THE LATEST LIFE AND ENTERTAINMENT HEADLINES FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Lifestyle

The art of drag has become a target. With Pride Month nigh, performers are organizing to fight back

“Drag is joy, but it’s under attack. Our very existence, our self-expression, our art — all of it is being threatened. And we’ve had enough.” That’s the opening salvo of Qommittee, a group of drag performers banding together to protect and promote their art form, as it announced its formation ahead of June’s LGBTQ+ Pride […]
15 hours ago

3 falcon chicks hatch atop the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in New York City

NEW YORK (AP) — Three peregrine falcon chicks have hatched in a nest built at the top of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in New York City, officials said. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority Bridges and Tunnels said Friday that the chicks hatched in a nesting box set up by the agency atop a 693-foot-tall (211-meter-tall) tower on […]
4 days ago

American is flying home after getting suspended sentence for ammo possession in Turks and Caicos

PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands (AP) — An American arrested in the Caribbean for illegally carrying ammunition received a suspended sentence Friday, according to a spokesperson for the Turks and Caicos Islands, and his spokesman said he was flying back to the United States. Bryan Hagerich was sentenced to one year, suspended and fined $6,700, […]
5 days ago

Artist who created Precious Moments figurines depicting teardrop-eyed children dies at the age of 85

CARTHAGE, Mo. (AP) — Sam Butcher, the artist who created the Precious Moments figurines depicting angelic teardrop-eyed children, has died. He was 85. The company said in a Facebook post that he died early Monday surrounded by family. It said his life’s mission was “to share God’s gift of love with the world.” No details […]
6 days ago

Three little piggies at a yoga class = maximum happiness

SPENCER, Mass. (AP) — Three little piggies went to a yoga class. Their human companions had a blast. Wilbur, Charlotte and Bluey fit right into a growing trend of yoga with animals, adding some fun to the usual physical and mental wellness exercises at a class in central Massachusetts. Darting and strolling among the yoginis […]
7 days ago

Travelers cope with crowds and high prices on the busiest day of Memorial Day weekend

Travelers contended with big crowds and flight delays Friday, which was expected to be the busiest day of the Memorial Day weekend. More than 4,000 U.S. flights were delayed by midafternoon on the East Coast, continuing a trend that has tested the patience of travelers all week. Thankfully, relatively few flights were canceled — fewer […]
7 days ago

Grand champion crowned the best in pork at barbecue world championship in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tennessee (AP) — The World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest crowned a grand prize winner Saturday after hundreds of dedicated pitmasters sweated through smoke to be named the best in pork. The Shed BBQ and Blues Joint from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, won the whole hog division and was named the grand champion in Memphis, Tennessee. […]
12 days ago

US security alert warns Americans overseas of potential attacks on LGBTQ events

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department renewed a global security warning Friday for Americans overseas, adding to it that LGBTQ people and events in particular face an “increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence.” The alert is a standard renewal of travel advice telling Americans to exercise increased caution against possible attacks by violent extremist […]
12 days ago

Savannah Gankiewicz of Hawaii crowned Miss USA after previous winner resigned, citing mental health

HONOLULU (AP) — Savannah Gankiewicz of Hawaii was crowned Miss USA 2023, more than a week after the previous titleholder resigned for mental health reasons. Born and raised on the island of Maui, Gankiewicz is a model who leads a female empowerment nonprofit organization. Gankiewicz, who was the first runner-up at the pageant last September, […]
14 days ago

Correction: Education-Brown v Board story

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a story published May 15, 2024, about the anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, The Associated Press erroneously reported the affiliation of Derek Black. He is a professor at the University of South Carolina, not the University of Southern California.
15 days ago

Feds urge people not to put decals on steering wheels after a driver is hurt by flying metal pieces

DETROIT (AP) — Federal auto safety regulators are warning people not to stick decals on their steering wheels because they can be hurled at drivers if the air bags inflate in a crash. The warning from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration comes after another driver was severely hurt by a flying emblem during a […]
15 days ago

Congress is sending families less help for day care costs. So states are stepping in

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Across the country, the story for families is virtually the same: Child care is unaffordable for many, hard to find for those who can pay, and financially precarious for day care operators and their employees. The Biden administration and Congress tried to alleviate some of these problems when the pandemic crippled […]
16 days ago

