Sam Rubin, an indelible figure in the world of entertainment journalism for decades, has died at the age of 64.
Rubin’s death was announced by KTLA, where he had worked since 1991, on Friday, May 10.
“KTLA 5 is profoundly saddened to report the death of Sam Rubin,” the network wrote via X. “Sam was a giant in the local news industry and the entertainment world, and a fixture of Los Angeles morning television for decades. His laugh, charm and caring personality touched all who knew him.”
The post concluded, “Sam was a loving husband and father: the roles he cherished the most. Our thoughts are with Sam’s family during this difficult time.”
According to TMZ, Rubin suffered a heart attack at his home on Friday morning where he went into full cardiac arrest. He was reportedly rushed via ambulance to UCLA West Valley Medical Center and later pronounced dead.
KTLA’s Frank Buckley went live on air to break the news of Rubin’s death, which he called “shocking” and “hard to comprehend.”
“Our hearts, as you can imagine, are broken,” Buckley said. “Quite simply, Sam was KTLA.”
Sam RubinTommaso Boddi/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Buckley became overwhelmed with emotion in discussing Rubin’s “laugh, his charm, his caring personality.”
Rubin is survived by his wife, Leslie, and four children.
Rubin served as the entertainment reporter for the KTLA Morning News and became known for his red carpet coverage of major awards shows and events, including his hosting duties on Live From the Academy Awards.
After news of his death broke, reactions began pouring in from Rubin’s colleagues and other members of the entertainment community.
“I am numb and shocked at the news of my friend Sam Rubin passing,” actor Greg Grunbergwrote via X. “He cared about everyone that he met and always took the time to smile and ask about family and was the best at what he did. I can’t believe this news. So devastating and sad. Thinking about his beautiful family.”
Jerry O’Connellshared via X, “Sam Rubin was a LEGEND. Rest In Peace KING.”
Bridesmaids director Paul Feig said he was “devastated” by the news.
“I truly loved Sam, who was so supportive of me and the industry in general,” Feig wrote via X. “He was the best. I can’t quite process him being gone. Sending so much love to his family and friends. So sad. RIP Sam. Love you, pal.”
Tess Holliday has managed to put her toxic marriage in the rearview mirror, but she knows she couldn’t have done it alone.
Tess, 38, exclusively spoke to Us Weekly about the difficult dissolution of her relationship with ex-husband Nick Holliday, from whom she split in 2019.
“It was so hard to push through it,” she admitted. “That was such a dark, dark time in my life and there’s parts of it that I don’t even really remember because I was just so focused on getting out of the situation.”
The supermodel — who recently partnered with Natural Cycles and Postpartum Support International to raise awareness about postpartum depression — married her ex-husband in 2015. Tess has full custody of their son, Bowie, 8, and she is also the mother of son Rylee, 18, from a previous relationship.
To help navigate the chaos, Tess turned to a new kind of coping mechanism. “Medical marijuana, man,” she gushed.
“I had never, ever used it before in my life,” she continued. “After I was done breastfeeding a year after giving birth, it allowed me to zone out and get through it a little bit.”
She also sought out the assistance of some professionals who ultimately helped her see the light.
“Therapy helped me immensely,” she said. “I had a postpartum therapist, and the therapist was like, ‘Hey, you know you’re in an abusive relationship, right?’ I was like ‘Oh, my God, I am.’ I was so out of it. It was having the therapist say that to me that snapped me back to reality.”
When it comes to future relationships, Tess vowed “to never do anything that doesn’t align with my heart and soul, and to listen to my gut.”
In accordance with her partnership with Natural Cycles and Postpartum Support International, Tess recorded a PSA as part of their “Is Mommy Okay?” series — which also features videos from Elaine Welteroth, Halle Bailey, Ashley Tisdale and Stephanie Beatriz — in which she gets honest about feeling like a “prisoner” to postpartum depression.
When Tess was asked to advocate for the cause, it was a no-brainer.
“Postpartum was extremely difficult for me,” she acknowledged. “I think for a while I was in denial with how bad my mental health was. Having help really empowered me to take care of myself, and I want that for others.”
Chris Robinson and Kate HudsonVince Bucci/Getty Images
Kate Hudson reminisced about her marriage to Chris Robinson — and shared why the couple ultimately went in “different directions.”
Hudson, 45, discussed her time with the Black Crowes frontman, 57 — who she was married to from 2000 to 2007 — during a Tuesday, May 7, appearance on The Howard Stern Show.
“My relationship with Chris was so beautiful and there was so much love there, but I really did grow out of it, and it was a very hard breakup,” Hudson told Stern, 70. “That was not an easy breakup. I was very in love with him, but it wasn’t going to be the rest of my life.”
Hudson was only 21 when she and Robinson got married. The couple welcomed their first and only child, son Ryder, when Hudson was 24.
“I was like a baby,” Hudson said of that time. “When my life really started to really take off and I wanted to go in different directions, we literally just weren’t in the same space to keep going.”
Hudson called her ex-husband “brilliant” and “really funny,” but acknowledged his desire to live “as a nomad and an artist,” which she said “can be hard for relationships.”
Kate Hudson and Chris RobinsonDave Hogan/MP/Getty Images
Robinson recently opened up about the dissolution of the marriage, as well, telling the Sydney Morning Herald the relationship “was over before our son Ryder was 2 years old.”
“I am not afraid of the realities that befall all of us when things go wrong,” Robinson said in a story published May 2, “and I take a lot of pride in being responsible as a parent.”
Prior to Hudson, Robinson was married to Lala Sloatman from 1996 to 1998. Robinson married second wife Allison Bridges in 2009, and the couple welcomed daughter Cheyenne later that year. The pair divorced in 2018.
Robinson married his fourth wife, Camille Johnson, in January 2020.
Hudson, meanwhile, was engaged to Muse frontman Matt Bellamy from 2011 to 2014. The couple welcomed son Bingham in 2011.
She is currently engaged to music producer Danny Fujikawa, with whom she shares daughter Rani, 5.
Hudson and Fujikawa, 37, are currently figuring out wedding plans. On Tuesday, she told Andy Cohen on SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Livethat the couple wants to tie the knot “soon.”
“I just don’t want to plan a wedding,” Hudson noted. “It’s such a bummer.”
Though Hudson acknowledged, “I want the party. I love a party. That’s the only problem.”
Jason Kelce and Kylie KelceCourtesy of Kylie Kelce/Instagram
Jason Kelce has no interest in a public skewering at the hands of his wife, Kylie Kelce.
After Netflix’s The Roast of Tom Brady aired all of the NFL legend’s dirty laundry for the world to see, Jason, 36, wondered why anybody would subject themselves to such torment.
“It was pure entertainment,” Jason said Wednesday, May 8, on his “New Heights” podcast. “I’m really happy they did it. But I just do not get the roasts. I don’t understand why people do them.”
Jason added, “Maybe I just take myself too seriously.”
The night was a rough one for Brady, 46, who endured jokes about his playing career, his appearance and, perhaps most aggressively, his relationships with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan and ex-wife Gisele Bündchen.
“My family’s ruined. It’s so funny!” Jason joked about what Brady must have been thinking. “Everyone’s laughing, it’s great! We’re all having fun, right?”
Despite his reluctance, Jason and brother Travis Kelce discussed who they’d want to roast them if Netflix ever came calling.
“If I was picking who to roast me, I would pick people that I would have no problem getting into a fistfight with,” Jason explained. “Family members, I mean. Dad can roast me, but I would beat the f–k out of Dad when the camera turns off.”
However, Jason indicated that his invitation wouldn’t extend to all of his family members.
Jason Kelce and Kylie KelceCooper Neill/Getty Images
“The one person I wouldn’t allow on the stage is Kylie,” Jason noted. “She has way too much. I cannot allow that.”
Travis, 34, agreed, saying that Kylie, 32, would “f–kin’ torch you.”
“Every day I’m getting roasted by Kylie,” Jason said. “I don’t need her to go up on stage and do that.”
As for Travis, he had a trio of comedians who he’d like to participate in his hypothetical roast.
“[Andrew] Santino is one of my favorite comedians of all time. I think he would f–king deliver,” Travis said. “Dave Chappelle is the all-time great. Kevin Hart. I would love for Kevin just to go up there and f–kin’ rip me in half.”
While we shouldn’t expect to see Kylie on a roast stage anytime soon, Jason did reveal that he followed through on Travis’ suggestion that he get Kylie a sword to celebrate their six-year wedding anniversary, which the couple celebrated last month.
“We got the sword,” Jason said. “Kylie loves it.”
Jason proudly displayed the gift to his brother, who called it “a nice-ass sword.”
“It’s really not,” Jason countered. “I’ve seen better. It’s not that sharp. But it’s for show. It’s a symbol.”
Still, Travis joked that the sword might lead to a “Robert Durst situation” in which Kylie kills Jason “in the basement with the iron sword.”
“I gotta be honest with you,” Jason said. “If Kylie killed me with a sword, I had it coming to me. No need to punish her.”
ABC News meteorologist Rob Marciano has reportedly been fired after nearly a decade with the network.
According to a Tuesday, April 30, report by Puck News, the Good Morning America weatherman was axed after “multiple staffers had made complaints about Marciano’s behavior over the years.”
The report further indicated that Marciano had been “at least temporarily barred from main GMA set in NYC.”
When reached by Us Weekly, ABC News had no comment. News of Marciano’s firing was confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter.
Rumblings about Marciano’s misconduct began to surface after an insider claimed to Page Six in March that Marciano had done something “improper” with a colleague and was being kept away from the studio.
ABC/Heidi Gutman
“He made people feel uncomfortable,” another source told the outlet. “There was a period where there were some issues, a number of alarming events.”
The second source alleged it was Good Morning America executive producer Simone Swink who made the decision to bar Marciano from the premises.
“She’s no-nonsense and is very serious,” the source said. “She’s focused on the work and wants to keep [her staff] focused and happy. She’s very protective of her team.”
While Marciano had been kept off the Good Morning America airwaves, he was still contributing to other ABC News programs, including World News Tonight.
In September 2023, Marciano celebrated the start of his 10th year with the network, writing via Instagram, “I couldn’t be more pumped to continue this journey with all of you.”
“My thanks to the bosses who listened and made this work-life balance possible,” he continued. “I’m also grateful for an exciting new project with NatGeo that has me exploring some very very cool stuff… more to come!”
Marciano joined ABC News as the network’s senior meteorologist in September 2014. Prior to that, he served as co-anchor on Entertainment Tonight from January 2013 to August 2014 and was a meteorologist and anchor for CNN.
Before going national, Marciano worked at local TV and radio stations including KATU in Portland, Oregon, KPLC in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and WVIT in West Hartford, Connecticut.
Marciano’s estranged wife, Eyrn Marciano — whom he married in 2010 — filed for divorce in June 2021.
“The last couple of years have been very difficult,” Marciano told People in a statement at the time. “I didn’t want this and tried to save the marriage, but we are sadly divorcing. My focus now is on my kids.”
Together, the couple share daughter Madelynn, 12, and son Mason, 5.
Emmanuel Acho has never been one to shy away from an uncomfortable conversation.
In the new book Uncomfortable Conversations With a Jew, the football analyst, 33, collaborates with TheNew York Times best-selling author and activist Noa Tishby on a raw, honest back-and-forth dialogue about the rise of antisemitism and general misunderstandings and mischaracterizations of Jewish history and culture.
For Acho, it represented an opportunity to attempt to cut through the noise of the current media environment.
“I think we’re in a very volatile and, to some degree, senseless place, unfortunately,” Acho exclusively told Us Weekly. “But that’s why if everybody is zigging, try to zag. When everybody’s yelling, try to whisper. I think this conversation that Noa and I are having is hopefully a whisper that people will listen to.”
Acho added, “The current landscape is completely unproductive. It’s people yelling about this, yelling about that. Who the heck is gonna listen?”
For Tishby, 48, Acho was a perfect partner for the bold writing experiment, which asks questions like “Did the Jews kill Jesus?” and includes a chapter called The Math Ain’t Mathing: Jews, Money, and Power.
“I didn’t even know that I was able to dream to have someone like Emmanuel from the Black community, who is such a powerful voice for change and for social justice,” Tishby told Us. “He reached out to me and asked to help our community. It was the quickest yes I’ve ever had.”
Despite bringing the idea for the book to the table, Acho — who is known for his digital series Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man – knew he would be met with backlash.
“I’ve been called a coon, told I was dancing for the white man,” Acho said. “People who don’t necessarily want to listen can be turned off and perturbed by those who do want to listen. I’ve already experienced it. I’m prepared to experience more of it. But ignorance really irks me. I would rather offend someone else than offend my own intellect.”
While the book presented an opportunity for Acho to learn about Jews and their experiences, the process was just as illuminating for Tishby.
“We learned a lot about each other,” she said. “I learned about the Black community through Emmanuel, the Black experience. I thought I already knew, but we’re always learning.”
Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
Tishby added of Acho, “It was very interesting to see someone who is so open, so knowledgeable, so smart, so educated and still be like, ‘Oh, I didn’t realize that.’ That’s the reason to sit down and have these conversations. We don’t do this today. We yell at each other on Instagram or TikTok and then go back to our own cocoon.”
Ultimately, while the subject matter is undeniably heavy and prescient, Acho left the experience feeling hopeful about what the future might hold.
“The purpose of the book was not to convince you, the purpose of the book was to converse with you,” he explained. “That’s incredibly, incredibly encouraging. The book truly made me happy because it reminded me that it’s possible.”
Whoopi Goldberg, Kristi Noem.ABC/Jeff Lipsky ; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Whoopi Goldberg took South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to the doghouse after the shocking revelation that Noem killed her own puppy.
In an excerpt from Noem’s upcoming memoir, she writes about shooting and killing her 14-month-old wirehaired pointer Cricket because she was a “less than worthless” hunting dog — and Goldberg, 68, addressed the stunning admission on the Monday, April 29 episode of The View.
“Give it back, bitch!” Goldberg suggested. “Give it back! How you gonna kill it?”
Goldberg further intimated that Noem, 52, should steer clear of perpetuating violence against another furry four-legged animal.
“She better be careful because if a cat gets a hold of her, cats don’t play that,” Goldberg told the panel. “Cats are like, ‘I’m sorry, are you pointing something at me? Girl, I’ll rearrange everything on your body. You better get away from me.’ Cats don’t play!”
Goldberg’s fellow cohosts were similarly outraged by Noem’s actions, especially Alyssa Farah Griffin, who had some real-life experience to draw on during her criticism of the politician.
ABC/Jeff Lipsky
“This is a puppy,” Farah Griffin, 34, said. “If your dog is acting wrongly, it is because you are incompetent at training that dog. When I grew up, we had big dogs and we had chickens. A dog did once get a chicken. Whose fault was it? Mine, for not having the dog somewhere where he couldn’t get the chickens.”
Farah Griffin further bolstered Goldberg’s argument that Noem should have given the puppy away, rather than murder it in cold blood.
“If you have a really challenging dog, there are countless organizations to re-home them to somebody who loves the dog enough,” she continued. “I want justice for Cricket. This is terrible.”
Cohost Sunny Hostin did not mince her words, saying, “The sign of a sociopath is someone that kills animals.”
“I’m not a clinician,” Hostin, 55, continued, “but she killed her animal.”
Hostin, who listed off numerous animal rights organizations that he has worked with, explained why the issue was so close to her heart.
“It is very important for people to understand that sometimes dogs, they are like your children,” Hostin said. “They are your fur babies. It is despicable that she not only did this, [but] she wrote about it and is defending it.”
After Noem was met with massive wrath after the memoir passage was published, the Governor doubled down on her actions.
“We love animals, but tough decisions like this happen all the time on a farm,” Noem wrote via X on Friday, March 26. “Sadly, we just had to put down 3 horses a few weeks ago that had been in our family for 25 years.”
Kate Hudson, Bill HudsonKevork Djansezian;Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images(2)
After decades of being estranged, Kate Hudson revealed there’s an optimistic path forward with her father Bill Hudson.
During a sneak preview of her Sunday, April 28 interview on CBS News Sunday Morning, Kate, 45, acknowledged she “doesn’t really have” a relationship with her dad, 74, but the actress hinted there’s a bit more to the story.
“It’s warming up,” Kate told Tracy Smith in a clip released Friday, April 26. “There’s warming up of this all happening. It will be whatever it will be.”
Bill, best known as a founding member of musical group The Hudson Brothers, married Kate’s mom Goldie Hawn in 1976 and the couple welcomed Kate three years later. Goldie, 78, and Bill also share Kate’s older brother Oliver Hudson, who was born two months after the couple got married.
Kate insisted she has “no expectation” of a reconciliation with her father, but said, “I just want him to be happy.”
Goldie filed for divorce from Bill in 1980 and it was finalized two years later. She began dating Kurt Russell in 1983 and, while they never wed, Kurt, 73, was responsible for raising both Kate and Oliver.
“[Bill] was around when we were young,” Kate told Howard, 70. “It sort of teetered out, you know?”
When Howard joked that Bill “lost interest” in his kids, Kate laughed and said, “I’m sure it was a little bit more complex.”
“My mom never spoke poorly of him,” Kate continued. “I was a real tough little girl. I did understand that it didn’t have to do with me and Oliver. We did understand that.”
1000-Lb. Sisters star Tammy Slaton is continuing to flaunt her major weight loss while spending time with friend Haley Michelle.
Slaton, 37, shared a picture via Instagram on Wednesday, April 24 showing Slaton and Michelle, 30, standing near a body of water with their arms intertwined.
“Spiritual Sisters, our powerful connection we don’t have to explain anything to anyone,” Michelle captioned the original post. “You are my Best Friend ”
The pair was dressed in all black, with Slaton’s dress hanging off her shoulders to show off a flowery tattoo.
Michelle’s caption was in reference to some of Slaton’s followers and fans, who have recently accused the self-proclaimed “Paranormal Princess” of exploiting her friendship with Slaton for clout.
“I wonder if she would still be friends if you said you didn’t want to post any pictures with her,” a comment on the latest post read. Another said, “I feel like people use her to try to be famous or just to be noticed ”
The comments section wasn’t completely filled with hate, however.
“Why is everyone attacking this,” the top comment on the post reads. “It’s not hard to believe this girl is Tammy’s friend. If I lived nearby I would be trying to become her friend too. She is genuine, kind, and hilarious.”
Slaton and Michelle took a trip to a local pool earlier this week, which the duo also showed off on Instagram.
Michelle posted a picture of the pair with their feet dipped in the water, captioned: Proud of you #tammyslatonweightloss.”
Slaton, who stars on TLC’s 1000-Lb. Sisters alongside her younger sister Amy Slaton, has recently lost more than 400 pounds, thanks in large part to undergoing gastric bypass surgery in September 2022.
The lake day and pool visit appear to be part of a vacation that Michelle gave a sneak peek of earlier in the day on Wednesday.
Michelle posted a photo of the two in a grocery store picking up some essentials for the outing, captioned: “Getting some groceries before our girls trip.”
While it’s not totally clear how Michelle and Slaton came into each other’s lives, Michelle has been a regular presence in Slaton’s orbit since at least January, routinely posting pictures and videos of the pair on social media.
As for her weight loss, Slaton said she finally “wised up” when she agreed to undergo the gastric bypass surgery.
“I was able to make my lungs strong enough to get my [tracheostomy tube for breathing] out, and then recently the doctor cleared me to be off my oxygen machine during the daytime,” she told People in June 2023. “Now I only wear my oxygen at night, along with my BiPap machine. I monitor my oxygen levels throughout the day and keep my machine on hand in case I need it.”
In Taylor Swift’s new song “thanK you aIMee,” which is believed to be about her years-long feud with Kim Kardashian, Swift, 34, opens with a curious reference.
“When I picture my hometown / There’s a bronze spray-tanned statue of you,” Swift sings. “And a plaque underneath it / That threatens to push me down the stairs at our school.”
Unsurprisingly, fans immediately began furiously attempting to connect the dots — and one might have struck gold.
“This is the statue she is referring to in the beginning of ‘thanK you aIMee,’” one fan wrote via X. “She thinks of Kim because of the snake in the statue.”
The fan shared a screenshot of the Wikipedia page for the statue of Athena Parthenos, which is located in The Parthenon in Nashville’s Centennial Park.
“The goddess is 13 meters tall and wears weaponry and a helmet,” the page reads. “In her left hand she holds a shield and in her right a 1.8 meter high statue of Nike. Between the shield and the goddess, a colossal snake rises.”
The snake reference potentially harkens back to the early days of the beef between Kardashian, 43, and Swift. In 2016, Kardashian released audio from a private phone call between Swift and her then-husband Kanye West, purporting to show Swift’s approval of her name being used in West’s song “Famous.”
In 2019, Swift opened up about the experience, saying, “A few years ago, someone started an online hate campaign by calling me a snake on the Internet.”
Since then, snakes and snake emojis have been closely associated with Swift and Kardashian’s long-standing feud.
As for the fan’s theory about the statue, he received some back-up from fellow Swifties in the comments.
One wrote, “OH WAIT UR SMART,” while another simply commented, “OMG.”
There were a couple of detractors who noted that Swift’s hometown is actually West Reading, Pennsylvania, not Nashville. However, Swift and her family did relocate to Music City when she was 14 years old and she has been intrinsically tied to the area ever since.
In fact, Swift owns two properties in Nashville, including a penthouse apartment located less than a mile away from the Parthenon and the statue in question.
Owen Wilson reportedly turned down a lucrative eight-figure deal to star in a movie about O.J. Simpson’s potential innocence.
According to director Joshua Newton, who has been working on a satirical film about Simpson called The Juice since 2015, Wilson, 55, was approached to play real-life attorney Douglas McCann — who became immersed in conspiracy theories about Simpson during the former football star’s 1995 murder trial — in the movie.
“Owen Wilson was perfect for the role,” Newton told The Hollywood Reporter in a story published Wednesday, April 24. “I actually had a meeting with him in Santa Monica. Everybody loved the script. His agent wanted him to do it. We offered him $12 million.”
With the offer on the table, however, Wilson made his intentions very clear.
Newton continued, “At the end of the lunch, Owen stood up and said, ‘If you think I’m going to take the lead role in a movie about how O.J. didn’t do it, you’ve got to be kidding me.’”
With Wilson out of the running, Newton said he found another actor who is “spot on” for the role. However, he wouldn’t name any names.
Whoever snagged the role of McCann will join Station 19 star Boris Kodjoe, who is playing Simpson, and actress Charlotte Kirk, who is playing his ex-wife Nicole Brown.
Newton said roughly 30 minutes of the movie has already been completed, a snippet of which can be seen in a teaser released Tuesday, April 23.
In the clip, Kodjoe can be seen strapped to an electric chair with sparks shooting off the sides of his head and smoke billowing from his mouth.
“Think of the real O.J.,” Kodjoe says while stuttering. “Not this lost person.”
The teaser ends with a title card reading: “Feel better now? You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Originally titled Nicole & O.J., the movie has been in development for years. Back in 2018, People released first-look photos of Kodjoe and Kirk as Simpson and Brown, respectively.
“Boris is the same height as O.J., very tall, a very athletic presence,” producer Stephen Small told the outlet at the time. “He transformed himself, changed his voice, he sounds pretty amazing.”
Newton is hoping to finish the movie by the end of this year for a release date in 2025.
In October 1995, Simpson was acquitted of the murders of both Brown and Goldman. A civil lawsuit was subsequently filed by the Brown and Goldman families, which ultimately found Simpson liable. Simpson was ordered to pay the families $33.5 million, almost all of which was left unpaid at the time of his death.
Women’s college basketball has never been more popular, thanks in large part to a fierce rivalry between two of the game’s biggest stars.
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark — who became the all-time NCAA scoring leader this season — and LSU’s Angel Reese — who was named SEC Player of the Year — have helped usher in a new era of the sport, which will culminate in a highly anticipated Elite Eight showdown between the Hawkeyes and Tigers on Monday, April 1.
The game is a rematch of last year’s NCAA National Championship Game, which saw LSU defeat Iowa 102-85, earning the Tigers their first title in school history.
What’s more, Reese, 21, and Clark, 22, engaged in a viral display of gamesmanship during the encounter that continued to play out far after the final whistle had blown — with the White House even getting involved.
Before Clark and Reese go head-to-head one final time collegiately, keep reading for a deep dive into their contentious past:
Angel Reese Taunts Caitlin Clark During National Championship Game
With the clock ticking down in April 2023’s NCAA National Championship Game between LSU and Iowa, a triumphant Reese shadowed Clark around the court and made a “you can’t see me” gesture — originally popularized by John Cena — by waving her hand in front of her face. Reese also pointed at her ring finger, making reference to the championship prize that would soon be hers.
Angel Reese #10 of the LSU Lady Tigers reacts towards Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes.Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
In the aftermath, some criticized Reese for a lack of sportsmanship.
“What a f–king idiot,” former ESPN personality Keith Olbermanntweeted about Reese. “Doesn’t matter the gender, the sport, the background – you’re seconds away from a championship and you do something like this and overshadow all the good. Mindless, classless, and what kind of coach does this team have?”
Olbermann later apologized for being “uninformed.”
Reese Calls Out “Double Standard” With Clark
In the midst of criticism about her behavior, Reese was quick to point out that Clark had done the exact same “you can’t see me” gesture two games earlier in the tournament without any blowback.
“I don’t fit in the box that you all want me to be in,” Reese said at the national championship’s postgame press conference. “I’m too hood, I’m too ghetto. You told me that all year. But when other people do it, y’all don’t say nothing.”
She continued, “So this is for the girls that look like me, that want to speak up on what they believe in. It’s unapologetically you. It was bigger than me tonight.”
Clark Defends Reese From the Backlash
Reese found a very powerful ally in all of the commotion about her on-court behavior: Clark herself.
“I don’t think Angel should be criticized at all,” Clark told ESPN two days after the game. “I’m just one that competes, and she competed. I think everybody knew there was going to be a little trash talk in the entire tournament. It’s not just me and Angel.”
Clark called Reese “a tremendous, tremendous player” and said she is “a big fan” of her game.
“Men have always had trash talk,” Clark continued. “You should be able to play with that emotion. That’s how every girl should continue to play.”
The White House Controversy
It is the customary gesture of the White House to invite the national championship winners to the school for a celebration, but when First Lady Jill Biden said she wanted to invite runner-up Iowa as well, it didn’t sit well with Reese.
In response, she tweeted a link to a story about the Iowa invite and wrote “A JOKE” complete with three rolling-on-the-floor laughing emojis.
The first lady’s press secretary Vanessa Valdivia explained Biden’s thought process, saying the invitation to both teams was meant to “applaud the historic game and all women athletes” and hoped to acknowledge “how far women have advanced in sports since the passing of Title IX.”
Still, Reese wasn’t having it. “I don’t accept that — I’m not going to lie to you, I don’t accept that apology because she said what she said,” Reese explained during an interview on the “I Am Athlete” podcast. “You can’t go back on certain things that you say. You felt that they should have came because of sportsmanship, right? [Iowa] can have that spotlight. We’ll go to the Obamas. We’ll see Michelle. We’ll see Barack.”
However, Reese later agreed to visit the White House and even helped present the first lady and President Joe Biden with custom LSU jerseys.
The Evolution of Their Relationship
With both of their programs in the national spotlight again, Reese was candid about the mutual respect she and Clark have for each other.
