Weird News Thread ....

[Jolie Rouge]

Reason Men Become Good Husbands

If you have a wonderful husband or boyfriend, thank his mother. A new study from Ferrum College in Virginia says men who become wonderful partners are often the product of wonderful moms, reports Reuters. The researchers interviewed 33 young couples--some of whom were married and some of whom were dating--and found what they called "significant" correlations between a man's tie to his mother and his partner's satisfaction with the relationship. "If he's very close to his mother he may feel very close to his partner, probably very affectionate," lead researcher Sarah Roberts explained to Reuters. She and her co-author, psychologist Sharon Stein, say that while much research has been done about the parent-child relationship in general, very little is known about the impact the mother-son relationship has on the son's relationship with his girlfriend or wife.

The "Mama's Boy or Lady's Man" study:

Each male and female member of the 33 couples completed different questionnaires. The men were asked about their perceived closeness to their moms. The women were asked about their own satisfaction with their romantic relationship.

The results:

In general, the men who said they had moms who "understood their needs" also had mates who described them as "affectionate." Men who had a strong love for their mothers tended to date women who described them as not only their lover, but also "their best friend," Reuters reports. And the men who tried hard to "make their mother proud" ranked high in terms of their ability to communicate with their female partner.

Why does this happen?

"In traditional homes, the mother is the very first person that the children have (as their) introduction to femininity," Roberts said in an interview with Reuters. "Their mother is, for the male child, their first study of what a woman is. So of course they watch her behaviors, they watch certain things coming from her, and of course are influenced by everything she may teach them." She speculates that in addition to influencing her son to be more open and gentle with other people, she may influence his choice in a mate. "If the mother is very loving, very caring, and displays this to her son, he may be in a position where he's thinking, 'Well, I want a woman like my mother,' or 'I don't want a woman like my mother,'" Roberts explained.

There's just one problem:

If the mother is too close--as in, the son perceives her as his best friend--her son was usually labeled "less-than-considerate" by his significant other. "I think it's clear it can go either way," Roberts told Reuters. "There's the question of 'how much is too much?' If he's too close to his mother, might not that be an obstacle for his spouse?" The study findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society.

[Jolie Rouge]

If You Get This E-Mail, Delete It ASAP

If you get this e-mail, do not click on or download the attachment. Delete the e-mail immediately. This is what it looks like:

Subject: your account
Text: Hello there, I would like to inform you about important information regarding your email address. This email address will be expiring. Please read attachment for details.
Best regards, Administrator
Attachment: message.zip


The attachment is a worm that evades antivirus software and takes advantage of a flaw in Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser, reports CNN. It's officially called "worm/MiMail.A" or "W32.Mimail.A@mm." The worm began spreading late Friday afternoon. Since it arrived as a zip file, it snuck through many e-mail scanning programs most companies have in place to block the entry of potentially dangerous programs that are disguised as e-mails.

If you click on the attachment, the worm will launch and then create a mass-mailing of itself. CNN reports that it's not yet known what "malicious payload" the worm contains. The immediate threat is that it will cost companies money and time as their computer systems are significantly slowed by it.

[Jolie Rouge]

Teen Abduction Nixed By Cell Phone Cam

This may be a first. When a man, who was later identified as William MacDonald, 59, tried to abduct a 15-year-old boy in Clifton, N.J., last week, the quick-thinking teen used his Sprint cell phone camera to take photographs of the man and his car, reports CNN. Those pictures led to the alleged abductor's arrest.

Here's the story, according to Det. Capt. Robert Rowan of the Clifton Police Department: The teen was walking home Tuesday evening when MacDonald approached him in a white car. He asked the boy to get in. The boy refused. "Then the motorist made sexually explicit remarks," Rowan told CNN. "The juvenile refused to get in and kept on walking. Then the juvenile took a picture of the man and the car's license plate." At that point, MacDonald jumped out of his car and grabbed the boy's arm. The two struggled, but the boy escaped and hopped on a New Jersey Transit bus. The teen rode the bus to a nearby town where his brother picked him up in his car. The two brothers then went to the Clifton police headquarters where they gave to police the cell phone camera photos of the man and his car, including the license plate. It was because of that evidence that MacDonald was arrested the next day.

