BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ A pilot who worked for movie star John Travolta from 1981-87 has come forward with the claim that his relationship with Travolta went far beyond professional. Douglas Gotterba claims they had an intimate relationship long before he entered into a confidentiality agreement. He’s now being allowed by a California Appeals Court to share his story, opening up the opportunity for the now 64-year-old to dispute the terms of his termination. (Why doesn’t Travolta just tell the truth about his sexuality? Wouldn’t he be further ahead?)
– HollywoodReporter.com
★ Actress Zoe Saldana is ‘about’ 3-months-pregnant with her 1st child, a friend claims. The “Guardians Of the Galaxy” star and her husband Marco Perego are said to be delighted about becoming parents, but don’t intend to confirm the news just yet. The 36-year-old was previously in a relationship with entrepreneur Keith Britton for 11 years and then briefly dated actor Bradley Cooper. She met Marco last year. (Shortly after he heard about the 3 lucrative “Avatar” sequels that she has coming up, no doubt.)
– “Us Weekly”
★ And this week actor Leo DiCaprio threw a star-studded bash in St Tropez, France to raise funds for his Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. The event attracted a slew of celebs including Bono, Cara Delevingne, Jared Leto, Robin Thicke, and Selena Gomez. Some offered up items for auction, ie: A Harley motorcycle signed by Martin Scorsese & Robert De Niro that sold for over $673,000. Bottom line: Leo raised more than $25 million at the inaugural fundraising gala for his foundation, mandated with protecting the environment and saving endangered species. (Not to be jaded, but someone often gets paid top dollar to head up these ‘charitable’ foundations.)
– NYPost.com

WEEKEND SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Arsenio Hall” (syndicated) – Tonight Kid Cudi (“Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon”). Rerun.
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated/CTV2) – Today Fitz & The Tantrums (“More Than Just a Dream”). Rerun.
• “Good Morning America” (ABC) – This morning Kings Of Leon (“Mechanical Bull”).
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Tonight Classixx (“Hanging Gardens”). Rerun.
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Tonight Kaiser Chiefs (“Employment”). Rerun.
• “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV2) – Tonight Neon Trees (“Pop Psychology”). Rerun.
• “Late Show With David Letterman” (CBS/Omni1) – Tonight Kiesza (“Hideaway”). Rerun.
• “Live With Kelly & Michael” (syndicated/CTV) – Today Kesha (“Warrior”).
• “Sharknado Week” (SyFy) – Sunday the TV netlet launches a flat-out promotion for the tongue-in-cheek sequel film “Sharknado 2: The Second One”, which premieres July 30th. The week-long lead-up includes screen time for a series of schlocky shark movies like “Mega Shark vs Mecha Shark” and “Sharktopus vs Pteracuda”.
• “Today” (NBC) – Today the annual Toyota Concert Series continues with a live performance by OneRepublic (“Native”).
• “Wendy Williams” (syndicated) – Today Tinashe (“Black Water”).

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Alicia Keys – Pharrell Williams has recruited her to join him as a guest mentor on the upcoming season of “The Voice” (NBC). They’ll go up against Adam Levine and his advisor Stevie Nicks, Gwen Stefani & her hubby Gavin Rossdale, and Blake Shelton with Little Big Town.
• Austin Mahone – Tonight he kicks off a North American headlining tour in his hometown of San Antonio TX.
• Duran Duran – The 1980s Brit rockers are suing … their own fan club. Chicago-based Worldwide Fan Clubs has breached a 2010 contract, they claim, by not paying the band 75% of revenue generated by memberships & merchandise. Total amount allegedly owing … $40,000. (Chump change. Is there a bit of a cash flow shortage, boys?)
• Garth Brooks – This is the weekend he WON’T be playing that series of 5 sold-out shows in Dublin, Ireland. He cancelled the gig when 2 of the dates failed to gain municipal approval.
• Hilary Duff – She’s returning to the music biz, having signed with RCA Records for her upcoming 5th album, due out this Fall.
• Jason Aldean – The body of a 22-year-old who disappeared midway through his show in Cleveland OH last week has been found in a landfill. Cause of death is still under investigation, but cops think he may have fallen into a trash chute at the concert and ended up in a Dumpster. (We’re guessing he was ‘trashed’ all right.)
• Justin Bieber – He’s been photographed using a wheelchair at Disneyland in Anaheim CA. Amid rumors he was attempting to avoid lineups, his reps have responded that he only sat in the chair a few moments and wouldn’t need it to get to the front of the line … he’s a celebrity.
• Magic! – “Rude” remains the #1 song on the ‘Billboard Digital Singles’ chart for another week.
• Pharrell Williams – He’s just released the video for “Come Get It Bae”, his latest single. The clip features Miley Cyrus hanging around with Pharrell, who is filming a bevy of dancing models. The song can be heard in a recent Red Bull ad.
• Weird Al Yankovic – He has the first #1 album of his career as “Mandatory Fun” tops the new SoundScan sales chart. It is the first comedy album to hit #1 in “Billboard” since Allan Sherman in 1963. Seems Yankovic’s promotional plan of releasing 8 music videos in 8 days worked well.

TODAY’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
• “The Fluffy Movie” ( PG-13 Comedy ): A comedy concert film that captures the on-stage performance and inspirational success story of Gabriel ‘Fluffy’ Iglesias. Could be the mainstream breakthrough for this niche entertainer. Co-stars Jacqueline Obradors, Gina Brillon, Alfred Robles.
NET: http://fluffyguy.com
• “Hercules” ( PG-13 Action Adventure ): Dwayne Johnson stars in director Brett Ratner’s latest bigscreen take on the mythological hero. This time the Greek demigod has his life as a sword-for-hire tested when the ‘King of Thrace’ and his daughter seek his aid in defeating a tyrannical warlord. Co-stars John Hurt, Ian McShane, Joseph Fiennes.
NET: http://www.mightyhercules.com
• “Lucy ( R-Rated Sci-Fi ): Scarlett Johansson stars as a woman caught in a perilous situation who turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic. Co-stars Morgan Freeman, Min-sik Choi, Amr Waked. From French director Luc Besson.
NET: http://www.lucymovie.com
• Opening in limited release: “And So It Goes” (Romantic Comedy); “Happy Christmas” (Dramedy); “Kick” (Bollywood Romantic Comedy); “Magic In the Moonlight” (Romantic Comedy); “A Most Wanted Man” (Thriller); “My Man Is a Loser” (Comedy); and “Very Good Girls” (Drama).

WOULD YOU WANT TO WORK FOR THIS GUY?
74-year-old Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim says the best way to improve the average worker’s life is … a 3-day work week. The CEO of telecom giant Telmex suggests that shortening the work week would improve both employee health and productivity. That sounds terrific until you learn that another of his recommendations for a ‘radical overhaul’ to improve workers’ lives is pushing back the retirement age. So the overall idea is to work more years, perhaps until age 70 or 75, but work 3 days a week … up to 11 hours a day. He contends that having 4 days off would give us more time to relax, thereby improving quality of life. Slim is estimated by “Forbes” to be worth $79.4 billion, making him the 2nd-wealthiest in the world, just shy of Bill Gates. (A lot shift workers already work ‘three 12s’ per week. Is the time off worth undergoing the weekly adjustment to your body clock?)
– Sourced from “Financial Times”

RIDICULOUS UNIVERSITY TOPICS:
Looking for a ‘bird course’ to take this Fall at a higher learning institution? Check out these …
• Staffordshire University, Stoke-on-Trent UK … ‘David Beckham Studies’.
• Columbia College, Chicago IL … ‘Zombies in Popular Media’.
• Georgetown University, Washington DC … ‘Philosophy of Star Trek’.
• University of Durham, Durham UK … ‘Harry Potter & The Age of Illusion’.
• Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland … ‘Feel the Force: How to Train In the Jedi Way’.
• University of California, Berkeley CA … ‘Arguing With Judge Judy’.
• University of Texas, Austin TX … ‘Invented Languages: Klingon and Beyond’.
• University of Virginia, Charlottesville VA … ‘Gaga for Gaga: Sex, Gender and Identity’ or there’s a 4-week seminar series on “Game of Thrones”.
• Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs NY … ‘The Sociology Of Miley Cyrus: Race, Class, Gender, and Media’.
• Rutgers University, New Brunswick NJ … ‘Politicizing Beyoncé’.
• Liverpool Hope University, Liverpool UK … ‘The Beatles, Popular Music and Society’.
• Whitman College, Walla Walla WA … ‘Mad Men: Media, Gender, Historiography’.
– DailyMail.co.uk / Telegraph.co.uk

DID YOU KNOW?
People don’t just walk more slowly when they’re on smartphones, their field of vision is reduced to just 5% of what it should be. (Forget about chewing gum, you can’t walk and talk.)
– BBC.co.uk

BS CHRONOMETER 07.25.14

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1967 [47] Matt LeBlanc, Newton MA, TV actor (“Episodes” since 2011, “Joey” 2004-06, “Friends” 1994-2004)/movie actor (“Lovesick”, “Charlie’s Angels” films)

1974 [40] Jay R Ferguson, Dallas TX, TV actor (‘Stan Rizzo’ on “Mad Men” since 2010, “Judging Amy” 2003-04)

1988 [26] Heather Marks, Calgary AB, fashion model (Calvin Klein, Givenchy, Marc Jacobs, Victoria’s Secret)

SATURDAY –
Classic rocker Mick Jagger (Rolling Stones) is 71; Movie actress Helen Mirren (“The Queen”) is 69; Classic rock drummer Roger Taylor (Queen) is 65; TV/movie actor Kevin Spacey (“House of Cards”) is 55; Movie star Sandra Bullock (“Gravity”) is 50; Movie/TV actor Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”) is 49; Movie actress Kate Beckinsale (“Total Recall”) is 41; Indie rock drummer Dan Konopka (OK Go) is 40.

SUNDAY –
TV actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (“Game of Thrones”) is 44; Movie actress/comedian Maya Rudolph (“Bridesmaids”) is 42; Rock drummer Abe Cunningham (Deftones) is 41; Suspended MLB player Alex Rodriguez (NY Yankees) is 39; Movie/TV actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers (“The Tudors”) is 37; TV actress Taylor Schilling (“Orange Is the New Black”) is 30; Country singer Cheyenne Kimball (Gloriana) is 24.

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Collingwood Elvis Festival” through Sunday in Collingwood ON, which culminates with one of the largest Elvis tribute artist competitions anywhere. Why an Elvis fest here? Something to attract Summer visitors to this ski resort town.
NET: http://www.collingwoodelvisfestival.com
• “Gilroy Garlic Festival”, the 36th annual salute to the ‘stink rose’ through Sunday in Gilroy CA. Events include ‘The Great Garlic Cook-Off’ and the ‘Miss Gilroy Garlic Pageant’.
NET: http://gilroygarlicfestival.com
• “Great Texas Mosquito Festival”, the 34th annual through Saturday in Clute TX, home of the world’s largest mosquito, ‘Willie Man Chew’; the ‘Mr & Mrs Mosquito Legs Contest’; and a ‘Mosquito-Calling Contest’.
NET: http://www.mosquitofestival.com
• “Lumberjack World Championships” through Saturday in Hayward WI, where lumberjacks and lumberjills from around-the-world, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA, compete in events such as ‘Logrolling’, ‘Single Buck’, ‘Speed Climb’, and ‘Underhand Chop’.
NET: http://www.lumberjackworldchampionships.com
• “Merry-Go-Round Day” (or “Carousel Day”), the anniversary of the mechanical carousel’s first patent 143 years ago (1871) by William Schneider of Davenport, Iowa. He did not invent it, however, as carousel rides may go back as far as 500 AD.
• “System Administrator Appreciation Day”, observed annually on the last Friday of July to honor that special person in the office who maintains the computer network. (And monitors your surfing and email.)
• “Talk In an Elevator Day”. After all, why is it we normally don’t? This is a day to try it out and see what happens.

