ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 236th day of 2020 and the 65th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1305, Scottish leader William Wallace was executed in London.

In 1939, Germany's Adolf Hitler and the Soviet Union's Joseph Stalin signed a nonaggression pact.

In 1942, the Battle of Stalingrad began as German and Soviet troops fought for control of the city.

In 1966, the Lunar Orbiter 1 spacecraft transmitted the first photo of Earth from orbit around the moon.

In 1999, the first cases of West Nile virus in the Western Hemisphere were reported in New York City.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: William Ernest Henley (1849-1903), poet; Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950), author; Ernie Bushmiller (1905-1982), cartoonist; Gene Kelly (1912-1996), actor/dancer; Vera Miles (1929- ), actress; Barbara Eden (1931- ), actress; Shelley Long (1949- ), actress; Rick Springfield (1949- ), singer/musician; Jay Mohr (1970- ), actor/comedian; River Phoenix (1970-1993), actor; Ray Park (1974- ), actor/stuntman; Kobe Bryant (1978-2020), basketball player; Jeremy Lin (1988- ), basketball player.

TODAY'S FACT: In 1973, an attempted bank robbery led to a hostage situation in Stockholm, Sweden. The behavior of the victims gave rise to the term "Stockholm syndrome" to describe the condition in which hostages develop sympathetic feelings toward their captors.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1969, Taiwan won its first Little League World Series. The island's teams went on to win nine more titles in the next 12 years.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses." -- Kobe Bryant

TODAY'S NUMBER: 22 -- listings with the surname Hitler in the New York City phone book prior to World War II. None were listed there when the war ended.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (Aug. 18) and first quarter moon (Aug. 25).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 235th day of 2020 and the 64th day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1851, the American yacht America won the first America's Cup.

In 1864, the first Geneva Convention, which established protections for those wounded in active warfare, was signed by 12 European nations.

In 1902, the Cadillac Automobile Co. was founded.

In 1996, President Bill Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act welfare reform into law.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Claude Debussy (1862-1918), composer; George Herriman (1880-1944), cartoonist; Dorothy Parker (1893-1967), author; Leni Riefenstahl (1902-2003), film director/actress; John Lee Hooker (1917-2001, singer-songwriter/guitarist; Ray Bradbury (1920-2012), author; Norman Schwarzkopf (1934-2012), general; Valerie Harper (1939-2019), actress; Bill Parcells (1941- ), football coach; David Chase (1945- ), screenwriter/producer; Tori Amos (1963- ), singer-songwriter; Layne Staley (1967-2002), singer-songwriter; Kristen Wiig (1973- ), actress/comedian; James Corden (1978- ), TV personality.

TODAY'S FACT: The Comics Journal named George Herriman's "Krazy Kat" the best American comic strip of the 20th century in 1999.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1989, Texas Rangers pitcher Nolan Ryan struck out Rickey Henderson of the Oakland A's, becoming the first major league pitcher to reach 5,000 strikeouts.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "There are attachments we make in life, even though it's all going to come to an end, that are worth so much, and we're so lucky to have been able to experience them. Life is short. ... But in spite of that, it's really worth it. So don't stop believing." -- David Chase

TODAY'S NUMBER: 30 -- Major League Baseball record number of runs scored by the Texas Rangers in a 30-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on this day in 2007.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (Aug. 18) and first quarter moon (Aug. 25).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 234th day of 2020 and the 63rd day of summer.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1858, senatorial candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held the first of their seven debates.

In 1863, pro-Confederate guerillas led by William Quantrill raided the pro-Union town of Lawrence, Kansas, killing more than 150 men and boys.

In 1911, an employee stole the "Mona Lisa" from the Louvre in Paris. It was recovered two years later.

In 1959, Hawaii was admitted as the 50th U.S. state.

In 1991, a coup by Communist hard-liners in the Soviet Union collapsed on the third day.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: William "Count" Basie (1904-1984), musician; Wilt Chamberlain (1936-1999), basketball player; Kenny Rogers (1938-2020), singer-songwriter; Peter Weir (1944- ), film director; Joe Strummer (1952-2002), musician; Kim Cattrall (1956- ), actress; Carrie-Anne Moss (1967- ), actress; Sergey Brin (1973- ), Google co-founder; Kelis (1979- ), singer; Usain Bolt (1986- ), Olympic sprinter; Hayden Panettiere (1989- ), actress.

TODAY'S FACT: Digital scans of the "Mona Lisa" in 2007 revealed that da Vinci had originally given his subject eyebrows and more prominent eyelashes, which had faded over time or had been lost to restoration efforts.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1947, the first National Little League Tournament (later renamed the Little League World Series) was held in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, featuring only local teams. The Williamsport team defeated the team from Lock Haven by a score of 16-7.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "People say my ego is grand. I think it's in proportion to me." -- Wilt Chamberlain

TODAY'S NUMBER: 6 million -- people who view Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" at the Louvre in Paris annually.

TODAY'S MOON: Between new moon (Aug. 18) and first quarter moon (Aug. 25).