Archive for May 8th, 2014

Even more things I didn’t know.

Thursday, May 8th, 2014

A comment by Guffaw in an earlier thread led me to Wikipedia, where I learned:

  1. There is a Jim Steinman Wiki.
  2. Jim Steinman was intimately involved in Batman: The Musical. Yes, you did read that correctly, and no, it was never produced.
  3. The Jim Steinman Wiki does not currently have an article about Dance of the Vampires. However, Wikipedia does:

    On January 25, 2003, after 56 performances, Dance of the Vampires closed. According to The New York Times, it was “one of the costliest failures in Broadway history”, losing roughly $12 million, easily eclipsing the infamous musical Carrie.

Posted in Music, Theatre | Comments Closed

You’re going down in flames, you tax-fattened hyena! (#12 in a series)

Thursday, May 8th, 2014

The indictment unsealed against Councilman Ruben W. Wills, a Democrat who represents southeastern Queens, included multiple counts of fraud and grand larceny in connection with more than $30,000 in public funds that went missing from a charity Mr. Wills used to run. It also accused Mr. Wills and a relative, Jelani R. Mills, who was also arrested, of conspiring to steal public campaign funds by creating a fraudulent business.

Heh. Heh. Heh. The charity in question was “New York 4 Life”, which the paper of record describes as an “anti-obesity charity”.

According to the authorities, Mr. Wills obtained a $33,000 state grant to start up New York 4 Life. The money was earmarked to the group by former State Senator Shirley L. Huntley of Queens, who was later sentenced to prison in a separate corruption investigation.

On an unrelated note: former State Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin had his prison term reduced from ten years to six. I enjoy the NYT lead:

There may have been more corrupt politicians in New York than former State Assemblyman Brian M. McLaughlin, even though he admitted stealing from his campaign, the state government, labor unions, even a Little League program in Queens.

He stole from the Little League? He took money from kids? Why reduce his sentence?

Answer: because he flipped.

Mr. McLaughlin’s assistance, prosecutors said in court papers, helped them win convictions for bribery and corruption against State Senator Carl Kruger, Assemblyman Anthony S. Seminerio and David Rosen, the chief executive of the nonprofit MediSys Health Network.

Posted in Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

Obit watch: May 8, 2014.

Thursday, May 8th, 2014

Bill Dana, legendary NASA test pilot.

Dana flew the sleek, black aircraft 16 times, reaching a top speed of 3,897 mph and a peak altitude of 306,900 feet. He started flying the aircraft in 1965 and was the last man to fly it in 1968.

That “sleek, black aircraft” was the X-15. Dana earned astronaut wings for two of his X-15 flights.

Over Dana’s 48-year career, he flew more than 8,000 hours in more than 60 aircraft, including helicopters and wingless experimental rocket planes.

Posted in Clippings, Obits, Planes | 1 Comment »