It's an unusual convergence of numbers today — the date is 01/01/01 — worthy of special attention, coming along only every 100 years as it does.

        We went looking for the weird and one-derful roles the number one plays in Greater Cincinnati lore and found a plethora of things you must be dying to know. Count 'em:

        1. “Give Me Just One Night (Una Nocha)” — hit song by pop boy-band and Cincinnati natives 98 Degrees.

        2. No. 1 acne treatment: Clearasil, a brand Procter & Gamble in October agreed to sell for $340 million cash to the United Kingdom's largest drugstore chain.

        3. Cincinnati is No. 1 for cities with ... lowest bankruptcy rates, ranked by Dun & Bradstreet and Entrepreneur Magazine.

        4. Lead headline on the Jan. 1, 1901 Enquirer: “Twentieth Century Welcomed In The United States.”

        5. Top dogs: The Big Pig Gig exhibit was No. 1 in corporate sponsorships, artist participation and public reaction for any American city sponsoring outdoor art exhibits — including horses, moose and lizards.

        6. World's first baseball club: Red Stockings, organized in Cincinnati in 1869.

        7. First among Reds: Former Cincinnati Reds Manager Fred Hutchinson's No. 1 jersey was retired — the first number ever retired by the Reds.

        8. No. 1 Tristate convention in 2000: 20,000 people at July 5-12 African Methodist Episcopal Church national conference.

        9. One is the loneliest number: Cincinnati Zoo added 77 new mammals in 2000, but many didn't come with partners — including a black rhinoceros, an Angolan colobus monkey, a ruffed lemur, a Dexter cow, a blue sheep and one Tasmanian devil.

        10. One celery stalk, 1 1/4 ounce vodka, V8 juice, dash celery salt, Worcestershire and Tabasco, dash horseradish and black pepper. Garnish with a lime. Happy New Year's!

        Source: Enquirer research.
       

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Peace Bell rings in its second new year
Portune vows to get a grip on county spending
14 frozen days equal icy record
Hoff era comes to a close at Xavier
Redistricting will help Chabot
People, issues to watch in 2001
Era of alignment for number wonks
Cincinnati has plenty of No. 1's
Ohio Assembly has fresh faces, new priorities
Ky. Assembly will make history
Legislature's first order of business - politics
Blood center promotes replacement drives
Local Digest
Monument restored, ready for another century
Northside woman dies in blaze at residence
Obituary: Sister Mary Jacinta Shay
Schools step up teacher recruiting
Senior housing project set to go
You asked for it