December 25 in history:

Charlemagne was already King of the Franks when he was crowned the Emperor of Rome on December 25th of 800.  Pope Leo III presided over the ceremony.

Another legendary king received his crown on this date in 1066.  William the Conqueror became the Norman King after defeating the reigning king of England earlier that year.

The American colonies were fighting against King George III of England at Christmas of 1776, when General George Washington led a surprise attack against Hessian forces.  On the night of December 25th, Washington and his troops made the famous crossing of the Delaware River from Pennsylvania into New Jersey.

Christmas is the birthday of the “King of Somewhere Hot,” the lord of “Margaritaville,” and leader of the Parrotheads.  Singer Jimmy Buffett was born December 25th, 1946.

The first movie made from a Stephen King novel, Brian De Palma’s “Carrie,” made Sissy Spacek a star.  A Christmas baby in 1949, Spacek won an Oscar for playing country music queen Loretta Lynn in “Coal Miner’s Daughter.”

In a way, “Twilight Zone” creator Rod Serling was the Stephen King of his day.  Best known for hosting “Zone” and another spooky TV series, “Night Gallery,” Serling (born Christmas Day of 1924) made his reputation in the 1950’s for writing live TV dramas such as “Requiem for a Heavyweight.”