UPI Almanac for Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015

Today is Thursday, Sept. 24, the 267th day of 2015 with 98 to follow.

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

Those born on this date are under the sign of Libra. They include English novelist Horace Walpole in 1717; Irish brewmaster Arthur Guinness in 1725; John Marshall, fourth chief justice of the United States, in 1755; French chemist Georges Claude, inventor of the neon lamp, in 1870; candy company founder Franklin Mars in 1883; golf Hall of Fame member Tommy Armour in 1894; novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1896; sports announcer Jim McKay in 1921; actor/singer Sheila MacRae in 1924; actor/singer Anthony Newley in 1931; Muppet creator Jim Henson in 1936; singer/photographer Linda Eastman McCartney, wife of former Beatle Paul McCartney, in 1941; television commentator Lou Dobbs in 1945 (age 70); football Hall of Fame member "Mean" Joe Greene in 1946 (age 69); actor Gordon Clapp in 1948 (age 67); comedian Phil Hartman in 1948; actor Kevin Sorbo in 1958 (age 57); gymnasts Morgan and Paul Hamm in 1982 (age 33).

On this date in history:

The Judiciary Act of 1789 was passed by Congress and signed by President George Washington, establishing the Supreme Court of the United States as a tribunal made up of six justices who were to serve on the court until death or retirement. (The number of justices became nine in 1869.)

In 1929, aviator James Doolittle demonstrated the first "blind" takeoff and landing, using only instruments to guide his aircraft.

In 1942, as World War II raged, popular bandleader Glenn Miller ended his long-running radio show and announced he was going into the U.S. Army. (He was succeeded on radio by Harry James.)

In 1959, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev met at Camp David, Md.

In 1986, the U.S. Congress adopted the rose as the national flower.

In 1998, Iran's foreign minister announced the country had dropped its 1989 call for the death of Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses, which many Muslims found blasphemous.

In 2007, about 73,000 members of the United Auto Workers went on strike against General Motors after contract negotiations bogged down over wages and benefits. (The walkout ended within two days.)

In 2009, the discovery of a treasure trove of more than 1,500 finely crafted gold, silver and copper artifacts, found with a metal detector and believed buried by seventh-century Anglo-Saxon rulers, was termed one of most important in British archaeological history.

In 2011, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev revealed plans to step aside in 2012 to allow Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to again run for the presidency. Putin was head of state for two terms (2000-08) but was barred constitutionally from seeking a third consecutive term.

In 2012, Amy Bishop Anderson, a biology professor who killed three members of the University of Alabama faculty and wounded three others in 2010, was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

In 2013, authorities in southwest Pakistan said a 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Balochistan province killed at least 500 people and destroyed hundreds of houses throughout the region.

In 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama, speaking at the United Nations, said countries must band together to destroy the "network of death" of Islamic State terrorists. "No God condones this terror," Obama said. "No grievance justifies these actions. There can be no reasoning -- no negotiation -- with this brand of evil. The only language understood by killers like this is the language of force."

A thought for the day: Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets, said, "The most sophisticated people I know -- inside they are all children."