Netflix announced that that it is getting the first two seasons of Homeland and American Horror Story exclusively in the UK and Ireland per a partnership with Twentieth Century Fox Television.

These shows will join other available content from Twentieth Century Fox including Sons of Anarchy, White Collar, The Killing, 24, Prison Break, The League, Arrested Development and Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

We are excited to bring both of these brilliant series, Homeland and American Horror Story, to our members in the UK & Ireland, said Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer at Netflix. These global smash series are two of the most talked about shows in entertainment, and we think that our members are going to love these latest additions.

While the rest of those shows are available through Netflixs streaming offering here in the U.S., Homeland still is not, though the DVD service does offer both seasons. American Horror Story has been available for streaming in the U.S. since 2012 with the second season just becoming available this past December.

For those unaware, the first season features none other than House of Cards Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara).

Netflix also just got the new From Dusk Till Dawn series in the UK and Ireland (as well as in Canada, the Netherlands and the Nordics Latin America will get it next week).

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Netflix UK, Ireland Subscribers Get Homeland And American Horror Story

WASHINGTON -

Tom and Aimee Hardy are holding out for a miracle. Their 7-year-old son Josh has beat cancer four times, but now a virus he contracted following a bone marrow transplant is threatening his life.

The Fredericksburg, Va. familys quest for access to a drug that could turn it all around has gained national attention. The potentially breakthrough anti-viral drug, Brincidofovir, is still in the trial phase, but doctors treating Josh at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital are convinced it could have him on the road to recovery in a matter of weeks.

The maker, Chimerix, stopped releasing it for "compassionate use" to patients like Josh two years ago.

CEO Kenneth Moch says it's a decision he had to make in order to help more patients down the road. He says the small company lacks the resources to handle all of the requests, while at the same time, conducting research to gain approval by the Food and Drug Administration.

Medical ethicist Arthur Caplan, a professor at New York University Langone Medical Center, says he understands both sides, telling FOX 5, "The company's main worry is if they give this drug to Josh, the flood gates are going to open and they're not going to be able to handle all of the people who might line up and say my child has a problem too."

He says it shines a spotlight on what he calls a national problem.

"Where is Congress?" asks Caplan.

He continued, "Where in the health care debate do we have the creation of a program for compassionate use?"

For Josh, time may be running out. His mother tells FOX 5 the Adenovirus is spreading to his lungs, which is very dangerous. She has been pleading with the company and spreading her son's story through social media.

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Fight for potential life-saving drug continues for Va. boy

"Shakira is hungry for a victory! She's starving she's a 'she wolf!'" shouted Adam Levine, in reference to the female coach's 2009 hit and new strategies during The Voice blind auditions.

Sometimes she's sassy and aggressive -- as we've seen much more often then ever this season -- but other times, she's back to those maternal instincts that won viewers over during season four. "You can allow yourself to be vulnerable with me," she told one contestant on Monday.

STORY: Shakira Sings Country Duet With Blake Shelton: 'I Was a Little Tired of L.A.'

But Usher immediately told that auditionee, "Do you want a mom or a mentor?" Though the question silenced the audience -- and definitely affected that singer's decision on which team to choose -- it also encapsulated Shakira's upcoming coaching dilemma as she continues through her second season, and her first on the show without any kind of spillover pregnancy symptoms.

Meet the latest additions to season six of The Voice:

Kat Perkins Song: "Gold Dust Woman" Coaches who turned their chairs: Levine, Shakira, Usher The childhood farmer played a yodeling cowgirl in a country western troupe, but then formed and disbanded the rock band Scarlet Haze. The singer-turned-nanny wailed on the Fleetwood Mac track, filled with long notes that particularly intrigued Usher. Shakira once again touted her super-detailed approach to her own career, but Levine highlighted her rock aspirations, and won her over.

Paula Deanda Song: "The Way" Coaches who turned their chairs: Blake Shelton, Shakira Formerly signed by Clive Davis to Arista, the pop singer of "Doin' Too Much" and "Walk Away" was dropped after two albums, but went for a second chance with the Ariana Grande breakout. Introducing herself as just "Paula" from Texas, she surprisingly went with Shelton, saying afterward that she's never explored her country roots.

STORY: 'The Voice': Usher's Blind Audition Strategy, Mark Burnett on Cee Lo Green's Exit

Jake Barker Song: "When I Was Your Man" Coaches who turned their chairs: Usher, Levine, Shakira The lifelong athlete circumvented his stage fright by recording performance videos on YouTube, and the now-bartender went with Bruno Mars for his first-ever performance, and attracted Usher and Levine after major trills in his falsetto-heavy performance. Levine went for his usual tactic of pointing out what he did wrong, and Usher leaned back into his supportive stance of his individuality. Shakira swooned, "You can allow yourself to be vulnerable with me," but Usher said, "Do you want a mom or a mentor?" which silenced the audience but sealed the deal with Usher.

Ria Eaton Song: "Cups (When I'm Gone)" Coaches who turned their chairs: Shakira, Shelton The daughter of a dancer deviated to singing, but stopped taking lessons when her father lost her job. At the very end of her Pitch Perfect cover, she got two coaches to turn, but Usher and Levine stood up to tease Shelton as he battled from the sidelines. Shakira called her "a pearl in an oyster," which won over applause from Usher and Levine. Eaton still opted for Shelton.

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'The Voice' Recap: Teams Even Out on Blind Auditions Night 5

HEBRON Not much of Hebron village governments core staff remains since Village President John Jacobson took over.

Gone is a public works director and his second-in-command. Gone is the villages clerk. Gone is a longtime treasurer and, only months later, her replacement.

Gone fired is Paul Acutt, the police officer who arrested Jacobson for driving under the influence in 2011.

Less than a year since Jacobson was elected despite pending drug charges, a Northwest Herald investigation has turned up details about the departures and additions to village staff under his guidance, and how hes running the day-to-day operations of the village. Jacobsons handling of a village truck to pay a consultant without board approval has raised legal concerns.

The investigation also revealed new details into Jacobsons dismissal from McHenry County College in February 2013, where it was alleged that the then-custodian was receiving and forwarding photos of naked children and adult pornographic images using the colleges email system. The McHenry County States Attorneys Office and the college give differing answers as to whether a police report ever was filed in the matter.

In Hebron, some staffers have resigned, not commenting publicly about their reasons for leaving. Others have been fired. Their replacements, in many cases, bring a fraction of their predecessors experience.

Our village [staff] now consists of people who have no clue, and have no experience in what theyre doing, Village Trustee Susan Ritzert said.

Ritzert and at least one other trustee are questioning the way the village is being run. Theyre frustrated by their leaders lack of communication, a tactic Ritzert sees as deliberate consistent with Jacobsons desire to control every aspect of the small towns government.

A shifting village staff

Despite attempts over the course of several weeks to arrange an interview, Jacobson never agreed to talk to the Northwest Herald for this story.

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Trustees question Hebron president's leadership

A local couple will have to demolish several costly building upgrades made to their Greenridge Drive home without permits from the citys Planning Commission, after losing an appeal before the La Caada Flintridge City Council Monday night.

The Planning Commission reported Shaker and Shatha Eissa increased the area of their house by more than 1,500 square feet, enclosing a patio and adding second-story footage that broached city rules about maintaining a roof line angle of 45 degrees or less.

They also built a 15-foot retaining wall, multiple decks, a sport court and several outdoor recreation areas in and along their backyard.

Planning officials said large parts of the project would never have been approved even if appropriate permits had been sought. They also said construction continued despite three stop work orders issued in 2008 and 2009.

A report presented by city assistant planner Harriet Harris said that over the course of the last two years, "staff worked with the applicant and his architect to determine what was done without permits and to complete drawings that reflected all the improvements that were done on the site.

After three public hearings to sort things out, the Planning Commission determined on Nov. 12 the project could only be partially approved. The housing additions and the sport court, built partially on filled soil, were denied.

On Dec. 9, the Eissas appealed the denials, opting instead for a ruling from the City Council.

Members of the Eissa family were present at Mondays meeting but did not speak, allowing attorney Kevin McDonnell, of the law firm Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell, to speak for them.

(My client) is not a developer. He is not a builder hes inexperienced in these things, and clearly that inexperience led to things getting out of hand, McDonnell said.

McDonnell said the house was originally zoned as existing nonconforming, meaning it had never met zoning parameters. He said neighbors approved the project and were against demolition, challenged the Planning Commissions determination of the additional square footage and said the changes were not visible from the street.

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Upgrades to La Caada home must come down

March 6, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL) Gwinnett Gladiators DULUTH, Ga. - The Gwinnett Gladiators made a couple moves on Thursday, signing rookie goaltender Josh Unice and forward Will MacDonald. In a corresponding move, goaltender Nick Niedert was released.

Unice (pronounced you-nis), 24, was a third round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks (#86 overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, and also attended training camp with the then-Atlanta Thrashers in 2009. The Holland, OH native will make his pro debut with Gwinnett after he finished his senior campaign at the University of Western Ontario this season with a 16-4 record, 2.56 goals against average, and a .927 save percentage. Unice was also named the top goaltender in the OUA West division for the second time in his career. In a little over four years as a Mustang, Unice went 58-18 in 84 games with seven shutouts. He never lost more than five games, nor posted a save percentage lower than .916 in a season.

Prior to his time with Western Ontario, Unice split three junior seasons between the Kitchner Rangers and the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League. In 2007-08, he backstopped Kitchner to an OHL Championship and a Memorial Cup runner-up finish while being named to the OHL All-Rookie Team. The next season he was a member of a Spitfires team that won both the OHL Championship and the Memorial Cup. He was also a member of Team USA for the 2009 World Junior Championship.

MacDonald, 25, wrapped up a four-year stint at Princeton last season where he scored 10 goals with 21 assists in 100 games. The Alpharetta, Ga. native then scored three goals in six games with the Florida Everblades of the ECHL, before returning for 17 more games with the Blades this season.

The Gladiators are members of the ECHL, the nation's premier "AA" hockey league and are affiliated with the Phoenix Coyotes of the NHL. All home games are played at the 11,355-seat Arena at Gwinnett Center, located just off I-85 on Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth.

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Two for Thursday; Gladiators Make Two Additions to Roster

Portland, Ore. (PRWEB) March 06, 2014

Brand DRTV Advertising Agency Atomic Direct has received two awards from Jordan Whitney Inc.: one for Best-Branded Short-Form, and one for Best Self-Protection Infomercial.

Jordan Whitney Inc. has awarded their annual Best Branded Short-Form Award to Atomic Direct for its Kobalt Triple Cut Campaign. This campaign, with both 60-second and 120-second spots, advertises the Triple Cut hand tool; sold exclusively by Lowes.

This also marks the second year in a row that Atomic has won the Best Branded Short Form award. Last year Atomic won for the Kobalt Double-Drive Ratchet.

In addition, Atomics half hour infomercial for the Iris Smart Home management system was selected as Best Self-Protection Infomercial of 2013. Iris is sold exclusively at Lowes and delivers smart home features in a DIY system.

Our clients trust us first and foremost to deliver high impact advertising. That makes it a special honor when our work delivers this impact and receives an award, says Atomic Direct CEO and President, Doug Garnett.

We are especially proud that the Kobalt Tools work was recognized again, says Garnett. Their spots are great examples of the power companies can tap for building brand when their advertising focuses on exceptional products.

About Jordan Whitney Located in Tustin, Calif. Jordan Whitney Inc. has monitored, ranked and critiqued DRTV commercials for over 18 years. The company serves as a research, consulting and publishing company within the DRTV world and maintains a library of over 60,000 individual infomercials and short-form spots (with additions made daily). View the JW Inc. website here: http://www.jwgreensheet.com/.

About Atomic Direct Based out of Portland, Oregon, Atomic Direct is an industry-leading full-service direct response marketing services and creative production agency. Visit the company online at: http://www.atomicdirect.com or read the blog: http://www.atomicdirect.com/blogs-more/.

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Atomic DRTV Work Selected as "Best Branded Short-Form" of 2013

Note: USA TODAY Sports' Paul White, via car, causeway, plane and rail, will eventually reach every major league camp this spring. Follow his exploits on Twitter - @PBJWhite - as he makes his way through the Cactus and Grapefruit leagues before imparting all you didn't know about every team right here.

Today: The Baltimore Orioles

***

Jonathan Schoop is over that shortstop thing.

After all, why bother?

He could be a starting second baseman in the major leagues any day now ?? make that should be ?? so you'd better practice the pronunciation. It's "scope."

The 22-year-old Curacao native would seem to be on a fast track to the big leagues with the Orioles except that he hangs in fast company and some of his best friends are wondering what's taking him so long.

Well, if guys like Manny Machado and Jurickson Profar would have just let Schoop keep playing shortstop.

Machado, with whom Schoop became tight coming through the Orioles system, debuted in Baltimore at 20 and the only thing that's stopped him since is the knee injury that prematurely ended his 2013 season but is looking less and less likely to keep him from the lineup on Opening Day or very shortly after.

Profar, with whom Schoop regularly hangs out and works out with back home, debuted with Texas at age 19 two seasons ago, was a Rangers part-timer last year and now will be the starting second baseman ?? like Schoop moving from his natural shortstop.

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Camp confidential: Orioles bolster team with late additions

Port St. Lucie, Fla.

Calling the New York Mets a "marquee franchise," new players' union head Tony Clark is paying attention to the team's payroll.

Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said he expects the team's payroll to be between $85 million and $88 million this season, which would be a slight decrease from its $90.9 million final figure last year.

Despite the additions of free agents Curtis Granderson, Bartolo Colon and Chris Young, the Mets have a payroll resembling that of a mid-market franchise. The Los Angeles Dodgers' payroll is over $225 million and the New York Yankees will top $200 million.

"Any time there are concerns or issues with any club related to certain habits or trends, we pay attention to it," Clark said after speaking with Mets players Tuesday during his tour of the 30 spring training camps. "New York is no different than any other club, from the standpoint of appreciating what's paid in payroll and how clubs may be functioning in general, related to improving the group they have on the field."

More Mets: Curtis Granderson hit two home runs and Zack Wheeler pitched three scoreless innings in a 6-2 victory over Houston. Granderson hit a two-run shot in the first and added a solo drive in the second. Wheeler struck out three and gave up two hits. He threw 40 pitches in his spring debut. Travis d'Arnaud got two hits for the Mets and Chris Young doubled and scored.

Yankees: Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez has rejoined the team as a minor-league spring training pitching instructor. He will be at the team's minor-league complex for the next few weeks.

Tigers: Ian Kinsler says an ESPN The Magazine story about him was "written for drama" and he says some critical comments attributed to him about the Rangers were taken out of context. In the ESPN story, Kinsler was quoted as saying he hopes his former team goes 0-162 this year. He also was quoted as calling Rangers general manager Jon Daniels a "sleazeball." Also, Andy Dirks is expected to miss three months due to a back problem that requires surgery.

Orioles: Two-time AL Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana has agreed to a minor-league contract as he tries to come back from the second major operation on his left shoulder.

Red Sox: Right-hander Clay Buchholz made his Grapefruit League debut for Boston, going one inning, giving up a run on three hits and a walk with one strikeout in the team's 8-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.

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Players' union paying attention to Mets' payroll

EDMOND Oklahoma ranks second nationally in the number of adults with a mental illness, according to the findings of a new study.

The study, conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, defined a serious mental illness as any mental, behavioral or emotional disorder that causes substantial functional impairment such as significantly interfering with or limiting one or more major life activities. Examples might include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or clinical depression.

SAMHSA defines any mental illness as the presence of any mental, behavioral or emotional disorder in the past year that meets specific diagnostic criteria.

The study ranked Oklahoma second in the number of persons in both categories.

From both a public and private perspective, finding help for a mental health issue is rapidly turning into a crisis situation, said Oklahoma Mental Health Commissioner Terry White, a product of Edmond Public Schools.

White said more than 600,000 Oklahomans are directly impacted by mental illness. White said these individuals are parents, loved ones, friends, neighbors, co-workers, doctors, lawyers, teachers, clergy just about anyone from any profession or socioeconomic level.

Officials are feeling the impact of this increasing need for services in the public system as well as the private system, White said. With scarce resources more people are going without services at the exact time that more people need them, White said.

If not treated early, a mental illness may progress, resulting in negative consequences such as divorce, family fragmentation, child neglect or abuse, unemployment or reduced work productivity, more students dropping out of school, homelessness, crime and incarceration, accidental or premature death and homicide or suicide, White said.

Its creating a perfect storm with no letup in sight, White said.

People become more seriously ill when they are unable to access services early in the disease process, White said. The good news is mental illness can be treated and success rates are very high, White said.

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Study: Oklahoma No. 2 in prevalence of mental illness