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Tennis Hall of Fame

Once again, Newport's Tennis Hall of Fame showed why it is one of the great sports venues in the world.

The combination of tremendous tennis at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open was coupled with the elegance of the induction ceremony of Australian great Lleyton Hewitt, who received tennis' ultimate Hall of Fame honor on Saturday. 

Newport yet again proved it is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

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McKee's "Motha"

It started as a tough week for Governor Dan McKee. On Monday, one of his biggest supporters -- union boss Michael Sabitoni -- was arrested by the RI State Police. And a top aide was arrested over the weekend was arrested in Vermont, tied to a mental health incident.

But Tuesday, McKee's campaign launched a new ad featuring the Governor's mother - 94-year-old mother, Willa.

By far and away the best ad of the political season, McKee's "Motha" saved the day...and maybe his political career. 

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Jay Leno -- and RI's Own Saugy Hot Dogs

Comedian Jay Leno has been regularly spotted around Newport ever since he purchased property in the popular Rhode Island seaside city.

On Tuesday — on the eve of National Hot Dog Day on July 20 — Leno headed down the hill and visited Wally’s Wieners on Thames Street to celebrate.

And it’s not just any variety Wally’s serves — it’s Rhode Island’s own Saugy hot dogs. 

The Hollywood star appeared to have a Saugy and a burger and fries as well. 

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Engineering Marvel

The only way to get there is to be lowered in a metal cage by a crane — first up 30 feet into the air and then down 160 feet.

There are no stairs and no elevator. Just the cage.

The "there" is the tunnel being dug as part of the third phase of the combined sewer overflow project. The cost of this phase is $800 million and, in total, will employ 500 people. 

The Narragansett Bay Commission is building a 2.2-mile tunnel that averages about 200 feet below. The project will help continue the efforts to improve the water quality of Narragansett Bay.

See More Photos and Video HERE

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Your Next Governor?

Zach Hurwitz wants to be Governor of Rhode Island. 

At just 18 years of age, he is legally allowed to run for the office. Now, it appears he is on the path to be on the ballot in November as an independent candidate. 

The Saunderstown resident gathered 1.112 validated signatures  — the requirement is 1,000 — and the Secretary of State’s office shows that over 500 have been certified as of Thursday. 

So who is Hurwitz — who just graduated from high school and is headed to URI in the fall — and why does he want to be Governor?

GoLocal spoke with the teenager about his aspirations — and motivations. 

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Big Week for Peter Neronha

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha had a busy week.

The AG was at the center of the storm on both the Tony Silva case and announcing an indictment in the so-called "fat test" controversy in North Kingstown.

Add in some aggressive action on landlords linked to lead poisoning, and it seemed like all Neronha, all the time. 

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The Royals Are Coming

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge — Prince William and Kate Middleton -- are coming to New England.

The royals announced this week they will be coming to Boston in December, as the city has been selected to host their second annual Earthshot Prize awards ceremony.

"In 2022, we're back and bringing Earthshot to the USA where we'll award the next five winners of the Prize," Prince William said in an announcement video posted to Twitter.

The video goes on to feature Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts standing in the outfield at Fenway Park.

"And we will be doing it right here in Boston,” said Bogaerts. 

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PHOTO: Robbie Dale CC: 2.0

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This Small Family-Owned Business Has Been Keeping Rhode Island Cool For 50 Years

A small Rhode Island family business has been keeping Rhode Island cool now for 50 years. 

Koolco, a staple on Main Street in Wakefield since 1972, celebrates its half-century mark this year — and according to owner Greg Sweet, it hasn’t always been easy. 

In fact, Sweet says they’ve been so busy so far in 2022, that he hasn’t even thought yet about planning a celebration. 

“No, I haven’t had the chance to think about a party,” said Sweet in an interview with GoLocalProv. “I’ve been busier this year with being short-handed and dealing with parts and equipment. I spend about half the day on the phone checking on parts, a lot of which are made overseas. And hiring is tough.” 

Sweet said he hadn’t originally planned to get into the family business.

Once he did, however, and bought Koolco from his father along with his brother in 1999, Koolco made a major pivot in its business model that has proved to be successful.

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Oh, Boston

Boston's racist legacy is in the spotlight again after NBA great LeBron James called the city "racist as f**k."

James is a business partner with John Henry in the ownership group that owns a number of sports interests, including the Boston Red Sox. The team has one of the most infamous legacies of racism. Henry also owns the Boston Globe.

But Boston and its sports teams' reputation goes back decades and includes numerous incidents and condemnation from even its greatest players.

Arguably, Boston’s greatest athlete, Bill Russell, called Boston a “flea market of racism."

The legacy of Tom Yawkey, the former owner of the Boston Red Sox, who passed away in 1976, is often pointed to as the genesis of the tangled web of Boston sports and racism. But many will argue, that he was just the best known and highest profile, with racism in the stands and core to the fan base.

The Red Sox tried out Jackie Robinson at Fenway Park in 1945 and rejected him. 

Under Yawkey, the Red Sox were the last team in baseball to integrate. They had a chance to sign Willie Mays. A Boston scout, George Digby, arranged to buy Mays from the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues for $4,500. Yawkey and the Red Sox general manager, Joe Cronin, refused.

In 2018, Yawkey Way was renamed outside of Fenway Park -- followed by the Yawkey commuter rail station in 2019. 

READ MORE HERE

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Gorbea's Campaign Claims 

Nellie Gorbea is a credible candidate for governor, but often she makes blundering, self-inflicted errors.

In her first political ad, she claimed she wasn't from a connected family -- but the reality is she is from a wildly affluent family.

Then, despite nearly a billion surplus, she called for a tax increase on many Rhode Island small businesses. This week, she blasted Governor Dan McKee for not doing enough for abortion rights, but GoLocal checked, and Gorbea had not asked either Speaker Joe Shekarchi or Senate President Dominick Ruggerio to call the legislature back to pass EACA. 

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All Broken - Nathan Bishop Middle School Recreation

Today, the five tennis courts and one basketball courts are in disrepair.

Only two of the tennis courts have functioning nets.

All of the courts are cracked -- some as wide as two inches. 

The basketball court has multiple cracks.

Like Hope High Schools's facilities, the condition of Nathan Bishop's broken and tattered facilities is due to a lack of city maintenance.

Just 13 years after the $35 million rehab, much of the outdoor recreation facilities are unusable.

READ THE FULL STORY

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CEO Pay Structures 

It was a good year for CVS CEO Karen Lynch in 2021. It was not quite as good for the average CVS employee, however.

Lynch made more than 458 as much as the average worker at the company.

The data, released annually by AFL-CIO, showed that the average S&P 500 company’s CEO-to-worker pay ratio was 324-to-1 in 2021.

Lynch crushed that ratio.

In 2021, Lynch’s compensation package exceeded $20 million --- the average CVS employee made $45,010.

Lynch looked restrained compared to Amazon’s CEO Andrew Jassy as he received a comp package of $212,701,169, which was more than 6,474 times the average Amazon worker who received $32,855.

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