Tiger wins PGA Championship by 2 shots By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer

Tiger wins PGA Championship by 2 shots By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer
46 minutes ago



TULSA, Okla. - A season of first-time major winners ended with a familiar champion — Tiger Woods, who seems to win them all.

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Challenged only briefly Sunday along the back nine of steamy Southern Hills, Woods captured the PGA Championship to win at least one major for the third straight season and run his career total to 13 as he moves closer to the standard set by Jack Nicklaus.

Woods closed with a 1-under 69 for a two-shot victory over Woody Austin, a gritty journeyman whose consolation prize was earning a spot on the U.S. team for the Presidents Cup.

Ernie Els also made a brief run at Woods, but the ending was all too familiar.

The only thing different about this title was how it ended. Woods became the first major champion in seven tries to make a par on the 72nd hole at Southern Hills. And it was his first major as a father, walking into the scoring room with wife Elin holding their 2-month-old daughter, Sam Alexis.

Naturally, the kid was dressed in red.

"That's a feeling I've never experienced before," Woods said. "To have her here, it brings chills to me. I was surprised she was out here, to see her and Elin there. It's just so cool."

Woods, who has never lost a tournament when leading by more than one going into the last round, stretched his three-shot lead to five with back-to-back birdies that appeared to siphon all the drama out of the final major of the year. Austin made a surprising charge, however, and Woods three-putted for bogey on the 14th that dropped his lead to one.

That was as close as it got.

Woods hit two perfect shots on the 15th and holed a 10-footer for birdie, pointing to the cup after it fell.

"Winning becomes almost a habit," Els said after his 66. "Look at Tiger."

Woods, who finished at 8-under 272, now has more majors than the rest of the top 10 in the world combined. At age 31, he is well ahead of the pace Nicklaus set when he won his record 18 professional majors. Nicklaus was 35 when he won his 13th.

Austin closed with a 67 and earned plenty of crowd support as the working class hero.

Austin, a 43-year-old former bank teller playing in only his 15th major, had a 12-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole that would have tied him for the lead, but it slid by on the left. He never seriously threatened birdie the rest of the way in closing with a 67.

The highlight was a 60-foot chip-in for birdie on the 12th, with Austin tugging on his ear to get the crowd to pump it up.

"I was trying to get them to go crazy for someone else, so he'd know there's someone else out here," Austin said. "There's no roar like his. It was nice to hear the loudest one I've ever heard for me."

But it wasn't enough.

After his three-putt bogey on the 14th, Woods hit every fairway and every green the rest of the way. Woods' final stroke was a 3-foot par on the 18th hole, and he took his time. In the last major at Southern Hills, Retief Goosen three-putted from 12 feet that forced him to win the U.S. Open the following day in a playoff.

Woods removed the ball from the cup and stuck it in his pocket, then removed his cap and thrust both arms in the air as sweat poured down his face from a fourth straight day with temperatures topping 100.

He won for the fifth time this year — no one else has won more than twice — and for the second straight week, coming off an eight-shot victory in the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone.

Stephen Ames, who played in the final group with Woods, made bogey on the first two holes and wound up with a 76.

Arron Oberholser settled down after a bogey-bogey start for a 69 that gave him a tie for fourth at 1-under 279 and secured a spot in the Masters next year. John Senden shot 71 and also finished at 279.

Els said if had been watching from home, he would have bet the house on Woods winning his 13th major. Inside the ropes, the Big Easy played as though he had an ace up his sleeve. Birdies on two of the first five holes at least got his name on the leaderboard, and Els kept plugging away with another birdie on the eighth that briefly drew him to within two shots.

Woods was two groups behind, and after a sluggish start, he began to separate himself from his challengers. He followed a 5-foot birdie on the seventh with a 25-foot birdie putt from just off the green at the par-5 eighth. Woods backpedaled as the ball drew near the hole, then slammed his fist in celebration.

But his knee buckled slightly on the slope, and he appeared to wince. His walk was steady down the ninth fairway, but that five-shot lead was anything but that.

Els continued to gamble, waiting for the 10th green to clear and belting driver on the 366-yard dogleg to just left of the green, leaving him a simple up-and-down for birdie. And even though he missed a 6-foot birdie on the 11th and took bogey on the 12th with an approach into the back bunker, the South African didn't back down.

He two-putted for birdie on the 13th, then hit his tee shot on the 14th about 4 feet behind the hole for another birdie to reach 6 under, only two shots behind. And when Woods three-putted the 14th, the lead was a single shot.

"I felt like, you know, I got myself into this mess, now I've got to go earn my way out of it," Woods said. "I did some serious yelling at myself going to the 15th tee."

The bigger threat turned out to be Austin.

Wearing the same shirt he had on when he closed with a 62 to win in Memphis, he ran off three straight birdies starting at No. 11, the most unlikely coming at No. 12 when he chipped in from the front of the green to a back pin.

The cheers died in the final hour and the outcome was inevitable.

Until proven otherwise, Woods simply doesn't lose when he has the lead going into the final round. He took control of this tournament with his record-tying 63 in the second round, and became the fifth player to shoot 63 in a major and go on to win.

Still all shook up over Elvis, 30 years after his death by Aisling Cordon Maki

Still all shook up over Elvis, 30 years after his death by Aisling Cordon Maki
2 hours, 48 minutes ago



MEMPHIS, United States (AFP) - Thirty years after Elvis left the building for the last time, the world is still all shook up over the King of rock and roll.

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While his music is no longer topping the charts, the legend of Elvis Presley continues to draw in new fans, and his iconic image graces everything from the tackiest of ceramic busts to multimillion dollar ad campaigns.

Elvis defined what it meant to be a pop star, and his swagger and croonings are imitated by aspiring front-men and impersonators alike.

He was the poor boy made good, the white boy who brought black music into the mainstream, the sex symbol who was a mama's boy, the rebel who remained a patriot, the star who died young as fame and fortune pushed him to drugs and depression.

"Elvis is the greatest cultural force in the twentieth century," American composer Leonard Bernstein once said.

"He introduced the beat to everything, music, language, clothes, it's a whole new social revolution."

Tens of thousands of devotees will make the pilgrimage to Graceland this week to mark the 30th anniversary of his death on Thursday.

It is a trek made by some 600,000 visitors annually, including Japan's former prime minister and ardent Elvis fan Junichiro Koizumi, who took a tour of the jungle room last year with US President George Bush while on a state visit.

While Elvis was not the first to blend blues and country - musical styles segregated by the same social forces that kept Southern blacks out of white swimming pools - he was the first to truly popularize rock and roll with his breakthrough 1956 hit "Heartbreak Hotel."

At a time when teenagers were beginning to challenge the authority of their parents, Elvis was a rebel and a threat: he was shot from the waist up on his first appearance on the Ed Sullivan television show to avoid broadcasting his "obscene" hip gyrations.

A devout Christian, he once asked fellow rock'n'roller Jerry Lee Lewis if they were playing the devil's music.

"Why boy, you are the devil!" Lewis said.

His reputation became much more benign after he served two years in the military in Germany and began appearing in a series of Hollywood films like Blue Hawaii and Jailhouse Rock.

But even as Elvis descended into the kitsch of his rhinestone-studded jumpsuits and Las Vegas shows, he continued to produce classic songs like "In the Ghetto" and "Suspicious Minds."

And the rock stars who replaced him as the icons of subsequent generations - Bob Dylan, Al Green, Elton John, the Beatles, punk rockers the Clash, and U2 - continue to pay tribute to the king.

"Before Elvis, there was nothing," John Lennon once said.

Decades later, U2 singer Bono wrote in Rolling Stone magazine, "Elvis changed everything -- musically, sexually, politically."

Elvis remains the best-selling solo artist of all time with over a billion records sold worldwide. He is arguably pulling in more money now than he did at the height of his career, with annual earnings of between 40 and 50 million dollars.

He topped the charts ahead of the 25th anniversary of his death in 2002 after a remix of his "A Little Less Conversation" was used by Nike in its World Cup advertising campaign.

An aggressive global marketing campaign is underway to mark the 30th anniversary.

Newly reissued CD box sets, "deluxe edition" DVD releases of Elvis films, and even a limited edition Reese's "King" sized peanut butter and banana cup are being pushed into stores.

Carnival Cruise lines is offering an all-Elvis cruise at sea, as Graceland prepares for a 250 million dollar renovation of its tourist complex under the new owner of Elvis Presley Enterprises, Robert Sillerman, a billionaire Elvis fan who also owns TV hit American Idol.

There is an enormous audience for Elvis merchandise, most notably among the more than 600 active official Elvis Fan clubs in 45 countries -- not bad for an artist who never toured outside North America.

There are thousands of Elvis impersonators or "tribute artists" worldwide, including the Mexican El Vez, lesbian Elvis Herselvis, and skydivers The Flying Elvi.

Thirty years after his death, Elvis sightings and conspiracy theories live on. People everywhere continue to be mesmerized by the magic and mayhem of Elvis the man and Elvis the legend.

Perhaps Bruce Springsteen put it best when he said "... it was like he came along and whispered some dream in everybody's ear, and somehow we all dreamed it."

More smoothies cutting the calories By ELIZABETH M. GILLESPIE, AP Business Writer

More smoothies cutting the calories By ELIZABETH M. GILLESPIE, AP Business Writer
1 hour, 30 minutes ago



SEATTLE - Concerned about losing the calorie-conscious, smoothie makers are whipping up no-sugar and faux-sugar blends.

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That Orange Twister will saddle you with just 140 calories.

Smoothie companies are increasingly focusing much of their marketing muscle on winning over the ultra-health-conscious consumer — especially those trying to eat less sugar.

"There are a lot of folks that aren't hindered by high sugar, but we do know that there's a significant percentage that are, and we think that number's growing all the time," said Jim Baskett, an executive with the Seattle-area chain Emerald City Smoothie.

