Month: November 2022

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News Daypop

Oath Keepers founder and one member found guilty of seditious conspiracy in Jan. 6 case

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On Tuesday, a federal jury in Washington found Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and Kelly Meggs, another member of the far-right organization, guilty of seditious conspiracy in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Jurors reached their decision on the third day of deliberations, following a trial in federal court in Washington that spanned weeks.

Three other members of the group who were on trial alongside Rhodes and Meggs — Jessica Watkins, Kenneth Harrelson and Thomas Caldwell — were found not guilty on the seditious conspiracy charge. All five defendants were found guilty of obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting for their actions on Jan. 6.

The three defendants who physically went inside the Capitol on Jan. 6 — Meggs, Harrelson, and Watkins — were found guilty of conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging their official duties. Rhodes and Caldwell were on Capitol grounds that day but did not go inside the building.

Rhodes’ lawyer said Tuesday that he plans to appeal that conviction; the seditious conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Editorial credit: Gallagher Photography / Shutterstock.com

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News Daypop

Virginia Walmart shooting survivor files $50M lawsuit for ignoring warning signs from shooter

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A Walmart employee who survived the mass shooting at a store in Virginia last week has filed a $50 million lawsuit against the company for allegedly continuing to employ the shooter “who had known propensities for violence, threats and strange behavior.” The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Chesapeake Circuit Court by the employee and plaintiff, Donya Prioleau, who alleges that she has experienced post-traumatic stress disorder, including physical and emotional distress, from witnessing the shooting in the breakroom on November 22.

The shooter, store supervisor Andre Bing, fatally shot six employees and wounded several others before he died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot.  The lawsuit states that Bing “had a personal vendetta against several Walmart employees and kept a ‘kill list’ of potential targets prior to the shooting.” Additionally, Prioleau had submitted a formal complaint on a Walmart Global Ethics Statement Form, indicating that Bing had “bizarrely and inappropriately commented on Ms. Prioleau’s age” and complaining that Bing had harassed her for “being poor and being short,” according to the lawsuit.

Prioleau alleges in the lawsuit that “Despite Mr. Bing’s long-standing pattern of disturbing and threatening behavior, Walmart knew or should have known about Mr. Bing’s disturbing and threatening behavior, but failed to terminate Mr. Bing, restrict his access to common areas, conduct a thorough background investigation, or subject him to a mental health examination.”

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Sports Daypop

U.S. advances to World Cup knockout stage after crucial win vs. Iran

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The United States defeated Iran on Tuesday in a crucial game at the 2022 World Cup in Doha, Qatar, advancing them to the knockout stage of the tournament. The Americans clinched the runner-up spot out of Group B and will join first-place England in the Round of 16.  Winning the game was the only way to advance to the knockout stage of the international tournament; the Americans will face Group A winner Netherlands in the Round of 16 at 10 a.m. EST Saturday at Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan. England, which won Group B, will face Group A runner-up Senegal in another Round of 16 match Sunday in Al Khor.

The U.S. scored their first and only goal of the match just over a third of the way through the first half when Christian Pulisic came sprinting into the area, split defenders Ramin Rezaeian and Majid Hosseiniand and sliced a shot into the net past Iranian goalie Alireza Beiranvand before collapsing in pain. Beiranvand collided with Pulisic just after the shot, and Pulisic stayed on the ground until being looked at by trainers. U.S. Soccer said he sustained an abdominal injury during the play and would not return for the second half.  On Tuesday evening, the team shared an update on the injured Pulisic, tweeting that “forward Christian Pulisic has been diagnosed with a pelvic contusion and his status is day-to-day.”

U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter said after the game: “I think, in the first half, we showed what we could do soccer-wise … In the second half, we showed what we could do determination-wise.”  The team also posted on Twitter shortly after the game ended, thanking fans for their support and sharing their on-field excitement:  “At home and in Qatar, you were with us all 99+ minutes tonight. We felt the love. We felt the unwavering support. Thank you.”

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Sports Daypop

Timberwolves forward Karl-Anthony Towns to miss 4-6 weeks due to right calf strain

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Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns is expected to miss four-to-six weeks with a calf strain. The forward was injured during Monday’s game against the Washington Wizards. Reports circulated that Towns was unable to put any weight on his right leg, as the team quickly ruled him out for the rest of the game. According to Wojnarowski, Towns had scans on Tuesday to reveal the extent of the injury, and is expected to return sometime in January.

The 27-year-old Towns has played more power forward this season. He has averaged just 20.8 points per game, this after scoring at least 24 per game in each of the last four years. His 8.2 rebounds and 0.7 blocks per game are an all-time career low. Towns is averaging 5.3 assists per game, with at least 20 points in 14 of 21 games this year.

With Towns out, Naz Reid and Kyle Anderson will see more playtime. The Timberwolves have struggled this year, are are currently 10th in the Western Conference with a 10-11 record.

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Country Daypop

Dolly Parton shares plans to open museum and ‘Dolly Center’ complex in Nashville 

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In an interview with The Tennessean, Dolly Parton revealed plans to open ‘Dolly Center’ in Downtown Nashville within the next few years.  Parton said her future plans in Music City will potentially include a Dolly Parton museum, restaurant/bar and grill, and more, but admits “right now though, I’ve got so many things going. I can do without that for the moment. But someday I will have a business here.”

Parton already has the Chasing Rainbows Museum inside of her Dollywood theme park, but said that she wants to open another closer to home: “I’m going to have a museum here [in Nashville] pretty soon,” she said, before sharing that she hopes to open the museum within the next couple of years. Parton added: “We have the museum at Dollywood, of course, but I would love to have something here since this is really my home.” Parton said the museum might be part of a larger complex, “like a ‘Dolly Center’ or something that includes the museum.” While it’s unclear what would be on display at the museum, it’s possible that it will highlight Parton’s legendary career similar to her Chasing Rainbows Museum, which features some of Parton’s unique memorabilia.

