Advertisement

UPI Almanac for Friday, March 6, 2015

Mexicans capture the Alamo, Bush declares end of Persian Gulf War... on this date in history.

By United Press International
Visitors tour the Alamo in San Antonio Feb. 9, 2015. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI
1 of 7 | Visitors tour the Alamo in San Antonio Feb. 9, 2015. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

Today is Friday, March 6, the 65th day of 2015 with 300 to follow.

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

Advertisement


Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include Italian painter/sculptor Michelangelo in 1475; French dramatist Cyrano de Bergerac in 1619; English poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning in 1806; Union Army Gen. Philip Sheridan in 1831; humorist/short story writer Ring Lardner in 1885; baseball Hall of Fame member Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove in 1900; Texas swing bandleader Bob Wills in 1905; comic actor Lou Costello in 1906; one-armed professional baseball player Pete Gray in 1915; television personality Ed McMahon in 1923; symphony conductor Sarah Caldwell in 1924; former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan in 1926 (age 89); Mercury astronaut L. Gordon Cooper in 1927; Colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1927; former District of Columbia Mayor Marion Barry in 1936; baseball Hall of Fame member Willie Stargell in 1940; actor Ben Murphy in 1942 (age 73); singer Mary Wilson in 1944 (age 71); musician/singer David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) in 1946 (age 69); actor/director Rob Reiner in 1947 (age 68); high jumper Dick Fosbury, who created the "Fosbury Flop," in 1947 (age 68); news commentator John Stossel in 1947 (age 68); actor Tom Arnold in 1959 (age 56); actor D.L. Hughley in 1963 (age 52); basketball star Shaquille O'Neal in 1972 (age 43).

Advertisement


On this date in history:

In 1836, Mexican forces captured the Alamo in San Antonio, killing the last of 187 defenders who had held out in the fortified Texas mission for 13 days. Frontiersman Davy Crockett was among those killed on the final day.

In 1853, "La Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi premiered in Venice, Italy.

In 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its landmark ruling that slave Dred Scott couldn't sue for his freedom in a federal court, even though his white owner had died in a "free" state.

In 1944, during World War II, U.S. bombers flying from Britain began the first daytime attacks on Berlin.

In 1967, Svetlana Alliluyeva, Joseph Stalin's daughter, defected to the United States.

In 1981, Walter Cronkite signed off from the "CBS Evening News" for the final time after 19 years at the anchor's desk.

In 1982, an Egyptian court sentenced five Muslim fundamentalists to death for the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. Seventeen others drew prison terms.

In 1991, U.S. President George H.W. Bush declared the Persian Gulf War over.

In 2006, officials said 2005 was the costliest hurricane season in U.S. history. Katrina, Rita and Wilma were among the storms that year.

Advertisement

In 2013, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he had no plans to return to public life but would consider doing so "out of duty, solely for the sake of France."

In 2014, Boeing said it would end pension plans for 68,000 non-union employees by 2016, switching to 401k plans.


A thought for the day: "Don't confuse being 'soft' with seeing the other guy's point of view." -- George H.W. Bush

Latest Headlines