1945 Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance.

1972 Kim Il Sung, the premier of North Korea, was named the country’s president under a new constitution.

1973 The Endangered Species Act was signed by President Richard Nixon, a law designed to protect plants and animals from extinction.

1981 Elizabeth Jordan Carr, the first American “test-tube” baby, was born in Norfolk, Va.

1991

Nine people died in a crush of people trying to get into a celebrity charity basketball game at City College in New York that was headlined by hip-hop stars.

2014 On Dec. 28, the U.S. war in Afghanistan came to a formal end after 13 years with a quiet flag-lowering ceremony in Kabul, marking the transition of fighting from U.S.-led combat troops to the country’s own security forces. More than 2,200 Americans had died in Afghanistan since the war began.

2015 A grand jury in Cleveland declined to indict two white police officers in the killing of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was Black. He was shot while carrying what turned out to be a toy pellet gun.

Actor Denzel Washington is 71. TV personality Gayle King is 71. Hockey Hall of Famer Ray Bourque is 65. Linux creator Linus Torvalds is 56.

TV host-comedian Seth Meyers is 52. Actor Joe Manganiello is 49. Musician John Legend is 47. Actor André Holland is 46. Actor Noomi Rapace is 46. Actor Sienna Miller is 44. Actor Jessie Buckley is 36. Singer David Archuleta is 35.

Political commentator Ana Navarro is 54.