People line up in Times Square and 43rd Street to receive sandwiches and a cup of coffee on December 8, 1930.

Two men read the Daily Mirror, whose headlines announce that Japan has declared war. They stand at a newspaper stand lit by an oil lamp on December 8, 1941.

With a turn of a ceremonial key, Parks Commissioner Walter R. Herrick demonstrated the newly installed sprinklers throughout Central Park on December 8, 1928.

The Times reported that the pipes of the new irrigation system, which have "concealed spray heads," will be controlled by a timer and create a fine mist. "Its operation starts with an electric clock which turns the system on or off at the given time." The system was estimated to do in 10 minutes the watering work of 10 men over several days.

Two great pairs of stage partners meet: Fred and Adele Astaire, then starring in Funny Face, call at the Guild Theater to greet Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, December 8, 1927. Lunt led the cast of Shaw's The Doctor's Dilemma. Others in the cast included Morris Carnovsky, Dudley Digges, Margalo Gilmore, and Sanford Meisner.

Four-year old Kathy Weekley of Brooklyn came to Manhattan to see the traditional Christmas wreath around the neck of Fortitude, the lion on the north side of Fifth Avenue, at the central branch of the Public Library, December 8, 1953. The lion on the south side, who also got a wreath, is called Patience. Mayor LaGuardia named them during the Depression. They wear the wreaths every December.

The day after Pearl Harbor, December 8, 1941: Early arrivals waiting outside the army recruiting headquarters at the Federal Building to file applications for enlistment.