For such a small city in such a remote location, Ketchikan has had its fair share of experience in welcoming the rich and famous. Names that come to mind are Bing Crosby, John Wayne, Cary Grant, as well as Olivia Newton-John, Bill Gates, and Chubby Checker - plus many, many others! Unlike today's notables who arrive by cruise ship for brief visits, earlier celebrity visitors usually came in on their own or someone else's yacht. Most enjoyed Ketchikan's sights, sounds and attractions for at most a few days. But one unexpected visitor found himself stranded for the winter!

It was back in 1940 that L. Ron Hubbard blew into town, literally, and because of a need for serious and costly repairs to his boat, wasn't able to sail out again for months! He was best known at that time as a pulp fiction author, and probably even he didn't imagine that one day he would become famous as the founder of what he dubbed a new, scientific religion -- Scientology. But he was blessed with good looks, natural charm, a vivid imagination, a gift for story-telling, and an enormous ego that would ease his way through life ­ except at the very end of it. - Read the rest of this story by June Allen...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

KIC Election 2005 Election Results Commentary/ Columns Dale McFeatters: With friends like these... President Bush's euphoria on the eve of his inaugural surely deflated slightly when the congressional Republican with final say over Bush's planned Social Security reform called this centerpiece of his second term a "dead horse." - More... Wednesday - January 19, 2005 Clifford D. May: Terrorists' medium often the message - An old saw has it that a lie can circle the globe before the truth even laces its sneakers. That's more accurate now, an era when satellites and the Internet have revolutionized communications, than ever before. - More... Wednesday - January 19, 2005 Viewpoints Opinions/Letters Democrats work with, not for, GOP by Ethan Berkowitz & Johnny Ellis - Wednesday RE: Integrity by Jerry A. Scudero - Wednesday Airing My Road Rage by Dayle Amundson - Wednesday Or not to Bypass the Bypass: A Hit List by Pat Cassin - Wednesday KPU Telecommunications - more discussion is needed by Rick Grams - Wednesday STEAMER'S FRIDAY NIGHTS by Joseph Branco - Wednesday More Viewpoints/ Letters Publish A Letter January 2005 Click on the date for stories and photos published on that day... S M T W T F S 26 27 28 29 30 31 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31            Today's Front Page Front Page Archives

National: Rice: U.S. withdrawal from Iraq depends on Iraqis - As President Bush's new secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice is promising new efforts to "spread freedom and democracy throughout the globe," but she could not tell senators Tuesday when U.S. troops will end their current mission in Iraq. - More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

National: As second term approaches, Bush suddenly talking to media - In the days leading up to his second inaugural, President Bush is performing a chore that he often seems to enjoy about as much as a trip to the dentist - talking to the news media. - More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

Ketchikan: Search ends successfully - The three-day search for 17 year old Jarrad Fudge ended successfully at approximately 11:12 pm Tuesday when Fudge showed up at a residence on Gravina Island. According to Alaska State Troopers, Fudge was hungry, cold and wet, but otherwise appeared to be in good condition.- More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

Ketchikan: Governor Appoints Schally to Valdez District Court - Governor Frank H. Murkowski announced Monday the appointment of Daniel Schally to the Valdez District Court. Schally currently serves as an assistant district attorney in Ketchikan. - More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

Ketchikan: Two Fairweather Sailings Cancelled; Fast Vehicle Ferry Will Transit to Ketchikan for Lay-up - Two sailings for the M/V Fairweather, the state's fast vehicle ferry, have been cancelled so that the ferry can be taken to Ketchikan for lay-up. The Fairweather would normally have sailed to Haines and Skagway on Sunday, January 23, and to Sitka on Monday, January 24. - More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005

Alaska: Berkowitz Sees New Sense of Possibility; 'We're not just talking about how to cut the budget' - Minority Leader Ethan Berkowitz said Tuesday that House Democrats are looking toward this legislative session with a renewed sense of possibility.

"For the first time since I served in the Legislature," said Berkowitz, who was first elected in 1996, "we're not just talking about how to cut the budget, about what we can't do and where we're not going to go. For the first time we're starting to talk about how to repair some of the problems that have been created in this cycle of budget cutting."

Higher oil revenues have a lot to do with that, as does the possibility of getting an agreement to build a gas pipeline that benefits Alaskans. - More...
Wednesday - January 19, 2005