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Posted on Sun, Jan. 14, 2007  WADE TATANGELO  Herald Staff Writer  Emotions will be soaring when Sylvia Zerbini gallops around the ring while mounted bareback on her Andalusian stallion Tuesday at Robarts Arena in Sarasota. Expect a huge smile on her face and thundering applause when she then hoists herself onto the trapeze bar while the horse is in mid-stride. It will be the homecoming that the ninth-generation circus performer has hoped for ever since she joined the Greatest Show on Earth a decade ago. Sylvia and sister Patty Zerbini will be performing only miles from where they were raised. The audience will be peppered with family, friends and mentors. When the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus holds its first Sarasota performance in almost 50 years this week, attendees will witness a historic occasion. "We're all so excited," Zerbini said before a performance in Fort Myers. "We're lucky to finally be able to play in smaller venues - especially a city like Sarasota." How could Sarasota - a city synonymous with the circus - go almost a half century without a performance by Ringling Bros.? After all, Winter Quarters was here from 1927 to 1959, circus celebrities still call Sarasota home and John Ringling's legacy continues to permeate the city. However, when Irvin and Israel Feld and Judge Roy Holfheinz purchased Ringling Bros. in 1967, ties with Sarasota were severed. For years, Ringling Bros. prospered with two massive circus units - the Red and Blue - that only played major venues such as the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. Mid- and small-sized cities such as Sarasota could not accommodate the sprawling three-ring spectacle and were bypassed. That changed when circus owners Feld Entertainment added the Gold Unit in 2003. Rather than travel by train like the Red and Blue, the smaller, single-ring show packs its gear into 10 tractor-trailer trucks and plays places like Daytona Beach, Pikeville, Ky., and Lubbock, Texas. "It's a very intimate, interactive show," said Gold Unit General Manager Angelina Quevedo. "We have the high-wire, the flying trapeze and a menagerie that includes the largest traveling elephant - a 10½ feet tall, 12,200 pound male named Luke." That would be Patty Zerbini's Luke. But before Patty trots out her six-ton friend, sister Sylvia will dazzle and delight circus-goers by working 30 feet in the air with no safety devices. "I don't use any gimmicks," Sylvia said. "It's a big challenge, but it's an incredible feeling when you're up there." Cheering for Sylvia will be her mentor, legendary aerialist LaNorma Fox. The 79-year-old has lived in Sarasota since she was brought here from Europe by John Ringling North in 1949. Fox's skills remain on display to this day via the 1952 classic film "The Greatest Show on Earth," in which she was the stunt-double for star Betty Hutton. Wade Tatangelo, features writer/music critic, can be reached at 745-7051

To keep a musty smell out of closed rooms, place a pan of charcoal briquettes in the room to keep odor away. It also reduces mustiness and moisture in small spaces. Replace the briquettes every few months. You can also use them in a barbecue later.  To conceal a scratch on furniture that is made of light-colored wood, rub the meat of a peanut, pecan, Brazil nut or walnut into the scratch to make it disappear . Keep drawer knobs from loosening by drilling a small hole in the base of the knob. Clip a small nail in half, and insert the lower half in the hole with the point facing out. When you screw the knob on, the point will bite into the wood, keeping the knob from turning.	The Dutch prosecutors office Tuesday initiated court proceedings aimed at banning the Hells Angels throughout the country, bringing a case against the Northcoast Chapter of the motorcycle club based in the north-eastern coastal town of Harlingen.  The case, the first in a series of six throughout the country, was being heard in the town of Leeuwarden in the province of Friesland. The cases are being heard under the civil code, as the level of proof required is lower than under the criminal code.  Prosecutors described the Hells Angels as the second-largest crime organization in the world after the Mafia and said the case was the fruit of 10 years' investigation into an organization that regarded itself as "untouchable."  In October 2005, police raided 70 premises, including the clubhouses of the organization in Amsterdam, Alkmaar, Haarlem, Harlingen, Ijmuiden, Kampen and Rotterdam.  TODAY'S THRIFTY TIP:  "Stretch" everything as much as you possibly can. For example, you can dilute these products with water, or cut them in half and they will work just as well:  toothpaste, shampoo, hair conditioner, dish detergent, dishwasher soap, and laundry soap.
Pulling the Airlines out of bankruptcy . I think we should dump the male flight attendants. No one wanted them in the first place. Then we should replace all the female flight attendants with good looking strippers! What the hell, the attendants have gotten old and haggard looking. They don't even serve food anymore, so what's the loss? The strippers would at least triple the alcohol sales and get a "party atmosphere" going in the cabin. And, of course, every businessman in this country would start flying again, hoping to see naked women. Because of the tips, female flight attendants wouldn't need a salary, thus saving even more money. I suspect tips would be so good that we could charge the women for working and have them kick back 20% of their tips, including lap dances and "special services." Muslims would be afraid to get on the planes for fear of seeing naked women. Hijackings would come to a screeching halt, and the airline industry would see record revenues. This is definitely a win-win situation if we handle it right. It's a golden opportunity to turn a liability into an asset. Why the hell didn't Bush think of this? Why do I still have to do everything myself? Sincerely, Bill Clinton.	Girls-only dads' prostate cancer risk high  NEW YORK, -- Men with only daughters have a higher risk of prostate cancer than men with at least one son, suggesting a chromosome defect, a U.S.-Israeli study said. Some studies previously suggested that prostate cancer risk could be linked with alterations on the X or Y chromosomes, Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health re- searchers said. Because alterations on the sex chromosomes could affect the probability of having sons or daughters, Susan Harlap of Columbia University, said she studied cancer incidences and offspring of nearly 39,000 men participating in the Jerusalem Perinatal Study. During the study period, 712 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer.  Men with only daughters had a 40 percent increased risk of prostate cancer when compared with men who had at least one son, researchers found. Men with no daughters showed neither an increase nor decrease in prostate cancer risk compared with men having children of both sexes.  "Overall, our findings are consistent with hypotheses that tie Y chromosome loci to prostate cancer, although other explanations cannot be excluded," Harlap said, adding that more study was needed. The results were published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute January issue. EDINBURGH, Scotland, -- Scotland is boasting the world's first breed of chicken genetically altered to lay eggs that can be used to make life-saving drugs. Researchers at the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh said they created a 500- bird flock, offering the prospect of mass-producing drugs at a fraction of the annual per patient cost currently paid by the National Health Service, the Sunday Times of London said. Researchers added human genes to the DNA of ISA Brown hens, enabling them to produce complex proteins. These human proteins are secreted into the whites of the birds' eggs, from which they can be extracted to produce drugs. Roslin scientists achieved a world-first in creating birds that "breed true," meaning added human genes are passed from generation to generation, observers said. This opens the door for creating a potentially limitless, inexpensive source of medicinal proteins. "This is potentially a very powerful new way to produce specialized drugs," said Dr Karen Jervis of Viragen Scotland, a biotech company work- ing with Roslin. "We have bred five generations of chickens so far and they all keep producing high concentrations of pharmaceuticals." The research appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Sarasota searching for volunteers for marathon  HERALD STAFF REPORT  Herald Staff Writer  SARASOTA - Anticipating more than 3,000 runners to hit the streets during the Sarasota Marathon on March 4, Sarasota is looking for volunteers to be course monitors and man water stations. Runners of the 26-mile marathon will start the race on Bay Shore Road in front of the Ringling Museum at 6 a.m.  and return to the museum around noon, according to a city press release. There is also a half-marathon that runs simultaneously. Participants will travel along Bay Shore Road onto U.S. 41 and continue to Ben Franklin Parkway. Runners will then travel through Ken Thompson Park, South Lido Beach Park, Bayfront Park and Southside Village before crossing the finish line. Water stations will be established at Sarasota Jungle Gardens, Centennial Park, Bird Key Park, Ken Thompson Park, Sarasota Yacht Club, North Lido Beach, South Lido Beach Park, Bayfront Park and Morton's Market, according to the press release. The course map is posted on the web site www.sarasotamarathon.com/course.cfm. Representatives of the Sarasota Marathon will host an informational volunteer meeting on Wednesday, January 24 at the YMCA at 1075 S. Euclid Ave in Sarasota. Although no roads will be closed during the marathon, there will be some lane closures along the route, so the city is warning drivers to expect some traffic congestion and possible delays on March 4. Traffic guidance will be provided by the Sarasota Police Department, but volunteers will also be on hand to help direct the runners, the press release stated. For more information about the opportunities to volunteer, contact Karen Hayes, the marathon's registration coordinator, at 941-365-1978.