Free Republic

Bada bing. A new documentary about the making of HBO’s mafia hit, “The Sopranos,” covers how the late star James Gandolfini gave money to his fellow cast members – except one. Now airing on HBO and Max, “Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos” sees series creator David Chase say onscreen about Gandolfini, “He was great to that crew. He made them laugh, and he gave the other cast members $30,000.” This information was also previously reported in the 2021 book, “Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers.” According to the book, Gandolfini signed a contract that would pay him...

James Gandolfini’s portrayal of Tony Soprano remains one of the greatest TV performances of the last 25 years, but working on the show day in and day out proved extremely taxing for the gifted actor. James Gandolfini’s portrayal of Tony Soprano remains one of the greatest TV performances of the last 25 years, but working on the show day in and day out proved extremely taxing for the gifted actor. "Every other day, we would go to a bar. We would have the exact same conversation,” Van Zandt explained. “We would get drunk. He’d say, ‘I’m done. I’m not going...

Selling Michael Jordan’s ultra-personalized compound has been anything but a slam dunk. The massive home has remained on the market for 12 years and slash its price twice. Jordan made his mark on the Chicago area estate: His name is painted on the basketball court, flags wave with his Air Jordan logo, and his jersey number adorns the gate, according to the Wall Street Journal. Jordan first listed the mansion at 2700 Point Lane in Highland Park, Illinois for $29 million in 2012, chopping it down to $16 million in 2014, and to $14.9 million in 2015, Compass shows.

Premiumization, another way of saying steadily rising retail prices, has been a feature of the bourbon market over the last decade. Notwithstanding ever-rising bourbon prices, however, there are still outstanding bourbons that retail for extremely attractive prices. Below is a list, along with tasting notes, of ten heavily medaled bourbons that have consistently won in international spirit competitions and still retail on average for around $35 or less. The indicated price is the national retail average and will vary by state.

The International Whisky Competition (IWC) 2024 saw the return of numerous prominent bourbon expressions, each vying for a gold medal in the prestigious contest. There were five sub-categories of ‘Best Bourbon’ in this year’s competition. So, today I thought we would take a look at the winners. With tasting notes, prices, where to buy, and what is behind each expression – here are the best bourbons according to the 2024 International Whisky Competition. Check out more whiskey awards here.

A 19-year-old is being charged with DUI manslaughter after allegedly running over a 2-year-old and dragging him and his tricycle in a gated Florida community Monday as his horrified family watched, authorities said. According to harrowing details from the affidavit obtained by ClickOrlando, Joshua Montero “appeared to drag the child and the bicycle” a few feet before the truck came to a halt. The tot’s mother said she and her husband were standing in their driveway as their children were riding their bikes in the street in front of their house on the Labor Day holiday when she heard and...

The Long Island mother accused of killing her young son in a wrong-way crash while she was driving high on methamphetamines had her license suspended for the 57th time during her arraignment Wednesday afternoon, prosecutors said. Suffolk County Judge Richard I. Horowitz ordered the suspension of Kerri Bedrick’s driver’s license until the conclusion of the case and held the 32-year-old in custody without bail after she pleaded not guilty to murder charges during her arraignment. Bedrick’s license was already suspended on Aug. 22 when she drove the wrong way on the Southern State Parkway around 2:15 a.m. and caused a...

Homebuyers desperate for a deal might be curious to learn more about a tiny town in Arkansas where homes are selling for just over $400. In Pine Bluff, just 45 miles outside of Little Rock, a home was recently sold for $402.74 at a tax auction. The city found itself thrust into the spotlight when a documentary titled “The City Left Behind: $400 Abandoned Homes in Pine Bluff” got 1.6 million views in the past three weeks on YouTube. “There is a surplus of properties—cheap!—that are prime for restoration and redevelopment,” filmmaker Michael Schwarz told Realtor.com®. “But not enough people...

Toyota has recalled more than 43,000 trucks in the US over defects that could increase the risk of a car crash. The Japanese automaker recalled 43,395 2023-2024 Sequoia Hybrids sold in the US after identifying a risk with the vehicles’ tow hitches. The tow hitch is a part located on the back of the truck that is used to connect the car to a trailer in order to be towed. The resin tow hitch on the Sequoia Hybrids is held in place on the rear bumper with molded clips, Toyota said in a recall report.

Fans expressed they were “seriously concerned” for Rachael Ray as she appeared to slur her words in a new cooking video. The chef, 56, took to Instagram on Monday to pay tribute to the late Tony Bennett by making his favorite dish, Ossobucco, which consists of braised veal shanks with polenta and bread. In the clip, Ray recalled inviting Bennett and his wife, Susan Crow, for dinner, where she “almost killed him.” “I had polished the floors in the kitchen because, well, Tony Bennett’s coming to dinner,” she continued. “I have to make sure the floors are perfect and the...

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — New COVID vaccines will be arriving in central Illinois in the next few weeks as the number of positive cases has been increasing in Illinois. “The FDA approved the latest COVID-19 vaccine. I think we will start seeing it much more in circulation starting post Labor Day,” Illinois Department of Public Health Director Sameer Vohra told WAND News on Friday. “This new vaccine will be updated and will be able to prevent illness from the most recent strains that we see circulating.” Anyone six months and older is eligible for the vaccine. People who have compromised...

If you've been on Instagram or TikTok recently, you've likely come across those viral videos of dogs hitting soundboard buttons while their proud owners feign exasperation at their furry friend's seemingly eloquent demands. Who wouldn't want to give their beloved pet the opportunity to talk back in a way we can understand? Skeptics such as this biologist have unsurprisingly raised their eyebrows at this fad, which has owners claiming their dogs can use the soundboards to form near-sentences asking for food, requesting help, raising alerts, and even questioning their mirror reflection.

On December 27, 2020, the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act of 2020 was enacted as section 103 in Division S, Innovation for the Environment, of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (H.R. 133 (116th): Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 [Including Coronavirus Stimulus & Relief]). The AIM Act authorizes EPA to address hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by providing new authorities in three main areas: to phase down the production and consumption of listed HFCs, manage these HFCs and their substitutes, and facilitate the transition to next-generation technologies through sector-based restrictions. Read the AIM Act (42 U.S. Code section 7675)

A newsstand vendor was robbed twice in recent months — including once by a pair of crooks who pistol-whipped him — after he set up shop on the Upper West Side in a bid to escape crime. Shah Hossain, 46, said he remains shaken by a brazen broad-daylight robbery Monday in which two gun-toting bandits clobbered him to the ground and snatched $3,000 from his newsstand along Columbus Avenue and West 81st Street. He suspects the bandits were the same duo who robbed him back in the spring. “I am watching people from all sides now,” he told The Post...

Brandon Miller, the high-profile New York real estate developer who took his own life last month, was in even more dire financial straits than was initially revealed at the time of his death. Miller, 43, who flaunted a high-flying Hamptons lifestyle bankrolled by millions of dollars in secret debt along with his influencer wife, Candace, was nearly $34 million in the red, with just $8,000 in his bank account, TheRealDeal reports. Through Candace’s now-defunct lifestyle blog Mama + Tata, Miller presented a fairy-tale life for the world to see, playing the role of the lucky and affectionate head of an...

An enraged ex-husband fatally shot his former wife and her new beau inside their million-dollar Long Island home Wednesday night after a bitter divorce battle, officials said. Daniel Coppola, 50, allegedly blasted the couple — Kelly Coppola, 50, and Kenneth Pohlman, 53 — in their St. James home around 11:45 p.m. while he warned his daughter to sit in his car outside 21 Brasswood Road, according to police. “The daughter was in the house and he reached out to her and told her to get out of the house,” Detective Lt. Kevin Breyer told reporters. Daniel Coppola then fled the...

Unravels the Roths-child family's history. Delve into the labyrinth of power, wealth, and secrets that have defined one of the most influential banking dynasties in the world. I had to cut out the mention of J3ffrey Epstaln from this video, but you can see them here on my Patreon - / web-of-lies-102158193 Link to transcript below video.

The owner of a luxury $1.8 million Hamptons vacation rental where two Maryland sisters died in a fire sparked by a shoddy electrical job has pleaded guilty to negligent homicide. Peter Miller, 56, admitted to building an illegal outdoor kitchen that overloaded the electricity system of his $ 8,000-per-week pad in Sag Harbor — killing Jillian Wiener, 21, and her 19-year-old sister Lindsay as they vacationed with their terminally ill father in August 2022, Suffolk County prosecutors said Monday. His wife, Pamela, who managed the popular summer rental, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment.

Blades are carving up the Big Apple. Stabbings and slashings across the city this year spiked 6% to 3,582 incidents through Aug. 11, up from 3,370 during the same period time last year, according to NYPD data requested by The Post. So far this year, 60 people have died by the blade — an 11% surge from the 54 in 2023. “There’s no reason for so much crime to go on,” Alton Scott, a veteran MTA conductor who needed 34 stitches to close a gruesome neck wound after being slashed in March, told The Post. In May, 17-year-old Sarah Rivera...

Do any FReepers have experience with a product called "Vulkem Max"? This appears to be a considerably improved version of Vulkem 116, a well established and very good product itself, used for caulking and sealing in difficult conditions / situations, but I can't even find any reviews on the web for Vulkem Max.