Friday, July 19, 2019 – Edition: #6497

The BS Press!

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Hey Upper East Siders, “Gossip Girl” is officially heading back to TV. Hopeful fans have been waiting for news of a reboot, and it’s finally here. WarnerMedia’s streaming service, HBO Max, has ordered 10 new episodes of a reboot of the CW favorite. The show, which launched the careers of Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley, Chace Crawford, Ed Westwick and Taylor Momsen, ran 6 seasons before going off the air in 2012. The reboot will center around a new group of elite teens. Don’t worry though, it will still take place in New York City, but 8 years later.
-TheBlast
★ The criminal sexual assault case against Kevin Spacey in Massachusetts has been dropped. The charge of felony indecent assault and battery was dropped due to “the unavailability of the complaining witness.” The unnamed accuser, who claimed that Spacey groped him at a Nantucket bar three years ago, invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during a pre-trial hearing last week. While Spacey is no longer facing jail time for that accusation, he is still being investigated in London in connection to six claims of sexual harassment and assault that allegedly occurred while he was artistic director of the Old Vic Theatre between 2004 and 2015.
-TheWrap
★ A copyright lawsuit against Netflix over footage used in its Fyre Festival documentary was dropped on Tuesday after the streaming company reached an undisclosed settlement with the plaintiff. The lawsuit was filed by Clarissa Cardenas, an attendee at the ill-fated 2017 Caribbean music festival, who claimed that footage she took at the festival was used in Chris Smith’s documentary “Fyre” without her permission. The suit requested $150,000 in damages.
-TheWrap
★ Dolly Parton might just be the next person to take her horse to the old town road. The legendary country singer is apparently teasing an appearance on yet another remix of Lil Nas X’s massive hit ‘Old Town Road’. Parton used Twitter on Wednesday to respond to the rapper, who had written, “y’all think i can get dolly parton and megan thee stallion on a old town road remix?” Parton retweeted Lil Nas X’s message and added a horse emoji and a unicorn emoji, as well as a photo of a pink horse alongside a brown horse and a black horse. Lil Nas X responded to her tweet, writing: “YEE YEE GANG!”, along with a series of horse and heart emojis.
-PopCulture
★ A fake chocolate bar and golden ticket from the 1971 film “Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory” has sold for $19,600 at auction in England. The Wonka bar, which is made of cardboard, originally belonged to the actress Julie Dawn Cole, who played spoiled brat Veruca Salt in the iconic adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s story. In the movie, June’s character bagged the golden ticket after her wealthy father got staff at his firm to open thousands of chocolate bars in a bid to find one of the five prized tokens granting children an exclusive tour of Willy Wonka’s business.
-Canoe

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Chris Hemsworth, the Jonas Brothers (R)
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): John Oliver, Joe Namath
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Aubrey Plaza, Louie Anderson (R)
• “The Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS/CTV): Halle Berry, Anjelica Huston, Allison Williams, Carly Rae Jepsen (R)
• “Conan” (TBS): Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring, Enrico Colantoni, Ryan Hansen, Percy Daggs III, Francis Capra, Kirby Howell-Baptiste
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Ricky Gervais
• “The Talk” (CBS): Sutton Foster, guest co-host Carnie Wilson
• “Live with Kelly and Ryan” (ABC/CTV): Jake Gyllenhaal, Meaghan Murphy
• “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” (NBC/CTV): Blake Shelton (R)

SATURDAY-
• “Apollo: The Forgotten Films” (DISCOVERY): The untold story and the unseen footage of Neil Armstrong’s moon landing are explored.
• “Say Yes to the Dress” (TLC): Season 18 premiere

SUNDAY-
• “Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted” (NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC): Series premiere.  High in Peru’s Sacred Valley of the Incas, Gordon Ramsay travels by motorbike to unlock the secrets of high-altitude cuisine.
• “Celebrity Family Feud” (ABC): Celebrity contestants include Brooklyn Decker, Andy Roddick, Bobby Bones, Lauren Alaina, Jon Pardi, Amy Brown, Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir.

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Katy Perry – When Taylor Swift extended her an olive branch to end their long running feud, it may have actually have been in the form of a cat. After texting for a while, Swift invited Perry to meet in person. Katy replied, “The only way I’m coming to your house is if I can hold your new cat.” She was referring to Benjamin Button, the kitten Taylor adopted after he appeared in her ‘ME!’ music video.
• Beyoncé – Her daughter Blue Ivy makes a cameo appearance in the video for her majestic new song ‘Spirit’.  She debuted the video on ABC’s “The Lion King” special on Tuesday. The movie and the album “The Lion King” are both out today.
• Janet Jackson — has announced vinyl reissues of five more of her classic solo albums — 1987’s “Control: The Remixes”, 1989’s “Rhythm Nation 1814”, 1993’s “janet.”, 1997’s “The Velvet Rope”, and 2001’s “All for You”. That follows last month’s vinyl reissue of 1986’s “Control” (1986), which many believe to be her best album.
• David Crosby – says “Never say never” about the possibility of a reunion of supergroup Crosby, Stills, and Nash, despite the fact that bandmates are not speaking to one another. On “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon”, he said: ”I have no bad stuff in my heart about any of those guys, man…I love them.”
• AC/DC — surprised fans on Tuesday by releasing a short video clip on their social media sites marking the 40th anniversary of their landmark album “Highway To Hell”. It included the caption “Celebrate with us all month long! #H2H40. The post comes after over two years of inactivity on their social media and during a week that the band is rumored to announce a world tour.
• Luke Combs – was formally inducted into the Grand Old Opry on Tuesday night by Vince Gill. Combs says he was just 6 years old when his mom and grandmother sneaked him into his first concert by hiding him in the backseat of their car so he could see Vince Gill play at a minor league baseball stadium.
• Tim McGraw – has revealed the cover of his upcoming book, “Grit & Grace: Train the Mind, Train the Body, Own Your Life”. He shared the photo on social media, saying that he wrote the book to inspire others, after he overcame alcoholism to become in top physical – and mental – shape.
• Chrissy Metz — has announced that she will be releasing a country album. Fans have been wondering if she might do so ever since she wowed the crowd while performing at the Academy of Country Music Awards, when she sang ‘I’m Standing With You’ with Carrie Underwood, Lauren Alaina, Maddie & Tae and Mickey Guyton.

TODAY’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
• “The Lion King” (PG, Animation/Drama):  A “photorealistic” computer-animated remake of Disney’s animated 1994 film. Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. But not everyone in the kingdom celebrates the new cub’s arrival. With help from a curious pair of newfound friends, the exiled Simba will have to figure out how to grow up and take back what is rightfully his. (Donald Glover, Beyoncé, Seth Rogen)
• “David Crosby: Remember My Name” (R-Rated, Documentary):  With unflinching honesty, self-examination, regret, fear, exuberance and an unshakable belief in family and the transformative nature of music, Crosby shares his often-challenging journey. (David Crosby, Cameron Crowe, Graham Nash)
• “Into the Ashes” (Not Rated, Action/Adventure):  Nick is an ex-con adjusting to a normal life in rural Alabama with a new job and a new wife. When some former associates track him down looking for retribution, he is forced back into the desperate and violent life he thought he left behind. (Frank Grillo, Luke Grimes)
• “Rosie” (PG-13, Drama): The story of a mother trying to protect her family after their landlord sells their rented home and they become homeless. (Sarah Greene, Moe Dunford)

THAT’S ONE SMALL BIT OF NITPICKING:
What did Neil Armstrong really say when he took his first step on the moon, 50 years ago tomorrow? Millions on Earth who listened to him on TV or radio heard this: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” But after returning from space, Armstrong said that wasn’t what he actually said. According to him, there was a lost word in his famous one-liner from the moon: the word “a”. His actual phrase was, “That’s one small step for ‘a’ man,” but the word “a” went unheard, possibly due to interference in the audio transmission. Armstrong, who died in 2012 at age 82, said he came up with the statement himself. In a 2001 NASA oral history, he said NASA discouraged coaching astronauts, a position reflected in a NASA memo. It cited how “the truest emotion … is what the explorer feels within himself.”
(I’m just glad it didn’t sound like “one giant LEAK”!)
-FOX

