Today is Friday, Jan. 3, the third day of 2025. There are 362 days left in the year.
Today in history
On Jan. 3, 1920, Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold the contract of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees, beginning a championship era for the Yankees and decades of heartache for Red Sox fans. (The Red Sox would ultimately break the “curse” in 2004, winning their first World Series in 86 years.)
Also on this date
In 1777, Gen. George Washington’s army routed British troops in the Battle of Princeton, N.J.
In 1861, more than two weeks before Georgia seceded from the Union, the state militia seized Fort Pulaski at the order of Gov. Joseph E. Brown.
In 1977, Apple Computer was incorporated in Cupertino, Calif., by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Mike Markkula (MAHR’-kuh-luh) Jr.
In 1990, ousted Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega surrendered to U.S. forces, 10 days after taking refuge in the Vatican’s diplomatic mission.
In 2022, a jury in San Jose, California, convicted Elizabeth Holmes of duping investors into believing that her startup company Theranos had developed a revolutionary medical device that could detect diseases and conditions from a few drops of blood.
Fun facts
New York and its surroundings came under English control in 1664. New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the country’s largest city since 1790.
Otters are known to hold hands in groups — called a raft — while they eat, sleep and rest, to prevent families losing each other. The furry animals, the largest member of the weasel family, are even known to wrap sea plants around them to secure the bond.
A growing number of Americans are living to age 100. Nationwide, the centenarian population has grown 65.8 percent over the past three decades, from 32,194 people who were age 100 or older in 1980 to 53,364 centenarians in 2010, according to new Census Bureau data.
Today’s birthdays
Musician Stephen Stills is 80. Musician John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) is 79. Actor-director Mel Gibson is 69. Basketball Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller is 61. Former NFL quarterback Eli Manning is 44. R&B singer Lloyd Polite, Jr. is 39. Actor Florence Pugh is 29. Environmental activist Greta Thunberg is 22.
The Edge is compiled by Katie Clohessy. She can be contacted at kclohessy@lmtribune.com.
