Tuesday, March 12, 2024 — Edition: #7675
We’ve Got Our Sheet Together!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ After a “kill order” was issued on a photo she released, the Princess of Wales herself is admitting that she digitally altered the image. Yesterday, she issued an apology on X. The pic, showing Kate Middleton with her 3 children, was posted on Sunday, but viewers quickly spotted signs of photo manipulation, and called it out, resulting in swift takedown of the image. In a new tweet, she wrote: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.” She signed the message with a simple “C,” indicating that it came from her. The picture caused a ruckus online over the weekend, coming as Middleton’s health and whereabouts have been under intense scrutiny, following abdominal surgery in January. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/5n8wzmz7
-TheWrap
★ Natalie Portman is single, again. The Oscar-winning actress and her husband, Benjamin Millepied, quietly separated last year and have already finalized their divorce, her rep has confirmed. Portman filed last July and the divorce was finalized last month in France, where Portman and Millepied live with their children, who are 12 and 7. The news comes a year after rumors surfaced that Millepied had an affair.
-NYPost
★ “The Super Marios Bros Movie” will return with a sequel, Nintendo has announced. The new animated film, set for release on April 3, 2026, will come almost exactly 3 years after the release of the original movie. The first film scored big at the box office, crossing $1 billion less than a month after release. No plot details about the sequel so far, except for the plan to “broaden Mario’s world further.”
-HollywoodReporter
★ Will Reba McEntire’s ‘June Ballard’ character return before “Young Sheldon” ends in May? That’s the hope, says Steve Holland. The exec producer “would love to have her back,” but pointed out there are no firm plans in place yet. Holland revealed that McEntire has “expressed interest, but she’s very busy” with another sitcom pilot she’s shooting, in addition to her coaching role on “The Voice”, so he’s not sure “if it’s going to work out.”
-TVLine
★ One of TV’s most iconic properties is up for sale. A Remax listing for the house used for exterior shots on “Roseanne” (and spinoff “The Conners”) shows the sellers are asking $225,000 for the property, on Runnymeade Ave. in Evansville, IN (NOT Lanford IL, as in the show!). The 2,400 square-foot home has 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a laundry room on the main level, plus an unfinished basement.
-TVLine
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (ABC/Global): Nathalie Emmanuel, Warren Zeiders
• “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Kelly Clarkson, Peyton Manning, Mike Tirico, Carrie Coon, Katherine Blanford
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Diane Lane, Patton Oswalt
• “After Midnight” (CBS/Global): Flula Borg, Chris Grace, Pink Foxx
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Ewan McGregor, Sara Bareilles, James Acaster
• “Watch What Happens Live” (Bravo): John Oliver, Ariana Madix
• “The Daily Show” (COM): TBA
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Tamron Hall, Patton Oswalt
• “The Talk” (CBS): Douglas Emhoff, David Rose
• “Live With Kelly and Mark” (ABC/CTV): Carrie Coon, Beau Bridges
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Awkwafina, Chelsea Clinton, Victoria Garrick Browne, Ernie Hudson, Drake Milligan
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): John Cena, Ashley Graham
• “Jennifer Hudson Show” (Check local listings): Jo Jo Siwa, Allison Holker, and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
• “FBI” (CBS): When a federal judge is gunned down in broad daylight, the team is sent looking for a suspect with ties to a local Islamic center; Maggie reunites with a former colleague. Followed by new episodes of “FBI: International” and “FBI: Most Wanted”.
• “Vanderpump Rules” (Bravo): The group begins to mend their friendships; Lala expresses her desire to become a mother again.
• “Password” (NBC): Season 2 premiere. Jimmy Fallon and celeb guest Joe Manganiello pair up with contestants as players try to win up to $25,000.
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Ariana Grande – Her just-released album “Eternal Sunshine” is already setting records. Spotify has announced it is the most-streamed album in a single day so far this year. By the way, she has also asked fans on Instagram not to send “hateful messages to people in my life based on your interpretation of this album.” Hmmm…
• Mark Ronson –says the song ‘I’m Just Ken’ was almost dropped from “Barbie”. The producer, who co-wrote the tune, said he “panicked” when he saw a rough cut of the film and realized Ryan Gosling’s performance “wasn’t working”. Studio execs even asked director Greta Gerwig how much she really needed it. Gerwig’s response: “With every inch of my body”.
• AC/DC – The upcoming biopic about late singer Bon Scott has landed its star. Lee Tiger Halley will play the lead in the film, tentatively titled “The Kid From Harvest Road”. Halley starred in the Netflix series “Boy Swallows World”, as well as several TV series in his native Australia. Production starts next year.
• Madonna – The city of Rio de Janeiro has announced she’ll be performing a huge, free show there. She’ll close out her “Celebration” world tour with a concert on Copacabana Beach on May 4, with about 2 million people in attendance.
• Lenny Kravitz — will be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame today. Speakers on hand for the event will include his daughter, actress Zoë Kravitz, and Denzel Washington.
• Carrie Underwood – turned 41 on Sunday, and she received some birthday surprises during her Saturday night Vegas residency show. With the help of her stage crew, some fans were able to pull off a mini-party onstage, surprising Underwood with a bouquet of flowers — and wheeling out an enormous birthday cake. One fan even got onstage and led the crowd in a rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/2s453br5
• Dillon Carmichael – wants your grandfather to appear in his new music video. His single ‘I’d Call Grandpa’ drops April 5, and he’s asking fans to “Text photos of your grandpa, whether it’s a throwback, family photo, or selfie for a chance to be featured” in the video. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/2tj4puwe
• Elle King – has issued her first comment on her drunken Dolly Parton tribute in January. She posted: “To everyone sending me love because I’m human and already talked to Dolly, I love you. To everyone who told me to [kill] myself, I love you too.” In the caption, she added “Oh no was my human showing,” along with the hashtag “#WWDD”, which presumably means “What Would Dolly Do.” LINK: https://tinyurl.com/5n7seeve
SHOOTING THE BULL
BULL SHEETING A BULL SHEETER:
It turns out that, despite the old saying, you actually can BS a “BSer”! In spite of the fact that people who often exaggerate or downright lie often think they can tell when someone else is doing the same thing, a new Canadian study has found that these BSers are actually MORE likely to be fooled by misleading information. A team from the University of Waterloo worked with over 800 volunteers in a series of trials examining their lying skills. They determined that the more frequently a person tends to be untruthful, “the more likely they are to be duped by various types of misleading information regardless of their cognitive ability.”
(This tells you all you need to know about the people who re-post some of what’s been going around online lately…)
(…and if you think I’m lying, I’m not sure what that says about you!)
-StudyFinds
THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT PET:
Anyone who is into cycling, hiking or long-distance running would be familiar with the fitness app Strava. It is used track outdoor activities using GPS, and also incorporates social networking features. Well, soon, many dog owners will be familiar with it as well. That’s right: Strava for dogs is here. Owners can now show off their canine companion’s athletic feats on the same platform they do their own accomplishments. The fitness platform has partnered with the smart dog collar brand “Fi”. Fi collars have built-in satellite positioning systems, just like in a sport watch. They’re designed to help find lost pets, and monitor a few basic health metrics. And now, the same tech can be used to log dog exercise. Users are able to keep track of distance traveled and number of steps taken, and track Fido’s progress towards goals, such as activity streaks and daily step totals. The app will also upload a route of your dog’s walk or game of fetch onto a map that you can see. 76% of Strava users with pets say their dogs motivate them to get outside when they otherwise wouldn’t.
(Same here. It’s called “peeing in the rain”!)
(I can’t wait to have a look at my dog’s heart rate when my wife is cooking her famous rotisserie chicken!)
-Outside
DINING DON’TS:
It turns out there are worse things you can do while dining out than double-dipping. A survey has found that the absolute worst thing you can do while at a restaurant if you’re looking to impress someone — is to be rude to the wait staff. When asked about the biggest dining turn-offs, 60% of adults said they can’t stand people who are rude to restaurant workers. Next on the list is when someone spits something back onto their plate (49%), so that gives you an idea of how reprehensible it is to be rude to waiters. Other “icks” include licking fingers when eating, eating with your mouth open, and – yes – double dipping. Want more: Here they come: playing with food, criticizing someone’s cooking, and putting ketchup on every meal. The OnePoll survey also found that just 28% of people would speak out about a “dining don’t” while on a first date.
(That’s fine. As long as they don’t expect me to share the ketchup!)
(Also worse than double-dipping: Licking, then double-dipping your fingers!)
