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The COVID pandemic killed the skinny jean trend, says denim expert There’s good news for Americans who packed on the pounds during the pandemic — skinny jeans are no longer in style. Levi Strauss & Co. CEO Chip Bergh says consumers are getting away from the hipster-inspired look of at least the past decade. “Cycles do come and go,” he told CNBC. “I think the pandemic definitely played a contributing role to consumers looking for a more comfortable, more relaxing denim.” According to Bergh, his denim-maker’s sales started last year were boosted by one new jean design that ballooned out at the bottom, and a second style that was loose fitting with a high-rise at the waist. “The last real denim cycle was driven by skinny jeans,” Bergh said to CNBC. “That cycle lasted about 10 years.” Bergh isn’t ready to bury the skinny jean look altogether, but he says there is now a “very strong demand” for looser fitting denim, from both male and female consumers. CNBC reports Levi’s sales were down overall in the first quarter of 2021, but believes the ongoing pandemic’s impact is depressing retail numbers. However, the company’s stock is up 25% on the year and the iconic brand expects sales to be back to 2019 standards in the final quarter of 2021.

“Big Sky” made headlines in its opening episode last fall by killing off ostensible series star Ryan Phillippe — shot in the head by psycho Montana State Trooper Rick Legarski (John Carroll Lynch), who eventually got his karmic comeuppance. The ABC drama continues its “shocking twist” tradition in its return Tuesday (April 13) at 9 p.m. with a two-hour episode that picks up where “Big Sky” left off in mid-February. “There are even more twists and turns than you think there will be — and I’m still shocked by the end of this season,” said Jesse James Keitel, aka Jerrie Kennedy, the sex worker held captive in an underground storage container for most of this season along with sisters Danielle and Grace Sullivan (Natalie Alyn Lind, Jade Pettyjohn). “Jerrie is still a working girl, but a different kind of working girl — she’s the newest employee of Dewell & Hoyt,” James said, referring to the new private investigation firm headed by Cassie Dewell and Jenny Hoyt (series stars Kylie Bunbury and Katheryn Winnick). “She’s never had a desk job but here she is,” James said of Jerrie. “She’s had quite the journey, from being an aspiring singer to a former truck-stop sex worker to now working in a private investigators’ office. “At the end of Episode 6, Jenny asked Jerrie to help and she said, ‘I’ll do whatever it takes.’ It’s really nice she’s able to help solve crimes,” Keitel said. “It kept coming up very early on that she’s very aspirational and has big dreams, and that’s allowed me the freedom to inject my own take on her. I think when you take into account what she’s had to do to survive, not just the sex work but … how does she survive, emotionally, when she probably doesn’t have any semblance of a queer community where she is. “It’s hard to navigating a scary world alone, especially when you’re a marginalized person. I would say Jerrie is arguably one of the toughest characters on ‘Big Sky.'” Tuesday night’s two-parter opens three months after Ronald’s escape, with Cassie and Jenny taking on new investigations, including a macabre domestic violence case. It also introduces some new characters — including a ranching family, whose patriarch, Horst Kleinsasser, is played by veteran actor Ted Levine (“The Alienist,” “Ray Donovan,” “Monk”). “They’re a messed-up Montana land-rich family full of a lot of problems and a traumatic past,” James said. “The eldest son is also Jenny’s ex, so there are some complicated storylines coming up. Jenny and Cassie, with the help of Denise (Dedee Pfeiffer) and Jerrie, try to help one of the Kleinsassers — and end up a little deeper than they intended to.” Ronald’s presence still hangs over the series, Keitel said. “He’s kind of disappeared for a bit but he resurfaces … he’s kind of keeping tabs on us, calling and breathing into the phone. It’s pretty chilling, to say the least.” Keitel, whose late grandfather, Jerome, was a cousin of actor Harvey Keitel, draws a parallel between Jerrie and her distant relative. “It’s kind of serendipitous. I don’t have a relationship with [Harvey] but he’s made a career out of playing these badass, tough, masculine men. In a lot of ways, I’m also playing a badass — but really subverting what that means in 2021.” Keitel broke new ground on “Big Sky” by becoming the first nonbinary series regular, in a lead role, on a primetime series. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t expecting to get a lot of hate. I started therapy before the show aired, mentally preparing myself to get ripped apart — and I couldn’t have been more wrong,” Keitel said. The amount of DMs, messages, tweets … even just family members telling me the things their relatives and friends have said. “I’ve gotten messages from 85-year-old women who are very firm in their beliefs and who have fallen in love with Jerrie, who changed their perception of, not just queer people, but trans people. It’s been kind of shocking to me in many ways. “I don’t know if I’m necessarily the most optimistic person, but it’s sparked a newfound optimism in me.”

How insulting... Whenever I'm conversing with anyone, I take it as a given that they are aware that at any moment I am likely to say something brilliant and life-changing, and that they are hanging on every word during the conversation and don't need verbal clues to listen intently.

When San Diego acquired Joe Musgrove from the Pirates over the winter, it was thought that the improved defense behind him might be a big help to him. He was strong in his first start, and will be carrying a no-hitter into the bottom of the 9th in Texas. He hasn't walked anyone; the only runner reached on a HBP. And San Diego, in existence since 1969, has never had a no-hitter before.

Ex-Manhattan Equinox gym manager sues over alleged sexual harassment A former Equinox gym manager says his male boss sexually harassed him — including by once telling him he had a “nice bulge,” according to new Manhattan court papers. Harold De Longchamp, an ex-general manager at a company gym on the Upper East Side, was fired in retaliation for complaining about mistreatment from Regional Manager Adam Gecht, says the Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit. De Longchamp was hired at the company’s East 85th Street gym in March 2018 as an assistant general manager and a year later was promoted to GM at the location making a base salary of $93,000 a year, court documents say. Gecht, 45, told De Longchamp on Jan. 29, 2019, that he could only get a free facial from work if he shaves his mustache because he looks “like a child molester,” court papers claim. On May 9 2019, at a work function in Florida when they were poolside in bathing suits, Gecht whispered in De Longchamp’s ear “nice bulge” — which other close-by managers heard, to De Longchamp’s embarrassment, the suit alleges. On the same trip, Gecht invited De Longchamp to breakfast, where he said he admired that De Longchamp was gay because he could “be sexually promiscuous,” the documents claim. Gecht added taht he regretted being married with kids because he couldn’t “act on his urges like [De Longchamp] could, being gay,” the papers allege. Gecht also told De Longchamp “the closer we are with each other, the farther you’ll get in the company,” according to the documents. Gecht also once told De Longchamp on June, 18, 2019 “you have to be the gayest Equinox employee I know,” the court filing claims. Not only did Gecht sexually harass De Longchamp, the boss also once berated the employee for not dealing with a broken air conditioner fast enough, the suit claims. Another time, on Sept. 28, 2019, Gecht told De Longchamp, “I don’t f–king care about your personal life!” when De Longchamp explained why he couldn’t immediately make it into work when his shift was changed by Gecht last minute, the court papers allege. On two occasions, De Longchamp made complaints to the company’s Human Resources department, the suit says. The first time, on May 15, 2019, the HR director told him “that’s just Adam, no one takes him seriously,” the court papers allege. Despite these complaints, Gecht was promoted in December 2019. De Longchamp’s new boss told De Longchamp he was friends with Gecht and knew about De Longchamp’s prior complaints, asking “Are we going to have any problems?” the court documents claim. Soon after, on Jan. 29, 2020, De Longchamp was fired, with his bosses telling him “it was time to separate from the company, we don’t seem to see eye to eye on things any longer,” the court documents claim. “Defendants’ true reason for terminating plaintiff was solely due to discrimination on the basis of his sex/gender (male) and sexual orientation (gay), and for complaining of said discrimination,” the suit charges. De Longchamp of Brooklyn is suing Gecht and the company for unspecified damages. Reached by phone, Gecht declined to comment, deferring to Equinox’s legal department. Equinox rep Judy Taylor told The Post, “We do not comment on pending litigations.”

Awe & Order: Christopher Meloni’s ‘juicy’ booty causes Twitter stir Stabler is stacked, honey. Just days after Christopher Meloni’s 60th birthday, the “Law & Order” star’s sweet cake is being celebrated all over social media. Without the help of Photoshop or asset-accentuating Amazon leggings, Meloni’s magnificent gluteus maximus is going viral on Twitter, thanks to a picture snapped while he was filming “Law & Order: Organized Crime” in Brooklyn Wednesday. Meloni and his famous moneymaker made their highly anticipated return to the “Law & Order” franchise last week after a decade-long hiatus. And fanny fans are seriously fawning over that full-figured tail feather. “I don’t know [whose] birthday it is but [Meloni] is serving cake for dinner,” one booty buff tweeted. Them cakes are rated E for everyone. ? — Chaosbutterfly (@Khaosbutterfly) April 8, 2021 I just want to fall asleep while resting my head on Chris Meloni's juicy cakes. Is that too much to ask? — Bad Dad (@BaddestDaddest) April 7, 2021 How’s Meloni handling all this heinie heat? Well, it’s safe to say the apple-bottomed actor — best known for slaying the role of Detective Elliot Stabler on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” for 12 seasons — is slaphappy about the round of applause his rump is receiving. Sure- big birthday(60), big boy(200 lbs), big cake https://t.co/lmkZ5JKFWe — Chris Meloni (@Chris_Meloni) April 8, 2021 He’s been on the business end of patootie praise before. Meloni’s cheeks went red from blushing while he read aloud the thirsty tweets that fans shared about his “thick” derrière in 2019. “I’d cut off my arm to touch Christopher Meloni’s butt. It’s that serious,” he recited from an admirer’s Twitter post. “Christopher Meloni is what I imagine when I say I want a [thick] daddy,” he read, quoting another complimentary commentator. He chuckled when he came across a tweet that said: “When I’m sad I just google Christopher Meloni’s butt until I’m not sad anymore.” His reprised Detective Stabler on the series premiere of “Law & Order: Organized Crime” last Thursday beckoned a staggering 8 million viewers. Meloni was taken aback by his warm re-welcome to prime-time television. “It was pretty overwhelming,” he told People of the positive fan reaction. “I was not prepared. It’s overwhelming and it’s wonderful and it’s very appreciated.”

Another season, another injury for Kevin Keirmaier... he'll miss a few weeks with a strained quad. The poor dear just can't stay healthy.

Fernando Tatis Jr. hurt himself taking a hard swing and immediately left Monday's 3-2 loss to the San Francisco Giants. Tatis struck out swinging against Anthony DeSclafani and winced in pain as he fell to the ground. He cradled his left arm while he got up, and two athletic trainers helped hold his arm against his body as he walked off the field. The Padres later said that Tatis exited because of a left shoulder subluxation, which is a partial dislocation of a joint. He will be reevaluated Tuesday. The 22-year-old Tatis left a game late in spring training with left shoulder discomfort but was back two days later. Manager Jayce Tingler said then that Tatis had been dealing with left shoulder discomfort since his minor league days. Tatis later said he'd had it since rookie ball. Tatis committed five errors through the first four games. He signed the longest contract in big league history on Feb. 22, a 14-year, $340 million deal. Nationals Set Opening Day Roster After having their first four games postponed due to positive Covid-19 tests within the organization, the Nationals have announced their roster for today’s season opener. Four Nationals players are said to have tested positive, with several more in the organization being deemed close contacts who are also going through protocol. Tuesday’s announcement was accompanied by a dizzying series of roster moves, which included placing catchers Yan Gomes and Alex Avila; left-handers Patrick Corbin, Brad Hand and Jon Lester; infielders Josh Harrison andJordy Mercer; first baseman Josh Bell; and outfielder Kyle Schwarber on the Covid-19 related injured list. Right-hander Will Harris was also placed on the 10-day injured list after his recent procedure to address a blood clot. In a sequence of corresponding roster moves, the Nats recalled catcher Tres Barrera; right-handers Ryne Harper and Kyle McGowin; infielders Carter Kieboom and Luis Garcia; lefty Sam Clay; and outfielder Yadiel Hernandezfrom their alternate training site. Washington also selected the contracts of veteran catcher Jonathan Lucroy and outfielder Cody Wilson. Wilson was specifically designated as a “replacement player,” indicating that he can be removed from the 40-man roster and sent back to the minors without clearing waivers as the affected Nationals players are cleared to return to the roster. Notably, the Nationals’ Opening Day roster includes shortstop Trea Turner — a welcome development after Turner was absent from yesterday’s workout with the team. Manager Dave Martinez tells reporters that Turner was not cleared to be on the field yesterday (Twitter link via the Washington Post’s Jesse Dougherty), so it seems he cleared protocols this morning. Turner will be joined in the Opening Day infield by Ryan Zimmerman, Hernan Perez (at second) and Starlin Castro(at third). The Nats will give Andrew Stevenson the nod in left field alongsideVictor Robles and Juan Soto, while Lucroy draws the start behind the plate, catching Max Scherzer. The Nationals will make up yesterday’s postponed contest against the Braves in a doubleheader tomorrow. It’s not yet clear when they’ll make up their three postponed games against the Mets, although given that they’re division rivals, the remainder of this season’s schedule will provide ample opportunity for those games to be played.

NASA researchers discover first X-rays from Uranus https://nypost.com/2021/04/05/nasa-researchers-discover-first-x-rays-from-uranus/ Oh, the punny possibilities abound...

Internet explorers they are not. A new study has found that 7 percent of American adults do not go online at all — for a variety of reasons including old age, remote living, and poverty. The Pew Research Center finding is down from 15 percent in 2015 and 48 percent in 2000. However, that number remains stubbornly high among people age 65 and older, 25 percent of whom say they don’t log on. By comparison, just 4 percent of Americans between the ages of 50 and 64 say they don’t use the internet, down from 12 percent in 2019. The difference in internet use is similarly stark when graded by educational attainment. While 14 percent of Americans with a high school education or lower don’t use the internet, the share quickly drops to 3 percent among Americans with some college education and 2 percent with a college degree or higher. 25 percent of citizens 65 and older do not use the internet, according to the study. Pew also defines household income as an indicator of connectivity, with 14 percent of adults living in households earning less than $30,000 per year reporting never using the internet. Among households making $30,000 to $49,999 per year, the percentage of non-internet users drops to 9 percent and plummets to 2 percent of adults in households making $50,000 to $74,999 per year. Only four percent of Americans between the ages of 50 and 64 say they don’t use the internet. The study also found “no statistically significant differences in non-internet use by gender, race and ethnicity, or community type.” Just 5 percent of Hispanic adults and 9 percent of black adults report they never use the internet, down from 14 percent and 15 percent, respectively, in 2019. Similarly, the study found that 10 percent of adults in rural areas never use the internet, compared to 6 percent of suburban adults and 5 percent of urban adults — while slightly more women (7%) than men (6%) say they never go online.

Milo Ventimiglia leaves the gym in short shorts My oh Milo! “This is Us” hunk Milo Ventimiglia showed off his very buff bod while leaving the gym in West Hollywood on Monday. The 43-year-old’s muscular thighs were on full display in black short shorts, while his toned arms were visible in a tee with rolled-up sleeves. The actor — also wearing Converse sneakers, a face mask and Ray-Bans on top of his heaad — clutched a water bottle and what looked to be an energy drink as he made his way to his car. The “Gilmore Girls” alum didn’t seem to mind the paparazzi and even threw up a peace sign as he sped off in his shiny black sports car with his shades on. Ventimiglia is not one to shy away from flexing his gains. He famously showed off his push-up capabilities in 2016 — with the talk show host sitting on his back. He has also said in the past that he’s just fine with being a sex symbol, saying in 2017, “I’m not uncomfortable with it. I think what I try and do is try and represent what men could be, which is kind, which is giving, which is not a pushover.” Ventimiglia’s talents and good looks scored him the title of Hasty Pudding Man of the Year in 2019. During the event’s roast, the lifelong vegetarian was skewered as “a piece of meat.”

Ketchup reportedly suffering from latest COVID-era shortage The coronavirus pandemic has sparked a nationwide ketchup shortage that has restaurants scrambling to get ahold of America’s most popular condiment, a new report says. In especially short supply are ketchup packets, a hot commodity for eateries that have relied on takeout orders over the past year as COVID-19 crimped their dining room capacity, according to The Wall Street Journal. Health officials have also helped drive up demand by pushing restaurants to ditch shared ketchup bottles for packets or other single-use containers, the paper reported. Prices for ketchup packets have spiked 13 percent since January 2020 amid that increased demand — and Heinz, the largest producer in the market, hasn’t been able to keep up, the Monday story says. The iconic ketchup brand is urging restaurants to be patient while it works to increase its manufacturing capacity by 25 percent so it can churn out more than 12 billion “sachets” a year, according to the Journal. “We’re busy doing everything we can,” Steve Cornell, an executive at Heinz parent Kraft Heinz, told the paper. With Heinz playing catch-up, Denver’s Blake Street Tavern had to switch ketchup brands last month after its supply order arrived with no Heinz — sending owner Chris Fuselier into a panic, according to the Journal. “How can we serve french fries without Heinz ketchup?” Fuselier reportedly wondered at the time. The shortage has also forced some larger restaurant chains to find alternative methods of securing the coveted condiment, the report says. Increased packet prices have driven up the ketchup bill by $500,000 at the Long John Silver’s fast-food chain, which had to buy the sauce from secondary suppliers as demand surged, according to the Journal. And some restaurant managers at Texas Roadhouse — which used 55 million ounces of ketchup last year — had to shop for the stuff at Costco and other wholesalers when their usual suppliers ran low, the paper reported. “We feel like the bottom of the barrel,” Texas Roadhouse spokesperson Travis Doster told the paper.

Astros manager Dusty Baker losing patience after fans’ trash-can stunt By Jeremy Layton The Astros are playing in front of fans this season for the first time since their sign-stealing scandal came to light, and as everyone expected, they’ve been showered with boos by rival fans at every turn. On Monday night, Angels fans took the showering to a new level. At the end of the sixth inning, fans heaved an inflatable garbage can over the right field wall, a glaring jab at the team, who infamously banged on trash cans to signal the pitches that were coming. When Altuve was at bat not long after, areal trash can was hurled over the same wall, and bottles spilled out of it. After the game, a 7-6 loss, manager Dusty Baker was upset with the antics. “You can tell the amount of hostility and the amount of hatred in the stands,” Baker said. “How many in the stands have never done anything wrong in their life? We paid the price for it. How many people have not cheated on a test or whatever at some point in time. I mean it’s easy if you live in glass houses, but I don’t think anybody lives in glass houses. “I think that sometimes we need to look at ourselves before you spew hate on somebody else. It’s a sad situation for America, to me, when you hear things – I mean what are the kids supposed to think in the stands? And some of them are kids that are following their parents. It’s sad to me. People make mistakes. We paid for ours, and I wish they’d leave it alone.” To be fair, they really didn’t pay for the mistake at all. Manager A.J. Hinch was fired, but none of the players received even a single game of suspension. The team made it back to the ALCS in the first year after the scandal was revealed. They even got to escape the boos and wrath of fans for a full year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Either way, the team can complain all it wants, but there’s no way the jeers are going to stop anytime soon.

How ironic that I just posted this a few hours ago:

Brothers kill 4 family members before turning gun on themselves Two brothers are accused of gunning down four family members inside their Texas home before turning the weapons on themselves in a chilling crime that they plotted months in advance, reports said Monday. Police believe Farhan Towhid, 19, and his older brother, 21-year-old Tanvir Towhid, carried out the carnage Saturday at the family’s home in Allen, according to Fox 4. All six victims of the Towhid family — including the brothers’ parents, sister and grandmother — were discovered by police dead with gunshot wounds during a wellness check at about 1 a.m. on Monday. Facebook “Hey everyone. I killed myself and my family,” Farhan wrote in a suicide note. “If I killed just myself, they would be miserable,” Farhan explained in his note. “I love my family. I genuinely do. And that’s exactly why I decided to kill them.” A friend of Farhan’s told police about the rambling suicide note Farhan had linked to from Instagram, detailing how he and his brother hatched the plan in February to kill their family and themselves if they could not “fix everything,” CBS DFW reported. Both brothers, who attended UT Austin, battled depression, the note said. “The plan was simple. We get two guns. I take one and shoot my sister and grandma, while my brother kills our parents with the other. Then we take ourselves out,” Farhan wrote. Police on Monday identified the boy’s parents as 54-year-old Towhidul Islam and his 56-year-old wife, Iren Islam. Farhan’s twin sister, Farbin Towhid, had a full scholarship to NYU, FOX 4 reported. The grandmother, 77-year-old Altafun Nessa, was visiting from Bangladesh. She was set to return home next month, the report said.

I just alluded to the famous Mike Branson/Tom Chase scene in California Kings in another thread, and I decided afterwards to watch it again. I'd forgotten how annoying it was that the cameraman rapidly zipped from one shot to another repeatedly throughout the scene. There was no editing to alleviate the problem. It was very distracting. I recently watched an even older video called Hot Off The Press. Jon King had 2 scenes in it. In the first one, the video cameraman was atrocious. At one point he had the still photographer completely in the frame between himself and the performers, and several times you saw a piece of the still photographer. Any bad examples y'all can think of?

Mike Branson fucking Tom Chase in California Kings. Once in Mikes's role, then once in Tom's role. Then once in Tom's role, then once in Mike's role. Then once in Mike's role, then once in Tom's role. Then... Of course, I'd need to have their bodies and cocks before I'd appear (tastefully) nude on video. ?? https://txxx.com/videos/15308544/mike-branson-tom-chase/

Christina lists house with estranged husband Ant Anstead for $6M The California home that HGTV star Christina Haack once shared with her now-estranged husband, Ant Anstead, has hit the market for $6 million. They first purchased the Newport Beach home in June 2018 for $4.1 million. Following two years of marriage, the two announced their separation in September. Haack, 37, remained in the home, while Anstead moved out. Six months after they split, Anstead, 42,told People that he was having difficulty finding another place in the area to stay close to their one-year-old son, Hudson London. “I feel like I need a home. It’s been over six months now,” he told the magazine, adding that while he has so many exciting ventures going on in his professional life, he’s struggled to find that special place where he and Hudson can settle in. “I still feel… I feel displaced,” he continued, “so I feel like if I can find a home, I can really start to rebuild from there.” The coastal southern California property is also the same residence where the former couple hosted their secret wedding in 2018. Spanning 4,804 square feet, the five-bedroom, five-bathroom abode has been marketed as a “once in a lifetime opportunity to own a fully realized and furnished vision by an HGTV celebrity.” Anstead filed for divorce on November 3. Since calling it quits, Haack has purchased a yacht named Aftermath while Ant has entered a “breakup recovery” program and lost more than 20 pounds.