Today is Tuesday, September 10, 2024.
It is the 254th day of the year.
112 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
A wedding dress mishap decades in the making and another retailer enters bankruptcy restructuring. Details in HIT LIST.
NICK CANNON knows he doesn’t have a shot with ex-wife MARIAH CAREY and one Hollywood couple shuts down swinging rumors. More in SHOWBIZ.
“South Park” delays its newest season and KATHY BATES dishes on her final role. Details in CASTING CALL.
DREAM’s big weekend. More on that in KARDASH.
An encouraging moment of hope for the future from PRINCESS KATE in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
BATTLE OF THE BILLIONAIRES: STARLINK – the constellation of satellites owned and managed by SPACEX to provide direct internet access around the world – has 6,000 satellites in orbit, representing nearly two-thirds of all active satellites around Earth. The service provides significant revenue for SpaceX and keeps ELON MUSK’s net worth well supported.
NOW: Fellow billionaire and astronaut wannabe JEFF BEZOS wants in on the action. Under the name “Project Kuiper,” a subsidiary of AMAZON, Bezos has launched two – just two, dos – satellites into orbit to provide a similar service, with plans to launch another 3,000-some in the coming years.
The company has not yet received regulatory approval to operate in other countries quite yet, though, but the United Kingdom appears poised to give the go-ahead soon.
WORTH NOTING: As of September 6, Musk and Bezos held the top two spots of richest men in the world: Musk at $252.7 BILLION and Bezos at $196.4 BILLION.
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FYRE FESTIVAL 2 IS HAPPENING: In a video posted to X on Monday morning, BILLY MCFARLAND announced dates for Fyre Festival 2, but is still keeping mum on the exact location.
The event will run April 25-28 next year, “on a private island off of the Caribbean Coast in Mexico,” McFarland said.
Potential festival goers can apply for tickets online. The application includes basic contact information – name, email and phone number.
There are four different ticket levels, though still not much for details about what each level includes, including travel to and from the mysterious island:
– FYRE Starter: $1,400
– FYRE VIP $5,000
– FYRE Artist Pass: $25,000
– PROMETHEUS: $1,100,000
The application then optionally asks for your Instagram handle and asks, “Anything else we should know?”
No money is exchanged – yet.
EDITORIAL NOTE: In an experiment, we submitted our info, and about four hours later got an email approving our ticket, noting the link to purchase was only good for 24 hours. We didn’t supply any social media details, but in the “Anything else we should know?” section, wrote, “just really rooting for Billy!”
We’re not gonna shell out $1400 for this adventure this time (we’re also way too old for that hot nonsense) but we’ll keep tabs on what happens next. The email notes that “information on the experiences, adventure, and artist line-up” will follow “in the coming weeks.”
ALSO WORTH NOTING: The “concierge” called and sent a text from a guy named Rob going over all the above details, adding, “hope to see you on the island and can’t wait to party with you.” [via Billy McFarland, Morning Martini]
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ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST: Discount home goods retailer BIG LOTS has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The company will shutter some stores but sell all of its assets to a private equity firm as it restructures. In a statement, Big Lots blamed inflation and elevated interest rates for their target customers pulling back spending, especially on seasonal items.
One industry analyst reports that Big Lots stores open at least one year have seen sales declines for up to nine straight quarters, depending on how long they’ve been open.
As part of the restructuring, other firms will be able to bid on the purchase, but a firm called Nexus Capital is leading the pack of buyers. [via ABC News]
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Thirty years ago, Christina Pereira of Elizabeth, New Jersey, got married and, like so many brides, had her dress cleaned and preserved in a box by a professional service, hoping to one day pass it along to her daughter.
Her daughter, Samantha, recently got engaged and the mother-and-daughter duo excitedly busted out the dress from the box for Samantha to try on.
Samantha tells local media, "She helped me put on the dress and she was looking at me and I was expecting her to cry and she didn't. And I was like, 'Do I not look good in this?' And then I realized and then she realized 'That's not my dress.’”
The company that stored and preserved the dress went out of business long ago. Now, Samantha and Christina are turning to social media, not just to hopefully find the original dress, but return the one in their possession to its rightful owner. While they’ve gotten a few promising leads, nothing has panned out yet. [via ABC 7]
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A young golden eagle attacked four people in Norway last week, including a young child who required stitches for the deep gouges.
A local gamekeeper explained that the bird of prey saw the toddler as food, and despite adults fighting back, continued to go for the “prey.” Meanwhile, an eagle expert said the bird “likely had a behavioral disorder,” causing it to attack outside of its normal prey.
Due to the increasing severity of the attacks, the eagle was killed. [via CBS]
MEANWHILE IN THE STATES: A Minnesota woman was attacked by a hawk earlier this year and left with talon marks in her scalp. Attacks like these typically happen when there is a nest with young nearby. Experts say owl decoys work to deter these birds. [via CBS]
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DEATHS
Legendary actor JAMES EARL JONES has died.
He passed away at his home in New York on Monday morning, according to his rep. No cause of death was shared.
