Another Sheetload of Bull!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ NBC News reported Saturday that Bobbi Kristina Brown, daughter of late singer Whitney Houston, has been transferred from hospital to a medical rehab facility. The 22-year-old has been in Atlanta’s Emory University Hospital for 2 months after being found unresponsive in her bathtub on January 31st. Her medical condition, however, is reportedly the same and she remains on life support. Meantime, a 10-carat diamond ring that her mother gave her is said to be missing. It’s the same $250,000 ring that Bobbi famously shared on Instagram as her ‘engagement ring’ in 2012.
– “USA Today” / RadarOnline.com
★ Seems we’re not really “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” any more as the E! reality show continues to hit new ratings lows. While Kim Kardashian frets about getting pregnant with another one of Kanye West’s babies, the show’s core audience, who used to devour anything she and her reality show family did, is beginning to tune out. According to “TV By the Numbers”, last week’s season premiere scored a paltry 2.5 million viewers, putting it behind Bravo’s “Real Housewives of Atlanta”. Has Kardashian fatigue set in for good?
– Zap2it.com
★ Actor Jamie Foxx has brushed off fresh rumors suggesting he is dating Tom Cruise’s ex-wife Katie Holmes, revealing they are actually working together on a new animated project. Gossip bloggers and tabloid reporters have been floating claims of a romance between the two for 3 years now. Foxx quote: “We’re just friends. As a matter of fact, Anthony Zuiker, creator of ‘CSI’, offered us an animation project. We’re working on that.” Foxx stopped short of offering up any further details about the joint project but says he’s not annoyed by the romance reports, calling them “part of the business”.
– TMZ.com
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Jeff Tweedy (“Sukierae”).
• “Dancing With the Stars” (ABC/CTV2) – The couples perform a variety of dances, including the salsa, the rumba, and the Argentine tango.
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated/CTV2) – P!nk (You+Me-“Rose Ave”); Selena Gomez (“For You”).
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Zac Brown Band (“Jekyll + Hyde”, out April 28th).
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Halsey (“Ghost”).
• “Late Late Show With James Corden” (CBS/Omni 1) – Series debut, hosted by the Brit actor, comedian, singer, writer, producer, and TV personality. Guests include Tom Hanks, Mila Kunis.
• “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV) – Charles Hamilton f/Rita Ora-“New York Raining”).
• “Late Show With David Letterman” (CBS/Omni1) – Tove Lo (“Queen Of the Clouds”).
• “Queen Latifah” (syndicated) – Andre 3000 (OutKast). Rerun.
• “The Talk” (CBS) – Guest host Gavin DeGraw (“Make a Move”).
• “Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV2) – Brandon Flowers (“Desired Effect”, out June 2nd).
• “The Voice” (NBC/CTV2) – The strongest vocalists choose a song to perform as they compete head-to-head.
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Celine Dion – Her Las Vegas show will go on. After taking a break to care for her cancer-stricken husband Rene Angelil, she’ll be returning to the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in late August to resume her residency. Since 2003, her box office gross has totaled over $533 million.
• Chris Brown – On Friday a Superior Court judge ended his probation and closed the assault case stemming from his brutal attack on his then-girlfriend Rihanna 6 years ago. The 25-year-old has been under supervision by court and probation officials since mid-2009.
• Fatboy Slim – Heather Mills (ex-Mrs Paul McCarntey) sold her failed vegan café to the DJ/producer (real name Norman Cook) some time back. It’s still going strong … but now serves meat.
• Kylie Minogue – The Brit pop princess has decided to part company with Jay Z’s Roc Nation management company after 2 years following a series of professional disappointments. Her last album, 2014’s “Kiss Me Once”, under-performed on the charts.
• Lil Wayne – He’s touting an explosive tell-all book to publishers in which he divulges details of an early feud with Drake over a love interest. The book reportedly also lifts the lid on the rapper’s rise to fame and his 2010 incarceration on gun possession charges.
• Michael Bublé – He hasn’t made quite the splash he’d hoped to in Dubai. He performed a couple of gigs there recently which were so sparsely attended that the organizers took to shunting people around the quarter-full cricket stadium to try to close up the huge gaps.
• One Direction – You might have heard Zayn Malik has quit their current world tour and flown home to ‘recuperate’, claiming there’s a lot of stress in his life right now. That’s set off a Twitter storm, many fans saying the show should not go on without him. Their next gig is Wednesday in Jakarta, Indonesia.
• Pharrell Williams – He tells “Access Hollywood” he thinks the jury made an emotional decision over his hit “Blurred Lines” (with Robin Thicke), misunderstanding copyright infringement. The verdict has awarded the Marvin Gaye estate $7.3 million for using elements of Gaye’s 1977 hit “Got to Give It Up”. Williams’ lawyer has said they’ll appeal.
