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Head Full of ‘Rock’
When David Winkelman, 48, was arrested on amisdemeanor warrant in Davenport, Iowa, in September, he was stillsporting "The Tattoo." In late 2000, Winkelman, reacting to a radio"contest," had his forehead inked with the logo of radio stationKORB, "93 Rock," because he had heard on-air personalities"offer" $100,000 to anyone who would do it. Winkelman had the tattoodone before fully checking the situation, however, and the disc jockeys laterinformed him that the "contest" was a joke. Ten years later, the"93 Rock" format is no longer around, but Winkelman's foreheadremains tattooed.
Chutzpah!
(1) The armed robber who knocked off a Wendy'sin Atlanta onJuly 31 still has not been apprehended. Police said that after the crime, theman called the store to ridicule the staff for having so little cash:"Next time, there better be more than $586," he reportedly said. (2)Ronald White, 35, arrested in Cinnaminson, N.J., in July, and charged withshoplifting, was released after posting $400 bail. Only afterward did policerealize that some of the money was counterfeit. Five days later, White wasarrested again when he returned to the station to demand a partial refund for"overpaying" the bail.
Least Competent Criminals
No Time for Disguises: Larry Shawn Taylor, 18,was arrested in Seattlein Septemberand it was rather easy for police to identify him. Two victims hadreported being robbed by a man with "GET MONEY" shaved into his hairon one side and "GET" tattooed on his right hand and"MONEY" tattooed on the left. (At least Taylor did not claim that someone else musthave had the same configuration.)
Undignified Deaths
(1) In August, a 29-year-old man who was parta group of 12 "ghost hunters" on a field trip in Iredell County, N.C.,was killed by a train. The 12 were investigating a rumored "ghosttrain" that killed 30 people in an 1891 crash and supposedly returns everyyear on the anniversary date. (2) A 49-year-old doctor in Bakersfield, Calif.,whose relationship with her boyfriend was described as "on-again,off-again," was killed in August when, after the boyfriend had locked herout of his house, she tried to enter by sliding down the chimney, where she gotstuck and later asphyxiated.
Least Competent Dictator
In September, when Ms. Nomatter Tagarira wassentenced to 39 months in jail for fraud, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe andseveral officials were hoping to close the book on an embarrassing episode. In2007, Tagarira had convinced them that she had the abilityby chanting into arockto find diesel fuel in the ground and make it shoot to the surface. Ofcourse, this could only be accomplished because Tagarira had henchmen hidebehind bushes and use a pump. But it convinced officials to reward her with a$2.7 million fee and the use of a 50-vehicle convoy for her missions. Her rusewas not discovered until a year later.
Great Art!
When David Winkelman, 48, was arrested on amisdemeanor warrant in Davenport, Iowa, in September, he was stillsporting "The Tattoo." In late 2000, Winkelman, reacting to a radio"contest," had his forehead inked with the logo of radio stationKORB, "93 Rock," because he had heard on-air personalities"offer" $100,000 to anyone who would do it. Winkelman had the tattoodone before fully checking the situation, however, and the disc jockeys laterinformed him that the "contest" was a joke. Ten years later, the"93 Rock" format is no longer around, but Winkelman's foreheadremains tattooed.
Chutzpah!
(1) The armed robber who knocked off a Wendy'sin Atlanta onJuly 31 still has not been apprehended. Police said that after the crime, theman called the store to ridicule the staff for having so little cash:"Next time, there better be more than $586," he reportedly said. (2)Ronald White, 35, arrested in Cinnaminson, N.J., in July, and charged withshoplifting, was released after posting $400 bail. Only afterward did policerealize that some of the money was counterfeit. Five days later, White wasarrested again when he returned to the station to demand a partial refund for"overpaying" the bail.
Least Competent Criminals
No Time for Disguises: Larry Shawn Taylor, 18,was arrested in Seattlein Septemberand it was rather easy for police to identify him. Two victims hadreported being robbed by a man with "GET MONEY" shaved into his hairon one side and "GET" tattooed on his right hand and"MONEY" tattooed on the left. (At least Taylor did not claim that someone else musthave had the same configuration.)
Undignified Deaths
(1) In August, a 29-year-old man who was parta group of 12 "ghost hunters" on a field trip in Iredell County, N.C.,was killed by a train. The 12 were investigating a rumored "ghosttrain" that killed 30 people in an 1891 crash and supposedly returns everyyear on the anniversary date. (2) A 49-year-old doctor in Bakersfield, Calif.,whose relationship with her boyfriend was described as "on-again,off-again," was killed in August when, after the boyfriend had locked herout of his house, she tried to enter by sliding down the chimney, where she gotstuck and later asphyxiated.
Least Competent Dictator
In September, when Ms. Nomatter Tagarira wassentenced to 39 months in jail for fraud, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe andseveral officials were hoping to close the book on an embarrassing episode. In2007, Tagarira had convinced them that she had the abilityby chanting into arockto find diesel fuel in the ground and make it shoot to the surface. Ofcourse, this could only be accomplished because Tagarira had henchmen hidebehind bushes and use a pump. But it convinced officials to reward her with a$2.7 million fee and the use of a 50-vehicle convoy for her missions. Her rusewas not discovered until a year later.
Great Art!
- In October, the award-winning London theater company Duckie announcedplans for a June 2011 production, Lullaby,at the Barbican Pit, that would feature music and performances so soothing thatpatrons will be encouraged to attend in pajamas and lounge overnight inbed-seats, with an early morning shower included in the ticket price of 42pounds ($66). Producer Simon Casson noted that, irrespective of the play, it isalmost impossible to find overnight facilities in central London for that price.
- A September one-woman "dance" recital of performer-writer AnnLiv Young as a naked "Cinderella" at a theater in Brooklyn, N.Y.,ran overtime because Young could not answer a scripted call of nature, whichwas to have been performed live on the stage. According to an incredulous New York Times reviewer, Young soughttips from the audience to get her bowels moving, but finally gave up and endedthe performance. The reviewer cited the show's "many layers offailure."
