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Pa. brothers face charges after broken bong brawl
January 23, 2012 | WPVI.com

Two western Pennsylvania brothers are charged with simple assault and marijuana possession charges after what police are calling a brawl over a broken bong

Ferndale police tell the Tribune-Democrat of Johnstown they responded to a fight call Wednesday in which one man was reportedly brandishing a screwdriver while the other hid in his bedroom.

After investigating, police say 18-year-old Tyler Kamler told them 23-year-old Brandon Kamler became upset when Tyler asked him about the broken bong – a glass or plastic water pipe commonly used to smoke marijuana. Police say they later found some small bags of marijuana, an ashtray and two smoking pipes buried in a flower bed after asking Brandon Kamler if there were other drugs in the house.

The brothers don’t have attorneys and declined immediate comment when called at home Friday.

(Copyright ©2012 WPVI-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

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Vegas bets wrong in ‘Price’ riot
About 10,000 people waited for gamer’s anni show tickets
By Lily Oei | www.variety.com | Jan. 23, 2002

Hell hath no fury like an audience scorned, as the staff of Las Vegas’ Rio Hotel learned when a ticket giveaway for a taping of “The Price Is Right” turned into an episode of “Cops.”

Thousands of hopeful contestants — many of them retirees — flocked to the hotel Jan. 17 in search of tickets to a special anniversary taping of the classic gamer. Problem was, there were only 900 seats.

Show was celebrating 30th anniversary by taping at the Rio, the first time the program has ever filmed outside its usual Television City studio. Since contestants on the program are culled from the audience, some would-be participants began waiting as early as the night before; others had secured rooms at the hotel. An estimated 10,000 people showed up for the well-publicized taping.

The hotel skedded the ticket giveaway for 10 a.m., but began handing out tickets at 5:30 a.m. in hopes of quelling the already swelling crowd. A small riot broke out when “latecomers” realized there were no more available seats, and the Las Vegas police were called in.

A rep for the show blamed the hotel for “completely underestimating the popularity of the show and the devotion of the fans.” The Rio also was faulted for ignoring its own protocol for ticket distribution by retaining seats for high-rolling guests, which left 300 other people out of luck.

Hotel reps didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.

“The people who did everything right, and were told that lines would form at 6 a. m. — those were the ones that did not get tickets,” the rep said.

“Ultimately, the show was fantastic, but it’s unfortunate that some fans were disappointed.”

Anni episode will be broadcast Jan. 31 in primetime on CBS.

Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

David Allen Canterbury. Image kgw.com

Portland police arrest man after alleged ‘Star Wars’ light saber assault at Toys R Us
By Kate Mather, The Oregonian | December 14, 2011 | www.oregonlive.com

Police arrested a man who allegedly assaulted three people with a blue light saber at a Hayden Island Toys R Us Wednesday night.

A 9-1-1 caller reported the incident about 9:50 p.m. and said the man was inside the store, 1800 Jantzen Beach Center, swinging the “Star Wars” weapon of choice at customers, said Sgt. Pete Simpson, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau. While the caller was on the phone, the man then left the store — light saber in hand — and walked out to the parking lot.

Officers tried to arrest the man, but he kept swinging the light saber at them, Simpson said. One tried to use his Taser on the suspect but the device didn’t work.

Another officer used his Taser and made contact, but the man knocked one of the wires away with the light saber.

The officers finally arrested the man after grabbing him and pinning him to the ground. The suspect, identified only as a 33-year-old Hillsboro man, was treated by medics at the scene and taken to an area hospital for a mental evaluation. He faces “several criminal charges” after he is evaluated, Simpson said.

None of the victims of the light saber assault needed medical attention, Simpson said.

Friday, January 13th is the first of 3 Friday the 13ths in 2012.

Three Friday the 13ths, 13 weeks apart, a rarity
By Wade Malcolm, The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal | Friday, January 13, 2012

It’s a bad year for people who suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia — the fear of Friday the 13th.

Why? There are three this year, instead of the usual two. There was one in 2011.

That’s not all. For the first time since 1984, those three Friday the 13ths — today, April 13 and July 13 — are exactly 13 weeks apart.

Three Friday the 13ths happen every few years. The last was in 2009, and the next is 2015. What’s special about 2012 — and what won’t occur again until 2040 — is that this is happening during a leap year, says Tom Fernsler, a University of Delaware math professor who sometimes goes by the name Dr. 13.

It’s hard not to feel something about Friday the 13th, Fernsler says. “I find that 95% of people in the world are superstitious about something, and the other 5% are liars,” he said.

The number 13 and Friday are recurring presences in mythological, spiritual and religious tradition. In Christianity, 13 people attended the Last Supper before Judas’ betrayal and Jesus’ death on a Friday. A Norse myth warns of dire consequences for dining in groups of 13. Friday the 13th was the date the medieval Knights Templar were imprisoned. And, though not as historic, rapper Tupac Shakur died on Friday, Sept. 13, 1996, after being gunned down Sept. 7.

For many pagans, 13 is a lucky number, because it corresponds with the number of full moons each year, says Ivo Dominguez Jr., owner of Bell, Book & Candle, a pagan and occult book and gift shop in Dover, Del.

While Friday the 13th can feel special, it isn’t. In a 400-year period, the 13th falls on a Friday more than any other day: 688 times, Fernsler says.

Fernsler has made it a hobby to find dates and events associated with the number 13, as well as Friday the 13th. The day has hosted some famous births, such as Fidel Castro and Butch Cassidy.

Dominguez argues Friday the 13th fears are “self-fulfilling prophecy,” adding there’s a “strong power in people convincing themselves something unlucky will happen.”

Momento Mori is a latin phrase, not a Chinese restaurant.

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Advertising executive sends Christmas greetings from the grave
By Tom Fontaine  |  PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW  |  December 9, 2011

Known for sending humorous Christmas cards each year to hundreds of friends, Bob McCully outdid himself this year — posthumously.

Last week, about 400 people received unexpected holiday greetings from McCully, a former advertising executive and satirical writer from Point Breeze who died in August at 88.

“Hello, please don’t call. I recently moved to a quiet neighborhood and …,” the front of the card read, the words appearing under a photo of McCully in an office talking on the phone.

The message concluded inside: “My new place doesn’t have a phone and our gates close after dark.”

Photos of the gates at Allegheny Cemetery in Lawrenceville and the tombstone McCully shares with his wife, Barbara Clark McCully, appear nearby.

“It was the strangest feeling getting that card. It was almost eerie. But when I opened it, I laughed out loud. It was the ultimate Christmas card,” said David Newell, a longtime friend of McCully’s.

McCully — Ketchum Inc.’s former director of communications and advertising who wrote and often performed locally in satirical musical revues — sent out hundreds of a humorous Christmas card every year. Each had a different theme. For several years, Newell said, cards were written from the perspective of McCully’s former dog, Rolf.

“It was dark humor, but it was very funny,” Newell said of the latest card. “It had a certain whimsy that took the darkness away. Bob certainly got the last laugh.”

Friends said McCully’s stepson Michael Clark, who could not be reached, helped produce the card.

Noted local jazz guitarist Joe Negri said some friends found the card “a bit macabre, (but) hey, there are no boundaries when it comes to humor.”

“I was delighted to no end. It was a great source of joy for me,” said Ed Blank, former Pittsburgh Press and Pittsburgh Tribune-Review film critic. “It was like nothing I’ve ever received.”

Live Nativity Scene Lamb Born On Christmas Eve
by Korva Coleman | http://www.npr.org | December 27, 2011

It’s almost too charming to be true – a sheep that’s part of a live nativity scene at a Cincinnati park gave birth to a lamb on Christmas Eve. Really.

The baby arrived late on Friday night at the Krohn Conservatory, but only a night watchman was present to witness the event, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. Both the sheep and the lamb – a female – are in good health.

Now, the lamb has a name – “Mary Christmas”.

“She’s up and running around,” says Cheryl Alexander, business services manager at the Krohn Conservatory, which hosts the annual Christmas scene. “She’s had all of her first shots, and yes, she’s in the live nativity scene right now.”

The Krohn Conservatory’s nativity crèche is an annual event presented by the Western and Southern Financial Group that began in 1939. Some 50,000 people visit the scene every year: the Enquirer reviews the company’s involvement with the event, and that of a Kentucky nursery, over the decades.

Mary, her mother and the rest of the crèche animals will be on display through Jan. 1 when they’ll return to the Kentucky nursery that owns them.

“Hopefully, Mary Christmas will return next year and become a Krohn regular,” says Alexander.