5/20/2022: Best Places to Live
Discover more from Morning Martini
5/20/2022: Best Places to Live
PLUS: Monkeypox in the US, Depp-Heard Trial Continues, Platinum Jubilee Performers
Today is Friday, May 20, 2022.
It is the 140th day of the year.
225 days remain.
TRENDING
#HarryandMeghan was trending yesterday in honor of the couple’s fourth anniversary.
Twitter lit up with tweets about the PGA Championship as it kicked off Thursday.
#PitDark was trending yesterday. The hashtag was started by the account @PitDark, which focuses on dark literature.
Rihanna was trending Thursday after news broke that she has welcomed her first child. Head to Baby News for more details.
#AmberTurd landed in Twitter’s Top 10 Trends as social media users continued to side with actor Johnny Depp in the defamation trial.
Vangelis was trending, along with #BladeRunner and #ChariotsofFire, after news of the music legend’s passing spread. Head to Deaths for more info.
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HIT LIST
A Massachusetts man has a confirmed case of monkeypox, the CDC says.
The patient’s recent travel was to Canada, which still has no recorded cases.
The development comes amid an uptick in cases in Europe.
Like covid, monkeypox can spread through airborne particles, but it’s certainly not as contagious. Infection symptoms include fever, headache, and fatigue, and sometimes rashes and blisters, which usually endure for two to four weeks.
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The Russian Rouble has not only rebounded after Western nations imposed sanctions on the Russian economy in February; it’s trading at a four-year high.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Here’s what President Biden tweeted on March 26: “As a result of our unprecedented sanctions, the ruble was almost immediately reduced to rubble. The Russian economy is on track to be cut in half. It was ranked the 11th biggest economy in the world before this invasion — and soon, it will not even rank among the top 20.”
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The Nonhuman Rights Project is suing a New York zoo over the living conditions of an elephant there named Happy.
The President of the group tells the Washington Post, “What we’re saying is that she” [meaning the elephant] “has a right to bodily liberty and that that makes her no longer a thing.” He added, “She’s a person.”
New York’s state supreme court is currently considering the case.
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There’s a new World Record for longest distance flown by a paper airplane.
A team composed of two men from South Korea and one from Malaysia designed and folded the plane, which soared 252 feet, 7 inches, busting the previous record of 226 feet, 10 inches, set in 2012.
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After an afternoon rally, the Dow still finished in the red, down 236 points.
Both the S&P and Nasdaq were down about a quarter of a percent.
Both West Texas Intermediate and Brent Crude are back over $110 a barrel, as American gas prices continue to climb upward.
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CHARTS
New to Hulu:
American Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story (Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75%)
The Valet (Rotten Tomatoes Score: 67%)
New to Netflix:
Ben Is Back (Rotten Tomatoes Score: 81%)
Jackass 4.5 (Rotten Tomatoes Score: Not Rated)
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DEATHS
JOHN AYLWARD has died.
The actor, best known for his role as Dr. Donald Anspaugh on “ER” and Barry Goodwin on “The West Wing,” passed away Monday at his home in Seattle. His wife, Mary Fields, told Deadline that he had been “in declining health.”
He was 75.
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VANGELIS has died.
The legendary composer, known for his work on “Chariots of Fire” and “Blade Runner,” passed away at a hospital in France on Tuesday. His rep reported that he was in the hospital being treated for an unspecified illness.
He was 79.
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BABY NEWS
RIHANNA gave birth to her first child with her boyfriend, rapper A$AP ROCKY.
The couple welcomed a little boy on May 13 in Los Angeles. No other details were shared.
Page Six was the first to report the news.
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ED SHEERAN is the proud papa to another baby girl.
The British singer announced on Instagram yesterday that he and his wife, CHERRY SEABORN, secretly welcomed another daughter. No other details were shared.
The couple are already parents to daughter Lyra Antarctica, 1.
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A paternity test proved that FLAVOR FLAV is the father of a 3-year-old son, named Jordan.
The boy’s maternal grandparents told TMZ that their daughter was Flav’s manager for a few years and during that time they had a romantic relationship.
Insiders told the outlet that the rapper has stepped up and is now getting to know his son.
Jordan is Flav’s eighth child.
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RELATIONSHIPS
Rep. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ is engaged to her longtime boyfriend RILEY ROBERTS.
AOC confirmed the news with a tweet, writing “It’s true. Thank you for all the well wishes.”
The couple met when they both attended Boston University.
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THE SWAMP
NBC News has analyzed the contents of a hard drive once owned by HUNTER BIDEN that was released by Senate Republicans, and shows he brought in roughly $11 million through his legal and consulting jobs between 2013 and 2018.
The money left his bank account as quickly as it came in: From October 2017 to February 2018, Hunter Biden spent upward of $200,000 a month. Purchases included hotel rooms, cash withdrawals, payments on a Porsche, and dental work, because Meth Mouth is real.
None of this is particularly a surprise for anyone following the Biden Family Crime Syndicate’s corrupt practices in recent years. Much of Hunter Biden’s drug use and irresponsible spending is even detailed in his own memoir.
More surprising is that NBC News is now covering it.
WORTH ASKING: Why now, and not in October 2020?
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LOTTERY
No winner for Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $131 million jackpot or a $74.9 million cash payout.
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No winner for Wednesday night’s Powerball drawing. Saturday night’s drawing will be for a $117 million jackpot or a $68.4 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
These albums drop today:
Alex Izenberg, “I’m Not Here”
Banditos, “Right On”
Brandon Coleman, “Interstellar Black Space”
Charlie Hickey, “Nervous At Night”
Flume, “Palaces”
Gavin DeGraw, “Face The River”
Hanson, “Red Green Blue”
Harry Styles, “Harry’s House”
Joe Rainey, “Niineta”
Jordana, “Face The Wall”
Liz Lamere, “Keep It Alive”
Matt Koziol, “Wildhorse”
Nate Bergman, “Metaphysical Change”
Pete Muller, “Spaces”
Seth MacFarlane, “Blue Skies”
Spice, “Viv”
Train, “AM Gold”
Will Joseph Cook, “Every Single THing”
Zach Bryan, “American Heartbreak”
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An Australian bakery is being blasted online after a video they posted, mocking AMBER HEARD, has gone viral.
In the clip, Dessert Boxes said it would be sending the actress a donut in the shape of a hand with a finger chopped off — making reference to JOHNNY DEPP’s finger injury testimony.
In the video a person can be heard saying “We’ll cut off the finger with a vodka bottle, throw that in for her, too.”
“And we’re sending Johnny Depp this piece,” the voice continues, while panning the camera to the piece of donut meant to be the severed finger.
While many laughed at the video, others called it “tone-deaf” and “sick.”
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Friday the 13th was a bad day for KELLY MONACO, as her Sherman Oaks home went up in flames.
According to the actress, she woke up late Friday morning to a fire in her front yard. She was able to escape, but the blaze quickly engulfed her home, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.
Investigators were able to determine that the fire started from a lit cigarette butt that someone tossed into the empty lot next to Monaco’s home.
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DAYMOND JOHN is offering to fund the funeral for the security guard who was killed last weekend in the Buffalo shooting.
The son of AARON SALTER JR., the retired police officer working security at the supermarket where the shooting took place, told TMZ that Daymond reached out, offering to cover the funeral and other expenses.
Aaron told TMZ that he and his family are huge fans of Daymond’s show “Shark Tank,” which made him reaching out all the more meaningful.
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BILLY MCFARLAND, the man behind the infamous Frye Festival, has been given early release from prison.
He was transferred to home confinement on March 30, where he will stay through the end of August. It is unknown if that means he is at home or at a half-way house.
Billy was sentenced to 6 years in 2018 for wire fraud in connection to the disastrous music festival.
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STEPHANIE MCMAHON is taking a leave of absence from her role as WWE’s Chief Brand Officer to focus on her family.
The decision comes a year after her husband, PAUL LEVESQUE aka the wrestler known as Triple H, suffered heart failure. At the time, he described it as having been on the “one yard line” of losing his life.
McMahon did say that she has every intention to return to the office at some point.
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CASTING CALL
A new documentary will focus on sexual assault allegations — including cannibalism claims — surrounding actor ARMIE HAMMER.
Currently in production, “House of Hammer” will center on the abuse, while also diving into the infamous family’s empire.
The doc will air on Discovery+.
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“Riverdale” is coming to an end.
In a statement, the CW revealed that the “iconic show,” based on Archie Comics characters, will wrap with the upcoming seventh season.
No debut or finale date has been announced.
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WYNONNA JUDD will continue with the upcoming tour she had planned with her late mother NAOMI JUDD.
She will be joined along the way by several big-name stars including, BRANDI CARLILE, FAITH HILL, LITTLE BIG TOWN, MARTINA MCBRIDE, ASHLEY MCBRIDE and TRISHA YEARWOOD.
The 11-date arena tour will launch on September 30 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and run through October.
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SCOTT EASTWOOD is returning to the “Fast & Furious” franchise.
Deadline reports that the actor has joined the cast of “Fast X,” and will star alongside VIN DIESEL, MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ, TYRESE GIBSON, JASON MOMOA, CHARLIZE THERON, BRIE LARSON, among others.
Eastwood will reprise his role as Little Nobody, the right-hand man of KURT RUSSELL’s Mr. Nobody.
It is unknown whether Russell will also return.
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THOMAS HADEN CHURCH will star alongside ANTHONY MACKIE and STEPHANIE BEATRIZ in “Twisted Metal” for Peacock.
The half-hour live-action adaptation of the popular video game centers on a motor-mouthed outsider (Mackie) who is offered a better life if he can successfully deliver a mysterious package across a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Church will play Agent Stone, a highway patrolman who rules the roads, prosecuting even the smallest crimes with the harshest punishments.
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HBO has renewed “Barry” for a fourth season.
The series, created by and starring BILL HADER, follows the many misadventures of Barry, a hired assassin who dreams of becoming an actor.
Season 3 will wrap on June 12.
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COURT CASES
Day 19 in the JOHNNY DEPP vs. AMBER HEARD trial was all about attacking Depp’s character.
Several people took the stand Thursday — including a former girlfriend and former associates of Depp. They all stated that the actor was “jealous,” “rude” and “out of control” especially when he was using drugs.
Heard’s younger sister also testified yesterday that she once found herself in the middle of one of the couple’s fights, during which Depp hit her and called her a “whore.”
Closing out the day, a talent agent told the court that Heard’s career was negatively affected by “the bad press” surrounding her relationship with Depp.
The trial resumes on Monday, with closing arguments expected to begin next Friday, May 27.
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CELEB CELLBLOCK
ISAIAH LEE, the man who attacked DAVE CHAPPELLE, is now facing attempted murder charges.
The Los Angeles County D.A.'s office reports that Lee allegedly stabbed a man last December while the two lived together at a transitional housing apartment building.
The delay in making the arrest is because the victim was unable to identify his attacker until he saw Lee’s face all over the place following the Chappelle incident.
On Thursday, Lee pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder charge.
WORTH NOTING: The attack on Chappelle landed Lee four misdemeanor charges.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
Fans now know what caused TRISTAN THOMPSON to boot a man from one of his basketball games.
The incident occurred last November, and at the time all anyone said was the person was “spewing inappropriate things.”
On this week’s episode of “The Kardashians,” Tristan tells KHLOE the man called her a “whore” and said she “dates basketball players.”
Khloe seemed to appreciate Tristan defending her.
WORTH NOTING: At the time the scene was filmed, Khloe and Tristan were once again trying to make their relationship work. Everyone now knows it didn’t.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
Several big names will perform at QUEEN ELIZABETH’s Platinum Jubilee next month.
According to Buckingham Palace, ALICIA KEYS, HANS ZIMMER, ROD STEWART, DURAN DURAN, DIANA ROSS, QUEEN and ADAM LAMBERT will hit the stage on June 4.
ELTON JOHN will also take part in the celebration, though his performance will be pre-recorded as he is currently on tour.
The evening will also feature special guest appearances from DAVID ATTENBOROUGH, DAVID BECKHAM, STEPHEN FRY and JULIE ANDREWS.
WORTH NOTING: Queen played at Her Majesty’s Golden Jubilee in 2002.
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Spain’s former KING JUAN CARLOS is returning to the country for a brief weekend visit.
The palace confirmed that after nearly two years in exile in Abu Dhabi, Juan Carlos will return to attend a yachting event and see his family.
As many may remember, he fled Spain amid allegations of tax fraud and money laundering in August 2020. But two months ago, Spain’s Public Prosecutor’s Office dropped the Investigations due to insufficient evidence and the immunity Juan Carlos held while serving as head of state.
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SPORTS
TOM BRADY spoofed his decision to un-retire from football in his latest Hertz commercial.
Watch the ad here:
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GREG OLSEN will call the Super Bowl next February, alongside KEVIN BURKHARDT, for Fox.
Insiders told The Post that the former NFL player and Fox Sports have a deal in place that will put Olsen in Glendale, Arizona next February for the big game.
Officially, the contract has not yet been signed, however, a source added.
Olsen and Burkhardt are replacing JOE BUCK and TROY AIKMAN, who left for ESPN’s “Monday Night Football.”
WORTH NOTING: With TOM BRADY’s post-football contract with the network, if his Buccaneers don’t make it to the postseason, he may end up joining Olsen and Burkhardt.
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LIST OF THE WEEK
US News and World Report compiled a list of the Best Places to Live in the US in 2022-2023.
To make the list, a place had to have good value, be desirable, have a strong job market and a high quality of life.
Here are the Top 10 Places:
Huntsville, Alabama
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Boulder, Colorado
San Jose, California
Raleigh & Durham, North Carolina
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Portland, Maine
Sarasota, Florida
San Francisco, California
To see the rest of the list head to: https://realestate.usnews.com/
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Be A Millionaire Day
National Pick Strawberries Day
National Quiche Lorraine Day
World Whisky Day
Weights & Measures Day
World Bee Day
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ON THIS DATE
325 – The First Ecumenical Council is held.
Roman Emperor Constantine the First convenes the bishops. There were some things to work out, like determining when to celebrate Easter.
They also forbade self-castration and usury - that would be priests giving out loans and charging crazy interest rates.
Also, they ruled churchgoers could not sit or kneel during Mass on Sundays.
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1609 – Publisher Thomas Thorpe publishes an anthology of William Shakespeare's sonnets in London. There were 154 poems in total.
This is about the same time his plays “Cymbeline” and “The Winter's Tale” were first being performed.
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1862 – Abraham Lincoln signs the Homestead Act into law.
It gave settlers moving West the deed to up to 160 acres of land, as long as they could show evidence that it had been improved over the last five years.
By the time the program was discontinued in 1886, the government had granted 1.6 million homesteads about 420,000 square miles of federal land. That's about 10 percent of all of the U.S.'s territory.
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1873 – Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis are granted a U.S. Patent.
Jacob Davis was a tailor working in Reno. He had the idea to use copper rivets to reinforce the pockets on what were called "denim working pants." Not having the money to do it, he partnered with Levi Strauss, who had been running a successful fabrics and clothing store in San Francisco.
The pair filed for and received the patent, and the modern blue jeans were born.
The first pairs were sold for $3 a pop.
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1927 – Charles Lindbergh departs Roosevelt Field in Long Island, New York in his plane Spirit of St. Louis. He would make the first nonstop trans-Atlantic flight by air, landing in Paris the next day.
The flight lasted 33 and a half hours.
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1932 – Amelia Earhart becomes the first female to accomplish the same feat. This time she flew a Lockheed Vega.
She took off from Newfoundland, Canada at 7:12 pm.
The flight was not without its peril. Poor weather hit, she dealt with a broken altimeter, and had gas leak into the cockpit. She almost crashed when the plane went into a downward death-spin and flames started shooting out the exhaust manifold.
But the next day she landed safely on the coast of Ireland.
It would be during a 1937 attempted flight around the world she mysteriously disappeared, and was never confirmed found.
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1956 – The first airborne hydrogen bomb is dropped over Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
Called Operation Redwing, the drop was the second of 17 in total. This one, called Cherokee, weighed in at 7,600 pounds, was three feet wide and about twelve feet long. 3.8 megatons were unleashed in the test.
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1979 – Elton John is the first western pop star to tour the USSR.
The reason he was the first? He “simply asked first.”
In the following decade, James Taylor, Santana, the Doobie Brothers and Billy Joel would all follow suit.
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2015 – David Letterman hosts the “Late Show with David Letterman” for the last time.
He hosted the show for 33 years.
Stephen Colbert would be announced as his successor a week later.
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2018 - K-pop boy band BTS are the first Koreans to perform at the Billboard Music Awards.
They would also win the award for Top Social Artist.
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BIRTHDAYS
Doug the Pug - internet celebrity dog - 9
Stephanie Poetri - pop singer - 22
Omar Apollo - pop singer - 25
Peyton Clark - actor, “I Didn’t Do It” - 28
Jon Pardi - country singer - 37
Rachel Platten - pop singer - 41
Iker Casillas - soccer player - 41
Matt Czuchry - actor, “Gilmore Girls” & “The Good Wife” - 45
Busta Rhymes - rapper - 50
Tony Stewart - race car driver - 51
Louis Theroux - director - 52
Timothy Olyphant - actor, “Justified” & “Santa Clara Diet” - 54
Mindy Cohn - actress, “The Facts of Life” -
Jane Wiedlin - singer, Go-Gos - 64
Mary Pope Osbourne - children’s author - 73
Cher - pop singer - 76
Born On This Date
Yolanda “LaLa” Brown - R&B singer - 1986 (d. 2007)
Joe Cocker - rock singer - 1944 (d. 2014)
Bill Hewlett - co-founder of Hewlett-Packard - 1913 (d. 2001)
James Stewart - actor, “It’s A Wonderful Life” & “Rear Window” - 1908 (d. 1997)
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