Category: Trending

Conservatives are incensed about Barbie right now, but, as always, they have plenty more anger to go around. In fact, they’re also losing their stuff over Disney’s in-the-works live action redo of Snow White. Why are they so mad? Because, partially thanks to Peter Dinklage, the seven dwarves are no longer dwarves. And Snow White? She’s no longer white, even though, name be damned, there’s no reason she has to be. But tell that to a recent Fox News guest.

On Monday, Outkick host Charly Arnolt joined host John Roberts to talk about how Hollywood movies haven’t been doing so well in one of its once-mighty markets, China. The problem, Arnolt claims? They’re too “woke,” thus driving away audiences. She cites The Little Mermaid, whose crime was casting a Black actress, Hailey Bailey, to play Ariel — a move that got Bailey pelted with all manner of racist attacks.

Arnolt then moved onto the Snow White remake, which stars West Side Story’s Rachel Zegler, a Latinx actress. That — and her revamped septet of companions — made her furious.

“The seven dwarves aren’t even dwarves anymore because they thought that to be too politically incorrect. Snow White is not even a white woman anymore, even though her name is Snow White,” Arnolt railed.

“We’re just going too far out of the way to make things super diverse and inclusive,” she continued. “It’s no longer about high-quality film production anymore or entertainment.”

Arnolt’s comments went viral, leading to many jokes about her thinking a character’s name requires a certain skin color.

Some saw it as part of a long-standing trend of far right pundits going nuclear over non-real characters.

The new Snow White is due in theaters on March 22 of next year. Perhaps by then the GOP will have calmed down about who plays a fictional character in a movie meant for kids. Or not.

(Via Raw Story)

As a beauty influencer, Sabrina Hassan is no stranger to creating viral makeup videos on TikTok. But one video that’s taking off is more than just a beauty tutorial.

The clip, watched over 7 million times, shows Hassan giving a spontaneous makeover to Linda, an older woman she just met on their shared flight via American Airlines. It’s an interaction full of smiles, warmth, laughter, connection…all the feels promised by a makeover scene in a movie, really.

“She’s an Instagram make-up artist, so I made her do my make-up!” Linda says with a chuckle to the flight attendant as Hassan dabs her cheeks with blush and paints her lips with a sheer rosy tinted gloss.

Those who watched the clip couldn’t help but be moved by how these two women from completely different walks of life were able to effortlessly bond over the simple joys of beautification.

“Moments like this make me love being a girl,” one person wrote.

Another seconded, “Glad we have phones to capture moments like these.”

Watch below. The moment Linda gets oh so excited with the spray makeup is the epitome of wholesome.

@sabrinaahassann

The nicest lady ever we bonded the whole plane ride 🫶🏽🩷🤍😭

♬ Let The Light In – Lana Del Rey

The sweet interaction turned out to be healing for both Linda and Hassan.

In an interview with Insider, Linda, 56, shared that she had recently been undergoing chemotherapy due to stage 4 colon cancer, and because of that hasn’t been able to wear much makeup, which has taken a toll on her self-esteem.

“I’ve lost my eyebrows, I’ve lost my eyelashes, and I can’t really wear mascara. My skin looks like I have a sunburn all the time. I don’t look like my former self. But that day on the plane, Sabrina made me feel like I was that woman again,” she recalled.

At the same time, Hassan told Insider that she was dealing with her own self-worth issues during their flight.

The 23-year-old was flying into California, where she would be doing makeup in front of other people—including other influencers. She revealed to Linda that the upcoming event was making her nervous. But after receiving such a hype up from her seat mate, those feelings of doubt soon dissipated to uncover a new sense of purpose.

“My favorite part of this was being able to help let Linda know that she is beautiful,” Hassan told Insider. “I had no idea I could change her life the way she changed mine. I wish everybody could meet her.”

And thus, the two women reclaimed their confidence, thanks to a totally impromptu moment. The unlikely friends hope to reconnect again in the near future and hope their story inspires others to simply spread kindness.

@sabrinaahassann

Found this and smiled 🩷🥹🥲

♬ these videos are adorable – 🪶starling

As Linda said to Insider: “Everybody is fighting some kind of battle that you can’t see. My battle is a little bit more apparent. Sometimes I use a walker. I’ve gained almost 70 pounds since I started treatment. It’s been extremely traumatic. But then there’s Sabrina, who on the outside looks like she has everything. She’s young, she’s beautiful—so it’s shocking that she was feeling nervous and insecure.”

In a time when headlines of unsavory airplane etiquette run rampant on the internet, refreshing anecdotes like these are a lovely reminder that the friendly skies do still exist. The stresses of traveling can certainly bring out the worst in all of us, but at the end of the day, I think it’s safe to say we would prefer to create endearing memories just like Hassan and Linda. Perhaps all that takes is a little kindness…and a great contour.

Way back in 2015, The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus received his own hog-focused road-trip series, Ride With Norman Reedus. The show is still kicking and hasn’t yet been eclipsed by fellow franchise stars’ own AMC reality series, including Colman Domingo’s Bottomless Brunch At Colman’s and Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Friday Night In With The Morgans. Perhaps that’s because Reedus’ series theme appears to go hand in hand with Daryl Dixon’s own preference for riding, which is one of the reasons why the previews for the Daryl In Paris spinoff have been somewhat confusing due to no motorcycle or Vespa on the scene.

Still, never fear because Reedus himself keeps riding even when Daryl does not, and somehow, his motorcycle series is now in Season 6 and will continue to air after The Walking Dead Shows, which keep multiplying and extending themselves with every given update. There are so many more stories of humanity among the undead coming your way, but in the meantime, here’s ^^^ a trailer, which proves that Keanu Reeves is aboard as a guest.

From this season’s synopsis, which sounds like the rest of the show, only with Keanu and a Jackass star in tow:

Join Walking Dead star and motorcycle enthusiast Norman Reedus on epic road trips around the world.  Each episode features Reedus and a riding companion – a fellow actor, musician, or friend, exploring local culture and seeking adventure on the road. Guests this season include Keanu Reeves, Adri Law, Josh Holloway and Johnny Knoxville.

Ride with Norman Reedus returns on September 10.

What did you do this past Saturday night? If you’re Elon Musk, you spent it suddenly announcing you were doing a complete rebranding of the social media service you semi-reluctantly purchased late last year. By Monday, Twitter was no longer Twitter. It was “X.” The friendly bird logo was gone, replaced by a dark, vaguely authoritarian depiction of the English language’s third-to-last letter. There were other strange changes to the company, though some you’d only notice if you were one of the few employees he didn’t unceremoniously fire months back.

A new piece by The New York Times offers some insight into what greeted Twitter — sorry: X! — employees when they returned to work on Monday:

Inside Twitter’s headquarters in San Francisco, X logos were projected in the cafeteria, while conference rooms were renamed to words with X in them, including “eXposure,” “eXult” and “s3Xy,” according to photos seen by The New York Times.

Why a conference room would be called some variation on “sexy” is currently unknown.

Musk didn’t stop by putting “X” everywhere he could at his company’s main base. As promised, he had the big Twitter sign removed from the corner of the building where he’s not always paid rent. Even that proved a chaotic mess.

Early reports claimed Musk had failed to get a permit to remove the sign, but The San Francisco Standard said it was a different internal screw-up: They did have a work order but they never told Twitter security nor the building’s property owner. As such, the police showed up and temporarily halted the removal.

The sign ultimately came down, and it’s unclear if the same fate will happen to the once-thriving social media service formerly known as Twitter, which in the pre-Musk days didn’t used to simply stop working more or less entirely. But at least the wildly uncool Piers Morgan thinks it’s cool.

(Via NYT)

HBO HBO Max Max just released its August streaming lineup and there are a few original series worth getting excited for.

A second season of the flashy, LA Lakers biopic Winning Time arrives early in the month to deliver one of the most riveting sports rivalries of all time while Issa Rae’s hip hop comedy, Rap Sh!t brings the laughs as it embarks on a cross-country tour. More Abbott Elementary, a few great films from the Warner Bros. vault, and plenty of docuseries are also on the menu this month.

Here’s everything coming to (and leaving) Max this month.

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty: Season 2 (streaming 8/6)

Magic Johnson (Quincy Isaiah) and the LA Lakers defend their title this season, facing off against familiar rivals like Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics. But the drama isn’t just reserved for the court. Season two of HBO’s breakout sports biopic sees everyone from Adrien Brody and John C. Reilly to Michael Chiklis and Jason Clarke pushing the Lakers to greatness as coaching shakeups and ownership succession questions threaten the magic happening in the paint.

Rap Sh!t: Season 2 (streaming 8/10)

Self-made rappers Mia and Shawna are hitting the road for a cross-country tour that promises the chance at superstardom if they can get past their dislike for their headlining artist and figure out their voice in an industry determined to make them conform.

