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The Almanac(UPI Newswraps Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Today is Monday, March 27, the 86th day of 2006 with 279 to follow.The moon is waning. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include printmaker Nathaniel Currier, of Currier and Ives, in 1813; German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen, discoverer of X-rays, in 1845; schoolteacher Patty Smith Hill, who wrote the words for Happy Birthday to You, in 1868; photographer Edward Steichen in 1879; architect Mies van der Rohe in 1886; actress Gloria Swanson in 1899; jazz singer Sarah Vaughan in 1924; actor Michael York in 1942 (age 64); filmmaker Quentin Tarantino in 1963 (age 43); and singer Mariah Carey in 1970 (age 36). On this date in history:In 1958, Nikita Khrushchev replaced Nikolai Bulganin as premier of the Soviet Union. In 1964, a powerful earthquake in Alaska killed 117 people. It was the strongest quake to hit North America. In 1977, two Boeing 747 jumbo jets collided and exploded in flames on a foggy runway in the Canary Islands, killing 577 people in the worst aviation disaster in history. In 1980, a Norwegian oil platform capsized during a storm in the North Sea, killing 123 people. In 1990, Soviet soldiers dragged Lithuanian army deserters from a hospital in Vilnius and took over the headquarters of Lithuania's independent Communist Party in an effort to reassert Moscow's control over the dissident Baltic republic. In 1992, an appeals court in West Palm Beach, Fla., refused to declare dead a baby girl born without a brain, despite her parents' anguished plea to allow her vital organs to be donated to help save other infants. In 1996, an Israeli court convicted Yigal Amir of assassinating Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and sentenced him to life in prison. In 1998, Russia got a new premier when President Boris Yeltsin nominated Sergei Kiriyenko, 35, to replace fired Premier Viktor Chernomyrdin. In 2002, President George W. Bush signed a campaign finance reform bill into law. Also in 2002, a suicide bomber killed himself and 19 Israelis attending a Passover meal at a hotel in Netanya. More than 100 others were injured. In 2003, President George W. Bush, seeking to calm concerns that the war in Iraq is proving tougher than expected after its first week, said the United States and Britain will battle Saddam Hussein's forces however long it takes to win. Also in 2003, health officials said 1,408 people in 14 countries had been stricken with severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and 53 had died, including at least 34 in China. In 2004, NASA reported its unmanned experimental hypersonic plane reached about 5,000 mph in a test flight -- more than seven times the speed of sound. In 2005, ailing Pope John Paul II appeared at his apartment window before an Easter crowd in St. Peter's Square but was unable to speak. He silently blessed thousands of pilgrims who wept and cheered. Also in 2005, about 1 million chanting demonstrators converged on Taiwan's capital to protest China's Anti-Secession Law. A thought for the day: Eden Phillpotts said, "The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper."Today is Tuesday, March 28, the 87th day of 2006 with 278 to follow.The moon is waning. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include Russian author Maxim Gorky in 1868; brewers Frederick Pabst in 1836 and August Anheuser Busch Jr. in 1899; famed Hollywood agent Irving Swifty Lazar in 1907; Edmund Muskie, the 1968 Democratic vice presidential candidate, in 1914; child star Freddie Bartholomew in 1924; Zbigniew Brzezinski, Carter administration national security adviser, in 1928 (age 78); actors Dirk Bogarde in 1921, Conchata Ferrell in 1943 (age 63), Ken Howard in 1944 (age 62) and Dianne Wiest in 1948 (age 58); and country singer Reba McEntire in 1954 (age 52 ). On this date in history:In 1797, Nathaniel Briggs was awarded a patent for the first washing machine. In 1881, P.T. Barnum and James A. Bailey merged their circuses to form The Greatest Show on Earth. In 1939, Madrid surrendered to the nationalist forces of Generalissimo Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War. In 1968, the counterculture musical Hair opened on Broadway. In 1969, Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th president of the United States, died in Washington at age 78. In 1979, a failure in the cooling system at the nuclear power plant on Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania caused a near meltdown. It was the worst accident at a U.S. civilian nuclear facility. In 1991, just days before the 10th anniversary of the attempt on his life, former President Ronald Reagan endorsed a 7-day waiting period for handgun purchases, reversing his earlier opposition. In 1993, Russian President Boris Yeltsin survived an impeachment vote by the Congress of People's Deputies. Also in 1993, French voters rejected the ruling Socialists and gave the conservative alliance a crushing majority in legislative elections. In 1994, pre-election clashes between Zulu nationalists, the ANC and police claimed 53 lives in Johannesburg, South Africa. In 1996, the U.S. Congress approved the presidential line-item veto. In 1997, an Italian warship collided with an Albanian ship crowded with refugees, causing an undetermined number of deaths. In 2002, the U.S. Justice Department said it would seek the death penalty against Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person charged at the time as a co-conspirator in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. In 2003, a Turkish student surrendered after hijacking an Istanbul-to-Ankara jetliner with about 200 people aboard. No one was hurt. In 2004, more than 40 people were reported killed in a series of bombings and gun battles in the central Asian nation of Uzbekistan. In 2005, a massive earthquake jolted the western coast of Sumatra reportedly killing as many as 3,000 people and destroying hundreds of buildings. A thought for the day: Seneca wrote, "What difference does it make how much you have? What you do not have amounts to much more."Today is Wednesday, March 29, the 88th day of 2006 with 277 to follow.The moon is new. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include John Tyler, 10th president of the United States, in 1790; baseball pitching legend Cy Young in 1867; Eugene McCarthy, the Minnesota Democrat whose 1968 presidential campaign focused U.S. opposition to the Vietnam War, in 1916; actress/singer Pearl Bailey, and Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton, both in 1918; former British Prime Minister John Major and actor Eric Idle, both in 1943 (age 63); former pro basketball player Walt Frazier in 1945 (age 61); Karen Ann Quinlan, who became the focus of arguments over the right to die when she fell into an irreversible coma, in 1954; gymnast Kurt Thomas in 1956 (age 50); actors Christopher Lambert in 1957 (age 49) and Lucy Lawless in 1968 (age 38); and tennis star Jennifer Capriati in 1976 (age 30). On this date in history:In 1812, the first wedding was performed in the White House. Mrs. Lucy Payne Washington, sister-in-law of President James Madison, married Supreme Court Justice Thomas Dodd. In 1971, Lt. William Calley was found guilty in the killing of 22 civilians in Vietnam, an event known as the My Lai massacre. Also in 1971, cult leader Charles Manson and three followers were sentenced to death in the Tate-Labianca slayings in Los Angeles. The death sentence was later found to be unconstitutional and the four were re-sentenced to life in prison. In 1973, the last U.S. troops left South Vietnam and the last U.S. prisoners of war acknowledged by the North Vietnamese government were freed. In 1979, the House Select Committee on Assassinations released its final report on the assassinations of President John Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. In 1991, six-time Italian Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti quit, paving the way for the country's 50th government since World War II. In 1994, the Bosnian Serbs stepped up their bombardment of Gorazde, 35 miles southeast of Sarajevo and one of the U.N.-designated safe areas. In 1995, the U.S. House of Representatives rejected legislation that would have set term limits for members of Congress. In 1996, the House Ethics Committee said Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., violated House rules by having close dealings with a wealthy GOP donor who had business interests affected by congressional legislation. It was the third time in two months the panel had notified Gingrich that he had broken the rules. In 2003, Iraq introduced a new tactic in its war with the U.S.-led coalition when a suicide bomber blew up his taxi and killed four U.S. soldiers near Najaf. Also in 2003, a Newsweek poll, published 10 days after the start of the Iraq war, showed 74 percent of Americans thought the Bush administration had a well thought-out military plan. Polls in other countries revealed as lot of opposition, however, and there were anti-war demonstrations around the world. In 2004, a partially declassified report released by the Pentagon says the United States is unprepared for a biological attack, such as the anthrax campaign in 2001. Also in 2004, Peter Ustinov, the legendary entertainer and two-time Oscar winner, died of heart failure in Switzerland at the age of 82. In 2005, an independent panel investigating the U.N. Iraq Oil-for-Food Program cleared U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan of any wrongdoing but faulted his son and top aides. A thought for the day: Martin Luther King Jr. said, "We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."Today is Thursday, March 30, the 89th day of 2006 with 276 to follow.The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include Spanish painter Francisco Jose de Goya in 1746; English author Anna Sewell (Black Beauty) in 1820; English social reformer Charles Booth in 1840; Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh in 1853; Irish dramatist Sean O'Casey in 1880; former CIA Director Richard Helms in 1913; singer Frankie Laine also in 1913 (age 93); TV host Peter Marshall in 1927 (age 79); actors Richard Dysart in 1929 (age 77), John Astin in 1930 (age 76) and Warren Beatty in 1937 (age 69); British blues/rock guitarist Eric Clapton in 1945 (age 61); actor Paul Reiser in 1957 (age 49); and singers Hammer in 1963 (age 43), Tracy Chapman in 1964 (age 42) and Celine Dion in 1968 (age 38). On this date in history:In 1842, Dr. Crawford Long became the first physician to use anesthetic (ether) in surgery. In 1867, U.S. Secretary of State William Seward reached an agreement with Russia for the purchase of Alaska for $7.2 million in gold. In 1870, following its ratification by the requisite three-fourths of the states, the 15th Amendment, granting African-American men the right to vote was formally adopted into the U.S. Constitution. In 1923, the Cunard liner Laconia arrived in New York City, becoming the first passenger ship to circumnavigate the world, a cruise of 130 days. In 1975, the South Vietnamese city of Da Nang fell to North Vietnamese forces. In 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. White House press secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent and a Washington police officer also were wounded in the incident outside a Washington hotel. Hinckley was later found not guilty by reason of insanity. In 1990, Idaho Gov. Cecil Andrus vetoed a restrictive abortion bill, ending the anti-abortion forces' goal at that time of giving Supreme Court a chance to overturn Roe vs. Wade. In 1993, a two-state custody battle over a 2-year-old girl took a dramatic turn when the Michigan Court of Appeals ordered the child who'd been living with her custodial parents in Michigan since shortly after birth returned to her biological parents in Iowa. In 1995, the compromise don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue policy allowing homosexuals to serve in the military under certain conditions was struck down by a federal judge in New York as unconstitutional. In 1997, House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., said he warned Chinese leaders that the United States would intervene militarily if China attacked Taiwan. In 1998, Armenian Premier Robert Kocharian was elected president in a run-off election in the former Soviet republic. In 1999, a jury in Oregon awarded $81 million in damages to the family of a smoker who had died from lung cancer. The plaintiff in the case, tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris, promised to appeal. A state judge later reduced the punitive portion of the judgment to $32 million. In 2003, an Iraqi spokesman said that 4,000 volunteers from 23 countries were ready to carry out suicide attacks against the U.S.-led coalition. In 2004, President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney offered to appear jointly before the congressional 9/11 commission hearings on the 2001 terror attacks. In 2005, Vatican officials said the ailing Pope John Paul II had a nasal feeding tube inserted after reportedly having trouble swallowing. The next day the 84-year-old pontiff was given the last rites of the Roman Catholic Church. A thought for the day: it was Mark Twain who said, "Principles have no real force except when one is well-fed."Today is Friday, March 31, the 90th day of 2006 with 275 to follow.The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include French philosopher Rene Descartes in 1596; Austrian composer Franz Joseph Haydn in 1732; German chemist Robert Bunsen, inventor of the Bunsen gas burner, in 1811; boxer Jack Johnson, the first black to hold the heavyweight title, in 1878; comedian Henry Morgan in 1915; actor/singer Richard Kiley in 1922; author and motivational speaker Leo Buscaglia in 1925; United Farm Workers President Cesar Chavez in 1927; actor William Daniels, also in 1927 (age 79); former National Hockey League star Gordie Howe in 1928 (age 78); fashion designer Liz Claiborne in 1929 (age 77); author John Jakes in 1932 (age 74); actress Shirley Jones in 1934 (age 72); trumpeter/bandleader Herb Alpert in 1935 (age 71); actors Richard Chamberlain in 1935 (age 71), Christopher Walken in 1943 (age 63), Gabe Kaplan in 1946 (age 60), and Rhea Perlman in 1948 (age 58); former Vice President Al Gore Jr. also in 1948 (age 58); and actors Ed Marinaro in 1950 (age 56) and Ewan McGregor in 1971 (age 35). On this date in history:In 1889, the Eiffel Tower was dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by its designer, Gustave Eiffel, during the Universal Exhibition of Arts and Manufacturers. In 1948, Congress passed the Marshall Aid Act, a plan to rehabilitate war-ravaged Europe. In 1954, the U.S. Air Force Academy was established at Colorado Springs, Colo. In 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Chinese-occupied Tibet and was granted political asylum in India. In 1968, President Lyndon Johnson announced he would not seek re-election and simultaneously ordered suspension of U.S. bombing of North Vietnam. In 1971, Lt. William Calley was sentenced to life imprisonment for his part in the deaths of 22 Vietnamese civilians in what was called the My Lai massacre. In 1987, the U.S. State Department ordered home all 28 remaining U.S. Marine guards at the Moscow embassy after two Marines were charged with espionage. In 1991, the Warsaw Pact formally ended as Soviet commanders surrendered their powers in an agreement between pact members