Monday, February 28, 2022 – Edition: #7177
The BS Press!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ The 2022 NAACP Image Awards, which honor achievement by people of color in culture and entertainment, were presented on Saturday. Jennifer Hudson was among the night’s big winners, earning the awards for Entertainer of the Year and outstanding actress in a motion picture for her performance as Aretha Franklin in the film “Respect.” Will Smith won best actor for his role in “King Richard,” and “The Harder They Fall” was awarded best film. Issa Rae won outstanding actress in a comedy series and Nikole Hannah-Jones was honored with the social justice impact award. Samuel L. Jackson received the NAACP Chairman’s Award for public service, while Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were honored with the President’s Award.
-CNN, USAToday
★ “SNL” broke from tradition Saturday night. There there were no laughs in the cold open — instead, viewers saw a moving tribute to Ukraine. The show opened with Kate McKinnon and Cecily Strong somberly introducing the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York. The choir sang a mournful song called ‘Prayer for Ukraine’. The Chorus has a deep connection to both Ukraine and the U.S. Ukrainian immigrants in the 1940’s created the Chorus to preserve their heritage and celebrate music. ‘Saturday Night Live has used serious cold opens only a few times in the past — notably, after 9/11, when Paul Simon sang ‘The Boxer’ as first responders and then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani stood by.
-TMZ
★ Amanda Kloots has announced that she’s been diagnosed with COVID-19, 2 years after her husband Nick Cordero died after a very public battle with the virus. Kloots, the former Broadway dancer and “Dancing With The Stars” contestant assured her followers that she is “feeling completely normal now and feel very grateful for that.” She added that being vaccinated and boosted against the virus “is very much putting me at ease” and she plans to be back at work on “The Talk” when her quarantine ends.
-Yahoo
★ It’s just come out that comedian Russell Peters tied the knot in a big way last weekend — inviting almost 300 guests, many of them big-time celebs. Peters and his bride, Ali, had their big day at the Ritz Carlton in Dana Point, CA, with a “who’s who” from the music, comedy and sports worlds. Cedric The Entertainer led the couple through their “I dos” as he conducted the ceremony, and, of course, got a few laughs in the process. R&B great Deborah Cox sang the bride and groom’s first dance song, Chic’s Nile Rodgers made a special appearance and UFC announcer Bruce Buffer introduced Russell and Ali as they entered the reception.
-TMZ
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/Global): Courteney Cox, Jimmy O. Yang, Avril Lavigne featuring Blackbear & Travis Barker
• “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Kate McKinnon, Paul Dano, YG featuring Moneybagg Yo
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Bob Odenkirk, Pusha T
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): John Oliver, Jason Clarke, Carter McLean
• ” The Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS/CTV): Maggie Gyllenhaal, Cynthia Erivo, Kimberly Clark
• “Watch What Happens Live” (Bravo): Lindsay Hubbard, Carl Radke
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Patrick Stewart
• “The Talk” (CBS): Noah Mills
• “Live with Kelly and Ryan” (ABC/CTV): Morris Chestnut, Molly Sims, guest co-host Ali Wentworth
• “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (NBC/CTV): Colin Farrell, Colman Domingo, Mat Franco
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Kit Hoover, Justin Cunningham, Danielle Kartes, Carlie Hanson
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): Joseph Gordon Levitt, Morena Baccarin, Justin Sutherland
• “The Bachelor” (ABC): Clayton visits the hometowns of his final 4 women to meet their families and immerse himself in each of their lives.
• “Ragdoll” (AMC): Series premiere. It’s a race against time after a gruesome discovery sets DI Baxter, DS Rose and DC Edmunds on the trail of the Ragdoll killer, who also lists 6 more people due to die.
• “Better Things” (HBO): Season 5 premiere
• “My Brilliant Friend: Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay” (HBO): Season 3 premiere
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Rihanna — is opening a Savage x Fenty store in New York City. The boutique in Brooklyn’s Triangle Building, close to the Barclays Center, will serve as a flagship location for her trend-setting lingerie brand after opening 5 other stores across the US.
• Jay-Z — A court has ruled he’s entitled to more than $4.5 million in royalties from the sales of his fragrance. Parlux Fragrances filed an $18 million lawsuit against him in 2016, claiming he breached their agreement by failing to do public appearances to promote his fragrance. The Justice ruled the company failed to pay royalties to Jay after 2015.
• Avril Lavigne — has a “Hello Kitty” bedroom in her house. She says she has kept all the tiaras, crowns and stuffed Hello Kitty toys she’s either received from fans or from photoshoots over the years and turned a room in her house into a shrine for the Japanese character.
• Madonna — Ukrainian president Vlodymyr Zelensky has followed her on Instagram after she posted a video montage in support of his country. In it, she condemned Russia’s “pointless and greed driven invasion”, adding that “Putin has violated every human rights accord in existence”.
• Twisted Sister — Dee Snider is all for Ukrainians using the band’s song ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ as a battle cry while fighting back against the Russian invasion. Snider tweeted: “I absolutely approve of Ukrainians using ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ as their battlecry. My grandfather was Ukrainian, before it was swallowed up by the USSR after WW2. This can’t happen to these people again!”
• Mick Jagger – is teaming up with Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson to produce a 4-part documentary on James Brown for A&E. “James Brown: Say it Loud” will premiere next year. Jagger described Brown as “a brilliant performer who inspired me from the beginning.”
• Sam Hunt – In case you missed it, late last week, his pregnant wife Hannah Lee Fowler filed for divorce — again. She originally filed in Davidson County, TN, but had the paperwork withdrawn the same day. It seems she had filed in the wrong county by mistake, and she resubmitted the same divorce petition in adjacent Williamson County later the same day.
• Runaway June — has lost another original member. Lead singer Naomi Cooke said via Instagram that she is going solo and leaving the trio. She’s the second member to leave in 2 years, following Hannah Mulholland, who departed in in 2020. Jennifer Wayne and Natalie Stovall made it clear they will carry on, tweeting: “We can’t wait to get back on the road!!!!!”
• Shania Twain — invited a special guest onstage at a recent show during her “Let’s Go! The Las Vegas Residency”. A video posted to social media, shows Coldplay’s Chris Martin joining her on piano while Twain played guitar for renditions of Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’ and Twain’s ‘You’re Still the One’.
SHOOTING THE BULL
SAVE YOUR SKIN:
Do you sleep on your side? Stomach? A skin expert is saying you shouldn’t, if you want to avoid the signs of aging. Dr. Farah Moustafa, a dermatologist and director of Laser and Cosmetics at Tufts Medical Center, says that repeatedly sleeping on your side or your stomach means your face is pushed against a pillow. This pressure on the skin can cause wrinkles to form. Lines caused by sleeping on our side or stomach usually appear as vertical wrinkles, while horizontal expression lines are formed when a person makes facial movements like raising or furrowing their eyebrows. Moustafa says that there “is definitely some benefit from sleeping on [your] back to avoid a lot of the compression forces on the face that create lines over time.” The drawback? Sleeping in your back can increase snoring and sleep apnea…and many people don’t find it a natural position to sleep in.
(Of course, if you sleep on your back, those wrinkles will be obscured by the pillow your wife uses to smother you . . .)
(I guess now we know how Keith Richards has been sleeping all these years . . .)
(Solution to not being able to sleep on your back: Just have a few drinks…if my wife’s complaints are to be believed!)
-TheSun
THROWING SHADE:
You may have done some research into your family’s genealogy, but these people came up with a family FOREST! Researchers at the University of Oxford’s Big Data Institute have created the largest-ever family tree, linking more than 27 million people — both living and long dead – around the world. They say it is a major milestone in the journey toward mapping the entirety of human genetic relationships. They say they’ve come up with a genealogy for all of humanity, which allows them to see how every person’s genetic sequence relates to every other person’s. In simpler terms, the comprehensive tree, which is in the forms of both a research paper and a video, depicts how people around the world are interrelated, like an all-encompassing 23andMe. The family tree provides info about where and when our human ancestors lived – specifically Africa – and may even help predict who might be more susceptible to diseases such as COVID-19.
(So, all of a sudden, we all have thousands of relatives that we never knew we had. It’s just like winning the lottery — literally!)
(So…obviously we’re all related. From my family to yours – I’m sorry.)
-NYPost
NEW GOOD NEWS:
➢ A new COVID-19 vaccine has achieved 100% efficacy against severe disease and hospitalizations, says its manufacturers Sanofi and GSK. The companies are now set to apply for approval to release the vaccine as both a 2-dose vaccine and booster shot. Advantages of the Sanofi-GSK offering include that because it’s not mRNA-based, it can be produced inexpensively and stored at refrigerator temperatures rather than ultra-cold storage – good news for those in low-income countries where vaccine rollout has been desperately slow. And unlike vaccines based on mRNA technology, this new one is protein-based, a factor which may convince some vaccine-hesitant people to get the shot, since it’s based on older, more widely established technology. (I’m still holding out for Ranch flavor!)
➢ Like many who have felt the mental health impact of the pandemic, New Zealander Brooke Lacey had her own share of issues. In the hope helping others, the 22-year-old was inspired to create a batch of stickers that read: “Please don’t take your life today. The world is so much better with you in it. More than you realize, stay.” She printed 600 of them, putting them up in public places, and one on the back of her car. She promptly forgot about the signs for months, until she came out of a coffee shop one day to see a piece of paper stuck underneath her windshield wiper. Figuring she was on the receiving end of a nasty note about her parking technique, Lacey was gobsmacked to find a note thanking her for saving the writer’s life. It read: “I left my house with a plan and asked for a sign, any sign I was doing the right thing, when I saw your car in the parking lot. Thank you.” Lacey’s tweet about the incident, with the words: I am so glad whoever you are chose to stay today. You never know who needs this reminder”, went viral.
-IFLScience, InspireMore
SOME OF THE WORST PAINS HUMANS CAN EXPERIENCE:
These are the conditions that, according to the UK’s National Health Service, rank as “pain so disabling” that they can prevent you from performing daily tasks . . . (no particular order)
• Frozen shoulder
• Endometriosis (uterus affliction)
• Shingles
• Cluster headaches/migrane
• Broken bones
• Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS – chronic arm or leg pain)
• Heart attack
• Slipped disc
• Sickle cell disease (blood condition)
• Arthritis
• Sciatica
• Kidney stones
• Appendicitis
• Trigeminal neuralgia (a form of facial pain)
• Acute pancreatitis
• Gout
• Stomach ulcer
• Fibromyalgia (causes pain all over the body)
• Pain after surgery (which means, of course, that if you get any of the above fixed, it’s gonna hurt!)
-Independent
DID YOU KNOW?
A British Columbia woman is spending $44,000 (Cdn) to clone her cat so he can live “forever”. When Kris Stewart’s beloved cat, Bear, was struck and killed by a car, she was heartbroken. Despite her grief, the Kelowna resident quickly began making arrangements to have Bear cloned. She had to store Bear’s body at the right temperature while frantically searching for a vet who knew how to perform a biopsy to collect his cells. Once that was done, she shipped them overnight to Viagen Pets in the US. The company likens the process to in-vitro fertilization through a surrogate, calling a cloned pet “essentially an identical twin that is born at a different time.” (***Caution*** Oh . . . Like Hitler and Putin!)
-CTV
BS CHRONOMETER 02.28.22
TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Shrove Monday”, also known as “Lundi Gras” (Fat Monday), and “Rose Monday” in Germany & Austria, where groups of ‘Faschingsanger’ (carnival singers) recall the funny and stupid events of the past year. Processions of decorated floats, regiments of ‘Fools Guilds’ in traditional uniforms, brass bands, horses & costumed groups wind through city streets.
• “Tooth Fairy Day”, honoring the devious dental donor who leaves money under kids’ pillows for lost teeth. No one knows the origin for sure but there was a fairytale in 18th-century France about a ‘tooth mouse’ who hid under pillows. In 2021, parents….err…the Tooth Fairy left an average of $5.99 per tooth for kids in Canada, according to a Delta Dental survey. That means that for a full set of 20 baby teeth, kids are raking in about $120. (In the US, the average is $4.70.)
• “International Floral Design Day”, focusing on the art of flower arranging, both as a profession and as a hobby.
• “Rare Disease Day”, established in 2008 to raise awareness for rare diseases and improve access to treatment. A disease is defined as ‘rare’ in Europe when it affects less than 1-in-2000; and in the USA if it affects fewer than 200,000 in total.
• “Public Sleeping Day”, today, you are encouraged to doze off in a public area, to draw attention to the fact that almost one-third of us sleep less than 6 hours a night. You may nap while riding on public transportation or on a bench in a park, at a library or a cafe, or any other public place. (Just don’t take off your shoes!)
• “International Repetitive Strain Injuries Awareness Day”, celebrated on Feb 29th in leap years (the only “non-repetitive” day of the year), and on the 28th in traditional years. While it takes a worker an average 47 days to recover from a broken bone, a worker suffering from an ‘RSI’, such as tendinitis or carpal tunnel syndrome, takes an average 52 days or 71 days, respectively.
COMING UP . . .
