Chevy Chase is leaving NBC's sitcom 'Community'

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NBC series "Community" will finish the season without Chevy Chase.Sony Pictures Television said Wednesday that the actor is leaving the sitcom by mutual agreement with producers.His immediate departure means he won't be included in the last episode or two of the show's 13-episode season, which is still in production.Chase had a rocky tenure playing a bored and wealthy man who...

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Study finds mammograms lead to unneeded treatment

Mammograms have done surprisingly little to catch deadly breast cancers before they spread, a big U.S. study finds. At the same time, more than a million women have been treated for cancers that never would have threatened their lives, researchers estimate.Up to one-third of breast cancers, or 50,000 to 70,000 cases a year, don't need treatment, the study suggests.It's the most detailed look yet at...

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Hamas-Israel cease-fire takes hold but mistrust runs deep

CAIRO/GAZA (Reuters) - A ceasefire between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers took hold on Thursday after eight days of conflict, although deep mistrust on both sides cast doubt on how long the Egyptian-sponsored deal can last. Even after the ceasefire came into force late on Wednesday, a dozen rockets from the Gaza Strip landed in Israel, all in open areas, a police spokesman said. In Gaza,...

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Deaths of 5 runaways prompt soul search in China

BEIJING (AP) — On the day China unveiled its new leadership in Beijing with promises of a better life for all, five runaway boys seeking shelter and warmth died in a garbage bin in the south.The boys were all brothers or cousins aged 9 to 13. Surnamed Tao, they were the sons of three brothers — two of whom are migrant workers with jobs far from home — and most of them lived largely unsupervised in...

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Elmo left behind on 'Sesame Street' as actor exits

NEW YORK (AP) — Even on "Sesame Street," where everything is famously A-OK, problems can arise for its residents.And that includes the Muppets. Cookie Monster grapples with an eating disorder. Oscar the Grouch gets cranky. Mr. Snuffleupagus gets the blues.But Elmo seemed immune to any of that. Since enjoying his breakout success more than two decades ago, the 3 1/2-year-old red monster has radiated...

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OB/GYNs back over-the-counter birth control pills

WASHINGTON (AP) — No prescription or doctor's exam needed: The nation's largest group of obstetricians and gynecologists says birth control pills should be sold over the counter, like condoms.Tuesday's surprise opinion from these gatekeepers of contraception could boost longtime efforts by women's advocates to make the pill more accessible.But no one expects the pill to be sold without a prescription...

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Gaza shakes, Israelis killed as Clinton seeks truce

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli air strikes shook the Gaza Strip and Palestinian rockets struck across the border as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton held talks in Jerusalem in the early hours of Wednesday, seeking a truce that can hold back Israel's ground troops. Egypt's new Islamist government is mediating talks and had floated hopes for a ceasefire by late Tuesday between...

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Obama sends Clinton to Mideast amid Gaza crisis

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — President Barack Obama dispatched Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to the Middle East on Tuesday as the U.S. urgently seeks to contain the bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas.Clinton hastily departed for the region from Cambodia, where she had joined Obama for summit meetings with Asian leaders. The White House said she would make three stops, meeting with...

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HTC “happy” with Apple settlement, slams media estimates

TOKYO (Reuters) – Taiwan’s HTC Corp is happy with its patent settlement with Apple Inc, but regards media reports on details of the licensing agreement as “outrageous”, chief executive Peter Chou told reporters on Tuesday.HTC and Apple announced a global patent settlement and a 10-year licensing agreement this month after a bruising patent war between...

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Fight over 'Modern Family' star returns to court

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge is scheduled to wade into the messy family dynamics of teen actress Ariel Winter and determine whether the "Modern Family" star should stay away from her mother, who has been described in court filings as physically and emotionally abusive.At a hearing Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Michael Levanas will consider whether the 14-year-old should continue living with her sister,...

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