Today's Feature

"THE FOURTH WALL."

Stones Throw Dinner Theatre with the Missouri Arts Council Proudly Presents: THE FOURTH WALL written by A.R. Gurney and directed by Jonathon Peck, Produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc.

All the world’s a stage, and there’s absolutely nothing we can do about it. Peggy has come to feel her life is a play; she has oriented everything around one wall, a blank wall, the "fourth" wall. The problem is, it makes people behave . . . differently. Does she know something we don’t? Is someone out there beyond that fourth wall watching them? Who could it possibly be? And what does Cole Porter have to do with all this? Watch as the lovely couple Peggy and Roger, with the help of their analytical acquaintances Julia and Floyd, tackle the question "Are we being watched?"

Performances are scheduled for, October 26, 27, & 28, and November 3, 4, & 5, 2006. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday the Theatre doors open at 6:00 p.m. with dinner being served at 6:30 p.m. and the performance starting at 7:30 p.m. Sundays the doors open at 12:30 p.m. with dinner at 1:00 p.m. and the performance starting at 2:00 p.m. Admission is $20.00 for adults 17-54, $19.00 for seniors over 55. Youth under 16 are $17.00, and children under 5 are free. Groups of ten or more receive a dollar discount per person.

Reservations are required and may be made by calling Stone’s Throw at 417-358-9665 or Betty Bell at 417-358-7268 by e-mailing reservations to bbell23@ecarthage.com . The box office will be open beginning October 23 from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon.

The cast includes: Kevin Provins as Roger, Imma J. Curl as Julia, Lyn Whyte as Peggy, and Ryan Tandy as Floyd. Set and Costume designer - Imma J. Curl, Properties designer - Becky Gooch

Pancake Feed at Fire Department.

The Carthage Fire Department will host its annual pancake feed at the Carthage Fire Station, 401 W. Chestnut on Saturday, October 21 beginning at $6.00. $4.00 for adults, $1.00 for ages 6 and under.

Stench Report:

Wednesday,
10/18/06

No Stench detected on the
Carthage Square

‘Course ‘sides all the organized activities, there are typically lots a private get-to-gathers across town. Old friends tellin’ the same old stories, with some new catchin’ up from time to time.

I’m guessin’ that the most folks, aside from the parade, are attracted to the band contest and the car show. Seems like both get bigger each year.

For the last few years, the Square has been holdin’ folks later into the afternoon with a variety of activities.

I’ve never doubted the estimates of folks attendin’ Maple Leaf, just curious as to who’s countin’. Just count the legs and divide by two.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Dear Tom and Ray:

My job requires me to spend a lot of time in my car every day - not only driving, but parked, working on my laptop. I estimate that the car is sitting at idle for approximately one hour every day while I work on the laptop. When the weather is cooler, I turn the engine off and roll the windows down but during the summer, it is just too hot to sit without the AC going. I am reimbursed for the mileage but have the feeling that I am getting the short end of the stick. While I am parked with the engine running, the odometer is not moving. Any guess how much gas I am using while sitting at idle? For argument’s sake, I have a 4-cylinder (Toyota Corolla). - Steve

RAY: The only statistic we’ve ever seen for the amount of fuel used at idle is from the Ohio Air Quality Development authority. It says that the average car uses about .15 gallons of fuel per hour of idling. That’s about 45 cents’ worth of gas. Do that once a day for 250 days a year, and it’s $112.50 a year at $3 a gallon.

TOM: So what you need, Steve, is a jack. Jack up one of those front wheels while you’re stopped and doing your work, put that baby in drive and let the odometer roll. You’ll MAKE money for your idling time.

RAY: No, that’s dishonest, Steve. And that doesn’t even take into account the excess pollution you’re creating by idling for an hour a day. A better solution would be to stop at a Distended Belly Doughnut Shop and do your work in there over a cup of iced coffee.

TOM: You won’t waste any money burning gas, you won’t be creating new pounds of carbon dioxide and you can put the coffee on your expense report.

RACING
By Greg Zyla
Sponsored by Curry Automotive

Born to Run: ‘63 Z-11 Chevy

Q: Greg, I saw a two-page spread on Chevy’s Mystery 427 engine in Car Craft magazine. I know you mentioned the Mystery 427 engine in previous columns and had a detailed history on it, but what about the drag race 427 engine? -- Cliff, Spokane, Wash.

A: Cliff, I’d be glad to. The saga starts in late 1962, when Chevy NASCAR and NHRA engineers came up with the 427-inch designs. Chevy’s 427 drag engine was dubbed Z-11, and was a stroked version of the 409 with special two-piece aluminum intake, similar-style "W" heads with bigger valves, stronger crank and a longer rod to arrive at its 427 size and conservative 430-horsepower rating (it produced closer to 475).

Of note is the fact that the 348-409 and Z-11 427 didn’t really utilize a combustion chamber in the cylinder head. A total of 57 Z-11s were ordered, although only seven remain today.

The oval racing Mystery 427 Motor, however, could not be purchased at the dealer. Chevy actually "introduced" to select NASCAR teams a canted valve cylinder head 427 engine back in late 1962 under huge secrecy. Chevrolet supposedly produced enough parts for NASCAR’s minimum rule of "50" engines and distributed them to NASCAR teams prior to Speedweeks in 1963. No drag racers received this "mystery" engine. Smokey Yunick and Rex White were the main Chevy teams that received the "Mystery" Mark II 427 engines. White and Smokey Yunick told us personally that no more than 26 or so were ever built.