Songwriter Bill Dees,"Oh, Pretty Woman" co-writer, dead at 73

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Singer-composer Bill Dees, best known for his songwriting collaboration with Roy Orbison on the hits "Oh, Pretty Woman" and "It's Over," has died at age 73 in Mountain Home, Arkansas, according to an obituary posted online by a local funeral home.

Dees, a Texas native who got his start in the 1950s with a high school band called the Five Bops, is credited with writing scores of songs in all, some recorded by such performers as Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn and Glen Campbell.

But Dees' most fruitful collaboration was his work with fellow Texan Orbison, with whom he teamed up to write Orbison's signature 1964 hit, "Oh, Pretty Woman." which was featured years later in the soundtrack to the movie "Pretty Woman," starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere.

The band Van Halen also scored a hit with a cover version of "Oh, Pretty Woman."

According to various accounts, the song's refrain grew out of an offhand comment Dees made when Orbison's wife, Claudette, walked into the room where the two men were writing together, and Orbison asked her if she needed any money.

Dees cracked, "Pretty woman never needs any money," and the song took shape from there, with the bulk of the composition coming together in less than hour.

As recounted in one biography posted on Dees' official website, Dees also contributed uncredited harmony vocals on the record.

"Oh, Pretty Woman" went to No. 1 in United States and topped the charts in Britain, as did the 1964 Orbison ballad co-written by Dees, "It's Over," a considerable achievement given the dominance of the Beatles and other British groups on both sides of the Atlantic at the time.

Other Orbison singles Dees co-wrote included "Born on the Wind," "Crawling Back," "Communication Breakdown," "Walk On," "Windsurfer" and "So This Is Love."

Dees died last week, on October 24, at Mountain Home, where he had lived since 1989, according to an announcement posted on the website of the Kirby & Family Funeral Home, where a memorial service is scheduled for Saturday, November 3.

(Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Eric Walsh and W Simon)

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George Clooney is distant cousin of Abraham Lincoln

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Aunt Rosemary was not George Clooney's only famous relative. You can add a certain Civil War American president to the Oscar-winning actor's family tree.

Politics has apparently run in the activist actor's blood for centuries, as website Ancestry.com on Thursday revealed that the "Ocean's 11" star is distantly related to President Abraham Lincoln.

According to Ancestry.com, Clooney is the half-first cousin five times removed from Lincoln, the 16th president. The genealogy website breaks down the connection, explaining the "half" means that two of their ancestors were half-siblings - Lincoln's mother Nancy Hanks was the half-sister of Clooney's 4th great-grandmother Mary Ann Sparrow.

Hanks and Sparrow shared the same mother, Lucy Hanks, but had different fathers. Lucy Hanks was Lincoln's maternal grandmother as well as the 5th great-grandmother of Clooney.

Clooney's aunt was singer and actress Rosemary Clooney, who died in 2002.

Clooney, long noted for his political activism, is a major Hollywood backer of President Barack Obama. He hosted a Democratic Party fundraiser at his Los Angeles home in March that raised $15 million.

Lincoln, a Republican, is considered one of the greatest presidents in the history of the United States. He led the country through the Civil War and is credited with the abolition of slavery, which officially became law in 1865 after his assassination.

He is the subject of an upcoming Steven Spielberg film "Lincoln," starring Daniel Day-Lewis in the title role, which is to open in the United States next week.

Ancestry.com is offering free access to more than 20,000 documents showcasing Lincoln's life, his family tree and the most pivotal moments of his presidential career. The details can be found at www.ancestry.com/lincoln.

(Reporting by Zorianna Kit; Editing by Chris Michaud and Jackie Frank)

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Billionaire Adelson, wife give new $10 million to Romney "Super PAC"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and his wife gave another $10 million to the "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in October, saying they hoped to "level the playing field" with Democrats ahead of the November 6 election.

In a campaign year of unprecedented contributions, Adelson and his wife Miriam have stood out above the rest.

The 79-year-old billionaire chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, Adelson emerged as the Republican Party's biggest patron in the 2012 campaign, pouring at least $47 million into Republican coffers with his wife.

The Adelsons gave $5 million each to the pro-Romney Super PAC Restore Our Future, accounting for about half of the fund's cash raised from October 1 through 17, according to Federal Election Commission filings released on Thursday. The filings are the last disclosures before the November 6 elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the Adelsons said they were exercising their "privileges" of free speech to counter the millions of dollars raised by President Barack Obama as well as contributions from liberal billionaire George Soros and labor unions.

