Don’t Criminals Need to Keep a Low Profile?
Community activist Steven Myrick, 41, was convicted in October of a rape in Torrance, Calif., that had gone unsolved for seven years. Myrick had called attention to himself during a public housing demonstration in which he mooned police officers and was arrested (and a subsequent DNA test tied him to the rape). Vincent Scheffner, 63,…
Perfect Logic
Mandy Bailey, who lives in a suburb of Phoenix, is the mother of conjoined 1-year-old girls and wanted to take them to a family reunion in Maryland. She called Delta Air Lines to make sure the girls could ride for free on her ticket. No, said Delta, because even though a child under 2 can…
Least Competent People
Coast Guard officials said they rescued Louis Pasquale, 35, near Freeport, N.Y., in September as he was towing his disabled 35-foot fishing boat back to port 20 miles away by dragging it behind an inflatable boat he was paddling against the current. (He had covered about 100 yards in three hours.) In August in Middlesex…
Live Sass from the press box
With less than 15 minutes before kickoff, the visiting Baylor crowd does not fill their parcel of seats “? there’s maybe 25 or 30 rows — and it appears the empty ones should be the rest of the band”¦ The football team and cheerleaders out number the fans who traveled from Waco”¦ After gaining a…
United Way announces fund-raising total to date
At today’s United Way Early Bird Luncheon, Larry Nichols “? campaign co-chair “? announced that so far this year, $13.6 million has been raised. The luncheon “? held at The Petroleum Club “? recognized 552 giving organizations that completed their employee charitable campaigns by Oct. 31. This year’s fund-raising goal is $17 million.…
Bava: The Mario Bava Collection Volume 2
2007 Perhaps best known for the chiller “Black Sunday,” Italian director Mario Bava was a master of atmosphere. Even when the prolific helmer’s films weren’t great, they were always great-looking. Eight of his genre efforts now are collected in a second box set, sure to please fans of his considerably sized cult. Revered today for…
People Different From Us
In September, Matt Wilkinson admitted to KGW-TV of Portland, Ore., that he had been in a coma for three days recently and nearly died after he decided to stick his pet Eastern diamondback rattlesnake into his mouth while drinking with some buddies: “Me, being me, I put his head in my mouth.” A doctor told…
Oops!
Spectacular Errors: The Kuala Lumpur phone company Telekom Malaysia acknowledged in April that it mistakenly sent a bill for the equivalent of $218 trillion (that’s 218 followed by 12 zeroes) or 806.4 trillion ringgit. The account was for the late father of Yahaya Wahab, whose final bill should have been the equivalent of $23. Jayantibhai…
Henry, leaders announce ‘Operation Holiday Homecoming’
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry announced today an in initiative to bring National Guard troops back to the state for the Christmas holidays. Called “Operation Holiday Homecoming,” Henry joined military and veterans affairs leaders to make the announcement and encourage Oklahomans to donate to the American Legion of Oklahoma fund. The funds would enable 45th…
Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity dedicates ‘Oklahoma Centennial House’
Central Oklahoma Habitat for Humanity dedicated its “Oklahoma Centennial House” today to honor the state’s upcoming 100th birthday. Located in northeast Oklahoma City in the Hope Crossing neighborhood, Lt. Gov. Jari Akins and the Oklahoma Centennial Commission’s Lee Allan Smith attended the ceremony for the house in which Tom Walker and his son, Ryder,…
News That Sounds Like a Joke
After some mild bickering during a delivery at a Wal-Mart in October in Indiana County, Pa., according to police, a Pepsi Cola route man allegedly repeatedly punched a Coca-Cola route man in the face. Reuters reported in September that a 50-year-old man who bought two large sausages at a butcher shop in Mannheim, Germany, returned…
Ultimate Force
2007 I like my action movies big and dumb like the next guy, but what I don’t like is my action movies big and dumb and boring. “Ultimate Force” trips over its own booted feet and stumbles into this latter category. Premiering on DVD, the film marks the debut of Mirko Cro-Cop Filipovic.…
28 Weeks Later
2007 On a second viewing, “28 Weeks Later” still strikes hot as a particularly strong and smart horror film, not to mention timely. Standing superior to the vastly overrated “28 Days Later,” this sequel chronicles what happens once the zombie outbreak of London is cleaned up “¦ well, at least they think it’s cleaned…
