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Matt Damon said no to a huge film franchise that he thinks could have made him $250 million

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

(CNN) — Matt Damon turned down a major role years ago – except this role was one that could have made the Oscar-winner upwards of $250 million.Appearing on Friday’s episode of CNN’s “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace,” Damon spoke with the host about how in 2009, he was offered not just the lead role in James Cameron’s “Avatar,” but a percentage of the film’s earnings.“It’s something awful like that,” Damon joked when asked about his $250 million calculation, going on to say he’s “sure it’s the most money an actor ever turned down.”Damon said he was obligated to finish production on the “Bourne” series that he starred in between 2002 and 2016, and he didn’t want to “leave them in the lurch” to go do “Avatar.”Cameron ended up casting Sam Worthington in the lead role, alongside Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Joel David Moore and Michelle Rodriguez in the franchise’s first installment.“Avatar,” of course, went on to become the highest grossing movie of a...

Gilgo Beach killer breakthrough: 12 years later, his tip helped crack the case

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — In the winter of 2010, shortly after police discovered the remains of his roommate and three other women buried on a remote stretch of Long Island shoreline, Dave Schaller provided detectives with a description of the person he believed to be the killer.More crucially, Schaller told them about his truck.This booking image provided by Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, shows Rex Heuermann, a Long Island architect who was charged Friday, July 14, 2023, with murder in the deaths of three of the 11 victims in a long-unsolved string of killings known as the Gilgo Beach murders. (Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office via AP0This combination of undated image provided by the Suffolk County Police Department, shows Melissa Barthelemy, top left, Amber Costello, top right, Megan Waterman, bottom left, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Authorities on Long Island are vowing to continue investigating a string of killings known as the Gilgo Beach murders aft...

CT man found guilty in death of mother killed by stray bullet while sitting in her sewing room

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

A Naugatuck man has been found guilty of leading a conspiracy to commit murder that led to the death of a Waterbury mother who was struck and killed by a stray bullet while sitting at her sewing machine in her own home.Franklin Robinson, 40, was found guilty on multiple charges including murder and conspiracy to commit murder in a plan that led to the death of 56-year-old Mabel Martinez Antongiorgi while she was in her craft room in her house on Orange Street in April 2022, according to Waterbury police and the Division of Criminal Justice.According to evidence presented at his trial, Robinson was jealous of a man who had said hello to his girlfriend and conspired to kill him. He fought with the man and his friends on the morning of April 9, 2022, and then recruited two people he knew to find them and shoot them, officials said.That afternoon, Robinson and his two associates found the car that they wanted to target parked on Orange Street, where Martinez Antongiorgi lived with her h...

Halifax-area roads damaged by heavy rainfall, with more rain forecasted

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

HALIFAX — Residents in the Halifax region are being warned to stay off the roads because of extensive damage caused by torrential downpours and flash flooding, with little reprieve in sight.Stephen Martin, a fire chief with the municipality, said many roads in the Bedford area are covered in water.“And there’s more rain coming,” he said Saturday morning.Environment Canada has issued rainfall warnings for much of the province, saying some areas have already received more than 150 millimetres of rain, which is more than the area gets in an average month.  An additional 40 to 100 mm is in the forecast for Saturday.Officials in Halifax say the rain has already caused significant damage to roads and infrastructure.  In some areas, submerged streets are littered with abandoned vehicles.Halifax RCMP say residents shouldn’t leave home unless it’s an emergency.Earlier in the day, an evacuation order was issued for people living near the St. Croix River system in...

‘You’ve got to move fast’: Science learns to quickly link extreme weather and climate

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

As firefighters and other first responders battle an unprecedented summer of fires, floods, tornadoes and heat waves around the country, a group of Canadian scientists are asking why they’re happening in the first place. “May and June were record hot months in Canada and we’ve got the record wildfire season as well,” said Nathan Gillett of Environment and Climate Change Canada. “Yes, it has been busy.”Gillett heads the Rapid Extreme Event Attribution Project, a new federal program that uses the growing field of attribution science to promptly establish to what extent — if any — a specific flood in British Columbia or wildfire in Quebec is due to climate change.  “The idea is to be able to make rapid extreme event attribution days or weeks after the extreme events occur,” he said. Twenty years ago, if you’d asked a scientist if climate change was linked to days of torrential rain or months of desiccating drought, you’d proba...

Car struck by Amtrak train after crossing railroad tracks on North Side: CFD

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Fire Department reported of an incident where a vehicle was struck by a passing Amtrak train on the Northwest Side early Saturday morning. Chicago Fire tweeted that the accident involved a sedan and a small SUV near Devon and Lehigh Avenue. There were no injuries or transports reported. Medical services were refused. One of the vehicles was struck by a passing train. There were no passengers in the vehicle when the train struck.WGN is actively following this incident and will update as more information is recovered.

Vehicle accident at Fort Bliss leaves 1 soldier dead, 5 injured

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

FORT BLISS, Texas (WGN) — A soldier is dead and five others are injured after a tactical vehicle crash at Fort Bliss, Texas, according to the U.S. Army.The non-combat crash was reported around 9:30 a.m. MST on Friday in the Fort Bliss training area, according to a news release.The conditions of those who were injured haven't been released. ‘Help me’ sign leads to rescue of kidnapped Texas girl in California The name of the soldier who was killed is being withheld until 24 hours after the next-of-kin was notified, the Army's 1st Armored Division said.Details surrounding the crash have yet to be released.In a statement included with the news release, Maj. Gen. James P. Isenhower III, the senior commander of Fort Bliss and commander of the 1st Armored Division, expressed condolences to the victim's loved ones.“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Soldier’s family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time," the official said.

Mega Millions jackpot increases to $820 million; 8 players will $1 million prize

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Friday's Mega Millions drawing once again failed to produce a grand-prize winner, causing the jackpot to swell closer to the $1-billion mark.Friday’s winning numbers — 29, 40, 47, 50, 57 and the Mega Ball 25 — went unmatched once again, continuing a months-long trend that began after the last jackpot-winner was announced on April 18.The estimated jackpot now stands at $820 million, with a cash value of $422 million. Family’s TikTok video of ‘unsanitary’ conditions at Myrtle Beach hotel goes viral The jackpot rose to similar heights around the same time last year — leading to a $1.337 billion jackpot being awarded on July 29, 2022. It was the third billion-dollar jackpot won in the competition's history, according to the Mega Millions website.The current jackpot amount is the fifth-largest in the game's history, but still more than $700 million beneath the largest ever won.AmountDateWinning Tickets$1.537 billion10/23/20181-SC$1.348 billion1/13/20231-ME$1.337 bi...

Stop using paper checks already!

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

(NerdWallet) - Sure, you’re probably not using paper checks for most things. But are you returning payments to medical providers and insurance companies in the mail? Paying by check for the random parking ticket or your child’s piano lessons? Now is a good time to stop: Check fraud tied to mail theft is up nationwide, according to a February alert from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. And letter carrier robberies are also on the rise.This is partially due to the effects of the pandemic, when thieves targeted government relief checks in the mail. “Fraudsters just went back to tried-and-true potential attack factors that seemed to be working,” says Michael Bruemmer, head of global data breach resolution for Experian.The U.S. Postal Service is vulnerable, and thieves who can access your checks can change the amount and ferret those funds right out of your bank account. And then it can take weeks to get the funds back.“It’s absolutely a life disruption event when you mail a che...

Texas' worst commute is in this southeastern community – and it's not Houston

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:57 GMT

(Stacker) – Commuting easily ranks as one of the least enjoyable parts of a person's day. Commuters encounter more physical health problems, and low-income commuters are less likely to gain financial stability—among a host of other negative impacts. And yet, America's commutes keep getting longer as people move farther away from the office, according to Census Bureau data. This little-known rule causes speed limits to go up in Texas Stacker compiled a list of counties with the worst commutes in Texas, using 2021 data from the Census Bureau. Surprisingly, the county with the No. 1 worst commute in the state isn't even home to one of Texas' major cities. Counties are ranked by longest average commute time in 2021 among workers over the age of 16, excluding those who work from home. Think you have a long trip to work? Read on to compare it against the worst commutes statewide.#19. Montgomery County (tie)- Average commute to work: 32.2 minutes- Share with commutes over ...