• Talking Heads – Tonight is ‘The Music of David Byrne & Talking Heads Benefit for Music Education Programs Serving Underprivileged Youth’ at NYC’s Carnegie Hall. Among those performing: Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Cee Lo Green, OAR, Perry Farrell, The Roots, and Sharon Jones (Dap Kings) among others. It’s the 11th annual tribute concert benefit at the venue.
• Zac Brown Band – They’re set to become the first artist ever to perform a 3-night stand at Boston’s iconic ball yard Fenway Park. The shows will run August 7-to-9. ZBB’s North American stadium tour kicks off in May.
SHOULD YOU PAY $3,000 FOR A MATTRESS?
The new latex mattresses have their selling points, but is a rubber mattress really worth the insanely high price tag? Seems the investment may actually be worth it. For one thing, researchers in Italy have discovered that people who snooze on latex log more hours of shut-eye than those who conk out on traditional coil-spring mattresses. Experts at the Sleep Medicine Center in Charlottesville VA say latex mattresses may offer more comfort because consumers can mix and match softer and firmer layers. The mattresses are also built to last. Theoretically at least, they should never wear out. Finally, rubber isn’t a very attractive environment for bacteria and dust mites, which means you’re bound to breathe easier at night … unless, of course, you’re allergic to latex. (But doesn’t rubber get overly warm?)
– Sourced from “Men’s Health”
SCIENTISTS SAY:
A BS compendium of recent ‘discoveries’ …
• Scientists say … if you were breastfed, you’ll end up making more. Researchers have been keeping tabs on a group of Brazilian children since 1982, and recently checked in with 3,500 of them. The results: Those who were breastfed had higher IQs and were earning more money. And the longer, the better – babies who were breastfed for more than a year make a good chunk more a month than babies breastfed for less than a month.
• Scientists say … porn might not ruin your sex life after all. There’s been a lot of talk about porn desensitizing guys to sexual stimuli and causing erectile dysfunction. But researchers put this link to the test and found there isn’t much of one. So what does cause erectile dysfunction? Anxiety, depression, and stress can be major players.
• Scientists say … a newly-found ring links Vikings to ancient Islam. Not only did the Vikings land in North America long before 1492, they may have visited the Islamic world as well. A ring found in a 9th-century Viking woman’s grave on the Swedish island of Birka is inscribed in an old Arabic script that seems to read either ‘to Allah’ or ‘for Allah’.
• Scientists say … conservatives are less cheery than liberals. That’s according to a new series of studies that find liberals exhibit more happiness through language, habits, and facial expressions. They even found a way to analyze tweets for insight. Previous findings saying that conservatives are happier have been based on self-reports of well-being.
– Condensed from USAToday.com
ENTER GOD MODE:
Netflix looks pretty much the same whether you’re using it on a phone, tablet, or on the web. And in the world of design, that sounds like a great idea. But in practice, desktop users have drawn the short straw. They need to sit there with their mouse hovering over an arrow to scroll through lists of movies. It’s frustrating and time-consuming. Thankfully, developer Renan Cakirerk has fixed this first world problem with what he calls ‘God Mode’. It’s a bookmarklet for your browser that blows up all those menus into one simple, scrollable list. Netflix will no longer look so nice and pretty, but it actually ends up being a whole lot more usable. The handy tool will undoubtedly be disabled by Netflix at some point, but for now it’s a must-have. (How many people watch Netflix on desktop? Tough to take to bed with you.)
NET: http://bit2pixel.com/netflix-god-mode/
– TheVerge.com
ARE SUPERFOODS ACTUALLY SUPER?
Consuming too many so-called ‘superfoods’ may actually do more harm than good. Eating too many grains such as quinoa (‘keen-wah’), regardless of how healthy they are, can cause an overload of potentially gut-irritating compounds. Chia seeds, another celebrity diet favorite, can also cause gut problems as can the trendy diet fad goji berries, which increase the risk of a digestive syndrome condition called ‘leaky gut’. Besides, you’d need to drink 13 servings of goji berry juice to get as many antioxidants as 1 red apple. So what should we be eating? Experts at last year’s Institute for Functional Medicine conference voted for the following foods: almonds, avocado, blueberries, broccoli, coconut oil, grass-fed buffalo/beef, green tea, olive oil, pomegranate, seaweed, spinach, wild Alaskan salmon. (Next week a new study will say something else.)
– @MailOnline
BS AMAZING FACT:
The ad executive behind the Nike slogan “Just do it” got the idea from the final words of condemned murderer Gary Gilmore. He was executed by firing squad in Draper, Utah in 1977.
