Monday, December 12, 2011        Edition: #4649
Here’s More Bull Roar!

WEEKEND TABLOID & BLOG BS:
• Today original “Survivor” winner Richard Hatch is due to be released from a NYC detention center after serving a 9-month prison sentence for violating the terms of his probation for tax evasion. The troubled reality TV star was originally convicted in 2006 for failing to pay taxes on the $1-million prize he won on the TV show’s 1st season. He served 3 years for that crime, then was ordered back to jail again this year for failing to file further tax returns. (Nest time, try H&R Block, dude.)
– TMZ.com.
• Today 50-year-old movie star George Clooney is scheduled to speak at the Global Leadership Forum, a 1-day seminar in Sydney, Australia aimed at inspiring businesses and employees. Clooney will reportedly discuss his career as well as his charity work in Sudan. Other speakers include lifestyle guru Martha Stewart and hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons. (How much do you figure George gets for a personal appearance … on the other side of the world?)
– ContactMusic.com
• ‘Mockupy’ protesters have crashed the set of an ‘Occupy Wall Street’-themed episode of long-running TV show “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (NBC). A replica of the Zuccoti Park encampment where the protest movement was born was constructed in NYC’s Foley Park as a backdrop for the episode. But when word got out about it, protesters arrived on the set, claiming the movement was being exploited. They were driven out by police in the wee hours of the morning. (Life imitating art imitating life.)
– RawStory.com
• Publisher Hugh Hefner is bumping up the release date of the “Playboy” edition featuring Lindsay Lohan’s much-ballyhooed photoshoot after the pics leaked weeks before it was due to hit newsstands. She was due to give viewers a sneak peek of the pics on this Thursday’s edition of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show”, but now that the full pictorial is online the issue is being rush-released, though a specific date has yet to be announced. (Think all of this is orchestrated? After all, when was the last time anyone was talking about “Playboy Magazine”?)
– WENN.com
• Michael Jackson’s 13-year-old daughter Paris has accepted her debut movie role in a new fantasy film called “Lundon’s Bridge & The Three Keys”, an adventure to be shot in a mix of live action and animation. Producer Stephen Sobisky says she’s a ‘sweet, smart girl’ and his goal is to make sure she has a fun time working on the film. Half any profits from the movie and book versions of the story will be donated to schools. Filming begins in January. (After her dad’s problems with being a child star, is this a good idea?)
– People.com
• Movie star Leonardo DiCaprio’s friends reportedly don’t like traveling on his private jet because … his dog stinks. The 7-year-old French bulldog named ‘Django’ travels everywhere with Leo but actor-friends like Armie Hammer and Carey Mulligan are not impressed with the canine’s chronic gas problems. One insider says ‘Django’ absolutely reeks, continually passing gas for the entire duration of flights. DiCaprio is apparently so used to it, it doesn’t bother him anymore. Well, either that or he has no sense of smell. (Or maybe smells worse than his dog?)
– NationalEnquirer.com

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Noel Gallagher (“Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds”).
• “Fear Factor” (NBC/Global) – The ‘gross-out’ reality TV competition wrapped in 2006 after 6 seasons, but tonight host Joe Rogan is back to kick off an abbreviated new season with a 2-hour premiere.
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CHCH) – The Kooks (“Inside In/Inside Out”).
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Manchester Orchestra (“Simple Math”); Wiz Khalifa (“Rolling Papers”).
• “Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC/CTV2) – Foster the People (“Torches”).
• “Wendy Williams” (syndicated) – Common (“The Dreamer, The Believer”).

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Adele – The 23-year-old says she’s now looking toward February for full recovery from her recent surgery to correct a recurrent vocal cord hemorrhage. She’s also predicting she may be ‘25 or 26’ by the time her next record comes out as she hasn’t even thought about it yet.
• Brad Paisley – Yesterday on “CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood”, he took correspondent Bob Schieffer on a tour of his hometown of Franklin, Tennessee, including The Castle recording studio and a favorite hole-in-the-wall diner called Barbara’s Homecookin’.
• Jay-Z – He’s set to live out his long-time dream of playing NYC’s Carnegie Hall when he headlines a pair of charity concerts February 6th and 7th. All proceeds will benefit the United Way and his own Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation. Tickets will be sold privately and priced from $500-to-$2,500 in order to raise a significant chunk of change.
• Lady Gaga – She says she’s interested in doing movies but doesn’t just want to be handed a role without having to audition. Her acting dream? To be in a Woody Allen film.
• Pharrell Williams – “Hollywood Reporter” says he’s being tapped as a music consultant for the 84th Academy Awards, alongside famed composer Hans Zimmer. It will be the first time either of them has worked on the show, which airs February 26th on ABC-TV.
• Taylor Swift – She has yet another achievement she can call “Mine”. She’s been named the ‘Top Country Artist of 2011’ by “Billboard” magazine. The ranking is based on album airplay, album & download sales, touring revenue, ringtone sales, etc.

BIG MAC MARRIAGE:
Starting January 1st , Hong Kong will become the 1st city in the world to roll out McDonald’s wedding packages. They’ll include a baked apple pie wedding cake, a dress made out of party balloons, kiddie party favors for guests, and of course, catering by McDonald’s. Alcohol is banned to make sure there won’t be drunk party guests acting inappropriately at the family venue, so newlyweds will have to toast their big day with soft drinks. The cost will be a few thousand Hong Kong dollars, depending on what guests order. The idea came about when a couple who met and dated at McDonald’s held their wedding party at Hong Kong’s Admiralty location earlier this year. (The best man was a real clown.)
– CNN.com

AWFUL MOVIES OF 2011:
A new ranking of the foulest films of the year …
• “Battle: Los Angeles” – Despite a budget of $70 million, the plot of this sci-fi dud was anything but exciting.
• “Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son” – Yet another guys-in-drag comedy that was almost universally panned by critics. Were there really unanswered questions left after the first 2 films?
• “Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star” – Who woulda thunk the story of a guy trying to follow in his parent’s footsteps and become an adult-film star would flop?
• “Drive Angry” – One review says this film provides ‘more evidence that Nicolas Cage is a monotone, uninspiring thespian whose films should be avoided at all costs’. Ouch!
• “The Hangover: Part II”. One critic tags it ‘a crueler, darker, raunchier carbon copy of the first installment’. Suffice it to say it lacked the element of surprise that made the original a hit.
• “Jack & Jill” – Adam Sandler’s attempts at humor are growing increasingly tiring, even when he dons a dress. And what’s Al Pacino doing slumming in this dreck?
• “Season Of the Witch” – Nicolas Cage & Ron Perlman in what’s described as ‘the blending of road movie and buddy film with supernatural thriller and period drama’. Wha?
• “Zookeeper” – Full of jokes that are inappropriate for younger viewers, the only ones likely to be intrigued by the juvenile storyline.
– “International Business Times”

ENDURING GLOW:
The “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” holiday season TV special originally aired on December 6, 1964. It has aired every year since its initial showing, making it the longest continuously running Christmas special. Each of the original puppets used in the stop-motion animation feature cost $5,000, a lot of money at the time. Numerous copies of the puppets made from wood, metal, and fabric were made, as they were fragile and wore out quickly. Some are still in existence today. (We always thought this was claymation. So incredibly life-like, aren’t they?)
– GreeleyGazette.com / TTP

REALLY GREEN XMAS:
Some stunningly extravagant highlights from the 28th annual ‘Ultimate Gift Guide’ published by “Robb Report”, the magazine ‘for the affluent lifestyle’ …
• 1st-class travel, an 18-night stay in a 2-bedroom suite at The Ritz, and best-of-the-best seating for every single event at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England. $907,500.
• A motorcar pairing of a restored 1927 Bentley Vanden Plas Sports Tourer & a made-to-order 2012 Bentley Continental convertible. 1st class travel to the UK to pick them up. $3.36 million.
• A 50,000-gallon saltwater aquarium sharing 2 glass walls with a 30-by-60 foot freshwater swimming pool. Fill it with reef sharks, triggerfish, angelfish, and moray eels. $11 million.
• Sol de Oriente Estate, a cliff-top villa designed by French architect Jean Claude Galibert and set on Mexico’s stunning Costa Alegre. Includes an 11,000-sq-ft infinity pool. $18 million.
• A fully customizable private-jet version of Boeing’s highly anticipated new 787 wide-body aircraft, decked out by New York designer Edése Doret to your specs. $260 million.
NET: http://robbreport.com/news-and-press/21-ultimate-gifts-2011
PHONER: 818.598.1115 (Jeff Perlman, Brandware Public Relations)
– RobbReport.com

BS FROM AROUND-THE-WORLD:
• An Islamic cleric residing in Europe says that women should not be close to bananas or cucumbers, in order to avoid any ‘sexual thoughts’. The opinion has stirred a storm of irony and denouncement among Muslims online, with hundreds of comments mocking the cleric, one saying these type of religious leaders give Islam ‘a bad name’. (As well as salami.)
– Bikyamasr.com
• After failing to pass a similar bill last session, Florida state senator Jim Norman is back with a new bill that would make it illegal to photograph or film a farm without the express written consent of the farmer. The bill is aimed at animal rights group looking to gather evidence of animal mistreatment. (So he’s in favor of animal mistreatment?)
– MiamiNewTimes.com
• Employees at the agency that promotes tourism to South Australia came up with what they thought was a real brainwave … sending broadcast stations and newspapers live goldfish in bowls emblazoned with the slogan, “Be the Big Fish in a Small Pond”. But by the time the fish were delivered … most were dead. (Dumb PR stunt, but they DID get a lot of press.)
– News.com.au
• Red Cross officials have issued a response to recent online rumors that the Geneva Conventions apply to videogames. An official statement assures gamers that ‘serious violations of the laws of war can only be committed in real-life situations’. (Um, don’t you people have more pressing things to deal with?)
– NYPost.com

FOR THE RECORD:
According to Guinness World Records, the world’s oldest dog died last week in Sakura, Japan, at age 26 years, 8 months … the equivalent of about 125 years for a human. ‘Pusuke’ was a fluffy tan Shiba mixed breed.
– “Daily Telegraph”

BS AMAZING FACTS:
• 4-of-the-past-9 governors of the State of Illinois have gone to prison.
– “Washington Post”
• You are given a lottery ticket if you clean up dog poo in New Taipei City, Taiwan.
– BBC News
• There is a bamboo plantation on the outskirts of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
– “Daily Mail”
• Swedish fashion chain H&M has been using doctored photos of store mannequins, superimposed with real-life models’ heads, as bikini bodies on its website.
– “The Independent”

BS CHRONOMETER 12.12.11