EagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA--Offbeat

Doorman fired after winning $5M

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 23:17:00 EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City doorman Richie Randazzo had said he wouldn't quit his day job after winning a $5 million lottery, and he didn't. He got fired.
A spokesman for the union representing apartment building workers says Randazzo notified the union's grievance center on Tuesday that he had been shown the door.

Stinky gambler fuming over NJ casino ejection

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 23:16:00 EDT

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Yes, Michael Wax stunk. He's the first to admit it.
The 440-pound New York City man said he was playing poker in an Atlantic City casino for 17 hours Tuesday and didn't have time to clean up. He understands why grossed-out gamblers complained about his body odor, but said he didn't deserve stinky treatment from the casino that asked him to leave.

Guests at noisy German birthday party mistake policemen for strippers

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:01:00 EDT

BERLIN (AP) — No one had ordered strippers for the 30th birthday party — but the two policemen who arrived after midnight to quiet the raucous celebration found themselves greeted by a round of applause.

UPS driver gets special, final delivery

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 00:27:00 EDT

CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. (AP) — Jeff Hornagold loved being a UPS driver.
So when the suburban Chicago man died this week of lung cancer, longtime co-worker Michael McGowan agreed to take him on one last delivery.

Dwarf comedy stunt shocks Swedish airport staff

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:43:00 EDT

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) — Swedish airport staff were not amused when a team from a TV comedy show tried to check in a suitcase with a dwarf inside.
Employees at Bromma airport called police when the dwarf hopped out of the suitcase at the check-in counter.

RI cops arrest man with .491 blood alcohol level

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 22:45:00 EDT

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — State Police arrested a man early yesterday whose blood alcohol level allegedly was .491 — more than six times the legal limit — which they believe is the highest ever recorded in Rhode Island for someone who wasn't dead.

NY man earning $100K lived in company paint shed

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 22:44:00 EDT

ORANGEBURG, N.Y. (AP) — A New York state report says a maintenance man who earned $100,000 last year working at a psychiatric center has been living for free in a paint shed on company grounds and even had his mail delivered there.

Apparent conjoined barn swallows found in Arkansas

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 21:25:00 EDT

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — An apparent set of conjoined twin birds — an incredibly rare find — has been discovered in Arkansas, authorities said.
The bodies of the barn swallows, which are attached at the hip by skin and possibly muscle tissue, are being sent to the Smithsonian Institution for examination and confirmation, Arkansas wildlife officials said Friday.

Fisherman hooks drowning man, reels him in

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 20:19:00 EDT

HALLOWELL, Maine (AP) — A Maine angler used his fishing rod to reel in a man who survived a jump from a bridge and was drowning in the Kennebec River.
Bob Greene of Hallowell says he heard what he thought was a cormorant making noise in the distance 4:30 a.m. Thursday as he was having his coffee and reading his newspaper. He says about 20 minutes passed before he realized there was a man bobbing down the river.

Dallas police find cocaine in car used by officers

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:40:00 EDT

DALLAS (AP) — Police didn't have to go far to find $400,000 worth of cocaine — it was in an undercover car they'd been driving for two months.
An officer cleaning the car at a patrol station Wednesday discovered the nearly 50 pounds of cocaine carefully hidden in hydraulically controlled compartments.

Maine suspect hitches ride — to pokey

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:46:00 EDT

NORWAY, Maine (AP) — A teenager from Waterford who was wanted by police flagged down a car to get away, but it turned out to be an unmarked cruiser, which took him straight to jail.
Monday's episode began when 19-year-old Travis Horan allegedly gave someone else's name and then bolted from police after being stopped for speeding in Norway. Police from four agencies searched the area but came up short.

Ala. police nab Mercedes-climbing goat

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:56:00 EDT

CAPSHAW, Ala. (AP) — The goat was arrested, the Mercedes-Benz was assaulted and the dog came along for the ride.
It happened Sunday when a woman driving the Mercedes saw a goat and dog playing on U.S. 72 in northern Alabama, Sheriff Mike Blakely said.

Cremated remains part of fireworks show

Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:06:00 EDT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — One of the fireworks bursting above the city this year will contain a bit of cremated remains — a fitting tribute, organizers say, to the man who ran the annual event for 40 years.

Tow-truck funeral planned for Maine tow operator

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:50:00 EDT

AUBURN, Maine (AP) — An Auburn man who towed disabled vehicles for nearly a half century will be making his last ride in a procession of tow trucks and wreckers as family, friends and colleagues bid him a final goodbye.

Alleged Fla. sausage assault brings battery charge

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 01:48:00 EDT

DELAND, Fla. (AP) — A man was charged with battery after he hit his mother in the head with a three-pound package of Polish sausage, police said.
Gregory Allen Praeger, 46, was in the kitchen cooking and talking on the phone when officers arrived Saturday night. His mother told police he had been drinking and arguing with her, then picked up the package of sausage and hurled it, grazing her head. She was not badly hurt and did not have to go to the hospital.

Crocodile welcomed into Australian pub by drinkers

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:58:00 EDT

DARWIN, Australia (AP) — Drinkers at an outback watering hole may have wondered if perhaps they'd had one too many when they were greeted by a crocodile at the pub's door.
But being good hosts, they did the only polite thing and invited him inside.

Woman's 'Wing House' takes flight in Malibu

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:57:00 EDT

MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — The neighborhood already has a house that scientists say looks like a giant atom smasher, and nearby there is another that is perched on a cylindrical tower and looks like a flying saucer. Yet when Francie Rehwald moves into her new digs sometime next year, she'll have them both beat.

Painting left at Md. Goodwill auctions for $40,000

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:59:00 EDT

EASTON, Md. (AP) — An old painting dropped off at a rural Maryland Goodwill store turned out to be a work by a French Impressionist. And now, thanks to the sharp eye of a store employee, the charitable organization is $40,000 richer.

Montana school searches for missing bison

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:49:00 EDT

ASHLAND, Mont. (AP) — Talk about fast food: One school is searching for more than 130 bison that wandered away from its lunch program.
Curtis Yarlott, executive director of the St. Labre Indian School, said the animals were probably spooked by a thunderstorm over Memorial Day weekend and ran through a fence.

Marines getting a few good triplets from Cadillac

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:59:00 EDT

CADILLAC, Mich. (AP) — The Marines are getting a few good triplets.
Andrew, Sam and Elizabeth Foltz may have disagreed now and then growing up, but they're taking the same post-high school path — enrolling in the U.S. Marine Corps.