John Oliver, the local one, pens book
Saratogian and British expat John Oliver (no, not that one, the local one) grew up in Albany, was a speechwriter and communications guru for the House of Seagram and GE Capital, got married to Schenectady City Council member Leesa Perazzo and just wrote a book that he has been peddling about. “I Know This Looks Bad: Errors and Graces in a Louche Life.” The tome is a memoir in which he recounts his “academic disaster, dodgy foreign entanglements, preposterous corporate misadventures and delivers a few poignant tributes along the way,” in 365 vignettes, Saratoga Living writes.
Production, by hand: Badcock of Hacker-Craft
The Albany Business Journal has posted a profile of George Badcock, the man who bought Hacker Boat Co. in 2009. He says in the story that he bought the name but the rest of the company was “a wreck.” A car sales executive, Badcock saw potential in the high-end boats for which the wealthy shell out a half million dollars and don’t need a loan. The story also highlights Grado headphones, Townsend Leather and other companies that manufacture products by hand.
Public speaks on Warrensburg moratorium
A two-hour public hearing Thursday evening forced the Warrensburg Town Board to rethink a proposed, one-year moratorium on new commercial development downtown, the Post-Star is reporting. At issue is the look of Main Street and what can be done to make sure it does not change too drastically. The instigator of it was a proposal for a Dollar General store that does not look like the neighboring Victorian-era buildings. Generally, people do not want to slow business at this time and want to have choices available for construction, the story says.
Summons for governor created, not delivered
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo has not yet been charged with misdemeanor forcible touching, but a summons for him to appear in court on Nov. 17 has been created, though not delivered to the former governor, the Times Union is reporting. The premature summons was issued on Thursday after a sheriff's investigator filed paperwork. No final decision had been made by the sheriff's department or the Albany County district attorney's office on whether to formally file charges, the story says.