Thursday, December 22, 2011        Edition: #4657
Good Morning, Sheetheads!

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
NFL star Tom Brady (New England Patriots) & his model wife Gisele Bundchen are getting set to move into their new Brentwood, California home as the $20-million mansion nears completion after 18 months of construction (at 22,000 sq ft, it’s half the size of a football field) . . . Movie producer Bob Yari has been ordered by a superior court judge to pay actor Brendan Fraser and director Paul Haggis $12 million in damages for improperly withholding profits from their 2004 film “Crash” (there were apparently ‘inappropriate accounting procedures’, aka rip-offs) . . . Vegan actress Alicia Silverstone is urging us to give the gift of an animal adoption this Christmas from Farm Sanctuary, which enables the well-being of pigs, goats, chickens and other farm critters (hey, your gift is we’re feeding a pig for a year – Merry Christmas!) . . . 31-year-old famous person Kim Kardashian tells “Hollywood Reporter” her family’s various reality TV shows ‘could go on for years’ (some sort of threat?) . . . The ‘Best Original Screenplay’ Oscar presented to Orson Welles for his work on 1941’s “Citizen Kane” has sold in a Hollywood memorabilia auction to an anonymous bidder for $861,542 (magician David Copperfield was apparently the runner-up) . . . Director Michael Bay’s “Transformers: Dark Of the Moon” has been named ‘Most Mistake-Ridden Movie of 2011’ by MovieMistakes.com, with a reported 58 onscreen blunders (the first mistake was making it) . . . New Zealand comedian Rhys Darby has confirmed the former cast of “Flight Of the Conchords” is eager to reunite for a movie based on the hit HBO show and may begin work on a script next year (for the record, HBO says it ain’t happening) . . . 38-year-old actress Kate Beckinsale tells “Daily Telegraph” it takes a lot of people to make her appear beautiful, quote: “I tend to wake up looking like Steve Tyler, then somebody comes to help” (zing!) . . . And “Jersey Shore” star Nicole Polizzi has been hit with a $7-million counterclaim after she dumped licensing company SRG Ventures for failing to launch a line of ‘Snooki’-related merchandise last year (better get this settled quick, folks – her clock’s at 14 minutes and ticking!).

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Colbert Report” (Comedy Central) – The Black Keys (“El Camino”). Rerun.
• “Conan” (TBS) – Glen Campbell (“Ghost On the Canvas”).
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated) – Lady Antebellum (“Own the Night”). Rerun.
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC)– Chevelle (“Hats Off To the Bull”). Rerun.
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Gavin Rossdale (Bush-“Sea Of Memories”); Laura Marling (“A Creature I Don’t Know”).
• “Late Show With David Letterman” (CBS) – Childish Gambino (“Camp”).
• “The Talk” (CBS) – Allison Krauss & Union Station (“Paper Airplane”).
• “Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC) – Il Volo (“Christmas Favorites”).
• “Wendy Williams” (syndicated) – Boyz II Men (“Twenty”). Rerun.
• “The X Factor” (FOX) – In the 2-hour live finalé, Justin Bieber performs a duet with former contestant Drew; then the winner is announced (Chris Rene, Josh Krajcik, or Melanie Amaro).

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Coldplay – A caricature of the band sketched on a piece of sheet-music paper by frontman Chris Martin has raised $2,680 in an online auction by Pencils of Promise, a charity that raises funds for schools in the developing world.
• Lady Antebellum – This week Dave Haywood became engaged to girlfriend Kelli Cashiola, a VP at Warner Music Nashville. He popped the question by blindfolding her and taking her home, where he’d spelled out ‘Will You Marry Me?’ in Christmas lights.
• Lady Gaga – Donald Trump is claiming he’s responsible for her phenomenal rise to stardom. It was apparently his choice to have her perform during the 2008 “Miss Universe Pageant” (which he owns). The resulting exposure, he claims, is what got people talking about her worldwide.
• Michael Bublé – This week he lived out a lifelong dream by suiting up for a practice scrimmage with his hometown hockey team, the Vancouver Canucks. He says he’s disappointed about missing a shot and falling down, but will never forget the experience.
• Motley Crue – Frontman Vince Neil tells “Las Vegas Sun” it’s not for sure yet but he’s thinking seriously about quitting the band after they finish their upcoming 3-week residency at the Hard Rock Hotel in February.
• Sean Combs – Diddy tells E! Online he’s planning to expand his booze biz to include ‘the best, smoothest and most authentic tequila in the world’, to go alongside his vodka brand Ciroc.
• Sugarland – The state of Indiana has settled with 64 of 65 victims in a class action lawsuit, which charged that the state was liable for deaths and injuries resulting from the August 13th stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair. In addition to the $300,000 awarded to each claimant, fair officials have distributed nearly $800,000 in donations from the public.
• Tim McGraw – Now that a court has released him from further commitment to Curb Records, his manager is looking for a new recording deal amongst the biggest record labels. The new deal is likely to be worth tens-of-millions to both McGraw and the company that signs him.

