December 21, 2016

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Wednesday, December 21, 2016 – Edition: #5877

Jingle Bull, Jingle Bull …

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ A new series could be A&E’s most controversial yet. The network has filmed Ku Klux Klan leaders and family members who want to get out of the Klan for the new “Generation KKK” documentary. The 8-episode series, which debuts in January, focuses on “pulling back the hood on prominent members”. The cable network has had cameras following Klansmen around for the past year. Some say the doc may make KKK members think they’re being legitimized. Others make the point that the show might even be used as a recruitment tool.
– “New York Times”
★ L’Wren Scott’s Manhattan condo where she committed suicide in 2014 has been sold for $6.5 million. That’s over $2 million less than the original asking price. The 3,300+ square foot duplex is on Eleventh Avenue in NYC, overlooking the Hudson River. L’Wren (Laura Bambrough), the long-time partner of Mick Jagger, bought the property known as the ‘Sky Garage’ in 2010. It’s been previously reported that Scott’s will left her entire estate to Mick. The new tenants will be neighbors to Keith Urban & Nicole Kidman.
– “Page Six”
★ And “Suicide Squad” star Margot Robbie appears to have confirmed that she has secretly wed her British filmmaker-boyfriend Tom Ackerley over the weekend. The confirmation comes by way of a pic of Robbie posted on Instagram showing off her sparkly new ring. The Sunday wedding was reportedly a low-key ceremony in Byron Bay, Australia. The bride is said to have worn an off-white vintage-style lace wedding dress and was surrounded by a 16-person bridal party, who were all barefoot. The actress and the director have been together for 3 years.
– ContactMusic.com

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong (“Revolution Radio”).
• “Game Changers With Robin Roberts” (ABC) – A year-end special highlighting the impact of Lin-Manuel Miranda, Michael Phelps, Chance the Rapper and other news-makers.
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Blake Shelton (“If I’m Honest”). Rerun.
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Temples (“Volcano”, coming in March). Rerun.
• “Live With Kelly” (syndicated/CTV) – Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood (“Christmas Together”).
• “The Real” (syndicated) – 2 Chainz (BC … Before Chainz).
• “The Talk” (CBS) – Dolly Parton (“Pure & Simple”). Rerun.

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Andrea Bocelli – The Italian tenor has reportedly backed away from performing at the Donald Trump presidential inauguration in January after “too much heat” from fans on social media.
• Brad Paisley – He’s releasing his 11th studio album, “Love and War”, on March 3rd. “Today” is the first single from the album. Paisley’s previous release was “Moonshine In the Trunk”, which dropped in August 2014.
• Katy Perry – She’s teased clips of what appears to be new music on her Instagram account, making fans wonder whether a new album is on the way. She hasn’t released an album since 2014, and has released just one single, “Rise”, this year.
• Leonard Cohen – A charity tribute concert is being planned for the late singer-songwriter on January 24th. The event at Brooklyn NY’s Music Hall of Williamsburg, features Josh Ritter, Sonic Youth rocker Lee Ranaldo, and Amy Helm. Additional special guests are being added.
• Prince – The late music icon apparently has an outstanding bill with his divorce lawyers. Cousins Law Firm in West Palm Beach FL has filed a claim with his estate for just under $600,000, allegedly accrued during his 2006 divorce from Manuela Testolini.
• Red Hot Chili Peppers – They’ve postponed their Dublin, Ireland shows due to frontman Anthony Kiedis suffering from flu. They were scheduled to perform at the 3Arena last night and tonight but have put the shows on hold until the 54-year-old rocker recovers.

OPENING IN MOVIE THEATERS TODAY:
• “Assassin’s Creed” ( PG-13 Action Adventure ): When a man explores the memories of his ancestor and gains the skills of a ‘Master Assassin’, he discovers he is a descendant of the secret ‘Assassins’ society. Stars Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Jeremy Irons, and Brendan Gleeson.
NET: http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/assassins-creed
• “Passengers” ( PG-13 Sci-Fi Adventure ): A spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet in order to transport thousands of people has a malfunction in its sleep chambers. As a result, two passengers are awakened 90 years early. Stars Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, Michael Sheen, and Laurence Fishburne.
NET: http://www.passengersmovie.com
• “Sing” ( PG Animated Musical Comedy ): A koala named ‘Buster Moon’ has one final chance to restore his theater to its former glory by producing the world’s greatest singing competition. Voice cast includes Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, and Scarlett Johansson.
NET: http://www.singmovie.com
• Opening in limited release: “Julieta” (Romantic Drama); and “Patriots Day” (Historical Drama).

MOST ‘LIKED’ COUNTRY SONGS 2016:
Pandora’s new ranking of the tunes that received the most ‘thumbs-ups’ …
1. “Die a Happy Man”, Thomas Rhett.
2. “HOLY”, Florida Georgia Line.
3. “Tennessee Whiskey”, Chris Stapleton.
4. “You Should Be Here”, Cole Swindell.
5. “Came Here to Forget”, Blake Shelton.
– CMT.com

PREGNANCY CHANGES A WOMAN’S BRAIN:
So-called ‘pregnancy brain’ is a real thing, a new study out of Leiden University in The Netherlands says. In experiments, a computer program could tell which women had become pregnant for the first time just by looking at MRI scans. And the changes seem to mostly remain present 2 years after childbirth. In 11 places in the brain, the MRI data indicate reductions in volume of the brain’s gray matter, but it’s not clear what that means. The researchers suspect that it’s to create more specialized and efficient brain circuits to prepare a woman for motherhood. No brain changes have been recorded among first-time fathers. (Except panic.)
– AP

BS BUZZWORDS:
Cutting-edge vocab …
• ‘Finishability’ – The characteristics or qualities that enable something to be read, watched, or listened to completely.
• ‘Noseworm’ – An odor that a person continues to smell even in the absence of the original odorant.
• ‘Social Eating’ – Filming yourself while you eat and posting or streaming it on a social media website. ‘Social Eating’ is actually a live streaming platform on Twitch.

SWEATING FOR THE OLDIES:
Sauna use may cut dementia risk, according to new research. Finnish researchers have found that men who use a sauna 4-to-7 times a week are 66% less likely to be diagnosed with any form of dementia, and 65% less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Men have been followed for more than 20 years as part of a Heart Disease Risk Factor Study. Although the researchers can’t explain the sauna-to-decreased dementia link, it is known that cardiovascular health affects the brain as well, and the sense of well-being and relaxation experienced during sauna bathing may also play a role. Average temperatures in the saunas used in the study hovered around 174 F or 79C. (Talk about being on the hot seat!)
– “Science Daily”

FROM THE BS POLL VAULT:
A statistical look at who we are and the things we do …
• 93% of all greeting cards are purchased by women.
• 80% of households have a can of WD-40 somewhere.
• 78% of people will not regift a personalized present.
• 70% of the poor people in the world are female.
• 50% more males are left-handed than females.
• 32% of men are hopeful that Santa puts hair products in their stockings this year.

DON’T IT MAKE YOUR BLUE EYES BROWN:
Surprise! All human eyes are brown … or at least various shades of it. The color we see depends on melanin and reflected light. Blue eyes have the least amount of melanin, which explains why brown-eyed newborns can appear to have blue eyes until their melanin forms, darkening the iris. While dark brown in color, melanin absorbs different amounts of light. Eye color can change depending on the light. The more light absorbed, the less light is reflected out, and the browner the iris appears. Reflected light is what we see when we gaze into someone’s eyes. Melanin levels also determine our skin and hair color. (Maybe our skin’s all brown too?)
– CNN.com

BS AMAZING FACT:
Women can improve their chances of winning board games against men by playing rock music in the background.
– “Telegraph”

BS SUBSCRIBER NOTE:
“The Bull Sheet” is on holiday hiatus from December 24th through January 1st inclusive. Subscribers will receive credits for missed service days. If you’ve received an expiry notice, be sure to get your renewal in to ensure “BS” service in the new year.

BS CHRONOMETER 12.21.16

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1937 [79] Jane Fonda. NYC, movie actress (“The Butler”)/TV actress (“Grace & Frankie” since 2015)

1948 [68] Samuel L Jackson, Washington DC, movie actor (“The Hateful Eight”, “Django Unchained”)

1957 [59] Ray Romano, Queens NY, movie actor (“Ice Age” movies)/TV actor (“Parenthood” since 2012, “Everybody Loves Raymond” 1996-2005)

1966 [50] Kiefer Sutherland, London UK, TV actor (‘Tom Kirkman’ on “Designated Survivor” 2016, “24” 2001-10)/movie actor (“A Few Good Men”)

1982 [34] Anna Bulbrook, LA CA, alt-rock musician (Airborne Toxic Event-“Changing”, “Sometime Around Midnight”)

1983 [33] Steven Yeun, Seoul, South Korea, TV actor (‘Glenn Rhee’ on “The Walking Dead” since 2010)

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Crossword Puzzle Day”, celebrating the date in 1913 when the first ‘Crossword Puzzle’ was published in the “New York World”. Arthur Wynne devised what he called a ‘Word-Cross’ for the Christmas edition, having no idea he would be starting a worldwide craze.

• “French Fried Shrimp Day”, celebrating the joys of battered prawns. Mmm!

• “Global Orgasm for World Peace”, the 10th annual attempt to join the world’s citizens in a simultaneous orgasm combined with thoughts of peace and love for all humanity. This solstice-synchronized celebration was initiated to ‘effect change in the energy field of the Earth through input of the largest possible surge of human energy’.

• “Homeless Persons Remembrance Day”, observed since 1990 to bring attention to the tragedy of homelessness and to remember those who have paid the ultimate price for living on the street.

• “Humbug Day”, when 12 ‘humbugs’ are allowed to be uttered in order to vent the frustrations of preparing for the holidays.

• “Short Girl Appreciation Day”, a salute to those of minimal stature on the shortest day of the year. At what height does a woman qualify as ‘short’?

• “Winter Solstice”, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, as Winter officially arrives at 5:44 am EST. The solstice is celebrated in many ways …
– “Blue Christmas”, also called “Longest Night” in the Western Christian tradition, is a day in the Advent season marking the longest night of the year.
– “Flashlight Day”, a tongue-in-cheek commemoration of the year’s longest night.
– In the Wicca religion it’s “Yule”, marking the death of the Sun-God and his rebirth from the Earth Goddess. (Source of the ‘Yule log’.)
– Iranians celebrate with “Yalda”, when fires and lights are lit and families stay up all night to help the Sun battle against darkness.
– The annual “Yukon International Storytellers Festival” features all-night music and stories in Whitehorse, Yukon.

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2012 [04] The world is purportedly scheduled to end according to the much-cited ‘Mayan Calendar’, despite the fact that experts state there were no Maya prophecies foretelling the end of the world on the date (part of the hype has been created by the 2009 movie “2012”)

2014 [02] “The Battle Of the Five Armies”, last film in “The Hobbit” series, exceeds box office expectations by grossing over $90 million in its first 5 days of release

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
2014 [02] Elton John & David Furnish formally convert their civil partnership into a marriage, hosting a ceremony at their estate in Berkshire UK (guests include David & Victoria Beckham, and Ed Sheeran)

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
2012 [04] “Gangnam Style” by South Korean musician Psy becomes the 1st YouTube video to reach a billion views (by the end of 2012, the song tops charts in over 30 countries)

COMING UP . . .
[Thurs] Date Nut Bread Day
[Thurs] Haiku Poetry Day
[Fri] “A Monster Calls”; “Why Him?” open in movie theaters
[Sat] Chanukah begins (Jewish)
[Sat] Christmas Eve (Christian)
This Week Is … Halcyon Days
This Month Is … Worldwide Food Service Safety Month

BULL’S BITS

LEAST-POPULAR 2017 CALENDARS:
Giving a calendar as a gift this year? Best stay away from these …
✗ Apple’s “Nerd-a-Day Desk Calendar”
✗ “A Year of Fat Accountants Named Fred”
✗ “365 Tips for First Class Toenail Maintenance”
✗ “Senators Unclothed!”
✗ “Keith Richards’ Health Tip-a-Day Calendar”
✗ “12 Close-Up Views of Lady Gaga’s Wart”

BS RANDOM JOKE:
“I have an irregular heartbeat pa-rum-pum-pum-pum …”

BS PHONE STARTER:
☎ If you could bring one fictional character to life, whom would you choose?

BS U-PICK TRIVIA:
Which is the top-selling musical artist of 2016 as measured by CD sales?
a. Beyoncé
b. Michael Bublé
c. Mozart [CORRECT]
– “Quartz”

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: : When you buy one of THESE, it’s at least 10-years-old.
Answer: Christmas tree.

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Someone is better than you at everything that you are good at.

Leave a comment