Month: February 2024

By Associated Press Usher’s first new solo album in eight years and the “Abbott Elementary” debuting its third season on ABC are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you. Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: Justin Hartley

By Associated Press NEW YORK — “The Girl on the Train” author Paula Hawkins has a new thriller out this fall, and will release it through a new publisher. Mariner Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, announced Wednesday that Hawkins’ “The Blue Hour” is scheduled for Oct. 8. Hawkins sets the story on a remote

By Associated Press LOS ANGELES — Las Vegas will be flooded with so many pre- Super Bowl events that Shaquille O’Neal lowered the prices to his popular carnival-themed “ Shaq’s Fun House. “ Instead of raising the rate, O’Neal decided to offer potential attendees more bang for their buck to the NBA legend’s sixth annual

By Associated Press NEW YORK — The annual “Puppy Bowl” turns 20 this year, well over middle age in dog years. But does the sheer cuteness of it really ever get old? “Who doesn’t want to watch dogs play all day long?” asks Laurie Johnson, the director of Florida Little Dog Rescue in St. Cloud,

By Associated Press WASHINGTON | Self-help author and spiritual guru Marianne Williamson on Wednesday announced the end of her long-shot Democratic challenge to President Joe Biden. The 71-year-old onetime spiritual adviser to Oprah Winfrey contemplated suspending her campaign last month after winning just 5,000 votes in New Hampshire’s primary, writing that she “had to decide

By Associated Press ST. LOUIS — A Missouri prosecutor on Wednesday filed a motion to vacate the conviction of a man imprisoned for more than three decades for the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy, the second time in two weeks that a St. Louis-area prosecutor has challenged a longstanding murder conviction. Christopher Dunn, now

By Associated Press QUETTA, Pakistan — Bombs ripped through two separate political offices in southwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least 30 people, officials said, a day before the country was set to elect a new parliament. The attacks in Baluchistan province — home to a low-level insurgency and various militant groups — have raised

By Associated Press SAN DIEGO | Rescuers were battling heavy snow Wednesday to reach a Marine Corps helicopter carrying five troops that went down in the mountains outside San Diego. The CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter — the largest helicopter in the military, designed to fly in harsh conditions — had gone missing as an historic

By Associated Press NEW YORK — Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel has discussed the possibility of stepping down during a private meeting with former President Donald Trump, with both agreeing to delay a decision until after South Carolina’s primary later this month, according to two people familiar with the matter. McDaniel has not formally

By Associated Press BILLINGS, Mont. — Montana Republican U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale plans to run for U.S. Senate, upending a race in which many national GOP officials already coalesced around a different candidate as they seek to unseat three-term Democrat U.S. Sen. Jon Tester. Rosendale’s intentions were disclosed Wednesday by two people close to the

By Associated Press LAS VEGAS — Nikki Haley was swamped in Nevada’s symbolic Republican presidential primary as GOP voters resoundingly picked the “none of these candidates” option on the ballot in a repudiation of the former U.N. ambassador who is the last remaining major rival to front-runner Donald Trump. Trump didn’t compete in Tuesday’s primary,

By Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that a cease-fire and hostage-release agreement between Israel and Hamas was still possible, despite the two sides being far apart on the central terms for a deal. Blinken was in the region trying to broker an arrangement that could bring

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — Wartime aid for Ukraine was left hanging in the Senate Wednesday after Republicans blocked a bipartisan border package that had been tied to the funding, then struggled to coalesce around a plan to salvage the aid for Kyiv. After GOP senators scuttled months of negotiations with Democrats on legislation intended

By Associated Press LAS VEGAS — Celebrating Super Bowl championships has become an annual tradition for NFL coaches and executives agent Bob LaMonte. He’s going for seven in a row when Kansas City plays San Francisco on Sunday. LaMonte, who represents Chiefs general manager Brett Veach, coach Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, has

By Associated Press BAGHDAD — A U.S. drone strike blew up a car in the Iraqi capital Wednesday night, killing a high-ranking commander of the powerful Kataib Hezbollah militia who is responsible for “directly planning and participating in attacks” on American troops in the region, the U.S. military said Wednesday. The precision blast hit a

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Justice Department special counsel investigating President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents has completed his inquiry and a report is expected to be made public soon to Congress and the public, Attorney General Merrick Garland told lawmakers in a letter Wednesday. Garland did not detail the conclusions of the

By Associated Press SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The PGA Tour shifts this week from the soggy-but-picturesque coast of Northern California to a party in the desert. The Phoenix Open, dubbed “Greatest Show on Grass,” is unlike anything in golf. Masses of up to 200,000 fans pack TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course with cheers, boos and the occasional

By Associated Press JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri senators on Wednesday voted against amending the state’s strict law against abortions to allow exceptions in cases of rape and incest. The state banned almost all abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 overturned Roe v. Wade. Abortions currently are only legal “in cases of medical

By Associated Press LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas proposed to the NFL in December 2021. ”Let’s just marry these brands, and let’s bring the Super Bowl here,” Steve Hill, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, recalled telling a room of NFL franchise owners. They said yes. The betrothal culminates Sunday

By Associated Press ATLANTA — Top Georgia lawmakers say moviemakers should be required to do more than just show a peach at the end of the credits to get the top benefit from Georgia’s lucrative film tax credit. Thanks in large part to tax breaks, productions including “The Hunger Games,” the Marvel movies, the Fast

By Associated Press Red Solo cups – a staple of barbecues and beer pong – are usually synonymous with good times. But on Tuesday, as word of country singer Toby Keith’s death spread, many were raising their red Solos in sad tribute to the singer, who immortalized the humble plastic cups in his 2011 hit

By Associated Press HENDERSON, Nev. — Patrick Mahomes is a much different quarterback than he was four years ago, when he helped the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl to end a championship drought stretching back five decades. He’s a different man, for that matter, a father of two

By Associated Press NEW YORK — Wall Street rose to the edge of another record-breaking milestone Wednesday as Ford Motor, Chipotle Mexican Grill and other big stocks climbed following their latest earnings reports. The S&P 500 got within a fraction of a point of the 5,000 level before ending the day at 4,995.06. The index