Jussie Smollett, Howard Schultz, Trevor Noah, One of Slava Mogutin\u2019s Hot Boys, and How A Historic LA Coffee Shop Turned Into A Gathering Place For The Political Left, and More: HOT LINKS<\/b><\/p>\n
DISCOVER IT FOR YOURSELF<\/strong> If you haven\u2019t seen it yet catch Star Trek: Discovery <\/em>tonight for the third episode of season two<\/a>.<\/p>\n Last week\u2019s episode felt like a throwback<\/a> but tonight we\u2019re supposed to get Spock!<\/p>\n TREVOR NOAH<\/strong> Talks to Howard Schultz about his 2020 Bid <\/p>\n Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz considers a 2020 run and Mark Zuckerberg plans to merge Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. PERSONS OF INTEREST <\/strong> Police released a grainy image <\/a>of the \u2018persons of interest\u2019 in Jussie Smollett\u2019s attack. Chicago police are asking for help identifying these two figures, but I have my doubts about whether anyone will really know much simply from this photo. Right now, these men<\/a> are just being called \u201cpersons of interest wanted for questioning\u201d not \u201csuspects.\u201d<\/p>\n Police search for persons of interest in alleged attack against Jussie Smollett t.co\/mrtiKcSr2G<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/6Dnm8naiby<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 CBS News (@CBSNews) January 31, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n OH GUS<\/strong> Keep talking.<\/p>\n gay<\/a> icon t.co\/d1zajhAakw<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Gus Kenworthy (@guskenworthy) January 31, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n HISTORIC LA DINER FINDS NEW RELEVANCE<\/strong> How did Johnnie\u2019s Coffee Shop turn into a gathering for the political left?<\/p>\n The foyer of Johnie\u2019s Coffee Shop<\/a> on Wilshire and Fairfax smells like weed, musk and dog*. A beat-up piano sits next to stacks of flyers from leftist organizations, and the area is guarded, on this particular afternoon, by a brown-and-white canine with a red bandana around his neck who comes jogging up to the door, barking at unknown newcomers.<\/p>\n Inside, the former restaurant is plastered with political signs with slogans like \u201c#CleanDreamAct DACA Strong,\u201d \u201cHealthcare is a Human Right\u201d and \u201c#stopcagingfamilies.\u201d Once a pinnacle of 1950s\u00a0Googie<\/a>\u00a0architecture, Johnie\u2019s took on new life when it\u00a0played host to<\/a>\u00a0a high-profile 2016 event for U.S. Senator and then-presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.<\/p>\n But many Angelenos are wondering what the space is being used for now.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is happening to the Johnnie\u2019s Coffee shop at Wilshire\/Fairfax? Just a Bernie Sanders landmark?\u201d one <\/a>LAist<\/a><\/em> reader asked<\/a>.<\/p>\n YOU CAN\u2019T EVER REALLY DELETE A TWEET<\/strong>Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks CEO who has floated an independent run at the White House, deleted a tweet Wednesday in which he praised a column that insulted other 2020 contenders said <\/a>The Hill<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n In the now-deleted tweet, Schultz linked to a piece that called Sen.\u00a0Kamala Harris<\/a>\u00a0(D-Calif.) \u201cshrill\u201d and Sen.\u00a0Elizabeth Warren<\/a>\u00a0(D-Mass.) \u201cFauxcahontas,\u201d a reference to her claims of Native American heritage.<\/p>\n TEACHING LGBT<\/strong> Free history lesson plans about LGBT History are being offered by The Los Angeles LGBT Center \u2014for teachers statewide and nationwide\u2014 curricula they can use at no cost. The Los Angeles LGBT Center is one of the leading organizations advancing civil rights and freedoms for LGBT people. Throughout California the center trains social service providers<\/a>, caregivers for seniors, educators, government agencies, law enforcement officials, and others to help them better serve the diverse LGBT community.<\/p>\n MISSIONARY POSITIONS WILL EXCITE RELIGIOUS BASE IN MISSISSIPPI \u00a0<\/strong>The Methodist church\u2019s debate and embracement over gay<\/a> marriage could affect Mississippi politicians in election year.<\/p>\n This year Mississippi politicians, including many Methodist politicians, will be running for office as the issues of gay<\/a> marriage and the ordination of gay<\/a> ministers play out in the United Methodist Church. While the New Orleans Saints were battling last week in the NFC championship game (i.e. getting hosed) several hundred Mississippi Methodists were meeting at Christ United Methodist Church in Jackson to discuss the explosive issues of gay<\/a> marriage and the ordination of gay<\/a> ministers.<\/p>\n According<\/a> to the United Methodist Church Mississippi Conference web page, there are more than 165,000 Methodists in the state. There are probably more United Methodist politicians in the state than members of any other congregation except perhaps Southern Baptists. It is safe to assume Methodist politicians will be involved in the issue this election year.<\/p>\n HOMOPHOBIC GREEK BISHOP JAILED <\/strong>Greek Bishop Amvrossios has been jailed for anti-gay<\/a> speech according<\/a> to the Greek Reporter<\/em>.<\/p>\n A Greek court has convicted prominent Greek Orthodox Bishop Amvrossios of violating laws against racism and abusing his office over an anti-gay blog posting.<\/a>Amvrossios, Bishop of Kalavryta and Aigialeia in the southern Peloponnese region, received a seven-month sentence, suspended for three years.<\/p>\n Amvrossios urged readers in his 2015 posting to \u201cspit upon\u201d homosexuals, adding: \u201cThey are not human beings, they are rejects of nature.\u201d<\/p>\n The three-judge court in the southern town of Aigio unanimously found against the bishop, who is one of the most conservative in the Greek Orthodox Church of Greece.\u00a0\u00a0A lower court had acquitted him, but the case was appealed. Lawyer Kleio Papandoleon, representing a group of citizens seeking legal action against the bishop, hailed Monday\u2019s ruling, saying it set limits to \u201cinflammatory and racist speech.\u201d<\/p>\n ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL<\/strong> Toni Harris aspires to be first female NFL player<\/a>.<\/p>\n Toyota\u2019s new\u00a0Super Bowl<\/a>\u00a0commercial features a college player who wants to make NFL history. Toni Harris is a defensive back for the East Los Angeles College Huskies and in addition to playing football in high school she was the homecoming queen. <\/p>\n Yep, she.<\/p>\n Harris will be one of the few women<\/a> ever to play college football. She\u2019s received multiple scholarship offers to four-year programs and while she still hasn\u2019t decided among them, she\u2019s set her sights on an even bigger goal: the NFL.<\/p>\n \u201cI first developed an interest in football when I was about four \u2013 between four and six years old. People around me \u2013 they weren\u2019t too fond of me playing football. They said that I could get hurt a lot easier playing with guys<\/a>,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n SAVE THE WHALES<\/strong> Naval sonar may cause some whales to commit suicide .Scientists have long known that some beaked<\/a> whales beach themselves and die in agony after exposure to naval sonar, and now they know why: the giant sea mammals suffer decompression sickness, just like scuba divers.<\/p>\n \u201cMillions of years of evolution have turned whales into perfectly calibrated diving machines that plunge kilometres (miles) below the surface for hours at a stretch, foraging for food in the inky depths, said Raw Story<\/em>.<\/p>\n WORLD\u2019S BIGGEST BEAR CAVE<\/strong> LA bear group bought\u00a0an<\/a> Oklahoma City hotel that bills itself as the largest gay<\/a> resort in the Southwest. The Journal Record<\/em>\u00a0reports<\/a>\u00a0Los Angeles-based Alternatives Resorts has bought the 170-room Habana Inn. Oklahoma County property records show the property sold for $2.4 million.<\/p>\n Alternatives Resorts spokesman Arnold Greenspan says the property will be renamed Hotel Habana and that a first phase of renovations will start in the fall. The resort has two nightclubs, a novelty store and a closed restaurant space. The hotel recently celebrated its 50th birthday and is a centerpiece of a string of businesses catering to LGBTQ clientele along a stretch of road that was part of historic\u00a0Route 66<\/a>\u00a0that connected travelers from Chicago to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n MEET ZIGGY STARDUST<\/strong> Johnny Flynn will portray David Bowie<\/a> in Stardust<\/em> biopic. It\u2019s been announced that\u00a0Johnny Flynn<\/a>has signed on to play the iconic entertainer in the upcoming biopic. The 35-year-old actor\/musician joins\u00a0Jena Malone<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Marc Maron<\/a>\u00a0in the film that tracks Bowie\u2019s rise as a superstar \u2013 starting with his first trip to American in 1971, which inspired the creation of his iconic alter ego Ziggy Stardust.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bowie sadly passed away<\/a>\u00a0in January 2016 after a battle with cancer.<\/p>\n Production for\u00a0Stardust<\/em>\u00a0is set to begin in June 2019.<\/p>\n FLIP FLOPPING<\/strong> Jeff Lewis and Gage Edward from Flipping Out<\/em> are taking a break\u00a0<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cIt was only a matter of time before\u00a0Jeff Lewis\u00a0is o<\/a>fficially gay<\/a> Scrooge and is holed up by his lonesome in his immaculately renovated Los Feliz mansion, and has to resort to yelling at the air or screaming at the Postmates delivery person who quickly drops his taco salad on the doorstep before running off. Because soon, there won\u2019t be a living thing in the Los Angeles area that hasn\u2019t completely washed their hands of Jeff Lewis and his signature asshole ways. He\u2019ll have nobody to yell at anymore!\u201d said Celebitchy<\/em>.<\/p>\n
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