Pop Culture
Sad! Donald Trump’s Twitter Ban Is Permanent, CFO Confirms
It only took four years of violating the Terms of Service, but in January Twitter finally worked up the courage to ban then-President Donald Trump. Still, the one-time Tweeter-in-Chief has vowed to run for president in 2024, perhaps under the banner of a new Patriot Party. This has led many to speculate that Twitter would relax the ban if Trump returned to power, since they already showed cowardice an unwillingness to challenge him while he spoke for half the country. Well, bad news for all the “God bless you, sir!” reply-guys, because Twitter CFO Ned Segal has confirmed that the Orange Menace is gone for good. “The way our policies work, when you’re removed from the platform, you’re removed from the platform,” Segal told CNBC’s Squawk Box, “whether you’re a commentator, you’re a CFO, or y...
Documentary on Four Seasons Total Landscaping in the Works
Four Seasons Total Landscaping is still cashing in on its increased exposure thanks to the bumbling, blundering 2020 Trump campaign. Since the humble Philadelphia business became the accidental site of a Rudy Giuliani press conference back in November, the company has raked it in with exclusive merch and that cheeky “Opportunity Knocks” Super Bowl ad for Fiverr. Now, the debacle that started this whole thing will become the focus of a new documentary from a pair of Oscar-winning producers. Entitled Four Seasons Total Documentary, the in-production film is being directed by Christopher Stoudt (Patron Saint of Jazz Fest). Glen Zipper and Sean Stuart, who won Academy Awards in 2012 for their high school football doc Undefeated, are serving as producers (via The Hollywood Reporter). Four Seaso...
Donald Trump Permanently Banned from SAG-AFTRA Following Angry Resignation Letter
If Donald Trump ever does intend to reenter entertainment, he’ll do so without the backing of the Screen Actors Guild — American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, as the union has permanently banned him from their ranks. Like the unemployed toddler he is, Trump threw a tantrum when he learned the SAG-AFTRA Disciplinary Committee was to hold a disciplinary hearing over the former Apprentice host’s role in the January 6th insurrection. He issued the most childish resignation letter ever, touting his work on Home Alone 2 and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air as if he deserved Golden Globes. He even claimed the media’s coverage of him helped save the cable news industry and “created thousands of jobs at networks. Initially, SAG responded to the note with a blunt and simple, “Thank you...
HBO Developing GameStop Stock Movie with Billions Co-Creator, Blumhouse
If you ask the folks on r/WallStreetBets, the saga of taking GameStop to the moon in order to stick it to hedge funds shorting the company’s stock isn’t nearly over. But even in the midst of this social media-based financial smack down, Hollywood is already seeing its own dollar signs. The latest studio seeking to adapt the real-life story is HBO, which is developing a project with Billions co-creator and financial journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin, former HBO Films head Len Amato, and Jason Blum’s Blumhouse. The Hollywood Reporter has it that the cable network is currently in search of a writer to pen the film. The outlet also continually refers to the production as a “project,” shying away from specifying if it might be a movie, TV show, or limited series. Any of those forms might work for t...
“Hollyboob” Stunt Was Actually a Statement Against Instagram’s Censorship
On Monday, a group of people climbed up and altered the iconic Hollywood sign to read “Hollyboob”. All six of them were subsequently arrested and charged with misdemeanor trespassing, but their stunt wasn’t for naught. As it turns out, the feat wasn’t a pointless prank like the 2017 “Hollyweed” hi-jink, but a statement against Instagram’s censorship of sex workers. The person who organized the caper is a woman named Julia Rose, the founder and CEO of an adult website called Shagmag, which boasts the description “Playboy’s hotter, younger sister” on its website. In an interview with Vice, Rose explained that both her personal Instagram account and the official Shagmag account were recently suspended from the app for nudity. The “Hollyboob” maneuver was an elaborate way t...
Jeff Bezos Will Step Down as Amazon CEO
Alexa, what do you do after you’ve conquered the world? In an email to his employees, Amazon founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos has announced he’ll be stepping down in Q3, with current head of Amazon Web Services Andy Jassy taking over. Bezos will transition to the role of Executive Chairman, where he’ll be less involved in day-to-day operations but still focused on long-term strategy. In his letter, Bezos wrote that, “In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives,” while investing more time in his personal and philanthropic projects. He continued, “As Exec Chair I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, Th...
