The Kansas City Star
Israel agrees to talks with Lebanon after continued attacks
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel vowed Thursday to continue striking Hezbollah in Lebanon, hours after he appeared to make a concession by saying his country would start talks with the Lebanese government about trying to disarm the...
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Fragile ceasefire takes hold as Iran, US both claim victory
The United States and Iran announced a two-week ceasefire and plans to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday evening, hours before a deadline set by President Donald Trump, who had threatened to destroy Iran’s “whole civilization” unless it...
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Artemis II heads for Earth and Trump congratulates crew
The crew of Artemis II flew farther from Earth than any human in history, saw parts of the moon never seen before and spoke with President Donald Trump as they took a turn for their return flight home. “Today you’ve made history and made all America...
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Love and unity on display at Parade of Hearts’ 2026 showcase
The Parade of Hearts were gathered in full force Saturday, April 4, in Overland Park before the sculptures get shipped away to their destinations across Kansas City and the surrounding area. Out of 700 applicants, 150 applicants were selected , and...
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Second downed US pilot rescued from Iran, Trump says
U.S. forces have rescued the second of two missing airmen who were shot down over Iran, President Donald Trump announced Sunday. “WE GOT HIM!” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform, adding that the “serious wounded” airman, whom he...
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Smithville community helps businesses destroyed by fire
A day after flames and smoke ravaged through a Smithville strip mall, a smattering of fallen bricks marked with ash, piles of charred wood and burnt beams now sit where five local businesses once stood. The remnants of Monday’s blaze sat largely...
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Black creators are reshaping cosplay culture in Kansas City
Over the weekend, thousands of fans filled the halls of Planet Comic Con Kansas City, moving between panels, vendor booths and clusters of costumed characters brought to life from screens and pages. Among them, Black cosplayers made up a smaller share...
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‘New old offering’: Screenland brings back film projectors
Screenland Armour owner Adam Roberts said he grew up watching movies on film until the late 2000s to early 2010s, when digital made its mandatory way into theaters. When he took over Screenbring land in 2012, film was dying, and the North Kansas City...
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Kansas City Symphony to build new concert hall in Plaza area
The Kansas City Symphony plans to break ground on a new Plaza-area concert venue in 2026. The music hall, located on the vacant land to the south of the Kansas City Public Library’s Plaza branch, will seat 4,600 for touring concerts and film with live...
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Iran sends US warning over troops on ground
A senior Iranian official has warned Tehran will set U.S. troops “on fire” and attack American allies in the Middle East if the White House puts ground troops onto Iranian soil. Iran’s military is “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the...
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Why small Johnson County bar keeps earning national acclaim
Listed on the bottom right corner of Drastic Measures’ menu is the College Dropout, a glowing yellow cocktail served in a coupe glass. It’s a woodsy drink with St. George Terroir gin (which has the flavor profile of a Douglas fir), absinthe, lime and...
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Iran dismisses ceasefire offer but signals openness to talks
Iran on Wednesday publicly dismissed President Donald Trump’s proposal for a ceasefire, with a military spokesperson and a report in state media insisting that the conflict would end only on Iran’s terms. Iranian officials have neversaid theless...
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Open kitchen fosters fellowship between Anjin staff, diners
During dinner service one evening at Crossroads restaurant Anjin, chef de cuisine Sam Edelson cranked the sound system as the Backstreet Boys began to sing. The voices of cooks and customers arose to harmonize with Nick Carter. Soon enough, the entire...
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Self unsure if he’ll return as KU basketball coach
Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self says he’s not yet made up his mind on whether he’ll coach a 24th season in Lawrence. The 63-year-old Hall of Famer explained his thoughts on his future after the Jayhawks’ 67-65 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 loss...
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Fans whose home was gutted by fire get artist’s Chiefs mural
The last year hasn’t been the best for Ed and Mary Ellen Hughes. A year of inconvenience, they call it. Three days before St. Patrick’s Day last year, fire ravaged the home where they have lived more than 23 years on a cul-defans sac in Liberty. They...
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Longtime KC civil rights leader, Gwen Grant, to retire in 2027
After nearly 30 years leading the Urban League of Greater Kansas City and being the mouthpiece shouting down injustice and threats of any kind to the rights of Black Kansas Citians and the historically marginalized, Gwendolyn Grant has announced she is...
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KC Bolivian immigrant named 2026 James Beard semifinalist
No two nights at Fern Bar are the same. That’s bar manager Diana Condori’s goal, anyway. If conversations between tables are bubbling over like Prosecco, and laughter is flowing freely like wine, she’ll crank the volume to a pop playlist and watch...
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Morton Amphitheater opening in June with busy concert lineup
What was once 165 acres of land in Riverside is just a few months away from hosting national touring acts and thousands of fans inside a brandnew outdoor concert venue. Constructions crews are closer to the completion of Morton Amphitheater, a...
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Atlas 9’s ‘surprise elements’ drew world-class dancer to KC
Atlas 9’s found its footing in Kansas City since opening in September 2025. More pieces to the 90s-themed interactive movie theater have been added since, inviting guests to unlock the secrets behind the films coming to life. It was also named the...
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Pentagon IDs 6 service members killed in refueling mission
The Department of Defense has identified the six U.S. service members killed during a refueling mission as part of the Iran war as three members of an Air Force refueling wing and three from the Ohio Air National Guard. The six crew members were...
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Kansas and Missouri agencies partner with ICE under Trump
A Christmas Eve drive in southwest Missouri was the last time two Guatemalan men living in Branson were free from the grasp of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That morning, cars streamed down I-44 outside of Springfield, taking in the...
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Leavenworth approves CoreCivic’s ICE detention center
Within days, immigrants arrested by federal authorities could find themselves locked inside CoreCivic’s razor wireringed concrete prison on the outskirts of Leavenworth. A multi-year campaign to reopen the shuttered facility as an ICE detention center...
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Kelce’s return cause to celebrate; how much depends on this
Even in the twilight of his career, the return of megastar Travis Kelce is an obvious cause for celebration for the Chiefs and their fans. The charismatic and intense Kelce embodies and even animates the culture of the Andy Reid-era Chiefs,...
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Renderings show plan for park atop South Loop highway downtown
A high-profile project that’s been in the works for years is close to reality in downtown Kansas City, but some council members are taking a critical eye before construction starts this summer. Officials presented the City Council with an update about...
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Trump witnesses return of bodies of US service members
President Donald Trump watched as the remains of the first American service members killed in the U.S. war with Iran arrived in the United States on Saturday afternoon at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The six Americans were Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien;...
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Iconic restaurant’s new vision is ‘Dear’ to owners’ hearts
James Beard-nominated chefs Johnny and Helen Jo Leach know full-well what Happy Gillis meant to the community. Craving breakfast this summer, the Leach family headed down to 549 Gillis St. for a bite with their daughter (it was her request, actually)....
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160-pound tuna cutting turns dinner into cultural experience
More than 70 people filled KC Craft Ramen on Monday night, crowding around tables and lining the walls. They were not there for ramen. At the center of the room sat a 160-pound bluefin tuna stretched across a prep table, its silvery body nearly...
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War expands as US, Israel, Iran ramp up regional strikes
U.S.-Israeli war on Iran reverberated across the region for a fourth day, with oil and gas prices surging and the world adjusting to a conflict that President Donald Trump says has no fixed timeline. Iran sent a fresh wave of missiles at countries...
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Johnson County’s best restaurant may be in a shopping center
a page in Swetha Newcomb’s childhood diary, second-grade script foretells her future. “I can’t wait till I’m older, and I can walk up and down in my restaurant in my fancy outfit,” wrote her younger self. Now 31, Newcomb’s words from long ago paint a...
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KC Curling Club sees surge in interest post-Olympics
By day, DeeAnn Wlodarski is an award-winning teacher at Grandview Middle School. In her spare time, for the last 10 years, she has served as president of the Kansas City Curling Club. So she has seen this phenomenon before. Every four years when the...
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KC hip-hop artists are changing the game
Jamel Thompson, known to his fans as The Royal Chief, has hosted many music release parties in his over more than a decade as a hip-hop artist. But on Feb. 12, he debuted a different creation — beer. The Kansas City native partnered with Vine Street...
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KC couple experiences ‘El Mencho’ mayhem in Puerto Vallarta
When my wife, Cindy, and I decided 10 years ago to seek out February weather relief, we sought tropical climates and places that looked peaceful yet energizing without being overrun by spring breakers. Puerto Vallarta seemed to have exactly what we...
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Savannah Guthrie offers $1M for tip leading to mom’s return
Television news anchor Savannah Guthrie said Tuesday that her family is offering up to $1 million for information that leads to finding her mother, Nancy, who was abducted from her home more than three weeks ago. Guthrie, a “Today” show host, made the...
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Data center encroaches on Independence couple’s dream life
and Howard Hoff like to describe their 8-acre property on Bly Road in eastern Independence — a former working cattle farm anchored by a stately house — as “a slice of heavard en.” When the Hoffs’ son was younger, his baseball team would practice in...
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Famous KCK diner changes hands after 50 years
For days, a line has snaked outside a beloved diner famous for their pork tenderloin sandwiches in Kansas City, Kansas, after the restaurant announced it was changing ownership. Christy’s Tasty Queen owners Lowell Christy and Marla Christy, both 79,...
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Discovering the Black engineering greats behind KC’s biggest landmarks
For many residents in Kansas City, the name Taliaferro & Browne may not ring any bells. But if you have taken a stroll through the riverfront, driven into the stadiums, went to a concert or caught a flight out of town, you are already unknowingly...
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Needlepoint shop brings hub of creativity to downtown Parkville
Hidden behind overgrown trees and bushes, a little pink house with chipped paint and a yard full of fallen leaves sat untouched for years, often overlooked by passersby and downtown Parkville shoppers. But beyond the unruly tree limbs and unswept...
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Influential civil rights icon twice sought presidency
The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, the Chicago-based Baptist minister, political figure and two-time presidential candidate whose soaring oratory and knack for capturing media attention made him a central figure in the Civil Rights Movement and national...
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KC-area dancer was in Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl show
Independence-born dancer Logan Lanigan celebrated her 24th birthday last week in a big way: by performing alongside the most-streamed musician in the world. She was one of many dancers on the field during the Super Bowl LX halftime show perthe formed...
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Unknown DNA found on Nancy Guthrie’s property, SUV impounded
Investigators announced finding DNA evidence on the property of Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson home that does not belong to her or anyone close to her, in addition to impounding a Range Rover SUV on Saturday. No arrests have been made in the case two weeks...
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New KC bar built on unusual pairing: wine and bourbon
Husband and wife Howard Turley and Laura Turley have opened a new type of bar in Kansas City — one that pairs bourbon and wine. But it’s not a place to feel intimidated if bourbon isn’t your forte. Nestled in Waldo at 404 W. 75th St., Audrey’s Wine...
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Sinkhole turns couple’s Independence dream home into nightmare
When Cassandra Krul first laid eyes on her century-old Independence home, it was love at first sight. She and her husband Keenan Massey previously lived in an apartment in Mission, Kansas, and had been shopping around for a while when they came upon...
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Go behind the scenes of The Star’s photo archive at free event
For more than 145 years, The Star has created the first draft of Kansas City history, from the development of the park system to the upcoming World Cup. As the city’s paper of record, The Star has decades of arAfter chives that tell the stories of...
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‘People seem to love it’: KC creator finds success in ceramics
Butler, 30, who goes by Lila with her family, never considered herself a creative person before she started her art business, LilasClayground. “I do this all by myself. I don’t have any employees; the exception (is) my dad coming to help me pack...
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KC advances plan to privatize Plaza’s sidewalks
Kansas City is one step closer to giving up control of public sidewalks on the Country Club Plaza. Gillon Property Group, the firm that owns much of the property in the Plaza’s core, is seeking to take responsibility for the sidewalks around its...
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Housing plan in downtown KC could add 26-story tower
ambitious project in Kansas City could fill two vacant office buildings with hundreds of housing units while remaking the downtown skyline. Arnold Development Group has proposed remaking the area around 9th and Central streets, in the downtown loop,...
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Homan says he is pulling 700 agents out of Minneapolis
Tom Homan, the White House border czar, said Wednesday that the federal government would immediately withdraw 700 law enforcement officers from Minneapolis, scaling down the Trump administration’s immigration crackofficials down in the area. The...
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113-year-old KC building off Troost Ave. could get new life
A distinctive vacant brick building off Troost Avenue in Kansas City could be saved and once again house neighbors and local business. The owners of what’s known as the Bancroft Apartments, 4301 Troost Ave., are seeking local historic status for the...
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Community fights to feature a local artist in 18th & Vine project
On the north face of a new parking garage rising at 18th Street and Lydia Avenue, Kansas City has reserved a blank rectangle nearly the height of a three-story building, 29 feet tall by 20 feet wide. The space is slated for a permanent, wallbased...
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Federal judge decides not to block ICE surge in Minnesota
federal judge in Minnesota denied a request by the state government and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul on Saturday to temporarily block a surge of federal immigration agents that has led to three shootings, thousands of arrests and weeks of...
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Homan says crackdown could ease with more access to jails
Tom Homan, President Donald Trump’s border czar, said Thursday that the immigration crackdown in Minnesota could wind down if federal agents gained broader access to state jails, amid public outrage over the administration’s policies. “The withdrawal...
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Liberty High students raise voices in walkout to protest ICE
Standing in the freezing cold on the snow-covered football field Tuesday morning, dozens of students at Liberty High School chanted “ICE out now” in unison and raised handmade signs bearing pro-immigration messages, bible verses and lines from the...
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Doughnut fans line up at new storefront for Slow Rise
What are you willing to brave single-digit temperatures to stand in line for? For most people, that list is fairly short. But when The Star arrived at Slow Rise’s new brick and mortar just after its opening time, the store was already full, and a line...
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Construction underway in Westport to improve infrastructure
Where you used to park at the Westport Sun Fresh is now a gaping hole in the ground. The ditch that’s up to 19 feet deep dwarfs the heavy machinTurning ery inside of it. The construction worker at the bottom looks like an orange dot, and the sound of...
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Major storm blasts through eastern US
A major winter storm dumped heavy snow in the northeastern United States on Sunday as it moved eastward, threatening to disrupt transportation and daily life in New York and other major cities. Five people were found dead in New York City on Saturday,...
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Hundreds protest votes on abortion, sick leave, more
of people from Kansas City and across Missouri packed into the Missouri Capitol on Wednesday to protest a series of recent legislative attacks on direct and representative deapproved mocracy. The protest, organized by a range of local activist groups,...
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For $4.75 million, this 4-floor condo in downtown KC could be yours
You’ve probably seen the Kansas City skyline hundreds of times. But have you ever dreamed about living in one of the buildings that’s a part of it? This spring, that could be a reality for someone new. A multimillion dollar Kansas City condo in the...
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Arthur Bryant’s, after flooding and a redo, is open again
After being closed for close to two months, a Kansas City barbecue restaurant of more than a century is serving the public again. Arthur Bryant’s threw open its doors Friday at 1727 Brooklyn Ave., welcoming a steady stream of burnt...
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AT KANSAS CITY MLK DAY EVENT, VOLUNTEERS SERVE THOSE IN NEED
U. S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver shows off a new face sticker placed on his face by Lyla Ligon, 8, at Cleaver Family YMCA in Kansas City on Monday, January 19, 2026. Cleaver II was in attendance to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day as hundreds of...
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1,500 troops told to prepare for possible Minn. deployment
The Defense Department has told 1,500 active-duty troops to prepare for a possible deployment to Minnesota, where President Donald Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act as a response to protests there against the killing of a Minneapolis...
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Lawyers for Renee Good’s family plan to investigate shooting
Lawyers representing the family of Renee Nicole Good, the woman killed by a federal immigration agent in Minneapolis last week, announced on Wednesday that they were pursuing what they described as a civil investigation of the shooting. The law firm...
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Fire destroys Tonganoxie diner and a lot of family history
Polley’s heart sank as she pulled into downtown Tonganoxie Friday night. Flames were shooting out of Flashbacks, her family’s beloved small-town diner, and there was nothing to do but watch as the building — part restaurant, part local history...
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Anti-ICE protests spread nationwide
Mounting outrage over an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent’s killing of a woman in Minneapolis spilled into streets across the country Saturday, as crowds of protesters mobilized against what they called the excesses of the Trump...
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Minn. officials kept out of ICE shooting investigation
A top state law enforcement official said Thursday that federal agencies were denying Minnesota investigators access to evidence from a fatal shootCriminal ing by an immigration enforcement officer the day before, preventing them from participating in...
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After 47 years, retiring is bittersweet for La Fonda owners
Maria Medina Chaurand hears it often inside her restaurant. Customers will sip spoonfuls of menudo, or scarf down steaming fajitas, and proclaim: “This reminds me of the food my mother used to make.” The cumulative weight of those statements make...
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Maduro tells US judge he was ‘kidnapped’
Nicolás Maduro, the ousted Venezuelan president, and his wife pleaded not guilty Monday to federal charges including drug trafficking and other crimes, two days after they were captured in a U.S. military raid in Caracas, the Venezuelan capital....
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The Venezuelan oil industry Trump is planning to revive
Venezuela’s oil industry would “make a lot of money” with the United States behind it, President Donald Trump said Saturday in a news conference to confirm the capture of the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro, who is facing federal drugs and weapons...
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Trump abandons efforts to deploy National Guard to three cities
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he would abandon, for now, efforts to deploy the National Guard in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, Oregon. The decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled last week that Trump could not deploy troops in...
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KC dad launched a trendy art subscription after art went viral
Theo Davis moved to Kansas City 10 years ago, and instantly felt at home. The 40-year-old Washington D.C. native had always had an affinity for art, but it wasn’t until a few years later that he began dabbling in selling his work, letting his love for...
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Top photos help tell story of KC in 2025
It’s been a busy 2025 in Kansas City. And Star photographers were along every step of the way to capture it. It all started with a massive snowstorm that dropped over a foot of snow across the metro, shuttering schools for days. Then the Chiefs lifted...
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Upon move, Chiefs fans weigh in on ticket prices, tailgating
Kansas City Chiefs fans had mixed emotions during the Christmas Day tailgate before taking on the Denver Broncos. The Thursday night game was the first following the news that the team would be leaving GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, their home for...
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Bodies of National Guard soldiers killed in Syria return home
The remains of two Iowa National Guard soldiers killed in an ambush in Syria arrived at the Iowa National Guard base in Des Moines, with funeral services for both scheduled for this weekend. The bodies of Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Staff...
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Olathe officials worked in secret to score Chiefs facilities
Olathe officials worked under a nondisclosure agreement with the Kansas City Chiefs as part of an effort to bring the NFL team to town — keeping plans under wraps for two years. Monday’s announcement from state officials regarding the incentive...
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Sources: Chiefs to announce move to Kansas, new stadium
The Kansas City Chiefs informed administrative officials that they would announce their move to Kansas on Monday, according to sources who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The move was pending the...
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After 40 years, KC’s Scrooge calling it quits
Gary Neal Johnson’s last time is now. After this, you won’t see him anymore. As Ebenezer Scrooge, that is. Johnson’s been a mainstay around Kansas City’s live theater scene for 44 years, with 24 of those spent playing Scrooge, the main character in...
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