Meatball-eating winner

Joey Chestnut maintained his dominance in the sport of competitive eating — and expanded his palate — by winning the first-ever Martorano’s Masters Meatball Eating Championship in Las Vegas.

Chestnut on Sunday gobbled 50 meatballs in 10 minutes at the Rio All Suite Hotel & Casino.

The 6.25 pounds was a new world record and earned him the first-place prize of $1,500.

Pat “Deep Dish” Bertoletti finished in second place, just one meatball behind Chestnut.

Sonya Thomas, weighing in at 105 pounds, ate 42 meatballs to finish third.

The event was a Major League Eating-sanctioned competition.

Chestnut’s resume also includes hot dog, pizza and chicken wing contests.

 

Flocks of birds

It’s not quite Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds,” but former Mannington Mayor Frank White says he’s had enough of the winged creatures for a long time.

White says his neighbor, City Councilman Jeff Michael, has been providing a regular smorgasbord for birds, with seed, bread and even French fries.

As a result, White says there are up to 60 birds at a time on his property. He says most of the birds are pigeons, which he calls a nuisance.

He’s asked the city to intervene, but current Mayor Bob Garcia says he’s not sure exactly what powers Mannington has in the situation.

Garcia has asked Michael to curtail the bird buffet for a while, and the mayor says Michael has agreed.

 

Graffiti work incomplete

Police in Florida say a graffiti artist who apparently ran out of paint midway through a spray-painted creation left a note to potential critics to explain the unfinished work.

Palm Bay police Officer Dan Fisher says the artist painted the words “ran out of purple” on the white concrete wall. The note was next to an incomplete bright purple piece that read “Solo.”

Fisher says the artist would likely face a criminal mischief charge if he or she is apprehended.

The damage was estimated at about $200.

 

Stolen car for court

The California Highway Patrol say a man stole a car to make a court appearance on a previous auto theft charge.

Patrol investigator Chris Linehan says he arrested Samuel Botchvaroff Tuesday as he sat inside a stolen 2000 Range Rover at the Vallejo courthouse.

 The 24-year-old Botchvaroff had just left his arraignment on auto theft charges stemming from an Oct. 31 arrest.

Linehan said the Range Rover’s LoJack system helped him locate the vehicle, which had been stolen from Oakland earlier Tuesday morning.

Authorities say Botchvaroff told officers his car had been impounded, and he had no other way to get to his arraignment.

He was booked into Solano County Jail on suspicion of auto theft and possession of stolen property.

 

Lawmaker in manure

A sculpture of a New Zealand government minister crafted from cow manure sold for New Zealand dollars 3,080 ($2,220) on an auction Web site.

The bust of New Zealand Environment Minister Nick Smith, sculpted as a protest by artist Sam Mahon, attracted 112 bids before being picked up by an anonymous buyer on Friday.

Mahon said he created the sculpture, and chose the medium, to protest what he considers Smith’s too-soft stance on pollution created by dairy farms. He said the bust did not smell and would last forever.

“The sculpture has a hollow head, which is very fitting. It is highly polished and sits on the stand slightly to the right of center,” Mahon said.

Mahon gathered cow dung from an organic dairy farm, ground it in a coffee grinder, mixed it with a polymer resin and pressed it into a mold. He polished the sculpture with beeswax to create a finish that resembles bronze.

Smith joked about the tribute Friday.

“Excuse the pun, but I would describe it as crap art,” he said.

Mahon’s said he will use the proceeds from the auction to help clean up waterways polluted by effluent from dairy farms near his home.

 

Man charged after call

Oregon police have charged a man with drunken driving after he called 911 to report his marijuana as stolen but the dispatcher couldn’t understand him because he was vomiting while on the road.

Marion County sheriff’s deputies say 21-year-old Calvin Hoover, of Salem, told dispatchers early Tuesday that someone had broken into his truck and stolen cash, a jacket and a small amount of marijuana while he was at a tavern in Salem.

He then called 911 again to complain that deputies had not arrived, but the dispatcher had trouble understanding Hoover because he was driving and stopping several times to vomit.

He was arrested on charges of driving under the influence of intoxicants.

The sheriff’s office says it has no record of an attorney for Hoover.