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Piper Laurie, 3-time Oscar nominee with film credits such as “The Hustler” and “Carrie,” dies at 91

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

Piper Laurie, the strong-willed, Oscar-nominated actor who performed in acclaimed roles despite at one point abandoning acting altogether in search of a “more meaningful” life, died early Saturday at her home in Los Angeles. She was 91.Laurie died of old age, her manager, Marion Rosenberg, told The Associated Press via email, adding that she was “a superb talent and a wonderful human being.”Laurie arrived in Hollywood in 1949 as Rosetta Jacobs and was quickly given a contract with Universal-International, a new name that she hated and a string of starring roles with Ronald Reagan, Rock Hudson and Tony Curtis, among others.She went on to receive Academy Award nominations for three distinct films: The 1961 poolroom drama “The Hustler”; the film version of Stephen King’s horror classic “Carrie,” in 1976; and the romantic drama “Children of a Lesser God,” in 1986. She also appeared in several acclaimed roles on television and the stage, including in David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks” in the 199...

Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks mark UNESCO World Heritage designation

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (AP) — For 400 years, Indigenous North Americans flocked to a group of ceremonial sites in what is present-day Ohio to celebrate their culture and honor their dead. On Saturday, the sheer magnitude of the ancient Hopewell culture’s reach was lifted up as enticement to a new set of visitors from around the world.“We stand upon the shoulders of geniuses, uncommon geniuses who have gone before us. That’s what we are here about today,” Chief Glenna Wallace, of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, told a crowd gathered at the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park to dedicate eight sites there and elsewhere in southern Ohio that became UNESCO World Heritage sites last month. She said the honor means that the world now knows of the genius of the Native Americans, whom the 84-year-old grew up seeing histories, textbooks and popular media call “savages.” Wallace commended the innumerable tribal figures, government officials and local advocates who made the desig...

Stephen Rubin, publisher of ‘The Da Vinci Code’ and other blockbusters, dies at 81

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stephen Rubin, a longtime publishing executive with an eye for bestsellers and a passion for music and public life who helped launched the career of John Grisham, among others, and released such blockbusters as “The Da Vinci Code” and “Fire and Fury,” has died. He was 81.Rubin died Friday at a hospital in Manhattan after “a brief and sudden illness,” according to his nephew, David Rotter.Book publishing is hard to imagine without the raspy-voiced Rubin, a powerful and colorful presence for decades with his tortoiseshell glasses, stylish suits and wide range of friends and colleagues, from Jacqueline Kennedy to Beverly Sills. He hosted memorable parties at his spacious West Side apartment and was a prime source of gossip and alternately profane and loving assessments of friends, colleagues and the greater world.“He would enter a room and immediately fill it,” close friend Jane Friedman, the former CEO of HarperCollins Publishers, told The Associated Press via email. “...

'A humanitarian disaster:' Chicagoans voice concerns for loved ones trapped in Gaza

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

CHICAGO — Israel gave civilians in Gaza a 24-hour warning to evacuate Friday before an expected large-scale invasion in the midst of launching deadly airstrikes across the region in the past week. Feelings of distress escalate for Palestinians in Chicago as they worry for loved ones scrambling to seek safety.Israeli air raids have reduced buildings to rubble, killed dozens of civilians in the past day and minimized access to safekeeping. The U.N. has warned that evacuating more than half of the population would be calamitous and has urged Israel to reconsider action.More than 2,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 8,000 wounded in Gaza. Associated Press reported that the morgue at Gaza's biggest hospital has overflowed as bodies came in faster than relatives could claim. Hospitals in the northern part of the strip have also been ordered to evacuate. "Evacuation is impossible for most people, there is nowhere to evacuate and no way to get there. This is asking to...

15-year-old girl missing from home on Northwest Side

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

CHICAGO — Police are searching for a teen girl missing from her home on the city's Northwest Side.According to the Chicago Police Department (CPD), a search is underway for 15-year-old Solange Meneses who has been missing since Saturday, Oct. 7.Officers say the teen girl was last seen at her home in the 4300 block of West Parker Avenue in the Hermosa neighborhood on the Northwest Side.Police say Meneses, who has red and auburn hair and brown eyes, stands 5-foot-1 and weighs around 115 pounds. Police did not provide a description of what the teen was wearing at the time of her disappearance.Officers notified the public about Meneses' disappearance in a news release sent out on Friday afternoon.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of 15-year-old Solange Meneses is asked to contact CPD Area Five SVU detectives at 312-746-6554 or dial 911.Tips for police can also be filed at CPDtip.com. Tips can be left anonymously.

