UPI Almanac for Saturday, July 25, 2015

Today is Saturday, July 25, the 206th day of 2015 with 159 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Leo. They include Revolutionary War Gen. Henry Knox in 1750; artist Thomas Eakins in 1844; artist Maxfield Parrish in 1870; actor Walter Brennan in 1894; actor Jack Gilford in 1908; actor Estelle Getty in 1923; actor Barbara Harris in 1935 (age 80); guitarist Jim McCarty (the Yardbirds) in 1943 (age 72); percussionist Jose Areas (Santana) in 1946 (age 69); folk singer/songwriter Steve Goodman in 1948; football Hall of Fame member Walter Payton in 1954; model/actor Iman Abdulmajid in 1955 (age 60); actor Matt LeBlanc in 1967 (age 48); Louise Joy Brown, the first "test-tube" baby, in 1978 (age 37); actor Brad Renfro in 1982.

On this date in history:

In 1909, French pioneer aviator Louis Bleriot became the first person to fly a "heavier-than-air machine" across the English Channel. It took him 36 minutes.

In 1917, Mata Hari was sentenced to death in France as a spy for Germany in World War I. (She was executed by firing squad less than three months later and her name became a synonym for a seductive female spy.)

In 1952, Puerto Rico became a self-governing U.S. commonwealth.

In 1956, the Italian luxury liner Andrea Doria and Swedish liner Stockholm collided at night in heavy fog off Nantucket, Mass. (The accident had a death toll of 52. Hundreds of people were rescued. The Andrea Doria sank the next morning.)

In 1965, folk legend Bob Dylan performed for the first time with electric instruments, so upsetting his fans that they booed him.

In 1972, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. Thomas Eagleton of Missouri, disclosed he had undergone psychiatric treatment in the 1960s. Presidential nominee George McGovern replaced him on the ticket with Sargent Shriver.

In 1978, the world's first "test-tube" baby, Louise Brown, was born in Oldham, England.

In 1986, former Navy radioman Jerry Whitworth was convicted of selling U.S. military secrets to the Soviets through the John Walker spy ring. The government called it the most damaging espionage case since World War II. (Whitworth was sentenced to 365 years in prison.)

In 1994, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Jordan's King Hussein signed a declaration that ended the 46-year state of war between their countries.

In 2000, an Air France Concorde supersonic jet crashed on takeoff from Paris, killing 113 people, including four on the ground. It was the first crash of a Concorde.

In 2007, as Iraqis celebrated their national soccer team's victory over South Korea in the Asian Cup semifinals, two suicide bombers attacked crowds in Baghdad, killing at least 50 people and injuring about 140.

In 2008, California banned the use of trans fats in all restaurants and retail bakeries in the state, beginning in 2010.

In 2012, North Korea announced its leader, Kim Jong Un, had married Ri Sol Ju.

In 2013, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the death toll in the 2 1/2-year conflict in Syria had surpassed 100,000.

In 2014, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 85 Syrian soldiers were killed in IS assaults led by suicide car bombers in Raqqa province. About 28 militants also died.

A thought for the day: Phil Jackson, who coached teams to 11 NBA titles, said, "Approach the game with no preset agendas and you'll probably come away surprised at your overall efforts."