September 15th Set as Date for Special Election
Governor Charlie Crist has set September 15th as the date for a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Jim King. This date was a bit earlier than expected. Meanwhile, Linda King has confirmed what everyone has already expected by officially saying that she will not attempt to seek her husband’s seat. [...]
Facebook’s a Great Friend to Business
HERMOSA BEACH, Calif. – Bartender Beau Dieda does more than mix and serve drinks every night at popular nightspot Baja Sharkeez: He is also instructed to sign up friends and fans for his company’s Facebook page, as well as his own. Before he leaves the restaurant, he sends bulletins to his collective fan base inviting [...]
Outdoor Baptisms Dwindling
LAKE PROVIDENCE, La. – The Rev. Michael Owens says nothing compares with dunking someone toward salvation. Owens, the pastor at New Hope Baptist Church in this small, church-crowded hamlet in northeast Louisiana, recently joined a dozen other pastors in leading outdoor baptisms in Lake Providence. They baptized 40 white-robed children, ages 4 to 15, plus [...]
Joe Negron is Newest Member of Florida State
Known when he was in the House for a sometimes frenetic pace, Stuart Republican Joe Negron is expected to bring that verve into the historically more staid Senate after handily winning a special election on Tuesday for the seat vacated early by Sen. Ken Pruitt. Following an abbreviated campaign in which he nonetheless spent more [...]
House Investigators Meet, Delay Work Until October
A special House committee charged with investigating former Speaker Ray Sansom’s relationship with a Panhandle college when he was House budget chairman has essentially postponed its work until October, waiting for the Destin Republican to be tried in criminal court. The committee, chaired by Rep. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, met Tuesday morning for an organizational meeting [...]
Hollywood Exclusive: Ask Stacy
DEAR STACY: Are they making another season of “Secret Life of a Call Girl”? If so, when will it be on? — Pat K., Spokane, Wash. DEAR PAT: The British import starring Billie Piper as the title upscale prostitute began shooting its third season back at the beginning of the year — with Piper back [...]
Alanis Morissette In Fun Songwriting Mood
Award-winning filmmaker-provocateur Todd Solondz has sworn the cast of his “Life During Wartime” film to secrecy — to the point that the only thing Ally Sheedy will say about it is that she’ll be on hand for the feature’s debut next month at the Toronto Film Festival. “Todd does not want me to talk about [...]
How Much Is That Clunker In The Window?
Ce qu’on voit et ce qu’on ne voit pas. That may exhaust my French phrase quota for the year, but it’s worth it. The saying is the title of an essay by 19th century French economist Frederic Bastiat and means “that which is seen, and that which is not seen.” Bastiat’s essay is most famous [...]
Sigourney Weaver’s Emotional ‘Prayers’
Sigourney Weaver’s Emmy nomination for Lifetime’s “Prayers for Bobby” underscores the huge and lasting emotional impact the movie has had upon the esteemed actress. Sigourney plays real-life gay rights activist Mary Griffith, a deeply religious woman who tried to turn her son away from homosexuality — but in the face of rejection and despair, he [...]
One Big, Honking Airplane
Did you miss me? No, I guess not, because The Jacksonville Observer mined my personal blog “Life’s a Beach” (shameless plug alert … http://tcpatton.com) for some new material for “Ocean View”. Which is fine. I hope you enjoyed it. I spent the week working for my primary client, Aero-News.net at the big annual EAA shindig [...]
Entries(RSS)