UPI Almanac for Saturday, March 23, 2024

Today is Saturday, March 23, the 83rd day of 2024 with 283 to follow.

The moon is waxing. Morning stars are Mars and Venus. Evening stars are Jupiter and Uranus.

Those born on this date are under the sign of Aries. They include culinary expert Fannie Farmer in 1857; Florence Ellinwood Allen, first woman on a state supreme court, in 1884; psychoanalyst Erich Fromm in 1900; actor Joan Crawford in 1905; Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa in 1910; inventor Bette Nesmith Graham in 1924; filmmaker Mark Rydell in 1929 (age 95); Roger Bannister, the first person to run the mile in under 4 minutes, in 1929; land speed racing pioneer Craig Breedlove in 1937; former Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson Jr. in 1938; musician Ric Ocasek (Cars) in 1949; television analyst/former NFL player Ron Jaworski in 1951 (age 73); author Kim Stanley Robinson in 1952 (age 72); former ExxonMobil CEO/Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in 1952 (age 72); musician Chaka Khan in 1953 (age 71); actor Amanda Plummer in 1957 (age 67); actor Catherine Keener in 1959 (age 65); actor Hope Davis in 1964 (age 60); actor Marin Hinkle in 1966 (age 58); musician Damon Albarn (Gorillaz) in 1968 (age 56); musician John Humphrey (Nixons) in 1970 (age 54); basketball Hall of Fame member Jason Kidd in 1973 (age 51); actor Randall Park in 1974 (age 50); actor Keri Russell in 1976 (age 48); actor Michelle Monaghan in 1976 (age 48); gossip blogger Perez Hilton, born Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr., in 1978 (age 46); actor Nicholle Tom in 1978 (age 46); country singer Brett Young in 1981 (age 43); country singer Brett Eldredge in 1986 (age 38); actor/TV personality Ayesha Curry in 1989 (age 35); Princess Eugenie of York in 1990 (age 34); actor Vanessa Morgan in 1992 (age 32); basketball player Kyrie Irving in 1992 (age 32); actor Victoria Pedretti in 1995 (age 29).

On this date in history:

In 1775, in a speech supporting the arming of the Virginia militia, Patrick Henry declared, "Give me liberty or give me death."

In 1909, Theodore Roosevelt began his post-presidency, embarking on the Smithsonian-Roosevelt African Expedition, part specimen collection, part hunting trip.

In 1933, the Enabling Act was passed by the German government, giving Chancellor Adolf Hitler the ability to enact laws unilaterally. Opening a session of the Reichstag, Hitler threatened to "destroy all those seeking to damage our people," while at the same time stressing "we are sincere friends of peace and shall heal the wounds from which all are suffering."

In 1965, astronauts Gus Grissom and John Young were launched in Gemini 3, the first U.S. two-man crew in space. Along for the ride, a corned beef sandwich snuck aboard the Gemini 3 probe by astronaut John Young.

In 1966, Pope Paul VI met Britain's Archbishop of Canterbury at the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, the first meeting between the heads of the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches in 400 years.

In 1983, the world's first recipient of a permanent artificial heart, Barney Clark of Seattle, died in a Salt Lake City hospital.

In 1983, President Ronald Reagan called for the development of an anti-missile defense system to protect the United States from potential nuclear attacks. The Strategic Defense Initiative was dubbed "Star Wars" by some.

In 1985, the United States completed the secret air evacuation of 800 Ethiopian Jews to Israel.

In 1994, Mexican presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party was fatally shot during a campaign appearance in Tijuana.

In 1996, Taiwan elected Lee Teng-hui in the island's first direct presidential election.

In 1998, Titanic won 11 Academy Awards, tying the record total won by Ben-Hur in 1959. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King also won 11 -- in 2004.

In 2001, the Russian space station Mir was brought down in the Pacific Ocean near Fiji after more than 15 years in orbit.

In 2010, U.S. President Barack Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law. The landmark legislation was designed to extend health insurance to about 32 million Americans over a 10-year period. Obama said it would "set in motion reforms that generations of Americans have fought for and marched for and hungered to see."

In 2021, the Ever Given, a large container ship, ran aground and became stuck horizontally in the Suez Canal, blocking traffic for six days.

In 2023, Canada announced it had a record 1 million increase in population in 2022 as the government's strategy to address labor shortages and an aging population through immigration stepped up a gear.

A thought for the day: "There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women." -- U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright