Answer of the Day
How long did Michelangelo work on David? Michelangelo's David was unveiled on this date in 1504. It took the sculptor three years to complete his rendition of the Bible's David posing with the slingshot he used to slay Goliath. David's slim stature is belied by the size of the sculpture. Originally called The Giant, David stands 17 feet/5.17 m tall. Over the years, the statue has faced challenges of its own: it was struck by lightning in 1512 and had its arm broken off in 1527 (a new one was made). In 1814, it was covered in wax and some 30 years later the statue had a hydrochloric acid bath, leaving it scratched and porous. And in 1991, a jealous artist smashed the David's toe.

Quote
"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough." — Oprah Winfrey

Word of the day

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Today's History

Kirk, Bones and Spock (l-r) Of the Original 'Star Trek'

• St. Augustine: the oldest permanent European settlement in the US was founded (1565)
• Galveston Hurricane: made landfall; it was the deadliest natural disaster to strike the US to date (1900)
• Miss America: the annual pageant was first held in Atlantic City; 16-year-old Margaret Gorman of Washington DC was the first to be crowned (1921)
• Siege of Leningrad: nearly 2.5-year blockade of the city by the Germans in WWII began (1941)
• Star Trek: TV series recounting the adventures of the starship Enterprise premiered (1966)
• John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts: opened in Washington, DC, with the premiere of Leonard Bernstein's Mass (1971)
• Watergate: US president Gerald Ford granted his predecessor, Richard Nixon, a full pardon for "crimes he committed or may have committed" (1974)

Today's Birthdays

Antonín Dvořák

• Richard I (1157-1199): aka Richard the Lionhearted, the third son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine
• Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904): Czech composer
• Sid Caesar (88): comedian and actor, Your Show of Shows; other comic actors born on this date include Peter Sellers (1925-1980), David Arquette and Martin Freeman (both 39), Nate Corddry (33) and Jonathan Taylor Thomas (29)
• Ann Beattie (63): author of short stories and novels; writers Alfred Jarry (1873-1907), Frederic Mistral (1830-1914) and Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533) shared this birth date
• Brooke Burke (39): co-host of Dancing With the Stars
• Pink (31): singer, "Get The Party Started"; also, musicians Patsy Cline (1932-1963), Will Lee (58) and Aimee Mann (50)