Top 25 Should've Bought

A $100 investment in each of these in their infancy would have turned $2,500 into $650,000. Of course that would have meant being wise enough to recognize the vision of Microsoft's Bill Gates and Oracle's Larry Ellison; the promise of products such as motorcycles and pork; and the big profits in money management.

1 Franklin Resources 64,224%

As the old saying goes, the way to make money during a gold rush is to be the one selling shovels. The best stock of the past 25 years – the USA's No. 4 mutual fund manager – is a prime example, managing money and dispensing investment advice during a 20-year bull market.

2 Danaher 47,913%

Most people might never have heard of this maker of industrial measuring tools, but companies of all types depend on its gear, which measures just about anything, ranging from electricity to blood and air quality.

3 Eaton Vance 38,444%

This smaller rival to Franklin Resources also cashed in on the insatiable demand for money management as it offered everything from mutual funds to services for institutional investors.

4 UnitedHealth 37,672%

Skyrocketing medical costs often are the worst part of going to the doctor. This insurer has prospered as employers and consumers looking for protection from wallet-busting costs snapped up its plans.

By Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

5 Cisco Systems 33,632%

This router maker made a fortune selling fatter straws to Internet surfers sucking ever-bigger amounts of bytes by downloading music and updating their Web pages.

6 International Gaming Technology 33,436%

Investors who bet the house on this slot machine ace hit jackpot. It makes one-armed bandits such as "Megabucks" and "Wheel of Fortune" and cashed in on casino and online gambling craze.

7 Biomet 30,531%

Biomet's reconstructive medical devices have made breaking a knee, leg or shoulder a bit less scary. Its success also made Biomet part of another huge trend: Private-equity investors are buying it.

AP photo

8 Microsoft 29,266%

More than 90% of computers run some sort of software from the house Bill Gates built. Pen and paper are foreign objects to cubicle dwellers nowadays thanks to its ubiquitous Windows operating system and Office software tools.

9 Best Buy28,703%

This retailer turned itself into a Disneyland for gadget freaks with its shelves brimming with the latest electronic gizmos. Anyone itching for a bigger TV or faster computer knows right where to go.

By Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

10 Oracle28,535%

Companies not willing to lose their institutional memory count on Oracle databases to store their most vital information. The company Larry Ellison heads offers software to manage all corporate data.

11 Stryker 25,383%

Weekend warriors don't have to hang up their cleats, skis or racquets due to wobbly knees or worn-out hips. Stryker's artificial joints help keep 77 million Baby Boomers in the game.

12 Countrywide 24,160%

This leading mortgage lender provided the fuel for the home-buying boom, which in turn was a boon for its bottom line. Its focus on first-time buyers with pristine credit has limited collateral damage from exposure to sub-prime lending.

13 Expeditors International23,860%

If it seems most everything sold here was made in China, this freight-forwarding company is probably partly responsible. It helps exporters save money by selling empty space in transport vessels.

By H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY

14 Home Depot 23,845%

Handy types willing to strap on a tool belt and silence that leaky faucet, feel at home at this arms dealer in the do-it-yourself craze. It puts cut-rate prices on everything from screws to toilets.

15 Dell 23,048%

A revolutionary made-to-order PC business model that was the brainchild of founder Michael Dell wowed Wall Street. Ads like "Dude, you're gettin' a Dell" helped transform it into a USA icon.

16 Robert Half 21,170%

This is a case of putting the right people in the right place at the right time. The provider of temporary and permanent help's deep bench of accounting and financial pros ready for hire helped it prosper in the post-Enron world.

17 Credo Petroleum 20,180%

This pint-sized natural gas driller produced huge returns because its patented technology "liberates gas stranded in reservoirs."

18 Adobe Systems 19,989%

Anyone who has opened a PDF file knows what this digital-imaging king makes. Its flagship Photoshop software lets consumers and pros doctor photos while its Flash Web software turns Web pages into animated spectacles.

19 Precision Castparts 19,437%

Another stellar stock many have probably never heard of. It makes investment castings and airfoil castings and other components used in jet engines.

By Seth Wenig, AP

20 Berkshire Hathaway 19,424%

Warren Buffett, the "Oracle of Omaha," made himself and shareholders rich investing in easy-to-understand, undervalued businesses. Paint, underwear and insurance may not be sexy, but they're profitable.

21 Smithfield Foods 19,414%

Pork production and processing added up to super-sized gain for Smithfield and put its shareholders in hog heaven. Its pre-processed sandwich meats fill kids' lunchboxes daily, and the low-carb craze make Smithfield bacon a breakfast staple.

22 Paxar 18,923%

If you've ever bought a pair of jeans, capri pants or trendy piece of apparel, you know Paxar. They make info-packed labels, tags and pressure-sensitive stickers that list fabric, size, price and advise on after-purchase care.

23 Time Warner 18,158%

This media and entertainment mega-giant is home to brand-name magazines such as Time, People, Money and Sports Illustrated; cable behemoths CNN and HBO; movie studios Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema; and AOL.

24 Paychex 17,920%

On payday, Paychex does everything for small business except writing the checks. It calculates timesheets, processes payroll, prints pay stubs, deducts taxes and sets up direct deposits.

By Tony Dejak, AP

25 Harley Davidson 17,808%

Legions of loyal followers are devoted to the USA motorcycle maker whose chrome-accented cruisers are affectionately dubbed "Hogs." Buying a "Roadster" or "Softail" is part sport, part $8,000-to-$21,000 personal statement.

Source: Ned Davis Research. Performance is through 4/5/2007 from 9/15/1982. Performance for stocks that went public after 9/15/1982 is from each company's split-adjusted initial public offering price.

Top 25 Books That Leave A Legacy

25 Books that leave a legacy

Books tell a story — about our reading preferences, certainly, but also about what's happening in our world. USA TODAY's book editors and critics chose 25 titles that made an impact on readers and the publishing industry over the past quarter-century. If your choices differ, let us know at usatoday.com. We'll post your picks.

1 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

By J.K. Rowling (1998)

Midnight book parties, all-night readathons, overnight deliveries: A boy wizard named Harry got kids (and adults) thinking that reading was cool. And mega sales of the magical series redefined what it meant to be a best seller.

2 The Deep End of the Ocean

By Jacquelyn Mitchard (1996)

What was America reading? Whatever Oprah Winfrey was reading. The talk-show host became a publishing powerhouse on Sept. 17, 1996, when she made Mitchard’s novel her first book club pick. All 57 selections have been instant smash hits.

3 The Da Vinci Code

By Dan Brown (2003)

The religious thriller about Jesus’s love affair with Mary Magdalene became the fastest-selling adult novel in the history of publishing with 75 million copies in print worldwide. It drew a warning from the Vatican and spawned months of water-cooler debates, a movie, countless Code wannabes and an entire travel industry.

4 The 911 Commission Report

By the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks (2004)

Praised for its riveting depiction of the events of Sept. 11, 2001, this is the only government report ever nominated for the National Book Award. First-day sales pushed the $10 report to the No. 1 spot on USA TODAY’s Best Selling Books list.

5 Chicken Soup for the Soul

By Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield (1993)

Comfort food for readers, the Chicken Soup books, which told short, bright stories about overcoming adversity, quickly became a franchise. The 144 titles now in the series are geared to teens, single parents, even NASCAR fans.

6 Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus

By John Gray (1992)

We always knew men and women were from different planets. Gray explained why (women like to talk, men don't), and the Mars/Venus image seeped into the lexicon.

7 Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution

By Robert C. Atkins (1992)

Dr. Atkins ignited the low-carb craze, the reigning diet of the '90s. Bread and pasta were out, and high protein was in.

8 And the Band Played On

By Randy Shilts (1987)

Shilts, a reporter at The San Francisco Chronicle who would die of AIDS in 1994, helped wake up the USA to the emerging AIDS epidemic. His book was the first definitive analysis of the medical, cultural and political! dimensions and was written with the power and sweep of a novel.

9 Beloved

By Toni Morrison (1987)

Morrison’s masterpiece about an escaped slave who kills her baby to save the child from slavery won the Pulitzer and propelled her to the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993. She is the last American to win it. In a 2006 poll of writers byThe New York Times Book Review, Beloved was named the best American novel of the past 25 years.

10 The Greatest Generation

By Tom Brokaw (1998)

The former NBC anchor popularized the expression “greatest generation” when he paid tribute to boomers’ parents with stories about men and women who survived the Great Depression and fought in World War II.

11 Bridget Jones's Diary

By Helen Fielding (1998)

Singletons, smug marrieds, v.v.. funny diary observations: This British import set the stage for a flood of chick-lit novels, from The Nanny Diaries to The Devil Wears Prada.

12 Left Behind

By Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins (1995)

The first in the fictional apocalyptic series about the Rapture clicked with evangelicals and then found a wider audience. Fifteen books about the end of the world followed with titles such as Armageddon and Glorious Appearing. The series wrapped up with a bang on April 3 with Kingdom Come.

13 The Purpose Driven Life

By Rick Warren (2003)

Everyone has a purpose in God’s plan, according to this Christian devotional guide. Sales surged in 2005 when an Atlanta woman used the book’s teachings to persuade a murder suspect who took her hostage to turn himself in.

14 Fast Food Nation

By Eric Schlosser (2001)

This exposé of fast-food restaurants and meatpacking plants earned comparisons to Upton Sinclair’s 1906 classic The Jungle. The book helped transform the American diet as we were reminded we are what we eat.

15 The Satanic Verses

By Salman Rushdie (1989)

Riots and political uproar on three continents greeted the publication of the Indian-born writer’s novel of good and evil. Fundamentalist Muslims called it blasphemous, and the Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa (death sentence) on Rushdie.

16 The Closing of the American Mind

By Allan Bloom (1987)

The conservative scholar’s attack on the shortcomings of colleges and liberal professors provoked an intense debate as well as self-criticism on campuses across the USA.

17 The Bonfire of the Vanities

By Tom Wolfe (1987)

Wolfe’s first novel captured the Wall Street greed of the ’80s better than any non-fiction. It vividly illustrated the growing gap between the haves and have-nots in American cities.

18 The Joy Luck Club

By Amy Tan (1989)

In 1949 San Francisco, four Chinese women gathered to play mahjong and forget the pain of the past. Tan, daughter of Chinese immigrants, created a debut novel out of this fresh material and launched a wave of immigrant literature.

19 What To Expect When You're Expecting

By Heidi Murkoff, Arlene Eisenberg and Sandee Hathaway (1984)

Boomer parents ditched Dr. Spock in favor of this accessible baby guide. The eight books in the series span toddlers to baby-sitters

20 A Brief History of Time

By Stephen Hawking (1988)

Theoretical physics suddenly was sexy thanks to a wheelchair-bound Cambridge University professor (he has Lou Gehrig’sdisease). Hawking explained black holes and the Big Bang theory for the rest of us.

21 Iacocca

By Lee Iacocca (1984)

The Chrysler chairman’s autobiography rolled off the assembly line and found eager buyers, proving a business memoir could be a hit.

22 Waiting to Exhale

By Terry McMillan (1992)

With her profane, sassy voice, Terry McMillan’s groundbreaking novel about black women looking for satisfying relationships was a wake-up call for the publishing industry. Readers of all races were hungry for entertaining stories about African-Americans.

23 Cold Mountain

By Charles Frazier (1997)

The Civil War saga got millions of readers talking about a literary novel. It was a rarity: a debut novel by an unknown writer that was both a critical and commercial hit.

24 Backlash

By Susan Faludi (1991)

Faludi, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, took on the media, Hollywood and anti-feminist propaganda as she examined the backlash that developed in the 1980s against successful women.

25 Final Exit

By Derek Humphry (1991)

The topic of assisted suicide exploded in controversy in the ’90s, thanks to Michigan pathologist Jack Kevorkian and his suicide machine and this how-to manual by an English journalist who helped his cancer-stricken first wife kill herself.

Top 25 Most Memorable Quotes

Many things are said, and quoted, in 25 years. Some become catchphrases. Others we'd like to forget. And some words capture the essence of a news event, a phenomenom, or a time. USA TODAY reporters and editors came up with this list of our Top 25 most memorable quotes of the last 25 years.

1 "Let's roll."

Todd Beamer, Sept. 11, 2001, just before he and other passengers attacked terrorists controlling United Flight 93, which crashed in a Pennsylvania field. The White House may have been the target.

President Reagan speaks in front of the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin. By J. Scott Applewhite, AP

2 "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

President Reagan, June 12, 1987, appealing to the Soviet leader to remove the Berlin Wall that divided East and West German sectors. It fell in 1989.

Defense attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. holds a pair of gloves at the O.J. Simpson trial. By Reed Saxon, AP

3 "If it doesn't fit, you must acquit."

Defense attorney Johnnie Cochran, Sept. 27, 1995, arguing that a glove used as murder evidence in the O.J. Simpson trial was too small.

President Clinton denies having had an improper relationship with Monica Lewinsky. By Greg Gibson, AP

4 "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky."

President Clinton, Jan. 26, 1998, at a White House news conference.

5 "You've got mail!"

America Online, 1989. The voice, which still greets users, is El Edwards, the husband of an AOL customer service representative.

6 "Read my lips: no new taxes."

George H.W. Bush, Aug. 18, 1988, accepting the GOP presidential nomination in New Orleans. A tax hike later in his presidency was a factor in his loss for re-election.

The space shuttle Challenger explodes after lifting off from Kennedy Space Center. By Bruce Weaver, AP

7 "Obviously a major malfunction."

Steve Nesbitt, NASA public affairs officer, Jan. 28, 1986, shortly after the space shuttle Challenger exploded.

8 "How do we know when irrational exuberance has unduly escalated asset values?"

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, Dec. 5, 1996, interpreted as a warning that stocks were too high. Markets plunged briefly the next morning.

Actor Jack Nicholson as a Marine officer in A Few Good Men. By Sidney Baldwin, Castle Rock Entertainment

9 "You can't handle the truth!"

Actor Jack Nicholson as Col. Nathan Jessup in the 1992 film A Few Good Men.

Sen. Lloyd Bentsen and Sen. Dan Quayle after their vice presidential debate. By Ron Edmonds, AP

10 "I knew Jack Kennedy; Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy."

Democratic vice presidential candidate Lloyd Bentsen, debating Republican Dan Quayle in Omaha on Oct. 5, 1988.

11 "Just say no."

Nancy Reagan's anti-drug campaign slogan, 1983.

Martha Stewart glares at Jayne Clayson on CBS' The Early Show.

12 "I want to focus on my salad."

Martha Stewart, June 25, 2002, on CBS' The Early Show, when questioned about the probe into her stock dealings.

13 "Which office do I go to to get my reputation back?"

Former Labor secretary Raymond Donovan, May 25, 1987, after being acquitted of fraud charges.

14 "Keep hope alive."

Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, July 19, 1988, in a speech at the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta.

President Bush with firefighter Bob Beckwith at the World Trade Center. By Doug Mills, AP

15 "I can hear you. The rest of the world hears you. And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon."

President Bush, Sept. 14, 2001, addressing police, firefighters and rescue workers at Ground Zero.

16 "My belief is we will, in fact, be greeted as liberators."

Vice President Cheney, March 16, 2003, on NBC's Meet the Press, describing how Iraqis will react when U.S. troops topple Saddam Hussein.

17 "One more thing."

Apple CEO Steve Jobs, 1999. He uses the phrase before unveiling products such as the iMac and iPod at computer shows.

18 "Don't give up. Don't ever give up. "

Former North Carolina State basketball coach Jim Valvano, March 4, 1993, accepting an ESPY Award shortly before he died of cancer.

19 "It takes a village to raise a child."

Hillary Rodham Clinton in her 1996 book, borrowing from an African proverb.

20 "I'd run over my own mother to win the Super Bowl."

Russ Grimm, 1984, a Washington Redskin who ended his career as a player with three Super Bowl rings.

The Beastie Boys. By Danny Clinch

21 "You gotta fight for your right to party. "

The Beastie Boys, 1986, in the song Fight For Your Right.

Rodney King pleads for an end to rioting in Los Angeles. By David Longstreath, AP

22 "People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along?"

Rodney King, May 1, 1992, after the acquittal of Los Angeles police in his beating trial sparked widespread rioting.

The famous commercial by Cliff Freeman & Partners.

23 "Where's the beef?"

Wendy's TV commercial, 1984, later used by Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale to ridicule opponent Gary Hart.

24 "I can't deny the fact that you like me! Right now, you like me!"

Sally Field, March 25, 1985,. accepting the Best Actress Oscar for Places in the Heart.

25 "Not that there's anything wrong with that."

Jerry Seinfeld, Feb. 11, 1993, in the episode The Outing, later used whenever a gay character was discussed on the show.

Top 25 Trends That Changed America

25 Trends That Changed America

Today, USA TODAY editors and reporters pick the 25 most important trends of the past quarter-century.

1 Diversity

Record immigration creates unparalleled racial and ethnic diversity. Hispanics overtake blacks as the largest minority. The federal government lets people identify themselves as of more than one race. Tikka Masala, edamame. and mole sauce join the lingo. American culture gets Latinized. There's a backlash -- the English-as-an-official language movement.

2 Fighting for equality

More women in the workplace. More poor women on the job, off welfare. The income gap between the sexes narrows -- in 2005, women earned 77 cents for every dollar men make. Title IX. Mainstreaming the disabled.

3 Millions living longer

The oldest of 79 million baby boomers turn 61 this year. Twenty-five years ago, the oldest were 36. Cost of health care multiplies. People have multiple careers. More life stages, from three generations to six (tweeners, 20-somethings, middle-age, young old, old, oldest old).

4 It's a small world after all

Globalization takes hold. NAFTA. European Union. India and China emerge as economic powerhouses. Outsourcing.

5 Global warming

The worry over climate change becomes so widespread that average folks discuss their carbon footprint. The Kyoto Accord. The shrinking polar ice cap. Melting glaciers. Monster hurricanes. El Niño, La Niña.

Talk show host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres. By Chris Pizzello, AP

6 Gay rights gain ground

Same-sex marriage, but 41 states ban it. Civil unions. Matthew Shepard. Ellen DeGeneres and other stars come out. Military says, "Don't ask, don't tell."

7 Are we safe?

Fear of terrorism changes our lives. Color-coded threat levels. We take off our shoes at airports. X-ray machines peek under our clothes. No-fly lists. Columbine. Amber alerts, America's Most Wanted. Crime rates drop.

8 Snuffing out smoking

In 1982, cigarettes were allowed almost everywhere. First they were banned in offices, then restaurants, public places and now maybe in your car and home. Nicotine patch. Nicotine gum.

9 Obesity crisis

Fat kids. Fat adults. New dietary guidelines. Ban on trans fats. Push for walking. Diabetes rates soar. The Biggest Loser on TV.

10 Tech creates cult of 'me'

Cellphones. The revolutionary switch from cassettes and VHS to CDs and DVDs. The Internet opens the floodgates. MySpace.com. Facebook. Blogs. It's all about customization and personalization. Shop and watch TV programs when you want (Amazon.com, TiVo). Download the song you want and listen to it when you want (iPod and MP3s). Capture every moment and play it for a worldwide audience (Youtube.com, camera phones, reality TV).

11 Spreading out

Americans want elbow room. Land is cheaper away from cities. Sprawl accelerates. Exurbs. Extreme commutes. Traffic congestion worsens. The smart growth movement -- getting people to eat up less open space and reduce driving -- takes off.

Hardee's Monster Thickburger by Tim Dillon, USA TODAY

12 Supersizing

Bigger is better. McMansions. SUVs. Minivans. Megachurches. Wal-Mart and other big-box stores. Megaplex theaters. Hardee's Monster Thickburger (1,420 calories).

13 Going green

It's not just for granola-crunching tree huggers anymore. There's a waiting list for hybrid cars. Curbside recycling. Low-flow toilets and showers. Organic foods in most supermarkets. Solar and wind power. Green office buildings. Battles over energy drilling and nuclear waste.

Ronald Reagan symbolized the rise of the right. By Pete Souza, The White House

14 A nation divided

Reagan Revolution. Bill Clinton. Rush Limbaugh, Al Franken. Hanging chads. Red and blue states.

Special-order coffee is now the norm. By Todd Plitt, USA TODAY

15 Luxury goes mainstream

Enjoying fancy perks no longer takes Bill Gates' fortune. Average Joes enjoy $4 cups of Joe at Starbucks, guzzle bottled water, feast on Godiva chocolates, drag suitcases on wheels, sit on heated car seats and let GPS systems guide them.

16 The end of Ozzie and Harriet families

Children's overbooked schedules. Demise of the family dinner. Boomerang kids. Unconventional families (gay parents, stepparents, single parents). Blended families.

17 Diet and exercise boom

Let's get physical. South Beach. Atkins. Weight Watchers. Fen Phen. Kickboxing. Tae-bo. Thighmaster. Pilates. BowFlex. For results, see No. 9.

18 On the move

Coastal counties from Texas to New England grow by about 1,300 people a day. The "new" Sun Belt explodes. Phoenix, Las Vegas and Charlotte become major metropolitan centers.

Photo illustration by Ron Coddington, USA TODAY

19 High anxiety

Prozac. Paxil. Xanax. Zoloft. Ritalin. Adderall.

20 Electronic cash

Debit cards. ATMs around the world. Credit cards for $3 purchases.

21 Living alone

More adults choosing to live by themselves. Marriage is delayed. More widows. About half of women have no spouse.

22 College stress grows

Pressure to get into elite universities spawns rise of test-prep industry and high school résumés crammed with activities. Major decline in high school drop-out rate. More women than men in college. College costs soar -- and so does college debt.

Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton from The Simple Life. By Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY

23 Sexualization

Strip clubs for executives. Hooters. Paris Hilton. Britney Spears. Wardrobe malfunction. Online pornography. Girls Gone Wild. Viagra. Erectile dysfunction ads.

24 States bet on gambling

State lotteries. Internet gambling. Casinos. Slot machines at racetracks.

25 Makeovers for the masses

You look marvelous. Cosmetic surgery (from breast implants and nose jobs to stomach bands and liposuction). Botox. Dermabrasion. Teeth whitening. Lasik eye surgery. Extreme Makeover on TV.

And God shall let the dumb rule the earth

Yet again, God doing a nice job helping those who can't help themselves:

Video shows fishermen joking about catching, killing 83 dolphins

Fishermen were caught on video killing 83 dolphins and joking about their illegal catch, Brazil's environmental protection agency says.

The Associated Press reports that the video, which was later broadcast on TV, showed the fishermen netting the dolphins, which suffocated because they could not surface to breathe.

The dead dolphins were then piled on the boat's deck, most likely to be sold as shark bait. The fishermen laughed after someone said, "Everyone's going to jail after this filming!"

Authorities are still trying to identify the culprits. When they are, "they will suffer the appropriate sanctions," an official said.

