Today is the 273rd day of 2012 and the eighth day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1789, the U.S. Department of War established a regular army, maintaining several hundred troops.

In 1916, The New York Times reported that John D. Rockefeller, the head of Standard Oil, was almost certainly a billionaire, the world's first.

In 2005, John G. Roberts Jr. was sworn in as chief justice of the United States.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616), writer; Enrico Fermi (1901-1954), nuclear physicist; Greer Garson (1904-1996), actress; Gene Autry (1907-1998), singer/actor; Jerry Lee Lewis (1935- ), singer/musician; Madeline Kahn (1942-1999), actress; Ian McShane (1942- ), actor; Lech Walesa (1943- ), labor leader/politician; Zachary Levi (1980- ), actor; Kevin Durant (1988- ), basketball player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1954, during the World Series, the New York Giants' Willie Mays caught Cleveland Indian Vic Wertz's near-home run in what is regarded as one of the greatest catches in baseball history.

TODAY'S FACT: Miguel de Cervantes' "Don Quixote" is widely considered to be the first modern novel. It was initially published in two volumes in 1605 and 1615.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "He who puts out his hand to stop the wheel of history will have his fingers crushed." -- Lech Walesa

TODAY'S NUMBER: $69 billion -- net worth of Carlos Slim Helu of Mexico, the world's richest man, in March 2012.

TODAY'S MOON: Full moon (Sept. 29).

Today is the 272nd day of 2012 and the seventh day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1066, William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, invaded England.

In 1972, Japan and China agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations.

In 2000, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of the pregnancy-terminating drug RU-486 after a 12-year controversy.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Ed Sullivan (1901-1974), TV personality; Al Capp (1909-1979), cartoonist; Marcello Mastroianni (1924-1996), actor; Brigitte Bardot (1934- ), actress; Ben E. King (1938- ), singer; Janeane Garofalo (1964- ), comedian/actress; Naomi Watts (1968- ), actress.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1941, Ted Williams hit 6-for-8 in a doubleheader to finish the season with a batting average over .400 (.406), a feat no player since has accomplished.

TODAY'S FACT: William the Conqueror rose to power despite early controversy that he was an illegitimate child. He was also known as "William the Bastard" before his conquest of England.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Perhaps one has to be very old before one learns to be amused rather than shocked." -- Pearl S. Buck

TODAY'S NUMBER: 23 -- age at which future "Li'l Abner" cartoonist Al Capp became the youngest syndicated cartoonist in the United States.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter (Sept. 22) and full moon (Sept. 29).

Today is the 271st day of 2012 and the sixth day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1954, "Tonight!" premiered on TV with its original host, Steve Allen.

In 1964, the Warren Commission report was released, stating that Lee Harvey Oswald had acted alone in assassinating President John F. Kennedy.

In 1990, David Souter was confirmed as associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Jayne Meadows (1920- ), actress; Arthur Penn (1922-2010), filmmaker; Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (1924-1966), jazz pianist; Wilford Brimley (1934- ), actor; Meat Loaf (1947- ), singer; Shaun Cassidy (1958- ), singer/actor; Gwyneth Paltrow (1972- ), actress; Avril Lavigne (1984- ), singer.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1998, Mark McGwire hit his 69th and 70th home runs in the last game of his record-setting season.

TODAY'S FACT: Most of Antarctica is classified as a desert because the majority of the continent receives less than 10 inches of precipitation annually.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Nothing is better than the unintended humor of reality." -- Steve Allen

TODAY'S NUMBER: 140,000 -- Polish troops taken prisoner by the Germans after the surrender of Warsaw on this date in 1939.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter (Sept. 22) and full moon (Sept. 29).