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We're celebrating a special birthday! Lou Manfredini's! Oh.. and Larry's too

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

It's a special day around here. It's Lou Manfredini's birthday! Happy Birthday Lou! Oh… and Larry too.Paul gifted Larry with a last minute, yet no-less-thoughtful gift, Tom Skilling's wallet.Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.

Keanu Reeves' band teases a comeback

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

(WHNT) — For anyone listening to alternative rock in the 90s and early 2000s era, you might be familiar with a little-known band called Dogstar. No? Does Keanu Reeves ring a bell?After a 20-year hiatus, the band teased its return in recent social media posts, saying, "Exciting news coming soon. Thanks for being so patient," and sharing a picture of the three original bandmates posing for a photoshoot. Aerosmith announces final farewell tour starting in September The band's Instagram page touts a following just shy of 38K, with a bio that reads, "Dogstar is back." As they replied to ecstatic fans, they wrote, "We will be rolling out some new music this summer, followed by some gigs. As soon as it’s all figured out we will let everyone know immediately."Dogstar also has an active Facebook presence, and yes, even Myspace.Shortly after the release of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," Reeves formed the band with Robert Mailhouse after a chance encounter at a supermarket in 1991. ...

Woman misses transplant appointment after bus never arrives

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) – Tearia Meek’s suitcase is still packed and sitting in her living room. The Greyhound bus tag is still attached.“We were supposed to go from Kansas City to St. Louis,” said Meeks, who had been traveling with her mother.From St. Louis, multiple other buses would eventually take them to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesotta, where Meek hoped to be approved for a double transplant of her kidneys and her lungs.She’s only 30, but she has been on dialysis for 13 years. She relies on a steady stream of medication and oxygen to stay alive. She was hopeful that the transplant would be her shot at a normal life.But she never made it to the Mayo Clinic. That’s because the Greyhound that was supposed to take her there never came. Instead, on Feb. 4, Meek and her mom found themselves stuck at the Greyhound station in St. Louis for more than 12 hours.   First Republic Bank collapse spurs fears for banking system, broader economy “The bus was supposed to leave at...

Texas-themed World's Largest Book heads to Capitol

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Guinness World Record holder for the "largest published book in the world" will make an appearance at the Texas State Capitol Tuesday morning. The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and artwork from more than 1,000 young Texans on what the state means to them. Students featured in the piece come from grades 3-12 and more than 80 school districts statewide, per a news release.The book was officially dubbed the largest in the world in Houston late last year. State Sen. Mayes Middleton will host a press conference on the Capitol steps at 10 a.m. Tuesday, joined by Austin-area student authors, their families and representatives from Galveston's Bryan Museum. The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and artwork from more than 1,000 young Texans on what the state means to them. (Courtesy: The Bryan Museum, iWRITE Organization, McCoy's Building Supply)The seven-foot-tall book, "I Am Texas," includes stories, poetry and ...

Austin to consider criteria for expanding high-quality, affordable child care programs

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin city officials have outlined new criteria on the table to help expand affordable child care services citywide.In a memo released Monday, city leaders released a list of proposed criteria for Austin City Council to consider. Back in early December, council approved a resolution centered on creating affordable, high-quality child care services.As part of its efforts, city leaders collaborated with the Success By Six coalition members and the Early Childhood Council to help inform recommendations. Additional input from Workforce Solutions Capital Area staff, the city's Economic Development Department, Financial Services Department - Real Estate and the Housing and Planning Department were also incorporated. RELATED: Austin City Council studying solutions for childcare affordability A child care service is one that offers full-day, year-round care within the city and "primarily or exclusively serves children birth to age 5," under the city's definition. These p...

MN Legislature picks 4 University of Minnesota regents

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

Minnesota lawmakers on Monday night elected four new members to the University of Minnesota system’s governing board, a body that sets policies and tuition at five campuses.Newly elected members of the UMN Board of Regents include a nurse union leader, a former health care company CEO and a West St. Paul city council member who works with the AFL-CIO.Interim board member Tadd Johnson, a former University of Minnesota Duluth graduate studies director, was elected to a full term. Johnson is the first Native American regent.The Board of Regents controls policy, curriculum, tuition and fees for the University of Minnesota’s campuses in Crookston, Duluth, Morris, Rochester and the Twin Cities. It also manages all university lands.Each odd-numbered year, all 201 members of the state House and Senate come together to elect one-third of the 12-member board to a six-year unpaid term. One member comes from each of the state’s eight congressional districts and four represent the state at large...

US News releases 2023 state rankings: Where does NY fall?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- U.S. News & World Report has released its 2023 Best State rankings. The publication looked at a range of categories across all 50 states to see how states best serve their citizens. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! U.S. News looked at several metrics to determine the rankings including health care, education, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, crime and corrections, and natural environment. Each category was then assigned a weight based on the average of three years of data from recent national surveys of a total of 70,000 people.“With the economic and social devastation caused by COVID-19 pandemic finally slowing down, U.S. News’ analysis of state data during that time reveals some bright spots – including a rise in the business creation rate. Unsurprisingly, the hardships Americans faced were also apparent – from soaring retail electricity costs to a significant rise in the...

Off the Beaten Path: Sweet Mimi's Café & Bakery

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (NEWS10) - NEWS10 ABC in the Morning is hitting the road this Friday to kick off “NEWS10 in Your Town” at our first stop: Saratoga Springs! Located at 47 Phila Street, you'll find Sweet Mimi’s Café & Bakery. Off the Beaten Path: Adirondack Salt Cave Sweet Mimi's Café & Bakery is located at 47 Phila Street in Saratoga Springs. They are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

St. Louis man accused of execution-style killing in court today

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

ST. LOUIS - A man accused of shooting and killing another man, execution style in downtown St. Louis, is scheduled to appear before a judge Tuesday morning.Video of the suspect shooting and killing a homeless man got shared millions of times on social media. Police arrested 23-year-old DeShawn Thomas shortly after. He was booked on a first-degree murder charge, and is scheduled to appear in court later Tuesday morning.Back in February, St. Louis Metro Police said a homeless man named David Saldana was shot and killed execution style. It happened at the Shell station at Tucker Boulevard and Convention Plaza. I-55 reopened after dust storm causes fatal Illinois crashes The shooting, captured on cell phone video, has been shared millions of times. Police shared that Thomas first shot Saldana in the back as he ran across Tucker, and as Saldana begged for his life, Thomas shot him in the head.  All of it was captured on video by both a witness and nearby surveillance cameras.Polic...

Auditor demands St. Louis Circuit Attorney's cooperation

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:57:12 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The Missouri State Auditor says he may file a lawsuit against St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner.Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick said she’s not handing over the information he needs to complete the audit to see if her office is wasting taxpayers' money.He said he’s been after certain documents for some time now and has given the Circuit Attorney’s Office deadlines. He said he'd run out of patience.“If we don’t received that in the next week or so, then we will be going to court," Fitzpatrick said. "We basically have to file a lawsuit to enforce the petition in court, where a judge would essentially order the Circuit Attorney’s Office to comply with the subpoena, and if they fail to do that, we would have to go back to the judge and say they didn’t. Then the judge would have to determine if they were going to be held in contempt of court or what was going to happen there. So the next step is just going to court to enforce the subpoena and force them to comply with...