‘Oprah’ show on sex offenders helps track down fugitive

Fargo, North Dakota – The same week Oprah Winfrey began devoting time on her show to tracking down sex offenders, she has a collar to show for it.

William C. Davis, 33, of Wadesville, Indiana, was arrested in Fargo on Thursday, two days after the talk-show host broadcast his face and offered $100,000 for information leading to his capture.

Jean Rosenthal of Moorhead, Minnesota, recognized Davis as “Mark,” a neighbor of her friend Karie Miller. She called Miller on Wednesday, and the 29-year-old Fargo deli worker discovered the man’s identity Thursday morning on a Web site.

“His picture came up and I started shaking so bad, I couldn’t hold my coffee,” Miller told The Forum of Fargo in Friday editions.

Davis, who was on the FBI’s Most Wanted Fugitives list, was one of several fugitive sex offenders shown on Winfrey’s program Tuesday. The reward, offered by her production company, applies to fugitives presented on the show and on http://www.oprah.com.

Davis faces felony charges of molesting three Indiana boys last year and failing to register as a sex offender. He was convicted of child molestation in 1992.

Davis, arrested by FBI agents, was in jail, awaiting an extradition hearing to return to Indiana.

Michael Jackson falls while making way through crowd

London – Michael Jackson fell to the ground as he tried to make his way through a throng of hundreds of fans outside the Victoria Palace theater, where he watched the stage version of the movie “Billy Elliot.”

Security staff forced a path for Jackson, 47, through the admirers and photographers standing outside the theater so he could reach the front door. But the singer fell in the commotion.

At the performance, Jackson mingled with other spectators, chatting and signing autographs.

“He talked to us saying hello and there were a lot of people around him,” said Roxanne Wisenberg, 47, of San Diego. “He was very nice and his children were with him.”

Jackson was in London to work on recording a song to benefit Hurricane Katrina victims. He was staying at the Dorchester Hotel in Park Lane, where fans gathered outside in hopes of seeing him.

Photographer charged with child endangerment

Anaheim, Calif. – A photographer was charged with child endangerment and battery for allegedly striking a 5-year-old child with his camera and shoving another out of the way to take pictures of Reese Witherspoon and her children.

Todd K. Wallace, 44, was charged Friday and was due back in court Wednesday, Assistant City Attorney Patrick Ahle said.

The photographer also is charged with battering the 5-year-old’s mother, who is a friend of Witherspoon, and two employees at a Disney theme park, said Anaheim Police Sgt. Rick Martinez.

Wallace became angry when the “Legally Blonde” star and her friends declined to be photographed Sept. 2 at Disney’s California Adventure and cursed them, Martinez said. Wallace was initially cited for misdemeanor assault and battery of the two employees.

The incident left some of the children in tears.

Wallace served more than four years in prison after a 1993 conviction of second-degree burglary and receiving goods by fraud, according to state corrections records.

Actress appeals for increased public school funding

Sacramento, Calif. – Annette Bening appeared on the Capitol steps to make an appeal for increased funding for the arts in California’s public schools.

“Education and art in our culture should not be treated as a luxury for some, but as an absolute necessity for every one of us and every one of our kids,” the actress said Friday.

The two-time Oscar nominee is a member of the California Arts Council and was participating in California Arts Day. Bening reminisced about her grade-school trip to the San Diego Opera House and the first time she saw a Shakespeare play, on a junior high school field trip.

Bening said she fears children in public schools don’t have those opportunities today.

Bening’s husband, actor and director, Warren Beatty, a longtime Democratic activist, has criticized Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in recent months, fueling speculation that he might make a bid for governor next year.

Schwarzenegger, a Republican, has placed several ballot initiatives on the Nov. 8 ballot, including one that would change the way schools are funded.