Many makers are turning to Splenda, the zero-calorie artificial sweetener. Some have drinks that are only fruit and juice. Executives at several smoothie companies say the low-sugar offerings have fared impressively — right alongside popular higher-cal versions.

The smoothie industry has been on an upward climb in recent years, with many chains big and small expanding their reach with new stores.

In 1997, there were just under 1,000 juice and smoothie bars in the U.S., pulling in an estimated $340 million in revenue. Today, there are roughly 5,000 of them, with 2007 sales projected at $2.5 billion, according to Juice Gallery Multimedia, a publishing and consulting firm that provides support services for the businesses.

In the beginning, many customers were health nuts. But the appeal now is much more mainstream and many of the offerings defy a healthy label by calorie count alone.

Take The Blender, a 1,270-calorie whopper made with chocolate or vanilla protein, peanut butter, banana, milk and ice cream, made by Emerald City. And there's Anne Kessler's favorite, the Mocha Bliss, another of the chain's more indulgent offerings.

"It just tastes good," she said, sipping down a tall one recently in her neighborhood smoothie shop.

But for her 2-year-old daughter, Kessler only orders from the low-sugar menu. Usually it's a banana-strawberry-papaya concoction with less than half the calories of her chocolatey choice.

Emerald City, which is gearing up to expand beyond a handful of Western states into Hawaii and New York, is among the Splenda users. So is Jamba Juice, a company based in the San Francisco area that last year also introduced a line with no added sweeteners.

Smoothie King, headquartered in the New Orleans area, sweetens many of its drinks with honey and raw cane sugar. But it allows customers to "Make It Skinny" by skipping the sugar, with a Splenda option.

Freshens Smoothie Company, a unit of Atlanta-based Freshens Quality Brands, offers some Splenda-sweetened drinks and prominently posts on its menu boards that 21-ounce servings of each contain less than 155 calories.

Along with the trend toward Splenda are other new ingredients — unrelated to calorie counts — that smoothie makers are hoping will entice. There's acai (pronounced AH-sigh-ee), a Brazilian berry touted as an antioxidant. There are plant sterols, soy and something called conjugated linoleic acid. Freshens is considering tweaking its yogurt base to add probiotics, a trendy food additive that some claim boost the immune system.

In general, consumer health advocates applaud efforts to make smoothies healthier. But serving sizes remain a frustration for the experts.

"When I was growing up, we had 6-ounce servings of orange juice. ... People don't drink 6 ounces of anything anymore," said Marion Nestle, a nutrition expert and professor at New York University.

The standard size of smoothies in many stores is 24 ounces.

Bonnie Liebman, director of nutrition for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a health advocacy group, questions why people seem so eager to gulp their fruits in giant single servings rather than eating them whole — an apple here, an orange there.

"The idea is to fill up on fruit and vegetables so you have less room for calorie-dense food," she said.

Smoothie companies say most of their customers use smoothies as meal replacements.

___

On the Net:

Emerald City Smoothie: http://www.emeraldcitysmoothie.com

Jamba Juice: http://www.jambajuice.com

Smoothie King: http://www.smoothieking.com

Freshens: http://freshens.com

Center for Science in the Public Interest: http://www.cspinet.org

Juice Gallery Multimedia: http://www.juicegallery.com

Astronauts zoom in on shuttle gash By MARCIA DUNN, AP Aerospace Writer

Astronauts zoom in on shuttle gash By MARCIA DUNN, AP Aerospace Writer
1 hour, 21 minutes ago



CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A close-up laser inspection by Endeavour's astronauts Sunday revealed that a 3 1/2-inch-long gouge penetrates all the way through the thermal shielding on the shuttle's belly, and had NASA urgently calculating whether risky spacewalk repairs are needed.

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A chunk of insulating foam smacked the shuttle at liftoff last week in an unbelievably unlucky ricochet off the fuel tank and carved out the gouge.

The unevenly shaped gouge — which straddles two side-by-side thermal tiles and the corner of a third — is 3 1/2 inches long and just over 2 inches wide. Sunday's inspection showed that the damage goes all the way through the 1-inch-thick tiles, exposing the felt material sandwiched between the tiles and the shuttle's aluminum frame.

Mission managers expect to decide Monday, or Tuesday at the latest, whether to send astronauts out to patch the gouge. Engineers are trying to determine whether the marred area can withstand the searing heat of atmospheric re-entry at flight's end. Actual heating tests will be conducted on similarly damaged samples.

"We have really prepared for exactly this case, since Columbia," said John Shannon, chairman of the mission management team. "We have spent a lot of money in the program and a lot of time and a lot of people's efforts to be ready to handle exactly this case."

The damaged thermal tiles are located near the right main landing gear door. In a stroke of luck, they're right beneath the aluminum framework for the right wing, which would offer extra protection during the ride back to Earth.

This area is subjected to as much as 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit during re-entry. A hole, if large and deep enough, could lead to another Columbia-type disaster. Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from the inside out. A foam strike at liftoff caused the gash.

Teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan — who was the backup for Challenger's Christa McAuliffe in 1986 — conducted the slow and painstaking survey, along with crewmate Tracy Caldwell. They used the 100-foot robotic arm and extension boom that flew up on Endeavour, steering the instrument to a spot just above the gouge and keeping it hovered there.

Laser sensors and cameras zoomed in on the damage, white and easily visible against the black tiles, from a variety of views.

Four other damaged areas also were scanned. Engineers believe the piece of foam struck the shuttle's underside, creating the big gouge, then skimmed along the bottom and nicked it in at least three spots. Those smaller gouges pose no threat, Shannon said.

The foam came off a bracket on the external fuel tank 58 seconds after Wednesday's launch, fell down onto a strut on the tank, then bounced up, right into Endeavour's belly. Ice apparently formed before liftoff near the bracket, which helps hold the long fuel feed line to the tank, and caused the foam to pop off when subjected to the vibrations of launch.

It's possible some ice was attached to the foam, which would have made the impact even harder. The debris that came off is believed to have been grapefruit-sized.

These brackets have lost foam in previous launches, a concern for NASA, Shannon said. A switch to titanium brackets, eliminating foam, will not occur before next year.

Shannon said he did not know whether the recurring foam problem would delay the next shuttle flight, currently scheduled for October.

"We have a lot of discussion to have before we decide to fly the next tank," he said.

The inspection consumed much of the astronauts' day. On Monday, two of them will go back out for the second spacewalk of the mission to replace a broken gyroscope at the international space station.

Endeavour has been docked at the space station since Friday. It will remain there until Aug. 20 for a record 10-day stay. Mission managers on Sunday approved the prolonged visit based on the successful testing of a new power transfer system flying on Endeavour. The system is drawing power from the station and converting it for use aboard the shuttle.

On the space station, meanwhile, two cosmonauts continued repairs to a Russian computer system that failed during shuttle Atlantis' visit in June. Condensation from an air conditioning unit apparently is collecting behind the panels where the computer equipment is located.

And a U.S. command-and-control computer that shut down during Saturday's spacewalk was working again Sunday.

___

On the Net:

NASA: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov

___

Rasha Madkour and Liz Austin Peterson contributed to this report from Houston.

Lending woes hit commercial real estate market By Ilaina Jonas

Lending woes hit commercial real estate market By Ilaina Jonas
2 hours, 56 minutes ago



NEW YORK (Reuters) - The havoc in the credit markets could reduce prices that office, industrial, apartment and shopping-center properties have commanded over the past few years.

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"The sale prices of assets are going to decrease," said Robert Horowitz, of Cooper-Horowitz Inc, which arranges financing. "Prices are a reflection of what people can borrow. The buyers can't get the level of financing that they were able to obtain six months ago."

Additionally, commercial mortgage interest rates have gone up a minimum of half a percentage point, he said.

Because of the turmoil in credit markets that started in the residential mortgage sector, commercial mortgage lenders are charging higher interest rates and lending lower portions of the purchase price -- despite lower vacancy rates and higher rental rates.

During the past couple of years, cheap money and the demand for commercial real estate allowed buyers to finance their investments by borrowing as much as 95 percent of the purchases.

About 40 percent of those mortgages were from the start headed for the commercial mortgage-backed securities market, usually the cheapest way to borrow money.

In the commercial mortgage-backed securities process, fixed-rate senior mortgages are issued, sold and pooled to create a base on which sponsors issue the CMBS bonds. The pool sponsors, usually investment banks, make their money selling the bonds at a higher price than the price they pay for the mortgages.

However, because of the volatile credit markets, issuers have had a difficult time selling the bonds at the prices they had baked in when they bought the loans. The bond prices are based on a rate above the benchmark swap rate. The spread has been widening, driving down the bond prices.

"The spread widening is because the investors are just not there, so you have to offer a higher spread to induce people to buy the paper," said Dennis Irvin, senior managing director of CIT Commercial Real Estate. "It's not because suddenly you're seeing weakness in the office, retail or apartment sectors."

"It's difficult to price the deal," said Wachovia senior analyst Brian Lancaster. "Nobody wants to make a loan that they're going to lose money on. Better not to make any loan. You're not sure you can sell it."

Lancaster estimated that new loans in the CMBS pools have raised some borrowing costs 80 basis points to 180 basis points -- or as much as nearly 2 percentage points.

It also could delay projects by large players such as Brookfield Properties (BPO.TO), experts said.

Still, deals are getting done.

"Any bank that I'm aware that has a loan under application, the banks are fulfilling their obligations and closing the loans," Horowitz said. "I think the banks are hesitant to issue new ones, and if they do they're not setting a price. They'll set a price a few days to closing so they don't misprice the deal."

But borrowers with good histories looking to finance strong deals can still get loans, experts said.

"There is still capital available for well-underwritten deals, said William Rudin, president Rudin Management Co., a New York real estate dynasty.

"We're being told there is capital but it's more expensive than it was two or three months ago. For some people the window is closed," said Rudin, whose firm also is the joint-venture partner in the Reuters Building in Times Square.

To make up for the amount the CMBS bank loans won't cover, borrowers are searching for other lenders in the business of making up the difference. Mezzanine financing as it is called, usually comes at a higher rate.

"I've gotten five calls this morning on deals, each one of us getting 10 new calls a day, because people are saying you're not a CMBS lender," said Irvin, of CIT Commercial Real Estate, a unit of CIT Group Inc (CIT.N). CIT Commercial Real Estate plays in the mezzanine financing sector.

"It's not a matter that deals are not getting done. It's that they're getting done in other shops," he said.

(See www.reutersrealestate.com for the new global service for real estate professionals from Reuters)

More trouble ahead for Wall Street? By Kristina Cooke

More trouble ahead for Wall Street? By Kristina Cooke
2 hours, 54 minutes ago



NEW YORK (Reuters) - It will be a weekend of high anxiety for investors on Wall Street, as they brace themselves for what will likely be another rollercoaster ride for the battered financial markets.

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Any more signs of spreading losses tied to risky subprime mortgages are likely to send U.S. stocks into more of a tailspin next week, exacerbating calls for the Federal Reserve to ride to the rescue.

Global equity markets were roiled this week, as fears that a widening fallout from worsening lending conditions could take a bite out of economic growth and corporate profits swept through financial markets.

Worries that another shoe may drop in the global credit crisis escalated on Thursday, after French bank BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) froze three debt funds because of the turmoil in subprime markets. And analysts say there may be more trouble ahead.

"What will drive the market next week? One word: Subprime. We're in the midst of it," said Chip Hanlon, president of Delta Global Advisors, Inc. in Huntington Beach, California.

"The only question is whether the Fed will let it run its course or will it come to the rescue -- and it is likely that it will come to the rescue."

MORE CASH FROM THE FED?

Central banks rushed to pump extra cash into the financial system this week in an attempt to temper fears about the liquidity crisis that is gripping investors worldwide.

The U.S. Federal Reserve provided the banking system with a total of $38 billion in three separate moves on Friday, the largest amount of liquidity since the days after the September 11 attacks six years ago, adding ample funds for the second day running as financial markets fretted over credit conditions.

The Fed also took the unusual step of making a rare statement after the first operation -- the first time it's done so since the September 11, 2001, terror attacks -- in an effort to calm investors' fears.

"Depending on the level of credit stress next week, you could see more liquidity injections. The Fed has already shown that if they have to, they will," said Joseph Quinlan, chief market strategist at Banc of America Capital Management, in New York.

By the closing bell, the S&P 500 squeaked out a gain of 0.55 of a point, or 0.04 percent, to finish Friday's wild ride at 1,453.64, off its session low at 1,429.74. The Dow average sharply cut its earlier losses and ended down 31.14 points, or 0.23 percent, at 13,239.54. Earlier, the Dow had fallen more than 200 points to a session low at 13,057.86. The Nasdaq closed at 2,544.89, down 11.60 points, or off 0.45 percent. The Nasdaq fell as low as 2,503.16 during the earlier plunge.

Despite the market's slide on Thursday and Friday, all three major U.S. stock indexes ended this volatile week higher: The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) gained 0.4 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 index (.SPX) advanced 1.4 percent and the Nasdaq composite index (.IXIC) rose 1.3 percent.

For the year so far, stocks are still in positive territory. The Dow is up 6.2 percent, while the S&P 500 is up 2.5 percent and the Nasdaq is up 5.4 percent.

ON INFLATION WATCH

While a heavy week for economic data may pale against the backdrop of liquidity concerns, inflation data could be important in setting a parameter for what the Federal Reserve will do next.

"If you get strong inflation numbers, it puts the Fed in a difficult position, as the market wants them to cut, but they've made it very clear that their priority is inflation," said Quinlan of Banc of America Capital Management.

"But if the data shows lower-than-expected inflation, it would allow the Fed to cut sooner rather than later."

On Wednesday, the closely watched core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is expected to rise 0.2 percent in July, matching June's gain. The producer price index, due on Tuesday, is expected to climb 0.2 percent.

Consumer confidence numbers will also be closely watched, with the Reuters/University of Michigan Consumer Surveys' preliminary August reading on the consumer sentiment index due on Friday. Economists surveyed by Reuters expect the consumer sentiment index to slip to 88.0 in August from July's 90.4.

"The fear is that the credit crunch means people won't be able to draw equity from their homes and spend as lavishly as they have- so any weakness in the consumer confidence will confirm that fear." said Delta Global Advisor's Hanlon.

Investors may eye U.S. retail sales data for July on Monday for clues on changes in consumer habits, as well as earnings updates from retailers Home Depot Inc (HD.N) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N), both due on Tuesday.

With the current focus on the housing sector, July housing starts on Thursday are likely to come under close scrutiny. The Reuters poll of economists showed that July housing starts are expected to decline to an annual rate of 1.405 million units from 1.467 million in June. Building permits for July also are likely to decline to an annual pace of 1.400 million units from 1.413 million the previous month.

Thursday's economic numbers will include the weekly jobless claims and the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's index for August.

(Wall St Week Ahead runs weekly. Any questions or comments on this column can be e-mailed to: kristina.cooke(at)reuters.com)

Entertainer, businessman Griffin dies By BOB THOMAS, Associated Press Writer

Entertainer, businessman Griffin dies By BOB THOMAS, Associated Press Writer
30 minutes ago



LOS ANGELES - Merv Griffin, the big band-era crooner turned impresario who parlayed his "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune" game shows into a multimillion-dollar empire, died Sunday. He was 82.

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Griffin died of prostate cancer, according to a statement from his family that was released by Marcia Newberger, spokeswoman for The Griffin Group/Merv Griffin Entertainment.

From his beginning as a $100-a-week San Francisco radio singer, Griffin moved on as vocalist for Freddy Martin's band, sometime film actor, TV game and talk show host, and made Forbes' list of richest Americans several times.

"The Merv Griffin Show" lasted more than 20 years, and Griffin said his capacity to listen contributed to his success.

"If the host is sitting there thinking about his next joke, he isn't listening," Griffin reasoned in a recent interview.

But his biggest break financially came from inventing and producing "Jeopardy" in the 1960s and "Wheel of Fortune" in the 1970s. After they had become the hottest game shows on television, Griffin sold the rights to Coca Cola's Columbia Pictures Television Unit for $250 million in 1986, retaining a share of the profits. He also continued to receive royalties for the popular "Jeopardy!" theme song, which he wrote.

"My father was a visionary," Griffin's son, Tony Griffin, said in a statement issued Sunday. "He loved business and continued his many projects and holdings even while hospitalized."

When Griffin entered a hospital a month ago, he was working on the first week of production of a new syndicated game show, "Merv Griffin's Crosswords," his son said.

Griffin was also a longtime friend of former President Reagan and his wife, Nancy.

"This is heartbreaking, not just for those of us who loved Merv personally, but for everyone around the world who has known Merv through his music, his television shows and his business," Nancy Reagan said in a statement.

She said Griffin "was there for me every day after Ronnie died" in 2004.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recalled Sunday that his very first U.S. talk show appearance was on "The Merv Griffin Show" in 1974.

"We became good friends, and Merv has always been a big part of my success," the former actor and bodybuilding champion said. "He helped me gain exposure to American audiences and whenever I had a new movie in the works, Merv always took time out from his busy schedule to call or send me a note to say congratulations and wish me good luck."

The governor said Griffin "excelled at whatever he put his mind to, will remain a legend in the hearts and minds of Californians forever."

"Wheel of Fortune" host Pat Sajak said he had lost "a dear friend."

"He meant so much to my life, and it's hard to imagine it without him," Sajak said.

For several years, Griffin was frequently seen in the company of actress Eva Gabor, who died in 1995.

"I'm very upset at the news. He was a very close friend of ours, a good friend of mine and a good friend of Eva's," Gabor's sister, Zsa Zsa Gabor, told The Associated Press by phone Sunday. "He was just a wonderful, wonderful man."

Griffin started putting the proceeds from selling "Jeopardy" and "Wheel" in treasury bonds, stocks and other investments, but went into real estate and other ventures because "I was never so bored in my life."

"I said `I'm not going to sit around and clip coupons for the rest of my life,'" he recalled in 1989. "That's when Barron Hilton said `Merv, do you want to buy the Beverly Hilton?' I couldn't believe it."

Griffin bought the slightly passe hotel for $100.2 million and completely refurbished it for $25 million. Then he made a move for control of Resorts International, which operated hotels and casinos from Atlantic City to the Caribbean.

That touched off a feud with real estate tycoon Donald Trump. Griffin eventually acquired Resorts for $240 million, even though Trump had held 80 percent of the voting stock.

"I love the gamesmanship," he told Life magazine in 1988. "This may sound strange, but it parallels the game shows I've been involved in."

In recent years, Griffin also rated frequent mentions in the sports pages as a successful race horse owner. His colt Stevie Wonderboy, named for entertainer Stevie Wonder, won the $1.5 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile in 2005.

His 1997 game show, "Click," also introduced a young host named Ryan Seacrest to the public.

In 1948, Freddy Martin hired Griffin to join his band at Los Angeles' Coconut Grove at $150 a week. With Griffin doing the singing, the band had a smash hit with "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Cocoanuts," a 1949 novelty song sung in a cockney accent.

Doris Day and her producer husband, Marty Melcher, saw the band in Las Vegas and recommended Griffin to Warner Bros., which offered a contract. After a bit in "By the Light of the Silvery Moon," starring Day and Gordon MacRae, he had a bigger role with Kathryn Grayson in "So This Is Love." But after a few more trivial roles, he asked out of his contract.

