Tuesday, November 30, 2010        Edition: #4397
December Planning Calendar in Today’s Issue!

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
Limited-release film “The King’s Speech”, starring Colin Firth as Britain’s stuttering King George VI, has generated the largest per-screen gross of the year, racking up almost $350,000 in just 4 theaters, over $87,000 per screen (it looks like the Weinstein Co has a hit on their hands) . . . Critics are saying Sunday night’s preview performance of Broadway’s most expensive production ever, the $65-million “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark”, was a rip-snorting mess, littered with hi-tech gadgetry fails, bad music soundtracking, and an utterly baffling script (opening night is now set for January 11, 2011) . . . A rep for Brooke Mueller, ex-wife of Charlie Sheen, is shooting down reports saying she checked into rehab over Thanksgiving weekend, telling “Us Magazine” she’s ‘clean & sober’ and ‘really excited’ about her new reality TV show with Paris Hilton (well, if anything would make it appear you’re on drugs …) . . . Brit musician-organizer Bob Geldof (“Live Aid”) says he’s responsible for the worst song in history – “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, which he co-wrote in 1984, and can’t believe it still gets played ‘every f–-ing Christmas’ (join the club, dude) . . . The Cameron Diaz-Alex Rodriguez ‘total tan tour’ continues, the twosome most recently spotted soaking up sun in Mexico (a ‘friend’ says they break up and get back together ‘all the time’) . . . And 28-year-old actress Anne Hathaway tells an Aussie magazine that she deals with problems by putting on her ‘big-girl underwear’ and getting on with life (better check your drawers, girl – reaction to “Love & Other Drugs” has been extremely tepid).

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Chelsea Lately” (E!) – Flo Rida (new album “Only 1 Flo – Part 1” released today).
• “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” (NBC) – Natalie Morales & Al Roker host the 78th annual tree-lighting ceremony in NYC. Performers include Annie Lennox, Josh Groban, Mariah Carey, and Sheryl Crow. The mammoth Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was lit for the first time on national TV on the “Kate Smith Show” in 1951.
NET: http://www.rockefellercenter.com/events/attractions/103
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated/A Channel) – Flo Rida.
• “George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight” (CBC) – Cee Lo Green (“The Lady Killer”).
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Miguel (debut album “All I Want Is You” out today).
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Broken Bells (“Broken Bells”).
• “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/A Channel) – Kid Cudi (“Man On the Moon 2: The Legend of Mr Rager”).
• “Live With Regis & Kelly” (syndicated/CTV) – Cast members from Broadway’s “Jersey Boys”.
• “Lopez Tonight” (TBS) – Atomic Tom (“The Moment”).
• “Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC/A Channel) – Rod Stewart (“Fly Me To the Moon – The Great American Songbook Volume V”).
• “Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show” (CBS) – A host of ‘VS Angels’ (aka underwear models) are featured, including Alessandra Ambrosio, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Chanel Iman, Erin Heatherton, and Lily Aldridge. Adriana Lima has been chosen to model this year’s ‘Fantasy Bra’, valued at $3 million. Performers include Akon and Katy Perry.

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Black Eyed Peas – Today they release the new album, “The Beginning”, featuring production from DJ Ammo and David Guetta, as well as head Pea will I am.
• Jackie Evancho – The 10-year-old singing sensation, discovered on “America’s Got Talent” (NBC), has become the biggest-selling debut artist of 2010 after entering the ‘Billboard 200’ at #2 with her album “O Holy Night”
• Keith Urban – Tonight he signs autographs and performs a free acoustic show at the Ice Palace in West Edmonton Mall in support of his new album “Get Closer”.
• Mariah Carey – She may have let it slip that she’s having twins while talking about her pregnancy in a Radio Disney interview. Quote: “I just hope that they don’t turn out hating Christmas!” (Maybe she’s just confused by pronouns?)
• Miley Cyrus – Word has it she’s now ditched plans to release “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” as her next single thanks to those rumors that Poison frontman Bret Michaels, who wrote the song, had an affair with her mom Tish. The tune appears on Miley’s latest album “Can’t Be Tamed”.
• Phil Collins – He recently met the boyfriend of his 21-year-old actress-daughter Lily Collins … 18-year-old “Twilight Saga” actor Taylor Lautner. The twosome are co-starring in the upcoming film “Abduction”. Word has it pops and boyfriend got along well.
• Rihanna – “Only Girl (In the World)” has made her the first to score 4 #1 hits on the “Billboard” magazine ‘Hot 100’ in a calendar year since Usher did it in 2004. Both her single and her album “Loud” are also #1 in Europe.
• Taylor Swift – “New York Times” has calculated that the 1 million-plus first-week sales of “Speak Now” equaled 11 times the #2 album’s sales and more than the next 61 titles combined.
• Tim McGraw – His latest compilation, “Number One Hits”, is out today. The double-album includes 22 singles ranging from 1994’s “Indian Outlaw” through 2009’s “Southern Voice”.
• White Stripes – Today their first 3 albums, “The White Stripes”, “De Stijl” and “White Blood  Cells”, are reissued on vinyl.

TODAY’S VIDEO RELEASES:
• “Going The Distance” ( R-Rated Romantic Comedy ): 35-year-old Drew Barrymore & her 32-year-old sometime offscreen boyfriend Justin Long play a couple trying to survive a bi-coastal relationship. Co-stars Christina Applegate, Leighton Meester (“Gossip Girl”).
• “Knight & Day” ( PG-13 Action Comedy ): Tom Cruise & Cameron Diaz star in the story of a secret agent who figures out he isn’t supposed to survive his latest mission. As he & his female companion contrive to stay alive, they soon learn that all they can count on is each other.
• “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” ( PG Disney Action Adventure ): Nicolas Cage stars as ‘master sorcerer ‘Balthazar Blake’, who recruits a seemingly everyday guy (Ottawa-born actor Jay Baruchel) in his mission to defend NYC from his arch-nemesis, ‘Maxim Horvath’ (Alfred Molina).
• “Vampires Suck” ( R-Rated Comedy ): A spoof of vampire-themed movies, in which teenager ‘Becca’ (instead of ‘Bella’) finds herself torn between 2 guys. From the makers of the parody films “Disaster Movie”, “Meet the Spartans”, “Epic Movie”, and “Date Movie”. No-name cast.
• Also released today: “Fantasia/Fantastia 2000 – 4-Disc Special Edition”; “Looney Tunes Super Stars” (Animation); “The Lucy Show: The Official 3rd Season” (Classic TV); “Parks & Recreation: Season 2” (TV); and “Waking Sleeping Beauty” (Disney documentary).

FACING UP TO APPEAL:
The secret of attractiveness is all in the tilt of your head, according to Australian husband & wife research team Dr Darren Burke & Dr Danielle Sulikowski. Their study suggests we can make ourselves more appealing simply by shifting our facial position. Women are more alluring if they angle their head forward, so they have to look slightly upward. In contrast, men become more masculine if they tilt their head back and look slightly down their nose. Why? Due to the normal height difference between men and women, tilting the face upward or downward shows interest. (Does this explain all those self-shot photos online of women peeking up into the camera?)
NET: http://bit.ly/hOzSpM (audio clip of Dr Sulikowski.)
– NewsYouCanUse.org

SOLAR POWER:
49-year-old Angeles Duran of Salvaterra do Mino, Spain has hired a notary public to register her claim to ownership of … the Sun. There is an international agreement that states no country can claim ownership of a planet or star but it says nothing about individual ownership, she says. She now wants to slap a fee on everyone who uses the Sun, of which she’d only keep 10%. The rest she’d divide up among the Spanish government (50%); Spain’s pension fund (20%); research (10%); and contribute the remainder to ending world hunger. (We’re suing her for sunburn.)
– AFP

LIFE BY THE NUMBERS:
A BS breakdown of who we are and what we do …
• 72% of women say they find their partners attractive.
• 56% of men admit they eat on the couch when their partner is not around.
• 49% of office workers have only set their voicemail recording once.
• 40% of couples say they save their most important conversations for in the car.
• 29% of employees plan to spend an hour or more holiday shopping online while at work.
• 3% of women wait for a Full Moon before they will weigh themselves on scales.

