Helen Gym Just Sent This Cease-and-Desist Letter to Every Philly TV Station

Philadelphia mayoral candidate Helen Gym, who just sent a cease-and-desist letter to every Philadelphia TV station (photo via City of Philadelphia)

Check phillymag.com each morning for the latest edition of Philly Today. And if you have a news tip for our hardworking Philly Mag reporters, please send it here.

Helen Gym Sent This Cease-and-Desist Letter to Every Philly TV Station

Last week, an anti-Helen Gym commercial began making the rounds on local television stations, taking aim at Gym’s 2019 vote on a Big Pharma bill at a time when her husband worked in that very industry. (Gym’s campaign has consistently maintained that she did everything by the book on that vote.)

On Friday, Gym campaign lawyer Adam Bonin fired off cease-and-desist letters to executives at 6 ABC, PHL 17, CBS 3, Fox 29, NBC 10, and Comcast (the owner of NBC 10), demanding they stop running the “false and defamatory” ad paid for by the political action committee Coalition for Safety and Equitable Growth.

“This reprehensible advertisement has nothing to do with the facts,” writes Bonin. “We call upon you to cease and desist airing it, immediately. By way of carbon copy, we are demanding that the Coalition for Safety and Equitable Growth and all related candidates, PACs, and entities cease and desist its reckless disregard of the truth and not reproduce or retransmit this false allegation in any other format, be it print, radio, digital, or otherwise. We will fully exercise our legal rights if it becomes necessary.”

Them’s fightin’ words! (And only a lawyer would write “carbon copy.” I’m guessing he also used a fax machine to distribute the letter.)

No word just yet on how the stations plan to respond.

You can read the full letter here.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to the Coalition for Safety and Equitable Growth as a dark-money group.

Helen Gym Cease-and-Desist Letter to TV Networks by philly victor on Scribd

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a.k.a. AOC, Endorses Helen Gym for Philadelphia Mayor

Helen Gym sure has been racking up the endorsements in her run for mayor of Philadelphia. She has a bazillion. And Gym’s endorsements have been notable not just in quantity, but also in geography, since some of her more prominent ones come from outside Philadelphia.

There’s Boston mayor Michelle Wu. There’s activist-y actor Mark Ruffalo. Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley. And now, United States Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a.k.a. AOC, has joined Team Helen Gym.

U.S. Representative Alexandria-Ocasio-Cortez, a.k.a. AOC, who just endorsed Helen Gym for mayor of Philadelphia (Getty Images)

“Helen isn’t afraid to take on tough fights or go up against big special interests,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement on Sunday. “She’s delivered real results for her constituents — making communities safer, housing more affordable, and public schools stronger. I am proud to endorse her.”

In 2019, Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman to ever serve in Congress. She is also a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and, like Gym, has been a frequent target of critics on the right.

For more on Gym and the other candidates, be sure to check our Ultimate Voter’s Guide to the 2023 Philadelphia Mayoral Race.

Today Is the Last Day to Register to Vote In Pennsylvania

Just a little PSA to say that Monday marks the last day to register to vote in Pennsylvania. It also marks the last day to change parties. This is all incredibly easy to do. Just fill out this form. No excuses.

Stop Parking in Bike Lanes!

The dreaded PPA is coming after you in full force. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

By the Numbers

45:13:32: Finishing time for the fastest person running the rainy 10-mile Broad Street Run on Sunday. Fastest time in a wheelchair? 39:43:18. Full results here.

$166,375: Amount recently paid at auction for a John Wilkes Booth “wanted” poster that hung on a tree in Philadelphia after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

$14: Rental price for the dress Gisele Fetterman just wore to the White House Correspondent Dinner. As she told us in a recent interview, Fetterman is a die-hard thrifter when it comes to clothes.

And from the Win-Some Sports Desk …

Friday night brought the first game in a World Series rematch in Houston against the Astros, and Philly was full of people my age trying to figure out how the hell to watch the game on AppleTV. With two out in the first, Kyle hit a Schwarbomb off Framber Valdez, deep into the stands. But Jeremy Peña — the Astros’ first batter — matched it that same inning with a homer off Aaron Nola. It was all quiet on the pitching front after that for Aaron, though … for a while.

In the top of the fifth, after Edmundo Sosa doubled with one out, Cristian Pache knocked him home with another double: 2-1 Phils. In the bottom of the fifth, Alex Abreu singled, and a Trea Turner throwing error sent him to third. A great play by Alec Bohm on a slow roller let J.T. Realmuto tag Abreu out at home.

