Month: May 2022

Since Rina Sawayama’s breakthrough album, Sawayama, dropped in 2020, the Japanese-British pop singer’s star has been steadily on the rise. She’s claimed standout collaborations with both Charli XCX (“Beg For You”) and Elton John (“Chosen Family”), and now has just announced that her third album, Hold This Girl, is coming out on September 2nd.

If Sawayama has made a habit of anything, it’s pushing the boundaries of what pop music has to offer. Lead single “This Hell” culls from both country music and glam rock influences, as she punctuating the chorus singing, “This hell is better with you!” The track was co-produced by Adele producer and former Grammy Awards Producer Of The Year winner Paul Epworth, and Sawayama’s longtime collaborator Clarence Clarity. It’s propped up on an electrifying guitar riff and is lyrically tongue-in-cheek without giving up any fire.

“The past couple of years I’ve been listening to lots of female country singers and wanted to write a euphoric and tongue-in-cheek country-pop song,” Sawayama said in a statement.” I’ve been dreaming of working with Paul Epworth my entire career so I knew it was meant to be when we finished this song in a day. I put in as many iconic pop culture moments as I can, but the song is more than that.”

She’s set to perform the song on Fallon tomorrow, but you can listen to “This Hell” now, above.

Hold This Girl is out 9/2 via Dirty Hit. pre-order it here.

Harry Styles is first and foremost a chart-topping pop star, but in recent years, his acting career has really picked up. He was in Eternals last year and coming out here in 2022, he has Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman. When it comes to My Policeman, the movie will reveal a new side of Styles: his backside.

In a new interview with Howard Stern (as Billboard notes), Styles said that in the movie, he shows his “bum-bum” but “no peen.” He also noted that he had to “wear a gas mask” while his various tattoos were covered by make-up artists for his nude scenes.

He also shared his thoughts about the ongoing Roe v. Wade situation, saying, “A lot of people are taking the right steps to make positive things happen, and people who don’t like that are clawing to grapple back any ground that they feel like they’ve lost, which never belonged to them in the first place… I just don’t think anyone should be able to make decisions about anyone’s else’s body. It doesn’t really make any sense to me… I don’t really know where that ends.”

Styles also spoke about auditioning for Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic, saying, “I was very intrigued by it… I feel like if a director feels like I’m not the best person for the role, then it’s better for them and it’s better for me. If they think the movie’s going to be better with someone else, then I don’t want to do it because I don’t want to be the not as-good version.”

The last time I was in Cabo San Lucas was during spring break of my junior year of college. As you can imagine, that week’s itinerary was packed with activities involving cheap booze and twerking competitions at Mango Deck. While the all-night ragers and questionable choices made for a memorable college experience, I went into this return trip ready for a more wholesome, more mature Cabo experience. Frankly, I don’t know what I was thinking.

Within 24 hours I had traded lounging quietly by the pool for long-pour tequila shots with a bachelor party, helpfully dispensed by bikini-clad bottle girls armed with sparklers. If there’s a version of Cabo that exudes wellness and relaxation, it certainly can’t be found at ME Cabo (although the in-house spa offers an hour of peace). But maybe I didn’t want that after all.

ME Cabo is a newly refurbished resort in the heart of the action in Cabo San Lucas. Located on one of the area’s only swimmable beaches, just steps from various dining experiences, bars, watersports, and adventure excursions, the luxury hotel is like an elevated spring break for adults. Between the all-day pool parties, indulgent yet freshly-prepared fare, nightly firework show, and modern design concepts, ME Cabo fosters an environment guaranteed to give you one epic weekend getaway. It may not have been my initial intention but it certainly didn’t disappoint.

WHY IT’S AWESOME:

It doesn’t matter where you’re from or how old you are — staying at ME Cabo is a non-stop party. It’s the kind of place you want to go with a group of friends or your partner to celebrate a special occasion. Just walking through the hotel’s grand entrance — where you’re immediately met with attentive service, a glass of bubbly, and a view of Cabo’s pristine oceanic landscape — immediately puts you in vacation mode.

You can spend a full weekend at ME Cabo without ever even needing to leave the property. To be honest, the only time I left was for my daily morning stroll down the beach. As someone who seeks adventure pretty much everywhere I go, this was out of character for me. But the lively yet laidback vibes were both contagious and hypnotic, reeling me in and reminding me that it’s okay to just chill the f*ck out and have fun from time to time. With three different restaurants and a rooftop bar, complimentary concierge services, a pool, a spa, and comfortable yet elegant rooms with picturesque balcony views, ME Cabo offers everything you could need for a memorable Mexican vacation.

IN-HOUSE FOOD & DRINK:

ME Cabo is home to three different restaurants and a rooftop bar (with an incredible panoramic view of the iconic El Arco, I might add). Mamazzita is great for any meal of the day. The daily breakfast menu offers morning classics like eggs, fruit, a variety of fresh juices, pastries, pancakes, and coffee. Its specialty breakfast items offer a more sophisticated start to your day. My personal favorite was the salmon tartine, which was basically a fancy avocado toast topped with lox.

Dinner at Mammazita is quite extravagant. With bumping music and a live show every night, it’s guaranteed to be lively. The menu offers an extensive selection of dishes inspired by traditional Mexican cuisine. To start, order the Burrata in Mole Almendrado, which is straight-up cheese and baked banana with cinnamon smothered in mole sauce. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. As for the main course, I drooled over the Branzino in Holy Leaf from the chef’s specialty menu. (Warning: You get the full fish served on a platter. So if seeing its face and tail will freak you out, opt for one of the other chef’s specials.)

ME Cabo is also home to the Taboo Beach Club restaurant (best for a casual lunch by the pool) and Funky Geisha, an Asian-inspired restaurant on the beach, where you can literally dine with your toes in the sand. This is a great option for a celebratory meal, as it offers an elevated beachside vibe. You also can’t go wrong with the signature craft cocktails. I ordered the Utopía, made with Don Julio 70 Tequila, Coco Liqueur, pink pepper, cinnamon, honey, lime juice, basil leaves, and ginger.

AMENITIES:

• Your own personal “aura hosts” to provide 24-hour assistance
• High-speed Internet
• Fitness center
• KORPO Wellness Spa
• Valet parking
• Outdoor functional training area
• Pet-friendly hotel
• Facilities for the disabled
• Laundry services and dry cleaning
• Yoga lessons, mat Pilates, and SUP yoga (additional charge)

ROOM TYPES:

ME Cabo offers a wide range of rooms and suites. You can choose from the Standard ME (ground floor), Standard ME Levelled Up, Superior ME+, Superior ME+ With Deck, Superior ME+ With Pool Access, Superior ME+ With Social Hot Tub, Extra ME+ Junior Suite, Extra ME+ Junior Suite With Terrace, Extra ME+ Junior Suite Beachfront and Hot Tub, Studio ME+ Suite, Exclusive ME+ Suite With Hot Tub and Terrace, Beyond ME+ Suite With Hot Tub and Terrace, and the Ultimate ME+ Suite.

Rooms start at $452 per night. Learn more about the different room types and book your stay here.

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 10-MINUTE WALK:

The best thing to do isn’t even a 10-minute walk away. It’s 10 steps away at Taboo Beach Club. This is the central hub of ME Cabo where the deep house music, bottle service, and chaotic energy run wild on a daily basis. It reminded me the Encore Beach Club in Las Vegas with a Mexican twist.

You really don’t have a choice but to lean into the aggressive party atmosphere. That’s just the way Taboo Beach Club is set up — a giant structure in the middle of the pool where DJs rage on, with a swim-up bar, bikini-wearing or shirtless (and also insanely good-looking) staff whose whole job is to have fun, bottle service, and endless sunshine. The vibes are just right. Whether you decide to stay at ME Cabo or not, it’s worth spending an afternoon at Taboo Beach Club. Learn more and reserve a table at Taboo Beach Club here.

If you’re wiped out from partying, it’s also worth spending a day on the beach, booking a boating excursion (which the ME Cabo staff can help you with), or participating in water sports. You can find most if not all of this right on the beach in front of the ME Cabo property.

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 10-MINUTE DRIVE:

If you want to get out and see more of Cabo, head to Downtown Cabo. You can stroll through the colorfully decorated streets of town while perusing local shops, food vendors, and boutiques. Here, you’ll also find the Marina filled with sailboats, catamarans, yachts, and a large boardwalk to continue your walk by the water. Spending an afternoon in the downtown area is a great way to take in more of the local scene and get out of your resort bubble, even briefly.

BED GAME:

My favorite part about my ME Cabo hotel room was the fact that the bed faces the sliding glass door to the balcony. So you wake up every morning looking out to a seaside view. As for the bed itself, it was right in that sweet spot between firm yet soft enough to jump into for a post-beach club nap. They didn’t go overboard with the decorative pillows like a lot of luxury resorts do, and the sheets and comforter were light enough to stay cool through the night.

Rating: 8/10

SEXINESS RATING:

Sex appeal is steadily oozing through the hallways of ME Cabo. The contemporary art and photography scattered around the building’s interior, the chic yet sophisticated design of each room, and again, a bed facing a romantic ocean view alone make it a downright sexy place to stay. Add in the Vegas-like pool parties, top-shelf booze, swanky yet cool restaurants, and nightly fireworks, and the level of sultry inspiration shoots to the next level. It’s the perfect place for a romantic bae-cation or a spontaneous weekend fling.

Rating: 9/10

THE VIEWS AND PHOTO SPOTS:

There’s a reason I’ve mentioned the views multiple times, they really are that good! You can see the famous Cabo arches from nearly every upper-level room and on the beach just a couple of steps from the property.

However, if you’re on the ground floor or in one of the outer rooms, you may want to make a trip up to the rooftop bar to take it all in. This is the best place to grab a drink at sunset. It’s quiet and mostly empty here until after the sun goes down and the music comes up (although it should be crowded considering this view), so you’ll be able to sip your Mezcal with an unobstructed scene of the surrounding sea.

Rating: 9/10

BEST SEASON TO VISIT:

Spring, but not spring break. Unless you want to be bombarded by crowds of college students stoked on the fact they can legally drink in Mexico (which, more power to you if that’s your scene), then you should probably wait it out and head south a week or so after the underage partiers have fled the scene.

IF I HAD TO COMPLAIN ABOUT ONE THING:

What makes ME Cabo so fun is also the one thing I have to complain about. It’s a never-ending party. When my head hit the pillow the first night I immediately regretted not bringing earplugs. The techno music seems to be blasting 24-seven, and the rooms definitely aren’t sound-proof enough to drown it out. By the time I left ME Cabo, I didn’t want to listen to house music for at least a month (or ever again).

BOOK HERE:

If you’re in the mood to let loose and soak up the sun, ME Cabo is the place to do it. And do it luxuriously. Book your stay at ME Cabo here.

INSTAGRAM IMAGES TAKEN AT ME CABO:

When it comes to seasonal beer flavors, it’s tough to beat the tart-yet-sweet, deeply refreshing juciness of grapefruit. That’s why so many breweries use it to flavor their fruit-based beers. You’ll find it in every type of summer brew from the iconic shandy to the bitter, refreshing IPA. Not only is it likely the most popular citrus fruit to flavor beers in 2022, but it just might also be the best fruit in general to complement most beer styles. One sip and you can totally see why.

The only problem with there being so many grapefruit-based beers these days is that it takes some effort to separate the wheat from the chaff. But since I’m in the business of helping drinkers have the best possible experience, especially when it comes to craft brews, I decided to grab a handful of well-known grapefruit beers and put them through a blind taste test. While grapefruit is very popular as the main flavor for a shandy or radler, I also selected a well-known IPA, lager, wheat beer, and even a Kölsch -style beer just to get a mix of as many styles as possible.

Keep scrolling to see which beers were an abysmal disappointment and which ones you should stock up on for a crisp, refreshing, citrus-fueled summer.

• Schöfferhofer Grapefruit
• Shiner Ruby Redbird
• Great Divide Roadie
• Surly Grapefruit Supreme
• Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin IPA
• Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Shandy
• Stiegl Grapefruit Radler
• Genesee Ruby Red Kölsch

Part 1: The Tasting

Taste 1

Tasting Notes:

There isn’t much to say about this beer’s nose. There’s a muted grapefruit aroma, but that’s literally it. I can’t find any other scents that would make me believe I was about to drink a beer at all. On the palate, it’s surprisingly watery and fizzy, almost like seltzer water or the cheapest light beer you can imagine. There’s more grapefruit flavor here, but it tastes almost artificial.

This beer tastes like a robot (that mildly enjoys grapefruit) created a beer having never tried one before.

Taste 2

Tasting Notes:

This beer is heavy on grapefruit aroma on the nose. But there’s also tangerine, lemon, and a light, floral, hoppy bitterness. The palate is slightly tart with sweet, pulpy grapefruit, light pale malts, freshly baked bread yeast, more citrus zest, and gentle bitterness at the finish.

It’s crisp, refreshing, and highly crushable on a hot day.

Taste 3

Tasting Notes:

Normally, I don’t notice the color, but this beer looks like grapefruit soda. The smell is all citrus peel and ripe grapefruit. Anything else is overpowered. Tasting it, I could have sworn that someone changed out one of the beers for Squirt soda or something similar. It doesn’t even taste like beer a little bit.

From my notes: “Must be a shandy or radler!”

Taste 4

Tasting Notes:

Ruby red grapefruit, bread-like malts, slight spices, tropical fruits, and bright, aromatic pine are present on the nose. The flavor is loaded with citrus flavors like tart grapefruit, tangerine juice, and lime, plus wet grass, freshly baked bread, and a healthy kick of bitter, resinous pine that brings everything together.

Taste 5

Tasting Notes:

Citrus rind, lemon, grapefruit, and orange zest are scents swirling around this beer’s nose. On the palate, I found flavors of tart, slightly bitter grapefruit, bread-like malts, more citrus zest, and a slightly hoppy, bitter finish that brings all the flavors together. All in all, a good beer for fans of tart, slightly fruity beers.

Taste 6

Tasting Notes:

The nose is a mix of citrus zest, grapefruit pulp, and biscuit-like malts. That doesn’t seem like a lot of aromas, but when it comes to a fruit beer, it’s notable. Some are more one-dimensional. Drinking it brings forth more tart, ripe grapefruit as well as light yeast, cracker-like malts, and just a hint of pleasing bitterness at the finish.

All in all, a decent, citrus-filled beer.

Taste 7

Tasting Notes:

The nose is heavy on grapefruit essence. It smells like you just cut into a grapefruit on Saturday morning. Still there is a slight wheat and even cereal grain aroma behind it that makes you remember it’s a beer. Sipping it revealed more sweet wheat, light caramel malts, and a healthy dollop of tart, sweet, grapefruit.

Overall, a fairly one-dimensional beer. But not terrible.

Taste 8

Tasting Notes:

Tangerine, grapefruit, and other citrus aromas met my nose before my first sip. Very heavy on the citrus and not much else. The palate is a mix of sweetness and tart flavor with grapefruit taking center stage. There are really no other discernable flavors. It’s refreshing, light, and crushable. It just doesn’t taste a lot like beer.

From my notes: “Another radler?”

Part 2: The Ranking

8) Schöfferhofer Grapefruit (Taste 3)

ABV: 2.5%

Average Price: $8.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

When I think of grapefruit beer, Schöfferhofer is the first beer that immediately comes to mind. Maybe because this beer with its pink hue and over-the-top grapefruit flavor barely resembles a beer at all. That being said, it’s a refreshing, summery, fruity beer that has countless fans.

Bottom Line:

Schöfferhofer Grapefruit supposedly is a mix of wheat beer and grapefruit juice, but it just tastes like grapefruit soda. If that’s what you’re looking for, you’re probably not a big fan of beer anyway.

7) Shiner Ruby Redbird (Taste 1)

ABV: 4%

Average Price: $9.50 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Beer fans know Texas’ Shiner for its iconic Bock. But they’re probably not on the lookout for a low-calories grapefruit beer. But that’s exactly what Shiner Ruby Redbird is. It’s a light lager (only 95 calories) that’s brewed with ruby red grapefruit and ginger. It’s available year-round for drinkers who are into those kinds of flavors.

Bottom Line:

If you’re a fan of Shiner Bock, don’t opt for this low-cal, low-ABV beer instead. You’ll be really unhappy you did. I’ve had hard seltzers that taste more like beer than this one.

6) Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Shandy (Taste 7)

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $8.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Leinenkugel’s is fairly well-known for its shandies. Its Summer Shandy is its most beloved, but there is a slew of other fruit flavors available as well. This includes Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Shandy. It begins as the brewery’s Weiss beer and natural white grapefruit flavor are added to it to give it a citrus zing.

Bottom Line:

Leinenkugel’s Grapefruit Shandy isn’t trying to be something it’s not. It’s a citrusy, grapefruit-filled wheat beer that is a little too much for some drinkers. But shandy fans will love it.

5) Stiegl Grapefruit Radler (Taste 8)

ABV: 2.5%

Average Price: $10.50 for a four-pack of 16.9-ounce cans

The Beer:

Ask any brewer or bartender to tell you the best grapefruit beer and you’ll have quite a few bringing up Stiegl Grapefruit Radler. This highly crushable, 2.5%, cloudy beer is made with real grapefruit juice mixed with beer to create one of the most popular citrus beers of all time.

Bottom Line:

I wasn’t surprised to learn this was Stiegl Grapefruit Radler. It’s one of the lowest ABV beers on this list and tastes exactly like you assume it would. More like a hard grapefruit soda than a beer.

4) Great Divide Roadie (Taste 6)

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Great Divide Roadie is a beer that’s specifically designed to be brought on a hike or long bike ride. It’s a low in alcohol (4.2%) ale brewed with natural grapefruit puree. The result is a Radler-style beer that’s an easy-to-drink mix of sweetness and tart citrus flavor.

Bottom Line:

Great Divide Roadie is a Radler, but instead of being one-dimensional and all grapefruit, it actually has some substance. It’s still a little too fruit-heavy for my liking, but it’s headed in the right direction.

3) Surly Grapefruit Supreme (Taste 5)

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $13.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

With a name like Surly Grapefruit Supreme, you should have a pretty good idea of what you’re getting into when you crack one open. This 4.5% tart ale is brewed with Pilsner, Acidulated, and Carafoam malts, unmalted wheat, and Warrior hops. Grapefruit gives it a tart, refreshing flavor.

Bottom Line:

Surly Grapefruit Supreme is exactly what its label suggests and that’s definitely not a bad thing. It’s a slightly tart ale with a broad spectrum of citrus flavors. It has a decent hop flavor as well.

2) Genesee Ruby Red Kölsch (Taste 2)

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $9.99 for a twelve-pack

The Beer:

When it comes to spring beers from Genesee (makers of the iconic Cream Ale), there are many as eagerly awaited at Ruby Red Kolsch. Available from March through August, this German-inspired beer combines a classic Kölsch-style beer with ruby red grapefruit flavors.

Bottom Line:

Kölsch is one of the most popular warm-weather beers so it should come as no surprise that adding grapefruit flavor is only going to heighten the experience. If grapefruit is your jam, this is a can’t miss summer beer.

1) Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin IPA (Taste 4)

ABV: 7%

Average Price: $13.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Ballast Point Sculpin IPA is one of the highest-rated, most beloved IPAs of all time. But if you prefer your IPA to have even more citrus flavor, you’ll opt for a Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin. This 7% ABV West Coast IPA already leans in on its bitterness and the addition of tart, tangy grapefruit only adds to the experience.

Bottom Line:

You’d have a difficult time finding a more well-balanced grapefruit beer than Ballast Point Sculpin. It’s piney, tart, slightly bitter, and perfect for a hot, hazy day.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

After this blind taste test, it’s obvious there are two different kinds of grapefruit beers and they appeal to two different types of beer drinkers. One is sweet, one-dimensional, crushable, and heavy on grapefruit and not much else. The other is complex, well-balanced, and uses grapefruit to complement other flavors.

There’s a place for both in the beer marketplace, though you can obviously see my preference!

With his upcoming fourth studio album Twelve Carat Toothache just weeks away, Post Malone has revealed the video for his Roddy Ricch collaboration, “Cooped Up.”

In the Andre Bato-directed video, Malone arises from a bed, ready to party, lamenting the fact that he’s been “f*cking cooped up.” He then proceeds to dance in an artsy, luxury apartment bedecked with modern furniture and works of art. Noticeably missing from the home space are walls and ceilings. Roddy Rich later emerges from a dark space (more so literally than figuratively) to deliver his verse, before a crowd of people fill the apartment, ready to party.

In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Malone hilariously revealed how writing “Cooped Up” came naturally to him.

“I’ve been out of my bag for a long time, and I’m trying to hop back in there, man,” said Malone. “We knew what we wanted to say, and we knew what we wanted to express, not only in a song but in that particular moment on the album…I couldn’t even tell you. I was probably on the shitter when I wrote it.”

Check out the “Cooped Up” video above.

Twelve Carat Toothache is out 6/3 via Republic. Pre-save it here.

Roddy Ricch is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Despite having a rough start to his campaign and a late surge by an “Ultra MAGA” rival, who undoubtedly siphoned votes from him, Dr. Mehmet Oz is within striking distance of locking down the GOP nomination for an open senate seat in Pennsylvania (where he doesn’t even live). Following Tuesday’s primary, Oz appears to have narrowly defeated Dave McCormick, but the margin is so small that election officials have deemed it too close to call, and an automatic recount will almost certainly be triggered.

Naturally, none of that matters to Donald Trump who is already telling Oz to declare himself the winner. In a post on Truth Social, the former president’s social company that he can’t pronounce, Trump immediately got to work accusing the other side of cheating. Who’s ready for another insurrection? Via Mediaite:

As far as Trump sees it, the contest is already over, so he got on Truth Social and said “Dr. Oz should declare victory. It makes it much harder for them to cheat with the ballots that they “just happened to find.”

Much like the 2020 presidential election, the results of GOP primary hinge on counting early and mail-in ballots, which could swing the results in either direction given how close Oz and McCormick are. However, despite Trump setting the stage for yet another election meltdown, Oz made sure to personally thank the former president and Sean Hannity for guiding him through the race in a state where, again, he doesn’t even live.

(Via Mediaite)

The most recent episode of Better Call Saul, “Axe and Grind,” featured more Breaking Bad references and foreshadowings than usual. To name a few: Saul forced Francesca to make a “fake” phone call, which she would later do again to scare Hank into thinking that Marie had been in a car accident; Saul goes to a liquor store to buy an expensive bottle of Zafiro Anejo, which has been on Better Call Saul multiple times, but first showed up as a deadly gift from Gus to Don Eladio on Breaking Bad; and of course, there’s the Best Quality Vacuum card. The Albuquerque-based store is a legitimate business run by Ed Galbraith (played by the late, great Robert Forster), but it’s also where Saul and Walt (and Jesse in El Camino) seek help when they need to, let’s say, get away.

The Best Quality Vacuum card appears in “Axe and Grind” in a little black book owned by Dr. Caldera, a vet who also provides medical care to humans who want no questions asked. He’s leaving town, he tells Saul and Kim, and plans to sell his mysterious notebook — his “keys to the kingdom” — so his life can be “all animals, all the time.”

(Sidenote: It’s unclear how Saul comes into possession of the book, but as co-creator Peter Gould explained on Better Call Saul Insider, its appearance here is “us figuring out that Saul must have found out about [Ed] from the vet without Mike present.”)

What’s in Dr. Caldera’s little black book, you be might wondering? Have a look.

“I think we found the Zodiac Killer,” Saul jokes, but a Better Call Saul fan on Reddit believes that they have cracked the code. Redditor AsuranFish’s deciphering began following the season six premiere, when the little black book shows up as the feds are emptying Saul’s house, post-Breaking Bad. “What is this notebook?” the post reads. “It seems pretty clear to me this is Caldera’s contact book for the ABQ underworld.” What follows is a list of names and numbers, and occasionally, prison information.

HUELL BABINEAUX – ** – II
505-115-_876
PUNCTUAL

​ARO – * – II
505-128-2_ _ 0
CSP 18 MOS.NOV.2004 (I think this is stating the guy got 18 months, and will be released in Nov. 2004)

​PATRICK KUBY – * – I
505-1_1-8720

​__LKUDI – * – II (finger covers the first part of the name)
505-170-2_58
ARRESTED & RELEASED

You can see it here.

AsuranFish went back to work following “Axe and Grind,” which gave viewers a better look at the notebook. “There doesn’t seem to be any familiar names this time around – but maybe some of these folks will turn up,” they wrote. Here’s that.

The Better Call Saul midseason finale airs next Monday, May 23.

Four years after Martin Shkreli — who rose to damning notoriety after cranking up the price of an AIDS drug at least 5000% overnight — cried in open court while being sentenced to seven years for fraud, the Pharma Bro is now a free man. The Washington Post confirmed the news through word from Shkreli’s lawyer, Ben Brafman, who declared, “I am pleased to report that Martin Shkreli has been released from Allenwood prison and transferred to a BOP halfway house after completing all programs that allowed for his prison sentence to be shortened.”