In 1954, Griffin went to New York where he appeared in a summer replacement musical show on CBS-TV, a revival of "Finian's Rainbow," and a music show on CBS radio. He followed with a few TV game show hosting jobs, notably "Play Your Hunch," which premiered in 1958 and ran through the early 1960s. His glibness led to stints as substitute for Jack Paar on "Tonight."

When Paar retired in 1962, Griffin was considered a prime candidate to replace him. Johnny Carson was chosen instead. NBC gave Griffin a daytime version of "Tonight," but he was canceled for being "too sophisticated" for the housewife audience.

Westinghouse Broadcasting introduced "The Merv Griffin Show" in 1965 on syndicated TV. Griffin never underestimated the intelligence of his audience, offering such figures as philosopher Bertrand Russell, cellist Pablo Casals and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer-philosopher-historians Will and Ariel Durant as well as movie stars and entertainers.

CBS tried to challenge Carson with a late-night show starring Griffin, but nothing stopped Carson and Griffin returned to Westinghouse.

A lifelong crossword puzzle fan, Griffin devised a game show, "Word for Word," in 1963. It faded after one season, then his wife, Julann, suggested another show.

"Julann's idea was a twist on the usual question-answer format of the quiz shows of the Fifties," he wrote in his autobiography "Merv." "Her idea was to give the contestants the answer, and they had to come up with the appropriate question."

"Jeopardy" started in 1964 and "Wheel of Fortune" was begun in 1975.

Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. was born in San Mateo, south of San Francisco on July 6, 1925, the son of a stockbroker. An aunt, Claudia Robinson, taught him to play piano at age 4, and he soon was staging shows on the back porch.

"Every Saturday I had a show, recruiting all the kids in the block as either stagehands, actors and audience, or sometimes all three," he wrote in his 1980 autobiography. "I was the producer, always the producer."

After studying at San Mateo Junior College and the University of San Francisco, Griffin quit school to apply for a job as pianist at KFRC radio in San Francisco. The station needed a vocalist instead. He auditioned and was hired.

Griffin attracted the interest of RKO studio boss William Dozier and his wife, Joan Fontaine.

At the time, Griffin weighed 235 pounds. "As soon as I walked in their hotel room, I could see their faces fall," he recalled. Shortly afterward, singer Joan Edwards told him: "Your voice is terrific, but the blubber has got to go." Griffin slimmed down, and he spent the rest of his life adding and taking off weight.

Griffin and Julann Elizabeth Wright were married in 1958, and their son, Anthony, was born the following year. They divorced in 1973 because of "irreconcilable differences."

He never remarried.

Besides his son, Griffin is survived by his daughter-in-law, Tricia, and two grandchildren.

The family said an invitation-only funeral Mass will be held at a later date at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills.

___

Associated Press writers Beth Harris and Jeff Wilson contributed to this story.

Obama's wife decries blackness question 59 minutes ago

Obama's wife decries blackness question 59 minutes ago



CHICAGO - The wife of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama on Sunday admonished those who question her biracial husband's credentials as a black man, calling the issue "nonsense."

"We're still playing around with the question: Is he black enough?" Michelle Obama told a campaign event on Chicago's South Side. "Stop that nonsense."

Michelle Obama, who was raised on the South Side, was speaking at a predominantly black "Women for Obama" rally, which cheered her comment about the U.S. senator from Illinois.

She added that raising the specter of whether her husband — whose mother was white and whose father was Kenyan — was sufficiently black sent a confusing message to kids.

"We are messing with the heads of our children," she said.

At the gathering, Michelle Obama also thanked the South Side community for supporting her family over the years.

"This community of people has raised us ... has helped create our moral fabric," she said. "We couldn't do it without the South Side."

She also told the several hundred people at the elaborately decorated Grand Ballroom that she hoped her husband serves as a role model in how he helps raise their two young daughters.

"If you can't run your own house, you certainly can't run the White House," she said.

___

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton told hundreds of supporters in Oklahoma she will make a strong effort to win over the politically conservative state.

"I don't know whether we can carry Oklahoma or not, but we're going to give it a try," she said at a fundraiser late Saturday evening. "After today, I'm on the way."

Clinton, whose flight from Texas was more than an hour late, spoke for about 30 minutes but hung around afterward to sign autographs and talk with people.

More Americans should become energy conscious, just like her late father was, who turned the lights off when people left a room and turned the heat off at nights even during cold Chicago winters, she said.

"I'm acting more and more like him all the time," Clinton said.

Mike Turpen, Oklahoma finance chairman for her presidential bid, said Clinton's two Oklahoma fundraisers, including one in June, show she has "committed, enthusiastic supporters" in the state.

He said she raised a total of approximately $400,000 in the two events.

___

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The wife of Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul of Texas had surgery Sunday to install a heart pacemaker.

A statement from Paul's campaign said that the surgery on Carol Paul was a success and that she is expected to make a full recovery.

Carol Paul was hospitalized Saturday after experiencing an irregular heartbeat. Her husband, who was due to participate in a high profile Republican straw poll in Ames, was delayed in arriving at the event because he was at his wife's side.

Paul attended the straw poll — where he placed fifth — after doctors gave him assurances his wife would be fine.

Romney: Win not hollow By KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press Writer

Romney: Win not hollow By KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 12 minutes ago



WASHINGTON - Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said Sunday that low turnout and the absence of some notable opponents shouldn't diminish his win in Iowa's Republican Party Straw Poll.

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Romney said the straw poll did just what it was designed to do: Let candidates demonstrate support that could propel them to victory in the state's caucuses this winter.

He maintained that the decisions by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Sen. John McCain of Arizona to skip the event demonstrated his campaign's strength.

"I think if they thought they could have won, they would have been here," Romney said on Fox News Sunday. "If you can't compete in the heartland, if you can't compete in Iowa in August, how are you going to compete in January when the caucuses are held, and how are you going to compete in November of '08?"

Romney had been expected to win the test, largely an exercise reflecting a candidate's organizational strengths, because he spent millions of dollars and months of effort on the event.

Romney scored 4,516 votes, 31.5 percent, to outpace former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee who had 2,587 votes, 18.1 percent. Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback was third with 2,192 votes, 15.3 percent.

While Romney won handily, Huckabee argued it was his second place finish that should be the most important story coming out of the straw poll. Huckabee said his campaign had little money to spend and dedicated less than $100,000 to the straw poll.

"It wasn't just that we surprised people with a second showing, it's that we did it with so few resources," Huckabee said Sunday. "This really was feeding the 5,000 with two fish and five loaves."

Historically, the straw poll has helped winnow the field of presidential candidates and prior to the event Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who ran sixth, had said repeatedly his campaign was likely to end if he was not in the top two.

WITI-TV in Milwaukee reported Sunday that Thompson told one of its reporters he was dropping out of the race.

Thompson's campaign did not confirm the report immediately, not returning calls from The Associated Press in Wisconsin and Iowa.

"Candidates who finish in the bottom half of the straw poll should withdraw from the race and support the rest of the field," Thompson said on his campaign Web site in June.

Thompson finished in 6th place with 1,039 votes, which put him behind Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas.

He left the event before the results were announced Saturday evening and his campaign in Iowa said at the time he would make an announcement about his future within 48 hours.

Brownback and Huckabee had waged a fierce competition for the loyalty of influential social and religious conservatives.

Eight years ago, about 23,600 people voted in the straw poll. On Saturday, only about 14,300 did. Romney attributed the turnout to heat and the expectation that he would be a runaway victor.

"I got a higher percentage even than the president got eight years ago," Romney said. "It was a warm day, and actually, it was difficult turning people out."

Brownback called his third-place finish "a ticket on board to the caucuses" and downplayed Romney's victory.

"I think Mitt Romney has probably hit on top of his ceiling," said Brownback on ABC's "This Week."

Huckabee said his victory catapulted him to the top tier of candidates. He said those who declined to participate in the straw poll did not want to be embarrassed by a poor showing.

"What they did was forfeit the game," Huckabee said on CBS' Face the Nation. "If you forfeit, it's a loss. They knew they weren't going to do well with Iowa voters because Iowa voters tend to be far more conservative."

____

AP writer Mike Glover in Iowa contributed to this report.

Romney: Win not hollow By KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press Writer

Romney: Win not hollow By KEVIN FREKING, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 12 minutes ago



WASHINGTON - Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said Sunday that low turnout and the absence of some notable opponents shouldn't diminish his win in Iowa's Republican Party Straw Poll.

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Romney said the straw poll did just what it was designed to do: Let candidates demonstrate support that could propel them to victory in the state's caucuses this winter.

He maintained that the decisions by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Sen. John McCain of Arizona to skip the event demonstrated his campaign's strength.

"I think if they thought they could have won, they would have been here," Romney said on Fox News Sunday. "If you can't compete in the heartland, if you can't compete in Iowa in August, how are you going to compete in January when the caucuses are held, and how are you going to compete in November of '08?"

Romney had been expected to win the test, largely an exercise reflecting a candidate's organizational strengths, because he spent millions of dollars and months of effort on the event.

Romney scored 4,516 votes, 31.5 percent, to outpace former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee who had 2,587 votes, 18.1 percent. Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback was third with 2,192 votes, 15.3 percent.

While Romney won handily, Huckabee argued it was his second place finish that should be the most important story coming out of the straw poll. Huckabee said his campaign had little money to spend and dedicated less than $100,000 to the straw poll.

"It wasn't just that we surprised people with a second showing, it's that we did it with so few resources," Huckabee said Sunday. "This really was feeding the 5,000 with two fish and five loaves."

Historically, the straw poll has helped winnow the field of presidential candidates and prior to the event Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who ran sixth, had said repeatedly his campaign was likely to end if he was not in the top two.

WITI-TV in Milwaukee reported Sunday that Thompson told one of its reporters he was dropping out of the race.

Thompson's campaign did not confirm the report immediately, not returning calls from The Associated Press in Wisconsin and Iowa.

