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Hurricane Mathew has destroyed through Haiti, and now is on it way to Cuba.

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Hurricane Matthew: Evacuations begin as deadly storm nears

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State officials in Florida, South Carolina and Georgia cautioned residents not to hunker down at home if they live in the hurricane's potential path.

Early Thursday the hurricane, which already has killed at least 15 people in several Caribbean countries, was about 125 miles (205 kilometers) south of Nassau, Bahamas, and 325 miles (525 kilometers) from West Palm Beach, Florida.

The National Hurricane Center isn't saying that Matthew will make landfall in Florida, just that the center of the storm will get "very near" the Atlantic Coast, possibly as a Category 4 hurricane.

Matthew was packing 115 mph (185 kph) winds as the eye neared the Central Bahamas, the National Hurricane Center said.

President Barack Obama warned Americans in the storm's path to pay attention and take any evacuation orders seriously. He said if the core of the storm strikes Florida, it could have a "devastating effect."

Florida braces for 'direct hit'

Florida Gov. Rick Scott warned 1.5 million residents they had 24 hours to get ready, or better yet, get going.

The voluntary and mandatory evacuations included the Miami area and extended all the way north past the city of St. Augustine.

Scott has also activated 1,500 National Guard members. He has repeatedly warned that a direct hit by Matthew could lead to "massive destruction" on a level unseen since Hurricane Andrew devastated the Miami area in 1992.

Many residents found long gas lines Wednesday. However, Scott said the state is not experiencing any gas supply or distribution shortages.

"We have heard of some individual stations (being) short, but in no area of the state are we short of fuel," the governor said, adding that the state has placed fuel in some areas and sends it to stations that need more.

Airline passengers were urged to call before leaving for the airport. Fort Lauderdale's airport is to close Thursday at 10:30 a.m. and FlightAware.com says almost 250 flights are canceled at Miami International.

State offices will be closed Thursday and Friday in 26 counties, Scott said.

Palm Beach residents cleared many grocery store shelves ahead of the storm.

In Jupiter, resident Randy Jordan told CNN affiliate WPEC people were pushing and shoving their way through the local Home Depot to buy supplies ranging from batteries to flashlights.

Residents still had a sense of humor. Olivia A. Cole posted a photo on Twitter of an empty grocery shelf, save for eight cans of a soup typically enjoyed in another part of the country. "South Florida wants to survive #HurricaneMatthew. But we'd rather die than eat clam chowder," Cole joked.

Mandatory evacuations in South Carolina

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley gave evacuation orders for the coastal counties of Charleston and Beaufort.

An estimated 250,000 residents evacuated from Charleston and Beaufort, said Kim Stenson, the director of South Carolina Emergency Management. He said as many as 200,000 people will leave Thursday.

Tempers apparently flared during the slow traffic out of Charleston. A man got out of his truck at point where vehicles were being redirected, removed a traffic cone and sped away. Police chased the man until he stopped on a dead-end road. Berkeley County Chief Deputy Mike Cochran told CNN that the man fired at deputies and police officers, who shot back and wounded the man.

The man was hospitalized, but his condition is unknown.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation changed the directions of eastbound traffic lanes to accommodate the exodus of people leaving coastal cities like Charleston.

But as thousands fled inland Wednesday, not everyone chose to evacuate. In Charleston, which likely will see the powerful storm's impact this weekend, some people were boarding up businesses.

"I think we're staying put," Cheryl Quinn told CNN's Stephanie Elam.

Quinn and her husband said they were fine a year ago when Charleston endured heavy rain after a brush with a big storm.

"It was kind of a party down here. I hate to say that," because storms can be scary, she added.

Still, Quinn has reserved a hotel room just in case.

North Carolina playing it by ear

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency for more than half the state's 100 counties. The changing forecast now predicts the storm won't have as great an impact on the state as once feared, and Matthew might even turn around before it gets there.

"We're just going to have to play it by ear and have our resources ready," the governor said.

Officials are still concerned areas in eastern North Carolina that were recently flooded will see drenching rains from Matthew.

Georgia governor: 'Remain calm, be prepared'

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has declared a state of emergency in 30 counties on or near the Atlantic Coast.

In six of those coastal counties -- Chatham, Bryan, Liberty, McIntosh, Glynn and Camden -- Deal urged residents to voluntarily evacuate.

"I urge Georgians in the affected areas to remain calm, be prepared and make informed, responsible decisions as we continue to monitor Hurricane Matthew's path," Deal said.

Residents of islands just east of Savannah were being urged to evacuate. A mandatory order was in effect in Tybee Island.

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evacuations underway as hurricane nears florida - cnn

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Max Blau, Steve Almasy, and Holly Yan, CNN

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State officials in Florida, South Carolina and Georgia cautioned residents not to hunker down at home if they live in the hurricane's potential path. Early Thursday the hurricane, which already has killed at least 15 people in several Caribbean countries, was about 125 miles (205 kilometers) south of Nassau, Bahamas, and 325 miles (525 kilometers) from West Palm Beach, Florida.

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killer clown spotting in the woods

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Three people in recent weeks have reported seeing clowns in wooded areas of Pierce County and in areas of the North Sound as well.

According to the News Tribune, people reported seeing men dressed as creepy clowns near South Hill and Graham.

"They're probably jumping on the bandwagon of what's been going on around the country," sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer told the TNT on Friday.
>>RELATED: Creepy clown sightings spread to Georgia; 'not cute or funny,' police say
A KIRO 7 viewer posted on our Facebook page that she had seen a clown at a gas station in Lynnwood.

Another person posted to the KIRO 7 Facebook page that she had seen one on a sidewalk.

"Saw a creepy clown on the sidewalk in Lynwood/Edmonds area last nigh t. Wasn't trying to lure anyone from what I could tell, but still absolutely terrifying. He was on the ground on hands and knees waving to us as we passed by in cars at the street light," said Gabriella Morrow.

Lynnwood police confirmed they had received reports of clown sightings.

The creepy clown sightings began in the Carolinas, where parents were on edge after about a half-dozen reports of the menacing clowns trying to lure children to wooded areas.

A majority of the reports were first made in a smattering of North Carolina cities. None of the reports have been substantiated, according to police, and at least one person there was accused of making up a confrontation with a clown.
>>RELATED: North Carolina man accused of falsely reporting clown sighting
Across the nation, creepy clown sightings were made in Alabama, Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and now Washington state, according to the TNT.

Police across those states have warned that anyone making a false report will be arrested. False reports of sightings strain police resources and unnecessarily spread fear.
>>RELATED: Parents warned about clown luring kids into woods in South Carolina
The New York Times reports that a dozen people in those states have been arrested for false reports, threats or chasing people.

Pierce County Sheriff's Office detectives said they are monitoring sightings but are not investigating them unless a crime occurs, as it is "not illegal to be a clown."
>>RELATED: Police: N.C. man with machete chases clown into woods

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Creepy clown sightings reported in Washington

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Three people in recent weeks have reported seeing clowns in wooded areas of Pierce County and in areas of the North Sound as well. According to the News Tribune, people reported seeing men dressed as creepy clowns near South Hill and Graham.

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Google unveils new pixel smaartphone

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Google has unveiled its hotly-anticipated new Pixel smartphones, which are branded with the Google logo on the back.

The new glass and aluminum phones come with Google Assistant included, a made-by-Google artificially-intelligent assistant that can do things like make dinner reservations through OpenTable. The devices come in two sizes, 5 and 5.5 inches, and are available immediately for pre-order, Google said.

"While Pixel's beautiful, what really makes it come to life is how the hardware and software work together," Rick Osterloh, senior vice president of Google's hardware division, said at the San Francisco event, during which they heavily emphasized the importance of the Google Assistant.

The Pixel phones will come in three colors, which Google calls "quite black," "very silver" and "really blue." Pricing begins at $649, or $27 a month.

The phones both feature a 12.3 megapixel camera and free unlimited photo and video storage through Google Photos. Also, the device has "no unsightly camera bump," Osterloh said- a dig at Apple's latest smartphones, which have cameras that protrude from the device.

Google also touted Pixel's other features, like customer service built into the phone, and a quick-charging feature that they said could give it seven hours of power in 15 minutes.

Also unlike Apple's newest iPhones, the new Pixel phones have a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Google also revealed more details about its Google Home device, a Wi-Fi enabled speaker that channels the Google Assistant to do things like play music through services such as YouTube or Spotify, answer questions, and even translate phrases.

"We think you're going to love the combination of a great sounding Wi-Fi speaker with voice control from the Google Assistant," Google vice president Rishi Chandra said, while demonstrating the device.

Chandra added that Google Home will be able to communicate with your television through a Google Chromecast device.

Google Home is available for pre-order immediately, and will be available on November 4 through the Google Store and retailers like Best Buy. It will cost $129.

Because the device is meant to blend into the aesthetics of a home, Google has designed it so that the color and material of the base can be switched. Options include colors called "mango" and "marine."
Follow Rob Verger on Twitter: @robverger

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Google has unveiled its hotly-anticipated new Pixel smartphones, which are branded with the Google logo on the back. The new glass and aluminum phones come with Google Assistant included, a made-by-Google artificially-intelligent assistant that can do things like make dinner reservations through OpenTable.

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba.

The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

Officials feared a high death toll in Haiti.

"We've already seen deaths. People who were out at sea. There are people who are missing. They are people who didn't respect the alerts. They've lost their lives," Interim Haitian President Jocelerme Privert said at a news conference.

Heavy rain throughout the day caused Haitian waterways to swell.

"The river has overflowed all around us," church pastor Louis St. Germain said. "It's terrible ... a total disaster."

St. Germain, who spoke to CNN on the phone from Les Cayes, Haiti, said the storm sheared a wall off his house and tore roofs off many buildings in the area.

And in a significant setback for emergency responders and aid relief efforts, the bridge that connected Port-au-Prince with southern Haiti collapsed.

There are reports of communications towers being affected by downed trees and officials are worried it will hamper the emergency response.

Matthew was moving across Cuba on its way to the Bahamas.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 7 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Up to 40 inches of rain could be dumped Haiti, which is still recovering from a devastating 2010 earthquake and a cholera outbreak.

River levels rise

Les Cayes Mayor Jean Gabriel Fortuné said Tuesday morning the storm was slamming into his city. He posted videos on social media that showed wind whipping through trees as heavy rains pelted people on the streets.

The United Nations mission in Haiti shared a photo of people wading through water in a flooded street there.

Witnesses also reported streets flooding in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Leogane was also hit hard.

Along the US East Coast governors in four states declared states of emergency and two told residents to prepare for possible evacuations. Florida Gov. Rick Scott was particularly blunt, telling residents to prepare for the state quite possibly taking a direct hit.

Death toll rising

Seven people have died in incidents connected to Hurricane Matthew within the past week, authorities said.

Four people in the Dominican Republic died, the government announced, without providing any details about how the victims passed away.

In Haiti, Guillaume Albert Moleon, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said one fisherman died on Sunday. A second fisherman is presumed dead, but the body has not been recovered.

In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, a teenager died in a landslide as he was cleaning a drain behind his house, according to Michelle Forbes, deputy director for the National Emergency Management Office. The boy died Wednesday after storms from Matthew passed.

The hurricane could cause further devastation for Haiti as much of the country's infrastructure remains weak after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

More than 300,000 people are in shelters across the country, the United Nations said.

After the storm clears Haiti, residents could face risks from another threat: standing water.

"That means a potential spike in cholera cases," said John Hasse, the humanitarian aid agency World Vision's national director in Haiti. "Other mosquito-borne diseases that have been more or less controlled are going to rear their heads."

Haiti is still recovering from a post-quake cholera outbreak that killed 10,000 people.

Collision course for Cuba

Forecasters said Matthew could dump up to 20 inches of rain in Cuba.

The United States, taking no chances, airlifted 700 family members of military personnel stationed at Guantanamo Bay to Florida. The 61 detainees held by the United States as alleged enemy combatants will not be evacuated, officials added.

After skirting Cuba, Matthew is expected to hit the Bahamas and turn toward the United States. It should lose some strength, but still have 115 mph winds.

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hurricane matthew update: storm smashes cuba after hitting haiti  - cnn

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Catherine E. Shoichet, Max Blau and Steve Almasy, CNN

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Hurricane Matthew pounds Cuba after drenching Haiti

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba. The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

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Bill Clinton calls Obamacare the craziest thing in the world.

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Speaking at a Democratic rally in Flint, Michigan, the former president ripped into the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for flooding the health care insurance market and causing premiums to rise for middle-class Americans who do not qualify for subsidies.

"So you've got this crazy system where all of a sudden 25 million more people have health care and then the people who are out there busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week, wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. It's the craziest thing in the world," Clinton said.

On Tuesday, he tried to clean up his criticism.

"Look, the Affordable Health Care Act did a world of good, and the 50-something efforts to repeal it that the Republicans have staged were a terrible mistake," Clinton said at a rally in Athens, Ohio. "We, for the first time in our history, at least are providing insurance to more than 90% of our people."

"But there is a group of people -- mostly small business owners and employees -- who make just a little too much money to qualify for Medicaid expansion or for the tax incentives who can't get affordable health insurance premiums in a lot of places. And the reason is they're not in big pools," Clinton said. "So they have no bargaining power."

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said Tuesday he bet Clinton "went through hell last night" with his wife, then added: "Honestly, there have been many nights when he's gone through hell with Hillary."

