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Texas Tech’s appeal to NCAA for Sorsby reinstatement denied

Texas Tech’s appeal to the NCAA to have Brendan Sorsby’s eligibility reinstated has been denied, in a ruling that is separate from the transfer quarterback’s lawsuit against that same governing body.

A person with knowledge of the NCAA’s decision told The Associated Press on Friday night that the NCAA for the second time denied Texas Tech’s petition to restore the quarterback’s eligibility. He was ruled ineligible after he acknowledged gambling on sports, including on his own team while at Indiana.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to the AP because there was no announcement about the appeal decision from either the NCAA or the quarterback’s current school.

That came while the NCAA and Sorsby were still waiting for a ruling from a Texas judge after the quarterback filed a lawsuit May 18 seeking a temporary injunction against the NCAA in hopes of playing this season for the Red Raiders after transferring from Cincinnati.

A two-hour hearing was held Monday in the 99th District Court in Lubbock County, where Texas Tech is located. As of Friday, there still was no decision from Judge Ken Curry.

Texas Tech had said May 26 that it was appealing after the NCAA denied the school’s initial petition to have Sorsby’s eligibility reinstated.

University president Lawrence Schovanec at that time wrote in a letter to the Texas Tech community that the school felt “the NCAA’s ruling should be reversed or modified.”

The school had ruled Sorsby ineligible May 18, the same day he filed his lawsuit. Tech had to do that to be able to pursue a request for his reinstatement that it submitted to the NCAA the following day. That was denied May 22.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Wemby misses at the end, Knicks beat Spurs 105-104 for 2-0 lead in NBA Finals

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Go crazy, New York. Or, perhaps more accurately, crazier.

The red-hot Knicks are going home, two wins away from an NBA championship that the capital of the world has been waiting to see for generations.

Jalen Brunson hit a go-ahead free throw with 9.5 seconds left after a turnover by Victor Wembanyama moments earlier, then Wembanyama missed a jumper at the end of New York’s 105-104 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night for a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals.

“What a ballgame,” Knicks coach Mike Brown marveled.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 20 for the Knicks. They have won 13 straight, the second-longest streak by any team in NBA playoff history.

“New York City showed up,” Towns said. “The fans showed up. The energy showed up. And we found a way to get it done.”

The Knicks are now just the third team to win the first two games of a finals on the road, joining Michael Jordan and the 1993 Chicago Bulls, and Hakeem Olajuwon and the 1995 Houston Rockets.

Both of those teams won championships, the Bulls needing six games to oust the Phoenix Suns, the Rockets going home after winning those first two games in Orlando and sweeping the Magic. The Knicks, seeking their first championship since 1973, are in position to join them.

Wembanyama, after a very quiet first half, scored 29. De’Aaron Fox had 20 for San Antonio.

“We can’t change the past,” Wembanyama said, “We’re already thinking about Game 3.”

The series now shifts to New York. Game 3 is at Madison Square Garden on Monday night.

President Donald Trump — a native New Yorker — plans on attending Monday. And ticket prices on the secondary market, for the worst seats at MSG, were approaching $9,000 apiece on Friday night, with Knicks fans evidently willing to pay tippy-top dollar just to be in the building as the team nears what would be its first championship in 53 years.

The Spurs were down 14 midway through the fourth and came all the way back — scoring the next 14 points to tie the game. Wembanyama’s three-point play with 57 seconds left gave the Spurs their first lead in nearly two full quarters, putting San Antonio up 104-102.

“We showed tremendous desperation, urgency and competitive response,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “Hopefully we can try to bottle that up … and try to play to that same level.”

But the Knicks got the last three, Brunson — the hero of Game 1 for the Knicks — getting them all.

Brunson scored on the next possession, just his seventh basket in 24 shots on the night, and the game was tied. Wembanyama missed a long jumper, OG Anunoby got the rebound for New York with 30 seconds left, the Knicks called time and the stage was set.

The Spurs got a stop, but Wembanyama threw the ball away. Brunson got fouled, the Knicks had the lead back and before long Spurs fans were filing out of the arena — possibly for the final time this season.

The Spurs called time with 7.5 seconds remaining. Fox took the inbound pass, then set up Wembanyama for a jumper that would have won it. The shot bounced off the rim, and it was over.

“We had to get a stop. We hadn’t gotten a stop all quarter,” Towns said.

They got their stop. Next stop: New York, where the hottest team in basketball knows an NBA title is just two wins away.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Corey Seager hits a 2-run homer in his Rangers return, snapping an 0-for-29 skid

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Corey Seager’s first hit in a month for the Texas Rangers was a big one in his return from the injured list.

Seager belted a two-run homer homer in the sixth inning that put the Rangers ahead in a 3-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Friday night. The five-time All-Star shortstop and two-time World Series MVP missed the previous 19 games because of lower back inflammation.

That homer also snapped a career-worst 0-for-29 slump in his 12 big league seasons, since his previous hit May 6.

“It was just nice to get out there with the guys again,” Seager said. “You obviously want to help.”

He went deep off Cleveland rookie Parker Messick right after a double by Wyatt Langford, who was also activated from the IL before the game. Seager’s eighth homer of the season made it 3-2.

“It’s definitely good to have them back,” said Rangers manager Skip Schumaker, who saw good signs early in the game. “Their timing looked right the first at-bat, both of them. … Good news on both ends.”

Langford, the left fielder, had missed 39 games since going on the injured list April 22 because of a right forearm strain. They batted 1-2 in the lineup and their consecutive extra-base hits came in their third at-bats.

Seager, still hitting .181 in his 43 games, went into the series opener in an 0-for-27 slide that included 11 strikeouts. He had been hitless in his previous seven games, also a career worst, since an RBI single on May 6 at Yankee Stadium after he hit a home run earlier in that game.

“I’m excited to see, really for the first time in some time, our group together. Still missing (second baseman) Josh Smith, but beyond that, we have not had our group together in a long time,” Chris Young, the team’s president of baseball operations, said before the game.

“Look at the past week, 10 days, and there have been a lot of positives with the way we’ve played,” Young said. “And now getting Corey and Wyatt back in this lineup, I think will be very big for us. I’m excited to see what that does for everybody.”

The Rangers (31-32) have won six of their last seven games.

“Honestly, in a weird way, it’s an easier way to come back for me and Wyatt when the team’s going (good),” Seager said. “You’ve just got to hop on the train and keep going. So it’s definitely nice to be playing good and just to be able to be back out there.”

Utility man Cody Freeman and outfielder Alejandro Osuna were optioned to Triple-A Round Rock to make room on the roster. Utility player Sam Haggerty was designated for assignment after he was activated from the bereavement/family medial emergency list.

Langford and Seager played in two rehab games together this week at Double-A Frisco. That was after Langford played two games with Round Rock.

Seager hadn’t been in a big league game since May 13. At that point, the 32-year-old shortstop had started 42 of the Rangers’ first 43 games. He said then that physically he felt “completely fine” after playing all of their 24 games in a 27-day span.

The Rangers had a day off after that and planned for Seager to get an extra break by sitting out the series opener at Houston. But he didn’t play at all in that series after waking up one morning with back spasms.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Texas governor wants to speed up work on a fly-breeding factory to fight a cattle parasite

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott expressed concern Friday that a new factory isn’t expected to start breeding sterile New World screwworm flies for more than a year as a big part of the effort to stop its flesh-eating larvae from threatening the $113 U.S. billion cattle industry.

Abbott pledged Texas will help the U.S. Department of Agriculture accelerate construction of the $750 million breeding facility outside Edinburg, Texas, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of the U.S.-Mexico border. He said Texas is willing to spend its own funds to see that construction is “24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Without greater sterile fly production, Abbott said during a news conference in the state capital of Austin, “We cannot make it through a second summer.”

The USDA confirmed an infestation of New World screwworm fly larvae this week in a 3-week-old calf in La Pryor, Texas, about 100 miles (161 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio and 50 miles (80 kilometers) from the Mexico border. It was the first case confirmed in Texas since 1966.

The department on Friday announced a second confirmed case found in a one-month-old calf in Zavala County, Texas, about 5.6 miles (9 kilometers) from the first case.

The new factory in Texas is the larger of two fly-breeding facilities funded by the USDA.

Separately, the USDA invested $21 million in converting a site in southern Mexico from breeding fruit flies to breeding screwworm flies. That factory is expected to start producing flies next month, eventually 100 million a week.

The other factory in Texas will be the size of two Costco stores, said Rear Admiral Michael Schmoyer, a member of the USDA’s screwworm response team. It is expected to produce up to 300 million flies a week.

Officials believe both factories are needed to eradicate the fly from the U.S., Mexico and Central America.

Schmoyer said the federal government has already shortened the planning and construction timeline considerably — drafting plans in a few months rather than taking a year, for example. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the USDA hopes it will be running sooner than its planned November 2027 opening date.

But Abbott said Texas is determined to have construction go even faster.

“This is going to spread over the course of the summer,” he said of the fly.
Infestation hits among record beef prices

An untreated infestation of New World screwworm fly larvae can kill an animal, but there are now a dozen government-approved medications to treat livestock. Federal and state officials have been quick to stress that fly’s larvae — which feed on living material — do not infest meat or fruit.

“There’s a food production issue, but not a food safety issue,” Abbott said.

Derrell Peel, a professor of agribusiness at Oklahoma State University, said the beef supply isn’t likely to be affected unless officials restrict cattle movement more than locally or unless infestations appear in feedlots or other places where cattle are concentrated. He does not expect that to happen.

“It’s probably not a major market issue,” he said.

Consumers are paying record beef prices because of a tight cattle supply, and Peel expects prices to rise even further when ranchers take heifers out of the supply chain to rebuild their herds. But he said the arrival of the screwworm in Texas “doesn’t change the supply fundamentals.”

Screwworm outbreaks in Mexico starting in 2024 prompted U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to close U.S. ports of entry to its cattle in May 2025. Mexican imports were once about 1.2 million animals a year and dropped about 80% last year, according to industry statistics.

But Peel said Mexican imports were only about 3% of the U.S. cattle supply.

“It’s been just one more thing on top of others,” he said, not a major driver of prices.

Breeding sterile flies has eradicated pest before

The New World screwworm fly was an annual, warm-weather scourge of U.S. cattle ranchers from at least the 1930s through the 1960s.

But breeding sterile flies and dropping swarms of them from planes eradicated it from the U.S. by the early 1970s, except for a brief outbreak among deer in the Florida Keys in 2016 and a case confirmed in a Maryland man who traveled to El Salvador last year. Until an outbreak in Panama in 2023, the fly had been considered eradicated outside its remote, southernmost region bordering Colombia.

Females mate once in their monthslong lives, and if they breed with sterile male flies, their eggs won’t hatch after being laid in open wounds and mucous membranes of warm-blooded animals, including cattle, wild mammals, household pets and humans.

Once the U.S. and other nations eradicated the fly years ago, they shut down fly-breeding facilities until there was only one left in the Western Hemisphere, in Panama. It can produce about 117 million flies a week.

However, past eradication efforts needed about 500 million flies a week, said Schmoyer, a member of the USDA’s screwworm response team, during Abbott’s news conference.
With fly drops, officials try to predict future

Schmoyer estimated that the USDA already has dispersed 130 million flies in Texas since January, most of them from planes, and those drops are now about 4 million a week. It also is releasing another 4 million a week in the ground as pupae, which are flies in the stage between larvae and adult.

But, even with those millions of flies, the USDA must be strategic about where to disperse them, Schmoyer told reporters. Federal and state officials are using scientific models to predict how the fly will move.

“In essence, it’s not where the flies are today, but where they could be weeks from now,” he said.

Part of the science involves traps, and Texas State Veterinarian Bud Dinges said they’ve been deployed up to 120 miles (193 kilometers) away from La Pryor to monitor the fly’s movement.

New city attorney hired

CHANDLER, Texas (KETK) – The Chandler City Council voted to hire a new city attorney in a meeting discussing the city’s leadership on Thursday night. During the meeting, city council discussed the conduct of City Administrator Kalon Rollins and Chandler Police Department Chief Johnny Foster. The city’s agenda for Thursday’s meeting included discussion of improper spending, bond issues, social media policy and hiring policy under Rollins and Foster.

The city council members also voted to hire Ronald D. Stutes, 67 of Tyler, as the new Chandler City Attorney during Thursday’s meeting. Stutes is a member of the Fairchild, Price, Haley & Smith law firm and has represented both the City of Palestine and the City of Dallas.

Ultimately, no formal action was taken against either Rollins or Foster at Thursday’s meeting.

Fugitive arrested by US Marshals

PANOLA COUNTY – Charles Seth Alexander, 38 of Timpson, was captured by the US Marshals Joint East Texas Fugitive Taskforce in Nacogdoches County on Friday. Alexander was a wanted fugitive out of Panola County and was the subject of a manhunt on Wednesday before he left the area.

According to the Panola County Sheriff’s Office and our news partner KETK, multiple agencies actively searched the vicinity of County Road 198 and County Road 176. Deputies were assisted by tracking dogs, horses and drones as they work through heavily wooded terrain.

Officials had asked the public to stay clear of the search zone, lock their homes and vehicles and secure outdoor pets until the situation is resolved. Authorities have not yet released additional details about the fugitive or what led to the search.

Administrator resigns citing ‘toxic atmosphere’

CHANDLER, Texas (KETK) – Chandler city administrator Kalon Rollins issued his resignation on Friday, saying it’s in his best interest to remove himself from a “toxic atmosphere” in the city’s government. Rollins’ resignation comes after a Thursday city council meeting where Chandler city council members considered taking action against Rollins and the current Chandler Police Chief Johnny Foster for improper spending, bond issues, social media policy and hiring policies.

“There comes a point when all efforts have failed, a change is required. With much thought and prayer, I have decided it is in my best interest to remove myself from the ongoing toxic atmosphere within the city government,” Rollins said on Friday. “I respect the fact that a newly elected council can bring new ideas and potential changes in city government procedures, and in some cases new ideas from newcomers can often contribute to an increase in a city’s abilities.”

“I believe a few of the current council members have the best intentions in mind to bring positive change to the city, but only time will tell if they have the fortitude to make the needed changes,” Rollins said. “With that being said, however, I do not see a positive path forward under the current circumstances. If a city council does not have trust in their administrative staff or conversely staff in the council, there can be no way to move and grow in a positive direction.” Continue reading Administrator resigns citing ‘toxic atmosphere’

Arrest made in deadly hit and run crash

Texas Department of Public Safety Troopers have arrested an 18-year-old Athens man in connection with a deadly hit-and-run crash that happened in February. Alexis Davila has been charged in the death of Martha Belcher, 73, of Athens.

The wreck happened in the early morning hours on FM 2709, when Belcher was walking along the westbound lane, and was struck and killed by a vehicle. Investigators determined the gray Chevrolet Silverado – driven by Davila – fled the scene. Troopers said Davila did not report the crash. He is charged with failure to stop and render aid involving death, and tampering with physical evidence.

Teen thieves shot by resident

LONGVIEW – Two Longview teenage juveniles were shot on Friday morning as they were committing theft at a Baxley Lane residence.

According to our news partner KETK and the Longview Police Department, officers went out to Baxley Lane near Ron Street at around 3 a.m. on Friday after a shooting was reported. When the officers arrived, they found two juveniles at the scene with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds.

Longview PD said the two teens were “committing theft” when a resident confronted them with a gun and shot them.

Detectives with Longview PD are currently investigating this incident and anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the criminal investigations division at 903-237-1199.

Jake Johnson, Damon Wayans Jr. to star in ‘The Cable Guy’ comedy pilot for Hulu

Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. arrive at the premiere of Twentieth Century Fox's 'Let's Be Cops' at the Cinerama Dome on Aug. 7, 2014, in Los Angeles, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. are reuniting for a brand-new comedy series.

The New Girl co-stars are set to lead a currently untitled comedy pilot for Hulu, ABC Audio has confirmed. The pilot will be inspired by the Jim Carrey movie The Cable Guy. Both Johnson and Wayans will star in and executive produce the project, which is produced by Sony Pictures Television.

"In a world of endless streaming, binging, and algorithms, old-school cable technician Chip Douglas (Johnson) languishes alone — until Steven Stephens (Wayans Jr.) calls to have his cable turned back on, reconnecting Chip with a childhood friend he never forgot," according to the project's logline. "The relationship gives each man something he’s been missing…until Chip’s enthusiasm turns into obsession. Inspired by the movie, the show explores the darkly absurd side of modern-day male friendship."

The pilot episode is written by It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia's Rob Rosell, as well as Cobra Kai's Joe Piarulli and Luan Thomas.

ABC Audio understands that the series won't be a remake of the original film and instead will be inspired by it. Its creators are big fans of the movie and want to honor the film instead of remaking it, akin to what the Fargo TV series did.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Hulu.

‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ actor Anthony Head dies at 72

Anthony Head attends the launch of a new attraction based on the hit BBC One drama series at Warwick Castle on April 13, 2011, in Warwick, Warwickshire. (Tony Woolliscroft/WireImage via Getty Images)

Anthony Head, the British actor known for his roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Ted Lasso, has died, the Associated Press reported Friday. He was 72.

His daughters, Emily Head and Daisy Head, told the Press Association news agency that their father died due to complications from pneumonia.

“Our grief is far greater than the hole he has left behind, but we know his legacy will live on, in the shows he was a part of, and in the audiences that love them,” Emily Head and Daisy Head said in a statement. “How lucky we are to know we are able to watch him doing what he loved, even when he is no longer with us.”

Anthony Head was born in London on Feb. 20, 1954. He was predeceased by his longtime partner, animal welfare activist Sarah Fisher, in 2025.

The actor is known for his role as librarian Rupert Giles, who mentored Sarah Michelle Gellar's titular character in the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series ran from 1997 to 2003.

He is also known for playing Rupert Mannion, the ex-husband of Hannah Waddingham's Rebecca, in the Apple TV comedy series Ted Lasso.

ABC News has reached out to Anthony Head's representatives for confirmation.

Panola County fugitive arrested by US Marshals in Nacogdoches County

UPDATE: Charles Seth Alexander, 38 of Timpson, was captured by the US Marshals Joint East Texas Fugitive Taskforce in Nacogdoches County on Friday. Alexander was a wanted fugitive out of Panola County and was the subject of a manhunt on Wednesday before he left the area.

PANOLA COUNTY (KETK) — Law enforcement agencies are urging residents to avoid the area south of Lake Murvaul as a fugitive search intensifies on Wednesday afternoon.

According to the Panola County Sheriff’s Office, multiple agencies are actively searching in the vicinity of County Road 198 and County Road 176. Deputies are being assisted by tracking dogs, horses and drones as they work through heavily wooded terrain.

Officials are asking the public to stay clear of the search zone, lock their homes and vehicles and secure outdoor pets until the situation is resolved. Authorities have not yet released additional details about the fugitive or what led to the search.

Stocks slump as Big Tech sinks and a strong May jobs report boosts odds for higher interest rates

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks slumped on Wall Street Friday as big technology companies lost ground and a strong jobs report boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will be forced to hike interest rates at some point this year.

The S&P 500 fell 1.6% and is headed for its first losing week in the last 10 and its biggest one-day drop since March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 373 points, or 0.7%, as of 12:11 p.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq composite slumped 2.6%.

Tech stocks dragged the broader market lower as companies that had powered the S&P 500 to a series of records the past two months saw losses. Nvidia fell 4.6% and Broadcom fell 5.9%. Stocks within the S&P 500 were close to evenly split between gainers and losers. But, many of the bigger tech stocks have pricey values that tend to have an outsized influence on the broader market.

Meanwhile, bond yields jumped after a report showed the U.S. added a surprising 172,000 jobs in May, according to the Labor Department. It is the latest report showing that employment remains solid, despite the squeeze inflation is putting on businesses and consumers.

The latest reading on employment comes two weeks before Kevin Warsh heads his first policy meeting as chair of the Fed. Policymakers are widely expected to keep rates steady at the June 16-17 meeting despite pressure from President Donald Trump to lower borrowing costs. Longer-term, the market sees a better than 60% chance the Fed will push rates higher by the end of the year, according to CME FedWatch, and little to no chance of a cut.

“Any hopes of a Fed rate cut have effectively been eliminated with this morning’s strong jobs report,” said Ronald Temple, chief market strategist at Lazard, in a research note.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.54% from 4.50% just before the report was released. The yield on the 2-year Treasury, which more closely tracks the Fed’s actions, jumped to 4.16% from 4.04% just prior to the report.

The Fed has been holding interest rates steady as it tries to gauge the ongoing impact from rising inflation. Prices were already ticking higher from the impact of tariffs. The U.S. war with Iran has essentially blocked crude oil shipments from moving through the Strait of Hormuz.

The price of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 1.6% to $93.50. It was about $70 per barrel before the war. The surge in oil prices prompted a jump in gasoline prices. That has fueled a broader rise in inflation as prices for anything being shipped move higher and threaten to slow economic growth.

A measure of inflation preferred by the Fed showed that prices rose 3.8% overall in April. That marked the biggest increase in two years.

Wall Street has been anticipating that negotiations to end the war will eventually be successful. American and Iranian negotiators reached a tentative deal last week to extend their ceasefire, but the agreement has not been finalized.

The latest round of corporate earnings is coming to a close. Lululemon slumped 9.2% after trimming its revenue and profit forecasts.

Most reports from companies have been surprisingly good and helped Wall Street on its record run. Encouraging profits and forecasts helped overshadow lingering worries about the direction of the economy amid tariffs and high energy costs because of the U.S. war with Iran.

With earnings now in the background, analysts have been warning that the tech companies benefitting from interest in artificial intelligence may have become too expensive. That could result in a slowdown for a market that has surged in 2026, with the S&P 500 up more than 9% for the year.

Markets were mixed in Europe after markets in Asia fell.

‘Power’ spin-off starring Michael Rainey Jr. and Joseph Sikora in the works

Joseph Sikora (L) and Michael Rainey Jr. attend the Ghost Season 2 Premiere on November 17, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for STARZ)

There’s another Power series in the works, with Joseph Sikora and Michael Rainey Jr. set to lead the cast. The two actors will reprise their roles as Tommy Egan and Tariq St. Patrick in Power: Legacy.

Power: Legacy picks up after the events of the Power Book IV: Force season finale, when Tariq arrives in Chicago to help save Tommy and asks him to return to New York to assist with his own business ventures. Although Tommy is initially reluctant to leave behind the empire he built in the Windy City, he ultimately decides to do so. According to the official logline, “Power: Legacy follows Tommy's return to New York, where he teams up with Tariq as the two aim to take the city by storm.”

“Power never dies, and this chapter is our biggest yet,” said 50 Cent, who serves as an executive producer. “Fans have been waiting to see Tariq and Tommy together, and now they’re taking over New York City. Bringing Joseph and Michael back together is special; they’ve turned these characters into true icons of the Power universe.”

Michael and Joseph were first introduced in the original Power before going on to headline their respective spinoffs, Power Book II: Ghost and Power Book IV: Force.

Other spinoffs in the franchise include Power Book III: Raising Kanan, which premieres its fifth and final season on June 12. Power: Origins, another upcoming series, will continue the story of the franchise's early years and is currently filming in New York City.