December 27 in History

• 1801

  December 27, 1801:

  Napoleon establishes the Republic of Lucca, following his conquest of Italy.

• 1831

  December 27, 1831:

  Charles Darwin begins his journey, through which he would eventually formulate his evolution theory, on the vessel HMS Beagle.

• 1904

  December 27, 1904:

  The play, “Peter Pan”, written by J.M. Barrie, premieres at the Duke of York's Theatre in London.

• 1927

  December 27, 1927:

  The Jerome Kern-scored musical, “Show Boat”, with lyrics by P. G. Wodehouse and Oscar Hammerstein II, is performed for the first time in New York City.

• 1932

  December 27, 1932:

  Billionaire John D. Rockefeller’s entertainment theatre, the Radio City Music Hall, opens in Manhattan.

• December 27, 1932:

  Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin reinstates the union’s internal passport system.

• 1947

  December 27, 1947:

  The American children’s television show, “Howdy Doody Show”, makes its debut on NBC.

• 1967

  December 27, 1967:

  Canadian folk singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen’s debut album, “Songs of Leonard Cohen” is released.

• 2002

  December 27, 2002:

  “Chicago”, a film starring Richard Gere, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Renee Zellweger, is released.

• 2007

  December 27, 2007:

  Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is assassinated in Rawalpindi, Pakistan during a campaign for upcoming parliamentary elections.