Banner Graphic, Volume 19, Number 82, Greencastle, Putnam County, 10 December 1988 — Page 3

People in the news Top romantics of 1988 named NEW YORK (AP) Jessica Rabbit, President and Mrs. Reagan and the co-stars of “Roseanne” were among the most romantic people of 1988, according to a list released Friday by Korbel champagne. Jessica Rabbit, the animated femme fatale from Disney’s “Roger Rabbit,” was chosen because she “risks all to help her man,” the sponsor said. The Reagans “helped set the tone for the return of romance in America during the ’Bos,” it was noted. Roseanne Barr and John Goodman, stars of the TV series “Roseanne,” remind prime-time viewers “that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder and that love and romance can flourish even in non-urban, non-yuppie and non-upscale settings,” the sponsor said. Other winners were George Bums, for “Grade: A Love Story,” a tribute to his late wife, Grade Allen; Olympic diver Greg Louganis, described as “boyish and irrepressible”; and Charles Kuralt, for his television glimpses into “the real romance of America.” Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the Ben & Jerry ice cream entrepreneurs, were cited for contributing 7.5 percent of their company’s pre-tax profits to charity; AIDS researcher Mathilde Krim, for “showing the world that compassion is as important as science”; John G. Healey, executive director of Amnesty International U.S.A., for organizing the “Human Rights Now!” concert tour; and actress Susan Sarandon, 42, for showing that “it’s class, not age, that makes a leading lady romantic and sexy.” • PHOENIX (AP) Humorist Erma Bombeck, whose last five books have sold more more than 15 million copies, has signed a three-book contract with a new publisher, Harper & Row. The terms of the contract were not disclosed, but there were estimates that it was for nearly sl2 million. “All I’ll say is, it’s a good estimate,” Ms. Bombeck said Friday. The first of her new books is for children recovering from cancer, she said. Harper & Row will donate' 100,000 copies of the book titled “I Want to Grow Hair, I Want to Grow Up, I Want to Go to Boise” to children who want them, Ms. Bombeck said. • TOKYO (AP) Kicking off the last leg of his world tour, superstar Michael Jackson mesmerized 50,000 Japanese fans Friday with song, footwork and a dazzling laser light show. Billows of smoke, blinding light and throbbing music set the stage for the first of nine concerts scheduled through Dec. 26 at the mammoth Tokyo Dome the final stop in a 13-month world tour the rock star has said will be his last Jackson, 30, in chains and body-hugging leather, had the crowd dancing, twisting and clapping to 18 numbers, including hits like “Thriller,” “Beat It,” and “Billy Jean.”

Dear Abby

Wedding guest behavior nothing to sing about

DEAR ABBY: I am a church organist. Recently a young couple spent an hour with me and the soloist selecting appropriate music for their wedding. At the wedding, before we reached the middle of the first song, the audience was talking so loudly, we might as well have not been there. During the Lord’s Prayer, the guests continued their loud talking and laughing. Abby, when a couple goes to the expense of hiring musicians ($l5O is our standard fee), the least the guests can do is listen. Such rudeness is inexcusable. To top it off, at the end of the service, when the couple kissed, the guests burst into applause! What for? Getting married? Anybody can get married. I say, save the applause for their 10th, 25th or 50th wedding anniversary. And then do it somewhere other than in a church. Please advise your readers that applauding in a house of worship is disrespectful and unacceptable behavior. UPSET IN CINCINNATI DEAR UPSET: You are justified in criticizing the bad manners of those who ignore the musicians at a wedding, but I must disagree with you about the applause. People burst into spontaneous applause to ex-

THE FAMILY CIRCUS @ By Bjl Keane CowtM Synacair Inc

“Burning candles make you feel quiet. That’s why they have them in church.”

HACKENSACK, N.J. (AP) Morton Downey Jr., the ultraconservative talk show host known for intimidating and haranguing his guests, has filed for divorce, charging his wife of 10 years with “extreme cruelty.” Downey’s divorce suit said Kim Cotton Downey’s moodiness and jealousy led her to create public disturbances and embarrass her husband. The couple, married in 1978, have separated since Nov. 1 and have had no communication for the last several months, said the lawsuit filed Dec. 1 in Superior Court The action proposes equitable distribution of all property acquired by the couple during their marriage. The lawsuit cites several incidents, including one in 1980 in Washington, in which she allegedly locked her husband out of their hotel room, and another in a Princeton restaurant this year in which she allegedly shouted at him loudly enough for all patrons to hear. • PHILADELPHIA (AP) Wayne Rogers, a star of the long-running television series “MASH,” has married Amy Hirsh, a television producer for ABC and a Philadelphia-area native. The 55-year-old Rogers, who played Trapper John in the series, met Hirsh, 36, two years ago while Rogers was guest host on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” The couple were wed Thursday at the Locust Club and will live in California. LOS ANGELES (AP) Leslie Nielsen, whose film “The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad” set post-Thanksgiving box office records, has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His star, the 1,884 th on the Walk, was unveiled Friday by Johnny Grant, chairman of the Walk Committee and honorary mayor of Hollywood, and Bill Welsh, president of the sponsoring Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. Nielsen, 66, stars as the hard-boiled detective Lt. Frank Drebin, who stumbles on a murder plot in Paramount Pictures’ movie adapted from the 1982 “Police Squad” television series. The movie earned a record $9.3 million its first weekend out.

■Pbi

Abigail Van Buren

press their joy, exuberance ano approval. I think it’s both charming and appropriate to applaud a heartwarming marriage ceremony. Readers? * * * DEAR ABBY: In your response to “Kissing Cousins in Minnesota,” you advised that first-cousin marriages are prohibited in certain states among them, Illinois. As an attorney in Illinois, I would like to qualify this prohibition. First cousins CAN marry in Illinois, if both parties are 50 years old or older. However, Illinois will not solemnize a marriage that would be illegal in the parties’ home state, so these two may be out of luck.

PAVLOV

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JOHN GOODMAN, ROSEANNE BARR As TV husband and wife on ‘Roseanne’

Nonetheless, Illinoisians may find this information useful. SUSAN HESSE, CHAMPAIGN, ILL. DEAR MS. HESSE: Thank you for pointing out the technicality. However, the Minnesota kissing cousins were both under 50 years old. * * * DEAR ABBY: My hat is off to the 47-year-old gentleman who wrote to express his resentment of clerks who ask him if he is entitled to a senior citizen’s discount. You cannot imagine how depressing this is for middle-aged people. I, and many of my friends, have had days spoiled by that obnoxious question: “Are you a senior citizen?” (Gag me with a cane!) The best way to end this prying practice is to refuse to patronize establishments where this takes place, and to make sure the management knows why. NOT THERE YET * * * Don’t put off writing thank-you notes, letters of sympathy, etc. because you don’t know what to say. Get Abby’s booklet, “How to Write Letters for All Occasions.” Send a check or money order for $2.89 ($3.39 in Canada) to: Dear Abby, Letter Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, 111. 61054. (Postage is included.)

Peanuts

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December 10,1988 THE BANNERGRAPHIC

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