and the Soviet Union. In 1992, the U.N. Security Council voted to impose air traffic and weapons sanctions against Libya for not surrendering six men wanted by the United States, Britain and France in the bombings of a U.S. jetliner and a French plane. In 1994, a state of emergency was declared in the South African Zulu homeland of KwaZulu following deadly fighting in the weeks before the country's first universal-suffrage elections. Also in 1994, the PLO resumed talks with Israel on the implementation of Palestinian self-rule in the occupied territories. In 1995, a federal judge ordered major league baseball owners to reinstate the contract that was in effect before the players' strike began. In 1998, the U.N. Security Council voted to impose an arms embargo on Yugoslavia after unrest in the Serbian province of Kosovo turned violent. In 1999, as the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia continued, three U.S. soldiers -- members of the peacekeeping forces in Macedonia in the process of withdrawing -- were captured by Serb troops near the Yugoslav-Macedonia border. In 2001, Serbian police and security forces attempted to arrest former President Slobodan Milosevic at his home in Belgrade on charges of corruption while in office. Supporters massed at the compound prevented entry by government forces, sparking a stand-off that lasted until the next day when Milosevic was taken into custody peacefully. In 2003, Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri called on U.S. and British forces to withdraw immediately from Iraq because Iraqis were determined to inflict the final defeat. In 2004, OPEC ministers agreed to cut crude oil production despite concerns in some nations over oil prices which were near their highest level in 13 years. Also in 2004, the International Court of Justice ruled the United States breached the rights of 51 Mexicans on death row by not telling them they had consular access. In 2005, Terri Schiavo, a 41-year-old Florida woman in a persistent vegetative state since 1990, died 14 days after removal of her feeding tube amid a heart-wrenching legal struggle over her fate reaching all the way to the White House and the U.S. Supreme Court. A thought for the day: J.W. Fulbright said, "In a democracy dissent is an act of faith. Like medicine, the test of its value is not in its taste, but in its effects."Today is Saturday, April 1, the 91st day of 2006 with 274 to follow.This is April Fools' Day. The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include German military theorist Prince Otto von Bismarck in 1815; Italian pianist and composer Ferruccio Busoni in 1866; Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff in 1873; actors Lon Chaney Sr. in 1883 and Wallace Beery in 1886; actor Toshiro Mifune in 1920 (age 86); author William Manchester (Death of a President) in 1922 (age 84); actresses/singers Jane Powell in 1928 (age 78) and Debbie Reynolds in 1932 (age 74); and actresses Ali McGraw in 1938 (age 68) and Annette O'Toole in 1953 (age 53). On this date in history:In 1918, toward the end of World War I, the Royal Air Force was founded. Two months later, Britain began bombing industrial targets in Germany from bases in France. In 1924, Adolf Hitler was sent to prison for five years after failing in his first effort to take over Germany by force, the unsuccessful Beer Hall Putsch in the German state of Bavaria. In 1945, U.S. forces swarmed ashore on the Japanese island of Okinawa, to begin what would be one of the longest and bloodiest battles of World War II. In 1979, Iran declared itself an Islamic Republic. In 1982, the United States formally transferred control of the Panama Canal Zone to the government of Panama. In 1986, world oil prices dipped below $10 a barrel. In 1991, Moscow food stores closed to curb panic buying in anticipation of government price increases. In 1992, President George H.W. Bush announced a $24 billion aid package to the former Soviet republics. In 1993, the FCC ordered the nation's cable television industry to cut its basic monthly rates by about 10 percent. In 1996, an outbreak of mad cow disease forced Britain to plan the mass slaughter of cows. In 1997, in the first of two reports, the U.S. Justice Department concluded the FBI had erred seriously in its investigation into the July 1996 bombing at Olympic Park in Atlanta. In 1998, a U.S. judge dismissed the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Paula Jones against President Bill Clinton. In 1999, Canada created a new territory, Nunavut, as a means of providing autonomy for the Inuit people. In 2000, the mediator in the Microsoft antitrust case said the software giant and the government had abandoned talks to settle the case. In 2001, a U.S. Navy spy plane collided with a Chinese jetfighter off the coast of China. The Chinese plane crashed into the ocean; the damaged U.S. plane landed on the Chinese island of Hainan, where its 24 crewmembers were held for 11 days. In 2002, the United States and Pakistan announced the capture of a top al-Qaida leader, a major break in their war on terrorism. In 2003, U.S. Marines rescued Pfc. Jessica Lynch, 19, who had been held prisoner in Iraq since an ambush on