Today is Tuesday, July 25, 2023.
It is the 206th day of the year.
159 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
A cookie recall and an illicit cheese discovery. More in HIT LIST.
PETE DAVIDSON gets community service and LIZZO does her first shoey. More in SHOWBIZ.
“Barbie” is a box office hit and props from the set of “Beetlejuice 2” have gone missing. More in CASTING CALL.
KIM KARDASHIAN is once again linked to a famous athlete, though this time it is a married man. More in KARDASH.
MEGHAN MARKLE plots her future – from a hotel suite. More in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
TWITTER’s rebrand to X hit a momentary snag on Monday, when some dork called the cops on the company for having the old logo taken down from the building facade.
Local media in San Francisco reported that someone called in a possible unpermitted street closure to accommodate the crane used to take the signage down. After officers arrived, they determined the “incident was not a police matter.”
MAYBE IT’S A UNION THING: The confusion did cause a delay on the project, and workers abandoned the effort with just the last two letters – “er” – left on the sign. [via The Verge]
WORTH NOTING: Businesses in San Francisco can’t get police to show up when some vagrant tripping on who-knows-what drug is freaking out customers in front of their store, but the cops sure showed up in a hurry for this.
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TRADER JOE’s has issued a recall of two types of cookies after the manufacturer alerted the store that the offering could contain rocks.
Two flavors are affected: Almond Windmill Cookies expiring between October 19 and 21, and Dark Chocolate Chunk and Almond Cookies expiring between October 17 and 21.
No details if they’re talking about tiny pebbles or little stones; either way, best to stay safe. Trader Joe’s will give a full refund if you bring back the contaminated lots. [via NBC News]
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Imagine enjoying a relaxing afternoon snorkeling in a beautiful river near Boise, Idaho, looking at the sea life and enjoying the water, only to interrupt your trip when you encounter a dead body.
While this was the case over the weekend, the snorkeler was a member of Idaho’s Ada County Sheriff’s Office who was training to be part of the dive team.
Initial reports say the remains had likely been in the water for some time and the community is not currently in danger. [via KIVI]
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Carlee Russell, the woman who was allegedly kidnapped after pulling over to check on a toddler she allegedly saw standing alongside an Alabama interstate only to return home on her own accord two days later, has admitted to making it all up.
On Monday -- weeks after the alleged kidnapping occurred -- Carlee’s attorney gave Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis a statement from her saying it was all a hoax.
In the statement, Carlee apologizes for her actions, while also asking for prayers as she deals with her “issues.”
No charges have been filed, though Derzis has a meeting today with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office. [via Newsweek]
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Customs and Border Protection agents found over 17 pounds of cocaine smuggled inside four large wheels of cheddar cheese last week.
The discovery was made at the Presidio Port of Entry in Texas after a scan of the cheeses displayed “anomalies.”
The drugs, cheese and truck were seized by agents, while the 22-year-driver was turned over to Homeland Security. The driver, a US citizen, will face smuggling charges. [via NY Post]
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RELATIONSHIPS
TOM BRADY and model IRINA SHAYK are dating.
The new couple reportedly spent the entire weekend together in Los Angeles, where photogs spotted them looking cozy in a Bentley.
As for Brady’s ex, fellow model GISELE BUNDCHEN, insiders say she is happy he has moved on.
Shayk, meanwhile, shares a daughter with actor BRADLEY COOPER, and was rumored to have dated YE after his split from KIM KARDASHIAN, who was recently rumored to be dating Brady.
By the way -- Brady is 45 and Shayk is 37.
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SICK BAY
Singer TORI KELLY was rushed to the hospital after passing out at a restaurant in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
Currently in the ICU, Kelly is reportedly being treated for multiple blood clots around her vital organs. She has been repeatedly “in and out of consciousness,” insiders said.
She is only 30.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW added 183 points (0.52%) to close at 35,411 on Monday. The S&P added 18 points (0.4%) to close at 4,554 and the NASDAQ added 26 points (0.19%) to close at 14,058.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $78; BRENT CRUDE closed at $82.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.59 on Monday.
₿ BITCOIN fell more than 3% on Monday and was trading just over $29,000, on news that crypto mega-exchange BINANCE is likely to face heightened regulatory scrutiny.
🛩 There were more than 5,620 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Monday and more than 250 such cancellations.
💰Tonight’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $820 million jackpot or a $422 million cash payout.
SHOWBIZ NEWS
Just weeks after calling off their divorce things have once again become contentious between KIM ZOLCIAK and KROY BIERMANN.
Insiders told TMZ that newly released footage from their calls to police, during their estrangement, have caused some bad blood.
For those who haven’t seen the footage, both throw jabs at the other, with Kim telling officers that she thinks Kroy suffered some sort of traumatic brain injury, while he says she has a gambling problem.
As of now, Kim still has Biermann in her social media handle, which was one of the first things she axed after filing for divorce.
One thing is certain, the drama will make for good TV as the two return to the “Real Housewives of Atlanta.” [via TMZ]
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CHER is launching her own line of gelato, called “Cherlato.”
Five-years in the making, Cher announced that her creation has finally come to fruition, with the help of New Zealand-based ice cream company Giapo.
Cherlato will initially only be available in Los Angeles. [via People]
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BRITNEY SPEARS’ 2003 hit “Toxic” has hit 1 BILLION streams on Spotify.
No word on how Spears is celebrating the feat as she has once again deactivated her Instagram.
The milestone comes on the heels of the release of Spears’ new single with WILL.I.AM, “Mind Your Business.” [via Billboard]
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PETE DAVIDSON has been ordered to do 50 hours of community service, complete 12 hours of traffic school and visit a morgue to learn about what happens to those who are victims of reckless drivers as consequence for his reckless driving incident from earlier this year.
If he can complete all of that -- and in a timely fashion -- there will be no criminal offense on his record.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Davidson was driving with his girlfriend, actress CHASE SUI WONDERS, in March when he allegedly hit a curb, lost control of his vehicle and smashed into a house in Beverly Hills. No one was injured and responding officers cleared Davidson of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol. [via TMZ]
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LIZZO experienced her first “shoey” while performing downunder on Sunday.
The Australian tradition involves taking a swig of something -- typically alcohol -- out of a shoe, and then putting it back on.
“Take a drink from my shoe? Is that what you’re saying?” she asked the crowd, before putting a bottle of tequila in her boot and yelling, “A reminder that this is [effed] up.”
HARRY STYLES shared the same sentiment when he drank out of his green Adidas sneaker, telling the crowd, “This is one of the most disgusting traditions.” [via People]
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No press is bad press, at least for JASON ALDEAN.
Following the backlash over his latest song “Try That In a Small Town,” on-demand audio and video streams have jumped by 999% from 987,000 to 11.7 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sales are up too. The week prior to the controversy the single sold 1,000 units; after, it sold 228,000 units.
In its first week, the song had about 350,000 views on YouTube, now it has been viewed over 16.6 million times.
The song is also currently No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [via Hollywood Reporter]
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Ahead of the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race in Des Moines over the weekend, late night host DAVID LETTERMAN picked up a shift at a local Hy-Vee store.
Wearing an apron and nametag, Letterman bagged groceries, stocked shelves and made announcements over the loudspeaker.
Letterman’s gig appeared to be a one-time thing, unlike singer LANA DEL REY who seems to be at least a part-time employee at a Waffle House in Alabama.
Also, Letterman is co-owner of the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team, who had a driver competing in the IndyCar Race. [via CNN]
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CASTING CALL
A large skeletal statue and lamp post featuring a pumpkin decoration on top of it have been stolen from the set of “Beetlejuice 2”.
Officers in Vermont, where filming is taking place, shared the theft on Facebook, writing “We tried saying the name of this stolen statue three times, but it didn’t come back.”
As for the movie, MICHAEL KEATON will reprise his role as “Beetlejuice” and WINONA RYDER will return as Lydia Diaz. “Wednesday” star JENNA ORTEGA will play Diaz’s daughter. It is expected to hit theaters in September 2024. [via NBC 5]
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Real estate developer and movie memorabilia collector John Azarian is selling 78 of his one-of-a-kind “Star Wars” props, including CARRIE FISHER’s Snowspeeder, prop weapons, lightsabers, and one of the last surviving Stormtrooper helmets from 1977’s “Star Wars.”
The items are being listed by Heritage Auctions starting July 29.
NOT RELATED: Azarian is also selling a stunt Batarang ADAM WEST used as Batman. [via Heritage Auctions]
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Director GRETA GERWIG has made history with “Barbie.”
Over its debut weekend, the movie grossed $155 million, beating previous female-directed record holder ANNA BODEN for “Captain Marvel” which earned $153 million in 2019.
“Barbie” also had the biggest opening weekend of the year, beating “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” at $146 million. [via Variety]
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COURT CASES
After deliberating for two hours on Monday, jurors in KEVIN SPACEY’s UK sexual assault trial adjourned for the day.
As previously reported, Spacey has pleaded not guilty to nine charges, including multiple counts of sexual assault and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.
The assaults allegedly occurred between 2001 and 2013. [via Reuters]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
Now that TOM BRADY is reportedly dating model IRINA SHAYK, rumors surrounding KIM KARDASHIAN’s dating life can be put to rest, right? WRONG!
WORTH REMEMBERING: Rumors swirled for weeks that Tom and Kim were romantically linked with insiders saying they are “strictly friends.” The new rumor is that Kim has been dating basketball player CHRIS PAUL.
BUT WAIT: This is not a new rumor. After filing divorce from YE in February 2021, he accused Kim of cheating on him with Paul, which those close to the mom-of-four denied.
