Historical Events
- Jan 1 40th Fiesta Bowl: #9 Oklahoma beats #25 Connecticut, 48-20
- Jan 1 97th Rose Bowl: #3 TCU beats #4 Wisconsin, 21-19
37th People's Choice
Jan 6 37th People's Choice Awards: Johnny Depp & Kristen Stewart win (Movie Star) and Hugh Laurie & Lisa Edelstein win (TV Drama)
"The King's Speech"
Jan 7 "The King's Speech", starring Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter, is released in the UK
- Jan 8 Attempted assassination of Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and subsequent shooting in Casas Adobes, Arizona at a Safeway grocery store kills 6 and wounds 13, including Giffords
US Clinch Victory
Jan 8 Hopman Cup Tennis, Perth: Americans Bethanie Mattek-Sands & John Isner beat Belgian pair Justine Henin & Ruben Bemelmans 6-1, 6-3 to clinch a 2-1 victory; 6th title for the United States
Ballon d'Or
Jan 10 Ballon d'Or: Barcelona forward Lionel Messi wins 2nd straight award from teammates Andrés Iniesta & Xavi; Brazilian forward Marta wins women's award for 5th consecutive year
- Jan 10 College Football, 13th BCS National Championship, University of Phoenix Stadium: #1 Auburn beats #2 Oregon, 22-19
Gandalf Returns
Jan 10 Ian McKellen officially confirms that he will reprise the role of Gandalf in "The Hobbit" film adaptations
- Jan 14 16th Critics' Choice Movie Awards: The Social Network wins Best Film
- Jan 14 Stampede near Sabarimala in Kerala, India kills 104 devotees and injures 100 more
- Jan 14 Tunisian president Ben Ali, flees to Saudi Arabia after popular protests known as the Jasmine Revolution
- Jan 15 Wikipedia the free internet encyclopedia turns 10 years old
- Jan 16 68th Golden Globes: The Social Network, Colin Firth, & Natalie Portman win
Le Pen National Front Leader
Jan 16 French politician Marine Le Pen becomes the leader of the National Front Party
- Jan 17 "Sure Thing" single released by Miguel (Billboard Song of the Year 2011)
Event of Interest
Jan 19 Joe Lieberman announces his retirement from the Senate at the end of his fourth term
- Jan 23 AFC Championship, Heinz Field, Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh Steelers beat New York Jets, 24-19
- Jan 23 NFC Championship, Soldier Field, Chicago: Green Bay Packers beat Chicago Bears, 21-14
- Jan 24 At least 35 died and 180 injured in a bombing at Moscow's Domodedovo airport.
- Jan 25 Egyptian Revolution of 2011 begins with a series of street demonstrations, rallies, acts of civil disobedience, labor strikes and violent clashes in Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities
- Jan 25 UK announces it had a shock economic contraction of 0.5% in Q4 2010, due to severe winter weather and budget cuts implemented by the coalition government
"Friday of Anger"
Jan 28 Hundreds of thousands of protesters fill the Egyptian's streets against the Hosni Mubarak's regime in demonstrations referred to as the "Friday of Anger"
Clijsters Defeats Li
Jan 29 Australian Open Women's Tennis: Kim Clijsters wins her 4th and final Grand Slam title; beats Li Na of China 3-6, 6-3, 6-3
- Jan 30 27th Sundance Film Festival: "Like Crazy", directed by Drake Doremus, wins Grand Jury Prize Dramatic
- Jan 30 58th NHL All-Star Game, RBC Centre, Raleigh, NC: Team Lidstrom beats Team Staal, 11-10; MVP: Patrick Sharp, Chicago, LW
Đoković Defeats Murray
Jan 30 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Novak Đoković wins his 2nd Australian title; beats Scotsman Andy Murray 6-4, 6-2, 6-3
- Jan 30 NFL Pro Bowl, Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI: NFC beats AFC, 55-41; MVP: DeAngelo Hall, Washington Redskins, DB
Famous Weddings
Valerie Bertinelli
Jan 1 "Hot in Cleveland" actress Valerie Bertinelli (50) weds financial planner Tom Vitale at their home in Malibu, California; divorce in 2022
Shania Twain
Jan 1 Canadian country singer-songwriter Shania Twain (46) weds Swiss business executive Frederic Thiebaud in Rincon, Puerto Rico
- Jan 1 Singer-songwriter Kellie Pickler (25) weds country music songwriter Kyle Jacobs (34) at the Jumby Bay Resort in Antigua
- Jan 2 Dresden Dolls singer Amanda Palmer (34) weds author Neil Gaiman (50) in Berkley, California
- Jan 14 "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" actor James Marsters (48) weds longtime girlfriend Patricia Rahman in Los Angeles
- Jan 15 PGA golfer Hunter Mahan (28) weds former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Kandi Harris in Dallas, Texas
- Jan 30 American "Chuck" actress Sarah Lancaster (30) weds attorney Matthew Jacobs in Southern California
Famous Divorces
- Jan 21 Actress Jaime Pressly (35) divorces entertainment lawyer Simran Singh (33) due to irreconcilable differences after more than 1 year of marriage
Eva Longoria
Jan 28 "Desperate Housewives" actress Eva Longoria (36) divorces NBA player Tony Parker (29) due to irreconcilable differences 3 years after a storybook wedding
Famous Deaths
- Jan 1 Billy Joe Patton, American golfer (Masters 1954 3rd; Walker Cup captain 1969), dies at 88
