_________________ WANTAGH ________________
CoMMUNItY UPDAtE Infections as of July 8
2,109
Infections as of July 1 2,104
$1.00
HERALD
Miss Wantagh 2021 is crowned
Mulcahy’s regular musical guests
Principal says his goodbyes
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Vol. 69 No. 29
JUlY 15 - 21, 2021
‘They want that little piece of fun’ Band with Jack Black look-alike singer hits it big on social media By KAtE NAlEPINsKI knalepinski@liherald.com
Courtesy Daniel Stanton
ACtor AND MUsICIAN Jack Black’s video reply to local rock band Adam and the Metal Hawks’ performance went viral and has attracted over 64 million views and 12.9 million likes on TikTok.
In early May, South Shorebased rock band Adam and the Metal Hawks covered AC/DC’s “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ’n’ Roll),” and posted the video to social media platform TikTok. At the time, the band had one main goal: to have actor and musician Jack Black — who covered the track in the film “School of Rock” — post a video reply on the app. “We tried to incorporate either songs that he had covered or his songs,” lead singer Adam
Ezegelian, of Wantagh, said, “and we worked them into different formats for our TikToks.” Soon enough, a “public pressure campaign” was created on the app, as drummer Alex Hertler described it. The band’s social media following urged Black, the vocalist for Tenacious D, to post a video reply to it. “We went onto his most recent [TikTok] video, and every other comment was like, ‘duet@amhband right now,’” Hertler recalled with a laugh. Adam and the Metal Hawks’ sixth video attempt at a Continued on page 15
County opioid lawsuit: ‘the first signs of real accountability’ By MAllorY WIlsoN mwilson@liherald.com
Nassau County has established a revenue fund to help end opioid abuse, officials announced last week. The Special Revenue Fund will bring Nassau County “one step closer to ending the heroin and opioid abuse epidemic,” County Legislator Rose Marie Walker, who chairs the Legislature’s Health Committee, said in a press release. The funds will be directed toward educational programs to help addicts, Walker said. “We want to send a clear message to the residents of Nassau County
that we are committed to doing everything in our power to take on these drugs that have ruined our communities, broken up families, and continue to put our children in harm’s way,” she said. According to Daniel Schrafel, the communications director for the Legislature’s Democratic caucus, the county is set to receive approximately $15.3 million of a $230 million settlement with the state by pharmaceutical manufacturer and distributor John & Johnson, which has been accused of helping to fuel the opioid crisis in New York. With the settlement, Johnson & Johnson avoided going to trial with several other opioid manufacturers.
In a statement on its website, Johnson & Johnson said that the settlement was not an admission of guilt, and that “the money given will provide New York, and all involved, funding to help address any and all opioid-related issues.” The company said it had discontinued making prescription pain medications in the U.S. Last month, a class-action lawsuit filed by Nassau and Suffolk counties and state Attorney General Letitia James convened in court in Central Islip for opening statements. The lawsuit accuses pharmaceutical giants including Teva Pharmaceuticals, Amerisource Bergen, McKesson Corp, Endo Pharmaceuticals, Allegan
Finance and Cardinal Health of feeding the opioid epidemic. James referred to it as “the nation’s most extensive lawsuit” to hold manufactures and distributors accountable. “While no amount of money will ever compensate for the thousands who lost their lives or became addicted to opioids across our state or provide solace
to the countless families torn apart by this crisis, these funds will be used to prevent any future devastation,” she said. Opioid deaths on Long Island increased by 77 percent from 2013 to 2017, from 358 to 617, according to the New York-based Fiscal Policy Institute, a nonprofit research and education organization. A Continued on page 9