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Review: Dynamic dancing drives this S.F. ‘Chorus Line’

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

Who knew a musical about auditioning for a musical would become such a phenomenon? But “A Chorus Line,” the now-classic musical that recently opened at San Francisco Playhouse, is nothing if not a singular sensation.There was nothing like “A Chorus Line” when the musical debuted in 1975. Inspired by taped conversations with actual Broadway dancers, some of whom were in the original cast, the show alternates between terrific synchronized dance numbers, as the dancers learn their steps, and heartfelt confessionals about the cast members’ lives, bizarrely solicited by the director as part of the audition process.Starting at New York’s Public Theater in April 1975, it quickly moved to Broadway, where its original production ran for 15 years. The show won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1976.“A Chorus Line” is indelibly associated with its original director/choreographer, Michael Bennett, who’s also credited with conceiving the play. With a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nich...

Thief breaks into California wine shop through its roof and steals $500,000 worth of rare booze

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

By Nadia Bidarian and Travis Caldwell | CNNPolice in Southern California are investigating a theft at a high-end wine shop where, according to the store, a burglar drilled a hole into its roof, descended via rope and stole around 600 bottles of wine and liquor worth over $500,000.After descending into the wine cellar of Lincoln Fine Wines in Los Angeles’ Venice neighborhood at around 12:30 a.m. Friday, the burglar – clad in a mask, black hoodie and red baseball cap – could be seen on surveillance footage covering the lens of the cellar’s security camera, according to store manager Nick Martinelle.“It was like something out of ‘Ocean’s Eleven.’ We just couldn’t believe it,” Martinelle told CNN. The tape from the back of a “Smile: You’re on Camera” sign stuck to the cellar’s door was used to conceal the camera, he said.During the theft, which lasted for an estimated four hours, the thief looted the wine cellar of some of the store’s rarest and most expensive wines and liquors.The owne...

SVB Financial approved to sell investment bank back to founder for $100 million

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

By Steven Church | BloombergSVB Financial Group, the bankrupt former owner of Silicon Valley Bank, won court permission to sell its investment banking arm for $100 million, four years after it paid $280 million for the unit.The buyers include Jeff Leerink and his management team. Leerink founded the investment advisory and continued running the unit after the bank holding company bought it. The sale is also backed by Baupost Group.US Bankruptcy Judge Martin Glenn had initially refused to approve the sale because it released too many SVB Financial executives from any potential lawsuits related to the collapse of the Silicon Valley Bank, which was taken over by regulators earlier this year.But after company officials added some restrictions to the legal releases, Glenn signed an order on Wednesday approving the sale.After regulators took over its bank, SVB Financial filed bankruptcy with plans to sell its non-banking assets, including the investment bank, in order to repay bondholders...

Man shot and killed while driving in East Oakland

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

EAST OAKLAND — A man was shot and killed while driving a vehicle in East Oakland on Wednesday night, leading them to crash the car with a passenger inside, according to authorities.The victim, a 34-year-old man with an unknown city of residence, was driving a vehicle eastbound on the 7300 block of MacArthur Boulevard with a female passenger when a man began shooting at the car from the sidewalk around 8:25 p.m., police said. The driver was hit by the gunfire, and the vehicle crashed at the intersection of MacArthur and 74th Avenue.The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The female passenger was transported to the hospital with unspecified injuries.The alleged shooter, 29, was identified as a person that knows the victims and was arrested in the area on suspicion of murder. There was no information released regarding a motive.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Grand jury indicts Martinez man, 52, for pair of 2022 killings Crime and Public Safety | ...

Larry Magid: Looking back on 40 years of writing tech columns

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

This week marks my 40th anniversary as a newspaper columnist. My first tech column, called “The Computer File” ran in the Los Angeles Times starting July 3, 1983. I wrote for the LA Times for the next 20 years and later the New York Times, and since around 1994, the Mercury News and other MediaNews Group papers where I continue to write a weekly tech column.Related ArticlesBusiness | Magid: Buying a large appliance online vs. local store Business | Magid: Could a smartwatch or fitness device save your life? Business | Larry Magid: Using AI and apps for summer travel plans Business | Larry Magid: Apple’s Vision Pro could inspire innovation That first 1983 column, “Learn Buzzwords Before Shopping,” described what were, at the time, unfamiliar terms like computer hardware, software, floppy disc, bite, kilobyte and megabyte. After defining what RAM (random access memory) stood for, I pointed out that computers could h...

Juvenile arrested for robbing 7-Eleven store twice in Santa Rosa

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

(KRON) -- A 17-year-old juvenile was arrested for allegedly robbing the same 7-Eleven store twice in Santa Rosa. On Wednesday at around 11:51 p.m., police were notified of a robbery that just occurred at a 7-Eleven store located on Mission Boulevard. According to the report, the suspect pointed a handgun at the store clerk and demanded money as well as pointing the gun at a citizen who had interrupted the robbery in progress.  2-year-old girl dies after being hit by car in Vallejo This robbery marked the store’s third in three weeks. An officer was in the vicinity of the store and arrived within one minute after the call was received. The officer was informed the suspect had fled the scene towards Mission Boulevard and a nearby creek. Two officers attempted to contact a person that matched the suspect description, however the person fled on foot, police said. The suspect was eventually caught in a residential area and taken into custody. Officers located a handgun, later determine...

Lake Tahoe prowler who fondles women's feet sought by police

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

(KRON) -- Police in the Lake Tahoe area are looking for a prowler who snuck into the rooms of two female resort guests and fondled their feet earlier this week. The first incident occurred on Sunday July 2 and the second occurred the following day, according to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. 4th of July partiers leave tons of trash behind at Lake Tahoe In both instances, a female guest staying at a resort in the 180 block of Elks Point Road in Stateline awoke to find an intruder in their room fondling their feet. When the women woke up, the intruder left the room, exiting through an exterior sliding screen door, police said.Both women's rooms were on the ground floor. Police suspect the prowler entered the rooms through unsecured exterior screen doors. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office said that it is actively investigating these incidents. Anyone with information related to the case is asked to call Investigator Scott Wharton at (775) 586-7253.KRON On is streaming live ne...

Bridge toll increase proposal passes key vote

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

(KRON) -- Bay Area drivers are one step closer to having to pay more to cross the bridges. The Safe, Clean and Reliable Public Transportation Emergency Act, introduced by Senator Scott Weiner, would temporarily raise tolls by $1.50 over the next five years at all seven state-owned Bay Area bridges. Police identify person of interest in fatal Oakland shooting The bill, which would go into effect January 2024 through December 2028, would raise around $900 million to provide public transportation funding to prevent service cuts and improve safety, cleanliness and reliability on struggling agencies like BART and Muni. “We’ve made good progress in this year’s budget, but the future of public transportation in the Bay Area is still under threat due to pandemic-related operational deficits that, without help, will lead to severe service cuts,” said Senator Wiener. “Bay Area transit ridership continues to climb, but it’s not happening quickly enough to make up for the loss of federal eme...

Marsh century powers Australia to 240-5 at tea in 3rd Ashes test

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

LEEDS, England (AP) — Australia allrounder Mitchell Marsh took advantage of England’s sloppy catching to smash a brutal century and change the game on the first day Thursday of the third Ashes test at Headingley.The home side started the must-win match with fire in its belly and was well on top when Marsh, making his first appearance in almost four years as an injury replacement, nicked Chris Woakes to slip with just 12 to his name.Had Joe Root taken the regulation chance just after lunch, Australia would have been in trouble on 98-5, but Marsh made him pay in full as he powered them to 240-4 before tea.Marsh batted with unfettered aggression after his reprieve, flaying 17 fours and four sixes as he racked up 118 at exactly a run a ball.The pain finally stopped for England in the last over before the break, Woakes getting Marsh when an inside edge looped to Zak Crawley via the thigh pad. But significant damage had already been done.England dictated terms in the first session, ...

EU agency sees no “critical areas of concern” in the use of controversial chemical herbicide

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:20:38 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s food safety agency said Thursday that it “did not identify critical areas of concern” in the use of the controversial chemical herbicide glyphosate.The ruling was welcomed by the companies seeking to extend the use of the chemical beyond December and harshly condemned by environmentalists who see it as a threat to nature and human health. Over the past decade, glyphosate, used in products like the weedkiller Roundup, has been at the heart of heated debate about whether it causes cancer and its possible disruptive effect on the environment. The EU’s executive commission and the member states must come to a full agreement on whether to extend the authorization of its use in the 27-nation bloc, partly based on Thursday’s advice.The European Food Safety Authority said in a detailed scientific review that assessing the impact of the chemical “on the health of humans, animals and the environment did not identify critical areas of concern.” ...