Tuesday, December 7, 2021 – Edition: #7123
Thanks For Being On Our Sheet List!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Alec Baldwin has deleted his main Twitter account just days after his first sit-down interview about the “Rust” tragedy with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, where he made the shocking claim that he “did not pull the trigger” of the gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. His other @AlecBaldwin___ account remains active, although hasn’t been used for more than a year. He’d been Tweeting from @AlecBaldwin more of late and the account was used to post his first statement on the tragedy on October 21. He’s deleted @AlecBaldwin multiple times in the past, including during the controversy over his wife Hilaria Baldwin’s Spanish heritage.
-Yahoo
★ Elon Musk may have just gotten “Swifted”. His ex has released a song trashing him as a boyfriend. Grimes’ song ‘Player of Games’ doesn’t mention Musk by name, but you don’t have to be a rocket scientist like him to figure it out. The song references gaming — something Elon apparently loves – and includes the lyrics: “I’m in love with the greatest gamer, but he’ll always love the game, more than he loves me.” Their 3-year relationship ended in September.
-TMZ
★ Multiple comedians now have way fewer comedy albums on Spotify than they did last month — because the streaming giant doesn’t want to fork over the extra royalties they’re asking for. Spotify has pulled several albums from dozens of high-profile comedians including Kevin Hart, John Mulaney, Tiffany Haddish, and others. Apparently, the comics have teamed up with an organization called Spoken Giants — which has been reaching out to companies like Spotify, YouTube, SiriusXM, Pandora and others to demand they pay additional fees for the use of comedians’ written jokes. Currently, most comics are only paid as performers by their labels and/or distributors, but not as composers, as songwriters are. At this point, Spotify isn’t playing ball.
-TMZ
★ Martha Stewart says she has a special someone in her life, but she’s not naming names. She opened up about her dating life on “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen”, revealing that she heard from “quite a few” famous eligible bachelors in direct messages after posting her “thirst trap” photo last summer. While she admitted she didn’t get any dates out of it in the end, her single status didn’t last long.
-People
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/Global): Chrissy Teigen, Brandy, Aminé, guest host J.B. Smoove
• “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Chloë Grace Moretz, Nick Thune, Wizkid
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon, Adam McKay
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Halle Berry, Chris Kattan, Rutger Bregman, Nikki Glaspie
• “The Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS/CTV): Ansel Elgort, Jane Levy
• “Watch What Happens Live” (Bravo): Tom Schwartz, Katie Maloney-Schwartz
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Sarah Ransome, guest co-host Mia Love
• “The Talk” (CBS): Norah O’Donnell
• “Live with Kelly and Ryan” (ABC/CTV): Kristin Davis, Carson Kressley
• “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (NBC/CTV): Chrissy Teigen
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Sterling K. Brown, Jessica Seinfeld, Lawrence Zarian
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): Whoopi Goldberg, Rachel Zegler
• “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: The Facts of Life and Diff’rent Strokes” (ABC): A re-creation of classic episodes of the 2 sitcoms.
• “Abbott Elementary” (ABC): Series premiere. Passionate teachers — and a slightly tone-deaf principal — are determined to help their students succeed.
• “The Voice” (NBC): Live Semi-Final Top 8 Eliminations
• “People’s Choice Awards” (NBC): Honoring fan favorites in music, TV, movies and pop culture; viewers worldwide make their selections from across 40 categories. Hosted by Kenan Thompson.
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Cardi B — has joined Playboy as the company’s first-ever creative director in residence. Her role will include providing “artistic direction” to the brand. She will work on “co-branded fashion and sexual wellness merchandise collections, digital editorial, experiential activations and more”.
• Ed Sheeran and Elton John – Friday, they released their new Christmas duet for charity. All proceeds from ‘Merry Christmas’ will be split between Sheeran’s foundation, which provides grants to young musicians in his hometown of Suffolk, and John’s AIDS charity. LINK: https://youtu.be/Q_yuO8UNGmY
• Mariah Carey — Her 1994 smash ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ is now the first and only holiday single to earn the RIAA’s coveted Diamond Award. In the U.S., songs are certified diamond when they reach 10 million sales and streaming units.
• Madonna – 50 Cent has apologized after mocking the lingerie photos she posted. He tweeted: “Ok Im sorry i did not intend to hurt your feelings. I don’t benefit from this in anyway.” He had compared one of her pics to a shot of the Wicked Witch of the East’s legs under Dorothy’s house in “The Wizard of Oz”.
• AC/DC — Prince William has revealed he likes to start his work week by listening to one of their classics. In a podcast, the Duke of Cambridge said: “There’s nothing better than, on a Monday morning, when you’re a bit bleary-eyed after the weekend and trying to get yourself back into the grind of the week, listening to AC/DC, ‘Thunderstruck.’”
• Weird Al Yankovic – has announced an encore run of his “Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour” that he’s calling “The Unfortunate Return of the Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour.” It will once against focus on his lesser-known songs. It kicks off April 23 and wraps October 29 with his first-ever show at New York’s Carnegie Hall.
• Kenny Chesney – says he always plans for his tours to end just before football season. Why? Quote: “Because I refuse to work during football season for 2 reasons. I want to watch the games, and I don’t want to compete with [the NCAA’s] Southeastern Conference football.”
• Blake Shelton – Friday, he released “Body Language Deluxe”. It adds 4 new songs to the original “Body Language” album, which dropped in May — one of which is his current single ‘Come Back As A Country Boy’. The other 3 new tunes are ‘Fire Up The Night (feat. HARDY)’, ‘Throw It On Back (feat. Brooks & Dunn)’ and ‘We Can Reach The Stars’.
• Stonewall Jackson – has died at 89 after battling dementia. He is best known for his hits ‘Don’t Be Angry’, ‘B.J. the D.J.’ and ‘Waterloo’. In 2012, he was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame.
SHOOTING THE BULL
ENDEARING BEARDS:
A doctor who is popular on TikTok says that growing a beard can be good for you. Dr. Karan Rangarjan, a surgical doctor and lecturer at Sunderland University, has amassed over 4½ million followers with his informative and entertaining health videos. A recent video of his went viral, and in it, “Dr. Raj” says that growing a beard is not only cool (because he has one), but a study comparing hospital workers with and without beards found that clean shaven faces are 3 times more likely to carry MRSA. MSRA is a cause of staph infection that is difficult to treat because of resistance to some antibiotics. The doc says this may be because shaving creates “micro-abrasions which are perfect breeding grounds for these bacteria”. Don’t hang around hospitals? Don’t worry. Your beard is still beneficial. The doctor says that beards “give you super-soft skin” because they protect it from aging by blocking sun exposure, and acts as a barrier to stop you from touching your facial skin, thereby rubbing off oils that keep your skin moisturized. He also points out that a beard “might reduce the risk of sunburn and skin cancer”. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/ybawsb23
(Ha! And you thought I just had a beard because I don’t want all the girls to kiss me!)
(This info totally explains why my grandmother lived to be 96!)
-BroBible
CORONAUPDATE:
➢ A new study says the “6-foot rule” isn’t really doing anything to protect people from COVID-19, whether they are indoors or outdoors. The research, by scientists at the University of Cambridge, used computer modelling to show how infectious particles travel when someone coughs, and found there isn’t a sharp decline in the spreading of droplets beyond 2 meters, or 6 feet. The team calls the social distancing rule an “arbitrary measurement” of safety in the absence of masks, and say it could have been set anywhere between 3-10 feet, depending on the risk tolerance of the local public health authority. (How about instead of the “6-foot rule”, we institute a “no-coughing rule”?)
➢ A new study has found that disposable plastic face masks may be spreading harmful toxins into the environment. Researchers at Swansea University found significant amounts of lead, copper, and antimony coming out of several masks after exposure to water. Experts are now posing the question of whether plastic masks are safe for people to use every day. The researchers concluded that we “need to keep wearing masks as they are essential in ending the pandemic. But we also urgently need more research and regulation on mask production, so we can reduce any risks to the environment and human health.” (And you, too, can help, by not throwing them all over the parking lot at the grocery store!)
-StudyFinds
MONIKER MONITOR:
Pet care company Rover.com has released its list of the most popular pet names of 2021 (in the US), and it is obvious that while many people chose to adopt furry friends this year, the pandemic was still very much on their minds when naming them. ‘Fauci’ was one of the most popular pet names of 2021 – shooting up 270% from 2020. The name ‘Covid’ was up 35%, and dogs named ‘Zoom’ were up 443%. ‘Siri’ and ‘Google’ are other technology-inspired pet names on the rise. Dogs named ‘Dr. Fauci’ and ‘Pfizer’ made the list for the first time this year, after the COVID-19 vaccine dominated headlines.
