The Almanac

Today is Friday, Feb. 1, the 32nd day of 2002 with 333 to follow.

The moon is waning, moving toward its last quarter.

The morning star is Mercury.

The evening stars are Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

Those born on the date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include composer Victor Herbert in 1859; Hattie Caraway of Arkansas, first woman elected to the Senate, in 1878; film director John Ford in 1895; actor Clark Gable in 1901; poet Langston Hughes in 1902; humorist S.J. Perelman in 1904; cabaret singer Hildegarde in 1906 (age 95); film and special effects director George Pal in 1908; actor Stuart Whitman in 1929 (age 73); former Russian President Boris Yeltsin in 1931 (age 71); singer Don Everly, rock parodist Ray "Dr. Hook" Sawyer and comedian Garrett Morris, all in 1937 (age 65); actor Sherman Hemsley in 1938 (age 64); actor/director Terry Jones ("Monty Python's Flying Circus") in 1942 (age 60); singer Rick James in 1952 (age 50); actor Billy Mumy ("Lost in Space") in 1954 (age 48); Princess Stephanie of Monaco and actress Sherilynn Fenn, both in 1965 (age 37); Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley and ex-wife of Michael Jackson, in 1968 (age 34); and actor Pauly Shore in 1970 (age 32).

On this date in history:

In 1790, the Supreme Court of the United States convened in New York City for its first session.

In 1968, the communist Viet Cong began a major offensive of the Vietnam War with a fierce attack on the South Vietnamese city of Hue.

In 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini, symbol of the Iranian revolution, returned to his homeland.

In 1990, Attorney General Richard Thornburgh applied for independent counsel to investigate former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Samuel Pierce.

In 1991, 34 people were killed and 24 more injured when a USAir jet hit a SkyWest plane on a runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

Also in 1991, at least 1,200 persons were killed in an earthquake that struck Afghanistan and Pakistan.

And in 1991, South African President F.W. De Klerk announced that he would seek repeal of key laws on which the apartheid system was based.

In 1992, President Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin held their first meeting since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

In 1993, President Clinton said he's "looking hard" at the government purchasing childhood vaccines and then distributing them free to ensure all children are properly vaccinated.

In 1994, Jeff Gillooly, the former husband of figure skater Tonya Harding, pleaded guilty to his role in the attack on rival skater Nancy Kerrigan.

In 1995, the House followed the Senate's lead and approved a measure making it hard for the federal government to pass so-called "unfunded mandates" -- laws that states and cities are required to implement but are given no money for doing so.

In 1996, a telecommunications bill cleared Congress that would lift most restrictions on telephone competition and broadcast station ownership, and also required V-chips in television sets. President Clinton signed the bill into law a week later.

In 2000, Sen. John McCain of Arizona swamped Texas Gov. George W. Bush in the New Hampshire primary; on the Democratic side, Vice President Al Gore defeated former Sen. Bill Bradley of New Jersey.

In 2001, former President Clinton said he and his wife would return $86,000 in gifts they received in 2000 but would keep $104,000 worth of others they received prior to 2000.

A thought for the day: "One's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions." Oliver Wendell Holmes said that.