Six years after making headlines for working at a Trader Joe's , "The Cosby Show" actor Geoffrey Owens is opening up once more about the reality of being a "middle-class actor." During an interview with Atlanta radio station V-103 earlier this month, Owens − who was promoting his new film, "Mr. Santa: A Christmas Extravaganza" − said he is still struggling to make a living. "I struggle every day to make my ends meet," the 63-year-old Owens said. "People have a false impression of what the average, what I call 'middle-class actor' makes, and their ability to make a living in the industry." The average salary for an actor was about $62,000 in 2023, according to the U.S. Labor of Bureau Statistics , although it's unclear exactly what Owens makes. This included actors who participate in theatrical performances, in addition to television, radio, video and film productions. Owens shares the screen in "Mr. Santa: A Christmas Extravaganza" with Tommy Davidson. Directed by Noel Calloway, the family-friendly Christmas movie is about a substitute teacher, known as Mr. Santa, arriving days before a high school's Christmas show. Looking back at his Trader Joe's moment Popularly known for playing Elvin Tibideaux on "The Cosby Show," Owens made headlines in 2018 after a shopper snapped photos of him working at the register at a Trader Joe's grocery store in New Jersey. Many social media users viewed the circulation of photos by outlets like Fox News and Daily Mail as job shaming, but countless celebrities shared their support for Owen's "good, honest work," like former NFL player and actor Terry Crews. Rapper Nicki Minaj even gifted $25,000 to Owens, who ended up donating the lump sum to the Entertainment Community Fund (formerly the Actors Fund), in honor of Earle Hyman, who played Bill Cosby's father, Russell Huxtable on "The Cosby Show," according to USA TODAY reporting . During his V-103 interview , Owens said he was recognized in public more often following the Trader Joe's news than he was while actively playing in "The Cosby Show" during the 1980s and '90s. He also unveiled during his interview that he had quit working at Trader Joe's right after the shopper snapped his photo and before the news broke, because he anticipated the reaction. "It wasn't like I quit because I knew I was going to be making a lot of money soon or anything," Owens said. "I just felt like I wasn't going to be able to handle that kind of scrutiny, that kind of attack on my privacy basically." What has Geoffrey Owens been in since 'The Cosby Show'? Though he most famously known for his role in "The Cosby Show," in which he appeared in 128 episodes between 1985-1992, according to IMDb , Owens has played countless characters in other television shows and movies. Owens is also known for his role as Lou in the 1994 comedy-drama, "The Paper," and Rob Marcus in the 2009 romantic comedy "Play the Game." Most recently, Owens has played as J.J. in the CBS sitcom, "Poppa's House." He's also appeared in smaller roles in popular television series like "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," "NCIS: New Orleans," "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" and "That's So Raven," starring Raven-Symoné, who also starred in "The Cosby Show." Contributing: Cydney Henderson Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretalcross. Story idea? Email her at gcross@gannett.com .The government’s new furnace and water heater rules are coming for you
A recent pointing out accountability concerns within the state Department of Children and Families merits a thorough bipartisan review, two lawmakers said this week. “Our shared goal, both now and in the future, is to prevent tragedies,” said Republican state Sens. Kevin Kelly and Lisa Seminara, the future and current ranking senators on the Committee on Children, in a joint statement. “This report merits a thorough bipartisan review and debate in the Committee on Children to determine how we can inject more accountability into the delivery of vital child protection services.” The recent report was a follow-up to an earlier investigation into the deaths of from a blunt force injury to the head and from fentanyl intoxication. It also reviews the near-death of another infant from fentanyl poisoning in 2024. Both the New Haven baby and Stamford toddler and their caregivers were involved with DCF and the Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division. The Office of the Chief Public Defender was also involved with the Stamford toddler’s family. The additional report, released in December, looks at steps agencies have taken to improve, including hiring more social workers, but concludes that more work needs to be done to keep children safe. The report also makes several recommendations for each of the agencies involved. For DCF, recommendations include modifying policies to require criminal background checks on caregivers throughout the life of an ongoing services case; ensuring that individual staff accountability is consistent and present throughout the workforce; and developing systemic quality improvement tools to monitor the degree of staff adherence to agency expectations. For the Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division, recommendations include establishing practices for when a person enters the system to ensure an assessment of their role within a household or as a caregiver is completed upon intake, with consideration of how their mental health or substance misuse may impact household members and children. The report also recommends cross-agency training and for the judicial branch to expand its agency’s referral network to include contracted programs for adults with children as well as services designed for parents (and their children) who are struggling with substance misuse. Recommendations for the Office of the Chief Public Defender include developing a strong activity framework and training curriculum for the 20 social workers it is hiring and enhancing its quality assurance framework. The report also recommends increased resources for this office “to ensure competitive compensation for assigned counsel” and to strengthen the ability to recruit and retain qualified staff.Canada stocks tumble over 2% after Fed moderates rate cut expectationsRecycLiCo Battery Materials Announces Results of 2024 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders
SHAREHOLDER ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Viking Therapeutics, Inc. - VKTX
Giants' 10th straight loss showed once again that they need a young QBSouth Korea’s share of global new ship orders is expected to fall below 20% this year, the lowest since the industry’s downturn 2016, but its shipbuilders are projected to maintain a competitive edge in high-value vessels like LNG carriers. Experts predict that Korean shipbuilders will counter China’s volume-driven strategy by heavily investing in smart and eco-friendly ship technologies. ING Think, the economic research arm of Dutch financial firm ING, noted in its “Asia’s Shipbuilding Renaissance” report, published on Dec. 16, that while South Korea’s market share in the global shipbuilding industry has declined over the past four years, its shipbuilders have become more efficient and competitive. The report also highlighted that South Korean shipyards dominate the high-value LNG and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) carrier markets, securing the majority of orders in these sectors. From January to November this year, South Korean shipbuilders secured 10.92 million compensated gross tonnage (CGT) out of a total of 60.33 million CGT in global new ship orders, and 248 out of 2,159 vessels. This accounts for 18% of the market, the lowest share since 2016′s 15.5%. Projections suggest that South Korea’s annual share will likely remain below 20%. China’s market share rose to 69% during the same period, driven by domestic orders. Following the 2008 global financial crisis, China restructured its shipbuilding industry and dominated low-cost orders for container ships and bulk carriers, maintaining the top spot in global new orders since 2012. In recent years, China has also increased its presence in the LNG carrier market, once dominated by South Korea. China holds a significant competitive advantage in shipbuilding due to lower labor and raw material costs, as well as generous government financial support. Labor costs, which account for over 20% of production expenses, are half those in South Korea and Japan. ING found that South Korea has the highest shipyard utilization rate among the three Asian countries, with 70.9 orders per shipyard, compared to 21.3 for China and 13.3 for Japan. ING noted that South Korean shipbuilders are filling their yards with “profitable and reliable orders.” While much of South Korea’s shipbuilding output is export-oriented, most of China’s orders come from domestic clients. Ship exports make up a larger portion of South Korea’s total exports compared to China and Japan. ING emphasized that shipbuilding is driving South Korea’s export growth this year, and with a current backlog of 3.5 years, ship exports are expected to continue rising for at least next more years. Despite China’s increasing LNG carrier orders to close the gap with South Korea, experts believe it will take time for China to match South Korea’s technological capabilities. In 2022, China secured LNG carrier orders that South Korean shipyards could not accommodate, with deliveries starting next year. Once these ships are operational, China’s technological progress will become clearer. South Korea aims to maintain its technological lead by accelerating the development of next-generation ships, such as ammonia and carbon dioxide carriers, fully autonomous ships, and zero-emission engines. Source: The Chosun DailyReuters World News Summary