Editor's Picks category, Page 263
Pittsburgh native, ‘Eyewitness News’ creator Al Primo dies
Many of the conventions of TV news today — on local newscasts or cable news or the “Today” show — originated in the mind of Pittsburgh native Al Primo, a University of Pittsburgh graduate who worked at Pittsburgh’s WDTV, which was re-christened KDKA-TV during his tenure as a news writer,...
Daycation: Agritourism farm tours offer rural retreats in Waynesburg
Explore green acres in Greene County with a day trip focused on agritourism. Agritourism is described as a form of business enterprise linking agricultural businesses with tourism for education and entertainment purposes. Tourism in Greene County has created more than 480 jobs, and, in 2019, visitors spent more than $78...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Sept. 30-Oct. 2
From a haunted house to a downtown rooftop to a neighborhood street, there are plenty of places to find fun in the Pittsburgh area this weekend. Thrills and chills If it’s scary enough for horror film director Michael Dougherty, it’s probably scary enough for you. It’s the ScareHouse, open Fridays-Sundays...
Polka music lives on, thanks to the musicians of tomorrowVideo
Joe Grkman Jr. can recall his father playing the accordion as far back as he can remember. “He’d have a friend come over to play guitar along with him,” said Grkman, 70, a Westmoreland County native living in Venetia. Joe Sr. and his friend would play polka tunes, and, in...
TV Talk: Deb Acklin steps down as WQED Multimedia CEO
After 12 years WQED Multimedia president and CEO Deborah Acklin will step down effective Friday to focus on treatment following a diagnosis of non-smoker’s lung cancer. “Leading WQED — my hometown PBS and classical music station -- has been a singular professional honor,” Acklin said in a statement released by...
Rich Engler documentary looks back at a storied concert career
Anyone who grew up going to rock concerts in the Pittsburgh area after 1970 probably has some idea who Rich Engler is. Engler — on his own and also as a member of the powerhouse promotions duo DiCesare Engler Productions with partner Pat DiCesare — promoted most of the major...
Network nightly newscasts morph, adapt for the streaming age
NEW YORK — For more than half a century, ABC, CBS and NBC have aired evening newscasts each weeknight on television. This fall, the competition has spread to another medium. The launch of John Dickerson’s “CBS News Prime Time” in September means that all three news divisions have unique streaming...
TV Talk: ‘Interview with a Vampire’ draws blood; ‘Doc Martin’ pulled from PBS stationsVideo
Already one vampire series debuted this fall – teen-focused “Vampire Academy” on Peacock – and soon there will be three more, beginning with “Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire,” previously adapted as the 1994 Tom Cruise-Brad Pitt movie. This new “Interview,” premiering at 10 p.m. Sunday on AMC and streaming...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Sept. 30-Oct. 2
For those about to rock Downtown Irwin will be rockin’ and rollin’ this weekend, with these concerts at The Lamp Theatre, 222 Main St.: • Foreigners Journey, featuring Constantine Maroulis, 8 p.m. Friday. The tribute band performs hits from both Foreigner and Journey, along with originals by front man Maroulis,...
Proposed soccer field in Bell Acres to be memorial for Sewickley Area Soccer founder
Leo Moss left an indelible impression on young Quaker Valley athletes. Members of the Quaker Valley Recreation Association, the nonprofit umbrella of Sewickley area soccer, baseball/softball and lacrosse athletic leagues, want to ensure his legacy lives on through a new artificial turf field. Fundraising has begun for the proposed Leo...
Haunted Mine offers hair-raising scares at abandoned Fawn site
Enter if you dare. Dark and dank, the narrow passages that wind deep underground at Tour-Ed Mine and Museum in Fawn have transformed into a frightening Halloween attraction seeking only the bravest souls to wander through. “We play off your natural phobias here, so we’re talking rats, bats and spiders,”...
Childhood friends get new lease on life thanks to directed kidney donation
Kate Shovel and Amber Sylvester have been friends for more than 35 years. They met going to school at Penn Hills in first grade and remained friends even after Shovel moved to Plum in high school. They played softball together as teenagers and became really close. Just a couple of...
Clergy strive to reconcile politically divided congregations
One member of Rabbi David Wolpe’s diverse congregation left because Wolpe would not preach sermons criticizing Donald Trump. Scores of others left over resentment with the synagogue’s rules for combating covid-19. But Wolpe remains steadfast in his resolve to avoid politics when he preaches at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles....
Hugh Jackman returning as Wolverine in ‘Deadpool 3,’ Ryan Reynolds saysVideo
It’s finally happening: Longtime frenemies Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are reuniting onscreen for “Deadpool 3.” Reynolds announced Tuesday on social media that Jackman will return as Wolverine for the highly anticipated Marvel film, coming to theaters Sept. 6, 2024. “We’ve been working very hard on the next ‘Deadpool’ film...
More coffee may mean a longer life, study says
Go ahead and have that extra cup of coffee — it could make you live longer. That’s according to a recently published study in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology that associated drinking two to three cups of java a day to a longer lifespan and reduced risk of arrhythmias...
National Coffee Day deals — free and discounted java love
With the weather turning cooler, nothing sounds as comforting as a hot cup of coffee. So what better time for National Coffee Day to show up than Thursday. And, apparently, Pittsburgh is one of the best cities in the country to celebrate the day. Wallethub has the Steel City ranked...
TV Q&A: Will the ‘FBI’ episode CBS pulled in May ever air?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Does CBS ever intend to air or stream what was going to be last year’s season finale of “FBI” that got pulled after the Texas...
How to apply for a Pa. property tax or rent rebate
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s rent and property tax rebate program — which helps older and disabled residents offset the rising cost of...
Sharpsburg’s police dog, Jango, dies after battle with health issues
Sharpsburg’s police dog, Jango, a 6-year-old German shepherd who retired in August after a little more than four years of service, has died. Jango “crossed that rainbow bridge” around 9:30 a.m. Sept. 26, according to a Facebook post by Sharpsburg’s K-9 unit. “Jango was not only a part of the...
Lombardozzi Restaurant in Bloomfield is up for sale
After nearly 50 years in operation, Lombardozzi Restaurant in Bloomfield is calling it quits and is up for sale. The large Italian restaurant on Liberty Avenue was an institution for several decades, attracting not only Bloomfield residents, but fans from across the city of Pittsburgh, said Phil Luciano, a business...
Jimmy Buffett postpones fall tour after ‘brief hospitalization’
Citing unspecified “health issues,” Jimmy Buffett has canceled two of his upcoming fall tour dates and postponed three others, including his Oct. 22 concert at San Diego State University’s new Snapdragon Stadium. In an announcement made Tuesday morning, the veteran singer-songwriter’s representatives stated that “on doctor’s orders,” Buffett “must take...
Pumpkin patches, hayrides, corn mazes: These farms go all in for Halloween
In search of the great pumpkin? You might have a good shot at finding one — and a lot more — at one of these pumpkin patches. As always, its wise to call ahead to check hours, admission costs and availability of activities during the week and weekends. Janoski’s Farm...
TV Talk: WPXI’s Susan Koeppen recounts life-saving CPR event
Just as two medical students ran to the aid of news anchor Susan Koeppen when she collapsed while jogging in Shadyside in 2011, Koeppen came to the aid of a man who had a cardiac incident while driving in July. The WPXI-TV anchor will be reunited with him in a...
Ollie’s bargain-hunting shoppers push the Pa. retailer’s growth to 457 stores
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet president and CEO John Swygert described the last two-and-a-half years as “a total rollercoaster ride.” “It was a challenge from every aspect you could think of,” he said. In December 2019, co-founder and longtime Ollie’s CEO Mark Butler died unexpectedly at the age of 61. Butler was...
Harrowing film, ’11 Minutes,’ tells of Las Vegas shooting and its aftermathVideo
NEW YORK — A pair of cowboy boots that Ashley Hoff never thought she would see again helped unlock a powerful story about the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. The resulting film, “11 Minutes,” is an inside account of the 2017 massacre at a country music festival in...
