NU WHO'S WHO: Nu Skin International has scored an impressive one-two punch of guest speakers for its annual distributors conventions. Earlier this summer, Nu Skin wheeled in Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf and takeover Tonight Show host Jay Leno, while the Provo-based company inaugurated its convention the previous year with visits from former president Ronald Reagan and comedian Bill Cosby.
Admittedly, we're not sure how the likes of Stormin' Norman and Cliff Huckstable help with the sales of personal-care products. And we probably won't ever know, because Nu Skin has barred the media from reporting such speeches in the past.But in a goodwill gesture to improve relations (and perhaps win an invitation to future events), we're submitting a Top 10 list of candidates to speak at next year's Nu Skin distributors convention. If Nu Skin officials pull off any one of the following combinations, it will be considered a major coup.
10. Country singers Garth Brooks and Chris LeDoux
9. Frank Layden and USA Today's NBA columnist Peter Vecessy
8. Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr
7. George Bush and Saddam Hussein
6. Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill
5. Madonna and the Rev. Jerry Falwell
4. D.B. Cooper and Amelia Earhardt
3. Dan Quayle and Murphy Brown
2. Prince Charles and Princess Diana
1. The young Elvis and the old ElvisNAMESAKE CITIES: Looking for that home-away-from-home location for your next vacation outside Utah? Consider traveling to a U.S. city with the same name as your hometown, as evidenced by the Top 10 list of same-name cities.
By the way, Salem residents have biggest list of choices when selecting a namesake destination. More than 15 states have cities named Salem.
10. Mapleton, Maine
9. Highland, Kan.
8. Goshen, N.Y.
7. Payson, Ariz.
6. Lehigh, Okla.
5. Pleasant Grove, Ala.
4. Alpine, N.J.
3. Elkridge, Md.
2. Spanish Fort, Miss.
1. Provo, S.D.GOING ABROAD: OK, so the former list begs the question - can we come up with a Top 10 list of same-name cities in foreign countries?
Of course - and we're excluding some of the most identically shared names, such as Mapleton, South Africa, and Salem, India. With a little bit of creative thinking, you can probably match the following 10 cities with their likely Utah County counterparts.
10. Springvale, Australia
9. Alpine Fault, New Zealand
8. Highlands, Scotland
7. Leiah, Pakistan
6. Spanish Head, Isle of Man
5. El Krib, Tunisia
4. Paysandu, Uruguay
3. Amersfoort, Netherlands
2. Oren, Turkey
1. Provo, Serbia (formerly Yugoslavia)
(Scott Taylor, Provo, is a Deseret News assistant city editor and a former assistant bureau chief of the newspaper's Utah County Bureau.)