"Our family has felt an obligation to help level the playing field by providing support to the candidates and causes on the other side of the equation," according to the statement provided by a Sands spokesman.

A series of U.S. court cases in recent years have shined a spotlight on political spending as a form of free speech.

The rulings spawned Super PACs, outside groups that can raise and spend unlimited funds but cannot formally coordinate with official campaigns.

Soros, a billionaire financier, held the previous political donation record with $27.5 million contributed to Democrats in 2004. In October, Soros gave $1 million to the pro-Obama Super PAC.

The Adelsons have also donated to Super PACs helping Republicans in Congress. They were the largest donors behind the party's convention in Tampa, Florida, in late August.

During the Republican primaries, the Adelsons used their fortune to attack Romney. They gave up to $20 million to presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who won the South Carolina primary.

The Adelsons became Romney donors in June when the candidate became Obama's remaining Republican challenger.

Forbes estimates Adelson's fortune to be $20.5 billion.

In September, Adelson told Politico he planned to spend up to $100 million, or "whatever it takes," to defeat Obama.

Adelson may have given another $20 million to $30 million to fundraising groups that do not need to report their contributors, according to Politico.

Adelson has also used his contributions to push for a stronger U.S. defense of Israel's sovereignty. He is a director of the Republican Jewish Coalition and has called Obama's Israel positions too soft.

In the previous presidential campaign of 2008, Adelson was a much less prominent donor, giving about $100,000 to Republican candidates and party funds, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group that tracks spending.

(Additional reporting by Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen; editing by Todd Eastham)

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R&B singer Natina Reed hit and killed by car in Georgia

(Reuters) - Natina Reed, a member of the R&B singing trio Blaque, was struck and killed by a car as she walked in a major roadway in Georgia, police said on Saturday.

Reed, who also appeared in the cheerleader movie "Bring It On" in 2000, would have turned 33 on Sunday.

She was struck by a car at about 10:30 p.m. Friday on a state highway just north of the Atlanta suburb of Lilburn, Gwinnett County Police Sergeant Rich Long said.

The car's driver called 911 and a passenger performed CPR but Reed was pronounced dead at an area medical center, police said. Authorities ruled the driver was not at fault and no charges were expected to be filed, Long said.

Investigators were trying to determine why Reed was in the road, Long said.

As part of Blaque, Reed performed the 1999 hits "Bring It All to Me" and "808" with fellow members Shamari Fears DeVoe and Brandi Williams.

Reed's fellow group members said in a statement on Saturday that Blaque had recently reunited and the group was working on an album and a reality show.

"My world as I know it has forever changed," DeVoe said on Twitter on Saturday. "Until we meet again, may you find comfort in the arms of an angel. I love you Natina."

(Reporting by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Bill Trott)

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Obama tackles rape comments, "fiscal cliff" on TV talk show

BURBANK, California (Reuters) - President Barack Obama suspended the levity during an interview with late-night TV talk show host Jay Leno on Wednesday to address a Republican Senate candidate's assertion that pregnancies resulting from rape are intended by God and to express confidence that Washington could soon address the looming "fiscal cliff."

"I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas. Let me make a very simple proposition: rape is rape. It is a crime," Obama said on NBC's "The Tonight Show."

"This is exactly why you don't want a bunch of politicians, mostly male, making decisions about women's healthcare."

Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock's comments that pregnancies caused by rape are "something God intended to happen" echoed across the U.S. media and sent ripples through political circles ahead of the November 6 election.

The Obama campaign, which enjoys leads among women voters in many election battleground states, sought swiftly to connect Mourdock with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. This summer Romney had to distance himself from remarks by another Republican Senate candidate, Todd Akin of Missouri, about what he called "legitimate rape."

In an interview full of jokes about marriage, Halloween and other topics, the Democratic president made a few serious comments, mostly about the hottest topic of the election: the economy.

Asked about the so-called fiscal cliff - a combination of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to kick in early next year - Obama said he was confident that a solution could be found before the end of the year.

"Solving this is not that hard. It requires some tough choices," Obama said, adding that some programs had to be cut and tax rates should go up for people making more than $250,000 a year.

"I hope that we can get it done by the end of this year. It just requires some compromise, which shouldn't be a dirty word."

On the economic crisis gripping the European Union, Obama said countries have been "kind of muddling along" and "they didn't respond as quickly as they could."

The United States is working with those nations to make sure they have a credible plan to maintain the unity of Europe, he added.

In a lighter moment, Obama joked about real estate mogul and TV personality Donald Trump, who recently posted a video challenging Obama to release documents about his education.

Trump has persistently questioned whether Obama, a native of Hawaii, was actually born in the United States, and Obama played off Trump's theories about his origins.

"This all dates back to when we were growing up together in Kenya," Obama joked. "We had, you know, constant run-ins on the soccer field. He wasn't very good and resented it."

(Additional reporting and writing by Lisa Lambert in Washington; Editing by Christopher Wilson)

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Billionaire Adelson, wife give new $10 million to Romney "Super PAC"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and his wife gave another $10 million to the "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in October, saying they hoped to "level the playing field" with Democrats ahead of the November 6 election.

In a campaign year of unprecedented contributions, Adelson and his wife Miriam have stood out above the rest.

The 79-year-old billionaire chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, Adelson emerged as the Republican Party's biggest patron in the 2012 campaign, pouring at least $47 million into Republican coffers with his wife.

The Adelsons gave $5 million each to the pro-Romney Super PAC Restore Our Future, accounting for about half of the fund's cash raised from October 1 through 17, according to Federal Election Commission filings released on Thursday. The filings are the last disclosures before the November 6 elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the Adelsons said they were exercising their "privileges" of free speech to counter the millions of dollars raised by President Barack Obama as well as contributions from liberal billionaire George Soros and labor unions.

"Our family has felt an obligation to help level the playing field by providing support to the candidates and causes on the other side of the equation," according to the statement provided by a Sands spokesman.

A series of U.S. court cases in recent years have shined a spotlight on political spending as a form of free speech.

The rulings spawned Super PACs, outside groups that can raise and spend unlimited funds but cannot formally coordinate with official campaigns.

Soros, a billionaire financier, held the previous political donation record with $27.5 million contributed to Democrats in 2004. In October, Soros gave $1 million to the pro-Obama Super PAC.

The Adelsons have also donated to Super PACs helping Republicans in Congress. They were the largest donors behind the party's convention in Tampa, Florida, in late August.

During the Republican primaries, the Adelsons used their fortune to attack Romney. They gave up to $20 million to presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who won the South Carolina primary.

The Adelsons became Romney donors in June when the candidate became Obama's remaining Republican challenger.

Forbes estimates Adelson's fortune to be $20.5 billion.

In September, Adelson told Politico he planned to spend up to $100 million, or "whatever it takes," to defeat Obama.

Adelson may have given another $20 million to $30 million to fundraising groups that do not need to report their contributors, according to Politico.

Adelson has also used his contributions to push for a stronger U.S. defense of Israel's sovereignty. He is a director of the Republican Jewish Coalition and has called Obama's Israel positions too soft.

In the previous presidential campaign of 2008, Adelson was a much less prominent donor, giving about $100,000 to Republican candidates and party funds, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group that tracks spending.

(Additional reporting by Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen; editing by Todd Eastham)

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Obama tackles rape comments, "fiscal cliff" on TV talk show

BURBANK, California (Reuters) - President Barack Obama suspended the levity during an interview with late-night TV talk show host Jay Leno on Wednesday to address a Republican Senate candidate's assertion that pregnancies resulting from rape are intended by God and to express confidence that Washington could soon address the looming "fiscal cliff."

"I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas. Let me make a very simple proposition: rape is rape. It is a crime," Obama said on NBC's "The Tonight Show."

"This is exactly why you don't want a bunch of politicians, mostly male, making decisions about women's healthcare."

Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock's comments that pregnancies caused by rape are "something God intended to happen" echoed across the U.S. media and sent ripples through political circles ahead of the November 6 election.

The Obama campaign, which enjoys leads among women voters in many election battleground states, sought swiftly to connect Mourdock with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. This summer Romney had to distance himself from remarks by another Republican Senate candidate, Todd Akin of Missouri, about what he called "legitimate rape."

In an interview full of jokes about marriage, Halloween and other topics, the Democratic president made a few serious comments, mostly about the hottest topic of the election: the economy.

Asked about the so-called fiscal cliff - a combination of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to kick in early next year - Obama said he was confident that a solution could be found before the end of the year.

"Solving this is not that hard. It requires some tough choices," Obama said, adding that some programs had to be cut and tax rates should go up for people making more than $250,000 a year.

"I hope that we can get it done by the end of this year. It just requires some compromise, which shouldn't be a dirty word."

On the economic crisis gripping the European Union, Obama said countries have been "kind of muddling along" and "they didn't respond as quickly as they could."

The United States is working with those nations to make sure they have a credible plan to maintain the unity of Europe, he added.

In a lighter moment, Obama joked about real estate mogul and TV personality Donald Trump, who recently posted a video challenging Obama to release documents about his education.

Trump has persistently questioned whether Obama, a native of Hawaii, was actually born in the United States, and Obama played off Trump's theories about his origins.

"This all dates back to when we were growing up together in Kenya," Obama joked. "We had, you know, constant run-ins on the soccer field. He wasn't very good and resented it."

(Additional reporting and writing by Lisa Lambert in Washington; Editing by Christopher Wilson)

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Billionaire Adelson, wife give new $10 million to Romney "Super PAC"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and his wife gave another $10 million to the "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in October, saying they hoped to "level the playing field" with Democrats ahead of the November 6 election.

In a campaign year of unprecedented contributions, Adelson and his wife Miriam have stood out above the rest.

The 79-year-old billionaire chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, Adelson emerged as the Republican Party's biggest patron in the 2012 campaign, pouring at least $47 million into Republican coffers with his wife.

The Adelsons gave $5 million each to the pro-Romney Super PAC Restore Our Future, accounting for about half of the fund's cash raised from October 1 through 17, according to Federal Election Commission filings released on Thursday. The filings are the last disclosures before the November 6 elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the Adelsons said they were exercising their "privileges" of free speech to counter the millions of dollars raised by President Barack Obama as well as contributions from liberal billionaire George Soros and labor unions.

"Our family has felt an obligation to help level the playing field by providing support to the candidates and causes on the other side of the equation," according to the statement provided by a Sands spokesman.

A series of U.S. court cases in recent years have shined a spotlight on political spending as a form of free speech.

The rulings spawned Super PACs, outside groups that can raise and spend unlimited funds but cannot formally coordinate with official campaigns.

Soros, a billionaire financier, held the previous political donation record with $27.5 million contributed to Democrats in 2004. In October, Soros gave $1 million to the pro-Obama Super PAC.

The Adelsons have also donated to Super PACs helping Republicans in Congress. They were the largest donors behind the party's convention in Tampa, Florida, in late August.

During the Republican primaries, the Adelsons used their fortune to attack Romney. They gave up to $20 million to presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who won the South Carolina primary.

The Adelsons became Romney donors in June when the candidate became Obama's remaining Republican challenger.

Forbes estimates Adelson's fortune to be $20.5 billion.

In September, Adelson told Politico he planned to spend up to $100 million, or "whatever it takes," to defeat Obama.

Adelson may have given another $20 million to $30 million to fundraising groups that do not need to report their contributors, according to Politico.

Adelson has also used his contributions to push for a stronger U.S. defense of Israel's sovereignty. He is a director of the Republican Jewish Coalition and has called Obama's Israel positions too soft.

In the previous presidential campaign of 2008, Adelson was a much less prominent donor, giving about $100,000 to Republican candidates and party funds, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group that tracks spending.

(Additional reporting by Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen; editing by Todd Eastham)

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Obama tackles rape comments, "fiscal cliff" on TV talk show

BURBANK, California (Reuters) - President Barack Obama suspended the levity during an interview with late-night TV talk show host Jay Leno on Wednesday to address a Republican Senate candidate's assertion that pregnancies resulting from rape are intended by God and to express confidence that Washington could soon address the looming "fiscal cliff."

"I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas. Let me make a very simple proposition: rape is rape. It is a crime," Obama said on NBC's "The Tonight Show."

"This is exactly why you don't want a bunch of politicians, mostly male, making decisions about women's healthcare."

Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock's comments that pregnancies caused by rape are "something God intended to happen" echoed across the U.S. media and sent ripples through political circles ahead of the November 6 election.

The Obama campaign, which enjoys leads among women voters in many election battleground states, sought swiftly to connect Mourdock with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. This summer Romney had to distance himself from remarks by another Republican Senate candidate, Todd Akin of Missouri, about what he called "legitimate rape."

In an interview full of jokes about marriage, Halloween and other topics, the Democratic president made a few serious comments, mostly about the hottest topic of the election: the economy.