"He was able to have the presence of mind to utilize the technology at his disposal," Rowan said of the boy. "He was upset at the time, but he's okay. He has a bruise to his arm and wrist." Meanwhile, MacDonald has been charged with criminal restraint, attempting to lure a juvenile into a vehicle, and simple assault. He is currently being held in Passaic County Jail on $25,000 bail. A spokeswoman for Sprint told CNN that this is the first time they know that someone has used the cell phone camera technology--which is only a year old--to foil a criminal.

[Jolie Rouge]

Ew! Look What They Added to Burgers
Coming soon to a plate near you: A blueberry hamburger.

Food scientists at the University of Maine have discovered that when blueberry puree or blueberry powder is added to ground beef, chicken, or turkey patties, it significantly boosts the nutritional value of the classic burger, reports The Associated Press. Call it a berryburger.

This isn't the first time fruit has been added to hamburger meat. Previously cherries and prunes were added to help soften dry meat. Blueberries do more than make the burger moist. They also add cancer-fighting antioxidants and may also slightly reduce the fat content of the burgers, according to Al Bushway, a food scientist at the University of Maine. There's another advantage, too: If such a move became popular, it would boost the sales of Maine blueberries.

What does a berryburger look like?

"With the beef, it's very difficult to really tell by looking at it," Bushway explained to AP. "When you put it in ground turkey, you do get a different color. One certainly would notice." Bushway has big berry plans. The burgers will soon be taste-tested by the most discriminating diners of all: school children. He hopes it will become a food fad. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has the same hope because the burgers will be healthier and that means a lot when serving school lunches to 27 million children

[Jolie Rouge]

.Lo & Ben Publicly Make Very Odd Vow

"Gigli" is so bad, so awful, so unwatchable, and such a box office bomb that stars and lovers Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez have made a solemn vow: They will never work together again.

That's the word from the New York Daily News as the film, which made a measly $3.8 million in its opening weekend, was pelted with bad reviews and snide remarks. The vow to never work together again was reportedly made because Ben and Jen--or "Bennifer" as gossip columnists have taken to calling them--are so distraught at the critical backlash. They blame themselves. They think the ONLY reason the movie failed is that they are famous, and fans are obsessed with gossip about their pending nuptials. "Ben's brushing it off the bad press," one source told IMDB News. "But J.Lo's taking it personally. They've admitted their relationship is more of a hindrance than a boost to a movie." Oops. Best not to tell Kevin Smith. He's the director of the upcoming movie "Jersey Girl," starring--you guessed it--both Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez.

At first, J.Lo thought their relationship would sell more tickets to "Gigli," since it was during the filming that they met. She is quick to add they did not fall in love then because she was still married to Cris Judd. That came later. But "Gigli" lets star-struck fans see where it all began. (As if they care.) Just last week, J.Lo told AP Radio: "(There) was bound to be publicity about us as well as the film, and that's fine! I just want people to know the movie is a good movie, is a lot of fun. There's some really great scenes in it, really interesting, funny, sexy stuff in it. And that they'll have a good time. It'll be good entertainment for them to go out and watch this week."

Turns out, mob enforcers kidnapping a federal prosecutor's mentally disabled brother isn't such good entertainment after all.

[Jolie Rouge]

The Endorsers
Stars that make big business out of selling their image.

http://channels.netscape.com/ns/cele...smith.jsp?p=27

Sell, Baby, Sell: Madonna Leads Parade of Celebrity Self-Marketers By Erick Johnson

It looks like Madonna, the queen of cross-promotion, has struck again. The Material Mom has masterminded yet another foolproof way of making her latest addition to her curriculum vitae a sure success. She's signed with Gap, the clothing retail chain, to appear in ads and commercials for them, which of course ends up a win-win situation for Madonna.

Here is how it works:

Madonna has made a remix of her classic pop tune "Get Into the Groove" with none other than hip-hop diva artist/producer Missy Elliott. And with every pair of baggy cords one buys from the Gap, one gets a free copy of the new version of the old Madonna classic. But that's not all. Also factored into the equation is the CD's tie-in to Madonna's first children's book, "The English Roses," which is due on bookstore shelves Sept. 15.


How brilliant for the first-time children's book novelist -- to have her debut work launched on a platform as big as the Oprah Winfrey book club. Not only does Madonna draw other middle-aged material moms -- who are now shopping at J Crew by the SUV load -- to Gap, but, thanks to Madonna's Harper's Bazaar cover, which is being launched simultaneously with billboard and television commercials, she's sure to help pull in quite a bit of the urban market as well.

