On This Day in History - December 4th - Almanac

Today is Sunday, Dec. 4, the 339th day of 2016 with 27 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter and Saturn. The evening stars are Mercury, Venus, Mars, Neptune, and Uranus.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Sagittarius. They include Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle in 1795; English novelist Samuel Butler in 1835; actor/singer Lillian Russell in 1861; Spanish dictator Francisco Franco in 1892; U.S. Marines fighter ace Gregory "Pappy" Boyington in 1912; actor Deanna Durbin in 1921; game show host Wink Martindale in 1934 (age 82); actors Max Baer Jr. in 1937 (age 79), Jeff Bridges in 1949 (age 67), Patricia Wettig in 1951 (age 65) and Marisa Tomei in 1964 (age 52); Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members Dennis Wilson (the Beach Boys) and Chris Hillman (the Byrds) (age 72), both in 1944; writer A. Scott Berg in 1949 (age 67); Olympic gold medal pole vaulter Sergey Bubka in 1963 (age 53); news commentator Suzanne Malveaux in 1966 (age 50); rapper Jay-Z, born Shawn Corey Carter, in 1969 (age 47) and model and television personality Tyra Banks in 1973 (age 43).

On this date in history:

In 1881, the Los Angeles Times published its first edition.

In 1942, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered liquidation of the Works Progress Administration, created during the Great Depression to provide work for the unemployed.

In 1954, the first Burger King fast-food restaurant opened -- in Miami.

In 1971, India joined East Pakistan in its war for independence from West Pakistan. East Pakistan became the republic of Bangladesh.

In 1991, American Terry Anderson was freed by his pro-Iranian captors after six years.

In 1992, President George H.W. Bush ordered U.S. troops into Somalia.

In 1997, health officials in Europe voted to ban most forms of advertising of tobacco beginning in four to five years.

In 2006, John Bolton resigned as U.S. envoy to the United Nations. He had been a harsh critic of U.N. bureaucracy.

In 2010, Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo was sworn in for another term in defiance of a U.N. determination that his opponent, Alassane Ouattara, who also was sworn in, had won a runoff election "with absolute certainty." Gbago was forced out four months later.

In 2012, Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker, responding to a challenge to survive on food stamps, began a week of spending less than $5 a day on food -- posting his grocery receipts on Facebook and Twitter. "This is hard," said Booker (who became a U.S. senator in 2013).

In 2013, Pittsburgh Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin was fined $100,000 by the NFL for stepping onto the field and interfering with a kickoff return in a 22-20 loss to the Baltimore Ravens Nov. 28. Tomlin said it was "an inexcusable blunder on my part."

A thought for the day: "Great players are willing to give up their own personal achievement for the achievement of the group. It enhances everybody." -- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar