On this date in . . .

1961: Ricky Nelson recorded "Travelin' Man." It became his second #1 song. "Poor Little Fool" reached #1 in 1958.

1964: 28-year-old Kitty Genovese was stabbed to death in Queens, New York. The murder occurred over several hours during which the killer left and returned, yet not one of 37 witnesses called police.

1975: Singers George Jones and Tammy Wynette were divorced after a stormy 6-year marriage.

1982: John Jaszowski of Milwaukee hit 12 consecutive strikes to become the youngest bowler ever to roll a perfect game. John was 11 years old.

1983: The Larry King Live show premiered on CNN.

1987: Bryan Adams' "Heat of the Night" became the first commercially released cassette single in the U.S.

1988: Gallaudet University, a liberal arts college for the hearing-impaired since 1864 in Washington, D.C., chose I. King Jordan to become the school's first deaf president.

1990: A blind man robbed a bank in Vallejo, California, then asked the teller to guide him out of the building. She refused, and he was still trying to find his way out when police arrived.

1991: Romanian peasant Calin Florea dug up his prize German-made Lanz tractor, which he had buried in his garden 35 years earlier to prevent a communist co-op from confiscating it. He cleaned the engine and it cranked right up.

1996: The Nigerian news agency reported that a woman waiting in line three hours for gasoline gave birth to a baby girl. Others in line at the service station nicknamed the baby "Fuel Crisis."

1997: A lock of British naval hero Lord Nelson's hair sold at auction for $8,096.

2002: President Bush declared Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was a menace and had to be dealt with, and Osama bin Laden had been reduced to a marginal figure in the war on terrorism.

2002: On Fox's "Celebrity Boxing." Tonya Harding beat Paula Jones, Danny Banaduce whipped Barry Williams and Todd Bridges defeated Vanilla Ice.

2006: U.S. Customs agents in California found 250 bogus billion dollar bills while investigating a man charged with currency smuggling. The investigation led agents to a West Hollywood apartment where they found the stash of yellowing and wrinkled one billion dollar bills with an issue date of 1934 and bearing a picture of President Grover Cleveland.

Birthdays:

• actress Dana Delany is 55;
• singer Neil Sedaka 72;
• singer Glenn Lewis 36;
• U2's Adam Clayton 51;
• actor William H. Macy 61;
• actress Deborah Raffin 58;
• actress Tracy Wells 40;
• actress Annabeth Gish 40;
• baseball's Will Clark 47;
• Donald Duck 77.

     Q: Which Annabeth Gish film also featured supporting roles by Julia Roberts and Matt Damon: (a) "Shag;" (b) "Hiding Out;" or (c) "Mystic Pizza?"
     A: In the 1988 cult film "Mystic Pizza," Annabeth was Kat Araujo, Julia played Daisy Araujo, and Matt made his film debut as Steamer.

     Q: Is Kool-Aid owned by: (a) Quaker Oats; (b) Sara Lee; or (c) Phillip Morris?
     A: Phillip Morris. They also own Cheez Whiz, Jell-O, Miller Beer, Marlboro, Oscar Mayer, Post Cereals, Velveeta, Tombstone Pizza, and Maxwell House.

     Q: Research shows that soccer players who hit the ball with their head ten or more times per game: (a) have more vision problems; (b) have more headaches; or (c) have lower IQs than other players?
     A: They have lower IQs than players who don’t "head" the ball more than once per game.

     Busy Truth: The sooner you fall behind, the more time you’ll have to catch up.

     Giraffe Hygiene Truth: A giraffe can clean its ears with its own 21-inch tongue.