Saturday, August 23, 1997
Today's events
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King Carl Gustaf of Sweden visits Bosnia.
The South Korean Art Troupe performs in Beijing to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Sino-Korean diplomatic relations.
Taiwan's ruling Nationalist Party holds its 15th Congress in Taipei to re-elect its party chairman and vice chairman and discuss major party affairs.
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On the horizon
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On Sunday, August 24, the 10th World Conference on Tobacco on
Health is scheduled to take place in Beijing.
On Monday, August 25, NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer is
set for a late-morning launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida,
aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket.
On Tuesday, August 26, the National Organization for Women is scheduled to mark Women's Equality Day.
On Wednesday, August 27, the annual Venice Film Festival opens in Italy.
On Thursday, August 28, Mafest 97, an international film festival of tourism, ecology and sports opens in Palic, Serbia with 65 films from 28 countries.
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On this day
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In 1305, William Wallace, the Scottish patriot and a leader of the struggle against the English, was hanged, disemboweled, beheaded and quartered in London.
In 1628, the 1st Duke of Buckingham, an influential but unpopular English statesman, was assassinated at Portsmouth.
In 1813, during the Napoleonic Wars, a Prussian force drove
back the French at the Battle of Grossbeeren.
In 1821, Mexico was declared independent of Spain by the
Treaty of Aquala.
In 1866, the Treaty of Prague formally ended the Seven Weeks'
War between Austria and Prussian-led German states.
In 1914, Japan declared war on Germany. On the European
battlefield, German troops executed over 600 people in the
Belgian town of Dinant, then fired and burned the town. British forces retreated at the Battle of Mons.
In 1921, Feisal I was installed as King of Iraq.
In 1927, two Italian-born anarchists, Nicola Sacco and
Bartolomeo Vanzetti, were executed in Massachusetts despite
worldwide protests of their innocence.
In 1939, Hitler and Stalin signed a non-aggression pact,
leaving the way open for Germany to attack Poland.
In 1942, the Battle of Stalingrad began. Although German
shelling reduced the city to rubble, the Russians fought back
and after six months the Germans surrendered.
In 1944, King Michael of Romania ordered his forces to cease
fire against the Allies and dismissed the pro-Axis premier,
Marshal Ion Antonescu.
In 1961, East Germany imposed new curbs on travel between West and East Berlin. In retaliation the Western powers placed tanks and 1,000 troops along the Berlin Wall.
In 1976, Arab guerrillas hijacked an Egyptair plane shortly
after takeoff from Cairo. The plane landed at Luxor where
Egyptian commandos successfully stormed it.
In 1979, Bolshoi Ballet star Alexander Godunov sought and
received political asylum in the United States.
In 1980, the Polish government agreed to negotiate directly
with striking Gdansk shipworkers.
In 1982, Christian militia leader Bashir Gemayel was elected
president of Lebanon.
In 1989, Citizens of the Soviet Union's Baltic states marked
the 50th anniversary of the Soviet-Nazi pact which led to their incorporation into the Soviet empire by forming a 180-mile human chain for freedom.
In 1990, East and West Germany announced that they would unite October 3, healing four decades of post-World War II division.
In 1991, Radical Moscow city leaders took control of the
Soviet Communist Party's headquarters, seizing documents and
sealing offices, as anti-communism swept the Soviet Union in the wake of a failed hardline coup.
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Newslink
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The Asian nation of Bangladesh always seems to be in the news for suffering the ravages of the latest cyclone, or other devastating weather event. Well, the country has a lot more to offer, as witnessed by the Bangladesh: An Online Tour Guide Web site.
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Holidays and more
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Bangladesh celebrates Janmastami.
Actor Tony Bill is 57.
Actress Barbara Eden is 63.
Actress Shelley Long is 48.
Dancer Patricia McBride is 55.
Actress Vera Miles is 67.
Political comedian Mark Russell is 65.
Actor Richard Sanders is 57.
Singer Rick Springfield is 48.
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Sources: Associated Press,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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