Northeast
‘Produce Pete,’ who taught millions to pick perfect fruits and vegetables, dies at 80
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
A beloved television personality who spent decades teaching viewers how to pick everything from the perfect pineapple to the juiciest tomatoes, drawing on lessons passed down from his Italian immigrant family, has died, according to reports.
Peter Napolitano, the New York–area TV personality known as “Produce Pete,” died Jan. 26 at the age of 80 at a hospital in Paramus, New Jersey, his son confirmed to The New York Times. A cause of death was not specified.
For more than 30 years, Napolitano appeared on WNBC’s “Weekend Today in New York,” delivering weekly segments built upon advice he learned from nearly a lifetime spent in the business.
SCIENTISTS DISCOVER ‘SUPERFOOD’ POTENTIAL IN OVERLOOKED VEGETABLE MOST AMERICANS CAN’T PREPARE
Born Feb. 23, 1945, in Englewood, New Jersey, Napolitano grew up immersed in the produce trade. His father, an Italian immigrant and one of 20 children, started the family business. Napolitano began selling fruits and vegetables door to door with his dad at just 5 years old, according to the Times.
Peter Napolitano poses at his produce market in Bergenfield, N.J., in 2003. (Carmine Galasso/The Record/USA Today Network)
“I come from immigrant people,” Napolitano said during a 2025 appearance on the “Today” show. “My father came here from Italy. No education, no nothing. And then, you know, I got lucky 35 years ago when someone was in my store and put me on a local show.”
5 ‘GRANDMA-STYLE COOKING’ RECIPES MAKING A COMEBACK AS AMERICANS DITCH MODERN FOOD TRENDS
By the mid-1950s, the family was selling watermelons out of an empty lot in Bergenfield, New Jersey, before opening Napolitano’s Produce in 1959. Napolitano eventually took over the store in 1970 and ran it for decades, building it into a regional destination for fresh fruits and vegetables.
His television career began in 1989, when he was invited to discuss concerns about contaminated Chilean grapes on a local New York talk show. The appearance led to regular on-air segments and, eventually, his long-running role at WNBC starting in 1992, where he became known simply as “Produce Pete,” a moniker he proudly embraced, NBC 4 New York reported.
Napolitano emphasized simple rules for quality produce, advising viewers to choose fruits and vegetables that felt “heavy in the hand” and encouraging shoppers to embrace oddly shaped items, which he often said packed the most flavor. He told viewers to look for a deep golden color in pineapples as a sign of ripeness and taught them to lift pumpkins from the bottom, so the stems wouldn’t break.
Napolitano released his autobiography, “They Call Me Produce Pete,” in 2023. (Tanya Breen/USA Today Network)
Napolitano’s popularity extended well beyond local television. He was parodied on “The Daily Show”; praised by comedian Tina Fey — who once told him, “You’re my Beyoncé”; and even recognized by actor Harrison Ford, according to the Times.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE LIFESTYLE STORIES
He also wrote several books, including “Produce Pete’s Farmacopeia,” a guide to choosing and preparing fruits and vegetables, and an autobiography published in 2023.
Napolitano retired from running the family store in the late 1990s but continued working in the produce industry as a broker and buyer while maintaining his television presence.
TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ
NBC 4 New York remembered Napolitano as a beloved member of its station family, highlighting not just his practical advice but also the personal stories he shared about his upbringing and family.
For generations of viewers, “Produce Pete” was a trusted voice on how to choose quality fruits and vegetables. (Tanya Breen/USA Today Network)
Napolitano is survived by his wife, Elizabeth “Bette” Napolitano; two children; seven grandchildren; and several siblings, according to reports.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
He famously signed off his segments with a message that also sums up his legacy: “If you eat right, you’re going to live right.”
Read the full article from Here
Pennsylvania
3 dead in apparent murder-suicide spanning from Pennsylvania to Illinois, police say
Two women are dead in Pennsylvania and a man is dead in Illinois after an apparent murder-suicide, police said on Wednesday.
According to a report from the Pennsylvania State Police, the investigation began in Hillside, Illinois, when police there were dispatched after a man reported two women dead in Jackson Township, Pennsylvania. Police said that when officers got to Hillside, about 15 miles west of Chicago, they found that the man had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
After identifying him, troopers said Hillside officers contacted police from Jackson Township to request a welfare check at the man’s home on Dior Drive, about 30 miles north of Pittsburgh.
Police said officers used forced entry to get into the home and found two women dead from apparent gunshot wounds. It’s believed the two women were family members of the man who died by suicide in Illinois, investigators said.
Pennsylvania State Police said they’ve assumed control of the case and are “actively investigating” what happened surrounding the three deaths.
Police didn’t release any names, saying the process of formal identification and notification of next of kin hasn’t been completed. Sources told KDKA that the victims were a husband, wife and their daughter.
“At this time, investigators believe there is no ongoing threat to the public, and law enforcement is not searching for any additional individuals in connection with this incident,” police wrote in the public information release report. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation.”
State police didn’t release any other details on Wednesday but said more information will be made public when it’s available.
“My first reaction was shocked because this is such a close-knit neighborhood, and to think something that horrible could happen here is very tragic because they were such a good family,” neighbor Danielle Sporer said on Wednesday.
Rhode Island
RI Lottery Powerball, Numbers Midday winning numbers for March 4, 2026
The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 4, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 4 drawing
07-14-42-47-56, Powerball: 06, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Numbers numbers from March 4 drawing
Midday: 2-7-4-4
Evening: 7-6-0-2
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from March 4 drawing
08-11-12-18-24, Extra: 15
Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 4 drawing
12-13-36-39-58, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
- Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
- Winners of the Millionaire for Life top prize of $1,000,000 a year for life and second prize of $100,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.
When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
- Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
- Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Vermont
19 Vermont school budgets fail as education leaders debate need for reform
MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – Most Vermont school budgets passed Tuesday, but 19 districts and supervisory unions saw their spending plans rejected — an uptick from the nine that failed in 2025, though well below the 29 that failed in 2024.
Some education leaders say the results show communities are largely supportive of their schools.
“We’re starting to kind of equalize out again towards the normal trend of passage of school budgets each year,” said Chelsea Meyers of the Vermont Superintendents Association.
Sue Ceglowski of the Vermont School Boards Association said the results send a clear message. “Vermont taxpayers support Vermont’s public schools,” she said.
Meyers said the results also raise questions about the scope of education reform being considered in Montpelier. “If we are going to reform the system, it might not require sweeping broad changes as are being considered right now, but a more concise approach to consider that inequity,” she said.
But in districts where budgets failed, officials say structural changes are still needed. In Barre, where the budget failed, Barre Unified Union School District Board Chair Michael Boutin said the Legislature must, at a minimum, create a new funding formula. “We have to have that in order to avoid the huge increases and decreases — the huge increases that we’ve seen in the last couple years,” Boutin said.
He said the rise in school budgets is separate from why property owners are seeing sharp tax increases. The average state increase in school budgets is 4%, but the average property tax increase is 10%, driven by cost factors including health care. “There’s a complete disconnect, and that’s a product of the terrible system that we have in Vermont with our funding formula,” Boutin said.
Ceglowski says the state should address health care costs before moving forward with rapid education policy changes. “Addressing the rapid rise in the cost of school employees’ health benefits by ensuring a fair and balanced statewide bargaining process for those benefits,” she said.
The 19 districts that did not pass their budgets will need to draft new spending plans to present to voters, which often requires cuts. Twelve school districts are scheduled to vote at a later date.
Copyright 2026 WCAX. All rights reserved.
-
World1 week agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts1 week agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Wisconsin3 days agoSetting sail on iceboats across a frozen lake in Wisconsin
-
Maryland4 days agoAM showers Sunday in Maryland
-
Denver, CO1 week ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Florida4 days agoFlorida man rescued after being stuck in shoulder-deep mud for days
-
Oregon6 days ago2026 OSAA Oregon Wrestling State Championship Results And Brackets – FloWrestling
-
Massachusetts2 days agoMassachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks