Breaking News
25th Annual ESPYs Emotional Moments: Nassar Survivors, NFL Legend Jim Kelly, Marjory Stoneman Coaches Recognized
Wednesday night in Los Angeles, the 25th Annual ESPYs were handed out on live telecast on ABC celebrating the best moments in sports over the past year. The evening also came with some truly emotional, heart-tugging moments about the human spirit with those receiving special honors.
The Jimmy V Award for Perseverance went to former Buffalo Bills quarterback and NFL Hall of Famer Jim Kelly. In a touching moment, the award was presented by two other QB Hall of Famers and Jim’s longtime friends, John Elway, and Dan Marino.
In 2013, Kelly, who led the Bills to four straight AFC championships, received devastating news that would change his life forever when he was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma in his jaw. Although Kelly was told he was cancer-free that same year, the disease returned shortly thereafter. After many grueling years of chemotherapy and radiation, Kelly announced his oral cancer had returned in March 2018. As well, Kelly lost his beloved son, Hunter when the boy was only 8-years-old, but who became the longest survivor of Krabbe Leukodystrophy. Accompanied on-stage by his two daughters, Kelly broke down after seeing his late son in the segment package just before his speech. In Jim’s acceptance of the award, he ended with a key message: “Make a difference today, for someone who is fighting for their tomorrow.”
In recognition of their undisputed bravery, Jennifer Garner presented the Arthur Ashe Courage Award to the hundreds of athletes who spoke in court about the extensive abuse suffered while they were child and teenage athletes at the hands of former USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University team doctor, Larry Nassar.
The group of victims, including Olympic gold medalist, Aly Raisman took to the stage after a gut-wrenching video introduction about their abuse. Three of Nassar’s victims, Raisman, Sarah Klein, and Tiffany Thomas Lopez, described what they endured, and how they were ignored by all the adults in the situation, when they reported their sexual abuse.
Klein, a former gymnast was the first girl abused by Nassar more than three decades ago. She expressed: “Speaking up and speaking out is not easy. Telling our stories of abuse over and over and over again, in graphic detail, is not easy. We’re sacrificing privacy and being judged and scrutinized, and it is painful, but it is time. ” When Raisman spoke she related this empowering message: “You never healed me. You took advantage of our passions and our dreams. Imagine feeling like you have no power and no voice. Well, you know what Larry, I have my power and my voice, and I will use them.” The women received a standing ovation, while tears were seen throughout close-ups of those in attendance.
And, instead of the “Coach of the Year” award going to a professional or college coach, the ESPYs instead paid tribute to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School coaches: Aaron Feis, Scott Beigel and Chris Hixon who all lost their lives in the mass shooting at the Florida high school in February. Family members and fellow coach Elliott Bonner took the stage and called for change with gun legislation, following a heart-tugging package featuring students who miss these men, and who spoke of what true heroes they were the day of the shooting; sacrificing themselves for the safety of the students.
Watch the three emotional moment below. Let us know what touched you the most via the comment section below.
Breaking News
George Cheeks, CBS President & CEO, on Timeline to Launch New Daytime Drama, ‘The Gates’: “We’re So Focused on Getting it Right”
March 2024 will be remembered in the TV and soap world when the news broke that CBS is prepping a brand new daytime drama. Many had thought a major network would never bring a new daytime soap into the world, given that the last time it was attempted was 25 years ago when the now defunct Passions bowed on NBC.
However, The Gates is definitely in development and moving forward with some major players associated with it including: Michele Val Jean as The Gates writer, showrunner and one of its executive producers, and Sheila Ducksworth from NAACP Venture
Now, for the first time since its announcement, George Cheeks, the president and CEO of CBS and chief content officer for news and sports at Paramount+, spoke on the project that will feature a Black family as its central focus who live in a wealthy gated community.
Speaking with Vulture, and when asked if The Gates is really something that truly has a chance of getting on the air, Cheeks clarified, “It’s super real. And just to give you a little bit of the backstory, when we hired Sheila Ducksworth to run the NAACP Venture, she and I had multiple meetings talking about what different genres she was going to lean into, and we talked a lot about daytime.”
Cheeks added, “One of the things that the data made very clear to both of us is that daytime soap operas over index with Black women, and yet when you look at soap operas, it’s usually sort of a white-led family with supporting characters that reflect more of our society. So we just thought, wouldn’t it be interesting to flip that and make the core anchor family a Black family, and then make the other characters reflect more the broader scope of society?”
The CEO gave props to Michele Val Jean, and how Ducksworth came to the table with the former B&B and GH writer. “She found this great writer, Michele Val Jean, who’s been in the soap opera space for 30 years. She came up with a pitch, and we loved it,” shares Cheeks. “We brought Procter & Gamble into it as well, because if there were going to be (product) integrations, we could do it more holistically and organically. All of that is to say, we did a lot of work on the front end to put this together. So while yes, it’s development, it’s accelerated development.”
When prodded on the timeline of when The Gates could come to full fruition, Gates related, “The actual timeline and when we’re going to do it is still uncertain, because we want to get this right. I mean, there hasn’t been a new soap opera launch since I can’t even begin to tell you when. But we have great success with Bold and the Beautiful and Young and the Restless, and so we think we’re the right folks to be launching a new soap. I wish I could tell you more about exact timing, but we’re so focused on getting it right, and that will dictate when we’re ready to launch it.”
The CBS exec also shared that whether The Gates will wind up an hour soap or half-hour is not yet determined, but that it is being developed as an hour show.
So, after reading what George Cheeks, the CBS President & CEO had to say about ‘The Gates’, are you even more excited for what looks to the first new network soap in 25 years? Comment below.
Breaking News
Robyn Bernard, ‘General Hospital’s’ Terry Brock, Dead at 64
Breaking News
51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards Announce Broadcast Date on CBS
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) revealed on Tuesday, that the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be broadcast live on Friday night, June 7th (8 – 10 PM, ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+*.
This year will mark the 18th time CBS has broadcast the Daytime Emmy Awards, which is more than any other network.
The 2024 Daytime Emmys will take place at the Westin Bonaventure in downtown Los Angeles. Back in December of 2023, the delayed 50th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards were also held at that venue. The June 7th date for the upcoming ceremony will be the first time in several years that the event is scheduled a few weeks earlier than normal; excluding last year’s revised date to the actors and writers strikes.
Lifetime Achievement honoree, nominations, host, and additional information will be announced in the coming weeks.
In a statement, Adam Sharp, President and CEO of NATAS noted, “We eagerly anticipate our return in June as we once again partner with CBS to recognize the exceptional and talented individuals who make daytime television great. We’re thrilled to kick off our second half-century of the Daytime Emmys.”
The Daytime Emmy Awards have recognized outstanding achievement in television programming and crafts since 1974, honoring work in a variety of categories, including daytime dramas, talk shows, instructional programming, hosting, culinary, and legal/courtroom programs. In 2021, NATAS and the Television Academy jointly announced plans to realign the Daytime and Primetime Emmy Awards to be organized by content genre, as opposed to program airtime.
The 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will once again be produced by NATAS and Associated Television International (ATI), which produced Daytime Emmy Award ceremonies on The CW in 2009 and on CBS in 2010, 2011, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Adam Sharp and Lisa Armstrong are executive producers from NATAS, while David McKenzie is executive producer from ATI.
So, glad to know that the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards honoring performance and shows in the 2023 calendar year, will be held in early June this year, and once again broadcast on CBS? Comment below.
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