DENVER — Maya Soetoro-Ng helped kick off the Democratic National Convention Monday in Denver by sharing her story of growing up in Hawaii with big brother Barack Obama.
Soetoro-Ng is a U.S. (Read the full post about ‘Obama’s Sister Shares Stories At DNC’…)
HONOLULU — Hawaii’s own Little League World Champions from Waipio returned to the islands on Monday night to hundreds of cheering family, friends and fans.
The team beat Mexico 12-3 in Williamsport, Penn., on Sunday to win the Little League World Championship.
Fire trucks escorted their plane to the terminal where the lieutenant governor met the team. Then it was time for the grand homecoming.
The boys from Waipio arrived exhausted but triumphant and mobbed by fans at the Honolulu International Airport.
Family, friends and fans exploded in cheers and screams as sheriff’s deputies led the team past the exuberant crowd. (Read the full post about ‘Waipio Champs Return To Overwhelming Welcome’…)
HONOLULU — The Honolulu Zoo is trying to put more emphasis on caring for its population of aging animals since they live much longer in captivity than in the wild.
Cleo, the second oldest hippo in captivity in America, is 53-years-old and long past her expected life expectancy of 35.
She sits in a holding pen all day, being cooled by sprinklers, because the Honolulu Zoo’s two younger hippos don’t get along with her.
“Younger ones started to fight with Cleo and because of her age. (Read the full post about ‘Honolulu Zoo Cares For Aging Animals’…)
NEW YORK — It’s not just Simon, Randy and Paula anymore.
A fourth judge has been added to “American Idol.” Kara Dioguardi has written songs for Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, Celine Dion and many others.
An “Idol” executive producer said that they originally intended to have four judges. She didn’t say why it’s taken eight seasons to add another judge.
The eighth season of “American Idol” premieres in January.
LOS ANGELES — Actor Charlie Sheen is about to become a dad for the fourth time: His new wife, Brooke Mueller, is pregnant.
Sheen has three daughters already: two girls with ex-wife, Denise Richards; and a 25-year-old — Cassandra Jade Estevez.
Estevez’s mother is Sheen’s former girlfriend Paula Profit.
Sheen and Mueller got married in May. He said that they’re both thrilled and he knows “she’ll be an amazing mom.”
After three girls, Sheen adds, unless he bats “100 percent, perhaps a boy awaits us.”
LOS ANGELES — Prosecutors in Los Angeles said Monday that they won’t charge Andy Dick with sexual battery stemming from his arrest last month.
The “NewsRadio” actor with a reputation for crude public behavior is still scheduled to face a judge later this week on misdemeanor drug possession and battery charges.
Dick, however, escaped felony charges after prosecutors reviewed video of the incident, Riverside County District Attorney spokesman Ryan Hightower said.
A teenage girl accused the 42-year-old actor of pulling down her top at a restaurant in Murrieta, a city about 80 miles east of Los Angeles in mid-July.
Dick was arrested by officers responding to reports of an intoxicated male.
The actor scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. (Read the full post about ‘Andy Dick Avoids Sexual Battery Charges’…)
K.I.T.T. may be one of the more memorable cars in television history on the show “Knight Rider,” but a new list finds that it was on television almost half as long as the car at the top.
According to a list on Forbes Autos, David Hasselhoff’s Pontiac Trans Am with ejector seats and automatic pilot comes in eighth on a top 10 list of most famous TV show cars. The cars are ranked according to show longevity, using the number of episodes that were broadcast.
Topping the list was bright red Ferrari 308 GTS that Tom Selleck drove around Hawaii on “Magnum P.I.” The use of the Ferrari may have contributed to the increase in interest of the Italian car in the 1980s.
However, “Miami Vice,” ranked fifth on the list, may have helped.
The show didn’t use an actual Ferrari Daytona Spyder, Forbes reported. (Read the full post about ‘Which TV Show Cars Are Most Famous?’…)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — “American Idol” winner Ruben Studdard owes nearly $200,000 for unpaid income taxes.
According to court filings, the federal government and the state of Alabama have placed liens on all of Studdard’s property for unpaid income taxes in 2003 and 2005.
Byron Perkins, a lawyer for Studdard, told the Birmingham News that his client is in good shape financially and can afford to pay the bill.
Developer John Elkington said he’s checking to find out if the liens on Studdard’s property will affect the singer’s promised six-figure investment in a planned downtown Birmingham club bearing his name.
The 29-year-old Alabama native, known as the “Velvet Teddy Bear,” was married in June.
Studdard is set to release a new album later this year and is launching a national tour in the fall.
Studdard won the “American Idol” title over Clay Aiken in Season 2 of the show. (Read the full post about ‘Tax Liens Placed On ‘American Idol’ Winner’…)
Here are some bullets on today’s briefing on alcoholism. The discussion was expanded to include other types of addiction.
*Dr. William Haning from the John A. Burns School of Medicine led off with a summary, and clarified what he said yesterday on the addictive quality of various substances. The chances of an individual getting hooked on a particular substance will vary significantly, of course, but the likelihood after the initial induction is 90% for cigarettes, 80-85% for crystal meth, and 10% for alcohol and marijuana.
*Gary Allen, Hawaii Business Health Council, said that his organization offers a counseling program for employees and employers for both alcohol and cigarette addiction.
*The Department of Health representative, Dr.
(Read the full post about ‘Addiction is Individual; Treatment is Individual’…)
Here is Rep. Ryan Yamane’s letter to the editor in this morning’s Advertiser:
As the father of two young sons, and as the state representative of the Waipio Gentry and Mililani district, I am doubly proud of the phenomenal achievement of the Waipio Little League team.
This team and their coaches showed us all two important things:
1) Never give up; even when you’re down, miracles are possible and you must make them happen.
2) Even though we come from a small state in the middle of the Pacific, we can compete with anyone in the world.
(Read the full post about ‘Rep. Ryan Yamane thanks Waipio Little League Team and Coaches’…)