Killed on live TV
Parker and Ward are fatally shot on live television during an interview with Gardner outside Bridgewater Plaza, Moneta, VA. While Parker is interviewing a woman, shots ring out. Both women scream and Ward falls to the ground. The audience sees a glimpse of a man who appears to be pointing a gun toward Ward. The station cuts away to a shocked anchor, Kimberly McBroom, back in the studio. Gardner is shot in the back and taken to hospital.
Smaller cub dies
The smaller of twin panda cubs born to Mei Xiang dies after experiencing respiratory difficulty. After the twins were born, zoo keepers decided to swap the cubs in Mei Xiang’s possession every four hours so each had time to nurse and spend quality time with her. After the most recent swap staff noticed the smaller cub’s weight was faltering.
We are sad to report that the smaller of the two panda cubs has died. The larger cub appears to be strong, robust, behaving normally and is with mother Mei Xiang.
In coma, receiving experimental drug
Riley, an honors student who has qualified for the Junior Olympics three times in cross country, is in a medically-induced coma after contracting Primary Amoebic Meningoencephalitis (PAM) as a result of amoeba Naegleria fowleri. Doctors believe the amoeba entered through his nose and got into his brain when he jumped into a lake at the Sam Houston National Forest on Aug. 13. A week later, Riley developed a fever and headache, and his mother took him to a local clinic. which sent him home. A few days later, his symptoms got worse. He was disoriented, with a fever, severe headache and neck pain similar to symptoms of meningitis. His parents took him to Texas Children’s Hospital, where doctors recognized the condition from having recently treated another case in the area. His family says he is now receiving an experimental drug that was used to save Kali Hardig.
Healy hired as CEO
Biter hires Healy as the CEO for Professional Lien Search. Healy was previously CEO of Novitex Enterprise Solutions, and spent 30 years with the U.S. Postal Service. PLS Operating Partner Biter:
Once PLS surpassed 60 employees, we knew it was time to bring in the big guns. Healy’s impressive resume made him an obvious choice to take the reins. I’m excited to know that our clients will be able to expect better service, faster turnaround times and additional services under Tim’s watch.
Morgan, Wollover marry
Wollover and Morgan marry in an “emotional ceremony” attended by friends and Wollover’s two-year-old daughter.
After almost losing Tracy last year, I am so grateful to finally be married to the love of my life. We have been through so much and our love is stronger for it…I’m so excited to see what our future holds and feel so blessed to spend the rest of my life with Tracy.
Twin pandas born
The National Zoo in Washington says Mei Xiang has had twins. Both cubs appear healthy. They are the 17-year-old panda’s third and fourth surviving offspring.
Resigns
Prime Minister Tsipras resigns after giving a TV address. Government officials said the aim was to hold an election on Sept. 20, with Tsipras seeking to crush a rebellion in his leftist Syriza party and seal public support for the bailout program, Greece’s third since 2010, that he negotiated.
The popular mandate I received on January 25th has run its course. Now the sovereign people of Greece must weigh in…I will go to the president of the republic shortly to submit my resignation, as well as the resignation of my government. I want to be honest with you. We did not achieve the agreement we expected before the January elections. I feel the deep ethical and political responsibility to put to your judgment all I have done, successes and failures.
Divorce
Fogle’s wife, Katie, releases a statement through her attorney saying she is divorcing him:
Obviously, I am extremely shocked and disappointed by the recent developments involving Jared. I am in the process of seeking a dissolution of the marriage. My focus is exclusively on the well-being of my children.
She says this will be her only public statement about the matter and asked for privacy for her family.
Murders 19 girls
ISIS murders 19 girls for refusing to act as sex slaves to ISIS soldiers. A Kurdish official from the area reports the girls were part of a group of women, taken as sex slaves, who hail from non-Sunni Muslim demographics that include Yazidis, as well as Christians. The group is reportedly being held in Mosul. UN Envoy:
The girls get peddled like barrels of petrol.
To host SNL
NBC says Morgan will host the October 17 episode of Saturday Night Live, returning to Studio 8H for his second time as host.
Stoked to be going home…#SNL
— Tracy Morgan (@TracyMorgan) August 17, 2015
E’Dena Hines stabbed to death age 33
Hines, Freeman’s step-granddaughter, is fatally stabbed in New York City. Her body is found lying in the street outside her home, with multiple stab wounds to her torso. EMS to Harlem Hospital and pronounced dead. A 30-year-old man is arrested at the scene. Freeman:
The world will never know her artistry and talent, and how much she had to offer. Her friends and family were fortunate enough to have known what she meant as a person. Her star will continue to shine bright in our hearts, thoughts and prayers. May she rest in peace.
NYT details Amazon working conditions
The New York Times publishes an article titled, Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace, that talks about difficult working conditions at Amazon.
At Amazon, workers are encouraged to tear apart one another’s ideas in meetings, toil long and late (emails arrive past midnight, followed by text messages asking why they were not answered), and held to standards that the company boasts are “unreasonably high.” The internal phone directory instructs colleagues on how to send secret feedback to one another’s bosses. Employees say it is frequently used to sabotage others. (The tool offers sample texts, including this: “I felt concerned about his inflexibility and openly complaining about minor tasks.”)
Julian Bond dies age 75
Bond dies in Fort Walton Beach, FL. His wife says the cause was complications of vascular disease. Wife:
[He] never took his eyes off the prize and that was always racial equality…He had a wonderful sense of humor. You know, that got him through the serious things he dealt with all his life. He used to joke that on his tombstone, one side would say ‘Race man’ and the other side would say, ‘Easily amused.’
Straight Outta Compton
In this drama directed by Grey, O’Shea Jackson plays as Ice Cube who revolutionizes hip-hop in the mid-80s by forming NWA in the streets of Compton. Co-starring Jason Mitchell, Corey Hawkins, Paul Giamatti, Andrea Berloff.
There’s a humanity to the story that you wouldn’t normally associate with this genre of music. That was important to me. I want you to get to know the guys behind the tracks, behind the lyrics and beats, and get a sense of them as human beings. That’s what makes this special, because you can’t just google “N.W.A.” and get these details. You can’t experience the brotherhood that you experience in the movie by going on to Wikipedia.
Hall, Aspinall divorce
Aspinal divorces Hall after six years of marriage. The documents were filed in May.
Cancer diagnosis
Carter says that recent liver surgery revealed he had cancer that had spread to other parts of his body. He does not say where the cancer had spread. The Carter Center in Atlanta says that he had undergone elective surgery at Emory University Hospital to remove a small mass in his liver. It adds that the operation had proceeded without issues and that the prognosis was excellent for a full recovery.
I will be rearranging my schedule as necessary so I can undergo treatment by physicians at Emory Healthcare. A more complete public statement will be made when facts are known, possibly next week.
Selling home
Malik and Edwards put their $6.56 million mansion up for sale after only two months of living together. Sources:
This was the house where Perrie expected to marry Zayn and act as his wife for the rest of their lives. It was their dream home. It’s understandable that Perrie feels confused and led on. He must have already been having doubts about the relationship…This was a very serious, major financial purchase. She thought Zayn was committing to their long-term future.
Voting rights defense
President Obama writes letter to New York Times saying voting rights must be vigorously defended. The Times published the letter in response to an article in its Sunday magazine last month describing efforts to undercut or dismantle the protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Obama:
These efforts are not a sign that we have moved past the shameful history that led to the Voting Rights Act. Too often, they are rooted in that history. They remind us that progress does not come easy, but that it must be vigorously defended and built upon for ourselves and future generations.
Skin transplants scheduled
The Palestinian minister of health says that Dawabsheh’s mother will undergo a skin transplant surgery within the next few days, despite her critical condition. The toddler’s brother, Ahmad will also have skin-cleansing sessions. He still lies in the ICU in trauma. The Director of Tel Hashomer Hospital, where the family is being treated, says both mother and brother will need one year in the ICU to recover from their injuries.
Pregnant swedish teenager held
A pregnant 15-year-old Swedish girl is being held by ISIS in Syria after running away from her foster home with her boyfriend to join al-Qaida. Swedish Foreign Ministry:
We have been informed that a Swedish minor is in Syria. We are in contact with family members,
The 15-year-old, whose name is not disclosed, disappeared from her foster home in Boras, near the south-western town of Gothenburg, on 31 May. It said she is six months pregnant. She and her 19-year-old boyfriend married in a Muslim ceremony in Stockholm earlier this year without their parents’ knowledge and reportedly travelled to Syria via Turkey, where they were recruited by an al-Qaida-linked group. The couple were captured by ISIS fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, and have been moved to an ISIS-controlled area. The boyfriend has been forced to fight for the jihadist group. The daughter had called her parents at least three times while being held by Isis after women secretly lent her a cell phone. Mother:
I spoke to her yesterday and found out she has been moved to a group of women. She is not allowed to be with her boyfriend because they aren’t considered married by [ISIS]. She was very sad and very scared. We don’t know how to get her out of the country. Now she’s in an [ISIS]-controlled area so it will be even harder.
The father says that his daughter might be moved to live with a group of women in Manbij, a town north-east of Aleppo, if ISIS militants did not recognise the marriage.