4/5/2024: Vault Heist!
PLUS: UConn Hunkers Down; KISS Sells; and More Royal Tours
Today is Friday, April 5, 2024.
It is the 96th day of the year.
270 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
LYFT extends an olive branch and new inflation numbers terrify grocery shoppers. Details in HIT LIST.
KEVIN BACON is going back to prom. More in SHOWBIZ.
JOE ROGAN bashes “The View” and the NFL Network announces some big cuts. Details in CASTING CALL.
Who is the most and least followed in the KarJenner clan? Find out in KARDASH.
Another Royal property opens to the public. Details in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
A blockbuster-style heist has baffled law enforcement in Los Angeles after thieves made off with more than $30 MILLION in cash from a money storage facility on Easter Sunday. Businesses that handle cash park their physical notes in what are supposed to be secure vaults in the facility.
So far, authorities have tracked the actual break-in to the roof but can’t figure out how the robbers didn’t trigger an alarm system. Then, keeping with the Hollywood theme, the crew apparently smashed through an exterior wall to make their getaway. Aerial footage shows plywood covering a hole on the side of the building.
Sources inside the investigation tell the LA Times that the building itself is nondescript and the general public likely didn’t know what happened inside. One expert tells the paper that the FBI is likely looking for other similar heists around the globe to determine who might be behind it; getting away with so much cash without triggering alarms is likely the work of a very experienced crew. [via LA Times, ABC7]
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A Wall Street Journal analysis of grocery store food costs shows the same basket of basic items – things like chicken, bananas, bread, soap, and eggs – is up 36% since 2019.
They intentionally made the math simple, too. Using 2019 grocery data, reporters created a grocery order including these and similar staples that cost almost exactly $100. Today, that exact same order costs $136.89.
WORTH NOTING: The analysis doesn’t account for shrinkflation, either – paying the same, or more, for less product that comes in the same packaging. [via WSJ]
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The University of Connecticut is being proactive as both the men’s and women’s basketball teams are playing in this weekend’s Final Four. Ahead of the tournament, UConn officials have removed all light poles from campus to avoid a repeat of last year’s chaos following the team’s big win.
For those unfamiliar, after the men’s team won last year, fans took to the streets where several light poles were torn down and tossed into nearby buildings. The chaos resulted in 39 arrests -- 25 of which were UConn students.
The No. 3 seeded women’s team plays the No. 1 seed Iowa Hawkeyes tonight, while the No. 1 seeded men’s team takes on the No. 4 seed Alabama tomorrow. Should both teams go all the way, it will be the men’s 6th and the women’s 12th NCAA championship. [via NY Post]
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FOLLOW-UP: LYFT has extended an olive branch to the Minneapolis City Council, with just weeks until a new minimum wage ordinance for rideshare drivers goes into effect at the start of May. Lyft and UBER have both publicly said they will suspend service in the city once the new rules go into effect.
Now, Lyft says it will continue operations if the City Council agrees to the minimum pay requirements originally proposed by Minnesota’s Department of Labor that are less than what the new rules would enforce.
The City Council says it will reopen discussion on the ordinance when it meets on April 11. [via WCCO]
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Locals near Lake Las Vegas in Nevada spotted a wild goose waddling along the shoreline – with an arrow through its body.
No word where the bird came from, how it was shot, or why it not only survived but continues to live.
Local animal control authorities say they approached the goose earlier this week in an attempt to provide care but couldn’t get their hands on the animal. It’s been missing in action since. [via Fox 5 Vegas]
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DEATHS
Football player MIKE KOLEN has died.
He passed away on Wednesday, according to a statement from his alma mater Auburn University. No cause of death was shared.
Kolen, nicknamed “Captain Crunch,” played linebacker for the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins Super Bowl team.
He was 76.
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Actor ADRIAN SCHILLER has died.
He passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday. No further details were shared.
Schiller is known for his roles in British historical dramas “Victoria” and “The Last Kingdom.”
He was 60.
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BABY NEWS
Actress JULIA STILES and her husband, actor PRESTON COOK quietly welcomed baby #3 last year.
She dropped the news during a recent interview, saying the child is now 5-months-old. No word on a name or sex.
Stiles and Cook are already parents to sons, 6-year-old Strummer and 2-year-old Arlo.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 530 points (1.35%) to close at 38,596 on Thursday. The S&P lost 64 points (1.23%) to close at 5,147 and the NASDAQ lost 228 points (1.4%) to close at 16,049.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $86; BRENT CRUDE at $90.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.59 on Thursday.
₿ BITCOIN snapped back on Thursday up over 3% and trading north of $68,200.
🛩 There were more than 4,000 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Thursday and more than 475 such cancellations.
💰Tonight’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $67 million jackpot or a $31 million cash payout. Saturday night’s POWERBALL drawing will be for a $1.23 BILLION jackpot or a $595.1 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
New Music Friday
Benson Boone, “Fireworks & Rollerblades”
Conan Gray, “Found Heaven”
Dustin Kensrue, “Desert Dreaming”
Lizzy McAlpine, “Older”
Maggie Rose, “No One Gets Out Alive”
Marcus King, “Mood Swings”
Palace, “Ultrasound”
Tori Kelly, “TORI.”
Vampire Weekend, “Only God Was Above Us”
X Ambassadors, “Townie”
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KEVIN BACON will return to Utah’s Payson High School to celebrate students’ final prom. Many may recognize the name as the school featured in the 1984 flick “Footloose.”
For the past two years, students have been campaigning to get Bacon to visit, showing off their own moves to the famous dance scene from the film. This past Monday, they received a video message from the actor, saying, “I’m gonna come. I gotta come.”
Payson High’s prom is set for April 20. It will be the final major event held there before it gets demolished at the end of the school year. [via NBC]
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Country singer CHRIS YOUNG is a fan of BEYONCE’s new album and hopes to get her in-studio with him.
Speaking to TMZ, Young expressed his love of Bey’s “Cowboy Carter,” adding that her success shows the industry is “more welcoming now than before.”
SHOOTER JENNINGS, the son of legends WAYLON JENNINGS and JESSI COLTER, shared the sentiment, telling the outlet that Bey’s album “is our generation’s ‘Urban Cowboy’ moment” -- referring to the 1980 flick that sparked a country music revival. [via TMZ]
MEANWHILE: Singer LILY ALLEN is not a fan of “Cowboy Carter,” calling Bey’s attempt to enter the country music world “calculated” and “weird.” [via TMZ]
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KISS sold their entire music catalog, and likeness, to Pophouse Entertainment for $300 MILLION.
Pophouse is the same company that the band was already set to do a full digital avatar residency with, so the decision was really a no-brainer. [via Variety]
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SHAQUILLE O’NEAL doesn’t have his Olympic gold medal from the 1996 games because he threw it out the car window while driving on a highway near Atlanta.
Sharing the story on his “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” the former baller said he was so frustrated after only playing in the last two minutes of the final game, that after the ceremony, he “drove home in [his] uniform and threw the goddamn medal out the window on I-75.”
Shaq played alongside CHARLES BARKLEY, SCOTTIE PIPPEN, KARL MALONE, JOHN STOCKTON and DAVID ROBINSON in the ‘96 Games. It was his only time playing in the Olympics. [via People]
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Actor ALAN RITCHSON is opening up about his dark past.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Ritchson details how in 2019 he attempted to take his own life in the attic of his Encino, California home, until visions of his three children stopped him. It was shortly after the attempt that he sought help and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. A few years later, at 40, he was diagnosed with ADHD, too.
His suicide attempt came after years of sexual assaults that followed him from the modeling industry into the acting world and “broke” him, he explained.
Now, starring in “Jack Reacher,” Ritchson says his focus is on what matters the most, “faith, family, mental health, [and] business practices.” [via THR]
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CASTING CALL
Author and CNN analyst COLE HUGHES sat down with JOE ROGAN this week to discuss his recent interview on “The View” -- or as Rogan calls it, a “rabies-infested henhouse.”
During his appearance, Hughes was confronted by co-host SUNNY HOSTIN, who accused him of being a “charlatan” and “pawn” for his views on race relations, calling out his new book, “The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America.”
In the book Hughes argues that to help solve racial inequality, Americans should “treat people without regard to race” but on “socio-economics,” which Hostin called “fundamentally flawed” and “something that the right has co-opted.”
Worth noting here, Hughes is a two-time Democrat voting Independent -- not a conservative.
Hughes told Rogan that prior to being on “The View,” he “didn’t know who Sunny Hostin was” and wasn’t expecting her to “ambush” him. As for how his message went over with the audience, Hughes simply said, “If anything, ‘The View’s’ audience is really who needs to hear my message the most.” [via NY Post]
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In a cost-cutting maneuver, the NFL Network is parting ways with MELISSA STARK, ANDREW SICILIANO, JAMES PALMER, and WILL SELVA.
Stark served as a host and reporter for the network for the past 12 years; she will continue her gig as sideline reporter for NBC’s “Sunday Night Football.” Siciliano hosted several shows for the network during his tenure, and serves as the Rams’ preseason play-by-play announcer.
Palmer called his nine-year stint as a reporter his “dream job,” while Selvia served as a co-host on “El Huddle,” the first English-language original podcast series by and for the Latino fanbase,” since 2013. [via The Athletic]
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MICHAEL J. FOX is open to acting again.
Despite retiring in 2020 due to struggles from Parkinson’s, the 62-year-old recently told ET, “I would do acting if something came up that I could put my realities into it, my challenges, if I could figure it out.” [via ET]
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JULIA GARNER will play a version of the Silver Surfer in a “Fantastic Four” reboot.
Garner will star alongside PEDRO PASCAL as Mister Fantastic, VANESSA KIRBY as the Invisible Woman, EBON MOSS-BACHRACH as The Thing and JOSEPH QUINN as The Human Torch.
“The Fantastic Four” hits theaters in July 2025. [via People]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
Celebrity blogger Just Jared ranked the KarJenners (and extensions) in order of popularity based on the number of Instagram followers.
13. Rob Kardashian: 3.2 million
12. Tristan Thompson: 3.8 million
11. Travis Barker: 8.7 million
10. Caitlyn Jenner: 15.7 million
9. Blac Chyna: 17.3 million
8. Scott Disick: 29.3 million
7. Kris Jenner: 52.6 million
6. Travis Scott: 55 million
5. Kourtney Kardashian: 224 million
4. Kendall Jenner: 294 million
3. Khloe Kardashian: 310 million
2. Kim Kardashian: 364 million
1. Kylie Jenner: 400 million
[via Just Jared]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
On the heels of an announcement that Balmoral Castle would open to the public for the first time ever, The Firm announced tours of Buckingham Palace’s East Wing will commence later this year for the first time ever.
Buckingham Palace is the ceremonial home of the monarch but is in the middle of an extensive, years-long renovation to protect the historic building from fire and flood and modernize other infrastructure. KING CHARLES and QUEEN CAMILLA currently live in nearby Clarence House when they’re in London.
Tours will last 45 minutes and take visitors through the Yellow Drawing Room and the Centre Room. They’ll also get a peak at the corridor that opens onto the balcony where the Royal Family often gathers after major celebrations to wave and smile for onlookers.
Tours open for about six weeks in July and cost 75 British Pounds per adult. [via The Sun]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
Gold Star Spouses Day
International Day of Conscience
National Flash Drive Day
National Caramel Day
First Contact Day
National Deep Dish Pizza Day
Walk to Work Day
National Read a Road Map Day
Hospital Admitting Clerks Day
National Go For Broke Day
Poet in a Cupcake Day
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ON THIS DATE
1722 - Dutch navigator Jacob Roggeveen discovers Easter Island aka Rapa Nui in the southeastern Pacific.
While the discovery was not deemed historical at the time, it has since attracted the attention of scientists and archaeologists from all around the world because of the large mysterious statues that dot the island.
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1792 - President Washington issues the first veto.
The bill in question would have changed the allocation of legislators in the House of Representatives. Washington consulted with his cabinet, and decided it was unconstitutional.
His only other veto was for a bill that would have reduced the size of the US cavalry.
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1945 - Yugoslavian dictator Tito creates an alliance with the Soviet Union.
The agreement allows Soviet troops to move through Yugoslavia's borders without issue.
Tito and Allied powers engineered a counteroffensive in 1941 to keep Germany and Italy out of the country, but with the end of World War II and the rise of the Cold War, Yugoslavia became a cog in the expansive Soviet regime.
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1955 - British Prime Minister Winston Churchill resigns.
He had led the country through World War II, and much of Europe's restoration. Throughout his tenure, he opposed fascism and communism, and was skeptical of Soviet victories after the war.
Before leaving office he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth and even received the Nobel Prize in literature.
Following his resignation as PM, he would remain in parliament for another nine years.
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1969 - Nearly 100,000 war protestors march through New York City.
Partner protests erupted across the country, including San Francisco, Washington DC, and Los Angeles.
The Socialist Workers Party was the primary organizer of the events.
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1984 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar breaks the all-time scoring record for an NBA player.
With 31,420 points, he bested Wilt Chamberlain. The basket that put Abdul-Jabbar on top came with fewer than nine minutes left in the game, off a pass from Magic Johnson.
He was then benched for the rest of the game.
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1994 - Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, fueled by a drug overdose.
Some conjecture that his crazy wife Courtney Love engineered his murder, but Cobain notoriously struggled with addiction.
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2016 - San Francisco becomes the first US city to mandate paid parental leave.
The new law requires most San Francisco employees to receive six weeks of fully paid parental leave.
It would officially go into effect in January 2017.
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2020 - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is admitted to the hospital after suffering symptoms from COVID-19.
He survives the deadly virus.
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BIRTHDAYS
Dominik Mysterio - wrestler - 27
Hunter March - TV show host, “Sugar Rush” - 33
Lily James - actress, “Downton Abbey” - 35
Charlotte Flair - wrestler - 38
Hayley Atwell - actress, “The Duchess” - 42
Zak Bagans - TV show host, “Ghost Adventures” - 47
Sterling K. Brown - actor, “This Is Us” - 48
Juicy J - rapper - 49
Pharrell Wililams - music producer & rapper - 51
Paula Cole - pop singer - 56
Agnetha Faltskog - pop singer, ABBA - 74
Born On This Date
Colin Powell - first Black US Secretary of State - 1937 (d. 2021)
Gregory Peck - actor, “To Kill a Mockingbird” - 1916 (d. 2003)
Bette Davis - actress, “All About Eve” - 1908 (d. 1989)
Booker T. Washington - educator & author - 1856 (d. 1915)
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