Today is the 214th day of 2016 and the 43rd day of summer.
TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1834, Britain abolished slavery in all of its colonies.
In 1876, Colorado was admitted as the 38th U.S. state.
In 1957, the United States and Canada announced the formation of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
In 1966, ex-Marine Charles Whitman opened fire from a tower at the University of Texas at Austin, killing 14 people and wounding 32.
In 2007, a highway bridge in Minneapolis collapsed over the Mississippi River, killing 13 and injuring 145.
TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: William Clark (1770-1838), explorer; Francis Scott Key (1779-1843), poet/lawyer; Herman Melville (1819-1891), author; Dom DeLuise (1933-2009), actor/comedian; Yves Saint Laurent (1936-2008), fashion designer; Jerry Garcia (1942-1995), singer-songwriter; Coolio (1963- ), rapper; Sam Mendes (1965- ), film director; Zac Brown (1978- ), musician; Jason Momoa (1979- ), actor; Charlie and Max Carver (1988- ), actors; Madison Bumgarner (1989- ), baseball player.
TODAY'S FACT: "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles was the first music video aired on MTV when the network launched on this day in 1981.
TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1936, the Olympic Games opened in Berlin before a crowd of 100,000 spectators.
TODAY'S QUOTE: "True Work is the necessity of poor humanity's earthly condition. The dignity is in leisure. Besides, 99 hundredths of all the work done in the world is either foolish and unnecessary, or harmful and wicked." -- Herman Melville
TODAY'S NUMBER: 14,130 -- final elevation (in feet) of Colorado's Mount Evans Scenic Byway, the highest paved road in North America.
TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (July 26) and new moon (Aug. 2).