Online Pretty News

Monday, January 18, 2016

ESPN NFL analyst Chris Mortensen diagnosed with throat cancer

The Artie Lange Show - Chris Mortensen (Phone)

Longtime NFL writer and TV analyst Chris Mortensen, who has been with ESPN since 1991, is taking a sabbatical from the network to battle cancer.

"More than a week ago, I was diagnosed with a Stage IV throat cancer," Mortensen said in a statement on Friday. "My focus shifted significantly to gathering information about the specifics of this cancer. The initial diagnosis was confirmed Friday and there is another test remaining that will determine the best possible treatment plan that will commence in the very immediate future.

"Consequently, with the support and encouragement from ESPN president John Skipper and many others at ESPN, I am temporarily stepping away from my normal NFL coverage duties to better engage this opportunity to fight the good fight that is projected to affect almost 1.7 million Americans with new cases in 2016.

"I have many inspirational examples of men, women and children who have faced this very fight. We all know somebody, right? I also have the love and prayers of my wife Micki, my family, my friends, colleagues and, most of all, my faith that serve as sources of tremendous strength. I have a peace about this and look forward to the battle."

Mortensen, 64, has covered the NFL forSport Magazine, The Sporting News, The National Sports Daily and Atlanta-Journal Constitution, covering every Super Bowl since 1979 and winning several awards throughout his career. Since joining ESPN he has been a fixture on the network"s wide swath of NFL coverage Sunday NFL Countdown, Monday Night Countdown, SportsCenter, NFL Live, NFL Insiders and other shows as a league insider and analyst.

"Our thoughts are with Chris and his family as he faces this challenge," Skipper said. "He is an extremely respected colleague, who has the complete support of his entire ESPN family. We wish him strength and hope in the battle ahead and look forward to his return whenever he chooses."

In January, Mortensen"s initial report on 11 of the 12 b***s inspected by league officials after the AFC championship game became the smoking gun of sorts for deflate-gate, even though the league-commissioned Wells report refuted this reporting. As a result, Mortensen became something of an enemy of New England Patriots, although he discussed his reporting on Boston radio and the NFL never set the record straight publicly on Mortensen"s information.

Joining Mortensen in his fight is his wife, Micki, and two children. His son, Alex, played college football at Arkansas and served a graduate assistant for the national championship-winning Alabama Crimson Tide football team this past season.

- - - - - - -

Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&ct2=us&usg=AFQjCNFC2rEVeC3VFMoAMwQswOLsJdy82w&clid=c3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331&ei=EyedVujUEIKV3QGOioTICA&url=https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/espn-nfl-analyst-chris-mortensen-diagnosed-with-throat-cancer-204645850.html

Panthers tight end Greg Olsen returns to Seahawks game after shoulder injury

Greg Olsen"s Incredible TD Catch Between Two Defenders! | Seahawks vs. Panthers | NFL

John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Olsen left the game in the fourth quarter, though Carolina had a healthy lead at the time. He returned later in the quarter.

Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen left the team"s Divisional round playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks with a shoulder injury on Sunday. He took a huge hit from Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor and jogged off the field holding one arm to his side. The Panthers announced his return as questionable, the he returned later in the fourth quarter.

He had five catches for 69 yards and a touchdown when he left the game.

Olsen"s career was relatively quiet before he joined the Panthers in 2011, but after turning in a couple 800-yard seasons, Olsen caught 84 passes for 1,008 yards and six touchdowns in 2014. During the regular season in 2015, Olsen caught 77 passes for 1,104 yards and seven touchdowns.

That yardage total was the most on the Panthers by a wide margin, with receiver Ted Ginn Jr. coming in second with 739 yards and 10 touchdowns. Any time missed for Olsen would be huge for Carolina, which was up by multiple scores when he exited the game in the fourth quarter. If the Panthers win, they"ll need Olsen healthy for the NFC Championship against the Arizona Cardinals.

Source: http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2016/1/17/10783216/greg-olsen-injury-panthers-seahawks-shoulder

First Click: SpaceX crash, Bowie hits No. 1, and a preview of the week ahead

ORBCOMM-2 Full Launch Webcast

Were entering earnings season again. While the financials themselves might be a little boring, some numbers do highlight broader industry trends. IBM, AMD, and Verizon all report this week, but our eyes will be fixed on Netflix and its fourth-quarter results release on Tuesday.

Netflix continues to be one of, if not,the biggest disrupters to ever take aim at traditional television. So everyone will be watching for thoseNetflix subscriber numbers come Tuesday, especially new US subscribers where the company disappointed last quarter with just 880,000 additions well off from its target of 1.15 million. Now Wall Street is expecting Netflix to produce1.62 million new subscribers for the three month period that ended on December 31st (Netflixs own guidance was 1.3 million). In October, Netflix launched in Spain, Portugal, and Italy leading analysts to predict 3.5 million new international additions for the quarter. The company also announced asimultaneous launch in 130 additional countries across the globe last week but those subscribers wont be reflected in Tuesdays count. Netflix has been moving aggressively into original programming in order to attract more eyeballs and was rewarded with twoOscar nominations last week for What Happened Miss Simone? and Winter on Fire: Ukraines Fight for Freedom.

The Sundance Film Festival is also kicking off this week. In 2016, Sundance received 12,793 film submissions from 120 countries. Of these, only 200 or so feature-length films and shorts were selected for viewing starting Thursday. Notable films previously introduced at the Festival include Whiplash, Boyhood, Reservoir Dogs, and Napoleon Dynamite. Itll be our second year at Robert Redfords festival in scenic Park City, Utah. Why, you ask? Ill let The Verges esteemed entertainment editorEmily Yoshida answer the question she pondered herself last year:

"This festival, along with a handful of major international festivals throughout the year, is one of the few chances we have to see movies with close to no interference. By the time the chosen ones of Sundance, Cannes, or Venice make their way to your local Cool Theatre, there will already be a storyline around them, molding your expectations. "The third act comes out of nowhere." "Theres no way so-and-so doesnt get an Oscar nod this year." "I bet you so-and-so ends up helming Ant-Man IV." In an era in which a film occupies your awareness over months of marketing and buildup and two hours of inevitable letdown, its exciting to just plop yourself down in a theatre with little more than a title, a director, and a longline to go on."

But thats all yet to come. First, lets catch up on the weekend that was.

| Subscribe | Unsubscribe |

Five stories to start your day

Watch SpaceX"s Falcon 9 rocket land, tip over, and explode

SpaceX"s latest attempt to land its reusable Falcon 9 rocket on a ship in the ocean failed again tonight, but it was a close call an issue with one of the rocket"s leg-locking mechanisms caused...

David Bowie"s Blackstar hits No. 1 on Billboard chart

Blackstar, the new album by David Bowie released just two days before the star"s death, has entered the Billboard charts at the number one spot. Billboard says that the album achieved 181,000...

What"s really standing in the way of drone delivery?

Drones zipping above our cities, landing on rooftops to drop off a bottle of Tylenol or a hot pizza, then flying home to charge their batteries. It sounds like a far-off fantasy world, the kind of...

The Oscars" whiteness problem runs deeper than the actors

Oscar season is officially upon us, and with it comes the annual and all-too-necessary conversation about the lack of diversity among the nominees this year. The choices in the acting categories...

How to be human: I was the other woman now what?

You were in a relationship with someone else. And yeah, you broke it off. But using a crutch to leave someone again, many of us have done it! is a bad plan. It"s not even a plan. It"s an off-the-cuff reaction to something much...

"Hard landing" of the day

Source: http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/18/10784862/first-click-tktk-tktk-and-a-preview-of-the-week-ahead

Pittsburgh"s Action Weather forecast

Five Day Weather Forecast - Studio C

WAY? SNOW, COLD, WIND? RAY: A IT"S GOING TO BE SPO -- SUPER COLD WH THAT ARRIVES. THE LEADING EDGE OF THE COLDEST AIR IS WHAT IS TO BLAME FOR THE SNOW SHOWERS. SOME ARE THE SNO SHOWERS ARE HEAVEY. YOU WOULD WOULD -- COULD S THAT, OUT HERE, TOWARD SOUTHER ARMSTRONG IS RIGHT NEAR THE BULLIZE -- BULLSEYE. AS YOU MOVE INTO AREAS OF INDIANA COUNTY. WE HAVE THIS MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW NORTH OF PITTSBURGH, ALS AND 70 AS YOU GET INTO WASHINGTON NEAR BENTLEY VIFMENT ANOTHER BURST OF SNOW. CHILL ADVISORY GOING SBOWFEKT AT 1:00 A.M. AND STAYS UNTIL NOON TOMORROW BECAUSE BE WIND CHILLS ARE EXPECTED TO DROP TO 10 TO 15 BEL ZERO. FROSTBITE CAN QUICKLY SET IN WITH WIND CHILLS LIKE THAT. SO HEADING OUT TOMORROW, MAKE SURE YOU BUNDLE UP. IT FEELS LIKE 10 RIGHT NOW THANKS TO THE WINDS COMING OUT OF THE WEST-NORTHWEST AT 18 MILES PER HOUR RIGHT NOW. WE GO FROM TEMPERATURES, UPP 20"S MORGANTOWN AND UNIONTOWN, MID-20"S THROUGH PITTSBURGH AND CRANBERRY AND THEN TEENS UP TO THE NORTH AND HIGH HIGH. GETS TO 12 IN DETROIT. 2 I CHICAGO AND 4 GLOW MINNEAPOLIS RIGHT NOW. THE COLD AIR MASS IS BUILDING IN AND SPARKING SNOW SHOWERS. WE"RE GOING TO SEE THE WINDS TURN MORE OUT OF THE WEST. THAT"S GOING TO SET UP LAKE EFFECT SNOW BANDS THAT WILL STAY UP TO THE NORTH AREAS OF NORTHER MONDAY ANGO COUNSELEDY MERCER COUNTY. MEADVILLE. WEDNESDAY WE"RE GOING SEE ANOTHER DISTURBANCE PUSH IN HERE THAT LEADS TO ADDITIONAL SNOW FAULT. BUT THE SNOW WILL STAY MAINLY UP TO THE NORTH OF THE AREA. COULD SEE A FEW LIGHT FLURRIES TOMORROW BUT THE BIGGER DEAL IS GOING TO BE THE COLD TEMPERATURES THAT ARE GOING TO BE HANGING OUT AS WE GO THROUGH TIME YOU CAN SEE THE WIND CHILLS DROP ALMOST 10 BELOW ZERO IN BUTLER AN PITTSBURGH UP TO ABOUT ZERO FOR T HIGH. 16 DEGREES. TEMPERATURES CONTINUING TO SLIDE INTO TOMORROW MORNING. COULD SEE A F FLURRIES AROUND. TOMORROW AMP, DEGREES FOR A HIGH TEMPERATURE. THAT IS IT. WIND CHAILS ROUND ZERO AND WE DO IT ALL AGAIN TUESDAY WITH A HIGH OF 16 YOUR FOUR-DAY FORECAST SHOWS ANOTHER POTENTIAL TIME OF SNOW FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. WE"RE WATCHING THAT PERIOD VERY CLOSELY AND AS EAU -- WE GET INTO NEXT WEEKEND, TEMPERATURES WILL BUILD INTO THE MID-30"S.

Source: http://www.wtae.com/weather/video/pittsburghs-action-weather-forecast/37487620

Critics" Choice Awards 2016 Red Carpet: Saoirse Ronan, Christian Bale

"Master of None" Wins Best Comedy Series | 2016 Critics" Choice Awards | A&E

This years Critics Choice Awards combines film and television categoriesnearly doubling the shows chances of drawing a strong turnout. Needless to say, the red carpet didnt disappoint. Jennifer Aniston, Rachel McAdams, Rosie Huntington-Whitley, and Saoirse Ronan were among those who turned out in their finest.

While most movie stars used the live telecast as a diversion to avoid interviews, a few, like Bryce Dallas Howard, were happy to talk shop. I got it from a store called Forward by Elyse Walker, the retail-loving Best Actress in an Action Movie nominee said of her low-cut Balmain dress. Ive alluded to this a little bit before, but when youre not a sample size or if you dont have a direct relationship with a designer or if you dont have a lot of noticethose size six dresses arent available. What Ive found is, if something is last minute, I go to Neimans or I get something online. As for the dresss plunging neckline, the actress laughed, Im really taped and Im touching my b*****s a lot, making sure that the tape is still sticking. I hope its not awkward for anyone.

Another film star,Jacob Tremblay of Room, relied on a little help from family. My mom and my dad helped me get ready, said the nine-year-old, whose tie featured monkeys.

Fashionably adventurous writer/director Paul Feig also went sans stylist. This is a little Ralph Lauren action, the Spy nominee said of his velvet tux with satin lapels. I get in there and buy this stuff. When I did the Globes, I wore a Tom Ford jacket with a little more color to it, so I thought Id go more basic black, but give it a little pop.

I know how to dress, insisted nominee Wendi McLendon-Covey. Borrowing things? Free is just too expensive, let me tell you. Its such a headache. I prefer to do it myself. Added Tracee Ellis Ross, Sometimes I work with a stylist. Sometimes I dont. For award shows, [borrowing] is probably the easiest. And I like to be smart with my dollars. I am a girl who has a closet and loves to shop.

For her part, Gina Rodriguez sang her stylist Lauren Rodriguezs praises. Were not related, but were soul sisters, she said. My stylist is like the love of my life. Shes been styling me since before I had money to pay her. She knows how I want to represent myself.

Meanwhile, Best Actress in a Comedy Series nominee Constance Wu worked with Jessica Paster to select her cornflower blue Peter Langner gown. I really loved the color, said the Fresh Off the Boat star. I was inspired a lot by Alessandro Michele at Gucci. Does she aspire to be dressed by Mr. Michele himself? Maybe one day. Im not getting that kind of stuff yet. Im so new to red carpets that Im still figuring it out.

Mary J. Blige, nominated for her role on The Wiz, selected J. Mendel for the occasion because its easy. Its comfortable. Its sleek. Its couture. Its everything that all the award shows are. I felt like being classy and chic. I hope thats what I am.

Wes Bentley said that the men have it far easier than the women. It doesnt matter at the end of the day if Im wearing something well, no one is going to talk about it, said the Armani-clad American Horror Story nominee, but for women, no matter what you do, theyre going to talk about it good or bad and thats a pressure I wouldnt want. I feel for them.

Source: http://wwd.com/eye/parties/critics-choice-awards-2016-red-carpet-saoirse-ronan-christian-bale-10317992/

Players to face intense heat at Australian Open on Tuesday

Novak Djokovic on-court interview | Australian Open 2016

Players and fans will face intense heat for Tuesday"s Australian Open action in Melbourne.

"Hot and breezy conditions will accompany the Australian Open on Tuesday," AccuWeather Meteorologist Rob Richards said.

Temperatures are set to soar to around 34 C (93 F) on Tuesday. A gusty breeze and the absence of high humidity will prevent the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature from being significantly higher.

Highs in the mid-20s C (upper 70s F) are more common in Melbourne this time of year.

Fans and players will want to take the necessary precautions, including drinking plenty of water and wearing light-colored clothing, to protect themselves from heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

"Water fountains are provided around Melbourne Park for the benefit of patrons," the official website of the Australian Open said.

RELATED:Detailed forecast for Melbourne, AustraliaForecast temperature mapsBattling the heat: Health dangers for runners, swimmers

Melbourne Park, home to the Australian Open, has three courts with retractable roofs. Other courts used by the tournament offer no protection against adverse weather.

"The Australian Open has an Extreme Heat Policy," the website said. That goes into effect, "once the ambient (surrounding temperature) exceeds 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) and the Wet Bulb Global Temperature reading exceeds 32.5 C (90.5 F)."

The Wet Bulb Global Temperature accounts for temperature, humidity, sun angle, solar radiation and wind speed. Those same components are part of the equation to calculate the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature.

Heat already affected this year"s Australian Open, according to the tournament"s website. Day one of the men"s qualifying round was suspended last Wednesday.

Switzerland"s Stan Wawrinka wipes sweat from his face during a practice session on Rod Laver Arena ahead of the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016.(AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Data from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology indicates that temperatures at Melbourne"s Olympic Park peaked at 42.2 C (108 F) on Wednesday.

Relief from the heat at the beginning of the tournament will come at midweek.

"A cooldown will start Tuesday night into Wednesday due to a cold front that will cause showers and possibly a thunderstorm. That can lead to delays in play," Richards said.

High temperatures will be lower for the middle and end of the week. By the weekend, temperatures will be returning to near normal.

A shower or thunderstorm may persist into Friday, helping to keep the heat from returning.

Source: http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/australian-open-heat-extreme-p/54829799

Sunday, January 17, 2016

Report: Patriots sign Keshawn Martin to two-year extension

Tom Brady Highlights (Divisional Playoffs) | Chiefs vs. Patriots | NFL
Getty Images

The Patriots traded for wide receiver Keshawn Martin in September and they appear tolike what theyve seen from him over the last few months.

Field Yates of ESPN.com reports that the Patriots have signed Martin to a two-year extension that runs through the 2017 season. Martin was set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

Per Yates, Martin stands to make base salaries of $850,000 and $1 million in the next two seasons with a variety of roster bonuses, escalators and incentives that can boost his total earnings. Theres also a $600,000 signing bonus included in the deal.

Martin had 24 catches for 269 yards and two touchdowns in nine games for the Patriots. Receiver Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and Brandon LaFell are all under contract through next season, although Amendolas salary of $5 million could make him a possible cut or restructuring target.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/01/17/report-patriots-sign-keshawn-martin-to-two-year-extension/