The Rock comes home | Morning Newsletter
🎤 And Made in America vs. Roots Picnic.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/pmn/TIDB4RFLYVGBPL7ZC4JAPHS6A4.jpg)
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Good morning. We might get a peek of sun today alongside a hint of rain, with high temps around 50. In even better news: Monday’s eclipse forecast is looking much brighter.
At long last, WrestleMania 40 is here. Tomorrow will be a sort of homecoming for headliner Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who attended high school in the Lehigh Valley. We have the story of how a football coach at Bethlehem’s Freedom High took a chance on the young Johnson and set him on the path to stardom.
And in the wake of Made in America’s latest cancellation, we’re wondering: Why does the Roots Picnic have staying power while the Roc Nation-backed fest does not? More on these and much more, below.
— Julie Zeglen (@juliezeglen, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.
Before he was a beloved action hero or a WWE favorite, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was a college football player. And before that, he was some “punk kid” at Freedom High School in Bethlehem, Pa.
Johnson will return to the ring as a headliner for WrestleMania at the Linc this Saturday. It’s his first scheduled match in 11 years, and he’ll be just 75 miles from where he met Jody Cwik, the football coach Johnson credits for setting his life on the trajectory toward success.
It all started with an apology, and a handshake, after a bathroom run-in.
But Cwik, a longtime coach and Bethlehem Area School District educator who died in 2006, didn’t just impact Johnson’s life. Matt Breen has the full story on mentorship and the power of second chances.
P.S. While you’re smelling what The Rock is cooking, be sure to check out The Inquirer’s recreation of wrestling’s big finishing moves, explained with stop-motion figurines — including Johnson’s signature elbow drop.
Philly has two annual hip-hop festivals: early summer’s Roots Picnic and Labor Day weekend’s Made in America. The latter just canceled ... for the second year in a row. What’s up?
Made in America has a few things working against it. For one, it’s a mid-size fest in an oversaturated market. The giant Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza are doing fine, as is the smaller Roots Picnic hosted by hometown heroes Questlove and Black Thought.
But what it’s really missing is a defined identity, The Inquirer’s Dan DeLuca writes, whereas the Picnic is clearly meant to be “the Philadelphia festival for Philadelphia by Philadelphia.”
“They have more of a community vibe,” a Billboard exec told him. “The Roots Picnic means something. I think Made in America lost some of that, since it first launched.”
The biggest lingering question: Could Made in America make a comeback?
What you should know today
Inclement weather has delayed repair work for the damaged bridge that forced a closure of the northbound lanes of I-95 in Port Richmond. The work is now expected to be completed this weekend.
Both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump are coming to the Philly area next week. The VP will be in the city on Monday to stump for the Biden administration, while Trump will visit Bucks County for a fundraiser next Saturday.
For years, New Jersey has been the only state to allow county parties to bracket endorsed candidates together in prime ballot positions. Last week’s court ruling that would require an overhaul of the state’s ballots is likely to stand.
Pennsylvania has around 65 “pink slime” sites, which are unreliable, often computer-generated sites that distort news and spew misinformation. Here’s how to spot one.
Philadelphia City Councilmembers have abandoned their latest resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza — and they may be done with the issue for good.
Lawmaker Mike Driscoll also introduced legislation on Thursday that would offer incentives to developers who want to build near public transit stations, especially along the El.
The West Chester inmate (and rock climber) who inspired Danilo Cavalcante’s viral “crab walk” prison escape was sentenced to 18 to 60 months in state prison.
Following recent efforts at Elixr, Ultimo, and ReAnimator, workers at coffee chain Bluestone Lane’s three Philadelphia shops have filed a petition to unionize.
A company started by a University of Pennsylvania scientist has received FDA approval to test a form of gene editing in infants for the first time in the U.S.
Welcome back to Curious Philly Friday. We’ll feature both new and timeless stories from our forum for readers to ask about the city’s quirks.
This week, we’re resurfacing an explainer from earlier this year on why the Broad Street Line train slows down between some Center City stops — especially the southbound train between Walnut-Locust and Lombard-South, where speeds drop to 10 mph.
The short answer: safety. Blame the curve heading into City Hall: “The speed is designed to withstand the way the system was built,” per SEPTA’s chief instructor for transit. Here’s the full explanation.
Have your own burning question about Philadelphia, its local oddities, or how the region works? Submit it here and you might find the answer featured in this space.
🧠 Trivia time
The Forbes billionaire list is out. Which of these Pennsylvania-tied figures is not on it?
A) Singer Taylor Swift
B) Sixers partner David Adelman
C) TikTok investor Jeffrey Yass
D) La Colombe cofounder Todd Carmichael
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re...
⚾ Watching: For fan reactions to the Phillies’ City Connect jersey, to be unveiled this morning.
🐀 Anticipating: Castle Rat’s new album, since it was recorded at the allegedly haunted St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Kensington.
❤️ Touched by: This mother’s story of helping other children get help to survive a brain disease called MLD after her own daughter died from it.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
We’ll keep it easy on a Friday morning: This regional transit system has its fair share of both haters and frenzied fans.
TAPES
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Wren Ingram, who solved Thursday’s anagram: Di Bruno Bros. The popular purveyor of gourmet food is getting a substantial investment from the regional grocery chain founded by onetime mayoral candidate Jeff Brown.
Photo of the day
Enjoy your weekend! I’ll be back in your inbox Monday. 👋
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.