arab singer and actor

- 1961 - Mike Keneally, American musician

- 1960 - Nalo Hopkinson, Canadian writer

- 1960 - Kim Ki-duk, Korean filmmaker

- 1959 - Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, Polish politician

- 1959 - Trent Tucker, American basketball player

- 1958 - Steve Sailer, American political commentator

- 1957 - Billy Bragg, English singer and songwriter

- 1957 - Mike Watt, American bassist

- 1957 - Stephen Bicknell, British organ builder and scholar (d. 2007)

- 1957 - Joyce Hyser, American actress

- 1957 - Anna Vissi, Greek-Cypriot singer

- 1956 - Blanche Baker, American actress

- 1956 - Junji Hirata, Japanese professional wrestler

- 1955 - David Breashears, American mountaineer

- 1955 - Ed Kuepper, German-born Australian musician (The Saints, Laughing Clowns)

- 1955 - Rory Markas, American sportscaster (d. 2010)

- 1954 - Michael Badalucco, American actor

- 1954 - Sandra Cisneros, American writer

- 1952 - Jenny Agutter, English actress

- 1952 - Sky Gilbert, Canadian writer

- 1951 - Gilbert Montagné, French musician

- 1951 - Peter May, Scottish novelist and scriptwriter

- 1950 - Arturo Marquez, Mexican composer

- 1949 - Soumaïla Cissé, Malian politician

- 1949 - Cecil Cooper, American baseball player

- 1948 - Alan Parsons, British music producer and artist

- 1948 - Stevie Wright, English-born Australian musician and songwriter

- 1947 - Gigliola Cinquetti, Italian singer

- 1946 - Lloyd Mumphord, NFL football player

- 1946 - John Spencer, American actor (d. 2005)

- 1946 - Sonny Perdue, American politician, governor of Georgia

- 1946 - Dick Wolf, American television series creator

- 1946 - Lesley Judd, English TV presenter and dancer

- 1945 - Peter Criss, American drummer and singer (Kiss)

- 1945 - Sivakant Tiwari, senior legal officer of the Singapore Legal Service (d. 2010)

- 1944 - Bobby Colomby, American musician (Blood, Sweat & Tears)

- 1944 - Jean Fergusson, English actress

- 1942 - Rana Bhagwandas, Former Pakistani Chief Justice

- 1942 - Jean-Claude Trichet, French banker and economist

- 1941 - Tommy Cole, American makeup artist, actor and singer

- 1940 - Pat Chapman, English Author, Founder The Curry Club

- 1938 - John Harbison, American composer

- 1935 - Khalid Ibadulla, Pakistani cricket player

- 1933 - Jean Carnahan, U.S. Senator

- 1933 - Rik van Looy, Belgian cyclist

- 1932 - John Hillerman, American actor (Magnum, P.I.)

- 1931 - Mala Powers, American film actress (d. 2007)

- 1931 - Terry Sanders, American filmmaker

- 1927 - Kim Young-sam, President of South Korea

- 1926 - Sir Geoffrey Howe, British politician

- 1926 - Otto Graf Lambsdorff, German politician

- 1925 - Benito Lorenzi, Italian footballer (d. 2007)

- 1925 - Mahathir bin Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malaysia

- 1924 - Charlie Callas, American comedian

- 1924 - Judy LaMarsh, Canadian politician and broadcaster (d. 1980)

- 1922 - George Roy Hill, American film director (d. 2002)

- 1922 - Beverly Pepper, American sculptor and painter

- 1918 - Jean Marchand, French Canadian trade unionist and politician (d. 1988)

- 1918 - Audrey Totter, American actress

- 1917 - David Bohm, American-born physicist, philosopher, and neuropsychologist (d. 1992)

- 1916 - Michel Chartrand, Quebec union leader (d. 2010)

- 1914 - Harry F. Byrd Jr, American politician

- 1911 - Hortense Calisher, American author (d. 2009)

- 1909 - Vakkom Majeed, Indian politician (d. 2000)

- 1908 - Dennis Morgan, American actor (d. 1994)

- 1907 - Paul Francis Webster, songwriter (d. 1984)

- 1905 - Bill O'Reilly, Australian cricket player (d. 1992)

- 1904 - Yevgenia Ginzburg, Russian writer (d. 1977)

- 1904 - Spud Davis, baseball player (d. 1984)

- 1902 - Sidney Hook, American philosopher (d. 1989)

- 1902 - George Edward Alexander Windsor, Duke of Kent (d. 1942)

- 1901 - Robert Van de Graaff, American physicist and inventor (d. 1967)

- 1898 - Irene Dunne, American actress (d. 1990)

- 1894 - Sir Robert Menzies, twelfth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1978)

- 1890 - Yvonne Arnaud, French-born actress (d. 1958)

- 1890 - Jaroslav Heyrovský, Czech chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1967)

- 1888 - Yitzhak Baer, German-born Israeli historian (d. 1980)

- 1888 - Fred Merkle, American baseball figure (d. 1958)

- 1886 - Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman, American tennis player (d. 1974)

- 1881 - Branch Rickey, baseball executive (d. 1965)

- 1873 - Kwan-Ichi Asakawa, Japanese historian (d. 1948)

- 1868 - Harvey Firestone, American automobile pioneer (d. 1938)

- 1865 - Elsie De Wolfe, American socialite and interior decorator (d. 1950)

- 1861 - Ivana Kobilca, Slovenian painter (d. 1926)

- 1860 - Dan Leno, English entertainer (d. 1904)

- 1841 - Ferdinand Buisson, French pacifist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1932)

- 1838 - Edwin Abbott Abbott, English schoolmaster, theologian, and author (d. 1926)

- 1833 - Samuel Mudd, American physician (d. 1883)

- 1792 - Nicolas Charlet, French painter (d. 1845)

- 1786 - Pietro Raimondi, Italian composer (d. 1853)

- 1740 - Arthur Lee, American diplomat (d. 1792)

- 1717 - Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes, French statesman and diplomat (d. 1787)

- 1629 - Pieter de Hooch, Dutch painter (d. 1684)

- 1626 - Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff, German statesman (d. 1692)

- 1579 - (baptized) John Fletcher, English playwright (d. 1625)

- 1566 - Edward Wightman, English Baptist preacher (d. 1612)

- 1537 - King John III of Sweden (d. 1592)

- 1494 - Oronce Finé, French mathematician (d. 1555)

