Netflix(LOS ANGELES) — Firefly Lane star Katherine Heigl is on the road to recovery after undergoing surgery to alleviate the “most excruciating pain” she had been suffering.
Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Heigl, 42, shared a series of photos of her post surgery and sporting a new neck brace.
“Well…I am now bionic!! Two titanium disk now inhabit my neck and I can probably stand on my head for like hours…I’m not gonna try it just yet but give me a few months and I’ll blow your mind,” the actress announced, also sharing an x-ray photo of the area of operation.
“I am so deeply deeply grateful to the incredible Dr’s and care team that saved me from the most excruciating pain I have ever experienced and blessed me with a new pain free lease on life,” Heigl expressed before shouting out the doctors who took her pain seriously.
Shouting out Dr. Robert Watkins who works at the Marina Spinal Center in California, the Grey’s Anatomy alum praised, “Thank you for treating me like a human being and giving me so much of your time and attention to help me truly understand what to expect.”
Heigl also credited the doctor for “saving my neck!”
The Emmy winner also praised Cedars Sinai Hospital, as well as the Marina Spinal Center for helping her through an otherwise intimidating situation.
“Heading into surgery and hospital stays is always a bit scary and you guys could not have made me feel more comfortable or taken care of,” wrote Heigl.
The actress closed out on a fun note by writing, “Oh and HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY! Clearly I’ve been blessed with the luck of the Irish today!”
Marvel Studios(LOS ANGELES) — Sorry Captain America fans, as it turns out the superhero, who was played by Chris Evans, is not gearing up for a comeback to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The news comes directly from President of Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige, who set the record straight in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
“I rarely answer no to anything anymore because things are always surprising me with what happens, but that rumor, I think, was dispelled rather quickly by the man himself,” he said.
In January, Deadline reported that Evans was in talks to reemerge as Captain America, but the actor quickly took to Twitter to shut the speculation by tweeting, “News to me.”
In fact, the new Marvel Studios show, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, deals with Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson grappling with taking up the Captain America mantel that Evans’ Steve Rogers passed to him at the end of Avengers: Endgame. The Disney+ show debuts Friday.
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.
(NEW YORK) — After a gunman killed eight people — the majority of whom were women of Asian descent — at three spas in the Atlanta area, police across the U.S. say they are increasing patrols in Asian American communities.
When the suspect, 21-year-old Robert Long, was taken into custody hours after the Tuesday shootings, he allegedly admitted to the killings, which spanned from Cherokee County, Georgia, to Atlanta, the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office said.
“Long told investigators that he blames the massage parlors for providing an outlet for his addiction to sex,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement on Wednesday. “Long told investigators the crimes were not racially motivated.”
The Atlanta police said Wednesday, “Our investigation is far from over and we have not ruled anything out.”
The killings come amid a rise in anti-Asian American hate crimes.
In New York City, the police department said Tuesday night that it will deploy “assets to our great Asian communities across the city out of an abundance of caution.”
In Chicago, “presence and patrols” will be upped in Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, Police Superintendent David Brown said Wednesday.
“Our district commanders are working with local community leaders, advocates and business owners throughout Chicago’s Asian American & Pacific Islander community to reinforce our commitment to protecting the lives, rights, and property of all people in Chicago,” Brown said.
Atlanta police said Wednesday that officers were sent to nearby spas “and patrols have been increased in those areas.”
In the Atlanta suburb of Lawrenceville, the police department said Wednesday that it’s providing “extra patrols in and around Asian businesses, particularly spas” in the wake of the shootings.
“Although there are no known threats at this time, these patrols will continue for the foreseeable future for the safety and comfort of the community,” police said.
The reporting forum Stop AAPI Hate said in a statement Tuesday, “The reported shootings of multiple Asian American women today in Atlanta is an unspeakable tragedy — for the families of the victims first and foremost, but also for the Asian American community, which has been reeling from high levels of racist attacks over the course of the past year. Few details about these shootings have been released, including whether or not they were motivated by hate.”
“Not enough has been done to protect Asian Americans from heightened levels of hate, discrimination and violence,” the statement continued. “Concrete action must be taken now. Anything else is unacceptable. As further details of this tragedy unfold, our hearts go out to the loved ones of the victims and to the Asian American community in Atlanta.”
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — Angelina Jolie will soon be heading to trial against ex Brad Pitt, as the two are in the middle of a divorce battle.
Entertainment Tonight reports that the Maleficentstar is prepared to bring forth “proof and authority in support” of the alleged domestic violence against her soon-to-be ex husband.
The material, according to court docs, will include testimony from the former couple’s children — some of whom are minors.
Jolie, 45, and Pitt, 57, filed for divorce in 2016 and, since then, have been embroiled in a nasty legal battle over custody of their shared children — 19-year-old Maddox, 17-year-old Pax, 16-year-old Zahara, 14-year-old Shiloh and 12-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne.
Jolie nor Pitt have returned request for comment.
The pair sparked relationship rumors in 2005 and announced their engagement in 2012, tying the knot in 2014. They separated two years later, citing irreconcilable differences.
(NEW YORK) — For the first time in over a year, baseball fans will be on hand to hear “Play ball!” loud and clear from their favorite seat — albeit from less-than-packed stadiums in most cases.
All states and cities with Major League Baseball teams are allowing fans when the season starts on April 1, with one permitting full attendance.
While the sight of thousands of fans cheering in a single space might be a cause for concern given that that country is still recording tens of thousands of new COVID-19 cases a day, public health experts told ABC News that such gatherings should largely be safe. On top of that, some experts contend that stadiums are vital to local economies and cheering crowds will help boost morale for all.
Dr. Dean Winslow, an infectious disease physician at Stanford Health Care, said the limited capacity, mask mandates in the stadiums, and the outdoor settings for fans in most cases are strong enough to prevent the spread of the virus.
“I think it’s a minimal degree of risk with the limitations that have been proposed,” he said.
But Winslow and other health experts warned that fans and teams need to stay within the bounds of the current health restrictions over the spring and summer if they want to limit spread of the virus as vaccinations continue to roll out.
Most of the baseball stadiums will not be opening stands to full capacity, but at differing levels based on their state and city regulations. For example, the Boston Red Sox will allow 4,500 fans at Fenway Park, roughly 12% of the stadium’s capacity, while the Cincinnati Reds will allow 12,700 fans at the Great American Ball Park, about 30% of capacity.
All stadiums also have mask mandates except for eating.
Wise to keep crowd sizes down
Winslow said state and local governments are wise to keep crowd sizes down to allow for safe social distancing and allow for more room for potential COVID-19 particles to travel when fans are maskless.
“If they do a good job and lower the number of people I don’t think we’ll see a number of super spreader events,” he said of the baseball stadiums.
Health experts so far haven’t connected any professional sports events to outbreaks of the virus in the last couple of months.
Winslow said he was concerned about states in the south, like Texas, which recently gave the OK for their businesses to reopen fully, as it would potentially increase the risk of spread among fans. Last week, the Texas Rangers announced they would open up Globe Life Field to its full 40,518-seat capacity on opening day, however, fans will be required to wear masks.
“We will continue to monitor developments and implement the necessary public health measures,” Neil Leibman, the team’s president of business operations, said in a statement.
As of March 17, no other team has announced plans to fully reopen their stadium.
Dr. Emily Landon, an epidemiologist and associate professor of medicine at the University of Chicago, told ABC News that the Rangers’ full reopening is premature. Landon, who has consulted with several Chicago businesses on their reopening plans, reiterated that vaccinations are currently far lower than what would be required for herd immunity and there is a lingering threat of the new virus variants.
As of March 17, Texas has administered more than 8.6 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, ranking second among all states with shots given, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, only 19% of state residents have received one shot, which is two percentage points lower than America as a whole, according to the data.
Landon noted that there is a strong threat of COVID-19 variants across the globe that warrant a slower reopening. She said a full reopening could give spectators a false sense of safety and potentially put whole communities at risk.
“It all depends on who has COVID, where they are and what they do,” she told ABC News.
Landon said the best way to conduct the baseball reopening is with a “Goldilocks” approach, using the coronavirus case and vaccination data as a guidepost. Allowing fans on opening day with limited capacity and slowly permitting more fans throughout the season, based on the data, would help mitigate the risk for fans.
“If the cases keep going down, there is no reason to hesitate to have people, especially masked people, gather at these events,” she said.
Crucial for the economy
Elected officials and sports businesses have said that reopening stadiums is crucial to jump-starting the economy, especially for the local shops located around the venues.
Restaurants and businesses near the stadiums, such as Yankee Stadium, faced threats of closure due to the lack of activity.
Allen Sanderson, a sports economist and professor at the University of Chicago, told ABC News that the baseball stadium reopenings will certainly boost the economy of the team’s cities in the short term.
Sanderson did note that having fans back in the stadium would have a bigger impact on the negative psychological effects of the pandemic. The sight of cheering fans, even at a limited capacity, will help lift people’s spirits following a long and trying year, he said.
“Socially we’d be better off if we were able to get more people together and sports venues offer that opportunity,” Sanderson told ABC News.
Sanderson said sports fans were likely to heed the health warnings and stop the spread to enjoy the games. He noted that the NBA and NHL have allowed fans in a limited capacity to return in the last couple of weeks and there haven’t been major reports of outbreaks linked to those games.
“Allowing more people into a facility and having them make a choice without too many other costs on people, that’s reasonable,” he said.
Netflix(LOS ANGELES) — Firefly Lane star Katherine Heigl is on the road to recovery after undergoing surgery to alleviate the “most excruciating pain” she had been suffering.
