| 1. BEACHFRONT CHICAGO MUSIC FESTIVAL CANCELED OVER ENDANGERED BIRDS: Mamby on the Beach, a popular beachfront music festival in Chicago, has been canceled after an endangered bird species made the Montrose Beach venue their home. Festival organizers battled with animal rights activists over keeping the festival venue, but ultimately canceled the event due to rising waters in Lake Michigan. Organizers were unable to find a new venue for the festival, which was slated to take place August 23-24. Chicago Sun-Times: “Organizers said tickets would be refunded within five to 10 business days. The two-day fest was expected to attract up to 20,000 people per day. Jill Niland of the Montrose Lakefront Coalition, which fought to have the festival moved away from the Montrose Beach area, said the decision ‘certainly going forward will be much better for the plovers.’ … In a Chicago Park District meeting this month, festival promoters released a plan to move the festival from the beach to parkland between Wilson and Lawrence avenues, the Park District said in a statement. In announcing the cancellation, organizers said it became too late to move the festival.” 2. NEW YORK OFFICIALS CANCEL OZY FEST OVER HEAT WAVE CONCERNS: New York officials canceled Ozy Fest on Friday due to a dangerous heat wave that took over the city this past weekend. Ozy media company’s festival, slated to take place July 20-21 in Central Park, was to feature headliners such as John Legend, Trevor Noah, Megan Rapinoe, and Padma Lakshmi. According to Parks Commmissioner Mitchell Silver, the festival’s contract allowed the city to cancel the event if the heat indexes exceeded 105 degrees. Page Six: “The event cost as much as $449 for V.I.P. tickets, though organizers said all tickets will be refunded. … To prepare for and clean up after the event, the Parks Department was prepared to close portions of the Great Lawn for nine days. Free tickets were distributed to students, teachers, military veterans and other groups, Simon Rao, vice president of operations for Ozy Media, told the New York Times, adding that Parks Department officials had been ‘innovative partners’ in helping expand the festival from a smaller venue in Central Park to the Great Lawn.” 3. SAN DIEGO MAYOR DENIES CLAIM HE LEFT COMIC-CON EVENT OVER IMMIGRATION THEME: A spokesperson for the San Diego Mayor's Office has denied a claim by actor Orlando Bloom that Mayor Kevin Faulconer left a Comic-Con activation that was themed around the immigration debate in the United States. During a Comic-Con panel on Friday, Bloom, who stars in Amazon Prime’s upcoming series Carnival Row, said Faulconer attended the show’s activation in the Gaslamp Quarter, and when he realized that the event involved an immersive theater experience where creatures were mistreated—echoing the immigration debate—he left. The Hollywood Reporter: “But Ashley Bailey, who serves as press secretary for the Republican politician, denied that. ‘The mayor never even went inside the activation for this show as there was a wait,’ she said. ‘He continued to tour the area and saw activations for other Amazon studio shows. Mayor Faulconer has a strong record on immigration, including working with nonprofits and local agencies to provide shelter to migrant families, and advocating for comprehensive immigration reform.’ Carnival Row centers on a human detective (Bloom) and a faerie (Delevingne) who become star-crossed lovers during a clash between humans and creatures.” | 