Minnesota Vikings cut Pro Bowl running back Dalvin Cook

The Minnesota Vikings will release running back Dalvin Cook, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, who tweeted: “The #Vikings and four-time Pro Bowl RB Dalvin Cook are parting ways, per source. One of the NFL’s most dynamic playmakers, Cook is coming off a fourth straight 1,000-yard season and has 52 career TDs. Now he’ll be a free agent at age 27 and will have multiple suitors.”

ESPN’s Adam Schefter also reported the Vikings are expected to try to trade Cook “one more time” and if they’re unable, they will officially release the running back on Friday. If Cook is unable to be traded, the Miami Dolphins and Denver Broncos are expected to pursue him once he officially hits free agency.

The 27-year-old Cook joined the Vikings in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The four-time Pro Bowl selection totaled 1,468 yards from scrimmage and 10 scores in 17 starts last season. Cook totaled 5,993 rushing yards, 1,794 receiving yards and 52 touchdowns in 73 appearances for the Vikings.

In 2020, the Vikings signed the 27-year-old to a five-year, $63 million extension with $28 million guaranteed. He suffered a dislocated shoulder in Week 3 of the 2022 campaign and played through it for the remainder of the year; in February, the Vikings announced that the running back underwent successful shoulder injury to address an ailment that had been “sustained over the past few seasons.”

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Jana Kramer expecting Baby No. 3, first child with fiancé Allan Russell

Two weeks after announcing her engagement to soccer player Allan Russell, singer, actress, author and podcast host Jana Kramer announced she is pregnant with the couple’s first baby, and Kramer’s third child. Kramer also shares daughter Jolie, 7, and son Jace, 4, with ex-husband Mike Caussin.

Kramer posted the happy news on social media, saying: “We’ve been keeping another secret from you guys (I promise this is the last Announcement…at least for a little while) but I’m pregnant!!!! Beyond blessed and grateful for this baby to be a part of our story.”  

In an interview with PEOPLE, Kramer added: “I didn’t think it would ever happen again, if I’m being honest. I’ve been through a lot, so this has just been a really beautiful thing. I’m letting it all sink in. It’s everything I’ve wanted and more. Allan was so sweet. He wrote me this little sticky note saying, ‘You deserve the happy ending.’” Kramer also said that her daughter Jolie is “so happy” to welcome another child into the growing family, and told PEOPLE that she and Russell “make it work,” aiming to not spend more than two weeks apart, as he splits his time in the U.S. and the U.K. with his teenaged son.

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Jana Kramer expecting Baby No. 3, first child with fiancé Allan Russell

Two weeks after announcing her engagement to soccer player Allan Russell, singer, actress, author and podcast host Jana Kramer announced she is pregnant with the couple’s first baby, and Kramer’s third child. Kramer also shares daughter Jolie, 7, and son Jace, 4, with ex-husband Mike Caussin.

Kramer posted the happy news on social media, saying: “We’ve been keeping another secret from you guys (I promise this is the last Announcement…at least for a little while) but I’m pregnant!!!! Beyond blessed and grateful for this baby to be a part of our story.”  

In an interview with PEOPLE, Kramer added: “I didn’t think it would ever happen again, if I’m being honest. I’ve been through a lot, so this has just been a really beautiful thing. I’m letting it all sink in. It’s everything I’ve wanted and more. Allan was so sweet. He wrote me this little sticky note saying, ‘You deserve the happy ending.’” Kramer also said that her daughter Jolie is “so happy” to welcome another child into the growing family, and told PEOPLE that she and Russell “make it work,” aiming to not spend more than two weeks apart, as he splits his time in the U.S. and the U.K. with his teenaged son.

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Carly Pearce confirms split from boyfriend Riley King after 2 years together

Carly Pearce confirmed her split from boyfriend Riley King after two years of dating, telling People that she and King ultimately weren’t a good fit.  Said the 33-year-old Pearce: “For the most part, it was great. People date to see if they’re gonna go the distance, and we weren’t. We just simply were not right for each other, and that’s the bottom line. I am on such a beautiful journey, and I am really excited about the next chapter of my life.”

King had also confirmed the split to Page Six, sharing: “Yes, things didn’t work out. Carly and I have parted ways and I wish her nothing but the best in both her career and personal life.” Pearce was previously married to country music singer Michael Ray; the former couple split in June 2020 after eight months of marriage.

Pearce will release her latest single “We Don’t Fight Anymore” with Chris Stapleton on June 16.  She said on Instagram that the song explores feeling distant in a relationship: “This song embodies a place that I think, if we are honest with ourselves, we’ve all felt at some point in a relationship. The distance that feels heartbreaking, yet you’re also indifferent. I’ve always been a writer who never wanted to shy away from the ‘uncomfortable’ moments in all of our lives, and this song feels too important not to share. @chrisstapleton, you made my dreams come true by lending your incredible talents to this song.”

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Pat Cooper, star of ‘Analyze This’ and ‘Seinfeld,’ dies at age 93

Standup comedian Pat Cooper, perhaps best known to this generation for his frequent appearances on The Howard Stern Show and his guest role on Seinfeld, has died at age 93.

Cooper’s producer and writing partner Steve Garrin confirmed the news, sharing that the comedian died on Tuesday (June 6) in his Las Vegas home. Said Garrin: “There was nobody like Pat Cooper, who burned every bridge that he went over. I put out a lot of the fires. He was one man who was honest. You could depend on him. You could trust him. If he gave you his word and said he was going to do something, he did it. And he helped so many people.”

Cooper — who was nicknamed the “Comedian of Outrage” due to his anger outbursts— first found success while opening for Frank Sinatra at the Sands in Las Vegas. Years later, he starred as himself in the 1996 Seinfeld episode titled, “The Friar’s Club.”  According to Garrin, Cooper improvised his entire scene on that show: “Pat ad-libs and says — if you look at Jason Alexander’s face — he goes, ‘Are you in show business?’ Jason looks at him like he doesn’t know what’s going on, but they went with it, and he goes, ‘No,’ and he goes, ‘Well, what am I talking to you for?’ And boom — that was the take, and they kept it.”  Cooper went on to star opposite Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal in the mafia comedy movie Analyze This (1999), where he played Salvatore Masiello; he reprised the role in the film’s 2002 sequel, Analyze That.

Cooper is survived by his wife, Emily Conner, two daughters and one son.

Pat Cooper Dies: Comedian & Actor In ‘Analyze This,’ ‘Seinfeld’ Was 93

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Canadian wildfire smoke continues to impact air quality across Northeast

As hundreds of Canadian wildfires burn, unhealthy levels of smoke and haze continued to spread across portions of the Northeast, worsening air quality for millions of people. More than 400 active wildfires were burning across Canada Wednesday, with the worst affecting the eastern province of Quebec, which borders Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. Skylines looked orange and the air was smokey, as officials instructed people to stay indoors.

About 128 million people were under air quality alerts because of wildfire smoke and ozone in the U.S. as of Wednesday night, and the Federal Aviation Administration slowed air traffic at some major airports. For smoke alone, around 100 million were under alerts across 16 states.

The National Weather Service said that the smoke in major metro areas, including Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., was expected to continue through Thursday and cause air unhealthy for all groups
Air quality advisories were in place for all five boroughs of the city of more than 8 million people, and NY Mayor Eric Adams called the situation unprecedented.

An Air Quality Alert issued by the National Weather Service remains in effect in parts of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut through Thursday night.

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NBA Finals: Nuggets take 2-1 series lead over Heat with 109-94 win

The Denver Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat 109-94 in a Game 3 victory on Wednesday in Miami, giving them a 2-1 series lead in the NBA Finals.

The Nuggets’ Jamal Murray scored a game-high 34 points and logged 10 assists and 10 rebounds, while Nikola Jokić had 32 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists — becoming the first teammates in NBA history to log 30-point triple-doubles in the same game. Meanwhile for the Heat, forward Jimmy Butler scored a team-high 28 points, and center Bam Adebayo totaled 22 points and 17 rebounds in the loss.

Nuggets coach Mike Malone said: “Guys understood Game 2 was not who we are. It’s not who we can be, especially at this stage of the season. And they responded like they always do. That’s one thing I know about our group, when we don’t play well, we own it. We find a way to be resilient and get back to playing Denver Nuggets basketball. That’s what we did tonight.”

Game 4 between the Nuggets and Heat will take place Friday at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.

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CNN Chairman and CEO Chris Licht resigns after one year

CNN’s parent company Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed in a statement that CNN Worldwide Chairman and CEO Chris Licht resigned on Wednesday, effective immediately. Warner Bros. Discovery said they have undertaken “an active search for a replacement,” and that executives Amy Entelis, Virginia Moseley, Eric Sherling and David Leavy will lead CNN. David Leavy, a key Zaslav ally, was recently named the network’s new chief operating officer, which was intended to allow Licht to focus more on programming. Licht helped launch MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” as its executive producer in 2007 and later became executive producer and showrunner of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS.

President and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav, said: “I have great respect for Chris, personally and professionally. The job of leading CNN was never going to be easy, especially at a time of huge disruption and transformation, and he has poured his heart and soul into it. While we know we have work to do as we look to identify a new leader, we have absolute confidence in the team we have in place and will continue to fight for CNN and its world class journalism.”

Licht’s tenure was faced with controversy, beginning when he eliminated the CNN+ streaming service.  He drew criticism in recent weeks after the network hosted a town hall with Donald Trump that was packed with Trump supporters. Despite drawing 3.3 million viewers, CNN’s ratings plummeted afterward and two days after the town hall, CNN’s prime-time viewership came in below right-wing outlet Newsmax.

Additionally, an unflattering 15,000-word profile of Licht in The Atlantic titled “Inside the Meltdown at CNN” seemed to seal Light’s fate. Top brass at Warner Bros. Discovery, including Zaslav, weren’t happy with the article and the aftermath, and Licht apologized to staffers Monday morning.

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French Open 2023: Coco Gauff defeated by No. 1-seeded Iga Świątek in quarterfinal

Top-ranked Iga Świątek defeated Coco Gauff with a 6–4, 6–2 victory to reach the semifinals on Wednesday. The 22-year-old Świątek recorded another straight-set victory over the American and will face Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil. The 19-year-old Gauff fell to 0–7 against Swiatek, and has yet to take a set against her in any match. Swiatek won 6–1, 6–3 in last year’s final.

Earlier on Court Philippe Chatrier, the 14th-seeded Haddad Maia scored another comeback win, upsetting Ons Jabeur 3–6, 7–6 (5), 6–1 to become the first Brazilian woman since 1968 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal.

Iga Swiatek beats Coco Gauff at French Open; U.S. major drought now longest in history

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Chris Stapleton postpones Syracuse, NY concert due to dangerous air quality conditions

Chris Stapleton has postponed his concert on Thursday, June 8th at the St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview in Syracuse, New York due to the dangerous air quality issues affecting the northeast stemming from wildfires raging in Canada. The air quality is so poor in New York that the state is making 1 million N95 masks available to the public, with NY Governor Kathy Hochul calling the situation “unprecedented” and a “very serious, dangerous situation.”

Stapleton tweeted: “Due to the ongoing air conditions in the greater Syracuse area, tomorrow night’s show at @StJosephsAmp will be rescheduled. All previously purchased tickets for the original date will be honored for the new date. We expect to have an update by mid-day June 9th. – Team CS”

Stapleton, who is touring with his All-American Road Show, was slated to kick off the 2023 season at Lakeview’s Amphitheater’s with special guests Charley Crockett and The War and Treaty; approximately 17,000 people were expected to attend. The amphitheater expects to have an update by mid-day Friday.

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