Born 1918: Joey Bishop, veteran comedian, actor, and last-surviving member of Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack. The bulk of his success came in television with "The Joey Bishop Show" sitcom (1961-65) and 177 guest host stints on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (more than anyone else), which led to his competing talk program (1967-69). His movies include "Ocean's Eleven" (1960), "Texas Across the River" (1966), and "A Guide for the Married Man" (1967).

Born 1926: Shelley Berman, stand-up comedian (who usually sat on a stool, pretending to talk on a telephone) and actor, remembered as Mel Beach on "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" (1977-78).

1938: Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were on first, their first radio appearance, as regular performers on "The Kate Smith Hour." The soon-to-be giant stars' radio show ran from 1940 to 1949, concurrent to their heyday in motion pictures. The team filmed 36 comedies, plus a television series, "The Abbott and Costello Show." Additionally, they were among the rotating guest hosts of "The Colgate Comedy Hour," an early '50s variety success.

Born 1956: Nathan Lane, tour de force comedic actor, considered Broadway's #1 star with successes in numerous shows, including "Guys and Dolls" (1992) as Nathan Detroit, his namesake, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (1996) as Pseudolus, and his Tony Award-winning "The Producers" (2001) as Max Bialystock. His movie work includes "The Birdcage" (1996) and featured voices in "The Lion King" and "Stuart Little" series.

Born 1965: Maura Tierney, actress, whose most prominent exposure in comedy was the "Newsradio" sitcom as Lisa Miller (1995-99) and opposite Jim Carrey in the theatrical film, "Liar, Liar" (1997).

Copyright ©2003 Mike Durrett. All rights reserved.