Vive la France! Hawks make Zaccharie Risacher second straight Frenchman taken No. 1 in NBA draft
NEW YORK (AP) — The Atlanta Hawks took Zaccharie Risacher with the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft on Wednesday night, the second straight year a player from France was the first player selected. Risacher doesn’t come with the enormous height or hype of Victor Wembanyama, the towering center who went to San Antonio last year and went on to win the Rookie of the Year award. But the Hawks saw him as the best choice in what has been viewed as a draft absent of elite talent. This is the first time that the draft has gone consecutive years without the No. 1 pick being someone who played at an American college.
Pair of giant pandas on their way from China to San Diego Zoo under conservation partnership
SAN DIEGO (AP) — A pair of giant pandas are on their way from China to the U.S., where they will be cared for at the San Diego Zoo as part of an ongoing conservation partnership between the two nations. Officials with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance were on hand in China Wednesday for a farewell ceremony commemorating the departure of the giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao. The celebration included cultural performances, video salutations from Chinese and American students and a gift exchange among conservation partners, the zoo said in a statement. After the ceremony, the giant pandas began their trip to Southern California.
Tribes honor the birth of a rare white buffalo calf in Yellowstone and reveal its name: Wakan Gli
WEST YELLOWSTONE, Mont. (AP) — Native American religious ceremonies with dancing, drumming, singing and the retelling of a sacred legend commemorated the recent birth of a rare white buffalo calf in Yellowstone National Park. The calf was born earlier this month in the park’s vast Lamar Valley. To the several tribes who revere American bison, the calf’s appearance was both the fulfilment of sacred prophesy and a message. Chief Arvol Looking Horse of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota Oyate in South Dakota said in Wednesday’s ceremonies near West Yellowstone, Montana, that the message is for people to work together to preserve the Earth for their children.
Bill Cobbs, the prolific and sage character actor, dies at 90
NEW YORK (AP) — The veteran character actor Bill Cobbs has died. He was 90. Cobbs became a ubiquitous and sage screen presence as an older man, acting in films such as “The Hudsucker Proxy” and “The Bodyguard.” Cobbs’ publicist says Cobbs died Tuesday at his home in the Inland Empire, California, surrounded by family and friends. A Cleveland native, Cobbs was a lifelong actor with some 200 film and TV credits. The lion share of those came in his 50s, 60s and 70s, when filmmakers and TV producers turned to him again and again to imbue small but pivotal parts with a wizened and worn soulfulness.
Alex Morgan left off the 18-player U.S. soccer roster headed to the Olympics
U.S. national team forward Alex Morgan has been left off coach Emma Hayes’ roster for the Paris Olympics. Morgan was the most notable absence on the 18-player list. The 34-year-old Morgan is a three-time Olympian but missed more than a month with the San Diego Wave after injuring her left ankle on April 19. She had since returned. Morgan also was named to the squad Hayes assembled for a pair of U.S. friendlies against South Korea earlier this month. Morgan has 123 goals in 224 appearances with the national team. Hayes says “there is no denying that it was an extremely competitive process.”
Canada ends cod moratorium in Newfoundland after more than 30 years
ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland (AP) — The Canadian government has ended the Newfoundland and Labrador cod moratorium, which gutted the Atlantic-coast province’s economy and transformed its small communities more than 30 years ago. The Fisheries Department says it would reestablish a commercial cod fishery in the province, with a total allowable catch of 18,000 tons for the 2024 season. Ottawa announced the devastating cod moratorium on July 2, 1992. Cod stocks off the province’s northern and eastern coasts were collapsing, and the moratorium was introduced as a way to help them recover. Before then, the cod fishery was a primary economic driver in the province, and the moratorium put tens of thousands of people out of work.
Knicks set to acquire Mikal Bridges in a trade from the Brooklyn Nets, AP sources say
NEW YORK (AP) — Two people with knowledge of the details say that Mikal Bridges is being traded by the Brooklyn Nets to the New York Knicks, where he will join Jalen Brunson and his other former Villanova teammates. The first trade between the New York rivals since 1983 will put Bridges in the lineup alongside Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo, players who helped the Wildcats win two NCAA championships. The Knicks will pay big to get him, with ESPN reporting Tuesday that they are sending the Nets Bojan Bogdanovic, four unprotected first-round picks and one protected pick. The deal was confirmed to The Associated Press under condition of anonymity because it is not yet official.
Chanel goes to the opera in a gleaming but designer-less couture collection
PARIS (AP) — Chanel’s latest couture display at the Paris Fashion Week is a finely executed collection channeling theatricality. Few Parisian fashion houses can fill the Paris Opera and gain applause from Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour and other luminaries without even having a designer. It’s a testament to Chanel’s enduring power and its world-renowned atelier following Virginie Viard’s abrupt exit on June 5.
Ex-‘Jackass’ star Bam Margera will spend six months on probation after plea over family altercation
WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — Former “Jackass” star Bam Margera will spend six months on probation after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct Wednesday over an altercation at his home near Philadelphia. The plea ends a misdemeanor assault case that stemmed from what his brother called a “frightening and unpredictable” two-week visit home last year. Defense lawyer William Brennan says Margera is now clean, sober and productive. He says Margera pleaded guilty to two summary offenses. Jess Margera had called his brother “a good dude when he’s not messed up,” but said he had ruptured his eardrum in the altercation.
The mastermind behind ‘CSI’ turns the franchise to a new direction with unscripted CBS series
NEW YORK (AP) — There have been five “CSI” shows with actors playing forensics experts. Now it’s time for the real experts to bask in the spotlight. “The Real CSI: Miami,” premiering on CBS on Wednesday, is a documentary-style look at the hunt for real criminals told by the officers and lab-coated pros who solved the murders. The series uses real 911 calls, actor portrayals, surveillance video, interrogation and bodycam footage, crime scene images, cool graphics and re-creations. There are also interviews with survivors and family members to underline the pain of loss. The series is created by writer-producer Anthony E. Zuiker, who created the hit franchise.
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