TheSij ittalion A GGIELIFE ^age^^Wednesda^March^^^Q^ ICKLAND uddenly Susan' actor found dead in motel Strickland appeared cheerful and spoke of his fu ture during an interview just a few weeks before his death. “I’m just trying to do a bunch of different things,” he told AP Network News. “I’d love to direct an episode next year of ’Suddenly Susan.’ I think that’s the best part about the entertainment business. I’d even like to try to get into a garage band.” “I’d like to be 30, 38, 39 and doing something re ally great and sort of have this look back and say, ’He’s worked consistently,”’ he said. “There’s something nice about that.” NBC spokesperson Rebecca Marks said the com pany was “deeply saddened by the news of David Strickland’s death and our condolences and support go out to his family and friends.” Strickland was born in Glen Cove, N.Y., and moved to Pacific Palisades near Los Angeles while he was in high school. He worked on a number of student films and ap peared in episodes of the television shows “Roseanne” and “Dave’s World.” He also had recur ring roles on “Sister, Sister” and “Mad About You.” Oscars place #1 in Nielsen Media ratings (AP) - Prime-time ratings compiled by Nielsen Media Research for March 15-21 have been released. Top 10 list ings include the week’s ranking, with the rating for the week and season-to- date rankings in parentheses. An “X” in parentheses denotes a one-time-only presentation. The rat ing is the percentage of the nation’s estimated 99.4 million TV homes. Each ratings point represents 994,000 Households. 1. (X) “Academy Awards,” ABC, 28.6, 28.4 million homes. 2. (X) “Oscar Preview Show,” ABC, 18.1, 17.9 million homes. 3. (2) “Friends,” NBC, 16.6, 16.5 million homes. 4. (3) “Frasier,” NBC, 14.4, 14.3 million homes. 5. (X) “Frasier,” NBC, 14.0, 13.9 million homes. 6. (6) “Jesse,” NBC, 13.9,13.8 mil lion homes. 7. “Barbara Walters Special,” ABC, 12.7, 12.6 million homes. 8. “Everybody Loves Raymond,” CBS, 12.4,12.3 million homes. 9. (1) “ER,” NBC, 12.1, 12.0 mil lion homes. 10. “NCAA Basketball Champi onship: Post Game,” CBS, 11.6, 11.5 million homes. LAS VEGAS (AP) — David Strick land, who played the music critic on the NBC sitcom “Suddenly Susan” and had a role in the new movie Forces of Nature, was found dead in a motel room, an apparent suicide. A worker at the Oasis Motel found Strickland’s body hanging from a bed sheet strung from a ceiling beam Monday, motel owner Peter Napoli said. A chair was next to the body. Police were investigating the death as a suicide, po ll spokesperson Steve Meriwether said. Strickland ^rasiidentified by his publicist, Marisa McGrath. S. i ickiand, 29, played the comically insecure writer .odd on NBC’s “Suddenly Susan,” which stars Brooke hields as a magazine writer. He had been on the show )r the last three seasons. ^■trickland also appears in Forces of Nature, starring andra Bullock and Ben Affleck, playing the ex- oylriend of Affleck’s fiancee. The movie opened last and was No. 1 at the box office over the week- nd. \mplaints filed against Methodist ministers mrticipatingin lesbian marriage ceremonies Fado did not return a call for comment Tliesday. The conflict over same-sex weddings has been simmering for years within the United Methodist Church, which with 8.5 million members is the na tion’s second-biggest Protestant denomination after the Southern Baptists. Fado led the wedding-like cel ebration for Jeanne Barnett, 68, and Ellie Charlton, 63. The women have long been active in Fado’s church, St. Marks United Methodist, and have been a cou ple for more than 15 years. More than 1,000 members of the clergy, gays and others at tended the ceremony, which was held at the Sacramento Commu nity Center and included folk songs, dancing and poetry. While Fado presided, the oth er ministers lined up on risers on the stage to chant the blessing that Fado proclaimed could land them all in trouble with church officials: “O God, our maker, we gladly proclaim to the world that Jeanne and Ellie are loving part ners together for life.” JACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) 'hi Methodist bishop for North- m Zalifornia filed a complaint 'uasday against 69 ministers /he) participated in a lesbian hJly union ceremony” in mass efiance of a church ban on anke-sex marriages. [Whe complaint is the first step award a possible church trial for he Rev. Don Fado, who presided t the Jan. 15 celebration, and the ither ministers. If convicted, they ould be removed from the clergy. Mishop Melvin Talbert, head of he 375-church California-Nevada Jnited Methodist Conference, said ie brought the complaint with sorrow and regret.” ' Talbert said the church’s ban in ceremonies recognizing gay re- itionships is an “act of injustice.” lut he said church law required im to act on a complaint brought Iwo pastors. “I will uphold law, but I will not silenced. I will continue speak- Jout against the law and will ntinue working to change the sition of our church to be more keeping with the teachings and inpassion of Jesus,” he said. attauon file phc an one to tli darker appi jvantages tc n the skin skin, keeps j a base tan ter, ” he sat lent where m tanning. ‘Wftu be OVfiserabCe ? 9rfSC Cepfteid ‘Variable ‘Presents: r^meConXXX March 25-28 ■iq /tea)**® > ‘m Zhf' •j & ^444 Mite :d, Christ vaiting^; e, and spo' otionallys ££l :h of us 1. Stay-at-fc 0 tad. 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