Today is Wednesday, Sept. 21, the 265th day of 2016. There are 101 days left in the year.

Today’s birthdays: Poet-songwriter Leonard Cohen is 82. Comedian Fannie Flagg is 75. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer is 73. Former Kentucky governor Steve Beshear is 72. Author Stephen King is 69. Basketball Hall of Famer Artis Gilmore is 67. Actor-comedian Bill Murray is 66. Actor David James Elliott is 56. Retired MLB All-Star Cecil Fielder is 53. Actress Cheryl Hines is 51. Country singer Faith Hill is 49. Talk show host Ricki Lake is 48. Actor Luke Wilson is 45.

In 1792, the French National Convention voted to abolish the monarchy.

In 1897, the New York Sun ran its famous editorial, written anonymously by Francis P. Church, which declared, ‘‘Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.’’

In 1938, a hurricane struck parts of New York and New England, causing widespread damage and claiming some 700 lives.

In 1968, ground was broken for Boston’s Hancock Tower.

In 1989, Hurricane Hugo crashed into Charleston, S.C., (the storm was blamed for 56 deaths in the Caribbean and 29 in the United States).

In 1996, President Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act denying federal recognition of same-sex marriages a day after saying the law should not be used as an excuse for discrimination or violence against gays and lesbians. John F. Kennedy Jr. married Carolyn Bessette in a secret ceremony on Cumberland Island, Ga.