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Tony Awards telecast make inclusive history and puts on quite a show despite Hollywood strike

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The intimate, funny-sad musical “Kimberly Akimbo” nudged aside splashier rivals on Sunday to win the musical crown at the Tony Awards on a night when Broadway flexed its creative muscle amid the Hollywood writers’ strike and made history with laurels for nonbinary actors J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell.“Kimberly Akimbo,” with songs by Jeanine Tesori and a book by David Lindsay-Abaire, follows a teen with a rare genetic disorder that gives her a life expectancy of 16 navigating a dysfunctional family and a stuttering high school romance. Victoria Clark, as the lead in the show, added a second Tony to her trophy case, having previously won one in 2005 for “The Light in the Piazza.”Producer David Stone credited the musical’s writers for penning a magic trick, calling “Kimberly Akimbo” a “musical comedy about the fragility of life, so healing and so profound and joyous that is almost impossible.”Earlier, Tony Awards history was made when Newell and Ghee became the...

Survey: EU mayors list climate action as top priority

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

This article is part of POLITICO’s Global Policy Lab: Living Cities, a collaborative journalism project exploring the future of cities. Sign up here.Climate change is a key concern for Europe’s local leaders, with a majority of mayors in 92 major cities across the bloc listing it as a top priority in a new survey published today.More than half of surveyed mayors said they intend to pass green measures, and listed the creation of low-emissions zones and new green spaces among their key objectives, according to the survey conducted by Eurocities, a network representing more than 200 cities in 38 countries.Over a quarter said climate threats posed a major challenge to their cities, adding that they are actively working on measures to mitigate extreme weather events and meet ambitious climate neutrality targets.“The mayors’ strong commitment to climate action comes in contrast to a worrying trend we currently see among national and European politicians, m...

Brayan Bello matches career-best night in extra-inning win over Yankees

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

Entering Sunday night’s series finale in New York, the Red Sox were 8-12 in series finales, and even one of Brayan Bello’s best starts of his burgeoning career couldn’t make it an easy night.The first two games of the series had been tight, why should the third be any different?Tighter, even, as it was Boston’s first extra-inning game since April 29.From start to finish, it was a night of dominant Red Sox pitching. For the second time in his career, Bello made a 7-inning start, holding the Yankees to two sort-of-earned runs and the only three hits they’d collect all night. They own the fourth-lowest on-base percentage in the majors.After Bello exited, Nick Pivetta, Kenley Jansen, and Chris Martin combined for three no-hit innings, with Martin slamming the door in the bottom of the 10th for a 3-2 victory.As has been the case lately, what held the Red Sox back for most of the night was their bats, or lack thereof.Jarren Duran led off with a 110 mph double...

San Diego has a new Steelers bar, following Bubs at the Beach's closure

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- About two months after San Diego's official Steelers bar, Bubs at the Beach, closed down, a new Pacific Beach bar has stepped up to take its place.The bar, Break Point, announced Sunday that they would be replacing Bubs at the Beach as the go-to spot for Steelers fans to cheer on their football team from America's Finest City, now that the Pacific Beach staple has shut down after 25 years of service.Starting in the fall, Break Point will offer local Pittsburgh fans the same kind of game-day experience Bubs at the Beach became known for during their 25 years serving as the spot for the Steelers Club of San Diego. All game broadcasts for the Steelers will be available to watch at the bar, while fans can munch on dishes from a unique Pittsburgh Steelers menu. Bar Ella to succeed Bub’s at the Beach in Pacific Beach Among the new Steelers-themed dishes coming to Break Point is a new burger called the "Roethlisburger," named after the Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger...

Logan Heights lot transformed into 'comic book' baseball diamond

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A vacant San Diego lot was transformed into a "comic book-inspired diamond" by Major League Baseball on Sunday, as part of "PLAY BALL," a weekend pop-up event for underserved youth.About 150 kids participated in the event, which aimed to provide greater accessibility to baseball and softball, hosted at the renovated Greely Lot 3256 in Logan Heights.The pop-art-style field designed by San Diego artist Geoff Gouveia, depicts a baseball shot off a bat that's headed towards the fences -- a creation that took about a week to paint on the lot using regular house paint."We wanted to keep the design really playful for the kids," Gouveia said. "We wanted to keep it in that comic book, pop-art feel so that it feels very much like children should play on it.""I love seeing the kids go around and tear it up and have a good time," Gouveia continued, "because that's what it was designed for." San Diego has a new Steelers bar, following Bubs at the Beach’s closure Kids took to the f...

Police: 3 dead, 3 wounded in shooting at Maryland home stemming from dispute

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Three people were killed and three wounded in a shooting Sunday night at a house in Maryland’s capital city, police said.Annapolis Police Chief Edward Jackson told reporters at a media briefing that the shooting stemmed from what he described as an “interpersonal dispute” and that there was no further threat to the public. “It’s a very active and fluid investigation. We’re still trying to determine everything that occurred. We’re still piecing it together. We have a lot more work to do,” Jackson said.He declined to elaborate on the relationship between the people involved, but said those killed ranged in age from their 20s to their 50s. He said that authorities hadn’t established a firm motive for the shooting. “It wasn’t random,” Jackson said, noting that the victims “died outside” the home. Numerous police cars were seen in the residential area where the shooting happened south of the city center and near the waterfront. Jackson said o...

New York firefighter drowns while trying to rescue daughter at Jersey Shore beach, authorities say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A New York City firefighter lost his life while trying to save his daughter, who became distressed while swimming at a New Jersey beach, authorities said.FDNY firefighter Mark Batista of Teaneck, New Jersey, died Friday morning, WNBC-TV reported.The 39-year-old reportedly went into the water at Sylvania Avenue beach in Avon-by-the-Sea around 8:30 a.m. to assist his 15-year-old daughter. It was not immediately clear what happened to the girl to require assistance near a jetty, the station reported. First responders contacted by witnesses rescued the girl from the water, but her father was not found until around 10 a.m. about 50 feet (15 meters) from the shore. Police said emergency responders attempted life-saving measures before Batista was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where he died, WNBC reported.The girl also was transported to the hospital and was expected to recover.Lifeguards are not scheduled to begin working at the beach before June 1...

Songwriter Cynthia Weil, who had hits with husband Barry Mann, honored at California memorial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — As guests filed into Sunday’s music-filled memorial for Cynthia Weil, they smiled in recognition and sang along to a string of hit songs she co-wrote that were played on speakers in a lush courtyard of the Beverly Hills Hotel. Weil, the Grammy-winning lyricist who enjoyed a decades-long partnership with husband Barry Mann and helped compose “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling,” “On Broadway,” “Walking in the Rain” and dozens of other timeless tunes, died last week at age 82.Singer Tony Orlando, who hosted the private event from a small stage with a grand piano, admonished attendees that despite the cloudy skies the day was not to be mournful, but a sunny celebration. “I want the applause to be loud!” he said. Orlando performed “Bless You,” the 1961 ballad that gave Weil and Mann their first top 20 hit. They were married within months of the song’s release. White-coated waiters distributed trays of bright green apple martinis, Weil’s favori...

In Uganda, a recent ban on charcoal making disrupts a lucrative but destructive business

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

GULU, Uganda (AP) — The charcoal makers in the forests of northern Uganda fled into the bush, temporarily abandoning their precious handiwork: multiple heaps of timber yet to be processed. The workers were desperate to avoid capture by local officials after a new law banned the commercial production of charcoal. They risked arrest and beatings if they were caught. But what’s really at stake for the charcoal makers is their livelihood. “We are not going to stop,” said Deo Ssenyimba, a bare-chested charcoal maker who has been active in northern Uganda for 12 years. “We stop and then we do what? Are we going to steal?”The burning of charcoal, an age-old practice in many African societies, is now restricted business across northern Uganda amid a wave of resentment by locals who have warned of the threat of climate change stemming from the uncontrolled felling of trees by outsiders. In reality, not much has changed as charcoal producers skirt around the rules to keep supply flowing and w...

Elgin man charged after double fatal car crash that killed teen couple

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:40:24 GMT

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — An Elgin man was charged Sunday, one day after a car crash in Hoffman Estates that killed a teen couple who had just graduated from Schaumburg High School.Deni Rubi, 32, from Elgin, Ill. (Courtesy: Hoffman Estates PD)Deni Rubio, a 32-year-old Elgin resident, was charged with five felony counts, according to the Cook County State's Attorneys Office. Rubio was charged with two counts of aggravated DUI resulting in the death of another person, two counts of reckless homicide, and one count of trying to disarm a peace officer.On Saturday, the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the teen couple as 18-year-olds Amelia Mazeikis and D’Shaun “DJ” Tudela, who had graduated from Schaumburg High School in May.Amelia Mazeikis and D'Shaun Tudela at their high school graduation in May.According to family, the two had been dating for three years and Amelia was driving D'Shaun to work at the time of the crash. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Cook County ME ID’s teen couple ...