BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Tonight the 2014 New York Musical Theatre Festival launches with the production “Somewhere With You”, the 1st modern country musical to ever hit NYC theater. Featuring songs made famous by Jake Owen, Kenny Chesney, Uncle Kracker and others, the production is a coming-of-age love story centering around a new generation of Southerners growing up in the early 2000s, confronted by the meth epidemic, the Iraq War and other post 9/11 challenges in the rural South. It’s playing at the Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre.
– CountryStandardTime.com
★ In a new magazine interview, actress Christina Hendricks, who plays ‘Joan Harris’ on AMC’s “Mad Men”, reveals she has been dying her hair since she was 10-years-old. She’s naturally a strawberry blonde but says redheads always intrigued her when she was a girl, especially “Anne of Green Gables”, so her mother suggested she throw a rinse on her hair. The 41-year-old says the idea stuck and she still loves her hair as red as she can get it. Of course the interview is in …
– “Redbook”
★ And Hillary Clinton may not yet officially be a candidate for the US presidency but she has already inspired a musical called “A Woman on Top”. The former First Lady’s living history provides creative spark for the production, which centers on a divorced senator seeking her party’s presidential nomination, only to find out that her ex-husband – the president – is running against her. Just like a presidential run, step one in getting the production to stage is to drum up backers. To that end actors will do a script read-through for potential investors tomorrow and Thursday in NYC.
– NYDailyNews.com

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “America’s Got Talent” (NBC/CityTV) – Hopefuls from across the country audition for the judges.
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Ziggy Marley (“Fly Rasta”). Rerun.
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated/CTV2) – Lenny Kravitz (“Strut”, due out September 23rd).
• “Live With Kelly & Michael” (syndicated/CTV) – O.A.R. (“The Rockville LP”).
• “Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV2) – Florida Georgia Line (“Here’s To the Good Times”).

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• La Roux – Today the synth/pop band releases their sophomore album, “Trouble in Paradise”. The Brit duo, made up of singer-keyboardist-writer Elly Jackson and producer Ben Langmaid, are currently touring North America, next playing San Francisco CA this Friday.
• Maroon 5 – Adam Levine says he worked for free on the currently-showing movie “Begin Again” in order to gain acting experience. Seems even superstars can be interns.
• Motley Crue – The soon-to-retire rockers are getting the tribute treatment … country style. Today’s release, “Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute to Motley Crue”, features fresh takes on 15 of their tunes, covered by Big & Rich, Darius Rucker, Florida Georgia Line, Justin Moore, Rascal Flatts and others.
• Ricky Martin – The 42-year-old says he loves being a parent to his 5-year-old twin sons, Matteo & Valentino, and would be pleased to have more kids … a daughter, in particular.
• Theory Of a Deadman – Today they release the new album, “SaVages”, co-produced by longtime collaborator Howard Benson (Halestorm, My Chemical Romance). Frontman Tyler Connolly says for this album they went ‘back to the angst, back to the darkness’.

THIS WEEK’S VIDEO RELEASES:
Out today on DVD, Netflix, Google Play and/or other video providers …
• “Bad Words” ( R-Rated Comedy ): Jason Bateman stars & makes his feature film directorial debut in this comedy about a 40-year-old who finds a loophole in the rules of the national spelling bee and decides to hijack the competition, thereby outraging officials, the regular 8th-Grade competitors and their parents. Co-stars Rohan Chand, Allison Janney.
• “Le Week-End” ( R-Rated Dramedy ): After arriving in Paris for the first time since their honeymoon in an attempt to rekindle their 30-year marriage, a British college professor (Jim Broadbent) and his school teacher-wife (Lindsay Duncan) discover that each of them wants a fresh start that may or may not include the other. Co-stars Jeff Goldblum.
• “Nymphomaniac Volume I & II” ( R-Rated Drama ): Filmmaker Lars von Trier’s 2-part erotic drama follows the sexual adventures of a woman from her youth to age 50, as recounted by the main character, a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac (Charlotte Gainsbourg). Co-stars Stellan Skarsgard, Shia LaBeouf, Willem Dafoe, Christian Slater, Uma Thurman.
• “The Raid 2” ( R-Rated Martial Arts Action ): After fighting his way out of a building filled with gangsters and madmen – a fight that left the bodies of police and gangsters alike piled in the halls – rookie Jakarta, Indonesia cop ‘Rama’ thought it was done and he could resume a normal life. He couldn’t have been more wrong. Stars Iko Uwais, Cok Simbara, Julie Estelle.
• Also released today: “Flowers of Evil: The Complete Collection” (Animation); “Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa 0.5” (Straight-to-Video Comedy); “Masterpiece Mystery: Endeavor: Series 2” (TV); “Prisoners of War: Season 1” (TV); “Vicious: Season 1” (TV); “Walker, Texas Ranger: One Riot One Ranger” (TV); “Watermark” (Documentary); and “Wings: Sky Force Heroes” (Animation).

