Since 2002, at least six of New Jersey’s “dry” towns have voted to permit the sale of alcohol, reducing the remaining number to 38. The latest convert was Stratford, a Camden County borough of about 7,000, where voters last November approved a licensing referendum by a 2-to-1 margin.

Seen in: Towns & Schools

Hi-Def TV is fine, but a sportswriter’s pilgrimage to the top ten athletic events not only puts him in touch with his past—it proves there’s no substitute for showing up.

Seen in: Jersey Celebrities, Jersey Living

With a fleet of automobile dealerships, the Somerset Patriots baseball team, a Bayonne film studio, and two Academy Award nominations, Steve Kalafer may be a business Renaissance man.

Seen in: Best Of Jersey

Yes, he recently was forced to resign as chief executive officer of Commerce Bank, but wow… those who used to slam their foreheads against early-closing bank doors will appreciate Hill’s legacy of superior-service banking. Modeled after Hill’s fast-food franchises, Commerce branches are open every day with late hours, and their perks include free coin-counting machines in the lobby.

Seen in: Best Of Jersey

New York City-based Colgate opened a starch factory in New Jersey in 1820. Colgate-Palmolive, as it is now known, opened a research center in Piscataway in 1962, acquired Morristown-based Mennen in 1992, and today is the maker of thousands of products, from toothpaste to wood cleaner to pet food. Its sales now surpass $12 billion annually.

Seen in: Best Of Jersey

As a makeup artist, Brown found that models want a more natural look when they aren’t on the catwalk. Brown gave it to them, and then to consumers. Ditching the garish blue eye shadow and fuchsia lipstick popular in the ’80s, she developed more muted shades, which took off after debuting at Bergdorf Goodman in 1991.

Seen in: Best Of Jersey

Whether you’ve popped melt-in-your-mouth-not-in-your-hand M&M candies, heated up Uncle Ben’s rice, or opened a Whiskas food pouch for Fluffy, you’ve probably helped make Mars an $18 billion-a-year business. Most of the U.S. operations are based in Hackettstown, and heiress Jacqueline Mars, the state’s richest resident, is worth an estimated $10.5 billion.

Seen in: Best Of Jersey