BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
• Oscar-nominated screenwriter Patrick Marber has been hired to rework the script for the movie adaptation of EL James’ bestseller “Fifty Shades of Grey” 2 days after Charlie Hunnam quit as leading man ‘Christian Grey’. Insiders claim director Sam Taylor-Johnson is still planning to start shooting next month, suggesting that a replacement for Hunnam is already in the works. Brit actor Jamie Dornen and Alexander Skarsgard are thought to be frontrunners.
– “Hollywood Reporter”
• Gywneth Paltrow pal Michael Kors is launching an exclusive capsule collection for Goop, her shopping and lifestyle website. Prices range from $125 for a pendant on a leather cord up to $2,500 for a cashmere cape, one of Paltrow’s favorites. The megastar American designer is the latest fashion talent to team up with Gwyneth Paltrow’s online lifestyle publication, after Brits Stella McCartney and Matthew Williamson.
– Agence France-Presse
• David & Victoria Beckham are hosting a charity auction at their 12-acre ‘Beckingham Palace’ country estate in order to get rid of clutter before ‘downsizing’ to a $70-million, 4-story London townhouse. An insider says they’ve shipped a few treasured items to California and given some things to their families but there is still loads left, including kitchen items, household appliances, designer clothing, and the ‘gold wedding thrones’ used during their 1999 wedding ceremony.
– “Daily Mirror”
• And according to the latest Nielsen ratings, the Season 4 premiere of “The Walking Dead” (AMC) received the highest TV ratings Sunday night, even topping “NBC Sunday Night Football” in the key 18-49 demographic. The show’s debut drew 16.1 million overall. On social media, AMC claims that over 5 million were talking about the “Dead” on Facebook, while a further 1.1 million Tweets were sent regarding the premiere.
– ContactMusic.com

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Burton & Taylor” (BBC America) – Dominic West & Helena Bonham Carter star as iconic Hollywood couple Richard Burton & Elizabeth Taylor in this biographical made-for-TV movie. UK critics were impressed when it first aired in the Summer.
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Ke$ha (“Warrior”); Fitz & The Tantrums (“More Than Just a Dream”). Rerun.
• “CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story” (VH1) – Premiere of a ‘VH1 Original Movie’ that chronicles girl group TLC’s humble beginnings in Atlanta GA and rise to fame in the 1990s. This week surviving members Chilli and T-Boz released the new album “20”.
• “George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight” (CBC) – Michael Bolton (memoir “The Soul of It All”).
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/CityTV) – Michael Franti & Spearhead (“All People”).
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Pierce the Veil (“Collide With the Sky”). Rerun.
• “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV2) – Kanye West (“Yeezus”). Rerun.
• “Late Show With David Letterman” (CBS/NTV/Omni1) – The Head & The Heart (“Holidays Rule”).
• “Live With Kelly & Michael” (ABC/CTV) – Elton John (“The Diving Board”).
• “Reign” (CW/MuchMore) – Premiere of a  younger-skewing take on the tale of Mary Queen of Scots. 23-year-old Australian Adelaide Kane is said to have big-time breakout-star potential.
• “Tavis Smiley” (PBS) – Rock veteran Robbie Robertson (“How to Become Clairvoyant”).
• “Tonight Show With Jay Leno” (NBC/CTV2) – Little Big Town (“Tornado”). Rerun.
• “The View” (ABC/CTV) – TLC (“20″).

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Kanye West – His 32-year-old girlfriend Kim Kardashian is reportedly working on a range of children’s clothes and although ‘Ye has been encouraging, he’s also said to be offering criticism and advice on everything … which is said to be driving Kim crazy.
• Luke Bryan – He wrapped his 5th “Farm Tour” over the weekend, performing for 115,000 fans during the 8-stop run. As part of giving back, a local college in each town visited will receive a ‘Luke Bryan Farm Tour Scholarship’, to be awarded to a student from a farming family.
• *NSYNC – Lance Bass says they had such a great time reuniting for their MTV Video Music Awards performance in August that he believes the former group should have their own reality TV show to capture their chemistry on camera.
• One Direction – Liam Payne is still angry after his underwear was stolen from his hotel balcony in Australia, insisting police officers should have arrested the thieves. Two females apparently did the deed, but were let off with a warning when they returned the undies.
• Paul McCartney – Model Kate Moss & actor Johnny Depp, who dated 1994-98, will star in the video for “Queenie Eye”, the upcoming single from the album “New”. The significance of their reunion seems lost on 71-year-old Paul, who says: “They are friends of mine and Stella’s. I am very lucky they agreed to do it.”
• Usher – He says he learned to pace himself after suffering exhaustion as he trained to play boxer Sugar Ray Leonard in the upcoming Roberto Duran biopic “Hands Of Stone”. Quote: “You can’t box, ride a bike for 20 miles in the Georgia heat, then go to the studio and rehearse.”

