This Day in Humor with Mike Durrett


Born 1919: J.D. Salinger. "His best-known work is 'The Catcher in the Rye,' a novel about a neurotic, perceptive adolescent who rebels against what he considers the phoniness of modern society," reports The Literature Nook. "Told in the teenage slang of the narrator-hero, the book is a skillful combination of humor and pathos."

Born 1943: Don Novello in Ashtabula, OH. The actor, writer, and comedian often seen in public as Father Guido Sarducci, insider to the Pope, a character he portrayed on numerous talk shows and as a regular on "Saturday Night Live."

Born 1969: Verne Troyer, comic actor who catapulted to fame as "Mini-Me" in the "Austin Powers" movie series.

Died 1994: Cesar Romero, 86, versatile actor in scores of films, may be best remembered as The Joker in TV's "Batman" series, 1966-68.

1995: The final "The Far Side" comic was published. The immensely popular strip began in 1980 and was retired by cartoonist Gary Larson on this date.

1996: Betty Rubble first appeared as a Flintstone vitamin, 27 years after her series co-stars.

Copyright ©2003 Mike Durrett. All rights reserved.