The “Simpsons” voice actors have commissioned a study estimating the show has made $1 billion in profits as ammunition in their negotiations with 20th Century Fox TV over its demand that they agree to have their salaries cut nearly in half. The study projected that the studio will eventually make about $2.8 billion from the show through 23 seasons.
The six actors have been asked to decide by noon Friday whether they will accept a demand from Fox that they cut their payment per episode from $440,000 to $250,000 per episode, according to people familiar with the talks. The actors offered last week to accept cuts to $300,000 per episode, in exchange for back-end payments they don’t currently receive, but the studio rejected the offer.
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Human rights lawyers often refer to it as “the other Guantanamo,” “Guantanamo’s evil twin” or “Obama’s Gitmo” — an attempt to raise the profile of the U.S. detention facility in Afghanistan that few know about.
It’s official name is the Bagram Theater Internment Facility. And even though it was recently rebuilt and renamed the Detention Facility in Parwan, after the province, most continue to refer to it simply as Bagram.
Run by American troops, the prison is located on the Bagram Air Base, about 80 kilometres north of Kabul, in a cavernous aircraft hangar built in the 1980s following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
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The short-snouted sea horse, which grows up to 6in long, is more commonly found in the waters of the Mediterranean and Canary Islands.
It has often been a visitor to coastal waters around Britain but the agency said it had never been found so far upriver.
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Nighttime deer poachers beware – that shadowy creature on the side of the road may just be remote-controlled.
State wildlife officials across the country have for several decades been rolling out roadside robot decoys to nab unscrupulous hunters, and the effort has paid off with hundreds of citations.
A robotic deer decoy used in Georgia had to be replaced in 2006 after being shot more than 1,000 times.
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Every year, several fortunate elephants are selected to leave the life of poverty on the streets compete in the King’s Polo cup, where they are treated to a life of luxury alongside celebrities and royalty.
John Roberts, the official referee of the King’s Cup, described the process of bringing these marginalized animals to this event. “We contact a friend of ours in Surin, and we ask him to select the 24 healthiest street elephants. Begging out on the streets is an uncomfortable way of life. We offer them two weeks to come live with us in return for playing polo twice a day, for max 28 minutes a day.”
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