FRIDAY, MAY 21, 2021

Today is the 141st day of 2021 and the 63rd day of spring.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1856, Lawrence, Kansas, was sacked by pro-slavery activists.

In 1881, the American Red Cross was established.

In 1901, Connecticut became the first state to enact a speed-limit law, limiting motor vehicle speeds to 12 mph in the city and 15 mph on country roads.

In 1979, former San Francisco city supervisor Dan White was convicted of manslaughter in the deaths of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: Alexander Pope (1688-1744), poet; Henri Rousseau (1844-1910), artist; Fats Waller (1904-1943), pianist/songwriter; Raymond Burr (1917-1993), actor; Andrei Sakharov (1921- 1989), physicist/Russian dissident; Al Franken (1951- ), politician/comedian; Laurence “Mr. T” Tureaud (1952- ), actor; Lisa Edelstein (1966- ), actress; The Notorious B.I.G. (1972-1997), rapper; Josh Hamilton (1981- ), baseball player.

TODAY’S FACT: In 1927, Charles Lindbergh landed in Paris after leaving Long Island, New York, the day before, completing the first solo nonstop trans-Atlantic flight. On the fifth anniversary of the event in 1932, Amelia Earhart landed in Ireland after taking off from Newfoundland, completing the first solo nonstop trans-Atlantic flight by a female.

TODAY’S SPORTS: In 1978, 21-year-old rookie professional golfer Nancy Lopez won her first Coca-Cola Classic, defeating JoAnne Carner on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “Charm strikes the sight, but merit wins the soul.” -- Alexander Pope, “The Rape of the Lock”

TODAY’S NUMBER:

456 -- height (in feet) of Kingda Ka, the world’s tallest roller coaster. The ride opened at the Six Flags Great Adventure theme park in Jackson, New Jersey, on this day in 2005.

TODAY’S MOON: Between first quarter moon (May 19) and full moon (May 26).

SATURDAY, MAY 22, 2021

Today is the 142nd day of 2021 and the 64th day of spring.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1807, former vice president Aaron Burr was indicted for treason.

In 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant signed the Amnesty Act into law, restoring full rights to nearly all Confederate sympathizers.

In 1947, President Harry Truman signed the Truman Doctrine, appropriating military and economic aid for Greece and Turkey to combat the spread of communism.

In 2017, a bomb exploded at Manchester Arena following an Ariana Grande concert, killing 23 people.

TODAY’S BIRTHDAYS: William Sturgeon (1783-1850), physicist/inventor; Richard Wagner (1813-1883), composer; Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), artist; Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), physician/author; Herge (1907-1983), cartoonist; Laurence Olivier (1907- 1989), actor/director; Charles Aznavour (1924-2018), singer-songwriter/actor; Morrissey (1959- ), singer-songwriter; Naomi Campbell (1970- ), model/actress; Ginnifer Goodwin (1978- ), actress; Maggie Q (1979- ), actress; Apolo Ohno (1982- ), speed skater.

TODAY’S FACT: On this day in 2011, an EF5 tornado struck Joplin, Missouri, killing 162 and causing $2.8 billion in damages. It remains the costliest and seventh-deadliest tornado in U.S. history.

TODAY’S SPORTS: In 2003, Annika Sorenstam became the first woman golfer since Babe Didrikson Zaharias in 1945 to officially compete against men at a PGA tour event.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “It may be that you are not yourself luminous, but that you are a conductor of light. Some people without possessing genius have a remarkable power of stimulating it.” -- Arthur Conan Doyle

TODAY’S NUMBER: 4,531 -- episodes of NBC’s “The Tonight Show” hosted by Johnny Carson, who began his tenure as host in 1962. Carson hosted his final show on this day in 1992.

TODAY’S MOON: Between first quarter moon (May 19) and full moon (May 26).