The gaming industry mourns the loss of Matt Shell, who most recently served as Director of Brand Marketing for Star Wars: Jedi – Survivor. Sadly, he passed away this week from an apparent heart attack.

Imagine if Star Wars was only confined to the silver screens. No epic battles on your Xbox, no wielding lightsabers on your PlayStation, just a galaxy far, far away that you could only visit through movies. Sounds incomplete, doesn’t it? Thankfully, due to visionaries like Matt Shell, the Star Wars universe has been successfully extended into our living rooms and gaming dens, allowing fans to live out their galactic fantasies in a way that few other franchises have managed.

Shell, who worked at LucasArts, isn’t a household name like George Lucas, but his fingerprints can be found on nearly every major Star Wars gaming project that came out in the past 20 years.

Shell began his journey in the gaming industry in the early 2000s, working on various sports titles like World Series Baseball and NCAA College Football 2K3 in production and project management roles. He also worked on beloved properties such as Monkey Island and Indiana Jones. But it was after he joined LucasArts that he truly found his calling. 

One of Shell’s earliest contributions was his involvement in the LEGO Star Wars series. As a Senior Product Marketing Manager, he played a key role in the development and promotion of these beloved games. But Shell’s impact extended far beyond the LEGO Star Wars series. As the Senior Product Marketing Manager for Star Wars: Battlefront and Star Wars: Battlefront II, he helped redefine the Star Wars gaming experience with large-scale multiplayer battles that put players in the middle of iconic moments from the films.

And then there’s Star Wars: Jedi – Fallen Order, a game that many feared would falter under the weight of colossal expectations. Here, Matt’s strategic marketing ensured that it wasn’t just written off as another entry into the crowded market.

It’s striking to see the sheer number of critically acclaimed and commercially successful games that benefited from his talents over the years. Without a doubt, Shell’s passing has left a gaping hole in the hearts of those who knew him and the gaming community at large.

His untimely passing is a tremendous blow to the Star Wars gaming community, but his legacy will live on. Rest in peace, Matt Shell, and may the Force be with you, always.

Bette Davis was one of the most famous and talented actresses of Hollywood’s golden age. Born in 1908, she had a long and illustrious career that spanned over 50 years.

She burst onto the silver screen in the 1930s, quickly making a name for herself with her strong personality, piercing eyes, and undeniable talent. Some of Bette’s most iconic films include Jezebel, All About Eve, and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?. In these movies, she delivered some of the most memorable performances in cinema history, earning herself two Academy Awards for Best Actress. 

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, directed by Robert Aldrich, is a vintage piece of horror that went on to become a critical and commercial hit. Davis earned her tenth and final Academy Award nomination for her role in the movie.

The film capitalized on the grotesque and the glamorous. Playing opposite her longtime rival, Joan Crawford, Davis embraced the role of Baby Jane Hudson, an unhinged former child star whose descent into madness and jealousy towards her sister leads to a tragic confrontation. As the film unfolds, we see Jane clinging desperately to her faded glory.

Bette Davis reinvents herself

At 54, Davis was playing a character who was supposed to be much older. Baby Jane was a washed-up, delusional old woman, complete with caked-on makeup, frilly dresses, and a face that looked like it had seen better days. But that’s the magic of Bette Davis – she completely embodied the character, bringing a sense of pathos and desperation to the role that made it impossible to look away.

The film was a bit of a gamble for Davis. At the time, she and Crawford were considered “old Hollywood” and their careers were on the decline. However, the film’s success proved that Bette could now establish herself in the horror genre. In fact, she did exactly that by taking on some other intense roles in movies like Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) and The Nanny (1965). 

Bette continued acting in films, television, and theater until the late 1980s. She had a few flops, and a few projects that didn’t quite live up to expectations. But that never stopped her from giving it her all. One of her last, really memorable roles was in the 1987 movie The Whales of August, where she starred opposite another Hollywood legend, Lillian Gish. Bette was in her late 70s at the time.

She kept working right up until the very end. Her last film appearance was in the 1989 movie Wicked Stepmother (comedy/horror), where she played – you guessed it – a wicked stepmother. Sadly, Bette passed away later that year at the age of 81. 

Her legacy still lives on as she has not only challenged Hollywood’s norms but also set a new standard for character portrayal that actors of all ages could aspire to.

Of the many universal facts that can never be changed, one is the bitter truth that Donald Trump can never serve as a positive inspiration to any sane soul. But that doesn’t stop the twisted minds, of a certain infamous individual known as RFK Jr., from openly embracing his “style.” But the ex-president has clarified that he is not cool with his signature move being blatantly copied.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent bid as a presidential candidate has faced an avalanche of responses, none of them encouraging the Democrat to pursue his decision. It started with his family not supporting his candidacy and openly criticizing it, followed by his party members speculating and claiming he was on Trump’s team and just competing in the race to steal votes from Joe Biden. Republicans soon joined the chorus as Junior’s candidacy being a risk to both Biden and Trump became apparent.

Clearly, no one is in Robert’s corner and if you caught his recent interviews, he is not in his own favor either.

Desperate to up his chances of at least getting enough votes to save his face, Kennedy, who has somewhat matched Trump’s pattern of being wildly inconsistent in his claims and promises, has decided to erase what difference remained in their tactics. Famous for being anti-vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic and gaining prominence for the conspiracy theories he peddled about vaccines, Kennedy is now switching lanes, assuring that Americans they will have assess to vaccines if he becomes president.

Sounds a lot like someone who asked the masses to inject bleach in their body to beat coronavirus, right? Someone who just loves to claim all credit for getting the COVID-19 vaccine to the public, but is also anti-vaccine, prefers criticizing everyone who supports vaccinations, and recently announced he will “not give one penny to any school that has a vaccine mandate?”

Yeah, that “someone” noticed this uncanny similarity as well and hurried to Truth Social to reprimand Junior, who was recently interviewed by Bill Maher.

“He said that “No Vaccine is safe and effective,” and then said “I would never say that, I’m not anti-vaccine!” Where did that come from? Maher defended the vaccine, which Junior’ actually seemed to agree with (WOW!), and then told him that his poll numbers have crashed. No Republican can vote for this guy. MAGA2024!”

You tell him, Donny… even though Republicans are still voting for you despite your inability to stick to your narrative. Still, Trump doesn’t need this not-so-subtle display of admiration from RFK Jr. when he has the likes of Eric Trump counting supporters at his court trials only he can see and singing ballads about his father’s “toughness” and “stamina.”

In the grand tradition of mixing satire with sirloin, the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner, which had over 2000 guests, delivered yet another evening where the line between political roast and roast beef became delightfully blurred. 

Held annually, this dinner not only serves as a night for journalists, politicians, and celebrities to break bread but also to break into laughter — or cringes — at the expense of those in the high echelons of power. This year, the spotlight was unforgivingly bright on former President Donald Trump, with President Joe Biden and comedian Colin Jost leading the charge.

Biden, who has often been criticized for his measured and diplomatic approach, surprisingly pulled no punches when it came to Trump. In a stroke of comedic genius (or maybe an accidental revelation), he exposed the self-proclaimed genius’ true spiritual age at the latest public spectacle, which he reports as more a toddler than a titan.

If tantrums, tweets, and tirades are anything to go by, perhaps Biden is on to something profound. After all, isn’t there a certain preschool elegance to how Trump handles diplomacy and decorum?

This jab at his spiritual immaturity comes amidst a constant attack from Trump’s side about Biden’s age. True, Biden may be no spring chicken, but at least he’s got his bowel movements under control and, ahem, is not letting loose a barrage of rogue farts.

But the roast didn’t stop there. Trump’s ongoing legal battles were also fair game, with reports of his courtroom antics painting a picture of a man who treats the judicial system like a personal nap room. The nickname “Sleepy Don” has never been more suitable, although it’s not clear if the name comes from his habit of falling asleep during important events or his remarkable talent for making the whole country sleepy with his incoherent ramblings. 

Jost masterfully drew parallels between the president’s miserly heart and his apparent disdain for the environment. It explains so much – the Grinch’s heart, two sizes too small, and the Lorax’s obsession with the environment. Combine the two, and you’ve got a president who’d steal Christmas (your joy) and gleefully ignore the Lorax’s pleas as he cuts down every last Truffula tree in the Whoville National Forest.

Maybe we’re getting carried away and reading too much into his Seuss character orgy. Perhaps all Jost really wanted to point out was Trump’s uncanny resemblance to these beloved Dr. Seuss characters – the Grinch’s infamous smirk and the Lorax’s unmistakable orange hue. I mean, have you ever seen Trump and the Lorax in the same room together? Just saying, the similarity is striking. 

So Jost, yes, Trump is essentially a cartoon villain come to life.

Then again, with Trump, it’s hard to tell where the superficial ends. Poor Lara Trump, sitting in the audience, had to witness this shocking expose of her father-in-law’s true parentage. She probably thought she married into a rich German dynasty, but instead, she’s now part of a dysfunctional Seussian nightmare. Maybe that’s why she’s been trying her hand at music – an attempt to escape the madness and express herself through the universal language of song.

But why was Trump himself notably absent from the event? If you didn’t know already, he’s still nursing the wounds from the time President Barack Obama roasted him so intensely at the 2011 dinner that his hair went from fake gold to burnt sienna. The man who claims to have “the best words” has been steering clear of the dinner ever since.

And as if on cue, the master of making everything about himself couldn’t resist the temptation to weigh in on the festivities. Clearly, for some, the ability to laugh at oneself is an optional, not obligatory, trait. 

“The White House Correspondents’ Dinner was really bad. Colin Jost BOMBED, and Crooked Joe was an absolute disaster! Doesn’t get much worse than this!”

Trump on Truth Social

This is just another example of Trump’s paper-thin skin and fragile ego. He can dish it out, but he can’t take it – unless it’s in the form of a Big Mac and a Diet Coke. And as Biden and Jost proved, even in his absence, he’s still the biggest joke in Washington.

By now any self-respecting Marvel fan has squealed over the 2^nd full-length Deadpool & Wolverine trailer at least once. The highly anticipated team-up has been at the top of fans’ must-see list since the first abysmal edition of the Merc with a Mouth appeared in X-Men Origins all the way back in 2009.  

So far the trailer hasn’t disappointed. Packed with one-liners and cheeky nods, it takes multiple watches to see all of the glorious easter eggs director Shawn Levy has added to every exceptional second. Which one is the best? The kind of comic book deep cut only the most dedicated Marvel fans will recognize.

Rob Liefeld: Lover of muscles, hater of feet

There are few comic book artists as prominent as Stan Lee, but Rob Liefeld has secured his own place in the Marvel Hall of Fame. Since he burst onto the scene in the late 80s, he’s done everything from rescuing the floundering New Mutants to masterminding Deadpool and his favorite frenemy, Cable. He even co-founded Image Comics to help comic artist maintain control of their darling creations.

Despite his many award-winning comics and his tenure as an artist – he got his start at Marvel before he had even reached 20 – Liefeld’s skills with a pen are contentious in the comic book world. Fans and critics alike can’t seem to agree on whether or not he’s actually good at drawing. And most arguments, as well as this deep-cut Marvel joke, hinge on his Achilles heel – or maybe we should call it an Achilles foot.

“Liefeld’s Just Feet,” a destroyed store that only appears briefly on screen, is a nod to Liefeld’s controversial problem in drawing, well, feet. Since the late 80s, Liefeld has been singularly untalented when it comes to drawing feet. For years, he’s found clever ways to hide the pesky appendage behind supporting characters, rocks, fire hydrants, weird angles, the edge of the frame, and basically any other appropriately (and inappropriately) placed objects he can fit in a scene.

Whenever a tootsie does happen to make it into a frame, it tends to have more than a few issues. His foot sizes are hilariously inconsistent with character size, the left feet turn right, and women appear to walk through life like a ballerina with a perfect point. It’s almost a signature at this point, and clearly, Liefeld is already in on the joke.

He took to Twitter to laugh about the jab and fully embraced it by cropping out Wolverine and Deadpool’s tosie-wosies for the post. After decades of being lambasted for his peculiar art style, Liefeld is just as impervious to the criticisms as Wolvie and Wade are to mortal wounds. After all, what damage can a playful dig about feet do when industry veterans like Barry Windsor-Smith – the man behind Red Sonia and Conan – have absolutely dragged him? Windsor-Smith once said of Liefeld’s art:

“He has nothing to offer. He cannot draw. He can’t write. He is a young boy almost, I would expect, whose culture is bubble gum wrappers, Saturday morning cartoons, Marvel Comics; that’s his culture.”

It must sting to have someone like Windsor-Smith bash your hard work, but Liefeld is certainly laughing all the way to the bank. At the end of the day, the Deadpool movies have a massive fan following and sit comfortably in the 80% range on Rotten Tomatoes, while 2011’s Conan the Barbarian bottoms out with a measly 25.

Ten years ago, in 2014, a 14-year-old boy in the United States injected himself with mercury from a thermometer and intentionally allowed himself to be bitten by spiders in an attempt to develop superpowers similar to his favorite Marvel superheroes.

Inspired by his love of comic books and superhero movies, the unnamed boy believed the mercury injection would give him powers similar to the Marvel characters Mercury and Wolverine. Mercury is a mutant composed of a mercury-like material. She can melt and solidify herself at will. The more popular Wolverine famously has bones coated in the fictional indestructible alloy adamantium.

The young boy also exposed himself to multiple spider bites to gain powers similar to the iconic Spider-Man, who can climb walls and spin webs like an arachnid. Unsurprisingly, he didn’t manifest any superpowers and instead found himself in a tertiary care trauma center.

What effects did the boy’s reckless actions have?

While the spider bites had no significant impact on the boy, the mercury injections required treatment — although the effects could have been far worse.

He had multiple ulcers on his forearms (one is pictured above), which had been there for around two months. He also had elevated levels of mercury in his urine, and it was visible in X-rays.

Remarkably, the long-term damage was minimal, as the boy had only succeeded in injecting the metal under his skin instead of into his veins. He had some hemorrhaging and a significant amount of dead tissue but was otherwise unharmed.

Once the mercury and dead tissue were removed, the boy was allowed to leave the hospital — presumably after being told, in no uncertain terms, never to do anything so silly again.

In most cases of deliberate mercury injection, it is an attempt to self-harm. Other instances have included a young boxer’s belief that it would strengthen his sporting performance and several who thought mercury would enhance their sexual prowess.

This instance was rare in the sense that the boy was found to have an average IQ and no psychiatric problems. However, his decision to inject himself to gain superpowers was undoubtedly a peculiar one.

On Aug. 4, 2020, 12-year-old Jaylen Griffin went missing after last being seen leaving his home to take a new puppy for a walk in the Central Terminal area of Buffalo, New York.

For nearly four years, the young boy’s fate was unknown, though his family, friends, and authorities understandably feared the worst. His mother, 48-year-old Joann Ponzo, died from illness and a “broken heart” in September 2023 before finding out what happened to her son.

In 2021, Ponzo told People magazine about the type of boy her son was, saying, “We live near a few stores and he would carry people’s bags, and they’d give him change.”

Tragically, Griffin — whose 18-year-old brother was shot dead near his home just three months after he disappeared — was found dead on April 12, 2024, in the attic of a house in upstate New York after a three-and-a-half year search just five miles from where he went missing, one week before what would have been his 16th birthday. His body was severely decomposed, and he was only able to be identified from dental records.

Police commissioner Joseph Gramaglia says Griffin must have been “up there in the house” for a “significant amount of time” and described the discovery as “nothing short of a tragedy.”

How did Jaylen Griffin die?

The medical examiner working on the case has ruled Jaylen Griffin’s death as a homicide, but specific details on how it happened or who the culprit is have not been provided by police.

What is known is that the house in which the boy was found — 107 Sheffield Avenue in South Buffalo, New York — has a dark history.

According to WIVB, three other bodies have been found on the property over the last four years. A plethora of 911 logs reveal the address has been complained about more than 160 times since 2007, with the cases comprising everything from domestic violence and fire to wellness checks and the discovery of bodies.

The other three bodies, whose identities haven’t been revealed to the public, were found in June 2020, September 2022, and August 2023, respectively.

It has recently been revealed the address’ long history of troubled residents includes sex offenders and criminals out on parole. It isn’t officially classified as a halfway house, but it has housed people recently out of prison, and prison records indicate a sex offender had lived there until March 2024.

Jaylen Griffin’s remaining relatives will be desperately hoping to learn more about what happened to him in the coming weeks, and police are offering a $7,500 reward for any information leading to the arrest or indictment of the person or people responsible for his death.

Now that X-Men ‘97 is a major hit, it’d make sense for others to want to capitalize on its success and try to revive other superhero animated shows from the 90s and 2000s, specifically James Gunn, who has the extensive DC catalog at his disposal and the responsibility to make it a success. But he’s absolutely no plan to jump on this train.

Long before its release, X-Men ‘97 was heavily hyped up with merchandise, an epic trailer, endless rumors, and more. Since it hit Disney Plus, fans and critics have only fallen in love with it more, and have given it a near-perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. Of course, the success of the MCU directs questions at the still-trying-to-find-its-feet DCU.

On X (formerly Twitter), user @iamthelangston asked the powerhouse director and Co-CEO if he’d be willing to give the fans a reboot of Justice League Unlimited because Beau DeMayo gave everyone “the gargantuan hit X-MEN ‘97.” In response, Gunn wrote that X-Men ‘97 “is fun because it’s unique and not desperately trying to follow the trends of everything around it. So I’d rather just keep doing that.” Many other X users backed up Gunn’s response in the replies section, giving him props for wanting to focus on telling great original stories instead of following what’s hot.

The thing that makes X-Men ‘97 great is that it was a totally unexpected serving from Disney. With the countless Marvel movies and shows the studio has released, one would assume that the franchise would follow the same format, and just work on expanding their universe. Instead, they decided to throw a curveball and bring back something that would not only spark nostalgia in Gen X’ers and Millennials but also give younger X-Men fans something fresh and fun (that isn’t tied to the MCU). 

As for James Gunn, if he were to recreate Justice League Unlimited, he likely would be met with scrutiny for it for a variety of reasons, including accusations that he is just copying X-Men ‘97’s success and not genuinely making the show for the nostalgia and love many have for it. While he doesn’t say it, there is also the fact that the animated DC series had a solid run and ended on a perfect note.

Based on more recent moves and comments, it’s obvious that the studio executive truly is focusing on new stories and refuses to be dependent on the old stuff or cater to what everyone else wants. Back in 2022, he was quoted saying that DC would be going through an “unavoidable transitional period” via People. And allegedly, it was he who made the controversial move to cut ties with Henry Cavill, whom fans were expecting to see in another Superman movie, though he denied the same. The same goes for Gal Gadot’s canned return as Wonder Woman.

David Corenswet is now Clark Kent/Superman in a revamped storyline. There’s no news yet about a new Wonder Woman, but when there is one, the person will most likely be introduced to a fresh take on the Amazonian warrior.

Gunn’s assessment of X-Men ‘97 also confirms that Justice League Unlimited won’t be part of his plans for the DCU anytime soon. Now, there is no need to feel all disappointed since he has been busy with other IPs and working on the stories he is passionate about. The newest Superman will be released next July, which many fans are waiting for anxiously. While the director ended his MCU run on a glowing note, it’s the arrival of the man in the red cape that will decide whether his design for the shaky cinematic world of DC will restore stability to its new run.

When it comes to the lives of Hollywood’s elite, the public often feels like they have a front-row seat. We scrutinize their every move, their relationships, and – perhaps most intriguing of all – their family dynamics. 

Nicole Kidman is one of those stars who manages to keep us endlessly curious, not just about her blockbuster roles and red-carpet looks but also about how she juggles life as a mom. It’s especially intriguing when you think about her juggling all that with a superstar ex like Tom Cruise. In 1990, Kidman married Tom, and together the couple made the decision to expand their family.

However, life had its plans, and Kidman’s marriage to Cruise ended in 2001. Undeterred by the challenges that came her way, especially her struggle against fertility,  Kidman continues to prioritize her children’s well-being. In 2006, she married country music star Keith Urban, and together they welcomed two children.

So, just how many kids does Nicole Kidman have? The answer is four – two adopted children from her previous marriage to Tom Cruise, and two biological daughters with her current husband, Keith Urban.

The Cruise Years

Isabella Jane Cruise

Born on December 22, 1992, Isabella Jane Cruise is Kidman’s first adopted child with her then-husband Tom Cruise. Isabella has generally maintained a low profile, despite the high-profile status of her parents. Over the years, she has shown a keen interest in the arts & fashion and has chosen a life away from the Hollywood spotlight, residing in London and working on her career independently. Her relationship with Kidman has been subject to speculation, but it is understood that both have their own path while maintaining personal connections behind the public eye.

Connor Antony Cruise

Connor Antony Cruise was born on January 17, 1995, and is the second child adopted by Kidman and Cruise. Unlike his sister, Connor has dabbled in the entertainment industry, appearing in a few films, such as the 2012 movie Red Dawn. However, his primary passion seems to be deep-sea fishing. He’s living the dream out in Florida, and if you check out his social media, it’s all about boats and the catch of the day. Definitely more of an outdoors guy. Connor lives in Clearwater, Florida, which is known to be a significant hub for the Church of Scientology, of which he is a member, like his father Tom.

The Urban Era

Sunday Rose Kidman Urban

Jump to Kidman’s current chapter with Keith Urban, and you meet Sunday Rose, born in 2008. Her arrival seemed to blend Kidman’s world of arts and heartfelt home life. With a name like Sunday Rose, you can almost picture the peaceful vibes at home, right? Kidman says she’s got a knack for music and filmmaking, which isn’t a surprise considering who her parents are. She’s growing up with creativity in her DNA.

“Sunday, I think, has always been interested in filming and making little stories with her little iPad. It would be great if Sundaycontinues making movies, cause I think she’s a storyteller — a good storyteller.”

– Keith Urban told ABC news

Faith Margaret Kidman Urban

Last but not least, there’s Faith Margaret, the youngest, born in 2010 via surrogacy. Her name itself tells a story of hope and perseverance, reflecting the journey Kidman and Urban went through to welcome her. Faith, like her big sister, is mostly out of the spotlight, growing up with a solid mix of normal kid stuff and some inevitable glam that comes with having famous parents. But like Faith, she also has hidden talents as Keith shared in his chat with ABC News.

“Faith has a great musical ear. I can tell ’cause she’ll hear a melody and go to the little piano and figure it out by singing it and matching the notes and stuff. She’s got a good ear.”

As per ABC News, both Sunday and Faith made their voice acting debuts in The Angry Birds Movie 2 in 2019. They’ve also appeared in two TV projects alongside their mother, starring in Big Little Lies and The Undoing.

While we all love a peek into their lives, Kidman makes sure her kids get the chance to write their own stories and carve their journey, away from the Hollywood frenzy.

The drama-thriller Baby Reindeer has been airing on Netflix for a couple of weeks, and it’s taken the entertainment world by storm. The series depicts the real-life experiences of Richard Gadd — a Scottish writer, actor, and comedian — who also wrote the story and stars in it.

Gadd, who’s now 34, was stalked and sexually assaulted in his twenties. In the show, he plays Donny Dunn, a fictionalized version of himself. Donny is stalked by Martha Scott (played brilliantly by Jessica Gunning), a former lawyer with a criminal past who becomes obsessed with the struggling comedian when he offers her a free cup of tea at his job working in a pub.

It’s a terrifying story that prompted iconic horror author Stephen King to post a frank two-word review on X (formerly Twitter). Those words were “Holy s**t,” which says everything you need to know about the brand-new Netflix offering.

However, in a recent interview with the Daily Mail, the self-proclaimed real-life Martha Scott — who remains anonymous — claims the tables have turned and that she’s now the victim, being bullied by Gadd in his pursuit of fame. She stressed that he is using the show to stalk her.

What is the woman saying?

The woman told the British newspaper, “He’s using Baby Reindeer to stalk me now. I’m the victim. He’s written a bloody show about me.”

She claims that aspects of the drama are inaccurate, saying, “I’ve never owned a toy baby reindeer and I wouldn’t have had any conversation with Richard Gadd about a childhood toy either.”

According to the woman, the fictionalized version of her isn’t representative of her appearance, either. She said, “She sort of looks like me after I put on four stone during lockdown, but I’m not actually unattractive.”

A decade ago, over a four-and-a-half-year period, the woman was said to have bombarded Gadd with 41,071 emails, 744 tweets, letters totaling 106 pages, and 350 hours of voicemail messages.

Gadd and Gunning have pleaded with Baby Reindeer fans not to conduct detective work to uncover the woman’s identity after several claimed to have found her on X. Gadd wrote in an Instagram story, “That’s not the point of the show.” He hasn’t addressed the accusations leveled against him by this “Martha” nor has she shared any further comments on the show currently making a killing on the streamer.

Unraveling entertainment history allows us to realize that each day marks the anniversary of some curious event. For instance, on April 28, two big celebrities broke out, one in the music industry and the other in the cinema.

Katy Perry traded gospel for lesbian music and became a hit

Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson began her journey to stardom with 2001’s gospel album Katy Hudson. The album was a complete failure, as the singer’s brand of Christian music failed to resonate with the public. Hudson was determined to find a way to overlap her faith and her passion for singing, so she moved to Los Angeles to try her luck in secular music. God had different plans for Hudson, though, as she would become world famous only after adopting the stage name of Katy Perry and releasing a single about girls kissing girls.

To say that 2008’s “I Kissed a Girl” was a success would be an understatement. Even if Katy Perry didn’t have a name and a cult following at the time to back her single, she still hit first on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 list. In addition, “I Kissed a Girl” is one of the defining songs of the 2000s, an undisputable classic that still plays at parties. It would be safe to say that Katy Perry’s actual career began on April 28, when her first pop single first played on the radio.

Hard Candy was Elliot Page’s breakout role

April 28 is a big date for another beloved celebrity, Elliot Page. That’s because on this day in 2006, Hard Candy got a wide theatrical release in the U.S. and debuted the story of Page’s underaged character who’s seduced by a charming and dangerous sexual predator (Patrick Wilson). However, the tables soon turn as Page is revealed to be hunting the man down to punish him for his crimes. It’s a gruesome thriller with stomach-turning scenes that flipped the revenge horror trope upside down.

Even though Page was not even 18 when he shot Hard Candy, his performance grabbed the critics’ attention since the movie’s international premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. However, due to the movie’s sensitive subject and Page’s unknown status in Holywood, Hard Candy was condemned to have a limited release on April 14, 2006. The surprisingly positive reception of the movie led to a broad release on April 28, allowing the whole country to witness the actor’s mesmerizing acting skills.

Say “Happy Birthday” to Jessica Alba

April 28 is also important because today is Jessica Alba‘s birthday. While no introductions are required for Alba, thanks to her prolific Hollywood career, today is a good day to remember some of the major milestones in her road to stardom. Alba had her breakout role in 2003’s Honey, a dance film that was mandatory at every slumber party in the early 2000s. After that, she starred in comic book adaptations such as Sin City and Fantastic Four. Director Robert Rodriguez liked working with Alba so much in Sin City that she would be cast in many of his movies, such as Machete, Machete Kills, and Spy Kids: All the Time in the World.

Outside the silver screen, Alba is also a successful entrepreneur, having co-founded The Honest Company, which specializes in baby, personal, and household products. She also has a long history with charity that helps her stand apart from other Hollywood stars.

Remember the first time you had to say goodbye to someone on Survivor? It was way back in 2000, and the person with the dubious honor of being the first ever voted-off contestant on the show was Sonja Christopher. Well, sadly, we’re saying goodbye to Sonja for good now.

At 87 years old, she’s passed away, leaving behind a legacy that’s about more than just being the first to hear “the tribe has spoken.” 

Born in Olympia, Washington, Sonja eventually made her way to Walnut Creek, California, where she settled into a life that was anything but ordinary. At 63, she’d already faced her fair share of challenges – a battle with cancer and a breakup that left her feeling like she needed a change. That’s when Survivor came calling.

The lady with the ukulele

Survivor is a reality television show that first premiered in the United States on May 31, 2000. The show is based on a competitive format where a group of contestants are isolated in a remote location, typically a deserted island or a similarly challenging environment. The contestants, referred to as castaways, must fend for themselves by finding food, water, and shelter while competing in various challenges to earn rewards and immunity from elimination.

Sonja’s time on the island was marked by her infectious spirit and her trusty ukulele, which she often played to lift the spirits of her fellow castaways — providing one of the first instances of what would become a Survivor tradition i.e., personal items that tether players to their identities beyond the game. But even more, she showed us that Survivor wasn’t just for the young and that age is just a number. So, it’s never too late to take a chance and do something crazy.

Despite her enthusiasm and the unique charm she brought to the game, Sonja was the first person to be voted out from the show. Her elimination came during the first Tribal Council of the series where the contestants vote to eliminate one of their own until only a few remain.

What happened to Sonja?

Sadly, on April 27, 2024, we learned that Sonja had passed away. Details of how Sonja died are not yet known as her family’s keeping it private.

The news was announced by fellow Survivor contestant Liz Wilcox on Twitter/X, and it quickly spread throughout the community.

Fans and former players alike shared their memories of Sonja, remembering her as a true original and a shining example of what it means to live life to the fullest. Joel Klug, who competed alongside Sonja in Borneo, shared a touching tribute to his former tribemate on Facebook.

“I just learned that Sonja Christopher has passed away… If not for Survivor we would have never crossed paths in life…We kept in touch over the past 25 years and I can honestly say, we never had a negative interaction. She was a funny and exceptionally kind person. We were in touch last month…she said she was doing what we both had experience in, Surviving. She will be missed.”

So, here’s to Sonja, who showed everyone how to play the game with grace, humor, and a whole lot of heart.