Latest news with #D&D
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Husband Suspects He's Being Cheated On for a Year—Then Truth Comes Out
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. When a man noticed his husband mysteriously disappearing on Saturday mornings soon after they got married six years ago, he started to think the worst. The Salt Lake City-based lawyer and humor columnist, Eli McCann, who posts on TikTok as @eliwmccann, told Newsweek that his husband would vanish for several hours and dodge any questions about where he was going. Eventually, McCann confronted him and asked if he was having an affair. The truth, however, turned out to be far more wholesome. "He was being cagey about what he was up to on Saturday mornings and indicated several times, if he told me, I was going to tease him. So I knew it was something kind of embarrassing and I finally just made him tell me. When I discovered it was Dungeons & Dragons, I laughed so hard, I had tears. I love his nerdy hobby, even if I don't understand it," McCann said. A split image of Eli McCann explaining the revelation that his partner was secretly playing "Dungeon & Dragons" every morning. A split image of Eli McCann explaining the revelation that his partner was secretly playing "Dungeon & Dragons" every morning. @eliwmccann/@eliwmccann McCann's video recounting the story quickly went viral, gaining more than 61,000 likes and over 813,200 views from amused viewers. In the clip, he said, when his husband finally revealed his secret hobby, he exclaimed: "I wish you were having an affair." For the uninitiated, Dungeons & Dragons (often abbreviated as D&D) is a tabletop role-playing game where players create characters and embark on collaborative adventures guided by a Dungeon Master. First published in the 1970s, it blends storytelling, strategy, and improvisation, allowing players to immerse themselves in a fantasy world. McCann, who regularly writes about his personal life for The Salt Lake Tribune, said his husband's quirky habits often provide him with material: "He's such a delightfully odd man," he added. Viewers on TikTok were quick to share their own thoughts and laughter over the unexpected twist. "Honestly I would lie about that too," said one user. "I'd be so mad if my partner were playing dungeons and dragons without me, that's so rude," added Liam. "'i wish you were having an affair' killed me," another user wrote, referring to a particularly funny moment in McCann's viral video. "I thought you were going to say he was in a running club, when you said D & D it was a sigh of relief," said Kate. Do you have any viral videos or pictures that you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@ and they could appear on our site.
Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Why Dungeons & Dragons storytelling duo signed with Critical Role
Cartoons, comic books, video games and now tabletop games. The team at Critical Role Productions, the entertainment company that grew out of the web series 'Critical Role,' featuring voice actors playing Dungeons & Dragons, continues to expand its media footprint with its newest hires — former Wizards of the Coast game gurus Chris Perkins and Jeremy Crawford. Perkins and Crawford, who led the Dungeons & Dragons design team for decades, have literally helped write the books on the most popular role-playing game in history. Perkins was the creative director for Dungeons & Dragons, overseeing the story direction, while Crawford was the game director, overseeing the rules. Their departure from the game publisher Wizards of the Coast earlier this year had fans wondering what their next move would be. Now the news is out that they will be joining Critical Role's Darrington Press game division. 'I was committed to staying with Wizards until after D&D's 50th anniversary, which gave me lots of time to work on succession planning and exit strategies,' Perkins said. 'What brought me out of retirement was the chance to work with Jeremy and the brilliant folks at Critical Role on things that have a lasting, positive impact on the world.' 'Chris and I talked about his retirement plan for years, so his approaching departure was long on my mind. When we sent the new D&D rule books to the printer last year, I felt it was time to explore a new chapter for myself,' Crawford said. 'I love the game and its team, but 18 years is a long time. I was ready for a new adventure. The chapter that we've now opened feels like coming home — resuming work with Chris and returning to Southern California.' Darrington Press CEO Travis Willingham, also a voice actor, stressed the importance of landing the game masters and what it could mean for the growth of this side of the Critical Role company. 'They are two of the biggest names that we're certainly aware of and that have influenced TTRPGs and the games that we played,' said Willingham, using the acronym for tabletop role-playing games. 'When we first caught wind that they were thinking about taking time off from where they were at,' Willingham continued, 'we said, 'Hey, listen, we're over here making cool nerdy things. If it's ever of interest to come over to Critical Role and mess around with what we're doing, we would love to have a conversation.' When you look at the opportunity to bring in 15, 17 years of experience, pedigree, pipeline, timeline, management, all of those things from really the granddaddy system of them all, that is always extremely interesting. It's a chance to level up everyone around here as well.' That mutual respect and a longtime friendship is what drew Perkins and Crawford to Darrington Press. 'Critical Role creates wonderful entertainment that is deeply meaningful to the people who work there and to fans around the world,' Perkins said. 'What brought me out of retirement was the chance to work with Jeremy and the brilliant folks at Critical Role on things that have a lasting, positive impact on the world.' 'Chris and I have had the pleasure of working with and befriending members of Critical Role over the last 10 years, and we've long admired their work and spirit,' Crawford said. 'When they approached us about joining them, we happily said yes. It meant we could continue our creative partnership in a company whose mission and people we believe in.' Beyond the Monopoly generation, tabletop games have seen a rise in popularity with titles like Settlers of Catan (now just Catan) and others. To continue that rise, Perkins and Crawford believe there have to be more people involved in not only playing, but creating the games. 'First, we believe there's strength in diversity,' Perkins and Crawford said in a joint email response to follow-up questions about their plans. 'Diverse creators and diverse games help to create an industry that feels more inviting to everyone. The more people we welcome into the proverbial tent, the more powerful the industry becomes. 'Second, we think it's important for the industry to acknowledge that friendly, introductory experiences are important for onboarding new generations of gamers. Third, we hope the industry never loses the joy of play. So many of us became game designers, game masters and players because of the spark of joy we felt when we first tried a role-playing game. Let's continue to fan that spark into a flame that fills everything we do with infectious delight.' So, are there already ideas brewing for Darrington and the duo? 'Oh, heaven's yes!,' Perkins said. And that's about all they'd say about that.
Business Wire
5 days ago
- Health
- Business Wire
D&D Pharmatech Announces Positive Phase 2 Results for DD01 in MASH with Robust Reductions in Liver Fat Accompanied by Improvements in Liver and Metabolic Health
GYEONGGI-DO, South Korea & GAITHERSBURG, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--D&D Pharmatech, Inc. (D&D) (KOSDAQ: 347850), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing breakthrough treatments for liver and metabolic diseases, today announced positive results from DD01-DN-02 study, an ongoing 48-week Phase 2 trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of DD01 (a once-weekly dual GLP1/glucagon receptor agonist) in 67 overweight/obese subjects with MASH. DD01 treatment was initiated with two weeks of dosing at 20 mg, followed by the 40mg once-weekly maintenance dose. Results of a planned 12-week assessment of safety and efficacy revealed DD01 was well tolerated, and the study's primary endpoint was met. Following a 1:1 randomization of 40mg DD01 and placebo, 75.8% of subjects treated with DD01 achieved at least a 30% reduction in liver fat, 72.7% of subjects achieved greater than 50% reduction in liver fat, and 57.6% of subjects achieved greater than 70% liver fat reduction (in each case, with p < 0.0001). DD01 achieved a mean reduction of liver fat content of 62.3% vs 8.3% for placebo at 12 weeks of treatment, and 48.5% of DD01 subjects achieved normalization of liver fat fraction (defined as liver fat fraction of 5% or less by MRI-PDFF). No placebo subject achieved normalization. Treatment related reductions in Non-invasive markers of MASH progression were used to evaluate subjects at baseline and after 12 weeks of treatment. DD01 treatment was associated with statistically significant improvements in liver stiffness (MRE), pro-C3 levels, and ELF score. Additional Endpoints Twelve-week weight loss data were encouraging. While placebo-treated subjects had no significant weight loss, 42.4% of DD01-treated subjects achieving a greater than 5% reduction in weight. Also encouraging were the results of HbA1c testing. While the study population was not selected to be diabetic, following 12 weeks of DD01 treatment, HbA1c reduction was statistically significant compared to placebo. Safety Results DD01 was well tolerated. Gastrointestinal (GI) side effects were most common, generally mild to moderate, but transient and manageable. To date, only 3 subjects have discontinued treatment due to GI-related adverse events. Implications Seulki Lee, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of D&D Pharmatech, stated, 'We have remarkably positive results for DD01 after only 12 weeks of treatment in MASH. The magnitude of improvements is equivalent to what has been achieved only after longer-term treatment with FGF and GLP-1 based drugs already validated with histology data in MASH.' 'Considering the combination of liver and metabolic benefits and the favorable tolerability profile, DD01 has the potential to provide patients and physicians with a MASH treatment that is easy to manage, encourages weight loss and is diabetes friendly.' Mazen Noureddin, MD, MHSc, Professor of Medicine at Houston Methodist Hospital; Co-Chairman of the Board, Summit & Pinnacle Clinical Research; Director, Houston Research Institutes, commented, 'The degree of liver fat reduction with DD01 is striking, with nearly three-quarters of patients achieving at least a 30% reduction and almost half reaching normalization within just 12 weeks. The observed improvement in liver stiffness by MRE, though early, adds further support to the biological activity of this dual GLP-1/glucagon approach, which is designed to act directly on the liver.' 'These consistent MRI-PDFF results provide strong confidence that DD01 has the potential to meet both key regulatory endpoints - MASH resolution and fibrosis improvement - as the program advances. Coupled with favorable metabolic effects and a very low treatment discontinuation rate, DD01 is emerging as a well-differentiated and promising therapy, both within its class and compared to other potent agents in development.' Additional data will be presented at upcoming medical meetings. About DD01 DD01 is a once-weekly dual GLP1/glucagon receptor agonist with a half-life of 7-8 days in obese/overweight patients with T2D and MASLD. Following a Phase 1 study that showed DD01 rapidly reduced liver steatosis, improved glucose tolerance, and encouraged weight loss in obese subjects with MASLD and type 2 diabetes, FDA granted DD01 Fast Track Designation for the treatment of MASH. Current Phase 2 results confirm and extend these findings revealing additional benefits in patients with MASH. The effect of DD01 is consistent with its dual-agonist pharmacology. Clinical results show the effects of DD01 are remarkably rapid. DD01 achieves robust results rapidly and with tolerability comparable to other validated MASH treatments. The GLP1:glucagon potency ratio for DD01 is 11:1. GLP-1R potency is likely an important driver in glucose management for diabetic patients and in weight loss. Importantly, with this ratio, DD01 is clearly also a potent glucagon receptor agonist. Substantial liver fat reduction was observed after only 4 weeks in obese subjects with MASLD (Phase 1). Liver fat reduction by DD01 is clearly not secondary to weight loss at these early timepoints, differentiating it mechanistically from the pure incretin approach. In terms of the balance between efficacy and tolerability, the pharmacokinetics of DD01 are also unique. Good tolerability at clinically active doses is likely aided by very slow absorption (tmax = 6 days) and a long half-life (7-8 days), features which make the onset and rise in DD01 exposure gradual. Peaks associated with poor tolerability and troughs associated with diminished efficacy are avoided. As a result, the need for a lengthy titration period is eliminated and therapeutic levels are reached rapidly. A key differentiator for DD01 is the balanced constellation of clinical benefits afforded by a unique pharmacologic and pharmacodynamic signature. Current data suggest DD01 has the necessary attributes to offer patients and physicians a treatment that is easy to use, supports both liver and metabolic health. About the DD01-DN-02 Trial With the support of staff at Summit Clinical Research, the study investigators, and the study participants, the DD01-DN-02 study is fully enrolled and currently ongoing at 12 centers in the U.S. Baseline characteristics were well balanced between both treatment groups with nearly identical mean liver fat fractions (overall mean of 20.7%) and similar body weight (overall mean 99.4 kg) at baseline. Treatment is ongoing and the study includes non-invasive and histologic assessments of MASH resolution and change in fibrosis at 48 weeks. More information about the study is available at under the identifier NCT06410924. About D&D Pharmatech D&D Pharmatech is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing revolutionary medicines for patients with a number of metabolic, fibrotic, and neurodegenerative diseases. DD01 and TLY012 are in development for fibrotic liver disease (MASH and cirrhosis). TLY012 has completed IND-enabling studies and has been shown to slow and even reverse established fibrosis in models of liver cirrhosis, chronic pancreatitis, and systemic scleroderma. Two products are in development for neurodegenerative diseases. NLY02 is a small molecule BBB penetrating kinase inhibitor targeting glial activation. It is a potent inhibitor of neurodegeneration. NLY01 is also a potent inhibitor of glial activation. It acts through the incretin pathway to reduce neuronal loss and slow functional decline in models of Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and multiple sclerosis. In a recently completed Phase 2 study conducted in >250 Parkinson's patients, 36-week of treatment with NLY01 resulted in a significant reduction in motor function decline (UPDRS III) in ~1/3 of trial subjects. NLY01 appeared to slow the progressive decline in motor function in newly diagnosed patients who were young (<60) and treatment naïve. D&D Pharmatech's ORALINK technology allows efficient oral uptake of therapeutic peptides. In partnership with Metsera, the company is developing orally active incretin-based peptide drugs for obesity.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IDOL recovers unpaid wages for workers on Saline County solar project
HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT) – The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) has recovered over $85,000 in unpaid wages. The IDOL has recovered these unpaid wages for 17 workers that were employed on a construction project in Saline County. IDOL also recovered more than $17,000 in penalties from D&D Electric, LLC (D&D). Eggs sold at Walmart, other grocers in 9 states recalled amid salmonella outbreak 'Illinois law requires that employees on publicly funded projects be paid a fair wage for their skilled work,' said Illinois Department of Labor Director Jane Flanagan. 'Making these workers whole reflects IDOL's commitment to enforcing the Prevailing Wage Act and holding employers accountable when they violate workers' rights.' IDOL says it began its investigation of the Harrisburg, Illinois-based contractor in 2024 for its work on a solar panel installation. The department says it determined D&D violated the State's Prevailing Wage Act by allegedly failing to properly classify workers and correctly compensate them for fringe benefits and overtime. IDOL explains the Prevailing Wage Act requires contractors and subcontractors to pay laborers, workers and mechanics employed on public works projects no less than the general prevailing rate of wages, which consists of hourly cash wages plus fringe benefits, for work of similar character in the locality where the work is performed. U.S. Supreme Court to hear Representative Bost's case on mail-in voting IDOl says the Illinois Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) ensured that new clean energy construction jobs are also quality high-wage jobs by requiring that contractors pay prevailing wages for workers on projects receiving incentives through the Illinois Power Agency. Officials say if a worker believes they have not been properly compensated for work performed in Illinois, they can file a complaint online or call 312-793-2800 with questions. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Business Wire
