On this day in 1964, Jean-Paul Sartre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, but turned down the honor.
On this day in 1975, the Soviet unmanned space mission Venera 9 landed on Venus.
On this day in 2001, Grand Theft Auto III was released, popularizing open-world video games, and spurring controversy for its realistic violence.
On this day in 2008, India launched its first unmanned lunar mission Chandrayaan-1.