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Tag: Arts/Entertainment

  • Netflix officially ends DVD rentals. This is the movie inside the final red envelope.

    Netflix officially ends DVD rentals. This is the movie inside the final red envelope.

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    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.33%
    has officially ended its DVD-delivery service, and will allow all DVD.com subscribers to keep their discs after Friday, Sept. 29, for free.

    The streaming company announced on Friday that the last DVD the company sent out via an iconic red envelope was the 2010 film “True Grit.” DVD.com, through which Netflix has operated its legacy by-mail service, now redirects to Netflix’s primary website.

    What’s Worth Streaming: How to maximize your streaming in October 2023, and why Netflix is all you really need

    Netflix posted the following message about the end of its DVD business:

    “In 1998, we delivered our first DVD. This morning, we shipped our last. For 25 years, we redefined how people watched films and series at home, and shared the excitement as they opened their mailboxes to our iconic red envelopes. It’s the end of an era, but the DVD business built our foundation for the years to come – giving members unprecedented choice and control, a wide variety of titles to choose from and the freedom to watch as much as they want. Today, we wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for watching.”

    Despite Netflix’s primary business as a streamer, the company has still been delivering DVDs, aka “digital video discs” or “digital versatile discs,” to consumers on DVD.com. Like its streaming model, its DVD delivery service has different plan types based on customers’ needs.

    DVD.com has multiple plan offerings just like Netflix’s streaming platform.


    Netflix

    The DVD service generated $145.7 million in revenue last year, which translated into somewhere between 1.1 million and 1.3 million subscribers, based on the average prices paid by customers, according to the Associated Press. Netflix made $31.6 billion in revenue in 2022.

    Netflix announced it was planning to shut down its DVD-by-mail rental service — the service upon which Netflix was founded prior to the rise of video streaming — back in April.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co–Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    See also: As Amazon Prime Video adds commercials, here’s how streaming services match up on pricing

    Netflix’s DVD business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013.

    After years of declining revenue, Netflix Inc. announced that it will cease renting DVDs by mail.


    Uncredited

    Netflix launched as NetFlix.com in 1998, a direct-to-consumer DVD-rental company and didn’t debut its streaming service until 2007.

    Shares of Netflix are up more than 60% in the last 12 months.

    The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which is made up of major movie studios and streaming companies including Netflix, Disney
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    +1.15%
    and Sony Pictures
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    -0.45%    ,
    and the Writer’s Guild of America agreed to end their months-long strike this week. Hollywood actors, represented by SAG-AFTRA, are still striking, although the union is expected to meet with the AMPTP next week.

    Netflix did not respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment.

    Read on (July 2023): Netflix criticized for posting AI jobs paying up to $900,000 while writers and actors are on strike

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  • Japan police arrest reggae singer Chehon on suspicion of marijuana possession – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Japan police arrest reggae singer Chehon on suspicion of marijuana possession – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

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    The X (formerly Twitter) account of reggae singer Koji Yoneda, who goes by the name Chehon, is seen.


    NAGOYA — Reggae singer Chehon, whose real name is Koji Yoneda, was arrested on Sept. 24 for allegedly possessing marijuana at a housing complex in Tokyo’s Shinagawa Ward.

    USDA Certified Organic Tinctures and salves


    Aichi Prefectural Police arrested Yoneda, 39, on suspicion of violating the Cannabis Control Act. The police have not revealed whether he has admitted to or denied the allegations.


    Yoneda is accused of being in possession of about 0.977 grams of dried marijuana at the housing complex at around 5:20 a.m. on Sept. 11.


    The prefectural police had been conducting a covert investigation after receiving information in April that Yoneda was in possession of marijuana. Liquid cannabis and inhalation equipment were seized from a room in the housing complex, and police are investigating additional offenses.


    Yoneda participated in a music event held in Nagoya’s Minato Ward on Sept. 24, and was subsequently arrested.


    His hit song “Impact” has been viewed more than 12 million times on his official YouTube channel.


    (Japanese original by Ayaka Morita, Nagoya News Center)

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

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  • Hollywood writers reportedly near deal with studios to end strike

    Hollywood writers reportedly near deal with studios to end strike

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    Hollywood writers and studios are reportedly near an agreement to end one of the months-long strikes that have brought production of TV shows and movies to a halt.

    Citing sources close to the negotiations, CNBC reported Wednesday night that the two sides were close to a deal following a face-to-face meeting earlier in the day. The sides are reportedly optimistic that an agreement can be finalized Thursday. However, the report also said the strike could drag on through the end of the year if a deal is not reached.

    Separately,…

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  • Charter vs. Disney: Is this the end of the bundle as we know it?

    Charter vs. Disney: Is this the end of the bundle as we know it?

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    It was the night cable TV went out across most of America.

    Late Thursday, all Disney channels, including ESPN and ABC, went dark on Charter Communications Inc.’s
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    Spectrum cable service as discussions over affiliate renewals hit an impasse — in the middle of the U.S. Open and college football season, and with the NFL regular season kicking off this Thursday night on NBC.

    The carriage dispute between Charter and Walt Disney Co.
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    threatens to upend business for both companies and dramatically reshape both the pay-TV and streaming ecosystems, and it could also spill over to affect content distributors and millions of consumers. The result will likely be far less spending on content from media and entertainment companies, including on sports and original programming.

    If Charter exits the TV business altogether, millions of homes are likely to abandon the pay-TV bundle, potentially speeding its decline as other, smaller TV providers follow suit, analysts said.

    “If Charter can drop ESPN, then any network (broadcast station or cable network) can be dropped,” analysts at LightShed Partners said in a note Tuesday. “Nobody is safe and the leverage will have permanently shifted to the distributor not because content is no longer king, but because too much content no longer requires the big video bundle and because the video bundle no longer is economically viable for distributors.”

    Indeed, the pandemic-era boom that streaming services enjoyed is unlikely to return. Netflix Inc.
    NFLX,
    +2.00%
    recently introduced an ad-supported tier while cracking down on password sharing. Disney also announced higher prices last month.

    “The collateral damage could be wide-ranging from sports leagues with rights coming up for renewal, local TV station affiliates seeking material step-ups and creative talent tied to the programming investments made by linear networks,” MoffettNathanson analysts Michael Nathanson and Craig Moffett said in a report Friday.

    Cable TV system needed a reset

    Billions of dollars and hours of must-see-TV time are at stake. The conflict boils down to two issues: How much the carrier will pay per channel, and what percentage of a distributor’s footprint will be required to have the channel in their package.

    The showdown was inevitable, with murmurings the cable TV model was fundamentally broken and with programmers like Disney continuing to pursue direct-to-consumer options. For example, Disney has indicated it plans to take ESPN, its most valuable property in the pay-TV bundle, direct to consumers in the coming years.

    The conflict “marks the beginning of the end of the media-carriage bundle extortion on [multichannel video programming distributor services], and does not bode well for other networks that are perceived to have far less clout than Disney,” Raymond James analyst Frank G. Louthan IV said in a note on Friday.

    Oppenheimer analysts went so far as to deem the dispute a “tipping point” for legacy TV and a defining moment for Charter, the country’s second-largest cable TV provider with 14.7 million subscribers. Media providers like Disney are transitioning to over-the-top (OTT) TV — streaming content via the internet — but are still expecting cable providers such as Charter to keep paying the same amount for legacy TV, the analysts said.

    “The linear TV business model is broken. The only thing that can save it somewhat longer term is by combining and bundling with OTT services,” the Oppenheimer analysts said.

    The impasse has Disney executives urging Charter subscribers to ditch the cable giant for Hulu with Live TV, which offers EPSN, ABC, Disney+ and other channels. Disney owns two-thirds of Hulu.

    “Disney deeply values its relationship with its viewers and is hopeful Charter is ready to have more conversations that will restore access to its content to Spectrum customers as quickly as possible,” Disney executives wrote in a blog post late Monday. “However, if you are one of these frustrated customers, it can be infuriating to not be able to access the content you want. Luckily, consumers have more choices today than ever before to immediately access the programming they want without a cable subscription.”

    Charter has remained firm that it is prepared to abandon its video business.

    “We’re on the edge of a precipice. We’re either moving forward with a new collaborative video model, or we’re moving on,” Charter CEO Chris Winfrey said on a conference call with Wall Street analysts Friday morning. “This is not a typical carriage dispute. It’s significant for Charter, and we think it’s even more significant for programmers and the broader video ecosystem.”

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  • What’s worth streaming in September 2023? Here are your best bets amid slim pickings.

    What’s worth streaming in September 2023? Here are your best bets amid slim pickings.

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    Looking to spend your entertainment dollars wisely in September? Watch Hulu and read a book or two.

    That pretty much sums up a hugely underwhelming lineup from streaming services, which burned through their best shows in the spring and have little to offer for the start of the traditional fall TV season. That’s not to say there aren’t a handful of promising shows — there are — but is one decent new show per service worth the price of multiple monthly subscriptions? Almost certainly not.

    It’s…

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  • Phil Mickelson responds to sports betting allegations: ‘I never bet on the Ryder Cup’

    Phil Mickelson responds to sports betting allegations: ‘I never bet on the Ryder Cup’

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    “‘I never bet on the Ryder Cup. While it is well known that I always enjoy a friendly wager on the course, I would never undermine the integrity of the game.’”

    That was golf star Phil Mickelson responding to allegations he wagered more than $1 billion on football, basketball and baseball over the past three decades, and attempted to bet on the Ryder Cup, too.

    The claims were made by professional gambler and Las Vegas businessman Billy Walters in a book due out on Aug. 22, “Gambler: Secrets from a Life of Risk.” Walters said Mickelson placed hundreds of bets with him for exactly $220,000 and 1,115 bets for precisely $110,000 over the span of three decades. Walters claims that Mickelson also asked him to place a $400,000 bet on the U.S. team to win the 2012 Ryder Cup, a request that Walters said he declined, according to excerpts of the book reported by The FirePit Collective. 

    PGA Tour players are prohibited from wagering on events under the organization’s Integrity Program.

    “​​I have also been very open about my gambling addiction,” Mickelson continued in his statement shared on social media. “I have previously conveyed my remorse, took responsibility, have gotten help, have been fully committed to therapy that has positively impacted me and I feel good about where I am now.”

    Mickelson did not specifically address Walters’s claims that he wagered over $1 billion on sports, or that he lost more than $100 million on his bets during the multi-decade span.

    Walters is viewed as one of the more successful professional gamblers in recent memory, with sportsbooks limiting the amount he could wager at their establishments. He was convicted of insider trading in 2017 and served five years in federal prison. Mickelson was named in that insider-trading case; he was not accused of wrongdoing but agreed to pay back close to $1 million earned on a stock tip he received from Walters.

    Representatives for Mickelson did not respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment for this story.

    Mickelson was one of the first professional golfers to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf last year. He was offered roughly $200 million to join the Saudi-backed league, according to the Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine. The PGA Tour, the DP World Tour and the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit reached a landmark merger agreement in June that aims to create a single operation that would “unify” golf.

    See also: PGA Tour head: it will be ‘difficult’ to earn players trust after LIV merger

    And: Tiger Woods turned down LIV Golf offer in the ‘neighborhood’ of $700 million, says Greg Norman

    Some fellow professional golfers reacted to the alleged gambling issues by taking a few swings at Mickelson.

    “At least he can bet on the Ryder Cup this year because he won’t be a part of it,” golfer Rory McIlroy said on Thursday. McIlroy, one of the PGA Tour’s staunchest defenders in its battle against LIV Golf, has been critical of Mickelson and LIV on multiple occasions.

    Golfers including Mickelson and Dustin Johnson have been criticized for joining LIV Golf and turning a blind eye to Saudi Arabia’s human-rights record. According to the U.S. State Department, Saudi Arabia has in recent years been linked to multiple human-rights violations, including unlawful killings; executions for nonviolent offenses; forced disappearances; torture and cases of cruel and inhuman or degrading treatment of prisoners and detainees by government agents, among other offenses.

    Golfer Jordan Speith, a three-time major championship winner, said people in the golf world were “surprised” by the recent headlines about Mickelson.

    Mickelson’s alleged gambling predates the summer of 2018, when the Supreme Court lifted a U.S. ban on sports betting, allowing states to create legislation to legalize gambling. Since then, 34 states allow some form of legal sports betting, according to the latest tally by the American Gaming Association.

    It’s estimated that between 1% and 3% of the American adult population has some sort of gambling issue, although some groups believe the actual number could be even higher.

    “We didn’t have a good problem-gambling infrastructure in place prior to the expansion of sports betting, and we still don’t,” Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, was quoted as having told the Charlotte Observer in February.

    U.S. sportsbooks accepted $93 billion in sports bets in 2022, according to the American Gaming Association’s Tracker, a massive jump from the $57.22 billion wagered in 2021.

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  • These stock watchers nailed the market’s melt-up, but now they’re bracing for a fall. Here’s what to watch.

    These stock watchers nailed the market’s melt-up, but now they’re bracing for a fall. Here’s what to watch.

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    Similar to the buzzy intrigue behind the mashup viewing of the tonally different Barbie and the Oppenheimer movies, the market is rallying to its own oddball double feature: higher interest rates and economic uncertainty.

    What could go wrong? That is what some stock-market specialists are wondering.

    On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
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    -0.13%
    notched a 10th consecutive positive close, marking the longest win streak for the blue-chip benchmark since Aug. 7, 2017, according to the team at Dow Jones Market Data.

    To say that it has been a remarkable run-up is, perhaps, an understatement for some assets. Carvana
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    -2.38%    ,
    a left-for-dead used-car retailer, whose stock had surged by 1,100% at its peak so far this year, before retreating somewhat, is a perfect example of the fervor surrounding risky assets.

    It feels as if buyers are crazed, even as the Federal Reserve is set next week to raise interest rates a quarter of a percentage point, marking the 11th time (since March of 2022) that the central bank has increased benchmark interest rates after pausing in June to assess the inflation backdrop.

    Read: U.S. inflation slows again, CPI shows

    The Wall Street Journal this week described the investing environment as hitting a “fever pitch” with “risk-on” assets the most popular they have been since late 2021—right before stocks entered the longest bear market in decades.”

    The surprising velocity at which the bearish miasma from earlier this year has dissipated is also noteworthy, considering the concerns around stubbornly high inflation and incessant fear of a Fed-induced recession.

    At Friday’s close of trade, the Dow was off a mere 4.3% from its January record high reached in 2022, the S&P 500 is about 5.4% shy of its Jan. 2, 2022 closing high. Soberingly, the tech-weighted Nasdaq Composite Index
    COMP,
    -0.22%
    remains off nearly 13%.

    Now, however, may be time to take profits, some pros seem to caution.

    Stifel’s chief equity strategist Barry Bannister told MarketWatch via email that the lagged effects of the Fed’s barrage of tightening, combined with stingy lending — among other factors — would likely be triggers for a market pullback, if not an economic retrenchment.

     “In total, those leading indicators will keep economic growth soft,” Bannister said, also referencing flagging manufacturing.

