Test Category – JackieL

Civil Rights tourism begins its comeback after shutdowns

ATLANTA (AP) — Tom Houck, who drove Martin Luther King Jr. and his family around Atlanta during the Civil Rights movement, is reopening his Civil Rights Tours Atlanta bus tours after shutting down during the pandemic. Relaunching the tours signals…

Dutch royals see German parliament, Merkel on state visit

The king and queen of the Netherlands visited the German parliament and had an appointment with Chancellor Angela Merkel on the second day of a three-day state visit to Germany. Parliament speaker Wolfgang Schaeuble welcomed King Willem-Alexander and Queen…

On 'Sesame Street,' Elmo gets a puppy (cue adorableness)

“Sesame Street” is about to get a whole lot cuter. Elmo, Grover, Abby Cadabby and the rest of the Muppet gang are introducing a new character to the show this summer,  a white-and-brown puppy named Tango. Kay Wilson Stallings, the executive vice president of creative and production at Sesame Workshop, says they wanted to explore the "special bond between children and pets." Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit behind “Sesame Street.” Tango will join “Sesame Street’s” 52nd season as both an animated character and a live-action Muppet, debuting this fall on HBO Max and streaming on PBS KIDS in 2022.

Romania's monument 'ambulance' races to save country's past

On a scorching summer day in the remote Transylvanian village of Micasasa, 39-year-old Romanian architect Eugen Vaida is busy coordinating a team of volunteers helping to breathe new life into a centuries-old Romanian castle on the brink of ruin. Vaida in 2016 launched the Ambulance for Monuments project, which has a simple task. It gathers volunteers from many fields and races around the country, giving critical care to as many historical buildings as possible that are in an advanced state of decay before it’s too late. The group has rescued 55 historical structures, including medieval churches, historic fortification walls, old watermills and ancient UNESCO World Heritage Sites, from descending into complete ruin. 

'Voice' stars Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton wed in Oklahoma

“The Voice” coaches Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton celebrated their nuptials over the Fourth of July holiday during a weekend wedding in Oklahoma. The singers posted photos on Monday of their wedding, including an image of the couple posing over a twilight sky. A representative for Shelton said they married in Shelton's home state of Oklahoma and the No Doubt singer tagged the wedding photos with Saturday's date. The two singers and competitors on the reality TV show announced their engagement in October. 

R. Kelly's lawyer wants trial delayed due to jail quarantine

R. Kelly’s new lawyers are asking a judge to postpone his Aug. 9 sex trafficking trial in New York City, arguing they haven’t had enough time to prepare because he’s under a mandatory jail quarantine. In a letter Monday to U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly, lawyer Deveraux Cannick wrote Kelly's lawyers have not been able to meet with him since he was transferred from Chicago. That has exacerbated what Cannick said was a “herculean effort” to get up to speed since they were hired June 21. Federal prosecutors hadn’t responded to Cannick’s request as of Monday night and declined to comment. Donnelly has yet to rule on the filing.

What to Do When Cryptocurrency Is Crashing

Cryptocurrencies were all the rage earlier this year, with the prices of several coins surging to record highs and crypto exchange Coinbase making its public offering. Crypto enthusiast and Tesla…

Ex-sportswriter says she was raped by an MLB player

Former sports journalist Kat O'Brien says she was raped by a MLB player during her time as a reporter while conducting a private interview. O'Brien shared her story in an opinion piece for the "New York Times" almost two decades…

Ed Perkins on Travel: Rail update — What we know now

Passenger railroads are coping with post-COVID re-opening along with the rest of the travel industry, although, as with most things railroad, a bit more slowly than the other players. Here's what I think we know as of mid-June.