Southeast Cobb Commissioner Bob Ott said this year's Movember campaign was the best yet. Ott said the group, made of 17 of Cobb's business, law and government leaders, raised $12,196 for prostate cancer research and awareness. Ott said he raised the most among the group at $2,700, and Robert Parker came in second with close to $2,000 raised. This year was the first time Ott hosted a golf tournament, which was Nov. 1 at the Dogwood Country Club, to raise money for the campaign, but said the tournament was "last minute," so he will spread the word sooner next year to build a bigger field.

The cause is close to Ott's heart. He lost his father to prostate cancer in December 2008. The campaign lasted from Nov. 1 to Nov. 30 worldwide, when partipants started clean-shaven on Nov. 1 and grew moustaches to raise awareness for the campaign.

"I'll do it every year because I think it's important, but my wife's not a big fan of the moustache. She counts down the days every year until I can shave it off," Ott said with a laugh.

District 4 Commissioner Woody Thompson is still sporting his moustache because, Ott said, Thompson's daughters want to see him with it on Christmas.

Overall, Ott said the United States raised $6.9 million for prostate cancer research through this year's campaign.

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POLITICAL PLATTER: U.S. Rep. Tom Price (R-Roswell) has been picked by incoming House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) to serve on the prestigious House Ways and Means Committee during the upcoming 112th Congress. That committee's jurisdiction includes tax and revenue measures, health care, trade, welfare, Social Security and Medicare.

His selection is a good indicator that Price is on better terms with Boehner than he is with incumbent Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Price, a retired orthopedic surgeon, recently noted that he's uncertain whether Pelosi even knows his name, telling Around Town that "she always just calls me 'Doc.'"

Price's appointment could give Cobb two members on high-ranking committees. U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-east Cobb) indicated to AT that he may be appointed to the Senate Finance Committee, the prestigious tax writing arm of the U.S. Senate. Isakson got an unexpected opportunity to spend time with his family this past weekend. He was scheduled for a trip to Afghanistan to visit our troops, but postponed the trip to be present for a vote on the Bush tax cuts.

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U.S. Rep. David Scott (D-Smyrna) said Monday that he supports the Bush tax cuts, explaining that the No. 1 concern he hears from constituents is to speed up the economic recovery and create jobs - and which also means that one of President Obama's most loyal Democrats has apparently broken rank.

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PEOPLE: AT sends its condolences to Cobb County Manager David Hankerson and his family after the passing of Hankerson’s mother on Saturday. Rhina Crawford was 101 when she died in Waynesboro, where she lived her whole life. Hankerson said he was on his way to the south Georgia town when his mother died, surrounded by friends and family. Ms. Crawford’s funeral will be Saturday in Waynesboro.

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NO DOUBT some Cobb school officials who’ve felt the heat from frequent MDJ guest columnist Pete Borden think he could pass for Scrooge. Well, that’s what he was doing recently in the Center Stage North production of “A Country Christmas Carol” by Ron Kaehler and Albert Evans and directed by Sarah Mitchell.

“It is kinda like Charles Dickens would have written it, had he lived in Texas and watched ‘Hee Haw’ and listened to the Grand Ole Opry,” reports Borden, a frequent actor/director/author of local community theater productions who will be playing Scrooge in the musical.

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Former Cobb County Schools Superintendent Kermit Keenum was defeated in his bid for the School Board in Prentiss County, Miss. Unfortunately, as an unpaid consultant, Keenum recommended and pushed for the consolidation of Prentiss County schools, which became controversial with many voters resenting his proactive and intrusive efforts.

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AGL Resources vice president and chief information officer Joe Surber, who grew up in Marietta and is a graduate of Lassiter High School, recently was recognized as an outstanding young Georgia executive by two major local business publications, the Atlanta Business Chronicle and Georgia Trend magazine. The Atlanta Business Chronicle tapped Surber for its celebrated list of “Up and Comers” for 2010. Georgia Trend also named Surber to its prestigious “40 Under 40” list for 2010.

Now living in Norcross, he is the only person to be honored by both publications this year. He became vice president and chief information officer at AGL Resources in 2008.

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TALK ABOUT unexpected Christmas presents — Marietta Kiwanis member and former president Alice Summerour, who manages her family’s extensive portfolio of Cobb real estate, won $1,727.50 in the club’s weekly charity raffle on Thursday. Merry Christmas!

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Joanna Conyngham, wife of Marietta florist Paul Conyngham, is home recuperating from triple bypass surgery last week. As Paul posted Monday on Facebook, “Everyone, especially women, take this as a heads up. Do not ignore issues with your heart. It can happen to anyone.”

THIS JANUARY marks a very special double feature event for The Strand.

“We have the opportunity to celebrate two legends: the two-year birthday of the reopening of the Earl Smith Strand Theatre and the 80th birthday of the theatre’s namesake, Earl Smith,” said Earl Reece, Strand executive director.

The Strand first opened its doors in 1935, providing movie entertainment to thousands until it closed its doors as a movie house in 1976. After serving as a variety of venues, a “For Rent” sign was placed in the box office window of the aged movie house.

Smith saw the weathered old Strand and envisioned her classic beauty restored at the center of a thriving community. With the assistance of many other volunteers, he organized the nonprofit Friends of The Strand Inc. and steered the six-year fundraising effort to bring life back to the heart of Marietta.

“Earl Smith has accomplished a great deal of things in his life. One of his great achievements was spearheading the initiative to reopen The Strand Theatre on the Marietta Square,” Reece said. “Through Earl’s hard work and determination, The Strand has become a diamond on the Square.”

On Jan. 8, 2011, the community will gather to applaud two years of the theater’s renewed life and the 80th birthday of Smith, while raising funds to keep The Strand alive and well. Guests will enjoy a black-tie evening of live stage entertainment, hors d’oeuvres, a birthday toast, and a silent auction benefitting The Strand. Tickets are on sale at The Strand’s box office and are $60 a person.

For more information or tickets, visit www.EarlSmithStrand.org or the box office at (770) 293-0080 or 117 North Park Square, Marietta, 30060. The box office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon; 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.; and two hours before the show.