FBI GUIDE TO TWITTER SHORTHAND:
Thanks to the Freedom of Information Act, we now know that the FBI once created an 83-page document about Twitter slang. The guide includes 2,800 entries that basically list every acronym known to humanity, along with quite a few that most would have never heard of. A sampling …
• BTW – By the way.
• BTWITIAILWU – By the way, I think I’m in love with you.
• BTDTGTTSAWIO – Been there, done that, got the T-shirt and wore it out
• C – See.
• GAMMD – Go ahead, make my day.
• ILYAAM – I love you as a mate.
• N1 – Nice one.
• PMYMHMMFSWGAD – Pardon me, you must have mistaken me for someone who gives a damn.
• ROFLMAOPMP – Rolling on the floor laughing my ass off (while) peeing my pants.
• RTD – Ready to drink.
• STA – Surveillance and target acquisition.
• TWEETUP – An in-person meeting of Twitter members.
• YOLO – You only live once.
• WYLABOCTGWTR – Would you like a bowl of cream to go with that remark?
– MuckRock.com

HOW TO BEAT THE ODDS AT THE CASINO:
Tips from a former professional card counter, dealer, and casino floor manager …
✓ Keep an eye out for the sloppy blackjack dealer who will accidentally flash the face-down card. It can give you a 6-to-9% edge over the house.
✓ Stay In the zone. Some casinos have sexed up some of their table games to ‘Party Pits’ featuring bikini-clad dealers and resident pole dancers. Distracting? You bet.
✓ Know when to walk away. The house enjoys a 5% edge at roulette. You have a decent chance of winning your 1st, 2nd, or 3rd spin, but if you keep at it the house will take your chips.
✓ If you insist on cranking a handle, focus on slots that cost $5 or more and play the maximum bet. On penny slots, the odds are jacked up in the house’s favor by 15-to-20%.
✓ Don’t play keno. Really, just don’t. Your chances are terrible. At some casinos, the house has a 35% edge. And no gambler has matched all 20 numbers on a 20-spot ticket … ever.
✓ Step away from the lights. Casinos make the games with the lousiest odds the most attractive by amping them up with flashing lights and bright colors.
✓ Buy a nice watch. There’s a reason you don’t see any clocks or windows in casinos. They want you to lose track of time so that you play for as long as possible.
✓ Practice makes perfect. Video poker may be the best game for players (typically, the house has only a 0.46% advantage), and the payoff is high. The catch? You need to win to cash in.
(In our experience, the best paying machine is always the ATM.
– Adapted from “Mental Floss Magazine”

TAKING SELF-SERVE TO A NEW LEVEL:
There’s a newly-opened coffee shop that has no staff and uses the ‘honor system’ … and it actually works! The Vault coffee shop in Valley City, North Dakota doesn’t have any staff or cash tills; customers serve themselves and are asked to leave money or swipe their credit card to pay for what they take. Amazingly, people actually do that and pay a little bit more, about 15%. And no thefts have been reported despite the fact that coffee, snacks, a library of books, and even 2 pianos are there for the taking. The owner only stops by the shop occasionally to keep it stocked up. (Would you pay for coffee if you didn’t have to?)
– “Metro”

WHY WE ITCH:
The average human body is covered by about 20 sq ft (2 sq m) of skin. Skin is the only organ that is constantly exposed to potential irritation. And, with so many things coming into contact with your skin daily, you’re bound to get an itch or two. Here’s how it happens …
• Itching, also known as ‘pruritus’, starts with some kind of external stimuli, including bugs, dust, clothing fibers, and hair.
• Like tickling, itching is a built-in defense mechanism that alerts your body to the potential of being harmed.
• Once the hair or dust scratches your skin’s surface layer, receptors in the dermis of the skin become irritated. In a split second these receptors send a signal to your brain.
• As soon as we sense an itch, our first natural response is to scratch the spot of the itch with our fingernails. The reason is simple … we want to remove the irritant as soon as possible.
• Even if you don’t remove the irritant, scratching will at least cause pain and divert your attention away from the itching.
• But, when you scratch the spot where the irritant is, you not only remove the irritant but you irritate a lot more nerve endings than the irritant. So sometimes itching leads to … more itching.
(You just started scratching, didn’t you?)
– HowStuff Works.com

DID YOU KNOW?
Pigs can suffer from anorexia.
– “Quite Interesting”

BS CHRONOMETER 07.08.14

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1944 [70] Jeffrey Tambor, San Francisco CA, TV actor (‘George Bluth Sr’/’Oscar Bluth’ on “Arrested Development” 2003-06, 2013)/movie actor (“Hangover” films, “Monsters vs Aliens”)

1951 [63] Anjelica Huston, Santa Monica CA, TV actress (‘Eileen Rand’ on “Smash” 2012-13)/movie actress (“Prizzi’s Honor”, “The Addams Family”)

1958 [56] Kevin Bacon, Philadelphia PA, TV actor (‘Ryan Hardy’ on “The Following” since 2013)/movie actor (“Frost/Nixon”, “Footloose”)/Hollywood Walk of Fame (2003)

1961 [53] Toby Keith, Clinton OK, country singer (“Made in America”, “I Love This Bar”)/sometime movie actor (“Beer For My Horses”, “Broken Bridges”)

1970 [44] Beck (Hansen), LA CA, alt-rock singer (“Blue Moon”, “E-Pro”)

1976 [38] David Kennedy, Poway CA, rock guitarist (Angels & Airwaves-“Everything’s Magic”, “The Adventure”)

1985 [29] Jamie Cook, Sheffield UK, indie rock guitarist-songwriter (Arctic Monkeys-“Do I Wanna Know?”, “I Bet You Look Good On the Dancefloor”)

1998 [16] Jaden Smith, Malibu CA, bad movie actor (“The Karate Kid”, “The Pursuit of Happyness”)/son of actors Will Smith & Jada Pinkett Smith

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Be a Kid Again Day”, when we’re encouraged to participate in activities we enjoyed as a child and to introduce them to a kid we know. (“OK Zachary, this is know as ‘playing outdoors’ …”)

• “Eat a Vegetable You’ve Never Tried Before Day”. Bok choy? Rapini? Bamboo? Kudzu?

• “Ice Cream Sundae Day”, a day to create you own sundae from all your favorite toppings. The 1st sundae was created on this date in 1881 by Edward Berner in Two Rivers WI.

• “Videogames Day”, a day for kids to appreciate both the games … and the parents who buy them. Actually, one of the fastest growing segments of the videogame market is adult women.

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
1990 [24] 1st TV broadcast to generate 1 billion viewers worldwide (FIFA World Cup, hosted by Italy)

1994 [20] Oscar-winning movie “Forrest Gump”, starring Tom Hanks, opens in theaters

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
2003 [11] A tooth from the mouth of Elvis Presley, along with a lock of his hair and a gold record, fetch over $100,000 in an eBay auction

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
1977 [37] Sabra Starr finishes ‘Longest Recorded Belly Dance’ … 100 hrs (wow, that’s a navel destroyer!)

COMING UP . . .
[Wed] Sugar Cookie Day
[Thurs] Don’t Step On a Bee Day
[Thurs] Piña Colada Day
[Fri] “Dawn Of the Planet Of the Apes” opens in movie theaters
[Fri] Cow Appreciation Day
[Sat] Collector Car Appreciation Day
This Week Is … International Gay Square Dancing Week
This Month Is … Share a Sunset With Your Lover Month

BULL’S BITS

INSANE COMING-OF-AGE TRADITIONS:
A few wacky ceremonies that make a ‘Sweet 16 Party’ seem like the piece of cake that it is …
✓ Aborigine Walkabout – Some Australian aboriginal tribes send their boys off into the Outback by themselves for up to 6 months.
✓ Bullet Ant Glove – Young boys in the Amazonian Satere-Mawe tribe must wear gloves made of bullet ants while dancing around for 10 minutes without flinching. The stings are extremely painful and cause paralysis for up to 24 hours.
✓ Fula Whip Match – Young boys of the west African Fula tribe engage in a whipping match with boys from a neighboring tribe. They cannot show any sign of pain. Whoever the crowd deems the winner is deemed a ‘man’.
✓ Hamar Cow Jumping – Men of the Hamar tribe in Ethiopia must undergo a ceremony where they are whipped by the other men of the tribe. They then run across the backs of four castrated bulls to become a man.
✓ Matausa Cleansing – In Papau New Guinea some tribes have young boys stick two canes down their throats until they vomit. Reeds will then be forced up their nostrils and their tongues are stabbed. All of this is done for the purpose of purification.
✓ Matis Hunting Trial – For boys from this Brazilian tribe to become men they have bitter poison dumped in their eyes, they are whipped, and then they must inject themselves with the potent poison of the Giant Leaf Frog.
✓ Mentawai Teeth Sharpening – When young female Mentawaians reach puberty they sharpen their teeth with a rock and chisel, and file them down to points. It is supposed to look beautiful.
✓ Naghol Land Diving – Something like bungee jumping, it is done with vines instead of elastic cords. When young boys in Vanuatu become men they must attempt to come as close as they can to brushing their head on the ground.
– Sourced from List25.com

BS PHONE STARTER:
☎ What’s a book you read in school and hated, but since reread and changed your opinion?

BS RANDOM JOKE:
You’re damn right I’m good in bed. I can stay there all day.

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: New parents spend an average of 45 hours doing THIS.
Answer: Choosing their baby’s name.

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Blessed are they who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused.