Thursday, April 14, 2005 Edition: #3012
We’ve Gone Bullistic!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
TONIGHT movie actress Sharon Stone guest stars on “Will & Grace” as a no-nonsense therapist who takes them both on as patients . . . “Us Weekly” reports 47-year-old Stone is set to adopt a 2nd baby boy (she already shares custody of a 5-year-old with her ex-, “San Francisco Chronicle” editor Phil Bronstein) . . . Word has it NBC-TV’s mini-series “Revelations” (which debuted LAST NIGHT) could wind up on the fall schedule as a regular weekly series (how many times can the world end?) . . . THIS WEEK the season finalé of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” is being taped in Flagstaff AZ, a guaranteed 3-hankie event in which the crew is building an entire new home for the family of an army specialist killed in Iraq (airs MAY 22nd) . . . Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld is publishing “The Karl Lagerfeld Diet” in MAY, outlining how he lost 90 pounds by eating oddities like horse meat, tuna & blackberry mousse, and calves’ liver with wild strawberries (urgh, I feel like I’m about to lose some weight right now) . . . Movie actor Joaquin Phoenix (“Signs”, “Gladiator”) has voluntarily checked himself into an undisclosed rehab center for alcoholism just as Billy Joel has checked out (thereby maintaining the celeb rehab equilibrium) . . . Proving there’s no end to her greed, Paris Hilton is now flogging jewelry – for dogs, ‘crystal collars’ available for 20 bucks online (http://www.amazon.com/gp/search.html/ref=xs_ap_l_xgl197/102-4428276-7896915?index=jewelry&node=3880591&keywords=Paris%20Hilton) . . . And actor Michael Imperioli, who plays ‘Christopher Moltisanti’ on “The Sopranos”, says he’s not sure the soon-to-shoot 6th season will be the series’ last after all (hurray, there’s still hope for TV!).
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Britney Spears – British bookies are already taking bets on what her baby will be named. ‘Zara’ and ‘Grace’ are the 20/1 favorites if it’s a girl (as her spokesperson claims); ‘William’ and ‘Harry’ are 20/1 faves should it turn out to be a boy. The longshot? ‘Justin’ at 150/1.
• Coldplay – A 30-second portion of “Speed of Sound”, the first single from their new album “X&Y”, is now available for download through Cingular Wireless. The album is due JUNE 7.
That makes it the first major single to debut as a ringtone first. Get an audio preview here …
NET: http://www-xl.cingularextras.com/fuel/enduser/portal/endUserHTMLDir?c1=1&dc=0
• Jennifer Lopez – She claims that whenever she has spare time, she likes nothing more than to cook and clean!
• Keith Urban – TODAY he does the “Today Show” on NBC-TV.
• The Killers – TONIGHT they perform on the “Tonight Show With Jay Leno”.
• Mariah Carey – TONIGHT she’s on “Late Show With David Letterman”.
COMING ATTRACTIONS:
Even though her psychic character ‘Jean Grey’ was killed off in the last film, Famke Janssen will appear in the upcoming “X-Men 3″ by evolving into the new character ‘Phoenix’ . . . Remember “Transformers”, those robot toys that morphed into cars, planes and other machines? They’ll be the basis of a live-action movie due for 2006 release . . . Director Spike Lee & actor Denzel Washington are teaming up again on the heist film “Inside Man”, about a tough cop attempting to match wits with a clever bank robber . . . “Malcolm in the Middle’s” Frankie Muniz has been cast in the horror flick “Stay Alive”, playing a computer-savvy video game player who tries to solve the mysterious death of a friend . . . George Clooney & Cate Blanchett are in talks to star in the romantic thriller “The Good German”, set in post-WW2 Germany (it would be Clooney’s 5th collaboration with director Steven Soderbergh) . . . And 27-year-old actress Brittany Murphy has given herself a 2-month deadline to finally get a driver’s licence because she needs it for the movie “Love & Other Disasters” which begins shooting this JUNE in London (where she’ll have a heart attack discovering they drive on the left side of the road).
SQUARE EYES STUDY:
According to the newly-released annual report on viewing habits by Eurodata TV Worldwide, average world TV viewing has risen slightly to 3 hours, 3 minutes per day. Here are the countries that watch the most TV …
1. Japan – A daily average of 5 hours.
2. USA – 4 hours, 28 minutes.
3. Argentina – 4 hours, 25 minutes.
At 2.5 hours daily each, China and Sweden watch the least amount of TV. Worldwide, 46% of TV viewing time is dedicated to drama, 36% to other entertainment (talk, comedy, variety shows) and 18% to news.
– “Hollywood Reporter”
SAINT KAROL?
The Vatican has compiled a list of reported miracles that occurred during the lifetime of Pope John Paul II. Among them – an unnamed American millionaire who was dying of a brain tumor attended a private mass and even took communion as the pope was unaware he was Jewish. Weeks later, the tumor completely disappeared. This so-called ‘miracle’ occurred years ago but could not be revealed while John Paul II was alive. Verified miracles are a condition of sainthood in the Catholic church, however, the rules specify that miracles must occur after the nominee’s death as well. Also, 5 years are supposed to pass after a candidate’s death before beatification will be considered, but John Paul II waived that stipulation for Mother Teresa. (Perhaps a bit of planning ahead on his part?)
– “The Telegraph”
MOST UNINHIBITED CELEBRITIES:
5. Christina Aguilera
4. Anna Nicole Smith
3. Drew Barrymore
2. Paris Hilton
1. Colin Farrell
– Columnist Stacy Jenel Smith in “Celebrity”
THE SWARM:
NASA engineers are testing a robot that they hope to shrink to ‘nanobot’ size and eventually form what they call ‘Autonomous Nanotechnology Swarms’ (ANTS). The researchers aim to give ANTS enough artificial intelligence to make smart decisions as well as know intuitively when and how to walk and swarm. The nanobots would also have flexibility to change shape as needed. (Yeah, now there’s what we need – hi-tech cockroaches.)
– “Christian Science Monitor”
INSPIRATIONAL CADDY:
THIS MONTH Singapore’s #1 golfer, Mardan Mamat, qualified for this JULY’s “British Open” with the help of – a spiritual guru. During play, 33-year-old Sukhdev (Yogi) Singh gave the golfer advice, including: “You’ve already won, just play your normal game.” and “Don’t think of sure birdies, but just play the normal game.” Mardan finished first in a field of 31.
– “Globe & Mail”
KID POWER:
Who’s making the buying decisions in your house? A retail study finds that 45% of the sales of children’s items stem from kids successfully nagging their parents. (The other 55% sell due to children nagging their grandparents.)
– “Advertising Age”
WORLDWIDE BULL ROAR:
• If you’re fighting traffic on the way to work this morning, just be thankful you’re not in the city of Ayolas, Paraguay. At least 16 auto accidents have been caused there by an invasion of – millions of creepy-crawly beetles! The plague has also forced schools and shops to close.
• A terrorist alert aboard a Hamburg, Germany commuter train has ended happily when it was discovered the ‘terrorist’ was actually an actor on the way home from the set of an action movie. Seems Alexander Scheer was in such a hurry to catch the train he forgot he still had his – replica gun strapped in a holster under his camouflage costume!
• A 46-year-old Kawkulh, India man has registered an unusual last will. The farmer with the unusual name of New World Laldingliana has stipulated that his remains should be – devoured by wild animals.
• Vienna-based chocolate maker Chocolatier Hochleitner has joined forces with the Al Ain Camel Farm & Dairy in the United Arab Emirates to create a new delicacy – camel milk chocolates. Camel milk is said to be a good alternative for chocolate because it’s lower in fat and sweeter than cow milk. (Will that be one hump or two?)
BS AMAZING FACTS:
• Almost all varieties of breakfast cereals are made of grass.
• Tall political candidates with short names get elected twice as often as short candidates with long names.
