At A Glance

17 December 1978 at a glance

Day of the week
17 December 1978 was a Sunday.
Irish Chart Song in 1978
The Irish chart song for 1978 was “Rivers of Babylon / Brown Girl in the Ring” by Boney M.
Top Film of 1978
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1978 was Grease.
Star sign
The star sign for 17 December is Sagittarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 17 December 1978 fell in the Year of the Horse.
Birthstone
The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 17 December 1978 was Waning Gibbous.

On this day: 17 December

  • 1957 The United States successfully launches the first Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
  • 1960 Troops loyal to Emperor Haile Selassie in Ethiopia crush the coup that began December 13, returning power to their leader upon his return from Brazil. Haile Selassie absolves his son of any guilt.
  • 1969 Project Blue Book: The United States Air Force closes its study of UFOs.
  • 1989 Fernando Collor de Mello defeats Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the second round of the Brazilian presidential election, becoming the first democratically elected President in almost 30 years.
  • 2002 Second Congo War: The Congolese parties of the Inter Congolese Dialogue sign a peace accord which makes provision for transitional governance and legislative and presidential elections within two years.

Famous people born on 17 December

  • Sarah Paulson, American actress (born 1974)
  • Milla Jovovich, Ukrainian-American actress (born 1975)
  • Bill Pullman, American actor (born 1953)
  • Pope Francis, Argentinian Pope of the Catholic Church (1936–2025)

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Choose your country: the charts, news and leaders change to match.

Events of 1978 in Ireland

A selection from Wikipedia's '1978 in Ireland'. Not a complete list.

  • 18 January – The European Court of Human Rights found Britain guilty of inhuman and degrading treatment of republican internees in Northern Ireland.
  • 19 January – The Fianna Fáil government dismissed the Garda Commissioner Edmund Garvey. No explanation was given.
  • 31 March – Six thousand people marched through Dublin to Wood Quay to protest against the building of civic offices above an ancient Viking settlement.
More events of 1978 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in Ireland in 1978

Taoiseach

Jack Lynch

Petrol (per litre)

£0.68/gal

Loaf of Bread

£0.21

Average House

£17,000

Weekly Wage

£37

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Famous Faces Born in the 1970s

Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.

Cillian Murphy25 May 1976ActorView their day →Michael Fassbender2 April 1977ActorView their day →Andrew Scott21 October 1976ActorView their day →Colin Farrell31 May 1976ActorView their day →Dolores O'Riordan6 September 1971MusicianView their day →Sharon Horgan13 July 1970Actress & writerView their day →Glen Hansard21 April 1970Musician & songwriterView their day →Jimmy Carr15 September 1972Comedian & humouristView their day →

Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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