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This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 12 Celebrity birthdays for the week of Oct. 2-8: Oct. 2: Critic Rex Reed is 84. Singer Don McLean is 77. Country singer Jo-el Sonnier is 76. Actor Avery Brooks (“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”) is 74. Guitarist Mike Rutherford of Genesis and Mike and the Mechanics is 72. Musician Sting is 71. Actor Robin Riker (“General Hospital,” ″The Bold and the Beautiful”) is 70. Actor Lorraine Bracco (“The Sopranos”) is 68. Guitarist Greg Jennings of Restless Heart is 68. Singer Phil Oakey of Human League is 67. Singer Freddie Jackson is 67. Singer-producer Robbie Nevil is 64. Drummer Bud Gaugh of Sublime and Long Beach Dub All-Stars is 55. Musician Gillian Welch is 55. Actor Joey Slotnick (“Boston Public,” ″The Single Guy”) is 54. Country singer Kelly Willis is 54. Singer Dion Allen of Az Yet is 52. Actor-talk show host Kelly Ripa (“Live With Kelly … [Read more...] about Celebrity birthdays for the week of Oct. 2-8

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 9 CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson is retiring from full-time racing and will turn his focus toward spending time with family. He figures his future schedule will include no more than 10 bucket-list events, but the 47-year-old had no idea Monday what that will look like in 2023. Johnson told The Associated Press he was excited to announce “I've got a blank sheet of paper, and we can now see what opportunities exist and start making a calendar.” Carvana has already told Johnson it will back whatever racing he pursues. Johnson took two weeks from the IndyCar finale — with a weekend spent in England with Ganassi teammates Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti at the Goodwood Revival — before finalizing his decision to scale back. He told the AP he didn't really need the time to ponder his future. “It's been an … [Read more...] about AP Exclusive: Jimmie Johnson to retire from full-time racing

PHOENIX (AP) — When an Arizona judge ruled last week that prosecutors can resume enforcing a near-total ban on abortion that dates to the Civil War, it fell to the staff at Camelback Family Planning to break the news to the women scheduled for appointments in the coming weeks. The staff faced “crying, a lot of very, very angry people, denial,” nurse Ashleigh Feiring said Monday. One woman argued, “But I’m only five weeks (along).” Women seeking abortions across Arizona were forced to find alternatives beyond the state’s borders after the ruling, which clears the way for prosecutors to charge doctors and others who help a woman end a pregnancy unless her life is in danger. The state’s major abortion providers immediately halted procedures and canceled appointments. Providers in neighboring states, already seeing an increase in traffic from other conservative states that have banned abortion, were preparing to treat some of the 13,000 Arizona patients who get an abortion each … [Read more...] about Arizona abortion clinics send women to other states

Former President Donald Trump has learned time and again that the best way to kill legal action is to first delay it. And while Trump’s “special master” gambit initially showed promise in that regard, the tactic may have actually backfired and put him on a fast-track collision course with the federal government he once led. Two separate court decisions last week have empowered the FBI to move swiftly in its investigation against Trump for mishandling classified information . “Who knows what’s still at Mar-a-Lago? Who knows where the rest of it is? It’s obvious that Trump can’t be trusted—and neither can his lawyers. But at least the bluff has been called on using the courts to delay this,” said Carl W. Tobias, a University of Richmond law school professor. Trump’s preemptive strike last month—a lawsuit against the feds—tried to block the FBI from reviewing the documents seized at his oceanfront Mar-a-Lago mansion . That legal fight has now been split in two. On one … [Read more...] about Trump’s ‘Special Master’ Delay Is Already Backfiring

Few San Francisco dim sum restaurants enjoy the notoriety of Yank Sing . Adored by downtown office workers and tourists alike, the gargantuan restaurant at Rincon Center is known for drawing incredible crowds, particularly on the weekends. But since the pandemic, Yank Sing seems to have quieted down a bit. Nabbing a reservation for six (which, naturally, turned into eight once word got around my office) only a day in advance was a breeze. When my group turned up at 1 p.m. on a Thursday, the restaurant was hardly full. I’m going to be honest. I was having a rough week when I visited Yank Sing. But the vaguely fancy decor — white tablecloths, gold accents and fake plants — reminded me so strongly of the Chinese restaurant that my family used to frequent for special occasions when I was a kid that I was instantly soothed. I ordered jasmine tea for the table, and all was right in the world. (Photos by Blair Heagerty) (Photos by Blair Heagerty) The dining room … [Read more...] about Famous San Francisco dim sum restaurant Yank Sing is where tourists, co-workers and locals collide

