Arkansas

FORT SMITH, Ark. — On Tuesday, the Wal-Mart neighborhood market in Fort Smith was busy with last-minute shoppers looking to pick up items for Thanksgiving dinners.”It’s about my third or fourth trip to the grocery store,” said Angie Losole, who’s preparing dinner for 12 family members.”I’m picking up stuff today to make dressing, and I brought my turkey yesterday,” said Losole. “We’ve see an increased traffic pattern,” said Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market manager Kenny McCutcheon. (Read the full post about ‘Last-Minute Shoppers Flooding Area Grocery Stores Before Thanksgiving’…)

FORT SMITH, Ark. — Black Friday will bring out thousands of local shoppers in the River Valley.Mobile Messaging Brings Deals To ShoppersShoppers will be taking advantage of holiday sales, and this year, Central Mall in Fort Smith can send the sales to you. Central Mall will be kicking off its Spread the Cheer Campaign Friday, and shoppers will see signs urging them to text a certain phrase to Central Mall, and in return you will be entered to win an iPod nano.Shoppers will also have the option to get the latest sales stores inside the mall are having, making it easier for shoppers to track sales.Jc Penney’s will open at 4 a.m. and the rest of Central Mall will open at 5 a.m. Friday. (Read the full post about ‘Texting Is New Way To Save’…)

VAN BUREN, Ark. — Police in Van Buren are on the hunt for a missing woman.Heather Renee Carter, 24, was last seen Sunday afternoon in Alma, Ark.She was driving a white Cadillac with a green rag-top roof with an Arkansas license plate. Police said the vehicle is considered stolen.Officials said she also drove off with three small children.Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to contact Alma police. (Read the full post about ‘Van Buren Police Searching For Missing Woman, 3 Children’…)

FORT SMITH, Ark. — Fort Smith police have made another arrest following a 17-month long narcotics investigation.During the course of the investigation, at least 14 people have been arrested and more than a pound of meth has been seized.Last week, police searched a business owned by Salvador Daniel-Tlaque and his wife — a Hispanic grocery store on Grand Avenue. (Read the full post about ‘Grocery Store Owner Arrested; Suspected Of Delivering Meth’…)

FORT SMITH, Ark. — An accident backed up traffic for miles Tuesday morning in the southbound lanes on Interstate 540 south of the Arkansas River bridge in Fort Smith.Police said a car was following too closely and ultimately struck a car in the gas tank. That impact caused the tank of that car to explode, and the two cars were burnt to the metal.A third car was involved but barely damaged, and police said those involved suffered only minor injuries. The driver of the rear car was cited for following too closely. (Read the full post about ‘Accident Stops Traffic On Ark. River Bridge’…)

CALABASAS, Calif. — Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber from “Star Wars,” Indiana Jones’ hat and whip from “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and Batman’s cowl from “Batman Begins” will soon be up for auction. The lightsaber is expected to sell for at least $150,000. Other items featured in the auction include C3PO’s helmet, a complete set of “Harry Potter” books signed by J.K. Rowling, a three-volume collection of “The Lord of the Rings” signed by J.R.R. Tolkien, and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s costume from “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” The items are for sale as part of Profiles in History’s Hollywood auction, to be held Dec. 11. (Read the full post about ‘For Sale: Luke’s Skywalker’s Lightsaber’…)

Nov. 7:
“Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”
“Soul Men”
“Role Models”

Nov. 14:
“Quantum of Solace”

Nov. 21:
“Bolt”
“Twilight”

Nov. 26:
“Australia”
“Four Christmases”
“Transporter 3″
“Milk” (limited)

LOS ANGELES — The top movie this Thanksgiving weekend is one about Christmas. The Vince Vaughn/Reese Witherspoon holiday comedy “Four Christmases” debuted at No. 1, earning $31.7 million according to studio estimates.The Warner Bros. release features Witherspoon and Vaughn as a couple suffering through four separate family holiday gatherings. Since it opened Wednesday, it’s brought in nearly $47 million. Last weekend’s top draw, the vampire romance “Twilight,” and Disney’s animated family flick “Bolt” each earned more than $26 million. The latest James Bond film, “Quantum of Solace” was fourth. The weekend’s other new wide release, the Nicole Kidman-Hugh Jackman epic “Australia,” opened at No. (Read the full post about ‘‘Four Christmases’ Gobbles Up Box Office’…)

CINCINNATI — WKRP is back on the air in Cincinnati, but this time it’s for real. A low-power TV station has changed its call letters to WKRP, the same as the fictional radio station in the 1970s hit series “WKRP in Cincinnati.” The station changed its call letters to promote its new digital TV signal. It formerly went by WBQC-TV. General Manager Elliott Block said the new call letters give the station recognition because so many people remember the television sit-com.The station’s program lineup includes urban and Latino fare with a heavy rotation of Punk’d. (Read the full post about ‘WKRP Now On Air In Cincinnati’…)

NEW YORK — Playwright and novelist William Gibson, author of such Broadway hits as “The Miracle Worker” and “Two for the Seesaw,” has died at the age of 94. Gibson died Tuesday in Stockbridge, Mass., according to the Finnerty and Stevens Funeral Home in Great Barrington. Gibson wrote more than a dozen plays, but it was “The Miracle Worker,” the story of a young deaf and blind Helen Keller forging a relationship with her teacher, Annie Sullivan, that was his biggest success. The play also is an annual event at Ivy Green, Keller’s birthplace in Tuscumbia, Ala., where it is staged on the grounds where Sullivan actually taught the girl more than a century ago. (Read the full post about ‘‘Miracle Worker’ Playwright Dies’…)