The Daily Valet. - 9/20/21, Monday

✔️ A Streamer Streak

September 20, 2021

Monday, September 20th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

And the Emmy for outstanding writing for a newsletter goes to…

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s Big Story

A Streamer Streak at the Emmys

The ceremony was utterly dominated by Brit-heavy shows like ‘Ted Lasso’ and ‘The Crown’

The Emmys were back in person this year, though they were still done a bit differently than most years. And I’m not talking about that embarrassing opening number. Last night’s awards took place mostly outside (or so they said, as Seth Rogen pointed out early on) and some international nominees/winners were beamed in via satellite.

Beyond the format of the show, some history was already made with this year’s Emmy Awards thanks to Marvel Studios getting its first TV trophies with WandaVision’s wins at the Creative Arts Emmys earlier this month.

But it wasn’t WandaVision’s night at all. Instead, it was very much Ted Lasso’s night, winning Outstanding Comedy Series and a whole bucket of awards four our favorite feel-good and, at times, foul-mouthed characters.

And Netflix, after years of trying, finally nabbed a Best Drama Series Emmy with another British series, The Crown. The show picked up seven awards in total. It was a good night all around for Netflix, which won 10 Emmys—including an outstanding limited series award for The Queen’s Gambit. By the end of the ceremony, Netflix had received more awards than HBO for the first time, taking 44 Emmys, compared with 19 for HBO and its streaming platform, HBO Max.

The Ringer says a new normal is being built in the TV landscape as streaming services both old and new are recognized by both critics and the Academy. “With the almost infinite explosion of programming in the streaming era, these awards are important to show what rises to the top in a crowded market,” Robert Thompson, director of Syracuse University’s Briar Television and Popular Culture Center, told NBC News.

While this year’s field of nominees was the most diverse to date, all major acting awards went to white performers, reports Entertainment Weekly. RuPaul did make Emmy history for the most wins by a person of color as Drag Race claimed its fourth consecutive Emmy trophy for Outstanding Competition Program.

↦ Did you know? It costs $400 to make an Emmy Award, the metal statue is coated with copper, nickel, pure silver and 24-karat gold. If each statue were made of solid gold, the estimated cost would be about $150,000.

Gabby Petito’s Body May’ve Been Found

The search for her fiancé continues

Authorities say a body discovered Sunday in Wyoming is believed to be Gabrielle “Gabby” Petito, who disappeared while on a cross-country trek with a fiancé who has been identified by authorities as a person of interest and is now being sought within a Florida nature preserve.

Many questions remain in the case of the young couple who once documented a seemingly idyllic “van life” on social media. The fiancé is still missing after refusing to speak with authorities upon returning home alone. While the body recovered Sunday resembles Petito's description, a cause of death has yet to be determined, the FBI said at a Sunday evening news conference.

This case seems to have hit a nerve for several reasons even though no criminal charges have been filed. First, most of us can't wrap our minds around how he has remained quiet. There's also an online paper trail of sorts that seems to grow each day. Body-camera footage released by police in Utah shows that the pair got into an emotional fight before she disappeared. Petito had been an active Instagram user, providing an archive of her life full of photos showing seemingly happier times.

After authorities announced the discovery of human remains “consistent with the description” of Petito, her father and brother shared their emotional reactions on social media.

↦ FYI: Although the FBI stopped short of officially identifying the remains, it shared “heartfelt condolences to Gabby’s family and loved ones.”

Traveling for the Holidays?

People are booking Christmas vacations earlier than ever before

Christmas is now just 95 days away. And unlike last fall, some hotels are already fully booked for the entire holiday season.

According to CNBC, people are reserving their vacations earlier than normal this year, despite an unsettling rise in COVID-19 infections caused by the highly contagious delta variant. The reason, travel experts say, has everything to do with vaccine confidence.

If you haven't booked yet, now's the time. This month, domestic airfares are down 5% from September 2019 and international fares down about 8%, drops due to the traditional price slump that happens at the end of the peak summer travel season plus the drop in business travel due to the Delta variant, according to the Los Angeles Times.

And as many Americans continue to work from home, the holiday travel schedule is going to look a little different this year. Travel + Leisure has the most popular travel dates and warns that car rentals could run tricky to get ahold of. The demand for car rentals in the U.S. this holiday season is already up 229% compared to 2019 and up 244% compared to 2020—an indicator that we could experience another car rental shortage over the holidays.

Scientists Create the Whitest Paint Ever

And it could save your energy bills as well as the climate

White houses may be a tad basic, but they could eventually save the planet. As USA Today reports, Purdue University researchers have developed an ultra-white paint (it just earned a Guinness World Record) that reflects 98.1% of solar radiation while outputting infrared heat.

Since this leaves the surface cooler than the environment (regular paint warms the surface), it could effectively replace air conditioning in some cases. According to Engadget, it produces a cooling power of 10kW for a 1,000sq. ft. roof—which is more than a typical house AC unit.

Heating, cooling, and lighting account for 28% of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions. And overusing air conditioning can overwhelm a city's power grid and cause blackouts, which can lead to devastating consequences.

You can't buy the paint just yet, but, according to Purdue, researchers are partnering with a company to help bring it to market.

↦ FYI: There are existing paints made to reflect heat, but they reflect no more than 90% of sunlight and don't cool surfaces.

In Other News

↦ SpaceX Inspiration4 Mission Splashdown Ends Historic Trip Around the Earth

↦ Manny Pacquiao Says He Will Run for Philippine Presidency in 2022

↦ California Firefighters Wrap Base of World’s Largest Tree in Fireproof Blankets As Blaze Approaches

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

UNIQLO’s new collaboration

Snapchat is 10!?

Harley’s electric bikes

Pay Off Credit Card Debt Faster

Our debt has never been higher. Here’s how to handle it.

If you have credit card debt, you're not alone. On average, Americans carry $6,194 on each credit card, according to CNBC. And total credit-card balances increased by nearly $50 billion to a record $930 billion in the final quarter of 2019.

Unfortunately, the proportion of people seriously behind on their payments increased as well, according to data released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

We all want to stay on top of our debt. And the less we have to pay, the better, right? It turns out, there are several options when it comes to paying down your debt quickly. It all depends on how much balance you're carrying and how best you like to pay. We spoke with some experts to bring you three simple, but proven options.

↦ Game Plan: From card consolidation and interest rate avalanches to specific repayments, here is what you need to do to make some headway.

Stuff We Want

This is a light layer you don't want to be without. Before sliding into the down and fleece, a shirt jacket is the perfect piece of outerwear to throw on, hang up and recycle over and over again like a grocery tote. Olivers' new Stadium shirt jacket ($158) might be lightweight and easy to wear, but don't be fooled—this jacket was built to stand up to the elements. It's cut from weather-repellent ripstop nylon with a quilted, lightly insulated liner to keep you warm (but not overheated). It comes in two shades, but we're digging the military olive drab.

↦ Want More? The five stylish items to buy this week