Free Republic

In television, there's often a strange, inherent tension between the fans who watch shows and the executives who oversee them. The former want good stories, compellingly told, that make sense and, when the time is right, come to a satisfying conclusion. The latter want to make money, which often means extending shows for as long as possible and sometimes even leaving things unresolved at the end because that lack of resolution keeps people guessing and can help the shows have a long life in syndication. Often, the executives win, but when the fans do, they have the final episode of...

A would-be robbery victim got some street justice on Friday when a man held him up at gunpoint - and he sped away so fast, it ripped the gunman's arm off, police sources said. The pair met through Craigslist, where they had arranged to exchange a pair of Air Jordan sneakers near East 86th Street and Avenue M in Canarsie. But instead, the 17-year-old would-be robber pulled a gun on the 39-year-old man, who was sitting in his car, sources said. The victim then stomped on the gas to get away, dragging the crook, whose arm was ripped off, law...

Actor-director Barry Morse, best known as the police detective in constant pursuit of Dr. Richard Kimble in the TV series "The Fugitive," has died in England at the age of 89. His son, Hayward Morse, says his father died Saturday at University College hospital in London, where he had been living for a number of years. He says he was taken there Wednesday after he began experiencing blackouts and was falling down. Morse established himself in London theatrical circles before emigrating to Canada in 1951. His career spanned seven decades and his website estimates Morse played more than 3,000 roles...

the county coroner, Dr. Samuel Gerber... stated, "It's obvious that the doctor did it." He told detectives to go to the hospital where Sheppard had been taken and get a confession... Gerber finally held an inquest in a school gymnasium. More than two hundred spectators, mostly housewives, filled the seats. They laughed and hooted at testimony and cheered when Gerber had Sheppard's lawyer removed for trying to have the outbursts noted in the record. Gerber questioned Dr. Sam for five hours with no legal counsel present.... Even that was not the end. In the 1990s Sheppard's son, Samuel Reese Sheppard,...

A federal courthouse was locked down Thursday and the courtrooms sealed after officials announced a man had escaped from U.S. marshals inside the building. Officials announced over intercoms that they were searching floor-by-floor. It wasn't immediately clear if the man was armed. Larnell Rogers, who was accused of lying to an ATF agent and scheduled to appear in court, fled after learning a warrant had been issued for his arrest, U.S. Marshals spokesman Kim Widup said. Authorities instructed court officials to lock all doors in the Everett M. Dirksen Federal Building "out of an abundance of caution," Widup said. Rogers...