UPI Almanac for Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020

Today is Saturday, Feb. 1, the 32nd day of 2020 with 334 to follow.

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

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; cabaret singer Hildegarde Loretta Sell in 1906; writer Muriel Spark in 1918; actor Stuart Whitman in 1928 (age 92); former Russian President Boris Yeltsin in 1931; singer Don Everly in 1937; comedian Garrett Morris in 1937 (age 83); actor/director Terry Jones in 1942; journalist Fred Barnes in 1943 (age 77); actor Elisabeth Sladen in 1946; journalist Jessica Savitch in 1947; singer Rick James in 1948; actor Bill Mumy in 1954 (age 66); artist Takashi Murakami in 1962 (age 58); Princess Stephanie of Monaco in 1965 (age 55); actor Brandon Lee in 1965; actor Sherilyn Fenn in 1965 (age 55); singer Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of Elvis Presley, in 1968 (age 52); actor Pauly Shore in 1968 (age 52); actor Michael C. Hall in 1971 (age 49); rapper Big Boi, born Antwan Andre Patton, in 1975 (age 45); actor Heather Morris in 1987 (age 33); mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey in 1987 (age 33); singer Harry Styles in 1994 (age 26).

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, staged the first of a series of non-violent 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 escaped 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 2004, Janet Jackson had a "wardrobe malfunction" in her appearance with Justin Timberlake during the halftime of Super Bowl XXXVIII.

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 2018, the United States confirmed plans to abandon the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty, which it signed with Russia in 1987, accusing Moscow of not holding up its end of the deal.

A thought for the day: "We have long since made clear that a state of war is not a blank check for the president when it comes to the rights of the nation's citizens." -- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor