Every once in a while, the internet throws up a random name and it starts trending on Twitter. On Sunday, it was Brendan Fraser, the Canadian-American actor best known for his Hollywood films in the 1990s.
Why? Just because fans love him.
"I'm imagining Brendan Fraser's publicist calling him like 'You're trending on Twitter' and him going 'Oh God, what did I do' and she says 'Um ... you're trending because everyone loves you' and I hope that gives him a warm fuzzy feeling," wrote Twitter user @madlori.
Another, @KyleGallner, added: "The guy is criminally underappreciated."
Fraser, now 52, has not been seen in a major box-office hit for years. So long, in fact, that when he played a small role in FX series Trust in 2018, TV Guide declared it the start of a "Brenaissance".
Fans on Sunday began sharing their favourite films starring Fraser. Of course, The Mummy series was top of everyone's list.
"It was the perfect casting choice," wrote one commenter. "He was so fun opposite Rachel Weisz ... they had great chemistry together."
In the 1999 Oscar-nominated film, the first in a trilogy, Fraser played American adventurer Rick O'Connell, who gets caught up in a kerfuffle after someone accidentally wakes up a cursed priest from the time of the Pharaohs.
It was such a massive success that it spawned two sequels: The Mummy Returns (2001) and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008), both also starring Fraser.
But fans on Twitter also brought up some of Fraser's other greatest hits, including his debut film, the comedy Encino Man (1992), also known as California Man, and George of the Jungle (1997).
One fan also praised Fraser's range in the 2000 comedy Bedazzled, in he played a number of characters, including Abraham Lincoln.
One of Fraser's last major roles was in the 2010 comedy Furry Vengeance, in which he plays a real-estate agent who faces off with a bunch of animals that are trying to protect their forest reserve. The film was widely panned.
In a 2018 interview with GQ, entitled What Ever Happened to Brendan Fraser?, the actor alleged he was sexually assaulted by Philip Berk, a former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the body that organises the Golden Globes, in 2003. The HFPA said it investigated the incident, but did not make its findings public, citing concerns over witness confidentiality.
After the GQ interview, the HFPA issued another statement saying it has "always" taken the allegations "very seriously", but that it ultimately found the incident was "not an intended sexual advance".
"I became depressed," he told the publication of the time following the encounter. “I was blaming myself and I was miserable. That summer wore on – and I can't remember what I went on to work on next.”
The experience made him retreat from Hollywood, he said. "It made me feel reclusive.”
Fraser also spoke about how working on action films, particularly the three Mummy films, had taken a physical toll on him. "I was put together with tape and ice … I was building an exoskeleton for myself daily." He added that the injuries resulted in several surgeries, including a laminectomy, a partial knee replacement, back and vocal cord surgeries that amounted to seven years in and out of hospitals.
"I felt like the horse from Animal Farm, whose job it was to work and work and work," he said. "I don't know if I've been sent to the glue factory, but I've felt like I've had to rebuild [expletive] that I've built that got knocked down and do it again for the good of everyone. Whether it hurts you or not."
Fraser, who has three children with ex-wife and actress Afton Smith, will next be seen in Ocean's Eleven director Steven Soderbergh's next film, No Sudden Move.
The crime thriller features an ensemble cast, including Don Cheadle, Benicio del Toro, David Harbour, Jon Hamm and Ray Liotta. Production wrapped in November 2020, but no release date has been announced yet.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
THREE
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What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Sunday's fixtures
- Bournemouth v Southampton, 5.30pm
- Manchester City v West Ham United, 8pm
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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The Light of the Moon
Director: Jessica M Thompson
Starring: Stephanie Beatriz, Michael Stahl-David
Three stars
Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, John Oliver
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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