Now here's an accomplishment to be known for.

Herb Peterson, who invented the ubiquitous Egg McMuffin as a way to introduce breakfast to McDonald's restaurants, has died, a Southern California McDonald's official said Wednesday. He was 89.

Peterson died peacefully Tuesday at his Santa Barbara home, said Monte Fraker, vice president of operations for McDonald's restaurants in that city.

He began his career with McDonald's Corp. as vice president of the company's advertising firm, D'Arcy Advertising, in Chicago. He wrote McDonald's first national advertising slogan, "Where Quality Starts Fresh Every Day."

Peterson eventually became a franchisee and was currently co-owner and operator of six McDonald's restaurants in Santa Barbara and Goleta, Fraker said.

Peterson came up with idea for the signature McDonald's breakfast item in 1972. He "was very partial to eggs Benedict," Fraker said, and worked on creating something similar.

The egg sandwich consisted of an egg that had been formed in a Teflon circle with the yolk broken, topped with a slice of cheese and grilled Canadian bacon. It was served open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin.

Well, everybody wants to be known for something -- and looks like Peterson made himself a part of popular culture. I can remember when the notion of a breakfast menu at a fast food place was unheard of. Now it is big business. Interesting how one idea can spark an industry revolution.

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OK -- I'll admit it.

I'm a dog person.

And I've fallen in love with a certain website over the last few months.

One with pictures like the one below the fold. more...

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Sir Arthur C. Clarke wrote what may be the greatest science fiction book of all time, 2001: A Space Odyssey. But the prolific author and scientist published much more than that one work, and worked to promote scientific understanding and advancement during his many decades of work.

Sir Arthur C. Clarke, the science fiction writer, has died aged 90 in his adopted home of Sri Lanka, it was confirmed tonight.

Clarke, who had battled debilitating post-polio syndrome since the 1960s and sometimes used a wheelchair, died at 1:30am after suffering breathing problems, his personal secretary Rohan De Silva said.

“Sir Arthur passed away a short while ago at the Apollo Hospital [in Colombo]. He had a cardio-respiratory attack,” he said.

* * *

The visionary author of more than 70 books, who was nominated for a Nobel Prize after predicting the existence of satellites, was most famous for his short story "The Sentinel", which was expanded into the novel that was later adapted for Stanley Kubrick's film "2001: A Space Odyssey".

He was also credited with inventing the concept of communications satellites in 1945, decades before they became a reality.

Clarke was the last surviving member of what was sometimes known as the "Big Three" of science fiction, alongside Robert A. Heinlein and Isaac Asimov.

The astronomer Sir Patrick Moore said that his friend was a “great visionary, brilliant science-fiction writer and great forecaster”.

“He said there would be a man on the Moon by 1970, while I said 1980 — and he was right,” he said.

“He was ahead of his time in so many ways. I’m very, very sad that he’s gone."

What is amazing to consider is that Clarke was working int he field of space science long before there was an actual space program, and that he was considered enough of a scientific expert to be brought on as a commentator by CBS News during its coverage of the Apollo program so many years ago.

And with the passing of Arthur C. Clarke comes the closing of an era in science fiction. He was the last of the giants of that era, the last of the authors who made the genre respectable and lifted it above the realm of pulp fiction. To class him with Asimov and Heinlein is quite appropriate, for the trio have the distinction of having written so many great works that still hold up to scrutiny decades after their publication.

Farewell, Sir Arthur C. Clarke -- and thanks for the many hours of pleasure your works brought to my life and the lives of so many others.

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OK, I don't usually comment upon has-been actors, but I'll make the exception in this case for two reasons.

More on them later.

First the news.

Patrick Swayze’s doctor is “optimistic” about his prognosis for battling pancreatic cancer, and the “Dirty Dancing” actor’s upcoming cable pilot is still in contention to become a series.

With the writer’s strike over, the A&E pilot “The Beast,” starring Swayze as an unorthodox FBI agent, is being considered to be turned into a series by the cable network. If that happens, the “Dirty Dancing” and “Ghost” star hopes to continue to be part of the show, his representative Annett Wolf told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Swayze has been undergoing treatment for the disease, Wolf confirmed in a statement. The National Cancer Institute estimates there will be 37,680 new cases of pancreatic cancer in 2008 with 34,290 deaths in the U.S.; only five percent of patients live more than five years after being diagnosed.

No, things do not look good for Swayze, though he certainly will have access to the best treatment. The reality, though, is that every person I've known with pancreatic cancer has been gone within a year. It is particularly virulent.

So why do i comment on the story? Two reasons.

1) While folks remember Ghost and Dirty Dancing when talking about Patrict Swayze, a pair of chick flicks, most guys remember him best in a favorite film of the Cold War era, Red Dawn. It is strange to watch the movie today, with the Russians no longer Communist and Castro gone from power in Cuba, but it still resonates. I wonder -- could a similar film about a post-Islamist takeover of America ever get made today?

2) I always have enjoyed the outrageous headlines of the NY Post, but they crossed a line with this one.

PATRICK SWAYZE GOING TO DIE

Come on, folks, isn't that a bit much? Have you no decency? And I won't point out the obvious truth that goes along with your headline.

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One of the greats of NFL history hangs it up.

Brett Favre told Green Bay Packers officials yesterday that he is walking away after a 17-year career in which he established himself as one of the most prolific and charismatic quarterbacks in NFL history.

Favre, 38, had pondered retirement in each of the last few offseasons but chose to continue a career that's sure to land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, even when it seemed as if his best days as a player might be behind him. He reversed the downward spiral in his play this past season, recapturing the exuberance and daring success of his younger days and leading the Packers to the doorstep of another Super Bowl appearance.

That resurgence on a youthful team created the expectation that he was likely to return next season. Instead, he informed Packers Coach Mike McCarthy by telephone Monday night that he would retire and reiterated that plan in a phone conversation yesterday morning with General Manager Ted Thompson.

Frankly, this is a good choice. The man doesn't feel ready to continue with the physically and mentally grueling effort that he needs to put out to excel. Better to allow a younger man to step in and lead the team to the next level than to pull the packers down by a halfhearted effort. We've all seen what happens when a great player over-stays his welcome. I'm glad Favre won't be a player remembered that way.

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