George Floyd mourned by sister on would-be 50th birthday: ‘I thought he would be alive to see it’

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

George Floyd’s sister is mourning him on what would have been his 50th birthday.The Minneapolis man, who would have celebrated the milestone on Saturday, was instead killed in May 2020 at the hands of a group of white cops.LaTonya Floyd, 55, remembers her little brother as “just a soul full of joy.”“He should’ve been here,” she told People. “I thought he would be alive to see it I thought he’d live to be 100.”Floyd was just 46 when he was murdered at the hands of Derek Chauvin, who in 2021 was convicted of second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The horror of his death, which many saw play out in widely broadcast video, reignited the Black Lives Matter movement.“I’m missing him,” Floyd’s sister told the outlet. “I love him. I just can’t help it, I’m going to cry all day.”Also in 2021, Floyd’s family was awarded $27 million in a settlement with both the ...

Area college football: Drake pummels Tommies 52-21

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

The Drake University football team gave St. Thomas a glimpse of the other side on Saturday, throttling the Tommies 52-21 in a Pioneer Football League game in Des Moines, Iowa.The rout was the Bulldogs’ first victory over the Tommies in three meetings over the past three seasons. It ended St. Thomas’ 13-game win streak in the PFL and could cost the Tommies a shot at another conference championship.Drake improved to 3-3 overall, 3-0 in the PFL. St. Thomas fell to 4-3 and 3-1.The Bulldogs started strong on Saturday, with their very first offensive possession ending in a touchdown. And they finished even stronger, outscoring the Tommies 28-0 in the second half and 21-0 in the third quarter, erasing a 21-14 deficit late in the second quarter to lead 24-21 at the half.Drake dominated, rolling up 556 yards of total offense and 31 first downs to St. Thomas’ 183 total yards and 12 first downs.Bulldogs quarterback Luke Bailey passed for 449 yards and six touchdowns in the ro...

San Jose Sharks forced to look in mirror after recent injuries

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks will be without Mikael Granlund for at least the rest of their challenging homestand and possibly longer, leaving the team without two of their top three centermen for an undetermined amount of time.The Sharks — already without Logan Couture, who is considered week-to-week — placed Granlund on injured reserve Friday, one day after he re-aggravated a lower-body ailment in San Jose’s season-opening game against the Vegas Golden Knights.Granlund, who dealt with the injury during training camp, will miss Saturday’s game with the Colorado Avalanche and remain inactive for upcoming games against the Carolina Hurricanes and Boston Bruins, and perhaps beyond.Most NHL teams, if not all, would be severely affected if they were to miss two top-nine centermen. But that’s especially true for the Sharks, who are still building up their depth at the position from top to bottom.“I think anytime you lose two players in one position, you kind of get a ...

Strong, Lester help Southern Illinois run away from Murray State for a 27-6 win

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

MURRAY, Ken. (AP) — Justin Strong broke loose on an 80-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage, Shaun Lester added a scoring run late and Southern Illinois beat Murray State 27-6 on Saturday. Strong carried 14 times for 128 yards. Lester’s 2-yard touchdown plunge ended a 10-play, 74-yard drive that capped the scoring with 4:25 remaining. Lester finished with 85 yards rushing on 14 carries. Vinson Davis III had a 9-yard TD run for Southern Illinois (5-1, 2-1 Missouri Valley Football Conference). Nic Baker added 137 yards on 14-of-23 passing. DJ Williams was 11-of-28 passing for 152 yards and threw two interceptions for Murray State (2-4, 1-2), which finished with just 185 yards of offense. Matt Maldonado made field goals from 44 and 29 yards. After Strong’s scoring run, Williams led the Racers on a 12-play, 67-yard drive to the Salkukis 8 but then threw an interception in the end zone. __AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://...

Tkachuk and Chychrun each score twice to lift Senators to 5-2 win over Flyers

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:43:12 GMT

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Brady Tkachuk and Jakob Chychrun each scored twice to lead the Ottawa Senators to a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.Anton Forsberg made 19 saves and Jake Sanderson also scored for Ottawa, who picked up their first win after dropping the season opener in Carolina 5-3.“It’s huge,” Tkachuk said of getting the first win. “Something to build on and we’re right back at it tomorrow, so you can’t really focus on (Saturday) much longer because we’ve got a wagon coming in tomorrow so you’ve got to be ready for that and that task. We just have to keep building on it.”Travis Konecny and Cam York scored and Carter Hart stopped 26 shots for the Flyers.Philadelphia opened the season with a 4-2 win over Columbus on Thursday night, but struggled to generate much against Ottawa.“We’re not going to panic, but our penalty kill, our power play, our offense, our defense, we were outplayed in all categories (Saturday),” Flyers coach John Tortorella said. “We’ll look...