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Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Rene Kirby dead: Shallow Hal dies at 70 after health struggles and lengthy hospital stay
Rene Kirby, known for his role in Shallow Hal, has sadly died at the age of 70. The actor's death on July 11 followed a two-month hospitalisation due to infections and complications with his oesophagus, kidneys and bladder, according to his brother Jon Kirby. His passing occurred at the University of Vermont Medical Center, as reported by the Vermont-based publication Seven Days. He was best known for starring in 2011 American comedy Shallow Hal, directed by the Farrelly Brothers and starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Jack Black. The movie saw Black's sexist character be hypnotised to only see the inner beauty of people - including love interest Rosemary (played by a fat-suit wearing Paltrow). The movie was a huge box office success, grossing $141million against a $41million budget. Kirby found himself starring in the 1999 Hollywood movies after a chance encounter with Hollywood director Peter Farrelly. Farrelly was in Rene's hometown of Burlington, Vermont shooting Me, Myself & Irene starring Jim Carrey. After buying Rene a pint and spending the evening chatting, Farrelly decided to cast Rene in his next film. In a 2001 interview, he said: "He's got a zest for life that is contagious and he's extremely funny." Farrelly penned a role specifically for Rene in Shallow Hal, which he co-wrote and co-directed with his brother, Bobby. Given the film's theme of looking beyond physical appearances, Farrelly believed it was an ideal fit for Rene, who he said "epitomises inner beauty". Kirby lived with spina bifida, which led to him having no use of his legs. But that didn't stop the actor from biking, skiing and acting. "Walking on my hands, it's just, all I've ever known, I just never thought of myself being disabled," he told Seven Days' Eva Sollberger in an episode of Stuck in Vermont.
New York Post
11-07-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Unilever appoints new Ben & Jerry's CEO as battle over board's lefty politics heats up
Unilever has appointed a new CEO to lead Ben & Jerry's as its battle over the ice cream brand's lefty politics heats up, according to a report Friday. Jochanan Senf, a Dutch Unilever executive who previously managed Ben & Jerry's Europe business, will start in the new role this month after the British parent company abruptly axed former CEO David Stever, according to the Wall Street Journal. In a court filing in March, Ben & Jerry's independent board — which manages the Vermont-based company's social activism and mission — had accused Unilever of firing Stever, who started as a tour guide for the brand's Waterbury factory in 1988. Advertisement 4 Jochanan Senf will take over Ben & Jerry's. LinkedIn / Jochanan Senf 4 Former CEO Dave Stever (left) at the company's Free Cone Day at the Waterbury factory. Ben & Jerry's The board — which was created and given power over management as a stipulation in the acquisition agreement when Unilever took over the company in 2000 — was not allowed to interview candidates to replace Stever, a source familiar with the matter told the Journal. The board also was excluded from the appointment process over the board's political activism – including support for anti-Trump policies and protests against Israel's handling of the war in Gaza, according to the report that cited unnamed sources. Advertisement 'Any claims that the Independent Board was excluded from the search process are simply incorrect – they have been offered to participate in good faith and to share their views, but declined to do so,' a spokesperson for the Magnum Ice Cream Company told The Post in a statement. Ben & Jerry's did not immediately respond to The Post's requests for comment. The company 'took every step to collaborate in good faith' with the board throughout the appointment process, Peter ter Kulve, who runs Unilever's ice cream unit, wrote in a memo to staff on Thursday, according to the Journal. Advertisement Unilever encouraged members of the board's appointment committee to interview candidates and share feedback, he said. 'The response from the Independent Board was to decline our requests, delay our timing and/or threaten litigation.' 4 Jerry Greenfield and Ben Cohen, co-founders of Ben & Jerry's, worked with a 'Get out the Vote' campaign for then-vice president Kamala Harris during her presidential campaign. Getty Images for MoveOn Unilever's firing of Stever broke its merger agreement with Ben & Jerry's, which 'protects Ben & Jerry's interest by precluding the unilateral removal of its CEO,' according to the complaint filed in March. Advertisement The parent company responded that it has the authority to appoint a new chief executive and that it would only do so after speaking with the board. Unilever is planning to spin off its ice cream unit this year, renamed the Magnum Ice Cream Company. It will be listed in the Netherlands as a separate company. 4 Unilever is planning to spin off its ice cream unit, including Ben & Jerry's, and rename it the Magnum Ice Cream Company. REUTERS Earlier this year, when it announced the spin off, Unilever made clear it has no intention of selling Ben & Jerry's – despite a bid from its liberal founders. Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, childhood friends from Long Island, NY, created the company – known for funky flavors like Chunky Monkey and Phish Food – in 1978. It later sold the brand to Unilever for $326 million.
Boston Globe
08-07-2025
- Boston Globe
Feds allege detained migrant leader in Vermont sought to smuggle Mexican woman across Canadian border
An employee-owner of a green building cooperative and a former farmworker, De La Cruz is a leader of the Vermont-based advocacy group Advertisement But in a search warrant filed last month and made public in federal court proceedings, the government alleges that De La Cruz was paid to help smuggle a Mexican woman across the Canadian border to the U.S. in April. De La Cruz, known as 'Nacho,' has not had the opportunity to respond to the allegation in court. His attorney, Brett Stokes, did not return requests for comment Tuesday. Advertisement The government has not suggested that De La Cruz was engaged in human smuggling at the time of his arrest, nor that the Border Patrol agent who pulled him over was aware of the allegations. During a hearing related to Perez's case Monday in federal court in Burlington, Acting U.S. Attorney Michael Drescher said the government has no evidence that Perez, his stepdaughter, was involved in the alleged smuggling scheme. A search warrant application filed by a Border Patrol investigator and signed by a federal magistrate judge seeks access to De La Cruz's phone, which was seized during last month's traffic stop. It's not clear whether the phone has yet been searched. The document says Border Patrol agents detained a woman named Yoselin Gonzalez Florez in Richford on April 19 after she crossed the border, on foot, through the woods. Upon inspecting her phone, agents discovered text messages between Gonzalez and a number belonging to De La Cruz, as well as between Gonzalez and another U.S.-based associate identified as 'Armando.' The exchanges, which took place between April 9 and 11, describe Armando meeting up with a person named Nacho to pay him $5,000 for Gonzalez's trip across the border. Armando wrote that Nacho would pick her up once she made it to the U.S. After Armando provided Gonzalez with Nacho's phone number — which matches De La Cruz's — Nacho and Gonzalez communicated directly about logistics. 'The NACHO NUMBER responded to GONZALEZ by saying that he would contact the person smuggling GONZALEZ across the border for the location to pick her up,' according to the application. Advertisement The government suggests that Nacho planned to pay the person accompanying Gonzalez a portion of the $5,000 — and that such arrangements are common, to ensure that a smuggler is fully compensated only once the person being smuggled has arrived. It appears from the communications that Gonzalez planned to cross from Ontario into upstate New York late on the night of April 10, and that Nacho planned to meet her shortly thereafter and bring her to his home in the Burlington area. But for unspecified reasons that plan changed, and the next morning Gonzalez told Nacho she would instead attempt to cross through the woods closer to Montreal at a later date. What happened next is also unclear. Gonzalez was detained eight days later after walking from Quebec to Vermont. The government has not alleged that De La Cruz was involved with that crossing. The agent who filed the search warrant application, David Palczewski, wrote that, while he had previously determined that the phone number was associated with a Jose Ignacio De La Cruz, that knowledge had not led to his detention. Only after De La Cruz and Perez were pulled over in June did Palczewski make the connection, he wrote. Will Lambek, a spokesperson for Migrant Justice, said in a written statement Tuesday that the new allegationsdid not change 'the essential fact that Nacho and Heidi were detained without cause' while dropping off food at a nearby farm. 'Border Patrol claims that Nacho had previously made a plan to give a ride to a woman who was planning on immigrating to the United States without authorization,' Lambek wrote. 