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Today is Wednesday, October 19, 2022.
It is the 292nd day of the year.
73 days remain.
TRENDING
#TheAstronaut topped Twitter’s Top 10 Trends on Tuesday after BTS member Jin announced his first official single solo, “The Astronaut,” is set to drop on October 28.
#TakeNote was trending after Apple unveiled its completely redesigned iPad Pro.
James Corden was trending Tuesday after getting banned and then later apologizing from a NYC restaurant. More in Showbiz.
Deal or No Deal was trending after Meghan Markle complained about her time on the show. More in Royals.
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HIT LIST
While Tesla is trying to make EVs affordable for everyone, luxury carmakers are seeing who can drive up the price tag the highest.
Cadillac has announced its second EV model, the Celestiq, which is only going to be for the highest end of consumers, with a $300,000-plus price tag. The Verge reports that the trim package is stuffed with 3D-printed parts, allowing for extensive customization along the way – things like putting your signature on the steering wheel and customizing textures and design patterns throughout. It’s estimated to get 300 miles per charge. They’re expected to ship next year.
MEANWHILE: Rolls-Royce has rolled out its first EV, called the Spectre, also due out next year. This one will get 260 miles on a charge. It’s expected to run $413,500 – before customizations.
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A family sitting on a rare coin that believed it to be a fake ripoff just sold it for north of $4 million.
It’s a Liberty head nickel from 1913 with a “V” on the back – the Roman numeral for five, as in a five-cent nickel. Only five such coins with this exact configuration are known to exist, and two are in museums.
When the original collector died in a car crash in 1962, a so-called “expert” told them the coin was a fraud. It sat around for years – until it resurfaced in 2003 and it was validated as real. It last sold in 2013 for $3.1 million.
Now it’s in the hands of a collector in Irvine, California.
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Netflix appears to have stopped the bleeding after back-to-back quarterly reports showing a massive slide in subscribers.
Analysts predicted only a million new subscribers for the end of the third quarter, but instead Netflix managed more than double that, at 2.4 million. Nearly half of those were in Asia.
The news comes just a few weeks ahead of the expected official rollout of its ad-supported plan, a first for the streamer. It’ll cost $6.99 a month – about a third of the regular ad-free package.
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An unidentified person walking a dog outside Boston over the weekend reportedly had to call police after they were surrounded by a pack of coyotes.
The dogwalker made the emergency call just after 9:30 pm Saturday, telling the dispatcher the pack was “not backing down.” When cops arrived, they say they counted at least 9 such animals and escorted the dogwalker and their pooch home. The coyotes ran off when they saw the lights and sirens.
Officials say to bring squirt guns and noisemakers on walks where coyotes might prowl.
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Just weeks ago, Fort Myers, Florida was devastated by Hurricane Ian.
Now, a $494 Mega Millions ticket was sold at a 7-Eleven there. A second ticket was sold in California for that same jackpot.
No word yet on the identity of the winner.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The Dow added 337 points (1.12%) Tuesday to close at 30,523. The S&P added 42 points (1.14%) to close at 3,719 and the Nasdaq added 96 points (0.9%) to close at 10,772.
🛢 West Texas Intermediate fell to $83 a barrel and Brent Crude settled just over $90.
⛽ The national average price of a gallon of gas was $3.87 Tuesday, inching back toward $4 a gallon.
₿ Bitcoin got pounded after a healthy morning, falling $500 from an afternoon peak. It was trading around $19,300 Tuesday evening.
🛩 There were 2,309 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Tuesday and 78 such cancellations.
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CHARTS
Top 5 Fiction & Nonfiction Books Currently on the New York Times Best Sellers List:
FICTION:
“Righteous Prey,” John Sandford
“Verity,” Colleen Hoover
“It Ends With Us,” Colleen Hoover
“Mad Honey,” Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
“Fairy Tale,” Stephen King
NON-FICTION
“Confidence Man,” Maggie Haberman
I’m Glad My Mom Died,” Jennette McCurdy
“Live Wire,” Kelly Ripa
“Killing the Legends,” Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard
“The Body Keeps The Score,” Bessel van der Kolk
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DEATHS
MIKE SCHANK has died.
The musician, who was prominently featured in “American Movie,” passed away October 13 after a months-long battle with cancer.
He was 53.
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Astronaut JAMES MCDIVITT has died.
He commanded the Gemini IV mission in 1965, followed by the Apollo 9 mission in 1969.
According to NASA, McDivitt passed away peacefully in his sleep on Thursday in Tucson, Arizona.
He was 93.
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THE SWAMP
Senator CHUCK GRASSLEY has submitted a letter to the FBI demanding they give an unredacted report to Congress detailing their investigation of HUNTER BIDEN.
WORTH REMEMBERING: While it’s believed a grand jury has reviewed a tax fraud case against the son of the President, there are any number of crimes Hunter has committed and documented extensively on social media, including transporting prostitutes across state lines, lying on a gun application, and doing a lot of drugs.
As Grassley’s office has previously noted, “Multiple FBI whistleblowers, including those in senior positions, are raising the alarm about tampering by senior FBI and Justice Department officials in politically sensitive investigations ranging from election and campaign finances pobes across multiple election cycles.”
WORTH NOTING: None of this seems to ever make the nightly news.
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The IRS has increased the income tax threshold for some federal tax brackets by 7%, reflecting the rise in inflation according to a formula laid out by statute. The standard deduction is also going up.
The Wall Street Journal reports this is the biggest year-over-year increase since 1985.
IN OTHER WORDS: The IRS and Congress agree that inflation shouldn’t drive up peoples’ taxes. Will the administration finally admit that the economy is in peril? d
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LOTTERY
No winner for Monday night’s Powerball drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $508 million jackpot or a $256.3 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
JAMES CORDEN has apologized to restaurant owner KEITH MCNALLY after getting banned from the establishment for “abhorrent” behavior.
HERE’S WHAT HAPPENED: McNally, who owns Balthazar in NYC, says the late night host was “incredibly abusive” to his staff on at least two occasions. He says Corden’s actions were so “abhorrent” that he felt the need to call him out publicly on social media, referring to him as a “cretin of a man.” McNally then banned him.
Less than 24 hours after the social media post, Corden reportedly apologized, and McNally accepted, removing the ban.
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POTENTIAL “Dancing With the Stars” SPOILER
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Actress SELMA BLAIR ended her run on the dance competition show with a tearful exit on Monday night after performing one last time with partner SASHA FARBER.
Blair, who has multiple sclerosis, said her body has “reached its limit” and she can no longer be part of the very physically-demanding show.
For her final dance, the judges gave Blair straight 10s.
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JASON SUDEIKIS and OLIVIA WILDE’s ex-nanny is continuing to bash the former couple, despite them calling her a liar.
The nanny, who sources identified to TMZ as ERIKA GENARO, told the Daily Mail that Olivia continued to string Jason along after their split. Even sleeping in the same bed and sending him flirty texts from time to time.
She also claims that Olivia gave her dog, Gordon, away to spend more time with her new man, HARRY STYLES.
As reported yesterday, Olivia and Jason have called the woman’s claims “false and scurrilous.”
Still no word on any NDA…
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BRITNEY SPEARS claims that her father, JAMIE SPEARS, was “trying to kill” her during her 13-year conservatorship.
In a two-minute clip shared to Twitter, Brit details various medical procedures she was forced to endure that “didn’t make sense” before being sent to a mental facility in 2019.
“The hardest thing is to know that they were just being mean and that I felt like my dad was trying to kill me. And I hope he burns in [effing] hell,” she stated.
Jamie has denied any wrongdoing, repeatedly stating that he “loves his daughter” and acted in “her best interests.”
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Fans of JOHNNY DEPP continue to show their love and support for the actor by blowing up sales on Captain Jack Sparrow costumes.
There is a notable trend going on, according to bigwigs at Halloweencostumes.com, who say they have seen a 90% increase in purchases related to Depp’s famous character.
The retailer also noted that the costume is out-selling more relevant characters, such as those from “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Hocus Pocus 2” and “Lightyear.”
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In actor TOM FELTON’s new book, “Beyond The Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard,” he details how a masturbating monkey caused quite the chaos on set.
While filming a scene for “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” all around the child actors, including himself, were caged animals, such as snakes, monkeys, toucans and an “ill-mannered baboon” who would repeatedly pleasure himself.
Felton writes that several takes were deemed “unusable” because of the baboon and the chaos that “ensued each time one of the kids saw what was happening.”
On the topic of keeping the group of young actors focused, Felton says that director CHRIS COLUMBUS would make them put ten pounds into a bag for goofing off “and, at the end of the shoot, all the money would be donated to charity.”
As for who “donated” the most, according to Felton it was RUPERT GRINT, who played Ron Weasley in the famous films.
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CASTING CALL
JESSE WILLIAMS will guest star and direct the fifth episode of ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy.”
Williams, who left the show as a series regular in 2021 after 12 seasons, will reprise his role as Dr. Jackson Avery in the episode.
Airing November 3, the episode titled “When I Get to the Border,” will be the fourth time that Williams has directed.
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SHANIA TWAIN will play Mrs. Potts in ABC’s upcoming “Beauty and the Beast” 30th-anniversary special.
As many may recall, the late ANGELA LANSBURY voiced the teapot in the original 1991 Disney film.
Singer H.E.R. and actor JOSH GROBEN will play Belle and the Beast, respectively.
The two-hour special will air on December 15.
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PETER BILLINGSLEY returns as Ralphie in “A Christmas Story Christmas” a sequel to the classic holiday flick “A Christmas Story” at HBO Max.
The new movie follows adult Ralphie in the 1970s, who returns to the iconic home on Cleveland Street to deliver his kids a magical Christmas like the ones he had growing up. He reconnects with childhood friends, while reconciling the passing of his Old Man.
IAN PETRELLA, ZACK WARD, SCOTT SCHWARTZ and R.D. ROBB are also reprising their roles from the original. Newcomers include ERINN HAYES, RIVER DROSCHE, JULIANNA LAYNE and JULIE HAGERTY.
Ralphie returns on November 17.
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Sony has bumped TOM HANKS’ movie “A Man Called Otto” to Christmas Day -- a two week delay from its original December 14th release date.
The film follows Otto (Hanks), a grumpy widower whose only joy comes from criticizing his neighbors. He finally meets his match when a young family moves in next door, leading to an unexpected friendship that turns Otto’s world upside down, per the official description.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KANYE WEST is living out of hotels and rental properties and spending money like it's nothing, so say those close to him.
Friends of Ye told TMZ Tuesday that the rapper rarely stays in the same place for more than a few days and is spending money on exuberant things, such as a $50 million penthouse.
Other questionable decisions include firing advisors and publicists.
WORTH NOTING: In addition to the new penthouse, Ye is building a home in Malibu and purchased a home near his ex, KIM KARDASHIAN, that needs tons of work -- none of which has begun.
SPEAKING OF YE: After comments Ye made about GEORGE FLOYD’s death in a recent interview, Floyd’s family has announced they plan to sue the rapper for a quarter of a billion dollars. Roxie Washington, the mother of Floyd’s only daughter Gianna, revealed Tuesday she has hired a team of lawyers to go after Ye for harassment, misappropriation, defamation and infliction of emotional distress. The family also reportedly sent Ye a cease and desist letter.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
On the latest episode of her “Archetypes” podcast, MEGHAN MARKLE whined about her time on “Deal or No Deal.”
She said she was “reduced to a bimbo” as one of the briefcase-opening women.
WORTH ASKING: What did she expect?
WORTH NOTING: Longtime host of the show HOWIE MANDEL told PIERS MORGAN earlier this year that he has “absolutely no memory” of Meg being on the show.
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PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE’s Netflix docuseries is still on track to premiere this year, despite reports to the contrary.
Deadline reported Monday that the show was potentially being pushed back until 2023 amid backlash over the upcoming season of “The Crown,” but Page Six reported Tuesday that sources told them the show is being slated for a December release.
Netflix has yet to announce an official release date.
SPORTS
While chatting with KEVIN DURANT on his podcast this week, TOM BRADY discussed creating a work-life balance, while comparing playing football to being in the military.
“I almost look at like a football season like you’re going away on deployment for the military. And it’s like, ‘Man, here I go again,” Brady said.
The Buccaneers QB also told Durant that as much as athletes may want a work-life balance, “when it comes down to it, your competitiveness takes over and as much as you want to have this playful balance with the work balance -- you’re going to end up doing exactly what you’ve always done, which is why you are who you are.”
WORTH ASKING: Is this the explanation he gave Gisele when he un-retired?
ALSO WORTH ASKING: With the Bucs 3-3 record, is Brady second-guessing his decision to return? His sideline tantrums seem to suggest this may be the case.
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DAY OF THE YEAR
International Gin and Tonic Day
Evaluate Your Life Day
Hagfish Day
National Seafood Bisque Day
Global Dignity Day
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ON THIS DATE
1781 – British General Cornwallis officially surrenders the war for the British, following defeat at Yorktown.
More than 7,000 British troops, 900 navy men, 140 cannons, and 45 ships stopped fighting, though it took time for the news of surrender to spread to other theaters of war.
Having suffered the greatest defeat of his career, Cornwallis sat out the formal ceremony, in which a surrogate delivered his sword to the American and French high command. Cornwallis said he had a cold.
It would take almost a year for the Treaty of Paris to be signed, which formally recognized the United States as an independent nation.
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1796 – An editorial in the "Gazette of the United States" accuses Thomas Jefferson of carrying out affairs with one of his slaves.
The article was signed with the pseudonym Phocion, who was later revealed to be Alexander Hamilton who, at the time, was the Treasury Secretary. Jefferson was running against John Adams for the presidency at the time.
This would be like Timothy Geithner writing under an assumed name in the New York Times about Mitt Romney having an affair with a housekeeper. In fairness to Romney, though, there is no evidence of this, and it is likely that Jefferson fathered several children by slaves.
It wasn't the first article by Phocion to appear in the Gazette. He wrote 25 long essays from October to November, but this one stands out as a political cheap shot.
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1982 – John DeLorean is arrested for possession of more than $24 million worth of cocaine.
The car inventor resorted to drug deals to help bail his company out of debt.
In the 1984 trial, his lawyers would successfully sell the story that DeLorean was entrapped by the government, leading to an acquittal.
The following year, he would be indicted for a slew of financial crimes, including fraud, racketeering, and tax evasion. He would get an acquittal for those as well.
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1985 – Blockbuster opens its first store. The Dallas location featured 8,000 VHS tapes and a high-tech computerized check-out system.
It would swiftly become the most popular and efficient video rental store in the nation. In particular, it bought up stand-alone mom-n-pop video rental shops and used their supplies and infrastructure.
The wild success didn't quite last into the 21st century. Netflix came about in 1997 and Amazon would launch its own online DVD store. When streaming came into the fold, Blockbuster was toast.
Many of the brick-and-mortar locations have closed, but it has seen a resurgence in digital streaming services, similar to those found on competitors Netflix and Amazon.
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2005 – Saddam Hussein begins his trial for war crimes and genocide.
The deposed despot sat with 7 co-defendants who were Ba'ath party officials and members of his cabinet.
When first asked for his name by a judge, Saddam responded only with, "I am the president of Iraq."
He would be convicted in November of the following year, and hanged on December 30.
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2018 - The “Halloween” reboot starring Jamie Lee Curtis brings in $77 million — a record for a horror film with a female lead.
It is also the biggest debut of any film with a female lead over the age of 55 in the US.
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BIRTHDAYS
Katie Douglas - actress, “Spooksville & “Ginny & Georgia” - 24
Hunter King - actress, “The Young and the Restless” - 29
Cheyenne Floyd - reality star, “Teen Mom” - 30
Lil Durk - rapper - 30
Colton Dixon - rock singer - 31
Rebecca Ferguson - actress, “Hercules” & “The Greatest Showman” - 39
Gillian Jacobs - actress, “Community” - 40
Jose Bautista - baseball player - 42
Omar Gooding - actor, “Smart Guy” - 46
Joy Bryant - actress, “Parenthood” - 48
Sweet Saraya - wrestler - 51
Chris Kattan - comedian - 52
Trey Parker - TV producer - 53
John Edward - TV psychic - 53
Jon Favreau - director & actor, “Swingers” & “Rudy” - 56
Ty Pennington - TV host, “Extreme Home Makeover” - 58
Evander Holyfield - boxer - 60
Joe Bryant - basketball coach - 68
Floyd Mayweather Sr. - boxer - 70
Jeannie C. Riley - country singer, “Harper Valley P.T.A.” - 77
John Lithgow - actor, “3rd Rock From the Sun” & “Interstellar” - 77
Born On This Date
Sylvia Browne - author & self-proclaimed medium - 1936 (d. 2013)
Hal B. Wallis - movie producer, “Casablanca” & “Elvis” films - 1899 (d. 1986)
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