Last night, a still-unidentified gunman opened fire in Charleston’s historic Emanuel A.M.E. Church, killing nine. The suspect, who police say is a white man in his early 20s, remains at large. Our liveblog about the shooting, its victims, and the manhunt for the suspect is below.

A likely terrified, apparently bleeding dolphin is stranded in the Gowanus Canal — the polluted Superfund site/former Mafia dumping ground running through central Brooklyn. Authorities and dolphin experts are on-scene, but no rescue operation can be attempted until for high tide — at 7 p.m.

Drudge: "ORGANIC: World's Deadliest Spider Found in WHOLE FOODS Produce..." Story: two experts dispute both the identification of the spider and that spider's deadliness. Plus:

Bernie Mac's publicist spent much of last night dispelling rumors that the 50-year-old comedian has died. He was checked into a Chicago hospital with pneumonia Friday night, but she says he's still alive and responding well to treatment. A source close to Mac's family, however, describes his condition as "very, very critical."

Times headline update: from "weighing" a resignation this morning to "expecting" same this afternoon to "HOW MUCH DID YOU PAY TO FUCK AROUND WITH US FOR TWO DAYS, ELIOT?"

Notoriously media-shy internet person Matt Drudge flew over to England to appear on News Corp's SkyNews (sans hat!). And in a rare TV interview, he slobbered all over Rupert Murdoch's newspapers and talked about how his unchanged-since-1997 news clearinghouse is the future of information dispersal. The interviewer did ask him an unexpected question about just who shares Matt's bed, but he declined to answer.

The Man Behind the Drudge Report Revaled [SkyNews via Soup Cans]

"My boyfriend just texted me that he was standing in Bryant Park when he heard a loud noise, looked up and saw a bunch of scaffolding plummeting down to earth from what he described as 'a great height.' It's a 'tall building opposite the corner of the park.' I know that's not particularly descriptive. He said people went fucking nuts. Not sure yet if anyone is hurt."

When it was reported that a couple of hoods had jumped Air America talk show host Randi Rhodes and knocked out some of her teeth, leftists and wobblies cried foul. "Right wing hate machine!" said John Elliot, a fellow host on AAR. Maybe there is one of those but Air America has retracted its claim that she was mugged at all. "On Sunday evening, October 14, Air America host Randi Rhodes experienced an unfortunate incident hindering her from hosting her show. The reports of a presumed hate crime are unfounded." Poor Randi! But maybe, suggests a reader, it was an alcohol crime?

Reports are filtering in that Air America host Randi Rhodes was severely beaten Monday night while walking her dog on 39th and Park. "Rhodes was beaten up pretty badly, losing several teeth and will probably be off the air for at least the rest of the week," writes Talking Radio. Air America, when reached for comment on the listener call-in line, said, "We don't want to feed the inaccurate rumor mill. Also, we don't know." Though the attacks haven't been reported elsewhere, Rhodes' website does mention that she isn't feeling well and has gone as far as creating a little church sign to that effect. Sam Seder is filling in for her. Murky!

From the mailbag, regarding Ivy League alum and douchey online dater John Fitzgerald Page: "I talked to John Page for 3 hours last night. So I called him.....a couple of times (and yes that is all it took). I don't know where to go with the information I have now after talking to him for seriously 3 HOURS. I will send you a copy of my phone bill a) if ATT has put it up yet b) you tell me where to send it, to prove what I am saying.... What do I do with 3 hours of information from the most hated/loved/entertaining/douchey guy on the internet today?"