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Youngkin calls on Virginia AG to investigate high school that withheld merit-based awards

January 4, 2023 Published by

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Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin on Tuesday called for an investigation into a high school that delayed notifying students of their merit awards in an effort to advance the school’s equity policy.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, one of the top high schools in Northern Virginia, delayed informing students of their recognition for national merit-based awards until after important deadlines for college scholarships had passed.

The Commended Student Awards are given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation to recognize top-performing high schoolers nationwide.

Youngkin sent a letter to Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, asking him to investigate the allegations that the school withheld notifications to students about their merit awards.

VIRGINIA LT. GOV. SEARS TORCHES HIGH SCHOOL’S EQUITY-BASED RULE ON MERIT AWARDS: ‘THIS IS NOT AMERICA’

“We need to get to the bottom of what appears to be an egregious, deliberate attempt to disadvantage high-performing students at one of the best schools in the country,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Parents and students deserve answers and Attorney General Miyares will initiate a full investigation. I believe this failure may have caused material harm to those students and their parents, and that this failure may have violated the Virginia Human Rights Act.”

The delayed notification was discovered by a parent whose son was not informed that he was among the nation’s top 3% of students until teachers dropped certificates unceremoniously on students’ desks about a month past special deadlines for National Merit Scholars.

Director of Student Services Brandon Kosatka allegedly told the parent when confronted about the issue that student leaders minimized the recognition to avoid hurting the feelings of students who failed to earn the honors.

The misconduct comes after Fairfax County Public Schools recently adopted a new strategy that aims to provide “Equal outcomes for every student, without exceptions.”

FCPS said in a statement that it is aware of Youngkin’s order for an investigation and that the district shares “his desire to get to the facts surrounding the delay in notification of National Merit Commendations at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology for 2022.”

The district said it initiated a third party, independent investigation into the allegations.

“Our preliminary understanding is that the delay this fall was a unique situation due to human error,” FCPS said. “The investigation will continue to examine our records in further detail and we will share key findings with our community.”

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FCPS had previously said it had reached out to colleges to correct its students’ records to reflect their merit awards.

“In addition, Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid is meeting with families this evening to listen to their concerns,” the statement continued. “Should the Virginia Attorney General’s office initiate an investigation, FCPS stands ready to work with our partners at the state level. As a reminder, once this error was brought to light, school staff reached out to colleges to update records where commended scholars had applied.”

Dave & Buster’s co-founder James ‘Buster’ Corley dead at 72

January 4, 2023 Published by

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This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

James “Buster” Corley, a co-founder of the popular restaurant-arcade chain Dave & Buster’s has died in an apparent suicide, the company said.

He was 72.

Corley was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home near White Rock Lake, in Dallas, Texas, on Monday, according to WFAA.

Dallas police officers found Corley and rushed him to an area hospital, where he was pronounced deceased, police told the station.

Corley’s family and Dave & Buster’s later confirmed the death.

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His daughter Kate Corley told WFAA that her father recently suffered a stroke that deeply affected him.

“Buster Corley had a stroke four months ago that caused severe damage to the communication and personality part of his brain,” Kate Corley said, according to the station. “The family asks for privacy during this time.”

A spokesperson for the company confirmed the death in a statement that highlighted his “easy laugh” and “deep care” for his employees.

“Our hearts go out to his family at this difficult time and while we will miss his wise counsel and his easy laugh, the legacy he and Dave built endures,” the spokesperson said.

“His pioneering spirit and steadfast belief that ‘everybody is somebody’ set the foundation for bringing food and games to millions of Dave & Buster’s guests over the past 40 years,” the Dave & Buster’s representative told WFAA. “Buster’s passion for hospitality, his demand for excellence, and the deep care he had for his team members were unparalleled.”

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Corley founded Dave & Buster’s with David “Dave” Corriveau in 1982, after the two fused their own respective businesses.

Corley, a restaurant owner, and Corriveau, an arcade owner — doors down from each other in Little Rock, Arkansas — saw customers enter the restaurant and dine out before heading over to the arcade to play games.

The two noticed they had the same customers at their own respective businesses and had an idea to combine the businesses, so customers could enjoy both in the same location — and it was a hit.

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In December 1982, Corley and Corriveau opened the first Dave & Buster’s in Dallas’ “Restaurant Row.” They successfully ran the company as business partners until they sold it years ago.

The company has more than 140 locations across the U.S.

As for the name of the company, it was decided by a coin toss, according to the company’s history. Corriveau won and his name was put first.

Corriveau died at age 63 in 2015.

Moms’ lack of fiber can boost obesity risk in baby mice

January 4, 2023 Published by Futurity (National Geo)

The offspring of lactating mice missing fiber in their diet may be highly prone to developing obesity, a new study shows.

Those offspring lack microbial diversity in their gut and have low-grade inflammation, the researchers report.

The findings in the journal Cell Host & Microbe could help explain why obesity is increasing, especially in children. However, because the experiment was conducted in mice, the researchers can only speculate how much the results translate to humans.

“As long as young mice were maintained on a standard diet, there was no difference in their weight or other metabolic parameters, regardless of whether or not their mother ate fiber,” says senior author Andrew Gewirtz, professor in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.

“But striking differences occurred when they were exposed to a Western style diet. The mice from the fiber-deprived mothers gained striking amounts of weight. The mice from the mothers who had the fiber diet gained only small amounts of weight on this diet.”

A Western style diet, also known as a fast food diet or obesogenic diet, is high in fat and low in fiber. The standard diet that young mice are raised on is a relatively healthy, mostly plant-based diet with a small amount of animal products.

If these results translate to humans, it could help explain cases in which adolescents have very easy access to fast food diets, but some exhibit large increases in adiposity while others remain fit and lean.

The study also found that if mothers were not consuming fiber, then the offspring didn’t get particular bacteria. If offspring don’t have those bacteria, or unless the bacteria are deliberately administered, the fiber by itself doesn’t provide a health benefit. The fiber is only beneficial if bacteria are there to metabolize it, Gewirtz explains.

The researchers studied the offspring’s fecal matter to determine the bacteria they were missing.

“They’re missing beneficial bacteria that help keep out inflammatory bacteria,” says lead author Jun Zou, a research assistant professor in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences. “The beneficial bacteria do two particular things. They can metabolize the fibers to produce beneficial products such as short-chain fatty acids and exclude bacteria that are pro-inflammatory.”

One limitation of the study was the way the experiments were performed. The mice were kept in cages in a research facility, so they didn’t have other ways of acquiring these beneficial bacteria, unless they were deliberately administered to them. This differs from human experience. Even if a child’s mother didn’t eat fiber, that child might be able to play with other children at daycare and acquire these bacteria.

“That’s one reason that our findings might not apply to humans, but we just don’t know,” Gewirtz says.

Next, the researchers want to understand the mechanism behind why some mice are so prone to gain weight when exposed to obesogenic diets and then develop simple approaches to prevent passing along an unhealthy microbiome. For instance, perhaps a pregnant woman could be given dietary supplements of fiber, probiotics, or a combination of the two.

Additional authors are from the Center for Inflammation, Immunity and Infection at the Institute for Biomedical Sciences. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the National Institutes of Health and American Diabetes Association funded the work.

Source: Georgia State University

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Victoria's Secret brand CEO abruptly resigns

January 4, 2023 Published by CNN

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CNN Business
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Victoria’s Secret brand CEO Amy Hauk has resigned less than a year into the job, the company said Tuesday.

Hauk, who was also CEO of the company’s Pink apparel brand geared to teens, notified the company of her resignation last week, the company said. She will leave Victoria’s Secret in March.

Martin Waters, the CEO of the brand’s parent company, Victoria’s Secret & Co., will take over as CEO of the brand.

Shares of Victoria’s Secret dropped 8% on the news during after-hours trading Tuesday.

Victoria’s Secret has struggled in recent years as some customers rejected its marketing replete with supermodels and “Angels” fashion shows and switched to niche bra brands. As Victoria’s Secret also become embroiled in turmoil over founder Leslie Wexner’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein, its clothing went out of fashion among some longtime buyers.

The company overhauled its advertising, began using a broader range of models and ended its Angels fashion show. The company also bought Adore Me, an upstart rival, for $400 million. That deal closed last week.

But Victoria’s Secret sales have been uneven since the start of the pandemic.

Sales tumbled in 2020 during the peak of Covid-19 but bounced back in 2021. They are projected to fall by up to 7% this year.

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McConnell breaks Senate record for longest serving leader

January 4, 2023 Published by Politico

McConnell’s standing as the longest serving Senate party leader stood in stark contrast to the situation of GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, who on the same day failed to attain the necessary votes to become speaker on a first House ballot. McConnell, meanwhile, achieved his record after beating back his first leadership challenge in November. Ten senators instead voted for Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), following a disappointing midterm performance for the GOP.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a close McConnell adviser, said Tuesday he’s not “surprised at all” about McConnell breaking Mansfield’s record.

“If you’ve read [McConnell’s] book, ‘The Long Game,’ this is something he’s wanted to do his whole life,” Cornyn said.

McConnell also commemorated other Senate leaders, including former Senate Republican Leader Henry Cabot Lodge, former Senate Democratic Leader Robert Byrd and former Senate Democratic Leader Lyndon B. Johnson. Mansfield succeeded Johnson as Senate leader.

McConnell said under Mansfield’s management of the Senate, “proceedings became more orderly and less theatrical.” And he highlighted Mansfield’s interest in Asia, describing him as a “trusted foreign policy hand.”

“Mansfield was a canny strategist who knew how to rally his conference. He knew when to go to battle, and when to coordinate with his counterpart Everett Dirksen,” McConnell said. “In short, he knew how to work the Senate.”

The 80-year-old McConnell, first elected Senate GOP leader in 2006, was majority leader from 2015 to the beginning of 2021. During that period, McConnell drew Democratic ire for blocking former President Barack Obama’s 2016 Supreme Court pick Merrick Garland from Senate consideration, in addition to Obama’s other judicial nominees. Under former President Donald Trump, Senate Republicans proceeded to confirm three Supreme Court justices, shifting the ideological balance of the court, along with 231 district, circuit court and U.S. Court of International Trade judges.

While McConnell worked closely with the Trump White House on judicial nominees and the 2017 GOP tax cuts, his relationship with the former president soured after the 2020 presidential election. After the Jan. 6 attack, McConnell described Trump as “practically and morally responsible,” but declined to convict him during his second impeachment trial. The Kentucky Republican has since avoided talking about the former president directly.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer congratulated McConnell on breaking the record, during his own floor speech.

“We have a lot of work ahead of us, so I hope we can find some ways to come together and not succumb to gridlock,” Schumer said. “For the good of this chamber and for the good of our country.”

McConnell became the longest serving GOP leader in June 2018, beating out former Sen. Robert Dole (R-Kan.). He is also the longest serving senator from Kentucky, first elected in 1984.

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Washington teacher who brought MAGA hat to school trainings protected under First Amendment, court rules

January 4, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth District ruled a former Washington teacher’s decision to bring a “Make America Great Again” hat to a school training was protected speech under the First Amendment.

Court documents showed former Wy’east Middle School science teacher Eric Dodge, an educator of more than 17 years, wore the controversial hat while walking up to an Evergreen Public Schools building to attend a staff-only cultural sensitivity and racial bias training.

Dodge did not wear the hat during the training, but had it set it out where others could see it near his belongings. Some attendees reportedly said they felt “intimidated” and “threatened” by Dodge’s decision to have the hat with him, court documents said.

Wy’east Middle School Principal Caroline Garret reportedly approached him about the hat and told him to use better judgment. Dodge then brought the hat to another training before the 2019-2020 school year.

77-YEAR-OLD VETERAN IN CALIFORNIA ATTACKED FOR WEARING MAGA HAT

In court documents, Dodge said he was “verbally attacked” by Garret and other school employees after bringing the hat again, and that retaliation amounted to a violation of his First Amendment rights.

He then filed a lawsuit against Garrett, the school’s HR officer Janae Gomes and the school district.

On Dec. 29, the appeals panel ruled in favor of Dodge and decided the school district failed to show evidence of a “tangible disruption” to school operations that would outweigh the teacher’s First Amendment rights.

The court noted that since Dodge did not wear the hat around students or in a classroom setting, his decision to wear the hat represented his beliefs alone and could not represent the school system, unlike other court cases.

Dodge’s lawyers also argued that there was “no general prohibition on political speech” when Garrett told Dodge he could not bring his MAGA hat to school, even adding that Garrett allowed a Black Lives Matter poster to hang in the library and sported a Bernie Sanders bumper sticker on her car.

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“That some may not like the political message being conveyed is par for the course and cannot itself be a basis for finding disruption of a kind that outweighs the speaker’s First Amendment rights,” Judge Danielle J. Forrest wrote in the opinion.

The document concluded by saying “concern over the reaction to controversial or disfavored speech itself does not justify restricting such speech.”

In addition to ruling in favor of Dodge’s First Amendment rights against Garrett, the appeals panel found that both the Evergreen Public Schools and Gomes did not take any improper administrative action against him.

According to the Associated Press, Michael McFarland, a lawyer representing the school district and Gomes, said his clients are happy with the ruling.

Dodge resigned from his position in 2020.

As McCarthy falls short on speakership, can anyone govern the House GOP?

January 4, 2023 Published by

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After watching a day of harsh rhetoric, backstage maneuvering and brinkmanship politics, I no longer think the question is why Kevin McCarthy couldn’t round up the 218 votes needed to become House speaker.

The question, and I say this without snark or partisanship, is whether House Republicans can govern at all.

When they took control yesterday, rather than addressing the country’s problems, the GOP presented a portrait of dysfunction, squabbling over personal grievances rather than routinely anointing its leader as the contest went to multiple ballots for the first time in 100 years.

What remained murky is whether the conservative rebels could get to yes no matter what concessions the California congressman offered, including handing his critics a loaded pistol by agreeing that any five members could topple him simply by requesting a no-confidence vote. So deep was their anger at McCarthy, or what he represents, that they were willing to paralyze the House on their opening day – since no other business can be done until there is a speaker. Maybe they want a weak and limping speaker, since that increases their own leverage (and that of every other five-member group with a beef).

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Look, leadership fights are messy and filled with horse-trading. What makes this one especially bizarre is that the distant second-place finisher – Freedom Caucus member Jim Jordan – is a McCarthy supporter who announced his intent to vote for McCarthy.

So how do you beat someone with no one?

The current Republican leader has been privately asking his colleagues, “If not me, who?” Having lost 19 conservative votes on the second ballot, he is now pursuing a wear-’em-down strategy that may be his only remaining option.

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Keep in mind that the last two House Republican leaders also eventually threw up their hands at the intransigence of the party’s right wing. John Boehner gave up the speaker’s job after a series of revolts, and Paul Ryan chose not to seek reelection rather than keep fighting the MAGA faction that was loyal to Donald Trump.

McCarthy’s frustration was clear in widely reported closed-door comments: “I earned this job. We earned this majority, and G—–mit we are going to win it today.”

He told reporters that his conservative critics “are trying to fight for their own personal items instead of fight for the country.”

Let’s say that McCarthy, a backslapping lawmaker who focuses on building relationships, played his cards wrong. He chided Trump right after the Jan. 6 riot, but before long was visiting the former president at Mar-a-Lago, needing him as an ally for the eventual speakership fight.

And yet even though Trump has endorsed McCarthy and made calls on his behalf, that hasn’t moved the needle among the dissidents.

McCarthy has openly courted Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of the chamber’s most flamboyant conservatives, promising to return the committee assignments that Democrats had stripped from her.

Greene said yesterday she hasn’t asked for anything, “but I find out that it’s my Freedom Caucus colleagues and my supposed friends that went and did that, and they asked nothing for me. Nothing. That’s what I found out in there. I’m furious.”

FROM ROMANIAN VIDEOS TO CLAIMS THAT ILLEGAL ALIENS VOTED, GOP LAWMAKERS SWAMPED MARK MEADOWS WITH WILD TEXTS

Another anti-McCarthy voice, Lauren Boebert, emerged from a morning meeting in which she said without shouting that McCarthy’s case was “bull****” and told reporters, “Here we are being sworn at instead of being sworn in.”

McCarthy has also remained silent about George Santos, who won a House seat despite fabricating most of his resume, obviously figuring he needed the newcomer’s vote since he can lose no more than four defectors.

Some pundits thought the GOP whip, Steve Scalise, might emerge as a compromise choice. But Scalise kicked off the third round of voting by nominating McCarthy.

Democrats, who fell into line to unanimously support their minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, were clearly enjoying the other party’s discomfort. But some of the harshest language came from conservatives who are upset with the rebels.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw, on Fox News, called the dissidents “petty” and acting like narcissists who “believe that your opinion is so much more important than everyone else’s and you’ll keep going and you’ll threaten to tear down the team just because of your own sense of self-importance.”

He added: “It makes us look foolish. If I didn’t know any better, it’s like the Democrats paid these people off.”

It would be one thing if two Republican factions were battling over some grand matter of principle, such as a balanced budget or securing the border. But it’s all about personal fiefdoms and demands that seem impenetrable from the outside — and perhaps they just view Kevin as the ultimate swamp creature.

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You could sense a shift in the punditry late in the day, as McCarthy fell one more vote short on the third ballot, even though he had 202 to Jordan’s 20 (and Jordan is backing him). There was chatter that some McCarthy supporters would tell him that as much as they support him, he can’t get to 218 and they need someone who can.

There’s also the optical issue of why McCarthy, with all his built-in advantages, couldn’t wheel and deal his way to co-opting the rebels.

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But what exactly do the dissidents stand for, and do they keep moving the goalposts? Freedom Caucus members have now demanded the ability to set up their own committees, pick their own members and bring their own litigation – things that no speaker would ever accept.

At this point, I have no greater ability to divine where this is going than anyone else. What I do know is that this is a debacle for the Republicans that raises serious questions about who ultimately will be in charge.

European Union countries near deal on response to China's Covid surge

January 4, 2023 Published by Politico

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EU countries are inching toward coordinated travel measures in response to China’s COVID surge, including pre-departure testing, masks on flights and testing wastewater for possible new variants.

The push for a joint response comes only after several EU countries had already introduced their own measures to curb COVID rates from China and surveil for new variants, despite vows to improve collaboration during the first wave of the pandemic.

At a health security meeting Tuesday of national ministers and representatives from the European Commission, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization, officials moved closer to a consensus on pre-departure testing for travelers from China, stepping up wastewater monitoring from flights, and increased domestic surveillance of the virus, tweeted EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides.

The members “converged” on these measures, she said, adding: “Discussion continues tomorrow in [the integrated political crisis response (IPCR) mechanism meeting].”

A Commission spokesperson told POLITICO that the Commission presented a draft opinion on proposed measures to EU capitals, which will now be “revised and adopted” based on their input.

“The overwhelming majority of countries are in favor of pre-departure testing,” the spokesperson said, adding that such tests “would need to be targeted at the most appropriate flights and airports and carried out in a coordinated way to ensure their effectiveness.”

The draft opinion also includes wearing masks on flights from China, personal hygiene for travelers and increased EU vigilance on testing and vaccination. It includes genomic surveillance at airports to detect new variants, such as testing toilet water, as well as increased monitoring and sequencing. The EU’s crisis response body will take all these measures into consideration when it meets Wednesday.

Many countries in Europe introduced wastewater sampling during the pandemic to identify outbreaks of COVID, but also to genetically sequence samples to monitor for new variants.

Belgium was the first country this week to announce it was testing wastewater samples from two flights a week from China and sequencing for variants.

Countries including the U.K. have said there is a lack of comprehensive health information shared by China, making it difficult to know whether new variants are emerging in the country.

Meanwhile, countries including Italy, France and Spain introduced their own testing measures for travelers from China last week, as well as the U.K.

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Family rep: Hamlin’s recovery moving in positive direction

January 4, 2023 Published by JOHN WAWROW

Top News: US & International Top News Stories Today | AP News

Pittsburgh head coach Jeff Capel, right, pauses during a timeout salute to former University of Pittsburgh football player Damar Hamlin, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Virginia in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Football fans held vigils outside of the hospital that is treating Damar Hamlin, and outside of the Buffalo Bills home stadium. Hamlin was listed in critical condition in Cincinnati after he had a cardiac arrest during Monday night’s NFL game. (Jan. 4)

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Damar Hamlin’s recovery is moving in “a positive direction” two days after the Buffalo Bills safety collapsed and went into cardiac arrest during a game against Cincinnati, the player’s marketing representative said Wednesday.

“We all remain optimistic,” Jordon Rooney, a family spokesman who described himself as a good friend of the player, told The Associated Press by phone. He said he was unable to go into further detail on Hamlin’s status at the request of his family not to provide specifics.

On Tuesday, the Bills said Hamlin was listed in critical condition.

Rooney said Hamlin’s family was staying positive and buoyed by the outpouring of worldwide support the Bills player has received since his heart stopped and he was resuscitated on the field before being loaded into an ambulance and transported the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

“They are elated right now,” Rooney said. “Damar is still their first concern. But for them, they always look at how they can turn a somewhat troubling situation into a good one. The bounce back from this, for him and his family is going to be incredible.”

Rooney’s update comes after Hamlin’s uncle, Dorrian Glenn, told numerous media outlets Tuesday night there were some encouraging signs in his nephew’s progress, such as doctors lowering the level of oxygen Hamlin needs from 100% to 50%.

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“He’s still sedated right now,” Glenn told CNN. “They just want him to have a better chance of recovering better. So, they feel that if he’s sedated, his body can heal a lot faster than if he was woke and possibly cause other complications.”

Rooney did want to clarify one thing Glenn said by saying there was a misunderstanding when the uncle said Hamlin had to be resuscitated twice. Rooney said that “isn’t exactly true,” without going into further detail.

The chilling scene of Hamlin’s collapse, which played out in front of a North American television audience on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football,” has put the NFL on hold, with the pivotal game suspended indefinitely. The Kansas Chiefs (13-3) are battling with the Bills (12-3) and Bengals (11-4) for the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

The Bills, who returned to Buffalo early Tuesday, are scheduled to hold team meetings and a walkthrough practice on Wednesday. They are expected to resume practicing on Thursday in advance of their home game against the New England Patriots on Sunday.

Players and fans from across the NFL rallied to Hamlin’s support, with vigils held in Cincinnati and outside the Bills’ home stadium. The shock of what happened also reverberated in Pittsburgh, where the 24-year-old Hamlin grew up and was determined to give back to those in need.

Hamlin was hurt in the first quarter when he was struck squarely in the chest while making what appeared to be routine tackle of Bengals receiver Tee Higgins. Hamlin briefly got up and adjusted his facemask before collapsing backward.

Hamlin is from McKees Rocks, a hardscrabble exurb of Pittsburgh, and was selected by Buffalo in the sixth round of the 2021 draft out of Pitt. He spent his rookie season limited to special teams roles, and took over the starting job in Week 3 in place of veteran Micah Hyde, who remains sidelined by a neck injury.

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A lion roars on Broadway as box office hauls reveal winners

January 4, 2023 Published by MARK KENNEDY

Top News: US & International Top News Stories Today | AP News

Confetti falls at midnight on the Times Square New Year’s celebration, early Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023, in New York. (Photo by Ben Hider/Invision/AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — It was feast or famine at the Broadway box office as 2022 wound down, with eye-popping revenue for popular shows — including a staggering new Broadway record for “The Lion King” — not lifting all strugglers.

Twenty-one of the 33 shows available broke the $1 million mark for the week ending Sunday, and “The Lion King” made history with the biggest haul ever — an astonishing $4,315,264 over nine performances for a 25-year-old show with no stars.

“The Music Man” was close behind with two high-wattage stars in Sutton Foster and Hugh Jackman — $3,971,531 over nine shows — followed by “Wicked” with $3,152,679. The top average ticket price went to “The Music Man” with $285.80, just about a dollar more than “The Lion King.”

All shows bar one — “A Christmas Carol” — saw their numbers grow over the week ending Sunday. However, the usual bump was barely evident for “Topdog/Underdog,” with just $345,567 over eight shows, and “Ohio State Murders” pulling in just $311,893 to a half-empty theater over nine performances despite the presence of six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald. A revival of the Pulitzer Prize-winning dark comedy “Between Riverside and Crazy” starring the rapper Common pulled in just $260,085.

Hub peek embed (apf-entertainment) – Compressed layout (automatic embed)

Box office numbers had been treacherous for new works even before the holidays — early closing notices were posted for shows like “Almost Famous,” “KPOP,” “A Strange Loop” and “Ain’t No Mo’.” The Broadway stalwart “The Phantom of the Opera” previously announced it would close in 2023 after 35 years. That announcement was met with a ticket spike.

The data is a reminder that Broadway has not fully rebounded from the pandemic, which wiped out live theater for 18 months and dried up its lifeblood — tourism.

Tom Kirdahy, a veteran producer behind the current starry revival of “The Piano Lesson” and the upcoming “New York, New York,” said audiences are steadily coming back and could be back to normal by spring.

“It’s very clear that buying patterns are different, but it’s equally clear that audiences are craving good work, and I think the challenge is to remind people that New York is actually a safe place to be and that theaters are safe places to be,” he said.

The 33 shows running on Broadway grossed $51,912,862 last week, the biggest seven-day period since the last week of 2019, when the box office earned $55,765,408. The holiday period is especially rough on performers and crew members who are usually asked to staff extra performances.

While January and February are among the bitterest months on Broadway, many producers were popping champagne after the latest numbers. The 26-year-old revival of the musical “Chicago” earned its biggest weekly total with $1,299,404 and “The Piano Lesson” starring Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington and Danielle Brooks became the highest-grossing August Wilson play on Broadway in history last week.

The Lea Michele-led revival of “Funny Girl” set a new box office record at the August Wilson Theatre with $2,405,901. And the new musical “& Juliet” broke the box office record at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, grossing $1,639,788 for nine performances. “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” broke the house record at the Lyric Theatre, grossing $2,671,191 for its eight-performance week.

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Mark Kennedy is at http://twitter.com/KennedyTwits