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St. Patrick's Day 2009 Survival Guide

2009-03-13T08:34:00.000-07:00

When St. Patrick's Day falls early in the week, as it does in 2009, the holiday should really be renamed St. Patrick's Days. Since not everyone can duck out of the office early to hit the pubs, or stay out late celebrating with a few pints of Guinness, clever bar owners and promoters tend to stagger events over a few days, giving everyone a chance to party -- and sometimes several chances.

When you're heading out on Tuesday, all the usual caveats apply: Lines will be long, so arrive early. Don't count on dining, because many pubs cut their menus down to the basics (cold sandwiches) and offer limited items, which do sell out. Bring cash, because some bars don't take credit cards in order to keep the bartenders moving faster.

Here's a day-by-day guide to your St. Patrick's Days festivities, starting with this weekend.

Friday, March 13
DC101's Kegs and Eggs party celebrates its 10th anniversary with a free early-morning concert at 9:30 Club with Filter, Hoobastank and Carbon Leaf. It's kind of an odd lineup -- Filter's biggest hits were in the late-'90s, and Hoobastank hasn't had a hit since "The Reason" in 2004. About the only thing they have in common is the Hoobastank has a new CD out, while Filter's "Greatest Hits" drops at the end of the month. Opening is local rocker outfit Carbon Leaf, which seems to play every year. Doors open at 7:15, and the live music runs from 8 to noon.

Saturday, March 14
When we highlighted this festival in this week's Nightlife Agenda, I wrote: With 40 bands, pub games, a rock climbing wall, sideshow acts, restaurant tents and all the green beer you can handle, Shamrock Fest easily takes the title of the biggest St. Patrick's Day party of the year. And with headlining acts like celtic punk veterans Flogging Molly, local Irish rockers Scythian and half the bands on this summer's Dewey Beach calendar (Mr. Greengenes, Burnt Sienna, Junkfood, etc.), it shouldn't fail to entertain. (Top of our must-see list: Girls, Girls, Girls, "the world's first and only all-girl Mötley Crüe tribute band.") However, we have to warn you that if your idea of fun is NOT excessive drinking in a parking lot, or you don't want to be around hundreds of people who think that excessive drinking in a parking lot is the PERFECT way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, you might want to steer clear of RFK Stadium today.

With the big event three days away, it's "St. Practice Day" at McFadden's, which includes all-Irish pursuits like beer pong and flip cup tournaments from 7 p.m. on. Besides specials on mini-Guinnesses, mini-Jamesons and mini-Michael Collins cocktails, there's a dance contest at 9, a "team uniform" contest for best St. Patrick's day outfits at 10 and a create-your-own-pitcher at 11.

Union Jack's in Bethesda is combining St. Patrick's Day with Halloween, offering cash and prizes for the "best" and "sexiest" Irish costumes at a midnight contest. (Time to bust out the "Sexy Leprechaun" and "Sexy Darby O'Gill" outfits!) Drink specials include $4 Guinness, $5 Guinness-and-a-shot bombs and, from 5 to 9 p.m., $2 Killian's Irish Red.

The "St. Patrick's Day Pre-Party" at Duffy's is one for the budget-minded, with half-price Guinness and Smithwick's pints from 5 p.m. to close, and $5 shots of Clontarf, my new favorite Irish whiskey. Irish music will be on the stereo all night.

Sunday, March 15
The D.C. St. Patrick's Day Parade begins at noon on Constitution Avenue, and if the stepdancers, bands and Irish groups get you in the mood for a party, walk up to Penn Quarter afterwards. Fado has a live performance by the Wild Rovers at 2:30, while singer-guitarist Andy O' Driscoll takes the stage at the Irish Channel a few blocks away.

One of Alexandria's pre-St. Patrick's Day traditions is the Irish brunch at Murphy's with harpist Carolina Gregg. Brunch is served from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pat Carroll and Rocky Guttman perform in the evening.

Monday, March 16
Want to show off your knowledge of all-things Irish? D.C.'s Fado and the Bethesda branch of Ri-Ra are hosting special St. Patrick's Day-themed pub quizzes with prizes like T-shirts and gift certificates. Both start at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, March 17
Before we get to the pubs: the annual Shamrocks and Shenanigans celebrates a decade of St. Patrick's Day shenanigans this year. Held again at Rumors from 3 to 11, Shamrocks and Shennanigans features deeply discounted drinks, green beads and dancing to top 40 and '80s hits, and some Irish touches, a like a bagpiper, will find their way into the mix, too. The afternoon starts with beat-the-clock Coors Light deals: $1.17 bottles from 3 to 4, $2.17 Miller Lites from 4 to 6, then $3.17 Miller Lites for the rest of the night. Contests include "Best Irish Costume" and "Best Irish Jig." The crowd is on the young side and gets sloppier as the night goes on. The cover charge starts at $5 and will increase.

Tuesday, March 17: D.C. Events
Vintage Guinness ads cover the walls at the 51st
State in Foggy Bottom, lending the appropriate atmosphere for the day. Doors open at 11, and a full lunch (with $3 Yuengling) is served until 2:30. All-day drink specials include $2 Shamrock Shooters and $6 Guinness.

One of Washington's oldest St. Patrick's Day parties is at the Dubliner, the Capitol Hill pub where owner Danny Coleman has been celebrating for 33 years. (Coleman is being honored with the "Gael of the Year" award at this year's St. Patrick's Day parade.) Doors open at 10 a.m., and there are usually lines by mid-afternoon. Inside, there are three smaller satellite bars set up to help ease the crush, and one will be added to the tented outdoor area this year. John McGrath, Morris Minor and the duo of Jimmy Rafferty and Patty Halligan rotate between two stages from 10 a.m. to last call, and the green-clad crowd whoops and hollers all day and all night. There's a $10 cover.

Duffy's opens at noon, and it pays to arrive early: The first 100 customers through the door receive a free T-shirt, and everyone who arrives by 3 gets half-price Guinness and Smithwick's. (There are $2 green Jello shooters for everyone who arrives late.) Since it's right around the corner from the 9:30 club, this is the perfect place to keep partying after Kegs and Eggs. The jukebox plays Irish music, Irish dancers will stop by to show off their steps, and cold sandwiches will be available at the bar. The kitchen crew gets the day off.

Like many other pubs, the Fado in Chinatown is charging a $10 cover. Unlike many other pubs, it's less of a cover than a minimum charge: As you walk in, you're handed a $10 gift card to use at the bar. Doors open at 8 a.m., and managers say there will be dancers and pipers performing throughout the day. Singer Willem Dickey performs from 11 to 3:30, and a DJ spins tunes after 9:30. If you arrive late, be prepared to wait. And wait.

At Ireland's Four Fields, live music plays from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., interrupted only by step dancing performances. All tables will be removed from the pub to make room for the large crowds, and only pre-made cold sandwiches will be served at the bar. There's a $10 cover charge all day.

Irish singer Brian Gaffney -- the former owner of Nanny O'Brien's -- performs from noon until close at the Irish Channel in Chinatown. A condensed menu of "classic Irish dishes" will be offered from lunch on. There's no cover charge.

If you're looking for a party in Dupont Circle, James Hoban's is the place: Doors open at 8 for the kegs and eggs party, and the tented patio area has its own bar. A short Irish menu will be served at lunch and dinner, and a DJ takes over at 7:30. There's no cover charge.

Kelly's Irish Times is easing off the cover charge this year: it's opening at 10 a.m. but not charging a $10 entry fee until 4 p.m. Singer Pete Papageorge picks up his guitar at noon, and a full lunch menu will be served until 2.

"It's just a regular day," reports a manager at Mackey's Public House. Doors open at 11, and there's no live music or crazy entertainment at the D.C. pub. There's no cover, either.

Some people are content to sit in a pub and listen to "The Wild Rover" on St. Patrick's Day. These are not the ones heading for McFadden's at 8 a.m. for a free breakfast buffet and 25-cent draft beers or sticking around for the 9 p.m. "Teeny Weenie Green Bikini " contest. It's a sea of college students, kickball teams and the merely curious, who sneak out of work for $5 Guinness drafts (noon to 7) and pour-your-own pint contests, shot specials, drinking games and a DJ. There will be a cover charge later in the night.

Tourists and locals share space at Murphy's of D.C. on St. Patrick's Day. It's business as usual early in Woodley Park: Doors open at 9 a.m., and there's a regular lunch menu with Irish specials. Then, at 3 p.m., everything changes: Ronan Kavanaugh and other musicians take the stage, and all seats are cleared out to make room for more customers. Drink specials will be offered, though they hadn't been decided at press time, and a limited food menu will be available for dinner. The party goes until 1 a.m.

Singer-guitarist Connor Malone, a fixture in local Irish pubs, performs from 1 to 6 at Nanny O'Brien's. Doors open at 10 a.m., and the $10 cover is enforced once Malone takes the stage. A limited menu of burgers, sandwiches and hot dogs is served all day.

Tuesday, March 17: Maryland Events
In downtown Annapolis, Castlebay Irish Pub has live music from Steve Ports and Ray Weaver from 7 a.m. to midnight. Breakfast will be served early, and there's a limited menu for the rest of the day. Draft beers are $6 all day, while rail drinks are $5. Expect to pay a $5 cover in the morning and $10 once the pub gets busy, usually after 3.

Want to get a taste of the day on your way to work? Doors at Annapolis's Fado Irish Pub open at 7 p.m. for the $3.17 breakfast specials, and WRNR sponsors an 8 a.m. concert by local favorites Jimmie's Chicken Shack. There's also a contest where you could win a trip to Ireland. After lunch, there are Irish dancers and bagpipers (2 p.m.) and a performance by Irish group Fools and Horses (4 p.m.). A DJ takes over in the evening. Expect to pay a $10 cover, beginning sometime in the late afternoon.

In Dublin on St. Patrick's Day, many eyes are on the All-Ireland Hurling and Football Championships. (De La Salle and Portumna clash in the hurling championship, while Crossmaglen Rangers and Kilmacud Crokes meet in the football final.) At Flanagan's Harp and Fiddle in Bethesda, doors open at 10 to show those matches live. After the sports, there's live music from noon to close from Kevin James, Connor Malone and Sean Chyun. A $10 cover will be levied after 5 p.m. Diners should note that a limited menu will be available, and reservations are strongly recommended.

Crofton's Irish Channel starts at 8 a.m. with $4 mimosas and a $6 breakfast buffet during the kegs and eggs party. Lunch is served from 11 to 2. In the afternoon, food options are limited, though there's a $8 buffet of appetizers and snacks. There will be Jameson giveaways and drink specials, and Andy O'Driscoll will be performing between 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. There's a $6 cover after 2 p.m.

McGinty's Public House seems determined to show as many facets of Irishness as it can in one day: Beef and Guinness stew and other favorites at lunch, Irish step dancers performing from 4:30 to 6, traditional jigs and reels performed by the teenage fiddlers and pipers of Pete Moss and the Bog Band from 6 to 8:30, then the fiddle-fueled Celtic rock of 40 Thieves from 9 to close. There's plenty of room to dance upstairs, and a cozy bar with darts downstairs A $10 cover will be charged after 6.

Looking for a pub with live music and no cover in Maryland? Head for Bethesda, where Ri-Ra features the Mike Leverone Duo from 2 to 5, the Roger Henderson Duo from 6 to 9 and cover band Cheap Date from 10 to close.

Tuesday, March 17: Virginia Events
Musicians play for 14 hours straight at Ireland's Four Courts on St. Patrick's Day, both on stage in the pub and in a tent in the parking lot set up to accommodate overflow crowds. An Irish lunch is served from 10 to 2, and music begins at 11. After lunch, all chairs are removed from the pub and it becomes standing room only.

It's hard to figure which is the bigger draw at Ireland's Four Provinces on St. Patrick's Day: The live music, with Don Cobert and the band Dirty Pints taking turns all day, or the set meals in the dining room. A three-course Irish meal ($26.95) will be served at 11, 1 and 3. Dinner, served at 5, 7 and 9, costs $10 more. Reservations are recommended, as the timeslots often fill up in advance. The bar opens at 8 a.m. for a kegs and eggs party, with a $10 cover.

Looking for celebrate without too much fuss? Mackey's in Crystal City will be open for business as usual.

Lines are always long for Murphy's of Alexandria on St. Patrick's Day, but with no cover charge at the venerable Old Town pub and live Irish music from longtime Murphy's favorites Rocky Guttman and Pat Garvey all day, it's not hard to see why. Doors open at 9 a.m.

Doors at Ned Devine's and Ned Kelly's open at 11 a.m. with a promise of "Green beer and Irish food." Local singers Phil Kominski and Nate Ihara play from 11 to 7, and a troupe of Irish step dancers performs at 6:30. Alternative rock cover act Scott's New Band takes over from 10 to close. There's a $10 cover after 7 p.m.

The vast Ned Devine's Irish Village, with a main room resembling a movie set of an idealized Irish town square, opens at 5. The precocious youngsters of the School of Rock Band take the stage at 6, followed by rockers Rude Buddha. You'll pay $10 cover whenever you show up.

O'Faolain's opens at 8 a.m. for kegs and eggs -- full Irish breakfast with $4 pints -- but it's not the Animal House-style madness you might expect. "As we also offer free wireless, we get lots of folks who work in the Dulles corridor that will use O'Faolain's as their office for the
day," reports general manager Justin Holohan. "By 9 a.m., they have had breakfast, are drinking pints and working away on their BlackBerries, laptops and PDAs . . . Mind you, by noontime the BlackBerries disappear." The rest of the day is rounded out with live music between noon and 3 and then again from 5 p.m. to close, with an Irish dancing performance at 3:30. There's $10 cover charge from 2 p.m. on unless you have dinner reservations.

As one of the few Arlington pubs offering live music without a cover on Tuesday, O'Sullivan's should prove a popular destination. Doors open at 11, and the music begins at 4. First up is the Michael Patrick Band, followed by the Journeymen at 7 and the Flying Cows of Ventry at 10. A very limited menu will be available, but there will be happy hour specials.

Congratulations are in order for the Old Brogue, which is celebrating its 28th anniversary on St. Patrick's Day. As always, the homey Great Falls pub is splitting itself into three venues on the 17th. The cozy "snuggery" room opens at 8 for a traditional Irish breakfast, accompanied by hammered dulcimer player Jody Marshall. The set-price menu costs $25, though that doesn't include drinks. A large outdoor tent opens at 9 a.m., with its own bar and a limited food selection. (Note: no seats are available in the tent.) The main pub opens an hour later, though the entertainment, featuring singer Ted Garber, doesn't start until 1. Lunch and dinner, which require reservations, are served in the snuggery and feature Irish tunes by Irish singer Sarah Croker. There's a $10 cover if you're not having a meal.

Every St. Patrick's Day, Ireland's Own performs an unusual swap. Managers pull all of the tables out of the dining room and bar to make space for standing-room-only crowds and move diners to a heated tent on the brick patio. Inside, you'll no doubt get to see owner Pat Troy perform his legendary version of "The Unicorn Song" and have the chance to clap along to "The Wild Rover" multiple times. On the patio, breakfast is served at 9, lunch at 11, 1 and 3, and dinner at 5, 7 and 9. There's a $10 cover to enter the main building.

Local cover band Dr. Fu is again the main attraction at Ri-Ra's party, following on a lively (and packed) performance last year at the Clarendon bar. The band takes the stage at 9:30. Doors open at 10 a.m., and there's live Irish music in the afternoon and a $10 cover after 5.

Herb Kent Joins Wendy Williams, New Book “Down the Dial”

2009-03-13T08:11:00.000-07:00

It’s not surprising that the author’s voice playing in our head while reading The Cool Gent (Lawrence Hill Books, $24.95) is a familiar one. With the exception of a few months in the 1970s, Kent has been a constant presence on local radio for a staggering 65 years, including his popular weekend dusties shows and a 15-year stint (starting in 1962) as one of WVON’s legendary “Good Guys,” the most influential group of black DJs in the medium’s history. As the radio veteran-turned-author presents colorful anecdotes, music trivia and his broadcasting philosophy in an informal, conversational tone (with the help of journalist David Smallwood), it’s impossible not to hear Kent’s mellifluous vocal tones in your head.

Which makes it particularly jolting when the book shifts to a voice Kent’s fans have never heard before. Sandwiched between tales of his broadcast days, related in his signature ultra-cool manner, is a devastating account of the five months after WVON fired him when, without a radio shift as a stabilizing element, the cocaine and alcohol that had been an integral part of his swinging ’70s experience took over. Though he doesn’t downplay the appeal of the wild lifestyle he led in his heyday (when celebrity status opened doors for sexual exploits, big cars and mountains of cocaine), Kent recounts the bad times in powerfully explicit, humbling detail.

“It was the most vivid part of my life,” Kent recalls. “You can push it to the back of your mind, but it was so degrading and traumatic that no matter how much you are trying to forget, it’s just there.”

Depressed and suicidal, his skinny frame wasting away to skeletal, the out-of-work DJ saw his house and car both literally explode and his possessions reduced to a couple of suits and a grocery bag of 45s. Though a later stint in rehab cleaned him up, he survived that dark period in part by returning to radio (buying brokered time on an obscure station, which he parlayed into huge ratings). But mostly his redemption came from a realization that Herb Kent, who had been run over by a car as a child, and who had provoked drug-induced fistfights with Chicago cops and lived to tell about it, was a survivor.

His rebirth resonates so profoundly because he’s also a trendsetter. Though his radio personality stands as his greatest creation, over the years his innovations have transcended his over-the-airwaves activities. At WVON, he assembled a sketch comedy troupe, and created urban guerilla theater with his infamous Wahoo Man, a sore-covered ghetto bogeyman who jumped out of caskets at nightclubs and high schools. These routines had a profound influence on black Chicago comedians, including Bernie Mac and Tim Reid (who based his WKRP in Cincinnati character Venus Flytrap on Kent). His involvement with Southern Illinois University’s Kappa Karnival helped pave the way for black college festivals like Atlanta’s Freaknic. Kent even created a cross-city bike ride that preceded Critical Mass. But with The Cool Gent, the Mayor of Bronzeville hopes to create a more lasting legacy.

“Hopefully somebody who is in the same place that I was is going to read this, and it just might motivate them to get cleaned up,” he says. “You can continue, but the only place you’ll end up if you do that is six feet under.”

The Cool Gent is out February 1.

Helicopter Crash - Search continues for 16 missing people

2009-03-13T07:26:00.000-07:00

Searchers on Friday combed the Atlantic Ocean for 16 missing people, a day after a chopper ditched in the frigid waters off Canada, a rescue official said.

The S-92 Sikorsky copter had been carrying the people to an oil platform when it slammed into the waters near Newfoundland on Thursday morning.

"We will continue to search until there's absolutely no chance that any survivors will be located," Maj. Denis McGuire of the Rescue Coordination Center in Halifax said Thursday. "Until last light (Friday)."

One survivor, identified as Robert Decker, was found and taken to a hospital, but efforts to find more survivors had proven fruitless, McGuire said. No other details about Decker were released.

The body of one person, who has not been identified publicly, also was pulled from the water.

"All we've got is the debris field," McGuire said. "There are no indications of any (more) survivors, but the search will continue."

The Atlantic Ocean water is 400 feet deep at the site where the helicopter hit the water about 30 nautical miles from St. John's, he said.

Helicopters and ships were scouring the debris field Thursday evening, and search-and-rescue technicians were planning to use night-vision goggles and flares overnight.

Officials became aware that the helicopter was having problems shortly after 9:10 a.m. Thursday, when the pilot declared a mayday, McGuire said.

"They declared their mayday and then they hit the water or landed in the water approximately eight minutes later," he said.

About 25 minutes later, a helicopter arrived at the area and discovered the survivor, the body, the overturned helicopter and two empty life rafts, he said.

Though those aboard would have been wearing survival suits that would have kept them dry and were equipped with lights and personal locator beacons, the suits have not helped the searchers. "We have not received any signals whatsoever," McGuire said.

The suits theoretically would allow their wearers to survive 24 hours in the freezing waters -- or until about 9 a.m. Friday -- but the search effort was to continue well beyond that.

At that time, based on water temperature and the size of the search area, officials will decide whether to continue the effort, he said.

Early in the day, high winds and seas hampered the search, but by late afternoon, the weather had improved, although seas were still about 13 to 16 feet (4 to 5 meters) and winds were at about 40 knots (46 mph).

Jeri Grychowski of the Rescue Coordination Center in Halifax said the debris filled a 6-mile area.
The survivor was taken to the Health Sciences Center in St. John's, Newfoundland.

The helicopter had been heading to the Hibernia offshore oil platform when it went down in what Grychowski called a controlled emergency crash landing.

The pilot reported some technical malfunctions before the crash and radioed that he was turning the chopper around, said Rick Burt of Cougar Helicopters -- the operator of the copter.

Source: CNN.com

Golf - Golfer Stenson Strips for Hole

2009-03-13T07:04:00.000-07:00

Swede Henrik Stenson had taken 69 shots (how many else?) in the opening round of the CA Championship before his ball wound up in the mud. It was after his 69 that he stripped down to his boxers in order to avoid getting his clothes wet and sticky.

"Just the way God created me," Stenson said.

"If you are saving a shot, that has to be worth taking your shirt and trousers," Stenson said. "I'm sure I'll hear a few comments and once the pictures get out, I'll hear a few more, no doubt. I'll probably take that to my grave with me. I don't think I scared too many spectators off the course, hopefully."

Kerry Thomas: Convicted Of HIV Spreading

2009-03-13T06:37:00.000-07:00

There must be something between Kerry Thomas and HIV. He had the "honor" of being the first man in Idaho convicted for knowingly spreading HIV. Now Kerry Thomas is charged again accused of committing the same crime: knowingly spreading HIV.

