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Published by BANG Showbiz English Kanye West has aimed a blistering rant at Kim Kardashian raging about a “porn addiction” which “destroyed” his family and comparing the men to “sperm donors”. The rapper posted a series of messages online which appeared to be part of a disagreement with Kim over where to send their four children – North, nine, Chicago, four, Saint, six, and Psalm, three – to school with Kanye suggesting he wanted the kids to attend the institution he founded – the Donda Academy – instead of the private Sierra Canyon school in Los Angeles. In one of the notes posted online, Kanye wrote: “It’s not up to Calabasas or Hulu where my kids go to school I’m not the crazy one here It’s up. I won’t stop until I have a say so on my kids no matter what it legally takes.” Another post referred to Tristan Thompson, Scott Disick, and Travis Scott – who have all dated Kardashian sisters – and compared them to sperm “donors”. The star added: “We’re in this together.” Tristan has two kids with Khloe Kardashian, while Scott has three children with Kourtney, and Travis is dad to a son and daughter with Kylie Jenner. Kanye also shared a screen shot which appeared to show an exchange between him and his ex Kim, with the reality TV star writing: “Can u please stop (sic)” and Kanye replied: “No … We need to talk in person. You don’t have say so of where the kids go to school. Why get say say. Cause you half white?” Another screen shot appeared to show Kim passing on a message from her mum Kris Jenner. She wrote: “‘From my mom – PLEASE. Tell him to please stop mentioning my name. I’m almost 67 years old and I don’t always feel great and this stresses me to no end.” Kanye responded: “Y’all don’t have so so over my black children and where they go to school.” In another message, Kanye seemingly referenced Kim’s infamous sex tape and a shoot she did for Playboy as well as another shoot for the magazine by her sister Kylie. The musician wrote: “Don’t let Kris make you do playboy like she made Kyle and Kim do Hollywood is a giant brothel Pornography destroyed my family I deal with the addiction Instagram promotes it. Not gonna let it happen to (daughters) Northy and Chicago.” ‘Keeping Up With The Kardashians’ star Kim and Kanye married in 2014 and became parents to four kids before they split in early 2021. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Denise Richards’ husband Aaron Phypers helps her shoot her saucy OnlyFans content. The 51-year-old ‘Wild Things’ star joined the raunchy website in June just days after her 18-year-old daughter Sami signed up for the service, and Denise has now recruited her partner to help her take the sexiest shots for the adult platform – admitting she values his opinion. During an appearance on Sirius XM’s ‘Jeff Lewis Live’, she explained: “Aaron takes a lot of my content for me. He knows what guys like. I ask him, I show him things, and say, ‘What do you think?’” Denise went on to reveal she takes pictures in bikinis and lingerie and isn’t afraid to show off her body – insisting pictures of her semi-naked already exist on the internet, She told host Jeff: “I do bikini, I do lingerie, I do stuff that is sexier ’cause I also think, ‘Why not?’ if I’m able to do stuff outside of some of the more conservative stuff that’s on my Instagram. I do show my boobies, my tush,” she explained. “They’re already out there if you Google them.” The actress said she first joined the site to show support for her daughter, but she grew to understand why it feels “empowering”. She went on: “I did it to support my daughter, being a mom who is an actress who has done stuff, and I just thought it was empowering too as a woman … to take control,” she said. “You own all of the content and (on) a lot of the other platforms, you don’t own the content. So, it’s nice to be able to control it.” Sami previously faced opposition from her actor dad Charlie Sheen, who wasn’t happy with her decision to join OnlyFans, and she recently revealed he still hasn’t been won over. The teenager told TMZ: “(My mom) has been incredibly supportive from the jump. I’m grateful to have to her in my corner. But my dad hasn’t seen the light yet. “ Charlie is also dad to another daughter, Lola, 17, with ex-wife Denise. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Jennifer Coolidge thought she was too fat to star in ‘The White Lotus.’ The 60-year-old actress stars as Tanya McQuoid on the HBO comedy series about a group of holidaymakers at a vacation resort in Hawaii but had gained so much weight during the COVID-19 lockdowns that she almost turned down the part. She said: “It was COVID, [I was] locked up with this very nice girl that I knew in New Orleans. She was sort of a friend [and] my house sitter. It was just very lonely times … and so she and I got obsessed with these vegan pizzas and we were eating a lot of them each day. The number kept increasing. You can sort of numb out any worry you have in the world if you just eat another pizza. … And not that I was 110 pounds before, but somehow it led to my demise.” The ‘American Pie’ star went on to explain that when show creator Mike White presented her with the project, she didn’t feel as if she was in “fighting shape” and only changed her mind when a friend told her she would be “out of her mind” to reject the part. She told PEOPLE: “I was like, ‘I just don’t think I can do that.’ I had no time, I can’t work out!’ It was sort of weird, it was not that big a difference from what I usually looked like, but somehow it became my excuse not to do it. For whatever reason, I didn’t feel like I was in fighting shape. “A girlfriend just gave me this [pep talk and said], ‘You are out of your mind. I don’t even think you know what this is. This is self-sabotage. I’ve been your friend all these years, this is incredible opportunity for you. Are you really going to f*** this up? Are you really going to f*** this up, Jennifer? This is the worst thing you could do to yourself. Just go, just f****** do it. So, for once in my life, I listened.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Kirton SHENZHEN, China (Reuters) -The main districts of Chinese tech hub Shenzhen shut down public transport and extended curbs on public activities on Friday as cities across China battled COVID-19 outbreaks that have dampened the outlook for economic recovery. Six districts comprising the majority of the city’s population of almost 18 million announced that all residents would be tested twice for COVID-19 over the weekend as subway and bus services were suspended. Employees should work from home, with the exception of those in self-contained “closed-loop” operations, essential supplies and public services. In the southwestern metropolis of Chengdu, which put its 21 million people under lockdown on Thursday, factories including plants run by auto giants Toyota and Volkswagen kept production running under closed-loops. Curbing movements of tens of millions of people intensifies the challenge for China to cushion the economic impact of a “dynamic-zero” COVID policy that has kept its borders mostly shut to international visitors and made it an outlier as other countries learn to live with the coronavirus. China has given little indication of any plans to pull back on its stringent controls. Economists at Nomura said in a Friday report that market expectations for easing once China’s ruling Communist Party completes a once-in-five-years Congress in October are optimistic. Nomura expects COVID curbs to remain at least until March, when the annual parliamentary session takes place. Even then “we expect the economy and markets to experience a difficult period, as people will be either disappointed about no real opening or be overwhelmed by a surging COVID infection”, the economists wrote. The world’s second-biggest economy slowed sharply in the second quarter due to widespread lockdowns, and a nascent third-quarter recovery appears in danger of stalling. “We believe markets still underestimate the severity of this round of (COVID),” Nomura wrote. China’s blue-chip stocks sagged on Friday. ‘CAN’T JUST GIVE UP’ In Shenzhen on Thursday, city officials sought to quell rumours that a full lockdown was imminent. In March, the city swiftly locked down for a week to fight community infections. They said people could leave and return to their homes with proof of a test result less than 24 hours old. “We need to get the virus under control, we can’t just give up like some countries,” said a woman surnamed Tang volunteering to help food deliveries at a locked-down housing compound in Futian, Shenzhen’s hardest-hit district. “But I don’t know when it will end, it’s really hurting businesses.” On Friday, officials reported 87 new locally transmitted COVID infections in Shenzhen for Thursday, up from 62 a day earlier. Eight of the new cases were outside quarantine areas. CLOSED LOOPS In Chengdu, uncertainty remained over whether the lockdown would be lifted after daily mass testing ends on Sunday. The city reported 150 new local cases for Thursday, compared with 157 a day earlier. Non-essential employees in Chengdu were told to work from home, while manufacturers capable of managing on closed campuses were exempted from work-from-home requirements. Toyota Motor’s Chengdu plant, which has an annual production capacity of 105,000 vehicles, was “operating normally” and inside a closed loop at the request of the Sichuan province government, a company official told Reuters. A Volkswagen plant in Chengdu that makes the Sagitar and Jetta models has been operating in a closed loop since Thursday, a VW China representative told Reuters. Foxconn was continuing to operate a plant that makes Apple iPads in the city, Bloomberg reported. However, Sweden’s Volvo Cars, majority owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, has shut its Chengdu plant, a company spokesperson said on Thursday. (Reporting by David Kirton, Ryan Woo, Norihiko Shirouzu and Liz Lee; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan, Tomasz Janowski, Tony Munroe, John Stonestreet and Nick Macfie) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Michael Jackson’s ex-wife Debbie Rowe felt she “should have done something” to help him battle his addictions. The King of Pop died aged 50 in 2009 after suffering a cardiac arrest following an overdose of heavy sedative propofol and Debbie – who was married to him between 1996 and 1999 – now looks back on his drug problems with regret that she didn’t do more to help the singer as he struggled. Speaking in a new documentary for Fox TV, Debbie got emotional as she said: “I should have done something and I didn’t. There is a number of people that died from addictions and in some way I was part of it.” Debbie previously worked as an assistant to Jackson’s dermatologist Arnold Klein – who had provided the star with strong pain relief – and admitted she felt sorry for her part in the tragedy. She said: “I was basically as bad as him (Klein) and I am so sorry I participated in it.” Klein died in 2015 at the age of 70. Debbie and Jackson married in 1996 and she was the surrogate mother of his two eldest children, Prince and Paris. They’d previously met 15 years earlier while the singer was being treated for a skin condition. She rarely talks about her relationship with the star, which was shrouded in secrecy from the very start. During an appearance in 2003 TV ‘Michael Jackson: The Footage You Were Never Meant To See’, Debbie spoke about her relationship with the kids – insisting she was determined to help the ‘Thriller’ star fulfil his dream of becoming a dad. She said: “I did it for him to become a father, not for me to become a mother. You earn the title parent. I have done absolutely nothing to earn that title. That is because Michael did all the parenting. “I didn’t do it to be a mother. I didn’t change diapers. I didn’t get up in the middle of the night, even when I was there, Michael did it all.” View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Catherine Deneuve has declared she was “never a sex symbol”. The 78-year-old actress opened up about her life and career as she was presented with the Golden Lion award for lifetime achievement at the Venice Film Festival in Italy on Wednesday (31.08.22) and she insisted she felt it was a “challenege” to be attractive despite being considered one of the most beautiful women in the world. She said: “I was never a sex symbol. You won’t find me in very sexy photos … It was a challenge to be good-looking, but it’s not something which has been too important for me these past few years, of course. And it’s much better to be old in Europe than it is in America, especially as a woman.” She also gave a modest observation of her 65-year career, insisting: “There was a lot of luck.” Catherine also dismissed herself being labelled an “icon”, retorting: “No! That’s a word that can be used, but I’m not, no.” The screen star has been returning to work recently since suffering a stroke in 2019. She fell ill while filming the movie ‘De Son Vivant’ in France and spent several weeks in hospital before being allowed to return to her home in Paris to continue her recovery. In the film she plays a mother whose son is dying of cancer, and she since admitted it felt important to go back to set to finish the film after her health scare. She told Variety: “After my accident, I simply went back on the shoot of Emmanuelle Bercot’s film because it was important for me to finish it; I thought it would bring me some satisfaction.