The most popular dog names of 2021:
Female: Bella, Luna, Lucy, Daisy, Zoe, Lily, Lola, Bailey, Stella and Molly
Male: Max, Charlie, Milo, Buddy, Rocky, Bear, Leo, Duke, Teddy and Tucker
The most popular cat names of 2021:
Female: Luna, Bella, Lily, Lucy, Nala, Kitty, Chloe, Stella, Zoe and Lola
Male: Oliver, Leo, Milo, Charlie, Max, Simba, Jack, Loki, Ollie and Jasper
Rover’s 9th annual list surveyed 1,000 pet owners in the US, and examined millions of pet names submitted by owners. (What’s the best…or funniest name for a pet that you’ve heard? We like ‘Askem’!)
-Yahoo
FUN FACTS ABOUT “NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION”
⇒ It was based on a short story: In 1980, John Hughes wrote the short story “Christmas ’59” for National Lampoon magazine. It would become the basis for the film that we all know and love.
⇒ Clark’s boss is Bill Murray’s brother: ‘Mr. Shirley’, is played by Brian Doyle-Murray. Many fans might not realize that he is Bill Murray’s older brother.
⇒ The Griswold home was used in other films and shows: It might look familiar to older viewers, because it’s part of the back lot of Warner Brothers. The set was also used on “Bewitched”, “The Partridge Family” and “The Middle”, among many others.
⇒ Chevy Chase was terrified during the toboggan scene: There was a lot of snow the day they filmed the big sled scene. Chase recalled nearly hitting trees several times while traveling at break-neck speed.
⇒ His favorite line might not surprise you: It’s when Clark peers out the window, observing Cousin Eddie emptying his RV’s waste into the sewer, and asks Ellen: “Have you checked our [bleep], honey?”
⇒ They used a real squirrel: The original plan was to use a trained squirrel for the chase scene inside the house, but the critter died before he got to film his scene. The crew opted for a wild untrained squirrel, which led to utter chaos.
⇒ Fans had to accept there were new actors for the kids: Since 6 years had passed since National Lampoon’s Vacation, the children had to be recast. Anthony Michael Hall was replaced by Johnny Galecki and Juliette Lewis took over from Dana Barron.
⇒ Roger Ebert didn’t like it: The famous film critic only gave Christmas Vacation 2 stars, saying, “Sequence after sequence seems to contain all the necessary material, to be well on the way toward a payoff, and then it somehow doesn’t work.” (He was wrong.)
-Diply
DID YOU KNOW?
It’s official: Australians are the heaviest drinkers in the world. A Global Drug Survey asked 32,000 people from 22 countries to monitor their alcohol consumption in 2020, to obtain a snapshot of global drinking habits. Participants from Australia got drunk an average of 27 times over the course of the year — almost double the global average of 15. Overall, Aussies drank 2 nights per week, but only became heavily intoxicated about once every 2 weeks. (On payday?)
-NYPost
BS CHRONOMETER 12.07.21
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1932 [89] Ellen Burstyn, Detroit MI, movie actress (“Requiem for a Dream”, “The Exorcist”)
1949 [72] Tom Waits, Pomona CA, blues-rock-folk-jazz singer-songwriter (‘Downtown Train’, ‘[Looking For] The Heart of Saturday Night’)/Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 2001
1955 [66] Priscilla Barnes, Fort Dix NJ, TV actress (“Jane The Virgin” 2014-19, ‘Terri’ on “Three’s Company 1981-1984)
1965 [56] Jeffrey Wright, Washington DC, TV actor (‘Bernard Lowe’ on “Westworld” 2016)
1977 [44] Dominic Howard, Stockport UK, rock drummer (Muse-‘Uprising’, ‘Supermassive Black Hole’)
1978 [43] Kristofer Hivju, Oslo Norway, TV actor (‘Tormund Giantsbane’ in “Game of Thrones” 2013-19)/movie actor (‘Connor Rhodes’ in “The Fate of the Furious”)
1979 [42] Sara Bareilles, Eureka CA, pop singer (‘King of Anything’, ‘Love Song’)
1987 [34] Aaron Carter, Tampa FL, pop singer (‘Aaron’s Party [Come Get It])/reality star “Dancing with the Stars” 2009)
1988 [33] Winston Marshall, London UK, folk-rock banjoist (Mumford & Sons-‘Believe’, ‘I Will Wait’)
1989 [32] Nicholas Hoult, Wokingham England, movie actor (“X-Men: First Class”, “Mad Max: Fury Road”)
TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Cotton Candy Day”, celebrating the sweet, sugary taste-treat that melts in your mouth. It was invented in 1897 as ‘Fairy Floss’, then renamed in 1920. In Greece, Israel, and India it is often referred to as ‘Old Woman’s Hair’. Yuck.
• “International Civil Aviation Day”, an observance by the International Civil Aviation Organization since 1994, to reinforce the importance of civil aviation to social and economic development. (Will this idea ever take off?)
• “National Letter Writing Day”, when we’re encouraged to take a few minutes to send someone a handwritten letter. Letter-writing has almost become a lost art. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone, either printed or in cursive? (What other old-school skills are falling by the wayside?)
• “Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day”, observed on the anniversary of one of the defining moments in American history, the 1941 Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii which caused the US to enter WW2. It is the 80th anniversary of the ‘date which will live in infamy’. BS FAST FACT: The 2001 film “Pearl Harbor” cost as much to make as the actual rebuilding of Pearl Harbor, and lasted an hour longer than the attack.
• “Trick Shot Day”. The Harlem Globetrotters, “the originators of the trick shot,” created this occasion to celebrate the kind of shots they are famous for, and to give fans the opportunity to showcase theirs. Record video of a trick shot and post it on social media using #WorldTrickShotDay.
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Wed] Brownie Day
[Wed] Pretend To Be a Time Traveler Day
[Thurs] Christmas Card Day
[Thurs] Pastry Day
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2001 [20] The caper movie remake, “Ocean’s Eleven”, featuring an all-star cast (George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts) opens in theaters (it spawns the sequels “Ocean’s Twelve”, “Ocean’s Thirteen”, and the all-female “Ocean’s 8″)
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1991 [30] Michael Jackson’s ‘Black or White’ reaches #1 on the singles chart; U2 s “Achtung Baby” debuts at #1 on the album chart
2014 [07] Pink Floyd’s classic album “The Dark Side of the Moon” makes a surprise return to the ‘Billboard 200’ (#13), thanks to ultra-cheap special pricing at 99¢ in the Google Play store
TODAY’S FIRST . . .
1969 [52] The TV special “Frosty the Snowman” is broadcast (on CBS) for the first time. It has aired annually every Christmas season since.
TODAY’S RECORD . . .
2010 [11] At auction, John James Audubon’s illustrated book “Birds of America” sells for a record price of $10.3 million
BULL’S BITS
BS WHACK FACTS:
✓ Termites eat wood twice as fast when listening to heavy metal music.
✓ Buttermilk does not contain any butter.
✓ With 2 forks and a charge, a pickle will emit light.
✓ Humans shed 40 pounds of skin in their lifetime, completely replacing their outer skin every month.
✓ Most liquid laundry detergents are alive with living organisms that help to break down stains.
✓ 1/3 of Taiwanese funeral processions include a stripper.
-AllThatisInteresting, RandomFactGenerator
Best of BS . . .
BS COMPLAINTS FROM NORTH POLE ELVES:
• Not allowed to join in reindeer games.
• Always being compared to Buddy.
• Low shelf-esteem.
• Climate change is melting my work station.
• How are we supposed to make these kids an iPhone without getting sued?
• Nothing to eat but cookies and reindeer jerky.
• Keebler Elves have a better benefit package.
• The polar bears ate Sugarplum Mary.
• South Pole elves never have to do squat.
• “I can’t handle one more Christmas Carol, and it’s only Dec. 7!
-Twitter, first published in BS in 2019
TODAY’S SCOOP OF BS:
➠ It’s officially that time of year. . . The Holidays! (You can tell, too. The Starbucks baristas are now spelling your name wrong on eggnog lattes…)
➠ A study found that the more time people spend on Facebook, the less active they are. (I was going to post this on Facebook, but had to take a nap first.)
➠ The E! Network People’s Choice Awards are on TV tonight. (I LOVE the different categories they have. Like, “Favorite Miley Cyrus Hookup,” and “Most Creative Vandalization of the Walk of Fame Trump-Star.”)
➠ Prohibition ended this week back in 1933. (Prohibition wound up being such a bad idea, historians now believe those who came up with it were drunk…)
➠ One in 3 people have lied to their relatives to avoid having them over for the holidays. (Not me! But that’s only because I died in a plane crash, like, 10 years ago…)
BS WEB GOODIE:
Future fan club president (sound up): https://tinyurl.com/z9duhv37
BS RANDOM JOKE:
Whoever said money can’t buy happiness didn’t know where to shop.
BS PHONE STARTER:
If you had to get a tattoo of a song lyric, what would it be?
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: The average person does THIS 98 times a year. What is it?
Answer: Eats cereal.
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
There has never been a meaningful life built on easy street.
