Stories from Sunday, July 24, 1994

ORAN -- Raymond J. Brinker, 81, of Oran, died Friday, July 22, 1994 at his home. He was born Aug. 29, 1912 in Oran, son of Henry Herman Brinker and Mary Hartke Brinker. He was owner of Brinker Brothers Service Station in Oran and retired in 1974. He was a member of the Guardian Angel Catholic Church in Oran, the St. Joseph Sodality and the Oran Chamber of Commerce. He was a board member of the Oran Housing Authority and a loan officer with the Guardian Angel Credit Union...

According to the Hearst papers, it was the "crime for all times." Never before had a Hollywood celebrity of such renowned proportions been accused of murder. In 1921, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle allegedly raped a movie starlet in a brutal orgiastic attack in a San Francisco hotel room. The rape escalated to murder when the starlet, Virginia Rappe, subsequently died from complications growing out of the sexual assault...

"Have Lawyers, Will Investigate." Psst! Don't tell anybody. Not a soul. If you promise, I'll let you in on what seems a well-kept secret. It is this: The Missouri attorney general's office is not an investigative agency. The spectacle of Attorney General Jay Nixon's launching an "investigation" of House Speaker Bob Griffin comes on the heels of his ongoing "investigation" of Secretary of State Judi Moriarty. ...

Revelations of a powerful state official's alleged influence peddling riveted Missourians this past week. The Kansas City Star reported last Sunday that House Speaker Bob Griffin, D-Cameron, made what that newspaper called "veiled threats" against a casino operator, Sahara Gaming Corp. of Las Vegas...

District: 8th district of Missouri covers 26 counties in southern Missouri, bordered by the counties of Perry, St. Francois, Washington, Crawford, Phelps, Texas, Wright and Howell. Duties: Serves in Washington, D.C. as one of 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and one of nine members from Missouri. Represents about 568,000 people...

With 18 years experience in local government, a belief that any tax increases need to be approved by voters, and a record of conservative fiscal management, Howard Tooke believes he is an ideal choice to be the next presiding commissioner of Cape Girardeau County...

FARMINGTON -- Frustrated by reports of violent crimes in his area, many by repeat offenders, Farmington attorney Don Hager worked early this year to come up with a new plan to deal with violent criminals. To help promote his plan, Hager filed as a Democratic candidate for Congress in the 8th district...

BOURBON -- In 1992, James L. "Jay" Thompson came within 204 votes of capturing the Democratic nomination for Congress in the 8th district. He finished second in a field of six candidates behind Thad Bullock of Cape Girardeau. Thompson believes Bullock's success was due to Republican supporters of U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson, who voted in the Democratic primary and picked Bullock as "a less formidable candidate."...

SCOTT CITY -- If you think moving a household is an aggravation, try relocating an entire library. That's what Elizabeth Link, director of the Riverside Regional Library and a squad of Scott City volunteers are completing this week. "It's going to be an interesting job," said Link. "I guarantee you nobody moves a library for the fun of it."...

Since the advent of air conditioning, Americans have found more and more ways to isolate themselves. Front porches, once forums of gossip, family updates and neighborly exchanges, have been replaced by family rooms, which generally are dimly lit by the glow of a television set that rarely gets turned off...

SCOTT CITY -- Thelma Lydia Keesee, 85, of Scott City died Saturday, July 23, 1994, at The Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born Feb. 10, 1909 in Blodgett, the daughter of Charles and Lydia Hilleman Keesee. She is survived by one brother, Orvel E. Keesee, Scott City; and one sister, Sylvia Lehde, Winachee, Wash...

CHAFFEE -- Dennis "Pete" Graser, 63, of Chaffee, died Saturday, July 23, 1994. He was born April 10, 1931 in Chaffee, son of Frank Lawrence and Olivia Rose DuMay Graser. He married Kryn Imhoff on Oct. 16, 1965 and she survives. He was the owner and of Graser-Shy Supermarket in Chaffee., a member of the St. Ambrose Catholic Church in Chaffee, the Chaffee V.F.W. Post 3127 and the Chaffee American Legion Post 389...

PERRYVILLE - Wilbert V. Krieger, 73, of Perryville, died Saturday, July 23, at his home. He was born Feb. 13, 1921, in Perry County, to Frederick "Fritz" and Mary Emmendorfer Krieger. On April 18, 1947, he married Irene M. Blessing. She survives, of the home...

Mary Hunter Byrd, 88, of 2825 Bloomfield Road, died Wednesday, July 20, 1994, at The Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. She was born April 9, 1906 in Oak Ridge, the daughter of T.B. and Emma VanAmburg Clodfelter. On Dec. 24, 1924, she married Carol Elliot Byrd in Fredericktown. He preceded her in death March 5, 1991...

VANDUSER -- Brenda Kay Miles, 42, of Vanduser, died Friday, July 22, 1994 in the intensive care unit at Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston following a heart attack. She was born Jan. 27, 1952 in Sikeston, daughter of George Worley and Gurnow. She was a housewife...

Melvin "Spankee" Rogers, co-star of the new "Saved by the Bell: The New Class" television series, signed autographs and promoted Cape Girardeau's Black Family Reunion Saturday at West Park Mall. In addition, dancer John Guilliam and duet "Brothas With Flav" were at the mall offering a boost to the reunion, planned here Aug. 12-14 at Cape Girardeau's Arena Park...

During summer months, it isn't uncommon to see roofers, painters and builders working diligently on homes and businesses. But this summer in particular, construction seems to be going on everywhere you look. And wherever there is a new building, there is a need for windows, mirrors and glass doors. Area glass companies are working hard to keep up with the increased demand...

Luiz Tozetto has a customer who comes to his restaurant three times a week to eat a meal of flour tortillas, grilled chicken and steamed vegetables. "His doctor told him his cholesterol is going down," said Tozetto. "It's been almost a year and it just keeps getting lower. There's something to be said for that."...

Good trees are hard to find. The government has limited cuts on its properties and competition for timber from individual landowners is fierce. "Good quality hardwood lumber is hard to find," said Stan Petzoldt, chairman and chief executive officer of East Perry Lumber Co., headquartered in Frohna. "We can still find regular softwood timber, but the quality hardwoods like red oak and white oak are difficult to find."...

KRCU Radio will bring "The Radio Reader," a popular program of National Public Radio to its daily programming Wednesday. The show will air weekdays at 6 p.m. KRCU is an NPR affiliate on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University. The 30-minute program features longtime host Dick Estell reading from best sellers...

Christina Lee Frazier, professor of biology at Southeast Missouri State University, will keynote summer commencement at Southeast Missouri State University. Commencement exercises are scheduled for 7 p.m. Aug. 5 at the Show Me Center. During the ceremony, 181 undergraduates and 77 graduate students will receive diplomas. ...

I suppose that by this last decade of the 20th century one could call the door-to-door salesperson a piece of passing, or already passed, piece of Americana. The first and, perhaps, only one such salesperson to make it into the environs of my early home was the Rawleigh man. ...

Gary Miller loves the sweeping majesty of organ music, the tapestry of sound that comes from all those pipes. His hands stroke the keys with a confidence nurtured by years of practice and performance. At 49, he is passionate about his music. An accomplished organist, Miller has taught music at Southeast Missouri State University for the past 14 years. His whole career as a music professor has been spent at the school...