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) – A New York City agency overseeing workplace affairs said on Friday it sued Starbucks Corp because the coffee chain illegally fired a longtime barista and union organizer shortly after employees in his store voted to join a union. The Department of Consumer and Worker Protection called the case on behalf of Austin Locke, a Starbucks employee for 5-3/4 years, the city’s first for violating “just cause” protections under a 2017 law meant to protect fast-food workers. The Fair Workweek Law prohibits fast-food employers from firing or laying off workers, or reducing their hours by more than 15%, without just cause or legitimate economic reasons. According to a petition filed with the city’s Office of Administrative Trails and Hearings, Starbucks fired Locke on July 5, one month after employees in his store in the Astoria section of the borough of Queens decided to unionize. The lawsuit seeks Locke’s reinstatement and back pay, as well as civil penalties. A Starbucks spokeswoman said the Seattle-based company does not discuss pending litigation, but plans to defend against claims it violated the law. The petition said Starbucks claimed it fired Locke because he failed to complete a questionnaire required by its COVID-19 protocols, and falsely reported that a supervisor made unwanted contact during a dispute by placing his hand on Locke’s chest. Both incidents took place two days after the unionization vote, the petition said. In a statement provided by the city, Locke said “Starbucks continues to wrongfully fire pro-union workers nationwide in retaliation for union organizing.” He called on Starbucks to negotiate a contract with Starbucks Workers United, which represents employees at more than 200 stores. Last month, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc agreed to pay $20 million to about 13,000 workers to settle city claims it violated the Fair Workweek Law. Chipotle was accused of failing to give workers their schedules two weeks in advance, award premium pay for unscheduled shifts, and let workers use accrued sick leave. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Josie Kao) View the full article

Published by Reuters (Reuters) -The U.S. government will provide abortion services to veterans in cases of rape or incest, or when the pregnancy puts the life of the woman at risk, even in states that have banned or restricted the practice, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said on Friday. The agency said in a policy document that it decided to offer abortions to veterans in response to a wave of U.S. states enacting bans and restrictions on such services since the Supreme Court ended the nationwide right to abortion in June. The department determined that “providing access to abortion-related medical services is needed to protect the lives and health of veterans” and the rule was meant to “avert imminent and future harm” to veterans, according to the policy document, which the department submitted to the Office of the Federal Register as an “interim final rule.” “This is a patient safety decision,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough said in a statement. By week’s end, 11 states will likely have near-total bans on abortion at all stages of pregnancy in force: Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas. In Texas, abortion providers could face up to lifetime imprisonment for helping patients terminate a pregnancy. In Oklahoma, where abortion was already banned with few exceptions, a law that took effect on Thursday makes providing an abortion a felony punishable with up to 10 years in prison and a $100,000 fine. The department’s new policy removes or changes some of provisions in the medical benefits package for veterans that excluded abortion services until now. Veterans Affairs healthcare providers will determine whether the pregnancy is a risk to the life and health of the veteran on a case-by-case basis, the department said. In cases of rape or incest, self-reporting by a veteran would constitute sufficient evidence to justify the abortion, it said. (Reporting by Ismail Shakil; Editing by Mark Porter and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Chris Rock says Will Smith managed to do an impersonation of a “perfect man for 30 years” before showing he is “just as ugly as the rest of us”. The comic, 57, finally shared his extensive feelings about being slapped by the 53-year-old actor at this year’s Oscars during a gig with fellow stand-up Dave Chappelle at Liverpool’s M and S Arena on the first night of their joint multi-date tour. Dave, 49, asked Chris in front of the crowd: “Did that s*** hurt?” prompting Chris to exclaim: “Goddam right… the mother***** hit me over a bulls*** joke – the nicest joke I ever told. “Will did the impression of a perfect person for 30 years, and he ripped his mask off and showed us he was as ugly as the rest of us. “Whatever the consequences are… I hope he doesn’t put his mask back on again, and lets his real face breathe. I see myself in both men.” Chris also took aim at Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, 41, during the show on Thursday night (01.09.22) by mocking her complaints about life and the royal family. He said: “I just don’t get it,” as he spoke about today’s obsession with ‘victimhood’, which the comic labelled a way of getting famous. Will stormed the stage at the Academy Awards in March and whacked Chris after the comic compared the ‘Seven Pounds’ actor’s wife’s shaven head to actress Demi Moore’s buzzcut in the 1997 film G.I. Jane. The actor then twice howled at Chris from his seat in front of stunned A-listers and while watched by millions of film fans around the world: “Keep my wife’s name out your f****** mouth.” Dumfounded Chris said after the slap: “Will Smith just slapped the s*** out of me. Oh, I could go…“ while looking into the stage wings, and then saying: “That was the greatest night in the history of television.” It was later highlighted Will’s wife of 25 years Jada Pinkett Smith, 50, had shaved her head as she suffers alopecia. While issued a grovelling apology in on online video earlier this month and has admitted Chris has not responded to his attempts to reach out. He said: “I will say to you, Chris, I apologise to you. My behaviour was unacceptable and I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk.” There was widespread outrage when Will went on to cry on the Oscars stage after the slap while picking up his best actor trophy for best actor for his role in ‘King Richard’, with many of his critics saying he should have immediately been kicked out of the ceremony by Oscars bosses, banned from after-parties, not allowed to pick up his award and questioned by police. He has since been banned from Oscars events for 10 years. Chris is scheduled to perform with Dave Chappelle in London, Copenhagen and Amsterdam before they return to America later this month for more shows. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Sarah N. Lynch and Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The FBI recovered more than 11,000 government documents and photographs during its Aug. 8 search at former President Donald Trump’s Florida estate, as well as 48 empty folders labeled as “classified,” according to court records that were unsealed on Friday. The unsealing by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in West Palm Beach came one day after she heard oral arguments by Trump’s attorneys and the Justice Department’s top two counterintelligence prosecutors over whether she should appoint a special master to conduct a privilege review of the seized materials at Trump’s request. Cannon deferred ruling immediately on whether to appoint a special master but said she would agree to unseal two records filed by the Justice Department. Former U.S. Attorney General William Barr, who was appointed by Trump, questioned the usefulness of such an appointment. “I think at this stage, since they’ve (FBI) already gone through the documents I think it’s a waste of time” to have a special master, Barr said in an interview on Fox News. Barr, who left the post in late December 2020, defied Trump by not backing his false claims that the presidential election that year had been stolen from him. In the interview, Barr added that he saw no “legitimate reason” for Trump having documents at his Florida estate if they were classified. He added, “I frankly am skeptical of this claim (by Trump) that ‘I declassified everything.’ Because frankly I think it’s highly improbable and second, if he sort of stood over scores of boxes not really knowing what was in them and said ‘I hereby declassify everything in here,’ that would be such an abuse, show such recklessness that it’s almost worse than taking the documents.” One of the records https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flsd.618763/gov.uscourts.flsd.618763.39.1_1.pdf, released on Friday, provides a little more detail about the 33 boxes and other items the FBI found inside Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, as part of its ongoing criminal investigation into whether he illegally retained national defense information and tried to obstruct the probe. It shows that documents with classification markings were at times co-mingled with other items such as books, magazines and newspaper clippings. Also found were unspecified gifts and clothing items. Of the more than 11,000 government records and photos, 18 were labeled as “top secret,” 54 were labeled “secret” and 31 were labeled “confidential,” according to a Reuters tally of the government’s inventory. “Top secret” is the highest classification level, reserved for the country’s most closely held secrets. There were also 90 empty folders, 48 of which were marked “classified,” while others indicated that they should be returned to staff secretary/military aide. It is not clear why the folders were empty, or whether any records could be missing. The other record https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flsd.618763/gov.uscourts.flsd.618763.39.0_2.pdf that was unsealed is a three-page filing by the Justice Department updating the court about the status of its investigative team’s review of the documents seized. That filing, dated Aug. 30, said investigators had completed a preliminary review of the materials seized and will investigate further and interview more witnesses. The Justice Department’s criminal investigation could be potentially put on pause if Cannon agrees to appoint a special master to come in and conduct an independent third-party review of the seized records. However, Cannon signaled at Thursday’s hearing she might be willing to permit U.S. intelligence officials to continue reviewing the materials as part of their national security damage assessment, even if a special master is appointed. The Justice Department has previously said in court filings it has evidence that classified documents were deliberately concealed from the FBI when it tried to retrieve them from Trump’s home in June. The Justice Department also opposes the appointment of a special master, saying the records in question do not belong to Trump and that he cannot claim they are covered by executive privilege, a legal doctrine that can be used to shield some presidential communications. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Jason Lange; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Richard Cowan and Lisa Shumaker) View the full article

Published by The Boot Dolly Parton‘s classic “9 to 5″ is getting revamped as a duet with Kelly Clarkson. The song gets a significant production update from in-demand Nashville producer and songwriter Shane McAnally, as well as Sasha Alex Sloan and King Henry. “I was blown away when I heard what Shane had done with my song,” says Parton, according to Rolling Stone. “This arrangement shows how differently a song can be done and the story can be told in a whole new way. And special thanks to [Dolly Parton Enterprises creative director] Steve Summers for getting the ball rolling on this musical venture.” It was Summers… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Dolly Parton is releasing wigs for dogs. The ‘9 to 5’ hitmaker has teamed up with SportPet designs to create a pet apparel line called ‘Doggy Parton’ and as well as a “blonde bombshell” hairpiece, items in the range include a pink cowgirl hat with tiara, a “gingham Western print two-piece collar and leash set,” tour t-shirts, cowgirl dresses, bandanas, and squeaky toys. A portion of the proceeds from the range will go to rescue organisation Willa B. Farms. Dolly said in a statement: “‘Puppy Love’ was my very first record and six decades later, my love for pets is stronger than ever. “This inspired me to start my own line of Doggy Parton apparel, accessories, toys and more with a little ‘Dolly’ flair. “Part of the proceeds will support Willa B Farms, a rescue where animals in need find never-ending love. Don’t we all need that?’ “ Earlier this month, the 76-year-old county legend unveiled another non-musical venture; plans for a new rollercoaster at her Dollywood theme park. The Big Bear Mountain will open at the attraction – which opened in Tennessee in 1986 – in 2023 and will feature “three separate launches, multiple airtime hills, high-speed carousel turns, and tunnels, including a pass behind a waterfall”. The ‘Jolene’ singer is excited fans will be able to travel the Smoky Mountains themselves via the ride while referencing her 1994 song ‘Smoky Mountain Memories.’ She tweeted: “The Smokies are all about adventure and going exploring. I’m excited our guests will be able to head out on their own trip into the Smokies to see if they can find that Big Bear. Whether he’s out there or not, I’m sure they’ll find a lot of memories along the way that they’ll keep forever.” Meanwhile, Dollywood president Eugene Naughton explained that the ride was “family-friendly” and described it as being “comfortable fun.” He said: “If you’re going to be the No. 1 family attraction in the United States, your product needs to be family-friendly. So, within this ride called Big Bear Mountain, I like to call it comfortable fun.” View the full article

Published by AFP US actress Jane Fonda has announced she is battling non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Los Angeles (AFP) – US actress and activist Jane Fonda announced Friday that she has cancer, and has begun chemotherapy. The 84-year-old Oscar winner, a prominent supporter of the Democratic Party vowed to fight the “very treatable” illness. “I’ve been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and have started chemo treatments,” she wrote on her verified Instagram account. “This is a very treatable cancer. 80 percent of people survive, so I feel very lucky. “I’m also lucky because I have health insurance and access to the best doctors and treatments.” Fonda, an avowed environmentalist and social campaigner, said her position was more fortunate than that of many others in her situation. “Almost every family in America has had to deal with cancer at one time or another and far too many don’t have access to the quality health care I am receiving and this is not right.” Fonda first appeared on screen in 1960, and scored Academy Awards for best actress for “Klute” (1971) and “Coming Home” (1978). She has scored five other Oscar nominations in her career, four of them for best actress. Fonda continues to work, and appears as the voice of an elegant dragon who is the CEO of a luck-making operation in the Apple TV+ animation “Luck”. She also stars in the popular, long-running Netflix hit “Grace and Frankie.” View the full article

Published by Mongabay By Elizabeth Fitt U.N. member states came tantalizingly close to sealing a deal for a high-stakes, legally binding treaty to conserve biodiversity on the high seas, areas beyond national jurisdiction that comprise two-thirds of the global ocean. At the close of negotiations on Aug. 26 in New York, however, delegates had failed to net consensus. Top sticking points included fair access to marine resources for all and how to establish marine protected areas. The meeting of 168 U.N. member states ended with a commitment to reconvene before the year is over. “We’re closer to the finish line than w… Read More View the full article

Published by Morning Honey More sleepless nights are in store for Taylor Swift fans, as the singer announced her new album “Midnights” will drop this fall! The 32-year-old shared the update on her Instagram with an image of the cover, which shows her holding a lighter and gazing at the flicker through her glittered eyelids. “Midnights, the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life, will be out October 21,” Swift captioned the post on Monday, August 28. “Meet me at midnight,” she added. In the second slide of her post, she gave some insight into the songwriting process. “We lie awake in love and in fear… Read More View the full article

Published by The San Diego Union-Tribune SAN DIEGO — In 1995, 23-year-old Indian filmmaker Aditya Chopra wrote and directed his first Bollywood movie, “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.” The globe-hopping romantic comedy told the story of two young British Indians, Raj and Simran, who fall hopelessly in love, even though Simran has been pledged by her father to an arranged marriage with a stranger in India. Nicknamed “DDLJ” by its legions of fans, the movie became one of the highest-grossing Indian films in history. Chopra would go on to produce some of the nation’s biggest blockbusters. The film’s lead actors Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol bec… Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters By Michael Erman and Julie Steenhuysen (Reuters) -The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated COVID-19 booster shots from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna that target the dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants, as the government prepares for a broad fall vaccination campaign that could begin within days. The new vaccines also