- 1788: The first European settlers in Australia, led by Captain
                        Arthur Phillip, landed in present-day Sydney.
                      - 1802: Congress passed an act calling for a library to be established
                        within the U.S. Capitol.
                      - 1837: Michigan became the 26th state when President Jackson signed a
                        statehood bill.
                      - 1838: The nation's first prohibition law against alcohol passed in
                        Tennessee.
                      - 1841: Great Britain formally occupied Hong Kong, which was
                        proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain.
                      - 1861: Louisiana became the sixth state to secede from the Union.
                      - 1863: The Secretary of War authorized the governor of Massachusetts
                        to recruit African American troops.
                      - 1870: The state of Virginia rejoined the Union.
                      - 1871: The first American income tax was repealed.
                      - 1875: The electric dental drill was patented by George F. Green.
                      - 1905: The world's largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan, was
                        found.
                      - 1913: Jim Thorpe relinquished his 1912 Olympic medals when he
                        confessed in a letter to James E. Sullivan, chairman of the Amateur
                        Athletic Union, that he had played pro baseball in 1909 and 1910,
                        thereby disqualifying him from amateur competition.
                      - 1939: Principal photography began on "Gone With the Wind."
                      - 1950: India officially proclaimed itself a republic when Rajendra
                        Prasad took the oath of office as president.
                      - 1956: Buddy Holly's first formal recording session took place at
                        the Nashville studios of Decca.
                      - 1961: "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" by Elvis Presley peaked at No. 1
                        on the U.K. pop singles chart.
                      - 1986: Between the Super Bowl XX pregame show and the game, ABC
                        inserted 60 seconds of blank air time as an "intermission" for the
                        television audience.
                      - 1988: The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Phantom of the Opera" opened
                        on Broadway.
                      - 1992: The Americans with Disabilities Act went into effect.

                      *Happy Birthday*
                      ----------------
                      - Anita Baker, 40, singer
                      - Ellen DeGeneres, 40, actress/comedienne
                      - Jules Feiffer, 69, editorial cartoonist, Village Voice
                      - Scott Glenn, 57, actor, "Silence of the Lambs"
                      - Wayne Gretzky, 38, NHL center, St. Louis Blues
                      - Eartha Kitt, 70, actress/songstress, Batman's Catwoman
                      - Paul Newman, 74, actor/racing enthusiast
                      - Gene Siskel, 53, film critic
                      - David Strathairn, 49, actor, "L.A. Confidential"
                      - Bob Uecker, 64, actor/baseball announcer
                      - Roger Vadim, 70, film director
                      - Eddie Van Halen, 44, guitarist
                      - Lucinda Williams, 46, singer