Editor's Picks category, Page 440
Free Wi-Fi coming to all Allegheny County Port Authority buses, light rail
Allegheny County Port Authority customers will be able to surf wherever they ride by early 2020. Port Authority will finish installing free, unlimited Wi-Fi on its fleet of more than 400 buses and on light rail cars in the coming months, the authority announced Monday. The signal will be strong...
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro classifies ‘ghost guns’ as a firearm
Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro on Monday announced he has closed a loophole in the state’s gun laws by classifying self-assembled gun kits — sometimes called “ghost guns” — as a firearm, making it illegal for felons and others not permitted to have a gun to possess. Shapiro said his...
$100K New Year’s raffle ticket sold in Penn Hills
A winning raffle ticket with a $100,000 prize was sold at Penn Hills Convenience in Penn Hills, the Pennsylvania Lottery announced Monday. The ticket was drawn as the fifth $100,000 Weekly Drawing prize. The weekly drawing is part of the New Year’s Millionaire Raffle, which began in November. The game...
Yinzer Yuletide celebrates Christmas traditionsVideo
Yinzer Yuletide, Pittsburgh Public Theater’s new entertainment experience, fills the O’Reilly Theater with holiday spirit. Beginning with the decor of the theater’s large front windows, the experience features WQED producer Rick Sebak hosting a variety show. The idea for the program came from the theater’s managing director, Lou Castelli, and...
Pitt Chancellor Patrick Gallagher gets raise, will make $828,000 in 2020
University of Pittsburgh officials say Chancellor Patrick Gallagher, who is completing his sixth year at the helm of Pitt, is a keeper and they’d like to make good on his desire to continue in office through retirement. Eva Tansky Blum, who chairs the Pitt board of trustees, said Gallagher’s performance...
Sick of the old holiday staples? 10 movies you may have missedVideo
Though much beloved and holiday staples, yet another viewing of “A Christmas Story” or “Home Alone” might be enough to bring out your inner Grinch … with a vengeance. Looking for something still holiday-ish, that might just become a new favorite? Here are 10 to consider: 1. ‘Meet Me in...
In New Kensington, there really is a SantaVideo
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series that features Alle-Kiski Valley residents and the notable things that they do. A casting call for a sixth-grade school play would land New Kensington native Tom Hogan the role of a lifetime. St. Joseph School in the early 1970s needed someone...
Marshall hosting learn to ski program
Marshall Township residents curious about skiing can learn more about what to expect on the slopes during a free class from 6 to 7 p.m. Monday at the municipal building. “Going Skiing for the First Time” is for people curious about learning to ski but uncertain about how to approach...
Hallmark to reinstate same-sex marriage commercial it pulledVideo
NEW YORK — The Hallmark Channel will reinstate same-sex marriage commercials that it pulled from the network, according to a company statement sent Sunday. An ad for wedding planning site Zola featuring two brides kissing at the altar was pulled following a complaint from the conservative group One Million Moms....
141-year-old fruitcake is a Michigan family’s heirloom
TECUMSEH, Mich. — Some families pass down jewelry, watches or even recipes. But a Michigan family has its own heirloom: a 141-year-old fruitcake. “It’s a great thing,” said Julie Ruttinger, the great great granddaughter of Fidelia Ford, who baked the cake in 1878. “It was tradition. It’s a legacy.” The...
Unsung heroes: Pittsburgh men, decades-long study impact HIV/AIDS researchVideo
Somber tones from the Reuter Opus organ filled Heinz Memorial Chapel on a dark December night as a small crowd filtered into the towering neo-Gothic church on the University of Pittsburgh campus to mark World AIDS Day. As they have for more than three decades, the Pitt Men’s Study leaders...
Houses of worship attacked with deadly frequency in 2019
On Dec. 1, a band of assailants opened fire on worshippers at a small-town Protestant church in Burkina Faso, an impoverished West African country where the Christian minority is increasingly a target of attacks. The victims included the pastor and several teenage boys; regional authorities attributed the attack to “unidentified...
35 cats and dogs rescued from West Deer home
Thirty cats and five dogs living in “deplorable conditions” at a West Deer home were rescued, according to a local animal shelter that is caring for them. Authorities responding to a complaint from a resident Friday said there was a “pungent odor emanating from the house” and obtained a warrant...
Wellness-focused EVEN Hotel opens in former Kaufmann’s in Downtown Pittsburgh
The EVEN Hotel doesn’t believe in odd-numbered rooms, hence the name. Located in the historic former Kaufmann’s department store in Downtown Pittsburgh, the brand from InterContinental Hotels Group opened in late October. The grand opening was Dec. 4. It is one of 12 such hotels, and the chain expects to...
Artist teams with Pandora, Pittsburgh Improv for interactive muralVideo
This is no joke: There is an interactive mural at the Pittsburgh Improv comedy club in the Waterfront, Homestead. Artist Brian Holderman, of the West End, painted the piece that adorns the side of the building. He’s drawn a female comedian, audience members laughing, cocktails, a piano and a marquis....
With Taylor Swift turning 30, here’s a look at her Pittsburgh stops over the years
It’s Dec. 13 and for some, that’s a big deal. Taylor Swift turned 30 today. With a milestone birthday, let’s look back at some times the Reading-born music star has performed in Pittsburgh. Over the years, the Trib has covered her concerts, through photos (above) and stories.Aug. 7, 2018, Reputation...
Kennywood’s ‘Holiday Lights’ recognized in USA Today poll
Kennywood’s Holiday Lights are shining a little brighter today. The West Mifflin amusement park was chosen again as one of the country’s “Best Theme Park Holiday Events.” It finished 10th out of 20 nominees selected for the 10Best.com online vote conducted over the past month in a nationwide poll conducted...
Man dresses as mom to take driver’s test for her
After seeing his mom fail her driver’s test three straight times, a Brazilian man decided to lend a hand. In a dress. Heitor Márcio Schiave showed up at the State Department of Traffic in Porto Velho, Brazil, in a long skirt, floral blouse, heavy make-up, a handbag, earrings and a...
What was trending on Google in 2019? Find out here
Can you believe it? Another year (almost) gone. But while you get nostalgic about 2019 or try to find ways to skip ahead to 2020, check out the work Google has done to recap what was trending in the United States this year. In overall searches, Disney took the top...
Astrobotic to set up ground control for lunar mission on Pittsburgh’s North Side
A 47,000-square-foot building being renovated on Pittsburgh’s North Side is expected to be a key player in America’s next space odyssey. Astrobotic Technology Inc. announced Thursday it will locate its headquarters at 1016 North Lincoln Ave., near the Manchester neighborhood, thanks in part to $285,000 in state job-creation tax credits....
Laundromat, car dealership, grotto and pubs used in U.K. vote
LONDON — Some citizens in the English city of Oxford could have been forgiven for bringing their dirty laundry with them when they went to their polling station to cast their vote in Britain’s first December general election in nearly a century. That’s because the Ace Launderette was pressed into...
Local musicians to celebrate 40 years of The Clash’s ‘London Calling’ in Millvale show
When The Clash’s double-album “London Calling” was released in 1979, many young musicians took notice. They’d been listening to bands such as Aerosmith, Journey and Queen, artists they liked and perhaps thought they loved. But love at that age is fleeting and ephemeral. A favorite cartoon becomes childish, a first...
People in Dublin were hanging coats on a bridge to clothe the homeless; city officials took them downVideo
If there’s one lesson to be learned this time of year, it’s “It’s better to give than to receive.” Some Dubliners seemed to get that sentiment and were in-tune with the holiday spirit by hanging unwanted winter coats on a pedestrian bridge with the idea that someone in need will...
Settlement over bad air in Clairton calls for U.S. Steel to cough up $2 million
U.S. Steel will pay residents $2 million and invest $6.5 million to upgrade equipment at its Clairton Coke Works facility, according to a tentative settlement struck with residents in a 2017 class-action lawsuit. The proposed settlement was outlined in court documents signed by an Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas...
Stahlstown man watches childhood tree light up Rockefeller Center for NYC holiday tradition
When Mitch Schultz Jr. watched a rainbow of lights bring a holiday glow to this year’s Christmas tree at New York City’s Rockefeller Center, it added a stunning final chapter to his family’s 60-year history with a Norway spruce. “I trimmed it tons of times as it was growing,” said...