ATTRACTIVE ALIASES:
A new British study of screen names used by clients of dating websites has discovered that men tend to be attracted to appearance-related names (ie: ‘Hot Chick’, ‘Greatbody’, etc) while women gravitate toward screen names that suggest intellect (such as ‘Wellread’, ‘Megamind’, etc). Perhaps surprisingly, wealth-related names (‘SunnyPorsche’, ‘Tycoon’, and the like) seem to be off-putting for both genders. (What would be the absolute least attractive screen name?)
– “Wilson Quarterly”

BS AMAZING FACT:
After feeding some 300 million facts into a new computer search engine in Cambridge UK, inventor William Tunstall-Pedoe has concluded that April 11, 1954 was the most boring day of the past century. Every other day had at least one major occurrence.
– Mirror.co.uk

BS CHRONOMETER 11.30.10

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1929 [81] Dick Clark, Mount Vernon NY, TV producer (“American Music Awards”, “Golden Globe Awards”)/TV host (“New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” since 1972)/suffered a stroke in 2004

1937 [73] Ridley Scott, South Shields UK, movie producer/director (“Robin Hood”, “Gladiator”)

1955 [55] Billy Idol (William Broad), Stanmore UK, classic rock singer (“White Wedding”, “Cradle of Love”)

1957 [53] Colin Mochrie, Kilmarnock, Scotland [raised Vancouver BC], improv comedian (“This Hour Has 22 Minutes” 2001-03, “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” 1998-2004)/former member of the Toronto Second City troupe

1965 [45] Ben Stiller, NYC, movie actor (“Night At the Museum” films, “Meet the Parents” films)/movie producer-director (“Tropic Thunder”, “Blades of Glory”)

1978 [32] Clay Aiken (Grissom), Raleigh NC, pop singer (“The Way”, “Solitaire”)/Broadway actor (“Monty Python’s Spamalot”)/2003 “American Idol” runner-up

1982 [28] Elisha Cuthbert, Calgary AB [grew up Longueuil QC], movie actress (“The Girl Next Door”, “Old School”)/TV actress (“24” 2001-10)  COMING UP: The mid-season replacement comedy series “Happy Endings” (ABC).

1985 [25] Kaley Cuoco, Camarillo CA, TV actress (‘Penny’ on “The Big Bang Theory” since 2007, “8 Simple Rules” 2002-05)

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “International Computer Security Day”, to remind us to protect our computers, programs, and data at home and work. Remember, there are evil tech people who want to enslave your computer for their nefarious uses, so always practise safe surfin’!

• “Meth Awareness Day”, a day of education and awareness of the dangers of methamphetamine.

• “St Andrew’s Day”, honoring the patron saint of Scotland who hurled his last haggis in 60 AD. Be sure to dust off your sporran!

• “Stay Home Because You’re Well Day”, a day to call in ‘well’ instead of having to fake sickness in order to get a day off. (Yeah right, try this stunt and you can stay home every day.)

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2004 [06] After amassing $2,520,700 on TV quiz show “Jeopardy!”, contestant Ken Jennings is finally knocked off by real estate agent Nancy Zerg on a question about taxes (during his record 75-game run, he gives correct responses to over 2,700 clues)

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
1970 [40] George Harrison releases “All Things Must Pass”, the first-ever ‘Triple Album’ (3 vinyl discs)

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
1984 [26] Japan’s #3 automaker, Toyo Kogyo, changes its name to ‘Mazda’ (somewhat catchier)

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
1985 [25] ‘World’s Largest Beer Mug’, a 6-foot tankard that holds 615 gallons, is unveiled by the Selangor Pewter Company of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

