Preservation board to decide on Herald building

The city of Miami’s historic preservation office has compiled a lengthy, detailed report that substantially bolsters the case for designation of The Miami Herald’s “monumental’’ bayfront building as a protected landmark based on both its architectural merits and its historic significance.Somewhat unusually, the 40-page report by city preservation officer Megan McLaughlin,...

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How They Pulled Off 'The Impossible'

The true story of the devastating 2004 tsunami that consumed the coast of Phuket, Thailand -- and how one family survived it -- is reenacted by Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor in The Impossible. Watch the video to go behind the scenes...Video: Tsunami Survivor Petra Nemcova Reacts to Latest Disaster in JapanIn theaters December 21, The Impossible finds Naomi as Maria and Ewan as her husband Henry, who...

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Woman gives birth at Syracuse zoo

SYRACUSE — An upstate New York zoo got a surprise visit from the stork.A woman gave birth on a wildlife path at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse on Friday, delivering her baby girl with the help of zookeepers not far from the bear exhibit.Zoo educator Liz Schmidt tells The Post-Standard that she rushed over from the reindeer pen to find the 21-year-old...

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Events showcase Miami’s growth as tech center

One by one, representatives from six startup companies walked onto the wooden stage and presented their products or services to a full house of about 200 investors, mentors, and other supporters Thursday at Incubate Miami’s DemoDay in the loft-like Grand Central in downtown Miami. With a large screen behind them projecting their graphs and charts, they set out to persuade...

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Nutcracker performances set for Pinecrest and West Dade

Here’s a Nutcracker with a twist. The young production company, What if Works, will present a different take on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker featuring a string quartet, a special narrative with dance, and artwork by Miami-Dade County’s middle school students. The art will be projected on stage as part of the scenery. Collective proceeds from the performances at different...

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Shonda Rhimes Talks Katherine Heigl Greys Anatomy Emmy Snub

Shonda Rhimes and her Scandal star Kerry Washington are the focus of Sunday's all-new episode of Oprah's Next Chapter, and in addition to talking about the importance of their addictive Thursday night series, Rhimes looks back on one of her more frustrating professional moments. RELATED - Grey's Star Talks Bailey's WeddingIn 2008, Katherine Heigl notoriously pulled her name from Emmy contention, saying...

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Supreme Court will hear gay marriage cases

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will take up California's ban on same-sex marriage, a case that could give the justices the chance to rule on whether gay Americans have the same constitutional right to marry as heterosexuals.The justices said Monday they will review a federal appeals court ruling that struck down the state's gay marriage ban, though on narrow...

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High-flying Miami businessman charged with fraud

Claudio Osorio once boasted that he climbed the world’s iconic mountains: Fuji, Kilimanjaro and the Matterhorn.But the jet-setting Venezuelan-born entrepreneur has now taken the steepest fall of his life. On Friday, Osorio, along with his business partner, Craig Stanley Toll, were arrested as part of a 23-count federal indictment charging them with bilking investors out of...

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Genting abandons gambling petition drive

In a major shift in strategy, the Genting Group, the Malaysian-based casino giant, told legislative leaders this week that it will stop a petition drive to get a casino amendment on the 2014 ballot, leaving it to lawmakers to decide the future of gambling in Florida.“We are not going forward with a petition drive effort and there have not been any petitions gathered,’’ said...

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'GMA' Team Joins Robin Roberts to Deck the Halls

As Robin Roberts continues her recovery at home from a bone marrow transplant, her Good Morning America colleagues paid her a visit after Thursday's broadcast to help her get into the holiday spirit!The GMA team -- including George Stephanopoulos, Josh Elliott, Sam Champion and Lara Spencer -- all wore Santa hats as they delivered plenty of holiday decorations to Robin's apartment and helped...

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Christie reunites with Obama at White House to ask for more Sandy aid

WASHINGTON — New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie is reuniting with President Barack Obama for the first time since the pair teamed up in response to Superstorm Sandy.Christie made an unannounced visit Thursday to the White House, where he met with Obama to press for $83 billion in extra disaster aid for his state plus New York and Connecticut.Obama is expected to ask Congress for about $50 billion...

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Scott names counsel to head jobless agency

TALLAHASSEE -- — Gov. Rick Scott turned to his top lawyer to take over the state’s jobs agency after the executive director abruptly resigned amid questions about jobless benefits he received before he was hired. Scott on Thursday named Jesse Panuccio, the governor’s general counsel, to replace Hunting Deutsch. Deutsch quit earlier this week after about eight months on the...

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State ethics commission: State Rep. Erik Fresen may have failed to disclose personal finances

The Florida Ethics Commission announced Wednesday it has found probable cause that state Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami, failed to properly disclose his annual net worth, assets, and liabilities from 2008 to 2011.Fresen called the allegations “baseless and pointless.”The commission’s next step is to determine whether Fresen violated state ethics laws by failing to properly report...

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'In Vogue' Fashionistas Buzz About Kate Middleton's Baby

The world's most influential fashion magazine and the creative forces behind it took center stage at The Met in New York Tuesday night for the premiere of HBO's In Vogue: The Editor's Eye, and the stars and fashion's top designers were buzzing about the pregnant Kate Middleton and her maternity fashion possibilities. Watch the video!Pics: Vogue's Best-Dressed Stars Joining Vogue commander Anna Wintour...

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Dark Knight shooter's school records released

The University of Colorado at Denver on Wednesday released thousands of documents that may relate to the man accused in the Colorado theater shootings, but much of the material appeared to be heavily redacted.More than 2,000 records were released after news organizations, including The Associated Press, requested them to learn about James Holmes' year at...

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Innovate MIA puts spotlight on startup community

If you think the next week is all about art, you may be surprised to learn there are also six entrepreneurship events vying for your time.And that is all by design. In much the way that Art Basel helped put Miami’s arts community on the international map, organizers of the first Innovate MIA hope their weeklong grouping of events will shine a light on the city’s growing tech...

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Commission postpones Jackson decision

Miami-Dade County Commissioners postponed Tuesday voting on a resolution concerning the future shape of the governing board of the Jackson Health System.Commissioner Rebeca Sosa asked for the delay and no one opposed the move.In October, the commission voted 6-5 to make permanent a seven-member Jackson board, selected by a nominating committee of nine persons, five of whom...

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China goes crazy for iPhone 5: Preorders hit 100,000 units in under 24 hours

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Video: Prince William Visits Kate in the Hospital

News broke Monday that royal bride Catherine Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, is expecting her first child with Prince William, and ET has new footage of the prince visiting Kate at the hospital, and an update from the Palace about her current condition.PICS: Baby on the Way: Will & Kate's Royal Romance The Palace said in a statement Tuesday, "The Duchess of Cambridge is continuing to feel...

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Singer loses bid to wrest $250M from Argentina

Paul Singer’s last-ditch attempt to get cash from Argentina this year has failed.A motion by Singer’s hedge fund, Elliott Management, requesting that the South American country put up a security deposit of $250 million by Dec. 10 was denied by a federal appeals court today.“Since we will not have a big payment for ages (if ever), this looks like a huge...

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The business behind the artist: Miami’s art gallery scene still evolving

This week, thousands of art collectors, museum trustees, artists, journalists and hipsters from around the globe will arrive for the phenomenon known as Art Basel Miami Beach. The centerpiece of the week: works shown at the convention center by more than 260 of the world’s top galleries.Only two of those are from Miami.While Art Basel has helped transform the city’s reputation...

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Lesbian bride who married partner at West Point is ’still processing all of the emotions’

As Brenda Sue Fulton stood in the back of West Point’s Cadet Chapel on Saturday, about to marry longtime partner Penelope Gnesin, an old friend said to her, "Well roomie, did you ever think this would happen?"“No, not in a million years,’ ” said Fulton, originally of Stuart, Fla., as she and Gnesin became the first same-sex couple to marry at West Point’s Cadet Chapel.“It...

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Obama Is Taking Himself and #My2K to Twitter This Afternoon

What a day for Twitter! First the Pope, then the Royal Baby, and now President Obama will come online to answer questions about the fiscal cliff. A @WhiteHouse tweet with the distincitive “-bo” signature, announced not long ago that the big guy himself will be taking questions online, starting at 2:00 p.m. ET.Good to see lots of folks on twitter speaking out on extending middle class tax cuts. I’ll...

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'Les Miserables' Stars Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway React to Oscar Buzz

Les Miserables is one of two upcoming films (the other: Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained) that have been swarmed with Oscar buzz before they open in theaters December 25. Flattered yet carefully reserved about how the buzz can easily result in a sting, Les Mis' stars discussed the overwhelming hype from the critics.Hugh Jackman--who plays the musical film's main character, "Jean Valjean"--said...

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R train to Whitehall resumes for first time since Sandy

APService on the R train to the Whitehall Street Station resume today for the first time since Sandy.The MTA resumed R train service today to Whitehall Street station in Manhattan for the first time since the system was shuttered for monster storm Sandy. Trains had been stopping at 34th Street because of serious damage to the Lower Manhattan station and...

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The business behind the artist: Miami’s art gallery scene still evolving

This week, thousands of art collectors, museum trustees, artists, journalists and hipsters from around the globe will arrive for the phenomenon known as Art Basel Miami Beach. The centerpiece of the week: works shown at the convention center by more than 260 of the world’s top galleries.Only two of those are from Miami.While Art Basel has helped transform the city’s reputation...

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Two dead after bus crash at Miami International Airport

What began as a day of prayer and fellowship turned into a surreal scene of stunned, bloodied passengers and twisted metal. There was the sickening sound of crunching metal early Saturday as a busload of Jehovah’s Witnesses was low-bridged by a concrete overpass at Miami International Airport, peeling back the top of the vehicle “like a can of sardines.” Airport workers running...

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Bachelorette Ashley Hebert and JP Rosenbaum are Married

Ashley Hebert is a bachelorette no more!The 28-year-old dentist and her construction manager fiancé J.P. Rosenbaum, 35, walked down the aisle on Saturday in Pasadena, California, reports People Magazine.The ceremony, officiated by Bachelor and Bachelorette host Chris Harrison, was attended by familiar faces from the series including Ali Fedotowsky, Emily Maynard, and Jason and Molly Mesnick.Video:...

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Grisly find in Brooklyn: Man, apparently beaten to death, found inside shopping cart

Theodore ParisienneThis body was found inside a tipped-over shopping cart and covered by a bag in Bed-Stuy today.A man was found dead inside a tipped-over shopping cart in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, this morning, police said. The unidentified victim, who appeared to have been beaten to death, was discovered around 4:30 a.m. in front of 750 Madison St.,...

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