JUST SHRUG FOR ‘YES’:
New ultrasound technology that enables mobile phones and tablets to be controlled by gesture could go into production as early as next year. Norwegian start-up Elliptic Labs is in talks with several Asian handset manufacturers to have the hi-tech chip embedded in devices. The technology uses sound rather than sight to interpret hand movements from up to a meter away. By contrast, Samsung’s Galaxy S4 uses an infrared sensor that can only interpret hand movements within a very small zone. (Ideal if you have wet or dirty hands, like when flipping through an online recipe.)
– BBC Technology News

FROM THE BS POLL VAULT:
A statistical look at who we are and the things we do …
• 90% of cellphone owners have experienced ‘phantom vibration’, where it’s perceived their phone is ringing when it’s not.
• 68% of people who have a garage do not use it to park their vehicle(s).
• 33% of women pay a lot of attention to table manners during a first date.
• 23% of women who color their hair have never told anyone about it.
• 15% of breakups are caused by a mother-in-law.
• 8% of men are totally turned off if a woman bites her fingernails.

ALL THAT JAZZ:
A new University of Cambridge study finds our music tastes change as we get older to match the shifting social circumstances of our lives. There seem to be 3 distinct musical ages that we pass through. As teenagers we use ‘Intense Music’ such as punk and metal to establish our identity. As we move into early adulthood, we develop a preference for ‘Contemporary Music’ such as pop and rap. That plateaus in middle age and we start to like ‘Sophisticated Music’ such as jazz and classical, as well as less pretentious fare like country, folk, and blues. (Rule of thumb: Young people prefer any music that their parents can’t stand.)
– Telegraph.co.uk

BS BUZZWORDS:
New cutting-edge vocab …
• ‘Cat Bearding’ – Taking photographs of people holding a cat to their faces so that the cat looks like a beard.
• ‘Human Safari’ – An expedition designed to seek out and observe people, particularly indigenous tribes.
• ‘Phoneur’ – A person, especially a pedestrian, who interacts with or engages the world mostly through a mobile phone.

SAMES ALSO ATTRACT:
Opposites attract when it comes to love, but only for certain people. A new study from Rutgers University has found that individual brain chemistry affects whether we’re attracted to people who are like us, or opposite from us. For example, impulsive people tend to be drawn to other impulsive people; while analytical, competitive people often seek out softer, more nurturing partners. But either way, when it comes to couples staying together, researchers say it boils down to the ability to overlook everything you cannot stand about someone. (Stop humming!)
– LiveScience.com

HOW TO ACT LIKE A WOMAN:
Speak up, guys! Interrupting a woman during a first date can help you land another, finds a new Stanford University study. Analysis of over 1,000 date conversations has found that women are more likely to ‘click’ with a guy if he occasionally cuts in or talks over her. Here’s the catch: It only works if he’s agreeing with her, encouraging her, or finishing her sentences or thoughts. While men tend to take turns speaking, women are more likely to talk over one another in order to show support or like-mindedness. (“I know what you mean, that happens to me all the time!”)
– MensHealth.com

POPULAR HALLOWEEN COSTUMES 2013:
2013’s trendiest Halloween outfit is based on Miley Cyrus’ recent MTV Video Music Awards. Amazon is selling a “Miley Cyrus Twerk Foam Finger” and a Robin Thicke suit, plus a ball & chain for anyone who wants to recreate Miley’s “Wrecking Ball” video. Among other hot Halloween costume ideas: “The Fox” (based on Ylvis’ viral video hit “What Does the Fox Say?”); “Breaking Bad” (‘Walter White’); “Duck Dynasty”; ‘The Minions’ from “Despicable Me 2”; “Batman”; Daft Punk; ‘Daenerys’ from “Game of Thrones”; and flapper-inspired dresses from “The Great Gatsby”. (Or just wear what you have on now and go as a bum.)
– Syracuse.com

BS AMAZING FACT:
Iceland is experiencing a book boom. This island nation of just over 300,000 people has more writers, more books published, and more books read per capita than anywhere else in the world. Public benches have barcodes so you can listen to a story on your smartphone as you sit. On average, 1-in-10 Icelanders will publish a book at some point.
– “BBC News Magazine”

BS CHRONOMETER 10.16.13

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1941 [72] Tim McCarver, Memphis TN, FOX-TV Major League Baseball analyst/former MLB catcher (1950s-80s)  BS FACTOID: After 55 years in baseball, he says this year’s World Series will be his last.