R.I.P. Ricky Powell, Iconic Hip-Hop Photographer and Honorary Beastie Boy Dead at 59
Ricky Powell, the celebrated hip-hop photographer who was known as the honorary fourth member of the Beastie Boys, has died at age 59. Powell’s manager and business partner Tono Radvany confirmed that his client had passed away on the night of February 1st. No cause of death has yet to be revealed. “I just want to let everyone know he was a very special man, and he will be sorely missed,” Radvany told Complex. A New York City native through and through, the Brooklyn-born Powell entered photography mainly to stick it to an ex-girlfriend. He discovered a camera she’d left behind and determined to use it to make a name for himself. After photographing art galleries in Greenwich Village and hip-hop shows in downtown Manhattan for a year, he was able to quit his job selling lemon ices to head o...
O.J. Simpson Receives Coronavirus Vaccine
O.J. Simpson is many things, but he is not an anti-vaxxer. The former NFL star-turned-accused murderer received his coronavirus vaccine on Friday. Simpson, who was previously seen partying without a mask, got his shot in Las Vegas on Friday. He was photographed wearing a mask that said, “The Juice” (of course), which he subsequently posted to Twitter. In an accompanying caption, Simpson wrote, “Get your shot. I got mine!!!” Simpson’s lawyer told the New York Post that his client was eligible to receive the vaccine due to his advanced age (he’s 73). “If you’re 70-plus, you’re eligible for the shot — you can schedule your shot and they’ll do it,” Malcolm P. LaVergne said. “There’s no favoritism with him being a celebrity — that has nothing to do with his getting the shot.” As for w...
Reddit Exploited a Hedge Fund and Made GameStop Stock Prices Explode
Shares of GameStop (GME) opened at more than $350 today after starting the month at around $17 a share. This has led a generation of half-dead old white guys to spit out their coffees onto their Wall Street Journals, demanding to know: what happened? Via New York Times, The Motley Fool, and CNBC, a Reddit board has used an avalanche of small trades to exploit an enormous bet made by the hedge fund Melvin Capital, with the little investors making a killing while the billionaires took a bath. The story begins with a financial practice called “shorting,” which happens when an investor is convinced that a stock price will go down. They borrow shares from a lender with an agreement to give the stock back at a later date. In the meantime, the investor hopes to make some money. First, t...
Disney’s Jungle Cruise Ride Will Remove “Negative Depictions” of Native Peoples
Another round of changes are coming to both of America’s Disney parks. The iconic Jungle Cruise rides at Disneyland and Disney World will be modified to remove what the company calls “negative depictions” of native peoples. According to a new post on the Disney Parks Blog, the riverboat attraction that first opened at Disneyland in 1955 and was replicated at Disney World in 1971 will no longer feature dated scenes of people of color dressed in generic jungle attire. Instead, the ride will follow an actual storyline narrated by its beloved skippers, and the scenery will contain more animals and less offensive human depictions. These updates are being made to “reflect and value the diversity of the world around us.” “This is not a re-envisioning of the entire attraction,” explained Disney Im...
TikTok “Dreams” Sensation to Skateboard in Joe Biden’s Inauguration Parade
With that one loser finally on his way out of the White House, Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day celebrations are expected to be all about the good vibes. And who better to bring them than Mr. “Good Vibes Only” himself, Nathan Apodaca, a.k.a. TikTok “Dreams” skateboarder @420doggface208. According to TMZ, the viral sensation is scheduled to appear as part of Biden’s virtual inauguration parade later this week. The President-elect’s planning team reportedly tapped Apodaca “because they saw how his feel-good video uplifted the world this past fall during social unrest and pandemic anxiety.” For those who may have somehow missed it, Apodaca’s famed TikTok clip saw him skateboarding blissfully to Fleetwood Mac hit “Dreams” while sipping from a bottle of Ocean Spray. For a brief moment, the hum...
Donald Trump Orders Construction of 250 Bizarrely Chosen Statues on His Way Out of Office
On his way out of office, Donald Trump is expected to issue a flurry of executive orders and pardons. Among the actions taken on Monday was an executive order following through on his pledge to build a “Garden of American Heroes.” Trump first announced plans for the monument over the summer, but today’s executive order includes a full list of statues that shall be constructed. It’s a disorientingly long list of 250 names spanning entertainment, sports, literature, and politics, with no apparent rhyme or reason for why they were included other than that they’re dead. Musicians include Johnny Cash, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Billie Holliday, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Elvis, and Whitney Houston, while Humphrey Bogart, Bob Hope, and Jimmy Stewart are among the Hollywood figures ...
