• Link Tank: SNL Set Builder Retires and Sesame Street Heads to Netflix

    An SNL Icon Retires
    Fans of Saturday Night Live have long wondered: What happens behind the scenes of the sketch-comedy show? In 2024, we got a glimpse with Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, which showcased just how stressful producing weekly live sketch comedy can be. 
    After 50 years of constructing Saturday Night Live’s sets for their various sketches, Stephen “Demo” DeMaria is retiring at age 87. And while DeMaria likely felt stressed out at times leading a team of carpenters for such a large-scale production on a time crunch, he says, “I didn’t have a bored day in my life. Never.” 
    “According to the report, DeMaria’s schedule at the start of each new fall season included starting his Thursdays at 1 a.m., receiving the week’s set design sketches by 2 a.m., and then splitting the work among five teams of approximately 50 total carpenters.” 

    at Entertainment Weekly

    American Idol Crowns Its Latest Winner
    One of the most intriguing aspects of the early 2000s era of reality TV was fan voting. I remember crowding around the TV with my mom and sisters, watching The Voice, and pulling out our phones every chance we could vote for our favorite contestants. 
    American Idol has stood the test of time, as it has been producing stars since 2002. Season 23 of American Idol declared its new champion, 27-year-old Jamal Roberts, on May 18. The physical education teacher from Mississippi has shined all season, landing him in the final three, alongside John Foster and Breanna Nix. 
    “The crooner, who excelled across all the genres, is the second Black male artist to win the competition after Ruben Studdard took the title during the show’s second season in 2003.”
    at CNN

    Sesame Street Gets a New Home

    Join our mailing list
    Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!

    Elmo’s home is now on Netflix. Following Warner Bros. Discovery’s decision not to renew Sesame Street on HBO Max, Netflix secured a deal with Sesame Workshop to keep the educational children’s show alive. 
    Notably, when the show was premiering on HBO Max, the streaming service was the only way to watch new episodes. In the wake of budget cuts to public broadcast, which resulted in countless layoffs and furloughs, Netflix is partnering up with PBS to release episodes to public broadcast the same day that they premiere on Netflix. 
    PBS, where Sesame Street aired originally, has provided accessible educational programming for children in low-income households for over 55 years. Sesame Workshop CEO, Sherri Westin, said in a statement that Netflix will showcase Sesame Street to a global audience, and thanks to this unique public-private deal, new episodes will be accessible in the U.S. for free through public TV. 
    “The deal with Netflix and PBS not only provides much needed financial stability for the non-profit, but also provides expanded access to the program for free, an extremely unusual arrangement for Netflix.” 
    at The Hollywood Reporter

    Sebastián Lelio Makes Waves at the Cannes Film Festival
    Lelio spoke with Deadline at the festival following the premiere of his newest project, The Wave— a movie musical that surrounds the Chilean feminist wave in 2018. 2018 marked a year of mass protests, strikes and civil unrest in Chile, mostly carried out by university and high school students in response to sexism and violence against women in educational institutions. This movie comes at a culturally significant time, as there has been an increase in student-led protests. 
    You might be thinking: Why is this a musical? After the mixed-to-negative response to Emilia Pérez, a movie musical that is also in Spanish, viewers may be weary to give this new movie musical a chance. 
    In his interview with Deadline, Lelio makes it clear that the use of music and performance in this movie are intentional. He described the musical element of the movie as “more of depiction of political cacophony.” 
    “Daniela López stars in the film – which debuted in Cannes Premiere – as a music student who joins the cause, haunted by an incident with her voice teacher’s assistant. She is joined in the cast by a raft of young Chilean acting talents including Paulina Cortés, Lola Bravo and Avril Aurora.” 
    at Deadline 

    Latest Kristen Stewart Project Gets a Streaming Release Date
    Even if you love Kristen Stewart, you might not have appreciated her starring role as a weather buoy in the 2024 post-apocalyptic romance, Love Me. If you left the theater with mixed feelings in 2024, or just overall confusion, you’ll be happy to know that on June 16 the film will be available for streaming on Paramount+ with Showtime. 
    “The movie, which follows a buoy and a satellite who meet online long after human extinction, will be available on Paramount+ with Showtime via Bleecker Street’s continuous partnership with the service. During their journey together, Me/Dejaand Iam/Liamdiscover what life on earth was like for humans and in the process find out who they are, and what it means to love and live.” 
    at MovieWeb
    #link #tank #snl #set #builder
    Link Tank: SNL Set Builder Retires and Sesame Street Heads to Netflix
    An SNL Icon Retires Fans of Saturday Night Live have long wondered: What happens behind the scenes of the sketch-comedy show? In 2024, we got a glimpse with Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, which showcased just how stressful producing weekly live sketch comedy can be.  After 50 years of constructing Saturday Night Live’s sets for their various sketches, Stephen “Demo” DeMaria is retiring at age 87. And while DeMaria likely felt stressed out at times leading a team of carpenters for such a large-scale production on a time crunch, he says, “I didn’t have a bored day in my life. Never.”  “According to the report, DeMaria’s schedule at the start of each new fall season included starting his Thursdays at 1 a.m., receiving the week’s set design sketches by 2 a.m., and then splitting the work among five teams of approximately 50 total carpenters.”  at Entertainment Weekly American Idol Crowns Its Latest Winner One of the most intriguing aspects of the early 2000s era of reality TV was fan voting. I remember crowding around the TV with my mom and sisters, watching The Voice, and pulling out our phones every chance we could vote for our favorite contestants.  American Idol has stood the test of time, as it has been producing stars since 2002. Season 23 of American Idol declared its new champion, 27-year-old Jamal Roberts, on May 18. The physical education teacher from Mississippi has shined all season, landing him in the final three, alongside John Foster and Breanna Nix.  “The crooner, who excelled across all the genres, is the second Black male artist to win the competition after Ruben Studdard took the title during the show’s second season in 2003.” at CNN Sesame Street Gets a New Home Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! Elmo’s home is now on Netflix. Following Warner Bros. Discovery’s decision not to renew Sesame Street on HBO Max, Netflix secured a deal with Sesame Workshop to keep the educational children’s show alive.  Notably, when the show was premiering on HBO Max, the streaming service was the only way to watch new episodes. In the wake of budget cuts to public broadcast, which resulted in countless layoffs and furloughs, Netflix is partnering up with PBS to release episodes to public broadcast the same day that they premiere on Netflix.  PBS, where Sesame Street aired originally, has provided accessible educational programming for children in low-income households for over 55 years. Sesame Workshop CEO, Sherri Westin, said in a statement that Netflix will showcase Sesame Street to a global audience, and thanks to this unique public-private deal, new episodes will be accessible in the U.S. for free through public TV.  “The deal with Netflix and PBS not only provides much needed financial stability for the non-profit, but also provides expanded access to the program for free, an extremely unusual arrangement for Netflix.”  at The Hollywood Reporter Sebastián Lelio Makes Waves at the Cannes Film Festival Lelio spoke with Deadline at the festival following the premiere of his newest project, The Wave— a movie musical that surrounds the Chilean feminist wave in 2018. 2018 marked a year of mass protests, strikes and civil unrest in Chile, mostly carried out by university and high school students in response to sexism and violence against women in educational institutions. This movie comes at a culturally significant time, as there has been an increase in student-led protests.  You might be thinking: Why is this a musical? After the mixed-to-negative response to Emilia Pérez, a movie musical that is also in Spanish, viewers may be weary to give this new movie musical a chance.  In his interview with Deadline, Lelio makes it clear that the use of music and performance in this movie are intentional. He described the musical element of the movie as “more of depiction of political cacophony.”  “Daniela López stars in the film – which debuted in Cannes Premiere – as a music student who joins the cause, haunted by an incident with her voice teacher’s assistant. She is joined in the cast by a raft of young Chilean acting talents including Paulina Cortés, Lola Bravo and Avril Aurora.”  at Deadline  Latest Kristen Stewart Project Gets a Streaming Release Date Even if you love Kristen Stewart, you might not have appreciated her starring role as a weather buoy in the 2024 post-apocalyptic romance, Love Me. If you left the theater with mixed feelings in 2024, or just overall confusion, you’ll be happy to know that on June 16 the film will be available for streaming on Paramount+ with Showtime.  “The movie, which follows a buoy and a satellite who meet online long after human extinction, will be available on Paramount+ with Showtime via Bleecker Street’s continuous partnership with the service. During their journey together, Me/Dejaand Iam/Liamdiscover what life on earth was like for humans and in the process find out who they are, and what it means to love and live.”  at MovieWeb #link #tank #snl #set #builder
    WWW.DENOFGEEK.COM
    Link Tank: SNL Set Builder Retires and Sesame Street Heads to Netflix
    An SNL Icon Retires Fans of Saturday Night Live have long wondered: What happens behind the scenes of the sketch-comedy show? In 2024, we got a glimpse with Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, which showcased just how stressful producing weekly live sketch comedy can be.  After 50 years of constructing Saturday Night Live’s sets for their various sketches, Stephen “Demo” DeMaria is retiring at age 87. And while DeMaria likely felt stressed out at times leading a team of carpenters for such a large-scale production on a time crunch, he says, “I didn’t have a bored day in my life. Never.”  “According to the report, DeMaria’s schedule at the start of each new fall season included starting his Thursdays at 1 a.m., receiving the week’s set design sketches by 2 a.m., and then splitting the work among five teams of approximately 50 total carpenters.”  Read more at Entertainment Weekly American Idol Crowns Its Latest Winner One of the most intriguing aspects of the early 2000s era of reality TV was fan voting. I remember crowding around the TV with my mom and sisters, watching The Voice, and pulling out our phones every chance we could vote for our favorite contestants.  American Idol has stood the test of time, as it has been producing stars since 2002. Season 23 of American Idol declared its new champion, 27-year-old Jamal Roberts, on May 18. The physical education teacher from Mississippi has shined all season, landing him in the final three, alongside John Foster and Breanna Nix.  “The crooner, who excelled across all the genres, is the second Black male artist to win the competition after Ruben Studdard took the title during the show’s second season in 2003.” Read more at CNN Sesame Street Gets a New Home Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! Elmo’s home is now on Netflix. Following Warner Bros. Discovery’s decision not to renew Sesame Street on HBO Max, Netflix secured a deal with Sesame Workshop to keep the educational children’s show alive.  Notably, when the show was premiering on HBO Max, the streaming service was the only way to watch new episodes. In the wake of budget cuts to public broadcast, which resulted in countless layoffs and furloughs, Netflix is partnering up with PBS to release episodes to public broadcast the same day that they premiere on Netflix.  PBS, where Sesame Street aired originally, has provided accessible educational programming for children in low-income households for over 55 years. Sesame Workshop CEO, Sherri Westin, said in a statement that Netflix will showcase Sesame Street to a global audience, and thanks to this unique public-private deal, new episodes will be accessible in the U.S. for free through public TV.  “The deal with Netflix and PBS not only provides much needed financial stability for the non-profit (it is slated to host its annual fundraiser next week), but also provides expanded access to the program for free, an extremely unusual arrangement for Netflix.”  Read more at The Hollywood Reporter Sebastián Lelio Makes Waves at the Cannes Film Festival Lelio spoke with Deadline at the festival following the premiere of his newest project, The Wave (La Ola)— a movie musical that surrounds the Chilean feminist wave in 2018. 2018 marked a year of mass protests, strikes and civil unrest in Chile, mostly carried out by university and high school students in response to sexism and violence against women in educational institutions. This movie comes at a culturally significant time, as there has been an increase in student-led protests.  You might be thinking: Why is this a musical? After the mixed-to-negative response to Emilia Pérez, a movie musical that is also in Spanish, viewers may be weary to give this new movie musical a chance.  In his interview with Deadline, Lelio makes it clear that the use of music and performance in this movie are intentional. He described the musical element of the movie as “more of depiction of political cacophony.”  “Daniela López stars in the film – which debuted in Cannes Premiere – as a music student who joins the cause, haunted by an incident with her voice teacher’s assistant. She is joined in the cast by a raft of young Chilean acting talents including Paulina Cortés, Lola Bravo and Avril Aurora.”  Read more at Deadline  Latest Kristen Stewart Project Gets a Streaming Release Date Even if you love Kristen Stewart, you might not have appreciated her starring role as a weather buoy in the 2024 post-apocalyptic romance, Love Me. If you left the theater with mixed feelings in 2024, or just overall confusion, you’ll be happy to know that on June 16 the film will be available for streaming on Paramount+ with Showtime.  “The movie, which follows a buoy and a satellite who meet online long after human extinction (yes, you read that right), will be available on Paramount+ with Showtime via Bleecker Street’s continuous partnership with the service. During their journey together, Me/Deja (Stewart) and Iam/Liam (Yeun) discover what life on earth was like for humans and in the process find out who they are, and what it means to love and live (and, presumably, laugh).”  Read more at MovieWeb
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  • Trump defies ethical concerns to host investors in his meme coin

    Trump to host investors in his cryptocurrency despite ethical concerns 4 hours agoLily JamaliNorth America Technology Correspondent•@lilyjamaliReporting fromSan FranciscoGetty ImagesUS President Donald Trump will host top purchasers of the cryptocurrency that bears his name at a gala dinner on Thursday.$TRUMP was launched shortly before his inauguration in January, initially rocketing in value before falling sharply shortly afterwards."It's fundamentally corrupt -- a way to buy access to the President," Democrat senator Chris Murphy wrote on X, one of a number of people to question the ethics of the event.Some have also suggested the expected attendance of many foreign investors poses a threat to national security.But the White House has batted away such allegations, saying Trump is only motivated by public serviceWhat is $TRUMP?$TRUMP is what is known as a meme coin - a type of cryptocurrency inspired by internet memes or viral online trends. Its price peaked at in January before plummeting to less than in April - it was trading at around at the time of writing.Experts question the value of such assets."This is something that doesn't have obvious utility. It's not being used for payments. It's not being used as a store of value," said Rob Hadick, General Partner of Dragonfly, a crypto venture fund.The dinner - which is being held at Trump's golf course near the nation's capital - is advertised on the website gettrumpmemes.com as "the most EXCLUSIVE INVITATION in the World."The top 220 purchasers of the meme coin, viewable on a leaderboard, received invitations to the "black-tie optional" event.The top investor in the $TRUMP meme coin is billionaire crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun who was charged with fraud and market manipulation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission during the Biden Administration.In February, the Trump administration paused the case.Sun said this week on the social media platform X that he planned to attend the dinner, calling himself Trump's "TOP fan!"From crypto critic to investorTrump's views on cryptocurrency have undergone radical change in recent years.In 2021, he called Bitcoin a "scam."Now, he's not just in charge of regulating cryptocurrencies in the US – he and his family are active industry participants.In addition to the meme coin, the Trump family also holds a majority stake in the crypto exchange World Liberty Financial, which was launched just prior to the election.Trump expressed his desire to be the nation's first "Crypto President" while campaigning for president and was a major beneficiary of campaign contributions from the crypto industry in the 2024 election.Many crypto assets have leapt in value under his presidency. On Thursday, Bitcoin hit a new all-time high of almost per coin.According to a report by the group State Democracy Defenders Action, Trump's investments in crypto have helped boost his net worth by as much as billion."As a stakeholder in crypto assets, President Trump will likely profit from the very policies he is pursuing," the report states.Three days into his term, Trump issued an Executive Order to establish a regulatory framework that promotes the growth of digital currencies.A Trump administration official told the BBC that the meme coin has nothing to do with the White House.White House spokesperson Anna Kelly pushed back on concerns about potential conflicts."The President is working to secure GOOD deals for the American people, not for himself," Kelly said in a statement. But one former financial regulator likened the meme coin to gambling."It's like selling membership cards for his personal fan club which are then traded," said Timothy Massad, Director of the Digital Asset Policy Project at Harvard. "They have no value. But people speculate on the price and those purchases and that trading enriches him."ReutersU.S. Senator Chris Murphyspeaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Conventionat the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Mike SegarAt a Senate committee hearing this week, Senator Chris Murphygrilled Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the lack of transparency regarding who will attend Thursday night's dinner.Mr Murphy cited reports that many of the attendees at the invite-only event were expected to be foreigners."There's clearly a way around the State Department for foreign individuals of significant influence and wealth to be able to directly lobby the president of the United States," Mr Murphy said."I don't have any concern that the president having dinner with someone is going to contravene the security of the United States," responded Mr Rubio, who said he was unaware of the dinner.On Thursday afternoon, Mr Murphy and certain other Democratic members of Congress planned a protest against the dinner to be livestreamed."The Members will demand Trump release the list of individuals attending the dinner and what favors they will be getting for the millions of dollars they invested in Trump's meme coin," the group said in a statement.Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.BitcoinCryptocurrency
    #trump #defies #ethical #concerns #host
    Trump defies ethical concerns to host investors in his meme coin
    Trump to host investors in his cryptocurrency despite ethical concerns 4 hours agoLily JamaliNorth America Technology Correspondent•@lilyjamaliReporting fromSan FranciscoGetty ImagesUS President Donald Trump will host top purchasers of the cryptocurrency that bears his name at a gala dinner on Thursday.$TRUMP was launched shortly before his inauguration in January, initially rocketing in value before falling sharply shortly afterwards."It's fundamentally corrupt -- a way to buy access to the President," Democrat senator Chris Murphy wrote on X, one of a number of people to question the ethics of the event.Some have also suggested the expected attendance of many foreign investors poses a threat to national security.But the White House has batted away such allegations, saying Trump is only motivated by public serviceWhat is $TRUMP?$TRUMP is what is known as a meme coin - a type of cryptocurrency inspired by internet memes or viral online trends. Its price peaked at in January before plummeting to less than in April - it was trading at around at the time of writing.Experts question the value of such assets."This is something that doesn't have obvious utility. It's not being used for payments. It's not being used as a store of value," said Rob Hadick, General Partner of Dragonfly, a crypto venture fund.The dinner - which is being held at Trump's golf course near the nation's capital - is advertised on the website gettrumpmemes.com as "the most EXCLUSIVE INVITATION in the World."The top 220 purchasers of the meme coin, viewable on a leaderboard, received invitations to the "black-tie optional" event.The top investor in the $TRUMP meme coin is billionaire crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun who was charged with fraud and market manipulation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission during the Biden Administration.In February, the Trump administration paused the case.Sun said this week on the social media platform X that he planned to attend the dinner, calling himself Trump's "TOP fan!"From crypto critic to investorTrump's views on cryptocurrency have undergone radical change in recent years.In 2021, he called Bitcoin a "scam."Now, he's not just in charge of regulating cryptocurrencies in the US – he and his family are active industry participants.In addition to the meme coin, the Trump family also holds a majority stake in the crypto exchange World Liberty Financial, which was launched just prior to the election.Trump expressed his desire to be the nation's first "Crypto President" while campaigning for president and was a major beneficiary of campaign contributions from the crypto industry in the 2024 election.Many crypto assets have leapt in value under his presidency. On Thursday, Bitcoin hit a new all-time high of almost per coin.According to a report by the group State Democracy Defenders Action, Trump's investments in crypto have helped boost his net worth by as much as billion."As a stakeholder in crypto assets, President Trump will likely profit from the very policies he is pursuing," the report states.Three days into his term, Trump issued an Executive Order to establish a regulatory framework that promotes the growth of digital currencies.A Trump administration official told the BBC that the meme coin has nothing to do with the White House.White House spokesperson Anna Kelly pushed back on concerns about potential conflicts."The President is working to secure GOOD deals for the American people, not for himself," Kelly said in a statement. But one former financial regulator likened the meme coin to gambling."It's like selling membership cards for his personal fan club which are then traded," said Timothy Massad, Director of the Digital Asset Policy Project at Harvard. "They have no value. But people speculate on the price and those purchases and that trading enriches him."ReutersU.S. Senator Chris Murphyspeaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Conventionat the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Mike SegarAt a Senate committee hearing this week, Senator Chris Murphygrilled Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the lack of transparency regarding who will attend Thursday night's dinner.Mr Murphy cited reports that many of the attendees at the invite-only event were expected to be foreigners."There's clearly a way around the State Department for foreign individuals of significant influence and wealth to be able to directly lobby the president of the United States," Mr Murphy said."I don't have any concern that the president having dinner with someone is going to contravene the security of the United States," responded Mr Rubio, who said he was unaware of the dinner.On Thursday afternoon, Mr Murphy and certain other Democratic members of Congress planned a protest against the dinner to be livestreamed."The Members will demand Trump release the list of individuals attending the dinner and what favors they will be getting for the millions of dollars they invested in Trump's meme coin," the group said in a statement.Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.BitcoinCryptocurrency #trump #defies #ethical #concerns #host
    WWW.BBC.COM
    Trump defies ethical concerns to host investors in his meme coin
    Trump to host investors in his cryptocurrency despite ethical concerns 4 hours agoLily JamaliNorth America Technology Correspondent•@lilyjamaliReporting fromSan FranciscoGetty ImagesUS President Donald Trump will host top purchasers of the cryptocurrency that bears his name at a gala dinner on Thursday.$TRUMP was launched shortly before his inauguration in January, initially rocketing in value before falling sharply shortly afterwards."It's fundamentally corrupt -- a way to buy access to the President," Democrat senator Chris Murphy wrote on X, one of a number of people to question the ethics of the event.Some have also suggested the expected attendance of many foreign investors poses a threat to national security.But the White House has batted away such allegations, saying Trump is only motivated by public serviceWhat is $TRUMP?$TRUMP is what is known as a meme coin - a type of cryptocurrency inspired by internet memes or viral online trends. Its price peaked at $75 in January before plummeting to less than $8 in April - it was trading at around $12.50 at the time of writing.Experts question the value of such assets."This is something that doesn't have obvious utility. It's not being used for payments. It's not being used as a store of value," said Rob Hadick, General Partner of Dragonfly, a crypto venture fund.The dinner - which is being held at Trump's golf course near the nation's capital - is advertised on the website gettrumpmemes.com as "the most EXCLUSIVE INVITATION in the World."The top 220 purchasers of the meme coin, viewable on a leaderboard, received invitations to the "black-tie optional" event.The top investor in the $TRUMP meme coin is billionaire crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun who was charged with fraud and market manipulation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission during the Biden Administration.In February, the Trump administration paused the case.Sun said this week on the social media platform X that he planned to attend the dinner, calling himself Trump's "TOP fan!"From crypto critic to investorTrump's views on cryptocurrency have undergone radical change in recent years.In 2021, he called Bitcoin a "scam."Now, he's not just in charge of regulating cryptocurrencies in the US – he and his family are active industry participants.In addition to the meme coin, the Trump family also holds a majority stake in the crypto exchange World Liberty Financial, which was launched just prior to the election.Trump expressed his desire to be the nation's first "Crypto President" while campaigning for president and was a major beneficiary of campaign contributions from the crypto industry in the 2024 election.Many crypto assets have leapt in value under his presidency. On Thursday, Bitcoin hit a new all-time high of almost $112,000 per coin.According to a report by the group State Democracy Defenders Action, Trump's investments in crypto have helped boost his net worth by as much as $2.9 billion."As a stakeholder in crypto assets, President Trump will likely profit from the very policies he is pursuing," the report states.Three days into his term, Trump issued an Executive Order to establish a regulatory framework that promotes the growth of digital currencies.A Trump administration official told the BBC that the meme coin has nothing to do with the White House.White House spokesperson Anna Kelly pushed back on concerns about potential conflicts."The President is working to secure GOOD deals for the American people, not for himself," Kelly said in a statement. But one former financial regulator likened the meme coin to gambling."It's like selling membership cards for his personal fan club which are then traded," said Timothy Massad, Director of the Digital Asset Policy Project at Harvard. "They have no value. But people speculate on the price and those purchases and that trading enriches him."ReutersU.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) speaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Mike SegarAt a Senate committee hearing this week, Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) grilled Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the lack of transparency regarding who will attend Thursday night's dinner.Mr Murphy cited reports that many of the attendees at the invite-only event were expected to be foreigners."There's clearly a way around the State Department for foreign individuals of significant influence and wealth to be able to directly lobby the president of the United States," Mr Murphy said."I don't have any concern that the president having dinner with someone is going to contravene the security of the United States," responded Mr Rubio, who said he was unaware of the dinner.On Thursday afternoon, Mr Murphy and certain other Democratic members of Congress planned a protest against the dinner to be livestreamed."The Members will demand Trump release the list of individuals attending the dinner and what favors they will be getting for the millions of dollars they invested in Trump's meme coin," the group said in a statement.Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.BitcoinCryptocurrency
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  • Target reveals drop in first quarter revenue, expects to slip for all of 2025

    Sales at Target fell more than expected in the first quarter and the retailer warned they will slip for all of 2025 year as its customers, worried over the impact of tariffs and the economy, pull back on spending.Target also said that customer boycotts have also done some damage. The company scaled back many diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in January after they came under attack by conservative activists and the White House. Target’s retreat created another backlash, with more customers angered by the retailer’s reduction of LGBTQ+-themed merchandise for Pride Month in June of 2023.Shares fell more than 4% before the opening bell Wednesday.Sales fell 2.8% to billion in the quarter, and that was short of the billion Wall Street expected, according to FactSet. Sales are also down from the billion the company reported during the same period last year.Target said Wednesday that it now expects a low-single digit decline in sales for 2025, and earnings per share, which excludes the gains from the litigation settlements in the first quarter, to be anywhere from to For the year, analysts expect earnings per share of on sales of billion.Comparable store sales, those from established stores and online channels, fell 3.8%. That includes a 5.7% drop in store sales and a 4.7% increase in online sales. That reverses a comparable store sales increase of 1.5% in the previous quarter.The number of transactions across online and physical stores fell 2.4%, and the average ticket dropped 1.4%. Target said Tuesday that it couldn’t reliably estimate the individual impact of each of the factors that were hurting its business.Target is setting up a new office to be led by Chief Operating Officer Michael Fiddelke would focus on making faster decisions to help accelerate sales growth. Current Chief Strategy and Growth Officer Christina Hennington will move into a strategic adviser role.Target is also intensifying efforts to entice customers who are nervous about the economy and inflation. The retailer says it is offering 10,000 new items starting at — with the majority under “I want to be clear,” Target CEO Brian Cornell told reporters on a call Tuesday. “We’re not satisfied with these results, so we’re moving with urgency to navigate through this period of volatility … We’ve got to drive traffic back into our stores or visits to our site.”Out of 35 merchandise categories including discretionary and essentials that the company tracks, it’s gaining or maintaining market share in only 15, the company said.Target rival Walmart reported strong quarterly sales last week. The nation’s largest retailer said it’s already raised prices on some items due to tariffs and that more price hikes are on the way this summer when the back-to-school shopping season goes into high gear. For example, car seats made in China that currently sell for at Walmart will likely cost customers another executives said.Target didn’t offer specifics on tariffs’ impact on prices, but said that it was looking at different ways to offset those costs.“We look at competition,” Cornell told reporters. “We make adjustments literally each and every week, so we’re constantly adjusting pricing. Some are going up. Some will be reduced.”President Donald Trump’s threatened 145% import taxes on Chinese goods were reduced to 30% in a deal announced May 12, with some of the higher tariffs on pause for 90 days.Yet Americans were already pulling back on spending as they grow increasingly uneasy over the state of the U.S. economy. Companies including toy manufacturer Mattel, toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker and consumer products giant Procter & Gamble have announced higher prices or plans to raise prices because of the trade war kicked of by the U.S.Walmart was able to dodge some of the tariff damage other retailers are suffering because groceries account for about 60% of its U.S. business. Target is more reliant on discretionary items like clothing and accessories, with less than a quarter of its sales coming from groceries.Target has reduced the number of its store-label products sourced from China to 30% now from 60% in 2017. The company is on its way to reducing that number to 25% by the end of next year, the company said. Target is shifting sourcing to Guatemala and Honduras and is looking to sourcing in the U.S.Target is being pressured on other fronts as well.The company in January said it would phase out a handful of DEI initiatives, including a program designed to help Black employees advance their careers and promote Black-owned businesses. Conservative activists and President Donald Trump have sought to dismantle DEI policies in the federal government, schools, and at private businesses.The pastor of a Georgia megachurch who led a nationwide 40-day boycott of Target stores in response called last month for a continuation of that effort.The Rev. Jamal Bryant is seeking a reinvigorated commitment from Target on diversity, and he wants more support from Target for Black-owned banks and businesses.Target earned billion, or per share, for the period ended May 3. That compares with million, or per share, in the year-ago period.Target operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide and employs more than 400,000 people.

    —Anne D’Innocenzio, AP Business Writer
    #target #reveals #drop #first #quarter
    Target reveals drop in first quarter revenue, expects to slip for all of 2025
    Sales at Target fell more than expected in the first quarter and the retailer warned they will slip for all of 2025 year as its customers, worried over the impact of tariffs and the economy, pull back on spending.Target also said that customer boycotts have also done some damage. The company scaled back many diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in January after they came under attack by conservative activists and the White House. Target’s retreat created another backlash, with more customers angered by the retailer’s reduction of LGBTQ+-themed merchandise for Pride Month in June of 2023.Shares fell more than 4% before the opening bell Wednesday.Sales fell 2.8% to billion in the quarter, and that was short of the billion Wall Street expected, according to FactSet. Sales are also down from the billion the company reported during the same period last year.Target said Wednesday that it now expects a low-single digit decline in sales for 2025, and earnings per share, which excludes the gains from the litigation settlements in the first quarter, to be anywhere from to For the year, analysts expect earnings per share of on sales of billion.Comparable store sales, those from established stores and online channels, fell 3.8%. That includes a 5.7% drop in store sales and a 4.7% increase in online sales. That reverses a comparable store sales increase of 1.5% in the previous quarter.The number of transactions across online and physical stores fell 2.4%, and the average ticket dropped 1.4%. Target said Tuesday that it couldn’t reliably estimate the individual impact of each of the factors that were hurting its business.Target is setting up a new office to be led by Chief Operating Officer Michael Fiddelke would focus on making faster decisions to help accelerate sales growth. Current Chief Strategy and Growth Officer Christina Hennington will move into a strategic adviser role.Target is also intensifying efforts to entice customers who are nervous about the economy and inflation. The retailer says it is offering 10,000 new items starting at — with the majority under “I want to be clear,” Target CEO Brian Cornell told reporters on a call Tuesday. “We’re not satisfied with these results, so we’re moving with urgency to navigate through this period of volatility … We’ve got to drive traffic back into our stores or visits to our site.”Out of 35 merchandise categories including discretionary and essentials that the company tracks, it’s gaining or maintaining market share in only 15, the company said.Target rival Walmart reported strong quarterly sales last week. The nation’s largest retailer said it’s already raised prices on some items due to tariffs and that more price hikes are on the way this summer when the back-to-school shopping season goes into high gear. For example, car seats made in China that currently sell for at Walmart will likely cost customers another executives said.Target didn’t offer specifics on tariffs’ impact on prices, but said that it was looking at different ways to offset those costs.“We look at competition,” Cornell told reporters. “We make adjustments literally each and every week, so we’re constantly adjusting pricing. Some are going up. Some will be reduced.”President Donald Trump’s threatened 145% import taxes on Chinese goods were reduced to 30% in a deal announced May 12, with some of the higher tariffs on pause for 90 days.Yet Americans were already pulling back on spending as they grow increasingly uneasy over the state of the U.S. economy. Companies including toy manufacturer Mattel, toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker and consumer products giant Procter & Gamble have announced higher prices or plans to raise prices because of the trade war kicked of by the U.S.Walmart was able to dodge some of the tariff damage other retailers are suffering because groceries account for about 60% of its U.S. business. Target is more reliant on discretionary items like clothing and accessories, with less than a quarter of its sales coming from groceries.Target has reduced the number of its store-label products sourced from China to 30% now from 60% in 2017. The company is on its way to reducing that number to 25% by the end of next year, the company said. Target is shifting sourcing to Guatemala and Honduras and is looking to sourcing in the U.S.Target is being pressured on other fronts as well.The company in January said it would phase out a handful of DEI initiatives, including a program designed to help Black employees advance their careers and promote Black-owned businesses. Conservative activists and President Donald Trump have sought to dismantle DEI policies in the federal government, schools, and at private businesses.The pastor of a Georgia megachurch who led a nationwide 40-day boycott of Target stores in response called last month for a continuation of that effort.The Rev. Jamal Bryant is seeking a reinvigorated commitment from Target on diversity, and he wants more support from Target for Black-owned banks and businesses.Target earned billion, or per share, for the period ended May 3. That compares with million, or per share, in the year-ago period.Target operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide and employs more than 400,000 people. —Anne D’Innocenzio, AP Business Writer #target #reveals #drop #first #quarter
    WWW.FASTCOMPANY.COM
    Target reveals drop in first quarter revenue, expects to slip for all of 2025
    Sales at Target fell more than expected in the first quarter and the retailer warned they will slip for all of 2025 year as its customers, worried over the impact of tariffs and the economy, pull back on spending.Target also said that customer boycotts have also done some damage. The company scaled back many diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in January after they came under attack by conservative activists and the White House. Target’s retreat created another backlash, with more customers angered by the retailer’s reduction of LGBTQ+-themed merchandise for Pride Month in June of 2023.Shares fell more than 4% before the opening bell Wednesday.Sales fell 2.8% to $23.85 billion in the quarter, and that was short of the $24.23 billion Wall Street expected, according to FactSet. Sales are also down from the $24.53 billion the company reported during the same period last year.Target said Wednesday that it now expects a low-single digit decline in sales for 2025, and earnings per share, which excludes the gains from the litigation settlements in the first quarter, to be anywhere from $7 to $9.For the year, analysts expect earnings per share of $8.34 on sales of $106.7 billion.Comparable store sales, those from established stores and online channels, fell 3.8%. That includes a 5.7% drop in store sales and a 4.7% increase in online sales. That reverses a comparable store sales increase of 1.5% in the previous quarter.The number of transactions across online and physical stores fell 2.4%, and the average ticket dropped 1.4%. Target said Tuesday that it couldn’t reliably estimate the individual impact of each of the factors that were hurting its business.Target is setting up a new office to be led by Chief Operating Officer Michael Fiddelke would focus on making faster decisions to help accelerate sales growth. Current Chief Strategy and Growth Officer Christina Hennington will move into a strategic adviser role.Target is also intensifying efforts to entice customers who are nervous about the economy and inflation. The retailer says it is offering 10,000 new items starting at $1 — with the majority under $20.“I want to be clear,” Target CEO Brian Cornell told reporters on a call Tuesday. “We’re not satisfied with these results, so we’re moving with urgency to navigate through this period of volatility … We’ve got to drive traffic back into our stores or visits to our site.”Out of 35 merchandise categories including discretionary and essentials that the company tracks, it’s gaining or maintaining market share in only 15, the company said.Target rival Walmart reported strong quarterly sales last week. The nation’s largest retailer said it’s already raised prices on some items due to tariffs and that more price hikes are on the way this summer when the back-to-school shopping season goes into high gear. For example, car seats made in China that currently sell for $350 at Walmart will likely cost customers another $100, executives said.Target didn’t offer specifics on tariffs’ impact on prices, but said that it was looking at different ways to offset those costs.“We look at competition,” Cornell told reporters. “We make adjustments literally each and every week, so we’re constantly adjusting pricing. Some are going up. Some will be reduced.”President Donald Trump’s threatened 145% import taxes on Chinese goods were reduced to 30% in a deal announced May 12, with some of the higher tariffs on pause for 90 days.Yet Americans were already pulling back on spending as they grow increasingly uneasy over the state of the U.S. economy. Companies including toy manufacturer Mattel, toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker and consumer products giant Procter & Gamble have announced higher prices or plans to raise prices because of the trade war kicked of by the U.S.Walmart was able to dodge some of the tariff damage other retailers are suffering because groceries account for about 60% of its U.S. business. Target is more reliant on discretionary items like clothing and accessories, with less than a quarter of its sales coming from groceries.Target has reduced the number of its store-label products sourced from China to 30% now from 60% in 2017. The company is on its way to reducing that number to 25% by the end of next year, the company said. Target is shifting sourcing to Guatemala and Honduras and is looking to sourcing in the U.S.Target is being pressured on other fronts as well.The company in January said it would phase out a handful of DEI initiatives, including a program designed to help Black employees advance their careers and promote Black-owned businesses. Conservative activists and President Donald Trump have sought to dismantle DEI policies in the federal government, schools, and at private businesses.The pastor of a Georgia megachurch who led a nationwide 40-day boycott of Target stores in response called last month for a continuation of that effort.The Rev. Jamal Bryant is seeking a reinvigorated commitment from Target on diversity, and he wants more support from Target for Black-owned banks and businesses.Target earned $1.04 billion, or $2.27 per share, for the period ended May 3. That compares with $942 million, or $2.03 per share, in the year-ago period.Target operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide and employs more than 400,000 people. —Anne D’Innocenzio, AP Business Writer
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  • Final Destination Kills Ranked from the Short and Sweet to Spectacularly Brutal

    This article contains full spoilers for every Final Destination movie, INCLUDING Bloodlines.
    For more than a decade, we thought we’d finally made it. It’s been 14 years since the last Final Destination film, the last time Death started killing off those who escaped its plan in exceedingly gruesome fashion. We thought we were free to go to theaters in safety once more. But as the mortician William Bludworth, played by the late great Tony Todd, has taught us, there’s no escaping Death.
    The franchise is back with one of its best entries: Final Destination Bloodlines, written and directed by newcomers to the franchise Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein. Bloodlines has a shinier look and a different approach, focusing on a family instead a group of random teens. But it follows the well-established principles of a Final Destination movie, especially in its incredible kills.
    In celebration of Bloodlines bringing Final Destination back to screens, we’re ranking all of Death’s achievements across the franchise. Because Final Destination movies are ultimately about good, gory fun, we’re ranking them from the most boring to the most enjoyably incredible.

    Like Death itself, we do have a few rules here. We aren’t counting any deaths in the premonitions that open each movie, nor the mass casualties that occur in the actual events, which means that you won’t see the infamous pile-up from Final Destination 2 or the incredible tower sequence that opens Bloodlines. Also we’re focusing on Death’s kills, so kills done by human beings don’t count. Even with those restrictions, Final Destination gives us plenty of memorable kills, as Death always makes a show of getting even.
    40. Alex Browning’s Off-Screen DemiseIs it a mark of respect that the first movie’s protagonist Alex Browningdoesn’t die on screen? Or is it the ultimate insult that we learn via newspaper clipping in Final Destination 2 that he was knocked in the head with a brick? Interpretations may vary, but no one can disagree that Alex’s death deserves the bottom spot.
    Played by comedy great David Koechner, paper plant boss Dennis Lapman of Final Destination 5 has one of the gnarliest premonition deaths. Dangling off a collapsing bridge, Dennis almost pulls himself back up when he’s doused with hot tar, burning alive as he lets go and drops to the water. That incredible end makes his actual expiration all the worse, as he goes out when a loose wrench on a shop floor gets hurled into his head, no real setup involved.
    38. Wendy Cristensen, Julie Cristensen, and Kevin Fischer Crash Off-ScreenWith the exception of the original Final Destination, the protagonists end their films thinking they’ve beaten Death only to realize that the Grim Reaper has one more trick up his sleeve, and the movies end with shocking cuts. The worst of them comes in Final Destination 3, one of the weaker entries overall, in which Wendy Cristensen, her sister Julie, and pal Kevin Fischerall perish in a train crash.
    Technically we see them meet their end in impressive carnage, but that all happens in a premonition, which this list rules out. So we have to go with the death that happens onscreen—well, on soundtrack, as the movie cuts to black with the sound of the crash.
    37. Janet Cunningham, Lori Milligan, Nick O’Bannon Death By X-Ray TruckEasily the worst of the series, the fourth entry The Final Destination also ends with a sudden attack on the protagonists. In this case, Nick O’Bannon, his love interest Lori Milligan, and her friend Janet Cunninghammeet in a coffee shop to celebrate life, only for a truck to crash into the building. It’s a lot like the third movie’s ending, but at least this movie gives us neat x-rays to look at and imagine what horrible things happened to our heroes.

    36. George Lanter and the Very Quiet AmbulancePlayed by the great Mykelti Williamson, George Lantner is the only character who acts like a human being in The Final Destination. So it’s a bit lame that the movie kills him off with a gag when he steps onto the road and gets flattened by an oncoming ambulance. He mentions “deja vu” right before it happens because his end is a callback to a similar one from the first film, which will be talked about shortly. It’s an unimaginative death and a mean joke at the expense of a likable character, which lands it toward the bottom of the list.

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    35. Nadia Monroy Makes Nick’s Dream a RealityFor the most part, this list is ignoring both the premonitions and the mass casualties that occur after a premonition. The one exception comes with Nadia Monroyof The Final Destination, who dies in the immediate aftermath of a premonition. After Nick has a vision of a massive Nascar wreck, he panics, which gets a group of people kicked out of the race just as the accident begins. As the survivors try to make sense of what happened, a tire flies out of the stadium and through Nadia’s head, replicating her death from the vision.
    34. Perry Malinowski Salutes the FlagFinal Destination loves its out-of-nowhere surprise kills. A character thinks they’re safe, they make some ironic statement and, bam, they’re immediately dead. Usually, these kills aren’t nearly as funny or clever as the movies think they are, especially compared to the elaborate sequences that have become the franchise’s calling card. One of the worst comes when Perry Malinowskigets unceremoniously offed when a loose horse breaks of a flagpole that goes through her chest, a forgettable death for a forgettable character. Horse looks cool though.
    33. Darlene Campbell Stays at the CabinAlthough not as meta as, say, a Scream movie, the characters in Final Destination: Bloodlines know how Final Destination movies work. To the filmamkers’ credit, the knowledge adds tension to the movie, underscoring how knowledge doesn’t give them power to evade Death. Nowhere is that more clear than at the climax of Bloodlines when Darlene Campbell—a mother who has estranged herself from her children—decides to hide in her own mother’s bunker, thereby stalling Death’s hit list and saving her children. Noble though the sentiment may be, Darlene’s proclamation of love for her children distracts her, and she gets smashed by a falling pole, rendering her heroism moot.
    32. Carter Horton Finally Sees the SignPlayed by Kerr Smith, Carter Horton is the onscreen antagonist of the first film, an annoying preppie who bullies Alex and the others and somehow gets to survive. So while we don’t actually see Carter get killed before the screen cuts to closing credits, his demise does rank above those from the third and fourth movies just because we wanted to see this guy get it for so long.
    31. Samantha Lane Has Her Eye on a StoneThe overwhelming majority of Final Destination victims are obnoxious, good-looking teens who mostly deserve to die. Wife and mother Samantha Lanecertainly isn’t a saint but she doesn’t irritate us like every other jerk in The Final Destination. So we’re a bit annoyed that she gets such a cruel death when a lawn mower kicks up a rock that flies through her eyes while her young kids watch in horror. The kill does get a few extra points, however, for all of the playfulness before it actually happens, as Death sets up a few options to off Sarah before finally picking the rock.

    30. Ian McKinley Splits the FairThe franchise has never done great with its human antagonists, the regular guys who get tired of all the dying and take things into their own hands by killing the other characters. Ian McKinleystands out a little bit more than the others. Instead of showing all the things that could off him, the camera simply follows Ian through a crowd while he rants about his immortality. That’s a bit dull, but it pays off when a firework shoots by him, apparently sparing him, only for the explosion to knock over a cherry picker that splits him in half. That extra beat is enough to make his sudden surprise kill a bit more satisfying.
    29. Stefani and Charlie Reyes in a LogjamAlthough a bit glossier and a bit kinder with its characters, Final Destination Bloodlines follows the beats of most entries in the franchise. In fact, its final moment, in which protagonists Stefaniand Charlie Reyesrealize that they did not, in fact, stop Death and are about to die, feels like a callback to the infamous log premonition in Final Destination 2. However, Bloodlines ups the stakes with a lucky penny leading to a train derailment. The amazing shot of Stefani and Charlie goes bigger than any of the other movies’ shock ending, undone some by the cheap effects when two logs from the train car come loose and flatten our heroes.
    28. Sam Lawton and Emma Bell Die in a CallbackFinal Destination 5 has the best ending of the series, in which protagonists Sam Lawtonand Emma Bellsurvive the ordeal and board a plane to celebrate. It’s only then that we realize that the movie has taken place in 2000 and that they’re boarding Flight 180, the one that explodes at the start of the first movie. Thus we have to watch as the characters who have gone through so much die, but we also get to see the original disaster that started it all. Emily splatters when she gets sucked out of the plane and sliced by the wing, but Sam’s death isn’t that spectacular outside of the fact that he burns up in the same manner as Alex did in his vision.
    27. Tod Waggner Hung Out to DryThe first “real” death of the series, Tod Waggner’send feels like a first draft to the spectacular kills to come. When water leaks from a toilet, Todd slips into the tub and gets a laundry cord wrapped around his neck. Todd’s desperate attempts to stand up and save himself, frustrated by the slick tub floor, give the death a level of pathos rarely seen in the series, but outside of that, it’s a fairly rote kill for the overall franchise.
    26. Iris Campbell Gets to the PointBloodlines gives Tony Todd a glorious final scene as Bloodworth, but it’s the elderly Iris Campbellwho tells her granddaughter Stefani the rules of Death’s design. Throughout the exposition dump, the camera points to various classic setups, but Iris catches them all. So when Death does finally take her, using a flying fire extinguisher to send a weathervane point through her face, it’s because Iris wants to show Stefani how Death operates. That intentionality makes Iris’ end stand out, even if it isn’t the most elaborate on this list.
    25. Rory Peters Goes FencingFinal Destination 2 has the best premonition in the series, an incredible accident and pile-up filled with ghastly incidents. Toward the climax of the movie, that road destruction gets sort of recreated when a series of events launched by a car crash suddenly kill off other characters. It’s mostly fun, and wide shots let us see Death’s composition, but it’s hard to get too excited when stoner Rory Petersgets split into thirds by flying fencing.

    24. Clear Rivers and Eugene Dix Go Up in FlamesIt was a nice reveal to show Clear Rivershad survived even the post-credit carnage of the first Final Destination to provide information to the victims of the second film. But that surprise was completely undercut by the film then killing Clear in a sudden hospital explosion, taking teacher Eugene, one of the more compelling characters in the movie, out along with her. Multi-victim kills always feel like a bit of a cheat, but at least this one had a nice build-up.
    23. Carter Daniels’ Hate Crime BackfiresThe Final Destination‘s unlikable cast goes to the extreme when white supremacist Cartersingles out George Latner as the cause of his wife’s demise. So it’s especially satisfying when Carter, in the midst of burning a cross on George’s lawn, gets dragged behind his truck and burned alive. Carter may not get the most creative of kills, but rarely do we see such an awful person get their full and just reward like that.
    22. Isaac Palmer Meets the BuddhaUnlike most entries, Final Destination 5 limited its nastiness to one character, and even then, actor P. J. Byrne knows how to find light notes in his depiction of smarmy exec Isaac Palmer. Byrne sleezes it up as Isaac steals a spa coupon from recently-deceased co-worker, leers at spa workers, and then condescend to the worker who performs upon him. From then on, it’s a classic Final Destination sequence, as a fallen candle ignites spilled oil to send Isaac pin-first onto the ground, crawling away until he inadvertently pulls a Buddha statue on his head, his karma fully earned.
    21. Kat Jennings and the Jaws of DeathNervous wreck Kat Jenningsgets one of the better sudden deaths in the series, largely because Death puts all the pieces in place for a symphony of chaos and then sets it off suddenly. Kat initially survives the car crash, avoiding the pointy pipe that ran through her back window and continues to stick out behind her head. When firefighters use the jaws of life to pry open her car door, however, the impact is enough to set off the airbags, slamming Kat’s head into the spike and setting off more carnage.
    20. Lewis Romero Loses Weight in the GymA lot of the kills on this list are preceded by a character declaring their immortality, but few do it with as much apblomb as Final Destination 3‘s aggro jock Lewis Romero. Like many Lewis responds to Death’s machinations by asserting his own free will… loudly. At the end, he does it while pumping iron in the gym, and his protestations shake the walls, knocking free swords used as part of his team’s decor. The swords cut the bands of his machine as they fall, freeing the weights to smash his head. Given that it was his actions that made the swords drop, Lewis did kind of control his own fate.
    19. Nora Carpenter and the Creepy Hook HandOf all the kills on this list, the death of nervous mom Nora Carpenterseems the easiest to avoid. Well, at first anyway, when she rushes into an elevator and gets her hair caught on a hook, part of the prosthetic limbs that a creepy guy holds in a box. If Nora just settled down for a moment, or if the creepy guy would put as much effort into untangling her as he does smelling her hair, then she probably could have wrestled free before the elevator decapitated her. All that aside, it’s a pretty amazing and gory kill, one that has enough shock value to overcome any logistical leaps.

    The Final Destination movies are big on dying, but not so big on suffering, which is a good thing. We don’t want to think of these people as human beings, because that would ruin the fun of watching them go out. Erin Ulmer’send in Final Destination 3 veers a bit too much toward suffering, as the camera holds on her as she moans in her last moments. Up until that point, though, the scene has fun with misdirection, making us think that we’re about to see Ian McKinley get crushed by boards until Erin gets knocked into a nail gun, which perforates the back of her head.
    17. Jonathan Groves Takes a BathOn one hand, Jonathan Grovesfeels like he was added to The Final Destination late in production because the producers found out the movie’s running a bit too short. Groves does show up in the opening crash scene, but we lose track of him and assume he’s dead until Nick sees him on the news. But we can forgive the shoehorning for the purely absurd way that Groves goes out, with an overfilled bathtub from the hospital floor above crashing down onto his bed.
    16. Nathan Sears and Flight 180’s LandingIn addition to its fantastic kills Final Destination 5 also has the most well-rounded characters in the series, characters like junior executive Nathan Sears. Nathan is fundamentally a nice guy but he gets caught up in a dispute with an older union leader, a dispute that ends when the leader accidentally dies during a fight. Thinking that was Death coming for him, Nathan comes to the leader’s wake to pay respects, secure in the belief that Death has skipped him. That assumption adds some pathos to the moment with gear from Flight 180 falls from the sky and crushes him, taking both good people and bad people.
    15. Frankie Cheeks Trapped in the Drive ThruFrankie Cheeksis one of the most unlikable characters in the franchiseand we don’t even know that he’s dead until after it happens. So why does it rank relatively high on this list? Because of the way it’s set up, looking very much like protagonists Wendy and Kevin are going to get killed in an unbelievable but well-orchestrated drive-through accident. While our heroes escape in time, a collision still occurs, sending a huge engine fan into the back of Frankie’s head. At first it seems like the duo passed their death onto an innocent bystander until we see a bloody necklace in the shape of a naked lady, and we all breathe a sigh of relief that Frankie Cheeks walks the Earth no more.
    14. Tim Carpenter Gets Squished By GlassTim Carpenter may be the weirdest character in the entire series. The script says he’s 15, and actor James Kirk sometimes plays him as a teen and sometimes as an eight-year-old, which ends up feeling like he’s the MadTV character Stuart. That childlike nature leads to Tim’s end when, like a dumb kid, he just decides to chase after some pigeons because… they were there? The pigeons take flight, knocking a giant pane of glass off of a crane and sending the glass on top of Tim, smooshing the little weirdo.
    13. Andy Kewzer Goes Through a Chain Link Fence… in Tiny PiecesThe biggest problem with The Final Destination is its reliance on CG blood, a scourge of 2000s horror. Still, sometimes the kills are so outrageous that we can forgive the poor effects. Such is the case when mechanic Andy Kewzergets blown into a chain link fence. It looks silly when his body collapses into goopy chunks, but the setup is satisfying, as is the sight of him getting blasted out of his garage into the instrument of his doom.

    12. Terry Chaney Hit By a Silent BusFor the first viewers of Final Destination, Terry Chaneyhad the standout death. Freaked out by Alex’s talk of Death coming for them all, Terry tells her friends to drop dead, steps into the street and gets splattered by a bus. It’s a funny moment, as long as you don’t think about it for a second, and it got cheers in the theater. Over time, however, the sudden shock death has become a series trope, dulling the impactof Terry’s end.
    11. Howard Campbell Gets a TrimPatriarch Howard Campbellgets the first classic-style death in Bloodlines, and what a glorious one it is. Occurring after the film has clearly laid out Death’s rules and process, the filmmakers luxuriate in the setup, taking time to highlight all of the things that could kill someone in Campbell’s well-appointed suburban backyard: a rake under a ripping trampoline, a shard of glass in an iced drink, a hose about to explode. After several minutes of anticipation, all of those things come together to set-off something we never saw coming, an electric self-propelled lawnmower, which runs over the face of the prone Howard.
    Iconic as it may be, Terry’s isn’t the best sudden shock death in the first Final Destination movie. That honor belongs to New York Rangers superfan Billy Hitchcock, who also dies without much obvious setup from Death. Billy goes after he and Alex confront the ever-jerky Carter, who decides to defy Death by parking on train tracks. Carter survives, but Billy can’t take it and starts having an angry meltdown, a meltdown cut short when the train kicks up a piece of shrapnel and sends it flying through Billy’s neck.
    Tod may be the first death in the Final Destination series, but Valerie Lewtongets the first great death of the franchise. Still shaken up over the explosion of Flight 180, teacher Mrs. Lewton spills some alcohol on the ground while making dinner. When her cooking goes awry, the alcohol ignites, setting her house ablaze. But it’s not the fire that kills her. Rather she dies when she accidentally pulls a knife down from the counter, which embeds itself in her chest.
    8. Evan Lewis Slips on SpaghettiSometimes Death orchestrates events in such an improbable manner that we can almost see a physical hand onscreen, manipulating events. Sometimes dumb people do dumb things and pay for it. It’s the latter event that brings down lottery-winning bro Evan Lewisin Final Destination 2, who just tosses a pot of spaghetti out the window. That decision proves disastrous when Death’s meddling leads to a fire in Evan’s apartment. Evan climbs out to make an escape, but he slips on his own spaghetti, which leaves him vulnerable to the falling ladder that pierces his eye.
    7. Brian Gibbons BBQ BombAlthough it’s a sudden kill with little setup, the death of Brian Gibbonsranks so high because of how funny it is. At the end of the movie, survivors Kimberly Cormanand Thomas Burkejoin the Gibbons family at a BBQ where they all let off a bit of steam. No sooner does Brian joke about his and his father’s near-death experience than the grill he’s using explodes, sending his severed arm flying through the air. The arm lands on his mother’s plate, a darkly funny beat that makes it one step better than the average out-of-nowhere kills in the series.

    6. Erik and Bobby Campbell Bond in the HospitalErik Campbellis truly a unique character in the Final Destination franchise. First of all, he seems to survive his own elaborate death, a hilarious incident in a tattoo parlor. Secondly he and his brother Bobbyactually like each other, which makes their end so poignant.
    Off of Bludworth’s information, Erik decides to send the highly allergic Bobby into anaphylaxis so he can revive him, thus satisfying Death. But Erik gets too cute with his plan, and his action accidentally turns on and revs up an MRI machine in the room where the brothers are working. The intensified magnification first pulls in and crushes Erik, with his piercings in front and a wheelchair in back, and then snags a coil from a vending machine, sending it through Bobby’s head.
    5. Olivia Castle’s Laser-Guided FallOkay, technically Olivia Castledies when she falls out of a window. But that’s not the part that sticks out in our mind. Instead we remember everything before that moment when Olivia gets laser eye surgery. As if torn from the worst thoughts of anyone about to get the surgery, we watch as Death shorts out the laser while the tech is out of the room and starts burning out Kimberly’s eye. No sooner does she escape than she slips on her beloved teddy bear and falls through the window, a somehow merciful end to the suffering.
    3. Ashley Freund & Ashlyn Halperin’s Tanning Session Gone WrongAs this list shows, great Final Destination deaths fall into one of three categories: memorably mean, patently absurd, or impeccably designed. Ashley Fruendand Ashlyn Halperinare the prime examples of the first category. A pair of stock mean mall girls, Ashley and Ashlyn go to their favorite tanning spa, giant-size sodas in hand. Death ups the condensation on the drinks, which creates enough water to short out the beds, which turns up the heat, while a fallen shelf keeps them trapped inside. The sight of them burning alive is nasty enough, but the real kicker is the match cut at the end, which replaces two tanning beds with two coffins.
    3. Julia Campbell Takes Out the TrashFinal Destination movies love a good fake-out and Bloodlines has the best one yet. Armed with knowledge from Iris, Stefani walks down a suburban street with a skeptical Erik, Death’s next probable victim. As the two walk, Stefani points out all of the things that could kill him: leaves from a blower, a soccer ball kicked by kids, a trash compactor. But to Erik’s mocking glee, nothing happens. Nothing, that is, until Erik’s sister Juliagoes for a run. In the background. And out of focus, all of those things come together to knock Julia into a roadside dumpster, which is then emptied into the garbage truck where Julia is compacted while Stefani watches.
    2. Hunt Wynorski’s Guts in a Pool PumpThe best patently absurd kill in the entire franchise occurs to obnoxious bro Hunt Wynorski. After getting into an altercation with a little kid at a public pool, Hunt sits down to catch some rays when he hears his lucky coin fall into the water. Hunt dives in after it, just as Death starts messing with the equipment, causing the pump to malfunction and raise the pressure. The pump traps Hunt at the bottom and he gestures wildly for help, but no one sees him. Instead of drowning, Hunt gets his guts sucked out through his butt, a kill so wonderful that we don’t even care about the CGI viscera that caps off the scene.

    1. Candace Hooper Doesn’t Stick the LandingEasily the most glorious and well-composed kill of the entire franchise occurs early in Final Destination 5, when a standard routine for gymnast Candice Hoopergoes horribly wrong. Director Steven Quale takes the time to show viewers the tools and space in which Death works, highlighting dripping water, a shaking girder, spilled dust, and other elements, before bringing them together as Candice goes through her flips. As a result, we understand every step in the system of catastrophes that leads to a ghastly end, with Candice’s crumpled body shuttering on the gym floor.
    #final #destination #kills #ranked #short
    Final Destination Kills Ranked from the Short and Sweet to Spectacularly Brutal
    This article contains full spoilers for every Final Destination movie, INCLUDING Bloodlines. For more than a decade, we thought we’d finally made it. It’s been 14 years since the last Final Destination film, the last time Death started killing off those who escaped its plan in exceedingly gruesome fashion. We thought we were free to go to theaters in safety once more. But as the mortician William Bludworth, played by the late great Tony Todd, has taught us, there’s no escaping Death. The franchise is back with one of its best entries: Final Destination Bloodlines, written and directed by newcomers to the franchise Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein. Bloodlines has a shinier look and a different approach, focusing on a family instead a group of random teens. But it follows the well-established principles of a Final Destination movie, especially in its incredible kills. In celebration of Bloodlines bringing Final Destination back to screens, we’re ranking all of Death’s achievements across the franchise. Because Final Destination movies are ultimately about good, gory fun, we’re ranking them from the most boring to the most enjoyably incredible. Like Death itself, we do have a few rules here. We aren’t counting any deaths in the premonitions that open each movie, nor the mass casualties that occur in the actual events, which means that you won’t see the infamous pile-up from Final Destination 2 or the incredible tower sequence that opens Bloodlines. Also we’re focusing on Death’s kills, so kills done by human beings don’t count. Even with those restrictions, Final Destination gives us plenty of memorable kills, as Death always makes a show of getting even. 40. Alex Browning’s Off-Screen DemiseIs it a mark of respect that the first movie’s protagonist Alex Browningdoesn’t die on screen? Or is it the ultimate insult that we learn via newspaper clipping in Final Destination 2 that he was knocked in the head with a brick? Interpretations may vary, but no one can disagree that Alex’s death deserves the bottom spot. Played by comedy great David Koechner, paper plant boss Dennis Lapman of Final Destination 5 has one of the gnarliest premonition deaths. Dangling off a collapsing bridge, Dennis almost pulls himself back up when he’s doused with hot tar, burning alive as he lets go and drops to the water. That incredible end makes his actual expiration all the worse, as he goes out when a loose wrench on a shop floor gets hurled into his head, no real setup involved. 38. Wendy Cristensen, Julie Cristensen, and Kevin Fischer Crash Off-ScreenWith the exception of the original Final Destination, the protagonists end their films thinking they’ve beaten Death only to realize that the Grim Reaper has one more trick up his sleeve, and the movies end with shocking cuts. The worst of them comes in Final Destination 3, one of the weaker entries overall, in which Wendy Cristensen, her sister Julie, and pal Kevin Fischerall perish in a train crash. Technically we see them meet their end in impressive carnage, but that all happens in a premonition, which this list rules out. So we have to go with the death that happens onscreen—well, on soundtrack, as the movie cuts to black with the sound of the crash. 37. Janet Cunningham, Lori Milligan, Nick O’Bannon Death By X-Ray TruckEasily the worst of the series, the fourth entry The Final Destination also ends with a sudden attack on the protagonists. In this case, Nick O’Bannon, his love interest Lori Milligan, and her friend Janet Cunninghammeet in a coffee shop to celebrate life, only for a truck to crash into the building. It’s a lot like the third movie’s ending, but at least this movie gives us neat x-rays to look at and imagine what horrible things happened to our heroes. 36. George Lanter and the Very Quiet AmbulancePlayed by the great Mykelti Williamson, George Lantner is the only character who acts like a human being in The Final Destination. So it’s a bit lame that the movie kills him off with a gag when he steps onto the road and gets flattened by an oncoming ambulance. He mentions “deja vu” right before it happens because his end is a callback to a similar one from the first film, which will be talked about shortly. It’s an unimaginative death and a mean joke at the expense of a likable character, which lands it toward the bottom of the list. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! 35. Nadia Monroy Makes Nick’s Dream a RealityFor the most part, this list is ignoring both the premonitions and the mass casualties that occur after a premonition. The one exception comes with Nadia Monroyof The Final Destination, who dies in the immediate aftermath of a premonition. After Nick has a vision of a massive Nascar wreck, he panics, which gets a group of people kicked out of the race just as the accident begins. As the survivors try to make sense of what happened, a tire flies out of the stadium and through Nadia’s head, replicating her death from the vision. 34. Perry Malinowski Salutes the FlagFinal Destination loves its out-of-nowhere surprise kills. A character thinks they’re safe, they make some ironic statement and, bam, they’re immediately dead. Usually, these kills aren’t nearly as funny or clever as the movies think they are, especially compared to the elaborate sequences that have become the franchise’s calling card. One of the worst comes when Perry Malinowskigets unceremoniously offed when a loose horse breaks of a flagpole that goes through her chest, a forgettable death for a forgettable character. Horse looks cool though. 33. Darlene Campbell Stays at the CabinAlthough not as meta as, say, a Scream movie, the characters in Final Destination: Bloodlines know how Final Destination movies work. To the filmamkers’ credit, the knowledge adds tension to the movie, underscoring how knowledge doesn’t give them power to evade Death. Nowhere is that more clear than at the climax of Bloodlines when Darlene Campbell—a mother who has estranged herself from her children—decides to hide in her own mother’s bunker, thereby stalling Death’s hit list and saving her children. Noble though the sentiment may be, Darlene’s proclamation of love for her children distracts her, and she gets smashed by a falling pole, rendering her heroism moot. 32. Carter Horton Finally Sees the SignPlayed by Kerr Smith, Carter Horton is the onscreen antagonist of the first film, an annoying preppie who bullies Alex and the others and somehow gets to survive. So while we don’t actually see Carter get killed before the screen cuts to closing credits, his demise does rank above those from the third and fourth movies just because we wanted to see this guy get it for so long. 31. Samantha Lane Has Her Eye on a StoneThe overwhelming majority of Final Destination victims are obnoxious, good-looking teens who mostly deserve to die. Wife and mother Samantha Lanecertainly isn’t a saint but she doesn’t irritate us like every other jerk in The Final Destination. So we’re a bit annoyed that she gets such a cruel death when a lawn mower kicks up a rock that flies through her eyes while her young kids watch in horror. The kill does get a few extra points, however, for all of the playfulness before it actually happens, as Death sets up a few options to off Sarah before finally picking the rock. 30. Ian McKinley Splits the FairThe franchise has never done great with its human antagonists, the regular guys who get tired of all the dying and take things into their own hands by killing the other characters. Ian McKinleystands out a little bit more than the others. Instead of showing all the things that could off him, the camera simply follows Ian through a crowd while he rants about his immortality. That’s a bit dull, but it pays off when a firework shoots by him, apparently sparing him, only for the explosion to knock over a cherry picker that splits him in half. That extra beat is enough to make his sudden surprise kill a bit more satisfying. 29. Stefani and Charlie Reyes in a LogjamAlthough a bit glossier and a bit kinder with its characters, Final Destination Bloodlines follows the beats of most entries in the franchise. In fact, its final moment, in which protagonists Stefaniand Charlie Reyesrealize that they did not, in fact, stop Death and are about to die, feels like a callback to the infamous log premonition in Final Destination 2. However, Bloodlines ups the stakes with a lucky penny leading to a train derailment. The amazing shot of Stefani and Charlie goes bigger than any of the other movies’ shock ending, undone some by the cheap effects when two logs from the train car come loose and flatten our heroes. 28. Sam Lawton and Emma Bell Die in a CallbackFinal Destination 5 has the best ending of the series, in which protagonists Sam Lawtonand Emma Bellsurvive the ordeal and board a plane to celebrate. It’s only then that we realize that the movie has taken place in 2000 and that they’re boarding Flight 180, the one that explodes at the start of the first movie. Thus we have to watch as the characters who have gone through so much die, but we also get to see the original disaster that started it all. Emily splatters when she gets sucked out of the plane and sliced by the wing, but Sam’s death isn’t that spectacular outside of the fact that he burns up in the same manner as Alex did in his vision. 27. Tod Waggner Hung Out to DryThe first “real” death of the series, Tod Waggner’send feels like a first draft to the spectacular kills to come. When water leaks from a toilet, Todd slips into the tub and gets a laundry cord wrapped around his neck. Todd’s desperate attempts to stand up and save himself, frustrated by the slick tub floor, give the death a level of pathos rarely seen in the series, but outside of that, it’s a fairly rote kill for the overall franchise. 26. Iris Campbell Gets to the PointBloodlines gives Tony Todd a glorious final scene as Bloodworth, but it’s the elderly Iris Campbellwho tells her granddaughter Stefani the rules of Death’s design. Throughout the exposition dump, the camera points to various classic setups, but Iris catches them all. So when Death does finally take her, using a flying fire extinguisher to send a weathervane point through her face, it’s because Iris wants to show Stefani how Death operates. That intentionality makes Iris’ end stand out, even if it isn’t the most elaborate on this list. 25. Rory Peters Goes FencingFinal Destination 2 has the best premonition in the series, an incredible accident and pile-up filled with ghastly incidents. Toward the climax of the movie, that road destruction gets sort of recreated when a series of events launched by a car crash suddenly kill off other characters. It’s mostly fun, and wide shots let us see Death’s composition, but it’s hard to get too excited when stoner Rory Petersgets split into thirds by flying fencing. 24. Clear Rivers and Eugene Dix Go Up in FlamesIt was a nice reveal to show Clear Rivershad survived even the post-credit carnage of the first Final Destination to provide information to the victims of the second film. But that surprise was completely undercut by the film then killing Clear in a sudden hospital explosion, taking teacher Eugene, one of the more compelling characters in the movie, out along with her. Multi-victim kills always feel like a bit of a cheat, but at least this one had a nice build-up. 23. Carter Daniels’ Hate Crime BackfiresThe Final Destination‘s unlikable cast goes to the extreme when white supremacist Cartersingles out George Latner as the cause of his wife’s demise. So it’s especially satisfying when Carter, in the midst of burning a cross on George’s lawn, gets dragged behind his truck and burned alive. Carter may not get the most creative of kills, but rarely do we see such an awful person get their full and just reward like that. 22. Isaac Palmer Meets the BuddhaUnlike most entries, Final Destination 5 limited its nastiness to one character, and even then, actor P. J. Byrne knows how to find light notes in his depiction of smarmy exec Isaac Palmer. Byrne sleezes it up as Isaac steals a spa coupon from recently-deceased co-worker, leers at spa workers, and then condescend to the worker who performs upon him. From then on, it’s a classic Final Destination sequence, as a fallen candle ignites spilled oil to send Isaac pin-first onto the ground, crawling away until he inadvertently pulls a Buddha statue on his head, his karma fully earned. 21. Kat Jennings and the Jaws of DeathNervous wreck Kat Jenningsgets one of the better sudden deaths in the series, largely because Death puts all the pieces in place for a symphony of chaos and then sets it off suddenly. Kat initially survives the car crash, avoiding the pointy pipe that ran through her back window and continues to stick out behind her head. When firefighters use the jaws of life to pry open her car door, however, the impact is enough to set off the airbags, slamming Kat’s head into the spike and setting off more carnage. 20. Lewis Romero Loses Weight in the GymA lot of the kills on this list are preceded by a character declaring their immortality, but few do it with as much apblomb as Final Destination 3‘s aggro jock Lewis Romero. Like many Lewis responds to Death’s machinations by asserting his own free will… loudly. At the end, he does it while pumping iron in the gym, and his protestations shake the walls, knocking free swords used as part of his team’s decor. The swords cut the bands of his machine as they fall, freeing the weights to smash his head. Given that it was his actions that made the swords drop, Lewis did kind of control his own fate. 19. Nora Carpenter and the Creepy Hook HandOf all the kills on this list, the death of nervous mom Nora Carpenterseems the easiest to avoid. Well, at first anyway, when she rushes into an elevator and gets her hair caught on a hook, part of the prosthetic limbs that a creepy guy holds in a box. If Nora just settled down for a moment, or if the creepy guy would put as much effort into untangling her as he does smelling her hair, then she probably could have wrestled free before the elevator decapitated her. All that aside, it’s a pretty amazing and gory kill, one that has enough shock value to overcome any logistical leaps. The Final Destination movies are big on dying, but not so big on suffering, which is a good thing. We don’t want to think of these people as human beings, because that would ruin the fun of watching them go out. Erin Ulmer’send in Final Destination 3 veers a bit too much toward suffering, as the camera holds on her as she moans in her last moments. Up until that point, though, the scene has fun with misdirection, making us think that we’re about to see Ian McKinley get crushed by boards until Erin gets knocked into a nail gun, which perforates the back of her head. 17. Jonathan Groves Takes a BathOn one hand, Jonathan Grovesfeels like he was added to The Final Destination late in production because the producers found out the movie’s running a bit too short. Groves does show up in the opening crash scene, but we lose track of him and assume he’s dead until Nick sees him on the news. But we can forgive the shoehorning for the purely absurd way that Groves goes out, with an overfilled bathtub from the hospital floor above crashing down onto his bed. 16. Nathan Sears and Flight 180’s LandingIn addition to its fantastic kills Final Destination 5 also has the most well-rounded characters in the series, characters like junior executive Nathan Sears. Nathan is fundamentally a nice guy but he gets caught up in a dispute with an older union leader, a dispute that ends when the leader accidentally dies during a fight. Thinking that was Death coming for him, Nathan comes to the leader’s wake to pay respects, secure in the belief that Death has skipped him. That assumption adds some pathos to the moment with gear from Flight 180 falls from the sky and crushes him, taking both good people and bad people. 15. Frankie Cheeks Trapped in the Drive ThruFrankie Cheeksis one of the most unlikable characters in the franchiseand we don’t even know that he’s dead until after it happens. So why does it rank relatively high on this list? Because of the way it’s set up, looking very much like protagonists Wendy and Kevin are going to get killed in an unbelievable but well-orchestrated drive-through accident. While our heroes escape in time, a collision still occurs, sending a huge engine fan into the back of Frankie’s head. At first it seems like the duo passed their death onto an innocent bystander until we see a bloody necklace in the shape of a naked lady, and we all breathe a sigh of relief that Frankie Cheeks walks the Earth no more. 14. Tim Carpenter Gets Squished By GlassTim Carpenter may be the weirdest character in the entire series. The script says he’s 15, and actor James Kirk sometimes plays him as a teen and sometimes as an eight-year-old, which ends up feeling like he’s the MadTV character Stuart. That childlike nature leads to Tim’s end when, like a dumb kid, he just decides to chase after some pigeons because… they were there? The pigeons take flight, knocking a giant pane of glass off of a crane and sending the glass on top of Tim, smooshing the little weirdo. 13. Andy Kewzer Goes Through a Chain Link Fence… in Tiny PiecesThe biggest problem with The Final Destination is its reliance on CG blood, a scourge of 2000s horror. Still, sometimes the kills are so outrageous that we can forgive the poor effects. Such is the case when mechanic Andy Kewzergets blown into a chain link fence. It looks silly when his body collapses into goopy chunks, but the setup is satisfying, as is the sight of him getting blasted out of his garage into the instrument of his doom. 12. Terry Chaney Hit By a Silent BusFor the first viewers of Final Destination, Terry Chaneyhad the standout death. Freaked out by Alex’s talk of Death coming for them all, Terry tells her friends to drop dead, steps into the street and gets splattered by a bus. It’s a funny moment, as long as you don’t think about it for a second, and it got cheers in the theater. Over time, however, the sudden shock death has become a series trope, dulling the impactof Terry’s end. 11. Howard Campbell Gets a TrimPatriarch Howard Campbellgets the first classic-style death in Bloodlines, and what a glorious one it is. Occurring after the film has clearly laid out Death’s rules and process, the filmmakers luxuriate in the setup, taking time to highlight all of the things that could kill someone in Campbell’s well-appointed suburban backyard: a rake under a ripping trampoline, a shard of glass in an iced drink, a hose about to explode. After several minutes of anticipation, all of those things come together to set-off something we never saw coming, an electric self-propelled lawnmower, which runs over the face of the prone Howard. Iconic as it may be, Terry’s isn’t the best sudden shock death in the first Final Destination movie. That honor belongs to New York Rangers superfan Billy Hitchcock, who also dies without much obvious setup from Death. Billy goes after he and Alex confront the ever-jerky Carter, who decides to defy Death by parking on train tracks. Carter survives, but Billy can’t take it and starts having an angry meltdown, a meltdown cut short when the train kicks up a piece of shrapnel and sends it flying through Billy’s neck. Tod may be the first death in the Final Destination series, but Valerie Lewtongets the first great death of the franchise. Still shaken up over the explosion of Flight 180, teacher Mrs. Lewton spills some alcohol on the ground while making dinner. When her cooking goes awry, the alcohol ignites, setting her house ablaze. But it’s not the fire that kills her. Rather she dies when she accidentally pulls a knife down from the counter, which embeds itself in her chest. 8. Evan Lewis Slips on SpaghettiSometimes Death orchestrates events in such an improbable manner that we can almost see a physical hand onscreen, manipulating events. Sometimes dumb people do dumb things and pay for it. It’s the latter event that brings down lottery-winning bro Evan Lewisin Final Destination 2, who just tosses a pot of spaghetti out the window. That decision proves disastrous when Death’s meddling leads to a fire in Evan’s apartment. Evan climbs out to make an escape, but he slips on his own spaghetti, which leaves him vulnerable to the falling ladder that pierces his eye. 7. Brian Gibbons BBQ BombAlthough it’s a sudden kill with little setup, the death of Brian Gibbonsranks so high because of how funny it is. At the end of the movie, survivors Kimberly Cormanand Thomas Burkejoin the Gibbons family at a BBQ where they all let off a bit of steam. No sooner does Brian joke about his and his father’s near-death experience than the grill he’s using explodes, sending his severed arm flying through the air. The arm lands on his mother’s plate, a darkly funny beat that makes it one step better than the average out-of-nowhere kills in the series. 6. Erik and Bobby Campbell Bond in the HospitalErik Campbellis truly a unique character in the Final Destination franchise. First of all, he seems to survive his own elaborate death, a hilarious incident in a tattoo parlor. Secondly he and his brother Bobbyactually like each other, which makes their end so poignant. Off of Bludworth’s information, Erik decides to send the highly allergic Bobby into anaphylaxis so he can revive him, thus satisfying Death. But Erik gets too cute with his plan, and his action accidentally turns on and revs up an MRI machine in the room where the brothers are working. The intensified magnification first pulls in and crushes Erik, with his piercings in front and a wheelchair in back, and then snags a coil from a vending machine, sending it through Bobby’s head. 5. Olivia Castle’s Laser-Guided FallOkay, technically Olivia Castledies when she falls out of a window. But that’s not the part that sticks out in our mind. Instead we remember everything before that moment when Olivia gets laser eye surgery. As if torn from the worst thoughts of anyone about to get the surgery, we watch as Death shorts out the laser while the tech is out of the room and starts burning out Kimberly’s eye. No sooner does she escape than she slips on her beloved teddy bear and falls through the window, a somehow merciful end to the suffering. 3. Ashley Freund & Ashlyn Halperin’s Tanning Session Gone WrongAs this list shows, great Final Destination deaths fall into one of three categories: memorably mean, patently absurd, or impeccably designed. Ashley Fruendand Ashlyn Halperinare the prime examples of the first category. A pair of stock mean mall girls, Ashley and Ashlyn go to their favorite tanning spa, giant-size sodas in hand. Death ups the condensation on the drinks, which creates enough water to short out the beds, which turns up the heat, while a fallen shelf keeps them trapped inside. The sight of them burning alive is nasty enough, but the real kicker is the match cut at the end, which replaces two tanning beds with two coffins. 3. Julia Campbell Takes Out the TrashFinal Destination movies love a good fake-out and Bloodlines has the best one yet. Armed with knowledge from Iris, Stefani walks down a suburban street with a skeptical Erik, Death’s next probable victim. As the two walk, Stefani points out all of the things that could kill him: leaves from a blower, a soccer ball kicked by kids, a trash compactor. But to Erik’s mocking glee, nothing happens. Nothing, that is, until Erik’s sister Juliagoes for a run. In the background. And out of focus, all of those things come together to knock Julia into a roadside dumpster, which is then emptied into the garbage truck where Julia is compacted while Stefani watches. 2. Hunt Wynorski’s Guts in a Pool PumpThe best patently absurd kill in the entire franchise occurs to obnoxious bro Hunt Wynorski. After getting into an altercation with a little kid at a public pool, Hunt sits down to catch some rays when he hears his lucky coin fall into the water. Hunt dives in after it, just as Death starts messing with the equipment, causing the pump to malfunction and raise the pressure. The pump traps Hunt at the bottom and he gestures wildly for help, but no one sees him. Instead of drowning, Hunt gets his guts sucked out through his butt, a kill so wonderful that we don’t even care about the CGI viscera that caps off the scene. 1. Candace Hooper Doesn’t Stick the LandingEasily the most glorious and well-composed kill of the entire franchise occurs early in Final Destination 5, when a standard routine for gymnast Candice Hoopergoes horribly wrong. Director Steven Quale takes the time to show viewers the tools and space in which Death works, highlighting dripping water, a shaking girder, spilled dust, and other elements, before bringing them together as Candice goes through her flips. As a result, we understand every step in the system of catastrophes that leads to a ghastly end, with Candice’s crumpled body shuttering on the gym floor. #final #destination #kills #ranked #short
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    Final Destination Kills Ranked from the Short and Sweet to Spectacularly Brutal
    This article contains full spoilers for every Final Destination movie, INCLUDING Bloodlines. For more than a decade, we thought we’d finally made it. It’s been 14 years since the last Final Destination film, the last time Death started killing off those who escaped its plan in exceedingly gruesome fashion. We thought we were free to go to theaters in safety once more. But as the mortician William Bludworth, played by the late great Tony Todd, has taught us, there’s no escaping Death. The franchise is back with one of its best entries: Final Destination Bloodlines, written and directed by newcomers to the franchise Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein. Bloodlines has a shinier look and a different approach, focusing on a family instead a group of random teens. But it follows the well-established principles of a Final Destination movie, especially in its incredible kills. In celebration of Bloodlines bringing Final Destination back to screens, we’re ranking all of Death’s achievements across the franchise. Because Final Destination movies are ultimately about good, gory fun, we’re ranking them from the most boring to the most enjoyably incredible. Like Death itself, we do have a few rules here. We aren’t counting any deaths in the premonitions that open each movie, nor the mass casualties that occur in the actual events, which means that you won’t see the infamous pile-up from Final Destination 2 or the incredible tower sequence that opens Bloodlines. Also we’re focusing on Death’s kills, so kills done by human beings don’t count. Even with those restrictions, Final Destination gives us plenty of memorable kills, as Death always makes a show of getting even. 40. Alex Browning’s Off-Screen Demise (Final Destination 2) Is it a mark of respect that the first movie’s protagonist Alex Browning (Devon Sawa) doesn’t die on screen? Or is it the ultimate insult that we learn via newspaper clipping in Final Destination 2 that he was knocked in the head with a brick? Interpretations may vary, but no one can disagree that Alex’s death deserves the bottom spot. Played by comedy great David Koechner, paper plant boss Dennis Lapman of Final Destination 5 has one of the gnarliest premonition deaths. Dangling off a collapsing bridge, Dennis almost pulls himself back up when he’s doused with hot tar, burning alive as he lets go and drops to the water. That incredible end makes his actual expiration all the worse, as he goes out when a loose wrench on a shop floor gets hurled into his head, no real setup involved. 38. Wendy Cristensen, Julie Cristensen, and Kevin Fischer Crash Off-Screen (Final Destination 3) With the exception of the original Final Destination, the protagonists end their films thinking they’ve beaten Death only to realize that the Grim Reaper has one more trick up his sleeve, and the movies end with shocking cuts. The worst of them comes in Final Destination 3, one of the weaker entries overall, in which Wendy Cristensen (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), her sister Julie (Amanda Crew), and pal Kevin Fischer (Ryan Merriman) all perish in a train crash. Technically we see them meet their end in impressive carnage, but that all happens in a premonition, which this list rules out. So we have to go with the death that happens onscreen—well, on soundtrack, as the movie cuts to black with the sound of the crash. 37. Janet Cunningham, Lori Milligan, Nick O’Bannon Death By X-Ray Truck (The Final Destination) Easily the worst of the series, the fourth entry The Final Destination also ends with a sudden attack on the protagonists. In this case, Nick O’Bannon (Bobby Campo), his love interest Lori Milligan (Shantel VanSanten), and her friend Janet Cunningham (Haley Webb) meet in a coffee shop to celebrate life, only for a truck to crash into the building. It’s a lot like the third movie’s ending, but at least this movie gives us neat x-rays to look at and imagine what horrible things happened to our heroes. 36. George Lanter and the Very Quiet Ambulance (The Final Destination) Played by the great Mykelti Williamson, George Lantner is the only character who acts like a human being in The Final Destination. So it’s a bit lame that the movie kills him off with a gag when he steps onto the road and gets flattened by an oncoming ambulance. He mentions “deja vu” right before it happens because his end is a callback to a similar one from the first film, which will be talked about shortly. It’s an unimaginative death and a mean joke at the expense of a likable character, which lands it toward the bottom of the list. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! 35. Nadia Monroy Makes Nick’s Dream a Reality (The Final Destination) For the most part, this list is ignoring both the premonitions and the mass casualties that occur after a premonition. The one exception comes with Nadia Monroy (Stephanie Honoré) of The Final Destination, who dies in the immediate aftermath of a premonition. After Nick has a vision of a massive Nascar wreck, he panics, which gets a group of people kicked out of the race just as the accident begins. As the survivors try to make sense of what happened, a tire flies out of the stadium and through Nadia’s head, replicating her death from the vision. 34. Perry Malinowski Salutes the Flag (Final Destination 3) Final Destination loves its out-of-nowhere surprise kills. A character thinks they’re safe, they make some ironic statement and, bam, they’re immediately dead. Usually, these kills aren’t nearly as funny or clever as the movies think they are, especially compared to the elaborate sequences that have become the franchise’s calling card. One of the worst comes when Perry Malinowski (Maggie Ma) gets unceremoniously offed when a loose horse breaks of a flagpole that goes through her chest, a forgettable death for a forgettable character. Horse looks cool though. 33. Darlene Campbell Stays at the Cabin (Final Destination Bloodlines) Although not as meta as, say, a Scream movie, the characters in Final Destination: Bloodlines know how Final Destination movies work. To the filmamkers’ credit, the knowledge adds tension to the movie, underscoring how knowledge doesn’t give them power to evade Death. Nowhere is that more clear than at the climax of Bloodlines when Darlene Campbell (Rya Kihlstedt)—a mother who has estranged herself from her children—decides to hide in her own mother’s bunker, thereby stalling Death’s hit list and saving her children. Noble though the sentiment may be, Darlene’s proclamation of love for her children distracts her, and she gets smashed by a falling pole, rendering her heroism moot. 32. Carter Horton Finally Sees the Sign (Final Destination) Played by Kerr Smith, Carter Horton is the onscreen antagonist of the first film, an annoying preppie who bullies Alex and the others and somehow gets to survive. So while we don’t actually see Carter get killed before the screen cuts to closing credits, his demise does rank above those from the third and fourth movies just because we wanted to see this guy get it for so long. 31. Samantha Lane Has Her Eye on a Stone (The Final Destination) The overwhelming majority of Final Destination victims are obnoxious, good-looking teens who mostly deserve to die. Wife and mother Samantha Lane (Krista Lane) certainly isn’t a saint but she doesn’t irritate us like every other jerk in The Final Destination. So we’re a bit annoyed that she gets such a cruel death when a lawn mower kicks up a rock that flies through her eyes while her young kids watch in horror. The kill does get a few extra points, however, for all of the playfulness before it actually happens, as Death sets up a few options to off Sarah before finally picking the rock. 30. Ian McKinley Splits the Fair (Final Destination 3) The franchise has never done great with its human antagonists, the regular guys who get tired of all the dying and take things into their own hands by killing the other characters. Ian McKinley (Kris Lemche) stands out a little bit more than the others. Instead of showing all the things that could off him, the camera simply follows Ian through a crowd while he rants about his immortality. That’s a bit dull, but it pays off when a firework shoots by him, apparently sparing him, only for the explosion to knock over a cherry picker that splits him in half. That extra beat is enough to make his sudden surprise kill a bit more satisfying. 29. Stefani and Charlie Reyes in a Logjam (Final Destination Bloodlines) Although a bit glossier and a bit kinder with its characters, Final Destination Bloodlines follows the beats of most entries in the franchise. In fact, its final moment, in which protagonists Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana) and Charlie Reyes (Teo Briones) realize that they did not, in fact, stop Death and are about to die, feels like a callback to the infamous log premonition in Final Destination 2. However, Bloodlines ups the stakes with a lucky penny leading to a train derailment. The amazing shot of Stefani and Charlie goes bigger than any of the other movies’ shock ending, undone some by the cheap effects when two logs from the train car come loose and flatten our heroes. 28. Sam Lawton and Emma Bell Die in a Callback (Final Destination 5) Final Destination 5 has the best ending of the series, in which protagonists Sam Lawton (Nicholas D’Agosto) and Emma Bell (Molly Harper) survive the ordeal and board a plane to celebrate. It’s only then that we realize that the movie has taken place in 2000 and that they’re boarding Flight 180, the one that explodes at the start of the first movie. Thus we have to watch as the characters who have gone through so much die, but we also get to see the original disaster that started it all. Emily splatters when she gets sucked out of the plane and sliced by the wing, but Sam’s death isn’t that spectacular outside of the fact that he burns up in the same manner as Alex did in his vision. 27. Tod Waggner Hung Out to Dry (Final Destination) The first “real” death of the series, Tod Waggner’s (Chad E. Donella) end feels like a first draft to the spectacular kills to come. When water leaks from a toilet, Todd slips into the tub and gets a laundry cord wrapped around his neck. Todd’s desperate attempts to stand up and save himself, frustrated by the slick tub floor, give the death a level of pathos rarely seen in the series, but outside of that, it’s a fairly rote kill for the overall franchise. 26. Iris Campbell Gets to the Point (Final Destination Bloodlines) Bloodlines gives Tony Todd a glorious final scene as Bloodworth, but it’s the elderly Iris Campbell (Gabrielle Rose) who tells her granddaughter Stefani the rules of Death’s design. Throughout the exposition dump, the camera points to various classic setups, but Iris catches them all. So when Death does finally take her, using a flying fire extinguisher to send a weathervane point through her face, it’s because Iris wants to show Stefani how Death operates. That intentionality makes Iris’ end stand out, even if it isn’t the most elaborate on this list. 25. Rory Peters Goes Fencing (Final Destination 2) Final Destination 2 has the best premonition in the series, an incredible accident and pile-up filled with ghastly incidents. Toward the climax of the movie, that road destruction gets sort of recreated when a series of events launched by a car crash suddenly kill off other characters. It’s mostly fun, and wide shots let us see Death’s composition, but it’s hard to get too excited when stoner Rory Peters (Jonathan Cherry) gets split into thirds by flying fencing. 24. Clear Rivers and Eugene Dix Go Up in Flames (Final Destination 2) It was a nice reveal to show Clear Rivers (Ali Larter) had survived even the post-credit carnage of the first Final Destination to provide information to the victims of the second film. But that surprise was completely undercut by the film then killing Clear in a sudden hospital explosion, taking teacher Eugene (T.C. Carson), one of the more compelling characters in the movie, out along with her. Multi-victim kills always feel like a bit of a cheat, but at least this one had a nice build-up. 23. Carter Daniels’ Hate Crime Backfires (The Final Destination) The Final Destination‘s unlikable cast goes to the extreme when white supremacist Carter (Justin Welborn) singles out George Latner as the cause of his wife’s demise. So it’s especially satisfying when Carter, in the midst of burning a cross on George’s lawn, gets dragged behind his truck and burned alive. Carter may not get the most creative of kills, but rarely do we see such an awful person get their full and just reward like that. 22. Isaac Palmer Meets the Buddha (Final Destination 5) Unlike most entries, Final Destination 5 limited its nastiness to one character, and even then, actor P. J. Byrne knows how to find light notes in his depiction of smarmy exec Isaac Palmer. Byrne sleezes it up as Isaac steals a spa coupon from recently-deceased co-worker, leers at spa workers, and then condescend to the worker who performs upon him. From then on, it’s a classic Final Destination sequence, as a fallen candle ignites spilled oil to send Isaac pin-first onto the ground, crawling away until he inadvertently pulls a Buddha statue on his head, his karma fully earned. 21. Kat Jennings and the Jaws of Death (Final Destination 2) Nervous wreck Kat Jennings (Keegan Connor Tracy) gets one of the better sudden deaths in the series, largely because Death puts all the pieces in place for a symphony of chaos and then sets it off suddenly. Kat initially survives the car crash, avoiding the pointy pipe that ran through her back window and continues to stick out behind her head. When firefighters use the jaws of life to pry open her car door, however, the impact is enough to set off the airbags, slamming Kat’s head into the spike and setting off more carnage. 20. Lewis Romero Loses Weight in the Gym (Final Destination 3) A lot of the kills on this list are preceded by a character declaring their immortality, but few do it with as much apblomb as Final Destination 3‘s aggro jock Lewis Romero (Texas Battle). Like many Lewis responds to Death’s machinations by asserting his own free will… loudly. At the end, he does it while pumping iron in the gym, and his protestations shake the walls, knocking free swords used as part of his team’s decor. The swords cut the bands of his machine as they fall, freeing the weights to smash his head. Given that it was his actions that made the swords drop, Lewis did kind of control his own fate. 19. Nora Carpenter and the Creepy Hook Hand (Final Destination 2) Of all the kills on this list, the death of nervous mom Nora Carpenter (Lynda Boyd) seems the easiest to avoid. Well, at first anyway, when she rushes into an elevator and gets her hair caught on a hook, part of the prosthetic limbs that a creepy guy holds in a box. If Nora just settled down for a moment, or if the creepy guy would put as much effort into untangling her as he does smelling her hair, then she probably could have wrestled free before the elevator decapitated her. All that aside, it’s a pretty amazing and gory kill, one that has enough shock value to overcome any logistical leaps. The Final Destination movies are big on dying, but not so big on suffering, which is a good thing. We don’t want to think of these people as human beings, because that would ruin the fun of watching them go out. Erin Ulmer’s (Alexz Johnson) end in Final Destination 3 veers a bit too much toward suffering, as the camera holds on her as she moans in her last moments. Up until that point, though, the scene has fun with misdirection, making us think that we’re about to see Ian McKinley get crushed by boards until Erin gets knocked into a nail gun, which perforates the back of her head. 17. Jonathan Groves Takes a Bath (The Final Destination) On one hand, Jonathan Groves (Jackson Walker) feels like he was added to The Final Destination late in production because the producers found out the movie’s running a bit too short. Groves does show up in the opening crash scene, but we lose track of him and assume he’s dead until Nick sees him on the news. But we can forgive the shoehorning for the purely absurd way that Groves goes out, with an overfilled bathtub from the hospital floor above crashing down onto his bed. 16. Nathan Sears and Flight 180’s Landing (Final Destination 5) In addition to its fantastic kills Final Destination 5 also has the most well-rounded characters in the series, characters like junior executive Nathan Sears (Arlen Escarpeta). Nathan is fundamentally a nice guy but he gets caught up in a dispute with an older union leader, a dispute that ends when the leader accidentally dies during a fight. Thinking that was Death coming for him, Nathan comes to the leader’s wake to pay respects, secure in the belief that Death has skipped him. That assumption adds some pathos to the moment with gear from Flight 180 falls from the sky and crushes him, taking both good people and bad people. 15. Frankie Cheeks Trapped in the Drive Thru (Final Destination 3) Frankie Cheeks (Sam Easton) is one of the most unlikable characters in the franchise (which is saying something) and we don’t even know that he’s dead until after it happens. So why does it rank relatively high on this list? Because of the way it’s set up, looking very much like protagonists Wendy and Kevin are going to get killed in an unbelievable but well-orchestrated drive-through accident. While our heroes escape in time, a collision still occurs, sending a huge engine fan into the back of Frankie’s head. At first it seems like the duo passed their death onto an innocent bystander until we see a bloody necklace in the shape of a naked lady, and we all breathe a sigh of relief that Frankie Cheeks walks the Earth no more. 14. Tim Carpenter Gets Squished By Glass (Final Destination 2) Tim Carpenter may be the weirdest character in the entire series. The script says he’s 15, and actor James Kirk sometimes plays him as a teen and sometimes as an eight-year-old, which ends up feeling like he’s the MadTV character Stuart. That childlike nature leads to Tim’s end when, like a dumb kid, he just decides to chase after some pigeons because… they were there? The pigeons take flight, knocking a giant pane of glass off of a crane and sending the glass on top of Tim, smooshing the little weirdo. 13. Andy Kewzer Goes Through a Chain Link Fence… in Tiny Pieces (The Final Destination) The biggest problem with The Final Destination is its reliance on CG blood, a scourge of 2000s horror. Still, sometimes the kills are so outrageous that we can forgive the poor effects. Such is the case when mechanic Andy Kewzer (Andrew Fiscella) gets blown into a chain link fence. It looks silly when his body collapses into goopy chunks, but the setup is satisfying, as is the sight of him getting blasted out of his garage into the instrument of his doom. 12. Terry Chaney Hit By a Silent Bus (Final Destination) For the first viewers of Final Destination, Terry Chaney (Amanda Detmer) had the standout death. Freaked out by Alex’s talk of Death coming for them all, Terry tells her friends to drop dead, steps into the street and gets splattered by a bus. It’s a funny moment, as long as you don’t think about it for a second (none of her friends have peripheral vision? The bus driver doesn’t see the gesticulating lady backing into the street?), and it got cheers in the theater. Over time, however, the sudden shock death has become a series trope, dulling the impact (pun intended) of Terry’s end. 11. Howard Campbell Gets a Trim (Final Destination Bloodlines) Patriarch Howard Campbell (Alex Zahara) gets the first classic-style death in Bloodlines, and what a glorious one it is. Occurring after the film has clearly laid out Death’s rules and process, the filmmakers luxuriate in the setup, taking time to highlight all of the things that could kill someone in Campbell’s well-appointed suburban backyard: a rake under a ripping trampoline, a shard of glass in an iced drink, a hose about to explode. After several minutes of anticipation, all of those things come together to set-off something we never saw coming, an electric self-propelled lawnmower, which runs over the face of the prone Howard. Iconic as it may be, Terry’s isn’t the best sudden shock death in the first Final Destination movie. That honor belongs to New York Rangers superfan Billy Hitchcock (Seann William Scott), who also dies without much obvious setup from Death. Billy goes after he and Alex confront the ever-jerky Carter, who decides to defy Death by parking on train tracks. Carter survives, but Billy can’t take it and starts having an angry meltdown, a meltdown cut short when the train kicks up a piece of shrapnel and sends it flying through Billy’s neck. Tod may be the first death in the Final Destination series, but Valerie Lewton (Kristen Cloke) gets the first great death of the franchise. Still shaken up over the explosion of Flight 180, teacher Mrs. Lewton spills some alcohol on the ground while making dinner. When her cooking goes awry, the alcohol ignites, setting her house ablaze. But it’s not the fire that kills her. Rather she dies when she accidentally pulls a knife down from the counter, which embeds itself in her chest. 8. Evan Lewis Slips on Spaghetti (Final Destination 2) Sometimes Death orchestrates events in such an improbable manner that we can almost see a physical hand onscreen, manipulating events. Sometimes dumb people do dumb things and pay for it. It’s the latter event that brings down lottery-winning bro Evan Lewis (David Paetkau) in Final Destination 2, who just tosses a pot of spaghetti out the window. That decision proves disastrous when Death’s meddling leads to a fire in Evan’s apartment. Evan climbs out to make an escape, but he slips on his own spaghetti, which leaves him vulnerable to the falling ladder that pierces his eye. 7. Brian Gibbons BBQ Bomb (Final Destination 2) Although it’s a sudden kill with little setup, the death of Brian Gibbons (Noel Fisher) ranks so high because of how funny it is. At the end of the movie, survivors Kimberly Corman (A.J. Cook) and Thomas Burke (Michael Landes) join the Gibbons family at a BBQ where they all let off a bit of steam. No sooner does Brian joke about his and his father’s near-death experience than the grill he’s using explodes, sending his severed arm flying through the air. The arm lands on his mother’s plate, a darkly funny beat that makes it one step better than the average out-of-nowhere kills in the series. 6. Erik and Bobby Campbell Bond in the Hospital (Final Destination Bloodlines) Erik Campbell (Richard Harmon) is truly a unique character in the Final Destination franchise. First of all, he seems to survive his own elaborate death, a hilarious incident in a tattoo parlor (featured heavily in teasers). Secondly he and his brother Bobby (Owen Patrick Joyner) actually like each other, which makes their end so poignant. Off of Bludworth’s information, Erik decides to send the highly allergic Bobby into anaphylaxis so he can revive him, thus satisfying Death. But Erik gets too cute with his plan, and his action accidentally turns on and revs up an MRI machine in the room where the brothers are working. The intensified magnification first pulls in and crushes Erik, with his piercings in front and a wheelchair in back, and then snags a coil from a vending machine, sending it through Bobby’s head. 5. Olivia Castle’s Laser-Guided Fall (Final Destination 5) Okay, technically Olivia Castle (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) dies when she falls out of a window. But that’s not the part that sticks out in our mind. Instead we remember everything before that moment when Olivia gets laser eye surgery. As if torn from the worst thoughts of anyone about to get the surgery, we watch as Death shorts out the laser while the tech is out of the room and starts burning out Kimberly’s eye. No sooner does she escape than she slips on her beloved teddy bear and falls through the window, a somehow merciful end to the suffering. 3. Ashley Freund & Ashlyn Halperin’s Tanning Session Gone Wrong (Final Destination 3) As this list shows, great Final Destination deaths fall into one of three categories: memorably mean, patently absurd, or impeccably designed. Ashley Fruend (Chelan Simmons) and Ashlyn Halperin (Crystal Lowe) are the prime examples of the first category. A pair of stock mean mall girls, Ashley and Ashlyn go to their favorite tanning spa, giant-size sodas in hand. Death ups the condensation on the drinks, which creates enough water to short out the beds, which turns up the heat, while a fallen shelf keeps them trapped inside. The sight of them burning alive is nasty enough, but the real kicker is the match cut at the end, which replaces two tanning beds with two coffins. 3. Julia Campbell Takes Out the Trash (Final Destination Bloodlines) Final Destination movies love a good fake-out and Bloodlines has the best one yet. Armed with knowledge from Iris, Stefani walks down a suburban street with a skeptical Erik, Death’s next probable victim. As the two walk, Stefani points out all of the things that could kill him: leaves from a blower, a soccer ball kicked by kids, a trash compactor. But to Erik’s mocking glee, nothing happens. Nothing, that is, until Erik’s sister Julia (Anna Lore) goes for a run. In the background. And out of focus, all of those things come together to knock Julia into a roadside dumpster, which is then emptied into the garbage truck where Julia is compacted while Stefani watches. 2. Hunt Wynorski’s Guts in a Pool Pump (The Final Destination) The best patently absurd kill in the entire franchise occurs to obnoxious bro Hunt Wynorski (Nick Zano). After getting into an altercation with a little kid at a public pool, Hunt sits down to catch some rays when he hears his lucky coin fall into the water. Hunt dives in after it, just as Death starts messing with the equipment, causing the pump to malfunction and raise the pressure. The pump traps Hunt at the bottom and he gestures wildly for help, but no one sees him. Instead of drowning, Hunt gets his guts sucked out through his butt, a kill so wonderful that we don’t even care about the CGI viscera that caps off the scene. 1. Candace Hooper Doesn’t Stick the Landing (Final Destination 5) Easily the most glorious and well-composed kill of the entire franchise occurs early in Final Destination 5, when a standard routine for gymnast Candice Hooper (Ellen Wroe) goes horribly wrong. Director Steven Quale takes the time to show viewers the tools and space in which Death works, highlighting dripping water, a shaking girder, spilled dust, and other elements, before bringing them together as Candice goes through her flips. As a result, we understand every step in the system of catastrophes that leads to a ghastly end, with Candice’s crumpled body shuttering on the gym floor.
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  • Jeff Bezos makes his most ghoulish deal yet

    Watching the behavior of our tech overlords has answered questions I’d never thought to ask. How do you NDA an army of baby mamas? Is there anything more embarrassing than impersonating Benson Boone?And now, the latest: how long after a sovereign ruler of a repressive state murders one of your columnists should you make a deal with him? The answer, it turns out, is a little over six years.In October 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a writer for the Jeff Bezos-owned Washington Post, was killed and dismembered with the approval of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmanafter Khashoggi entered a Saudi consulate in Istanbul to get paperwork for his upcoming marriage. His body has never been found. On May 13th, Bezos’ Amazon announced it would work with Humain, MBS’ AI company, to build an “AI Zone” in Saudi Arabia — and the two companies will spend more than billion in the process.Saudi money is old news in the tech industry — the Public Investment Fund has sloshed into lots of startups, either directly or via intermediaries such as SoftBank. Morally bankrupt moneygrubbers such as Andreessen Horowitz have been wooing Saudi funds for a while.This isn’t the first deal for Amazon, either. In March, Amazon pledged to invest billion to build data centers in a country that’s scrambling to look futuristic. In 2024, Saudi Arabia said it wanted to build an AI-powered economy. There’s a fancy website for Project 2030, which I guess is meant to distract us from all the oil money. That date isn’t a coincidence — many projections say that’s when oil production will peak and then decline. Regardless of when the actual peak occurs, a global shift away from petroleum threatens Saudi Arabia’s wealth. That’s why the country is behaving like a dipshit startup.Take Neom, billed as the city of the future, vaporware at a previously unimagined scale that also served as a “key tool” for MBS to consolidate power, according to Ali Dogan, a researcher at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin. Khashoggi’s murder was a blow to the project, as luminaries such as OpenAI’s Sam Altman and former US energy secretary Ernest Moniz suspended their involvement. A number of companies publicly renounced Saudi money — at least, for a while. Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?Neom is moving down the entirely predictable vaporware path. It keeps getting delayed and downsized, which makes sense because it’s no longer the city of the future and a spectacular investment opportunity once it’s built — it’s just another city. But, according to Saudi officials, we won’t have to worry about that for another 50, or possibly 100, years. In the meantime, though, contracts! Investment! AI!Look, I don’t expect ethics out of Altman or any of his ilk. But for basic reasons of maintaining employee morale, I would hesitate to invest in a state that literally murdered one of my contractors. And didn’t merely murder him — but dismembered and then disappeared him. An opportunity the state had only because Khashoggi wanted to get married. Murder is bad enough, but every single detail makes it worse.Lately, it seems Bezos has been dismantling the Washington Post, one of the US’ premier journalistic institutions — putting British failure machine Will Lewis, known for his role in the UK phone-hacking scandal, in charge. Last year, the Post didn’t endorse a candidate in the US presidential race for the first time since 1960, resulting in more than 200,000 canceled subscriptions. Its stars have been fleeing in droves.Now, after all Bezos’ posturing about the free press, he’s cutting deals with people who murder journalists for saying inconvenient things. But maybe we should have seen that coming when he banned op-ed writers from opposing “free speech and the markets.” Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?It’s all so spineless. I mean, we already know that MBS may have hacked Bezos’ phone, but I guess that’s water under the bridge. Or maybe not. Maybe MBS got something real good in that hack. Impossible to say whether this is motivated by kompromat or greed, I suppose. But whatever the motive, we know one thing: it takes five years for Bezos to go from posting his photo op with the headstone of a murdered reporter to making billion-dollar deals with his killer.See More:
    #jeffbezosmakes #his #most #ghoulish #deal
    Jeff Bezos makes his most ghoulish deal yet
    Watching the behavior of our tech overlords has answered questions I’d never thought to ask. How do you NDA an army of baby mamas? Is there anything more embarrassing than impersonating Benson Boone?And now, the latest: how long after a sovereign ruler of a repressive state murders one of your columnists should you make a deal with him? The answer, it turns out, is a little over six years.In October 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a writer for the Jeff Bezos-owned Washington Post, was killed and dismembered with the approval of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmanafter Khashoggi entered a Saudi consulate in Istanbul to get paperwork for his upcoming marriage. His body has never been found. On May 13th, Bezos’ Amazon announced it would work with Humain, MBS’ AI company, to build an “AI Zone” in Saudi Arabia — and the two companies will spend more than billion in the process.Saudi money is old news in the tech industry — the Public Investment Fund has sloshed into lots of startups, either directly or via intermediaries such as SoftBank. Morally bankrupt moneygrubbers such as Andreessen Horowitz have been wooing Saudi funds for a while.This isn’t the first deal for Amazon, either. In March, Amazon pledged to invest billion to build data centers in a country that’s scrambling to look futuristic. In 2024, Saudi Arabia said it wanted to build an AI-powered economy. There’s a fancy website for Project 2030, which I guess is meant to distract us from all the oil money. That date isn’t a coincidence — many projections say that’s when oil production will peak and then decline. Regardless of when the actual peak occurs, a global shift away from petroleum threatens Saudi Arabia’s wealth. That’s why the country is behaving like a dipshit startup.Take Neom, billed as the city of the future, vaporware at a previously unimagined scale that also served as a “key tool” for MBS to consolidate power, according to Ali Dogan, a researcher at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin. Khashoggi’s murder was a blow to the project, as luminaries such as OpenAI’s Sam Altman and former US energy secretary Ernest Moniz suspended their involvement. A number of companies publicly renounced Saudi money — at least, for a while. Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?Neom is moving down the entirely predictable vaporware path. It keeps getting delayed and downsized, which makes sense because it’s no longer the city of the future and a spectacular investment opportunity once it’s built — it’s just another city. But, according to Saudi officials, we won’t have to worry about that for another 50, or possibly 100, years. In the meantime, though, contracts! Investment! AI!Look, I don’t expect ethics out of Altman or any of his ilk. But for basic reasons of maintaining employee morale, I would hesitate to invest in a state that literally murdered one of my contractors. And didn’t merely murder him — but dismembered and then disappeared him. An opportunity the state had only because Khashoggi wanted to get married. Murder is bad enough, but every single detail makes it worse.Lately, it seems Bezos has been dismantling the Washington Post, one of the US’ premier journalistic institutions — putting British failure machine Will Lewis, known for his role in the UK phone-hacking scandal, in charge. Last year, the Post didn’t endorse a candidate in the US presidential race for the first time since 1960, resulting in more than 200,000 canceled subscriptions. Its stars have been fleeing in droves.Now, after all Bezos’ posturing about the free press, he’s cutting deals with people who murder journalists for saying inconvenient things. But maybe we should have seen that coming when he banned op-ed writers from opposing “free speech and the markets.” Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?It’s all so spineless. I mean, we already know that MBS may have hacked Bezos’ phone, but I guess that’s water under the bridge. Or maybe not. Maybe MBS got something real good in that hack. Impossible to say whether this is motivated by kompromat or greed, I suppose. But whatever the motive, we know one thing: it takes five years for Bezos to go from posting his photo op with the headstone of a murdered reporter to making billion-dollar deals with his killer.See More: #jeffbezosmakes #his #most #ghoulish #deal
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    Jeff Bezos makes his most ghoulish deal yet
    Watching the behavior of our tech overlords has answered questions I’d never thought to ask. How do you NDA an army of baby mamas? Is there anything more embarrassing than impersonating Benson Boone? (Also, who is Benson Boone?) And now, the latest: how long after a sovereign ruler of a repressive state murders one of your columnists should you make a deal with him? The answer, it turns out, is a little over six years.In October 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a writer for the Jeff Bezos-owned Washington Post, was killed and dismembered with the approval of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (better known as MBS) after Khashoggi entered a Saudi consulate in Istanbul to get paperwork for his upcoming marriage. His body has never been found. On May 13th, Bezos’ Amazon announced it would work with Humain, MBS’ AI company, to build an “AI Zone” in Saudi Arabia — and the two companies will spend more than $5 billion in the process.Saudi money is old news in the tech industry — the Public Investment Fund has sloshed into lots of startups, either directly or via intermediaries such as SoftBank. Morally bankrupt moneygrubbers such as Andreessen Horowitz have been wooing Saudi funds for a while. (Perhaps that’s the real reason they endorsed the Saudis’ preferred candidate?) This isn’t the first deal for Amazon, either. In March, Amazon pledged to invest $5 billion to build data centers in a country that’s scrambling to look futuristic. In 2024, Saudi Arabia said it wanted to build an AI-powered economy. There’s a fancy website for Project 2030, which I guess is meant to distract us from all the oil money. That date isn’t a coincidence — many projections say that’s when oil production will peak and then decline. Regardless of when the actual peak occurs, a global shift away from petroleum threatens Saudi Arabia’s wealth. That’s why the country is behaving like a dipshit startup.Take Neom, billed as the city of the future, vaporware at a previously unimagined scale that also served as a “key tool” for MBS to consolidate power, according to Ali Dogan, a researcher at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin. Khashoggi’s murder was a blow to the project, as luminaries such as OpenAI’s Sam Altman and former US energy secretary Ernest Moniz suspended their involvement. A number of companies publicly renounced Saudi money — at least, for a while. Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?Neom is moving down the entirely predictable vaporware path. It keeps getting delayed and downsized, which makes sense because it’s no longer the city of the future and a spectacular investment opportunity once it’s built — it’s just another city. But, according to Saudi officials, we won’t have to worry about that for another 50, or possibly 100, years. In the meantime, though, contracts! Investment! AI!Look, I don’t expect ethics out of Altman or any of his ilk. But for basic reasons of maintaining employee morale, I would hesitate to invest in a state that literally murdered one of my contractors. And didn’t merely murder him — but dismembered and then disappeared him. An opportunity the state had only because Khashoggi wanted to get married. Murder is bad enough, but every single detail makes it worse.Lately, it seems Bezos has been dismantling the Washington Post, one of the US’ premier journalistic institutions — putting British failure machine Will Lewis, known for his role in the UK phone-hacking scandal, in charge. Last year, the Post didn’t endorse a candidate in the US presidential race for the first time since 1960, resulting in more than 200,000 canceled subscriptions. Its stars have been fleeing in droves. (Ann Telnaes, who was driven to quit the Post after a cartoon making fun of Bezos was killed, recently won a Pulitzer Prize for her work. Oops!) Now, after all Bezos’ posturing about the free press, he’s cutting deals with people who murder journalists for saying inconvenient things. But maybe we should have seen that coming when he banned op-ed writers from opposing “free speech and the markets.” Does the freedom to assassinate count as one of the personal liberties Bezos claims to treasure?It’s all so spineless. I mean, we already know that MBS may have hacked Bezos’ phone, but I guess that’s water under the bridge. Or maybe not. Maybe MBS got something real good in that hack. Impossible to say whether this is motivated by kompromat or greed, I suppose. But whatever the motive, we know one thing: it takes five years for Bezos to go from posting his photo op with the headstone of a murdered reporter to making billion-dollar deals with his killer.See More:
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  • An ELLE Decor Editor’s Guide to New York’s Flower District

    Pictured above, Cynara by Osborne & Little, shot at Dutch Flower Line.There’s something ineffably romantic about an early morning sprint through New York City’s Flower District. Tucked along West 28th Street, this energetic and fragrant corridor has long been a mecca for interior designers, stylists, and creatives. Buckets overflow with ruffled ranunculus, chartreuse parrot tulips, and branches of cherry blossoms stretching skyward—each one an ephemeral muse. For me, it’s not just about blooms, it’s about fabric.This season a wave of new floral textiles has burst forth. From delicately block-printed and hand-embroidered linens to screen-printed silks and bold cotton chintzes, textile houses are turning to flowers not merely as motif but as mood. As florals reassert themselves this season, there’s no better place to begin than the Flower Market, where scent, texture, and color convene like a mood board in bloom. Supporting this local institution not only sustains a vital creative ecosystem, it keeps the soul of the city’s design scene alive and rooted in community. In this garden of inspiration, flowers are forever.Jennifer LivingstonSandrine by Leah O’Connell Textiles, shot at G. Page.Jennifer LivingstonFrom left: Francesca Purple by Tulu Textiles; Frenchy by James Malone available through John Rosselli, shot at US Evergreen.Jennifer LivingstonPersephone by Spring Street Textiles, shot at Dutch Flower Line.My Favorite SourcesNew York Flower Group150 W. 28th StreetThis team has some of the best service and freshest blooms in every color. If you need something specific, call ahead to place an order.28th Street Wholesale150 W. 28th StreetAlthough it has the same address, this shop is next door to the New York Flower Group. They carry interesting seasonal branches and offerings, such as, in season, uncut tulips growing from the bulb.Caribbean Cuts120 W. 28th StreetWith some of the most unique and exotic tropical plants and flowers, this is the place to go for the most interesting foliage and fruit.US Evergreen805 Sixth AvenueRight around the corner, this institution takes over the street and is bursting with the best local branches. It also specializes in custom wreaths and garlands during the holidays, so place your orders early for next season.Tropical Plants and Orchids106 W. 28th StreetChicly located behind the McDonald’s, I always check Tropical Plant for myrtle topiaries and indoor plants, like maiden’s hair ferns or potted orchids—they tend to have the best prices on the block. Plus, they’ll pot anything beautifully with moss.Jamali Floral and Garden149 W. 28th StreetThe go-to source for floral supplies, basic decorative containers, and shears. Head to Jamali to grab some simple taper candles or a julep cup.Jennifer LivingstonBeaton Floral by Ralph Lauren Home, available through Designers Guild, shot outside of Jamali Floral and Garden.Jennifer LivingstonProtea Print by Thibaut, shot at Caribbean Cuts.Jennifer LivingstonPolka by Décors Barbares for Namay Samay, available through John Rosselli, shot outside of 28th Street Wholesale.What to KnowGo early: I recommend arriving between 5:30 and 6 a.m. for the freshest finds and best variety. You’d be surprised how crowded it is with floral designers and stylists, even at this hour.Dress warmly: Since the temperatures inside are often quite low, I recommend bringing an extra layer and dressing for utilitarian purposes—Mother Nature isn’t always the cleanest. Park on 27th Street: Street parking is free on 27th Street but only until 8 a.m. Avoid 28th Street for parking and Uber pickup, as it is always extremely crowded.Use the shelves: The open shelves in the rear of each shop are for customers. It’s really helpful to arrange everything you’re considering buying facing outward so you can see what you have and what you’re missing.Walk the street: I recommend starting on one side of the market and walking across 28th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues to see who has the best of whatever is in season at the moment. Make a mental list and then go back when ready to purchase.Bring a wagon: I am now the proud owner of a collapsible wagon. While not the most attractive item I own, it’s helpful if you’re working on a big project and don’t have an extra pair of hands. Be respectful: Everyone working at the market is super-knowledgeable, kind, and hardworking. I’ve sadly seen some horrifying customer behavior. In a place chock-full of beauty, no one needs to make enemies.Jennifer LivingstonPansy by Marvic Textiles, shot at 28th Street Wholesale.Jennifer LivingstonHindi by Zak and Fox, shot at Dutch Flower Line.Jennifer LivingstonTara Magnolia by Lee Jofa, shot outside of Tropical Plants and Orchids.Style assistant: Julia Stevens
    #elle #decor #editors #guide #new
    An ELLE Decor Editor’s Guide to New York’s Flower District
    Pictured above, Cynara by Osborne & Little, shot at Dutch Flower Line.There’s something ineffably romantic about an early morning sprint through New York City’s Flower District. Tucked along West 28th Street, this energetic and fragrant corridor has long been a mecca for interior designers, stylists, and creatives. Buckets overflow with ruffled ranunculus, chartreuse parrot tulips, and branches of cherry blossoms stretching skyward—each one an ephemeral muse. For me, it’s not just about blooms, it’s about fabric.This season a wave of new floral textiles has burst forth. From delicately block-printed and hand-embroidered linens to screen-printed silks and bold cotton chintzes, textile houses are turning to flowers not merely as motif but as mood. As florals reassert themselves this season, there’s no better place to begin than the Flower Market, where scent, texture, and color convene like a mood board in bloom. Supporting this local institution not only sustains a vital creative ecosystem, it keeps the soul of the city’s design scene alive and rooted in community. In this garden of inspiration, flowers are forever.Jennifer LivingstonSandrine by Leah O’Connell Textiles, shot at G. Page.Jennifer LivingstonFrom left: Francesca Purple by Tulu Textiles; Frenchy by James Malone available through John Rosselli, shot at US Evergreen.Jennifer LivingstonPersephone by Spring Street Textiles, shot at Dutch Flower Line.My Favorite SourcesNew York Flower Group150 W. 28th StreetThis team has some of the best service and freshest blooms in every color. If you need something specific, call ahead to place an order.28th Street Wholesale150 W. 28th StreetAlthough it has the same address, this shop is next door to the New York Flower Group. They carry interesting seasonal branches and offerings, such as, in season, uncut tulips growing from the bulb.Caribbean Cuts120 W. 28th StreetWith some of the most unique and exotic tropical plants and flowers, this is the place to go for the most interesting foliage and fruit.US Evergreen805 Sixth AvenueRight around the corner, this institution takes over the street and is bursting with the best local branches. It also specializes in custom wreaths and garlands during the holidays, so place your orders early for next season.Tropical Plants and Orchids106 W. 28th StreetChicly located behind the McDonald’s, I always check Tropical Plant for myrtle topiaries and indoor plants, like maiden’s hair ferns or potted orchids—they tend to have the best prices on the block. Plus, they’ll pot anything beautifully with moss.Jamali Floral and Garden149 W. 28th StreetThe go-to source for floral supplies, basic decorative containers, and shears. Head to Jamali to grab some simple taper candles or a julep cup.Jennifer LivingstonBeaton Floral by Ralph Lauren Home, available through Designers Guild, shot outside of Jamali Floral and Garden.Jennifer LivingstonProtea Print by Thibaut, shot at Caribbean Cuts.Jennifer LivingstonPolka by Décors Barbares for Namay Samay, available through John Rosselli, shot outside of 28th Street Wholesale.What to KnowGo early: I recommend arriving between 5:30 and 6 a.m. for the freshest finds and best variety. You’d be surprised how crowded it is with floral designers and stylists, even at this hour.Dress warmly: Since the temperatures inside are often quite low, I recommend bringing an extra layer and dressing for utilitarian purposes—Mother Nature isn’t always the cleanest. Park on 27th Street: Street parking is free on 27th Street but only until 8 a.m. Avoid 28th Street for parking and Uber pickup, as it is always extremely crowded.Use the shelves: The open shelves in the rear of each shop are for customers. It’s really helpful to arrange everything you’re considering buying facing outward so you can see what you have and what you’re missing.Walk the street: I recommend starting on one side of the market and walking across 28th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues to see who has the best of whatever is in season at the moment. Make a mental list and then go back when ready to purchase.Bring a wagon: I am now the proud owner of a collapsible wagon. While not the most attractive item I own, it’s helpful if you’re working on a big project and don’t have an extra pair of hands. Be respectful: Everyone working at the market is super-knowledgeable, kind, and hardworking. I’ve sadly seen some horrifying customer behavior. In a place chock-full of beauty, no one needs to make enemies.Jennifer LivingstonPansy by Marvic Textiles, shot at 28th Street Wholesale.Jennifer LivingstonHindi by Zak and Fox, shot at Dutch Flower Line.Jennifer LivingstonTara Magnolia by Lee Jofa, shot outside of Tropical Plants and Orchids.Style assistant: Julia Stevens #elle #decor #editors #guide #new
    WWW.ELLEDECOR.COM
    An ELLE Decor Editor’s Guide to New York’s Flower District
    Pictured above, Cynara by Osborne & Little, shot at Dutch Flower Line.There’s something ineffably romantic about an early morning sprint through New York City’s Flower District. Tucked along West 28th Street, this energetic and fragrant corridor has long been a mecca for interior designers, stylists, and creatives. Buckets overflow with ruffled ranunculus, chartreuse parrot tulips, and branches of cherry blossoms stretching skyward—each one an ephemeral muse. For me, it’s not just about blooms, it’s about fabric.This season a wave of new floral textiles has burst forth (April showers… as it goes). From delicately block-printed and hand-embroidered linens to screen-printed silks and bold cotton chintzes, textile houses are turning to flowers not merely as motif but as mood. As florals reassert themselves this season, there’s no better place to begin than the Flower Market, where scent, texture, and color convene like a mood board in bloom. Supporting this local institution not only sustains a vital creative ecosystem, it keeps the soul of the city’s design scene alive and rooted in community. In this garden of inspiration, flowers are forever.Jennifer LivingstonSandrine by Leah O’Connell Textiles, shot at G. Page.Jennifer LivingstonFrom left: Francesca Purple by Tulu Textiles; Frenchy by James Malone available through John Rosselli, shot at US Evergreen.Jennifer LivingstonPersephone by Spring Street Textiles, shot at Dutch Flower Line.My Favorite SourcesNew York Flower Group (Dutch Flower Line)150 W. 28th StreetThis team has some of the best service and freshest blooms in every color. If you need something specific, call ahead to place an order.28th Street Wholesale150 W. 28th StreetAlthough it has the same address, this shop is next door to the New York Flower Group. They carry interesting seasonal branches and offerings, such as, in season, uncut tulips growing from the bulb.Caribbean Cuts120 W. 28th StreetWith some of the most unique and exotic tropical plants and flowers, this is the place to go for the most interesting foliage and fruit.US Evergreen805 Sixth AvenueRight around the corner, this institution takes over the street and is bursting with the best local branches. It also specializes in custom wreaths and garlands during the holidays, so place your orders early for next season.Tropical Plants and Orchids106 W. 28th StreetChicly located behind the McDonald’s, I always check Tropical Plant for myrtle topiaries and indoor plants, like maiden’s hair ferns or potted orchids—they tend to have the best prices on the block. Plus, they’ll pot anything beautifully with moss.Jamali Floral and Garden149 W. 28th StreetThe go-to source for floral supplies, basic decorative containers, and shears. Head to Jamali to grab some simple taper candles or a julep cup.Jennifer LivingstonBeaton Floral by Ralph Lauren Home, available through Designers Guild, shot outside of Jamali Floral and Garden.Jennifer LivingstonProtea Print by Thibaut, shot at Caribbean Cuts.Jennifer LivingstonPolka by Décors Barbares for Namay Samay, available through John Rosselli, shot outside of 28th Street Wholesale.What to KnowGo early: I recommend arriving between 5:30 and 6 a.m. for the freshest finds and best variety. You’d be surprised how crowded it is with floral designers and stylists, even at this hour.Dress warmly: Since the temperatures inside are often quite low (for the flowers), I recommend bringing an extra layer and dressing for utilitarian purposes—Mother Nature isn’t always the cleanest. Park on 27th Street: Street parking is free on 27th Street but only until 8 a.m. Avoid 28th Street for parking and Uber pickup, as it is always extremely crowded.Use the shelves: The open shelves in the rear of each shop are for customers. It’s really helpful to arrange everything you’re considering buying facing outward so you can see what you have and what you’re missing.Walk the street: I recommend starting on one side of the market and walking across 28th Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues to see who has the best of whatever is in season at the moment. Make a mental list and then go back when ready to purchase.Bring a wagon: I am now the proud owner of a collapsible wagon. While not the most attractive item I own, it’s helpful if you’re working on a big project and don’t have an extra pair of hands. Be respectful: Everyone working at the market is super-knowledgeable, kind, and hardworking. I’ve sadly seen some horrifying customer behavior. In a place chock-full of beauty, no one needs to make enemies.Jennifer LivingstonPansy by Marvic Textiles, shot at 28th Street Wholesale.Jennifer LivingstonHindi by Zak and Fox, shot at Dutch Flower Line.Jennifer LivingstonTara Magnolia by Lee Jofa, shot outside of Tropical Plants and Orchids.Style assistant: Julia Stevens
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  • #333;">Trump launches Middle East tour by meeting with Saudi crown prince
    U.S.
    President Donald Trump opened his four-day Middle East trip on Tuesday by paying a visit to Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for talks on U.S.
    efforts to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program, end the war in Gaza, hold down oil prices and more.Prince Mohammed warmly greeted Trump as he stepped off Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital and kicked off his Middle East tour.The two leaders then retreated to a grand hall at the Riyadh airport, where Trump and his aides were served traditional Arabic coffee by waiting attendants wearing ceremonial gun-belts.
    Fighter jet escort
    The pomp began before Trump even landed.
    Royal Saudi Air Force F-15s provided an honorary escort for Air Force One as it approached the kingdom’s capital.Trump and Prince Mohammed also took part in a lunch at the Royal Court, gathering with guests and aides in an ornate room with blue accents and massive crystal chandeliers.As he greeted business titans with Trump by his side, Prince Mohammed was animated and smiling.It was a stark contrast to his awkward fist bump with then-President Joe Biden, who looked to avoid being seen on camera shaking hands with the prince during a 2022 visit to the kingdom.Biden had decided to pay a visit to Saudi Arabia as he looked to alleviate soaring prices at the pump for motorists at home and around the globe.At the time, Prince Mohammed’s reputation had been badly damaged by a U.S.
    intelligence determination that found he had ordered the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.But that dark moment appeared to be distant memory for the prince as he rubbed elbows with high-profile business executives — including Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk — in front of the cameras and with Trump by his side.Later, the crown prince will fete Trump with a formal dinner.
    Trump is also slated to take part Tuesday in a U.S.-Saudi investment conference.“When Saudis and Americans join forces, very good things happen — more often than not, great things happen,” Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said.
    Oil production
    Saudi Arabia and fellow OPEC+ nations have already helped their cause with Trump early in his second term by stepping up oil production.
    Trump sees cheap energy as a key component to lowering costs and stemming inflation for Americans.
    The Republican president has also made the case that lower oil prices will hasten an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.But Saudi Arabia’s economy remains heavily dependent on oil, and the kingdom needs a fiscal break-even oil price of $96 to $98 a barrel to balance its budget.
    It’s questionable how long OPEC+, of which Saudi Arabia is the leading member, is willing to keep production elevated.
    The price of a barrel of Brent crude closed Monday at $64.77.“One of the challenges for the Gulf states of lower oil prices is it doesn’t necessarily imperil economic diversification programs, but it certainly makes them harder,” said Jon Alterman, a senior Middle East analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
    Qatar and UAE next
    Trump picked the kingdom for his first stop, because it has pledged to make big investments in the U.S., but Trump ended up traveling to Italy last month for Pope Francis’ funeral.
    Riyadh was the first overseas stop of his first term.The three countries on the president’s itinerary — Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — are all places where the Trump Organization, run by Trump’s two elder sons, is developing major real estate projects.
    They include a high-rise tower in Jeddah, a luxury hotel in Dubai and a golf course and villa complex in Qatar.Trump is trying to demonstrate that his transactional strategy for international politics is paying dividends as he faces criticism from Democrats who say his global tariff war and approach to Russia’s war on Ukraine are isolating the United States from allies.He’s expected to announce deals with the three wealthy countries that will touch on artificial intelligence, expanding energy cooperation and perhaps new arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
    The administration earlier this month announced initial approval to sell $3.5 billion worth of air-to-air missiles for Saudi Arabia’s fighter jets.But Trump arrived in the Middle East at a moment when his top regional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are far from neatly aligned with his approach.
    Trump’s decision to skip Israel remarkable, expert says
    Before the trip, Trump announced that Washington was halting a nearly two-month U.S.
    airstrike campaign against Yemen’s Houthis, saying the Iran-backed rebels have pledged to stop attacking ships along a vital global trade route.The administration didn’t notify Israel — which the Houthis continue to target — of the agreement before Trump publicly announced it.
    It was the latest example of Trump leaving the Israelis in the dark about his administration’s negotiations with common adversaries.In March, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t notified by the administration until after talks began with Hamas about the war in Gaza.
    And Netanyahu found out about the ongoing U.S.
    nuclear talks with Iran only when Trump announced them during an Oval Office visit by the Israeli leader last month.“Israel will defend itself by itself,” Netanyahu said last week following Trump’s Houthi truce announcement.
    “If others join us — our American friends — all the better.”William Wechsler, senior director of the Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council, said Trump’s decision to skip Israel on his first Middle East visit is remarkable.“The main message coming out of this, at least as the itinerary stands today, is that the governments of the Gulf … are in fact stronger friends to President Trump than the current government of Israel at this moment,” Wechsler said.
    Restarting efforts to normalize Israel-Saudi ties
    Trump, meanwhile, hopes to restart his first-term effort to normalize relations between the Middle East’s major powers, Israel and Saudi Arabia.
    Trump’s Abraham Accords effort led to Sudan, the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco agreeing to normalize relations with Israel.But Riyadh has made clear that in exchange for normalization it wants U.S.
    security guarantees, assistance with the kingdom’s nuclear program and progress on a pathway to Palestinian statehood.
    There seems to be scant hope for making headway on a Palestinian state with the Israel-Hamas war raging and the Israelis threatening to flatten and occupy Gaza.Prince Mohammed last week notably hosted Palestinian Vice President Hussein Sheikh in Jeddah on the sheikh’s first foreign visit since assuming office in April.Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the crown prince appeared to be subtly signaling to Trump that the kingdom needs to see progress on Palestinian statehood for the Saudis to begin seriously moving on a normalization deal with the Israelis.“Knowing how the Saudis telegraph their intentions, that’s a preemptive, ‘Don’t even think of asking us to show any goodwill toward normalization,'” Abdul-Hussain said.
    Madhani reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
    —Zeke Miller, Aamer Madhani and Jon Gambrell, Associated Press
    #666;">المصدر: https://www.fastcompany.com/91333433/trump-launches-middle-east-tour-meeting-saudi-crown-prince" style="color: #0066cc; text-decoration: none;">www.fastcompany.com
    #0066cc;">#trump #launches #middle #east #tour #meeting #with #saudi #crown #prince #uspresident #donald #opened #his #fourday #trip #tuesday #paying #visit #arabias #facto #ruler #mohammed #bin #salman #for #talks #usefforts #dismantle #irans #nuclear #program #end #the #war #gaza #hold #down #oil #prices #and #moreprince #warmly #greeted #stepped #off #air #force #one #king #khalid #international #airport #capital #kicked #tourthe #two #leaders #then #retreated #grand #hall #riyadh #where #aides #were #served #traditional #arabic #coffee #waiting #attendants #wearing #ceremonial #gunbeltsfighter #jet #escortthe #pomp #began #before #even #landedroyal #f15s #provided #honorary #escort #approached #kingdoms #capitaltrump #also #took #part #lunch #royal #court #gathering #guests #ornate #room #blue #accents #massive #crystal #chandeliersas #business #titans #side #was #animated #smilingit #stark #contrast #awkward #fist #bump #thenpresident #joe #biden #who #looked #avoid #being 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#announcementif #others #our #american #friends #betterwilliam #wechsler #director #rafik #hariri #atlantic #council #remarkablethe #main #message #coming #least #stands #today #governments #fact #stronger #current #government #saidrestarting #efforts #normalize #israelsaudi #tiestrump #meanwhile #hopes #restart #firstterm #effort #relations #between #easts #powers #arabiatrumps #abraham #accords #led #sudan #bahrain #morocco #agreeing #israelbut #clear #exchange #normalization #wants #ussecurity #guarantees #assistance #progress #pathway #palestinian #statehoodthere #seems #scant #hope #making #headway #state #israelhamas #raging #threatening #flatten #occupy #gazaprince #notably #hosted #vice #hussein #sheikh #sheikhs #foreign #since #assuming #aprilhussain #abdulhussain #research #foundation #defense #democracies #subtly #signaling #see #statehood #begin #seriously #moving #deal #israelisknowing #telegraph #intentions #thats #preemptive #dont #think #asking #show #any #goodwill #toward #normalization039 #saidmadhani #reported #emirateszeke #miller #aamer #madhani #gambrell #associated #press
    Trump launches Middle East tour by meeting with Saudi crown prince
    U.S. President Donald Trump opened his four-day Middle East trip on Tuesday by paying a visit to Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for talks on U.S. efforts to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program, end the war in Gaza, hold down oil prices and more.Prince Mohammed warmly greeted Trump as he stepped off Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital and kicked off his Middle East tour.The two leaders then retreated to a grand hall at the Riyadh airport, where Trump and his aides were served traditional Arabic coffee by waiting attendants wearing ceremonial gun-belts. Fighter jet escort The pomp began before Trump even landed. Royal Saudi Air Force F-15s provided an honorary escort for Air Force One as it approached the kingdom’s capital.Trump and Prince Mohammed also took part in a lunch at the Royal Court, gathering with guests and aides in an ornate room with blue accents and massive crystal chandeliers.As he greeted business titans with Trump by his side, Prince Mohammed was animated and smiling.It was a stark contrast to his awkward fist bump with then-President Joe Biden, who looked to avoid being seen on camera shaking hands with the prince during a 2022 visit to the kingdom.Biden had decided to pay a visit to Saudi Arabia as he looked to alleviate soaring prices at the pump for motorists at home and around the globe.At the time, Prince Mohammed’s reputation had been badly damaged by a U.S. intelligence determination that found he had ordered the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.But that dark moment appeared to be distant memory for the prince as he rubbed elbows with high-profile business executives — including Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk — in front of the cameras and with Trump by his side.Later, the crown prince will fete Trump with a formal dinner. Trump is also slated to take part Tuesday in a U.S.-Saudi investment conference.“When Saudis and Americans join forces, very good things happen — more often than not, great things happen,” Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said. Oil production Saudi Arabia and fellow OPEC+ nations have already helped their cause with Trump early in his second term by stepping up oil production. Trump sees cheap energy as a key component to lowering costs and stemming inflation for Americans. The Republican president has also made the case that lower oil prices will hasten an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.But Saudi Arabia’s economy remains heavily dependent on oil, and the kingdom needs a fiscal break-even oil price of $96 to $98 a barrel to balance its budget. It’s questionable how long OPEC+, of which Saudi Arabia is the leading member, is willing to keep production elevated. The price of a barrel of Brent crude closed Monday at $64.77.“One of the challenges for the Gulf states of lower oil prices is it doesn’t necessarily imperil economic diversification programs, but it certainly makes them harder,” said Jon Alterman, a senior Middle East analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Qatar and UAE next Trump picked the kingdom for his first stop, because it has pledged to make big investments in the U.S., but Trump ended up traveling to Italy last month for Pope Francis’ funeral. Riyadh was the first overseas stop of his first term.The three countries on the president’s itinerary — Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — are all places where the Trump Organization, run by Trump’s two elder sons, is developing major real estate projects. They include a high-rise tower in Jeddah, a luxury hotel in Dubai and a golf course and villa complex in Qatar.Trump is trying to demonstrate that his transactional strategy for international politics is paying dividends as he faces criticism from Democrats who say his global tariff war and approach to Russia’s war on Ukraine are isolating the United States from allies.He’s expected to announce deals with the three wealthy countries that will touch on artificial intelligence, expanding energy cooperation and perhaps new arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The administration earlier this month announced initial approval to sell $3.5 billion worth of air-to-air missiles for Saudi Arabia’s fighter jets.But Trump arrived in the Middle East at a moment when his top regional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are far from neatly aligned with his approach. Trump’s decision to skip Israel remarkable, expert says Before the trip, Trump announced that Washington was halting a nearly two-month U.S. airstrike campaign against Yemen’s Houthis, saying the Iran-backed rebels have pledged to stop attacking ships along a vital global trade route.The administration didn’t notify Israel — which the Houthis continue to target — of the agreement before Trump publicly announced it. It was the latest example of Trump leaving the Israelis in the dark about his administration’s negotiations with common adversaries.In March, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t notified by the administration until after talks began with Hamas about the war in Gaza. And Netanyahu found out about the ongoing U.S. nuclear talks with Iran only when Trump announced them during an Oval Office visit by the Israeli leader last month.“Israel will defend itself by itself,” Netanyahu said last week following Trump’s Houthi truce announcement. “If others join us — our American friends — all the better.”William Wechsler, senior director of the Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council, said Trump’s decision to skip Israel on his first Middle East visit is remarkable.“The main message coming out of this, at least as the itinerary stands today, is that the governments of the Gulf … are in fact stronger friends to President Trump than the current government of Israel at this moment,” Wechsler said. Restarting efforts to normalize Israel-Saudi ties Trump, meanwhile, hopes to restart his first-term effort to normalize relations between the Middle East’s major powers, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Trump’s Abraham Accords effort led to Sudan, the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco agreeing to normalize relations with Israel.But Riyadh has made clear that in exchange for normalization it wants U.S. security guarantees, assistance with the kingdom’s nuclear program and progress on a pathway to Palestinian statehood. There seems to be scant hope for making headway on a Palestinian state with the Israel-Hamas war raging and the Israelis threatening to flatten and occupy Gaza.Prince Mohammed last week notably hosted Palestinian Vice President Hussein Sheikh in Jeddah on the sheikh’s first foreign visit since assuming office in April.Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the crown prince appeared to be subtly signaling to Trump that the kingdom needs to see progress on Palestinian statehood for the Saudis to begin seriously moving on a normalization deal with the Israelis.“Knowing how the Saudis telegraph their intentions, that’s a preemptive, ‘Don’t even think of asking us to show any goodwill toward normalization,'” Abdul-Hussain said. Madhani reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. —Zeke Miller, Aamer Madhani and Jon Gambrell, Associated Press
    المصدر: www.fastcompany.com
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    Trump launches Middle East tour by meeting with Saudi crown prince
    U.S. President Donald Trump opened his four-day Middle East trip on Tuesday by paying a visit to Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for talks on U.S. efforts to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program, end the war in Gaza, hold down oil prices and more.Prince Mohammed warmly greeted Trump as he stepped off Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital and kicked off his Middle East tour.The two leaders then retreated to a grand hall at the Riyadh airport, where Trump and his aides were served traditional Arabic coffee by waiting attendants wearing ceremonial gun-belts. Fighter jet escort The pomp began before Trump even landed. Royal Saudi Air Force F-15s provided an honorary escort for Air Force One as it approached the kingdom’s capital.Trump and Prince Mohammed also took part in a lunch at the Royal Court, gathering with guests and aides in an ornate room with blue accents and massive crystal chandeliers.As he greeted business titans with Trump by his side, Prince Mohammed was animated and smiling.It was a stark contrast to his awkward fist bump with then-President Joe Biden, who looked to avoid being seen on camera shaking hands with the prince during a 2022 visit to the kingdom.Biden had decided to pay a visit to Saudi Arabia as he looked to alleviate soaring prices at the pump for motorists at home and around the globe.At the time, Prince Mohammed’s reputation had been badly damaged by a U.S. intelligence determination that found he had ordered the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.But that dark moment appeared to be distant memory for the prince as he rubbed elbows with high-profile business executives — including Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk — in front of the cameras and with Trump by his side.Later, the crown prince will fete Trump with a formal dinner. Trump is also slated to take part Tuesday in a U.S.-Saudi investment conference.“When Saudis and Americans join forces, very good things happen — more often than not, great things happen,” Saudi Investment Minister Khalid al-Falih said. Oil production Saudi Arabia and fellow OPEC+ nations have already helped their cause with Trump early in his second term by stepping up oil production. Trump sees cheap energy as a key component to lowering costs and stemming inflation for Americans. The Republican president has also made the case that lower oil prices will hasten an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.But Saudi Arabia’s economy remains heavily dependent on oil, and the kingdom needs a fiscal break-even oil price of $96 to $98 a barrel to balance its budget. It’s questionable how long OPEC+, of which Saudi Arabia is the leading member, is willing to keep production elevated. The price of a barrel of Brent crude closed Monday at $64.77.“One of the challenges for the Gulf states of lower oil prices is it doesn’t necessarily imperil economic diversification programs, but it certainly makes them harder,” said Jon Alterman, a senior Middle East analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Qatar and UAE next Trump picked the kingdom for his first stop, because it has pledged to make big investments in the U.S., but Trump ended up traveling to Italy last month for Pope Francis’ funeral. Riyadh was the first overseas stop of his first term.The three countries on the president’s itinerary — Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — are all places where the Trump Organization, run by Trump’s two elder sons, is developing major real estate projects. They include a high-rise tower in Jeddah, a luxury hotel in Dubai and a golf course and villa complex in Qatar.Trump is trying to demonstrate that his transactional strategy for international politics is paying dividends as he faces criticism from Democrats who say his global tariff war and approach to Russia’s war on Ukraine are isolating the United States from allies.He’s expected to announce deals with the three wealthy countries that will touch on artificial intelligence, expanding energy cooperation and perhaps new arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The administration earlier this month announced initial approval to sell $3.5 billion worth of air-to-air missiles for Saudi Arabia’s fighter jets.But Trump arrived in the Middle East at a moment when his top regional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are far from neatly aligned with his approach. Trump’s decision to skip Israel remarkable, expert says Before the trip, Trump announced that Washington was halting a nearly two-month U.S. airstrike campaign against Yemen’s Houthis, saying the Iran-backed rebels have pledged to stop attacking ships along a vital global trade route.The administration didn’t notify Israel — which the Houthis continue to target — of the agreement before Trump publicly announced it. It was the latest example of Trump leaving the Israelis in the dark about his administration’s negotiations with common adversaries.In March, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t notified by the administration until after talks began with Hamas about the war in Gaza. And Netanyahu found out about the ongoing U.S. nuclear talks with Iran only when Trump announced them during an Oval Office visit by the Israeli leader last month.“Israel will defend itself by itself,” Netanyahu said last week following Trump’s Houthi truce announcement. “If others join us — our American friends — all the better.”William Wechsler, senior director of the Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council, said Trump’s decision to skip Israel on his first Middle East visit is remarkable.“The main message coming out of this, at least as the itinerary stands today, is that the governments of the Gulf … are in fact stronger friends to President Trump than the current government of Israel at this moment,” Wechsler said. Restarting efforts to normalize Israel-Saudi ties Trump, meanwhile, hopes to restart his first-term effort to normalize relations between the Middle East’s major powers, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Trump’s Abraham Accords effort led to Sudan, the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco agreeing to normalize relations with Israel.But Riyadh has made clear that in exchange for normalization it wants U.S. security guarantees, assistance with the kingdom’s nuclear program and progress on a pathway to Palestinian statehood. There seems to be scant hope for making headway on a Palestinian state with the Israel-Hamas war raging and the Israelis threatening to flatten and occupy Gaza.Prince Mohammed last week notably hosted Palestinian Vice President Hussein Sheikh in Jeddah on the sheikh’s first foreign visit since assuming office in April.Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the crown prince appeared to be subtly signaling to Trump that the kingdom needs to see progress on Palestinian statehood for the Saudis to begin seriously moving on a normalization deal with the Israelis.“Knowing how the Saudis telegraph their intentions, that’s a preemptive, ‘Don’t even think of asking us to show any goodwill toward normalization,'” Abdul-Hussain said. Madhani reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. —Zeke Miller, Aamer Madhani and Jon Gambrell, Associated Press
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