Strange But True
By SAMANTHA WEAVER

• You might be surprised to learn that the highest reward ever offered for the capture of Henry McCarty - the infamous outlaw better known as Billy the Kid - was $500.

• It was famed Irish author George Bernard Shaw who made the following sage observation: "A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul."

• The multinational telecommunications company Motorola was actually founded in 1928, though its original name was Galvin Manufacturing Company.

• From the Before They Were Famous file: comedian Jerry Seinfeld was a telemarketer, selling light bulbs by phone; actress Demi Moore was employed by a debt-collection agency; rocker David Lee Roth worked as an orderly in a hospital; and singer Madonna worked at Dunkin' Donuts.

• You may know that on Oct. 4, 1957, the Soviet Union earned the distinction of putting the first humanmade object into space with the launch of the satellite Sputnik 1. You may not know, though, that in Russian, the word "sputnik" means "fellow traveler."

• You've almost certainly heard the song "For Once in My Life" - the version recorded by Canadian singer Michael Buble has been all over the airwaves in recent years. You might not be aware of the song's long history, though. Since it was written in 1967 by Ron Miller and Orlando Murden, it's been recorded by such musical luminaries as Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald, The Temptations, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. In fact, with more than 200 versions, it's one of the most-recorded songs of all time.

• I don't know who studies such things, but those who do say that over the course of a lifetime, you'll probably spend about three years in the restroom.

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Thought for the Day: "Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks." - Doug Larson

(c) 2007 King Features Synd., Inc.