Friday, November 17, 2006 Edition: #3411
Avoid Sheet Fits – Don’t Forget to Renew Your Subscription!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
TODAY Sony’s ‘PlayStation 3′ game console has its North American release (an ‘extremely limited supply’ that was likely mostly bought up in pre-orders), amid growing criticism that the system can’t play some of the older previously released games (only a cynic would say that was purposefully done so you’d also have to buy new games on top of the $499-$599 MSRP) . . . Just to heat up the holiday season game-marketing competition, Nintendo’s ’Wii’ console [pronounced ‘WE’] is released on SUNDAY . . . Reports say Whitney Houston’s New Jersey mansion is set to hit the auction block JANUARY 4th if she doesn’t settle up on taxes and mortgage payments that are $1 million behind . . . New stats show “Queen’s Greatest Hits” is the UK’s best-selling album of all-time, with more than 5.4 million copies sold since its 1981 release . . . Elvis Presley Enterprises has authorized the 1st official “Elvis Tribute Artist Competition”, with the top impersonator to be announced on the 30th anniversary of “The King’s” death, AUGUST 16, 2007 . . . The release date for Clint Eastwood’s “Letters From Iwo Jima”, the companion movie to his recent “Flags of Our Fathers”, has been moved ahead from FEBRUARY 2007 to DECEMBER 20th, in order for it to qualify for Oscar consideration . . . And 24-year-old “Blade: Trinity” actress Jessica Biel is reportedly dating 32-year-old NY Yankee star Derek Jeter (no word if it’s serious or just a ‘shortstop’).
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Alison Krauss – TOMORROW she rides the ‘Santa Train’ some 110 miles through Appalachia (parts of Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky), helping to distribute 15 tons of toys & gifts for the Christmas season to thousands of disadvantaged along the way.
• Bjork – TONIGHT she & her old band Sugarcubes reunite for a one-off concert in their native Iceland, with profits from the show going toward the promotion of Icelandic music.
• The Game – TONIGHT he’s on “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC).
• Ice-T – TONIGHT he’s a guest on “Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson” (CBS).
• Ludacris – TOMORROW he’s the host and musical guest on “Saturday Night Live” (NBC).
• *NSYNC – TONIGHT former singer JC Chasez [‘SHAH-zay’] does a guest appearance on “Ghost Whisperer” (CBS), playing a musician who once was in a band with a rock star that’s haunted by his father.
• Reba McEntire – SATURDAY CMT airs a 2-hour tribute concert honoring her music that was taped at Hollywood’s Kodak Theater. Performers include Faith Hill, Trisha Yearwood, Kelly Clarkson, Martina McBride, Brooks & Dunn, LeAnn Rimes and Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles.
• Ricky Martin – Remember him? TONIGHT he’s on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC).
• Sam Roberts Band – TONIGHT they perform at the Winnipeg Convention Centre as part of the “2006 Grey Cup Festival”.
• Shakira – A 15-foot, 6-ton iron statue of her has been unveiled in Barranquilla, Colombia where she’s as much a hero for her charity as her music.
• Tom Cochrane & Red Ryder – SATURDAY they perform at Winnipeg’s MTS Centre as part of the “Grey Cup Festival”.
