‘Ted Lasso’ star and writer Brett Goldstein confirms Season 3 will be its last

Ted Lasso star and writer Brett Goldstein confirmed that Season 3 will mark the end of the hit Apple TV+ series.  Goldstein told told U.K.’s The Sunday Times when asked if the show would conclude in the third season:  “We are writing it like that. It was planned as three. Spoiler alert: everyone dies.”

Goldstein’s comments are consistent with what co-creator and star Jason Sudeikis said back in 2021, when he envisioned the series ending after three seasons. Sudeikis told Entertainment Weekly: “The story that I know is the one that I wanted to tell, and so that’s the one we’re telling with the help of numerous people in front of and behind the camera. So it’s by no means me typing every key stroke and saying every word. It’s nowhere near like that. But the story that’s being told — that three-season arc — is one that I see, know, and understood. I’m glad that they are willing to pay for those three seasons. As far as what happens after that, who knows? I don’t know.”

Ted Lasso, developed by Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt and Joe Kelly, is based on a character Sudeikis originally portrayed in a series of promos for NBC Sports’ coverage of the English Premier League. The series follows Ted Lasso, an American college football coach who is hired to coach an English soccer team in the EPL. The show premiered in August 2020 and quickly turned into a smash hit.

The third season of Ted Lasso is currently in production in the U.K. and is set to premiere later this year.

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Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle announce joint stand-up comedy show in London

Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle have announced a joint stand-up comedy show in London, set to take place Sept. 3 at the O2 Arena. The controversial comedians have set an age limit at their event, only welcoming guests 18 years and older. Tickets will go on sale for the general public on June 10.

Rock, 57, recently joined Chappelle onstage at West Hollywood’s “The Comedy Store,” where both poked fun at their attacks. Chappelle, 48, was attacked onstage in May while performing at the “Netflix is a Joke” show in Los Angeles. Accused attacker Isaiah Lee, 23, said he was “triggered” by the comedian’s jokes about the LGBTQ community and homelessness, and claims he was inspired to attack the comedian after seeing Will Smith slap Rock at the Academy Awards.

Smith infamously slapped Rock onstage during the televised awards show after Rock cracked a bald joke about the actor’s wife, Jada-Pinkett Smith, who’s openly discussed her struggles with alopecia, an autoimmune disease that causes hair to fall out.

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Tampa Bay Lightning defeat NY Rangers in Game 4 to tie series at 2-2

The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the New York Rangers on Tuesday with a 4-1 victory in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference final at Amalie Arena, evening the series at 2-2.

Pat Maroon helped Tampa Bay take the early lead with a goal just 2:38 into the first period, and Steven Stamkos scored in the third. The Lightning’s Ondřej Palát earned two assists and added an empty-netter with 8.7 left in regulation, while Nikita Kucherov earned a team-high 21st postseason point with a breakaway goal in the second period, which would hold as the game winner. Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy recorded 33 saves in the win, his highest total of the series.

The Lightning and Rangers will face-off again in Game 5, scheduled for Thursday at 8 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden in New York.

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One confirmed dead, multiple injured in separate climbing incidents at California’s Mount Shasta

Authorities confirmed that one climber is dead, and several others were injured in separate incidents on Northern California’s Mount Shasta on Monday during “very tough conditions”. Mount Shasta is a potentially active volcano and a major peak of the Cascade Range. It has an elevation of 14,179 feet.

The Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office said rescuers responded to three incidents on the mountain near the Oregon border over the course of several hours. The fatal incident involving three climbers was reported at 8:39 a.m. around Avalanche Gulch, which authorities described as a snowy glacier climb on the mountain. One climber was confirmed dead before rescue efforts could be performed, the sheriff’s office said. The second climber in this incident was in critical condition while a third was recovering from injuries that included a broken ankle.

A second incident occurred around Avalanche Gulch at 12:31 p.m., with rescue crews airlifting one climber in critical condition to safety. The sheriff’s office said that in yet another separate incident, a fifth climber was rescued around 4 p.m. after suffering injuries on the mountain. A helicopter crew located her and airlifted her to a hospital.

The sheriff’s office later posted a climbing advisory video with another climber describing the conditions on the mountain as “very tough.”  In the video, Wallace Casper of Bozeman, Montana said a lot of people were slipping and sliding due to a layer of water ice on top of the snowpack, conditions which he said make it “pretty much impossible to self-arrest” as a skier.

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Matthew McConaughey speaks at White House briefing, makes plea to leaders for gun reform

Uvalde, Texas native Matthew McConaughey visited the White House on Tuesday, and emotionally urged leaders to make the loss of 19 children and two teachers in last month’s mass school shooting “matter” by enacting stricter gun laws.

McConaughey said during the White House briefing:  “So I am here today in the hopes of applying what energy, reason and passion that I have and to try and turn this moment into a reality because this moment is different. We start by making the loss of these lives matter.  We start by making laws that save lives and don’t infringe on our Second Amendment rights. We start right now by voting to pass policies that can keep us from having so many Columbine, Sandy Hooks, Parklands, Las Vegas and Uvaldes.”

McConaughey called for gun responsibility, not gun control, saying: “We need background checks. We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21. We need a waiting period for those rifles. We need red flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them.”

McConaughey visited his hometown after the shooting, and as he spoke he showed photos of the children killed and described how their families pleaded with him to make sure their loss mattered.  The actor said: “We need to invest in mental health care. We need safer schools. We need to restrain sensationalized media coverage. We need to restore our family values. We need to restore American values.”

McConaughey challenged leaders in Washington, D.C. to finally enact gun laws that save lives: “Can both sides see beyond the political problem at hand and admit that we have a life preservation problem on our hands This should not be a partisan issue. As divided as our country is, this gun responsibility issue is one that we agree on more than we don’t Find the middle ground, a place where most of us Americans live anyway, especially on this issue, because I promise you, America, you and me, we are not as divided as we are being told we are.”

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Matthew McConaughey speaks at White House briefing, makes plea to leaders for gun reform

Uvalde, Texas native Matthew McConaughey visited the White House on Tuesday, and emotionally urged leaders to make the loss of 19 children and two teachers in last month’s mass school shooting “matter” by enacting stricter gun laws.

McConaughey said during the White House briefing:  “So I am here today in the hopes of applying what energy, reason and passion that I have and to try and turn this moment into a reality because this moment is different. We start by making the loss of these lives matter.  We start by making laws that save lives and don’t infringe on our Second Amendment rights. We start right now by voting to pass policies that can keep us from having so many Columbine, Sandy Hooks, Parklands, Las Vegas and Uvaldes.”

McConaughey called for gun responsibility, not gun control, saying: “We need background checks. We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15 rifle to 21. We need a waiting period for those rifles. We need red flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them.”

McConaughey visited his hometown after the shooting, and as he spoke he showed photos of the children killed and described how their families pleaded with him to make sure their loss mattered.  The actor said: “We need to invest in mental health care. We need safer schools. We need to restrain sensationalized media coverage. We need to restore our family values. We need to restore American values.”

McConaughey challenged leaders in Washington, D.C. to finally enact gun laws that save lives: “Can both sides see beyond the political problem at hand and admit that we have a life preservation problem on our hands This should not be a partisan issue. As divided as our country is, this gun responsibility issue is one that we agree on more than we don’t Find the middle ground, a place where most of us Americans live anyway, especially on this issue, because I promise you, America, you and me, we are not as divided as we are being told we are.”

Editorial credit: DFree / Shutterstock.com

Los Angeles Angels fire manager Joe Maddon as losing streak hits 12 games

Amid a 12-game losing streak, the Los Angeles Angels fired manager Joe Maddon on Tuesday.  The team announced that Phil Nevin has been named interim manager.  The Angels were 10 games above .500 two weeks ago, but have since fallen to 27-29. The 12-game losing streak ties a franchise record for a season, putting the Angels in danger of missing the postseason for the eighth straight year.

The 68-year-old Maddon told The Athletic he was very surprised by first-time general manager Perry Minasian’s decision, saying: “You always rely on people in charge to read the tea leaves properly. This time, they did not. You didn’t even have to ask me. You can ask any of the players or coaches. They’re the ones who really know. Perry was in a tough spot. I understand that. Let me just put it that way. I would really rely on the sentiments of the coaches and the players.”

Maddon, a three-time Manager of the Year, was in his third season with the Angels’ organization, where he had previously spent four decades as a player and a coach. Maddon went on to a successful nine-year run with the Tampa Bay Rays, and in 2016 he led the Chicago Cubs to their first World Series championship in more than 100 years.

The Angels began season this season at 27-17, but since then they have an AL-worst 6.31 ERA.  Said Maddon: ‘We’ve got guys hurt. The bullpen had a really hard time. And we just stopped hitting. It’s just one of those things that became contagious. It wasn’t an issue of camaraderie or lack of leadership. It was a calamity that occurred all at one time.’

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Carly Pearce shares her closet with fans with special Pop-Up shop to raise money for charity

Carly Pearce will have a special treat for fans during CMA Fest, giving them access to shop her personal closet.  Carly’s Closet: A Pop-Up Shop Supporting Healthcare for the Music Industry will open at Noelle (200 Fourth Avenue North) in downtown Nashville on Friday, June 10 from 4-6:00 p.m. CT. Pearce hand-selected over 100 items of clothing, shoes, and accessories from her personal collection for the Pop-Up Shop.

Said Pearce: “I recently did some spring cleaning and found that I had so many clothes that need new owners. Who better to pass them along to than my fans!? With so many people coming to Nashville this week, it felt like the perfect time to host a pop-up shop and raise some money for a great cause.  Access to healthcare is something we all need and deserve, and the Music Health Alliance has been providing resources to artists, songwriters and musicians for over 15 years. When you make a purchase at this event, you can know your money is going directly to them to support the people who bring the music to life.”

Wardrobe pieces available for purchase will include outfits from Carly’s “Next Girl” music video, the 2021 ACM Awards, and several media and concert appearances. All proceeds will aid the Music Health Alliance’s mission to provide free healthcare advocacy and support to more than 18,000 music industry members across 49 states.

Fans across the country will also be able to participate in Carly’s Closet online, with a few select items available for sale exclusively on TalkShopLive.

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Chris Lane and wife Lauren expecting their second child together

Chris Lane and his wife Lauren (Bushnell) Lane have revealed they are expecting their second child in late October.  The couple also share son Dutton, who will be 1 later this week.  Chris shared the news on Instagram, posting a picture of himself, Lauren and Dutton with the caption: I guess it’s no secret to what’s been goin on in the Lane household 🤠 Dutty is gonna be a brother!”

Lauren told People that they were “shocked” to learn the news, as Lauren initially had no symptoms and just took a test to prove what she thought she already knew:  “To be quite honest, when we found out, I’ve never been more shocked in my entire life because this was very much an unexpected surprise. When we found out, Dutton was almost 8 months old, and I didn’t feel anything. I truly had no symptoms. And to my surprise and to Chris’ surprise, it was very much positive.”

The couple is now preparing to have two babies under two years old.“(It) wasn’t necessarily the plan, but we’re so thankful that we’re able to have another,” said Lauren. “We had planned on having at least two kids, so we’re very thankful that it was able to happen for us, even if it wasn’t necessarily on our exact timing.”

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Take a look at the first teaser for ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’

Lionsgate Films has released a 90-second teaser for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.  The preview shows a snowy landscape where frozen, golden birds and snakes appear to be defrosting, and the words “In 2023, the world will discover who is a songbird and who is a snake,” appear on the screen before a snake strikes at the camera.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes stars Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler, and is based on Suzanne Collin’s best-selling young adult novel. A film synopsis reads: “Years before he would become the tyrannical President of Panem, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) is the last hope for his fading lineage, a once-proud family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow is alarmed when he is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), the girl tribute from impoverished District 12. But, after Lucy Gray commands all of Panem’s attention by defiantly singing during the reaping ceremony, Snow thinks he might be able to turn the odds in their favor.”

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is set for release Nov. 17, 2023.

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