So you want to have a drink but you aren't sure why? Here are some GREAT reasons to call your friends over and have a party.

January 22nd


- Christian Feast Day

January 22nd


- 2006 - Evo Morales is inaugurated as President of Bolivia, becoming the country's first indigenous president.
- 2002 - Kmart becomes the largest retailer in United States history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
- 1999 - Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons are burned alive by radical Hindus while sleeping in their car in Eastern India.
- 1995 - Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Beit Lid massacre – In central Israel, near Netanya, two suicide bombers from the Gaza Strip blow themselves up at a military transit point killing 19 Israelis.
- 1992 - Rebel forces occupy Zaire's national radio station in Kinshasa and broadcast a demand for the government's resignation.
- 1992 - Space Shuttle program: STS-42 Mission – Dr. Roberta Bondar becomes the first Canadian woman in space.
- 1991 - Gulf War: Three SCUDs and one Patriot missile hit Ramat Gan in Israel, injuring 96 people. Three elderly people die of heart attacks.
- 1990 - Robert Tappan Morris, Jr. is convicted of releasing the 1988 Internet Computer worm.
- 1987 - Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, leading to debates on boundaries in journalism.
- 1984 - The Apple Macintosh, the first consumer computer to popularize the computer mouse and the graphical user interface, is introduced during Super Bowl XVIII with its famous "1984" television commercial.
- 1973 - The Supreme Court of the United States delivers its decision in Roe v. Wade, legalizing elective abortion in all fifty states.
- 1973 - A chartered Boeing 707 explodes in flames upon landing at Kano Airport, Nigeria killing 176.
- 1970 - The Boeing 747, the world's first "jumbo jet", enters commercial service for launch customer Pan American Airways with its maiden voyage from John F Kennedy International Airport to London Heathrow Airport.
- 1968 - Apollo 5 lifts off carrying the first Lunar module into space.
- 1968 - Operation Igloo White, a US electronic surveillance system to stop communist infiltration into South Vietnam begins installation.
- 1963 - The Elysée treaty of cooperation between France and Germany is signed by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer.
- 1962 - The Organization of American States suspends Cuba's membership.
- 1959 - Knox Mine Disaster: Water breaches the River Slope Mine near Pittston City, Pennsylvania in Port Griffith; 12 miners are killed.
- 1957 - Israel withdraws from the Sinai Peninsula.
- 1957 - The New York City "Mad Bomber", George P. Metesky, is arrested in Waterbury, Connecticut and is charged with planting more than 30 bombs.
- 1952 - The first Jet airliner, the de Havilland Comet, enters service for BOAC.
- 1947 - KTLA, the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River, begins operation in Hollywood, California.
- 1946 - Iran: Qazi Muhammad declares the independent people's Republic of Mahabad at Chuwarchira Square in the Kurdish city of Mahabad. He is the new president; Hadschi Baba Scheich is the prime minister.
- 1946 - Creation of the Central Intelligence Group, forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency.
- 1944 - World War II: The Allies commence Operation Shingle, an assault on Anzio, Italy.
- 1941 - World War II: British and Commonwealth troops capture Tobruk from Italian forces during Operation Compass.
- 1931 - Sir Isaac Isaacs is sworn in as the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia.
- 1927 - First live radio commentary of a football match anywhere in the world, between Arsenal F.C. and Sheffield United at Highbury.
- 1924 - Ramsay MacDonald becomes the first Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
- 1919 - Act Zluky is signed, unifying the Ukrainian People's Republic and the West Ukrainian National Republic.
- 1917 - World War I: President Woodrow Wilson of the still-neutral United States calls for "peace without victory" in Europe.
- 1906 - SS Valencia runs aground on rocks on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, killing more than 130.
- 1905 - Bloody Sunday in St. Petersburg, beginning of the 1905 revolution.
- 1901 - Edward VII is proclaimed King after the death of his mother, Queen Victoria.
- 1899 - Leaders of six Australian colonies meet in Melbourne to discuss confederation.
- 1890 - The United Mine Workers of America is founded in Columbus, Ohio.
- 1889 - Columbia Phonograph is formed in Washington, D.C.
- 1879 - Anglo-Zulu War: Battle of Isandlwana – Zulu troops defeat British troops.
- 1879 - Anglo-Zulu War: Battle of Rorke's Drift – 139 British soldiers successfully defend their garrison against an intense assault by four to five thousand Zulu warriors.
