When faced with the task of painting a giant mural at Seattle’s Museum of Flight, artist Esmeralda Vasquez found it was best not to do it alone. More than 160 volunteers helped out, as reported in this story by VOA’s Natasha Mozgovaya.
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Robbie Robertson, The Band’s lead guitarist and songwriter who in such classics as “The Weight” and “Up on Cripple Creek” mined American music and folklore and helped reshape contemporary rock, died Wednesday at 80.
Robertson died in Los Angeles, surrounded by family, “after a long illness,” publicist Ray Costa said in a statement.
From their years as Bob Dylan’s masterful backing group to their own stardom as embodiments of old-fashioned community and virtuosity, The Band profoundly influenced popular music in the 1960s and ’70s, first by literally amplifying Dylan’s polarizing transition from folk artist to rock star and then by absorbing some of Dylan’s own influences as they fashioned a new sound immersed in the American past.
The Canadian-born Robertson was a high school dropout and one-man melting pot — part-Jewish, part-Mohawk and Cayuga — who fell in love with the seemingly limitless sounds and byways of his adopted country and wrote out of a sense of amazement and discovery at a time when the Vietnam War had alienated millions of young Americans.
The Band started out as supporting players for rockabilly star Ronnie Hawkins in the early 1960s and through their years together in bars and juke joints forged a depth and versatility that made them able to take on virtually any kind of music.
Stellar start
Besides Robertson, the group featured drummer-singer Levon Helm, bassist-singer-songwriter Rick Danko, keyboardist singer-songwriter Richard Manuel and all-around musical wizard Garth Hudson. They were originally called the Hawks but ended up as The Band — a conceit their fans would say they earned — because people would point to them when they were with Dylan and refer to them as “the band.”
They remain defined by their first two albums, “Music from Big Pink” and “The Band,” both released in the late 1960s.
The rock scene was turning away from the psychedelic extravagances of the Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and a wave of sound effects, long jams and strange lyrics.
“Music from Big Pink,” named for the old house near Woodstock, New York, where Band members lived and gathered, was for many the sound of coming home. The mood was intimate, the lyrics alternately playful, cryptic and yearning, drawn from blues, gospel, folk and country music. The Band itself seemed to stand for selflessness and a shared and vital history, with all five members making distinctive contributions and appearing in publicity photos in plain, dark clothes.
Through the “Basement Tapes” made with Dylan in 1967 and through the group’s own albums, The Band has been widely credited as a founding source for Americana or roots music. Fans and peers would speak of their lives being changed.
Eric Clapton broke up with his British supergroup Cream and journeyed to Woodstock in hopes he could join The Band, which influenced albums ranging from The Grateful Dead’s “Workingman’s Dead” to Elton John’s “Tumbleweed Connection.” The Band’s songs were covered by Joan Baez, the Staple Singers and many others.
Like Dylan, Robertson was a self-taught musicologist and storyteller who absorbed everything American from the novels of William Faulkner to the scorching blues of Howlin’ Wolf to the gospel harmonies of the Swan Silvertones.
At times his songs sounded not just created but unearthed. In “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” he imagined the Civil War through the eyes of a defeated Confederate. In “The Weight,” with its lead vocals passed around among group members like a communal wine glass, he evoked a pilgrim’s arrival to a town where nothing seems impossible.
At Woodstock
The Band played at the 1969 Woodstock festival, not far from where they lived, and became newsworthy enough to appear on the cover of Time magazine. But the spirit behind their best work was already dissolving. Albums such as “Stage Fright” and “Cahoots” were disappointing even for Robertson, who would acknowledge that he was struggling to find fresh ideas. While Manuel and Danko were both frequent contributors to songs during their “Basement Tapes” days, by the time of “Cahoots,” released in 1971, Robertson was the dominant writer.
They toured frequently, recording the acclaimed live album “Rock of Ages” at Madison Square Garden and joining Dylan for 1974 shows that led to another highly praised concert release, “Before the Flood.”
But in 1976, after Manuel broke his neck in a boating accident, Robertson decided he needed a break from the road and organized rock’s ultimate sendoff, an all-star gathering at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom that included Dylan, Van Morrison, Neil Young, Muddy Waters and many others. The concert was filmed by Martin Scorsese and was the basis for his celebrated documentary “The Last Waltz,” released in 1978.
Robertson had intended The Band to continue recording together but “The Last Waltz” helped permanently sever his friendship with Helm, whom he had once looked to as an older brother. Helm accused Robertson of greed and outsized ego, noting that Robertson had ended up owning their musical catalog and calling “The Last Waltz” a vanity project designed to glorify Robertson. In response, Robertson contended that he had taken control of the group because the others — excepting Hudson — were too burdened by drug and alcohol problems to make decisions on their own.
“It hit me hard that in a band like ours, if we weren’t operating on all cylinders, it threw the whole machine off course,” Robertson wrote in his memoir Testimony, published in 2016.
Solo career, soundtracks
The Band regrouped without Robertson in the early 1980s, and Robertson went on to a long career as a solo artist and soundtrack composer. His self-titled 1987 album was certified gold and featured the hit single “Show Down at Big Sky” and the ballad “Fallen Angel,” a tribute to Manuel, who was found dead in 1986 in what was ruled a suicide (Danko died of heart failure in 1999 and Helm of cancer in 2012).
Robertson, who moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s while the others stayed near Woodstock, remained close to Scorsese and helped oversee the soundtracks for “The Color of Money,” “The King of Comedy,” “The Departed” and “The Irishman” and the upcoming “Killers of the Flower Moon.” He also produced the Neil Diamond album “Beautiful Noise” and explored his heritage through such albums as “Music for the Native Americans” and “Contact from the Underworld of Redboy.”
Robertson married the Canadian journalist Dominique Bourgeois in 1967. They had three children before divorcing. His other survivors include his second wife, Janet Zuccarini, and five grandchildren.
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Sixto Rodriguez, who lived in obscurity in the U.S. only to find musical success in South Africa and a stardom he was unaware of, died Tuesday in Detroit. He was 81.
Rodriguez’s music career flamed out early in the U.S., but it took off after the singer and songwriter became the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man.
His death was announced on the Sugarman.org website and confirmed Wednesday by his granddaughter, Amanda Kennedy.
He died following a short illness, according to his wife, Konny Rodriguez, 72.
A 2013 Associated Press story referred to Rodriguez as “the greatest protest singer and songwriter that most people never heard of.”
His albums flopped in the United States in the 1970s, but — unknown to him — he later became a star in South Africa where his songs protesting the Vietnam War, racial inequality, abuse of women and social mores inspired white liberals horrified by the country’s brutal racial segregation system of apartheid.
Swedish filmmaker Malik Bendjelloul’s documentary Searching for Sugar Man presented Rodriguez to a much larger audience. The film tells of two South Africans’ mission to seek out the fate of their musical hero. It won the Academy Award for best documentary in 2013.
Rodriguez was “more popular than Elvis” in South Africa, Stephen “Sugar” Segerman said in 2013. The Cape Town record store owner’s nickname comes from the Rodriguez song Sugar Man.
As his popularity in South Africa grew, Rodriguez lived in Detroit. But his fans in South Africa believed he also was famous in the United States. They heard various stories that the musician had died dramatically.
In 1996, Segerman and journalist Carl Bartholomew-Strydom set out to learn the truth. Their efforts led them to Detroit, where they found Rodriguez working on construction sites.
“It’s rock-and-roll history now. Who would-a thought?” Rodriguez told The Associated Press a decade ago.
Rodriguez said he just “went back to work” after his music career fizzled, raising a family that includes three daughters and launching several unsuccessful campaigns for public office. He made a living through manual labor in Detroit.
Still, he never stopped playing his music.
“I felt I was ready for the world, but the world wasn’t ready for me,” Rodriguez said. “I feel we all have a mission — we have obligations. Those turns on the journey, different twists — life is not linear.”
Konny Rodriguez said the couple met in 1972 while both were students at Wayne State University in Detroit and married in the early 1980s. Although still married at the time of his death, the couple had been separated for a number of years, she said Wednesday while looking through some of Sixto Rodriguez’s memorabilia.
“He loved college. He was born to be taught, to teach himself,” Konny Rodriguez said. “The music was more to bring people together. He would play anywhere, anytime. That’s where I noticed him. He was walking down Cass Avenue with a guitar and a black bag. He was a really eccentric guy.”
The two albums she said he recorded in 1969 and 1971 “didn’t do well.”
“I’m sure that was still in his head,” Konny Rodriguez added. “Then in 1979, I picked up the phone and it was a guy with an Australian accent who said Rodriguez ‘must come to Australia because he’s very famous here.'”
She said they toured Australia in 1979 and 1981 and later learned about the impact of his music in South Africa.
“Apartheid was going on,” she said. “Frank Sinatra had a full-page ad, ‘Do not go to South Africa.’ We didn’t.”
After the end of apartheid, Sixto Rodriguez did travel to South Africa and perform in front of his fans there, she said.
“He did so well in South Africa. It was insane,” Konny Rodriguez said.
Sixto Rodriguez later pursued royalties he did not receive from his music being used and played in South Africa.
Some of Rodriguez songs were banned by the apartheid regime, and many bootlegged copies were made on tapes and later CDs.
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Modernist structures designed by African Americans targeted for preservation
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Watching news of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, U.S. comic book editor Scott Dunbier felt compelled to help. He reached out to comic book professionals to create “Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds” to raise funds to provide emergency supplies and services to Ukrainians. Genia Dulot has this report.
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Throngs of fans lined the streets of Sinead O’Connor’s former hometown in Ireland to bid farewell to the gifted singer as her funeral procession passed by Tuesday following a private memorial service.
A vintage VW camper van with rooftop speakers blasting Bob Marley’s song “Natural Mystic” led a hearse at walking pace through a thick crowd of admirers along the waterfront in Bray. O’Connor said she loved Marley’s music.
Devotees of O’Connor’s singing and those touched by her sometimes-troubled life tossed roses and other flowers on the hearse.
A group that had been waiting for well over an hour outside O’Connor’s former home, singing her songs at times, began to clap as four police officers on motorcycles leading the cortege approached and the procession came to a halt.
They snapped photos through the windows of the hearse where her coffin was dwarfed by a pile of blue hydrangeas and pink roses.
Ruth O’Shea, who had come to the coastal town of Bray south of Dublin with her two daughters, became teary as she spoke of O’Connor’s significance, saying she had “meant the world” to her.
“She was so rebellious and empowering and inspiring, and my mother hated me listening to her music,” O’Shea said. “She was just brilliant. Brilliant — I loved her, and then the kids, I suppose by osmosis because I played her when they were both growing up, they’d go, ‘Oh God, mom’s listening to Sinead O’Connor, she’s obviously had a rough day.’ She just gave me hope. And I just loved her, I loved her.”
O’Connor, 56, was found unresponsive at her London home on July 26. Police have not shared a cause of death, though they said her death was not suspicious.
O’Connor’s family had invited the public to pay their respects during the funeral procession.
“Sinead loved living in Bray and the people in it,” her family said in a statement. “With this procession, her family would like to acknowledge the outpouring of love for her from the people of Wicklow (county) and beyond, since she left … to go to another place.”
Fans tucked handwritten notes and flowers behind a chain wrapped around a granite post at the entrance to her former home, thanking her for sharing her voice and her music. One sign listed causes that the singer had expressed support for, including welcoming refugees.
“Thanks for your short special life,” one note read. “Gone too soon.”
O’Connor, a multi-octave mezzo soprano of extraordinary emotional range who was recognizable by her shaved head, began her career singing on the streets of Dublin and soon rose to international fame.
She became a sensation in 1990 with her cover of Prince’s ballad “Nothing Compares 2 U,” which topped charts from Europe to Australia.
She was a critic of the Roman Catholic Church well before allegations of sexual abuse were widely reported. She made headlines in October 1992 when she tore up a photo of Pope John Paul II while appearing on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” and denounced the church as the enemy.
She was public about her struggles with mental illness. When her teenage son Shane died by suicide last year, O’Connor tweeted there was “no point living without him” and she was soon hospitalized. Her final tweet, sent July 17, read “For all mothers of Suicided children,” and linked to a Tibetan compassion mantra.
Since her death, celebrities have paid tribute to her, and ordinary people have shared acts of kindness she performed.