“I don’t think people realize it’s not personal,” Reese said Sunday, March 31. “Once we get out between those lines, if I see you walking down the street, it’s like, ‘Hey, girl, what’s up? Let’s hang out.’ I think people just take it like we hate each other. Me and Caitlin Clark don’t hate each other. I want everybody to understand that.”
On the court, however, Reese detailed how all pleasantries go out the window.
“Once I get between those lines, there’s no friends,” she continued. “I’m going to talk trash to you. I’m going to do whatever it takes to get in your head the whole entire game, but after the game, we can kick it. I don’t think people really realize that.”
Reese said she was fine being cast in “the villain role,” especially in the wake of the interest in their rivalry helping the sport reach new heights.
“I’ll take the hit for it, but I know we’re growing women’s basketball,” Reese noted. “If this is the way we’re going to do it, then this is the way we’re going to do it. You either like it or you don’t.”
Clark agreed, saying on Sunday that she and Reese have that “competitive fire.”
”We both grew up loving this game,” Clark said, “and we’re going to do anything we can to help our teams win.”
Making it to the Draft
Iowa defeated LSU 87-94 in the Elite Eight in April 2024, advancing to the 2024 NCAA Women’s Final Four in Cleveland, Ohio, where they secured the win against UConn. They went on to lose the NCAA Championship to the South Carolina Gamecocks 87-75 later that month.
Clark and Reese’s focus then shifted to the WNBA draft, where Clark was the No. 1 pick by the Indiana Fever. Reese, meanwhile, was picked seventh by the Chicago Sky.
Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro.Getty Images (2)
One of the most infamous and tumultuous relationships in reality TV history has written its long-awaited next chapter.
Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola and Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, whose on-and-off relationship during the original run of Jersey Shore was one of the show’s most consistent story lines, were in the same room with one another for the first time in nearly a decade on the Thursday, April 11, episode of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation.
“I know that I’m going to have to see Sam,” Ronnie, 38, said in a confessional before joining the cast on a trip to Nashville. “We haven’t seen each other in seven years, you know. There was no closure for us, so it’s kind of weird. I just don’t want it to be awkward, honestly.”
Sammi, 37, and Ronnie began dating during Jersey Shore’s first season in 2009 and, despite years of attempting to make things work, officially broke things off for good in 2014.
“I’m just, like, a ball of emotions. I’m not looking forward to spending time with this person that hasn’t been a part of my life,” Sammi said in her pre-trip confessional. “I just want to kind of, like, figure it out so everyone can have fun, coexist and get along together.”
Before the big reunion, Ronnie spent some guys’ time with Vinny Guadagnino and Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino, where Ronnie further expressed his hesitations about seeing Sammi.
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“I’m a little nervous, obviously, to see Sam,” Ronnie told Vinny, 36, and Mike, 41. “We were together for a long time, such a long history. Last time we talked it was just kind of like, ‘We’re done,’ and that was it. I think we’ve both grown. I know I’ve grown and I’ve matured and I’m hoping me and Sam could have a conversation, but we’ll see.”
Sammi, meanwhile, wasn’t quite as optimistic about being in the same room with her ex. She expressed hope that she and Ronnie could “coexist,” but suggested that’s where things ended.
She said definitively, “Sam and Ron is from the past.”
Once the duo were finally in the same room together, things got predictably awkward very quickly.
“Everybody’s on edge, I can feel it, I’m being quiet as hell,” Sammi said in a confessional. “I don’t know where to look. In my head, I’m just like, ‘Get me out of here.’”
The edgy atmosphere was felt by the entire cast, with Vinny, 36, calling it “the most monumental awkward moment of Jersey Shore history.”
Jenni “JWoww” Farley likened Sammi and Ronnie to “a bad, divorced couple that has to, like, go on a holiday together for the kids and they f–king hate each other.”
Luckily, Paul “DJ Pauly D” DelVecchio was there to save the day — at least for a little while — and planned a dinner for the whole crew, including a Hot Ones–style eating contest.
“It started off a little awkward and shaky at first, but it seems like everyone is having a good time,” Pauly, 43, said in a confessional. “So I just want to keep them all distracted from the drama.”
The distraction didn’t last long.
At the table, Vinny made reference to The Note (i.e. the infamous anonymous letter written by JWoww and Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi to tell Sammi that Ronnie was cheating on her), which turned whatever progress was being made firmly in reverse.
As Mike, 41, explained, “You’re not supposed to joke about The Note when Ron and Sam are present at the same table for pretty much the first time.”
With tensions about to boil over, Sammi issued an ominous warning to close out the episode.
“I have been cool, calm and collected about the whole Ron situation,” she said in a confessional, “but this is something that I don’t take lightly, and now I feel like I’m going to explode.”
Find out what happens next when new episodes of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation premiere Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on MTV.
The free concert, organized to help end extreme poverty, arrives at Central Park’s Great Lawn for the 12th time on Saturday, September 28.
“Since 2012, the Global Citizen Festival has called Central Park its home, thanks to the long-standing partnership with NYC Parks and the City of New York,” Global Citizen cofounder and CEO Hugh Evans said. “Annually, we have welcomed 60,000 global citizens to the Great Lawn, who have played a crucial role in our mission, and we look forward to coming back again on September 28 to drive more action and commitments towards ending extreme poverty.”
The event, as always, is free to attend. The lineup and ticketing information will be announced in coming months.
Last year’s concert on the Great Lawn featured Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Jung Kook, Anitta, Conan Gray, D-Nice, Sofia Carson and Stray Kids.
Past Global Citizen lineups have included artists like Metallica, Jonas Brothers, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, The Weeknd, Rihanna, Kendrick Lamar, Stevie Wonder, Pearl Jam and Beyoncé.
“Central Park’s iconic Great Lawn has a long and celebrated history of hosting live events that thrill New Yorkers and visitors alike, from Simon & Garfunkel to the NY Philharmonic,” NYC Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue said. “The Global Citizen Festival is more than just a good time for music lovers — it’s a call to action, inspiring us to be active citizens of the world in the fight against poverty, inequity, and climate change.”
In addition to its legacy in New York, the Global Citizen Festival has also featured concerts in Montreal, Mumbai, Hamburg, Johannesburg and a September 2022 show in Accra, Ghana, that featured performances from Usher, SZA, Tems and more.
“I’m excited that with Global Citizen’s support, the Parks Department and the Central Park Conservancy will open a restored Great Lawn this week so that an NYC gem is ready for spring,” New York City Councilmember Erik Bottcher said, “and a season’s worth of inclusive cultural, philanthropic and recreational events that help make New York the great city that it is.”
Since the launch of the Global Citizen Festival in 2012, over $43 billion has been distributed to nonprofit partners around the world, impacting more than 1.3 billion lives.
After experiencing a reckoning with her religious upbringing, Olivia Plath is doing her best to pick up the pieces.
Olivia, 25, has starred on all five seasons of TLC’s Welcome to Plathville, a reality series about the Plath family in rural, southeastern Georgia. She married into the group, tying the knot with Ethan Plath in 2018.
The conservative, religious values held by the Plaths, however, were nothing new for Olivia.
As she explained in a Teen Vogue feature published on Tuesday, April 2, “I grew up in the fundamental Christian world, which I would also call a cult.”
Olivia described her childhood as “very isolated,” much of which centered around the teachings of her father, Don Meegs, a pastor.
“By the time I was 13, I was being given books on how to be the best wife possible,” Olivia explained, “so from a very young age I assumed that what was expected from me in life as a woman, and what I was told what was expected of me as a woman was to get married and to have kids and to be a stay at home mom.”
For a while, at least, that’s exactly what happened.
However, Olivia and Ethan filed for divorce in February after five years of marriage. Post-split, Olivia moved across the country to Los Angeles, which is when things really began to change.
In her new home, Olivia really began the process of deconstructing her religious past, which became a more arduous, revealing process than even she anticipated.
“When you start to question a few things, then you start to question a few more,” Olivia said. “You start to realize the entire foundation on how you’re living your life is kind of a sham.”
Olivia’s childhood was not dissimilar, she explained, to that of the Duggar family, featured on TLC’s 19 Kids & Counting. The belief system used by Olivia’s father and his church was in line with those of the Institute of Basic Life Principles, with which the Duggars were closely associated.
“All of these people in fundamental Christian worlds have pretty much the same beliefs, give or take a thing or two,” Olivia noted. “But they don’t want to use the same label or title because those one or two things that they disagree on are huge things. Those little, tiny things end up being very divisive because everyone is convinced they know the perfect way to live.”
Olivia is in the process of building a new life for herself — she even hinted she’s in a new relationship — and while things might not be perfect, she said, “I feel very at home with myself.”
Jeremy Allen White might be trading in his chef’s knives for a harmonica.
Allen White, 33, is in talks to play Bruce Springsteen in an upcoming film, according to Variety.
The film, called Deliver Me From Nowhere, is an adaptation of Warren Zanes’ 2023 book of the same name, which chronicles the making of Springsteen’s album Nebraska.
Scott Cooper, best known for writing and directing 2009’s Crazy Heart and directing 2015’s Black Mass, is also in talks to write and direct. Official deals for Allen White and Cooper are still pending.
The movie would mark Allen White’s first film role since playing Kerry Von Erich in 2023’s The Iron Claw alongside Zac Efron and Harris Dickinson.
Allen White would likely film Deliver Me From Nowhere after completing production on seasons 3 and 4 of The Bear, which are currently filming back-to-back.
Season 3 of the FX drama, which earned Allen White an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in January, is set to premiere in June.
Allen White has also earned two Golden Globes and three Screen Actors Guild Awards, including one for Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series, for his work on The Bear as Carmy Berzatto.
Nebraska, released in 1982, marked a seminal moment in Springsteen’s career. A stripped-down, critically acclaimed record, it ranked No. 150 in Rolling Stone’s 2020 list of the Top 500 Albums of All Time.
The movie title is taken from a lyric in the song “State Trooper,” the album’s sixth track.
What made the Nebraska era even more paramount is what came after. Springsteen, now 74, released Born in the U.S.A. two years later, which has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide and catapulted Springsteen into a new level of superstardom.
Recently, Springsteen got candid about being diagnosed with peptic ulcer disease in September 2023, which caused The Boss to take six months away from touring.
“You sing with your diaphragm,” Springsteen explained to SiriusXM’s E Street Radio host Jim Rotolo in an interview that aired Thursday, March 21. “My diaphragm was hurting so badly that when I went to make the effort to sing, it was killing me, you know? So, I literally couldn’t sing at all, you know, and that lasted for two or three months, along with just a myriad of other painful problems.”
Fortunately, Springsteen has been able to recover and make a triumphant return to the road, with tour dates stretching across the globe until the end of the year.
The man accused of being a drug mule for Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested Monday, March 25, on cocaine and marijuana possession charges.
According to arrest records obtained by Rolling Stone, Brendan Paul was taken into custody at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport around 4:30 p.m. ET, shortly after Homeland Security executed raids at two of Diddy’s, 54, homes, reportedly in connection to a federal sex trafficking investigation.
The airport is the same location where Diddy was seen pacing outside on Monday afternoon in video obtained by TMZ, roughly 90 minutes after Paul, 25, would have been taken into custody.
Arresting officers found cocaine in Paul’s “personal travel bags” and he was taken to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami where he was booked on charges of cocaine possession and possession of a controlled substance. He has since posted bail and been released, according to TMZ.
Jones claimed to have seen Paul “acquire and distribute” drugs to Diddy, including “ecstasy, cocaine, GHB, ketamine, marijuana, mushrooms, and tuci.”
The lawsuit alleged the substances would be packed in carry-on luggage to make it through TSA.
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Jones alleged to have “personally witnessed” Paul transport or intend to transport illegal substances in his baggage while traveling between Los Angeles, Miami, Virginia, the Caribbean and London during three separate occurrences between December 2022-November 2023.
The $30 million lawsuit filed by Jones also accused Diddy of sexual assault and harassment during his time working for the music mogul from September 2022 to November 2023.
In a statement to Us Weekly, Diddy’s attorney Shawn Holley denied the accusations calling Jones a “liar.”
“Lil Rod is nothing more than a liar who filed a $30 million lawsuit, shamelessly looking for an undeserved payday,” Holley said. “His reckless name-dropping about events that are pure fiction and simply did not happen is nothing more than a transparent attempt to garner headlines.”
On Monday, Diddy’s homes in Los Angeles and Miami were both raided by Homeland Security.
“Earlier today, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation, with assistance from HSI Los Angeles, HSI Miami, and our local law enforcement partners,” Homeland Security shared in a March 25 statement to Us Weekly. “We will provide further information as it becomes available.”
Kevin Bacon is getting ready to put back on some very famous dancing shoes.
Bacon, 65, announced plans to attend prom at Payson High School in Payson, Utah, where he filmed the movie Footloose more than 40 years ago.
It all started with a grassroots campaign from Payson High students, who asked the actor to attend the final prom at their school before it moves locations after the school year.
During a segment on the Today show Friday, March 22, Payson High student Rubie Raff explained how the movie’s legacy still impacts the town all these decades later.
“I think it means so much because everyone around us cares about it so much,” she said.
So, with the entire Payson High student body assembled in the school’s gymnasium, Bacon surprised them on video to thank them for all of their efforts.
Kevin Bacon and Chris Penn in ‘Footloose.’Cover Images
“I have been so impressed with everything that’s been going on there with this crazy idea to get me to come back,” Bacon gushed. “I don’t need to say it, but the movie and Payson High School was a big part of my life. I’ve been amazed at the work all of you have been putting into this with the musical and the flash mobs and the re-creations.”
Bacon also gave a shout-out to Payson students for organizing a prom event that will benefit the actor’s charity organization Six Degrees, which launched in 2007 and focuses on initiatives to enrich local communities.
“It hasn’t gone unnoticed by me,” Bacon said. “Not to mention the fact that you tied in SixDegrees.org, our foundation, and are trying to figure out ways to give back to your community. It’s really inspirational.”
As the students continued to wait with bated breath, Bacon finally made the announcement they had all been waiting for.
Kevin Bacon and Lori SInger in ‘Footloose.’Cover Images
The gymnasium erupted into thunderous applause, as Raff, who was standing by, told Bacon, “Let’s dance! We’re gonna do it! This is awesome!”
Payson High student Kaleb Dymock also expressed his excitement about the big reveal. “We’re gonna party really hard, Kevin,” he said.
Footloose, which was released in February 1984, has meant just as much to Bacon as it has to the town of Payson over the years.
“I think that it was a great gift to be part of that movie,” he told Today in 2022. “I certainly took it very seriously when I was doing it and I love that people will still come up and say that they just showed it to their kids.”
After 13 years in the NFL, Jason Kelce revealed some routines are harder to break than others.
Calling himself a “creature of habit,” Jason, 36, said there has been “zero” difference in his life since announcing his retirement on March 4.
“I’ve actually still gone down to the facility to get a couple of weightlifting sessions in,” Jason told brother Travis Kelce on the Wednesday, March 13, episode of their podcast, “New Heights.”
However, Jason acknowledged that his unaltered way of living won’t last forever.
“I’m assuming once organized team activities start up, especially once training camp and the season start rolling around, it will really start to hit a little bit more,” he said.
Organized team activities (OTAs) will kick-start in late May or early June before training camps open in mid-to-late July.
Jason acknowledged it’s been an overwhelming couple of weeks since announcing his NFL exit, with the former Eagles center receiving “over a thousand text messages.”
“It was awesome hearing from guys that I haven’t talked to,” Jason gushed, “or teammates I haven’t talked to in years that reached out.”
When Travis, 34, asked if Jason was still busy responding to all the messages, Jason said it was quite the difficult task.
“It was so hard getting through it that I did it in different days,” he explained. “I hope I got back to you if you did reach out. I appreciate it so much.”
Jason said he especially appreciated hearing from fellow retired players because “they know how life-changing it is.”
While Jason didn’t want to name-drop all of the celebrities and NFL stars he had heard from, he did reveal that retired New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees sent him a nice message of congratulations.
“I could start going through the list,” Jason said, “but it was a lot of people reaching out.”
Jason did give a special notice to the fans in the City of Brotherly Love, who embraced him as their own throughout the course of his illustrious career with the Eagles.
“I’ve been in Philadelphia for 13 years,” Jason added. “There’s a lot of people and acquaintances that I’ve gotten to know and befriend over the years. It was awesome.”
New episodes of “New Heights” drop every Wednesday.
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