Florida Today from Cocoa, Florida • Page 41

II iMrthHMHWll. ii i Hill INSIDE PEOPLE REACHING OUT Help the animals The South Brevard Humane Society thrift shop needs donations of used furniture. Call 723-2792. Answers to your questions about heart bypass surgery, 2D. Florida Space Coast Philharmonic presents sounds of Vienna, 5D.

i SECTION SUNDAY, March 14, 1993 Activities honor Gemini astronauts Exciting events will be afoot this week when the 13 astronauts who orbited the Earth during the Gemini program in the mid-'60s are honored at activities Friday and Saturday. The 13 astronauts who will be honored at a 1 A ttt dinner Friday night and inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame south of Titusville on Saturday are: John Young, James McDl-vitt, the late Edward White II, Charles "Pete" Conrad Frank Bonn an, James LovelL Thomas Stafford, Neil Armstrong, David Scott, Eugene Cernan, Michael Collins, Richard Gordon Jr. and Buzz Aldrin. They are listed in the -V tf jfj niif 1 AMY ctm PEOPLE Photos by Malcolm Oenemark, FLORIDA TODAY FIVE-YEAR-OLD Jamie Gorman of Cape Canaveral is ready for the beach with some of the cool toys and books available for the summer.

What to buy now for By Jocelyn R. Coleman FLORIDA TODAY So the weatherman says today is going to be one of the coldest this year. How br-br-br-br boring. Hey, instead of longingly staring at the beach through your windshield, why not head to the stores and load up on some new beach gear? This lull in aquatic activity is the perfect opportunity for the entire family to purchase games, toys, accessories and leisure reading for both lounging and playtime at the beach. The mercury will rise again later this week look for a high in the 70s by Tuesday and no one wants to be caught unprepared for the torrid days in the Space Coast sun.

But we wouldn't be politically correct unless we first mentioned sun ual paddle drums, accessories and mallets also are available. To order, call 1-800-453-3814. To all the guilty parties who each summer say they have no time to read, Barb Gollet, manager of Bookland at Merritt Square mall, has one thing to say: "People complain that they don't have time to read, but they have time to lie in the sun. By taking that little paperback with them, they accomplish both at one time." The pickings on the bookshelves are really ripe this time of year, too. "The big-name authors either have a new hardback out, or a current hardback is going into paperback," Gollet said.

Really smoking on the paperback bestseller list is John Grisham, author of The Pelican Brief (Pocket, $6.99) and The Firm (Island-Dell, The motion picture based on The Firm, starring Tom Cruise, started filming earlier order in which they flew. They join the original Mercury 7 astronauts, who were installed into the Hall of Fame when it opened three years ago. They are Alan Shepard, the late Virgil "Gus" Grissom, John Glenn Jr, Malcolm Scott Carpenter, Walter Schlrra, L. Gordon Cooper Jr. and Donald "Deke" Slayton.

Also planning to attend, representing her late husband, is Betty Grissom. Twelve of the astronauts moved on to the Apollo program. Six walked on the moon; five others orbited the moon. According to Debbie Land, special events coordinator for the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, "All of the surviving Gemini and Mercury astronauts will be here except for Dave Scott.

He has some pressing business concerns and can't make it, but all the rest already have their plane tickets in hand." The fun begins Friday with a dinner and program at the Radisson Resort at the Port in Cape Canaveral. A 6:30 p.m. cocktail reception (with a cash bar) will be followed by a 7 p.m. dinner catered by Bernard's Surf. The dinner will feature a double entree of filet mignon with green peppercorn sauce and fresh mahi mahi.

Emcee for the evening will be Roy Neal, a consultant for NBC. Another guest will be Bill Dana, aka Jose Jimenez and "The Reluctant Astronaut," who has been a friend of the Mercury and Gemini astronauts for many years. The most exciting part of the evening will be after dinner, when the Gemini astronauts will "get into a story-telling contest," Debbie says. "I can't wait to hear some of their stories. They're each going to try to outdo each other.

It should be something!" mm in the in Each person attending will receive a marble this year in Philadelphia. "Grisham's writing is so intriguing," says Dawn Martell, Book-land's assistant manager. "He captures people's interest, and they just can't put the books down." To enhance that literary escapade, let the Beach Blaster cradle your weary head. It's a headrest with built-in speakers that hook up to your personal stereo. No more fiddling with messy headphones once you plunk down $24.99 for the headrest, which is available at the Salty Dog Surf Shop at Melbourne Square mall.

paperweight with a specially designed logo. About 400 people are expected to attend. screen. From spf 2 to 22, just make sure you have something on. That said, it's time for fun.

Remo Paddle Drums can add a different beat to any day. Made by the world's leading manufacturer of drum heads, these special paddles can be used to play tennis, badminton, rac-quetball or ping pong. The paddles also can be used for solo drumming or become part of a drumming circle. It's basically a two-in-one deal. Players can ditch the game rules and just sit around and create their own percussive compositions for fun.

