🌊 America Runs on OnlyFans?

Do you know where the term computer “bug” comes from?

The answer would be a literal bug. On this day in 1947, Harvard engineers found a moth stuck in one of the components of a Mark 2 computer. They taped the insect in their logbook and labeled it "first actual case of bug being found.” Thus they de-bugged their computer.

Does anyone else want to know the origin of the term “cookies” now?

–Max, Max, and Owen

KEY STORY

Hostage Video Released

Hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin’s parents endorsed the sharing of a video Hamas took of him days before they killed him

• Israel discourages sharing hostage videos, deeming them a form of psychological warfare. Israeli media typically won’t broadcast them without consent from the victim’s family

• On Thursday, Hamas released a tape of Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old Israeli-American, taken hostage from the Nova Music Festival and killed by Hamas at the end of August. Hours later, his parents – who have been outspoken proponents of a ceasefire and hostage deal – said the video should be shared as a “wake-up call”

Dig Deeper

• In the video, Goldberg-Polin says, “I can’t remember the last time I saw the sun or took a breath of fresh air…Worst of all is that my own country, Israel, has been trying to bomb me nonstop”

• He then called on Americans to secure a ceasefire before saying, “Keep on fighting, and hopefully, I believe I’ll be home soon. Don’t stop. I love you”

KEY STORY

It’s a Dead Heat

Polling averages show a dead heat between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump ahead of Tuesday’s debate

• The average of national polls has Harris up by 1.4 points, but a New York Times/Siena poll released Sunday has Trump leading by a point

• In all seven swing states – Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada, and Arizona – polls show the candidates within 1.5 points of the other

• Polls have historically underestimated Trump’s popularity: National polls overestimated Hillary’s support by 1.6 points on average and Biden’s by 3.9

Dig Deeper

• Betting markets suggest the polls are once again undercounting Trump’s support

• Most have him leading by a slim margin, while polling expert Nate Silver’s model, which has historically performed more accurately than the averages, has Trump with a 60%+ chance of winning

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• Monogram plans to end the Series D Preferred offering on September 12, 2024

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KEY STORY

OnlyFans Pays Big

OnlyFans paid out $7B+ last year as the platform’s user base and revenue boomed

• The platform – which lets “creators,” who mostly make adult content, charge fans for exclusives – reported a 33%+ increase in both the number of creator and “fan” accounts, as well as a 20% increase in net revenue. New filings show OnlyFans now has 305M fan accounts

• OnlyFans’ parent company paid $6.6B to creators in 2023, a $1B increase from the previous year, as well as $631M in dividends and additional payments to its owner

Dig Deeper

• Fans on the platform can pay for subscriptions, tips, on-demand content, and private messaging with creators. OnlyFans takes a 20% cut from all transactions

• OnlyFans’ CEO described 2023 as a “strong year,” calling the platform “a leading digital entertainment company and a UK tech success story”

KEY STORY

Starliner Returns Alone

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft touched down in New Mexico, ending its tumultuous first mission

• The Starliner returned without its two-astronaut crew after NASA deemed the aircraft too risky to fly. The pair will be ferried from the International Space Station (ISS) back to Earth aboard a SpaceX rocket next year

• The empty Starliner returned to Earth without any apparent issues

• A NASA representative called the Starliner’s return “near flawless” but said determining its future will “take a little time”

Dig Deeper

• Boeing Vice President Mark Nappi praised his company’s efforts: “I want to recognize the work the Starliner teams did to ensure a successful and safe undocking, deorbit, reentry, and landing… We will review the data and determine the next steps for the program”

• The company would need NASA’s approval to continue ISS operations

RUNDOWN
Some Quick Stories for the Office

📉 US stocks dropped sharply on Friday, ending their worst week in 18 months

🏃‍♂️ Edmundo González, the opposition candidate who appeared to have defeated President Nicolás Maduro in recent Venezuelan elections, fled Venezuela

⚖️ Donald Trump’s sentencing in his Manhattan “hush money” trial was delayed until after the election

🎤 Kendrick Lamar was announced as this season’s Super Bowl halftime show performer

🪧 A 26-year-old Turkish-American woman was killed at a protest in the West Bank, apparently by Israeli troops

COMMUNITY

🧠 Today’s question: What was the highlight of your weekend?