COMING ATTRACTIONS:
A BS selection of movies in the making …
• “Devil’s Knot” – Reese Witherspoon will star in this adaptation of the book “Devil’s Knot: The True Story Of the West Memphis Three”. She’ll play the mother of one of three 8-year-old Boy Scouts who were bludgeoned to death in 1993. The 3 teens convicted of the crime were released from prison earlier this year after maintaining they did not carry out the slaying.
• “Fast 6” – Vin Diesel has revealed “The Fast & The Furious” franchise will eventually include 7 films as scriptwriters are already working on 2 sequels to “Fast Five”. The actor claims the introduction of so many new characters meant finishing off the story will require ‘more than 110 pages’. The real reason for 2 more sequels: “Fast Five” raked in $626 million this year.
• “Man of Tai Chi” – Keanu Reeves’ directorial debut will be shot in China, with production slated to start in February. Set in contemporary Beijing, Tiger Chen stars as a young martial artist whose fighting skills bring him vast opportunities as well as painful choices. Reeves, who will also co-star in the pic, will shoot the film in both Mandarin and English.
• “Passion” – 33-year-old actress Rachel McAdams is in talks to star in this English-language remake of the French psychological drama “Crime d’Amour”. Her castmate in “Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows”, Noomi Rapace, may also appear in the project. Director Brian de Palma is looking to begin filming in Berlin, Germany in March.
• “300: The Battle Of Artemisia” – In this sequel to 2006’s “300”, Eva Green has the role of Greek goddess ‘Artemisia’, who persuades ‘Xerxes’ (Rodrigo Santoro) to amass an army and lead it into battle. While set in the same time period as the original film, this epic story is said to stand on its own. Shooting is set to begin next Spring for a 2013 opening.

SELF-CLEANERS:
Engineers at China’s Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Hubei University for Nationalities have created a chemical coating that causes cotton materials to clean themselves. The treated material sheds both stains and odors when it is exposed to sunlight. The researchers say the treatment is cheap, non-toxic, and ecologically friendly. (If this means no more trips to the laundromat, we’re all for it!)
– BBC News

BS QUESTIONABLE CONSUMABLES:
• 25 years ago, a British woman accidentally swallowed a pen. At the time, both her husband and her doctor thought she was making the story up, so nothing was done about it. But now, a quarter-century later, a surgeon has indeed removed a pen from the 76-year-old’s abdomen … and it’s still in working order!
– “British Medical Journal”
• Last night on Dutch TV, the hosts of a show called “Test Rabbits” ate each other’s flesh … to find out what it tastes like. BNN personalities Dennis Storm and Valerio Zeno each went under the knife to have a piece of muscle removed from a left butt cheek and abdomen. The segment then featured a chef pan-frying the tiny pieces of flesh in oil while a studio audience looked on.
– QMI Agency
• A campaign by British animal-rights group Viva (Vegetarians International Voice for Animals) has apparently backfired. The protest was designed to discourage UK retailer Harvey Nichols from selling reindeer paté. Instead, it seems to have drawn consumer attention to the product. The paté, made from Swedish Arctic reindeer meat, cognac, and spices – advertized as a ‘farm-raised relative of Rudolph’ – is now completely sold out.
– MSNBC.com

FOR THE RECORD:
22-year-old Ekaterina Rybolovleva, the socialite daughter of Russian billionaire Dmitriy Rybolovlev, has purchased a Manhattan apartment at 15 Central Park West for an astonishing $88 million ($13,000 per sq ft), setting a new record for the highest individual transaction in New York City history. The 10-room property was first listed by Citigroup chairman Sandy Weill in November, who promised to donate the proceeds of the sale to charity. Ekaterina reportedly is planning to stay in her new home ‘when visiting New York’.
– Forbes.com

BS AMAZING FACT:
Seaweed-eating nations often have higher-than-average life expectancies. In Iceland, dried seaweed known as ‘sol’ is credited with helping Icelanders to live to 83 on average, thanks to its fat-absorbing qualities.
– “The Independent”

BS SUBSCRIBER NOTE:
“The Bull Sheet” will be shutting down for the holidays from December 24-January 1 inclusive. Subscribers will receive account credits for missed service days.

BS CHRONOMETER 12.22.11