Scottie Pippen predicts the US Olympic men's basketball team will "bring home the gold"
NBA legend Scottie Pippen has a special message for the US Olympic men's basketball team, who is competing for their fourth consecutive gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
Pippen spoke to ABC Audio about his prediction for this year's roster, which features several first-time Olympians.
The former Chicago Bulls player -- who was a first time Olympian himself when he joined the 1992 Dream Team alongside Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird -- said the team features "the best [players] in the world."
"I think those players have truly shown -- throughout their careers -- that they're some of the top in the game," Pippen remarked before diving into his prediction for how the team will perform in Tokyo.
Saying Team USA "will bond and gel throughout their practices and their preparation [and] training," the basketball great declared, "They will do well and bring home the gold."
Pippen, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, shouted out Kevin Durant. The Brooklyn Nets player is primed to win his third gold medal at this year's Olympics.
"I'm wishing him to bring home the gold for Team USA," Pippen expressed. "I think his leadership will truly be needed in this year's Olympic Games, especially on the basketball stage."
Pippen also reminisced about his time playing in the 1992 and 1996 Olympics, noting the pressure athletes face when they compete on the world stage.
"You're representing the country. The amount of people that are behind you and pulling for you, it's an amazing feeling," he recalled. "It's something I will never forget."
The US Olympic men's basketball team tips off against France this Sunday at 8 a.m. ET.
Three lucky people and their friends can watch the Olympics from Pippen's Chicago mansion, which is available on Airbnb for three one-night stays on August 2, 4, and 6.
Source-ABC
Keyshia Cole's mother, Frankie Lons, passes away at age 61
Keyshia Cole's biological mother, Frankie Lons, has passed away at age 61.
According to TMZ, Lons, whose struggle with substance abuse was documented on Cole's various BET reality series, including Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is, reportedly overdosed at her Oakland home on Sunday, the same day she was celebrating her 61st birthday.
Cole’s younger sister, Elite, confirmed the news of her mother's death in an IG Story. “Worse pain ever….to see my mama in a body bag on her birthday! My heart so broken.”
As you may recall, Cole had a rocky relationship with her biological mother and father, Virgil Hunter. Although the singer was adopted and raised by family friends, she eventually reunited with her biological family once her career hit the mainstream.
It was just early last year that Cole had praised her mother for deciding to check herself into rehab.
"Maybe that's what'l make THIS Time different," she'd written in a now-deleted post. "This being what YOU WANTED AND NO ONE ELSE...."
As of March of last year, Frankie had reportedly been sober for 60 days.
Cole has not yet commented on her mother's passing.
Source-ABC
Jeff Bezos to blast into space aboard New Shepard rocket
Billionaire Jeff Bezos will blast into space on Tuesday, in the first crewed flight of his rocket ship, New Shepard.
He will be accompanied by Mark Bezos, his brother, Wally Funk, an 82-year-old pioneer of the space race, and an 18-year-old student.
They will travel in a capsule with the biggest windows flown into space, offering stunning views of the Earth.
New Shepard, built by Bezos' company Blue Origin, is designed to serve the burgeoning market for space tourism.
"I'm excited. People keep asking me if I'm nervous. I'm not really nervous, I'm curious. I want to know what we're going to learn," Bezos said in an interview with CBS News.
"We've been training. This vehicle's ready, this crew is ready, this team is amazing. We just feel really good about it."
Though the private spaceflight revolution is often billed as an effort to expand access to space for all, seats aboard one of Virgin Galactic flights will initially set customers back $250,000, while the regular ticket price for New Shepard has not been disclosed.
With a net worth of around $200bn, Bezos is the world's richest man. The 57-year-old recently resigned as chief executive of Amazon, the e-commerce giant he founded, to focus on special company initiatives and his other ventures such as Blue Origin.
Bezos' brother Mark, 53, founded an advertising agency and is now a senior vice president at Robin Hood, a New York-based charity.
The fourth passenger is the son of Joes Daemen, founder of Dutch private equity firm Somerset Capital Partners. Oliver had originally secured a seat on the second flight, but was drafted in to replaced the anonymous winner of a public auction.
This unnamed winner, who paid $28m (£20m) to join Bezos on New Shepard's first crewed flight, had to pull out "due to scheduling conflicts".
Source-BBC
Certain Neutrogena, Aveeno sunscreens recalled due to traces of cancer-causing chemical
Johnson & Johnson has issued a voluntary recall of several sunscreen products after finding they contain trace amounts of a cancer-causing chemical.
The recalled products include five Neutrogena and Aveeno aerosol sunscreens, according to a statement released Wednesday by the company.
Some samples of the affected products, all spray-on sunscreens, were found to contain low levels of benzene, according to Johnson & Johnson, the parent company.
Johnson & Johnson said it recalled the products out of an "abundance of caution," noting the low levels of benzene found in the samples would not be expected to impact people’s health.
The most severe health complications typically come after long term exposure to benzene, which the CDC defines as exposure of one year or more.
The five sunscreen products impacted by the voluntary recall are:
NEUTROGENA® Beach Defense® aerosol sunscreen
NEUTROGENA® Cool Dry Sport aerosol sunscreen
NEUTROGENA® Invisible Daily™ defense aerosol sunscreen
NEUTROGENA® Ultra Sheer® aerosol sunscreen
AVEENO® Protect + Refresh aerosol sunscreen
Product images and lot information is available on www.Neutrogena.com and www.aveeno.com.
Johnson & Johnson is advising consumers to stop using these products and discard them.
Hip-hop legend Biz Markie dies at age 57
Hip-hop legend Biz Markie, best known for his 1989 single "Just a Friend," has died at age 57.
His rep confirmed his passing in a statement to ABC News Friday.
"It is with profound sadness that we announce, this evening, with his wife Tara by his side, Hip Hop pioneer Biz Markie peacefully passed away," the statement read. "We are grateful for the many calls and prayers of support that we have received during this difficult time."
"Biz created a legacy of artistry that will forever be celebrated by his industry peers and his beloved fans whose lives he was able to touch through music, spanning over 35 years," the statement continued. "He leaves behind a wife, many family members and close friends who will miss his vibrant personality, constant jokes and frequent banter. We respectfully request privacy for his family as they mourn their loved one."
It was in 2010 that Markie revealed he'd been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. After a 140-pound weight loss, Markie told ABC News in 2014 that he "wanted to live" and that if he "didn’t make the changes, it was going to make the diabetes worse." The rapper was hospitalized in April 2020 due to complications from his diabetes, and the following December it was reported that Markie was staying in a rehabilitation facility after going into a diabetic coma and suffering a stroke.
Markie's rep refuted reports in late June, 2021 that Markie had died, saying that his client was "under medical care, surrounded by professionals who are working hard to provide the best healthcare possible."
Born Marcel Theo Hall in Harlem, New York, Markie began his music career with the Juice Crew, serving as the group's beatboxer. Often referred to as ''Clown Prince of Hip-Hop'' for his ability to inject humor into his lyrics, Markie gained mainstream attention with the 1989 hit single "Just a Friend," from his second studio album, The Biz Never Sleeps. Sampled from Freddie Scott's "(You) Got What I Need," the song features Markie both rapping and singing. It became his biggest career hit, reaching #9 on the Billboard Hot 11 singles chart.
In addition to several studio albums, Markie made numerous guest appearances on songs including the Beastie Boys' "Bennie and the Jets" and Will Smith's "So Fresh." He was even sampled by The Rolling Stones for their track "Anybody Seen My Baby?"
Markie also enjoyed a successful acting career, appearing on several episodes of the sketch comedy show In Living Color, portraying a beatboxing alien in Men in Black II, and making several cameos on the children's show Yo Gabba Gabba for his segment "Biz's Beat of the Day." Other credits include Sharknado 2, The Meteor Man, and Breath Control.
PUBLIC FORECAST FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT
GENERAL SITUATION: THE NORTHERN EXTENT OF A TROPICAL WAVE MOVING WESTWARDS ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA WILL TRIGGER A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AS IT CONTINUES TO EXIT THE AREA. MEANWHILE, HIGH PRESSURE WILL PROGRESSIVELY BUILD IN ITS WAKE THROUGH TONIGHT.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT DUE TO THE RISK OF POSSIBLE WATERSPOUT ACTIVITY. BEACHGOERS SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION DUE TO THE SLIGHT RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ALONG NORTHERN AND EASTERN SHORELINES.
FOR ALL AREAS:
WEATHER:VARIABLY CLOUDY, HOT, AND A BIT BREEZY WITH A FEW PASSING SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS, MAINLY OCCURRING OFFSHORE IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS THROUGH TONIGHT.
ADVISORY: EXPECT GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
WINDS: NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 15 KNOTS.
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE 90°F 32°C
OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURE 75°F 24°C
SUNRISE: 6:29 AM MOONRISE: 10:39 AM
SUNSET: 8:00 PM MOONSET: 11:35 PM
HIGH TIDE: 11:40 AM HIGH TIDE: 11:57 PM
LOW TIDE: 5:44 PM LOW TIDE: 6:25 AM THU
EXTENDED FORECAST: (FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS) THE SURFACE RIDGE WILL GRADUALLY WEAKEN ACROSS THE BAHAMAS. MEANWHILE, A LOW TO MID-LEVEL TROUGH ACCOMPANIED BY A PLUME OF TROPICAL MOISTURE WILL SPARK SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE ISLAND CHAIN AS THE TROUGH PROPAGATES NORTHWESTWARDS THROUGH TO FRIDAY.
Microsoft announces Windows 365, a subscription cloud PC
Microsoft has announced a new "cloud PC" product where users can stream a Windows device from anywhere.
Windows 365 will work similarly to game streaming - where the computing is done in a data centre somewhere remotely and streamed to a device.
That means all sorts of devices - including tablets or Apple Macs - can stream a full Windows desktop PC.
It is being sold to businesses to begin with, as many firms move to a mix of office and remote working.
Microsoft is marketing the new way of using a PC as "hybrid Windows for a hybrid world".
The company says that every user's apps and settings will boot instantly from any device - allowing personalised Windows PCs to be accessed from anywhere.
"The Windows experience is consistent, no matter the device," the announcement promised.
"You can get the same work done on a laptop in a hotel room, a tablet from their car between appointments, or your desktop while you're in the office."
It will launch in August for business customers "of all sizes", Microsoft said. To begin with, it will stream a version of Windows 10 - but the successor, Windows 11, will also be available once it launches.
There is no news on whether a personal product will follow. However, Microsoft has been moving towards a subscription model for its man services for nearly a decade.
Microsoft Office began marketing subscription licences with Office 2013, which was launched alongside Office 365, as the subscription version is known. It now makes more money than its single-purchase desktop-bound version.
Similarly, Microsoft has been championing the ongoing subscription model in its gaming division. Its Xbox Games Pass service has largely won over sceptical gamers, providing a range of titles to download and play for a monthly fee. It has recently added game streaming, using similar technology to this new version of Windows.
The backbone of the service already existed, using Microsoft's widely-used Azure platform and existing virtualisation technology.
The downside to such services is that their long-term cost for individuals is often much higher than a one-off purchase.
Microsoft has also dramatically lowered the price of Windows for many customers. Where once it was sold on discs at computer stores for a significant cost, the company has offered customers free upgrades from one version to another for many years, and will do the same for Windows 11.
Source-BBC
Kia Soul EV won't go to the U.S.
The Chicago Auto Show is the first show where the Kia EV6 has been displayed for the public to see, and it's highly impressive. But it got us wondering about another Kia EV that was announced a couple years ago but still hasn't shown up in America: the Kia Soul EV. We spoke to a Kia representative, and he didn't have good news.
Apparently the Soul EV won't be offered in the U.S. It was delayed in part because of supply issues, and the company reportedly wasn't going to bring the next-generation version, here, but apparently even the current one is officially dead for the U.S. The representative said Kia is making the Niro EV the small electric crossover focus for America. Part of the reason is that its slightly larger size and more traditional crossover appearance make sense for the U.S. market.
Source-AutoBlog
Britney Spears says she wants dad Jamie charged with conservator abuse
Britney Spears is so happy, she's doing cartwheels -- literally.
On Wednesday, the 39-year-old singer took to Instagram to post a video of herself horseback riding and doing cartwheels in the grass. Alongside the post, which was fittingly set to KT Tunstall's "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree," Britney wrote, "Coming along, folks ... coming along [middle finger emoji]!!!!!"
"New with real representation today ... I feel GRATITUDE and BLESSED," Britney continued. "Thank you to my fans who are supporting me ... You have no idea what it means to me be supported by such awesome fans !!!! God bless you all !!!!!"
Britney was referring to Wednesday's development in her ongoing conservatorship battle, in which a judge approved Spears' request to appoint high-powered attorney Mathew S. Rosengart as her new legal counsel on Wednesday for her conservatorship case. Rosengart immediately pledged to get Britney's father, Jamie Spears, removed as her conservator.
Britney's celebratory Instagram post concluded, "Pssss this is me celebrating by horseback riding and doing cartwheels today," adding #FreeBritney. By the way, it's believed this is the first time that Britney herself has used the #FreeBritney hashtag in a public social media post.
Britney's boyfriend, Sam Asghari, as well as celebrities Ariana Grande, Jersey Shore's Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and thousands of fans, showered the "Stronger" singer with support in the post's comments.
"YOU ARE SO VERY LOVED AND SUPPORTED," Ari commented.
Britney Spears addressed California Superior Court Judge Brenda J. Penny on Wednesday, stating her desire to have her father removed from her conservatorship. "I am here to get rid of my dad," she said.
She also said during Wednesday's hearing that she wanted to charge her father, Jamie Spears, with conservator abuse.
Britney also has a new attorney. Penny approved high-powered attorney Mathew S. Rosengart to be the pop star's new legal counsel. The judge also approved Samuel D. Ingham III's request to resign as the singer's court-appointed attorney.
While Rosengart appeared in person in court, Britney and Jamie Spears called in via telephone. Also appearing remotely were Britney's mother, Lynne Spears, as well as co-conservator Jodi Montgomery, who has served as the conservator of the singer's personal affairs since 2019 when Jamie vacated the role.
Penny also approved the request from Bessemer Trust to step down as co-conservator in the handling of Britney's estate, leaving Jamie in sole control of her finances. Jamie's involvement in the conservatorship has been a point of contention for some time; during Wednesday's hearing, Britney spoke about her "serious abandonment issues" and said that as a child, she was "extremely scared" of her father.
"My dad needs to be removed [from the conservatorship] today," she said, adding that she approved of Montgomery's job as conservator of her person.
These developments came three weeks to the day after her bombshell testimony about her conservatorship on June 23. This testimony did more than just make headlines -- it served as the catalyst for several changes regarding her 13-year conservatorship.
Britney, 39, has been in a conservatorship since 2008, when she was hospitalized for mental health reasons.
The Grammy winner's next day in court is scheduled for September 29.
Source-ABC
Minister of Foreign Affairs for Japan to visit Jamaica
TOSHIMITSU Motegi, minister of foreign affairs for Japan, will visit Jamaica from July 19 to 20, the Japanese Embassy in Kingston announced yesterday.
During his visit, the minister will pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Andrew Holness and hold ministerial dialogue with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Kamina Johnson Smith. In addition, he will hold a Japan-Caricom ministerial meeting.
“Through this visit, Minister Motegi will exchange opinions on cooperation for the maintenance and expansion of free and international order based on the rule of law, globally faced issues such as measurements against the novel coronavirus and strengthening economic relationships,” the release said.