1958 [55] Tim Robbins, West Covina CA, movie actor (“The Shawshank Redemption”, Oscar-“Mystic River”)/movie director (“Dead Man Walking”)

1962 [51] Flea (Michael Balzary), Melbourne, Australia, rock bassist (Red Hot Chili Peppers-“The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie”, “Dani California”)

1971 [42] Paul Sparks, Lawton OK, TV actor (‘Mickey Doyle’ on “Boardwalk Empire” since 2010)

1977 [36] John Mayer, Bridgeport CT, pop singer-songwriter (“Waiting On the World to Change”, “Your Body Is a Wonderland”)

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Bosses Day”, an observance since 1958 in which employees are encouraged to ‘honor the boss with a small gift or greeting card’ (aka ‘Brown Nosers Day’). What makes a good boss? Attributes most people select in a recent poll: fair, honest, understanding, approachable, a good communicator. Among employees who consider their bosses to be ‘abusive’, 30% confess to having ‘slowed down or ‘purposely making errors’ on the job, according to another poll.

• “Clean Your Bug Zapper Day”, an annual bug-gut check we can do without thank-you.

• “Dictionary Day”, celebrating the 1758 birth of Noah Webster, one of the most famous of lexicographers, who 1st published “Webster’s Dictionary” in 1828.

• “Feral Cat Day”, initiated over a decade ago by the advocacy group Alley Cat Allies to promote humane care for domestic cats who are scrabbling to stay alive in the wild.
NET: http://www.alleycat.org/page.aspx?pid=388

• “International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction”, A UN observance on the 3rd Wednesday of October. (Yes, let’s have fewer hurricanes, shall we?)
NET: http://www.un.org/en/events/disasterreductionday/

• “Support Your Local Chamber of Commerce Day”, observed annually on the 3rd Wednesday in October. It’s all about giving them the business!

• “Take Your Parents to Lunch Day”, when students are encouraged to bring a parent to school to enjoy a healthy meal. (For older kids finished school, it involves coming up from the basement to mom & dad’s kitchen.)
NET: http://tinyurl.com/kwkb2no

• “World Food Day”, as declared annually by the UN. The 2013 Theme: “Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition”.
NET: http://www.fao.org/getinvolved/worldfoodday/en/

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2011 [02] 33-year-old Dan Wheldon, a 2-time Indianapolis 500 winner, dies following a fiery, 15-car crash during the IndyCar World Championship at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1993 [20] Aretha Franklin sings the anthem in Toronto before a World Series game between the Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies

2003 [10] Simon & Garfunkel open their “Old Friends Tour” with a concert in Wilkes-Barre PA

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
1921 [92] 1st (and only) mid-game NFL football coaching change (Rock Island Independents fire Frank Coughlin at half-time … are you listening Tom Coughlin?)

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
1984 [29] ‘World’s Tallest Dog’ dies at age 9 in Milton Keynes UK, a Great Dane standing 42 inches tall at the shoulder and weighing 238 lbs

AND REMEMBER . . .
[Thurs] Alternative Fuel Day
[Thurs] Mulligan Day
[Thurs] Wear Something Gaudy Day
[Fri] Full ‘Hunters’ Moon
[Fri]  World Menopause Day
This Week Is … Teen Read Week
This Month Is … Pasta Month

BULL’S BITS

BAD TITLES FOR ACTION MOVIES:
• “Walking Stout”
• “The Good, The Bad, and Their Attorneys”
• “If I Was 20 Years Younger …”
• “Lawrence Of Accounting”
• “Mission Possible”
• “A Fistful Of Gumballs”
• “Black Belt, Brown Shoes”
• “Male Pattern Badass”
• “A Wedgie Too Far”
• “Run Away!”
– Thanks to Peter Schooff

BS PHONE STARTER:
☎ Who are the coolest middle-aged rockers?

BS U-PICK TRIVIA:
Which of the following has NOT been used as a form of money at one time or another?
a. Woodpecker Scalps.
b. Porpoise Teeth.
c. Giraffe Tails.
d. Cow Patties. [CORRECT]
– “Fascinating Facts”

BS RANDOM JOKE:
My inferiority complex is not as good as yours.

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question: One of the best ways to get on your boss’ good side at work is to do THIS.
Answer: Dress like your boss.

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
Others will look to you for stability, so hide when you bite your nails.