Jones starred in “Field of Dreams,” “The Sandlot,” and voiced “Star Wars” villain Darth Vader and Mufasa on “The Lion King.”
He was 93.
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Baseball player ED KRANEPOOL has died.
He passed away Sunday in Boca Raton, Florida after suffering cardiac arrest.
Kranepool played for the Mets during their first two World Series teams.
He was 79.
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Waffle House CEO WALT EHMER has died.
He passed away over the weekend after a long illness. No further details were shared.
Ehmer joined Waffle House in 1992.
He was only 58.
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SICK BAY
Disgraced movie mogul HARVEY WEINSTEIN underwent emergency heart surgery yesterday.
He was rushed from Rikers Island to Bellevue Hospital after experiencing chest pains. Further details were not shared.
Weinstein, who is 72, is due in court this week where prosecutors are set to present evidence, hoping for a new indictment against him.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW gained 484 points (1.2%) to close at 40,829 on Monday. The S&P increased 62 points (1.16%) to close at 5,471 and the NASDAQ gained 193 points (1.16%) to close at 16,884.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $68; BRENT CRUDE at $71.
⛽ The national average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.20 on Monday.
₿ BITCOIN climbed on the day, up over 2% and trading around $57,000.
🛩 There were more than 2,050 FLIGHTS delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Monday and more than 40 such cancellations.
💰Tonight’s MEGA MILLIONS drawing will be for a $800 million jackpot or a $401.8 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer has no intentions to reconsider her decision to dismiss ALEC BALDWIN’s involuntary manslaughter trial.
She recently denied special prosecutor Kari Morrissey’s motion asking to give the decision another look because her filing was “too long.”
In her denial, Judge Sommer said Morrissey’s 52-page filing was 42 pages over the limit.
MEANWHILE: A hearing will take place later this month to determine if “Rust” armorer HANNAH GUITERREZ-REED will be released pending a new trial, or serve out the remainder of her 18-month sentence. [via The Blast]
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The Beyhive is upset that BEYONCE failed to land even one nomination at the 2024 CMA Awards, despite having one of the biggest-selling country albums for the year and becoming the first Black woman to have a No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot Country chart.
Leading the pack with seven nominations, including Entertainer of the Year and Song of the Year was MORGAN WALLEN, followed by CHRIS STAPLETON and CODY JOHNSON with five nods a piece.
The CMA Awards will air live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on November 20 on [via TMZ]
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JOHNNY DEPP will launch his first “immersive experiential exhibition,” titled “A Bunch of Stuff,” at the Starrett-Lehigh Building in Manhattan.
The show will include “never-before-seen artworks as well as many personal artifacts and ephemera from his studios” and will feel like “a studio visit with [Depp] himself.”
Depp’s artwork is no joke; in 2022, he sold 780 pieces from a set called “Friends & Heroes” for $3.6 million via the UK gallery Castle Fine Art.
“A Bunch of Stuff” opens next month. [via Page Six]
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NICK CANNON says he would love to get a second shot at love with ex-wife MARIAH CAREY, but knows she would never be up for it because of all his “crazy antics.”
“Yeah, she don’t want me,” he told People Magazine. “She’s moved on from my crazy antics.”
Cannon and Carey were married for six years before calling it quits in 2014. They share twins, Moroccan and Monroe. [via People]
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JENNA BUSH HAGER and HODA KOTB were told to be quiet by Vogue editor-in-chief ANNA WINTOUR at this past weekend’s US Open men’s championship match.
“Tennis is fun! We were loud and annoying,” Kotb shared on Monday’s “Today with Hoda and Jenna.”
While tennis is why they were there, the ladies said they also enjoyed the sideline entertainment, which included TAYLOR SWIFT and TRAVIS KELCE putting on some serious PDA. [via Page Six]
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SABRINA CARPENTER has been named Redken’s first hair care ambassador.
The pop star will appear in ads as soon as this month, according to the L’Oreal-owned brand.
MEANWHILE: Carpenter is set to perform this week at the MTV VMA’s. [via THR]
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DAX SHEPARD and his wife, KRISTEN BELL are not swingers.
The actor addressed the rumor during Monday’s episode of “The Drew Barrymore Show.”
“There was the most exciting tabloid story that we were Hollywood swingers and we hosted swing parties, this was in the tabloids,” Shepard explained. “My favorite part of that happening was we got a lot of texts from other friends of ours saying, ‘How could you not have invited me to the swinger party?’”
As for how the rumor started, Bell thinks it's because Shepard likes to make “key-party jokes” whenever they have people over. [via EW]
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MADONNA was swarmed by fans trying to get to her as she left New York Fashion Week over the weekend.
Despite being surrounded by heavy security detail -- and her much younger boyfriend -- some fans were still able to get their hands on the Material Girl before she was ushered into a blacked-out car. [via The Mirror]
TIDBIT TIME: One insider spoke to Life & Style about Madge’s relationship, saying while she spoils her man with “clothes and gifts and first-class travel” everything else, including when he eats, sleeps and what he can watch on TV when are “on her terms.” [via Life & Style]
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CASTING CALL
“South Park” creators TREY PARKER and MATT STONE are delaying the Season 27 premiere until after the upcoming presidential election because they don’t have it in them to satire DONALD TRUMP again.
“We’ve tried to do ‘South Park’ through four or five presidential elections, and it is such a hard thing to -- it's a mind scramble, and it seems like it takes outsized importance,” Stone told Vanity Fair.
The new season will debut in 2025. [via Vanity Fair]
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KATHY BATES announced that her role as Madeline Matlock in the rebooted series “Matlock,” will be the final acting gig of her career.
“This is my last dance,” she told the New York Times.
“Matlock” premieres on CBS on September 22.
Some of Bates’ other notable films include, “TItanic,” “The Blind Side,” “The Family Affair,” and “Misery.” [via NYT]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
Just days after launching her Instagram, 7-year-old DREAM KARDASHIAN made her runway debut during New York Fashion Week, walking for Zeus & Lexi Kids.
Her dad ROB KARDASHIAN was not at the show, but Dream’s mom, who now goes by her birth name, ANGELA RENEE WHITE, was in attendance.
Dream is not the first KarJenner to strut her stuff; in 2018, NORTH WEST made her runway debut. And then of course, her aunts KENDALL JENNER and KYLIE JENNER have walked in several shows. [via Page Six, Collider]
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
PRINCESS KATE announced Monday morning that she has completed chemotherapy treatment.
In a nod toward an increasingly modernized monarchy, the KensingtonRoyal X account posted a short, three minute video narrated by Kate showing her spending time with her kids and husband, PRINCE WILLIAM, and talking about her journey through recovery.
Another bit of news included in the announcement is Kate’s expectation to expand her event calendar: “I am however looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can,” she says. And in a note of hope for others battling cancer, she says, “I remain with you, side by side, hand in hand. Out of darkness, can come light, so let that light shine bright.”
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DAY OF THE YEAR
World Suicide Prevention Day
National Swap Ideas Day
National TV Dinner Day
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ON THIS DATE
1608 - The Jamestown city council elects John Smith as its president.
He had proven himself as a leader and organizer of the new British colony. Under his leadership, though, the colony suffered. Famine and fire plagued the residents, and the settlement suffered endless attacks from the natives.
Smith returned to England the next year after injuries sustained when a bag of gunpowder accidentally exploded near him.
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1776 - Continental Army Captain Nathan Hale volunteers to spy on British Troop movements on Manhattan and Long Island.
He pretended to be a Dutch schoolmaster, touting his authentic Yale diploma.
He pulled off the con for only 11 days, when he was outed by a Loyalist and arrested.
There was enough evidence to suspect him of espionage, and he was hanged.
His famous last words have become legendary: "I regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." Though there is no official account of what he said, one British officer wrote in his diary that Hale “behaved with great composure and resolution."
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1846 - Elias Howe is granted a patent for his sewing machine, a hand-cranked contraption that simplified the otherwise tedious needle-and-thread system.
A similar design was approved and patented five years later by Isaac Singer, but Howe sued -- and won. Unfortunately for Howe, Singer's business had taken off, and could afford to pay him off.
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1897 - Police arrest and fine a drunk driver for the first time ever.
Cab driver George Smith crashed his taxi into a building, and was fined 25 shillings.
The process was easy, since he admitted to his inebriation. Police had no other way to test whether someone was too lubed up to drive.
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1919 - 25,000 World War I vets are honored at a New York City welcome parade, heralding the return of General John J. Pershing.
The soldiers marched in full combat equipment.
Pershing himself received the loudest and most uproarious response. He would later be bestowed with the rank General of the Armies - the only man to ever receive such a distinction.
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1976 - 176 people die when two jets collide over Zagreb, Yugoslavia.
Poor air-traffic control was blamed.
The left wing of one jet struck the cockpit of the other, killing those pilots instantly. The planes crashed almost four miles apart.
The air-traffic controller who failed to handle the situation was sentenced to seven years in prison, but was released when other air traffic controllers rallied to his support.
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2002 - Switzerland joins the United Nations to little pomp or circumstance.
It has since maintained its status as a neutral country.
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2017 - Hurricane Irma makes landfall in the Florida Keys.
The Category 3 storm caused more than $50 billion in damage.
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BIRTHDAYS
Ian Gunther - gymnast - 25
Jack Gilinisky - pop singer - 28
Jack Grealish - soccer player - 29
Matt Rife - comedian - 29
Sam Kerr - soccer player - 31
Misty Copeland - dancer - 42
Mikey Way - bassist, My Chemical Romance - 44
Ryan Phillippe - actor, “Cruel Intentions” & “Crash” - 50
Colin Firth - actor, “Pride & Prejudice” & “The King’s Speech” - 64
Chris Columbus - director - 66
Born On This Date
Karl Lagerfield - fashion designer - 1933 (d. 2019)
Arnold Palmer - golfer - 1929 (d. 2016)
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