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James Gunn’s Superman Features A Major DCU Retcon Within It’s First 3 Minutes

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Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for James Gunn’s Superman

Superman marks an exciting new era for the new DCU. While it’s technically the first true live-action movie under the DCU banner, it’s been confirmed that the bulk of past James Gunn DC projects are part of the official continuity as well. However, it seems very likely that Superman just retconned a key moment from The Suicide Squad.

In 2021’s The Suicide Squad, Amanda Waller sends a team of operatives led by Idris Elba’s Bloodsport to Corto Maltese to erase all evidence of Project Starfish (Starro). Likewise, these events were largely canonized when referenced in 2024’s Creature Commandos, the DCU’s first official project before Superman. However, it seems as though Superman has rewritten a key part of Bloodsport’s backstory within the first three minutes of the movie.

James Gunn’s Superman Suggests Bloodsport’s Greatest Feat Never Happened

Putting The Man of Steel in the ICU With A Kryptonite Bullet

In The Suicide Squad, Robert DuBois’s Bloodsport is a highly trained assassin/marksman. Utilizing an array of high-tech weaponry, it was said that Bloodsport’s claim to fame, and reason for being imprisoned in Belle Reve to begin with, was for shooting Superman with a Kryptonite bullet, landing the Man of Steel in the ICU. However, it’s now quite likely that this never happened in the official DCU continuity.

Related


Superman: 100 DC Easter Eggs & References Explained

James Gunn’s Superman is finally here, featuring a wide collection of incredibly fun Easter eggs, references, and cool ties to the original comics.

James Gunn’s Superman opens with some important introductory text, revealing how long metahumans have been on Earth (3 centuries), how long ago Kal-El was sent to Earth (3 decades), when he started operating as Superman (3 years ago), his interference in Boravia (3 weeks ago), and when he started fighting the Hammer of Boravia (3 hours ago). However, the final line is perhaps the most noteworthy:

“3 MINUTES AGO, Superman lost a battle for the first time…”

Before his fight with the Hammer of Boravia (secretly Lex Luthor’s enforcer Ultraman), Superman had apparently never lost a fight before in the DCU. As such, this strongly implies that Bloodsport putting Superman in the hosptial is no longer canon. While it’s a bit disappointing, this does make a certain amount of sense.

Kal-El losing for the first time in Superman carries more thematic weight, kicking off the entire film. Likewise, it wouldn’t be the first instance where a moment has been erased from one of James Gunn’s past projects due to the new DCU, like the DCEU’s Justice League showing up at the end of Peacemaker season 1, something Gunn has obviously confirmed is not part of the new continuity.

That said, it will be fascinating to see if Elba’s Bloodsport ever makes a return to the big screen in the DCU, even if one of his most impressive feats has more than likely been left with the old DCEU canon.

James Gunn’s Superman is now playing in theaters from DC Studios.



This story originally appeared on Screenrant

Elvis Presley’s watch, John Lennon’s suit sell at Goldin auction

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Elvis Presley’s worn Omega wristwatch, gifted to him by Johnny Cash, sold for $103,700 this week.

Goldin, a leading sports and pop culture memorabilia auction house, sold the engraved timepiece as part of its inaugural music memorabilia auction, which closed Wednesday night. Other high-selling items included a D.A. Millings & Son custom suit worn by John Lennon in 1963 ($102,480), a signed copy of Led Zeppelin’s album “Presence” ($19,520) and George Harrison’s sunglasses ($47,590). Goldin also set a new sale record for a type 1 photo — or photo developed from an original negative within two years of when the picture was taken— of rapper Tupac Shakur, which sold for $10,370, according to the auction house.

Though sports and trading card auctions are Goldin’s “bread and butter,” the company is venturing more into pop culture, said head of revenue Dave Amerman. This transition is documented in Goldin’s Netflix show, “King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch,” which premiered in 2023 and was just renewed for a third season.

“We realized that we get so many music items and we build them into our pop culture sales, we just want to separate it and make its own event out of it,” Amerman told The Times.

Many of the Beatles items belonged to music promoter Chris Agajanian, who’s been building his collection for more than 40 years. Agajanian owns more than 2,000 pieces of Beatles memorabilia and signed letters of provenance for many of the items in the Goldin sale.

The music auction also included more than 500 concert posters graded by the Certified Guaranty Company, the leader in comic book grading. Poster subjects ranged from the Grateful Dead and the Beatles to Sonic Youth and Blink-182.

In 2020, Goldin sold one of the most expensive albums of all time: a copy of Lennon and Yoko Ono’s “Double Fantasy” that Lennon unwittingly signed for his assassin, Mark David Chapman, just before the Beatle was shot in 1980. It went for $900,000.

Additionally, the auction house holds the record for most expensive toy sold at an auction: a 1979 prototype action figure of “Star Wars” bounty hunter Boba Fett that went for more than $1 million in 2024.

Goldin’s Hollywood Props & Memorabilia auction, featuring Harrison Ford’s “Indiana Jones” whip, a “Star Wars” Stormtrooper prototype helmet and George Reeves’ “Superman” suit, is currently live. The auction closes Aug. 6.



This story originally appeared on LA Times

Chinese Streaming Stocks & Sphere Entertainment Share Price Gain Big

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Chinese music streaming stocks continued their upward trajectory this week as trade tensions between Washington and Beijing showed signs of easing. Netease Cloud Music rose 12.1% to 302.40 HKD ($38.55), bringing the Chinese music streamer’s July gain to an impressive 25.5% and its year-to-date improvement to 164.8%. Tencent Music Entertainment (TME), China’s leading music streaming company, rose 8.3% to $21.43, valuing the company at $36.8 billion and bringing its year-to-date increase to 71.9%. 

Cloud Music and TME shares have both benefited from solid first-quarter results and growing consumer interest in music subscriptions. Chinese stocks in general received a boost this week after the U.S. government eased export bans and allowed the sale of Nvidia’s AI chips to China. In addition, Chinese data showed that China’s gross domestic product grew 5.2% in the second quarter despite continued trade tensions. 

The 20-company Billboard Global Music Index (BGMI) rose 3.0% to 2,982.90, breaking a two-week losing streak and improving its year-to-date gain to 40.4%. The BGMI nearly doubled the Nasdaq composite index’s 1.7% increase and was well ahead of the S&P 500’s 0.6% gain. In the U.K., the FTSE 100 rose 0.6%. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index advanced 0.4%. 

Warner Music Group (WMG) continued its winning streak, jumping 4.9% to $31.22 and getting a boost from Rothschild & Co Redburn’s upgrade of WMG to “neutral” from “sell” on Tuesday (July 15). After reaching the mid-year mark down 12.1%, WMG shares have gained 14.6% since the company’s July 1 announcement that it will save $300 million annually from layoffs and other cost-cutting measures. The company will announce earnings on Aug. 7. 

Most live music stocks were in positive territory. Sphere Entertainment Co. spiked 7.6% to $46.15, the stock’s highest closing price since Feb. 21 and more than $22 higher than its low point after President Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on U.S. trading partners on April 3. Live Nation climbed 4.6% to $150.52, bringing the stock to within approximately 5% of its all-time high of $157.75. MSG Entertainment was up 2.0% to $40.25. CTS Eventim fell 1.3% to 103.90 euros ($120.82), but the German concert promoter’s 27.3% year-to-date gain was the best of the peer group. 

Shares of Abu Dhabi-based music streamer Anghami rose 2.1% to $0.49 after the company announced on Wednesday that it will hold an extraordinary general meeting of its shareholders to vote on a reverse stock split that will allow the stock to remain listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market exchange. The company has until Aug. 18 to achieve a minimum bid price of at least $1.00 per share for at least 10 consecutive business days. 

SiriusXM shares fell 2.7% to $23.56 after Wednesday’s announcement of an affordable, ad-supported satellite radio tier, SiriusXM Play, that will cost under $7 per month. Morgan Stanley raised its price target on SiriusXM on Wednesday (July 16) to $22 from $21 and kept its “underweight” rating.

With HYBE in the news over a federal probe into Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, the K-pop giant’s stock fell 1.1% to 268,000 KRW ($192.98), marking it third consecutive weekly decline. At least one analyst was optimistic this week: On Thursday (July 17), Nomura increased its price target for HYBE shares to 370,000 KRW ($266.42) from 270,000 KRW ($194.42) and maintained its “buy” rating. HYBE will announce its second quarter results on Aug. 6. 

Spotify shares dipped 2.0% to $695.18, the fourth consecutive weekly decline after closing at $772.60 on June 27. After reaching the mid-year mark with a 71.4% gain, Spotify has dropped 9.4% in July. The company will report earnings on July 29. 

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This story originally appeared on Billboard

Scott Riccardi Reveals Electrocution Shocker as He Targets 12th Win

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[The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Friday, July 18, episode of Jeopardy!]

Scott Riccardi, from Somerville, New Jersey, has become the most-talked-about contestant on Season 41 of Jeopardy! because of his “superchampion” status and cracking the Top 20 all-time list. For Friday’s (July 18) game, though, he might have people talking for a different reason: The 11-time winner shared that he was once electrocuted while in an orchestra.

Riccardi, who has an 11-day total of $282,101, returned for his twelfth game (and, hopefully, win). He faced off against Ameen Ismail, from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and Julia Broussard, from New Orleans, Louisiana.

At the beginning of the episode, host Ken Jennings shared that Riccardi, an engineer, finished with 39 correct responses on Thursday, which is the most the game show has seen all season.

The first part of the game didn’t start off too well for Riccardi, though. There were many Triple Stumpers, and by the time the first commercial break came around, he was in third place. Not to mention, he had to share an embarrassing story when the show returned.

“You had an exciting high school experience, right? What happened to you there?” Ken Jennings asked.

“It was kind of ramping up when I was in the orchestra for all of the spring musicals,” Scott Riccardi shared. For Rent, they put us right on stage, and they had this metal cage. I guess it wasn’t grounded right, so every time you stepped into it, you’d get a bit of a shock. But then the next year, in rehearsal for The Addams Family, I was trying to unplug a keyboard amp, and I got a real bad shock. I didn’t think anyone noticed because they were all rehearsing, but I looked over and there was one horrified freshman, just staring open-mouthed at me.”

Jennings laughed and said, “But, you’ve lived a charmed life. You’re living all your adventures and made it to the Alex Trebek Stage.” The contestant agreed before Jennings went back to his podium.

Scott Riccardi tried to take the lead when he found the Daily Double in the second half of the round. With $1,800, he moved to second place. He wagered $1,000 in “Ambrose Bierce’s Devil’s Dictionary.” The clue read, “This group, then of 90 men: ‘A body of elderly gentlemen charged with high duties & misdemeanors.’” “What is the Senate?” Riccardi answered correctly. This pushed him into first place with $2,800, only $200 above Ismail, a particle physicist.

He kept the momentum up the rest of the round and maintained the lead with $4,000. Ismail had $3,600. Broussard, a university administrator, was in third with $1,800.

In Double Jeopardy, Riccardi answered three clues correctly before finding the first DD of the round. He wagered $4,000 out of his $8,800, which would still keep him in first place if he got it wrong. In “MP,” the clue read, “From Italian, it’s a person who puts on, & often finances, public entertainment, like a concert or theatrical event.” “What is impresario?” the champion answered correctly, giving him $12,800.

Only two clues later, Ismail found the last DD. He was in second with $5,200 and wagered $5,000. In “War Locks,” the clue was “These blue-painted Scottish warriors whose name is from Latin for ‘paint’ are traditionally illustrated with flowing locks.” With uncertainty, Ismail said, “Who are the woad raiders?” He was wrong and dropped down to $200 and third place. The correct response was The Picts.

The other two contestants tried to catch up to Riccardi for the rest of the round by answering most of the clues correctly, but he was just too far ahead. Riccardi ended with $22,400. Broussard was in second with $6,800. Ismail had $2,600.

The category for Final Jeopardy was “Science Words.” The clue read, “Expanding on a word created by a Czech playwright, Asimov coined this term in 1941 for a branch of science that didn’t exist then.” The correct response was “robotics,” and all three contestants got it right.

Ismail wagered $105, giving him a final total of $2,705. Broussard wagered $0, giving her $6,800. Riccardi wagered $8,000, making his winning total $30,400. He has a 12-day total of $312,501. His twelfth win moved him up two spots to number 14, according to The Jeopardy! Fan (check out the All-Time winnings on the sidebar). Riccardi will return for his thirteenth game on Monday, July 21.

“Not that many contestants can say that they’ve won at least twelve Jeopardy games in regular play. Congrats to Scott!” a Reddit user said.

“Man, I wish I could make it look that easy,” wrote another.

“There are only 5 more episodes in the season (i.e., 1 more tape day). The way he’s been playing, I’d say Scott has a very good chance of continuing his streak into season 42,” added a third.

Jeopardy!, weeknights, check local listings




This story originally appeared on TV Insider

Briton was trying to save friend when both died in Portugal, sister says | UK News

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The sister of a man who drowned in Portugal has said he died while trying to save his best friend in the water.

King Edonmi, 29, and Mo Liasu, 27, both from Ipswich, died less than 24 hours after arriving on holiday in Albufeira, on the south coast of Portugal.

They are believed to have drowned in a hotel swimming pool on 15 July.

In a statement online, King’s sister Kemi Edonmi said: “My best friend is really gone.

“Rest in peace to my big brother and his best friend Mo, we love you and will never forget you both.”

She also wrote that King “died trying to save his friend’s life”.

She added that reports suggesting the two had been drinking were false, saying: “My brother and Mo do not drink and were not intoxicated at the time of the incident.”

Image:
Pic: GoFundMe / Angelo Antonio

A GoFundMe fundraiser for the repatriation of their bodies and to support their families has raised more than £24,500 as of 9pm on Friday – well above its £20,000 target.

Organiser Angelo Antonio wrote that the two “were more than friends to us” and “were brothers to many,” before adding: “They were warm, loyal, funny and full of dreams.

“The sort of men you never hear a bad word about because there simply were none.”

Mr Antonio then said that the total cost of returning their bodies to the UK would be more than £10,000.

He added: “Repatriation involves complex legal paperwork, international funeral care and transportation costs no family is ever prepared for, especially not under such heartbreaking circumstances.”

Read more on Sky News:
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A spokesperson for Portugal’s criminal investigation police said the incident is not being treated as suspicious.

“The inspection of the scene revealed no evidence of criminal activity,” they added. “Witnesses to the events were interviewed, confirming the investigation’s belief that it was an accident.”

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson also said: “We are supporting the families of two British men who have died in Portugal and are in contact with the local authorities.”



This story originally appeared on Skynews

Police raid the former presidents home and political headquarters : NPR

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Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at the Federal Senate in Brasilia on July 17, 2025.

MATEUS BONOMI/AFP


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RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — The ongoing feud between the U.S. and Brazil escalated on Friday after Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered former President Jair Bolsonaro—an ally of Donald Trump—to wear an electronic ankle monitor, citing him as a flight risk.

The court says Bolsonaro sought interference from the U.S. president to undermine the Brazilian judiciary—allegations that come amid growing tensions between the two countries.

Police raided Bolsonaro’s home and party headquarters early Friday morning, fitting the far-right leader with the tracking device. The court also imposed a nighttime and weekend curfew and barred him from contacting foreign diplomats, visiting embassies, or using social media.

Bolsonaro, who is facing charges of plotting a coup to remain in power after losing Brazil’s 2022 election, called the measures a “supreme humiliation.” Speaking outside a federal police station, he denied planning to flee and claimed that the $14,000 found in his home was legally obtained.

On Thursday night President Trump posted a letter on his Truth Social platform demanding the case be dropped. He has repeatedly threatened 50% tariffs on Brazilian goods if the prosecution continues. “I will be watching closely,” Trump wrote.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva fired back, calling Trump’s threats “blackmail” and vowing not to bow to foreign pressure.

“No gringo is going to give orders to this president,” Lula told a cheering crowd using the common Brazilian slang for foreigners.

Lula says Brazil is weighing retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods, including tech firms. The confrontation has helped revive his flagging popularity, as many Brazilians view Trump’s remarks as overreach.

“U.S. observers are underestimating the power of Brazilian nationalism,” said political scientist Oliver Stuenkel of FGV University. “There’s a strong response to what’s seen as aggressive interference by Trump.”

Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the Supreme Court judge who is overseeing Bolsonaro’s case, is increasingly a target of conservative U.S. figures for his crackdown on misinformation and social media platforms. Trump’s media company, Trump Media and Technology Group, has even filed suit against him in a Florida court, accusing him of violating free speech.

Meanwhile, Bolsonaro’s son Eduardo—currently in the U.S.—has been lobbying Trump to pressure Brazil’s institutions. In a statement posted on social media Eduardo called for Brazil to “act like a dignified democracy.”

But he’s now barred from speaking to his father. The court’s order prohibits Bolsonaro from contacting others facing charges, including his son, who also claims to be a victim of political persecution.




This story originally appeared on NPR

The CEO caught hugging his HR chief at a Coldplay show is being investigated by his tech unicorn

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  • Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and his chief people officer, Kristin Cabot are being investigated by their board after after a video of them snuggled up took the internet by storm.

Astronomer, the tech company at the center of a viral internet controversy in which the married CEO embraced his chief people officer at a Coldplay concert where it was featured on a jumbotron, announced it launched a formal investigation. The Astronomer board is digging into the conduct of CEO Andy Byron and chief people officer Kristin Cabot and will reveal additional details soon, the company posted in a statement on LinkedIn and X.

“Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,” the company’s announcement read. “The Board of Directors has initiated a formal investigation into this matter and we will have additional details to share very shortly.”

The response was posted to both platforms on Friday. It received more than 700 reactions on LinkedIn almost immediately. Astronomer clarified in its post that an employee speculated to have also been at the Boston Coldplay concert with Byron and Cabot was not at the event. The company similarly refuted any alleged statements circulated online said to have been made by Byron or Astronomer as incorrect. 

Byron and Cabot’s concert hug rose to internet fame and sparked widespread affair allegations on Thursday after a clip, posted on TikTok, showed the CEO holding his subordinate in his arms at the Gillette Stadium show. Byron is seen in the video clutching Cabot from behind as the pair smiles and sways in the crowd. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin can be heard saying “Oh look at these two,” as they appear on the jumbotron, only for Cabot to quickly cover her face and turn away while Byron ducks to avoid the cameras. 

Martin responded to their behavior, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy” as the crowd cheered. The band played at the Boston venue on Tuesday and Wednesday night.

After the video went viral, it was revealed that Byron is legally married to Megan Kerrigan Byron. He and Kerrigan appear to have two sons. As for Cabot, public records suggest she has been married at least once. Her current marital status, however, could not be confirmed. 

At many public and private companies, relationships between a CEO and another employee are prohibited because they can be viewed as coercive by their very nature. They can also disrupt morale and lead to allegations of unfair treatment. 

Byron became CEO of Astonomer in 2023, whereas Cabot, according to her now-defunct LinkedIn, joined Astronomer in November 2024. 

Astronomer is a private data infrastructure and operations company that achieved unicorn status in 2022 with a $1 billion or more valuation. The company recently moved its headquarters to New York City, and secured $93 million in series D funding in a round led by Bain Capital Ventures and Salesforce Ventures. 

Introducing the 2025 Fortune 500, the definitive ranking of the biggest companies in America. Explore this year’s list.




This story originally appeared on Fortune

3 booming growth shares in the Scottish Mortgage portfolio

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Image source: Getty Images

Shares of Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (LSE: SMT) are up around 25% over the past year. That’s undoubtedly impressive.

Underneath though, at the portfolio level, some of the trust’s holdings are absolutely rocketing. Here, I want to highlight three of them to assess whether any are worth considering.

Hitting $4trn

Let’s start with the most high-profile, which is AI chipmaking juggernaut Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). Shares are up 83% since the start of April, giving the company a mind-bending market cap of $4.22trn.

For context, that’s nearly 20 times the size of HSBC, the UK’s largest listed firm.

The news that recently sent Nvidia to a $4trn valuation — the first company to ever reach this milestone — was related to China. Namely, the US is allowing Nvidia to once again export its modified H20 AI chips to China. This was part of trade negotiations over rare earth metals.

According to Reuters, internet giants Tencent and TikTok-owner ByteDance are already lining up to get their hands on these chips. I doubt they’ll be alone in the queue. So this is great news for Nvidia shareholders. 

The company remains at the epicentre of the AI boom. But there are risks, which Scottish Mortgage manager Tom Slater recently highlighted: “If AI is to become truly transformative, it also needs to become ubiquitous and that points to commoditisation. A world built on $70,000 chips and 60% margins isn’t likely to endure.”

Here, Slater is casting doubt on whether Nvidia can sustain its pricing power as the AI revolution matures. In response, the trust has been trimming its Nvidia stake, having made over 100 times its money since 2016.

Despite this, the stock remained a top 10 position at the end of June.

Two other high-fliers

Elsewhere, Joby Aviation (NYSE: JOBY) has taken to the skies, fittingly for a flying air taxi firm. It’s gone from $5 to $17 since April — a gain of 240%.

The stock has been buoyed by news that Joby has successfully carried out trials of its aircraft in Dubai, ahead of a planned launch in early 2026. It then intends to expand its air taxi service globally, from the US and UK to Japan.

Earlier this week, Joby also announced that it will double its manufacturing capacity, allowing it to produce up to 24 aircraft per year (nearly one every other week).

Finally, global gaming platform Roblox is on fire. Shares have more than doubled year to date.

The company recently launched a new intellectual property licensing platform, enabling brands like Netflix, Sega, and Lionsgate to integrate their characters and worlds into the Roblox ecosystem. 

Hefty valuations

The strong performance of such stocks obviously bodes well for Scottish Mortgage (it reports the current period in November). But are any of them still worth a look?

Unfortunately, I’m not convinced they are, despite me holding all three. Joby has a $14.5bn market cap but no revenue (yet), which makes it highly speculative. And if Roblox disappoints with its revenue growth, the market could punish such missteps very severely.

For exposure to these stocks (and around 95 others), I think investors could consider Scottish Mortgage shares.

While there’s a risk the 10% discount to net asset value could widen further, the portfolio of growth companies looks incredibly strong today.



This story originally appeared on Motley Fool

Ice Cube Praises Stak For Setting The Tone In BIG3 League With Heart And Honesty


Instagram/@icecube

Cube, going on all BIG3 and Stak, praised the man for the shaping of the league the way it is today. The hip-hop icon and basketball mogul recently set the record straight on social media when he gave credit to Stak for bringing in that no nonsense, “play with heart” attitude into the league from day one, as compared to what he referred to as “ego-licious” antics in the NBA. “Major respect to Stak for setting the bar. Established the tone to play with heart and honesty from Day 1. That’s the BIG3 way. No NBA All-Star bullshit here,” Cube said, tagging the official social media account of the league.

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The comment was accompanied by a clip of Cube talking of the early days in the BIG3, basically giving Stak credit for setting the bar in competitive spirit. “When I was playing, I can’t prepare. I’m game one to the end of the season,” Cube said in the clip. Then he gave the explanation of how Stak’s thinking of treating the court like a battlefield, “No friends out here; there’s only foes,” had become the foundation. “Stacks was like basically, you got no friends out here. So own your bullshit. We’re going to play this, and it really set the tone on playing the game the right way. Cube also said this wasn’t about money for me; it was about giving the players a real chance to compete again.”

Fans and followers started chiming in from all angles. One commenter clearly got fired up and went all caps on a chaotic freestyle that seemed like anything but a coherent reply. Another said, “It’s time to take BIG3 games back to the roots—local playgrounds where there are rusty rims and concrete courts. Let’s take it to the next level… Take the game to different local courts. 1st you’re bringing exposure to the kids. 2nd take it back to the milk crates, alleys, playground with the metal nets, lol. Basketball is basketball.” The very idea of developing a professional game inspired by streetball hit the right nerve.

Some just wanted to praise Cube. “Cube always opening doors, more than a hip-hop legend,” followed one comment. A wannabe big shot from Reno dreamed grand: “Reno is building a new arena in 2027. Hopefully, we’ll have a BIG3 team there by then.” Some admitted that they’ve been slacking on watching the games and promised that will change. “Mannn I gotta tune in. I be so busy, I can’t lie to y’all. Big big big blessings 4 laying the foundation.”

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Cube supported not just a throwback; it was a reminder of how BIG3 promotes itself differently. While the NBA is sometimes one giant show of superstar antics, the BIG3 has carved a niche of real, raw competition, a concept envisioned by Cube and Stak: Just bare bones and balls. Judging by the reaction, this is what people are yearning for. Nostalgia for streetball culture or hunger for real gritty hoops-Cube‘s message definitely resonated with many. So, while BIG3 might not have all the glitz and glam of the NBA, it surely has something even bigger: Authenticity. Cube, Stak, and the fan base all agree on that one.




This story originally appeared on Celebrityinsider

How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Marlee Matlin

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Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, Marlee Matlin always looked forward to Sundays.

It was her father’s only day off, so her family made a weekly tradition of meeting up with close friends for breakfast at a local deli. Afterward, she and her family of five would do a season-friendly activity — apple picking in the fall or a Chicago Cubs game during the summer, perhaps — before wrapping up with a finale event they called “takeout Sundays.”

In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.

“Sundays were always my favorite day because I knew that we’d all be together,” says Matlin, who became the first deaf actor to win an Oscar in 1987 at the tender age of 21. During our Zoom call, she communicated via an interpreter.

Throughout her career, the “Coda” star has been vocal about her battles with addiction and sexual abuse, but fans are getting an even more intimate look into her life via her latest project, “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore,” which is showing in select theaters nationwide and will be available on demand on August 22. When she was approached to do a documentary, Matlin says it was a no-brainer for her to have her longtime friend and fellow deaf actor, Shoshannah Stern, direct it.

“What better way to have two deaf women who have similar shared life experiences to tell my story?” Matlin says. In the 1980s, she convinced lawmakers to add closed captioning to television programming.

The veteran actor and activist has been a self proclaimed “California girl” for nearly 40 years, but says that she will always be a “Chicago girl at heart.” (The skyline of the neighborhood she grew up in, Morton Grove, is proudly tattooed on her forearm.) These days, she’s enjoying empty-nester life with her husband Kevin Grandalski. Her ideal Sunday in L.A. involves visiting the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, getting her steps in at the Rose Bowl, having a slice of pizza in Eagle Rock and spending quality time with her 14-month-old granddaughter.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

6 a.m.: Take care of my pets

If I had the choice, I would probably wake up at 8 a.m., but because I have a cat, it’s 6 a.m. I also have a dog who needs to be taken out on a walk. Like a fool, he barks at every other dog that we encounter, and I have apologize to each dog owner.

Then I have to have to have breakfast. I’m a breakfast person. I don’t skip it. I love my oatmeal with a little bit of brown sugar and blueberries. If I’m in the mood, I’ll make some turkey bacon and make sure it’s extra crispy, and I drink my Red Bull sugar free. I know I’m going to get a lot of flack because I drink a Red Bull in the morning, but that’s what I drink. I like my drink, and it’s as simple as that. I don’t drink coffee. I wish I did, but I don’t like the taste.

After I’ve gotten breakfast out of the way, I have to make my bed. I can’t even leave the house with an unmade bed. I have to make the bed immediately, and my husband knows that very well.

10 a.m.: Go shopping for new threads

I might go to Rose Bowl either for the flea market, which is open once a month, or for a walk. Before I had foot surgery, I would always go and walk around the Rose Bowl at least twice for a total of six miles. I love power walking.

Afterward, I would go to a couple of boutiques that I like. I’m a big supporter of small local businesses, so I would stop by Tuck in Pasadena and Everson Clare in La Cañada Flintridge. They are both female-owned, and they care about their customers a great deal. Both of them are very good friends of mine. They both work so hard to get their stores opened. I watched them from their inception to where they are today. They have different clothing styles that seem to fit me well. Then there are some stores that I’ll go to in Studio City. You can find me at Sephora, Nordstrom or HomeGoods.

2 p.m.: Pick a favorite L.A. activity

If we’re in the mood to be active, we’ll go to Descanso Gardens or to a Dodgers game. We recently went to Shot of Art, and it’s so fun. It’s similar to paintball. You create art on a canvas as it spins. I just got reelected as the governor of the Academy Museum, so I’ll make sure to go there. Being governor and a member of the Academy, they have been nothing but so supportive of my community and many other underrepresented communities as well. Everyone who has a love for film or history [and] how films are made should go to the museum. Even if you [do] not, you’ll be surprised.

4 p.m.: Quality time with my granddaughter

Then I’ll come back home to spend time with my granddaughter, who is 14 months old. We’ll have playtime at the house. She’s always exploring. She loves the cat. She runs after her, and I’m always the one having to run after the baby. So there’s the three of us running around: cat, baby, then me. I’ll take her to the park, which is down the street. Just being with her is the most important thing. We are just in awe of watching her grow, exploring the world and watching what she learns. That’s the perfect Sunday for me.

6 p.m.: Enjoy an early dinner

I love to cook on Sundays and have an early dinner. I have a whole raft of cookbooks and recipes that I’ve printed out. I’ll just take that big stack and search through it. I’m not somebody who does a whole lot of research. I just pick one and then go for it. I love to barbecue, and I love to bake desserts. I have a sweet tooth. I set up a candy bar — like a bar for candy — in my house. It’s dangerous to have a candy bar. Wait until my granddaughter grows old enough to realize what the candy bar is actually about.

But if I don’t feel like cooking, we might go to Casa Bianca. It’s a pizza shop in Eagle Rock. The pizzas, the mozarella sticks and the salads are fantastic. The chicken piccata is great, and the people who own it are just wonderful people and so welcoming.

8 p.m.: Backgammon before bed

I’ll spend time with my husband after dinner, and we’ll clean up. Then I’d check my phone to see what’s coming up for the week. Depending on what’s going on, I’ll get in touch with the kids and play backgammon on my phone — just spend time winding the day down. And I’ll take an evening walk. Before I close shop, I have to take the dog out once more. I go to bed early. I’m usually in bed by 9:30 p.m.



This story originally appeared on LA Times