Parton will next appear in Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas, featuring appearances by Parton, Jimmy Fallon, Willie Nelson, Miley Cyrus, Billy Ray Cyrus, Jimmie Allen, Zach Williams and airing on Thursday, Dec. 1 at 8/7c on NBC.  In addition, Parton and her goddaughter Miley Cyrus are set to co-host the upcoming NBC New Year’s Eve special dubbed Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party, airing live on NBC from Miami on Saturday, Dec. 31 from 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET and also streaming live on Peacock.

Editorial credit: Featureflash Photo Agency/ Shutterstock.com

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Country Daypop

‘Brett Young: 5 Tour 3 2 1’ to launch Spring 2023

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Brett Young will hit the road this spring for “Brett Young: 5 Tour 3 2 1”, with Ashley Cooke and Morgan Evans serving as support. The 17-date trek kicks off on March 30, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio, heading across the U.S. before wrapping-up at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles on May 20, 2023.

Young also plans to release a new version of his song “You Ain’t Here To Kiss Me,” which he wrote alongside Tiffany Goss and Matt Alderman, on Friday (Dec. 2). Says Young: “I can be a very emotional songwriter and, for some reason, the sad, reflective songs, often come naturally for me. The song is a true story about a situation my now wife and I had many years back–it just describes the feeling of missing someone and seeing everyone else around you in happy relationships. Dann Huff has been wanting to cut a new version of it for a while so we thought the timing was right to give it a bit of a new life around this coming New Year.”

Tickets for “Brett Young: 5 Tour 3 2 1” will go on sale this Friday (Dec. 2) at 10 a.m. CT. For more information, click here.

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

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Entertainment Daypop

Clarence Gilyard Jr., star of ‘Walker, Texas Ranger’ and ‘Die Hard’, dies at 66

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Actor Clarence Gilyard Jr., best known for starring in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and his supporting role in “Die Hard,” has died at age 66.  Gilyard’s death was confirmed through a statement by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where Gilyard had been working as a film and theatre professor at UNLV College of Fine Arts. No further details about his death are available at this time.

UNLV film chair Heather Addison said in a statement: “Professor Gilyard was a beacon of light and strength for everyone around him. Whenever we asked him how he was, he would cheerfully declare that he was ‘Blessed!’ But we are truly the ones who were blessed to be his colleagues and students for so many years. We love you and will miss you dearly, Professor G!”

Gilyard was an accomplished film, television and theatre actor, making a series of guest star TV appearances in the 1980’s. Gilyard made his film debut as Sundown in “Top Gun,” and famously portrayed the terrorist computer whiz Theo in “Die Hard”.  In 1989, he became a regular on the primetime series “Matlock,” appearing on 85 episodes before departing the series in 1993. He went on to portray Jimmy Trivette, the right-hand man to Chuck Norris on the hit series “Walker, Texas Ranger,” appearing in all 196 episodes of the series’ eight seasons.

Gilyard is survived by his wife, Elena Gilyard, and six children.

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Rock Daypop

Smashing Pumpkins announce co-headlining ‘The World Is a Vampire Festival’ with Interpol

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Smashing Pumpkins and Interpol are set to headline a new festival to be held Spring 2023. The new three-day event, titled The World Is a Vampire Festival, will take place Mexico City on March 6-9, 2023. Bands including Turnstile, Peter Hook, The Warning, and Deafheaven are also slated to join the lineup for the weekend-long festival.

The festival’s name comes from a song lyric in the Smashing Pumpkins song, “Bullet with Butterfly Wings” [The world is a vampire / Sent to drain / Secret destroyers / Hold you up to the flames / And what do I get / For my pain? / Betrayed desires / And a piece of the game, they sing to open the song].

Smashing Pumpkins released the first act of their new 33-track album, ATUM, which is a follow-up to the band’s LPs, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Machina/The Machines of God. Interpol released its latest album, The Other Side of Make-Believe, this past summer.

Fans can get tickets for the The World Is a Vampire Fest now at Ticketmaster.

Editorial credit: Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com

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Rock Daypop

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers release ‘Live At The Fillmore 1997’

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The Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers ‘Live at the Fillmore (1997)’ box set, taken from their legendary residency at the historic San Francisco venue, is available now in various formats on Warner Records.  The 20-show run at the Fillmore was described by Petty as “the highpoint of our time together as a group.”

The ‘Live at the Fillmore” box set is the first live release in 13 years, with the band playing covers of their favorite influences as well as their hits. It features an acoustic version of “American Girl” with Petty singing along with his fans. The new album features more covers than originals, paying tribute to the artists and songs that shaped Petty as he was growing up. Highlights include Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door,” The Rolling Stones’ “Time is On My Side” and more from The Kinks, Everly Brothers, Bill Withers, The Byrds, Chuck Berry and Booker T. & the M.G.’s.

Listen to ‘Live at the Fillmore, 1997 (Deluxe)’ – here.

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Pop Daypop

Taylor Swift releases acoustic version of her single ‘Anti-Hero’

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Taylor Swift has released an acoustic version of her recent single ‘Anti-Hero’. The original track is the lead single from Swift’s tenth studio album ‘Midnights’, which was released last month.

Swift has released numerous other versions of the song, including several remixes and another version featuring frequent collaborator Jack Antonoff’s band, Bleachers.

Listen to the acoustic version of ‘Anti-Hero’ – here.

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