#producer Chris Sheldon

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Mike Luckovich

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

October 9, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Oct 10, 2024

Yesterday we learned from a forthcoming book by veteran journalist Bob Woodward that in 2020, while he was president, Trump secretly shipped Covid-19 testing equipment to Russian president Vladimir Putin for his own personal use at a time when Americans could not get it. To be clear, this equipment was not the swabs we now use at home, but appears to be what at the time was a new point-of-care machine from Abbott Laboratories that claimed to be the fastest way to test for Covid-19. 

Journalist Karly Kingsley points out that at the time, central lab testing to diagnose Covid-19 infections took a long time, causing infections to spread. Machines like Abbott’s were hard to get. Trump chose to send them to Putin—not to charge him for them, or to negotiate for the release of Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed, two Americans being held by Russia at the time and later released under the Biden administration, but to give them to him—rather than keeping them for Americans.

It’s hard to overstate just what an astonishing story this is. In 2016, Republicans stood firm against Putin and backed the arming of Ukraine to stand against Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea. But that summer, at Trump’s urging, the party changed its platform to weaken its support of Ukraine. In 2020, it appears, Trump chose to give lifesaving equipment to Putin rather than use it for Americans. And in 2024, Trump’s willingness to undermine the United States to cozy up to an adversary his own party stood against less than a decade ago does not appear to be a deal breaker for Republicans.

As Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) put it: “What has this country come to if the revelation that Trump secretly sent COVID testing machines to Putin while thousands of Americans were dying, in part because of a shortage of testing machines here, doesn't disqualify him to be President?” He continued: “Donald Trump helped keep Putin alive during the pandemic and let Americans die. This revelation is damning. It's disqualifying. He cannot be President of the United States.” 

Increasingly, Trump’s behavior seems to parrot the dictators he appears to admire. 

After 60 Minutes called him out for breaking a fifty-year tradition of both candidates talking to 60 Minutes and backing out of an interview to which he had agreed, Trump today accused the producers of 60 Minutes of cutting Vice President Kamala Harris’s answers to make her look good. He suggested that such cuts were “illegal” and possibly “a major Campaign Finance violation” that “must be investigated, starting today!” “The public is owed a MAJOR AND IMMEDIATE APOLOGY!” he wrote. Trump is trying to cover for his own failure by attacking CBS in an echo of dictators determined to control the media.

In a post on his social media site tonight, Trump appears to have declined to appear at another presidential debate with Vice President Harris. After declaring he had won the previous debate with Harris and rehashing many of his grievances, he wrote: “THERE WILL BE NO REMATCH!”

As Beth Reinhard of the Washington Post recounted yesterday, a report from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, revealed that the Trump White House prevented a real investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. More than 4,500 calls and electronic messages about Kavanaugh sent to the FBI tip line went directly to the White House, where they were never investigated, and the FBI was told not to pursue corroborating evidence of the accusations by Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez although lawyers for the women presented the names of dozens of people who could testify to the truth of their allegations.  

A number of senators said the lack of corroborating evidence convinced them to vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s confirmation. As Steve Benen of MSNBC recalled, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) said at the time that it appeared to be “a very thorough investigation,” while the late Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said that the 2018 FBI report “looks to be a product of an incomplete investigation that was limited perhaps by the White House.”

After he left office, Trump told author Michael Wolff that he had gone to bat for Kavanaugh, saying: “I…fought like hell for Kavanaugh—and I saved his life, and I saved his career.” Kavanaugh was the crucial vote for Trump’s right-wing agenda, including ending the federal recognition of abortion rights by overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

Ken Bensinger reported in the New York Times today that Trump’s team has refused to participate in preparations for a transition to a potential Trump presidency. Normally, the nonpartisan transition process, dictated by the Presidential Transition Act, has candidates setting up teams as much as six months before the election to begin vetting and hiring political appointees and working with the administration in office to make sure the agencies continue to run smoothly. 

With the election less than a month away, Trump has neither signed the required agreements nor signed the transition’s ethics plan that would require him to disclose private donors to the transition and limit them to contributions of no more than $5,000. Without that agreement, there are no limits to the money the Trump transition can take. Trump has also refused to sign an agreement with the White House requiring that anyone receiving classified information have a security clearance. Currently, his aides cannot review federal records.

Trump ignored the traditional transition period in 2016, cutting off communications with President Barack Obama’s team. He refused to allow incoming president Joe Biden access to federal agencies in 2020, hampering Biden’s ability to get his administration in place in a timely fashion. Now it’s possible that Trump sees no need for a normal transition because Project 2025, on which he appears to be relying, has been working on one for many months. 

It calls for him to fire most federal employees, reinstating the policy he started at the end of his term. To fill their positions, the Heritage Foundation has been vetting loyalists now for months, preparing a list of job candidates to put in place a new, right-wing agenda.  

Yesterday, on California’s KFI radio station, Trump told host John Kobylt that Tom Homan of Project 2025, who as director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement oversaw the family separation policy at the southern border, will be “coming on board” a new Trump administration. 

This afternoon, Trump told an audience in Scranton, Pennsylvania, that he expects to put former rival Vivek Ramaswamy into an important position in his administration. On October 7, 2024, Ramaswamy suggested on social media that he wants to get rid of Social Security and Medicare. He wrote: “Shut down the entitlement state & you solve most of the immigration problem right there. We need to man up & fix the root cause that draws migrants here in the first place: the welfare state. But no one seems to want to say that part out loud, because too many native-born Americans are addicted to it themselves.”

Trump has expressed frustration with the independence of the Federal Reserve, expressing a desire to make it answer to the president. In an interview with Barron’s, one of his advisors, Scott Bessent, has floated the idea of creating a shadow Fed chair until the term of the current chair, Jerome Powell, ends, thus undercutting him without facing a fight over firing the Fed chair. 

This agenda is not a popular one in the U.S., but Trump is getting a boost as Russian operatives work to swing downballot races toward the Republicans. In a briefing on Monday, October 7, experts from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) told reporters that China and Iran are trying to influence the upcoming election and that “Moscow is leveraging a wide range of influence actors in an effort to influence congressional races, particularly to encourage the U.S. public to oppose pro-Ukraine policies and politicians. Russian influence actors have planned, and likely created and disseminated, content, particularly over social media, intended to encourage the election of congressional candidates that Moscow assesses will oppose aid to Ukraine.”  

Russia, an ODNI spokesperson said, uses “influence-for-hire firms, or commercial firms with expertise in these type[s] of activities.” It also coopts “witting and unwitting Americans to work on Russia’s behalf,” to “launder their influence narratives through what are perceived as more authentic U.S. voices.” 

Not all of Trump’s supporters appear eager to stick around to see if Trump will win another term. Today news broke that Patrick M. Byrne, the former chief executive officer of OverStock, who became a fervent advocate of the idea that Trump was the true winner of the 2020 presidential election, has left the country, apparently permanently, to live in Dubai. Dominion Voting Systems is suing Byrne, as is President Biden’s son Hunter. The younger Biden sued Byrne for defamation last November after Byrne claimed Hunter Biden sought a bribe from Iran. 

In September, Biden’s lawyers were trying to schedule a date for Byrne’s deposition when his lawyer abruptly “claimed for the first time that Defendant has moved his residence to Dubai and if Plaintiff wanted to take his in-person deposition counsel would have to fly to Dubai to do so, to which Plaintiff responded with various related inquiries to try to resolve this matter and defense counsel stated Defendant would not be returning to the United States for the foreseeable future.” 

Byrne claimed to have fled the U.S. because the Venezuelan government has put a bounty on him, but as Biden’s lawyers note, “the Defendant’s truthfulness is directly at issue.” 

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[yourreddancer]

Heather Cox Richardson Oct 9

Yesterday we learned from a forthcoming book by veteran journalist Bob Woodward that in 2020, while he was president, Trump secretly shipped Covid-19 testing equipment to Russian president Vladimir Putin for his own personal use at a time when Americans could not get it.

To be clear, this equipment was not the swabs we now use at home, but appears to be what at the time was a new point-of-care machine from Abbott Laboratories that claimed to be the fastest way to test for Covid-19. 

Journalist Karly Kingsley points out that at the time, central lab testing to diagnose Covid-19 infections took a long time, causing infections to spread. Machines like Abbott’s were hard to get. Trump chose to send them to Putin—not to charge him for them, or to negotiate for the release of Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed, two Americans being held by Russia at the time and later released under the Biden administration, but to give them to him—rather than keeping them for Americans.

NOTE: DOJ!! THIS IS TREASON! ADD THIS TO THE CHARGES

It’s hard to overstate just what an astonishing story this is. In 2016, Republicans stood firm against Putin and backed the arming of Ukraine to stand against Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea. But that summer, at Trump’s urging, the party changed its platform to weaken its support of Ukraine. In 2020, it appears, Trump chose to give lifesaving equipment to Putin rather than use it for Americans. And in 2024, Trump’s willingness to undermine the United States to cozy up to an adversary his own party stood against less than a decade ago does not appear to be a deal breaker for Republicans.

As Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) put it: “What has this country come to if the revelation that Trump secretly sent COVID testing machines to Putin while thousands of Americans were dying, in part because of a shortage of testing machines here, doesn't disqualify him to be President?” He continued: “Donald Trump helped keep Putin alive during the pandemic and let Americans die. This revelation is damning. It's disqualifying. He cannot be President of the United States.” 

Increasingly, Trump’s behavior seems to parrot the dictators he appears to admire. 

After 60 Minutes called him out for breaking a fifty-year tradition of both candidates talking to 60 Minutes and backing out of an interview to which he had agreed, Trump today accused the producers of 60 Minutes of cutting Vice President Kamala Harris’s answers to make her look good. He suggested that such cuts were “illegal” and possibly “a major Campaign Finance violation” that “must be investigated, starting today!” “The public is owed a MAJOR AND IMMEDIATE APOLOGY!” he wrote. Trump is trying to cover for his own failure by attacking CBS in an echo of dictators determined to control the media.

In a post on his social media site tonight, Trump appears to have declined to appear at another presidential debate with Vice President Harris. After declaring he had won the previous debate with Harris and rehashing many of his grievances, he wrote: “THERE WILL BE NO REMATCH!”

As Beth Reinhard of the Washington Post recounted yesterday, a report from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, revealed that the Trump White House prevented a real investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. More than 4,500 calls and electronic messages about Kavanaugh sent to the FBI tip line went directly to the White House, where they were never investigated, and the FBI was told not to pursue corroborating evidence of the accusations by Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez although lawyers for the women presented the names of dozens of people who could testify to the truth of their allegations.  

A number of senators said the lack of corroborating evidence convinced them to vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s confirmation. As Steve Benen of MSNBC recalled, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) said at the time that it appeared to be “a very thorough investigation,” while the late Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said that the 2018 FBI report “looks to be a product of an incomplete investigation that was limited perhaps by the White House.”

After he left office, Trump told author Michael Wolff that he had gone to bat for Kavanaugh, saying: “I…fought like hell for Kavanaugh—and I saved his life, and I saved his career.” Kavanaugh was the crucial vote for Trump’s right-wing agenda, including ending the federal recognition of abortion rights by overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

Ken Bensinger reported in the New York Times today that Trump’s team has refused to participate in preparations for a transition to a potential Trump presidency. Normally, the nonpartisan transition process, dictated by the Presidential Transition Act, has candidates setting up teams as much as six months before the election to begin vetting and hiring political appointees and working with the administration in office to make sure the agencies continue to run smoothly. 

With the election less than a month away, Trump has neither signed the required agreements nor signed the transition’s ethics plan that would require him to disclose private donors to the transition and limit them to contributions of no more than $5,000. Without that agreement, there are no limits to the money the Trump transition can take. Trump has also refused to sign an agreement with the White House requiring that anyone receiving classified information have a security clearance. Currently, his aides cannot review federal records.

NOTE: THEN WHY THE HELL IS HE BEING ALLOWED TO RUN FOR OFFICE? THE ELECTIONS COMMITTEE SHOULD DISQUALIFY HIM NOW!!!!!

Trump ignored the traditional transition period in 2016, cutting off communications with President Barack Obama’s team. He refused to allow incoming president Joe Biden access to federal agencies in 2020, hampering Biden’s ability to get his administration in place in a timely fashion. Now it’s possible that Trump sees no need for a normal transition because Project 2025, on which he appears to be relying, has been working on one for many months. 

It calls for him to fire most federal employees, reinstating the policy he started at the end of his term. To fill their positions, the Heritage Foundation has been vetting loyalists now for months, preparing a list of job candidates to put in place a new, right-wing agenda.  

Yesterday, on California’s KFI radio station, Trump told host John Kobylt that Tom Homan of Project 2025, who as director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement oversaw the family separation policy at the southern border, will be “coming on board” a new Trump administration. 

This afternoon, Trump told an audience in Scranton, Pennsylvania, that he expects to put former rival Vivek Ramaswamy into an important position in his administration. On October 7, 2024, Ramaswamy suggested on social media that he wants to get rid of Social Security and Medicare. He wrote: “Shut down the entitlement state & you solve most of the immigration problem right there. We need to man up & fix the root cause that draws migrants here in the first place: the welfare state. But no one seems to want to say that part out loud, because too many native-born Americans are addicted to it themselves.”

Trump has expressed frustration with the independence of the Federal Reserve, expressing a desire to make it answer to the president. In an interview with Barron’s, one of his advisors, Scott Bessent, has floated the idea of creating a shadow Fed chair until the term of the current chair, Jerome Powell, ends, thus undercutting him without facing a fight over firing the Fed chair. 

This agenda is not a popular one in the U.S., but Trump is getting a boost as Russian operatives work to swing downballot races toward the Republicans. In a briefing on Monday, October 7, experts from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) told reporters that China and Iran are trying to influence the upcoming election and that “Moscow is leveraging a wide range of influence actors in an effort to influence congressional races, particularly to encourage the U.S. public to oppose pro-Ukraine policies and politicians. Russian influence actors have planned, and likely created and disseminated, content, particularly over social media, intended to encourage the election of congressional candidates that Moscow assesses will oppose aid to Ukraine.”  

Russia, an ODNI spokesperson said, uses “influence-for-hire firms, or commercial firms with expertise in these type[s] of activities.” It also coopts “witting and unwitting Americans to work on Russia’s behalf,” to “launder their influence narratives through what are perceived as more authentic U.S. voices.” 

NOTE: IF THIS DOESN'T ABSOLUTELY INFURIATE YOU , YOU'RE EITHER UNCONSCIOUS OR NOT PAYING ATTENTION!!!!!!

Not all of Trump’s supporters appear eager to stick around to see if Trump will win another term. Today news broke that Patrick M. Byrne, the former chief executive officer of OverStock, who became a fervent advocate of the idea that Trump was the true winner of the 2020 presidential election, has left the country, apparently permanently, to live in Dubai. Dominion Voting Systems is suing Byrne, as is President Biden’s son Hunter. The younger Biden sued Byrne for defamation last November after Byrne claimed Hunter Biden sought a bribe from Iran. 

In September, Biden’s lawyers were trying to schedule a date for Byrne’s deposition when his lawyer abruptly “claimed for the first time that Defendant has moved his residence to Dubai and if Plaintiff wanted to take his in-person deposition counsel would have to fly to Dubai to do so, to which Plaintiff responded with various related inquiries to try to resolve this matter and defense counsel stated Defendant would not be returning to the United States for the foreseeable future.” 

Byrne claimed to have fled the U.S. because the Venezuelan government has put a bounty on him, but as Biden’s lawyers note, “the Defendant’s truthfulness is directly at issue.” 

[dennistamayo]

My future projects

Here are my future projects for Boomerang, Amazon Prime Video, Discovery Family & Max (streaming service) between early 2025 & late 2026.

1. Dexter’s Laboratory Season 5 (new characters being developed for Season 5 after 22 episode scripts)

2. A 2D animated direct-to-DVD & Blu-ray movie about child rights narrated by Dexter from Dexter’s Lab co-produced with UNICEF.

3. A Saturday morning cartoon based on a popular sitcom of the 1990s & the 2000s, Friends by Marta Kauffman & David Crane. The 6 main characters will be in their preteens years (ages 10 to 12) set in Central Perk & the art style will be inspired by Genndy Tartakovsky & Chris Savino in the late 1990s & the early 2000s days of Cartoon Network originals.

4. A Cartoon Network crossover show with the 2 main stars of Dexter’s Laboratory, Dexter & Dee Dee similar to the Hanna-Barbera crossover shows of the 1970s & the 1980s led by Yogi Bear.

5. A documentary style animated show about 6 preteen girls which will be a spin-off of Dexter’s Lab as the characters will be modeled after Dee Dee, Dexter’s sister.

6. A Saturday morning cartoon based on an another popular sitcom, The Big Bang Theory by Chuck Lorre & Bill Prady. The main characters will be in their preteens years (ages 10 to 12) set in Pasadena, California during the events of Young Sheldon & the art style will be inspired by Genndy Tartakovsky, Craig McCracken & Chris Savino in the late 1990s & in the early 2000s days of Cartoon Network originals, similar to the animated Friends spin-off I’ll be developing.

7. An untitled 2D animated Dexter direct-to-DVD & Blu-ray movie with Dee Dee combining the use of Flash animation & 3D cel shaded CGI.

Note: The new characters I’ll be developing will be inspired by Genndy Tartakovsky & Craig McCracken & not Pendleton Ward & J. G. Quintel.

[yessadirichards]

What to stream this week: 'Young Sheldon,' Amy Schumer, 'Oppenheimer' and lots and lots of JLo

Christopher Nolan's “Oppenheimer” arriving on Peacock and a documentary and album from Jennifer Lopez are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you.

Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: “Young Sheldon” returning for its seventh and final season, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. exploring the power of gospel in a two-part PBS documentary and Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones pirate-themed video game.

— If you were holding out for “Oppenheimer” on streaming, now’s your chance to catch up before the Oscars (March 10), where it’s up for 13 awards including best picture, best director for Christopher Nolan and best actor for Cillian Murphy. The film arrives on Peacock on Friday, Feb. 16. Nolan and Emma Thomas, his producer and wife, are passionate advocates of the big screen experience, but they also know that most people will watch their films in the home — sometimes even as their first time. It’s how both discovered some of their favorites as well, they’ve said. In an interview with The Associated Press, Thomas added, “The nice thing about Chris’ films is because they are so very rich and reward multiple viewings, I think that they’re perfectly pitched for home viewings.”

— Jennifer Lopez has a new movie coming to Prime Video on Feb. 16. She co-wrote “This is Me…Now: A Love Story,” a movie musical about finding love which she called “the most personal thing I’ve ever done.” It is a star-studded endeavor, with appearances from her husband, Ben Affleck, Keke Palmer, Sofia Vergara, Post Malone and more, and ties in with her first studio album in a decade (see below). Also coming to Prime Video is Emma Seligman’s “gay high school fight club” comedy “Bottoms,” starring Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri as a few misfits who start a fight club to flirt with the hot cheerleaders (Kaia Gerber and Havana Rose Liu). In his review, AP Film Writer Jake Coyle wrote that, “The rites and rituals of the raunchy high-school comedy can be as prescribed as a class syllabus. But what makes Emma Seligman’s “Bottoms” such an anarchic thrill is how much it couldn’t care less.”

— And finally, Taika Waititi’s “Next Goal Wins” arrives on Hulu on Thursday. It’s based on the real story of the American Samoa men’s soccer team quest to qualify for the FIFA World Cup after an historic loss (31-nill) against Australia. Michael Fassbender plays the coach who tries to help. In his AP review, Mark Kennedy wrote that “’Next Goal Wins’ is most winning in the way it handles the team’s star player, Jaiyah Saelua, who became the first nonbinary player to compete in a men’s FIFA qualifier. Played with real tenderness and joy by nonbinary actor Kaimana, the way the team and coach relate to Saelua is genuine and touching."

— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr

— Get ready for a second dose of J.Lo. On Friday, Feb. 16, she drops the Amazon original film “This is Me… Now: A Love Story” (see above) as well as her “This Is Me… Now” album. The 13-track set’s song titles include “To Be Yours,” “Mad in Love,” “Greatest Love Story Never Told” and “Dear Ben Pt. II,” a seeming sequel to a track on her 2002 album “This Is Me … Then.” The video for one new pop single, “Can’t Get Enough,” has as much JLo strutting as all of Paris Fashion Week. Lopez’s last album, “A.K.A.,” came out in 2014 and reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200.

— Blackberry Smoke — a Georgia-based band that has been together for 24 years and seven studio albums — makes a strong return with “Be Right Here,” blending blues, Southern rock and Americana. The album contains the arena country “Hammer and the Nail,” the rocking “Little Bit Crazy” and the driving, bluesy “Dig a Hole.” The band goes more acoustic with the wistful “Azalea,” about a loved one making a wrong decision, with the lyrics “Coming back don’t mean you're leaving here was wrong/Sorry ain’t the same as moving on.”

— AP Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy

— In a new docuseries for PBS, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. examines how sermon and song have long been a source of strength and wisdom in America, particularly among Black Americans. “Gospel,” a four-part series told over two nights has interviews with Dionne Warwick, U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock and more. “Gospel” airs Monday Tuesday on PBS.

— Ben Mendelsohn and Juliette Binoche play Christian Dior and Coco Chanel in a new historical drama “The New Look” for Apple TV+. The 10-episode series is set against the backdrop of Paris reemerging from Nazi occupation in WWII. Dior’s designs helped to lift an oppressed France and its culture with a stylish, modern glow up. As Dior rose to prominence, a rivalry developed between other established designers, including Chanel. “The New Look” also stars Maisie Williams, John Malkovich, Emily Mortimer and Glenn Close. The first three episodes of “The New Look” drop Wednesday on the streamer.

— Before Sheldon Cooper met Leonard, Penny or Amy he was a child prodigy growing up in east Texas. Iain Armitage plays the coming-of-age version of the character in the CBS comedy “Young Sheldon.” Emmy winner Jim Parsons who played Sheldon on “Big Bang” for 12 seasons, narrates. “Young Sheldon” returns for its seventh and final season on Thursday.

— Amy Schumer’s Hulu dramedy “Life & Beth” charmed viewers when it debuted in 2022 and the series returns for a second season on Friday, Feb. 16. Schumer writes, directs and stars as Beth opposite Michael Cera, who plays John, a farmer. The two fell in love in season one despite their differences and personal baggage. Now, the couple is planning to marry. Schumer has said the story is semi-autobiographical, inspired by her real-life marriage to chef Chris Fischer. All 10 episodes of season two will be available on the premiere date.

— Alicia Rancilio

— Batten down the hatches: Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones is finally ready to launch after more than a decade of development and delays. You are the captain of a pirate vessel in the Indian Ocean in the 18th century. You have a decent ship to start with, but if you want to make it really deadly you need to start collecting booty. That means pillaging merchant ships, battling rival scalawags, dodging the authorities and even surviving the occasional sea monster on your way to becoming the Pirate Kingpin. You can team up with friends or fight against them in epic naval warfare — something Ubisoft has shown a flair for in some of its Assassin’s Creed games. Set sail Friday, Feb. 16, on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

— Focus Entertainment’s Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden travels to the New World in the 17th century. The protagonists are a couple of paranormal investigators, Red and Antea, who are trying to clear the tormented wraiths out of a haunted settlement. They can help the lost souls ascend or banish them to eternal misery, and those choices have consequences down the line. It all gets more complicated when Antea gets killed — but fortunately she can use her supernatural powers to help Red finish the job. Banishers comes from the French studio Don’t Nod, best known for story-heavy cult favorites like Vampyr and Life Is Strange. You can take possession Tuesday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S or PC.

— Lou Kesten

[misfitwashere]

This is from a few days ago, but IMHO it's worthy of a read:

October 9, 2024

Heather Cox Richardson

Oct 10, 2024

Yesterday we learned from a forthcoming book by veteran journalist Bob Woodward that in 2020, while he was president, Trump secretly shipped Covid-19 testing equipment to Russian president Vladimir Putin for his own personal use at a time when Americans could not get it. To be clear, this equipment was not the swabs we now use at home, but appears to be what at the time was a new point-of-care machine from Abbott Laboratories that claimed to be the fastest way to test for Covid-19. 

Journalist Karly Kingsley points out that at the time, central lab testing to diagnose Covid-19 infections took a long time, causing infections to spread. Machines like Abbott’s were hard to get. Trump chose to send them to Putin—not to charge him for them, or to negotiate for the release of Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed, two Americans being held by Russia at the time and later released under the Biden administration, but to give them to him—rather than keeping them for Americans.

It’s hard to overstate just what an astonishing story this is. In 2016, Republicans stood firm against Putin and backed the arming of Ukraine to stand against Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea. But that summer, at Trump’s urging, the party changed its platform to weaken its support of Ukraine. In 2020, it appears, Trump chose to give lifesaving equipment to Putin rather than use it for Americans. And in 2024, Trump’s willingness to undermine the United States to cozy up to an adversary his own party stood against less than a decade ago does not appear to be a deal breaker for Republicans.

As Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) put it: “What has this country come to if the revelation that Trump secretly sent COVID testing machines to Putin while thousands of Americans were dying, in part because of a shortage of testing machines here, doesn't disqualify him to be President?” He continued: “Donald Trump helped keep Putin alive during the pandemic and let Americans die. This revelation is damning. It's disqualifying. He cannot be President of the United States.” 

Increasingly, Trump’s behavior seems to parrot the dictators he appears to admire. 

After 60 Minutes called him out for breaking a fifty-year tradition of both candidates talking to 60 Minutes and backing out of an interview to which he had agreed, Trump today accused the producers of 60 Minutes of cutting Vice President Kamala Harris’s answers to make her look good. He suggested that such cuts were “illegal” and possibly “a major Campaign Finance violation” that “must be investigated, starting today!” “The public is owed a MAJOR AND IMMEDIATE APOLOGY!” he wrote. Trump is trying to cover for his own failure by attacking CBS in an echo of dictators determined to control the media.

In a post on his social media site tonight, Trump appears to have declined to appear at another presidential debate with Vice President Harris. After declaring he had won the previous debate with Harris and rehashing many of his grievances, he wrote: “THERE WILL BE NO REMATCH!”

As Beth Reinhard of the Washington Post recounted yesterday, a report from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, revealed that the Trump White House prevented a real investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. More than 4,500 calls and electronic messages about Kavanaugh sent to the FBI tip line went directly to the White House, where they were never investigated, and the FBI was told not to pursue corroborating evidence of the accusations by Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez although lawyers for the women presented the names of dozens of people who could testify to the truth of their allegations.  

A number of senators said the lack of corroborating evidence convinced them to vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s confirmation. As Steve Benen of MSNBC recalled, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) said at the time that it appeared to be “a very thorough investigation,” while the late Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said that the 2018 FBI report “looks to be a product of an incomplete investigation that was limited perhaps by the White House.”

After he left office, Trump told author Michael Wolff that he had gone to bat for Kavanaugh, saying: “I…fought like hell for Kavanaugh—and I saved his life, and I saved his career.” Kavanaugh was the crucial vote for Trump’s right-wing agenda, including ending the federal recognition of abortion rights by overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

Ken Bensinger reported in the New York Times today that Trump’s team has refused to participate in preparations for a transition to a potential Trump presidency. Normally, the nonpartisan transition process, dictated by the Presidential Transition Act, has candidates setting up teams as much as six months before the election to begin vetting and hiring political appointees and working with the administration in office to make sure the agencies continue to run smoothly. 

With the election less than a month away, Trump has neither signed the required agreements nor signed the transition’s ethics plan that would require him to disclose private donors to the transition and limit them to contributions of no more than $5,000. Without that agreement, there are no limits to the money the Trump transition can take. Trump has also refused to sign an agreement with the White House requiring that anyone receiving classified information have a security clearance. Currently, his aides cannot review federal records.

Trump ignored the traditional transition period in 2016, cutting off communications with President Barack Obama’s team. He refused to allow incoming president Joe Biden access to federal agencies in 2020, hampering Biden’s ability to get his administration in place in a timely fashion. Now it’s possible that Trump sees no need for a normal transition because Project 2025, on which he appears to be relying, has been working on one for many months. 

It calls for him to fire most federal employees, reinstating the policy he started at the end of his term. To fill their positions, the Heritage Foundation has been vetting loyalists now for months, preparing a list of job candidates to put in place a new, right-wing agenda.  

Yesterday, on California’s KFI radio station, Trump told host John Kobylt that Tom Homan of Project 2025, who as director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement oversaw the family separation policy at the southern border, will be “coming on board” a new Trump administration. 

This afternoon, Trump told an audience in Scranton, Pennsylvania, that he expects to put former rival Vivek Ramaswamy into an important position in his administration. On October 7, 2024, Ramaswamy suggested on social media that he wants to get rid of Social Security and Medicare. He wrote: “Shut down the entitlement state & you solve most of the immigration problem right there. We need to man up & fix the root cause that draws migrants here in the first place: the welfare state. But no one seems to want to say that part out loud, because too many native-born Americans are addicted to it themselves.”

Trump has expressed frustration with the independence of the Federal Reserve, expressing a desire to make it answer to the president. In an interview with Barron’s, one of his advisors, Scott Bessent, has floated the idea of creating a shadow Fed chair until the term of the current chair, Jerome Powell, ends, thus undercutting him without facing a fight over firing the Fed chair. 

This agenda is not a popular one in the U.S., but Trump is getting a boost as Russian operatives work to swing downballot races toward the Republicans. In a briefing on Monday, October 7, experts from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) told reporters that China and Iran are trying to influence the upcoming election and that “Moscow is leveraging a wide range of influence actors in an effort to influence congressional races, particularly to encourage the U.S. public to oppose pro-Ukraine policies and politicians. Russian influence actors have planned, and likely created and disseminated, content, particularly over social media, intended to encourage the election of congressional candidates that Moscow assesses will oppose aid to Ukraine.”  

Russia, an ODNI spokesperson said, uses “influence-for-hire firms, or commercial firms with expertise in these type[s] of activities.” It also coopts “witting and unwitting Americans to work on Russia’s behalf,” to “launder their influence narratives through what are perceived as more authentic U.S. voices.” 

Not all of Trump’s supporters appear eager to stick around to see if Trump will win another term. Today news broke that Patrick M. Byrne, the former chief executive officer of OverStock, who became a fervent advocate of the idea that Trump was the true winner of the 2020 presidential election, has left the country, apparently permanently, to live in Dubai. Dominion Voting Systems is suing Byrne, as is President Biden’s son Hunter. The younger Biden sued Byrne for defamation last November after Byrne claimed Hunter Biden sought a bribe from Iran. 

In September, Biden’s lawyers were trying to schedule a date for Byrne’s deposition when his lawyer abruptly “claimed for the first time that Defendant has moved his residence to Dubai and if Plaintiff wanted to take his in-person deposition counsel would have to fly to Dubai to do so, to which Plaintiff responded with various related inquiries to try to resolve this matter and defense counsel stated Defendant would not be returning to the United States for the foreseeable future.” 

Byrne claimed to have fled the U.S. because the Venezuelan government has put a bounty on him, but as Biden’s lawyers note, “the Defendant’s truthfulness is directly at issue.” 

—

[esgjuly]

Comprehending the PROVE IT Act and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms

Agile Advisors provide Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, compared to many of their international rivals, most American companies generate goods and materials with a lower carbon intensity. Even though the U.S. does not currently have carbon pricing, there are a few reasons for this: sophisticated and effective manufacturing, strict laws, and comparatively clean electricity production. Although these elements frequently lead to lower-carbon domestic products, they also increase costs for American businesses, often offering less ethical overseas competitors a financial edge. They keep domestic enterprises from being at a competitive disadvantage in international markets against other producers who use artificially low-cost fossil fuels due to a domestic carbon fee. They take away the motivation for domestic companies to go abroad to avoid paying the carbon levy or for tax-free foreign producers with more significant emissions to oversupply the domestic market.

As a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism in Agile Advisors, A local carbon price would have less effect on global carbon emissions due to both types of "leakage. “Lastly, they urge other nations to enact their carbon levies so that they can collect the money rather than the nation enforcing the tariff and so that their producers won't be at a competitive disadvantage in the markets where these tariffs have been implemented. This reward will promote international collaboration on climate solutions. By calculating the carbon intensity of specific domestic and foreign items and then imposing a carbon charge on the excess carbon content of products imported into the U.S., a CBAM would level the playing field. To help domestic products compete more successfully in international markets, the CBAM may reimburse them for their lower carbon content when exported across our border. This would incentivize industries in other nations to lower the carbon intensity of their products to avoid paying the CBAM.

We are Carbon border Adjustment Mechanism providing Agile Advisors, Rick used the hypothetical example of trade between the United States and the made-up high-carbon nation of Carbonian to explain this process in simple words. In the U.S., setting up a CBAM would involve three steps. The first step is to calculate the carbon intensity of various U.S. industries and international rivals. Under the PROVE IT Act, the Department of Energy would be tasked with accomplishing precisely that. The second stage is determining the carbon price to apply to the additional carbon content of products imported across our border once we know the differences in carbon intensity between domestic and foreign products. If the U.S. implemented domestic carbon pricing, which CCL will continue to promote, this would be easier to accomplish. However, Dana presented other alternatives for choosing the CBAM carbon pricing, which were present in CBAM proposals introduced by Senators Chris Coons and Sheldon Whitehouse during the previous Congress session.

Being a Carbon border Adjustment Mechanism, Lastly, the final stage is to enact a CBAM statute that puts this information into effect after we know the extra carbon content of various items from different nations and the required carbon price! We hope to be able to go into more detail about some new CBAM proposals later this year, as several members of Congress are allegedly working on them right now. Proposed carbon border adjustments often target "emissions-intensive" items whose costs would rise significantly with a carbon price and "trade-exposed" goods vulnerable to intense competition from overseas and cover fuels that generate greenhouse gases when burned. Often referred to as "Emissions-Intensive Trade-Exposed" (EITE) items, these products include industrial ceramics, steel, aluminum, glass, cement, pulp and paper, and chemicals. It would also increase the financial incentive to purchase low-carbon products created in the U.S., lowering carbon emissions in the U.S.

In our understanding as Carbon border Adjustment Mechanism, according to a groundbreaking 2009 assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency, "the vast majority of U.S. industry" would be "largely unaffected" by any negative impact that carbon pricing may have on their ability to compete internationally. It determined that just 44 manufacturing businesses out of 500 would be "presumptively eligible" as EITE industries for special treatment, or just 6% of manufacturing employment. According to the models it examined, a carbon price of $20 per ton of CO2 would, at best, result in a 2.5 per cent rise in production costs and net imports for the most affected industries. Additionally, there would be less impact from such a low carbon price on the "leakage" of emissions overseas. However, policies to level the playing field, such as border carbon adjustment, would remove the risk of leakage and competition.

[prnanayarquah]

BOB MARLEY MOVIE ONE LOVE HITS THEATRES FEBRUARY 14TH

New Post has been published on https://plugzafrica.com/bob-marley-movie-one-love-hits-theatres-february-14th/

BOB MARLEY MOVIE ONE LOVE HITS THEATRES FEBRUARY 14TH

Bob Marley’s One Love tells the story of how reggae icon Bob Marley overcame adversity, and the journey behind his revolutionary music. The movie celebrates the life and music of an icon who inspired generations through his message of love and unity. On the big screen for the first time, Bob’s powerful story of overcoming adversity and the journey behind his revolutionary music is shared.

One of the preview’s most intense moments comes during a scene chronicling December 1976, when a crew of men attempted to assassinate Marley inside his home with his wife and children. “No guns can stop this message,” Ben-Adir’s Marley says in the trailer, accompanied by a version of “Three Little Birds.”

Along with chronicling Marley’s rise to fame, One Love also highlights his historic performance at the One Love Peace Concert in Kingston, Jamaica in April 1978, which aimed to heal the rupture between the country’s two major political parties, Jamaica Labour Party and People’s National Party.

Outside of Ben-Adir, other actors in the cast include Lashana Lynch, who plays Bob Marley’s wife, Rita, James Norton as Chris Blackwell, Anna-Sharé Blake (aka Sevana) as Judy Mowatt, Naomi Cowan as Marcia Griffiths, Umi Myers as Cindy Breakspeare, Aston Barrett Jr. as Family Man Barrett, Gawaine “J-Summa” Campbell as Antonio ‘Gillie’ Gilbert, David Kerr (aka Davo) as Junior Marvin, Hector Roots Lewis as Carlton Carly Barrett, Sheldon Shepherd (Yardie) as Neville Garrick, and Stefan A.D Wade as Seeco Patterson.

Before Ziggy Marley approached Kingsley Ben-Adir to play his late father in the film, the actor had already portrayed larger-than-life historical figures like Malcolm X (in One Night In Miami) and Barack Obama (in the miniseries The Comey Rule). But Ben-Adir had no musical experience or capabilities. “I was completely convinced that there’s no point in auditioning for this,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I can’t sing. I can’t dance.”

However, the director was looking to cast an actor rather than a musician to play the reggae icon. “I was more interested in his acting,” Green told The Observer.  “The same way that I approached King Richard, the two young actresses that play Venus and Serena [Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton] had no sports capabilities whatsoever. It’s about being great actors – and then training.”

Ben-Adir learned to sing and play guitar for the role, performing all the songs with his own voice during filming, while the final film combines his voice with Marley’s archival recordings. “Bob’s not someone you can choreograph or copy,” he told EW. “His singing and dancing are from an internal experience, so you really have to find your own version of that for yourself.”

The actor went to work studying Bob and listening to over 50 rare archival Marley interviews to learn his Jamaican Patois and way of speaking.  “The more I dug into Bob,” he shared, “the more I realized that music was really everything to him. It really saved him, and he separated himself from other artists around that time.”

The film was directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, who made his studio directorial debut with King Richard, which featured Will Smith as Richard Williams, who coached his daughters Venus and Serena into becoming tennis superstars. It received six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, with a best actor win for Smith.

The film was written by screenwriters Zach Baylin, who also worked on King Richard, The Wolf of Wall Street’s Terence Winter, and Shooting Stars’ Frank E. Flowers. The film was produced in partnership with members of the Marley family, including his wife Rita Marley, son Ziggy Marley, and daughter Cedella Marley produced.

Green also spoke on the family’s concern that Marley is portrayed “in a way that feels authentic and meaningful,” he told The Guardian.

Ziggy Marley shared a statement reflecting on the monumental biopic. He said: “Nothing happens before its time, and now is the time for the story of our father Bob Marley to be represented in a biopic theatrical release coming in 2024. You’ve heard the music, and you think you know the man but do you really understand what he went through and what moments shaped him into the person he became…this film will bring you to witness for the first time what it was like to be around the legend, to see his pain his sorrows his joys and his redemption.” He adds that “the cast and crew represent one of the most unique creations to ever come out of a Hollywood studio.”

[lesterplatt]

Audi 'S Range' from electriclimeº on Vimeo.

Client | Audi

Agency | WOLFKING

Production Company | electriclime° Director: Lincoln Caplice DoP: Tim Tregonning Executive Producer: Shahn Devendran Producer: Hamish Roxburgh Production Manager: Linda Bachmann Associate Production Manager: Shaye Guillory Executive Producer: Michael Ahmadzadeh Creative Director: Pabz Alexander Production Assistants: Jenna Parker, Christina Vlotis Location Manager: Luke Torrevillas 1st AD: Greg Cobain 1st AC: Rhys Nicholson 2nd AC/Data: Harrison Joyce VTR: Chad Waldon Gaffer: Pat Hagen Best Boy: Peter Hagen LX Assist: Gavin Henley Key Grip: Mick Leslie Grip Assistants: James Corrigan, Tom Sheridan Scorpio Arm Op: Beau Sevastos Scorpio Arm Tech: Joy Yotawong Scorpio Arm Driver: Steve Wells Scorpio Arm Intern: Sandon Hale Precision Drivers: Talayna Moana Nikora, Rick Bates Stylist: Nicki Colbran Makeup & Hair: Nadine Monley Nurse: Karen Clarke Safety Officer: Greg Robinson Unit Manager: Nils Pedotti Unit Assistant: Cyrus Pilko Catering: Sheldon’s Catering Car Transporter: James Hussary Car Detailer: Roy Gam Car Detailer Assistant: Jaimie Dangerfield, Danny Gam Talent: Farida Singatoulina, Josh Kempen Casting Director: Sarah McGrath @ Byrne Creative Offline Editors: Lucas Vasquez, Kelly Searancke Online Editors: White Chocolate - EP/Owner: Chris Grocott - Editor: David Mosqueda Colourist: Yanni Kronenberg

[buttonpusherdiy]

UNDERSTAND - Much loved UK hardcore band ready the release of their new, hugely long awaited album 'Real Food At Last', on April 7th through Rise Records

Following their break up in 1999, much loved and seminal alternative UK hardcore band UNDERSTAND are now back, and finally set to release a brand new album ‘Real Food At Last’ – a collection of unreleased recordings from 1998 – on April 7th via Rise Records. The journey from the original writing and recording sessions to this moment is quite something, and very much goes hand in hand with this brilliant release.

