UPI Almanac for Sunday, Dec. 31, 2017

Today is Sunday, Dec. 31, the 365th and final day of 2017.

Tonight is New Year's Eve.

The moon is waxing. The morning stars are Jupiter, Mars and Venus. The evening stars are Mercury and Uranus.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Capricorn. They include Charles Edward Stuart, Scotland's "Bonnie Prince Charlie," in 1720; French painter Henri Matisse in 1869; U.S. Army Gen. George Marshall, formulator of the Marshall Aid Plan for Europe following World War II and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, in 1880; songwriter Jule Styne ("Three Coins In the Fountain, "Let It Snow") in 1905; Saudi King Salman in 1935 (age 82); actor Anthony Hopkins in 1937 (age 80); actor Sarah Miles in 1941 (age 76); Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Andy Summers (The Police) in 1942 (age 75); actor Ben Kingsley in 1943 (age 74); singer/songwriter John Denver and Rock in 1943; Roll Hall of Fame member Pete Quaife (The Kinks) in 1943; fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg in 1946 (age 71); rock singer Burton Cummings in 1947 (age 70); Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Donna Summer in 1948; actor Tim Matheson in 1947 (age 70); actor Bebe Neuwirth in 1958 (age 59); actor Val Kilmer in 1959 (age 58); writer Nicholas Sparks in 1965 (age 52); singer Joe McIntyre in 1972 (age 45); Donald Trump Jr., businessman and son of President Donald Trump, in 1977 (age 40); singer/dancer Psy, born Park Jae-sang, in 1977 (age 40); Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Gabby Douglas in 1995 (age 22).

On this date in history:

In 1862, the Union ironclad ship USS Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras, N.C., during a storm. Sixteen members of the crew were lost.

In 1879, Thomas Edison gave the first public demonstration of his incandescent lamp -- in Menlo Park, N.J.

In 1929, Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians did their first New Year's Eve broadcast from the Roosevelt Grill in New York City.

In 1947, America's favorite Western movie couple, singing cowboy Roy Rogers and co-star Dale Evans, were married.

In 1973, Pittsburgh Pirates great Roberto Clemente and four other people died in a cargo plane crash en route to deliver supplies to earthquake-stricken Nicaragua. The plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after takeoff from Puerto Rico.

In 1983, the court-ordered breakup of the American Telephone and Telegraph Co. took effect.

In 1983, a bloodless military coup overthrew Nigerian President Shehu Shagari's government, replacing him with Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

In 1984, Bernhard Goetz, the so-called "subway vigilante," turned himself in to police in New Hampshire and confessed the shooting deaths of four men on a New York City subway.

In 1985, fire broke out on a chartered DC-3 aircraft and it crashed in northeastern Texas, killing rock singer Rick Nelson, his fiancee and five band members.

In 1988, the Chicago Bears defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 20-12 in the so-called "Fog Bowl," when thick fog shrouded Chicago's Soldier Field.

In 1994, Russian forces launched a full air and ground attack on Grozny, the capital city of the rebel republic of Chechnya.

In 1997, the Algerian government announced that more than 400 people had been massacred by Islamic extremists during the last nine days of December.

In 1999, Panama assumed full control of the Panama Canal.

In 1999, Boris Yeltsin resigned as president of Russia, leaving Vladimir Putin acting president.

In 2004, authorities in Buenos Aires reported at least 175 deaths and hundreds of injuries in a fire at a crowded nightclub. A government official said, "Only two exits were open; the others were tied up with wire. These young people were doomed in a death trap."

In 2006, Romania and Bulgaria joined the European Union, increasing its membership to 27 countries.

In 2013, the Dow Jones industrial average closed at 16,576.66, up 26.5 percent for the year, the biggest gain in nearly two decades.

In 2014, Beji Caid Essebsi becomes Tunisia's first freely elected president. The country's Parliament ousted him 18 months later with a vote of no confidence.

A thought for the day: "Tomorrow, is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one." -- Brad Paisley