Abbott Elementary: Season 2 (streaming 8/21)

Who knows when we might see a third season of this Emmy-winning comedy series so, for now, take comfort in the fact that you can re-watch all of season two on Max.

Coming to Max this August

Avail. 8/1
A Hologram for the King (2016)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989)
A Royal Affair (2012)
Agent Cody Banks (2003)
Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London (2004)
American Gangster (2007)
Amsterdam (2022)
Angel of Mine (2019)
Animal Kingdom (2010)
Annie Hall (1977)
Antitrust (2001)
Before Midnight (2013)
Best Man Down (2013)
Beyond the Reach (2015)
Blown Away (1994)
Body of Lies (2008)
Bulletproof Monk (2003)
Chernobyl Diaries (2012)
Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer (2010)
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
De-Lovely (2004)
Deadfall (2012)
Death Wish II (1982)
Death Wish 3 (1985)
Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987)
F/X (1986)
F/X 2: The Deadly Art of Illusion (1991)
Fame (2009)
Fargo (1996)
Flash of Genius (2008)
Good News (1947)
I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
Ice Station Zebra (1968)
Infinitely Polar Bear (2015)
Inside Job (2010)
Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)
Kill Your Darlings (2013)
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)
Kingpin (1996)
Leaving Las Vegas (1996)
Love Is Strange (2014)
Maggie’s Plan (2016)
Miss Congeniality (2000)
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (2005)
Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (2021)
My Scientology Movie (2015)
Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994)
Night Catches Us (2010)
Night Moves (1975)
Ocean’s Eight (2018)
Ocean’s Thirteen (2007)
Ocean’s Twelve (2004)
Our Family Wedding (2010)
Out of Time (2003)
Restless (2011)
Ronin (1998)
Rubber (2010)
Searching for Sugar Man (2012)
Shattered (1991)
Soul Plane (2004)
Spaceballs (1987)
Spawn (1997)
Stage Fright (1950)
Stan & Ollie (2018)
Star 80 (1983)
Stealing Harvard (2002)
Take Shelter (2011)
The Age of Adaline (2015)
The Amityville Horror (1979)
The Amityville Horror (2005)
The Assistant (2020)
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
The Bronze (2015)
The Comedian (2016)
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
The Exception (2017)
The Fluffy Movie (2014)
The Getaway (1972)
The Good Lie (2014)
The Goodbye Girl (1977)
The Hollars (2016)
The Hunted (2003)
The Illusionist (2010)
The Iron Giant (1999)
The Killer Elite (1975)
The Mean Season (1985)
The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991)
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
The Omega Man (1971)
The Phantom (1996)
The Prince & Me (2004)
The Seagull (2018)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)
The Wash (2001)
The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (2007)
They Died with Their Boots On (1941)
This Is Elvis (1981)
Till the End of Time (1946)
Torpedo Run (1958)
Transcendence (2014)
Travels with My Aunt (1972)
Twister (1996)
Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)
Whiteout (2009)
Wild Wild West (1999)

Avail. 8/3
House Hunters, Season 200 (HGTV)
House Hunters International, Season 172 (HGTV)
Vlad and Niki, Season 2B

Avail. 8/4
Khun Pan 3 (2023)

Avail. 8/6
Big Sky Kitchen with Eduardo Garcia, Season 2 (Magnolia Network)
Evil Lives Here, Season 14 (ID)
Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, Season 2 (HBO Original)
Worst Cooks in America: Love at First Bite, Season 26 (Food Network)

Acail. 8/7
Kim vs Kayne: The Divorce (Discovery Networks International)
Ugliest House in America: Summer Road Trip, Season 4 (HGTV)

Avail. 8/8
Bugs Bunny Builders, Season 1F
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the New York Jets (HBO Original)

Avail. 8/9
Contraband: Seized at the Border, Season 1 (Discovery Channel)
Doubling Down with the Derricos, Season 4 (TLC)
Get Hard (2015)

Avail. 8/10
Cookie Monster’s Bakesale (Max Original)
Rap Sh!t, Season 2 (Max Original)

Avail. 8/12
Belle Collective, Season 2B (OWN)
I Survived Bear Grylls, Season 1 (TBS)

Avail. 8/14
Forensic Files II, Season 4A (ID)
Signs of a Psychopath Season 6 (ID)

Avail. 8/15
90 Day: The Last Resort, Season 1 (TLC)
Good Bones, Season 8 (HGTV)
House Hunters International Season Volume 8: Season 188 (HGTV)
Scent of Time (Max Original)
What’s Wrong With That House?, Season 1 (HGTV)

Avail. 8/16
Battle of the Decades, Season 1 (Food Network)

Avail. 8/17
Avatar (2009)
I Love You, And It Hurts (Te Quiero y Me Duele) (Max Original)

Avail. 8/18
American Masters: Sidney Poitier: One Bright Light (2000)
MarkKim + Chef (Max Original)
Time of Essence, Season 1 (OWN)

Avail. 8/20
Disappeared: The Bradley Sisters (ID)
Sister Wives, Season 18 (TLC)
Stand Up to Cancer

Avail. 8/22
Bobby’s Triple Threat, Season 2 (Food Network)

Avail. 8/23
BS High (HBO Original)
Why The Heck Did I Buy That House?, Season 2 (HGTV)

Avail. 8/24
Bargain Block, Season 3 (HGTV)
Save My Skin, Season 4 (TLC)

Avail. 8/25
Tracked, Season 1 (Discovery Channel)

Avail. 8/27
Disappeared, Season 11 (ID)
We Baby Bears, Season 2B (Cartoon Network)

Avail. 8/29
Bugs Bunny Builders: Hard Hat Time, Season 1C (Cartoon Network)

Avail. 8/30
Design Down Under, Season 1 (Magnolia Network)
In With the Old, Season 4 (Magnolia Network)

Avail. 8/31
Adventure Time: Fionna & Cake, Season 1 (Max Original)

Leaving Max in August

Leaving 8/5
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Detroit Lions (HBO Original)

Leaving 8/12
A Very Venture Christmas (2004)
From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story (2011)

Leaving 8/13
Thank You, Mr. President: Helen Thomas at the White House (2008) (HBO Original)

Leaving 8/28
Tokyo Revengers (Dubbed & Subtitled) (2021)

Leaving 8/31
20 Feet From Stardom (2013)
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
93Queen (2018)
A Vigilante (2019)
Acts of Vengeance (2017)
Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)
Airplane! (1980)
Anger Management (2003)
Basic (2003)
Best of Enemies (2015)
Big Daddy (1999)
Blue Bayou (2021)
Brokedown Palace (1999)
Bullitt (1968)
Cobra (1986)
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
Demolition Man (1993)
Dolores Claiborne (1995)
Dragonball Evolution (2009)
Dunkirk (2017)
Eagle Eye (2008)
Enter the Dragon (1973)
Finding Forrester (2001)
Ghosts of Mississippi (1986)
Godzilla (2014)
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
Going in Style (1979)
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)
Heist (2015)
Hellboy (2004)
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992)
Hellraiser IV: Bloodline (1996)
Hellraiser V: Inferno (2000)
Hellraiser VII: Deader (2005)
Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002)
Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)
Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)
House at the End of the Street (2012)
Hunter Killer (2018)
I Am Love (2009)
I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009)
Iris (2015)
Jackson (2016)
Jersey Boys (2014)
Johnson Family Vacation (2004)
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2012)
Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)
Just Cause (1995)
King Kong (1933)
Lemon (2017)
Lethal Weapon (1987)
Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)
Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)
Letters to Juliet (2010)
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)
Make Your Move (2003)
Miss March (2009)
Miss Sloane (2016)
Mona Lisa Smile (2003)
My Bloody Valentine (1981)
My Bodyguard (1980)
My Week with Marilyn (2011)
Netizens (2018)
Never Grow Old (2019)
Norma Rae (1979)
Outrage (2009)
Over the Garden Wall (2014)
Paparazzi (2004)
Ready Player One (2018)
Results (2015)
Robin Hood (1991)
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)
RocknRolla (2008)
Rush Hour (1998)
Rush Hour 2 (2001)
Rush Hour 3 (2007)
School Life (2017)
Sinister (2012)
Sleepers (1996)
Slums of Beverly Hills (1998)
Squidbillies (2004)
Tangerine (2015)
Taxi (2004)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993)
Tequila Sunrise (1988)
Thanks for Sharing (2012)
The Accused (1988)
The Animatrix (2003)
The Big Hit (1998)
The Card Counter (2021)
The Cold Light of Day (2012)
The Crazies (2010)
The Pick-Up Artist (1987)
The Ring Two (2005)
The Sentinel (2006)
The War of the Roses (1989)
TMNT (2007)
Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)
What a Girl Wants (2003)
What Lies Beneath (2000)
Whip It (2009)
White God (2015)
Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger (2014)
Wild (2014)
Wild Hogs (2007)
Woman Walks Ahead (2017)
Yogi Bear (2010)

Ever since Jamie Foxx was hospitalized with a mysterious medical complication back in April, there has been no shortage of rumors and conspiracy theories about what’s really going with the actor.

Due to his notoriously private nature, Foxx has not yet disclosed the exact nature of his health issues, but he did recently share a video thanks his fans for all of their love and support. That video arrived after Foxx was spotted around Chicago in a series of surprise public appearances.

However, despite Foxx clearly being very much alive, alert, and cognizant, that hasn’t stopped the conspiracy theories from running wild on social media. The latest rumor claims that Foxx has been “replaced” because he looks different in his thank you video to fans. Ice-T caught wind of these crackpot theories and immediately shut them down.

“People would rather believe that Jamie is now a Clone or AI, than the man was just seriously sick and damn near die,” an exasperated Ice-T tweeted. “Cause he doesn’t look EXACTLY the same??? YOU look different after a bad cold! Smh weirdos.”

While Ice-T hit the nail on the head that Foxx has been sick for over five months now, and the actor candidly revealed that his recovery has been difficult, another Twitter user pointed out another contributing factor for why Foxx looked different: Camera angles.

“People don’t understand how camera lenses work,” Jared Monroe tweeted. “Probably lost a little weight and the lighting is different. But 90% of the difference is just a telephoto lens (probably a 70-200mm) vs the super wide selfie camera on your phone.”

Long story short, no there isn’t a sophisticated Jamie Foxx AI clone running around, you dorks.

(Via Entertainment Weekly)

Lana Del Rey wasn’t the only famous person picking up a service industry shift this weekend.

While in Iowa for the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race over the weekend, David Letterman dropped by a Hy-Vee supermarket in Grimes. “This is my first time in a Hy-Vee store. We don’t have them where I live and I’ve known of them through the racing team, but what I’ve known of them is the tip of the iceberg,” the former late-night host said, according to the Des Moines Register (he co-owns a race car sponsored by Hy-Vee). “So I walk in here and it’s the world of the future.”

Letterman spent roughly an hour in the store, where he “filmed a series of skits with two store employees, Caden Grimes and Elyse McIlhon. They played with a gumball machine, bagged groceries in the self-checkout area, and organized soup cans.” Letterman also ate (drank?) soup straight from the can, which should become a new tradition in the midwest.

Letterman posted about the experience on his Instagram. “I spent spent a considerable amount of my life in a grocery store in Indianapolis, and it was the last of the singular, independent owned grocery stores and I loved it,” he said in the video. And if I can give something back to the marketing community, I would like to do that – but I don’t have all day, of course.”

You can watch footage from the trip below.

I can’t wait to find out which random celebrity will be spotted pumping gas at an Exxon in West Virginia next!

(Via Des Moines Register)

As K-pop gets more and more popular stateside, more artists in other genres have become more eager to collaborate with K-pop stars to increase their own reach, and it’s paying off. The latest is Latto, who teamed up recently with BTS’ Jungkook (or Jung Kook, as he’s apparently presenting himself to US audiences) to release “Seven” — and in the process, reached her biggest career milestone yet.

The latest week’s Billboard charts have arrived and guess who’s landed at the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100. That’s right: Jungkook, Latto, and their collaboration “Seven,” which has become both artists’ first-ever No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart. That accomplishment has them overtaking Jason Aldean’s Jim Crow anthem “Try That In A Small Town” (I guess the power of diversity and globalism is still stronger than thinly veiled dog whistle racism).

“Seven” is, of course, thought to be the first single from Jungkook’s speculated solo debut; its success indicates that the appetite for said project is just as high as fans could expect from a solo member of BTS, one of the most popular boy bands in the world. It’s also just one of many crossovers between hip-hop and K-pop recently, including J-Hope’s J. Cole collab “On The Street,” FIFTY FIFTY’s Kaliii crossover “Barbie Dreams,” and Blackpink’s “Bet You Wanna” with Cardi B.

Christopher Landis, a choir director at Hingham Middle School in Massachusetts, didn’t tell his students he was engaged to Joe Michienzie three years ago. According to Inside Edition, whenever they asked who Michienzie was, Christopher would say, “That’s Joe. He’s my friend.”

Landis kept his relationship a secret in front of his students because he wasn’t sure how their parents would react. Sadly, even today, LGBTQ people still have to be discreet about their personal lives in some professions.

This is sad for the teachers who have to stay closeted and also for the LGBTQ students who miss out on having a positive role model.

However, somehow the secret got out and two mothers of Landis’ students, Margit Foley and Joy Foraste, approached Michienzie to see how they could get the students involved in their wedding.

“At the end of the summer, Margit and I heard he was getting married. He’s the best teacher, and he’s got this great energy, and he makes every school function fun. We thought, wouldn’t it be awesome to do something for his wedding?” Foraste said according to The New York Times.

The women emailed the other choir parents to see if their children could perform at their teacher’s wedding rehearsal dinner.

“We hoped we’d get at least 15 kids to do it,” Foraste said. But 50 of the 70 kids in the chorus said they’d be there to support their teacher’s wedding. They secretly rehearsed for four Sundays in a row at a local library so Landis wouldn’t catch a whiff of the plan they hatched.

The kids and their parents kept the secret for four months before the big day and had to get off school and travel 30 miles to the event. Landis had no idea what was about to happen but he felt something was up when people at the dinner started picking up their phones.

Out of nowhere, 50 kids filed into the room, songbooks in hand. After Dona Maher, a colleague of Landis’, banged out the first few notes of the French National Anthem on her keyboard, the kids began to sing the word, “Love.” It was the perfect song for the occasion, “All You Need Is Love” by the Beatles.

Video taken by the bartender at the event shows Landis unable to hold back the tears as his kids sang their hearts out. It was a beautiful moment of acceptance for a teacher who wasn’t sure if his kids and their parents would understand his love for his husband-to-be.

After the performance, Landis turned to the crowd with a huge smile and said, “These are my kids.”

“It was so wonderful for the kids to see him with his family and his close friends, and they saw him as a person, not just their teacher,” Foraste told The Patriot Ledger. “They saw how much it meant to him. He immediately started crying and the kids started crying. It’s something they’ll never forget.”

This article originally appeared on 11.10.22

A quick-thinking 10-year-old boy escaped a woman trying to lure him by pretending that a local store clerk was his mother. ABC 6 reports that Sammy Green was walking home from school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, on Friday, November 11, when a strange woman started following him.

The woman “started walking with him and asking him where his family was, asking where his dad was,” Sam Green, the boy’s father, told ABC6. The boy didn’t know the woman but she insisted that she knew his family.

She tried to lure him into going with her by promising she’d buy him “anything he wanted” at Wawa, a local convenience store that sells shakes, sandwiches and other treats.

“She was like, ‘I’m going to Wawa, are you going there? What are you getting from Wawa? Where’s your family at?'” Sammy told CBS.

“She said she probably knew me and was going to Wawa and that he was supposed to go with her and he could get anything he wanted,” Sam Green said.

In an attempt to flee the suspicious woman, Sammy walked into Dani Bee Funky, an unconventional gift shop, where he went straight to 17-year-old Hannah who was working the register. “He was like, ‘Pretend like you’re my mom,'” Hannah told CBS, “and I was just like, ‘all right go to the back.’ He didn’t want to leave my side.”

Security footage shows that Hannah then calmly walked up to the store’s front door and locked it, preventing the woman from coming inside. After she was locked out, the woman walked away. “I was still shaking when I was in here,” Sammy said.

The security camera footage is hard for Sammy’s dad to watch. “When we were watching that video, I cried every time I saw it,” said Green.

u201cthat are so scary i glad he was able to get help nnA 10-year-old boy in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, escaped a woman who was following him.nnThe boy asked a cashier to pretend to be his mother nhttps://t.co/2WYLX9nQvNu201d

— Hu1ea1nh Lien ud83cudff3ufe0fu200dud83cudf08 (@Hu1ea1nh Lien ud83cudff3ufe0fu200dud83cudf08)
1668604197

The shop’s owner has nothing but praise for Hannah’s calm way of handling the dangerous situation. “I am very proud of her. Hannah is a 17-year-old young lady. She did everything correctly,” Small said.

This story is a great reminder for parents to talk to their kids about what to do if they are approached by a suspicious person. The first thing they should know is that it’s OK to say “No!” as loudly as possible to a suspicious person. They should then scream, “Help! This is not my mom or my dad!” to alert the adults around them and then run. If they are grabbed by the person they should bite, punch and kick as hard as they can until they can get free.

Sammy’s dad is proud that his son remembered what he told him to do when confronted by a suspicious stranger. “Think of every scenario and make sure that children know and also practice it,” he reminded parents. “Practice your situations and scenarios just like fire drills.”

For the time being, Sammy is going to have a family friend walk him to and from school. The Pottstown Police have spoken with the woman and she is now getting help for mental health issues.

This article originally appeared on 11.17.22