Print edition for November 8, 1999

'Bone Collector' scares up top ticket sales: Robert Jablon; Denzel Washington's latest drama earned $17.2 million in its opening weekend to place No. 1, even though critics generally thought the grisly serial-killer thriller was full of plot holes.

Business journalists told to watch for stock correction: David Strow; Is the bubble ready to burst?

Reptile collecting impact to be studied: Wildlife spokesman Jeff Snyder said there are only about 20 licensed collectors in the state, but they gather a good number of the snakes and lizards that are sold commercially worldwide.

Harvard to honor Councilman Brown: Brown, a 1979 graduate, will be inducted for all-around performance due to his baseball and football careers with the Crimson. His double-lettering puts him in an exclusive class of Hall of Fame members as just 12 or 13 have been inducted for all-around performance.

Obituaries for November 8, 1999: Robert D. Finley, 66, of Las Vegas died Wednesday in a local hospital. He was born Feb. 6, 1933, in Ramsey, Ill. A resident for four years, he was a retired machine operator and Korean War Army veteran.

Nevada to lead nation in job growth: Phil Levine; Nevada will lead the nation in job growth next year, although the state's home building sector will experience a slowdown.

One dead in shooting outside casino: Steven Baron was arguing with Aldore Malboeuf inside a parked car when he was shot Saturday, said state police spokesman Lt. Ralph Carpenter. Baron was pronounced dead on arrival at William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich.

Senior housing complex battling for approval: Diana Sahagun; A 43-acre senior housing complex that once drew a slew of opposition is heading before the North Las Vegas Planning Commission for final approval.

Two casinos sold to Florida firm: The deal by The Holder Group LLC involves the Silver Club Hotel-Casino in Sparks and El Capitan Lodge and Casino in Hawthorne.

Planning council to decide on Nevada HAND project: Diana Sahagun; Nevada HAND, a nonprofit housing development company, will go before the North Las Vegas Planning Commission Wednesday night asking for approval of a site plan to develop a low-income senior apartment complex.

Some Venetian liens released: More than $420 million in addition bonds are expected to be posted Wednesday, freeing the Strip resort from the threat of foreclosure by construction firms that haven't been paid for work done on the hotel-casino.

Governor ready to retool tax system: During an interview Friday on "POV Vegas," the Las Vegas Sun's news discussion show, which can be seen on Channels 1 and 39, Guinn said the state looks at its budget every two years when it should be looking at projections of up to eight years.

Howard Hughes Corporation, ANC interested in sale of BLM land parcels: The two largest land developers in Southern Nevada will vie for Bureau of Land Management property as it's auctioned.

Local news briefs for November 8, 1999: A note left at the Henderson home of Frank Sherwood told police why he killed his 71-year-old wife at Desert Springs Hospital on Friday, then turned the gun on himself.

Engineers say today's LV hotels safer than ever: Las Vegas has experienced its share of acts of God and man-caused disasters -- fire, floods, earthquakes, etc. -- and the operators of skyscraping hotel-casinos have weathered such incidents and learned from their mistakes.

DOE makes Yucca pitch to state agency: Over the next two weeks the U.S. Department of Energy will make its case for building a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain to the state agency that has the greatest say about it: the Nevada Engineer's Office.

Nevada judges to rule on alien criminals: CARSON CITY -- In what is called a first in Nevada, the five federal district judges assigned to Nevada met to decide whether criminal aliens who have been ordered deported by the government can be kept indefinitely in jail if their native country refuses to accept them.

LV firm wins patent: This patent covers preemptive hopper fills and automatic hopper inventory reporting, Spintek said.

Rudin fights extradition to Nevada: Ed Koch and Jace Radke; Margaret Rudin, who has been on the run for more than 2 1/2 years from charges of killing her millionaire Las Vegas husband, remains determined not to return to Nevada.

Car crash leaves two dead near Hoover Dam: Jace Radke; A head-on collision between two cars a few miles south of Hoover Dam in Arizona Sunday night left two people dead and snarled traffic for hours.

Big Las Vegas developers set for Beltway real estate boom: One of the first to profit from the beltway is American Nevada Corp., the real estate arm of the Greenspun family, which owns the Las Vegas Sun and several sister publications.

Financier Milken touts diversification, education: Gary Thompson; Diversification of its industrial base and increased investment in education are keys to a prosperous future for Nevada, financier Michael Milken said.

Aggressive bank to expand in LV Valley: Phil Levine; Seattle-based Washington Mutual Inc. will create 200 jobs with its Las Vegas expansion.

Turnipseed often sides with Southern Nevada on water: State Engineer Michael Turnipseed, who holds the power to decide whether Nevada's ground water can be used for building a high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, is no stranger to controversy.

LV Strip attractions in sales pact: David Strow; In what's being described as the first venture of its kind in Las Vegas, four popular tourist attractions are allying themselves in an effort to cross-promote their businesses.

Environmentalists air complaints: Environmentalists and two federal land agencies are leading the opposition to a plan that would turn almost 7,000 acres of virgin desert land 40 miles southwest of Las Vegas into a new airport.

Enron to sell power in Nevada: Enron Corp., the world's largest marketer of electricity and natural gas, was licensed to do business in Nevada last week by the state Public Utilities Commission.

Nevada utility in deal for $3.1 billion: Bloomberg News contributed to this report.

Homebuilder changes website: The company's new website is www.kbhomes.com.

Complex sues county, flood district: Winchester said rainwater overflowed a drain at Winchester Community Center instead of draining to the Flamingo Wash via the drainage system under Winchester's property at 3135 S. Mojave Road.

Barrick Goldstrike cuts 86 Nevada jobs: Most of the job cuts were the result of the company improving its trucking equipment, the Toronto-based gold mining firm said. It said it was deploying 330-ton capacity trucks to replace its 190-ton fleet.

Retailer opening in North Las Vegas: The Minneapolis-based discount chain plans to build a 124,500-square foot store at 2189 Craig Road. Opening March 5, 2000, the store will employ about 200 people. Target currently operates eight stores in the Metropolitan Las Vegas area.

Letter: Activists' violence is not surprising: Many groups encourage acts of extremism to advance the movement's agenda, even while remaining less than outspoken on the issue. These groups maintain their innocence when violence occurs, an unfortunate example of the movement's duplicity -- where one hand washes the other, yet neither comes clean.

Greenspun eyes Las Vegas-themed cable network: Consider what a national television network devoted to Las Vegas could do for the Entertainment Capital of the World.

Ambulance response time challenged: According to its contract, in 90 percent of emergencies American Medical Response must respond in under nine minutes.

Flat tire punctures Jarrett's run: PHOENIX -- Dale Jarrett's hopes of winning Sunday's Dura Lube 500 were ended by the pull-tab from an aluminum beer or soda can.

Forest Service boss in bull trout flap quits job: Scott Sonner; Locked in a battle over protection of the threatened bull trout as well as mining and livestock grazing controversies in Nevada, Gloria Flora said she intends to leave her post soon after the first of the year.

Firefighters battle 6,000-acre Elko County wildfire: Gusty winds on the leading edge of a storm in the Sierra were fueling the spread of flames through the dry grass, sage, pinyon-juniper and mountain mahogany, said Roger Vorce, incident commander at the Elko Interagency Fire Dispatch.

UNLV golf ties for seventh: The Rebels (286-278-286-850) finished tied with South Carolina at 14-under. Georgia won the team title at 27-under, while Georgia Tech finished second, four shots back.

Big utility pays to settle discrimination complaints: Scott Sonner; The settlement includes a $82,933 retirement payment to a minority worker "who felt compelled to leave the racially hostile workplace," the Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance said in a statement Monday.

BMW team holds on to win at LVMS: Brock Radke; BMW Motorsport co-drivers J.J. Lehto and Steve Soper outlasted the competition to win the American Le Mans Series Grand Prix at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Sunday.

Spartans, Wildcats get chance to settle score: Spencer Patterson; One year later, Cimarron-Memorial and Las Vegas will finally get the chance to take care of some unfinished business on the football field.

Upcoming business events for November 8, 1999: Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce -- Lunch with Tommy Tune of EFX and Keith Woods of the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce. Tuesday. 641-5822.

Letter: Notch baby column right on target: I had sent telegrams to Washington. Rep. Dan Rostenkowski, then-chairman of the Ways & Means Committee, replied to one with a lengthy letter trying to explain why we should get nothing. What an honorable man he turned out to be.

For Rebels, exhibition will gauge progress: Victoria Sun; Next up

Nevada will keep children in controversial Colorado program: Cleo Wallace Centers provide inpatient and outpatient care for children from Colorado and other states at facilities in Colorado Springs and the Denver suburb of Westminster.

