ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Universal Orlando Resort will open its fourth central Florida theme park, just in time for Memorial Day next year. The move ups the competition against Disney in the theme park capital of the United States. Park officials said Thursday that Universal Epic Universe will open on May 22 with themed areas
Continue ReadingMIAMI (AP) — Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory, who co-founded the notorious drug trafficking organization Black Mafia Family, will serve the remainder of his prison sentence in a residential reentry program in Miami, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Flenory, 56, was originally sentenced to 30 years in prison following his 2008 conviction for drug
Continue ReadingAssociated Press/Report for America BRADENTON BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast are digging out from mountains of sand after Hurricanes Helene and Milton clobbered them with back-to-back hits in less than two weeks. Storm surge as high as 10 feet swept sand into communities. The fine, white sand helps make Florida’s beaches
Continue ReadingAP Business Writer The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. moved higher for the third week in a row and reached the highest level since late August. The rate rose to 6.44% from 6.32% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 7.63%. Mortgage rates are
Continue ReadingAssociated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mitzi Gaynor, the effervescent dancer and actor who starred as Nellie Forbush in the 1958 film “South Pacific” and appeared in other musicals with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, has died. She was 93. Gaynor, among the last survivors of the so-called golden age of the Hollywood
Continue ReadingAssociated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mitzi Gaynor, the effervescent dancer and actor who starred as Nellie Forbush in the 1958 film “South Pacific” and appeared in other musicals with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, has died. She was 93. Gaynor, among the last survivors of the so-called golden age of the Hollywood
Continue ReadingLOS ANGELES (AP) — Mitzi Gaynor, ‘South Pacific’ star among the last actors of the Hollywood musical era’s golden age, dies at 93.
Continue ReadingAssociated Press CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A former New Hampshire state senator accused last year of fraudulently obtaining federal COVID-19 loans and spending the money on luxury cars was charged this week with stealing separate state pandemic relief funds. The attorney general’s office says Republican Andy Sanborn, of Bedford, was charged Wednesday with theft by
Continue ReadingAssociated Press LONDON (AP) — One Direction was one of the last boy bands from the age of mass-audience linear television and one of the first of the social media era. That helped propel them to a level of fame comparable to Beatlemania, but with the constant scrutiny of a world of smartphones and streaming.
Continue ReadingAP Film Writer Actor and humanitarian Jane Fonda is adding the SAG life achievement award to her many accolades. The 86-year-old will be given the prize at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in February, the guild announced on Thursday. Fonda said in a statement that she was “deeply honored and humbled.” In her over six
Continue ReadingNo. 21 SMU (5-1, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) at Stanford (2-4, 1-2), Saturday, 8 p.m. ET (ACC Network) BetMGM College Football Odds: SMU by 14 1/2. Series record: Stanford leads 1-0. What’s at stake? This is the first conference meeting between the ACC newcomers. The Mustangs are off to a strong start and are trying
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Treasury Department has announced sanctions against two Chinese companies accused of directly helping Russia build long-range attack drones used in the war in Ukraine. The department said Thursday that it’s the first time the U.S. has imposed penalties on Chinese makers of drone engines and parts for “developing
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s government is denying that it works with mobsters to target Sikh separatists in Canada as alleged publicly this week by Canadian officials in an escalating diplomatic dispute. India’s External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal denied that India was in cahoots with India-based mobsters in Canada and even suggested
Continue ReadingAssociated Press KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Africa’s top public health agency says the number of mpox-related deaths in the continent has surpassed 1,000 and warned of the continuing threat of cross-border contamination and a lack of rapid test kits. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there were 50 mpox-related deaths in the
Continue ReadingSouthern California (3-3, 1-3 Big Ten) at Maryland (3-3, 0-3), Saturday, 4 p.m. ET (Fox Sports 1) BetMGM College Football Odds: USC by 7 1/2. Series record: First meeting. WHAT’S AT STAKE? The Trojans’ first season in the Big Ten has come to be defined by close defeats, including last week’s 33-30 overtime setback at
Continue ReadingAssociated Presss WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Long Island funeral home owner has pleaded guilty to spraying wasp killer at police officers and assaulting two journalists, including an Associated Press photographer, during a mob’s riot at the U.S. Capitol nearly four years ago. Sixty-year-old Peter Moloney, of Bayport, New York, is scheduled to be sentenced
Continue ReadingN.C. State (3-4, 0-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) at California (3-3, 0-3), Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET (ACC Network) BetMGM College Football Odds: Cal by 10 1/2. Series record: First meeting. What’s at stake? Both teams are midway through October and still looking for their first ACC wins, with pressure increasing to win games for bowl
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Last Friday’s decisive fifth game of the National League Division Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres was the most-watched Major League Baseball postseason game on record in Japan, averaging an estimated 12.9 million viewers, according to MLB. The Dodgers’ 2-0 victory was the first time two Japanese
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UPDATE: 5:30 – Palm Springs 9-1-1 service restored UPDATE: 4:30 – Cathedral City 9-1-1 service restored DESERT HOT SPRINGS, California (KESQ) – 911 lines are down in several Coachella Valley communities. The Desert Hot Springs Police Department announced that 911 phone lines are currently down in Desert Hot Springs. They made the announcement Thursday morning
Continue ReadingPARIS (AP) — Torrential rains and flooding have submerged roads and railways in central France, disrupting transportation in the region. National railway operator SNCF halted regional trains between the cities of Lyon and Saint-Étienne, saying the tracks were impassable. Train services are not expected to resume until Friday morning. A main highway between the two
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