Mad Dog Vachon; Famed wrestler 'Mad Dog' Vachon dies at 84

Maurice Vachon

Maurice Vachon was a Canadian professional wrestler, best known by his ring name "Mad Dog" Vachon. He is the brother of wrestlers Paul and Vivian Vachon, and the uncle of wrestler Luna Vachon.

Born: September 14, 1929, Ville-Émard, Canada

Died: November 21, 2013

Height: 1.75 m

Weight: 104 kg

Siblings: Paul Vachon, Vivian Vachon

TV shows: AWA All-Star Wrestling

 

Maurice (Mad Dog) Vachon wrestled for 44 years, had about 13,000 matches and once said he did everything he could to make people hate him.

"I failed miserably," he grinningly admitted of his attempts to arouse dislike.

That's probably an understatement for the growling tough guy who achieved folk-hero status in his home province of Quebec as he pioneered the now-familiar trash-talking of opponents straight into the TV camera.

Vachon died in his sleep early Thursday at his home in Nebraska. He was 84.

One of 13 children, including his brother and sometime tag-team partner Paul (The Butcher) and wrestling sister Vivian, Maurice Vachon went on to alternate between being a ring villain and underdog hero.

While Vachon will be best remembered for his evil grins and grappling in the ring, Theriault said there's a big difference between Mad Dog and the man himself.

"He wasn't a bad guy," he said. "He had a heart as big as the world."

 

Brittany Murphy's cause of death challenged by father

The father of actress Brittany Murphy, who died in late 2009, is challenging the official cause of death.

Nearly four years after Brittany Murphy's death, the father of the Hollywood starlet has challenged the official cause amid speculation that the actress could have been poisoned.

Katy Perry 

 

Katheryn Elizabeth "Katy" Hudson, better known by her stage name Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, businesswoman, philanthropist, and actress. She was born and raised in Santa Barbara, California. 

Born: October 25, 1984 (age 29), Santa Barbara, California, United States

Spouse: Russell Brand (m. 2010–2012)

Movies and TV shows: The Smurfs 2, Good Morning America, More

Parents: Keith Hudson, Mary Perry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Following the release of her latest album, Prism, Perry is hitting the road early next year for what she is calling the Prismatic World Tour. So far, only a handful of dates in the U.K. have been unveiled, though Perry promises this is merely the tip of the candy iceberg. “DON’T WORRY – more GLOBAL tour dates coming soon! I can’t wait to get closer to ALL of you than ever before!” she tweeted.
Icona Pop will serve as the opening act across the first 11 concerts, which means they’ll be having a busy new year –they’re also booked to open up Miley Cyrus’ Bangerz tour, which launches in February.
When EW spoke to Perry about the tour, she played it relatively close to the vest, but did hint at what fans might be in store for. “I always try to take it to the next level,” she told EW. “I think people will realize what the tour is going to be like when they listen to the music.” And like her tweet, she promised some sort of intimacy. “Let’s just say I’m going to be very close to people,” she said.
 

Doris Lessing;a model for every writer coming from the back of beyond

Doris Lessing

Novelist

Doris May Lessing CH was a British novelist, poet, playwright, librettist, biographer and short story writer.

Born: October 22, 1919, Kermanshah, Iran

Died: November 17, 2013, London, United Kingdom

Children: Peter Lessing, Jean Wisdom, John Wisdom

Spouse: Gottfried Lessing (m. 1945–1949), Frank Wisdom (m. 1939–1943)

Awards: Nobel Prize in Literature, Somerset Maugham Award

Inventive, brave, down-to-earth – she never hedged her bets or pulled her punches, doing everything with all her heart.
 

Wonderful Doris Lessing has died. You never expect such rock-solid features of the literary landscape to simply vanish. It's a shock.

I first encountered Lessing on a park bench in Paris in 1963. I was a student, living on baguettes, oranges and cheese, as one did, and suffering from a stomach ailment, as one did. My pal Alison Cunningham and I had been barred from our hostel during the day, so Alison was soothing my prostrate self by reading from The Golden Notebook, which was all the rage among such as us. Who knew we were reading a book that was soon to become iconic?

As we age, we face a choice of caricatures; for women writers vis à vis younger ones, it's Cruella De Vil versus Glinda the Good. I encountered my share of Cruellas along the way, but Doris Lessing was one of the Glindas. In that respect, she was an estimable model. And she was a model also for every writer coming from the back of beyond, demonstrating – as she so signally did – that you can be a nobody from nowhere, but, with talent, courage, perseverance through hard times, and a dollop of luck, you can scale the topmost storyheights.

George Zimmerman; George Zimmerman Under Arrest Again

George Zimmerman has been charged with assault after his girlfriend called deputies to the home where they were living and claimed he pointed a shotgun at her during an argument, authorities said.

The girlfriend, Samantha Scheibe, called 911 early afternoon Monday (local time) to say that Zimmerman had smashed a glass table, threatened her with the shotgun and ultimately pushed her out of the house, according to an arrest report. After pushing her out, Zimmerman barricaded the door with furniture and refused to leave, saying that he would talk to police by phone, authorities said.

The arrest was the latest legal problem for Zimmerman since he was acquitted last summer of criminal charges in the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen. The trial stoked a discussion on racial profiling across the country.

"You point your gun at my fricking face," Samantha Scheibe is heard telling Zimmerman on a 911 call. "Get out of my house. Do not push me out of my house. Please get out of my house."

Seconds later, she told the dispatcher, "You kidding me? He pushed me out of my house and locked me out. ... He knows how to do this. He knows how to play this game." 

George Zimmerman's new mugshot from Nov. 18, 2013.

Brittany Murphy; Was Brittany Murphy murdered?

Brittany Murphy

Actress

Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack, known professionally as Brittany Murphy, was an American film and stage actress, singer, producer and voice artist.

Born: November 10, 1977, Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Died: December 20, 2009, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, United States

Spouse: Simon Monjack (m. 2007–2009)

TV shows: King of the Hill, Boy Meets World, Sister, Sister, More

Parents: Angelo Bertolotti, Sharon Murphy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Was Brittany Murphy murdered?

Actress Brittany Murphy may have been murdered, a new toxicology report suggests.

Murphy, 32, of Clueless fame, was found dead by her mother in her home in California on December 20, 2009.

The Los Angeles Coroner originally attributed her death to pneumonia and anaemia.

Hydro One; Strong winds cause damage and power outages

High winds cause damage

High winds cause damage

High winds cause damage

Thousands of people were still left in the dark Monday morning after strong winds swept across Central and Southern Ontario – including Simcoe County, York Region and Muskoka.

The heavy rain and wind gusts rolled in late Sunday evening and continued overnight causing damage and power outages across the region.

Wind gust were measured up to 104 km/h along the Georgian Bay shoreline and up to 90 km/h inland.

In Tiny Township, large trees were uprooted and came crashing down on powerlines and roadways.

"I saw the hydro lines split in half and of course boom no power, it took only seconds," said Patricia Lefaive after she watched her neighbours tree come crashing down on power lines this morning.

At the height of the storm, Hydro One says more than 100,000 customers were without power.

Hydro crews have been working around the clock assessing the damage and restoring power. Some service had been restored this morning but  by the noon hour more than 18 thousand customers were still without power across Central Ontario.

According to Hydro One, Hunstville is one of the hardest hit areas with nearly 4, 000 customers still in the dark.

Hyrdo crews were also busy today working to restore power in Aurora, Barrie, Bolton, Muskoka, Orangeville, Orillia, Parry Sound and communities in the Georgian Bay area.

At this point hydro officials don't know when power is expected to be fully restored.