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The opening song of “The Morning Breaks” during the “Music & the Spoken Word” on Sunday, July 13, was one of the songs in the first broadcast 96 years ago.

During the final song of the 5,000th broadcast Sunday — “High on a Mountain Top” — music director Mack Wilberg used the baton director Anthony J. Lund used in that first broadcast on July 15, 1929.

The Tabernacle Choir, Orchestra and Bells at Temple Square celebrated the 5,000th episode of “Music & the Spoken Word” — the longest continuously running network broadcast in history — on Sunday, July 13, 2025, in the Conference Center in downtown Salt Lake City with a tribute to the history of the program and those who have participated in and have been impacted by the show.

“‘Music & the Spoken Word’ continues each week as a beacon,” said choir President Michael O. Leavitt during the pre-show. “A beacon of peace, a beacon of light to the world.”

The milestone events included a pre-show, the regular 30-minute “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcast followed by an encore musical celebration. The pre-show and the encore celebration were presented to the more than 11,500 people gathered in the Conference Center. The post-broadcast encore celebration concluded with many former choir and orchestra members in the audience coming onstage to sing the final two songs.

Attendees includes two members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — Elder David A. Bednar and his wife, Sister Susan Bednar; and Elder Gerrit W. Gong and his wife, Sister Susan Gong — along with other Church officers and religious, community, business and political leaders.

The choir was also recognized by the National Association of Broadcasters with a commemorative proclamation and crystal, presented by Perry Sook, chairman of the association’s joint board of directors and the CEO of Nexstar media.

“‘Music & the Spoken Word’ is not just the world’s longest running continuous network broadcast,” Sook said. “It’s one of the most meaningful across generations and across the globe.”

He added: “And today’s 5,000th broadcast recording represents more than longevity; it represents unwavering excellence, a commitment to public service, the enduring power of faith and music and the ability of faith and music to unite us.”

For the first episode — done on a Monday afternoon — a single microphone for the choir and announcer was attached to the ceiling, with a long cable connecting it to KSL’s radio controller, located a city block away. Nineteen-year-old Ted Kimball, son of organist Edward P. Kimball, climbed a 15-foot-tall stepladder and announced each song that was sung by the choir.

Sunday’s “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcast from the Conference Center was broadcast on the radio and television and streamed online. The show is seen or heard by about 6 million people in 50 countries around the world.

“Music & the Spoken Word” is broadcast on more than 2,000 stations, available on the Tabernacle Choir’s YouTube channel and on a variety of social media outlets, with captions available in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese. The Spanish version — with Spanish-speaking narrators and other features — is on the El Coro del Tabernáculo YouTube channel and also broadcast by Telemundo Utah.

‘Music & the Spoken Word’ pre-show

During the preshow, Derrick Porter, who is executive producer, principal writer and presenter of “Music & the Spoken Word,” recognized several people who had contributed to the “Music & the Spoken Word.”

One of those was Lela Christiansen, 98, the oldest known living choir alumni, who sang with the choir from 1964 to 1987.

Others Porter introduced included:

• Elizabeth Ashton, violinist with the Orchestra at Temple Square, who joined when it was created in 1999. Since then, she and her husband, Brigham Ashton, have welcomed 10 children to their family.
• Charles and Florence Rose met in 1900 when they sang together in the choir, became engaged and got married. Now, their great-great-grandson Nathan Givens and his wife, Deborah Givens, sing in the choir.
• Kyle Woodruff, who joined the choir in 2023, is “here each week, contributing and sharing his talents with the world and doing it all while being totally blind,” Porter said.
• Choir member Sarah Clayton represents six consecutive, uninterrupted generations of choir members in her family. Her third-great grandmother, Sarah, was part of the choir in 1883.

• The families of Jane Hillier Clark and Elliott Clark bring together more than 130 years of combined service between them and across both sides of their families as 40 family members have performed with the choir and orchestra, including their niece who sings first soprano. Jane Hillier Clark, who plays violin in the orchestra, was using a violin Sunday that was made by her great-grandfather 112 years ago.

• More than 150 family members of presenter Richard L. Evans, the first presenter of “Music & the Spoken Word” were asked to stand and be recognized. Later in the celebration, past presenter J. Spencer Kinard and his family and the family of Lloyd D. Newell were recognized. Newell is serving as a mission leader for the Church in Los Angeles, California.

5,000th broadcast

After singing “The Morning Breaks,” the choir and orchestra performed “When in Our Music, God is Glorified,” directed by Wilberg. Organist Richard Elliott performed an improvisation on “Hymn to Joy,” based on “Ode to Joy,” and the choir and orchestra performed the thoughtful “Pilgrim Song,” directed by associate music director Ryan Murphy.

Earlier this year, Porter invited people to send in their stories of experiences with “Music & the Spoken Word” and received more than 1,200 responses. One of those was about Caden Simpson, who was diagnosed with cancer at age 6 and how the choir’s “Consider the Lilies” helped comfort him.

Porter said: “The story we share today is emblematic of hundreds of other stories we’ve received and together, these experiences combine to witness that God really is in the details of our lives.”

Former choir music director Craig Jessop, who served from 1999 to 2008, led “Consider the Lilies.” Wilberg used Lund’s baton as he directed the boisterous “High on a Mountain Top” to conclude the broadcast. The Bells at Temple Square joined in on “High on a Mountain Top.”

Celebrating 5,000 episodes

The post-broadcast encore celebration included music, a video tribute, recognition by the National Association of Broadcasters Joint Board and more of the stories. It opened with “O Come Ye Nations of the Earth,” directed by Wilberg.

Porter presented a video tribute that included the voices of previous presenters — Evans (from 1930 to 1971), Kinard (1972-1990) and Newell (1990-2024); music and video from past “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcasts and several of the experiences of those who were impacted by the weekly show, including those from Brazil, Ivory Coast and across the United States.

One of those was Warna Huff, 101, who recalled listening to the first broadcast when she was 5 years old. “What is this?” she asked. Her aunt told her: “This is something you don’t want to forget.”

Porter said that one of the hymns that came up frequently in those responses was “It Is Well With My Soul” — with text written by Horatio Spafford after the death of his daughters on a trans-Atlantic voyage — and the choir and orchestra performed it.

Prior to presenting the recognition to the choir leaders, Sook said that being part of the episode was a “full-circle moment” for him. In the mid- to late 1970s, he worked for a local radio station to pay for college. He was assigned the 6 a.m. to noon shift on Sundays.

“At the appointed hour, I would string up the reel-to-reel tape on the station’s ancient player, and soon thereafter, the dulcet tones of Spencer Kinard would fill the airwaves of southeastern Ohio,” Sook said, noting that the station still airs the program.

For the last two songs —”Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “God Be With You Till We Meet Again” — Porter invited the former choir, orchestra and bells members to come up on the stage to join the 360-voice choir and orchestra. There were so many choir members that they stood in front of the stage.

“It was very moving to sing with former members of the choir to reflect on the legacy of this organization and the people who came before us,” said soprano Julia Darley.

Tera Nelson, an alto, said it was “unforgettable” to sing in the milestone broadcast and that she was emotional throughout the broadcast and celebration.

“It felt different today. The energy and the emotion of the congregation was palpable. It was so moving. I had tears streaming down my face, pretty much from start to finish,” she said, adding that it was “wonderful” to sing with “friends that I love and miss.”

Todd Russell, who sang tenor with the choir for seven years, said it was “an amazing experience” to be there not only for the 5,000th episode milestone, but to sing with former and current choir members.

“I saw what connects us all in certain pieces of music that I saw every former member of the choir sing. ‘The Battle Hymn’ and ‘God Be With You’ are definitely special to all of us,” he said.

“I’m excited to see what comes next,” Russell said, looking ahead to the 100th anniversary of “Music & the Spoken Word” in a few years.

Porter concluded the celebration: “On this milestone 5,000th episode, we lift our voices collectively in heartfelt gratitude, thanking God for His constant presence and for the blessings He pours out upon the world and for the assurance that He is always with us. And so, in the words of Richard L. Evans, we leave you from within the shadow of the everlasting hills, may peace be with you, this day and always. And may God be with you until we meet again.”

Edi Gathegi, 46, says he got in shape for his “Superman” role with martial arts and intuitive eating.

In an interview with GQ published Thursday, the actor spoke about his fitness routine and the go-to clean meals that helped him prepare for his role as Mister Terrific in the James Gunn film, which was released in cinemas on July 11.

“Part of my process of getting ready for ‘Superman’ was training with this brilliant South Indonesian martial artist. He taught me Silat and Kali, which is a Filipino and Thai martial art. It was all about stances and flow and footwork, and we did a little bit of capoeira,” Gathegi told GQ.

Since his character is an Olympic athlete, Gathegi said he focused on improving his agility and mobility to ensure he could perform the action sequences properly.

“You can’t just be bulky, you also have to be able to move,” Gathegi said.

Diet-wise, the actor said he mostly eats intuitively, and only started counting calories recently at the request of his trainer.

