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US, 
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IrelandAt A Glance
17 December 1997 at a glance
- Day of the week
- 17 December 1997 was a Wednesday.
- Billboard Hot 100 No. 1
- The Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 was “Candle in the Wind 1997 / Something About the Way You Look Tonight” by Elton John.
- Top Film of 1997
- The highest-grossing film worldwide released in 1997 was Titanic.
- Bestselling Novel of 1997
- “The Partner” by John Grisham was No. 1 on Publishers Weekly's US fiction list for 1997.
- Top-Rated TV Show
- “Seinfeld” (NBC) was No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1997–98 season.
- Star sign
- The star sign for 17 December is Sagittarius.
- Chinese zodiac
- In the Chinese zodiac, 17 December 1997 fell in the Year of the Ox.
- Birthstone
- The birthstone for December is Turquoise.
- Moon phase
- The moon phase on 17 December 1997 was Waning Gibbous.
On this day: 17 December
- 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.
- 2010 Mohamed Bouazizi sets himself on fire. This act became the catalyst for the Tunisian Revolution and the wider Arab Spring.
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)
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Events of 1997 in the United States
A selection from Wikipedia's '1997 in the United States'. Not a complete list.
- February 28 – North Hollywood shootout: Two heavily armed bank robbers conflict with officers from the Los Angeles Police Department in a mass shootout.
- March 21 – Liar Liar is released in theaters nationwide, later going on to rank as the 7th highest grossing film of the year.
- March 24 – The 69th Academy Awards, hosted by Billy Crystal, are held at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, with Anthony Minghella's The English Patient winning nine awards out of 12 nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. The telecast garners nearly 40.1 million viewers.
Life in the US in 1997
President
Bill Clinton
Gas (per gallon)
$1.23
Loaf of Bread
$1.00
Average House
$146,000
Weekly Wage
$507
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Famous Faces Born in the 1990s
Well-known people born in the same decade as you, not on your birthday.
Zendaya1 September 1996Actress & singerView their day →Sydney Sweeney12 September 1997ActressView their day →Charlie Kirk14 October 1993Political activistView their day →Shailene Woodley15 November 1991ActressView their day →Miley Cyrus23 November 1992Singer & actressView their day →Enes Kanter Freedom20 May 1992Basketball playerView their day →Kate Upton10 June 1992Model & actressView their day →Phoebe Bridgers17 August 1994MusicianView their day →Sources: Wikidata and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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