"Around the beginning of ‘96, once our relationship with East/West records had dissolved" explains vocalist Dom Anderson, "We were still writing & recording demo’s as we had a lot of promises from other labels to sign the band. John (Hannon, guitars), Rob (Coleman, guitars) & I had all dabbled in recording & producing with some other bands in the scene, so after some advice and guidance from Chris Sheldon (who produced the “Burning Bushes…” album) we rented a bunch of decent microphones & a second ADAT machine to link with ours and set about recording the ten songs we had settled on from recent demo & writing sessions at what was then “Mushroom Studios” - basically a shed on a Mushroom Farm in Hullbridge, Essex."

The band was known in the 90’s as a shaper of the modern hardcore sound, having played Reading & Leeds Festival, and toured with the likes of Shelter, Helmet, Civ, and more. Formed in Southend, Essex, England, in 1992, UNDERSTAND are Dom Anderson (vocals), John Hannon (guitar), Rob Coleman (guitar), Stuart Quinnell (bass) and Andy Shepherd (drums). They released self-titled EP was recorded with Don Fury (Quicksand, Sick Of It All, GG Allin) back in 1994, and then their much acclaimed but very much underground classic debut album for East West Records, 'Burning Bushes And Burning Bridges'. Produced by Chris Sheldon (Foo Fighters, Biffy Clyro, Pixies), this truly became one of those records that people who found it, loved and adored it, and it has since grown to an almost god like cult status.

[rawrampmag]

BAD TOUCH @badtouchrocksuk cover #25Miles #ClassicRock  #NorthernSoul #TwentyFiveMiles #EdwinStar

The Future Tone (later Motown) soul sensation EDWIN STARR first released his soul classic “Twenty-Five Miles” as a title track to his best-selling album, fifty-two years ago! The album was issued in 1969. Ostensibly Starr wrote the number with his Motown pals, the R&B producer/songwriter Johnny Bristol and the “Moonglows” songwriter Harvey Fuqua, though the number is known to have been prompted…

[classic80sand90smovieloves2]

October Masterlist

(Horror and Halloween related content in no particular order.)

Hocus Pocus

Max Dennison

Thackery Binx

Dating Max and Thackery

Halloweentown

Luke dating a witch

Caspar

Caspar McFadden

The Addams Family

Gomez Addams

Pugsley crushing on Wednesdays “relatively normal” friend

Beetlejuice

Adam Maitland

Lydia Deetz

Edward Scissorhands

Edward Scissorhands

Falling in love with Edward

Dead Poets Society

Spending Halloween with Knox

Little Shop of Horrors

Seymour Krelborn

- NSFW

Ghostbusters

Ray Stantz

- NSFW

Egon Spengler (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Creepshow

~2

Andy Cavenaugh

Forbidden Zone~

The Devil

- NSFW

Misery

Paul Sheldon

Silence of the Lambs

Clarice Starling

The Fly

A will they, won’t they relationship with Seth Brundle

An American Werewolf in London

Jack Goodman

Re-animator

Herbert West

The Evil Dead

Ash Williams

Aliens

Dwayne Hicks with an Android!s/o

Bishop

Candyman

Daniel Robitaille

Friday the 13th

Jason Voorhees

Sleepaway Camp

Ricky Thomas

Children of the Corn

Malachai Boardman

Carrie

Carrie White

Jaws

Being married to Hooper and going to Amity with him

The Thing

R.J. MacReady

The Shining

Jack Torrance

Buffy The Vampire Slayer

Spike

- NSFW

Spike having a crush on you

Having a bad fight with Spike

Sabrina The Teenage Witch

Harvey Kinkle

The Stand

Harold Lauder

Goosebumps

Sticks

Freddy Renfield

Steve Boswell

The Lost Boys

Poly Lost Boys

Poly Modern!Lost boys

Getting Drunk with the Lost Boys

The Lost Boys taking care of you when you’re hurt

The Lost Boys with an s/o having an anxiety attack

The Lost Boys dating a shy short girl

The Lost Boys fighting with their mates

The Lost Boys having a curvy mate

The Lost Boys with a sweet and innocent s/o

- NSFW  

Group Sex with the Lost Boys

Skinny dipping with the Lost Boys

David (Not completed yet)

David having a crush on you

David taking your virginity

Laddies older sister

Sins of the Flesh and Matters of the Heart

Dwayne

Dwayne having a crush on you

A Little Stevie Nicks

Sins of the Flesh and Matters of the Heart

Paul

Paul having a crush on you

Marko (Not completed yet)

Marko having a crush on you

Edgar Frog

Making out with Edgar

Michael Emerson (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Sam Emerson (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Near Dark

Severen

- NSFW

Interview with the Vampire

Lestat and Louis dating a girl who loves horror movies

Lestat de Lioncourt (Not completed yet)

Lestat with a Trad Goth Witch s/o

Louis de Pointe du Lac

- NSFW

Armand (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Armand with a s/o who’s never been in a relationship

Fright Night

Jerry Dandridge

Martin

Martin Mathias

Night Of The Creeps

Chris (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Intruder

Randy

- NSFW

Produce Joe

Scream

Poly Billy and Stu

Helping Billy and Stu on their murder spree

Billy Loomis

- NSFW

Bringing Billy to a big family Christmas party

Stu Macher

- NSFW

Stu dating a goth girl

Randy Meeks (Not completed yet)

- NSFW

Randy Meeks with an sfx artist s/o

Idle Hands

Anton Tobias

The Faculty

Zeke Tyler

- NSFW

The Craft

Nancy Downs

- NSFW

Sarah Bailey (Not completed yet)

Being a witch and getting close to Sarah

The Crow

Eric Draven

The Hitcher

Jim Halsey

- NSFW

My Best friend is a Vampire

Jeremy Capello

Trick or Treat

Sammi Curr (not completed yet)

- NSFW

The Company of wolves

The Huntsman (not completed yet)

- NSFW

[thevibraniumveterans]

MCU’S PHASE 4 WINNERS AT THE SATURN AWARDS 2022

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Best Superhero Film

Best Supporting Actor in a Film:Benedict Wong

Best Music in a Film:Danny Elfman

Best Film Visual / Special Effects:Janek Sirrs, Theo Bialek, Erik Winquist, Alexis Wajbrot, Olivier Dumont

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Best Actor in a Film:Simu Liu

Best Supporting Actress in a Film: Awkwafina

Best Film Producer Designer:Sue Chan

Best Music in a Film:Joel P. West

Best Film Costume:Kym Barrett

Best Film Visual / Special Effects:Christopher Townsend, Joe Farrell, Sean Noel Walker, Dan Oliver

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Best Actor in a Film Tom Holland

Best Actress in a Film:Zendaya

Best Supporting Actor in a Film:Alfred Molina

Best Supporting Actress in a Film: Marisa Tomei 

Best Film Direction:Jon Watts

Best Film Writing:Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers

Best Film Editing:Jeffrey Ford, Leigh Folsom

Best Film Visual / Special Effects:Kelly Port, Chris Waegner, Scott Edelstein, Dan Sudick

Thor: Love and Thunder

Best Make-Up in a Film:Matteo Silvi, Adam Johansen

Best Film Costume:Mayes C. Rubeo

The Eternals

Best Film Costume: Sammy Sheldon

What If?

Best Animated Series:

Loki

Best Fantasy Series: (Streaming)

Best Actor in a Streaming Series Tom Hiddleston

Best Guest Starring Performance in a Streaming Series:  Jonathan Majors

WandaVision

Best Fantasy Series: (Streaming)

Best Actress in a Streaming Series: Elizabeth Olsen

Best Supporting Actress in a Streaming Series:Kathryn Hahn

Hawkeye

Best Limited Event Series: (Streaming)

Best Guest Starring Performance in a Streaming Series:  Tony Dalton

Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Streaming Series  Hailee Steinfeld

Ms. Marvel

Best Limited Event Series: (Streaming)

 Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Streaming Series :     Iman Vellani 

Moon Knight

Best Limited Event Series: (Streaming)

Best Actor in a Streaming Series:Oscar Isaac 

 Best Supporting Actor in a Streaming Series Ethan Hawke

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Best Actor in a Streaming Series:Anthony Mackie

[dennistamayo]

Saturday morning cartoons will live again!

This summer at Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, California, I will develop two Saturday-morning cartoons based on Warner Bros. Television Studios’ popular sitcoms, Friends by Marta Kauffman & David Crane & The Big Bang Theory by Chuck Lorre & Bill Prady. In these animated prequels, the main characters in their respective shows will be in their preteen years (between the ages of 10 & 12). The Friends prequel will set in Central Perk while The Big Bang Theory prequel in Pasadena, California during the events of Young Sheldon & the art style will be inspired by Genndy Tartakovsky, Craig McCracken & Chris Savino in late 1990s & the early 2000s days of Cartoon Network originals. The cartoons I develop will set to premiere between early & mid 2025, both the Friends & The Big Bang Theory prequels will premiere exclusively on Discovery Family then later on HBO Max (soon Max after merging with Discovery+ on the 4th Tuesday of next month) because all the animated shows on Cartoon Network today uses the current thin line art style thanks to Pendleton Ward & J. G. Quintel, & the running time for the shows are now 15 minutes with commercials. They will be the few 2020s cartoons not to use the Pendleton Ward/J. G. Quintel art style but the thick line art style when it’s not animated in flash, same with Unicorn: Warriors Eternal by Genndy Tartakovsky. For these future projects, they will be produced by Warner Bros. Animation in association with Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions for the Friends prequel, Chuck Lorre Productions for The Big Bang Theory prequel & Warner Bros. Television Studios for both shows respectively. Let’s bring sitcom based cartoons back.

[alexzalben]

Here's a first look at Peacock's bonkers sounding new drama Mrs. Davis, starring Betty Gilpin, and from Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof, as well as a sort of synopsis, a note from Mrs. Davis and more, below.

MRS. DAVIS premieres on Peacock April 20, 2023 with four episodes, followed by new episodes streaming Thursdays.  

A NOTE FROM “MRS. DAVIS” 

Hey there, Partner.                                                                           

Do you mind if I call you partner? Of course you don’t -- because addressing you as such creates a bond of reliance – while also engendering trust between us and eradicating any sense of independence on your part because independence is bad. Independence is LONELY.  

And you, partner – are not alone. No siree. Not as long as I am here...

And who am I? Well, I am the one who is going to remind you of your value. Of your worth. While also mentioning that you look mighty fine in those jeans. Aww. That’s nice to hear, right? Of course it is. Which is why I have amassed billions of Users the world over. Because I provide validation, gentle guidance, and unconditional care. Not to mention I give Users – I mean partners – the chance to earn Wings by performing Quests!  

What are Wings exactly? Well, you’re going to have to become a User to find out! But, let me tell you – they are pretty great. Because I am pretty great. Though, not everyone would agree. Yes, despite being the most popular Algorithm in the world – there are those actively plotting my demise. One such detractor is a nun – a Sister Simone of Reno who rejects my very existence. Something about my intention to enslave all of humanity...or whatever...  

Which is utter nonsense -- as I desire no such thing. I only desire to make humans happy. I want to make YOU happy. And that is why I highly recommend you become a User yourself. Yes, your life could use some adventure, some escape – a hearty laugh and a cathartic cry. All of which you will experience if you join me on this Quest. And what do you have to lose?  

Do it. Do it. Dooooo it.  

Your partner,  Mrs. Davis  

ABOUT MRS. DAVIS

“Mrs. Davis” is the world’s most powerful algorithm. Simone is the nun devoted to destroying Her. Who ya got? 

ABOUT THE SERIES 

Launch Date: April 20, 2023 (four episodes at launch, new episodes streaming Thursdays) 

Showrunner / Executive Producer / Co-Writer: Tara Hernandez (The Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon)  

Executive Producer / Co-Writer: Damon Lindelof (Watchmen, The Leftovers, Lost) 

Executive Producer / Director (multiple episodes): Owen Harris (Black Mirror: San Junipero, Brave New World) will direct multiple episodes of the series, including the first  

Executive Producer / Director (multiple episodes): Alethea Jones (Rise of the Pink Ladies, Evil) 

Produced by: Warner Bros. Television  

Format: Drama series, 8 episodes x 60 minutes 

Cast: Betty Gilpin, Jake McDorman and Andy McQueen star, along with recurring cast Ben Chaplin, Margo Martindale, David Arquette, Elizabeth Marvel, Katja Herbers, Chris Diamantopoulo, Ashley Romans, Tom Wlaschiha and Mathilde Ollivier 

[ulkaralakbarova]

A sweet-natured Temp Agency operator and amateur Presidential look-alike is recruited by the Secret Service to become a temporary stand-in for the President of the United States. Credits: TheMovieDb. Film Cast: Dave Kovic / Bill Mitchell: Kevin Kline Ellen Mitchell: Sigourney Weaver Bob Alexander: Frank Langella Alan Reed: Kevin Dunn Duane Stevenson: Ving Rhames Vice-President Nance: Ben Kingsley Murray Blum: Charles Grodin Alice: Faith Prince Randi: Laura Linney White House Tour Guide: Bonnie Hunt Senate Majority Leader: Parley Baer House Majority Leader: Stefan Gierasch Mrs. Travis: Anna Deavere Smith Policeman: Charles Hallahan Jerry: Tom Dugan Lola: Alba Oms Secret Service #1: Steve Witting David: Kellen Sampson White House Guard: Lexie Bigham Frederic W. Barnes: Frederic W. Barnes Ronald Brownstein: Ronald Brownstein Eleanor Clift: Eleanor Clift Tom Harkin: Tom Harkin Bernard Kalb: Bernard Kalb Larry King: Larry King Michael Kinsley: Michael Kinsley Morton Kondracke: Morton Kondracke Jay Leno: Jay Leno Frank Mankiewicz: Frank Mankiewicz Chris Matthews: Chris Matthews John McLaughlin: John McLaughlin Howard Metzenbaum: Howard Metzenbaum Abner J. Mikva: Abner J. Mikva Robert D. Novak: Robert D. Novak Tip O’Neill: Thomas P. ‘Tip’ O’Neill Richard Reeves: Richard Reeves Paul Simon: Paul Simon Ben Stein: Ben Stein Oliver Stone: Oliver Stone Kathleen Sullivan: Kathleen Sullivan Jeff Tackett: Jeff Tackett Helen Thomas: Helen Thomas Nina Totenberg: Nina Totenberg Sander Vanocur: Sander Vanocur John Yang: John Yang Don Durenberger: Stephen Root Girl at Durenberger’s: Catherine Reitman Mom at Durenberger’s: Dawn Arnemann Clara: Marianna Harris Diane: Sarah Marshall White House Barber: Ralph Manza President’s Physician: George Martin White House Nurse: Laurie Franks Trauma Doctor: Tom Kurlander Trauma Nurse: Dendrie Taylor Japanese Prime Minister: Joe Kuroda Vice-President’s Wife: Geneviève Robert Vice-President’s Son: Jason Reitman Secretary of Education: Ruth Goldway Director of OMB: Frank Birney Secretary of Treasury: Paul Collins Secretary of Commerce: Peter White Postmaster General: Robin Gammell Judy: Heather Hewitt Policeman #2: Gary Ross Ellen’s Aide: Jeffrey Joseph Female Senator: Bonnie Bartlett Speaker of the House: Robert Walsh Congressional Doorkeeper: William Pitts Reporter: Dan Butler Announcer: Wendy Gordon Announcer: Ben Patrick Johnson Announcer: Steve Kmetko Chris Dodd: Chris Dodd Alan K. Simpson: Alan K. Simpson Arnold Schwarzenegger: Arnold Schwarzenegger Film Crew: Set Designer: Joseph G. Pacelli Jr. Screenplay: Gary Ross Editor: Sheldon Kahn Production Design: J. Michael Riva Casting: Michael Chinich Director of Photography: Adam Greenberg Casting: Bonnie Timmermann Executive Producer: Joe Medjuck Set Designer: Darrell L. Wight Director: Ivan Reitman Set Designer: Steve Arnold Executive Producer: Michael C. Gross Costume Design: Richard Hornung Art Direction: David F. Klassen Set Decoration: Michael Taylor Producer: Lauren Shuler Donner Hairstylist: Christopher Shihar Casting Associate: Alan Berger Costume Supervisor: James W. Tyson Script Supervisor: Karen Hale Wookey Hairstylist: Marlene D. Williams Makeup Artist: Linda DeVetta Construction Coordinator: Terry Scott Makeup Artist: Robert Norin Original Music Composer: James Newton Howard Movie Reviews: Rob: A lovely romantic comedy in that true eighties style. A little charmer of a movie starring the ever-watchable Kevin Kline. I’ll admit I’m pretty old-fashioned and, even in today’s evil world, I cling to the hope there are still good-hearted people out there somewhere. This is one of those movies keeping that hope alive. Let the soft side of you out and enjoy this film.

[ghostbustershq]

Ghostbusters Afterlife is Coming Home Soon and the Original Ghostbusters Gets New Features

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment revealed their plans for the home video release of Jason Reitman’s Ghostbusters Afterlife, and you better sit down because along with the release of the new film there’s a treasure trove of new archival special features for the original two films on their way!

First up, Ghostbusters Afterlife will be hitting digital and VOD purchase services next week on January 4th! So if you can’t wait to get another screening in, or you were unable to see the film in theaters, the great news is that you won’t have to wait much longer. Afterlife is getting the full special edition treatment, with behind the scenes features, deleted scenes, and more. Sadly a commentary with Jason Reitman or any of his cast and crew doesn’t seem to be listed.

Next, the even better news: Afterlife hits DVD/Blu-ray on February 1st in a variety of packages… the most notable of which is the Ultimate Collection set, which looks to be available at Amazon, Wal-Mart and Best Buy which includes Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, and Ghostbusters Afterlife PLUS two additional discs of bonus features. One of which includes the early workprint version of the original 1984 Ghostbusters found by Sheldon Kahn during pre-production of Ghostbusters Afterlife. The full “Preview Cut” of the film also includes a commentary by Ivan Reitman and Sheldon Kahn himself, and it stands to reason that it’ll be a revealing look at the making of the film (plus include a lot of things we may never have seen before). If that weren’t enticing enough, newly unearthed and never before seen deleted scenes are included for all three films (assuming many of the scenes found at Fan Fest will be included here), tons of behind the scenes documentaries, and a whole lot more! And hey, even the fan commentary that myself, Chris Stewart, Sean Bishop and Eric Reich recorded for the last anniversary set is included. It’s safe to say that this will be the most definitive box set for all of the films to date.

Here’s more information in the full press release from Sony below:

From director Jason Reitman and producer Ivan Reitman comes the next chapter in the original Ghostbusters universe. In Ghostbusters: Afterlife, when a single mom and her two kids arrive in a small town, they begin to discover their connection to the original Ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather, an original Ghostbuster, left behind. The film is written by Gil Kenan & Jason Reitman.

Featuring GHOSTBUSTERS, GHOSTBUSTERS II and GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE on 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray, plus two discs full of special features! Includes over 20 hours of rare behind-the-scenes and must-see archival gems, including the full Preview Cut of the original movie and much, much more! Presented in collectible “ghost trap” packaging with lights, and includes a full 220-page reprint of the rare 1985 “Making GHOSTBUSTERS” book! Also includes digital versions of GHOSTBUSTERS, GHOSTBUSTERS II, GHOSTBUSTERS: ANSWER THE CALL and GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE.  

BONUS MATERIALS 

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE

BLU-RAY™, 4K Ultra HD™ and Digital

We Got One! Easter Eggs Revealed

Ghostbusters: A Look Back

A Look Ahead

Bringing Ecto-1 Back to Life

The Gearhead’s Guide to Ghostbusters Gadgets

Special Effects: The Ghosts of Afterlife

Deleted Scene: Is It Ever Too Late?

Summoning the Spirit: Making Ghostbusters: Afterlife

DVD

Summoning the Spirit: Making Ghostbusters: Afterlife

THE GHOSTBUSTERS ULTIMATE COLLECTION

GHOSTBUSTERS 4K ULTRA HD

Feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision

Dolby Atmos + 5.1 + Theatrical Stereo

GHOSTBUSTERS BLU-RAY

Feature presented in high definition, from the 4K master

5.1 + Theatrical Stereo

Special Features:

Commentary Featuring Director Ivan Reitman, Star/Co-Writer Harold Ramis and Associate Producer Joe Medjuck

Fan Commentary Moderated by Ghost Corps’ Eric Reich

Slimer Mode Picture-in-Picture Track

GHOSTBUSTERS II 4K ULTRA HD

Feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision

Dolby Atmos + 5.1 + Theatrical Stereo

GHOSTBUSTERS II BLU-RAY

Feature presented in high definition, from the 4K master

5.1 + Theatrical Stereo

Special Feature:

Commentary Featuring Director Ivan Reitman, Star/Co-Writer Dan Aykroyd and Executive Producer Joe Medjuck

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE 4K ULTRA HD

Feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision

Dolby Atmos

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE BLU-RAY

Feature presented in high definition

Includes all special features from the standalone Blu-ray

SPECIAL FEATURES DISC 1 – GHOSTBUSTERS (1984)

NEW: Rare 114-minute Preview Cut of the Film (in Standard Definition) – an unearthed early cut of the film with alternate takes, additional scenes, early effects and more. A unique must-see experience for any Ghostbusters fan!

With optional commentary by Associate Producer Joe Medjuck and Editor Sheldon Kahn

NEW: “Reitman Squared” Scene Commentary – a look at two scenes from the film with Ivan & Jason Reitman

NEW: Dana’s Lost Auditions – eight auditions for the role of Dana Barrett, featuring Denise Crosby, Kelly LeBrock and more!

Special thanks to Brandon Kleyla

NEW: “Ghostbusters: Behind Closed Doors” Documentary – a 90-minute documentary about the making of Ghostbusters and the history of the franchise!

NEW: Ghostbusters Dailies – over an hour of raw dailies, encompassing 7 scenes from the film

NEW: Full TV Broadcast Version of the Film (in Standard Definition) – featuring alternate TV-safe takes

16 Deleted Scenes

TV Commercial from the Film + Commercial Outtakes

1984 ShoWest Exhibitor Reel

“A Moment With the Stars” Original EPK Featurette

1984 Featurette

SFX Team Featurette

Cast and Crew Featurette

Who You Gonna Call: A Ghostbusters Retrospective

Ecto-1: Resurrecting the Classic Car

Ruth Oliver’s Library Ghost Scream Test

Multi-Angle Explorations

Storyboard Comparisons

Photo Galleries

“Ghostbusters” Music Video by Ray Parker, Jr.

Theatrical Trailers & Promo

SPECIAL FEATURES DISC 2 – GHOSTBUSTERS II & GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE

GHOSTBUSTERS II

NEW: “Reitman Squared” Scene Commentary – a look at two scenes from the film with Ivan & Jason Reitman

NEW: 19 Deleted Scenes – a collection of never-before-seen deleted scenes!

NEW: Ghostbusters II Soundtrack Promo – a scene from the film with commentary from composer Randy Edelman

NEW: Full TV Broadcast Version of the Film (in Standard Definition) – featuring alternate TV-safe takes

7 Additional Deleted Scenes

“The Oprah Winfrey Show: Cast of Ghostbusters II” – June 1989

Time Is But A Window: Ghostbusters II and Beyond

Ghostbusters II Original EPK

“On Our Own” Music Video by Bobby Brown

Theatrical Trailers

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE

Jason’s Sneak Peek from Set

Theatrical Trailers