Asked about the so-called fiscal cliff - a combination of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to kick in early next year - Obama said he was confident that a solution could be found before the end of the year.

"Solving this is not that hard. It requires some tough choices," Obama said, adding that some programs had to be cut and tax rates should go up for people making more than $250,000 a year.

"I hope that we can get it done by the end of this year. It just requires some compromise, which shouldn't be a dirty word."

On the economic crisis gripping the European Union, Obama said countries have been "kind of muddling along" and "they didn't respond as quickly as they could."

The United States is working with those nations to make sure they have a credible plan to maintain the unity of Europe, he added.

In a lighter moment, Obama joked about real estate mogul and TV personality Donald Trump, who recently posted a video challenging Obama to release documents about his education.

Trump has persistently questioned whether Obama, a native of Hawaii, was actually born in the United States, and Obama played off Trump's theories about his origins.

"This all dates back to when we were growing up together in Kenya," Obama joked. "We had, you know, constant run-ins on the soccer field. He wasn't very good and resented it."

(Additional reporting and writing by Lisa Lambert in Washington; Editing by Christopher Wilson)

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Billionaire Adelson, wife give new $10 million to Romney "Super PAC"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and his wife gave another $10 million to the "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in October, saying they hoped to "level the playing field" with Democrats ahead of the November 6 election.

In a campaign year of unprecedented contributions, Adelson and his wife Miriam have stood out above the rest.

The 79-year-old billionaire chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, Adelson emerged as the Republican Party's biggest patron in the 2012 campaign, pouring at least $47 million into Republican coffers with his wife.

The Adelsons gave $5 million each to the pro-Romney Super PAC Restore Our Future, accounting for about half of the fund's cash raised from October 1 through 17, according to Federal Election Commission filings released on Thursday. The filings are the last disclosures before the November 6 elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the Adelsons said they were exercising their "privileges" of free speech to counter the millions of dollars raised by President Barack Obama as well as contributions from liberal billionaire George Soros and labor unions.

"Our family has felt an obligation to help level the playing field by providing support to the candidates and causes on the other side of the equation," according to the statement provided by a Sands spokesman.

A series of U.S. court cases in recent years have shined a spotlight on political spending as a form of free speech.

The rulings spawned Super PACs, outside groups that can raise and spend unlimited funds but cannot formally coordinate with official campaigns.

Soros, a billionaire financier, held the previous political donation record with $27.5 million contributed to Democrats in 2004. In October, Soros gave $1 million to the pro-Obama Super PAC.

The Adelsons have also donated to Super PACs helping Republicans in Congress. They were the largest donors behind the party's convention in Tampa, Florida, in late August.

During the Republican primaries, the Adelsons used their fortune to attack Romney. They gave up to $20 million to presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who won the South Carolina primary.

The Adelsons became Romney donors in June when the candidate became Obama's remaining Republican challenger.

Forbes estimates Adelson's fortune to be $20.5 billion.

In September, Adelson told Politico he planned to spend up to $100 million, or "whatever it takes," to defeat Obama.

Adelson may have given another $20 million to $30 million to fundraising groups that do not need to report their contributors, according to Politico.

Adelson has also used his contributions to push for a stronger U.S. defense of Israel's sovereignty. He is a director of the Republican Jewish Coalition and has called Obama's Israel positions too soft.

In the previous presidential campaign of 2008, Adelson was a much less prominent donor, giving about $100,000 to Republican candidates and party funds, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group that tracks spending.

(Additional reporting by Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen; editing by Todd Eastham)

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AA Reports Progress in Pilot Talks

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American Airlines is making "good progress" in three-week-old contract talks with pilots and will begin funding a new retirement plan to replace contributions to pilots' pension plans, a company executive said in a letter to pilots late Friday.

Senior Vice President Denise Lynn said the airline would begin paying 11 percent into a new 401K retirement program for pilots.

The pilots' pension plans end next month.

At the same time, the airline offered to increase the contribution to 14 percent if pilots approve a new contract.

"I believe good progress has been made and we are approaching a deal that the APA Board of Directors will soon agree to put out for a ratification vote," Lynn wrote to pilots.

Tom Hoban, a spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, said the union had no comment on the letter.

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Arrest Made in M Streets Attack, Burglaries

Gabriel Hernandez-Machuca, 33, has been arrested in connection with two burglaries in the M Streets neighborhood.

