Dan Wheldon dies in 15-car Indycar crash

LAS VEGAS — Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon died Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after his car became ensnared in a fiery 15-car pileup, flew over another vehicle and landed in a catch fence just outside turn 2.

The 33-year-old racer was a two-time Indy winner, including this year's race.

Three other drivers, including championship contender Will Power, were hurt in the pileup during Lap 11.

Wheldon was airlifted from the track to University Medical Center; about two hours later, his colleagues were told of his death by IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard, who said Wheldon's injuries were "unsurvivable."

"One minute you're joking around at driver intros. The next, Dan's gone," said Dario Franchitti, whose wife, actress Ashley Judd, had to bring him a box of tissues. "I lost, we lost, a good friend. Everybody in the IndyCar series considered him a friend. He was such a good guy. He was a charmer."

With the race cancelled, drivers, many sobbing openly, took part in a five-lap salute around the oval in honour of one of the sport's biggest stars.

The race was only minutes old when Wheldon, who started at the back of the 34-car field and was in position for a US $5-million payday if he had won, couldn't steer clear of a wreck that started when two cars touched tires.

Within seconds, several cars burst into flames and debris covered the track nearly halfway up the straightaway. Some points of impact were so devastating workers had to patch holes in the asphalt.

The deadly realities of racecar driving
Fellow drivers remember Dan Wheldon
Read Dan Wheldon's May, 2011, interview with CBS' Early Show

Video replays showed Wheldon's car turning over as it went airborne and sailed into what's called the catch fence, which sits over a barrier that's designed to give a bit when cars make contact. Rescue workers were at Wheldon's car quickly, some furiously waving for more help to get to the scene.

"When we came around after the caution (flag) was thrown, I can't even describe to you what the scene looked like on the race track from our point of view," rookie driver James Hinchcliffe of Toronto told ABC. "It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before in my life."

Added Ryan Briscoe: "I'll tell you, I've never seen anything like it. The debris we all had to drive through the lap later, it looked like a war scene from Terminator or something. I mean, there were just pieces of metal and car on fire in the middle of the track with no car attached to it and just debris everywhere. So it was scary, and your first thoughts are hoping that no one is hurt because there's just stuff everywhere. Crazy."

Wheldon, who came to the United States from England in 1999, won 16 times in his IndyCar career and was the series champion in 2005.

Despite winning this year's Indy 500, Wheldon couldn't put together a full-time ride this season. He was racing in Las Vegas on the same team as Alex Tagliani of Lachenaie, Que.

"It's a very sad day," Tagliani said on his Twitter account. "He was my little brother from another mother."

Raiders QB Jason Campbell leaves in 2nd quarter with broken collarbone

OAKLAND, Calif. — Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell broke his right collarbone in the second quarter against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

Campbell landed hard on his shoulder after being hit at the end of a scramble by Cleveland linebackers Chris Gocong and Scott Fujita with about 4 minutes remaining in the half. Campbell stayed down on the turf after the hit and was then helped to the locker room.

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( Ben Margot / Associated Press ) - Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell (8) gets tackled by Cleveland Browns outside linebacker Scott Fujita (99) and outside linebacker Chris Gocong (51) in the second quarter of an NFL football game in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 16, 2011. Campbell left the game after this play.
( Paul Sakuma / Associated Press ) - Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell (8) is tended to by trainers after being injured against the Cleveland Browns in the second quarter of an NFL football game in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 16, 2011.

( Ben Margot / Associated Press ) - Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell (8) gets tackled by Cleveland Browns outside linebacker Scott Fujita (99) and outside linebacker Chris Gocong (51) in the second quarter of an NFL football game in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 16, 2011. Campbell left the game after this play.

Tests determined that he broke his collarbone.

“I’m not going to let this football team blink,” coach Hue Jackson said after a 24-17 victory. “We’ll miss Jason for a little while. I have no idea how long it will take. I don’t know. We’ll see as we go. I know, obviously, he won’t be here next week or anything like that. We’ll continue to press forward and get better.”

Campbell was replaced by Kyle Boller, who went 8-for-14 for 100 yards in his first action of the season.

“I felt very comfortable,” Boller said. “I probably was a little bit quick in the beginning. Wish I could slow my feet down a little bit, but that’s part of it. I felt like in the second half I got more comfortable each play, and even in the last couple drives it felt good.”

The only other quarterback on Oakland’s roster is rookie Terrelle Pryor, who will be activated Monday. Pryor got a one-week roster exemption after serving a five-game suspension to start his career.

Campbell has completed 60.6 percent of his passes for 1,170 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions this season. Campbell is in the final year of his contract.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Texas Rangers Win 2nd Consecutive World Series Berth After Defeating Detroit Tigers 15-5

ARLINGTON, Texas — Nelson Cruz and the Texas Rangers are headed to their second straight World Series, finishing off the Detroit Tigers to become the American League's first repeat champion in a decade.

Cruz set a postseason record with his sixth home run of the series, Michael Young hit a pair of two-run doubles in a nine-run third inning, and the Rangers romped to a 15-5 win Saturday night that won the AL pennant in six games.

They'll open the World Series on Wednesday night at St. Louis or Milwaukee, seeking the first title in the history of a franchise that started play in 1961.

Cruz had 13 RBIs in the series, another postseason record, and was selected MVP.

"He was unbelievable," teammate Adrian Beltre said. "Every moment we needed him, he came through."

Young, who also homered, had five RBIs in the finale, and the longest-tenured player on the Rangers helped make sure the World Series will again be deep in the heart of Texas.

Young caught Brandon Inge's game-ending popout in short right field and pumped a fist into the air signaling "No. 1" while fireworks and confetti filled the air, then ran toward the middle of the field to celebrate with his teammates.

Cruz threw both hands in the air and briefly knelt to a knee in the outfield before running to the infield for the ginger ale-spraying celebration to come while a banner was unfurled high over center field declaring the Rangers 2011 AL champions

With former President George W. Bush seated in the front row alongside Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan, part of the ownership group that took over the team last year, Rangers manager Ron Washington was at the edge of the dugout wildly waving his arms and shouting encouragement to his players as the big inning unfolded.

All Tigers manager Jim Leyland could do was take off his cap and scratch his head.

A franchise that began as the expansion Washington Senators and moved to Texas in 1972 had failed to reach the World Series in its first 49 seasons. Then the Rangers won their first AL pennant last year only to lose the Series to the San Francisco Giants in five games.

"As soon as the season began, we were hungry, we were hungry to get back," Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus said.

Texas overcame a 2-0 deficit by sending 14 batters to the plate against Detroit starter Max Scherzer (0-1) and three relievers in the highest-scoring postseason inning since 2002.

Alexi Ogando (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings for his second win in the series as the Rangers became the AL's first consecutive pennant winner since the New York Yankees won four in a row from 1998-01.

While Young became only the fourth player in postseason history with two extra-base hits in the same inning – first a tying double into the left-field corner and then one down the right field line for a 9-2 lead – every batter in the Texas lineup reached base at least once before the third out of the third. By the time all the fireworks was over, the Rangers scored the most runs ever in a postseason game against the Tigers and the most in any postseason contest since the Yankees routed Boston 19-8 in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS.

Also among the sellout crowd of 51,508 was Dirk Nowitzki, MVP of the NBA finals won by the Dallas Mavericks in June.

Now the Rangers get another chance to bring another championship to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and go a step further than last season.

Young, in his 11th season in Texas, had played in 1,508 career regular season games before finally getting into the playoffs last year. He added a huge exclamation point to his already big night when he led off the seventh with a 416-foot homer to straightaway center field.

His five RBIs matched the Rangers postseason record set by Cruz in Game 2.

Young's two two-run doubles came in the highest-scoring inning in a postseason game since the Angels s matched a playoff record with 10 runs in the seventh inning of Game 5 during the 2002 ALCS against Minnesota.

'The Walking Dead' season premiere recap: The Searchers

'The Walking Dead' season premiere recap: The Searchers
Our favorite band of apocalypse refugees hit the road, only to run afoul of a herd of undead. Bloodshed ensues.
By Darren Franich | Published Oct 16, 2011

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There are few story structures that are as fundamentally American as the Road Trip. Maybe it's because most of these United States only came into being after a few brave souls packed their lives into covered wagons and set off west. Maybe it's because Americans just love driving. Some of the most iconic works in every narrative medium are variations on the Road Trip theme -- Easy Rider, Huckleberry Finn, On the Road, the book and film of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Y: The Last Man.

