Today is Wednesday, May 15, 2024.
It is the 136th day of the year.
230 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
Americans fret inflation in record numbers and layoffs hit a job-search site. Details in HIT LIST.
KELLY CLARKSON details her weight loss journey and GAYLE KING graces the cover of “Sports Illustrated.” More SHOWBIZ.
KEVIN COSTNER addresses his “Yellowstone” feud. Details in CASTING CALL.
KHLOE and kids hit up one of TRISTAN’s basketball games. More in KARDASH.
THE KING sees red as he reveals his first official portrait. Details in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
It’s that time of year when high school students decide which college they’ll be attending next fall. For more than 1,000 applicants who wanted to get into Georgia State University, their acceptance email turned out to be an error.
A rep for the school says the email that went out is typically a follow-up after a student formally accepts, but instead went to students who had incomplete applications.
“We sent them follow up communication explaining the error and encouraging them to complete their applications so they could be considered for admission,” the rep says. [via CNN]
MEANWHILE: A new study from the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity shows that 40% of Master’s degrees have a negative return on investment. In these cases, graduates would’ve been financially better off just sticking with the Bachelor’s degree. [via FREOPP]
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In a tragic turn of irony, job-search site Indeed will lay off about 1,000 employees, representing 8% of its American workforce.
Indeed culled about 15% of its staff about a year ago as the pandemic-era hiring boom began to slow. At the time, company management said the job cuts were connected to cost cuts. This time, the reduction in headcount will help the company focus on efficiency, the company’s brass says. [via The Hill]
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A record number of Americans name inflation as the most significant problem impacting their family’s finances, at 41%.
In 2020, this was just 3%. In the 2008 recession, the metric peaked just under 20%. But the concern has surged in recent years, to 32% in 2022 and 35% last year.
Another 14% cited concerns over the cost of housing. [via Gallup]
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Even on living room TV screens, YouTube occupied 10% of total screen-viewing time in America in April, according to Nielsen data, where viewers used a TV app to stream from the platform.
Another 11.5% of viewing went to Disney properties including ABC, ESPN+, Hulu, and Disney+. ABC and ESPN were bolstered by the 18.8 MILLION viewers who watched the NCAA women’s basketball championship game last month.
Reps for YouTube say the TV app is connected to more than 150 million accounts in the United States.
Rounding out the top streaming companies are NBC Universal (8.9%), Paramount (8.8%), Warner Bros. Discovery (8.1%), and Netflix (7.6%). [via WSJ, THR]
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Following Miss USA Noelia Voigt and Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava abdicating their titles, runner-up Miss Teen New York Stephanie Skinner says she doesn’t want it either.
“I didn’t feel like it was the right decision considering all the circumstances,” the 19-year-old told the NY Post. “My integrity and my character will always come before crowns.”
The winners gave up their crowns after allegedly being “bullied” by the organization’s CEO, Laylah Rose.
MEANWHILE: Miss Hawaii, Savannah Gankiewicz, will take over as Miss USA today. [via NY Post]
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BABY NEWS
The names of PUNXSUTAWNEY PHIL and wife PHYLLIS’ newborns have been announced.
The baby girl and baby boy groundhogs will be called Sunny and Shadow, respectively.
The pups were born in March.
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BREAKUPS
Golfer RORY MCILROY has filed for divorce from his wife of seven years PGA employee ERICA STOLL.
According to court docs, McIlroy cited that the marriage is irretrievably broken.”
He’s 35 and she’s 36.
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WEDDINGS
Actor TAYLOR KINNEY is married.
The actor tied the knot with model ASHELY CRUGER last month after two years of dating.
This is the first marriage for both, though Kinney was previously engaged to LADY GAGA. That ended in July 2016.
By the way -- he’s 42 and she’s 27.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW increased 126 points (0.32%) to close at 39,558 Tuesday. The S&P ticked up 25 points (0.48%) to close at 5,246 and the NASDAQ increased 122 points (0.75%) to close at 16,511.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $78; BRENT CRUDE at $82.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.61 on Tuesday.
₿ BITCOIN slid on the day, down over 2% and trading around $61,500.
🛩 There were more than 3,740 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Tuesday and more than 80 such cancellations.
💰Tonight’s POWERBALL drawing will be for a $59 million jackpot or a $27.6 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
SYLVESTER STALLONE is selling a handful of watches -- including what experts are calling the “Holy Grail” of timepieces, a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime.
The last time a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime sold at auction was in 2019, it went for $31 million.
The entire collection will be auctioned off through Sotheby’s next month. [via TMZ]
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KELLY CLARKSON admitted that she lost over 60 pounds with the help of a weight loss drug.
While she did not share which medication she took, Clarkson was adamant it wasn’t Ozempic.
She also said that long walks and cold plunges, in addition to eating more protein, helped her shed the pounds. [via NY Post]
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GAYLE KING graces the cover of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue.
The 69-year-old is one of four women tapped to appear on different covers of the magazine, joining models CHRISSY TEIGEN, HUNTER MCGRADY and KATE UPTON.
The issue hits newsstands on May 17. [via TMZ]
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Actress SARAH PAULSON says the secret to her long-lasting relationship with girlfriend, fellow actress HOLLAND TAYLOR is separate houses.
“We’ve been together for a long time now and I think part of it has to do with, we’re together when we wanna be and we’re not when we don’t” Paulson explained on a recent episode of the “Smartless” podcast.
The pair have been together for nine years -- which for some in Hollywood is a lifetime. [via Page Six]
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TORI SPELLING’s estranged husband DEAN MCDERMOTT wants a monthly payout and joint legal and physical custody of their five kids.
He also wants Spelling to cover all his legal fees in relation to their divorce proceedings.
Meanwhile, Spelling has also requested spousal support and that McDermott pay her attorney fees. She wants sole physical custody of the kids and joint legal custody.
The two split last July after 17 years of marriage. [via Radar Online]
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AVRIL LAVIGNE is releasing a “Greatest Hits” album in conjunction with her first-ever “Greatest Hits” tour.
“Can’t do the greatest tour without a greatest hits album!!!” she posted on Instagram, alongside a photo of the album’s cover art.
The 20-track album is due out June 21. Her tour kicks off next week. [via People]
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KYLE RICHARDS was harassed by a rat who made its way onto her side-view mirror.
Recording the ordeal, the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star can be heard freaking out as she tries to get the beady-eyed creature off her car. At one point she even bangs on the window trying to get a passerby to assist her.
As for why she didn’t just drive away, Richards says she was afraid if she reversed her mirror would move and potentially squish the rat.
No word on how the saga ended. [via Instagram]
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ZAYN MALIK tried to find love on Tinder, but no one he matched with believed it was actually him.
While living on a farm in a small town in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, he downloaded the dated app, only for everyone to accuse him of “catfishing.” Not only that, but some reported his account and he was kicked off the app “once or twice.”
Now, Malik says he has given up the dating apps and is “happy just being single.” [via TMZ]
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CASTING CALL
KEVIN COSTNER is finally speaking out about his alleged feud with “Yellowstone” creator TAYLOR SHERIDAN, telling Deadline that he made the show “the first priority and to insinuate anything else would be wrong.”
This is all in reference to Costner allegedly bailing on Season 5.
Shortly after that news broke, it was revealed that the season would be the final one, which many assumed was due to Costner’s exit, but he says it's because there was no script. “If the writing is there, I will be there too,” he added.
As for Costner’s other project, a series called “Horizon,” he said any rumors that its cut into his filming for “Yellowstone” is “a lie.” [via NY Post]
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A “Legally Blonde” prequel series, titled “Elle,” is in the works at Prime Video.
The series follows Elle Woods through her high school years, long before her time at Harvard and years as a lawyer.
REESE WITHERSPOON played Elle Woods in the 2001 movie, and will serve as executive producer on the series. [via People]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KHLOE KARDASHIAN brought daughter TRUE and son TATUM to the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse to cheer on their dad, TRISTAN THOMPSON in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The outing marked the first time the kids were on hand to watch their dad play.
Khloe’s nephew SAINT WEST also tagged along for the game. [via TMZ]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
KING CHARLES unveiled his first official portrait as monarch on Tuesday.
The more than 8-by-6-foot painting depicts the King in a Welsh Guard uniform, with a butterfly landing on his right shoulder. The painter took significant artistic liberties that match the background to the colors of the uniform. Check it out >
QUEEN CAMILLA reportedly told the painter, Jonathan Yeo, “you’ve got him,” when she saw a sneak peak of the work. [via BBC]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
International Family Day
National Nylon Stocking Day
National Straw Hat Day
International Vascular Birthmarks Awareness Day
Peace Officers Memorial Day
World Product Day
International Customer Support Day
National Chocolate Chip Day
Bring Flowers to Someone Day
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ON THIS DATE
1252 - Pope Innocent IV authorizes the use of torture in the Inquisition.
"Ad exstirpanda" was the edict that said it was okay to hurt people until they decided to believe in God, but with a few caveats.
The beating could not cause loss of limb, each method could only be used once, and the Inquisitor had to be certain that the person being beaten was a heretic.
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1536 - Anne Boleyn is accused of incest, adultery and treason against her husband, King Henry VIII.
She would be tried and beheaded at the Tower of London four days later.
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1800 - John Adams orders that the federal government move from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C.
The Congress and Cabinet had one month to make the move, effective June 15, 1800.
There were at the time only 125 federal employees. Any archives and documents accumulated in the eight years of the young country's existence were transported by barge using inland waterways.
The Adams Family wouldn't move into the still-unfinished White House until November that year.
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1869 - The National Woman Suffrage Association forms in New York.
It was founded by abolitionists Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stantion.
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1963 - Faith 7 blasts off from Cape Canaveral. It was the last mission of the Mercury Program.
Pilot Gordon Cooper orbited Earth 22 times over the course of 34 hours. It made him the first American to spend more than 24 consecutive hours in space.
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1972 - A gunman shoots Governor George Wallace of Alabama. Wallace was the governor, running for president for the third time.
Wallace was historically very pro-segregation. In 1972 he ran on the Democrat ticket.
The day after his shooting he won primaries in Michigan and Maryland. But soon it became evident that the attack would leave him paralyzed from the waist down.
George McGovern would get the nomination.
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1973 - Nolan Ryan throws his first no-hitter in a game against the Kansas City Royals, striking out 12 batters. Ryan would throw 5 more no-hitters in his career. His last would be 19 years later, at the age of 44.
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1988 - Soviet troops begin withdrawing from Afghanistan.
They left after eight years of support for the pro-communist movement in the country. The Afghanis detested the communist uprising, and the Soviet occupiers even more.
Neither side ever gained an edge in the ongoing fighting for nearly a decade. As the Soviet Union was headed for collapse, it began consolidating its armed forces across Europe and Asia. Pulling troops out of Afghanistan was just one element of that action.
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2002 - “Bowling for Columbine” premiers at the Cannes Film Festival.
The documentary, directed by Michael Moore, explores primary causes for the Columbine High School massacre in 1999 and other acts of gun violence.
Moore looks at the background and environment in which the massacre took place and public opinions and assumptions about related issues. The film also touches on the nature of violence in the United States.
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2019 - The birthrate in the United States hits a 32-year low with a fertility rate of 58.3 births per 1,000 women.
Teen births were also at a record low.
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BIRTHDAYS
Jackson Mahomes - social media star & brother of Patrick - 24
Alex Verdugo - baseball player - 28
Andy Murray - tennis player - 37
Jessica Sutta - pop singer, The Pussycat Dolls - 42
Jamie-Lynn Sigler - actress, “Sopranos” - 43
Zara Phillips - daughter of Princess Anne - 43
David Krumholtz - actor, “Numb3rs” - 46
Ray Lewis - football player - 49
AJ Hinch - baseball player - 50
Rod Smith - football player - 54
Emmitt Smith - football player - 55
Kevin Von Erich - wrestler - 67
George Brett - HOF baseball player - 71
Born On This Date
Roger Ailes - CEO of Fox News - 1940 (d. 2017)
Madeleine Albright - 1st US Secretary of State - 1937 (d. 2022)
David Healy - actor, “Supergirl” & “Doomsday Gun” - 1929 (d. 1995)
Eddy Arnold - country singer - 1918 (d. 2008)
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