Loretta Lynn, Chieftains to appear at MerleFest

Loretta Lynn, Chieftainsto appear at MerleFest
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Loretta Lynn and The Chieftains will make their debut appearances next year at MerleFest, the Americana music festival begun by bluegrass legend Doc Watson.
Dozens of acts are to perform at the 18th annual festival, from April 28 to May 1, including returning favorites Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, and Alison Krauss and Union Station.
Lynn won album of the year and artist of the year from the Americana Music Association earlier this year for "Van Lear Rose."
"The really neat thing about it is it appeals to young people and old people and everybody in between," said Claire Armbruster, MerleFest's artist-relations coordinator. "It's just a great piece of work. It's rooted in country, not the slick country of today, but the roots of country."
The Chieftains, longtime performers of Celtic music whose more recent albums have featured many popular and country artists, will headline two nights of performances.
Guests will include artists who performed on "Down the Old Plank Road," such as Skaggs, Bela Fleck, John Hiatt and Earl Scruggs.
The music festival raises money for the Eddy Merle Watson Garden for the Senses, named like the festival for Watson's son and fellow musician, who was killed in 1985 when a tractor rolled over on him.
MerleFest is held at Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro.
Accuser spots suspecton 'Blind Date' program
LOS ANGELES -- You would think that someone who's wanted for a crime, and a serious one at that, would try to keep a low profile. At the very least, he wouldn't appear on a nationally syndicated television show.
In this case, not so much.
Police in Ventura County, Calif., north of Los Angeles, have arrested Ulrick K. White, 31, on charges of rape and kidnapping stemming from a September 2003 case, TheSmokingGun.com reports. White had been at large until his accuser spotted him, no kidding, on a recent episode of "Blind Date."
The syndicated dating show, which films people on a daylong date and pokes fun at what goes on via editing and on-screen graphics, is distributed by NBC Universal. The company isn't commenting as to how White made it onto the show.
White's accuser was watching TV on Oct. 22 when she heard a female "Blind Date" contestant refer to White by his nickname, Aswah. She then videotaped the rest of the segment featuring White and gave the tape to investigators. He was arrested not long after.
Notable death
Jazz pianist and songwriter Joe Bushkin, who co-wrote Frank Sinatra's first hit and performed with some of the best jazz musicians of his time, has died of pneumonia. He was 87.
Bushkin died Wednesday at his Santa Barbara home, his daughter Nina Bushkin Judson said.
Bushkin performed and recorded with such jazz and big band greats as Fats Waller, Eddie Condon and Billie Holiday. As a member of the Tommy Dorsey band, he co-wrote the hit "Oh! Look at Me Now" with John DeVries. The song launched the career of a young Frank Sinatra, the band's vocalist.
Today's birthdays
Director Mike Nichols is 73. Country singer Stonewall Jackson is 72. Singer Eugene Pitt (The Jive Five) is 67. Singer P.J. Proby is 66. Country singer Guy Clark is 63. Actress Sally Field is 58. Pop singer-musician Glenn Frey (The Eagles) is 56. Singer Rory Block is 55. Jazz musician Arturo Sandoval is 55. California's first lady, broadcast journalist Maria Shriver, is 49. Actress Lori Singer is 47. Actor Lance Kerwin is 44. Rock musician Paul Brindley (The Sundays) is 41. Rock singer Corey Glover is 40. Actor Peter DeLuise is 38. Actress Kelly Rutherford is 36. Actor Ethan Hawke is 34. Actress Thandie Newton is 32. Model-actress Rebecca Romijn is 32. Actress Nicole Dubuc is 26. Actress Mercedes Kastner is 15.
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