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Saturday, May 31, 1997

  • Today's Events
  • On Horizon
  • On This Day
  • Newslink
  • Holidays & more
  • Almanac archive
  • "Hopefully, when we understand how the universe began, it will give us a clue as to why it began the way it did, or even why it began at all."

    -- Dr. Stephen Hawking





    Today's events


  • Pope John Paul II begins a trip to his native Poland.

  • U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright is scheduled to visit Sarajevo for talks with political leaders.

  • The U.N.'s World Health Organization sponsors No-Tobacco Day.

  • With over 90 balloons participating, the annual Great Wisconsin Dells Balloon Rally opens in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin.

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    On the horizon


  • On Sunday, June 1, the second round of French parliamentary elections is scheduled to begin.

  • On Monday, June 2, Canada is scheduled to hold its general elections.

  • On Tuesday, June 3, it will be the eighth anniversary of China's crackdown on dissidents in Tiananmen Square.

  • On Wednesday, June 4, the World Economic Forum issues its world competitiveness report in Zurich.

  • On Thursday, June 5, multi-party legislative elections are scheduled to be held in Algeria, the first since authorities annulled 1992's general election.

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    On this day


  • In 1433, Pope Eugenius IV crowned Sigismund the Holy Roman Emperor.

  • In 1669, due to failing eyesight, the British admiralty official and diarist Samuel Pepys stopped writing his diary.

  • In 1793, in France, three days of insurrection and revolt began, leading to the fall of the Girondists from the Convention.

  • In 1821, the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary In Baltimore became the first catholic cathedral to be dedicated in the United States.

  • In 1859, Big Ben, the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament in London, began telling the time.

  • In 1902, the Treaty of Vereeniging was signed in Pretoria bringing an end to the Boer War. 5,774 British troops and at least 4,000 Boers were killed in action.

  • In 1910, the former British self-governing colonies of Natal, the Transvaal and Cape of Good Hope joined together and formed the Union of South Africa.

  • In 1911, in Belfast, the White Star liner the Titanic was launched as one of the largest vessels afloat. It sank on its maiden voyage in April 1912.

  • In 1961, South Africa proclaimed itself a republic and left the Commonwealth.

  • In 1962, Adolph Eichmann, who helped organize Nazi Germany's Holocaust murder of millions of Jews, was hanged in Jerusalem.

  • In 1990, the smash NBC sitcom "Seinfeld" premiered.

  • In 1994, Bosnia's parliament elected Croat war veteran Kresimir Zubak as the first interim president of a new power-sharing Muslim-Croat federation.

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    Newslink


    The Pope is headed home for a visit to his native Poland. But the country has been through so many changes in the years since he took up residence in Rome that he may need a little help getting around. Poland Now! is one Web site ready to aid the Papal pilgrimage to the old home stead.


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    Holidays and more


  • Brunei Darussalam celebrates the Anniversary of the Royal Brunei Malay Regiment.

  • Malaysia celebrates its Harvest Festival.

  • Actor Tom Berenger is 47.

  • Actor Clint Eastwood is 67.

  • Actress Sharon Gless is 54.

  • Football Hall of Famer Joe Namath is 54.

  • Singer Johnny Paycheck is 56.

  • Actress Brooke Shields is 32.

  • Actress Lea Thompson is 36.

  • Composer Peter Yarrow is 59.

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    Sources: Associated Press,
    Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan



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