'If true, this incident is wholly unrelated to the actual circumstances of their violent detainment on June 14th.' Advertisement Rather, Lambek alleged, Border Patrol had engaged in 'racial profiling' when making the traffic stop last month, coming up with 'flimsy pretexts' to justify it and violating the constitutional rights of De La Cruz and his stepdaughter. The new court filings provide additional details about the stop. At the time a Border Patrol agent noticed De La Cruz's vehicle, he and Perez were less than a mile from the border, on a road frequently associated with illegal crossings. Another passenger van had been spotted in the area earlier this year collecting people who had just crossed the border, though photographs in the filings make clear they are not the same vehicle. The agent, Brandon Parent, wrote that the pair 'became visibly nervous' once they saw him and failed to make a full stop at an intersection. He said he thought he saw other people through the van's tinted windows, though he later realized he was incorrect. After running a license check, he pulled them over. De La Cruz and Perez declined to roll down their windows more than a few inches, nor to identify themselves. After another agent and a supervisor arrived — and the pair continued to refuse their orders — the supervisor, Thomas Blaser Jr., smashed the driver's side window with his baton and pulled De La Cruz out of the van. Blaser later realized he had cut his right arm on the window glass, requiring a visit to the hospital and eight stitches. In their account of the incident, De La Cruz and Perez say the agents failed to say why they were being pulled over. At a nearby station, they wrote, an agent 'aggressively' bent Perez's arm when she refused to be fingerprinted. Both said they were prevented from calling an attorney. Advertisement At Monday's federal court hearing in Burlington, Stokes, who also represents Perez, argued that she should be released because the government had violated her rights to due process and against unreasonable search and seizure. He also claimed the government had violated her right to free speech, given her public advocacy with Migrant Justice. But US District Judge Christina Reiss appeared skeptical, noting that if Border Patrol had not known Perez's identity when pulling over the van, she could not have been targeted for her speech. As for whether Border Patrol was justified in stopping De La Cruz and Perez, Reiss said, 'We have these stops in our court a lot, and these facts are enough for reasonable suspicion.' The judge did not immediately rule on Stokes' request, instead asking for further briefs later this month.
New York Post
03-07-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Unilever cuts off millions in funding to Ben & Jerry's charity over donations to pro-Palestinian groups: report
Unilever is reportedly cutting off millions of dollars in funding to the Ben & Jerry's charitable foundation after it refused to provide audit documents about donations to pro-Palestinian groups, escalating an internal dispute between a corporate parent and its left-leaning subsidiary. Peter ter Kulve, head of Unilever's ice cream division, informed Ben & Jerry's executives via email that the foundation's trustees 'have continued to resist basic oversight' and are not cooperating with requests from corporate auditors, according to the news site Semafor. 'It represents a marked departure from the norms of charitable organizations, for whom transparency is typically a bedrock operating principle,' ter Kulve wrote in the email, which was obtained by Semafor. 4 Unilever is reportedly cutting off millions of dollars in funding to the Ben & Jerry's charitable foundation. nmann77 – The audit process is part of Unilever's ongoing effort to spin off its ice cream business, which includes the famously left-leaning Vermont-based brand. The Ben & Jerry's foundation distributed more than $5 million of Unilever's funds in 2022, mostly to progressive organizations. The foundation has operated under Unilever's ownership since the multinational acquired Ben & Jerry's in 2000. Since then, the company's outspoken political stances have frequently clashed with its corporate parent's broader business objectives. The audit has become a flashpoint in the growing dispute between Unilever and the foundation. According to Semafor, the probe into the foundation's activities has revealed a deeper turf war over the scope and nature of its charitable giving. 4 Ben & Jerry's, the Vermont-based ice cream maker, was acquired by Unilever in April 2000 for $326 million. Electric Egg Ltd. – Ter Kulve told executives that Unilever and the future independent Ben & Jerry's management team had made repeated efforts to address the foundation's concerns. These included changing the audit firm and pledging to keep certain grantee information private. 'The Foundation is a powerful force for good and has played a meaningful role in advancing the Ben & Jerry's social mission,' ter Kulve wrote. 