Madness over pie

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🏀 California schools participate in Madness: The brackets for both the Men and Women’s March Madness Tournament have been set. Here is a breakdown of teams both within our area, and our state, and how they’ll begin their road of madness:

Women:

• (4) UCLA vs. (13) Sacramento [Greenville, SC I]

• (8) USC vs. (9) S.D. State [Seattle, WA III]

• (1) Stanford vs. Play-In (Southern/Sacred Heart)

Men:

• (5) Saint Mary’s vs. (12) VCU [West]

• (2) UCLA vs. UNC Asheville [West]

• (5) San Diego State vs. (12) Charleston [South]

• (3) Baylor vs. (14) Santa Barbara [South]

• (7) Michigan State vs. (10) USC [East]

The Women’s bracket can be viewed here, while the Men’s bracket can be viewed here.

🐶 A hotel that allows your pet to wag their tail: Wag Hotels, a pet service company with six locations across Northern California and Denver, has opened a new state-of-the-art hotel in Santa Monica. The facility features premium boarding accommodations, customizable daycare options, luxurious spa treatments, and ultra-suites complete with a TV, full human-sized bed, and 24/7 WagCam. Pets can also enjoy seasonal camps, themed parties, and vet-approved ice cream sundaes and yogurt bars. The Santa Monica location is located at 1653 19th Street, just off I-10, and is open for check-in and check-out 24/7/365

🥧 Some of the best places to get pie in Los Angeles: Happy Pi Day, LA! It’s time to revisit LA Eater's drool-worthy list of the best pie spots in the city. Sink your teeth into Doan's Bakery pies in Woodland Hills, featuring seasonal favorites like pumpkin, apple, and sweet-potato-pecan. At Pie 'n Burger in Pasadena, pair a juicy burger and crispy fries with a slice of classic apple or pecan pie. And for those seeking something more adventurous, All Day Baby's pastry goddess Thessa Diadem has got you covered with tantalizing flavors like apple crumb, purple yam, and chocolate cream. But the real star of the show is Apple Pan's legendary shortening-laced crust, with the banana cream pie so delicious it's practically a celebrity in its own right

🧺 The Laundromat from Everything. Everywhere….: Majers Coin Laundry in San Fernando, may look like any other laundromat, but it is the site where Everything Everywhere All At Once was filmed in March 2020. The laundromat has become a popular destination for fans of the movie who come to take selfies in front of the recognizable green roof and red signage and attempt to relive scenes from the Oscar-dominating film. For Kenny and Irene Majers, who own the business, the laundromat is where they have done their laundry and taxes together for the last two decades. The couple worked side-by-side, building the business into a fixture of the community and raising their only child, a daughter, Kaylyn

☘️ [Reminder] Get lucky this Friday: An Irish reminder (whatever that means), of St. Patrick’s Day this Friday. We got lucky and found a website that showcases all the events you could ever want, and then more.

[Reminder] 📚️ DYK: Our Libraries offer free income tax preparation and filing?: Our Los Angeles Library System offers a variety of options for those that wish to take advantage of free assistance, from the smart bookworms that know best! These options include in-person tax help, online tax help, resources for tax disputes, and more

📈 This won’t be The Last Of US: HBO's The Last of Us has broken yet another record with its season one finale, which drew in 8.2 million viewers across linear channels and digital platforms. This marks the largest same-day audience to date, despite competing with the Oscars. Throughout the series, viewership has consistently grown, with the premiere episode bringing in 4.7 million viewers and the average audience for the first six episodes now at 30.4 million viewers across all platforms. The Last of Us has even become the most-watched show in the history of HBO Max in both Europe and Latin America. Starring Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, and Gabriel Luna, this series, based on the PlayStation game, takes viewers on a brutal journey through a destroyed modern civilization, following the story of Joel and Ellie as they traverse the US and rely on each other for survival.

🔥 The Oscars have a great year for ratings: The Oscars had their highest ratings since 2020, with 18.7 million viewers and a 4.0 rating among adults 18-49 tuning in to Sunday's broadcast on ABC. This is a 12.5% improvement in viewers and a 5% bump in adults 18-49 from last year. The show also received positive reviews for its controversy-free presentation, emotional speeches, and Jimmy Kimmel's hosting.

📽️ Behind the scenes at the Oscars: Preparing for the Oscars is a fast-paced and unpredictable process, as evidenced by the fact that Jimmy Kimmel had two versions of his monologue ready depending on whether or not pop star Rihanna was in her seat. The last-minute withdrawal of Tom Cruise also caused some changes to Kimmel's planned gags, but the monologue ultimately proved successful. Kimmel opted to focus on simplicity and jokes rather than big pre-taped packages or flashy stunts, which was a risky move but ultimately paid off. Balancing jokes for the industry audience and the home audience is a challenge, especially when dealing with films that some people may not have seen

💰️ Diddy explores BET purchase: Sean Diddy Combs is exploring the opportunity to buy BET as part of his plan to build a Black-owned global media powerhouse, reported exclusively by Variety. While he's not yet in talks with Paramount to purchase a majority stake, he's expressed interest. Combs already owns Revolt, which has grown into a multimedia company over the past decade, reaching about eighty million households and expanding its slate to 42 original series. If he acquires BET, Combs plans to bring the two networks together, broadening BET’s audience reach with Revolt’s younger and more diverse audience. The deal would also mark Combs’ latest venture after expanding from music into film and television production, fashion, spirits, and cannabis. Perry and Allen are also interested in buying BET, and Group Black has recently put in a bid of $400 million for the potential deal