With just three weeks to go until the Oscars, this year’s unpredictable awards season took another surprising twist at Sunday evening’s Screen Actors Guild Awards, as Hollywood’s actors gave their highest honor to Bong Joon Ho’s genre-scrambling class satire “Parasite.”

Beating out a diverse field including “Bombshell,” “The Irishman,” “Jojo Rabbit” and “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” the critically acclaimed South Korean film about two families, one rich and one poor, whose lives become entangled became the first foreign-language film ever to win the SAG ensemble prize, the guild’s closest analogue to a best picture award. (The only other previous foreign-language film to score a SAG ensemble nod was 1997’s Holocaust dramedy “Life Is Beautiful.”)

“Although the title is ‘Parasite,’ I think the story is about co-existence and how we can all live together,” actor Song Kang Ho, who plays the patriarch of the poor family, said as he accepted the award. “To be honored with a best ensemble award, it occurs to me that maybe we haven’t created such a bad movie.”

Coming into the night, many were predicting that either Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic “The Irishman” or Quentin Tarantino’s 1960s fantasia “Once Upon a Time” — both anchored by star-packed casts — would take the ensemble prize. But when the “Parasite” cast, none of whom received individual nominations, earned a warm standing ovation early in the night from the audience of actors at the Shrine Auditorium, while introducing the film, it was clear where the crowd’s affections resided.

With the actors representing the largest branch of the motion picture academy by far, the SAG Awards are generally considered a significant bellwether indicating which way Oscar voters may be leaning. Over the last 25 years, roughly half of the winners of the ensemble prize have gone on to win best picture at the Oscars. That said, last year’s victor, “Black Panther,” ultimately lost out to “Green Book” (which was not nominated for the SAG ensemble prize).

This year’s wide-open awards horse race has seen different films appear to surge into the lead at varying times, with the accelerated schedule only heightening the sense of uncertainty. The win for “Parasite” — which has earned six Oscar nominations, including the first ever best-picture nod for a Korean film — could be a good omen for its Academy Awards chances.

No foreign-language film has ever won the best picture prize in the academy’s history, however, and “Parasite” will have to overcome stiff competition from more conventional Oscars fare like the World War I drama “1917,” Scorsese’s “The Irishman” and Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time.” Both the comic-book smash “Joker” and “1917” — which are in the thick of the leaders’ pack with 11 and 10 Oscar nominations, respectively, with the latter hot off its Producers Guild Award for best picture win on Saturday — failed to score ensemble nods from SAG.

Joaquin Phoenix won his first-ever SAG Award for his lead turn as a mentally disturbed aspiring stand-up comic turned supervillain in “Joker,” while Renée Zellweger took home the lead actress prize for playing Hollywood icon Judy Garland in her difficult final years in the biopic “Judy.” Both Zellweger and Phoenix took home Golden Globe Awards earlier this month and are considered front-runners in their respective categories for the Oscars.

After giving a somewhat rambling and jaded speech at the Globes, Phoenix seemed in better humor. He extolled the talents of his fellow nominees and saluted the late Heath Ledger — who won a posthumous Oscar for playing the Joker in “The Dark Knight” — calling him his favorite actor and saying, “I’m here tonight standing on [his] shoulders.”

Laura Dern won the supporting actress prize for her turn as a cutthroat divorce lawyer in “Marriage Story,” while Brad Pitt took home the supporting prize for playing a grizzled 1960s stuntman in “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood.” “I’ve got to add this to my Tinder profile,” Pitt cracked in one of the night’s most memorable speeches “Let’s be honest, it was a difficult part: a guy who gets high, takes his shirt off and doesn’t get along with his wife. It was a big stretch.”

In the television categories, Amazon stuck to the template it set at the Emmys and rode an early wave of comedy wins to lead the night with three awards. “Fleabag” star Phoebe Waller-Bridge completed the trifecta, adding a SAG Award to her Emmy and Golden Globe trophies, while Tony Shalhoub won for his role in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” which also took home the comedy ensemble prize.

As if to underscore Amazon’s recent comedy dominance, “Maisel” co-star Alex Borstein seemed shocked to win — mainly because of the in-house competition. “I voted for ‘Fleabag,’” she said upon accepting the series’ ensemble award, “This makes no sense.”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, “Fosse/Verdon,” FX’s limited series about the romantic and creative partnership of performers Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon, was catnip to actors, earning matching awards for stars Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams.

No other network or TV series nabbed more than a single SAG Award, with “The Morning Show’s” Jennifer Aniston (Apple TV+), “Game of Thrones’” Peter Dinklage (HBO) and the ensemble of “The Crown” (Netflix) taking home one apiece.

Robert De Niro earned a SAG Life Achievement Award — and a reverent standing ovation — in recognition of his illustrious nearly 50-year career, from his early breakout in 1973’s “Mean Streets” up through his roles in two of this year’s best-picture nominees, “The Irishman” and “Joker.”