The Harper's Bazaar cover has Madonna modeling a simple white Gap "wife beater" t-shirt, bee-bop cap, baggy Gap cords and enough bling, bling on her wrist to make Ray Charles squint and Liberace jealous.

While it isn't unusual for the company to lean upon celebrities to advertise their all-American wares, (previous ad campaigns have featured the likes of Christina Ricci, Anjelica Huston, Dennis Hopper, India.Arie and Don Cheadle, to name a few) the Madonna deal is unique.

The last time Madonna did such a huge advertising campaign for something outside of one of her own projects, was with Pepsi back in the early '90s and that ended not-so-kindly, with the soda-making giant refusing to air taped commercials featuring Madonna's "Like a Prayer" song that many found to be sacrilegious.

But Pepsi's history with celebrity pitchfolks has largely been a positive one. Besides Madonna, Michael Jackson, Robert Palmer, Britney Spears, and now, Shakira and Beyonce, have successfully peddled the product.

There was a time when actors feared that being seen in commercials would taint their artistic reputations. Little of that feeling lingers, although today enormous strategizing goes into teaming celebs with companies that have the perfect "upscale," "hip," "edgy" or whatever appropriate image. Americans have to go abroad to see the ads they take just to make money.

In America one may see Halle Berry in ads for make-up great Revlon, or Jennifer Lopez in magazine ads and billboards for Louis Vuitton handbags and leathers, for instance.

But if you want to see Pierce Brosnan hawking lipstick or George Clooney inveigling you to get your hands on a Toyota, you need to be in Japan.

In fact, nowhere in the world outside of Japan do American stars take so much advantage of their celebrity by appearing in ads that will only be seen in that country. "Japanders" -- Western stars who make large sums of money in a short time by advertising products in Japan that they might never use -- include the following:

Mariah Carey sells canned coffee for Nescafe.
Ben Stiller sells Chutti, a canned beverage made with shochu and various fruit flavors.
Charlize Theron, Lara Flynn Boyle and Penelope Cruz are all Lux ladies, selling Lux haircare products in Japan and around the globe.

Ewan McGregor, Cameron Diaz, Celine Dion and Carey are also spokespersons for Japan's Aeon English Schools.

The latter was a particularly nice get for Dion, given she grew up speaking French in Canada.

Perhaps Brad Pitt has made the most of this practice. Over the last decade, he's made a series of commercials for Edwin brand Jeans and clothes that's said to be worth tens of millions of dollars. Perhaps this sheds a little light on Pitt's oftentimes odd choices in movie roles.

After all, who really needs to have a hit at the box office when people are shelling out those kinds of bucks for 30-second spots?





Syndicated Columnists--Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith are featured on E! Online under the daily "Ask Marilyn" column and in monthly celebrity profiles and industry features.

[Jolie Rouge]

DNA to Be Used to Indict Unknown Suspects in Sex Crimes
By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/04/ny...4&partner=UNTD


ew York City officials said yesterday that they planned to systematically review biological evidence from hundreds of unsolved sex crimes, with the goal of indicting the unidentified attackers based on their DNA profiles before the 10-year statute of limitations runs out.

Under the initiative, called the John Doe Indictment Project, prosecutors, investigators and scientists will seek to tie the most serious unsolved sex crimes to specific DNA profiles, then file charges even before they have linked a name to the DNA or have arrested a suspect.

The first roughly 600 cases for which evidence will be reviewed concern attacks in 1994, nine years ago. If the indictments are completed before the prosecution clock runs out, law enforcement officials say they believe the person with that DNA can be arrested and charged any time in the future.

The project is the first of its kind anywhere, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said yesterday, although individual "John Doe indictments" based on DNA have been filed in New York City and a few other places. There have been roughly 20 cases in the city, mostly in Manhattan, which pioneered the practice in the unsolved case of the East Side rapist, who has been linked to more than a dozen sexual attacks from the 1990's.

New York State law requires that a felony prosecution be brought within five years of those crimes, or within 10 years if the criminal's identity is unknown. The purpose of the limitation is to protect the accused against fading memories and lost witnesses. An indictment, even one that identifies the attacker simply by DNA — usually in semen collected soon after a crime — indefinitely preserves the ability to prosecute, officials said.

