Today is the 228th day of 2014 and the 57th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1861, President Abraham Lincoln prohibited Union states from trading with states that had seceded.

In 1896, gold was discovered near the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory, sparking a gold rush.

In 1977, Elvis Presley died at age 42.

In 2007, U.S. citizen Jose Padilla was convicted of conspiracy in a "dirty bomb" terrorism case and sentenced to more than 17 years in prison.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: T.E. Lawrence (of Arabia) (1888-1935), soldier/archaeologist/writer; George Meany (1894-1980), union leader; Charles Bukowski (1920-1994), poet/writer; Ann Blyth (1928- ), actress; Eydie Gorme (1928-2013), singer/actress; Frank Gifford (1930- ), sportscaster/football player; Kathie Lee Gifford (1953- ), actress/TV personality; James Cameron (1954- ), film director; Angela Bassett (1958- ), actress; Madonna (1958- ), singer/actress; Steve Carell (1962- ), actor/comedian.

TODAY'S FACT: An 18-year-old Elvis Presley paid a private recording studio $4 in 1953 to record "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartache Begins" on a two-sided record as a belated birthday gift to his mother.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1954, the first issue of Sports Illustrated was published.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "An intellectual is a man who says a simple thing in a difficult way; an artist is a man who says a difficult thing in a simple way." -- Charles Bukowski, "Notes of a Dirty Old Man"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 102,800 -- height (in feet) from which Joseph Kittinger jumped during a record-setting U.S. Air Force experiment on this day in 1960. Though his height and speed records were broken during the Red Bull Stratos project in 2012, Kittinger's 4 minutes, 36 seconds of free fall remains unsurpassed.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Aug. 10) and last quarter moon (Aug. 17).

Today is the 227th day of 2014 and the 56th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1483, the Vatican's Sistine Chapel was consecrated.

In 1914, the Panama Canal officially opened.

In 1947, India and Pakistan won independence from Britain.

In 1971, President Richard Nixon canceled the direct convertibility of the U.S. dollar to gold.

In 2003, Libya accepted responsibility for the bombing of a Pan Am airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988, and agreed to pay reparations.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821), French emperor; Walter Scott (1771-1832), poet/novelist; Ethel Barrymore (1879-1959), actress; Edna Ferber (1885-1968), author; Julia Child (1912-2004), TV personality; Steig Larsson (1954-2004), journalist/author; Debra Messing (1968- ), actress; Ben Affleck (1972- ), actor; Carl Edwards (1979- ), race car driver; Jennifer Lawrence (1990- ), actress.

TODAY'S FACT: The price of gold skyrocketed from $35 per ounce in 1971 to $800 per ounce in 1980 as a result of the economic measures undertaken by President Nixon in 1971.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1948, Babe Didrikson Zaharias won the third women's golf U.S. Open, even after missing a 5-foot putt on the 18th hole.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Oh, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive!" -- Walter Scott, "Marmion"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 400,000 -- estimated number of concert-goers who attended the three-day Woodstock Music Festival when it opened near Bethel, N.Y., on this day in 1969.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Aug. 10) and last quarter moon (Aug. 17).

Today is the 226th day of 2014 and the 55th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act, guaranteeing income for retirees and the unemployed.

In 1945, President Harry Truman announced Japan's unconditional surrender and the end to World War II.

In 2003, 50 million people in the northeastern United States and Canada lost power in one of the largest blackouts in U.S. history.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Doc Holliday (1851-1887), gambler; David Crosby (1941- ), singer-songwriter; Steve Martin (1945- ), comedian/actor/writer; Danielle Steel (1947- ), novelist; Gary Larson (1950- ), cartoonist; James Horner (1953- ), composer; Rusty Wallace (1956- ), race car driver; Earvin "Magic" Johnson (1959- ), basketball player/businessman; Halle Berry (1966- ), actress; Mila Kunis (1983- ), actress; Tim Tebow (1987- ), football player.

TODAY'S FACT: The New York Times reported in 1945 that an estimated 2 million people flooded New York City's Times Square following the announcement of Japanese surrender in World War II.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 2007, Braves manager Bobby Cox was ejected from his 132nd major league game, passing the record previously set by John McGraw. Cox retired in 2010 with 158 regular season and three post-season ejections in his career.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Thankfully, persistence is a great substitute for talent." -- Steve Martin, "Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life"

TODAY'S NUMBER: $47 million -- price paid by pop legend Michael Jackson when he purchased the publishing rights to the majority of the Beatles' catalog (251 compositions) on this day in 1985.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Aug. 10) and last quarter moon (Aug. 17).