Dashed left edge = started before December 2013 ·
Dashed right edge = ongoing beyond December 2013
Events in December 2013 19
1917 – 2013Joan Fontaine (1917-2013)British-American actress, star of Rebecca and the only actor to win an Oscar for a Hitchcock film.
1918 – 2013Nelson MandelaAnti-apartheid leader and first president of democratic South Africa, 1918-2013Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison before becoming South Africa's first democratically elected president in 1994, ending apartheid.
1922 – 2013Eleanor Parker (1922-2013)American actress with three Oscar nominations, remembered as the Baroness in The Sound of Music.
1929 – 2013Ronnie Biggs (1929-2013)Died 18 December 2013, aged 84Ronnie Biggs was a British criminal who took part in the 1963 Great Train Robbery and evaded capture for decades after escaping prison, living for years as a fugitive in Brazil. He died in a care home in England.
1932 – 2013Peter O'Toole (1932-2013)Died 14 December 2013, aged 81Peter O'Toole was a British actor best known for his Academy Award-nominated performance in Lawrence of Arabia. He died in a London hospital after a long illness.
20132013: Sebastian VettelRed BullVettel won his fourth consecutive title with an extraordinary run of nine straight victories to close the season, equalling Schumacher's record of dominance.
2013Amazon Prime grows to 20 millionSubscription retail changes shoppingAmazon Prime reached approximately 20 million subscribers in the US in 2013. Its combination of free shipping and streaming video created a new model for retail and entertainment.
2013Dame Edna's Farewell TourEmbarked on Dame Edna's Eat Pray Laugh farewell tour, which included a celebrated run at the London Palladium. Surprised King Charles and Camilla at the Royal Variety Performance by sitting next to them in the royal box.
2013Finally Grew a BeardAfter decades of ironic beardlessness, finally grew a short ZZ goatee around 2013, ending one of rock's longest-running visual jokes.
2013Kissing the Sword: A Prison MemoirPublished Kissing the Sword, a memoir of her experiences in Iranian prisons, translated into English by Sara Khalili for the Feminist Press.
2013Moved Back to New JerseyMoved from Chicago to Lambertville, New Jersey, with her husband Edgar to be closer to their children, citing health challenges. 'I always want to have a hand in jazz, wherever I am,' she said.
2013Spotify reaches 24 million usersStreaming dominates musicSpotify grew to 24 million active users in 2013, with 6 million paying subscribers, demonstrating that music streaming was replacing downloads as the dominant way people listen to music.
2013Swiss Citizenship and Marriage to Erwin BachMarried Erwin Bach, her partner of 27 years, and became a Swiss citizen, renouncing her American citizenship.
2013Nelson Mandela diesFather of the Rainbow Nation, age 95Nelson Mandela died on December 5, 2013, aged 95, at his home in Johannesburg. The first democratically elected president of South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize laureate was mourned worldwide.
2013Metallica play AntarcticaFreeze 'Em AllThe first band to play on all seven continents in one year.
2013Eleanor Parker dies in Palm SpringsEleanor Parker dies aged 91.
2013Civil war breaks out in South SudanPolitical rivalry ignites ethnic conflictFighting broke out in Juba between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar, quickly spreading into a civil war along ethnic lines. The conflict would kill tens of thousands and displace millions over the following years.
2013Joan Fontaine dies in CarmelJoan Fontaine dies aged 96.
2013Royal pardonUnder the prerogative of mercyTuring receives a posthumous royal pardon on Christmas Eve, following a campaign led in part by scientists and by Justice Minister Chris Grayling's recommendation to the Queen. Critics note that a pardon implies a crime, and that the crime was the law.