There you are, sitting in traffic in your car, listening to Taylor Swift on Spotify because it’s easier than subjecting yourself to a new, more challenging artist. An ad pops up in your stream. It’s serious stuff, evidenced by the dystopian tone of the narrator: “Join the mission to protect America,” the serious man’s voice commands, “with bonuses up to $50,000 and generous benefits. Apply now … and fulfill your mission.”
It’s an Immigration and Customs Enforcement recruitment ad, part of the Trump administration’s investment of $30 billion to add more than 10,000 deportation officers to its ranks by the end of the year. You would have been spared the outrage if only you had paid for Spotify’s ad-free tier of service, but there’s no way the audio streamer is getting your money now. You’ll be switching to, say, Apple Music. Maybe Tidal?
The experience of being subjected to recruitment ads for a domestic military force, assembled by a power-hungry president, has generated intense backlash that’s culminated this week in calls for boycotts of streaming services and platforms that have featured ICE spots. They include Pandora, ESPN, YouTube, Hulu and Fubo TV. Multiple HBO Max subscribers bemoaned on X that they were subjected to ICE recruitment videos while watching All Elite Wrestling: “Time to be force-fed ICE commercials against my will for two hours again #WWENXT,” @YKWrestling wrote.
Recruitment ads — Uncle Sam’s “I Want You” poster comes to mind — are an American staple, especially in times of war. But the current recruitment effort is aimed at sending forces into American cities, predicated on exaggerated claims that U.S. metro areas are under siege and in peril due to dangerous illegal immigrants, leftist protesters and out-of-control crime rates. The data, however, does not support those claims. The American Immigration Council found that from 1980 to 2022, while the immigrant share of the U.S. population more than doubled (from 6.2% to 13.9%), the total crime rate declined by over 60%.
Yet there’s a far scarier doomscape on the horizon if ICE’s recruitment efforts are successful: a mercenary army loyal only to Trump, weaponized to keep him on the throne. If that sounds more dystopian than the aforementioned Spotify ad, consider that the administration has spent more than $6.5 million over the past month on a slew of 30-second commercials aimed at luring in police officers.
The ads aired on TVs in more than a dozen cities including Chicago, Seattle and Atlanta and opened with images of each specific metro area’s skyline. Then came the commanding narration: “Attention, Miami law enforcement!” It’s followed by the same messaging that is used in ICE ads across the country: “You took an oath to protect and serve, to keep your family, your city, safe. But in sanctuary cities you’re ordered to stand down while dangerous illegals walk free — Join ICE and help us catch the worst of the worst. Drug traffickers. Gang members. Predators.”
But are the ads working? It’s hard to say since transparency isn’t a hallmark of the MAGA White House. For what it’s worth, a Sept. 16 press release from the DHS claimed that it had received more than 150,000 applications in response to its campaign and had extended 18,000 tentative job offers.
As for the power of consumer-led boycotts, there’s hope. More than 1.7 million Disney, Hulu and ESPN subscriptions were reportedly canceled between Sept. 17 and Sept. 23 during Jimmy Kimmel’s temporary suspension by ABC (Disney is ABC’s parent company). The network pulled the show after the host’s comments related to Charlie Kirk’s assassination angered MAGA supporters and the Trump-appointed FCC chair appeared to threaten the network. But after a week with a significant increase in cancellations — a 436% jump compared to a normal week — Kimmel was back on the air.
As of today, Spotify appears unmoved by the pressure to pull those intrusive ICE ads. “This advertisement is part of a broad campaign the US government is running across television, streaming, and online channels,” a Spotify spokesperson said in a statement this week. “The content does not violate our advertising policies. However, users can mark any ad with a thumbs up or thumbs down to help manage their ads preferences.”
Thumbs down. Frowny emoji. Cue the dystopian narrator for a counter ad: “Join the mission to protect America: Cancel Spotify.”
“South Park” is bidding adieu to its short-lived but buzzy Season 27.
The sixth episode of the year, which airs Wednesday on Comedy Central, marks the first episode of Season 28, a spokesperson from the network confirmed to The Times. (The episode will stream on Paramount+ Thursday.)
The reason behind the decision to end Season 27, which was originally expected to have 10 episodes, is unclear. But fans of the long-running satire will still get four additional episodes this year, if “South Park” co-creator Matt Stone and Trey Parker stick to the schedule they outlined. Fans had been speculating about the start of a new season after seeing television listings that coded Wednesday’s episode as the first of Season 28.
The new episode, titled “Twisted Christian,” follows a possessed Cartman, who “may be the key to stopping the Antichrist,” according its brief description. A short teaser also shows the students of South Park Elementary engaging with the viral “67” slang, an essentially meaningless phrase that has taken over Generation Alpha.
The recent episodes have been drawing strong viewership and have, as always, poked fun at topical issues and political figures including President Trump, immigration raids, tariffs and the FCC. Even Paramount, which bought the global streaming rights to “South Park” this summer in a $1.5-billion deal, has been the butt of several jokes.
Season 27 had an unusual cadence of episodes, with the first two arriving on a weekly schedule, then biweekly before the arrival of the most recent episode (and the apparent finale of the season), which aired three weeks later on Sept. 25.
The second episode drew criticism for its parody of Charlie Kirk, the slain political influencer, despite the episode airing weeks before his death. Comedy Central, which is owned by Paramount, announced it will not air reruns of the second episode of the latest season after Kirk was fatally shot Sept. 10 in Utah. The episode can still be found on Paramount+.
The final episode of Season 27 was the first to air after Kirk’s death, but Parker and Stone told the Denver Post the delay was unrelated to its content: “No one pulled the episode, no one censored us, and you know we’d say so if true.” The pair issued a statement on Sept. 17 saying the episode wasn’t finished in time.
Future episodes of “South Park” will air every two weeks through Dec. 10.
Times TV editor Maira Garcia contributed to this report.
Jimmy Kimmel figured his ABC late-night show was toast during last month’s firestorm over his comments following conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s shooting.
“I said to my wife: ‘That’s it. It’s over,’” Kimmel recalled Wednesday night at the Bloomberg Screentime media conference in Hollywood in a lengthy sit-down interview three weeks after the controversy.
The 57-year-old comedian has all along felt his statements about the Kirk shooting were misconstrued. But he recognized his show was in deep trouble on Sept. 17 when his bosses benched him and two ABC affiliate station owners, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group, initially refused to air the program.
Kimmel provided fresh details about his dealings with Walt Disney Co. brass, his emotional hiatus and the late night television business in the wake of rival CBS announcing it was canceling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” next spring.
Kimmel declined to say whether he would extend his long ABC run when his contract is up in May, but he acknowledged an interest in producing other projects.
Kimmel’s future was in doubt last month after his comments and the political backlash spawned boisterous protests that shined a light on 1st Amendment freedoms, the role of the Federal Communications Commission and the challenges facing Disney as it looks for a new leader to replace Chief Executive Bob Iger next year.
The controversy began with his Sept. 15 monologue when Kimmel said Trump supporters “are desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” Right-wing influencers howled; FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel’s actions “the sickest conduct possible.”
The sentiment he was trying to convey “was intentionally, and I think maliciously, mischaracterized,” Kimmel said.
He didn’t sense the initial fallout was “a big problem,” but rather a “distortion on the part of some of the right-wing media networks,” he said.
Kimmel had planned to clarify his remarks Sept. 17, but Disney executives feared the comedian was dug in and would only inflame the tense situation. That night, about an hour before showtime, Disney hit pause and released a statement saying the show had been pre-empted “indefinitely.”
He was off the air for four days.
“I can sometimes be aggressive. I can sometimes be unpleasant,” he said.
A protester calls for the return of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” after Walt Disney Co. yanked the ABC comedian in September over comments he made about the shooting of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
He recognized the show’s precarious position when Sinclair and Nexstar bailed. He recalled an episode from early in his career when he made a joke about boisterous Detroit basketball fans, saying “They’re gonna burn the city of Detroit down if the Pistons win,” so he hoped the Lakers would prevail.
The comment riled up the Motor City, prompting the local ABC affiliate to briefly shelve Kimmel’s show.
An ABC executive at the time told Kimmel the loss of the Detroit market could be catastrophic. That pales in comparison to the threatened loss of Nexstar and Sinclair, which own dozens of stations, including in such large markets as Seattle, St. Louis and Washington, D.C.
“The idea that I would not have …. 40 affiliates [stations] … I was like, ‘Well, that’s it,’” Kimmel said.
But he said he “was not going to go along” with demands made by station broadcasters.
Sinclair, a right-leaning broadcaster, said in a statement it would not air Kimmel until he issued “a direct apology to the Kirk family” and “make a meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA,” the right-wing group Kirk founded.
Both Sinclair and Nexstar resumed airing the show Sept. 26. ABC offered no concessions.
Kimmel complimented Disney’s co-chair of entertainment Dana Walden’s handling of the crisis, saying she was instrumental in helping him sort through his emotions.
“I ruined Dana’s weekend. It was just nonstop phone calls all weekend,” Kimmel said, saying he doubted the situation would have turned out so well “if I hadn’t talked to Dana as much as I did, because it helped me think everything through, and it helped me just kind of understand where everyone was coming from.”
When asked who might become the next CEO of Disney, Kimmel said it would be “foolish” to answer that question.
“But I happen to love Dana Walden very much, and I think she’s done a great job,” Kimmel said.
Throughout the controversy, Walden and Iger were skewered by critics who asserted the company was caving to President Trump, who has made it clear that he’s no Kimmel fan. The Disney leaders were accused of “corporate capitulation.”
“What has happened over the last three weeks … was very unfair to my bosses at Disney,” Kimmel said. “It [was] insane, and I hope that we drew a really bold red line as Americans about what we will and will not accept.”
Kimmel returned Sept. 23 with an emotional monologue that championed the 1st Amendment.
Ratings soared.
The controversy — and CBS’ upcoming cancellation of Colbert — has focused new attention on the cultural clout of late night hosts, despite the industry’s falling ratings.
Millions of viewers now watch monologues and other late night gags the following day on YouTube, which means networks that produce the shows have lost valuable revenue because Google controls much of that advertising.
Networks acknowledge the late night block is challenged, but Kimmel said such shows still matter.
He scoffed at reports that cite unnamed sources suggesting Colbert’s show was on track to lose $40 million this year.
“If [CBS] lost $40 million, they would have canceled it already,” Kimmel said. “I know what the budgets for these shows are,” alluding to the ABC, CBS and NBC shows.
“If we’re losing so much money, none of us would be on,” he said. “That’s kind of all you need to know.”
About 200 people gathered on Paramount’s Melrose Avenue lot for a screening of “Red Alert,” a four-part scripted drama portraying the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel from the perspective of six victims.
The host of the Sept. 30 event was Paramount Chairman and Chief Executive David Ellison, who shared how he had chatted with Academy Award-nominated producer Lawrence Bender a few weeks earlier at a memorial service for legendary Hollywood power broker Skip Brittenham. That’s where Ellison learned that Bender’s Israeli-backed series, “Red Alert,” needed a home in the U.S.
Ellison quickly volunteered. “It was a fast ‘yes,’ ” he told the group.
On Tuesday, “Red Alert” debuted on the company’s streaming service, Paramount+, marking the second anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. The initial Hamas assault left about 1,200 Israelis dead and more than 250 kidnapped.
The high-profile project comes two months after Ellison assumed control of Paramount in an $8-billion buyout by his family, led by billionaire and Oracle founder Larry Ellison, and private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners.
Since the deal closed Aug. 7, David Ellison has moved to position the company slightly right of the political center, while also taking on polarizing issues. The scion has been unafraid to challenge those in Hollywood who’ve called for a boycott of Israel.
More than two years after the Oct. 7 attack, a deep divide remains in Hollywood over the subsequent Israel-Hamas war.
The effort called for a boycott of Israeli film festivals, institutions and projects to help spur an end to the war in Gaza. The campaign was designed in the vein of South African boycotts decades ago, which proved to be instrumental in ending apartheid, that country’s racial segregation.
No other major studio followed Paramount.
In its Sept. 12 statement, Paramount said it disagreed with the Film Workers call to avoid film screenings or to work with Israeli film institutions.
“At Paramount, we believe in the power of storytelling to connect and inspire people, promote mutual understanding, and preserve the moments, ideas, and events that shape the world we share,” the company said. “Silencing individual creative artists based on their nationality does not promote better understanding or advance the cause of peace.”
The Film Workers group accused Paramount of misrepresenting the intent of its pledge, saying it did not target individual filmmakers.
But critics counter that filmmakers who engage with Israeli cultural institutions would likely fall under the ban.
More than 1,200 industry players including actors Mayim Bialik and Liev Schreiber and Paramount board member Sherry Lansing signed an opposing open letter released by the nonprofit organization Creative Community For Peace that accuses the Film Workers for Palestine of advocating “arbitrary censorship and the erasure of art.”
The Palestinian supporters dismissed the characterization. “The Film Workers Pledge to End Complicity is an explicitly anti-racist and non-violent campaign that is grounded in international law and the moral clarity of a global majority opposed to genocide,” the group said in a statement this week. “It is the first major refusal of the international film industry at large that targets complicit Israeli film institutions and companies.”
“Red Alert” was co-produced by a prominent Israeli production company, Keshet Media Group, and received funding from the Jewish National Fund-USA and the Israel Entertainment Fund. The series premiered last weekend on Israel’s popular television channel Keshet 12. Keshet produced the Hebrew-language series “Prisoners of War” that Showtime later adapted into the award-winning American drama “Homeland.”
During the late September screening at Paramount, Ellison spoke of the need for such projects as “Red Alert” to remember the atrocities as well as stories of survival and heroism.
“We at Paramount, we are here to tell stories that last forever,” Ellison said. “We are not here to debate politics or platforms or to argue about east or west. And ‘Red Alert’ is the very embodiment of that mission, and I couldn’t be prouder to support this series.”
Others in Hollywood have found fault with Israel’s government and its conduct in the Gaza war, which has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians or combatants.
The United Nations, rights groups, experts and many Western governments accuse Israel of committing genocide. Israel denies the charge.
During a May 2024 Simon Wiesenthal Center gala in his honor, WME Group Executive Chairman Ari Emanuel sharply denounced Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and called for his ouster. Emanuel’s remarks were met with cheers and jeers and some attendees walked out.
In his Oscar acceptance speech last year, Jonathan Glazer, director of the Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest,” asked “Whether the victims of October 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza, all the victims of this dehumanization — how do we resist?”
Weeks later, Steven Spielberg called out the rise of antisemitism as well as the ongoing war.
“We can rage against the heinous acts committed by the terrorists of October 7th and also decry the killing of innocent women and children in Gaza,” Spielberg said during an event celebrating the anniversary of the USC Shoah Foundation.
Paramount’s opposition to the Film Workers’ pledge and other recent moves, including buying the Free Press news site for $150 million and installing its founder, journalist Bari Weiss, as the editor in chief at CBS News, has rattled a small group of Paramount employees.
David Ellison recruited Weiss, who has been public about her support for Israel, for the prominent role.
The division was roiled by Paramount’s efforts to settle President Trump’s lawsuit over edits to a “60 Minutes” interview a year ago with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Paramount this summer agreed to pay $16 million to end Trump’s suit, which 1st Amendment experts viewed as a spurious shakedown.
Weeks later, Trump appointees on the Federal Communications Commission approved the Ellison family’s takeover of Paramount.
The employee group, which calls itself Paramount Employees of Conscience, said they have sent two letters to Paramount leaders in the last month to voice their concerns but have not received a reply. In a statement, the group noted that while Paramount+ was distributing “Red Alert,” the company had not offered “equivalent programming about Palestinian experiences of the genocide in Gaza.”
“How can a company with this supposed creative mission actively ignore, suppress, and silence internal calls for years to champion stories that shed a light on the reality that marginalized and excluded communities, particularly Palestinians, face every day?” the group asked in a Sept. 17 letter addressed to Paramount’s leadership.
Paramount declined to comment.
The group includes about 30 employees, according to one member who asked not to be identified out of fear of retribution.
Paramount employees separately are bracing for a steep round of layoffs, which is expected next month. Ellison’s firm Skydance Media and RedBird promised Wall Street that they would find more than $2 billion in cost cuts at Paramount.
“We know the Ellisons are formidable, powerful and have a lot of resources,” said the Paramount employee. “But we are here to interrupt a culture of silence…. Silence within the industry becomes complicity.”
One of two trained hawks stolen from outside SoFi Stadium during a Rams game was recovered Sunday in Hacienda Heights, nearly 25 miles from where the vehicle taken during the heist was found a week ago.
A two-seat motorized cart with a key left in the ignition was stolen Sept. 28 from the stadium. The hawks — named Bubba and Alice — were housed in green containers in the back seat and vanished along with the vehicle.
Bubba was recovered near Seventh Street in Hacienda Heights after a homeowner spotted the hawk in her backyard and contacted the Inglewood Police Department. Falconer Charles Cogger, who trained and owned the hawks, raced to the location.
“I made arrangements, got over there as quick as I could and got Bubba back,” Cogger told NBC Los Angeles. “Alice is still out there, but this gives me hope she will show up.”
The hawks were employed by SoFi Stadium to deter other birds from flying over SoFi Stadium during the game, keeping fans safe from unpleasant aerial droppings and also keeping birds from eating discarded food.
The Kawasaki Mule UTV that housed the hawks was found abandoned Sept. 29 in a South L.A. neighborhood about five miles from SoFi Stadium and 25 miles from Hacienda Heights.
Inglewood police released a photo of the suspect taken by stadium security cameras, describing him as a male adult “wearing a black jacket with a white stripe going down the shoulder, black pants and black shoes.”
Cogger is holding out hope that Alice will turn up. Each of Cogger’s hawks wears a metal band around its leg that identifies it as captive-bred.
“They can only go so long without eating or getting water,” he said.
Anyone with information about Alice can contact the Inglewood Police Department watch commander at (310) 412-5206. Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for the hawk’s safe return.
Tyrese Gibson faces one charge of cruelty to animals stemming from a September incident in Fulton County, Ga., that left a neighbor’s 5-year-old dog mauled and dead.
The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office booked the 46-year-old singer-actor, a staple in the “Fast and Furious” film franchise, on Friday. He was released on a $20,000 surety bond. Attorney Gabe Banks said in a statement that Gibson voluntarily turned himself “to answer for a misdemeanor warrant.”
“Despite what others might say, throughout this entire process Mr. Gibson has cooperated fully with legal authorities and will continue to do so until this matter is resolved,” Banks said. “Mr. Gibson once again wants to extend his deepest condolences to the family who lost their dog and respectfully asks for privacy and understanding as this matter is handled through the appropriate legal channels.”
Police said earlier this week that Gibson failed to turn himself into law enforcement after an arrest warrant was issued stemming from a violent incident involving the actor’s Cane Corso dogs. On the night of Sept. 18, a neighbor of the “Morbius” star let her small spaniel out to her yard and returned five minutes later to find the dog had been attacked. The dog was rushed to a veterinary hospital but did not survive, police said.
The Cane Corsos were then seen at the house, where the owner called police, saying she was afraid to go outside. Animal control officers responded and were able to keep the dogs back while the neighbor went to her vehicle.
The arrest warrant issued for the movie star was part of an “ongoing issue” following multiple calls about the dogs in the last few months, Fulton County Police Capt. Nicole Dwyer said. Gibson received multiple warnings before the warrant was issued, and police also attempted to cite him before the attack, Dwyer said, but Gibson was not at his Atlanta home.
Police had a search warrant for Gibson’s property on Sept. 22, but the actor and the dogs were not there.
In a statement shared to the actor’s Instagram page on Wednesday, Gibson and Banks expressed condolences to the family “who lost their beloved dog in this tragic incident.” The “Transformers” and “Baby Boy” star said his heart “is truly broken,” the note said, and that “he has been “praying for the family constantly, hoping they may one day find it in their hearts to forgive him.”
The statement said that the attack occurred while Gibson, who “accepts full responsibility for his dogs,” was out of town. The actor has since rehomed the two adult dogs and their three puppies, the statement said, adding “the liability of keeping them was simply too great.”
Gibson also issued a personal statement, describing his passion for dogs and declaring that his animals have “never been trained to harm.” He said he has been in Los Angeles with family, mourning the death of his father.
“Please know that I am praying for you, grieving with you, and will continue to face this tragedy with honesty, responsibility, and compassion,” he added.
In another Instagram statement shared Tuesday, Banks explained that Gibson’s decision to bring the Cane Corso dogs into his home was for security against stalkers who had been “randomly showing up at his home” in recent years. Banks said that the dogs “never harmed a child, a person, or another dog” until the September incident.
Gibson said Tuesday: “I had no idea I would ever wake up to this nightmare, and I know the family must feel the same way. To them, please know that my heart is broken for you. I am praying for your healing and for your beloved pet, who never deserved this. I remain committed to facing this matter with honesty, responsibility, and compassion.”
President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” is reshaping the electric-vehicle (EV) landscape.
When a new president enters office, it’s not uncommon for changes to take place, either through the signing of bills into law or via executive orders. Since President Donald Trump was inaugurated a little over eight months ago, we’ve witnessed a slew of adjustments made to Social Security, as well as the passage of his flagship tax and spending law, the “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
While Trump’s big, beautiful bill introduced a number of tax breaks for select groups, including a higher standard tax deduction for eligible seniors from 2025 through 2028, and partial deductions for tips and overtime pay for eligible workers during the same four-year timeline, it also removed some important benefits.
President Trump delivering his State of the Union address. Image source: Official White House Photo.
Specifically, Donald Trump’s law changes the fortunes of the electric-vehicle (EV) industry and its leading pure-play manufacturers, which includes Tesla(TSLA 0.61%), Rivian Automotive(RIVN -2.15%), and Lucid Group(LCID 0.56%), as of today, Sept. 30.
EV makers bid adieu to an important dangling carrot
Among the laundry list of tax and credit adjustments in the president’s big, beautiful bill is a newly shortened timeline that ends the $7,500 tax credit consumers received when purchasing a qualifying new EV or plug-in hybrid, as well as the $4,000 credit when buying a used EV. This EV credit was available to new vans, SUVs, and trucks priced below a manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) of $80,000, as well as new sedans with an MSRP of no more than $55,000.
Though this credit (officially known as the Clean Vehicle Credit) was initially slated to end in 2032, based on the Inflation Reduction Act, Donald Trump’s big, beautiful bill brings this new EV purchase credit to an end today, Sept. 30. Qualifying new vehicles purchased after today will no longer be eligible for the $7,500 credit.
This EV credit applied to a significant percentage of the vehicles Tesla sells, including its Model 3 Sedan, all-wheel drive Model X SUV, single and dual motor Cybertruck, and multiple variants of the Model Y SUV. While Rivian’s and Lucid’s EVs are generally priced above the MSRP range where tax credits end, both companies had been angling leases of upcoming models as a way to take advantage of the $7,500 EV credit.
This EV credit was akin to a dangling carrot that allowed pure-play electric-vehicle manufacturers to be more price-competitive with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. Undercutting traditional ICE vehicles on price is viewed as a borderline necessity with EV charging infrastructure still somewhat lacking on a nationwide basis.
Without this upfront cost advantage, it’s likely that future buyers will opt for traditional gas- and diesel-powered vehicles due to the availability of ICE fueling infrastructure and opportunity cost. Whereas it takes just a few minutes to refuel an ICE vehicle, it can take an hour to a full day, depending on the type of charger used, to juice up an EV.
Image source: Tesla.
But wait — there’s more bad news
However, ending this lucrative tax credit that incentivized the purchase of EVs isn’t the only way Donald Trump’s big, beautiful bill is disrupting pure-play EV manufacturers.
When the president signed his flagship tax and spending bill into law on July 4, 2025, it put an end to corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) fines, as well as retroactively eliminated fines for 2022 model years and all subsequent years.
CAFE regulations represent the standard of how far vehicles must travel on a gallon of fuel. These figures, which are set by the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, are designed to promote more fuel-efficient vehicles over time and lessen the reliance on fossil fuels. Automakers that failed to meet these standards were subject to fines. With CAFE civil penalties removed, courtesy of Trump’s law, there’s no longer any financial incentive for automakers to meet sky-high mile-per-gallon targets.
This is almost certain to have an adverse impact on the ability of Tesla, Rivian Automotive, and Lucid Group to generate profits.
Government agencies provide automotive regulatory credits to these pure-play EV manufacturers, which sell these tax credits to legacy automakers that are short of compliance targets. For Tesla especially, selling these tax credits plays a key role in its profitability. Without regulatory credits, Elon Musk’s company would have reported a pre-tax loss during the first quarter of 2025.
With the teeth behind CAFE regulations removed by the big, beautiful bill, the market for automotive regulatory credits in the U.S. is going to be severely depressed. It has the potential to expose the fact that Wall Street’s EV darling, Tesla, has been consistently generating more than half of its pre-tax income from unsustainable and/or non-innovative sources, such as selling automotive regulatory credits and earning interest income on its cash.
It’ll also minimize regulatory tax credit revenue for Rivian and Lucid. Whereas Tesla has at least been profitable on a recurring basis for five consecutive years (with the help of automotive regulatory credits), Rivian and Lucid continue to lose money hand over fist as they ramp up operations and attempt to carve out their own unique niches in the automotive marketplace. Despite substantial cash piles for both companies and brand-name financial backing, long-term success is far from a guarantee.
Though I wouldn’t go so far as to say Donald Trump drove a dagger through the heart of the EV industry, his actions are almost certain to thin the herd and make it considerably more difficult for pure-play electric-vehicle makers to compete with traditional ICE vehicles.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he would be scoreboard watching on Sunday afternoon.
But he insisted he didn’t care how things played out.
His team, of course, had already been locked in as the National League’s No. 3 seed, set to host a best-of-three wild card series at Dodger Stadium starting Tuesday.
What wasn’t clear until the end of play on Sunday, however, was whether the Dodgers would be facing the Cincinnati Reds or New York Mets to open the postseason.
“I honestly don’t really care, I really don’t,” Roberts said. “I think the way we’re playing right now, it doesn’t matter who we play.”
In a photo finish for the NL’s final wild-card berth, it was the Reds who earned the final ticket to the postseason, clinching in spite of their Sunday loss to the Milwaukee Brewers thanks to the Mets’ defeat in Miami at the hand of the Marlins.
Thus, it will be the Reds coming to Chavez Ravine this week, trying to halt the Dodgers’ defense of last year’s championship.
“It’s a gritty group. It’s a hungry group. It’s certainly a younger group,” Roberts said after the matchup was set. “These guys are going to be coming in to win a series. They’re feeling really good about themselves. So we’ve got to focus on ourselves and take it to them.”
Here are nine things to know about the Reds ahead of Game 1 at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday at 6:08 p.m. (ESPN):
The plunge highlights high levels of leverage by crypto investors.
Cryptocurrency prices slumped Sept. 22 with Ethereum(ETH 0.01%) losing 9% in the early hours of Monday morning. The second-biggest cryptocurrency fell from almost $4,500 to $4,075, before finishing the day at $4,200. Bitcoin(BTC 1.56%) dropped 3% and the total crypto market cap slipped back below $4 trillion.
Crypto positions saw more than $1.6 billion in liquidations in 24 hours — the biggest liquidation this year, according to CoinGlass data. Ethereum was hardest hit with more than $500 million wiped out. It’s a reminder of the way excessive leverage in crypto can quickly snowball. The market moved against investors who had borrowed to fund bullish positions. As it did, their positions were forcibly closed, which added to the broader downward pressure.
Let’s dive in to find out what the rocky start to the week means for crypto investors.
What investors need to know about the sell-off
When cryptocurrency prices are rising, it’s often easy to forget about the risk involved. Dramatic shifts and liquidations remind us that this is still a relatively new and evolving asset class.
1. Cryptocurrency volatility hasn’t gone away
Bitcoin is still a volatile asset. That volatility has lessened as it has gained traction as a store of value and attracted institutional investment, particularly through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). According to Fidelity, Bitcoin was less volatile than shares of Netflix in the two years running up to March 2024. However, the volatility is still there.
This is even more so for Ethereum, which serves a different purpose than Bitcoin and has not yet benefited from the same inflows of corporate and institutional capital. Ethereum is starting to be viewed as the smart contract workhorse of crypto, supporting a wealth of stablecoin and decentralized finance applications. However, it is still more volatile than Bitcoin as this week’s dramatic price swing demonstrates.
2. Keep an eye on crypto leverage
Investing using margin and leverage involves using borrowed funds to take a larger position in an investment. It can work in different ways, but for many crypto investors, it involves depositing assets as collateral to increase purchasing power. As an investor, it can be risky because you could lose your collateral — known as liquidation — if the market doesn’t rise or falls.
On a broader level, leverage amplifies market activity. That’s why it’s concerning that the levels of crypto leverage are coming close to those of Q4 2021 and Q1 2022. An August Galaxy report showed that total crypto-collateralized lending increased to more than $53 billion in the second quarter of 2025. That’s a 27% increase from on the quarter before.
In 2022, we saw the way that excessive leverage can quickly spiral and exacerbate market volatility. Markets are cyclical by nature, and history shows us that cryptocurrency bull runs don’t last forever. When prices start to fall, as they did at the start of the week, those declines are magnified by the various forms of buying crypto using borrowed money.
There’s also growing concern about crypto corporate treasury companies, some of which are using debt to fund their Bitcoin and Ethereum purchases. Adding crypto to company balance sheets using borrowed money has become popular this year. The danger is that when prices fall, they may need to sell their crypto to service debts, causing prices to fall further.
Image source: Getty Images.
3. Bitcoin and Ethereum are still trending upward
Dramatic price swings are always unsettling, but it’s important to keep them in context. Bear in mind that both Bitcoin and Ethereum are still outperforming the S&P 500 — in spite of the recent sell off. As of Sept. 24, the S&P 500 has gained about 16% year over year. Bitcoin is up almost 77% and Ethereum increased 57% in the same time period.
Prepare for further turbulence
Crypto prices seem to have stabilized today, with Bitcoin holding its head over the $113,000 mark and Ethereum at almost $4,200. However, Bloomberg warns that the market is braced for further volatility. It says Bitcoin options traders are betting on two extremes — a slide to $95,000 or a rally to over $140,000, showing that we may yet see more dramatic price swings.
Bitcoin and Ethereum have rallied this year, buoyed by a crypto-friendly administration, changes in regulation, and — most recently — hopes for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. Potential Securities and Exchange Commission approvals of spot altcoin ETFs may also give the industry a boost in the coming months. Even so, economic doubts and inflation concerns continue to weigh on prices. If further rate cuts do not materialize as anticipated, crypto prices may not be able to sustain recent gains.
As a long-term investor, one way to manage volatility is to use dollar-cost averaging, buying a set amount of crypto at regular intervals rather than in a lump sum. It’s also important that crypto only make up a small amount of your portfolio, and that you set clear goals to avoid making panic investment decisions.
1. The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown (Doubleday: $38) Symbologist Robert Langdon takes on a mystery involving human consciousness and ancient mythology.
2. My Friends by Fredrik Backman (Atria Books: $30) The bond between a group of teenagers 25 years earlier has a powerful effect on a budding artist.
3. Katabasis by R. F. Kuang (Harper Voyager: $35) The deluxe limited edition of a dark academia fantasy about two rival graduate students’ descent into hell.
4. The Academy by Elin Hilderbrand and Shelby Cunningham (Little, Brown &. Co.: $30) Scandal and drama unfold at a New England boarding school.
5. Culpability by Bruce Holsinger (Spiegel & Grau: $30) A suspenseful family drama about moral responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence.
6. Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon (Bloomsbury Publishing: $30) Long-slumbering dragons awaken in a prequel to fantasy bestseller “The Priory of The Orange Tree.”
7. Clown Town by Mick Herron (Soho Crime: $30) The disgraced spies of Slough House are caught between MI5’s secret past and its murky future.
8. The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi (Tor Books: $30) A return to the galaxy of the Old Man’s War series.
9. Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (Flatiron Books: $29) As sea levels rise, a family on a remote island rescues a mysterious woman.
10. The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong (Penguin Press: $30) An unlikely pair develops a life-altering bond.
…
Hardcover nonfiction
1. All the Way to the River by Elizabeth Gilbert (Riverhead Books: $35) The bestselling author’s memoir about an intense and ultimately tragic love.
2. The Book of Sheen by Charlie Sheen (Gallery Books: $35) The movie and TV star reflects on his turbulent life.
3. Good Things by Samin Nosrat (Random House: $45) The celebrated chef shares 125 meticulously tested recipes.
4. We the People by Jill Lepore (Liveright: $40) The historian offers a wholly new history of the Constitution.
5. Art Work by Sally Mann (Abrams Press: $35) The artist explores the challenges and pleasures of the creative process.
6. The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins (Hay House: $30) How to stop wasting energy on things you can’t control.
7. Night People by Mark Ronson (Grand Central Publishing: $29) The Grammy-winning record producer chronicles his early DJ days.
8. Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy (Scribner: $30) The acclaimed novelist’s first memoir takes on the complex relationship with her mother.
9. Coming Up Short by Robert B. Reich (Knopf: $30) A memoir by the political commentator of growing up in a baby-boom America.
10. Poems & Prayers by Matthew McConaughey (Crown: $29) The Oscar-winning actor shares his writings and reflections.
…
Paperback fiction
1. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster: $19)
2. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (Ballantine: $20)
3. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon (Vintage: $18)
4. The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami (Vintage: $19)
5. Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout (Random House Trade Paperbacks: $18)
6. The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden (Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster: $19)
7. Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar (Vintage: $18)
8. Red Rising by Pierce Brown (Del Rey: $18)
9. The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali (Gallery Books: $19)
10. Starter Villain by John Scalzi (Tor Books: $19)
…
Paperback nonfiction
1. All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley (Simon & Schuster: $19)
2. On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder (Crown: $12)
3. Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari (Random House Trade Paperbacks: $25)
4. The Art Thief by Michael Finkel (Vintage: $18)
5. Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum (Vintage: $18)
6. The Friday Afternoon Club by Griffin Dunne (Penguin Books: $21)
7. Catching the Big Fish by David Lynch (Tarcher: $20)
8. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (Milkweed Editions: $22)
9. The Wager by David Grann (Vintage: $21)
10. How to Dream by Thich Nhat Hanh (Parallax Press: $11)
In 1776, the British hanged American Revolutionary War hero and patriot Nathan Hale. His famous last words were, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing some 3 million slaves.
In 1888, National Geographic began publishing.
In 1927, Jack Dempsey muffed a chance to regain the heavyweight championship when he knocked down Gene Tunney but failed to go to a neutral corner promptly, thereby delaying the referee’s count and giving the champ time to get up.
In 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed a law giving the Peace Corps permanent status. He hailed it as a way for Americans to work for world peace and understanding.
In 1975, U.S. President Gerald Ford escaped a second assassination attempt in 17 days, this one by self-proclaimed revolutionary Sara Jane Moore, who tried to shoot him as he walked from a San Francisco hotel. Her shot, deflected by ex-Marine Oliver Sipple, a bystander who grabbed her arm, slightly wounded a man in the crowd. Moore served 32 years of a life prison sentence. She was released in 2007 at the age of 77. Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, convicted in a Sept. 5, 1975, assassination attempt in Sacramento, was paroled in 2009, at age 60, after 34 years in prison.
File Photo courtesy Gerald R. Ford Library
In 1980, long-standing border disputes and political turmoil in Iran prompted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to launch an invasion of Iran’s oil-producing province of Khuzestan, touching off an eight-year war.
In 1985, more than 50 rock and country stars, headed by Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp, staged the 14-hour Farm Aid concert for 78,000 rain-soaked spectators in Champaign, Ill., raising $10 million for debt-ridden U.S. farmers.
File Photo by Armand Engelbrecht/UPI
In 1994, Friends, starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer, premiered on NBC. The comedy series ran for 10 season, each of which was ranked in the Top 10 of the final TV season ratings.
In 2008, officials at China’s health ministry said nearly 53,000 children, most of them younger than 2 years old, had been sickened by milk powder tainted with an industrial chemical. At least four children died. Ten Asian and African nations, including Japan, temporarily banned Chinese dairy products.
In 2010, a Miami appeals court affirmed the adoption of two foster children by a gay couple, ruling Florida’s ban on same-sex adoption was unconstitutional.
In 2017, the U.S. Marine Corps announced that for the first time in its 250-year history, a woman will be joining its ranks as an infantry officer.
In 2019, Billy Porter became the first openly gay man to win an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama in a Series for Pose.
In 2020, the United States reported a milestone 200,000 deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Hollywood institution known for mystery, deception and drama, the Magic Castle is now gripped by a new variety of suspense.
Magic Castle mansion owner Randy Pitchford, who bought the establishment in 2022, has presented a reorganization plan to his tenant, the Academy of Magical Arts. The AMA is the nonprofit club that operates the castle and whose performer-members have helped build it into one of the world’s top venues for magic.
In a series of proposals, Pitchford has offered AMA members a choice between embracing his plan — which gives him control over castle operations and most revenue — or finding another clubhouse when the academy’s lease expires Dec. 31, 2028.
Members have until Sept. 29 to decide.
With backing from the AMA’s board of directors, Pitchford presents this moment as a chance for the academy to secure a vibrant future for the Magic Castle while preserving its legacy.
But the proposal is causing “division, fracturing and confusion” among many AMA members, as one magician, Ralph Shelton, put it. Some members, who asked not to publish their names, told The Times they believe that Pitchford is using an ultimatum to take control of the castle. Other members say they simply worry that Pitchford is giving AMA members too little information.
“The easiest people to fool are magicians and scientists,” said Shelton, a Huntington Beach attorney who put himself through law school by doing magic. “You know what they’re looking for and you work around that.”
Pitchford did not immediately respond Thursday to requests for comment on the allegation that he is using an ultimatum to take control of the castle. But Pitchford and his team had said that by taking over the risks and rewards that come with running the Castle, his company is freeing up the AMA to focus on its non-commercial mission — promoting magic — “for as long as it wishes to use the Magic Castle as its clubhouse.”
Since Sept. 8, the academy’s 4,664 members have been casting electronic votes on whether to change the organization’s bylaws and other documents to allow the proposed realignment. In previous polling, the members who voted have heavily favored a deal. A “yes” vote would mean the reorganization would begin as soon as Oct. 1.
At the Magic Castle, guests say a secret password to enter.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Pitchford learned magic at the castle before building a video game empire as the co-founder of Gearbox Entertainment. In a Sept. 9 statement to The Times, he noted that he and his wife were married in the Magic Castle’s Palace of Mystery in 1997, “so our investment into its preservation and quality is quite personal to us.”
As an AMA member for more than 30 years, he said he is “thrilled that the Academy of Magical Arts, with the overwhelming support of the membership, are our ally in forging a bold, mission-first partnership for at least the next 30 years of magic at the Magic Castle.”
The Magic Castle, a 1909 Edwardian-style mansion, opened in 1963 as a clubhouse and performance venue for the Academy of Magical Arts, which was founded and sustained for years by the Larsen family. From the start, the academy was a tenant in the building, leasing from private owners, the Glover family, on terms often described as “a handshake deal.”
For decades, visitors have been drawn by the idea of dressing to the nines and roaming room to room, sipping cocktails as conjurers and sleight-of-hand artists ply their trade. Performers and members have included Cary Grant, Johnny Carson, Orson Welles, Jason Alexander, Neil Patrick Harris and Larry Wilmore (who sits on the board of directors). Exclusivity is part of the appeal, too. To get in, most guests need an invite from a member.
The enterprise ran into trouble in 2020 when the pandemic shut it down and a Times investigation detailed allegations of sexual harassment, groping and racism. In 2021, the mansion reopened amid a leadership overhaul.
Erika Larsen, president of Magic Castle Enterprises, and mansion owner Randy Pitchford.
(Tara Ziemba / Getty Images)
The latest chapter in the castle’s story began in April 2022 when Pitchford bought the property from its longtime landlords, the Glover family.
Pitchford, 54, whose Texas-based company created the popular Borderlands video game franchise, is a controversial figure in the video game industry. His purchase of the castle, valued by the L.A. County Assessor at $50 million, also included an adjacent apartment building and the 33-unit Magic Hotel next door.
About the same time as the castle purchase, Pitchford also bought intellectual property rights to the Magic Castle name from Milt Larsen, who died in 2023.
When Pitchford was announced as buyer of the castle, many academy members voiced optimism. “We were absolutely thrilled beyond measure,” said Paul Kott, an Anaheim-based commercial and residential real estate broker who has been an AMA member for 50 years. “We know his heart wants to dedicate this place to the art of magic.”
To manage the new holdings, Pitchford and his wife, Kristy Pitchford, created companies called Magic Castle Enterprises (for intellectual property) and Magic Castle Entertainment (for real estate), together known as MCE. They also enlisted Erika Larsen, daughter of castle pioneers Bill and Irene Larsen, as president of Magic Castle Enterprises, and Jessica Hopkins, granddaughter of Bill and Irene Larsen, as chief operating officer.
In January 2024, the AMA’s leadership told members that the group’s lease on the building would not be renewed — causing a surge of anxiety among members — and that academy board was negotiating with MCE in hopes of keeping the group in place.
On July 30, 2024, AMA members said they received an email that included a warning from MCE saying that if it couldn’t make a deal with the academy, MCE might “create a new club with enticing features and pricing” that “might possibly lead to [the academy’s] demise.”
(In a later email exchange with The Times, Pitchford said he did not recall that specific sentence; he did not respond to a request to confirm or deny the passage.)
In December 2024, AMA leaders invited members to vote on a proposed “resolution implementation agreement” for MCE to take over the Magic Castle’s commercial operations while the academy remained on site indefinitely and focused on its nonprofit role, including awards programs and educational efforts.
MCE reported that more than 90% of ballots favored the deal. Opponents said that a minority of members cast votes. A second vote yielded similar results.
Further details emerged in a “white paper” document that MCE circulated in February 2025. It said MCE would operate and collect revenue from the castle gift shop, bar, restaurant, box office and valet parking. AMA members would pay dues through a new entity which would divide that revenue between MCE and the academy. The Magic Castle would serve “as the exclusive clubhouse of the AMA indefinitely.”
MCE also pledged to invest $10 million in capital improvements and maintenance and relieve the AMA of remaining lease and trademark-related financial obligations. Meanwhile, the AMA board of directors would gradually shrink from nine members to five, two of them nominated by MCE.
In March, the Magic Castle announced that the MCE and AMA board of directors had signed a resolution implementation agreement, the framework for a deal. An AMA spokesperson said that MCE and the AMA board of directors “have negotiated terms for long-term access. Details of the agreement will not be released.”
“I think [Pitchford] has tried to do everything in his power to preserve the nature of this iconic place,” said longtime member Christopher Hart, who serves as chair of the academy’s board of trustees, which oversees artistic choices at the castle. Hart played “Thing,” the disembodied hand, in the “Addams Family” movies.
“The rumors have been so rampant in so many directions,” said Gay Blackstone, a longtime member who has served in many roles on the academy board of directors and board of trustees. Blackstone said she still has research to do before casting her vote but “I know that [Pitchford’s] love and passion for the magic are tremendous.”
Still, for some, doubts persist. “I don’t think the membership is being given what they need to make a good decision…. How long can we stay? how much is it going to cost?” Kott asked.
Now comes another membership vote. On Sept. 8, members began a binding vote on proposed changes in academy bylaws and other documents that would make the new deal possible. Those changes include creation of a Magic Castle Club, separate from the Academy of Magical Arts.
That “is an important wrinkle,” Shelton said.
The concept of the Magic Castle Club “is not to compete with the A.M.A., but we needed a new entity to collect dues on behalf of the A.M.A. and MCE per the arrangement,” Randy Pitchford said in a statement to The Times Sept. 15. Once an agreement is in place, Pitchford said, “All club activities, events, initiatives, etc, are and will be led and directed by the Academy of Magical Arts.”
The goal, MCE leaders have said, is “a seamless transition with a focus on an uninterrupted member and guest experience.”
If the membership rejects the changes, Christopher Grant, president of the academy’s board of directors, said in a statement that “MCE will terminate its current lease with the AMA” and the academy would need to find a new clubhouse by January 2029.
Further effects of a “no” vote, especially for academy-member performers and audiences at the Magic Castle, are harder to predict.
In his Sept. 9 statement, Pitchford suggested that the new proposal puts in place “the same kind of relationship that founded and created” the Magic Castle in the first place.
“Change is always scary,” Hart said. “Members just want the same experience they’ve always had and loved about the castle.” The proposed changes, Hart added, “could make the castle greater than it’s ever been.”
1 of 6 | The Constitution of the United States of 1789 is on display along with other historical documents in the rotunda of the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C. On September 17, 1787, the U.S. Constitution, completed in Philadelphia, was signed by a majority of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention. File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI | License Photo
Sept. 17 (UPI) — On this date in history:
In 1787, the U.S. Constitution, completed in Philadelphia, was signed by a majority of the 55 delegates to the Constitutional Convention. Nine states ratified the document in June 1788, and it became the supreme law of the United States on March 4, 1789.
In 1862, Union forces led by Gen. George McClellan attacked Confederate troops led by Gen. Robert E. Lee near Antietam Creek in Maryland. McClellan blocked Lee’s advance on Washington but fell short of victory.
In 1939, Soviet troops invaded Poland, 16 days after Nazi Germany moved into the country. Warsaw capitulated to Nazi armies 20 days later.
In 1972, North Vietnam released three American pilots, the first U.S. prisoners of war released by the country since 1969.
In 1976, NASA displayed its first space shuttle, the Enterprise, an airplane-like spacecraft costing almost $10 billion that took nearly a decade to develop.
File Photo by Michael Kleinfeld/UPI
In 1978, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin signed the Camp David Accords, laying the groundwork for a permanent peace agreement between Egypt and Israel after three decades of hostilities.
In 1983, Vanessa Williams of New York became the first Black woman to be named Miss America. She resigned 11 months later after nude photos were published but regained stardom as a singer and actress.
In 1991, North Korea, South Korea, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were admitted to the United Nations.
File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
In 1993, Cambodia’s two leading political parties agreed that Prince Norodom Sihanouk would lead the nation. Sihanouk was installed as king a week later.
In 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush said Osama bin Laden, the suspected ringleader in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, was “wanted dead or alive.” Bin Laden was killed in a 2011 U.S. commando raid in in Pakistan.
In 2024, thousands of pagers and walkie talkies meant to be used by members of Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon and Syria over the course of two days. The attacks killed 42 people and injured thousands. The Israeli government manufactured devices, installing the explosives in a plan dubbed Operation Grim Beeper.
In 1901, U.S. President William McKinley died of wounds inflicted by an assassin eight days earlier. He was succeeded by Vice President Theodore Roosevelt.
In 1920, the first live radio dance music was broadcast, carried by a Detroit station and featuring Paul Specht and his orchestra.
In 1959, the Soviet probe Luna 2 — known informally as Lunik 2 — became the first Earth-launched space vehicle to land on the moon.
In 1960, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was founded.
OPEC ministers meet in Moscow on December 23, 2008. File Photo by Anatoli Zhdanov/UPI
In 1982, Princess Grace of Monaco — American film actress Grace Kelly — was killed when her car plunged off a mountain road by the Cote D’Azur. She was 52.
In 1991, the South African government, ANC, Inkatha Freedom Party and 20 other anti-apartheid groups signed a peace accord to end black factional violence.
In 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush proclaimed this to be a day of national mourning and remembrance for those killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The FBI identified the hijackers and said several had taken flying lessons in Florida.
In 2005, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines, the third and fourth largest U.S. air carriers, filed for bankruptcy as the industry reeled under record high jet fuel costs.
In 2008, the U.S. brokerage firm Merrill Lynch agreed to sell itself to Bank of America for $50 billion and Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy after it failed to find a buyer.
File Photo by Laura Cavanaugh/UPI
In 2010, U.S. hiker Sarah Shourd, imprisoned in Iran on charges of espionage for more than a year after she and two male companions were accused of illegally crossing into Iranian territory, was released on $500,000 bail. The men — Shane Bauer, her fiance, and Josh Fattal — were freed just over a year later.
In 2023, the U.S. Justice Department indicted Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, on felony gun charges. He was the first child of a sitting president to be charged by the department.
Investors should make sure they’re eligible for this ultra-high dividend.
Altria(MO 0.45%) is one of the world’s largest tobacco companies, with well-known brands under its umbrella that include Marlboro, Black & Mild, Parliament, Copenhagen, and Skoal. Although some investors may have reservations about investing in a tobacco company, those who do invest in the company typically do so for one reason: Its ultra-high-yield (and growing) dividend.
If you’re interested in investing in Altria, you might want to do so before Sept. 15, because that is its ex-dividend date. When it comes to stocks, a company’s ex-dividend date is the day by which an investor must own shares of the company to be eligible to receive its next dividend payout. In Altria’s case, owning the stock before Sept. 15 will ensure you receive the dividend payout scheduled for Oct. 10.
Image source: Getty Images.
One of the stock market’s top dividend stocks
When Altria recently announced that it was increasing its quarterly dividend to $1.06 per share (up from $1.02), it marked the company’s 56th consecutive year increasing its dividend, and the 60th total increase in that span. That track record of growth helped Altria earn the designation as a Dividend King.
At the time of writing, Altria’s dividend yield is around 6.16%, which is slightly below its average over the past decade, but more than five times the S&P 500’s current average of 1.2%.
While Altria’s appeal has long been its dividend, the stock has had an impressive 2025 so far, up 26%. I wouldn’t invest in the stock expecting these returns year in and year out, but if you’re looking for a company that can provide reliable dividend income, Altria is a good choice.
Stefon Walters has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Thursday marks the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that saw two planes flown into the Twin Towers in New York, killing nearly 3,000.
Kevin Danni was there. The St. Francis High graduate and father of Golden Knights linebacker Luke Danni reflects back every anniversary on how he escaped from the 61st floor of the South Tower.
“I’m so lucky there were so many who sacrificed to save me,” he said.
Danni told his story to a rapt audience earlier this week at a meeting of the YMCA of the Foothills QB Club, where he is president.
He was 22 years old, a recent graduate of Occidental College and had been sent to Morgan Stanley in New York to begin training at the Twin Towers on Sept. 10, 2001. The next morning, a training meeting ended up being 15 minutes late because a speaker went too long, so during a break, he decided not to go to the observation deck on the 107th floor.
Instead, he looked out a window and saw what he thought was confetti flying around, It was papers from the aftermath of a plane running into the North Tower. Soon he saw a fire. At first, evacuation from the South Tower was not recommended. But Danni said the head of security, Rick Rescorla, overrode orders and told everyone to leave.
When Danni reached the 55th floor walking down the stairs, he heard an explosion. “The walls cracked,” he said.
It was a plane hitting the South Tower.
“I knew it was a terrorist attack,” he said. “I started to descend and passed firefighters going up the stairs. It took 45 minutes to evacuate.”
When he went outside, he said, “I saw both on fire.”
He went to find a pay phone so he could call his loved ones and tell them he was OK. Then the towers started to collapse.
“I heard a rumble,” he said. “It was 57 minutes since the plane hit. I saw the dust cloud. I turned and ran.”
Danni said he learned the security man, Rescorla, after escorting employees outside, went back up to make sure all had been evacuated from the office. The security man and 343 firefighters perished trying to help others.
“I got to see so many acts of heroism,” Danni said.
He was dating his future wife, Helena, at the time. They eventually married and their son, Luke, was born. This week he’ll be having fun watching Luke play quarterback for St. Francis on Friday night against Muir.
“Every 9/11, he says, ‘Dad, I’m glad you’re here,’” Kevin said.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].
Sierra Canyon has a defense in high school football that needs comic book treatment.
Call them “The Kaboom Squad.”
At any moment, whether it’s a lineman, linebacker or defensive back delivering the blow, be prepared to be wowed.
With size, quickness and depth, the Trailblazers have shut out opponents for 12 consecutive quarters. The opponents haven’t been bad: JSerra, Oaks Christian and Honolulu Punahou.
Will they go through their 10-game regular-season schedule unscored upon? Absolutely not. But the reason they have three shutouts in lopsided victories is that the second stringers are performing as well as first stringers when coach Jon Ellinghouse clears the bench.
Their 63-0 win over Oaks Christian broadcast on Spectrum only added to the Trailblazers’ reputation.
It’s kaboom time as Sam Amuti of Sierra Canyon High prepares to level a Punahou ballcarrier.
(Craig Weston)
A combination of returnees and transfers gives the Trailblazers a defense with few weaknesses.
Nobody is perfect, and perhaps Downey and star quarterback Oscar Rios will be the first to end the shutout streak on Friday, but this is Sierra Canyon’s best defense since the spring of the 2021 COVID season when the Trailblazers put together 18 consecutive quarters of allowing zero points and gave a scare to St. John Bosco.
All the Trailblazers’ positions are filled with talented starters and quality backups. The defensive line starts with Texas commit Richard Wesley, wearing No. 99, the number of Rams great Aaron Donald. The linebackers have a smart, fearless tackler in Ronen Zamorano. The secondary has so many college-bound players that the players’ NIL deals could pay for a trip to Hawaii. Madden Riordan (USC), Havon Finney Jr. (Louisiana State) and Brandon Lockhart (USC) lead the way. And coming soon when the sit-out period ends on Sept. 29 is kicker Carter Sobel, who was a standout at Chaminade and will add to bad field position for opposing offenses.
Sierra Canyon’s Spencer Parham gets emotional for a defense that hasn’t allowed any points in 12 quarters.
(Craig Weston)
Having seen the physicality of St. John Bosco’s offensive and defensive lines last week in a 21-14 win over Baltimore St. Frances, Sierra Canyon (3-0) still needs to keep progressing to be on the same level of the Trinity League powers needed to win a Southern Section Division 1 championship.
The Trailblazers are definitely closing the gap with the Braves and No. 1 Mater Dei. They get a good tune-up for the Division 1 playoffs with a matchup against Orange Lutheran on Sept. 18, a team they lost to last season 33-26.
Chris Rizzo, a former Taft head coach, is the Trailblazers’ defensive coordinator. He wears his baseball cap backward on the sideline with sunglasses and has many options for defensive packages.
Asked if the defense has any weaknesses, Rizzo said, “We have some weaknesses. We’re not perfect by any means. We’ve got some things we have to fix and keep getting better.”
The defense is also helping Sierra Canyon’s offense improve because it’s so difficult to move the ball during practices.
“It makes our guys better,” Ellinghouse said.
Rizzo declined to reveal which unit he thinks is best. “The secondary is pretty star-studded,” he said. “The defensive line is deep. They embrace the grind and play for each other.”
Only time will tell whether this defense is as good as some think. There’s plenty of games ahead to prove if the Trailblazers are truly The Kaboom Squad.
The Kit Kat Club is closing its Broadway doors early on Sept. 21, as current “Emcee” Billy Porter battles a “serious case of sepsis,” according to the production team.
“It is with a heavy heart that we have made the painful decision to end our Broadway run,” said producer Adam Speers in a statement. “On behalf of all the producers, we’re so honored to have been able to bring this version of John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Joe Masteroff’s important masterpiece, ‘Cabaret,’ to New York and to have opened the doors to our own Kit Kat Club for the year and a half we have been here.”
“Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club” — as this revival is titled — opened on Broadway in April 2024, with Eddie Redmayne and Gayle Rankin in the lead roles. Following their September 2024 departure, duos Adam Lambert and Auli’i Cravalho, and Orville Peck and Eva Noblezada played the titular roles.
Porter stepped into the role of the Emcee, alongside co-star Marisha Wallace as Sally Bowles, in July. The duo was expected to lead the production’s final 13 weeks — originally scheduled to end on Oct. 19 — before Porter’s illness sidelined him.
“Billy was an extraordinary ‘Emcee,’ bringing his signature passion and remarkable talent,” said Speers. “We wish Billy a speedy recovery, and I look forward to working with him again in the very near future.”
As of Sept. 21, the production will have played 18 preview performances and 592 regular performances. Marty Lauter and David Merino, the production’s longtime alternates for Emcee, will share the role for the final two weeks of performances. Their exact performance schedules — opposite Wallace as Bowles — are forthcoming.
