Author: NY TIMES

James Arthur Ray, an Oprah-endorsed motivational speaker who spent two years in prison for manslaughter after the 2009 deaths of three people in a sweat lodge, the culmination of a three-day spiritual program he ran in the Arizona desert, died on Jan. 3 in Henderson, Nev. He was 67.His brother, Jon Ray, announced the death on social media. He did not say where in Henderson Mr. Ray died or cite a cause, but he did say the death was unexpected.Mr. Ray was struggling to succeed as a motivational speaker when he appeared in “The Secret,” a 2006 documentary made by…

Mauro Morandi, whose 32-year sojourn on an uninhabited Mediterranean island led to his being known as Italy’s Robinson Crusoe, died on Jan. 3 in Modena, Italy. He was 85.The cause was a brain hemorrhage, said Antonio Rinaldis, who wrote a 2023 book with Mr. Morandi about his life on the island.Unlike Daniel Defoe’s hero, who was shipwrecked and fervently hoped to be rescued, Mr. Morandi chose his life of solitude.He said he had fallen in love at first sight with Budelli, a pristine, undeveloped island off the northern tip of Sardinia. He arrived in 1989, somewhat by chance, he said…

Gary Ginstling, a veteran orchestra manager who briefly led the New York Philharmonic before abruptly resigning last year, will become the next chief executive of the Houston Symphony, the ensemble announced on Friday.He will take the helm of the orchestra, which was founded in 1913, as it works to elevate its artistic profile and increase fund-raising. The Houston Symphony is close to completing a $60 million renovation of its home, Jones Hall, and it has been working to attract new audiences.Ginstling, who starts next month, said he was drawn to the dynamism of Houston.“The word is potential — potential to…

The Israeli military said on Friday that Hamza Ziyadne, an Arab citizen of Israel held hostage in Gaza, had been killed in the Palestinian enclave, as efforts by mediators to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas to free hostages have seen little success.Over 15 months after the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023 prompted the war in Gaza, around 98 hostages remain in Gaza; roughly 36 are presumed dead by the Israeli authorities.The confirmation of Mr. Ziyadne’s death comes just a day after family and friends buried his father, 53-year-old Youssef Ziyadne, who was also taken hostage. The Israeli…

This article was updated on 9 January to reflect the ball used in Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie between Arsenal and Manchester United.Mikel Arteta has no doubts about it.As the Arsenal boss dissected the 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg on Tuesday, with no reporters in the room to prompt him, he asked an unlikely question which he believed had Helping explain his team’s inability to convert, none of the 23 shots on goal that night were scored.”We also kicked a lot of balls over the crossbar and they flew a lot,…

The United States ambassador to China, R. Nicholas Burns, said the Biden administration is making a last push to try to persuade China to stop transferring equipment to Russia for the war in Ukraine.Mr. Burns, in an interview at the U.S. embassy in Beijing, asserted that nearly 400 Chinese companies have supplied Russia with so-called dual use products, those with both military and commercial applications. He also said China has supplied 90 percent of the microelectronics used in the Russian war effort.With less than two weeks remaining before President-elect Donald J. Trump takes office, Mr. Burns is raising the administration’s…

The next big fight over offshoring is playing out in Washington, and this time it involves artificial intelligence.The Biden administration, in its final weeks in office, is rushing to issue new regulations to try to ensure that the United States and its close allies have control over how artificial intelligence develops in the years to come.The rules have touched off an intense fight between tech companies and the government, as well as among administration officials.The regulations, which could be issued as early as Friday, would dictate where American-made chips that are critical for A.I. could be shipped. Those rules would…

Richard M. Cohen, an outspoken and award-winning television news producer whose career was eventually derailed by the ravages of multiple sclerosis, which he wrote about in a best-selling memoir, died on Dec. 24 in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., a village in Westchester County. He was 76.His wife, the former “Today” show host Meredith Vieira, said his death, in a hospital, was caused by acute respiratory failure.Mr. Cohen spent more than 20 years in the news business, working with luminaries like Ted Koppel at ABC and Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather at CBS. But he tackled a different subject when he wrote…

Nicole Montanez called four hotels on Tuesday before finding a room where she could safely evacuate with her son and her 4-year-old Havanese, Diego. The dog coughed throughout the 75-minute car ride from Pacific Palisades to Marina del Rey, where the family was taking shelter from the wildfires searing through Los Angeles.“I’ve got to give him a bath,” Ms. Montanez, 42, said of Diego. “He smells like smoke, too.”The wildfires that have killed five people and forced tens of thousands to evacuate since Tuesday morning have also created chaos for the dogs, cats and other animals that consider Los Angeles…

Funny place, the music business — it devours the young and ignores the old. Or at least that’s how it may appear. Aside from a handful of entrenched executives and a circuit of legacy acts, employment opportunities in the industry for those of AARP age might seem slim. But there’s a fascinating exception: Many of the industry’s most respected and consistently employed roadies, instrument techs and live sound people are well into their 60s and even 70s.They’re the sound checkers who puff and count into microphones; the runners in black who bring guitars out between songs; the daredevils who climb…