Wednesday, January 26, 2022 – Edition: #7154

The BS Press!

 

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Peloton isn’t pleased with its recent depiction on TV. On Sunday night’s “Billions,” ‘Mike Wagner’ aka ‘Wags’ suffered a mild heart-attack while riding a Peloton bike. Sound familiar? The same thing happened to ‘Mr. Big’ on the “Sex and the City” sequel series “And Just Like That…”. Unlike Big, Wags did not die. The Showtime character did, however, acknowledge the HBO Max tragedy, saying: “I’m not going out like Mr. Big.” Peloton wasn’t happy with this kind of product placement, and tweeted: “To be clear, we did *not* agree for our brand or IP to be used on @SHO_Billions, or provide any equipment. As the show itself points out, cardio-vascular exercise helps people lead long, happy lives.”
-TheWrap
★ Michael Madsen has confirmed the news that his son Hudson Lee Madsen has died. On Tuesday morning, a representative for the “Reservoir Dogs” star and his family said: “We are heartbroken and overwhelmed with grief and pain at the loss of Hudson.” Hudson Madsen, died at age 26 in a “suspected suicide”. His Facebook profile indicated that he lived in Hawaii, with his wife. According to photos posted to his social media pages, he served in the US Army and spent time in Afghanistan. He was the godson of Oscar-winning director Quentin Tarantino. His father, Michael and Tarantino collaborated on multiple films together, including “Reservoir Dogs” and the two-part “Kill Bill.”
-PageSix, Metro
★ (***Caution – “F-ing”***) Peter Dinklage has criticized the forthcoming revival of the 1937 children’s film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, calling the story “f-ing backwards”. The actor, who has dwarfism, was discussing the concept of “wokeness” on a podcast, and said: “I was a little taken aback when they were very proud to cast a Latina actress as ‘Snow White’. You’re still telling the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there. It makes no sense to me.” Dinklage went on to point out that it seems the producers are “progressive in one way” but are still making a backwards story “about seven dwarfs living in a cave together.”
-Independent
★ Robert Pattinson says that his ‘Batman’ will enjoy venting rage towards criminals. He plays the Caped Crusader in Matt Reeves’ upcoming movie “The Batman”, and told an interviewer that viewers will see the superhero’s darker side, although the Dark Knight will stick to his no-kill code. Pattinson explained that his take on ‘Bruce Wayne’ “practically lives in the gutter,” and exploring the character’s grittier side was a key reason he signed up for the part. The Batman is set for release March 4.
-ContactMusic

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/Global): Charlie Day, Colman Domingo, Iann Dior featuring Machine Gun Kelly & Travis Barker
• “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Halle Berry, Dave Franco, Dijon
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Adrien Brody, Lady Wray
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Cynthia Nixon, Annaleigh Ashford, Del Water Gap, Larnell Lewis
• “The Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS/CTV): Daveed Diggs, Sydney Sweeney, Joy Crookes
• “Watch What Happens Live” (Bravo): Paris Hilton, Kathy Hilton
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Amber Ruffin, guest co-host Lisa Ling
• “The Talk” (CBS): Ming-Na Wen
• “Live with Kelly and Ryan” (ABC/CTV): Chris Sullivan, Henrik Lundqvist, Susan Sarandon
• “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (NBC/CTV): Courteney Cox, Chris Martin, Coldplay
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Ben Affleck, Tye Sheridan, Daniel Ranieri, Christina Perri
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): Cynthia Nixon, Daphne Oz, Gail Simmons, Jamika Pessoa
• “Let’s Make a Deal Primetime” (CBS): Prizes include trips to Portugal, Croatia and Greece, at least one trader is guaranteed to win $50,000 in cash.
• “The Amazing Race” (CBS): Teams race through Switzerland, where racers bungee jump over 700 feet off the Verzasca Dam.
• “I Can See Your Voice” (NBC): Guest panelists Joel McHale and Alison Brie; the selected singer performs with Ashanti.

