Today in history
In Hong Kong
1967: Hippies dressed to express their individuality and were seeking a self-identity, said the Reverend Matthew Fong of the YMCA Institute. Although hippies just sat and gazed absent-mindedly in class, a survey indicated they had a higher IQ than other students, he said.
1971: A record one-day fall left many small investors ruined as the Hang Seng Index plunged 29.49 points to close at 278. Local shares in the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank closed at $202, down $26.
1976: Special Branch officers were searching for two Japanese terrorists believed to be planning 'a strike' somewhere in Southeast Asia to mark the 50th anniversary of Emperor Hirohito's ascension to the throne.
1982: Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels announced it would be opening the Bangkok Peninsula early next year. The US$80 million, 425-room hotel was expected to be the most expensive hotel in the Thai capital with rooms starting at US$115.
Around the world
1497: Portugal's Vasco Da Gama became the first navigator to sail round the Cape of Good Hope in his search for a sea route to India.
1718: Edward Teach, known as 'Blackbeard' the pirate, was killed off the coast of North Carolina.
1819: George Eliot, British novelist whose works included The Mill On The Floss, was born as Mary Ann Evans.
1830: The Belgian Congress voted to turn the country into a monarchy.
1878: In Afghanistan, the British under Sir Samuel Browne captured the Ali Musjid fortress, starting the Second Afghan War.
1890: General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French during World War II and elected president in 1958, 1965 and 1968, was born.
1899: Hoagy Carmichael, US pianist and composer, was born as Howard Hoagland Carmichael. Famed for his song Stardust, he also appeared in films including To Have And Have Not.
1899: Wiley Post, pioneering US aviator who was the first to fly solo around the world, was born.
1916: US writer Jack London, famous for his novels White Fang and Call Of The Wild, died.
1974: Gunmen hijacked a British Airways VC-10 at Dubai; three days later they abandoned the plane at Tunis after murdering a passenger and securing the release of Palestinians from jails in Cairo and The Hague.
1980: Mae West, movie star and sex symbol of the 1930s, died. Famed for sayings such as 'come up and see me sometime'.
1989: The newly elected president of Lebanon, Rene Muawad, was assassinated in west Beirut while passing through the city in a motorcade to celebrate Independence Day. Sixteen others died in the blast.
1990: British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher resigned after 11 years in office.
1996: An Australian court sentenced Port Arthur killer Martin Bryant to life in jail for the massacre of 35 people at a tourist site in Tasmania in April 1996.
1997: One of Australia's most successful rock stars and lead singer of INXS, Michael Hutchence, was found dead in a luxury Sydney hotel.