OIL COMPANIES BLAME GAS PRICE SPIKE ON KATRINA, INCREASED DEMAND IN CHINA, AND FACT THAT ROBERT BLAKE IS ON THE LOOSE

NEW YORK - The price of gas continues to rise across most of America and most oil industry insiders continue to blame the record prices on a variety of factors, including the disruptions caused by Hurricane Katrina and the increased demand for gas in China and India.

But heightened public scrutiny and charges of price gouging have caused some industry insiders to spread the blame wherever they can. Last week before a Congressional subcommittee on price gouging, ExxonMobil's Chief Financial Officer, "Curly" Joe DeRita, cast blame on an unlikely source: "Having [actor] Robert Blake on the loose doesn't help [the price of gas], I'll tell you that."

Following DeRita's testimony, the effort to blame Robert Blake for record gas prices has gained momentum throughout the oil industry. "If you want someone to blame," echoed Jules Sunoco, President of the Sun Oil Company, "it's definitely Robert Blake. Absolutely." Asked to explain, Sunoco would only say this: "It just makes the market jittery knowing there's someone like that out there, trust me."

Robert Blake did not immediately return calls.

JUSTICE ALITO URGES HIGH COURT TO ADOPT NEW TECHNOLOGY TO INSURE ITS DECISIONS ARE CORRECT

LOCAL MAN HAS NO IDEA WHY MAJOR NEWSPAPER TARGETED HIM TO "DROP DEAD"

PAPER PROVIDES NO EXPLANATION FOR FATWA

DESPITE ITS BEST EFFORTS, ABERCROMBIE & FITCH CAN'T TEACH ITS MODELS TO HOLD A FOOTBALL CORRECTLY

MTV CONCEDES "REAL WORLD BAGHDAD" NOT SUCH A GOOD IDEA AFTER BOMB DECIMATES ROOMIES' "COOL LOFT," KILLING FOUR ANGST-RIDDEN CAST MEMBERS

BOMBING GIVES TIRED SERIES MUCH-NEEDED CACHET

BAGHDAD - MTV admits that its attempt to inject heightened drama into the tired "Real World" series by rooming seven early-20-somethings together in what promotional literature billed as a "cool loft in Baghdad" probably was a mistake. An insurgent's bomb ripped through the loft this morning, killing four of the angst-ridden roommates. MTV has temporarily pulled the plug on the series while it seeks to relocate the surviving cast to Anaheim. An MTV official, speaking on condition of anonymity, conceded that the publicity from the bombing could give the moribund series much-needed cachet.

"Darius [Clayton] and Gina [Marumbaa] had just hooked up," said survivor of the bombing Sharmaine Wilson, 20. "They were, like, so in love. I am just, like, so sad."

At 8 a.m. Baghdad time this morning, Gina was candidly pouring out her soul directly into the camera. The chilling transcript of the broadcast leading up to the attack reads as follows:

GINA: "Like, Darius and I are, like, such soul-mates, it's unbelievable. Sharmaine and the others are like totally jealous because, like, we keep it real while they have all these issues, and --"

At this point, a terrific explosion tore through the house, and the screen went blank. Gina Marumbaa was killed instantly. Also killed in an adjoining room were Darius Clayton, 22, who was playing pool shirtless with Brian Wheedon, 21, and Jack Schmidt, 23, both of whom were also shirtless. None of the young men were discussing their feelings at the time of the blast but rather were smirking about their respective conquests at a Baghdad nightclub last night.

PROTESTORS UPSET OVER UNITED 93's "HOLLYWOOD ENDING"

SHANKSVILLE, PA - A vocal majority of the audience at the world premiere of controversial United 93 at the Warner Theatre in Somerset last night expressed outrage that Universal Pictures took "extensive liberties" with the facts about the only terrorist flight on September 11, 2001 that failed to hit its target. The film stars Charles Durning as pilot Captain Dahl, Keanu Reeves as Todd "let's roll" Beamer, and Jessica Simpson as a flight attendant.

