(Knievel jumps the fountains at the Caesar's Palace. File photo courtesy of UPI)

12/31/1967 - Packers win in Ice Bowl

In one of the greatest, and coldest, NFL games in history, the Green Bay Packers narrowly beat the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL Championship Game. The Packers' win came on a last-second dive by quarterback Bart Starr, who just barely got into the end zone for the score.

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12/31/1967 - Knievel attempts Caesar's Palace

Evel Knievel, the American daredevil who became a household name in the 1970's, makes the first major jump of his career. Riding a motorbike, Knievel attempted to jump the fountains outside the newly-opened Caesar's Palace hotel. Knievel accelerated at the ramp and cleared the 50 yards worth of fountains. But as he connected with the downward ramp, something went wrong and he botched the landing. Badly.

Knievel landed with a wobble and was thrown from the bike, which continued to speed forward. The large crowd that had gathered to see him watched in horror as Knievel bounced violently down the ramp, each roll seeming to be more painful than the last. Knievel broke his back, femur, and pelvis, fractured his hip and wrists, and wound up in a month-long coma.

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(A portrait of Abner Doubleday, the man long known as baseball's inventor)

12/30/1907 - Spalding announces baseball's inventor

The Mills Commission, a panel appointed by Albert Goodwill Spalding, announces that the game of baseball was invented by Abner Doubleday, a respected Civil War general. Spalding, a former big league player, manager, owner, and the creator of a sporting goods company that bears his name, launched the committee to investigate baseball's origins. His intention was to prove that baseball had been devised in America, and not through the evolution of British activities such as townball, rounders, and cricket.

There was no evidence to back up his claim. Then, a couple years later, a 73 year-old man named Abner Graves wrote the commission a letter. In it, he claimed to have been a companion of Doubleday, who allegedly drew out the rules of baseball in the dirt, on a small farm owned by Elihu Phinney in Cooperstown, on a June day in 1839. Without checking for proof, Spalding used the old man's letter to confirm his assertions. And thus, Abner Doubleday was thereby recognized as the inventor of baseball.

But years of dedicated research by historians would disprove Spalding's efforts as a massive hoax. Doubleday never wrote a single letter about or mentioned to be in involved with the game of baseball, and the day that he supposedly created it, he was stationed in West Point, not Cooperstown. The man who wrote the letter turned out to be crazy, and was later sent to an asylum for killing his wife -- the Doubleday story was a complete fabrication.

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(Alan Ameche scores the winning TD. Photo courtesy of AP Photos)

12/28/1958 - The Greatest Game Ever Played

In the first overtime game in league history, the Baltimore Colts defeat the New York Giants, 23-17, in the 1958 NFL Championship Game. The game was played at Yankee Stadium and famously ended on a touchdown run from Colts running back Alan Ameche, who scored from just a yard out. The tightness of the game, mixed with the significance of the teams playing and the 45 million viewers watching on NBC, helped dramatically increase the popularity of the NFL. It is this game, more than any other, that is credited with making the NFL the most popular sports league in the United States.

Jack Hand of the Associated Press wrote, "If they play football for 100 years, they never can top the Baltimore's first championship snatched in a sudden death playoff 23-17 after New York refused to gamble."

With two-and-a-half minutes to play in regulation, the Giants were holding a 17-14 lead and were on fourth-and-inches from their own 43. Had they decided to go for it, and had they converted on the first down, the Giants likely would have run out the clock. Instead, coach Lee Jim Howell took the cautionary route and ordered his team to punt. The ball was placed at the 14 yard-line with 1:56 to go, setting up Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas, who led the team on an 80-yard drive to put them within field goal distance. Many regard this as the first instance of the "two-minute drill," which had been unheard of 1958.

The Colts' drive led to a 20-yard field goal from Steve Myhra, who had missed a short-range kick earlier in the game. Myhra's boot was good this time around and tied the game at 17 with six seconds remaining in the game. Time expired shortly there after with the outcome still undecided. "When the game ended in a tie, we were standing on the sidelines waiting to see what came next," Unitas later recalled. "All of a sudden, the officials came over and said, ‘Send the captain out. We’re going to flip a coin to see who will receive.’ That was the first we heard of the overtime period."

The Giants won a coin flip from the officials and started the extra period with the ball. After failing to get farther than their own 29, the Giants once again punted the ball on fourth-and-1. The Colts then finished the game with the drive that set up Ameche's run, leaving the 64,185 fans at Yankee Stadium in shock.

