UNIVERSAL UCLICK ALMANAC
Today is the 31st day of 2013 and the 42nd day of winter.
TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1606, Guy Fawkes was executed for his role in the Gunpowder Plot in Britain.
In 1917, Germany announced the renewal of submarine warfare in the Atlantic.
In 1968, the North Vietnamese Tet Offensive began in South Vietnam.
In 2006, Samuel Alito Jr. became the 110th U.S. Supreme Court justice.
TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Franz Schubert (1797-1828), composer; John O'Hara (1905-1970), writer; Jackie Robinson (1919-1972), baseball player; Carol Channing (1921- ), actress; Norman Mailer (1923-2007), writer; Ernie Banks (1931- ), baseball player; Nolan Ryan (1947- ), baseball player; Portia de Rossi (1973- ), actress; Justin Timberlake (1981- ), singer.
TODAY'S FACT: The first Social Security check, issued this day in 1940, was for $22.54 and went to Ida May Fuller, who lived on a Vermont farm. Having worked less than three years under Social Security, she paid only $24.75 into the system, but she had collected $22,888.92 by the time of her death in 1975.
TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1999, Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway won his second consecutive Super Bowl and the final game of his NFL playing career, leading the Denver Broncos to a 34-19 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII. Elway was also selected as the game's MVP.
TODAY'S QUOTE: "I don't think life is absurd. I think we are all here for a huge purpose. I think we shrink from the immensity of the purpose we are here for." -- Norman Mailer
TODAY'S NUMBER: $99.6 billion -- amount Americans spent on gambling in 2010.
TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Jan. 26) and last quarter moon (Feb. 3).