HEBER SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) - Mindy McCready, who hit the top of the country charts before personal problems sidetracked her career, died Sunday in Arkansas in an apparent suicide. She was 37.
PALM CITY, Fla. (AP) - Michelle Obama jokingly says a mid-life crisis is what inspired her new haircut with bangs.
MANTOLOKING, N.J. (AP) - On the surface, things look calm and placid. Just beneath the waterline, however, it's a different story.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The CIA thrillers "Argo" and "Zero Dark Thirty" have won top screenplay honors from the Writers Guild of America.
Sometimes it turns out that famous clichés are just plain wrong, or at least wrong in enough important situations to make them suspect. One with which I particularly disagree is "Familiarity breeds contempt." I know what it is supposed to identify, and I flatly disagree. Familiarity, with the right people, in the right way, and for the right reasons, actually breeds contentment.
LAKE ELSINORE (AP) - A former councilman for the Southern California city of Lake Elsinore has been found slain in his home.
ROME (AP) - An influential Italian Catholic magazine is asking its readers if disgraced former Los Angeles archbishop Roger Mahony should participate in the upcoming election for a new pope.
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - Ruby-throated hummingbirds are migrating to North America weeks earlier than in decades past, and research indicates that higher temperatures in their winter habitat may be the reason.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Jerry Buss, the Los Angeles Lakers' playboy owner who shepherded the NBA franchise to 10 championships from the '80s Showtime dynasty to the Kobe Bryant era, died Monday, his assistant said.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Adults who've begun working toward their GED are being urged to finish up this year, before the test for a high school equivalency diploma changes and they have to start all over.
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - Police chiefs in New Hampshire wanted more money for their youth training program. A youth hockey team in North Dakota needed more ice time.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - In mathematical terms, divide the circumference of the world by its diameter, and you have pi. In Hollywood terms, add a United Nations mix of ingredients and you have the blockbuster "Life of Pi."
Roger Ailes, the head of Fox News Channel, is a very smart man. And he knows how to count, a skill that has apparently eluded many of his fellow conservatives.
Those who have said goodbye to the work-a-day grind now have many hours to settle down and relax. People who have continually put off vacations in lieu of work responsibilities may now have all the time they need to explore the world.
Presidents' Day is a time set aside to celebrate the legacies of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln and also remember all of the Presidents of the United States (POTUS) that have made our nation great.
MOORE, Okla. (AP) - Helmeted rescue workers raced Tuesday to complete the search for survivors and the dead in the Oklahoma City suburb where a mammoth tornado destroyed countless homes, cleared lots down to bare red earth and claimed 24 lives, including those of nine children.
Finally, an issue Republicans and Democrats can agree on:
Obama and his minions are mired up to their eyeballs in scandals, what with Benghazigate, the IRS targeting of conservative groups for harassment, and the Justice Departments secret grab of Associated Press phone records, not to mention the lingering Operation Fast & Furious debacle.
A world-famous entertainer announced that she and her boyfriend were splitting up in one of the saddest tweets I've ever read: "We have decided to go our separate ways. Please respect our privacy."
The still-rugged beauty of the Santa Clarita Valley provides a natural appeal for motorcyclists. For the past six years, chapter 101 of the legendary Boozefighters Motorcycle Club has enjoyed our rural spirit and open roads by making Canyon Country their home.
SAN JOSE (AP) - Brent Burns helped San Jose jump off to a fast start with his second goal of the postseason and the Sharks tied their second-round series against Los Angeles at two games with a 2-1 victory over the Kings in Game 4 on Tuesday night.
ANAHEIM (AP) - Mike Trout hit for the cycle and drove in five runs, Josh Hamilton celebrated his 32nd birthday with a homer and a triple, and Howie Kendrick also went deep in the Los Angeles Angels' 12-0 rout of the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Summoned by Congress, a key figure in the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative groups plans to invoke her constitutional right against self-incrimination and decline to testify at a congressional hearing on Wednesday.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Officials at the University of California, Los Angeles say a man was found dead on campus after an apparent fall from a building.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Far-reaching legislation that grants a chance at citizenship to millions of immigrants living illegally in the United States cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a solid bipartisan vote Tuesday night after supporters somberly sidestepped a controversy over the rights of gay spouses.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - About 17,000 Californians with serious medical problems will be moved from a state-run stopgap health insurance program to a federal plan starting in July, ensuring they will have no break in medical coverage until the national health care reforms kick in next year, state officials announced this week.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - California is sending six specially trained urban search-and-rescue workers to Oklahoma to assist recovery efforts after Monday's tornado.
CALABASAS, Calif. (AP) - Many areas of sprawling Point Mugu State Park that have been off-limits since this month's big wildfire on the outskirts of Camarillo and Thousand Oaks will reopen in time for the Memorial Day weekend.
MOORE, Okla. (AP) - The principal's voice came on over the intercom at Plaza Towers Elementary School: A severe storm was approaching and students were to go to the cafeteria and wait for their parents to pick them up.
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate voted Tuesday to keep a $400 million annual cut - or roughly a half of 1 percent - to the food stamp program as part of a major five-year farm bill.