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Details on the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago are starting to fall into place. According to a senior Justice Department official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, a confidential source not only told the Bureau which classified documents Donald Trump was allegedly still hiding, but exactly where the former president was keeping them. With that information in play, plans were made to search Mar-a-Lago while Trump was gone to avoid a political circus. Obviously, that did not work out.

Via Newsweek:

The effort to keep the raid low-key failed: instead, it prompted a furious response from GOP leaders and Trump supporters. “What a spectacular backfire,” says the Justice official.

“I know that there is much speculation out there that this is political persecution, but it is really the best and the worst of the bureaucracy in action,” the official says. “They wanted to punctuate the fact that this was a routine law enforcement action, stripped of any political overtones, and yet [they] got exactly the opposite.”

According to additional sources, plans for the search were made weeks ago and had no political motive. The FBI’s goal was “recovering highly classified documents that were illegally removed from the White House.” However, this is Donald Trump we’re talking about it, so there’s no way any of this was going to happen quietly.

“They were seeking to avoid any media circus,” a senior intelligence official told Newsweek. “So even though everything made sense bureaucratically and the FBI feared that the documents might be destroyed, they also created the very firestorm they sought to avoid, in ignoring the fallout.”

(Via Newsweek)

For much of her life, singer and actress Halle Bailey has worked creatively alongside her older sister Chlöe. From making YouTube videos, to getting signed to Beyoncé’s Parkwood Entertainment label as Chloe x Halle, to acting on Freeform’s hit TV series, Grown-ish, the two have been a dynamic duo.

Over the past two years, the two have embarked on separate endeavors. They are both working on solo music and movies of their own. In 2019, Halle was announced to play Ariel in the live adaptation of Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Production was often delayed, but took place during late 2020 and early into 2021. When the film wrapped last summer, Halle immediately went to film her parts for a remake of The Color Purple, in which she will play Nettie.

The Color Purple contains darker themes than The Little Mermaid, however, Halle revealed to Variety that while filming The Color Purple, she drew from the pain of being in London filming The Little Mermaid, and not being able to see Chlöe, who was in the US for much of that time.

“She couldn’t visit me; everything was on lockdown,” Halle said, “and it was that agony, that pain of being pulled away from something that’s like your arm, so I was pulling from that.”

The Little Mermaid will arrive to theaters on May 23, 2023 and The Color Purple will premiere on December 20, 2023.

After Republicans in the Senate tanked the Honor Our PACT Act, which would provide necessary and long overdue healthcare to veterans exposed to toxic burn pits, Jon Stewart immediately went to work relentlessly hounding them for nuking the bill. Reportedly, Senator Pat Toomey convinced his GOP colleagues to vote against the bill in retaliation for Democrats moving ahead with President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better legislation, and Stewart was not having it. He took the fight to the Capitol steps before going on a whirlwind and righteously profane media tour across CNN, Newsmax, and even Jack Posobiec’s Twitter account.

Here’s the thing: Stewart’s relentless crusade worked. Less than a week later, Republicans in the Senate backtracked and the bill passed through with an 86-11 vote. During a signing for the bill on Wednesday, Biden took a moment to praise Stewart for his efforts. Via Deadline:

“What you have done Jon matters, and you know it does. You should know it really, really matters. You refused to let anybody forget, you refused to let them forget, and we owe you big man, we owe you big,” Biden said.

Stewart, who was present for the East Room ceremony, was given a standing ovation.

During the emotional ceremony, Biden brought up his personal connection to the burn pit issue: The loss of his son, Beau, who died of brain cancer from his time in service. Biden sat his grandson next to the daughter of an Ohio veteran who died of lung cancer from being exposed to the toxic pits.

“His daddy lost to the same burn pits, and he knows what you are going through,” Biden said. “But guess what? You are going to do this, and you are going to be really, really strong.”

(Via Deadline)

Earlier this month, it was revealed that HBO would be shelving the long-awaited Batgirl movie, which left many DC fans scrambling to understand where exactly the superhero giant is headed. After a series of misses (sorry, Morbius) it’s unclear what the future of DC will be, which includes the upcoming Ezra Miller-led movie The Flash. Shockingly, that movie seems to be going on as planned!

Miller has been in various amounts of legal trouble this year, which began with them being arrested in Hawaii, getting accused of holding a family captive on a remote farm in Vermont, allegedly grooming multiple minors, and most recently being charged with burglary. And yet somehow, against all odds, Miller has been reportedly filming scenes for The Flash all summer.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Miller has been working on reshoots of The Flash over the last few months before being arrested last week. DC has not given any indication that the movie will not be moving forward, and has not reported any incidents on the set by Miller. In fact, advanced screenings of the superhero movie have been “testing well.” The movie is slated for a June 2023 release.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav seems to be optimistic about the upcoming roster of movies, which includes The Rock’s Black Adam, the upcoming Aquaman sequel, and The Flash. Zaslav says “We’ve seen [the movies]. We think they are terrific, and we think we can make them even better.” Zaslav says that the company has “done a reset” and now has a 10-year plan for DC. “We are going to focus on quality. We are not going to release any film before it’s ready,” he added. “DC is something we can make better.”

It seems like their way of “making something better” is to cancel one highly-anticipated movie in favor of another movie led by a very controversial public figure. Whatever works!

Miller was last reported to be MIA when they missed a court date in July, though it seems like they’ve just been hiding in plain sight the whole time, probably dressed as The Flash.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

We all fall back on frozen pizza from time to time. There’s the price and expediency of it all. Popping a $5 pie in the oven from the freezer and then digging in 20 minutes later has its perks. Then there’s the nostalgia factor. We all have that one brand we’ll defend to the death — mine is Red Baron (Classic Crust Supreme).

With the benefit of reaching full adulthood and not coming home drunk after a keg party, I think we can agree that frozen pizzas aren’t that great (even the “good” ones). This thanks to cardboard crusts, plasticky cheese, too-sweet sauces, and mediocre toppings (at best).

That being said, what if we treat frozen pizza not as an end unto itself but as merely a jumping off point? You might find that frozen pizzas become massively better with just a little “somethin’ extra” on your end. That’s why today, we’re pulling in some famous internet hacks to help you make your next frozen pizza endeavor the best one yet.

Below, we’re trying eight of the most popular frozen pizza hacks from around the internet. Of course, we did have to do some narrowing. The vast majority of the “hacks” on the internet and on social media were just some variation of “top it yourself” with good stuff, which is kinda… no shit! Really? Yes, folks, you can put whatever you want on your frozen pizza to make it better. There’s no secret frozen pizza police that’ll burst through the wall and arrest you for subverting the will of the fine folks at Tombstone.

Point being, we’ve streamlined all the different brilliant “add toppings” advice posts into a single composite entry, in order to focus more energy on the methods that actually can elevate your frozen pie in ways you might conceivably not have thought of before.

As for the testing of the hacks, I’ll be using the same pizza (our favorite brand from a previous tasting, Screamin’ Sicilian Bessie’s Revenge Cheese) for all eight with one for control and a final combo hack. All are baked and served according to the box’s instructions, unless the hack dictates otherwise. I’ve cut two pies into eight pieces to save on food waste. I’m also using a standard electric oven without a pizza stone (side note, you should get a pizza stone — that’s the real hack). All told, you should be able to replicate all of this at home in any oven — just make sure your oven is preheated properly before starting to bake your pie.

The Control Pizza

The Method:

This was prepared strictly according to the box directions. 425 for 16 minutes with a five-ish minute rest before serving.

Tasting Notes:

This is fine. It’s frozen pizza, with a decent yet soft crust and cheese vibe. It’s not mind-blowing — or anything near delivery/take out — but it has its charms. I’d say overall, it’s very edible, the crust has an okay crunch (but not much really), and the cheese and sauce are balanced but slightly bland.

Bottom Line:

“Fine” is the keyword here. This is satisfying overall but nothing to get excited over.

The Hacks

8. Poke Holes In Crust

The Method:

This hack asks you to take a knife and poke holes into the frozen pie. The idea is that you’ll create space for hot air to travel through the pie and bake it more thoroughly. Otherwise, the time and temperature from the baking instructions were the same.

Tasting Notes:

Honestly, I didn’t notice much difference here. The pie was cooked through but it couldn’t really find any variation from the control pie.

Bottom Line:

You can skip this one.

7. High Temperature/Shorter Time

The Method:

This is probably the easiest but most finicky hack. Fresh pizza is usually cooked at a high temp for a short time. The pizza ovens in Naples are usually around 700 to 800 degrees and cook a pie in 90 seconds. Obviously, that’s using fresh ingredients to begin with (as opposed to frozen) and your home oven likely doesn’t go up to that temperature anyway.

Still, you should be able to get your oven up to 500F without much trouble. That temperature will cut your bake time from around 16 minutes (at 400 or 425) to nine/10 minutes. The thing is, you’ll need to keep an eye on your pie to know when it’s done (which is sort of contrary to the ease of a frozen pizza, but whatever) — look for melted cheese and a browning crust on the edges.

Tasting Notes:

Overall, this is more “set” as a pizza. It’s a little less gooey, with a crunchier crust, but the cheese isn’t that much different honestly.

Bottom Line:

Was this that much better? I don’t know. Maybe by a hair. The biggest advantage was it took closer to 10 minutes instead of 16. Overall, this gets a big shrug from me as a hack.

6. Top It Yourself Before Baking

The Method:

This is the “no, duh…” hack of the internet. Adding quality ingredients is going to elevate anything. For this method, I’m adding some better low-moisture mozzarella, a few slices of decent pepperoni, and some black olives. Then I’m baking it according to the box.

You can literally add anything else. Grilled sausage and bell peppers? Go for it! Jalapeños and pineapple? Yup!! Anchovy and capers? Absolutely!!! Okay, you get the point. Be creative and you do you.

Tasting Notes:

This is a bit better. This still has a “fine” crunch and doughiness to the crust while carrying much bolder flavors up top. The cheese and salami melt together nicely to create a classic vibe. The olive is hot and adds that earthy umami counterpoint that you either love or hate.

Bottom Line:

This hack is one of the best because it can be anything. Almost any pizza can be made better by adding your own, high-quality toppings. Plus, this is best done with a plain cheese frozen pizza, which is the cheapest on the shelf from any brand. But! The actual pizza below those toppings is still pretty basic and not really elevated at all.

5. Garlic Butter Crust

The Method:

This is kind of in the same bracket as “top it with better stuff.” That said, this is really about elevating the crust specifically with better, deeper flavors. In this case, you need to make a simple garlic butter (or buy some from the bread aisle at your grocery store) and brush it around the crust before you bake it.

In this case, I’ve baked it according to the box and on the cookie sheet (to save the butter and garlic melting/burning all over the oven).

Tasting Notes:

This is better. The crust takes on the fat from the butter and gets both crispier on the edges while softer in the middle of the bread/crumb. The garlic amps up the overall flavor nicely while the butter adds a lush dimension to the pie that’s very much welcome.

Bottom Line:

This is a good hack that both elevates the medium and the flavor profile. I will say that this should be added to the “top it better” hack though because if you’re not doing this while adding better pepperoni or cheese, then you’re missing out big time.

4. Top It After Baking

The Method:

Topping your pie after it comes out of the oven is a totally different beast than topping before. Topping a pizza post-bake is all about lighter ingredients like fresh basil, Parmesan, fresh arugula, olive or chili oil, and maybe even some prosciutto or walnuts.

In this case, I’m going old-school Neapolitan and keeping it simple with fresh basil, good olive oil, freshly grated parm, a few slices of prosciutto, and some big flakes of finishing salt. All of this is on a pie cooked according to the box’s specs.

Tasting Notes:

This is a strong contender. The addition of fresh ingredients after the bake takes center stage on the palate. The pie is fine underneath but becomes secondary to the big flavor notes from the almost peppery basil, salty cheese and ham, and the earthiness of the oil.

Bottom Line:

This isn’t a Neapolitan pie by any stretch but it’s still a massive elevation for a frozen pizza. And, I’d argue, a better one than adding toppings before baking. It’s just fresher and brighter.

3. Defrost Before Baking

The Method:

This is the most time-consuming but very rewarding. By defrosting, you’re essentially working with a fresh pizza that can cook faster and more thoroughly at a higher temperature.

In this case, I’m baking the pie on a sheet at 500F for about seven minutes since fresh pizzas are always cooked at a very high temp (as mentioned above).

Tasting Notes:

This is really a lot better. The crust feels more like a real crust with a nice chew and crisp exterior. The cheese is properly melted and has a lot less of that plasticky aftertaste. It feels like the sauce is better too but that could just be me projecting.

Bottom Line:

Overall, this is miles better than just throwing a hard, frozen pie into the oven. That said, it takes a long time to defrost a pie, over an hour. That might be a deal breaker for some. My recommendation is to put a pie in your fridge in the morning before you leave for work and it should be defrosted by the time you come home (or very nearly) — or use a microwave.

2. Olive Oil In A Baking Pan

The Method:

This hack asks that you both bake the pie in an oven-pre-heated pan and add a ton of olive oil to crisp everything up. So, I’ve put the pie into a pan that has a thin layer of olive oil in it. I drizzled more olive oil over the crust and then baked the pie according to the box’s instructions.

Tasting Notes:

This worked really well. The crust was 100% elevated, both in texture and flavor. The base of the pizza (under the toppings) was also more of a solid, almost cracker than a soggy listless shrug. This had the best crust.

Bottom Line:

This is a good and easy hack to make your pizza far better structurally, and tastier. The only downside is that you have an oily pan to clean at the end, which is a far cry from pulling a pie from a rack.

1. Bake Directly On The Rack

The Method:

Most pies will have you baking a pizza on a cardboard cutout, piece of baking paper, or on a cookie sheet of some sort. There’s a lot of chatter out there that you should be avoiding doing that. This hack calls for you to cook the pizza directly on the oven rack, to allow for the heat to directly encompass the pie while it bakes.

For this one, I’m cooking the pie on the rack according to the box’s instructions.

Tasting Notes:

This is way better. The pizza is more evenly cooked with the cheese meltier with a truly crispy cheesy edge. The crust is more set and properly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. The overall slice is way less droopy too — there’s just better form with a great crust.

Bottom Line:

This is the easiest improvement you can make to a frozen pizza. Simply bake it on the rack, folks!

Final Thoughts: The Combo Hack

The Method:

Here’s the ultimate hack, folks. A defrosted pie on the rack (with parchment paper). Add some sharp cheddar or extra mozz to the toppings and maybe some grilled onions and peppers. Bake according to the box’s instructions (425F for 16 minutes). Let rest for three minutes. Add fresh basil, parm, and prosciutto with a crack of black pep and a flake or two of good salt, and then hit with a good drizzle of olive oil around the crust (don’t be shy).

Optional, squirt a touch of fresh lemon juice over the pie to add acid and brighten the whole thing up (it’s a very Southern Italian tactic).

Tasting Notes:

This is it. The combination of extra (fresh and light) toppings that are baked into the pie with extra cheese helps to create a more robust base without overstuffing the pizza at a foundational level. The real elevation here is adding all the extra fat, salt, acid, and sweetness at the end with that basil, ham, olive oil, and seasoning.

Bottom Line:

This is a perfect bite… of frozen pizza. Yes, it’s still frozen pizza. You’re not going to trick anyone into thinking it’s delivery. But this is about as good as it gets.

The best part? You can mix this up as you see fit. If you have some good and peppery arugula, use that instead of basil. Leftover broccoli and gorgonzola? Put that on before baking! You get the point. Have fun with it.

In the end, the point is that the combo of defrosted, on the rack (or in a pan), lightly topped before baking, heavily topped and oiled after baking, and seasoned at the end is the ultimate frozen pizza hack. You’re welcome.

Trevor Noah is in shock that the FBI raided Mar-a-Lago, and kicked off Tuesday’s episode of The Daily Show saying as much. After calling the news “bigger than when the Feds investigated Bill Clinton for doing mouth stuff with that saxophone,” Noah made it clear that he wasn’t surprised that Donald Trump would commit a criminal act — he’s just sort of taken aback by how much time he is able to dedicate to so many different crimes.

As Noah went on to explain, the FBI’s swoop is totally separate from all the other wrongdoings the former president is currently embroiled in. “By the way, this raid — just so you know — has nothing to do with January 6th or tax fraud or giving the White House plumber PTSD,” Noah explained, then went on to marvel at the sheer prolificacy of his shenanigans:

Apparently, this investigation is about Trump taking classified documents from the White House. And honestly, I’m amazed that Trump has time for all of this crime. Like, at any moment — at any moment — Trump’s got a crime that he’s covering up, he’s got a crime that he’s doing now, he’s got a crime that he’s plotting for the future. He’s like the Steve Harvey, but of crimes, you know?

Every day, I’m like: Does he have the same hours in the day as me? He gets so much done!

Noah also reminded viewers that this isn’t the first time the Feds have paid a visit to Trump’s Palm Beach golf club. Earlier this year, they traveled to Florida in order to “take back 15 boxes of documents Trump wasn’t supposed to have. But apparently, they think there’s more hidden on the property. And I believe that.” Why? Because, as Noah explained, “Trump’s not going to keep records in a filing cabinet like a normal person. This is the same dude who buried his ex-wife on a golf course!”

And while Noah admitted that the move was indeed unprecedented, as no former president’s home has ever been raided in American history. He also pointed out that “Donald Trump has never happened in American history.” Which is something we can all be thankful for.

You can watch the full clip above.

For weeks now, the Boston Celtics have been linked as a suitor to acquire Kevin Durant, with star wing Jaylen Brown spearheading a return for the Brooklyn Nets. On Monday, The Athletic’s Shams Charania identified Boston, Toronto, and Miami as ” the most significant candidates” for Durant.

According to Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe, though, Brooklyn initially “tried to pry” both Brown and Jayson Tatum in a trade for Durant.

“That deal went nowhere, of course,” Himmelsbach wrote.

The Nets angling to snag both All-Star wings from Boston feels like prime posturing. There is simply no way the Celtics would ever entertain such a deal, nor could Brooklyn even expect to make headway on that proposal. It seems like a starting point for negotiations from which to work and hope to find a middle ground satisfying each party. Boston isn’t trading Tatum on his own for Durant, let alone him and his co-star, regardless of how extremely gifted Durant remains at NBA basketball 15 years into his career.

“The source confirmed recent reports that Brooklyn later shifted its focus to a potential deal centered on Brown, Marcus Smart, and a massive haul of future first-round draft picks,” Himmelsbach continued. “But the Celtics were not interested.

“As of this week, when Durant reportedly reiterated his desire to be traded during a meeting with team owner Joe Tsai, the Celtics and Nets were not close to a deal.”

There’s been considerable noise linking Brooklyn and Boston the past few weeks. All these reports feel like a form of negotiating from the two sides. It’d hardly be surprising at this point to see Durant donning Celtics green and white next season, given all the smoke surrounding a potential trade sending him to Boston. But yeah, Tatum and Brown was never going to happen.