During the process of outfitting a fan cave in the Santa Monica apartment of 92-year-old Los Angeles Rams fan Lewis Lazarus in advance of Thursday Night Football kicking off on Prime Video earlier this month, Alvin Nathaniel Joiner, better known by his stage name Xzibit, learned a few things. One of them? That Amazon’s virtual assistant Alexa is genderless. “I didn’t understand exactly what Alexa could do until I got into this project. I found out a lot about the programming and that Alexa is not a she,” Xzibit tells InsideHook. “Alexa is an AI that has no gender identification. That was cool to find out.” Xzibit has found out a lot over the course of a career that began in earnest with the release of his debut studio album At the Speed of Life in 1996 and was taken to a new level in 2004 when he hosted the first of six seasons of MTV reality series Pimp My Ride . A hit that inspired international spinoffs including Pimp My Car, Pimp My Room and Pimp My Whatever … [Read more...] about What Years of Pimping Rides Taught Xzibit About the Human Condition

(BPT) - No place in your home has the potential to blend utility and luxury quite like the shower. When you step into that space, it's about more than getting clean. It's your own little oasis in a busy world where you can rejuvenate and focus on self-care. If your current shower leaves something to be desired, it's time to invest in your house and in yourself with an upgrade. Whether your budget allows a complete remodel or you simply want to enhance the current space, here are three elements to elevating the shower with touches of luxury and lasting appeal. Timeless design Design trends come and go, so when you're deciding on the design components for your shower, consider a timeless aesthetic and high-quality materials that will last. For example, the Statement Showering Collection re-envisions showering at the most basic level and brings a range of unique shapes and sizes to the shower, breathing new life into well-loved standards and marrying the latest in technology … [Read more...] about 3 elements to transform your shower into a soothing oasis

Photo-Illustration: by Intelligencer; Photo by Cathrine White Chris Cuomo is attempting a comeback — or at least, he’s “moving forward,” as he tells Kara Swisher in this episode of our new podcast , On With Kara Swisher . Just a couple years ago, the former CNN anchor was hosting chummy (and extremely popular) segments interviewing his brother, then New York governor Andrew Cuomo , on a network run by his friend, then CNN chief Jeff Zucker . These days, he’s taping his own podcast, The Chris Cuomo Project , from his dining room while gearing up for a new cable show on a far smaller network, NewsNation — and seeking $125 million in damages from his former employer. Cuomo was unceremoniously dismissed from CNN late last year after a multi-month saga that centered around the relationship between the anchor and his brother. First there was the governor’s downplaying of nursing-home deaths , which by June 2020 led CNN to reinstate a ban on the brotherly … [Read more...] about Chris Cuomo Wants to Move Forward. Can He?

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Former New Jersey Gov. James Florio, who championed a plan that substantially raised the state’s sales and income taxes leading to his reelection defeat in 1993, died Sunday. He was 85. His law partner Doug Steinhardt and current New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy confirmed Florio died in statements on Monday. “Governor Florio was a fighter who never backed down. He was a leader who cared more about the future of New Jersey than his own political fortunes,” Murphy, a fellow Democrat, said in a statement. Florio was a longtime public servant who held numerous posts on the local, county, state and federal levels. A Democrat, he made three unsuccessful runs for the governor before finally succeeding in 1989, when he defeated Republican Jim Courter and became the first Italian-American to serve as the state’s chief executive. Florio drew sharp criticism in 1990 when he … [Read more...] about Former NJ governor, US Rep. James Florio dies at 85

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Top U.S. insurance companies and associations say California is risking a crisis in the nation’s largest automobile insurance market by refusing to approve any rate increases for more than two years, since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The companies already are cutting back and say they can't continue operating at a loss while Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara delays rate cases filed by companies representing three-quarters of the California market. Allstate, Geico, Kemper, Liberty Mutual and State Farm all reported paying more in claims than they collected in California premiums in the first half of the year, though they were profitable as recently as last year. It's part of Lara's effort to compensate consumers who he says were overcharged during the pandemic's early months, when traffic all but disappeared after California imposed the nation’s … [Read more...] about Insurers say California’s inaction threatens auto policies