- Jan 1 Charles Fambrough, American jazz bassist (Jazz Messengers), dies at 60
- Jan 1 Marin Constantin, Romanian composer and conductor, dies at 85
- Jan 1 Reynaldo Dagsa, Filipino politician, assassinated at 35
- Jan 2 Anne Francis, American actress (Honey West, Forbidden Planet, Pancho Villa), dies at 80
- Jan 2 Pete Postlethwaite, English actor (In the Name of the Father, Inception), dies of pancreatic cancer at 64
- Jan 2 Richard Winters, American army officer and war hero (commanded 'Easy Company' during Normandy Invasion portrayed in "Band of Brothers"), dies at 92
- Jan 2 Szeto Wah, Hong Kong politician and educationalist, dies at 79
- Jan 3 Fadil Hadžić, Croatian film director, dies at 88
- Jan 4 Coen Moulijn, Dutch soccer winger (38 caps; Feyenoord 487 games, European Cup 1970), dies from a cerebral infarction at 73
- Jan 4 Dick King-Smith English Author (b. 1922)
- Jan 4 Gerry Rafferty, Scottish guitarist and vocalist (Steeler's Wheel - "Stuck In The Niddle"; solo - "Baker Street"), dies at 63
- Jan 4 Miick Karn [Andonis Michaelides], Cypriot-British new wave and art rock fretless bassist, and singer-songwriter (Japan), dies of cancer at 52
- Jan 5 Roland Kayn, German electronic music composer, dies at 77
- Jan 6 Don Tyson, American businessman, founder of Tyson Foods, dies at 80
- Jan 6 Uche Okafor, Nigerian footballer (b. 1967)
- Jan 7 Derek Gardner, British Formula 1 car designer (b. 1931)
- Jan 8 Hans Ulrich Engelmann, German composer (Ophelia), dies at 79
- Jan 8 John Roll, United States Federal Judge (b.1947)
- Jan 8 Thorbjørn Svenssen, Norwegian footballer (b. 1924)
- Jan 8 Vang Pao, charismatic Laotian general who commanded a secret army of his mountain people in a long, losing campaign against Communist insurgents, dies at 81
- Jan 9 Debbie Friedman, American singer-songwriter and arranger of Jewish religious music ("Mi Shebeirach"), dies of pneumonia at 59
- Jan 9 Peter Yates, English film director (Breaking Away, Bullitt), dies at 81
- Jan 10 Bosko Petrovic, Croatian jazz musician, founder of the Zagreb Jazz Quartet, dies at 75
- Jan 10 Cookie Gilchrist, American football fullback (AFL All Star 1962-65; AFL MVP 1962; CFL All Star 1956-60), dies of chronic traumatic encephalopathy at 75
- Jan 10 Liana Alexandra, Romanian pianist and composer, dies from a cerebral hemorrhage at 63
- Jan 10 Margaret Whiting, American singer (It Might As Well Be Spring, Time After Time), dies at 86
- Jan 11 David Nelson, American actor, director, and producer (The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet), dies at 74
- Jan 12 Paul Picerni, American actor (The Untouchables), dies at 88
- Jan 13 Ellen Stewart, American actress, director and founder of La Mama Theatre Group, dies at 91
- Jan 14 Ben Wada, Japanese television producer (NHK), dies at 80
- Jan 14 Trish Keenan, lead vocalist of English band Broadcast (b. 1968)
- Jan 15 Nat Lofthouse, English Footballer (b. 1925)
- Jan 17 Donald "Don" Kirshner, American rock & roll producer known as "The Man With the Golden Ear" (invented bubblegum music), dies at 76
- Jan 18 Sargent Shriver, American politician and activist (Peace Corps), dies at 95
- Jan 19 Ernest McCulloch, Canadian stem cell research pioneer, dies at 84
- Jan 19 Wilfrid Sheed, British-American writer (Boys of Winter; Transatlantic Blues; The House That George Built), dies at 80
- Jan 20 Bruce Gordon, American actor (The Untouchables), dies after long illness at 94
- Jan 20 Reynolds Price, American writer (A Long and Happy Life; Kate Vaiden; Strengthened By a Pale Green Light), dies of complications after a heart attack at 77
- Jan 21 Dennis Oppenheim, American conceptual artist (b.1938)
- Jan 21 E. V. V. Satyanarayana, Indian Telugu Film Director, screenwriter and producer, dies at 54
- Jan 23 Jack LaLanne, American fitness and nutritional expert, dies at 96
- Jan 24 Bernd Eichinger, German film producer and director, dies at 61
- Jan 24 Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Indian khayal (romance) and devotional (bhajan and abhangsad) singer, dies at 88
- Jan 24 Peter Paul Zahl, German left-wing writer and printer (shot two police officers), dies at 66
- Jan 26 Charlie Louvin [Loudermilk], American country singer-songwriter, and guitarist (Louvin Brothers - "The Only Way Out (Is to Walk Over Me)"), dies of cancer at 83
- Jan 26 Gladys Horton, American pop singer (The Marvelettes- "Please Mr. Postman"; "Too Many Fish In The Sea"), dies at 65 [or 66]
- Jan 29 Emanuel Vardi, Israeli-American viola virtuoso and conductor (South Dakota Symphony 1978-82), dies at 95 [1]
- Jan 29 Milton Babbitt, American mathematician, composer of serial and electronic music (Correspondences), and teacher (Princeton; Juilliard), dies at 94
- Jan 30 John Barry [Prendergast], English film score composer (James Bond films; Born Free), dies at 77
- Jan 31 Michael Tolan, American actor (Nurses, Senator), dies at 85
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions