Profile America -- Friday, September 10th. The days of Mark Twain will come alive again today through Sunday in Marietta, Ohio. The 35th annual Ohio River Sternwheel Festival will draw more than two dozen sternwheel river boats, along with some 85,000 spectators, who will enjoy music, food and fireworks. The highlight of the gathering will be races of the vintage boats, belching smoke and some providing their own music from steam-powered calliopes. While less romantic than in the past, modern river boats remain a vital part of the nation's commerce, carrying 2.5 billion tons of freight each year, with the largest category being petroleum products.

Profile America -- Thursday, September 9th. Some 350,000 people will be gathering in Marion, Ohio through Sunday to prove that popcorn is not just for the movies. This will be the 30th anniversary celebration of the Marion Popcorn Festival -- three days of food, entertainment, cooking competitions, and one of the state's largest parades. There will also be golf and bowling tournaments, and two bicycle tours. Marion is an appropriate location for the popcorn festival, since it is in the heart of the one of the prime popcorn producing areas in the country.

Profile America -- Wednesday, September 8th. A device that most of us interact with every few days was first built this week in 1905 -- the gasoline pump. Sylvanus Bowser of Fort Wayne, Indiana made the pump for a customer, basing it on an earlier design for pumping kerosene. As the number of cars increased dramatically, the pumps became very popular. Eventually, his name became a generic term for a fuel dispenser and gas pumps in New Zealand and Australia are still called "Bowsers."

Profile America -- Tuesday, September 7th. The first thing many people do when they pick up their daily newspaper is to turn to the comics and check on their favorites. Through the years, the characters in these comic strips have often become folk heroes -- such as Popeye, Spider-Man, and Garfield the cat. Our taste in comics has changed over the years, but one strip keeps going -- "Blondie," originally drawn by cartoonist Chic Young, first appearing this week in 1930. Originally about a jazz age flapper who marries a playboy, "Blondie" evolved into a strip poking gentle fun at the middle class. Today, "Blondie" appears in some 50 countries, in 35 different languages.

Profile America -- Monday, September 6th. This is Labor Day -- a time to honor the nation's working men and women, and traditionally, it's also the end of the summer season. The observance has added meaning this year because of the high unemployment rate. The first Labor Day was celebrated in September 1882 in New York City. By 1893, more than half the states were observing the occasion, and noting the first Monday in September as a national holiday became law in 1894. In the U.S., more than 154 million men and women are in the labor force. Just over 10 million are self-employed, while nearly 6 million work at home.

Profile America -- Sunday, September 5th. There's only one place to be these days if you like pork chop barbecue and that's the Hog Capital of the World Festival in Kewanee, Illinois. The town's 57th annual celebration will wind up tomorrow with a total of 60,000 people expected to enjoy food, professional entertainment, a carnival, Model T races, and a grand parade. It's a friendly gathering, with the motto "It's time to come home again." Illinois is home to some 4.4 million hogs and pigs, worth more than $900 million.

Profile America -- Saturday, September 4th. As darkness fell on this date in 1882, people in lower Manhattan stood in awe -- when four streets, including Wall Street, started to glow with the light from 400 bulbs. This first public showing of electric lights was staged by Thomas Edison. Just three years before, he had demonstrated the first incandescent light bulb at his New Jersey laboratory. Even by 1940, more than a fifth of U.S. homes still were not electrified. Today, just about every house in the country has electric service, and with our increasing love of gadgets, annual home usage of electricity has increased 17 percent since 1990.

Profile America -- Friday, September 3rd. The state of West Virginia usually conjures up thoughts of mountains, white water rafting and Blue Grass music. However, today is the start of the 32nd annual West Virginia Italian Heritage Festival in Clarksburg. During its three day run, this top-rated festival is expected to draw some 150,000 people to share Italian-themed contests, exhibitions, and displays, as well as professional entertainment, and of course, food. In the U.S., there are close to 18 million people who are of Italian ancestry, including nearly 70,000 who live in West Virginia. The state's total population is 1.8 million, ranking it 37th among the states.

Profile America -- Thursday, September 2nd. Sixty-five years ago today, Japan formally surrendered in solemn ceremonies held on the deck of the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The event marked the end of hostilities in the Pacific theater -- and was the last act of World War II. The day is often called V-J Day, for Victory Over Japan, although the term is also used for the day the unconditional surrender was announced on August 15th. V-E Day, for Victory in Europe, was celebrated the previous May. Fighting in both Europe and the Pacific resulted in the combat deaths of 292,000 American troops on the ground, in the air, and on and under the sea.

Profile America -- Wednesday, September 1st. While comedian Lily Tomlin will probably always come to mind as the stereotype of the telephone operator, the nation's first woman operator actually reported for work on this date in 1878. Her name was Emma Nutt, and she stayed on the job for 33 years. Teenage boys were the first operators, but they proved to be rude to customers. Women replaced them and responded to callers quickly and courteously -- usually after just one "ringy-dingy."

Profile America -- Tuesday, August 31st. A unique exhibition is under way in Shelbyville, Tennessee -- the 72nd annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration. The festival started last week and runs through September 4th -- with a total of 235,000 people expected to attend. The horses are known for their ambling gait and their running walk -- a gentle, rocking horse canter. The Tennessee Walking Horse also is known for its steady disposition and hardiness, and is widely used as a trail and pleasure riding horse.

Profile America -- Sunday, August 29th. One of the most influential jazz musicians was born on this date 90 years ago in Kansas City -- alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. He gained the nickname "Yardbird" for his habit of sitting in the backyard of bars and taverns, later shortened to just "Bird." His career took him from jam sessions in Kansas City to New York, where he played with Dizzy Gillespie and others who were developing the jazz style known as "bop." Parker was famous for his dazzling innovations and fingering technique. Although he was widely recognized as a musical genius, a heroin addiction plagued his life, and he died at the age of 34. Today, Parker's music is still revered among jazz fans.

Profile America -- Friday, August 27th. One of America's favorite snack foods is said to have originated this week near Saratoga Springs, New York, in 1853. The chef at Moon's Lake House, George Crum, was irritated at a customer who sent back his fried potatoes several times, saying they were too thick and soggy. Crum decided to slice potatoes paper thin and stir fry them. The customer was delighted, and so-called Saratoga Chips became famous. The exact history of potato chips is unknown, but it is thought they originated in Europe. Worldwide, more than $16 billion of potato chips are sold each year.

Profile America -- Wednesday, August 25th. Americans love a bargain as well as the hunt for a good deal but many people draw the line at buying used clothing. That's why this is National Second Hand Wardrobe Day. The idea is to encourage thrift store donations and to remove the stigma of buying previously used clothing and accessories by noting their economic and ecological benefits. Across the U.S., there are nearly 92,000 stores selling used merchandise, usually including clothing, and they have annual sales of nearly $10 billion.

Profile America -- Tuesday, August 24th. It's a good bet that shopping malls across the country are busy these days as students and parents stock up for the coming school year. Younger students will be looking for traditional things, such as pencils, erasers, and backpacks. Those in college will be checking out new laptops. For both groups, though, the big thing will be clothes. All ages of students must have just the right brand of jeans and shirts to be comfortable going to school. In fact, only in the height of the Christmas holiday season do family clothing stores do more business than they do in August. Across the country, there are more than 27,000 family clothing stores, an equal number of shoe stores.

Profile America -- Monday, August 23rd. It may seem like it's still summer -- it's hot, and many people are on vacation. But one of the nation's largest seasonal events will soon be under way. It's back to school time. From nursery school to college, 76 million students are headed to the classroom -- that's more than one-out-of-four of the total U.S. population age 3 and over. Thousands of teachers and school workers also will be headed back to school. It's projected that of the 56 million elementary and high school students enrolled this fall, 11 percent will attend private schools. One statistic that may be a surprise -- the parents of two-thirds of students report that their children often like going to school.

Profile America -- Sunday, August 22nd. All across the country, many families are sneaking in a last week of vacation before school gets under way. These getaways will take people to the mountains, lakes, ocean beaches, and the country's network of national parks and recreation areas for one last summer fling. Many will be sightseeing trips, while others have more defined goals of fishing, camping, or hiking. Americans go on 350 million leisure trips each year, averaging about 4½ nights away from home. More than eight-out-of-10 of these trips are by car, and about 15 percent involve air travel.

