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Column: With sports movies an endangered species, a look back at memorable offerings of decades past

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

By Nina Metz and Shakeia Taylor, Chicago TribuneSports movies can serve as a backdrop for all kinds of storytelling about what it means to navigate through life. But mid-budget movies have all but disappeared from theaters, taking sports movies with them. When was the last time you saw a great sports comedy or drama that was new? Once a hardy genre, sports movies are something of an endangered species at the moment.With that in mind, Tribune film critic Nina Metz and sports writer Shakeia Taylor look back at four titles from decades past: “Slap Shot,” “A League of Their Own,” “White Men Can’t Jump” and “Bend it Like Beckham.” All are rentable or available on a streaming platform.Note: Next month Taylor will take part in the panel discussion “Leveling the Playing Field: Women in Baseball,” hosted by the Jackie Robinson Museum in New York, to talk about how women of color are stepping up to the plate across baseball.‘Slap Shot’ (1977)Paul Newman plays an aging player-coach of a strugg...

Patriots extra points: What Bill Belichick has seen from new QB

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

FOXBORO — The Patriots have rifled through No. 3 quarterbacks throughout the past year, but head coach Bill Belichick seems sold on the team’s new third-stringer.Including Brian Hoyer, who was released in March, the Patriots have had nine quarterbacks on their roster in the past year. Nathan Rourke, who was claimed off waivers from the Jaguars early last week, is Mac Jones’ and Bailey Zappe’s latest backup. He’s spent two weeks of practice with the Patriots now.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Patriots’ Bill Belichick names five players to personal ‘All-Time team’ New England Patriots | Patriots get good news at Friday practice before Bills game New England Patriots | Patriots mailbag: How to acquire QB of the future while falling down draft board New England Patriots | Position switch has paid off for Patriots impending free agent New England Patriots | M...

Ozempic overdose? Poison control experts explain why thousands OD’d this year

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

Jeremy Childs |  Los Angeles Times (TNS)Some of those taking Ozempic or Wegovy are learning that too much of a good thing is never good.Semaglutide, the medication prescribed under the brand names Ozempic, for treating Type 2 diabetes, and Wegovy, for weight management, works by mimicking the hormone GLP-1, which is released by the gut after eating. The hormone has several effects in the body, such as stimulating insulin production, slowing gastric emptying and lowering blood sugar.It has been hailed for its weight-loss benefits, most conspicuously among celebrities. Oprah Winfrey recently said she uses weight-loss medication and lauded “the fact that there’s a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime.” She said it felt “like a gift.”But between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30 this year, at least 2,941 Americans reported overdose exposures to semaglutide, according to a recent report from America’s Poison Center...

Alex Murdaugh’s pursuit of a new murder trial is set for an evidentiary hearing next month

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The new judge handling the fallout over Alex Murdaugh’s murder convictions plans to hold an evidentiary hearing late next month.Murdaugh’s lawyers want another trial in the killings of the former lawyer’s wife and younger son, citing allegations that the court clerk improperly influenced the jury. The defense will get to put forth evidence at a three-day hearing expected to begin Jan. 29, according to a tentative schedule shared by a media liaison for former South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal.Jurors, the clerk and even the trial judge might have to testify under oath.Murdaugh is serving life imprisonment without parole after a jury found him guilty this March of killing his wife, Maggie, and younger son, Paul, in June 2021. He got sentenced this November for stealing about $12 million to an additional 27 years behind bars under a plea deal that resolved scores of state crimes related to money laundering, breach of trust and f...

Sportsnet to broadcast select PWHL games during inaugural season

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

Sportsnet has partnered with the Professional Women’s Hockey League to broadcast select games from the league’s inaugural season, beginning with the season-opener between Toronto and New York on New Year’s Day.Following the season-opener, Sportsnet’s broadcast schedule will include 16 games from January to March with additional games added at a later date.“The visibility offered across our broadcast and streaming schedule is unprecedented in women’s hockey and reinforces the growing interest in our sport,” said Stan Kasten, PWHL Advisory Board member. “Accessibility of PWHL games throughout our inaugural season is a giant win for fans everywhere. We felt it was a priority to engage a magnitude of committed partners on a variety of consistent platforms.”It has also been announced. Sportsnet’s parent company Rogers will also become the official telecommunications partner of the PWHL in Canada.They will create custom content with the PWHL to help engage fans, including the behind...

Kathy Griffin files for divorce ahead of her fourth wedding anniversary

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Comedian Kathy Griffin has filed for divorce from longtime partner Randy Bick just shy of the couple’s fourth wedding anniversary.Los Angeles Superior Court records show Griffin filed for divorce Thursday, citing irreconcilable differences.The pair dated for several years before marrying on New Year’s Day 2020. They have no children together, and Griffin’s filing says a prenuptial agreement dictates how their assets should be divided.Griffin, 63, was a star of the NBC series “Suddenly Susan” and poked fun at her celebrity on “My Life on the D-List.”Bick has worked as a marketing executive and began dating Griffin in 2011.Griffin was previously married. She accused her former husband of stealing from her on “Larry King Live” in 2006, and says she put their troubles into her act.The filing was first reported Friday by celebrity website TMZ.The Associated Press

Gunmen kill 6 people, wound 26 others in attack on party in northern Mexico border state

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Three gunmen pulled up to a party early on Friday in northern Mexico and opened fire on partygoers, killing six people and wounding 26 others. Two of the dead were under 18 years old, and five of the wounded were children. Four of the wounded were reported to be in critical condition at local hospitals, while 13 others were treated and released. Prosecutors in the border state of Sonora said the killings in the city of Ciudad Obregon was an attack on a suspected cartel member who was wanted in homicide and other charges.A fourth gunman who participated in the attack was already at the party. The suspected cartel member tried to flee but was killed.The attackers were able to escape. Sonora has been the scene of bloody turf battles between various drug gangs. The Associated Press

Float plane that crashed in N.W.T. was chartered to help with winter roads, TSB says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — A preliminary report by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada says a plane that crashed in the Northwest Territories this week was chartered to help with winter road construction in the area. The Air Tindi plane carrying 10 people crashed Wednesday near the Diavik Diamond Mine, about 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife. Everyone on board survived the crash. The TSB report says the Twin Otter, a small float plane, was travelling from Margaret Lake to Lac de Gras in the territory and crashed as it was attempting to land on the lake.TSB spokesman Hugo Fontaine said an investigation was to begin Friday, starting with video interviews with the passengers.He said the TSB will be present at the crash site to investigate sometime next week.A Royal Canadian Air Force CC-130H Hercules search-and-rescue aircraft was dispatched to the site from 17 Wing Winnipeg, and dropped search-and-rescue personnel by parachute Wednesday night.Air Force spokesman David Lavallee said the...

B.C. court blocks new law against public drug use, warning of ‘irreparable harm’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

VANCOUVER — The British Columbia Supreme Court has blocked new provincial laws against public consumption of illegal substances.The ruling in favour of the Harm Reduction Nurses Association imposes a temporary injunction until March 31, with the judge saying “irreparable harm will be caused” if the laws come into force.The Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act was passed by the legislature in November, allowing fines and imprisonment for people who refuse to comply with police orders not to consume drugs in certain public places.The nurses association argued the act, which has yet to come into effect, would violate the Canadian charter in various ways if enforced.But Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson says in his ruling that it was unnecessary to turn to those arguments, since the “balance of convenience” and the risk of irreparable harm weighed in the plaintiff’s favour. Lawyer Caitlin Shane for the nurses association says the injunct...

New Year's Eve in Chicago: CPD layouts safety plan ahead of busy holiday weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:12:51 GMT

CHICAGO — As the holiday weekend approaches, the Office of Emergency Management and Communications is reminding everyone to celebrate responsibly and remain vigilant. OEMC and Chicago police said Friday that preparations are underway to ensure the safety of locals and tourists visiting the city. Fireworks at Navy Pier and along the Riverfront, the Chicago Bears v. Atlanta, the New Year’s Eve 5K expects to draw big crowds to the downtown area. That's why OEMC and city police are asking locals to report any suspicious activity by calling 911.  "OEMC will monitor all citywide activities, traffic, and weather conditions and coordinate public safety resources with the Chicago Police Department, Chicago Fire Department and City of Chicago infrastructure departments," said a spokesperson for the agency.SEE ALSO | Events that shaped Chicago: 2023 Year in Review New Year's Eve events include:Chicago Riverwalk fireworksThe Chicago Riverwalk fireworks will be launched ...