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Assault Victim Warns Neighbors About Attack

A woman in the M Streets area of Dallas is warning her neighbors about an attack by a man who broke into her home, stole her underwear and tried to sexually assault her.

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Dallas police have arrested a man in connection with an attempted sexual assault and two burglaries in the M Streets area of the city.

Grand Prairie police took Gabriel Hernandez-Machuca, 33, into custody during a traffic stop on Thursday and turned him over to Dallas police.

Dallas police said Hernandez-Machuca gave detectives details on his involvement in a burglary and attempted sexual assault in the 5100 block of Vanderbilt Avenue and a burglary in the 5100 block of Ridgedale Avenue.

In both burglaries, underwear was stolen from the women's homes, Dallas police had said.

The victim in the Vanderbilt Avenue attack told NBC 5 that she was punched and choked in her home Oct. 18. She said her attacker tried to sexaully assault her, but she fought him off.

Police said they are reviewing other burglaries that may have involved Hernandez-Machuca.

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Local FEMA Team Responding to Hurricane Sandy

Rick Mitchell, Ray Villeda and Kevin Cokely, NBC 5 News

As the East Coast braces for what could be a historic storm, a local FEMA team is heading out to help.

North Texas Team Responds to...

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Ten people from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's regional headquarters in Denton are heading to Virginia to help states along the East Coast respond to Hurricane Sandy.

The incident management assistance team includes specialists in mass care, communications, logistics, and operations.

"One of the first things we do is, we get onboard, take a look at what's going on, kind of get a good sense of what's going on on the ground, working closely with the state, their personnel and determining if there's any shortfalls, if there are how can we fill those shortfalls, and make sure that everything's being handled as it the threat comes in and makes landfall," Robert Alvey of FEMA said.

Denton is also sending 2.75 million meals, 775,000 liters of water and several communications trucks from a staging area in Louisiana.

The team leaves Saturday morning and expects to be fully operational on Sunday.

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More Cameras, Training for School With Indecency Arrest

Omar Villafranca, NBC 5 News

Plano ISD says it plans to add cameras to Hunt Elementary in Murphy and train teachers to deal with child indecency cases.

Changes Announced for Hunt Elementary

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Emotions Boil Over at Meeting Over School Sex Abuse Case

Hunt Elementary parents said at a heated meeting that they want to know what is being done to prevent another case of sexual abuse after two separate allegations in two years.

Coach Accused of Indecency Warned by Principal: Affidavit

The Collin County Sheriff's Office released the arrest affidavit in the case of a Hunt Elementary School coach accused of indecency with a child.

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The Plano school district is putting safety measures in place after two incidents of suspected sexual abuse between a teacher and a student at a Murphy elementary school within two years.

Last week, Todd Reich, a gym teacher at Martha Hunt Elementary, was arrested on suspicion of indecency with a child.

His arrest came less than a year after a teacher at the school, Joseph Garbarini, was sentenced to more than 60 years for a similar incident.

On Tuesday, parents of students at Martha Hunt Elementary ripped into administrators for not putting safety measures into place.

Steve Cuny, a father of four students, said simple measures, such as more cameras and doors that allow people to look into rooms, were not in place in certain parts of the school.

Plano Independent School District Superintendent Richard Matkin told parents in a letter that he had heard their concerns and that changes were on the way.

"It was with the best of intentions that the district hosted the parent meeting on October 23 to connect the Hunt Elementary School parents and families with additional resources and information," he wrote. "I realize that many walked away from the meeting feeling unheard, and I want to convey my apologies for this sentiment."

The letter listed the following changes that schools officials plan to implement:

• Additional cameras will be added to gymnasiums and common areas. The current plan being implemented is to increase from 40 cameras to 88 cameras.
• All solid doors on offices and classrooms are currently being modified to contain glass/windows.
• Additional counseling staff will be assigned to the campus.
• A full‐time assistant principal will be assigned to the campus.
• All paper and window coverings will be removed from doors and interior windows. However, security systems for lock‐ins, lock‐downs and storm procedures will be followed when necessary.
• Members of the campus leadership team will be in every classroom on a daily basis.
• Training will be provided for Hunt Elementary School personnel related to the particular issues faced this month.
• The district will engage a third‐party review of its human resources practices and procedures to validate current processes.

Benjamin Conner, one of the concerned parents at the Tuesday meeting, said the changes would ease parents worries.

