Today is the 131st day of 2016 and the 52nd day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1837, after months of economic downturn, several New York banks refused to convert paper currency to gold or silver, setting off the Panic of 1837.

In 1869, a golden spike was driven in Promontory, Utah, in ceremonies marking the symbolic completion of the U.S. transcontinental railroad.

In 1940, Winston Churchill was appointed prime minister of Great Britain.

In 2013, the spire of One World Trade Center was completed, making it the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: John Wilkes Booth (1838-1865), actor/assassin; Fred Astaire (1899-1987), singer/dancer/actor; David O. Selznick (1902-1965), film producer; T. Berry Brazelton (1918- ), pediatrician/author; Pat Summerall (1930-2013), football player/broadcaster; Donovan (1946- ), singer-songwriter; Bono (1960- ), singer-songwriter; Linda Evangelista, (1965- ), supermodel; Kenan Thompson (1978- ), actor; Odette Annable (1985- ), actress.

TODAY'S FACT: When Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's government fell in 1940, King George VI himself summoned Winston Churchill to Buckingham Palace and asked him to form a government.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1970, Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins scored the game-winning goal in sudden-death overtime to give Boston the Stanley Cup title over the St. Louis Blues.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The idea that anything is possible, that's one of the reasons why I'm a fan of America. It's like 'Hey, look there's the moon up there, let's take a walk on it, bring back a piece of it.' That's the kind of America that I'm a fan of." -- Bono

TODAY'S NUMBER: 140,000 -- miles of freight railroad track currently in operation in the United States.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (May 6) and first quarter moon (May 13).

Today is the 130th day of 2016 and the 51st day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first presidential proclamation calling for a national Mother's Day holiday.

In 1961, Newton Minow, newly appointed chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, gave a speech to broadcasters in which he described network TV programming as a "vast wasteland."

In 1974, the U.S. House of Representatives opened impeachment hearings against President Richard Nixon.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: John Brown (1800-1859), abolitionist; J.M. Barrie (1860-1937), author/playwright; Howard Carter (1874-1939), archaeologist; Mike Wallace (1918-2012), journalist; James L. Brooks (1940- ), director/producer; Candice Bergen (1946- ), actress; Billy Joel (1949- ), singer-songwriter/pianist; Tony Gwynn (1960-2014), baseball player; Rosario Dawson (1979- ), actress; Prince Fielder (1984- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S FACT: The top-rated TV shows in the United States during the 1960-1961 season were "Gunsmoke," "Wagon Train," "Have Gun Will Travel," "The Andy Griffith Show" and "The Real McCoys."

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1984, the White Sox finally defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 7-6 in a 25-inning game that had been suspended from the day before. It was the longest timed game in Major League Baseball history to date, at 8 hours and 6 minutes.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Let no one who loves be called altogether unhappy. Even love unreturned has its rainbow." -- J.M. Barrie, "The Little Minister"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 28 -- current member nations in the European Union. Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey are candidates for membership.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (May 6) and first quarter moon (May 13).

Today is the 129th day of 2016 and the 50th day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1877, the first Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show was held in New York City.

In 1886, pharmacist John Pemberton sold the first Coca-Cola soft drink.

In 1945, Victory in Europe Day (or V-E Day) was celebrated as the Allies accepted Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender, ending World War II in Europe.

In 1973, a 10-week standoff in Wounded Knee, South Dakota, between federal authorities and American Indian Movement activists ended.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Harry S. Truman (1884-1972), 33rd U.S. president; David Attenborough (1926- ), TV personality/environmentalist; Don Rickles (1926- ), comedian/actor; Thomas Pynchon (1937- ), author; Ricky Nelson (1940-1985), singer-songwriter; Toni Tennille (1940- ), singer-songwriter; Mike D'Antoni (1951- ), basketball coach; Bill Cowher (1957- ), football coach/analyst; Lovie Smith (1958- ), football coach; Enrique Iglesias (1975- ), singer-songwriter; Adrian Gonzalez (1982- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S FACT: In 1978, Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler became the first climbers to ascend Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1984, the Soviet Union announced that it would boycott that year's Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers." -- Thomas Pynchon, "Gravity's Rainbow"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 418,500 -- total U.S. military and civilian deaths in World War II, according to the National WWII Museum.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (May 6) and first quarter moon (May 13).