-StudyFinds
ORIGIN STORIES:
X user @noahpasaran recently posted that he was shocked to discover that the term “Debbie Downer” originated from the 2004 “Saturday Night Live” sketch of the same name, rather than the sketch being named after an existing phrase, like most people probably assumed. The ‘Debbie Downer’ character (played by Rachel Dratch) is the ultimate party pooper who is even able to make a trip to Disney World a miserable experience. That led to a thread where X users shared other popular phrases that people thought existed way before they did, and also similarly, had unexpected origins. Here are some examples, which we believe to be correct…
• “Bucket list”: @JakeAnbinder wrote that the term (meaning a list of things you’d like to do before you die) came from the movie “The Bucket List” starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, and was coined by screenwriter Justin Zackham in 2007.
• “Wardrobe Malfunction”: @zedonarrival pointed out that this one originated when Justin Timberlake used the term in 2004 during his public statement about the Janet Jackson “nipplegate” incident during the Super Bowl halftime show.
• “Mullet”: @ecto_fun claimed that the name for the hairstyle originated in 1994, thanks to the Beastie Boys’ song ‘Mullet Head’. While the hairstyle certainly existed before then, Oxford English Dictionary credits the Beasties for the name.
• “Saying the quiet part out loud”: @GarlicCorgi pointed out that the phrase “saying the quiet part out loud” comes from “The Simpsons”. In a 1995 episode, ‘Krusty the Clown’ says: “Let’s just say it moved me…to a bigger house! Oops! I said the loud part quiet and the quiet part loud!” The phrase gained popularity on Twitter, and transformed into “the quiet part out loud” in the 2010s.
BONUS: • “Shipping”: The fandom term, which is used when fans want 2 people or characters to enter into a relationship, exists thanks to “X-Files” fans really, really wanting ‘Mulder’ and ‘Scully’ to get together in 1994. That’s according to an article in For The Win. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/w5d3ks9m
-BuzzFeed
DID YOU KNOW?
A new study has found that “night owls” are more likely to perform poorly at work. Researchers in Finland say that those who stay up late regularly also have a higher risk of retiring from their job early due to disability than their “early bird” co-workers. The team from the University of Oulu say that while early risers tend to function best early in the morning, night owls are sharper during the evening and generally stay up later. The problem is that owls usually don’t go to bed early enough to get the recommended amount of rest on work nights. (In my defense, I always try to catch up on my sleep as soon as I arrive at the office…)
-StudyFinds
BS CHRONOMETER 03.12.24
TODAY’S BS REASON TO PARTY . . .
• “World Day Against Cyber Censorship”, initiated by Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International in 2008. The idea is to rally everyone in support of an internet that is unrestricted and accessible to all, and to try to keep governments from controlling it.
• “Working Moms Day”. Today, working moms celebrate themselves by sharing their stories of resilience, and celebrate other working moms by sharing their appreciation for them. (It wouldn’t hurt if the rest of us did the same!)
• “Organize Your Home Office Day”. Studies once showed that an inordinate number of those who work at home still dress in office attire every day in order to ‘get into work mode’. Is that still the case? (At least from the waist-up?)
• “Alfred Hitchcock Day”. His prolific film-making career spanned half a century – from 1921 to his last film, “Family Plot”, in 1976. His unique cinematic style in the genres of psychological thrillers and suspense earned him the title ‘Master of Suspense’.
• “Girl Scout Day”, celebrating the creation of the first Girl Scout group (originally ‘Girl Guides’) on March 12, 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low in Savannah GA, who gathered together a troop of 18 girls and taught them how to milk a cow, tie up a burglar, and the complicated art of boiling water. (So, grab a cookie [or 12] and to celebrate!)
• “Plant a Flower Day”, a day to get a little dirt under your fingernails. Take a few minutes and plant a petunia today (or at least blow the dust off the fake ones).
• “Baked Scallops Day”, there are 2 fleshy parts of the scallop that are usually sold at the market for human consumption. The adductor muscle is the white medallion of meat which is rich and sweet. This is the piece that is the “scallop” we see on a menu.
