Historian chooses help on biography

Historian chooseshelp on biography
MIDDLETOWN, Conn. -- Despite declining health, historian William Manchester will finish the third volume of his biography of Winston Churchill with a little help.
Paul Reid, a feature writer at The Palm Beach Post, has been chosen to work with Manchester on "The Last Lion, Volume III," the final book in Manchester's biography of Britain's World War II leader. The book's publisher, Little, Brown and Co., made the announcement Friday.
Manchester, 82, had said it was unlikely the biography would ever be finished. The professor emeritus at Wesleyan University has had two strokes.
Reid was selected after he wrote a 60-page sample chapter. Using Manchester's outline and notes, the chapter picks up where Manchester's manuscript leaves off.
Manchester also wrote speeches for John F. Kennedy, and detailed Kennedy's 1963 assassination in "The Death of a President: November 20-November 25." Other books include "American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880-1964" and "Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War."
Death Row Recordsmust pay settlement
LOS ANGELES -- Death Row Records was ordered to pay more than $162,000 to a man who said label owner Marion "Suge" Knight and his bodyguards attacked him at a recording studio in 2001.
In issuing its verdict Tuesday, the Superior Court jury did not hold Knight personally liable for the altercation with Dwayne H. Baudy, but ruled that Death Row Records was responsible for the actions of Knight's security guards.
Baudy, who underwent surgery for a ruptured disc and now walks with a cane, said he went to Con Am Studios on Nov. 6, 2001, to meet an independent rap producer. He said he and a friend got into a confrontation with Death Row's security chief, Reginald Wright Jr.
Wright said Baudy and his friend brandished guns after they were barred from entering a restricted area of the studio. Knight testified that he was not in the studio during the altercation.
The record label was ordered to pay Baudy $58,301 for medical bills and $104,340 for lost income, pain and suffering.
Would you cough upmoney for this?
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A seller on eBay tried to auction off a cough drop that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger allegedly used, then tossed into a trash can -- listing the item under the heading "Schwarzenegger's DNA."
But the ad posted on the popular Web site Friday was quickly yanked after eBay decided it fell into the category of "body parts," which the Web site will not list for sale.
The original listing was accompanied by two photos of a half-consumed cough drop and the words, "Own a piece of DNA from the man himself." The seller indicated she or he had seen Schwarzenegger discard the lozenge at a recent public event and had retrieved it.
The California governor's office confirmed Schwarzenegger routinely sucks on cough drops, but would say little more.
An eBay spokesman said the seller, identified only as "AMF814," could put the item back up for sale if he or she reclassified it as a collectible. As of Saturday, it was not among the 115 Schwarzenegger collectibles listed.
Accident changedMiss Florida's life
MIAMI -- Shauna Pender's typical day is just as busy now as it was before the car accident that almost killed her. But instead of making personal appearances at parades and youth meetings as Miss Florida 2003, her schedule is now filled with doctors' appointments. Still, she's staying optimistic and even joking about her scars and recovery, which included surgeries on her heart, chest and arms.
"I can still do hand modeling. There's nothing wrong with my hands," she quipped at a news conference Thursday beside the doctors at Jackson Memorial Hospital who saved her life.
In November, Pender was on her way to an appearance when a tractor-trailer tipped over on a Miami expressway and landed on the car in which she was riding. The 24-year-old from St. Petersburg had just been crowned Miss Florida weeks earlier. She was runner-up, but received the tiara when the original winner, Ericka Dunlap, became Miss America. Next month, a new Miss Florida will be crowned.
A Florida State University theater graduate, Pender said she's going to focus on her dream of becoming an actress. She has trouble moving her arms and fingers and because of damage done to a nerve, she needed collagen injected into her vocal cords to be able to speak.
"I used to be a singer," she said in a raspy voice. "Now, I'm a great shower singer."
Today's birthdays
Bandleader Artie Shaw is 94. Actress Betty Garrett is 85. Pianist Alicia de Larrocha is 81. Bluegrass singer Mac Wiseman is 79. Actress Barbara Barrie is 73. Actress Joan Collins is 71. Actor Charles Kimbrough is 68. Actress Lauren Chapin is 59. Country singer. Singer Luka Bloom is 49. Actor-comedian Drew Carey is 46. Country singer Shelly West is 46. Actor Linden Ashby is 44. Actress-model Karen Duffy is 43. Rock musician Phil Selway (Radiohead) is 37. Singer Lorenzo is 32. Singer Maxwell is 31. Singer Jewel is 30. Actor Adam Wylie is 20.