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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Mar 24, 2015
March 24, 2015
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Looking at Logos:
See ya: After 131 years, the company that makes Louisville Slugger bats has just sold the brand to its rival --Wilson Sporting Goods-- for a reported $70-million dollars.
Hillerich & Bradsby Company CEO JOHN A. HILLERICH IV said yesterday he would have liked to keep the bat business in family hands, but "we've seen things change and we had to make a very tough decision. We'd rather the brand go on and have somebody else own it than potentially put it in jeopardy by keeping it in the family."
The bats will still be made at the same Louisville, KY, factory they've always been made at, and still have the trademark logo, but around about a fifth of the company's employees will lose their jobs.Fast Food:
Burger King announced yesterday that its Chicken Fries will be served year-round after a surge in demand on various social media for the product.
If you're not familiar, it's nine pieces of breaded and fried chicken strips for $2.89. The chicken product helped participating Burger King stores nab a 3.6 percent sales increase during a two-month trial period, according to Bloomberg. The item has been on and off Burger King's menu since 2005.Sucking the life out of the wire services:
ANGELINA JOLIE says she underwent preventative surgery to have her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed last week after doctors detected early signs of cancer.
In an Op-Ed piece in today's New York Times, she said she'd promised to let people know about her decision to have a double mastectomy for preventive reasons and any follow-up.
"I will not be able to have any more children, and I expect some physical changes," she said. "But I feel at ease with whatever will come, not because I am strong but because this is a part of life. It is nothing to be feared."
She said she made the decision after her doctor called two weeks ago with results from blood tests that indicated she may be in the early stages of cancer.
Her husband, BRAD PITT, flew back from France within hours to be by his wife's side after she received the news.
Angelina's mother, grandmother and aunt all died from cancer, and she said her doctors had told her she should have preventive surgery about a decade before the earliest onset of cancer in her female relatives.
"My mother's ovarian cancer was diagnosed when she was 49. I'm 39," she said.Stars and their movies:
Actor WILL FERRELL will be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this morning at 11:30 am (Pacific) at 6767 Hollywood Boulevard in front of the Hollywood Wax Museum. JOHN C. REILLY and MOLLY SHANNON will be there to speak as Will's star, in the Motion Picture category, gets unveiled. KEVIN HART, Will's co-star in the movie, "Get Hard," which just happens to open this weekend, will also be on hand for the ceremony.
Grace notes from Vinny Marino:
MADONNA is waiting for one very specific invite. She told Us Weekly that more than anyone else in the world, she wants to meet President OBAMA. In fact, Madonna is a little upset that he hasn't called her yet to come hang with him at the White House. She said (quote), "He probably thinks I'm too shocking to be there. I'm serious. If I was a little bit more demure... or if I was just married to Jay Z. Hey, if Jay would only take me as his second wife, then I'd score an invitation." Madonna also revealed that she wants to do out on a (quote), "dream date" with DRAKE, but she only wants to kiss him. (Marino)
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