New data seen by ministers and government scientists shows the proportion of severely obese people in ICUs is twice the proportion in the general population.
When it comes to pop culture phenomenons, so much of it is about being in the right place at the right time. The smash hit Netflix series Tiger King, for example, benefited tremendously from perfect timing when it landed on the streaming service just as millions around the world were sheltering in place amid the coronavirus outbreak.
ESPN likewise saw an opportunity with their upcoming docuseries, The Last Dance, about Michael Jordan and the 1997-1998 Chicago Bulls. It was originally set to air in early June during the NBA Finals, but after fans mobilized on social media to move up the premier date — with a little nudge from LeBron James — the producers opted for a much earlier release.
Of course, that wasn’t without its obstacles. Director Jason Hehir and his production crew had only completed three of the 10 episodes at the time, and the quarantine presented a logistical nightmare as they were forced to conduct editorial meetings via Zoom and edit the episodes in five different locations, sharing their work with one another via Vimeo.
According to Arash Markazi of The Los Angeles Times, they’re still in the process of finishing up the final two episodes.
Hehir believed he could finish the final episode by mid-May, so airing one episode per week for 10 weeks was discussed before the decision was made to premiere on April 19 and close on May 17, with two episodes airing every Sunday.
Contrary to the usual practice of having an entire series complete before it debuts, work on episode 9 was finished Friday and the final is scheduled to be done by May 10, as viewers watch episodes 7 and 8.
So far, the first four episodes have been a mega-hit with fans as the series offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at the iconic figures that comprised one of the most compelling sports teams of all-time, in the process managing to rekindle some bitter and long-simmering rivalries between the Bulls and Pistons of the era.
With six more episodes still to come and so much story left to tell, there’s plenty to look forward to, and Hehir has assured us that there’s a number of surprises in store. Editing on the fly like this probably isn’t the most ideal way to finish a project like this, but through the first two weeks of the event, it’s been an unmitigated success.
Love them or hate them (and there’s plenty of reasons for the latter these days), no one can argue that WWE has been trying to think outside the box since the COVID-19 outbreak has put the kibosh on their traditional wrestling model. We’ve had Boneyard Matches and Firefly Funhouse Matches, plus plenty of empty-arena anti-comedy (remember 3:16 Day? You’re better off not).
Keeping in this tradition, WWE has already announced that this year’s Money In The Bank ladder matches will take place inside (and on top of) WWE’s corporate headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut. But during tonight’s episode of Smackdown, Michael Cole made an even bigger announcement: Both the men’s and women’s MITB ladder matches will take place at the exact same time.
Your
don’t deceive you.
For the first time ever, the Men’s and Women’s #MITB Ladder Matches will be happening SIMULTANEOUSLY! #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/iF4abSludy
— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2020
That’s right: When the bell rings (or hell, maybe there will be a starter pistol or something — why not?), 12 competitors will begin the mad dash through the lobby of WWE headquarters, headed toward the rooftop where two Money In The Bank briefcases will be suspended. Here are the currently announced participants of the matches:
- Asuka
- Shayna Baszler
- Nia Jax
- Carmella
- Dana Brooke
- Lacey Evans
- Otis
- Daniel Bryan
- Rey Mysterio
- Baron Corbin
- Aleister Black
One final male competitor will be added to the match this Monday on Raw. It will probably be Triple H, because why not? (He probably has access to a special elevator that takes him right to the rooftop or something.)
With both matches taking place simultaneously, there’s a legitimate chance we could see intergender combat, a rarity in WWE. I for one would love to watch Shayna Baszler choke out Baron Corbin, or Otis and Nia Jax furiously bumping as they try to push through a narrow doorway. How insane will this actually be? We’ll all find out on Sunday, May 10.
Here are your quick and dirty, editorial-free WWE Friday Night Smackdown results for May 1, 2020. This week’s show featured the rare occurrence of champions being pinned in a non-title match, as well as two Money in the Bank qualifiers, Daniel Bryan vs. King Corbin, and more. Make sure you’re here tomorrow for the complete Best and Worst of Friday Night Smackdown column.
WWE Friday Night Smackdown Results:
1. Daniel Bryan defeated King Corbin. Before the match, Bryan cut a passionate promo about being hungry and wanting to win Money in the Bank. Bryan defeated Corbin by disqualification when Corbin hit him with a ladder. After the match, Bryan briefly got the Yes Lock on Corbin, but Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro attacked and tossed Bryan into a pile of ladders.
– Bray Wyatt interrupted Braun Strowman with a Firefly Funhouse about black sheep.
2. Sheamus defeated Leon Ruff with a Brogue Kick. Sheamus wasn’t impressed with the latest Jeff Hardy video, and said he’ll be here when Hardy returns to Smackdown next week.
3. Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Carmella defeated Mandy Rose with a superkick after a long promo distraction from Sonya Deville. After the match, Sonya attacked and screamed at Mandy.
4. The Forgotten Sons defeated New Day with help from Jaxson Ryker. Miz and Morrison were on commentary. The Forgotten Sons have pinned the Smackdown Tag Team Champions!
– A Tamina interview was cut short by Sasha Banks and an attack from Bayley. Lacey Evans made the save. Next week it’ll be Tamina and Evans vs. Banks and Bayley.
5. Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Otis defeated Dolph Ziggler. Otis hit the Caterpillar on Ziggler to win the match.