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Wire
Hasbro Celebrates International Day of Play with Global Initiatives to Expand Access to Play
PAWTUCKET, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS), a leading games, IP and toy company, is proud to celebrate the second annual International Day of Play (IDOP) on June 11, 2025. Through an epic new family-friendly DUNGEONS & DRAGONS adventure and meaningful community partnerships, Hasbro is bringing more ways to play to children, fans and families around the world. Recognized globally as a day to elevate play to the world stage, IDOP advocates for increased time, space, and quality of play as a fundamental right for every child. 'This International Day of Play, we're calling on everyone to make more space for play,' said Theron Grim, Vice President, EHS, Sustainability, and Corporate Citizenship at Hasbro. 'In a world where loneliness is rising and access to play isn't equal, we know it has the power to build friendships, boost emotional well-being, and spark lifelong skills like problem-solving, collaboration, and empathy. Whether it's through roleplaying games like DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, hands-on creativity with PLAY-DOH, or programs in hospitals and schools, we're all in on expanding access to play for every child and every fan.' Hasbro's 2025 IDOP highlights: Join the party and embark on an all-new D&D quest Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast are dropping a brand-new, family-friendly D&D adventure, Borderlands Quest: Goblin Trouble —available to download at no cost for registered users on D&D Beyond, or at 300+ Wizards Play Network retail locations across the U.S. Designed for players of all ages and experience levels, it's the perfect introduction to the World's Greatest Roleplaying Game ®. To download the adventure, fans must first register here on D&D Beyond at no cost. For a list of participating WPN stores across North America, click here: Powering up play with Boys & Girls Clubs of America Hasbro's Wizards of the Coast is piloting official afterschool D&D clubs at 10 Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide, complete with mini libraries, game materials, and support to train the next generation of Dungeon Masters. To celebrate, Hasbro volunteers will be visiting a local Boys & Girls Club to bring the fun in person. Delivering joy to pediatric patients Together with Starlight Children's Foundation, Hasbro is offering D&D adventures to all Starlight U.S. partner hospitals (800+ locations) and toy deliveries to kids at six children's hospitals across the U.S., including in Providence, Seattle, Austin, Durham, and Los Angeles. Hasbro employees will be on-site in Seattle and Los Angeles to help lead gameplay and deliver joy. In London, Hasbro is partnering with Spread a Smile to host interactive play sessions at four London hospitals, bringing laughter and comfort to hospitalized children and their families. Play around the world From London to Singapore to Pawtucket, Hasbro teams are hosting office playdays and teaming up with local nonprofits to bring play to their communities, including Special Effect, City Year, and the Singapore Children's Museum. The International Day of Play (IDOP), adopted by the UN in March 2024, is a global advocacy day dedicated to recognizing play as a fundamental human right. Celebrated annually on June 11, IDOP calls on governments, organizations, and communities to ensure all children have time, space, and access to quality play. About Hasbro Hasbro is a leading games, IP, and toy company whose mission is to create joy and community through the magic of play. With over 100 years of expertise, Hasbro delivers engaging play and entertainment experiences across a broad portfolio of iconic brands, including MAGIC: THE GATHERING, MONOPOLY, NERF, PLAY-DOH, PEPPA PIG, and DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, as well as premier partner brands. Hasbro connects with fans through toys, games, digital gaming, consumer products, and entertainment. Through its franchise-first approach, Hasbro unlocks value from both new and legacy IP, powered by a portfolio of thousands of iconic marks and a diversified network of partners and subsidiary studios. For more information, visit
