Matthews apologizes for Nazi analogy to Sanders victory

NEW YORK » MSNBC’s Chris Matthews apologized Monday to Bernie Sanders for comparing the Democratic senator’s win in the Nevada caucus to the Nazi takeover of France.

Matthews’ self-described “bad” analogy deepened the discontent that the presidential candidate and his supporters have been feeling lately toward the cable network, one that is usually friendly territory for liberals.

“Sen. Sanders, I’m sorry for comparing anything from that tragic era in which so many suffered, especially the Jewish people, to an electoral result in which you were the well-deserved winner,” Matthews said at the opening of his show, “Hardball,” on Monday evening.

He said he’d try to do a better job elevating the debate this campaign season.

Paramount halts ‘Mission: Impossible’ shoot over virus

NEW YORK » Paramount Pictures on Monday halted production on the seventh “Mission: Impossible” film due to the new virus, as Hollywood began to more drastically adapt to the growing global outbreak.

“Mission: Impossible 7” had been scheduled to shoot for three weeks in Venice. More than 200 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Italy, the largest number outside Asia. While most of those cases are in the neighboring Lombardy region, authorities said three people in Venice have tested positive for the virus.

In a statement, Paramount cited the Venetian government’s halting of public gatherings, and said it was canceling the shoot “out of an abundance of caution for the safety and well-being of our cast and crew.”

Paramount also on Monday postponed the Chinese release of “Sonic the Hedgehog,” which had been set for Friday. Cinemas in China have been shuttered due to the outbreak, closing down the world’s second largest box-office market.