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- Robert Heinlein -
L.A. TV Employee Wins $266 Million Mega Millions Jackpot
The ticket, worth $266 million, was sold at a Hawaiian barbecue restaurant.
Watch Lynette Romero's Report
KTLA News
11:44 AM PDT, May 5, 2010
PICO RIVERA, Calif. -- An employee of a Los Angeles TV station is the sole winner of the $266 million Mega Millions ticket in Tuesday's multi-state drawing.
The ticket was sold at L&L Hawaiian Barbecue at 8760 Washington Blvd in Pico Rivera.
The lucky ticket holder has not yet come forward. However KTLA has learned that the winner works behind the scenes in the KNBC newsroom.
According to the KNBC website, she wanted to go to KFC for dinner but her husband wanted Hawaiian Barbecue. Now they can have whatever they want for dinner.
The couple said they picked the numbers at random. The couple also said that the husband recently lost his job.
They could take a one-time payout of roughly half the $266 million jackpot or opt for annual payments over 25 years.
The restaurant gets $1.3 million for selling the winning ticket.
Twenty-eight tickets -- seven sold in California, three each in New Jersey and Virginia, two each in Michigan, Missouri, New York and Ohio, and one each in Arizona, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Texas -- had five numbers, but didn't have the Mega number.
The seven sold in California are each worth $179,428, while the other 21 are each worth $250,000, California Lottery officials announced. California law requires major payoffs of lottery games to be paid on a pari-mutuel basis.
The winning numbers drawn Tuesday night were 9, 21, 31, 36, 43 and the Mega number was 8.
The estimated $266 million jackpot was the eighth largest in the history of the game, which began in 2002.
The Mega Millions game is played in 38 states and the District of Columbia.
The jackpot for Friday's draw will be $12 million.
TIW 5-4-10 NC Evening
Winning Numbers: 505 & 5244
257, 865, 382, 351, 376, 718, 940, 621
8301, 9837, 0259, 7123, 7649, 1984, 1704
6280, 6587, 6591, 6903, 2854, 3504, 4236
865, 976, 087, 198, 209, 310, 421, 532, 643, 754
376, 487, 598, 609, 710, 821, 932, 043, 154, 265
6580, 6581, 6582, 6583, 6584, 6585, 6586, 6587, 6588, 6589
0587, 1587, 2587, 3587, 4587, 5587, 6587, 7587, 8587, 9587
7640, 7641, 7642, 7643, 7644, 7645, 7646, 7647, 7648, 7649
0649, 1649, 2649, 3649, 4649, 5649, 6649, 7649, 8649, 9649
31, 30, 10, 86, 85, 65, 21, 76 pairs
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Williamses advance in Rome
Associated Press
ROME -- Top-ranked Serena Williams and older sister Venus each advanced to the quarterfinals at the Italian Open on Wednesday.
Serena, in her first tournament in three months, defeated Andrea Petkovic of Germany 6-2, 3-6, 6-0. Venus ousted Shahar Peer of Israel 6-3, 6-4.
Both sisters are back from knee injuries and could meet in the semifinals.
Second-ranked Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark lost her third-round match to Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez of Spain, and eighth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland was ousted by Czech player Lucie Safarova, who rallied to win 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (1).
Serena had been off the tour since she won the singles and doubles titles at the Australian Open, and she was entered in Rome thanks to a wild card.
Against the 49th-ranked Petkovic, Serena said she felt "rusty." Her game was erratic at times and a mid-match slump cost her the second set. She finished with nearly as many unforced errors (21) as winners (25).
"I definitely felt extremely rusty today," Serena said. "I'm glad I was able to win because at least I can be guaranteed another match. I think I definitely need it."
Serena got off to a good start, winning the first set with a five-game streak. But she quickly fell behind 4-1 in the second, came back to 4-3 but conceded another decisive break to Petkovic. In the third set, she picked up her game and played aggressively.
Serena next plays Maria Kirilenko of Russia, who defeated Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.
Serena said that after three months off she needs to stay healthy and play. That's why, she explained, she decided to skip social events at home and come to play the clay-court event in Rome instead.
Serena said she told herself to "forget Oprah and Anna Wintour" -- who co-chaired the annual Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala Benefit on Monday in New York.
"I was supposed to be there. I had a fabulous dress," Serena said. "It hurt me ... I wanted to really be there, but this is my career and I need the extra match."
The fourth-seeded Venus, who had been sidelined with a knee problem since losing the Key Biscayne final, was solid against Peer. In the first set, she dropped only four points on serve. In the second, she saved two break points at 3-4 before getting the decisive break in the next game.
Venus said she was especially happy with her serve and movement on clay.
She will have a tough quarterfinal against Jelena Jankovic, who rolled to a 6-2, 6-0 victory over Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium. The Serb player ousted Venus in the 2008 quarterfinals en route to her second Rome title.
In other action, Nadia Petrova of Russia won 6-0, 3-6, 6-2 against Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania, who knocked out defending champion Dinara Safina on Tuesday.
Updated: May 5, 2010, 4:39 PM ET
Evans deal worth reported $56.7M
By Adam Schefter
ESPN
Archive
One day after San Francisco 49ers Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Willis signed a $50 million contract, New Orleans Saints Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans has reached agreement on an even bigger deal.
Evans, 26, and the Saints agreed on a seven-year that was announced by the team Wednesday.
According to league sources, the contract is worth $56.7 million deal, the richest deal ever given to a guard. Evans will receive $19 million in the first year of the contract and $25.7 million in the first three years of the deal, sources said.
"We liked what we saw from him as a small-school prospect in the draft four years ago, and I can say that we've loved what we've seen from him on the NFL level as well," general manager Mickey Loomis said in a statement.
Evans, out of NCAA Division II Bloomsburg (Pa.) University, was picked by the Saints in the fourth round in 2006. He has started all 64 games at right guard since being drafted.
The move will keep one of the Saints' top players in New Orleans through the 2016 season and at least temporarily deflect some of the attention on the Vicodin issues surrounding the team.
The Saints have been dealing with the fallout from a civil lawsuit alleging the team covered up the theft of Vicodin prescription pills by a senior staff member at the team's training headquarters.
The civil suit, seeking damages and back pay, was filed by former security director Geoffrey Santini, who claims he was compelled to resign because of the team's handling of the Vicodin episode.
The Saints have said the allegations are false and represent an attempt by Santini, who resigned last August, to shake down the club. Team spokesman Greg Bensel has said the club will aggressively defend itself in court.
5-5-10
838, 489, 406, 409, 053, 071, 073, 445, 247
179, 111, 368, 923, 151, 777, 555, 333, 208
735, 879, 123, 905, 422, 522, 784, 790, 803
823, 583, 876, 124, 147, 270, 801, 119, 159
"Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense."
- Gertrude Stein -
Cinco de Mayo: Has its popularity peaked?
Cinco de Mayo celebrates Mexico's victory over the French army at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. But its popularity may be peaking this year because the flow of Mexicans into the US is falling.
By Husna Haq
posted May 5, 2010 at 2:24 pm EDT
Cinco de Mayo may have reached the peak of its popularity in the United States.
That’s not because Mexicans don’t celebrate their country’s victory over the French army at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 (the holiday is mostly celebrated north of the border).
It’s because there are fewer Mexicans coming into the US – and a steady stream are returning back to Mexico.
The flow of immigrants from Mexico to the US has sharply dropped since the mid 2000s, according to Pew Hispanic Center. If that trend continues, there may be more Mexicans leaving the US than entering it at some point, though that’s a distant possibility.
“There’s been a huge drop between migration from Mexico to the US,” says Jeff Passel, senior demographer at the Pew Hispanic Center. “The available data suggest that there has been essentially no growth in the Mexican population in the United States over the last couple of years. This suggests a rough balance between new immigration and return migration.”
If you attend a Cinco de Mayo celebration, look around. Are there more Mexicans or not.
Out-migration from Mexico (almost all of it to the US) has dropped steadily over the past several years, according to Pew. From February 2006-February 2007, it was about 1 million. By 2008/09, it had fallen to 636,000.
“Immigration is diminished,” says Rodolfo de la Garza, a professor at Columbia University and an immigration expert. “It’s harder to get a job in the US [after the recession], and there’s an increased risk of being caught.”
That finding is reinforced by data from the US Border Patrol, showing fewer apprehensions of Mexicans attempting to cross illegally. In fact, apprehensions decreased by a third between 2006 and 2008, data show.
Meanwhile, many Mexicans are returning to Mexico, though that figure is steady, not increasing, says Mr. Passel of Pew. “Return migration to Mexico has not increased and has remained virtually constant over the last three to four years.”
Some 479,000 Mexican migrants returned home from February 2006 to February 2007, according to Mexico's National Survey of Employment and Occupation. In 2008-2009, that figure was 433,000.
Add to that Mexicans’ dropping birth rates – the average Mexican family had seven children in 1960, compared with two in 2008 – and the tide of immigration could change.
Still, Mexican culture is as much a part of the American mosaic as ever, says Professor de la Garza.
“There’s so many ways its transformed American culture,” he says. “First of all, from a culinary perspective, they’ve altered the way Americans eat not unlike pizza did, or Chinese. [Mexican food] is now an American meal.”
“And of course, linguistically, there’s a penetration. They’re expanding the patois of the American public.”
This Cinco de Mayo, crunch on some tortilla chips and salsa and chew on these figures:
13,000: Number of Mexican-born people in the US in 1850.
12.6 million: Number of Mexican-born people in the US in 2010.
30.7 million: Number of US residents of Mexican origin in 2008.
2 out of 3: Hispanics are of Mexican origin
15,112: Number of full-service Mexican restaurants in the US in 2002
$12.6 billion: Sales of top Mexican restaurant chains in 2009
Greece on 'edge of abyss' as riots turn deadly
by John Hadoulis - 32 mins ago
ATHENS (AFP) – Greece stands on the "edge of the abyss," President Carolos Papoulias warned Wednesday, after a day of often violent protests against brutal budget cuts and tax hikes left three people dead.
As a general strike -- called to vent public fury at the planned measures to avert national bankruptcy -- paralysed the nation, demonstrators tried to storm the parliament and hooded youths hurled petrol bombs at stores and businesses in central Athens.
Police said two women and one man died at a branch of the Marfin bank which caught fire after rioters broke a window and threw Molotov <snip>tails inside. Around 20 more people had to be ushered to safety.
"The attackers wore hoods. First they tried to torch our bookstore and then they threw two firebombs inside the bank," witness Vassilis Hatziiakovou told Mega television.
At least two other buildings -- the Athens prefecture and one used by tax officials -- caught fire in other firebomb attacks on the margins of the protests.
Prime Minister George Papandreou angrily condemned the bank attack as a "raw murderous act".
"Protesting is one thing, killing is another," he told parliament.
Later in the day, Papoulias said Greece had "reached the edge of the abyss" and called on his compatriots "to not take the step into the void."
The general strike was the first major test of the Socialist government's resolve to push through unprecedented measures since agreeing to an 110 billion euro (143 billion dollars) EU and IMF debt bailout at the weekend.
Papandreou's insistence that the measures are vital for the nation's survival failed to dissuade unions from paralysing public services.
"The Greek people have been called to make sacrifices while the rich pay nothing," said Yiannis Panagopoulos, head of the GSEE private sector union.
After rallying in two separate demonstrations in central Athens, unionists marched on parliament where a vote on the spending cuts and tax hikes will be held Thursday.
"They're taking everything from me, I don't know how I'm going to get by," said 61-year-old Anargyros Bizianis, a municipal worker in the Athens suburb of Piraeus who earns 900 euros a month.
As the protestors tried to break through a police line in front of parliament, they first hurled stones and bottles of water, prompting officers to respond with tear gas.
Full-scale clashes then erupted, with riot police trying to disperse the crowds with baton-charges and youths responding with stones, flares, smoke bombs and Molotov <snip>tails.
Youths also went on the rampage in other parts of the capital, with several dozen youths hurling petrol bombs at stores, smashing shop windows and bus shelters with iron bars.
Athens police chiefs mobilised all their forces, including those not on active duty, by declaring a general state of alert.
At least 12 people were arrested in Athens and police made a further 37 detentions in the northern city Thessaloniki where protestors targeted stores and banks in the city centre before they were dispersed by riot police.
A group of about 200 communists had stormed the Athens Acropolis on Tuesday, unfurling banners reading "Peoples of Europe, Rise Up."
A government official downplayed the unrest saying that "for years there's been strikes and protests in this country without much consequence."
But markets reacted with alarm as Greek stocks closed down 3.9 percent.
Pushed to the brink of default, the government agreed at the weekend to slash spending and jack up taxes in return for 110 billion euros in loans over three years from eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund.
Among the major measures, the government is to cut 13th and 14th month bonus pay for civil servants and retirees; require three years more for pension contributions; and raise the retirement age for women to 65.
After months of hesitation, eurozone countries and the IMF agreed to lend Greece billions at below market rates after concerns the Athens crisis could trigger a knock-on effect elsewhere.
Fighting accusations of holding up the bailout, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the crisis underlined the need for an overhaul of EU fiscal rules, adding that the "future of Europe... is at stake".
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Report: Teen wanted dad's OK
ESPN.com news services
Before 17-year-old Steve Consalvi ran onto the field at Citizen's Bank Park on Monday, where he was Tasered by a police officer, the teenager reportedly called his father for permission to do so.
"He said, 'Dad, can I run on the field? I said, 'I don't think you should, son,'" Wayne Consalvi told the Philadelphia Inquirer of the conversation he had with his son.
"This would be a once in a lifetime experience!" Steve Consalvi replied to his father, according to the newspaper.
Wayne Consalvi told the newspaper that his son was not drinking and he wasn't on drugs. Steve Consalvi is "a real good student, heading to Penn State," his father told the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The father also told the newspaper that his son didn't run onto the field as a result of a dare or bet, either.
"I don't recommend running on the field, but I don't think they should have Tased him at all," he told the newspaper.
The Phillies and Philadelphia police are investigating whether a police officer's use of a Taser to apprehend Steve Consalvi was an appropriate use of force.
Lt. Frank Vanore, a police spokesman, says Commissioner Charles Ramsey reviewed the tape and felt the officer had acted within the department's guidelines, which allow officers to use Tasers to arrest fleeing suspects. Vanore says internal affairs is still investigating.
Ramsey told KYW Radio in Philadelphia that he supported the officer's decision to use a Taser.
"It was inappropriate for him to be out there on the field," Ramsey said. "Unless I read something to the contrary, that officer acted appropriately. I support him 100 percent."
The department is reviewing whether its officers should be on the field wrangling fans who aren't threatening anyone, Vanore said.
"Should we be on the field at all? I think that's what's being looked at," Vanore said. "I'm not sure we should be chasing people around the field."
Vanore said it was the first time he knew of that a Philadelphia officer had used a Taser on a fan on the field.
Pat Courtney, a spokesman for Major League Baseball, said security issues are dealt with at the team level. He said he knew the Phillies were talking with police about the encounter and that MLB was monitoring the situation, but he declined further comment.
Mary Catherine Roper, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union in Philadelphia, said she didn't understand why the officer had to use a Taser.
"How long can he really run around out there?" Roper said of the fan. "In this situation, he's not dangerous, he's not getting away."
Consalvi, wearing a baseball cap, red T-shirt and khaki shorts, hopped a fence and scurried around the outfield, eluding two security officers in the bottom of the eighth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals. One officer used a Taser and the fan went down in a heap. Several Phillies placed gloves over their faces and appeared to be stifling laughter at the wild scene.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Paxson apologizes for altercation
ESPNChicago.com
DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Chicago Bulls vice president of basketball operations John Paxson apologized on Tuesday for a physical altercation he had with Vinny Del Negro, who was fired as Chicago's head coach on Monday night.
Bulls general manager Gar Forman held a news conference Tuesday to discuss Del Negro's firing, and he said the altercation on March 30 after a game against the Phoenix Suns had nothing to do with Del Negro's dismissal.
After the game, Paxson confronted Del Negro about playing Joakim Noah more minutes than was allowed as he recovered from plantar fasciitis. There are conflicting reports as to whether Paxson or Del Negro was the aggressor.
"I want to apologize to fans and Vinny for what happened March 30 after the Phoenix game," Paxson said. "I hold myself accountable and responsible. I am not at all proud of how I handled the situation. I felt that at the time I was representing and standing up for a policy we put in place. I felt that way.
"But there's no question I was wrong in how I handled it. During the incident, I was not proud of the language I used or how I represented myself or the Bulls. And if I could have that moment back, I'd take it back. It was a heat-of-the-moment type of thing, and it's something I'm not proud of."
The incident became public on April 13, and much of the fallout was critical of Bulls management.
"You'd be hard-pressed to find someone who cares more about the Bulls organization," Paxson said. "That's why I'm most embarrassed, because I put the Bulls in a bad position with the way I did handle it.
"I just wanted to today to make a public apology. I talked to [chairman Jerry Reinsdorf] and Gar immediately after the incident, and apologized to them."
Paxson would not go into detail about the incident.
"As a player, ever since I was a little kid, I was always the type of player who would scrap and claw and fight to protect myself and get to where I was," he said. "And those things are fine when you're playing, but obviously it's not in this situation.
"I learned from it. I'm not perfect, I make mistakes, and I did in this instance. I'll learn from it and move on."
Paxson also said he will be with the Bulls for years to come.
"I don't believe an incident or a couple of incidents of losing my temper define who I am," Paxson said. "I think I've done a lot of good things.
"I'm comfortable with who I am as a person. I know the people I work with every day, and that I've worked with for a long time, have respect for me. Because I have treated them the right way. In this instance, I didn't treat Vinny the right way. And I'm sorry for that. It's not a proud moment."
Paxson said he didn't step forward immediately after the incident because he didn't want to be a distraction.
"I laid pretty low after the incident, because I did not want to disrupt anything," he said. "And especially the night someone broke that story, I wasn't going to try to draw more attention to the situation. It would have been unfair to our players. "
Life is a succession of moments. To live each one is to succeed."
- Corita Kent -
Stars are nominated for 2010 Tony Awards
By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, AP Drama Writer
Michael Kuchwara, Ap Drama Writer
1 hr 48 mins ago
NEW YORK – Star wattage will burn bright at the 2010 Tony Awards with Denzel Washington, Jude Law, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Kelsey Grammer among those receiving nominations Tuesday.
Washington and Law were each cited for best actor performances in "Fences" and "Hamlet," respectively. Zeta-Jones was nominated for best performance by a leading actress in a musical, "A Little Night Music," and Grammer was nominated for lead actor in a musical, "La Cage aux Folles."
"What a thrill to be nominated! The experience of doing this incredible show and working every night with such a talented group of people has truly been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career," Zeta-Jones said Tuesday. "And now to be nominated for a Tony. In my dreams, I couldn't imagine a better way to make my Broadway debut."
Washington said that being on Broadway again — he last appeared in 2005 in "Julius Caesar" — was "like coming home again for me, and sharing a Tony nomination for 'Fences' with so many wonderfully talented people associated with this play makes it seem like one big family reunion."
"Fela!" — nominated for best musical — and "La Cage aux Folles" — nominated for the best musical revival — each received 11 nominations, followed by "Fences" with 10 nods.
Nominated for best play were "In the Next Room (or the vibrator play)" by Sarah Ruhl; "Next Fall," by Geoffrey Nauffts; "Red," by John Logan; and "Time Stands Still," by Donald Margulies.
Best musical nominations went to Green Day's "American Idiot"; "Memphis"; "Million Dollar Quartet"; and "Fela!"
"I am very proud and humbled by this extraordinary recognition of our work today," said Michael Grandage, artsitic director of Britain's Donmar Warehouse, who was nominated for directing "Red." John Logan's engrossing, often enthralling new play about art, an artist and the act of creation, received seven Tony nominations.
Besides Washington and Law, the actor-play nominees include Alfred Molina, "Red"; Liev Schreiber, "A View From the Bridge"; and Christopher Walken, "A Behanding in Spokane."
In the actress-play category, the nominees were Viola Davis, "Fences"; Valerie Harper, "Looped"; Linda Lavin, "Collected Stories"; Laura Linney, "Time Stands Still"; and Jan Maxwell, "The Royal Family."
Harper, whose play has closed, said the nomination was "bittersweet" because "Looped" had closed. "That was sad and disappointing but boy does this sweeten the pot," she said. "And we have a 10-week commitment in Toronto. So there is an afterlife for the play, and that's exciting."
The performers competing with Zeta-Jones for the actress-musical prize were Kate Baldwin, "Finian's Rainbow"; Montego Glover, "Memphis"; Sherie Rene Scott, "Everyday Rapture"; and Christiane Noll, "Ragtime."
Scott, also nominated with Dick Scanlan for best book of a musical for "Everyday Rapture," got the news Tuesday from her husband and she said they had a "celebratory vegetable juice" and soy muffin. What do the nominations mean to her?
"That I have to be forced to wear dresses, that's what this means," said Scott. "I'm really happy for this one, actually, because we created it from nothing."
Besides Grammer, the actor-musical nominees were Sean Hayes, "Promises, Promises"; Douglas Hodge, "La Cage aux Folles"; Chad Kimball, "Memphis"; and Sahr Ngujah, "Fela!"
Nominees for featured actress in a play: Maria Dizzia, "In the Next Room (or the vibrator play"; Rosemary Harris, "The Royal Family"; Jessica Hecht, "A View From the Bridge"; Scarlett Johansson, "A View From the Bridge"; Jan Maxwell, "Lend Me a Tenor."
"It has been a dream come true to be a part of the Broadway community," Johansson said. "I am deeply honored to be nominated and so proud to have been a part of this extraordinary production."
Featured actor in a play nominees included David Alan Grier, "Race"; Stephen McKinley Henderson, "Fences"; Jon Michael Hill, "Superior Donuts"; Stephen Kunken, "Enron"; Eddie Redmayne, "Red."
Redmayne said Tuesday that working in New York has been a great experience for a "newbie" British actor.
"From the beginning, I felt a sort of fear of being an impostor, of being a Brit bringing a New York play to New York," he said. "The way it's been embraced by people has been completely overwhelming."
Nominees for featured actor in a musical were: Kevin Chamberlin, "The Addams Family"; Robin De Jesus, "La Cage aux Folles";
Christopher Fitzgerald, "Finian's Rainbow"; Levi Kreis, "Million Dollar Quartet"; Bobby Steggert, "Ragtime."
Nominees for featured actress in a musical were: Barbara Cook, "Sondheim on Sondheim"; Katie Finneran, "Promises, Promises";
Angela Lansbury, "A Little Night Music"; Karine Plantadit, "Come Fly Away"; Lillias White, "Fela!"
"I am honored but also I am humbled, because it showed that we are ready for evolution," said Plantadit. "The show is being recognized by our nominations for us pushing forward dance into a new arena."
Twyla Tharp, who choreographed and conceived the dance musical "Come Fly Away," set to Frank Sinatra songs, competes for best choreography with Rob Ashford, "Promises, Promises"; Bill T. Jones, "Fela!"; and Lynne Page, "La Cage aux Folles."
Special Tony Awards for lifetime achievement were given to playwright Alan Ayckbourn ("The Norman Conquests," a trilogy of three plays that won the best play revival Tony last year), and actress Marian Seldes ("A Delicate Balance," "Three Tall Women," "Tiny Alice").
The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Conn., will receive the regional theater award.
Winners will be announced June 13 during a ceremony televised by CBS from Radio City Music Hall.