THE BULL SHEET 04.14.2K5
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1935 [70] Loretta Lynn (Webb), Butcher Hollow KY, country legend (“Van Lear Rose”, “Coal Miner’s Daughter”)/1st female winner of CMA ‘Entertainer of the Year’ award/Country Music Hall of Fame (1988)
1941 [64] Pete Rose, Cincinnati OH, MLB star who was banned for life in 1989 for gambling (Reds, Phillies, Expos)
WHY HE SHOULD BE IN HALL OF FAME:
• Most MLB career hits (4,256)
• 3 NL batting titles
• Only player to collect 200 or more hits in 10 different seasons
• NL-record 44 consecutive game hitting streak
• Only player to play in All-Star Games at 5 different positions (1st, 2nd & 3rd bases, right & left fields)
• And most importantly – he didn’t use steroids like everybody since.
1960 [45] Brad Garrett (Gerstenfeld), Woodland Hills CA, 6-ft, 8.5-in TV actor (2 Emmy Awards as ‘Robert Barone’ on “Everybody Loves Raymond” 1996-2005)
1973 [32] Adrien Brody, NYC, movie actor (“The Village”, Oscar-“The Pianist”) UP NEXT: Co-stars with Naomi Watts & Jack Black in Peter Jackson’s upcoming remake of “King Kong”, opening DECEMBER 14th.
1977 [28] Sarah Michelle Gellar, NYC, movie actress (“Scooby-Doo 1 & 2″, “The Grudge”)/ex-TV actress (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” 1997-2003)/Mrs Freddie Prinze Jr since 2002
BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
TODAY is “Moment of Laughter Day”, a day to take the time to experience the power of laughter.
TODAY is “Titanic Disaster Anniversary”. Shortly before midnight on April 14, 1912 the ship collided with an iceberg causing it to sink at 2:20am on April 15th. Scientists now say it wasn’t an iceberg that brought down the ship. It’s now believed that cold water caused rivets to pop out, opening 6 holes in the hull.
TODAY is “Pan-American Day”, commemorating the first “International Conference of American States” in 1890.
THIS WEEK “Songkran Festival” celebrates the new solar year in Thailand. To the Thais, that means it’s time to throw water (literally!) on everyone. You can’t walk down the street without being good-naturedly doused, but since it’s the hottest season of the year, the custom is refreshing!
TODAY’S FIRSTS . . .
1910 [95] (William Howard Taft becomes 1st US President to throw out ceremonial first pitch of MLB season FACTOID: Also during the 1910 season, 300-lb Taft started another tradition by standing up in the middle of the 7th inning of a game in Pittsburgh because he was uncomfortable. The crowd thought he was leaving and also stood out of respect. Then the big guy sat down and so did the fans. Thus was born the ‘7th-Inning Stretch’!
1969 [36] 29,184 fans watch the Montréal Expos play their 1st home game at Jarry Park and beat the Cardinals 8-7
1983 [22] 1st ‘Cordless Telephone’, capable of operating up to 600 ft from its base, introduced by Fidelity
TODAY’S RECORD . . .
1996 [09] Detroit Red Wings complete winningest NHL season with 62 victories
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Fri] “Canadian Idol” auditions (Moncton NB)
[Fri] Prince Rainier of Monaco’s funeral
[Sat] Stress Awareness Day
[Sun] Canadian Equality Day
[Sun] International Ford Mustang Day
[Mon] International Jugglers Day
[Tues] “Canadian Idol” auditions (Montréal)
This Week Is . . . Garden Week / Guitar Week
This Month Is . . . Listening Awareness Month / Mathematics Education Month
BULL’S BITS . . .
BS PHONE STARTERS:
• What’s the most ‘affordable luxury’ you’ve ever found?
• If you win the lottery with a ticket you purchased while still married, should you be forced to share the jackpot with your ex-? (That’s exactly what’s happened to a $10-million winner in Brazil.)
BS BLATANT JOKES:
• I’ll say this for you [co-host], you always manage to hit the nail right on the thumb.
• I’ve got all the money I’ll ever need … if I die by 4 o’clock this afternoon.
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Today’s Question: According to a new study, firstborn children get more of THIS than other kids.
Answer to Give Out Next Show: Education. As a result they’re typically more successful professionally and often make more money than their younger siblings.
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Who needs rhetorical questions?
