Today is Monday, Jan. 27, the 27th day of 2020. There are 339 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:
On Jan. 27, 1981, President Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy, greeted the 52 former American hostages released by Iran at the White House.

On this date:
In 1756, composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria.

In 1832, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, who wrote “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” under the pen name Lewis Carroll, was born in Cheshire, England.

In 1880, Thomas Edison received a patent for his electric incandescent lamp.

In 1943, some 50 bombers struck Wilhelmshaven in the first all-American air raid against Germany during World War II.

In 1945, during World War II, Soviet troops liberated the Nazi concentration camps Auschwitz and Birkenau in Poland.

In 1967, astronauts Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom, Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee died in a flash fire during a test aboard their Apollo spacecraft.

In 1972, “Queen of Gospel” Mahalia Jackson, 60, died in Evergreen Park, Ill.

In 1973, the Vietnam peace accords were signed in Paris.

In 1984, singer Michael Jackson suffered serious burns to his scalp when pyrotechnics set his hair on fire during the filming of a Pepsi-Cola TV commercial at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

In 1998, first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, on NBC’s “Today” show, charged the sexual misconduct allegations against her husband, President Bill Clinton, were the work of a “vast right-wing conspiracy.”

In 2001, Jennifer Capriati upset three-time winner Martina Hingis 6-4, 6-3 to win the Australian Open title and her first Grand Slam tournament championship.

In 2003, the Bush administration dismissed Iraq’s response to U.N. disarmament demands as inadequate. Meanwhile, chief U.N. inspector Hans Blix charged that Iraq had never genuinely accepted U.N. resolutions demanding its disarmament and warned that “cooperation on substance” was necessary for a peaceful solution.

Ten years ago: Acknowledging that “change has not come fast enough,” President Barack Obama vowed in his State of the Union address to get jobless millions back to work while fighting for ambitious overhauls of health care, energy and education. Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad tablet computer during a presentation in San Francisco. J.D. Salinger, the reclusive author of “The Catcher in the Rye,” died in Cornish, New Hampshire, at age 91. Actress Zelda Rubinstein died in Los Angeles at age 76.

Five years ago: European leaders gathered in Poland to mark the 70th anniversary of the Soviet liberation the Auschwitz death camp; amid tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin stayed away, sending his chief of staff instead. A National Weather Service forecaster apologized for predicting that the area from New York to Philadelphia would see a foot or two of snow. Instead, the storm moved farther east and piled more than 2 feet of snow on parts of New England.

One year ago: “Black Panther” took the top prize at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, topping the leading Oscar nominees “Roma” and “The Favourite.” Novak Djokovic (NOH’-vak JOH’-kuh-vich) overwhelmed Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 to win a record seventh Australian Open championship and a third consecutive Grand Slam title.

Today’s Birthdays: Actor James Cromwell is 80. Rock musician Nick Mason (Pink Floyd) is 76. Rhythm-and-blues singer Nedra Talley (The Ronettes) is 74. Ballet star Mikhail Baryshnikov is 72. Latin singer-songwriter Djavan is 71. Chief U.S. Justice John Roberts is 65. Country singer Cheryl White is 65. Country singer-musician Richard Young (The Kentucky Headhunters) is 65. Actress Mimi Rogers is 64. Rock musician Janick Gers (Iron Maiden) is 63. Actress Susanna Thompson is 62. Political and sports commentator Keith Olbermann is 61. Rock singer Margo Timmins (Cowboy Junkies) is 59. Rock musician Gillian Gilbert is 59. Actress Tamlyn Tomita is 57. Actress Bridget Fonda is 56. Actor Alan Cumming is 55. Country singer Tracy Lawrence is 52. Rock singer Mike Patton is 52. Rapper Tricky is 52. Rock musician Michael Kulas (James) is 51. Actor-comedian Patton Oswalt is 51. Actor Josh Randall is 48. Country singer Kevin Denney is 42. Tennis player Marat Safin is 40. Neo-soul musician Andrew Lee (St. Paul & the Broken Bones) is 34. Rock musician Matt Sanchez (American Authors) is 34. Actor Braeden Lemasters is 24.

Thought for Today: “The most beautiful thing in the world is, of course, the world itself.” — Wallace Stevens, American poet and author (1879-1955).