Friday, July 21, 2023 – Edition: #7521

Sheeters Always Prosper!

 

BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
★ Kim Kardashian admitted she rebounded with her now-ex Pete Davidson — to avoid the spiraling drama with ex-husband Kayne West. On Wednesday’s episode of “The Kardashians”, the reality star told sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner: “I definitely jumped into another relationship so fast. It got my mind away from, like, stuff, and that’s not a way to, like, run from things.” She also told her younger siblings that “it’s better” to “feel, deal, [and] heal.” Despite the controversy that surrounded her ex-husband, Kim confessed that she doesn’t want to look at her experience “negatively”, instead concentrating on the questions: “What am I supposed to be learning from this? How is this going to make me a better person?”
-People, PageSix
★ Joe Manganiello has officially filed for divorce from Sofia Vergara, after 7 years of marriage. The “Magic Mike” star’s lawyer filed the divorce docs on Wednesday, in which he cites “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split. According to the divorce petition, Manganiello and Vergara signed a prenuptial agreement that stipulates that they each keep any assets that were accumulated during their time together. The docs also state their date of separation as July 2, 2023.
-ETCanada
★ Kim Kardashian’s Skims brand is now worth $4 billion. The New York Times reports that the shapewear company raised $270 million in a new round of funding, putting its latest valuation above the $4 billion mark. That’s close to $1 billion more than the $3.2 billion valuation investors gave Skims last year. Kardashian launched the company in 2019, with the brand pulling in $2 million in sales in just the first few minutes after its site went live.
-PageSix
★ NBC is shaking up its fall schedule, most notably moving up the final season of “Magnum, P.I.” to this fall. Amid the actors and writers strikes, new seasons of the “Chicago” franchise, including “Chicago Med,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.,” and 2 “Law & Order” series — “Law & Order” and “Law & Order: SVU” — which were set to hold down Wednesday and Thursday night programming, have been delayed. The second season of “Night Court” and “Extended Family,” both of which were scheduled to air Tuesdays, are also being postponed, and NBC has added an additional airing of “The Voice” on Tuesdays.
-TheWrap
★ Just a few months after booting adult children, exes, old roommates, and other free-loaders from Netflix accounts worldwide, the streamer is once again changing up its subscription model. What used to be the cheapest ad-free plan has quietly disappeared, as of this week. From now on, new and rejoining users will no longer be able to sign up for the Basic plan, which cost subscribers $9.99 per month. Current Basic users will be able to keep their plan until they cancel the service. The cheapest option—Standard with ads, for $6.99 per month—is still available, as well as Standard and Premium, both of which are ad-free.
-AVClub
★ Jenny has moved to a new block…in the wax museum. Madame Tussauds’ New York location recently unveiled its new wax figure of JLo, which was inspired by her look from the 2020 Super Bowl Halftime Show, which she co-headlined with Shakira. The lifelike wax figure’s ensemble consists of a leather vest covered in sparkles and matching thigh-high leather boots with gold studs. And putting in a New York twist, the figure of the singer is holding onto the Empire State Building-modeled after the pole from the beginning of her performance.
-E!

TODAY’S SHOW BIZ SKED:
• “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC/Global): Celine Dion talks and performs, Chris Tucker (R)
• “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV):Tessa Thompson, Andy Cohen and musical guest The National (R)
• “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS/Global): Emily Blunt, George Saunders (R)
• “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (NBC/CTV): Amy Poehler and Lucinda Williams (R)
• “The View” (ABC/CTV): Hot Topics
• “The Talk” (CBS):Emily Osment, correspondent Erin Moriarty (R)
• “Live with Kelly and Mark” (ABC/CTV): Casey Affleck, guest co-host Maria Menounos
• “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (Check local listings): Robin Thicke, Derek Hough (R)
• “The Drew Barrymore Show” (Check local listings): Bobby Farrelly, Madison Tevlin, Kevin Iannucci, Joshua Felder (R)
• “Jennifer Hudson Show” (Check local listings): Coco Jones
• “Tough as Nails” (CBS): The crews take a trip to the quarry to face the most explosive individual challenge ever — they must install 20 detonators.
• “CMT Summer Sessions” (CMT): Featuring BRELAND
• “FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023” (Check local listings): United States vs Vietnam; Philippines vs Switzerland; Spain vs Costa Rica

SATURDAY:
• “A Date With Death” (ID): Series premiere. A married couple enjoys a romantic date night at a California restaurant, but one of them won’t make it back home.
• “Saturday Night Live” (NBC): Host Michael B. Jordan; musical guest Lil Baby (R)
• “Greatest Geek Year Ever: 1982” (CW): Arnold Schwarzenegger conquers the movies in “Conan the Barbarian,” while Sylvester Stallone steps into the ring for “Rocky III”, and out of it for “First Blood”.

SUNDAY:
• “Celebrity Family Feud” (ABC): The Haunted Mansion Cast: Tiffany Haddish vs. Justin Simien and Cruel Summer vs. The Wonder Years
• “The Prank Panel” (ABC): A man seeks childhood revenge on his mom and grandma; a best friend auditions to be a Bollywood star.
• “Belly of the Beast: Feeding Frenzy” (DSC): Researchers brave a great white shark feeding frenzy inside a life-size whale decoy.

BS MUSIC NOTES:
• Timbaland and Nelly Furtado — are together again in the studio. Monday, the super producer uploaded a video and pics of himself lounging Furtado at a Miami recording studio. She also informed fans during an IG Live session that they are working on new music. The 2 have worked together in the past on hits including ‘Promiscuous’ and a remix of her hit ‘Turn Off the Light’. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/mteapk6t
• Beyoncé – helped a lucky couple pick their wedding song during her Nashville show on July 15. During her set, Bey spotted a sign in the crowd that read “Pick our wedding song” with the options ‘XO’ and ‘1+1’. She chose 1+1, drawing frenzied screams from the stunned couple and fans. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/2u2bsu3x
• Queen – ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ tops Spotify’s all-time list of the most-streamed rock and metal songs, with 2.19 billion, as of July 19. The rest of the top-5, in order are: ‘Stressed Out’-Twenty One Pilots – (1.98b), ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’-Nirvana (1.68b), ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’-Queen (1.64b), and ‘In the End’-Linkin Park (1.62b).
• Creed – has made its reunion official, announcing the “Summer Of ’99” cruise, highlighted by the group’s first live shows since 2012. Also booked to perform on the excursion, set for April 18-22, 2024 out of Miami, are: 3 Doors Down, Buckcherry, Tonic, Vertical Horizon, Fuel, The Verve Pipe, Tantric, Dishwalla, Louise Post (of Veruca Salt) and Nine Days. LINK: https://www.summerof99cruise.com/
• Alice Cooper – has dropped the new song ‘White Line Frankenstein,” featuring Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello. It’s the latest song from his upcoming album “Road”, out Aug. 25. Cooper also has announced a number of US tour dates set for October. LINK: https://tinyurl.com/4etpkwsr
• Jason Aldean – Tacklebox, the production company behind his controversial video for ‘Try That in a Small Town’, says Aldean did not pick the location for the shoot, and people are reading too much into that. The vid relies on a collection of tropes about small-town America for theme, which many have decried as promoting vigilante gun violence. CMT has pulled the video.
• Walker Hayes – is releasing 2 new songs today. ‘Stetson’ and ‘Show Me the Country’. They follow ‘if father time had a daughter’ and ‘6 string american dream’, which both arrived in March. This week, he posted a preview of Stetson on YouTube Shorts.
• Toby Keith — will receive the Country Icon Award at the upcoming People’s Choice Country Awards. A press release says the award will salute Keith’s “decades-long career as a groundbreaking musician, humanitarian and entrepreneur.” Blake Shelton will present the award during the Sept. 28 ceremony.

SHOOTING THE BULL

THIS WEEK’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
• “Barbie” (PG-13, Comedy): Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. But when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans. (Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Kate McKinnon) Tomatometer: 89%
• “Oppenheimer” (Rated-R, History/Drama): The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb. (Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr.) Tomatometer: 93%
• “Stephen Curry: Underrated” (PG-13, Documentary, limited): The remarkable coming-of-age story of one of the most influential, dynamic, and unexpected players in the history of basketball. (Steph Curry) Tomatometer: 100%

ON THE iPHONE:
➢ Apple’s iOS 17, for iPhone, will launch this fall, and one of its most interesting new features is “StandBy, which turns your iPhone into a bedside alarm clock or a fun desk companion. Users will be able to prop their phone up beside their bed, and with a swipe, see upcoming calendar events, check the day’s weather or view notifications at a glance. Or, if you’re more of a traditionalist, you’ll be able to let it sit on your bedside table showing off various clock faces. Users can also set it up on a desk, where StandBy mode can display stocks, weather, or a rotating array of photos from the image library, much like smart home hub devices from Amazon or Google. (Congrats, Apple! You’ve finally made it possible for me to attain 24-hours-per-day of screen time!)
➢ …and in case you haven’t heard, earlier this week, an unopened first-generation iPhone sold at auction for a record US$190,373, almost 380 times its original price of $499 in 2007. LCG Auctions said the 4GB iPhone model was 20 times rarer than the 8GB model released at the same time for $599. That’s largely because the 4GB model was discontinued 2 months after launch, given customer preference for the larger memory size. (Wow – 16 years old, and it’s still in the box! Talk about “StandBy mode”!)
-CNBC, CTV

COOL IT:
As many areas experience record-breaking heat this month, it may be an understatement to say that sometimes, emotions can run as high as the thermostat. Psychologist Kirsty Leah from mental health support platform SupportRoom says that while warm weather can make us happier, sweltering heat is linked to greater irritability. Here are some tips on keeping your cool – literally and figuratively…
☞ Make your life easier: Avoid the high afternoon heat, stay hydrated, and invest in lighter sheets or a fan. Remember, getting enough sleep goes a long way in “keeping your cool”.
☞ Be patient:  You might be ready to snap at others, but remember that if you are feeling it, they are, too, so try to be extra patient and lower your expectations of people until things are cooler.
☞ Postpone meetings: Whether it’s an important conversation or a routine check-in, consider holding back on work and social meetings until the heat subsides. (Unless the person you were going to meet up with has a pool and a well-stocked beer fridge!)
☞ Avoid big decisions: You might be prone to making rash calls if struggling in the heat, but it’s important not to make any big decisions until you are well-rested and can focus on the situation in hand to make an informed choice. (You tell me this NOW, after I just decided to blow off a big meeting with the boss?)
-HuffPost, first published in BS in 2022

NEWS OF THE WEIRD:
➢ While opinions on tipping culture certainly vary, surely we can all agree that a line has to be drawn somewhere, and this might be a good place to start: The self-checkout. A woman was flabbergasted when she ran her groceries through a self-service checkout, and, at the end of the transaction, the machine asked her whether she’d like to leave it a tip. The woman, a Reddit user who goes by the name “komkomkommer”, posted a pic of the machine, giving her options of tipping 15, 18 or 20%, or not at all.
(We’re guessing the next screen asked her to donate $2 to the ‘poor grocers’ fund!)
➢ A controversial scientist claims to have implanted an electrode into his brain to control his dreams — by performing brain surgery on himself, in the comfort of his living room. Michael Raduga, a Russian researcher with no neurosurgery qualifications whatsoever, reportedly lost more than a ‘liter of blood’ while performing brain surgery on himself in his home in Kazahstan, to install an electrode that may one day be used to control lucid dreams. Raduga is not a doctor, but he is the founder of Phase Research Center, and organization that aims to provide guidance on how one may experience sleep paralysis, out-of-body experiences, and ‘astral projection’. He admitted that about 30 minutes into his DIY surgery, he was ready to give up because he had lost a lot of blood, and was afraid he might pass out. But he allegedly managed to complete the surgery, took a shower and worked for about 10 hours straight. He prepared by watching brain surgery footage on YouTube and experimenting on a few sheep.
(…just gonna leave that one alone…!)
-LADBible, DailyNews

DID YOU KNOW?
A new poll says that 58% of parents are already looking forward to the 2023-2024 school year, and 66% feel that it’ll be better than last year. You can decide for yourself what THAT means, but the survey also found that on average, parents are setting aside $225 for back-to-school shopping. Conducted in the US by OnePoll, the survey also found that 39% of parents planned to start back-to-school shopping for their child . . . before July. ($225??!! When I was a kid, back to school shopping consisted of a set of colored pencils…and a new shirt!)
-StudyFinds

