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December 2, 1968

Revisit the music, news, notable people, and historical moments connected to this date.

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Headlines from December 2, 1968

U.S. STUDY SCORES CHICAGO VIOLENCE AS 'A POLICE RIOT'; Says Many Officers Replied to Taunts in August With Unrestrained Attacks

By Max Frankel

Natl Comm on Causes and Prevention of Violence issues rept, Rights in Conflict, on violence in Chicago during Dem Natl Conv; terms police attacks as gratuitious, ferocious, mindless, amounting to 'what can only be called a police riot'; rept is work of 212-member study team led by D Walker, Chicago lawyer and pres of unofficial Chicago Crime Comm; team worked under contract to violence comm; comm chmn M S Eisenhower explains prompt release of rept to 'the widespread interest'; rept urges punishment of police; blames Mayor Daley for his criticism of police restraint in other, earlier riots in Chicago black communities; suggests violence was product of gradual conditioning of demonstrators and police; scores characterization of crowds as subversives as 'both wrong and dangerous'; says most of demonstrators planned no violence, but says that some hoped for a violent 'confrontation'; repts attacks on newsmen in special sec; some of 'worst' examples of police violence reptdly omitted from rept at request of Justice Dept, which is placing material before a Fed grand jury; statistical supplement lists number injured, hospitalized, arrested and notes damage and other details

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Music on My Birthday

Billboard 200

The Top 50 albums for the chart week of November 27, 1968, covering December 2, 1968.

  1. 1
    Album cover for Cheap Thrills by Big Brother And The Holding Company

    Cheap Thrills

    Big Brother And The Holding Company

    Last week
    2
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    14
  2. 2
    Album cover for Electric Ladyland by The Jimi Hendrix Experience

    Electric Ladyland

    The Jimi Hendrix Experience

    Last week
    1
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    7
  3. 3
    Album cover for Feliciano! by Jose Feliciano

    Feliciano!

    Jose Feliciano

    Last week
    3
    Peak
    2
    Weeks
    20
  4. 4
    Album cover for The Second by Steppenwolf

    The Second

    Steppenwolf

    Last week
    4
    Peak
    4
    Weeks
    9
  5. 5
    Album cover for Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits by The Rascals

    Time Peace/The Rascals' Greatest Hits

    The Rascals

    Last week
    5
    Peak
    1
    Weeks
    21

Notable Births

1968David Batty, English footballer[†]

David Batty is an English former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.

1968Jiří Dopita, Czech ice hockey player[†]

Jiří Dopita is former Czech professional ice hockey player, and later ice hockey coach. He has played in the Czech Elite League most of his career. He briefly played in the National Hockey League. Dopita has primarily played center throughout his career.

Darryl Kile

1968Darryl Kile, American baseball player (died 2002)[†]

Darryl Andrew Kile was an American professional baseball starting pitcher. He pitched from 1991 to 2002 for three Major League Baseball (MLB) teams, primarily for the Houston Astros. Kile was known for his sharp, big-breaking curveball. He died at the age of 33 of coronary artery disease in 2002 in Chicago, where he and the St. Louis Cardinals were staying for a weekend series against the Chicago Cubs. He was the first active major league player to die during the regular season since 1979, when the New York Yankees' Thurman Munson died in a plane crash.

Lucy Liu

1968Lucy Liu, American actress and producer[†]

Lucy Alexis Liu is an American actress, producer, and artist. Widely regarded as a trailblazer for Asian American representation in Hollywood, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two Critics' Choice Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards. A prominent sex symbol in the late 1990s and early 2000s, she has been recognized for shifting Western mainstream beauty standards. In 2019, Liu became the second Asian American woman to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Nate Mendel

1968Nate Mendel, American singer-songwriter and bass player[†]

Nathan ‍Gregor ‍Mendel is an American musician who is the bass guitarist for the rock band Foo Fighters, as well as a former member of Sunny Day Real Estate. He has also worked with musical acts The Jealous Sound and The Fire Theft. He has released one solo album, If I Kill This Thing We're All Going to Eat for a Week, under the name Lieutenant. Though not a founding member, he is the longest-serving member of the band after lead vocalist and guitarist Dave Grohl, and has appeared on every album by the group since The Colour and the Shape.

Rena Sofer

1968Rena Sofer, American actress[†]

Rena Sherel Sofer is an American actress, known for her appearances in daytime television, episodic guest appearances, and made-for-television movies. In 1995, Sofer received a Daytime Emmy Award for her portrayal of Lois Cerullo in the soap opera General Hospital. She reprised the role of Lois in October 2023. From 2013 to 2022, she played Quinn Fuller on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful.

Historical Events

Wien Consolidated Airlines Flight 55

1968Wien Consolidated Airlines Flight 55 crashes into Pedro Bay, Alaska, killing all 39 people on board.[†]

Wien Consolidated Airlines Flight 55 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight in Alaska that crashed into Pedro Bay on December 2, 1968, killing all 39 on board. The Fairchild F-27B aircraft was operated by Wien Consolidated Airlines and was en route to Dillingham from Anchorage, with three intermediate stops. The NTSB investigation revealed that the aircraft suffered a structural failure after encountering "severe-to-extreme" air turbulence. The accident was the second-worst accident involving a Fairchild F-27 at the time, and currently the third-worst accident involving the aircraft.

Historical Context for December 2, 1968

In 1968, the world population was approximately 3,545,187,251 people[†]