9/16/2022: One-Way Ticket to Martha’s Vineyard
PLUS: The Chrysalis Theory; Brady & Bundchen Living Separately; and Federer to Retire
Today is Friday, September 16, 2022.
It is the 259th day of the year.
106 days remain.
TRENDING
Martha’s Vineyard landed in Twitter’s Top 10 Trends on Thursday following Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sending illegal immigrants to the area. More in Swamp.
Roger Federer was trending yesterday after making a major announcement. More in Sports.
Twitter was full of whining TikTokers on Thursday after the video-sharing app kept crashing. Enough of them complained that #tiktokdown was trending.
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LONDON BRIDGE IS DOWN
The length of the line to pay respects to QUEEN ELIZABETH II as her coffin lies at Westminster Hall stretched more than five miles Thursday.
After a stretch of ceremonial events, the inner royal family reportedly quietly mourned in private.
Today, KING CHARLES III, will head to Wales for a memorial service.
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HIT LIST
Mortgage rates have ticked up even further, surpassing 6% for the first time since 2008.
The rate hike has accompanied measures taken by the Fed to cool inflation. Another interest rate increase is expected in the coming weeks.
Just a year ago average mortgage rates were just 2.86%.
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Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN said that major ally China has “questions and concerns” about his invasion of Ukraine following an in-person summit in Uzbekistan.
It was the first face-to-face meeting between Putin and Chinese premier XI JINPING since Russia launched its invasion.
Putin did underscore the continued alliance between the countries, though China may just be putting on a show for the international stage as it continues to support Putin’s regime.
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The Monkeypox outbreak disappeared quietly from headlines in recent months – but FDA officials warn things might be too quiet for comfort.
A formal guidance issued by the FDA says that overprescription of the Tpoxx drug to treat Monkeypox symptoms could easily cause a mutation that makes it ineffective completely.
Monkeypox cases are down 50% from an August peak so far.
WORTH NOTING: Tpoxx is a treatment for those who have already contracted the infection, and is different from the Jynneos vaccine to prevent contracting it in the first place.
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A study in science journal “Science” – it’s a science journal, and it’s called “Science” – has a new theory for how Saturn formed its rings.
The research suggests between 100 and 200 million years ago, the gravity from one moon threw off the trajectory of another, sending it closer to the planet. That’s when it was ripped apart by gravitational forces, resulting in the rings of rocks and ice.
They’ve dubbed the theoretical moon “Chrysalis.”
The ring system is an estimated 30 feet thick with a diameter of 170,000 miles.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The Dow lost 173 points (0.56%) Thursday to close at 30,961. The S&P lost 44 points (1.13%) to close at 3,901 and the Nasdaq lost at 167 points (1.43%) to close at 11,552.
🛢 West Texas Intermediate was trading at $85.31 Thursday. Brent Crude settled at $90.84.
⛽ The AAA national average price of a gallon of gas was $3.69 on Thursday.
₿ Bitcoin lost $400 on Thursday, trading at $19,800.
🛩 There were 2,167 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Thursday and 56 such cancellations.
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CHARTS
New to Amazon Prime:
Dog (Rotten Tomatoes Score: 77%)
Firebird (Score: 55%)
The Outfit (Score: 85%)
New to Disney+:
The Art of Racing in the Rain (Score: 45%)
New to Hulu:
I Think We’re Alone Now (Score: 63%)
New to Netflix:
Do Revenge (No Score)
I Used to Be Famous (No Score)
Jogi (No Score)
Mirror, Mirror (Score: 50%)
This Is the End (Score: 83%)
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DEATHS
FRED FRANZIA has died.
The California winemaker behind Franzia wine passed away Tuesday. No cause of death was shared.
He was 79.
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BABY NEWS
NICK CANNON is now a dad of nine.
The actor announced on social media yesterday that he and model LANISHA COLE recently welcomed a baby girl, named ONYX ICE COLE CANNON.
WORTH NOTING: Baby #8 for Cannon arrived just months ago, while baby #10 and #11 are still cooking.
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BLAKE LIVELY, 35, and RYAN REYNOLDS, 45, are expecting baby #4.
The actress debuted her baby bump at the 10th Annual Forbes Power Women’s Summit on Thursday in NYC.
The couple are already parents to daughters James 7, Inez, 5, and Betty, 2.
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MEGHAN MCCAIN, 37, is pregnant with baby #2.
The former co-host of “The View” announced the news Thursday, telling the Daily Mail she, and her husband BEN DOMENECH, 40, are expecting another girl.
They are already parents to daughter Liberty, 2.
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THE SWAMP
So much for mail-by-vote being totally legal – again.
A judge in Delaware has ruled that the vote-by-mail pushed in the state is unconstitutional and can’t be used for midterm elections. But it’s not even a conflict with federal law; the judge explains that Delaware’s state constitution explicitly outlines the manner in which a voter can get a ballot.
Receiving it by mail isn’t one.
“I am compelled by precedent to conclude that the vote-by-mail statute’s attempt to expand absentee voting ... must be rejected,” he wrote.
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Two buses with 50 illegal immigrants arrived in Martha’s Vineyard Thursday morning, courtesy of Florida Governor RON DESANTIS.
The move came days after Vice President KAMALA HARRIS insisted that the southern border is secure.
And it came just one day after President JOE BIDEN reportedly asked the Mexican government to take in immigrants before they get to the United States under a provision first instituted by former President DONALD TRUMP at the start of the pandemic.
Reuters reports that seven U.S. officials and three representatives of the Mexican government said off the record that Biden’s team is pressuring Mexico to accept migrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
WORTH ASKING: Why would he need Mexico to do this if the Southern border were totally safe and secure?
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LOTTERY
No winner for Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $256 million jackpot or a $137.4 million cash payout.
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No winner for Wednesday night’s Powerball drawing. Saturday night’s drawing will be for a $225 million jackpot or a $122.7 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
These albums drop today:
Blackpink, “Born Pink”
Crack Cloud, “Tough Baby”
Death Cab for Cutie, “Asphalt Meadows”
Jesca Hoop, “Order of Romance”
Jessie Reyez, “Yessie”
Joe Keery, “Decide”
Lissie, “Carving Canyons”
Marcus Mumford, “Marcus Mumford”
Mura Masa, “Demon Time”
No Age, “People Helping People”
Noah Cyrus, “The Hardest Part”
Rina Sawayama, “Hold The Girl”
Suede, “Autofiction”
The Beths, “Expert In A Dying Field”
The Black Angels, “Wilderness Of Mirrors”
The Mars Volta, “The Mars Volta”
Young Jesus, “Shepherd Head”
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CNN reported Thursday that TOM BRADY and GISELE BUNDCHEN are no longer living together amid the tension from his decision to un-retire from football.
The outlet’s report stated that the couple are having “marital issues” and are currently “living separately.”
While neither have directly addressed their current situation, Brady did say he has a “lot of s**t going on.”
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GRIMES says she was once interrogated for “many hours” after being “wrongfully accused” of throwing snowballs at QUEEN ELIZABETH’s car as it drove past her Canadian high school in 2002.
“All day the teachers threatened us no snow balls,” she tweeted this week.
“As she drove past it was dead silent, all teachers [on] high alert. And just as the procession was almost past a single snowball arced from the crowd & hit her car.”
“I was wrongfully accused and had to spend many hours in interrogations. Still to this day the culprit remains unknown. But it was glorious,” she added.
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Actor TRACEY MORGAN will go to extreme lengths to support his daughter’s big dreams.
During his recent appearance on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Morgan revealed that he has a 20,000-gallon shark tank in the backyard, filled with 15 sharks for his daughter, Maven, 9, who wants to be a marine biologist. Also, sharks are her favorite animal.
Morgan also shared that they have eight tanks in the house filled with various aquatic creatures.
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JASON MOMOA showed off some new ink on Instagram this week.
The new tattoo runs down the side of his head, around his ear, and onto his neck. The artwork honors the actor’s Hawaiian roots and culture.
Check it out:
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CASTING CALL
DON LEMON, POPPY HARLOW and KAITLAN COLLINS will anchor CNN’s new morning show.
With the new gig, Lemon was booted from his primetime “Don Lemon Tonight” show, Harlow will switch from her late morning time slot and Collins, who was the network’s chief White House correspondent, will switch to co-anchor and chief correspondent.
The morning show will get a new name, format and set, according to the announcement.
JOHN BERMAN and BRIANNA KEILAR, who have been co-anchoring the current show “New Day,” will get new roles at the network, CNN reported.
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Four new faces have joined the upcoming season of “SNL.”
MARCELLO HERNANDEZ, MOLLY KEARNEY, MICHAEL LONGFELLOW and DEVON WALKER have joined the cast of the sketch-comedy show ahead of the 48th season, according to a press release.
The new season premieres on October 1 on NBC.
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A scripted original movie, titled “Hot Take: The Depp/Heard Trial,” will premiere on Tubi on September 30.
Starring MARK HAPKA as JOHNNY DEPP and MEGAN DAVIS as AMBER HEARD, the film follows the actors’ tumultuous relationship, both in and out of the courtroom.
MELISSA MARTY plays Depp’s lawyer Camille Vasquez and MARY CARRIG plays Heard’s lawyer Elaine Bredehoft.
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BOBBY CANNAVALE, ROBERT DE NIRO, ROSE BYRNE, VERA FARMIGA, RAINN WILSON, WHOOPI GOLDBERG and WILLIAM FITZGERALD have signed on to star in the TONY GOLDWYN-directed film, “Inappropriate Behavior.”
The movie follows Max Bernal (Cannavale), a former late-night comedy writer turned stand-up comic, and his son Ezra (Fitzgerald). After some unexpected life changes, Bernal finds himself living with his dad, Stan (De Niro). Byrne plays Bernal’s ex-wife, Jenna.
No details about when or where the project will launch.
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Amazon Prime Video has picked up the live-action series “Blade Runner 2099.”
RIDLEY SCOTT, who directed the original 1982 “Blade Runner” movie, has signed on to executive produce the series.
The project is the first series in the franchise.
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COURT CASES
TODD CHRISLEY and JULIE CHRISLEY’s sentencing date, for bank fraud and tax evasion, has been pushed back a month.
According to court documents filed this week, obtained by Page Six, sentencing was originally set for October 6, but will now take place on November 21.
Todd was found guilty of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and tax evasion in June, while Julie was convicted of those same federal charges, and also wire fraud and obstruction of justice.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KANYE WEST is pulling the plug on his partnership with GAP.
According to a letter from his lawyer, the retailer “violated” their deal with Ye by “not releasing his clothing as promised, and not opening retail stores specifically designed to promote [his] merchandise.”
The decision comes after Ye spent weeks complaining about GAP on social media. He gave the company an ultimatum last month saying, “You have to really give me the position to be Ye and let me do what I’m thinking, or I have to do the thinking somewhere else.”
WORTH ASKING: Did GAP really think it was going to be easy working with Ye? The guy has gone through five attorneys in less than a year in his ongoing divorce from KIM KARDASHIAN.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
PRINCE HARRY and MEGHAN MARKLE’s kids, ARCHIE, 3, and LILIBET, 1, will not be given His and Her Royal Highness titles -- something the couple is “furious” about, a source told the Sun.
KING CHARLES III will, however, bestow the titles of prince and princess on his two overseas-living grandchildren.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Harry and Meghan gave up their HRH titles after deciding to leave the family.
WORTH ASKING: How can they be mad about something that they chose to walk away from?
SPEAKING OF THE FORMER ROYALS: An online petition -- started by the people of Sussex -- seeks to remove Harry and Meghan’s titles as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, so they cannot use them for “personal financial gain.” The petition notes that the couple are “taking the name” but “not doing anything for the people of Sussex.”
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One of the guards standing watch beside QUEEN ELIZABETH’s coffin fell face-first to the ground in Westminster Hall this week.
It is unclear what caused the guard to collapse. No update on his condition has been given.
According to the BBC, royal guards normally rotate around the coffin every 20 minutes, with a full shift lasting six hours.
LADY GABRIELLA WINDSOR, a cousin to QE2, also collapsed during Wednesday’s service. She was in the receiving line with other members of the Royal Family when she lost consciousness. Her husband, TOM KINGSTON, rushed to her aid and helped her out of the event. No word on her condition either.
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SPORTS
ROGER FEDERER is hanging up his racket.
The 41-year-old announced his retirement from tennis on social media Thursday morning, writing that next week’s Laver Cup will be the final tournament of his 24-year career.
The news comes just days after SERENA WILLIAMS ended her illustrious career.
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LIST OF THE WEEK
Vacation rental platform HomeToGo has compiled a list of the top destinations for beer enthusiasts to visit in the US.
