Month: October 2021

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” debuted with $40.1 million in ticket sales in its opening weekend in North America, drawing enough moviegoers to see the thundering sci-fi epic on the big screen despite it also being available in homes. Last week’s top film, Universal Pictures’ horror sequel

By GILLIAN FLACCUS and SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A crew member says she has raised safety concerns in the past about the assistant director who authorities say unwittingly handed actor Alec Baldwin the prop gun that killed a cinematographer on a film set. Crew member Maggie Goll said in a

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Workers for the Philadelphia-area transit system have voted to authorize a strike next month if agreement isn’t reached on a new contract. The Transport Workers Union Local 234 said a voice vote at a Sunday morning meeting in south Philadelphia approved a motion to allow union leaders to call a strike if

By The Associated Press British pop star Ed Sheeran says he’s tested positive for COVID-19 and will do interviews and performances from his house while he self-isolates. The four-time Grammy winner broke the news Sunday on social media days before his new studio album is due out. He says he’s following government guidelines. He also

By MARCO UGARTE Associated Press HUEHUETAN, Mexico (AP) — A group of about 2,000 mainly Central American migrants are continuing their mass trek from the southern Mexico city of Tapachula, reaching a town about 16 miles (26 kilometers) away. Migrants started walking before dawn Sunday to avoid the burning heat. Many were accompanied by small

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Twitter has suspended an Indiana congressman’s official account after removing a post about a transgender Biden administration official over a violation of the social media company’s rules. Twitter’s action came after Republican Rep. Jim Banks posted tweets last week regarding Dr. Rachel Levine becoming the first openly transgender four-star officer

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — The Guatemalan government has declared a month-long, dawn-to-dusk curfew and banned pubic gatherings in the northern coastal province of Izabal, following two days of protests against a mining project. Thousands of police confronted demonstrators angered by a Swiss-run nickel mine. Protesters say they weren’t consulted about the mine, and lobbed stones

CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline spiked 13 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.44 per gallon. The price at the pump is $1.22 higher than a year ago. Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey says Sunday the rise comes as the cost of crude oil surges.

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Across Northern California, crews worked to clear streets of toppled trees and branches and to clean gutters clogged by debris carried by rainwater from a massive storm that caused flooding and rock slides, and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands. Sacramento set a one-day

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Black, the front man for the 1960s rock band Jay and the Americans, who crooned the soaring vocals to hits like “This Magic Moment,” “Cara Mia” and “Come a Little Bit Closer,” has died. He was 82. In a statement, the band announced the

ROME (AP) — Italy’s economy ministry and UniCredit bank have announced that they are breaking off acquistion talks regarding an ailing Italian bank. Both the ministry and UniCredit didn’t cite a reason for pulling the plug on negotiations for Monte dei Paschi di Siena Bank in a joint statement released Sunday evening. But Italian news

WASHINGTON (AP) — Greek Orthodox officials say the spiritual leader of the world’s 200 million Eastern Orthodox Christians has been hospitalized in Washington on the first full day of a planned 12-day U.S. visit and will stay overnight. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America says Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew was preparing to leave for a service

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Dozens of U.S. Marines joined hundreds of Wyoming residents to bid a final farewell at a memorial for Rylee McCollum. The 20-year-old was one of 13 U.S. servicemen killed in a suicide bombing as they guarded a gate at a chaotic Kabul, Afghanistan airport during the final U.S. evacuation from that

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Eleven Pablo Picasso artworks have been sold for a combined $109 million in a Las Vegas auction coinciding with the artist’s 140th birthday. The nine paintings and two ceramic pieces had been displayed inside the Picasso restaurant at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art for more than two decades until owner

MARENGO, Wis. (AP) — Authorities say two people died when a single-engine plane crashed into a home in northeastern Wisconsin. The Ashland County Sheriff’s Office received numerous 911 calls about 2:40 p.m. Saturday with reports of the crash in the town of Marengo. No one on the ground was hurt. The sheriff’s department says the

By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — Florida’s top health official was asked to leave a meeting after refusing to wear a mask at the office of a state senator who told him she had a serious medical condition. The Florida Senate president sent a memo to senators saying it was disappointing to

LONDON (AP) — The husband of U.K. charity worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has gone on a hunger strike again after a court decided she has to spend another year in an Iranian prison. Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been detained for more than five years in Iran. Husband Richard Ratcliffe started his fast on Sunday outside the British government’s

By JOCELYN NOVECK AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The tragedy that unfolded on a New Mexico movie set when Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun, killing a cinematographer, has led to calls for fundamental change in Hollywood. Some are saying real guns should be banned on sets. From a change.org petition to a

KERRVILLE, Texas (AP) — Authorities say a driver lost control during a Texas drag racing event and slammed into a crowd of spectators, killing two children and injuring eight other people. A 6-year-old boy and an 8-year-old boy were killed Saturday at an event called “Airport Race Wars 2” at the Kerrville-Kerr County Airport. The

By JARI TANNER Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — Finland’s leader says that the Turkish president’s decision to order that 10 foreign ambassadors be declared persona non grata after calling for the release of a jailed philanthropist and human rights activist was a “regrettable situation.” Prime Minister Sanna Marin made the comments Sunday after Turkish President

By STEPHEN GROVES Associated Press SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota lawmakers are taking a look at a state agency that has been at the center of questions of whether Gov. Kristi Noem used her influence to aid her daughter’s application for a real estate appraiser license. The Legislature’s Government Operations and Audit Committee

By JIM MORRIS Associated Press VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Canadian Coast Guard officials say a fire that was burning in several containers aboard a cargo ship off the coast of British Columbia appears to be out. The Coast Guard had said earlier Sunday that it received word late Saturday morning that a fire had

By LISA MASCARO and HOPE YEN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin appears to be on board with White House proposals for new taxes on billionaires and certain corporations to help pay for President Joe Biden’s big domestic policy bill. A person who requested anonymity to discuss Manchin’s position tells The Associated