SpongeBob Squarepants auction balloons into firing

SpongeBob Squarepants auction balloons into firing
PALM HARBOR, Fla.-- A Burger King employee was fired after she refused to return a 10-foot-tall SpongeBob Squarepants balloon that she sold for $1,025 in an Internet auction.
Viney Richards, 36, said a manager gave her the 50-pound balloon after it was taken down from the restaurant's roof.
But when she asked permission to be photographed by The Tampa Tribune, which was writing a story about the balloon's listing on the Internet auction house eBay, she was told to stop talking to the media and return the balloon.
"I really like my job at Burger King," Richards said. "But I just couldn't give back the SpongeBob."
She said she was fired from her $6.15 an hour job on Wednesday.
The balloon was one of several listed on eBay. Dozens of the balloons have been stolen from the roofs of Burger Kings from Florida to Utah since the release of "The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie," authorities said.
Christmas concert
MERCER, Pa. -- The MCHS Chamber Players will have the annual candlelight Christmas concert will take place 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Helen Black Miller Memorial Chapel at 119 South Pin Str. The Players are under the direction of Frank Steams.
The evening will include a variety of seasonal selections. Troy Ayres, tenor, will be guest vocalist. The program finale will feature the Chamber Players and the audience playing and singing traditional carols, ending with a candlelit rendition of "Silent Night."
Players and audience will mingle at a post-concert reception in the chapel's social hall. Admission is free, but donations are accepted.The cast includes 75 people.
Holiday magic
WARREN --The Packard Music Hall Foundation's production of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" makes its debut at the music hall with performances at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Dec. 19 next Sunday.
Karen Horrell directs the adaptation by Jeffery Flood and S.W. Senek with Patty Latham as assistant director. Senek, a playwright, is a native of Bristolville and is now working professionally in New York City.
A timeless holiday tradition, the Packard Music Hall Foundation's production of "A Christmas Carol" celebrates the yuletide season by infusing Charles Dickens' classic tale with a little bit of holiday magic.
From amazing ghosts to a quiet little boy and his crutch, "A Christmas Carol," is packed with singing and dancing. Audiences will delight as the 75-member cast helps transform the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge through the course of one very memorable Christmas Eve night.
Tickets -- $6 for kids, $10 for students, $12 for seniors and $15 for adults -- may be purchased at the Music Hall box office, 1703 Mahoning Ave. N.W., or charged by phone at (330) 841-2931. Group rates are available for groups of 10 or more with special rates for Scouts and other formal youth organizations.
Sculpture exhibition
CLEVELAND -- The Sculpture Center will open a display this month culled from significant sculpture collections in Cleveland.
The show, Private Collections, will run Friday through Jan. 21 and includes works by internationally recognized sculptors, members of The Cleveland School and significant local artists. Many works have never been publicly exhibited.
The Sculpture Center, 1834 E. 123rd St., is presenting Private Collections to place the work of emerging artists in context with more traditional forms. The objective is to prompt discussion of what makes a lasting artistic impression and what led certain artists to success in their careers.
Quote/unquote
"I'm glad to be on the right side of the law." -- Michael Imperioli, who will play a police detective on NBC's "Law & amp; Order." He won an Emmy this year for his portrayal of mob boss Tony Soprano's hard-luck nephew on HBO's "The Sopranos."
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