At A Glance

17 December 1989 at a glance

Day of the week
17 December 1989 was a Sunday.
Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “We Didn't Start the Fire” by Billy Joel.
Top Film of 1989
The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1989 was Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Bestselling Novel of 1989
“Clear and Present Danger” by Tom Clancy was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1989.
Top-Rated TV Show
“The Cosby Show” (NBC) and “Roseanne” (ABC) were joint No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1989–90 season.
Star sign
The star sign for 17 December is Sagittarius.
Chinese zodiac
In the Chinese zodiac, 17 December 1989 fell in the Year of the Snake.
Birthstone
The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
Moon phase
The moon phase on 17 December 1989 was Waning Gibbous.

On this day: 17 December

  • 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.
  • 2003 SpaceShipOne, piloted by Brian Binnie, makes its first powered and first supersonic flight.
  • 2005 Jigme Singye Wangchuck abdicates the throne as King of Bhutan.

Famous people born on December 17

  • 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 1989 in the United States

A selection from Wikipedia's '1989 in the United States'. Not a complete list.

  • March 24 – Exxon Valdez oil spill: In Alaska's Prince William Sound the Exxon Valdez spills 240,000 barrels (38,000 m3) of oil after running aground.
  • March 29 – The 61st Academy Awards, the first since 1971 with no official host are held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, with Barry Levinson's Rain Man winning four awards out of eight nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.
  • April 19 – Trisha Meili is attacked while jogging in New York City's Central Park; as her identity remains secret for years, she becomes known as the "Central Park Jogger."
More events of 1989 →Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Life in the US in 1989

President

George H. W. Bush

Gas (per gallon)

$1.00

Loaf of Bread

$0.73

Average House

$107,600

Weekly Wage

$390

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Famous Faces Born in the 1980s

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

Hayden Panettiere21 August 1989Actress & singerView their day →Alan Ritchson28 November 1982ActorView their day →Anne Hathaway12 November 1982ActressView their day →Dakota Johnson4 October 1989Actress & modelView their day →Macklemore19 June 1983RapperView their day →Andrew Garfield20 August 1983ActorView their day →Julia Stiles28 March 1981ActressView their day →Taylor Swift13 December 1989Singer-songwriterView their day →

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

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