Today is the 257th day of 2012 and the 86th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1788, Congress chose New York City as the temporary federal capital.

In 1971, a four-day riot at Attica Correctional Facility in New York came to an end as state troopers stormed the prison.

In 1993, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat signed the Oslo Accords.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: John Pershing (1860-1948), U.S. Army general; Sherwood Anderson (1876-1941), writer; Claudette Colbert (1903-1996), actress; Roald Dahl (1916-1990), writer; Judith Martin (1938- ), "Miss Manners" columnist; Jacqueline Bisset (1944- ), actress; Michael Johnson (1967- ), Olympic sprinter; Fiona Apple (1977- ), singer; Thomas Muller (1989- ), soccer player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1970, Gary Muhrcke won the first New York City Marathon with a time of 2:31:38.

TODAY'S FACT: Best known for his children's books and the movies based on them, Roald Dahl was also a screenwriter, penning the scripts for films such as "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" and "You Only Live Twice."

TODAY'S QUOTE: "It's far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help." -- Judith Martin

TODAY'S NUMBER: 3 -- gold medals Michael Johnson won in sprints and relays at the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games.

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

Today is the 256th day of 2012 and the 85th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1609, English explorer Henry Hudson entered the river that would later bear his surname.

In 1974, Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie was removed from power by a military coup after 58 years of rule.

In 1992, space shuttle Endeavour embarked on the 50th NASA shuttle mission.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: H.L. Mencken (1880-1956), journalist/critic; Jesse Owens (1913-1980), Olympic athlete; Ian Holm (1931- ), actor; George Jones (1931- ), singer; Barry White (1944-2003), singer; Joe Pantoliano (1951- ), actor; Ben Folds (1966- ), musician; Yao Ming (1980- ), basketball player; Jennifer Hudson (1981- ), actress/singer; Andrew Luck (1989- ), football player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1979, Boston Red Sox bomber Carl Yastrzemski became the first American League player to reach career totals of 3,000 hits and 400 homers.

TODAY'S FACT: Dr. Mae Jemison, the science mission specialist on the Endeavour in 1992, was the first African-American woman in space.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The older I grow, the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age brings wisdom." -- H.L. Mencken

TODAY'S NUMBER: 45 -- minutes it took track legend Jesse Owens to break three world records, and tie a fourth, at a college track meet in 1935.

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

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).