This news reverberated on Twitter, where it thrilled Marjorie Taylor Greene, who hasn’t been this excited since hearing that Roe v. Wade would soon be overturned. “I hear Martin Shkreli has been released, having paid his debt to society,” Greene tweeted while ignoring Madison Cawthorn’s telling primary loss. “2016 energy everywhere you look!”

As for Shkreli, he’s outta there as Edmund Sullvan revealed on Twitter. First, he joked that he found Shkreli “hitchhiking” and pointing out his own fame. And then Sullivan pulled the “satire” card.

Then, uh, Sullivan (wearing a fanboy t-shirt) took Shkreli for a post prison meal at Cracker Barrel. Sounds about right.

There’s no word whether Shkreli will ever recover that seized Wu-Tang Clan album from the federal government (seems unlikely) or if he’s still in contact with the reporter (Christie Smythe) who gave up her personal and professional lives after falling in love with the Pharma Bro.

(Worst. Romance. Novel. Ever.)

For her part, Smythe thinks that we’ll see her Pharma Man back on social media soon.

(Via Washington Post)

The Pennsylvania Senate Primary is still too close to call but that’s not stopping some MAGA folk from claiming the whole election is rigged.

Currently, celebrity TV doctor Mehmet Oz and hedge fund manager David McCormick are neck-in-neck for a place on the ballot but another GOP candidate who was leading early in the polls is now claiming that ballot tampering may be to blame for why she’s all but out of the race. Kathy Barnette — a Stop The Steal believer who marched on Capitol Hill in support of Donald Trump’s election fraud claims — gained an impressive amount in the polls during the primary’s final week. Unfortunately for her, Trump decided to back Oz, phoning into the candidate’s rallies and doing robocalls to urge his supporters to vote for the TV personality. That endorsement, coupled with Fox News’s Sean Hannity publicly supporting Oprah’s favorite medical hack, likely helped Oz pull ahead in the polls but because MAGA truthers seem unable to accept the idea that their political candidate can actually lose, now Barnette’s supporters are claiming the Senate Primary race has been rigged.

After being ahead by more than 8 points earlier in the week, Barnette’s crowd is, ironically, claiming that the election has been rigged in favor of a Trump-endorsed candidate. Obviously, there’s no evidence to back this claim, but that hasn’t stopped people on Twitter from already sowing doubt about the results before the race has even been called.

In other news, Trump is now urging Oz to declare himself the winner of the Primary election in order to … get this, avoid claims of election fraud.

So it looks like whoever actually does come out on top will most definitely be fielding claims of a rigged vote and a fake victory which seems like the best form of karma for a bunch of conservative trashbags who marched with Proud Boys and supported insurrectionists and tried to destroy our trust in the democratic process. You reap what you sow and all that.

(Via RawStory)

The trailer for A24 and HBO Max’s upcoming series Irma Vep dropped today, and there is a lot going on. The series is based on the 1996 French film of the same name and stars Ex Machina’s Alicia Vikander as Mira, a discouraged movie star who is tired of playing big-budget superhero roles. She travels to France to play Irma Vep (an anagram for “vampire” how fun!) in a remake of a French silent film.

But as she begins filming, reality and the movie start the blend together. Pair that with a stubborn director, and there is a whole lot of tension on this set. So it’s a remake of a movie that’s based on making a remake of a movie. Follow?

Vikander stars alongside Rene Vidal, Jeanne Balibar, Devon Ross, Carrie Brownstein, and Fala Chen. The series comes from writer-director Olivier Assayas, who also serves as executive producer. Irma Vep airs on June 6th on HBO Max, and will have a premiere at Cannes prior to its release. Here is the official description:

Mira (Alicia Vikander) is an American movie star disillusioned by her career and a recent breakup, who comes to France to star as “Irma Vep” in a remake of the French silent film classic Les Vampires. Set against the backdrop of a lurid crime thriller, Mira struggles as the distinctions between herself and the character she plays begin to blur and merge. Irma Vep reveals to us the uncertain ground that lies at the border of fiction and reality, artifice and authenticity, art and life.