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Freddie Mercury’s beloved piano, song drafts and hundreds of personal items to go on sale

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

LONDON (AP) — More than 1,400 of Freddie Mercury’s personal items, including his flamboyant stage costumes, handwritten drafts of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and the baby grand piano he used to compose Queen’s greatest hits, are going on display in a free exhibition at Sotheby’s London ahead of their sale.The vast collection of the singer’s personal belongings, which had been left to Mercury’s close friend Mary Austin, had remained undisturbed in his west London mansion for 30 years since his death in 1991.Austin, 72, said in a BBC interview in April that she has decided to sell almost all the items to “close this very special chapter in my life” and “put my affairs in order.”Among the hundreds of Mercury’s personal treasures were previously unseen working drafts of hits “Don’t Stop Me Now,” “We Are the Champions” and ”Somebody to Love.”The handwritten draft of “Bohemian Rhapsody” — which shows that Mercury experimented with naming the song “M...

Bell saw Q2 net earnings fall almost 40% as it began layoff of 1,300 workers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

MONTREAL — BCE Inc. says its net earnings tumbled almost 40 per cent in its most recent quarter as it began laying off 1,300 workers.The Montreal-based telecommunications company’s net earnings for the second quarter amounted to $397 million or 37 cents per common share compared with $654 million or 66 cents per common share a year ago.Adjusted net earnings totalled $722 million, or 79 cents per share, compared with $791 million, or 87 cents per share, a year prior.Analysts on average had expected an adjusted profit of 80 cents per share for the period ended June 30, according to estimates compiled by financial markets data firm Refinitiv.Operating revenue ticked up to $6.06 billion from $5.86 billion a year earlier.Bell attributed its increased costs to severance expenses, a higher interest rate environment and an obligation it had to repurchase at fair value the minority interest in one of its joint venture equity investments.“Bell’s Q2 results demonstrate that our consisten...

Stock market today: Wall Street slips as its big rally cools some more

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are slipping Thursday as Wall Street’s red-hot rally for the year cools a bit more.The S&P 500 was 0.4% lower in morning trading and on pace for a third straight loss after hitting a 16-month high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 74 points, or 0.2%, at 35,208, as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.3% lower.A day earlier, U.S. stocks tumbled to their worst loss in months. While the drop came after Fitch Ratings downgraded the U.S. government’s credit rating, several analysts say they expect the move to have minimal impact on financial markets. U.S. Treasury debt is the cornerstone of the global financial system, but the downgrade by itself likely won’t push any investors to dump theirs.The big questions remain whether the economy will avoid a recession, how corporate profits will do and where interest rates are heading. Hanging over them all is whether the stock market’s big run this year was overdone, as critics suggest.Tr...

Hasbro selling eOne to Lionsgate in $500M deal after buying the company for $4B in 2019

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

Hasbro is selling its eOne television and movie business to Lionsgate in an approximately $500 million deal, after having paid $4 billion for the company four years ago.Hasbro said Thursday that the agreement with Lionsgate includes $375 million in cash and the assumption of production financing loans.The acquisition will give Lionsgate access to eOne’s library of almost 6,500 titles, including “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Yellowjackets” and “The Woman King.” Lionsgate will also receive film development rights to Hasbro’s Monopoly, based on the popular board game.The deal allows the Santa Monica, California-based company to continue to scale its operations in the U.K. and Canada, where it has recently launched production partnerships with BBC Studios, Channel Four, the CBC, Rogers’ CityTV and Bell Media.Hasbro purchased Entertainment One Ltd. in 2019 in an all-cash deal valued at about $4 billion. At the time, Hasbro was interested in eOne’s preschool brands, which inc...

A father rescued his 3 children from a New Jersey river before drowning

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — A father who rescued his three children from a New Jersey river drowned after he lost his balance and disappeared under the water, authorities said.Divers found the body of Rolando Camarillo-Cholula, 42, of South River, shortly before 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Millstone River, Franklin Township police said.Emergency responders went to the river in the Somerset County town around 2:15 p.m. after a 911 caller reported the man was in distress in the water, but his children — ages 8, 11 and 13 — were safe on shore.Witnesses said the children had gone in the water but soon became distressed. The father then went in and got the kids to shallow water, but soon struggled to maintain his balance.Responders went into the water but could not find the man. The three children were treated at the scene.The drowning remains under investigation.The Associated Press

Alleged ex-member of Syrian militia arrested in Germany, accused of crimes against humanity

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — An alleged former member of a Syrian pro-government militia has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of crimes against humanity related to the abuse and torture of civilians in the early years of his country’s civil war, prosecutors said Thursday.The man, identified only as Ahmad H. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested in Bremen on Wednesday, federal prosecutors said. He is suspected of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes by torture and enslavement.Between 2012 and 2015, the suspect was a local leader of a militia loyal to the government of President Bashar Assad in the Damascus suburb of Tadamon which was tasked with working with Syrian military intelligence to repress attempts at opposition, prosecutors said in a statement. They said the militia ran checkpoints and carried out arbitrary arrests, which it used to extort money, torture people or force them to work.The suspect was personally involved in abusing civilians on various occasi...

No injuries after timber beam falls from Hibernia offshore oil platform

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador’s offshore petroleum regulator says nobody was injured in a potentially deadly accident on the deck of the Hibernia Platform last month.The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board says that on July 25, a 1.8-kilogram piece of timber dropped 15 metres onto the deck as a chemical tank was being lifted from the platform to a support vessel via a crane.The report says nobody was inside the lifting zone on the platform or the vessel, but the incident could have been fatal.A news release says Hibernia’s management are investigating the incident, and the regulator will continue to monitor the situation.Hibernia was the province’s first offshore oil installation, located over 300 kilometres off the coast of St. John’s.ExxonMobil Canada, Chevron Canada Resources and Suncor are among Hibernia’s owners.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 3, 2023.The Canadian Press

Death of off-duty Chicago firefighter who died while swimming ruled accidental drowning: medical examiner

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

CHICAGO — The death of an off-duty Chicago firefighter who died Sunday while swimming has been ruled an accidental drowning, according to the Cook County medical examiner.The firefighter, identified as 43-year-old Wilbert Hayes, was swimming with his family in Lake Michigan after his shift when the incident occurred. According to the Chicago Fire Department, Hayes' death will be considered an "off-duty accidental death of an active-duty member."Visitation and funeral services have been set for the fallen firefighter. Off-duty Chicago firefighter who died while swimming with his family in Lake Michigan ID’d "It is my sad duty to inform you that Engineer/EMT Wilbert B. Hayes assigned to Engine 16 diedSunday, July 30, 2023. As Fire Commissioner, I encourage all members of the Fire Departmentto join me in paying our respects. I further encourage all off-duty members to attend andparticipate in the service," Fire Commissoner Annette Nance-Holt said in an announcement.Visitation for Hay...

18-year-old fatally shot in face on South Side ID'd

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

CHICAGO -- An 18-year-old man who succumbed to his injuries after being found in the street with gunshot wounds has been identified. The medical examiner's office identified him as Jacarrion S. Johnson from Chicago.Police said he was found in the 800 block of West 54th Street in Back of the Yards with gunshot wounds to the face and chest. He was transported to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition. Woman killed, toddler son among 3 others shot on South Side He was pronounced dead a short time after.There is currently no one in custody and police are investigating the incident.

Russia fines Apple, Wikipedia for spreading 'false information' about Ukraine conflict

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:09 GMT

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian court on Thursday imposed fines on Apple and the host of Wikipedia for failing to remove material deemed to be “false information” about Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.A justice of the peace in a magistrate's court, which handles administrative violations and low-level criminal cases, fined the Wikimedia Foundation 3 million rubles ($33,000) for retaining material on Russian-language Wikipedia pages that violated a law against discrediting Russia's military and spreading false information about the Ukraine conflict, the Interfax news agency reported.The same justice found Apple guilty of failing to delete podcasts and apps with such information and fined the company 400,000 rubles ($4,400). Russia accuses Ukraine of striking same Moscow building that was hit by drone days ago Since sending troops into Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has enacted an array of measures to punish any criticism or questioning of the military campaign.Some critics have rece...