The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Volume 12
/MST3000.jpg” width=65 border=0> 2007 Four more episodes from the long-running “Mystery Science Theater 3000” television series make their way to another beloved box set. Some are from the early years, some from the later years, but all are great. And here’s the formula: bad movies + acid-tongued robot hosts = comedy gold. “The…
American Indian tribes celebrating statehood in own way
A century after statehood, the state’s American Indian communities will gather for a new ceremony of their own design. A literal and metaphorical journey into a new day, a sunset ceremony in Guthrie will close out the first 100 years of statehood Nov. 15 and point forward to the next. The centennial marks a time…
Allegedly two Oklahoma Baptist students capture Coney Pony
Police in Shawnee found themselves searching for a horse of a different color when someone hoofed it with a full-sized decorative fiberglass horse from the local Sonic Drive-In restaurant, according to recent stories. According to The Shawnee News Star, the horse was part of a city centennial display project called “Horse in the City,”…
Vending machine in a skirt
Crime-fearing female pedestrians in Tokyo can soon protect themselves with fashion designer Aya Tsukioka’s skirt that opens into a realistic-looking (except made of fabric), full-size vending machine that she hopes thugs will pass right by. It’s one of several fanciful crime-avoiding creations of the genre that Japanese inventors are noted for, according to an October…
Oklahoma teens evaluate meat quality
Some teens go to the movies for fun. Others, the mall. Four from Porter? Meat lockers. Dennis Lang, Jenna Parnell, Melissa Gaither and Katelyn Acree spent hours evaluating meat quality around the state recently, beefing up for a late-October contest at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, according to the Tulsa World. By the…
Oklahoma Shakespeare’s ‘Grapes of Wrath’ withers on vine
John Steinbeck’s classic novel “The Grapes of Wrath” epitomizes the desperate spirit of Oklahomans caught first by the Great Depression, followed by a crushing drought. Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park presents Frank Galati’s adaptation as an official centennial production. No small challenge technically, the piece requires multiple settings. Shane McClure’s set design is minimalist, with…
Alt-country siren Crain not as mean as she sounds
Samantha Crain is a unique alt-country siren in the metro’s music scene. She just turned 21, but her youthful face and stature make her look a decade younger, all of which belies the elegant heartache that seeps out of her songs and voice. “People who’ve heard me before they’ve seen me say they thought I’d…
Bee Movie
Reviewer’s grade: B- Jerry Seinfeld attempts flight as producer, writer and star of this animated fable about a bee named Barry who doesn’t want to spend his life as a drone. Venturing outside the hive, he meets a human florist (Ren
Martian Child
Reviewer’s grade: A John Cusack is David, a successful sci-fi writer who decides to adopt a 6-year-old boy. The kid, Dennis (Bobby Coleman), claims he is from Mars. David, who was a weird kid once, decides the match is perfect, and takes Dennis home. But Dennis doesn’t grow out of his Martian phase, and…
Bedlam football made a splash even before statehood
Even before Oklahoma officially became a state on Nov. 16, 1907, teams from the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University were battling it out for gridiron supremacy. In fact, the first-ever meeting between the then-fledgling rivals occurred on the banks of Cottonwood Creek, near the state’s original capital city of Guthrie, on Nov. 5,…
Leading Economic Indicators
A new condominium development in New York City, near 11th Avenue and West 24th Street (with prices starting at $6.25 million), features in-unit garages, allowing the resident to drive into the En-Suite Sky Garage System at street level and be lifted to his own unit. Guests and residents who don’t own cars will just have…
The FBI frets over Terry Nichols’ prison privacy
The FBI wants to stop a videotape interview with convicted Oklahoma City federal building bombing conspirator Terry Nichols to maintain privacy and security. Let’s repeat. The FBI is concerned about the potential invasion of privacy posed by an interview with a man serving a life sentence for his part in the worst domestic…
