• Tom Bodett is suing Motel 6. The long-time spokesperson says the chain is using his voice and name without permission. After 39 years of working together, Motel 6 allegedly failed to make an annual payment and has not rectified the situation, Bodett says.

For 39 years, Tom Bodett encouraged people to stay at Motel 6 with his signature line “We’ll leave the light on for you.” Now he’s suing the hotel chain.

Bodett has filed suit in a Manhattan federal court, accusing the company of using his name and voice without his permission. While the two have been inseparable in many people’s minds, due to the length of the partnership, Bodett says he cut ties with the company in January, after its new owner missed a $1.2 million annual payment.

 Motel 6’s new owners made a number of excuses for their failure to make the required payment,” the suit reads. “First, they blamed the delay on the ownership transition and the need to work “through bank transfers.” Then, they claimed with no proof whatsoever that Plaintiffs had not performed their obligations under the Agreements, and threatened to sue Plaintiffs for non-performance if Mr. Bodett would not agree to simply let Motel 6’s breach lie.”

Motel 6, he says, has continued to use his name and voice on its reservation line, however. Bodett also says he coined the “We’ll leave the light on for you” tagline.

Bodett, in the court filing, said he spent five months trying to find a way for the partnership to end amicably and without “undue negative publicity,” but says the company has “only responded with misrepresentations, obfuscations, and delay tactics.” He’s seeking $1.2 million and additional damages.

Bodett, who has also voiced animated series on Saturday Night Live as well as several Ken Burns documentaries, has been the voice of Motel 6 since 1986. The ad campaign, a wry, bare-bones, folksy, low pressure series of commercials, has won numerous awards and has been inducted into the Clio Advertising Hall of Fame. It was so popular at one point that radio listeners would call the stations and request replays of the ads.

G6 Hospitality, Motel 6’s immediate parent, did not immediately reply to Fortune‘s request for comment about the complaint.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Beanie Babies, Cabbage Patch Kids, and Stanley coolers have all had their moments in the sun. Now, make way for Labubu.

The viral stuffed toy is already familiar to avid TikTok users, but it’s starting to ping the radar of the rest of the world—and it’s selling out at a ludicrous pace, with fans lining up outside of stores and stalking online refreshes.

So, what is a Labubu? It’s a plush pendant toy that’s part of a larger group of toys called “the Monsters.” Created by Hong Kong artist and author Kasing Lung, the characters made their debut in a 2015 book and were turned into toys in 2019 by toy company Pop Mart.

It wasn’t long before influencers and celebrities began attaching the creepy-looking “elvish creature” to their handbags and word began to spread.

Want to get up to speed? Here’s what you need to know:

How does one get a Labubu?

Luck helps. Labubus are typically sold in “blind boxes,” meaning the buyer doesn’t know what color or design they’re getting until they open it. And even getting your hands on one of those boxes is tricky.

Pop Mart restocks its online Labubu collections on Thursdays. Real-world stores (and vending machines) refresh on Friday. In both cases, people swarm the stores, with online refreshes selling in seconds and lines forming outside physical locations hours before they open.

What made Labubu so popular?

One of the first celebrities to popularize the toy was rapper Lisa of the K-pop group Blackpink (who also was featured on season 3 of The White Lotus). Last year, for example, she shared photos of a Christmas tree decorated with several of the dolls.

Other stars have since pledged their loyalty, including Rihanna and Kim Kardashian.

How much are people paying for a Labubu?

The dolls retail for as little as $44 (though certain vinyl-faced dolls go for $180 on Pop Mart), but because demand is so intense, there’s a thriving secondary market. Resale site eBay is loaded with people asking thousands of dollars for certain models (but with the “best offer” caveat letting them sell for much less). StockX, which lets people bid on items, has seen prices topping $5,000 for some of the dolls. And in China, a one-of-a-kind human-size Labubu doll recently sold for $150,000.

How many different kinds of Labubu are there?

The way to keep a viral sensation hot is to have lots of variety—with some being especially rare. There are over 300 different sorts of Labubu at this point, some dressed in special clothes, and some that are part of brand collaborations, like one with Coca-Cola.

Is it true some stores are refusing to sell Labubu?

Yep. Last month, Pop Mart decided to stop selling Labubus in its 16 U.K. stores for a while as people were getting into fights in their fervor to get (and possibly resell) one. The stores have reportedly since been restocked.

Okay, so what the heck is a Lafufu?

With something this popular, there were bound to be knockoffs. A Lafufu is a fake Labubu. If you see someone selling a Labubu on the street, it’s likely a Lafufu. Buyer beware when purchasing online from anyone other than Pop Mart as well.

How much fun is it to say “Labubu”?

A lot.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• Lawmakers were active stock traders in the days following Trump’s Liberation Day tariff announcement. A study of trades shows House lawmakers (or their families) made 1,865 trades in April. This comes amid calls for reform that would prevent lawmakers from trading individual stocks.

While the debate on whether to ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks rages on, lawmakers were particularly active in April amid the announcement of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

A study by The Wall Street Journal found that House lawmakers reported 1,865 trades by them or their families in April, the highest number, by far, since January 2024. From the period between April 2, when Trump announced the tariffs, to April 8, when he paused them, over a dozen members of the House and their family reported over 700 trades.

And the most transactions, the paper says, were made by Reps. Ro Khanna (D., Calif.) and Rob Bresnahan (R., Pa.), who have previously called for stock-trading bans. Both said their trades were made by outside financial advisors.

Lawmakers weren’t the only ones selling and buying stocks during that period, of course. The S&P 500 fell more than 4.5% for two consecutive sessions after the so-called Liberation Day announcements. And after the pause, the Nasdaq index saw its biggest gain in 24 years, a 12% increase.

Because of the vague nature of disclosure rules for members of the House, it’s not possible to determine if the lawmakers made or lost money in those trades.

Two lawmakers seemed well-positioned to have profited, however. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.) and Jared Moskowitz (D., Fla.) both bought in early April, so were likely to see those investments gain value after the market rebounded. Greene spend roughly $28,000 on FedEx, Amazon.com, Lululemon Athletica and Palantir Technologies. Moskowitz made 23 stock purchases of at least $1,000 each in companies such as Amazon, Nvidia and Visa.

Both said financial advisors made the trades.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• Paramount Global is laying off 3.5% of its staff, impacting hundreds of employees. The entertainment giant laid off roughly 2,000 workers last year. It’s in the process of trying to get approval for its merger with Skydance Media.

Paramount Global is downsizing its staff once again.

The entertainment giant, which owns CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, and more channels and properties, announced plans to reduce its U.S. headcount by 3.5%, which will impact hundreds of jobs. The company blamed the economy and decline in traditional pay-television revenues for the action.

“We recognize how difficult this is and are very thankful for everyone’s hard work and contributions,” the company wrote in a memo to staff. ”These changes are necessary to address the environment we are operating in and best position Paramount for success.”

Paramount, as of December, had 18,600 full- and part-time employees globally. (The company does not break that number down between domestic and international workers.)

This is the second (or third, depending on how you count) round of layoffs for the company in the past year. Last August, Paramount announced plans to cut 15% of its workforce, which impacted approximately 2,000 workers. The following month, the second round of those cuts occurred.

The company also laid off 800 workers last February, the day after it saw record Super Bowl ratings.

The cuts come as Paramount is seeking regulatory approval for its proposed merger with Skydance Media. The company has also made a controversial $15 million offer to settle a lawsuit Donald Trump filed last year over perceived “illegal” edits to a 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump is seeking $20 billion in a suit that most legal experts have said he had no chance of winning.

Paramount’s decision to attempt to settle the case led to the departures of Bill Owens, longtime 60 Minutes executive producer; and Wendy McMahon, president of CBS News and Stations.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• Adjustable weights from BowFlex are being recalled. Over 3.8 million units are impacted by the recall. More than 100 people have been injured by the weights so far.

Working out with BowFlex adjustable dumbbells? You might want to switch to another method for a while.

Over 3.8 million BowFlex 552 and 1090 adjustable dumbbells have been recalled, according to an announcement from the Consumer Product Safety Commission. That follows hundreds of reports of the plates dislodging during use. That has resulted in over 100 injuries such as concussions, abrasions, broken toes, or contusions.

