FACTBOX: Little known Grammy Awards facts and tidbits

(Reuters) - Nominees in 110 categories for the 51st annual Grammy Awards, the music industry's top honors, were announced in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Rapper Lil Wayne led the field with eight nominations. Here are a few lesser-known Grammy facts and tidbits.

* George Carlin will compete from the grave for best comedy album, for "It's Bad For Ya," an HBO recording released shortly after he succumbed to heart failure in June, aged 71.

Other deceased nominees include Stephen "Static Major" Garrett, co-writer of the rap hit "Lollipop," where he was the featured artist alongside Lil Wayne. He died suddenly in February, aged 33. The cause has not been officially disclosed.

Also, Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler, who died in August aged 91, was nominated along with David Ritz for writing the liner notes for an Aretha Franklin album.

* Former Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr received nominations. McCartney, a perennial nominee who has not won a Grammy since 1980, received a pair of nods for tunes recorded at a Los Angeles record store.

Starr, who has never been honored for his solo recordings, is competing in the surround sound category with "Ringo 5.1: The Surround Sound Collection."

* Maybe this time? These nominees have never won a Grammy: rock veterans Neil Young, AC/DC, Rush, Motley Crue and Judas Priest.

* The race for traditional folk album will be a family affair for two of the nominees. Veteran activist Pete Seeger is nominated for "At 89," while half-sister Peggy Seeger will compete with "Bring Me Home."

* Movie director Peter Bogdanovich, the Oscar-nominated director and co-writer of "The Last Picture Show," is making a splash in the music world. He was nominated in the longform music video category for his Tom Petty documentary "Running Down a Dream."

* In addition to securing five nominations with Radiohead, the British rock band's guitarist, Jonny Greenwood, was nominated for his score for "There Will Be Blood," for which Daniel Day Lewis won an Oscar earlier this year. Greenwood's work was deemed ineligible for Oscar consideration because it included some pre-existing compositions.

(Reporting by Dean Goodman; editing by Todd Eastham)