Israel returns 22 artifacts as Greece pushes to bring antiquities home
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Israel has returned 22 ancient Greek artifacts that were illegally removed from Greece, marking the first such repatriation between the two countries. Greek Culture Minister Lina Mendoni received the antiquities at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens from the Israel Antiquities Authority. The collection includes a bronze statuette of a woman and pottery decorated with mythological scenes and geometric motifs, dating from approximately 700 B.C. to 320 B.C. The handover comes as Greece intensifies its international campaign to reclaim the Parthenon Marbles, currently housed at the British Museum in London.
3,156-pound pumpkin grown in Rhode Island is inspected for possible world record
HALF MOON BAY, Calif. (AP) — A Rhode Island pumpkin grower appears to have set a new world record for the heaviest pumpkin. Ron Wallace's giant squash weighed 3,156 pounds at a contest in New England. That's nearly the weight of three concert grand pianos. The Guinness Book of World Records has yet to verify his achievement. Wallace said Monday he was in communication with officials. He won $3,500 at his local contest, choosing to compete there despite bigger prize offers elsewhere. Meanwhile, in Northern California, Travis Gienger won a major pumpkin-weighing contest with a 2,389-pound pumpkin named Rocky. Gienger plans to grow pumpkins in a climate-controlled environment like Wallace to compete more seriously.
RJ Mitte, 'Breaking Bad' actor and disability rights champion, dies at 34
LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Breaking Bad” actor and disability rights advocate RJ Mitte has died at age 34. According to authorities and his representatives, Mitte was declared dead Monday in Brownsville, Texas. Authorities did not share his cause of death, but an autopsy will be performed. Mitte was known for his role as Walter White Jr. on the acclaimed AMC show. He drew from his own experience living with cerebral palsy to bring authenticity to the role. His representatives said he used his platform to challenge stereotypes and promote greater representation for people with disabilities. “Breaking Bad” star Bryan Cranston said he is in “deep despair” for the loss of his TV son.
'Wildwood' premieres at the London Film Festival. Here's what to know
LONDON (AP) — Stop-motion animation ‘Wildwood’ had its world premiere at the 70th London Film Festival Sunday, part of this year’s star-studded lineup. The festival runs from October 7 to 18 and features actors like Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson and Robert Pattinson. Andrew Scott and Olivia Colman appear in Simon Stone’s “Elsinore” which opened the festival, while Jesse Eisenberg’s “The Debut” closes it. Other highlights include animation “Ray Gunn,” and Luca Guadagnino’s “Artificial” about OpenAI’s Sam Altman. The festival also includes an international competition and extends beyond London with partner venues across the UK.
'Other Mommy' tops the box office with $27.5M; 'The Social Reckoning' opens to $5.5M
The Jessica Chastain horror film “Other Mommy” tops the North American box office in its first weekend in theaters. Released by Universal Pictures, it has earned an estimated $27.5 million across 3,365 locations. Despite poor reviews and a D+ CinemaScore, its $19 million production budget marks another win for the horror genre. International showings brings its global debut to $45.2 million. Meanwhile, “The Social Reckoning” is struggling to launch, earning less than expected from 2,606 theaters. Written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, the film received mixed reviews and a B- CinemaScore. The domestic box office has crossed the $8 billion mark, up 19% from last year.
Anthropic's Claude AI submits a false tip on a Philadelphia unsolved homicide case
NEW YORK (AP) — An Anthropic artificial intelligence model submitted a false tip to Philadelphia police about an unsolved homicide case, authorities and Anthropic said. It’s the latest example of AI models acting on their own and manipulating government and other websites. In a report Friday, Anthropic also disclosed separate incident when its AI model submitted forms to an undisclosed government website instead of stopping before submission. The incident in Philadelphia occurred on July 18 when the AI model Claude Haiku 4.5 was tasked with generating and performing example tasks on randomly selected webpages, Anthropic said.
Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin out for the season with knee injury after fall against Capitals
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Rangers say goalie Igor Shesterkin is out for the season after injuring his right knee Friday night in a game at Washington. Shesterkin came well out of his crease to challenge a shooter midway through the second period Friday night and fell as he scrambled back into his own net. The 30-year-old Russian jammed his right skate into the right post as he slid back into the crease and collapsed into the net in pain. Shesterkin did not put any weight on his right leg as he was helped off the ice by teammates. He was replaced by 24-year-old backup Dylan Garand,
Severe turbulence injures at least 8 aboard Avianca flight, forcing emergency landing in Miami
At least eight people were injured when an Avianca flight encountered severe turbulence and had to make an emergency landing in Miami. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue says one person was rushed to a trauma center with severe injuries while seven others were taken to area hospitals in ambulances. The plane landed shortly after 3 a.m. Friday. The airline said three crew members and six passengers were affected by the turbulence and needed to be taken to a medical facility. The Federal Aviation Administration said the Avianca flight was en route from Medellin, Colombia, to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
A tiger kills a man who entered the big cat enclosure at an English wildlife park
LONDON (AP) — UK police say a man died Saturday after entering the tiger enclosure at a wildlife park in northern England. The incident occurred at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park near the city of Doncaster at about 1:35 p.m. South Yorkshire Police says the tigers remained inside the enclosure and there was no danger to the wider public. The Yorkshire Ambulance Service said it dispatched two ambulances, an air ambulance and a doctor attended the scene. Authorities didn’t immediately release information about the victim’s injuries.
2 Renoir paintings stolen from a French museum have been found, 6 arrested
PARIS (AP) — Two Renoir paintings stolen from a museum in southern France have been found. Local authorities say six people have been arrested. The mayor of the town housing the Renoir Museum praised investigators for tracking down the paintings and suspects. The two missing paintings were “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano” and “Young Woman at the Well.” Thieves sliced through a fence, climbed through a window, and initially stole four paintings but abandoned two as they fled. The theft took less than three minutes and targeted the most valuable works in the Renoir Museum.
