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☆ ‘Barbenheimer’ box office success has reawakened America’s moviegoing muscle
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Eva Rothenberg | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —It’s a tale of two movies and a box office triumph: “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” maintained incredible momentum into their second weekends. It is the largest domestic second weekend performance ever for Warner Bros., which produced the movie. Crucially, these numbers reflect that not only is there high energy and excitement for movies, but an appetite for the movie theater experience. People dress up as the doll Barbie to attend the Barbie movie on July 21, 2023 in New York City. “You have to go into the theater to experience it.”Repeat viewings are also fueling box office earnings.

Persons: CNN —, “ Barbie ”, “ Oppenheimer ”, Barbie ”, Oppenheimer, Barbie, Stephanie Keith, Barbenheimer, it’s, ”, Michael O’Leary, “ Oppenheimer, O’Leary, “, they've, Instagram O’Leary, there’s, Paul Dergarabedian, Eric Thayer, Shawn Robbins Organizations: CNN, Warner Bros, Warner Bros ., National Association of Theater Owners, B Theaters, Hollywood, B, “, Guild of America, SAG, Comscore, ”, Screen, Fox Studios, Bloomberg, Getty, Boxoffice Pro Locations: New York City, United States, Los Angeles

☆ 'Barbenheimer' gets off to hot start with $32.8 million in combined Thursday sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

"Barbenheimer" is off to a red-hot start at the domestic box office. Heading into the weekend, Warner Bros.' "Barbie" is expected to capture upwards of $140 million, if not more, over its first three days in theaters. Meanwhile, Universal's "Oppenheimer" appears destined to snare at least $50 million, with some box office analysts expecting it could top $60 million. With additional ticket sales from "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One," "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" and "Sound of Freedom," it could be the highest-grossing weekend of the year so far. Major movie chains have indicated that ticket sales are strong for both films this weekend and additional shows have been added to accommodate demand.

Persons: Barbie, Oppenheimer, Universal's, Indiana Jones Organizations: Warner Bros, AMC Theatre, National Association of Theatre, Comcast, CNBC Locations: NBCUniversal

☆ 'Barbenheimer' opening weekend could top $200 million, a jolt for Hollywood's soft box office
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

This weekend at the box office is all about atomic bombs and blonde bombshells. Typically when two big movies from two different studios hit theaters at the same time, it's a competition for ticket sales. Heading into the weekend, "Barbie" is expected to capture at least $90 million in domestic ticket sales, with some box office analysts projecting the film could tally upwards of $140 million. Major movie chains have indicated that ticket sales are strong for both films this weekend and additional shows have been added to accommodate demand. "Going into this weekend anticipation has been very high for both 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer,'" said Jeffrey Kaufman, chief content officer at Malco Theatres.

Persons: That's, Oppenheimer, Erik Davis, It's, Barbie, Jeffrey Kaufman, Greta Gerwig, Bird, Hollywood's, Audiences, Stanley Kubrick's, Margot Robbie, Ken, Ryan Gosling Organizations: Warner Bros, Mattel, AMC Theatre, National Association of Theatre, Malco, Academy Locations: Barbie

☆ 'Barbie' review: Margot Robbie stars in Greta Gerwig's 'Barbie'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Brian Lowry | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —“Barbie” comes roaring out of the gate with an inventiveness and energy the movie perhaps inevitably can’t sustain. Still, the closest kin would probably be “The Lego Movie,” which similarly took a familiar toy and built a kind of existential crisis around it. Simu Liu, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in "Barbie." Courtesy Warner Bros. PicturesThe juxtaposition of those more thoughtful elements with the sheer giddiness elsewhere – alternating between the serious and the silly, between art and commerce – doesn’t always quite mesh or feel as fresh as it might. (The film is being released by Warner Bros., like CNN, a unit of Warner Bros.

Persons: CNN — “ Barbie ”, Greta Gerwig’s, Noah Baumbach, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, “ Barbie ”, Ferrell’s, Helen Mirren, Barbie, Ken, Gosling’s Ken, Ariana Greenblatt, Simu Liu, Bird, Gosling, “ Justice League ”, “ Oppenheimer, “, overdoing, ” Organizations: CNN, Mattel, America, Warner Bros, “ Justice League, Warner Bros .

☆ After days of anticipation, many folks won't get to see the northern lights. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Chris Panella | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

This week's forecast for seeing the northern lights across the US was hopeful, but it's now unlikely. Predictions for a stunning display of the northern lights across the continental US this week were promising, but forecasters say it's unlikely now. Usually the northern lights are only visible north of the continental US, in snowy Arctic regions. Scientists rely on observations of space and solar activity in order to forecast the northern lights, but things can change quickly. Even in the days and hours leading to a possible appearance of the northern lights, it's still difficult to predict them.

Persons: it's, Bill Murtagh, Murtagh Organizations: Service, National Oceanic, Prediction, USA, Experts, NASA Solar Dynamics Locations: Maryland, Annapolis , Maryland, Arizona

☆ My husband and I quit our jobs and bought a 500-year-old hamlet in the French countryside. Here's how we transformed it into a successful rental business and our dream home.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Gia Mora | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Liz and Dave Murphy left their 9-to-5 jobs and traded their city home for a 17th-century hamlet. My husband, Dave, and I traded our detached house in Manchester for a 17th-century village in the French countryside in pursuit of a better quality of life. We both had 9-to-5 jobs in copywriting and marketing, and life had become a mad rush of food, baths, and bedtime. We split the cost of the hamlet with my mom and her husband, who were joining us. We renovated 2 buildings while running the businessOur family moved into the biggest gîte, while Mom and Terry took the old owner's home.

Persons: Liz, Dave Murphy, Liz Murphy's, Liz Murphy, Dave, COVID, we'd, Tom, Liz Murphy We'd, Helen, Terry, We'd, it's, There's, Liz Murphy Dave, we've, We've Organizations: Service, Charlotte Locations: Wall, Silicon, Lac de Maison, Manchester, France, de Maison, Poitou, Charentes, England

☆ The house from 'The Brady Bunch' is on the market. Check out photos of the $5.5 million property.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Will Gendron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The home made famous in "The Brady Bunch" has hit the market. The property in Studio City, Los Angeles is listed at $5.5 million. While the show was never shot inside the home, it's been renovated to mirror "The Brady Bunch" set. Now's your chance: The house featured in "The Brady Bunch" recently hit the market. The property can be yours for a cool $5.5 million.

Persons: it's, —, Danny Brown Organizations: Service, HGTV Locations: Studio City, Los Angeles, American, Studio, Hollywood

☆ We're a millennial couple in Singapore. It took 2 years, 17 apartment viewings, and some negotiation, but we managed to find our forever home.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Amanda Goh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

After being together since 2015, Joy Oh and Eddy Kur were looking to settle down. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with 31-year-old Joy Oh, a digital-content producer who works in a creative agency in Singapore. Joy Oh and Eddy Kur/Ohkur HouseThat aside, we had a pretty long list of requirements for our future home. Joy Oh and Eddy Kur/Ohkur HouseAfter our down payment, we took out an HDB housing loan of SG$389,100 to finance the rest of our home. Joy Oh and Eddy Kur/Ohkur HouseWe decorated the place and signed the papers in our living room.

Persons: Joy Oh, Eddy Kur, —, Indonesia —, Eddy, Oh Organizations: Service, Board Locations: Singapore, Jakarta, Indonesia, Yishun, Khatib —

☆ This couple paid $200,000 for their 180-year-old rainbow farmhouse and spent just as much on renovations—take a look inside
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Celia Fernandez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The two sat down together and drew a circle around New York City on a map and started looking for where they could buy land for a farm. The 180-year-old farmhouse originally sat on 40 acres of land. The couple initially bought 16 acres, but was eventually able to buy the entire property back. Two months and 25 viewings later, they saw a 180-year-old farmhouse on 16 acres of land in Kingston, New York. Over time, Katwise and Brown were able to buy the other 24 acres, which brought the property back to its original size.

Thailand was the most popular outbound destination for Chinese travelers during the May labour day holiday, data from website Trip.com showed, followed by Japan and South Korea. "There is definitely demand from China for properties in Thailand," said Mesak Chunharakchot, the president of the Thai Real Estate Association. "Chinese are buying houses, sending their children to international schools and having their parents come stay in Thailand to take care of the grandkids." Nearly 270,000 Chinese tourists visited Thailand in March, government data shows, a three-year high, though well below the figure of 985,227 in March 2019, before the pandemic took hold. Therefore some would sell one of the houses in China and buy a property here for retirement."

☆ I increased a property's value by $78,000 with DIY renovations that cost under $2,000. See the before-and-after pictures, plus how I stayed on budget.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Salina Jivani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

A friend asked for Juliff's help to refresh her London apartment on a tight budget of under $2,000. Here's how she increased the home's value by $78,000, as told to Salina Jivani. During this time, my husband and I decided to sell our apartment in London and purchase anotherOur apartment sold in January 2021, but our purchase fell through. Upon hearing our dilemma, a close friend reached out to another person in her network who had an empty apartment in London. Once the remodeling was over, my friend got the apartment appraisedThe real-estate agency valued the home at $78,000 more than before.

☆ Funeral homes may soon be forced to post prices online: 'People are at their most vulnerable when they're grieving'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Aidan Pollard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Funeral homes must provide pricing information in person and over the phone under federal regulation. Now, the Federal Trade Commission is looking to broaden transparency for funeral pricing. The Federal Trade Commission is considering an update to a federal rule that forces funeral homes to disclose prices in person and over the phone, the New York Times reported. "People are at their most vulnerable when they're grieving," Lina M. Khan, chair of the Federal Trade Commission, told the Times. According to the FTC, less than a quarter of all funeral homes provide full price lists on their websites, and many provide little to no pricing information.

☆ I Visited Miami After the Stock Market Crash, Crypto Bubble Pop
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Linette Lopez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

And if any city is the city where you can see just how remarkably things have shifted, it's also Miami. If the draw in the 1920s was imaginary land, Miami's bubble in the 2020s was driven by imaginary money — crypto. The newcomers — and the crypto kids, especially — believed they could master Miami as easily as they had mastered the markets. The new Miami money party started to run out of libations. "There were a lot of true believers in the Miami crypto scene.

Like the original movie, "Avatar: The Way of Water" is directed by James Cameron ("Titanic"). How to watch 'Avatar: The Way of Water'"Avatar: The Way of Water" is currently only available to watch in theaters, so you can't purchase or stream the movie at home just yet. When will 'Avatar: The Way of Water' be available to watch at home? You can watch "Avatar: The Way of Water" at home starting March 28. The sequel repeats one of the biggest draws of the first "Avatar" movie in terms of being a groundbreaking visual spectacle.

[1/3] Students walk past stalls during the orientation week at The University of Sydney, in Camperdown, Australia February 15, 2023. 'BIG RUSH'The shortage has meanwhile jumpstarted one of the few subsets of Australian residential property, the student accommodation sector, that languished during COVID. Before 2020, Chinese students accounted for about 40% of the A$40 billion ($27 billion) Australia made educating foreigners annually. But China's reopening has raised the issue about the availability of beds in a "welcome sign" for investors, said Brad Williams, managing director of AMP Capital's diversified infrastructure trust, Australia's third-largest owner of purpose-built student accommodation. Tomas Johnsson, CEO of UniLodge Australia, the country's biggest operator of purpose-built student accommodation, said some developers were even paying more to speed up construction.

The case for falling rentSomething strange is happening in the apartment market. More than 971,000 apartment units were under construction across the US at the end of 2022, the second-largest number on record. There's only so much people are willing to pay,'" said Jon Leckie, a researcher for Rent, a platform that helps landlords market their properties. For now, though, the wave of supply that's already underway should keep rents in check over the next couple of years. Now, as landlords shift their focus from jacking up rents to filling up units, renters can once again look ahead to better days.

☆ I'm a New York City broker. Here's my advice for buyers and renters looking to land the best deals in a volatile market.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Ameena Walker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A few months ago, New York City's real-estate market was on fire, with no signs of slowing down. But that's changed as inflation continues to rise, federal interest rates spike, and construction costs climb — making it extremely expensive to purchase a home. I can't say I didn't see this comingThe market frenzy earlier in the year was largely driven by lower interest rates making home ownership more affordable. The real-estate market requires flexibility and patience, so that's what I'm focusing on right now. Time has repeatedly shown us that the real-estate market is cyclical, and at some point, it will turn, for better or worse.

"Avatar: The Way of Water" premiered December 16 exclusively in theaters. Though the movie is currently exclusive to theaters, it's expected to hit Disney Plus at some point in 2023. Like the original movie, "Avatar: The Way of Water" is directed by James Cameron ("Titanic"). As of December 16, there is no official streaming date set for "Avatar: The Way of Water." The sequel repeats one of the biggest draws of the first "Avatar" movie in terms of being a groundbreaking visual spectacle.

☆ Giraffe360 offers real-estate brokers a camera and software to create 3D property viewings. Check out the 9-slide deck it used to raise $16 million from Peter Thiel's Founders Fund.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Giraffe360's camera-based platform allows real-estate companies to create virtual property tours. The London-based startup secured $16 million in a round led by Founders Fund. CEO Mikus Opelts saw an uptick in virtual house viewings during the pandemic, and he is optimistic that virtual viewings will be key to real-estate listings in the future. Existing investors LAUNCHub Ventures, Hoxton Ventures, HCVC (Hardware Club), and Change Ventures also participated in the round. This brings the startup's total amount raised to $22 million in equity, and $9 million in venture debt.

☆ London’s rental market has become a ‘nightmare.’ Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“I think that I sent over 100 messages to different ads, and I only had [a] reply to 30 messages,” she told CNN Business. ‘You can’t hesitate’Matt Hutchinson, communications director at SpareRoom, told CNN Business that the capital has seen a “huge influx” of students, young people and overseas workers in recent months — demand that the pandemic kept bottled up. Landlords have been leaving the rental market as it becomes less and less profitable. Savills expects the average London rent — across all property types — to jump another 5.5% next year. Sally Vince, who works in commercial property, told CNN Business that after a “very stressful” time looking for her £700 ($832) room this summer, she took what she could get.

☆ AMC and Zoom want you to take your next work meeting on the big screen
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Zoom, the popular video conferencing service, along with AMC Theatres announced this week that they are partnering in an effort to bring conference calls to the big screen. The partnership with the nation's largest theater chain, dubbed "Zoom Rooms at AMC," will see AMC turn its movie screens into videoconferencing displays for audiences ranging in size from 75 to 150, AMC said in an announcement. AMC says that it will also offer "additional services including food and beverage offerings, possible movie viewings, and concierge-style personalized handling of meeting needs" to customers "at an added cost." AMC and Zoom did not immediately give an indication of how the offerings would be priced. The companies said they plan to launch Zoom Rooms in "up to 17 major US markets sometime in 2023."

NewFest, New York’s premier LGBTQ film festival, returns for its 34th annual celebration of queer media. While there are many must-see films at this year’s festival, here are a five to add to your watch list. The film stars Emmy-nominated actor Jeremy Pope (“Hollywood”) as a young gay man who joins the Marines after a decade living on the streets. Previously, Bratton translated his experiences into documentaries about LGBTQ subjects, including 2019’s “Pier Kids,” about queer and transgender youths living at Manhattan’s Christopher Street Pier. The film’s stars include Flaherty, Wyatt Fenner, Joey Taranto and Kiyon Spencer.

Notably, Paris says it will not organize fan zones for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, citing social and environmental issues. “Paris Saint-Germain’s matches in the Parc des Princes have become a must-see event for a great many foreign visitors.”France is looking to retain the World Cup after winning the competition in 2018. James Williamson/Getty ImagesParis joins Strasbourg, Lille, Rodez, Bordeaux, Nancy and Reims in committing to not organizing public viewings. “I repeat that this is not the trial of Qatar, we are questioning the model of this event,” insisted Rabadan. Qatar World Cup officials estimate a very different death toll, telling CNN last year that there have been just three work-related deaths on stadiums and 35 non-work-related deaths.

☆ A real-estate investor with a property portfolio worth $11 million shares his best strategies for beginning investors
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-03 | by ( Leo Ginsburg | Nathan Rennolds | Business Insider Deutschland | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The 32-year-old Paul Müller owns 70 properties, which are worth around 10.5 million euros, or around $10.96 million. In 2019, Müller quit his job and briefly moved to a real-estate company before becoming a self-employed real-estate investor in 2020. Müller said that about half of his portfolio consisted of "buy-and-hold" properties. The other half of his portfolio contains "fix-and-flip" properties. How he selects propertiesWhen looking for properties, investors in buy-and-hold properties look primarily at yield, which they calculate by dividing rental income per year by the purchase price, Müller said.

Olivia Wilde’s “Don’t Worry, Darling” is — on its immaculately, obsessively polished surface — a film about the danger of dreams. Even if you have somehow avoided all publicity for the film, the pop culture reference points should already be clear. Pugh conveys blissful serenity and anguished confusion with equal conviction; her deftness justifies Wilde’s poetic anti-narrative, and vice versa. The real world feels like ghostly and desaturated reflection. “Don’t Worry, Darling” is a movie that airily warns you to watch out for illusions even as it revels in a film’s power to create a world deliberately untethered from reality.

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