ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 115th day of 2017 and the 37th day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1859, British, French and German engineers began construction on the Suez Canal in Egypt.

In 1898, the United States declared war on Spain.

In 1945, U.S. and Soviet troops met at the Elbe River in Germany, signaling the defeat of German defenses.

In 1953, Francis Crick and James D. Watson published an article describing the double helix structure of DNA.

In 2011, a four-day tornado outbreak in the southern United States began, producing 358 confirmed tornadoes and killing more than 300 people.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), soldier/politician; Edward R. Murrow (1908-1965), journalist; Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996), singer; Meadowlark Lemon (1932-2015), basketball player; Jerry Leiber (1933-2011), songwriter/producer; Al Pacino (1940- ), actor; Hank Azaria (1964- ), actor; John Henson (1965-2014), puppeteer; Joe Buck (1969- ), sportscaster; Renee Zellweger (1969- ), actress; Jason Lee (1970- ), actor; Tim Duncan (1976- ), basketball player.

TODAY'S FACT: In 1901, New York became the first state to begin requiring automobile license plates.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1950, Chuck Cooper became the first African-American drafted into the NBA when he was selected by the Boston Celtics with the first pick of the second round.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The speed of communications is wondrous to behold. It is also true that speed can multiply the distribution of information that we know to be untrue." -- Edward R. Murrow

TODAY'S NUMBER: 26,723 -- nautical miles traveled by the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered submarine USS Triton during its 60-day, 21-hour submerged circumnavigation of the world, completed on this day in 1960.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (April 19) and new moon (April 26).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 114th day of 2017 and the 36th day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1898, Spain declared war on the United States.

In 1916, the Irish Republican Brotherhood began the Easter Uprising in Dublin, Ireland, seizing several key locations and proclaiming Irish independence.

In 1980, the United States launched Operation Eagle Claw, an unsuccessful attempt to free American hostages in Iran that resulted in the deaths of eight U.S. servicemen.

In 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched from the space shuttle Discovery.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Willem de Kooning (1904-1997), artist; Robert Penn Warren (1905-1989), novelist/poet; Richard Donner (1930- ), filmmaker; Shirley MacLaine (1934- ), actress; Sue Grafton (1940- ), author; Barbra Streisand (1942- ), singer/actress; Cedric the Entertainer (1964- ), comedian/actor; Djimon Hounsou (1964- ), actor; Aidan Gillen (1968- ), actor; Damon Lindelof (1973- ), TV writer/executive; Kelly Clarkson (1982- ), singer-songwriter.

TODAY'S FACT: The Hubble Space Telescope's successor, the James Webb Space Telescope, is scheduled for launch in 2018. NASA estimates that Hubble will make its natural atmospheric re-entry between 2030 and 2040.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1901, the first American League game was played. The Chicago White Stockings defeated the Cleveland Blues, 8-2.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I've been to a lot of places and done a lot of things, but writing was always first. It's a kind of pain I can't do without." -- Robert Penn Warren

TODAY'S NUMBER: $300 million -- price reportedly paid by hedge fund manager Kenneth C. Griffin for the Willem de Kooning painting "Interchange" in a private sale in September 2015. It is the highest known price paid for a painting.

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (April 19) and new moon (April 26).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 113th day of 2017 and the 35th day of spring.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1635, the first public school in the United States, Boston Latin School, was founded in Boston, Massachusetts.

In 1908, Congress passed a bill establishing the U.S. Army Reserve.

In 1968, students protesting the Vietnam War at Columbia University in New York City began occupying campus buildings.

In 1969, Sirhan Sirhan received the death penalty for assassinating Sen. Robert F. Kennedy. His sentence was reduced to life imprisonment in 1972.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: James Buchanan (1791-1868), 15th U.S. president; Max Planck (1858-1947), physicist; Shirley Temple Black (1928-2014), actress/diplomat; Roy Orbison (1936-1988), singer-songwriter; Lee Majors (1939- ), actor; Sandra Dee (1942-2005), actress; Tony Atlas (1954- ), bodybuilder; Michael Moore (1954- ), filmmaker; George Lopez (1961- ), comedian/TV personality; John Cena (1977- ), wrestler/actor; John Oliver (1977- ), actor/comedian; Dev Patel (1990- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: An estimated 300 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube.com every minute. The first video on the site, an 18-second clip entitled "Me at the Zoo," was uploaded on this day in 2005.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1954, Milwaukee Braves rookie Hank Aaron hit his first major-league home run.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I may be a living legend, but that sure don't help when I've got to change a flat tire." – Roy Orbison

TODAY'S NUMBER: 77 -- days that "New Coke," introduced on this day in 1985, was on the market before Coca-Cola reintroduced the soft drink's original formula, under the name "Coca-Cola Classic."

TODAY'S MOON: Between last quarter moon (April 19) and new moon (April 26).