Trump says America’s 250th birthday celebration will be a “Trump rally.” “We are going to host the most spectacular TRUMP RALLY of them all, a ‘TRIBUTE TO AMERICA’… I will be launching what will be the LARGEST FIREWORKS SHOW IN HISTORY.”

UFC Freedom 250 is facing a chaotic weather setup on the White House South Lawn, with a 60% chance of thunderstorms, heavy downpours, and wind gusts up to 34 mph threatening to delay the outdoor fights. On top of the storm risk, brutal D.C. humidity is driving a triple-digit heat index alongside massive swarms of mosquitos and gnats that fighters will have to battle inside the cage. While the venue’s massive 92-foot overhang will keep the octagon dry, a single lightning strike within eight miles will trigger an automatic 30-minute freeze on the entire event.

This morning at the White House...

Workers continue to deploy a curtain to further conceal the removal of Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center

Q: Are you concerned about the latest inflation numbers that came out this morning? TRUMP: No, I love it. I love the inflation. You know why? Because as soon as this war is over -- do you know we've been taking out millions of barrels of oil? Nobody knows it. You know who doesn't know? Iran until right now.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier premiered in U.S. theaters 37 years ago today — June 9, 1989 and I remember this poster vividly! I wish that seatbelts were actually needed for this movie, but alas. And there IS a reason why this may have been the case. The vision of the original script faced severe und unexpected challenges and setbacks due to technical limitations and budget. Around that time, I came across and read @WilliamShatner 's book "Captain's Log: William Shatner's Personal Account Of The Making Of Star Trek V - The Final Frontier (as told by Lisabeth Shatner)" recounting, in magnificent detail, and with brimming humor, his absolutely wild and downright harrowing experience directing the movie. The book illustrates clearly that the vision Shatner (and a few of the producers and, naturally, the screenwriter) had in mind, did not translate onto the screen at all, along with the (often questionable) reasons why. In 1988 (when production began), the tech apparently simply did not yet exist for the movie's original vision. For example, the script envisioned gigantic rock monsters consisting of maaaassive rock boulders whom the crew of the Enterprise would have to fight against in an epic final battle on planet Sha Ka Ree. Cool, right?! However, none of that was in the final movie. The CGI tech didn't yet quite exist, and Paramount apparently also didn't want to pay for a stop-motion team to make the filmmakers' vision a reality. Regardless, to this day, Star Trek V remains one of my most favorite Trek movies. Not because of any missing seatbelts, but rather that it explores rather significant questions around the concept of "God" in brilliant fashion, especialy as it ties into the Ancient Astronaut Theory. In fact, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier contains one of my most favorite lines ever spoken in sci-fi cinema history, fired off sarcastically by the legendary Captain James Tiberius Kirk, when he snaps, "What does God need with a starship?" ~ absolute brilliance, perfectly encapsulating the most basic of core tenets of the Ancient Astronaut Theory. PS: One of my favorite parts of the book (and there are many) is Shatner recalling that he was so deeply involved in preparing for this movie as a director and its entire pre-production aspect, rather than, you know, reprising his role as Captain Kirk for the fifth installment of the Trek movie franchise, he totally forgot to grow his "Star Trek sideburns"... which he realized driving to the Paramount lot ON the day when principal photography with the actors began! He gasped at his own oversight and unfortunate shortcoming. The solution? The magnificent and capable artists over at Paramount's makeup department cut a fake mustache in half, applied it to the sides of Shatner's face, et voilà! Movie magic. PPS: It's a fun read, go get yourself a copy, especially if you're into movie-making BTS (behind the scenes), for which I am a sponge.