Today is the 336th day of 2014 and the 72nd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1823, President James Monroe announced a policy establishing American neutrality in future European conflicts, later known as the Monroe Doctrine.

In 1927, Ford Motor Co. introduced the new Model A.

In 1942, a team led by Enrico Fermi engineered the first controlled nuclear fission chain reaction under the stands of the University of Chicago's Stagg Field.

In 1988, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as prime minister of Pakistan, becoming the first female leader of an Islamic nation.

In 2001, the energy trading company Enron filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Georges Seurat (1859-1891), painter; Maria Callas (1923-1977), opera singer; Gianni Versace (1946-1997), fashion designer; Stone Phillips (1954- ), journalist; Ann Patchett (1963- ), author; Lucy Liu (1968- ), actress; Monica Seles (1973- ), tennis player; Britney Spears (1981- ), singer; Aaron Rodgers (1983- ), football player.

TODAY'S FACT: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which began operations on this day in 1970, employed a workforce of 15,913 in 2013.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1967, Hall of Fame center Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia 76ers set an NBA record for missed free throws in a single game, missing 22 in a 133-109 win over the Seattle SuperSonics.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Never be so focused on what you're looking for that you overlook the thing you actually find." -- Ann Patchett, "State of Wonder"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 112 -- days Barney Clark, the recipient of the first artificial heart, lived after it was implanted on this day in 1982.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Nov. 29) and full moon (Dec. 6).

Today is the 335th day of 2014 and the 71st day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to sit in the back of a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, sparking a new era in the civil rights movement.

In 1969, the United States instituted its first draft lottery since World War II.

In 2008, the National Bureau of Economic Research declared that the United States had been in an official recession since December 2007.

In 2013, China launched Yutu, its first lunar rover.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Marie Tussaud (1761-1850), museum founder; Rex Stout (1886-1975), author; Mary Martin (1913-1990), actress; Lou Rawls (1933-2006), singer-songwriter; Woody Allen (1935- ), filmmaker; Lee Trevino (1939- ), golfer; Richard Pryor (1940-2005), actor/comedian; Bette Midler (1945- ), singer/actress; Nestor Carbonell (1967- ), actor; Sarah Silverman (1970- ), actress/comedian; DeSean Jackson (1986- ), football player.

TODAY'S FACT: At the time of the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955, about 70 percent of bus riders in the city were African-American.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1924, Brooklyn pitcher Dazzy Vance (28 wins, 2.16 ERA, 262 strikeouts) won the National League MVP award over Rogers Hornsby, who had batted .424 for the season.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Someone once asked me if my dream was to live on in the hearts of people, and I said I would prefer to live on in my apartment." -- Woody Allen

TODAY'S NUMBER: 1.86 million -- men inducted into the U.S. armed forces between 1965 and 1973 through the Selective Service System.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Nov. 29) and full moon (Dec. 6).

Today is the 334th day of 2014 and the 70th day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1782, provisional articles of peace were signed in Paris between Britain and the United States, under which Britain recognized U.S. independence.

In 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Finland.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton signed the Brady Bill, a major gun-control measure.

In 1999, Exxon Corp. and Mobil. Corp. completed their merger, creating the largest publicly held oil company in the world.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), clergyman/satirist; Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910), writer; Winston Churchill (1874-1965), British statesman; Dick Clark (1929-2012), TV personality/producer; Bill Walsh (1931-2007), football coach; Abbie Hoffman (1936-1989), political activist; Ridley Scott (1937- ), filmmaker; Mandy Patinkin (1952- ), singer/actor; Bo Jackson (1962- ), football and baseball player; Ben Stiller (1965- ), actor; Marc Forster (1969- ), filmmaker; Amy Ryan (1969- ), actress; Clay Aiken (1978- ), singer.

TODAY'S FACT: Mark Twain published a number of pieces in newspapers and periodicals under a variety of pen names, including Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass, W. Epaminondas Adrastus Blab and John Snooks.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1991, the U.S. women's soccer team defeated Norway 2-1 to win the first Women's World Cup.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "(The) truth is incontrovertible. Panic may resent it, ignorance may deride it, malice may distort it, but there it is." -- Winston Churchill

TODAY'S NUMBER: $2,520,700 -- total winnings of Ken Jennings during his record-shattering 74-game winning streak on the TV quiz show "Jeopardy!" (not including a $2,000 consolation prize for coming in second in his final game, on this day in 2004).

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Nov. 29) and full moon (Dec. 6).