Slaughter’s first four novels, tracing the adventures of two young heroes, Danny Tucker and Jase Addison, are set in a fictionalized town that sounds for all the world like Owosso, wartime 1944-45.

The Predators were short a forward Sunday, with Mike Fisher out of the lineup with an illness. The team went with 11 forwards and seven defensemen, and got off to a bit of a slow start. The same can’t be said for Dallas, though; Michael Ryder put the Stars on the board first, as he eluded Nashville’s defenders to turn a Mike Ribeiro pass into a 1-0 lead at 6:49 of the first.

A strong shift for the Preds with five minutes left in the first period seemed to change momentum, building toward a redirection goal by Gabriel Bourque at 15:39 to make it 1-1. Then Nashville took the lead on its first power play, with Shea Weber converting just as the buzzer sounded to end the first period.

After Colin Wilson made it 3-1 for the Preds at 16:05 of the second period, the Stars returned with pressure in the third. Despite being 0-8-2 this season in the second half of back-to-back games (Dallas suffered a 2-1 overtime loss Saturday night against Phoenix), the Stars looked anything but fatigued in the final period. Nashville netminder Pekka Rinne made a big stop on Eric Nystrom four and a half minutes into the final frame, but Alex Goligoski broke through to cut the Predators’ lead to 3-2 with just under five minutes left in regulation.

Newly acquired defenseman Hal Gill was whistled for tripping at 17:55 of the third, upping the drama as Dallas skated with its first power play. But Nashville killed off the penalty and the remaining five seconds to secure the road win, 3-2.

Next the Predators return to Nashville Tennessee to begin a four-game homestand with a Tuesday night match-up against the Vancouver Canucks. Game time is 7:00pm.

The measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Eric Watson of Cleveland was approved 70-26 after a lengthy debate on Thursday. All 26 votes against the bill came from Democrats. Seven voted for it.

The companion bill was to be heard on the Senate floor, but it adjourned before hearing the legislation. Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey told reporters later that the measure likely will be heard next Thursday.

Protesters have camped at the plaza since early October. At one time there were as many as 60 tents, but that number is now less than half, mainly because of the proposed legislation.

The measure would make it a misdemeanor to lay down “bedding for the purpose of sleeping.”

It refers to items associated with camping, “including tents, portable toilets, sleeping bags, tarps, propane heaters, cooking equipment and generators.”

Under the legislation, violators would be fined as much as $2,500 and face up to nearly a year in jail.

Supporters say the bill is necessary because of criminal activity and lewd behavior at the encampment. They say since the protesters arrived, there have been hundreds of additional reports of misconduct.

Law enforcement at the local and state level agrees that crime has increased since the protesters began occupying the plaza, but it hasn’t been a spike.

Nevertheless, Watson said something needs to be done to “restore the entire public’s right to use state property.”

“There have been weddings put off because of the protesters,” he said.

Added Republican Rep. Barrett Rich of Somerville: “This bill is for the 99 percent who want to come to the plaza.”

Opponents say the penalty is extreme and unnecessary.

“It seems like there was a special effort here to be punitive,” said Democratic Rep. Gary Odom of Nashville.

The Tennessean, Nashville’s daily newspaper, provided the set for the movie’s newsroom setting, and scenes were filmed throughout Middle Tennessee.

The film is about two investigative reporters, played by Eric Roberts and Steve Talley, who shed light on the slaying of a young black man that was never investigated in the 19 years since it happened, the newspaper reported (http://tnne.ws/whXgoO ).

The movie includes many performers who live in Tennessee.

“We’re a fan of creativity, and we’re also a fan of telling the tough story,” said Carol Hudler, president and publisher of The Tennessean, which co-hosted Wednesday night’s premiere. “Sometimes you really have to dig deep to tell the truth, and we’re all the better for it.”

Founder and Cash friend Bill Miller choked up while discussing the blueprints, which include permanent exhibits, a multipurpose room and a performance stage with 250 seats.

“This is the realization of a long-term dream,” he said, according to the Tennessean. Cash’s son John Carter Cash, brother Tommy and granddaughter Chelsea were also on hand for the news conference. Miller — a longtime collector of Cash memorabilia — will run the museum, which will feature items donated by the family and items from the now-closed Johnny Cash Museum in Henderson, Tenn.

“He’s been an incredible supporter of my dad and one of the largest collectors of memorabilia,” Cash’s daughter Roseanne Cash told Guitar World earlier this month. “If anybody has the whole structure to put up a museum, he does. So I have a lot of trust in him and I think it’s great at this point. I think he’ll do something with dignity and class that’s historically important, not some kitschy thing. I’m very interested in seeing what he does.”

The museum will be located within a block of the Country Music Hall of Fame, just off Broadway St. on Third Ave. Admission will be $13. The cost of building the museum is approximately $7 million.

The measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Eric Watson of Cleveland could be up for floor votes in both chambers this week. It would make it a misdemeanor to lay down “bedding for the purpose of sleeping.”

The proposal refers to items associated with camping, “including tents, portable toilets, sleeping bags, tarps, propane heaters, cooking equipment and generators.”

Protesters have camped at the plaza since early October. There are about 60 tents on the plaza and at least two portable toilets nearby.

At an emergency meeting on Monday afternoon, Occupy protesters decided to move some of their equipment to storage in the in event the law passes and police confiscate their belongings. Some members said they are going to commit civil disobedience by staying on the plaza if the law passes.

The group is also considering moving its camp outside Nashville’s historic courthouse should the law pass and members are arrested.

“Just because we move, we haven’t lost our message,” Occupy member Jason Steen said. “We’ll still be camping.”

The group’s proposals still have to be approved at a general assembly meeting Tuesday evening.

Watson said in the House Judiciary Committee last week that the proposal is necessary because of criminal activity and lewd behavior where the protesters are encamped.

He said someone believed to be associated with Occupy Nashville urinated on a state employee. Watson said those sorts of things tarnish the protesters’ efforts to have a “peaceable assembly.”

“You ought to be ashamed of yourselves,” said Watson in the committee, where he is chairman. “And if you think that’s peaceable assembly, you need to be peed on, and see how you like it.”

The protesters circulated a petition on Monday with more than 100 signatures calling for Watson to apologize for alleging that the urination act was associated with Occupy Nashville.

“The person or animal responsible for this act has never been identified,” said the petition, which also calls for his remarks to be “stricken from the record.”

“And no one has shown a connection of any sort with Occupy Nashville.”

Watson told The Associated Press he had no comment about the petition.

Under his proposal, violators would be fined as much as $2,500 and face up to 11 months and 29 days in jail.

The legislation comes several months after Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration lost a legal battle over a curfew that was used to temporarily dislodge the encampment. The administration is following a judge’s orders and promulgating rules for use of the plaza.

Watson has said that since Oct. 7, 131 people have been arrested by Nashville police, and there have been more than 1,000 reports of other misconduct on the block.

Law enforcement officials acknowledge there has been an increase in crime, but not quite as much as Watson’s numbers indicate.

“There have been certain investigations and arrests that were related to the presence of Occupy Nashville protesters,” said city police spokesman Don Aaron. “But there has not been a tremendous spike in what we would see ordinarily.”

Tennessee Highway Patrol Col. Tracy Trott agreed.

“There have probably been about 130 incident reports around the capitol plaza area,” he said. “That’s not to say all those involved are people from the Occupy movement. A lot of them were homeless people; a lot of them were people who were in downtown and around the Capitol.”

On Sunday, The Tennessean reported that the protesters are considering temporarily withdrawing from their encampment. The idea was among four discussed Saturday during a meeting about the group’s future.

D.J. Hudson, who was arrested in October when the state first tried to oust the group, told the newspaper she thinks protesters should return to their homes for the winter and regroup in the spring.

“I think being out here during the winter months is risking people’s health,” Hudson said. “I think we should plan for the spring, keep ourselves rested and return later stronger than when we left.”

The meeting did not lead to final decisions, but included a range of proposals, including:

–relocating the camp to Public Square, outside the historic Metro courthouse;
–preparing for an immediate protest or march if members are arrested;
–purchasing a storage unit for tents, books and supplies;
–moving to private land or a campground.

Eviction appears inevitable as lawmakers prepare to vote this week on a bill that would ban unauthorized camping on public grounds, with the threat of jail time for violators.

“The reason we’re having the meeting is for strategic withdrawal from the plaza, trying to find out where we’re going to move our camp to and also figuring out what we’re going to do with all the public stuff,” Hamill said.

Attendees vowed to continue their protests, whatever the outcome of their encampment.

Protesters want apology

Earlier Monday, Occupy Nashville demanded an apology from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Eric Watson, R-Cleveland, who last week expressed disgust at behavior on the plaza that he attributed to protesters. Watson said a legislative employee was “peed on.”

“If you approve of that — you think that’s peaceable assembly — you need to be peed on. See how you like it,” Watson said.

In a letter, the group calls Watson’s statement a “false accusation.”

“The person or animal responsible for this act has never been identified; there’s no evidence that the employee was intentionally targeted; and no one has shown a connection of any sort to with Occupy Nashville,” the letter reads.

Protesters sent the letter to Judiciary Vice Chairman Jim Coley, Watson, House Speaker Beth Harwell and news outlets.

The letter asks that the remarks be stricken from the record and demands an apology.

Protesters said they have not received a response. Watson could not immediately be reached.

For most people who walk down the streets of Nashville every day the people they see are just a blur, quick glances and friendly smiles. But to Carter Andrews, every person is a portrait.

“I love shooting portraits. No one expects to have the photo taken when they walk out of the house. My method is I can get your picture in thirty seconds and be done,” said Andrews.

The museum, planned for a former warehouse on Third Avenue South, will feature parts of Cash’s former home in Hendersonville. It also will include memorabilia from the personal collection of William “Bill” W. Miller Jr., a Cash biographer who is behind the effort, and items endowed by the Cash family.

Committees in the state Senate and House of Representatives each approved a ban on unauthorized camping on public grounds, setting up the possibility that the measure could clear the Tennessee legislature sometime next week.

The nearly identical measures would give Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration clearance to try again to remove the Occupy Nashville camp, though it is unclear whether it would act immediately. The bill also faces potential legal hurdles.