Top 25 Sports Scandals

Scandal did not escape the sports world in the last 25 years. From baseball to boxing, bribery to murder, athletes, coaches, schools and administrators undermined the enjoyment that sports can bring.

USA TODAY reporting and writing by Rachel Shuster.

1 Pete Rose

Baseball’s all-time hits leader spent a lifetime as Charlie Hustle, in the good sense, but betting on the game as manager of the Cincinnati Reds cast that nickname in a different light. A certain Hall of Fame induction is a long shot at best.

2 BALCO/ steroids in baseball

It’s difficult to think of the bulging home run records of the late 1990s and early 21st century without wondering how many would have been set without chemical enhancement.

AP file photo

3 Ben Johnson

The 100 meters flew by in 9.79 seconds, a world record, but three days later the Canadian was stripped of the gold medal when he tested positive for an anabolic steroid in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. Carl Lewis was awarded gold, and his 9.92 seconds became the world record.

Merline Summers, AP

4 Tonya/Nancy

Forever linked, captivating a nation, the skating lives of Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan diverged when Harding’s camp, with her knowledge, carried out a plot to injure Kerrigan before the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

5 Olympic bribery

The seedy underbelly of getting to host one of the most recognized international events was exposed when leaders of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Committee were charged with bribing to secure the bid. The two main figures were acquitted; reforms came in the bid process.

AFP photo

6 O.J.

An American sports icon bewildered us when O.J. Simpson was accused of killing his ex-wife and her friend in June 1994 in Brentwood, Calif. The 1995 criminal trial ended in acquittal, but a subsequent civil suit found Simpson liable for compensatory damages.

Jack Gruber, USA TODAY

7 Skating judging

Into the subjective world of judging landed accusations of a fix in pairs skating in the 2002 Winter Games. Canadians Jamie Sale and David Pelletier skated flawlessly but lost the gold to Russians Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze, who had a major error. A French judge said she was “pressured” to vote for them. The result: two golds.

Michael Conroy, AP

8 Mike Tyson

From heavyweight champion of the world to being led away in handcuffs. The ups and downs of Tyson’s life got no lower than when the boxer was sentenced to six years in prison for raping a Miss Black America contestant in 1991. Tyson, who denied the charge, served three years.

9 SMU football

The NCAA leveled its first “death penalty” in 1987, citing “long-term abuses and a pattern of purposeful violations” of rules, such as a banned booster paying thousands to recruits. The team did not play in ’87. SMU canceled the ’88 season because of penalties.

Chris Gardner, AP

10 Danny Almonte

What could be more perfect than a perfect game in the Little League World Series? Except it was not perfect. Dominican Republic birth records revealed Almonte was 14, past the Little League limit of 12, when he pitched in 2001 for the Rolando Paulino All-Stars of the Bronx, N.Y. Third place? Forfeited.

Susan Walsh, AP

11 Baylor basketball

The killing of Patrick Dennehy by teammate Carlton Dotson in 2003 set off a chain reaction. Coach Dave Bliss had paid two players illegally, including Dennehy, then tried to get coaches and players to agree to a phony story that Dennehy got extra cash from dealing drugs. Dotson got a 35-year prison sentence. Bliss resigned. Baylor got NCAA probation.

Kevork Diansezian, AP

12 Kobe Bryant

The L.A. Lakers star was accused of raping a 19-year-old in Colorado in 2003. He admitted adultery but said the sex was consensual. The criminal case was dismissed, a civil suit settled out of court.

13 Duke lacrosse

Accusations of rape vs. some white players by a black woman hired as a stripper in 2006. Indictments. DNA evidence withheld. Independent investigation clearing them. D.A. Mike Nifong resigned, was disbarred.

Elaine Thompson, AP

14 Minn. academics

Wholesale academic corruption of the men’s basketball program was exposed in 1999. University President Mark Yudof said it was “corrupt in almost any way one can think about it.” Coach Clem Haskins was ousted.

