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Brought to us by the director of “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” Henry Selick, with children’s book illustrator Lane Smith serving as conceptual designer, this macabre musical fantasy transforms itself from live action to stop-motion animation once James crawls inside the peach. And it’s the better for it, since Selick’s touch with human actors is a tad clunky. He’s much more at home with the insects who form James’s new family–the aristocratic, fiddle-playing Grasshopper (voice of Simon Callow), the vampish Miss Spider (Susan Sarandon), the cocksure, cigar-chomping Centipede (Richard Dreyfuss), the pessimistic Earthworm (David Thewlis) or the proper, matronly Ladybug (Jane Leeves)....

The current controversy over whether the postmaster general is making decisions to help his party win elections should lead to a bipartisan effort to remove the postal service from politics. Whether these allegations are true, false or somewhere in between, they require a hard look at the role of the postal service in our electoral system. With the increasing use of mail-in ballots—even absent the present pandemic—it has become increasingly important to ensure that that the postmaster general, regardless of party affiliation, does not have the power to influence voting....

EMILY’s List, a political action committee that works to elect Democratic women in favor of abortion rights, said on Thursday that it had officially taken back its endorsement of Sinema. The group was by far the largest donor to the Arizona senator’s successful 2018 campaign, according to Open Secrets. Earlier this week, Sinema was warned that she would lose the endorsement if she did not change her stance on the filibuster....

During the dive, Bitcoin fell by about 6 percent, reaching below $30,000 for the first time since June 22. This also marks a more than 50 percent drop from Bitcoin’s all-time high of $65,000. The Bitcoin fall also affected the rest of the cyptocurrency market. Altcoins had a loss of roughly 10 percent, and Ethereum fell to $1,700 in an 8 percent drop. XRP, BNB and ADA suffered steeper falls, with each losing more than 10 percent....

Bremer has grown increasingly frustrated during his six-month tenure–not least because his bosses back in the White House and Defense Department haven’t appreciated how bad the guerrilla attacks have gotten. So he promptly got Condoleezza Rice on the phone. The national-security adviser, taking a rare Sunday afternoon off, was at the Redskins game at FedEx Field. Rice has been given more oversight of the Iraq problem as Bremer has chafed under Pentagon control and the White House has fretted that Donald Rumsfeld’s unforeseen “postwar” war could cost President George W....

Because of the allusion to artificial intelligence, Fabulich, then a 21-year-old Yale senior, knew immediately that this wasn’t a stalker-but a clue. The robot’s message was just the latest element in a fantasy world that has been created to promote the coming summer movie “A.I.,” an intricate maze of more than 30 Web sites. Although Fabulich had left his phone number on one of the sites, even he was surprised when the furious-sounding robot called his dorm room....

The Reds want the Serbia international to gain first-team experience next season and have received interest from a host of clubs across Europe. Cardiff are in pole position, with Grujic having spent the second half of last season on loan with the Welsh outfit, helping Neil Warnock’s side earn automatic promotion to the Premier League. The 22-year-old made 14 appearances, though he was left out of the side towards the back end of the campaign....

The news was confirmed by the club’s chief executive, Marco Fassone, at a press conference arranged after talks on Thursday. Fassone said that he had been informed by Donnarumma’s agent, Mino Raiola, that the young goalkeeper’s decision to leave the club upon the expiry of his current terms was “final”. Euro U21 stars who could be on the move Milan will now have to decide whether to cash in on the 18-year-old, who is widely regarded as the brightest goalkeeping prospect in world football, or allow his contract to run down and receive what is likely to be significantly smaller fee through a tribunal....

Strinic, 31, moved to San Siro over the summer on a free transfer after playing a key role in Croatia’s march to the World Cup final. The full-back started six of his nation’s seven games in Russia, as they ultimately missed out on the big prize after a 4-2 defeat to France in the decider. He was expected to form a big part of Milan’s plans for the upcoming season, joining fellow new faces such as Gonzalo Higuain, Mattia Caldara, Nikola Kalinic and Pepe Reina at the Rossoneri....

The Academy issued the letter late Tuesday about the incident at the Oscars on Sunday in which Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock and said that the situation was still being processed and it will be a few weeks before it reaches a conclusion. The body confirmed that their Board of Governors will decide on appropriate action for the King Richard star, who stormed the stage and slapped Rock after the latter made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head....

Yes, the 2022 ACC Tournament marks the final time Duke coach Mark Krzyzewski can earn yet another conference title to his already-significant collection. A win in this tournament would be his 16th while head coach at Duke. It’s also worth mentioning that Duke would collect its 22nd conference title with a conference tournament win — five without Krzyzewski leading the way. Luckily for Krzyzewski, his team, which secured the No....

Line: Dallas -4.5, Total: 197.5 (check The Linemakers on Sporting News’ live odds page for current NBA point spreads and totals) The average score after 10,000-plus simulations performed by AccuScore is Dallas 102-Utah 99. We’ll look to the total for our recommended play. AccuScore best bet: There’s a 57 percent chance the total combined score goes OVER 197.5. In the past week, AccuScore is 32-22 (59.3 percent, +780 units) in predicting NBA totals....

Ryan Nichols and Robert Morss wrote a letter listing 77 offenses they said they have experienced in a Washington, D.C., jail where they are being detained. “This is not a correctional facility, this is an evisceration facility, designed to break the body, mind, and soul of men whom are presumed innocent until proven guilty,” the letter said. “Nothing is ‘correct’ in the walls of this facility.” The men claim to have witnessed “a multitude of horrendous horrors” inside the jail, which they say insists on “tormenting” its “defenseless and traumatized guests....

Jana Weckerly’s attorney, Thomas Bowers, filed an updated lawsuit Monday that accuses Jones of forcibly touching Weckerly’s genitals and kissing her on the lips without her consent more than 5 years ago, then bullying her into not reporting the alleged attack. The lawsuit seeks more than $1 million in damages. MORE: South Park skewers Jones in season premiere Jones has denied Weckerly’s allegations and the Cowboys on Wednesday referred to an earlier statement from Jones attorney Levi McCathern calling the claims “completely false....

Achilles tendon tears most often occur in young to middle-aged weekend warrior athletes. While sometimes occurring in younger athletes, or elderly individuals, these injuries are most common in men in their 30s and 40s. Typically this occurs during a pickup basketball or soccer game, and most often there were no symptoms of Achilles problems prior to the injury. When a tear occurs, the pain is sudden and severe. Walking can be difficult, and returning to athletics is out of the question....

Big Bend National Park posted a picture of one of the unusual creatures on Facebook last week, explaining that summer rains have sparked a flurry of vinegaroon activity. Vinegaroons are also widely known as “whip scorpions,” due to several characteristics that they share with scorpions. However, that name is misleading, since vinegaroons belong to their own unique arachnid order. Their bodies, not including the tail, can exceed 80mm in length, which is more than 3 inches....

Before Lebow, marathoning was a sport only in Boston, Nike a sneaker only in Portland, Ore., and aerobic fitness a movement only in Dr. Ken Cooper’s Dal-las. Lebow changed all this on Oct. 24, 1976 – the day he moved the New York City Marathon from the anonymous confines of Central Park to the street theater of the city’s five boroughs. ““Fred’s genius was in realizing he had the greatest stage in the world and in opening it up to average runners,’’ says Bill Rodgers, winner of the 1976-1979 Marathons....

On Tuesday, the university announced the resignation of Police Chief David Perry and stated that Assistant Chief Rahsheem Holland, who has been serving as acting chief since Perry went on medical leave after a procedure in May, will continue in the role until UNCPD finds a replacement. But some students are calling for Holland’s termination after the veteran officer, who has worked at the university for 20 years, clashed with student protestors at a Board of Trustees meeting last week....

The protesters sought to highlight the nominee’s anti-abortion stances by imitating characters from Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel and its 2017 TV series adaptation. In The Handmaid’s Tale, the U.S. has become an ultra-Christian theocracy where women are treated as men’s property and forced to give birth against their wills. Soon after Barrett was named as Republican President Donald Trump’s nominee to replace recently deceased Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, various reproductive rights groups, such as Planned Parenthood and Emily’s List—a political action committee that supports pro-choice Democratic female candidates—began highlighting how Barrett could potentially roll back women’s reproductive rights and other abortion access provided in the Affordable Care Act and elsewhere....