Today in History and Celebrity Birthdays

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 13: TV personality Nick Clooney is 91. Actor Charlie Brill is 87. Actor Billy Gray (``Father Knows Best'') is 87. John Lees, lead guitarist with Barclay James Harvest, is 78. Guitarist Trevor Rabin of Yes is 71.

Today in History for Jan. 13: In 1691, Englishman George Fox, founder of the Society of Friends, or Quakers, died. In 1695, satirist Jonathan Swift, author of "Gulliver's Travels," was ordained an Anglican priest in Ireland.

Today in Music History for Jan. 13: In 1501, Christianity's first vernacular hymnal was printed in Prague, capital of the present-day Czech Republic. It contained 89 hymns in the Czech language.

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 12: Country singer William Lee Golden of the Oak Ridge Boys is 86. Jim Gold, lead singer of the '70s pop group Gallery, is 78. Actor Anthony Andrews is 77. Movie director Wayne Wang is 76.

Today in History for Jan. 12: In 1519, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I died. In 1598, the Marquis de La Roche was awarded a fur trading monopoly in the New World by the King of France.

Today in Music History for Jan. 12: In 1905, cowboy singer Tex Ritter was born in Texas. Most people remember him singing the title song for the Academy Award-winning film "High Noon" in 1952.

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 11: Former prime minister Jean Chretien is 91. Olympic alpine skier Anne Heggtveit is 86. Director Joel Zwick (``My Big Fat Greek Wedding'') is 83. World Golf Hall-of-Famer Ben Crenshaw is 73.

Today in Music History for Jan. 11: In 1848, Edward Fisher, founder of the Toronto Conservatory of Music, was born in Jamaica, Vt. He directed the conservatory from its opening in 1887 until his death in 1913.

Today in History for Jan. 11: In 1569, England's first state lottery was held to raise money for the construction of harbours. In 1693, an earthquake at Catania, Italy, killed 60,000. In 1759, America's first life insurance company was founded.

Celebrity Birthdays for Jan. 17: Talk show host Maury Povich is 86. Singer Chris Montez is 83. Actress Joanna David ("Downton Abbey") is 78. Actress Jane Elliot ("General Hospital") is 78. Former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor is 77.