People

KENTUCKY COLLEGE HONORS LORETTA LYNN

"The Coal Miner's Daughter," Loretta Lynn, is a classic example of living out the American dream -- rising from humble beginnings in Butcher Holler to become an international superstar. Now officials of the University of Kentucky report that Lynn has just gotten an additional honor. Over the weekend she was presented with an honorary doctorate of arts degree from the school. The honor was presented following a formal procession of faculty members and guests into the Singletary Center for the Arts. The event was held at the school's Lexington campus. James Holsinger Jr., the university's senior vice president, in making the presentation, called Lynn "a traveling ambassador for both the entertainment world and the state of Kentucky." During Lynn's career she has racked up 53 Top 10 singles on the country charts and has had 16 albums go to No. 1 on the list. She's now 66. By the way, she is co-chairwoman of the Kentucky Hall of Fame, along with the state's first lady.

SPEAKING OF COUNTRY STARS ...

There seems to be a resurgence in the popularity of country and the visibility of country stars nationally. Much of it is because of the incredible popularity of the soundtrack for the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" and its amazing bluegrass music. And more and more of what Nashville is cranking out is considered "cross-over music" and is being played on a wider spectrum of stations across the country. This facet of music, though, is rankling many dyed-in-the-wool country fans that see the genre being "diluted." The latest example of the expansion of country is the appearance of Alan Jackson on the cover up the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly magazine. Jackson also is featured in a six-page major article in the publication. He was the guest on "Today" on NBC as this week started. The mustachioed Jackson's Web site -- alanjackson.com -- has more.

'LORD OF THE RINGS' A COSTLY VENTURE

It's a sure bet that for years to come the incredible movie "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" and its possible sequels will pay handsome monetary rewards to backers. But, according to the New York Post, the mega-costly movie was a logistical nightmare to produce. Here are some of the mind-boggling stats from the production of the film: 46,000 swords and scabbards were used; 1.2 million hand-linked rings; 900 suits of armor; 15,000 costumes; 350 wigs; 1,600 pair of prosthetic Hobbit feet. More than 40 full-time tailors were employed for the filming; a quarter of a million silk leaves were attached to "trees" on sets; more than 20,000 extras were used and there were 114 speaking roles. The movie was shot on more than 100 sets and locations and three million feet of movie film was used. But, as those who have seen it can attest, the results were amazing. Currently in its 12th week of national distribution, "Rings" has grossed nearly $300 million.

MORE LEGAL HOT WATER FOR FORMER NBA STAR

Additional charges are being leveled against former NBA standout Jayson Williams. Court officials in Newark, N.J., confirm that prosecutors have come up with more charges, including tampering with evidence and engaging in a conspiracy to obstruct justice in a case relating to the death of a limousine driver. The shooting incident happened at Williams' home. Two others were named in the evidence-tampering suit. Williams earlier was charged with manslaughter in the death of the driver. He had hired the man to drive some friends home from a game with the Harlem Globetrotters in Bethlehem, Pa., in February. Sports Illustrated has reported that a witness says that Williams tried to put the driver's fingerprints on the gun after the shooting. The star has yet to enter a plea in the manslaughter case.

HISTORIAN DEFENDS HER 'INTEGRITY'

Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin says writing down history is not easy and she has defended her work before a convocation at the College of St. Catherine in Minnesota. Several months ago a flap erupted around the publication of her major work, "The Fitzgeralds & The Kennedys." There were charges that some of the work was not original and that Goodwin had plagiarized sections. She told the students at St. Catherine's that she got much of her information from "dozens of cartons" stored for years at Hyannis and, that since she was not the only person over the years to have had access to the material, it's possible that other authors simply got there first. Goodwin said she wanted to confront the charges of theft while appearing at the St. Paul school and had actually changed the topic of her intended address. The Pioneer-Press reports that she initially was to have spoken under the title "Democracy in Times of Crisis." She changed her agenda to "The Writing of History: Problems and Pleasures." Goodwin is possibly best known for her Pulitizer prize-winning book on the lives of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

MALCOLM X PAPERS ON WEB AUCTION SITE

The family of Malcolm X and quite a few writers are worried that the sudden appearance of a huge cache of the late activist's writings on the eBay Internet auction site could mean the material will be lost forever. The New York Times reports that the writings and other papers, some of which also are in the hands of a San Francisco auction house, are vitally important to the record of the day and, if they end up in private hands, could be lost to future historians. The papers and other mementos apparently were found in a storage center and could bring in half a million dollars. Scholars who have read summaries of some of the papers say they are legit. A lawyer for Malcolm X's family says that several of his children are "appalled" that the papers could end up in private hands and the legacy of their father be lost.

UPI DAILY SURVEY QUESTION NO. 286

Over the weekend I reached one of those milestones in your life ... another major birthday. This one means that I get 10 percent off at Wendy's. It was a fun observance with friends, good food and lots of storytelling. So, today's question: "What was either the best or worst birthday you can remember?" Put BIRTHDAY in the subject line and send to [email protected] via the Internet.

HEY, 'SURVEY' IS BACK IN BUSINESS

After more than a week of computer re-tooling, the SURVEY in-box is again alive and well. Now the problem is dealing with the backlog of answers to the questions we've used during the past two weeks. So, let's at least get cracking and go back to our question related to WEATHER. We had asked if better weather was approaching in your area. Len, who also lives here in Las Vegas, wrote to ask me if I didn't already know the weather in Vegas is horrible. Peggy, in the Michigan state capital, reported that the weather was getting better and the daffodils were beginning to "stick their heads out." Then she added, "we just got four more inches of snow." Sheila is among many who basically said the same thing about the last week in February. "Nice enough yesterday to go for a picnic, but today winter has returned." She lives in south Texas. (Sheila, do you ever eat at Snoopy's? Ever listen to KEDT? Former UPI Radio Network anchor Bill Clough is now with the station.) Finally, Pat -- from Hamilton, Ontario -- reports that this winter only one heavy snow fell there. It would be interesting to see what the replies would be were we to ask the question again now, two weeks later. TOMORROW: We continue to catch up on your replies and look at your feelings about the Winter Olympics and the number of calendars you have. GBA.

BY THE WAY: Did you see the gut-wrenching documentary on 9/11 that CBS had Sunday night? It was amazing.