Reporter’s diary

Press, 8 July 1983, Page 2

Reporter’s diary

Just cruising DOGS might not be able to drive Volkswagen “beetle” cars, but they can make a fair attempt at it, in the experience of a woman who lives in Englefield Road, Belfast. One of her sons, who owns a Volkswagen and a Dalmatian dog called Rupert, recently got engaged and from time to time visits his fiancee in the North Island, leaving his car at his parents’ home. During these absences, Rupert, who everybody admits to be thoroughly spoilt, insists on spending much of his time pining in the Volkswagen. The other day, perhaps tired of such a static existence, Rupert managed to get the car’s indicators flashing, headlights blazing (it was day-time), and windscreen wipers going, with only moderate damage to the controls from his teeth. Luckily, for the house and garden, there was no key in the ignition. Racket auction THE RACKET used by John McEnroe in the Wimbledon men’s singles final will be auctioned at Sotheby’s to raise money for the sports clinic at the British School of Osteopathy in London. While on the subject of Wimbledon, veteran tennis enthusiasts might be interested to learn that Kitty McKane, th. 1924 and 1926 women’s singles champion, is s'iil playing the game at the age <i 86. She returns regularly to the scene of her triumphs to practise on the courts of the All England Tennis Club. These days, she says, she confines herself to doubles, as she finds the court “too wide for singles.” Married bliss?

RICHARD BURTON and Elizabeth Taylor are well known for the number of times they have been married. But, there are

others with more imposing records. The most-married person in the world is the aptly named Glynn de Moss Wolfe, aged 76, a former minister of religion. He married for the twentythird time in May, 1982, although he wedded some of his wives more than once, according to the “Daily Mail.” Asbestos millionaire, Thomas Manville, died in 1967, aged 73, after 23 marriages and 11 wives. In Britain, people are more restrained. Olive Joyce Wilson, of Marston Green, Birmingham, has married a record of eight times. She just nosed out Woolworth millionairess, Barbara Hutton, who died in California, aged 67. Miss Hutton was Mrs Cary Grant at one time and Mrs “Somebody Else” six times. Cary Grant himself has married five times, most lately to a Devon farmer’s daughter, Barbara Harris, who, aged 30, is 47 years his junior. Most prolific marriers are men, but one notable exception is Mrs Beverly Nina Avery, a barmaid in Los Angeles. Her sixteenth divorce was from her fourteenth husband. Betting coups PUNTERS threw caution to the wind and pulled off some of the biggest betting coups ever experienced at Addington Raceway at a special meeting on Wednesday evening. People were invited to the course and issued with play money to invest on reebrdings of old races. The evening was held to familiarise totalisator staff with the new jet-bet and trifecta systems which will be in use for the first time tomorrow. With the “devil-may-care” attitude associated with betting with someone else’s money and an ability to remember the original result, record low dividends were reported, as were payouts. One

punter collected $24,000 from the last race while some trifectas paid under $5. Betters will be hoping the windfalls continue tomorrow but that the prices increase. Wine windfall ALL ROBERT Kandall wanted was cigarettes but he left the San Francisco store with 18 bottles of wine after noticing that Chateau Lafite-Rothschild and Chateau Latour were marked at SNZ6.IO a bottle. “I could barely contain myself,” said Kandall, aged 24, who works as a waiter. “We have wine tastings at the restaurant and I know wines. I just couldn’t believe those prices.” A wine dealer told Kandall the 10 bottles of 1975 Chateau Lafite-Roth-schild that he bought were worth about SNZIS3 a bottle and eight bottles of Chateau Latour would bring about SNZI9I each. The store’s proprietor said later that he had found the wine in a back room when he bought the market a few months ago. Pastry and... CONNOISSEURS of meat pies can be thankful they do not live in Australia. The consumer magazine, “Choice,” has just bitten the crust of 24 Australian meat pies and reports a soggy tale. They found only one pie had recognisable pieces of meat and 18 had more pastry than filling. Lottery success BESSIE WHEELESS, aged 84, a former telephone operator who lives in a retirement home, won $2.4 million in an Illinois state lottery. But she must live another 20 years to collect the entire prize which is awarded at the rate of $123,936 a year for the next two decades. In the event of her death, payments will continue to her estate.