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Wed] Donald Duck Day
[Wed] Good Samaritan Day
[Thurs] Crowdfunding Day
[Fri] Ides of March
This Week is…Bubble Gum Week
This Month is…Umbrella Month
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1946 [78] Liza Minnelli, Hollywood CA, singer/stage & movie actress (Oscar-“Cabaret”)/youngest Tony Award winner (19)/daughter of Judy Garland
1948 [76] James Taylor, Boston MA, pop-folk singer (‘Fire & Rain’, ‘You’ve Got a Friend’)
1956 [68] Steve Harris, London England, heavy metal bassist-songwriter (Iron Maiden-‘Run to the Hills’, ‘The Trooper’)
1960 [64] Jason Beghe, NYC, TV actor (‘Sergeant Hank Voight’ on “Chicago PD” since 2014)/movie actor (“G.I. Jane”)
1962 [62] Darryl Strawberry, Los Angeles CA, retired MLB right fielder (Mets, Dodgers, Yankees) 8-time All-Star, 4-time World Series champ
1968 [56] Aaron Eckhart, Cupertino CA, movie actor (“The Rum Diary”, ‘Two-Face’ in “The Dark Knight”) COMING UP… “Classified”
1984 [40] Jaimie Alexander, Greenville SC, movie actress (‘Sif’ in “Thor” films)/TV actress (“Blindspot” 2015-20, “Kyle XY” 2007-09)
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2012 [12] The movie “Hunger Games,” starring Jennifer Lawrence, premieres in Los Angeles
2019 [05] Dozens of people are charged in the US college admission scandal, including Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1988 [36] Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ hits #1 in the US. The video, which shows Astley singing his way around London, does well, but really takes off 2 decades later with the ‘Rickrolling’ trend
2007 [17] Van Halen is inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (Eddie Van Halen misses the ceremony due to a stint in rehab). Also inducted: Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Patti Smith, R.E.M. and The Ronettes
TODAY’S FIRSTS . . .
1894 [130] Coca-Cola is sold in bottles for the first time (Vicksburg, Mississippi)
1948 [76] (***Caution***) The first chapter of Hell’s Angels Motorcycle Club forms, founded by a breakaway group of the “Pissed Off Bastards” (no BS!) in San Bernardino, California
TODAY’S RECORD . . .
2009 [15] Financier Bernard Madoff pleads guilty in NYC to scamming $18 billion, the largest in Wall Street history
BULL’S BITS
BS WHACK FACTS:
✓ The fedora hat was originally made for women.
✓ Not only does hot water make a different sound than cold water when poured, 96% of people can correctly guess which it is, based on sound alone.
✓ A ‘second’ is called a second because it is the second division of the hour by 60, the first division being a minute.
✓ In Victorian times, leeches were used to predict the weather.
✓ Monkeys sometimes floss their teeth with things like bird feathers and blades of grass.
✓ A Virginia park ranger was hit by lightning 7 times – and lived!
-BuzzFeed, Facts
Best of BS . . .
(March is “Caffeine Awareness Month”. With that in mind, here are…)
BS SIGNS YOU’RE DRINKING WAY TOO MUCH COFFEE:
• Your eyes stay open when you sneeze.
• You jam a fork into the waiter’s hand when he tries to refill your regular coffee with decaf.
• When a Starbucks commercial comes on, you actually lick the TV screen.
• You grind your own coffee beans … in your mouth.
• Neighbors call 9-1-1 to complain about the noise of your chattering teeth.
• You’re passing everybody on the freeway when suddenly you realize – you’re not in a car.
• You finish your 60-minute presentation before everyone is seated.
• Your doc needs a calculator to take your pulse.
• You answer the door before people knock.
-First published in BS 1999
BS SIGNS YOU PICKED THE WRONG MOVER:
• They loaded up your entire house-full of furniture 7 weeks ago and never asked for your new address.
• They don’t use peanuts to pack your fine crystal, they use peanut butter.
• They keep flicking ashes in Grandma’s urn.
• Nothing gets broken during the loading and unloading, but you see more ‘crack’ than a narc.
• Before moving the furniture, they remove all the drawers … their drawers.
• Your collection of “private home videos” shows up several weeks after the move … online.
• An hour after the truck pulls away, all your stuff is listed on Marketplace.
• The box marked ‘knickknacks’ seems to be barking.
-First published in BS 2011
BS WEB GOODIE:
Absolute “angels” — or so they would have you believe: https://tinyurl.com/2usbafad
BS RANDOM JOKE:
Fun Fact: If Celine Dion sang just the vowels in her name, it would be the lyrics to ‘Old MacDonald Had a Farm’.
BS PHONE STARTER:
If you were in charge of renaming things to make object’s names more accurate, what would you come up with? (Some suggestions: Bread: Raw toast. Donut: Sugar bagel. Tissue: Sneeze paper. Gloves: Finger pants. Feather: Bird leaf. Ice cube: Water with corners….)
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: According to a report, “Check the Answering Machine” is the #2 phrase that went extinct thanks to modern technology. What is #1?
Answer: “Be Kind Rewind!”
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Happiness held is the seed; happiness shared is the flower.
