The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, July 08, 1996, Image 6

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Page 6 • The Battalion • Monday, July 8, 1996
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MASH vet makes headlines with painting
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TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Gary Burghoff, who
played Cpl. Radar O’Reilly on “M-A-S-H,” turned
from acting to painting the great outdoors.
Burghoff displayed his wildlife paintings Sat
urday at the Fenwick Gallery near Toledo. The
longtime animal preservationist was bitten by
the fine arts bug three years ago, after judging a
national duck stamp competition.
“I realized I should be doing that, so I set up
my easel,” he said.
After nearly 8 years of playing the efficient
but nerdy corporal who always knew when
wounded soldiers were coming in, Burghoff left
the long-running television show in 1979.
Despite the show’s huge following, Burghoff
remains somewhat surprised by calls for a “M-A-
S-H” reunion show.
“It’s very curious to me why that is so impor
tant,” Burghoff said. “There seems to be a real
need to know we’re still friends.”
Burghoff got a hug at his opening from an un
expected guest: Jamie Farr, the 4077th M-A-S-
H’s cross-dressing Cpl. Max Klinger. Farr was in
town for his Jamie Farr Kroger Classic women’s
golf tournament.
Dollywood cashier captured with
stolen money, minus $1,000
I
L
RENO, Nev. (AP) — A
cashier at Dolly Parton’s coun
try music theme park in Ten
nessee who allegedly embez
zled $647,000 got as far as
Reno, but police caught up
with him before he could blow
it all at the casinos.
Police recovered the miss
ing money, minus about
$1,000, after arresting John
Joseph Rightsell Jr. late Fri
day at the hotel where he
was staying.
Rightsell, a supervising cashier at Dollywood
PARTON
in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., disappeared several days
earlier and the money was discovered missing.
He was jailed with no bail pending extradition
to Tennessee.
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Former Potsie from Happy Days
spends time behind camera
Soap star takes stab at crime boss
part in upcoming release Fled
NEW YORK (AP) — Whatever happened to
the guy who played Potsie on “Happy Days?”
Well, he just ducked behind the camera.
Anson Williams’ new role is that of director,
with credits including “Hercules: The Legendary
Journeys,” “seaQuest DSV,” and “Fudge.”
TV directing veteran Garry Marshall helped
him make the career switch.
“He said ‘anything you want to learn, come to
me,’ and he arranged for you to observe,”
Williams says in the July 13 issue of TV Guide.
And Williams has no desire to return to acting.
“I always felt limitations as an actor,” he said.
“Once in a while I’ll do something if someone
asks, but I don’t miss it as a career.”
NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Nader, suave ty
coon Dimitri Marick on the TV soap opera “All
My Children,” usually doesn’t play bad-to-the-
bone types. Now he’s got his chance.
Nader tackles the part of a fierce Cuban
crime boss in Fled, starring Laurence Fish-
burne and Stephen Baldwin, which opens na
tionwide this month.
Shedding his image as a daytime drama pret
ty boy wasn’t easy, Nader said. First he needed
to turn 50.
“It’s been a real dilemma — getting those
kinds of roles after playing romantic leads,” Nad
er, 51, says in the July 13 TV Guide. “I’m finally
starting to get a little character in my face, but
I’m still considered a threat to a lot of good-look
ing movie stars.”
Critics question Christian Coalition’s avoiding
federal taxes, say group acts as political machine
WASHINGTON (AP) — Dave Jenkins is hardly
the first guy you’d guess the Christian Coalition
would regard as an enemy.
The conservative Republican grew up in
Newport News, Va., half a mile from the child
hood home of Christian Coalition founder Pat
Robertson, attended a Baptist high school and
majored in religion at the nearby College of
William and Mary.
But when he decided to seek the Republican
nomination for a U.S. House seat in Texas this
year, he found himself on the wrong side of a pow
erful political force.
“I did make some attempts to court them,”
Jenkins said in an interview. He painstakingly
filled out a 91-question form stating his views on
the coalition’s issues, from taxes to health care to
foreign policy. He said he agreed with the coalition
on 80 percent of the issues.
When thousands of copies of a voter guide were
distributed just before primary election day, “They
selected seven issues I disagreed with them on. It
made it look like I was totally against everything
they stood for.”
It was, Jenkins said, “a total distortion.”
Similar complaints have come from candidates
on the wrong side of a Christian Coalition voter
guide, one of the organization’s most powerful po
litical tools. The group plans to publish 64 million
of them this year.
Coalition director Ralph Reed defends the guides
as nonpartisan voter education tools, saying the
coalition chooses questions based on “our own sense
of what our members think is important.”
But last month, Robertson made this bold
claim: “The Christian Coalition, without it proba
bly Bob Dole wouldn’t be the (Republican presi
dential) nominee.”
