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Juror removed from Alex Murdaugh murder trial for talking about case to friends

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(WALTERBORO, S.C.) — A juror was removed from the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial Thursday morning after the judge learned she had been talking about the case to her friends.

Alex Murdaugh is accused of fatally shooting his wife and younger son at the family’s estate in June 2021. The disgraced South Carolina attorney was charged with their murders more than a year later.

Ahead of the defense’s closing argument on Thursday, Judge Clifton Newman informed the court that he had received a complaint from a member of the public indicating that the juror had “improper conversations with parties not associated with the case.”

The juror denied it when confronted about the issue in the chambers at the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro on Tuesday, he said. Three witnesses were interviewed on Wednesday, which revealed that the juror had offered her opinion on the evidence presented in the trial to at least three people, the judge said.

“In order to preserve the integrity of the process and the interests of both the state and the defense in a fair trial, that juror will be removed and replaced by another juror,” Newman told the court.

Both the state and the defense were in agreement with the order.

Newman informed the juror that he concluded she had discussed the case “intentionally or unintentionally” with people not on the jury despite his order not to, and that he was required to remove her from the jury.

The judge described her as a “great juror” who seemed “attentive to the case and performed well” and thanked her for her service.

“I’m sure that with all the time you’ve invested in it, you probably hate not to continue,” Newman said. “I’m not suggesting that you intentionally did anything wrong, but that in order to preserve the integrity of the process and in fairness to all the parties involved, we’re going to replace you with one of the other jurors.”

A new juror was sworn in before the defense began delivering their closing argument.

The trial, which is now in its sixth week, now has only one of its initial six alternate jurors remaining as the jury will soon prepare for deliberations. Several jurors have been removed due to illness since the start of the trial.

The latest shakeup comes a day after the jurors traveled to the scene of the crime — the 1,772-acre hunting estate Moselle in Islandton — to get a sense of the space where the killings took place.

Margaret Murdaugh, 52, and Paul Murdaugh, 22, were found dead from multiple gunshot wounds near the dog kennels at the family’s estate. Alex Murdaugh, 54, has repeatedly denied killing them and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Fire aboard Spirit plane causes emergency landing, sends 10 to hospital

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) — Ten people were hospitalized after a Spirit Airlines plane bound for Orlando, Florida, made an emergency landing in Jacksonville due to a fire onboard, according to officials.

Spirit Airlines Flight 259 landed at Jacksonville International Airport around 2 p.m. on Wednesday, after the crew reported a battery on fire in an overhead bin.

The plane landed without incident and pulled up to the terminal before fire rescue teams went aboard the flight, Jacksonville Fire Rescue Capt. Eric Prosswimmer told reporters.

When emergency responders were able to board the plane, they discovered the fire in the overhead compartment had been caused by a battery. The flight crew on the plane had been able to put out the fire, but there was still smoke in the cockpit, according to Prosswimmer.

“The battery, I don’t know where it came from, but it had started a fire. The crew was very intelligent; they put it in a galley in a bucket of water,” Prosswimmer said.

The Airbus A320 departed Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and was headed to Orlando International Airport.

Shortly after landing, one passenger was not feeling well. They were examined by rescue teams before being transferred to the hospital, according to Prosswimmer.

At around 6 p.m., more crew members and passengers began to feel ill and fire rescue teams ended up transporting a total of 10 patients, all with non-life-threatening conditions, to the hospital, according to Prosswimmer.

The fire was caused by a lithium ion battery, officials said.

A retired fireman on board was able to help flight crew put out the fire, according to a passenger.

“There was a retired fireman that jumped up and flight crew came in and they tried putting water on it and another guy went and got a bucket because I think the fireman reached in and grabbed it and they got it put out, but it took about 20 minutes,” passenger Kerri Arakawa told Jacksonville ABC affiliate WJXX.

Arakawa said smoke had filled the cabin, but that the captain was able to land the plane quickly.

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the incident.

Jimmy Kimmel surprises Jon Favreau with “secret” ‘Iron Man’ snippet starring Samuel L. Jackson

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Wednesday night, and surprised the chat show host and geek with his very own Star Wars action figure — but Kimmel returned the favor with a surprise of his own.

After Kimmel happily received his custom figure — a miniature of him smiling, frozen in a block of carbonite like Han Solo — Kimmel shocked Favreau by revealing a “secret” video Jon had shot on the set of 2008’s Iron Man.

Favreau recalled asking Samuel L. Jackson — a “real geek” — to take part in a “top secret shoot” that would become the first of many Marvel post-credit scenes. In the movie, Jackson’s Nick Fury made his first appearance and informed Robert Downey Jr.‘s Tony Stark about what Fury called The Avengers Initiative, which laid the groundwork for the eventual Marvel Cinematic Universe.

But Favreau said he shot an alternate take “for me, I knew it wouldn’t be in the movie … just for fun.”

That’s when Kimmel interrupted and, to Favreau’s apparent shock, said he had the footage and played it.

Sure enough, there were Downey and Jackson once again in Tony’s living room, but acting out new dialog.

“Who the hell are you?” Stark asks Fury.

“Nick Fury, motherf***er,” Jackson replies, deadpan.

Favreau was asked if he knew that film would lead to dozens more movies and a shared cinematic universe. “We didn’t know, honestly,” he said.

“When Robert Downey was cast, that’s when I thought, ‘Oh, this could be cool and really special.’ And we attracted, because of Robert, I think, a lot of great other actors like Jeff Bridges and Gwyneth [Paltrow], and … the characters became interesting and comedy was offbeat.”

(Video contains censored profanity.)

Joni Mitchell honored with the Gershwin Prize for Popular Music

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Joni Mitchell was honored in Washington, D.C., Tuesday night with the Library of Congress’ Gershwin Prize for Popular Music.

“It’s just a beautiful event for me,” Mitchell told the invite-only audience, according to USA Today. “So many people that I care about are here tonight from different parts of my life. New friends, old friends. It’s just kind of thrilling.”

Mitchell treated the crowd to a two-song performance – George and Ira Gershwin’s “Summertime” and “The Circle Game,” in which she was joined by a slew of artists and friends, including James Taylor, Cyndi Lauper, Brandi Carlile, Graham Nash and Annie Lennox.

The night also featured performances celebrating Joni and her music, including “Both Sides Now,” sung by Lennox; “California,” performed by Taylor; “Shine,” performed by Carlile; and “Big Yellow Taxi,” performed by Lauper, Lennox, Carlile and others.

The Gershwin Prize has been handed out since 2007, with Paul Simon the first honoree. Last year Lionel Richie received the award, with Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Carole King and Stevie Wonder among the previous honorees.

Fans will get to see what went down at the two-hour event when it airs on PBS March 31 at 9 pm ET.

COVID call centers and testing sites close in further sign US is moving past the pandemic

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — COVID-19 call centers and testing sites are closing across the United States as more Americans look to move on from the pandemic and with the emergency declaration set to end in May.

In Rockland County, New York — just north of New York City — the call center closed Tuesday after three years in operation.

The center was launched in early March 2020 after the county’s health department became inundated with telephone calls from people asking questions about the virus. According to a press release, the center received 19,163 calls during its operation and provided residents and businesses with information about COVID-19 guidance, testing sites, testing results and how to schedule vaccination appointments.

“I commend our staff for their tireless efforts to assist the community during this global pandemic,” said county health commissioner Dr. Patricia Schnabel in a statement. “As the number of COVID-19-related calls continues to decrease, the health department is able to reallocate personnel to other critical health work.”

In nearby Massachusetts, the state’s department of public health announced Monday it is shutting down its remaining free PCR testing sites, which were known as “Stop the Spread” sites, at the end of March.

UMass Memorial Health, which runs one of the sites in Worcester — located in central Massachusetts — cited “less demand for COVID-19 testing” as the reason behind the health department’s decision.

Drive-thru testing sites are also coming to an end. Carilion Clinic, a health system based in Roanoke, Virginia, closed its drive-thru testing sites on Wednesday.

According to a press release, the sites completed more than 340,000 tests over the course of three years and saw staff members often working from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m.

Kim Roe, vice president of family and community medicine, said testing personnel “truly worked tirelessly these past three years; their work was invaluable in keeping our workplace and communities safe.”

“A closure is an odd thing to celebrate, but this is a moment to recognize all that was accomplished as we transition into the endemic stage of this virus,” her statement continued.

It comes as several COVID data trackers also shut down, including Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center, one of the first to launch in early 2020 and a vital source that filled in information gaps.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also shut down its data website last month but has kept the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s dashboard running.

According to the CDC, COVID-19 cases have been declining for several weeks. During the week of Feb. 22 — the latest date for which data is available — a total of 236,131 cases were recorded in the U.S., a 48.2% decline from the 455,866 cases recorded the week of Jan. 11.

Hospitalizations and deaths, both of which are traditionally lagging indicators, have also been trending downward. Over the same period, weekly deaths have fallen from 4,448 to 2,407, according to CDC data.

The data also shows the seven-day average of hospitalizations declined from 39,837 on Jan. 11 to 22,766 on Feb. 22.

Metallica shares trailer for ’72 Seasons’ theatrical listening party

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Metallica has shared the trailer for the band’s upcoming theatrical 72 Seasons listening party, taking place on April 13 in cinemas worldwide.

The clip teases that you’ll be able to experience the much-anticipated album in full in “pummeling surround sound” before its official release on April 14. You’ll also get to see new music videos featuring “exclusive intros” from Metallica.

For a list of participating theaters and all ticket info, visit Metallica.film.

72 Seasons is the follow-up to 2016’s Hardwired…to Self-Destruct. It includes the songs “Lux Æterna,” “Screaming Suicide” and “If Darkness Had a Son.”

Metallica will support 72 Seasons on a massive world tour, which begins in Europe in April before coming to the U.S. in August.

Chaka Khan pans ‘Rolling Stone’ Greatest Singers of All Time list: “They need hearing aids”

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Chaka Khan had some strong words about which artists Rolling Stone thought were the best singers of all time, especially when it comes to where Mariah Carey and Mary J. Blige ended up on the list.

To recap, Rolling Stone released its 200 Greatest Singers of All Time list in January, placing Aretha Franklin at #1. The list sparked intense controversy, from its omission of artists like Dionne Warwick and Celine Dion, to how it ranked the artists themselves.

Khan, who placed 29th on that list, told Los Angeles magazine Rolling Stone‘s new rankings weren’t on her radar. “These people don’t quantify or validate me in any way,” she added.

But her attitude changed after finding out who ranked ahead of her — specifically Blige, who placed 25th on the list. She called Rolling Stone‘s editors blind and added, “They need hearing aids.”

She also took issue with Mariah and Adele, who were respectively fifth and 22nd on the list.

After learning Mariah made the top five, Chaka quipped, “That must be payola or some s*** like that.” When it came to Adele finishing just a few spaces ahead of her, the singer remarked, “OK. I quit.”

Khan also wasn’t happy to hear she was ahead of Tina Turner, who was 55th in the ranking. “Now that’s crazy. It’s insane,” she said. She took similar issue with Michael Jackson being ranked 86th overall, with Diana Ross right behind him at #87.

However, when discussing Joan Baez, who placed at #189, the singer declared, “Let’s be honest. The b**** cannot sing. Now, she was a good writer.”

Khan was pleased to hear Aretha was #1, saying, “As she f***ing should be! Thank you, there’s some f***ing justice somewhere.”

Road to the Oscars 2023: Tony Kushner talks co-writing ‘The Fabelmans’ with Steven Spielberg

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

When Steven Spielberg wants to write a movie with you, you write a movie with Steven Spielberg. That’s what happened to Tony Kushner, who co-wrote and produced The Fabelmans alongside the acclaimed director. Their film is up for seven Oscars at this year’s Academy Awards, including nominations for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay.

