From gowns to pantsuits, Michelle Obama explains her iconic fashion picks in a new book, 'The Look'
WASHINGTON (AP) — Michelle Obama says that on any day during the eight years she was first lady of the United States, she could go from giving a speech to meeting with a foreign counterpart to digging in her vegetable garden with schoolchildren. She says her clothes had to be ready for the variety. But she also never wanted her clothes to be off-putting to others. The former first lady who went on to be admired for her fashion sense chronicles her style journey in her latest book, “The Look.” She spoke about it during a moderated conversation Wednesday night in Washington.
Sotheby's says a diamond brooch lost by Napoleon as his forces fled Waterloo sells for $4.4 million
GENEVA (AP) — A diamond brooch that French emperor Napoleon was said to have lost while fleeing from the Battle of Waterloo in the early 19th century sold for more than 3.5 million Swiss francs, or about $4.4 million, at a Geneva auction on Wednesday. Sotheby's says the brooch, which can also be worn as a pendant, features an oval diamond weighing over 13 carats surrounded by smaller cut diamonds. The sale price vastly outstripped the high end of the pre-sale estimate of 200,000 francs.
Ex-NFL star Antonio Brown gets $25K bail and GPS monitor on Miami attempted murder charge
A Miami judge ordered that former NFL star wide receiver Antonio Brown will be released on $25,000 bail and must wear an ankle monitor. He has pleaded not guilty to the second-degree attempted murder charge in Florida. That carries a potential 15-year prison sentence and a fine up to $10,000 if he's convicted. His lawyer said the 37-year-old Brown would return to his home Florida while the case proceeds. Brown is accused of grabbing a handgun from a security staffer after a celebrity boxing match on May 16 and firing two shots at a man he had gotten into a fistfight with earlier. Brown's lawyer says it was his own gun.
Kryptos' final code remains unsolved. The CIA sculpture's creator is auctioning the solution
BOSTON (AP) — An artist is auctioning off his archive for a sculpture at CIA headquarters that has transfixed code breakers for decades. The 10-foot-tall, S-shaped copper screen is called Kryptos. It was designed to look like a piece of paper coming out of a fax machine. One side features a series of alphabets that are key for decoding the four encrypted messages on the other side. Three of the passages have been solved, but a fourth remains a mystery. The plain text of K4 and the original coding for it will be part of the auction, which runs until Nov. 20.
Food-snatching seagulls are more likely to leave you alone if you shout at them, researchers say
LONDON (AP) — Researchers have found that shouting is more effective than speaking when trying to scare off seagulls. The study published Wednesday tested how 61 European herring gulls reacted to different sounds. They included a robin's song, a man's voice speaking and a man's voice shouting. The gulls tended to walk away from the speaking voice but flew away from the shouting. This suggests they can differentiate between the acoustic properties of vocalizations. The experiment showed that you don’t need to lash out at the birds to frighten them. Further studies could explore reactions to female voices.
Cleto Escobedo III, Jimmy Kimmel's bandleader and childhood friend, dies at 59
Jimmy Kimmel is mourning the death of his longtime friend and bandleader, Cleto Escobedo III. Escobedo was 59. Kimmel announced the news Tuesday on Instagram and expressed deep heartbreak. The two met as children in Las Vegas and grew up across the street from each other. Escobedo became a professional saxophonist, touring with Earth, Wind and Fire and Paula Abdul. When ABC's “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” began in 2003, Kimmel chose Escobedo to lead the house band. Kimmel said they had unmatched chemistry. Escobedo is survived by his wife Lori and their two children. Kimmel asked for prayers for Escobedo’s family.
Christian missionary father and daughter died when plane bound for Jamaica crashed in Florida
A Christian missionary father and his daughter were killed when a small plane bound for a hurricane relief mission in Jamaica crashed in a South Florida neighborhood. Christian missionary organization Ignite the Fire identified the two victims of the Monda morning crash as the group’s founder, 53-year-old Alexander Wurm and his daughter 22-year-old Serena Wurm. The organization says the pair was bringing humanitarian aid to Jamaica. The Beechcraft King Air plane they were flying in crashed into a pond in a residential area of the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs, narrowly missing homes. As of Tuesday morning, investigators had not reported any other victims.
Thieves steal Roman statues from Syria's national museum
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Officials say thieves have broken into Syria's national museum in Damascus and stolen several ancient statues from the Roman era. Officials said Tuesday the theft was discovered early Monday and led to the museum's brief closure. The museum had reopened in January after the fall of the Assad family's rule the previous month. It houses priceless antiquities from Syria's long history, and many had been moved to the museum during Syria's long civil war. Security had been boosted with metal gates and surveillance cameras. An official says six marble statues were stolen, and that an investigation has begun.
Cleveland pitcher Luis Ortiz appears in court on allegations he took bribes to rig bets
BOSTON (AP) — Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz has appeared in court on charges accusing him and teammate Emmanuel Clase of taking bribes to help associates in their native Dominican Republic win prop bets placed on pitches they threw. U.S. Magistrate Judge Donald Cabell in Boston granted Ortiz his release during Monday's hearing but with several conditions, including that he surrender his passport. According to prosecutors, the two hurlers took several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two unnamed gamblers in their home country win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of certain pitches. Ortiz was arrested Sunday, while Clase wasn't immediately taken into custody. Lawyers for the pitchers say their clients are innocent.
Calisthenics are making a comeback. Is body weight enough to get a good workout?
Calisthenics is an age-old form of fitness that uses little or no equipment and relies on body weight for resistance. It's making a comeback. In July, President Donald Trump even reestablished the Presidential Fitness Test, intending that youth across the country will again practice old-school exercises like situps, pushups and pullups. Some experts say the no-frills moves of calisthenics speak to our overscheduled lives when it might be hard to go to a gym. It's also cheaper than going to a gym. But is performing these exercises an effective way to work out? It depends what your goal is. Experts say calisthenics can improve everything from muscle strength to aerobic conditioning. But they also say weight machines and dumbbells have their advantages too.