Reply to this email to let us know what you think!

POPCORN
Some Quick Stories for Happy Hour

💰 The juice is loose (again): Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” the sequel to the 1998 cult classic “Beetlejuice,” earned $110M at the domestic box office during its opening weekend

📲 Big Phone Energy: Two YouTubers set a Guinness World Record for the world’s largest smartphone replica by building a 6.74-foot-tall iPhone. It has a fully functioning camera, flashlight, and charging port

🐸 Toad-ally illegal: Peruvian authorities confiscated 390 endangered Titicaca water frogs poached for their alleged aphrodisiac effects. Over the past 15 years, the species’ population has declined by 80%

🎾 No party in the USA: The United States was represented in the men’s and women’s US Open finals for the first time since 2002 but failed to capitalize. Taylor Fritz lost the men’s final to world #1 Jannik Sinner, and Jessica Pegula lost in the women’s final to world #2 Aryna Sabalenka

🏈 What a day: Dolphins star receiver Tyreek Hill was detained on the way to Miami’s stadium ahead of his game Sunday for a “traffic incident.” In the game, he scored a TD and celebrated by pretending to be handcuffed

ROCA WRAP

Monday Madness

Here are a set of quirky stories to start your Mondays off. 

A Grave Mistake

Police arrested a 47-year-old woman after she allegedly burglarized a Las Vegas funeral home, stole a casket with a body inside, and dumped the remains in the process.

Late last month, officers responded to a report of a body found face down in front of the funeral home. Upon investigating, they discovered an open door and “flower petals on the floor leading out the door,” with surveillance footage showing the woman breaking a window, unlocking the door, and carrying the casket out, with the body later found nearby.

On Thursday, officers arrested the suspect after someone recognized her at a convenience store and alerted authorities. She claimed she “was not trying to be malicious and was apologetic” but admitted to being the person in the video.

She faces charges including grand larceny, burglary of a business, and disturbing human remains.

The Real “Nightmare on Bibury Street”

An Ohio homeowner says she’s received complaints from her community for setting up her annual Halloween display earlier than usual this year.

She has erected the display, titled “Nightmare on Bibury Street,” for seven years with assembly – which takes over 100 hours to complete and dismantle – typically beginning in mid-August.

However, she began earlier this year due to her husband’s cancer diagnosis, resulting in the alleged complaints. The city told her she could keep the decorations up but suggested waiting a week or two, which she says isn’t feasible due to her husband’s health.

Despite the backlash, she maintains her love for sharing the display with the community and says she has received hundreds of supportive comments on social media.

Same Beetlejuice, New Name?

“Beetlejuice” star Michael Keaton, 73, says he won’t be going by Michael Keaton but will instead use a new name – Michael Keaton Douglas – on future acting projects.

According to Keaton, he couldn’t use his real name, Michael Douglas, when he started acting in the 1970s because of the other Academy Award-winning actor of the same name. A Screen Actors Guild rule prohibits members from using another member’s professional name, leading him to pick the name Keaton from a phone book.

While “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” – a sequel to the 1988 hit horror comedy “Beetlejuice” – opened in theaters on Friday, it still credits Keaton’s traditional stage name for his reprisal of the iconic Beetlejuice role.

No Laws When You’re Playing Claws

Rio de Janeiro police executed 16 search warrants targeting the “claw” arcade game.

Police said the games trick people into thinking it’s a skill game, when in reality, it’s a game of chance, like a slot machine. Alleging that gangs have set up the claw machines to defraud unwitting consumers, they seized claw machines and their plush toys, as well as laptops, cell phones, and a firearm from arcades. A similar raid saw 80 machines taken away this May.

EDITOR’S NOTE
Final Thoughts

Hope you all had a great weekend. It was a rough weekend for Max T and Roca’s third cofounder Billy due to Notre Dame’s stunning, insane, and inexcusable loss to Northern Illinois. Maybe we’re overreacting, but our therapist told us it’s healthy to pin your wellbeing to a bunch of 19- and 20-year-olds playing a meaningless game. At least Max F got his Bills win!

–Max and Max