"The steps they outlined in the email were kind of exactly what we wanted to hear on Tuesday night," he said. "From my perspective, it's a step in the right direction. It's positive. People are excited to hear that there are safety measures being put in place."

Conner said he plans to make sure the district follows up on its word. He also mentioned that another meeting between parents and administrators is being planned.

---

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Flights Operating Normally Before Sandy

Getty Images

As Hurricane Sandy approaches the East Coast, flights are still operating normally to and from the North Texas airports.

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Major airlines with service  to and from DFW International Airport and Dallas Love Field are still  operating normally, as Hurricane Sandy approaches the East Coast.

American Airlines representatives said Saturday,  they're predicting some changes Sunday or Monday when the hurricane activities are likely to pick up on the East Coast.

They currently have more than 20 airports listed as potential places where weather may become an issue and are offering flexible travel accommodations to passengers who are planning to fly to or from those locations.

Most other airlines are offering similar services, including waiving change fees for passengers and making it easier to cancel or switch their reservations.

All major airlines also have travel advisories with updates. Southwest Airlines has been updating their advisories every couple of hours.

Representatives for the airline suggested all passengers flying in the next couple of days to continue checking their flight status.

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Dallas Has a New Green Space to Play

Mark Schnyder, NBC 5 Reporter

On Saturday, the brand new Klyde Warren Park in downtown Dallas officially opened.

Dallas Has a New Greenspace to Play

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It's finally done, the Klyde Warren Park in downtown Dallas.

Five-point-two acres of green space over an eight lane highway you don't even realize is there.  

Thousands arrived, on Saturday morning  to give it a test run including Magan Kuhlenbeck who lives near the park. She brought out her beagle puppy Walter for a walk on the dirt trail.

"It's awesome and it's a wonderful place to take him and it's new," says Kuhlenbeck.  "I think it's a good thing for right here."

So does Charles Hamilton,  sitting at a table in the sun in the reading and games area.  Across from him, his 12-year old grandson.  They're playing checkers.

"We're enjoying the benefits of the park right now," says Hamilton.  "And hopefully generations to come these kids will be able to enjoy it.  Outstanding."

During the dedication ceremony Mayor Mike Rawlings said Dallas is truly trailblazing with this new park. "Our central city was once divided by this major freeway separating our city's core.  This project has been a long time making and solidifies our foundation and city core."

Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson helped secure $16.7-million in stimulus money to help fund the $110-million park.  

She said she's all for cutting budgets, but if the government's spending, she's going to get what she can for Dallas.

The beautiful park will require a lot of people to keep it beautiful.  Among them a pretty famous ten-year old, Klyde Warren, the son of Kelcy Warren who helped fund the park.

"I'll be cleaning up trash and walking around making sure every thing's okay," said the 4th grader after the dedication ceremony. 

He also said he's looking forward to enjoying the park like everyone else.

It features a separate kids park, a dog park, ping pong tables and a five-hole putting green.  A restaurant will go in next summer.

For more on the park and it's activities check out www.klydewarrenpark.com

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Military Mom Surprises Her Kids at Football Game

Christine Lee, NBC 5 Reporter

Natale Smith was deployed to Saudi Arabia for the past seven months in support of Operation Enduring Freedom

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One Plano mother is back home from serving her country. After seven months of being away, she surprised her four young children at their football game on Saturday.

Natale Smith was deployed to Saudi Arabia for the past seven months in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Her husband, James Smith, had to take care of their four young children by himself.

"The first two months were really hard because my kids cried every single night. And I had to put them to bed and explain to them why mom was gone. Because she was serving a bigger purpose," he said.

Just as the kids are now enjoying their mom's return, Smith said he too appreciates his wife's presence more than ever. "It's been a long road, I mean we've never really been separated from each other. And I appreciate everything she went and did when she was here," said Smith.

Natale Smith said she missed the daily routine she used to have with her little ones. "Getting woken up early, and just hanging out, and going to the park, and football games, and anything. I miss it all," she said.

Now that she's back home, she plans to pick up where she left off. "I'm just excited to see my kids and hug on them and love on them and come back to life," said Smith.

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Obama tackles rape comments, "fiscal cliff" on TV talk show

BURBANK, California (Reuters) - President Barack Obama suspended the levity during an interview with late-night TV talk show host Jay Leno on Wednesday to address a Republican Senate candidate's assertion that pregnancies resulting from rape are intended by God and to express confidence that Washington could soon address the looming "fiscal cliff."