Sosa, who’s been tearing it up, doubled in the seventh, and Brandon Marsh singled him home: 3-1 Phils! Bryan Abreu came in to pitch the eighth for the Astros and got Turner, Schwarber and Castellanos; Nola stayed in for the bottom and got three straight outs, too. In the ninth, Rafael Montero answered with three straight. In came Alvarado for the bottom of the inning and got the job done. Nice to see Nola coming around!

phillies win. here's a butt made of straws so astros fans can suck my ass. pic.twitter.com/R8q2uwdyGo

— Absolutely Hammered (@ah_pod) April 29, 2023

On Saturday, Zack Wheeler and Cristian Javier kept it scoreless for both teams through the first three. Hey, look at that scoreboard!

Winnie the … pic.twitter.com/5AM0HjuFHs

— PHILLIES BELL (@PhilliesBell) April 29, 2023

In the fourth, Castellanos went way yard, his fourth of the year, followed by a Marsh double. A wild pitch sent Marsh to third, and he scored on a Realmuto fly ball. Bohm hit a double of his own, but that was all they wrote, as Clemens flied out. The Astros answered with a Jose Alvarez double but didn’t get anything more going.

With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, Wheeler hit Martin Maldonado with a pitch, which elicited a warning from the umps, but got the last out. Javier got pulled for Phil Maton after Realmuto doubled in the sixth — is it just us, or were there a ton of doubles in this series? Clemens promptly whacked a mile-high homer to make the Phils’ lead 4-0.

Roger Clemens struck out 20 batters 37 years ago today. He's in the stands at Minute Maid Park and just saw his son, Kody, hit a two-run homer. That's cool.

— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) April 29, 2023

Seranthony relieved Wheeler in the seventh and gave up a single to Abreu, then nailed poor Maldonado again, putting men on first and third with two outs. He ended the side with a strikeout, though. Seth Martinez came in for Maton in the eighth, and a one-out walk by Marsh and a two-out double (see?!?) by Bohm brought in another run. In the bottom, Peña hit a solo homer off Andrew Vasquez: 6-1. And that’s where it stayed, through a one-two-three finish by Yunior Marte.

On Sunday night, in the first, Phils went down 1-2-3 to José Urquidy; in the Astros’ half, lead hitter Jeremy Peña singled off Bailey Falter, who then walked Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarado. Bailey’s hair looked nice, though, in the late Houston sun. He got Jose Abreu to hit into a double play, but Peña scored. Still, Kyle Tucker hit a long fly to end the damage. Did I mention there’s a rumor Bryce Harper may be back from his surgery during the Dodgers series that follows this game? J.T. tied the game up with a homer in the top of the second, but in the bottom, Brandon Marsh fumbled a fly ball and David Hensley took second. Falter got two strikeouts, but a Maldonado double brought a run home: 2-1.

In the fourth, the Phils wasted a single by Turner and a walk by Schwarber; in the bottom, Falter gave up another solo homer, this one to Jake Meyers: 3-1.

https://twitter.com/DisgruntledPhan/status/1652830367949135877

But damn, Kody Clemens whacked one of his own: 3-2. And Edmundo Sosa just missed one.

In the bottom of the fifth, Bregman walked and Alvarez singled, and a bloop that fell between Schwarber and Turner scored another for the Astros. In came Brogdon, who got the job done. Then in the sixth, Schwarber got drilled by a fastball from Urquidy and took first, steaming. Urquidy promptly left the game with the trainer, bringing in ex-Phil Hector Neris, whose wild pitch moved Schwarbs to second. A Castellanos strikeout followed, but Marsh walked. And J.T. flied out to end a long inning.

In the top of the seventh, Sosa blooped a single, Stott hit a legit one … and Turner struck out on three pitches. Gregory Soto came in to pitch for the Phils in the bottom and notched three quick outs. Bryan Abreu pitched the eighth for the Astros and walked Schwarber. A Castellanos grounder sent him to second, and an error put J.T. on first and scored Schwarber: 4-3 Astros. For the eighth, the Phils sent in Luis Ortiz, who gave up a Tucker single. But a weird strikeout/double play where interference was called on the batter on a J.T. pickoff throw ended the inning. Ryan Pressly came in to pitch the ninth, facing Clemens, who struck out; Sosa grounded out, and so did Stott. New pup Major’s win streak was over. The Phils head to L.A. to play the Dodgers tonight at 10:10.

Don’t forget! Game 1 of the Sixers-Celtics playoffs is tonight at 7:30. Rumor has it Joel is a scratch for at least this game. Oh, and James Harden took a quick side trip to Vegas and slapped a guy.

If you’re actually able to maintain interest in the NFL draft past the first round, the Inquirer kept track for you. And the New York Times was impressed with Howie Roseman’s finesse. As were others! Many others!

The Union had the weekend off. They play LAFC again on Tuesday in the Champions League semifinals; so far, the two teams are tied.

All Philly Today Sports Desk coverage is provided by Sandy Hingston.