The Almanac

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Today is Saturday, Feb. 25, the 56th day of 2006 with 309 to follow.

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

Those born on this day are under the sign of Pisces. They include French painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir in 1841; Italian operatic tenor Enrico Caruso in 1873; U.S. statesman John Foster Dulles in 1888; actor Zeppo Marx, the "sane" sibling of the early Marx Brothers movies, in 1901; actor Jim Backus in 1913; tennis player Bobby Riggs in 1918; producer/writer Larry Gelbart in 1928 (age 78); actors Tom Courtenay in 1937 (age 69) and Diane Baker in 1938 (age 68); former Beatle George Harrison in 1943; talk-show host Sally Jesse Raphael, also in 1943 (age 63); director Neil Jordan in 1950 (age 56); and actress Teá Leoni in 1966 (age 40).

On this date in history:

In 1791, the First Bank of the United States at Philadelphia became the first national bank chartered by Congress.

In 1836, Samuel Colt patented a "revolving gun," the first of the six-shooters.

In 1868, President Andrew Johnson was impeached for violation of the Tenure of Office Act. He was acquitted of the charges the following May by a single vote.

In 1870, Hiram Rhoades Revels, a Republican from Natchez, Miss., was sworn into the U.S. Senate, becoming the first African-American to sit in Congress.

In 1964, Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) defeated Sonny Liston to become the world heavyweight boxing champion.

In 1967, U.S. warships began shelling Vietnam.

In 1986, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos left his Manila palace for Hawaii, ending 20 years in power. The United States recognized Corazon Aquino as president of the Philippines.

In 1990, Violeta Chamorro, the U.S.-backed candidate for the presidency of Nicaragua, scored an upset victory over President Daniel Ortega, leader of the leftist Sandinista Liberation Front.

In 1991, as the Persian Gulf War ground assault continued, Iraq ordered its forces to withdraw from Kuwait.

Also in 1991, the Warsaw Pact nations signed an agreement to dissolve their alliance after 36 years.

In 1994, 29 Muslim worshippers were killed and three more trampled to death when a Jewish settler opened fire with an automatic rifle inside the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank town of Hebron. The settler was overpowered and beaten to death.

In 1996, a bus bombing in Jerusalem killed 25 people.

In 1997, documents revealed President Bill Clinton endorsed rewarding Democratic contributors with such perks as rounds of golf with him or overnight stays in the White House.

In 2000, four white New York City police officers were acquitted in the shooting death of unarmed African immigrant Amadou Diallo, slain as he sat in his doorway.

In 2003, as the possibility of war loomed, the chief U.N. weapons inspector said Iraq was showing new signs of cooperation in dismantling its weapons arsenal.

In 2004, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told Congress to reduce the budget deficit by cutting Social Security benefits rather than raising taxes.

In 2005, authorities arrested Dennis Rader, a municipal employee and church leader, for the so-called BTK serial killings that terrorized Wichita, Kan. The attacker referred to himself as "BTK," for bind, torture, kill.

Also in 2005, in the first terrorist attack in Israel in four months, a suicide bombing outside a Tel Aviv nightclub killed four and injured 50 others.

A thought for the day: John Foster Dulles said, "A man's accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail."