Russian fans make homemade Oscar trophy for DiCaprio
After winning the real Academy Awards trophy, leonardo DiCaprio will have another ‘Oscar’ or at least a close replica of the coveted statue. Residents in Russia’s Far East have made a statue for DiCaprio that bears close resemblance to the Oscar prize and is made from donated metals. Nearly 150 DiCaprio fans from the Yakutia region donated 1.5 kg silver and 4 grams gold to make the statue for the American, who recently won Best Actor for his role in The Revenant.
One fan, Anna Ivanova, says “even if DiCaprio did not receive the Oscar this time, he would still continue to be our favourite”.
DiCaprio, whose grandmother was Russian, is popular in the country, and had met Vladimir Putin in 2010 to discuss tiger conservation.
(AP)
Michigan family welcomes second leap year daughter
A southeast Michigan couple is twice lucky after the birth of their daughter on February 29, the second time the woman has given birth to a baby girl on that day in a leap year.
Chad and Melissa Croff, from Columbus Michigan, welcomed Evelyn Joy into the world at 3.06 am, the Henry Ford Health System said in a statement. She arrived 10 days after her due date.
Weighing in at 6 pounds, 9 ounces, the little girl shares her birthday with older sister Eliana Adaya, who was born on February 29, 2012, the last time there was a leap year, the hospital system said. “It’s a little surreal,” Melissa Croff told Reuters in an interview. “It’s kind of winning the lottery; the baby lottery.” She added that labor was not induced. Neither drugs nor a Cesarean section delivery method were used.
Currently, the couple celebrates Eliana’s birthday on the closest Saturday relatives can agree on, Croff said. In the future, the girls will pick a celebration day during non-leap years.
(Reuters)
Bird poop apparently caused NY nuclear reactor outage
Bird poop was the likely cause of a December shutdown at a nuclear power plant outside New York City, according to the operator. An Indian Point reactor safely shut down for three days starting December 14 following an electrical disturbance on outdoor high voltage transmission lines, Entergy Corp said. An outside expert is analysing whether what’s technically called bird ‘streaming’ was the culprit.
In a report to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission last month, the New Orleans-based company said the automatic reactor shutdown was apparently from bird excrement that caused an electric arc between wires on a feeder line at a transmission tower.
“If it has nowhere to send its electricity, the generator senses that and automatically shuts down,” Entergy spokesman Jerry Nappi said.
Plant managers told the NRC they were revising preventive maintenance for additional inspection and cleaning and installing bird guards on transmission towers.
Nappi said he couldn’t recall a similar incident in the past several years from birds at Indian Point, which is located along the Hudson River north of New York City. He didn’t immediately know what type of bird was suspected. No carcass was found, he said.
(AP)
Man conceived at concert looks for father via FB
A New York man who says he was conceived at a local radio station’s music festival is seeking his biological father through Facebook. Jette Collins, 18, shared a photo of himself holding a sign claiming that his mother met his biological father at the first ever “K-Rockathon” concert in 1996.
“I am looking for a man by the name of Jason that lived in Syracuse, NY in 1996,” the sign read. “He went to the first K-Rockathon in 1996 and met a girl named Diana Collins. I am the product of that night. I am not asking for anything. Just would like to meet my biological father.”
Collins added that while his expectations weren’t high, he hoped that the photo could gain enough traction to help him meet his father. “I don’t know if this works but I’m going to try it, just hoping for the best and a little luck. Help a kid out,” he wrote. The photo quickly spread around the Internet, garnering almost 10,000 shares.
(UPI)
The joke’s on Trump in cohen’s new comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen’s new comedy The Brothers Grimsby is causing quite the stir with a scene in which presidential hopeful Donald Trump contracts the AIDS virus. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the end credits scene features a character representing Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe contracting AIDS. In a later scene, the Radcliffe look-alike is shot and his blood sprays Trump, infecting him. Neither Radcliffe or Trump actually star in the film.
Sony Pictures, the studio behind the comedy, was reportedly nervous about the scene and attempted to have Cohen remove it from the film. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Sony refuted the claims stating that they are “100 per cent supportive of the filmmaker and the film”.
Cohen slammed the hotel mogul calling him a “demagogue”. Trump and Cohen have crossed paths before, with Trump walking out of an impromptu interview with Cohen’s character Ali G back in 2003.
(UPI)