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JOHNNY CASH TO GET YET ANOTHER HONOR

Country music's annual Flameworthy Awards says it will honor "The Man in Black," Johnny Cash, at its upcoming ceremonies. A segment of the April 7 show will be devoted to Cash, who recently was the subject of a slew of honors from various groups and singers. The awards show, officially called the CMT Flameworthy 2003 Video Music Awards, will honor Cash for "his contributions to American music." Organizers are quoted as saying Cash has been an omnipresent "driving force" behind American pop and country music since he burst upon the scene four decades ago. Recently, the magazine Rolling Stone honored Cash as having produced the Video of the Year for the track "Hurt." It was a mix of concert and other video segments intertwined with new footage shot at the Cash estate in Tennessee near Nashville. The song was written by Trent Reznor, of Nine Inch Nails fame. It appears on the latest Cash CD, "American IV: The Man Comes Around Again."

TEXAS EVANGELIST HAD HUGE 'OVERHEAD'

A report in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram claims Texas-based minister Mike Murdock spent the majority of donations to him on "overhead." The publication says for nearly a decade less than 1 percent of the ministry's income actually went for charitable causes. The ministry, the Mike Murdock Evangelistic Association, promises adherents if they send in small donations their lives will be turned around. The publication says Murdock has been promising: restored relationships, healed bodies and financial gain that will be "100 times that of what is given." While making his pitches, Murdock often tells his followers "If any of this money is for Mike Murdock's personal gain, may a curse be upon me and my ministry and may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth." The information about the use of the funds comes from IRS information garnered from tax statements. During one two-year period Murdock claimed he spent nearly $140,000 on "personal expenses." During that same period, the chief officers of the five largest Christian non-profit groups each spent about $5,000 a year. It is estimated out of the $5.6 million the ministry raised last year, less than $30,000 went to the poor.

CONGRATULATIONS TO 'CHICAGO'

It looks as though the musical movie "Chicago" really is great, being named Best Picture by the Producers Guild of America Sunday night. Additionally, the movie's producer, Martin Richards, captured the group's Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year award. The movie is seen by some as being the start of a revival of the singing and dancing movie musical, but with the grit and verve necessary to capture today's audiences. It is as much a quantum leap forward as was "West Side Story" in the 1960s, which also was born of Broadway. That honor and others bestowed on the film, according to some pundits, are proof it will be the movie's night on March 23 when the Oscars are handed out.

TOBY KEITH: I'M ANTI-WAR -- BUT

Controversial singer-songwriter Toby Keith ("Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue") says he's against war, but when it's fought it should be all-out. The news provider country.com, reporting on a rambling interview given recently to radio big-wigs in Nashville, says Keith again defended "Courtesy," a jingoistic song that went to the top of the charts but got him bumped from an ABC Fourth of July show because the host, Peter Jennings, objected to a word in the lyric and the in-your-face tone of the song. Keith admits he has been outspoken. Once a critic of Bill Clinton's personal life, Keith says he changed his mind about the presidency after a personal visit to the White House. He also retold the story of having to go on stage and perform just minutes after receiving a phone call about the unexpected death of his father in a traffic accident. He called his dad a "real hero." He says, though, you have to go on from here.

ATLANTA SYMPHONY ON CLOUD NINE

Members of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus are basking in the glow of three important Grammys. Robert Spano, the orchestra's music director, says he is thrilled at the awards, given for the Telarc recording of Ralph Vaughan Williams' "A Sea Symphony." The CD, one of the first recorded in the new SACD format -- which allows older players to convey the music as usual, but lets consumers with newer equipment hear a broader range of sounds -- won Best Classical Album, Best Choral Album and Best Engineered Album. The ASO's president, Allison Vulgamore, says the work "is an incredible recording and we have many to thank for (it)." By the way, the Williams work was the second recording for the Atlanta group under Robert Spano. The ASO has a long history of winning awards for its recordings. For years it racked up kudos under legendary director Robert Shaw, who was famous both for his instrumental conducting and his chorus and singers. One of the best recordings of Handel's "Messiah" ever done is an old RCA Red Seal effort under Shaw. Unlike thunderous recordings made by other orchestras, Shaw went back to Handel's original scoring with a small ensemble of players and singers, producing an almost dance-like "chamber" version of "Messiah."

MILITARY BROADCASTERS CELEBRATE BIRTHDAY

The international broadcast service for GIs around the world, Armed Forces Radio, is marking its 61st birthday. It was March 1, 1942 -- less than three months after the attack on Pearl Harbor -- that entertainers first joined to do a radio show for the service personnel who already had been dispatched to far-flung corners of the world. The initial show would evolve into the long-running series "Command Performance." The concept would expand into a full-fledged network sending programming overseas. "Command Performance," a weekly feature on the Armed Forces Radio Service, answered mailed-in requests from servicemen around the world who wanted a "piece of home" sent to them via shortwave radio and disk recordings. Eventually most of the shows were moved to special studios in Hollywood to take advantage of the immense pool of talent there. During the war the show presented special songs by GIs' favorite artists. A kiss from a starlet thrown to a microphone and the sound of bacon and eggs frying are two well-remembered requests honored on the show. That first broadcast originated in New York. The announcer was Harry Von Zell. The host was Eddie Cantor. Danny Kaye, Dinah Shore and Cantor's orchestra performed on the broadcast. Another featured vocalist was Bea Wain. Ironically, she would become the featured guest on the last special broadcast originated by what became the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service. That was in 1995 when Frank Bresee, the 30-year host of "The Golden Days of Radio," interviewed Wain. After Bresee's final broadcast was aired, AFRTS stopped originating all but disk jockey-type music for transmission to troops around the world.

UPI DAILY SURVEY QUESTION NO. 536

If you've ever been in the military, here is today's question: "What are your memories of programs heard overseas on Armed Forces Radio?" Put AFRTS in the subject line and send to [email protected].

RESULTS OF QUESTION NO. 531 (FIRE)

Last week, in the wake of that tragic nightclub fire in Rhode Island, we asked about your near-miss experiences. From a very random dip into the e-mail inbox here is what we found:

-- A surprising percentage, 15 percent, noted they had a fire of one kind or another in their car or truck.

-- Another 15 percent said they escaped a major house blaze.

RyanTul has vivid memories of getting out of a hotel fire in Italy while he was in college. SrTJ says she knew nuns who narrowly escaped the horrible fire at Our Lady of Angels School in Chicago. That 1958 tragedy killed nearly 100 students and teachers.

TOMORROW: Surfing with your engine. GBA