"Candidates who finish in the bottom half of the straw poll should withdraw from the race and support the rest of the field," Thompson said on his campaign Web site in June.

Thompson finished in 6th place with 1,039 votes, which put him behind Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas.

He left the event before the results were announced Saturday evening and his campaign in Iowa said at the time he would make an announcement about his future within 48 hours.

Brownback and Huckabee had waged a fierce competition for the loyalty of influential social and religious conservatives.

Eight years ago, about 23,600 people voted in the straw poll. On Saturday, only about 14,300 did. Romney attributed the turnout to heat and the expectation that he would be a runaway victor.

"I got a higher percentage even than the president got eight years ago," Romney said. "It was a warm day, and actually, it was difficult turning people out."

Brownback called his third-place finish "a ticket on board to the caucuses" and downplayed Romney's victory.

"I think Mitt Romney has probably hit on top of his ceiling," said Brownback on ABC's "This Week."

Huckabee said his victory catapulted him to the top tier of candidates. He said those who declined to participate in the straw poll did not want to be embarrassed by a poor showing.

"What they did was forfeit the game," Huckabee said on CBS' Face the Nation. "If you forfeit, it's a loss. They knew they weren't going to do well with Iowa voters because Iowa voters tend to be far more conservative."

____

AP writer Mike Glover in Iowa contributed to this report.

3rd hole planned to reach Utah miners By JENNIFER DOBNER, Associated Press Writer

3rd hole planned to reach Utah miners By JENNIFER DOBNER, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 16 minutes ago



HUNTINGTON, Utah - A video camera lowered into a collapsed coal mine revealed equipment but not the six missing miners, a federal official said Sunday. Officials planned to drill yet another hole in an attempt to locate the men.

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Poor lighting allowed the camera to only see about 15 feet into a void at the bottom of the drill hole, far less than the 100 feet it's capable of seeing, said Richard Stickler, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

Rescuers saw a tool bag, a chain and other items that are normally seen underground in a mine, he said.

"We did not see any sign at all of any of the miners," Stickler said.

That view was recorded overnight on the camera's second trip down the hole. On its first descent Saturday, in which one lens was impaired, showed a 5 1/2-foot-high void described by Stickler as "survivable space."

The men have not been heard from since the mine was struck by an earthshaking collapse early last Monday. Rescue leaders said they were proceeding as if the miners were alive.

"Our attitude is we always have to have hope, and our position is that we're hoping and we're praying and it would be a terrible mistake to give up hope until you know for sure," Stickler said.

Another attempt to see farther in the mine will be made with an improved lighting system, Stickler said. In between using the camera, compressed air is being pumped down the hole into the mine.

Stickler announced the findings after a 3 1/2-hour meeting to brief families of the miners.

The drill rig was to be relocated to a new position late Sunday where it will send the drill down 1,414 feet. The previous holes were more than 1,800 feet.

Bob Murray, head of Murray Energy Corp., co-owner of the mine, said the new hole will target an area that the miners would have gone if air in their original location was bad.

Stickler would not estimate how long it would take to drill the new hole. Murray initially estimated three to four days, but his vice president, Rob Moore, said quietly to him during a news conference that it could be up to six days.

The Crandall Canyon mine is built into a mountain in the Manti-La Sal National Forest 140 miles south of Salt Lake City.

Opening off a narrow canyon, the mine's main entrance is large enough for vehicles to enter and drive deep into the mine. At the time of the collapse, the miners were believed to be working at a point 3.4 miles from the entrance.

Rescuers have also been slowly moving horizontally through the mine to try to reach the men.

The horizontal route was blocked about 2,000 feet from the men. Rubble had been cleared from about 580 feet of that route, Stickler said Sunday. The distance had been estimated at 650 feet late Saturday. The discrepancy was not immediately explained.

Crews working that route had to be withdrawn for a time overnight because of earth movements known as "mountain bumps," officials said.

Stickler would not estimate how long it would take to reach the miners on the horizontal route.

Councilwoman Julie Jones, who was with the families when they were briefed, said they were very hopeful.

Of the miners' relatives, she said, "They are one family."

Mike Marasco, son-in-law of missing miner Kerry Allred, said his family has been sleeping on the floor of the school where families were gathering to somehow identify with their father's discomfort inside the mine.

"It's hard to just sit here. We want to feel what he felt. We've been sleeping on the floor ... it's not even close to being in the mine but it's something."

The miner's son, Cody Allred, 32, looked sad and exhausted. "I've accepted all possibilities," he said.

The cause of the collapse has not been officially established.

Murray has insisted that the collapse was caused by an earthquake. Seismologists say there was no earthquake and that readings on seismometers actually came from the collapse.

A 2 1/2-inch-wide hole was drilled first into the miners' presumed location.

A two-way communications system was dropped down that hole but there was no answer to repeated calls of "Hello in the mine."

Air samples taken through a tube placed down the small hole ominously found oxygen levels too low for survival.

The bigger drill boring the nearly 9-inch-wide hole punched into the mine 130 feet from the small hole late Friday. Rescuers banged on the drill steel to signal the miners but there was no response. They then lowered the video camera.

___

Associated Press writers Alicia Caldwell, Chris Kahn and Brock Vergakis contributed to this report.

More human remains found at bridge site By MARTIGA LOHN, Associated Press Writer

More human remains found at bridge site By MARTIGA LOHN, Associated Press Writer
11 minutes ago



MINNEAPOLIS - Divers found more human remains in the Mississippi River on Sunday, 11 days after a highway bridge collapsed into the fast-flowing water, and a crane working at one end of the ruined span removed a school bus and other vehicles.

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Navy divers searched for five people missing and presumed dead. Stormy weather made their task more dangerous over the weekend, strengthening river currents Saturday.

But conditions had cleared Sunday and the remains were recovered about eight hours into the search, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office said.

The official death toll stood at eight while the county's medical examiner identified the remains.

The yellow school bus became a symbol of a disaster that could have been worse. Everyone on board — 52 children and several adults — escaped alive.

One of the bus survivors, Julie Graves, had been accompanying children from a neighborhood center in Minneapolis on a trip to a water park the day the bridge collapsed.

On Sunday, her feet were in casts and tight wraps on her arms locked her elbows. She has been in a back brace after surgery to repair two broken lumbar vertebrae last week, but is expected to make a full recovery.

"I'm doing good," Graves said by phone Sunday from Hennepin County Medical Center. "Some pain here and there definitely. But I'm so grateful to be alive."

In all, 44 vehicles have been removed from the bridge since its collapse. About 100 vehicles had been on the structure when it fell on Aug. 1, said Minnesota Department of Transportation spokesman Kevin Gutknecht.

Most vehicles on the bridge's north end were gone; Gutknecht said work would focus on the south end for the next day or two.

Broken glass remained on a slanted section on the bridge's north end as pedestrians and cyclists peered through a mesh fence put up to keep them from getting too close.

So far, crews have cleared cars from parts of the bridge that fell onto land. Equipment is positioned to start major debris removal once the recovery efforts are finished.

The list of confirmed missing included Christine Sacorafas, 45, of White Bear Lake; Vera Peck, 50, and her son Richard Chit, 20, both of Bloomington; Greg Jolstad, 45, of Mora; and Scott Sathers, 29, of Maple Grove.

About 100 people were injured in the collapse, but only eight remained hospitalized, their conditions ranging from serious to good. Hennepin County Medical Center released one patient and upgraded another from serious to satisfactory condition, a spokeswoman said Sunday.

Graves, who celebrated her 28th birthday at the hospital Friday, expects to remain at the hospital for up to two weeks.

She had planned to get married at the end of the month and she said she still may exchange vows, but the wedding celebration has been pushed back to May "so I can be in full dancing condition."

___

Associated Press Writer Jon Krawczynski contributed to this report.

to another Columbia-type disaster. Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from

to another Columbia-type disaster. Columbia was destroyed in 2003 when hot atmospheric gases seeped into a hole in its wing and melted the wing from the inside out. A foam strike at liftoff caused the gash.

Teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan — who was the backup for Challenger's Christa McAuliffe in 1986 — conducted the slow and painstaking survey, along with crewmate Tracy Caldwell. They used the 100-foot robotic arm and extension boom that flew up on Endeavour, steering the instrument to a spot just above the gouge and keeping it hovered there.

Laser sensors and cameras zoomed in on the damage, white and easily visible against the black tiles, from a variety of views.

Four other damaged areas also were scanned. Engineers believe the piece of foam struck the shuttle's underside, creating the big gouge, then skimmed along the bottom and nicked it in at least three spots. Those smaller gouges pose no threat, Shannon said.

The foam came off a bracket on the external fuel tank 58 seconds after Wednesday's launch, fell down onto a strut on the tank, then bounced up, right into Endeavour's belly. Ice apparently formed before liftoff near the bracket, which helps hold the long fuel feed line to the tank, and caused the foam to pop off when subjected to the vibrations of launch.

It's possible some ice was attached to the foam, which would have made the impact even harder. The debris that came off is believed to have been grapefruit-sized.

These brackets have lost foam in previous launches, a concern for NASA, Shannon said. A switch to titanium brackets, eliminating foam, will not occur before next year.

Shannon said he did not know whether the recurring foam problem would delay the next shuttle flight, currently scheduled for October.

"We have a lot of discussion to have before we decide to fly the next tank," he said.

The inspection consumed much of the astronauts' day. On Monday, two of them will go back out for the second spacewalk of the mission to replace a broken gyroscope at the international space station.

Endeavour has been docked at the space station since Friday. It will remain there until Aug. 20 for a record 10-day stay. Mission managers on Sunday approved the prolonged visit based on the successful testing of a new power transfer system flying on Endeavour. The system is drawing power from the station and converting it for use aboard the shuttle.

On the space station, meanwhile, two cosmonauts continued repairs to a Russian computer system that failed during shuttle Atlantis' visit in June. Condensation from an air conditioning unit apparently is collecting behind the panels where the computer equipment is located.

