Today is the 356th day of 2016 and the first day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1620, the Pilgrims went ashore at Plymouth Rock, setting foot on North America for the first time.

In 1913, the New York World newspaper published Arthur Wynne's "Word-Cross Puzzle," the first crossword puzzle.

In 1937, Disney's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," the first feature-length animated film, premiered.

In 2013, the Walt Disney Company completed its $4.06 billion purchase of Lucasfilm Ltd.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881), British prime minister; Josh Gibson (1911-1947), baseball player; Joe Paterno (1926-2012), football coach; Jane Fonda (1937- ), actress; Frank Zappa (1940-1993), musician; Samuel L. Jackson (1948- ), actor; Chris Evert (1954- ), tennis player; Ray Romano (1957- ), actor/comedian; Florence Griffith Joyner (1959-1998), Olympic track athlete; Kiefer Sutherland (1966- ), actor; Julie Delpy (1969- ), actress/filmmaker.

TODAY'S FACT: "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," derided by Hollywood insiders as "Disney's Folly" while it was in production, cost Disney Studios an estimated $1.5 million to create. Walt Disney mortgaged his home to help cover the unanticipated expenses.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 2010, the University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team won its 89th consecutive game, setting a new Division I record for consecutive wins.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The press is not only free, it is powerful. That power is ours. It is the proudest that man can enjoy. It was not granted by monarchs, it was not gained for us by aristocracies; but it sprang from the people, and, with an immortal instinct, it has always worked for the people." -- Benjamin Disraeli

TODAY'S NUMBER: 41 -- adult male Pilgrims on the Mayflower who signed the Mayflower Compact before disembarking on Plymouth Rock.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (Dec. 20) and new moon (Dec. 28).

Today is the 355th day of 2016 and the 90th day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1803, the territory covered by the Louisiana Purchase was formally transferred to the United States from France.

In 1860, South Carolina seceded from the United States.

In 1941, with his army under pressure on the Russian front, Adolf Hitler ordered "no retreat."

In 1946, the Christmas film "It's a Wonderful Life" was released in New York City.

In 1989, the United States invaded Panama to overthrow dictator Manuel Noriega in Operation Just Cause.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Harvey Firestone (1868-1938), business magnate; Branch Rickey (1881-1965), baseball executive; Irene Dunne (1898-1990), actress; Uri Geller (1946- ), illusionist; Dick Wolf (1946- ), TV producer; Alan Parsons (1948- ), musician; Billy Bragg (1957- ), singer-songwriter; Rich Gannon (1965- ), football player; David Wright (1982- ), baseball player; Jonah Hill (1983- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: Adolf Hitler was released from Landsberg Prison in the German state of Bavaria on this day in 1924 after 264 days of incarceration for treason.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1946, boxer Sugar Ray Robinson won the welterweight crown by a unanimous decision over Tommy Bell.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "If things don't come easy, there is no premium on effort. There should be joy in the chase, zest in the pursuit." -- Branch Rickey

TODAY'S NUMBER: 2.2 million -- acres of land owned by media billionaire John Malone, making him the largest private landowner in the United States.

TODAY'S MOON: Last quarter moon (Dec. 20).

Today is the 354th day of 2016 and the 89th day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1777, the Continental Army under George Washington set up winter quarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

In 1932, the first BBC World Service radio broadcast aired, as "Empire Service."

In 1998, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to impeach President Bill Clinton.

In 2011, North Korea announced that dictator Kim Jong Il had died two days earlier.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950), historian; Leonid Brezhnev (1906-1982), Soviet leader; Jean Genet (1910-1986), author; Edith Piaf (1915-1963), singer/actress; Al Kaline (1934- ), baseball player; Richard Leakey (1944- ), paleoanthropologist; Robert Urich (1946-2002), actor; Reggie White (1961-2004), football player; Criss Angel (1967- ), magician; Tyson Beckford (1970- ), model; Alyssa Milano (1972- ), actress; Warren Sapp (1972- ), football player; Jake Gyllenhaal (1980- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: The first American president to be impeached by the House of Representatives was Andrew Johnson in 1868.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1980, Brigham Young University's football team, down 20 points with three minutes to play, staged an improbable comeback to defeat Southern Methodist University in the Holiday Bowl, 46-45.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "When I got to the street, I walked boldly. But I was always accompanied by an agonizing thought: the fear that honest people may be thieves who have chosen a cleverer and safer way of stealing." -- Jean Genet, "Miracle of the Rose"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 12 -- astronauts in the Apollo program who set foot on the moon's surface. The last manned lunar flight, Apollo 17, returned to Earth on this day in 1972.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Dec. 13) and last quarter moon (Dec. 20).