JANUARY 15, 1967 - The first AFL-NFL World Championship Game was played in Los Angeles between the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Now known as Super Bowl I, the game was established as part of the merger agreement between the NFL and the AFL. For the first two years, the game was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game; it was not until the third year that the game was referred to as the Super Bowl. During the merger negotiations, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle wanted to call the game "The Big One," while Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt jokingly referred to the proposed inter league championship as the "Super Bowl." Hunt thought of the name after seeing his children playing with a toy called a Super Ball. Hunt only meant his suggested name to be a placeholder until a better one could be found. Nevertheless the name "Super Bowl" stuck.

JANUARY 17, 1977 - Convicted murderer Gary Gilmore was executed by a firing squad in Utah, becoming the first execution in the United States after a moratorium imposed by the United States Supreme Court was overruled. In the 1972 decision of Furman v. Georgia the Supreme Court held that capital punishment was unconstitutional on the basis of the 8th Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The decision was largely based on Georgia's use of a "unitary trial," meaning the jury was required to return a verdict of guilt or innocence along with a determination of the punishment. In the 1976 decision of Gregg v. Georgia the Supreme Court opened the door again for capital punishment in cases where the verdict and sentencing proceedings are conducted separately. Gilmore was convicted on October 7, 1976 and did not seek any appeals. When asked if he had any last words before the execution, Gilmore simply replied, "Let's do it!"

JANUARY 20, 1801 - John Marshall was appointed as Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Marshall served on the Court for 34 years, the longest of any Chief Justice, and was one of the most influential in history. His decision in Marbury v. Madison (1803) ruled that a provision of the Judiciary Act of 1789 violated the Constitution. This was the first time that an act of Congress was held unconstitutional, and the case established the doctrine of judicial review. Marshall is credited with cementing the position of the judiciary as an independent and influential branch of government.