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William Friedkin, the Oscar-winning director who became a top filmmaker in his 30s with the gripping “The French Connection” and the horrifying “The Exorcist” and struggled in the following decades to match his early success has died. He was 87.
Friedkin, who won the best director Oscar for “The French Connection,” died Monday in Los Angeles, Marcia Franklin, his executive assistant for 24 years, told The Associated Press on behalf of his family and wife, former studio head Sherry Lansing.
“The French Connection,” based on a true story, deals with the efforts of maverick New York City police Detective James “Popeye” Doyle to track down Frenchman Fernando Rey, mastermind of a large drug pipeline funneling heroin into the United States. It contains one of the most thrilling chase scenes ever filmed.
Doyle, played by Gene Hackman in an Oscar-winning performance, barely misses making the arrest on a subway train, then hurries to his police car to follow the train as it emerges on an elevated railway. He races underneath, dodging cars, trucks and pedestrians, including a woman pushing a baby buggy, before abandoning the pursuit.
The movie also won Academy Awards for best picture, screenplay and film editing and led critics to hail Friedkin, then just 32, as a leading member of a new generation of filmmakers.
He followed with an even bigger blockbuster, “The Exorcist,” based on William Peter Blatty’s best-selling novel about a 12-year-old girl possessed by the devil.
The harrowing scenes of the girl’s possession and a splendid cast, including Linda Blair as the girl, Ellen Burstyn as her mother and Max Von Sydow and Jason Miller as the priests who try to exorcise the devil from her, helped make the film a box-office sensation.
It received 10 Oscar nominations, including one for Friedkin as director, and won two, for Blatty’s script and for sound.
With that second success, Friedkin would go on to direct movies and TV shows well into the 21st century. But he would never again come close to matching the success of those early works.
Other film credits included “To Live and Die in L.A.,” “Cruising,” “Rules of Engagement” and a TV remake of the classic play and Sidney Lumet movie “12 Angry Men.” Friedkin also directed episodes for such TV shows as “The Twilight Zone,” “Rebel Highway” and “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”
Born in Chicago on August 29, 1939, he began working in local TV productions as a teenager. By age 16 he was directing live shows.
“My main influence was dramatic radio when I was a kid,” he said in a 2001 interview. “I remember listening to it in the dark, everything was left to the imagination. It was just sound. I think of the sounds first and then the images.”
He moved from live shows to documentaries, making “The People Versus Paul Crump,” in 1962. It was the story of a prison inmate who rehabilitates himself on Death Row after being sentenced for the murder of a guard during a botched robbery at a Chicago food plant.
Producer David Wolper was so impressed with it that he brought Friedkin to Hollywood to direct network TV shows.
After working on such shows as “The Bold Ones,” “The Alfred Hitchcock Hour” and the documentary “The Thin Blue Line,” Friedkin landed his first film, 1967’s “Good Times.” It was a lighthearted musical romp headlined by the pop duo Sonny and Cher.
He followed that with “The Night They Raided Minsky’s,” about backstage life at a burlesque theater, and “The Birthday Party,” from a Harold Pinter play. He then gained critical attention with 1970’s “The Boys in the Band,” a landmark film about gay men.
Friedkin had three brief marriages in the 1970s and ’80s, to French actress Jeanne Moreau; British actress Lesley-Anne Down, with whom he had a son; and longtime Los Angeles TV news anchor Kelly Lange. In 1991 he married Paramount studio executive Lansing.
In recent years, Friedkin was often called on to reflect on his career around the 50th anniversaries of his classics and was always candid. He also wrote a memoir, The Friedkin Connection, which came out in 2012. And he wasn’t done working: A new film, “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial,” starring Kiefer Sutherland, is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival next month.
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K-pop star Suga, songwriter and rapper for the boy band supergroup BTS, has begun the enlistment process for mandatory military service, the band’s label said on Monday, making him the third band member to go off to perform the military duty.
“We would like to inform our fans that SUGA has initiated the military enlistment process by applying for the termination of his enlistment postponement,” Big Hit Music said in a statement.
All able-bodied South Korean men ages 18-28 must serve in the military for about two years.
Under a 2019 revision of the law, globally recognized K-pop stars were allowed to put off their service until the age of 30. Parliament is now debating a new amendment that would allow K-pop stars to do just three weeks of military training.
In April, J-Hope, another member of Grammy-nominated BTS, began his mandatory military service, following Jin, the oldest, who joined the military in December.
“We ask you for your continued love and support for SUGA until he completes his military service and safely returns,” the label said.
Suga went on his first solo world tour earlier this year, running his YouTube talk show.
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Greta Gerwig should be feeling closer to fine these days. In just three weeks in theaters, “Barbie” is set to sail past $1 billion in global ticket sales, breaking a record for female directors that was previously held by Patty Jenkins, who helmed “Wonder Woman.”
“Barbie,” which Gerwig directed and co-wrote, added another $53 million from 4,178 North American locations this weekend according to studio estimates on Sunday. The Margot Robbie-led and produced film has been comfortably seated in first place for three weeks and it’s hardly finished yet. Warner Bros. said the film will cross $1 billion before the end of the day.
In modern box office history, just 53 movies have made over $1 billion, not accounting for inflation, and “Barbie” is now the biggest to be directed by one woman, supplanting “Wonder Woman’s” $821.8 million global total. Three movies that were co-directed by women are still ahead of “Barbie,” including “Frozen” ($1.3 billion) and “Frozen 2” ($1.45 billion) both co-directed by Jennifer Lee and “Captain Marvel” ($1.1 billion), co-directed by Anna Boden. But, “Barbie” has passed “Captain Marvel” domestically with $459.4 million (versus $426.8 million), thereby claiming the North American record for live-action movies directed by women.
New competition came this weekend in the form of the animated, PG-rated “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” and the Jason Statham shark sequel, “Meg 2: The Trench,” both of which were neck-in-neck with Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” also in its third weekend, for the second-place spot.
“Meg 2” managed to sneak ahead and land in second place. It overcame its abysmal reviews to score a $30 million opening weekend from 3,503 locations. The Warner Bros. release, directed by Ben Wheatley, currently has a 29% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes and a B- CinemaScore from audiences. The thriller was released in 3D, which accounted for 22% of its first weekend business.
Third place went to “Oppenheimer,” which added $28.7 million from 3,612 locations in North America, bringing its domestic total to $228.6 million. In just three weeks, the J. Robert Oppenheimer biopic starring Cillian Murphy has become the highest grossing R-rated film of the year (ahead of “John Wick Chapter 4”) and the sixth-biggest of the year overall, surpassing “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
“Oppenheimer” also celebrated a landmark, crossing $500 million globally in three weeks. Its worldwide tally is currently $552.9 million, which puts it ahead of “Dunkirk,” which clocked out with $527 million in 2017, and has become Nolan’s fifth-biggest movie ever. It’s also now among the four top grossing biographies ever (company includes “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “The Passion of the Christ” and “American Sniper”) and the biggest World War II movie of all time.
Paramount’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” was close behind in fourth place with an estimated $28 million from 3,858 theaters in North America. Since opening on Wednesday, the film, which is riding on excellent reviews (96% on Rotten Tomatoes) and audience scores, has earned $43.1 million.
“This is one of those movies that is a multigenerational joy,” said Chris Aronson, Paramount’s president of domestic distribution. “I think the enduring popularity of ‘Turtles’ is showing its true colors. And there hasn’t been an animated film in eight weeks and there won’t be another for eight weeks which is great for us.”
“Turtles” cost $70 million to produce and features a starry voice cast that includes Jackie Chan, Ice Cube, Paul Rudd, Ayo Edebiri and Seth Rogen, who produced and co-wrote the film, which leans into the “teenage” aspect of the turtles.
“Barbie,” “Oppenheimer” and even the surprise, anti-trafficking hit “Sound of Freedom” (now at $163.5 million and ahead of “Mission: Impossible 7”) have helped fuel a boom at the box office, bringing in many millions more than was expected and helping to offset pains caused by some summer disappointments.
“After ‘The Flash,’ ‘Indiana Jones’ and, to a certain extent, ‘Mission: Impossible,’ people were saying the summer was a disappointment. But it’s not over yet,” said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. “We’re going to have a summer that is going to go out on a high note.”
But the moment of triumph for the industry will likely be short lived if the studios can’t reach an agreement with striking actors and writers soon. The fall release calendar has already gotten slimmer, with some studios pushing films into 2024 instead of trying to promote them without movie stars.
Sony had planned to release its PlayStation-inspired true story “Gran Turismo” in theaters nationwide next Friday, but will now be rolling it out slowly for two weeks before going wide on Aug. 25. The thinking? If movie stars can’t promote the film, maybe audiences can.
“We have to be realistic,” Dergarabedian said. “We’re on this emotional high of movies doing so well, but we have to temper our enthusiasm and optimism with the fact that the strike is creating a lot of uncertainty. The longer it goes on the more profound the issues become. But the audience has spoken and they love going to the movie theater.”
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
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“Barbie,” $53 million.
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“Meg 2: The Trench,” $30 million.
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“Oppenheimer,” $28.7 million.
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“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” $28 million.
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“Haunted Mansion,” $9 million.
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“Sound of Freedom,” $7 million.
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“Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part I,” $6.5 million.
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“Talk to Me,” $6.3 million.
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“Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani,” $1.5 million.
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“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $1.5 million.
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Netherlands advanced to the quarterfinals of the Women’s World Cup on Sunday with a 2-0 win over South Africa.
Jill Roord and Lineth Beerensteyn scored in each half at the Sydney Football Stadium to secure the 2019 runners-up a place in the last eight.
But South Africa, one of the surprise teams of the tournament, gave the Dutch a scare, forcing goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar into a string of saves to keep Thembi Kgatlana at bay.
Netherlands lost to the U.S. team in the World Cup final four years ago and look like contenders again after finishing above the Americans in Group E.
South Africa had already exceeded expectations by advancing to the knockout stage for the first time after its dramatic 3-2 win over Italy in its final group game.
Roord scored in the ninth minute with a header from close range.
Kgatlana had a series of chances as South Africa searched for an equalizer before the break.
Netherlands regained control in the second half and scored its second in the 68th after an error from keeper Kaylin Swart.
Beerensteyn’s weak shot should have been easily caught by Swart, but she allowed it to squirm out of her control and over the line.
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Aitana Bonmati scored twice as Spain routed Switzerland 5-1 on Saturday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Women’s World Cup for the first time.
Spain responded emphatically to its 4-0 loss against Japan in its group-stage finale in a blowout against the Swiss in Auckland.
Alba Redondo, Laia Codina and Jennifer Hermoso also scored in the win at Eden Park. Codina showed plenty of relief to score from close range after conceding an own goal in the first half.
Spain coach Jorge Vilda made some big calls after his team was routed by Japan. Two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexis Putellas was left on the bench and goalkeeper Cata Coll was picked for her full international debut. They were among five changes to his starting lineup, which paid off as his team produced a dominant performance.
Switzerland was one of only three teams that didn’t concede a goal in the group stages but was 4-1 down by halftime.
Bonmati scored her first in the fifth minute after Switzerland goalkeeper Gaelle Thalmann had pushed Alba Redondo’s effort against the post. The Swiss couldn’t clear the ball and Bonmati collected it, turned sharply in the box and fired low into the corner.
Switzerland was gifted an equalizer in the 11th through Codina’s own goal. The defender picked up the ball just inside her own half, but without looking, turned and swept an overhit backpass beyond Coll, who was advanced out of her goal.
Spain was back in front in the 17th as Redondo headed a bouncing ball low into the corner. It was her third goal of the tournament.
Spain continued to look for more goals and Bonmati scored her second in the 36th when showing quick footwork to make space in the box before placing a shot into the corner.
It was 4-1 in the 45th as Codina made amends for her earlier error by bundling the ball over the line from a corner.
Meriame Terchoun, one of three half time substitutes for Switzerland, forced a save from Coll from close range after the break. It was her team’s only effort on target all match.
Switzerland all-time leading scorer Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic had just one shot on goal in group play and didn’t fire a shot against Spain.
Hermoso swept in a fifth for Spain in the 70th to score her third of the tournament.
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A crowd of thousands that packed Manhattan’s Union Square for a popular livestreamer’s hyped giveaway got out of hand Friday afternoon, with some clambering on vehicles, hurling chairs and throwing punches, leaving police struggling to rein in the chaos.
Aerial TV news footage showed a surging, tightly packed crowd running through the streets, scaling structures in the park and snarling traffic. Shouting teenagers swung objects at car windows, threw paint cans and set off fire extinguishers. Some people climbed on a moving vehicle, falling off as it sped away. Others pounded on or climbed atop city buses.
By 5:30 p.m., police officers in growing numbers had regained control of much of the area, but small skirmishes were still breaking out, with young people knocking over barricades and throwing bottles and even a flowerpot at officers. Police were seen wrestling people to the ground and chasing them down the street.
Police planned to charge the streamer, Kai Cenat, with inciting a riot, NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said Friday evening. Officers arrested 65 people, including 30 juveniles.
A number of people were injured, including some police. Details and numbers were not yet available.
“People were suffering out here,” Maddrey said, adding that he saw people bleeding and having asthma and panic attacks. Some motorists were trapped as people climbed on top of their cars. Maddrey said several police vehicles were damaged, including his.
On his Instagram feed, Cenat had an image promoting a giveaway at 4 p.m. in the park. People started lining up as early as 1:30 p.m. By 3 p.m., the crowd had swelled and was getting unruly. Some young people leaving the park said they had come expecting to get a computer for livestreaming or a new PlayStation.
Skylark Jones, 19, and a friend came to see Cenat and try to get something from his giveaway, which they said was promoted as a chance for things like gaming consoles or a gaming chair.
When they arrived, the scene was already packed. Bottles were being thrown. There was a commotion even before Cenat appeared, they said.
“It was a movie,” Jones said. Police “came with riot shields, charging at people.”
Cenat, 21, is a video creator with 6.5 million followers on the platform Twitch, where he regularly livestreams. He also boasts 4 million subscribers on YouTube, where he posts daily life and comedy vlogs ranging from Fake Hibachi Chef Prank! to his most recent video, I Rented Us Girlfriends In Japan!
His 299 YouTube videos have amassed more than 276 million views among them. In December he was crowned streamer of the year at the 12th annual Streamy Awards. Messages sent to his publicist, management company and an email address for business inquiries were not immediately returned.
Livestreaming on Twitch from a vehicle as the event gathered steam, Cenat displayed gift cards he planned to give away. Noting the crowd and police presence, he urged, “Everybody who’s out there, make sure y’all safe. … We’re not gonna do nothin’ until it’s safe.”
Eventually he and an entourage got out of the vehicle and hustled through an excited crowd, crossed a street and went into the park, where Cenat was at the center of a cheering, shoving mob.
Maddrey said Cenat at some point in the afternoon was removed “for his safety” and that police were in contact with him. Videos posted on social media and taken from news helicopters showed Cenat being lifted over a fence and out of the crowd and then placed in a police vehicle.
The police chief also said a city bus filled with people who were arrested came under attack, and more police had to be sent to protect it. Numerous people were seen in hand restraints, sitting on the sidewalks, and multiple young men were taken away in handcuffs.
“We have encountered things like this before but never to this level of dangerousness,” Maddrey said.
Businesses adjoining the square closed their doors. Carina Treile, manager of Petite Optique, an eyeglass shop nearby, sheltered inside while police dispersed the crowd.
“Usually with people giving away free stuff, it’s never like this. It’s very organized,” she said. “And here we have a very chaotic scene.”
Loud bangs at one point frightened some in the crowd.
“That was a little bit scary, especially when people started running,” Treile said.
Police, some with batons, used metal barricades to push the crowd back and loudspeakers to repeatedly declare the gathering unlawful.
“Listen, we’re not against young people having a good time, we’re not against young people gathering,” Maddrey said. “But it can’t be to this level where it’s dangerous. A lot of people got hurt today.”
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A film taking place during Russia’s war on Ukraine was recently screened before the U.S. Congress. It tells the story of two Ukrainian teens who were forcibly transferred to a Russian-occupied territory. Andriy Borys has this report, narrated by Anna Rice. VOA footage by Viacheslav Filiushkin
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The group stages of the women’s soccer World Cup in Australia and New Zealand have ended with the unexpected elimination of Germany, Brazil and the current Olympic champions, Canada. Starting Saturday, the tournament moves into its knockout phase where three African nations hope to advance. Organizers say more than 1.7 million tickets have been sold for the event, so far.
The knockout round begins Saturday.
What started as 64 matches featuring 32 teams now stands at eight matches played by 16 teams.
The tournament started with group play: eight groups of four teams each. The top two teams in each group advance to the round-of-sixteen, or knockout round.
On Sunday, the world’s top-ranked side, the United States, will face Sweden. The U.S. is attempting to win the tournament for a third consecutive time.
The world’s second-ranked nation and two-time winners of the Women’s World Cup, Germany, was eliminated when Morocco beat Colombia in Perth. The Germans, who could only draw with South Korea, were left with fewer points than the North Africans.
Canada and Brazil, ranked seventh and eighth respectively, are also out of the tournament.
Morocco, Nigeria and South Africa have all progressed to the knockout round, where they are expected to face tough matches against France, England and the Netherlands respectively.
Francis Awaritefe, chair of Professional Footballers Australia, which represents the country’s elite players, said he is not surprised African nations have played well.
“They have always been very strong,” he said. “I think Nigeria has always performed very strongly. But I think in recent times there has been a lot of investment in football in a country like Morocco where they have invested a lot of money specifically into coaching and infrastructure and resources for women’s football, and we can see that result in the performances of the team, the Moroccan national team in terms of the way it has performed. South Africa has also been reasonably strong as well, but it is good to see them now actually producing those results on the field.”
Co-host New Zealand has been eliminated, but Australia has reached the next round where it plays Denmark at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney on Monday.
Awaritefe said fans in both host nations are embracing the Women’s World Cup.
“Look, I think it has gone beyond our expectations not just in terms of the performances on the field, which has been absolutely wonderful,” he said. “The standard has just gone up another notch or two in this tournament. But, also, in terms of the crowds and the way that Australians have really embraced the Football World Cup. It has been absolutely phenomenal and also in New Zealand as well. Japan, England and Australia for me are the strongest sides right now and they are the ones I can see going very, very deep into the tournament.”
As the knockout phase begins, soccer fans around the world are anticipating more drama in the days to come. The final will be played in Sydney on Aug. 20.
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The Somali government has suspended its head of athletics after a sprinter finished more than 10 seconds behind the winner in the 100-meter dash at the 2023 World University Games in Chengdu, China.
Youth and Sports Minister Mohamed Barre Mohamud told VOA Somali that Khadijo Aden Dahir had been suspended pending an investigation.
He alleged that the runner, Nasro Abukar Ali, had been selected to represent Somali schools because of nepotism rather than her performance.
On Tuesday, Ali ran the 100-meter-dash in 21.81 seconds, compared with the winning time of 11:58 seconds.
“When we investigated how she went there, she went there through [an] inappropriate process which was not transparent and not in line with the rules,” Mohamud said.
“We can confirm that she was taken there through corruption.”
Mohamud said Dahir and Ali are related.
VOA Somali has reached out to Dahir, but she has not responded to repeated calls and requests for comment.
Politicians and Somali observers have taken to social media, describing the matter as a “national embarrassment.”
“So Embarrassing for the young lady who cannot run. … This is a national tragedy,” wrote Ali Said Faqi, a Somali federal lawmaker, on X, the site formerly known as Twitter.
A civil society leader in the diaspora, Zahra Shirwa, was kinder to Ali.
“The only ‘tragedy’ here is that this young woman is turned to a national punching bag,” she wrote. “She was clearly not ready for the competition but, tragedy?
Last week, Ali was seen off from the Mogadishu airport by Somali officials and the Chinese ambassador to Somalia, Fei Shengchao, according to a post on X by Somali National Television.
The Ministry of Youth said the government would investigate the matter and submit conclusions to the justice department.
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The use of artificial intelligence has become a focal point in the Hollywood strikes. Studios say they have offered fair protections and compensation where the new technology is used, but actors and writers have reservations. Genia Dulot has this report.
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For thousands of years, canoes were the primary means of travel for the Native Americans known as the Coast Salish peoples. Tribal Canoe Journey, an event celebrating indigenous tribes of the West Coast, is back after a pandemic hiatus. Natasha Mozgovaya has more. Camera: Natasha Mozgovaya.
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Paul Reubens, the actor and comedian whose character Pee-wee Herman became a cultural phenomenon through films and TV shows, has died.
Reubens died Sunday night after a six-year struggle with cancer that he did not make public, his publicist said in a statement.
“Please accept my apology for not going public with what I’ve been facing the last six years,” Reubens said in a statement released with the announcement of his death. “I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you.”
The character with his too-tight gray suit, white chunky loafers and red bow tie was best known for the film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” and the TV series “Pee-wee’s Playhouse.”
Herman created Pee-wee when he was part of the Los Angeles improv group The Groundlings in the late 1970s. The live “Pee-wee Herman Show” debuted at a Los Angeles theater in 1981 and was a success with both kids during matinees and adults at a midnight show. HBO would air the show as a special.
Reubens took Pee-wee to the big screen in 1985’s “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” The film, in which Pee-wee’s cherished bike is stolen, was said to be loosely based on Vittorio De Sica’s Italian neo-realist classic, “The Bicycle Thief.” The film, directed by Tim Burton and co-written by Phil Hartman of “Saturday Night Live,” sent Pee-wee on a nationwide escapade. The movie was a success, grossing $40 million, and continued to spawn a cult following for its oddball whimsy.
A sequel followed three years later in the less well-received “Big Top Pee-wee,” in which Pee-wee seeks to join a circus. Reubens’ character wouldn’t get another movie starring role until 2016’s Pee-wee’s Big Holiday,” for Netflix. Judd Apatow produced Pee-wee’s big-screen revival.
His television series, “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” ran for five seasons, earned 22 Emmys and attracted not only children but adults to Saturday-morning TV.
Both silly and subversive and championing nonconformity, the Pee-wee universe was a trippy place, populated by things such as a talking armchair and a friendly pterodactyl. The host, who is fond of secret words and loves fruit salad so much he once married it, is prone to lines like, “I know you are, but what am I?” and “Why don’t you take a picture; it’ll last longer?” The act was a hit because it worked on multiple levels, even though Reubens insists that wasn’t the plan.
“It’s for kids,” Reubens told The Associated Press in 2010. “People have tried to get me for years to go, ‘It wasn’t really for kids, right?’ Even the original show was for kids. I always censored myself to have it be kid-friendly.
“The whole thing has been just a gut feeling from the beginning,” Reubens told the AP. “That’s all it ever is and I think always ever be. Much as people want me to dissect it and explain it, I can’t. One, I don’t know, and two, I don’t want to know, and three, I feel like I’ll hex myself if I know.”
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A week later, the “Barbenheimer” boom has not abated.
Seven days after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” conspired to set box office records, the two films held unusually strongly in theaters. “Barbie” took in a massive $93 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. “Oppenheimer” stayed in second with a robust $46.2 million. Sales for the two movies dipped 43% and 44%, respectably — well shy of the usual week-two drops.
“Barbenheimer” has proven to be not a one-weekend phenomenon but an ongoing box-office bonanza. The two movies combined have already surpassed $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore, call it “a touchstone moment for movies, moviegoers and movie theaters.”
“Having two movies from rival studios linked in this way and both boosting each other’s fortunes — both box-office wise and it terms of their profile — I don’t know if there’s a comp for this in the annals of box-office history,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s really no comparison for this.”
Following its year-best $162 million opening, the pink-infused pop sensation of “Barbie” saw remarkably sustained business through the week and into the weekend. The film outpaced Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” to have the best first 11 days in theaters of any Warner Bros. release ever.
“Barbie” has rapidly accumulated $351.4 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, a rate that will soon make it the biggest box-office hit of the summer. Every day it’s played, “Barbie” has made at least $20 million.
And the “Barbie” effect isn’t just in North America. The film made $122.2 million internationally over the weekend. Its global tally has reached $775 million. It’s the kind of business that astounds even veteran studio executives.
“That’s a crazy number,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. “There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.”
Amid the frenzy, “Barbie” is already attracting a lot of repeat moviegoers. Goldstein estimates that 12% of sales are people going back with friends or family to see it again.
For a movie industry that has be trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing — and that now finds itself largely shuttered due to actors and screenwriters strikes — the sensations of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have showed what’s possible when everything lines up just right.
“Post-pandemic, there’s no ceiling and there’s no floor,” said Goldstein. “The movies that miss, really miss big time and the movies that work really work big time.”
Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” meanwhile, is performing more like a superhero movie than a three-hour film about scientists talking.
Nolan’s drama starring Cillian Murphy as atomic bomb physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer has accrued $174.1 million domestically thus far. With an additional $72.4 million in international cinemas, “Oppenheimer” has already surpassed $400 million globally.
Showings in IMAX have typically been sold out. “Oppenheimer” has made $80 million worldwide on IMAX. The large-format exhibitor said Sunday that it will extend the film’s run through Aug. 13.
The week’s top new release, Walt Disney Co.’s “Haunted Mansion,” an adaptation of the Disney theme park attraction, was easily overshadowed by the “Barbenheimer” blitz. The film, which cost about $150 million, debuted with $24 million domestically and $9 million in overseas sales. “Haunted Mansion,” directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) and starring an ensemble of LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson, struggled to overcome mediocre reviews.
“Talk to Me,” the A24 supernatural horror film, fared better. It debuted with $10 million. The film, directed by Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou and starring Sophie Wilde, was a midnight premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and received terrific reviews from critics (95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). It was made for a modest $4.5 million.
While theaters being flush with moviegoers has been a huge boon to the film industry, it’s been tougher sledding for Tom Cruise, the so-called savior of the movies last summer with “Top Gun: Maverick.” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which debuted the week before the arrival of “Barbenheimer,” grossed $10.7 million in its third weekend. The film starring Cruise and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, has grossed $139.2 million domestically and $309.3 million oveseas.
Instead, the sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom” has been the best performing non-“Barbenheimer” release in theaters. The Angel Studios’ release, which is counting crowdfunding pay-it-forward sales in its box office totals, made $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its haul thus far to nearly $150 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
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“Barbie,” $93 million.
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“Opppenheimer,” $46.2 million.
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“Haunted Mansion,” $24.2 million.
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“Sound of Freedom,” $12.4 million.
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“Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One,” $10.7 million.
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“Talk to Me,” $10 million.
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“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $4 million.
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“Elemental,” $3.4 million.
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“Insidious: The Red Door,” $3.2 million.
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“Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,” $1.6 million.
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ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA — Morocco made history in multiple ways during its 1-0 victory over South Korea in the Women’s World Cup on Sunday.
Defender Nouhaila Benzina became the first player to wear a Hijab in a World Cup game at the senior level, and her teammate Ibtissam Jraïdi scored the Atlas Lionesses’ first World Cup goal. The Moroccans scored in the 6th minute and were able to make it stand up for the remainder of the match.
After a lopsided 6-0 loss against Germany, the victory keeps No. 72-ranked Morocco in contention to advance to the knockout stage of the tournament.
Key moments
Morocco scored its first ever World Cup goal in the sixth minute when Ibtissam Jraïdi met a cross from Hanane Aït El Haj with a glancing header toward the far post.
South Korea had the majority of the possession but was unable to translate the advantage into many scoring opportunities. Its best chance at equalizing came in the 87th minute when 16-year-old New Jersey resident Casey Phair pushed a shot just wide of the post. Phair, the youngest player to appear at a World Cup, went on as a late substitute.
Why it matters
After dropping its opening match 6-0 to Germany, Morocco’s victory temporarily moves it level with Germany and Colombia on three points ahead of the matchup later Sunday between those teams in Sydney. Morocco becomes the first Arab Nation ever to win a game at a Women’s World Cup and remains in contention to advance to the round of 16.
South Korea is all but eliminated from the tournament after its second loss of the tournament.
What’s next
Morocco will take on Colombia on the final day of the group stage Thursday in Perth in a match that may decide which of the two teams advances to the round of 16. South Korea will play Germany in Brisbane. The two matches will kick off simultaneously.
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TEHRAN, Iran — Millions of Shiite Muslims in Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and around the world on Friday commemorated Ashoura, a remembrance of the 7th-century martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Hussein, that gave birth to their faith.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban cut mobile phone services in key cities holding commemorations for fear of militants targeting Shiites, whom Sunni extremists consider heretics. Security forces in neighboring Pakistan also stood on high alert as the commemorations there have seen attacks in the past.
Not all Shiites, however, were to mark the day on Friday. Iraq, Lebanon and Syria planned their remembrances for Saturday, which will see a major suburb of Beirut shut down and the faithful descend on the Iraqi city of Karbala, where Hussein is entombed in a gold-domed shrine.
Shiites represent over 10% of the world’s 1.8 billion Muslims and view Hussein as the rightful successor to the Prophet Muhammad. Hussein’s death in battle at the hands of Sunnis at Karbala, south of Baghdad, ingrained a deep rift in Islam and continues to this day to play a key role in shaping Shiite identity.
More than 1,340 years after Hussein’s martyrdom, Baghdad, Tehran, Islamabad and other major capitals in the Middle East were adorned with symbols of Shiite piety and repentance: red flags for Hussein’s blood, symbolic black funeral tents and black dress for mourning, processions of men and boys expressing fervor in the ritual of chest-beating and self-flagellation with chains.
In Iran, where the theocratic government views itself as the protector of Shiites worldwide, the story of Hussein’s martyrdom takes on political connotations amid its tensions with the West over its advancing nuclear program.
Iranian state television aired images of commemorations across the Islamic Republic, tying the event to criticisms of the West, Israel and the U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in 2020. Anchor Wesam Bahrani on Iran’s state-run English-language broadcaster Press TV referred to America as the “biggest opponent of Islam” and criticized Muslim countries allied with the U.S.
In the suburb of Sayida Zeinab near Syria’s capital, Damascus, security forces guarded checkpoints after a bomb hidden in a motorcycle exploded Thursday, killing at least six people and wounding dozens more. On Tuesday, another bomb in a motorcycle wounded two people. The suburb is home to a shrine to Zeinab, the daughter of the first Shiite imam, Ali, and granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad.
On Friday, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the recent attacks in a statement, claiming that Thursday’s attack killed about 10 and wounded about 40 others “during their annual polytheistic rituals.” The group’s extreme interpretation of Islam holds Shiite Muslims to be apostates.
Iraq will see the main observance of the Ashoura on Saturday in Karbala, where hundreds of thousands are expected and many will rush toward the shrine to symbolize their desire to answer Hussein’s last cries for help in battle. Convoys of the faithful arrived throughout the day Friday.
In Pakistan, authorities stepped up security as an Interior Ministry alert warned that “terrorists” could target Ashoura processions in major cities. Security was tight in the capital, Islamabad, where police were deployed at a key Shiite place of worship.
“The Imam’s lesson is … hold on to patience,” said Anam Batool, a mourner who took part in a commemoration in Islamabad. “After that, resist falsehood, stand with the truth. Where you must raise your voice against oppression, raise your voice there.”
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Sophia Braun and Romina Nunez scored goals in a five-minute span late in the second half, rallying Argentina to a 2-2 draw with South Africa in the Women’s World Cup on Friday (local time).
Linda Motlhalo put South Africa in front in the 30th minute, and Thembi Kgatlana doubled the lead in the 66th minute before Australia rallied.
In the 74th minute, Braun fired a right-footed shot from 20 yards out and found the top right corner.
Argentina’s Yamila Rodrigues delivered a cross from the top of the box on the right side in the 79th minute, and Nunez ran onto the ball and headed it in from near the penalty spot to tie the score.
The result still leaves the teams tied for third place in Group G, both with one point at 0-1-1. The other two teams in the group, Sweden and Italy, both 1-0-0 with three points, will meet Saturday in Wellington, New Zealand.
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Portugal’s Telma Encarnacao scored one goal and set up the other in a 2-0 win over fellow Women’s World Cup debutants Vietnam, sending the Southeast Asian side out of the tournament at Waikato Stadium on Thursday.
Portugal is third in Group E with three points and will face the U.S. in their final group game in Auckland while Vietnam, yet to score or pick up a point, take on the Netherlands in Dunedin. Both matches will be played Tuesday.
The U.S. are level on four points with the Netherlands but top the table on goal difference after the teams drew 1-1 earlier Thursday.
Portugal coach Francisco Neto made seven changes to the team that lost 1-0 to the Netherlands in their Group E opener and the decision paid off as first-half goals from Encarnacao and Francisca Nazareth earned them a first ever World Cup win.
Neto will be thrilled with Thursday’s accomplished performance as Portugal dazzled under the floodlights — a stark contrast to their struggling first display — although the scoreline did not reflect their dominance.
Encarnacao swept Portugal in front after seven minutes with a smart first-time finish from Lucia Alves’ cross before turning provider for Nazareth, who fired the ball past goalkeeper Tran Thi Kim Thanh in the 21st minute.
Only 11 places separate the two teams in the world rankings, with Portugal sitting higher at 21, but the contest was one-sided and the Europeans were firmly on top throughout with five attempts on target in the first half alone.
They could not add more gloss to the result, however, as Kim Thanh, who helped restrict holders the United States to three goals in Vietnam’s opening defeat, was once again key in ensuring they did not concede more than two.
However, despite Kim Thanh’s efforts, Vietnam struggled to create chances and managed only one shot on target in the match when Nguyen Thi Bich Thuy drew a save from Patricia Morais just before the break.
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WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND — Lindsey Horan, angry over being knocked down minutes earlier by Danielle Van de Donk, scored a revenge goal minutes later in the second half Thursday to help the United States squeeze out a 1-1 draw with the Netherlands at the Women’s World Cup.
The Dutch struck first with a goal from Jill Roord in the first half to surprise the Americans, who remained unbeaten in 19 consecutive matches with Horan’s second-half score.
Horan’s goal on a header off a corner kick in the 62nd minute followed several minutes of jawing between the two teams: Horan was angry after she was knocked off her feet and even cursed in the direction of Van de Donk — her teammate for club team Lyon.
The Americans tried to calm Horan, who responded with her 29th international goal, fourth in the World Cup, and second consecutive in this tournament.
Before the ball even crossed the goal line, Horan’s expression showed she knew she was on target.
With the draw, neither team secured a spot in the knockout round yet with one group match remaining. Both the Americans and the Dutch sit atop the Group E standings with a win and a draw, but the U.S. has the edge for the lead with more goals.
The game was a rematch of the 2019 Women’s World Cup final, a 2-0 win for the Americans in a game played in Lyon, France. It was the Americans’ second straight trophy in the tournament, and fourth overall.
Roord’s strike from atop the box went through Horan’s legs to put the Dutch ahead in the 17th minute.
Dominique Janssen had a good chance from distance in the 29th minute, but U.S. goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher jumped for it and the ball skirted above the crossbar and into the netting.
Horan’s header off a cross in the 36th minute went wide left as the pace became more frenzied with halftime looming.
Rose Lavelle, who was hampered by a knee injury in the run-up to the World Cup, was subbed in for the United States at the half. Lavelle scored one of the goals in the World Cup final four years ago, replaced Savannah DeMelo.
The Netherlands went into halftime with that single goal lead. It was just the sixth time the United States had trailed at the half in 52 World Cup matches, and first time since trailing Sweden at the break in the opening round in 2011.
Skies were sunny but temperatures were in around 12 degrees Celsius in New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington, and there was a stiff breeze for the match. The crowd was announced at 27,312.
The Americans, vying for a record third consecutive World Cup title, defeated Vietnam 3-0 in their tournament opener. Sophia Smith scored a pair of goals and Horan added the other.
U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski used the same lineup for the Dutch that he used against Vietnam. He’s turned to Julie Ertz, normally a midfielder, to play at center back in the absence of veteran Becky Sauerbrunn, who injured her foot and was not able to play in the World Cup.
The Dutch were without forward Lineth Beerensteyn, who was hurt early in her team’s 1-0 victory over Portugal to open the tournament. Katja Snoeijs replaced her in the starting lineup against the United States.
The Dutch was also missing leading scorer Vivianne Miedema, who ruptured her ACL while playing for Arsenal in December. She has 95 career goals for the Dutch.
The United States was undefeated in all but one of its meetings with the Dutch — the first game in 1991.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with the team at their hotel on the eve of the match and was at the game. Blinken was in Wellington for a formal bilateral meeting with New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs Nanaia Mahuta, and he will also meet with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins.
The top finisher in Group opens the knockout round in Sydney against the second-place finisher in Group G, which includes Sweden, South Africa, Italy and Argentina.
The second-place finisher heads to Melbourne against the top Group G team.
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