The familiar Formica brand of plastic surface is made from paper or fabric laminated with melamine resin. Formica was invented in 1912 by two Westinghouse researchers, and first used as an electrical insulator. The product's name is short for "formerly micarta," after another electrical insulating material. It has nothing to do with the Formica that's a genus of ants.

With the help of Hal Fittipaldi of Allentown, Pa., your humble trivia author has compiled a list of 20 performers in John Wayne films who had one or more Billboard Top 40 tunes in the U.S. The first half of the list: Paul Anka, Ann-Margaret, Frankie Avalon, Pat Boone, Walter Brennan, Red Buttons, Glen Campbell, Johnny Crawford, Bing Crosby and Fabian. Look for the second half next week.

The world's busiest artificial waterway, in terms of the number of ships using it, is located in:
A) Africa
B) Central America
C) Europe
D) Asia

Previous word: "Sushi" literally means "it is sour" in Japanese.

TRIVIA FANS: Send the trivia questions you've always wanted answered, or original TriviaBits ideas of your own, with your full name and hometown, to Stan Newman at StanTrivia@aol.com or on a postcard to P.O. Box 69, Massapequa Park, NY 11762.

Stanley Newman is the editor of the Newsday Crossword and author/editor of more than 125 books on crosswords, word games and trivia, including "15,003 Answers: The Ultimate Trivia Encyclopedia" (Random House). To find out more about Stanley Newman visit StanXwords.com, or e-mail him at StanTrivia@aol.com.
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