Actress Will Play Big Role in Hamlet for $20 Million

Kim Basinger literally goes to town when she makes an investment. The actress is buying most of Braselton, Ga., for $20 million from a family that owns about 80% of it. For her money, she will get about 1,800 acres, the water and sewer system, an industrial park, several businesses and about 50 homes and other buildings, according to Herbert B. Braselton, whose grandfather, William Harrison Braselton, settled the community in 1876. He said that the sale will close this summer. Basinger, whose movies include “Blind Date,” “9 1/2 Weeks” and “The Natural,” grew up in nearby Athens. The local government of the town, which is 40 miles north of Atlanta and has about 500 residents, will not be affected by the sale, Braselton said. Details of the deal’s financing were not immediately available.

--Citizens of Riverside, Iowa, cannot be accused of offering belated birthday wishes. In fact, the about 200 people who gathered at the VFW Hall for a birthday party were 239 years early. The celebration was for James T. Kirk, the fictional captain of the Starship Enterprise played by William Shatner in movies and the television series “Star Trek.” Gene Roddenberry, creator and executive producer of the series, wrote in “The Making of Star Trek” that Kirk was born in a small town in Iowa. The Riverside City Council picked up on the idea in 1985, declaring a site in town the “future birthplace” of Kirk.

--Randall Dale Adams hopes to build a future by speaking about his past. Adams, 40, was freed last week from prison after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reversed his 1977 conviction for the murder of a Dallas policeman. Adams’ story was chronicled in Errol Morris’ documentary, “The Thin Blue Line,” which questioned evidence in the case. “I want to get some speaking engagements, talk to people, law schools, places where lawyers and judges are trained. They must know my story,” Adams said. “If I can support myself and do that, I want to take that avenue. But failing that, I’ll get a job. In that case, Randall Adams could just filter into the mists of time.”