Timeline December 2009

Events in December 2009 12

• 1918 – 2009 Oral Roberts (1918-2009) Died 15 December 2009, aged 91 Roberts was an American televangelist and faith healer who pioneered televised religious broadcasting and founded Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma. His ministry was among the largest and most influential in American evangelicalism during the twentieth century. He remained active in the movement he built until his death.
• 1919 – 2009 Jennifer Jones (1919-2009) American actress, Oscar winner for The Song of Bernadette, and wife of David O. Selznick.
• 1977 – 2009 Brittany Murphy (1977-2009) Died 20 December 2009, aged 32 Murphy was an American actress known for roles in films including Clueless, 8 Mile and Girl, Interrupted. Her sudden death from pneumonia complicated by drug intoxication at age 32 drew widespread media attention. Her husband died of similar causes in the same house five months later.
• 2009 2009: Jenson Button Brawn Button won the title with the Brawn GP team, a fairy-tale outfit formed from the ashes of Honda's withdrawal. Six wins in the first seven races sealed an improbable championship.
• 2009 Person of Cultural Merit Designated a Person of Cultural Merit by the Japanese government, one of the country's most prestigious cultural honours.
• 2009 Uber founded Ride-sharing disrupts transport Uber was founded in San Francisco in 2009 by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp. It grew to operate in over 70 countries, fundamentally disrupting the taxi industry worldwide.
• 2009 Women Without Men Film Visual artist Shirin Neshat adapted Women Without Men into a feature film that won the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival.
• 2009 Stevie Wonder named UN Messenger of Peace United Nations Appointed to campaign for people with disabilities.
• 2009 Treaty of Lisbon enters into force EU reform treaty creates new presidency and voting rules The Treaty of Lisbon took effect across the European Union after years of ratification delays, amending the bloc's governing treaties. It created the post of President of the European Council and streamlined qualified-majority voting. Herman Van Rompuy became the first holder of the new presidency.
• 2009 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference UN summit ends with non-binding accord World leaders gathered in Copenhagen for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP15) seeking a binding successor to the Kyoto Protocol. Negotiations ended instead with the non-binding Copenhagen Accord, brokered in part by the United States, China, India, Brazil and South Africa. Many participants criticized the outcome as a failure to reach a legally binding deal.
• 2009 Jennifer Jones dies in Malibu Jennifer Jones dies aged 90.
• 2009 Avatar #1 film of 2009 — $2.92bn worldwide Directed by James Cameron, starring Sam Worthington. A paraplegic marine dispatched to the moon Pandora becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the indigenous Na'vi people. Highest-grossing film ever at the time.