Repeat Winner Goes for Chocolate-Flavored Catfish

--More than 30,000 persons got hooked on the excitement and a Vicksburg man netted top honors in an eating contest as Belzoni, Miss., paid homage to the catfish. Belzoni, a town of 5,500 that bills itself as the Catfish Capital of the World, hosted the 10th annual World Catfish Festival in honor of the $64-million-a-year industry in the Mississippi Delta. Don Delnicki, who won his fourth straight catfish-eating contest, smacked his lips and said there was no special trick to gulping down the 2 pounds, 10 1/2 ounces of catfish that he polished off in 10 minutes flat. “I just shovel it down,” said Delnicki, 43, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employee, who took sips of chocolate soda between bites. Kathy Henry of nearby Swiftown, the newly named Catfish Queen, was looking forward to attending the National Catfish Convention in Reno. “I’ve never traveled much so I’m very excited about it,” she said.

--A new poll may have made Clint Eastwood’s day. The tough-guy actor is the No. 1 hero of America’s 18- to 24-year-olds, a nationwide survey by the Roper Organization, commissioned by U.S. News & World Report, said. Eastwood was named by 30% of the young adults who were asked: “What public figures living anywhere in the world do you find personally inspiring and would you hope to be like in some way?” Following Eastwood were actor-comedian Eddie Murphy, with 24%; President Reagan, 15%; actress Jane Fonda, 14.3%; actress Sally Field and film director Steven Spielberg, tied with 13.7% each; Pope John Paul II, 12%; Mother Teresa, 10%, and entertainers Michael Jackson and Tina Turner, tied with 9.5%. Only 19% said they did not have a hero or heroine. Eastwood, who dared young punks to “make my day,” as Inspector Harry (Dirty Harry) Callahan in the 1983 movie “Sudden Impact,” was cited by 40% of the males asked to name a hero. He was named by 18% of the females.

--Amy Carter has a big decision to make. The daughter of former President Jimmy Carter has been offered admission this fall to two Ivy League colleges, Princeton and Brown universities, says a Carter family spokeswoman. Carter, 17, was among about 2,100 high school seniors accepted by Princeton from more than 12,200 applicants, the spokeswoman said. Those selected have until May 1 to reply. Brown University is in Providence, R.I. If she chooses Princeton, Carter would be the first presidential offspring to attend the school this century, said university spokesman George Eager.