Bas Czerwinski, AP

15 Floyd Landis

With 7-time Tour de France champ Lance Armstrong retired, the USA’s Landis won last year but was accused of using a banned substance. His trial in the court of public opinion is as fierce as his arbitration case vs. the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

16 Korean boxers

At the 1988 Summer Games in Seoul, Roy Jones lost in the 156-pound final to South Korean Park Si-Hun. Jones said the referee who announced the results muttered, “I can’t believe they’re doing this.” Papers showed the judges were bribed.

Duane Burleson, AP

17 Pistons/Pacers

What began as a hard foul by then-Detroit Pistons center Ben Wallace on then-Indiana Pacers forward Ron Artest deteriorated to such a level that players fought fans throwing objects at them at The Palace of Auburn Hills in November 2004. Artest got the stiffest sanction, suspended for the season.

18 Northwestern point-shaving

Basketball players Kenneth Dion Lee and Dewey Williams were sentenced in 1998 to a month in jail for accepting bribes from their bookie, Notre Dame kicker Kevin Pendergast, to shave points in three games in 1995. Pendergast served two months in prison.

19 Georgia academics

“How many points does a three-point field goal account for in a basketball game?” was on the final for Jim Harrick Jr.’s “Principles and Strategies of Basketball” class, taken by 3 players on his dad’s basketball team. Both men were let go in 2003. Georgia got probation and lost scholarships.

20 Kentucky recruiting

An assistant to basketball coach Eddie Sutton was alleged in 1988 to have sent $1,000 in an overnight shipment to the father of recruit Chris Mills. Dwane Casey denied doing that, but the NCAA said there was a violation and restricted his hiring for five years without its permission. Sutton was forced to resign after the 1988-89 season, shortly before Kentucky went on two years’ NCAA probation.

John Bazemore, AP

21 Bob Knight's end at Indiana

A controversy-marred basketball coaching career at IU unraveled in 2000 when ex-player Neil Reed said Knight choked him in practice in 1997. An IU investigation found a pattern of inappropriate behavior; Knight was suspended and fined. Later in 2000, he was accused of grabbing a student, cursing and lecturing him on manners and was fired.

22 Short stay at Alabama

Even before he got the chance to coach the football team in 2003, Mike Price was fired after five offseason months for inappropriate behavior at a golf tournament. The university president said Price was warned even before that alleged misbehavior took place.

Gannett News Service

23 Len Bias

Imagine the Boston Celtics with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and All-American Len Bias. Boston never could after Bias, the No. 2 pick of the 1986 draft out of Maryland, overdosed on cocaine and died of a heart attack 2 days after he was chosen, one of the first prominent athletes to succumb to drugs.

24 John Rocker

For sheer outrageousness, this major league reliever caused major controversy with such remarks as this about New York City: “The biggest thing I don’t like about New York is the foreigners. You can walk an entire block in Times Square and not hear anybody speaking English. Asians and Koreans and Vietnamese and Indians and Russians and Spanish people and everything up there. How the hell did they get in this country?”

25 Eugene Robinson

Hours after receiving the Bart Starr award for charitable work and moral character, the Atlanta Falcons safety was arrested in Miami the night before Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999 for soliciting oral sex from an undercover officer. He started in the loss to the Denver Broncos and later returned the award.

bell jar

affordable cat/kitten spaying

from craigslist.org:

For other new kitten owners: please get your kitties the checkups, shots and spaying/neutering that they need. I was given the following great info:

1) MSPCA.org or call (877)590-7729. They do not ask how much you earn, and will spay a cat for $55 including rabies and distemper shots.
2) www.arlboston.org
3) thestopclinic.com who have a mobile van, and if you go to their website you can see when they will be in your town (or close by), and make an appointment.
$70 for spaying and $60 for neutering, which includes a physical and rabies shot.
4) Friendsofanimals.org on line. You can purchase a spay certificate for $65 and $51 for neutering. They send you an email instantly on the participating vets in your area, and how to get the certificate.