November 10, 2000 Edition: #1930
“Sesame Street” made it’s debut 31 years ago TODAY (1969) and here’s a look at . . .
BS WAYS “SESAME STREET” HAS STAYED CURRENT:
• Addition of new goth character ‘Sarcophagus’.
• Latest music compilation CD is called “E-Z Elmo Does Sesame Street Gangsta Rap”.
• ‘Bert’ has dumped ‘Ernie’ for a massage therapist named ‘Rico’.
• ‘The Count’ does regular guest shots on ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’.
• Neighborhood now notices “one of these things is not like the others” when ‘Snuffy’ drops pants.
• ‘Oscar the Grouch’ is now joined in the garbage can by ‘Tony the Mob Corpse’.
• Bill Gates comes on to teach kids the number 65 billion.
• ‘Big Bird’ has changed name to ‘Notorious B.I.G. Bird’.
• Instead of the letter ‘B’, show now brought to you by Budweiser.
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
Tickets range up to $300 a pop for TONIGHT’s performance by trouble-prone couple Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown at the Aladdin Theater in Las Vegas (they’ll perform individually and as a husband-wife duet) . . . “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’s” 2nd ‘celebrity week‘ starts SUNDAY and includes Alec Baldwin, Tyra Banks, Drew Carey, Sean “Puffy” Combs and Charlie Sheen . . . Part 1 of the CBS mini-series OJ Simpson couldn’t stop, “American Tragedy”, airs SUNDAY, featuring Ving Rhames as Johnnie Cochran and Christopher Plummer as F Lee Bailey . . . The Beatles CD compilation of chart-topping hits, “1”, will be launched at midnight SUNDAY at HMV’s flagship London store.
TODAY’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
Adam Sandler plays a hapless son of Satan who must save the world in the comedy “Little Nicky” (McFarlane Toys is releasing “Little Nicky” action figures – ‘Beefy’ the dog that comes with an internal bladder and ‘special urinating function’, and another that repeatedly punches itself in the groin when wound up) . . . Robert De Niro, Cuba Gooding Jr and Charlize Theron in the drama “Men of Honor”, based the true story of the first black to become a Master Chief Diver in the US Navy . . . Val Kilmer stars in the sci-fi thriller “Red Planet”, about the first manned expedition to Mars in which, predictably, things start to go wrong.
THE MUSHY SPOT:
Scientists at Britain’s University College believe they’ve identified the area of the brain responsible for falling in love. By showing study participants pictures of the person they were madly in love with, researchers noted an increase in blood flow to specific regions. (Of their laps.)
JUST SHOWING OFF:
According to the journal “Human Nature”, men have a different relationship with mobile phones than women. Men tend to keep their phones out in the open for anyone to see, while women usually leave theirs tucked away in pockets or purses. Researchers say that’s because mobile phones now serve as a status symbol in the human mating ritual. (But remember, it’s not the size of the cellular but the speed of the dialer.)
THE BULL SHEET 11.10.00
TODAY’S CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS . . .
1972 [28] Shawn Green, Des Plaines, IL, $84-million MLB player who became 2nd-highest paid when traded from Toronto Blue Jays to LA Dodgers
1979 [21] Chris Jannou, Newcastle AUS, rock musician (Silverchair-“Pure Massacre”, “Tomorrow”)
SATURDAY’S BIRTHDAYS . . .
1962 [38] Demi Moore (Demetria Guynes), Roswell NM, movie actress (“GI Jane”, “Ghost”)/ex-Mrs Bruce Willis
1964 [36] Calista Flockhart, Freeport IL, emaciated TV actress (Ally-“Ally McBeal”)
1970 [30] Peta Wilson, Sydney AUS, TV actress (Nikita/Josephine-“Nikita”)
1974 [26] Leonardo DiCaprio, Hollywood CA, film actor (“Titanic”, “Man in the Iron Mask”)/party boy NEXT FILM: Currently shooting Martin Scorsese’s “Gangs of New York”
BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
TOMORROW is “Remembrance Day”, commemorating the end of WWI at 11 am on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. It’s observed in Canada, Britain, the USA (renamed Veterans Day in 1954), Belgium & France (Armistice Day). The Remembrance Day poppy program run by the Canadian Legion raises over $5 million dollars each year for veterans’ programs. Last year, a return to the original tradition of TWO minutes silence at 11 am was encouraged.
TOMORROW is the Christian observance “Martinmas”, when they’ll stage the annual “Martinmas Goose Celebration” in front of the town hall of Sursee, Switzerland. Blindfolded participants try to cut down a suspended goose with a single sword stroke.
ONE YEAR AGO . . .
1999 As a ratings stunt, ABC’s “Drew Carey Show” is performed live and improvised
1999 “Pokemon: The First Movie” opens in theaters
TODAY’S FIRSTS . . .
1932 [68] 1st “Hockey Night in Canada” on CBC Radio, with Foster Hewitt doing the play-by-play (Toronto and Boston tie 1-1)
1983 [17] Microsoft unveils the 1st “Windows” operating system (and the 1st ‘general protection fault’ and ‘illegal operation’ error messages)
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Sun] National Pizza With The Works Except Anchovies Day
[Tues] Operation Room Nurse Day
[Wed] National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day
Random Acts of Kindness Week
Jewish Book Month
BULL’S BITS . . .
BS “SESAME STREET” QUIZ:
• He’s “Sesame Street’s” happy game show host. (‘Guy Smiley’)
• He’s ‘Big Bird’s’ friend who always travels with a trunk. (‘Snuffleupagus’)
• He sang “It’s Not Easy Being Green”. (‘Kermit the Frog’)
• He’s the late, great owner of the corner store. (‘Mr Hooper’)
• What the letters ‘CTW’ stand for on the “Sesame Street” sign. (Children’s Television Workshop)
BS TAG LINE: 35 is when you finally get your head together and your body starts falling apart.
