Today is Friday, June 27, 2025.
It is the 178th day of the year.
187 days remain.
PROGRAMMING NOTE
We will have an amended publication schedule next week ahead of the Independence Day weekend.
MONDAY, JUNE 30 - WEDNESDAY, JULY 2: We’ll send our “lite” version, including similar content but fewer pieces.
THURSDAY, JULY 3: A special Independence Day edition with holiday-themed facts and trivia.
FRIDAY, JULY 4: No newsletter.
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WHAT’S ON TAP
NOTABLE & NOTEWORTHY: A new beachside resort debuts in a questionable locale.
MICHELLE OBAMA is over the divorce rumors and BILL HADER shares a “terrible” past interaction he had with a “Karate Kid” star. More in SHOWBIZ
New Academy invitees and several sequels in CASTING CALL.
PRINCE WILLIAM and PRINCESS KATE meet a (likely) benefactor. Details in ROYALS.
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Revised economic data published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis on Thursday shows a 0.5% economic contraction in the United States, as measured by Gross Domestic Product, through the first quarter of the year.
The tick down in economic output was driven by two factors: a surge in imports and a decrease in government spending.
Imports grew nearly 38% year over year in the quarter, as businesses rushed to get foreign-made products stocked ahead of all the tariff turmoil. (More imports than exports pull down the GDP number).
The annual 4.6% decrease in government spending marks the biggest percentage drop since 1986. [via BEA]
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UPDATE: The lifeguard who survived a freak accident that left her shoulder impaled on a beach umbrella will be okay – and she’s even itching to get back to work.
The victim, identified only as 18-year-old Alex, said she was trying to secure the umbrella on an Asbury Park, New Jersey, beach, when a wind gust whipped it around. "I was kind of a little freaked out at first and my brain got heavy because I was like, 'oh my gosh, I've been impaled,'" she said.
In a fortunate twist, she says the pole missed a major artery by just a centimeter. Even so, she’ll be laid up for at least the next month and a half. “I was bummed when I found out I had to take six weeks off,” she said. That will leave just a week or two before she heads back to the University of Wisconsin for her sophomore year. [via ABC 7]
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Zoo staff in Duluth, Minnesota, say they’ve completed the first-of-its-kind dental crown procedure on an Alaskan brown bear.
The procedure fixed a root canal conducted in 2023 that the bear, named Tundra, recently re-injured. Vets say the metal, silver-colored, titanium alloy cap should now permanently protect the area. The fixture was made from a wax cast of the tooth.
The veterinarian who conducted the operation, Dr. Grace Brown, says it’s the largest crown ever created in the world, and that she plans to publish a paper on the procedure. [via NBC News, CBS News]
SPEAKING OF BEARS: A black bear forced air controllers to shut down the runway at the Yamagata Airport in Higashine, Japan yesterday after refusing to leave the area. Officials tried to chase the animal off the runway, but were unsuccessful, leading to the cancellation of 12 flights. [via The Guardian]
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The Wonsan-Kalma resort area boasts beautiful ocean beaches, brand new hotels, sea-side restaurants, shopping destinations, and a water park – in North Korea.
The regime will open the tourist town to its own citizens on July 1. The facility was originally set to open in October 2019, but construction delays pushed the date back – and then the pandemic struck and North Korea kept its borders completely closed for over three full years.
The first foreign guests will likely be part of Russian tour groups as the countries expand their economic and military cooperation. [via BBC]
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Police in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, are on the lookout for a burglar who robbed a gas station after hours while wearing a Scooby Doo costume and green ski mask.
The unidentified crook knocked off a Quick Stop in the early hours Sunday. Security camera footage shows the culprit making off with a duffel bag of cash.
Locals are encouraged to call in any suspicious activity. Other than the pajama-style costume, the only other detail to go off is the suspect’s height, around 5-foot-nine. [via Tuscaloosa News]
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