Callupsie hopes to rebuild Tulsa music scene
To create great music, it’s a good idea to surround oneself with great musicians. Callupsie lead singer Aaron Hamby claims two guitar heroes in his band: Sam Ewing on bass and gypsy jazz guitarist Clay Welch on lead. Hamby said that they, along with drummer Lizzy Wattoff, “put the meat” on his songs. Callupsie has…
Donut Theatre adapts literary classics for kids
New to Oklahoma City, The Donut Kids Theatre is a professional adult company that performs crowd-pleasing productions of classic children’s stories for kids and families alike. The Donut debuts “The Emperor’s New Clothes” Tuesday at the Family Theatre Warehouse, 907 W. Britton. To connect with the audience, The Donut uses classic literature that everyone is…
An affair of the ‘mark
An Affair of the Heart, the annual arts and crafts show that has been an Oklahoma City tradition since 1985, became a legal battleground in late October, when representatives of the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University allegedly arrived to confiscate merchandise that bore OU and OSU emblems. At least 15 vendors filed…
Playwright Albee to speak at OCU
What do Jane Goodall, Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. all have in common? They’ve been a part of Oklahoma City University’s Distinguished Speaker Series, and this week, America’s leading dramatist, Edward Albee, joins that group. OCU invites everyone to attend “An Evening with Edward Albee: Improvisation and the Creative Mind” at 7:30…
American Indian artists unite for IAO exhibit
This weekend, American Indian artists in Oklahoma will let their voices be heard through original artwork in the exhibit “Current Realities: A Dialogue with The People.” The opening reception is from 6-9 p.m. Friday at the Individual Artists of Oklahoma Gallery, 811 N. Broadway. More than 60 artists will combine their artwork to expose the…
Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil – Jeff Smith
DC Comics “Bone” creator Jeff Smith leaves the comfort of his own creation to play with one with a long-established history “? namely Captain Marvel “? in “Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil,” a four-issue graphic novel. Smith’s revisionist take is an origin story that begins earlier than previous mythology, with Billy Batson not as…
Just because President Roosevelt made Oklahoma a state doesn’t mean he liked it
At 9:16 a.m. Oklahoma time on Nov. 16, 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the proclamation that declared Oklahoma a state of the union. What may not be so well-known is that Roosevelt signed the proclamation while wincing in mental anguish over doing so. According to historians, Roosevelt had trepidation over the state’s constitution when it…
Rough life informs songs of Slow Car Crash
Perhaps if not for the tough times, Slow Car Crash front man Omarr Escoffie’ still would be singing about wizards and dragons. The Los Angeles musician joked that his first song attempt featured that type of imagery due in part, he said, to influences by bands like Iron Maiden. But Escoffie’ reaped the rewards of…
More Things to Worry About
As several sightings were made around Washington, D.C., of dragonfly-looking bugs hovering in the air at political events, government agencies were denying that they had released any tiny surveillance robots, according to an October Washington Post investigation. “I look up and I’m like, ‘What the hell is that?’” asked a college student at an antiwar…
Hepburn’s tapes reveal frustrating Oklahoma experience
Hear that? No, it’s not the loons from “On Golden Pond” welcoming us back, but the fiery temper of actress Katharine Hepburn smiting the Sooner State from her grave. The Oscar-winning legend may have passed away in 2003, but her reportedly short fuse continues to spark, thanks to 22 boxes of her writings and…
Organization promotes AIDS awareness through art
A group of nine people in Oklahoma City decided that a major problem with AIDS/HIV prevention was a lack of education for young people and a shortage of funding for many local support organizations. Led by founder Clif Taylor, these individuals formed The Red Line Foundation. From 8 p.m. to midnight Saturday, the nonprofit organization…
Hit parade
Burns Hargis is right on track with his leadership efforts to bring a new edge to the nation’s perception of Oklahoma City. That leadership included a belief that a major Halloween parade could showcase Central Oklahoma’s artistic and creative spirits and help hone the new edge. As Hargis worked his way through the usual…