TODAY’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
• “Casino Royale” ( PG-13 Action Adventure ): In this 21st Bond adventure, MI6 dispatches 007 (Daniel Craig) to Madagascar to track a terrorist. That leads him to a Montenegro casino where he competes in a marathon game against ‘Le Chiffre’ (Mads Mikkelsen), a banker to international terrorist organizations. Features the longest running-time for a Bond movie at 144 minutes. The theme song, “You Know My Name”, is co-written & performed by Audioslave’s Chris Cornell. New Bond actor Craig says he’s already tired of being offered a Martini every time he walks into a bar. Word has it he became nervous over the movie’s love scenes so he used a stand-in (or would that be ‘lie-in’?). Music and trailer here …
NET: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/casinoroyale/site/
• “Fast Food Nation” ( R-Rated Drama ): A bigscreen take on Eric Schlosser’s best-seller from director Richard Linklater (“The School of Rock“). Greg Kinnear plays a marketing executive for a fast food giant who travels to the Colorado town that’s home to feedlots and packing plant that fuel his business. His goal is to quietly investigate whether cow manure has found its way into his product. The ensemble cast includes Bruce Willis, Wilmer Valderrama, and singer Avril Lavigne in a small role. Cool SFX and clips here …
NET: http://www.foxsearchlight.com/fastfoodnation/
• “Happy Feet” ( PG Animated Family Adventure ): A tap-dancing penguin is born into a society of Emperor Penguins who are very much into singing, but not so much into dancing. The film is described as “Madagascar” meets “March of the Penguins” meets boy band choreography. Produced in Australia. The all-star voice cast includes Elijah Wood, Nicole Kidman, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman, Robin Williams (in 3 different roles), and late “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin. Tunes and clips here …
NET: http://www2.warnerbros.com/happyfeet/
• “Let’s Go to Prison” ( R-Rated Comedy ): A career criminal (Dax Shepard) and a rich snob (Will Arnett) are brought together in a cell in a maximum-security jail. Shot on location at Illinois’ infamous Joliet Prison. The movie’s logo is on a cake of soap, which gives you some indication of the level of humor it stoops to. Trailer here …
NET: http://www.letsgotoprison.com/
• Also onscreen THIS WEEKEND only: The “After Dark Horrorfest”, a limited engagement showing in 35 cities of ‘8 Films to Die For’ including “Hood of Horror”, a hip-hop horror anthology of 3 tales of terror told by the ‘Hound of Hell’ (Snoop Dogg).
NET: http://www.horrorfestonline.com/
TOMKAT WEDDING NOTES:
SATURDAY Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes are set to wed (have you heard?). A few facts …
• The location has been narrowed down to the 16th-century castle Castello Odescalchi [‘o-des-KAL-ki’], on a hilltop north of Rome that overlooks Lake Bracciano.
• Holmes will wear a Giorgio Armani gown.
• The star-studded guest list, some of which were personally flown in by John Travolta, includes Kirstie Alley; David & Victoria Beckham; Jennifer Lopez & Marc Antony; Brooke Shields; Jim Carrey; and Andrea Bocelli.
• Cruise reportedly paid $8,000 for embroidered towels bearing his & Katie’s initials as gifts for guests.
• The mayor of Bracciano has imposed a $1,500 ‘paparazzi tax’ on photogs and camera crews wishing to shoot from windows and balconies of the town’s city hall, which overlook the castle.
• The ceremony will be performed by a Scientology minister who’ll likely use the marriage vows found in the book, “The Background Ministry, Ceremonies & Sermons of the Scientology Religion”. In part they go: “And do you (bride’s name) take/His fortune/At its prime and ebb/And seek/With him best fortune/For us all?/Do you?” “Now, (groom’s name),/girls need clothes/And food and/Tender happiness and frills/A pan, a comb,/perhaps a cat/All caprice if you will/But still/They need them./Do you then/Provide?/Do you?”
AIR-POD:
Apple Corp has announced that 6 airlines have agreed to provide connections for iPods that will allow users to watch their movies and other videos on seat-back screens during flights without draining their batteries. The airlines are United, Continental, Delta, Air France, Delta, Emirates, and KLM. Presumably the service, due to begin in mid-2007, will be free. (Another excuse to keep your ears plugged.)
– “Contact Music”
AND WE QUOTE:
“Brandon Flowers had made some comments about our band and a couple of other bands but he ended up apologizing for it, so he kind of started it and ended it before we even got a say.”
— Panic! at the Disco’s Spencer Smith about the brief feud between his band and The Killers, proving not just Hollywood starlets get all snitty.
