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Very little has gone right for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2021-22 NBA season, including injury-related issues and a disappointing win-loss performance. Still, the Lakers are alive in the postseason race, and Los Angeles got a bit of good news on Tuesday evening. During what was a dismal first half for the Lakers in a nationally televised game against Dallas, Chris Haynes of TNT and Yahoo Sports reported that star big man Anthony Davis is aiming to return on Friday when the Lakers take on the New Orleans Pelicans.

As Haynes notes, LeBron James missed Tuesday’s game with an ankle issue, and indicates that James will miss Thursday’s game as well. Still, there seems to be optimism that he’ll be back in the near future, and Haynes cites sources in saying Davis, barring setbacks, is targeting Friday against New Orleans or Sunday against Denver. Within the same report, however, Haynes does indicate that Kendrick Nunn, who has not appeared all season, is not likely to debut for Los Angeles before the end of the regular season.

Davis has appeared in only 37 of 75 games for the Lakers this season, and he hasn’t appeared since suffering an injury on Feb. 16. Despite a dismal 18.2 percent three-point shooting clip in a small sample, Davis is averaging 23.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game and, at the very least, he would bring a desperately needed infusion of high-end talent for the Lakers. Though he may not be 100 percent upon arrival, any lingering optimism for the Lakers is tied to the hopes that James and Davis can overcome the rest of the organizational drawbacks when the bright lights come on in the playoffs, and this is a step toward that potential.

This past October marked one year since Wizkid released his fourth album Made In Lagos. While the world was barred from enjoying the project in an outdoor setting, which tends to be appropriate for an afrobeats project, Made In Lagos grew to be Wizkid’s most popular release yet. It was spearheaded by the success of “Essence,” which features Tems and became a song of the summer entry in 2021 as it was later remixed by Justin Bieber. Despite bit being a bit removed from the release of Made In Lagos, Wizkid is back with a new music video for a fan favorite from the project.

At long last, Wizkid shares the video for “True Love,” which features Tay Iwar and Projexx. The new visual includes an appearance from Jamaican-Canadian model and vitiligo awareness spokeswoman Winnie Harlow. In it, Wizkid takes center stage in a gladiator-like stadium as a group of women dance around him. Soon, Harlow joins him and they intimately dance and cozy up beside each other for the remainder of the visual.

Wizkid released the video for “True Love” a few months after landing a pair of nominations for the upcoming Grammy awards. He was selected in the Best Global Music category with Made In Lagos and the Best Global Music Performance category with “Essence.”

You can watch the video for “True Love” above.

Is there anything better than jamming out to some of your favorite songs in Beat Saber? The VR rhythm game that features players slashing away at floating blocks is one of the best games in the always growing VR landscape. Beat Saber is so popular that some of the biggest musical artists in the world such as Lady Gaga and Billie Eilish have collaborated with the game to get music packs of their own in the game.

On Tuesday, we saw another example of a major collaboration happening with world famous band Fall Out Boy adding a music pack of their own to Beat Saber. Some of the songs include hits like “Centuries” and “Irresistible” among others.

Pete Wentz was excited about the band’s collaboration with Beat Saber saying in a statement, “Our shows are flat out filled with pyro – it’s rock n roll.” said Wentz. “That’s why our first VR collab had to have a TON of it… this will be the biggest rock show that Beat Saber has ever seen. Turn it up!”

One of the best parts of playing Beat Saber is how energetic it can feel jamming out to music while hitting each block. Fall Out Boy is perfect for a game like this thanks to how uptempo some of their music can be. We can’t wait to start jamming out when the music pack drops on March 31.

Harry Styles has quite a busy schedule ahead of him. He recently announced that his third album Harry’s House will arrive towards the end of May. It’ll be his first full-length project since late 2019’s Fine Line. The project received Grammy nominations in the Foreign Pop/Rock Album or Soundtrack of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album categories. “Watermelon Sugar” and “Adore You” were also nominated for Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Music Video respectively, with the former winning. Harry is hoping for similar success this time around with Harry’s House, and it appears that it’ll require him to let go of some prior obligations.

According to The New Yorker and Billboard, Harry has dropped out of his role in the remake of the 1992 silent film Nosferatu. His last-minute exit from the film was reportedly due to a scheduling conflict. His appearance in the classic gothic horror would’ve made for his fifth acting role following 2017’s Dunkirk, 2021’s Eternals, and this year’s upcoming films Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman. Harry’s appearance in Nosferatu also would’ve made for his second role in a horror film.

In other news, Harry recently announced the release date for his first single off Harry’s House. “As It Was” will arrive on April 1, less than two months before Harry’s House drops on May 20. Elsewhere, Harry styles will also take the stage as a headlining act at this year’s Coachella Festival.

Harry’s House is out 5/20 via Columbia Records. Pre-save it here.

Zoe Kravitz speaks her mind. When Hulu cancelled her adaptation of Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity after only one season, she shaded the streamer for its dearth of “shows starring women of color.” Now she’s using deep, angry sarcasm to weigh in on Will Smith’s instantly infamous slap of presenter Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.

To recap: Late in Sunday’s telecast — not long before Smith won an Oscar for King Richard — Rock, who was presenting the trophy for Best Picture, made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head. Her husband, who was initially seen laughing at the joke, suddenly stormed the stage and struck Rock across the face. Smith then screamed profanities at Rock, who struggled to get things back on track. (Smith’s antic also overshadowed the trophy’s winner, Summer of Soul, co-directed by fellow native Philadelphian Questlove.)

In the immediate wake of the incident, people were confused. But in the two days since, the tide appears to have turned definitively against Smith. Smith issued a formal apology (while Pinkett Smith released a cryptic statement), while everyone from 50 Cent to Jimmy Kimmel have weighed in, taking Rock’s side. Kravitz joined them.

Over two separate Instagram posts, the The Batman actress shared what seemed to be innocuous photos of her Oscar and after party gowns…only to reveal it was really about Smith’s behavior. “here’s a picture of my dress at the show where we are apparently assaulting people on stage now,” she wrote in one. The other was almost the same. “and here is a picture of my dress at the party after the award show -where we are apparently screaming profanities and assaulting people on stage now.”

Sure enough, people found footage of Kravitz not standing up when Smith won not long after striking Rock.

Rock refused to press charges against Smith, but others feel some action must be taken. Jim Carrey said Rock should sue Smith, while Joe Rogan claimed what Smith did sets a dangerous precedent for people reacting to comedians making jokes about other people. Smith, apology excepted, has been largely laying low, perhaps reflecting about how he’s spent decades immaculately polishing a brilliant career, which he may have torpedoed in about 30 seconds.

The Umbrella Academy’s most recent season ended in late July of 2020, and later that year something big happened to one of its main stars: Elliot Page came out as transgender. At the time, it wasn’t clear what would happen to his character, superheroic violinist Vanya Hargreeves. But with a few months before the new season begins, we now have an answer: Vanya will become Viktor.

On Tuesday, Page revealed that, like him, his character on Netflix’s take on the Dark Horse comic, will come out as trans. “Meet Viktor Hargreeves,” he posted, alongside a photo of his character sitting at a bar, looking a bit different than before.

Entertainment Weekly confirmed the news, while Netflix welcomed Viktor to the fold.

Since bowing in 2019, The Umbrella Academy has been singled out as one of the genre’s more fun and weirder offerings. When last we saw the team, they had traveled back to the 1960s to save the world from the apocalyptic mishegoss they’d unleashed in Season 1.

Page has been busy the last year-and-a-half, spending a lot of his time battling the growing number of disturbing anti-trans legislation, including the draconian one in Texas that claims trans health care is child abuse. At least there will soon be another strong trans character on one of Netflix’s most popular shows to give trans viewers someone to look up to.

The Umbrella Academy‘s third season hits Netflix on June 22.

(Via EW)

Ever since going live almost two years ago, HBO Max has been on a spinoff craze. Any movie that gets attention winds up getting plundered for more content. There are endless DC shows, including multiple ones about the recent The Batman, including one about Colin Farrell’s the Penguin. Even Dune is getting a show about the Bene Gesserit. Now the streamer is going back to a series that concluded in 2019.

As per Variety, It, the two-film take on one of Stephen King’s most beloved doorstops to the big screen, is getting a prequel series that will air on HBO Max. Entitled Welcome to Derry, it will dive into the backstory of both the Maine town that wound up haunted by Pennywise, a murderous, shape-shifting creature that most often appears as a clown, as well as the origin of Pennywise himself.

Published in 1986, It was King’s 22nd book (and 17th under his own name), as well as one of his longest, running over 1,100 pages. Like many King works, it was adapted for the screen. It was first adapted into a 1990 TV miniseries, and later into an Indian TV show. The film version split the book into two movies. The first, tackling the characters’ younger days, arrived in 2017, and the second, starring the likes of James McAvoy, Bill Hader, and future Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain, in 2019. Both films were very long — Chapter Two ran nearly three hours — but now the franchise will be longer still.

(Via Variety)

We live in a time when the oldest among us grew up without most of the things today’s youth utilize in their daily lives. No computers, no televisions, no internet, no mobile phones (much less smartphones). It’s a completely different world, and that generation gap has only gotten wider the more quickly technology has advanced.

But a generation gap doesn’t have to be a bad thing. In fact, there’s a great deal that people from different generations can learn from one another. And one gentleman from the grandparent generation is using TikTok to celebrate those differences with the most wholesome—and oddly soothing—videos.

Brian Smith was born in the 1940s and the world has changed incredibly since then. Smith acknowledges and marvels at what’s changed, while also asking questions of younger people, while also lulling everyone onto a Zen state with his David Attenborough-like voice.

In one video, he shared how strange it was that he made a phone call on his watch, which used to be used to tell time, while making a video on his phone, which used to be used to make phone calls.

@brian..smith

Making a telephone call #phone #watch #time #tiktok

Then he followed up that video with a full-circle commentary on posting that video on TikTok, which is the sound that clocks and watches used to make. Delightful.

@brian..smith

Reply to @dylancostley #watch #phone #time #tiktok

Smith often responds to the comments on his videos, such as when someone called him “W human.” Just watch. Seriously wholesome.

@brian..smith

Reply to @2_millimeter_defeater_ #generations #language #youth

Frequently, Smith will pose questions to his young audience, asking them about how they use technology.

@brian..smith

Reply to @fnatma Does text have a future? #communication #text #video

His sincere curiosity and desire to learn about the sociological differences between generations is inspiring.

@brian..smith

Do you use email? #asktiktok

@brian..smith

Talk to me about usernames #name #username #handles

Definitely David Attenborough vibes, with some Bob Ross and Fred Rogers thrown in for good measure.

The gentleman even has an epic model train setup, because of course he does.

@brian..smith

Model railway #model #railway #underground #tube

Smith shares snippets of history and also weighs in on current events. He has a special interest in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine because he made a Russian friend online a while back and learned to speak Russian as a result.

He shared his concerns many times in the months leading up to the invasion.

@brian..smith

William Hague in today’s Times newspaper #politics

And he’s spoken out for peace along with most of the world.

@brian..smith

Reply to @green4x Peace in Ukraine #мир #peace #ukraine #украина #україна

But the generational commentary Smith shares is the best. It’s great to see someone of the older generation embracing technology, remaining curious and keeping an open mind. He loves to learn and it’s so fun to see him with one foot in his own generation and one in, as he says, “Generation Zed.”

@brian..smith

Reply to @bmcdeez #change #history #technology

Seriously, Brian Smith. Be more lovable.

@brian..smith

I do love TikTok #fun #barber #fleetstreet

Follow @brian..smith on TikTok.

The price of insulin has skyrocketed over the past decade. In fact, per-person spending on insulin, for those with employer-paid health insurance, doubled between 2012 and 2016. Today, the average list price for a vial of insulin for people without health insurance is $300 and some people need six per month. For those with insurance, the cost of the copay can vary from $30 to $50 per vial (though that could be much higher for people on a high-deductible health plan).

In Canada, a vial of insulin costs $37.99.

More than 8 million Americans with diabetes depend on insulin to survive. The high cost of the drug has forced one in every four people with diabetes to ration or skip doses.

The factors involved in drug pricing can be complicated but it’s pretty clear that the cost of insulin is on the rise because pharmaceutical companies are able to charge what they like. America has very relaxed policies on drug pricing, compared to the rest of the world, so companies take full advantage. “They are doing it because they can,” Jing Luo, a researcher at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told Vox, “and it’s scary because it happens in all kinds of different drugs and drug classes.”

The cost of insulin has put such a strain on American families that the Biden administration placed a $35 cap on the drug in its Build Back Better bill. However, that bill is currently on hold in the Senate.

The inventors of insulin sold the patent for just $1 so it would be available to all.nn97 years later, Americans are dying because drugmakers like Eli Lilly charge $300 for a vial of insulin. Tomorrow I will be joining diabetics to buy insulin in Canada for one-tenth the price.pic.twitter.com/QbvLnr91Wt

— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders)
1564253700

The good news is that for some Americans with diabetes, relief from high insulin prices may soon be in sight.

Earlier this month, Civica Rx, a nonprofit generic drug maker backed by hospitals, insurers and philanthropies, announced that it plans to manufacture and sell insulin for a maximum of $30 a vial. The company hopes the drug will be available at pharmacies as early as 2024. Before it makes it to market it must be approved by the FDA and Civica Rx has to finish constructing its 140,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Virginia.

The company predicts its products could make up around 30% of the U.S. insulin market.

“That’s actually a fairly fast development time for a product like this,” said Civica’s Allan Coukell. “For Civica as a nonprofit, we’re going to manufacture these insulins and sell them for close for what it costs us to make them – without any huge markup.”

The company says there’s also a plan to prevent any retail markups.

“We’ll actually have a transparent pricing policy where we say nobody should pay more than—for example, for a vial, $30—at the pharmacy counter. And we’re going to say that right on the vial: ‘this is the maximum price anybody should pay’ so that there’s no downstream markups that unfairly target the consumer,” Coukell said.

It’s obscene that in the richest country in the world people are getting gouged for a product they need to stay alive. The price of insulin is a life-or-death issue and Civica Rx should be commended for stepping up and doing the work to help people struggling with diabetes while we wait for the government to act.

When I was a kid growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, on school picture day you posed in front of a backdrop that resembled something you’d see in a Sears portrait studio. But these days a lot of school photographers pose children in front of green screens so their parents can choose a background later.

The process is called “chroma keying” and it’s used for dropping digital effects into movies. The problem is that if you wear green in front of the screen, part of you will disappear when the new background is added.

Sugar Grove Elementary in Indianapolis, Indiana ran into some serious problems earlier this month after it decided to have picture day on St. Patrick’s Day. The school had scheduled its spring photos twice but the dates were changed due to inclement weather.

A few days after the photo shoot, parents got a real shock when the photo proofs arrived and their kids were partially invisable in the photos. They had floating, disembodied heads, and their clothing seemed to blend into the background of the shots.

Amanda Snow, the mother of a kindergartner at the school, thought the proofs of her son were hilarious so she posted them in a local mothers’ group asking if anyone else had the same issue.

“Honestly, I just couldn’t wait to see other parents’ pictures, and it ended up being a hilarious fiasco. Just because it’s so funny,” Snow said. After Snow’s post, the photos began pouring in.

A girl became one with a flower bed. One young boy blended into the fence near a pasture. Another boy was cut in half by a dirt road. After the photos were sent to parents, the school’s principal sent a message home saying, “Don’t worry, the photography studio can fix this in post-production.”

Snow’s son was understandably confused by the photos.

“It was kind of hard to explain to him what was happening because he’s 6, but as soon as he saw all the different options, he was just laughing because it looks like he’s a fence or looks like he’s a field,” Snow said. “So he thought it was really funny.”

The photos came with a warning from Inter-State Studio, the company that took the photos.

“The image is not the final product because it gets fixed in post-production,” the company said. “We appreciate the opportunity to respond to this specific instance. Everyone has had such a good sense of humor about this!”

The photos have been so memorable that Snow wants to keep the original proofs. “I might reach out to the company and see if I can get the unedited ones because honestly they’ve brought me so much joy and laughter over the last days,” Snow told WKYC.

The botched photo shoot goes to show that sometimes doing things the old-fashioned way is the right way to go. Let’s hope that the next time the school has a photo shoot on St. Patrick’s Day they remind families to send their kids with an extra set of clothes.