It appears that the former BSU player Kerry Thomas did not learn anything from his last conviction. Why would someone in his good mind knowingly spread HIV? Aren't people naturally good?

This time Kerry Thomas is charged on seven counts of knowingly transferring the HIV virus. Each count carries a maximum punishment of 15 years and a $50,000 fine.

The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention has a very informative coverage on HIV Transmission. There we learn that "HIV is spread by sexual contact with an infected person, by sharing needles and/or syringes (primarily for drug injection) with someone who is infected, or, less commonly (and now very rarely in countries where blood is screened for HIV antibodies), through transfusions of infected blood or blood clotting factors. Babies born to HIV-infected women may become infected before or during birth or through breast-feeding after birth."

Last year in December the police department learned that Kerry Thomas had been involved in a sexual relationship with a woman.

Jean Fisher, Ada County deputy prosecutor told CNN that he does not know why Kerry Thomas would continue to spread the HIV virus, especially as a man who has been previously convicted and spend years behind bars.

Kerry Thomas' HIV counts have two records. He was charged with 4 counts of HIV transmission and two counts of statutory rape in 1990. In 1996 Thomas was again charged with one count of HIV transmission, and a jury convicted him.

Currently it's not known if Kerry Thomas is in custody due to his HIV related charges. The prosecutors are seeking to designate him as a "persistent violator," therefore Thomas is now facing a life in prison.

Casual contact through closed-mouth or "social" kissing is not a risk for transmission of HIV, explains CDC in the same above mentioned place. "Because of the potential for contact with blood during "French" or open-mouth kissing, CDC recommends against engaging in this activity with a person known to be infected. However, the risk of acquiring HIV during open-mouth kissing is believed to be very low. CDC has investigated only one case of HIV infection that may be attributed to contact with blood during open-mouth kissing."

Biography Farrah Forke

2009-03-13T06:27:00.000-07:00

Farrah Forke, sometimes credited as Farrah R. Forke (born January 12, 1968 in Corpus Christi, Texas), is an American actress known for her role as "Alex Lambert" on the NBC sitcom Wings, and "Mayson Drake" on Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. She also voices the character Big Barda on the animated television series Batman Beyond and Justice League Unlimited.

Forke attended The Hockaday School, an all-girls private school in Dallas. She also spent a year at North Side Middle School while living in Elkhart, Indiana.

She entered acting with a role in a Texas production of the musical The Rocky Horror Show.[2] After moving to New York City and studing acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute,[2] she made her feature debut in the 1991 film Brain Twisters (1991). Other roles would include the movies Whispers in the Dark, Heat (1995), and Kate's Addiction (1998), in which she and actress Kari Wuhrer play woman in a lesbian love affair, and the TV-movies Journey to the Center of the Earth (NBC, 1993); Complex of Fear (CBS, 1993); Bionic Ever After? (CBS, 1994), a Bionic Woman movie; and Abandoned and Deceived (ABC, 1995).

She became best known as Alex Lambert, a former U.S. Army Apache helicopter pilot during Operation Desert Storm who afterward ran a Nantucket Island helicopter service for two seasons on the NBC sitcom Wings. The part was a recurring role during the 1992-93 season, and a regular cast role the following year.

After Wings, Forke played Carey, an office manager for a computer software company, in the 1995 CBS sitcom Dweebs (1995), and then, from 1996 to 1997, a prep school teacher in NBC's Mr. Rhodes.

Wachovia Bank Improves it's Online Banking

2009-03-13T06:19:00.000-07:00

Once I went to Wachovia to open a bank account. This was about three years ago. Being a Bank of America customer and despite low interest rates liking its online banking I asked the representative about Wachovia's online banking. While she said that they are good she acknowledged that Bank of America is the leader in online banking. However, it seems that Wachovia online banking services have gone a long way becoming an industry leader with superior customer satisfaction.

Wachovia online banking is fast becoming the banking method of choice for millions of customers looking to save time. In fact just recently the Wachovia online banking system landed in top place for customer satisfaction as gauged by Keynote System's "Keynote Customer Experience and Service Level Rankings."

What features set Wachovia online banking apart from its competition? Ease of use is what put Wachovia ahead of the rest. Online banking benefits banks by giving customers a way to help themselves. But online banking also has to benefit customers, and if such a program isn't intuitive and easy to navigate, customers won't use it.

That's not a problem at Wachovia. Its web site is uncluttered and neatly categorized which enables users to see at a glance exactly where to go to address their immediate needs. Another area in which Wachovia online banking excels is its access to customer service. Even though the site is easy to navigate, there are times when customers won't know where to go or how to proceed. When that happens, all they need to do is click on the Customer Service link. There customers will find several FAQ's that have been designed to answer the most common questions. There's also a site map and a glossary of terms.

If that's still not enough, customers need only click on the Contact Us link. Again, customers will find their banking needs listed by category. They need only click on the appropriate link and in a split second, they'll have complete contact information including a toll-free telephone number in most cases.

So even though Wachovia online banking customers are dealing with a web site access to a human being is never more than a click away. Besides the ease of use and quick access to customer service, Wachovia online banking is offered absolutely free of charge. Better still, many prospective customers claim that the online banking web site is the feature that helped them choose Wachovia as their bank. No wonder Wachovia tops the list.

Reynosa officials wreck shrine to 'Santa Muerte'

2009-03-13T05:51:00.000-07:00

Reynosa officials demolished a shrine to the Mexican occult figure the “Santa Muerte” or “Holy Death” that had been built in the median of a busy highway.

The Hora Cero newspaper reported that the demolition took place on a state highway between Reynosa and Rio Bravo on Thursday.

The newspaper reported that the shrine had been built on the median of a busy stretch of highway in the Villas de Imaq subdivision.

The shrine was reportedly built less than a week ago.

Reynosa Public Works Director Guillermo Acebo Salman told Hora Cero that the shrine looked bad and obstructed planned projects in the area.

“Santa Muerte” is a Mexican occult figure whose name means “Holy Death” and resembles the “Grim Reaper”.

Shrines to “Santa Muerte” have been found in drug stash houses on both sides of the border.

Action 4 News reporter Victor Castillo investigated the worship of “Santa Muerte” in a special report last year.

Source

Gabriel Cardona-Ramirez Sentenced to Life Imprisonment

2009-03-13T05:32:00.000-07:00

Gabriel Cardona-Ramirez, 22, has been sentenced to life imprisonment, acting United States Attorney Tim Johnson announced today. Cardona-Ramirez aka “Pelon” aka “Gaby,” a hired assassin or “sicario” for the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel, was convicted in August 2008 of conspiracy to kidnap and kill in a foreign country in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 956. The charges stem from the kidnapping and murder of two Laredo youths, Jorge Alfonso Aviles, 19, and Inez Villarreal, 14, from a Nuevo Laredo nightclub on March 30, 2006.

Cardona-Ramirez is one of 14 defendants arrested as a result of a 42-count indictment returned in federal court on March 4, 2008. The indictment charges a drug and money laundering conspiracy involving high-ranking members of the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas, the enforcement arm of the cartel. As part of the conspiracy, the indictment alleges several hit squads or sicario cells operated on both sides of the border and killed members of the rival Sinaloa Cartel in an attempt to forcibly gain control of the Nuevo Laredo-Laredo port of entry and corridor. The indictment remains sealed in part pending the arrest of others charged.

Cardona-Ramirez, a U.S. citizen and Laredo resident, eventually became the leader of one of the sicario cells and is personally charged for his involvement in five murders and four attempted murders committed on the U.S. side of the border as well as the murders of Aviles and Villarreal in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Cardona-Ramirez was charged with one count of drug conspiracy, one count of money laundering conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to kidnap, one count of conspiracy to use a firearm in a violent crime, five counts of using a firearm in a violent crime, eight counts of interstate travel In aid of racketeering, four counts of using a juvenile to commit a violent crime and one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

As part of his plea agreement, Cardona-Ramirez pleaded guilty to count 32 of the indictment admitting his involvement in the kidnapping and murders of Aviles and Villarreal and waived his rights to appeal. In addition to the maximum punishment for the offense — life imprisonment without parole, Cardona was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine. The court has ordered the federal life term of imprisonment is to be served consecutive to sentences imposed by the state court.

Cardona-Ramirez has been in federal custody without bond since his arrest in April 2006.

Source

Anna Nicole Smith’s Doctors, Boyfriend Charged With Feeding Smith Drugs

2009-03-13T05:22:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, California Attorney General Jerry Brown brought drug charges against Anna Nicole Smith’s former lawyer/boyfriend, Howard K. Stern and the drug providing doctors, Sandeep Kapoor and Khristine Eroshevich. The three were charged with 11 felony charges, including unlawfully prescribing a controlled substance and prescribing, administering or dispensing a controlled substance to an addict and conspiracy. Prosecutors allege in the complaint that Anna Nicole’s boyfriend and doctors all conspired to provide her with scores of prescription opiates, sedatives and sleeping pills, to feed her addiction.

Most of the prescription drugs were prescribed to Stern under fictitious names, which were then given to Anna Nicole. Many of the prescriptions mentioned in the complaint were prescribed just days before 39-year-old Anna Nicole was found dead on Feb. 8, 2007, in her hotel room from an overdose.

Police found nearly one thousand pills in Anna Nicole’s hotel room when she died, including muscle relaxants and chloral hydrate, a strong sleeping medication that may have contributed to her death. Shockingly, over 400 muscle relaxers were missing from prescriptions only a couple of weeks old.

Stern and Kapoor surrendered voluntarily Thursday night and posted $20,000 bonds. Eroshevich’s attorney Adam Braun expects his client to turn himself in to California authorities on Monday.

Eroshevich, Anna Nicole’s former psychiatrist, traveled to the Bahamas to provide her boyfriend Stern with the prescription drugs, over a period of six-months. Eroshevich treated Anna Nicole for depression after the death of her 20-year old son, Daniel Smith, who also died from a drug overdose.

Eroshevich prescribed most of the prescriptions found in Anna Nicole’s hotel room upon her death. Braun, Eroshevich’s lawyer claims his client wrote the prescriptions under fictitious names to protect Anna Nicole’s privacy.

Prosecutors are not saying at this point how much time, if any, Anna Nicole’s boyfriend and doctors could spend in prison. These charges come as a surprise to many who have been keeping track of the sad and circus-like death of Anna Nicole and the resulting race to claim paternity of her daughter Dannielynn who may be worth a fortune.

Immediately after Anna Nicole’s death by overdose, it was speculated that assorted charges might be brought against people close to her, but her death was ruled accidental and the authorities took no action at that time

Stern at first, claimed he was the father of Anna Nicole’s daughter, until paternity tests showed the little girl’s biological father was Nicole’s former boyfriend, Larry Birkhead.Attorney General Jerry Brown is expected to make a statement on Friday, regarding the charges.

Man survives Niagara Falls plunge

2009-03-12T09:33:00.000-07:00

A man has survived despite plunging 180ft (55m) over Niagara Falls and spending 45 minutes in freezing waters resisting his rescuers.

The unnamed man was seen by tourists to scale a wall and leap into the rapids above the falls.

