Entertainment News

An Alaska Mother’s Day tradition: Mingling with ice age survivors on a farm

PALMER, Alaska (AP) — It is one of Alaska’s favorite Mother’s Day traditions, getting up close and personal with animals that have survived the ice age. All moms get a flower and free admission Sunday at the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer, about an hour’s drive north of Anchorage. Once inside, they will have the chance to view more than 70 members of the musk ox herd, including babies who have just been born. Mother’s Day is the busiest day of the year, attracting over 1,500 visitors. It is a tradition that now stretches over three generations. Executive director Mark Austin says there would be a riot if they ever didn’t have the traditional opening of the summer season on Mother’s Day.… Continue Reading

A woodpecker has invaded a Massachusetts neighborhood. Residents are taking it in stride

ROCKPORT, Mass. (AP) — During the War of 1812, residents of Rockport, Massachusetts, hurled rocks at British soldiers using their stockings as slings. Today, they’re slinging trash bags and towels over the side mirrors of their cars to protect them from a destructive and determined pileated woodpecker. Over the last few weeks, the bird has broken more than two dozen mirrors and at least one vehicle’s side window. But residents are taking the violence in stride. Resident Ben Favaloro says he and his neighbors are having a good laugh about it, and no one wants to harm the bird. Pamela Hunt, an avian biologist with New Hampshire Audubon, says lots of smaller birds will be aggressive against their own reflections, but pileated woodpeckers don’t usually peck at opponents.… Continue Reading

Go inside the factory where Peeps are made

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) — Love them or hate them, marshmallow Peeps are inescapable around the Easter holiday. Millions of the brightly-colored candies are made daily in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, by Just Born Quality Confections. The family-owned candy manufacturer also churns out Hot Tamales, Mike and Ike fruit chews and Goldenberg’s Peanut Chews. Peeps is the company’s most recognizable brand. It also evokes strong reactions — good and bad. Some say an Easter basket isn’t complete without the multi-flavored Peeps, while others deride them as being indestructible. On average, about 5.5 million are made each day. That adds up to 2 billion Peeps a year.… Continue Reading

Wink Martindale, the genial game show host and an early TV interviewer of Elvis Presley, dies at 91

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Wink Martindale, the genial host of such hit game shows as “Gambit” and “Tic-Tac-Dough,” has died. He was 91. Martindale began his career in radio and was did one of the first recorded television interviews with a young Elvis Presley before scoring hits as a game show host. “Gambit” started in 1976 but within a few short years was overtaken by “Wheel of Fortune” and other shows, but he bounced back in 1978 with “Tic-Tac-Dough,” which aired until 1985. Publicist Brian Mayes says Martindale died Tuesday at Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage after battling lymphoma for a year.… Continue Reading

Millions tune in for 24-hour live coverage of Sweden’s epic moose migration

Swedish slow TV hit “The Great Moose Migration” has become a phenomenon. The livestream began airing Tuesday, a week ahead of schedule. National broadcaster SVT shows the annual migration 24 hours a day for 20 days. Not much happens for hours at a time, and fans say that’s the beauty of it. The production hit 9 million viewers last year. Remote cameras capture dozens of moose as they swim across a river toward summer grazing pastures. An expert and fan calls the show “gripping because nothing catastrophic is happening.” Even the production crew says their stress eases.… Continue Reading

Blue Origin launches an all-female celebrity crew with Katy Perry, Gayle King and Lauren Sanchez

Blue Origin has launched Jeff Bezos’ fiancee Lauren Sanchez into space with an all-female celebrity crew that included Katy Perry and Gayle King. The New Shepard rocket blasted off Monday from West Texas. Sanchez, a helicopter pilot and former TV journalist, invited the others along for the 10-minute, fully automated ride. Besides Sanchez, Perry and King, the crew included a film producer, a former NASA engineer who started her own companies to promote science education, and a scientist who now advocates for sexual violence survivors. Moved by the views of Earth below, Perry couldn’t resist singing “What a Wonderful World” in space.… Continue Reading

So your home’s not social-media perfect? How to get over ‘house shame’ and invite people in

NEW YORK (AP) — Is your house something less than Pinterest perfect? Whose isn’t. Social media has fed a phenomenon called house shame. It’s that anxiety and dread that sets in when you think people coming over to your house will judge how it looks. It can also be internal — a self-shaming that sets in when you can’t achieve the perfection you see on Instagram. Home organizers and interior designers have suggestions on how to get over house shame. First, remember there’s no such thing as perfect. A space that’s cared for is more important. Light a candle and place some flowers to make the front hall welcoming. Use a rolling rack for coats if closets are crammed. And if someone does house shame you, don’t invite them back.… Continue Reading

Final Four games average 15.3 million viewers, its biggest audience in 8 years

NEW YORK (AP) — Saturday night’s Final Four games averaged 15.3 million viewers on CBS according to fast national numbers from Nielsen, the most-watched national semifinals in eight years. The data also includes some out-of-home data. Numbers are expected to increase when the final numbers are released Tuesday morning. Some of the increase can be…… Continue Reading

Val Kilmer, ‘Top Gun’ and Batman star with an intense approach, dies at 65

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Val Kilmer has died at age 65. The versatile actor played flying ace Iceman opposite Tom Cruise in “Top Gun,” Batman in “Batman Forever” and singer Jim Morrison in the biopic “The Doors.” Kilmer’s daughter says he died Tuesday in Los Angeles from pneumonia. He had been diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. The Los Angeles-born Kilmer studied acting at the elite Juilliard School and had his big break in the 1985 spy spoof “Top Secret.” He was sometimes regarded as a difficult presence on film sets but said in his memoir that he always put the art first.… Continue Reading

What to know about the bird flu outbreak in wild birds and what it means for backyard bird feeders

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bird flu has devastated poultry and dairy farms since it was first detected in North America in late 2021. But what has been the toll on wild birds? While most wild birds are susceptible to the disease, some species like mallards are more likely to carry the virus without symptoms. Others like geese tend to die in large numbers. Songbirds have sometimes gotten sick and died, but there haven’t been mass die-offs. Experts recommend taking precautions around sick or dead wild birds. But you can keep your bird feeder up. Scientists say the threat to the general population is currently low.… Continue Reading

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