PHOTO GALLERY: New aerospace themed playground opens at Mary Belle Williams Park
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Area children in the City of Lake Charles Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to enjoy the new aerospace themed playgroud at the Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Area children in the City of Lake Charles Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to enjoy the new aerospace themed playgroud at the Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Area children in the City of Lake Charles Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to enjoy the new aerospace themed playgroud at the Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Area children in the City of Lake Charles Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to enjoy the new aerospace themed playgroud at the Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Area children in the City of Lake Charles Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to enjoy the new aerospace themed playgroud at the Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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A ribbon cutting was held on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at the remoddeled Mary Belle Williams Park. A new aerospaced themed playground was built to reflect the area's history with Chennault International Airport and Northrup Grumman. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Mayor Marshall Simien Jr. shows impresses local children with the disappearing thumb trick at Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Phillips 66 employee demonstrates volcano chemical reaction summer campers on Thursday, at Mary Belle Williams Park. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
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Summer campers are wowed by a elephant tooth paste demonstration by Phillips 66 employees Tyler Pullen, Zach Lofaso, Dhara Brassieur and Chandra Piert at Mary Belle Williams Park on Thursday, July 10, 2025, as part of the park ground opening of its new aerospace themed playground. (Rodrick Anderson / American Press)
The City of Lake Charles held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, July 10, 2025, to open the new aerospace-themed playground at Mary Belle Williams Park. The design was chosen due to the area's history with Chennault International Airport and Northrop Grumman. Summer campers with the city's Epic Adventure Summer Camp got to try out the new playground and participate in STEM activities with the help of Phillips 66 employees.
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American Press
3 days ago
- American Press
Malcolm-Jamal Warner, 'Cosby Show' actor, dies at 54 in Costa Rica drowning
Malcolm-Jamal Warner played Theo Huxtable on 'The Cosby Show." (Special to the American Press) Malcolm-Jamal Warner the actor who played teenage son Theo Huxtable on 'The Cosby Show,' has died at age 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica, authorities there said. Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said Monday that Warner drowned Sunday afternoon on a beach on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast. He was swimming at Playa Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean. 'He was rescued by people on the beach,' the department's initial report said, but first responders from Costa Rica's Red Cross found him without vital signs and he was taken to the morgue. Warner created many TV moments etched in the memories of Generation X children and their parents, including a pilot-episode argument with Bill Cosby's Cliff Huxtable about money and an ear piercing he tries to hide from his dad. His Theo was the only son among four daughters in the household of Cliff Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad's Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom, and he would be one of the prime representations of American teenage boyhood on a show that was the most popular in America for much of its run from 1984 to 1992. He played the role for eight seasons in all 197 episodes, winning an Emmy nomination for supporting actor in a comedy in 1986. For many the lasting image of the character, and of Warner, is of him wearing a badly botched mock designer shirt sewed by his sister Denise, played by Lisa Bonet. The 'Gordon Gartrell' shirt later became a memeable image. Anthony Mackie wore one on 'The Tonight Show' with Jimmy Fallon and the profile picture on Warner's Instagram shows a toddler sporting one. Like the rest of the show's cast, Warner had to contend with the sexual assault allegations against its titular star, whose conviction in a Pennsylvania court was later overturned. Warner told The Associated Press in 2015 that the show's legacy was 'tarnished.' 'My biggest concern is when it comes to images of people of color on television and film,' Warner said. 'We've always had 'The Cosby Show' to hold up against that. And the fact that we no longer have that, that's the thing that saddens me the most because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale.' Representatives for Cosby declined immediate comment. Warner later appeared on the sitcom 'Malcolm & Eddie,' co-starring with comedian Eddie Griffin in the series on the defunct UPN network from 1996 to 2000. And in the 2010s he starred opposite Tracee Ellis Ross as a family-blending couple for two seasons on the BET sitcom 'Read Between The Lines.' He also had a role as O.J. Simpson's friend Al Cowlings on 'American Crime Story' and was a series regular on Fox's 'The Resident.' His film roles include the 2008 rom-com 'Fool's Gold' with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A poet and a musician, Warner was a Grammy winner, for best traditional R&B performance, and was nominated for best spoken word poetry album for 'Hiding in Plain View.' Warner was married with a daughter, but chose to not publicly disclose their names. Warner's representatives declined immediate comment.
American Press
5 days ago
- American Press
Lake Charles native to head to New York Fashion Week
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She looks forward to building a name for herself and hopes to one day be reached out to celebrity stylists and musician stylists to reach out to her for custom pieces for red carpet events. 'I'm surrounded by so many great friends who believe in me, I have such a great support system who actively help participate in my growth,' she said. Fusilier has pieces on her website Pieces include the new metallic fringe chaps, Cosmic Cowgirl slip dress, Cosmic Cowgirl pajama short set, Cosmic comfort dress, blazer capes, the original Blingdana that started it all, and more! While Fusilier has made custom pieces for musicians, she will also create something custom for you as well. The best way to contact Fusilier for a custom piece is to email her through her website. Anybody can reach out, it's a very intimate process where it's one-on-one, the client will tell me what they want, what colors they want, the inspiration and from there I handpick everything and show them and then we go from there,' she said. Fusilier says how it's never too late to turn your life around, it's never too late to tap into a dream you might have. 'I just say do it afraid, just keep doing it,' she said. 'I'm grateful to be from Lake Charles, my family is there and it's really amazing to have a hometown that supports your dreams,' she said.
American Press
7 days ago
- American Press
14-year-old ready to take audience on musical journey of Elvis' hits
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