- Fade to black: Richard Chamberlain, unofficial title holder, “king of the mini-series.”
Richard Chamberlain, who rose to fame as the heartthrob star of the television series “Dr. Kildare” in the early 1960s, proved his mettle by becoming a serious stage actor and went on to a new wave of acclaim as the omnipresent leading man of 1980s mini-series, has died. He played the dashing 17th-century romantic lead in “Shogun” in 1980, seducing a new generation of fans. He followed that in 1983 with his portrayal of Ralph de Bricassart, the tortured young priest in the saga “The Thorn Birds,” making him a 49-year-old sex symbol and the undeniable holder of the unofficial title “king of the mini-series.” Mr. Chamberlain received Emmy Award nominations for “The Thorn Birds” and “Shogun,” as well as for “Wallenberg: A Hero’s Story” (1985) — in which he played Raoul Wallenberg, the World War II resistance hero — and for “The Count of Monte Cristo” (1975). He won three Golden Globes during his career, for “The Thorn Birds” and “Shogun,” and as best television actor for “Dr. Kildare” in 1963.
- Can this be true? Nearly Half of All U.S. Adults Have Cardiovascular Disease
A record 48 percent of U.S. adults — 121.5 million people — have some form of cardiovascular ailment, which includes coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, and high blood pressure, according to a new report from the American Heart Association (AHA). Cardiologist Ivor Benjamin, AHA volunteer president and director of the Cardiovascular Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, attributed the increase to a new definition of high blood pressure, which says a reading of 130/80 indicates hypertension, compared with the previous benchmark of 140/90. The new report, based on 2016 data, is published in the AHA journal Circulation. Without taking high blood pressure into account, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease among U.S. adults was 9 percent overall, or about 24 million people, the study says. In addition, the AHA reports that the number of deaths annually from cardiovascular disease has increased to 840,678 after decades of decline. [More]
- Your morning cup of Joe has a hundred and one different varieties! Here’s how the descriptors on the coffee bag — light, dark, drip, etc — translate to the taste you prefer
Coffee’s one of the most complex substances humans consume, right up there with red wine in terms of the number of flavor and aroma compounds it contains. The sheer number of compounds would be overwhelming to us, but we mentally associate the many tastes and smells with familiar sensations to help us make sense of the experience. The notes listed on your coffee bags are identified through a tasting process called cupping, which is a process coffee industry folks use to record both coffee quality and characteristics. Here’s how the terms printed on the bag translate to what’s in your cup?
- ‘Snow White’ opens with a sleepy $43 million at box office. (No surprise: the original animated film is part of our childhood)
With a budget above $250 million, “Snow White” had set out with higher ambitions, particularly since it returns Disney to its very origins. The 1937 original “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” was the company’s first animated feature, and paid for its Burbank studio lot. But this “Snow White” struggled to find anything like a fairy tale ending. The runup to release was plagued by controversies over the film’s handling of the dwarfs, who are rendered in CGI, and backlashes over comments by its star, Rachel Zegler. The PR headaches prompted Disney to pull back on its premiere. Also working against the film, directed by Marc Webb: poor reviews. Critics were largely not impressed with Disney’s latest live-action remake, with reviews coming in just 43% “fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes.
- New Social Security Requirements Pose Barriers To Rural Communities. The changes will impact the most vulnerable Americans.
New requirements that Social Security recipients access key benefits online or in person at a field office, rather than on the phone, would be nearly impossible to meet without help. The requirements, set to go into effect March 31, are intended to streamline processes and combat widespread fraud within the system, according to President Donald Trump and officials in his administration. They say that’s why it’s vital for people to verify their identity online or in person when signing up for benefits, or making a change like where the money is deposited. But advocates say the changes will disproportionately impact the most vulnerable Americans. It will be harder to visit field offices in rural areas with high poverty rates. Often these are the same areas that lack widespread internet service.
- Now here’s a sticky subject. Nearly All Cybertrucks Have Been Recalled Because Tesla Used the Wrong Glue
Tesla said Thursday it would recall nearly all the Cybertrucks it has produced to repair a stainless steel trim panel that the carmaker said could become detached from the vehicle while driving. It’s the eighth recall for the distinctive all-electric pickup, which hit US roads just over two years ago. Unlike many other Tesla-related recalls, though, this one cannot be fixed with an over-the-air software update; the trucks must be brought into a service center for repairs. The recall affects more than 46,000 Cybertrucks manufactured between November 2023 and late February 2025. The recall is related to a cosmetic applique on the vehicle’s exterior, which is attached to the rest of the truck by a kind of glue. On affected Cybertrucks, the adhesive can separate from the rest of the truck, creating a possible “road hazard” for others and increasing the risk of a crash.
- How Long Do You Need to Keep Tax Records?
After you file your tax return, you may be wondering how long you need to hold on to your tax records. You might be tempted to shred everything and toss the debris in the trash. Or you might assume that you need to hold on to every tax return and supporting document forever. Turns out, you do need to keep certain tax documents for a period of time in case the IRS or state treasury department has questions about the information you provided on your return — or you get audited. But don’t worry — you don’t need to turn your basement into a storage facility for decades’ worth of tax records. To protect yourself, follow these record keeping guidelines.
- One bit of good news about eggs, as America’s egg farmers address one of their worst problems
Since the start of 2025, over 27 million egg-laying hens — 9 percent of the entire national flock — have died from the bird flu or have been (horrifically) killed to slow the spread. It’s led to egg shortages and price spikes, with a carton of a dozen eggs today costing double what it did in early 2022, when this latest bird flu outbreak began. But each year, whether there’s a bird flu outbreak or not, far more chickens are brutally killed. The egg industry hatches around 650 million birds annually, but because half of them — the males — can’t lay eggs, egg companies kill them the day they’re born. They’re typically shredded alive or gassed with carbon dioxide! But here’s the good news: Technology to end this grisly practice is finally coming to the US. Known as “in-ovo sexing” (“in-ovo” is Latin for “in the egg”), the technology detects the sex of a chicken while still in the egg so that companies can dispose of them before they hatch to avoid the shredding and gassing. And the technology hardly raises the cost of production, at just a few pennies per carton.
- After more than eight decades in operation, craft retailer Joann is going out of business
The crafts retailer is closing all 800 of its stores and laying off 19,000 employees. The news comes after the retailer’s restructuring plans failed and a liquidator opted to purchase its assets. Joann is far from the only retailer in its death throes. Recent data shows that the number of retail-store closures is expected to double during 2025, to roughly 15,000 from the 7,300 or so in 2024, including companies such as Red Lobster, Big Lots, and Party City, which have each announced plans to either completely close up shop or enact big restructuring in recent months. And a commonality between many of them? Private equity firms are playing a large role. Critics say that private equity, often simply referred to as PE, tends to come in and strip a company for parts and eventually kill it off rather than trying to make an honest attempt at turning the business around and making it profitable. [More]
- Tom Llamas Will Take Over For Lester Holt On ‘NBC Nightly News’
“Anchoring “NBC Nightly News” is a profound honor and one that carries tremendous responsibility,” Llamas said in a news release. “I look forward to working with the world class journalists at ‘Nightly News’ and ’Top Story′ to bring viewers the most important stories every night.” Llamas called Holt, who is stepping down to go full time at NBC’s “Dateline,” a “great man” and “one of the most trusted broadcasters.” Llamas said he will be “devoted” to viewers and “dedicated to the truth,” “just like” Holt. Llamas began his career with NBC News 25 years ago. He rejoined NBC News in 2021 as a senior national correspondent. He is a regular fill-in anchor on “NBC Nightly News” and a reporter on “Today.” Previously, he worked as ABC’s chief national affairs correspondent and anchored the weekend editions of ABC’s “World News Tonight.”
- You’ve heard all about artificial intelligence and its amazing capabilities. Here’s how you can put it to work in your home
ChatGPT brought artificial intelligence into the mainstream. It’s one of the fastest-growing apps of all time, and has led the way for millions of other AI products to emerge. AI has fundamentally changed the way we search online, with Google’s lucrative top front page real estate now dedicated to the AI Overview — and people are even using ChatGPT to answer their queries instead of Google. AI chatbots like ChatGPT will continue to transform how we consume, create and communicate online. While AI innovation is progressing quickly, it’s important to understand the fundamentals of how ChatGPT works to navigate the ecosystem of tools. With that in mind, here’s your ChatGPT 101 class.
- Retired teacher, firefighter, police officer or recipient of a public pension? You’ll be getting big bucks from new benefits of Biden’s Social Security Fairness Act
Millions of retired teachers, firefighters, police officers and others with public pensions will be reaping the benefits of the recently passed Social Security Fairness Act sooner than first projected, federal officials announced. The Social Security Administration (SSA) said it was immediately beginning to pay retroactive benefits and will increase monthly payments starting in April to the more than 3.2 million people affected by a law signed in January by former President Biden, who said it would mean an average monthly increase of $360 for more than 2.5 million Social Security recipients. Decades in the making, the Social Security Fairness Act expanded benefits for millions by eliminating two federal policies that barred employees with a public pension from collecting their full benefits under the federal retirement program. Those same policies also reduced benefits for such workers’ surviving spouses and family members. [More]
A newspaper by and for seniors, Senior News Daily scours the internet each morning for news of interest to active men and women of retirement age. Coverage includes financial and health news, politics, retirement strategies and assisted living news and helpful blogs about aging.
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