(May 28, 1997) -- 7:35 AM EST -- Television personality Willard Scott is famous for singing "Happy Birthday" to centenarians on NBC’s Today Show. He had missed a few shows lately, though, while recuperating from surgery. So it was the perfect tribute to Becton Dickinson when he sang "Happy 100th" to Becton Dickinson with an ACE^® brand bandage rakishly wrapped around his head.

The ubiquitous ACE^® brand bandage, developed by Becton Dickinson 80 years ago, is more than a household staple for binding countless sprains and strains. It is one of the few products worthy of a Webster’s Dictionary listing. But even Webster doesn’t know the ACE^® is an acronym for "all cotton elastic." The name was the winning entry of 48 physicians who split a $200 prize in a name-the-product contest in 1918.

As Becton Dickinson celebrates its centennial in 1997, the ACE^® family has expanded to include health care products designed to cure today’s ills: gloves to relieve arthritis, ankle wraps for sports injuries and wrist braces for Carpel Tunnel Syndrome.