include the original version of the virus targeted by all the previous COVID shots. The FDA authorized the shots for everyone ages 12 and older who has had a primary vaccination series and is at least two months out from a previous booster shot, shorter than prior recommended intervals. Dr. Peter Marks, a senior FDA official overseeing vaccines, said he hopes the shots will restore the very good protection against symptomatic disease that the original vaccines offered when launched in late 2020 and early 2021. “We don’t know for a fact yet whether we will get to that same level, but that is the goal here,” Marks said. The government has begun working on the fall rollout, which could start soon after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) outside expert panel meets on Thursday and agency Director Rochelle Walensky makes a final recommendation. The United States has secured more than 170 million doses of the two shots in an attempt to stave off the worst effects of a potential surge in infections as schools reconvene and people spend more time indoors due to colder weather. This could be the last COVID vaccine provided for free to all Americans as the government plans to shift them to the commercial insurance market next year. Moderna’s retooled vaccine was authorized for those aged 18 and above, while the Pfizer/BioNTech shot will be available for those aged 12 and above, the FDA said. Pfizer said it has some doses ready to ship immediately and can deliver up to 15 million doses by Sept 9. Moderna said it expects its new shot to be available “in the coming days.” Experts have said that the updated vaccines will be important for older people and the immunocompromised, but noted there is limited data to support the level of protection the government is hoping for. “For people who haven’t been infected whose last dose was a year ago, yes, it’s going to benefit them. How much, I can’t tell you,” said Dr. Gregory Poland, a vaccine expert at the Mayo Clinic. He said the new shots are unlikely to help those who have been recently infected. The revaccination campaign this fall is expected to target many more people than the previous boosters authorized by the FDA earlier this year. Concerns about long COVID was one reason younger and healthier Americans should get the shot, officials said. “If anything is going to prevent transmission and long COVID, it’s going to be a variant specific vaccine for the variant that’s currently circulating,” FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said. DIFFERENT VACCINES IN OTHER COUNTRIES About 50% of those in the United States over the age of 12 – some 107 million people – have received at least one COVID-19 booster dose so far. Some scientists were critical of the recommendation that would allow for a new booster just two months after a prior shot, saying a longer gap would improve immune responses. FDA officials said the vast majority of Americans are significantly more than two months out from their most recent shot. Other countries including Canada and the UK also have ordered updated Omicron vaccine boosters for fall campaigns, although some have purchased shots tailored to the BA.1 Omicron subvariant that caused the record surge in COVID cases last winter. The FDA in June asked vaccine makers to tailor shots to the BA.4/BA.5 subvariants of the virus responsible for the most recent surge in infections worldwide. The BA.5 subvariant accounts for more than 88% of U.S. infections. The vaccine makers have not completed testing of the updated BA.4/BA.5-based boosters in humans. The FDA is basing its decision on safety and effectiveness data from the original shots as well as from clinical trials conducted on boosters using the BA.1 Omicron subvariant. (Reporting by Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru, Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago and Michael Erman in Maplewood New Jersey; Additional reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein in Washington; Editing by Caroline Humer and Bill Berkrot) View the full article

Published by DPA Robert Aramayo (l, Elrond) and Morfydd Clark (Galadriel) in “The Lord of the Rings – The Rings of Power”, launching on Amazon Prime on September 2. Ben Rothstein/Amazon Studios/dpa They dwell in utterly different worlds. HBO’s “Game of Thrones” spinoff, ”House of the Dragon,” is the one with beautifully candlelit buttocks and a steady supply of spilled entrails. “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is the other one. Premiering Thursday night on Amazon, “The Rings of Power” wields a different, family-friendlier set of selling points, though there is a dragon overlap. And in its first five minutes “The Rings of Power” does manage to shoot an arrow into someone’s mouth. For all the obvious contrasts, though, these two streaming fantasy prequels chase the same quarry. They’re after more of the same of whatever worked the first time, but a different sort of same. “The Rings of Power” gets off to a promising, lavishly outfitted start in the first two episodes made available for review. Guessing here, but I think just enough of the flashy stuff seen in the trailer shows up in the early going to keep casual or less committed Middle-earthlings on the hook for a while. The rabid fans were going to watch anyway. The questions for Amazon: Will their kids watch, too? And can “The Rings of Power” in its chosen weight class turn into a water cooler phenomenon, the way “House of the Dragon” has, even in our post-water cooler age? The series represents Amazon’s quest for the holy grail of a prestigious yet populist streaming hit, working off pricey IP. Jeff Bezos, a J.R.R. Tolkien enthusiast, paid $250 million for the adaptation rights alone — not derived from a book or three, but from various Tolkien “appendices” and narrative threads “inspired by, though not contained in, the original source material,” as the end credits phrase it. The eight-episode first season of “The Rings of Power” (just two were made available for preview) takes place many thousands of years prior to “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit,” in the Second Age of Middle-earth and environs. It may be peacetime, and New Zealand, as always, looks lovely both in fantasy peace and fantasy war, all dressed up with the usual, clinically wondrous digital landscapes. But the Dark Lord Sauron lurks somewhere across the Sundering Seas, and he’s shaping up as a strong second-term prospect for an all-powerful reign of terror. The initial table-setting “Rings of Power” episodes focus on the elven warrior commander Galadriel (Morfydd Clark, playing the younger version of the character Cate Blanchett handled in the Peter Jackson “LOTR” trilogy). She’s one of 22 characters jostling for their share of screen time in the kingdoms of elves, humans, dwarves, orcs and the rest of the Tolkien universe. With so many storylines on the burner, “The Rings of Power” makes a strategically wise decision to focus the early going on Galadriel as she braves the seas various and Sundering (excellent digital effects here), makes an uneasy truce with a human castaway (Charlie Vickers), and sets a course for adventure, without which, no story. As with Galadriel, many other characters link back directly or indirectly to those we know from the Jackson trilogy. Much like Liv Tyler and Viggo Mortensen’s heavily discouraged elven/human love story in “LOTR,” in “The Rings of Power” the Sylvan elf Arondir falls in love with the human healer Bronwyn, a single mother whose son is tempted by the forces of darkness. Arondir and Bronwyn, two “noncanonical” newbies created for the show, are played with quiet force by Ismael Cruz Córdova and Nazanin Boniadi. While the introduction of elves of color has already exploded the heads of some “LOTR” purists, whatever. Those people can make their own “Lord of the Rings” prequel. Working with showrunners Patrick McKay and J.D. Payne, director J.A. Bayona shoots in a style approximating “Lord of the Rings” director Jackson’s endless, pivoting camera glides. Visually the series stalls a bit when setting up the less-than-enthralling elven kingdom doings of young half-elf Elrond (Robert Aramayo here, playing the prequel version of the Hugo Weaving role in “LOTR”). Much goes on simultaneously in “The Rings of Power,” including underground rock-crushing contests and the aboveground crash landing of a mysterious interstellar visitor. The overriding plot in this roiling sea of little plots is right there in the title: Twenty rings will be fashioned, eventually, in master elven architect Celebrimbor’s dream of a forge “able to birth a flame as hot as a dragon’s tongue and as pure as starlight.” Hearing a classically trained actor such as Charles Edwards wrap his vowels around a description like that, well, it’s something many “LOTR” enthusiasts have been missing for a long time now. At one point, Celebrimbor wonders if his life’s work will ever “grow beyond petty works of jeweled craft — and devise something of real power.” The same question looms over Amazon’s series. For now, it’s nice for our streaming pile of fantasy destination vacations to include a noble corrective to the assaultive depravities of “House of the Dragon.” The HBO phenom had zero trouble making the stakes and power dynamics clear in its debut episode, because it’s well-made, the actors sell it and the narrative is ridiculously simple. It may take a while for “The Rings of Power” to sort itself out, by contrast, and get the forge fired up. But so far, pretty good. Prime Video has embarked on a mammoth project, and one that is set to be divisive. Its producers are relaunching “The Lord of the Rings” as a series. After years of male-dominated narratives, women are now also taking the fate of Middle Earth into their own hands. Amazon Studios/dpa Morfydd Clark stars as Galadriel in “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”, launching on Amazon Prime on September 2. Matt Grace/Amazon Studios/dpa View the full article

Published by Raw Story By Brad Reed Republicans for decades have relied on the late billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson to fund congressional and presidential races — but now the money spigot he once provided appears to have dried up. Bloomberg News reports that Adelson’s widow, Miriam Adelson, has been hesitant to fork over the massive sums her husband provided prior to his death in early 2021, leaving what the publication describes as a “financial hole” for the GOP. In fact, the only money Adelson has given this year has been a $5 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC dedicated to electin… Read More View the full article

Published by The Philadelphia Inquirer PHILADELPHIA — President Joe Biden used Philadelphia as the launching point Thursday for a blistering speech warning that “MAGA Republicans” are a threat to American values, and urging voters to choose a different path. Here are six takeaways from the address: A warning for democracyStanding in front of Independence Hall Thursday night, President Joe Biden said it was his duty to warn the country that the democracy born there is under direct threat. “As I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise,” he said early in his roughly 2… Read More View the full article

Published by AFP The Biden administration has asked Congress for $22.4 billion more in funds to combat Covid-19 New York (AFP) – Warning of “difficult trade-offs” ahead of a feared fall Covid-19 wave, the Biden administration Friday urged Congress to approve $22.4 billion more to maintain key testing and vaccine programs. The request comes as the government readies a new fall initiative for Covid-19 vaccine boosters targeting the Omicron variant after US officials recommended Thursday new Pfizer and Moderna shots. Biden’s request for more money faces an uncertain fate on Capitol Hill amid pandemic fatigue and elevated partisanship ahead of the midterm elections. Noting that a previous White House demand for additional Covid-19 funds stalled in Congress, the administration has been forced “to pull existing funding from critical needs to meet the most pressing needs,” according to an administration memo ahead of the September 30 end of fiscal year 2022. The government on Friday suspended its program to provide free at-home Covid-19 testing kits, citing the lack of congressional funding. The government currently has “some tests available in the stockpile, but we do not have enough if there were a surge this fall,” an administration official told reporters on a briefing. Administration officials also said continued lack of funding would necessitate a transition from government-financed Covid-19 vaccines to a commercial model that would leave out some people. The latest batch of vaccines will continue to be free to the public “through the fall into next year,” an administration official said. “We were always going to have to transition to commercialization, but we’ve had to accelerate the timeline without additional funding,” the official said, noting the need to provide underinsured and uninsured to “the life saving protection of a vaccine.” Besides Covid-19 programs, the administration sought additional funds to support Ukraine, combat the monkeypox outbreak and address natural disasters in Kentucky, California and other states. View the full article