Bill Clinton, whose efforts with his wife to overhaul health care in the 1990s were stymied by a recalcitrant Congress and the insurance lobby, told the crowd the insurance model "doesn't make sense" and "doesn't work here."

Touting his wife's proposal to allow people without access to subsidies to buy into Medicare and Medicaid, he also acknowledged that market-based solutions would not solve the country's problems with insurance costs and coverage.

"On the other hand, the current system works fine if you're eligible for Medicaid, if you're a lower-income working person; if you're already on Medicare, or if you get enough subsidies on a modest income that you can afford your health care," Clinton said. "But the people that are getting killed in this deal are small business people and individuals who make just a little too much to get any of these subsidies."

Angel Urena, Clinton's press secretary, defended the former president's stance on Obamacare on Tuesday, saying he had consistently supported the legislation since it was enacted in 2010.

"President Clinton spoke about the importance of the ACA and the good it has done to expand coverage for millions of Americans. And while he was slightly short-handed, it's clear to everyone, including President Obama, that improvements are needed," Urena said in a statement.

The White House said again Tuesday there were changes they would like to see made to the ACA.

"President Obama has of course acknowledged that with cooperation from Democrats and Republicans in Congress, there are some things that could be done to further strengthen the law. That's something that Sec. Clinton has vowed to pursue if she is elected President of the United States," press secretary Josh Earnest said in a briefing.

But he insisted Obamacare remains a top accomplishment of the president's tenure.

"The Affordable Care Act continues to be a source of pride for people who work here in the administration in terms of that significant legislative accomplishment. That's essentially our position," Earnest said. "You'd have to talk to President Clinton about exactly what message he was trying to send."

When asked whether the former president went too far in his criticism against the ACA, Earnest responded he's "not sure what argument (Clinton) was making."

And when asked if he wished Clinton hadn't used "crazy" or "craziest" to describe Obamacare, Earnest said, "Of course."

CNN's Athena Jones, Kevin Liptak, Michelle Kosinski, Daniella Diaz and Allie Malloy contributed to this report.

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bill clinton calls obamacare 'the craziest thing in the world

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' later tries to walk it back - cnnpolitics

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Bill Clinton calls Obamacare 'the craziest thing in the world,' later tries to walk it back

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Bill Clinton criticized President Barack Obama's signature policy reform Monday while on the stump for his wife, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, calling Obamacare "the craziest thing in the world." But he attempted to temper his criticism at a Tuesday rally.

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Ferrari reveals fastest convertible ever and a super-fast family car.

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Ferrari went to extremes when it unveiled two new cars at the Paris Motor Show Thursday.

One was a less expensive version of the practical GTC4Lusso model, which is a four-seater. The other was a convertible version of the LaFerrari hybrid extreme supercar.

The convertible supercar, called the LaFerrari Aperta, costs $2.2 million. But it was still sold out even before Ferrari announced, back in July, that it would debut in Paris this month.

The Aperta is available with a standard cloth top plus an optional removable carbon fiber hard top. It has the same V12 hybrid drive system as the hardtop coupe version. With an output of 750 horsepower, the V12 engine is the most powerful engine ever used in a Ferrari road car. And that's not even including the additional power from electric motors. All together, the system produces 950 horsepower.

The convertible also has the same 217 mile-per-hour top speed as the hardtop LaFerrari. It's unusual for a convertible to be able to go as fast as a hardtop car due to the compromised aerodynamics. With the roof open but its side windows up, the Aperta is just as aerodynamic as the hardtop car, according to Ferrari.

Only 209 of these cars are being produced, including nine that are being kept by Ferrari.

Related: Mercedes unveils electric car line-up

Ferrari also unveiled Thursday the GTC4Lusso T, a car meant for practical daily use. It's a V8-powered version of a car that had previously been available only with Ferrari's famed V12 engine. The turbocharged V8 produces 602 horsepower compared to the V12's 680 horsepower. But it will still get the car from zero to 60 miles an hour in under 3.5 seconds, only slightly slower than the V12.

Ferrari engineered the V8 version to provide a more fun and exciting everyday driving experience even at relatively low speeds, said Nicola Boari, Ferrari's director of product marketing. Since it's intended for those who want a Ferrari they can really drive all the time, it's expected to bring new customers into the "Ferrari family," he said.

Prices will start at about $260,000, about $40,000 less than the V12 GTC4Lusso. That's still not cheap but this is, after all, a Ferrari.

CNNMoney (Paris) First published September 29, 2016: 2:11 PM ET

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Ferrari reveals fastest convertible ever, and a super-fast family car

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One was a less expensive version of the practical GTC4Lusso model, which is a four-seater. The other was a convertible version of the LaFerrari hybrid extreme supercar. The convertible supercar, called the LaFerrari Aperta, costs $2.2 million. But it was still sold out even before Ferrari announced, back in July, that it would debut in Paris this month.

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Kim Kardashian robbed in her private apartment in Paris

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Hurricane Matthew lashes Haiti, heads toward Cuba

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba.

The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

Officials feared a high death toll in Haiti.

"We've already seen deaths. People who were out at sea. There are people who are missing. They are people who didn't respect the alerts. They've lost their lives," Interim Haitian President Jocelerme Privert said at a news conference.

Heavy rain throughout the day caused Haitian waterways to swell.

"The river has overflowed all around us," church pastor Louis St. Germain said. "It's terrible ... a total disaster."

St. Germain, who spoke to CNN on the phone from Les Cayes, Haiti, said the storm sheared a wall off his house and tore roofs off many buildings in the area.

And in a significant setback for emergency responders and aid relief efforts, the bridge that connected Port-au-Prince with southern Haiti collapsed.

There are reports of communications towers being affected by downed trees and officials are worried it will hamper the emergency response.

Matthew was moving across Cuba on its way to the Bahamas.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 7 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Up to 40 inches of rain could be dumped Haiti, which is still recovering from a devastating 2010 earthquake and a cholera outbreak.

River levels rise

Les Cayes Mayor Jean Gabriel Fortuné said Tuesday morning the storm was slamming into his city. He posted videos on social media that showed wind whipping through trees as heavy rains pelted people on the streets.

The United Nations mission in Haiti shared a photo of people wading through water in a flooded street there.

Witnesses also reported streets flooding in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Leogane was also hit hard.

Along the US East Coast governors in four states declared states of emergency and two told residents to prepare for possible evacuations. Florida Gov. Rick Scott was particularly blunt, telling residents to prepare for the state quite possibly taking a direct hit.

Death toll rising

Seven people have died in incidents connected to Hurricane Matthew within the past week, authorities said.

Four people in the Dominican Republic died, the government announced, without providing any details about how the victims passed away.

In Haiti, Guillaume Albert Moleon, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said one fisherman died on Sunday. A second fisherman is presumed dead, but the body has not been recovered.

In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, a teenager died in a landslide as he was cleaning a drain behind his house, according to Michelle Forbes, deputy director for the National Emergency Management Office. The boy died Wednesday after storms from Matthew passed.

The hurricane could cause further devastation for Haiti as much of the country's infrastructure remains weak after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

More than 300,000 people are in shelters across the country, the United Nations said.

After the storm clears Haiti, residents could face risks from another threat: standing water.

"That means a potential spike in cholera cases," said John Hasse, the humanitarian aid agency World Vision's national director in Haiti. "Other mosquito-borne diseases that have been more or less controlled are going to rear their heads."

Haiti is still recovering from a post-quake cholera outbreak that killed 10,000 people.

Collision course for Cuba

Forecasters said Matthew could dump up to 20 inches of rain in Cuba.

The United States, taking no chances, airlifted 700 family members of military personnel stationed at Guantanamo Bay to Florida. The 61 detainees held by the United States as alleged enemy combatants will not be evacuated, officials added.

After skirting Cuba, Matthew is expected to hit the Bahamas and turn toward the United States. It should lose some strength, but still have 115 mph winds.

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hurricane matthew update: storm smashes cuba after hitting haiti  - cnn

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Catherine E. Shoichet, Max Blau and Steve Almasy, CNN

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Hurricane Matthew pounds Cuba after drenching Haiti

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba. The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

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Hurricane Matthew hits Haiti's and is heading toward Cuba

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Hurricane Matthew lashes Haiti, heads toward Cuba

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba.

The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

Officials feared a high death toll in Haiti.

"We've already seen deaths. People who were out at sea. There are people who are missing. They are people who didn't respect the alerts. They've lost their lives," Interim Haitian President Jocelerme Privert said at a news conference.

Heavy rain throughout the day caused Haitian waterways to swell.

"The river has overflowed all around us," church pastor Louis St. Germain said. "It's terrible ... a total disaster."

St. Germain, who spoke to CNN on the phone from Les Cayes, Haiti, said the storm sheared a wall off his house and tore roofs off many buildings in the area.

And in a significant setback for emergency responders and aid relief efforts, the bridge that connected Port-au-Prince with southern Haiti collapsed.

There are reports of communications towers being affected by downed trees and officials are worried it will hamper the emergency response.

Matthew was moving across Cuba on its way to the Bahamas.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 7 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Up to 40 inches of rain could be dumped Haiti, which is still recovering from a devastating 2010 earthquake and a cholera outbreak.

River levels rise

Les Cayes Mayor Jean Gabriel Fortuné said Tuesday morning the storm was slamming into his city. He posted videos on social media that showed wind whipping through trees as heavy rains pelted people on the streets.

The United Nations mission in Haiti shared a photo of people wading through water in a flooded street there.

Witnesses also reported streets flooding in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Leogane was also hit hard.

Along the US East Coast governors in four states declared states of emergency and two told residents to prepare for possible evacuations. Florida Gov. Rick Scott was particularly blunt, telling residents to prepare for the state quite possibly taking a direct hit.

Death toll rising

Seven people have died in incidents connected to Hurricane Matthew within the past week, authorities said.

Four people in the Dominican Republic died, the government announced, without providing any details about how the victims passed away.

In Haiti, Guillaume Albert Moleon, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said one fisherman died on Sunday. A second fisherman is presumed dead, but the body has not been recovered.

In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, a teenager died in a landslide as he was cleaning a drain behind his house, according to Michelle Forbes, deputy director for the National Emergency Management Office. The boy died Wednesday after storms from Matthew passed.

The hurricane could cause further devastation for Haiti as much of the country's infrastructure remains weak after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

More than 300,000 people are in shelters across the country, the United Nations said.

After the storm clears Haiti, residents could face risks from another threat: standing water.

"That means a potential spike in cholera cases," said John Hasse, the humanitarian aid agency World Vision's national director in Haiti. "Other mosquito-borne diseases that have been more or less controlled are going to rear their heads."

Haiti is still recovering from a post-quake cholera outbreak that killed 10,000 people.

Collision course for Cuba

Forecasters said Matthew could dump up to 20 inches of rain in Cuba.

The United States, taking no chances, airlifted 700 family members of military personnel stationed at Guantanamo Bay to Florida. The 61 detainees held by the United States as alleged enemy combatants will not be evacuated, officials added.

After skirting Cuba, Matthew is expected to hit the Bahamas and turn toward the United States. It should lose some strength, but still have 115 mph winds.

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hurricane matthew update: storm smashes cuba after hitting haiti  - cnn

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Catherine E. Shoichet, Max Blau and Steve Almasy, CNN

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Hurricane Matthew pounds Cuba after drenching Haiti

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba. The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

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Google unveils their new line of smartphones and other gadgets, they call them "Pixel Smartphones"

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Get up to the minute entertainment news, celebrity interviews, celeb videos, photos, movies, TV, music news and pop culture on ABCNews.com.

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hurricane  hit Haiti and moving to Cuba

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba.

The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

Officials feared a high death toll in Haiti.

"We've already seen deaths. People who were out at sea. There are people who are missing. They are people who didn't respect the alerts. They've lost their lives," Interim Haitian President Jocelerme Privert said at a news conference.

Heavy rain throughout the day caused Haitian waterways to swell.

"The river has overflowed all around us," church pastor Louis St. Germain said. "It's terrible ... a total disaster."

St. Germain, who spoke to CNN on the phone from Les Cayes, Haiti, said the storm sheared a wall off his house and tore roofs off many buildings in the area.

And in a significant setback for emergency responders and aid relief efforts, the bridge that connected Port-au-Prince with southern Haiti collapsed.

There are reports of communications towers being affected by downed trees and officials are worried it will hamper the emergency response.

Matthew was moving across Cuba on its way to the Bahamas.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 7 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Up to 40 inches of rain could be dumped Haiti, which is still recovering from a devastating 2010 earthquake and a cholera outbreak.

River levels rise

Les Cayes Mayor Jean Gabriel Fortuné said Tuesday morning the storm was slamming into his city. He posted videos on social media that showed wind whipping through trees as heavy rains pelted people on the streets.

The United Nations mission in Haiti shared a photo of people wading through water in a flooded street there.

Witnesses also reported streets flooding in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Leogane was also hit hard.

Along the US East Coast governors in four states declared states of emergency and two told residents to prepare for possible evacuations. Florida Gov. Rick Scott was particularly blunt, telling residents to prepare for the state quite possibly taking a direct hit.

Death toll rising

Seven people have died in incidents connected to Hurricane Matthew within the past week, authorities said.

Four people in the Dominican Republic died, the government announced, without providing any details about how the victims passed away.

In Haiti, Guillaume Albert Moleon, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said one fisherman died on Sunday. A second fisherman is presumed dead, but the body has not been recovered.

In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, a teenager died in a landslide as he was cleaning a drain behind his house, according to Michelle Forbes, deputy director for the National Emergency Management Office. The boy died Wednesday after storms from Matthew passed.

The hurricane could cause further devastation for Haiti as much of the country's infrastructure remains weak after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

More than 300,000 people are in shelters across the country, the United Nations said.

After the storm clears Haiti, residents could face risks from another threat: standing water.

"That means a potential spike in cholera cases," said John Hasse, the humanitarian aid agency World Vision's national director in Haiti. "Other mosquito-borne diseases that have been more or less controlled are going to rear their heads."

Haiti is still recovering from a post-quake cholera outbreak that killed 10,000 people.

Collision course for Cuba

Forecasters said Matthew could dump up to 20 inches of rain in Cuba.

The United States, taking no chances, airlifted 700 family members of military personnel stationed at Guantanamo Bay to Florida. The 61 detainees held by the United States as alleged enemy combatants will not be evacuated, officials added.

After skirting Cuba, Matthew is expected to hit the Bahamas and turn toward the United States. It should lose some strength, but still have 115 mph winds.

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hurricane matthew update: storm smashes cuba after hitting haiti  - cnn

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Catherine E. Shoichet, Max Blau and Steve Almasy, CNN

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Hurricane Matthew pounds Cuba after drenching Haiti

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba. The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

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In 5 days its my best friend Anyse birthday

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clown sightings

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Police in several New Hampshire communities investigated reports of clown sightings on Monday night
Related: Report of armed clown at Massachusetts college was false, officials say
Durham police confirmed reports of a person dressed as a clown walking around the University of New Hampshire campus.
>> New England school district bans clown costumes
Police said the clown was reportedly using a megaphone but that no weapons were reported.
More: The creepiness of clowns, explained
UNH police checked the campus and Durham police checked outside the campus. Police said they received the report around 10 p.m.

Police in both Keene and Berlin said they too also investigated reports of clown sightings.

Chatter on social media indicated that clowns were spotted near Keene State College. Campus safety officials looked into the reports, but they said no credible information was found.

Clowns were also spotted in Orono, Maine, WMTW reported. The Orono Police Department said it was aware of sightings in the town Monday evening.

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Police investigate after multiple clown sightings reported in NH

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Police in several New Hampshire communities investigated reports of clown sightings on Monday night Related: Report of armed clown at Massachusetts college was false, officials say Durham police confirmed reports of a person dressed as a clown walking around the University of New Hampshire campus.

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Kmart could be closing for good. They could easily file bankrupt in 2017 or 2018

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How bad are things for troubled retailer Sears? Let me count the ways.

Sears stock has plunged more than 35% this year.

There are worries that Sears could file for bankruptcy in 2017 or 2018.

Chapter 11 rumors have plagued Sears for some time now. But the talk has resurfaced after ratings agency Fitch named Sears as one of several retailers that could soon default on its debt in a report last week.

Another credit ratings agency, Moody's, said in a report last month that it was particularly concerned about "the viability of the Kmart franchise."

Sears and Kmart merged in 2004 and the home of the Bluelight Special has mostly struggled ever since. There is even speculation that Sears may look to pull the plug on the Kmart franchise. Cue the "Rain Man" jokes.

But Sears CEO Eddie Lampert has had it with all the negative chatter. Lampert sought to reassure investors and customers on Monday in a post on the Sears corporate blog.

Lampert wrote that the frequent reports about Kmart's demise are "false and exaggerated." He added that "there are no plans and there have never been any plans to close the Kmart format." But he conceded that some unprofitable Kmart stores will be closed.

Related: Layoffs in aisle 4! Retailers are big job killers

Still, Lampert faces an uphill battle in convincing Wall Street and Main Street that Sears can be saved.

The company is predicting more red ink and analysts expect sales to keep declining at both the Sears and Kmart stores for the foreseeable future.

Sears said in May that it might even sell three of its most well-known brands -- Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard. The company said it was looking at strategic alternatives for its Home Services installation and repair businesses as well.

And Sears may be moving closer to a sale of some of these divisions. Shares of Sears surged 16% (tongue twister!) Tuesday after Bloomberg reported that Stanley Black & Decker was among the bidders for Craftsman.

Sears was once an icon of American retail. It was in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and lent its name to the famous tower in Chicago. But Sears was removed from the Dow in 1999 and that big building in the Windy City is now known as the Willis Tower.

The company is a shell of its former self. It has been closing Sears and Kmart stores as sales dwindle.

Sears spun off its Lands' End clothing business in 2014 -- although being free from Sears hasn't helped it. Lands' End shares are down 35% this year and not far from an all-time low.

Related: Sears may sell some of its iconic brands

Sears has also spun off its Canadian operations and created a separate public company for some of its real estate assets -- Seritage Growth Properties.

Sears Canada has plunged nearly 35% this year but Seritage is up about 25%. Interestingly, the famous value investor Warren Buffett personally owns a piece of Seritage. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway does not own a stake.

Why is Buffett intrigued? Many on Wall Street believe that the ultimate end game for Lampert is to sell off its real estate properties. There could still be value there.

Lampert cryptically teased the possibility of more real estate transactions in the blog post, writing that Sears had "an opportunity to create value" in the real estate assets "by monetizing them in a variety of ways."

But can financial engineering really save Sears and Kmart at a time when Amazon rules the retail roost and Walmart is staging a comeback?

Related: Why is Warren Buffett is betting on a Sears spinoff?

Lampert ended his letter by saying that "the retail environment generally has been challenging."

Sears may be a lost cause, and Lampert could be running out of time to convince investors and consumers otherwise.

But give Lampert some credit. He's kept the company afloat a lot longer than many had thought. I wrote a story about Sears bankruptcy rumors with the headline of "Tears for Sears" (I'm a child of the 80s. Sue me.) back in January -- of 2012.

CNNMoney (New York) First published October 4, 2016: 9:28 AM ET

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Sears CEO Eddie Lampert denied rumors that the retailer will shut down its Kmart stores. But Sears and Kmart are still struggling. And Lampert may be running out of time to convince Wall Street and Main Street that Sears can be saved.

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Mayor Charles Wasco won't stop posting racist Obama memes.

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Professional Skateboarders Shane O'Neil and Lacey Baker won 2016 SLS Nike SB Super Crown World Championship. Contest was in Los Angeles, California. Both winners of this years competition won a $200,000. prize, a solid gold trophy and two custom Nixon watches that added up to $36,000.

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Shane O'Neill put on quite the performance to win this year's SLS Super Crown World Championship. He did some of the most technical tricks that have ever been done in an SLS contest. And his points reflected that. He was on fire yesterday at the Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles. And there couldn't have been a better way to cap off his year. After winning Tampa Pro and the SLS Pro Open in Barcelona, Shane's 2016 Super Crown World Championship is the icing on the cake.

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Shane O'Neill put on quite the performance to win this year's SLS Super Crown World Championship. He did some of the most technical tricks that have ever been done in an SLS contest. And his points reflected that. He was on fire yesterday at the Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles.

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Bill Clinton calls Obama care crazy and says our current system works fine.

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Speaking at a Democratic rally in Flint, Michigan, the former president ripped into the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for flooding the health care insurance market and causing premiums to rise for middle-class Americans who do not qualify for subsidies.

"So you've got this crazy system where all of a sudden 25 million more people have health care and then the people who are out there busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week, wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. It's the craziest thing in the world," Clinton said.

On Tuesday, he tried to clean up his criticism.

"Look, the Affordable Health Care Act did a world of good, and the 50-something efforts to repeal it that the Republicans have staged were a terrible mistake," Clinton said at a rally in Athens, Ohio. "We, for the first time in our history, at least are providing insurance to more than 90% of our people."

"But there is a group of people -- mostly small business owners and employees -- who make just a little too much money to qualify for Medicaid expansion or for the tax incentives who can't get affordable health insurance premiums in a lot of places. And the reason is they're not in big pools," Clinton said. "So they have no bargaining power."

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said Tuesday he bet Clinton "went through hell last night" with his wife, then added: "Honestly, there have been many nights when he's gone through hell with Hillary."

Bill Clinton, whose efforts with his wife to overhaul health care in the 1990s were stymied by a recalcitrant Congress and the insurance lobby, told the crowd the insurance model "doesn't make sense" and "doesn't work here."

Touting his wife's proposal to allow people without access to subsidies to buy into Medicare and Medicaid, he also acknowledged that market-based solutions would not solve the country's problems with insurance costs and coverage.

"On the other hand, the current system works fine if you're eligible for Medicaid, if you're a lower-income working person; if you're already on Medicare, or if you get enough subsidies on a modest income that you can afford your health care," Clinton said. "But the people that are getting killed in this deal are small business people and individuals who make just a little too much to get any of these subsidies."

Angel Urena, Clinton's press secretary, defended the former president's stance on Obamacare on Tuesday, saying he had consistently supported the legislation since it was enacted in 2010.

"President Clinton spoke about the importance of the ACA and the good it has done to expand coverage for millions of Americans. And while he was slightly short-handed, it's clear to everyone, including President Obama, that improvements are needed," Urena said in a statement.

The White House said again Tuesday there were changes they would like to see made to the ACA.

"President Obama has of course acknowledged that with cooperation from Democrats and Republicans in Congress, there are some things that could be done to further strengthen the law. That's something that Sec. Clinton has vowed to pursue if she is elected President of the United States," press secretary Josh Earnest said in a briefing.

But he insisted Obamacare remains a top accomplishment of the president's tenure.

"The Affordable Care Act continues to be a source of pride for people who work here in the administration in terms of that significant legislative accomplishment. That's essentially our position," Earnest said. "You'd have to talk to President Clinton about exactly what message he was trying to send."

When asked whether the former president went too far in his criticism against the ACA, Earnest responded he's "not sure what argument (Clinton) was making."

And when asked if he wished Clinton hadn't used "crazy" or "craziest" to describe Obamacare, Earnest said, "Of course."

CNN's Athena Jones, Kevin Liptak, Michelle Kosinski, Daniella Diaz and Allie Malloy contributed to this report.

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bill clinton calls obamacare 'the craziest thing in the world

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' later tries to walk it back - cnnpolitics

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Bill Clinton calls Obamacare 'the craziest thing in the world,' later tries to walk it back

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Bill Clinton criticized President Barack Obama's signature policy reform Monday while on the stump for his wife, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, calling Obamacare "the craziest thing in the world." But he attempted to temper his criticism at a Tuesday rally.

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Hurricane Matthew makes landfall in Haiti and Florida has been taking Hurricane Matthew very seriously and has been keeping up on all of the details and preparing everybody for the storm.

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Hurricane Matthew rebounded into a powerful Category 4 storm early Thursday as winds began battering Florida's east coast.

In their 11 a.m. advisory, the National Hurricane Center reported sustained winds speeds at 140 mph. Located about 180 miles southeast of Miami, the storm was moving northwest at 14 mph. The fierce storm, now between Andros Island and Nassau, will likely continue moving north, northwest today and swing close or strike Florida Friday.

Hurricane force winds extend about 120 miles across the monster storm, with tropical storm force winds covering about 320 miles.

Across South Florida, winds started picking up as Matthew drew closer. Preparations remained hit or miss despite urgent warnings from authorities over the last few days.

Up and down Southwest Eighth Street, many shops and restaurants - the Latin American Cafe, Ace Hardware and Rey's Pizza - were business as usual. Workers mid morning were busy shuttering Pego Lamps. Thursday's long gas lines had mostly vanished. In Miami Shores, Eli Bru-Garcia and her father Jaime Bru were doing what they do every morning: jogging along the bay. They did not shutter their home.

From downtown Miami, through Belle Meade and Morningside and up to Aventura, very few homes and businesses were shuttered. Some stores were open, mainly drug and liquor and grocery stores and gas stations.

Otherwise, people seemed to be taking advantage of a day off work.

"I'm not scared. Not here," said tech worker Alex Macedo, 40, as he tossed coconuts to his dog. "I think if you're up north you should be concerned." In a morning briefing, Gov. Rick Scott said 58 shelters were open across the state Thursday, with another 84 scheduled to open.

About 3,000 residents have already evacuated. Scott also activated 2,500 National Guard troops, who had positioned 150 trucks carrying water and enough food for more than 10,000 around the state. Search and rescue teams are on standby in West Palm Beach and Orlando, said Air Force Maj. Caitlin Brown of the Florida National Guard. Other troops were at Camp Blanding near Starke, Fla.

The Guard also has nearly 2,500 "high water vehicles," eight helicopters, 17 boats and more than 700 generators that could be used in emergency operations, she added. Mandatory evacuations have been ordered along the coast of Brevard and Palm Beach counties, and voluntary evacuations in Broward County. In Miami-Dade, state officials recommended that people who live in mobile home parks also move to safer shelter.

At Miami International Airport, about 90 percent of the daily flights were cancelled. Some flights will continue through noon and airport officials said early Thursday they don't expect to close the airport.

In Miami-Dade, police put staff on standby but said street patrols are generally suspended when winds reach 40 mph. The county's solid waste department cancelled pick-ups, but urged residents to secure bins.

In Broward County, which has an 80 percent chance of getting slammed by tropical storm force winds, authorities were bracing for heavy winds to begin in the early afternoon with hurricane force winds starting around 6 or 7 p.m., said Broward Sheriff Office Fire Chief Joseph Fernandez.

"Stay in doors -- hazardous conditions will come very soon," he said at a 10 a.m. press briefing at the county's Emergency Operations Center in Plantation.

The number of people in shelters fell from a high of 2,200 Wednesday night to about 1,900 this morning. Emergency rooms also reported an uptick in minor injuries from storm preparations. Well before the doors opened to a Fort Lauderdale shelter Wednesday night, a crowd began gathering, toting suitcases, pillows and bags of prescription medication. Most said they lived on the city's east side, in Matthew's possible path.

Some were homeless with no other place to go, others living in homes that didn't have the right protections.

I am homeless. There is no way I can ride out a Category 3 or 4 outside," said Ken Roberts, 59, a U.S. Army veteran who came to Fort Lauderdale from Asheville, NC last year. "I would not make it." Further up the coast, where Matthew may make landfall, beachgoers were taking a last look before winds pick up despite mandatory evacuation orders.

"We wanted to see the beach before it all goes away," said David Weinstein, 58, as he watched waves from the beach in Melbourne. The retired Navy sailor lives on the barrier island but is staying in a hotel on the mainland.

Local college student, Jian Ma, 24, snapped shots with his digital camera of the birds frolicking in the rising surf. "This is frightening - and exciting," Ma said. Most gawkers took selfies as a TV camera crew took their shots. One woman strapped an iPhone to her baseball cap to better take video. A few dipped in the stirring waters, while others scooped up sand for sandbags.

Gary Scannelli, 58, boarded up his townhouse three blocks from the beach, where he plans to stay with his wife and two Chihuahuas. This is his first hurricane for the New Jersey transplant and his neighbors assured him their block would survive. They stocked up on water and boxed wine. "It seems to be easier than leaving. Hotels are booked all the way through Tampa," he said.

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Staff writers Audra Burch, Chuck Rabin, Carol Rosenberg, Chabelli Herrera, Amy Sherman and Julie K. Brown contributed to this report.

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Hurricane Matthew up to Cat 4, and winds are whipping South Florida

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Hurricane Matthew rebounded into a powerful Category 4 storm early Thursday as winds began battering Florida's east coast. In their 11 a.m. advisory, the National Hurricane Center reported sustained winds speeds at 140 mph. Located about 180 miles southeast of Miami, the storm was moving northwest at 14 mph.

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Hurricane Matthew lashes Haiti,and heads towards Cuba

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba.

The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

Officials feared a high death toll in Haiti.

"We've already seen deaths. People who were out at sea. There are people who are missing. They are people who didn't respect the alerts. They've lost their lives," Interim Haitian President Jocelerme Privert said at a news conference.

Heavy rain throughout the day caused Haitian waterways to swell.

"The river has overflowed all around us," church pastor Louis St. Germain said. "It's terrible ... a total disaster."

St. Germain, who spoke to CNN on the phone from Les Cayes, Haiti, said the storm sheared a wall off his house and tore roofs off many buildings in the area.

And in a significant setback for emergency responders and aid relief efforts, the bridge that connected Port-au-Prince with southern Haiti collapsed.

There are reports of communications towers being affected by downed trees and officials are worried it will hamper the emergency response.

Matthew was moving across Cuba on its way to the Bahamas.

The Category 4 hurricane made landfall near Les Anglais, Haiti, around 7 a.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Up to 40 inches of rain could be dumped Haiti, which is still recovering from a devastating 2010 earthquake and a cholera outbreak.

River levels rise

Les Cayes Mayor Jean Gabriel Fortuné said Tuesday morning the storm was slamming into his city. He posted videos on social media that showed wind whipping through trees as heavy rains pelted people on the streets.

The United Nations mission in Haiti shared a photo of people wading through water in a flooded street there.

Witnesses also reported streets flooding in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Leogane was also hit hard.

Along the US East Coast governors in four states declared states of emergency and two told residents to prepare for possible evacuations. Florida Gov. Rick Scott was particularly blunt, telling residents to prepare for the state quite possibly taking a direct hit.

Death toll rising

Seven people have died in incidents connected to Hurricane Matthew within the past week, authorities said.

Four people in the Dominican Republic died, the government announced, without providing any details about how the victims passed away.

In Haiti, Guillaume Albert Moleon, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said one fisherman died on Sunday. A second fisherman is presumed dead, but the body has not been recovered.

In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, a teenager died in a landslide as he was cleaning a drain behind his house, according to Michelle Forbes, deputy director for the National Emergency Management Office. The boy died Wednesday after storms from Matthew passed.

The hurricane could cause further devastation for Haiti as much of the country's infrastructure remains weak after the 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

More than 300,000 people are in shelters across the country, the United Nations said.

After the storm clears Haiti, residents could face risks from another threat: standing water.

"That means a potential spike in cholera cases," said John Hasse, the humanitarian aid agency World Vision's national director in Haiti. "Other mosquito-borne diseases that have been more or less controlled are going to rear their heads."

Haiti is still recovering from a post-quake cholera outbreak that killed 10,000 people.

Collision course for Cuba

Forecasters said Matthew could dump up to 20 inches of rain in Cuba.

The United States, taking no chances, airlifted 700 family members of military personnel stationed at Guantanamo Bay to Florida. The 61 detainees held by the United States as alleged enemy combatants will not be evacuated, officials added.

After skirting Cuba, Matthew is expected to hit the Bahamas and turn toward the United States. It should lose some strength, but still have 115 mph winds.

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hurricane matthew update: storm smashes cuba after hitting haiti  - cnn

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Catherine E. Shoichet, Max Blau and Steve Almasy, CNN

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Hurricane Matthew pounds Cuba after drenching Haiti

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The damage was especially brutal in southern Haiti, where sustained winds of 130 mph continued to punish the impoverished island nation even as the eye of the storm crossed eastern Cuba. The "extremely dangerous" storm has killed at least seven people, including four in Haiti's neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

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Gloria Naylor dies, author of 'The Woman of Brewster Place'. At age 66. Wrote the stories chronicling the experiences of black women in the 1980's and 1990's.

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Naylor said she became a writer because she felt the perspectives of black women like herself were underrepresented in America literature. News of her death drew tributes from authors including Terry McMillan, who urged followers to "read everything Gloria Naylor has ever written."

Her debut novel in 1982, "The Women of Brewster Place," follows seven black women in an urban housing project through the trials and triumphs of friendship, family, sexual identity and violence.

The novel won the 1983 National Book Award for First Fiction and was adapted into a television miniseries by Oprah Winfrey's production company in 1989 starring Winfrey, Cicely Tyson and Robin Givens.

"I wanted to write a book that would reflect the diversity and the richness of the black female experience in America -- and no one woman could do that for me, and no one geographical location could do that for me," she said in an interview with the National Book Foundation. "That's when the idea got born that Brewster Place would be a microcosm of American society, that on that street would come all of these different women, and what they would share would be that wall."

Her subsequent novels, including "Linden Hills," "Mama Day," and "Bailey's Cafe," not only earned her a place in the vanguard of black feminist writers but also established her reputation as a voice of American literature.

Born in New York in 1950, Naylor was a part of a family that encouraged reading and writing. The library was her "refuge," and she went through all the books there in alphabetical order, she told NBF.

"But in all of my early reading, I was never given anything to read that had been written by black Americans, and I believed for years that black people didn't write books. No one ever said that to me -- as a matter of fact, in 1950, the same year I was born, Gwendolyn Brooks won the Pulitzer Prize -- but books by black authors weren't on my high school curriculum and their books weren't in my library. I read nothing that reflected me," she said.

Because she had a hard time expressing herself, her mother bought her a diary when she was 12. She filled it up in three months and moved on to the extra paper in her notebook, jotting down vignettes in the style of "Twilight Zone," and she never stopped.

The journal writing inspired the confessional tone of "The Women of Brewster Place," which she began writing as a literature student at Brooklyn College, borrowing bits and pieces from her life, including the names of two characters, Luciela and Mae Johnson, borrowed from her grandmother and great-aunt. By the late 1970s, she had published stories in Essence magazine that later became part of "Brewster Place."

She earned her M.A. from Yale University in 1983, the same year "The Women of Brewster Place" was published. By then, she had discovered the works of Toni Morrison and Alice Walker and Ntozake Shange.

"Then I got into the room where I belonged, with all of these foremothers, and I said, well, maybe I can tell my story, too," she told NBF.

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gloria naylor dies; author of 'the women of brewster place' - cnn

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Naylor said she became a writer because she felt the perspectives of black women like herself were underrepresented in America literature. News of her death drew tributes from authors including Terry McMillan, who urged followers to "read everything Gloria Naylor has ever written."

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In San Francisco, Today Google will unveil a series of products, including two new phones, a virtual reality headset and the Chromecast Ultra.
Google is about to unveil their new phones "Pixel"
The flagship announcement was the introduction of Pixel, the first Google phone to carry exclusively Google branding. The company called it the "first phone made by Google inside and out." The device is poised to take on the iPhone with a built-in artificially intelligent assistant, 4K video and other bells and whistles.
Pixel comes in two sizes, 5” or 5.5”, and three colors: Very Silver, Quite Black and our limited edition for the U.S. only, Really Blue.
Available for pre-order today starting at $649

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It's a big day for Google.

Looking to drum up consumer excitement, the tech company hosted an event in San Francisco on Tuesday to unveil a series of products, including two new phones, a virtual reality headset and the Chromecast Ultra.

The flagship announcement was the introduction of Pixel, the first Google phone to carry exclusively Google branding. The company called it the "first phone made by Google inside and out."

The device is poised to take on the iPhone with a built-in artificially intelligent assistant, 4K video and other bells and whistles.

Here's a closer look at everything you need to know:

Pixel smartphones

Google announced a new Pixel line of phones -- the 5-inch Pixel ($649) and 5.5-inch Pixel XL ($769). The prices are the same as the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus.

The devices boast 4GB of RAM, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor, a fingerprint sensor and a 12MP rear-facing camera.

The phones drop its existing Nexus branding in favor of "Pixel," a nod to Google's existing tablet and Chromebook line. Both run on Android 7.1 Nougat, Google's most recent mobile operating system.

The devices come with a built-in AI assistant, Google Assistant. The company demonstrated how the AI software can make a reservation for you right from the device and complete other tasks.

Pixel has a pretty sweet perk for photo fans, too: Users will get free unlimited storage of photos and videos -- something Apple would be wise to consider in the future.

The devices, which are available for pre-sale starting on Tuesday, come in three colors: quite black, very silver and really blue.

Chromecast Ultra

Google unveiled its next-generation content streaming device, the Chromecast Ultra. The gadget, which has sold 30 million units to date, supports 4K streaming. Chromecast Ultra will be available for $69 this fall.

Google's popular Chromecast device plugs into your TV through an HDMI port and can stream content from your computer or mobile device.

Daydream

Google also showed off its new virtual reality headset for mobile devices, Daydream View. The viewer holds a smartphone, while the user has a hand-held remote to control what's happening on screen.

The Pixel phones are the first Daydream-ready devices. But there are a lot more on the way from partners, according to Google's Clay Bavor.

It will be available in slate, snow and crimson colors, and cost $79 when it launches in November.

Daydream is launching with over 50 partners and a slew of games. The company is also working with Warner Brothers to bring immersive environments to the device, and the headset will support Netflix, HBO and Hulu.

Google isn't necessarily trying to compete with Oculus' VR hardware ($599) or the HTC Vive ($799). Both of those systems, favored by gamers and early VR adopters, are for immersive VR experiences and require PCs.

Instead, the company will target casual VR consumers who have -- or will buy -- Android smartphones running Nougat. Its closest competitor could be the Samsung Gear VR headset ($99), built for Samsung Galaxy devices and powered by Oculus.

Google Wi-Fi

Google is also touting a new router and Wi-Fi manager to adjust the internet connection in the home. Google WiFi automatically finds the strongest Wi-Fi point if you move around in your home. It also comes with an app, so you can -- for example -- turn Wi-Fi off when it's time for dinner.

Google Home

We got a sneak peek at Google Home -- Google's voice-controlled smart speaker -- back in May, but Google has finally shared more details about the gadget.

To start, the device is priced at $129 -- about $50 cheaper than the Amazon Echo. It has a slight leg up from Amazon's speaker too: Google Home pulls from the 70 billion facts the company has logged throughout the years.

It comes loaded with Google Assistant -- the company's software that searches for answers, schedules meetings, adjusts your calendar and controls smart home devices such as Philips Hue lights and Nest thermostats (both companies are launch partners).

To activate Google Home, you'll need to say "OK, Google" -- the same keyword that activates Google Now on Android.

It's available for pre-order in the U.S. now and will launch with a free six-month trial of YouTube Red.

CNNMoney (San Francisco) First published October 4, 2016: 11:51 AM ET

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Google unveils its Pixel smartphone and VR headset

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Looking to drum up consumer excitement, the tech company hosted an event in San Francisco on Tuesday to unveil a series of products, including two new phones, a virtual reality headset and the Chromecast Ultra. The flagship announcement was the introduction of Pixel, the first Google phone to carry exclusively Google branding.

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Mr. Kohl- Welcome to the Vice Presidential debate. Tonight, Gov. Mike Pence (IN), who’s on Team Trump, and Sen. Tim Kaine (VA), who’s on Team Clinton, will be playing defense for their running mates.

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Mr. Kohl- Welcome to the Vice Presidential debate. Tonight, Gov. Mike Pence (IN), who’s on Team Trump, and Sen. Tim Kaine (VA), who’s on Team Clinton, will be playing defense for their running mates.