Today is Wednesday, September 9, 2022.
It is the 250th day of the year.
115 days remain.
TRENDING
In honor of National Read a Book Day, Twitter users shared their favorite series or stand alone books.
Harry Styles landed in Twitter’s Top 10 Trends on Tuesday. Head to Showbiz to see why.
#MashupTwoBands was trending yesterday. Tweets included, “Dire Straits and Chris Rea = Dire Rea,” “Stray Cat(s) Stevens,” “Moody Blues Brothers” and “Men at Work Without Hats.”
Twitter users’ jaws dropped in reaction to Jerry Seinfeld’s new modeling gig. More in Showbiz.
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HIT LIST
Lawyers for ELON MUSK and Twitter faced off in court Tuesday during preliminary hearings about the forthcoming trial over whether or not to enforce Musk’s purchase of the platform.
In particular, Musk wants to include the whistleblower complaint from last month made by Twitter’s former head of security about the social media platform’s practices and bot-count. If Twitter was lying about its security issues, Musk’s camp contends the company has breached provisions of its tentative merger agreement.
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The Moderna and Pfizer covid shots are certainly not vaccines; certainly not how we’ve understood vaccines to function for decades.
Now, the proof is right in front of us: New guidance from the federal government says new shots will be required every year alongside flu shots, with adapted formulas to attack whatever strain is out there at the time.
WORTH REMEMBERING: These same federal officials promised us in 2021 that getting the shots meant you wouldn’t get covid. That they were so good, so safe, so effective, only an idiot would choose not to take them.
As the data changed, so did their narrative – but without contrition and without acknowledgement of their missteps. Along the way, even more people lost their jobs for not getting these shots.
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Vape manufacturer Juul Labs will shell out $438.5 million to settle lawsuits leveled by multiple states accusing the company of selling and marketing to underage consumers.
A lengthy investigation suggests Juul did not properly identify the ages of online buyers, who were able to get their hands on the nicotine-laced products online with fake IDs.
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Pornhub isn’t thrilled about getting its accounts suspended on Instagram.
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation has claimed credit for successfully lobbying Instagram, owned by Meta (which owns Facebook too), to deplatform Pornhub’s accounts, citing concerns that the adult site made money off child porn and shirked human trafficking laws.
Now, Pornhub is accusing the NCOSE of making misleading statements about their role in getting the porn site booted from social media. Reps for the site say their account was just temporarily disabled, and pointed to Instagram’s “overly cautious censoring of the adult industry.”
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About 1,400 people live in Moroni, Utah, and the police chief there is the only officer in town.
Robert Hill used to have that job – until, he says, he was fired because he gave a traffic ticket to the small town’s mayor’s son.
Hill has filed suit for wrongful termination. He says in January of this year, the mayor and city officials praised his job performance and said he’d soon be eligible for a raise – or even to add another officer to the small department.
But when he pulled over an erratic driver making dangerous turns in February, the man behind the wheel turned out to be the son of the mayor.
Hill tells the Salt Lake Tribune, "I didn’t know who it was, but he made it very clear who he was, and made it clear that he better not be getting a ticket."
The very next day, Hill was put on administrative leave by the mayor, and was outright fired days later.
BY THE WAY: The lone police chief office in Moroni has since been empty. The city has instead outsourced its patrol to the Sanpete County Sheriff’s Office for $125,000 a year, which gets them five hours of coverage a day.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The Dow lost 173 points (0.55%) to close at 31,145 on Tuesday. The S&P lost 16 points (0.41%) to close at 3,908 while the Nasdaq lost 85 points (0.74%) to close at 11,544.
🛢 West Texas Intermediate slid to $86 a barrel Tuesday. Brent Crude was down under $93.
⛽ The national average price of a gallon of gas was $3.78 on Tuesday.
₿ Bitcoin is taking a tumble, losing more than $880 in value Tuesday and trading below $19,000.
🛩 There were 2,598 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Tuesday and 75 such cancellations.