Correction: Mother’s Day-Rikers Island story

NEW YORK (AP) — In a story published May 12, 2024, about a new family visiting room for prisoners at New York’s Rikers Island jail complex, The Associated Press misspelled the name of the agency that operates the facility in one reference. It is the Department of Correction, not the Department of Corrections.
19 days ago

Fans are following Taylor Swift to Europe after finding Eras Tour tickets less costly there

LONDON (AP) — Thousands of ride-or-die Taylor Swift fans who missed out on her U.S. concert tour last year or didn’t want to buy exorbitantly priced tickets to see her again found an out-of-the-way solution: Fly to Europe. The pop star is scheduled to kick off the 18-city Europe leg of her record-setting Eras Tour […]
22 days ago

Correction: Wellness-Sleep Tips story

In a story published April 23, 2024, about sleep tips, The Associated Press erroneously reported the name of an academic medical institution. It is Weill Cornell Medicine, not Weill Cornell Medical College.
1 month ago

America’s child care crisis is holding back moms without college degrees

AUBURN, Wash. (AP) — After a series of lower-paying jobs, Nicole Slemp finally landed one she loved. She was a secretary for Washington’s child services department, a job that came with her own cubicle, and she had a knack for working with families in difficult situations. Slemp expected to return to work after having her […]
1 month ago

Soar, slide, splash? It’s skiers’ choice as spring’s wacky pond skimming tradition returns

GILFORD, N.H. (AP) — A costumed skier races down a slope, hits a pond and hydroplanes halfway across. He pirouettes and then plunges into the icy water before jumping up and waving to the cheering crowd. It’s the wacky spring tradition of pond skimming, and it’s happening this month at ski resorts across the country. […]
1 month ago

Federal appeals court overturns West Virginia transgender sports ban

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A federal appeals court has overturned a West Virginia transgender sports ban, finding that the law violates Title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools. The 2-1 ruling Tuesday from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocks a West Virginia law banning transgender girls from […]
1 month ago

German parliament votes to make it easier for people to legally change their name and gender

BERLIN (AP) — German lawmakers on Friday approved legislation that will make it easier for transgender, intersex and nonbinary people to change their name and gender in official records. The “self-determination law,” one of several social reforms that Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s liberal-leaning coalition government pledged when it took office in late 2021, is set to […]
2 months ago

The OJ Simpson saga was a unique American moment. 3 decades on, we’re still wondering what it means

NEW YORK (AP) — A dog’s plaintive wail. A courtroom couplet-turned-cultural catchphrase about gloves. A judge and attorneys who became media darlings and villains. A slightly bewildered houseguest elevated, briefly, into a slightly bewildered celebrity. Troubling questions about race that echo still. The beginning of the Kardashian dynasty. An epic slow-motion highway chase. And, lest […]
2 months ago

Internet providers must now be more transparent about fees, pricing, FCC says

NEW YORK (AP) — Much like nutritional labels on food products, “broadband labels” for internet packages will soon tell you just what is going into the pricing of your service, thanks to new rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission this week. “If you’ve ever shopped for home or mobile internet, you can understand how […]
2 months ago
solar eclipse...

Total solar eclipse wows North America. Clouds part just in time for most

MESQUITE, Texas (AP) — A chilly, midday darkness fell across North America on Monday as a total solar eclipse raced across the continent, thrilling those lucky enough to behold the spectacle through clear skies. Street lights blinked on and the planets came into view, as the moon shrouded the sun for a few minutes across […]
2 months ago

Clarification: TikTok Bans-Politics story

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — In a story published April 6, 2024, The Associated Press did not include a statement from TikTok regarding efforts underway in states to ban the app. The story should have included the following statement: “Bans on state government devices and networks prevent state agencies from reaching a wider audience. Bills like […]
2 months ago

P&G recalls 8.2 million bags of Tide, Gain and other laundry detergents over packaging defect

NEW YORK (AP) — Procter & Gamble is recalling more than 8 million bags of Tide, Gain, Ace and Ariel laundry detergent packets sold in the U.S. and Canada due to a defect in the products’ child-resistant packaging. According to Friday notices from both P&G and product-safety regulators in the U.S. and Canada, the outer […]
2 months ago