Friday, March 17, 2023 – Edition: #7440
Happy St Paddy’s Day, for Sheet’s Sake!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Kanye West will NOT be charged for throwing a woman’s phone into the street. According to a release from the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, the woman’s phone suffered minor damage during the January incident, TMZ says. In fact, the toss is said to have affected only the case around her device, which was valued at $30. The release also says that the woman declined to press charges against West. The rapper had been at the center of a battery investigation. Video shows him reaching into her car, snatching her phone and tossing it in the air, after he noticed he was being photographed leaving his daughter’s basketball game.
-PageSix
★ Hugh does he think he is? After being seemingly rude to Ashley Graham at the Oscars, Hugh Grant, has now dissed former co-star Drew Barrymore. While appearing in a “Wired” interview to promote “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves”, the “Love Actually” alum revealed how he made fun of Barrymore’s singing during their 2007 rom-com “Music & Lyrics.” After admitting that his singing in the film was “auto-tuned a bit”, Grant said: “Drew Barrymore was in that film with me and I don’t think she’d mind me saying her singing is just horrendous. I’ve heard dogs bark better than she sings.” He made partial amends by saying once “they tuned her up” Barrymore “sounded way better than me because she’s got heart and voice and rock ‘n roll.”
-NYPost
★ If you thought it seemed like ‘product-placement’, you were absolutely right. Fans went wild during the Oscars when a teaser clip of “The Little Mermaid” aired during the telecast. The 2-minute-long trailer debuted when the film’s stars Melissa McCarthy and Halle Bailey presented it onstage at the Dolby Theatre. Now, it’s being reported that Disney forked over $10 million to unveil the ad during the ABC broadcast — much higher than the cost of a 30-second spot, which runs “between $1.6 million and $2.1 million.” ABC is a property of Disney, but still had to pay to show the trailer during the show.
-NYPost
★ Will Smith has 2 upcoming projects that could return him to audiences’ good graces, over a year after ‘The Slap’. Sony Pictures is moving ahead with a 4th “Bad Boys” movie after “Bad Boys for Life” was one of the biggest box office hits of 2020. Netflix is also resuming work on “Fast and Loose”, which the streamer put on hold days after last year’s Academy Awards incident. Those 2 projects will be Smith’s first acting gigs since slapping Chris Rock during the 2022 Oscars. Smith is expected to get $25 million for each project, which is only around $10 million less than what he earned on his last 2 projects.
-PopCulture
★ “Days of Our Lives” has been renewed for 2 more seasons, guaranteeing the show will reach a historic 60th season. The NBC soap opera successfully transitioned from the traditional broadcast network to Peacock, where it has been joined by the spinoff “Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem”. Since Days of Our Lives moved to Peacock last season, the show has been in a Top 10 title for the NBCUniversal streamer.
-PopCulture
★ If you’re feeling left in the dark about the status of the Megan Fox/Machine Gun Kelly relationship, he might have just dropped a clue. MGK’s performance at Rodeo Houston this week was filled with jokes. But the most shocking revelation was when he proposed that he move to the Lone Star State. He asked the crowd of 55,000: “Don’t you guys kind of feel like I should just move to Texas? I could do it. My life’s in shambles,” Of course, that came after his fiancée Megan Fox attended the Vanity Fair Oscar party by herself — and without her engagement ring.
-AmericanTop40
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV): Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell, Padma Lakshmi
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Nick Kroll, Rep. Jim Himes, Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert (R)
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Paul Rudd, Zoë Brecher (R)
• “The Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS/CTV): Chloë Grace Moretz, Glen Powell, Renee Rapp (R)
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Nicholas Braun
• “Live with Kelly and Ryan” (ABC/CTV): Hannah Waddingham, Melanie Lynskey, Dr. Wendy Bazilian
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Helen Mirren, Adam Brody, Aly & AJ
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): Keira Knightley, Carrie Coon, Justice Smith, Ali Landry
• “Jennifer Hudson Show” (Check local listings): Quinta Brunson, Stephanie Mills
• “20/20” (ABC): A love triangle, murder, arson — an interview with the woman at the center of it.
• “Lopez vs Lopez” (NBC): When her primos visit, Mayan and Quinten get a taste of what life could have been like had they made different choices.
• “Gold Rush” (DSC): Parker returns and drops a bombshell on his crew to make up for the Alaska debacle; Fred and Christopher face off over the night shift.
SATURDAY-
• “World’s Funniest Animals” (CW): Mischievous mittens; kittens; dancing dogs; boating birds; a pug that wants to be a cowboy.
• “A Winning Team” (HALL): When a pro soccer player finds herself no longer in the game, she teams up with a small-town coach to lead her niece’s team to the playoffs.