The products were sold in stores, including Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Johnson Fitness & Wellness, and online on Amazon and the BowFlex website for between $200 and $800. The weights have been in stores since 2004.

Consumers are encouraged to stop using them immediately and return them for a refund.

Johnson Health Tech Trading, which sells the weights under the BowFlex name, is working with the CPSC to recall the products, including the ones sold under Nautilus, the former owner of the BowFlex brand.

To facilitate that, consumers will be sent a prepaid shipping label to return the handle and base for each returned dumbbell. Johnson Health Tech Trading plans to contact all known purchasers directly.

The black dumbbells were sold in pairs and single units. The 552 model adjusts from five to 52.5 pounds, while the model 1090 ranges from 10 to 90 pounds.

Recalls of exercise equipment by the CPSC are fairly rare. The most recent significant recall came in 2023, when Peloton was forced to recall 2 million exercise bikes, when it was discovered the seat could break during use, posing the risk of possible injury.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• While it’s still summer, retailers are already promoting Halloween yard decorations. This year could be different than previous years as tariffs have raised fears about supply shortages and higher prices. Lowe’s is the latest to offer goods, with products that tie in to Disney’s Haunted Mansion attraction.

Holiday creep is the sort of thing that usually drives people a little bit crazy. So seeing yard decorations for Halloween cropping up in home improvement stores right as hurricane season gets underway might seem a bit much.

But 2025, by all signs, is not going to be the usual spooky season. And people who are hoping to have the latest and greatest ghouls in their front yard might want to consider stocking up a bit early this year.

Lowe’s is the latest store to offer early Halloween decorations, with several new decorations and animatronics from Disney’s Haunted Mansion ride. The store is offering several freestanding tombstones that visitors see when they’re waiting to enter the attraction, as well as decorations of popular ride characters, including the groundskeeper and the hitchhiking ghosts.

Critics might take issue with some of the design choices of these decorations (which are not exactly what you’d call a carbon copy of the ride characters), but as Oct. 31 draws nearer, the choices in stores might not be as robust as previous years.

Continuing questions about tariffs have pushed some retailers to pause or cancel orders for Halloween and Christmas decorations.

Lowe’s is hardly the first retailer to launch early Halloween sales. The Home Depot, in March, launched sales of select spooky decorations, such as its iconic 12-foot skeleton and a 15-foot animated scarecrow.

Several more items are still available on that company’s website, but if you’re hoping to pick up a 12-foot skeleton, you’ll have to wait until the Home Depot’s next big Halloween event, which usually takes place in July.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• A film based on the coup against OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman is reportedly in the works. While no deals have been signed, Andrew Garfield is said to be the leading contender to play Altman. The film would be directed by Luca Guadagnino.

When Sam Altman was kicked out of OpenAI, it didn’t last long. Within five days, the co-founder of the artificial-intelligence giant was back in charge. But the drama surrounding that attempted coup is the sort of stuff Hollywood lives for.

Now, Amazon-owned MGM is reportedly fast-tracking a film about the events called Artificial. The Hollywood Reporter says that while nothing has been officially green-lit, the hope is that production will begin as early as this summer. Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name, Challengers) is being eyed to direct the film—and while no actors have been signed, pending Guadagnino’s deal closing, Andrew Garfield is the odds-on favorite to play Altman.

Monica Barbaro (A Complete Unknown) is rumored to be in line to portray Mira Murati, and Anora actor Yura Borisov would play Ilya Sutskever.

There could be as much drama offscreen as on with this film. Amazon has invested heavily in Anthropic, an OpenAI rival, which will have onlookers combing the frames for any perceived corporate bias.

Altman was abruptly kicked out of OpenAI on Nov. 17, 2023 in an effort led by Sutskever. Murati was named interim CEO, but relinquished that role soon after to Emmett Shear. Altman formally returned on Nov. 22, with Sutskever, Helen Toner, Tasha McCauley removed from the board.

Sutskever and Murati have since left OpenAI to launch their own artificial-intelligence companies.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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