News In Brief

HEY, BIG SPENDER!

It's not as though waitress Melanie Uczen had never seen a nice tip before. The Illinois State University graduate once was left $80 on a tab of $20. But a patron at the upscale lounge in Chicago where she works absolutely blew her away with his generosity last weekend. When he left, after she'd chatted with his party of three about the merits of hard work, she noticed the gratuity on his $9 bill for a round of iced teas - a cool $10,000.

HE WAS IN A CLASS BY HIMSELF

Earning valedictorian honors at your high school demands years of dedicated effort, right? Not for David Franks. In his case, it was automatic. He is 2000's only graduate of Kellys Island School on the island of the same name in Lake Erie, off Sandusky, Ohio. The school has only 35 students and, its principal says, there are years when none of them is a senior. David wouldn't have been one either if he hadn't moved there from Cleveland in his sophomore year.

'Millionaire' is fending off all competition for TV ratings

"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" doesn't want to give up its TV audience to anything. Not to the Tony Awards, which didn't even make Nielsen Media Research's top 10 list. "Survivor," CBS's reality series, also didn't beat "Millionaire," although it had a strong debut at No. 6. The top shows May 29-June 4 as measured by Nielsen, with the estimated number of homes (in millions) tuning in to each:

1. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" (Thursday), ABC 16.1

2. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" (Tuesday), ABC 15.2

3. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" (Sunday), ABC 14.4

4. "NBA Playoff: Portland/L.A. Lakers" (Sunday), NBC 12.5

5. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" (Wednesday), ABC 11.9

6. "Survivor," CBS 10.4

7. "60 Minutes," CBS 10.3

8. "60 Minutes II," CBS 9.9

9. "20/20 Downtown," ABC 9.8

10. "NBA Playoff: L.A. Lakers/ Portland" (Friday), NBC 9.4

- Associated Press

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