Month: September 2023

For the last two weeks, the nation has been gripped by the search for Danelo Cavalcante, a convicted murderer who escaped from a southeastern prison. So far he has eluded the nearly 500 law enforcement members searching for his whereabouts. Cavalcante is considered “armed and extremely dangerous.” But that doesn’t scare a certain reality show veteran who may be joining the search.

Per The New York Post (as first reported by TMZ), sources claim that Dog the Bounty Hunter, aka Duane Chapman, has been following the Cavalcante case ever since he “crab-walked” his way out of Chester County Prison. He’s reportedly already contacted Pennsylvania law enforcement, though he’ll only team up with them if he can piece together a proper plan of action.

In the past, the hulking star of Dog the Bounty Hunter, which ran on A&E between 2004 and 2012, has wormed his way into big time cases. He joined the hunt for the MMA fighter known as War Machine after his attempted murder of porn star Christy Mack. He declined to go after El Chapo, but he did put up the bail bond that sprung Nicolas Cage from prison after a drunken night out went awry.

Should Chapman shlep out to Pennsylvania, he’ll be hunting down someone who escaped from prison only a week after being handed a life sentence for the fatal stabbing of his girlfriend. Cavalcante allegedly has a .22 rifle, which someone fitting his description stole from a Chester County resident’s garage, while said resident was present. The man fired after Cavalcante, but he’s not believed to be wounded. Making the search more challenging is that the area is densely wooded, but surely Dog the Bounty Hunter isn’t afraid of trees.

(Via TMZ and NY Post)

Last fall, I was wondering whether Charlie Hunnam was being a stinker when he teased something that vaguely had to do with the Sons Of Anarchy circle. He had dropped a tidbit, and Entertainment Tonight asked him if that meant Jax Teller would ride again, and Hunnam played coy, like, “There’s nothing I can say at all, other than if it happens, it’ll happen.”

So, no denial, no confirmation, and no mention of the fact that Jax Teller drove into a green screen Mack truck to meet the Reaper. True, we never saw the body, but c’mon — we saw a makeshift roadside memorial and Wendy talking about dead Jax to EZ in Mayans M.C.. Also, never mind that almost every SOA character in the above still died before the finale, and then Happy croaked in Mayans M.C., and only Tig and Chibs seem to be breathing now. And there’s no way that these dudes can be in a prequel because too many years have passed since the pilot.

Still, that didn’t stop Hunnam from also hinting the same vibe to Comic Book: “I have an idea that I’m exploring in its infancy where that could be a possibility.” Additionally, the reality of what happened to Juice Ortiz after he ate that pie (“you went out good, sweetheart”) didn’t stop Theo Rossi (while promoting Emily The Criminal) from recently having some fun with Deadline:

“There might be something coming up where we’re all back together, which is insane,” Rossi told Deadline. “If it happens, it’s wild, but if it doesn’t, it would be perfect and really cool because we also talk every day,” he added, referring to his continuing friendship with the show’s lead, Charlie Hunnam, and the rest of the cast.

When asked if this might be an idea for a Sons of Anarchy movie, Rossi smiled cryptically and said, “It’s totally different. It’s really cool.”

No one knows if Hunnam and Rossi were talking about the same thing, and both were being purposefully vague, yet Rossi did throw the “totally different” into the mix, which probably tells us that this is no SOA-branded project. Also, I couldn’t even begin to guess whether franchise creator Kurt Sutter, who has not mentioned a hypothetical prequel or Abel-focused offshoot for quite some time, would be involved or interested in picking up the crowbar again after that Disney dustup.

Besides, I’d guess that Sutter is focused upon polishing the first season of The Abandons for Netflix. Whereas Hunnam will soon be seen in Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon for Netflix. Still, I’ve already expressed the vain hope that Hunnam just kinda pops up in The Abandons, maybe while being simultaneously cussed out by Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson’s characters.

I’d like that. Let’s make it happen.

What are women up to when no one is watching?

Artwork courtesy of Sally Nixon, used with permission.

Well, take a look at Sally Nixon’s illustrations and you’ll see.

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The subjects in her artwork aren’t aware we’re looking at them.

And that’s the point. They’re living in a world free from the pressures that exist in the real one.

“I like drawing girls doing their everyday routine — just hanging out, not worried about what others are thinking,” Nixon told Upworthy. “They’re usually alone or with other girls. Their guard is down.”

Editor’s note: An image below contains partial nudity.

Capturing her subjects in this liberated light wasn’t intentional at first, she explained.

But when she started a 365-day challenge last April to create one art piece a day, the work started reflecting the nuances of her own life away from prying eyes — “I was kind of like, ‘Oh, I’m brushing my teeth, so I’ll draw that.'” — and a theme began to form.Her illustrations show how women look, away from the exhausting world where they’re often judged more harshly than men.

