The United States held its first draft lottery since 1942 on 1 December. #1 in the lottery that day was September 14. (My “draft number,” irrelevant as I was on active duty in the Navy, was above 300.)
The Boeing 747 made its first passenger flight on 2 December, flying from Seattle to New York City on a Pan American chartered flight. The plane carried 191 people, 110 of them reporters and photographers. The flight took fours hours, two minutes. Here’s a 1969 Pan Am commercial for the 747.
The Altamont Free Concert was held 6 December at the Altamont Speedway, near Tracy, Calif., in the Bay Area, attracting 300,000 people. Hosted by the Rolling Stones, it was intended to be “Woodstock West.” It was better known for the four deaths that happened during the day, including the beating and stabbing to death of one of the spectators, by members of the Hells Angels hired as security guards.
A Los Angeles grand jury on 8 December indicted Charles Manson and four of his followers (Charles “Tex” Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Linda Kasabian, Susan Atkins) on seven counts of murder arising from the Tate-LaBianca murders exactly four months earlier.
President Nixon announced on 15 December that he would bring an additional 50,000 American troops out of Vietnam over the next four months, marking the withdrawal of over 110,000 U.S. servicemen during the first year of his administration.
In a record for American late-night television, 30 million+ people tuned in on 17 December to watch the wedding of falsetto-voiced singer Herbert Buckingham Khaury, better known by his stage name, Tiny Tim, on The Tonight Show, hosted by Johnny Carson. Tiny Tim’s 17-year-old bride, Victoria Mae Budinger, was quickly nicknamed “Miss Vicky” by the American press.
On 22 December, 11 sailors at the Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego were killed, and seven were seriously injured, when a disabled U.S. Navy F-8 Crusader jet plunged into the aircraft hangar where the group had been gathered. Moments earlier, the F-8 pilot had reported a malfunction and ejected safely from the aircraft.
In ABC’s second attempt to cut into the ratings success of NBC’s The Tonight Show, starring Johnny Carson, The Dick Cavett Show debuted on 29 December. Replacing The Joey Bishop Show, Cavett’s show originated from New York City and would run for five years.