SUNDAY-
• “American Idol” (ABC): The judges search New Orleans, Las Vegas and Nashville to find the next singing sensation.
• “Tournament of Champions” (FOOD): Guy Fieri matches up 8 chefs for the next round and reveals the twist: Double the proteins: surf and turf.
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Ariana Grande — Tuesday, the star of the upcoming movie “Wicked” shared on Instagram a photo of the musical’s logo – and announced its new release date: November 27th, 2024. That’s a little earlier than originally planned for the film, in which Grande plays ‘Glinda the Good Witch’. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/4eeftajp
• Miley Cyrus – is the “healthiest and happiest she’s been in a long time,” according to a story in People. Cyrus, who recently dropped her album “Endless Summer Vacation”, is reported to be thriving following years of drama surrounding her and ex-husband Liam Hemsworth. They divorced in Feb. 2020.
• Queen — guitarist Brian May has been given a knighthood from Britain’s King Charles III. He received the title of Knight Bachelor for his services to music and to charity, and will now be known as Sir Brian.
• Elton John – He’s just an “E” away from EGOT status, and an event Monday for Television Academy members at Samuel Goldwyn Theatre served as a reminder of that to voters. The celebration of the success of Disney+’s “Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium” was introduced by Elton himself, who said of the show: “I’ve never played and sang so well in my life, for so long.”
• U2 – The documentary “Bono & The Edge: A Sort of Homecoming, With Dave Letterman”, premieres today on Disney+. In it, Letterman travels to Dublin to hang out with the U2 twosome. It culminates with an intimate performance by the pair. Their new album “Songs of Surrender” drops today, too.
• Brad Paisley and Darius Rucker — and an all-star supporting cast took the stage Tuesday at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville to perform the Prince classic ‘Purple Rain’, and they brought the house down. Also involved: Sam Hunt, Caylee Hammack, Tyler Hubbard, Parker McCollum, Brothers Osborne and more. The show was part of the 2023 Country Radio Seminar.
• Keith Urban – Last weekend, he took a break from his residency to head to ‘Dig This Vegas’ to try his hand at car crushing. He posted video showing him having a blast in a forklift as he lands seismic crushes on a car. He wrote: “A huge thank you to everyone at @DigThisVegas for letting me go mad in your big a** sandbox & annihilate a poor, unsuspecting Ford Focus…” LINK: https://tinyurl.com/2ntsccf9
• Chase Matthews – was determined not to cry when he made his Grand Ole Opry debut on Tues. He cried anyway. He dropped out of high school, dabbled in rap had a drug problem, and was homeless as a teen before managing to straighten his life out and pursue a country career. After his performance, the ‘The Way I Am’ singer said: “God’s got a plan, and it’s showing.”
SHOOTING THE BULL
THIS WEEK’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
• “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” (PG-13, Action/Fantasy/Comedy): Continuing the story of teenage Billy Batson who, upon reciting the magic word “SHAZAM!” is transformed into his adult Super Hero alter ego. (Zachary Levi, Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, Asher Angel) No Tomatometer.
• “Inside” (R, Drama): Nemo is an art thief trapped in a New York penthouse after his heist doesn’t go as planned. Locked inside with nothing but priceless works of art, he must use all his cunning and invention to survive. (Willem Dafoe, Gene Bervoets, Eliza Stuyck) Tomatometer: 63%
MY EAR HERTZ:
Got plans to see live music at all this weekend? Well, if you’re planning to bring along earplugs, you’d be in the minority. New research says that half of all concert and club goers experience ringing in their ears, but only one in 10 regularly wear earplugs at gigs, festivals and nightclubs. According to the World Health Organization, that means that one in two young people are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss – including tinnitus and deafness. The research also found that fewer than 50% of music fans even know what tinnitus is – an irreversible condition in which a person hears noises such as ringing, clicking or buzzing inside their ear. It is often caused by overexposure to loud noise.
(Of course, with today’s music, I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference!)
(Maybe their ears are just ringing because someone is talking about them!)
-MixMag
HOW THE WORLD CELEBRATES ST PATRICK’S DAY:
• London, England – Thousands gather for festivities and a concert in Trafalgar Square, where fountain waters are dyed green.
• Munich, Germany – Germany’s St Patrick’s Day Parade is considered one of the largest anywhere outside of Ireland.
• New York NY – The annual St Patrick’s Day Parade in New York City, the world’s largest, has honored the patron saint of Ireland for over 250 years, since 1762.
• Singapore – Members of the city-state’s Irish community come together to celebrate in a 3-day-long street festival. Events include performances, parades, and Irish food & drink.
• Sydney, Australia – St Patrick himself (at least a good replica) makes an appearance in the Sydney parade, which features more than 70 floats to represent all 32 counties of Ireland.
• Washington DC – Green water flows and geysers from the large fountain on the South Lawn of the White House.
• Around here – The usual drunks drink at their usual haunts, and wonder why their beer’s green!
-ReadersDigest, first published in BS in 2022
2-STEP GREEN BEER (NO BS!):
Makes: 1 pint
• 2 drops green food coloring
• 1 bottle light-colored beer (your choice)
1. Drop food coloring into the bottom of a chilled pint glass.
2. Top with your favorite light-colored beer. Enjoy!
(So easy, I could do it even after a few pints of normal-colored beer!)
-GoodHousekeeping
NEWS OF THE WEIRD:
➢ A New York City tech worker has gone viral after applying for her own job. Kimberly Nguyen learned that a role with her job title was being advertised, offering up to $90,000 more per year. The user experience writer on a contract basis for Citigroup saw the job opening on LinkedIn, so she decided to apply. She earns $85,000 working as a contractor with Citi, and the job posting said the full-time position pays $117,200 to 175,800 per year. After seeing the listing, Nguyen posted the link in a group chat to coworkers, which prompted an emergency meeting with HR. She says she was told that the company has “no control over contractor salaries.” (And now she’s applying for positions with other companies!)
➢ A 41-year-old British man, previously known as Deano Wilson, legally changed his name — to “Fire Exit” after it became a running family joke. Exit says his new name has really ‘sparked’ something too, because now, he is offered free stuff wherever he goes. Quote: “People have given me loads of free drinks, and one barber even cut my hair for free because he heard about my name change. And the father of 5 is also asked for autographs regularly. He says shops, restaurants and other places now feature his signature – on their exit signs, naturally. (He always wanted to have his name in lights!)
-CNBC, NYPost
DID YOU KNOW?
The marketing trick du jour for new companies seems to be to come up with a creative misspelling for a common word when they name their company. Think of brands like “Lyft”, “Fiverr”, “Flickr” and “Tumblr” A study has found consumers are less likely to support brands with unique spellings, especially when they have the option to go with products that use the conventional spelling of the same word. Researchers from the University of Notre Dame say: “Consumers perceive unconventionally spelled names as a persuasion tactic or a marketing gimmick, leading them to view the brand as less sincere.” (Well, it seems to have worked for “Krispy Kreme”!)
-StudyFinds
BS CHRONOMETER 03.17.23
TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “St Patrick’s Day”, the Irish national holiday that began as a ‘solemn religious observance’ to honor St Patrick (389-461 AD), patron saint of Ireland. It’s a public holiday in Ireland, Montserrat, and the Canadian province of Newfoundland & Labrador. Some fast facts …
– It’s been an Irish holiday for 1,500 years.
– The world’s largest “St Patrick’s Parade” is in NYC, where over a million spectators and 150,000 participants turn out. A tradition since 1762, the parade lasts about 6 hours.
– It was first celebrated in Canada in 1765 in Québec City QC.
– Green is associated with “St Patrick’s Day” because it’s the color of Spring, Ireland, and the shamrock.
• “Corned Beef & Cabbage Day”, you’d think that corned beef and boiled cabbage is a traditional Irish dish for St. Patrick’s Day, but it’s not. It is an Irish-American invention, originating when Irish immigrants discovered that beef was cheaper than pork in America at the time.
• “Submarine Day”, to commemorate this date in 1898, when Irish-born engineer John Philip Holland demonstrated a submarine he designed, the “Holland VI”, for the US Navy. During the demonstration, the vessel was submerged for 1 hour and 40 minutes. (That seemed to “go down” well…)
• “Camp Fire Girls Day”, the sister organization to the Boy Scouts of America. In 1975, the name was changed to Camp Fire Boys and Girls, in 2001 to Camp Fire USA, and to Camp Fire in 2012.
• “World Sleep Day”, an international celebration of sleep, and a call to action on important issues related to sleep, including medicine, education, and driving. (Scientists have finally determined exactly how much sleep we need: “Just 5 more minutes…”) LINK: http://www.worldsleepday.org
SATURDAY-
• “Awkward Moments Day”, a day to celebrate the humor in life’s uncomfortable and embarrassing situations … which we normally fail to see until years later. (If you need me, I’ll be sitting in the corner re-living my personal top-20…)
• “Maple Syrup Saturday”, a celebration of the running of the sap from which they make liquid gold. About 75% of the world’s supply is produced in Canada, with 91% of that coming from the province of Québec.
