New Jersey
‘The Honeymooners’ star Sheila MacRae dies at 92
ENGLEWOOD, N.J. – Sheila MacRae starred on the Broadway stage and in films, yet it was her small-screen role as the tolerant and brassy wife of a Brooklyn bus driver for which she is most remembered.
MacRae, best known for playing Alice Kramden to Jackie Gleason’s Ralph in the 1960s recreation of “The Honeymooners,” died Thursday. She was 92.
In the 1950s version of “The Honeymooners,” Audrey Meadows starred with Gleason as lovebirds and sparring partners Ralph and Alice Kramden. Sheila MacRae replaced Meadows as the tolerant and brassy wife of a Brooklyn bus driver in a later version from 1966-70 on “The Jackie Gleason Show.” She was the last survivor from the ’60s edition of the show; Jane Kean, who played Trixie Norton, died last fall.
California
Thousands of bees attack woman in California
PALM DESERT, Calif. – A 71-year-old woman is believed to have suffered about 1,000 stings in Southern California after being attacked by a swarm of killer bees covering her entire body.
Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mark Williams says the woman was expected to recover after Thursday’s attack in Palm Desert. He said five firefighters also were hospitalized for stings.
A bee removal specialist told the Riverside Press-Enterprise up to 80,000 Africanized honey bees found in an underground electrical vault stung a Verizon employee who opened the vault. Lance Davis said the bees then attacked the woman, who had just gotten out of a car nearby.
Davis said her relatives tossed a blanket over her and rushed her indoors.
Connecticut
Lawmakers consider bill to curb loud movies
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Connecticut could become the first state to curb loud movies under proposed legislation drawing opposition from the Motion Picture Association of America.
A proponent of the measure says the industry’s decision to use voluntary efforts to keep the sound down doesn’t work. But a hearing loss expert says movies are not harmful.
The legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee is considering the bill, which would prevent theaters from showing a film or preview that exceeds 85 decibels. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health recommends noise should be kept below 85 decibels for workers for eight hours to minimize hearing loss.
An industry representative and a legislative researcher say they believe Connecticut would be the first to regulate the maximum decibel level at movies.
Washington
750 immigration detainees on hunger strike
TACOMA, Wash. – The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement department has confirmed 750 detainees at the Northwest Detention Center have refused to eat and say they are on a hunger strike.
An immigrant activist says the hunger strike started Friday as a protest of deportations as well as center conditions.
The center currently houses nearly 1,300 people, being investigated for possible deportation.
The detainees are under continuous observation by center staff and medical personnel.
Associated Press