Sports Illustrated writer Tex Maule was the first to dub the game "The Best Football Game Ever Played." Because the word "best" doesn't carry the same gravitas as "greatest," the 1958 NFL Championship is generally referred to as "The Greatest Game Ever Played." Although few historian will argue against the deservedness of the game's moniker, many of the players from the game later contended that it didn't deserve the title. In fact in an ESPN.com article written by Eddie Epstein, three Colts players stated that a regular season game against the 49ers from less than a month earlier was a better contest.

"I've always felt that it (the '58 championship game) wasn't a real good football game until the last two minutes, and then the overtime," Unitas said. "Just the fact that it was the first overtime in championship play and it happened in Madison Avenue's backyard, that was enough to make people feel they had seen something fantastic. ... They always forget that the month before, in the game we clinched the division and put us into the playoff, San Francisco had us down 27-7 at the half and we came back to beat 'em 35-27. That was a much better game."

In 1959, the Colts and Giants once again met in the championship game; the rematch wasn't nearly as competitive and ended in a decisive 31-16 Colts win. Just a year after the 1958 championship, businessman Lamar Hunt launched the American Football League to directly challenge the NFL. The AFL and the NFL would later merge, creating the dynamic event we now know as the Super Bowl.

''You can't overemphasize the dramatic impact of that 1958 NFL Championship Game," Hunt later told the New York Times. "Pro football was just starting to grow. It suddenly had its first overtime game in a championship game with the nation watching on television. I can vividly remember seeing it in a hotel room in Houston. ... In February 1959, the idea formed that there was more than enough pro football interest around the country for another league. The Colts-Giants game had been the turning point in my thinking and awareness."

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12/26/1919 - Boston trades Babe Ruth

In a move that most historians regard as the biggest trade in American sports history, the Boston Red Sox sell 26 year-old George Herman "Babe" Ruth to the New York Yankees for $100,000 in cash. The deal, which wasn't announced until January of the following year, would live in infamy for Red Sox fans, as Ruth became the most prolific baseball player in the game, finishing his stellar career with 714 homers -- a record that stood for over four decades.

Prior to the Ruth trade, Boston had been New York's better, having won four of the previous eight World Series (the latest coming in 1918). But after the deal, the Yankees were the infinitely better franchise the remainder of the century. From 1920 to 2003, the Yankees managed to win 26 championships, while the Red Sox never won anything and always seemed to come up short to the Bronx Bombers. Boston's lack of success following the Ruth deal was so great that people attributed it to "The Curse of the Bambino" -- a legend that Ruth was haunting the team for selling him away. It wasn't until the Red Sox won it all in 2004, 86 years after their previous title, that the curse was said to have finally been lifted.

The person who signed off on the Babe's trade was Red Sox owner Harry Frazee, a man who had made his money in the theater industry. Frazee -- as legend has it -- had made a series of bad investments and was in need of cash in order to fund his upcoming theatrical projects, mainly the play "No, No Nanette." On top of that, he had to deal with the contract demands of Ruth, who was asking for his $10,000 salary to be doubled. Ruth, who had spent his early years as a left-handed pitcher, had made the transition to the outfield in 1919 and set a major league record with 29 homers. As such, the Babe was asking for a hefty payraise, and Frazee, who was getting tired of his antics, questioned if he was worth keeping around.

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12/20/2003 - Namath drunk on ESPN

Former Jets quarterback Joe Namath embarrasses himself in front of a live television audience. In an ESPN game between the New England Patriots and New York Jets, sideline reporter Suzy Kolber was interviewing the Hall of Famer about current Jets quarterback Chad Pennington, who some were already calling "the next Joe Namath." Namath appeared completely intoxicated and slurred his answer -- he then disregarded Kolber's next question and told her, "I want to kiss you. I couldn't care less about the team strugg-a-ling." A few seconds later he again repeated "I want to kiss you.''

Kolber then akwardly segued the interview to an end as Namath finished with an off-camera yell. Jeff Drake, an ESPN executive who was in the broadcast truck, later told the press, "If we had known definitively (Namath) was in that kind of state, we wouldn't have conducted the interview."

"I was full of some Christmas cheer, certainly too much. It was a festive occasion," said Namath, referring to an on-field reunion of former Jets players. "I wasn't trying to be rude and crude. I feel awful about what happened, for my family and the Jets. I've been in better Christmas spirits, no pun intended." "(Kolber) was a real pro. She handled it so well. I appreciate Suzy's professionalism. It could have really gotten out of whack."

In a statement released through ESPN the following day, Kolber stated, "Joe apologized, I accept. It's over." Namath later vowed to give up drinking forever.

