SUNDAY, JANUARY 2021

Today is the 17th day of 2021 and the 28th day of winter.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1773, Captain James Cook and his crew became the first to sail south of the Antarctic Circle.

In 1917, the United States purchased the Virgin Islands from Denmark for $25 million.

In 1946, the United Nations Security Council held its first session.

In 1991, a United Statesled coalition’s planes struck targets in Kuwait and Iraq, launching the Persian Gulf War.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), statesman/inventor/ author; Al Capone (1899-1947), organized crime boss; Betty White (1922- ), actress; Eartha Kitt (1927-2008), actress/singer; James Earl Jones (1931-), actor; Muhammad Ali (1942-2016), boxer; Andy Kaufman (1949-1984), actor/comedian; Steve Harvey (1957- ), comedian/ actor; Jim Carrey (1962- ), actor; Sebastian Junger (1962- ), journalist/author; Michelle Obama (1964- ), U.S. first lady; Kid Rock (1971- ), singer-songwriter; Zooey Deschanel (1980-), actress; Dwyane Wade (1982- ), basketball player; Calvin Harris (1984- ), singer-songwriter/producer.

TODAY’S FACT: The term “military-industrial complex” was first used by President Dwight Eisenhower during his farewell address to the nation on this day in 1961.

TODAY’S SPORTS: In 1971, the Baltimore Colts defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 in Super Bowl V, a game so filled with errors it was nicknamed the “Blunder Bowl.”

TODAY’S QUOTE: “For me, becoming isn’t about arriving somewhere or achieving a certain aim. I see it instead as forward motion, a means of evolving, a way to reach continuously toward a better self. The journey doesn’t end.” -- Michelle Obama, “Becoming”

TODAY’S NUMBER: 26 -- age at which gangster Al Capone became boss of the “Chicago Outfit.”

TODAY’S MOON: Between new moon (Jan. 12) and first quarter moon (Jan 20).

MONDAY, JANUARY 2021

Today is the 18th day of 2021 and the 29th day of winter.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1788, English settlers landed in Australia to establish a penal colony.

In 1943, the first armed uprising began at the Warsaw Ghetto in German-occupied Poland.

In 1964, planners unveiled the designs for New York’s World Trade Center.

In 1990, Washington, D.C., mayor Marion Barry was arrested on drug possession charges as a result of an FBI sting operation.

In 1993, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755), political philosopher; Daniel Webster (1782-1852), statesman/ orator; A.A. Milne (1882-1956), children’s author; Cary Grant (1904-1986), actor; Danny Kaye (1911-1987), entertainer; Kevin Costner (1955- ), actor; Mark Rylance (1960- ), actor; Mark Messier (1961-), hockey player; Dave Attell (1965- ), actor/comedian; Dave Bautista (1969- ), wrestler/actor; Jesse L. Martin (1969- ), actor; Julius Peppers (1980- ), football player; Jason Segel (1980-), actor.

TODAY’S FACT: Australia is the world’s sixth-largest country by area, at 2.97 million square miles.

TODAY’S SPORTS: In 1976, wide receiver Lynn Swann gained 161 yards on four receptions and was named MVP as Pittsburgh defeated Dallas 21-17 in Super Bowl X.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “There is no greater tyranny than that which is perpetrated under the shield of the law and in the name of justice.” -- Baron de Montesquieu

TODAY’S NUMBER: 582,578 -- square miles of Pacific Ocean encompassed by the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, initially established at 139,797 square miles by President George W. Bush in June 2006 and expanded to its current size by President Barack Obama in 2016.

TODAY’S MOON: Between new moon (Jan. 12) and first quarter moon (Jan 20).