Today is Thursday, April 25, 2024.
It is the 116th day of the year.
250 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
Add uncertainty over the future of America’s favorite social media app to the coming chaos and techs restore communication with Voyager 1. Details in HIT LIST.
SEAN COMBS’ assistant pleads not guilty and REGGIE BUSH gets his Heisman back. More in SHOWBIZ.
STEVE CARRELL and TINA FEY are reuniting on a new Netflix show. Details in CASTING CALL.
Cardboard gives KIM K the ick. More in KARDASH.
A famous friend promotes MEGHAN MARKLE’s new jam. Details in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
The parent company of TIKTOK has 270 days to sell off its operations in the United States before it faces a total ban.
The company’s CEO said in a video posted on Wednesday that he expects to beat the legislation in court: “The facts and the Constitution are on our side and we expect to prevail again,” said Shou Zi Chew.
Likely more by coincidence than corrupt political scheming, the sale deadline is January 19 next year, just a day before the winner of November’s presidential election is sworn in.
The legislation also gives the president the option to extend the sale deadline by up to three months if, in his sole judgment, he believes the company is making progress toward a sale. [via Reuters]
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Since November, the Voyager 1 space probe, initially launched in 1977, started sending garbled code and information back to Earth as it continues its journey into interstellar space as the farthest-reaching manmade spacecraft ever.
While NASA expected to have to close down the mission, the team finally says they tracked down the problem and restored basic functionality. In a statement, NASA said that on April 20, they were able to get a “health and status” report from the spacecraft for the first time in five months.
The team is optimistic they will be able to send similar updates that allow Voyager 1 to continue sending back scientific data, not just system information. [via NPR]
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There’s never a convenient time for your car to be stolen, but this might be the worst possible: A Milwaukee woman says her car was jacked while she was delivering a DoorDash order.
Casey Miller says she left her car running (so there is that) for about a minute after arriving at the delivery address to complete the order. Then she watched an SUV pull up, the passenger get out, hop in her car, and they both sped off.
Miller says she’s completed more than 6,000 deliveries in the last two years. In the meantime, she’s figuring out what to do for transportation and a job, as neither DoorDash nor her insurance are covering the cost of a rental. [via WISN]
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An Oklahoma man could spend 12 years in prison in Turks and Caicos after airport security officials on the island nation found a ziploc bag of ammunition in his luggage.
Ryan Watson traveled there with his wife earlier this month to celebrate his 40th birthday and says he accidentally left the rounds in his baggage in a “bonehead” mistake. But Turks and Caicos last September passed a mandatory 12-year prison sentence for such mistakes, boneheaded or otherwise.
Watson is out on bail but authorities seized his passport so he can’t leave. After nearly two weeks, his wife was allowed to return home; the couple has two young children. No word yet on a court date for Watson’s trial. [via NBC News]
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The Norwin School District, located in North Huntingdon Township, Pennsylvania, has 11 sets of twins set to graduate this spring.
Not only that, but principal Dr. Michael Choby is a parent of twins, though his are not yet in high school.
According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, about one in every 250 pregnancies will result in twins. For the Norwin School District the odds seem higher.
No word on if the count is some sort of record. [via CBS]
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DEATHS
Actor and producer TERRY CARTER has died.
He passed away Tuesday at his home in Manhattan, according to a statement from his son. No cause of death was shared.
Carter is best known for his roles in “Battlestar Galactica” and “McCloud.”
He was 95.
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BREAKUPS
RYAN SEACREST has split from his girlfriend of three years, model AUBREY PAIGE.
He’s 49 and she’s 26.
No word on what caused the breakup.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 42 points (0.11%) to close at 38,460 on Wednesday. The S&P increased 1 point (0.021%) to close at 5,071 and the NASDAQ increased 16 points (0.1%) to close at 15,712.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $82; BRENT CRUDE at $87.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.66 on Wednesday.
₿ BITCOIN’s rollercoaster continued Wednesday, down 3.8% and trading just under $64,000.
🛩 There were more than 1,903 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Wednesday and more than 80 such cancellations.
💰Friday night’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $228 million jackpot or a $103.4 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
SEAN COMBS’ assistant BRENDAN PAUL has been charged with one felony count of drug possession after feds found cocaine and marijuana candy in his possession last month.
It all went down when the feds showed up at the Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport to chat with Combs while his Miami and Los Angeles mansions were raided. During the chat, his private jet was searched, which is when the drugs were found.
Paul has reportedly pleaded not guilty. [via TMZ]
WORTH NOTING: This could be bad news for Combs as the feds may offer some sort of plea deal to Paul for inside info on the music mogul.
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Now that the NCAA allows student-athletes to profit off their name, image and likeness, REGGIE BUSH will be getting his Heisman Trophy back.
Many may recall that in 2010 the former USC running back returned the award after a lengthy investigation determined he received illegal benefits as a student-athlete.
Bush says he is “honored to return to the Heisman family.” [via NY Post]
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Universal Music will release “Songwriter,” a collection of 11 unreleased recordings from the late country singer JOHNNY CASH this June.
Of those songs, only two were ever re-recorded and released in any form: “Drive On” and “Like a Soldier,” which both appeared on the album “American Recordings.”
All the songs being demos, Cash’s son John Carter Cash gathered musicians who intimately knew his dad to create the backing tracks. [via Variety]
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PATRICK SWAYZE’s 3-bedroom, 4.5-bathroom Rancho Bizarro pad sold for $3.5 million last month.
Sitting on 4.51 acres of land in the San Fernando Valley, the estate was purchased by Swayze and his wife, Lisa Nemi, in the ‘80s. They lived there together until his passing in 2009.
Six years later, in 2015, Niemi sold the ranch to oil heiress AILEEN GETTY for $2.9 million.
No word on who the new buyer is. [via Radar Online]
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DONNIE WAHLBERG says he and his wife, JENNY MCCARTHY, fall asleep together on FaceTime when they are not together.
“I tell her if you wake up at three in the morning and can’t sleep, just tap me on the shoulder through the phone and I’ll wake up and hang out with you for a while,” Wahlberg explained during his recent appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show.”
In addition to virtually sleeping together, Wahlberg also tries to keep the spark alive by sending McCarthy flowers weekly. [via Page Six]
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CASTING CALL
Several people were injured while filming an action sequence for EDDIE MURPHY’s new flick “The Pickup.”
A spokesperson told the Associated Press that a truck “locked up” and crashed unexpectedly into a car. Two crew members were hospitalized with injuries ranging from bruises to broken bones.
Murphy stars in the movie alongside KEKE PALMER and PETE DAVIDSON, none of whom were on set at the time of the accident. [via Variety]
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STEVE CARRELL and TINA FEY are reuniting for a new Netflix series, called “Four Seasons.”
The series is an updated version of the 1981 film that follows three couples who like to vacation together, until one of them splits and the dynamics change. The original starred ALAN ALDA, CAROL BURNETT, RITA MORENO, and JACK WESTON.
Carrell and Fey previously starred together in 2010’s “Date Night.” [via THR]
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A documentary about the late JIM HENSON will land on Disney+ next month.
The first trailer for “Jim Henson Idea Man,” shows bits of the puppeteer’s life and career, including his creation of the Muppets, and his work on “Sesame Street,” “The Dark Crystal,” and “Labyrinth.”
The doc, produced by RON HOWARD and Henson’s family, features interviews with former co-stars RITA MORENO and JENNIFER CONNELLY, and his four children.
Henson passed away in 1990. [via People]
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PARIS HILTON is ready to take a deep dive into how female celebrities, including herself, were treated in the 2000s tabloids.
Her production company, 11:11 Media, landed the rights to the book “Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s,” and plans to turn it into a docuseries.
The focus will be on several big names, in addition to Hilton, such as BRITNEY SPEARS, LINDSAY LOHAN, AALIYAH, JANET JACKSON, AMY WINEHOUSE, KIM KARDASHIAN, and JENNIFER ANISTON.
No word on where the series will land. [via TMZ]
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The 2024 MTV Video Music Awards will air live from New York’s UBS Arena on September 10.
This year marks the show’s 40th anniversary.
FOR THE RECORD: Last year’s awards show was the highest-rated in three years with a 37% growth in viewers from 2022. [via Deadline]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN has someone remove the cardboard sleeve from her coffee cup before she even thinks about touching the drink.
