On Dec. 17, 1939, the Nazi warship Graf Spee was scuttled off the coast of Uruguay as British vessels pursued it after the Battle of the River Plate.

On Sept. 7, 1977, President Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos signed a treaty to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama.

Actor Leslie Jones turns 50 and singer Gloria Gaynor turns 68, among the famous birthdays for Sept. 7.

On Dec. 26, 1908, Jack Johnson, with a 14th-round KO of Tommy Burns in Australia, became the first African-American to win the world heavyweight boxing title.

On Dec. 17, 1975, a federal jury in Sacramento sentenced Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme to life in prison for her attempted assassination of President Gerald R. Ford.

On Sept. 7, 1986, Desmond Tutu was installed as the Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, becoming first black titular head of South Africa's fourth-largest Christian church.

UPI Almanac for Friday, Dec. 26, 2014

UPI Almanac for Thursday, Dec. 26, 2013.

UPI Almanac for Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2013.

UPI Almanac for Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013.

Former President Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Ernie Banks and Gloria Steinem are among 16 recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom announced Thursday.

News from United Press International, around the world around the clock ...

Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie Wednesday named Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz to succeed U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, who died Dec. 17 of respiratory complications at age 88.

U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa, D-Hawaii, will seek appointment to the late Sen. Daniel Inouye's seat, an aide to the congresswoman said Wednesday.

A former U.S. presidential nominee, a longtime U.S. senator, the central figure in a case that led to reform of a major police department, and a number of supporting players from the Civil Rights era and the Watergate scandal, topped the list of notable deaths in 2012.