Monday, June 2, 2025

MONDAY, JUNE 2, 2025

Good Morning! On this day in 1863, a Raleigh newspaper titled the North Carolina Standard first referenced the state’s “Tar Heel” nickname. The term is later linked to General Robert E. Lee allegedly exclaiming, “God Bless the Tar Heel boys!” after a North Carolina soldier retorted that if other states’ soldiers had tar on their heels, North Carolina’s troops would not have had to retake a Civil War battle line.

Did you get a rare glimpse of the Northern Lights in North Carolina’s skies last night? If not, there may be another chance tonight! Learn more in Top Stories.

Attention movie lovers: our sponsor today is Legion M, giving you an opportunity to invest in an up-and-coming movie studio.

Don’t feel like reading the national edition of The Flyover? Tune in to The Flyover Podcast! New episodes drop daily—watch on YouTube or listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, all in under 15 minutes.

NC Prepares for Hurricane Season

North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey is urging communities across the state to prepare for another active hurricane season and has released a video with tips on how to be prepared before, during, and after a storm.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting 19 named storms, nine hurricanes, and four major hurricanes for the Atlantic hurricane season, which began Sunday and runs through Nov. 30.

Some counties, like Columbus, have hosted disaster preparedness events demonstrating how to assemble disaster kits and document possessions for insurance purposes.

Need a refresher on North Carolina’s most damaging hurricanes? The top eight include Hugo, Donna, Matthew, Floyd, Fran, Florence, Hazel, and Helene—with Helene ranked No. 1.

Northern Lights Expected to Reach NC

NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) issued a Severe Geomagnetic (G4) Storm Watch lasting through tonight that was expected to make the Northern Lights visible in some parts of North Carolina last night and possibly again tonight.

SWPC experts said a rare, elevated solar flare associated with an Earth-directed coronal mass ejection occurred Friday night into Saturday morning, which typically leads to a geomagnetic storm and auroral display on Earth.

The aurora was seen Saturday night in states like Wyoming and Idaho.

Past G4 storms have had profound impacts on Earth-based electrical systems. SWPC experts expected the storm to peak around midday Sunday before winding down to a lower storm intensity during the day on Tuesday.

NC’s Best Beaches Ranked

USA Today released its list of North Carolina’s 10 best beaches, ranking Atlantic Beach No. 1 due to its Crystal Coast location and scenery, town park, and 18-hole mini-golf course.

Carolina Beach, known for its bustling boardwalk and diverse recreational activities, took the No. 2 spot. Holden Beach, Indian Beach, and Oak Island rounded out the top five, respectively.

U.S. News ranked North Carolina’s beaches in a slightly different order. Emerald Isle took the No. 1 spot, followed by Kill Devil Hills, Carova Beach, Cape Hatteras, and Holden Beach.

Meanwhile, Florida coastal scientist Stephen Leatherman, aka Dr. Beach, left North Carolina’s beaches off his top 10 for the second year in a row. Leatherman’s top five 2025 picks included Coopers Beach in New York, Wailea and Poipu beaches in Hawaii, Delnor-Wiggins Pass in Florida, and Main Beach in New York.

Flying together with our sponsor

Emmy-Winning Founders Flip the Script on Hollywood

Hollywood said no. 50,000+ fans said yes.

After hitting 800+ theaters last February, My Dead Friend Zoe quickly became one of the year’s best-reviewed films. Starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales, Ed Harris, and Morgan Freeman, it boasts a 🍅95% Rotten Tomatoes score, making it one of the best-reviewed movies in Morgan Freeman’s career.

The interesting thing is…the movie was developed, financed, and produced by Legion M—a movie studio OWNED BY FANS.

How does it work? At most studios, a handful of execs decide what gets made. At Legion M, fans lead the way. They believe people like you, who buy the tickets and pay the subscriptions, know what’s best, so they open the doors for you to own early-stage stock in the studio, get red-carpet perks, and have a seat at the table deciding what gets made.

They might be onto something. In just the past few months, Legion M has:

Released one of the year’s best-reviewed films
Closed a 7-figure international rights deal with Universal
Paid out over $1M in royalties to investors

With 54,000+ investors on board (plus a billion-dollar producer, award-winning stars, and current/former execs from Netflix, Lucasfilm, Disney, Amazon, and Legendary), the Legion M moonshot is well on its way.

But it’s not too late for you to join them.

Just be sure to invest before Legion M’s round ends TOMORROW at midnight!

