Tuesday, October 28, 2008 Edition: #3888
We’ve Gone Bullistic!
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
Another pair of former “Survivor” contestants is getting hitched — Erik Huffman & Jaime Dugan who met on “Survivor: China”, and in the tradition of reality TV couple Rob & Amber, will milk their fame for swag, having lined up a free $80,000-wedding in a promotion sponsored by the Charleston SC Convention & Visitors Bureau . . . On the heels of a British report that Madonna has asked her assistant to gather all the items she received from Guy Ritchie so she can bury them, a source close to the now-touring singer says friends are worried she’s in ‘full meltdown mode’ (that’s nothing new, is it?) . . . Thanks to much improved ratings over the past few weeks, there’s talk NBC-TV hospital drama “ER” may last beyond this final scheduled season, either with another full-fledged season or a handful of additional episodes (oh please, it’s time for euthanasia) . . . In an upcoming episode of “The Office” (NBC/Global), ‘Michael Scott’ & some ‘Dunder Mifflin’ colleagues make a business trip to – Winnipeg, chosen as a destination because it strikes the ‘right balance between exotic and obscure’ (for authenticity, the LA set will be loaded up with Winnipeg curiosities like Old Dutch Potato Chips & Fort Garry Ale) . . . High School Musical 3’s” whopping $42-million box office is the biggest opening EVER for a movie musical, thrashing “Mamma Mia!’s” $27 million (and some of the audience was over 12) . . . Actress Jessica Biel is invading BF Justin Timberlake’s territory, laying down a couple of tracks in a recording studio, not for an album, but for her upcoming movie role in “Easy Virtue” . . . And pubescent star Miley Cyrus says she loves her new BF because he’s ‘a really good Christian guy’, so it’s too bad somebody had to go wreck everything by posting online pics of 20-year-old Justin Gaston partying in his underwear, drinking, and flipping the bird (next!).
TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• AC/DC – The “Black Ice World Tour” launches at the Wachovia Center in Wilkes-Barre PA. The 40-date North American leg is scheduled to run through JANUARY ‘09.
• “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” (NBC/A Channel) – Classic rockers the Black Crowes perform.
• Johnny Cash — A new CD/DVD collection out today includes a 19-hour narration of the entire New Testament. Cash’s son, John Carter Cash, says years ago, his dad was approached to record the project and releasing now is a way of keeping his dad’s voice alive.
• Musicians Hall of Fame – The 2008 inductees are saluted at a ceremony/concert at the Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum in Nashville TN. Among the honorees: Booker T & The MGs, The Crickets, the Memphis Horns, and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. Presenters include The Stones’ Keith Richards, George Jones, Lee Ann Womack, and Kix Brooks.
• New Albums – TODAY’s releases include Celine Dion’s “My Love Essential Collection” and the expanded 2-disc “My Love Ultimate Essential Collection”; Pink’s “Funhouse”; Rascal Flatts’ “Greatest Hits Vol 1“; the 3-CD box set “Reba McEntire’s 50 Greatest Hits”; Snow Patrol’s “A Hundred Million Suns”; and Toby Keith’s “That Don’t Make Me a Bad Guy”
• “SingStar Country” – A new PlayStation2 videogame is released in which players sing-along with country acts like Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Brooks & Dunn, Faith Hill, Kellie Pickler, Kenny Chesney, Montgomery Gentry, Rascal Flatts, Taylor Swift, and other artists. It’s sort of a “Rock Band” for country fans.
• “Today Show” (NBC) – Pink promotes her new album, “Funhouse”.
• “The View” (ABC/CTV) – Welsh soul singer Duffy (“Mercy”) is on.
BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Amy Winehouse – Her rep is denying reports the singer is in rehab – again — insisting her latest visit to a London medical center was for a chest infection.
• Carrie Underwood – She’s now immortalized as a wax figure at Madame Tussauds in NYC.
• Chris Brown – He’s featured in the ad campaign for Hasbro’s new “U-Dance” motion-sensing dance videogame. The game is packaged with 12 initial songs, including his hit “Run It”.
• Kid Rock – His ‘Made in Detroit’ apparel line is working with Wayne State University to help start a college scholarship fund for area music students. The ‘Kid Rock Scholarship’ will be available to students studying the business and/or performance sides of music.
• Killers – In the new single “Human”, what the heck does the line ‘Are we human or are we dancer?’ mean? Brandon Flowers’ explanation: He was inspired by a Hunter S Thompson quote that says America is just raising a generation of dancers … that’s it.
• Michael Jackson – He’s reportedly planning a 30-date world tour NEXT YEAR to ‘show his kids what he does’. (As we’re still waiting for the Hurricane Katrina relief record announced in 2005 … we won’t hold our collective breath.)
• TI – He appears in the new documentary “Walking With Guns”, aimed at ending gun violence. A little over a year ago, he was arrested on his way to the “BET Hip-Hop Awards” for trying to purchase a cache of weapons and silencers. Part of the sentence was to perform community service warning young people about the pitfalls of guns, gangs and drugs. He also has jail time coming up.
• Tim McGraw – Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin says he’d be perfect to play her husband opposite Tina Fey’s bang-on impression of her. When her hubby Todd wears his hat, she says, he’s a dead ringer for Tim. Tim’s likely really flattered.
TODAY’S VIDEO RELEASES:
• “Journey To the Center Of the Earth” ( Action Adventure ): Brendan Fraser (“The Mummy”) stars as a geologist who discovers the entrance to a previously unseen world while on a special mission with his son (Josh Hutcherson). It’s the first full 3-D live action flick using the new ‘RealD’ technology. Based on the classic sci-fi story by Jules Verne. Shot in Montréal & Iceland. Available in ‘Limited-Edition 2-D’ and ‘Limited-Edition 3-D With Glasses’ versions.
• “Kit Kittredge: An American Girl” ( Family Mystery ): Abigail Breslin (“Little Miss Sunshine”) stars as a young girl living through the struggles of the Great Depression who is determined to become a newspaper reporter. Based on the Valerie Tripp “American Girl” stories and doll line of the same name. Co-stars Stanley Tucci, Joan Cusack, and Chris O’Donnell. Also available on Blu-ray Disc.
• Also released TODAY: The Flaming Lips’ “Christmas On Mars” (DVD or CD/DVD package); “The Flintstones: The Complete Series” (vintage TV); “Good Times: The Complete Series” (vintage TV); “The Little Rascals: The Complete Collection” (all 80 comedy shorts); “National Lampoon’s Animal House: 30th Anniversary Edition – Limited Gift Set”; “NewsRadio: The Complete Series” (1995-99); “The Polar Express 3-D”; “Sanford & Son: The Complete Series” (vintage TV); and “The Speeches Collection Volume 2: Republicans vs Democrats” (historical documentary).
KIDS & COLORS:
Scientists have found that children as young as 4-months-old have favorite colors which are most often red and/or blue. In general, babies prefer bright colors over dark hues. Researchers speculate that may be one reason kids have an aversion to green vegetables – the color is a big turn-off for them. (Naw, it’s the taste … ever tried a lima bean?)
– ANI Science & Health
THE TRADE-OFF:
Nutritionists in Britain have calculated that you would need to walk almost 10 miles in order to work off the 1,411 calories in a Big Mac Meal. It requires about a 6-mile trek to walk off a KFC meal and about 3.5 miles to make amends for that British staple, an order of fish & chips. In comparison, eating a stick of celery only requires a short walk of 0.013 of a mile. (Now about that bag ‘o doughnuts [co-host] inhaled this morning …)
– “The Sun”
DEATH LIST 2008:
Who’ll be the next big-name celeb to kick? 12 of the 50 predicted by the ‘Death List’ website have already departed. These are among those still hanging on …
• Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro (82).
• Actor Karl Malden (96).
• Actor Eli Wallach (93).
• Actor Kirk Douglas (92).
• R&R singer Fats Domino (80).
• Pseudo-actress Zsa Zsa Gabor (98).
• Former first lady Betty Ford (92).
• Evangelist Billy Graham (90)
– http://www.deathlist.net
TIME FOR A CHANGE:
This SUNDAY North America returns to “Standard Time”. “Daylight Saving Time” was instituted during WWI to conserve fuel; it has nothing to do with farmers as is commonly believed. Experts say about 20% of us notice significant changes in mood as seasons change, accentuated by the switch from “Daylight Saving Time”. What used to be called simply the ‘Winter Blues’ is now ‘Seasonal Affective Disorder’ or ‘SAD’. (Drivers: Don’t forget to adjust your hands to the 9 and 1 o’clock positions on your steering wheel until Spring.)
– Wikipedia.com
FROM THE BS POLL VAULT:
A statistical breakdown of life by the numbers …
• 80% of Internet users under 18 get ‘inappropriate’ spam e-mail … on a daily basis.
• 63% of men think ‘straight teeth’ are more important to a woman’s good looks than ‘bra size’.
• 52% of brides-to-be expect that ‘intimate relations’ with their partner will get better after they wed.
• 45% of women wash their faces in both morning and evening.
• 21% of men and 12% of women admit they’ve been unfaithful to their spouses in the past 5 years.
• 14% say there’s no point in housecleaning since things just get dirty again anyway.
PAIN IN THE FACE:
According to a recent study published in the journal “Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery”, women have twice the number of nerve fibers per square cm of facial skin than men – 34, compared to just 17. Dr Brandon Wilhelmi of Southern Illinois University says that suggests that women really do suffer more pain than men. (But whine a heckuva lot less.)
– “GQ”
ART OR NOT?
London’s Westminster Council has announced that it will paint over “One Nation Under CCTV”, a mural by anonymous ‘guerilla street artist’ Banksy as a message to other graffiti artists. Councilor Robert Davis says the decision is that it’s nothing more than graffiti, and if you condone it then what is the difference between it and all the other graffiti scrawled across the city? (Well, actually … about a half-million dollars if the work sold as well as some of his others.)
– “GQ”
MOTHER NATURE CAN BE SO CRUEL:
Whatever else might be going wrong in your life at least you can be grateful that you don’t suffer from ‘trimethylaminuria’, a genetic condition which makes you smell like … rotting fish. A woman in Australia has been diagnosed with the condition after suffering ridicule, distress, shame, and extreme low self-esteem for the past 40 years. The rare affliction triggers an excess excretion of a compound that’s also found in fish and strongly affects the smell of sweat, breath, and urine. (The good news is – she’s moving to Digby, Nova Scotia.)
– News.com.au
BS AMAZING FACT:
NASA reports that outer space smells like a mixture of fried steak, hot metal, and motorcycle welding. That’s the finding of a fragrance company commissioned to recreate the scents in order to make astronaut training more realistic. According to reports from astronauts who’ve returned from space walks, the peculiar smell was all over their spacesuits after they returned to Earth. (You can have the same experience down at Barney’s Greasy Spoon Diner.)
– “Daily Mail”
BS CHRONOMETER 10.28.08
TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1955 [53] Bill (William Henry III) Gates, Seattle WA, retired Microsoft mogul/now ranked world’s 3rd-wealthiest human at circa $58 billion FACTOID: When Microsoft stock peaked in 1999 he was worth about $90 billion, meaning he’s also LOST more money than anyone in history.
1967 [41] Julia Roberts, Smyrna GA, movie star (“Ocean’s Twelve”, “Oscar-Erin Brockovich”)/mom to twins Hazel & Phinneaus
1972 [36] Brad Paisley, Glen Dale WV, country singer (“Waitin’ On a Woman”, I’m Still a Guy”)
1974 [34] Joaquin Phoenix, San Juan PR, movie actor (“Walk the Line”, “Hotel Rwanda”)
BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Chocolate Day@. North Americans collectively eat over 100 lbs of chocolate … every second!
• “Statue of Liberty Day@ in America, honoring the day in 1886 when the Statue of Liberty was dedicated. The statue was designed by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi and was a gift to the US from France.
TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1971 [37] John Lennon & Yoko Ono record “Happy Xmas (War is Over)” in NYC
2007 [01] Country music pioneer Porter Wagoner dies at age 80
TODAY’S FIRSTS . . .
1904 [104] 1st use of >Fingerprints= in a police investigation (St Louis MO)
1954 [54] 1st >Automatic Toll Collectors= (1st driver tries to sneak through by tossing in a penny)
COMING UP . . .
[Wed] “Quantum of Solace“ world premiere (London)
[Wed] Hermit Day
[Wed] International Internet Day
[Thurs] Devils Night or Mischief Night
[Fri] Bring Your Jack-o-Lantern to Work Day
[Fri] Halloween
[Fri] National Magic Day
[Fri] Increase Your Psychic Powers Day
[Fri] UNICEF Day
This Week Is … Save Your Back Week
This Month Is … Energy Awareness Month
BULL’S BITS
BS ‘BREAKFAST BINGO’:
Contestant gets 60 seconds to answer 5 questions about breakfast foods. The answers begin with the letters B-I-N-G-O in that order …
• This is what you shove in the toaster to make toast. [Bread]
• It’s the chocolate part of a Boston Cream doughnut. [Icing]
• This was the world’s first instant coffee. [Nescafé, invented in 1937.]
• It’s the fruit that sometimes squirts you in the eye when you cut it. [Grapefruit]
• One brand of this hot cereal features a picture of a Quaker in a big hat. [Oatmeal]
BS RANDOM JOKE:
She’s so rich she has a bumper sticker that says, “My other car is also a Mercedes.”
BS HALLOWEEN U-PICK TRIVIA:
• According to superstition, if you stare into a mirror at midnight on Halloween you’ll see what?
a. Your future spouse. [CORRECT]
b. Your current spouse wielding an axe.
c. Your own face as you’ll look in old age.
• Which popular game started as another way of determining your future spouse at Halloween?
a. Hide and seek.
b. Tag.
c. Bobbing for apples. [CORRECT. A name would be pinned to each.]
• Instead of pumpkins, what did the Irish originally carve into faces for Halloween?
a. Radishes.
b. Celery.
c. Turnips. [CORRECT]
BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Today’s Question: According to an aroma poll, THIS is the favorite smell of North Americans.
Answer to Give Out Next Show: Banana.
BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Money often costs too much.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson