Labubus, A Hungry Bear, and No-go on a Logo

Episode

Sep 4

Written By Tracy Kaplan

10 Things You Need to Know: Episode 602

10 Things You Need to Know

1. National Wildlife Day 🌎

2. A Bear-y Big Sweet Tooth 🐻🍦

3. It's Pumpkin Spice Season ☕️

4. The NFL is Back 🏈

5. Minneapolis Tragedy ❤️‍🩹

6. Cracker Barrel's New Logo is a No-Go 🍳

7. The Latest on Labubus🪆

8. Netflix's Most-Watched Movie 🍿

9. One Dusty Storm 💨

10. Beanie Baby Brain Teaser 🧸

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TRANSCRIPT

INT. TEN NEWS STUDIO

RYAN: Good morning Pam, your pumpkin spice latte is in the snack room–

PAM: Awww, thanks Ry!

PAM: Ummmm, Ryan? What’s…what what what’s happening in the snackroom?

RYAN: What? Your pumpkin spice latte or the brand new crunch mcyumyums in there?

PAM: No. I’m….uhhhh, the…there’s a BEAR in the snackroom?

RYAN: Ohhhh, you mean Fuzzy? Yeah, he’s cool, I think. Pretty he’s just gonna eat run.

PAM: That’s not Pooh Bear, that’s a bear, bear. You’re not worried?

RYAN: Nahhh, it’s a special day! Do you even know what today is, Pamela Kirkland?

PAM: Yes I do, Ryan Willard. It’s Thursday, Sept 4th.

RYAN: This is Ten Things You Need to Know.

PAM: So what exactly is so special about Thursday, Sept 4th?

RYAN: Well it’s a Thursday, which is pepperoni pizza night at my house, oh and also, new video games usually come out on Thursday. But most importantly, it’s National Wildlife Day!

PAM: Ahhh yes of course, how could I forget! National Wildlife Day started in 2006, to honor the great wildlife conservationist Steve Irwin, also known as the “Crocodile Hunter.” It’s a day to think about conservation—protecting wild animals and their habitats. The idea of protecting nature goes way back. <SFX: Rewind tape> in 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant created Yellowstone, the world’s very first national park. In the 1960s, scientist Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring opened people’s eyes to how harmful chemicals were hurting birds and other wildlife.. And in 1973, the Endangered Species Act was signed into law to protect animals in danger of being wiped out. So how can you celebrate the day? Get outside in nature, pick up trash in your neighborhood, or support a local conservation group that protects wildlife.

RYAN: Speaking of wildlife, our next story is about a bear with a bear-y big sweet tooth. A brown bear broke into an ice cream shop at Camp Richardson in South Lake Tahoe and made himself at home behind the counter, with access to every ice cream flavor he could imagine. <SFX: Yum> Fuzzy, the nickname the deputies who showed up named him, didn’t exactly cover his tracks, as there were several half-eaten tubs of ice cream and plenty of paw prints left behind. Fuzzy eventually got full (we can only assume) and left the shop, leaving behind very little damage, aside from the fact that the store had to replace its entire stock of ice cream. Ummm, I might be part bear.

PAM: We can’t really blame Fuzzy for wanting a tasty treat, after all, plenty of grown-ups were probably mobile-ordering their first pumpkin spice lattes of the season last week. Yes, it is that time again when Starbucks, the OG behind the pumpkin spice phenomenon, Dunkin’ and Peet’s all roll out their fall menus. Beyond the classic pumpkin spice latte, Starbucks is also serving up a pumpkin cream cold brew, an iced pumpkin cream chai, and even a brand-new pecan oatmilk cortado. Over at Dunkin’, you’ll find a cereal-n’milk latte and pop star Sabrina Carpenter’s Daydream Refresher. But here’s the twist: your favorite fall drinks could cost a little more this year. Why? Because the U.S. added a big new tariff (a kind of extra tax) on coffee beans from Brazil. And since Brazil grows about a third of the coffee we drink here, that price hike could trickle down into your pumpkin-spiced sips.

RYAN: From pumpkin spice to pigskin—it’s football time. In the Wide World of Sports <SFX Wide World of Sports> The NFL regular season officially starts today with a huge matchup: the Philadelphia Eagles vs. the Dallas Cowboys.

This season opener is more than just a game—it’s one of the league’s biggest rivalries. I am personally an Eagles fan and I’m hoping we return to the Super Bowl, after falling short last year. And Cowboys fans are, well, always convinced this is their year.

PAM: And before we take a quick break, we need to share some difficult news. Families in Minneapolis are going through a really hard time right now after a tragic event at a local school. Last week, during morning Mass at a Catholic school, a shooting left 17 people injured and 2 children dead. The whole community is grieving, and many kids and parents are leaning on each other for support. If hearing about stories like this makes you feel sad or upset, remember it’s okay to talk to a trusted adult about your feelings and we have more resources in our show notes for our Ten’ers.

RYAN: We’ll be back after this quick break.

RYAN: Hey Ten’ers, season 6 is just kicking off and we want to hear from YOU. Why? Because you ARE the people that we make the show for. So we want to know: what do you want us to cover or explore in this season of the Ten News? Do you want to hear more about video games? Or animals? Or Space? Whatever it is, leave us a review on Apple podcasts, a comment on spotify or drop us an email at hello@thetennews.com. Whatever it is, we want to hear it, even if it’s that you want me to explain why I’m afraid of butterflies. BLEAH. Okay, back to the show!

PAM: Cracker Barrel, the restaurant chain, decided to refresh its classic logo this summer—but the redesign didn’t go over easy. The logo update did away with the image of the founder’s Uncle Herschel sitting in a wicker chain leaning against a barrel. Customers and branding experts criticized the changes, saying the update made the logo look bland and stripped away its nostalgic charm. Even worse for the company, the backlash led to a dip in stock prices. The company heard the criticism and decided to go back to their old logo, saying "We thank our guests for sharing your voices and love for Cracker Barrel," "We said we would listen, and we have. Our new logo is going away and our 'Old Timer' will remain."

RYAN: Have you heard of Labubu? Or is it pronounced Labooboo? Either or, these quirky, big-eyed figurines from the toy company Pop Mart of China, have become the latest craze—collectors around the world are buying them up like crazy. Some rare ones sell for hundreds of dollars online. Pop Mart is on track to sell $1Billion worth of them this year according to EMarketer. 1 Billion!

But experts say it could be a bubble about to burst. If people lose interest, the value of Labubus could plummet.

PAM: So basically… they’re Beanie Babies 2.0?

RYAN: Could be. Ten’ers if you haven’t heard of Beanie Babies, let me fill you in – they were the stuffie of the 90’s and people went absolutely NUTS trying to get their hands on one, or twenty, thinking they would be investments. And then the bubble burst. <SFX: Pop and deflating> If you’ve got a Labubu, I say just enjoy it, it might be worth a fortune today and nothing tomorrow. Or it could be worth a billion dollars in a few years, but I highly doubt it.

PAM: Ry have you watched KPop Demon Hunters yet?

RYAN: I’ve watched KPop Demon Hunters about 17 times. That movie knocked me out like a lullaby. Why do you ask?

PAM: Because Netflix just broke its own record with the animated fantasy-action film. KPop Demon Hunters hit 236 million views, becoming the most-watched movie ever on the platform. It beat out Red Notice, which held the title for years. The movie mixes K-pop idols with monster-fighting action, and fans around the world clearly can’t get enough. And the music is just so good!

RYAN: Music, dancing, and demon battles? Some of my favorite things all in one movie.

RYAN: Folks in Arizona were staying inside last week when Phoenix was slammed with a haboob—that’s a massive dust storm that looks like a giant wall of dirt rolling across the desert. <SFX wind gusts>

This one caused power outages, flight delays, and damage across the city. While haboobs are common in the Southwest, climate scientists say storms like this are getting bigger and more dangerous.

PAM: (coughs) I need a glass of water just thinking about all that dust.

RYAN: I see a haboob every time I look under my bed. And I’m too lazy to vacuum…

PAM: And for our last thing you need to know, let’s go to our Trivia Master: Owen.

OWEN: Okay Ten’ers, let’s talk collectibles. Labubus might be hot right now, but Ryan told you about how back in the 1990s, Beanie Babies were the big craze. My mom definitely had a few so I’m putting her on the hot seat today. They would sell at a store for a reasonable price and then sold on auction sites for tons of money. Which Beanie Baby once sold for tens of thousands of dollars during the height of the craze?

A) Peanut the Royal Blue Elephant
B) Princess Diana Bear
C) Claude the Crab OR

D) Brownie the Bear

TRACY: I know this one, I didn’t have it but it was so cute. B the Princess Diana Bear.

OWEN: Correct! The Princess Diana Bear was released in 1997 to raise money for charity. While it originally cost just a few dollars in stores, some versions resold for over $10,000 at the peak of the Beanie Baby boom.

TRACY: Did you know that the company’s tactic of only releasing limited amounts of each Beanie Baby was originally due to a production problem? The company had an issue filling orders for Lovie the Lamb and told stores that it was discontinued. This raised the demand for it and they realized they could do this with each new release of a Beanie Baby.

OWEN: And Beanie Baby history was made.

PAM: And that was Ten Things You Need to Know.

RYAN: Okay, I think Fuzzy is gone…he didn’t tear up the snackroom but…OH MAN! That bear ate all the ice cream!

PAM: How did you not see that coming?

RYAN: I just never thought I’d relate to a bear so much. I think we just get each other. I bet he even wants some Ten News Snaps–

PAM: But before that, here’s a quick note for the grownups.

RYAN: Time for Ten News Snaps!

PAM: A Ten’er named Fun-bun19384 said this in their review on Apple Podcasts: “It is amazing <3 <3 love from Sweden!” Oh wow! I didn’t know we have Ten’ers in Sweden! And a Ten’er named Hot Sauce said, “MUSTARD!!!! <SFX Mustard sound?> Ok in all seriousness this is a great podcast. I think that podcasts should be more like this one. It’s informative but still funny. MUSTARD!!!” I do like Mustard but I’m not sure why you keep saying it, but thanks Hot Sauce!

RYAN: And a Ten’er named Mega Man Geek said, “Ryan I’m giving you a video game suggestion you should try mega man its a super fun 2d side scroller its super fun and I think you should try it out.” Ummmm, Mega Man Geek, challenge accepted, I will be trying it ASAP THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

PAM: And two extra notes for the grown-ups, you can now get ad-free versions of our episodes when you join the Ten’ers Club on our website.

RYAN: And if you want to help support the Ten News, you can make a tax-deductible donation at the link in our show notes. The whole team thanks you for your support!

PAM: “The Ten News” is a co-production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts, and part of the Airwave Podcast Network.

RYAN: The Ten News creative team is eating more ice cream than a pack of bears and includes Tracey Not a Crooks, Adam the Great Bambino Bernard, Brian Not Ryan Douglas and Carson Not So Harry Potter. Big thanks to Owen, Not Slowin Down for Anybody.

PAM: Our Production Director is Jeremiah Tittle, and our Executive Producers are Donald Albright, Albright, Albright! and show creator Tracy Takes the Leeds Kaplan. I’m Pamela Kirkland.

RYAN: And I’m Ryan Willard, thanks for listening to the Ten News.

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Tracy Kaplan

Labubus, A Hungry Bear, and No-go on a Logo

10 Things You Need to Know: Episode 602

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