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Andrews McMeel Almanac for December 26, 2015

Andrews McMeel Almanac by by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
Andrews McMeel Almanac | December 26th, 2015

Today is the 360th day of 2015 and the fifth day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1776, after staging a surprise attack, George Washington and the Continental Army scored a major upset victory over the British in the Battle of Trenton.

In 1908, boxer Jack Johnson defeated Tommy Burns, becoming the first African-American heavyweight champion.

In 1966, the pan-African holiday Kwanzaa, founded by UCLA professor Maulana Karenga, was celebrated for the first time.

In 2004, a powerful earthquake in the Indian Ocean triggered a massive tsunami that claimed the lives of at least 226,000 in Southeast Asia and east Africa.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Thomas Gray (1716-1771), poet; Charles Babbage (1791-1871), mathematician/inventor; Mao Zedong (1893-1976), Chinese leader; Richard Widmark (1914-2008), actor; Steve Allen (1921-2000), entertainer; Alan King (1927-2004), actor/comedian; John Walsh (1945- ), TV personality/activist; Ozzie Smith (1954- ), baseball player; David Sedaris (1956- ), writer; Lars Ulrich (1963- ), musician; Jared Leto (1971- ), actor/musician; Chris Daughtry (1979- ), singer-songwriter.

TODAY'S FACT: Despite its impact in the Colonies, the Battle of Trenton was fought by relatively small numbers on both sides -- an estimated 2,400 Continental Army soldiers defeated the 1,500-strong British/Hessian garrison.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1919, Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold Babe Ruth's contract to the New York Yankees.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "High school taught me a valuable lesson about glasses: Don't wear them. Contacts have always seemed like too much work, so instead I just squint, figuring that if something is more than 10 feet away, I'll just deal with it when I get there." -- David Sedaris, "When You Are Engulfed in Flames"

TODAY'S NUMBER: $700 million -- estimated amount Americans donated, privately or via corporations, to the 2004 tsunami relief efforts.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Dec. 25) and last quarter moon (Jan. 1).

oddities

Andrews McMeel Almanac for December 25, 2015

Andrews McMeel Almanac by by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
Andrews McMeel Almanac | December 25th, 2015

Today is the 359th day of 2015 and the fourth 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 1974, 25-year-old Marshall Fields crashed his car through a White House gate and threatened to detonate a bomb; he surrendered after a four-hour standoff.

In 1990, Tim Berners-Lee launched the first World Wide Web server.

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; Rod Serling (1924-1975), screenwriter/producer; Jimmy Buffett (1946- ), singer-songwriter; Sissy Spacek (1949- ), actress; Karl Rove (1950- ), political strategist; Annie Lennox (1954- ), singer; Rickey Henderson (1958- ), baseball player.

TODAY'S FACT: Americans spent $53.3 billion shopping online during the holiday season in 2014.

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

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I have an almost complete disregard of precedent, and a faith in the possibility of something better. It irritates me to be told how things have always been done. I defy the tyranny of precedent. I go for anything new that might improve the past." -- Clara Barton, "The Story of My Childhood"

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

TODAY'S MOON: Full moon (Dec. 25).

oddities

Andrews McMeel Almanac for December 24, 2015

Andrews McMeel Almanac by by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
by the Editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication
Andrews McMeel Almanac | December 24th, 2015

Today is the 358th day of 2015 and the third day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1943, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed supreme allied commander.

In 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 became the first humans to orbit the moon.

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- ), author; Robert Joffrey (1930-1988), dancer/choreographer; Kate Spade (1962- ), fashion designer; Ricky Martin (1971- ), singer/actor; Stephenie Meyer (1973- ), author; Ryan Seacrest (1974- ), TV/radio personality.

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 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 QUOTE: "The free-thinking of one age is the common sense of the next." -- Matthew Arnold

TODAY'S NUMBER: 34 -- years after his death in 1976 that the estimated $2 billion estate of Howard Hughes, who died without a valid will, was finally settled.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Dec. 18) and full moon (Dec. 25).

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