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By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Melvin Van Peebles, a Broadway playwright, musician and movie director whose work ushered in the “blaxploitation” films of the 1970s, has died. He was 89. His family said in a statement that Van Peebles died Tuesday night at his home. Sometimes called the “godfather of

By STEFANIE DAZIO Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Federal lawmakers have introduced legislation Wednesday that would change 19th century maritime liability rules in response to the 2019 boat fire off the coast of Southern California that killed 34 people. The bill introduced Wednesday would update the Limitation of Liability Act of 1851, under which

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has announced that’s he’s nominating two major Democratic fundraisers and a former Georgia state lawmaker to serve as ambassadors. Erik Ramanathan, chairman of the public health nonprofit organization Heluna Health and an LGBT activist, was tapped for Sweden; Michael Adler, a South Florida real estate executive, was

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON Associated Press TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida will consider an abortion bill similar to one signed into law in Texas that would ban most abortions in the state. Republican Rep. Webster Barnaby filed the legislation Wednesday and it was quickly met with criticism by Democrats. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office said it

By JORGE GARMA Associated Press SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain (AP) — Taking center stage in a prestigious Spanish film festival to receive a top career award, actor Johnny Depp presented himself as a victim of the “cancel culture” that, he said, has spread across the cinema industry. Depp was addressing questions on Wednesday by reporters at

By JIM VERTUNO Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas death row inmate’s murder conviction has been overturned because a prosecutor in his 2003 trial was also working for the judge. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled Wednesday that the arrangement between the judge and prosecutor in Midland County violated Clinton Young’s right

By ACACIA CORONADO and NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Latino groups are bracing for possible fights over redistricting. None is bigger than in Texas, which is gaining two congressional seats because of its explosive population growth. Half of that growth comes from Latinos. But the state has repeatedly violated the Voting Rights

By JEFFREY COLLINS Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Supreme Court has ruled a state law preventing anyone from moving a Confederate monument or changing the historical name of a street or building without the Legislature’s permission is legal. But in the same ruling Wednesday, the justices struck down a requirement that

By LYNN ELBER AP Television Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mayim Bialik knew she’d be busy around this time of year, but not this busy. Besides returning to production on her Fox comedy series “Call Me Kat,” Bialik was recalled to duty as a “Jeopardy!” guest host in the aftermath of the messy effort to

By MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has ruled the man who claimed he had a bomb in a pickup truck near the U.S. Capitol last month is competent to stand trial. Floyd Ray Roseberry pleaded not guilty in federal court Wednesday to charges that include threatening to use a weapon

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s new surgeon general has signed new protocols allowing parents to decide whether their children should quarantine or stay in school if they are asymptomatic after being exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19. The guidelines signed by Dr. Joseph Ladapo on Wednesday eliminate previous