By James Clark If there’s ever a day you need to be on your toes, it’s April Fool’s Day. Unfortunately, I can’t say I fooled anybody with a great gag this year.I guess my days of pretending to set myself on fire, or pretending to be trapped under a tractor have caught up to me.…

Warren County resident White County native Vester B. Kelsey, 90, died April 1 at his home after an extended illness.A bus driver for Trailway and a member of the Baptist Church, he was the son of the late Amos and Florance Young Kelsey; and was preceded in death by first wife, Christine Southard Kelsey; sons,…

Manchester resident and Warren County native Ramona Yvonne Higgins, 36, died unexpectedly April 1 at her home.A food service worker, she was the daughter of the late Frank and Rebecca Simmons Higgins.She is survived by sons, Brandon Jennings of Sparta and Shane Jennings of Manchester; brothers, Randy, Tim, Mark, and Michael Higgins, all of McMinnville…

NEW YORK (AP) — Court TV is acting like a buttoned-down lawyer who prowls the clubs at night.A serious news network that focuses on trials by day, Court TV is aggressively seeking young viewers at night with a mixture of nonfiction entertainment programming and reality shows with colorful lawyers such as Bruce Cutler.Court TV’s programming…

By ANTONIO CASTANEDA / Associated Press Writer BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — Iraqi lawmakers elected a Sunni Arab as parliament speaker and Shiite and Kurdish leaders as his deputies on Sunday, ending days of deadlock as they sought to balance the country’s predominant religious and ethnic groups in a new government. The selection of Industry Minister…

By NICOLE WINFIELD / Associated Press Writer VATICAN CITY (AP) — The crowd of many thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square went suddenly silent when a Vatican official announced Pope John Paul II had died. Then they started to clap — an Italian tradition by which mourners show their appreciation for important figures who have…

By VICTOR L. SIMPSON / Associated Press Writer Part of the home page of the Vatican’s website shows Pope John Paul II’s years of his pontificate, on Sunday, April 3, 2005, a day after the death of the pope was announced. (AP Photo/Vatican web site) VATICAN CITY — Pope John Paul II, a dynamic preacher…

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Michael Bryant doesn’t know what he would say if someone from his hometown of Mount Vernon ran into him. “If I saw anyone here, it would be like a church member running into their pastor at the liquor store,” Bryant said. The 37-year-old self-described “closet Elvis” spent $1,500 on a custom-made…

McMinnville resident and Ephrar, Pa., native Thomas Michael Hibshman, 58, died March 29 at his home after an extended illness.A factory worker and a member of the Protestant faith and a member of the Order of the Moose and Legionaries, he was the son of the late Franklin and Maude Warner Hibshman; and was preceded…

McMinnville resident Nancy Dee Knight, 73, died March 30 at St. Thomas Hospital.A retired employee of Century Electric and a member of Old Bethel Baptist Church, she was the daughter of the late Elmer and Gladys Blaylock Smith, and was preceded in death by her husband, Waymond L. Knight in 1953; brother, John Smith; sisters,…