Today is the 255th day of 2012 and the 84th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1841, President John Tyler's entire Cabinet (excluding Secretary of State Daniel Webster) resigned to protest his veto of a national banking bill.

In 1973, Gen. Augusto Pinochet seized control of Chile in a military coup.

In 2001, hijacked planes crashed into New York City's World Trade Center, the Pentagon in Virginia and a Pennsylvania field in terrorist attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: O. Henry (1862-1910), short-story writer; D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930), novelist; Ferdinand Marcos (1917-1989), deposed Filipino president; Brian De Palma (1940- ), film director; Moby (1965- ), musician; Harry Connick Jr. (1967- ), actor/singer; Ludacris (1977- ), rapper/actor; Jacoby Ellsbury (1983- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1985, Pete Rose broke Ty Cobb's record with his 4,192nd career hit.

TODAY'S FACT: John Tyler was the first vice president to assume the presidency because of a sitting president's death. During the term he served, after William Henry Harrison's month-long presidency, Tyler was often referred to slightingly as "His Ascendancy" or "Acting President."

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Life is ours to be spent, not to be saved." -- D.H. Lawrence

TODAY'S NUMBER: 4,256 -- total career hits, which remains the Major League Baseball record, for Pete Rose.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter (Sept. 8) and new moon (Sept. 15).

Today is the 254th day of 2012 and the 83rd day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1846, Elias Howe patented the first sewing machine.

In 1977, France used a guillotine in carrying out a death sentence for the last time.

In 2002, famously neutral Switzerland became a member of the United Nations.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Rin Tin Tin (1918-1932), canine actor; Arnold Palmer (1929- ), professional golfer; Roger Maris (1934-1985), baseball player; Charles Kuralt (1934-1997), TV journalist; Stephen Jay Gould (1941-2002), biologist/writer; Chris Columbus (1958- ), film director; Colin Firth (1960- ), actor; Ryan Phillippe (1974- ), actor; Joey Votto (1983- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1988, Steffi Graf won the first Grand Slam in women's tennis since 1970 with her victory over Gabriela Sabatini in the U.S. Open.

TODAY'S FACT: The United Nations, which included 193 member states as of July 2012, began in 1945 when representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco to draw the charter.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "If there is any consistent enemy of science, it is not religion, but irrationalism." -- Stephen Jay Gould

TODAY'S NUMBER: 97 -- countries that have abolished the use of capital punishment as of 2012.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter (Sept. 8) and new moon (Sept. 15).

Today is the 253rd day of 2012 and the 82nd day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1776, the Continental Congress resolved to use the name "United States" instead of the previous "United Colonies."

In 1850, California became the 31st U.S. state.

In 1956, Elvis Presley appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" for the first time.

In 1997, Sinn Fein, the political ally of the Irish Republican Army, formally renounced violence as it prepared for negotiations on the future of Northern Ireland.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), writer; Harland David "Colonel" Sanders (1890-1980), businessman; Otis Redding (1941-1967), singer/songwriter; Joe Theismann (1949- ), sportscaster/football player; Tom Wopat (1951- ), actor; Hugh Grant (1960- ), actor; Adam Sandler (1966- ), comedian/actor; Michael Buble (1975- ), singer; Michelle Williams (1980- ), actress.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1965, Los Angeles Dodger Sandy Koufax threw a perfect game against the Chicago Cubs.

TODAY'S FACT: California became a state in 1850 without going through a formal period as a U.S. territory. Its population exploded due to the Gold Rush, allowing the area to quickly achieve the 60,000 residents required for statehood.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." -- Leo Tolstoy

TODAY'S NUMBER: 134.5 million -- albums certified sold by Elvis Presley, making him second only to the Beatles (177 million) as the greatest-selling artist of all time.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter (Sept. 8) and new moon (Sept. 15).