Shortly afterwards he was spotted in the water near the base of the falls clinging to a log.

The man was eventually pulled from the icy waters and taken to hospital with hypothermia and a head injury.

Canadian officials said he was in a critical condition.

Rescue team

A specially trained falls rescue team had rushed to the man's aid after receiving reports of him going over the Horseshoe Falls, one of Niagara's three waterfalls.

However, the man - who was naked - swam away from them toward the middle of the river, police said.

A private helicopter was called in and used the force of its rotor blades to blow him closer to shore.

Toyota Financial seeking loans from Japanese government

2009-03-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

Toyota Financial Services has reportedly applied for loans equaling $2 billion (200 billion yen) from the state-backed Japan Bank for International Cooperation. Much of these funds would presumably be used to lend money to new car buyers in the United States, Toyota's largest and most profitable market. If granted, Toyota would join American automakers General Motors and Chrysler on the bailout bandwagon.

Last month, Toyota sold roughly $2 billion (200 billion yen) worth of 10-year bonds at rates much less favorable than what the automaker had previously been accustomed to. That and the aforementioned loan request are actions likely taken to shore up Toyota's falling cash reserves, which some have estimated to be as low as $18.5 billion at the end of January.

It's widely expected that Toyota will post a net loss of as much as $3.5 billion (350 billion yen) for the fiscal year ending in March. This would be the Japanese automaker's first ever operating loss for a full 12-month period, and it further proves how dire the current economic conditions are for all around the globe.

Source: Bloomberg

Sears Tower name to change to Willis Tower

2009-03-12T09:04:00.000-07:00

The Sears Tower, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, will soon become the Willis Tower.

Sears Tower will change its name to Willis Tower under the terms of a new lease signed by global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings.

Willis Group plans to consolidate five area offices and move nearly 500 Associates into Willis Tower, at 233 S. Wacker, initially occupying more than 140,000 square feet on multiple floors.

London-based Willis said its move to the new space, at $14.50 per square foot, will result in significant real estate cost savings, and that there is no additional cost to the company associated with renaming the building.

"Having our name associated with Chicago's most iconic structure underscores our commitment to this great city, and recognizes Chicago's importance as a major financial hub and international business center," said Joseph J. Plumeri, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Willis Group Holdings.

Sears, Roebuck & Co., now based in Hoffman Estates, finished construction on the office building in 1973 but has not had offices in it since 1992. At the time it was the tallest building in the world. Now, it is the tallest in the Western Hemisphere.

Katie Lee Joel’s Homemade Granola

2009-03-12T06:22:00.000-07:00

When it comes to granola, even though it sounds good for you, beware. Store bought granola can be fattening sometimes. As with anything else, you need to read the label and know what you’re eating. Someone who knows this all too well is Katie Lee Joel. Although you may know her as pop singer Billy Joel’s wife or a one-time host to Bravo’s Top Chef, she is a strong personality in her own right, with even a cookbook under her belt.

In a recent issue of Domino magazine, Katie Lee said, “Store-bought granola can be fattening, and if I want a fattening breakfast, I’m going to have pancakes!” To conquer this, she makes big batches of her own recipe (shared below). If you store it in an airtight container, it will keep for months. Perfect for nibbling on, sprinkling over yogurt or eating in a bowlful of milk. With only a little bit of sugar, you can chomp away guilt-free.

Granola
Recipe courtesy of Katie Lee Joel
Yields 8 cups (10-12 servings)

The Ingredients:
3 cups rolled oats
½ cup unsalted hulled sunflower seeds
½ cup unsalted hulled pumpkin seeds
½ cup flaked coconut
¼ cup wheat germ
1-½ cups chopped unsalted mixed nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts, Brazil nuts, cashews, etc.)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon kosher salt
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter or canola oil
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped mixed dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, dates, apricots, figs, prunes, etc.)

Preheat over to 350º. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, coconut, wheat germ, nuts, cinnamon, and salt. In a small saucepan melt butter in the maple syrup over low heat. Stir in the vanilla. Add to the oat mixture. Add 2 tablespoons water and stir until well combined. Spread the granola evenly on a large baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring at 10-minute intervals to ensure uniform baking, until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool in the pan. Stir in the dried fruits.

The Ultimate Fishing Show - Matt meets big fish in New York

2009-03-12T06:08:00.000-07:00

What started as a crazy idea over a couple of beers and is still produced in a Northland shed is about to be seen by an audience of millions.

Matt Watson, a Takou Bay resident and self-proclaimed "stunt-fisherman", has signed a deal with Discovery and Animal Planet to show The Ultimate Fishing Show, which is set to screen in the American autumn, in about October this year.

Watson appeared on an episode of talk show The Late Show with David Letterman a week ago, discussing his production - which screens in New Zealand as The ITM Fishing Show - and some of his crazy fishing exploits.

Footage of Watson's "stunt-fishing" has won popularity and awards on video-sharing website YouTube, which is how Letterman learned of the spirited Northlander.

His stunts included jumping from a helicopter to tackle and tag a marlin underwater.
"It was pretty amazing," Watson said of his appearance on the popular talk-show in New York City. "It was a little bit different to Takou Bay - ok, they were polar opposites."

Despite having fished all over the world, Watson still thinks Northland game fishing is the best. "The great thing here is that we've got the two coasts."

Ideas for Watson's stunts seem to come out of nowhere, but at least he's got a good barometer on whether or not they're winners.

"Once I get an idea, I'm like a dog with a bone, I just can't let go of it. I bring up ideas when I'm sitting around with mates having a beer, and if it makes them spit their beer out, it's probably good enough."

When the Northern Advocate suggested Watson had introduced extreme fishing as Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond had introduced extreme stunts in cars on UK show Top Gear, he laughed.

"You know, you're not the first person to tell me that. But I've never actually even seen it. I'm not a big TV person, and I tried to watch it [Top Gear] once, but I've got a short attention-span and I watched two or three minutes and they were just doing stuff in a studio."

Just getting a cab ride in New York City was exciting enough for Watson - let alone appearing on a world-famous talk show.

During the episode, which screened in the USA two weeks ago, Watson sat casually in the famous chair opposite Letterman, wearing a T-shirt and shorts. When asked what town he was from, Watson said "a beautiful place" called the Bay of Islands.

He recounted the moment he decided fishing for a living was a better idea than being a roof tiler. It came after a nasty accident in which he landed either side of a gutter, and while stuffing bandages down his pants he got a call from mates who'd just landed a yellow-fin tuna.

"But doing my job, you need balls," he told Letterman.

Forbes The World's Billionaires #9 - Theo Albrecht

2009-03-12T05:31:00.000-07:00

Net Worth: $18.8 bil
Fortune: self made
Source: Aldi, Trader Joe's
Age: 87
Country Of Citizenship: Germany
Residence: Foehr
Industry: Retail
Education: N/A
Marital Status: married, 2 children

Runs discount supermarket group Aldi Nord; firm holding up amid economic downturn. Sales expected to hit $31 billion in 2008. After World War II he and older brother Karl transformed their mother's corner grocery into Aldi. Brothers split ownership in 1961; Karl took the stores in southern Germany, plus the rights to the brand in the U.K., Australia and the U.S. Theo got the northern Germany stores and the rest of Europe. Unable to operate Aldi stores in U.S., Theo developed discount food store Trader Joe's; now has more than 320 U.S. stores. Also owns stake in Supervalu. Became a recluse after being kidnapped for 17 days in 1971; said to collect old typewriters; loves golf.

Source: Forbes.com

Dead Weather: Jack White's newest stripe

2009-03-12T05:14:00.000-07:00

His new band, Dead Weather, plays a 20-minute set, sounding a lot like a stripped-down version of the White Stripes.

Reporting from Nashville -- Jack White took the wraps off his new band here Wednesday night, launching phase three of his ever-evolving career with a 20-minute live performance by Dead Weather, fronted by the Kills singer Alison Mosshart, at the site of his new Third Man Records headquarters.The private show, attended by about 150 invitees, took place in the downtown building that houses not only the label's offices but a performance space, a record store specializing in vinyl, a photo studio and a darkroom.White, playing drums and singing with Mosshart, is joined in the new group by two of his Raconteurs bandmates, guitarist Dean Fertita (also from Queens of the Stone Age) and bassist Jack Lawrence.

During the four-song set, Mosshart writhed at the mike while Fertita and Lawrence provided the heavy blues-rock groove on sibling white single-cutaway Gretsch hollow body guitar and bass. Mosshart joined them with a matching white Bo Diddley cigar box guitar for "So Far From Your Weapon."White took his place at the drums, the instrument on which he first learned to play music. He came out from behind his kit just once, duetting at the mike with Mosshart on "Weapon."The band's debut album, "Horehound," is due in June, and the first single will be "Hang You From the Heavens," which Third Man is issuing on a 7-inch vinyl single as well as making it available for download.

Source: LATimes.com

Mexico drug lord on Forbes rich list with $1 billion

2009-03-12T05:05:00.000-07:00

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's most wanted man Joaquin "Shorty" Guzman, blamed for thousands of deaths in a drug war, has made it onto the Forbes Magazine list of the world's richest people with an estimated $1 billion fortune.

Guzman, who is just 5 feet tall, escaped from prison in 2001 to set off a wave of killings across Mexico in an attempt to dominate the country's highly lucrative drug trade into the United States.

"He is not available for interviews," Luisa Kroll, senior editor of Forbes, said Wednesday. "But his financial situation is doing quite well."

Forbes placed Guzman at 701 on its list, tied with dozens of others worldwide with riches of some $1 billion.

Guzman, 51, who officials believe changes his cell phone every day to avoid being tracked, is often compared to the late Colombian kingpin Pablo Escobar, whom Forbes has said amassed a fortune of $3 billion before he was killed by police in 1993.

The Mexican smuggler is "basically one of the biggest providers of cocaine to the United States," Kroll said. The magazine based its tally of his fortune on estimates from drug-trade analysts and U.S. government data.

Guzman's prison escape and ability to elude capture for eight years are an embarrassment to the Mexican government.

He has outwitted four major government drives to find him between 2002 and 2007. His escapades are the stuff of legend in the areas he controls and in popular "narcocorrido" songs that glorify drug traffickers.

Mexico's attorney general, Eduardo Medina Mora, told Reuters last week that defeating Guzman's cartel of traffickers from the Pacific state of Sinaloa was a priority in President Felipe Calderon's army-backed drug fight.

Some 7,000 people have been killed in drug violence across Mexico since the start of last year as rival gangs fight each other and Mexican security forces. Guzman's enforcers from the Sinaloa cartel are among the most vicious hitmen.

Forbes said Mexican and Colombian traffickers laundered between $18 billion and $39 billion in proceeds from wholesale drugs shipments to the United States in 2008.

Guzman and his operation likely grossed 20 percent of that -- enough for him to have pocketed $1 billion over his career and earn a spot on the billionaire's list for the first time.

About 90 percent of all cocaine consumed in the United States comes through Mexico. It also is a major source of heroin, methamphetamines and marijuana in the United States.

Google Voice Rises To Replace GrandCentral

2009-03-12T04:18:00.000-07:00

New to the service will be the ability to receive SMS text messages sent to your Google Voice number on a mobile device, and sending messages from your Web-based Google Voice inbox.
Google's online voicemail and call management system GrandCentral will be reborn on Thursday as Google Voice, with several new features.

The service will remain in private beta for existing GrandCentral users for a few more weeks. But after that Google expects to open Google Voice to the general public.

In an interview at Google's San Francisco office, Craig Walker, senior product manager for Google's voice products, described Google Voice as a service that can help organize chaotic communication channels.

Google Voice, in keeping with Google's mission to organize the world's information, provides a single phone number that routes incoming calls to six of the user's phones at once. It also provides a single online inbox for voicemail messages.

"A telephone number should be personal to you," said Walker. "And with everything in one inbox, you now have only one voicemail to check."

Google Voice inherits GrandCentral's many features, including the ability to screen calls as if in a room with an answering machine, to record calls and access those recordings online, to block unwanted callers, and to receive notifications of voicemail via e-mail or SMS.

It includes various personalization features, such as the ability to set how calls to one's Google Voice number are routed, based on time or caller. It also allows personalized greetings, per user or group, and the ability to personalize the ringing sound that callers hear while waiting for you to answer.

Google Voice also features GrandCentral's WebCall Button, for connecting a would-be callers phone to yours using a Web-based button, the ability to initiate a call from your online address book, and visual voicemail.

Google Voice

Resource: Informationweek.com

'Diggnation' co-hosts talk online video

2009-03-12T04:07:00.000-07:00

When Jimmy Fallon appeared as a guest host on "Diggnation" in January to promote his new late-night talk show, he made clear that he was going after a different audience than broadcast TV was used to.

Now, in the second week of "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," the "Saturday Night Live" alum is returning the favor. "Diggnation" co-hosts Alex Albrecht and Kevin Rose will appear tonight as guests on his show.

"We sort of assumed it was going to be months before we got onto the show," Albrecht said.

The courtship of "Diggnation," a weekly online video show that's wildly popular among the geek crowd, shows how resolute Fallon has been in his quest to attract a tech-savvy audience.

"Late Night" producer Gavin Purcell has said that viewers can expect to see more product placement than they're used to. Purcell, who previously produced "Attack of the Show" on the G4 network, is pushing for gadgets, games and Web services to feature prominently.

In one gag, the camera zoomed in on audience members and then displayed silly fake Facebook status updates above their heads. A blogger from Engadget demonstrated the Palm Pre cellphone on the show. And Fallon used micro-blogging service Twitter to solicit interview questions for Cameron Diaz from fans.

Source: LATimes.com

Is Kelly Clarkson pregnant, or just gaining weight?

2009-03-12T03:59:00.000-07:00

Kelly Clarkson’s appearance on American Idol this evening has set tongues wagging after Clarkson showed what on the surface at least appeared to be a baby bump.

So is Kelly Clarkson pregnant? The answer is we can’t be sure, but it’s more likely just weight gain. Only recently, Clarkson told Us Weekly that she wasn’t interested at the moment in spawning children. She also told Ryan Seacrest that there is no special person in her life at the moment.

Clarkson, rumored by some to be a lesbian, has had a long battle with weight, often putting on the pounds only to lose them again in a semi-regular fashion.

One thing we can say for Clarkson: if she was pregnant, she’d probably share the news; only earlier today, details of an interview she did with Blender Magazine included gems from Clarkson such as she pisses on her self in the shower, and that she analyzes her snot for illness.

From swimsuit competition glamour to parish pulpit clamor

2009-03-10T07:57:00.000-07:00

Beauty queen is now a pastor

COTUIT - On a recent Sunday morning, 30-year-old Nicole Lamarche, a former Miss California, stood before a crowd in a simple clapboard church next to a local watering hole. She wore high-heeled boots, her thin figure draped in a black robe.

"I feel so lucky to be your pastor," she proclaimed.

Lamarche became minister of Cotuit Federated Church two years ago, shaking up its stodgy routine and causing quite a stir in this quiet Cape Cod village of about 2,600 year-round residents.

She says four parishioners defected early on, after people Googled her name and discovered her beauty pageant past, but these days residents credit Lamarche with injecting new dynamism into the town and the church.

Lamarche says she understands that for some the "pastor in a swimsuit thing" is hard to swallow, but she simply needed the money. Loyal members of her congregation accept her explanation, buoying her spirits. Plus, says Lamarche, "If you can walk on a stage in your swimsuit, you can do anything."

After a service earlier this year, the congregation gathered for coffee, fruit salad, and cookies in an adjoining reception room, chattering with each other and the pastor who was once Miss Desert Vista.

"Just listen to it," said Pam Bode, a member of the church since 1985. "This is a church that has come alive."

"She's good for God," agreed Norman Knight, a 79-year-old retired welder, one of about a hundred regular members of the church who now attend weekly.

The path from beauty-pageant winner to pastor has not always been smooth. Lamarche grew up going to church near her hometown of Chattaroy, Wash., and joined a campus ministry group when she started college at the University of Arizona. An international relations major, she planned to join the foreign service after graduation.

The minister at her church suggested she consider seminary school instead. She had her doubts, but agreed to attend a "ministry as vocation" weekend at the Pacific School of Religion in California after the minister offered to pay her airfare to Berkeley. She enrolled and started the following year.

But Lamarche needed money, she recalled, and she was drawn to scholarship prizes she heard about in pageant competition.

Her first attempt was for the Miss Tucson title in 2000. Things did not go well. Recently returned from a backpacking trip around Europe, she had what she describes as "a short German haircut."

She cried onstage during the swimsuit competition and wore an old prom dress for the evening wear portion. She walked away empty-handed.
But in 2001, she became Miss Desert Vista, coming in first runner-up for Miss Arizona later that year.

When she moved to California that summer for seminary school, she thought her pageant days were behind her. But the mother of the 1998 Miss California winner found Lamarche on an online message board and convinced her to compete.

Source: Boston.com

Deadly Love Triangle Exposes Secret Life of Kinky "JadeVixen"

2008-12-04T06:50:00.000-08:00

The tawdry details of the S&M lifestyle enjoyed by a rising star attorney at Manhattan law firm were exposed after he was shot dead by a rival for the affections of his stunning stilettoed girlfriend -- a brunette Ivy Leaguer who moonlighted as a dominatrix, authorities said.

Anthony Ottaviano, 40, was shot dead by a tattooed maniac whose obsession with the attorney's girlfriend, Edythe Maa, drove him to follow the couple to Maa's Philadelphia home, shoot Ottaviano and kidnap the dominatrix, the New York Post reported.

The 42-year-old former client of Maa's eventually released the petite brunette before he turned the same gun he used to slay Ottaviano on himself and committed suicide, according to The Post.
"Jade Vixen - she's the greatest fetish model since Betty Page!" the madman, David Krieg, gushed on a video on his MySpace page.

Ottaviano worked at the prestigious firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison but lusted after the S&M lifestyle, which turned out to be his downfall.

His passion for the leather-clad lifestyle was shared by Maa, a former Ph.D. student at the University of Pennsylvania known in fetish circles as Jade Vixen.

The couple would often attend kinky fetish parties in New York City -- with the Manhattan attorney sporting a garter belt, stockings, high heels and a dash of lipstick, according to The Post.

The 5-foot-4 Maa boasts of 32D-22-32 measurements on fetish websites and says she specializes tickle torture, nipple play and "sissy slut training" and will engage in forced feminization, medical play and genital torture, the Post reported.

Maa's closet was full of latex, leather, corsets and stilettos and her clients include men, women and transgenders.

New York Post on Olmert scandal

2008-05-06T07:19:00.000-07:00

Though the Israeli media is more or less obeying a gag order on the Olmert scandal, the website of Israel's Ynet is kind enough to inform us that the non-Israeli New York Post claims to be in possession of the basic details. With Israel facing grave security challenges including possible imminent Iranian nuclearization, it can be validly claimed that what we don't need now is for the political system to get plunged into chaos with Tzipi Livni as caretaker prime minister (that's if Olmert really gets booted). Though that would clearly have its downsides, I still think Olmert continuing is the greater evil.

Source: PDavidHornik

Colbert becomes Greatest Living American

2008-05-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

Stephen Colbert won the "Webby Person of the Year" Award. Colbert became the "Greatest Living American" in the eyes of Google thanks to his fans who took to the Internet and "Google-bombed" him to the top. They did so by posting comments all over the Web that contained his name and "Greatest Living American" to make him the top result when anyone searched Google for the title.

Colbert's use of the Internet, including challenging the "truthiness" of Wikipedia, attracting 78 members per minute to the Facebook page for his candidacy for president and his ability to get fans to rack up donations online for DonorsChoose.org earned him the award.

Tropical Cyclone Nargis hits Burma

2008-05-05T07:40:00.000-07:00

Burma, one of the poorest countries in Asia has been hit by a powerful cyclone, killing over 350 people and leaving thousands homeless.

The fact that Burma is a very poor country is hampering rescue efforts as the government is not well prepared to deal with the aftermath of the cyclone, power lines are down and large areas are inaccessible as roads have been blocked by fallen debris.

Click on the link below to find out more.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7383573.stm

Source: LiveGeography

Cinco de Mayo day

2008-05-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of Cinco de Mayo day? There’s an untold story about Cinco de Mayo day. It is allegedly a Mexican holiday celebrated in America on the fifth day of May, with many people thinking it has to do with a Mexico independence day. It does not. The untold story is, it does not, it does not have anything to do with a Mexican independence day. Fact is, for the most part it’s not even celebrated in Mexico, say for portions of the Mexican state of Puebla. So why is this holiday today so celebrated in America and what is the purpose or story behind the celebration? That is the rest of the Another Untold Story told at anotheruntoldstory.com. You won’t hear it told hardly anywhere else because it’s not one of those PC. you know politically correct stories, and you might be called a very nasty, nasty name if you tell it. So don’t tell anyone you went to anotheruntoldstory.com to learn of it. To learn of the war story that is behind the Cinco de Mayo celebration in America, but if you do go there to learn why some Americans are not celebrating Cinco de Mayo day, it’ quite a story.

Source: Another Untold Story

Mindy McCready is Roger Clemens’ Affair

2008-04-28T07:03:00.000-07:00

Mindy McCready is a country singer who’s been in trouble with the law a few times. McCready is reportedly also the ten year affair of former major league pitcher Roger Clemens. You can see her biography below.

Mindy’s affair with Roger Clemens allegedly began when she was only 15-years-old and he was pitching for the Red Sox at 28. Clemens was married and had two children at the time. Clemens acknowledges the relationship, but, through his lawyer, denies it was ever of a sexual nature.

Mindy McCready Biography

Mindy McCready was born Malinda Gayle in Fort Myers, Florida on November 30, 1975, which makes her age 32. Mindy’s singing career can be traced back to age 3, and like a lot of country artists, started in church. She graduated from high school early at 16 so she could pursue a professional singing career. According to reports, this would also be the time Roger Clemens came into her life. Two years later she moved to Nashville and was signed by BNA records.

Mindy’s debut album, “Ten Thousand Angels,” went gold in six months with the help of her two singles “Ten Thousand Angels” and “Guys Do It All The Time.” Her sophomore album, “If I Don’t Stay The Night” did not prove to be as successful. The third album in her discography, “I’m Not So Tough,” was a commercial failure after Mindy split ways with her label before any promotion was done. McCready later signed with Capitol records, but was subsequently dropped by them two years later.

Mindy has since had several run-ins with the law and a history of personal problems. McCready appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and spoke of her battle with domestic abuse, depression, and drug abuse. She has been arrested several times, the first in August of 2004 when Mindy used a fake prescription to buy the painkiller OxyContin. In July 2005, McCready was charged in Arizona with “identity theft, attempted fraudulent scheme and artifices, unlawful imprisonment, hindering prosecution and unlawful use of transportation.” In August 2005, she was arrested for violating probation and the next month confirmed a drug overdose was a suicide attempt. Her troubles continued in 2007 when she was charged with battery and resisting arrest. McCready has also had several altercations with the father of her baby, Billy McKnight. He was arrested for allegedly breaking into her house, beating her and choking her. McKnight was charged with attempted murder and aggravated burglary.

It sounds like the last thing she needs is to be involved in this media story with Roger Clemens.

Source: Rightpundits.com

The Ex-Boyfriend Jewelry

2008-04-24T07:35:00.000-07:00

We have a Video Report About Ex-Boyfriend Jewelry Dot Com.
Ex-Boyfriend Jewelry is a website that helps you get over your heartbreak and sell your jewelry given to you by an ex.

Watch the video report about ex-boyfriend jewelry website: click here .

Kenneth Keith Kallenbach is Dead

2008-04-24T07:16:00.001-07:00

It was just reported on the Kidd Chris Show moments ago, that Kenneth Keith Kallenbach, Howard Stern Wackpacker and erstwhile comedian has died. The story is that Kenneth caught pneumonia while in jail and died of complications thereof.

Details are sketchy as of right now. But the funny man has left the building.

Today: Boston Marathon

2008-04-21T07:46:00.000-07:00

The world’s oldest annual marathon. In 2007 more than 20000 runners completed the race. The Boston Marathon has distinguished itself by virtue of its traditions. You can follow the race in real time at - http://www.bostonmarathon.org/ .

The 112th Boston Marathon start times are as follows:

9:25 a.m. Wheelchair Division Start
9:35 a.m. Elite Women’s Start
10:00 a.m. Elite Men & Wave 1 Start
10:30 a.m. Wave 2 Start

So where is the best place to watch the Boston Marathon? Well, we love it right on the ground level in all hte action at the finish line on Boylston Street. Although we were wishing the Mandarin Oriental Residences were open right now as maybe we could get a birds eye view of the final few blocks for the win!

Oh ya - and best of luck to Boston Real Estate blogger and pal - John Keith who is running again this year!

Source: Boston Condo

Moon Bloodgood Cast in Terminator 4

2008-04-21T06:18:00.000-07:00

Good news for Terminator fans: First it was confirmed earlier this weekend that The Sarah Connor Chronicles has been renewed for a second season. Second, the rumor from last week that Terminator 4 had been shut down has turned out to be untrue after all. And now THR reports that Moon Bloodgood is in final negotiations for the female lead in McG’s upcoming film.

Bloodgood will play a “no-nonsense and battle-hardened member of the resistance who is carrying a lot of guilt over surviving the nuclear holocaust.” You might remember Bloodgood from her role as Livia in NBC’s short-lived television series Journeyman. Principal photography is set to begin in two weeks, on May 5th, with the film set to hit theaters on May 22nd 2009.

Source: Slashfilm.com

Catholics: "Fire Bill Maher"

2008-04-21T06:04:00.000-07:00

The call to fire Bill Maher comes after several Catholic organizations and media outlets expressed their shock at Maher’s attack on the Catholic Church just days before Pope Benedict XVI was scheduled to visit the United States. Maher’s “New Rules” segment has been openly criticized for its anti-Catholic tone on several Catholic and independent media outlets.

“If Maher had made equally vile comments about a Muslim or Jewish leader, the media would be jammed with calls for HBO to fire him,” said Judie Brown, president of American Life League. “But because he attacked the Catholic Church, the vast majority of the media is silent. It seems that anti-Catholicism is the last remaining acceptable prejudice left in America.”

Earthquake Illionois

2008-04-18T06:18:00.000-07:00

I felt my building moving in Iowa City at 4:45 AM and woke up. I saw and heard the big lamp rocking hitting against the wall. So I got up and looked online and was surprised to find that it was the tremors of an earthquake that I was experiencing, not a bad dream!

The epicenter was in Illinois and the magnitude was 5.4 on the Richter scale.

The details can be found here: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsus/Quakes/us2008qza6.php

LisaRaye McCoy’s body covers Smooth Magazine

2008-04-17T06:55:00.000-07:00

41-year old “Diamond” covers the new issue of SMOOTH magazine. Stacey Dash covered KING magazine this month and now Lisa is doing the damn thing!

NBA 2008 Playoff Bracket

2008-04-17T06:32:00.000-07:00

See here: the official 2008 NBA Playoff Bracket:

Joan Lunden Talks About Colorectal Health

2008-04-17T06:20:00.000-07:00

Television personality Joan Lunden, joined by the Dr. Tim Turnham, CEO of the Colon Cancer Alliance, talked about the support and educational resources that are available to colorectal cancer patients and their caregivers.

Lunden is involved in this campaign because she is an avid advocate of empowering and educating the public about their health concerns, colon cancer being one of them.

The Colon Cancer Alliance (CCA) is a national patient advocacy organization, with chapters throughout the nation, and the official patient support partner of Katie Couric's National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (NCCRA).

Hazel Court, R.I.P.

2008-04-17T05:58:00.000-07:00

Sad news reached us today, that Horror Queen Hazel Court, died on the 15th April 2008. Hazel who was 82, had been suffering from a yet undisclosed long term illness. Hazel was born in Birmingham in the UK on the 10th of February 1926. She entered Gainsborough Studios during WWII, & stayed there for several years, during which she became known as one of ‘The Gainsborough Girls’. Her first starring role being in the 1944 film Champagne Charlie in which she had a very small role, the role would lead to bigger parts for Court. After the War she married her first husband Dermot Walsh in 1949, to whom she would remain married to until their divorce in 1963.

During the early 1950s Hazel would appear in an assortment of movies for various film companies including The Rank Organisation. Amongst those films were The Ghost Ship (1952) & Devil Girl From Mars (1954), but her major starring role came when Hammer Films, who then specialised in low budget thrillers & science fiction adaptations from radio & TV gave Hazel the role of Elizabeth in The Curse of Frankenstein in 1957, in which she teamed up with the then to become Horror film legends – Peter Cushing & Christopher Lee. The film went on to worldwide success, breaking box office records around the world, Hazel would soon find herself with offers for all manner of film & TV work.

Her next work for Hammer was the 1959 film The Man Who Could Cheat Death, in which she would again work with Christopher Lee & electrifying German actor Anton Diffring. In 1962 she would start work on what would be 3 very different films for director American director Roger Corman, the first being Premature Burial in which she co-starred with actor Ray Milland. Her next Corman film was The Raven with Boris Karloff, but undoubtedly her best film of that era was the superb Corman made The Masque of Red Death in 1964 with Vincent Price. Hazel re-married in 1964 to actor/director Don Taylor with whom she had 1 child. Hazel continued to work in film & television in the USA up until 1981. Hazel then settled for a life of painting, for which she had a real passion. She would also be a regular at some of the organised Horror conventions, including Hammer. Her autobiography Hazel Court – Horror Queen, An Autobiography was published by Tomahawk Press in 2007.

Konami ID servers blown to smithereens?

2008-04-17T05:38:00.000-07:00

It seems like the servers at id.konami.net said goodbye earlier today. The awaited Metal Gear Online BETA was released in North America today, and is going to be released in Europe tomorrow.

To take part of the MGO BETA you need to sign up with a special Konami ID, but a ton of gamers are finding this quite hard to do, since the servers were blown to the smithereens earlier today. Maybe Metal Gear's popularity exceeded Konami's expectations? To all you gamers out there, keep signing in. Traffic will probably be reduced by tomorrow!

South Park: Over Logging

2008-04-17T05:23:00.000-07:00

South Park, along with the rest of the country, has lost the Internet. As a result, Randy Marsh takes his family on a trek to California to find it.

As someone who is an Internet addict, I certainly can understand the dilemma of this situation. I don't think we could go back to being a society without Internet, much as we can't go back to being a society without phones, television or cars.

As someone who works with the Internet for his day job, I had some problems with the simplistic way that it was presented. The Internet is used for much more than shopping or e-mailing (or, indeed, porn). Entire industries rely on it. The only part that struck me as truthful was seeing people live in a Great Depression-type state without the Internet.
There are several subtle ironies in this episode. The Great Depression happened as a result of the Stock Market Crash of 1929. The South Park Depression happened as a result of the Internet crash of 2008. Also, without the Internet itself I wonder if South Park would have become the phenomenon that it is.

I don't think this episode was a satire of any particular show or movie (although there was a glaring reference to Close Encounters of the Third Kind), but there were historical references to the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the Great Depression. They even used the cinematic tradition of presenting that context in black and white.

One of the characters in the show was stating about how he couldn't wait to e-mail someone, and my first thought was "if nobody has Internet, who'd read it?"

The episode focused on the Marsh family with minimal appearances by the other kids (although Kyle had a critical role in getting the Internet back). Stan's sister Shelley remains her usual sadistic self. Grandpa didn't say anything. He didn't even call Stan "Billy."

At first, I thought Shelley's Internet boyfriend Amir was one of those middle-aged Internet stalkers (which may have led to another Chris Hansen episode). Let us not forget that 12-year old Shelley once dated a 23 year old in the "Timmy 2000" episode . However, we eventually learn that he's a normal kid around her age and as usual, Internet relationships are awkward when put face-to-face.

I love how they presented the Internet as a giant wireless router, which is probably what it looks like to the general public who have one in their household. Kyle used the same solution to fix the problem as most of the tech support people at my ISP tell me to do whenever the Internet is down. It's always the simplest solution.

I've got to say that Randy's Internet habits are disturbing. I don't know a single guy that would masturbate to women vomiting in each other's mouths. And he's very loud. I loved how at the end he was dressed in an American-Indian costume and speaking of the Internet as if it were a limited resource like oil (which was a parody of a 70's commercial).

At the end, Randy was given the honor of the money shot. And what a money shot it was! Last year, he took the world's biggest poop and now this. The man has more bodily secretions and less dignity than any other cartoon character I know. However, that scene was a hilarious punchline to an otherwise lackluster episode.

Overall, a good if not great episode. I didn't think it was as good as last week's with the Penis Mouse.

Source: TVSquad

Marilyn Monroe's dirty tape

2008-04-15T05:54:00.000-07:00

Long before Paris Hilton went all naughty night vision; prior to Kim Kardashian getting Ray J’d for all to see; and decades preceding Dustin Diamond’s dirty (sanchez) deeds, there was Marilyn Monroe.

As the original sex kitten, this actress was married to Joe DiMaggio and is remembered for a fling with JFK. Now, the New York Post reports that Monroe was also the first celebrity to make a sex tape. The newspaper says a copy still-FBI-classified reel - 15 minutes of 16mm film footage in which the blond bombshell goes all Antonella Barba on an unidentified man - was recently sold to a New York businessman for $1.5 million.

Keya Morgan - the well-known memorabilia collector who discovered the film and brokered its purchase - claims it came to light in the mid-’60s. At that time, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover had his agents spend two weeks futilely trying to prove that Monroe’s sex partner was either John F. Kennedy or Robert F. Kennedy.

The silent black-and-white flick shows Monroe on her knees in front of a man whose face is just out of the shot.

Last month, Morgan brokered its sale to a wealthy New York businessman who wants to keep this unseemly part of Monroe’s past buried.

“He said he’s just going to lock it up,” Morgan said. “He said, ‘I’m not going to make a Paris Hilton out of her. I’m not going to sell it, out of respect.’ “

MTV The Paper - Cypress Bay High School

2008-04-15T05:31:00.000-07:00

Cypress Bay High School is the focus of a new MTV reality show that features the award-winning Cypress Bay High School Newspaper, "The Circuit." The show, aptly named "The Paper," follows the action as the writers at the now-famous Cypress Bay High School strive to make the Cypress Bay High School newspaper the best that it can be.

If you missed the start of the series, don't dispair, I am sure you can catch up on the action on MTV.

Troubles with Tribbles

2008-04-15T00:40:00.000-07:00

JnV News is here once again to offer you the most amazing pet you have ever seen… Tribbles. Tribbles are soft, cuddly, and easy to take care of. The nice thing about Tribbles is that you don’t have to worry about not feeding them after midnight.

Tribbles really don’t require much maintenance at all and they are very little trouble at all. You should definitely look into getting one for you house or apartment. I guarantee that you will love the Tribble so much that your home will be filled with thousands of Tribbles in no time.

Source: BlueSkelton

American Orient Express

2008-04-14T02:43:00.001-07:00

GrandLuxe Rail Journeys is the current operator of the American Orient Express. Through this company you can book train tours of the national parks of the west, the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, and Napa Valley, as well as tours of the Antebellum South and Mexico’s Copper Canyon.
These trips generally run 4 to 10 days and can be booked by calling 800-269-6044.
There are a variety of accommodations available, from a standard Pullman car with upper and lower berths to a Presidential Suite. Attire is casual so you will not need a tuxedo to get into the dining car. Bring walking shoes for the tours at frequent stops. There is a gourmet restaurant and a pianist to play background music for your journey. Meals and hotels are included in the price of your journey.
If you want to see the beauty of America there is nothing like riding a train through the mountains and plains. You will not have to worry about driving and can spend your time looking out the windows. Unlike an airliner, you will be part of the landscape, not high above it. For scenery and enjoyment there is nothing like a train ride.

Source: SomeKnowledge

The Office - Dinner Party

2008-04-11T03:01:00.000-07:00

It feels really good to be back, doesn't it? My calculations might be a bit off, but it seems to me the amount of time we had off for the writer's strike was about the same as what we usually have off for a summer break. For some reason, though, it felt longer. Something about the cold winter months makes me long for the sweet siren song of Scranton, I suppose.
I wasn't there when we won WWII, but I imagine the joy I felt when a new Office showed up in my TiVo was similar to what it felt like on V.E. day. I almost wanted to dress up in a sailor uniform and give Steve Carell a long, deep kiss in Times Square (though, to be fair, I almost always feel that way). I was happy The Office was back, the only thing I worried about was whether it'd still be good...

Short answer: it was. Maybe it was the excitement of the first new Office in five months, or maybe it was the fact that the writers didn't have much to do except think of funny things while they were on the picket line, but tonight's Office was a Barry Bond's-style chemically enhanced mega-home-run.

This week we left the office behind and ventured to a dinner party at Michael and Jan's condo. Andy, Angela, Jim and Pam get the invite, with Dwight, of course, not invited. (The excuse Michael gives is classic: it's couples only, and besides, they only have six wine glasses).
From there, we spend the entirety of the episode at Michael and Jan's condo. My editor, Joel Keller, pointed out a difference in film stock -- the video seemed to have a much grainer digital quality to it -- and we couldn't decide if that was a stylistic choice or if filming in the cramped confines of the condo might have necessitated it. Did anyone else catch the change? I think it worked well stylistically; the video was dark as the episode.

"Cramped confines" is also a good way to describe what Jan and Michael's condo felt like. We get the tour and Jan's domineering is evident throughout: she has an office and a place to work on her scented candle business. They have a nice bench at the foot of their bed that is, uh, Michael's actual bed because Jan has "space issues." (Though those issues don't seem to prevent them from having a little fun together as a video camera was left conspicuously out, pointed at the bed. It's a fair bet that Michael left that out on purpose.)

The camera gag illustrates perfectly what I loved about this episode: on the surface it was an obvious joke. Oh, yes, a video camera and a bed, wink wink. The only way it could have been more obvious was if a midget in dominatrix clothing tumbled out of the closet during the tour. But, if you look a bit deeper, you can catch the second, subtle joke that's underneath it: Michael wanted Jim to see the camera because Michael is constantly seeking approval. The first-time viewer can laugh at the sex joke; the long-time viewer is rewarded with a complex, character-based joke.

As the party continues, Jan indicates that the dinner would take three hours to braise properly. Pam: Three hours from now or, like three hours from an earlier time, like 4:00? Jan: You know, Pam, in Spain, it's not uncommon for dinner to start after midnight. Michael: When in Rome! Cue a look that Pam and Jim share that is exactly like the looks my wife and I give each other when confronted with interminable events (there are a lot of Catholic weddings in my family).

Predictably, the evening falls apart, with the frayed edges of Michael and Jan's relationship beginning to unravel. Things that we learned tonight:

Jan most certainly had sex with her former assistant Hunter and then Hunter recorded a delightfully awful ballad about it.
Michael has lied about a past relationship (probably wished for) with Pam. Jan is ridiculously jealous of this fact (and when I say "ridiculously" I mean it in both senses: a lot, and RIDICULOUSLY).
Michael has had three vasectomies, as he keeps snipping and unsnipping his baby-pipes according to Jan's whims.
Jan might be certifiably insane.

And if there was one weak spot about the episode it might be that last point. As the evening progressed and we got to see deeper into the troubled relationship between Michael and Jan, it became quite clear that Jan is a seriously deranged woman. When Michael says it's entirely possible that Jan has poisoned his food, it doesn't seem that outlandish based on what we've seen of Jan over this season.

And thus the most cringe worthy episode... well, maybe ever... comes to a close, as Michael heads off with Dwight, Angela and Andy go for ice cream, and Pam and Jim head to a parking lot to listen to Hunter's song just one more time.

The reason I loved this episode so much, I think, is because it represents the very best of what The Office is capable of. At its core, this is a series that says the people you work with, no matter how horrible they might be, eventually become your family. Most of the time, this vein is mined for the kind of dark laughs we saw tonight. Sometimes, though, we get to view the employees of Dunder-Mifflin the same way we view the employees at our own office: horrible people that we love anyway.

Jan, alone at the end of the episode, trying desperately to glue the head back on the Dundie she shattered, captures this feeling. Every once in a while, we're gonna break the the plasma-screen of the one we love. All we can hope to do, at the end of the day, is take the Dundie we broke it with and put a little glue on its head.

And, uh, that's what she said.

Source: TV Squad

Artie Lange walks off the Howard Stern show

2008-04-11T02:45:00.000-07:00

Howard Stern Show fixture Artie Lange walked out of the studio after an argument and subsequent outburst at his personal assistant on the air.

Lange, who became a part of the show’s daily routine in October of 2001, was spotted disputing with his assistant in the hallways off the air. When it was brought up to Stern, he asked the assistant Teddy to come into the studio and discuss the situation on the air.

Lange began to express his disdain for his assistant of nearly two years because of recent money issues. Teddy retorted by implying there’s more to the job than meets the eye.

The two are slated to travel to Amsterdam this evening and the squabble began over setting up Lange’s travel accommodations. However, the in-studio dispute quickly escalated into a discussion about how much Lange finances Teddy, who is affectionately called “Teddy Microphone” around the studio.

As the argument continued, Lange became enraged and physically lashed out at Teddy, but the physical confrontation was apparently defused by other members in the studio.
When Lange returned, he said Teddy would be “dead” had he reached him and he would be in jail.

Stern then expressed his feelings on the situation, saying he cannot condone Lange’s actions. The comedian, who has had a similar outburst on the air in the past, said he cannot guarantee he can refrain from acting out in the future. Upon hearing that, Stern said he cannot have Lange around with the potential of such actions looming.

Artie then offered his resignation; Stern accepted, but told Lange to leave and cool off. Just before Lange left he told Stern: “I’m not a good person … I gotta leave … I love you”
Teddy returned to the studio several minutes later and said there was overreacting from everyone, but did not downplay the seriousness of the situation.

Show producer Gary Dell’Abate came in to analyze the situation, but he and Stern admitted they “did not know what to make of it all.”
Stern does not host a live show on Fridays and the crew is on vacation next week.

Source: Newsday.com

Lionel Richie - Stuck on you Lyrics

2008-04-11T02:30:00.000-07:00

The lyrics of Richie's international hit, Stuck on you.

Stuck on you
I've got this feeling down deep in my soul that I just can't lose
Guess I'm on my way
Needed a friend
And the way I feel now I guess I'll be with you 'til the end
Guess I'm on my way
Mighty glad you stayed

I'm stuck on you Been a fool too long I guess it's time for me to come on home
Guess I'm on my way
So hard to see
That a woman like you could wait around for a man like me
Guess I'm on my way
Mighty glad you stayed

Oh, I'm leaving on that midnight train tomorrow
And I know just where I'm going
I've packed up my troubles and I've thrown them all away
'Cause this time little darling
I'm coming home to stay

I'm stuck on you
I've got this feeling down deep in my soul that I just can't lose
Guess I'm on my way
Needed a friend
And the way I feel now I guess I'll be with you 'til the end
Guess I'm on my way
I'm mighty glad you stayed

Jason Reitman, Kevin Smith will blog for NHL

2008-04-10T07:37:00.000-07:00

Jason Reitman, Lauren Conrad, Dierks Bentley and Kevin Smith are among the celebrities who will blog about their love of hockey on the National Hockey League's Web site.

Beginning Wednesday, more than a dozen celebs will follow their favorite teams through the Stanley Cup playoffs, said NHL spokeswoman Bernadette Mansur.

"As NHL.com bloggers, they can be irreverent and candid about their love for the NHL," she said.

A native Canadian who grew up in Los Angeles, Reitman, 30, became a hockey fan seven years ago. Since then, the Oscar-nominated director ("Juno") has dedicated himself to the cause, directing commercials for the NHL and serving on its entertainment advisory board.

"I'd come to really love the game and I was just a little upset because I felt there was more of an opportunity for particularly Americans to know about the game and follow the game," he told The Associated Press.

Reitman told the league to call him if he could be of any help and they asked him to blog.

"This year is a little depressing because my two teams, the (Vancouver) Canucks and the (Los Angeles) Kings, neither of them are in the playoffs," he said, adding that the invitation came "when the Canucks still had a chance."

"Now the Canucks aren't in it. So what I decided is that I'm going to write a kind of mythical blog about what the Canucks and Kings would be doing had they still been in," he said. "In my version, for the first time in NHL history, the Canucks and the Kings will be the first two Western Conference teams to actually meet in the Stanley Cup finals."

Conrad described herself as "a casual hockey fan" who has followed the Kings for the past two seasons.

"I'm blogging about the NHL playoffs because I love live hockey and I thought this would be a fun way to get more involved with the postseason," the reality-TV star said in a statement.

This is the second year that stars from movies, music and television have brought their hockey fan-dom to the blogosphere. Celebrities blogging about the 2008 quest for the Stanley Cup include David Boreanaz, A.J. Buckley, Tom Cavanagh, William Fichtner and Geoff Stults.

Source: Express

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)

2008-04-10T07:17:00.000-07:00

Rooted in Family Farms
In the mid-1980s, family farmers across America were in the fight of their lives. Prices had dropped below the cost of production. Family farmers were told they were inefficient and they had to either get big or get out. Deeply flawed national and international policies were the root cause of the crisis. A galvanizing effort to save the family farm helped spawn the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). In 1986, IATP began documenting the underlying causes of America’s rural crisis and proposing policies that would benefit farmers, consumers, rural communities and the environment.

Facing Globalization
IATP works with organizations around the world to analyze how global trade agreements impact domestic farm and food policies. Alongside a global coalition, IATP advocates for fair trade policies that promote strong health standards, labor and human rights, the environment and, most fundamentally, democratic institutions.

Building Sustainability
We are developing alternative economic models that include clean sources of energy such as wind power and biofuel that would spur rural development. We’re working with landowners to form cooperatives that promote sustainable forest management. We’re advocating for green businesses and farms that reduce toxic runoff into the Great Lakes and Mississippi River.

Safe Food, Healthy Ecosystems
We are working to stop the overuse of antibiotics in agriculture and aquaculture, while limiting the release of mercury and other toxic pollutants that fall onto farmland and enter the food supply. IATP is also monitoring the impact of genetically engineered crops on the environment, human health and farmer income.

Randy Pausch fighting pancreatic cancer

2008-04-10T03:23:00.000-07:00

Randy Pausch, the programmer well known from The Alice Project is fighting pancreatic cancer. On his website, you can follow his updates from his cancer treatment.
But he's not sitting stil, yesterday his new book was published, called The Last Lecture.

Beyonce finally flashes wedding ring

2008-04-10T02:46:00.000-07:00

Beyonce Knowles has finally flashed a wedding ring to her fans. Superstar Beyonce married Jay-Z in secret four days ago (Friday) at Westchester, N.Y., and on Tuesday night she showed the ring to fans at the Jay-Z’s concert in Atlanta, Ga.
Beyonce had an impressive gem on her finger while she parted with her mate Usher in the V.I.P. area, Jay-Z was photographed on Monday without a ring.
Lets hope this marriage is one that sticks as many celebrities find it hard in the spot light.

Source: SFGate

American Idols gives back

2008-04-10T02:04:00.000-07:00

If you have a TV program which attracts 40 million audience per week on an average, what do you do? Just sit and enjoy…right? Well, Nigel Lythgoe doesn't think so and so he decided to give back to the society which has given him so much. This idea of doing something for the fellow human beings resulted in the formation of Idol Gives Back Foundation.

Idol Gives Back Foundation is a not-for-profit organization to raise money and awareness for children and families living in poverty and at risk in the U.S. and abroad. Idol Gives Back Foundation is harnessing American Idol's ability to capture America’s hearts and the power of entertainment to benefit some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in the world.

Last year the event raised $76 million and this year’s event, beginning at a special 7:30 PM start time on April 9th, will be bigger and more ambitious than ever. The likes of Robin Williams, Celine Dion and Brad Pitt along with many others will grace the occasion. During the show, viewers will be able to make donations via toll-free lines and the Internet. Idol Gives Back Foundation charitable causes are also generously supported by corporate partners.

Source: Thaindian News

'Monk' actor Stanley Kamel found dead

2008-04-10T00:44:00.000-07:00

Stanley Kamel, a character actor most recently known for playing Dr Kroger, Adrian Monk's thrice-a-week therapist, has been found dead in his Hollywood home.

Stanley Kamel's family released the following statement: 'Actor Stanley Kamel was found dead in his Hollywood Hills home on Tuesday, April 8, by his long time agents and friends, Donna Massetti and Marilyn Szatmary. Cause of death at this time is unknown... He is survived by his brothers Dr Stephen Kamel and Robert Kamel, 5 nieces and nephews, and 6 grand nieces and nephews.'

Wednesday afternoon, Kamel's representative stated that the actor died of a heart attack.

A working actor for nearly 40 years, Kamel appeared in several well-known shows, such as Murder One, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Cagney & Lacey, Days of Our Lives, Melrose Place and Beverly Hills 90210, among others. (Above right: Stanley Kamel as he appeared on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Days of Our Lives.)

Source: Sheknows.com

The Alice Project - an invention that counts

2008-04-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

Finally an invention that really counts. Randy Pausch, Professor of Carnegie Mellon University started The Alice Project to help teen girls learn to program. It's all in a 3D programming environment, so teens can learn how to create animation to tell a story, play an interactive game or a video to share on the web, while learning introductory computing.

You can download versions for middle school and high school/college levels from the site.

Amber Hagerman

2008-04-09T00:35:00.000-07:00

Amber Renee Hagerman, born in 1986 and killed only 10 years later, was a victim of a child abduction and murder. She had been riding her bike near the home of her grandparents in Arlington, Texas, when she was kidnapped.

A neighbor had witnessed the abduction, and called in a description of the suspect and the car he had been driving. Four days after the search began, Amber’s body was found by a man walking his dog. Her throat had been slit, and her lifeless body lay at the bottom of a creek bed.
No arrests were ever made, and her murderer’s whereabouts have never been discovered. On July 25, 2007, a man named Terapon Adhahn was under investigation, after being arrested in connection with the abduction of Zina Linnik, however, nothing ever came of it.

In October of 2000, the US House of Reps. adopted H.R. 605, which encouraged a nationwide use of the AMBER Plan. Finally in 2003, George Bush signed the AMBER Alert legislation, which made the program national. There are still many updates that need to be made, as it seems technology has not quite caught up with the Amber Alert System, which notifies citizens when a child has gone missing.

There is currently a Lifetime made-for-TV movie called Amber’s Story that was filmed in 2006.

NCAA Final: Kansas vs. Memphis odds

2008-04-07T07:39:00.000-07:00

The 2008 NCAA March Madness Tournament has reached its culmination point with the final game on Monday, leaving thousands of bettors on the ropes after the underdog Kansas reached the end of the road and a meeting with Memphis. Kansas won the game against the ultimate favorite to win the March Madness, North Carolina, and will face the Memphis Tigers for the final of the 2008 NCAA. But for many, Kansas could bring the big money, the Jayhawks were the underdog of the Final Four with odds to win the 2008 March Madness at 3/1. But don't cash that ticket yet, as the final game is not yet over and Kansas are naturally the underdog to win the tournament tonight.

At the online bookmaker Bodoglife the Memphis Tigers hold the favorite odds to win the game at -130, while the Kansas Jayhawks are sitting on underdog odds +110. The point spread for the Kansas vs. Memphis is currently posted at -2 points chalk the Tigers with the total at 147 points. Betting trends on the 2008 NCAA Tournament Final Game show that Kansas, third in the league in field goal percentage at 50.8, is 5-1 against the spread in its last 6 games and Memphis is 4-2 against the spread in its last 6 games. Also keep in mind when betting that the total has gone UNDER in 5 of Kansas's last 5 games, while the total has gone OVER in 5 of Memphis's last 5 games. Kansas' Rodrick Stewart is out for the season with knee injury and Memphis' Andre Allen is also out of the season with suspension. But other than the two guards, the rest of the players in both squads are ready to go for the final March Madness game. Visit Bodoglife for the full list of the 2008 NCAA Championship game odds and props, including player props and extraordinary bets.

Superstar Jaheim teams up with Steve Harvey

2008-04-07T06:27:00.000-07:00

Multi-platinum R&B superstar Jaheim has teamed up with The Steve Harvey Morning Show, The Jamaica Tourist Board, American Airlines, and Atlantic Records to make one lucky couple’s dream of a destination wedding come true. The winning couple, and 20 guests, will be whisked away to the Grand Lido Braco Resort & Spa in Jamaica for the “Ultimate Jamaica Destination Wedding,” complete with a special performance by Jaheim during the couple’s first dance at the wedding reception. The contest will kick off Monday, March 17 with an announcement on The Steve Harvey Morning Show. Contest entries will be accepted until April 4, and the winning couple will be announced on-air and online on April 18, with the wedding trip to take place July 10 - 16, 2008.

To enter the contest, engaged couples will mail a letter and photo to The Steve Harvey Morning Show’s Hollywood office (see address below) answering 4 questions: 1.) How the engaged couple met, 2.) How the couple got engaged, 3.) Why the engaged couple wants to win this contest, and 4.) Why the engaged couple wants Jaheim to sing at their wedding reception. The letters will be judged on 3 criteria: Originality (50%), Creativity (40%), and Meets Entry Criteria (10%). The top 3 entries will be posted on the Steve Harvey website (http://www.steveharvey.com/) beginning April 14 where listeners will then go to vote online until April 17 for their favorite entry to determine the winner. The winning entry will be announced on-air on The Steve Harvey Morning Show and posted online at http://www.steveharvey.com/ on April 18.

Couples are competing for the “Ultimate Jamaica Destination Wedding” which includes:

The Grand Prize:
Jaheim will perform 1 song live at the reception for the winning couple’s first dance;
A 7-day/ 6-night Super-Inclusive Jamaica destination wedding and honeymoon for the winning couple including air travel on American Airlines, accommodations at the Grand Lido Braco Resort & Spa in Jamaica, and a wedding package including wedding planner, cake, flowers, champagne toast, reception and breakfast in bed the next morning.
The Grand Prize also includes air travel on American Airlines and 3-day/2-night Super-Inclusive trips for 20 guests of the winning couple.

90 runner-up couples will each receive an autographed copy of Jaheim’s latest CD, “The Makings of a Man,” which has sold over 500,000 units since its release December 18, 2007.