Today is the 360th day of 2012 and the fifth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1868, President Andrew Johnson unconditionally pardoned all those who had participated in the Southern rebellion that led to the Civil War.

In 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as Soviet president. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved the next day.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727), scientist; Clara Barton (1821-1912), American Red Cross founder; Humphrey Bogart (1899-1957), actor; Cab Calloway (1907-1994), bandleader/singer; Anwar Sadat (1918-1981), Egyptian president; Jimmy Buffett (1946- ), singer; Sissy Spacek (1949- ), actress; Karl Rove (1950- ), political strategist; Annie Lennox (1954- ), singer.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1989, former New York Yankees player and manager Billy Martin died in an automobile accident.

TODAY'S FACT: Americans spent $35.3 billion shopping online during the holiday season in 2011.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Most people seek after what they do not possess and thus are enslaved by the very things they want to acquire. They become prisoners of their desires even though they appear to be free." -- Anwar Sadat

TODAY'S NUMBER: $0 -- amount Tim Berners-Lee charges to let people use his Web innovations, including HTML, URLs and HTTP.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Dec. 20) and full moon (Dec. 28).

Today is the 359th day of 2012 and the fourth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1943, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed Supreme Allied Commander.

In 1973, Congress passed legislation allowing residents of Washington, D.C., to elect a mayor and council with limited authority.

In 1992, President George Bush pardoned former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger and five others associated with the Iran-Contra scandal.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Kit Carson (1809-1868), Army scout/frontiersman; Matthew Arnold (1822-1888), poet/critic; Howard Hughes (1905-1976), businessman/aviator/film producer; Ava Gardner (1922-1990), actress; Mary Higgins Clark (1927- ), writer; Robert Joffrey (1930-1988), dancer/choreographer; Kate Spade (1962- ), fashion designer; Ricky Martin (1971- ), singer; Stephenie Meyer (1973- ), author; Ryan Seacrest (1974- ), TV/radio personality.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1950, the Cleveland Browns won the NFL championship by defeating the Los Angeles Rams, 30-28, when Lou "The Toe" Groza kicked a field goal with 20 seconds left.

TODAY'S FACT: Kit Carson left his apprenticeship as a saddle and harness maker to join a wagon train headed west when he was 15 years old.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity." -- Dwight D. Eisenhower

TODAY'S NUMBER: 5 -- Academy Awards won by "The Aviator," a 2004 film based on the life of Howard Hughes. The film received 11 nominations.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Dec. 20) and full moon (Dec. 28).

Today is the 358th day of 2012 and the third day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1783, George Washington resigned as commander in chief of the Continental Army.

In 1823, the poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (better known as "'Twas the Night Before Christmas") was first published anonymously in the Troy (N.Y.) Sentinel. The poem was later attributed to Clement C. Moore.

In 1986, the lightweight composite aircraft Voyager completed the first nonstop flight around the globe without refueling.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Joseph Smith (1805-1844), religious leader; Sarah Breedlove Walker (1867-1919), entrepreneur; Akihito (1933- ), emperor of Japan; Wesley Clark (1944- ), Army general; Harry Shearer (1943- ), actor/comedian; Susan Lucci (1946- ), actress; William Kristol (1952- ), political commentator; Eddie Vedder (1964- ), musician; Hanley Ramirez (1983- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1972, the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Oakland Raiders, 13-7, on a bizarre last-second touchdown that became known as the "Immaculate Reception."

TODAY'S FACT: In 2006, an original handwritten copy of "A Visit From St. Nicholas" sold in a private sale for $280,000.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Whether it's overt or covert, you pay enormous consequences for using force." -- Gen. Wesley Clark

TODAY'S NUMBER: 18 -- Daytime Emmy nominations Susan Lucci received before finally winning the award in 1999.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Dec. 20) and full moon (Dec. 28).