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Bad Bunny – has announced his first stadium tour. “Bad Bunny: World’s Hottest Tour” kicks off Aug. 5 at Campus Stadium in Orlando, and will make 15 U.S. stops, including Yankee Stadium, Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, and Boston’s Fenway Park. The tour will continue into fall with 14 stops in Latin America.
• Adele – Her ‘Easy on Me’ has notched its 10th week at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. That equals her longest reign at the top, previously established by her 2015-16 smash ‘Hello’.
• Fugees — have cancelled their reunion tour. They planned to hit the road late last year to celebrate 25th anniversary of their classic album “The Score”, but the shows were delayed to 2022 due to COVID-19 concerns. Now, the group has announced the shows won’t be taking place at all, but they hope to reconsider the possibility of a tour “sometime soon”.
• Bob Dylan — has sold his catalog of recorded music to Sony Music Entertainment, the company he’s been with for 6 decades. The deal includes all of Dylan’s work from 1962-2020, and rights to future releases. Terms weren’t disclosed, but Billboard says Dylan’s catalog is valued at around $200 million.
• Sammy Hagar — has recruited another guy who loves signing about drinking for his upcoming summer tour. George Thorogood and the Destroyers will join Hagar and his band the Circle on the “Crazy Times” tour. The first of 14 shows announced so far is June 10 in Bridgeport, CT.
• Kid Rock — will join forces with Foreigner and Grand Funk Railroad for a U.S. tour. The 24-city “Bad Reputation Tour” will kick off April 6 in Evansville IN, and wrap with 2 shows in Detroit Sept. 16-17. Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening will appear on select dates.
• Marilyn Manson — In the first half of her documentary “Phoenix Rising”, Evan Rachel Wood claims he “essentially raped” her on the set of his 2007 video ‘Heart-Shaped Glasses’. Last year, she said he was abusive during their relationship, which lasted from 2007-10. Manson has denied the allegations.
• Luke Bryan — After being placed on vocal rest, he was back in action and belting it out during the 4-night “Crash My Playa 2022” in Cancun. He lost his voice after cheering a little too hard for the Georgia Bulldogs in the National Championship, but triumphantly returned to the stage at the event over the weekend, joined by several other big-names, including Darius Rucker and Jason Aldean.
• Thomas Rhett — is hitting the road this summer, and he’s taking Parker McCollum and Conner Smith with him. “Thomas Rhett’s Bring the Bar to You Tour” will launch June 17 in Gilford, New Hampshire and hit 30 cities, before winding up in Dayton, Ohio, Oct. 15.
• Shenandoah – recently announced their 35th Anniversary Tour, set to begin next month. When asked to name his top memory with the group, singer Marty Raybon pointed to their time spent opening for legends Merle Haggard and George Jones, and having a ringside seat to the inner working of their camps.

SHOOTING THE BULL

NEW YEAR’S REVOLUTION:
If you’re already failing in your New Year’s resolutions (and who isn’t?), an expert is providing a convenient excuse. Apparently, we’re trying to do too much these days, and in order to achieve more, we should actually do less. It seems counterintuitive, but it’s best to work on one or 2 habits, rather than trying to improve all aspects of yourself at once, according to Caroline Leaf, a communication pathologist and cognitive neuroscientist based in Dallas. She says changes in thinking and behavior take about 2 months. When you divide up a year, that is 5 to 6 goals you can reach every year. She recommends you find one or 2 specific goals to work on in 9-week increments – then break those down to one small goal to accomplish each week. As a result, she says, the small changes you make each month won’t be as intimidating, and you won’t feel as worn out by achieving them.
(Hey…hey…HEY! Who said anything about attaining 5 or 6 goals? If I did that, my ex might come back!)
(OK, but even if I listen to her, I’ve still already blown my “Dry January” week!)
-CNN

GRAVE MARKER:
A simple eye test may reveal how long you have to live. An international team of medical researchers has discovered a link between the biological age of a person’s retinas and their risk of death. The study of about 47,000 adults, headed by the Centre for Eye Research Australia, found that people whose retinas were “older” than their actual age were more likely to die over the next decade. Each participant had their fundus (the back surface of the eye) scanned, and were monitored for 11 years. The team compared each retina’s “biological age” with that person’s chronological age, and discovered a “retinal age gap” in many participants. Large gaps were associated with 49-67% higher risks of death. According to the study authors, their findings “indicate that retinal age gap might be a potential biomarker of aging that is closely related to risk of mortality.” The discovery could lead to a routine screening tool for a host of life-threatening illnesses – including Alzheimer’s disease.
(I did not see that coming! Sorry, that was cornea!)
(I’m a little afraid of this. Mostly because I’ve never taken a test that I haven’t failed!)
-StudyFinds

