Print edition for January 4, 2008

They invented basic strategy: By Jeff Haney; The four newest members of the Blackjack Hall of Fame never counted cards. They never gambled for high stakes or won much money in casinos. In fact, after making their indelible mark on the game, they stopped following developments in blackjack in the early 1960s, around the time Ed Thorp published his influential book, “Beat the Dealer.”

First test for candidates: saxo-archive; So what should we make of Thursday's Iowa caucuses? The first thing that struck us was that a black man, Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, won a presidential nominating contest in a Midwestern rural state that is overwhelmingly white.

Flight data now public: After spending $11.5 million to interview 30,000 pilots and record their experiences with flight hazards, NASA abruptly ended the project in 2005 and mothballed the information.

The hunt for D.B. Cooper: saxo-archive; On Nov. 24, 1971, a man now known as D.B. Cooper hijacked a passenger plane traveling from Portland, Ore., to Seattle. He said he had a bomb and demanded $200,000 in $20 bills. After the plane landed in Seattle, he was given the money and parachutes in exchange for releasing the 36 passengers onboard. He then told the crew, “Fly to Mexico.”

Supporters bask in Obama win: By Michael Mishak; Outside Theodore Roosevelt High School, Barack Obama volunteer Dan Egnor is hammering a steel rod into the frozen ground with little success. He's trying to shore up a large campaign sign to compete with Hillary Clinton's three. The ice is winning.

Seeing no profits, condo owners sue: By Liz Benston; Nevada's biggest Strip developer is embroiled in a dispute with mom-and-pop investors that offers a cautionary, buyer-beware tale involving the sale of high-rise residential units.

Obama victory resounds across U.S.: By J. Patrick Coolican, David McGrath Schwartz; The first sound of victory was a quick yelp, which was followed by a roar that filled a basement bar in Manchester, N.H. CNN had just called the Iowa caucus for Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

Arts Notes: Stolen Rockwell may get visit from Vegas man: By Kristen Peterson; The case of the stolen Norman Rockwell has been an ongoing game of he sues, she sues, gaining international attention and draining pocketbooks.

DA will go after former UMC boss: By Tony Cook; After an investigation that began over a year ago, Clark County District Attorney David Roger plans to take the case against former University Medical Center boss Lacy Thomas to a grand jury this month.

Jon Ralston lists his top 10 stories that should have been: By Jon Ralston; But this isn't one of those “gee, really” catalogues of last year's major events. This is the traditional Top 10 List of Stories We Wish Had Been the Top 10 Stories of the Year:

Loud and clear for nearly 20 years: By Jerry Fink; Ethel Merman was a favorite of composers such as Cole Porter and Irving Berlin. She's remembered for her booming voice, which one person said could cut through an orchestra “like a big brass horn,” and for the many songs that etched her into the memories of theater fans -- “I Got Rhythm,” “Anything Goes,” “It's De-Lovely,” “I Get a Kick Out of You.”

Distress over remark during Vegas concert won’t dissipate: By Brian Eckhouse; They flocked here for a long Christmas weekend of diversion: parties, booze and slots, maybe some family time. The usual. What 5,000 Persian-Americans encountered, however, didn't stay in Vegas. In a break between songs at Planet Hollywood on Dec. 23, Iranian artist Dariush Eghbali ignited a controversy that lingers nearly two weeks later: Did he make an anti-Semitic remark in his native tongue, Farsi?