THE BULL SHEET 11.17.06
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1938 [68] Gordon Lightfoot, Orillia ON, Canadian icon/pop/folk singer (“Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald”)/Canadian Music Hall of Fame (1986)/Canada’s Walk Of Fame (1998)/CCMA Hall Of Fame (2001)/Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (2003)/Companion of the Order of Canada (2003)
1942 [64] Martin Scorsese, Queens NY, movie director (“No Direction Home: Bob Dylan”, “GoodFellas”)
1944 [62] Danny DeVito, Asbury Park NJ, 5′-1″ movie actor (“Get Shorty”)/movie producer (“Erin Brockovich”)
1944 [62] Lorne Michaels (Lipowitz), Toronto ON, TV producer (“30 Rock”, “Saturday Night Live” since 1975, “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” since 1993, “The Kids in the Hall”)/movie producer (“Mean Girls”)/Canadian Walk of Fame (2003)
1963 [43] Dylan Walsh, LA CA, TV actor (‘Sean McNamara’ on “Nip/Tuck” since 2003)
1977 [29] Aaron Lines, Fort McMurray AB, country singer (“Seeing Things”, “Living Out Loud”)
SATURDAY –
Canadian author Margaret Atwood (“The Blind Assassin”) is 67; Rock guitarist Kirk Hammett (Metallica) is 44; Movie actor Owen Wilson (“Wedding Crashers”) is 38; Movie actress Chloe Sevigny (“Boys Don’t Cry”) is 32; Rapper Fabolous (“Into You”) is 27.
SUNDAY –
TV talk-show host Larry King (“Larry King Live”) is 73; Media/sports mogul Ted Turner is 68; Fashion designer Calvin Klein (CK jeans) is 64; Rock drummer Matt Sorum (Velvet Revolver) is 46; TV actress Allison Janney (“The West Wing”) is 46; Movie actress Meg Ryan (“When Harry Met Sally”) is 45; Movie actress Jodie Foster (“Flightplan”) is 44; Country singer Billy Currington (“Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right”) is 33.
TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Farm Joke Day”, a day to have a chuckle about the rural lifestyle. You can have a cow here …
NET: http://www.cljones.com/jfarm.html
NET: http://www.basicjokes.com/dtitles.php?cid=77
• “Homemade Bread Day”, when we’re all encouraged to bake a loaf from scratch. These days that means emptying an envelope into your automatic breadmaker and pushing the little red button. It’s a good day to get a bun in the oven!
• “Take A Hike Day”, which is either a day to enjoy the outdoors or to get out of someone’s face.
SATURDAY –
• “Elephant Round-Up” in Surin, the ‘Elephant Capital’ of Thailand through Sunday. Events include a mock battle with over 100 elephants & costumed warlords; and special elephant competitions in strength, skill & obedience. There’s also a party for 200 elephants featuring a 60-ton buffet.
NET: http://www.tatnews.org/events/events/2006/nov/3082.asp
• “Leonid Meteor Shower”, the annual sky show when you can see ‘shooting stars’ … if you stay up all night. THIS YEAR’s Leonids peak SATURDAY evening (or SUNDAY morning depending on your time zone) at 11:45 pm EST.
NET: http://stardate.org/nightsky/meteors/
• “Married to a Scorpio Support Day”, a day of remembrance to honor those who are married to Scorpios. Are they all that bad?
• “Mickey Mouse Day”, generally observed as his ‘birthday’ when he appeared in the cartoon short “Steamboat Willie” in 1928 (now making him a geezer mouse of 78!). It was the first cartoon with synchronized sound.
SUNDAY –
• “Cannabis Cup” in Amsterdam, Netherlands, where blowing a stick is legal. The 19th annual competition through next Thursday seeks the world’s top weed while participants attend seminars and ‘sample’ product.