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CHARTS
Top 5 Fiction & Nonfiction Books Currently on the New York Times Best Sellers List:
FICTION:
“It Ends With Us,” Colleen Hoover
“Verity,” Colleen Hoover
“Where The Crawdads Sing,” Delia Owens
“Love On The Brain,” Ali Hazelwood
“Soul Taken,” Patricia Briggs
NON-FICTION
“I’m Glad My Mom Died,” Jennette McCurdy
“Breaking History,” Jared Kushner
“The Body Keeps The Score,” Bessel van der Kolk
“Diana, William, and Harry,” James Patterson and Chris Mooney
“Path Lit By Lightning,” David Maraniss
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DEATHS
“Smash” actress MEGAN HILTY is mourning the loss of her sister LAUREN HILTY, brother-in-law ROSS MICKEL and niece REMY.
The three were among the 10 passengers on a float plane that crashed in Washington’s Puget Sound on Sunday.
The US Coast Guard released passengers’ names on Tuesday, though they have recovered only one body. The nine others are presumed dead.
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BABY NEWS
BARRON HILTON, 32, and his wife TESSA HILTON, 28, welcomed their second child, a son named Caspian Barron Hilton on September 4.
The newborn joins big sister Milou Alizee, 2.
Barron is the son of hotel moguls RICHARD and KATHY HILTON and brother to NICKI and PARIS.
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THE SWAMP
Speaker NANCY PELOSI isn’t ready to give up politics if the Republicans take the House in November.
Insiders tell Fox Business Pelosi wants the ambassadorship to Italy, a role that President JOE BIDEN has not yet appointed.
Pelosi is 82.
WORTH NOTING: Pelosi is running again to keep her Congressional seat either way.
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Remember last week when Biden White House Media Commissar KARINE JEAN-PIERRE said it was fair to label MAGA Republicans “extremists” because their views aren’t in line with the majority of Americans?
ABOUT THAT: A Trafalgar Group poll shows that 56.8% of likely voters think Biden’s Thursday night speech “represents a dangerous escalation in rhetoric and is designed to incite conflict amongst Americans.”
IN OTHER WORDS: Biden’s views are not in line with a majority of Americans, which by Jean-Pierre’s reasoning, inherently makes him an extremist – no?
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LOTTERY
No winner for Monday night’s drawing. Tonight’s drawing will be for a $170 million jackpot or a $93.8 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
A viral video appears to show HARRY STYLES spit on CHRIS PINE during the premiere of their film “Don’t Worry Darling” at the Venice Film Festival.
Sources close to Pine told TMZ that “it absolutely did happen,” while others say Styles “absolutely did not spit” on his co-star.
A rep for Pine later told Page Six that the spitting story is “ridiculous” and a “complete fabrication.”
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GISELE BUNDCHEN may have returned to Florida, but sources say that she and TOM BRADY have yet to reconcile.
“She flew back to Florida to be with her kids but hasn't been to their home in Tampa,” an insider told Page Six on Tuesday.
As previously reported, Bundchen flew to Costa Rica after a couple of heated spats over Brady’s decision to un-retire from the NFL.
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SEAN PENN and BEN STILLER have been banned from Russia by the country’s foreign ministry.
The actors are among 25 “high-ranking officials, representatives of the business and expert communities, as well as cultural figures,” that got the boot.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the list is based on “the principle of reciprocity.”
Penn traveled to Ukraine earlier this year to film a documentary about the conflict with Russia, while Stiller visited Ukrainian refugees in Poland this summer before traveling to Ukraine to meet with President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY on World Refugee Day. These acts likely played a role in them getting banned.
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BRITNEY SPEARS’ duet with ELTON JOHN has landed her a spot on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Hold Me Closer” debuted at No. 6 on the charts yesterday, marking Spears’ 14th top 10 song, and her first in over a decade.
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JUSTIN BIEBER has canceled the remainder of his “Justice” world tour.
The 28-year-old announced the cancellation in an Instagram Story, telling his fans that he needs to take a break and focus on his health.
The announcement comes after his battle with Ramsay-Hunt Syndrome earlier this year, at which point he canceled the rest of his North American tour.
There are 70 shows left on his tour. No word on when or if he will make up the dates.