A set with an 8-inch paddle and a 10-inch paddle, two mallets and three balls costs $59.50. Larger sets and individ At 10:30 a.m. Saturday, the public will get a chance to cheer the astronauts when they appear in a parade through Cocoa Beach. The motorcade will move north on SR A1A. Each of the space pioneers will ride in a vintage Corvette convertible, most provided by the Cape Canaveral Corvette Club.

Among the cars will be a 1967 model once owned by Gus Grissom, who, like other astronauts, drove one of the sporty cars. The induction ceremony will take place at 4:30 p.m. Saturday after a 3 p.m. press confer SPRING BREAKERS, back from left, Amy Packer, Tammy Sheldon, Tina Curry and Kristy Snyder, all students at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, and Irne Bier of Hamburg, Germany, get into the latest beach books while they soak up rays on Friday. ence at the Hall of Fame.

Christopher Kraft Jr. See BEACH, Next Page will be master of ceremonies. Kraft was flight director during the Mercury and Gemini programs and later served as director of Johnson Space Center in Houston. For Cocoa's Carrot Top, laughter's in the bag After the official induction ceremony, which is expected to attract about 500 people, a beer and wine reception will take place in the new exhibit area in the museum. Cost of attending the celebration dinner is $65 per person and $25 per person for the fill installation ceremony.

Tickets may be pur chased at the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame ticket counter from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. daily. For more information, call 269-6127.

cable show." He wants his own television show. "I would like to be my own character in a sitcom," he said. "It's like Roseanne (Arnold) is always Roseanne, and Improvement" star) Tim Allen is just being Tim Allen. "It would just be me trying to sell my latest inventions to toy stores. You know, like maybe one week I'd have a Frisbee for blind dogs." For the unenlightened, that's a Frisbee with an onion tied to it Even if Carrot Top is only semi-bombarded with job offers, appearing on the late-night talk show could be the perfect way to get even with friends and peers who once told him his brand of comedy would never work.

"Now, I just call them up and sing 'The Tonight Show' theme." quick-witted observations. If you haven't seen Carrot Top, formerly known as Jeff Thompson of Cocoa, you can watch him open his Pandora's boxes of surprises again on Monday's "The Tonight Show" starring Jay Leno. But don't expect a rerun. Yes, he was on the show just a few weeks ago. Carrot Top left Leno wanting more every six weeks, in fact Although Carrot Top has appeared on several cable comedy specials as well as MTV's "Half-Hour Comedy Hour," he longs to join his funny-biz brothers and sisters on network television.

"In the old days, before cable, appearing on The Tonight Show' had more impact," Carrot Top said. "I would have been a household name if we didn't have cable. Today, every other person has a On TV: 11:35 p.m. Monday on NBC, Chs.2,5. By reuse Hickman FLORIDA TODAY Carrot Top never will be mistaken for any of the other comedians flooding the air waves.

And it's not just his freckled, child-like face or fire-red hair that makes him unique. It's not just because he is one of the few people who can successfully impersonate the girl who appears on Wendy's restaurant bags simply by tying his hair into pigtails. What separates him from the rest is his luggage. Most comedians don't take four large travel trunks on stage. But Carrot Top's bags contain inventions and devices that appear and disappear as quickly as his Astronaut weekend, 10E Wanted: Your news Mail your social news to Amy Clark, Florida Today, P.O.

Box 419000, Melbourne, FL 32941 9000. Phone: 242-3784. Fax: 242-6620. Amy For FLORIDA TODAY NO, HE'S not Dave Thomas' daughter, but put Carrot Top's signature red mop in pigtails, and he looks remarkably like Wendy. Clark's People column appears every Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday in Florida Today.

Cemtan up tilota Shoaly Ttsiay's TV Judith Light and Peter Strauss star in "Men Don't Tell." The movie about a physically and verbally abused husband airs at 9 p.m. on CBS Chs. 6 and 12. More In TV Week. Tciiy's trivia Where Is Sherwood Forest? This fabled royal hunting ground, supposedly a hangout for Robin Hood and his band of merry men, is in Nottinghamshire, England.

Today it is under the protection of the British Forestry Commission. "Little Shop of The musical will be presented at 3 p.m., March 21 at the King Center for the Performing Arts, 3865 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne. Ticket prices are $21 .50 and $14 and $18 for children Call 242-2219. Today's Up It's cheaper to buy tiles in boxes than singly.

Count part tiles as whole tiles for estimating purposes, but remember that a large cork or vinyl tile can be cut into several border pieces. And allow a few extra tiles (about percent) for breakage and future repairs. Lives In: Rockledge. Resident at: Sunny Pines Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Best part of life there: Helping the nurses and playing music.

How she spends her free time: Writing letters and playing music. Can't live without: Food. Most exciting times: Going to church and going to Adare Nursing Home once a month to play the accordian and play bingo with the residents there. -V' 4 -0.