"I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas. Let me make a very simple proposition: rape is rape. It is a crime," Obama said on NBC's "The Tonight Show."

"This is exactly why you don't want a bunch of politicians, mostly male, making decisions about women's healthcare."

Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock's comments that pregnancies caused by rape are "something God intended to happen" echoed across the U.S. media and sent ripples through political circles ahead of the November 6 election.

The Obama campaign, which enjoys leads among women voters in many election battleground states, sought swiftly to connect Mourdock with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. This summer Romney had to distance himself from remarks by another Republican Senate candidate, Todd Akin of Missouri, about what he called "legitimate rape."

In an interview full of jokes about marriage, Halloween and other topics, the Democratic president made a few serious comments, mostly about the hottest topic of the election: the economy.

Asked about the so-called fiscal cliff - a combination of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes set to kick in early next year - Obama said he was confident that a solution could be found before the end of the year.

"Solving this is not that hard. It requires some tough choices," Obama said, adding that some programs had to be cut and tax rates should go up for people making more than $250,000 a year.

"I hope that we can get it done by the end of this year. It just requires some compromise, which shouldn't be a dirty word."

On the economic crisis gripping the European Union, Obama said countries have been "kind of muddling along" and "they didn't respond as quickly as they could."

The United States is working with those nations to make sure they have a credible plan to maintain the unity of Europe, he added.

In a lighter moment, Obama joked about real estate mogul and TV personality Donald Trump, who recently posted a video challenging Obama to release documents about his education.

Trump has persistently questioned whether Obama, a native of Hawaii, was actually born in the United States, and Obama played off Trump's theories about his origins.

"This all dates back to when we were growing up together in Kenya," Obama joked. "We had, you know, constant run-ins on the soccer field. He wasn't very good and resented it."

(Additional reporting and writing by Lisa Lambert in Washington; Editing by Christopher Wilson)

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Billionaire Adelson, wife give new $10 million to Romney "Super PAC"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Republican donors Sheldon Adelson and his wife gave another $10 million to the "Super PAC" backing Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in October, saying they hoped to "level the playing field" with Democrats ahead of the November 6 election.

In a campaign year of unprecedented contributions, Adelson and his wife Miriam have stood out above the rest.

The 79-year-old billionaire chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp, Adelson emerged as the Republican Party's biggest patron in the 2012 campaign, pouring at least $47 million into Republican coffers with his wife.

The Adelsons gave $5 million each to the pro-Romney Super PAC Restore Our Future, accounting for about half of the fund's cash raised from October 1 through 17, according to Federal Election Commission filings released on Thursday. The filings are the last disclosures before the November 6 elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the Adelsons said they were exercising their "privileges" of free speech to counter the millions of dollars raised by President Barack Obama as well as contributions from liberal billionaire George Soros and labor unions.

"Our family has felt an obligation to help level the playing field by providing support to the candidates and causes on the other side of the equation," according to the statement provided by a Sands spokesman.

A series of U.S. court cases in recent years have shined a spotlight on political spending as a form of free speech.

The rulings spawned Super PACs, outside groups that can raise and spend unlimited funds but cannot formally coordinate with official campaigns.

Soros, a billionaire financier, held the previous political donation record with $27.5 million contributed to Democrats in 2004. In October, Soros gave $1 million to the pro-Obama Super PAC.

The Adelsons have also donated to Super PACs helping Republicans in Congress. They were the largest donors behind the party's convention in Tampa, Florida, in late August.

During the Republican primaries, the Adelsons used their fortune to attack Romney. They gave up to $20 million to presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, who won the South Carolina primary.

The Adelsons became Romney donors in June when the candidate became Obama's remaining Republican challenger.

Forbes estimates Adelson's fortune to be $20.5 billion.

In September, Adelson told Politico he planned to spend up to $100 million, or "whatever it takes," to defeat Obama.

Adelson may have given another $20 million to $30 million to fundraising groups that do not need to report their contributors, according to Politico.

Adelson has also used his contributions to push for a stronger U.S. defense of Israel's sovereignty. He is a director of the Republican Jewish Coalition and has called Obama's Israel positions too soft.

In the previous presidential campaign of 2008, Adelson was a much less prominent donor, giving about $100,000 to Republican candidates and party funds, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group that tracks spending.

(Additional reporting by Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen; editing by Todd Eastham)

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