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UPI Almanac for Thursday, July 2, 2015

A president is shot, Shirley Temple, 6, gets film contract, first Walmart opens, historic balloon flight ends … on this date in history

By United Press International
Steve Fossett's balloon crosses the south Australian coast July 2, 2002. At 9:48 a.m. eastern time on that day, the American businessman-adventurer completed the first solo navigation of the world by balloon. Trevor Collens/Pool/UPI File
1 of 8 | Steve Fossett's balloon crosses the south Australian coast July 2, 2002. At 9:48 a.m. eastern time on that day, the American businessman-adventurer completed the first solo navigation of the world by balloon. Trevor Collens/Pool/UPI File | License Photo

Today is Thursday, July 2, the 183rd day of 2015 with 182 to follow.

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

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Those born on this date are under the sign of Cancer. They include German novelist Hermann Hesse in 1877; King Olav V of Norway in 1903; tennis champion Rene Lacoste in 1904; former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in 1908; singer/actor Ken Curtis ("Gunsmoke's" Festus) in 1916; civil rights activist Medgar Evers in 1925; Imelda Marcos, wife of former Philippine President Fernando Marcos, in 1929 (age 86); Dave Thomas, Wendy's fast-food restaurant chain founder, in 1932; actor Polly Holliday in 1937 (age 78); former race car driver Richard Petty in 1937 (age 78); actor/director Ron Silver in 1946; writer/actor Larry David in 1947 (age 68); actor Jimmy McNichol in 1961 (age 54); former baseball star Jose Canseco, first to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in the same major league season, in 1964 (age 51); actor Lindsay Lohan in 1986 (age 29).

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On this date in history:

In 1788, it was announced in the U.S. Congress that the new Constitution had been ratified by the required nine states, the ninth being New Hampshire.

In 1839, slaves being shipped to Cuba revolted and seized the ship Amistad, leading to an eventual end of the African slave market.

In 1881, U.S. President James Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau, a mentally unstable lawyer and office-seeker. (Garfield died Sept. 19 and was succeeded by Vice President Chester Arthur. Guiteau was convicted and hanged in 1982.)

In 1900, the world's first rigid airship was demonstrated by Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin in Germany.

In 1934, 6-year-old Shirley Temple signed a contract with Fox Film Corp. (She went on to become one of the biggest movie stars of the era.)

In 1937, U.S. aviator Amelia Earhart and navigator Frederick Noonan were reported lost over the Pacific Ocean. (They were never found.)

In 1962, the first Walmart store opened -- in Rogers, Ark.

In 1964, the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law with the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson.

In 1976, North and South Vietnam reunited, forming the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

In 1986, the U.S. Supreme Court endorsed numerical hiring goals for minorities, rejecting the Reagan administration view that affirmative action be limited to proven victims of race discrimination.

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In 1990, a stampede in a pedestrian tunnel at the Muslim holy city of Mecca during the annual hajj killed 1,426 pilgrims.

In 1993, South African President F.W de Klerk and African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela announced that the country's first election open to all races would be April 27, 1994.

In 1994, a Colombian soccer player who inadvertently scored a goal for the United States, contributing to his team's loss in World Cup competition, was shot to death in Medellin, Colombia.

In 2000, Vicente Fox was elected president of Mexico.

In 2002, American Steve Fossett completed the first round-the-world solo flight in a balloon, reaching Queensland in the Australian outback to finish a 13-day, 19,428-mile trip that began in Western Australia.

In 2004, medical reports said post-traumatic stress disorder was appearing in 1-in-6 U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq.

In 2009, India's ban on homosexuality, in effect since 1861, was overturned by New Delhi's highest court.

In 2013, in announcing an Affordable Care Act delay, U.S. officials said a mandate that larger employers provide health coverage for their workers, or pay penalties, would not be enforced until 2015.

In 2014, U.S. officials announced that security would be tightened for some flights headed to the United States from the Middle East and Europe because intelligence reports indicated an increased threat by terrorists.

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A thought for the day: "Guns and bombs, rockets and warships are all symbols of human failure." -- Lyndon B. Johnson

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