ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 31st day of 2023 and the 42nd day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1606, Guy Fawkes was executed for his role in the Gunpowder Plot in Britain.

In 1958, Explorer 1 was launched, marking the first successful launch of an American satellite into orbit.

In 1968, the North Vietnamese Tet Offensive began in South Vietnam.

In 2010, James Cameron's "Avatar" became the first film to reach a worldwide gross of $2 billion.

In 2020, The United Kingdom's membership in the European Union ended.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Franz Schubert (1797-1828), composer; John O'Hara (1905-1970), author; Jackie Robinson (1919-1972), baseball player; Carol Channing (1921-2019), actress; Norman Mailer (1923-2007), author/journalist; Ernie Banks (1931-2015), baseball player; Jessica Walter (1941-2021), actress; Jonathan Banks (1947- ), actor; Nolan Ryan (1947- ), baseball player; Minnie Driver (1970- ), actress; Portia de Rossi (1973- ), actress; Kerry Washington (1977- ), actress; Justin Timberlake (1981- ), singer-songwriter; Marcus Mumford (1987- ), singer-songwriter.

TODAY'S FACT: The Toyota Corolla is the bestselling car of all time, with more than 50 million units sold since its debut in 1966.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1999, Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway won his second consecutive Super Bowl and the final game of his NFL playing career, leading the Denver Broncos to a 34-19 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII. Elway was also selected as the game's MVP.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "George Gershwin died on July 11, 1937, but I don't have to believe it if I don't want to." -- John O'Hara

TODAY'S NUMBER: $22.54 -- amount of the first Social Security check, issued on this day in 1940 to Ida May Fuller, who lived on a Vermont farm. Having worked less than three years under Social Security, she paid only $24.75 into the system, but she had collected $22,888.92 by the time of her death in 1975.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Jan. 28) and full moon (Feb. 5).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 30th day of 2023 and the 41st day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1649, England's King Charles I was executed for treason.

In 1835, a gunman attempted to shoot President Andrew Jackson near the U.S. Capitol and was subdued by a crowd, marking the first presidential assassination attempt.

In 1933, Adolf Hitler was sworn in as chancellor of Germany.

In 1948, Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by a Hindu extremist.

In 2005, Iraq held its first free elections in a half-century.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945), 32nd U.S. president; Barbara W. Tuchman (1912-1989), historian; Dick Martin (1922-2008), actor/comedian; Gene Hackman (1930- ), actor; Vanessa Redgrave (1937- ), actress; Dick Cheney (1941- ), U.S. vice president; Phil Collins (1951- ), singer-songwriter; Charles Dutton (1951- ), actor; Christian Bale (1974- ), actor; Wilmer Valderrama (1980- ), actor; Kid Cudi (1984- ), actor/rapper.

TODAY'S FACT: Charles I was the first king of England to be tried for crimes against his kingdom. He refused to enter a plea, insisting that the court had no authority over a monarch.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 2002, Karl Malone became the second NBA player (after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) to score 34,000 career points.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt

TODAY'S NUMBER: 5 -- songs played by the Beatles in their last public performance as a group, a 42-minute impromptu concert from the roof of Apple Records in London, on this day in 1969. The band performed multiple takes of several of the songs before police shut the concert down.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Jan. 28) and full moon (Feb. 5).

ANDREWS MCMEEL ALMANAC

Today is the 29th day of 2023 and the 40th day of winter.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1861, Kansas was admitted as the 34th U.S. state.

In 1891, Queen Liliuokalani inherited the throne from her brother, Kalakaua, becoming the last monarch of the Hawaiian Islands.

In 2002, President George W. Bush described Iran, Iraq and North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" in his State of the Union address.

In 2009, then-Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was convicted on charges of corruption and removed from office in an impeachment trial before the Illinois Senate.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Thomas Paine (1737-1809), patriot/philosopher; William McKinley (1843-1901), 25th U.S. president; Anton Chekhov (1860-1904), author; W.C. Fields (1880-1946), actor/comedian; Edward Abbey (1927-1989), environmentalist/author; Tom Selleck (1945- ), actor; Oprah Winfrey (1954- ), TV personality; Edward Burns (1968- ), actor/director; Heather Graham (1970- ), actress; Paul Ryan (1970- ), politician; Sara Gilbert (1975- ), actress; Adam Lambert (1982- ), singer.

TODAY'S FACT: Edgar Allan Poe's famous poem "The Raven" was first published in the New York Evening Mirror on this day in 1845.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1995, the San Francisco 49ers defeated the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX, becoming the first NFL team to win five Super Bowls.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "True forgiveness is when you can say, 'Thank you for that experience.'" -- Oprah Winfrey

TODAY'S NUMBER: 6 -- record number of Super Bowl wins for a franchise, held by the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots.

TODAY'S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Jan. 28) and full moon (Feb. 5).