So, how does one go about co-writing a film? Kushner tells ABC Audio about their process, which started during the COVID lockdowns in 2020.

“First, we just did Zoom calls, and talked about the outline and stuff like that,” Kushner says. “Then, when it was time to write – Final Draft software has a feature called collaboration, where two people can type on the same document at once.”

While both men had access to the document, Kushner says he was doing most of the heavy lifting, typing-wise.

“I’m a much better typer than Steven is. I’m not a great typist, but Steven really isn’t fast. So, I did all the typing, but he could see what I was doing,” Kushner says. “We were on Zoom so we could look at each other. And we did it three days a week, four hours a day for two months, and we finished the screenplay.”

The Fabelmans, which follows a fictional story inspired by Spielberg’s childhood, has already taken Kushner around the awards circuit this year.

“You get to meet people whose work you really love, and then sometimes they become friends and that’s a nice thing,” Kushner says.

There was one celebrity interaction in particular that Kushner considers his highlight.

“The day after the Golden Globes my husband and I got to have breakfast with Jennifer Coolidge,” Kushner says. “I think it was, like, the prize for the whole season.”

The Lumineers announce summer ’BRIGHTSIDE’ tour

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

The Luminners have announced a summer U.S. tour in continued support of the band’s latest album, BRIGHTSIDE.

The headlining outing will run from August 16 in Bangor, Maine, to September 15 in Los Angeles. James Bay will also be on the bill.

Tickets will be available through various presales next week, leading up to the general sale on Friday, March 10, at 10 a.m. local time.

For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit TheLumineers.com.

BRIGHTSIDE, the fourth Lumineers album, was released in January 2022. Its title track hit #1 on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart.

Pete Townshend, Joe Perry & more guest on Ann-Margret’s new album

March 2, 2023 by WDNY Radio

The Who’s Pete Townshend and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry are just a few of the guest artists who appear on entertainer Ann-Margret’s first new album in over a decade, Born to Be Wild, dropping April 14.

Townshend appears on the just-released cover of The Everly Brothers’ classic “Bye Bye Love,” which also features T.G. Sheppard.

“Being offered an opportunity to work with Ann-Margret, especially on an Everly Brothers song, was just too romantic to pass,” Townshend shares. “Ann-Margret’s work on the Tommy movie back in 1974 (when she was most certainly not old enough to pretend to be Roger Daltrey’s mother) was a joy from beginning to end.”

He adds, “Her sonorous voice, her Scandinavian beauty, her sense of humor, her stamina and her strength all shone through.”

The album features covers of song like “Rock Around the Clock,” “Son of a Preacher Man” and “Why Do Fools Fall in Love,” with Yes’ Rick Wakeman, Sir Cliff Richard, Pat Boone, Paul Shaffer and the late Mickey Gilley among the other guests on the record.

Born to be Wild is available for preorder now.

Here’s the track list for Born to Be Wild:

“Rock Around The Clock” feat. Joe Perry & Jim McCarty
“Bye Bye Love” feat. Pete Townshend & T.G Sheppard
“Son Of A Preacher Man” feat. Steve Cropper & Brian Auger
“Earth Angel” feat. The Oak Ridge Boys & Harvey Mandel
“Why Do Fools Fall In Love” feat. Robben Ford & Chip Z’Nuff
“The Great Pretender” feat. Paul Shaffer, Danny B. Harvey & Adam Hamilton
“Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” feat. Cliff Richard & Rick Braun
“Born To Be Wild” feat. The Fuzztones
“Splish Splash” feat. Mickey Gilley, Linda Gail Lewis & The Rockats
“Somebody’s In My Orchard” feat. Don Randi
“Teach Me Tonight” feat Pat Boone, Rick Wakeman & Damiano Della Torre
“Volare” feat. Lee Rocker & Slim Jim Phantom
“Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” feat. Sonny Landreth

+ More