The oddity was revealed during her recent appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” as the host asked her about rumors he’s read on the internet.
“I can’t see it being done or I can’t hear it and I can’t feel it,” she explained. “Like the cardboard getting moved off of the cup is like nails on a chalkboard to me.” [via Complex]
WORTH ASKING: Why not just order the coffee without the cardboard sleeve?
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
Add CHRISSY TEIGEN to the list of famous pals shilling for MEGHAN MARKLE’s jam.
The model and actress, who has published her own cookbooks and sells a line of kitchen cookware, said in an Instagram post that she paired Markle’s jam with “rustic bread, salted butter, triple cream brie, [and] thick cut bacon,” calling it “one of the best bites all year.”
Teigen did not indicate which numbered jar of jam she received; previous influencers showed their jars labeled as a run of only 50. [via Express]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
World Penguin Day
National Teach Your Children to Save
Red Hat Society Day
International Amigurumi Day
National Parental Alienation Awareness Day
National East Meets West Day
Thank You Thursday
National Telephone Day
National Lingerie Day
National Hug a Plumber Day
World Malaria Day
National DNA Day
National Zucchini Bread Day
National Financial Awareness Day
Love Your Thighs Day
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ON THIS DATE
1719 - Adventure novel "The Life and Strange Adventures of Robinson Crusoe" is first published by Daniel Defoe.
The story tells the tale of a man who spent 28 years shipwrecked on a deserted island. It is based loosely on the experiences of Alexander Selkirk, who spent four years stranded on an island off the coast of South America.
It is regarded as the first English novel.
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1859 - Workers shovel up the first dirt to construct the Suez Canal.
The man-made waterway would stretch 101 miles to connect the Mediterranean and Red seas.
The first ceremonial pickax was thrown by Ferdinand de Lesseps. He was a French diplomat who orchestrated the project.
Since then, the canal has been a key route for opening trade to Europe and the Middle East.
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1901 - New York becomes the first state to require license plates on vehicles.
It cost $1.
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1947 - President Truman becomes the first to use the White House bowling alley.
It was only two lanes.
In his first frame, the president knocked down 7 of 10 pins.
While Truman didn't make much use of the lanes, he encouraged White House employees to assemble a bowling team, which would eventually compete around the country.
President Eisenhower would turn that bowling alley into a mimeograph room in 1955.
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1983 - Pioneer 10 leaves its orbit around Pluto, and heads to Neptune.
This is back when Pluto was still considered a planet. Because of Neptune and Pluto's orbits, Neptune at the time was the planet farthest from the sun.
Pioneer continued faint communications with Earth for another 20 years.
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1990 - The Hubble Telescope is put into orbit by the shuttle Discovery.
It began as an idea in the 1940s, but took almost 50 more years to make it a reality.
Since then, shuttle crews have consistently maintained and managed the orbiting telescope, which gives astronomers on earth an unprecedented look into deep space.
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2011 - At least 300 people are killed when tornadoes touch down in several southern and eastern states.
The hardest hit were Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee where 175 tornadoes were reported to have touched down.
Severe damage was also reported in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York and Virginia.
In total, 360 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service over the next three days.
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2019 - Microsoft becomes the third US company to hit a market value worth of $1 trillion.
The other two are Apple and Amazon.
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BIRTHDAYS
Sam Fender - rock singer - 30
Jonathan Bailey - actor, “Bridgerton” - 36
Sara Paxton - actress, “Summerland” & “Aquamarine” - 36
Daniel Sharman - actor, “Fear the Walking Dead” & “Teen Wolf” - 38
Matthew West - rock singer - 47
Tim Duncan - basketball player - 48
Jason Lee - actor, “My Name is Earl” - 54
Renee Zellweger - actress, “Jerry Maguire” & “Chicago” - 55
Hank Azaria - voice actor, “The Simpsons” - 60
Adam Silver - NBA Commissioner - 62
Bjorn Ulvaeus - singer, ABBA - 79
Al Pacino - actor, “The Godfather” trilogy - 84
Born On This Date
Len Goodman - judge on “Dancing With the Stars” - 1944 (d. 2023)
Ella Fitzgerald - jazz singer - 1917 (d. 1996)
Edward R. Murrow - journalist, war correspondent - 1908 (d. 1965)
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