Posts by TresHappy

this jerk still solicits money from time to time on bet, however the former church he pastored has fallen to the wrecking ball.. tilton's old church falls to wrecking ball .

farmers branch leaders focus on ice rink plans, not site's evangelist past.

12:55 am cst on tuesday, november 11, 2003 .

TresHappy

This jerk still solicits money from time to time on BET, however the former church he pastored has fallen to the wrecking ball.

Tilton's old church falls to wrecking ball

Farmers Branch leaders focus on ice rink plans, not site's evangelist past

12:55 AM CST on Tuesday, November 11, 2003

By SCOTT STAFFORD / The Dallas Morning News

FARMERS BRANCH ? The Word of Faith church, erected more than 20 years ago, was demolished Monday by the city of Farmers Branch to make way for construction of an ice-skating complex.

As two steam shovels tore into the walls of the structure, city officials said they were eager to proceed with the 95,000-square-foot Dr Pepper StarCenter that will house two skating rinks, eight locker rooms, a concession area, a pro shop and a conference center.

"We are looking forward to what this project is going to mean and the fact that the purchase of this property is of strategic importance as a gateway into the city," said Farmers Branch spokesman Tom Bryson. "What the property used to be has very little importance to where the city is going."

At its height, evangelist Robert Tilton's Word of Faith empire included a congregation of thousands, an adjacent private school and a broadcasting and direct-mail marketing operation. The entire organization generated about $70 million annually, according to court reports in the late '90s.

"I'm sad when any church goes away for the people that were sincere followers ? [but] in this case, followers that didn't realize he wasn't feeding the sheep, he was eating the sheep," said Ole Anthony, president of the Trinity Foundation, a watchdog over the televangelism industry.

In the 1990s, Mr. Tilton's empire collapsed following news reports of widespread fraud, lawsuits from victims who alleged the same and well-publicized divorces from his first and second wives.

Farmers Branch bought the former church and 14.2 acres for $6.3 million in 1999, according to city officials. The city is spending about $149,000 from the hotel-motel tax fund to demolish the 65,000-square-foot, 3,300-seat-church and its adjacent office building. Mr. Tilton built the church about 1980, according to city officials.

Plans originally called for a city convention center in the building, but officials balked at the $7 million price tag for renovation.

City officials plan to sell about $9 million in bonds to fund construction of the StarCenter, which would be repaid using income from the 25-year lease.

Former Farmers Branch Mayor Dave Blair, who served from 1988 to 1996, said he was excited about plans for the site but said its history had no bearing on the city anymore.

"That building was kind of a monument to himself [Mr. Tilton] ? and it was kind of a joke for a while, with the big cross and all that," Mr. Blair said. "Then when it closed down, I don't think anyone paid any attention to it anymore."

Mr. Tilton did not respond to a request for comment through his Tulsa attorney, James Ferris.

E-mail [email protected]

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Remember Herbert W. or Garner Ted Armstrong?

by wednesday in

recently i have remembered a man named armstrong and a mag.

he used to publish "the plain truth".

i remember in the 60-70 many people used to get him mixed up with jws.

TresHappy

I was flipping channels this morning on the satellite and saw Garner Ted Armstrong on - sort of soliciting money from the grave, I suppose.

7

Comedian Art Carney has died

by TresHappy in

i just heard that jackie gleason's sidekick on the honeymooners, art carney, has died.

he died sunday in his connecticut home.

we've lost another hollywood classic fella!.

TresHappy

Remember when Art Carney did the voice of Gazoo on The Flintstones?

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Comedian Art Carney has died

by TresHappy in

i just heard that jackie gleason's sidekick on the honeymooners, art carney, has died.

he died sunday in his connecticut home.

we've lost another hollywood classic fella!.

TresHappy

I just heard that Jackie Gleason's sidekick on the Honeymooners, Art Carney, has died. He died Sunday in his Connecticut home. We've lost another Hollywood classic fella!

Actor Art Carney dies at 85

04:05 PM CST on Tuesday, November 11, 2003

Associated Press

CHESTER, Conn. ? Art Carney, who played Jackie Gleason's sewer worker pal Ed Norton in the TV classic "The Honeymooners" and went on to win the 1974 Oscar for best actor in "Harry and Tonto," has died at 85, a funeral home manager says.

Carney died Sunday, said Philip M. Appell of the Swan Funeral Home in Old Saybrook.

Carney would be forever identified as Norton, Ralph Kramden's bowling buddy and upstairs neighbor on "The Honeymooners." The sitcom appeared in various forms from 1951 to 1956 and was revived briefly in 1971. The shows continue their popularity on cable TV and videocassettes.

With his turned-up porkpie hat and unbuttoned vest over a T-shirt, Carney's Ed Norton with his raucous "va-va-voom!" became an ideal foil for Gleason's blustery Kramden. Carney won three Emmys for his role and his first taste of fame.

"The first time I saw the guy act," Gleason once remarked, "I knew I would have to work twice as hard for my laughs. He was funny as hell."

He told a Saturday Evening Post interviewer in 1961 that strangers were always asking him how he liked it down in the sewer. "I have seasonal answers. In the summer: 'I like it down there because it's cool.' In the winter: 'I like it down there because it's warm.' Then I've got one that isn't seasonal: 'Go to hell."'

3

Andy Griffith Returns

by TresHappy in

.

for those of you who love andy griffith, the cbs special is tomorrow tonight.. http://www.cbs.com/specials/andy_griffith/.

TresHappy

For those of you who love Andy Griffith, the CBS Special is tomorrow tonight.

http://www.cbs.com/specials/andy_griffith/

2

I went to this concert last night and it was awesome!

by TresHappy in

jw
friends

crow's concert goes heavy on glitz .

by josh shaffer

star-telegram staff writer

TresHappy

Crow's concert goes heavy on glitz
By Josh Shaffer
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

SPECIAL TO THE STAR-TELEGRAM/BILL JANSCHA

Sheryl Crow's set at the American Airlines Center on Sunday included My Favorite Mistake, If It Makes You Happy and a quiet rendition of Cat Stevens' The First Cut Is the Deepest.

DALLAS - In her black leather pants and sleeveless denim shirt, Sheryl Crow confessed that she had never -- perish the thought -- played a rodeo before.

"But I like the way it smells," she said. "And I love a man in chaps."

It was a rare Sunday-afternoon gig for Crow, rarer still because much of the American Airlines Center crowd listening to her was huddled on a dirt floor where bulls had been stomping only moments before.

"Somebody better get me some barbecue," she said jokingly.

The fans had dwindled somewhat by the time Crow took the stage on the last day of the Texas Stampede, a three-day, beer-soaked celebration of stringed instruments and hoofed animals.

But that was understandable. Crow followed the best-butt contest. Most rockers, even those with Crow's credentials, would have trouble following a bull rider swatting his own behind.

Crow leaned heavily on old favorites, the songs that crossed rock-country boundaries in the '90s and made her a constant presence on pop radio. She strummed acoustic guitar on Strong Enough and picked electric bass on My Favorite Mistake. Dozens of toddlers danced on the dirt while their parents held hands.

Lasers shot across the arena for If It Makes You Happy, and Crow kicked her legs high. Then she surprised the crowd with a quiet version of Cat Stevens' The First Cut Is the Deepest.

Crow's show had a slick, overproduced feel that seemed out of place. Her voice was flawless, even on the sky-high notes of If It Makes You Happy, but as she took the stage, all the women with cacti and horses embroidered on their jackets got up to leave.

Too Hollywood, perhaps. This was a crowd geared more for the likes of Pat Green, who played the Stampede on Saturday night, and it didn't seem to respond to Crow's faux classic-rock vibe.

"I love the smell of a horse," Crow said, but her cowgirl persona sounded manufactured -- borrowed for a Sunday afternoon -- and more like the voice of someone who loves the smell of cash.

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