The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe

Beyond the Gilded Gate

The $600,000 problem. Why does it cost so much to build housing in Boston, and what can we do about it?
Many forces drive the housing crisis here, and the sky-high cost of construction is one of the most powerful.

Calculator: How do costs factor into constructing an apartment building?

Explore the project

Maine law enforcement knew shooter posed a threat but were concerned about confronting him, video shows
The law enforcement checks were initially set off by an incident in July at an Army Reserve training camp in New York, in which the shooter got into a fight with three other reservists.

‘He’s the only one that’s speaking the truth’: Trump’s fans trust nothing — except him
Voters who attended recent rallies in Iowa and New Hampshire expressed similar beliefs that Donald Trump is the only politician who has ever leveled with them.

Supreme Court won’t fast-track ruling on whether Trump can be prosecuted in election subversion case

Trump repeats and defends his use of language that echos Nazi ideology

2 paramedics found guilty in death of Elijah McClain, who they injected with an overdose of ketamine

Two Denver-area paramedics have been convicted in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain, who they injected with an overdose of the sedative ketamine after police put him in a neck hold.

Police on Morse Street in Norwood, where a woman was shot by police near a storage business.

Gun-wielding woman shot by police in Norwood

‘Winning requires hard work’: Wayfair CEO sends employees a gloomy pre-holiday email following layoff-filled year

“Working long hours, being responsive, blending work and life, is not anything to shy away from,” Niraj Shah wrote in the email obtained by the Globe. “There is not a lot of history of laziness being rewarded with success.”

Israel-Hamas war casts a shadow over holiday season for people of many faiths

Gaza war’s staggering toll reaches a grim milestone: 20,000 dead UN Security Council approves watered-down resolution on aid to Gaza without call for suspension of hostilities

Singha Oeun conferred with his lawyer John Galvin during his arraignment on Nov. 21, 2019 in Brookline District Court. On Thursday, a jury in Norfolk Superier Court found him not guilty of manslaughter for the stabbing death of Nicolas "Cole" Kern, 20, at Amory Playground.

Man found not guilty of manslaughter in 2019 stabbing in Brookline

Judge rules against suspended cannabis regulator, setting up hearing to determine her fate

Steam billowed from the chimney of the Edaville No. 3 steam engine pulling cars filled with passengers along a 3½-mile route decorated with 250,000 Christmas lights on Dec. 15.

The Edaville road to a magical Christmas landscape

Workers arrive hours before the Edaville trains start to carry thousands of passengers on a circuitous 3 1/2-mile route on 2-foot wide tracks past flooded cranberry bogs and through towering pines transformed into a magical landscape by 250,000 brilliant colored Christmas lights.

When did Boston last wake up to a white Christmas?
It's a white Christmas when there's an inch of snow or more on the ground by around 7 a.m. on Dec. 25, according to the National Weather Service.

Holidays got you down, Charlie Brown? Take our quiz on classic Christmas specials for a hit of holiday cheer.

Holiday online sales are booming. Here’s why that’s bad news for retailers — and consumers.

Forecast | Dave Epstein

Expect dry, seasonably cold temperatures Christmas weekend

Travelers lined up to enter the security checkpoint as others waited at the ticket counter at Logan Airport's Terminal A last week.

Holiday crowds — and labor unrest — descend on Logan Airport

From flight attendants to air traffic controllers to cabin cleaners, workers around Logan Airport are battling to improve their working conditions and pay.

Dan Shaughnessy

A legendary day is looming at the end of a forgettable Patriots season, and other thoughts
The regular-season finale will be at Gillette against the Jets on Jan. 7, and despite Bill Belichick's feelings about that franchise, it could be one the Patriots need to lose to secure the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Travis Kelce reveals what he said to Bill Belichick after Chiefs-Patriots game

Bill Belichick confirms special teams footballs were underinflated Sunday at Gillette Stadium

Jordan Montgomery has made 30 starts each of the last three seasons, and his success in the AL East throughout his career makes him a potentially attractive option for the Red Sox.

With Yoshinobu Yamamoto off the market, what’s next for the Red Sox and others in need of pitching?

The early offseason logjam created by the free agencies of Shohei Ohtani and Yamamoto is finished, and those not named the Dodgers have been left running to find alternatives.

Red Sox lose out on Japanese righthander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who signs massive deal with the Dodgers

Claudine Gay

Critics see ‘double standard’ in Harvard’s handling of plagiarism allegations

The collision of partisan politics with a question of academic integrity has left some Harvard faculty members conflicted.

Stuart share podcast

Listen to the podcast

Presented in association with HBO, 'Murder in Boston: The untold story of the Charles and Carol Stuart shooting' is available wherever you get your podcasts.

Read chapter one of ‘Nightmare in Mission Hill’ Read the full series

From left: Finn Sweeney as Jimmy Jr., Sofia Capanna as Grace, Jon Cryer as Jim, Abigail Spencer as Julia, and Donald Faison as Trey in "Extended Family," premiering Saturday on NBC.

How Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck’s family situation inspired a new NBC sitcom

“Extended Family,” premiering Saturday, is a fictional take on the amicable, post-divorce parenting relationship between Grousbeck, his wife, Emilia Fazzalari, and her ex-husband George Geyer.

Three generations of Townies — (from left) Mary Beth Kelly; her 95 year-old mother, Elizabeth “Betty” Kelly; and her daughter Meaghan Murray — pose for a portrait at Elizabeth’s home in Charlestown.

In Charlestown, three generations of women reflect on working with seniors

Betty Kelly, 95, worked for years at the Kennedy Center in Charlestown. Her 68-year-old daughter, Mary Beth, is about to retire from the city’s Age Strong Commission. Mary Beth’s daughter and Betty’s granddaughter, Meaghan Murray, 42, is director of the Beverly Gibbons Community Center for Older Adults in Charlestown.

Winnipeg's Nino Niederreiter (62) scores into an empty net behind Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman (left) to give the Jets a 3-0 lead in the second period Friday night in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

JETS 5, BRUINS 1

Bruins shut down by soaring Jets in Winnipeg

Boston was done in by the host's relentless forechecking and an anemic offensive attack in a 5-1 loss at Canada Life Center.

The old Hotel Hemenway, now called Parkside Tower.

Beyond the Gilded Gate

A Boston building, scattered souls, and rent control revisited

The end of rent control three decades ago helped push many working people out of a Fenway apartment building — and out of Boston. Their stories speak to one of the causes of the current housing crisis, and to the increasing demands that rent caps return.

Explore the project

Opinion

Holiday vibes in Hong Kong

Vibe check on 2023

Vibes now dominate the whispering of the spheres, whether it be the will-o’-the-wisp “vibecession,” the ongoing obsession with “vibe shifts,” or the omnipresence of “vibe checks.”

MARCELA GARCÍA

What the US can learn from the EU’s immigration deal

In this season of hope, a year of sorrow ends for the trans community

IDEAS | TOM JOUDREY

Bah, humbug! ‘A Christmas Carol’ is cringeworthy.

Smoking out the truth at the Cannabis Control Commission

More recent News

State issues warning on dog virus
At least one dog in Franklin County has been infected with canine parvovirus, a disease that’s highly contagious among pooches and that can be fatal, according to the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources.

CELTICS NOTEBOOK

Payton Pritchard wanted out from the Celtics last season. This season, he’s thriving in their regular rotation
Pritchard seems to be getting increasingly comfortable operating out of the left corner, where he can serve as an off-ball safety valve for Boston’s talented wings.

Dinner with Cupid

Blind date: ‘We shared our food, which was a big plus for both of us’
Will this artistic bachelor draw in his date?

Larry Edelman | Trendlines

The tough challenges ahead for the Massachusetts economy
Unemployment is low, inflation is falling, and the Federal Reserve is poised to cut interest rates. But the state faces some forbidding headwinds.

‘Turtleboy’ blogger arraigned for alleged harassment of witnesses in Karen Read case
Aidan Kearney pleaded not guilty to a 16-count indictment charging him with intimidating witnesses in the pending murder trial against Karen Read. He was released on personal recognizance.

A Cohasset woman was making a mental to-do list when a tree limb crashed onto her car during Monday's storm
A branch crashed onto her car, shattering the front windshield and the back window next to her baby's car seat.

Globe Santa

Remembering loved ones through Globe Santa
There are donors who received gifts from Globe Santa as children, and others who contribute as a way to remember and honor lost relatives and friends.

Donate to Globe Santa

Globe Santa is a program of the Boston Globe Foundation and exists solely to deliver joy to children.

Recommended reads

A Green Line train makes its way along the GLX in Somerville. MBTA officials knew tracks on the Green Line Extension into Medford and Somerville were not built to specifications and were in some places unsafe, but they opened the new line anyway. Repairs must now remedy the numerous resulting slow zones.

Green Line shutdowns coming in January as MBTA works to remove slow zones, fix Green Line extension mistakes

The MBTA’s campaign to remove slow zones on subway lines resumes in January with a staggered shutdown of sections of all four Green Line branches.

