Once Again, Texas Leads the Way

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas
| Texas/Southwest: "A Dallas man appointed to head a Texas arts commission was arrested at Southern Methodist University on trespassing charges after he was warned to stay off the campus because students filed complaints alleging he offered alcohol to minors, officials said."

All Righty, Then

Crimespree Cinema: Dermot Mulroney is Jim Rockford.: "Well, it seems to be true. After Michael Ausiello broke the news, THR and Variety followed up with reports of their own.

Dermot Mulroney is the new Jim Rockford. Mulroney is perhaps best known as Julia Roberts' pal in MY BEST FRIEND'S WEDDING and has also appeared in ZODIAC and YOUNG GUNS. This will be his first regular television gig."

It's Not Who You Think

Boozy ape sent to rehab: "'The beer and cigarettes were ruining him. He would pester passers-by for booze,' the Komsomolskaya Pravda paper said."

Hat tip to David Cranmer.

Dirty Hippies!

Woodstock Hippies Lead to the Financial Collapse, Says New Film - ABC News: "New Film Claims Hippies-Turned-Boomers as Responsible for Excessive Spending, the Mortgage Crisis, and Recklessness on Wall Street"

Hat tip to Seepy Benton.

The Food of the Gods

Ancient Egyptian Priests Died by Lavish Banquets | TopNews United States: "The food listed in hieroglyphic inscriptions on temple walls, which was offered by the Priests to ancient Egyptian Gods, was weighed down with saturated fat, according to an analysis. The priests offered food to appease the God and they carried the rest of the food with them, which blocked their arteries."

Hat tip to Fred Zackel, who is in no way responsible for the poor writing in the article.

New Excerpt at BEAT to a PULP

BEAT to a PULP :: Cinderella After Midnight - Big and bright and colorful, like the California Dream :: Fred Zackel

Get a Rope!

Andy Griffith Statue Vandalized - KTLA: "MOUNT AIRY, N.C. - The statue of Andy and Opie that sits outside the Surry Arts Council building was painted red and green by vandals over the weekend."

Weekend at Bernie's Reimagined by Tim Burton

Once Again, Texas Leads the Way

Houston area assistant principal and teacher face drug charges after being caught with cocaine - 2/26/10 - Houston News - abc13.com: "A teacher and an assistant principal are charged with possession of a controlled substance after getting arrested outside a Montrose bar.

Matthew Neufeld is an assistant principal at Chancellor elementary in Alief, and Bradley Voss is a teacher at Stafford high school. Police say an officer approached the men in a parked car last night and discovered two bags of cocaine."

Kinks Update

Ray Davies Rerecording Kinks Songs With Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and More - Spinner: "While Kinks frontman Ray Davies joins millions of British Invasion fans in waiting on his brother and guitarist Dave Davies to decide if he wants to reunite the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band, the singer-songwriter is continuing to find new ways to re-examine his legendary band's catalog.

Having viewed the Kinks through the eyes of choirs with 'The Kinks Choral Collection,' he now will see the band through some of music's biggest stars. In an interview with NJ.com, Davies revealed that he's recording a duets album of classic Kinks tunes with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, the Killers, Lucinda Williams and more."

Sauced

Police: Man beaten with Worcestershire bottle | TimesDaily.com | The Times Daily | Florence, AL: "Florence police said the 43-year-old Florence man was injured when he was severely beaten in the head with a bottle of Worcestershire sauce and a fire extinguisher outside the Economy Inn on Wednesday night."

Destination Moon

I was 9 years old, and I thought this was the greatest movie ever made.

Roger Ebert Upate

Technology giving Roger Ebert his voice back - Chicago Breaking News: "Nearly four years after a battle with thyroid cancer robbed him of the ability to speak, iconic film critic Roger Ebert sounded like his former self Friday during a taping of 'The Oprah Winfrey Show,' the show's producer said.

It was no medical miracle, but rather a demonstration of new software using audio recordings of Ebert to create a synthetic voice that sounds like his own.

CereProc, a company based in Edinburgh, Scotland, created the voice for him using mostly audio of Ebert's DVD commentaries on 'Citizen Kane' and 'Casablanca.'"

Egad! Update

1939 Batman Detective Comics No. 27 sells for record $1 million at auction - washingtonpost.com: "Well, that record didn't last long.

Just three days after a Superman book became the first comic to sell for $1 million, a Batman comic book sold Thursday at auction for about $75,000 more.

Heritage Auction Galleries in Dallas reports that a rare copy of Detective Comics No. 27 from 1939 -- in which 'The Batman' made his debut -- sold for a record-setting $1,075,500."

He Should Have Been Scaring Kids off his Lawn

Police: man makes fake prescription pills, tries to trade them for sex | pills, percocet, miller - News - Northwest Florida Daily News: "A 68-year-old man was arrested for manufacturing imitation drugs after a witness alleged that the man traded the drugs for sex, according to an Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office arrest report."

Can Spring Be Far Behind?

Happy Birthday, Fats Domino!

It's Not Who I Thought It Was

Carly Simon ends You’re So Vain riddle | The Sun |Showbiz|Bizarre: "SINGER CARLY SIMON has finally ended a 38-year guessing game - by naming the subject of hit You're So Vain."

Poor Baby

Student files complaint against councilman who teaches - baltimoresun.com: "A fight between two Patapsco High School students has led to a complaint that a substitute teacher, Baltimore County Council member Vincent J. Gardina, forcibly restrained one of the students."

Blackout in Precinct Puerto Rico -- Steven Torres

This is the fifth book in Steven Torres' excellent series, though I believe it was the first written. I generally avoid books about small-town Sheriffs because I don't want to fall into unconscious plagiarism, but I'm willing to make an exception for this series. The Puerto Rican setting makes it different enough from my own Blacklin County, and there's no reason I should miss out on some good reading. Besides, Torres' books are a bit more darkly tinged than mine. We're doing different things here, not that there there's no humor in Torres' books. There is. It's just different from mine.

In this installment, Sheriff Luis Gonzalo has to discover who attacked and battered a 16-year-old girl who refuses to speak. The list of suspects is short, at first, and that leads to some serious repercussions. People will talk, no matter where they are. Sometimes they talk too much.

Sheriff Gonzalo is a fine creation. He's human and humane in dealing with the town and with his family. He's tough but fair, and he's very much affected by the things that happen. Nobody comes out unscathed.

If you haven't read the previous books in the Precinct Puerto Rico series, that's no barrier to reading this one. It's a good place to start. Check it out.