Oklahoma City native Hank Thompson helped break down baseball’s color barrier. Unfortunately, his success during nine Major League seasons from 1947-56 and four earlier campaigns with the legendary Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues was tainted by his off-the-field conduct. Ironically, Thompson played his first organized game of baseball while serving a six-month sentence […]
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Latest Religious Messages
Egypt’s Muslims are growing weary of the number of specific religious edicts (“fatwas”) issued by the country’s clerics, including two recent, highly controversial ones, according to a June New York Times dispatch from Cairo. Ezzat Atiya, a lecturer at the prestigious al-Azhar Islamic University, had declared that men can be permitted to see unrelated women […]
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New Frontiers in Science
Hitachi’s “brain machine interface,” which it showed an Associated Press reporter in June, might soon allow a user to don a hat and turn an appliance on or off by merely thinking about doing so. (Until now, such thought-controlled instructions could only be done by people with devices implanted.) Scientists at Italy’s La Sapienza University […]
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Henry, Disney officials make Centennial, Epcot announcement
Gov. Brad Henry and Walt Disney World Resort officials announced today they have invited the State of Oklahoma to be the first state-dedicated marketplace experience at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival later this year. The Epcot event, held Sept. 28 through Nov. 11, will be held for the 12th time this […]
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Pro golfers descend on Tulsa for PGA tourney
Fifteen days and counting to when the world’s best golfers will tee up at Tulsa’s Southern Hills Country Club for the 89th PGA Championship. Fortunately for Oklahoma golfing enthusiasts, tickets still are available for the prestigious event, which traditionally features a more diverse field and more world-ranked players than any other PGA tournament. PLAYERS Tiger […]
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Oklahoma River to gain three transportation boats
Former Oklahoma City Mayor Ron Norick announced today three boats will begin cruising the OklahomaRiver later this year. Acting as the chair of the River Trust, Norick’s riverside announcement included Devon Energy’s $2 million commitment to bring three 65-foot-long, 14-foot-wide boats “? which will be called Devon Discoveries — to the OklahomaRiver. Norick […]
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Court upholds death sentence
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the death sentence given to Jimmy Dean Harris for the 1999 murder of Merle Taylor. Harris killed Taylor on the morning of Sept. 1, 1999, when he went to confront his estranged wife, Pam Harris, who worked at Taylor’s AAMCO transmission shop in Oklahoma City. Pam Harris […]
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Everything OK, says Rocketplane
Despite funding problems and layoffs, Rocketplane Inc. officials continue their reassurance that everything is fine and state officials continue to have confidence in the Oklahoma City-based company. Rocketplane officials failed to meet a funding deadline mandated by a NASA contract to build a reusable rocket, “K-1,” to transport cargo to and from the International Space […]
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GRASCAR competitors turn lawn mowers into racing machines
Like Dr. Frankensteins of the garage, several people in El Reno have mutated the lawn mower into a racing machine and put it on a dirt track to see who is top turf. Paul Shepard, president of the El Reno GRASCAR Lawnmower Racing Association, said these races began back in 1998. “Probably just a bunch […]
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Henry requests flood assistance
Gov. Brad Henry announced today he has requested federal disaster assistance for 17 counties including Oklahoma County. The financial assistance would help state and local governments pay for flood-damaged roads, bridges and other infrastructure. Henry is asking the federal government to declare disaster areas for 17 counties: Bryan Comanche Cotton Custer Hughes Jefferson Kiowa […]