– “Daily Mail”
BS CHRONOMETER 03.23.15
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1968 [47] Damon Albarn, London UK, alt-rock singer-songwriter-producer (“Everyday Robots”, Gorillaz-“Feel Good Inc”, Blur-“Girls & Boys”)
1974 [41] Randall Park, LA CA, TV actor (‘Louis Huang’ on “Fresh Off the Boat” 2015, ‘Danny Chung’ on “Veep” since 2012)/movie actor (‘Kim Jong-Un’ in “The Interview”)
1976 [39] Keri Russell, Fountain Valley CA, movie actress (“Dawn Of the Planet Of the Apes”, “Mission: Impossible III”)/TV actress (“Felicity” 1998-2002)
1976 [39] Michelle Monaghan, Winthrop IA, movie actress (“Gone Baby Gone”, “Mission: Impossible III”)/TV actress (‘Maggie Hart’ on “True Detective” 2014)
1978 [37] Perez Hilton (Mario Lavandeira Jr), Miami FL, pop culture blogger (PerezHilton.com)/media personality (“Radio Perez”)
TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Chip & Dip Day”. While North Americans might pick ‘Sour Cream & Onion’ or ‘Salt & Vinegar’ chips, the top flavors for ‘crisps’ in the UK include ‘Roast Beef & Mustard’ and ‘Smoked Ham & Pickle’. The Swiss like ‘Paprika’, while Thais choose ‘Prawn’, and in Egypt ‘Kebab’ is popular. The best dip? ‘Hot Bean with Jalapenos’ … or is it?
NET: http://www.punchbowl.com/holidays/national-chip-and-dip-day
• “Puppy Day”, the idea being to save 10,000 homeless puppies in a single day by encouraging adoptions at dog pounds and rescue centers.
NET: http://nationalpuppyday.com
• “World Meteorological Day”, an annual UN observance to promote understanding of how weather, climate, and water affects us all. For one thing, it seems to be our favorite topic of conversation. What overused weather clichés should be dumped? “Mild, isn’t it?”
NET: http://www.wmo.int/worldmetday
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
1990 [25] “Pretty Woman” starring Julia Roberts & Richard Gere, opens in movie theaters
1998 [17] “Titanic” wins a record-tying 11 Oscars at the 70th annual “Academy Awards” (“Ben Hur” and “Lord Of the Rings, The Return Of the King” have also won 11)
2011 [04] Screen legend Elizabeth Taylor (“Butterfield 8”, “Cleopatra”) dies in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure at age 79
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
1985 [30] Singer Billy Joel marries uptown model Christie Brinkley (marriage lasts 10 years)
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Tues] Chocolate Covered Raisins Day
[Tues] World Tuberculosis Day
[Wed] International Day of Remembrance Of the Victims of Slavery
[Wed] Manatee Appreciation Day
[Wed] Pecan Day
[Wed] Tolkien Reading Day
[Thurs] “The Breakfast Club” re-opens in movie theaters
THIS WEEK IS . . .
Cleaning Week / LGBT Health Awareness Week / Meat-Free Week / Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Week / Root Canal Awareness Week / Tsunami Awareness Week / Week of Solidarity with People Struggling Against Racism & Discrimination / Youth Violence Prevention Week
BULL’S BITS
BEST OF BS:
Highlight bits culled from 21 years of “Bull Sheet” back issues …
BS THINGS FOUND DURING SPRING CLEANING:
What have you dug up around the house that you’d forgotten you had? Perhaps …
• A box of useful 5-and-a-quarter-inch floppy discs.
• Vintage hairballs, courtesy of ‘Puff’.
• That copy of “Purple Rain” you were sure your girlfriend stole when she left … in ’92.
• A valuable collection of fridge mold … 10 years in the fermenting.
• Your stockpile of microwave popcorn from Y2K.
• A complete set of ‘Power Rangers POGs’ worth over $300 … 20 years ago.
• The OTHER pink sock you thought the dryer ate.
• Or maybe just … your hatred of Spring Cleaning.
– First published in “BS” 2004.
TACKY BS THINGS YOU SHOULDN’T SAY AT A FUNERAL:
• “I guess this means I’m out the 20 bucks he owes me.”
• “I wouldn’t be caught dead in that outfit!”
• “When did he die? Really? Hey Todd, you won the pool!”
• “Don’t look now Jason, but you and the deceased have the exact same suit on.”
• “He looks natural and all but those shoes do NOT go with that dress.”
• “Whew, who died in here?”
– First published in “BS” 2012.
NET: http://www.FreeRadioPrep.com
BS PHONE STARTER:
☎ What one movie have you seen more than any other?
BS WEB GOODIE:
Now this is cool! Type in a sentence (ie: your station slogan); hear it spoken out by a bunch of film clips.
NET: https://www.crumbles.co
BS RANDOM JOKE:
I used to work in a blanket factory, but it folded.
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: Women tend to do THIS in the evening, while men are more likely to do it during the day.
Answer: Worry about money.
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much room.
BS FRESH MEAT:
Lisa Smith @ Classic Rock 93 [KZLE] Jonesboro AR; Steveo Joslin @ TCM, Today’s Country Music [WTCM] Traverse City MI; Desmond Brown @ Yard Link Radio, Orlando FL; Ric Rush @ 1035 Today’s Country [WEZL] Charleston SC; and Bayu @ Hard Rock FM, Jakarta, Indonesia.