"Well, the first thing wrong with it," said angry Shanksville resident Sean Cannon, "is that Hollywood turned the Arab terrorists into debonair British villains." (A Universal Pictures spokeswoman denied that the casting of four middle-aged British males to play the terrorists was a bow to political correctness. "We weren't concerned with ethnicity," said Carol Murray. "But it just so happened, coincidentally, that these British actors had the best auditions for those particular parts.")

The filmgoers had even more serious criticisms. "I hate to burst their bubble," said Sean Cannon, "but the passengers did not subdue the terrorists and safely land the plane."

A minority of the filmgoers were pleased that the terrorists were vanquished in the film. "I, for one, applauded when Keanu [Reeves] threw the last of the British terrorists out the gaping hole in the side of the plane," said Velveeta Lugosi. "Maybe the real terrorists will see this and get the message that they can't mess with us."

But the filmgoers saved the brunt of their fury for the filmmakers' decision to ignore Flight 93's Pennsylvania connection. Boos erupted in the theater when Reeves brought the plane to rest not in a Western Pennsylvania field but in the middle of bustling Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., directly in front of the Capitol Building, after narrowly missing the President's daughters who were sunbathing on the roof of the White House.

Many of the attendees continued to boo the humorous outtakes during the final credits, especially the sight of Charles Durning mugging shirtless in a turban.

Director Paul Greengrass dismisses the criticisms. "Frankly, the story that the Shanksville residents wanted me to tell was a real downer. Let's face it, these folks are the same bellyachers who rooted for Stallone to lose the fight in the first 'Rocky,' and for Rhett Butler to leave Scarlett O'Hara." Greengrass said he should be lauded for refusing to accede to the studio's demand that the President's daughters be shown sunbathing topless. "That would have been totally gratuitous," Greengrass explains. "Besides, we show enough of Jessica Simpson's breasts all throughout the film without stooping to distracting cheap thrills during the film's climax." Greengrass said he is pleased with the finished product. "I can tell you that when Keanu and Jessica walk off that plane arm-in-arm, it made me proud to be an American -- even though I'm British."

ALEXANDER SOLZHENITSYN SIGNS ENDORSEMENT DEAL WITH PFIZER, WILL APPEAR IN VIAGRA COMMERCIALS

WASHINGTON - Nobel-Prize winning Russian Author Alexander Solzhenitsyn signed an exclusive endorsement contract with pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Industries today, agreeing to appear in commercials and print-ads promoting the drug Viagra.

This is the first time in history that a Nobel Prize winner has agreed to become a spokesperson for a product prescribed to treat erectile dysfunction.

In a statement released through his publicist, Solzhenitsyn said he was looking forward to lending “his name, his legacy, his imposing moral, physical and literary stature, indeed his very soul, to helping the millions of men around the world who struggle to achieve an erection.”

Solzhenitsyn hasn’t done commercials on American television since he replaced Joe Dimaggio as a spokesman for “Mr. Coffee” during the mid-eighties. Since then, he has appeared in local Russian dinner theater, and managed a bed and breakfast in a suburb of St. Petersburg that attempts to recreate the Siberian Labor Camp experience for Western tourists.

Pfizer Chairmen George Van Epps said he was elated that Solzhenitsyn had agreed to the deal. “Alexander Solzhenitsyn has spent the better part of his life attempting to elevate the impotent, and through his literary works and in his public statements he has never ceased to confront the flaccid organs of Soviet power. It is indeed an honor for all of us here at Pfizer to be able to work with him.” Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The first ad featuring Solzhenitsyn is scheduled to appear during the 2007 Super Bowl.

JOHN SHUMWAY TO UNDERGO ON-AIR SEX CHANGE DURING MAY SWEEPS PERIOD

PITTSBURGH - KDKA television reporter and radio morning co-host John Shumway will undergo an on-air sex change operation during the crucial May sweeps period. Shumway is the first local television personality to have a sex-change since Dr. Renee Richards underwent a similar procedure at Divine Providence Hospital in 1968 and emerged as long-time anchorman Ray Tannehill. KDKA News Director John Verrilli announced the news at a press conference this morning at Gateway Center.

“Ever since John underwent on-air liposuction years ago," Verilli said, "viewers have called and written asking us to broadcast additional medical procedures, and surprisingly, the most frequent request we receive is for John to have the sex change. With the upcoming sweeps so important to set advertising rates for the next quarter, now just seemed to be the perfect time."

Shumway, who joined Verilli at the press conference, said he was looking forward to starting a new life as a woman. He even took some good-natured ribbing from his boss about the weight he regained after his liposuction. “I hope you know what you’re doing, John,” said Verilli. “Just because your gut came back doesn’t mean your [gonads] will.”

BIN LADEN, AL-ZARQAWI, PAN UNITED 93; DENOUNCE FILM AND AMERICA AS “VAPID, BANAL, OVERWROUGHT PIFFLE”

QUATAR - Osama Bin Laden and Musab Al-Zarqawi both gave "two thumbs way, way, down" to the new film United 93 released last Friday. The film is the first major Hollywood release dealing with the events of September 11, 2001.

The negative reviews were made during the weekly television program "Bin Laden and Al-Zarqawi At The Movies." The show, broadcast on the Aljazeera Network, features witty repartee, gentle jibes and occasional insights from two of terrorisms most fanatical cinematic aficionados.

It is rare that both men agree in their assessment of any film, but United 93 proved the exception. "Paul Greengrass directs this movie with the deftness of someone playing a piano with boxing gloves," said Bin Laden. "This is the kind of storytelling you would expect from an NYU freshman." Al-Zarqawi was equally dismissive. "We’ve known for quite some time that America is morally and spiritually bankrupt," he said. "With the release of this movie, we can now state unequivocally they are culturally bankrupt as well."

Both men ridiculed the performance of Lewis Alsamari as Saeed Al-Ghamdi. "Alsamari isn’t playing Al-Ghamdi, he’s doing an impression of him," said Bin Laden. "Absolutely the worst performance by any actor I’ve seen in all of my years of doing this show," said Al-Zarqawi. "And yes," he added, "I’ve seen all of Patrick Swayze’s movies."

Heinz's dirty little secret

POLICE UNCOVER PITTSBURGH CONDIMENT COMPANY'S SECRET MUSEUM OF PORN AND KETCHUP
PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh Police today raided a secret museum in the sub-basement of H.J. Heinz Company's northside factory housing innumerable pornographic artifacts with a tomato theme.

"I have just seen evil in its purest form," said Pittsburgh Police Chief Dom Costa, who headed the raid. "Or, more accurately, in it's puree form."

Among the artifacts is the statue pictured above, entitled "Tomato Man with Ketchup Bottle Phallus."

A hands-on exhibit of a busty woman built entirely out of tomatoes invites visitors to "squeeze the tomatoes."

And an entire room is devoted to Heinz's "57 varieties," but it has nothing to do with food products.

Chief Costa was shaken by the depths of depravity he witnessed. "Call me homophobic if you will," he said, "but I've given up eating pickles."

BUSH NAMES BILL O’REILLY NEW WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY

WASHINGTON - President Bush named Fox News personality Bill O’Reilly as White House Press Secretary this morning, replacing Scott McClellan, who resigned last week after it was revealed he had been using the NSA to electronically eavesdrop on phone conversations between his daughter and her boyfriend.

“The American people deserve to hear the news from someone who isn’t afraid to give them straight talk," the President said, "or the plain unvarnished truth. Bill O’Reilly is just the man for this job.” O’Reilly, who interrupted the President’s remarks to thank him for his appointment, immediately renamed the White House Briefing Room "The White House Briefing Room No-Spin Zone."

“I believe this simple, yet profound change will have a monumental effect on the way the American public receives the news,” said O’Reilly. When President Bush attempted to interject his agreement, O’Reilly cut him off. “I’m sorry, Mr. President, that’s all the time we have for this segment,” he said. O’Reilly, who is expected to remain as host of his nightly talk-show, “The O’Reilly Factor,” on FOX News, as well as his daily radio show, became angry when reporters questioned how well he would be able to fulfill his obligations at what amounts to a third-full time job. “That is the most ridiculous item of the day," he barked. "I never get tired of telling people the no-spin truth,” said O’Reilly. “Especially the no-spin truth as I see it.”

BUSH'S CAMPAIGN FOR SENATOR SANTORUM IS SO LOW-KEY, NO ONE KNOWS HE'S CAMPAIGNING

SEWICKLY HEIGHTS - President Bush made a secret visit to the home of businessman Richard Simmons in the posh Pittsburgh suburb of Sewickly Heights Friday night to attend a fundraiser for Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, who trails his Democratic challenger, Bob Casey, in the polls by double-digit margins. With Bush's popularity at an all-time low, the Republican party decided that having Bush openly campaign for Santorum would do the Senator more harm than good, so the President kept a low profile on this trip.

Bush eschewed the de rigueur limosine motorcade to Simmons' house in favor of a yellow cab ride. Cabdriver Bob Haas, Pittsburgh's so-called "cabdriver to the stars," was tapped to transport the first citizen. "Sinatra tipped better," was all that Haas would say.

Bush arrived at the Simmons' mansion before the other guests and was immediately whisked into a closet off the main room where he hid alone, in the dark, for the remainder of the evening. Secret service agents hovered outside throughout the fundraiser, and none of the guests realized that the President of the United States was secreted inside. Twice during the course of the evening Bush yelled from inside the closet in a high-pitched, unrecognizable voice: "Vote for Santorum! Vote for Santorum!" That was the extent of the President's contribution at the fundraiser.

When Bush arrived back in Washington, he told reporters that his time in the closet "made me appreciate what those brokeback cowboys went through all those years they spent in there."

Protestor at White House reception yells at Hu to stop religious persecution in China

BUSH APOLOGIZES PROFUSELY TO BRUTAL DICTATOR FOR AMERICA'S EXCESSIVE FREE SPEECH

WASHINGTON - A protestor interrupted President Bush's White House ceremony welcoming Chinese President Hu to America last Thursday, touching off an embarrassing international incident that could have negative repurcussions for the Bush administration's diplomatic efforts to end the U.S.-China trade imbalance.

The protestor, a 47-year old woman who had obtained temporary press credentials to attend the ceremony, waited until Hu started speaking and then, for several minutes, yelled for President Bush to "stop [Hu] from killing" and "persecuting" the Falun Gong, a banned religious movement in China. Hu shot Bush a disgusted glance and curtly muttered, "I am not amused." Bush scurried to the lectern and yelled for secret service agents to "drag her away, just drag her away, would you?"

After the ceremony, Bush tried to prevent the incident from derailing the trade talks between the U.S. and China. He obsequiously told the Chinese president: "How dare that wretched woman question your right as supreme dictator of a sovereign nation to deal forcefully with dangerous subversives. I am so, so sorry for the excessive display of freedom of speech you witnessed today." Bush went on to explain that the American Constitution was "concocted by a bunch of foolhardy old bastards" who "didn't live in the real world." Winking at Hu, Bush promised to "tighten up" the First Amendment.

"Good," snapped the still-angry Hu, "because I will not stop persecuting, or killing, the Falun Gong, in my sole discretion."

"Nor should you," Bush quickly agreed.

Hu then chided Bush for the "lenient" manner in which the United States deals with its dissidents. "We have a very effective way of dealing with undesirables in China," Hu said. "You will find evidence of that in the Tiananmen Square Massacre."

"Well, we have an effective way of dealing with them, too," Bush assured him. "For example, recently a rich lawyer got out of line, so I arranged for him to go quail hunting with my Vice President."

PATRICK OUT AS PENS' GM, WILL REPLACE RUMSFELD AS SECRETARY OF DEFENSE; RUMSFELD BECOMES PENS' NEW GM

WASHINGTON - Pittsburgh Penguins General Manager Craig Patrick announced that he has accepted President Bush's offer to become the nation’s Secretary of Defense. Patrick has been under fire since it was disclosed in "The Hockey News" last week that six former members of the Penguins (nicknamed "The Retired Generals"), as well as Penguins' broadcasters Mike Lange and Paul Steigerwald, signed a statement calling for his resignation.

Meanwhile at the Pentagon, Donald Rumsfeld announced that he was resigning from the President’s cabinet to take the job as general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins. This marks the first time since Brooklyn Dodgers General Manager Branch Rickey became Secretary of Defense during the last days of the Truman Administration in 1951 (succeeding Dean Acheson, who left to manage a Washington D.C. automobile dealership) that a professional sports executive has ascended to a cabinet-level position.

Speaking to reporters in a joint news conference on Air Force One, President Bush and Penguins' President Ken Sawyer lauded both Rumsfeld and Patrick for their accomplishments. Bush read a joint statement: “It is admirable that both Don and Craig have exhibited a steadfast willingness to remain completely inflexible and to 'stay the course,' in spite of vast empirical evidence suggesting that innumerable other routes would have been preferable.”

Across the river at the Pentagon, Patrick and Rumsfeld held their own press conference. Both men said they were pleased with the progress they made with the Penguins and the war in Iraq, respectively. When pressed by reporters, neither man could identify a single thing they would have done differently during the time they held their now-former positions.

Pittsburgh flashback: October 27, 1936

WOMAN BRINGS CRIMINAL CHARGES AGAINST MAN WHO PERFORMED FAKE BREAST EXAM, THANKS HIM FOR EARLY DETECTION OF HER CANCER

ORLANDO - Police say that Orlando resident Bradleys Roadhouse, who allegedly went door-to-door pretending to be a doctor and offering women free breast exams, has been arrested and charged with assault and battery. One of Roadhouse's victims, Bradenton resident Velveeta Lugosi, said that Roadhouse told her he found a lump during his examination of her. However, Ms. Lugosi became suspicious of Roadhouse when she realized he was not using gloves. She immediately ordered him out of her house and called the police.

Ms. Lugosi subsequently filed a criminal complaint against Roadhouse, and she also sent him a "thank you" note and a bottle of wine at the County Jail for detecting what turned out to be a cancerous lump and saving her life.

BETTIS JOINS OLIVIER, PRINCESS GRACE, OTHERS IN CELEBRITY WING AT BOWLING HALL OF FAME

ST. LOUIS - Former Pittsburgh Steeler running back Jerome Bettis has been chosen as one of the inaugural members of the new Celebrity Wing of the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame. Other inductees include actor Sir Lawrence Olivier, New York Observer film critic and bon vivant Rex Reed, choreographer George Balanchine, and the late Princess Grace of Monaco.

“The new Celebrity Wing will honor those non-bowling celebrities who, by their public words and actions, have engendered positive awareness of the sport of bowling or otherwise have advanced the bowling lifestyle,” said Museum Director Jerry Baltz.

Through a spokesman, Bettis issued a statement calling the honor “the single greatest achievement of my life,” adding that “if I never got inducted into another Hall of Fame, I wouldn’t care,” since this honor “was the only Hall of Fame that mattered anyway.”

Baltz said he expected a large contingent of Steeler fans to attend the induction ceremony, traditionally held on the last Saturday of July at the Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame Lanes in downtown St. Louis. “I only regret that they won’t be able to bowl after the ceremony,” he said. “It’s a league night.”

BREAKING NEWS: District Attorney names third assailant in Duke lacrosse rape case: Joran Van Der Sloot

JESSE JACKSON: "THAT YOUNG MAN SURELY WAS INVOLVED -- HE'S BAD NEWS."

POPE DECRIES PUBLICATION OF GOSPEL OF JUDAS, ISSUES FATWA AGAINST NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

VATICAN CITY - In the most controversial edict of his papacy, Pope Benedict XVI called on Christians around the world to rise up and kill the publisher of National Geographic Magazine. The Vatican News Service released the Pope’s message this morning: “By publishing the so-called 'Gospel of Judas,' the National Geographic Society has committed a heresy. It has long been settled by Church scholars and theologians that Judas never could have written a Gospel. His penmanship was simply too lousy.”

