Rich Fury/Getty ImagesAfter missing out last year, fans who were hoping to enjoy Coachella this April are out of luck again.
The festival, as well as its sister country event, Stagecoach, have been officially canceled due to a public health order. Dr. Cameron Kaiser, the Public Health Officer of Riverside County, CA, issued the order due to the likelihood of the festivals becoming super-spreader events, and because of the concern that there will be a fall resurgence of COVID-19 within the country and worldwide.
Kaiser’s order notes that both events attract “hundreds of thousands of attendees from many countries, including several disproportionately afflicted by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.”
“If COVID-19 were detected at these festivals, the scope and number of attendees and the nature of the venue would make it infeasible, if not impossible to track those who may be placed at risk,” the order continues.
Coachella 2020, which had originally been postponed from April to October of last year, was canceled outright in June of 2020. It was to have been headlined by a reunited Rage Against the Machine, Frank Ocean and Travis Scott. Stagecoach 2020, canceled that same month, was to have been headlined by Thomas Rhett, Carrie Underwood and Eric Church.
(MONTGOMERY, Ala.) — Alabama continues to struggle with its vaccine rollout, with less than half of the COVID-19 vaccines delivered to the state making it into arms, according to health officials.
While there’s a discrepancy between the vaccine data the state health department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are reporting, both datasets depict a sluggish rollout, with far more doses distributed than administered.
According to the state health department, Alabama has received 772,275 vaccine doses and administered 323,875. The CDC reported that 655,275 doses have been delivered and 278,993 of them administered.
That translates to just 5,690 doses given for every 100,000 people, according to the CDC data, and puts Alabama last in the nation for vaccine distribution. As a point of comparison, West Virginia, which has among the best COVID-19 vaccination rate per capita in the country, has vaccinated 12,533 out of every 100,000 residents as of Jan. 29, according to the CDC.
“We talk to the CDC every day and I stress that even though we might have a difference on data, we are still working together,” Dr. Karen Landers, assistant state health officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health, told ABC Birmingham affiliate WBMA. According to Landers, the state dashboard updates quicker than the CDC’s website.
Landers said that part of Alabama’s problem is that certain medical facilities ordered too many vaccines, a misallocation that means roughly 4,000 doses need to be moved to facilities in need of that supply. Another issue is that Alabama’s public health infrastructure is notably sparse, experts say. One county in the state has neither a hospital, nor a health department. Then there’s lingering distrust of the medical community linked to the infamous Tuskegee experiment, where doctors denied Black patients treatment for syphilis as part of a medical study in Tuskegee, Alabama.
“That still haunts us today,” Benard Simelton, president of the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP told the Washington Post late last year.
Like many governors around the country, Gov. Kay Ivey said Alabama needs more vaccine supply to improve its rollout.
“We have all been frustrated that the supply of vaccine coming from the federal government hasn’t kept up with the demand,” Ivey said in a statement Friday. “To be blunt, we simply haven’t gotten the vaccine that we’ve been promised, and this has created a major backlog of aggravation.”
Dr. Scott Harris, state health officer, responded to criticism from Alabama residents last week about the pace of the rollout. Many of the vaccines that haven’t been administered are reserved for people waiting for their second dose, he explained during a Jan. 21 press conference.
“I think we can also do things faster,” he said. “People certainly have a right to expect that we can do things faster.”
ABC News’ Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.
Lester Cohen/Getty Images for The Recording Academy(LOS ANGELES) — Emmy and Grammy Award winner Dave Chappelle may be a familiar face to most — but apparently not to some recent contestants on Jeopardy!
During an episode of the popular game show, Chappelle’s photo was featured as part of a question during a Double Jeopardy round.
“This comedian displayed his drama chops in A Star is Born, playing Bradley Cooper’s longtime friend,” read interim host Ken Jennings to the seemingly oblivious contestants.
When no one buzzed in, Jennings responded, “That’s Dave Chappelle.”
It didn’t take long for social media to react to the blunder.
“No one recognized Dave Chappelle during Jeopardy? What is, ‘who are these people?’,” one wrote.
“It’s crazy enough that a picture of @DaveChappelle was a $2000 clue on Jeopardy tonight – what’s more incredible is no one got it right!,” shared another.
One fan even joked that he had to yell at his TV when no one knew that it was Chappelle.
“Watching Jeopardy last night and screaming at my TV “Who is Dave Chappelle, Who is Dave Chappelle???” How can they not know who he is? Put down the book and watch some Netflix or Comedy Central,” he wrote.
Chappelle has yet to comment on the Jeopardy! episode.
Courtesy of Campbell Entertainment GroupThe Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam, like virtually every other festival scheduled to take place last year, was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The event planned for 2020 was postponed, but not for good: Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam will return in 2021.
The new dates for the festival will be June 4-6, 2021, taking place in Panama City Beach, Florida. Luke Bryan, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Brad Paisley — the originally scheduled headliners — will all remain on the bill for the new dates.
Lynyrd Skynyrd is headlining the first night of the three-night event, and will be joined by fellow performers Cody Jinks, Lindsay Ell and many others. The following day will feature Cole Swindell, Tenille Townes, Billy Ray Cyrus and other acts, with Brad Paisley headlining. Finally, Luke Bryan’s performance will close out the festival, flanked by Brothers Osborne, Riley Green, Walker Hayes and others.
Almost all the artists who were originally scheduled to perform have remained on the bill. However, due to a scheduling conflict, Jordan Davis will no longer perform, and Rodney Atkins will take his slot in the lineup.
The Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam has implemented several changes to increase safety and social distancing during the event. No vendors will accept cash at the festival, and patrons will wear wristbands registered with a credit or debit card to enable touchless payment. The festival will also offer contactless pickup for artist merch and a variety of other purchases.
For ticket info and other details, visit the Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam’s website.
ABC/Jeff Niera(LOS ANGELES) — Sara Gilbert, the star and executive producer of ABC’s The Conners, is reportedly taking a look into the so-called Varsity Blues college cheating scandal, as part of her new fact-based HBO Max series called Verbatim.
Deadline reports the show will be based on the New York Times‘ digital documentary series of the same name, which re-enacts actual events, using the subjects’ own words as a script.
The trade notes that The Office alum Rob Huebel, veteran character actor Leland Orser, and Chris Messina, the latter of whom was recently seen in Birds of Prey, are also set to star in the pilot. Deadline says Gilbert will “likely” play one of the FBI agents integral to the investigation into wealthy people who got caught trying to grease their children’s admission into various colleges.
In all, the scandal snagged 53 wealthy individuals, including Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman, and Fuller House star Lori Loughlin and her designer husband Mossimo Giuanulli. They were each sentenced to jail for their roles in the scam.
Rich Fury/Getty ImagesAfter missing out last year, fans who were hoping to enjoy Coachella this April are out of luck again.
