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The Kim Kardashian Game Isn’t Making the Megabucks Everyone Thought

Rishi Iyengar @iyengarrishi

10:55 PM ET

TV personality Kim Kardashian attends Lynn Hirschberg Celebrates W's It Girls with Piaget and Dom Perignon at A.O.C on January 10, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. Donato Sardella—Getty Images for W Magazine

That initial projection of $200 million is looking optimistic

Kim Kardashian’s once wildly popular mobile game, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, is not so popular anymore.

The socialite’s app has dropped to the 19th spot in Apple’s App Store and showed a similar plunge in the Android market, Yahoo Finance reports.

Kim Kardashian: Hollywood lets users create their own Kardashian-style star and ascend, after completing various quests, to A-list status. After its release in June 2014, it immediately shot to the top of the charts, following which analysts predicted it would net $200 million.

However, the game only earned $43 million in the third quarter, and although publisher Glu Mobile won’t release fourth quarter earnings until early February, the $200 million mark seems out of reach.

Not that Kardashian minds. She apparently gets 45% of net profits.

[Yahoo Finance]

TIME Newsfeed animals

Super Chill Dog Takes the Bus to Meet Her Owner at the Dog Park

Melissa Locker @woolyknickers

4:50 PM ET

Owners: who needs 'em?

Sometimes a dog just really wants to go to the dog park — and if that means taking the bus alone, so be it.

Eclipse, a self-sufficient 2-year-old black lab, has taken to riding public transit to the dog park alone when her owner misses the bus. “We get separated. She gets on the bus without me, and I catch up with her at the dog park,” said Eclipse’s owner Jeff Young, speaking to Seattle’s KOMO News. “It’s not hard to get on. She gets on in front of her house and she gets off at the dog park, three or four stops later.” No word on how she pays the fare with her cute little paws.

Since Lassie, Benji and Milo and Otis have helped pave the way for such precocious canine behavior, neither the dog, the owner, the bus driver, nor the other commuters seem to view the pup’s behavior as anything but adorable. “All the bus drivers know her. She sits here just like a person does,” commuter Tiona Rainwater, told KOMO. “She makes everybody happy. How could you not love this thing?” A spokesman for Seattle’s Metro Transit said the agency loves that a dog appreciates public transit.

While Eclipse is apparently capable of riding the streets of Seattle alone, helpful Seattleites frequently stop the dog on her travels. Young told KOMO that he gets a phone call once a week or so from good Samaritans anxious to help reunite a lost dog with its owner: “I have to tell them, ‘no. She’s fine.’ She knows what she’s doing.” Lassie probably never had to put up with that.
[H/T KOMO News]

TIME Business Food & Drink

Pizza Hut Will Start Serving Gluten-Free Pies

Laura Stampler @LauraStampler

3:38 PM ET Updated: 10:43 PM ET

Between that and new Sriracha offerings, the chain is doing its best to stay on trend

Correction appended: Jan. 12, 2015, 10:40 p.m. E.T.

Pizza Hut has great news for the gluten intolerant — and “meh” news for people who say they’re gluten intolerant but are really just trying to lose weight.

Starting Jan. 26, the chain will start offering 10-inch gluten-free pizzas in 2,400 of its 6,300 domestic locations. A slice of the gluten-free pizza’s cheese and pepperoni offerings come in at 150 and 170 calories, respectively.

Although Domino’s started offering a gluten-free pizza, it is not recommended for people with Celiac disease because it is prepared in the same kitchen as dough products. Pizza Hut worked with Udi’s and the Gluten Intolerance Group to ensure crusts are gluten-free–separating cheese, marinara sauce, and pepperoni separately from other foods. According to a press release, “Team members preparing the Gluten-free Pizza will wear gloves, bake the fresh-to-order pizza on parchment paper and use a designated gluten-free pizza cutter.”

Still, the chain asks customers to consult doctors before eating the pie, as the kitchens aren’t completely gluten-free.

