Newser Story Index from October, 2009
Welcome to the Newser Story Index. Here you find stories written by Newser writers and editors, assembled with supporting photos and videos from the files of the news story.
Hasselbeck Returns to View , Talks Nipple
People
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Oct 19, 2009 1:51 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Elisabeth Hasselbeck was back from maternity leave and in her old form this morning on The View , chatting amicably with Whoopi and company about Rush Limbaugh, David Letterman—and her nipple. That’s right, Hasselbeck showed off a photo of her baby, and told an anecdote of a far racier photo sent, inadvertently, to her entire family, that...
Elephants on Verge of Extinction
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 1:44 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Within 15 years, African elephants could be extinct as a consequence of rampant ivory poaching, conservation experts say. Africa's elephant population numbers just 600,000, and that number appears to be dwindling by about 38,000 a year. That’s faster than the birth rate. One animal welfare group is urging countries to crack down on the ivory...
Web Surfing Can Help Slow Dementia
Times (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 1:29 PM CDT
(Newser) -
It’s time to teach Grandma to Google. Surfing the Internet can slow or even reverse the mental decay that leads to dementia, according to a new study. UCLA researchers scanned the brains of 24 men and women aged 55 to 78 and discovered that surfing the web was more stimulating than reading, with the effects lasting long after they’d logged...
Obama-Bashing Is Manchurian Candidate Crap
Guardian (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 1:20 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Liberals questioned George W Bush's legitimacy and wanted him to fail, writes Michael Tomasky, so what's the difference between those Bush haters and the birthers, teabaggers, and "paranoid" “committed conservatives” who Tomasky writes are way “off the continuum” of political debate over Barack Obama’s...
GOP Plans Stall Tactics for Health Bill Fight
Roll Call
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Oct 19, 2009 1:02 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Lacking the votes for a filibuster and increasingly resigned to the fact that Democrats will stand united, GOP senators have a novel strategy to stall the health care reform bill: They’re going to stall it however they can. The Democratic plan “is inconsistent with the American people,” says Richard Burr of North Carolina. “So...
The Perils of Free Sperm Donation
DoubleX
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Oct 19, 2009 12:47 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Free sperm donors abound on the Internet, and they’re trying to help those who can’t have a baby the traditional way—or can’t afford the traditional sperm donation. They range from Trent, a 6’1” blond who says “a spirit of volunteering to the community” motivates him, to Ted, a 51-year-old protesting...
Obama Bigwigs Take Aim at Wall Street
Washington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 12:18 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Wall Street is getting ready to hand out some hefty bonuses, and the Obama administration is already crashing the party, with top aides loudly dressing down execs, framing them as would-be fat cats who only last year were on the public dole. "The bonuses are offensive," says David Axelrod, while Rahm Emanuel gripes that Wall Street only has...
Rock Band Hits the iPhone
TechCrunch
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Oct 19, 2009 12:01 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Rock Band has arrived on the iPhone, complete with a Bluetooth multi-player mode that allows four people to jam together. The $9.99 app, also available on the iPod Touch, includes 20 tracks, among them the Pixies' "Debaser" and two Foo Fighters songs; of course, more can be purchased via an in-game store, TechCrunch reports. All four parts...
Facebook Has 300M Users, Most Bored
Washington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 11:54 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Facebook has finally turned a profit, and can boast 300 million users—and it may be on its way out. The web has seen dozens of social networking sites come, gain buzz, get huge, and then implode or mutate as users looked for the next big thing—remember Friendster, Livejournal, and MySpace? Now, some see the vultures circling Facebook, the...
Iran Waffles on Nuke Deal
BBC
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Oct 19, 2009 11:33 AM CDT
(Newser) -
State news reports coming out of Iran suggest that country is backpedaling on a possible deal to enrich partially processed uranium in Russia or France for use in nuclear power plants. State-run television reports that the government is in fact opposed to shipping partially enriched nuclear fuel outside of the country, and would prefer to buy the final...
