Philadelphia Phillies erupt late to beat New York Mets and give Cliff Lee first win of season

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/philadelphia_phillies_erupt_la.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Cliff Lee finally posted his first win of the season and the Philadelphia Phillies hit three late homers, breaking past the New York Mets 9-2 today and stopping a six-game losing streak. Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz hit consecutive home runs in the seventh inning as the Phillies rallied from a 2-0 deficit. Ty Wigginton's two-run homer in the ninth capped the surge.

Palmer Township holds Fourth of July Tractor and Bike Parade

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/easton/index.ssf/2012/07/palmer_township_holds_fourth_o.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Residents along Toursdale Drive in Palmer Township held their fifth annual Fourth of July Tractor and Bike Parade today.

NBC Sports Coverage of the U.S. Women’s Open Golf Championship

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ The NBC Sports Group will be devoting more than 30 hours of coverage to this weekend U.S. Women’s Open Golf Championship. NBC’s coverage will be complemented by Golf Channel’s Golf Central pre-game show. Golf Channel’s wraparound coverage will originate from the tournament site throughout the week, featuring news, talk and instructional programming. GolfChannel.com also will provide comprehensive online coverage of the championship. Dan Hicks and lead analyst Dottie Pepper will anchor coverage from the 18th tower. They will be joined by tower reporter Gary Koch and on-course reporters Roger Maltbie, Kay Cockerill and Jane Crafter. Annika Sorenstam will make her debut on NBC, joining Hicks and Pepper in the booth for a portion of the coverage each day. Here is the entire schedule of coverage of the Open, including early round action on ESPN: U.S. Women’s Open Programming Show Network Airtime (all times ET) Wednesday, July 4 Morning Drive Golf Channel 7-9 a.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 6-6:30 p.m. On the Range Golf Channel 8-9 p.m. State of the Game Golf Channel 9-10 p.m. Thursday, July 5 Morning Drive Golf Channel 6:30-8:30 a.m. Golf Central Pre Game Golf Channel 1:30-3 p.m. U.S. Women’s Open ESPN2 4-8 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 7-7:30 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 11:30 p.m.-Midnight Grey Goose 19th Hole Golf Channel Midnight-12:30 a.m. Friday, July 6 Morning Drive Golf Channel 6:30-8:30 a.m. Golf Central Pre Game Golf Channel 1:30-3 p.m. U.S. Women’s Open ESPN2 4-8 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 7-7:30 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 1:30-2 a.m. Saturday, July 7 Golf Central Pre Game Golf Channel 1-2:30 p.m. Golf Central on NBC NBC 2:30-3 p.m. U.S. Women’s Open NBC 3-6 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 6-6:30 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 11:30 p.m. – Midnight Sunday, July 8 Golf Central Pre Game Golf Channel 1-2:30p.m. Golf Central on NBC NBC 2:30-3 p.m. U.S. Women’s Open NBC 3-6 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 6-7 p.m. Golf Central Golf Channel 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.

Nazareth holds Eighth Annual Fourth of July Kazoo Parade

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/nazareth/index.ssf/2012/07/nazareth_holds_eighth_annual_f.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES By Salena Fehnel Freedom’s ring took on a unique sound at Nazareth’s 8th Annual Independence Day Kazoo parade. For 83-year-old Nazareth native Helen Ziegler, it’s a familiar sound, and one that she has never once missed out on. “My husband, John, and I marched every year and loved it,” she said. Despite losing her husband two years ago, Ziegler has remained a constant in the parade day festivities.

Joey Chestnut eats 68 hot dogs to win sixth straight Coney Island hot dog eating title

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2012/07/joey_chestnut_eats_68_hot_dogs.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Joey Chestnut won his sixth straight Coney Island hot dog eating contest. The San Jose, Calif., man known as “Jaws” scarfed down 68 hot dogs and buns to win today in Brooklyn. He takes home $10,000 and a mustard-yellow champion’s belt. The total tied his personal best and the record. Last year, Chestnut won with 62 hot dogs.

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Auditions

http://lauranachman.wordpress.com/ FROM LAURA NACHMAN It’s that time of year again to audition for Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Baseball Night in America on Fox, with Announcer Assignments

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ Fox has only three games on its schedule for this Saturday’s Baseball Night in America regional action. Coverage begins at 7:00p.m. ET with the Baseball Night in America Pregame Show with Matt Vasgersian, Harold Reynolds, and Kevin Millar. His is the slate of games, with announcers calling the action and the markets where each game can be seen: New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox - Joe Buck, Tim McCarver and Ken Rosenthal. 74% of the country will see this game. MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Fort Myers, Greensboro, Hartford, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Orlando, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Raleigh, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Washington, West Palm Beach. Atlanta Braves at Philadelphia Phillies- Kenny Albert and Eric Karros. 13% of the country will see this game. MARKETS INCLUDE: Atlanta, Birmingham, Greenville, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Philadelphia. Minnesota Twins at Texas Rangers- Dick Bremer and Mitch Williams. 12 % of the country will see this game. MARKETS INCLUDE: Austin, Dallas, Houston, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Tulsa.

TV NEWS ON JULY 4

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2012/07/2012-4th-of-july-marathons-remembering.html Happy 4th of July to all of you out there! We hope you are enjoying the day off on our country's birthday! It's time to relax and watch some TV on this holiday! We are known for letting you know what marathons are airing on TV on holidays and we will do the same for this 4th of July as well! This year due to the passing of TV legend Andy Griffith, we have many Andy Griffith tributes marathons today, along with other marathons of course, and we will tell you all about all of them. So, bring out your beach towel, BBQ some hot dogs, and stay indoors and watch some television! Among the marathons we have already mentioned include a Gidget Independence Day marathon on Antenna TV starting at 11am with every episode airing today. They will also air Gidget movies beginning at 5am. We also mentioned a week of marathons on GMC leading into the premiere of 7th Heaven on Saturday, as today's marathon on GMC is a 4th of July Candid Camera marathon from 10am-11pm. Locally, we have an I Love Lucy marathon in New York City on WLNY-TV from 9am-9pm. Lucccccccccccy! CMT has scrapped the Married...with Children marathon we had mentioned for today. So sorry about that as Al Bundy is not going to "rock" on this 4th of July. Other marathons of note include a The Game marathon on BET from 8am-12am and a Good Times marathon in primetime on TV One from 8pm-2am. There is also a Saved by the Bell: The College Years scheduled in the regular time block for the series on MTVN from 11am-2pm. SOAPnet has a Brothers & Sisters marathon from 10am-7pm. Of course it wouldn't be the 4th of July without a Twilight Zone marathon on Syfy from 8am-5am. TNT starts the day with a marathon of The Mentalist from 10am-5pm followed by a marathon of the new Dallas from 5-10pm, which includes a new episode at 9pm. Lifetime will turn the day over to a Wife Swap marathon from 11am-10pm. A&E has the usual Criminal Minds marathon from 9am-6pm, while ABC Family will bring out the laughs with an America's Funniest Home Videos marathon from 11am-11pm. BBC America goes into space with Star Trek: The Next Generation marathon from 8am-5am, while Science Channel has a Firefly marathon from 8am-3am. More marathons include Cloo's 24-hour House marathon, Hallmark Movie Channel's 24-hour Matlock marathon (scheduled before the passing of Andy Griffith), and USA Network's NCIS marathon from 10am-11pm. Please see below for all the tributes to Andy Griffith today which includes TV Land, WGN America and MeTV, along with a nice local marathon in Chicago on MeToo. So PLEASE read below in our tribute to him. Firweworks in primetime are on NBC (Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular) at 9pm (with an encore at 10pm) and CBS (The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular) at 10pm. But my pick of the night for fireworks is on PBS with A Capitol Fourth live from Washington D.C. at 8pm hosted by Tom Bergeron. Our friends at TV Tango have compiled a FULL LIST of marathons today! Bring out your lawn chair, throw some burgers on the BBQ, and watch some television! Andy Griffith Andy Griffith Legendary actor Andy Griffith, best known to television audiences for his long-running roles as Sheriff Andy Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show and criminal defense attorney Ben Matlock on Matlock, has died. He died of an unspecified illness Tuesday morning (July 3) at his home on Roanoke Island in Dare County, NC. Mr. Griffith was 86. Griffith's early career was as a comedian and monologist. His long story, What It Was, Was Football, was released a single in 1953. It reached number nine on the charts in 1954 and became one of the biggest selling comedy records of all time. In March 1955, he made his first appearance on television in an adaptation of No Time for Sergeants on The United States Steel Hour. It was later expanded into a play on Broadway. Griffith received a Tony Award nomination in 1956 for "Distinguished Supporting or Featured Dramatic Actor" for his role as Will Stockdale. He received his second Tony Award nomination in 1960 for Destry Rides Again. Film roles would follow in A Face in the Crowd (1957), No Time for Sergeants (1958), and Onionhead (1958). A February 1960 episode of Make Room for Daddy would serve as the backdoor pilot for The Andy Griffith Show. In the episode Danny Meets Andy Griffith, Danny Williams (Danny Thomas' character) is arrested by Sheriff Andy Taylor for going through an unnoticed stop sign in the town of Mayberry. CBS picked up The Andy Griffith Show for the fall 1960 season. The show became an immediate ratings and critical hit. It never finished lower than seventh in the ratings during its eight season run. His series co-stars Don Knotts and Francis Bavier won a total of six Emmys (five for Knotts and one for Bavier). Surprisingly enough, Andy Griffith was never even nominated for an Emmy Award during his time on the show. After 8 very popular seasons and 249 episodes were produced, The Andy Griffith Show left the air in 1968. Griffith made five appearances in the spin-off series, Mayberry R.F.D., in 1968-1969. He also served as the show's executive producer. The Andy Griffith Show cast would reunite in 1986 for the highly successful television movie Return to Mayberry on NBC. Two other television reunion specials were aired on CBS in 1993 and 2003. Matlock - Don Knotts and Andy Griffith Griffith started his own production company (Andy Griffith Enterprises) in 1972. He starred in some short-lived television shows such as Headmaster, The New Andy Griffith Show (1971 sitcom), Adams of Eagle Lake, Salvage 1, and The Yeagers. Some of his guest appearances included Mod Squad, Hawaii Five-O, The Doris Day Show, Here's Lucy, The Bionic Woman, Fantasy Island, Hotel, and The Love Boat. During the 1970s and early 1980s, he appeared in many television movies such as The Strangers in 7A, Go Ask Alice, Pray for the Wildcats, Winter Kill, Savages, Street Killing, Murder in Texas, Murder in Coweta County, Fatal Witness, and Crime of Innocence. Griffith received his only Emmy nomination for his role as the father of a murder victim in Murder in Texas. In 1986, he landed the role of criminal defense attorney Benjamin Leighton "Ben" Matlock on the legal drama Matlock. The show ran for 9 successful seasons and 195 episodes from 1986-1992 on NBC and 1992-1995 on ABC. Don Knotts was among the Mayberry alumni to appear on the show. In 1995, he played the dangerous and mysterious grandfather in the memorable TV movie Gramps, which co-starred John Ritter. Some of his later roles included guest appearances on Diagnosis Murder, Family Law, and Dawson's Creek. His final role was in the 2009 film Play the Game. The Archive of American Television conducted an extensive interview with him on May 5, 1998. Griffith's survivors include his wife, Cindi Knight, and a daughter, Dixie. Ron Howard, his Andy Griffith Show co-star and friend, had this to say on Twitter: "His pursuit of excellence and the joy he took in creating served generations & shaped my life I'm forever grateful RIP Andy." He was a true pioneer of television and entertainment icon. We thank him for bringing us many laughs and quality hours of entertainment during his lengthy career. He was so talented and versatile. Mr. Griffith will be deeply missed. Share your memories on our Andy Griffith Show message board. View photos in our photo galleries. See below for a list of TV marathons and tributes for Andy Griffith today and beyond. Andy Griffith Andy Griffith Tributes: WGN America - Matlock Wednesday, July 4, 2012 9am-5pm ET: 9am-10am/ET Matlock "The Picture" (part 1) 10am-11am/ET Matlock "The Picture" (part 2) 11am-12pm/ET Matlock "The Lemon" 12-1pm/ET Matlock "The DJ" 2-3pm/ET Matlock "Cookie Monster" 3-4pm/ET Matlock "The Brothers" 4-5pm/ET Matlock "The Fighter" (Catch Matlock all day today on Hallmark Movie Channel as well, but this was pre-planned.) MeTV Network - A Tribute To Andy Griffith Wednesday, July 4, 2012, 12pm-3pm ET MeTV will air a special tribute to the late Andy Griffith on Wednesday, July 4, from 12 noon-3pm ET with select episodes of Hawaii Five-O, The Mod Squad, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. and Make Room For Daddy, all of which Andy Griffith guest starred in. 12p - Hawaii Five-O "I'm A Family Crook-Don't Shoot" 1pm - Mod Squad "Big George" 2pm - Gomer Pyle "Opie Joins The Marines" 2:30pm - Make Room For Daddy "Danny Meets Andy Griffith" TV Land - Andy Griffith Show Marathon TV Land will honor the life and work of beloved actor Andy Griffith, who passed away at the age of 86, with blocks of programming highlighting his most treasured work, The Andy Griffith Show. On Wednesday, July 4 from 8am-1pm ET/PT and Saturday and Sunday, July 7 and 8 from 11am to 8pm ET/PT, TV Land will air some of the most memorable episodes in marathons of The Andy Griffith Show. The TV Land Facebook page (www.facebook.com/tvland) will also pay tribute to Andy, celebrating some of his best TV moments. MeToo Chicago Andy Griffith Show Marathon (WMEU in Chicago) Wednesday, July 4 2012 12pm-11pm CT; Thursday, July 5, 2012 7pm-10pm CT and Friday, July 6, 2012 7pm-10pm CT The Andy Griffith Show airs regularly on MeToo in Chicago weekdays at 12 noon and 12:30pm CT. TCM - Andy Griffith Movies Wednesday, July 18, 2012 8 p.m. – A Face in the Crowd (1957) – with Patricia Neal, Anthony Franciosa, Walter Matthau and Lee Remick. Directed by Elia Kazan. 10:15 p.m. – No Time for Sergeants (1958) – with Myron McCormick, Nick Adams, Murray Hamilton and Don Knotts. Directed by Mervyn LeRoy. 12:30 a.m. – Hearts of the West (1975) – with Jeff Bridges, Donald Pleasance, Blythe Danner, Alan Arkin, Richard B. Shull, Herb Edelman, Alex Rocco and Marie Windsor. Directed by Howard Zieff. 2:15 a.m. – Onionhead (1958) – with Felicia Farr, Walter Matthau, Erin O'Brien, Joe Mantell, Ray Danton, James Gregory and Joey Bishop. Directed by Norman Taurog.

Fourth of July events, fireworks in the Lehigh Valley

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/events/index.ssf/2012/07/fourth_of_july_event_in_the_le.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Enjoy fireworks Wednesday at J. Birney Crum Stadium as part of the 55th annual Allentown PAL show. Musical entertainment begins at 5:30 p.m. Fireworks are expected to start at 9:20 p.m. Admission is free, but a donation of $5 per family and $2 per adult is requested to defray the cost of the show. The show will also be telecast live on RCN. CATASAUQUA County Commissioner Daniel K. McCarthy will read the Declaration of Independence at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the George Taylor House, 35 S. Front St. The reading will be followed by an honor guard salute. Tours of the George Taylor House are from 9 a.m. to noon; there’s a suggested donation of $4. BETHLEHEM The Allentown Band plays at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Levitt Pavilion at SteelStacks. The city's fireworks will be visible from the venue after the concert. The city’s annual display will start at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Fireworks are launched from Sand Island and visible throughout the city, particularly around Payrow Plaza on East Church Street. The American Legion Band will perform a free concert on the plaza at 7:30 p.m. In case of rain, fireworks will be 9 p.m. July 5. The Bethlehem City Republican Committee is hosting a public reading of the Declaration of Independence from 11 a.m. until noon Wednesday on the stairs of Bethlehem’s Town Hall, 10 E. Church St. The nonpartisan reading will be performed by several elected officials, candidates and private citizens. EASTON Colonial re-enactors, Civil War encampments and the reading of the Declaration of Independence are slated for Heritage Day on July 8 at Centre Square in Easton. There will be music and family friendly entertainment -- all of which is capped by the evening's fireworks. Find more information at heritageday.org. GLEN GARDNER Firetruck rides are available from 10 a.m. until noon Wednesday at the borough park, School Street and Hampton Road. LEBANON A baby parade at 9:30 a.m. precedes the main parade at 10 a.m.Wednesday from the firehouse on Main Street. Bicycles and antique vehicles will also be included. For more information, call 908-236-2343. NAZARETH The Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce will host the annual kazoo parade and patriotic program Wednesday. Participants should meet at 9:30 a.m. at Nazareth Area High School. Walkers will be assigned into groups to play patriotic songs on kazoos, which were donated by Lafayette Ambassador Bank. The parade route is: From the high school, turn up South Liberty Street and make a right onto Belvidere Street. Follow until Main Street and make a right up to the circle, go half way around and turn onto West Center Street and end at council chambers. Local elected officials will offer a greeting at council chambers. The Dream Kids and Lehigh Valley Idol will provide patriotic entertainment. The grand marshal of the parade is Abbe “Miss G” Graber, known as the “Kazoo Lady of Woodstock.” For more information, call the chamber at 610-759-9188 or visit nazarethchamber.com. WASHINGTON Washington Celebrates America starts at 8 a.m. Wednesday with a Soap Box Derby on Broad Street. The parade will begin at 3 p.m., followed by a rock concert, "WashRock 7/4," at Warren Hills Regional Middle School. The concert includes DJ Doc South, and Eric DeLauro, a Frank Sinatra tribute singer from Hoboken, N.J. The event culminates with a fireworks display at dusk.

Wednesday!

Special Note: There is no e-mail Wednesday July 4 This is due to the 4th of July Have a great holiday weekend! E-Mails will resume on Monday July 9th! See you Monday July 9! Andy

Lehigh Valley IronPigs rally for 6-5 victory over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/ironpigs/index.ssf/2012/07/lehigh_valley_rally_for_6-5_vi.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES It was vintage Ryan Howard on Tuesday night at Coca-Cola Park. The slugging first baseman continued his rehab assignment by going 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs and the Lehigh Valley IronPigs rallied for two runs in the eighth inning to post a 6-5 International League victory over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. Cody Overbeck’s RBI double and Tuffy Gosewisch’s sacrifice fly highlighted the eighth-inning uprising. The win increased the IronPigs’ lead to three games over second place Pawtucket, which lost to Rochester, and 4.5 games over the third place Yankees in the North Division.

New York Mets romp reeling Philadelphia Phillies, 11-1

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/new_york_mets_romp_reeling_phi.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Jonathon Niese had a two-run single to back his fine performance on the mound tonight and David Wright hit a three-run homer to break open the New York Mets' 11-1 romp over the reeling Philadelphia Phillies. Niese (5-3) pitched a season-high eight innings and gave up three hits, one a homer to Carlos Ruiz. His hit in the second inning put New York up for good.

Glenn Grigg made local sports a better place

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER I am on vacation at the Jersey shore, but still read the e-mails on my cell phone and I was saddened by a few I received today telling me of the passing of a good friend of mine, Glenn Grigg. I don't know what his age was, but he definitely left us too soon. You may not have known Glenn because he wasn't in the headlines. He was one of those behind-the-scenes guys who made Lehigh Valley sports in general, and Allen High sports in particular, a better place. I knew him from being the scorekeeper for Allen softball for many years when Ed Stinner was the coach and he has also been Allen's boys basketball scorekeeper under Doug Snyder since Snyder got the job. He was a multi-Kegger award winner because, frankly, he made my job easier. But my friendship with Glenn wasn't just limited to giving me the scorebook. I considered him a friend and when Glenn went on a vacation, and he loved to travel, he'd generally send me a postcard. We talked about what to see in various towns and what ballpark was the best and this and that. When Glenn would get me on the phone in the office, I knew I wouldn't able to do anything for a long time because he loved to talk. And most of the time, I was happy to listen. We often talked about the past because Glenn remembers a very different Allentown and Allen High School. He saw a lot of changes in his time in the Allentown School District as a teacher and coach. Still, as Stinner said in an e-mail: "Glenn loved Allentown kids." He really did. He'd give me insights on who were the really good kids on the Allen teams and he loved when I found the opportunity to spotlight some of them. And one Allen kid he loved in particular was the late Kyle Miller, better known as "Mr. Softball." Glenn loved Kyle and really got a kick out of him. So did I. That journey we took together in 1990 when Allen won the state softball title was some of the best times of my career. He also loved Bangor and he absolutely beamed when he shared the scorer's table with his idol Bill Pensyl. Pensyl has been keeping the scorebook for his son, Brad, the coach at Pocono Mountain West and PM West and Allen have met often in recent years. Glenn would regale me with stories about Pensyl and Bangor. I think he knew more about Pensyl than Pensyl did. It was a blast hanging around those two when they were together. Glenn was also quite proud of Moravian College where he played football. I don't know when and where services will be for Glenn and right now, I am absolutely in shock that he's gone because he's one of those guys that you figure will be around forever. He had a heart issue last year, but I had no indication that there was anything wrong. He seemed to get through last basketball season just fine. Right now, I am just very sad. My vacation and family time will continue and frankly, Glenn's passing is yet one more reminder that nothing lasts forever and we should enjoy life, family and friends as much as we can while we're all still here.

Sports Media Digest- July 3, 2012

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ ESPN Sees Increased Viewership for Wimbledon- In the first year of its exclusive agreement to televise Wimbledon ESPN is reporting an eight percent increase over its household audience last year. After six days ESPN is seeing its average household impression at 569,000 homes, while its average rating (0.5) is the same over a year ago. ESPN is reporting an increase in ratings in the younger demographics of male 18-34 (up 13 percent), male 18-49 (up 20 percent), and male 25-54 (up 11 percent). NASCAR Coke Zero 400 from Daytona This Saturday on TNT- TNT is getting set to provide live prime time coverage of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. Turner will simulcast the race on truTV and offer what it calls Wide Open coverage, race action with no commercial interruptions. Pre-race coverage begins at 6:30p.m. ET with Adam Alexander and analysts Larry McReynolds and Kyle Petty. Alexander will also provide play-by-play for the race with analysts Petty and Wally Dallenbach and reporters Ralph Sheheen, Marty Snider, Matt Yocum and Chris Neville. Colorado at Seattle this Saturday’s MLS Action on NBCSN- The weekend’s MLS match-up on the NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) will pit the Colorado Rapid at the Seattle Sounders FC. Coverage begins at 11:00p.m. ET with Arlo White and Kyle Martino on the call the with Russ Thaler hosting the pre-game, halftime and post-game segments on-site. Boxing After Dark Returns to HBO- HBO Sports will be presenting another edition of its Boxing After Dark cards this weekend. Nonito Donaire will take on Jeffrey Mathebula and Kelly Pavlik will battle Will Rosinsky this Saturday night at 10:00p.m. ET. Bob Papa, Max Kellerman and Roy Jones Jr. will be ringside for the event. Prep Hoops Action Returns to CBS Sports Network- The CBS Sports Network will again be the home for the adidas Grassroots Basketball events. The action tips off July 15th at 2:00 PM, ET from Indianapolis. The action continues on Sunday, July 29 at 9:00 PM, ET with the 2012 adidas Super 64 Championship from Las Vegas, Nev. and concludes Monday, Aug. 6 with the adidas Nations third-place 8:00 PM, ET and championship games 9:30 PM, ET in Los Angeles, Calif.

ESPN Sees Success with Euro 2012

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ The final ratings numbers are in and ESPN saw a significant increase in audience for its coverage of Euro 2012. Through the three week tournament Euro 2012 on ESPN delivered an average of 993,000 households and 1,300,000 viewers – up 51 percent in households and viewers, respectively, versus 31 matches in 2008 (657,000 households and 859,000 viewers). Sunday’s finale between Spain and Italy was seen by an average audience of 4.068 million viewers in 2.699 million average television households, based on a 2.4 U.S. household rating – up eight percent in viewers (3.761 million), six percent in households (2.552 million) and four percent in ratings (2.3) vs. the previous high, Spain vs. Germany in EURO 2008 final on ABC. The audience on ESPN Deportes was also impressive. The Spain-Italy final delivered the network’s highest-rated and most-watched telecast ever with a 12.9 Hispanic household coverage rating, 700,000 Hispanic household impressions and 1,125,000 Hispanic viewers – up 28 percent compared to ESPN Deportes coverage of the UEFA EURO 2008 final (10.1). The final is also the second highest-rated European soccer match ever on a Spanish-language sports cable network. Through the tournament, 5.25 million people (P2+) tuned into live coverage of EURO 2012 on ESPN Deportes, a 24 percent increase from the 4.24 million people in 2008. ESPN also saw significant increases in viewership of the tournament online.

Andy Griffith, of 'Matlock,' dies at 86

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/entertainment-general/index.ssf/2012/07/matlocks_andy_griffith_dies_at.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES According to an NBC affiliate, actor Andy Griffith, 86, has died. The death was confirmed today by the actor's friend, UNC President Bill Friday told WITN News. The actor earned accolades for his role as the sheriff on "The Andy Griffith Show," which ran 1960-68. Griffith again earned legions of fans with the 1986-95 television series "Matlock."

Third annual Andre Reed Celebrity Golf Tournament will bring LeVar Arrington, other former stars to Valley

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER Andre Reed's third annual celebrity golf tournament is coming soon and it looks to be bigger and better than ever. The former Dieruff High School and Kutztown University football star will again bring lots of former pro athletes to the Lehigh Valley on Sunday/Monday July 15-16. Here's the official release, courtesy of the event's public relations director Jeff Vaughan: Lehigh Valley, PA, June 27, 2012 – Former NFL great Andre Reed announced today he is bringing his annual celebrity golf classic back to his hometown in 2012. The “Andre Reed Celebrity Golf Classic” will be held throughout the Lehigh Valley July 15-16, 2012, to benefit the Andre Reed Foundation with proceeds targeting the Boys & Girls Club of Allentown and the United Way. “This tournament is all about helping kids in need in my hometown,” said Reed. “The fact that the celebrities and sponsors who participate always have a wonderful, memorable time makes it all the more enjoyable to host.” The 2012 tournament will again consist of a Celebrity/Sponsor Cocktail Party and Auction on July 15 followed by the Tournament Pairing Selection Reception. Tickets will again be available for the Celebrity/Sponsor Cocktail Party for non-golfers. Times and locations will be announced shortly. On July 16 the Celebrity Golf Tournament will be held at Lehigh Country Club in Allentown, Pa., beginning with a shotgun start followed by a cocktail reception and dinner. Past celebrity participants include former professional athletes Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Darryl Talley, Eric Dickerson, Kellen Winslow, James Lofton, Sterling Sharpe, Terrell Davis and many more. New celebrities playing this year include former Major League Baseball relief pitcher John Rocker, former Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive tackle Barrett Brooks, former Philadelphia Flyers’ right winger Tim Kerr, former Green Bay Packers’ wide receiver Antonio Freeman and former Penn State great LaVar Arrington. They will join returning hometown celebrities Mike Guman, Joe Wolf and Marty Nothstein. Sponsorship Opportunities: Please visit www.andrereedfoundation.org or email info@andrereedfoundation.org for sponsorship information and a complete list of celebrity guests. About The Andre Reed Foundation The Andre Reed Foundation (www.andrereedfoundation.org) was established in 2010 by former NFL great Andre Reed to help underprivileged children reach their full potential and become responsible contributors to their communities. Headquartered in

TV NEWS ON JULY 3

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2012/07/cmt-acquires-reba-and-yes-dear-g4.html CMT has acquired two new sitcoms and we can now reveal what they are! Two long-running, family-oriented sitcoms Reba and Yes, Dear will make their way to CMT this Fall as part of a multi-year licensing deal with Twentieth Television. Syndicated episodes of Reba and Yes, Dear will air in weekday blocks beginning Wednesday, August 1, 2012. The network will also air seven straight hours of Reba as part of a fan-voted marathon on Saturday, August 18. So, beginning July 13, fans can vote via CMT's Facebook page to pick their all-time favorite episodes of the beloved sitcom. Reba will kick off primetime weeknights on CMT from 7:00-9:00pm ET and it will also air afternoons 4:00-5:00pm ET. Starring country music powerhouse Reba McEntire, the series ran for six successful seasons, totaling 127 episodes. Yes, Dear will serve as the lead-in to Reba, airing weeknights from 5:00-7:00pm ET. These acquisitions complement CMT's current line-up (off-network series like Dukes of Hazzard and Extreme Makeover: Home Edition), and the network also has more originals in production than any time in its history. Currently Reba airs on Lifetime and Yes, Dear airs on Nick at Nite. As of the end of June, TBS no longer airs Yes, Dear. The question you might have is, will Reba continue on Lifetime as it is coming to CMT? It doesn't look like it, but we will confirm that very soon. We can however tell you that Reba will be coming to ANOTHER cable network in August, in addition to CMT. What network do you think it will be? Start the guessing game! As for Yes, Dear, both Nick at Nite and CMT are a part of the Viacom library so they will be sharing the sitcom.

MLB Network at the All-Star Game

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ The MLB Network plans 14 hours of coverage of next week’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game from Kansas City. The following hosts and analysts will be on site to bring viewers on the field and behind the scenes of the All-Star Game festivities: Greg Amsinger, Sean Casey, Peter Gammons, Brian Kenny, Al Leiter, Kevin Millar, Dan Plesac, Harold Reynolds, Alanna Rizzo and Chris Rose. Coverage begins Monday, July 9th at 1:30p.m. ET with the All-Star player and manager media day. MLB Network will also have coverage during batting practice each day as well as pre- and post game coverage on Tuesday. The network’s coverage ends on Wednesday with the telecast of the Triple A All-Star Game Here is the MLB Network schedule for the All-Star Game: MLB Network’s 2012 All-Star Week Programming: All times ET and subject to change. Check MLBNetwork.com for updates. Monday, July 9: 1:30 p.m.: All-Star Media Day 4:30 p.m.: Intentional Talk: All-Star Edition at Batting Practice 6:00 p.m.: MLB Tonight: All-Star Edition at Batting Practice Post-Derby: MLB Tonight: All-Star Edition Tuesday, July 10: 4:00 p.m.: MLB All-Star Red Carpet Show presented by Chevrolet 5:00 p.m.: MLB Tonight: All-Star Edition at Batting Practice 7:30 p.m.: MLB All-Star Red Carpet Show presented by Chevrolet (abbreviated) Postgame: MLB Tonight: All-Star Edition Wednesday, July 11: 7:00 p.m.: 25th annual Triple-A All-Star Game

Tuesday!

Special Note: There is no e-mail Wednesday July 4 This is due to the 4th of July Have a great holiday weekend! E-Mails will resume on Monday July 9th! See you Monday July 9! Andy

Chase Barbieri is the new Voorhees High School boys soccer coach

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/chase_barbieri_is_the_new_voor.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Chase Barbieri, a 2011 graduate of Monmouth University, has been hired to replace Joe Tucker as head boys soccer coach at Voorhees High School. Barbieri was approved by the school board on June 19, according to Athletic Director Al Stumpf. Barbieri played four years at Monmouth, where he captained the team as a senior. He was on the Hermann Award watch list as a junior and senior. The Hermann Trophy is given by the Missouri Athletic Club to the top men's and women's Division I player each year - the soccer equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.

Lehigh Valley IronPigs rally past Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for extra-inning victory

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/ironpigs/index.ssf/2012/07/ironpigs_rally_past_scrantonwi.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES The Lehigh Valley IronPigs entered tonight looking for starting pitcher Tom Cochran to go deep into the game to spell a weary pitching staff after Sunday’s doubleheader sweep. As it turns out, what was really needed was an offensive solution to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitcher Ramon Ortiz. Cochran did his part, the Lehigh Valley bats finally figured out the Yankees veteran and the IronPigs scratched their way to a 5-4 come-from-behind victory on a wild pitch in the bottom of the 10th inning before a crowd of 9,599 at Coca-Cola Park.

The 2012-13 Lafayette women's basketball schedule is ou

http://blogs.mcall.com/varsity/2012/07/lafayette-womens-basketball-schedule.html FROM THE MORNING CALL Coach Dianne Nolan's Leopards open the season Friday, Nov. 9, with a home game against Loyola-Chicago at 6:30 p.m. Lafayette has visits to Seton Hall (Nov. 11), Penn State (Nov. 18), Saint Joseph's (Dec. 5) and Ohio State (Dec. 9). It hosts Villanova (Nov. 14), Pitt (Dec. 1) and Brown (Jan. 5) before starting Patriot League play Jan. 12 at Navy. The club ends the regular season March 2 at American. The Leopards return several key players from their 2011-12 team, including Danielle Fiacco, Emily Homan, Maddie Peabody, Brya Freeland and Madeline Fahan. Nolan welcomes threee freshmen: forwards Jazmin Hayes and Annette Snow, and guard Jamie O'Hara. They also get Kelly Loughney, who sat out last season after transferring.

Sports Media Digest- July 2, 2012

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ Tiger’s Win at Congressional Gives CBS Big Ratings Boost- The Tiger factor continues when it comes to PGA Tour ratings. Yesterday’s win by Tiger Woods at the AT&T National resulted in CBS Sports getting an overnight rating of 4.6, 188% over the 1.6 rating for last year’s tournament. The rating matched the highest rating for the event seen in 2009. NBA TV has Exclusive Coverage of Selection of U.S. Basketball Team- This Saturday NBA TV will have the exclusive announcement of the make-up of the 2012 U.S. men’s basketball team. USA Basketball Selection Show presented by Burger King will be hosted by Matt Winer and analyst Steve Smith. Included in the one-program will be an interview with U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski. The show airs Saturday at 7:00p.m. ET. NBC to Resume Fight Night Series- NBC Sports Group has reached a deal with Main Events to produce a second season of the network’s successful primetime boxing series Fight Night. The Saturday night boxing series will expand to up to 16 episodes and will showcase match-ups between some of the world’s best fighters. The first Fight Night telecast will take place December 22nd. Kenny Rice will serve as the play-by-play commentator, and will be joined by Hall-of-Fame boxing trainer Freddie Roach and cruiserweight contender B.J. Flores. Chris Mannix will serve as the ringside reporter for each telecast. Rangers/White Sox on Wednesday Night Baseball- ESPN will have still provide its Wednesday Night Baseball match-up this Fourth of July. The Texas Rangers will take on the Chicago White Sox this Wednesday beginning at 7:00p.m. ET with Dave O’Brien and Nomar Garciaparra on the call. U.S. Women’s Open Golf Begins Thursday on ESPN- ESPN will once again have early round coverage of the U.S. Women’s Open Golf Championship. The first two rounds of the tournament will take place Thursday and Friday from 4:00p.m. to 8:00p.m. ET. Terry Gannon will anchor the coverage along with Judy Rankin, Curtis Strange and Andy North. ESPN Unveils Schedule for High School Football Kickoff- ESPN has taken the wraps off its schedule of 13 games as partof its third annual ESPN High School Football Kick-Off. Here is the schedule: Date Time (ET) Games Location Network Fri, Aug 24 8 p.m. Joliet Catholic Academy (Ill.) vs. Providence Catholic (Ill.) Providence Catholic High School ESPNU 8 p.m. Minnetonka (Minn.) vs. Arrowhead (Wis.) Arrowhead High School ESPN3 9 p.m. Good Counsel (Md.) vs. Bishop Gorman (Nev.) Bishop Gorman High School ESPN2 10 p.m. Mullen (Co.) vs. Valor Christian (Co.) Valor Christian High School ESPN3 Sat, Aug 25 noon American Heritage (Fla.) vs. Cocoa (Fla.) Cocoa High School ESPN 3 p.m. Fork Union Military Academy (Va.) vs. Hermitage (Va.) Oscar Smith High School ESPNU 3:30 p.m. Staley (Mo.) vs. Lee’s Summit West (Mo.) Lee’s Summit West High School ESPN 7 p.m. Byrnes (S.C.) vs. Oscar Smith (Va.) Oscar Smith High School ESPN 9 p.m. Ensworth (Tenn.) vs. Lexington Catholic (Ky.) Lexington Catholic High School ESPNU 10 p.m. Santa Margarita (Calif.) vs. Brophy College Prep (Ariz.) Phoenix College ESPN2 Sun, Aug 26 noon Alcoa (Tenn.) vs. Maryville (Tenn.) Maryville High School ESPN2 3 p.m. University School (Fla.) vs. Trotwood-Madison (Ohio) King’s High School ESPN 7 p.m. Gilman (Md.) vs. Moeller (Ohio) King’s High School ESPNU

NBC Sports, SI, to Produce Magazine Show

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ The NBC Sports Group and Sports Illustrated announced today it will partner in producing a monthly, one-hour magazine program on NBC Sports Network. “Sports Illustrated” presented by Lexus debuts Tuesday, July 24, 9:00 p.m. ET. The program will be based on the magazine’s penchant for storytelling, reporting, and commentary by SI journalists. Red Line Films will produce the show, which will also feature segments from the SI Vault looking at sporting events and people from the past. The premiere episode will take place just three days before the opening of the 2012 Summer Olympics. At least one featured subject from the show will be chronicled in the current issue of SI and additional editorial vehicles across SI.com and NBCSports.com. “Sports Illustrated is an iconic brand and the gold standard in long-form journalism,” said Jon Miller, President of Programming for NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network, “This programming fits incredibly well with our rich history of storytelling, and partnering with Sports Illustrated for this show adds even more quality programming to NBC Sports Group’s growing portfolio.” Here is the schedule for the program the remainder of 2012: Episode #1 July 24 9:00 p.m. NBC Sports Network Episode #2 September 12 9:00 p.m. NBC Sports Network Episode #3 October 13 2:30 p.m. NBC Sports Episode #4 November 3 2:30 p.m. NBC Sports Episode #5 December 13 9:00 p.m. NBC Sports Network

ArtsQuest to host Fourth of July discount concert, movie ticket sale

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/entertainment-general/index.ssf/2012/07/artsquest_to_host_july_fourth.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Don't miss the Fourth of July ticket sale at ArtsQuest. From 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, ArtsQuest will be offering buy one, get one promotions and ticket discounts for 35 Musikfest shows, Musikfest Cafe performances, Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas film tickets and comedy performances, according to a news release. ArtsQuest members can purchase tickets from 3 to 4 p.m. The public ticket sale begins at 4 p.m. Only new ticket purchases are eligible; no refunds or exchanges are permitted, according to the release. “Almost all of our upcoming performances are included in this special sale, so if you’ve been waiting to buy tickets to a show, now’s the time to do so,” ArtsQuest Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations Curt Mosel said in a news release. “There are some amazing offers that people simply won’t believe, but the only way to take advantage of them is to stop by the ArtsQuest Center on July 4th.” In addition, ArtsQuest will offer 25 percent off merchandise at ArtsQuest Center's Stacks Shop and 20 percent off ArtsQuest Center and Banana Factory rentals booked before July 31. Find more information at the ArtsQuest website. Some of the shows included in the sale: Blast Furnace Blues Festival Young the Giant John Mayall Little River Band Patton Oswalt Daughtry Sheryl Crow Pat Metheny Justin Townes Earle Jars of Clay

Hot Dog Showdown premieres on RCN TV

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/food/index.ssf/2012/07/hot_dog_showdown_premieres_on.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Exciting news for all you hot dog fans out there. Our 2012 Hot Dog Showdown has found a new spot on RCN TV. Don't worry you'll still be able to find all the reviews, previews, photos and video here, but our videos will also be broadcast on RCN throughout the day.

SportsRadio 94 WIP Programming Schedule

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2010/11/22/wip-programming-schedule/ 7-2-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM Marc Farzetta 6:00AM – 10:00AM Angelo Cataldi & The Morning Team 10:00AM – 1:00PM Middays with Ike Reese & Rob Ellis 1:00PM – 6:00PM Afternoons with Anthony Gargano & Glen Macnow 6:00PM – 10:00PM Rob Ellis 10:00PM – 2:00AM Spike Eskin 7-3-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM Big Daddy Graham 6:00AM – 10:00AM Angelo Cataldi & The Morning Team 10:00AM – 1:00PM Middays with Michael Barkann & Rob Ellis 1:00PM – 6:00PM Afternoons with Anthony Gargano & Glen Macnow 6:00PM - Leading Off with Rob Ellis 6:30PM – 10:30PM Phillies vs Mets 10:30PM – 11:00PM The Final Out with Jody McDonald 11:00PM – 2:00AM Jody McDonald 7-4-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM Big Daddy Graham 6:00AM – 10:00AM The Best of Angelo Cataldi 10:00AM – 12:00PM Middays with Paul Jolovitz & Rob Ellis 12:00PM – 12:30PM Leading Off with Rob Ellis 12:30PM – 4:35PM Phillies vs Mets 4:35PM – 5:05PM The Final Out with Anthony Gargano & Glen Macnow 5:05PM – 6:00PM Afternoons with Anthony Gargano & Glen Macnow 6:00PM – 10:00PM Brian Startare 10:00PM – 2:00AM Marc Farzetta 7-5-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM Big Daddy Graham 6:00AM – 10:00AM Angelo Cataldi & The Morning Team 10:00AM – 1:00PM Middays with Michael Barkann & Rob Ellis 1:00PM – 6:00PM Afternoons with Anthony Gargano & Dan Klecko 6:00PM – 6:30PM Leading Off with Brian Startare 6:30PM – 10:30PM Phillies vs Mets 10:30PM – 11:00PM The Final Out with Jody McDonald 11:00PM – 2:00AM Jody McDonald 7-6-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM Big Daddy Graham 6:00AM – 10:00AM Angelo Cataldi & The Morning Team 10:00AM – 1:00PM Middays with Michael Barkann & Ike Reese 1:00PM – 6:00PM Afternoons with Anthony Gargano & Dan Klecko 6:00PM – 6:30PM Leading Off Reuben Frank 6:30PM – 10:30PM Phillies vs Braves 10:30PM – 11:00PM The Final Out with Jody McDonald 11:00PM – 2:00AM Jody McDonald 7-7-12 2:00AM – 5:00AM Jon Johnson 5:00AM – 8:00AM Best of Cataldi 8:00AM – 10:00AM Howard Eskin 10:00AM – 1:00PM Paul Jolovitz & Ray Didinger 1:00PM – 6:00PM Rob Charry & Dan Klecko 3:00PM – 6:35PM Leading Off with Reuben Frank 6:35PM – 10:35PM Phillies vs Braves 10:35PM – 11:05PM The Final Out with Rickie Ricardo 11:05PM – 2:00AM Rickie Ricardo 7-8-12 2:00AM – 6:00AM G Cobb 6:00AM – 7:00AM Conversations with Peter Solomon 7:00AM – 8:00AM WIP Sunday 8:00AM – 10:00AM Sonny Hill 10:00AM – 12:00PM Rob Charry & Dan Klecko 12:30PM – 1:00PM Leading Off with Rob Charry 1:00PM – 5:30PM Phillies vs Braves 5:30PM – 6:00PM The Final Out with Reuben Frank 6:00PM – 9:00PM Reuben Frank 9:00PM – 2:00AM Paul Jolovitz 450 610 sched SportsRadio 94 WIP Programming Schedule Listeners can hear most of the great programming SportsRadio 94WIP has to offer on SportsRadio 610WIP. In addition, 610WIP-AM will air the following exclusive programming on the below days and times: 7-2-12 10:00PM – 1:00AM The Nick & Artie Show 7-3-12 10:00PM – 1:00AM The Nick & Artie Show 7-4-12 10:00PM – 1:00AM The Nick & Artie Show 7- 5-12 10:00PM – 1:00AM The Nick & Artie Show 7- 6 -12 10:00PM – 1:00AM The Nick & Artie Show 7-7-12 5:00AM – 7:00AM The Joe Morgan Show 7:00AM – 8:00AM Good News in Real Estate 7-8-12 1:00PM – 5:00PM Talk

TV NEWS ON JULY 2

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2012/07/whos-boss-coming-to-tv-guide-network.html The very popular family sitcom Who's the Boss? is returning to cable starting...today! TV Guide Network has acquired the cable rights to the long-running 1984-1992 ABC sitcom starring Tony Danza, Judith Light, Alyssa Milano, Danny Pintauro and Katherine Helmond. The series will air back-to-back episodes at 6:00pm & 6:30pm starting tonight, Monday, July 2, 2012. It will also air at times at 1:00am when a movie doesn't run long, so check listings. The sitcom was last seen on cable on The Hallmark Channel for one year from May 2010 to April 2011. So, after little over a year the sitcom is back on television! The sitcom will follow back-to-back episodes of Designing Women at 5:00pm & 5:30pm, which remains in the hour. Who's the Boss? will lead into back-to-back episodes of Dharma & Greg at 7:00pm & 7:30pm for a nice block of comedy. Other comedies airing on the network are: more Designing Women (10:00am & 10:30am), Ugly Betty (1pm & 2pm), Samantha Who? (3:00pm), Ned & Stacey (3:30pm), Caroline in the City (4:00pm) and the return of Cybill (4:30pm). TV Guide Network is still also airing dramas Early Edition (11:00am) and The Guardian (12:00pm & 12:00am) on weekdays. Weeds (1:30am & 5am) and Curb Your Enthusiasm (4:00am) air sporadically. On the series, former professional athlete Tony Micelli (Tony Danza) and his daughter Samantha (Alyssa Milano) arrive at the upscale, suburban household of executive Angela Bower (Judith Light), where Tony has taken a job as live-in housekeeper. When they arrive, Angela is uptight and obsessed with her work. Her son Jonathan (Danny Pintauro) is shy and lacks self-esteem, and her mother, Mona (Katherine Helmond), is a man-hungry vixen. Tony eventually wins them over with his laid back style, and the Bowers soon begin to loosen up. FX's biggest night of comedy ever also proved to be one of cable's biggest nights of comedy ever as Anger Management set ratings records for a primetime scripted comedy series premiere, while Wilfred and Louie returned to the network with significant growth over their prior seasons, and FX's entry into the late night arena, BrandX with Russell Brand, got off to a strong start. Thursday, June 28 marked the most-watched Thursday night (prime, 8-11 PM) in FX's 18-year history in both Total Viewers (3.05 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.54 million). Thursday night's series debut of Anger Management (9:00 PM) was the most-watched primetime scripted comedy series premiere in cable history in delivery of Adults 18-49 (2.65 million, 2.1 A18-49 rating), and Total Viewers (5.47 million, excluding children's programming). It also ranks as the most-watched series premiere in FX history in Total Viewers. Episode 2 of Anger Management (9:30 PM) grew to 5.74 million Total Viewers, and the demo also grew in the second half hour to 2.89 million A18-49 (2.3 A18-49 rating). While the two episode premiere was the highest rated basic cable premiere for a comedy series, the BET premiere of The Game in January 2011 was might higher doing 7.68 million and a 3.6 A18-49 rating for its one-hour season premiere. So Anger Management didn't set a record for a original comedy on basic cable, it just did it for a series premiere. But this is still pretty good. Combined with the encore telecasts (1:00 and 1:30 AM), the series premiere episode of Anger Management delivered a total audience of 6.21 million viewers and 3.11 million Adults 18-49, and the second episode drew 6.45 million viewers and 3.29 million Adults 18-49. Episode 2 of Anger Management at (9:30 PM) ranked as the top-rated program on television (broadcast or cable) on Thursday in delivery of Adults 18-49 and Men 18-49, and in cable in delivery of Total Viewers, Adults 18-49, Adults 18-34 (1.24 million) and Adults 25-54 (3.22 million). The series premiere (9:00 PM) ranked #2 on television (broadcast or cable) on Thursday in delivery of Adults 18-49 and Men 18-49, and #2 among all cable programs Thursday night in Total Viewers, Adults 18-49, Adults 18-34, and Adults 25-54. Anger Management moves to its regularly scheduled time period of Thursdays at 9:30 PM ET/PT beginning this week: Thursday. July ). FX will repeat its pilot and second episode also this Thursday at 8:30PM and 9:00PM, respectively.

Monday!

Monday July 2, 2012 BIG NEWS: On Saturday the PA HOUSE PASSED A BUDGET! BUDGET ON TIME!!!!!!! PRETTY GOOD BUDGET TOO!!!!! I Stayed up to 1:30am SUNDAY MORNING I Watched from 9am to 1:30am 15 hour session Saturday Am I Nuts? Governor Tom Corbett signed the budget at 11:45pm Saturday night!!! Happy 4th of July!! The only E-Mail this week! Wednesday is the 4th! Any holiday plans? Any picnics? I Will be at the Nazareth's KAZOO Parade!!!!!!!! Wednesday at 10am I Might sing with the DREAMKIDS! The Heat is on! Are you staying cool? Big Monday! Fitness at 11am Town and Country for Lunch at 1:00pm!! That will be fun! Yes, i am wearing SHORTS!!!!!!!!! Nazareth Legion Baseball is HOT! 6pm Tuesday at Hellertown 6pm Wednesday vs Bath 6pm Friday at Lehigh Twp. Only 3 losses so far for Nazareth!! DON HUNTER THEATRE OF MIND Tonight 9pm-1am on WALN! Starters at Northampton Blue Mountain Baseball on at 9:30pm Tuesday on RCN Cable!!!!!!! RCN IS SHOWING THE ALLENTOWN FIREWORKS AND CEREMONIES LIVE 5:30PM-10PM WEDNESDAY NIGHT ON THE 4TH OF JULY! Check that out!!!!! My boss Rusty Amato will be on RCN SPORTS TALK Thursday at 6pm!! His dad will be on too!!!!!!!!! Jim Thome was traded to Baltimore. What are your thoughts? Ryan Howard was in Lehigh Valley Sunday night! He might be in the area all weekend!!!! Kutztown Folk Festival all week! It runs to next Sunday!!!!!!!!!!! How are you? How was your weekend? What did you do all weekend? Anything Fun? I am great! Had a great week!!!! DOGS ARE HANGING IN! Toby is having issues. Schedule: Monday July 2: 8:30am-5pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 11am Fitness NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm Town and Country Restaurant 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 NO ANNOUNCING 7pm-9pm Jack Burns on WALN 9pm-1am Don Hunter on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Tuesday July 3: 8:30am-12:30pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm RADIO SHOW ON WEEX 1230 3:30pm-5:15pm DIANA 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 6pm At the Nazareth Legion Baseball Game at Hellertown 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 9:30pm Starters at Northampton Blue Mountain Baseball on RCN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Wednesday July 4: 8:30am-12:30pm DIANA 10am AT THE NAZARETH KAZOO PARADE 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 12:30pm RADIO SHOW ON WEEX 1230 1pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 5:30pm AT THE BATH AT NAZARETH LEGION BASEBALL GAME 5:30pm-10pm ALLENTOWN 4TH OF JULY CELEBRATION LIVE ON RCN4 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Thursday July 5: 8:30am-11am DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm-2pm Radio Show on WEEX 1230 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 1:30pm-6pm DIANA 2pm Calling Bingo at Moravian Hall Square 6pm RCN SPORTS TALK SHOW ON RCN4 7:30pm JOLLY JOE TIMMEER SHOW ON RCN4 8pm-11pm NED RICHARDS ON WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Friday July 6: 8:30am-5pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 11am Fitness NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 6pm At the Nazareth Legion Baseball Game at Lehigh Twp. 6pm-12am JD ROSS ON WALN 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Saturday July 7: 8:30am-10:30am DIANA 9am-11am KEITH GROLLER ON 1470 WSAN 10am-NOON 69 Sports Saturday on WEEX 1230 NOON-12:30pm Radio Show on WEEX 1230 11am-9pm Mark Thomas on WGPA 1100 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on FOX 9pm-2am Ned Richards on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 10:30pm Announce Charlie Manuel Show on MYPHL17 Sunday July 8: 11am-NOON Radio Show 9:30am-NOON JOLLY JOE TIMMER ON WGPA 1100 1:30pm Announce Phillies Baseball on MYPHL17 NOON-3pm Dennis Christman on WGPA 1100 3pm-9pm MIGHTY MIKE ON WGPA 1100 7pm Layla on WALN 9pm Happy Jack on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 RIP: Dale Earenhardt SR. Davey Allison COURTNEY DIACONT GRANDMA WEAVER JAMIE LINTZ JOHN VUKOVCICH KRISTEN BENNY PARSONS DEREK KEHOE JOSH HANCOCK Joe Schneider Frank Klepeisz Mary Mutchler Jene Flick Frank Jenny Jennifer Jacksits Donald Williams John Marzano Andrew Millheim Harold Rrenyold Todd Rothrock Wayne Grube Catherine Baker Knoll Josh Booth Francesco Tolerico Craig Borst George Williams Deborah Ed Phil Newbaker Harry Kalas Dan Ozark Chuck Daly Brenton Krouse Joshua Miller Gary Pappa Farrah Facett Irv Homer Michael Jackson Steve Mcnair Paul Marcinkowski Walt Cronkite Henry Tomkowski (Who raised a great and fun Daughter) Tom Partridge Angelica Fox Melissa Kinsella Joey Beers Ben Yorgy Brooke Stephens Ryan Zawada Frank Silfries Pumpkin Groller Al Alberts Morgan Mcginis Jason Gilligan Harriet Lindenmoyer Barbara Johnson Chris Henry Oral Roberts Patti Heffner Britney Murphy Glen W. Bell Jr Vince Heinlein Heather Miller John Murtha Julio Rivera Aaaron Groff Jack Lapos Tom Ochs Mario Donnagelo Sally Murphy Owens Thomas Ernie Harwell Robin Roberts Luke Hahn Bob Shephard Michael Yakemik Donald Fritz George Steinbrenner Teko Johnson Kiski Palmer Smith Lewis Ogioba Chris Hushour Bill Altherton Mary Sysko Stephen Haberle Dan Wheldon Shawnalai Werkheiser Thomas Maher Tori Hirst Sweeney Paul May Elwood Stewart Murphy Phillips Joe Paterno Patricia VanHorn Whitney Houston Matt Kelly Steve Friendricks Dick Clark Dennis Schantzenbach Linda Berry Richard Dawson Mary Tracy Isaac Isaiah Irving President of the Alan Davis, Gary Laubach, Dream Kids and Keith Groller, Ray Kaminski Fan Clubs! Check out my blog I am doing new things!! http://nazoeagle.blogspot.com/ Keep It real! Thanks for your Time! SEE YOU ON MONDAY JULY 9!!!!!!!

Andrews Leaves ESPN for Fox

http://sportsmediajournal.com/ Word came out on Friday that Erin Andrews would not be re-signing with ESPN and was exploring options at Fox Sports. Late this afternoon that speculation became confirmed. Andrews is taking her talents to Fox Sports. Here is the entire press release from Fox: ERIN ANDREWS JOINS FOX SPORTS Hosts New Prime Time College Football Pregame Show, Contributes to NFL and MLB on FOX Coverage & Other Marquee Events New York & Los Angeles – College football on FOX just became must-watch TV this fall as the popular Erin Andrews, one of sports television’s brightest stars, rejoins the FOX Sports family. A versatile broadcaster whose talent bridges sports and entertainment, Andrews’ position includes hosting the new prime time college football pregame show, making significant contributions to the network’s NFL and MLB coverage, along with other marquee sports properties. The announcement of Andrews’ multi-year agreement was made today by Executive Producer, Co-President & COO, FOX Sports Media Group, Eric Shanks. “Opportunities to add someone of Erin Andrews’ caliber don’t come along often and we’re thrilled to welcome her back to the FOX Sports family,” said Shanks. “Erin is one of the hardest-working, most-respected individuals in sports television and we expect her to have an immediate impact. In addition to having her anchor our new college football show and studio coverage, we expect her to be a big contributor to our MLB and NFL coverage as well as other major events.” “To have the chance to not only host the primetime college football pregame show, but cover the NFL, MLB and various other incredible FOX Sports properties is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Andrews. “I couldn’t be more excited to get to work.” FOX Sports’ new 30-minute college football pregame show, which originates live each week from the FOX Network Center in Los Angeles, leads into FOX Sports’ first-ever regular-season over-the-air college football package. The network’s coverage kicks-off onSaturday, Sept. 1 (7:30 PM ET) as Hawaii visits USC, live from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Andrews, one of the most-followed sports television personalities on Twitter with over 1.3 million followers, returns to FOX Sports after spending eight years at ESPN. Most recently, she hosted the first hour of ESPN’s College GameDay on ESPNU and was a features reporter for the full three-hour program, a role she held since the 2010 season. Andrews also served as a sideline reporter for college football and basketball games. Prior to ESPN, Andrews worked for Turner Sports from 2002 to 2004 as a studio host and reporter. She covered college football (reporter) and the Atlanta Braves (studio host) for TBS and the Atlanta Thrashers (studio host) and Atlanta Hawks (reporter) for Turner Sports South. From 2001 to 2002, she worked for the Sunshine Network as a Tampa Bay Lightning reporter. She got her start as a sports reporter at FOX Sports Florida in 2000. Andrews is also known for appearing on the 10th season of Dancing with the Stars. Andrews, who was partnered with Maksim Chmerkovskiy, was one of three contestants to make it to the finals, where they placed third. Andrews, a native of Lewiston, Maine, graduated from the University of Florida in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in telecommunications. She was a member of the Gators’ basketball dance team from 1997 to 2000. In addition to broadcasting 13 consecutive weeks of regular-season action, including 12 prime time games and seven doubleheaders, FOX Sports boasts exclusive coverage of college football’s Pac-12 Conference Football Championship Game on Friday, Nov. 30 (8:00 PM ET) followed by the Big Ten Conference Football Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 1 (8:00 PM ET). FOX Sports wraps up its 2012-13 campaign with an exciting Big 12/SEC match-up in the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic live from Cowboys Stadium on Friday, Jan. 4 (8:00 PM ET).

TV NEWS ON JULY 1

http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2012/07/summer-week-5-sitcom-ratings-new.html Summer has now started. We will be back with our normal weekly ratings report with the first four nights numbers and analysis in the fall, but we still will have our regular how the sitcoms did all summer long! Here are our summer ratings: Summer Week 5 (June 25-July 1) How the Sitcoms Did Last Sunday Sitcoms (counts for week of June 18-24) The Simpsons (Fox) - preempted. The Cleveland Show (Fox) - A repeat at 7:30 just did 1.72 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, down two tenths from previous week. Bob's Burgers (Fox) - preempted. Family Guy (Fox) - preempted. American Dad! (Fox) - The normal 9:30 airing was preempted. A repeat earlier in the night at 7 did just 1.56 million and a 0.7 18-49 rating, down a tenth week-to-week. Monday Sitcoms How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - A repeat did 4.27 million and a 1.2 18-49 rating, up a tenth from previous week. Up and down it goes. 2 Broke Girls (CBS) - A repeat of this comedy did 4.73 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Two and a Half Men (CBS) - A repeat did 5.32 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating, on par with previous week. Mike & Molly (CBS) - 4.78 million and a 1.2 18-49 rating for a repeat was also on par with the previous week. Tuesday Sitcoms Last Man Standing (ABC) 2 airings - The first repeat at 8 did 3.62 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, which could be better. A second repeat followed at 8:30pm with a similar 3.39 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating. New Girl (Fox) - Repeats return in August but on Thursdays. Wednesday Sitcoms The Middle (ABC) - A repeat at 8 did 3.7 million and a 0.9 18-49 rating, down a tenth from previous week. Suburgatory (ABC) - A repeat at 8:30 posted 3.0 million and a 0.8 18-49 rating, down two tenths week-to-week. Up All Night (NBC) - preempted. Modern Family (ABC) 2 airings - A repeat did 3.81 million and a 1.3 rating, down two tenths from previous week. A second airing followed with a similar 3.64 million and a 1.3 18-49 rating. We're now heading into the dog days of summer. Happy Endings (ABC) - preempted Don't Trust the B---- In Apartment 23 (ABC) - preempted. Thursday Sitcoms The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - A repeat at 8 did 7.7 million and a 2.0 18-49 rating, down two tenths from the previous week. Consistent and great for summer and still at a 2. Dog days of summer coming up though, so will be tough to do a 2. 2 Broke Girls (CBS) - A repeat did 6.04 million and a 1.6 18-49 rating, down five tenths from previous week. Weird. The Office (NBC) - preempted. Parks and Recreation (NBC) - preempted. Friday Sitcoms Whitney (NBC) - preempted. Community (NBC) - preempted. Saturday Sitcoms Rules of Engagement (CBS) - preempted. How to Be a Gentleman (CBS) - preempted. Airing tonight (Sunday) are repeats of Fox Animation Domination from 7-10pm.

Spain crushes Italy to capture European soccer championship

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/spain_crushes_italy_to_capture.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Spain won its third straight major soccer title today, beating Italy 4-0 in the European Championship final. David Silva and Jordi Alba scored first-half goals, and Fernando Torres and Juan Mata added one apiece in the second half as the Spanish passing game worked its magic against the Italians at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine. Silva headed in a high shot in the 14th minute off a pass from Cesc Fabregas. Alba added another in the 41st, picking up a beautiful through ball from Xavi Hernandez and shooting past Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. Torres posted the third goal in the 84th, becoming the first man to score in two European Championship finals. Mata scored in the 88th.

Miami Marlins complete sweep of Philadelphia Phillies

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/miami_marlins_complete_sweep_o.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Ricky Nolasco pitched seven strong innings, Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run home run, and the Miami Marlins completed a three-game sweep of the struggling Philadelphia Phillies with a 5-2 win today. It was the first Marlins sweep of the Phillies since August 7-9, 2009, at Citizens Bank Park. All-Star slugger Giancarlo Stanton also homered, and Omar Infante and John Buck each had RBI doubles for the Marlins, who have won four straight.

Philadelphia Phillies ship Chad Qualls to New York Yankees

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/07/philadelphia_phillies_ship_cha.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES The New York Yankees have acquired reliever Chad Qualls from the Philadelphia Phillies for cash considerations, according to the Phillies' Twitter. The Yankees made the deal today during their game against the Chicago White Sox. The Phillies designated the right-hander for assignment Wednesday. Qualls was 1-1 with a 4.60 ERA in a team-high 35 appearances for the Phillies.

Lehigh Valley IronPigs win first game of doubleheader against Pawtucket

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/ironpigs/index.ssf/2012/07/lehigh_valley_ironpigs_win_fir_1.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES One down, one to go. The Lehigh Valley IronPigs got four solid innings from spot-starter B.J. Rosenberg and three relievers held on to the lead as the Pigs beat Pawtucket 8-5 in front of 6,420 fans this afternoon at Coca-Cola Park in Game 1 of a day/night doubleheader. Game 2, featuring rehabbing Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard, is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Tyson Brummett (3-1, 3.25) is making another spot-start for the IronPigs against Billy Buckner (1-2,

Erin Andrews lands at Fox

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER Erin Andrews has a new TV home and her new network couldn't be more excited. Andrews, perhaps the most-talked about sideline reporter in TV sports history, has landed at Fox. In a release sent out on Sunday, Fox gushed about its new hire. Take a peek: College football on FOX just became must-watch TV this fall as the popular Erin Andrews, one of sports television’s brightest stars, rejoins the FOX Sports family. A versatile broadcaster whose talent bridges sports and entertainment, Andrews’ position includes hosting the new prime time college football pregame show, making significant contributions to the network’s NFL and MLB coverage, along with other marquee sports properties. The announcement of Andrews’ multi-year agreement was made today by Executive Producer, Co-President & COO, FOX Sports Media Group, Eric Shanks. “Opportunities to add someone of Erin Andrews’ caliber don’t come along often and we’re thrilled to welcome her back to the FOX Sports family,” said Shanks. “Erin is one of the hardest-working, most-respected individuals in sports television and we expect her to have an immediate impact. In addition to having her anchor our new college football show and studio coverage, we expect her to be a big contributor to our MLB and NFL coverage as well as other major events.” And Fox seems xcited as well. “To have the chance to not only host the primetime college football pregame show, but cover the NFL, MLB and various other incredible FOX Sports properties is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Andrews. “I couldn’t be more excited to get to work.” Andrews was at ESPN for eight years. Fox is now going to push ABC/ESPN and CBS for a share of the college football regular season. FOX Sports’ new 30-minute college football pregame show, which will originate live each week from the FOX Network Center in Los Angeles, begins on Saturday, Sept. 1 (7:30 PM ET) when Hawaii visits USC.

Next Comedy Central Roast Announced

http://lauranachman.wordpress.com/ FROM LAURA NACHMAN cannot wait until the Comedy Central Roast of Roseanne, August 12th.

Fourth of July events, fireworks in the Lehigh Valley

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/events/index.ssf/2012/07/fourth_of_july_event_in_the_le.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES ALLENTOWN Enjoy fireworks Wednesday at J. Birney Crum Stadium as part of the 55th annual Allentown PAL show. Musical entertainment begins at 5:30 p.m. Fireworks are expected to start at 9:20 p.m. Admission is free, but a donation of $5 per family and $2 per adult is requested to defray the cost of the show. The show will also be telecast live on RCN. CATASAUQUA County Commissioner Daniel K. McCarthy will read the Declaration of Independence at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the George Taylor House, 35 S. Front St. The reading will be followed by an honor guard salute. Tours of the George Taylor House are from 9 a.m. to noon; there’s a suggested donation of $4. BETHLEHEM Fireworks are scheduled following the Allentown Band concert at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Levitt Pavilion at SteelStacks. The city’s annual display will start at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Fireworks are launched from Sand Island and visible throughout the city, particularly around Payrow Plaza on East Church Street. The American Legion Band will perform a free concert on the plaza at 7:30 p.m. In case of rain, fireworks will be 9 p.m. July 5. The Bethlehem City Republican Committee is hosting a public reading of the Declaration of Independence from 11 a.m. until noon Wednesday on the stairs of Bethlehem’s Town Hall, 10 E. Church St. The nonpartisan reading will be performed by several elected officials, candidates and private citizens. EASTON Colonial re-enactors, Civil War encampments and the reading of the Declaration of Independence are slated for Heritage Day on July 8 at Centre Square in Easton. There will be music and family friendly entertainment -- all of which is capped by the evening's fireworks. Find more information at heritageday.org. GLEN GARDNER Firetruck rides are available from 10 a.m. until noon Wednesday at the borough park, School Street and Hampton Road. LEBANON A baby parade at 9:30 a.m. precedes the main parade at 10 a.m.Wednesday from the firehouse on Main Street. Bicycles and antique vehicles will also be included. For more information, call 908-236-2343. NAZARETH The Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce will host the annual kazoo parade and patriotic program Wednesday. Participants should meet at 9:30 a.m. at Nazareth Area High School. Walkers will be assigned into groups to play patriotic songs on kazoos, which were donated by Lafayette Ambassador Bank. The parade route is: From the high school, turn up South Liberty Street and make a right onto Belvidere Street. Follow until Main Street and make a right up to the circle, go half way around and turn onto West Center Street and end at council chambers. Local elected officials will offer a greeting at council chambers. The Dream Kids and Lehigh Valley Idol will provide patriotic entertainment. The grand marshal of the parade is Abbe “Miss G” Graber, known as the “Kazoo Lady of Woodstock.” For more information, call the chamber at 610-759-9188 or visit nazarethchamber.com. WASHINGTON Washington Celebrates America starts at 8 a.m. Wednesday with a Soap Box Derby on Broad Street. The parade will begin at 3 p.m., followed by a rock concert, "WashRock 7/4," at Warren Hills Regional Middle School. The concert includes DJ Doc South, and Eric DeLauro, a Frank Sinatra tribute singer from Hoboken, N.J. The event culminates with a fireworks display at dusk. Check back to our Fourth of July page for coverage and a map of events.

