The season of Pre-Lent, once marked by the Roman Catholic Church, developed in the seventh century and included the three Sundays before the beginning of Lent. These Sundays are Septuagesima, Sexagesima, and Quinquagesima—roughly 70, 60, and 50 days before Easter. The Ordinary Form of the Mass (Novus Ordo), introduced in 1969, does not officially celebrate Pre-Lent. However, these Pre-Lent Sundays are still included in the Extraordinary Form of the Mass (Traditional Latin Mass or Tridentine Mass). These three Sundays are also celebrated by certain other Christian denominations.
Daily Calendar for Sunday, January 31, 2027
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Daily Calendar
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Sunday, January 31, 2027
Born
- Franz Peter Schubert (Austrian composer) –
- Zane Grey (novelist) –
- Eddie Cantor (comedian) –
- John Henry O'Hara (author) –
- Jersey Joe Walcott (boxer) –
- Garry Moore (TV personality) –
- Jackie Robinson (first African American baseball player in major leagues) –
- Mario Lanza (singer & actor) –
- Carol Channing (actress) –
- Norman Mailer (author) –
- Jean Simmons (actress) –
- Ernie Banks (baseball player) –
- Phillip Glass (musician) –
- Nolan Ryan (baseball player) –
- Anthony LaPaglia (actor) –
- Portia de Rossi (actress) –
- Justin Timberlake (singer) –
- Tyler Seguin (ice hockey player) –
Died
- Timothy Eaton (retailer) –
- A. A. Milne (author) –
- Samuel Goldwyn (Pioneering Polish-American film producer Samuel Goldwyn, 94, dies in Los Angeles, California.) –
- Francis Gabreski (retired colonel who recorded 37.5 kills and was known as “America’s Greatest Living Ace” ) –
- Horace Hagedorn (founder of Miracle-Gro plant food) –
- Eunice Sanborn (American supercentenarian) –
Events
- Anton Chekov’s play, Three Sisters, premiered at the Moscow Art Theatre –
- A Napier was the first car to go over 100 mph –
- The German government informed the U.S. that unrestricted submarine warfare would begin on February 1, 1917 –
- The Green Hornet made its radio debut –
- Yugoslavia adopted its constitution and officially became a people’s republic –
- The U.S. released 33 former Nazis incarcerated for war crimes, including Alfred Krupp –
- Explorer I, first U.S. satellite, launched –
- Explorer 1, first successful U.S. satellite, was launched –
- Ham, a male chimpanzee, was recovered alive in the Caribbean after being carried to a height of 155 miles in a U.S. space capsule launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida –
- National Traffic Safety Agency issued the first set of U.S. federal safety standards for vehicle safety –
- North Vietnam launched the Tet Offensive, attacking South Vietnamese towns –
- Limited telephone service re-established between East and West Berlin for the first time in 19 years –
- Apollo 14 manned spacecraft launched –
- Paul and Linda McCartney appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone. This made Linda McCartney the first person to have both taken a photo, and to have been photographed, for the front cover of the magazine. –
- The first McDonald’s opened in Moscow, Russia –
- Samuel Alito was sworn in as the 110th U.S. Supreme Court justice –
Weather
- Snowy month left 54 inches of snow on the ground at low levels, Northfield, Vermont –
- Big snow in Oregon set a record: Portland 16 inches; Salem 25 inches –
- A record low temperature of 0 degrees Fahrenheit is recorded in San Antonio, Texas. –
- In Nortway, Alaska, a new continental North American record was set as the barometric pressure rose to 31.85 inches –