Atheists Split Over How Mean to Be to Faithful
NPR
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Oct 19, 2009 11:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Can a non-religion schism? Maybe that’s too dramatic a phrase, but there’s a rift growing between so-called “new atheists,” who favor an aggressive, mocking stance toward religion, and the old live-and-let-live kind. On “Blasphemy Day” last month, for example, new atheists were out in force, “de-baptizing”...
In New York, No One Matters But Bloomberg
New York
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Oct 19, 2009 11:14 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Say what you will about Michael Bloomberg—the perfect mayor for New York in a financial crisis or arrogant billionaire who's pretty much bought an unprecedented third term—above all, Chris Smith writes, he is “a one-man Establishment.” A perfect storm of his personal fortune, the vagaries of international finance, and the shifting...
Cameron's Avatar May Be a Revolution
New Yorker
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Oct 19, 2009 11:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
People always seem to want James Cameron to fail, most notably when he embarked upon the $200 million adventure of making Titanic . Suffice it to say that the pressure is on for his $230 million 3-D epic Avatar , marking a return to the big screen after 12 years without a feature film . Cameron and an array of cronies, colleagues, and competitors...
Real Housewife Frankel Preggers
Perez Hilton
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Oct 19, 2009 10:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Real Housewives of New York ’s Bethenny Frankel announced her engagement over the weekend—but failed to mention she’s also pregnant. It will be the first child for the 38-year-old reality star, who is also—coincidentally?—getting her own spin-off show. A source close to Frankel tells Perez Hilton more than just her biological...
Taliban Starts YouTube Channel
Huffington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 10:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The jihad has come to YouTube: The Taliban has set up shop on the viral video site, posting two propaganda videos to its “Istqalmedia” channel, Fareed Zakaria noticed over the weekend. One, which you can see here, shows a variety of pastoral scenes set to Pashtun-language music. The other, which according to Zakaria included “hideous...
Liz Taylor: The First Paparazzi Magnet
Salon
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Oct 19, 2009 10:10 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Elizabeth Taylor, whose affair with Eddie Fisher was more scandalous than the Brad-Jen-Angelina triangle can ever hope to be, is “a pioneer for the Madonnas and Lindsay Lohans of today, women whose personal lives occupy more of the public imagination than does their creative work,” writes Laura Miller in Salon. As William J. Mann’s...
Health Reform Could Mean More Treatment Denials
Los Angeles Times
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Oct 19, 2009 10:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Health care reform would force insurers to accept everyone, even those with pre-existing conditions; but it wouldn’t actually force them to treat those patients. None of the reform bills pending on Capitol Hill would restrict insurers’ ability to deny procedures for their customers, the LA Times reports. In fact, because they’ll...
In Switch, 'Real Economy' Hits Big Banks
New York Times
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Oct 19, 2009 9:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Those concerned about the nation’s banks should forget about the “softly, softly policy” of the Obama administration that has allowed Goldman Sachs to go back to business as usual in spectacular fashion. The real problem, Paul Krugman writes, is banks like Citi and Bank of America that are still floundering despite taxpayer largess....
Balloon-Boy Stunt Not So Strange for Wacky Dad
Associated Press
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Oct 19, 2009 9:24 AM CDT
(Newser) -
With the balloon-boy debacle now exposed as a hoax, the spotlight has turned on Richard Heene's wacky and not-so-camera-shy behavior. The 48-year-old amateur scientist/wannabe reality TV star tried his hand at acting and standup comedy in the early '90s in Hollywood. And though that ended up being a "total bomb," says an associate, Heene...
Enough With This Cougar Thing
Independent (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 9:03 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The cougar phenomenon is spreading—in the UK, one 39-year-old woman runs a camp teaching aspiring cougars how to attract younger men. “Who cares, you may cry. Women should be fighting back over an ageist, youth-obsessed society,” writes Helen Croydon in the Independent . True as that may be, “a workshop teaching women to force...
Obama Tries to Hobble Chamber of Commerce
Politico
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Oct 19, 2009 8:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Obama administration is deliberately freezing out a US Chamber of Commerce seemingly chilly to its entire agenda. White House officials have pointedly ignored the Chamber, speaking instead directly with the CEOs of its member companies. “We prefer the approach where the actual people who are on the front lines come and advise us,” Valerie...
Burris: It's Public Option or Nothing
Associated Press
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Oct 19, 2009 8:28 AM CDT
(AP) -
For Democrats determined to get a health care bill, Sen. Roland Burris is like the house guest who couldn't be refused, won't soon be leaving, and poses a plausible threat of ruining holiday dinner. Suddenly, he can no longer be ignored. Rod Blagojevich's appointee says he'll only vote for a health care bill if it includes a public option—and...
Why Jon and Kate Are Everywhere
Vanity Fair
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Oct 19, 2009 8:16 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Kate Gosselin went from a dowdy, sweatpants-wearing nurse to a Nobu-dining celebrity on a first-name basis with Kelly Ripa; soon-to-be-ex-hubby Jon was a much-pitied, constantly-berated dad, and now a keg-standing, nanny-seducing frat boy no one can stand. How did this couple become the biggest tabloid story of the year, appearing on more than 50 covers...
GOP Slow-Pedals Effort to Oust Rangel
Politico
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Oct 19, 2009 8:04 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Rep. Charlie Rangel, the ethically challenged head of the House Ways and Means Committee, has become yet another millstone for New York Democrats, whose electoral chances are already sagging under an unpopular governor. Several candidates want him gone, and are tacitly supporting GOP efforts to get him booted from his committee chair. But Republicans...
Karzai Allies Get Tough on Recount
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 19, 2009 7:56 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Hamid Karzai's camp is signaling he may not accept the results of a recount from Afghanistan's presidential election, sowing further doubt about the country's future. A spokesman said the recount process had been "politically manipulated," and Karzai allies spent the weekend criticizing the UN-backed electoral commission that is counting...
Progressives Call Out Harry Reid in New Ad
Huffington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 7:48 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A progressive group is taking off the gloves with a new ad titled, straightforwardly, “Is Harry Reid Strong Enough?” The ad, which begins airing in Nevada on Wednesday, features a self-proclaimed “typical swing-voter” with health problems vowing ominously to vote for Reid in 2010 based exclusively on whether he’s “a...
Taliban Money Men Outwit US
New York Times
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Oct 19, 2009 7:37 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Taliban is thriving financially, despite the US’ best efforts to clamp down on its cash flow, thanks to a sophisticated collection of revenue streams including foreign donations, criminal activities, and drug trade profits. “I don’t believe we can significantly alter their effectiveness by cutting off their money right now,”...
Clinton 'Misspeaks' Again on Belfast Bombing
Times (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 7:28 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Hillary Clinton has been caught in another war-zone exaggeration—this time, in Northern Ireland. The secretary of state told regional lawmakers that she stayed at a "bombed" hotel that was still partially boarded up in Belfast in 1995—even though the last terrorist strike there was in 1993 and the hotel was renovated 22 months...
Feds Will Back Off Medical Pot Operations
Associated Press
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Oct 19, 2009 7:27 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Obama administration will stop cracking down on medical marijuana centers operating legally under state law, according to a new policy expected to be released today. The move is a significant departure from the Bush administration, which continued to bust such operations for breaking federal law. Under the new strategy, federal prosecutors will...
3 Runners Drop Dead in Detroit Marathon
Detroit Free Press
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Oct 19, 2009 7:21 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Michigan authorities will conduct autopsies today on three men who died within a 16-minute span during yesterday's Detroit marathon. Just after 9am, a 36-year-old collapsed on the course after 11 miles, and a few minutes later a 65-year-old longtime runner dropped to the ground near the same spot. At the same time, a younger runner collapsed after...
We All Share Blame for Balloon Boy
Gawker
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Oct 19, 2009 7:10 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Falcon Heene's media-hungry dad isn't the only culprit in the balloon boy hoax that put the 6-year-old at the center of a giant international lie. We may be just as much to blame for our ravenous appetite for more thrilling "reality" TV events, "glued to 40-inch hi-def images, waiting for the latest fix of manufactured emotion to get...
Al-Qaeda Boosts Western Recruits
Washington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 7:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
An increasing number of Westerners are joining al-Qaeda and the Taliban as the terrorist groups profit from dissatisfaction with the war in Afghanistan and develop sophisticated foreign-recruiting networks. Some 30 German citizens have traveled to Pakistan for training this year, according to authorities. Belgian, French and Swedish nationals have...
Is Palin Seeking Job on LinkedIn?
LinkedIn
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Oct 19, 2009 6:46 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Guess who's joined LinkedIn and is eager for gainful employment? A poster identified as always-surprising GOP rogue Sarah Palin is actively seeking "job inquiries" on the Internet network for professionals. Anyone interested can peruse the posted resume, which touts "Governor, State of Alaska" as the most recent gig. Besides job...
Khloe, Lamar Finalize Prenup
TMZ
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Oct 19, 2009 6:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
True love has prevailed in the fairytale romance of Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom, who have finalized—though not yet signed—their long-awaited pre-nup and can now finally tie the knot legally, TMZ reports. Though Lamar will keep the money he makes from his Lakers contract—up to $33 million—he will fund a joint account with...
Energy Lobby Split on Climate, Thrilling Greens
New York Times
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Oct 19, 2009 6:30 AM CDT
(Newser) -
With the Senate set to consider legislation to tax carbon and rein in global warming, a split has emerged among the energy lobby that may make it easier to pass a clean-energy law. Natural gas producers favor a bill, while their colleagues in the oil industry oppose it; electric companies are sparring over whether to favor coal or renewables; and wind...
Justice Stevens Hints He'll Retire This Term
USA Today
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Oct 19, 2009 6:01 AM CDT
(Newser) -
John Paul Stevens, the senior justice on the Supreme Court and the bench's liberal lion, says he gave serious thought to retiring—in the late 1980s, when he was 65 years old. Instead, while younger colleagues have packed their bags, Stevens has become the court's master tactician, cobbling together narrow majorities for decisions on civil rights,...
5 Years Until Climate Disaster, Warns WWF
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 5:46 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Disastrous climate change is inevitable unless the world begins cutting carbon emissions within the next five years, the World Wildlife Fund warns in a new report. Ahead of December's clutch Copenhagen summit, meant to forge a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, the fund repeats that global temperature rises could stay below 2°C if greenhouse gas...
Virus 'Scareware' Scams Millions
BBC
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Oct 19, 2009 5:07 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Alarming warnings that internet surfers' computers are being invaded by a devastating virus are almost always scams used to either hack into computers or rip off consumers for phony protective software. More than 40 million people have fallen victim to the "scareware" scam in the past year. Experts have identified some 250 versions of the...
Bush AG: Court Terror Trials Too Dangerous
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 19, 2009 4:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Obama administration wants to try alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other Guantanamo detainees in federal courts—and that's a major mistake, says Michael Mukasey. Terrorism trials pose "overwhelming" security challenges, and classified information would have to be revealed, warns George Bush's relatively moderate...
Parks Boss Had 3400 Porn Pics; Feds Avert Gaze
Washington Post
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Oct 19, 2009 3:50 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A federal investigative report has cleared a parks official even though he pored over thousands of porn pics on his computer while he was supposed to be working. The superintendent of the popular Gettysburg National Military Park was cleared of misconduct accusations linked to financial dealings with the Gettysburg Foundation, reports the Washington...
Lee Leads Phillies to 11-0 Game 3 Win
Associated Press
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Oct 19, 2009 3:03 AM CDT
(AP) -
Cliff Lee dominated the Dodgers and Ryan Howard and Jayson Werth provided the big swings early as the Philadelphia Phillies cruised past Los Angeles 11-0 last night for a 2-1 lead in the NL championship series. Lee provided another brilliant playoff start, striking out 10 and allowing only three hits in eight innings. "Cliff Lee, what can I say...
Brit Cops Sic Dogs on Eco-Protesters
Telegraph (UK)
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Oct 19, 2009 2:58 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Climate change activists were chewed up by police dogs as British cops sicced German shepherds on protesters scaling fences at a power station. ''Of course this is regrettable, but it's a combination of reckless behavior by some protesters and us having to respond with a different style of policing," said an official. Some 1,000 activists...
Sotomayor: White House Picked My Clothes
New Haven Register
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Oct 19, 2009 1:43 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Every aspect of Sonia Sotomayor's nomination procedure to become the newest Supreme Court justice was so controlled that she was even told what to wear at the acceptance ceremony, she said in a talk at Yale yesterday. Sotomayor, who appeared on campus for her 30th Yale Law School reunion, wanted to shop for new clothes for her acceptance, but was told...
Feds: NY Hedge Fund Boss Funded Terror
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 19, 2009 1:20 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A hedge-fund manager busted for insider trading has been contributing money to a Sri Lankan terrorist group, according to FBI agents. Raj Rajaratnam came under scrutiny in a federal probe into the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization, a charity which was charged with funneling money to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a violent separatist group defeated...
Vaccine Delay Aggravates Swine Flu Fears
Wall Street Journal
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Oct 18, 2009 5:15 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Production delays that are slowing the distribution of the H1N1 flu vaccine could hardly have come at a worse time, with the death toll in young people mounting and antivaccine activists seizing on any chance to make their position heard. Experts point out that the H1N1 version uses the same formula as the seasonal flu vaccine: "One hundred...
In Fight With Fox, White House Can't Win
New York Times
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Oct 18, 2009 4:24 PM CDT
(Newser) -
By tackling Fox News head-on, the Obama administration has almost certainly bitten off more than it can chew, apparently prioritizing payback ahead of rising above the fray. "While there is undoubtedly a visceral thrill in finally setting out after your antagonists," media columnist David Carr writes for the New York Times, "the history...
Palin Wades Back Into Health Care Debate
Facebook
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Oct 18, 2009 3:36 PM CDT
(Newser) -
With less than a month to go before the release of her memoir, Sarah Palin has weighed in on the health care debate, opining that the authors of the Baucus bill "no doubt have good intentions, but good intentions aren’t enough." Furthermore, the effort in general "certainly gives the appearance of politics-as-usual in Washington...
How I Helped Plan the Balloon Boy Hoax
Gawker
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Oct 18, 2009 3:12 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Balloon boy Falcon Heene's father, Richard, planned the hoax because he wanted to return to reality TV, claims a former research assistant. Heene "was often driven by ego and fame," Robert Thomas says in an interview with Gawker, which the website acknowledges it paid him for. "He was all about controversy, hoping to whip up something...
UConn Football Player Slain on Campus
Hartford Courant (Conn.)
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Oct 18, 2009 2:11 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A University of Connecticut football player has died after being stabbed on campus early this morning. Jasper Howard, a junior cornerback from Miami and the first member of his family to attend college, was 20. Two groups of people scuffled as a dance at the student union was letting out, and at least one other person was stabbed but survived,...
Wild Things Runs Rampant
USA Today
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Oct 18, 2009 1:48 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Where the Wild Things Are ran wild at the weekend box office, exceeding expectations by doing $32.5 million worth of business. Spike Jonze's first foray into children's cinema earned the director his strongest opening weekend ever. "I can't imagine too many people who could do what Spike did," an exec with distributor Warner Bros. tells...