Civil rights activists say MLK Highway not recognized enough: "We fought too long and too hard to get it on paper only to be ignored," said Bill Moon, former president of the Reno-area NAACP chapter. "Its too important a highway to continue to say 395 and not Martin Luther King."

Community news briefs for November 8, 1999: The American Lung Association is asking residents to donate their used car, truck, motorcycle, boat or RV to its Vehicle Donation Program.

Denial of water rights could kill proposed nuclear dump: Trevor Hayes; "Water is necessary for the repository to be constructed and operated," said Scott Wade, an environmental safety and health specialist with the U.S. Department of Energy.

Stewart coasts: PHOENIX -- Tony Stewart knew he had a good car, but he didn't realize he had the car to win the NASCAR Winston Cup Dura Lube 500 until he ran out of gas 89 laps into Sunday's race at Phoenix International Raceway.

Le Mans Grand Prix results: 1. (5) J.J. Lehto, Monaco; Steve Soper, England, BMW V12 LMR, 129, 105.267 miles per hour.

Editorial: Affordable homes get nice boost: One option for families is manufactured housing, but Clark County ordinances in the past restricted the areas where these homes could be built. In response, the 1999 Legislature passed a law that eases some of these restrictions, allowing manufactured homes as long as they meet pre-existing architectural and zoning rules. On Wednesday the Clark County Commission brought itself into compliance with this state law, passing an ordinance that will allow manufactured homes to be built anywhere in unincorporated Clark County starting Jan. 1, 2000.

Greenspuns are looking to expand publishing base: Pardon Del Rusher if he's experiencing a little deja vu in his role as the head of the recently formed Greenspun Media Group.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway results: NASCAR LATE MODELS

Columnist Ralph Siraco: Grab a pen and take a Breeders' Cup quiz: Ralph Siraco; No matter what prevailed over this planet anywhere else on Saturday, in South Florida there was a full moon over Miami. Trust me, there was. And it shone brightly over Gulfstream Park for Breeders' Cup XVI.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Wolves howl as mouthy visitors win: Dean Juipe; The tenor of the game was set more than an hour before kickoff when the visitors took the field not just talking trash, but issuing threats.

Moorehead's plea bargain to no avail: Prosecutors agreed to recommend probation in return for restitution and her guilty plea in June to a felony embezzlement charge.

Gillette Challenge kicks off Desert Inn's LPGA tourney: Also committed to the field are Helen Alfredsson, Rachel Hetherington, Rosie Jones, Lorie Kane, Mi Hyun Kim, Mardi Lunn and Juli Inkster in the alternate-shot tournament featuring five two-player teams. The team which wins the five-hole event wins $9,000 of the total $23,000 purse.

Nude sunbathers at Lake Tahoe may go to court: The group earlier agreed to the limits in exchange for plans to build a parking lot with 150 new spaces. But the Forest Service since has scaled that plan back to build only 45 new parking spaces.

Fugitive held in Massachusetts for husband's death: Tom Kirchofer; Margaret Rudin, who was taken into custody Friday, was ordered held without bail in Framingham District Court today. The 56-year-old was indicted on a murder charge in 1997 for the 1994 shooting of real estate agent Ron Rudin.

Prep playoff schedules, results: Friday's Results

Parks Division imposes fees for senior citizens, mulls changes in rules: CARSON CITY -- Starting in January senior citizens won't be receiving a free ride to any of Nevada's state parks.

Rebels hit links with President: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- President Bill Clinton and the UNLV golf team finally hit the links together today -- a year and a half after Clinton invited the team to the nation's capital.

Big HMO relents on managed care principle: Phil Galewitz; UnitedHealth, the nation's second-largest health insurer, has decided to eliminate a type of red tape that has particularly vexed many patients, an official at the HMO confirmed today.

Wildland fire gets boost from wind: The fire was burning grass, sage and juniper. No homes were threatened and no injuries were reported.

Robbery suspect cornered in casino: The man ditched his car outside the casino and ran inside. Police found him about 45 minutes later.

Letters: Road rage roots often overlooked on valley streets: Rather than cure the underlying reasons for road rage, why does the media always ignore the real responsible parties and try to fault the good drivers who are fed up with the lack of sensible law enforcement, coupled with some needed modifications to some of the ridiculous traffic laws which add to the city's congestion and gridlock?

Former Mirage CFO joins Web grocer: Lee said he was recruited to the company by former Netscape Chief Executive Jim Barksdale, who is a financial backer and board member of Homegrocer.