Amarillo, Potter County | featured news

■ On Oct. 6, 1976, President Gerald R. Ford, in his second debate with Democrat Jimmy Carter, asserted that there was “no Soviet domination of eastern Europe.” (Ford later conceded such was not the case.)
■ In 1683, 13 families from Krefeld, Germany, arrived in Philadelphia to begin Germantown, one of America’s oldest settlements.
■ In 1927, the era of talking pictures arrived with the opening of “The Jazz Singer” starring Al Jolson, a movie featuring both silent and sound-synchronized sequences.

Starting Friday, Amarillo and Canyon residents can dine out for a good cause.
United Way of Amarillo & Canyon has partnered with 10 restaurants in both cities that will donate a percentage of their profits on specific days to the charity.
“Dine United is a community-wide effort among local dining establishments to generate awareness and support for United Way,” said Honnah Taylor, spokesperson for United Way of Amarillo & Canyon.
The community-wide event will start Friday at Chipotle and continue through Oct. 29 at the Home Plate Diner.

Amarillo Little Theater Academy director Jason Crespin keeps moving up the charts.
Wednesday, he found out he had advanced from the top 40 to the top 20 contestants vying for a co-hosting gig with Kelly Ripa on “LIVE with Kelly” Friday, October 21.
When he got the good news, Crespin, 33, posted this on his Facebook page: “So excited! Hope all of Amarillo can cast a vote for me until Sunday! Top ten vote getters advance to the next round!”

The Roan-Creek Marine Corps League of Amarillo received about $10,000 from Bell Helicopter at a meeting at Amarillo’s Veterans of Foreign Wars post on Tuesday night.
“For our organization, this is enormous, and it will help us do so much for the veterans of our community, along with our Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarships,” said Kayla Padgett, an RCMCL representative.
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“I’ve done numerous collector car auctions, and that’s what I’m best known for, but I’ve never been able to do one in my home (region),” Tom “Spanky” Assiter said Tuesday.
But come Saturday, the Canyon resident and former International Auction Champion will be back in the driver’s seat, auctioning off more than 165 collector automobiles at the Amarillo Tri-State Exposition Fairgrounds.
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Touching on immigration, education and the U.S. presidential race, area State Reps. Four Price and John Smithee, both Republicans from Amarillo, took part in an open forum at Amarillo College moderated by Texas Tribune co-founder and CEO Evan Smith.
Immigration, specifically how to handle issues surrounding undocumented migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, received much attention during the first part of the Tuesday talk.
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The Amarillo City Council discussed a road map for implementing its planned 311 non-emergency call service Tuesday.
The plan, which spans from October to January, was presented by City of Amarillo IT Director Rich Gagnon.
The 311 call center, which aims to relieve stress on Amarillo’s 911 emergency call service, is part “of a larger framework,” Gagnon told the council.
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■ On Oct. 5, 1986, in an incident that helped expose the Iran-Contra affair, a plane secretly ferrying supplies to Nicaraguan Contra rebels was shot down over southern Nicaragua by Sandinista forces.
■ In 1829, the 21st president of the United States, Chester Alan Arthur, was born in North Fairfield, Vt.
■ In 1931, Clyde Pangborn and Hugh Herndon completed the first non-stop flight across the Pacific Ocean, arriving in Washington some 41 hours after leaving Japan.

Partners in Palo Duro Canyon is sponsoring a Star Party in the state park from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday.
The parking area next to the visitor center will be cleared, and several telescopes will be in place to view Saturn, Venus, the moon and constellations.
The event is free, but everyone must pay the state park entry fee of $5.
For more information, visit palodurocanyon.com.

Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum will have free admission from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday during West Texas A&M’s homecoming celebration weekend. The museum’s homecoming exhibit is “Let’s Remember Kimbrough,” featuring memories of WT’s Kimbrough Stadium. For more about homecoming activities, visit wtamu.edu.