In another controversial move, the Pope also announced that he was immediately canceling his subscription to National Geographic. Benedict XVI, who sources say has been “in a bad mood” since he learned that Ron Howard was directing a film adaptation of Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code,” said he regretted having “to have somebody killed,” but he said that Christians can learn from their Muslim brethren. “A calm, measured response to viewpoints or opinions that offend or provoke doesn’t seem to get us anywhere,” said Benedict. “Let’s see what a couple of good riots and a little mayhem will do.”

ARREST MADE IN NATALEE HOLLOWAY CASE; AUTHORITIES TAKE DIRECTION FROM GROUP OF FIFTH GRADE GIRLS, ONLY REVEAL SUSPECT'S INITIALS

ORANJESTAD, ARUBA - Aruban authorities have arrested a 19-year old suspect in what is believed to be a major breakthrough in the sensational Nataelee Holloway disappearance, but they refuse to announce his name and will only say that his initials are "G.V.C."

Aruba's Governor Fredis Refunjol, stung by criticisms from around the world regarding the botched investigation following Ms. Holloway's disappearance, last December exclaimed in exasperation that a class of fifth grade girls could have handled the investigation better. To prove his point, Refunjol ordered investigators to take direction from a group of giggling, inane fifth grade girls until the case is closed.

The girls today instructed investigators to respond to inquiries from the press regarding the identity of the suspect by reading the following words in a coy manner: "Well, he's 19, and he's really cute, and his initials are 'G.V.C.' But that's all I'm going to say."

It is rumored that tomorrow the girls are going to reveal that the suspect smiled at one of them.

G. OGDEN NUTTING HOLDS RARE PRESS CONFERENCE TO ISSUE FATWA AGAINST MICHAEL KEATON; KEATON FOUND DEAD

PITTSBURGH - G. Ogden Nutting, the reclusive owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates, broke his silence this morning to address actor Michael Keaton's criticisms of Pirates ownership prior to the team's home opener earlier this week. Lit candles dotted the floor of the press room at PNC Park, and the room was shrouded in a strange mist of unknown origin. Nutting, who arrived via a trap door in the floor, was adorned in a dark flowing cape, and his trademark half-mask hid the disfigurement he suffered in the implosion of Three Rivers Stadium in 2001. The bizarre press conference was brief and to the point.

MR. NUTTING: Michael Keaton, insolent fool! You claim the fans should be upset because my team has not had a winning season since 1992. What of YOUR fans, Mr. Keaton? The last time you had a hit movie was also 1992 ["Batman Returns"]. I warn you, Mr. Keaton, keep your hands at the level of your eyes.

At this, Nutting disappeared through the trap door.

In a strange coincidence, less then thirty minutes later, actor Michael Keaton was found strangled to death in his Hollywood Hills home, the apparent victim of the mysterious Punjab Lasso trick. Police say they have no suspects.

Baseball cleans up its act: Ballplayer banned for life for unseemly personal habit

NEW YORK - Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, "fed up with the black eye" baseball has been getting the past several months from renewed allegations about steroids usage, is "cleaning house" to spruce up the game's badly tarnished image. His first target is an unlikely one. Selig announced today that he has banned from baseball for life 21-year old Justin Farber of the Altoona Curve, a double "A" minor leauge club, "for his repeated and unseemly habit of publicly picking his nose in major and minor league facilities." Selig explained in a written statement: "My decision with respect to the nose picker, as difficult as it was, will go a long way toward healing the wounds baseball has suffered these past months."

Selig was asked why he chose to single out this particular habit when no steroid user has been similarly banned. He explained: "In most respects, Mr. Farber's misconduct is more serious than steroid usage because it was done publicly, in front of children and families who have paid hard-earned money and who don't want to be subjected to this deplorable, vile activity." In contrast, Selig explained "steroid users do 'their thing' in private. In fact, if weren't for some over-zealous reporters, the fan would never know about it."

Selig said that his next target is "the big one" -- the crotch grabbers. "I expect that a large number of players will be targeted for that one."

