ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 361st day of 2024 and the sixth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1776, after staging a surprise attack, George Washington and the Continental Army scored a major upset victory over the British in the Battle of Trenton.

In 1908, boxer Jack Johnson defeated Tommy Burns, becoming the first African American heavyweight champion.

In 1966, the pan-African holiday Kwanzaa, founded by professor Maulana Karenga, was celebrated for the first time.

In 2004, a powerful earthquake in the Indian Ocean triggered a massive tsunami that claimed the lives of at least 226,000 in Southeast Asia and east Africa.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Thomas Gray (1716-1771), poet; Charles Babbage (1791-1871), mathematician/inventor; Mao Zedong (1893-1976), Chinese leader; Richard Widmark (1914-2008), actor; Steve Allen (1921-2000), entertainer; Alan King (1927-2004), actor/comedian; John Walsh (1945- ), TV personality/activist; David Sedaris (1956- ), writer; Lars Ulrich (1963- ), musician; Jared Leto (1971- ), actor/musician; Chris Daughtry (1979- ), singer-songwriter; Kit Harington (1986- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: Despite its impact in the Colonies, the Battle of Trenton was fought by relatively small numbers on both sides -- an estimated 2,400 Continental Army soldiers defeated the 1,500-strong British/Hessian garrison.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1919, Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold Babe Ruth's contract to the New York Yankees.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Notewise, whenever I read a passage that moves me, I transcribe it in my diary, hoping my fingers might learn what excellence feels like." -- David Sedaris

TODAY'S NUMBER: 27,960 -- length (in miles) of China's high-speed rail system, the longest network of its kind in the world. The 175-mile section connecting Beijing to Shijiazhuang opened on this day in 2012.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (Dec. 22) and new moon (Dec. 30).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 360th day of 2024 and the fifth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1868, President Andrew Johnson unconditionally pardoned all those who had participated in the Southern rebellion that came to be known as the Civil War.

In 1974, 25-year-old Marshall Fields crashed his car through a White House gate and threatened to detonate a bomb; he surrendered after a four-hour standoff.

In 1990, Tim Berners-Lee launched the first World Wide Web server.

In 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as Soviet president. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved the next day.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Clara Barton (1821-1912), American Red Cross founder; Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), actor; Cab Calloway (1907-1994), bandleader/singer; Louise Bourgeois (1911-2010), sculptor/artist; Anwar Sadat (1918-1981), Egyptian president; Rod Serling (1924-1975), screenwriter/producer; Jimmy Buffett (1946-2023), singer-songwriter; Sissy Spacek (1949- ), actress; Karl Rove (1950- ), political strategist; Annie Lennox (1954- ), singer-songwriter; Rickey Henderson (1958- ), baseball player; Justin Trudeau (1971- ), prime minister of Canada.

TODAY'S FACT: Americans spent $276.8 billion shopping online during the holiday season in 2023.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1989, former New York Yankees player and manager Billy Martin died in an automobile accident.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Economy, prudence, and a simple life are the sure masters of need, and will often accomplish that which, their opposites, with a fortune at hand, will fail to do." -- Clara Barton

TODAY'S NUMBER: 50 million -- units sold of Bing Crosby's "White Christmas," making it the bestselling physical single of all time, according to Guinness World Records. The song debuted on Crosby's weekly radio program, "Kraft Music Hall," on this day in 1941.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (Dec. 22) and new moon (Dec. 30).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 359th day of 2024 and the fourth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1814, the United States and Great Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent, ending the War of 1812.

In 1943, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed supreme Allied commander.

In 1973, Congress passed legislation allowing residents of Washington, D.C., to elect a mayor and council with limited authority.

In 1992, President George H.W. Bush pardoned former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger and five others associated with the Iran-Contra scandal.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Kit Carson (1809-1868), Army scout/frontiersman; Matthew Arnold (1822-1888), poet/critic; Howard Hughes (1905-1976), businessman/aviator/film producer; Ava Gardner (1922-1990), actress; Mary Higgins Clark (1927-2020), author; Robert Joffrey (1930-1988), dancer/choreographer; Lee Daniels (1959- ), filmmaker; Kate Spade (1962-2018), fashion designer; Stephenie Meyer (1973- ), author; Ryan Seacrest (1974- ), TV/radio personality.

TODAY'S FACT: Kit Carson left his apprenticeship as a saddle and harness maker to join a wagon train headed west when he was 15 years old.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1950, the Cleveland Browns won the NFL championship by defeating the Los Angeles Rams, 30-28, when Lou "The Toe" Groza kicked a field goal with 20 seconds left.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "If you want to be happy for a year, win the lottery. If you want to be happy for life, love what you do." -- Mary Higgins Clark, "On the Street Where You Live"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 34 -- years after his death in 1976 that the estimated $2 billion estate of Howard Hughes, who died without a valid will, was finally settled.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (Dec. 22) and new moon (Dec. 30).