On June 27, Reed and Robertson met again
y Minor
The Christian Right influence
Levels of influence of the Christian Coalition and other religious
right groups in state Republican Party organizations:
<f|; Substantial % Dominant
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with Dole, who is expected to officially win the
nomination in August, in hopes of working out a
compromise on the divisive abortion issue.
Such meetings, the voters guides and for-sale
lists of conservative voters leave critics and tax
experts questioning whether the group has
crossed the line from tax-exempt education to
political machine.
Since it was formed in 1989, the Virginia-
based organization has paid no federal income
taxes, claiming an exemption for groups that
promote public welfare. Such groups can dabble
in partisan politics, but it cannot be their pri
mary purpose.
After more than six years the IRS still hasn’t
ruled on the claim, one of the longest delays ever
for such an application.
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Associated Press
ID4 makes movie histor
v
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Inde
pendence Day grossed $83.5 mil
lion over the July Fourth holiday
for the best five-day opening in
film history, industry sources es
timated Sunday.
Buoyed by heavy media cover
age and strong word of mouth,
the alien invasion thriller out-
muscled Arnold Schwarzeneg
ger’s Eraser and other summer
blockbusters and appeared to be
on track to reach the $100 mil
lion mark with record speed.
“It’s right up there with the
biggest pictures of all time,” said
Tom Sherak, the executive vice
president of 20th Century Fox.
The weekend’s other debut
was Phenomenon, starring John
Travolta as a man who suddenly
gains superintelligence and psy
chic power. It opened in third
place with a five-day gross of
$25 million. Eddie Murphy’s The
Nutty Professor was second with
$26.5 million over five days.
Independence Day, produced
for about $70 million, stars Will
Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pull
man and spectacular special ef
fects that include the fiery de
struction of major cities by in
vading spaceships.
Many theaters sold out.
Scalpers reportedly were getting
up to $20 a ticket.
Independence Day was expect
ed to gross $49 million from Fri
day through Sunday and $83.5
million for the period from its
Wednesday debut.
The previous five-day mark
was set by I99l’s Terminator 2:
Judgment Day, which sold $52.3
million worth of tickets. The
three-day record is held by last
year’s Batman Forever, which
grossed $52.8 million.
However, Sherak said that
figure included a midnight and a
preview screening. Independence
Day would have beaten that
mark if Fox included the more
than $11 million it grossed in
Tuesday previews, he said.
Unless sales lag. Inde
pendence Day could top the
$100 million mark in seven
days, two less than it took
1993’s Jurassic Park, Sher
ak said.
From the start, the film
was geared to attract a
family audience, Sherak
said. There is little graphic
violence and virtually no
sex or swearing.
“Although 740 million
(people) get killed in the
second act, you never see
that,” Sherak said.
Fox planned its market
ing campaign with all the
shrewdness of an invasion.
Last Christmas, long before
the movie’s final cut was
ready, trailers showed
spaceships casting eclipse
like shadows over Washing
ton and blowing up the
White House.
A $1 million Super Bowl
commercial warned: “Enjoy
the Super Bowl ... It may be
your last.”
The studio also courted the
press — an increasingly vital
form of free publicity — with
early peeks at some scenes and
tongue-in-cheek gifts such as a
dartboard with the Earth in the
bull’s-eye.
“The press bought into it
hook, line and sinker. They saw
what we had,” Sherak said.
“Everybody who wrote about it
said it could be the biggest pic
ture of the summer ... everybody
liked it.”
The movie appeared on
covers of Time and Newswe
last week.
But hype alone cannot mai
a hit — moviegoers must be
tertained, Sherak said.
THE TOP 1 0
#1. Independence Day, 20tli
Century Fox, $83.5 million
#2. The Nutty Professor,
Universal, $26.5 million.
#3. Phenomenon, Disney,
$25 million.
#4. The Hunchback of Notn
Dame, Disney, $14 million.
#5. Eraser, Warner Bros.,
$1 3.4 million.
#6. The Rock, Disney, $8.6
million.
#7. Striptease, Columbia,
$7.5 million.
#8. Twister, Warner Bros.,
$4.4 million.
#9. Mission: Impossible,
Paramount, $3.6 million.
#10. The Cable Guy, Co
lumbia, $2.7 million.
Vol. 102=
Po
car
“They come and stand in
because you’ve touched a nerve,
he said. “Something happens:,
all of us ... who get involved
the carnival atmosphere of whai
popcorn movies are. Thisiss
movie that P.T. Barnum \
have approved of.”
Preliminary figures are based
on industry estimates of ticket
sales for Wednesday througl
Sunday. Final figures will be re
leased Monday.
Election
Continued from Page 1
June 16, Yeltsin won by only three percent of the
vote. There were concerns voiced over Yeltsin’s
health and rumored alcoholism.
Mestrovic said the Russian people should pay
close attention to these potential problems.
“This is a serious concern because if he died in
office, there would be a stampede for power,” Me
strovic said. “And we shouldn’t assume the
transformation would be peaceful and orderly,
like in the U.S.”
Alexander Lebed was one of the candidates on
the ballot of the June 16 election. In an effort to gair,
Lebed’s supporters, Yeltsin appointed him National
Security Adviser after the preliminary election.
Mestrovic said Lebed is a man the Russian peo
pie should be wary of.
“Lebed was a general in the Afghan War and
he’s very much a bigot, an authoritarian and a na
tionalist,” Mestrovic said. “He is very anti-West
era, and if he were to seize power it would be a
very bad thing for the West.”
Last week, Lebed was criticized for comments
he made about religion.
In a Houston Chronicle article, Lebed said there
are only three established religions in Russia -
Orthodox Christianity, Islam and Buddhism —
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Powell
Continued from Page 1
Moms, one must have held an
office in the chapter closest to
her hometown.
Powell said her experience
as president of Plano Aggie
Moms gave her the skills neces
sary to serve as president of the
entire federation.
“I think I can bring a unique
perspective to the Aggie Moms.
It’s such an honor to wear the
ring and work with these
ladies,” Powell said. “I love the
ladies. Even though they’re not
all A&M graduates, we’re all
part of the Aggie family. It’s
very special to us.”
Powell will keep busy during
her term as president — from
Parents’ Weekend 1996 to Par
ents’ Weekend 1997.
Powell said she will commute
two or three times a month from
Plano to College Station and
stay for a few days.
She also has other things to
keep her busy.
“I’m a grandmother,” Powell
said. “Between that and Aggie
Moms, I’ll have a full-time job.”
Powell even moved to College
Station for a brief time in order
to spend more time working on
various Aggie Mom projects.
Becky Segrest, a former mem
ber of the Aggie Mothers’ Club
Federation Board, said Powell is
an ideal president.
“She’s so hard-working,
very dependable,” Segrest
said. “She really has a heart
for Aggies.”
Powell encourages students to
tell their mothers about Aggie
Moms. There are no specific
qualifications for serving as an
Aggie Mom, only to have a heart
for the University and the stu
dents. The organization is open
to all mothers and legal
guardians of students and for
mer students.
“We offer ‘at-large’ member
ship to those who are not close
enough to be in a specific club,’
Powell said. “These members
receive our newsletter and par
ticipate in our Adopt-A-Student
program. Adopt-A-Student is
where the Aggie Mom just
sends care packages or birth
day cards to a particular stu
dent while that student is away
from their own mom at college
or studying abroad.”
According to the University ad
ministration Aggie Moms help to
add a “small university atmos
phere” to a very large university.
Powell said Aggie Moms are
a united group of women be
cause they are all part of the
Aggie family.
“My daughter said the other
day, T know if I needed some
thing and couldn’t reach you, I
could call any Aggie Mom and
they would help me,”’ Powell
said. “It is such a neat feeling
for a student to know that they
are so loved and cared for by
the Aggie Moms.”
Senate
Continued from Page 1
cents — unless you’re among the excluded millions’.”
Republican conservatives dismissed Clinton’s
threat and said Bond’s amendment was needed
to shield small businesses from the job-killing ef
fects of what amounts to a 20 percent increase in
their labor costs.
“He can call it a poison pill. He can call it any
thing he wants. My guess is he will sign it if it
gets to his desk,” said Senate Majority Whip Don
Nickles, R-Okla.
The minimum-wage bill, cleared 281-144 by the
House on May 23, provides a two-step increase —
from $4.25 to $4.75 immediately and then, on July
1, 1997, to $5.15. It’s paired with a package of tax
breaks, mostly for business.
Bond’s amendment also would delay the effective
date of the increases by six months — to Jan. 1,
1997 and Jan. 1, 1998. He would double the period
during which businesses could pay a training wage
to 180 days from 90 days in the House version. And
he would permit the training wage, which would be
less than the minimum wage, for workers of all ages,
not just for workers younger than 20.
Meanwhile, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., plans
to offer an amendment that would shorten the train
ing wage period to 30 days and strike a provision in
the House bill excluding workers who earn tips.
The Senate tax-break package, intended to soft
en the blow to businesses of the wage raise, is
more generous than the House’s — roughly $11
billion over eight years compared with $7 billion.
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DEW
A wrecking b<
Fire
By Melissa Nunn
The Battalion
The Brayton
■tig Center uses
jons of water eai
•tig. But the yee
and the recent ’
cause some to 1
availability of w,
Itig center.
The fire train
aver, recycles 75
the water used
rest is lost thro
and overspray on
Jack Donovar
the Fireman Ti
said they use u]
Sallons of watei
training center i
gallons last year.
“We probably i
1,600 million gal
fecycle,” Donovan
The amount of v
center would use 1
cling system wouli
to the amount use
lege Station in c
We’ve cut bac
cause we have th
Separator,” Donov
The oil and wat
^oves oil from tl
imping the wate