Word: deftly
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...adventure, Appleby and the Ospreys (Dodd Mead; 185 pages; $15.95), to investigate the murder of a dotty peer struck down in the library of his ancestral country pile. There is not much out of the ordinary in either the premise or the solution, but Innes' plot prestidigitation is as deft as ever, and his celebrated sense of humor is in full flood, whether sketching a social-climbing mother or recounting a literal manifestation of bats in the belfry of a parish church...
...that Southland Corp. was ripe for takeover. A roster of raiders were said to be eyeing the company that operates the ubiquitous 7-Eleven chain of 7,700 convenience stores and owns 50% of Citgo Petroleum. Last week the family that holds a 10% interest in Southland made a deft maneuver. John, Jere and Jodie Thompson, whose father Joe founded the firm in 1927, offered to buy the rest of the company for $3.8 billion, or $77 a share, and take it private. Just seven weeks ago, Southland stock traded at $48. But investors may reap yet bigger rewards. Southland...
Deflecting the tough questions of the committee lawyers with lengthy answers and some deft jabs ("Don't get angry, counsel. I'm going to answer your question"), the combative North brazenly defended many of his actions. He even assailed members of Congress for putting him through what he called "this ordeal." Said North: "I don't mind telling you that I'm angry at what you have attempted to do to me and my family...
Once again, Reagan's proposed Strategic Defense Initiative may be playing a central role in the Kremlin's thinking. Gorbachev has a history of performing deft flip-flops on whether to demand SDI restrictions as a condition for other arms-control agreements. A year ago, he indicated that an INF deal could be cut separately. That led to October's Reykjavik summit. There the Soviets proposed a package deal, including acceptance of Reagan's zero option on INF in Europe along with deep cuts in strategic weapons and restrictions on SDI. The deal fell apart because Reagan felt Gorbachev...
...zany nerd. Both actors have nifty fun updating these roles. Quaid, flashing the satanic grin patented by Jack Nicholson, ensures that Tuck makes a convincing connection with a friend he cannot embrace until the end of the movie. And Short, late of SCTV and Saturday Night Live, is one deft darling. Jack begins as a wild paranoiac but soon straightens up and loosens up, especially in a maniacal boogie he performs to Sam Cooke's Twistin' the Night Away. If this number doesn't win Short an Oscar, it should at least cop him second prize on Dance Fever...