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World Almanac

Today is the 228th day of 2021 and the 58th day of summer.

TODAY’S HISTORY: In 1861, President Abraham Lincoln prohibited Union states from trading with states that had seceded.

In 1896, gold was discovered near the Klondike River in Canada’s Yukon Territory, sparking a gold rush.

In 1977, Elvis Presley died at age 42.

In 2007, U.S. citizen Jose Padilla was convicted of conspiracy in a “dirty bomb” terrorism case and sentenced to more than 17 years in prison, increased on appeal to 21.

TODAY’S BIR THDAYS: T.E. Lawrence (of Arabia) (1888- 1935), soldier/archaeolo- gist/writer; Hal Foster (1892- 1982), author/illustrator; George Meany (1894-1980), union leader; Charles Bukowski (1920-1994), poet/writer; Ann Blyth (1928- ), actress; Eydie Gorme (1928-2013), singer/actress; James Cameron (1954- ), filmmaker; Angela Bassett (1958- ), actress; Madonna (1958- ), singer/actress; Steve Carell (1962- ), actor/comedian; Taika Waititi (1975- ), actor/filmmaker; Yu Darvish (1986- ), baseball player.

TODAY’S FACT: An 18- year-old Elvis Presley paid a private recording studio $4 in 1953 to record “My Happiness” and “That’s When Your Heartache Begins” on a two-sided record as a belated birthday gift to his mother.

TODAY’S SPORTS: In 1954, the first issue of Sports Illustrated was published.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “At the end of the day, the reality is we’re all losers, and we’re all uncoordinated. We’re the worst of all of the animals on Earth, and there’s something quite endearing about that.” – – Taika Waititi

TODAY’S NUMBER: 102,800 — height (in feet) from which Joseph Kittinger jumped during a record-setting U.S. Air Force experi- ment on this day in 1960. Though his height and speed records were broken during the Red Bull Stratos project in 2012, Kittinger’s 4 min- utes, 36 seconds of free fall remain unsurpassed.

TODAY’S MOON: Between first quarter moon (Aug. 15) and full moon (Aug. 22).

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