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How ‘King Lear’ and ‘E.T.’ inspired Sir Ben Kingsley to befriend an alien in the new movie ‘Jules’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

In his new film “Jules,” Sir Ben Kingsley plays Milton, a lonely old man in a small Pennsylvania town whose quiet life is turned upside down when an alien spaceship lands in the middle of his azalea bushes one night.It’s a movie that’s alternately funny and heartbreaking. For Kingsley, 79, accepting the role offered by director Marc Turtletaub was an easy decision given the unlikely pairing of influences Kingsley recognized in Gavin Steckler’s script.“Reading the screenplay, I went through several different perceptions rapidly,” Kingsley says in an interview a few weeks completed before the Screen Actors Guild went on strike. “Starting with it possibly being ‘The Tragedy of King Lear,’ and then on page 10 or 11 it turned into ‘E.T.’“It was a very intelligent combination of the two,” he says. “That you have the extraordinary ambush, into a man’s life, of the completely unexpected and inexplicable. But at the same time the journey towards the end of that man’s life, which tragically a...

Senior East Bay tenants’ battle: Cockroaches, water leaks, maintenance problems

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

For months, 83-year-old Bonnie McCord of Oakley would pull on her rubber gloves each evening and spend hours meticulously scrubbing her apartment, hoping to rid it of the cockroaches that would scamper across her floors, in her cupboards, on her walls and across her arms as she sat on her recliner.“I was washing down every single thing, mopping the floors before I went to bed, wiping down everything with Clorox because their poop looks like pepper,” she said. “You have to wipe it because you can’t see it.”But by the next morning, the resilient pests would be back in what seemed like armies once again infesting her Oakley apartment.“They’re in everything. They’re in the furniture. They’re in the appliances, the refrigerator, the stove, the microwave and the dishwasher,” McCord said. “Even the shower curtain.”Exhausted, the retired widow said she finally threw her hands up about a month ago and agreed to temporarily stay with a friend downstairs so professional exter...

East Palo Alto: Four indicted in deadly 2022 park shootout

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

EAST PALO ALTO — The last suspect in a deadly 2022 shootout at a city park teeming with children has been arrested, following several criminal indictments being handed down in connection with the daytime gun battle, authorities said.The shooting was reported the evening of May 17, 2022 at Jack Ferrell Park, involving two pairs of men opening fire at each other with several bystanders on scene. Four men were hit, and one of them, Ralph Fields, died at the hospital.Early on, police emphasized that the shooting was not random, and tallied 33 shots fired between three rounds of gunfire. A week after the shooting, police announced that two people had been arrested.On Wednesday, East Palo Alto police announced that four men were indicted by a criminal grand jury Aug. 4 on multiple charges related to the shooting, including assault with a deadly weapon and discharge of a firearm with gross negligence. A police news release made no mention of murder or manslaughter charges related to ...

Record numbers of people have died in California jails. Now lawmakers could crack down

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

Eighteen people died in the San Diego County jail system in 2021, the most in-custody deaths ever recorded there. Local officials expressed consternation. State representatives demanded answers. Calls for change rang out.The next year, another 18 people died in custody. San Diego County jails, which house an average of 3,800 people per day, are among the state’s deadliest.So far this year, 11 people have died in San Diego County jails, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.It’s not just San Diego. Six California county jail systems recorded record inmate deaths in 2022, according to California Department of Justice data dating to 2005. Solano County was one of them. Five people died in a system that houses an average of just 500 people per day.Those numbers are alarming to advocates for incarcerated people and for state lawmakers who have struggled to adopt a statewide response to the deaths. Locally elected sheriffs manage jails, and they report to the county boards of superviso...

Family of boy fatally shot in Minnesota mourns not only his loss, but arrest of 14-year-old brother

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

The mother of a 12-year-old boy fatally shot in St. Paul said Monday she feels like she’s in a nightmare — her son is gone and his 14-year-old brother is under arrest in the case.Police booked the teen into the Ramsey County Juvenile Detention Center Saturday on suspicion of manslaughter.“It was a terrible accident,” said Denisha Hill, mother of both boys. “This is devastating for me as a mother, having to plan a funeral for one child and to have another child behind bars.”UPDATE: Teen who shot 12-year-old brother in St. Paul released from custodyOfficers were called just before 5 a.m. Saturday on a report of a juvenile who’d been shot in the North End. Police found a 12-year-old, who family identified as Markee Jones, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.The shooting happened at Hill’s mother’s residence on Stinson Street between Farrington and Galtier streets. No one knew that someone hid a gun at the home; it wasn’t brought there by the kids, Hill said.The home is “a safe spo...

Outside Lands 2023: Why everyone seems so excited about this year’s lineup

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

Allen Scott understands that some people have enjoyed some Outside Lands’ lineups better than others. He knows that because, well, he’s one of those people — and he’s also one of the primary architects putting together the lineup each year.“I have different feelings on the lineup every year,” says Scott, co-founder of Outside Lands and president of concerts and festivals at Another Planet Entertainment. “Sometimes, I like the lineup more than others, certainly — like everybody. And I am like really, really fired up for this year.”That seems to the general consensus about the bill for the 2023 Outside Lands, which marks the 15th anniversary of the festival. Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey, Odeza, Foo Fighters, Megan Thee Stallion, The 1975, Janelle Monae, Zedd, J.I.D and Maggie Rogers are among the well-known acts set to appear at the three-day event, which takes place Aug. 11-13 at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. (See sfoutsidela...

San Francisco Uber riders, drivers can audio record their trip

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Your next Uber ride may be recorded. The company announced Wednesday that some Uber riders and drivers in San Francisco can now use an audio recording safety feature on its app. Some riders and drivers will begin seeing the feature in the app's "Safety Toolkit" starting Wednesday. In the coming weeks, the feature will be available to all riders and drivers."Beginning today, Uber is expanding an in-app safety feature that will allow drivers and riders in San Francisco to record audio during trips. We launched the initial US pilot in December 2021 in three cities: Kansas City, MO; Raleigh, NC; and Louisville, KY," Uber wrote.Drivers and riders can enable the new feature to record audio during a trip. Safety concerns -- for both riders and drivers -- have persisted since Uber launched as an alternative taxi-style service and setup its headquarters in San Francisco. A man was robbed at gunpoint while waiting for an Uber near Alamo Square at 10 a.m. Monday, accord...

Fire breaks out at 18th and Kirkham in SF

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- A fire has broken out at 18th Avenue and Kirkham Street in San Francisco, according to the San Francisco Fire Department. The fire is currently a one-alarm fire. People are being advised to avoid the area. People in Hawaii flee into ocean to escape wildfire destroying historic Maui tourist town No other information is available at this time.This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

UFO Whistleblower Kept Security Clearance After Psychiatric Detention

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

“Non-human” biological material recovered from purported UFO crash sites. A decadeslong secret program to reverse-engineer extraterrestrial aircraft. A government cover-up employing “administrative terrorism” to silence truth-tellers.These are some of the extraordinary claims made to Congress by Maj. David Grusch, a 36-year-old retired Air Force intelligence officer who also served as an adviser to the Pentagon’s Unidentified Aerial Phenomena task force. Last month, the House Oversight Committee opened an investigation after Grusch claimed he was retaliated against for blowing the whistle on the U.S. government’s alleged UAP recovery program.Security clearances of the sort Grusch has held are subject to strict requirements, including regarding psychological episodes and substance issues. Grusch has used his high-level clearance to shore up his credibility, telling the committee: “I was cleared to literally all relevant compartments and in a position of extreme trust in both my milit...

13-year-old Da’vian Kimbrough becomes youngest soccer player to go pro in US

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:51:35 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Da’vian Kimbrough, a 13-year-old forward, signed a contract with the Sacramento Republic of the second-tier League Championship of the United Soccer League, which says he is the youngest athlete in American professional team sports.Kimbrough, who joined the team’s youth academy in 2021, was 13 years, 5 months, 13 days when the deal was announced Tuesday.After playing for North Bay Elite Futbol Club in Solano County and Woodland Soccer Club of Yolo County, Kimbrough scored 27 goals in 31 matches for the Republic’s under-13 team in 2021, when he was 11.He played for the under-14 team last year, also joining the under-15 team for some matches. Kimbrough scored six goals this year as the New York Red Bulls Academy team won the Bassevelde Cup for under-13 teams in Belgium.Kimbrough, born Feb. 18, 2010, is eligible to debut on Saturday against the Birmingham Legion.Maximo Carrizo signed with Major League Soccer’s New York City on his 14th birthday on Feb. 28, 200...