Today is the 172nd day of 2015 and the first day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1788, New Hampshire ratified the U.S. Constitution and became the ninth state.

In 1898, U.S. troops captured the island of Guam.

In 1964, three civil rights workers were murdered by members of the Ku Klux Klan in Neshoba County, Mississippi.

In 1989, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that burning the American flag was a form of political protest protected by the First Amendment.

In 2004, SpaceShipOne, piloted by Mike Melvill, became the first privately sponsored craft to carry a human into space.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Al Hirschfeld (1903-2003), cartoonist; Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980), philosopher; Mary McCarthy (1912-1989), writer; Jane Russell (1921-2011), actress; Ray Davies (1944- ), guitarist/songwriter; Tony Scott (1944-2012), film director/producer; Benazir Bhutto (1953-2007), Pakistani politician; Berkeley Breathed (1957- ), cartoonist; Kevin Harlan (1960- ), sportscaster; Juliette Lewis (1973- ), actress; Chris Pratt (1979- ), actor; Prince William (1982- ), Duke of Cambridge.

TODAY'S FACT: James Buchanan was the only U.S. president who never married.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1997, the first Women's National Basketball Association game kicked off the league's debut season.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "In a word, man must create his own essence: It is in throwing himself into the world, suffering there, struggling there, that he gradually defines himself." -- Jean-Paul Sartre, "Characterizations of Existentialism"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 142,000 -- population of New Hampshire in 1790, following ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (June 16) and first quarter moon (June 24).

Today is the 171st day of 2015 and the 93rd day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1863, West Virginia was admitted as the 35th U.S. state.

In 1893, Lizzie Borden was acquitted of the murders of her father and stepmother.

In 1973, Juan Peron returned to Argentina after 18 years of exile.

In 1975, the Steven Spielberg film "Jaws" debuted in theaters.

In 1999, NATO formally ended its bombing campaign against Yugoslavia as Serb forces completed their withdrawal from Kosovo.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Lillian Hellman (1905-1984), playwright; Errol Flynn (1909-1959), actor; Chet Atkins (1924-2001), singer-songwriter; Audie Murphy (1924-1971), war hero/actor; Martin Landau (1928- ), actor; Brian Wilson (1942- ), musician/singer-songwriter; Bob Vila (1946- ), handyman/TV personality; Lionel Richie (1949- ), singer-songwriter; John Goodman (1952- ), actor; Nicole Kidman (1967- ), actress; Robert Rodriguez (1968- ), filmmaker; Christopher Mintz-Plasse (1989- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: Western Argentina is home to Aconcagua Mountain, the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere, with an altitude of 22,834 feet.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1967, boxer Muhammad Ali was convicted of violating Selective Service laws by refusing to be inducted. The Supreme Court overturned Ali's conviction in 1971.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Everything I've ever done was out of fear of being mediocre." -- Chet Atkins

TODAY'S NUMBER: 1 -- Grammy Award win for the Beach Boys. The group, which formed in 1961 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, won the Best Historical Album award in 2013 for its "The Smile Sessions" boxed set.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (June 16) and first quarter moon (June 24).

Today is the 170th day of 2015 and the 92nd day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1865, with the arrival of federal troops, slaves in Texas were informed of their freedom. The day is celebrated as the holiday Juneteenth.

In 1934, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was created.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was approved after a lengthy filibuster in the Senate.

In 1978, Jim Davis' "Garfield" comic strip made its debut.

In 1991, the last Soviet troops left Hungary after 45 years of occupation.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), philosopher/scientist; Moe Howard (1897-1975), actor; Lou Gehrig (1903-1941), baseball player; Lester Flatt (1914-1979), bluegrass guitarist; Salman Rushdie (1947- ), author; Kathleen Turner (1954- ), actress; Paula Abdul (1962- ), singer/TV personality; Laura Ingraham (1964- ), radio host/author; Dirk Nowitzki (1978- ), basketball player; Zoe Saldana (1978- ), actress; Macklemore (1983- ), rapper; Paul Dano (1984- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: Juneteenth has been celebrated as an official state holiday in Texas since 1980.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1846, the New York Nine defeated the New York Knickerbockers by a score of 23-1 at Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey. The game is widely regarded as the first officially recorded baseball game under codified rules in the United States.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "We are generally the better persuaded by the reasons we discover ourselves than by those given to us by others." -- Blaise Pascal, "Pensees"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 83 -- days for which senators in opposition to the 1964 Civil Rights Act filibustered the bill.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (June 16) and first quarter moon (June 24).