"For the first time, prosecutors, police and scientists will join forces and use technology on a citywide scale to employ an innovative legal strategy — indicting the DNA profiles of unknown sex offenders," Mr. Bloomberg said at a news conference with Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, prosecutors and other officials.

"One very simple goal is behind this strategy: stopping rapists from profiting from the statute of limitations," he said. "By indicting a rapist's DNA profile even before we know who he is, we can stop the clock on the statute of limitations. So on the day that we find out who that rapist is, whether it takes us 10 years, 20 years, 30 years or more, he will have his day in court."

A $350,000 federal grant will cover the cost of one prosecutor and one investigator in each of the city's five district attorney's offices to work solely on reviewing the cases, Mr. Bloomberg said.

John Feinblatt, the mayor's criminal justice coordinator, said he could not say how many indictments would be filed, but he and other officials stressed that they would be sought only if the victim could be found and would be willing to testify before a grand jury. Because of the passage of time and the intense emotion involved in sex crimes, he acknowledged that there were special difficulties to winning convictions. Both time and emotion can affect memory, even though the event is burned into the victims' memories.

Mr. Bloomberg said that for three years the city had sought legislation in Albany extending the statute of limitations. More than a dozen states have extended the statute of limitations since 2000, and others are considering doing so.

Citing the recent John Doe indictments in New York City, Mr. Feinblatt said that the city had used the technique and that it had worked. "We've done it on a very small scale, we know it's a smart way to proceed; the test phase is over and we want to make it policy," he said. "We tried to go to Albany, and that failed. Our job is to protect victims, and now that we believe science will allow us to do it, we're not going to wait."

Criminal-defense lawyers and legal scholars had mixed views of the project, and some contended that it sought to bypass the statute of limitations, a centuries-old tradition rooted in common law, without providing an adequate replacement for the defenses it provides.

Lawrence S. Goldman, the past president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, said that, with the passage of time, it becomes harder and harder to defend against criminal cases. "It is extremely difficult to defend a crime after many years," he said. "I would rather the city spend its efforts on people who are sitting in prison and make sure the DNA matches," he said.

And the New York Civil Liberties Union raised questions about the practice in a memorandum opposing proposed legislation that would have changed New York State law to explicitly allow such indictments. The indictments could violate the due process rights of those accused of crimes, according to the undated memorandum, which appears on the group's Web site, because after the passage of a significant amount of time, an innocent person accused of a crime may be unable to remember what he or she was doing on a specific day, and alibi witnesses also may not remember, may move away or may die.

But Yale Kamisar, an expert in criminal procedure and a law professor at both the University of Michigan and the University of San Diego, called the project "a kind of ingenious way" to deal with the statute of limitations. Noting that people now treat sex crimes far more seriously than they did even 10 years ago, he said, "So now that people view it differently, I personally don't see why anybody has a right to say, `Well, my time has run out and they can't find me.' This is a pretty good way to respond to that."

Barry Scheck, a law professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University and a founder of the school's Innocence Project, which has been a leader in using DNA to reverse wrongful convictions, said he could imagine cases in which the new technique would be appropriate. "You have to look at it on a case-by-case basis," he said.

Mr. Kelly, who late last year restructured and expanded the Police Department's Special Victims Unit, which investigates sex crimes, said the new project would be especially effective as the state's convicted-offender database grows, allowing the DNA in John Doe indictments to be compared to more profiles. "As the number of profiles in those systems increases, so will the number of DNA matches and the resulting convictions," he said.

Mr. Feinblatt said the technique was likely to be tested in appeals courts in the coming years. He emphasized that the certainty of DNA evidence was the strength of the project. In recent years, DNA evidence has helped free scores of people wrongly accused of crimes and convict many others.

"Of course, when we were dependent on people's memories to identify somebody, the statute of limitations made sense," Mr. Feinblatt said. "We no longer live in that world. In rape cases, defendants leave their identity behind. That makes a world of difference, and what we're saying is that practice has to catch up with science."

[Jolie Rouge]

Alcohol-Fueled Blaze Burns Beam Warehouse


BARDSTOWN, Ky. (AP) - Fire engulfed a wood-frame bourbon warehouse Monday, sending alcohol-fueled flames more than 100 feet in the air.

The Jim Beam warehouse collapsed about two hours after the fire was reported at 3 p.m. and continued burning. There were no reports of injuries.

Firefighters doused two nearby warehouses with water in an attempt to save them, while a fire truck stood by at a third.

``Only one of them is on fire and they're working to make sure that it stays that way and to contain the burning whiskey,'' said Larry Green, city administrator.


Authorities did not know the fire's cause.


A person answering the phone at the Jim Beam headquarters in Deerfield, Ill., could not provide further details.


Warehouse and distillery fires are typically devastating because of the flammable alcohol. In 2000, a fire at a Wild Turkey distillery in Lawrenceburg destroyed a seven-story warehouse that held nearly 1 million gallons of aging bourbon in 17,200 barrels.


More than 95 percent of the world's bourbon is produced in Kentucky, where it has been made since the 1780s. More than a half-dozen distilleries are in the region, including Jim Beam, Maker's Mark and Wild Turkey.



08/04/03 18:24

[Jolie Rouge]

Jon Stewart searches for absurdity
Monday, August 4, 2003 Posted: 1:50 PM EDT


"Ultimately, everyone here thinks of ourselves in terms of being a comedy show and that's it." -- Jon Stewart


NEW YORK (AP) -- Jon Stewart could barely contain himself.

A congressman had publicly called a colleague a "fruitcake" and, since it happened on a Friday night, Stewart couldn't joke about it on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" until three days later.

"I do believe we need to go to a 24-hour fake news channel," he said. "Fox can't be the only fake news channel out there!"

Stewart can't wait to bare the absurdities of the news and the people who cover it, and his sharp humor has made "The Daily Show" a growing force. No one hit the comic mark more consistently during the war in Iraq. And as an election year approaches, Stewart's in top form.

He and "The Daily Show" are up for five Emmys next month, and the Television Critics Association gave him two awards last month. The critics even nominated "The Daily Show" for best achievement in news, along with "60 Minutes" and "Nightline."

On August 14, the nation's reigning political celebrity, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, is Stewart's guest.

During unfunny times, viewers have responded to Stewart's ability to make fun. The show's average nightly audience has nearly doubled from 427,000 in 1999, the year he took over, to 788,000 so far this year.

"Even though terrible things are going on around us, I would hope that wouldn't mean that the sense of humor is lost," Stewart said, relaxing in his office after taping a show. "The idea isn't to make jokes about horrible things. The idea is to find the absurdity in the difficult circumstances around us."

Preserving the political satirist

Stewart helps keep political satire alive for a young audience that -- the experts say -- isn't very attuned to the news.

The show's fake "debate" about foreign policy, using film clips to show President Bush arguing about nation-building with presidential candidate Bush, was as pointed as a political cartoon.

"He's really strong at political satire," said CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer, whose first name, naturally, has made him a target of Stewart's barbs. "I don't know of anybody who does it better than he does." Blitzer said he can tell that Stewart and his staff are news junkies.

"The Daily Show" recognizes that its audience has an astute media awareness, too. Stewart made note last week, for example, that The New York Times used an obituary of comedian Bob Hope written by a reporter, Vincent Canby, who died in 2000.

Stewart also didn't let the latest odd Dan Rather moment pass by. He played tape of when the CBS anchor, in a deadpan voice, recited lyrics to "Take Me Home, Country Road" when former POW Jessica Lynch returned to West Virginia.

"I'm just glad he didn't keep going," Stewart said later. "He could have. There's more choruses. He could have gone into 'Annie's Song.' He could have gone into Jim Croce. He was on a roll."

Stewart's political humor stands out, in part, because he's willing to be tough at a time others aren't. At the same time, he's less threatening because he has no ideological ax to grind.

"Believe me, the idea of the show is not to be a bold, critical voice that stands out amidst timidity," he said. "It's more like, 'I think we need a fart joke at the end of this because we're getting too strident.' Ultimately, everyone here thinks of ourselves in terms of being a comedy show and that's it."

Poking fun at presidents, candidates

He's seen no evidence that his barbs against the president have drawn blood. The rigid discipline of the Bush administration is easy to have fun with, he said. At the very least, it's a big change from Monica Lewinsky jokes. "When you look back on it now, I wish we were making jokes about that," he said. "That was a luxurious scandal if there ever was one. Imagine a president right now who'd even have time for extra oral sex."


"The Daily Show" will begin gearing up this fall for another presidential campaign. Right now, the staff is just happy the GOP convention is in New York, so they can sleep in their own beds.

Stewart's "Indecision 2000" coverage attracted attention last time. With a larger audience, it's likely to get even more this time.

The upcoming Clinton appearance is an indication of that. Other than the insatiable need for applause, Stewart can't quite understand why it's important for politicians to go on comedy shows. Not that he's complaining.

"I can't imagine anyone lauding Churchill's legacy as, yes, he rallied England during its darkest hours but, also, tremendous ribald wit," he said. "Great leadership, as far as I know, doesn't require that you go toe to toe with pranksters, but for some reason, they feel that it adds to their electability."

Stewart is signed to stay with Comedy Central through the end of the 2004 elections. His name is always at the top of the list when broadcasters go looking for late-night talent. But unless one of the really big jobs -- Jay Leno's or David Letterman's -- open up unexpectedly, he's probably better off staying where he is.

"There are things about those jobs that are very appealing," he said. "There are things about those jobs that are unappealing. I'd probably think more about something else if I wasn't happy where I was. But I don't feel an emptiness, an itch. I like doing what I'm doing."


{{we're here for you, Jon ...****

[Jolie Rouge]

Leno to get makeover from 'Queer Eye' guys
By Ben Berkowitz

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Is a "Queer Eye" plus Jay Leno's big chin the right look for good ratings? The NBC television network thinks so.

With new reality series "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" having become a breakout summer hit for the Bravo cable TV channel, Bravo parent NBC said Monday it will bring the show's "Fab Five" make-over artists onto "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" for a pair of special appearances next week.

The "Queer Eye" quintet will make their "Tonight Show" debut as guests on Aug. 14, then return the following night to give Leno and his program a special make-over.

"Queer Eye," which has become a major ratings winner for Bravo, features five gay men with expertise in good grooming, food, fashion, culture and interior design coming to the aid of a hapless heterosexual slob. The hour-long show has drawn the cable channel's highest audience numbers ever.


An initial half-hour repeat of the show on NBC proved to be a solid ratings performer, and "Queer Eye" hype has continued to build in U.S. popular culture since that special broadcast. NBC plans to air a second 30-minute prime-time installment on Aug. 14, the same evening as the Fab Five's debut on Leno.


While audiences have taken warmly to "Queer Eye," some of the nation's top TV critics have been mixed in their reviews.


"In this long summer of instantly disposable reality TV, cable's Bravo channel manages to break through the pathetic pack by slyly subverting one of the genre's conventions," TV Guide critic Matt Roush wrote in this week's issue. "Yes, the 'Fab Five' can be *****y, but as they bond with their subject, there's a lot of heart in the way they root for him."


Washington Post critic Tom Shales took a different tack, though, in his initial review of the show.


"Forced to choose between scorn and condescension, gay people could hardly be blamed for preferring the latter -- and thus might not object to the stereotypes on parade in the series," he said last month.


Reuters/VNU

08/04/03 18:49

[Jolie Rouge]

Alien Baby Found in Wyoming?

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) - The headline raised some eyebrows, but authorities said there's no evidence an alien baby has been found in Casper.

According to a story published in The Weekly World News tabloid, local rancher Phil Merleson found a scaly skinned infant on the floor of his barn May 7 after hearing a humming sound emanating from the building.

The story added that mysterious lights were seen in the area the previous night. The creature, the paper reported, has two brains and three hearts, is in good health and can produce high-frequency wails capable of shattering glass.

Included with the story were several photographs allegedly taken from a video shot by Merleson's wife, Cynthia.

FBI Special Agent Ann Atanasio said the agency was not aware of any alien babies discovered in its territory covering Wyoming and Colorado and denied any involvement with such a case.

``But I suggest that you might want to refer any inquiries to FBI headquarters and ask for agents Mulder or Scully,'' she quipped, referring to the stars of the TV show ``The X-Files.''

Natrona County Sheriff Mark Benton was also unaware of any alien babies discovered in barns in his jurisdiction. ``I wish we had found an alien baby, but we have not found one and we have not really been looking for one,'' he said.

The newspaper learned of the happenings from the Merlesons themselves, who sent editors the videotape, Weekly World News executive editor Barry Dutter said.




No one named Merleson, however, is listed in Casper-area phone books or on any Internet-based telephone directory.


© Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained In this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.