VIRTUALLY MARRIED – OR MARRIED VIRTUALLY?
An Indian couple are planning the country’s first-ever “metaverse marriage”. As COVID-19 forces couples to cancel or downsize their traditionally large-scale weddings, Dinesh Sivakumar Padmavathi and Janaganandhini Ramaswamy have found a venue unaffected by the current limit of 100 attendees – the metaverse — where guests can attend via phones, tablets or laptops. And we’re not talking about a simple video feed here. Metaverse is a term used to describe virtual 3D environments where users can gather and interact. Because the pair are self-professed “Potterheads,” or fans of Harry Potter, the groom worked with start-up platform TardiVerse to create a castle-like digital space inspired by Hogwarts. The legal ceremony will still take place physically in front of close friends and relatives, but afterwards, the couple will log on to join their reception, which cost about US $2,000 to design, develop and host. The one-hour event will see the newlyweds virtually address their guests, who will be able to explore the castle and customize their avatars’ appearance and outfit. Another advantage to having a digital celebration: They’ve been able to involve Ramaswamy’s late father in the proceedings by creating an avatar of him, so he can bless the couple.
(If it saves me the price of a plane ticket, I’m all for this idea!)
(I’m pretty sure I’d still find a way to spill a drink on someone’s dress . . . )
-CNN

URGE TO SPLURGE:
With the “Roaring 20s” delayed just a little bit, there’s definitely a burning desire by people to go all out and enjoy what they’ve missed out on since the beginning of the pandemic. A survey of 2,000 adults found 70% are looking to have more fun with their finances over the next decade, and here are the top-10 things that they want to spend more money on . . .
1. Traveling – 44%
2. Home goods/decor – 40%
3. Consumer electronics – 38%
4. Restaurants – 37%
5. Groceries – 37%
6. Clothing – 37%
7. Live entertainment – 37%
8. Shoes – 29%
9. Museum exhibits – 27%
(I think it’s already been established that we’ll be spending more on groceries . . . LOTS more!)
(Me? Definitely car repairs!)
-GoodNewsNetwork

DID YOU KNOW?
The Tonga volcano that erupted last week had a force more than 500 times that of the Hiroshima atomic bomb. According to estimates provided by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption released an equivalent of 10 megatons of TNT, making it one of the most powerful eruptions in 30 years. According to local officials, the eruption had a radius of 260 kilometers (161.5 miles), and threw up ash 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) into the atmosphere. The situation in Tonga in terms of death and devastation remains uncertain, though 3 are confirmed dead with several still missing.
-IFLScience

BS CHRONOMETER 01.26.22

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Australia Day”, the national day for our mates Down Under, commemorating the 1788 landing of Captain Arthur Phillip at Sydney to establish a penal colony. Records of an annual celebration date back to 1808. (FUN FALSE FACT: Australia’s biggest export is boomerangs. It’s also their biggest import!)
• “Peanut Brittle Day”, celebrating the yummy treat that sticks to your fillings. A little sugar, a little corn syrup, a little more sugar, some peanuts, a little butter, a little more sugar …
• “Spouse’s Day”, a time to enjoy and appreciate your better half. (Just before you deposit this month’s alimony…)
• “International Customs Day”, recognizing the role of custom officials and agencies in maintaining border security. It focuses on the working conditions and challenges that customs officers face on-the-job. (To celebrate, body-frisk a co-worker today. Just kidding!)
• “Library Shelfie Day”, some book collectors arrange them so their spines can be admired. Others have a system of organization that results in an alternative art form. However they’re organized on the shelf, today you should take a “shelfie,” and share it on social media. (Do you just screen-shot your list if you have a Kindle?)
• “Lotus 1-2-3 Day”, marking the anniversary of the day in 1983 when the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet program, which was a three-in-one (1-2-3)
spreadsheet calculator, database manager, and graphics package, debuted as an application for the IBM PC.

COMING UP . . .
[Thurs] Thomas Crapper Day
[Thurs] International Holocaust Remembrance Day
[Fri] Daisy Day
[Fri] Blueberry Pancake Day

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1934 [88] Bob Uecker, Milwaukee WI, baseball announcer (honored last fall for 50 years as the comedic play-by-play announcer for Milwaukee Brewers’ radio broadcasts)/movie actor (“Major League” movies)/former MLB player

1949 [73] David Strathairn, San Francisco CA, movie actor (“Bourne” films, “Good Night, and Good Luck”)

1957 [65] Deep Roy [Mohinder Purba], Nairobi Kenya, movie actor (“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, “Star Trek”)

1958 [64] Ellen Degeneres, Metairie LA, TV personality (“Ellen DeGeneres Show” since 2003, “American Idol” 2010-11)/TV actress (“Ellen” 1994-98)

1961 [61] Wayne Gretzky (“The Great One”), Brantford ON, retired NHL player (9-time MVP, 10-time scoring champ, 4-time Stanley Cup winner)/all-time greatest hockey player?/NHL coach (Phoenix Coyotes 2005-09)

1963 [59] Andrew Ridgeley, Surrey England, pop singer (Wham!-‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’)

1981 [41] Colin O’Donoghue, Drogheda Ireland, TV actor (‘Captain Hook’ on “Once Upon a Time” 2012-18)

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2009 [13] 8 children are born to Nadya Suleman, whom the media dubs ‘Octomom’ (public reaction turns negative when it’s discovered the unemployed single mom already has 6 other kids via in vitro fertilization)

2010 [12] James Cameron’s film “Avatar” surpasses his 1997 movie “Titanic” to become the highest-grossing film of all-time (eventually totaling $2.8 billion)

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
2006 [16] Garth Brooks’ “Double Live” album, released in 1998, becomes the first live album certified Double Diamond for sales of over 20 million in America

2019 [03] Miranda Lambert gets married for a second time, tying the knot with police officer Brendan Mcloughlin in a secret ceremony. Her first marriage was to Blake Shelton

2020 [02] 18-year-old Billie Eilish wins 4 of the 9 televised awards at the Grammys, including the big ones: Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist

TODAY IN SPORTS . . .
2020 [02] LA Lakers basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and 7 others die in a helicopter crash in foggy conditions in the hills above Calabasas, California

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
1972 [50] Serbian flight attendant Vesna Vulovic survives the highest-ever fall without a parachute — 10,160 meters (6.3 miles)

BULL’S BITS

BS WHACK FACTS:
✓ The word ‘yo’ was first used in the 15th century.
✓ A cluster of bananas is called a ‘hand’.  A single banana is called a ‘finger’.
✓ Chewing gum while studying, then chewing the same flavored gum while taking a test can help you remember what you studied.
✓ Technically, the “high seas” are waters 12 or more nautical miles beyond a nation’s territory.
✓ Pilots and co-pilots eat different meals in case of food poisoning.
✓ Melbourne, Australia was originally named Batmania.
-UberFacts, WhattheFfacts

BS RANDOM THOUGHTS IN THE DOCTOR’S WAITING ROOM:
• Ohhhh…so my appointment time is actually when I start waiting for my appointment . . .
• I’ve been studying for this urine test for two weeks.
• Why did that contagious-looking guy have to sit next to me?
• Why do they call it a “practice” anyway?
• I can tell by the way they’re all standing around whispering that they’re going to diagnose me with paranoia.
• It’s great to see what magazines everyone was reading in 2006.
• I won’t lie about how much I drink. I won’t lie about how much I drink…I won’t…
• What’s that smell?
• I wonder what he’s here for. I wonder what she’s here for…
• I hope it’s OK that I’ve already taken my pants off…
-Twitter, first published in BS in 2020

TODAY’S SCOOP OF BS:
➠ It turns out that Bill Gates, in his lifetime, has donated a total of $33.3 billion toward poverty alleviation and health efforts, including to fight COVID-19. (Yet, he still hasn’t given a red cent to fight the viruses that keep crashing Windows 10!)
➠ There’s a Seattle, Washington company that makes a non-alcoholic beer for dogs. (So if you think everyone in Seattle is stoned, then… well…you may have a good point!)
➠ A study has concluded that chocolate is good for the heart. (Which, of course, explains all those Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup wrappers all over my treadmill…)
➠ Fact:  If you stay up all night, your body will burn an extra 161 calories. (So, those ‘Midnight Snacks’ are actually helping me stay fit?)
➠ Fact of the Day:  Chainsaws were originally invented as a tool to help deliver babies. (Of course, in those days, a chainsaw would cost you “an arm and a leg”!

BS THREEZER:
(Give contestant the clues, they tell you what all 3 have in common…)
• A fisherman, A dog catcher, A trapeze artist
Answer: They all use nets

• M*A*S*H*, Fargo, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Answer: They’re all movies that inspired TV shows

• Green, Red, Bell
Answer: They are all types of peppers
-TriBond

BS WEB GOODIE:
I play the ‘keys’:   https://tinyurl.com/wj5ecpf3

BS RANDOM JOKE:
Inside me, there’s a thin person struggling to get out, but I can usually sedate him with 4 or 5 cupcakes.

BS PHONE STARTER:
What unreasonable fear did you have as a child? Quicksand? The Bermuda Triangle? Walking into the basement at night? Spontaneous combustion? Soap? (What? Just me?)

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question:  35% of drivers claim the reason they speed is THIS. What is it?
Answer:  They have to go to the bathroom

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
The greatest thief this world has ever produced is procrastination, and he is still at large.