(NOTE LANGUAGE) As everyone knows, Twitter isn’t always the place to go to see any semblance of human unity, but it appears news that Bob Odenkirk collapsed on the Albuquerque set of Better Call Saul on Tuesday has managed to do the impossible.
There were the usual well-wishes from present and former fellow cast members, like his Better Call Saul co-star Michael McKean — who tweeted in part “You got this, brother!” — as well as an Instagram post from Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston, who asked for “positive thoughts and prayers” for the actor.
However, so many messages came from regular folks supporting the star that his name is trending on the social media service.
“I do not pray but I will do it for Bob Odenkirk to please be ok,” tweeted one fan.
“If anything bad happens to Bob Odenkirk, I will fight God,” noted USA Today‘s Barbara VanDenburgh.
“if anything happens to bob odenkirk we blow up the f***ing moon,” offered another.
Yet another added, “hopefully he was just dehydrated or something i cannot deal w a world in which bob odenkirk is experiencing suffering.”
One Twitter user summed it up: “One small positive observation from this troubling news: can you imagine anyone being more universally loved/respected than Bob Odenkirk? Never seen the entire timeline unite and rally behind someone so quickly.”
(LONDON) — Beginning next month, the United Kingdom will allow fully vaccinated U.S. citizens to enter the country without quarantining.
In a statement, the U.K. Department for Transport says the policy will apply to travelers from countries on their “green” and “amber” lists, but not for those from several dozen nations on the “red list.” It will go into effect on August 2, and will cover vaccines that have been approved by the European Medicines Agency, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or the Swiss vaccination program.
Those arriving in the U.K. will still be required to complete a pre-departure test before landing in England, as well as a PCR test for COVID-19 within their first two days there. Separate rules apply for those entering the U.K. from France.
The plan is expected to help the British economy, as well as enable fully vaccinated people from other nations to reunite with family and friends.
“We’ve taken great strides on our journey to reopen international travel,” said U.K. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps. “Whether you are a family reuniting for the first time since the start of the pandemic or a business benefiting from increased trade – this is progress we can all enjoy.”
More than 70 percent of adults in the U.K. have received both shots of a COVID-19 vaccine. Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid credited that fact with helping to build “a wall of defence against this virus so we can safely enjoy our freedoms again.”
Simone Biles is considered one of the greatest female gymnasts of all-time, an athlete who competes on a different level, with four signature moves named after her in three different events.
The level of difficulty undertaken by the six-time Olympic medalist is one reason her decision to withdraw from both the team and individual competitions at the Tokyo Olympics is being applauded by gymnastics experts.
“Gymnastics is a sport where if you make a mistake you can get severely, severely injured,” said Valorie Kondos Field, former longtime head coach of the UCLA Women’s Gymnastics team. “The worst possible injury you can think of happening can happen in this sport if you lose your focus.”
During Tuesday’s team competition final, Biles, 24, had planned to do a vault with two-and-a-half twists. Instead, mid-air, Biles lost her way and completed only one-and-a-half twists and stumbled on her landing.
Shortly after that vault, USA Gymnastics announced Biles’ early exit from the team competition.
“I had no idea where I was in the air,” Biles said in a press conference Tuesday. “I could have hurt myself.”
Further explaining her decision, Biles added, “I just felt like it would be a little bit better to take a back seat, work on my mindfulness. I didn’t want to risk the team a medal for, kind of, my screw ups, because they’ve worked way too hard for that.”
Team USA went on to win a silver medal in the team competition, losing the gold medal to gymnasts from Russia.
On Wednesday, it was announced by USA Gymnastics that Biles would also sit out the individual competition to “focus on her mental health.”
“Simone will continue to be evaluated daily to determine whether or not to participate in next week’s individual event finals,” the sport’s national governing body said in a statement. “We wholeheartedly support Simone’s decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many.”
Biles had qualified in all six of the women’s gymnastics finals at the Tokyo Olympics — team, individual all-around, vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor. She was on track to win an unprecedented six gold medals during the Games, with the aim of becoming the first woman since 1968 to win back-to-back titles in the all-around — a competition that tests individual gymnasts on each of the four apparatuses.
Dominique Dawes, a four-time Olympic medalist who competed at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games, applauded Biles’ decision to put herself first instead of succumbing to pressure and risking physical injury.
“[She] really got lost in the air and if that does happen there is a mental block there and the concern is not only for your mental health but physical health,” said Dawes. “And she knew if she was not going to be on her ‘A’ game, Team USA would not be on top of the podium or maybe even get on the podium.”
“What I respect most about her is she’s listening to her inner voice and she made a decision that was best for her,” she said, adding of her own experience: “During the 2000 Olympic trials I actually quit after [preliminaries]. It was too much on me emotionally; however, I was not able to make that decision. It was very much a controlled atmosphere.”
Biles’ skill level is so great that the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) gave the double-double dismount on the balance beam, a signature move by Biles, a lower value because it was considered essentially a safety risk for other gymnasts to try.
“There is added risk in landing of double saltos for Beam dismounts (with/without twists), including a potential landing on the neck. Reinforcing, there are many examples in the Code where decisions have been made to protect the gymnasts and preserve the direction of the discipline,” the federation said in a 2019 statement. “The WTC’s task is to ensure the safety of all athletes around the world and decisions are not based purely on one gymnast.”
Another skill achieved by Biles, the Yurchenko double pike on vault, is considered so dangerous that Biles’ coach said the gymnast would have to “beg” her to execute it at the Olympics.
In May, at the 2021 U.S. Classic, Biles became the first woman to ever perform the skill in competition.
“If she really wants to do it, she’s going to have to beg me,” Laurent Landi told “On Her Turf” earlier this month. “People seem to forget that it’s a very, very dangerous skill … just to have glory and being [in] the Code of Points, it’s not enough.”
Jacoby Miles, a Washington woman who says she was paralyzed from the chest down due to a gymnastics accident at age 15, took to Instagram to applaud Biles for prioritizing her mental health.
“I experienced those mental blocks throughout my career as a gymnast, and to be quite blunt, it only took one bad time of getting lost in the air in a big flip to break my neck and leave me paralyzed,” Miles wrote. “So I’m so, so glad she decided to not continue until she’s mentally recovered. Especially at her skill difficulty.”
Jade Carey, a 21-year-old gymnast from Arizona who had the ninth-highest score in qualifications, will compete in Biles’ place in the all-around on Thursday, according to USA Gymnastics.
Biles still has the option to compete later this week in the individual finals for vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor.
ABC News’ Rachel Katz, Morgan Winsor and Alexandra Svokos contributed to this report.
Following the death of their beloved dog, Pippa, singer John Legend and wife Chrissy Teigen opened their hearts and homes to a puppy — a Bassett Hound named Pearl.
Teigen announced last week that Pippa, a 10-year-old French Bulldog, had passed away “in my arms.” The death left the family heartbroken, she said.
Legend, 42, and Teigen, 35, announced on Tuesday that they welcomed a four-legged member into their family.
“Pearl has touched down into the legend/teigen/stephens household! We love this little girl so much already but I will admit, she has definitely taken to John first,” Teigen gushed while sharing a few photos and video of the brown and white puppy roaming around her home. “I grew up with Basset Hounds so I can’t wait for John to see this bouncy, no-bones, jello mold of skin grow into the stubborn logs of love I love so much.”
Teigen also confirmed that their other dog, a French Bulldog named Penny, is already “obsessed with her.”
Chrissy added there was a special meaning behind the puppy’s name by writing in a comment, “Pippa – we hope you love her name. A tribute to you! You were always an iconic, different lady when your pearls were on. I’ll never forget when they shattered in front of you and you sunk into a funk for weeks until we got you a new one.”
Teigen later shared an adorable video to her Instagram story of her and Legend’s three-year-old son, Miles, bonding with the puppy.
Also taking to Instagram to welcome the newest addition, Legend shared a crop of photos and gushed, “Meet our newest family member Pearl!”
The “All of Me” singer made sure to include a photo of Pearl snuggling on his lap.
Dream Theater has announced a new album called A View from the Top of the World.
The 15th studio effort from the prog metallers will arrive October 22. It consists of seven songs — the title track, which closes the album, is over 20 minutes long.
“We just love to play our instruments,” says guitarist John Petrucci. “That never goes away. I love to be creative, write, and exercise that part of my mind. We’ve been able to do this for a long time, and we don’t take it for granted. Whenever we get together, we know we can’t disappoint ourselves or our fans, so we manage to try even harder.”
Dream Theater will launch a tour in support of A View beginning October 28 in Mesa, Arizona. For ticket info and the full list of dates, visit DreamTheater.net.
Here’s the A View from the Top of the World track list:
“The Alien”
“Answering the Call”
“Invisible Monster”
“Sleeping Giant”
“Transcending Time”
“Awaken the Master”
“A View from the Top of the World”
Tuesday marked 40 years since the release of Stevie Nicks‘ solo debut album, 1981’sBella Donna. Now the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has released an essay explaining how important the album is to her.
On her socials, Stevie writes that “Bella Donna was a dream…I did not want the record to sound anything like Fleetwood Mac. That would have defeated the dream.” Instead, she explains, she wanted her and her two backup singers Lori and Sharon to sound like “the girl version of Crosby, Stills & Nash.”
According to Stevie, the inspiration for the album was a poem she wrote, inspired by her then-boyfriend’s mother, Maria Teresa Rojas. As Stevie tells it, Rojas’ lover in Chile was “banished to France” after the Chilean coup of 1973.
“She never saw him again,” Stevie writes. “I was so touched by this story of lost love that I wrote Bella Donna. The moment the poem and then the song was finished, I knew I had the basis for my first solo record.”
Stevie goes on to say that Bella Donna “defined how I would feel about love forever,” adding, “I could not have been more proud of those songs, or the three months it took [us] to craft it. It did not break up Fleetwood Mac. If anything, it kept us together.”
And finally, Stevie notes that Bella Donna “opened the doors of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, took my hand and invited me in for my own work…the thing I am most proud of. And all because of a tragic love affair that caused… an important and relevant song to be turned into a story that the world seemed to love.”
Bella Donna topped the Billboard 200 album chart and has since been RIAA-certified four-times Platinum on the strength of hits including “Edge of Seventeen,” “Leather and Lace,” and its highest-charting single, “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” a duet with the late rock legend Tom Petty.
(NEW YORK) — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday announced that all patient-facing health care workers in hospitals run by the state will be required to get vaccinated. He said, “There will be no testing option.”
Additionally, as of Labor Day, all state employees must either be vaccinated or get tested on a weekly basis.
Governor Cuomo said the decision was made due to the “dramatic action” needed to control a surge in COVID-19 cases linked to the Delta variant. He said school districts in areas of high transmission should also consider taking a more aggressive approach.
“I understand the politics, but I understand if we don’t take the right actions, schools can become super-spreaders in September,” Cuomo said.
Calling on private sector businesses, Cumo said they should incentivize vaccinations by only allowing vaccinated people in.
75% of adults in New York state have been vaccinated.
(BENTONVILLE, Ark.) — America’s largest private employer announced on Tuesday that it will pay for college tuition and books for associates, in full.
In a press release, Walmart says it will also eliminate the $1 per day fee from its Live Better U education program, which provides workers with access to training or a degree. The company says with these changes, “approximately 1.5 million part-time and full-time Walmart and Sam’s Club associates in the U.S. can earn college degrees or learn trade skills without the burden of education debt.”
Lorraine Stomski, the company’s senior vice president of learning and leadership, said the move would create “a path of opportunity for our associates to grow their careers at Walmart, so they can continue to build better lives for themselves and their families.”
The company also noted it will add four academic partners, bringing the total number of institutions it works with to ten. The new partners include Johnson & Wales University, the University of Arizona, the University of Denver, and Pathstream.
Earlier this year, Walmart announced it would raise its starting pay to $11 per hour. That move, which affected approximately 425,000 employees, brought the company’s average pay to $15 per hour.
(BALTIMORE) — Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced Wednesday, keeping him off the field for the team’s first training camp workout.
Head coach John Harbaugh says the test came back on Tuesday, and that Jackson had repeatedly tested negative in the preceding days. The NFL was working to process and evaluate the results as of Wednesday morning.
Jackson is the second Ravens player to test positive this week, after running back Gus Edwards. In Jackson’s absence, Trace McSorley and Tyler Huntley took most of the practice snaps on Day One.
The 2019 NFL MVP tested positive for COVID-19 last Thanksgiving, missing a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers because of the virus. He was activated from the COVID-19 reserve list less than two weeks later.
Jackson was one of 20 Ravens to spend time on the COVID-19 reserve list last season, including an outbreak in November and December where at least one player tested positive for ten consecutive days.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Universal Music Group
Kanye West is showing off his current living situation.
After reports that the rapper is hunkering down in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz stadium as he puts the finishing touches on his 10th audio album, DONDA, he shared a snap of the room that’s presumably his.
The caption-less photo, which Ye posted to Instagram on Tuesday evening, shows a room with just the bare essentials in it — a bed, TV and closet. There are also shoes lined up along the wall next to an open suitcase, some workout equipment and a bottle of water next to the bed.
Last week the “Power” rapper held a sold-out listening event at the stadium for his upcoming album, with its release intended for Friday, July 23. However, the album never dropped and now has a reported release date of August 6.
Since then, the Yeezy designer’s team has has turned parts of the venue into a designated recording and living space, complete with a chef, according to TMZ.
Ye first teased DONDA, which is named after his late mother Donda West, in March 2020 and said it was slated to come out that July, but failed to materialize. It was later announced that the release was canceled because the rapper was further tweaking it. Can someone say deja vu?