[Tues] Mardi Gras
[Tues] Horse Protection Day
[Wed] International Rescue Cat Day
[Wed] Ash Wednesday
This Week Is…Peace Corps Week
This Month Is…Brain Injury Awareness Month
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1940 [82] Mario Andretti, Montona Italy, retired pro race-car driver (1969 Indianapolis 500, 1978 Formula One World Champion)
1944 [78] Kelly Bishop, Colorado Springs CO, TV actress (‘Emily Gilmore’ on “The Gilmore Girls” 2000-07, “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life” 2016)/movie actress (“Dirty Dancing”)
1955 [67] Gilbert Gottfried, Brooklyn NY, whiny-voiced comedian/voice actor (voice of ‘Iago’ in Disney’s “Aladdin”/voice of the “Aflac Duck” 2000-11)
1957 [65] John Turturro, Brooklyn NY, movie actor (“Transformers” films, “The Taking of Pelham 123”)
1969 [53] Pat Monahan, Erie PA, pop-rock singer (Train-‘Hey, Soul Sister’, ‘Drops Of Jupiter’)
1973 [49] Eric Lindros, London ON, retired NHL player (Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Dallas Stars), Hockey Hall of Fame, 2016
1976 [46] Ali Larter, Cherry Hill NJ, movie actress (“Resident Evil” films, “Final Destination” films)/TV actress (“Heroes” 2006-10)
1977 [45] Jason Aldean, Macon GA, country singer (‘Burnin’ it Down’, ‘Dirt Road Anthem’)
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
1983 [39] The final TV episode of “M*A*S*H” airs; a record 125 million watch in the US (still the most-watched TV series episode in history)
1998 [24] “Baywatch” actress Pamela Anderson divorces Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee after 3 years of marriage
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1984 [38] Michael Jackson is the big winner at the Grammy Awards, winning 8 trophies, including Album of the Year for “Thriller” and Record of the Year for ‘Beat It’.
1998 [24] Celine Dion’s ‘My Heart Will Go On’, from the movie “Titanic”, goes to #1 in the US, joining the soundtrack and the movie at #1 on their respective charts
2016 [06] At the Oscars, Lady Gaga performs ‘Til It Happens To You’ joined by a group of sexual assault survivors, but the “Best Song” Oscar goes to Sam Smith’s ‘Writing’s On the Wall’
TODAY’S FIRST . . .
2013 [09] A neuro-scientist at Duke University announces he has successfully connected the brains of 2 rats in such a way that they can share information
BULL’S BITS
BS WHACK FACTS:
✓ Ancient Egyptians slept on pillows made of stone.
✓ The first Fords had engines made by Dodge.
✓ Studies show that when people fall in love, they lose an average of 2 close friends.
✓ ‘Toto’ was paid $125 per week while filming “The Wizard of Oz”.
✓ Frogs sometimes eat enough fireflies that they themselves glow.
✓ In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.
-Owlcation
Best of BS . . .
BS STANDARD HOUSEHOLD MEASURES FOR YOUNG SINGLES:
• A heap of cake.
• A stack of brownies.
• A brick of ramen.
• A spoon of peanut butter.
• A mug of wine.
• A sleeve of cookies.
• A fist of jellybeans.
• A shirt-bowl of popcorn.
• A whole thing of ice cream.
-First published in BS in 2014
BS FAILED CIRCUS ACTS:
• World’s tallest dwarf
• Man-bun lady
• Three-ring binder
• Non-creepy clowns (couldn’t find any)
• Synchronized fidget spinning
• My world-famous check-book balancing act
• Electrified hi-wire
• The carny kissing booth
• Russian roulette
• My 2015 family reunion
-Twitter, first published in BS in 2019
BS U-PICK TRIVIA:
• Who was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?
a) Diana Ross
b) Aretha Franklin [CORRECT]
c) Tina Turner
d) Tiffany
• The phrase “Let them eat cake” is commonly attributed to whom?
a) Marie Antoinette [CORRECT]
b) Florence Nightingale
c) Laura Ingalls
d) Betty Crocker
• “America’s Next Top Model” is a reality TV show created by which former model?
a) Tyra Banks [CORRECT]
b) Naomi Campbell
c) Christy Turlington
d) Iman
-Trivia.fyi
BS WEB GOODIE:
Some people just have the rhythm: https://tinyurl.com/xadtaj7n
BS RANDOM JOKE:
Never try to keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level. It’s cheaper.
BS PHONE STARTER:
What’s the strangest food item you’ve snuck into a movie theater?
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: 25% of people under the age of 25 have never been HERE. Where?
Answer: A bank
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts, never fears, and never regrets.
