Man accused of faking heart attacks to avoid bills
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressA 52-year-old Milwaukee-area man has been accused of faking heart attacks to avoid paying restaurant bills and cab fares.
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Champ retains NYC hot-dog eating title in overtime
AP Photo
Joey Chestnut achieved frankfurter immortality Friday, outdueling his celebrated Japanese rival in an epic hot-dog eating contest that pushed both of the gluttonous gladiators to the brink.
Crazy cat that frightened neighborhood mends ways
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressA combative cat named Lewis who frightened the neighbors and got his owner into legal trouble two years ago has done so well under house arrest that the case has now been scratched.
UK court: Pringles are potato-light, tax-free
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressBritain's High Court has ruled that Pringles are not a potato snack, and thus are not subject to value-added tax.
2 teens attacked in town mocked in YouTube videos
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressTwo teenagers who drove to Oniontown after a series of YouTube videos portrayed the hamlet as a run-down, backwoods dump were pelted with rocks by an angry group of young residents, authorities said.
Chestnut wins hot dog contest after eat-off
AP Photo
Joey Chestnut reclaimed the top spot at the annual hot dog eating contest in Coney Island on Friday after first tying with archrival Takeru Kobayashi in a 10-minute chow-down and then beating him in a five-dog eat-off.
Tortoise returned after 2 1/2 weeks on the lam
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressA 60-pound tortoise that escaped from a family's garage last month is back home after a 2 1/2-week adventure that took him through three northwestern Indiana towns.
Ben Franklin, Betsy Ross actors wed in Philly
AP Photo
Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross celebrated the eve of the Fourth of July not with fireworks but with wedding vows.
1851 gun used in Civil War returns to Arkansas
AP Photo
An 1851 artillery gun carried into battle by Arkansas military school students who joined the Confederate Army was unveiled in its home state Thursday after nearly 150 years.
MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military HistoryMinn. teen charged with offering his vote on eBay
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressA college student claimed it was all a joke when he put his vote in this fall's presidential election up for sale on the Web auction site eBay. But prosecutors didn't see the humor.
Miniature dachshund gnaws off diabetic owner's toe
Published on: 07/04/08 The Associated PressAn Illinois woman says her beloved miniature dachshund gnawed off her right big toe while she was asleep. Linda Floyd told the Alton Telegraph for a story Wednesday that her beloved Roscoe was euthanized because of safety concerns.
Man nabbed after calling cops on stolen cell phone
Published on: 07/03/08 The Associated PressA Duluth man is under arrest after he called police on a cell phone from a purse he had just allegedly snatched. Police arrested the 29-year-old man on Wednesday.
Cremated remains part of fireworks show
Published on: 07/03/08 The Associated PressOne 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.
Man accused of robbing, then hugging Mo. victim
Published on: 07/03/08 The Associated PressPolice in the southeast Missouri town of Poplar Bluff are looking for the gunman who robbed a man on Monday night, then gave him a hug before fleeing.
Woman accused of stealing cat to get back her dog
Published on: 07/03/08 The Associated PressPolice say a South Florida woman stole a couple's cat to get them to return her dog. Linda Urioste's black Labrador was recently picked up by animal control officers and later adopted by Jutta Hollar and her husband.
Wrong number! Job hotline was sex line
Published on: 07/03/08 The Associated PressLooking for work in all the wrong places?
Oregon lawn-chair pilot plans 300-mile flight
Published on: 07/03/08 Associated Press WriterLike many Americans, Kent Couch plans to settle into a lawn chair during the Fourth of July weekend. Unlike everyone else, his feet will dangle high above the lawn.
Alleged police car joyride lands SC teen in jail
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressCall him the short arm of the law. Police in Dillon, a small town near the North Carolina border, say a 13-year-old with an interest in law enforcement twice stole a police cruiser and took it out to do some patrolling.
More than 2,000 guitarists appear to set record
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressMore than 2,000 guitar-players performing "This Land is Your Land" in a Bay Area park appear to have strummed their way into the record books.
New Zealand man puts up his soul for auction
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressA New Zealand man has put his soul up for auction to the highest bidder, noting that it is "a merry old soul" rather than a "funk soul brother" but that he would "would like to think there is a bit of funk in there somewhere."
Courthouse with dead opossum almost free of fleas
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressThe Pulaski County Courthouse is almost free of fleas that hitched a ride on an opossum found dead between the floorboards. In early June, workers started to complain that the pests were biting them and visitors.
Man sells stolen items near home that was robbed
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressPolice say an Ocala man was selling stolen property at a yard sale in the same neighborhood as the home he robbed. Fred and Betty McAteers, who live in Ocklawaha, arrived at a home they own in Ocala on Monday to find that it had been burglarized.
Australians making odd choices for funeral songs
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressHymns are being replaced at funerals in one Australian city by popular rock classics like Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and AC/DC's "Highway to Hell," a cemetery manager said Wednesday.
Runway tractor carrying potatoes mashes car
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressA farmer in Germany has learned a harsh lesson about the dangers of smoking. While he ducked into a convenience store to buy cigarettes, his parked tractor and its load of 25 tons of potatoes went rolling down a hill - and over a parked car.
Arkansas thieves take bank ATM _ but not its cash
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressThieves in northwest Arkansas made a huge withdrawal at a bank - they took a whole automated teller machine with them.
Dolphins can spend Independence Day in NJ river
Published on: 07/02/08 Associated Press WriterA group of 15 dolphins who have taken up residence in a river near the Jersey Shore will be allowed to stay there through the July Fourth weekend, even though a nearby fireworks display draws heavy boat traffic.
Nowthen, Minn., I think our city has a name
Published on: 07/02/08 The Associated PressResidents of Nowthen know it's a funny name, but they're proud to officially become a city. The community north of the Twin Cities changed its name Monday from Burnsville Township to Nowthen, which was the name the first local post office was given by mistake.
Woman crashes into store then tries to buy beer
Published on: 07/01/08 The Associated PressA convenience store became an unwilling drive-in when a 74-year-old woman plowed her car through the front window and then tried to buy a six-pack of Budweiser, police and the owner said.
Alleged burglar sheds clothes, flees in shorts
Published on: 07/01/08 The Associated PressPolice say a man took off his clothes, broke into a home and fled in shorts belonging to the female resident. The woman who lives at the home said a man woke her up Saturday night by banging on her front door.
Woman seeks $30K after her home mistakenly razed
Published on: 07/01/08 The Associated PressA Jackson State University official blames pranksters for the mistaken demolition of a house - and everything in it. Owner Annie Wilson of Dallas said trying to get fair compensation has been a nightmare.