• “Biodiesel Day”, in honor of the clean-burning fuel that can be used in any diesel engine with no conversion whatsoever. It is derived from 100% renewable resources like soybeans, canola, mustard seed, even recycled cooking oil. The day is celebrated on the anniversary of the 1858 birth of Rudolph Diesel, the German inventor of the diesel engine. (What are the odds?)
• “Forgive Mom & Dad Day”. No matter how lousy they were as parents, it’s time to let it go and get on with your life. (I’m still not forgiving them for my nose…)
• “Sloppy Joe Day”, America’s all-time favorite hot sandwich, it is often made with ground beef, onions, tomato sauce, brown sugar, cola or maple syrup to sweeten it, and seasonings to spice it, all served up on a hamburger bun or roll.
• “Corndog Day”, a celebration concerning basketball, the corn dog (a hot dog sausage coated in a thick layer of cornmeal batter), Tater Tots, and American beer. It occurs every year on the first Saturday of “March Madness”.
• “Goddess of Fertility Day”, celebrating Aphrodite and other gods and goddesses of fertility. Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation. Her Roman equivalent is the Goddess Venus.
SUNDAY-
• “Let’s Laugh Day”, laughter decreases stress hormones and increases antibodies, boosting your immunity. Laughing also helps relax your muscles and helps you de-stress. Plus, it improves your blood pressure and decreases pain. And, laughing actually burns calories — how about that?
• “Chocolate Caramel Day”, an annual celebration of everything great about chocolate and caramel. (Like cavities?)
• “Poultry Day”, celebrating chicken, turkey, and other farm-raised fowl that we commonly consume. Plus, they give us eggs. (If they had a say in it, we’d celebrate by eating pork!)
• “Client’s Day”, a day created for the purpose of letting all of your clients know just how glad you are that they’ve chosen your company (except when they show up at closing time…)
• “Backyard Day”, a place for fun, happiness and freedom. Today, we celebrate all the creative ways we embrace and enjoy our backyard, from gardening to scavenger hunts to campouts and sports. (I know how my dog celebrates our backyard…)
• “Certified Nurses Day”, an annual day of recognition for and by healthcare leaders dedicated to nursing professionalism, excellence, recognition, and service.
• “St Joseph’s Day”, the day that the swallows traditionally return to the Mission San Juan Capistrano, an excuse for the annual “Fiesta de las Golindrinas”. Every March 19th since 1776 (with few exceptions), the birds have come back to usher in Spring in the Southern California seaside town. Their return is now an annual tourist attraction.
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1949 [74] Patrick Duffy, Townsend MT, TV actor (“Dallas” 1978-1991, “Step by Step” 1991-98)
1951 [72] Kurt Russell, Springfield MA, movie actor (“Escape from L.A.”, “Guardians of the Galaxy 2”)/partner of Goldie Hawn since 1983
1955 [68] Gary Sinise, Blue Island IL, TV actor (“Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders” 2016, “CSI: NY” 2004-13)/movie actor (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, “Forrest Gump”)
1964 [59] Rob Lowe, Charlottesville VA, TV actor (“9-1-1: Lone Star” since 2020, “Parks & Recreation” 2010-15)/movie actor (“St. Elmo’s Fire”, ‘Austin Powers’ films) COMING UP… “Unstable” TV series
1967 [56] Billy Corgan, Chicago IL, rock singer-guitarist (Smashing Pumpkins-‘1979’, ‘Bullet with Butterfly Wings’)
1973 [50] Keifer Thompson, Miami OK, country singer (Thompson Square-‘If I Didn’t Have You’, ‘Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not?’)
1978 [45] Geoff Sprung, Harrisonburg VA, country bassist (Old Dominion-‘Snapback’, ‘Break Up with Him’)
1988 [35] Grimes (Claire Boucher), Vancouver BC, electronica singer-songwriter-producer (‘Flesh Without Blood’)/ex-partner of Elon Musk/mother of “Y” (Exa Dark Sideræland) and “X Æ A-Xii” (pron: Ex Ash A Twelve)
1990 [33] Hozier (Andrew Hozier-Byrne), Bray Ireland, folk-pop singer-songwriter (‘Take Me to Church’, ‘From Eden’)
1992 [31] John Boyega (Adegboyega), London England, movie actor (‘Finn’ in “Star Wars” films, “Pacific Rim: Uprising”) COMING UP… “They Cloned Tyrone”, 2023
SATURDAY-
Vanessa Williams (“Ugly Betty”) is 60; Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains) is 57; Queen Latifah [Dana Owens] (“Living Single”) is 53; Dane Cook (“Employee of the Month”) is 51; Philip Sweet (Little Big Town) is 49; Adam Levine (“The Voice”) is 44; Lily Collins (“The Blind Side”) is 34
SUNDAY- Ursula Andress (“Dr. No”) is 87; Glenn Close (“Fatal Attraction”) is 77; former movie producer Harvey Weinstein is 71; Bruce Willis (“Die Hard”) is 68; Zach Lind (Jimmy Eat World) is 47
THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2003 [20] On the first episode of MTV’s practical joke show “Punk’d”, host Ashton Kutcher stages a prank involving the IRS that makes Justin Timberlake cry
2020 [03] The musical “Cats” wins 6 awards, including ‘worst film’ at the Golden Raspberry Film Awards (Razzies)
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
2008 [15] Heather Mills is awarded £23.7 million (about $47 million) in her divorce from Paul McCartney, substantially more than McCartney was offering
2012 [11] After being pelted with trash at their SXSW performance, A$AP Rocky and the rest of A$AP Mob launch into the crowd, punching fans and igniting a brawl
TODAY’S FIRST . . .
2000 [23] Julia Roberts becomes the first actress ever to command $20 million for a movie, with the release of “Erin Brockovich”
TODAY’S RECORD . . .
2018 [05] At their St. Patrick’s Day concert in Brussels, The Script buy a drink for everyone in the audience of 8,000, setting a Guinness World Record for “world’s biggest round”
BULL’S BITS
BS WHACK O’FACTS:
✓ St. Patrick’s Day could have been called St. Maewyn’s Day. St. Patrick’s birth name was Maewyn Succat, but he changed it to Patricius after becoming a priest.
✓ Historians say that St. Patrick’s color was blue, not green. The use of green started in the 1600s.
✓ Although St. Patrick is given credit for driving the snakes out of Ireland, fossil records show that the country has never been home to any snakes.
✓ Holy trinity aside, later interpretations of the meaning of a clover’s leaves were that they represent hope, love, and faith. If there’s a 4th leaf, it symbolizes luck, which is why we consider 4-leaf clovers to be lucky.
✓ There are no female leprechauns. In traditional Irish folk tales, there are only nattily-attired little guys.
✓ Until the 1970s, St. Patrick’s Day was a religious occasion, and thus a dry holiday where the only alcohol available in Ireland was at the national dog show.
-GoodHousekeeping, MentalFloss
Best of BS . . .
ST PATRICK’S DAY PICKUP LINES:
• “Come over to my place and I’ll show you my Lucky Charms.”
• “So you actually kissed the Blarney Stone? Tongue or no tongue?”
• “If you don’t sleep with me, the leprechauns have already won.”
• “I may not have 4 leaves, but if you pluck me I’ll bring you luck.”
• “Why don’t you come catch a leprechaun with me, maybe together we’ll get lucky.”
• “That’s a fine-lookin’ dram o’ whisky you be drinkin’, lass. It’d look so much better barfed up on me bedroom floor.”
• “How’d you like to help put the Irish Spring back into me shillelagh?”
• “Well, lass, we’re the only ones still standing. How about it?”
-Adapted from TopFive
TODAY’S SCOOP OF BS:
➠ It’s St. Patrick’s Day. (I’m SO not going to participate. If I wanted to see a bunch of idiots drink themselves to death, I’d just watch reruns of “Jersey Shore”.)
➠ A pet Zebra in Ohio bit off a man’s arm. (On the plus side, the zebra won’t have to be outfitted in prison clothes…!)
➠ The first day of spring is this Monday. (I love spring! The vernal equinox is my favorite of all equinoxes…)
➠ Former One Directioner Louis Tomlinson was seen holding the hand of a model, and appears to have moved on after splitting with longtime girlfriend Eleanor Calder earlier this year. (The relationship became troubled when they realized their lives were going in two directions…)
➠ March Madness has begun. (I’m of course talking about that annual scramble to become Kim Kardashian’s new boyfriend…)
BS WEB GOODIE:
Look familiar? https://tinyurl.com/3x438jnd
BS RANDOM JOKE:
I’m sure St. Patrick’s Day was the occasion when someone first said: “Take a pitcher, it’ll last longer.”
BS PHONE STARTER:
On what occasion did you experience “the luck of the Irish”?
BS WATER COOLER QUESTIONS:
Question: Among those celebrating today, 83% will have THIS in common. What is it?
Answer: They’ll be wearing something green
Question: 66% of us fall asleep with one of THESE in our bed. What Is it?
Answer: TV remote control!
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
For each petal on the shamrock, this brings a wish your way: Good health, good luck, and happiness for today and every day.