'We remain committed to that mission.' Despite these assurances, the dispute has continued to escalate. Representatives for Unilever and Ben & Jerry's did not respond to a request for comment. The conflict between the British conglomerate — specializing in food, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products — and the Ben & Jerry's Foundation comes amid the broader plan to spin off its ice cream division, which it announced last year. 4 Peter ter Kulve, head of Unilever's ice cream division, informed Ben & Jerry's executives that the foundation's trustees 'have continued to resist basic oversight' and are not cooperating with requests from corporate auditors. Unilever The audit of the foundation was initiated as part of that process. However, what began as a standard financial review has morphed into a highly charged confrontation over governance, transparency, and political values. According to the foundation's trustees, Unilever is using the corporate restructuring process as an excuse to undermine the foundation's philanthropic work. The origins of the rift trace back at least to 2021, when Ben & Jerry's announced it would no longer sell its products in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories. 4 Ben & Jerry's stance on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute has caused headaches for corporate parent Unilever. The image above shows Israeli soldiers in the Tulkarm refugee camp on Wednesday. Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/Shutterstock Unilever responded by selling the Ben & Jerry's license for the region, a move that sparked further backlash from the brand's independent board of directors. In November, Ben & Jerry's independent directors filed a lawsuit against Unilever, accusing the parent company of silencing the ice cream maker's public statements in support of Palestinian refugees.
Indian Express
23-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
130 km in 30 minutes for just Rs 700: First electric passenger plane lands in US
A passenger-carrying electric aircraft has completed its first successful flight to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, marking a significant step towards sustainable air travel. The flight, operated by Beta Technologies, flew from East Hampton to JFK earlier this month, covering about 70 nautical miles (130 km) in just over 30 minutes, according to Fox News. Kyle Clark, founder and chief executive of Beta Technologies, was at the controls during the flight. He told Fox News, 'This is a 100% electric aeroplane that just flew from East Hampton to JFK with passengers on it, which was a first for the New York Port Authority and the New York area. We covered 70 odd nautical miles in 35 minutes.' Clark also pointed out how affordable the flight was. Charging the aircraft and making the journey cost just around $8 (about ₹700), far cheaper than a helicopter, which would have cost about $160 (₹13,885) in fuel for the same distance. 🇺🇸HISTORIC ALL-ELECTRIC FLIGHT LANDS AT JFK An all-electric aircraft made a landmark landing at JFK Airport on Tuesday, marking the first such arrival at the New York hub. Vermont-based Beta Technologies' Alia CX300 took off from Suffolk County for a 45-minute flight. CEO… — Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 4, 2025 Passengers on board were able to talk easily during the flight, thanks to the quieter electric motors compared to conventional aircraft engines. Beta Technologies, based in Vermont and founded in 2017, has been developing electric aircraft for both conventional takeoff and landing and vertical takeoff and landing. The company recently raised $318 million to support production, certification and commercial operations. The CX300, the aircraft that flew to JFK, can travel up to 250 nautical miles on a single charge. The company hopes to secure certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) by the end of the year. Clark explained that electric planes could offer a cleaner, quieter, and cheaper way to travel for short journeys between cities or suburbs. The lower operating cost and reduced noise could make them popular with commuters and those living near airports. Transport companies are also looking at using electric aircraft for city flights that can take off and land vertically, helping reduce road traffic and emissions. The FAA has already put rules in place for pilot training and certification for these air taxis.
