Today is Thursday, April 27, 2023.
It is the 117th day of the year.
248 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
ELIZABETH HOLMES’ prison time gets delayed and a New Orleans senior has set a new college scholarship record. More in HIT LIST.
DONALD TRUMP has preemptively bowed out of GOP primary debates and BERNIE SANDERS backs JOE BIDEN. More in THE SWAMP.
GISELE BUNDCHEN is giving back and JAMES BROLIN says therapy is the key to a lasting marriage. More in SHOWBIZ.
STEVEN SPIELBERG regrets editing one of his iconic films and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” has surpassed $900 million. More in CASTING CALL.
Kim says she would give up reality TV for this career. Find out what it is in KARDASH.
KING CHARLES has bestowed PRINCESS ANNE with a high honor for the upcoming coronation. More in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
Convicted fraudster ELIZABETH HOLMES has been spared prison after all – for now.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Holmes had previously unsuccessfully tried to stay out of prison pending her appeal, but the judge on the case ruled that because an appeal on certain evidentiary grounds couldn’t fully overturn her conviction, she should be behind bars anyway, and ordered her to report for intake today, April 27.
NOW: Holmes’ legal team has successfully petitioned the Ninth Circuit for a brief reprieve; she’ll be free for at least the next ten days while the feds respond to their filing. [via New York Post]
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New Orleans senior Dennis Barnes has received offers from more than 125 colleges and universities, totalling more than $9 million in scholarships; a new national record.
According to CBS affiliate WWL News, the number of offers breaks the previous record held by a Lafayette high school senior who received $8.7 million in scholarships in 2019.
Barnes, who wants to pursue dual degrees in computer science and criminal justice, plans to reveal his school of choice on May 2. [via WWL]
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Have you ever been on the receiving end of a jab or slight from a friend, family member or acquaintance and not known how to reply? Etiquette expert Sara Jane Ho has three little words that will allow you to put the individual on the spot while still maintaining “be the bigger-person” status.
According to Ho, the next time someone pokes fun, simply look them in the eye and say -- in a neutral and non-confrontational tone -- “Are you okay?”
If that doesn’t make you feel better Ho says an alternative option is simply not saying anything at all.
No matter which option is preferred, Ho wants people to remember, “The greatest power is showing that the other person doesn’t have power over you.” [via CNBC]
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Mojave Max, Sin City’s very own weather-predicting tortoise, has emerged from his desert home, signaling that spring has sprung.
Locals, who rely on Max’s predictions just like the rest of the country counts on Punxsutawney Phil, were thrilled to hear he had vacated his winter burrow this week. In fact, it was his earliest outing in the past 23 years, according to the Associated Press.
Warmer temperatures, longer daylight hours, and the animal’s internal clock are all factors that lead to his coming out each year, according to biologists from the Springs Preserve where he lives. [via AP News]
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A woman in Somalia ended up in the International Journal of Surgery Case Reports after having a bullet removed from her…nether regions.
According to study authors, the 24-year-old woman underwent emergency surgery after getting accidentally shot…down there. As for how it happened, the report says she was just relaxing at home when all of a sudden a bullet came through her ceiling and struck her.
Surgeons placed the woman under local anesthesia and removed the bullet without any complications. She was sent home the following day. At a routine follow-up visit the woman was deemed “in good health.”
Study authors noted that injuries to that particular area are not uncommon, but as far as they are aware this is the first instance of a slow-moving projectile getting lodged in the sensitive area. [via NY Post]
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BABY NEWS
Bachelor Nation is growing by four feet.
Former “Bachelorette” BECCA KUFRIN is expecting her first child with fiance THOMAS JACOBS.
The couple announced the news on Instagram with a video montage filled with photos of them, their two dogs and ultrasound pictures. The baby is due this September.
And…
Former “Bachelor” contestant BEKAH MARTINEZ is expecting her third child with fiance GRAYSTON LEONARD. The couple are already parents to 4-year-old daughter, Ruth, and 2-year-old son, Franklin.
No word on when their bundle is due.
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THE SWAMP
Former President DONALD TRUMP says he will not participate in any Republican primary debates.
“When you’re leading by seemingly insurmountable numbers, and you have hostile Networks with angry, TRUMP & MAGA hating anchors asking the “questions,” why subject yourself to being libeled and abused?” he wrote on Truth social. [via Mediaite]
WORTH NOTING: This is a departure from the combative, fighting attitude that won him support in 2016 – backing down from a showdown, even if he sees it as rigged, is not the behavior of a stalwart “fighter.”
BY THE WAY: The first Republican National Committee-sanctioned debate will be held in Milwaukee in August, a year before the city host’s the party’s official nominating convention.
MEANWHILE: The writer who has accused Trump of rape took the stand in her civil lawsuit on Wednesday. Trump so far has refused to enter the courtroom and launch missives defaming his accuser, E JEAN CARROLL, on Truth Social. The judge has reportedly talked to Trump’s lawyers about getting their client to keep his thoughts to himself during the trial. [via The Guradian]
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Socialist Senator BERNIE SANDERS, who owns three homes, said on Wednesday he is not going to challenge President JOE BIDEN and offered his own endorsement for the incumbent.
Sanders tells Associated Press, “I’m in to do what I can to make sure that the president is reelected.” [via AP News]
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 228 points (0.68%) to close at 33,301 on Wednesday. The S&P lost 15 points (0.38%) to close at 4,055 and the NASDAQ added 55 points (0.47%) to close at 11,854.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $74; BRENT CRUDE at $77.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.64 on Wednesday.
₿ BITCOIN slid Wednesday, losing 1.75% and trading around $27,800.
🛩 There were more than 3,375 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Wednesday and more than 410 such cancellations.
💰Friday night’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $38 million jackpot or a $20.4 million cash payout.
SHOWBIZ NEWS
TIGER WOODS and JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE are collaborating with billionaire JOE LEWIS and entrepreneur MARK BELLISSIMO to create a 600-acre luxury residential community club in Wellington, Florida.
The area will feature both single-family homes and condos, which will run from $4-$5 million a pop.
Residents will have access to an 18-hole professional golf course, stadium tennis court, pickleball courts, several pools, including a six-lane lap pool, a kids’ splash area and an adult-only resort-style pool with cabanas. There will also be a 120,000-square-foot field house complete with a full basketball court, tennis courts, squash courts, pickleball courts, five sports simulators, a smoothie bar, a 40,000-square-foot fitness center and full spa.
For outdoor recreation, a 16-acre Central Park and lake with walking trails, yoga gardens and an outdoor center will be created.
Lastly, a 17-acre area will be designated for various shops, offices, retail shops and restaurants. [via NY Post]
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MORGAN WALLEN’s team is setting the record straight about his absence last weekend.
As previously reported, fans attending his show at Mississippi’s Vaught Hemingway Stadium were outraged when, five minutes before Wallen was due to take the stage a message appeared stating he would not be coming out.
Since then rumors of Wallen being too drunk to perform have been swirling thanks to a security guard who was working at the venue.
Now, both the security company and Wallen’s team are refuting the drunken story and sticking with the initial report that he had simply lost his voice. [via People]
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GISELE BUNDCHEN is giving back to her Florida community.
She announced this week that she is donating $1 million to the Miami chapter of Lotus House, the nation’s largest women’s shelter, for their new facility called The Children’s Village.
According to TMZ, the new facility will focus on the needs of youth in the community and continue working toward preventing homelessness. Gisele’s donation will go toward building a new playground and developing programs within the facility. [via TMZ]
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Sotheby’s Auction House announced Wednesday they will be displaying around 1,500 items that once belonged to FREDDIE MERCURY.
The items include drafts of QUEEN lyrics, accessories, costumes, various pieces of artwork, fabrics, a handwritten manuscript of lyrics to “We Are the Champions,” and lastly, the crown and cloak he wore during his final tour with Queen.
Several of those items will be available for purchase later this year. The crown and cloak are expected to get between $75,000 and $100,000, while the handwritten lyrics are estimated between $250,000 and $400,000. Other items hitting the auction block include Mercury’s Tiffany and Co. silver mustache comb ($500-$750) and a pair of pink, star-shaped glasses ($2,500-$5,000).
According to Sotheby’s, the items have been in the possession of Mercury’s longtime friend, who decided it is time to let them go.
The items will be on display at Sotheby’s New York, then their Los Angeles location and Hong Kong spot before returning to London by August 4, which would have been Mercury’s 77th birthday. Once back in the UK, the pieces will go live in September. [via People]
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ADELE will never reach EGOT status for one simple reason: she “[effing] hates musicals.”
“I just don’t need to hear everything in [effing] song all the time. I also think the EGO suits me better,” she told JAMES CORDEN during their “Carpool Karaoke” episode.
Adele has at least one Emmy, Grammy and Oscar, leaving only a Tony left to finish the title. [via Page Six]
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JAMES BROLIN says the secret to his successful marriage to BARBRA STREISAND is therapy.
Speaking to TMZ photogs this week, the actor said that oftentimes couples need a “third party to help break up the log jam a husband and wife might experience.”
He also said there needs to be “a little bit of give and take in picking your battles.”
Brolin, who is 82, has been married to Streisand for 25 years. [via TMZ]
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DON LEMON and TUCKER CARLSON have hired Hollywood attorney BRYAN FREEDMAN to help with their abrupt exits from CNN and Fox News, respectively.
Freedman has a history of landing multimillion-dollar settlements for celebrities, including former NBC journalist MEGYN KELLY. He is also currently representing CHRIS CUOMO who is seeking $125 million for what he perceives as wrongful termination from CNN in 2021.
Freedman has also previously worked with QUENTIN TARANTINO, JULIA ROBERTS, MARIAH CAREY, SETH ROGAN and GABRIELLE UNION. [via NY Times]
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CASTING CALL
STEVEN SPIELBERG says he regrets editing out weapons in “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.”
Speaking at the TIME100 Summit, the filmmaker called it “a mistake” to remove the firearms federal agents were holding in the 1982 flick and replace them with walkie-talkies.
“‘E.T.’ is a product of its era, and no film should be revised based on the lenses we now are either voluntarily or be forced to peer through,” he explained. [via People]
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“The Super Mario Bros. Movie” has hit another box office milestone.
On Tuesday, the film passed the $900 million mark. Since its debut 21 days ago, the movie has grossed $444 million domestically and over $457 million at the international box office.
The flick has already been named the biggest film of 2023 globally and domestically. [via Deadline]
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AMBER HEARD does in fact reprise her role as Mera in “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” after rumors suggested otherwise.
There was much speculation that she would be booted from the film after her highly-publicized defamation trial with ex, JOHNNY DEPP. But, Insider reports that a trailer for the flick was played at CinemaCon this week and Heard is in it.
It is not known how much she actually appears in the movie, however, as she testified during the trial that producers “took a bunch out of [her] role.”
“Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” hits theaters this December. [via Insider]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN said she would happily give up her reality TV gig if it meant being a full-time lawyer.
The mom-of-four made the (shocking?) revelation during an interview at the TIME100 Summit this week.
What would a Kardashian-less world look like? [via TMZ]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
PRINCESS ANNE has been designated the “Gold-Stick-in-Waiting” position for KING CHARLES’ coronation next weekend. The ceremonial role typically goes to the person closest to the monarch responsible for overseeing his personal safety.
For Anne, this means she’ll travel directly behind the freshly-crowned King and Queen on horseback from Westminster Abbey back to Buckingham Palace – that’s less than a mile as the crow flies.
WORTH NOTING: Anne herself is an accomplished equestrian, so mounting the horse should be no trouble. She also rode behind her mother, QUEEN ELIZABETH, during Trooping the Colour celebrations in London to celebrate the late monarch’s birthday. [via The Mirror]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Teach Your Children to Save Day
National Prime Rib Day
Marine Mammal Rescue Day
Thank You Thursday
National Tell A Story Day
Morse Code Day
Stop Food Waste Day
Love Your Thighs Day
World Tapir Day
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ON THIS DATE
4977 BC - If you ask Johannes Kepler, the universe was created on this date.
He was a 17th century physicist and scientist who studied three laws of planetary physics and motion.
Kepler inspired much of the science that Sir Isaac Newton would use and expound.
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1521 – Ferdinand Magellan is killed at the hands of ticked off natives in the Philippines.
He was working to convert a different tribe to Christianity, and get their support to wipe out the natives ultimately responsible for his death.
Fighting ensued. Magellan was taken out by a poison arrow. As his crewmen retreated, his body was left behind.
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1667 – John Milton sells the rights to his story “Paradise Lost.”
Milton was blind, and dictated the story to his daughters, who transcribed it.
The rights to the long-form poem went for only 10 British Pounds, which wasn't even a lot of money for the time. But the book took off, and he had two more stories published.
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1773 – British Parliament passes the Tea Act.
The law lowered the tax paid to the British government by the East India Trading Company, which was nearing bankruptcy. Since Britain controlled all imports into the colonies, the East India Trading Company gained a virtual monopoly on the tea market in the New World.
While this meant lower prices in the colonies, it also meant less freedom. It was this law that later inspired the Boston Tea Party, in December that year.
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1968 – Hubert Humphrey announces his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for president.
He was LBJ's vice president. Johnson announced in March that year that he would not seek the Democratic nomination.
Humphrey's greatest challenger was Bobby Kennedy, who was assassinated during the primaries.
The Chicago DNC convention was historically uproarious that year.
Ultimately Humphrey got the nomination, but lost to Richard Nixon in the general election.
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1978 – Communist rebels overthrow the Afghan president, leading to a prolonged conflict that would leave the country destitute.
Overthrown leader Sardar Mohammed Daoud was unsympathetic to leftist policy, and angered neighboring Russia.
After the coup, Afghanistan and the Soviets forged a treaty that pumped weapons and supplies into the country.
Soviet forces would remain until 1988.
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1982 – The trial of John Hinckley Jr. begins for the attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan.
On March 30, 1981 Hinckley shot Reagan in the lung as he left a speaking engagement in Washington D.C. He tried to kill the President to impress Jodie Foster, who he had an obsession with.
Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was under psychiatric care until September 2016. He was granted unconditional release in June 2022. Now he’s making a go at a music career. You can even hear his singles, “We Have Got That Chemistry” and “You Let Whiskey Do Your Talking” on streaming platforms.
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2014 - “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” premieres on HBO.
The late-night show takes a satirical look at news, politics and current events on a weekly basis.
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2020 - The global confirmed cases of COVID-19 passes three million with the death toll at 205,000.
At the time, the US accounted for 1/3 of all cases – but so far there has been virtually no investigation into how cases were counted stateside versus other countries around the world.
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BIRTHDAYS
Nick Kyrgios - tennis player - 28
Corey Seager - baseball player - 29
Lizzo - pop singer - 35
Rege-Jean Page - actor, “Bridgerton” & “For the People” - 35
William Moseley - actor, “The Royals” - 36
Jenna Coleman - actress, “Doctor Who” & “Me Before You” - 37
Patrick Stump - rock singer, Fall Out Boy - 39
Ari Graynor - actress, “The Sopranos” - 40
David Lascher - actor, “Blossom” & “Beverly Hills, 90210” - 51
Cory Booker - politician - 54
William-Alexander - King of the Netherlands - 56
George Gerwin - basketball player - 71
Ace Frehley - guitarist, KISS - 72
Si Robertson - reality star, “Duck Dynasty” - 75
Frank Abagnale - con artist turned security consultant - 75
Born On This Date
Casey Kasem - radio personality, American Top 40 - 1932 (d. 2014)
Coretta Scott King - civil rights leader, wife of MLK - 1927 (d. 2006)
Sheila Scott - aviator, first woman to fly solo around the world - 1927 (d. 1988)
Ulysses S. Grant - 18th POTUS & Commanding General (Union) - 1822 (d. 1885)
Samuel Morse - inventor of the telegraph & Morse code - 1791 (d. 1872)
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