The recently completed Speed Art Museum‘s expansion included a first-ever 142-seat cinema equipped with state-of-the-art technology. This weekend’s film, “The First Monday in May,” is about the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Met Gala, an annual event that’s surged in popularity under the direction of top Vogue magazine editor Anna Winter. It got a 79% on movie review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.
Movie times, with links to buy tickets:
The automaker just filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission disclosing a slew of stock grants to 10 of the 16 members of the board of directors. The stock, part of their annual fees, was issued to the directors on Thursday; at that day’s closing price of $13.09, the 141,040 shares had a total value of $1.8 million. For most of the directors, the shares were worth about $150,000. Here’s the line-up; links go to the SEC filings.
Ford’s stock closed today at $13.13, basically flat.
A news summary, focused on big employers; updated 5:57.m.
FORD: Why Ford will beat Tesla, even as electric cars gain a toehold (Barron’s).
YUM: The company’s stock has overthrown McDonald’s as the hottest fast-food stock around. Year to date, shares have surged 9% vs. 4% for McDonald’s and a skinny 0.2% for the S&P 500 index. (The Street). Also, former Chairman David Novak says workers are “starved for recognition” from their supervisors (Business First).
PIZZA HUT today introduced 8-inch Hershey’s Toasted S’mores Cookies for a limited time at $6.99 (press release).
AMAZON has started hiring up to 500 employees for a new distribution center in Florence Township outside Trenton, N.J. “They want to be up and running in time for the Christmas holiday,” Township Administrator Richard Brook said last week (Burlington County Times).
GANNETT: Tribune Publishing’s shares dove 15% today on fears that Courier-Journal owner Gannett may rescind its $15-a-share takeover offer; Gannett’s stock fell 2.4% (Talking New Media). The chances Tribune would pursue a “Pac-Man” defense takeover of Gannett had already eased when Tribune decided to share confidential information that could pave the way for Gannett’s $864 million purchase of Tribune (Reuters).
KFC: A 29-year-old man was arrested last night in Columbus, Ga., after he allegedly approached the KFC drive-thru on Manchester Expressway completely nude (Ledger-Enquirer).
BROWN-FORMAN said today it will release fourth-quarter financial results on June 8, followed by a conference call with Wall Street analysts (press release). Meanwhile, Boulevard is sad we missed the chance on Saturday to celebrate World Whisky Day, where everyone was invited to “try a dram and celebrate the water of life” (Hot Rum Cow).
TEXAS ROADHOUSE opens one of its newest restaurants today, a $1.3 million outlet in the college town of Ithaca, N.Y. (Ithaca Voice).
CHURCHILL DOWNS: Thoroughbred racing’s now increasingly international, as NBC Sports made clear during Saturday’s Preakness Stakes, when the network teased its coverage of the Royal Ascot meeting in Britain starting next year (Chicago Now). Ascot got a big publicity boost in 1964’s “My Fair Lady.” The women’s dress code for the royal enclosure is super-strict, including this admonition: “strapless, off the shoulder, halter and spaghetti straps are not permitted” (Ascot).
Photo, top: Pizza Hut.
Business First has a curious story about political campaign contributions in its current issue both in print and on its website. (We won’t link to the web version because it’s only for subscribers). The story lists the Louisville area’s top 30 individual donors for the 2016 election cycle — this includes White House candidates — and says whether their gifts went mostly to Democrats or to Republicans. The names were compiled for the business weekly by the well-regarded Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan group in Washington that tracks campaign finance.
Here’s what’s odd; bear with us, because it’s complicated. The story says the No. 1 donor is a retired Dr. Mark Jones, who’s said to have given a total $200,950 primarily to Republicans. He’s far and away the most generous donor listed; No. 2 is the philanthropist Christy Brown, who’s given $76,600 (mostly to Democrats), according to the list.
But Boulevard wonders whether the center has erred. We used its searchable database to build our own list of the biggest Kentucky donors for the 2016 election cycle. At the top of our list: one David A. Jones, identified only as a Louisville retiree who gave $200,000 on Sept. 14 to the Kentuckians for Strong Leadership PAC.
He’s almost certainly Humana co-founder David A. Jones Sr.; the PAC lists his $200,000 gift, and his West Main Street office address in its annual 2015 Federal Election Commission report. (Moreover, if you search solely for any David A. Joneses, you turn up another five donations totaling $41,500 from a retired David A. Jones Sr., including $33,400 on May 27, 2015, to the Republican National Committee. However, it doesn’t look like these gifts were from his son, venture capitalist and Humana director David A. Jones Jr.; these appear to be from Jones Sr.)
Back to the Business First story. The center’s database does, indeed, show two contributions by a Dr. Mark Robert Jones of Louisville, but totaling only $950. And unlike Business First’s account, Jones isn’t identified as retired. The donations went to 21st Century Oncology; it’s unclear whether that’s a PAC.
Did the center mistakenly credit the $200,000 from David Jones Sr. to Dr. Jones and his $950, pushing the doctor to the top of the list? It certainly seems possible. That would mean the Humana co-founder is the real top donor, with a total $241,500. We’ll watch Business First for any clarification in the days ahead.
This much is certain: The Kentuckians for Strong Leadership PAC is solidly Republican. “Our highest priority in 2014,” its website says, “was ensuring the reelection of U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. In 2016, we turn our attention to delivering control of Kentucky’s State House of Representatives to the Republican Party.”
A news summary, focused on big employers; updated 6:12 p.m.
Quarrels have broken out behind the scenes of Anthem’s proposed acquisition of Cigna, as the health insurers seek regulatory approval for their landmark $48 billion deal, according to a series of letters reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. “People on both sides say the squabbles could delay or derail antitrust approvals, which are typically harder to obtain if both parties aren’t in sync,” the Journal is reporting today.
The deal was announced July 24, three weeks after Aetna and Humana announced their own planned $34 billion tie-up, as big insurers sought scale and efficiency in a shifting U.S. health care industry. The Anthem-Cigna dissension suggests their proposal may fall behind in the regulatory review, worrisome because it’s “thought to have better odds if reviewed alongside Aetna-Humana,” the Journal says.
On Friday, Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini said he expected his company’s purchase of Humana would close during the second half of the year. He also said he couldn’t rule out the possibility Aetna might move its headquarters from its historic Hartford home once the deal is complete.
In other news, new federal overtime regulations could force employers to boost the pay of about 149,000 Kentuckians, although mostly at small and mid-sized companies. Starting in December, salaried employees earning $47,476 or less annually must be paid time-and-a-half for working more than 40 hours in a week; that’s twice the current level (Courier-Journal).
For a glimpse of what the Courier-Journal can do when it really commits resources, consider today’s installment of the quarterly premium sections introduced in March. It’s devoted to all things food: from farmer’s markets to an impressive farm-to-table restaurant guide. It’s handsomely designed, as you can see in the photo, left, of the cover.
And at a $1 per-subscriber surcharge, the sections surely brings in tens of thousands of dollars in additional revenue. Plus, they’ve got a long shelf life, so readers are likely to keep them well after recycling the rest of the paper.
But that’s in the CJ’s printed version. Where’s all that special new content in the other, more important edition: the website and mobile app, where coveted younger readers spend most of their time? Boulevard can’t find it online in the food section. Ditto for the farm-to-table section, or health and fitness. Strangest of all, it’s not in the subscribers-only Xtras section, even though that’s where the paper’s top editor directed readers when the first installment was published in March.
Newspapers everywhere are battling for business in a world turned upside down by online competition. But all too often, their digital distribution comes up way too short, especially when it involves content that, like freeze-dried food, has a long shelf life.
Boulevard 