March 23. Also in 2003, figures released on April 1 listed 46 U.S. military personnel dead in Iraq, seven captured and 16 missing. The British reported 27 dead. In 2004, four U.S. civilian contractors were killed and mutilated by Iraqi insurgents after their vehicles were stopped in Falluja. Also in 2004, suspected Ohio highway sniper Chares McCoy was indicted by a grand jury on 24 counts, including aggravated murder. And, a new poll says most Americans agree with former White House counter-terrorism chief Richard Clarke's criticism of President George W. Bush on terrorism but politics was widely seen as the motivating force behind the criticism. In 2005, Samuel Berger, national security adviser to President Bill Clinton, pleaded guilty to destroying classified documents he admitted removing from the National Archives. Also in 2005, all nine people aboard an Australian navy helicopter on a relief mission to earthquake-struck Indonesia died when the chopper crashed. A thought for the day: Marcel Marceau said, "It's good to shut up sometimes."Today is Sunday, April 2, the 92nd day of 2006 with 273 to follow.Daylight saving time begins in the United States. The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The evening stars are Mars and Saturn. Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include Charlemagne, founder of the Holy Roman Empire, in 742; Italian adventurer Giacomo Casanova in 1725; Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen in 1805; French sculptor Frederic Bartholdi, creator of the Statue of Liberty, in 1834; French novelist Emile Zola in 1840; surrealist artist Max Ernst in 1891; actors Buddy Ebsen in 1908; Alec Guinness in 1914 and Jack Webb in 1920; Australian auto racer Jack Brabham in 1926; singer/songwriters Marvin Gaye in 1939 and Leon Russell in 1941 (age 65); actress Linda Hunt in 1945 (age 61); literary and cultural critic Camille Paglia and country singer Emmylou Harris, both in 1947 (age 59); actress Pamela Reed in 1953 (age 53); comedian Dana Carvey in 1955 (age 51); and actor Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) in 1961 (age 45). On this date in history:In 1513, Ponce De Leon of Spain landed at what's now St. Augustine, Fla., to search for the Fountain of Youth. In 1792, Congress passed legislation authorizing the U.S. Mint to coin money, all to be inscribed with the Latin words E Pluribus Unum, a motto meaning Out of Many, One. In 1863, rioting erupted in the Confederate capital of Richmond, Va., sparked by an angry crowd's demand for bread at a bakery. In 1877, the first White House Easter Egg Roll was held. In 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany. Also in 1917, Jeannette Rankin, a representative from Montana, took her seat as the first woman elected to Congress. In 1932, Charles Lindbergh left $50,000 in bills in a New York City cemetery in hope of regaining his kidnapped son. The infant was later found dead. (Bruno Hauptmann subsequently was found guilty of kidnapping and murdering the Lindbergh child and was executed.) In 1982, Argentine troops stormed the Falkland Islands, overwhelming the small British Royal Marine unit stationed there. In 1987, the Senate overrode a Reagan veto by one vote to enact a highway bill that authorized states to raise the speed limit to 65 mph from 55 mph in certain areas. In 1991, Iraq crushed month-long insurgencies by northern Kurds and southern Shiite Muslims. Also in 1991, a 30-year-old woman claimed she had been raped three days earlier by William Kennedy Smith at the Kennedy family estate in Palm Beach, Fla. (Smith would later be acquitted by a jury.) In 1992, a New York jury convicted mob boss John Gotti in five killings, racketeering and other charges. In 1993, President Bill Clinton held a daylong forest conference in Portland, Ore. Also in 1993, thousands of British commuters turned to their cars or stayed home as the staff of British Rail staged a 24-hour national strike. In 1995, an explosion in the city of Gaza killed eight people, including a leader of the military wing of Hamas. In 2000, Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi suffered a stroke that left him comatose. He later died. In 2001, the Senate passed a campaign reform bill that would ban the large unregulared political contributions known as soft money. In 2003, the White House confirmed that one of the 28 prisoners captured last week in Pakistan was Osama bin Laden's key lieutenant, Abu Zubaydah. In 2004, the Labor Department announced that 308,000 jobs had been added in March, the biggest 1-month increase in four years. Unemployment was up slightly, to 5.7 percent. Also in 2004, a New York judge cited intense media pressure against a juror as he declared a mistrial in the high profile six-month proceeding against Tyco executives Dennis Kozlowski and Mark Swartz. In 2005, Pope John Paul II, head of the Roman Catholic church for more than a quarter century, died at his Vatican apartment. The 84-year-old pontiff suffered in his final days from a urinary tract infection and a bacterial infection that led to organ failure. A thought for the day: President John Kennedy said, "The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth." |