Birthday

Teddy Roosevelt slept here, and so did Jimmy Carter . It's the landmark Renaissance Blackstone Hotel Chicago , which honors U.S. presidents and President's Day with a quirky room discount: If you share your birthday with a president, any president, pay your age for a night's stay -- whether you're 35 or 105. The deal: I found a list of birthdays for the 44 men who have served as president. (I share a birthday with Harry Truman.) You have to stay the night of your birthday to take advantage of the deal.

Matt Kenseth won on his 41st birthday for his new Joe Gibbs Racing team, barely holding off Kasey Kahne in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series for his third victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday. Kenseth earned the 25th victory of his career in only his third start in the JGR Toyota after leaving Roush Fenway Racing in the off-season. He took the lead away from Kahne out of a late restart and fended off Kahne's Chevrolet over the final laps, adding another trophy to his Las Vegas victories in 2003 and 2004.

The storied Raffles Hotel in Singapore , which over the decades has welcomed the raffish (Charlie Chaplin) and the revered (Queen Elizabeth II), is celebrating its 125 th birthday on Sept. 16.  Those with deep pockets who want to join the festivities can book Raffles' "Time to Celebrate" luxury package (for $40K), which includes two nights in the Presidential Suite, airport transfers in the hotel Bentley, a pair of engraved Jaeger-LeCoultre commemorative watches and two tickets to the fancy dress dinner on Saturday or dinner for two in the Bar & Billiard Room.

SAN DIEGO--A student at Ramona High School in northeast San Diego County died Wednesday hours after being hit in the chest with a ball, officials said. The 16-year-old sophomore was playing over-the-line, a softball-like sport, during a PE class when he was struck by a line drive. He later collapsed and was taken to a local hospital, where he was declared dead. His name has not been released. Principal Tony Newman said the ball being used is even softer than a normal softball.

Once in a great while, you know a phone call is going to be enjoyable long before you reach for the handset. Could you have a bad phone call when it's directed to Los Angeles' greatest treasure? Vin Scully picks up his cell, sees my name flash on his screen and is giving me the warmest of greetings long before I can even get around to the reason for the call: Happy 85th birthday, Vin. Scully has been receiving phone calls all day Thursday at the Los Angeles home he shares with his wife, Sandra.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Dozens of Gov. Jerry Brown's friends and campaign donors along with state business officials were off to Beijing on Sunday for the beginning of a weeklong trade mission -- but the governor was not among them. Brown, who turns 75, opted instead to spend his birthday in California with his wife, Anne. They plan to set out Monday to join the more than seven dozen others in the delegation. Earlier this week, Brown said he had originally planned to celebrate his milestone birthday with "a big party" at the Governor's Mansion in Sacramento, but that the logistics of the China trip and his schedule had overwhelmed that idea.

There's no place like home for President Obama, especially on his birthday. Air Force One took off Wednesday afternoon for Chicago, where Obama planned to celebrate his 49th birthday at a dinner with friends, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said. "I think he is looking forward to spending the night in his house for a change," Gibbs added. He'll be home alone (well, as alone as someone with a full Secret Service detail can be). First Lady Michelle Obama will be across the Atlantic with daughter Sasha this week on a trip to Spain.

This day marks a time of relaxation for Kobe Bryant. It's rare for him to do that. He's used to sleeping three to four hours per night. Even when the NBA season ended, Bryant immediately began preparing for the London Olympics. After earning his second gold medal, he then went on a week-long trip to China to promote his Nike shoes and hold clinics. After such a busy schedule, Bryant mentioned on his Facebook page that he's taking some time off. He's planning to help his 9-year-old daughter, Natalia, learn how to surf this week by just "supervising.

Harry Styles had a cheeky 19th birthday bash in London over the weekend -- the kind with photographic evidence that definitely isn't safe for work. The One Direction boy bander celebrated at the Alibi Club in the British capital, where his friend DJ Nick "Grimmy" Grimshaw set up an appearance with a stripper, bizarrely complete with nunchucks and all. (Apparently, she forgot her baton.) "Grimmy said I had to sit there because he was bringing a cake," the singer told the Sun during the band's tour rehearsal.