The Green Line Extension's long history of trouble

They were spreading Christmas cheer when they got attacked. Two older carolers were beaten in Dorchester.
One of the carolers thought “something must have fallen from the house” when she was struck while singing “Silent Night.” Police are seeking assault charges against two teenagers.

Harvard student’s speech blasting Moms for Liberty cofounder at school board meeting goes viral
As a scandal involving Bridget Ziegler, cofounder of Moms for Liberty, continues to attract national attention, a speech by a Harvard University student calling on Ziegler to resign from a local school board in Florida has struck a chord.

Santa Claus is coming to town. And he’s making bank.
New England impersonators say playing St. Nick can be a sophisticated and lucrative affair, particularly when Santas are in short supply.

Culture & Lifestyle

From left: Krystina Alabado, Reneé Rapp, Kate Rockwell, and Erika Henningsen in the Broadway production of "Mean Girls," an adaptation that transformed Tina Fey's screen comedy into a musical. Now a film version of the musical is set for release on Jan. 12.

From screen to stage and back to screen, this time trying to carry a tune

Michael O'Donnell, a BC Law School grad, has written a novel about a father and son hiking and hiding in New Hampshire.

In Michael O’Donnell’s debut novel, a father and son hide from danger in the White Mountains

Rapper Clark D performs during the 2023 Boston Music Awards at Big Night Live Wednesday night. He won album/EP of the year for “Propaganda.”

Boston Music Awards show dazzles with diverse, dynamic, and defiant performances

Left to right (from top): “Written in Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos,” various artists; “The Songs of Bacharach & Costello,” Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello; “History Kinda Pales When It and You Are Aligned: The Days of Wine and Roses 40th Anniversary Edition,” The Dream Syndicate; “In Utero: 30th Anniversary Super Deluxe,” Nirvana; “The Journey, Parts 1 and 2,″ The Kinks; John Coltrane with Eric Dolphy, “Evenings at the Village Gate”; Drive-By Truckers, “The Complete Dirty South”; Wes Montgomery/Wynton Kelly Trio, “Maximum Swing: The Unissued 1965 Half Note Recordings”; The Velvet Underground, “Loaded: Fully Re-Loaded Edition.”

The Velvet Underground, Nirvana, Stax soul, and more: 9 great album reissues of 2023

Special Projects

Photo Illustration

Boston thrives off the dreams of young people. But can they make it here?

Baby boomers and Gen Xers benefited from economic conditions that do not exist for millennials. And by many measures, the path ahead for Gen Z is even more fraught.

Boston, MA—12/14/2022 - Commuters wait for the T to arrive at Ruggles Station. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)

Boston doesn’t work if the T doesn’t work

With the MBTA engulfed by issues, everyday riders are feeling the pain.

Brittany Tee, Soomaiiah Quraiishi, and Reina Morales Rojas are among thousands of people thought to be missing from Massachusetts.

How the missing become the uncounted

Inside the government’s flawed approach to finding missing persons.

Two Weeks in America

Two Weeks in America

We sent a dozen journalists on the road across this complex country. They found it’s better than you think.

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Opinion, ideas, and commentary

Harvard University president Claudine Gay attended a campus menorah lighting ceremony at Harvard University on Dec. 13.

How Harvard’s Claudine Gay can help mend the wounds left by Oct. 7

Colorado Supreme Court Justice Carlos Samour Jr. listened during a hearing in the court, Dec. 6, in Denver.

After Colorado court kicks Trump off ballot, US Supreme Court needs to settle questions on 14th Amendment

Tetiana Dovbii, left, and Anya Rudak participated in a course in firearms and urban combat in a forest near Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv, on Oct. 14.

Christine Keating

Why the phrase ‘women and children’ is bad for gender equality

Claudine Gay, president of Harvard University, testified before the House Education and Workforce Committee on Dec. 5, in Washington, D.C. The Committee held a hearing to investigate antisemitism on college campuses.

A five-point plan to save Harvard from itself

Samuel Winkler wore a Star of David necklace and a blue ribbon during a visit by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to Towson University to discuss antisemitism on college campuses, Thursday, Nov. 2, in Towson, Md.

Why is antisemitism on the rise among Gen Z?

When accidents happen: True stories from an ICU

Ernesto Barbieri and Jess Ruliffson

When accidents happen: True stories from an ICU nurse

Metro

When did Boston last wake up to a white Christmas?

It's a white Christmas when there's an inch of snow or more on the ground by around 7 a.m. on Dec. 25, according to the National Weather Service.

Man found not guilty of manslaughter in 2019 stabbing in Brookline

Singha Oeun of Brookline was found not guilty of manslaughter Thursday by a Norfolk County jury for death of Nicolas "Cole" Kern, 20, at Amory Playground on Nov. 19, 2019, court records show.

Maine law enforcement knew shooter posed a threat but were concerned about confronting him, video shows

The law enforcement checks were initially set off by an incident in July at an Army Reserve training camp in New York, in which the shooter got into a fight with three other reservists.

The Edaville road to a magical Christmas landscape

Workers arrive hours before the Edaville trains start to carry thousands of passengers on a circuitous 3 1/2-mile route on 2-foot wide tracks past flooded cranberry bogs and through towering pines transformed into a magical landscape by 250,000 brilliant colored Christmas lights.

Sports

Winnipeg's Nino Niederreiter (62) scores into an empty net behind Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman (left) to give the Jets a 3-0 lead in the second period Friday night in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

JETS 5, BRUINS 1

Bruins shut down by soaring Jets in Winnipeg

Boston was done in by the host's relentless forechecking and an anemic offensive attack in a 5-1 loss at Canada Life Center.

PEABODY 12/22/2023 Bishop Feehan’s Samantha Carlson dribbles upcourt with encouragement from the Shamrocks bench during the second half against Bishop Fenwick. Ken McGagh for The Boston Globe

GIRLS' BASKETBALL: BISHOP FEEHAN 53, BISHOP FENWICK 45 (OT)

Samantha Carlson helps Bishop Feehan grind out overtime win against Catholic Central Large foe Bishop Fenwick

Carlson, Feehan’s smallest player at 5-feet-5-inches, made a big difference in a Catholic Central League classic overtime win, 53-45.

Mark Landolfi (left) is the new football coach at Archbishop Williams, his alma mater. His brother, Chris (second from right), formerly at Hanover, will be the defensive coordinator. Their brother, Matt (second from left), has directed Duxbury to back-to-back Division 4 state titles. His daughter, Madison, is a cheerleader at Duxbury. The fourth brother, Brian (far right) is an official.

HIGH SCHOOL NOTEBOOK

Chris Landolfi returns to South Shore to assist his brother, Mark, the new Archbishop Williams football coach

Mark ('86) and Chris Landolfi (’88) are Archies graduates who coached together at Hanover for 10 years, during which they won 75 percent of their games, four league titles, and a Super Bowl in 2016.

BRUINS NOTEBOOK

Hockey lifer Rick Bowness has special bond with Bruins coach Jim Montgomery

CELTICS NOTEBOOK

Payton Pritchard wanted out from the Celtics last season. This season, he’s thriving in their regular rotation

HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING NOTEBOOK

Beverly’s evolution into a wrestling championship contender is rooted in its self-confidence: ‘We’re not scared of anybody’

Business

US wields risky bank sanctions in new bid to deny Putin cash

The US is turning to a powerful yet risky tool in authorizing secondary sanctions against banks as it escalates efforts to deny Russia the money it needs to wage war in Ukraine.

Trump repeats and defends his use of language that echos Nazi ideology

Trump’s comments about immigrants, made during campaign rallies in the early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire, have drawn bipartisan criticism.

Coming soon to highway service signs near you: EV charging

Massachusetts hiring rebounded in November

magazine

The 29 best photos of 2023 taken by Boston Globe photographers

Comedian Lenny Clarke remembers being a kid getting presents from Globe Santa.

Actor Lenny Clarke’s best ever childhood Christmas came unexpectedly

Fran and Tom on their Dinner With Cupid blind date.

Dinner with Cupid

Blind date: ‘We shared our food, which was a big plus for both of us’

My relative wants to compare what we all got for gifts. Help!

metro

A makeshift memorial was established in the parking of Sparetime Recreation, one of the locations in the shootings in Lewiston, Maine.

Authorities knew Maine shooter was a threat but felt confronting him was unsafe, video shows

State issues warning on dog virus

Expect dry, seasonably cold temperatures Christmas weekend

sports

Florida State may not have to deal with another trip to Boston College again if its petition to leave the ACC is granted.

Florida State, unsatisfied with ACC, sues to leave league in search of greener pastures

The Broncos have something to play for on Sunday, but for Patriots it’s time to focus on future

Is there anything worth building around on this Patriots team? Here are a few names.

business

Boston's Financial District is still struggling with the impact of remote work.

The tough challenges ahead for the Massachusetts economy

Whole Foods wins case about Black Lives Matter apparel

Bristol Myers agrees to buy Boston’s Karuna Therapeutics in a $14 billion deal

politics

The US Supreme Court.

Supreme Court won’t fast-track ruling on whether Trump can be prosecuted in election subversion case

Congress launches an investigation into the Osprey program after the deadly crash in Japan

Trump repeats and defends his use of language that echos Nazi ideology

Nation

Paramedics Jeremy Cooper, far left, and Peter Cichuniec, far right, enter the Adams County, Colo., Justice Center, Friday, Dec. 22, 2023, in Brighton, Colo.

2 paramedics found guilty in death of Elijah McClain, who they injected with an overdose of ketamine

Wisconsin Supreme Court orders new legislative maps in redistricting case brought by Democrats

Busiest holiday travel season in years is off to a smooth start with few airport delays

World

A Palestinian boy collected small pieces of debris following Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 22, 2023.

Gaza war’s staggering toll reaches a grim milestone: 20,000 dead

UN passes resolution on aid for Gaza but stops short of calling for cease-fire

US wields risky bank sanctions in new bid to deny Putin cash

opinion

Ebenezer Scrooge (played by David Coffee) with his employee Bob Cratchit (Russell Garrett) in a 2018 performance of "A Christmas Carol" at the North Shore Music Theatre.

Bah, humbug! ‘A Christmas Carol’ is cringeworthy.

How Harvard’s Claudine Gay can help mend the wounds left by Oct. 7

2023: the year in Globe readers’ own words

lifestyle

Somerville indie band Hush Club promised pizza in return for helping their TikTok video go viral. Now, after 48,000 views, they're planning to make a whole lot of pies.

Hush Club’s TikTok strategy went viral — it’s anything but cheesy

Dating during perimenopause

One in six people experiences infertility. But in a season focused on kids, you can feel like you’re the only one.

food & dining

Ashley Taveras, an assistant event stylist at Easy Entertaining, sorts dishes.

‘I feel abandoned’: Restaurants remain burdened by Washington Bridge closure in Rhode Island

Scared of the T? Hop aboard Mothership instead

A new Turkish restaurant near Watertown Square is already popular

travel

Passengers waited in line at Dulles International Airport on Dec. 21, 2023, in Dulles, Virginia.

Busiest holiday travel season in years is off to a smooth start with few airport delays

We took a girlfriend getaway to Savannah. Plenty of other women had the same idea.

This Booking.com reservation is fake! Will the company pay up?

Arts

A person removed a piece of art work by Banksy, which showed what looks like three drones on a stop sign, at the intersection of Southampton Way and Commercial Way in Peckham, London.

Banksy stop sign taken from London street soon after it appears

Forgotten women of the American landscape

A model subject gets his close-up in ‘Chuck: Photographs by George Platt Lynes’

Books

Justin Torres, author of “Blackouts."

For Justin Torres, reading is about finding the sweet spot between poetry and prose

Local bestsellers for the week ended Dec. 17

In Michael O’Donnell’s debut novel, a father and son hide from danger in the White Mountains

Movies

(L-R Clockwise) Film stills from “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!,” and “The Year Without Santa Claus."

Holidays got you down, Charlie Brown? Take our quiz on classic Christmas specials for a hit of holiday cheer.

Michael Mann’s ‘Ferrari’ fails to rev up

Oscars shortlists revealed: Here are the films one step closer to a nomination

Television

A makeshift memorial was set up in New York City in October following the death of actor Matthew Perry.

Minnie Driver remembers Matthew Perry’s ‘wealth of soul’

How Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck’s family situation inspired a new NBC sitcom

12 hilarious and heartwarming classic Christmas episodes to stream this week

music

The Felice Brothers

Before coming to Cambridge, the Felice Brothers hatch a surprise for their fans

Boston Music Awards show dazzles with diverse, dynamic, and defiant performances

The Velvet Underground, Nirvana, Stax soul, and more: 9 great album reissues of 2023

Theater/Dance

Darrel Bailey stars in the solo show "Yippee Ki Yay," a "Die Hard" spoof that also tells a parallel story about an exhausted husband and father.

A ‘Die Hard’ diehard creates ‘Yippee Ki Yay,’ and the Huntington gets in on the action

There’s life after COVID for Jamaica Plain’s 147-year-old Footlight Club theater

Midwinter Revels serves up a frolicsome ‘Feast of Fools’

Health

A CVS pharmacy in Miami.

CVS to launch new pharmacy reimbursement model aimed at simplifying drug pricing

Many Americans ration insulin to save money. One nonprofit is trying to make the life-saving drug more affordable.

In R.I., there’s a lack of dentists caring for patients with special needs. This program is trying to change that.

Obituaries

Pastor Tony Lowden gave the eulogy during the funeral service for Rosalynn Carter in Plains, Ga., in November, 2023.

Influential people we lost in 2023

Robert M. Solow, celebrated economist and Nobel laureate, dies at 99

Raymond Dirks, whose tipster case redefined insider trading, dies at 89