You also might notice none of the girls in her illustrations are smiling.

According to Nixon, that’s a deliberate choice.

“I don’t sit around smiling to myself,” Nixon said, noting the double standard that exists in thinking women should always appear cheerful.

“I’ve been told, ‘You need to smile more.’ It’s so infuriating. I wanted to show the way girls actually look, comfortably.”

The theme of friendship is also an important one in Nixon’s drawings.

“I have four older sisters, so female friendship has always been a big part of my life,” Nixon told The Huffington Post. “You gotta have someone to talk about periods with, and dudes just don’t get it.”

Creating relatable scenes was key to Nixon, too — from the details of women’s lives to the physical shapes of their bodies.

“It’s important that the women I draw aren’t rail thin with huge boobs,” Nixon said. “I think there are enough images of bodies like that out in the world. The ladies I draw typically have small-ish, droopy breasts and thick thighs. They’re kind of lumpy but in an attractive way. Just like real people.”

The women in Nixon’s work aren’t real, but she hopes their stories are.

“One of my absolute favorite comments [on my work] is, ‘Oh my God, it’s me!'” she explained of the depictions.

“There’s a little bit of beauty in [everyday life] and I wanted to bring that out.”

You can view more of Nixon’s artwork on her website and check out her prints for purchase on Etsy.

This article originally appeared on 04.15.16

Dogs hold a remarkable knack for tuning into human emotions. Witnessing their ability to sense our moods and see how they react is astonishing. Whether it’s a nudge of their nose when we’re feeling down or their tail wagging excitedly to mirror our joy, their empathy and understanding go beyond mere animal instinct.

This deep-seated connection, honed over thousands of years of companionship, attests to the beautiful symbiosis and understanding that can happen between different species. Even though we’ve always known how close we can get to dogs, a new study shows that connection goes even further than we knew.

A preliminary study found that our dogs listen to us when they sleep.

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A team of researchers at Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary performed a small pilot study on 13 dogs, which found that dogs’ brains light up when hearing both canine and human noises while asleep. “This finding is significant insofar as it is the first evidence of complex auditory processing during sleep in dogs,” Eötvös Loránd University ethnologist Huba Eleőd and colleagues write in their paper.

The dogs were connected to apparatuses to record their event-related brain wave reactions while asleep. Then, they were introduced to various vocalizations from dogs and humans while in different states of consciousness: fully awake, semi-conscious, and deep sleep.

The sounds the researchers played were various non-threatening vocal expressions, including yelps, whines and laughter. The researchers were careful not to make any distressing noises that might wake the dog.

Despite being asleep, the researchers found the dogs demonstrated a remarkable ability to discern the source and emotional tone of the sounds — whether dog or human — and detect if the underlying emotion was positive or neutral.

A dog’s ability to understand and process vocalizations while sleeping is much like a human’s. Researchers have found that while humans are asleep, they can differentiate between familiar and unfamiliar voices talking in the background. When people hear a stranger’s voice while sleeping, they are more likely to wake up than if it’s someone they know.

Researchers theorize that an unknown voice is more likely to threaten a person’s safety.

A dog’s ability to recognize other voices while asleep shows they are more like humans than we thought. Eleőd and colleagues believe this similarity between the two species supports the idea that dogs should be used in comparative neurobiology research, which could also teach us more about the human mins as well.

“Although use of a non-invasive ERP paradigm with dogs is quite labor-intensive, it is nevertheless the most feasible possibility to study vocal stimuli processing during sleep, as it does not require prior training and does not cause any distress or harm,” the team writes.

This new research not only shows that humans and dogs are even more connected than we knew previously. But it’s also a warning to dog owners everywhere. Be careful not to utter the words “walk” or “treat” around a sleeping dog, or you just may wake them up.

David Duchovny has investigated, hunted, and been captured by many supernatural beings in his (fictional) lifetime. One thing hasn’t done? Hunted demonic dogs. Probably! We don’t know a lot of what Mulder was doing on his off days. So why can’t he have a little fun, at least until they decide to add on another season of The X-Files just because they can.

Duchovny stars in the latest Stephen King adaptation Pet Sematary: Bloodlines which tells the humble beginnings of your favorite haunted cemetery where everything comes back to life. Even your pet goldfish, Goldy, who you should have just flushed down the toilet!! He doesn’t want to come back to life! Duchovny’s character is unclear, but he seems to be digging a lot of holes, and that’s never a good sign.

The movie is a prequel to the reboot that was based on the 1989 movie adaptation of the book of the same name. Honestly, why not? They are just going for it these days. Here is the plot synopsis:

In 1969, a young Jud Crandall is set to leave his hometown of Ludlow, Maine in search of his life’s purpose. Before he makes it out, however, Jud and his childhood friends encounter an ancient evil that has gripped Ludlow since its founding.

The trailer has everything: a young couple freely roaming an open road before a mild accident that changes the trajectory of their lives, blood splattering across a screaming face, questionable rituals, and even some cute little animals. If only Gillian Anderson could pop in for a cameo, then the whole thing would feel like a great family reunion!

Pet Sematary: Bloodlines hits Paramount + on October 6th. Hide your pets! Watch the trailer above.

There’s a new Walter Isaacson bio of Elon Musk out now, which has arrived on the heels of Ronan Farrow’s bombshell New Yorker profile. Naturally the tome has its own share of weird surprises, including that the prolific haver of children secretly had a third kid with ex-partner Grimes. It also has a slender chapter on another relationship: the one he had with Amber Heard, which according to Musk was not always smooth sailing.

Per Vanity Fair, the two met on, of all places, the set of 2013’s sequel Machete Kills, which at one point improbably involves our big knife-wielding hero slicing up baddies on a space station. Guess who was a consultant on this part of the movie? Elon Musk. Still, they didn’t really make a connection until a year later, when Musk treated her to a tour of Space X and gave her a spin in a Tesla (that presumably didn’t crash).

It wasn’t until Heard split from Johnny Depp that the two reconnected again, this time as a couple. Their dates reportedly included trips to a rope course and a wildlife sanctuary — typical billionaire stuff. At one point, Isaacson writes, “He told her that she reminded him of Mercy, his favorite character in the video game Overwatch, so she spent two months designing and commissioning a head-to-toe costume so she could role-play for him.”

Heard was not a hit with Musk’s inner circle. His brother called her “toxic,” and Musk’s chief of staff compared her to “the Joker.” Grimes, meanwhile, described her as “chaotic evil,” whereas she is, by her own estimation, “chaotic good.”

Still, Musk’s relationship with Heard meant enough to him that after they broke up in the summer of 2017, he didn’t take it well. It didn’t help that it coincided with some professional unpleasantness on top of news about his dad having fathered a secret child he’d never heard about. Musk described this mixture as “eighteen months of unrelenting insanity.”

What did Heard have to say about dating the guy who would later screw up Twitter? “I love him very much,” she told Isaacson. “Elon loves fire, and sometimes it burns him.”

(Via Vanity Fair)

There are plenty of reasons why book bans are ridiculous and harmful to society but their worst offense? Forcing us, the general public, to listen to an elderly conservative with more twang than a banjo stumble his way through a bit of Queer smut during a Congressional hearing.

Louisianna Republican John Kennedy sat in for the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on Illinois’ recent anti-book ban law. The state passed a law that protects the freedom of libraries to carry books they deem appropriate and vital to children’s education in the state. The law comes after a rise in book bans in more conservative states like Florida where censorship of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC authors has become more widespread. Unfortunately, Illinois’ progressive stance forced GOP hypocrites like Kennedy to call for a hearing to debate whether more government overreach — a concept Republicans often gripe about — is needed when it comes to Queer literature. And, to make his point, Kennedy decided to read a couple of graphic excerpts from books geared towards more mature student readers that left everyone at the hearing squirming in their seats.

Kennedy began his speech by reciting a passage from the book, All Boys Aren’t Blue, in which two young men engage in consensual sexual intercourse.

“I’m going to try to understand what you’re asking us to do,” Kennedy said before quoting the text that read:

“I put some lube and got him on his knees and I began to slide into him from behind. I pulled out of him and kissed him while he masturbated. He asked me to turn over while he slipped a condom on himself. This was my ass! And I was struggling to imagine someone inside of me. He got on top and slowly inserted himself into me. It was the worst pain I think I ever felt in my life. Eventually, I felt a mix of pleasure with the pain.”

This is when the flashbacks of that creepy uncle at Thanksgiving questioning the mechanics of your sex life after a Lil Nas X song popped up on your Spotify playlist start — but it only gets worse. Kennedy then read a paragraph from another book called Genderqueer in which he struggled to correctly pronounce the term “strap-on.”

“I got a new strap-on harness today, I can’t wait to put it on you. It will fit my favorite dildo perfectly, you’re going to look so hot. I can’t wait to have your cock in my mouth. I’m going to give you the blowjob of your life then I want you inside of me.”

The Senator then asked what Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias wanted him to do about the reading material in question saying, “Are you suggesting that only librarians should decide whether the two books I just referenced should be available to kids? Is that what you’re saying?”

The short answer: yes, but we definitely could’ve gotten there with a little more paraphrasing.

(Via Real Clear Politics)

Dating rumors are pretty commonplace in hip-hop. A new one popped up today, courtesy of the Daily Mail in the UK, but it might be one to take with a grain of salt. According to the Mail, Doja Cat met up with fellow rapper Quavo for a dinner date at Carbone in New York on Monday (September 11). The restaurant’s known for being a celebrity hotspot, so it’s reasonable that they both ate there. Are they “dating,” though?

It’s tough to say that they were on a “date,” per se. For one thing, Doja’s been romantically tied recently to social media personality Jeffrey Cyrus (aka J.Cyrus). Doja seemed serious enough about the seeming relationship to block fans who criticized her over it, although she had yet to comment on it publicly. Plus, aside from both being rappers, it doesn’t seem like Quavo and Doja actually have all that much in common.

The one tenuous connection they do share would also seem to preclude a romantic connection. In 2021, Quavo had a very public and messy breakup with rapper Saweetie, who had collaborated with Doja Cat on the single “Best Friend” earlier that year. Doja dating Quavo seems like a huge violation of girl code, although I freely admit I am no expert (Saweetie has seemingly moved on since, and was most recently linked with Compton rapper YG).

So is Doja dating Quavo? It seems unlikely but the jury’s out. On one hand, the Mail has a horrible track record with this sort of stuff. On the other, we live in a world where Avril Lavigne is spending significant time with Tyga. Anything is possible.

While everyone is over in one corner of the internet fighting for their lives over the Timothee Chalamet/ Kylie Jenner sightings, the rest of the Wonka crew is really just excited to be here! That includes Hugh Grant, who is famously starring as an Oompa Loompa in the upcoming biopic fantasy film about Willy Wonka. But how did such a prestigious man, known for his work in British romcoms, and Paddington 2, land the coveted Oompa Loompa gig? It’s actually kind of mean.

Director Paul King explained (via Variety) that he thought Grant would be perfect for the role because she is a “real sh*t.” This is a normal thing to say about your co-worker! “I was enchanted by the idea of these impossibly tiny beings, far smaller even than the child-sized me,” King explained. He continued, “The voice and the attitude of the Oompa Loompa came from revisiting the books – long songs full of humor, sarcasm, superiority and scorn. So it was really just thinking about that character – someone who can be a real sh*t. And I went, ‘Ah, Hugh [Grant]!’ Because he’s the funniest, most sarcastic sh*t that I’ve ever met!” Some of this is true, but maybe we should have given Grant a chance to be, say, a mild-mannered chocolatier or something.

It gets better (worse?) when you learn that this man wrote Grant a letter telling him this. Sure, he could have just said “hey be in my movie?” but instead King went right for the jugular! Who does that to such a kind and dedicated soul?

“I had to write him this awkward letter, saying, ‘You’re good at playing washed-up, old hams…’” King added. “Once you see Hugh Grant as an 18-inch high orange man with green hair, you go, ‘Ah, yes. I know what Oompa Loompas are. It all makes perfect sense.’” Does it make sense? No! Why would you say such a thing about Hugh Grant, who is your mother’s favorite actor!

Either way, we are here to support Grant as an Oompa Loompa, at least until his next Glass Onion cameo comes around and he can play a nice dude again.

(Via Variety)

Forty-some years is a long time for anyone to do any job, and yet that’s how long Pat Sajak has been hosting Wheel of Fortune — even longer than the late Bob Barker hosted The Price is Right. All good things must come to an end, though, and when the game show’s next season ends, so will Sajak’s tenure. It’s not the only show he’ll be leaving. He’s also bidding adieu to the spinoff Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. When he does, he’ll do so with some big names.

As per TV Line, the show has revealed the celebrities who’ll compete on a show that usually only makes news when contestants have massive, hilarious brain farts. Among them are Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt, aka the more chill Coach Beard; Luis Guzman, who’s currently making for a fine Gomez Addams on Wednesday; and The Daily Show’s Roy Wood, Jr. (who was also excellent in that very good Fletch movie that barely got released for some reason).

Others include ‘80s teen pop icon Debbie Gibson, The Facts of Life’s Kim Fields, Kel Mitchell, SNL’s Melissa Villaseñor, Penn Jillette, Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Natasha Leggero, Ghosts’ Danielle Pillock, Making the Cut’s Tim Gunn, Days of Our Lives’ Kyle Brandt, NFL star-turned-sportscaster Marcellus Wiley, and fellow former NFL stars Rashad Jennings and Jared Allen.

Season 4 bows on September 27 and it will consist of 10 episodes, in which the famous contestants will compete for a $1 million prize that will go to their chosen charity.

Meanwhile, after it was revealed show co-host Vanna White hadn’t received a raise, well, ever, she finally got one — though it’s still a pittance of what Sajak has been raking in.

(Via TV Line)