The Almanac

Today is Wednesday, March 5, the 64th day of 2003 with 301 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include Flemish mapmaker Gerhardus Mercator in 1512; William Blackstone, the first settler in what is now Boston, in 1595; Antoine Cadillac, founder of Detroit, in 1658; poet Lucy Larcom in 1824; lithographer James Ives, partner of Nathaniel Currier, in 1824; author Frank Norris in 1870; water treatment pioneer Emmett J. Culligan in 1893; actors Rex Harrison in 1908, Jack Cassidy in 1927, Dean Stockwell in 1936 (age 67), Samantha Eggar in 1939 (age 64), Paul Sand in 1944 (age 59), Michael Warren ("Hill Street Blues") in 1946 (age 57) and Marsha Warfield ("Night Court") in 1954 (age 49); and magician Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller in 1955 (age 48).

On this date in history:

In 1770, British troops killed five colonials in the so-called "Boston Massacre," one of the events that led to the American Revolution.

In 1933, in German elections, Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party won nearly half the seats in the Reichstag, the German parliament.

In 1946, Winston Churchill, speaking in Fulton, Mo., established the Cold War boundary during his famed "Iron Curtain" speech.

In 1953, the Soviet Union announced that dictator Josef Stalin had died at age 73.

In 1984, the Standard Oil Co. of California, also known as Chevron, bought Gulf Corp. for more than $13 billion in the largest business merger in U.S. history.

In 1991, rebellions against Saddam Hussein were reported in southeastern Iraq. U.S. military officials predicted the unrest probably would lead to his downfall. It hasn't, so far.

In 1992, Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.) dropped out of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

In 1993, Canada's Ben Johnson, once called the world's fastest human, again tested positive for drugs and was banned for life from track competition.

In 1996, Republican presidential hopeful Bob Dole won the GOP primaries in Colorado, Maryland, Georgia and several New England states.

In 1997, Switzerland announced plans to establish a $4.7 billion government-financed fund, using interest from its gold reserves, to compensate survivors of the Nazi Holocaust and their descendants.

In 1998, NASA announced that ice had been found at the moon's north and south poles.

In 2001, a 15-year-old boy opened fire at a Santee, Calif., high school, killing two students and wounding 13 other people.

Also in 2001, Vice President Dick Cheney was hospitalized with chest pains caused by a partially blocked artery.

In 2002, President Bush imposed tariffs of up to 30 per cent on steel imported from Europe, Asia and South America.

Also in 2002, Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif., who admitted a "very close" relationship with missing government intern Chandra Levy, lost his bid for renomination to another term.

A thought for the day: Winston Churchill said, "It is no use saying, 'We are doing our best.' You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary."