Latest News from United States of America
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Alan Alda says his face blindness made him not recognize his daughter: 'I don't think she was too happy'
Good one, dad. Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Alan Alda is opening up about the time he didn't recognize his own daughter due to a condition he'd later come to find out was prosopagnosia, or face blindness. In all fairness, the incident occurred on the set of Alda's film The Four Seasons, after he had had his daughter, Beatrice, dye her hair a completely different color for her role in the comedy. "I saw this person with horn-rimmed glasses and blonde hair staring at me, and it was starting to get distracting," Alda recalled to PEOPLE. "I said to the assistant director, 'Don't let these strangers come on the set.' He said, 'That's your daughter!' I don't think she was too happy about that, because neither of us knew that there was such a thing as face blindness [at the time]." Alda said to this day it's "very hard" for him to recognize people due to the condition. "When somebody comes up to me, as if they know me, I often don't know if they know me from seeing me on the screen or if I actually know them," he told the outlet. "I could have dinner with somebody, spend two hours with somebody next to me, and the next day not know who they are." Alda, 89, has been open about his health struggles in recent years. In 2018, he revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2015. At the time, he told CBS This Morning he decided to reveal his diagnosis after noticing his "thumb twitch" during some recent TV appearances to promote his podcast, Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda. "I thought, it's probably only a matter of time before somebody does a story about this from a sad point of view, but that's not where I am," he said. Speaking with PEOPLE more recently, Alda gave an update on his condition, telling the outlet, 'I don't have dexterity with my fingers the way I used to, so sometimes [my wife, Arlene] has to tear a package open for me,' he said. 'She's so good-natured about it. I'm always saying, 'Thank you.'" He also admitted that while managing his Parkinson's has gone from "a part-time job to almost a full-time job" over the past 10 years, he's still able to keep a positive outlook. "It keeps me always looking for the funny side," he said. Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Taxpayers set for £10bn loss on NatWest as disgraced ex-boss takes £600k-a-year pension
Fred 'the Shred' Goodwin, the disgraced ex-boss of Royal Bank of Scotland, is estimated to be receiving an annual pension worth nearly £600,000, as the government prepares to declare a £10bn loss after selling its final stake in the bank as early as this week. The banking group, now known as NatWest, is expected to return to full private ownership within days, drawing a line under a £45bn state bailout that saved the bank from the brink of collapse at the height of the 2008 financial crisis. The 17-year effort to off-load the government's 84% stake in the lender has come at a substantial cost to the public purse, with the government expected to fall short of recouping its financial support. Shares have only recently pushed past their pre-financial crisis levels – closing at 524p on Friday – but the bulk of the government's shares have been below the 502p at which they were bought. It means the government could end up recovering roughly £35bn of the original £45bn spent on the rescue package in 2008, marking a near-£10bn loss. Meanwhile, yearly payouts have soared for Goodwin, the boss blamed for helping push the bank to its near-collapse. The former RBS chief executive, who was sacked as part of a non-negotiable condition of the state rescue, originally walked away with a £16m pension pot that paid out about £700,000 a year. But public outrage forced Goodwin and the bank to halve those payouts to £342,500 a year. However, after nearly two decades, an agreement that linked his payouts to the rate of inflation has pushed that figure ever-closer to the original sum. The bank is now spending about £598,000 a year on Goodwin's pension nearly 17 years after the bailout, according to estimates by wealth manager Quilter shared with the Guardian. NatWest Group declined to comment. The Guardian was not able to reach Goodwin for comment. Goodwin's excessive spending on a string of acquisitions, private jets, and a sprawling £350m campus in Edinburgh, were criticised for leaving RBS without sufficient financial buffers that could have helped the bank to ride out the credit crunch hit in 2008. Goodwin was widely known to be a ruthless boss, earning his nickname 'Fred the Shred' for making harsh cuts to his workforce amid his expansion efforts. That included a decision to slash 18,000 jobs after RBS' flashy £21bn takeover of NatWest in 2000, one of the largest cost-cutting exercises in banking at the time. By the time of the bailout, Goodwin had expanded RBS into 50 countries and grown its assets to £2.2tn – more than double the size of the UK economy that year. Had the government failed to step in, shock waves from the bank's implosion in 2008 could have led to a systemic collapse in the wider economy. The government was concerned that its failure could wipe out the savings of everyday customers, and prompt panic about the health of other lenders across the UK, creating a domino effect of failures across the industry. The bank's eventual emergency rescue made Goodwin – now 66 years old – a lightning rod for public anger over the cost of bank bailouts, which led to years of government austerity that many blame for hollowing out public services across the country. Goodwin was also slow to say sorry for the record-breaking losses that he left behind at the centuries-old bank. He was later stripped of his knighthood in 2012, amid concerns that he had 'had brought the honours system in to disrepute'. The government has spent nearly two decades trying to take the bank off the public books, through a combination of sales to institutional investors and a drip-feeding of shares into the open market. NatWest fast-tracked the process through multibillion-pound share buy-backs, helping the stake drop from 38% in December 2023 to 0.9% earlier this month. NatWest's current chair, Rick Haythornthwaite, said last month the bank was indebted to the public for keeping the lender afloat. 'We remain incredibly grateful to the government, and to UK taxpayers, for their intervention and support, which protected millions of savers, homeowners and businesses at a time of global crisis,' he said at the bank's AGM in Edinburgh. He added the government was always expected to lose money on the bailout. 'I don't think they ever went into this is an investment … This was a rescue of a sector, and they did well as a result.' Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
About £1bn in car loan compensation at risk because data deleted, lawyers warn
Consumers are at risk of losing £1bn of compensation over inflated car loans because high street banks and specialist lenders deleted their data, claims lawyers have warned. Borrowers, banks and the government are anxiously awaiting a ruling from the supreme court that could spark one of the biggest redress schemes since the £50bn payment protection insurance (PPI) saga. But some consumers could miss out because most banks typically purge customer data after six years. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ordered firms to stop deleting car finance documents when it launched its initial investigation in January 2024. But the files relating to customers with contracts that ended more than six years earlier may have already been lost. That could be a problem if the FCA sets up a compensation scheme where banks are ordered to contact borrowers who may be due a payout. Claims law firm Courmacs Legal says that 465,000 consumer complaints on its books fall into this category, having been paid off before 2018. If all those claimants faced document deletion hurdles, they could lose out on £1.18bn worth of compensation – an average of £2,365 each – according to Courmacs' estimates. 'There is a real risk that millions of people will lose out because the banks which ripped them off will never write to them,' Darren Smith, managing director of Courmacs, said. The Financing and Leasing Association, which represents leading car loan providers including Lloyds, Santander UK and Close Brothers, said: 'We have made clear to the FCA that consistent and fair outcomes cannot be delivered with patchy or absent data.' The car loans scandal has been rumbling on for more than a year, but ballooned in October when a court of appeal judgment vastly expanded an FCA investigation into potentially harmful commission arrangements. It determined that paying a secret commission to car dealers, who had arranged the loans without disclosing the sum and terms of that commission to borrowers, was unlawful. It sparked panic over compensation costs, with lenders including Santander UK, Close Brothers, Barclays and Lloyds potentially on the hook for up to £44bn, according to some analysts. Even chancellor Rachel Reeves attempted to intervene, warning supreme court judges ahead of the April hearing to avoid handing 'windfall' compensation to borrowers. It is unclear whether the court of appeal ruling will be upheld. But consumer champion Martin Lewis said he was still concerned over how data deletion issues would be handled if there is compensation for discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs), which were the subject of the FCA's original investigation. DCAs, which were banned in 2021, allowed car dealerships to earn more commission by setting higher interest rates, providing an incentive to make loans more expensive for consumers. 'I do have concerns about it. I am worried about how it will play out,' Lewis said. However, he urged consumers not to panic. 'We have to hope that the regulator will be on top of firms who have destroyed data, [and] we are only potentially two months away from having some clarity of what's going on.' While banks were urged during the PPI scandal to err on the side of consumers, even when there was no documentation, it is not yet clear how this will play out for car loans. An FCA spokesperson said: 'If we decide to undertake a redress scheme, we will work with industry and other interested parties to ensure that it is as clear and straightforward as possible for customers to complain.' Lloyds Banking Group, the biggest provider of car loans, said: 'We do not recognise these figures shared by Courmacs, and encourage people to contact their car finance provider directly to avoid paying claims management fees.'
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Gary Payton believes Stephen Curry is not a real point guard: "We are putting shooting guards as point guards now in the NBA"
One of the biggest debates about Steph Curry is whether he is a point guard or not. Curry is the Golden State Warriors' starting one by position. However, he does not orchestrate the Dubs' offense as a traditional floor general would. Instead, that task falls heavily on forward Draymond Green, while "Chef's" main task on offense is usually to break free from his defenders and get that small space where he can launch his deadly three-point shots. Advertisement Hall of Famer and 1996 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Gary Payton shared his case against Steph being considered a true point guard during a recent appearance on the "Brownie and Rab Show." "Everyone looks at Steph Curry as a point guard, and he's not," said Payton. "I don't believe that. They're scorers. That's what we say in the era again. A point guard is not a legit point guard, what we're talking about. If you think about it, Nash is a legit point guard. You're talking about Jason Kidd as a legit point guard, myself as a legit point guard, Chris Paul is a legit point guard, John Stockton is an elite point guard. See, that's the difference of what the era is. We are putting shooting guards as point guards now in the NBA." A shoot-first point guard Payton attributes it partly to the difference in eras, but also to the natural evolution of the game. What started as a traditional, structured sport under Dr. Naismith has transformed into today's positionless style. Back then, big men played exclusively on the inside. Nowadays, they step out and take the three-pointer with the green light from the bench. Advertisement Point guards, like the names GP mentioned, were more facilitators or court generals who set up the offense. At best, they racked up assists and preferred to pass rather than score. Much like today's big men are expected to shoot, modern point guards are also scoring threats. Some, like Curry, are even shoot-first guards — but Payton firmly argues that he doesn't fit that traditional point guard mold. "Now it's a little different in this era because we got a lot of people that can go one-on-one basketball and score. Now, if we really think about it, what is the point guard that you see right now who is having more assists than anything? Now we're looking at Haliburton. He's a legit point guard, because he facilitates and does things the right way, and he gets to the bucket when he has to," the Hall of Fame guard added. Related: Walt Frazier admits NBA players were afraid to lift weights back in the day: "Basketball players thought it would affect their shot" Zeke also said that Steph is no PG Payton's thoughts about what a true point guard is were once shared by his fellow Hall of Famer and two-time NBA champion, Isiah Thomas, who also believed that Curry should not be included in the GOAT PG debate because he isn't a real point guard. Advertisement "What he's been able to do for this generation of play and the way he's won it with has been different than anybody elsehas ever tried to do it," Thomas said on "The Draymond Green Show." "With Stephen Curry, the way he has done it, nobody could compete with him. Allen Iverson was the closest small guy to come to doing it the way Steph is doing it." As mentioned earlier, the current game has become positionless, so not all players can be standardized under traditional positions. Today's game features roles like Stretch Fours and Point-Forwards, and if you want, you can call Steph a hybrid guard. But perhaps the more fitting label is "modern point guard," a title that, while accurate, might not sit well with old-school legends like "The Glove" and "Zeke." Related: 'I was never able to drive right or do anything going to my right hand' - Steph Curry reveals the secret that unlocked his back-to-back MVP seasons
San Francisco Chronicle
23 minutes ago
- General
- San Francisco Chronicle
AP PHOTOS: Chickens take over Miami while some embrace roosters as a cultural symbol
Flamingos, pelicans, herons and parrots are just a few of the wild birds that call Miami home, but it's the roosters, hens and baby chicks that have come to rule the roost in recent years. Not only found in residential neighborhoods like Little Havana, Little Haiti and Wynwood, the fowl families are also making their home among the high-rises and government buildings downtown. And while some find the crowing to be a nuisance, many have adopted the rooster as an unofficial mascot for the city. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
