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The almanac

By United Press International
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Today is Saturday, Sept. 7, the 250th of 2013 with 115 to follow.

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

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Those born on this date are under the sign of Virgo. They include England's Queen Elizabeth I in 1533; American painter Anna "Grandma" Moses in 1860; financier J. Pierpont Morgan Jr. in 1867; novelist Taylor Caldwell in 1900; pioneering heart surgeon Dr. Michael DeBakey and football Hall of Fame member Paul Brown, both in 1908; film director Elia Kazan in 1909; physicist and rocket developer James Van Allen in 1914; actor Peter Lawford in 1923; U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, in 1924; fashion designer Laura Ashley in 1925; philanthropist John Paul Getty Jr., in 1932; rock 'n' roll pioneer Buddy Holly in 1936; pop singer Gloria Gaynor in 1949 (age 64); actors John Phillip Law in 1937, Julie Kavner in 1950 (age 63) and Corbin Bernsen and Michael Emerson, both in 1954, (age 59); political commentator Peggy Noonan in 1950 (age 63); Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Chrissie Hynde (Pretenders) in 1951 (age 62); and entertainer Michael Feinstein in 1956 (age 57); and actors Toby Jones in 1967 (age 46) and Evan Rachel Wood in 1987 (age 26).

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On this date in history:

In 1822, Brazil declared independence from Portugal.

In 1892, James Corbett knocked out John L. Sullivan in the 21st round of a prizefight at New Orleans, the first major fight under the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.

In 1901, the Boxer Rebellion in China ended with the Boxer Protocol, a peace agreement between China and other world powers, including the United States.

In 1926, Hollywood studios closed for the day in honor of the funeral of Rudolph Valentino, the silent movie superstar who had died after ulcer surgery.

In 1940, Nazi Germany launched the London blitz, a bombing that Adolf Hitler believed would soften Britain for invasion. The invasion never materialized.

In 1963, the Pro Football Hall of Fame opened in Canton, Ohio. The inaugural inductees included George Halas and Harold "Red" Grange.

In 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos signed a treaty agreeing to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama at the end of the 20th century.

In 1986, Desmond Tutu was installed as the Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, becoming first black titular head of South Africa's fourth-largest Christian church.

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In 1992, 12 people were killed when a twin-engine plane carrying skydivers crashed in a soybean field in Hinckley, Ill.

In 1996, rapper Tupac Shakur was shot four times in Las Vegas. Shakur died six days later.

In 2005, authorities reported finding 32 drowning victims in a New Orleans nursing home where people didn't evacuate in face of rampaging flood waters from Hurricane Katrina.

In 2006, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who would lead the government for more than 10 years, announced he would resign within one year.

In 2007, the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego agreed to pay almost $200 million to 144 people who said they were sexually abused by members of the clergy.

In 2009, the British government convicted three men of plotting to blow up seven trans-Atlantic flights, smuggling explosives aboard in soft drink bottles, a plan that led to tighter airline regulations on carry-on bottles of liquid.

In 2011, a plane crash in Russia killed 43 people, including several members of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Kontinental Hockey League team.

In 2012, the U.S. unemployment rate dropped to 8.1 percent in August, down 0.2 points. About 96,000 jobs were added, fewer than expected.

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A thought for the day: American lawyer and statesman Daniel Webster said, "Knowledge is the only fountain both of the love and the principles of human liberty."

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