‘Garfield,’ ‘Furiosa’ repeat atop box office charts as slow summer grinds on
It was a quiet weekend at North American movie theaters, dominated once again by Sony’s “The Garfield Movie” and Warner Bros. “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” “The Garfield Movie” earned a chart-topping $14 million in ticket sales while “Furiosa” settled into third place in a close race with “IF,” both earning around $10.8 million, according to studio estimates on Sunday. Disney/20th Century Studios’ “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” landed in fourth place with $8.8 million. Universal’s “The Fall Guy” rounded out the top five with $4.2 million. The 2024 box office is down nearly 24% from last year.
Rupert Murdoch ties the knot for the 5th time in ceremony at his California vineyard
NEW YORK (AP) — Media magnate Rupert Murdoch, who is 93, has married for the fifth time. Murdoch’s News Corp confirmed that he and Elena Zhukova, a 67-year-old Russian-born retired molecular biologist, wed Saturday in a ceremony at his California vineyard. The couple announced their engagement in March. Murdoch was most recently married to model and actor Jerry Hall. They were wed in 2016 and divorced in 2022. Zhukova is the ex-wife of Alexander Zhukov, a billionaire energy investor and Russian politician. Their daughter, Dasha, was previously married to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who used to own the Premier League soccer club Chelsea. Last fall, Murdoch stepped down as leader of both Fox News’ parent company and his News Corp. media holdings.
Ex-NJ officer sentenced to 27 years in shooting death of driver, wounding of passenger in 2019 chase
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A former New Jersey police officer has been sentenced to a total of 27 years in prison in the shooting death of one man and the wounding of another during a high-speed car chase 5 1/2 years ago in the city of Newark. Superior Court Judge Michael Ravin sentenced former Newark officer Jovanny Crespo on Friday to 20 years for aggravated manslaughter and seven years for aggravated assault in the January 2019 chase. NJ.com reported that 31-year-old Crespo wept as his mother and sister begged for leniency. He later stood to briefly apologize to the victims’ families.
Makhachev beats Poirier by submission at UFC 302 to defend lightweight title
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Islam Makhachev defended his lightweight title and extended his winning streak to 14 fights, third-longest in UFC history, by getting a submission over Dustin Poirier in the fifth round at UFC 302. Overcoming one of the sport’s accomplished veterans and a crowd that was against him from the start, Makhachev ran his record to 26-1 and said afterward he may move up in weight for another challenge. There’s certainly not much left for him at 155 pounds, where he defended his title for the third time and showed why he is ranked as the pound-for-pound best in UFC. Poirier fell short in his third attempt for the undisputed title.
Live Nation reveals data breach at its Ticketmaster subsidiary
Live Nation is investigating a data breach at its Ticketmaster subsidiary, which dominates ticketing for live events in the United States. Live Nation, based in Beverly Hills, California, said in a regulatory filing Friday that on May 27 “a criminal threat actor″ offered to sell Ticketmaster data on the dark web. Other media reports say a hacking group named ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the breach in an online forum and was seeking $500,000 for the data, which reportedly includes names, addresses, phone numbers and some credit card details of Ticketmaster customers.
Oregon officials close entire coast to mussel harvesting due to shellfish poisoning
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon authorities have closed the state’s entire coastline to mussel harvesting due to an outbreak of shellfish poisoning they described as “unprecedented.” They’ve also closed parts of the Oregon coast to harvesting razor clams, bay clams and oysters. The Oregon Health Authority this week said paralytic shellfish poisoning has sickened at least 20 people. The agency is asking people who have harvested or eaten Oregon shellfish since May 13 to fill out a survey to help officials identify the cause of the outbreak and the number of people sickened. Officials say high levels of toxins were first detected in shellfish along the coast about two weeks ago.
A Chinese spacecraft lands on the moon’s far side to collect rocks in growing space rivalry with US
BEIJING (AP) — A Chinese spacecraft has landed on the moon’s far side to collect rocks, in a growing space rivalry with U.S. The official Xinhua News Agency says the landing module touched down Sunday morning Beijing time. The mission is the sixth in the Chang’e moon exploration program and the second designed to bring back samples. The moon program is part of a growing rivalry with the U.S. and others, including Japan and India, to explore space. China has put its own space station in orbit and regularly sends crews there.
Boeing’s first astronaut flight called off at the last minute in latest setback
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Mission managers say last-minute computer trouble has nixed the latest launch attempt for Boeing’s first astronaut flight. Two NASA astronauts were strapped into the company’s Starliner capsule and awaiting liftoff Saturday when the countdown was halted. With only a split second to take off, there was no time to work the latest trouble and the launch was called off. Officials say they could try again as early as Wednesday. If it doesn’t blast off this coming week, then that would be it until mid-June in order to move the rocket off the pad and replace batteries. NASA wants a backup to SpaceX, which has been flying astronauts since 2020.
With his transgender identity public, skier Jay Riccomini finds success on and off the slopes
COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. (AP) — Jay Riccomini is increasingly well known in the world of slopestyle skiing. He finished third overall in last season’s World Cup slopestyle standings, and is now mentioned as an Olympic hopeful in 2026. But he has also achieved a different kind of victory: publicly embracing his identity as a gay transgender man. Riccomini kept his identity a secret for years, but broke his silence in an Instagram post in 2021, when he was 17. In one of his first interviews with a national news outlet, Riccomini recently shared with The Associated Press the long road he followed to get where he is today.
Downtown Atlanta water service disrupted, forcing business closings and water boil notice
Atlanta officials were slowly repressuring the city’s water system after corroding water pipes burst in downtown and Midtown, forcing many businesses and attractions to close and affecting water service in area homes. The problems began Friday morning and crews were still working Saturday to restore service. The department issued a boil water advisory for a large swath of metro Atlanta and asked the public to restrict water usage to allow the pressure in the system to rebuild. Water gushed into the street where three large water mains intersect, causing water problems at two downtown hospitals a city jail, a county jail and local shelters. Attractions like the Georgia Aquarium remained closed Saturday.
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