NEWS OF THE WEIRD:
➢ A Missouri man decided he needed a unique plan to get the attention of his city’s public works department, so he threw a birthday party for a pothole that he had been complaining about since March. Frank Sereno posted pictures on Facebook of a slice of birthday cake with a number 3 candle placed inside the pothole, presumably to indicate that he and his neighbors had been enjoying the pothole’s company for three years. A spokesperson for Kansas City’s Public Works Department has since indicated that crews were on Sereno’s block recently to finally make the repair. (They must have heard there was cake!)
➢ A first-time flyer tried a new method of onboarding a plane at an airport in Turkey. A viral video shows her climbing onto a luggage conveyor belt, reportedly thinking it would transport her to the plane. The would-be passenger checked in her bags at Istanbul Airport, but instead of heading to her terminal, she proceeded to climb onto the conveyor belt as terminal attendants and other passengers looked on. She promptly fell onto her backside as the belt rolled forward. (That’s not what they mean by “carry-on”!)
➢ Police in Spain arrested a man who allegedly tried to smuggle half a kilo of cocaine under his over-sized toupee at Barcelona’s international airport. Authorities said the man appeared to be extremely nervous when he arrived on a flight from Bogota, Colombia. They were also puzzled by his disproportionately large hairpiece. When he was asked to remove the wig, a package of cocaine was reportedly found stuck to his head. The drugs have an estimated street value of $34,000. (Maybe he should have tried to ride the conveyor too!)
-NYPost, KMOV, FOX

BS CHRONOMETER 07.19.19

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1947 [72] Brian May, Hampton UK, classic rock guitarist-songwriter (Queen-‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘We Will Rock You’)

1962 [57] Anthony Edwards, Santa Barbara CA, TV actor (“ER” 1994-2008)/movie actor (“Top Gun”, “Revenge of the Nerds”)

1974 [45] Jason McGerr, Seattle WA, indie-rock drummer (Death Cab for Cutie-‘You Are a Tourist’, ‘Soul Meets Body’)

1976 [43] Benedict Cumberbatch, London UK, TV actor (“Sherlock” 2010-2017)/movie actor (“The Imitation Game”, “Avengers: Infinity War”) COMING UP…“Ironbark”, 2019

1982 [37] Jared Padalecki, San Antonio TX, TV actor (‘Sam Winchester’ on “Supernatural” since 2005)

1983 [36] Trai Byers, Kansas City KS, TV actor (‘Andre Lyon’ on “Empire” since 2015)/movie actor (“Selma”)

SATURDAY- Carlos Santana (‘Black Magic Woman’) is 72; Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam) is 53; Josh Holloway, (“Lost”) is 50; Sandra Oh (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 48; Model Gisele Bundchen is 39; Julianne Hough (“Dancing With the Stars”) is 31

SUNDAY- Cat Stevens/Yusef Islam (‘Peace Train’) is 71; Jon Lovitz (“Grown Ups 2”) is 62; Alysia Reiner (“Orange Is the New Black”) is 49; Paul Brandt (‘Get a Bed’) is 47; Josh Hartnett (“Penny Dreadful”) is 41; Brad Mates (Emerson Drive) is 41

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Flight Attendant Safety Professionals Day”. In celebration, please take your seats and fasten your seatbelts. Also make sure your seat back and folding trays are in their full upright position. And please turn off all personal electronic devices. (And for the love of all that is holy, please, no more singing flight attendant viral videos!)

• “Stick Your Tongue Out Day”, for some long-forgotten reason. But now that you have it out, try rolling it into a cylinder … only 1-in-14 of us can do that!

• “Daiquiri Day”, An engineer named Jennings Cox supervised a mine in a Cuban village named Daiquiri in 1898. After work, Cox and his colleagues would gather at the local bar. One day Cox mixed Bacardi, sugar, and lime into a glass of ice. Named after the Daiquiri mines, the drink became a popular staple in Havana.

• “Triple Play Day”, marking the 1st MLB unassisted triple play, which was accomplished on this day in 1909 by one Neal Ball of the Cleveland Naps. It’s one of the rarest events in baseball.
(Why do they call it a ‘triple-play ball’ rather than a ‘Neal Ball’?)

• “New Friends Day”, celebrating brand-new friends, those fine and fabulous folks that have recently come into our lives to brighten our days with camaraderie and joy (and make our old friends jealous…).

SATURDAY-
• “International Chess Day”, an observance since 1966 honoring the game that generates challenge, intellectual stimulation, and enjoyment for people of all ages. There are estimated to be 605 million regular chess players around the world. A surprisingly stable 70% of the adult population has played chess at some point during their lives. (Except they play on their tablet now…)
• “Lollipop Day”, celebrating the 1908 invention of the famous candy on a stick. Pieces of hard candy were put on the ends of pencils for kids to nibble much earlier than that, but the treat had no name. So, here’s to lollipops!
• “Moon Day”, the anniversary of the 1st lunar landing in 1969. Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first to walk on the Moon. Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin joined him later, while Michael Collins remained orbiting above. A few things you likely didn’t know about the lunar landing … NET: http://tinyurl.com/l5p7kb  (Celebrate how you want, but please don’t do the obvious!)
• “Ugly Truck Day”. Sure, a brand new, shiny truck with all the gadgets is a great thing, but there’s something noble about an old ugly truck. Or maybe that’s just a guy thing?
• “Nap Day”, grab a chaise lounge out in the yard, spread a blanket at the beach, string a hammock between two trees or curl up on your bed under a ceiling fan with the air conditioner cranked.

SUNDAY-
• “Junk Food Day”. If your health wasn’t a factor, which junk food would you chow down on every chance you got: Burgers, Pizza, Hot Dogs, Tacos, Fries, Chocolate?
• “Tug-of-War Day”, an annual celebration of the competitive sport in which 2 teams hold opposite ends of a large rope and attempt to pull the other towards them in order to win. The spectacle has a long and ancient history all over the world. (And works best if there is a mud pit in the middle!)
• “Legal Drinking Age Day” so if you’re 21, 19, or 18 depending on where you are… cheers…because it’s 5 o’clock somewhere!

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
1961 [58] TWA (Trans World Airlines) shows the first-ever ‘in-flight movie’ (“In Love Possessed”, starring Lana Turner & Efrem Zimbalist Jr)

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1986 [33] Genesis hit #1 on the US singles chart with ‘Invisible Touch’. The band’s former lead singer Peter Gabriel was at No.2 with ‘Sledgehammer’.

2014 [05] Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine weds Victoria’s Secret model Behati Prinsloo in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

2017 [02] ‘Depacito’ by Luis Fonsi ft. Daddy Yankee becomes the most streamed song ever, at 4.6 billion views (currently around 6.4 billion)

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
2003 [16] During a 14-hour surgery at Vienna’s General Hospital, a 42-year-old Austrian man receives the world’s 1st ‘Transplanted Tongue’

BULL’S BITS

BS WHACK MOON FACTS:
✓ The average distance from the Moon to the Earth is 384,403 kilometres (238,857 miles).
✓ The Moon rotates on its axis in around the same length of time it takes to orbit the Earth. This means that from Earth we only ever see around 60% of its surface (50% at any one time).
✓ The surface of the Moon features a huge number of impact craters from comets and asteroids that have collided with the surface over time. Because the Moon lacks an atmosphere or weather, these craters remain well preserved.
✓ The average surface temperature of the Moon is 107 degrees Celsius (225F) during the day and -153 degrees Celsius (-243F) at night.
✓ The far side of the Moon looks quite different due to its lack of maria (ancient pools of solidified lava).
✓ Hot dogs were of the first food eaten on the moon. Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. ate hot dogs on their 1969 journey.
-SpaceFacts, ScienceKidz

BS GAME SHOWS FOR DUMMIES:
• Jeoparduh
• Are You Smarter Than a Kardashian?
• Who Wants to See a Millionaire?
• Name That Number
• The Price is $3.25
• How Many Fingers Am I Holding Up?
• Crash Cab
• Here’s $500. Try Not to Embarrass Yourself
• Tic Tac D’oh
• Scribble
• Love Island
-Twitter

Best of BS:
BS SIGNS YOU HAVE A CRAPPY SUMMER JOB:
✗ The uniform includes a name tag, a hairnet, and an orange vest with a fluorescent yellow ‘X’.
✗ Each day begins with the North Korean pledge of allegiance.
✗ They make everyone share the whistle.
✗ A sign in the restroom reads: “Employees Must Wash Each Other”.
✗ Your parents lie and tell people you’re temporarily working as a stripper.
✗ A big part of your day involves dodging Federales and the opposing cartel.
✗ Even the interns berate you with “Out of the way, loser!”
✗ To go home at the end of the day, you have to escape.
-First published in ‘BS’ in 2015

BS PHONE STARTER:
What is your “I’ll always remember where I was when it happened” moment?

BS RANDOM JOKE:
The more you weigh, the harder you are to kidnap. Stay safe, eat cake.

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question:  10% of men can’t locate THIS on a car. What is it?
Answer:  The oil dipstick

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
I still say, “shoot for the moon; you might get there.” – Buzz Aldrin