ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC
Today is the 158th day of 2017 and the 80th day of spring.
TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1776, Richard Henry Lee proposed a resolution calling for a declaration of independence to the Continental Congress.
In 1929, Vatican City became a sovereign state.
In 1942, the Battle of Midway ended in an Allied victory.
In 1971, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling set the precedent that vulgar writing is protected under the First Amendment.
In 2006, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, was killed by a U.S. airstrike.
TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Paul Gauguin (1848-1903), painter; James Braddock (1905-1974), boxer; Jessica Tandy (1909-1994), actress; Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000), poet; Dean Martin (1917-1995), singer/actor; Tom Jones (1940- ), singer; Liam Neeson (1952- ), actor; Orhan Pamuk (1952- ), author; Prince (1958-2016), singer-songwriter/musician; Karl Urban (1972- ), actor; Bear Grylls (1974- ), TV personality; Allen Iverson (1975- ), basketball player; Bill Hader (1978- ), actor/comedian; Anna Kournikova (1981- ), tennis player; Michael Cera (1988- ), actor.
TODAY'S FACT: Pope Julius II hired the Swiss Guard to serve as his personal protection in 1506. The paid mercenary force has been protecting popes in Vatican City ever since.
TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1978, the Washington Bullets (now Wizards) won the franchise's first and only NBA championship.
TODAY'S QUOTE: "Art hurts. Art urges voyages -— / and it is easier to stay at home." -- Gwendolyn Brooks, "Chicago Picasso"
TODAY'S NUMBER: 800 -- estimated population of Vatican City in 2016.
TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (June 1) and full moon (June 9).