On this date in history

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Today is Thursday, Nov. 1, the 305th day of 2007 with 60 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Mars and Saturn. The evening stars are Uranus, Neptune and Jupiter.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Scorpio. They include(PRASADV1-ts4ms);( Jimbo-ts4ms); journalist and novelist Stephen Crane in 1871; sportswriter/poet Grantland Rice and Polish author Sholem Asch, both in 1880; journalist James Kilpatrick in 1920 (age 87); actress Betsy Palmer in 1926 (age 81); golfer Gary Player in 1935 (age 72); publisher Larry Flynt in 1942 (age 65); country singer Lyle Lovett in 1957 (age 50); and actresses Rachel Ticotin in 1958 (age 49) and Jenny McCarthy in 1972 (age 35).




On this date in history:

In 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, one of Italian artist Michelangelo's finest works, was exhibited to the public for the first time.

In 1755, an earthquake in Lisbon, Portugal, killed 60,000 people.

In 1765, American colonists were furious over the new British Stamp Act, termed "taxation without representation" and, ultimately, a major cause of the revolution.

In 1800, U.S. President John Adams and his family moved into the newly built White House as Washington became the new U.S. capital.

In 1918, the Hapsburg monarchy of Austria-Hungary was dissolved. Vienna became the capital of Austria and Budapest the capital of Hungary.

In 1922, following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Turkey became a republic.

In 1950, two Puerto Rican nationalists tried to force their way into Blair House in Washington in an attempt to assassinate U.S. President Harry Truman.

In 1986, a warehouse fire in Basel, Switzerland, triggered massive chemical pollution of the Rhine River in Switzerland, France, West Germany and the Netherlands.

In 1990, McDonald's, under pressure from environmental groups, said it would replace plastic food containers with paper.

In 1991, the Russian Congress of People's Deputies granted Boris Yeltsin sweeping powers to launch and direct radical economic reforms in Russia.

In 1993, the Columbia completed a 14-day flight, the longest mission in U.S. space shuttle history.

Also in 1993, the European Community's treaty on European unity took effect.

In 2002, a powerful earthquake and more than 30 aftershocks shook Italy's remote Molise region, killing at least 29.

In 2003, frightened parents in Baghdad kept their children home from school amid warnings of "a day of resistance" by rebels loyal to Saddam Hussein.

In 2005, U.S. President George Bush asked Congress for $7.1 billion to prepare the nation for a possible pandemic flu outbreak.

In 2006, China and Vietnam prepared for Typhoon Cimaron that bore down with 100-mph winds. The storm hit the northern Philippines island of Luzon earlier, killing 13 and inflicting heavy damage with high winds, floods and landslides.

Also in 2006, the North Korean government said its decision to resume nuclear disarmament talks was based on the United States easing economic sanctions.


A thought for the day: Eubie Blake, who lived to be 100, reportedly said, "If I'd known I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself."

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Today is Friday, Nov. 2, the 306th day of 2006 with 59 to follow.

The moon is waning. The morning stars are Mercury, Venus, Mars and Saturn. The evening stars are Uranus, Neptune and Jupiter.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Scorpio. They include frontiersman Daniel Boone in 1734; Marie Antoinette, queen of France, in 1755; U.S. President James Polk in 1795; U.S. President Warren G. Harding in 1865; astronomer Harlow Shapley, a pioneer in studies of the Milky Way, in 1885; trumpeter Bunny Berigan in 1908; actors Burt Lancaster in 1913 and Ray Walston in 1914; Australian tennis player Ken Rosewall in 1934 (age 73); columnist, commentator and presidential candidate Pat Buchanan in 1938 (age 69); author Shere Hite and actress Stefanie Powers, both in 1942 (age 65); and singer k.d. lang in 1961 (age 46).


On this date in history:

In 1889, North and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states of the union.

In 1917, British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour proposed a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Israel became a reality 31 years later.

In 1920, in the first significant news broadcast, KDKA in Pittsburgh reported the U.S. presidential election results for Warren G. Harding and James Cox.

