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By DENNIS DAILY, United Press International
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REMEMBERING MOYNIHAN

If only for his mercurial style and speaking voice, the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan will be remembered as unique. Relegated to shining shoes as a child, then working as a longshoreman, the talented and intelligent Moynihan eventually earned a Fulbright Scholarship to study in England and was enamored of everything British for the rest of his life. With his trademark bow-tie and his penchant for quoting great writers, he often chagrined reporters by answering questions in long, rambling, carefully constructed, grammatically correct sentences. He was not the master of the "6-second sound bite." His style of speaking with a pinched staccato was somewhat like a slowed-down marriage of Walter Winchell and Howard Cosell. Moynihan was more substance than form. During his 24 years in the Senate he became a crusader for lost causes, especially, in his later years, Social Security reform. He began as an aide to New York Gov. Averell Harriman. He later served presidents on both sides of the aisle, from Kennedy to Nixon to Ford. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., announced his death to the Senate on Wednesday. A rare blend of the world of academia and of the smoke-filled Washington cloakroom, Moynihan was 76.

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WILLIE NELSON TO BE HONORED IN NYC

Colorful country singer-songwriter-balladeer Willie Nelson will be honored by music's biggies on his 70th birthday. The bash is set for New York City, with meteoric, award-winning Norah Jones on hand as well as Eric Clapton, Jerry Lee Lewis and Sheryl Crow. Additionally, the list of invited performers reads like a "who's who" in music: Kenny Chesney, Ray Charles, Merle Haggard, Toby Keith, Kris Kristofferson, Lyle Lovett, Shelby Lynne, Ray Price, Leon Russell, ZZ Top, Shania Twain and John Mellencamp. The event is being dubbed "Willie Nelson and Friends: Alive and Kickin'." CMT says the venue will be New York's Beacon Theater. The April 9 show will be taped for later broadcast on the USA Network over the Memorial Day holiday. Nelson's official birthday is April 30.


CONNIE CHUNG IS LEAVING CNN

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Caught up in the ongoing drive for ratings at CNN, Connie Chung has had her show canceled. The action comes just days after some national media, including the New York Post, expressed the feeling her days were numbered at the news outlet. During much of war coverage Fox News has continued to gain strength, even though CNN had a ton of familiar, comfortable faces, including Chung. Over the years she has been a controversial addition to several news companies. In 1997 her move from CBS to ABC was heralded by eonline.com in a story that described her as a "phoenix who keeps rising from the journalistic ashes." Her CBS days were tainted by that private on-camera conversation she had with the mother of House Speaker Newt Gingrich in which she promised the woman she would not repeat her son's assessment of Hillary Clinton in which Gingrich used the "B-word." Published reports indicates Chung was given the option of staying on after her show was canceled, but she declined.


BLADDER CANCER SIDELINES TOMJANOVICH

Flamboyant Houston Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich has told his players treating his bladder cancer is now his top priority. The Houston Chronicle says the popular coach with the award-winning smile is in his 12th season as head coach. He told players there is no question in his mind he'll be back for next season. Tomjanovich is famous for his frenetic, over-the-top sideline gyrations. Few coaches seem as wrapped up in the game of basketball. In his absence assistant coach Larry Smith will fill in. The coach's condition was fully diagnosed just a few days ago.

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CASH CD IS FIVE YEARS IN THE MAKING

She's gotten her voice back and Rosanne Cash finally has put out a CD that has been "five years in the making." It was in 1998 Cash began working on a project called "Rules to Travel." The tapings fell farther and farther off deadline when it was discovered the singer had developed vocal cord problems. At first, according to country.com, Cash thought she was suffering from a common malady that afflicts singers and that rest would fix the problem. It didn't. She often thought about the vocal problems that hit Julie Andrews as her condition worsened. Determined not to have surgery, she underwent alternative treatments. Now Cash is back and her CD is out this week. Over the years the 46-year-old singer has proven she's more than just Johnny Cash's daughter, winning the Grammy and riding 11 songs to No. 1 on the charts.


CINCINNATI KIDS REMEMBER 'DR. DUNKY'

The gregarious, child-pleasing pediatrician from Ohio, known to a generation of young patients as "Dr. Dunky" has died. Dr. Irvin Dunsky filled his office's waiting room with tons of stuffed toys and fairytale paintings. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports his bedside manner with children became the stuff of local legend. Many of his patients begged to stay on even when they turned 21 and passed the technical age limit for his clientele. He first opened his pediatric office's doors in 1947, finally taking off his smock for the last time in 1996. For more than 16 years his wife Clare served as his receptionist. An avid fan of local sports teams, he parlayed his knowledge of football and baseball into conversation fodder to keep young patients occupied. "Dr. Dunky" was 84.

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UPI DAILY SURVEY QUESTION NO. 554

We have another cross-country bus trip match-up question today, based on pairing famous people, living and dead. "If you had to spend a week sitting on a cross-country bus with a single seat-mate, which of these two would you chose -- the Rev. Jerry Falwell or the Rev. Billy Graham. Put BUS9 in the subject line and send to [email protected] via the Internet.


RESULTS OF QUESTION NO. 549 (ATTACK)

Last week we asked: "Did you watch any of the coverage of 'Day One' of the attack on Iraq?" From a very random dip into the e-mail inbox we found the following:

-85 percent of respondents said they were glued to TV, radio or the Internet in the first hours,

-10 percent said they occasionally checked for updates,

-5 percent said they thought the coverage was an intrusion on our troops and was "managed."

TOMORROW: Have you ever boycotted? GBA

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