Editor's Picks category, Page 389
Mary Trump book already nearing 1 million sales
Mary L. Trump’s scathing memoir about her uncle, President Donald Trump, is nearly a million seller on preorders alone. Simon & Schuster said Thursday that Mary Trump’s “Too Much and Never Enough” had sold a company record 950,000 copies in combined print, digital and audio editions as of its date...
Western Pa. residents flock to campsites for safe, social-distanced summer fun
As people search for summer fun in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, camping has quickly become a popular alternative to bustling beaches and large crowds. At Ohiopyle State Park, park manager Kenneth Bisbee said attendance has skyrocketed this season. “Since the governor issued the stay-at-home order in March, our...
Pittsburgh man uses 27 billboards to display uplifting art exhibition
A man from Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood is using 27 billboards to create an outdoor art exhibit, spreading messages of love, togetherness and resilience. The exhibition, titled “April in Paris of Appalachia,” will display Sean Rothermel’s artwork through July. Rothermel isn’t an artist by trade — he said he has a...
Massachusetts mayor steps in to save Pittsburgh couple’s wedding that was missing officiantVideo
MASHPEE, Mass. — A couple gathered with family for a Cape Cod wedding found themselves without an officiant minutes before being wed, until a Massachusetts mayor wrangled special permission to perform the ceremony. Carlo DeMaria, the mayor of Everett, Mass., was on vacation Saturday near the venue in West Yarmouth,...
New owners thrilled to purchase quirky Plum homeVideo
The couple that bought a unique house on Rainier Drive in Plum won’t change much about their new home. “It’s right up our alley,” said Nick Sarver, just days after he and his wife, Katelyn, moved into John Cope’s getaway house he rebuilt as Epoc I. The castle-starship-beach-hippie house in...
New poll shows Biden leading Trump by 13 points in Pennsylvania
A new poll shows Joe Biden leading Donald Trump by 13 points in Pennsylvania for November’s election. The Monmouth University poll of registered Pennsylvania voters shows Biden, the Democratic candidate, is supported by 53% while the incumbent Trump is favored by 40%. “Even taking into account any polling error from...
Game warden saves bald eagle mired in Lancaster County manure pit
The Pennsylvania Game Commission rescued a bald eagle stuck in a manure pit in Lancaster. The Game Commission said it received a report Saturday that a bald eagle was unable to fly out of a manure pit at a private farm in southern Lancaster County. The large mature male eagle...
Phish’s favorite artist designs image for Pittsburgh’s Commonplace Coffee
An artist noted for his work with the jam band Phish is teaming up with Pittsburgh’s Commonplace Coffee for a line of limited-edition merchandise. Jim Pollock, who has been creating iconic art for the music industry and many brands and businesses for more than 30 years, has designed coffee mug...
Apple ‘n Arts plans to scale back fall festival
While a final decision has not been made yet, organizers for the annual Apple ’n Arts Festival are considering paring it back to an apple cider drive-thru this year due to the covid-19 pandemic and the ever-evolving health and safety guidelines associated with it. Festival officials on Tuesday night laid...
Demand rises for robot cooks as kitchens combat covid-19
HAYWARD, Calif. — Robots that can cook — from flipping burgers to baking bread — are in growing demand as virus-wary kitchens try to put some distance between workers and customers. Starting this fall, the White Castle burger chain will test a robot arm that can cook french fries and...
Rivers of Steel to host drive-in movies at Carrie Blast Furnaces
With covid-19 forcing movie theaters to shut their doors, drive-in movies are making a comeback — sometimes at obscure destinations. Rivers of Steel, a nonprofit dedicated to the industrial heritage that gave Pittsburgh its Steel City moniker, is hosting a drive-in movie experience at the Carrie Blast Furnaces in Rankin....
The Caribbean comes to Sharpsburg with 2 Sisters 2 Sons restaurant
A Jamaican restaurant, 2 Sisters 2 Sons, opened on Main Street in Sharpsburg just a few days into July, but their cuisine is hardly new to Pittsburgh’s Caribbean food scene. Their phone is ringing off the hook. Those callers might know the sisters, Denise Josephs and Marlene Siddo, from their...
Carnegie Mellon names new business school dean
Isabelle Bajeux-Besnainou, dean of the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University in Montreal, was named the 10th dean of Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business on Monday. Officials at CMU said Bajeux-Besnainou’s appointment follows an international search. She will assume her new role at CMU Oct. 15. She...
Cleveland ranks as most stressed city in U.S., Pittsburgh at 97
Covid-19, civil protests, businesses shutting down, presidential election forthcoming. There’s no doubt these are stressful times. Now, a new survey finds that the most stressful city in the country is just next door to Pittsburgh — in Cleveland. Well, with a moniker like “Mistake on the Lake,” it’s no wonder...
Look out, Mars: Here we come with a fleet of spacecraft
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Mars is about to be invaded by planet Earth — big time. Three countries — the United States, China and the United Arab Emirates — are sending unmanned spacecraft to the red planet in quick succession beginning this week, in the most sweeping effort yet to...
Pittsburgh artist’s digital illustrations installed at The Terminal in the Strip
When you think of the Strip District, visions of markets and music and cafes enter your mind. Artist, illustrator and muralist Brian Holderman, of Holderman Art Graphics, set out to capture those images in a larger-than-life scene. He created a digital illustration showcasing the personality of the Pittsburgh neighborhood where...
4 more states added to Pennsylvania travel quarantine list
HARRISBURG, Pa. — State health officials in Pennsylvania have added four states — including neighboring Delaware — to the travel quarantine recommendation aimed at stemming the spread of covid-19 in the commonwealth. Officials said people who have traveled to Delaware, Iowa, Kansas and Oklahoma are being asked to self-quarantine for...
Pittsburgh-area musicians find new ways to stage live music amid covid-19 restrictions
When Pittsburgh’s nightlife scene shut down amid the covid-19 quarantine, hundreds of live performances were shelved. In the quarantine’s early days, livestreaming was a primary mode of musical communication, with bands setting up “virtual tip jars” through services such as PayPal and Venmo. And while there is still plenty of...
Audubon Society announces most fabulous bird photos of 2020Video
Each year, the National Audubon Society picks 10 award-winning photographs of birds. The contest, in its 11th year, honors images that “evoke the ingenuity, resilience and beauty of birds small and large, terrestrial and aquatic,” according to a recent Audubon Society press release. Photos are judged on technical quality, originality...
Comet streaking past Earth, providing spectacular show
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A newly discovered comet is streaking past Earth, providing a stunning nighttime show after buzzing the sun and expanding its tail. Comet Neowise — the brightest comet visible from the Northern Hemisphere in a quarter-century — swept within Mercury’s orbit a week ago. Its close proximity...
Allegheny, Westmoreland arts groups receive portion of $2.3 million pandemic grants
Hundreds of nonprofit arts organizations will receive $2.3 million in pandemic relief grants Gov. Tom Wolf announced this week . Out of the 309 recipients, 36 organizations will receive $50,000 each from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and 273 organizations will receive $1,930 from the Pennsylvania Council on...
Postponed school musicals going live and online during July
Stage Right School for the Performing Arts in Greensburg is preparing to stage “Aladdin Jr.,” the spring musical for its preteen home-schooled students that was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic. It’s the first time Stage Right has had to consult with a medical professional while preparing a musical production,...
Here’s how to interpret daily covid-19 case counts
As coronavirus cases mount in Allegheny and surrounding counties, questions often arise about how the data should be interpreted. Viewed without context, the numbers can lead to some misconceptions. Allegheny County health officials reported 158 new cases Thursday, for instance, along with 12 hospitalizations — but those infections didn’t happen...
‘Start feeling lightheaded’: Construction workers suffer during heat waves
Scorching hot temperatures are taking a toll on construction crews across Western Pennsylvania. Peter Caruso, owner of Peter J. Caruso & Sons Inc., had about 30 workers paving in sweltering temperatures on Thursday — when air temperatures topped 90 degrees for the seventh consecutive day, with the heat wave expected...
Police: Man learning how to drive crashes into license center in Penn Hills
A man learning how to drive in the Penn Hills Shopping Center parking lot struck another vehicle and plowed into the PennDOT Drivers License Center on Thursday evening, police said. An Allegheny County dispatcher said the call for the crash came in around 8:20 p.m. at 11620 Keleket Drive. Police...