NOW: Rumors of their relationship have once again sparked, after photos allegedly showing them together at LIONEL MESSI’s MLS debut game have gone viral. But Kardashian fans claim it is not Kim in the photos, but rather her sister KENDALL JENNER and her ex-boyfriend DEVIN BOOKER.
ALSO: Paul has been married to his college sweetheart since 2011. They share two kids. [via In Touch]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
On the heels of news that PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE are house shopping in the Malibu area, Express reports that Meg is currently living and working out of a hotel suite in Los Angeles to become a Hollywood power player.
The insider says her temporary pad is across the street from her agent’s office at William Morris Endeavour. [via Express]
WORTH ASKING: Does she know that to be a heavy hitter she has to, you know, work? Spotify and Netflix scaled back their deals with the Sussexes for lack of performance. Couldn’t she have hustled on the deals she already had in place? What’s missing?
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DAY OF THE YEAR
Carousel Day
National Hot Fudge Sundae Day
National Thread the Needle Day
National Wine and Cheese Day
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ON THIS DATE
1593 - King Henry IV of France renounces Protestantism and embraces Roman Catholicism.
The conversion distanced the monarch from Queen Elizabeth I of England, but did realign him with the hundreds of thousands of Catholics in Paris and around France.
Though himself a Catholic, Henry was responsible for the Edict of Nantes, which provided for toleration of some French protestants.
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1788 - Mozart completes Symphony No. 40 in G minor.
This was his second of three symphonies to be completed over the course of just seven weeks.
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1797 - Fighting for Britain against Spain in the French Revolutionary Wars, Admiral Horatio Nelson loses his right arm and 300 soldiers during the botched takeover of Tenerife.
A bullet dashed Nelson as he landed on shore. The crew of his small transport boat turned back for the flagship Theseus. Once on board, Nelson quipped to the awaiting surgeon: "Doctor, I want to get rid of this useless piece of flesh here."
After the limb was amputated, it was thrown overboard, to Nelson's chagrin. He wanted to keep it.
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1861 - Congress passes the Crittenden-Johnson Resolution. The document cements the Union's purpose in waging war to preserve the union, and not to end slavery.
The "Johnson" in the amendment was Andrew Johnson of Tennessee, the successor to Abraham Lincoln.
The resolution also clarified that fighting would end when slave states returned to the Union, irrelevant of whether they allowed slavery.
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1909 - Louis Bleriot soars across the English channel in his home-built Anzani 3-cylinder powered monoplane.
The aircraft, made of oak and poplar, made the trip from Callais to Dover in a little more than a half hour.
Without a compass and his engine almost overheating, Bleriot smashed down belly-first and the landing gear broke off. The rain was the only element to cool the engine.
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1946 - At a public detonation of a nuclear bomb underwater near Bikini Atoll, government officials and press watch the explosive nicknamed Baker sink nine decommissioned warships.
The controlled explosion was one of two such tests that year to study the effects of naval nuclear warfare.
In as few as four milliseconds, the blast dug a 30 foot crater into the ocean floor. The exploding bubble hit the surface at 2,500 feet per second and blew a 6,000 foot column of water into the air.
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1978 - Louise Joy Brown, the world’s first test tube baby, is born via Cesarean section.
Her mother had blocked Fallopian tubes, so in November of 1977, she underwent a procedure to have a mature egg harvested from her ovaries, fertilized and implanted in her uterus, and so, in vitro fertilization was born, nine months before Louise.
Louise weighed 5 pounds 12 ounces at her first weigh-in.
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1997 - Researchers announce that human stem cells have been cultured in a laboratory setting. These are the basic building blocks for a baby developing inside the womb.
It would be some time before the findings were published, however.
Knowing what he was getting himself into, lead researcher Dr. John Gearhart wanted to spark the public discussion regarding the ethics of such procedures.
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2019 - The “City Killer” asteroid shocks astronomers who didn’t pick up on the rock’s trajectory until days before it passed by Earth.
Measuring 187 to 427 feet in diameter, the asteroid passed within 43,500 miles of Earth at a speed of 15 miles a second.
It is believed to be the largest rock to pass by Earth in a decade.
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BIRTHDAYS
Bryce Young - football player - 22
Meg Donnelly - actress, “American Housewife” & “Zombies” movies - 23
Mason Cook - actor, “Speechless” - 23
Alvin Kamara - football player - 28
James Lafferty - actor, “One Tree Hill” - 38
Shantel VanSanten - actress, “One Tree Hill” & “The Flash” - 38
Zawe Ashton - actress, “The Marvels” - 39
Finn Balor - wrestler - 42
Matt LeBlanc - actor, “Friends” - 56
Doug Drabek - baseball player - 61
Born On This Date
Walter Payton - football player - 1954 (d. 1999)
Emmett Till - his murder & trial were pivotal events in the Civil Rights Movement - 1941 (d. 1955)
Estelle Getty - actress, “Golden Girls” - 1923 (d. 2008)
Rosalind Franklin - chemist & co-discoverer of the structure of DNA - 1920 (d. 1958)
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