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The 50 best-selling music artists of all time

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taylor swift

Rock 'n' roll legends hold the top spots on the all-time list of best-selling artists, but today's pop stars are fast on their heels.

With many years of music likely still ahead of them, artists like Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and Adele have a good chance to surpass a number of classic artists and bands in sales totals.

You'd likely be surprised to learn, for instance, that Swift has sold more than Garth Brooks, U2, and Mariah Carey. Or that Rihanna has toppled Michael Jackson.

We compiled this list by ranking the most successful acts according to their total certified units sold worldwide — a figure that includes sales of albums, singles, and music videos. 

It's a surprising mix of the old and the new.

Check out the 50 best-selling music artists of all time: 

SEE ALSO: The 20 most ridiculous things superstar musicians have demanded at their concerts

50. Journey — 62 million units



49. Coldplay — 62.3 million units



48. Prince — 63.7 million units



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Everything you need to know about the breakout stars of Netflix's 'Stranger Things'

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Stranger Things

Once in a blue moon, magic happens and a star is born. That's the case with Netflix's newest hit series, "Stranger Things."

The first season of the series, set in the 1980s, from brothers Matt and Ross Duffer ("Wayward Pines"), follows the disappearance of a young boy, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp), and the monstrous chain of events it launches in the small town.

Viewers weren't just enraptured in the series' references to some of the most memorable movies in cinema, but also they fell in love with the show's cast, especially its young stars.

“All the kids are getting tons of praise for feeling ‘real,'" Carmen Cuba, the casting director on "Stranger Things," told the Los Angeles Times of the young actors' newfound fame.

Who are these kids and what's next for the talented bunch?

Here's a quick look at the young breakout stars of "Stranger Things":

SEE ALSO: The actress who plays Barb on 'Stranger Things' says she didn't think anyone would care about her

DON'T MISS: Everything you need to know about 'Stranger Things' — the Netflix show people are obsessed with

Noah Schnapp as Will Byers

Noah Schnapp plays Will Byers, whose disappearance becomes the obsession of his family and friends and leads to a monstrous chain of events.

Fun facts: Born in Scarsdale, New York, 11-year-old Schnapp started his acting career in school and community plays. When he was eight years old, his acting teacher recognized his talent and suggested he go professional.

Biggest credits so far: Schnapp voiced the lead character, Charlie Brown, in 2015's "The Peanuts Movie." That same year, he appeared in Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks' "Bridge of Spies."

What's next: The second season of "Stranger Things."



Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler

Finn Wolfhard plays Mike Wheeler, the unofficial leader among Will's friends and the first to befriend Eleven (Millie Brown). He's a member of the AV club at the kids' middle school.

Fun facts: A Vancouver-native, 13-year-old Wolfhard is a film buff and wants to be a director when he grows up. He's a fan of Sam Raimi’s ("The Evil Dead") early work. Raimi's "Spider-Man!" was the first movie he ever watched. He also plays the bass and guitar.

Biggest credits so far: TV shows "The 100" and "Supernatural," and the independent film "Aftermath, the Resurrection." 

What's next: The second season of "Stranger Things" and the movie, "It," based on the Stephen King novel.



Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven

Millie Bobby Brown plays Eleven, a young girl who runs into Mike, Lucas, and Dustin while they're searching for Will. She has tremendous powers and can help lead them to Will. But Eleven has led a horrific life in a nearby lab, being experimented on by Dr. Brenner (Matthew Modine), who she considers her father.

Fun facts: Brown, 12, was born in Spain to British parents. They moved to Orlando when Brown was seven years old, and she began taking acting workshops. That's where an acting scout discovered her and convinced her parents that she would do very well in Hollywood. So, the family soon moved to LA.

Biggest credits so far: Within three months of moving to LA, Brown landed the role of young Alice on ABC's "Once Upon a Time in Wonderland." She then landed a lead role in BBC America drama series, "Intruders." She has also appeared on "NCIS," "Modern Family," and "Grey's Anatomy."

What's next:The second season of "Stranger Things" (not confirmed).



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

Donald Trump let Jimmy Fallon mess up his hair

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Jimmy Fallon messes up Donald Trumps hair tonight show nbc

Jimmy Fallon definitely asked Donald Trump some tough questions about real issues, but he didn't pass up the chance to touch on a lighter issue: Trump's hair.

"The next time I see you, you could be the president of the United States," the host told Trump on Thursday's episode. "I just wanted to know if there's something that we can do that's not presidential, really, that we can do now that we're both civilians."

Trump responded, "Like what? I'm not liking the sound, go ahead."

Fallon then asked, "Can I mess your hair up?"

The crowd cheered while Trump grimaced at the question. 

"The answer is yes," he said. "But the people of New Hampshire, where I'm going to be in about an hour from now, I hope they're going to understand."

Fallon didn't give Trump much time to change his mind before digging his hand into the mogul's intricately styled locks.

Watch Fallon mess up Trump's hair below:

SEE ALSO: Seth Meyers digs deep into Donald Trump's history of reportedly stiffing people

DON'T MISS: Trevor Noah rips apart Donald Trump's anti-immigration views in profanity-filled rant

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A hair surgeon explains what's going on with Donald Trump's hair

Here's when ex-'Top Gear' host Jeremy Clarkson's new show will premiere on Amazon Prime (amzn)

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On Friday, Amazon Prime finally revealed the official premiere date for Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May's new car show.

Called "The Grand Tour", the new show is slated to debut on November 18 via Amazon Prime's instant video platform.

Amazon also released a teaser trailer to go along with the premiere date announcement— giving viewers a brief glimpse at what's to come in the new season.

The trio, who reached stardom as the host of the BBC's Emmy Award-winning "Top Gear", can be seen up to their old tricks behind the wheel of million-dollar hyper cars, exotic sports cars, and even a trio of dune buggies. 

It's unclear if Amazon will release the show by individual episodes or if the complete first season will be available in November.

In March of 2015, Clarkson was dismissed from the BBC after he punched a producer for not being able to obtain a hot steak dinner.

The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Jeremy ClarksonHammond, May, and long-time "Top Gear" executive producer Andy Wilman voluntary left the BBC following Clarkson's exit. 

In April 2015, Clarkson, Hammond, May, and Wilman signed a three-year deal with Amazon Prime to produce the new car show worth as much as $250 million.

Prior to their departure from the BBC, the trio of exiled hosts helped transform "Top Gear" from a struggling automotive news show to an entertainment juggernaut with more than 350 million weekly viewers. 

Check out "The Grand Tour" trailer:

SEE ALSO: Former 'Top Gear' host Jeremy Clarkson just revealed the cars he hated the most this year

Join the conversation about this story »

Netflix strikes major pay-TV deal (NFLX)

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Netflix has reached an agreement with Liberty Global to bring content from its subscription video on-demand (SVOD) service to nearly 30 million Liberty pay-TV subscribers across Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean, The Wall Street Journal reports.

This deal builds on Netflix’s partnership with Virgin Media since 2013 – when the SVOD service was first made available on cable set-top boxes. Liberty acquired Virgin in the same year.

Netflix subscribers will be able to log in to their accounts via their Liberty set top boxes, and Liberty will receive a share of the proceeds from customers who sign up for Netflix from its cable boxes. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings mentioned that integrating with Liberty set top boxes will eliminate the need for one remote control, making the viewing experience that much more seamless for subscribers. This partnership also plays into Netflix's strategy via the following additional factors: 

  • Reach TV audiences where they are, and deliver content how they want it. Two-thirds of Netflix users are cable and satellite TV subscribers, equivalent to the year prior,according to a survey on 582 Netflix customers by Cut Cable Today. Additionally, despite the emergence of mobile and desktop screens, 43% use their connected TVs to tune into their streaming services, according to IBM Clearleap, and most (72%) prefer to watch this content on their TV sets, according to Hub Research’s April report. 
  • Broaden Netflix's international expansion plans. The deal will bring Netflix to Liberty's 29 million video subscribers in more than 30 countries across three continents, with the roll out beginning in the Netherlands, and carrying over to other countries throughout 2017. Overseas subscribers accounted for 36 million of Netflix’s 83 million member total, as per the company’s most recent earnings report.
  • Continue the gradual blurring of digital and traditional TV. Netflix reached a similaragreement earlier this summer to bring its content to Comcast’s X1 set top boxes. Around 35% of Comcast’s 22 million subscribers own an X1 box. Netflix also recently partnered with Univision to broadcast its original show “Narcos” on the Spanish language TV network.

Over the last few years, there’s been much talk about the “death of TV.” However, television is not dying so much as it's evolving: extending beyond the traditional television screen and broadening to include programming from new sources accessed in new ways.

It's strikingly evident that more consumers are shifting their media time away from live TV, while opting for services that allow them to watch what they want, when they want. Indeed, we are seeing a migration toward original digital video such as YouTube Originals, SVOD services such as Netflix, and live streaming on social platforms.

However, not all is lost for legacy media companies. Amid this rapidly shifting TV landscape, traditional media companies are making moves across a number of different fronts — trying out new distribution channels, creating new types of programming aimed at a mobile-first audience, and partnering with innovate digital media companies. In addition, cable providers have begun offering alternatives for consumers who may no longer be willing to pay for a full TV package.

Dylan Mortensen, senior research analyst for BI Intelligence, has compiled a detailed report on the future of TV that looks at how TV viewer, subscriber, and advertising trends are shifting, and where and what audiences are watching as they turn away from traditional TV. 

Here are some key points from the report:

  • Increased competition from digital services like Netflix and Hulu as well as new hardware to access content are shifting consumers' attention away from live TV programming.
  • Across the board, the numbers for live TV are bad. US adults are watching traditional TV on average 18 minutes fewer per day versus two years ago, a drop of 6%. In keeping with this, cable subscriptions are down, and TV ad revenue is stagnant.
  • People are consuming more media content than ever before, but how they're doing so is changing. Half of US TV households now subscribe to SVOD services, like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu, and viewing of original digital video content is on the rise.
  • Legacy TV companies are recognizing these shifts and beginning to pivot their business models to keep pace with the changes. They are launching branded apps and sites to move their programming beyond the TV glass, distributing on social platforms to reach massive, young audiences, and forming partnerships with digital media brands to create new content.
  • The TV ad industry is also taking a cue from digital. Programmatic TV ad buying represented just 4% (or $2.5 billion) of US TV ad budgets in 2015 but is expected to grow to 17% ($10 billion) by 2019. Meanwhile, networks are also developing branded TV content, similar to publishers' push into sponsored content.

In full, the report: 

  • Outlines the shift in consumer viewing habits, specifically the younger generation.
  • Explores the rise of subscription streaming services and the importance of original digital video content.
  • Breaks down ways in which legacy media companies are shifting their content and advertising strategies.
  • And Discusses new technology that will more effectively measure audiences across screens and platforms. 

Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:

  1. Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. » START A MEMBERSHIP
  2. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. »BUY THE REPORT

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Bill Clinton responds to Hillary health rumors: 'Big deal, she had pneumonia'

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Getty Images bill clinton trevor noah daily show

Bill Clinton brushed off wife Hillary Clinton's recent bout with pneumonia when he appeared on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah" on Thursday.

"Big deal, she had pneumonia - people get get it all the time," Clinton told Trevor Noah.

Hillary was forced to leave a 9/11 event over the weekend due to dehydration. It was later announced that she had pneumonia.

While Bill said he was concerned after seeing her appear to faint, that was tempered by his certainty about what caused it.

"She had been working hard, she was dehydrated, she had been standing up a long time there," he explained. "And she wanted to go to that 9/11 event and we both thought she'd be okay. It's not surprising... 90% of the time, it's just people are dehydrated. And so I didn't worry too much about it."

He then joked about Hillary's pneumonia diagnosis.

"It used to be called when I was young, walking pneumonia," he said. "But sometimes, you can't walk anymore and you have to rest, so that's what she did."

Hillary's pneumonia fed into rumors that she isn't healthy enough to be president. But she recovered after about four days of rest and returned to the campaign trail on Thursday.

Watch the full interview at the Comedy Central website.

SEE ALSO: Donald Trump let Jimmy Fallon mess up his hair

DON'T MISS: Seth Meyers digs deep into Donald Trump's history of reportedly stiffing people

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Clinton's latest ad slams Pence for refusing to call former KKK leader David Duke 'deplorable'

'Making a Murderer' subject Brendan Dassey asks to be released from prison on bond

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brenden dassey making a murderer ap

Lawyers for "Making a Murderer" subject Brendan Dassey have filed a motion to have him released from prison while Wisconsin's appeal of his overturned conviction is being decided.

"On September 14, 2016, we filed a motion asking the Court to release Brendan on bond during the State of Wisconsin’s appeal," Dassey's lawyers told Buzzfeed in a statement.

"We will not be publicly commenting on this motion at this time," the statement continued. "As in the past, we ask Brendan’s supporters to refrain from contacting the judge or prosecutors about this motion. As always, Brendan, his family, and his attorneys remain grateful for your support."

The motion arrives a week after Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel filed an appeal in the decision to free Dassey.

Had he not filed the appeal, the decision by a federal magistrate judge that overturned murder charges against Dassey would've resulted in his release by mid-November.

If the state's appeal is unsuccessful, state prosecutors can still decide to re-try Dassey for the crimes.

The federal magistrate judge's decision to overturn Dassey's charges was primarily based on the questionable methods used while interrogating Dassey, who was about 16 at the time.

The investigators' interrogations of Dassey were heavily featured on the Netflix series. Many who watched "Making a Murderer" were particularly aghast at the treatment of Dassey, who has learning disabilities and whose interrogation with police may have been marred by "interview contamination"— in which police let slip details to potential witnesses or suspects, leading them to believe and repeat certain facts.

As for Dassey's uncle, Steven Avery, who is also serving life for the murder, his attorney, Kathleen Zellner, recently filed a request to retest evidence used in the trial against him in an attempt to prove that local investigators planted evidence. She has also said new, "crucial" witnesses have come forward.

Netflix is currently in production on a second season of "Making a Murderer."

SEE ALSO: Wisconsin is appealing the decision to free 'Making a Murderer' subject Brendan Dassey

DON'T MISS: Everything you need to know about 'Making a Murderer' if you don't want to spend 10 hours watching

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: The defense attorneys from 'Making a Murderer' respond to criticism from Steven Avery’s new lawyer

Sony finally responds to controversy over 'No Man's Sky'

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Following the release of the highly anticipated space-exploration game "No Man's Sky," there was a bit of a backlash amongst its most excited customers.

In short, they felt its marketing campaign greatly overpromised on the game's features, leaving many feeling underwhelmed once they actually started playing.

A YouTube video that made the rounds shortly after the game's release sums up the disappointment pretty well. In it, you can see footage from the game's initial reveal at E3 2014 compared to actual gameplay footage upon its release in August:

Speaking to Eurogamer, Sony's President of Worldwide Studios, Shuhei Yoshida, said he sympathizes with these disappointed customers.

"I understand some of the criticisms especially [Hello Games' Founder] Sean Murray is getting, because he sounded like he was promising more features in the game from day one," he said. "It wasn't a great PR strategy, because he didn't have a PR person helping him, and in the end he is an indie developer. But he says their plan is to continue to develop No Man's Sky features and such, and I'm looking forward to continuing to play the game."

One of the features players felt they were promised was the ability to play with others online should they ever run into each other. During Sean Murray's appearance on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," he says that this would be possible, but very unlikely given just how unfathomably huge the game's world is.

Murray says the game's universe is as big as an actual universe, containing an estimated 18 quintillion planets.

While that may be the case, two players managed to stand in the exact same spot on the exact same planet less than a day after the game came out — but they were unable to see each other.

Sean Murray, clearly surprised that players had managed to run into each other so soon, chalked this up to the fact that the servers were overwhelmed with so many trying to play the game at once, but others speculated that maybe the game wasn't able to support multiplayer at all.

Around the same time, there were reports that some editions of the game had stickers covering an icon that indicated the game would support online play, leading some to believe that the game's proposed multiplayer features had to be scaled back before release.

Unfortunately, this isn't a new issue for the gaming industry. There's a great YouTube video that showcases the differences between the initial reveal trailers for games versus what they actually looked like upon release.

Let's just hope Sean Murray makes good on his promise of continuing to support "No Man's Sky," evolving it into the game that its most loyal fans dreamed it would be from the start.

SEE ALSO: The 10 weirdest things people have encountered in 'No Man's Sky'

SEE ALSO: Here's what's at the center of the universe in 'No Man's Sky'

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's your first look at the newest PlayStations


The Surprising Real Names Of 30 Celebrities

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whoopi goldberg

Sometimes you need to change your name to make it as a star in Hollywood or the music business.

Plenty of today's biggest stars don't go by their birth names — Reese Witherspoon, Mila Kunis, and Natalie Portman. 

However, you probably aren't familiar with how they ended up with their current monikers.

Some are simple. Francis Ford Coppola's nephew Nicolas Cage changed his last name to avoid the worries of Hollywood nepotism. 

Others, like Bruno Mars and Michael Caine are more inspired. And then there's Whoopi Goldberg, whose name was changed after friends noticed her flatulence problem.

Mila Kunis — Milena Markovna Kunis

At the age of seven, Milena Markovna Kunis and her family moved from Ukraine to Los Angeles, Calif.

Mila's mother, Elvira, and father, Mark, soon enrolled her in acting classes and allowed Mila to shorten her name when she started booking her first roles on "Days of our Lives," "7th Heaven," and playing a young Angelina Jolie in "Gia."



Joaquin Phoenix — Joaquin Rafael Bottom/Leaf Phoenix

Joaquin Rafael Bottom is the third of five children, all with equally interesting names, including River (1970–1993), Rain (1973), Liberty (1976), Summer, and a half-sister Jodean.

After Joaquin's parents, John Lee and Arlyn Bottom, married in 1969, the couple joined the religious cult the Children of God and traveled around South America. But they soon became disenchanted with the cult and moved back to the U.S. in 1978, where they changed their last name to "Phoenix" to symbolize "new beginning."

Around this same time, a young Joaquin began calling himself "Leaf," desiring to have a similar nature-related name like his siblings. In a past Jay Leno interview, Joaquin said he had originally called himself "Antleaf" as a child.

Leaf would become the name he would use as a child actor until, at age 15, he changed it back to Joaquin.



Reese Witherspoon — Laura Jeanne

The "Sweet Home Alabama" actress traded her first and middle name in for her mother's maiden name, "Reese."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

'Snowden' star Shailene Woodley explains how Hillary Clinton can attract Bernie Sanders supporters

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Bernie Sanders Shailene Woodley Seth Meyers Llody Bishop NBC.JPG

While doing press for her upcoming movie "Snowden," actress Shailene Woodley stopped by "Late Night with Seth Meyers" Thursday night and got into issues of politics and the environment, two things she's passionate about. 

Sitting alongside Senator Bernie Sanders, who Woodley was a vocal supporter of when he ran for the Democratic nomination of the President of the United States, Meyers asked Woodley how Hillary Clinton can inspire millennials like herself that were so taken by Sanders' campaign to support Clinton. 

Woodley pointed out that Clinton showing her stance on climate chance would be one that would grab the attention of millennials that are very environment-conscious. 

"People want to vote for her," said Woodley, "people just want to see that what she says is actually going to be followed through."

One example she gives is the Dakota Access Pipeline, a project that would carry more than 470,000 barrels of crude oil daily from North Dakota to Illinois, however, a North Dakota Native American reservation has said the pipeline runs too close to its main water supply and sacred burial sites. The Obama administration temporarily halted work on the project following the recent protests against it, which included Woodley, who says she was there protesting for a month.

"Hillary has a platform that said she honors the sovereignty of Native American nations, she also has a platform with climate change," said Woodley. "This is a brilliant opportunity for her to stand up and show millennials where her stance is on this particular issue.”

You can watch Woodley talk on "Late Night with Seth Meyers" below:

SEE ALSO: Bill Clinton responds to Hillary health rumors: "Big deal, she had pneumonia"

Join the conversation about this story »

The Surprising Real Names Of 30 Celebrities

0
0

whoopi goldberg

Sometimes you need to change your name to make it as a star in Hollywood or the music business.

Plenty of today's biggest stars don't go by their birth names — Reese Witherspoon, Mila Kunis, and Natalie Portman. 

However, you probably aren't familiar with how they ended up with their current monikers.

Some are simple. Francis Ford Coppola's nephew Nicolas Cage changed his last name to avoid the worries of Hollywood nepotism. 

Others, like Bruno Mars and Michael Caine are more inspired. And then there's Whoopi Goldberg, whose name was changed after friends noticed her flatulence problem.

Mila Kunis — Milena Markovna Kunis

At the age of seven, Milena Markovna Kunis and her family moved from Ukraine to Los Angeles, Calif.

Mila's mother, Elvira, and father, Mark, soon enrolled her in acting classes and allowed Mila to shorten her name when she started booking her first roles on "Days of our Lives," "7th Heaven," and playing a young Angelina Jolie in "Gia."



Joaquin Phoenix — Joaquin Rafael Bottom/Leaf Phoenix

Joaquin Rafael Bottom is the third of five children, all with equally interesting names, including River (1970–1993), Rain (1973), Liberty (1976), Summer, and a half-sister Jodean.

After Joaquin's parents, John Lee and Arlyn Bottom, married in 1969, the couple joined the religious cult the Children of God and traveled around South America. But they soon became disenchanted with the cult and moved back to the U.S. in 1978, where they changed their last name to "Phoenix" to symbolize "new beginning."

Around this same time, a young Joaquin began calling himself "Leaf," desiring to have a similar nature-related name like his siblings. In a past Jay Leno interview, Joaquin said he had originally called himself "Antleaf" as a child.

Leaf would become the name he would use as a child actor until, at age 15, he changed it back to Joaquin.



Reese Witherspoon — Laura Jeanne

The "Sweet Home Alabama" actress traded her first and middle name in for her mother's maiden name, "Reese."



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

22 lessons from Stephen King on how to be a great writer

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stephen king

Renowned author Stephen King has written over 50 books that have captivated millions of people around the world.

In his memoir, "On Writing," King shares valuable insights into how to be a better writer. And he doesn't sugarcoat it. He writes, "I can't lie and say there are no bad writers. Sorry, but there are lots of bad writers."

Don't want to be one of them? Here are 22 great pieces of advice from King's book on how to be an amazing writer.

1. Stop watching television. Instead, read as much as possible.

If you're just starting out as a writer, your television should be the first thing to go. It's "poisonous to creativity," he says. Writers need to look into themselves and turn toward the life of the imagination.

To do so, they should read as much as they can. King takes a book with him everywhere he goes, and even reads during meals. "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot," he says. Read widely, and constantly work to refine and redefine your own work as you do so.

2. Prepare for more failure and criticism than you think you can deal with.

King compares writing fiction to crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a bathtub, because in both, "there's plenty of opportunity for self-doubt." Not only will you doubt yourself, but other people will doubt you, too. "If you write (or paint or dance or sculpt or sing, I suppose), someone will try to make you feel lousy about it, that's all," writes King.

Oftentimes, you have to continue writing even when you don't feel like it. "Stopping a piece of work just because it's hard, either emotionally or imaginatively, is a bad idea," he writes. And when you fail, King suggests that you remain positive. "Optimism is a perfectly legitimate response to failure." 

3. Don't waste time trying to please people.

Stephen KingAccording to King, rudeness should be the least of your concerns. "If you intend to write as truthfully as you can, your days as a member of polite society are numbered anyway," he writes.

King used to be ashamed of what he wrote, especially after receiving angry letters accusing him of being bigoted, homophobic, murderous, and even psychopathic.

By the age of 40, he realized that every decent writer has been accused of being a waste of talent. King has definitely come to terms with it. He writes, "If you disapprove, I can only shrug my shoulders. It's what I have." You can't please all of your readers all the time, so King advises that you stop worrying. 

4. Write primarily for yourself.

You should write because it brings you happiness and fulfillment. As King says, "I did it for the pure joy of the thing. And if you can do it for joy, you can do it forever."

Writer Kurt Vonnegut provides a similar insight: "Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about," he says. "It is this genuine caring, not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style."

5. Tackle the things that are hardest to write.

"The most important things are the hardest things to say," writes King. "They are the things you get ashamed of because words diminish your feelings." Most great pieces of writing are preceded with hours of thought. In King's mind, "Writing is refined thinking."

When tackling difficult issues, make sure you dig deeply. King says, "Stories are found things, like fossils in the ground ... Stories are relics, part of an undiscovered pre-existing world." Writers should be like archaeologists, excavating for as much of the story as they can find.

6. When writing, disconnect from the rest of the world.

Writing should be a fully intimate activity. Put your desk in the corner of the room, and eliminate all possible distractions, from phones to open windows. King advises, "Write with the door closed; rewrite with the door open."

You should maintain total privacy between you and your work. Writing a first draft is "completely raw, the sort of thing I feel free to do with the door shut — it's the story undressed, standing up in nothing but its socks and undershorts."

7. Don't be pretentious.

Stephen King"One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary, looking for long words because you're maybe a little bit ashamed of your short ones," says King.

He compares this mistake to dressing up a household pet in evening clothes — both the pet and the owner are embarrassed, because it's completely excessive.

As iconic businessman David Ogilvy writes in a memo to his employees, "Never use jargon words like reconceptualize, demassification, attitudinally, judgmentally. They are hallmarks of a pretentious ass." Furthermore, don't use symbols unless necessary. "Symbolism exists to adorn and enrich, not to create an artificial sense of profundity," writes King.

8. Avoid adverbs and long paragraphs.

As King emphasizes several times in his memoir, "the adverb is not your friend." In fact, he believes that "the road to hell is paved with adverbs" and compares them to dandelions that ruin your lawn. Adverbs are worst after "he said" and "she said" — those phrases are best left unadorned.

You should also pay attention to your paragraphs, so that they flow with the turns and rhythms of your story. "Paragraphs are almost always as important for how they look as for what they say," says King. 

9. Don't get overly caught up in grammar.

According to King, writing is primarily about seduction, not precision. "Language does not always have to wear a tie and lace-up shoes," writes King. "The object of fiction isn't grammatical correctness but to make the reader welcome and then tell a story." You should strive to make the reader forget that he or she is reading a story at all.

10. Master the art of description.

"Description begins in the writer's imagination, but should finish in the reader's," writes King. The important part isn't writing enough, but limiting how much you say. Visualize what you want your reader to experience, and then translate what you see in your mind into words on the page. You need to describe things "in a way that will cause your reader to prickle with recognition," he says.

The key to good description is clarity, both in observation and in writing. Use fresh images and simple vocabulary to avoid exhausting your reader. "In many cases when a reader puts a story aside because it 'got boring,' the boredom arose because the writer grew enchanted with his powers of description and lost sight of his priority, which is to keep the ball rolling," notes King.

11. Don't give too much background information.

Stephen King"What you need to remember is that there's a difference between lecturing about what you know and using it to enrich the story," writes King. "The latter is good. The former is not." Make sure you only include details that move your story forward and that persuade your reader to continue reading.

If you need to do research, make sure it doesn't overshadow the story. Research belongs "as far in the background and the back story as you can get it," says King. You may be entranced by what you're learning, but your readers are going to care a lot more about your characters and your story.

12. Tell stories about what people actually do.

"Bad writing is more than a matter of shit syntax and faulty observation; bad writing usually arises from a stubborn refusal to tell stories about what people actually do — to face the fact, let us say, that murderers sometimes help old ladies cross the street," writes King. The people in your stories are what readers care about the most, so make sure you acknowledge all the dimensions your characters may have.

13. Take risks; don't play it safe.

First and foremost, stop using the passive voice. It's the biggest indicator of fear. "I'm convinced that fear is at the root of most bad writing," King says. Writers should throw back their shoulders, stick out their chins, and put their writing in charge. 

"Try any goddamn thing you like, no matter how boringly normal or outrageous. If it works, fine. If it doesn't, toss it," King says.

14. Realize that you don't need drugs to be a good writer.

"The idea that the creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time," says King. In his eyes, substance-abusing writers are just substance-abusers. "Any claims that the drugs and alcohol are necessary to dull a finer sensibility are just the usual self-serving bullshit."

15. Don't try to steal someone else's voice.

As King says, "You can't aim a book like a cruise missile." When you try to mimic another writer's style for any reason other than practice, you'll produce nothing but "pale imitations." This is because you can never try to replicate the way someone feels and experiences truth, especially not through a surface-level glance at vocabulary and plot.

16. Understand that writing is a form of telepathy.

"All the arts depend upon telepathy to some degree, but I believe that writing is the purest distillation," says King. An important element of writing is transference. Your job isn't to write words on the page, but rather to transfer the ideas inside your head into the heads of your readers.

"Words are just the medium through which the transfer happens," says King. In his advice on writing, Vonnegut also recommends that writers "use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted."

17. Take your writing seriously.

"You can approach the act of writing with nervousness, excitement, hopefulness, or despair," says King. "Come to it any way but lightly." If you don't want to take your writing seriously, he suggests that you close the book and do something else. 

As writer Susan Sontag says, "The story must strike a nerve — in me. My heart should start pounding when I hear the first line in my head. I start trembling at the risk."

18. Write every single day.

stephen king"Once I start work on a project, I don't stop, and I don't slow down unless I absolutely have to," says King. "If I don't write every day, the characters begin to stale off in my mind ... I begin to lose my hold on the story's plot and pace."

If you fail to write consistently, the excitement for your idea may begin to fade. When the work starts to feel like work, King describes the moment as "the smooch of death." His best advice is to just take it "one word at a time."

19. Finish your first draft in three months.

King likes to write 10 pages a day. Over a three-month span, that amounts to around 180,000 words. "The first draft of a book — even a long one — should take no more than three months, the length of a season," he says. If you spend too long on your piece, King believes the story begins to take on an odd foreign feel.

20. When you're finished writing, take a long step back.

King suggests six weeks of "recuperation time" after you're done writing, so you can have a clear mind to spot any glaring holes in the plot or character development. He asserts that a writer's original perception of a character could be just as faulty as the reader's.

King compares the writing and revision process to nature. "When you write a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees," he writes. "When you're done, you have to step back and look at the forest." When you do find your mistakes, he says that "you are forbidden to feel depressed about them or to beat up on yourself. Screw-ups happen to the best of us."

21. Have the guts to cut.

When revising, writers often have a difficult time letting go of words they spent so much time writing. But, as King advises, "Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler's heart, kill your darlings."

Although revision is one of the most difficult parts of writing, you need to leave out the boring parts in order to move the story along. In his advice on writing, Vonnegut suggests, "If a sentence, no matter how excellent, does not illuminate your subject in some new and useful way, scratch it out."

22. Stay married, be healthy, and live a good life.

King attributes his success to two things: his physical health and his marriage. "The combination of a healthy body and a stable relationship with a self-reliant woman who takes zero shit from me or anyone else has made the continuity of my working life possible," he writes.

It's important to have a strong balance in your life, so writing doesn't consume all of it. In writer and painter Henry Miller's 11 commandments of writing, he advises, "Keep human! See people, go places, drink if you feel like it."

This is an update of an article written by Maggie Zhang.

SEE ALSO: Here's the secret underlying all good writing

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Jimmy Fallon is under fire for going easy on Donald Trump in 'sickening' interview

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Jimmy Fallon has come under fire after interviewing Donald Trump on Thursday by critics who say he wasn't aggressive enough with the presidential candidate.

Fallon's playful, softball interview, which ended with his toughest question — whether Trump would let him mess up the candidate's hair— has inspired a lot of heated criticism among viewers and members of the media.

Huffington Post writer Maxwell Strachan called the interview "an extended on-air puff piece" and dinged Fallon for playing nice with a controversial figure running for the highest job in the nation. Strachan compared Fallon's Trump interview with one done by David Letterman, who retired from late night last year.

"At their best, late-night hosts have been able to toe a difficult line between comedy and responsibility. No one did this better than David Letterman, who repeatedly exposed truth while still on the air," Strachan wrote.

He continued: "Fallon is not Letterman, and he never will be, nor does he seem to want to be. But that doesn't mean he be let off the hook for humanizing a well-documented xenophobic, racist, and misogynistic serial liar, which is exactly what he did on Thursday."

A chorus of viewers expressed their anger with Fallon on social media:

A "Tonight Show" representative didn't immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

Watch a clip from Fallon's Trump interview:

SEE ALSO: Donald Trump let Jimmy Fallon mess up his hair

DON'T MISS: Bill Clinton responds to Hillary health rumors: 'Big deal, she had pneumonia'

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NOW WATCH: Watch Trump finally admit that President Obama was born in the US

Fox is suing Netflix for allegedly poaching employees

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netflix ceo reed hastings

Fox is suing Netflix for allegedly poaching employees from the company.

In a statement provided to Business Insider, Fox says: "As our complaint explains, we filed this lawsuit because we believe Netflix is defiantly flouting the law by soliciting and inducing employees to break their contracts. We intend to seek all available remedies to enforce our rights and hold Netflix accountable for its wrongful behavior."

The legal complaint was filed by Twentieth Century Fox and Fox 21, a TV production subsidiary, in Los Angeles County, West District, TheWrap reports.

Fox claims that Netflix is encouraging its employees to violate contracts in order to go work for the streaming giant, which has done "great and irreparable harm" to Fox.

Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

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NOW WATCH: This incredibly detailed Batman costume just set a Guinness World Record

The 5 best new songs you can stream right now

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bon iverNow that new music comes out every Friday — though not always on every streaming service — it can be hard to know where to find the next great song.

To help you out, Business Insider compiles this rundown of the best new music you can stream right now.

This week, Bon Iver premiered its latest single on "The Tonight Show," and instrumentalist Tycho released an excellent new track. 

Check out this week's best new songs:

SEE ALSO: The 5 best new songs you can stream from the week of September 2

Tycho — "Epoch"

Tycho's new single "Epoch" continues in the instrumentalist's tradition of cool, meditative jams that are great for studying, working out, driving, walking, or pretty much any other activity imaginable. 

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Mndsgn — "Use Ya Mnd (Twentyfourseven)"

In the fashion of Toro y Moi's early music, California producer Mndsgn's latest album "Body Wash" combines chill electronic music with simple vocals. The synth-jazz on the highlight track "Use Ya Mnd (Twentyfourseven)" makes for pleasant listening.  

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Francis and the Lights — "See Her Out (That's Just Life)"

It's been an impressive year for indie outfit Francis and the Lights. Following notable collaborations with artists like Frank Ocean and Chance the Rapper, the group has released "See Her Out (That's Just Life)," a compelling and accessible single of its own. 

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'Well you don't talk about ISIS with a big grin on your face': Hillary Clinton riffs on Republicans telling her to smile more

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Hillary Clinton riffed on the double standard she faces on the campaign trail during an appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon on Friday.

"When you campaign, I feel like it's so tricky. People kind of want to see this Hillary, which is the bad-ass Hillary and the serious Hillary." Fallon said, according to a Reuters report published ahead of the show's airing Monday night.

"They want to see someone who's going to protect us and be strong and tough," Fallon added.

Clinton responded:

"It's especially tricky for women. And it just is because you know there's a lot of serious things. The other night, I was on a show and being asked about ISIS and Iran and I was serious. These are important issues that the country needs to talk about. And the Republicans were saying, 'Oh she looks so serious.' Well you don't talk about ISIS with a big grin on your face. They're a barbaric, evil group that we have to defeat and wipe out. But it is a constant balancing act. How do you kind of keep the energy and the positive spirit while taking seriously what you need to."

Clinton was referring to NBC's Commander-In-Chief Forum that news anchor Matt Lauer hosted on September 7, where both she and her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, discussed national security.

After Clinton appeared, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted that she had "no smile."

Not the first time

Conservative MSNBC host Joe Scarborough similarly told Clinton to "smile" after she won three crucial states in the Democratic primary. The response from Samantha Bee of "Full Frontal" prompted thousands of others to tweet their #SmileforJoe.

And those are just the two instances that received a substantial amount of press.

A number of women have addressed being told to smile over the last few years, from actresses and activists to politicians and pundits.

"Stop Telling Women to Smile" is a project from artist Tatyana Fazlalizadeh that places portraits of women around major cities to draw attention to the street harassment women face every day. It's turned into a movement, with women sharing their own harassment storiesacross social media.

As a true testament to the cultural ubiquity of the phrase, in an episode of the show "Broad City," Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson reacted to a stranger on the street saying it by pushing their mouths into a smile with their middle fingers.

After Preibus' tweet, Chelsea Handler responded on her Netflix show, "Chelsea."

"Who the f--- are you to tell someone to smile? This is just another example of how men think they can belittle every woman in the world and order up a smile," Handler said.

"You know what, women? We'll smile when Hillary kicks that pneumonia and trounces Trump in November."

DON'T MISS: The chairman of the GOP is getting slammed for tweet criticizing Clinton for having 'no smile'

SEE ALSO: Jimmy Fallon is under fire for going easy on Donald Trump in 'sickening' interview

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NOW WATCH: 'It’s not my thing': Clinton releases ad of Trump stating diaper changes are a wife's job

This game from 2015 is better than anything I've played in 2016

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I didn't get around to "The Witcher III" when it originally came out in 2015 because it was simply too intimidating. It was a massive game that could absorb my life if I wasn't too careful. It was also the third game in a series I had never played, so I was worried I might not be able to follow the supposedly great narrative.

That one ranks pretty high up on the list of mistakes I've made in my life. Having bought it on sale earlier this year and finally devoting lots of time to it over the past month, I can confidently say it's an achievement like few other games. If you like great storytelling, I can't recommend it enough.

Here are the main reasons why:

 

SEE ALSO: One of the best opening sequences in gaming almost didn't happen

You play as a defined character instead of one you created, and he's fantastic

"The Witcher III" is a role-playing game (or RPG) along the same lines as something like "Dragon Age" or "Mass Effect." Its main deviation from that formula is that you don't create a character; instead, you play as Geralt of Rivia, star of the previous games and the focus of the Polish novels upon which the games are based.

Geralt is a Witcher, meaning he was given a bunch of mutations as a kid that gave him unnatural strength and heightened senses at the expense of his ability to procreate. Witchers are traveling monster slayers-for-hire, so Geralt either finds work or waits for work to find him.

While I immensely enjoy and respect the ability to create my own hero and craft my own story, I found playing as a more defined character to be really compelling. Geralt is wisened, cynical and has a fantastically dry sense of humor. He isn't totally amoral, but he understands the way the world has to work sometimes and acts accordingly.

You still make huge choices that impact the story, but every available choice is something Geralt would do. Whether you choose to spare or kill a bad guy, Geralt will find a way to justify his decision according to his characterization. 



By lowering the stakes, its story is far more compelling than others

Most video games (and a good chunk of fiction in general) frame their stories as a hero trying to save the world from destruction of some manner. That's fine! It's a good impetus for characters to find their flaws and develop in order to fulfill their roles.

"The Witcher III" (almost) completely eschews this in favor of something more personal. Here, all Geralt is trying to do is find his long-lost adopted daughter Ciri, who has been on the run from a group of bad dudes called the Wild Hunt.

You actually get to play as Ciri a couple of times, and her journey is enthralling enough to be a game of its own. But since you play as Geralt, you largely see people and places in the aftermath of encountering Ciri, so you're really seeing the aftermath of the traditional video game story instead of controlling it.

The interplay between Geralt and Ciri is fantastic, as it is between Geralt and all his other friends you meet along the way. "The Witcher III" shows that not every story needs to be an end-of-the-world scenario to be compelling; in fact, getting away from that makes your story even better.



The ways in which your choices impact the story are more subtle than other games

Without spoiling too much (I expect you to buy the game right after reading this), I want to talk about the way the game handles its ending, which I found particularly great.

There are basically three possible outcomes on a grand scale, with small permutations between them. Which outcome you get is not based on a simple choice at the end, but on several seemingly-innocuous interactions peppered throughout the story.

It feels natural. The fate of a character was partially influenced by whether or not I chose to stay up late and have a beer with them, rather than me choosing the blue (good) or red (bad) option. 

It also helps that the choices never come down to purely good or bad. There is no perfect ending to any scenario, or necessarily even an ideal one because that's not how the world works. All you can do is be the best Geralt you can be and hope things work out.



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'Shark Tank' investor Robert Herjavec reveals how deals are affected by what happens behind the scenes

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When "Shark Tank" returns on September 23 for its season-eight premiere, millions of Americans will tune in to watch a reality show with real stakes, where entrepreneurs pitch their companies to a panel of investors who can potentially change their lives.

A great product and charisma are necessary for a deal, but a bit of luck is involved as well, since the Sharks' moods are closely tied to their shooting schedule, cast member Robert Herjavec reveals in his latest book, "You Don't Have to be a Shark."

The series has been huge for the personal brands of each of the six investors and has yielded investments that have made them millions of dollars, but they need to spend as little time as possible in the Los Angeles studio because their businesses are still their primary responsibilities.

To compromise, the show's producers have worked out a schedule that allows an entire season of about 30 episodes to be shot over 17 days. The seventh season, for example, was split into a session early last summer and then early last fall. Each day on set lasts 12 hours, beginning at 6 a.m. or 7 a.m., and shooting is done in three-day splits separated by an off-day.

In his book, Herjavec says that each of these three days has a distinct atmosphere, and the day an entrepreneur pitches to them on affects their chances of getting a deal — as well as how the Sharks interact with each other.

SEE ALSO: 9 successful entrepreneurs share the worst advice they ever received

Day 1

"The first day is generally a good one," Herjavec writes. "We reacquaint ourselves with each other and get a buzz from routine preparations, trading gossip, catching up on each other's careers, and talking with crew members in the studio."

Herjavec notes that the nature of the show requires their full attention, and that at the start of each three-day cycle they are rewiring their brains to forget about whatever is happening back at their companies or even their personal lives.

To help get into this mindset, the Sharks deliberately play up their personas, Herjavec explains. "For the first few hours of day one Kevin [O'Leary] snarls a little more, Mark [Cuban] is pushier, Lori [Greiner] sharpens her TV smarts, Barbara [Corcoran] plays her strict den mother role with greater relish, and Daymond [John] seems to rise even farther above it all," he writes. "I tend to smile more easily, finding it all entertaining and refreshing."

So depending on which of the Sharks connects to an entrepreneur's pitch, either with enthusiasm or distaste, landing a Day 1 spot can result in a slightly exaggerated reception.



Day 2

"Day two is inevitably the best," Herjavec says. The Sharks aren't distracted by what's happening back at their office and they're not concerned about hamming it up. They're acutely focused on making good deals.

"Those twelve-hour studio sessions have become our reality, and nothing intrudes on our assessment of the pitches (and the people making them)," he writes.



Day 3

Day 3 presents the biggest challenge to entrepreneurs because it's the least enjoyable for the Sharks.

As the day progresses, Herjavec says, "it becomes difficult to keep our minds off whatever we hope or fear is happening back at the office. It also becomes trickier to overlook little annoyances that were easy to shrug off a day or two earlier, when they might have earned a smile or a joke tossed between us for a laugh."

The investors start to itch to get back to their companies, and they're more likely to think about how cold, hungry, and miserable they are in the studio, Herjavec says. The producers enjoy the third day, he argues, because the ways the Sharks either attack an entrepreneur giving a weak pitch or attack each other over a deal when they're in this mood makes for great television.

That's what happened in season six, for example, when Herjavec yelled at Greiner and John for giving a "handout" to an entrepreneur he determined they felt sorry for, before storming off the set, with similarly disgusted Cuban and O'Leary not far behind him.

"Three days don't represent just the maximum number of days we can stay away from our businesses; it's the maximum number of days we can do our jobs as Sharks and still remain functional," Herjavec writes. "Not to mention amiable and courteous with each other."



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The crazy government conspiracy theory that inspired 'Stranger Things'

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The deep dive on our favorite summer show isn’t done yet.

It turns out that Netflix’s sci-fi hit “Stranger Things” resembles very closely an alleged real-life government experiment known as “The Montauk Project.”

As Thrillist reports, The Montauk Project is claimed to have been a series of government experiments that were done at Camp Hero or Montauk Air Force Station in Montauk, Long Island. Stories of the experiments have circulated since the 1980s, saying they focused on psychological-warfare techniques and things like time travel, teleportation, and mind control. (Though the stories, many of which come from supposed repressed memories, are not at all confirmed and should be taken with a grain of salt.)

As for "Stranger Things"? Well, the show was originally titled "Montauk" when it was picked up by Netflix, and the synopsis (reported by Slash Film) makes it pretty clear the creators were inspired by those repressed memories:

"Described as a love letter to the ’80s classics that captivated a generation, the series is set in 1980 Montauk, Long Island, where a young boy vanishes into thin air. As friends, family and local police search for answers, they are drawn into an extraordinary mystery involving top-secret government experiments, terrifying supernatural forces and one very strange little girl."

Thrillist highlights a man named Preston Nichols, who claims to have memories of being involved in a specific experiment known as the “Montauk Chair,” which amplifies psychic powers.

See if this description of an experiment from Nichols' book “The Montauk Project: Experiments in Time” sounds familiar:

“The first experiment was called ‘The Seeing Eye.’ With a lock of person's hair or other appropriate object in his hand, Duncan [Cameron, supposed psychic] could concentrate on the person and be able to see as if he was seeing through their eyes, hearing through their ears, and feeling through their body. He could actually see through other people anywhere on the planet.”

Kind of sounds like the experiment being done on Eleven before she opens the Upside Down portal on "Stranger Things."

And in this excerpt from Nichols’ book he writes about how Duncan summoned a monster while on the chair:

“We finally decided we’d had enough of the whole experiment. The contingency program was activated by someone approaching Duncan while he was in the chair and simply whispering ‘The time is now.’ At this moment, he let loose a monster from his subconscious. And the transmitter actually portrayed a hairy monster. It was big, hairy, hungry and nasty. But it didn’t appear underground in the null point. It showed up somewhere on the base. It would eat anything it could find. And it smashed everything in sight. Several different people saw it, but almost everyone described a different beast.”

We've had fun naming all the movies that "Stranger Things" is paying homage to, but it's equally fascinating to see how it's playing with decades-old government conspiracy theories.

And that's not quite all. "Stranger Things" also echoes another real project known as Project MK-ULTRA, the CIA's covert, illegal program doing scientific research on human subjects. During the Cold War, the CIA subjected people to experiments with drugs including LSD, and some argue the program was for the purposes of mind control, as Time reports.

However, the creators of “Stranger Things,” Matt and Ross Duffer, have been coy about the connection to the Montauk Project (or any other potential government experiment). They've only said that ditching the “Montauk” title was “very painful.” 

SEE ALSO: Everything you need to know about the breakout stars of Netflix's "Stranger Things"

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NOW WATCH: The 7 best TV shows on Netflix you've probably never heard of

What Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, and 13 other successful people do on weekends

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Mark Cuban

For some, the weekend's a sacred retreat from the hustle and bustle of work.

For others, the weekend is a myth — Saturday and Sunday are mere extensions of the workweek and a chance to get ahead of the competition.

Judging from the ways successful people spend their — at least theoretical — time away from work, there really is no right or wrong way to structure your weekends. It's all about striking the right balance for you.

Here's how some of the most successful people do it:

SEE ALSO: 23 successful people who wake up incredibly early

DON'T MISS: What 13 highly successful people read every morning

Richard Branson hangs out on his island in the Caribbean

While Branson told the Telegraph he spends half the year traveling the world on business trips, he said he spends the other half on his tiny private Caribbean island, Necker.

"I know I shouldn't, but I still like to party on Friday nights," he admitted. The business mogul said he dances until the wee hours of the morning to the sounds of the island's band, the Front Line, and heads to the crow's nest on his roof around 2 a.m. to watch the stars.

Despite being up late, Branson still wakes up early, usually before everyone else, and goes for a swim around the island.

"It's exquisitely beautiful; I'll see spotted eagle rays, giant leatherback turtles and a number of species of shark, such as nurse sharks and lemon sharks," he told the Telegraph. "It's not frightening; if you're swimming with sharks they don't tend to bother you at all, it's only if they mistake you for a seal that they might have a nip."

His morning swim is usually followed by a healthy breakfast of fruit salad or natural muesli, though on occasion he spoils himself with kippers or an English breakfast.

The day's activities could include tennis, kitesurfing, scuba diving, or hanging out with dolphins and whales in his tiny submarine. But Branson said afternoons are always spent on the beach, oftentimes playing chess with his kids. 

Saturday evenings consist of more partying, and Sundays include rock jumping, paddle boarding, and boat races, Branson told the Telegraph



Elon Musk spends time with his children

Musk, the billionaire CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, has five sons, with whom, he told Mashable, he hangs out on the weekends.

But he also admitted at South by Southwest in 2013 that some of this "quality time" is spent sending emails.

"Because they don't need constant interaction, except when we're talking directly," he said. "I find I can be with them and still be working at the same time."



Arianna Huffington catches up on email

Though she admits that she likes to go through her inbox Saturdays, the Huffington Post cofounder has said she never expects a response from her staff.

"If I send an email at 11 at night, it's to get it off my to-do list, but I don't expect a reply," she told Mashable. "And I make that very clear, I don't expect replies over the weekend."



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