8/10/2023: Spooky Scuba Find 🤿
PLUS: 13-year-old Goes Pro; Sneaky Swifties; and Revisiting Kensington
Today is Thursday, August 10, 2023.
It is the 222nd day of the year.
143 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
SAM BANKMAN-FRIED didn’t dodge a bullet after all and a lucky lottery winner makes history. More in HIT LIST.
Former Victoria’s Secret Angels reunite for a new campaign and more accusations have been hurled at LIZZO. More in SHOWBIZ.
The WGA strike has now surpassed 100 days. More in CASTING CALL.
KIM KARDASHIAN’s new gig has some scratching their heads. More in KARDASH.
PRINCE HARRY is looking to plant a flag in England. Again. More in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
Late last month, the federal government announced it was dropping charges against SAM BANKMAN-FRIED related to Federal Elections Commission violations.
TURNS OUT: He’s not getting off that easy. Since SBF was extradited from the Bahamas, some complicated international law got in the way of the formal charges on a technicality. But prosecutors now say they will formally re-add those charges to the existing indictment that includes fraud and conspiracy charges.
The trial is scheduled to begin in October.
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A black bear on the prowl near Lake Tahoe has been captured after spending nearly a year snooping around and even inside some of the homes in the area.
Locals have nicknamed the bear “Hank the Tank” – but it turns out Hank is actually a female bear. She’s now headed to a sanctuary in Colorado.
There have been at least 21 documented instances of Hank’s break-ins on private property. [via BBC]
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Da’vian Kimbrough might just be the youngest professional athlete in American history.
At only 13-years-old, Kimbrough recently signed a contract with Sacramento Republic FC of the USL Championship league.
Before that, the 5-foot-11, 150-pound forward played for the team’s youth academy starting when he was just 11. In his two seasons with the team, Kimbrough scored 61 goals in 81 games.
He will make his first appearance with the team this Saturday when Sacramento Republic takes on the Birmingham legion FC. [via The Guardian]
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An unidentified Neptune Beach, Florida resident is now $1.58 BILLION richer after winning Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing. They also have the cash option which is an estimated $783.3 million.
The amount is the third-largest in Mega Millions history.
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?: Chances of winning a Mega Millions jackpot is one in 302.6 million. [via Time]
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There’s a group of volunteer SCUBA divers in Florida who spend their free time searching bodies of water in search of clues related to unsolved crimes, particularly cold cases.
Last weekend, the group searched a lake near Miami International Airport and found a trove of more than thirty cars underwater. Officials for the group don’t believe the cars were part of one massive tragedy, but that the lake was instead a dumping ground for hiding evidence of crimes over the span of years.
Efforts are now underway to remove those vehicles in search of further evidence. [via WSVN]
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DEATHS
Musician ROBBIE ROBERTSON has died.
He passed away Wednesday after a battle with prostate cancer.
Robertson was the lead guitarist for the legendary rock group THE BAND.
He was 80.
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Actor ROBERT SWAN has died.
He passed away Wednesday at his home in Indiana after a battle with cancer.
Swan is best known for his roles in “Hoosiers,” “Rudy” and “The Babe.”
He was 78.
SICK BAY
Senator DIANNE FEINSTEIN was briefly hospitalized Tuesday after tripping and falling at her San Francisco home.
After a thorough checkup, she was discharged with no serious injuries.
The 90-year-old has struggled with several health issues over the past few years, including shingles, Ramsay Hunt syndrome and encephalitis.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 191 points (0.54%) to close at 35,123 on Wednesday. The S&P lost 31 points (0.7%) to close at 4,467 and the NASDAQ lost 162 points (1.17%) to close at 13,722.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $84; BRENT CRUDE at $87.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.82 on Wednesday.
₿ BITCOIN dipped back down Wednesday, trading around $29,500.
🛩 There were more than 3,300 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Wednesday and more than 115 such cancellations.
💰Friday night’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $20 million jackpot or a $9.9 million cash payout.
SHOWBIZ NEWS
“Botched” doctor TERRY DUBROW has his wife, HEATHER DUBROW, to thank for saving his life after experiencing stroke-like symptoms.
Terry shared the story this week, saying the couple were at dinner last Thursday when his speech briefly slurred, prompting a concerned Heather to call 911. After being checked out by paramedics, Terry refused a ride to the hospital, but Heather insisted.
At the hospital, doctors discovered that Terry had suffered a transient ischemic attack (TIA), which can be a precursor to a full-blown stroke. They also found that he has a patent foramen ovale (PFO) -- essentially a hole in his heart, which is what a blood clot traveled through to get to his brain to cause the TIA. [via USA Today]
Thank goodness for nagging wives!
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Country singer MIRANDA LAMBERT is taking some time off after scolding some selfie-taking fans at her Vegas concert last month.
Radar Online reports that she is hoping to “let the controversy simmer down,” though her rep says that “is false” and she already had time scheduled off.
Many may recall the backlash Lambert faced after stopping her show to lecture some fans who were in a VIP area just off the stage who posed for a photo op during her ballad “Tin Man.” Some at the show walked out of the venue, while others shared their contempt on social media. [via Radar Online]
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GISELE BUNDCHEN, NAOMI CAMPBELL, ADRIANA LIMA and CANDICE SWANEPOEL returned to their Victoria’s Secret roots for a new collection, called The Icon by Victoria’s Secret.
Swanepoel and Lima were most recently Angels, but Bundchen and Campbell haven’t walked the runway since 2005.
HAILEY BIEBER, EMILY RATAJKOWSKI, SUI HE and others also appear in the new campaign. [via Page Six]
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LEONARDO DICAPRIO and MICK JAGGER were spotted hanging out together on a yacht off the coast of Ibiza.
The two were joined by several bikini-clad women, including Jagger’s partner MELANIE HAMRICK -- who is 44 years his junior.
While both men have been often characterized as “womanizers,” Jagger is the only one of the two to have married and fathered children. He has a six-year-old son with Mel, and seven more children with four other women. Also, his four eldest are older than his current partner.
As for Leo, he keeps busy by dating much younger models. [via Daily Mail]
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Some Swifties have been bribing their way into SoFi Stadium to watch TAYLOR SWIFT perform.
A few who claim to have done it, told TMZ they entered the stadium and made their way through security. When they got to the checkpoint where they were asked to show their tickets, the fans claimed they simply paid their way in on the spot.
Once inside they were forced to move around a lot as they didn't actually have seats, but even with that, they say it was worth it! [via TMZ]
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There are now a total of six dancers who have come forward with accusations of sexual harassment against LIZZO.
The 35-year-old spoke out about the initial three claims, calling them “outrageous.”
All six women are suing for general and special damages, as well as punitive damages and attorneys’ fees. [via Page Six]
WORTH NOTING: News of the additional claims comes one day after it was announced that the 2023 Made in America festival has been canceled; Lizzo was supposed to headline the event.
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CASTING CALL
Wednesday marked 100 days of striking for members of the Writers Guild of America.
The last WGA strike, in 2007, lasted for 100 days and resulted in 37,700 lost jobs and a $2.1 BILLION blow to the California economy.
Last month, Deadline quoted an anonymous executive who said studios are willing to “let the strike until union members start losing their apartments and losing their houses.”
Many of those striking took that as an “intimidation tactic” and motivation to keep going. [via Reuters, Deadline]
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NY Jets QB AARON RODGERS was stoked to meet actor LIEV SCHREIBER at a recent team practice.
Schreiber was on scene as part of HBO’s “Hard Knocks: Training Camp With the New York Jets,” which he narrates.
After their introductions, Rodgers tried to pump up his teammates calling Schreiber “the voice of God.”
The focus of this season is Rodgers' move from the Green Bay Packers to the Jets. [via People]
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RILEY KEOUGH revealed to Vanity Fair that she once caused the set of “Under the Silver Lake” to temporarily shut down.
It all happened because she ate a granola bar containing peanuts, which her co-star ANDREW GARFIELD is extremely allergic to. Making things even more urgent is that the two co-stars were about to shoot a kissing scene after her quick snack break.
“Under the Silver Lake” follows an aimless young man (Garfield) who stumbles upon various conspiracies while investigating the disappearance of his neighbor (Keough). [via Vanity Fair]
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“The Franchise,” a new half-hour comedy series about a fictional struggling superhero movie, has been given the green light by HBO.
The series “shines a light on the secret chaos inside the world of superhero moviemaking, to ask the question — how exactly does the cinematic sausage get made? Because every [f-up] has an origin story,” per the official description.
“Succession” and “Veep” showrunner JON BROWN is behind the project.
The series will not premiere until the ongoing strikes have ended. [via Hollywood Reporter]
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COURT CASES
Former NFL player HENRY RUGGS has been sentenced to 3-to-10 years in prison for a 2021 car crash that resulted in the death of a 23-year-old and her dog.
The 24-year-old ex-Raider faced more than 50 years behind bars after officers said he was drunk behind the wheel when his Corvette slammed into the victim’s Rav-4. After making a plea deal, and agreeing to plead guilty to one felony count of DUI resulting in death and one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter, the DA agreed to reduce the sentence to no more than 3-to-10 years.
Ruggs will be eligible for parole after serving three years. [via Las Vegas Sun]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN has been named the new face of Marc Jacobs and many are confused.
After the fashion brand made the announcement, social media users were quick to share their thoughts on the choice, with one questioning “WHY KIM on everything?” and another asking whether it was “some kind of joke.”
A third person asked why the brand didn’t pick any “real fashion icons” like VICTORIA BECKHAM.
While Kim has not responded to the critics, Marc Jacobs, himself, shared his approval of the ad, commenting “love” under the post. [via Daily Mail]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE are trying to make amends with the Royal Family, beginning with their offer to rent an apartment in Kensington Palace and furnish it themselves.
The gesture would be an olive branch that reflects seriousness about re-integrating into the royal fold – but Harry still has concerns he’ll be a “prisoner of the palace,” more in a figurative sense, but he’d still be on royal property.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Harry and Meg fully cleared out of their former home in London just in June. [via New York Post]
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Lazy Day
Skyscraper Appreciation Day
Duran Duran Appreciation Day
National S’mores Day
World Lion Day
Vlogging Day
National Spoil Your Dog Day
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ON THIS DATE
1846 - President James Polk signs the Smithsonian Institution Act into law, establishing what has grown into a giant institution of science and history in the nation’s capital.
When English scientist James Smithson died in 1829, his will ordered that his estate would go to the US government to create “an Establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge” — but only if his only nephew died without any heirs.
Six years later that was the case, and a diplomat went to Europe and returned with 104,960 gold coins and a variety of Smithson’s personal effects and research worth more than half a million dollars at the time.
After years of negotiations and figuring out how to allocate the money to achieve Smithson’s vague objective, they determined the money would go to a museum, a library, and a research program emphasizing sciences, arts, and history.
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1977 - Police arrest David Berkowitz, who would be charged with the “Son of Sam” killings in New York City.
Berkowitz blamed demons and a black Labrador dog that his neighbors owned named Sam for telling him to carry out his attacks, which killed six and injured ten in the course of a year. His victims tended to be young women with long brown hair.
He later withdrew his insanity plea and pleaded guilty to the six murders, earning him six 25-to-life sentences. Parole hearings rejected his plea for freedom in 2016 and 2018, though his lawyer noted that prison staff have called him a model prisoner.
Another was scheduled for May 2020, but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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1981 - Pete Rose clocks a new record for most hits by a National League player in a career, with his 3,631st.
The previous record holder was on hand for the feat: Stan Musial, who spent his career with St. Louis, which was also the team the Phillies were playing. Musial ran out to first base to congratulate Rose.
Rose accomplished the record in only 2,886 games. He would finish his career with 4,256.
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1984 - “Red Dawn” appears in theaters, the first ever with a PG-13 rating.
The Motion Picture Association of America wanted a rating between its “M” for mature audiences with no age restrictions and “R,” which restricted anyone under 16 without an adult.
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2003 - Temperatures in the United Kingdom exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit for the first time.
The widespread heatwave in August that year is believed to have killed 35,000 lives, mostly young and elderly.
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2008 - Michael Phelps wins the 400-meter individual medley at the Beijing Olympics with a world record time of 4:03.84.
The following day he would break an Olympic record in the event with a time of 4:07.82.
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2020 - Data from Johns Hopkins University shows global COVID-19 cases have passed 20 million.
The total number of deaths globally is nearing 734,000.
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BIRTHDAYS
Ja Morant - basketball player - 24
Kylie Jenner - reality star & beauty mogul - 26
Jacob Latimore - R&B singer - 27
Andre Drummond - basketball player - 30
Maci Bookout - reality star, “Teen Mom” - 32
Lucas Till - actor, “Hannah Montana: The Movie” & “House” - 33
Brenton Thwaites - actor, “Home and Away” & “Maleficent” - 34
Jake Stone - “Jake From State Farm” - 38
Wade Barrett - wrestler - 43
Joanna Garcia - actress, “Reba” & “Steel Magnolias” - 44
June Shannon - reality star, “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” - 44
Rickey Smiley - comedian - 55
Suzanne Collins - author, “The Hunger Games” - 61
Antonio Banderas - actor, “The Mask of Zorro” & “Spy Kids” - 63
Betsey Johnson - fashion designer - 81
Born On This Date
Ronnie Spector - rock singer, The Ronettes - 1943 (d. 2022)
Jimmy Dean - entrepreneur, Jimmy Dean sausage - 1928 (d. 2010)
Herbert Hoover - 31st POTUS - 1874 (d. 1964)
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