The almanac

Today is Saturday Jan. 23, the 23rd day of 2010 with 342 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include American patriot John Hancock in 1737; French author Stendhal, a pseudonym for Marie-Henri Beyle, in 1783; French Impressionist painter Edouard Manet in 1832; Russian film director Sergei Eisenstein in 1898; actors Randolph Scott in 1898 and Dan Duryea in 1907; comedian Ernie Kovacs in 1919; actress/singer Chita Rivera in 1933 (age 77); actors Gil Gerard in 1943 (age 67), Rutger Hauer in 1944 (age 66) and Richard Dean Anderson ("MacGyver") in 1950 (age 60); Princess Caroline of Monaco in 1957 (age 53); and actresses Gail O'Grady in 1963 (age 47) and Tiffani-Amber Thiessen in 1974 (age 36).

On this date in history:

In 1845, the U.S. Congress decided that all national elections would take place on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November.

In 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in U.S. history to receive a medical degree.

In 1922, at Toronto General Hospital, 14-year-old Canadian Leonard Thompson became the first person to receive an insulin injection as treatment for diabetes.

In 1948, U.S. Army Gen. Dwight Eisenhower said he couldn't accept a presidential nomination from either party. Four years later, he ran as a Republican and was elected 34th president of the United States.

In 1968, the USS Pueblo was seized in the Sea of Japan by North Korea, which claimed the ship was on a spy mission. The crew was held for 11 months before being released.

In 1971, the temperature at Prospect Creek, Alaska, dropped to 80 degrees below zero, the lowest temperature recorded in the United States.

In 1973, U.S. President Richard Nixon announced that U.S. troops would cease fighting in Vietnam at midnight Jan. 27.

In 1980, U.S. President Jimmy Carter reinstated the Selective Service System.

In 1986, the first class if inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley were those enshrined.

In 1988, Sandinista missiles downed a cargo plane that was dropping U.S.-financed supplies to Contra rebels in southeastern Nicaragua. Four crewmen were killed.

In 1991, U.S. Army Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said heavy bombing had destroyed Iraq's two operating nuclear reactors and damaged chemical facilities.

Also in 1991, U.S. Treasury Secretary Nicholas Brady asked Congress for another $80 billion toward the bailout of the nation's savings and loan industry.

In 1997, Madeline Albright was sworn into office as the first woman U.S. secretary of state.

In 2004, Bob Keeshan, the easy-going, bushy-mustached actor who created the classic children's television show "Captain Kangaroo," died at the age of 76.

In 2005, Johnny Carson, host of TV's "Tonight Show" for 30 years and a powerful presence in American entertainment, died of emphysema at age 79.

Also in 2005, Viktor Yushchenko was sworn in as Ukraine's president, ending a tumultuous election and promising a period of radical, liberal reforms.

In 2006, Ford Motor Co., reflecting the downsizing of the U.S. auto industry, said it would close 14 factories and eliminate 30,000 jobs over six years.

Also in 2006, Canadian voters chose Stephen Harper's Conservation Party over outgoing Prime Minister Paul Martin's Labor Party in a close parliamentary election.

In 2008, tens of thousands of Palestinians rushed into Egypt to buy food and supplies after members of Hamas destroyed parts of a wall separating the Gaza Strip from Egypt.

Also in 2008, Thailand returned to civilian rule after a military council that had ruled the country for 16 months disbanded.

In 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama ordered an end to the "global gag rule" that barred U.S. aid to groups overseas that provide abortions or abortion referrals.

A thought for the day: it was Mark Twain who said: "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambition. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great."