- John Densmore, the drummer of The Doors, was born in Los Angeles on December 1, 1944.
- George Harrison's Vox UL730 amp and cabinet used in Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band will be auctioned off in London. (Rolling Stone)
- Neil Young was sued by Geffen Records on Dec 1, 1983 because his new music for the label was "not commercial in nature and musically uncharacteristic of his previous albums.”
- Post-impressionist artist Georges-Pierre Seurat was born in Paris on December 2, 1859. He is most famous for the painting, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, using the technique of pointillism. (Artic)
- German theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg was born on December 5, 1901 (deceased on February 1, 1976). He received Nobel prize in Physics in 1932 for the creation of quantum mechanics and the discovery of the allotropic forms of hydrogen.
- Hubert Sumlin, guitarist for Howlin’ Wolf, died of a heart failure in a Wayne, N.J. hospital on December 4. He was 80 years old. (Sun Times) (Guardian)
- Paul McCartney and Pete Best were arrested for pinning a condom to a brick wall and then igniting it on Dec 5, 1960. They were told to leave Germany.
- Blues musician Leadbelly died on Dec 6, 1949.
- Jim Morrison was born in Melbourne, Florida on December 8, 1943.
- John Lennon was shot outside his New York apartment by Mark David Chapman on December 8, 1980.
- John Lennon: the last day in the life. (Guardian)
- French filmmaker Georges Méliès was born on December 8, 1861. He was the inspiration of Brian Selznic's illustrated novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret. The book was later made into a film Hugo by Martin Scorsese.
- Guitarist J Mascis was born in Amherst, MA on December 10, 1965.
- Norwegian expressionist artist Edvard Munch was born on December 12, 1863.
- The Simpsons was first aired on December 17, 1989.
- Rock musician Don Van Vliet, famously known as Captain Beefheart, died at 69 on December 17, 2010. (LA Times)
- Frank Zappa on Captain Beefheart: “If he’d been produced by professional famous producers, there could’ve been number of suicides involved.”
- Keith Richards was born in Dartford, England on December 18, 1943.
- J.J. Thomson was born in Cheetham Hill, England on December 18, 1856. He is credited for the discovery of the electron and isotopes. He received Nobel Prize in Physics in 1906 for the discovery of the electron and for his work on the conduction of electricity in gases.
- On the evening of Dec 23, 1888, Van Gogh confronted Gauguin with a razor blade. Then fled to a brothel and cut off his left ear lobe.
- Nirvana started recording their first album Bleach on Dec 24, 1988 with $600 borrowed from a friend.
- Noel Redding best know as the bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience was born in Folkestone, England on December 25, 1945.
- Jim Morrison was pardoned in late December 2010 for his ’69 indecent exposure case. Widow, Patricia Kennealy Morrison, said Morrison wouldn’t have wanted a pardon. (ABC News)
- Rhythm and blues musician Bo Diddley was born in McComb, Mississippi on December 30, 1928 (deceased June 2, 2008). He played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock & roll and influenced musicians including Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, and The Rolling Stones. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and received a Grammy Award.
