Today is Friday, January 31, 2025.
It is the 31st day of the year.
334 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
NOTABLE & NOTEWORTHY: Stranded BOEING astronauts conduct their first joint spacewalk and a Luigi Mangione copycat raises eyebrows.
SAM HUNT gets arrested and a reality TV star reaches out to TAYLOR SWIFT. More in SHOWBIZ.
CHRIS EVANS shuts down Marvel rumors and a Housewife returns. Details in CASTING CALL.
PRINCESS KATE makes her first official “away day” visit in ROYALS.
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President of El Salvador NAYIB BUKELE is openly celebrating his schadenfreude toward former Senator BOB MENENDEZ, who this week was sentenced to 11 years in prison for corruption charges.
While in the Senate, Menendez accused El Salvador’s government of using Bitcoin as a front for corruption. In addition to cracking down on gang crime and bringing down the nation’s murder rate to among the lowest in the western world, Bukele made his country the first to recognize Bitcoin as a legal tender back in September 2021.
Now, in response to a news story about Menendez’s sentence, Bukele writes, “This guy said we used Bitcoin for money laundering and corruption 😂”
In a follow-up post, he uses a Spanish-language turn-of-phrase, “el ladrón juzga por su condición,” or “the thief judges by his own condition,” nodding toward the human tendency to assume others behave the same as oneself.
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The two Boeing astronauts stuck aboard the International Space Station conducted a joint spacewalk for the first time Thursday morning.
SUNI WILLIAMS and BUTCH WILMORE performed routine maintenance work and also took samples of the orbiting facility’s exterior to look for any microbes that might have survived the adventure to space.
Their weeklong mission has been extended indefinitely. PRESIDENT TRUMP this week tasked SPACEX with bringing them home as soon as possible, which the company says will be no sooner than late March. [via Space]
GRETCHEN ROSSI is returning to the “Housewives” franchise.
She was booted from the “Real Housewives of Orange County” in 2013 after being a series regular for four seasons. In 2021 Rossi called the show “confusing” and “inauthentic,” leaving many to assume she had zero interest in returning.
This week, both Rossi and Bravo revealed that she will appear in the show’s forthcoming Season 19. [via The Blast]
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LIAM PAYNE will still be featured as a guest judge in Netflix’s forthcoming talent series, “Building the Band.”
Filming wrapped prior to Payne’s untimely passing last year.
The streamer has reportedly been in contact with Payne’s family about how to proceed.
A premiere date for the show has not yet been announced. [via Deadline]
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Country singer SAM HUNT was arrested on January 20 for speeding and violating a car breathalyzer.
He was booked and released on the same day on a $1,500 bond.
Hunt’s vehicle was equipped with the breathalyzer as part of a plea deal from his 2019 DUI arrest.
His attorney addressed the incident, saying Hunt will not face any charges, and instead received only a speeding ticket. [via TMZ]
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SPENCER PRATT says he reached out to TAYLOR SWIFT “right away” after his and wife HEIDI MONTAG’s home burned down earlier this month.
“That was night one,” Pratt told NICK VIALL on an episode of his “Viall Files” podcast, showing the email he sent Swift.
While he has not yet received a response, Pratt said he is sure the message was read and believes Swift “may have something in the works” to help his family out.
Meanwhile, Pratt has been documenting the loss on TikTok, where he’s raised over $25,000, plus $100,000 from direct fan donations. [via Page Six]
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UP NEXT: How SAM BANKMAN-FRIED might dodge his full prison sentence; COLDPLAY sets a world record; and PRINCESS KATE ventures out solo. Plus, America enters the space age on this date in history.
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