ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 299th day of 2020 and the 34th day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1415, King Henry V led his English forces to victory at the Battle of Agincourt in northern France.

In 1971, the U.N. General Assembly voted to admit the People's Republic of China as the country's "official" government, expelling Taiwan.

In 1983, U.S. troops invaded Grenada to secure the safety of American medical students on the island and to overthrow a Marxist regime.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Georges Bizet (1838-1875), composer; Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), artist; Charles Coughlin (1891-1979), radio host/priest; Minnie Pearl (1912-1996), comedian; Marion Ross (1928- ), actress; Bob Knight (1940- ), basketball coach; Helen Reddy (1941-2020), singer-songwriter; Anne Tyler (1941- ), author; James Carville (1944- ), political consultant/commentator; Midori (1971- ), violinist; Pedro Martinez (1971- ), baseball player; Craig Robinson (1971- ), actor; Zadie Smith (1975- ), author; Katy Perry (1984- ), singer; Ciara (1985- ), singer.

TODAY'S FACT: Pablo Picasso's birth name was Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Maria de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso. He was named after a variety of relatives and saints.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1986, the New York Mets defeated the Boston Red Sox in Game 6 of the World Series after a routine ground ball rolled between the legs of Boston first-baseman Bill Buckner, allowing the winning run and capping the Mets' 10th-inning, come-from-behind victory. The Mets won Game 7 two nights later to earn the championship.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The very reason I write is so that I might not sleepwalk through my entire life." -- Zadie Smith

TODAY'S NUMBER: 11 -- age at which violinist Midori made her concert debut with the New York Philharmonic.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Oct. 23) and full moon (Oct. 31).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 298th day of 2020 and the 33rd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1926, magician Harry Houdini gave his last performance at the Garrick Theatre in Detroit.

In 1945, the charter establishing the United Nations took effect.

In 1987, the Teamsters union was readmitted to the AFL-CIO, 30 years after its expulsion.

In 2002, authorities arrested John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo in connection with Washington, D.C.-area sniper attacks.

In 2003, the last commercial Concorde flight was made.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879), writer/publisher; Bob Kane (1915-1998), writer/illustrator; Jiles Perry "The Big Bopper" Richardson (1930-1959), singer-songwriter; Stephen Covey (1932-2012), author/educator; Bill Wyman (1936- ), musician; F. Murray Abraham (1939- ), actor; Kevin Kline (1947- ), actor; BD Wong (1960- ), actor; Monica (1980- ), singer; Wayne Rooney (1985- ), soccer player; Drake (1986- ), actor/rapper; Shenae Grimes (1989- ), actress; Jalen Ramsey (1994- ), football player.

TODAY'S FACT: In 1901, adventurer Annie Edson Taylor celebrated her 63rd birthday by becoming the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1992, the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-3 to win World Series Game 6, becoming the first Canadian team to win the Major League Baseball championship.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I don't really have a gimmick or a 'thing.' I'm one of the few artists who gets to be himself every day." -- Drake

TODAY'S NUMBER: 2 -- jersey numbers in the four major American professional sports leagues that are retired throughout the league. The No. 42 worn by Jackie Robinson (who died on this day in 1972) was retired by Major League Baseball in 1997; the No. 99 worn by Wayne Gretzky was retired by the National Hockey League in 2000.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Oct. 23) and full moon (Oct. 31).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 297th day of 2020 and the 32nd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1915, more than 25,000 women marched on Fifth Avenue in New York City to advocate voting rights for women.

In 1946, the United Nations General Assembly met for the first time in New York City.

In 1983, a suicide truck bombing in Beirut killed 241 U.S. military personnel.

In 2001, Apple announced the first iPod, which cost $399 and offered five gigabytes of storage.

In 2002, armed Chechen separatists took more than 700 people hostage at a theater in Moscow.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Gertrude Ederle (1905-2003), swimmer; Johnny Carson (1925-2005), TV personality/comedian; Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodriguez (1935- ), golfer; Pele (1940- ), soccer player; Michael Crichton (1942-2008), writer; Ang Lee (1954- ), filmmaker; Dwight Yoakam (1956- ), singer-songwriter; Nancy Grace (1959- ), journalist/TV host; Sam Raimi (1959- ), director; "Weird Al" Yankovic (1959- ), singer/satirist; Ryan Reynolds (1976- ), actor; Meghan McCain (1984- ), columnist/TV personality; Emilia Clarke (1986- ), actress.

TODAY'S FACT: Sales of the new board game Twister skyrocketed in May of 1966 after Johnny Carson played the game with Eva Gabor on "The Tonight Show."

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1993, right fielder Joe Carter of the Toronto Blue Jays hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 8-6 and earn the Blue Jays' second consecutive World Series title.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "A movie is really provocation. It's not a message, it's not a statement." -- Ang Lee

TODAY'S NUMBER: 51 -- members of the United Nations when it first convened in 1946.

TODAY'S MOON: First quarter moon (Oct. 23).