Author Archives: Carol Edwards

The Bullitt is going, going, gone. 

On Friday, the Ford Mustang driven by Steve McQueen in the 1968 thriller Bullitt sold for $3.4 million at a Mecum Auction in Kissimmee, Florida. The star in a chase scene lauded by many as the greatest in cinematic history, the vehicle just became the highest-priced Mustang ever sold in a public auction. The previous record was $2.2 million. 

Fans of the McQueen classic may be surprised to learn bidding for the car started at just $3,500 — at the owner’s insistence. In an interview with Bloomberg, Sean Kiernan, who inherited the car from his late father, said that was the original purchase price when it became the family’s car in 1974.  Read more…

More about Auction, Classic Car, Steve Mcqueen, Entertainment, and Movies Tv Shows

Instagram and Facebook are removing posts that support Qassem Soleimani, a top Iranian general and leader who was killed in a U.S.-sanctioned airstrike, according to CNN. 

Coda Story reports that Iranian journalists, influencers, and human rights activists have had posts if not their entire accounts removed from the platform. 

Instagram is one of the few Western social media sites not blocked in Iran. As such, many Iranians posted about Soleimani after his death. Facebook is blocked (as well as Twitter), but some people access it through VPN. 

Facebook, which owns Instagram, says that it is complying with United States sanctions against Iran by removing the posts and accounts. “We operate under U.S. sanctions laws, including those related to the U.S. government’s designation of the IRGC and its leadership,” a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement provided to CNN. The spokesperson also said that people who feel like their posts were wrongfully removed can go through the appeals process.  Read more…

More about Facebook, Instagram, Iran, Qassem Soleimani, and Tech

We may have no idea who’s competing for 2021’s Golden Globes, but we do know who’s hosting — and it is glorious, spectacular, wonderful news.  

On Saturday at the Television Critics Association Tour, NBC Entertainment announced that all-star hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler will return for a fourth Globes hosting gig in 2021. 

The duo previously hosted from 2013 to 2015, universally delighting fans of Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, and great comedy everywhere. They made fun of Martin Scorsese’s glasses. They made Anne Hathaway relive her Oscars hosting with James Franco. They even made rival host Neil Patrick Harris listen to their advice at the 2013 Emmys.  Read more…

More about Golden Globes, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Entertainment, and Movies Tv Shows

The first full week of the new decade is about to wrap, and it’s already been stressful with serious issues in Iran and surprises like Megxit. Now, we have to deal with the manifestation of the climate crisis in our respective cities.

Take those in North Texas, where it is currently snowing — while in New York City, where I’m currently writing this, it’s 60 degrees. Totally cool and normal, right?

It’s not just NYC that is experiencing unusually high temperatures, where the average high for a January day is 40 degrees. States such as Ohio and Massachusetts are also experiencing spring-like weather: Read more…

More about Twitter, Climate Change, Texas, Culture, and Climate Environment

The Hummer could be making a comeback as an electric pickup truck.

According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the Hummer name, once known for outrageous gas-guzzling and general douchebaggery, will be repurposed for a new battery-powered SUV from General Motors as early as 2022. 

Rumors of the vehicle’s second lease on life began swirling in summer 2019 when GM president Mark Reuss told reporters the company was considering Hummer as one of many possibilities for its “all-electric future.” Unlike its predecessor, the new Hummer will not be a standalone brand, instead appearing as the first of several large, eco-friendly models available to consumers in the coming years.  Read more…

More about General Motors, Lebron James, Hummer, Tech, and Transportation

You can be a cat owner and have absolutely zero clue how your pet will react to something new in its environment. For example, they may be scared of the new toy you bought them, but love the cardboard box it came in. They may be terrified of a toy car on a racing track or they may love it — you just don’t know until you put it in front of them.

In a video from Brazil, a kitten named Athena leans more towards the latter. She bounces and hops and chases after the car as if it was smuggling some catnip around that track. “Athena was very excited when she saw the Autorama and started jumping endlessly behind the race car,” the description states.  Read more…

More about Video, Youtube, Viral Video, Cat Videos, and Culture

An upcoming #MeToo documentary will no longer have Oprah Winfrey’s name attached when it debuts at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in January.

The as-yet-untitled documentary focuses on an unnamed former music executive who has accused Def Jam Recordings co-founder and Rush Communications CEO Russell Simmons of sexual misconduct. It’s not the first time Simmons has faced such an accusation.

Winfrey was originally on board to executive produce the documentary, which comes from the filmmaking team of Kirby Dick (director) and Amy Ziering (producer). But Winfrey confirmed in a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter on Friday that she’s stepping back from the project. Read more…

More about Oprah Winfrey, Metoo, Sundance 2020, Entertainment, and Movies Tv Shows

If you purchased a iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, or iPhone XR battery case between January and October 2019 and it sucks, good news! Apple just launched a program that will replace it for free.

It’s called the Smart Battery Replacement Program, and Apple gives it the rundown on its website. If the battery case does not charge when plugged into power or it just does not charge the iPhone at all, you can go to Apple (or an Apple-approved service provider) to get it replaced. 

“Apple has determined that some Smart Battery Cases made for iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR may experience charging issues,” the site reads. “This is not a safety issue and Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider will replace eligible battery cases, free of charge.”  Read more…

More about Tech, Apple, Iphone, Smart Battery Case, and Tech

It may seem like that cuttlefish is prepping to see The Rise of Skywalker but no, it’s actually part of a research experiment.

A team at the University of Minnesota put 3D glasses on cuttlefish in order to learn more about their eyes and brains, specifically how both organs work together to catch prey. Like humans, cuttlefish utilize stereopsis, the scientific term for depth perception. Unlike humans, cuttlefish still hunt their prey — and stereopsis helps them do it. The cuttlefish strikes at its prey and must correctly guess how far away it is. If it’s too close when it strikes, the prey will get spooked and move away; too far away, and it won’t reach. Read more…

More about Science, Animals, Study, Cuddlefish, and Science

In an effort to promote his new single “Yummy,” Justin Bieber shared a guide to hijacking music charts, encouraging international fans to stream it under a U.S. VPN. 

Bieber shared a slideshow guide to boosting “Yummy” to the top of pop charts on Thursday night in a now-deleted Instagram post. The guide, which was originally created by a fan edit page, instructed fans outside the U.S. to “download a VPN app, set the VPN to the U.S., and then create a Spotify account.” 

By using a VPN, which stands for Virtual Private Network, international fans could hide their IP addresses and appear to stream the song from within the U.SBillboard’s Hot 100 only takes sales, radio plays, and streams within the country into account when ranking the top 100 songs of the week.  Read more…

More about Justin Bieber, Cheating, Culture, and Web Culture