July 17 is the 198th day of the year. There are 167 days remaining until the end of the year.
+ 1902 – Willis Carrier creates the first air conditioner in Buffalo, New York.
+ 1938 – Douglas Corrigan takes off from Brooklyn to fly the "wrong way" to Ireland and becomes known as "Wrong Way" Corrigan.
+ 1955 – Disneyland is dedicated and opened by Walt Disney in Anaheim, California.
+ 1976 – The opening of the Summer Olympics in Montreal is marred by 25 African teams boycotting the games because of New Zealand's participation. Contrary to rulings by other international sports organizations, the IOC had declined to exclude New Zealand because of their participation in South African sporting events during apartheid.
+ 1984 – The national drinking age in the United States was changed from 18 to 21.
( Births )
+ 1912 – Art Linkletter, Canadian-American radio and television host (d. 2010)
+ 1917 – Phyllis Diller, American actress, comedian, and voice artist (d. 2012)
+ 1935 – Donald Sutherland, Canadian actor and producer
+ 1951 – Lucie Arnaz, American actress and singer
+ 1952 – David Hasselhoff, American actor, singer, and producer
+ 1976 – Luke Bryan, American singer-songwriter and guitarist