And a U.S. command-and-control computer that shut down during Saturday's spacewalk was working again Sunday.

___

On the Net:

NASA: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov

___

Rasha Madkour and Liz Austin Peterson contributed to this report from Houston.

killed in Mo. church shooting By MARCUS KABEL, Associated Press Writer

killed in Mo. church shooting By MARCUS KABEL, Associated Press Writer
18 minutes ago



NEOSHO, Mo. - A gunman opened fire in the sanctuary of a southwest Missouri church Sunday, killing three people and wounding several others, authorities said.

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About 25 to 50 people were briefly held hostage at the First Congregational Church until the gunman surrendered, Neosho spokeswoman Desiree Bridges said.

About four or five people were wounded, Police Chief Dave McCracken said, but several others who were injured fled the scene.

"This is a terrible tragedy which was made worse by the fact that it happened in a peaceful place of faith and worship," Gov. Matt Blunt said in a statement.

The shooter was being held at the Newton County Jail, but police were not releasing any information about him. Bridges said he was related to someone in the church, but declined to elaborate. No charges had been filed Sunday, McCracken said.

The gunman had two small-caliber handguns and one 9 mm semiautomatic machine pistol with a large magazine, McCracken said. The shooting followed the 1 p.m. service, which is held in Spanish. About 50 people, ranging in age from children to the elderly, were in the church at the time.

The gunman surrendered to authorities after about 10 minutes of negotiation.

"At the time that the rescue attempt was successful we had approximately 20 people in the sanctuary still," he said. "We had some people who escaped the crime scene prior to the police arrival that were wounded, and we had some people escape during the process and at the time of the rescue."

He said no one was injured during the arrest.

McCracken said he could not confirm whether the gunman was a member of the church. But he said an incident involving the suspect and a family that attended the First Congregational Church on Saturday night fueled the shooting Sunday.

"At this point though, we don't have any information more than that," McCracken said.

The identities of the deceased were being withheld, McCracken said.

Entertainer, businessman Griffin dies By BOB THOMAS, Associated Press Writer

Entertainer, businessman Griffin dies By BOB THOMAS, Associated Press Writer
23 minutes ago



LOS ANGELES - Merv Griffin, the big band-era crooner turned impresario who parlayed his "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune" game shows into a multimillion-dollar empire, died Sunday. He was 82.

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Griffin died of prostate cancer, according to a statement from his family that was released by Marcia Newberger, spokeswoman for The Griffin Group/Merv Griffin Entertainment.

From his beginning as a $100-a-week San Francisco radio singer, Griffin moved on as vocalist for Freddy Martin's band, sometime film actor, TV game and talk show host, and made Forbes' list of richest Americans several times.

"The Merv Griffin Show" lasted more than 20 years, and Griffin said his capacity to listen contributed to his success.

"If the host is sitting there thinking about his next joke, he isn't listening," Griffin reasoned in a recent interview.

But his biggest break financially came from inventing and producing "Jeopardy" in the 1960s and "Wheel of Fortune" in the 1970s. After they had become the hottest game shows on television, Griffin sold the rights to Coca Cola's Columbia Pictures Television Unit for $250 million in 1986, retaining a share of the profits. He also continued to receive royalties for the popular "Jeopardy!" theme song, which he wrote.

"My father was a visionary," Griffin's son, Tony Griffin, said in a statement issued Sunday. "He loved business and continued his many projects and holdings even while hospitalized."

When Griffin entered a hospital a month ago, he was working on the first week of production of a new syndicated game show, "Merv Griffin's Crosswords," his son said.

Griffin was also a longtime friend of former President Reagan and his wife, Nancy.

"This is heartbreaking, not just for those of us who loved Merv personally, but for everyone around the world who has known Merv through his music, his television shows and his business," Nancy Reagan said in a statement.

She said Griffin "was there for me every day after Ronnie died" in 2004.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recalled Sunday that his very first U.S. talk show appearance was on "The Merv Griffin Show" in 1974.

"We became good friends, and Merv has always been a big part of my success," the former actor and bodybuilding champion said. "He helped me gain exposure to American audiences and whenever I had a new movie in the works, Merv always took time out from his busy schedule to call or send me a note to say congratulations and wish me good luck."

The governor said Griffin "excelled at whatever he put his mind to, will remain a legend in the hearts and minds of Californians forever."

"Wheel of Fortune" host Pat Sajak said he had lost "a dear friend."

"He meant so much to my life, and it's hard to imagine it without him," Sajak said.

For several years, Griffin was frequently seen in the company of actress Eva Gabor, who died in 1995.

"I'm very upset at the news. He was a very close friend of ours, a good friend of mine and a good friend of Eva's," Gabor's sister, Zsa Zsa Gabor, told The Associated Press by phone Sunday. "He was just a wonderful, wonderful man."

Griffin started putting the proceeds from selling "Jeopardy" and "Wheel" in treasury bonds, stocks and other investments, but went into real estate and other ventures because "I was never so bored in my life."

"I said `I'm not going to sit around and clip coupons for the rest of my life,'" he recalled in 1989. "That's when Barron Hilton said `Merv, do you want to buy the Beverly Hilton?' I couldn't believe it."

Griffin bought the slightly passe hotel for $100.2 million and completely refurbished it for $25 million. Then he made a move for control of Resorts International, which operated hotels and casinos from Atlantic City to the Caribbean.

That touched off a feud with real estate tycoon Donald Trump. Griffin eventually acquired Resorts for $240 million, even though Trump had held 80 percent of the voting stock.

"I love the gamesmanship," he told Life magazine in 1988. "This may sound strange, but it parallels the game shows I've been involved in."

In recent years, Griffin also rated frequent mentions in the sports pages as a successful race horse owner. His colt Stevie Wonderboy, named for entertainer Stevie Wonder, won the $1.5 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile in 2005.

His 1997 game show, "Click," also introduced a young host named Ryan Seacrest to the public.

In 1948, Freddy Martin hired Griffin to join his band at Los Angeles' Coconut Grove at $150 a week. With Griffin doing the singing, the band had a smash hit with "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Cocoanuts," a 1949 novelty song sung in a cockney accent.

Doris Day and her producer husband, Marty Melcher, saw the band in Las Vegas and recommended Griffin to Warner Bros., which offered a contract. After a bit in "By the Light of the Silvery Moon," starring Day and Gordon MacRae, he had a bigger role with Kathryn Grayson in "So This Is Love." But after a few more trivial roles, he asked out of his contract.

In 1954, Griffin went to New York where he appeared in a summer replacement musical show on CBS-TV, a revival of "Finian's Rainbow," and a music show on CBS radio. He followed with a few TV game show hosting jobs, notably "Play Your Hunch," which premiered in 1958 and ran through the early 1960s. His glibness led to stints as substitute for Jack Paar on "Tonight."

When Paar retired in 1962, Griffin was considered a prime candidate to replace him. Johnny Carson was chosen instead. NBC gave Griffin a daytime version of "Tonight," but he was canceled for being "too sophisticated" for the housewife audience.

Westinghouse Broadcasting introduced "The Merv Griffin Show" in 1965 on syndicated TV. Griffin never underestimated the intelligence of his audience, offering such figures as philosopher Bertrand Russell, cellist Pablo Casals and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer-philosopher-historians Will and Ariel Durant as well as movie stars and entertainers.

CBS tried to challenge Carson with a late-night show starring Griffin, but nothing stopped Carson and Griffin returned to Westinghouse.

A lifelong crossword puzzle fan, Griffin devised a game show, "Word for Word," in 1963. It faded after one season, then his wife, Julann, suggested another show.

"Julann's idea was a twist on the usual question-answer format of the quiz shows of the Fifties," he wrote in his autobiography "Merv." "Her idea was to give the contestants the answer, and they had to come up with the appropriate question."

"Jeopardy" started in 1964 and "Wheel of Fortune" was begun in 1975.

Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. was born in San Mateo, south of San Francisco on July 6, 1925, the son of a stockbroker. An aunt, Claudia Robinson, taught him to play piano at age 4, and he soon was staging shows on the back porch.

"Every Saturday I had a show, recruiting all the kids in the block as either stagehands, actors and audience, or sometimes all three," he wrote in his 1980 autobiography. "I was the producer, always the producer."

After studying at San Mateo Junior College and the University of San Francisco, Griffin quit school to apply for a job as pianist at KFRC radio in San Francisco. The station needed a vocalist instead. He auditioned and was hired.

Griffin attracted the interest of RKO studio boss William Dozier and his wife, Joan Fontaine.

At the time, Griffin weighed 235 pounds. "As soon as I walked in their hotel room, I could see their faces fall," he recalled. Shortly afterward, singer Joan Edwards told him: "Your voice is terrific, but the blubber has got to go." Griffin slimmed down, and he spent the rest of his life adding and taking off weight.

Griffin and Julann Elizabeth Wright were married in 1958, and their son, Anthony, was born the following year. They divorced in 1973 because of "irreconcilable differences."

He never remarried.

Besides his son, Griffin is survived by his daughter-in-law, Tricia, and two grandchildren.

The family said an invitation-only funeral Mass will be held at a later date at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills.

___

Associated Press writers Beth Harris and Jeff Wilson contributed to this story.

Woods seizes control at Southern Hills By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer

Woods seizes control at Southern Hills By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer
1 hour, 50 minutes ago



TULSA, Okla. - Tiger Woods saved his best golf for the last major. Woods followed his record-tying 63 at Southern Hills with a round that wasn't anything special Saturday, but no less effective at the PGA Championship. He made 15 pars in his 1-under 69, giving him a three-shot lead over Stephen Ames going into the final round.

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It felt much larger considering the history of the world's No. 1 player.

Woods is 12-0 when going into the final round of major with at least a share of the lead, and he has never lost any tournament when leading by more than one shot after 54 holes.

