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‘Die Hard,’ laugh harder at one-man parody

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

British actor Darrel Bailey does a great German accent. This was a problem.While Bailey was rehearsing to perform “Yippee Ki Yay” — a one-person retelling of “Die Hard” — he kept crushing his German accent. Only Alan Rickman himself doesn’t actually do all that well with the accent of legendary villain Hans Gruber (note: I acknowledge there is vigorous debate around this subject).“There’s a joke very early on in the show about how Alan Rickman’s accent isn’t very good, how it’s very English,” Bailey told the Herald from London. “I struggled trying to nail down a bad German accent. Mine was too good. I have a good frame of reference because I have good German friends. But the director at the time was like, ‘Too German, make it more posh English.’”Eventually Bailey mastered along with the dozen of other voices he invented for “Yippee Ki Yay,” Dec. 27 to 31 at the Huntington Theatre. And the dozens of mannerisms. And the character ticks. And how to fight a teddy bear.If you celebrate e...

King: Why haven’t candidates embraced AI?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

Memo to presidential candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump:Assuming one of you will be elected president of the United States next year, many computer scientists believe you should be addressing what you think about artificial intelligence and how you plan to deal with the surge in this technology, which will break over the nation in the next president’s term.Gentlemen, this matter is urgent, yet only a little has been heard from either of you who are seeking the highest office. President Biden did sign a first attempt at guidelines for AI, but he and Trump have been quiet on its transformative impact.Indeed, the political class has been silent, preoccupied as it is with old and — against what will happen — irrelevant issues. Congress has been as silent as Biden and Trump. There are two congressional AI caucuses, but they have been concerned with minor issues, like AI in political advertising.The AI tsunami is rolling in, and the political class is at play, unaware that it is about ...

Keilson & Seckel-Cerrotti: Fighting the epidemic of loneliness in U.S.

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

Singer-songwriter Carole King had it right: It’s good to know you’ve got a friend. Especially now, in the midst of what the U.S. Surgeon General has called, in a 2023 report, “an epidemic of loneliness and isolation” in the United States. Research has shown that having friends is good for your health, staves off anxiety and depression, and even reduces the need for medical care. Any heavy lift is lighter when someone is lifting with you.The Surgeon General’s report warns that the physical consequences of loneliness and poor connection can be devastating and include a 29% increased risk of heart disease; a 32% increased risk of stroke; and a 50% increased risk of developing dementia for older adults. In stark terms, the report notes that lacking connection can actually increase one’s risk for premature death to levels that compare with smoking 15 cigarettes a day.To us, these findings were concerning but not surprising. We’ve seen what can happen to people who are without a friend or...

Editorial: Blinken gets it right in case against Hamas

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

In this space we do the talking, but today we are giving a good chunk of our space to Secretary of State Tony Blinken. America’s top diplomat gave his year-end press conference Wednesday before he left for another trip to the Mideast for the Israel-Hamas war that the terror gang launched from Gaza on Oct. 7.Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council postponed yet again a vote on an United Arab Emirates-drafted resolution calling for a pause in the fighting to bring in aid to Gaza and allow for the hostages kidnaped by Hamas to be released.The Monday vote became the Tuesday vote became the Wednesday vote and was delayed again because the U.S. is rightly insisting that Hamas be named as instigators of this awful war that has killed Israelis and Palestinians. Great credit to Blinken and President Joe Biden for demanding that the Security Council must call a terrorist a terrorist.Here is Blinken: “We’ve talked about Israel and Gaza. Let me just say this. We believe that, as we’ve sa...

Thornton: Holiday gift-giving turbocharges trash problem

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

Every time I rip open a lovingly wrapped gift (and plenty of us will be doing a lot of that soon), one thing pops into my mind: trash.The wrapping paper, trash. The package hidden underneath it, trash. And the gift itself, in most cases, future trash, given enough time.Too harsh? Then ask yourself: Do you remember much of what you got last Christmas?Though I’d wager the answer is no, I’d also bet you do remember something: who gave you a present, and the love you felt because of it. Like it or not, giving our friends and family stuff between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day is one of the most important bonding rituals we have.My wife puts a lot of thought into her gift-giving, and my children beam when they get something in the mail from their great-grandparents. I respect that — no matter how intractable our trash problem has become.And it is a monstrous problem, especially around Christmas. By one estimate, we generate more than 25% of our annual waste during the holidays. That mig...