Profile America -- Sunday, August 22nd. All across the country, many families are sneaking in a last week of vacation before school gets under way. These getaways will take people to the mountains, lakes, ocean beaches, and the country's network of national parks and recreation areas for one last summer fling. Many will be sightseeing trips, while others have more defined goals of fishing, camping, or hiking. Americans go on 350 million leisure trips each year, averaging about 4½ nights away from home. More than eight-out-of-10 of these trips are by car, and about 15 percent involve air travel. When away from home, more than 40 percent of travelers stay in hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts.

Profile America -- Saturday, August 21st. Many people die each year in the U.S. from diseases that could have been prevented by immunization. Many more experience pain, suffering and disability. That's why this is National Immunization Awareness Month -- calling attention to the importance of people of all ages to get their shots. Also known as vaccination, its most spectacular success came in the eradication of smallpox, a human scourge for thousands of years. The last known natural case was diagnosed over 30 years ago. While Edward Jenner and Louis Pasteur developed modern immunization, the process was known in ancient China and India.

Profile America -- Friday, August 20th. One of the nation's first radio stations began broadcasting in Detroit on this date in 1920 -- station 8MK, now operating as WWJ. The station was owned by the Detroit News, and its daily program was called "Tonight's Dinner." For some reason, the station was granted an amateur license, which soon changed to commercial. The first station granted a commercial license was KDKA in Pittsburgh, which began broadcasting in October of 1920. Radio soon caught the public's fancy, and the number of stations grew rapidly.

Profile America -- Thursday, August 19th. The man whose imagination gave television audiences a host of beloved characters such as Captain James T. Kirk, Spock, Captain Jean-Luc Piccard, and Lieutenant Commander Data was born on this date in 1921. Gene Roddenberry flew B-17s in World War II and was an airline pilot for many years. He quit to write for television.

After some thin years, he became a legend in the entertainment world with "Star Trek" and its successor, "Star Trek: The Next Generation," as well as movies based on the series. "Star Trek" first appeared three years before America landed the first men on the moon. Last year, NASA budgeted almost $723 million on space flight.

Profile America -- Wednesday, August 18th. This is the time for a very American celebration in many parts of the country -- the annual state fair. Fairs in Indiana, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Montana, West Virginia and Wyoming are under way now. A total of 17 states will stage their fairs this month. Some will draw upwards of a million people to experience the special blend of eating, entertainment and entrepreneurship that make up a state fair. These events go back to the early 19th century and were started to celebrate the annual harvest and each state's contribution to the nation's agricultural progress. In 1920, there were about 6.5 million farms in the U.S.

Profile America -- Tuesday, August 17th. An invention that changed the automobile so anybody could drive one was patented on this date in 1915 -- awarded to Charles F. Kettering for the self-starter. Before that, it took considerable muscle and knowledge of machinery to hand crank the engine of a car, especially in the winter. Kettering ended up as the head of General Motors research and in his lifetime, was awarded more than 140 patents, including the electrical ignition system and leaded gasoline. The impact of the self-starter was immediate. When Kettering came up with the idea, there were 2.5 million cars in the U.S. -- just five years later, the number was over 12 million.

Profile America -- Monday, August 16th. While the summer season is rapidly drawing to a close, many children are begging their parents for just one more visit to the nearest amusement or theme park. As it has been for over a century, one of the prime features of these parks is their latest roller coaster. From their beginnings in the U.S. at Coney Island, New York, in 1884, they have fascinated riders and onlookers alike. For some years, roller coasters that include a loop to scare their riders have been popular. The first such ride appeared at Coney Island in 1900, called "Boynton's Centrifugal Railway," which included a 20-foot wide loop. Now, roller coaster fans are drawn to 580 amusement and theme parks around the country.

Profile America -- Sunday, August 15th. Most history books say the railroad spanning the U.S. was completed in May 1869 -- at the famous driving of the golden spike at Promontory Summit, Utah. The actual linking of the transcontinental lines occurred a year later in another state. It was on this date in 1870 that the two lines were joined at Strasburg, Colorado, with no ceremony. For many decades after, the nation's railroads enjoyed a near monopoly on moving freight and passengers, connecting every town and city in the country.