With Post Malone’s Runaway Tour documentary, Runaway, set to premiere on Friday on Freevee, an exclusive clip of the film has dropped on YouTube to promote its release. In the clip, Post meets rock idol Ozzy Osbourne for the first time after securing a feature from Ozzy on his third studio album, Hollywood’s Bleeding. Although Osbourne appeared on the single “Take What You Want,” the two didn’t actually meet until Post’s Los Angeles tour stop at The Forum, where Ozzy made a surprise appearance, delighting fans as he emerged sitting on a throne to sing the song’s intro.

In the Runaway clip above, it is a few hours before that moment, when the two performers are introduced for the first time. “Good to see you,” Post says. “How are you? You look great. You excited? You ready to party?” Ozzy cackles a bit in return, obviously amused at the thought of the standout performance to come. The clip picks up after the performance with Post admitting, “I was nervous meeting him. Not as much performing, but meeting him is terrifying because what the f*ck do you say to Ozzy Osbourne, ‘I like your pants?’ I don’t know. You have no idea what the fuck to say to him.”

You can check out the clip above and catch Runaway in full on Freevee on 8/12.

Rosalía had a hit with her album from earlier this year, Motomami: It was her second No. 1 album in her native Spain and her first to crack the Billboard 200 here in the US. Already, though, she’s moving on from the LP, as last month yielded her first post-Motomami single, “Despechá.”

She’s not done with that song yet, as she dropped a new video for it today. The clip was filmed on location on the Spanish island of Mallorca and it’s a slice-of-life look at a day at the beach, complete with sunbathing, dancing, games, and smiles galore.

Rosalía previously said of the song, “There are many ways to be Despechá, in this theme it is from the freeness or the craziness, moving without reservations or regrets,” she said. “This is the place from where I make music, from where I did it when I first started and where I will continue to until God says so. I’m grateful for having been able to travel in recent years and have learned from music from other places including the DR, where artists like Fefita La Grande, Juan Luis Guerra and Omega have inspired me and without them this song would not exist.”

Watch the “Despechá” video above.

Everyone wants another taste of those famous Casa Bonita sopapillas.

That’s the ongoing vibe from fans who are clamoring in the wake of last year’s news from South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who decided to resurrect one of the eatertainment venue’s locations in the Denver, Colorado area. They even declared that they’d do so with good food (from a chef and everything), which means that it wouldn’t actually be like the O.G. Casa Bonita but maybe like another company packaged inside of a gaudy pink castle?

In a display of devotion, Parker even bought a house close to the soon-to-be-resurrected Casa Bonita (on South Park avenue), but construction is proving to be a challenge. The restaurant’s beloved fountain had to be demolished in the interest of safety, and Parker and Stone realized that they were living a bit of a “nightmare” in that a childhood-sourcing dream was proving to be a major stressor. The pair told The Denver Post how their dream of doing something “cool” with the iconic location turned into putting “all our money” into something that they “hope” will create many more wonderful memories.

Parker added that “[w]e absolutely should bail and stop spending money, but we’re committed now.” And as it turns out, the location’s Instagram page surfaced last fall with an “under new management” post, and that’s where fans are now congregating to communicate their impatience.

Now, every time the account posts, whether it has to do with snow or a charity event people are piling on the interrogations. Here’s a mere sampling of comments:

“Ok, great, is Casa Bonita ever going to re-open?????”

“When is opening day!! I need some Casa Bonita!”

“When can I make reservations??”

“Are you open now?”

“GOOD LORD! Open already!”

“I’m so excited, I’ll be there the second it re-opens.”

“People are so impatient and expect casa Bonita to improve from before holy sh*t.”

There’s no projected opening date as of yet, but rest assured that Parker and Stone are as ready to communicate progress as people are to hear about it. Because even though the food of the original restaurant chain sucked, those sopapillas ruled.

(Via The Denver Post)