January 2026

Image: Franklin D. Roosevelt / National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution CC0 Today we remember Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States, who was born on this day in 1882. Regarded as one of the greatest U.S. presidents in history, Roosevelt successfully led the country through the Great Depression and World War II until his death in 1945. Roosevelt was a member of the prominent Roosevelt family, one of the oldest and wealthiest families in… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Oprah Winfrey! Today media icon turns 72. After facing considerable hardship growing up, Winfrey has become one of the most successful and influential entrepreneur’s in the world. Image: Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson / Wikimedia Commons Although Winfrey was named “Orpah” on her birth certificate, people mispronounced it as “Oprah” so often that the name stuck. Born into poverty in rural Mississippi, she got her start working in radio and by the age… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Alan Alda! Today the star turns 90. Image: Alan Alda / Library of Congress He was born Alphonso Joseph D’Abruzzo on January 28, 1936 in New York City, New York to Robert Alda and Joan Browne. The son of an actor, it was only a matter of time before Alda decided to pursue a career in show business. In 1972, he took on his most memorable role as Hawkeye Pierce on the… Read the full story

Today we celebrate the birthday of legendary composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Image: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart / Wikimedia Commons Mozart was born on January 27, 1756 in Salzburg, Austria to Leopold Mozart and Anna Maria Pertl. A child prodigy, Mozart began composing music and performing before royalty at the age of 5. During his childhood, his father took Mozart and his sister, Maria Anna, on a grand European tour to perform at the courts of Munich,… Read the full story

Today we celebrate what would have been legendary actor Paul Newman’s 101st birthday. Image: Paul Newman / Library of Congress Born on January 26, 1925, Newman was the second son of Theresa Fetzko and Aurthur Sigmund Newman. His mother was born in Hummenne in what is today Slovakia and his father was the son of Jewish immigrants from Hungary and Poland. As a child, Newman showed an early interest in theater and participated in school plays…. Read the full story

On this day in 1813, Norwegian writer Camilla Collett was born in Kristiansand, Norway. Often referred to as the first Norwegian feminist writer, Collett was a passionate advocate of women’s rights and an influential figure in Norwegian literature. Image: Camilla Collett / National Library of Norway, Flickr Collett was the daughter of Alette Thaulow and Nicolai Wergeland, a priest and politician. Her father was a member of the Norwegian Constituent Assembly at Eidsvoll, which wrote the Constitution of Norway… Read the full story

On this day in 1901, Queen Victoria died at the age of 81. At the time of her death, the Queen had reigned for 63 years, 7 months and 2 days, making her the longest reigning British monarch. It wasn’t until 2015 that her second great granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, surpassed her record as the longest reigning monarch in British history. Image: Queen Victoria / Wikimedia Commons At the time of her birth on May 24, 1819,… Read the full story

On this day in 1793, Louis XVI was executed for treason by guillotine. Image: Louis XVI / New York Public Library Louis XVI was born on August 23, 1754 in the Palace of Versailles. He was the second son of Louis, the Dauphin of France, and thus the grandson of Louis XV. When his brother died at the age of nine, followed by the death of his father in 1765, a young Louis became the next… Read the full story

Happy 96th birthday to Buzz Aldrin! Image: Buzz Aldrin / NASA On January 20, 1930, Edwin Eugene Aldrin, Jr. was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey to Edwin Eugene Aldrin, Sr. and Marion Gaddys. His nickname “Buzz” originated in his childhood; his younger sister mispronounced the word “brother” as “buzzer” and the name stuck. The family later shortened it to Buzz. As the Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 11, Aldrin made the first manned lunar landing… Read the full story

Today country music superstar Dolly Parton celebrates her 80th birthday! Parton went from very humble beginnings to become one of the most successful artists in history. Not only has she made her mark in music and film, but she even has her own theme park called Dollywood. Image: Dolly Parton / Wikimedia Commons Parton was born on January 19, 1946 in Locust Ridge, Tennessee and was the fourth of twelve children born to Robert Lee Parton… Read the full story

Today we remember trailblazing Mexican film actress Katy Jurado, who was born on this day in 1924. Considered one of the leading actresses during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, Jurado was one of the first Mexican actresses to successfully crossover to Hollywood. Image: Katy Jurado / Wikimedia Commons She was born María Cristina Estela Marcela Jurado García in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico to a wealthy family. Despite the disapproval of her family, Jurado decided to pursue… Read the full story

Today we remember iconic civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr, who was born on this day in 1929. Image: Martin Luther King, Jr. / Library of Congress King was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia to Martin Luther King, Sr. and Alberta Williams. An inspiring leader, King helped make significant advancements in civil rights through non-violent protest. In 1955, King led the Montgomery bus boycott after Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing… Read the full story

On this day in 1957, actor Humphrey Bogart died at the age of 57. Image: Humphrey Bogart / Wikimedia Commons Bogart was born on December 25, 1899 in New York City, New York to Belmont DeForest Bogart, a doctor, and Maud Humphrey, an illustrator and suffragist. Through his father’s branch, Bogart can trace his ancestry to the early Dutch settlers of New Amsterdam. He is a direct descendant of Sarah Rapelje, who is said to… Read the full story

Do you have Dutch ancestry? On this day in 1596, Dutch artist Jan van Goyen was born. A prolific artist, van Goyen (sometimes spelled Goijen) produced about 1,200 paintings and over 1,000 drawings during his lifetime. Image: Jan van Goyen / Wikimedia Commons He was born Jan Josephszoon van Goyen in Leiden, Netherlands. Van Goyen began an apprenticeship at the age of ten and studied painting under the tutelage of several masters. Although he made… Read the full story

On January 12, 1876, American journalist and author Jack London was born in San Francisco, California. Image: Jack London / Library of Congress The author is best remembered for his novels, Call of the Wild and White Fang, which are both set in Alaska and the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush. He was one of the first fiction writers to gain worldwide celebrity and fortune from his works of fiction alone. London died on… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Catherine, Princess of Wales! Today she turns 44. Image: Catherine, Princess of Wales / Photo by Ian Jones, Wikimedia Commons (OGL v1.0) Born on January 9, 1982 in Reading, Berkshire, England, Catherine Elizabeth Middleton is the eldest child of Michael Middleton and Carole Goldsmith. She first met Prince William while they were students at the University of St Andrews, where she earned a degree in art history. They were married in 2011… Read the full story

Happy birthday, Elvis! 91 years ago today, Elvis Presley was born. Known as the King of Rock and Roll, Presley is remembered as one of the most successful and iconic musicians in history. Image: Elvis Presley / Wikimedia Commons Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi in a two-room shotgun house built by his father, Vernon Presley. Sadly, Presley’s identical twin brother was delivered stillborn 35 minutes before his birth. Presley grew up as… Read the full story

American author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston was born on January 7, 1891. A central figure of the Harlem Renaissance, Hurston wrote four novels and more than 50 short stories, plays, and essays on the African-American experience. Image: Zora Neale Hurston / Library of Congress Hurston was the fifth of eight children born to John Hurston, a Baptist preacher and carpenter, and Lucy Ann Potts, a school teacher. She was born in Notasulga, Alabama and moved… Read the full story

On this day in 1852, Louis Braille died at the age of 43. Braille developed a system of reading and writing for the blind and visually impaired. Known simply as braille, the system continues to be used worldwide today. Image: Braille alphabet / Library of Congress Braille was born on January 4, 1809 in Coupvray, a small town near Paris, France. He was blinded at the age of 3 after an accident in his father’s… Read the full story

Today we remember actress Diane Keaton on what would have been her 80th birthday. Image: Diane Keaton / Firooz Zahedi, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) Keaton was born Diane Hall on January 5, 1946 in Los Angeles, California. She was the eldest of four children born to Dorothy Deanne Keaton and John Newton Ignatius “Jack” Hall. Her mother was a homemaker and an amateur photographer and her father was a real estate broker. With an… Read the full story

Today we remember science fiction author Isaac Asimov on what would have been his 105th birthday! Image: Isaac Asimov / Wikimedia Commons Although the exact date of his birth is unknown, Asimov celebrated it on January 2. He was born in Petrovichi, Russia and came to the United States with his family at the age of 3. By the age of 5, he had taught himself how to read and at 19, he sold his first story to a science… Read the full story