Pa. court agency removes records from website

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2012/07/pa_court_agency_removes_record.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Pennsylvania has removed millions of public records from a state court system website, and while a statewide newspaper group says that’s a troubling policy shift, an online privacy expert says say it’s reasonable. State officials say they are just treating the electronic copies like paper ones, which are destroyed after a certain period of time. The Patriot-News of Harrisburg first reported that the records which were removed involve minor crimes, traffic offenses, landlord-tenant disputes and small lawsuits. Records of serious crimes are still kept for decades. Edward Spreha, a Harrisburg-based defense attorney who frequently deals with traffic cases, said that the change will make it harder to find the criminal and civil court records of his clients, potential clients and witnesses. He said that searches that once took moments could potentially take weeks.

Philadelphia Phillies' Ryan Howard will play second game in IronPigs' double-header today

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/ironpigs/index.ssf/2012/07/philadelphia_phillies_ryan_how_1.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard will play this evening for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Howard has been out for the Phils this season while recovering from a torn Achillies tendon sustained last fall. It was initially announced Howard would play this afternoon's game. The second game against Pawtucket Red Sox starts at 6:35 p.m. in Coca-Cola Park.

Howard rescheduled; will now play tonight in Game 2 of DH at Coca-Cola Park

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER There was a lot of back-and-forth Saturday night as to when Ryan Howard would be in Allentown to continue his rehab with the IronPigs. The Phillies announced late Saturday night that he would be in Allentown for Game 1 of today's day-night doubleheader, but now the Phillies have changed their mind and said Howard will be there for tonight's Game 2, which is a 6:35 p.m. start. The IronPigs sent out a release to confirm this news, which may be too late for late ticket buyers for the 12:05 game who were hoping to see the 2006 National League MVP.

Lehigh Valley IronPigs receive pitching help from Reading for doubleheader

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/ironpigs/index.ssf/2012/07/lehigh_valley_ironpigs_receive.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES This morning the Lehigh Valley IronPigs received a trio of arms from Double-A Reading in preparation for today's day/night doubleheader against Pawtucket. Right-handers Ryan Duke and Jordan Whatcott and lefty Frank Gailey were promoted to Lehigh Valley. The Pigs assigned struggling left-hander Pat Misch to the R-Phils. Duke is 1-0 with a 9.00 ERA in one game (one inning) with Reading and 0-1 with a 3.24 ERA in 17 appearances with Single-A Clearwater this season. Whatcott is 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA in 19 games (four starts) with Reading. Gailey was 2-2 with a 4.66 ERA in 19 appearances.

A familiar face is back coaching at Dieruff

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER Tryone Wright, a Dieruff High graduate,who most recently was the men’s coach at Northampton Community College, was appproved as the Huskies new girls basketball coach on Thursday night. Wright replaces Steve Middleton who was not rehired after going 6-60 over the past three seasons. After winning 10 games in the 2007-08 season, Dieruff has won just nine times over the last four seasons combined and has not qualified for the district tournament since 2001. Wright remembers better times for the Huskies. He is a Dieruff graduate, having played for Hall of Fame coaches Dick Schmidt and Terry German at the Allentown school in early 1970s. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Allen in 1989 and was also an assistant at Dieruff before taking over as Allen’s head coach from 1998-2000. He was then an assistant at Parkland before going to the college ranks and becoming the head women’s coach at LCCC for the 2004-05 season and then the mens’s head coach at Northampton Community College from 2006-09 where he was 71-19 Last season, he was an assistant men’s coach at Penn State-Lehigh Valley. More in Monday's print edition of The Morning Call

Howard could be here for a week; boost IronPigs ticket sales

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER Chase Utley created quite a stir with his one night in the Lehigh Valley last Tuesday. He drew a capacity crowd of 10,100 and kept people in their seats as long as he had the potential to come to bat. Phillies slugger Ryan Howard, the 2006 National League MVP, could be spending virtually the entire week here and should create a similar frenzy. Howard will be at Coca-Cola Park Sunday for the first game of the IronPigs' rare day-night doubleheader. The first game is set for a 12:05 p.m. start, the nightcap is slated for a 6:35 start against Pawtucket. IronPigs GM Kurt Landes said Saturday night that a couple thousand tickets are available for Sunday's games, but tickets will be sure to move quickly. If fans want to be sure to see Howard play, the first game is the better option. He may take the night off and may not even be in the ballpark. If fans can't get to Sunday's games they should have plenty of opportunities to see Howard with the IronPigs since the team's 11-game homestand continues through Friday, although Landes said tickets had already sold well for many of the games involving special fireworks shows.. Howard, still recovering from a torn left Achilles suffered while making the final out of last year’s NLDS against the Cardinals, has played three rehab games for Class A Lakewood (N.J.) and has gone 5-for-8 (.625) with four RBIs and a double in three games. If all goes well, he is expected to rejoin the Phillies the week after the All-Star break, somewhere between July 13-20.

Sands Casino linked to increase in DUIs by Northampton County report

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2012/07/sands_casino_linked_to_increas.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Drunken driving has nearly doubled in Bethlehem since 2008, and the Northampton County Drug and Alcohol Division attributes some of the increase to Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem. In 2008, a year before the casino opened, Bethlehem had 269 drunken driving arrests, according to Uniform Crime Reporting System data. That number rose to 304 in 2009 and 300 in 2011, then spiked to 398 last year.

Save the dates for these events

http://www.mcall.com/features/scene/mc-scene-lehigh-valley-save-dates-0701-20120630,0,1105806.story FROM THE MORNING CALL MUSICAL BENEFIT: The First Creaturesfest, a benefit for the Eastern Pa. Chapter of Huntington's Disease Society(www.hdsa.org/epch) in memory of Mark Heber Smith, will be 5 p.m.-midnight July 21 at North Penn Gun Club, 2555 Tollgate Road, Trumbauersville. The event includes performances by six bands, a Woody Guthrie musical tribute and exhibit, silent auction and raffle. Food and drink for sale. Tickets, $20 at the door. Info: Scott Steinberg at 610-868-5775. GLASS AND PLATE: The 3rd Annual Lehigh Valley Food and Wine Festival will be noon-4 p.m. Aug.18 and 19 at the Sands Bethlehem Event Center at the Sands Casino Resort. The benefit for the Northampton Community College Foundation features tastings from 20 restaurants and bakeries, plus 40 varieties of wine and beer. Admission $75 per day. Additional events such as champagne and spirits tastings and a cooking demo by Chef Emeril Lagasse can be purchased separately. Info: 610-861-5519 or email BWeppel@northampton.edu. Purchase tickets online at webapp.northampton.edu/LVfoodandwinefest. GOLF OUTING: The Joe's Tavern 8th Annual Golf Outing to benefit St. Luke's University Health Network Cancer Center begins with a shotgun start at 1:30 p.m. on Aug. 26 at Green Pond Country Club. A $90 fee includes cart and greens fees, snacks and beverages, a dinner buffet, photo, silent auction and more. Several cash prizes will be awarded. Info: on registration, sponsorships or gift donation: Janet at 610-767-9138 or email Premier_00@msn.com.

Volunteers needed

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-volunteers-0701-20120701,0,6666144.story FROM THE MORNING CALL AMERICAN DIABETES ASSOCIATION in Palmerton needs volunteers to help with the 5K Race for Diabetes 8-10:30 a.m. Aug. 18, including registration, goodie bags, maintain walk route, cheer on walkers, water stations, set-up and cleanup. Contact: Dawn Fernandez, 888-342-2383, ext. 4625, dfernandez@diabetes.org. CAMELOT FOR CHILDREN of Allentown is looking for volunteers for weeklong camp at JCC Campgrounds in Coopersburg for children with special needs that are paired up one-on-one with a volunteer. Our goal is to provide activities that all children can participate in. Aug. 13-17; times vary per day. Brief orientation 10 a.m. Aug. 13. Contact: Cassie Kemmerer, 610-791-5683, cassiek@camelotforchildren.org. COMMUNITY SERVICES FOR CHILDREN of Allentown needs youth to help assemble community resource books in August. Also youth are needed to help clean school buses in August, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Minimum age 14. Contact: Amanda Buss, 610-437-6000 ext. 2112, abuss@cscinc.org. HISTORIC BETHLEHEM PARTNERSHIP is seeking volunteers for its annual Blueberry Festival. Shifts are between 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. July 21 and 22. Minimum age 14. Contact: Jill Caggiano, 610-882-0450, ext. 20, jcaggiano@historicbethlehem.org. For more, check out the Morning Call Website!

Sunday!

