Beneath the Remains During the 1800s in the town of Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, a group of antiquarians made a startling find. W.K. Morehead, Dr. G.P. Donehoo and A.B. Skinner of Philadelphia's American Investigating Museum unearthed giant skeletons said to originate from 1200AD. However, the most significant detail of these seven-feet tall frames was not the size but the skulls, upon which were situated horns above the eye sockets! If such skeletons were freaks of......

Philadelphia has one of the highest rates of police shootings in the country. The Daily News takes a look at what's being done about it, and is pretty underwhelmed. Apparently "many of the officers involved in these shootings are back to their regular street beats, even though most incidents are still being investigated without a determination that the officers were justified in firing their weapons." Due to the fact that local schools had received recalled......

Berks County is featured in one the strangest hauntings regarding road-related weirdness. At Hawk Sanctuary Mountain there is a legend that a shining, ten-feet tall apparition spooks drivers travelling along the two-road lane which ascends the mountain. The mountain, situated between Ecksville and Bailey's Crossing, is also allegedly haunted by the spirits of settlers who were killed by Indians during the 1700s. Meanwhile Bristol - located in the extreme south of Bucks County, northeast of......

The Sixers are trying to keep up the home court magic after trashing the Milwaukee Bucks Wednesday (112-69), by beating the Orlando Magic tonight at 7PM at the Wach (get tickets or watch here). The Flyers (who despite some people’s assessment aren’t doing that bad, even with that embarrassing loss to the Rangers (0-4) last night) host the Anaheim Ducks tomorrow night at 7PM at the Wach (get tickets or watch here). The Kixx try......

Whilst the heart of Philly may be bereft of sightings of the hairy humanoid we've come to know and love as Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, history shows that such man-beasts have been evident within the counties which surround. For over a century Pennsylvania has been plagued by all sorts of high strangeness, and reports of hulking, bipedal beings are no exception. During the summer of 1968 a sixteen-year old female camping in Bucks County was cycling......

After losing to the Knicks (81-89) on Friday and beating the Charlotte Bobcats away Saturday night (103-96), the Sixers hope to score big at home: seven of their next eight games are at the Wachovia Center. Catch them Wednesday battling the Milwaukee Bucks at 7PM (get tickets or watch). The Flyers had a break for the All-Star game, but now have to defend their #1 status with wins against the Los Angeles Kings Tuesday night......

The Daily News analyzes Paris Hilton's visit to the area yesterday, and comes to the rather surprising conclusion that she's a nice lady and her only real fault is that she's not punctual. The Philadelphia Museum of Art's exhibition of American artist Bruce Nauman has been selected to appear in the US Pavilion of the the 53rd Venice Biennale, "one of the most important art gatherings in the world." Mayor Nutter revoked a license given......

The Daily News suggests strongly that if the city made use of private ambulances when Fire Department medic units are swamped with calls, it could make the difference between life and death for certain patients. Philadelphia doesn't use nonmunicipal ambulances because of legal issues. Also in the Daily News this morning is an article providing more details on the case of the three North Philadelphia teenagers killed in a car accident on Saturday. Last......

On the last day of 2007, the Daily News takes a look back at the biggest story in Philadelphia this year: the murder rate. A disturbing and surreal faux funeral motorcade took place yesterday, organized to bring attention to the problem. The Daily News asked a bunch of experts what was causing the problem and got a lot of different answers, but it seems to be generally agreed that guns and poverty don't help. Finally,......

The "10,000 men: A Call to Action" campaign will get started in earnest on Saturday when they put the first 200 men on the streets. It'll be a field exercise for squad leaders, and apparently they'll also be doing a door-to-door campaign to alert neighbors of the effort. Then they'll be patrolling in South Philadelphia next Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evening. John Lewis, the suspect in the murder of police officer Chuck Cassidy, was......

The Inquirer has the story of an American soldier from Bucks County who worked hard in Iraq trying to rebuild the country and is now home for the holidays. Princeton University scientists announced yesterday that they'd discovered a way to reproduce the chemical signals that the bacteria that cause cholera use to communicate with each other, which opens up the possibility of a new way to fight bacteria: talking to them in their own......

Mostly what we have for you this morning are election results from all around the area: municipal elections for Bucks County and Montgomery County, School Board elections for Montgomery County, ballot questions in Bucks, and the various suburban races. And of course, as expected, Nutter's position as Mayor has been made official. The Daily News has some more details on John Lewis' flight from police and his eventual capture, and the Inquirer has the......

The Daily News has more on what's happening in the city in the aftermath of the death of Philadelphia Police Officer Chuck Cassidy. The reward for information has been increased, the manhunt has been stepped up, and later today "detectives expect to have a video of the murder that was enhanced at FBI headquarters in Quantico, Va." In a lengthy hearing yesterday, more sordid information came out about Andy Reid's sons Garrett and Britt......

"A former lawmaker has returned $79,000 he was paid to serve as litigator for House Republicans." But the state Ethics Commission still has to decide whether his contract violated Pennsylvania law, in which case he might have to pay fines equal to three times that amount. The 90-year-old woman who was beaten and robbed outside her Port Richmond home last month has now died from her injuries. The police are asking for help in......

Sadly, we have a lot of notes about violent crime this morning. First up is the story of a brutal mugging, and the act of a good Samaritan that may very well have saved the victim's life (via Jill). That incident occurred some time ago, but early Saturday morning a gunman fired into a crowd outside Club Polaris, killing two young men and injuring three more. The club has been closed by the city's......

