Benzinga Buzz: Musk Vs. Zuck, Skims Vs. Spanx, Spotify Vs. Meghan Markle And More

Each week, Benzinga Buzz compiles the latest entertainment news into a cohesive column for your consideration. Read on for the latest updates — both useful and irreverent.

• Skims Vs. Spanx. Kim Kardashian's underwear startup began in a bathtub. "I used to take my shapewear and dye it with tea bags and coffee in the bathtub," Kardashian said. Almost immediately, trucks filled with venture capital backed into Kim's driveway and her "Skims" secured funding at a valuation of $3.2 billion (because she's a famous person). For something more inspiring, consider the hosiery-to-riches story of Sara Blakely. Her company, Spanx, achieved a $1.2 billion valuation, but only after Blakely — formerly a door-to-door fax machine seller — spent years struggling and toiling to get a "yes" for her shapewear invention. See the video below:

• Doofus Duo. The billionaire rivalry between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg is baffling. Not only are the pair slated to actually fight each other (for charity), they also might be headed to court. To sum up: Musk, who owns Twitter, is upset that Zuckerberg launched a rival platform called Threads. Now, Musk is threatening to sue Meta Platforms Inc META, accusing Zuckerberg of poaching Twitter employees to build Threads. Author Stephen King had this to say:

A choice between Musk and Zuckerberg! Gosh, how lucky can we be?

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) July 6, 2023

• Duchess Denied. Meghan Markle penned a letter to Taylor Swift inviting the pop star to come on a now-cancelled podcast. Swift, who is reportedly making $13 million a night on her current tour, said "no." Following the announcement of a second season of the podcast last month, Spotify SPOT and Meghan could not reach an agreement on its launch, and the snub from Swift added another layer to the situation. Spotify had shelled out $20 million for one season of Meghan's podcast "Archetypes," included guests like Serena Williams, Mariah Carey and Paris Hilton. Meghan, I'm available!

Recommended Reading.

• 'Real Housewives' star Jackie Goldschneider rejects Ozempic weight loss drug: 'I'll Be The Last (Wo)man Standing'
• Netflix Inc. NFLX peeves users over the timing of "Titanic" being added to the platform after the "Titan tragedy." Others simply watched the movie or ignored it entirely.
• The Hollywood writers' strike has no end in sight. And now, the Screen Actors Guild may also strike, citing a similar concern as the writers — the threat of unregulated use of artificial intelligence (AI). For more information, read this article written by an AI newsbot.

For the last edition of Benzinga Buzz, click here.