Shell fined for explosions, gas leak at Dutch chemical plant

A Dutch court has fined oil giant Shell 2.5 million euros ($2.8 million) for breaching Dutch labor and environmental laws in a case linked to two explosions and a gas leak at a chemical plant south of Rotterdam.

The East Brabant court ruled Monday that Shell did not take sufficient precautions to prevent two blasts and a subsequent fire that injured two workers when the company restarted two reactors at a chemical plant in the village of Moerdjik on June 3, 2014.

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The court also held Shell liable for a leak of ethylene oxide gas that lasted from Nov.14, 2015, until Jan. 27, 2016, at the same plant.

Shell did not immediately respond to an email and phone call seeking comment.

Tackled Uber’s entry with guerrilla-like plan, says Ola

We focussed on nooks and corners of India: CEO Aggarwal

India’s biggest ride-hailing firm Ola countered American giant Uber’s ‘carpet bombing’ entry into the country with guerrilla warfare, by going into nooks and corners to gain significant market share, said its founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal.

Speaking at the IIT Bay Area Alumni meet in California, a transcript of which was made available by the company, Mr. Aggarwal said Uber was clearly ahead of Ola in terms of fund infusion but it was never able to gain a dominant market share.

Mr. Aggarwal claimed when the “competition was at its peak, Uber was outspending us almost 5:1 to the dollar.”

“Yet, we held on to our market share and even today we have 2:1 market share against our competition. They had to really outspend but were never really able to gain dominant market share in India.” He likened the firm’s strategy to guerrillas stating they will “fight the nooks and corners” and win in the long-term.

Mr. Aggarwal recounted that when Uber entered India in 2013, Ola was a “tiny c1ompany” operating in two cities with a mere half a million dollars in the bank. “We did not have a huge head start against them in India … [however], we were clear about our strengths… we know India better, we ended up building our business model customised around Indian reality in every aspect,” he noted.

Broadway’s ‘Hillary And Clinton’ Starring Laurie Metcalf Announces Closing

Hillary And Clinton, Lucas Hnath’s Broadway play starring Laurie Metcalf and John Lithgow, will plays its final performance on Sunday, June 23, producer Scott Rudin announced today.

The critically praised production – read my Deadline review here –  earned Metcalf a Tony Award nomination as best leading actress/play, but the trophy went to The Waverly Gallery‘s Elaine May. With no Tony-assisted b.o. boost, today’s closing announcement was no unexpected. (Last week, the Rudin-produced Gary: A Sequel To Titus Andronicus, a best play nominee, announced its closing).

When it closes on Sunday, June 23, H&C will have played 37 previews and 77 regular performances since beginning previews March 16, 2019, and opening April 18 at the Golden Theatre. In addition to Metcalf and Lithgow – who play the title characters, or, rather perhaps alternate-universe versions of the two – H&C featured Zak Orth and Peter Francis James. Joe Mantello directed.

Though even at its peak the play never reached must-see levels for audiences, recent weeks have seen the show overshadowed by the buzzier, Tony-heavier productions. In the week leading up to the June 9 Tony Awards, Hillary And Clinton‘s weekly gross was a slight $291,098, only about 36% of its $814,632 potential.

Tyra Banks To Star & Executive Produce ‘Beauty’ Docuseries For Quibi

Tyra Banks (America’s Next Top Model) is set to star in and executive produce Beauty, a new docuseries for Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman’s short-form video platform Quibi.

Per Quibi, Beauty will serve as a mirror for us to question societal standards that have defined us – going deep to tackle compelling topics head on in every episode, making you question everything you ever thought was beautiful… nothing will be off limits. Beauty‘s mission is to break down barriers and challenge traditional notions, all while captivating, inspiring and exploring beauty revolutions and evolutions across the globe.

“As I look into the future, I see radical changes in both how people ‘attain beauty,’ and how the world perceives beauty,” says Banks, “Our docu-series aims to expand and redefine the definition of beauty as we know it, challenging why we accept certain beauty parameters and reject others, and examining the beliefs behind those judgments.”

Banks stars and executive produces. Beauty is produced by Network Entertainment for Quibi.

Banks created and hosts America’s Next Top Model, which has been running for 24 seasons. The show airs in over 180 countries and with over 100 geographical versions, including Germany’s NTM, India’s NTM, Asia’s NTM and Britain’s NTM.

Banks and Network Entertainment are repped by UTA.

Egypt’s state TV says the country’s ousted President Mohammed Morsi collapsed during court and died

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s state TV says the country’s ousted President Mohammed Morsi has collapsed during a court session and died.

The state TV says the 67-year-old Morsi was attending a session Monday in his trial on espionage charges when he blacked out and then died. His body was taken to a hospital, it said.

Morsi, who hailed from Egypt’s largest Islamist group, the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, was elected president in 2012 in the country’s first free elections following the ouster the year before of longtime leader Hosni Mubarak.

The military ousted Morsi in 2013 after massive protests and crushed the Brotherhood in a major crackdown, arresting Morsi and many others of the group’s leaders.