On This Day in History - February 1st - Almanac

Today is Wednesday, Feb. 1, the 32nd day of 2017 with 333 to follow.

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

Those born on the date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include: Composer Victor Herbert in 1859; Hattie Caraway of Arkansas, first woman elected to the U.S. Senate, in 1878; film director John Ford in 1894; National Hockey League executive Conn Smythe in 1895; actor Clark Gable in 1901; poet Langston Hughes in 1902; humorist S.J. Perelman in 1904; cabaret singer Hildegarde Loretta Sell in 1906; film and special effects director George Pal in 1908; actor Stuart Whitman in 1928 (age 89); former Russian President Boris Yeltsin in 1931; singer Don Everly in 1937; comedian Garrett Morris in 1937 (age 80); actor Sherman Hemsley in 1938; actor/director Terry Jones ("Monty Python's Flying Circus") in 1942 (age 75); journalist Fred Barnes in 1943 (age 74); journalist Jessica Savitch in 1947; singer Rick James in 1948; actor Billy Mumy in 1954 (age 63); Princess Stephanie of Monaco in 1965 (age 52); actor Sherilyn Fenn in 1965 (age 52); singer Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley, in 1968 (age 49); actor Michael C. Hall in 1971 (age 46); mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey in 1987 (age 30); singer Harry Styles in 1994 (age 23).

On this date in history:

In 1790, the U.S. Supreme Court convened in New York City for its first session.

In 1861, Texas seceded from the United States.

In 1865, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signed the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery.

In 1896, Giacomo Puccini's opera "La Boheme" premiered in Turin, Italy.

In 1946, Norwegian Trygve Lie was selected to be the first U.N. secretary-general.

In 1947, members of the Jewish underground launched pamphlet bombs throughout Tel Aviv, warning British military authorities to expect further retaliation against its drive to suppress violence in the Holy Land.

In 1951, the Defense Department, responding to needs to effectively execute its Korean War strategy, ordered drafting of 80,000 men during April for assignment to the U.S. Army.

In 1960, four African American students, later known as the Greensboro Four, stage the first of a series of nonviolent protests at a Woolworth lunch counter in Greensboro, NC.

In 1968, the communist Viet Cong began a major offensive in the Vietnam War with a fierce attack on the South Vietnamese city of Hue.

In 1978, famed director Roman Polanski escapes to France after pleading guilty to charges of having sex with an underage girl.

In 1991, South African President F.W. De Klerk announced he would seek repeal of key laws on which the apartheid system was based.

In 2003, the space shuttle Columbia broke apart during its descent over the southwestern United States. All seven astronauts aboard were killed.

In 2006, Ben Bernanke became the U.S. Federal Reserve chief, replacing Alan Greenspan, who held the position for 18 years.

In 2009, Iceland swore in its first female prime minister, Johanna Sigurdardottir.

In 2011, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, with hundreds of thousands of protesters demanding his departure after a reign of nearly 30 years, announced he wouldn't seek re-election.

In 2012, at least 73 people were killed and 200 hurt in a fight between fans and players at a soccer match in Port Said, Egypt.

In 2013, John Kerry was sworn in as U.S. secretary of state, succeeding Hillary Clinton.

In 2014, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called Syria's civil war "the most urgent security challenge in the world today." U.N. officials estimated more than 100,000 people had been killed since the conflict began in March 2011.

A thought for the day: "To be 70 years young is sometimes far more cheerful and hopeful than to be 40 years old." -- Oliver Wendell Holmes