*By Conor White*
"Mad Men" creator Matthew Weiner's new anthology series for Amazon, "The Romanoffs," is about far more than Russia's last royal family, according to one of its stars.
"As I said to Matthew when I was doing this, I have to bone up on the Romanoffs," actor Aaron Eckhart said in an interview on Cheddar.
"And he said, 'Well, not really, because it really has nothing to do with the Romanoffs.'"
The family consisted of Tsar Nicholas II, his wife, and five children. After Russia's February Revolution of 1917, Nicholas II abdicated the throne and was later executed with the rest of his house. Within the last 30 years, all the bodies have been discovered and identified through DNA testing. Despite that evidence, whispers remain that one of his children, most likely Anastasia, escaped the killings. (The tsar's youngest daughter inspired the popular animated film, "Anastasia," which was recently turned into a musical.)
The Amazon ($AMZN) series features a different cast in each of its eight episodes, which are all linked by some sort of connection to the famous family ー be it real or fabricated.
Eckhart said it's the relationships between the show's characters ー whether directly linked to the royals or not ー that makes the show special.
"The magical part of the show is that it has thematics, and it has through lines with the Romanoffs," the Golden Globe nominee said. "But it's all these different scenarios with different people all over the world."
The series is creator Weiner's return to television after his seven-season run with "Mad Men" ー the highly-acclaimed show garnered two Golden Globes for "Best Drama Series" and eight Primetime Emmy awards.
It was Eckhart's first time working with Weiner, and he said the experience was "educational, interesting," and "fascinating,"
"It's very surprising and striking and bold. It takes a real genius to figure this all out," Eckhart added.
In the age of binge-watching, Amazon has made the choice to release one episode per week after releasing the first two episodes simultaneously on Oct. 12.
Eckhart is a fan of the move and called it "more traditional." But he admitted he has binged his way through at least one classic series.
"I did binge-watch 'Friends'," he said.
"'Friends' is a very good show."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/meet-the-romanoffs).
L’Oréal is doubling down on its investment in tech. The French beauty giant unveiled two new high-tech products ahead of CES 2022, aimed at simplifying the hair coloring process. Guive Balooch, global vice president of L’Oréal Technology Incubator, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss the company's innovations for hair coloring, including the Colorsonic application device and the Coloright AI diagnostic tool.
After meeting by chance in an airport, legendary actor Bill Murray and world-renowned cellist Jan Vogler joined forces to put out an album of poetry and music, go on a European concert tour, and release a feature documentary. Murray and Vogler joined Cheddar to dish about the experiences taking their “New Worlds: The Cradle of Civilization" on the road and filming the documentary that followed the pair, along with Mira Wang on violin and Vanessa Perez on piano, at their final show in Greece. "When this opportunity to play with Jan and Mira and Vanessa came along, I thought, well how bad can I be with these people behind me," Murray self-deprecatingly noted about his own musical talents.
On this episode of Cheddar Reveals: Director of Programs at Alpine Ascents breaks down how to mentally and physically prepare for climbing Mount Everest; American Himalayan Foundation's Vice President discusses Sherpa culture and ethos, and why they are so critical to the climb; A look at Curiosity Stream's 'History by the Numbers.'
All around the world, speed limits are placed on public roads to promote car safety and save lives. In that same world, car manufacturers have continued to look for ways to build faster and faster cars. Despite the dangers of speeding, many drivers are guilty of pushing the pedal from time to time. With cars being such a prevalent culture in everyday life, especially in the US, it’s worth wondering what it would take for car companies to once and for all settle the argument of safety versus freedom.
A recent study by MSI uncovers a vast racial divide in influencer marketing. The research found a 35% racial pay gap between white and black influencers. This gap is extremely wider than the gap in other industries such as education, business, and finance. The research also suggests that brands and agencies have the power to close this gap. Tiffany Hardin, founder and CEO of Gild Creative Group, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Student loan collection company Navient agreed to cancel $1.7 billion in debt and paid more than $140 million in other penalties to settle a lawsuit over abusive lending practices. Josh Shapiro, the attorney general of Pennsylvania who led negotiations in the settlement, joined Cheddar to go over the details of the company's predatory lending. "What Navient would do is charge [borrowers] these exorbitantly high rates, even though they knew people couldn't pay them or they would likely default on them," he explained.
Retail platform operator and delivery company, Foxtrot,
raised $100 million in a Series C round led by D1 Capital Partners. Foxtrot bills itself as the modern convenience store that combines what it calls in-store curated discovery with 30-minute delivery and 5-minute pickup. Since launching first as a digital-only delivery service, the company has since grown into a popular local retailer, opening 16 brick and mortar locations across Chicago, Dallas, and Washington, DC. Foxtrot co-founder and CEO Michael LaVitola joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