Monday July 2, 2012 BIG NEWS: On Saturday the PA HOUSE PASSED A BUDGET! BUDGET ON TIME!!!!!!! PRETTY GOOD BUDGET TOO!!!!! I Stayed up to 1:30am SUNDAY MORNING I Watched from 9am to 1:30am 15 hour session Saturday Am I Nuts? Governor Tom Corbett signed the budget at 11:45pm Saturday night!!! Happy 4th of July!! The only E-Mail this week! Wednesday is the 4th! Any holiday plans? Any picnics? I Will be at the Nazareth's KAZOO Parade!!!!!!!! Wednesday at 10am I Might sing with the DREAMKIDS! The Heat is on! Are you staying cool? Big Monday! Fitness at 11am Town and Country for Lunch at 1:00pm!! That will be fun! Yes, i am wearing SHORTS!!!!!!!!! Nazareth Legion Baseball is HOT! 6pm Tuesday at Hellertown 6pm Wednesday vs Bath 6pm Friday at Lehigh Twp. Only 3 losses so far for Nazareth!! DON HUNTER THEATRE OF MIND Tonight 9pm-1am on WALN! Starters at Northampton Blue Mountain Baseball on at 9:30pm Tuesday on RCN Cable!!!!!!! RCN IS SHOWING THE ALLENTOWN FIREWORKS AND CEREMONIES LIVE 5:30PM-10PM WEDNESDAY NIGHT ON THE 4TH OF JULY! Check that out!!!!! My boss Rusty Amato will be on RCN SPORTS TALK Thursday at 6pm!! His dad will be on too!!!!!!!!! Jim Thome was traded to Baltimore. What are your thoughts? Ryan Howard was in Lehigh Valley Sunday night! He might be in the area all weekend!!!! Kutztown Folk Festival all week! It runs to next Sunday!!!!!!!!!!! How are you? How was your weekend? What did you do all weekend? Anything Fun? I am great! Had a great week!!!! DOGS ARE HANGING IN! Toby is having issues. Schedule: Monday July 2: 8:30am-5pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 11am Fitness NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm Town and Country Restaurant 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 NO ANNOUNCING 7pm-9pm Jack Burns on WALN 9pm-1am Don Hunter on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Tuesday July 3: 8:30am-12:30pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm RADIO SHOW ON WEEX 1230 3:30pm-5:15pm DIANA 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 6pm At the Nazareth Legion Baseball Game at Hellertown 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 9:30pm Starters at Northampton Blue Mountain Baseball on RCN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Wednesday July 4: 8:30am-12:30pm DIANA 10am AT THE NAZARETH KAZOO PARADE 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 12:30pm RADIO SHOW ON WEEX 1230 1pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 5:30pm AT THE BATH AT NAZARETH LEGION BASEBALL GAME 5:30pm-10pm ALLENTOWN 4TH OF JULY CELEBRATION LIVE ON RCN4 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Thursday July 5: 8:30am-11am DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 1pm-2pm Radio Show on WEEX 1230 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 1:30pm-6pm DIANA 2pm Calling Bingo at Moravian Hall Square 6pm RCN SPORTS TALK SHOW ON RCN4 7:30pm JOLLY JOE TIMMEER SHOW ON RCN4 8pm-11pm NED RICHARDS ON WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Friday July 6: 8:30am-5pm DIANA 11AM-1PM Jolly Joe Timmer on WGPA 1100 11am Fitness NOON Channel 69 News with Eve and Jaciel 1pm-6pm Glen Mac and Anthony Gargano on 94 WIP 4pm-7pm Happy Hour on WEEX 1230 6pm At the Nazareth Legion Baseball Game at Lehigh Twp. 6pm-12am JD ROSS ON WALN 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on Comcast 10pm Anchor News on CW57 Saturday July 7: 8:30am-10:30am DIANA 9am-11am KEITH GROLLER ON 1470 WSAN 10am-NOON 69 Sports Saturday on WEEX 1230 NOON-12:30pm Radio Show on WEEX 1230 11am-9pm Mark Thomas on WGPA 1100 7pm Announce Phillies Baseball on FOX 9pm-2am Ned Richards on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 10:30pm Announce Charlie Manuel Show on MYPHL17 Sunday July 8: 11am-NOON Radio Show 9:30am-NOON JOLLY JOE TIMMER ON WGPA 1100 1:30pm Announce Phillies Baseball on MYPHL17 NOON-3pm Dennis Christman on WGPA 1100 3pm-9pm MIGHTY MIKE ON WGPA 1100 7pm Layla on WALN 9pm Happy Jack on WALN 10pm Anchor News on CW57 RIP: Dale Earenhardt SR. Davey Allison COURTNEY DIACONT GRANDMA WEAVER JAMIE LINTZ JOHN VUKOVCICH KRISTEN BENNY PARSONS DEREK KEHOE JOSH HANCOCK Joe Schneider Frank Klepeisz Mary Mutchler Jene Flick Frank Jenny Jennifer Jacksits Donald Williams John Marzano Andrew Millheim Harold Rrenyold Todd Rothrock Wayne Grube Catherine Baker Knoll Josh Booth Francesco Tolerico Craig Borst George Williams Deborah Ed Phil Newbaker Harry Kalas Dan Ozark Chuck Daly Brenton Krouse Joshua Miller Gary Pappa Farrah Facett Irv Homer Michael Jackson Steve Mcnair Paul Marcinkowski Walt Cronkite Henry Tomkowski (Who raised a great and fun Daughter) Tom Partridge Angelica Fox Melissa Kinsella Joey Beers Ben Yorgy Brooke Stephens Ryan Zawada Frank Silfries Pumpkin Groller Al Alberts Morgan Mcginis Jason Gilligan Harriet Lindenmoyer Barbara Johnson Chris Henry Oral Roberts Patti Heffner Britney Murphy Glen W. Bell Jr Vince Heinlein Heather Miller John Murtha Julio Rivera Aaaron Groff Jack Lapos Tom Ochs Mario Donnagelo Sally Murphy Owens Thomas Ernie Harwell Robin Roberts Luke Hahn Bob Shephard Michael Yakemik Donald Fritz George Steinbrenner Teko Johnson Kiski Palmer Smith Lewis Ogioba Chris Hushour Bill Altherton Mary Sysko Stephen Haberle Dan Wheldon Shawnalai Werkheiser Thomas Maher Tori Hirst Sweeney Paul May Elwood Stewart Murphy Phillips Joe Paterno Patricia VanHorn Whitney Houston Matt Kelly Steve Friendricks Dick Clark Dennis Schantzenbach Linda Berry Richard Dawson Mary Tracy Isaac Isaiah Irving President of the Alan Davis, Gary Laubach, Dream Kids and Keith Groller, Ray Kaminski Fan Clubs! Check out my blog I am doing new things!! http://nazoeagle.blogspot.com/ Keep It real! Thanks for your Time! SEE YOU ON MONDAY JULY 9!!!!!!!

STAYED UP TO 1:30AM WATCHING THE PA HOUSE!

News: STAYED UP TO 1:30AM WATCHING THE PA HOUSE! They recess at 1:28am for the SUMMER!

Corbett signs 2012-13 budget

http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-pa-corbett-signs-budget-20120630,0,824468.story FROM THE MORNING CALL HARRISBURG— — Just before midnight, Gov. Tom Corbett signed into law the key components of the $27.66 billion state budget, even as lawmakers raced to wrap up their work before the start of an annual summer break. Corbett signed the general appropriation bill, which is the main budget, and the revenue estimate, which shows how much money the state will have to spend in the coming fiscal year, at 11:45 p.m. Corbett had said last week that he would not sign the 2012-13 budget until all its component parts reached his desk, but at 11:15 p.m., his office announced he would sign the spending plan into law during an 11:45 p.m. ceremony in the Capitol rotunda. The 2011-12 fiscal year ended at midnight Saturday. "For the second year in a row, I am pleased to have signed an on-time budget that contains no new taxes," Corbett said. "Hopefully, we are developing a habit and Pennsylvania's citizens will appreciate that habit."

Governor Tom Corbett signs budget with minutes to spare

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/07/governor_tom_corbett_signs_bud.html FROM PENNLIVE Gov. Tom Corbett avoided the embarrassment of a late state budget, but he made it close. Like last year, he only had minutes to spare before the clock struck midnight on the last day of the fiscal year when he signed it in the Capitol Rotunda. Corbettbudget.jpgView full sizeJOE HERMITT, The Patriot NewsGov. Corbett signs the 2012-13 budget, which cuts business taxes by $288 million and doubles funding for tax credits for businesses supporting education. The nearly $27.7 billion budget includes no tax increase or new taxes. It ensures that no public school or public university receives less money than last year. The 2012-13 budget cuts business taxes by $288 million and doubles funding for tax credits for businesses supporting education. At the same time, it cuts spending on child care programs for low-income working families, eliminates cash assistance for a slice of the state's welfare recipients, cuts funding for county-provided human services and cuts funding for environmental protection. Overall, the budget increases spending by less than 2 percent. Lawmakers worked throughout the day Saturday, blowing past their 11 p.m. curfew debating and moving budget-related bills between chambers. In backrooms, House and Senate Republicans tried to resolve their differences on charter school reforms. By late afternoon, the chambers engaged in a blinking contest over their competing charter proposals. The Senate passed one version, the House another. When neither blinked, the lawmakers put the issue off until fall, along with a proposal to overhaul the special education funding system. House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R-Allegheny, touted all the legislation that did get approval in the past week: welfare changes, education funding restorations, and a plan keeping spending below the rate of inflation. "It's a budget that I think was very balanced and very fair," Turzai said. Corbett has had two budgets, and he can say he got both done on time. He boasted that fact at 11:58 p.m., two minutes before the new fiscal year began. "I'm pleased to be able to sign a balanced state budget on time and with no new taxes," Corbett said. "This budget package earned bipartisan support here in this General Assembly. ... Our taxpayers deserve government that works for them and tonight they delivered." An evolving plan Many lines in the budget look nothing like the $27.1 billion draft version that Corbett offered in February. His budget version eliminated a $100 million accountability block grant program that school districts use to provide full-day kindergarten, preschool and tutoring. He cut funding to the 14 state-owned universities by 20 percent. He sought a 30 percent cut for Penn State, Pittsburgh and Temple. He wanted to cut funding to county-provided human services by 20 percent, which Democrats called the deepest cut in decades. In his budget address to lawmakers, he described his budget proposal as "lean and demanding." And he insisted, "We will not spend more than we have." That phrase became his mantra at news conferences and in media interviews throughout the budget season. 2012-13 Pennsylvania State budget Throughout the spring, representatives from agencies affected by the cuts came out in force to demand more aid. College students came by the hundreds. Schoolchildren came by the thousands. Individuals with intellectual disabilities, along with their caregivers and advocates, rallied in the Rotunda. They demanded that Corbett live up to his 2010 campaign promise of supporting the state's most vulnerable residents. Activists in wheelchairs caused such a commotion that the Corbett administration began enforcing a policy to prevent them from gathering in large numbers outside the governor's office. As they fought for a bigger slice of the budget, the commonwealth began to experience a revenue surge in March, and again in April. The economic outlook began looking brighter, leading the Senate in May to pass a nearly $27.7 billion budget. Lawmakers responded to some of the demands of activists who visited their offices. Money on the table? During final budget negotiations, the leaders' biggest tussles involved convincing Corbett and Budget Secretary Charles Zogby to spend $500 million more than the governor proposed. Corbett and Zogby insisted on keeping about that amount in reserve to deal with next year's higher pension, welfare and medical assistance costs. The improving revenue picture helped move the talks past that hurdle, along with lawmakers' willingness to consider a $1.7 billion, 25-year tax credit, starting in 2017, for the petrochemical industry. By mid-June, an agreement was reached on the final spending number. Leaders of the Republican majority caucuses and Corbett held almost daily meetings to work out differences on spending decisions and a host of other pet issues that the sides wanted included as part of the budget package. Education issues and social services funding emerged as high priorities for lawmakers. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett would like to start budget talks earlier Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett would like to start budget talks earlier Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett would like to start budget talks earlier Watch video They cut county-provided social services by 10 percent, instead of the 20 percent Corbett sought. They fully restored the accountability block grant funding and most school districts were kept at last year's levels. Some financially struggling districts got more money. In exchange for a commitment from university leaders to keep tuition at or below the rate of inflation, budget negotiators found a way to avoid any cuts for the state's public universities. Lawmakers also found $17.8 million for services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, which advocates and lawmakers called unprecedented in this state. They injected $25 million more into the $75 million Educational Improvement Tax Credit program for businesses that donate to preschool and K-12 scholarships and public education programs. They even found $50 million for a related tax credit program for business-funded scholarships targeted to lower-income students in the state's worst-performing schools. Pennsylvania State budget talks Enlarge JOE HERMITT, The Patriot-News Rep. William Adolph, R-Delaware, Republican Committee chairman, left and Ed Nolan, executive director of the House Republicans talk during a House of Representatives Appropriations Committee meeting to discus budget related bills at the Pennsylvania state Capitol building. JOE HERMITT, The Patriot-News Pennsylvania state budget talks continue gallery (3 photos) Pennsylvania State budget talks Pennsylvania State budget talks Not every cut got restored. But acquiescing to the governor's desire to have money on hand to help with the 2013-14 budget, lawmakers set aside as much as $380 million in reserve. Democrats in the House and Senate denounced the Republicans' decision to leave that much on the table while failing to more fully meet the needs of the state's most vulnerable residents. "It is the choice of the governor and the Republican-controlled House and Senate that we don't have money to spend on children with disabilities, on people in wheelchairs, on college students and students in school," said Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster. "I understand that this budget before us is a little bit better than what Gov. Corbett had proposed initially ... but that doesn't make this one a good proposal." Republican leaders admitted it's not perfect. But it complies with Corbett's edict in his budget address: The state only spends what it has. "In these economic times, it's very difficult to provide the necessary funding for everyone, for all the needs that are out there," said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bill Adolph, R-Delaware. "What this budget did is it tried to sustain the expenses versus the revenue we're collecting. I think everyone in Pennsylvania respects that."

Gov. Tom Corbett signs new state budget minutes before deadline

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2012/07/gov_tom_corbett_signs_new_stat.html FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has signed a new state budget. Corbett signed the $27.7 billion budget in the Capitol rotunda just minutes before the 2011-12 fiscal year expired at midnight Saturday. The budget included legislation that would stop Allentown from collecting other municipalities’ earned income taxes for its hockey arena. Members of the House and Senate worked late into the night Saturday to approve all the legislation that must accompany the general appropriations bill that was passed Friday. The signing ceremony came after lawmakers overwhelmingly approved the Republican governor's biggest legislative priority, tax credits to entice the construction of a new petrochemical refinery.