A gunman attacked an armored car as it pulled up to service an ATM at a Wachovia Bank in Rhawnhurst early yesterday morning. He killed two guards, injured a third, and escaped with a bag of money. Surveillance cameras recorded the entire attack. The killer "is described as a black man, wearing a yellow baseball cap with a black logo, a black short-sleeved shirt, blue jeans and white sneakers. His car appeared to be......

A Philadelphia police officer shot in 1966 while trying to stop a burglary finally died on Sunday from complications of his injuries, and his death has therefore been ruled a murder. Police are now considering whether to charge the shooter (already sentenced to 10 to 20 years for attempted murder) with the crime. Pacifico Ford in Philadelphia and Springfield Ford in Delco have made an agreement with the government to reimburse African African customers who......

Rendell is now supporting the idea, spearheaded by outgoing Philadelphia School Reform Commission Chairman James Nevels, of trying to bring a major league soccer franchise to the city of Chester. While the court battle still rages over whether SEPTA will be able to eliminate transfers or not, Rendell and Fumo announced Tuesday that all seventh-through-12th graders who live more than 1 1/2 miles from their schools will ride for free with a new weekly transit......

Psst. Rumor is, Billy Penn will soon be enclosed in scaffolding again for waterproofing. It was announced yesterday that a company called Pacifica Ventures would be opening a $75 million "entertainment production facility" (read: film studio) in the Delaware Valley by the fall of 2008 - and it's all thanks to our new tax-incentive package for filmmakers. "Pacifica is looking at sites in Bucks, Delaware and Philadelphia Counties for a 500,000-square-foot facility." Yesterday the......

Tuesday Join the Bucks County Choral Society for their open Summer Sing of Orff's 'Carmina Burana.' Trinity Episcopal Church (6587 Upper York Rd., Solebury); 7:30 PM; $10 Wednesday The Holy Trinity's brown bag lunch series continues with the Father John D'Amico Jazz Trio. Holy Trinity Rittenhouse Square; 12:30 PM; FREE Friday The Haddonfield Players continue their run of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance. 957 E Atlantic Ave, Haddonfield, NJ; 8 PM; $18......

Last Friday, we decided to grab some food at World Cafe Live and enjoy the opening band, The Kin. We were headed off to The Polyphonic Spree later in the evening, but instead of the regular restaurant in Northern Liberties, we thought we would try something new. Not only was the food great (though they don't have many menu items) the entertainment was even better. The Kin are from Adelaide, Australia though they just......

It's all Fumo, all the time! Fumo might lose his defense counsel! Fumo might sell his house to pay for his defense! Fumo is still an important figure in local politics! Fumo, Fumo, Fumo! Speaking of "fumo," no fumo in PA! Well, sort of. The state senate passed a statewide ban on smoking yesterday, which would theoretically replace Philly's own smoking ban if it were to get signed into law, even though it has so......

Apparently a lot of cops, already unhappy with Police Commissioner Sylvester M. Johnson's selection of Kimberly Byrd as his chief of staff, are now even more pissed that he's changed her title to executive officer of the department, even though he insists it's not a promotion, and will involve no increase in pay, just an increase in duties. Johnson has been getting a lot of flak lately, for this and other decisions, on Domelights.com, an......

When you go to vote today, be extra careful that you're voting for the people you mean to be voting for: today's ballot promises to be quite confusing. Meanwhile, The Next Mayor will be liveblogging the results of today's primary election. And if you're still not sure where to go to vote, The Committee of Seventy has an interactive map on which you can find your precinct. An R6 train rear-ended an R5 train (we......

Guess who's surging in the polls now? It's Michael Nutter! He's taken a very close second place to Tom Knox, and the Inquirer has a profile. Philly's three African elephants now have new travel plans: Pittsburgh. Here's hoping that this deal doesn't fall through like the last one did. And that they don't become Steelers fans. A Germantown High School teacher got to face the two students that injured him at their sentencing hearing......

Bands I Caught: Illinois, Bardo Pond, The Spinto Band, Dr. Dog Venue: Starlight Ballroom When I saw a newspaper ad with the POPPED! lineup several weeks ago, the Starlight Ballroom show, especially, enticed me. Not only because that was my favorite venue south of Girard but because I was a big fan of Dr. Dog and enjoyed what I had heard of Illinois and The Spinto Band. And right from jump the event exceeded my......

How about a little local celebrity gossip? WPVI's Monica Malpass is being sued by her former fiance (auto-parts entrepreneur Stephen Thorne) because she won't give him back the engagement ring, even though she supposedly agreed to do so, and he has requested her to numerous times. The casinos are apparently sending attorneys and private investigators to harrass people who signed those anti-casino petitions. Smooth, guys. Smooth. Meanwhile, a Bucks County judge has been appointed......

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Thursday post only collects the latest announcements, so definitely check the Tuesday post for any you may have missed. Al Martino Resorts Atlantic City Sat, 3/31/07 - Thu, 4/5/07, many dates and times $40 On sale: Today, 10AM, Ticketmaster 2u w/Mini Kiss House of Blues Atlantic City Sat, 3/10/07, 8PM $10 On sale: Fri, 10AM, Ticketmaster Mushroomhead......

Little-known fact: There are a hell of a lot of blogs in Philly. While we here try to hold our own, there are a lot of good stories out there just waiting to be read from around the Philly blog community. Here are a few that popped up throughout the week. Go ahead, check it out, we won't get jealous. Just come on back here when you're good and ready. We'll have cookies and soy......

Scary story: a bus got out of control, apparently due to a mechanical problem of some kind, on the campus of Bucks County's Pennsbury High School and injured 17 students, one of them critically. Philly police have invited the family of Bryan Jones - the 20-year-old that cops shot during a New Year's Day gun battle - to meet with them, in order to discuss the details of his death. The cops need your help......