Today is Sunday, Jan. 29, the 29th day of 2017 with 336 to follow.
The moon is waning. Morning stars are Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury. Evening stars are Neptune, Venus, Mars and Uranus.
Those born on this date are under the sign of Aquarius. They include Swedish scientist and philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg in 1688; American colonial political philosopher Thomas Paine in 1736; William McKinley, 25th president of the United States, in 1843; Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov in 1860; businessman John D. Rockefeller Jr. in 1874; comic actor W. C. Fields in 1880; dramatist Paddy Chayefsky in 1923; actor Victor Mature in 1913; actor John Forsythe in 1918; writer Germaine Greer in 1939 (age 78); actor Katharine Ross in 1940 (age 77); actor Tom Selleck in 1945 (age 72); actor Ann Jillian in 1950 (age 67); drummer Tommy Ramone (born Erdelyi Tamas) in 1952; TV personality Oprah Winfrey in 1954 (age 63); Olympic gold medal-winning diver Greg Louganis in 1960 (age 57); actor Nick Turturro in 1962 (age 55); actor Heather Graham in 1970 (age 47); actor Sara Gilbert in 1975 (age 42); singer Adam Lambert in 1982 (age 35).
On this date in history:
In 1820, 10 years after mental illness forced him to retire from public life, Britain’s King George III, who lost the American colonies, died at the age of 82.
In 1845, Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven was published.
In 1861, Kansas became the 34th state of the United States. It joined as a free or non-slavery state at a time when southern states were seceding from the Union.
In 1886, German Karl Benz was awarded a patent for the gasoline-driven automobile.
In 1900, eight baseball teams were organized as the professional American League. They were in Buffalo, N. Y.; Chicago; Cleveland; Detroit; Indianapolis; Kansas City, Mo.; Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
In 1936, the first class of inductees for the National Baseball Hall of Fame included Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Babe Ruth and Honus Wagner.
In 1963, the first inductees named for the Pro Football Hall of Fame included Sammy Baugh, Harold « Red » Grange, George Halas, Don Hutson, Earl « Curly » Lambeau, Bronko Nagurski and Jim Thrope.
In 1979, Deng Xiaoping, deputy premier of China, and U. S. President Jimmy Carter signed accords reversing decades of U. S. opposition to the People’s Republic of China.
In 1995, the San Francisco 49ers became the first team to win five Super Bowls when they routed the San Diego Chargers 49-26.
In 2000, delegates from more than 130 nations meeting in Montreal adopted the first global treaty regulating trade in genetically modified food products.
In 2002, U. S. President George W. Bush warned in his State of the Union address that the war on terrorism was just beginning, with thousands of potential terrorists « spread throughout the world like ticking time bombs. » It was in this speech he referred to Iran, Iraq and North Korea as part of an « Axis of Evil. »
In 2006, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was sworn in as the 5th emir of Kuwait. He replaced the 4th emir, Sheikh Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah, who ruled for nine days following the death of Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, 3rd emir of Kuwait.
In 2010, Scott Roeder was convicted of first-degree murder in the 2009 Wichita, Kan., church slaying of Dr. George Tiller, noted for performing late-term abortions. Roeder, 52, was sentenced to life in prison.
In 2013, Ray LaHood, U. S. transportation secretary, announced his resignation .
In 2014, the U. S. Federal Reserve, indicating optimism in the country’s economic growth, announced a $10 billion cut in its monthly bond purchases.
A thought for the day: « There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women. » — Madeleine Albright
