Happy holidays, Rye.
Pam, can you guess what holiday I'm currently celebrating?
Christmas.
Nope.
Hanukkah.
Nope.
Kwanzaa.
Still nope.
Festivus.
Nope, but that is for the rest of us.
Come on.
Is that Rigby?
Wait, is it National Cat Lovers Month?
Got him.
Now we can start the show.
I'm Ryan Willard.
That's Rigby Rocket.
And I'm Pamela Kirkland.
It's...
Oh, hi.
I'm sorry.
That's Midnight, the official 10 News cat.
It's Thursday, December 4th.
This is 10 Things You Need to Know.
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December is finally here, which means it's finally time for National Cat Lovers Month.
This cat-tastic month is a time to show our pet cats a whole lot of extra love and feed them extra treats.
But Midnight and Rigby requested that we start with five fun facts about felines.
Number one every single cat's nose print is different, just like a human's fingerprint is one of a kind.
Number two cats can't taste sweetness because they don't have sugar receptors, which is probably why your cat is never begging for your cookie, but will probably steal your tuna sandwich.
Number three, is your cat ever busy baking biscuits?
Whenever a cat is kneading their paws, it means they feel comfortable and safe.
Cats also have a superpower.
Their whiskers act like a radar, making it easy for them to swiftly move, and safely move in the dark or small spaces.
Number five.
Unlike their canine companions, when a cat wags its tail, it doesn't mean it's happy.
Instead, it might mean your furry friend is irritated or overstimulated.
Well, we love our furry friends, and today is actually World Wildlife Conservation Day.
Did you know that humans are actually the most invasive species on Earth?
What?
That's why today, and every day, really is so important to spread awareness about preserving Earth's endangered plant and animal life that surrounds us.
For years, animals have been hunted and forests have been cleared, endangering or even pushing wildlife to extinction.
In that time though, conservationists and hunters have come together to form organizations to support hunting laws and wildlife restoration.
We also have the Endangered Species Conservation Act that protects threatened and endangered species.
You can even make a difference, whether you're making a point to stay informed, choosing to donate to local wildlife causes or spreading the word.
Every action, big or small, means a lot.
Kind of like what Beast Philanthropy and the Rockefeller Foundation are teaming up to work on.
As you might have guessed, Mr Beast, also known as Jimmy Donaldson, one of the world's most famous creators, is the founder of the Beast Foundation.
And the Rockefeller Center is one of America's most distinguished philanthropies.
Together, the two organizations aim to spark youth philanthropy and inspire the younger generations to care about the world's most vulnerable populations.
They've not yet shared the exact issues that they plan to tackle as a team, but we'll keep you posted on what comes next and how you can get involved.
Stranger Things is finally back for its final season, and I am hyped!
Sure, the Upside Down is totally freaky, but have you ever wanted to hang out in their town, Hawkins?
Yeah, Hawkins is fictional, but there's a real town that they film in, Jackson, Georgia.
Before Stranger Things, Jackson was a struggling community facing crime issues and empty businesses.
But today, the town is buzzing as fans visit from all over.
Once barren, Jackson is now filled with coffee shops restaurants, an ice cream parlor and even a local shop that runs daily Stranger Things tours.
And during the years the show is actively streaming.
Butts County, where Jackson is located, sees a 12 jump in tourism.
And yes, it's really called Butts County.
While the box office has had its ups and downs this year, this weekend was one for the books, thanks to Zootopia 2.
The film had a record-setting opening, bringing in 96 million in North America and earning 156 million over the five-day Thanksgiving period.
It also scored $556 million globally since opening weekend, according to studio estimates.
Zootopia 2 is now the top opener of 2025, the highest international opening ever for an animated movie and the fourth highest highest global debut of any time.
But the film wasn't alone in making Thanksgiving weekend a success for the box office.
Wicked for Good earned 628 million in North America in its second weekend for Universal Pictures and has brought in 393 million internationally.
Not gonna lie, those movies were awesome.
And sequels usually aren't even that good.
I haven't seen either of them.
Maybe we should take a quick break so I can at least watch the trailers.
Hey, Tenders, so... Whoa!
Okay, um... Midnight?
Rigby?
Slow down!
We have our next deep dive coming up and we're curious what was your favorite thing that happened this year?
Leave us a comment on Spotify or an Apple review, and we might shout you out on the show.
Speaking of, back to it.
The vote is in, and Oxford University Press has picked its 2025 word of the year, rage bait.
Lexicographers who write, compile or study dictionaries at Oxford University Press select the word of the year by analyzing new and emerging words, as well as changes in the use of language, to identify words of cultural significance.
And this year's winner Ragebait, captures the growing trend of social media content designed to spark outrage and keep people clicking, sharing and arguing.
It's pretty similar to clickbait, where a headline makes someone want to read the article or watch a video, but Ragebait content makes people angry and that rage often tricks people into posting comments and engaging with the post.
Runner-ups for the word of the year are aura farming, which means to cultivate a public image by presenting oneself in a way intended subtly to convey, in an air of confidence, coolness or mystique, and biohack, an attempt to improve or optimize one's physical or mental performance, health or longevity.
That is, yeah, definitely how grownups would define it.
Kind of like how they tried to define 6'7".
Up next, a former NFL player is helping one high school football team's dream come true.
Rob Gronkowski showed up to Dierks High School as a complete surprise in rural southwest Arkansas with a check for 1 million after the school won T-Mobile's Friday Night 5G Lights competition.
The nationwide contest for schools competes for votes to win a full football stadium makeover.
And the students at Dierks High School won by rallying their community, the state and even landing celebrity support to get the most votes in the nation.
Their high school football field has certainly seen better days, as the slope drops nearly eight feet from one end zone to the other.
With the money, they're going to revamp the playing area and invest in new stands for the fans, a new locker room for the athletes and larger training facilities.
From sports to travel.
Major winter weather swept across parts of the United States over the holiday weekend.
Roughly 25 million people were under winter weather alerts, as parts of the Midwest saw more than a foot of snow, paired with strong winds and bitter cold.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin even declared a snow emergency.
In Vigo County Indiana, a 45-car pileup occurred on Interstate 70, though thankfully no injuries were reported.
In Iowa, a Delta Airlines flight slid off the end of a runway after hitting ice, requiring first responders to plow the aircraft out of the snow.
Beyond accidents, the storm disrupted travel nationwide, with more than 11000 flight delays and over 800 cancellations affecting the busy post-holiday rush.
A lot of people travel over the holidays, so we at the 10 News hope you all travel safely and comfortably, if you're going anywhere.
Know where I want to go, Rye?
Flavortown?
Yes, but no.
Tokyo, Japan?
I mean I do want to go to Tokyo, but I was actually thinking about going to the world's brand new largest city.
After ranking 33rd in 2018, Indonesia's capital Jakarta, has soared to the top as the world's most populous city, with an estimated population of nearly 42 million residents.
Wow.
Not far behind in second is Dhaka Bangladesh, with 36 million people, and it is expected to become the world's largest city by mid-century.
Both of these cities are located on the continent of Asia, which is home to nine of the ten most populous cities in the world.
And for the last thing you need to know, let's go to our Tribune Master, Owen.
What is going on here?
What thanks rye james gunn.
Superman was one of my favorite movies of the summer, but do you know what made the original comic book superman number one so special?
Is it a the first comic devoted to one superhero, b the first appearance of lois lane, c the first comic in color or d the first superman team-up?
The answer is A The Superman No.
1 issue was the first comic book featuring just one superhero.
One copy of this comic book became extra special recently, as it was auctioned off for more than 9 million.
After sitting in the attic of their late mother's home, three brothers came across the comic book beneath a stack of old newspapers, dust and cobwebs.
It was sold at exactly $9.12 million, making it the most expensive comic book ever sold.
And that was 10 Things You Need to Know.
Have you seen Rigby and Midnight?
I'm supposed to be loving them and showering them with treats right now, but I can't find them.
Look, Rye.
Oh my gosh, they're both sleeping in your desk drawers?
That is so cute!
Hey, we should take naps too.
I actually love that idea.
We should give 10 new snaps to one of our listeners, though.
But first, here's a quick note for the grown-ups.
It's time for 10 new snaps.
Simone left us a comment on Spotify about your Thanksgiving pies.
She said, the mango broccoli pie.
Yes, I knew someone else would dig that one.
And then she said, butterflies rule, Ryan.
IDK why you hate them.
What?
And Cat Lover left us an Apple review and said, I would like to try the pepperoni pizza pie.
Yes, that's another winner.
And also left a bunch of butterfly emojis.
Come on.
Okay, last one.
Someone said, I would try your beef nacho pie.
The tenors know what is up.
That review was left by Billy the Bird.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
And two extra notes for the grownups.
You can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Tenors Club on our website.
And if you want to help support The Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes.
The whole team thanks you for your support.
The Ten News is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.
The 10 News creative team is making biscuits and zoom, zoom, zooming with their feline friends.
It includes Tracy, Notta Crooks, Adam the Great Bambino, Bernard Brian Not Ryan, Douglas the Duke of Earl Davis and Carson, Not-So-Harry Potter.
Big thanks to Owen Not Slowing Down for anybody.
Our production director is Jeremiah Onfaya.
Tittle and our executive producers are Donald Albright, Albright, Albright.
And show creator Tracy takes the lead, Kaplan.
I'm Pamela Kirkland.
And I'm Ryan Willard.
Thanks for listening to The 10 News.
