The News Of …

Looking at her face, it was impossible to say exactly what was going through Olivia Culpo’s mind.
The 20-year-old cellist from Rhode Island had just been crowned Miss USA (beating 50 other beauty queens for the right to represent the United States in the Miss Universe pageant) and her eyes were wide with a mix of terror, ecstasy, and disbelief.
And, really, who can blame her?
Culpo just completed her sophomore year at Boston University, and folks who know her say she didn’t slack on her studies even as she was preparing to strut across a stage, on national TV, in a lilac bikini and then a fuchsia evening gown with a sparkly belt.
“She has this very wonderful way about her that’s very calming” – says Louis Mayhew, Culpo’s academic advisor at BU. “Think about the stress level just being a college student can cause, and then think about what she’s been doing.”
Our attempts to reach Culpo Monday were initially unsuccessful because the Miss USA crown comes with a carefully orchestrated PR offensive that begins Tuesday with an appearance on “LIVE! With Kelly.” But persistence paid off, and Culpo spoke to us on the phone for three minutes after arriving in New York from Las Vegas, where the pageant had been held at the Planet Hollywood casino.
“I was just in shock” – Culpo said, explaining her reaction. “All 51 of those women were beautiful on the inside and outside.”
A graduate of St. Mary Academy Bay View, an all-girls Catholic school in Riverside, R.I., Culpo told us she was short and chubby as a youngster: “a little bit of an awkward stage.”

Olivia Culpo.

Read the rest of this entry »

Richard Dawson, the British actor who went from comedy co-star in the popular TV series “Hogan’s Heroes” to his best-known role as the charming host of the TV game show “Family Feud” with his trademark of kissing the female contestants on the lips, has died. He was 79.
Dawson died Saturday at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center from complications related to esophageal cancer. The actor, who had been living in Beverly Hills, was diagnosed with the disease about three weeks ago – said his son Gary.
“The way he was on the game show was the way he was in real life” – Gary Dawson said Sunday. “He was always rooting for people — he not only wanted people to win, but to have a comfortable, great experience.”
Dawson’s easy-going style topped with a Cockney accent were evident in his early films in the 1960′s such as “King Rat,” “Munster Go Home” and “The Devil’s Brigade,” while his quick wit distinguished him both as a game show contestant in the 1970′s on “Match Game” and “I’ve Got A Secret,” and as a performer on “The New Dick Van Dyke Show” and “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In,” where he was a regular cast member for two years.
The actor gained much of his popularity with American audiences from “Hogan’s Heroes,” the CBS series about a World War II prisoner-of-war camp that ran from 1965 to 1971. Dawson played Cpl. Peter Newkirk, an expert safecracker who was also adept at picking pockets.

Richard Dawson.

Read the rest of this entry »

Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren yesterday won a clear road to an Election Day showdown with U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown, capturing the Democratic nomination with enough votes to avoid a primary election with her Democratic challenger Marisa DeFranco.
“I’ve got just one thing to say – Are you ready?” Ms. Warren shouted from the stage of the MassMutual Center to screams of affirmation from delegates after it was announced that she won 95 percent of the delegate votes for the nomination. “Are you ready to stop the Republicans from taking over the U.S. Senate?” she asked.
Ms. DeFranco, a Middleton attorney who campaigned with little money for more than the past year, failed to get the required 15 percent of the delegate votes needed to force a primary for the Democratic nomination.
State Democratic Chairman John Walsh said that until yesterday, no candidate had ever exceeded 85 percent of the delegate vote in a contested nomination process at a state convention to eliminate a primary challenge.
Ms. Warren, running for office for the first time, vowed to reclaim “the people’s seat” from Mr. Brown, and zeroed in on his record in an address that brought the crowd of approximately 4.000 delegates to their feet. She barely mentioned Ms. DeFranco and remarked that voters did not get what they expected when they elected a Republican to the Senate four years ago. Ms. Warren said voters thought they were sending “a decent guy” to Washington.
“But boy, did he let us down. In no time at all, he chose Wall Street over Main Street, millionaires over the middle class, and big oil over big ideas” – Ms. Warren said.

Elizabeth Warren.

Read the rest of this entry »

A longtime Twin Cities radio personality and race track fixture who went by the name “Dark Star” has died.
KFAN Radio program director Chad Abbott says Minnetonka police told him Friday that officers found George Chapple (who worked at the station) dead in his apartment. Police say they’re investigating a non-suspicious death.
Chapple worked for 25 years at WCCO-AM before taking a buyout in 2010. He then joined KFAN.
WCCO-AM program director Bob Shomper, SHAHM’-pur, says the 66-year-old Chapple “could be a little off-color, one of those people who got away with it and still have respect.”
Chapple also had worked at Canterbury Park since the Shakopee, SHAHK’-uh-pee, track opened in 1985. He had hosted a nightly replay show and was a media relations consultant for the track.

Dark Star.

Read the rest of this entry »

Martin Short is taking the high, high road.
While chattering continued today about Kathie Lee Gifford’s mistake on Wednesday’s Today show. She asked Short at length about his wife, unaware Nancie had died in 2010 of ovarian cancer. He clearly isn’t dwelling on it.
“On live television, people make mistakes. There’s no ill will intended” – Short told E! News while doing press for his new film, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. “It’s nice to aspire to be kind of elegant.”

Martin Short and Kathie Lee Gifford‎.