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12/19/1999 - Brown blinded by flag

In one of the final games of the year, Browns tackle Orlando Brown was hit with a penalty flag in the worst possible place: his eye. Referee Jeff Triplette, who threw the flag, quickly came over and removed it from his helmet. The flag was reportedly filled with BB pellets to make it throwable and was improperly weighted; the damage it caused to Brown's right eye was serious.

Brown, whose father was blind from glaucoma, instantly became concerned with the condition of his eye. In his panic/rage, Brown raced back from the Cleveland sideline and back onto the field, where he shoved Triplette to the ground.

"Whatever hit me, it wasn't BBs," Brown insisted. "It might have been a lead fishing weight, something solid with a jagged edge that put four tears in my iris. Maybe it was a nut. But it wasn't BBs. The doctor said that when I got to the hospital."

The NFL suspended Brown indefinitely, making it the first time a player had ever been suspended for contacting a referee. Most sports writers were ready to run Orlando out of town, however when the severity of his injury was disclosed, it put his reaction in a whole other context. Brown's eye was bad enough that doctors feared he would lose sight altogether. The NFL dropped its suspension, though it hardly mattered; Brown's vision was too blurry for him to play football anyway.

Cleveland released Brown from his contract less than a year later. At the time, Brown had the largest contract of any lineman in history: six years, $27 million. While he still collected the $7.5 million signing bonus that came with it, the rest of his million were forfeited due to the NFL's lack of guaranteed contracts.

Brown sued the NFL for a whopping $200 million, citing that his impaired vision cost him future endorsements and the remnants of his Pro Bowl career. He was awarded a $15-20 million settlement. Brown's eye recovered shortly thereafter and he signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2003. The NFL in turn sued Brown for $500,000 on the basis that the settlement prohibited him from returning to the league. The case was later dropped.

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(Frank Olivo, pictured here wearing his Santa suit. Photo courtesy of AP Photos)

12/15/1968 - Philadelphia boos Santa Claus

Philadelphia sports fans have long been perceived as some of the harshest, most unruly, and most negative sports fans in the country. When Michael Irvin suffered a career-ending injury, they cheered. When J.D. Drew appeared in the outfield, they threw batteries at him. When Donovan McNabb was picked by the Philadelphia Eagles, they booed. But no incident could possibly top the one that happened in 1968, one that was so preposterous in concept that it's almost unbelievable: they booed Santa Claus.

It was halftime of the final Eagles game of the year. It was a tie game against the Minnesota Vikings, but the fans were in no mood to celebrate. The '68 Eagles were sitting on a 2-11 record after losing the first 11 games of the year. Between the terrible football season and the freezing weather, the normally-rowdy Philly fans were not in a good state of mind.

So who should come out for the halftime show but 20 year-old Frank Olivo, the man portraying jolly old Saint Nick. The Eagles fans were having none of it. They loudly booed the rotund gift-giver and even pelted him with snowballs as he left the field. It was not a good moment for the "city of brotherly love."

"It became a thing that Philadelphia sports fans became famous for doing, and it will never die, I guess," Olivo said in 2008. "Look how many years it's been."

Olivo said he never held a grudge with the fans and even said he appreciated the notoriety. "The team was horrible," he told Ronnie Polaneczky in 2008. "They wanted to express their displeasure. So they booed and threw snowballs. I'd have done exactly the same thing, if I weren't on the field."

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(Jackie Robinson. Photo courtesy of Chock Full o'Nuts)

12/13/1956 - Jackie Robinson traded to Giants

The Brooklyn Dodgers do the unthinkable and trade Jackie Robinson to their crosstown rivals, the New York Giants, for Dick Littlefield and $30,000. Robinson had broken the baseball color barrier in 1947 and helped the Dodgers go from the bums of baseball to a consistent contender in the National League. But he was 37 years old and was in the twilight of his career.

Robinson was leaning towards retirement when he heard the news. He did not want to start anew with a different team, but he didn't want to disappoint his die-hard fans, who cried for him to remain in the game. The Giants offered him $60,000 to stay active and play first base for them. But Dodgers VP Buz Bavasi hinted that Robinson was prolonging his decision to make more money; upon hearing this, Robinson immediately announced his retirement. "I wouldn't give them the chance to tell me 'I told you so,'" Robinson wrote in his autobiography.

Jackie announced his exit that January, rescinding the trade and sending Littlefield back to the Giants. He then signed a deal to become the vice president of Chock Full o'Nuts, a local New York lunch counter.

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