The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was released in theaters in the US.
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The third and last moonwalk of the Apollo 17 mission began.
Driving Miss Daisy, directed by Bruce Beresford, was released.
NASA launched the first-ever active repeater communications satellite.
The online dictionary, Merriam-Webster, stated their most searched word of the year was 'Feminism.'
The first European explorer discovered New Zealand.