    In large part, that is why he’s calling for sideways action or a possible retreat of about 3% for the S&P 500
    SPX,
    +0.03%
    to 4,400.

    Bannister’s recent call is worth heeding because he nailed the first part of a two-pronged prediction for 2023, when he referred to it as a year of two halves.

    Back in January, he wrote:

    2023 may be a year of 2 halves, with the S&P 500 peaking mid-2023. The S&P 500 in late 2023 may give back some or all of 2023 gains.

    The Stifel analyst sees a heightened recession risk for 2024.

    Meanwhile, Michael Gayed, who also runs the Lead-Lag Report and is a portfolio manager at Tidal Financial Group, warned of the perils of investors’ rabid buying, in a recent report. Similar to Bannister, he also predicted a strong first half of 2023 followed by a retreat in latter part of the year.

    Jacques Cesar, a former managing partner at Oliver Wyman who now works on market valuation for the firm, shared a similar sentiment to those two…but with some nuances, in an interview with MarketWatch.

    “Right now, we are in a melt-up,” he said. “And Rule No. 1 about a melt-up, don’t short a melt-up,” he said, referring to making bearish bets that the market will fall soon.

    “Is the market too high? Yes,” Cesar said. “But is there a signal to short? Absolutely not,” he said.

    The market valuation pro, says investors find themselves in a Russian nesting doll of market conditions: “We are in a sub-cyclical bull in a cyclical bear in a suprasecular bull.”

    His assumption is that the current melt-up in markets will reverse but cautions that predicting the precise timing is impossible.

    Useful signs to look for will be decelerating market pricing and then reversing coupled with trading volume picking up as stocks slide.

    Cesar also predicts a pullback in 2024, if not a recession, and said that downturn will be followed by a return to a suprasecular, long-term bull run in 2025.

    Although, there won’t be an apparent trigger for the market and economic slump, Cesar says eroding consumer savings. built up during the pandemic, will be depleted by the end of 2023.

    As for inflation, Cesar says it has been dropping like a stone and pointed to the New York Fed’s Underlying Inflation Gauge as an early (but perhaps unheeded) signal that pricing pressures have been steadily receding.

    So much so that disinflation, a slowdown in the rate of inflation, may be a corporate concern in coming quarters.

    He said companies, which enjoyed healthy pricing power during the inflationary period, will be hurt in the short-term by disinflation in the short term.

    “As you go into disinflation, the margins get squeezed,” he said.

    Bannister says oversold parts of the market like banks
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    -1.26%

    KBE,
    -1.20%    ,
    industrials
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    -0.47%
    and basic materials
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    might be better opportunities for investors in the third quarter than growth-oriented tech plays like Tesla
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    -1.10%    ,
    for example.

    In the end, bulls (and bears), similar to moviegoers are wading back into a market that had been written off at the start of the year. The major cinematic question? Will they will be partying with Barbie or getting blown up with Oppenheimer?

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  • This Barbie ‘holy grail’ doll is on sale for $25,000 — but one rare Barbie collectible could fetch $1 million

    This Barbie ‘holy grail’ doll is on sale for $25,000 — but one rare Barbie collectible could fetch $1 million

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    With the release this weekend of the new “Barbie” movie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, there’s growing attention being paid to the world of Barbie collectibles. As in the hundreds of dolls that have been released over the years, to say nothing of such accessories as Barbie outfits and furniture.

    But there’s one collectible above all — the holy grail of Barbies, if you will. We’re referring to Barbie No. 1, the first doll ever released by Mattel to bear the Barbie name, dating from 1959.

    Barbie fanatics speak of it in reverent terms. “I lost sleep over this doll,” one collector said in a YouTube
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    video that documented the arrival and unboxing of a Barbie No. 1.

    Needless to say, collectors will pay a pretty penny for a Barbie No. 1. Prices can easily reach $10,000-plus, according to Barbie experts. The original doll sold for about $3, but there’s a Barbie No. 1 doll on eBay
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    -1.02%
    currently going for $25,000.

    But before you plunk down five figures for an investment-grade doll, we figured you might want to know a little more about this one-of-a-kind Barbie. Here goes:

    What makes the ‘Holy Grail’ Barbie so special?

    Obviously, it’s all about being the first of its kind, not unlike a baseball player’s rookie card (the 1952 Mickey Mantle card is often considered the holy grail of sports collectibles, though that can sell for millions of dollars). It’s also about rarity. Experts say around 300,000 to 350,000 of those debut Barbies were sold in 1959, but the number of Barbie No. 1s that survived throughout the years — dolls are sold as toys, after all, not necessarily collectibles — is considerably less.

    (Mattel
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    -0.42%
    reportedly now releases about 60 million Barbies annually, but the company didn’t respond to a MarketWatch request for comment and information.)

    There’s also something to be said for No. 1’s distinct look, marked by what veteran Barbie appraiser Dr. Lori Verderame describes as its “deep profile” with a protruding nose and high forehead. It’s a design very much inspired by the German-made Bild Lilli dolls that intrigued Barbie creator Ruth Handler.

    Are there any really rare examples of the original Barbie?

    Red-headed Barbie No. 1s are known to exist. Marl Davidson, a Barbie dealer based in Bradenton, Fla., says she once sold one for $50,000, and perhaps the holiest of holy grails is a salesman’s Barbie sample case dating from the doll’s early years. Davidson says she believes only two or three are around. And one surfaced? “It could go for $1 million,” she says.

    And what makes some Barbie No. 1s more valuable than others?

    As with almost any collectible category, it’s all about condition. Barbie buyers are looking for a No. 1 that’s as close to mint condition as possible, with all the original items — namely, the box, black stand, sunglasses, shoes, brochure and zebra-striped swimsuit. (There are also outfits and accessories dating from Barbie’s early years, but these were sold separately; Verderame says a popular outfit from this period can sell for $150 to $200.)

    Ironically, if the Barbie has stayed in the original box, it may affect the condition — Verderame explains that the packaging is acidic so it can “damage the piece over time,” but she says collectors still “want it in the box.”

    Then, there’s the hair color. The original Barbie came in both blonde and brunette versions. Verderame says the blondes are generally more sought after since that’s what most people think of as the Barbie classic. But Davidson says brunettes can actually have value since there were fewer made of them. Then again, she says, the collectors “who can afford it will have one of everything.”

    How can you tell if a first-edition 1959 Barbie is a fake?

    There are various elements that will signify an original Barbie — most notably, a marking on the doll’s, um, right buttock (this also applies to later Barbies, though). Also look for holes in the feet and what the Doll Reference site describes as “tight curly bangs,” among other identifiers. It’s worth keeping in mind that you might find an original No. 1 doll, but with other parts that are not original — say, a replacement stand.

    What’s the current market for the original Barbie?

    It’s soaring because of the movie, Verderame says. She notes that Barbie No. 1s that went for $10,000 as recently as three months ago are now selling in the $15,000-$25,000 range. Verderame anticipates the market will cool off after the fervor for the Warner Bros.
    WBD,
    -1.37%
    film dies down. But Davidson remains bullish on Barbie’s longer-term prospects because of the doll’s iconic appeal: “The price can only go up,” she says.

    Are there any affordable alternatives to a first-edition Barbie?

    Davidson says collectors can also consider Barbie No. 3 as a collectible. It’s a very early model, but it has a far more approachable price — Davidson says collectors can find one between $1,000 and $3,000.

    If you want something way more affordable that still has potential to appreciate, Verderame says to consider iconic Barbies from the 1990s and 2000s that are currently selling for between $50 and $150.

    But if you insist on a Barbie No. 1, Davidson says you can always buy one in lesser condition for a lesser price. Still, even a bald Barbie No. 1 won’t come cheap, she warns. “It’s going to go for a couple of grand,” she says.

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  • An unscripted Tony Awards honors ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ and ‘Leopoldstadt,’ among other shows

    An unscripted Tony Awards honors ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ and ‘Leopoldstadt,’ among other shows

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    Call it an equal opportunity Tony Awards.

    No single show dominated Broadway’s big night, with prizes split almost evenly among a handful of productions. “Kimberly Akimbo,” a quirky, smaller-scaled show that chronicles the story of a teenager who suffers from a disease that effectively traps her in an older person’s body, was named best musical, the evening’s most heralded honor.

    But otherwise, the show captured a respectable but hardly record-breaking four other awards — namely, ones for Victoria Clark for lead actress in a musical, Bonnie Milligan for supporting actress, Jeanine Tesori for score and David Lindsay-Abaire for book. By contrast, “Hamilton” won a total of 11 awards when it competed in 2016.

    Similarly, “Leopoldstadt,” legendary dramatist’s Tom Stoppard’s chronicle of a Jewish Viennese family before, during and after the Holocaust, was honored for best play, but didn’t sweep its way through all the other categories in which it was nominated. Still, it picked up wins for Brandon Uranowitz for best supporting actor, Patrick Marber for direction and Brigitte Reiffenstuel for costume design.

    Other major winners: a production of Suzan-Lori Parks’ “Topdog/Underdog” was named best revival of a play and a production of Alfred Uhry and Jason Robert Brown’s “Parade” was recognized for best revival of a musical.

    This year’s Tony Awards ceremony, held at the United Palace theater in New York City, was significant on several other levels. For starters, it was an unscripted awards show — a situation borne from the fact that the Writers Guild of America is still on strike. The powers behind the Tony Awards worked out an agreement with the union to let the show proceed, but without the preamble and intros that usually accompany any awards program.

    Still, there was a host — veteran actress Ariana DeBose — who acknowledged some of the awkwardness of the situation from the start, but also showed that, well, the show must go on.

    “Darlings, buckle up!” DeBose said at the beginning of the main ceremony, which was seen on CBS and Paramount+.

    It was also an occasion for Broadway to flex some of its muscle as it continues its recovery from the pandemic, which forced theaters to shut down for more than year. Shows grossed nearly $1.6 billion during the 2022-’23 season — a sizable figure, but still not equal to the record $1.8 billion that Broadway took in during the 2018-’19 season.

    In addition, this marked the first time the Tonys recognized a non-binary performer with an award — actually, two performers, with J. Harrison Ghee of “Some Like It Hot” for best lead actor in a musical and Alex Newell of “Shucked” for best featured actor in a musical.

    Newell gave one of the most emotional acceptance speeches of the night.

    “Thank you for seeing me, Broadway,” Newell said. “I should not be up here as a queer, nonbinary, fat, Black little baby from Massachusetts. And to anyone that thinks that they can’t do it, I’m going to look you dead in your face. That you can do anything you put your mind to.”

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  • Hollywood writers go on strike, saying they face ‘existential crisis’

    Hollywood writers go on strike, saying they face ‘existential crisis’

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    Hollywood writers are on strike for the first time in 15 years, halting production of TV shows and movies.

    The Writers Guild of America announced Monday night its boards unanimously approved a strike effective 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. “Picketing will begin tomorrow afternoon,” the WGA said in a tweet Monday night.

    The WGA said the decision was…

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  • Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

    Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

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    Netflix Inc. is ending the DVD-by-mail business that first made it a household name and took down Blockbuster Video.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.29%
    executives announced Tuesday afternoon that the company will ship its last red DVD envelopes on Sept. 29, after 25 years. The business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013 to less than $150 million last year.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    Also see: Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

    Netflix launched as a DVD-by-mail service in an era that relied on physical media such as the discs to watch television shows and movies at home. The DVD business at the time was dominated by Blockbuster, which relied on brick-and-mortar stores that rented movies for a few days and charged late fees if they were not returned on time.

    Netflix offered a different approach, allowing consumers to have a certain number of DVDs mailed to their home and return them at their leisure, which eventually led to the demise of Blockbuster. Eventually, the company began focusing on streaming media directly to consumers, and first offered that service for free to DVD subscribers.

    Co-founder and former Chief Executive Reed Hastings — who announced he was stepping down from that position three months ago — decided to pivot from the successful DVD business to focus on streaming, which wasn’t an easy transition. When he announced that Netflix would sever the DVD and streaming businesses in 2011, effectively doubling the monthly price for consumers who wanted both offerings, it became one of the biggest debacles in Netflix history as consumers raged and canceled their subscriptions.

    While the process was not easy — remember Qwikster? — Hastings’ vision for streaming services won out, with Netflix collecting roughly $31.5 billion in streaming subscription revenue last year, as the DVD business racked up $146 million. Some of the biggest names in entertainment and tech — Walt Disney Inc.
    DIS,
    +0.63%    ,
    Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.75%    ,
    Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    -1.79%
    HBO, and many more — have followed Netflix’s path, and established streaming as one of the most dominant forms of media consumption.

    For more: Netflix has changed drastically since its IPO —and is worth thousands of times more

    “Those iconic red envelopes changed the way people watched shows and movies at home — and they paved the way for the shift to streaming,” Sarandos wrote in Tuesday’s announcement.

    Netflix stock has also been a winner, despite a decline in late trading following earnings on Tuesday afternoon. Shares have increased more than 1,300% in the past decade, as the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.09%
    has grown by about 167%.

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  • Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

    Netflix is sending its DVD-by-mail business to the Blockbuster graveyard

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    Netflix Inc. is ending the DVD-by-mail business that first made it a household name and took down Blockbuster Video.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    +0.29%
    executives announced Tuesday afternoon that the company will ship its last red DVD envelopes on Sept. 29, after 25 years. The business has dwindled in the past decade from more than $900 million in revenue in 2013 to less than $150 million last year.

    “Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult,” co-Chief Executive Ted Sarandos said in a blog post titled “Netflix DVD — The Final Season.”

    Also see: Netflix stock falls after subscriber growth, earnings forecast miss. But it’s bouncing back on ad plans, shared-password crackdown in U.S.

    Netflix launched as a DVD-by-mail service in an era that relied on physical media such as the discs to watch television shows and movies at home. The DVD business at the time was dominated by Blockbuster, which relied on brick-and-mortar stores that rented movies for a few days and charged late fees if they were not returned on time.

    Netflix offered a different approach, allowing consumers to have a certain number of DVDs mailed to their home and return them at their leisure, which eventually led to the demise of Blockbuster. Eventually, the company began focusing on streaming media directly to consumers, and first offered that service for free to DVD subscribers.

    Co-founder and former Chief Executive Reed Hastings — who announced he was stepping down from that position three months ago — decided to pivot from the successful DVD business to focus on streaming, which wasn’t an easy transition. When he announced that Netflix would sever the DVD and streaming businesses in 2011, effectively doubling the monthly price for consumers who wanted both offerings, it became one of the biggest debacles in Netflix history as consumers raged and canceled their subscriptions.

    While the process was not easy — remember Qwikster? — Hastings’ vision for streaming services won out, with Netflix collecting roughly $31.5 billion in streaming subscription revenue last year, as the DVD business racked up $146 million. Some of the biggest names in entertainment and tech — Walt Disney Inc.
    DIS,
    +0.63%    ,
    Apple Inc.
    AAPL,
    +0.75%    ,
    Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    -1.79%
    HBO, and many more — have followed Netflix’s path, and established streaming as one of the most dominant forms of media consumption.

    For more: Netflix has changed drastically since its IPO —and is worth thousands of times more

    “Those iconic red envelopes changed the way people watched shows and movies at home — and they paved the way for the shift to streaming,” Sarandos wrote in Tuesday’s announcement.

    Netflix stock has also been a winner, despite a decline in late trading following earnings on Tuesday afternoon. Shares have increased more than 1,300% in the past decade, as the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    +0.09%
    has grown by about 167%.

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  • The new Steve Jobs book is free to download now — here’s where to get it 

    The new Steve Jobs book is free to download now — here’s where to get it 

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    Apple founder Steve Jobs has continued to inspire even after his death in 2011. Just this week, in fact, Tim Cook — Apple’s AAPL current CEO and chief operating officer for a decade-plus under Jobs — mused in a GQ interview on life lessons imparted by his predecessor. 

    And now anyone who wants to get an intimate glimpse into Jobs’s wisdom and reflections on his life, which was cut short at just 56, can download a curated collection of personal correspondence, speeches and interviews — for free.

    “Make…

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  • Disney eliminates metaverse division in cost-cutting purge: report

    Disney eliminates metaverse division in cost-cutting purge: report

    [ad_1]

    The metaverse is among the first victims of Walt Disney Co.’s cost-cutting purge.

    The Magic Kingdom is shutting down its next-generation storytelling and consumer-experiences unit, the small division that was developing metaverse strategies, as part of a plan to slash 7,000 jobs, according to a Wall Street Journal report on Tuesday.

    Disney…

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  • J. Kimo Williams Presents His FACES of VIETNAM Photo Exhibit: March 24th, 25th and 26th

    J. Kimo Williams Presents His FACES of VIETNAM Photo Exhibit: March 24th, 25th and 26th

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    Vietnam Veteran J. Kimo Williams returned to Vietnam with his camera and wrote music.

    Press Release
    –

    Feb 24, 2023


    SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va., February 24, 2023 (Newswire.com)
    –
    FACES OF VIETNAM exhibit returns for the third year to the Shepherdstown War Memorial Building in West Virginia on March 24, 25, and 26, 2023, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

    In recognition of the sacrifices and contributions of Vietnam Veterans, Public Law No: 115-15, Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017 designated March 29 as the official day to recognize Vietnam Veterans and their service to the country. FACES OF VIETNAM is a wonderful opportunity to remember those who contributed and served.

    Vietnam Veteran J. Kimo Williams returned to Vietnam with his camera, and his stunning photographs are a testament to the land’s beauty and people. Williams’ journey started in 1969 when he thought Vietnam was nothing more than a third-world country, as portrayed by the media. But upon his return to the country in 1998, he realized how wrong he was. Williams has since visited Vietnam several times, capturing the essence of the culture through his camera lens.

    The FACES OF VIETNAM exhibit showcases the people that Williams encountered during his trips to Vietnam, and it is a truly unforgettable experience. Williams’ work is not just limited to photography; as a composer, he has also remastered and rereleased his DownBeat 41/2 Star album War Stories, featuring esteemed musicians like Mike Stern, Victor Bailey, and Vinnie Colaiuta. Pulitzer Prize winner Studs Terkel also provides a liner note introduction to several tracks.

    Williams wants his music to be heard like an abstract painting on canvas, and it is sure to inspire a range of emotions in its listeners. You can find War Stories on streaming platforms and during the exhibition in Shepherdstown.

    Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to experience the beauty and culture of Vietnam through the eyes of J. Kimo Williams and reflect on the contributions of Vietnam Veterans. 

    War Stories is available at www.Kimotion.org, on streaming platforms, and during the exhibition in Shepherdstown.

    Source: J. Kimo Williams-Photographer

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  • Franco Harris, Hall of Fame running back, dies aged 72

    Franco Harris, Hall of Fame running back, dies aged 72

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    PITTSBURGH (AP) — Franco Harris, the Hall of Fame running back whose heads-up thinking authored “The Immaculate Reception,” considered the most iconic play in NFL history, has died. He was 72.

    Harris’ son Dok told The Associated Press his father passed away overnight. No cause of death was given.

    His death comes two days before the 50th anniversary of the play that provided the jolt that helped transform the Steelers from also-rans into the NFL’s elite and three days before Pittsburgh is scheduled to retire his No. 32 during a ceremony at halftime of its game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

    Harris ran for 12,120 yards and won four Super Bowl rings with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s, a dynasty that began in earnest when Harris decided to keep running during a last-second heave by Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw in a playoff game against Oakland in 1972.

    With Pittsburgh trailing 7-6 and facing fourth-and-10 from their own 40 yard line and 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Bradshaw drifted back and threw deep to running back French Fuqua. Fuqua and Oakland defensive back Jack Tatum collided, sending the ball careening back toward midfield in the direction of Harris.

    While nearly everyone else on the field stopped, Harris kept his legs churning, snatching the ball just inches above the Three Rivers Stadium turf near the Oakland 45 then outracing several stunned Raider defenders to give the Steelers their first playoff victory in the franchise’s four-decade history.

    “That play really represents our teams of the ’70s,” Harris said after the ”Immaculate Reception” was voted the greatest play in NFL history during the league’s 100th anniversary season in 2020.

    While the Steelers fell the next week to Miami in the AFC Championship, Pittsburgh was on its way to becoming the dominant team of the 1970s, twice winning back-to-back Super Bowls, first after the 1974 and 1975 seasons and again after the 1978 and 1979 seasons.

    Harris, the 6-foot-2, 230-pound workhorse from Penn State, found himself in the center of it all. He churned for a then-record 158 yards rushing and a touchdown in Pittsburgh’s 16-6 victory over Minnesota in Super Bowl IX on his way to winning the game’s Most Valuable Player award. He scored at least once in three of the four Super Bowls he played in, and his 354 career yards rushing on the NFL’s biggest stage remains a record nearly four decades after his retirement.

    Born in Fort Dix, New Jersey, on March 7, 1950, Harris played collegiately at Penn State, where his primary job was to open holes for backfield mate Lydell Mitchell. The Steelers, in the final stages of a rebuild led by Hall of Fame coach Chuck Noll, saw enough in Harris to make him the 13th overall pick in the 1972 draft.

    “When (Noll) drafted Franco Harris, he gave the offense heart, he gave it discipline, he gave it desire, he gave it the ability to win a championship in Pittsburgh,” Steelers Hall of Fame wide receiver Lynn Swann said of his frequent roommate on team road trips.

    Harris’ impact was immediate. He won the NFL’s Rookie to the Year award in 1972 after rushing for a then-team-rookie record 1,055 yards and 10 touchdowns as the Steelers reached the postseason for just the second time in franchise history.

    The city’s large Italian-American population embraced Harris immediately, led by two local businessmen who founded what became known as “Franco’s Italian Army,” a nod to Harris’ roots as the son of an African-American father and an Italian mother.

    The “Immaculate Reception” made Harris a star, though he typically preferred to let his play and not his mouth do the talking. On a team that featured big personalities in Bradshaw, defensive tackle Joe Greene, linebacker Jack Lambert among others, the intensely quiet Harris spent 12 seasons as the engine that helped Pittsburgh’s offense go.

    Eight times he topped 1,000 yards rushing in a season, including five times while playing a 14-game schedule. He piled up another 1,556 yards rushing and 16 rushing touchdowns in the playoffs, both second all-time behind Smith.

    Despite his gaudy numbers, Harris stressed he was just one cog in an extraordinary machine that redefined greatness.

    “You see, during that era, each player brought their own little piece with them to make that wonderful decade happen,” Harris said during his Hall of Fame speech in 1990. “Each player had their strengths and weaknesses, each their own thinking, each their own method, just each, each had their own. But then it was amazing, it all came together, and it stayed together to forge the greatest team of all times.”

    Harris also made it a habit to stick up for his teammates. When Bradshaw took what Harris felt was an illegal late hit from Dallas linebacker Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson in the second half of their meeting in the 1978 Super Bowl, Harris basically demanded Bradshaw give him the ball on the next play. All Harris did was sprint up the middle 22 yards — right by Henderson — for a touchdown that gave the Steelers an 11-point lead they would not relinquish on their way to their third championship in six years.

    Despite all of his success, his time in Pittsburgh ended acrimoniously when the Steelers cut him after he held out during training camp before the 1984 season. Noll, who leaned on Harris so heavily for so long, famously answered “Franco who?” when asked about Harris’ absence from the team’s camp at Saint Vincent College.

    Harris signed with Seattle, running for just 170 yards in eight games before being released in midseason. He retired as the NFL’s third all-time leading rusher behind Walter Payton and Jim Brown.

    “I don’t even think about that (anymore),” Harris said in 2006. “I’m still black and gold.”

    Harris remained in Pittsburgh following his retirement, opening a bakery and becoming heavily involved in several charities, including serving as the chairman of “Pittsburgh Promise,” which provides college scholarship opportunities for Pittsburgh Public School students.

    Harris is survived by his wife Dana Dokmanovich and his son, Dok.

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  • As subscription prices rise, here’s what’s worth streaming in November 2022: ‘The Crown,’ ‘Willow,’ ‘Mythic Quest’ and more

    As subscription prices rise, here’s what’s worth streaming in November 2022: ‘The Crown,’ ‘Willow,’ ‘Mythic Quest’ and more

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    So here’s some bad news and some, well, slightly less bad news.

    First, the bad-bad: Streaming prices are increasing almost across the board (Hulu and Apple TV+ rose in October, Disney+ will rise in December, while Netflix and Prime Video rose earlier this year), putting even more of a crunch on budget-conscious consumers.

    But now the less bad: If you can put up with commercials, there are cheaper, ad-supported versions coming your way (Netflix on Nov. 3, Disney+ in December).

    Of course, the other money-saving solution is to double down on a churn-and-return strategy and cut down on recurring subscriptions even more.

    Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget, rating the major services as a “play,” “pause” or “stop” — similar to investment analysts’ traditional ratings of buy, hold and sell. We also pick the best content to help you make your monthly decisions.

    Consumers can take full advantage of cord-cutting by churning and returning — adding and dropping streaming services each month. All it takes is good planning. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month, and keep an eye out for lower-priced tiers, limited-time discounts, free trials and cost-saving bundles. There are a lot of offers out there, but the deals don’t last forever.

    Here’s a look at what’s coming to the various streaming services in November 2022, and what’s really worth the monthly subscription fee.

    Netflix ($6.99 a month for basic with ads starting Nov. 3, $9.99 basic without ads, $15.49 standard without ads, $19.99 premium without ads)

    Netflix has another really good month coming up.

     “The Crown” (Nov. 9), returns for its fifth season, set this time in the 1990s as scandals involving Charles and Diana plaster London’s tabloids and the role of Britain’s monarchy in modern society is thrown into question. Imelda Staunton takes over the role of Queen Elizabeth, with Dominic West as Prince Charles, Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana and Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip. Controversy has already erupted over the new season, which will include Diana’s tragic death, as some have spoken out about the show’s increasingly blurry line between truth and fiction. Pryce recently told Vanity Fair, ““The vast majority of people know it’s a drama,” not a documentary. And it’s a pretty good drama.

    Netflix
    NFLX,
    -0.41%
    hasn’t had much success developing original sitcoms, but is hoping to finally break through with “Blockbuster” (Nov. 3), a workplace comedy set at the last Blockbuster video store in America, starring network sitcom veterans Randall Park (“Fresh Off the Boat”) and Melissa Fumero (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”). There’s also “Wednesday” (Nov. 23), a horror-comedy series from Tim Burton starring Jenna Ortega as the terrifyingly snarky teen Wednesday Addams, with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman playing her creepy and kooky parents, Morticia and Gomez; and the third and final season of the dark comedy “Dead to Me” (Nov. 17), starring Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini, which returns after a two-and-a-half-year layoff.

    On the drama side, there’s “1899” (Nov. 17), a mystery-horror series set aboard a transatlantic steamer ship at the turn of the last century, from the makers of the mind-bending German sci-fi series “Dark” — and if it’s even half as trippy and addictive, it’ll be terrific; Part 1 of the fourth season of the supernatural drama “Manifest” (Nov. 4), which Netflix rescued from NBC’s cancellation; and Season 6 of the soapy Spanish high-school drama “Elite” (Nov 18).

    More: Here’s everything new coming to Netflix in November 2022, and what’s leaving

    There’s also the timely documentary “FIFA Uncovered” (Nov. 9), digging into the scandal-plagued organization behind the World Cup; “Pepsi, Where’s My Jet” (Nov. 17), a documentary about a man who sued Pepsi in the 1980s to get a free Harrier fighter jet; the fifth installment of “The Great British Baking Show: Holidays” (Nov. 18); and the new standup comedy special from the outgoing “Daily Show” host, “Trevor Noah: I Wish You Would” (Nov. 22).

    On the movie front, there’s “Enola Holmes 2” (Nov. 4), a sequel to the hit 2020 movie about Sherlock Holmes’ younger sister, played by Millie Bobby Brown (“Stranger Things”), as young detective Enola sets out to investigate her first case; “Slumberland” (Nov. 18), a comedy adventure about a young girl exploring the dreamworld, starring Mallow Barkley and Jason Mamoa; and Lindsay Lohan is back with a Christmas rom-com, “Falling for Christmas” (Nov. 10).

    Who’s Netflix for? Fans of buzz-worthy original shows and movies.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. When it’s at the top of its game, as it is again this month, Netflix is a must-have, at whatever price tier.

    Disney+ ($7.99 a month)

    The TV world has been abuzz about prequels for the past few months, but it’s all about sequels in November for Disney+.

    The biggest of the bunch is “Willow” (Nov. 30), a follow-up series to the cult-favorite 1988 fantasy movie of the same name. The magical adventure is set 20 years after the events of the film, and Warwick Davis returns as farmer-turned-sorcerer Willow Ufgood, who leads an unlikely group of heroes on a quest to save their world. It should be fun for the whole family.

    Disney
    DIS,
    +1.45%
    also has “Disenchanted” (Nov. 18), a sequel to the 2007 hit movie “Enchanted.” The musical fantasy is set 10 years after the happily-ever-after ending, with Giselle (Amy Adams) questioning her happiness and inadvertently setting her two worlds askew. Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden and Maya Rudolph co-star. And then there’s “The Santa Clauses” (Nov. 16), as Tim Allen reprises his role of Santa Claus, who’s now facing retirement and looking for a replacement, in a new miniseries spinoff of the family-movie trilogy.

    Also of note: “The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special” (Nov. 25), as Star-Lord and the gang kidnap Kevin Bacon; the live performance “Elton John: Live from Dodger Stadium” (Nov. 20), the pop icon’s final show in North America; and weekly episodes of “Dancing With the Stars” (season finale Nov. 21), the “Star Wars” prequel “Andor” (season finale Nov. 23) and “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers” (season finale Nov. 30).

    And heads up: Prices for the ad-free tier will jump to $10.99 a month in December, after Disney+ launches its ad-supported tier for $7.99 a month.

    Who’s Disney+ for? Families with kids, hardcore “Star Wars” and Marvel fans. For people not in those groups, Disney’s library can be lacking.

    Play, pause or stop? Play. There’s something for everyone in the household — even grumps who aren’t “Star Wars” fans can get into “Andor,” which absolutely works as a dark, gripping, spy thriller. Meanwhile, fans are realizing it just might be the best “Star Wars” series or movie ever made.

    HBO Max ($9.99 a month with ads, or $14.99 without ads)

    HBO Max is bringing back  “The Sex Lives of College Girls” (Nov. 17) for its second season. Created by Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble (who also teamed on Netflix’s “Never Have I Ever”), the ensemble comedy about four college roommates picks up right after Thanksgiving break, with the girls organizing a “sex-positive” male strip show. It’s sharp, funny, and less cringey than its title suggests.

    Then there’s “A Christmas Story Christmas” (Nov. 17), a nostalgic sequel to the 1983 classic, starring Peter Billingsley as a grown-up Ralphie who returns to his hometown to try to give his kids a perfect Christmas. It’s risky reviving such a beloved movie, and this could either be wonderful or terrible, there’s really no middle ground.

    HBO Max also has a slew of documentaries, including “Love, Lizzo” (Nov. 24), about the pop superstar’s inspiring life story; “Shaq” (Nov. 23), a four-part docuseries chronicling the rise to superstardom of NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal; “Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty” (Nov. 3), a true-crime series about a South Carolina lawyer’s scandalous fall; and “Say Hey, Willie Mays!” (Nov. 8), a film exploring the life, career and social impact of the greatest baseball player who ever played the game.

    See more: Here’s everything new coming to HBO Max in November 2022, and what’s leaving

    And every week brings new episodes of Season 2 of the very dark vacation comedy “The White Lotus,” Season 3 of “Pennyworth: The Origin of Batman’s Butler” and Season 2 of the cult documentary “The Vow.”

    Who’s HBO Max for? HBO fans and movie lovers.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. “The White Lotus” and “The Sex Lives of College Girls” are both worth watching, but beyond that it’s kinda “meh” this month. And Max is too pricey for “meh.”

    Amazon Prime Video ($14.99 a month)

    Amazon
    AMZN,
    -6.80%
    is bringing the star power in November, starting with the Western drama series “The English” (Nov. 11), starring Emily Blunt as an aristocratic Englishwoman who teams with a Pawnee scout (Chaske Spencer) on a mission to cross the violent 1890s American frontier. It looks stylish and bloody — and promising.

    Meanwhile, James Corden and Sally Hawkins star in “Mammals” (Nov. 11), a dark comedy series about modern marriage; pop star-turned-actor Harry Styles stars in “My Policeman” (Nov. 4), a drama about forbidden romance that’s getting very “meh” reviews in its theatrical release; and Kristen Bell, Ben Platt and Allison Janney star in “The People We Hate at the Wedding” (Nov. 18), a raunchy comedy set at a dysfunctional family wedding.

    More: Here’s what’s coming to Amazon’s Prime Video in November 2022

    There’s also NFL Thursday Night Football every week, and new episodes of the intriguing sci-fi drama “The Peripheral,” which is giving very “Westworld”-but-slightly-less-confusing vibes.

    Who’s Amazon Prime Video for? Movie lovers, TV-series fans who value quality over quantity.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. There’s good stuff here, but nothing that feels must-see.

    Paramount+ ($4.99 a month with ads but not live CBS, $9.99 without ads)

    Taylor Sheridan (“Yellowstone,” “1883,” “Mayor of Kingstown”) has another new series: “Tulsa King” (Nov. 13), starring Sylvester Stallone as a former New York mafia capo who gets freed from prison after 25 years and settles in Tulsa, Okla., to build a criminal empire of his own. Showrunner Terence Winter (“The Sopranos,” “Boardwalk Empire”) knows a thing or two about mob shows, and this one could be good.

    Paramount+ also has the spinoff series “Criminal Minds: Evolution” (Nov. 24), about an elite team of FBI profilers unraveling a network of serial killers; the family movie “Fantasy Football” (Nov. 25), about a girl who can magically control how her NFL-player dad performs on the field; and the series finale of “The Good Fight” (Nov. 10), which its creators promise will be “cataclysmic.”

    There’s also the Thanksgiving Day Parade (Nov. 24) and a ton of live sports, including college football on Saturdays, NFL football on Sundays (and Thanksgiving Day), and group-stage matches for UEFA’s Champions and Europe leagues.

    Who’s Paramount+ for? Gen X cord-cutters who miss live sports and familiar Paramount Global 
    PARA,
    +3.37%
     broadcast and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Pause. Besides its solid live-sports lineup, it’s a good time to catch up and binge “The Good Fight,” and “Tulsa King” could be worth a watch too.

    Hulu ($7.99 a month with ads, or $14.99 with no ads)

    Hulu has a couple of interesting offerings in November, but nothing that screams must-see. Yet, at least.

    FX’s “Fleishman Is in Trouble” (Nov. 17) stars Jesse Eisenberg as a newly divorced dad whose promiscuous dive into app-based dating is disrupted when his ex-wife disappears and leaves him with their kids. Claire Danes, Lizzy Caplan and Adam Brody co-star in the eight-episode drama, which is based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s best-selling novel.

    There’s also “Welcome to Chippendales” (Nov. 22), a true-crime series starring Kumail Nanjiani as the immigrant founder of the 1980s male-stripper franchise, which chronicles his business empire’s rise and fall amid a blizzard of sex, drugs and violence.

    Meanwhile, Adam McKay (“The Big Short”) and Billy Corben (“Cocaine Cowboys”) have the documentary  “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty” (Nov. 1), about the private life of Christian televangelist and former Liberty University president Jerry Falwell Jr. and his very public downfall.

    See: Here’s everything new on Hulu in November 2022 — and what’s leaving

    There are also the final two episodes of “Atlanta” (series finale Nov. 10), whose fourth season has returned to brilliance after an underwhelming Season 3 over the summer, and new episodes every week of ABC’s “Abbott Elementary.”

    Who’s Hulu for? TV lovers. There’s a deep library for those who want older TV series and next-day streaming of many current network and cable shows.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. While you won’t regret paying for Hulu if you already do, there’s not a lot to lure new subscribers this month.

    Apple TV+ ($6.99 a month)

    Apple TV+ is too inconsistent to be worth the $2-a-month price hike that was just announced, so it’s best to strategically plan when to stream — wait until a good series or two are completed, for example, and binge them all in a month, then cancel. Repeat as needed.

    And it actually is a decent month for Apple. Its second-best comedy, “Mythic Quest” Nov. 11), returns for its third season, with Ian (Rob McElhenny) and Poppy (Charlotte Nicdao) gearing up for war against their old videogame company. With a perfect blend of humor and heart, it’s one of the best workplace comedies on TV.

    Meanwhile, Season 2 of “The Mosquito Coast” (Nov. 4) finds the fugitive Fox family finally hiding out in Central America, after a tedious premise-pilot of a first season that wasted good actors (Justin Theroux and Melissa George) and beautiful cinematography with nonsensical plot twists, while the action series “Echo 3” (Nov. 23) stars Luke Evans and Michiel Huisman as former soldiers trying to rescue a kidnapped scientist in the jungles of South America.

    Apple
    AAPL,
    +7.56%
    also has a pair of high-profile original movies: “Causeway” (Nov. 3), starring Jennifer Lawrence as a former soldier struggling to adjust to civilian life in New Orleans, co-starring Brian Tyree Henry, and “Spirited” (Nov. 18), a musical twist on “A Christmas Carol” told from the ghosts’ point of view, starring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell.

    Who’s Apple TV+ for? It offers a little something for everyone, but not necessarily enough for anyone — although it’s getting there.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s just not enough to justify a month-to-month subscription. December is a better bet, with “Mythic Quest” and a new season of “Slow Horses” running concurrently.

    Peacock (free basic level, Premium for $4.99 a month with ads, or $9.99 a month with no ads)

    The World Cup from Qatar (Nov. 20-Dec. 18) will be broadcast on Fox and FS1, so cord-cutters are out of luck, unless you subscribe to a live-streaming service like Hulu Live or YouTube TV. However, Peacock will stream every match in Spanish, which could be a decent Plan B for soccer fans.

    And that “it’ll-do-but-it’s-not-exactly-what-I’m-looking-for” description is the running theme for Peacock. November will bring a handful of originals that are unlikely to move the needle, subscriber-wise: There’s the musical-comedy spinoff series “Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin” (Nov. 23), starring Adam Devine; “The Calling” (Nov. 10), a crime drama about a religious cop, from David E. Kelley and Barry Levinson; the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (Nov. 24); and the streaming debut of Jordan Poole’s sci-fi/horror hit “Nope” (Nov. 18).

    Sports-wise, Peacock has the National Dog Show (hey, it’s a competition!) on Nov. 24, NFL Sunday Night Football every weekend, a full slate of English Premier League matches through Nov. 13, and a ton of golf and winter sports.

    Who’s Peacock for? If you have a Comcast 
    CMCSA,
    -0.06%
     or Cox cable subscription, you likely have free access to the Premium tier (with ads) — though reportedly not for much longer. The free tier is almost worthless, but the recent addition of next-day streaming of NBC and Bravo shows (like “Saturday Night Live” and “Real Housewives”) bolsters the case for paying for a subscription. Still, Peacock is still not really necessary unless you need it for sports.

    Play, pause or stop? Stop. There’s not a lot that’s particularly enticing right now, even on the sports side.

    Discovery+ ($4.99 a month with ads, or $6.99 with no ads)

    More of the same in November for Discovery+, which is a feature, not a bug. Highlights include the vegan cook-and-chat show “Mary McCartney Serves It Up” (Nov. 1); “Tut’s Lost City Revealed” (Nov. 3), about a 3,000-year-old Egyptian city recently discovered by archaeologists; “Vardy vs Rooney: The Wagatha Trial” (Nov. 19), the inside story of the tabloid-fodder “Wagatha” scandal between the wives of English soccer stars; and Season 2 of the excellent CNN food series “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” (Nov. 30). Full disclosure: There are also a handful of sappy holiday movies guest-starring some HGTV and Food Network stars, but they look terrible and I expect better from you, a discerning reader/viewer.

    Who’s Discovery+ for? Cord-cutters who miss their unscripted TV or who are really, really into “90 Day Fiancé.”

    Play, pause or stop?  Stop. Discovery+ is still fantastic for background TV, but it’s not worth the cost. Still, it should add value when the reconfigured Warner Bros. Discovery 
    WBD,
    +3.68%
      combines it with HBO Max next summer.

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  • Elon Musk would lose 13.5 million Twitter followers if he scraps most spam accounts; Justin Bieber would lose 27.6 million, data finds

    Elon Musk would lose 13.5 million Twitter followers if he scraps most spam accounts; Justin Bieber would lose 27.6 million, data finds

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    Elon Musk would lose about 13.5 million Twitter followers, if he pushes through his plan to get rid of most spam accounts, according to data crunched by CodeClan, a Scottish digital skills academy.

    The Tesla Inc.
    TSLA,
    -3.84%
    CEO on Tuesday gave up a legal battle and agreed to pay $44 billion to take over the social-media company. Musk has said he wants less than 5% of Twitter
    TWTR,
    -2.35%
    accounts to be spam.

    But Musk’s losses pale in comparison with singer Justin Bieber, who would lose 27.6 million of his 114.2 million followers, according to the data.

    Britney Spears would lose the highest percentage of fake followers out of the top 20 with some 48% of her 55.8 million followers being classified as fakes.

    See also: Elon Musk says Twitter will eventually be part of ‘X, the everything app’

    Former President Barack Obama would lose 19.3 million of his 131.9 million followers, the data shows.

    Among other high profile names; Katy Perry has about 23.3 million fakes among her 108.9 million followers, or 21.4% of the total; Rihanna has about 26.5 million fakes, or 24.9% of her 106.5 million followers; Lady Gaga has 10.9 million fakes in her roster of 84.7 million followers, for 12.9% of the total; Kim Kardashian has about 14 million fakes, or 19.4% of her 72.4 million followers, and Ellen DeGeneres has about 24.4 million fakes, equal to 31.5% of her 77.5 million followers.

    See now: Elon Musk’s legal battle with Twitter may be over, but his war with the SEC continues

    In the world of politics, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has about 17.5 million fakes in his 78.8 million followers, equal to 22.2% of the total.

    CNN Breaking News has about 7.7 million fakes, or 12.2% of its 63.1 million followers. Bill Gates has about 14.3 million fakes, or 24.2% of his 58.9 million followers. And NASA has some 14.7 million fakes, or 26.8% of its 57.1 million followers.

    Twitter shares were slightly lower premarket, while Tesla was down 1.1%.

    Shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp.
    DWAC,
    +0.03%    ,
    the special-purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, buying the company behind former President Donald Trump’s Truth Social social-media company, was slightly higher premarket after falling more than 5% Tuesday in the wake of the Musk/Twitter news.

    The SPAC has fallen 67% in the year to date, while the S&P 500
    SPX,
    -1.28%
    has fallen 20%.

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  • Trevor Noah leaving ‘The Daily Show’ after 7 years

    Trevor Noah leaving ‘The Daily Show’ after 7 years

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    Trevor Noah is leaving Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” after seven years.

    The South African comedian made the announcement at the end of the taping of Thursday’s show, after thanking the audience for their support. “It’s been absolutely amazing. After seven years, my time is up,” he said. “But in the most beautiful way.”

    “Honestly, I’ve loved hosting the show. It’s been one of my greatest challenges. It’s been one of my greatest joys,” he added. ” I have loved trying to figure out how to make people laugh, even when the stories are particularly shitty on the worst days.”

    Noah took over hosting the satirical news show from Jon Stewart in 2015.

    He hosted the show from his apartment for more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before returning to the studio last year. During Noah’s tenure, “The Daily Show” shifted its focus, from snarky mocking of conservatives under Stewart to a more youth-focused, social-advocacy messages (though conservatives were still regularly mocked).

    Noah did not give a departure date, and said he will continue hosting the show for the “time being.”

    “We are grateful to Trevor for our amazing partnership over the past seven years,” Paramount Global’s
    PARA,
    -4.44%
    Comedy Central said in a statement Thursday night. “With no timetable for his departure, we’re working together on next steps. As we look ahead, we’re excited for the next chapter in the 25+ year history of The Daily Show as it continues to redefine culture through sharp and hilarious social commentary, helping audiences make sense of the world around them.”

    “The Daily Show” has been Emmy-nominated for “outstanding variety talk series” every year Noah has hosted, but has never won, losing to former “Daily Show” cast member John Oliver’s “Last Week Tonight” on HBO each year, though it did win an Emmy for “best short-form variety show” in 2018.

    Noah’s departure is the latest shakeup in the late-night TV scene. Warner Bros. Discovery’s
    WBD,
    -1.10%
    TBS recently canceled Samantha Bee’s “Full Frontal” after seven seasons. Showtime’s “Desus & Mero” recently split up, and James Corden has announced he’s leaving CBS’s “The Late Late Show” in 2023.

    Last week, Disney’s
    DIS,
    -1.96%
    ABC renewed “Jimmy Kimmel Live” for three more years.

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