NEW YORK (AP)—Disney is dropping the word “Fox” from the movie studios it acquired as part of last year's $71 billion purchase of Fox's entertainment business, according to published reports. Disney will still run them as separate studios within the company. But trade publication Variety reported that 20th Century Fox will become 20th Century Studios, while Fox Searchlight Pictures will be Searchlight Pictures. Variety said the studios' logos are largely unchanged except for the removal of the Fox name. Variety said the Fox name created brand confusion...

LOS ANGELES (AP)—“Parasite” has officially infected this year’s award season. Bong Joon Ho’s Korean film became the first foreign language film to take top honors from the Screen Actors Guild on Sunday, setting itself up as a legitimate best picture contender to the front-runner “1917” at next month’s Academy Awards. Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston both took home awards at the 26th Screen Actors Guild on Sunday. Pitt, who is headed toward his first acting Academy Award for his performance in “Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood,”...

By Beth Harris   PASADENA (AP)—Kim Kardashian West is a step closer to becoming a lawyer, having finished her first year of study as an apprentice. She told The Associated Press on Saturday that her next step is taking the “baby bar,” so-called because it's a one-day exam. If she passes, she plans to study for another three years and then take the California bar exam. “I'm super-motivated, and I really want to see it through,” she said in an interview after promoting a television documentary on criminal justice reform....

By Mesfin Fekadu   NEW YORK (AP)—The leadership at the Recording Academy thought they were in the clear: After the Academy's then-CEO made comments that seemed to belittle women at the height of the (hash)MeToo movement, leaving the organization in a firestorm that further exposed their diversity problems, it set out to make a change. It issued a task force focused on inclusion. It hired Michelle Obama's former chief of staff to run it and also launched an initiative to create more opportunities for female music engineers and producers. And they hired...

LOS ANGELES—The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded $1.7 million to the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) and the City of Los Angeles to ensure Good Samaritan Hospital’s Emergency Department can deliver life-saving services after a major earthquake. As a first-tier hospital in the National Disaster Medical System, Good Samaritan’s emergency staff are trained to receive and treat victims of mass casualty events, such as a large-scale disaster. But violent shaking from an earthquake can damage essential medical equipment...

LOS ANGELES—The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) is cooperating with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to respond to recent reports of a novel (new) coronavirus. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some causing respiratory illness in people and others that circulate mostly among animals, including camels, cats and bats. Common symptoms in an infected person include a fever, cough and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing.  Since December 2019, Chinese authorities preliminarily identified more than 45 human...

By Mark Sherman   WASHINGTON (AP)—The Supreme Court will consider allowing the Trump administration to enforce rules that allow more employers to deny insurance coverage for contraceptives to women. The justices agreed Friday to yet another case stemming from President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, this time about cost-free birth control. The court probably will hear arguments in April. The high court will review an appeals court ruling that blocked the Trump administration rules because it did not follow proper procedures. The new policy on...

By Chris Frost chris@tricountysentry.com Oxnard--The spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King is alive and well in Oxnard, as the 34th Annual Ventura County Martin Luther King Jr. Day walk and program brought all races, colors, and creeds together to celebrate a man who stood for peace and equality.   The event hosted by the Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Ventura County was out bright and early and ready to make it a memorable day.   Hundreds of people gathered at Plaza Park on a chilly Monday morning to reenact the Freedom March and prove Dr. King's...

By Chris Frost chris@tricountysentry.com   Oxnard-- The battle between Moving Oxnard Forward and the City of Oxnard continues, as the council voted to adopt the voter initiative that limits the term in office for an elected official.   The initiative limits the Mayor and the City Council to two consecutive terms, requiring a two-year break before becoming eligible to serve again. The mayor will move from a two-year to a four-year term in 2022.   The initiative had an extensive signature-gathering effort by Moving Oxnard Forward Principals Aaron...

By Chris Frost chris@tricountysentry.com   Oxnard-- It's back to court for The City of Oxnard, Aaron Starr, and Alicia Percell as the city council voted, Jan. 15, to sue Aaron Starr and Alicia Percell over three ballot initiatives that were certified by Ventura County.   The council voted to put one ballot initiative, permit simplicity, on the ballot this Nov., but sued Starr over the other three.   Starr, Percell, and their group "Moving Oxnard Forward" engaged in an extensive signature-gathering effort in 2019 and certified five...