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The almanac

By United Press International
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Today is Friday, July 26, the 207th day of 2013, with 158 to follow.

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

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Those born on this date are under the sign of Leo. They include artist George Catlin, painter of American Indian scenes, in 1796; Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw in 1856; Swiss psychologist Carl Jung, founder of analytic psychology, in 1875; British novelist Aldous Huxley in 1894; comedian Gracie Allen in 1895; U.S. Sen. Estes Kefauver, D-Tenn., who led the 1950-51 Senate investigation of organized crime, in 1903; actor Vivian Vance in 1909; Erskine Hawkins, trumpet virtuoso, band leader, in 1914; storyteller Jean Shepherd in 1921; actor Jason Robards, movie producer Blake Edwards and baseball Hall of Fame member Hoyt Wilhelm, all in 1922; children's author Jan Berenstain in 1923; filmmaker Stanley Kubrick in 1928; Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Mick Jagger (Rolling Stones) in 1943 (age 70); British actor Helen Mirren in 1945 (age 68); tennis player Vitas Gerulaitis in 1954; Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in 1955 (age 58); Olympic gold medal skater Dorothy Hamill in 1956 (age 57); and actors Kevin Spacey in 1959 (age 54), Sandra Bullock in 1964 (age 49) and Kate Beckinsale in 1973 (age 40).

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On this date in history:

In 1788, New York becomes the 11th state of the United States upon ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

In 1847, Liberia became a republic and Africa's first sovereign, black-ruled democratic nation.

In 1908, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was born when a group of newly hired investigators was ordered to report to the Justice Department. The special unit officially became the FBI in 1935.

In 1941, U.S. Army Gen. Douglas MacArthur was named commander of U.S. forces in the Philippines.

In 1948, U.S. President Harry S. Truman ordered desegregation of the U.S. military.

In 1956, Egypt created a crisis by nationalizing the British and French-owned Suez Canal.

In 1984, "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" became the first network television show to be broadcast in stereo.

In 1990, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 408-18 to reprimand Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., for actions he took on behalf of a male prostitute.

In 1992, under pressure, Iraq backed down and agreed to allow U.N. inspectors to look for documentation on weapons of mass destruction.

In 2005, the shuttle Discovery lifted off from Cape Canaveral in the first launch since the 2003 Columbia tragedy.

In 2007, the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly passed anti-terrorism legislation that enhances screening of air and sea cargo and allocates more funds to states deemed at risk of attack.

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In 2009, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 2010, the founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, said the decision to post more than 75,000 secret U.S. Afghan war documents on the Internet was to give a complete picture of the conflict. The White House called said the deed had "a potential to be very harmful."

In 2011, U.S. Rep. David Wu, a seven-term Oregon Democrat, announced he would resign after a published report alleged he had made unwanted sexual advances on the 18-year-old daughter of a friend and campaign donor.

In 2012, Republican U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney was harshly criticized in London for suggesting, a day before the start of the Olympic Games, that the city might be "unprepared" for them.


A thought for the day: Matthew Arnold wrote, "The free thinking of one age is the common sense of the next."

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