UNIVERSAL UCLICK ALMANAC

Today is the 29th day of 2013 and the 40th day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1861, Kansas was admitted into the Union as the 34th state.

In 1891, Queen Liliuokalani inherited the throne from her brother, Kalakaua, becoming the last monarch of the Hawaiian Islands.

In 1984, Ronald Reagan announced that he would run for a second term as U.S. president.

In 2002, President George W. Bush described Iran, Iraq and North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" in his State of the Union address.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Thomas Paine (1737-1809), patriot/philosopher; William McKinley (1843-1901), U.S. president; Anton Chekhov (1860-1904), writer; W.C. Fields (1880-1946), comedian; Tom Selleck (1945- ), actor; Oprah Winfrey (1954- ), TV personality; Heather Graham (1970- ), actress; Adam Lambert (1982- ), singer.

TODAY'S FACT: Edgar Allan Poe's famous poem "The Raven" was first published in the New York Evening Mirror on this day in 1845. Poe was paid $15.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1995, the San Francisco 49ers defeated the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX, becoming the first NFL team to win five Super Bowls.

TODAY'S QUOTE: " It ain't what they call you, it's what you answer to." -- W.C. Fields

TODAY'S NUMBER: 6 -- record number of Super Bowl wins for a franchise, held by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Jan. 26) and last quarter moon (Feb. 3).

UNIVERSAL UCLICK ALMANAC

Today is the 28th day of 2013 and the 39th day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1547, King Henry VIII of England died.

In 1871, France surrendered to Germany, ending the Franco-Prussian War.

In 1915, Congress passed legislation creating the U.S. Coast Guard.

In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger exploded shortly after liftoff, killing six astronauts and Christa McAuliffe, a teacher who was to become the first civilian in space.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Jose Marti (1853-1895), poet/activist; Colette (1873-1954), writer; Jackson Pollock (1912-1956), artist; Alan Alda (1936- ), actor; Nicolas Sarkozy (1955- ), French president; Sarah McLachlan (1968- ), singer/songwriter; Elijah Wood (1981- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: A ranch owner in Fort Keogh, Mont., discovered the largest reported snowflake on this day in 1887. It measured 15 inches wide and 8 inches thick.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1959, Vince Lombardi was named the Green Bay Packers' head coach and general manager.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "It doesn't make much difference how the paint is put on as long as something has been said. Technique is just a means of arriving at a statement." -- Jackson Pollock

TODAY'S NUMBER: 20,500 -- estimated number of genes in the human genome, revised from estimates of as many as 140,000 in 2001.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Jan. 26) and last quarter moon (Feb. 3).

UNIVERSAL UCLICK ALMANAC

(DEAR SUBSCRIBERS: Effective January 21, 2013, the name of this column has been changed to "Universal Uclick Almanac.")

Today is the 27th day of 2013 and the 38th day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1924, the body of Vladimir Lenin was placed in a tomb in Moscow's Red Square.

In 1944, the German siege of Leningrad ended after 871 days.

In 1967, astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward H. White II and Roger B. Chaffee died in a cabin fire during a launchpad test of the Apollo 1 command module.

In 1973, the Vietnam peace accords were signed in Paris by delegations representing the United States, North Vietnam and South Vietnam.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), composer; Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), writer; Donna Reed (1921-1986), actress; Mordechai Richler (1931-2001), novelist; Mikhail Baryshnikov (1948- ), dancer; John G. Roberts Jr. (1955- ), Chief Justice of the United States; Keith Olbermann (1959- ), TV personality; Bridget Fonda (1964- ), actress; Alan Cumming (1965- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: The U.S. Supreme Court decided 75 cases during the 2011-2012 term. Fifteen were 5-4 decisions.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1991, the New York Giants won Super Bowl XXV, defeating the Buffalo Bills 20-19 when Bills kicker Scott Norwood missed a 47-yard field goal attempt in the final seconds. The loss was the first of four consecutive Super Bowl losses for the Bills.

TODAY'S QUOTE: " The world itself looks cleaner and so much more beautiful. Maybe we can make it that way -- the way God intended it to be -- by giving everyone, eventually, that new perspective from out in space." -- Roger B. Chaffee

TODAY'S NUMBER: 91.5 million -- estimated population of Vietnam in mid-2012.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Jan. 26) and last quarter moon (Feb. 3).