On this day in 1981, Mark David Chapman was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for murdering John Lennon.
On this day in 1989, Tadeusz Mazowiecki was chosen as the first non-communist Prime Minister in Central and Eastern Europe.
On this day in 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as head of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
On this day in 1995, Microsoft Windows 95 was released to the public in North America.
On this day in 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) redefined the term "planet" such that Pluto is now considered a dwarf planet.