Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay threw the 20th perfect game in major league history, beating the Florida Marlins 1-0.
2009
Jay Leno ended his first stint as host of "The Tonight Show." (Following a short-lived prime-time show, Leno was back on NBC's late night mainstay in February 2010.).
Four followers of Osama bin Laden were convicted in New York of a global conspiracy to murder Americans, including the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa that killed 224 people. (All were sentenced to life in prison.).
Olusegun Obasanjo wins Nigeria's first free elections in 16 years. The former Nigerian Army general and military ruler oversaw a democratization process that defines the country's political system to the present day.
Benjamin Netanyahu becomes Israel's prime minister. The conservative politician is criticized for hampering the peace process that former prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, had promoted.
President Ronald Reagan began his first visit to the Soviet Union as he arrived in Moscow for a superpower summit with Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay conquer Mount Everest. The first successful ascent of the world's highest mountain came after Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans had come within 100 meters of the summit just three days previously.
Bing Crosby records White Christmas. Crosby's rendition of Irving Berlin's song became the most successful of his career and the best-selling Christmas single in history.
Igor Stravinsky's ballet Le Sacre du printemps is premiered. he performance sparked a riot in the audience as many felt its irregular beat and the percussive character was a sacrilege against music. Today, it is considered one of the key works of 20th-century art music.
On his 30th birthday Charles II returns to London from exile in the Netherlands to claim the English throne after the Puritan Commonwealth comes to an end.