Between this and its new obsession with Sriracha, Pizza Hut seems very determined to stay on trend.

The original version of this article misstated the number of Pizza Hut locations that will offer gluten-free pies. The chain will offer the pizzas in 2,400 of its 6,300 domestic locations.

TIME Newsfeed celebrities

Taylor Swift Helps Superfan Pay Off Student Loan

Michele Corriston / People

3:12 PM ET

Taylor Swift attends the Post-Golden Globe Party on Jan. 11, 2015. Jon Kopaloff—Getty Images

The singer generously wrote a check for $1,989 to help the fan pay off her student loan

Just because Swiftmas is over doesn’t mean Taylor Swift is done sending her fans personalized presents.

And one Swiftie may have just gotten the pop star’s most generous gift yet: a $1,989 check to help her pay off her student loans.

Rebekah Bortnicker shared her story on Tumblr on Monday: After uploading a video she created casting Swift’s celeb gal pals in the intro to Friends, the 1989 artist responded with a telltale Emoji.

A FedEx (er, Swift-Ex) package arrived at her door, containing a handwritten letter, Polaroids, assorted gifts and the check.

“I have nothing to say!” a tearful Rebekah cried after opening the box. “Oh my god!”

Later, she was a little more composed – but just as grateful.

“I know I’ve said it so many times already but thank you, thank you, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Never in a million years did I ever imagine this happening to me,” she wrote on Tumblr. “I am so honored and so thankful to call myself a fan, to have supported you all of these years because you are truly the most amazing, genuine, and selfless person. … I can’t wait to see you on tour and thank you a 1,989 more times.”

This article originally appeared on People.com.

TIME Newsfeed movies

This Honest Trailer for Gone Girl Shows How Completely Ridiculous the Movie Actually Is

Samantha Grossman @sam_grossman

2:48 PM ET

"Based on the book everyone's mom read on the beach"

+ READ ARTICLE

If you’ve already seen Gone Girl, this parody trailer will make you rethink some things about the movie. Or it will at least make you laugh. If you haven’t seen Gone Girl but still plan to, you might want to stay away because of spoilers.

Created by the YouTube heroes known as Screen Junkies, this “honest trailer” basically just picks the David Fincher film completely apart. For example: we’re all supposed to be cool with the idea that a woman would spend years framing her husband for murder instead of, you know, just divorcing him. And that he’d then get revenge by … staying with her to start to a family?

The whole thing is pretty hilarious — and there’s a special little treat in it for Serial fans. Enjoy!

Listen to the most important stories of the day.

TIME Newsfeed Internet

This Website Lets You Attack Your Enemies With Glitter

Victor Luckerson @VLuck

1:21 PM ET

There's a Mariah Carey joke in here somewhere

There’s a new lurking evil out there on the Internet: weaponized glitter. A new website called ShipYourEnemiesGlitter.com is vowing to do just that by mailing envelopes full of the annoying craft supply anywhere in the world for $9.99 AUD.

The site’s creators joked that glitter is “the herpes of the craft world” and promise that they’ll leave no indication of who paid for the unwanted gift. Included with the messy, sparkly debris will be a note telling the recipient “how awful they are.” The note, the creators promise, will itself be packed with glitter, increasing spillage. The site even has some (seemingly fake) testimonials from so-called customers who used envelopes of glitter to ruin marriages and put job security into question.

If you’ve never spilled a whole thing of glitter in your house, you may not understand what a cruel joke this would be to play on another person. Be sure you’re ready to destroy a relationship with the glitter bomb, because there’s no going back.

Listen to the most important stories of the day.

TIME Newsfeed

Eminem Makes Wish Come True for Terminally-Ill Fan

Melissa Locker @woolyknickers

1:12 PM ET

The day before the teen passed away

Gage Garmo had one wish before he died: Meet Eminem.

The teenager was battling a rare and aggressive form of bone cancer, and his friends wanted to help make his life-long dream come true. They set out on a social media campaign to bring the rapper to the Detroit suburb of Rochester, MI., to meet Garmo. Their efforts got a boost when the Michigan-based charity The Rainbow Connection, which grants wishes to children facing terminal illnesses, head about Garmo’s case, and managed to set up a meeting with the 8 Mile rapper within just 48 hours.

After hearing that Garmo only had a week to live, Eminem flew to Michigan on Sunday to spend time with his young fan. The Detroit Free Press reported that the two talked about hip-hop and football in Garmo’s living room. According to the Free Press, Garmo “sat up with a grin on his face” upon seeing the rapper and a Rainbow Connection staffer noted that Garmo’s “family hadn’t seen their son do that in such a long time.”

Garmo died Monday night. He would have turned 18 on Friday.

TIME Newsfeed Music

Watch John Legend and Common’s Uplifting Video for ‘Glory’ From Selma

Samantha Grossman @sam_grossman

12:17 PM ET

Fresh off their recent Golden Globes win

+ READ ARTICLE

On Sunday, John Legend and Common nabbed the Golden Globe for Best Original Song for their Selma soundtrack cut “Glory.” Now, the musicians have shared the song’s official music video.

The video features crooner John Legend at a grand piano, along with rapper Common on some kind of stage. Of course, plenty of scenes from Selma are woven in as well.

“The first day I stepped on the set of Selma, I began to feel like this was bigger than a movie,” Common said in his Golden Globes acceptance speech. “Selma has awakened my humanity.”

TIME Newsfeed Food & Drink

The New Ben & Jerry’s Flavors Are Perfect for People Who Like Cookies and Ice Cream Together

Olivia B. Waxman @OBWax

11:26 AM ET

Sweet news

Good news for people who only buy cookie dough ice cream so they can pick out the cookie dough parts: Ben & Jerry’s has announced new flavors with a cookie butter “core.” They are:

Boom Chocolatta! Cookie Core: Mocha & Caramel Ice Creams with Chocolate Cookies, Fudge Flakes & a Chocolate Cookie Core.

Peanut Buttah Cookie Core: Peanut Butter Ice Cream with Crunchy Peanut Butter Sugar Bits, Peanut Butter Cookies & a Peanut Butter Cookie Core

Spectacular Speculoos Cookie Core: Dark Caramel & Vanilla Ice Cream with Speculoos Cookies & Speculoos Cookie Butter Core

Why introduce an ice cream line when it’s so cold outside? As Bloomberg Businessweek reports, “New flavors also give consumers a reason to buy ice cream during a season when most are more inclined to eat other things for dessert.”

TIME Newsfeed society

Retired Principal Wins Record $326M Mega Millions Jackpot

Olivia B. Waxman @OBWax

10:54 AM ET

Harold Diamond and his wife Carol receive their ceremonial check from Yolanda Vega at the Valero gas station in the Town of Wallkill, N.Y., on Monday, Jan. 12, 2015. John DeSanto/Times Herald-Record—AP

"I yelled up to my wife, I think we won a few bucks!"

A retired elementary school principal hit the jackpot, winning $326 million in the Mega Millions lottery, the largest in New York state history. It is also “the 29th time a New Yorker has won the top prize on the multi-state mega jackpot game,” according to the lottery’s website.

Harold Diamond, 80, of Westburo, who reportedly served as principal of George L. Cooke Elementary School, bought the ticket on Election Day 2014 at a gas station near Middletown, where he and his wife stopped to wait out a storm. He said at a Jan. 12 press conference that after he heard someone in the area had bought the winning ticket, he turned on local TV, and, “When I saw the last number, I yelled up to my wife, I think we won a few bucks!”

He also said he wanted to use the money to take his wife Carol to Hawaii for their 55th wedding anniversary and, according to the Associated Press, give “back to the local community.”