12/13/2022: SBF Arrested
PLUS: More Twitter Truthbombs; Golden Globe Nominations; and Shaq’s “Shaq-tacular” Event
Today is Tuesday, December 13, 2022.
It is the 347th day of the year.
18 days remain.
TRENDING
#GoldenGlobes was trending Monday after nominees were announced. More in Showbiz.
Dave Chappelle landed in Twitter’s Top 10 Trends after bringing a controversial guest on stage during his gig on Sunday. More in Showbiz.
Bob Barker was trending yesterday as Twitter users sent the former “Price Is Right” host birthday wishes. Many also thanked him for getting them through their sick days home from school growing up.
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HIT LIST
SAM BANKMAN-FRIED was arrested by Bahamian authorities Monday after American prosecutors filed criminal charges against him including wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering, among others.
SBF was scheduled to testify to Congress by video later today. American officials will likely get a smooth extradition for SBF back to the States.
HILARIOUS: In a livestream audio interview earlier Monday, SBF said he planned to testify to Congress by video because of his busy schedule and was worried about being swarmed by paparazzi if he were to travel. He later explicitly said, “I don’t think I will be arrested.”
Obnoxiously, SBF also said he was playing video games during the interview. So, yeah, pretty overbooked.
AND NOW AN UPDATE ON PEOPLE WHO STILL ARE BILLIONAIRES: Stock price jostling on Monday means ELON MUSK is no longer the richest man in the world. With Tesla shares down 6.3%, Musk slid below BERNARD ARNAULT, the chairman of LVMH, the company behind luxury brands like Louis Vuitton.
Arnault’s worth $186.2 billion, while Musk is worth $181.3 billion. JEFF BEZOS, who can suck it, meanwhile, is at #4 with $113.8 billion.
MEANWHILE: Meta – the parent company of social app Facebook – has reportedly ended a pretty excellent perk for its employees: A $200 monthly stipend to spend on Lyft rides.
Business Insider reports it’s another cost-cutting measure at the company as the national economy braces for a dangerous economic slowdown.
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Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have reportedly made a huge breakthrough in fusion energy technology.
Whereas nuclear reactors today are powered by fission technology – harnessing the power of atoms breaking apart – fusion is a result of multiple atoms colliding to form a larger one. At scale, fusion technology would essentially provide a limitless, clean energy source.
The recent breakthrough for the first time netted more surplus energy than the amount of energy needed to create the reaction. While promising, don’t expect nuclear fusion sites across the globe any time soon; it will be some time to figure out how to create enough surplus energy to be practical.
The Department of Energy is expected to make a formal briefing about the findings later today, CNN reports.
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Reuters reports that Russia’s military is turning to 40-year-old ammunition rounds as it struggles to keep troops stocked in its invasion of Ukraine.
American diplomats have suggested Russia is brokering deals with North Korea and Iran to keep their troops armed. Analysts say at the current rate, Russia will deplete its stores early next year without outside involvement. Russia’s official line is that no other country is aiding its invasion.
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Two men have been freed from prison after 25 years following the efforts of a true crime podcast that was investigating their case.
Darrell Lee Clark and Cain Joshua Storey were convicted of shooting their 15-year-old friend at a party in 1996. At the time, the men, who were just 17 years old, said they were playing a dangerous game of Russian Roulette. But prosecutors made a case that they staged the game and conspired to kill their friend. Throughout, Clark and Storey maintained their innocence.
But the podcasters eventually got a key witness to admit she gave a coerced testimony to police and another witness to cast doubt on his own recollection of the incident.
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The oldest known pair of jeans in the world have sold at auction for $114,000.
The white work pants feature a five-button fly and were found in a shipwreck from 1857 off the coast of North Carolina. They were on board the SS Central America, which sank in a hurricane on September 12 that year.
Recovery teams have been surfacing artifacts from the wreck since 1988, which have so far sold altogether for more than one million dollars.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The Dow added 528 points (1.58%) to close at 34,005 on Monday. The S&P added 56 points (1.43%) to close at 3,990 and the Nasdaq added 139 points (1.26%) to close at 11,143.
🛢 West Texas Intermediate closed at $73; Brent Crude at $78.
⛽ The national average price of a gallon of gas was $3.26 on Monday.
₿ Bitcoin was trading around $17,200 Monday evening.
🛩 There were 3,799 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States Monday and 168 such cancellations amid widespread, worsening winter storms.