- 1877 - Arthur Tooth, an Anglican clergyman is taken into custody after being prosecuted for using ritualist practices.
- 1863 - The January Uprising breaks out in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. The aim of the national movement is to regain Polish-Lithuanian-Ruthenian Commonwealth from occupation by Russia.
- 1824 - Ashantis defeat British forces in the Gold Coast.
- 1771 - Spain cedes Port Egmont in the Falkland Islands to the United Kingdom.
- 1521 - Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, opens the Diet of Worms.
- 1506 - The first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrives at the Vatican.
- 565 - Eutychius is deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus.

January 22nd


- 1988 - Greg Oden, American basketball player
- 1988 - Asher Allen, American football player
- 1987 - Astrid Jacobsen, Norwegian cross-country skier
- 1987 - Ray Rice, American football player
- 1987 - Shane Long, Irish footballer
- 1986 - Lee Pa-ni, South Korean model
- 1986 - Daniel Wayne Smith, American reality television personality (d. 2006)
- 1985 - Mohamed Sissoko, Malian footballer
- 1985 - Orianthi Panagaris, Australian guitarist
- 1984 - Raica Oliveira, Brazilian model
- 1984 - Leon Powe, American basketball player
- 1984 - Maceo Rigters, Dutch footballer
- 1984 - Ben Eager, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1984 - Ubaldo Jiménez, Dominican baseball player
- 1983 - Shaun Cody, American football player
- 1982 - Fabricio Coloccini, Argentine footballer
- 1982 - Jason Peters, American football player
- 1981 - Willa Ford, American singer
- 1981 - Beverley Mitchell, American actress
- 1981 - Ibrahima Sonko, French footballer
- 1980 - Jake Grove, American football player
- 1980 - Christopher Masterson, American actor
- 1980 - Ben Moody, American guitarist (Evanescence)
- 1980 - Jonathan Woodgate, English footballer
- 1980 - Subhash Ram Prajapati, Nepalese writer
- 1979 - Carlos Ruiz, Panamanian baseball player
- 1978 - Chone Figgins, American baseball player
- 1977 - Jono Gibbes, New Zealand rugby union footballer
- 1977 - Hidetoshi Nakata, Japanese footballer
- 1977 - Matthew Newton, Australian actor
- 1977 - Aaron Rakers, American baseball player
- 1977 - Luciano Andrade Rissutt, Brazilian footballer
- 1976 - Jimmy Anderson, American baseball player
- 1976 - James Dearth, American football player
- 1976 - Mikko Luoma, Finnish ice hockey player
- 1975 - Balthazar Getty, American actor
- 1975 - Felipe Giaffone, Brazilian racing driver
- 1975 - David Výborný, Czech ice hockey player
- 1974 - Cameron McConville, Australian racing driver
- 1973 - Rogerio Ceni, Brazilian footballer
- 1972 - Romi Park, Japanese seiyu (voice actress)
- 1972 - Gonzalo Rodríguez, Uruguayan racing driver (d. 1999)
- 1972 - Namrata Shirodkar, Indian actress
- 1972 - Katie Barberi, Mexican actress
- 1972 - Gabriel Macht, American actor
- 1971 - Stan Collymore, English footballer
- 1970 - Abraham Olano, Spanish cyclist
- 1970 - Alex Ross, American comic book artist
- 1969 - Olivia d'Abo, English actress
- 1969 - Keith Gordon, American baseball player
- 1969 - John Linton Roberson, American cartoonist
- 1968 - Heath, Japanese bass guitarist (X Japan)
- 1968 - Frank Lebœuf, French footballer
- 1968 - Mauricio Serna, Colombian footballer
- 1967 - Ecaterina Szabo, Romanian gymnast
- 1967 - Nick Gillingham, British swimmer
- 1967 - Eleanor McEvoy, Irish singer and songwriter
- 1967 - Manabu Nakanishi, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1965 - Steven Adler, American drummer (Guns N' Roses)
- 1965 - DJ Jazzy Jeff, American rapper and actor
- 1965 - Diane Lane, American actress
- 1965 - Brian McCardie, Scottish actor
- 1965 - Andrew Roachford, English singer and songwriter
- 1965 - Chintara Sukapatana, Thai actress
- 1964 - Wayne Kirby, American baseball player
- 1964 - Nigel Benn, English boxer
- 1964 - Joe Dudek, American football player
- 1963 - Javier Ortiz, American baseball player
- 1963 - Andrei Tchmil, Ukrainian-Belgian cyclist
- 1963 - Jeff Treadway, American baseball player
- 1962 - Choi Min-sik, South Korean actor
- 1962 - Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu, Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia
- 1961 - Daniel Johnston, American singer-songwriter and artist
- 1960 - Michael Hutchence, Australian singer (INXS) (d. 1997)
- 1959 - Linda Blair, American actress
- 1958 - Nikos Anastopoulos, Greek football player and manager
- 1957 - Mike Bossy, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1957 - Brian Dayett, American baseball player
- 1957 - Godfrey Thoma, Nauruan politician
- 1957 - Rene Requiestas, Filipino comedian (d. 1993)
- 1957 - Francis Wheen, English writer and journalist
- 1956 - Steve Riley, American drummer
- 1956 - John Wesley Shipp, American actor
- 1955 - Timothy R. Ferguson, American politician
- 1955 - Thomas David Jones, American astronaut
- 1954 - Tully Blanchard, American professional wrestler
- 1954 - Chris Lemmon, American actor
- 1954 - Peter Pilz, Austrian politician
- 1953 - Jim Jarmusch, American director
- 1953 - Myung-Whun Chung,South Korean Conductor and pianist
- 1952 - Ramón Avilés, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1952 - Teddy Gentry, American musician (Alabama)
- 1952 - Ace Vergel, Filipino actor (d. 2007)
- 1951 - Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater (d. 1989)
- 1951 - Leon Roberts, American baseball player
- 1951 - Steve J. Spears, Australian playwright, actor, writer and singer (d. 2007)
- 1949 - Mike Caldwell, American baseball player
- 1949 - Phil Miller, English guitarist (National Health, In Cahoots, Matching Mole)
- 1949 - Steve Perry, American singer and musician (Journey)
- 1948 - Gilbert Levine, American conductor
- 1948 - Northern Calloway, American actor (d. 1990)
- 1946 - Malcolm McLaren, British music manager (d. 2010)
- 1946 - Serge Savard, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1945 - Arthur Beetson, Australian rugby league footballer and coach
- 1943 - Marília Pêra, Brazilian actress
- 1942 - Mimis Domazos, Greek footballer
- 1940 - John Hurt, English actor
- 1940 - George Seifert, American football coach
- 1939 - Jørgen Garde, Danish admiral (d. 1996)
- 1939 - Alfredo Palacio, former President of Ecuador
- 1939 - Jeff Smith, American chef (d. 2004)
- 1939 - J.C. Tremblay, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1994)
- 1938 - Altair, Brazilian footballer
- 1937 - Edén Pastora, Nicaraguan rebel leader
- 1937 - Joseph Wambaugh, American author
- 1936 - Alan J. Heeger, American chemist, Nobel laureate
- 1936 - Ong Teng Cheong, 5th President of Singapore (d. 2002)
- 1935 - Seymour Cassel, American actor
- 1934 - Bill Bixby, American actor (d. 1993)
- 1934 - Graham Kerr, British-born chef
- 1932 - Berthold Grünfeld, Norwegian psychiatrist and former sexologist
- 1932 - Piper Laurie, American actress
- 1931 - Sam Cooke, American singer (d. 1964)
- 1928 - Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historian (d. 2004)
- 1927 - Lou Creekmur, American football player
- 1925 - Johnny Bucha, American baseball player (d. 1996)
- 1925 - Bobby Young, American baseball player (d. 1985)
- 1924 - J. J. Johnson, American jazz trombonist and composer (d. 2001)
- 1922 - Howard Moss, American poet, dramatist, and critic (d. 1987)
- 1920 - Irving Kristol, American pundit, columnist and author (d. 2009)
- 1920 - Sir Alf Ramsey, English football manager (d. 1999)
- 1919 - Diomedes Olivo, Dominican Republic baseball player (d. 1977)
- 1918 - Elmer Lach, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1917 - Huck Geary, American baseball player (d. 1981)
- 1916 - Bill Durnan, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1972)
- 1916 - Henri Dutilleux, French composer
- 1916 - Harilal Upadhyay, Gujarati author, poet, astrologist (d. 1994)
- 1915 - Heinrich Albertz, German theologian and politician (d. 1993)
- 1914 - Dimitris Dragatakis, Greek composer (d. 2001)
- 1913 - Henry Bauchau, Belgian novelist, poet, and psychoanalyst
- 1913 - William Conway, Northern Irish cardinal (d. 1977)
- 1913 - Carl F. H. Henry, American theologian and publisher (d. 2003)
- 1911 - Bruno Kreisky, Chancellor of Austria (d. 1990)
- 1909 - Porfirio Rubirosa, Dominican diplomat and international playboy (d. 1965)
- 1909 - Ann Sothern, American actress (d. 2001)
- 1909 - U Thant, Burmese 3rd United Nations Secretary General (d. 1974)
- 1908 - Lev Landau, Soviet physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1968)
- 1908 - Prince Oana, American baseball player (d. 1976)
- 1907 - Douglas Corrigan, American pilot (d. 1995)
- 1907 - Dixie Dean, English footballer (d. 1980)
- 1907 - Mary Dresselhuys, Dutch actress (d. 2004)
- 1906 - Joe Gladwin, English actor (d. 1987)
- 1906 - Robert E. Howard, American author (d. 1936)
- 1904 - George Balanchine, Russian choreographer (d. 1983)
- 1904 - Arkady Gaidar, Russian children's writer (d. 1941)
- 1904 - John Milligan, American baseball player (d. 1972)
- 1903 - Fritz Houtermans, Polish physicist (d. 1966)
- 1903 - Robin Milford, British composer (d. 1959)
- 1902 - Daniel Kinsey, American hurdler (d. 1970)
- 1900 - Ernst Busch, German singer and actor (d. 1980)
- 1897 - Rosa Ponselle, American soprano (d. 1981)
- 1893 - Conrad Veidt, German actor (d. 1943)
- 1892 - Marcel Dassault, French industrialist (d. 1986)
- 1891 - Antonio Gramsci, Italian philosopher, and political theorist (d. 1937)
- 1890 - Fred M. Vinson, 13th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1953)
- 1890 - Vinko Zganec, Croatian ethnomusicologist (d. 1976)
- 1889 - Henri Pélissier, French cyclist (d. 1935)
- 1889 - Amos Strunk, American baseball player (d. 1979)
- 1887 - Helen Hoyt, American poet (d. 1972)
- 1886 - Roman Ungern von Sternberg, Russian counter-revolutionary (d. 1921)
- 1882 - Theodore Kosloff, Russian-born actor, ballet dancer and choreographer (d. 1956)
- 1881 - Ira Thomas, American baseball player (d. 1958)
- 1880 - Bill O'Neill, American baseball player (d. 1920)
- 1879 - Francis Picabia, French-born painter and poet (d. 1953)
- 1877 - Tom Jones, American baseball player (d. 1923)
- 1876 - Warren McLaughlin, American baseball player (d. 1923)
- 1875 - D. W. Griffith, American film director (d. 1948)
- 1874 - Edward Harkness, American philanthropist (d. 1940)
- 1874 - Jay Hughes, American baseball player (d. 1924)
- 1869 - Grigori Rasputin, Russian monk (d. 1916)
- 1869 - José Vicente de Freitas, Portuguese military officer and politician (d. 1952)
- 1858 - Beatrice Webb, English economist (d. 1943)
- 1849 - August Strindberg, Swedish writer (d. 1912)
- 1840 - Ernest Roland Wilberforce, English bishop (d. 1907)
- 1831 - Jack Slade, American frontier figure (d. 1864)
- 1831 - Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein (d. 1917)
- 1820 - Joseph Wolf, German artist (d. 1899)
- 1799 - Ludger Duvernay, Canadian printer and publisher (d. 1852)
- 1797 - Maria Leopoldina of Austria, Empress of Brazil (d. 1826)
- 1796 - Karl Claus, Russian chemist (d. 1864)
- 1788 - George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (Lord Byron), English poet (d. 1824)
- 1781 - François Antoine Habeneck, French violinist (d. 1849)
- 1740 - Noah Phelps, American Spy (d. 1809)
- 1733 - Philip Carteret, British Naval Officer (d. 1796)
- 1729 - Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German author and philosopher (d. 1781)
- 1690 - Nicolas Lancret, French painter (d. 1743)
- 1654 - Richard Blackmore, English physician and writer (d. 1729)
- 1592 - Pierre Gassendi, French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist (d. 1655)
- 1570 - Sir Robert Bruce Cotton, English politician (d. 1631)
- 1561 - Sir Francis Bacon, English philosopher (d. 1626)
- 1553 - Mori Terumoto, Japanese warrior (d. 1625)
- 1440 - Ivan III of Russia (d. 1505)
- 1263 - Ibn Taymiya, Islamic scholar (d. 1328)