And the Top Beer Towns are:
Chicago, Illinois
Portland, Oregon
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Denver, Colorado
Seattle, Washington
New York City
Asheville, North Carolina
Austin, Texas
Tampa, Florida
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
San Diego, California
Daytona Beach, Florida
Charleston, South Carolina
Birmingham, Alabama
Portland, Maine
Boston, Massachusetts
Key West, Florida
HomeToGo ranked the cities based on “abundance of breweries and well-reviewed bars, as well as the affordability of pints and overnight stays.”
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Play-Doh Day
National Cinnamon Raisin Bread Day
National StepFamily Day
National Working Parents Day
Mayflower Day
National Guacamole Day
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ON THIS DATE
1776 – General George Washington rallies a group of retreating Continental soldiers to take back territory recently invaded by the Redcoats.
4,000 Brits were occupying Manhattan.
Washington's troops were able to push the invaders back to the northern parts of the island. Though the gains were small, confidence in America's young army was bolstered.
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1810 – A Catholic priest declares Mexico's independence from Spain.
Peasants from around the area gather around the priest, named Miguel Hidalgo. He marches his proletariat force toward Mexico City. The first shots would be fired four days later at Guanajuato.
Official and guerrilla fighting continued for more than a decade.
Fighting culminated with the Treaty of Cordoba, signed in 1821, granting Mexico's independence from Spain.
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1908 – William Crapo Durant founds a holding company for Buick, his carmaker company. It's called General Motors.
Durant and his business partner, Charles Stewart Mott, were previously the manufacturers of horse-drawn carriages. As automobiles became more popular, they started building those, too.
Durant himself thought cars were noisy, dangerous, and stinky, but wouldn't shy away from an opportunity to make profit.
Today, GM is a holding company for several brands, including Buick, Cadillac, Chevy, GMC, Opel, Vauxhall, and Holden, with operations all across the globe.
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1940 – As fighting escalates in Europe, Congress passes the Burke-Wadsworth Act. It allowed for the first peacetime military draft in US history.
Men between 21 and 36 started registering the next month. 20 million were eligible, though anyone with health issues was dismissed. 4 million who signed up were illiterate, and also disqualified.
When the war expanded in 1942, the draft was extended to include those between the ages of 18 and 37.
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1981 – Sugar Ray Leonard knocks out Thomas Hearns in the 13th round in a bout at Caesar's Palace.
Leonard placed the winning jab with one eye closed, and Hearns crashed to the floor, but got up again.
In the 14th round, Leonard beat up on Hearns until the ref called it over.
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1985 – Steve Jobs resigns his post as chairman of Apple Computer. The same day, he incorporated a small company called NeXT Computer, which he envisioned would crush Apple.
It didn't.
Apple bought NeXT for $400 million in 1996 and Jobs came back to Apple as an adviser.
When sitting Apple CEO Gil Amelio oversaw one of the company's worst losses ever, Apple named Jobs back to interim CEO -- exactly 11 years later, on September 16th, 1996.
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1993 – NBC sitcom “Frasier” begins its first season, on a run that would last 11 more years.
Kelsey Grammer played radio shrink Fraser Crane, who originated on the TV show “Cheers.”
Grammer guest-starred on “Wings" in the early 1990s playing the same character. The guest spot earned him an Emmy -- making him the only actor ever to get three Emmy nominations for the same character on 3 different shows.
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2018 – Salesforce founder Marc Benioff and wife Lynne Benioff purchase Time magazine for $190 million.
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BIRTHDAYS
Aaron Gordon - basketball player - 27
Nick Jonas - pop singer - 30
Chase Stokes - actor, “Outer Banks” - 30
Daren Kagasoff - actor, “Secret Life of the American Teenager” - 35
Heather Young - reality star, “Selling Sunset” - 35
Ian Harding - actor, “Pretty Little Liars” - 36
Gleb Savchenko - dancer, “DWTS” - 39
Alexis Bledel - actress, “Gilmore Girls” & “Handmaid’s Tale” - 41
Loona - pop singer - 48
Richard Engel - journalist, NBC - 49
Amy Poehler - actress, “SNL” & “Parks and Recreation” - 51
Marc Anthony - pop singer - 54
Jennifer Tilly - actress, “Liar Liar” & “Seed of Chucky” - 64
Born On This Date
BB King - guitarist - 1925 (d. 2015)
Charles Crocker - business tycoon, Central Pacific Railroad - 1822 (d. 1888)
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