Read the rest of this entry »

An explosive day of violence ended Wednesday when a man believed to have shot five people in a cafe near the University District and a woman in a downtown parking lot shot himself in the head as police closed in.
“We strongly believe that this is the person that committed the homicides” – Assistant Police Chief Jim Pugel told reporters after the dramatic face-off in West Seattle. The shootings left six people dead, including the suspect, and one critically wounded.
Among the four people killed at Cafe Racer, near the University of Washington, were two men who were members of the band God’s Favorite Beefcake, which had performed over the weekend at the city’s Folklife Festival, witnesses told KIRO television. One of the pair was also a sword swallower and fire breather who often performed in local burlesque shows, the station said.
Police initially were not certain whether the two incidents were related. The shootings had occurred within half an hour of each other but several miles apart.
Surveillance photos from the 11 a.m. shootings at the cafe showed a man with dark hair, a beard and a pale blue jacket.
In the second incident, which happened about 11:30 a.m., police said a man shot a woman and drove off in a black sport utility vehicle. It was found abandoned several miles away in West Seattle, with a gun on the seat.
While a massive dragnet was underway in the neighborhood near the cafe, plainclothes detectives began combing the area where the black SUV was found – Pugel said.
An officer in West Seattle saw a man who appeared to resemble the one in the cafe surveillance photos – Pugel said.

Seattle shooting.

Read the rest of this entry »

Grammy-winning U.S. guitarist and folk singer Arthel Lane “Doc” Watson died on Tuesday in a North Carolina hospital at age 89 – his management company said.
Watson died at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, following abdominal surgery last week, Folklore Productions International said in a statement.
“Doc was a legendary performer who blended his traditional Appalachian musical roots with bluegrass, country, gospel and blues to create a unique style and an expansive repertoire” – the statement said. “He was a powerful singer and a tremendously influential picker who virtually invented the art of playing mountain fiddle tunes on the flattop guitar.”
Watson, who was blinded before his first birthday, won seven Grammy Awards, in addition to the Grammy for lifetime achievement he received in 2004. In 2006 he won in the category of best country instrumental performance for his playing on “Whiskey Before Breakfast.”
Watson was born on March 3, 1923, in Deep Gap, North Carolina, to a banjo-playing father, General Watson, and a mother who sang traditional secular and religious songs, Annie Watson.
Blinded by an eye infection as a toddler, he learned to play the banjo first, then taught himself the chords to “When the Roses Bloom in Dixieland” on a borrowed guitar at age 13 – his managers said.

Doc Watson.

Read the rest of this entry »

Two-time welterweight champion Paul Williams was paralyzed in a motorcycle crash near Atlanta on Sunday while driving to his brother’s wedding.
“From the waist down, he has absolutely no movement. He’s in very good spirits, though” – said Williams’ manager, George Peterson. “He still believes he’s going to fight again.”
Williams (30) severed his spinal cord after landing on his back and head when he was thrown off his bike in Marietta, Georgia, according to Peterson. On Monday, Williams has been listed in serious but stable condition.
The collision happened at around 8am after Williams, who was wearing a helmet, tried to avoid another car in the next lane that was negotiating a curve and then had to maneuver to avoid an oncoming car.
The New York Daily News has reported that Williams was doing about 75 miles per hour when he lost control of the motorcycle, flew several feet in the air and landed on his back on the road. Peterson said one of the drivers of the other cars called 911.

Paul Williams.

Read the rest of this entry »

Former three-weight world boxing champion Johnny Tapia has died at the age of 45.
Tapia’s body was found in his Albuquerque, New Mexico, home on Sunday night and police spokesperson Robert Gibbs said there did not appear to be any suspicious circumstances.
Although a highly successful boxer, Tapia’s life outside the ring was highly tumultuous: plagued by drug use, depression and brushes with the law.
His mother was murdered when he was eight, and his father was reportedly killed before the boxer was born.
He had the Spanish phrase “mi vida loca” (my crazy life) tattooed on his stomach and went after his opponents in an all-action style.
Tapia turned professional in 1988 and after going unbeaten in his first 48 fights – claiming the WBO and IBF super flyweight titles plus the WBA bantamweight crown in the process – he was eventually defeated by Paulie Ayala in June 1999.
He won the IBF featherweight title in April 2002 with a majority decision victory over Manuel Medina but dropped a decision to Marco Antonio Barrera six months later and from there his career went slowly downhill.
His last fight came in June 2011 when he scored an eight-round decision over Mauricio Pastrana in his home town of Albuquerque. Leaving him with a career record of 59 wins, five losses and two draws.

Johnny Tapia.

Read the rest of this entry »

Grammy-winning folk musician Doc Watson has regained some strength after undergoing colon surgery at a North Carolina hospital.
Agent Mitch Greenhill of Folklore Productions said in an e-mail Friday that Watson is resting and responsive following the surgery Thursday at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem. A hospital spokeswoman said he remained in critical condition Friday afternoon.
Watson’s daughter (Nancy) told the Associated Press that the 89-year-old Watson fell Monday.
The blind singer and guitarist has won several Grammys, including a lifetime achievement award. He also received the National Medal of the Arts.
He’s known as a master of the flatpicking style of guitar playing. He also started Merlefest – an annual gathering of musicians in Wilkesboro named after his son, who died in a tractor accident in 1985.

Doc Watson.

Read the rest of this entry »