In 1947, Howard Hughes built and piloted the world's largest airplane, the 200-ton flying boat Spruce Goose, on its only flight, at Long Beach, Calif. The Goose remained airborne for just less than 1 mile.

In 1962, U.S. President John Kennedy announced that Soviet missile bases in Cuba were being dismantled.

In 1983, U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed the bill establishing a national holiday to mark the birthday anniversary of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

In 1986, U.S. hostage David Jacobsen was released in Beirut after 17 months. Later disclosures showed his freedom was a trade for U.S. arms sent to Iran.

In 1992, legendary filmmaker Hal Roach died at age 100. He was credited with discovering the comedy team of Laurel and Hardy and producing the "Our Gang" comedies.

Also in 1992, HIV-infected Earvin "Magic" Johnson retired from professional basketball "for good."

In 1993, a new series of wildfires swept along the Southern California coast, destroying more than 300 homes in the exclusive community of Malibu.

In 1995, the Justice Department indicted the Japanese-owned Daiwa Bank on conspiracy and fraud charges linked to an illegal bond-trading scheme.

In 1996, Britain announced a plan to ban ownership of large-caliber handguns.

In 2000, five days before the election, George W. Bush, the Republican nominee for president, admitted he had been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in 1976 near the family home in Maine.

In 2001, the Labor Department announced that October unemployment had jumped to 5.4 percent, highest in five years and that 415,000 non-farm jobs had been lost, highest monthly figure since 1980.

In 2002, new violence flared in Indian-administered Kashmir leaving several people dead, including a politician killed when his motorcade was ambushed.

In 2003, at least 13 U.S. soldiers were killed and about 20 wounded in Iraq when a missile downed a helicopter carrying members of the 82nd Airborne Division near Fallujah.

In 2004, U.S. President George W. Bush was re-elected in a close race with Democrat John Kerry.

Also in 2004, Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, who received death threats because of his film about violence against Islamic women, was slain as he rode his bicycle through an Amsterdam park.

In 2005, thousands of protesters gathered in Argentina near the site of an upcoming summit to denounce the imminent arrival of U.S. President George Bush.

In 2006, a foiled British terror plot to blow up 10 passenger airplanes with liquid bombs was meant to occur over U.S. cities, a senior FBI official said.

Also in 2006, Ted Haggard, a prominent Colorado pastor and rising conservative political star, denied charges he paid a gay prostitute for sex. He later was fired by the 14,000-member church he founded.

A thought for the day: after winning the Masters tournament, golfer Tiger Woods said, "I'm definitely not a pioneer. That's for people like Jackie Robinson and Lee Elder. I'm just a product of their hard work."

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:Today is Saturday, Nov. 3, the 307th day of 2006 with 58 to follow.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Saturn and Mars. The evening stars are Jupiter, Mercury, Pluto, Venus, Uranus and Neptune.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Scorpio. They include(dogfeet-ts4ms) early Texas leader Stephen Austin, for whom the state capital is named, in 1793; poet William Cullen Bryant in 1794; Chicago Bears legend Bronislaw "Bronko" Nagurski in 1908; actor Charles Bronson in 1922; conductor/composer John Barry, entertainer Ken Berry and former Massachusetts governor and 1986 Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis, all in 1933 (age 74); comedian Roseanne Barr in 1952 (age 55); comedian Dennis Miller and actress Kate Capshaw, both in 1953 (age 54); and actress Kathy Kinney ("The Drew Carey Show") in 1954 (age 53).




On this date in history:

In 1783, with American independence established, Congress ordered the Continental Army demobilized.

In 1803, with the support of the U.S. government, Panama issued a declaration of independence from Colombia.

In 1928, Mickey Mouse appeared for the first time, with Walt Disney doing the squeaky voice of his soon-to-be-famous creation, in "Steamboat Willie," the first fully synchronized sound cartoon produced.

In 1948, the Chicago Daily Tribune printed the famously premature (and incorrect) headline, "Dewey defeats Truman."

In 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first animal into space -- a dog named Laika -- aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft.

In 1964, Lyndon Johnson was elected U.S. president with a margin larger than in any previous presidential election, defeating Republican Barry Goldwater.

In 1976, former Democratic Gov. Jimmy Carter of Georgia was elected the 39th U.S. president, defeating Republican incumbent Gerald Ford.

In 1979, five members of the Communist Workers Party, participating in a "Death to the Klan" rally in Greensboro, N.C., were shot to death by a group of Klansmen and neo-Nazis. Seven others were wounded.

In 1984, the cremation of assassinated Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi drew world leaders to New Delhi.

In 1992, Democrat Bill Clinton, the governor of Arkansas, defeated incumbent Republican President George Bush in the race for president of the United States.

In 1995, Typhoon Angela killed more than 700 people in the northern Philippines.

In 2001, Osama bin Laden, in a taped message, called the U.S.-led attack on Afghanistan a war against Islam.

Also in 2001, anthrax spores were confirmed in India and Pakistan and on additional postal equipment in the United States.

In 2002, North Korea was reported ready to negotiate its newly disclosed nuclear weapons program with the United States, including the dismantling of its uranium-enrichment facilities.

In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the case of Alabama's Chief Justice Roy Moore who wanted to keep a Ten Commandments monument in that state's judicial building.

In 2004, California voters approved the creation of a $3 billion embryonic stem cell research effort over the next decade.

Also in 2004, Hamid Karzai was officially declared the winner in Afghanistan's first presidential election.

In 2006, Katherine Jefferts Schori was installed as the first female presiding bishop of the U.S. Episcopal Church.

Also in 2006, Taipei protesters demanded the ouster of Taiwan President Chen Shui-Bian whose wife and former aides were accused of misusing state funds.


A thought for the day: in his second inaugural address, U.S. President Bill Clinton said, "Government is not the problem and government is not the solution. We, the American people, we are the solution."

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Today is Sunday, Nov. 4, the 308th day of 2007 with 57 to follow.

Daylight saving time ends in the United States.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Scorpio. They include (crwisconsin-ts4ms); humorist Will Rogers in 1879; reporter Walter Cronkite in 1916 (age 91); actors Art Carney in 1918, Martin Balsam in 1919 and Loretta Swit in 1937 (age 70); U.S. first lady Laura Bush in 1946 (age 61); controversial photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in 1946; actors Markie Post in 1950 (age 57), Ralph Macchio ("The Karate Kid") in 1961 (age 46), and actor Matthew McConaughey and singer/actor/songwriter Sean "Puffy" Combs, both in 1969 (age 36).



On this date in history:

In 1922, British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of ancient Egypt's child-king, Tutankhamen.

In 1952, Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected president, ending 20 years of Democratic administrations.

In 1956, Soviet forces entered Budapest to crush the anti-communist revolt in Hungary.

In 1979, Iranian militants seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, taking some 90 people hostage, 63 of them Americans.

In 1980, Republican Ronald Reagan was elected the 40th U.S. president in a landslide victory over incumbent Jimmy Carter.

In 1990, renowned singer/actress Mary Martin died at age 76.

In 1991, Imelda Marcos, former first lady of the Philippines, returned home, ending more than five years of exile in the United States.

In 1993, Canadian Liberal Party leader Jean Chretien was sworn in as prime minister.

In 1994, the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to withdraw the remaining 17,000 U.N. troops from Somalia by mid-March 1995.

In 1995, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, 73, was assassinated by a Jewish extremist following a peace rally in Tel Aviv.

In 2001, intense bombing by U.S.-led forces pounded the Afghan capital of Kabul while U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, on a tour of the region, told reporters that strikes on Taliban targets were showing "measurable progress."

In 2002, Roman Catholic Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston apologized for assigning priests who may have been sexually abusive to parishes where they continued to have access to children.

In 2003, the elevation of a gay Episcopal priest to bishop prompted worldwide opposition, including a remark from a Kenya cleric: "The devil has clearly entered our church."