And last night, after a six-episode first season that mostly stuck to the greater Atlanta area, the season premiere of The Walking Dead sent our ragtag band of still-breathing survivors on their own personal road trip from/to hell, careening down the lonesome highways of the post-apocalypse in a caravan that includes Dale's RV and Daryl Dixon's motorcycle. (If you were wondering how long it would take for the season premiere to make Norman Reedus look awesome, the answer is "about thirty seconds.)

The episode kicked off with Rick at his daily vigil, trying to reach Morgan on his walkie-talkie. "Atlanta's done," he explained. "We're going to Fort Benning. Can't be harder than our journey's been so far, can it? 125 miles, that's what lies ahead." (Well, technically about 118 miles. Too bad the survivors don't have Google Maps.) Everything started so well. In the Grimes family motor vehicle, Rick and Lori recalled a long-ago trip to the Grand Canyon, which was scotched at the halfway point when a very young Carl got sick: "I never knew a baby could throw up so much!" Meanwhile, in Dale's RV, Shane tried to show Andrea the basics of gun maintenance. He complimented her gun. She said the gun was a gift from her father. There seemed to be a vaguely implied attraction between the two characters, but that could just be because it's fun to talk about guns.

At this point, the caravan of courage ran afoul of a massive billion-car pile-up on the highway. It looked like a scene from Jean-Luc Godard's Weekend, except less French. Daryl tried to lead the cars through the wrecks, but the RV's engine blew halfway through the devastation. Dale was pessimistic: "We're stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of..." Then he looked around and realized he was literally surrounded by spare car parts. "Okay, that was dumb," he admitted.

I loved the casual air of the scene that followed, with the refugees fanning out around the cars to get supplies. Some of them found things that were useful: Shane found a massive collection of bottled water and instantly took a fully-clothed shower. "It's like being baptized!" said Shane. Some were just nice reminders that our characters were normal people pre-zombacalypse: Carol grabbed a red dress out of the trunk of a car, noting that her dead husband Ben "never let me wear nice things like this." Meanwhile, Dale scanned down the highway with his binoculars, and Rick kept watch with his sniper rifle. He saw one Walker and prepared to fire. Then he saw another one. Then -- oh, hello! He noticed an entire stumbling herd of undead bearing down on them. "Oh, Christ," he muttered. (For those keeping track for drinking-game purposes, that's two Jesus references in two minutes. They wouldn't stop there.)

Zachary Quinto: I’m ‘A Gay Man’

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Zachary Quinto attends “The Merchant Of Venice” opening night after party at Espace in New York City on November 7, 2010Caption “Star Trek” actor Zachary Quinto has decided to publicly reveal he is gay in a new interview and on a personal blog post, both of which hit the web on Sunday.

Following an eight-month stint in the New York City revival of “Angels in America” (where the 34-year old played a man who abandoned his AIDS-stricken boyfriend), Zachary told New York Magazine he was left in deep contemplation regarding the play’s dark themes.

“[The role was] the most challenging thing I’ve ever done as an actor and the most rewarding,” he said of the award-winning Tony Kushner play, in an interview posted on the mag’s website on Sunday. “And at the same time, as a gay man, it made me feel like there’s still so much work to be done, and there’s still so many things that need to be looked at and addressed.”

Zachary — who will next be seen on the big screen in the upcoming thriller, “Margin Call” — again referenced his sexuality while discussing the tragic death of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer, a gay teenager who took his own life last month after being bullied.

“And again, as a gay man I look at that and say there’s a hopelessness that surrounds it, but as a human being I look at it and say ‘Why? Where’s this disparity coming from, and why can’t we, as a culture and society, dig deeper to examine that?’” he told the mag. “We’re terrified of facing ourselves.”

In a personal post on ZacharyQuinto.com, the actor said Jamey’s suicide prompted him to live his own life publicly.

“in light of jamey’s death - it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it - is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality,” he wrote. “our society needs to recognize the unstoppable momentum toward unequivocal civil equality for every gay lesbian bisexual and transgendered citizen of this country.

“i believe in the power of intention to change the landscape of our society - and it is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action,” he continued. “jamey rodemeyer’s life changed mine. and while his death only makes me wish that i had done this sooner - i am eternally grateful to him for being the catalyst for change within me.”