Previous Barney bitings

Critters

Previous Barney bitings

It turns out that President Bush's dog Barney is a repeat offender. Boston Celtics public-relations director Heather Walker said Friday that Barney bit her wrist and drew blood as she tried to pat the Scottish terrier in September after a White House ceremony honoring the team's 17th NBA championship. "It was very strange. I didn't expect him to bite me," Walker said. Last week, Barney bit Reuters reporter Jon Decker's index finger when he reached down to pet the seemingly docile dog. Sally McDonough, a spokeswoman for first lady Laura Bush, said Friday she was unaware of the Walker incident.

People

West arrested, released

Rapper Kanye West, 31, was arrested after a fracas outside a nightclub but released without charge, British media reported Friday. The Press Association news agency and others reported that West was detained early Friday after an incident involving a photographer outside the Tup Tup Palace bar in Newcastle, northern England. A West spokeswoman did not return a call seeking comment. West was arrested last month at Los Angeles International Airport after he was filmed struggling with a paparazzo. He was not charged.

Costner prefers music

He has played Wyatt Earp, and Eliot Ness in the movies, but actor Kevin Costner said his most natural gig is playing music with his band. "This is as close to my personality as I ever get, playing live," Costner said recently. Costner, 53, and his band, Modern West, released their debut CD, "Untold Truths," this week. It features 12 songs, half of them co-written by Costner, who is the lead singer and plays guitar. The sound is roots rock with elements of country.

Holidays

Tree makes it to NYC

An 8-ton, 72-foot-tall Norway spruce was hoisted into place Friday at New York City's Rockefeller Center, where it will be dressed up for its starring role as the city's most famous Christmas tree. The tree came from the Varanyak family in Hamilton, N.J. The family used it as its own Christmas tree in 1931 and planted it outdoors. Mary Varanyak, who died eight years ago, had predicted it would make it to Rockefeller Center someday.

Today in History

1806: Explorer Zebulon Pike sighted the mountaintop now known as Pikes Peak in present-day Colorado.

1939: President Roosevelt laid the cornerstone of the Jefferson Memorial.

1969: A quarter of a million protesters staged a peaceful demonstration in Washington against the Vietnam War.

Today's Birthdays

Judge Joseph Wapner, 89. Singer Petula Clark, 76. Actor Sam Waterston, 68. Actress Beverly D'Angelo, 54. CNN anchor-reporter John Roberts, 52. "Tonight Show" bandleader Kevin Eubanks, 51. Rapper E-40, 41. Actress Rachel True, 39. Actor Jonny Lee Miller, 36. Actress Sydney Tamiia Poitier, 35.

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