Published by City AM By Adam Bloodworth Gay men had it in the 1980s and 1990s when two landmark plays, Angels In America and The Normal Heart, humanised the tragedies of the AIDS crisis on major theatre stages. And now I, Joan, a new adaptation of the story of Joan of Arc, feels similarly like a crucial and history-making piece of theatre for transgender and non-binary people. This is the first major London theatre production where a trans person is centre stage, in a main role. It could have gone so wrong. A first-time actor in their first major London theatre job, twisting one of history’s great heroines to fit … Read More View the full article

Published by Euronews (English) A 25-year-old man has died from his injuries after being attacked at a gay pride event last week in the northwestern German city of Münster. Prosecutors say the young man — identified only as Malte — came to help other people who were being insulted at a Christopher Street Day rally on 27 August. A man then attacked the victim, knocking him to the ground, before fleeing with another person. Malte succumbed to his injuries early on Friday morning. Police have issued a description of the male suspects and have appealed for witnesses to come forward. The German government’s “queer commissioner”… Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters By Steve Holland, Trevor Hunnicutt and Jarrett Renshaw PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden charged Republican allies of Donald Trump with undermining the country’s democracy and urged voters on Thursday to reject extremism ahead of November’s midterm elections. Biden accused lawmakers and others devoted to the Make America Great Again (MAGA) agenda led by former U.S. President Trump as willing to overturn democratic elections, ignore the Constitution and “determined to take this country backwards” to a time without rights to abortion, privacy, contraception or same-sex marriage. “Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic,” Biden said. “As I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise.” The prime-time speech in Philadelphia, the birthplace of American democracy, marked a sharp turn for Biden as midterm congressional elections approach. Aides say the president is increasingly concerned about anti-democratic trends in the Republican Party, and sees a need to jump into this year’s election fight and recast the stakes of his own 2024 re-election bid. After spending much of 2022 trying to combat high inflation at home and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and enduring two bouts of COVID-19 over the summer, Biden has in recent days repeatedly lashed out at Trump-aligned Republicans. His remarks on Thursday denouncing political violence and urging bipartisan compromise came after speeches in recent days where he condemned MAGA philosophy as “semi-fascism” and assailed Republican threats against the FBI after a search of Trump’s Florida home as “sickening.” House of Representatives Republican leader Kevin McCarthy on Thursday accused Biden of ignoring crime and inflation to criticize his fellow citizens. “Instead of trying to bring our country together to solve these challenges, President Biden has chosen to divide, demean and disparage his fellow Americans,” McCarthy said in Biden’s hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania. “Why? Simply because they disagree with his policies.” A Democratic fundraiser said donors are closely watching Biden’s performance over the next few months to gauge whether to back him in a 2024 presidential run. Some have already decided that Biden, 79, should step aside to make way for fresh leadership, while others want to see if he can lead the party effectively. “If we can pull it off and retain the Senate, then there will be enough voices saying he has earned it and pave the way for re-election,” said a senior Democratic official. “If we don’t, the overwhelming sentiment will be ‘Pass the torch.'” FREE ELECTIONS IN DANGER? Biden spoke in Philadelphia from behind bullet-proof glass and within earshot of chanting Trump-supporting protesters. He made his remarks at a venue meant to signal the historical significance of his appeal, near Independence Hall, where the U.S. Declaration of Independence and Constitution were adopted. Some historians and legal scholars have cast the stakes in starker terms than Biden’s political future, saying free elections and commitment to the rule of law hang in the balance. They say losing Congress would not only make Biden a lame-duck president, but also turn over control of certifying the results of the next presidential election to Trump sympathizers, some of whom never accepted Biden’s 2020 victory and who have pledged to overhaul voting systems. Biden alluded to the concerns, saying “I will not stand by and watch elections in this country be stolen by people who simply refuse to accept that they lost.” The speech echoed Biden’s signature 2020 campaign pledge to restore the “soul of the nation” and, by implication, purge the values associated with Trump. In the nearly two years since Biden was elected, Republican voters have mostly backed candidates aligned with the former president; more than half say they believe Trump rightfully won the election. Confronted by threats after Trump’s loss, one in five election workers polled this year said they may quit before the next presidential election. (Reporting by Steve Holland in Philadelphia, and Trevor Hunnicutt and Jarrett Renshaw in WashingtonAdditional reporting by Jeff Mason and Tyler Clifford in WashingtonEditing by Heather Timmons, Jonathan Oatis and Matthew Lewis) View the full article