BS MONTHLY PLANNING CALENDAR . . .
[Dec 1] “Grammy Nominations Concert Live” (CBS) /  World Aids Day / Hanukkah begins (Jewish) / Bifocals At the Monitor Liberation Day / Civil Air Patrol Day / Day Without Art Day / Rosa Parks Day
[Dec 2] International Day For the Abolition of Slavery Day / Special Education Day
[Dec 3] “CMT Artists Of the Year” (CMT) / NASCAR Sprint Series Awards Ceremony (Las Vegas) / International Day of Disabled Persons / “The Warrior’s Way” opens in movie theaters
[Dec 4] Cookie Day
[Dec 5] AFL-CIO Day / 2010 Kennedy Center Honors (Washington DC) / Bathtub Party Day / International Ninja Day
[Dec 6] “American Country Awards” (FOX) / Miners Day / Pawnbrokers Day / St Nicholas Day
[Dec 7] International Civil Aviation Day
[Dec 9] International Anti-Corruption Day / Salesperson Day
[Dec 10] Australian Film Institute Awards (Melbourne) / Day Of the Horse / Dewey Decimal System Day / Human Rights Day / Nobel Prize Day / “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage Of the Dawn Treader”; “The Tourist” open in movie theaters
[Dec 11] Nobel Peace Prize Concert (Oslo) / International Mountain Day / Worldwide Candle Lighting Day / International Shareware Day
[Dec 12] Poinsettia Day
[Dec 14] “Oprah’s Ultimate Australian Adventure” begins (ABC) / Michael Jackson’s “Michael” album released
[Dec 15] Cat Herders Day / Ashura begins (Muslim)
[Dec 16] Chocolate-Covered Anything Day / Underdog Day
[Dec 17] Wright Bros Day / “The Fighter”; “How Do You Know”; “TRON: Legacy”; “Yogi Bear” open in movie theaters
[Dec 18] International Migrants Day
[Dec 20] International Human Solidarity Day
[Dec 21] Full ‘Cold’ Moon / Lunar Eclipse / Winter Solstice / Global Orgasm for World Peace / Crossword Puzzle Day / Forefathers Day / Humbug Day / World Peace Day
[Dec 22] Haiku Poetry Day / Re-gifting Day / Yule / “Gulliver’s Travels”; “Little Fockers”; “True Grit” open in movie theaters
[Dec 24] Christmas Eve
[Dec 25] Christmas Day
[Dec 26] Boxing Day (Canada, NZ, UK) / Candy Cane Day / Thank-you Note Day / Whiners Day
[Dec 29] Tick Tock Day
[Dec 30] Bacon Day
[Dec 31] New Years Eve / No Interruptions Day / Universal Hour of Peace Day / World Peace Meditation Day / “Blue Valentine” opens in movie theaters
[Jan 1] World Series of Beer Pong begins (Las Vegas) / New Years Day

BULL’S BITS

BS SIGNS YOU’RE ABOUT TO LOSE YOUR JOB:
• Each morning you’re greeted with the phrase, “Oh, you again.”
• Whenever someone talks about you, it’s in the past tense.
• Your company credit card has been replaced with Burger World discount coupons.
• Sign outside your door reads, ‘Jim’s Office/Men’s Room’.
• Your cubicle has been rented out to a family of migrant workers.
• Your end-of-year bonus is a bowl of chili con carne.
• Your players in the office fantasy sports pool have all been claimed on waivers.
• The receptionist tells you that she only sleeps with ‘employees’.
• Your desk has been moved … outside.
• You’re Charlie Sheen’s publicist.

BS PHONE STARTER:
Which would you choose – more money or more time? Why?

BS RANDOM JOKE:
She’s out of sick days, so she called in dead.

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Today’s Question: There is a 30% chance THIS has already happened to you today.
Answer to Give Out Next Show: You’ve hugged somebody.

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Success has ruined many a good man.