In 2004, medical sources in Paris confirmed that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was brain dead. However, doctors denied they had removed Arafat from life support.

Also in 2004, U.S. Army reservists and guardsmen in Iraq said they saw looters make off with truckload of explosives from al-Qaqaa after the fall of Baghdad.

In 2005, protests turned violent at the Summit of the Americas in Argentina where demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails at security. However, thousands of protesters were peaceful during a meeting of 34 world leaders, including U.S. President George Bush.

In 2006, security was tight in Baghdad and nearby Iraqi provinces in anticipation of a death sentence for toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. Saddam was expected to be found guilty in an upcoming verdict of crimes against humanity.

Also in 2006, six Arab nations announced plans to pursue nuclear energy. They include Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates.


A thought for the day: humorist Will Rogers said, "My forefathers didn't come over on the Mayflower but they met the boat."

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Today is Friday, Nov. 9, the 313th day of 2007. There are 52 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Nov. 9, 1965, the great Northeast blackout happened as a series of power failures lasting up to 13 1/2 hours left 30 million people in seven states and part of Canada without electricity.

On this date:

In 1872, fire destroyed nearly 800 buildings in Boston.

In 1918, it was announced that Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm II would abdicate. He then fled to the Netherlands.

In 1935, United Mine Workers president John L. Lewis and other labor leaders formed the Committee for Industrial Organization (later Congress of Industrial Organizations).

In 1938, Nazis looted and burned synagogues as well as Jewish-owned stores and houses in Germany and Austria in what became known as "Kristallnacht."

In 1953, author-poet Dylan Thomas died in New York at age 39.

In 1963, twin disasters struck Japan as some 450 miners were killed in a coal-dust explosion, and about 160 people died in a train crash.

In 1967, a Saturn V rocket carrying an unmanned Apollo spacecraft blasted off from Cape Kennedy on a successful test flight.

In 1976, the U.N. General Assembly approved resolutions condemning apartheid in South Africa, including one characterizing the white-ruled government as "illegitimate."

In 1986, Israel revealed it was holding Mordechai Vanunu, a former nuclear technician who had vanished after providing information to a British newspaper about Israel's nuclear weapons program. (Vanunu was convicted of treason and served 18 years in prison.)

In 1989, communist East Germany threw open its borders, allowing citizens to travel freely to the West; joyous Germans danced atop the Berlin Wall.

Ten years ago: A Boeing 707 jetliner carrying first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton was forced to return to Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington after a sensor indicated an engine fire, which turned out to be a false alarm. (Clinton left the following day for a tour of Central Asia.)

Five years ago: President Bush said in his Saturday radio address that Saddam Hussein faced a final test to surrender weapons of mass destruction.

One year ago: Republican Sen. George Allen conceded defeat in the Virginia Senate race to Democrat Jim Webb, sealing the Democrats' control of Congress. Champion figure skater Michelle Kwan was appointed America's first public diplomacy envoy by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. CBS newsman Ed Bradley died in New York at age 65.

Today's Birthdays: Sportscaster Charlie Jones is 77. Baseball executive Whitey Herzog is 76. Former Sen. Bob Graham, D-Fla., is 71. Singer Mary Travers is 71. Actor Charlie Robinson ("Night Court") is 62. Movie director Bille August is 59. Actor Robert David Hall ("CSI") is 59. Actor Lou Ferrigno is 55. Gospel singer Donnie McClurkin is 48. Rock musician Dee Plakas (L7) is 47. Rapper Pepa (Salt-N-Pepa) is 38. Rapper Scarface (Geto Boys) is 38. Blues singer Susan Tedeschi is 37. Actor Eric Dane is 35. Singer Nick Lachey (98 Degrees) is 34. Rhythm-and-blues singer Sisqo (Dru Hill) is 29. Actress Nikki Blonsky (Film: "Hairspray") is 19.

Thought for Today: "He who seeks rest finds boredom. He who seeks work finds rest." —