In the past year-plus, William Shatner has recorded a couple of albums, released a movie, served as host on a couple of new shows — including History’s The UneXplained and RT America’s I Don’t Understand — and has taken up a new hobby: slaying trolls.
The iconic Star Trek star admits to ABC Audio that, of course, he doesn’t have to spend time answering back snarkers online, but he genuinely gets a kick out of it.
There are countless examples, but his most recent comeback was reserved for Love It or List It co-host David Visentin, who posted to him, “Red rover red rover this tweet about life as theater calls @WilliamShatner over.”
To this, Shatner responded, “David, dear boy — a couple rules of Twitter: One doesn’t post a tweet of questions, then answer their own tweet and tag me in it so I can point out how pitifully sad they are,” complete with a shrugging emoji.
Visentin’s tweet was rather benign, but Shatner often gets sharper ones — and answers in kind. He recently took a Twitter user to task for calling Shatner’s singing Elton John‘s “Rocket Man” the “worst footage I had on my hard drive.”
To him, Shatner retorted, “I looked on my timeline for the dumbest person and found him! A blue checked troll who tagged me in silly tweet and then liked his own tweet! So I blocked him!”
Shatner tells ABC Audio with a giggle, “I find it amusing.”
He adds, “And of course, you know, the stupid people…who try to do stupid things behind an anonymous shield, you have to ignore. But if you take responsibility for your thought, and argue your thought, it could be great fun!”
(WASHINGTON) — With 3.6 million Americans at risk of being evicted as soon as Monday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi repeated her call to the Biden administration to immediately renew the now-lapsed eviction moratorium on Monday after House Democrats over the weekend failed to pass legislation via unanimous consent to extend it to Oct. 18.
“As they have called upon the American people to mask up, to be vaccinated and to take other public health precautions, it is critical, in recognition of this urgency, that they extend the eviction moratorium,” Pelosi said of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a new letter to Democratic colleagues Monday morning. “Putting people on the streets contributes to the spread of the virus.”
It comes after freshman Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., who highlights how she was once homeless herself, spent her third night sleeping on the Capitol steps to protest the end of the moratorium even as most House lawmakers had already headed home for the August recess.
As Pelosi says she now awaits a new response from the administration, the White House said last week that it can’t unilaterally extend the moratorium because of a Supreme Court ruling in late June when Justice Brett Kavanaugh, writing for the 5-4 majority, said he would block additional extensions unless there was “clear and specific congressional authorization.”
But Democratic leaders have put the responsibility to extend the measure — which they’ve called a “moral imperative” — back on President Joe Biden and the CDC, which first implemented the moratorium last September, after the Biden administration on Thursday, one day before the House adjourned for August recess, called on Congress to pass legislation.
Despite the 11th-hour scramble by lawmakers, the moratorium expired on Saturday.
With the Senate back in session to focus on unprecedented infrastructure legislation, the chances senators would pivot to a moratorium extension are slim.
“Action is needed, and it must come from the Administration,” Pelosi said in a joint statement with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., and Assistant Speaker Katherine Clark, D-Mass, on Sunday evening. “As the CDC doubles down on mask-wearing and vaccination efforts, science and reason demand that they must also extend the moratorium in light of the delta variant.”
The Democratic leaders also called on the Treasury Department to indicate how state and local governments can more efficiently deliver the billions in rental assistance Congress has authorized since last December. Of the $47 billion available, only $3 billion has been sent out so far.
Pelosi on Monday also announced House Democrats will have a presentation Tuesday from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, whose department transferred the funds earlier this year, which were intended to help renters and landlords with payments during the moratorium catch up — but dispersing those out has been a slow process.
While the House adjourned for its August recess, Pelosi has teased that she could call members back to bring legislation. However, without a desire in the Senate to pass an extension, she’s putting the onus back on Biden.
The president, who was leaving Camp David for the White House Monday, has not yet directly responded to Pelosi’s latest letters, but he has also called for the acceleration of congressionally-approved rental assistance funds.
“There can be no excuse for any state or locality not accelerating funds to landlords and tenants that have been hurt during this pandemic,” Biden said in a statement Friday.
Progressive lawmakers including Bush, who has been homeless, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., have called on their colleagues to do more.
“We cannot in good faith blame the Republican Party when House Democrats have a majority,” Ocasio-Cortez said on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday. “Now, there is something to be said for the fact that this Court order came down on the White House, a month ago, and the White House waited until the day before the House adjourned to release a statement asking on Congress to extend the moratorium.”
She and other progressive Democrats, who also penned a letter to urge the Biden administration to take action, joined Bush and activists outside the Capitol over the weekend to draw awareness to what they call a public health emergency.
“Extending the eviction moratorium is a matter of life and death for the communities we represent,” they said in the letter.
Bush, who was still on the Capitol steps Monday, told ABC News over the weekend that she was “frustrated” and “disgusted” that the moratorium was not extended and didn’t have plans to leave.
According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau survey from late June and early July, about 7.4 million adult tenants reported they were behind on rent.
Game of Thronesalums Kit Harington and Rose Leslie are notoriously private about their lives, but in a recent interview, the actors provided a rare glimpse of how their lives have changed since becoming first-time parents.
When revealing what was the most surprising thing he’s learned about being a dad, Harington, 34, told Access Hollywood, “Everyone goes, ‘Look, it’s big what you’re about to go through.’ You have no way of knowing that until it happens.”
“What surprises you is: You go, ‘Oh, this goes on forever.’ Like, you don’t get a break from it,” he continued.
Harington said he was surprised by how his marriage improved in the months since. “Every day, I wake up and I look after this little human and now we’re part of a unit together,” he said. “I think the thing that surprises me most about fatherhood is… you are now a unit, the three of you. And that’s a whole new dynamic you need to find.”
While not revealing too much about his newborn, the upcoming Eternals star gushed, “I pretty much find every day as he grows and changes, how does that change you. It’s a beautiful thing, it really is!”
Meanwhile, Harrington appears to be in a sharing mood; he also told XM’s The Jess Cagle Show about going to rehab for stress and alcohol after his HBO hit ended.
I went through some mental health difficulties after Thrones‘ — and during the end of Thrones, to be honest — and I think it was directly to do with the nature of the show and what I’ve been doing for years,” the 34-year-old actor told the chat show host.
“I think I took a sort of break after Thrones where I said, ‘I don’t want to work for a year. I want to really kind of concentrate on myself. I’m really happy I did that.”
Foster the People will mark the 10th anniversary of their debut album, Torches, by releasing a deluxe edition, called Torches X, on November 12.
The digital release includes the enitre original album — which features the band’s massive hit “Pumped Up Kicks” — plus 10 bonus tracks. Those include the one-time iTunes exclusive “Broken Jaw,” stand-alone single “Ruby,” and “Downtown,” which frontman Mark Foster recorded before FTP got a record deal. You can listen to “Broken Jaw” now via your favorite streaming service.
There are also a bunch of remixes of the album’s tracks, as well as a brand-new version of “Pumped Up Kicks” by Gus Dapperton.
Foster the People will do three concerts at The Wiltern in Los Angeles on November 17, 18 and 19 to celebrate Torches‘ 10th anniversary, and they’ll perform the album in its entirety at the shows. For tickets, visit FosterthePeople.com.
In a letter to fans, FTP writes, “It’s been a reflective time for us as we look back on all our experiences from the last ten years. Our lives changed with the release of Torches. That record became our airplane. It was our passport to see the world, to meet so many different people from so many different cultures, and to share our hearts in its purest form.”
The letter continues, “We are so grateful that this album continues to reach new ears still to this day; and especially for the fans that have been with us from the beginning. Thank you for your continued support as we evolve and move into different chapters. It’s been the joy of our lives to be able to make art for you and with you…Thank you for giving us the greatest gift imaginable: a dream fulfilled.”
Here’s the track listing for Torches X:
“Helena Beat”
“Pumped Up Kicks”
“Call It What You Want”
“Don’t Stop (Color on the Walls)”
“Waste”
“I Would Do Anything for You”
“Houdini”
“Life on the Nickel”
“Miss You”
“Warrant”
“Broken Jaw”
“Love”
“Chin Music for the Unsuspecting Hero”
“Ruby”
“Downtown”
“Pumped Up Kicks” (The Knocks Speeding Bullet Remix)
“Houdini” (RAC Remix)
“Helena Beat” (Lenno Extended Remix)
“Call It What You Want” (Treasure Fingers Pre-Party Remix Radio Edit)
“Pumped Up Kicks” (Gus Dapperton version)
(NEW YORK) — The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 613,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and over 4.1 million people have died worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 58.1% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC last week, citing new science on the transmissibility of the delta variant, changed its mask guidance to now recommend everyone in areas with substantial or high levels of transmission — vaccinated or not — wear a face covering in public, indoor settings.
Here’s how the news is developing Monday. All times Eastern:
Aug 02, 2:14 pm
Louisiana respiratory therapist: ‘We see families destroyed’
In Louisiana, which has the nation’s highest case rate per 100,000 residents, COVID-19 hospitalizations are reaching peak levels, with more than 1,700 patients now receiving care.
“We’re seeing people that are way too young to be so sick,” David Wrightson, a respiratory therapist and ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) specialist for the Willis-Knighton Health System in Shreveport, Louisiana, told ABC News. “We see families destroyed. We see children without one or more parent because of this virus. We see a new mom who will never go home to see her newborn, will never see her child grow up.”
He went on, “When you see someone that’s 30 years old with no medical problems at all, nobody knew anything was wrong, and we have this person literally on death’s doorstep, doing everything in our power to turn them around and return them to their family. The vaccine is something worth getting.”
More people need to see and understand the reality of this disease, he said.
“I wish I could show them a few steps in our day to see what we see and to see what we have to do, and to go home at night and, and have nightmares about those things, and sometimes cry yourself to sleep,” he said.
-ABC News’ Erica Baumgart and Arielle Mitropoulos
Aug 02, 1:48 pm
Denver mandates vaccinations for workers in high-risk settings
Denver is mandating vaccinations for city employees and those in high-risk jobs like first responders, correctional workers and school personnel. The mandate also applies to staff at long-term care facilities, shelters and hospitals.
After considerable deliberation & consultation w/ public health experts, including @DDPHE‘s exec. director, I am approving a public health order mandating that all @CityofDenver employees and private-sector workers in high-risk settings, be fully vaccinated against COVID by 9/30. pic.twitter.com/VS73Z7HPvR
70% of adults in US have now had at least 1 vaccine dose
Seventy percent of adults in the U.S. have now had at least one vaccine dose, the White House announced Monday, nearly one month after President Joe Biden hoped to reach the milestone.
Biden said in May, “Our goal by July 4th is to have 70% of adult Americans with at least one shot and 160 million Americans fully vaccinated.” When that date finally rolled out, the White House touted that 70% of Americans ages 27 and up met the goal, but low vaccination rates among young people kept the country from fully meeting the target.
Biden is scheduled to give remarks on vaccination progress on Tuesday.
-ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky
Aug 02, 11:50 am
Nearly 60% of counties reporting high community transmission
In the U.S., 59.72% of counties are reporting high community transmission. Five weeks ago, only 8% of counties were reporting high transmission, according to federal data.
Louisiana now has the highest case rate in the country with more than 600 new cases per 100,000 residents, according to federal data. Florida, Arkansas and Mississippi follow behind with 500, 400 and 300 new cases per 100,000 residents respectively.
-ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos
Aug 02, 10:59 am
At least 1 patient checked in every hour at Louisiana hospital
At least one COVID-19 patient was checked in every hour Monday morning at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, hospital officials told ABC Baton Rouge affiliate WBRZ.
The hospital said Monday it has 301 unvaccinated COVID-19 patients and 52 vaccinated COVID-19 patients.
Our Lady of the Lake Hospital is among 45 hospitals in the state requesting extra staff, reported WBRZ.
Louisiana is recording a “remarkable increase in the number of newly vaccinated people,” White House COVID-19 data director Cyrus Shahpar tweeted Monday.
Aug 02, 10:42 am
Masks strongly recommended indoors for the vaccinated, NYC mayor says
Masks are now strongly recommended in public, indoor settings in New York City, even for those who are vaccinated, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday.
The mayor also announced that all new city hires must be vaccinated.
De Blasio noted that this week is the last week to get all children ages 12 and above fully vaccinated by the first week of school.
Aug 02, 10:09 am
New vaccine policy for NY transit workers
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which controls John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports, have adopted the same policy the state has for its public sector employees in requiring either a vaccine or a weekly proof of a negative test. Subway, airport and bus and commuter rail workers must be vaccinated starting Labor Day or face a weekly test, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday.
The number of COVID-19 cases in New York state has increased four-fold in the last month while hospitalizations have doubled.
Cuomo last week mandated vaccines for public-facing workers in state-run hospitals. If cases continue to rise, Cuomo said he would consider mandatory vaccines for teachers and nursing home employees.
Cuomo also said he is encouraging restaurants, bars and other business owners to adopt a vaccine-only policy.
-ABC News’ Aaron Katersky
Aug 02, 9:44 am
Tokyo COVID-19 cases up 200% in 1 week
There are 2,195 new COVID-19 cases in Tokyo, a 206.9% increase since last Monday, according to the Tokyo Media Center.
At the Olympics, there are 281 new COVID-19 cases, an increase of 17 cases in the last 24 hours, according to Tokyo 2020 organizers. None of these cases are athletes; they are all contractors, personnel or media.
Aug 02, 8:56 am
At least 1 patient checked in every hour at Louisiana hospital
At least one COVID-19 patient was checked in every hour Monday morning at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, hospital officials told ABC Baton Rouge affiliate WBRZ.
Our Lady of the Lake Hospital is among 45 hospitals in the state requesting extra staff, reported WBRZ.
Aug 02, 8:19 am
TSA screens highest number of people since start of pandemic
The Transportation Security Administration screened 2,238,462 people at U.S. airports on Sunday, the highest number since the start of the pandemic, the agency said. The continued spread of the highly contagious delta variant has not stopped travelers this summer and the TSA put out a tweet reminding fliers to mask up and socially distance.
After a long hiatus, Grammy-winner Lizzo has announced her highly-anticipated return with “Rumors,” her first single in over two years.
“New Era B****,” wrote Lizzo on Instagram, sharing the single’s cover art. In the photo, Lizzo rocks a long straight black wig and a gold bustier while holding up her diamond-encrusted index finger to her lips, appearing to tell fans “shhh.”
“Rumors” follows Lizzo’s RIAA-certified Platinum song, “Tempo” featuring Missy Elliott, the 2x Platinum “Juice,” the 3x Platinum “Good As Hell,” and the 7x Platinum single, “Truth Hurts,” the latter of which earned her a 2020 Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance.
All four songs are featured on Lizzo’s third album,Cuz I Love You, which peaked at #4 on the Billboard200. The deluxe version won a Grammy for Best Urban Contemporary Album.
“Rumors” will be available on streaming services on August 13.
Along with her return to music, Lizzo is also gearing up to hit the stage this fall at a number of festivals. On September 4th, she’ll make history as the first woman to ever headline Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. The Minnesota native will also return to her home state to headline the Treasure Island Amphitheater in Welch, MN on September 11th. This marks her first performance in Minnesota since her two sold-out shows in 2019.
While Demi Lovato has taken to describing themself as “California Sober,” The Weeknd prefers the term “Sober Lite.” He says he drinks “occasionally” and smokes weed, but has left other drugs behind.
“Drugs were a crutch,” he tells the mag. “It was me thinking that I needed it. And not doing the work to figure out how not to need it. And I’ve spent the last few years realizing that and thanking God that I don’t need it. Because for a lot of people, it’s hard to shake it. But I knew I didn’t want it.”
The Weeknd, birth name Abel Tesfaye, adds that he also wants a family someday. “I know I say I don’t, but I know I do,” he says. “I want children.”
After teasing a new single and a new era Sunday, The Weeknd also gives GQ some hints about what his next album will sound like. The mag describes the project as being “packed” with “Quincy Jones meets Giorgio Moroder meets the best-night-of-your-f*****-life party records.”
“It’s the album I’ve always wanted to make,” The Weeknd says.
(NEW YORK) — Quinn Ewers, the number two college football prospect in the 2022 class, has announced on Twitter that he is enrolling at Ohio State a year early.
Ewers was the top-ranked player in Texas and was the number one quarterback prospect in the country, according to ESPN.
Ewers said the new name, image, and likeness rules that would have prohibited him from making money this next year while in high school were one factor.
“It’s unfortunate I’ve found myself in this situation, as my preference would have been to complete my senior season at Southlake Carroll along with my teammates and friends I’ve taken the field alongside past three seasons,” Ewers wrote.
Ewers said this was not just a financial decision, but one he felt was the best for his football career.
He has one class that is about to be completed and will enroll at Ohio State and be start practice with the team.
Ohio State is looking to replace Justin Fields, who was drafted 11th overall by Chicago this spring. Redshirt freshman CJ Stroud, true freshman Kyle McCord, and redshirt freshman Jack Miller were the three quarterbacks battling to become the starter before Ewers announced his decision.
Ewers originally committed to the University of Texas but de-committed last October.
Courteney Cox just posted to her 11.6 million Instagram followers a tease of a new line of Friends merchandise, and proceeds are going to a good cause.
“[G]uys some pieces from the first ever @friends merch collection,” the actress posted, noting, “Half of my proceeds from this limited drop will benefit @ebmrf [The Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation], an LA based non-profit that’s near and dear to my heart.”
The charity is dedicated to raising awareness and funds for Epidermolysis Bullosa, a rare and debilitating genetic skin disorder.
Among the shirts, sweatshirts and other items include stylized designs of scenes from the show, including the cast at the fountain from the sitcom’s open, Phoebe playing “Smelly Cat,” Rachel, holding her first paycheck and asking “Who’s FICA?” and other Friends moments from the show’s first three seasons.
Incidentally, among those who were first to post their support were Two Broke Girls star Beth Behrs, 90210‘s Sara Foster, and Trudie Styler, the producer wife of Sting — and a one-time Friends guest star — who noted she “will support for sure.”
The limited run of merchandise will be available for four weeks only.
Rage Against the Machine was supposed to headline Coachella in 2020, but of course, the festival was canceled due to the pandemic. The good news, though, is that the band is back on the bill for next year.
An interview with Coachella co-founder Paul Tollett in the Los Angeles Times includes this information, and also adds that rapper Travis Scott will be back to co-headline, as originally planned in 2020. A third headline act will be announced in the future.
“Right now, it’s the Wild West,” Tollett tells the paper. “I’m just trying to be as fair as I can to artists and to the fans to make sure that eventually they get to see everyone that we talked about.” He notes that some artists whose careers have blown up since the lineup was announced in 2020 — like rapper Megan Thee Stallion — may need to be moved up on the bill.
Coachella 2022 will take place over the weekends of April 15-17 and April 22-24, 2022. When tickets went on sale in June, they all sold out, even without any performers being named. After being canceled in 2020, Coachella was supposed to return in April 2021, but California government officials wouldn’t allow it to go forward.
