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UPI Almanac for Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017

On Feb. 11, 1990, Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African apartheid, was released after 27 years in prison.

By United Press International
Nelson and Winnie Mandela greet supporters at the Oakland Coliseum June 30, 1990. File Photo by Dan Groshong/UPI
Nelson and Winnie Mandela greet supporters at the Oakland Coliseum June 30, 1990. File Photo by Dan Groshong/UPI | License Photo

Today is Saturday, Feb. 11, the 42nd day of 2017 with 323 to follow.

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

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Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include Englishman Henry Fox Talbot, a developer of photography, in 1800 Chief Justice of the United States Melville Weston Fuller in 1833 inventor Thomas Edison in 1847 boxer Max Baer in 1909 film director Joseph L. Mankiewicz, in 1909 author Sidney Sheldon in 1917 actor Eva Gabor in 1919 King Farouk, Egypt's last monarch, in 1920 actor Kim Stanley in 1925 actor Leslie Nielsen in 1926 actor Tina Louise in 1934 (age 83) actor Burt Reynolds in 1936 (age 81) songwriter Gerry Goffin in 1939 Brazilian musician Sergio Mendes in 1941 (age 76) Jeb Bush, former Florida governor and presidential son and brother, in 1953 (age 64) singer/songwriter Sheryl Crow in 1962 (age 55) former Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin in 1964 (age 53) actor Jennifer Aniston in 1969 (age 48) singer/actor Brandy (Norwood) in 1979 (age 38) actor Taylor Lautner in 1992 (age 25).

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On this date in history:

In 1858, French peasant girl Bernadette Soubirous said the Virgin Mary appeared to her at Lourdes.

In 1929, a Lateran treaty signed in Italy recognized the sovereignty of Vatican City.

In 1929, Miss Bobbi Trout, 18-year-old "Tomboy" who took up flying to avoid dish-washing, broke three world aviation records.

In 1941, Glenn Miller's Chattanooga Choo Choo was awarded the first gold record, given for sales of 1 million copies.

In 1945, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin ended a wartime conference at Yalta.

In 1965, U.S. and South Vietnamese planes made their first bombing raids on North Vietnam.

In 1970, Japan put a satellite in space, following the Soviet Union, the United States and France.

In 1987, Corazon Aquino was sworn in for a six-year presidential term in the Philippines.

In 1990, Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African apartheid, was released after 27 years in prison.

In 1993, British Prime Minister John Major said Queen Elizabeth II would pay income tax on her personal income as well as being subject to capital and inheritance levies.

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In 2005, playwright Arthur Miller, a fiery moralist whose plays include "Death of a Salesman" and "The Crucible," died at the age of 89.

In 2006, U.S. adventurer Steve Fossett broke the solo flight record when he landed near Bournemouth, England, covering 24,997 miles after taking off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida four days earlier.

In 2009, a long, bitter political fight in Zimbabwe apparently was resolved when President Robert Mugabe swore in opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai as prime minister.

In 2011, Hosni Mubarak stepped down after nearly 30 years as president of Egypt, bowing to intense public pressure to resign after 18 days of massive, often violent protests that spawned a reported death toll of more than 800 people. Mubarak, 82, ceded power to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.

In 2012, Whitney Houston, an American pop singing star who sold millions of albums and starred in movies, was found dead in a Beverly Hills, Calif., hotel room. The Los Angeles coroner said the 48-year-old entertainer died of accidental drowning in her bathtub but that cocaine and heart disease also played a role.

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In 2013, the Medal of Honor was awarded to former U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha, who led an Alamo-like defense of an outpost against 300 Taliban attackers in Afghanistan.

In 2014, an Algerian Hercules C-130 military plane crashed into a mountain in eastern Algeria, killing 77 people, including women and children. There was one survivor, a soldier.


A thought for the day: "No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite." -- Nelson Mandela

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