Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants (DRI 29.90), operator of the Olive Garden and Red Lobster chains, reported fiscal third quarter earnings well above expectations and issued a full year outlook that tops the current consensus estimate. Darden reported earnings of $0.80 per share in its fiscal third quarter, excluding nonrecurring items. The results were $0.12 better than the First Call consensus of $0.68.

Darden said combined same-restaurant sales were down 3.2% in the quarter. Olive Garden performed the best, with a same-restaurant sales decline of 1.4%. Looking ahead, the Orlando, Fla.-based company issued upside guidance for the full year, expecting earnings per share from $2.66 to $2.74, well ahead of the $2.52 consensus. Revenues are expected to range from $7.09 billion to $7.13 billion, shy of the $7.23 billion consensus.

The chain that is behind such brands as Olive Garden and Red Lobster sees 2009 ESP results coming in 15-20 cents higher than analysts have been anticipating. Management expects sales growth of between 9 percent and 9.5 percent for the year, despite forecasting same-store sales to drop to between 1.25 percent and 1.75 percent. The euphoria in today’s rise may also be tied in to options expiration and some traders getting caught leaning the wrong way.

Whitney Hendrickson

Whitney Hendrickson, 18, was filling a minivan with gasoline, when she the crash happened. An SUV hit a pickup truck and they slammed into gas pump pinning Hendrickson against her minivan. Witnesses say the Palmer High School graduate was screaming for help in the fire. There were 2 explosions, according to witnesses. Hendrickson was killed.

Bystanders tried to rescue her, but were forced back by the flames. Firefighters came across her body as they put out the fire. One person was in the passenger seat of the minivan and escaped unhurt. The crash happened at the 7-11 is on W. Colorado. W. Colorado was closed for several hours, but is now open. The driver of the pick up was Gebarra, 21, of Colorado Springs. Police say he wasn't hurt.

he driver of the Ford Explorer was Kelli Renae McKay, 29, of Colorado Springs. Police say she was taken to Memorial Hospital where she was treated for her injuries and released. She faces a charge of with Careless Driving Involving Death, a Class One Misdemeanor. Hendrickson was on Spring break. She attends Grinnell College in Iowa. Her friend, Julie Podair, was in the van with her, but escaped without injuries. Her father, David Hendrickson, is a political science professor at Colorado College.

Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson’s wife Natasha Richardson seriously injured in ski accident Reports emerged yesterday that actress Natasha Richardson has been seriously injured in a ski accident outside of Montreal. She was flown into New York in the afternoon and The New York Times has confirmed that she is in very serious condition… Other reports have claimed brain damage or swelling. Others report that friends and family are gathering in New York to “say goodbye.”

onflicting reports about Natasha Richardson’s condition after yesterday’s ski accident. Personally, I’m holding onto the stories that have The White Countess star walking to her room and laughing for some time after the fall, before entering the hospital complaining of headaches. The NY Post has jumped to the worst conclusions, but TMZ has sources who say Ms. Richardson is sedated with brain swelling.

Natasha Richardson and Liam Neeson met as the stars of the 1993 revival of "Anna Christie" at what was then the Criterion Center. At the time, Richardson was married to producer Robert Fox, and Neeson was a perennial bachelor who had wooed stars such as Helen Mirren, Julia Roberts, Barbra Streisand and Brooke Shields. Soon they were New York City fixtures, who could frequently be seen at Cafe Luxembourg, an upper West Side bistro near their apartment or, when they started a family, taking their sons to swimming lessons.