SATURDAY –
• “Dance Day”, the 5th annual on the last Saturday of July to encourage both young and old to move. Created by Nigel Lythgoe, executive producer and judge on TV competition “So You Think You Can Dance” (FOX).
• “Day Of the Cowboy”, the 10th annual initiative to preserve pioneer and Western heritage.
NET: http://www.nationaldayofthecowboy.com

SUNDAY –
• “Baseball Hall of Fame Induction” (MLB Network) in Cooperstown NY. 2014 inductees are slugger Frank Thomas; pitchers Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine; and longtime managers Bobby Cox, Joe Torre, and Tony La Russa.
NET: http://www.baseballhalloffame.org
• “Korean War Veterans Armistice Day”, commemorating the 1953 negotiated cease-fire that ended the Korean War. During the 3 years of struggle, over 600,000 Allied lives were lost.
• “Take Your Houseplants For a Walk Day”, to help them get to know their real environment.
• “Walk on Stilts Day”, celebrating the feat most often seen in parades and at the circus. Stilt-walking is an ancient art that only requires a pair of stout sticks … and lots of practice.

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
1999 [15] 30th anniversary celebration of the Woodstock Festival ends with riots, fires, looting, 3 accidental deaths, and several fans hospitalized due to polluted drinking water

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENT . . .
2001 [13] Mariah Carey cancels upcoming engagements and checks herself into a Connecticut psychiatric hospital suffering from an ’emotional & physical breakdown’

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
1978 [36] World’s 1st ‘Test Tube Baby’ is born (Louise Brown of Oldham UK, who has been conceived outside her mother’s body using the new technique of ‘in-vitro fertilization’)

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
2010 [04] WikiLeaks publishes more than 76,900 documents classified documents about the war in Afghanistan, likely the largest leak in military history

COMING UP . . .
[Mon] Eid-Al-Fitr/Ramadan ends (Muslim)
[Mon] Milk Chocolate Day
[Tues] Lasagna Day
[Wed] Cheesecake Day
[Wed] Father-In-Law Day
This Week Is … Garlic Week
This Month Is … Family Golf Month

BULL’S BITS

BS WHYZITS:
• Whyzit men’s bicycles have crossbars?
• Whyzit we say “That sucks!” when the vacuum cleaner doesn’t?
• Whyzit people tie up the dog but let their 15-year-old run wild?
• Whyzit we talk about baseball, shopping, or fishing at work; but when we are out at a game, the mall, or on the lake, we talk about work?
• Whyzit we call the time when traffic hardly moves ‘Rush Hour’?
• Whyzit nothing good ever comes after the words: “Sit down we have to talk”?

BS WEB GOODIE:
“Single Ladies” was a smash hit for Beyoncé when it was released in 2008. Now actress Nina Millin has covered the song and turned it into a dark spoken-word monologue as the latest in her “Beyoncélogues” series on YouTube. Millin brings a new level of spite and humor to Beyoncé’s lyrics, which she describes as ‘Shakespearean’.
NET: http://tinyurl.com/m82x235

BS PHONE STARTER:
☎ Any horror stories about pets in the workplace you want to share?

BS RANDOM JOKE:
My mind works like lightning … one brilliant flash and it’s gone.

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: Be careful how low you set your air conditioner! The colder your bedroom, the more likely you are to have THIS.
Answer: Bad dreams.

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
When ideas fail, words come in very handy.