THE BREAKING DESK
LIVE — Convicted in London of rape and three sexual assaults; sentencing is set for Monday.The Breaking DeskNew NC Rep. Richard Ojeda says Hegseth should be impeachedThe HillRichmond Fed's Barkin sees more rate hikes ahead, at a gradual paceCNBCDemocrat leads Mississippi's Senate race by just over 1,000 votesBBC US & CanadaLIVE — Convicted in London of rape and three sexual assaults; sentencing is set for Monday.The Breaking DeskNew NC Rep. Richard Ojeda says Hegseth should be impeachedThe HillRichmond Fed's Barkin sees more rate hikes ahead, at a gradual paceCNBCDemocrat leads Mississippi's Senate race by just over 1,000 votesBBC US & Canada

THE MOTHER LODE

Three editions a day — Morning · Midday · Evening
Nº002 Edition Nº 002 · Midday Friday, November 6, 2026 NO ADS— Brought to you free by Re4rge and CalculateMine
Portrait of Michael Ian Black smiling at the Montclair Film Festival, in a checkered shirt, vest and tie.
THE MOTHER LODE
Edition Nº 002 · Midday · Friday, November 6, 2026
The Cover Story · Hollywood

A Candle Company That Doesn't Need a Spokesman Just Hired Michael Ian Black

Nobody has ever needed this job. Michael Ian Black announced Friday that he's taken it anyway — spokesman for Sinscents, a tiny candle company whose sales he puts at "exactly zero" and whose upside he prices, in his own capitals, at SEVERAL HUNDRED dollars.

By Marcus Hale · November 6, 2026  ·  Read the story →
Also in this issue
HollywoodMartin McDonagh's "Wild Horse Nine" Opens Today, and Its First Major Review Says John Malkovich Is as Good as He's Ever BeenGamesSony's Profit Jumped 45%. A Spider-Man Movie Is Part of the Reason — and Nintendo Fell 16% the Same Week.CreationThe AI Movie Awards Open in London on Saturday With 30 Finalists From 57 Countries. Here Are the Five to Watch First.The ExplainersRussell Brand's Appeal Clocks Are Already Running: One Started Thursday, the Other Starts When He's Sentenced

Cover: designed card — every figure on it is from the article itself.

01

Hollywood

Marcus Hale · News Editor — The Desk
02

Music

Remy Delgado · Music
TWO BALLOTSA first-round ballot sets the Grammy nominees; a final-round ballot picks the winners — both cast by the Recording Academy's voting members
Music

Grammy Winners Are Picked by Two Rounds of Ballots From Working Music Professionals. Here Is the Process.

Grammy winners are picked by peers, twice — the Recording Academy's voting members, working performers, songwriters, producers and engineers, cast a first-round ballot that sets the nominees and a final-round ballot that picks the winners, with an accounting firm holding the results in sealed envelopes until show night.

By Remy Delgado
03

Broadway

Celia Vance · Broadway — The Usher
04

Games

Jake Pruitt · Games — Player Two
¥622.3 BILLIONSony's quarterly operating profit, up 45% — games and movies including “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” per Sony's reportFull-year outlook raised 9% · Nintendo fell 16% the same week
Games

Sony's Profit Jumped 45%. A Spider-Man Movie Is Part of the Reason — and Nintendo Fell 16% the Same Week.

Sony posted ¥622.3 billion ($3.95 billion) in quarterly operating profit, up 45% and well above forecasts, crediting games and movies including "Spider-Man: Brand New Day." It raised its full-year outlook 9%. Nintendo, reporting in the same cycle, went the other way.

By Marcus Hale
05

Creation

Ada Nowak · Creation — The Maker
30 FINALISTSFrom more than 500 entries from 57 countries — the AI Movie Awards, Savoy Place, London, November 7–8, 2026Winners announced Sunday night, November 8
Creation

The AI Movie Awards Open in London on Saturday With 30 Finalists From 57 Countries. Here Are the Five to Watch First.

The second AI Movie Awards runs November 7–8 at the Institution of Engineering and Technology on Savoy Place, with winners announced Sunday night. Thirty films made the cut from more than 500 entries. This is a ranked watch list — ranked by one thing only: what each film has already done in rooms like this one.

By Ada Nowak
06

The Explainers

Priya Raman · The Numbers, Translated — Explainers
28 DAYSFrom Thursday's verdict, Brand's lawyers can challenge the convictions — and 28 days from Monday's sentence to challenge the sentence
The Explainers

Russell Brand's Appeal Clocks Are Already Running: One Started Thursday, the Other Starts When He's Sentenced

A conviction in England starts two different countdowns, and they don't start on the same day. Brand's lawyers have 28 days from the verdict to challenge the convictions — a clock already ticking — and 28 days from Monday's sentence to challenge the sentence. Going the other way, anyone at all can ask the Attorney General to argue the sentence is too low, on a deadline that can't be extended by a single day.

By Priya Raman
07

Lists & Quizzes

Bea Sandoval · The List — Lists & Quizzes
0115.32×The 10 Biggest Box-Office Surprises of 2026Opening weekend is the loudest number in the business, and it's often the least honest one. These ten films didn't win their first weekend. They won every weekend after it — ranked by how many times over they multiplied their opening.By Bea Sandoval and Marcus Hale02$225,160,693The 10 Highest-Grossing Tours of 2026 So FarPollstar's mid-year scorecard is in, and it's a rout at the top: Bad Bunny at $225.2 million, Lady Gaga at $209.4 million, and then daylight. Here's the full top ten, counted the Pollstar way — reported ticket money only.By Bea Sandoval and Remy Delgado03PER TICKET — OTHER DESERT CITIES$301.23Broadway's 10 Priciest Tickets Last WeekOne seat at Broadway's priciest show averaged $301.23 last week — more than two and a half times the cheapest seat in this top ten. Celia Vance walks the top ten as a buyer's guide: what the money buys, who's on stage, and why people are paying it. Week ending November 1, 2026.By Bea Sandoval and Celia Vance04No. 1 OF 2026 SO FARNBA 2K27The 10 Best-Selling Games of 2026 So FarBasketball just took the crown from survival horror. Here's the full U.S. top 10 for 2026 so far, counted down from 10 to 1 — ranked by dollars, not copies, and that's not a footnote, that's the whole game.By Bea Sandoval and Jake Pruitt
11

In This Issue

Every story in Edition Nº 002 · Midday — an opening-day verdict, the Brand appeal clocks, two sets of voting rules, and four Top Ten lists
  1. 01A Candle Company That Doesn't Need a Spokesman Just Hired Michael Ian BlackHollywood
  2. 02FOUR STARSMartin McDonagh's "Wild Horse Nine" Opens Today, and Its First Major Review Says John Malkovich Is as Good as He's Ever BeenHollywood
  3. 03SONY +45%Sony's Profit Jumped 45%. A Spider-Man Movie Is Part of the Reason — and Nintendo Fell 16% the Same Week.Games
  4. 0430 FINALISTSThe AI Movie Awards Open in London on Saturday With 30 Finalists From 57 Countries. Here Are the Five to Watch First.Creation
  5. 0528 DAYSRussell Brand's Appeal Clocks Are Already Running: One Started Thursday, the Other Starts When He's SentencedThe Explainers
  6. 06TWO BALLOTSGrammy Winners Are Picked by Two Rounds of Ballots From Working Music Professionals. Here Is the Process.Music
  7. 07857 VOTERSTony Winners Are Chosen by 857 Industry Voters, Including the Touring Presenters Who Book the RoadBroadway
  8. 0815.32×The 10 Biggest Box-Office Surprises of 2026Lists & Quizzes
  9. 09BAD BUNNY $225.2MThe 10 Highest-Grossing Tours of 2026 So FarLists & Quizzes
  10. 10$301.23 A TICKETBroadway's 10 Priciest Tickets Last WeekLists & Quizzes
  11. 11NBA 2K27 — No. 1The 10 Best-Selling Games of 2026 So FarLists & Quizzes