Hello, Goodbye update: Thanks to Larry Wirick of Pittsburg, Calif., for letting us know that the Vietnamese word "chao" can mean both "hello" and "goodbye." With all the Vietnam vets out there, he thought someone else would have written in about it. Nope, Larry, no one else did.

According to the recently published Washington/Lafayette biography, "Adopted Son," the Marquis de Lafayette was the designer of the tricolor French national flag. Its colors were the ones he previously chose for the uniform of the French National Guard militias under his command during the French Revolution -- red, white and blue, which were "borrowed" from the new flag of the United States.

What occupation would be most concerned with items that include cakes, dragon eggs, salutes, palm trees and willows?
A) Pastry chef
B) Fireworks technician
C) Landscape architect
D) Newspaper editor

Previous answer: The first American novel to sell over 1 million copies was Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin."

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.