His go-to meals, which he cooks on his own, are simple.

“Chicken breast, turkey breast. I’ll do salmon, which I enjoy a little bit too much. I’ll do ribeye. That’s my cheat. Then I’ll do complex carbohydrates, so it’s brown rice with any one of those proteins. Broccolini is my favorite, but I’ll do Brussels sprouts. I’ll do green beans, possibly,” he said.

Gathegi says he’s a creature of habit who enjoys sticking to routines, and that applies to the meals he eats each day. Breakfast typically consists of half a cup of oatmeal, a bowl of non-fat Greek yogurt and some fruit, he said.

“My lunch is a variation of the protein, the brown rice, and the veg. Then dinner’s a repeat, and I’ll probably do two shakes scattered in there throughout the day,” he added.

Even though he has a sweet tooth, Gathegi says he knows how to be disciplined. He tracks his macros, drinks plenty of water throughout the day, and takes fish oil.

“I love me some sweets: the cakes, the cookies, the creams. I love junk food, burgers, and fries. I’m a foodie. But I also have a voice in my head that says, when I have to achieve a certain look, these are the foods that I need to be focused on,” he said.

Lastly, even though wellness trends like cold plunges and red light therapy have taken the fitness world by storm, Gathegi says he isn’t into any of that.

“I’m not knocking any of that, but I’m not doing any. You do that when you’re trying to find your thing. I guess I’ve landed at a place where I’m just so grateful for the life that I have, and I’m in awe,” he added.

Gathegi isn’t alone. Martial arts is becoming more popular among Hollywood stars and even tech execs because of its physical and mental benefits.

Keanu Reeves trained for his role in “John Wick 2” by practicing Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo.

Charlize Theron spent four months learning various martial arts techniques — including Aikido, Judo, and Karate — to prepare for her role in “The Old Guard,” the film’s fight coordinator, Danny Hernandez, previously told Business Insider.

Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg also practices Brazilian jiu-jitsu and has even competed — and won medals — in tournaments.

A representative for Gathegi did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by BI outside regular hours.

Taiwanese boy band F4 sprung a surprise reunion on fans at rock band Mayday’s concert in Taiwan on Saturday.

The quartet’s performance of their ballad Meteor Rain sparked a wave of nostalgia at the Taipei Arena, and sent many among the 40,000 concertgoers singing along.

Meteor Rain was the theme song to the 2001 popular TV drama Meteor Garden, which starred F4’s Jerry Yan, Vanness Wu, Vic Chou, and Ken Chu, and catapulted them to stardom.

The series, which was based on the Japanese manga series Boys Over Flowers, captured the hearts of millions across Asia and popularised the “idol drama” genre.

Meteor Garden also starred Barbie Hsu, who died from pneumonia in February.

Its storyline centres around a girl from a working-class family, played by Hsu, who goes to school with four rich and arrogant boys known as the F4, short for Flower 4.

The series’ success spawned other Asian adaptations, including Japan’s Hana Yori Dango in 2005, South Korea’s Boys Over Flowers in 2009, China’s Meteor Garden in 2008 and F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers in 2021.

The boy band F4, which formed around the same time the Taiwanese series debuted, disbanded in 2009, but came together four years later for a one-off performance during Chinese TV network Jiangsu’s Spring Festival Gala.

Mayday’s frontman Ashin, whose real name is Chen Hsin-hung, said it took his band years to get all four F4 members together again.

“Everyone overcame a lot of obstacles to make this picture a reality,” Ashin said on Saturday. At the concert, F4 also performed Mayday’s The Song of Laughter and Forgetting with the rock group.

F4’s Yan thanked Mayday for its “amazing effort” in reuniting his former band mates.

“This is something I could not have imagined would happen again in my lifetime. It’s also made us reminisce about our youth,” said Yan, now 48.

“I am very grateful to everyone who are here to share a beautiful evening with us,” said bandmate Wu, 46.

All four band members are in their 40s and are still active in the entertainment industry.

Fans were ecstatic about the reunion, with many calling for the band to hold their own concert.

“OMG!! Thank you Mayday !! My childhood is alive. It’s crazy seeing [F4] perform again,” read one comment on X.

“Are you crying already… because we are! Hello to the inner child in you jumping up and down because #F4 just reunited! Tour soon? We hope!” Sound Check Manila, whose account curates music events in the Philippine capital, also wrote on X.

Taiwan’s Mirror Media earlier reported that F4 would hold a a concert next year, marking 25 years since their debut. This has not been verified by the artists or their agents.