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The End of “Dr. Laura”
Paramount Pictures Television Group has announced that Laura Schlessinger’s TV talk show, “Dr. Laura” has been cancelled after just one year on the air. The subject of much controversy and protest from a variety of groups, including The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the popular website,
StopDrLaura.com, “Dr. Laura” drew poor ratings and was snubbed by advertisers, prompting stations in major markets to shove the show from it’s intended daytime slot to one in the middle of the night.
Schlessinger drew the ire of many several years ago when she referred to homosexuality as “deviant” and “a biological error.” In a statement, the radio host rued the end of her television forum. “I believe it could have earned a substantial audience in time, but the television advertiser boycott precluded that,” she said.
While taping has ceased, Paramount has said that episodes of the show could air through the fall.
Millersville to Bronze Dinosaur Head
for Smithsonian
A life-size bronze casting of a Triceratops is being crafted by the art department at Millersville University for inclusion in the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History.
The Smithsonian commissioned Millersville’s artists-in-residence George Mummert and Richard Klyver and art department professor Ike Hay to cast the piece as part of its on-going restoration of the dinosaur. The Triceratops has been on display in the Smithsonian’s first floor Dinosaur Hall since 1911.
Smithsonian scientists and conservators have begun to repair some of the dinosaur’s bones and have plans to remount it to what they believe is it’s more accurate, upright position. Plans call for a plaster cast of the skeleton to be on display on the museum floor; when finished, the bronze casting will be placed outside the museum along Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C.
A silicone rubber mold of the skull sent by the Smithsonian is being used to cast the bronze creation. Mummert estimates the completed skull and lower jaw bone to weigh approximately 12,000 to 15,000 pounds.
The three artists and a number of Millersville students and volunteers hope to finish the project within the next six months.
Broad Street Market Extends Hours
The Broad Street Market rang in the month of April by announcing its new extended hours of operation. The new hours for the stone market will be Tuesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The brick market will be open from Wednesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Both buildings will be open on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“Our new market hours will simplify what has traditionally been a very confusing schedule,” said Kurt Twiford, Chairman of the Board of the Market. “Our expectation is that the more simplified schedule and longer evening hours will increase the traffic to our vendors, as well as provide convenience to our customers.”
By all indications, the decision to extend the hours of operation was a hit with the vendors. “I feel good about it,” said Mike Rhayem, vendor of International Food and Deli. “I think it will provide an opportunity for customers to stop in after work and pick up some dinner.”
The Broad Street Market is located at 1233 North Third Street, between Third and Verbeke streets.
Car Dealership and Pinnacle
Health
Join to Fight Child Abuse
During the month of April — National Child Abuse Prevention Month — Faulkner Honda and PinnacleHealth have teamed up to call attention to the fight against child abuse. Called “Drive Away Child Abuse,” the program calls for $25 to be donated to support PinnacleHealth’s Children’s Resource Center with the purchase of every new or used car.
The Children’s Resource Center was established in 1994 to evaluate and treat children who were suspected to have been sexually abused. The Center is dedicated to reducing the occurrence and aftermath of child abuse, thereby improving the health, welfare and safety of children and families in Central Pennsylvania. The Children’s Resource Center served 901 clients in 2000.
Creation of Non-Traditional University Underway
On April 2, Harrisburg Mayor Stephen R. Reed announced the formation of a development corporation to “pursue the creation of a non-traditional public university” in the city. Intended to fulfill a “niche mission,” the university — to be called the Harrisburg Polytechnic Institute (HPI) — will be designed to meet the needs not currently met by the existing local branches of higher education.
Plans call for the Institute to offer courses that are of best interest to the region’s economy and workforce. Those areas of training include information technology, biotechnology, transportation, warehousing and distribution, hospitality, and health and human services with emphasis on services to the elderly. The school will provide certificate programs and associate, undergraduate, and graduate degree programs. The programs will work “cooperatively with business, government, and other colleges and universities to foster regional work force development and continuing professional development, to serve as an incubator for new businesses, and to offer an environment for applied research and development.”
With a start-up price tag estimated at $75 million and an opening date targeted in four to five years, the Harrisburg Polytechnic Development Corp. was created to develop plans and raise the needed funds, among other priorities. Heading the development corporation is the former chair of ENVISION Capital Region, David Schankweiler. Thus far, the board of directors for the corporation is comprised of Alan Todd, Richard Pizzaro, Sheila Dow-Ford, Barbara Groce, Dr. W. Braxton Colley, Sr., John M. Lori, Douglas A. Neidich, and Yvette S. Porter. In all, the board will include 25 members.
The largest capital city in the nation without a comprehensive public university, Reed feels that the Polytechnic Institute’s impact will provide a variety of unexplored opportunities on a number of levels. “This is not about competing with existing educational institutions or replicating existing programs,” he said. “This is about a new approach, one that opens the doors for individuals to gain access to higher education on a flexible and continuous basis and one that is focused on developing specific skills needed not only for individual advancement but also for the community’s future economic development.”
The board of directors are to begin meeting this month.
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