➤ Statewide: Health officials are investigating a multistate Salmonella outbreak linked to whole cucumbers that have sickened 45 people in 18 states, including three in North Carolina. (See Map)

➤ NC Rivers: Sound Rivers’ weekly Swim Guide reported Friday that 12 North Carolina river swimming sites—three in the Upper Neuse and nine in the Tar-Pamlico and Lower Neuse watersheds—failed bacteria testing. (See Locations)

➤ Boone runner John Kelly aims to break the speed record on the Appalachian Trail to raise funds and awareness for communities damaged by Hurricane Helene. To break the record, Kelly must run all 2,190 miles in 40 days straight, averaging 60 miles a day. (More)

➤ Wake County: Hiking and mountain biking trails on 136 acres of Lake Crabtree County Park closed Sunday due to the expiration of a county lease with RDU Airport Authority. (See Details)

➤ Great Smoky Mountains National Park—considered the most biodiverse national park system—has partnered with a research nonprofit that has documented nearly 23,000 species and estimates there could be as many as 80,000 living there. (More)

➤ Wilmington International Airport offers 29 nonstop destinations to cities such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Chicago, with some one-way fares as low as $43. (See Details)

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➤ In Men’s College World Series action Sunday, Duke advanced and Wake Forest beat Tennessee in their first double-elimination game. Meanwhile, UNC fell to Oklahoma, and NC State lost to Auburn in the first games of their double-elimination round. ECU was eliminated with a loss to Coastal Carolina. (See Bracket)

➤ Former Duke basketball star Zion Williamson is being sued by an unnamed woman accusing him of rape and assault, alleging the abuse began during his freshman year and continued for years. (More)

➤ UNC basketball has landed a major commitment from Montenegrin wing Luka Bogavac. (More)

➤ Four North Carolina golf courses made Golf Digest’s list of America’s greatest golf courses: Wade Hampton Golf Club (No. 27), Pinehurst No. 2 (No. 32), Old Town Club (No. 39), and Diamond Creek (No. 95). (Watch Report)

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➤ Asheville’s Business Improvement District launches today, funded by a property tax on downtown businesses to support crime reduction, safety, and cleanliness efforts. (More)

➤ Duke Energy settled a class-action lawsuit over a 2024 data breach with plaintiff Matthew Saunders. The case was dismissed with prejudice, preventing refiling, but settlement details remain undisclosed. (More)

➤ Daimler Truck Financial Services chose Charlotte for its North American headquarters, where it will create 276 jobs and invest more than $7 million in the Ballantyne area. (More)

➤ Charlotte Transportation Center vendors must shut down within 90 days as the Charlotte Area Transit System carries out a safety overhaul to convert the Uptown facility into a fare-only zone for paying riders. (More)

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Last Call to Invest in a Rising Star

Think a fan-owned company can’t make it in Hollywood? Think again.

Legion M is a studio on the rise. In the last few months, they released one of 2025’s best-reviewed films, closed a 7-figure international rights deal, and paid out over $1,000,000 in returns to investors in its movies. 2025 revenue is already 150% of last year’s…even though it’s only June!

When you invest in Legion M, you’re buying early-stage stock in the company. You’re betting they get big enough to IPO or have an exit. The risk is that they die trying.

Could Legion M turn into the next Netflix? There’s only one way to find out…

Get in before it’s too late—the offering ends at midnight tomorrow!

This is a paid advertisement for Legion M’s Regulation CF Offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.legionm.com.

➤ Sliding Rock in Pisgah National Forest, the Mile-High Swinging Bridge in Linville, and Whirligig Park in Wilson made Southern Living’s list of 25 unforgettable southern road trip stops. (See List)

➤ The 2025 Port City Highland Games celebrated Scottish heritage in Wilmington on Saturday with cultural food, highland dancing, sword fighting, games, and vendors. (Watch Report)

➤ Grammy award-winner Darius Rucker purchased a home in Pinehurst last summer, where he estimates he played 200 rounds of golf during the last year. (More)

Flying together with our sponsor

➤ The 5 “Bone-Dissolving” Foods Hiding in Your Kitchen. Think you’re protecting your bones by getting calcium and vitamin D? What your doctor hasn’t told you is that certain everyday foods are quietly dissolving your bone density right under your nose. Before you take another calcium supplement or reach for that “healthy” breakfast, discover what might be secretly stealing your skeletal strength and independence. (Learn More)