Thursday AM

This may very well be the craziest shit I've ever heard... A 21-year-old wheelchair bound dude was taken on a wild ride yesterday afternoon when the wheelchair he was in became attached to the grille of a semi-truck and was taken four miles down a highway at about 50 mph. "You are not going to believe this, (but) there is an 18 wheeler pushing a guy in a wheelchair on Red Arrow Highway," an unknown caller told the Michigan State Police. Police at first believed the calls were pranks. But when troopers responded to where the semi had come to a stop, they noticed the wheelchair with the man sitting in it, still attached. The driver was in disbelief when he stepped out of the semi and saw what he had picked up along the way, police said. An investigation revealed the truck driver had pulled out of a local gas station when the man in the wheelchair pulled in front of the semi, according to police. His wheelchair somehow became lodged by its handles to the front grille. "It was quite a ride," the wheelchair bound man reportedly told police. He was unfazed and unharmed.

I've been thinking about the B-52's a lot lately so it was interesting to hear this morning that 15 years after their last album of new material, The B-52's are wrapping up work on their next one. Fred Schneider said the 11 new tracks will maintain the B-52's danceable, party vibe but will showcase some new directions for the band. "There's more electronica on it," he said. "It's up-tempo and a bit sexed-up. It's sexier than ever." Schneider said post-production work on the album is expected to begin soon, with plans to release it early next year. The band owns the master recordings of the album and is now shopping for a record label to release it. Meanwhile, the group plans a handful of U.S. and European tour dates this summer, with a full concert schedule planned when the album is released.
"It's great to perform when we have new material," Schneider said. "That makes all the difference." The last time I saw my boy Fred must've been 1998, he was going to check his PO BOX near Varick Street. Holla!

In Pictures: A History of Cell Phones: From Motorola's first phone, which weighed in at 2 pounds, to Apple's upcoming iPhone, here's a look at how cell phones have evolved over the years from nothing into something we can't seem to live without.

State troopers crackin' down... More than 20 teens were arrested for underage drinking before last night's Fall Out Boy concert at PNC. The shake down came following a concert in May in which 13 kids had to be taken to hospitals because of alcohol. The youngest was 11 years old.

Why didn't anyone tell me there was a public diamond park !??! Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas is the world's only diamond-producing site open to the public and visitors are allowed to keep the gems they find. On average, two diamonds are found each day at the park. A 13 year old chick found a tea-colored, 2.93-carat diamond yesterday. The largest of the 25,000 diamonds found since the state park was established in 1972 was the 16.37-carat Amarillo Starlight, a white diamond found by a visitor from Texas in 1975. Does JetBlue fly to Arkansas?

Iowa Hill, California: Alone in the woods with his left leg pinned beneath a fallen tree for 11 hours, a 66-year-old Al Hill used pocket knives to cut off his leg below the knee to free himself. My grandma will read about this in Readers Digest 6 months from now.

The Spice Girls are getting back together.

Paris Hilton is out of jail already. She was originally sentenced to 45 days, but that was reduced to 23. She served a total of three days.

Williamsburg street-artists Faile are having their first solo NYC gallery show this weekend at an old glass factory on Chrystie Street just south of Stanton. If you've enjoyed their street work and are in the neighbourhood, check out the show-- today through Sunday, 11am-6pm, at 201 Chrystie.

Her life was filled with intense fame and tragedy. Four decades after her death, Edith Piaf remains one of the most renowned singers of all time. She was born into poverty, rose to become the toast of Paris, and then struggled with alcohol and drugs until she died at age 47. Today on WNYC the director of the new film "La Vie En Rose" tells why it took 40 years to bring Piaf’s remarkable story to the big screen. Tune in to 93.9 FM at 2pm.