After two previous SAG Awards that were dominated by issues surrounding gender in Hollywood, Sunday’s ceremony was a relatively light and apolitical affair. But accepting his award, De Niro — who hasn’t exactly been shy when it comes to his feelings about the current president — made an impassioned case for his fellow actors to use their platforms in these turbulent times to speak up for what they believe in.

“I can imagine some of you are saying, ‘Alright, alright, let’s not get into politics,’ but we are in such a dire situation, so deeply concerning to me and to so many others, I have to say something,” De Niro said. “There’s right and there’s wrong and there’s common sense and there’s abuse of power, and as a citizen I have as much right as anybody — an actor, an athlete, a musician, anybody else — to voice my opinion.”

Times staff writer Matt Brennan contributed to this report.

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Dear Liz: If my wife and I sell our primary residence of 12 years, I understand we can exclude up to $500,000 in home sale profits from taxes. But if we rent it for a year or two, then sell, have we lost that tax break by converting it to income property?

Answer: As long as you lived in the property at least two of the five years before the sale, you can use the home sale exclusion that allows each owner to protect $250,000 of profits from taxation.

You would pay capital gains rates on profits above that amount, but a big home sale profit could have other tax implications.

If you’re covered by Medicare, for example, profits above the exclusion amounts could temporarily increase your monthly premiums. This is because the income-related monthly adjustment amount, which is added to premiums when modified adjusted gross income exceeds $87,000 for singles or $174,000 for married couples.

If you might be affected, you’d be smart to consult a tax professional to see if there’s a way to structure the sale to reduce these effects.

Also, renting property has its own set of tax rules, making it even more important to have a tax pro who can assist you.

A tricky Social Security plan

Dear Liz: In a recent column, you described the difference between withdrawal and suspension of Social Security benefits. I am 64 and want to take Social Security for two months to get out from under a few one-time bills. I’ll then withdraw my application and pay back the money. Do I understand that I’d have 12 months to pay back the funds? Is this something that can be done every 12 months? I see it as an interest-free short-term loan. Of course this only works if the money is paid back.

Answer: The answer to both your questions is no. You’re allowed to withdraw an application only once, and it must be in the 12 months after you start benefits. Once you submit your withdrawal request, you have 60 days to change your mind. If you decide to proceed, you must pay back all the money you’ve received from the Social Security Administration, including any other benefits based on your work record such as spousal or child benefits, plus any money that was withheld to pay Medicare premiums or taxes. In other words, you have a two-month window to pay back the funds, not 12 months.

If you can’t come up with the cash, you’d be stuck with a permanently reduced benefit. You could later opt to suspend your benefit once you’ve reached your full retirement age, which is between 66 and 67. (If you were born in 1956, it’s 66 years and four months.) At that point, your reduced benefit could earn delayed retirement credits that could increase your checks by 8% for each year until the amount maxes out at age 70.

There are a few situations in which starting early and then suspending can make sound financial sense, but a short-term cash need is not typically one of them.

New Secure Act changes some retirement rules

Dear Liz: At age 70½, when I must withdraw money from my IRA, may I donate those dollars to a charitable organization without paying tax on the withdrawn funds?

Answer: The short answer is yes, but you should know there have been some recent changes to retirement plan rules.

Required minimum distributions now start at 72, thanks to the recently enacted Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (Secure) Act. If you turned age 70½ in 2019 and started your required minimum distributions, you should generally continue, but talk to a tax pro.

Also, you can now make contributions to your IRA after age 70½, as long as you’re still working. You must have earned income at least equal to the amount you contribute.

The law didn’t change when you can begin making qualified charitable distributions from your IRAs. Once you reach 70½, you can donate up to $100,000 each year directly from your IRA and the donated amount will not be included in your income.

If you make IRA contributions after age 70½, though, those contributions are deducted from the amount you can donate.

Liz Weston, Certified Financial Planner, is a personal finance columnist for NerdWallet. Questions may be sent to her at 3940 Laurel Canyon, No. 238, Studio City, CA 91604, or by using the “Contact” form at asklizweston.com.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — 

SpaceX completed the last big test of its crew capsule before launching astronauts in as little as two months, mimicking an emergency escape shortly after liftoff Sunday.

No one was aboard for the wild ride in the skies above Cape Canaveral, just two mannequins.

A Falcon 9 rocket blasted off as normal, but just over a minute into its supersonic flight, the Dragon crew capsule catapulted off the top 12 miles above the Atlantic. Powerful thrusters on the capsule propelled it up and out of harm’s way, as the rocket engines deliberately shut down and the booster tumbled out of control in a fiery flash.

The capsule reached an altitude of about 27 miles before parachuting into the ocean just offshore to bring the nine-minute test flight to a close and pave the way for two NASA astronauts to climb aboard next time.

SpaceX flight controllers at the company’s California headquarters cheered every milestone — especially the splashdown. Everything appeared to go well despite the choppy seas.

Recycled from three previous launches, the SpaceX rocket was destroyed as it crashed into the sea in pieces. The company founded and led by Elon Musk normally recovers its boosters, landing them upright on a floating platform or back at the launch site.

“That’s the main objective of this test, is to show that we can carry the astronauts safely away from the rocket in case anything’s going wrong,” said SpaceX’s Benji Reed, director of crew mission management.

“This test is very important to us … a huge practice session,” Reed added.

NASA’s commercial crew program manager, Kathryn Lueders, said the launch abort test was “our last open milestone” before allowing SpaceX to launch Doug Hurley and Robert Behnken to the International Space Station.

She said that could happen as soon as March.

“We are purposely failing a launch vehicle to make sure that our abort system on the spacecraft, that will be flying for our crews, works,” Lueders said in advance of the demo.

Delayed a day by bad weather, Sunday’s launch from Kennedy Space Center brought together hundreds of SpaceX, NASA and Air Force employees on land, at sea and in the air. Tourists and locals alike packed the adjoining visitor complex and nearby beaches to see the dramatic fiery spectacle of an out-of-control rocket.

“Dragon high altitude, supersonic abort test is a risky mission, as it’s pushing the envelope in so many ways,” Musk tweeted minutes before liftoff.

Hurley and Behnken, the NASA astronauts assigned to the first SpaceX crew, monitored the flight from the firing room, including the capsule recovery effort. They took part in a dress rehearsal Friday, suiting up and heading to the launch pad.

NASA astronauts have not launched from the U.S. since 2011, when the space shuttle program ended.

Preferring to focus on the moon and Mars, NASA hired SpaceX and Boeing for billions of dollars to transport astronauts to and from the space station. That should have happened long before now, but both companies struggled with technical problems, adding years of delay and forcing NASA to shell out hundreds of millions of dollars extra for Russian rocket rides.

SpaceX successfully flew a Crew Dragon to the space station last March without anyone on board, but the capsule exploded a month later during ground testing. The emergency escape thrusters — the kind used in Sunday’s test — had to be retooled. In all, SpaceX has tested these powerful Super Draco thrusters some 700 times.

Last month, meanwhile, Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule ended up in the wrong orbit on its first test flight and had to skip the space station. The previous month, only two of the Starliner’s three parachutes deployed during a launch abort test.

Lueders said it was too soon to know whether Boeing would need to send another Starliner to the space station without a crew or go straight to launching astronauts later this year. An investigation team was still looking into why the Starliner’s automated timer was off by 11 hours during the December test flight.

Dahlem is one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Berlin, its lovely, leafy streets lined with large mansions — villas, the Germans call them — built mostly in the early 1900s. As I walked from the thatch-roofed Dahlem-Dorf U-Bahn station to dinner at the home of a not-exactly-Daddy-Warbucks friend one recent evening, I initially puzzled at how he managed to afford such posh surroundings.

Then I saw a villa with six doorbell buttons at the front gate instead of just one. I noticed one or two more such subdivided villas after that, plus a couple of small plaques indicating that there were doctor’s offices inside. My friend’s place turned out to be in a small apartment building that was newer than the surrounding houses, but built to about the same scale.

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Such mixed housing is not entirely unheard of in the U.S., but it is found mainly in neighborhoods that predate zoning, which began its stateside rise in the 1910s and 1920s. In the zoning era, especially since World War II, the general rule for residential neighborhoods has been single-family houses and only single-family houses, with no apartments or businesses allowed.

In Germany, which is usually credited with inventing zoning, this practice of dividing cities into areas intended for certain activities and building forms dates all the way back to the 1870s. Development in Dahlem, a former country estate that had ended up in government hands, was even managed by a Royal Commission for the Division of the Domain of Dahlem that dictated that buyers of plots had to erect villa-like buildings on them within two years or pay a fine.

German zoning and planning innovations got lots of attention elsewhere, and the American reformers who began to advocate more restrictive urban development rules in the early 1900s were quite open about their Teutonic inspiration, at least until World War I. But while German laws and regulations do a lot to shape how and where people can build, they don’t dictate that single-family housing be segregated from all else.

In fact, pretty much no other country does this to the extent that the U.S. does. As University of Georgia professor of landscape architecture and planning Sonia Hirt wrote in her charming and enlightening 2014 book “Zoned in the U.S.A.”: “I could find no evidence in other countries that this particular form — the detached single-family home — is routinely, as in the United States, considered to be so incompatible with all other types of urbanization as to warrant a legally defined district all its own, a district where all other major land uses and building types are outlawed.”

Single-family zoning is now on the defensive in the U.S., with the Minneapolis City Council voting in 2018 to allow up to three housing units on every residential parcel, and the Oregon Legislature doing something along the same lines (the rules vary by size of city) last year.

Although similar legislation has so far failed in California, other reforms to allow homeowners to add units to existing houses have in the words of one expert put the state “on the precipice of single-family zoning functionally not existing,” and the bolder reforms aren’t dead yet. In California, Senate Bill 50 has been re-introduced with changes that give cities and counties two years to develop plans to boost development before state mandates for greater housing density kick in.

These efforts have engendered some alarmed — and alarmist — reactions. “Dems Declare War On Suburbs, Seek To Ban Single-Family Housing,” conservative journalist Luke Rosiak wrote on Twitter in promotion of his Daily Caller article about a bill just introduced in the Virginia Legislature that he claimed “could quickly transform the suburban lifestyle enjoyed by millions.” Suburbanist thinkers Joel Kotkin and Wendell Cox argued in City Journal that without widespread homeownership, “America will become increasingly feudal in its economic and social form.”

Kotkin and Cox hinted but were careful enough not to claim outright that abolishing single-family zoning would have this effect. Their caution was warranted. Germany is, in fact, a country where both homeownership and single-family houses are minority phenomena, and I’ll leave you to decide whether that means it’s feudal. Lots of other affluent nations have homeownership rates similar to or higher than that of the U.S. (the highest tend to be in the formerly communist states of Eastern Europe) without U.S.-style single-family-only zoning.

The most famous explanation for why single-family zoning is so prevalent in the U.S. is probably Dartmouth College economist William Fischel’s “Homevoter Hypothesis”: Except in a few cities, local politics is dominated by homeowners, homeowners favor policies that increase their property values and single-family zoning is perceived as doing just that.

Hirt, who was born and grew up in Bulgaria, acknowledged the power of this reasoning in “Zoning in the U.S.A.,” but she argued that it is incomplete. “If real-estate economics was and continues to be the key factor, if residential property values inevitably decline in surroundings where multiple land uses and housing types are allowed,” she wrote, “shouldn’t people in the other capitalist democracies be equally fearful about their home’s environs and their home’s values?”

Hirt proposed instead that a particular set of cultural beliefs determined the form that zoning took in the 1920s and that this form has subsequently shaped Americans’ notions “of the places in the city where we can and should meet each other, the streets we can and should travel on, how many cars we can and should have, and the kinds of homes we can and should live in.”

Some of these pro-single-family-housing cultural beliefs date at least to the founding of the U.S., and the preferences of certain founders for the country over the city. Others were unique to the 1920s and really pretty nutty. Corner grocery stores were depicted as vectors of disease and disorder, while the landmark 1926 Supreme Court decision that established the legality of zoning asserted that “very often the apartment house is a mere parasite.”

This was an era when lots of reformist types also supported eugenics, and the role of similar bigotry in the rise of zoning can’t be denied. But it was also driven by comparatively innocent beliefs that just happen to have been totally wrong. Zoning advocates argued, for example, that channeling residential development into neighborhoods of detached single-family houses far removed from shops and offices would be a boon to Americans’ health, while in fact the extreme dependence on automobiles that often resulted has been the opposite.

Would getting rid of single-family-only zoning suddenly reverse all of this and transform suburbia? Uh, no. Ibraheem Samirah, the suburban Virginia dentist and newly elected state lawmaker who sponsored the zoning reform bill discussed above, said he thinks any change “would be much more long-term, much slower.” His hope, he told me last week, is to shift the balance in local housing politics a little by giving homeowners the opportunity to profit from developing their own properties instead of just fighting nearby development. “I’m trying to broaden the coalition for more affordable housing beyond developers to property owners,” he said.

In Berlin, meanwhile, it’s not as if the absence of single-family zoning has solved all the city’s real estate problems. Purchase prices and especially rents are still low by the standards of the world’s major cities, but they’ve risen so much over the past two decades that the local government felt compelled to impose a five-year rent freeze last fall.

Single-family zoning is not the sole cause of high housing prices in California, Virginia or elsewhere in the U.S. But it is kind of strange.

Fox writes a column for Bloomberg.

I’m Business columnist David Lazarus, with a look today at airline baggage fees. Or, more broadly, nickel-and-dime fees in general.

JetBlue Airways last week said it was jacking up its baggage fees for the second time in two years (thanks, guys!).

Your first checked bag will now cost $35, up from $30. A second checked bag will run a hefty $45, up from $40.

But what’s really beautiful here is that the airline is spinning the price hikes as a boon to travelers. Because JetBlue is offering a $5 discount for checking bags online, it says this will do wonders for relieving congestion at airport ticket counters.

The higher fees will “reduce transactions in the airport lobby and improve the Customer experience,” the carrier said in a memo to employees.

It also said that “we are changing our fee structure to give Customers extra motivation to use those self-service tools, while at the same time increasing revenue for JetBlue even as we keep our base fares low.”

OK, let’s pick all that apart.

First, higher fees may be a plus for consumers in some parallel universe. But on this plane of existence, they’re almost always just another way for businesses to boost their bottom line.

Second, higher online fees don’t “improve the Customer experience.” You’ll still have to check in your bags at the airport. The only difference is you won’t need to take out your credit card again. Big wow.

Lastly, JetBlue is getting closer to the truth when it admits the higher baggage fees increase revenue “even as we keep our base fare low.” That’s the whole game — tricking people into thinking they’re getting a good deal when in fact the overall cost is up.

As I’ve noted previously, this racket of base prices and add-on fees — a common practice among airlines, telecom companies, hotels and restaurants — is designed to prevent consumers from making apples-to-apples comparisons when shopping around.

It allows businesses to maintain the fiction that they’re offering reasonable prices when in reality they’re reaching as deep as they can into customers’ pockets.

The solution is for businesses to offer a single, all-inclusive price for goods and services.

That’s how they do it across the Atlantic. The European Union says consumers “have to be clearly informed about the total price, including all taxes and additional charges.” In other words, the price you see listed is the price you pay.

Easy peasy.

Compare that with JetBlue’s approach, which is to promote a deceptively low base price and then smack travelers upside the head with sky-high extra fees (see: $45 for a second bag). Phone and cable companies routinely play the same obnoxious game.

Nobody begrudges companies making a fair profit. If a price hike is warranted, so be it. Explain why people are being asked to pay more and move on.

But don’t act as if you’re doing customers a favor. That’s cowardice at best. Fraud at worst.

Now then, here are a couple of recent stories from our pages worth highlighting:

That’s no moon: Disneyland hopes the Force is strong with its new Star Wars ride, which debuted Friday. Rise of the Resistance, a high-tech, multimedia attraction, not only is getting favorable buzz but will finally test whether Disney’s $1-billion investment in the new land will pay off.

Greener, sweeter: Since 2010, signs at Santa Monica-based Sweetgreen have assured diners “nothing from inside Sweetgreen goes to the landfill.” But for most of the time, that hasn’t been entirely true. In many of the company’s biggest markets, municipal composting was and is nonexistent. The company is trying to remedy that.

Recalls

Nissan North America is recalling 307,962 Nissan and Infiniti vehicles to replace front passenger airbag inflators. Many had received temporary replacements until permanent ones were available.

About 2,000 Tango Mini Strollers are being recalled because faulty hinge joints can cause the stroller to collapse, endangering children. The low-priced strollers were sold at Target and on Amazon from October to November 2019.

Spare change

For our friends at JetBlue, some songs about sleight of hand. The Steve Miller Band weighs in with a little hey-presto. Santana wants you to meet a black magic woman. This one from Pilot is cheesy but fun. But my top picks are from Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and the Lovin’ Spoonful.

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On the fashion front, it was the battle of the network (and streaming) stars at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday.

Whether marking the last official congregation for the “Game of Thrones” cast, which completed its eighth and final season last year, or the soon-to-start fourth season for “Stranger Things,” the actors brought their A-game to the silver carpet at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Noah Schnapp from “Stranger Things” made one of the biggest statements in a baby-blue suit designed for him by Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing. Philippe Uter, Schnapp’s stylist, said in an email to The Times, “The baby blue felt like the perfect color because it was unique, but it was still understated.”

Drawing inspiration from Balmain’s current spring and summer collection, the double-breasted suit was cinched with a matching cummerbund over the jacket. Schnapp offset the unexpected color with a white mandarin-collar shirt and pristine sneakers. Uter added, “The fabric and shape make this a very classy look yet it is still a statement look.”

Schnapp wasn’t the only one rocking a bold look. Millie Bobby Brown had one of her own — a custom white silk taffeta coat dress and matching pants by Louis Vuitton. The French luxury label also outfitted her with a brooch and satin pumps. On People TV, Brown said she “wanted to go for a masculine but feminine look.”

Other standouts from the “Stranger Things” crew included Gaten Matarazzo in a velvet plaid tuxedo shaded midnight blue by Strong Suit and Priah Ferguson in a yellow strapless dress belted with a hot-pink sash. Sadie Sink and Finn Wolfhard both wore glam get-ups by Gucci.

Leading a fundraiser to benefit victims of the bush fires in his native Australia, Dacre Montgomery cleaned up his bad-boy Billy persona with a white tuxedo accessorized by a pin supporting the Red Cross. On the other hand, Winona Ryder incited a flashback to “Beetlejuice” in her high-necked, long-sleeved gown by Dior Haute Couture.

As for the SAG newcomers from “Fleabag,” the U.K.-based thespians went full blast with their sartorial selections. Andrew Scott, a.k.a. the hot priest, layered a mauve suit by Azzaro Couture over a dusty-rose shirt, punctuated by a black bow tie and cummerbund. Sian Clifford stood stately in a burgundy velvet suit with black satin lapels from Zuhair Murad’s fall and winter 2019 collection.

The series creator, lead actor and SAG winner Phoebe Waller-Bridge dared to bare in Armani Privé, pairing a black velvet full-length pencil skirt with a bandeau top overlaid with a crystal-embroidered black net shawl.

Over in the “Game of Thrones” camp, Sophie Turner turned heads in a fuchsia column gown with a fitted bustier and a big belt from Louis Vuitton.

Warren Alfie Baker styled both Alfie Allen and Pedro Pascal from “Game of Thrones” but picked distinctive looks to suit their personal style. Accessorized with a watch and cufflinks by Asprey, Allen’s full look from Ermenegildo Zegna XXX by Alessandro Sartori featured an abstract black and burgundy print in which the brand’s logo was hidden. “This piece just jumped out for me,” Baker said. “It’s super-elegant with some flare.”

Pascal went with a bespoke gray sateen half-wrap dinner jacket, a white silk band-collar shirt and black evening trousers, all from Dunhill, because “it has a relaxed elegance that is so beautiful and luxe,” Baker said. The actor completed his look with Christian Louboutin shoes and an Omega watch.

Nathalie Emmanuel arrived in a pouf of orange and white flowers, wearing a 1960s-inspired Miu Miu gown accentuated by a big bow in the front. After all, she said on People TV, “I like to see myself as a giant present.”

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The Screen Actors Guild Awards are frequently described as an actors-celebrating-their-own kind of affair and, based on Sunday night’s awards, it was a celebrate-your-own-style affair as well, with most of the memorable looks coming down the silver carpet pumping up the volume, amping up the color and showcasing boldness — in terms of pattern and sparkle.

“Harriet” star Cynthia Erivo, fresh off a focus-pulling turn on the Golden Globes red carpet earlier this month, did it again here, this time in a bright red and pink strapless custom Schiaparelli Couture gown that was poufing and puffing toward the floor.

Others keying into the cornea-searing color palette included Sophie Turner (“Game of Thrones”) in a bright pink bustier-inspired strapless Louis Vuitton gown; Kathryn Newton (“Big Little Lies”) in a voluminous Valentino gown the color of the midday sun (“I wanted to feel like the sun,” she told a People TV reporter on the way into the Shrine Auditorium, to which we say, “Mission accomplished”); and Madeline Brewer (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) in an aquamarine strapless tiered ballgown with a ruched bodice from the spring and summer 2020 Monique Lhuillier collection.

Among the memorably dressed men who took fashion risks that paid off were Andrew Scott (the hot priest from “Fleabag”), who turned up in a mauve tuxedo from Azzaro Couture paired with a dusty rose dress shirt, black bow tie and black cummerbund; Noah Schnapp (“Stranger Things”), whose custom baby blue Balmain ensemble put the cummerbund on the outside of the tuxedo jacket; and O-T Fagbenle (“The Handmaid’s Tale”), whose flowing, wide-sleeved robe (a type of robe known as an agbada) came across as part dashiki, part Renaissance fair and part superhero costume (but somehow worked perfectly on him).

Others noticeably pumping up the volume were Nathalie Emmanuel (“Game of Thrones”), whose strapless, floral-festooned Miu Miu gown sported an immense bow at the breastbone (“I like to see myself as a present, you know?” she said to the People TV reporter, to which we again say, “Mission accomplished”); Jennifer Lopez (“Hustlers”) in Georges Hobeika; and Millie Bobby Brown (“Stranger Things”) in a custom white silk taffeta Louis Vuitton coat dress and trousers.

Brown’s masculine-meets-feminine look also keyed into the men’s formalwear-inspired look for women that was the top trend takeaway from the Globes earlier this month. Among those who followed suit Sunday night were Julia Butters (“Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood”), who arrived in a sparkly silver-sequinned tuxedo jacket from Dsquared2; Sian Clifford (“Fleabag”), in a burgundy velvet Zuhair Murad suit with black satin lapels; and Patricia Arquette (“The Act”), whose red, one-button tuxedo with flared-leg trousers, contrasting black lapels and black cape-like train made her the superhero we all wish we were.

The second major televised event of the 2020 awards season stood out from the pack Sunday by featuring a silver carpet in lieu of a traditional red one. Turns out tradition went to the wayside as we witnessed a variety of looks and (perhaps) a few emerging trends make their way to the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles for the 26th Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Here’s what we noticed: Statement suits, tuxedos and a robed ensemble by the gentlemen and a swath of tulle and voluminous silhouettes for the ladies. Also there were plays on vibrant, bold colors that we also noticed at the Golden Globes this month.

Just remember this is all in good fun. Now check out our picks for our hits, misses and those looks we just couldn’t come to a consensus about in our latest category, On the Fence.

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TOKSOOK BAY, Alaska — 

There are no restaurants in Toksook Bay, Alaska. No motels or movie theater, either. There aren’t any factories. Or roads.

But the first Americans to be counted in the 2020 census live in this tiny community of 661 on the edge of the American expanse. Their homes are huddled together in a windswept Bering Sea village, painted vivid lime green, purple or neon blue to help distinguish the signs of life from a frigid white winterscape that makes it hard to tell where the frozen sea ends and the village begins.

Fish drying racks hang outside some front doors, and you’re more likely to find a snowmobile or four-wheeler in the driveway than a truck or SUV.

In this isolated outpost that looks little like other towns in the rest of the United States, the official attempt to count everyone living in the country will begin Tuesday.

The decennial U.S. census has started in rural Alaska, out of tradition and necessity, ever since the U.S. purchased the territory from Russia in 1867.

Once the spring thaw hits, the town empties as many of its residents scatter for traditional hunting and fishing grounds, and the frozen ground that in January makes it easier to get around by March turns to marsh that’s difficult to traverse. The mail service is spotty and the internet connectivity unreliable, which makes door-to-door surveying important.

For those reasons, census takers have to start early here.

The rest of the country, plus urban areas of Alaska such as Anchorage, will begin the census in mid-March.

Some of the biggest challenges to the count are especially difficult in Toksook Bay, one of a handful of villages on Nelson Island, which is about 500 miles west of Anchorage and only accessible by boat or plane.

Some people speak only Alaska Native languages such as Yupik, or they speak one language but don’t read it.

The U.S. census provides questionnaires in 13 languages, and other guides, glossaries and materials in many more. But the 20 official Alaska Native languages are not among them. Consequently, local groups are bringing together translators and language experts to translate the census wording and intent to help local community leaders feel like they can trust the endeavor as well as understand and relay the importance of the census.

It isn’t an easy task. Language can be very specific to a culture.

For example, there’s no equivalent for “apportionment” — the system used to determine representation in Congress — in the language Denaakk’e, also known as Koyukon Athabascan. So translators have used terms for divvying up moose meat in a village, an example of finding cultural relevancy, said Veri di Suvero, executive director of the agency partner Alaska Public Interest Research Group.

When the official count begins this week, the Census Bureau has hired four people to go door-to-door. At least two of them will be fluent in English and Yupik.

Places such as Toksook Bay that run this risk of being undercounted also desperately need the federal funds assigned based on population for healthcare, education and general infrastructure.

Yet mistrust of the federal government is high. That’s true in many parts of the U.S. but especially in Alaska, where many have strong libertarian views, and it’s even more true in a rural community where everyone knows everyone and someone asking for personal information is seen with suspicion.

“The No. 1 barrier to getting an accurate count throughout Alaska is concern about privacy and confidentiality and an inherent distrust of the federal government,” said Gabriel Layman, chairman of the Alaska Census Working Group. “And that attitude is fairly pervasive in some of our more rural and remote communities.”

The census is entirely confidential, Layman reassures people, and the Census Bureau can’t give information to any law enforcement or immigration official — or to a landlord if you report you have 14 people living in your rental. Violating that privacy could land a census worker behind bars with a hefty fine.

When the count begins on Tuesday, a Yupik elder who is part of a well-known Eskimo dancing group will be the first one counted.

Lizzie Chimiugak, whose age isn’t known because records weren’t kept but is anywhere from 89 to 93, is “the grandma for the whole community,” said Robert Pitka, the tribal administrator of the Nunakauyak Traditional Council in Toksook Bay.

Steven Dillingham, the director of the U.S. Census Bureau, will be on hand for Tuesday’s start.

Village officials will greet him at the town’s airstrip and bring him to the school, where community members will have traditional food, which could include seal, walrus, moose or musk ox. They’ll have a ceremony with the dance group that includes Chimiugak, who will come to the school and dance in her wheelchair if the weather allows.

Mary Kailukiak, a town councilwoman, said she was one of the cooks.

“I’m thinking of maybe cooking up dried fish eggs, herring fish eggs,” she said, pausing to speak to a reporter while ice fishing for tomcod and smolt on the Bering Sea. Kailukiak was dressed in a black parka and snow pants and sported a hat made by her daughter from sealskin and beaver. The eggs, she said, will be soaked overnight and served with seal oil.

Then Dillingham will conduct the first official census count, or enumeration, as it is known, with Chimiugak, out of earshot of others to satisfy federal privacy laws.

Pitka is hoping for nice weather — it’s been as cold as -20 Fahrenheit lately — as the nation’s eyes turn west for the event: “It’s going to be a very special moment.”

Joe Asuluk, 75, says it’s important for people in Toksook Bay to be counted in the census.

He’s lived in Toksook Bay since 1965, a year after it was founded, and pointed out local landmarks from the air to visitors on a recent flight from the hub community of Bethel, 115 miles away.

Asuluk stood outside his small plane after landing in Toksook Bay, getting ready to board a four-wheeler for the journey home. How did he feel about the first count of the census being conducted in his adopted hometown?

“We’re pretty proud,” he said, his breath visible in the frigid air.

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NEW YORK — 

Today she travels the world, attends a red-carpet movie premiere and sits on panels with astronauts, former presidents and feminist icons.

But in the years after 9/11, Amani Khatahtbeh was just a New Jersey teenager, writing a blog from her bedroom. She used the blog to connect with other young Muslim girls and defy stereotypes. At the time, the only reflections of herself in the news seemed to be men in orange jumpsuits who looked like her father and women who seemed silent and oppressed, she said.

“Being bombarded with those headlines growing up and never feeling represented by them, I did what any millennial would do, which was to turn to social media,” Khatahtbeh said. “I decided to put my own place out there and create that space for us to talk back.”

A decade later, her MuslimGirl.com site is an online magazine with a global audience addressing how it feels to be the only woman in a hijab at a kickboxing class, offering beauty tips and covering stories of teenagers fighting Islamophobia. Last year, the domain that she bought for $7 had more than 2 million visitors.

The site “is the biggest English-language online platform for Muslim women voices,” the tech entrepreneur, now 27, said at her family’s video game store in New Jersey. “Our goal is to reclaim our narrative.”

She was 9 when the airliners struck the World Trade Center towers, and she remembers the warning of her Jordanian immigrant father: “They’re going to blame us.”

In the aftermath, she was bullied. People threw eggs at her home and slashed her mother’s tires. Her family faced such a backlash that her father temporarily relocated them to Jordan.

While she is proud of being “born and raised a Jersey girl,” it was only in Jordan that she began to take pride in her roots. She learned Arabic and appreciated Middle Eastern food and hospitality. When she returned to the U.S., she began to wear a headscarf as an act of defiance against a rising anti-Muslim tide.

“I lost a lot of friends, people started treating me differently,” she said. But she also became an ambassador for her faith. Students, even teachers, stopped her in school and asked about the Quran and Islam.

“I had to learn as much as I possibly could about my own religion, the ins and outs of it, what Islamophobes were saying about it, so that I could understand how to respond,” she said.

Eventually, she concluded that if the people around her had those questions, so did many others.

She started the blog at 17 with help from friends at her local mosque. Most of the work is still a grassroots effort. Her younger brother, Ameer, a journalism student at Rutgers University, helps run communications. Although the site pays a group of editors, most articles are written by Muslim women volunteers.

Muslim Girl has also partnered up with companies like ORLY for the creation of a halal nail polish and received support from the Malala Fund. Most recently, VaynerMedia founder Gary Vaynerchuk became an investor.

The site’s topics — in categories like #woke, #fit and #fierce — range widely. Posts include a list of the top 10 most beautiful verses from the Quran, a look at Marvel’s newest Muslim superhero and a story about how hijab-wearing Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad has a Barbie doll made in her likeness.

The site and its founder have attracted a legion of devoted fans who follow her on social media under the hashtag “#muslimgirlarmy. She also has detractors who say she is too Americanized or too progressive. Some question her appearance, such as the way she wears her hijab or shows her arms. She also has tattoos, an eyebrow ring and long manicured nails.

“A lot of times, at any given moment, I can have like two completely different, opposing parties be bonded by their criticism of us,” Khatahtbeh said,

These days, she divides her time between Los Angeles and New York, attending meetings for potential business partners and live-recording moments of her life for Instagram and Twitter.

In recent years, Forbes magazine chose her for its “30 Under 30” list of top achievers. Michelle Obama asked her to speak at the United State of Women Summit. She was also part of a panel that included female astronaut Cody Coleman and was moderated by former President Clinton. Most recently, she served on an advisory committee for the live-action remake of Disney’s “Aladdin” and attended the premiere.

“It was such a full-circle moment for me, because when I was a little girl, Princess Jasmine was one of the only representations that I had growing up,” she said.

Being on the committee allowed her “to try to course-correct some of the problematic stereotypes” in the first movie, including some that she did not notice as a child.

She pointed to two examples: The opening song talked about a faraway place that is “barbaric.” And Jasmine was dressed in a belly dancing outfit and chains in a “hyper-sexualized and oppressive way.”

On her site, Khatahtbeh is especially proud of stories that deal with race and sexuality. “Of course, female sexuality is honored within our religion, and it shouldn’t be something we shy away from or think of as a taboo.”

Most of the site’s visitors live in the U.S. and Britain, and an estimated 70% are millennials and gen Z ages 15 to 32. One of the site’s most controversial stories was written by a Muslim transgender person.

“We want to push the envelope that way by creating that space and reminding people that they have a place within our religion,” she said. “I’m really proud of that, because one thing Muslim Girl does really well is we attract youth. They want to come in, and they want to learn more about Islam because of the way that we put it out there. We always say that our language is the millennial tongue.”