"I accomplished my goal today," Woods said. "My goal was to shoot under par and increase my lead. And I was able to do that."

A blue towel was draped over his shoulder as Woods, his shirt soaked with sweat from spending four hours in 100-plus degrees, sat in an air-conditioned room.

A white flag might be in order for everyone else.

"The statistics will tell you, yes, it is over," Ernie Els said after a 69 left him six shots behind. "But as a competitor, I can't sit there and tell you it's over. I can't ever do that."

But if he were watching from his house?

"If I was not a golfer — a fan on the couch — I'd be putting my house on him, yeah," Els said.

Woods made it look as though this were a Sunday afternoon and he was protecting his lead, not taking on many flags or working too hard for par. He picked up his lone birdies at Nos. 4 and 12, and had two par saves of about 10 feet on the front nine that allowed him to keep his distance from Scott Verplank and the rest of the field.

Woods finished at 7-under 203 and will play in the final round of a major for the third time this year. He was trailing at the Masters and U.S. Open and never caught up, but the odds are much higher in his favor of capturing his first major of the year.

Ames made a 12-foot birdie on the final hole for a 69 that put him in the final group of a major for the first time. Just his luck he gets Woods, spotting the 12-time major champion a three-shot lead.

Ames bristled when his loss to Woods in the Accenture Match Play Championship last year was brought up again. He jokingly said that anything could happen "especially where he's hitting the ball," and Woods went on to a record 9-and-8 victory two days later.

This time, Ames figures he has nothing to lose.

"For me, it's a great opportunity of being in the situation," he said. "Tiger's going for his 13th. I'm looking for my first."

Only five players remained under par at Southern Hills.

Woody Austin lost his chance to be in the final group when he took bogey on the final hole for a 69, leaving him at 207. Johnson Senden had a 69 and was another shot back, followed by Els.

Verplank held his own until a double bogey from the rough and trees on the signature 12th hole, and a three-putt from the back of the 18th green for bogey sent him to a 74.

For the briefest moment, the former U.S. Amateur champion from Oklahoma State pulled within one shot. Verplank dribbled an 8-foot birdie putt down the hill and into the cup at No. 4 to reach 5 under, only to watch Woods hole a 6-foot putt to match his birdie and restore the margin to two shots.

Walking to the fifth tee, Verplank smirked and said, "That guy makes everything."

It sure looked that way.

Woods atoned for a poor chip on the third with a 10-foot par save, and saved par from 10 feet again on the eighth after hitting into a bunker. His streak of 24 straight holes without a bogey ended when he hit 6-iron into the bunker on the 14th and missed from 18 feet.

He led by as many as five shots on the back nine until that bogey on 14. Even so, it was his largest lead going into the final round of a major since the 2005 Masters, which he won in a playoff over Chris DiMarco.

"If you're trying to win a tournament like this, he's the wrong guy to let get out ahead of you," Verplank said.

One after another, players finished their rounds, looked at the top of the leaderboard and figured it would require their best round to have any chance of winning. They have seen this before.

And so has Woods, even if he won't concede the tournament is over.

This is only the fifth time in his career that Woods came to the final major of the year without winning one, although he arrived at Southern Hills fresh off an eight-shot victory at a World Golf Championship. But the work is not done.

"I've always said in order to have a great year you have to win a major championship," he said. "You can win every tournament, but the majors are where it's at. And this year, I've had some opportunities to deal with this. I haven't done it. I'm in good shape going into tomorrow and hopefully, I can get it done."

The only low scores were in the morning, when the greens were still smooth. Boo Weekley had a chance to shoot 63 until he hit his approach on the 18th about 45 feet away and took three putts for a bogey and a 65.

Playing with Weekley was Sergio Garcia, but not for long. Weekley marked down a 4 for Garcia on the 17th hole when the Spaniard made 5, and Garcia signed it anyway and was disqualified.

Trevor Immelman had a 66, but all that got him was to 1 over par, eight shots behind a guy who has never lost a lead in the majors.

Woods looked as though he might come back to the field, but he steadied himself quickly. He saved par twice on the first three holes, then wiggled his way out of trouble on the par-5 fifth when he bounced his third shot out of the rough, under a tree and tumbling up to the green about 35 feet left of the pin.

He left several birdie putts short, but rarely had to grind for par.

That left him where he wants to be — in the lead at a major, daring anyone to catch him. The 11 guys who have been paired with him in the final round of a major (Garcia did it twice) still haven't figured it out.

Someone asked Woods what effect his presence atop the leaderboard had on the rest of the field, what would cause a three-time major champion like Els to say he would bet the house on Woods if he weren't trying to beat him.

"Maybe because I've won 12 majors," he replied.

Queen of Soul cancels hometown show 2 hours, 21 minutes ago

Queen of Soul cancels hometown show 2 hours, 21 minutes ago



DETROIT - The Queen of Soul is cooling her heels. Aretha Franklin announced she has canceled her hometown concert Sunday night at an outdoor amphitheater in suburban Detroit, citing heat exhaustion.

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With temperatures forecast to climb above the 90 degrees, Franklin decided to call off the show at DTE Energy Music Theatre and hopes to reschedule it at a later date.

Franklin, 65, said in a statement Friday that the heat at recent East Coast shows has been "sweltering and all but overwhelming."

"Following the Weather Channel and the daily reports in the news via television and newspaper publications, I see that the temperatures in Detroit have been very similar," she said in the statement. "I am exhausted from the heat and cannot tolerate heat in these extremely high numbers and being in concert simultaneously."

US slipping in life expectancy rankings By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer

US slipping in life expectancy rankings By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer
25 minutes ago



WASHINGTON - Americans are living longer than ever, but not as long as people in 41 other countries.

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For decades, the United States has been slipping in international rankings of life expectancy, as other countries improve health care, nutrition and lifestyles.

Countries that surpass the U.S. include Japan and most of Europe, as well as Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands.

"Something's wrong here when one of the richest countries in the world, the one that spends the most on health care, is not able to keep up with other countries," said Dr. Christopher Murray, head of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

A baby born in the United States in 2004 will live an average of 77.9 years. That life expectancy ranks 42nd, down from 11th two decades earlier, according to international numbers provided by the Census Bureau and domestic numbers from the National Center for Health Statistics.

Andorra, a tiny country in the Pyrenees mountains between France and Spain, had the longest life expectancy, at 83.5 years, according to the Census Bureau. It was followed by Japan, Macau, San Marino and Singapore.

The shortest life expectancies were clustered in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region that has been hit hard by an epidemic of HIV and AIDS, as well as famine and civil strife. Swaziland has the shortest, at 34.1 years, followed by Zambia, Angola, Liberia and Zimbabwe.

Researchers said several factors have contributed to the United States falling behind other industrialized nations. A major one is that 45 million Americans lack health insurance, while Canada and many European countries have universal health care, they say.

But "it's not as simple as saying we don't have national health insurance," said Sam Harper, an epidemiologist at McGill University in Montreal. "It's not that easy."

Among the other factors:

• Adults in the United States have one of the highest obesity rates in the world. Nearly a third of U.S. adults 20 years and older are obese, while about two-thirds are overweight, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

"The U.S. has the resources that allow people to get fat and lazy," said Paul Terry, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Emory University in Atlanta. "We have the luxury of choosing a bad lifestyle as opposed to having one imposed on us by hard times."

• Racial disparities. Black Americans have an average life expectancy of 73.3 years, five years shorter than white Americans.

Black American males have a life expectancy of 69.8 years, slightly longer than the averages for Iran and Syria and slightly shorter than in Nicaragua and Morocco.

• A relatively high percentage of babies born in the U.S. die before their first birthday, compared with other industrialized nations.

Forty countries, including Cuba, Taiwan and most of Europe had lower infant mortality rates than the U.S. in 2004. The U.S. rate was 6.8 deaths for every 1,000 live births. It was 13.7 for Black Americans, the same as Saudi Arabia.

"It really reflects the social conditions in which African American women grow up and have children," said Dr. Marie C. McCormick, professor of maternal and child health at the Harvard School of Public Health. "We haven't done anything to eliminate those disparities."

Another reason for the U.S. drop in the ranking is that the Census Bureau now tracks life expectancy for a lot more countries — 222 in 2004 — than it did in the 1980s. However, that does not explain why so many countries entered the rankings with longer life expectancies than the United States.

Murray, from the University of Washington, said improved access to health insurance could increase life expectancy. But, he predicted, the U.S. won't move up in the world rankings as long as the health care debate is limited to insurance.

Policymakers also should focus on ways to reduce cancer, heart disease and lung disease, said Murray. He advocates stepped-up efforts to reduce tobacco use, control blood pressure, reduce cholesterol and regulate blood sugar.

"Even if we focused only on those four things, we would go along way toward improving health care in the United States," Murray said. "The starting point is the recognition that the U.S. does not have the best health care system. There are still an awful lot of people who think it does."

__

On The Net:

Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/

National Center for Health Statistics: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/lifexpec.htm

Computer glitch causes delays at LAX By AMANDA BECK, Associated Press Writer

Computer glitch causes delays at LAX By AMANDA BECK, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 43 minutes ago



LOS ANGELES - Weary international passengers were stuck at Los Angeles International Airport for several hours, unable to set foot in the United States after a computer failure prevented customs officials from screening arrivals.

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About 6,000 international passengers, both Americans and foreigners, sat in four airport terminals and in 40 planes starting about 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, when the computer system broke down, said Los Angeles World Airports spokesman Paul Haney.

The system contains names of arriving passengers and law enforcement data about them, including arrest warrants, said Mike Fleming, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman.

"That system allows our officers to make decisions on who we can allow to enter the United States," Fleming said. "You just don't know by looking at them."

Some of the computers were functioning by 7:45 p.m., and authorities began processing passengers in order of their arrival.

However, the system was functioning at reduced capacity, and officials did not know how long it would take to clear the huge backlog.

The cause of the shutdown was not known, and there was no estimate on when the system would be repaired, Fleming said.

Officials diverted seven incoming flights to an Ontario airport and advised international passengers departing Sunday to check the status of their flights before leaving for the airport.

Terminals that normally accept international passengers were full by 2:30 p.m. Saturday, and passengers arriving afterward had to remain on the runway until their was room inside the terminal buildings.

"This is just unbearable," said Gaynelle Jones, 57, who landed on a 13-hour flight from Hong Kong at about 2:15 p.m. and was still sitting on her plane five hours later. She said she had missed her connecting flight to Houston.

"We've already been on a plane for several hours, and they have no timeframe for when we'll be able to get off," Jones said during a cell phone interview.

Airport officials said the stranded planes were connected to ground power and passengers had access to food, water and bathrooms.

"People are getting a little stir-crazy, feeling claustrophobic," said Chris Cognac, 39, who was returning with family and friends — including 10 children — from a week in Puerto Vallarta. The group had been sitting on the tarmac for five hours when he spoke by phone.

Passengers on his plane were in the aisles, holding their carry-on luggage, and ready to disembark when the flight crew asked them to return to their seats, Cognac said.

"Everybody's pretty angry with customs at the moment because they're not informing any one of anything," Cognac said. "It's becoming a logistical issue with diapers."

NZ papers outsource editorial production By RAY LILLEY, Associated Press Writer

NZ papers outsource editorial production By RAY LILLEY, Associated Press Writer
2 hours, 35 minutes ago



WELLINGTON, New Zealand - Newspaper publisher APN News & Media began outsourcing editorial production work Sunday, a strategy being watched by media outlets in other countries, a senior executive said.

An outside contractor now will do the editing and layout work for The New Zealand Herald — the nation's biggest daily — along with several regional papers and weeklies, said APN deputy chief executive Rick Neville.

Starting Sunday, 20 full-time sub-editors at contractor Pagemasters New Zealand will be "operating on an extension of APN's 'Cyber' computer editorial production system" at a site 20 minutes from the paper's editorial offices, Neville said.

By the end of 2007, Pagemasters will have about 45 editing staff at their site to edit the seven newspapers — nearly 30 fewer than the newspapers employed for the job.

"I'm confident readers won't notice the difference," said Neville, who has led the project.

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union, whose members include New Zealand journalists, said the move will erode the quality of news coverage because stories will be handled by editors unfamiliar with local issues.

Editing staff layoffs were completed at the Herald on Friday, with regional staff cuts coming by the end of the year, Neville said.

Neville said the outsourcing program's benefits include lower personnel costs, more efficiency and "doing a lot more" with costly "knowledge technology."

APN is half-owned by Irish businessman Tony O'Reilly's Dublin-based Independent News & Media PLC, which publishes 175 newspapers and magazines worldwide.

It also runs radio stations and outdoor advertising sites in Australia and New Zealand. Pagemasters is a subsidiary of the Australian Associated Press news agency.

Newspapers owned by O'Reilly in Ireland also recently announced an editorial outsourcing strategy.

Romney wins Iowa straw poll as expected By MIKE GLOVER, Associated Press Writer

Romney wins Iowa straw poll as expected By MIKE GLOVER, Associated Press Writer
33 minutes ago



AMES, Iowa - Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won an easy and expected victory in a high-profile Iowa Republican Party Straw Poll on Saturday, claiming nearly twice as many votes as his nearest rival.

Romney had been expected to win the test because he spent millions of dollars and months of effort on an event that was skipped by two of his major rivals.

Romney scored 4,516 votes, or 31.5 percent, to outpace former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee who had 2,587 votes, or 18.1 percent. Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback was third with 2,192 votes, 15.3 percent.

Announcement of the results was delayed for 90 minutes because a hand count was required on one of the 18 machines.

The biggest loser of the evening likely was former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who finished in 6th place with 1,039 votes. He had said repeatedly that if he didn't finish in the top two his campaign was likely to end. He left the event before the results were announced.

In Milwaukee, his campaign said Thompson would make an announcement about his future within 48 hours.

The missing big names got only a handful of votes.

Former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee got 203 votes. He was on the ballot, although not an officially declared candidate.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani received 183 votes and Sen. John McCain of Arizona got 101.

Romney was quick to claim the prize he had spent so much effort to win.

"The people of this great state have sent a message to the rest of the country," said Romney. "Change starts in Iowa."

Huckabee said his showing was impressive because he had little money to spend.

"You have taken a minimum amount of resources and made a maximum amount of gain," Huckabee told backers.

Brownback and Huckabee had waged a fierce competition for the loyalty of influential social and religious conservatives, and Huckabee's showing gave him new credibility.

Brownback put the best face on his showing.

"I think this is a ticket forward for us," said Brownback. "It was pretty close. We were both right in there together."

Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo has made illegal immigration his signature issue, and scored a fourth place showing with 1,961 voltes, while Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who has developed an Internet-driven following, came in fifth with 1,305 votes.

Filling out the field, Rep. Duncan Hunter got 174 votes, while Chicago businessman John Cox got 41 votes.

"Activists turned out in great numbers to support their candidate despite a heat index exceeding 100 degrees," said Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Ray Hoffmann.

In all, there were 14,302 ballots cast, nearly 10,000 fewer than when a similar straw poll was held in 1999. Then-Gov. George Bush won that straw poll with roughly 7,400 votes, and went on to win the caucuses and the White House.

State Republican officials had predicted as many as 40,000 activists would attend the event, but said 33,000 eventually showed up. Many of those were from out of the state and not eligible to vote in the straw poll.

Although some candidates paid for chartered buses to get hoped-for supporters to the event, and often covered their $35 ticket cost, they had no way of knowing how they would vote in the secret ballot process.

Supporters of Paul had sought to block voting, arguing that vote-counting machines had fundamental weaknesses, but a federal judge refused to grant an injunction on Friday. The matter was appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, which on Saturday upheld the ruling, said Matt McDermott, attorney for the Republican Party of Iowa.

The grounds around Iowa State University's basketball arena took on a carnival atmosphere on the steamy day as candidates erected huge air-conditioned tents where they courted activists with food, prizes and plenty of rhetoric.

The National Rifle Association, anti-abortion groups and other organizations also were on hand to capture a slice of the spotlight.

Candidates consider the straw poll a vital chance to demonstrate support that could help them this winter when Iowans hold precinct caucuses, an event that also puts a premium on a campaign's organizational skills and leads off the presidential nominating process.

For some candidates, a poor showing could prompt them to drop out of the race.

The scale of the spectacle was so immense — event organizers planned for the arrival of 375 buses — that even Iowa Democratic Chairman Scott Brennan decided to take a look. State Democrats don't hold anything similar, arguing the event is more about raising money than selecting candidates.

McCain and Giuliani opted to skip the event, but their names were on the ballot.

McCain, campaigning in Milton, N.H., called the straw poll "a great way to raise money for the Iowa Republican Party" and said he doesn't criticize it.

"But I think I can do my campaign and me personally better by being here in New Hampshire, talking to people, having the town hall meetings, and responding to their questions and concerns," he said.

Voting security was tight. Before voting, activists had to show ID and tickets, both of which were scanned to ensure they hadn't been used before. Stealing a page from the Iraqis, those casting ballots dipped their thumbs in purplish indelible ink to make sure they couldn't vote again.

___

Associated Press writer Amy Lorentzen in Ames contributed to this report.

Hurricane Flossie expected to weaken By JAYMES SONG, Associated Press Writer

Hurricane Flossie expected to weaken By JAYMES SONG, Associated Press Writer
5 minutes ago



HONOLULU - Hurricane Flossie spun about 875 miles east-southeast of Hawaii on Sunday, but forecasters predicted the Category 4 storm would weaken considerably before passing by the islands.

The hurricane was expected to pass by Hawaii late Tuesday or early Wednesday, but by then cooler waters should weaken Flossie considerably to a tropical storm.

At 5 a.m. EDT, Flossie had maximum sustained winds near 135 mph about. The storm was traveling west at about 14 mph.

Flossie may weaken as it moves over cooler ocean waters and travels south of Hawaii, according to the forecast. But it could also keep its strength and veer toward the islands.

The island's southeastern shores could see waves of 8 to 12 feet, forecasters said, with the surf rising during the day Monday and peaking Tuesday. The island's South Point is the southernmost area of the United States.

State civil defense officials urged residents to be prepared because of the unpredictable nature of hurricanes. A one or two degree direction change, they say, could make a big difference.

The last time a hurricane hit Hawaii was in 1992, when Iniki ravaged Kauai, killing six people and causing $2.5 billion in damage.

Hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. In May, forecasters predicted that Hawaii and the rest of the central Pacific face a slightly below-average hurricane season, with just two or three tropical cyclones expected because of lower sea surface temperatures.

The islands get an average of 4.5 tropical cyclones a year and one hurricane about every 15 years. Last year, the central Pacific had five tropical cyclones after the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted two to three.

On July 21, a tropical depression moved past the Big Island, bringing a few inches of rain to the parched island but no major problems. Cosme, the year's first Pacific tropical cyclone, reached hurricane status for a day before it weakened.

5 American soldiers killed near Baghdad 6 minutes ago

5 American soldiers killed near Baghdad 6 minutes ago



BAGHDAD - The U.S. military said Sunday that five American soldiers were killed south of Baghdad, including four in a single roadside bombing.

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The four soldiers were killed and four others were wounded Saturday by a blast that struck during combat operations, the military said.

Another soldier was killed Saturday by small-arms fire during a foot patrol southeast of Baghdad, the military said separately.

All the soldiers were assigned to Task Force Marne, which operates in an area with a volatile mix of Sunni and Shiite extremists.

Names of the soldiers were withheld pending notification of relatives.

The deaths raised to at least 3,690 members of the U.S. military have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.