Dear Abby: Forgive MIL for hitting children? No way

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

Dear Abby: My husband and I have been married for 25 years. Right now, our marriage is in trouble because I have been ordered to rekindle a relationship with his mother, whom I haven’t spoken to in six years.In my opinion, the woman is toxic. For 17 years, she has essentially stabbed me in the back. At my husband’s request, I forgave her each time. I love him, but I have come to realize he always takes her side. In his eyes, she can do no wrong.Six years ago, we had an issue regarding her spanking my children. I asked to meet in a neutral location to discuss it, but she and my husband’s stepfather refused. To resolve the situation, I agreed to meet at their home under one condition: If an argument began, my husband and I would leave. We even drove there separately.Upon our arrival, my father-in-law began screaming at me, so I left, and I’ve had no contact with my in-laws since. My husband says if his mother goes to her grave without this issue being resolved,...

Israel and Hamas measures get a look as most US state legislatures meet for first time since Oct. 7

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

Most U.S. state legislatures will reconvene in January for the first time since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel sparked a war in Gaza and protests worldwide — and they’re preparing to take action in response, both symbolic and concrete.Legislatures in at least eight states that were in session late in 2023 have already condemned the attacks.“My worldview was shaped by the fact that my forbearers were not protected during the Holocaust, that no one came to their aid,” said Florida state Sen. Lori Berman, a Democrat who sponsored a resolution that passed unanimously last month in her state. “Silence and indifference are the reason why bad — evil — is able to prevail.”Measures have been introduced already for the 2024 sessions in states from New Hampshire to North Dakota, and more are likely.In the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 240 others hostage. Israel responded with attacks on Gaza, leveling buildings, including hos...

In Mexico, piñatas are not just child’s play. They’re a 400-year-old tradition

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

ACOLMAN, Mexico (AP) — María de Lourdes Ortiz Zacarías swiftly cuts hundreds of strips of newsprint and colored crepe paper needed to make a piñata, soothed by Norteño music on the radio while measuring pieces by feel.“The measurement is already in my fingers,” Ortiz Zacarías says with a laugh.She has been doing this since she was a child, in the family-run business alongside her late mother, who learned the craft from her father. Piñatas haven’t been displaced by more modern customs, and her family has been making a living off them into its fourth generation.Ortiz Zacarías calls it “my legacy, handed down by my parents and grandparents.”Business is steady all year, mainly with birthday parties, but it really picks up around Christmas. That’s because piñatas are interwoven with Christian traditions in Mexico.There are countless designs these days, based on everything from Disney characters to political figures. But the most traditional style of piñata is a sphere with seven spiky co...

Post-flight feast: Study suggests reindeer vision evolved to spot favorite food

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer may have millions of carrots set out for him on Christmas Eve, but what about the rest of the year?Finding food in a cold, barren landscape is challenging, but researchers from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and the University of St. Andrews in Scotland report that reindeer eyes may have evolved to allow them to easily spot their preferred meal. It’s further evidence that while reindeer are famous for pulling Santa’s sleigh, it’s their vision that really sets them apart, says Nathaniel Dominy, a Dartmouth anthropology professor and co-author of a recent study published in the journal i-Perception.“They’ve been sort of obscure and unheralded in the annals of visual neuroscience, but they’re having their moment because they have a really fascinating visual system,” he said in an interview.Scientists have known for years that mirror-like tissue in reindeer eyes changes color from a greenish gold in the summer to vivid blue i...

Isaiah Stevens breaks career scoring record for No. 16 CSU Rams in win over Loyola Marymount

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:00:55 GMT

LOS ANGELES — Isaiah Stevens scored 19 points to break the career scoring record for No. 16 Colorado State, which remained perfect away from home with a 76-67 victory over Loyola Marymount on Friday night.Nique Clifford led Colorado State with 23 points, going 9 of 10 from the floor. Patrick Cartier added 14 points for the Rams (11-1), who won their second consecutive game since their only loss — a home defeat against Saint Mary’s on Dec. 9 — and improved to 5-0 in away and neutral-site games.Stevens broke the record previously held by Pat Durham (1985-89) and now has 1,986 points in five seasons with the Rams. He also went 8 of 13 from the floor to break Durham’s school record for field goals.With seven assists, Stevens also surpassed 700. As a team, Colorado State had 21 assists on 30 baskets.Will Johnston scored 21 of his 27 points in the second half for Loyola Marymount (7-6), which dropped to 1-1 to begin a stretch of six consecutive home games.Keli Leaupepe scored 13 poi...