Central girl crowned Miss Teen
BEAUT OF A WIN:
Blair Wortsmith, 17, of Little Rock was named Miss Teen International on Aug. 2 at the competition’s annual pageant in Jacksonville, Fla. Wortsmith competed against more than 40 contestants from around the world. She will spend her year as Miss Teen International promoting her platform of encouraging children to make healthy food choices and become more physically active.
The Central High School senior was crowned at the event by Miss Teen International 2013 Haley Pontius, a fellow Arkansan who recently graduated from Perryville High School.
MUSIC PRESERVATION:
Progress is being made on the restoration of Central High School’s grand piano, reports Julie Keller of the Tiger Foundation, a nonprofit foundation that supports the high school. Keller led the fundraising campaign that netted the $37,081.80 needed to restore the 1927 Steinway & Sons piano, believed to be original to the school.
A permanent, lockable storage compartment for the piano was constructed in a locked room at the rear of the school’s stage. New Steinway parts for the piano have been ordered, and some restoration work has already taken place.
Keller adds that plans for a “welcome home” concert for the piano’s return to the school are being made for the fall of 2015 in the school’s auditorium, which has a seating capacity of 2,120. The concert will be free and open to the public.
SHARING THE LOVE:
Last Tuesday on Jimmy Kimmel Live, actor Ted Danson gave props to South on Main restaurant in downtown Little Rock. Danson and his wife, Academy Awardwinning actress Mary Steenburgen, formerly of North Little Rock, are investors in the restaurant owned by Steenburgen’s niece, Amy Bell, and her husband, Matt, who serves as chef. Danson also shared a humorous story about playing, “Ditch the President,” referring to his and his wife’s good friend, Bill Clinton. He spoke of the times when Clinton, then president, would still be full of energy late at night and wanting to visit while Danson and Steenburgen were tired and wishing to retire for the evening.
DELVING INTO HISTORY:
James Presley, a resident of Texarkana (Miller County, Ark., and Bowie County, Texas) revisits a decades-old string of five murders there from March to May 1946 in his new book, The Phantom Killer. The 400-page hardcover book, featuring eight pages of black-andwhite photos, is due for release by Pegasus Books on Nov. 15. Presley has a doctorate in history from the University of Texas and has won numerous awards for his journalism. He also is the author of A Saga of Wealth: The Rise of the Texas Oilmen. The new book retails for $19.86 with the Kindle version selling for $12.99. Presley’s uncle, Bill Presley, was the Bowie County sheriff in Texas at the time of the murders.