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JERRY SEINFELD is the new face of Kith’s fall 2022 campaign.
The comedy legend posted for the streetwear line in a floral fleece, a paisley set and a Mets cap paired with Kith’s classic varsity jacket.
The Twitterverse lit up with praise for Seinfeld’s new modeling gig.
WORTH NOTING: Seinfeld made his modeling debut as the face of Rag & Bone’s menswear in 2014.
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NYPD officers were called to MADONNA’s music video shoot on Monday night.
Sources told The Blast that while filming the video for her upcoming hit with Dominican rapper TOKISCHA, titled “Hung Over,” car speakers blaring music “created loudness and craziness” that disturbed multiple neighbors.
A police spokesperson told the outlet that the “condition was corrected” and “no summonses were issued.”
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DEBBIE ROWE, the ex-wife of MICHAEL JACKSON and mother of two of his children, spoke out about Dr. ARNIE KLEIN and how he would trade drugs for celebrity status.
Rowe appeared in the TMZ special “Who Really Killed Michael Jackson,” where she revealed that Dr. Klein plied MJ with massive doses of Demerol on a daily basis in the months leading up to his death. In exchange, he wanted an in with Michael and his famous pals.
As many know, Michael’s personal physician Dr. CONRAD MURRAY was ultimately charged with his death after improperly administering the anesthetic drug Propofol. Murray has always laid blame on MJ’s other doctors.
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CASTING CALL
HBO’s “House of the Dragon” smashed records in the UK with over four million viewers tuning in to the premiere episode.
The “Game of Thrones” prequel series is now Sky Atlantic’s biggest US drama launch in its 11-year history.
According to UK ratings agency Barb, “House of the Dragon” is on par with Netflix’s “Stranger Things” and Disney+’s “Obi Wan-Kenobi.”
ALSO: The series became the most-watched HBO/HBO Max TV or film premiere in Europe in the network’s history.
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CHRIS WALLACE’s talk show, “Who’s Talking To Chris Wallace?,” will premiere on HBO Max on September 23, and on CNN September 25.
Guests of the show include Tyler Perry, Shania Twain, Alex Rodriguez, James Patterson and Michelle Zauner.
The show was initially intended for CNN+. It got picked up by HBO after the utter failure of the streaming service.
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KIM KARDASHIAN wants to act in a Marvel film.
Speaking to Interview Magazine, the reality star said that doing a Marvel movie “would be so fun to do.”
Kim does have some previous acting gigs on her resume. She appeared in TYLER PERRY’s 2013 flick “Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor” and took on a voice acting role in the “Paw Patrol” movie in 2021.
And who could forget her biggest role of all…the one that kicked off her and her family’s life in the spotlight. The infamous sex tape.
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
In the latest episode of her “Archetypes” podcast, MEGHAN MARKLE hits back at the public’s “gendered” response to her relationship with PRINCE HARRY.
Speaking to her guest, actress MINDY KALING, Meg explained how frustrated she got hearing that she was “lucky” that Harry chose her.
“At a certain point, after you hear it a million times over, you’re like, ‘I chose him, too,’” she said.
MEANWHILE: Harry & Meg traveled to Germany on Tuesday to take part in the countdown to the 2023 Invictus Games.
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SPORTS
Minute Maid Park, home to the Houston Astros, suffered some damage following Puerto Rican megastar BAD BUNNY’s sold out two-night concert over the weekend.
During the Astros game against the Texas Rangers on Monday night, fans noticed patches of grass that appeared to be missing in the outfield and indentations likely leftover from the stage and on-the-field seating.
Several Astro fans shared their disappointment on Twitter, writing that the field should not be used for events other than ball games during the MLB season.
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Beer Lover’s Day
National Neither Snow Nor Rain Day
National Grandma Moses Day
National Acorn Squash Day
National Salami Day
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ON THIS DATE
1251 BC - A solar eclipse on this date may mark the birth of Hercules in Thebes, Greece.
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1776 – A small, wooden American submarine approaches the HMS Eagle, which is moored in New York Harbor.
Sergeant Ezra Lee was the pilot of the small vessel, which was called the “Turtle.” It took two hours to maneuver the submersible to the British ship. His attempts to attach a bomb to the British ship did not work. The charge he was to set included a delayed detonator. Rather than blowing himself up, Lee discharged the small bomb, which floated down the river and exploded without inflicting any damage.
There is no British account of this explosion, only the official American reports. Some believe the “Turtle” never existed, and was only fabricated for the sake of propaganda.
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1876 – An attempted robbery in Northfield, Minnesota backfires on Jesse James and his gang when the town rises up and chases them away.
Seeing the holdup at the First Bank, citizens drew arms and started shooting at the bandits, several of whom were killed.
Not risking his own death, James upped and left, retreating into the Dakotas.
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1906 – The 14-Bis aircraft takes flight. Some say it's the first aircraft to do so under its own power.
The wheels only lifted off for a few fleeting seconds, but the plane did go airborne. Later in the year, it would fly up to 50 meters for short spurts of time.
The achievement does conflict with the Wright brothers' 1903 launch of their Flyer, which got airborne with the assistance of a catapult. The 14-Bis only used wheels and hills for momentum.
To the Wright brothers' credit, their flights were more controlled and sustained compared to the erratic maneuvers in the 14-Bis.
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1921 – Looking for ways to keep tourists in town past Labor Day weekend, Atlantic City holds the first Atlantic City Pageant. It's a 2-day event.
The winner of the beauty contest would receive a 3-foot Golden Mermaid trophy. Only upon her return the following year would she receive the Miss America title.
16-year-old Margaret Gorman of Washington, D.C. was the first to be named Miss America.
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1953 – Nikita Khrushchev is named First Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party. It's a diplomatic way of saying he's the communist empire's dictator.
Khrushchev’s policies were markedly more relaxed than Stalin's, as political prisoners were freed and the mass executions were denounced. He encouraged Soviet countries to peacefully coexist with capitalist nations and compete with them. This didn't last long.
By 1964, the Soviet Central Committee demanded his resignation.
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1979 – Chrysler Corporation got a government bailout before we were calling it a bailout.
The federal government guaranteed $1.2 billion in loans to the car manufacturer, which needed at least $800 million by the end of the month.
Eventually Chrysler restructured and reorganized in a way that highly resembles Chapter 11 bankruptcy, without really calling it "declaring bankruptcy" ... on the taxpayers' dime.
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1979 – The Entertainment Sports Programming Network hits the airwaves for the first time.
ESPN debuted with SportsCenter, hosted then by Lee Leonard and George Grande.
The first score announced was for women's tennis at the US Open. To fill the airwaves in the meantime, ESPN broadcasted games you couldn't catch on other networks.
Today the ESPN brand extends to more than 50 media properties on TV, radio, online, and in print.
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1996 – Tupac Shakur is shot while hanging out of Suge Knight's sunroof. He would die 6 days later in the hospital.
No one was initially arrested in the shooting – but rapper Biggie was implicated. He would be shot and killed the following year.
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2008 – The U.S. Treasury takes over federal mortgage houses Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The takeover was one of many bailouts of both private and government organizations that accelerated the nation’s debt.
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2021 - The US records more than 40 million cases of COVID-19.
Daily cases hit 161,000 two days earlier, with an average daily death count of 1,560.
More than 100,000 are hospitalized due to the virus.
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BIRTHDAYS
Dannielynn Birkhead - model, daughter of Anna Nicole Smith - 16
Donovan Mitchell - basketball player - 26
Alex Greenwood - soccer player - 29
Jennifer Veal - actress, “Jessie” - 31
Loren Allred - pop singer - 33
Kevin Love - basketball player - 34
Evan Rachel Wood - actress, “The Wrestler” & “Thirteen” - 35
Devon Sawa - actor, “Casper” & “Final Destination” - 44
Leslie Jones - comedian - 55
Toby Jones - actor, “Frost/Nixon” - 56
Gloria Gaynor - pop singers - 79
Born On This Date
Eazy-E - rapper - 1964 (d. 1995)
Buddy Holly - rock singer - 1936 (d. 1959)
Queen Elizabeth I - royal - 1533 (d. 1603)
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