Good Morning! On this day in 1781, British forces surrendered at the Battle of Yorktown, signaling the end of British rule in the colonies and the birth of a new nation: the United States of America.
Today’s Whatever Happened To feature explores the rise and decline of waterbeds, a $2 billion industry in the 1980s that has since become a nostalgic, niche item.
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Nationwide ‘No Kings’ Protests
At least 2,500 “No Kings” rallies were held nationwide on Saturday as hundreds of thousands protested against Trump administration policies amid the ongoing government shutdown.
Prominent Democrats like former second gentleman Doug Emhoff, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Sens. Bernie Sanders, Chuck Schumer, and Elizabeth Warren all voiced their support of the rallies in person and through social media.
Republicans have blamed the protests on far-left activism, claiming Democrats are supporting the protests to prolong the government shutdown while appeasing their progressive base.
House Speaker Mike Johnson expressed hope that once the rallies concluded, Democrats would focus on ending the shutdown.
Trump Commutes Santos’ Sentence
President Trump said Friday he had commuted the sentence of former U.S. Rep. George Santos, who was serving a seven-year sentence in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud and identity theft charges.
The New York Republican was sentenced in April after admitting last year to deceiving donors and stealing the identities of 11 people—including his own family members—to make donations to his campaign.
Trump posted on Truth Social on Friday evening: “George has been in solitary confinement for long stretches of time and, by all accounts, has been horribly mistreated. Therefore, I just signed a Commutation, releasing George Santos from prison, IMMEDIATELY. Good luck George, have a great life!”
The former congressman fabricated much of his personal and professional history before entering the House of Representatives. He claimed to have graduated from New York University and Baruch College — the latter on a volleyball scholarship — and worked at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.
Ohtani Sends Dodgers Back to World Series
Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani delivered one of the greatest single-game performances in baseball history—perhaps even all of sports—on Friday to send the defending champions back into the World Series.
With a 5-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, the Dodgers completed a four-game sweep of the majors’ best regular-season team.
The Japanese phenom hit three home runs and pitched six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out 10 batters. Ohtani is the only player in league history to hit multiple home runs in a postseason game he pitched.
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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes, straight from the heart of the country. Clicking the link will take you directly to these stories:
➤ President Trump meets with Zelensky and hints at a Putin summit to end the Ukraine War. (Hear More)
➤ Schwarzenegger says this effort by Gov. Gavin Newsom is a big scam and hypocritical. (Listen Now)
➤ A bride turned Grand Central into the fairytale wedding venue of her dreams. (More Details)
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➤Lawson Luckiecaught three touchdown passes and No. 9 Georgia outscored No. 5 Ole Miss 17-0 in the fourth quarter to beat the previously unbeaten Rebels 43-35. (Recap)
➤Jadarian Price’s go-ahead 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the third quarter punctuated No. 13 Notre Dame’s 34-24 win over No. 20 USC. (Watch Video)
➤No. 6 Alabama pulled away from No. 11 Tennessee in a 37-20 win, and No. 15 BYU beat No. 23 Utah 24-21 in the first-ranked edition of the Holy War since 2009. (See Scores)
➤ The NFL returns today with plenty of exciting games, highlighted by the Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Commanders rivalry matchup at 4:25 and a showcase of the NFC’s top teams on Sunday Night Football between the Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers. (Week 7 Preview)
➤ Also tonight, the Seattle Mariners look to clinch their first World Series berth in their 49-year history as they take on the Toronto Blue Jays, leading the seven-game series 3-2. (See preview)
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➤ Media and entertainment conglomerate Paramount Skydance will begin mass layoffs the week of Oct. 27, eliminating close to 2,000 U.S. jobs as part of a $2 billion cost-cutting plan. (More)
➤ Kering, the French luxury group that owns Gucci, is reportedly in talks with L’Oréal on a $4 billion deal to sell its beauty division. (More)
➤ Southwest Airlines, which has used open seating for more than 50 years, will shift to assigned seating starting Jan. 27 and introduce a completely new boarding system. (More)
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Ladies and gentlemen, here are our most-clicked stories of the week:
➤ A mini-cow named Jason Moo-Moah took a boat ride from Gulfport Marina to Shell Island, sporting a life vest and relaxing on a sandbar for about an hour. (See Jason)
➤ Texas’s population is projected to grow 28%, or 8.6 million people, while West Virginia’s is expected to decline 15%, according to a study of America’s fastest-growing states. (See Study)
➤ Families of Israeli hostages freed by Hamas under the cease-fire deal said their loved ones showed dramatic physical changes after more than two years in captivity. (More)
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➤ Vice President JD Vance will travel to Israel on Monday to advance the second phase of the historic Gaza peace deal. (More)
➤ Israeli officials said Hamas returned the remains of 76-year-old Eliyahu Margalit, who was taken hostage in 2023 from Kibbutz Nir Oz. (More)
➤ Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent said on Friday that he plans to meet next week in Malaysia with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng to discuss U.S. tariffs. (More)
➤ Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy requested a major disaster declaration from the White House after flooding displaced more than 2,000 residents, leaving them unable to return home for at least 18 months. (More)
➤ Vermont state Sen. Samuel Douglass resigned on Friday after being linked to a Young Republican group chat that shared racist and antisemitic jokes. (More)
➤ A rare calico lobster, colored black-and-orange and named Jack-o’-Lantern, was caught by a Gloucester lobsterman and now lives at the Marine Science Center in Massachusetts. Scientists call it a 1-in-30 million find. (See Lobster)
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Whatever happened to waterbeds?
The iconic waterbed was invented in 1968 and caught on swiftly, growing so popular that by 1987, waterbeds accounted for roughly 20% of U.S. mattress sales, with industry revenue reported at around $2 billion.
By the 1990s, the problems began to overwhelm the wavey fun. As every waterbed owner quickly learned, the beds were heavy, holding hundreds of pounds of water that had to be drained if you wanted to move the bed. They required constant maintenance and heating, and if they sprang a leak, you had a major problem to deal with.
For all those reasons, landlords and insurers began adding legal and financial restrictions to waterbed ownership, limiting their use because of the weight and water-damage risk.
But the final nail in the mattress was that the dry competition caught up. Memory Foam and pillow-top mattresses grew more sophisticated, delivering plush comfort without all the waves—and without the maintenance issues. By the 2000s, waterbeds comprised less than 5% of mattress sales.
Today, waterbeds exist mainly as niche specialty items used in back-pain therapy or by fans of retro nostalgia.
Did you ever have a waterbed? Was it trouble-free? Let us know your experience by replying to this email.
A road construction crew has come up with a creative, albeit unsuccessful, method for having their lunches delivered.
“I have a lot of friends that have daughters that play soccer, play volleyball, run track, play softball. You know what their parents don’t want them doing for good f—— reason is competing with males.”