Canada Morning Brief: What You Need To Know For June 23

Good morning — Andrew from Narcity here! ☕

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5 Things You Need To Know Today

🚰 HOLIDAY
The U.S. apparently observes National Hydration Day on June 23. It's probably not a bad idea for Canadians to show some solidarity with our neighbours to the south, too, given how stinking hot some corners of the country have been this week.

🏀 BASKETBALL
The 2022 NBA Draft is tonight, with the Orlando Magic tipping things off with the No. 1 pick shortly after 8 p.m. ET. The Toronto Raptors' lone selection is currently No. 33 — though that could certainly change as teams trade up and down the draft board.

🤖 TECH TALKS
The international technology conference Collision wraps up in Toronto today — bringing a merciful end to the 30,000-plus attendees having to make awkward small talk about the short-term prospects of cryptocurrency.

🏃♀️ MILESTONE
Today marks the 50th anniversary of the passing of what is most commonly called Title IX, the U.S. law barring sex-based discrimination in education for schools that use government funding. Among its many positive effects, Title IX played a monumental role in opening the door to greater participation in women's sports.

🎂 BIRTHDAYS
Speaking of the half-century mark, headstrong French soccer star Zinedine Zidane also turns 50 today. Four-time Oscar-winner Frances McDormand is 65, entitling her to the senior's discount at Bulk Barn on Wednesdays. LaDainian Tomlinson, who was everyone's favourite fantasy football player from 2006-07, is also 43.

In Case You Missed It

1. Canada Is Increasing Protections For Flyers

The Canadian Transportation Agency is amending its rules on when airlines are required to issue refunds, Lisa Belmonte reports. The big takeaway: starting September 8, operators will have to provide timely recourse for passengers for "lengthy" delays outside of the airlines' control. There's a fair amount to unpack so click here for the full story.

2. Cineplex Hikes Fees On Some Movie Tickets

Canada's largest film exhibitor is adding a $1.50 fee to movie tickets purchased online — though members of various loyalty programs can get varying degrees of discounts on the new charge. Also, the fee won't apply to tickets purchased in person — which is great news if you wanted to sneak into a mid-day screening of Morbius without leaving much of a paper trail. Here's Lisa once more with details on Cineplex's price increase.

3. Toronto's Taste Of The Danforth Shelved For 2022

For the third straight year, one of Toronto's signature street festivals, the all-Greek-everything Taste of the Danforth, will not be held. This time, however, the issue isn't the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic so much as what organizers have deemed an inadequate amount of time to address "changes to the streetscape." Alex Arsenych takes us through what we know so far.

4. Uh, What's Up With This Wild Brad Pitt Cover Shoot?

Combine a technicolour pond, flowers, some ostentatious jewelry, a lizard and possibly a handful of magic mushrooms and you get this unsettling GQ cover shoot starring Brad Pitt. As Josh Elliott notes, the commentariat couldn't help themselves, noting Pitt's corpse-like qualities — but the real story is that he told GQ he spent a year futilely digging for treasure at his French estate.

5. Adam Sandler Is Basically An Honourary Torontonian

Yesterday, we spotlit a casting call for the production of an Adam Sandler film being shot in Toronto later this summer. Well, it turns out the Sandman is already in town and locals keep running into the Happy Gilmore star. Brooke Houghton takes us through the visual clues of where you might spot the world's foremost expert on the "oversized polo shirt with basketball shorts" look.

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