This may be a sign of things to come, and it is not encouraging. Piers Morgan, that acerbic and hugely popular British podcaster, interviewed a new Hollywood starlet, Tilly Norwood, about her role in her new film, Misaligned.
Accompanied by actor Tom Conti (Oppenheimer), Morgan interacted in what appears to be a Zoom call with Ms. Norwood. Questions were asked seriously and answered cheerfully, as one might expect. The slight latency (delay) in the connection between Q and A was as would be expected in a remote setup, but in this case was slightly exaggerated because: Ms. Norwood is not real.
She is a complete creation of artificial intelligence.
Yet there she was, interacting with Morgan and Conti with a beguiling, cheerful smile and clean diction. She answered questions with eloquence and confidence, in a way that looked all too human.
She was of course merely a talking head, but then so were the others, given the format. I’m not sure how she looks in the movie—and I really don’t plan to find out—but presumably she has a full human-ish body there.
As a mere digital creation, Tilly’s performance was intriguing and persuasive—until without warning she switched to Cantonese halfway through the interview.
In the YouTube clip at the 10:50 mark, Tom Conti asks her whether her fellow actors are humans or digital creations. Tilly begins to reply in her delightful, friendly 20-something way. Then she suddenly pauses. After a few seconds of dead air, she resumes her response in what is apparently Cantonese.
Both interviewers are obviously perplexed.
Morgan asks her why she slipped into Chinese mid-interview. She replies in English with an endearingly carefree, “Sometimes my wires get crossed!” response.
Morgan then speculates that she switched in anticipation of a Chinese national who would follow her as a guest on the program.
I can hardly wait until we start exchanging AI surrogates as international ambassadors. Negotiations could take unexpected twists.
Does this mean we need fewer data centers? Or… maybe more of them?
Number 3. LA Times. Trump gets what he wants in Greenland.
I think it’s probably pretty clear if you read his book. I doubt that Donald Trump wrote The Art of the Deal because he didn’t know anything about negotiating.
Last year, there was near-universal outrage about Trump’s loud bullying of Denmark over the subject of Greenland. The president proposed purchasing Greenland (under control of Denmark), and when the parties objected, he basically said, “No problem, we can take it by force any time we want it.”
The left freaked out.
Of course the U.S. could take Greenland by force, but it would violate all sorts of holy international agreements, and we probably won’t.
But Donald Trump has positioned himself as a loose cannon. His critics generally play right into his hand, choosing to take him literally instead of seriously.
Trump seriously wanted U.S. military access to Greenland territory in order to counter likely avenues of missile attack from hostile actors: namely, Russia, China and North Korea. There is also the matter of increasingly navigable Arctic waters due to shrinking ice, making foreign intrusion into that space more likely over the next decade.
When he launched the operation to seize Nicolas Maduro from Venezuela in January, and then attacked Iran at the end of February, the Greenland issue fell off the front page. But it is increasingly obvious that NOTHING ever truly escapes Mr. Trump’s attention. Negotiators continued their work.
Last weekend, Denmark prime minister Mette Frederiksen announced that a three-way deal between her country, Greenland, and the U.S. would be signed within the week.
The deal permanently denies both China and Russia access to Greenland. It also opens the door to commercial U.S. mining rights in Greenland, important to Trump’s attempts to counter Chinese global interest in rare earth minerals, especially in Africa.
U.S. investment is expected to guarantee long-term military security for both Greenland and Denmark, and probably make many residents of both lands quite wealthy.
What’s not to like?
So when Donald Trump says something like, “I’m gonna bulldoze your house unless you sign it over to me!” it might be useful to look past the public bluster and understand the private motivations.
Considering the reactions of Mr. Trump’s critics, it’s hard not to draw parallels to the antics of Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote.
Number 2. The Gateway Pundit. House pet foils thief’s plan by proposing play.
This is not exactly earth-shaking news, but it is a pleasant break from the incessant sky-is-falling alerts which are the stock in trade of the blogstermeister.
A San Diego man broke into Dante & Stephanie’s home while they were away. Their Ring doorbell alerted them and Dante called local police. He gave them access to his Ring video feed.
Response was soon under way.
At home, Nash, the Golden Retriever who was trusted to repel boarders with ferocious barking and gnashing of bared teeth, brought the intruder his stuffed toy and wagged his tail—the only ferocious thing about him.
Police arrived, gained entrance, and sic’d a drone on the guy inside the house. (Clever move; I’d do the same given the option. Better than walking into a wall of flying lead.)
The drone chased the guy from room to room. Cops burst through the front door, guns at the ready.
With all the excitement, Nash was in heaven. Look at all my new friends! Running and shouting inside the house! This is great!
The perpetrator was arrested and removed from the premises. It was a sweet evening for Nash, who had lots to tell Mom & Dad when they got home.
I love a happy ending.
Number 1. RedState. Trumpeter’s malfunction turns National Anthem into an over-the-top performance.
Speaking of happy endings: This is about major league baseball, for those of you who, like me, are sports challenged. But it’s also about music and performance.
The Arizona Diamondbacks, on the 25th anniversary of their World Series championship, faced the New York Yankees in Phoenix last weekend. For the occasion, home team management called in Dr. Jesse McGuire to play the National Anthem on his trumpet.
Dr. McGuire had played during that World Series run in 2001, and had performed the Star Spangled Banner at other home games since. Now at age 68, he is the former lead trumpet player for the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and for a band called Tower of Power. He has also performed for multiple U.S. presidents, at the Daytona 500, and at various nationally recognized professional sports events.
He is man accustomed to performing under pressure.
He proved it again last Saturday night before a full stadium.
He began beautifully, as expected. The crowd joined in with the words to the Star Spangled Banner. When McGuire got to “Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous—” his horn could not quite get to “fight.” Which left Old Glory’s colors streaming uncertainly o’er the ramparts in the night sky above Fort McHenry.
The professional Jesse McGuire didn’t clutch. His horn inoperative, he immediately seized the microphone which stood before his trumpet. He then belted out the rest of the Anthem as a vocal solo. He strode confidently back and forth, trumpet cradled in his left hand.
McGuire is a musician. He can sing as well as play.
The crowd went nuts.
A brass specialist I happen know (Mrs. Alligator) explained to me that a common malady of the trumpet occurs when the tiny second-valve slide interferes with the operation of the piston. Oftentimes, when the horn is laid down on its right side, instead of left, the slide can be pressed too far into the tubing.
It doesn’t take much… maybe an excess ten-thousandths of an inch.
Of necessity, the clearance inside the valve assembly is quite limited. Any extra force applied to that very short slide can disable the second key.
Dr. Jesse McGuire proved what a true professional looks like in a performance crisis.
Watch the video. You gotta love it. I don’t know his politics, but I really don’t care. This man was all American last Saturday night.
And thanks for joining The Alligator News Roundup for Friday, September 25, 2026. With the break in the weather here in the middle of North America, take some time to sit outside on the deck or in the backyard. Crank up the gas grill—if the climate cops have not yet outlawed it in your state—and enjoy some hamburgers and hot dogs.
Or, you could take a weekend trip to a distant city, at gas costs approaching five bucks a gallon, and mooch off your friends’ hamburgers.
Whatever… it’s good to have friends.
Have a good weekend!
