2/1/2024: RIP FTX
PLUS: Portland Crackdown; More Breathless Traylor Analysis; and Kate's Secret Procedure
Today is Thursday, February 1, 2024.
It is the 32nd day of the year.
334 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
Police breakup a rooster ring in Oklahoma and Budweiser continues its (hopeful) comeback. Details in HIT LIST.
Find out why TERI HATCHER can’t use dating apps in SHOWBIZ.
When you’re too big a star for existing venues, they build you your own. Find out who gets her own popup concert hall in CASTING CALL.
KIM and YE’s brood descend on Malibu for a night out. Details in KARDASH.
More insider non-details about PRINCESS KATE’s hospital stay in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
The long saga of FTX now has a clearer endpoint, with the crypto exchange’s new management deciding to repay all debtors and shut the company down for good, instead of trying to reopen.
An attorney for the company said it could not find investors and outside bidders who were willing to put in enough cash to get it properly up and running. He added that the financial impasse further demonstrates how precariously the company was built by convicted fraudster SAM BANKMAN-FRIED, without the underlying technology and administrative processes a firm its size should have had.
In a damning statement, the attorney said, “FTX was an irresponsible sham created by a convicted felon. The costs and risks of creating a viable exchange from what Mr. Bankman-Fried left in a dumpster were simply too high."
NEXT: The company will put its efforts behind selling off its remaining assets and paying customers who lost a collective $9 BILLION when the crypto exchange suddenly imploded in November 2022. So far, the new management estimates it has clawed back more than $7 billion. [via Reuters]
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Police in Norman, Oklahoma, announced the bust of a massive rooster-fighting operation at a nearby farm over the weekend, after emergency responders arrived to combat a barn fire.
When they arrived, they found 77 roosters living in what local media describes as “deplorable conditions, and there was evidence of brutal training and exploitation of roosters for fighting purposes.”
Officers say the rescued chickens will get care at an out-of-state rehabilitation facility – which is a thing for chickens, apparently.
IT GETS WORSE: Nine puppies died in the fire that alerted authorities in the first place. [via KOCO]
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As Oregon’s state legislature considers changing the 2021 referendum law that largely decriminalized drug use and possession, the city of Portland has declared a state of emergency over the fentanyl crisis raging there.
Governor TINA KOTEK announced the creation of a “command center” in the city to coordinate local and state resources. Over the next three months, the coordinated effort will also roll out two public education campaigns. [via KPTV]
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Access to charging stations for electric vehicles increased 16% between July and December last year with the installation of nearly 1,100 fast-charging stations across the country.
IN COMPARISON: There is roughly one charging station for every 16 gas stations nationwide.
UP NEXT: US Department of Transportation funding for even more expanded charging access kicks in this year – to the tune of $5 BILLION. [via Bloomberg]
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BUDWEISER is bringing back its iconic Clydesdale horses for its Super Bowl commercial this year as part of its ongoing image rehabilitation campaign.
The company already dropped this year’s ad online, more than a week out from the Big Game.
Along with the ad, Bud is buying a days-long ad campaign on the exterior of the new Sphere venue in Las Vegas, with supplemental promotional content showing on the video screens starting February 5. [via News3LV.com]
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DEATHS
MELINDA LEDBETTER WILSON has died.
The wife of Beach Boys frontman BRIAN WILSON who worked as his manager for years passed away “peacefully” at home Tuesday morning, according to a statement released by the family.
She was 77.
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BABY NEWS
ELISABETH MOSS is pregnant.
The 41-year-old actress announced the news during a recent appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” – but shared no other details.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 317 points (0.82%) to close at 38,150 on Wednesday. The S&P lost 79 points (1.6%) to close at 4,845 and the NASDAQ lost 345 points (2.23%) to close at 15,164.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $75; BRENT CRUDE at $80.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.14 on Wednesday.
₿ BITCOIN was down for the day, trading around $42,500.
🛩 There were more than 1,510 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Wednesday and more than 105 such cancellations.
💰MEGA MILLIONS
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
Actress TERI HATCHER will continue to look for love – just not on dating apps.
During an interview on “Getting Grilled with Curtis Stone,” Hatcher said she felt ready to try the online dating game and paid for a premium subscription to the app Hinge.
Shortly after she was booted from the app for “pretending to be Teri Hatcher.” Oops.
Hatcher said she asked to get her money back, which she did, along with an apology, but by that time she was done with the process. "I'm definitely done with the dating apps,” she says, “and I feel like if there's any way I'll go somewhere and meet someone, that's what it's gonna have to be." [via EW]
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When reviews dropped for the final installment of “The Crown,” DOMINIC WEST – who plays Prince Charles – tells BBC Radio 4, “I spent two days in bed.” He added, “So yes, I’m a sensitive soul. I worry about what people think.”
West added he’s looking forward to returning to theater roles that are subject to less public scrutiny. [via People]
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Mari Copeny is a 16-year-old “climate activist” who has gained a social media following by advocating for money and infrastructure to get clean water into Flint, Michigan.
When NICKI MINAJ and MEGAN THEE STALLION’s feud began over the weekend, Copeny took to social media to encourage the artists to donate one cent for every stream of those songs to Flint’s clean water efforts.
That didn’t go great with the rappers’ fans, who responded with taunts like, “You can filter out the water we use after we mop the floor with this bitch Megan Thee Stallion” while another called her a “CLOUT CHASIN HO!!!!” [via DailyMail]
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TRAVIS KELCE says he won’t be girlfriend TAYLOR SWIFT’s plus one at the Grammys in Los Angeles on Sunday.
Ever the doting boyfriend, Kelce said during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, “I wish I could go support Taylor at the Grammys, and watch her win every single award that she’s nominated for. But I think I’ve got practice on Sunday.”
Kelce, of course, is preparing with the rest of the Kansas City Chiefs to take on the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl the following week. [via ET Online]
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Let the record show that MARTIN SHORT and MERYL STREEP are not dating.
The iconic actors appeared on screen together in the latest season of “Only Murders in the Building” and were spotted looking very friendly during the Golden Globes earlier this month.
But Short tells BILL MAHER they’re just pals. “We’re not a couple, we are just very close friends,” he said – but Maher encouraged the pair to make themselves an item. Maher said, “there’s nothing more powerful in Hollywood than a power couple.”
Streep recently went public with her separation from longtime partner DON GUMMER. Short divorced in 2010 and has since been unmarried. [via CNN]
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MARGOT ROBBIE has no hard feelings over her Oscar snub.
“There’s no way to feel sad when you know you’re this blessed,” she said before a special screening of “Barbie” this week. Robbie did go to bat for Director GRETA GERWIG, lamenting that Gerwig did not get a nom despite creating a “once-in-a-career, once-in-a-lifetime” film.
WORTH NOTING: Robbie is eligible to take home an Oscar as a producer on the film if it wins Best Picture. [via ET Online]
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CASTING CALL
ADELE is headed to Europe to perform this summer – in an 80,000-seat pop-up facility she says is being built just for her show!
She has four dates booked in Munich at Munich Messe during the first two weeks of August. The special facility will include a combination of standing room and seats.
In an Instagram post announcing the dates, Adele said she had been perfectly content with her Vegas residency dates and the occasional performances in London, but said she was offered to perform at “a one off, bespoke pop-up stadium designed around whatever show I want to put on,” calling the offer “a bit random, but still fabulous!” [via People]
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JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE told KELLY CLARKSON during an interview this week that he was back in the studio with former *NSYNC bandmates recently, stirring speculation the boy band could be putting out new music or even a tour.
BUT WAIT: An insider at RCA Records tells TMZ that J.T. is just hyping up his new album, which will feature a track with the *NSYNC guys singing backing vocals.
The band recorded the music last year for their song “Better Place” for the “Trolls Band Together” movie, which features Timberlake’s voice acting talents. [via TMZ]
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The same guy who owns The Weather Channel and a bunch of local TV media groups has placed a $30 BILLION bid to buy Paramount Global.
The package would acquire all of Parmount’s outstanding shares if approved by stockholders.
The massive offer would include Paramount’s sprawling entertainment empire, while executives have begun reviewing other smaller bids for different segments of the company.
Through September last year, Paramount lost more than $1.1 BILLION. [via Deadline]
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Married actors KEVIN BACON and KYRA SEDWICK will co-star in a movie for the first time in twenty years.
Shooting begins this week on “Connescence,” where Bacon will play a security guard who befriends a successful urologist, played by Sedwick, after breaking up a robbery. Deadline reports the ensuing on-screen relationship will “grow[] into something that shakes the foundation of both their lives.”
Shooting is scheduled to last about three weeks in and around Brooklyn, New York. [via Deadline]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN and YE took daughter NORTH WEST and her friends out to dinner at Malibu hotspot Nobu on Tuesday night.
North and pals – including cousin PENELOPE DISICK – left wearing swag promoting Ye’s upcoming album, “Vultures.” Ye came and left wearing his weird stretchy facemask. [via Page Six]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
Since PRINCESS KATE began a days-long hospital stay for an unspecified abdominal issue, she’s kept a tight lid on the details of her procedure and consistently asked for privacy while she heals.
TURNS OUT: Even many in her inner circle was surprised by the news of her treatment in an effort to maintain medical privacy.
Insiders tell Page Six, “Even her closest aides did not know what exactly was wrong.”
She’s since returned home to the Windsor estate for her recovery – which watchers anticipate to last at least several more weeks. [via Page Six]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
Decorating with Candy Day
National Baked Alaska Day
National Dark Chocolate Day
National Freedom Day
National Girls and Women in Sports Day
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ON THIS DATE
1790 - The US Supreme Court convenes for the first time.
John Jay sits as the Chief Justice.
He was accompanied by five associate justices, including John Rutledge and John Blair.
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1861 - Texas secedes from the Union, against the wishes of governor Sam Houston, and joins the Confederacy.
Houston sat in the state house as the legislature voted to withdraw from the Union.
He later refused to pledge an oath to the Confederacy, and was replaced by his lieutenant governor.
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1884 - The Oxford English Dictionary is published for the first time.
It was considered then and remains the most comprehensive and accurate index of the English language.
For those wondering if something is an official world in the English lexicon, consult the OED.
The first edition was assembled by the Philological Society of London. They sought a dictionary to cover all of English since 1150 A.D.
The final product would take another 40 years to finish, weighing in at 400,000 words and 10 volumes.
The official OED provides a chronology of the history of words -- the word "set" takes 60,000 words to explain its definitions and history.
BY THE WAY: The OED says there are 171,476 words in current use – but that doesn’t include things like scientific terminology. A typical English speaker has a vocabulary of between 20,000 and 30,000 words – using less than 20% of those available.
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1968 - Richard Nixon announces his CANDIDACY for president.
This would be like Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis announcing his candidacy over a year from now, just nine months before the general election.
Nixon had previously lost to JFK in the 1960 general election.
Since then he had also lost a run for governor of California.
He eventually chose Maryland governor Spiro Agnew as his running mate.
Nixon and Democrat Hubert Humphrey nearly tied in the popular vote, but Nixon won the electoral college in a blowout.
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2003 - Space Shuttle Columbia explodes on re-entry after a 16-day mission, killing all 7 crew members.
A review of the disaster revealed that a piece of insulating foam fell off during launch, puncturing the shuttle’s left wing. That small hole likely caused gasses to interfere with the hydraulic system during re-entry, causing the eventual breakup and explosion.
The next shuttle mission would not be until 2005, with the launch of Discovery.
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2016 - The WHO declares a global public health emergency over the rapid spread of zika-linked conditions.
The spread of the virus and its suspected link to birth defects raised the cause for alarm.
It was predicted that between three and four million people would be infected within the year. By December, only 5,000 cases would be reported in the US.
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2021 - Wisdom the albatross hatches a chick at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.
The egg was laid sometime during the last few days of November 2020.
The birth is noteworthy because at 70-years-old, Wisdom is the world’s oldest known bird.
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BIRTHDAYS
Stormi Webster - Kylie Jenner’s daughter - 6
Jessica Balo - singer - 22
Harry Styles - singer - 30
Julia Garner - actress, “Ozark” & “Inventing Anna” - 30
Lauren Conrad - reality star - 38
Ronda Rousey - MMA pro - 37
Heather Morris - actress, “Glee” - 37
Big Boi - rapper from “Outkast” - 49
Michael C. Hall - actor - 53
BORN ON THIS DATE
Lisa Marie Presley - 1968 (d. 2023)
Rick James - singer - 1948 (d. 2004)
Elisabeth Sladen - actress - 1946 (d. 2011)
Langston Hughes - poet - 1902 (d. 1967)
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