McCLATCHY OVERDRAWS ON FANS GOOD WILL, OLD MAN NUTTING TO FORECLOSE ON TEAM

PITTSBURGH - The cantankerous, powerful business tycoon G. Ogden Nutting, who has been frustrated in his attempts to obtain complete control of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball club for many years, announced that he planned to foreclose on the team within twenty-four hours. A press release issued by a representative of Old Man Nutting asserted: “In light of the fact that the Pittsburgh Pirates have begun the season by losing the first four games, it is my belief that owner Kevin McClatchy has overdrawn on his good will account with the fans of Pittsburgh. It is my opinion that he has defaulted on his pledge to the community to field a competitive team.” Mr. Nutting plans to sell the franchise, terminate all employees, beginning with the elderly and lame, and demolish PNC Park to build, in his words, “a world-class parking lot.”

A man who identified himself as Clarence answered the phone at Mr. McClatchy’s office and said that McClatchy was despondent and wishes he had never been born. He said that McClatchy blamed the Pirates poor start on a careless bookkeeping error by an elderly relative in the front office. Clarence also indicated that McClatchy was last seen walking in the direction of the Sixth Street Bridge. "I'm going to catch up with him," said Clarence. "I'll talk to him about Mr. Nutting’s takeover bid -- you know, show him a few things, just as soon as I finish my lunch” which consisted of a flaming rum punch.

Pittsburgh Pirates broadcaster Lanny Frattare said that McClatchy deserved sympathy. “Imagine buying this team and writing checks to players who do nothing but fail for thirteen seasons in a row. Kevin is the richest loser in town.”

HINES WARD PLACES WREATH AT COLONEL HENRY BLAKE MEMORIAL

SEOUL - Super Bowl MVP Hines Ward completed an emotional return to his native Korea by attending a ceremony in downtown Seoul honoring the service of Colonel Henry Blake, a United States Army doctor who led a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the first two seasons of the Korean War.

Colonel Blake died in a plane crash over the Sea of Japan in 1972 when his plane spun in too low. There were no survivors.

Ward was joined at the ceremony by his mother and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun. In opening remarks, President Moo-hyun thanked Colonel Blake for his commitment to the Korean people. “Henry Blake was a doctor who dispensed the best kind of medicine: laughter. Without his rapier wit, wielded with a surgeon’s precision, we never would have fought the North Koreans to a stalemate.”

At the conclusion of the speech, Ward broke from the crowd and caught the wreath thrown to him by the President. High-stepping towards the memorial, Ward spiked the wreath at the base of the statue and performed a celebratory dance.

Colonel Blake left the Korean War after two seasons following a dispute with his superiors over compensation and a desire to guest-host the Tonight Show. Many believe that, had he lived, Blake would have starred in several failed sitcoms and enjoyed a lucrative career as a celebrity panelist on numerous television game shows. Ward said Blake was an inspiration, and he lamented his passing. “I know how difficult contract negotiations can get. It’s just too bad his holdout ended in death.”

BUCS PREPARE FOR OPENING DAY, YOKO ONO TO SING NATIONAL ANTHEM, LIONS TO CHASE PIEROGIES IN FIRST RACE OF SEASON

PITTSBURGH - Pirates owner Kevin McClatchy held a press conference this morning to announce that Yoko Ono, widow of slain smart Beatle John Lennon, would sing the National Anthem before the team’s home opener this Monday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. “Yoko has promised me that her treatment of the Star Spangled Banner will be respectful and understated, with a minimum of shrieking,” said McClatchy.

In other Pirates news, McClatchy announced that Aramark, Inc. will offer Soylent Green at the new Charlton Heston Concession Kiosk located on the mezzanine level. “Our research indicates that fans are tired of traditional ball-park fare. They want a different kind of eating experience when they come to PNC Park. And this Soylent Green is the miracle food of high energy plankton gathered from all the oceans of the world,” said McClatchy. “And we’ll be offering Soylent Red, too.”

When asked about rumors that the “Pierogie Race,” a PNC Park fan favorite, was being dropped this season, McClatchy was quick to respond. “Not dropped, just tweaked a bit,” he said. “As you know, Commissioner Stern imposed a one year suspension on Sauerkraut Sol after he failed a drug test for the third time in his career. So that hurts. And I thought the race was lacking something last season. So I’m pleased to announce that this year, in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Zoo, we’ll be using real, African lions to chase the Pierogies from the right field corner to home plate. Now they’ve got something to run for,” said McClatchy. “Their lives.”

McCLATCHY: PIRATES NEED NEW BALLPARK OR THEY'LL LEAVE TOWN

PITTSBURGH - Pirates Chief Executive Officer Kevin McClatchy said today that if the Pirates don't get a new publicly funded ballpark within five years, the team will leave town. "PNC Park was built in 2001, and it's definitely showing its age," McClatchy said. "We need a new venue to be able to compete with newer parks, like the one in Philadelphia."

McClatchy said it's time the Pirates moved back to a cavernous, multi-purpose stadium. "The thinking about what makes a ballpark good has changed drastically since PNC Park opened," he explained. "For example, when we built this thing, we thought grass was such a cool idea. Now we know that artificial turf is far superior. It's cost us thousands of dollars to get the damn grass stains out of the uniforms."

McClatchy also wants to eliminate the view of the city's skyline from the ballpark. "That's another idea that looked good on paper," he said. "The fact of the matter is that staring at the skyline is too distracting for the players."

"We didn't know any better, but Three Rivers Stadium did everything exactly right," said McClatchy. "Well, you live and learn."

McClatchy says that although he isn't counting his chickens just yet, he's already making plans for an implosion party for "when we tear down that dump, PNC Park."

TEAM SENT INFIELDER TO SORCERY SCHOOL IN OFF-SEASON, BANKS ON IMPROVEMENT AT THIRD BASE

BRADENTON, Fla - The Pittsburgh Pirates revealed today that they sent third baseman Joe Randa, 37, to famed Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the off-season to teach him sorcery, hoping to improve his batting average and defense.

"It may seem unorthodox to the average fan sitting in the bleachers slurping his beer, but it really was nothing out of the ordinary," said Pirates General Manager Dave Littlefield. "[Barry] Bonds attended [the school] in 1998, and we all know what it did for him."

Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts, said that Randa was an eager student. "I predict that with young Master Randa at third base, any ball hit to the left of second base up to 40 feet into the air will be an automatic out. And look for him to strike between 65 and 80 homeruns, and to hit at least .350."

Randa has been the hit of the Pirates' spring training clubhouse. He is able to levitate objects (see picture above), sign his autograph by just pointing at a piece of paper, and he has picked every basketball winner during the NCAA finals.

SHOCKER: PIRATES WORK BRADENTON BOOSTERS TO DEATH, PLOP THEM ON PICNIC TABLES TO DIE WITHOUT MEDICAL ATTENTION

BRADENTON - According to members of the Bradenton Boosters, the volunteer senior citizens group that services McKechnie Field during the Pittsburgh Pirates' spring training games, every March the ballpark resembles a scene from Cecille B. DeMille's Ten Commandments where the heartless Egyptians work the Jewish slaves to near-death and then drag them to the side of the road to die.

"The Pirates are killing these old people, pure and simple," said Bradenton Booster Charlene Finelli, who asked not to be idenitified in this story. "It's hot down here, and most of these poor old people are not in the best of health. But the Pirates force them to run around carrying bolders, rocks and other heavy objects, sometimes for days on end without sleep, and for no rhyme or reason -- just to carry them back and forth. We lose an average of 40 senior citizens every March in this ballpark."

According to Finelli, security guards at the ballpark carry the fallen boosters to picnic tables where they are left to die without medical attention. "The Pirates put them [at the picnic tables] so that the fans will think they're just resting. The fact is, they're either dead, or they're about to die."

Pirates General Manager Dave Littlefield was indignant when questioned about the team's treatment of the boosters, but he did not deny it. "Look, I'm here to win a division title," he explained. "So, yes, I need everyone to pull their weight, and that includes [the boosters]." Littlefield walked away, then stopped and smiled: "Besides, if I wanted to kill these people, I wouldn't bother with picnic tables. I'd force them to watch Vogelsong pitch."