ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 308th day of 2024 and the 43rd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2 with a dog named Laika aboard. Laika was the first creature to be sent into orbit.

In 1964, residents of Washington, D.C., were eligible to vote in the presidential election for the first time since the city was established in 1800.

In 1973, NASA launched Mariner 10, the first space probe to reach the planet Mercury, from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

In 2014, One World Trade Center opened in New York City.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878), poet/journalist; Walker Evans (1903-1975), photographer; Charles Bronson (1921-2003), actor; Michael Dukakis (1933- ), politician; Larry Holmes (1949- ), boxer; Anna Wintour (1949- ), fashion journalist; Roseanne Barr (1952- ), comedian/actress; Kate Capshaw (1953- ), actress; Dennis Miller (1953- ), comedian; Phil Simms (1955- ), football player/sportscaster; Dolph Lundgren (1957- ), actor; Evgeni Plushenko (1982- ), figure skater.

TODAY'S FACT: Though he didn't receive a single electoral vote, third-party presidential candidate Ross Perot won 18.9% of the popular vote nationally in 1992.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 2016, the Chicago Cubs ended the longest championship drought in Major League Baseball history at 108 years, defeating the Cleveland Indians in Game 7 of the World Series.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "If you look at any great fashion photograph out of context, it will tell you just as much about what's going on in the world as a headline in The New York Times." -- Anna Wintour

TODAY'S NUMBER: 162 -- days Sputnik 2 was in orbit. Laika, its canine passenger, died within hours of the launch due to overheating.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (Nov. 1) and first quarter moon (Nov.8).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 307th day of 2024 and the 42nd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1889, after the Omnibus Bill divided the Dakota Territory, North Dakota and South Dakota were admitted as the 39th and 40th U.S. states, respectively.

In 1947, aircraft designer Howard Hughes piloted his "Spruce Goose," the largest flying wooden plane ever built, on its maiden (and only) flight.

In 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making the third Monday of January a federal holiday marking the birth of Martin Luther King Jr.

In 2000, the first permanent crew arrived at the International Space Station.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), queen of France; James K. Polk (1795-1849), 11th U.S. president; Warren G. Harding (1865-1923), 29th U.S. president; Burt Lancaster (1913-1994), actor; Steve Ditko (1927-2018), comic book artist/writer; Pat Buchanan (1938- ), political commentator; Michael Buffer (1944- ), boxing announcer; k.d. lang (1961- ), singer-songwriter; David Schwimmer (1966- ), actor; Nelly (1974- ), rapper.

TODAY'S FACT: Jimmy Carter, elected president on this day in 1976, was the first U.S. president from the Deep South since before the Civil War.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1991, down 49-14 in the third quarter against Weber State Wildcats, the Nevada Wolf Pack football team scored 41 points, winning 55-49 and setting the then-record for the biggest comeback in NCAA history.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I wanted to write songs that would play themselves on stage, songs that sweep you through their current." -- k.d. lang

TODAY'S NUMBER: 14 -- age at which Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria married future French King Louis XVI and became Marie Antoinette, dauphine of France.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (Nov. 1) and first quarter moon (Nov.8).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 306th day of 2024 and the 41st day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel was exhibited to the public for the first time.

In 1800, John Adams became the first president to reside in the newly constructed "President's House" (later named the White House).

In 1870, the Division of Telegrams and Reports for the Benefit of Commerce (later renamed the National Weather Service) made its first meteorological forecast.

In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty went into effect, formally establishing the European Union.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Stephen Crane (1871-1900), writer; James Kilpatrick (1920-2010), journalist; Gary Player (1935- ), golfer; Lyle Lovett (1957- ), singer-songwriter; Tim Cook (1960- ), business executive; Anthony Kiedis (1962- ), singer-songwriter; Toni Collette (1972- ), actress; Jenny McCarthy (1972- ), actress; Logan Marshall-Green (1976- ), actor; Penn Badgley (1986- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: John Adams was the only president elected as a member of the Federalist Party.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1959, NHL goalie Jacques Plante of the Montreal Canadiens suffered a severe laceration across his face while blocking a shot and was taken to the locker room for stitches. He returned to the game wearing the first goalie face mask, a homemade fiberglass mask of his own design.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "To be able to create a character and tell a story is a crazy way to make a living. I feel so lucky to be able to do this." -- Toni Collette

TODAY'S NUMBER: 12,000 -- total square footage of Michelangelo's ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel.

TODAY'S MOON: New moon (Nov. 1).