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CHARTS
Top 5 Songs on iTunes:
Mariah Carey, “All I Want For Christmas Is You”
Brandi Carlile, “The Story”
Sam Smith & Kim Petras, “Unholy”
Brenda Lee, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”
Meghan Trainor, “Made You Look”
Top 5 Songs on Spotify:
SZA, “Nobody Gets Me”
Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero”
Sam Smith & Kim Petras, “Unholy”
Beyonce, “CUFF IT”
Metro Boomin, The Weeknd & 21 Savage, “Creepin’”
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BREAKUPS
“Sister Wives” stars KODY BROWN, 53, and JANELLE BROWN, also 53, have split.
The breakup was revealed in a sneak peek of the upcoming “Sister Wives: One on One” special.
The news comes one year after Kody’s other wife, CHRISTINE BROWN, left the family.
The polygamous family is now Kody, and his wives MERI BROWN and ROBYN BROWN, though his relationship with Meri is strictly platonic.
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RELATIONSHIPS
Singer DUA LIPA, 27, is dating rapper JACK HARLOW, 24.
An insider told Page Six the two started talking earlier this year when Harlow asked her permission to name a song after her. She approved.
Neither of them have officially commented on the news.
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THE SWAMP
Another drop of Twitter files from independent journalist BARI WEISS reveals the company’s leadership knew they had no case to ban former President DONALD TRUMP from the platform in January 2021, but did so after buckling to internal pressure from the myriad leftist activists employed there.
Messages among the team making such decisions show them saying Trump’s tweets were clearly not a violation of any terms of service.
It wasn’t until the disgraced head of the Orwellian-named “Legal, Policy, and Trust” segment of Twitter chimed in to suggest that Trump’s tweets were a “coded incitement to further violence.” She argued that Trump saying “American Patriots” … “will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!” was a call to violence.
Hours later Trump was kicked off.
WORTH NOTING: Weiss does a good job of revealing how actual tyrant thugs have called for literal violence and have not lost their accounts.
For example: The former Malaysian Prime Minister called for Muslims “to kill millions of French people for the massacres of the past.” He still has his account.
Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei tweeted, “Israel is a malignant cancerous tumor in the West Asian region that has to be removed and eradicated: it is possible and it will happen again.” Neither the tweet nor his account was deleted.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister called for an entire invasion of the disputed Tigray Region of his country. Neither the tweet nor his account was deleted.
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“Continuing resolution” will once again be a buzzword this week, as Congress rushes to strike a deal to forestall another government shutdown.
The current proposed stopgap would provide a one-week extension to this Friday’s deadline to figure out how to spend your tax dollars. Republican Senator RICHARD SHELBY tells NBC News there’s a $26 billion gap between what his caucus and Democrats are willing to spend.
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LOTTERY
No winner for Friday night’s Mega Millions drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $400 million jackpot or a $216.2 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
Golden Globes nominations were announced Monday.
Leading the pack of films is “The Banshees of Inisherin,” which earned eight nominations. “Babylon,” which doesn’t hit theaters until later this month, came away with five nods.
BRENDAN FRASER was nominated for Best Actor in a Drama, but says he will not attend the awards show after he says he was groped by PHILIP BERK, a long time HFPA member and former president of the organization, in 2003.
On the TV side, “Abbott Elementary” led the way with five nominations, while “The Crown,” “Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” “Only Murders in the Building,” “Pam & Tommy,” and “White Lotus” all earned four nods.
The Golden Globes will air live on January 10 on NBC. Comedian JERROD CARMICHAEL will host.
WORTH NOTING: Despite diversifying its voting board after last year’s uproar over the issue, no difference in nominations was noted. Black films, “Till” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” as well as two #MeToo movies, “Women Talking” and “She Said” were seemingly ignored.
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TAYLOR SWIFT announced Monday that fans who signed up for the Verified Fan presale for her “Eras Tour” will get a second chance at getting tickets.
According to the note sent out to Swifties, invitations will be issued on a staggered basis by tour date in each city. More info on how to submit requests will be sent out on an yet-to-be-announced future date.
MEANWHILE: Swift has finally shut down a lawsuit filed by two songwriters who say she ripped off lyrics for her hit “Shake It Off.” The case was headed for a jury trial next month, but papers were filed to close the case; no word if any money exchanged hands.
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ELON MUSK was hit with a chorus of boos when he joined DAVE CHAPPELLE on stage at his recent show in San Francisco.
“It sounds like some of them people you fired are in the audience,” Chappelle said to Musk, who was wearing an “I Love Twitter” tshirt.
In a tweet Monday, Musk addressed the hostile response, calling the crowd a bunch of “unhinged leftists.”
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TJ HOLMES and AMY ROBACH’s “GMA” co-anchors are “upset” about all the drama their affair is bringing to the set, specifically nightly news anchor DAVID MUIR.
Insiders told Page Six that Muir, who is “very private,” “wants no part” of the drama.
As previously reported ABC’s initial plan was to ignore the story until it went away, but Holmes and Robach didn’t follow orders and joked on air about having a “great week” after the affair was exposed. The lack of respect prompted ABC bigwigs to pull them from the air while they decide their fate.
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Comedian MARK CURRY claims he was racially profiled during a recent stay at The Mining Exchange, a Wyndham Grand Hotel & Spa, in Colorado Springs.
A video of the incident, shared to Curry’s Instagram, shows him drinking coffee in the lobby when he was approached by an employee who asked him if he was a guest at the hotel. Declining to answer, Curry eventually goes to the front desk to issue a complaint, at which point he is again asked if he is a hotel guest. “Didn’t you check me in?” Curry asks the man.
“Black man and a hotel lobby, it’s impossible he has a room here,” Curry captioned the video which has been viewed nearly 100,000 times.
In response, The Mining Exchange issued an apology and offered to comp Curry’s stay as well as provide him with a future stay at no cost. The hotel also stated that they will use the incident as an “opportunity to revisit training with [their] staff.”
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The woman who gave birth to SEAN “Diddy” COMBS’ baby girl, Love Sean Combs, has been identified .
According to Love’s birth certificate, obtained by TMZ, Diddy is listed as the father, while 28-year-old DANA TRAN is listed as the mother.
All that is known about Tran is that she works in cyber security and lives in Southern California.
Her current relationship with Diddy is unclear.
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The owners of the Los Angeles home that actress ANNE HECHE crashed into, are taking legal action against her estate.
In documents obtained by PEOPLE magazine, the couple are seeking compensatory damages of at least $2 million.
In addition to damages, the couple are asking for recovery of repair costs, prejudgment interest, and punitive damages for any other relief the court deems fair.
Other claims have also been filed against Heche’s estate, including one from her ex, actor THOMAS JANE who is seeking repayment of a loan exceeding $150,000, and LYNNE MISHELE, who was residing in the home at the time of the crash. She is asking for $2 million.
Heche’s oldest son, HOMER LAFFOON has been named the administer of her estate.
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CASTING CALL
SHAQUILLE O’NEAL will host his own virtual reality special with Meta.
“The Shaq-tacular Spectacular” is an interactive virtual reality New Year’s Eve countdown that will see performances by CARDI B, LUDACRIS, LIL YACHTY, KILLER MIKE, WHIPPED CREAM and DJ Diesel aka O’Neal, according to Deadline.
The VR event space will feature a roller rink, basketball court, and main stage that will be filled with a marching band, cheerleaders, pro roller skaters, basketball players and fans.
Fans can join the experience with a Meta Quest 2 headset on December 31.
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AUSTIN BUTLER told Variety that he didn’t see or speak to his family for three years as he got himself into character for his role as Elvis Presely in BAZ LUHRMANN’s “Elvis.”
“I was speaking in his voice the whole time,” Butler said, while revealing that he would occasionally slip back into talking like Elvis even after filming wrapped. Australia’s repressive covid lockdown rules during filming also made it impossible for him to fly back to the US to see family.
Many may recall that in May, Butler told British GQ that he was hospitalized and bedridden for a week after completing the movie because his body was just “shutting down” due to his complete dedication to the role.
“Elvis” was released in June.
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DANIEL CRAIG’s next gig will be in the film adaptation of “Queer.”
The story centers on Lee, a self-conscious and insecure man, who recounts his life in Mexico City, during which he befriends and pursues Allerton, a recently discharged Navy serviceman, according to Deadline.
It is unknown which of the two men Craig will play.
SPEAKING OF CRAIG: The search for the new James Bond is still underway. Producers BARBARA BROCCOLI and MICHAEL WILSON said the next Bond will be played by a Brit, will be young enough to have the role for at least 15 years and will be a man, not a woman. Rumored to be in the running are actors HENRY GOLDING, TOM HARDY, RICHARD MADDEN, ANDREW GARFIELD, JOE ALWYN, JOHN BOYEGA and more.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN and her mom KRIS JENNER were on hand to celebrate LAUREN SANCHEZ’s 53rd birthday last week.
The girlfriend of JEFF BEZOS shared photos on Instagram from her birthday luncheon, showing her cutting a cake with the phrase “hottest 25th birthday,” surrounded by her famous gal pals.
Many may recall, Sanchez and Bezos went on several double dates with Kim and her ex-boyfriend PETE DAVIDSON this year.
Meanwhile, Sanchez and Bezos have been together for almost four years.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
In a newly released trailer for the second part of PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE’s Netflix series, the pair talks about their decision to leave the UK.
“I wasn’t being thrown to the wolves, I was being fed to the wolves,” Meg tells the camera, referring to how the Royal Family refused to protect her from the media.
Harry, meanwhile, claims that his family was “happy to lie to protect” his brother PRINCE WILLIAM, but refused to “tell the truth” to protect him and Meghan.
Part two of the docuseries drops this Thursday, December 15.
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SPORTS
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT and DAK PRESCOTT were each fined $13,261 for jumping into a large Salvation Army kettle positioned in the endzone of AT&T Stadium to celebrate a touchdown last week.
While the league may have frowned upon the move, the Salvation Army told TMZ Sports that they saw a spike in donations, with many NFL fans donating $21, a reference to Elliott’s jersey number.
“The number of donations to the Salvation Army that day doubled compared with the game last year,” the organization told the outlet.
Elliott also donated $50,000 to the Salvation Army in North Texas.
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DAY OF THE YEAR
Day of the Horse
National Cocoa Day
National Violin Day
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ON THIS DATE
1621 – The first American furs are exported from America to England.
Robert Cushman was the entrepreneur and settler responsible for the trade market. He had arrived a month earlier in the Plymouth Colony with 35 other settlers. They were the first new batch of settlers since Plymouth was founded the year prior.
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1642 – Abel Tasman of the Netherlands discovers New Zealand. He's the first recorded European to lay eyes on the South Pacific islands.
When he tried to land, Tasman's crew was killed by native warriors. It is suggested that the natives thought the European's trumpet blasts were a battle cry, when really they were just celebratory.
Tasman also discovered what is known as Tasmania a few weeks before his death. He didn't name it for himself -- it was named in his honor posthumously.
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1916 – A freak avalanche in Austria kills hundreds of Austrian soldiers fighting during World War I.
The natural disaster struck a barracks near the Italian border.
Throughout the month that year, avalanches were common, and more than 10,000 civilians also lost their lives. Some conspiracy theorists suggest the Italians detonated explosives to impel the snow-slides.
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2000 – After nearly 6 weeks of recounts and hanging chads, Al Gore concedes the presidential election.
George W. Bush would be sworn in as the next President of the United States the following January.
Gore spoke to America in a televised address from his V.P. office in the White House. He called for an end to "partisan rancor."
Though Gore beat Bush by 500,000 votes nationwide, he still lost the electoral college 271 to 266.
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2003 – American Marines find Saddam Hussein stuck in a spider hole in Iraq.
The hole went down about 8 feet. It was located 9 miles from the former dictator's hometown Tikrit.
Hussein did not resist. Soldiers described him as a "man resigned to his fate."
Hussein was hanged December 30, 2006, after a trial that found him guilty of crimes against humanity.
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2017 - Prehistoric bones of a penguin are found on Otago Beach, New Zealand.
The bird, which was alive after the demise of the dinosaurs, stood nearly 6-feet-tall and weighed nearly 225 pounds.
The find, published in Nature Communications, marks the second-oldest known penguin. The older one, also from New Zealand, lived over a million years prior.
2018 - Dirk Nowitzki takes the court for his 21st NBA season with the Dallas Mavericks, surpassing Kobe Bryant, who held the record of 20 seasons playing with the LA Lakers.
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2021 - The CDC reports that 1 in 100 Americans age 65 and older have died of COVID-19.
That accounts for about 75% of total deaths from the virus in the US.
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BIRTHDAYS
Maverick Baker - pop singer - 22
Emma Corrin - actress, “The Crown” - 27
Dermot Kennedy - pop singer - 32
Taylor Swift - pop singer - 33
Katherine Schwarzenegger - author & daughter of Arnold & Maria Shriver - 33
Amy Lee - rock singer, Evanescence - 41
Tom DeLonge - rock singer, Blink-182 - 47
NeNe Leakes - reality star, “Real Housewives of Atlanta” - 55
Jamie Foxx - actor, “Ray” & “Django Unchained” - 55
Steve Buscemi - actor, “Con Air” & “Miracle Workers” - 65
Dick Van Dyke - actor, “Mary Poppins” & “The Dick Van Dyke Show” - 97
Born On This Date
Christopher Plummer - actor, “The Sound of Music” & “Beginners” - 1929 (d. 2021)
Mary Todd Lincoln - First Lady - 1818 (d. 1882)
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