NET: http://www.cannabiscup.com/ht/cancup/
• “Grey Cup”, the 94th Canadian football championship and national excuse for a blow-out party, being held this year at Canad Inns Stadium in Winnipeg. The theme of this year’s bash is ‘Magic on the Prairies’. 2006 “Canadian Idol” Eva Avila performs the anthem before kick-off. Nelly Furtado is the featured half-time entertainer. The ‘Post-Game Party’ features Harlequin.
NET: http://www.cflgreycup.ca/winnipeg/
• “Have a Bad Day Day”, for all the grouches who can’t stand being constantly told to
‘Have a Nice Day’.
• “World Toilet Day”, to encourage toilet hygiene. The Singapore-based World Toilet Organization promotes better design, ventilation and sanitation for the device that is still a luxury to 40% of the world’s population.
NET: http://tinyurl.com/stdke
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2000 [06] Actor Michael Douglas marries 24-years-younger actress Catherine Zeta-Jones in NYC
2002 [04] Michael Jackson briefly dangles his baby son Prince Michael II over a Berlin, Germany hotel balcony for fans waiting outside
2003 [03] Arnold Schwarzenegger is sworn in as the 38th Governor of California
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
1958 [48] 13-year-old Brenda Lee releases “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”, which goes on to become a holiday season classic
TODAY’S FIRST . . .
1940 [66] 1st NFL team to travel by airplane (Green Bay Packers)
COMING UP . . .
[Mon] Absurdity Day
[Mon] Name Your PC Day
[Mon] National Child Day in Canada
[Mon] Universal Children’s Day
[Tues] False Confessions Day
[Tues] World Hello Day
[Tues] American Music Awards (LA)
[Wed] Start Your Own Country Day
[Thurs] US Thanksgiving Day
This Week Is … Culinary Week
This Month Is … Healthy Skin Month
BULL’S BITS
ALL-TIME FAVORITE BOND VILLAINS:
A new poll picks the best bad guys in Bond films …
3. ‘Goldfinger’ (Gert Frobe) – “Goldfinger”.
2. ‘Oddjob’ (Harold Sakata) – “Goldfinger”.
1. ‘Jaws’ (Richard Kiel) – “The Spy Who Loved Me”, “Moonraker”.
– Fandango.com
BS BOND QUIZ:
• Daniel Craig is the 6th actor to play agent ‘007′ in the series. The others include Pierce Brosnan, Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, and the one everyone forgets …
a. George Burns
b. George Lazenby [CORRECT. The Aussie actor lost the job after 1 film, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, when he held out for more money.]
c. George Clooney
• Who played ‘Jimmy Bond’ in the 1967 version of “Casino Royale”, which was not an official Bond film but a secret-agent spoof film?
a. David Niven
b. Peter Sellers
c. Woody Allen [CORRECT]
• French actress Eva Green is ‘007’s latest co-star (‘Vesper Lynd’). Which of the following was NOT a Bond girl?
a. Barbara Bach
b. Marion Morrison [CORRECT. Marion Morrison was late actor John Wayne’s name at birth.]
c. Halle Berry
• What does the acronym ‘SPECTRE’, Bond’s arch-rival in several films, stand for?
a. Society to Promote Endless Chaos, Tyranny, Repression, Etc.
b. Special Executive for Counterintelligence, Terrorism, Revenge & Extortion. [CORRECT]
c. Somebody Please End Countries Trying to Rule Everything.
• For his first Bond film, “Dr No”, a then 32-year-old Sean Connery was reportedly paid how much?
a. $16,500 [CORRECT]
b. $165,000
c. $1,650,000
– Internet Movie DataBase / “The Sun”
TOP SWAPS:
The week’s most requested music files online …
5. Justin Timberlake – “SexyBack”
4. Hinder – “Lips Of An Angel”
3. Jibbs – “Chain Hang Low”
2. Akon – “Smack That”
1. Justin Timberlake – “My Love”
– Big Champagne online music measurement
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Today’s Question: One-third of women take THIS when they sense a break-up coming.
Answer to Give Out Next Show: A piece of their partner’s clothing as a memento.
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.