CHARLESTON, Utah ( ) – Slow and steady, 25-year-old Jake Harvath rode his trusty white mare, Bella, down Highway 189 toward Charleston, Utah, with his other two mustangs, Denver and Eddy, in tow. Drivers roared by in the comfort of their modern modes of transport, but the trio clip-clopped along unphased, not even by the loudest semitrailers. They were on their last leg of what’s been a 14-month, 6,000-mile journey across the country. Just three more miles along a highway was nothing compared to what they’d already overcome. They dipped down side streets and neighborhoods wherever they could along their route to avoid the busy highway, but got help from a police escort along Main Street in Heber City, where traffic was most hectic for three horses and one cowboy. After passing through 25 states — from Utah to the coastline in New Jersey and back — braving busy roads, navigating remote backcountry trails, trudging through blizzards, even taking a harrowing swim across the Delaware River, and at times knocking on doors to ask for safe places to sleep and eat, Jake and his horses’ ride was almost at an end. Jake coined the journey the “Year of the Mustang.” His mission? Raise awareness of the power and plight of the wild horse. How grazing, population growth and development pressures have made life increasingly difficult for these animals, even though they’re idolized as a patriotic symbol for their role in helping settle the West. Jake Harvath rides through Heber City on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, just a few miles from completing a 6,000-mile, 14-month ride around the U.S. | (Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Traffic, as it turns out, would be among the biggest challenges Jake said he confronted along his ride, and it was representative of the entire issue he wanted to highlight — how wild horses “feel constricted and out of place in a human world.” That’s fitting, given the automobile has replaced the horse as a practical use in today’s reality. “That’s the struggle of wild horses, isn’t it?” he told Utah News Dispatch in an interview reflecting on his journey. But by proving their mettle with a modern-day cross-country ride, Jake hoped to inspire others to consider adopting a Bureau of Land Management mustang as one of the many needed solutions to the complex wild horse crisis. Last year, the BLM spent nearly $159 million on efforts to manage wild horse and burro populations across the U.S. — and yet, at more than 73,000 as of March of this year, their numbers continue to be triple what the federal government has deemed as sustainable. To show the country how valuable mustangs are as both companions and work horses even in today’s modern world, Jake rode his steeds all the way to the Atlantic Ocean and back. He hoped to prove they’re just as capable and trustworthy as any other breed — and that they make especially tough trail horses because their survival depends on it in the wild. Police provide an escort as Jake Harvath rides through Heber City, Utah, on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, just a few miles from completing a 6,000-mile, 14-month ride around the U.S. |(Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) All three of Jake’s mustangs were adopted from the BLM — Bella and Denver from Nevada, and Eddy from New Mexico. Their ages and training levels varied, though, at the start of their journey. Bella, now 18, was the oldest and most experienced. She helped teach Jake when he first started learning how to be a horseman at the age of 14, and they formed a tight bond, leading her previous owner to eventually gift Bella to Jake. Eddy, 13, was previously trained but he was the newest to Jake’s herd, so the two were still learning to trust each other as their ride began. And Denver, now 7, was the youngest and a rookie. Even in the days leading up to their trip, Denver still had a lot to learn about being a pack horse, and Jake was still training him. Now, though, after 6,000 miles, they’re all experts. As they drew closer to her home barn, Sage Creek Equestrian Center in Charleston, Bella’s ears perked up and she began sniffing the air. Her pace quickened. From atop her back, Jake noticed her anticipation build. “She smells home,” he said. Jake Harvath hugs his father, Daniel, as he arrives at Sage Creek Equestrian in Charleston on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, completing a 6,000-mile, 14-month ride around the U.S. | (Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) While doling out more hugs, Jake and his dad led his three horses to Sage Creek’s indoor arena, where Jake waited for the crowd to quiet down before giving a heartfelt speech, thanking them for their support and sharing his gratitude. “I’m shaking,” he said. “I can’t believe it. It doesn’t feel real.” Jake said it’s been a “remarkable experience, being able to help loads of people start the adoption process to adopt their first wild horses. And also just to be some people’s first experience with horses.” Alongside to his goal to raise awareness of the wild horse crisis, Jake also set out to possibly break a record for the longest continuous horse pack trip done in the U.S. within a year’s time. Although he had originally aimed to trek 7,000 miles — with a route that crossed through California before heading back to Utah — Jake changed his plans when he realized it would be difficult to make it back to Utah before winter fully descended in the West. It took him a little over a year, but he still rode 6,000 miles. And based on what he’s been able to research, Jake believes he has indeed set a record for the longest continuous ride in the U.S. within a year. From Sept. 25, 2023, to Sept. 25, 2024, he said he rode 4,570 miles. The most comparable documented horse ride Jake has been able to find was one completed by Lucian Spataro in 1989. In 150 days, Spataro rode 3,000 miles coast to coast, from Los Angeles to Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, according to his website. He crossed through 15 states — the most ever done at the time with the same horses. Jake said he plans to submit an application to The Long Riders Guild, as well as one to Guinness World Records to set an official record. It remains to be seen if they’ll accept it. But to Jake, while the record would be a cherry on top, it wasn’t the point. The horses were. “These horses have suffered, bled, worked, and sweat to no end to get us here to the end, through storms, rivers, over hundreds and hundreds of mountains,” Jake told his supporters. “They’ve proven their worth again and again. I owe my very life to them.” Gus Warr, wild horse and burro manager for the BLM’s Utah office, came to Jake’s homecoming celebration. After Jake’s speech, Warr stood next to him in the indoor arena, thanking him for his work to “bring exposure” to the wild horse crisis while proving mustangs have a “long list” of capabilities, including “endurance, adaptability, stamina, love and partnership.” “The mustang is another horse. It’s another member of people’s family that can do anything a domestic horse can do,” Warr said. He told Jake, “You’ve proven to the world that, you know what, they’re there for everybody.” Warr told Utah News Dispatch that Jake was the best “ambassador” for the BLM’s wild horse and burro adoption program the government could ask for, at no taxpayer expense. “We have animals we need to find homes for,” Warr said. “And he’s been a banner for that.” As of the BLM’s last monthly report issued in September, nearly 63,000 horses were in “off range” holding facilities, cared for in either corrals or pastures. The BLM is tasked with the “management and protection” of both wild horses and the health of public lands. Despite efforts to reduce overpopulation — including round ups and fertility control treatments — wild horse and burro populations remain about three times what federal range managers believe is an appropriate balance with rangeland resources, at about 27,000. Since 2013, herd sizes have more than doubled, though in 2020 populations dipped slightly, according to the BLM. Some wild horse activists advocate against round ups, saying they can be cruel and mustangs have been made scapegoats for rangeland damage most often caused by taxpayer-subsidized cattle grazing. The BLM says it doesn’t remove wild horses to simply make room for cattle grazing on public lands — but rather it does so to “ensure rangeland health” in accordance with land-use plans and to carry out the BLM’s mission to manage public land for multiple uses while also protecting the land’s resources. Still, it’s an expensive problem. Of the $158 million the BLM spent last year alone, $109 million was to care for the animals in off-range holding facilities. While fertility treatments are also expensive and difficult to administer, the agency relies on rehoming horses to save taxpayer money and reduce herd sizes. In 2023, the BLM reported it placed about 8,000 animals into new homes (the second-highest placement rate in more than 20 years), which it estimated saved taxpayers about $181 million. Jake said he sees adoption as not the only solution, but an important one to the wild horse crisis. “The BLM will of course need to apply multifaceted means to controlling wild horse populations if they want to get to stable numbers that the land can sustain, and that means applying perhaps more effective and more supportive means of contraception in mares,” Jake said, as well as “finding more off-range pasture contracts so that more horses in holding facilities can just be retired to a better living situation and they can live more like wild horses do but not competing with other species.” Along with adoption and other methods, Jake said “that will be what it takes to overcome” the issue. Though he acknowledged adoption isn’t the best solution for a majority of horses, he said it’s how more Americans can be part of the solution. While mustangs may be perceived as dangerous or uncontrollable, he wants to encourage existing and perhaps future horse owners against disregarding them in favor of other breeds. “That’s something I think the horse world needs to acknowledge,” Jake said. “That there are qualities these horses have that are absolutely very desirable for many horsemen, and for that reason they should be counted as something worthwhile for horse owners.” Adoption, Warr agreed, is a “huge part of solving the problem,” because the BLM can “only do so much fertility control.” “They’re wild animals. We literally cannot inoculate, capture, vaccinate all the animals we need to,” he said. “It’s overwhelming. So we’re going to continue to do gathers, which means we’re going to have excess animals we’re going to need to find homes for.” Jake’s efforts have indeed directly raised interest in the BLM’s adoption program, Warr said, adding that he’s been contacted by dozens of people “from all over the country” asking about it after they saw Jake on social media, in the news or in person. Jake’s journey also made dozens of local headlines throughout the year. “Him bringing exposure to it is going to help find homes for probably thousands of animals,” Warr said. Police provide an escort as Jake Harvath rides through Heber City on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024, just a few miles from completing a 6,000-mile, 14-month ride around the U.S. | (Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) To those who argue wild horses should just be left alone on rangelands and their populations will naturally regulate, Warr said the BLM would be neglecting its government mandate to maintain public lands for multiple uses while balancing rangeland health. Additionally, he said overpopulation could lead horses to starve, suffer and die. For both of those reasons, he said, “We can’t turn our back on them.” Adoption, though, has its own challenges. Americans, too, are facing increased cost-of-living pressures — and of course not everyone can afford to own a horse. They’re a luxury item, and it’s a lifestyle that’s becoming increasingly out of reach. Over his 30 years with the program, Warr said it’s become more difficult to adopt out animals. “It’s definitely part of the equation,” Warr said. “People aren’t using equines like they used to, and it’s getting to be a challenge.” That’s why Jake’s efforts to inspire, he said, may be more important than ever. A little over a year ago when he first embarked on his trip, Jake’s face was clean shaven. For his return, he sported a grizzly beard and a weather-worn face. “He came back a mountain man,” one of his supporters remarked with a laugh at his welcome home party. His horses changed, too. When they first embarked on their trip last year, the youngest, Denver, was still learning the ins and outs of packing. And Eddy, while he was a more experienced trail horse, was still getting to know and trust Jake. Now they’ve both got 6,000 miles of experience in the backcountry through all types of terrain — desert, mountains, snow, rivers, and busy city streets. Jake estimated he’d ride about four to six days a week with week-long breaks in Arkansas and New Jersey. He said they averaged about 20 miles a day for the entire trip, though some days were shorter or longer. Remarkably, Denver and Eddy completed the entire ride, switching between carrying Jake and his belongings, and Jake said he never used a trailer to move his horses forward for any portion of their journey. Bella, however, at 18 years old, worried Jake several months into their ride when he saw she was losing weight. Not wanting to risk her health, Jake arranged a trailer in Arkansas to take her back home to Sage Creek Equestrian Center so she could rest. She returned in March and quickly recovered, Jake said. But hoping to finish out the ride with Bella — the seasoned trail horse that helped teach Jake when he was first learning to be a horseman — one of his friends brought her to the Wyoming-Utah state line. She joined Denver and Eddy to trek the last 115 miles or so of the trip. “It was so cool to get her back to be with us for the last week,” Jake told Utah News Dispatch in an interview the day after his homecoming, reflecting on the integral role Bella played. “She was the horse — really the only horse that was truly ready when we got going. The other two had a lot to learn still,” he said. “And I look back and I realize, if it hadn’t been for her, we just never would have made it from the beginning. She taught those boys how to do their job.” That training and trust was put to the ultimate test in Pennsylvania, when Jake’s plans to cross the Delaware River by riding his horses across the Washington Crossing bridge fell through. He said New Jersey bridge commission officials would not give him permission to bring his horses on the pedestrian path. “My heart sank,” he said, since it was the only way he could get to his destination in New Jersey, where he planned to conclude his trek east at the coastline in Middletown. Otherwise, he’d have to trailer, which wasn’t consistent with his goal. So, Jake said he decided to use satellite imagery of the Delaware River to find a place to cross like “real cowboys,” as he said in a video from that day posted on his YouTube channel — by swimming. “I think we’re going to go for it. Like the old days, folks.” Jake was grinning before he, Eddy and Denver took the plunge. Then the video cut to him emerging from the river soaking and breathless. He praised his horses, laughed with relief, and poured water out of his boots before telling the camera: “That was not easy. I wish I could have filmed that for you guys but that was not a time to be holding a phone.” Recalling the swim months later, Jake said it was an “incredible story that everyone loved,” but he added it was an “extremely risky and scary experience.” The rocks were slippery and the current was strong, threatening to sweep them down the river. Eddy and Denver were hesitant at first, but he said he steered them straight until their hooves lifted off and they were both swimming. “I had to commit, there was no turning around,” Jake said. “If I had any shot of getting it done at all, I had to be completely confident. And that’s what I applied to everything we had to overcome.” As much as the Year of the Mustang was about the mustangs themselves and the special relationships they can form with humans, its success also relied on human relationships — not just friends and family, but also complete strangers. “One of the things that surprised me most about the Year of the Mustang journey,” Jake told his supporters, “was the people who wanted to help us. Everywhere I went.” Jake said his trip could not have been possible without the help he received along the way — the farmers, ranchers and other “horse people” who let him camp overnight on their property, in their barns or stay in their homes. With each state he passed through, Jake said he relied on a network of support that grew thanks to social media and word of mouth. His GoFundMe page also pulled in donations to fund the trip, topping $38,000. Some nights Jake said he’d even have to knock on doors to ask for a place to stay, which he said was rarely rejected. In all, he guessed several hundred people helped him along the way. While he estimated he spent about a quarter of the 437-day trip camping on public land, the rest of the time he said he relied on “people’s private situations, whether that was camping on their land or staying in a barn.” “I always thought this out in my mind as a very solo experience, but it became a very national effort, in a way,” Jake said, adding that he found himself talking to groups about the wild mustang crisis and advocating for their adoption. “Maybe that’s a lot to say, but it definitely felt that way when I was speaking to the masses about wild horses,” he said. “I’m glad I got to share with everyone and to see how many people wanted to be a part of it as we went along — whether they were helping us or wanted to help me spread the word.” Jake had planned for years to do this ride, so he didn’t intentionally plan it for a presidential election year — a time when American polarization is on full display — but it happened to work out that way. Especially as November came around, Jake said that reality was “definitely” noticeable because “it was on everyone’s mind.” He said political differences never really became an issue, though he recognized he was mostly dealing with people from similar backgrounds: farmers, ranchers and other horse people. “I’m one of the personalities that I can make friends with anybody, and that helped me throughout this entire trip,” he said. “So I’m very much able to sit down and talk with complete strangers, wherever they’re coming from, and find ways to get along with anybody. So I never really saw that as a challenge.” During his welcome home party, when speaking to his supporters, Jake said even though he’d get asked all the time whether one state was better than another, “I didn’t meet a bad person.” “And I really do genuinely believe it’s a narrative that gets fed to us,” he said. “I’ve come to find that there’s good people everywhere.” Jake said some would wrinkle their noses when he’d explain he’d be riding to New Jersey and back, asking why he chose that state. It was a matter of logistics, he said, because he’d be able to cross one more state off his list with just three days of riding time to the ocean. Though he ran into more obstacles, like the Delaware River crossing, Jake said he enjoyed his time there, in a state where it truly was an unusual sight to see a cowboy with two horses walking down the street. “It just brightened up everyone’s day to see horses walking through their neighborhood or down the middle of town, Princeton, and everything,” he said. “Everyone was super excited to meet me, like everywhere else. It was funny. Just the different experience and perception I got compared to what other people outside of New Jersey had.” Though some states were more scenic than others (Colorado, he said, had the best views), Jake said he doesn’t have a favorite state. “When you really get down to it and you’re meeting people, it’s like, you know, they’re just people,” he said. “They’re good people.” He does have a favorite moment, though. “It was hitting the beach,” he said, in Middletown. “When I rode those horses up to the ocean and rode them in the water, New York City in the back ... it felt great.” So what’s next for Jake now that he’s home? He said he intends to keep advocating for wild horses, in partnership with the BLM and otherwise. He also plans to continue creating content for his social media platforms, and he hopes to make a career out of it. “I’m going to go back out into the country. Not on horse so much this time, (I’ll) probably drive a little more, to catch other people’s stories — ranchers, horse trainers, farmers,” Jake said. “Also, going and telling my story in bigger and better ways to everyone.” So while he may be home in Utah for now, don’t expect it to last long. “We’re going to take this to the whole world.” To remove this article -

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were indeed scaled down to save on postage and paper, resulting in pint-sized editions. Lands’ End, Duluth Trading Company and Hammacher Schlemmer are among gift purveyors using smaller editions. Some retailers are saving even more money with postcards. Lisa Ayoob, a tech-savvy, online shopper in Portland, Maine, was surprised by the size of a recent catalog she received from outdoor apparel company Carbon2Cobalt. “It almost felt like it was a pamphlet compared to a catalog,” she said. Catalogs have undergone a steady recalibration over the years in response to technological changes and consumer behavior. The thick, heavy Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs that brought store displays to American living rooms slimmed down and gave way to targeted mailings once websites could do the same thing. Recent postal rate increases accelerated the latest shift to compact formats. The number of catalogs mailed each year dropped about 40% between 2006 to 2018, when an estimated 11.5 billion were mailed to homes, according to the trade group formerly known as the American Catalog Mailers Association. In a sign of the times, the group based in Washington rebranded itself in May as the American Commerce Marketing Association, reflecting a broadened focus. But don't expect catalogs to go the way of dinosaurs yet. Defying predictions of doom, they have managed to remain relevant in the e-commerce era. Retail companies found that could treat catalogs with fewer pages as a marketing tool and include QR and promo codes to entice customers to browse online and complete a purchase. Despite no longer carrying an extended inventory of goods, catalogs are costly to produce and ship. But they hold their own in value because of growing digital advertising costs, helping retailers cut through the noise for consumers barraged by multi-format advertisements, industry officials say. In an unlikely twist, notable e-commerce companies like Amazon and home goods supplier Wayfair started distributing catalogs in recent years. Amazon began mailing a toy catalog in 2018. That was the same year Sears, which produced an annual Christmas Wish Book Wish starting in 1933, filed for bankruptc y. Fans of printed information may rejoice to hear that apparel retailer J.Crew relaunched its glossy catalog this year. Research shows that the hands-on experience of thumbing through a catalog leaves a greater impression on consumers, said Jonathan Zhang, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “The reason why these paper formats are so effective is that our human brains haven’t evolved as fast as technology and computers over the past 10 to 20 years. We retain more information when we read something on paper. That's why paper books remain relevant," Zhang said. “The psychology shows that three-dimensional, tactile experiences are more memorable.” Pint-sized presentations still can work, though, because the purpose of catalogs these days is simply to get customers’ attention, Zhang said. Conserving paper also works better with younger consumers who are worried about the holiday shopping season's impact on the planet, he said. Postal increases are hastening changes. The latest round of postage hikes in July included the category with the 8.5-by-11-inch size that used to be ubiquitous for the catalog industry. Many retailers responded by reducing the size of catalogs, putting them in a lower-cost letter category, said Paul Miller, executive vice president and managing director of the American Commerce Marketing Association. One size, called a “slim jim,” measures 10.5 by 5.5 inches. But there other sizes. Some retailers have further reduced costs by mailing large postcards to consumers. Lands' End, for one, is testing new compact formats to supplement its traditional catalogs. This year, that included folded glossy brochures and postcards, along with other formats, Chief Transformation Officer Angie Rieger said. Maine resident Ayoob said she understands why retailers still use catalogs even though she no longer is a fan of the format. These days, she prefers to browse for products on the internet, not by flipping through paper pages. “Everybody wants eyeballs. There’s so much out there -- so many websites, so many brands,” said Ayoob, who spent 35 years working in department stores and in the wholesale industry. Targeting customers at home is not a new concept. L.L. Bean was a pioneer of the mail-order catalog after its founder promoted his famous “Maine Hunting Shoe” to hunting license holders from out-of-state in 1912. The outdoor clothing and equipment company based in Freeport, Maine, is sticking to mailing out regular-sized catalogs for now. “By showcasing our icons, the catalog became an icon itself,” L.L. Bean spokesperson Amanda Hannah said. "Even as we invest more in our digital and brand marketing channels, the catalog retains a strong association with our brand, and is therefore an important part of our omni-channel strategy, especially for our loyal customers.” David Sharp, The Associated Press

“Barbenheimer” was a phenomenon impossible to manufacture. But, more than a year later, that hasn’t stopped people from trying to make “Glicked” — or even “Babyratu” — happen. The counterprogramming of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” in July 2023 hit a nerve culturally and had the receipts to back it up. Unlike so many things that begin as memes, it transcended its online beginnings. Instead of an either-or, the two movies ultimately complemented and boosted one another at the box office. This combination of images shows promotional art for "Gladiator II," left, and "Wicked." And ever since, moviegoers, marketers and meme makers have been trying to recreate that moment, searching the movie release schedule for odd mashups and sending candidates off into the social media void. Most attempts have fizzled (sorry, “Saw Patrol” ). This weekend is perhaps the closest approximation yet as the Broadway musical adaptation “Wicked” opens Friday against the chest-thumping sword-and-sandals epic “Gladiator II.” Two big studio releases (Universal and Paramount), with one-name titles, opposite tones and aesthetics and big blockbuster energy — it was already halfway there before the name game began: “Wickiator,” “Wadiator,” “Gladwick” and even the eyebrow raising “Gladicked” have all been suggested. “'Glicked' rolls off the tongue a little bit more,” actor Fred Hechinger said at the New York screening of “Gladiator II” this week. “I think we should all band around ‘Glicked.’ It gets too confusing if you have four or five different names for it.” As with “Barbenheimer," as reductive as it might seem, “Glicked” also has the male/female divide that make the fan art extra silly. One is pink and bright and awash in sparkles, tulle, Broadway bangers and brand tie-ins; The other is all sweat and sand, blood and bulging muscles. Both films topped Fandango’s most anticipated holiday movie survey, where 65% of respondents said that they were interested in the “Glicked” double feature. Theaters big and small are also pulling out the stops with movie-themed tie-ins. B&B Theaters will have Roman guards tearing tickets at some locations and Maximus popcorn tubs. Marcus Theaters is doing Oz photo ops and friendship bracelet-making. Alamo Drafthouse is leaning into the singalong aspect (beware, though, not all theaters are embracing this) and the punny drinks like “Defying Gravi-Tea.” This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film "Wicked." “Rather than it being in competition, I think they’re in conversation,” “Gladiator II” star Paul Mescal said. “This industry needs a shot in the arm. Those films gave it last year. We hope to do it this year.” And the hope is that audiences will flock to theaters to be part of this moment as well. It's a sorely needed influx of could-be blockbusters into a marketplace that's still at an 11% deficit from last year and down 27.2% from 2019, according to data from Comscore. “Competition is good for the marketplace. It’s good for consumers,” said Michael O'Leary, the president and CEO of the National Association of Theatre Owners. “Having two great movies coming out at the same time is simply a multiplier effect.” “Glicked” is currently tracking for a combined North American debut in the $165 million range, with “Wicked” forecast to earn around $100 million (up from the $80 million estimates a few weeks ago) and “Gladiator II” pegged for the $65 million range. “Barbenheimer” shattered its projections last July. Going into that weekend, “Barbie” had been pegged for $90 million and “Oppenheimer” around $40 million. Ultimately, they brought in a combined $244 million in that first outing, and nearly $2.4 billion by the end of their runs. It’s possible “Glicked” will exceed expectations, too. And it has the advantage of another behemoth coming close behind: “Moana 2,” which opens just five days later on the Wednesday before the Thanksgiving holiday. “Glickedana” triple feature anyone? This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Pedro Pascal, left, and Paul Mescal in a scene from "Gladiator II." “These are 10 important days,” O'Leary said. “It’s going to show the moviegoing audience that there’s a lot of compelling stuff out there for them to see.” There are infinite caveats to the imperfect comparison to “Barbenheimer,” as well. “Wicked” is a “Part One.” Musicals carry their own baggage with moviegoers, even those based on wildly successful productions (ahem, “Cats”). “Gladiator II” got a head start and opened internationally last weekend. In fact, in the U.K. it played alongside “Paddington in Peru,” where that double was pegged “Gladdington.” “Gladiator” reviews, while positive, are a little more divided than the others. And neither directors Ridley Scott nor Jon M. Chu has the built-in box office cache that Christopher Nolan’s name alone carries at the moment. The new films also cost more than “Barbie” ($145 million) and “Oppenheimer” ($100 million). According to reports, “Gladiator II” had a $250 million price tag; “Wicked” reportedly cost $150 million to produce (and that does not include the cost of the second film, due next year). The narrative, though, has shifted away from “who will win the weekend.” Earlier this year, Chu told The Associated Press that he loves that this is a moment where “we can root for all movies all the time.” Close behind are a bevy of Christmas releases with double feature potential, but those feel a little more niche. There’s the remake of “Nosferatu,” the Nicole Kidman kink pic “Babygirl” and the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.” The internet can’t even seem to decide on its angle for that batch of contenders, and none exactly screams blockbuster. Sometimes the joy is just in the game, however. Some are sticking with the one-name mashup (“Babyratu”); others are suggesting that the fact that two of the movies feature real-life exes (Timothée Chalamet and Lily-Rose Depp) is enough reason for a double feature. And getting people talking is half the battle. When in doubt, or lacking a catchy name, there’s always the default: “This is my Barbenheimer.” Associated Press journalist John Carucci and Film Writer Jake Coyle contributed reporting. Last summer, Malibu's iconic blonde faced off against Cillian Murphy and the hydrogen bomb in the unforgettable "Barbenheimer" double feature. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!Ahmad Robinson scores 21 in near triple-double and Mercer beats Georgia State 71-68None

The IMF and the World Bank must be abolished to save the planet

Algert Global LLC Reduces Position in Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBKR)PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Honey, they shrunk the catalogs. While retailers hope to go big this holiday season , customers may notice that the printed gift guides arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were indeed scaled down to save on postage and paper, resulting in pint-sized editions. Lands’ End, Duluth Trading Company and Hammacher Schlemmer are among gift purveyors using smaller editions. Some retailers are saving even more money with postcards. Lisa Ayoob, a tech-savvy, online shopper in Portland, Maine, was surprised by the size of a recent catalog she received from outdoor apparel company Carbon2Cobalt. “It almost felt like it was a pamphlet compared to a catalog,” she said. Catalogs have undergone a steady recalibration over the years in response to technological changes and consumer behavior. The thick, heavy Sears and J.C. Penney catalogs that brought store displays to American living rooms slimmed down and gave way to targeted mailings once websites could do the same thing. Recent postal rate increases accelerated the latest shift to compact formats. The number of catalogs mailed each year dropped about 40% between 2006 to 2018, when an estimated 11.5 billion were mailed to homes, according to the trade group formerly known as the American Catalog Mailers Association. In a sign of the times, the group based in Washington rebranded itself in May as the American Commerce Marketing Association, reflecting a broadened focus. But don't expect catalogs to go the way of dinosaurs yet. Defying predictions of doom, they have managed to remain relevant in the e-commerce era. Retail companies found that could treat catalogs with fewer pages as a marketing tool and include QR and promo codes to entice customers to browse online and complete a purchase. Despite no longer carrying an extended inventory of goods, catalogs are costly to produce and ship. But they hold their own in value because of growing digital advertising costs, helping retailers cut through the noise for consumers barraged by multi-format advertisements, industry officials say. In an unlikely twist, notable e-commerce companies like Amazon and home goods supplier Wayfair started distributing catalogs in recent years. Amazon began mailing a toy catalog in 2018. That was the same year Sears, which produced an annual Christmas Wish Book Wish starting in 1933, filed for bankruptc y. Fans of printed information may rejoice to hear that apparel retailer J.Crew relaunched its glossy catalog this year. Research shows that the hands-on experience of thumbing through a catalog leaves a greater impression on consumers, said Jonathan Zhang, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “The reason why these paper formats are so effective is that our human brains haven’t evolved as fast as technology and computers over the past 10 to 20 years. We retain more information when we read something on paper. That's why paper books remain relevant," Zhang said. “The psychology shows that three-dimensional, tactile experiences are more memorable.” Pint-sized presentations still can work, though, because the purpose of catalogs these days is simply to get customers’ attention, Zhang said. Conserving paper also works better with younger consumers who are worried about the holiday shopping season's impact on the planet, he said. Postal increases are hastening changes. The latest round of postage hikes in July included the category with the 8.5-by-11-inch size that used to be ubiquitous for the catalog industry. Many retailers responded by reducing the size of catalogs, putting them in a lower-cost letter category, said Paul Miller, executive vice president and managing director of the American Commerce Marketing Association. One size, called a “slim jim,” measures 10.5 by 5.5 inches. But there other sizes. Some retailers have further reduced costs by mailing large postcards to consumers. Lands' End, for one, is testing new compact formats to supplement its traditional catalogs. This year, that included folded glossy brochures and postcards, along with other formats, Chief Transformation Officer Angie Rieger said. Maine resident Ayoob said she understands why retailers still use catalogs even though she no longer is a fan of the format. These days, she prefers to browse for products on the internet, not by flipping through paper pages. “Everybody wants eyeballs. There’s so much out there -- so many websites, so many brands,” said Ayoob, who spent 35 years working in department stores and in the wholesale industry. Targeting customers at home is not a new concept. L.L. Bean was a pioneer of the mail-order catalog after its founder promoted his famous “Maine Hunting Shoe” to hunting license holders from out-of-state in 1912. The outdoor clothing and equipment company based in Freeport, Maine, is sticking to mailing out regular-sized catalogs for now. “By showcasing our icons, the catalog became an icon itself,” L.L. Bean spokesperson Amanda Hannah said. "Even as we invest more in our digital and brand marketing channels, the catalog retains a strong association with our brand, and is therefore an important part of our omni-channel strategy, especially for our loyal customers.”

The recently retired Andy Murray is going to team up with longtime rival Novak Djokovic as his coach, they both announced Saturday, with plans to prepare for — and work together through — the Australian Open in January. It was a stunning bit of news as tennis moves toward its offseason , a pairing of two of the most successful and popular players in the sport, both of whom are sometimes referred to as members of a so-called Big Four that also included Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal . Djokovic is a 24-time Grand Slam champion who has spent more weeks at No. 1 than any other player in tennis history. Murray won three major trophies and two Olympic singles gold medals and finished 2016 atop the ATP rankings. He ended his playing career after the Paris Summer Games in August. Both men are 37 and were born a week apart in May 1987. They started facing each other as juniors and wound up meeting 36 times as professionals, with Djokovic holding a 25-11 advantage. “We played each other since we were boys — 25 years of being rivals, of pushing each other beyond our limits. We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. They called us game-changers, risk-takers, history-makers,” Djokovic posted on social media over photos and videos from some of their matches. “I thought our story may be over. Turns out, it has one final chapter. It’s time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner. Welcome on board, Coach — Andy Murray.” Djokovic's 2024 season is over, and it was not up to his usual, high standards. He didn't win a Grand Slam trophy ; his only title, though, was meaningful to him: a gold medal for Serbia in singles at the Summer Games. Djokovic has been without a full-time coach since splitting in March from Goran Ivanisevic. “I’m going to be joining Novak’s team in the offseason, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open," Murray said in a statement released by his management team. "I’m really excited for it and looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change, helping him to achieve his goals.” Their head-to-head series on tour includes an 11-8 lead for Djokovic in finals, and 8-2 at Grand Slam tournaments. Djokovic beat Murray four times in the Australian Open final alone — in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016. Two of the most important victories of Murray's career came with Djokovic on the other side of the net. One was in the 2012 U.S. Open final , when Murray claimed his first Grand Slam title. The other was in the 2013 Wimbledon final , when Murray became the first British man in 77 years to win the singles championship at the All England Club. Next year's Australian Open starts on Jan. 12. ___ AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Pitt QB Eli Holstein carted off with leg injury