BS CHRONOMETER 07.21.23

TODAY’S BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
• “Junk Food Day”. If your health wasn’t a factor, which junk food would you chow down on every chance you got — Burgers, Pizza, Hot Dogs, Tacos, Fries, Chocolate? (All of the above?)
• “Tug-of-War Day”, an annual celebration of the sport in which 2 teams hold opposite ends of a large rope, and attempt to pull the other towards them in order to win. The spectacle has an ancient history all over the world. (And works best if there’s a mudpit in the middle!)
• “Legal Drinking Age Day” so if you’re 21, 19, or 18 depending on where you are… Cheers! Because it’s 5 o’clock somewhere!
• “No Pet Store Puppies Day”, initiated by the SPCA to educate the public about the connection between pet stores and ‘puppy mills’, commercial dog breeding facilities where the emphasis in on profit, not animal welfare.
• “Invite an Alien to Live with You Day”, celebrating “Mork & Mindy”, the TV show that starred Pam Dawber as ‘Mindy’ and Robin Williams as ‘Mork’, an alien from the planet Ork, whom Mindy invited to live with her. The day takes place on the late Robin Williams’ birthday (1951-2014).
• “Be Someone Day”, challenging everyone to commit to reporting child abuse. The day was founded by Project Harmony to end child abuse and to “bring communities together through education and awareness.”

SATURDAY:
• “Hammock Day”, honoring the most relaxing thing you can have in your backyard. It’s the perfect excuse to slow down and chill during the ‘Dog Days of Summer’. (And keep your “banana hammock” jokes to yourself!)
• “Summer Leisure Day”, for an idea of how to observe it, see “Hammock Day”. (Or, why not spend your leisurely day arguing with someone about the proper pronunciation of ‘leisure’?)
• “Ratcatcher’s Day”, observed on the anniversary of the fabled ‘Pied Piper of Hamelin’ (Germany) piping the town’s rats into the Weser River in 1376.
• “Spooner’s Day”, honoring the 1844 birth of William Archibald Spooner in London England, who accidentally invented ‘spoonerisms’ – slips of the tongue like ‘queer old dean’ instead of ‘dear old queen’ or ‘blushing crow’ for ‘crushing blow’. (Now you’re just pit-nicking…)
• “Lion’s Share Day”, A “lion’s share” is an idiom meaning “the largest part of something divided amongst others.” The expression comes from one of Aesop’s fables, where a lion asks animals to help him hunt, and afterwards tells them why he should get to keep all parts of the spoils.
• “Pi Approximation Day”, today’s date, written in the date/month format, is 22/7. That’s an approximate value for pi. Don’t confuse today with Pi Day, observed on March 14th. (Any chance a nerd came up with this?)
• “Mango Day”, there’s an international mango festival that has been held in Delhi, India annually since 1987. Fun facts about mangos:
-20 million tons of mangos are grown annually.
-They are related to cashews and pistachios.
-A mango provides 100% of your daily vitamin C requirement.
-In India, a basket of mangos is considered a gesture of friendship.
-Mango trees can grow as tall as 100 feet!
-Most of the mangos sold in the US come from Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Guatemala, and Haiti.
-There are also mango festivals held in Canada, Jamaica, the Philippines, and the USA.

SUNDAY:
• “Hot Enough For Ya? Day”, when it should be legal throw a water balloon at anyone who asks you that overused, plain-as-the-end-of-your-sweat-dripping-nose question. (For maximum effect, the word “for” should be pronounced “fer”)
• “Vanilla Ice Cream Day”, celebrating the favorite ice cream flavor of the masses … by far. (I have a lactose-intolerant friend who sells ice cream for a living — He can’t take it, but he can dish it out!)
• “Gorgeous Grandma Day”, Everybody thinks that their grandma is gorgeous – so what could be better than an entire day devoted to acknowledging that fact? Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are well known, so Gorgeous Grandma Day is a natural progression.
• “International Yada, Yada, Yada Day”, “Yada yada yada” is the phrase used as a way of skipping over uninteresting and/or irrelevant details. Comedian Lenny Bruce used it, and there are records of it being used in 1940s vaudeville. But it was in the 1990s, in the TV show “Seinfeld”, that “yada yada yada” really became a ubiquitous catchphrase. “The Yada Yada” was the name of the 153rd episode of the sitcom.
• “Peanut Butter and Chocolate Day”, they’ve been an undeniably necessary combination since each met the other. Whether you’re drooling over Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups or nomming down on delicious peanut butter and chocolate ice cream, this is a combination that is guaranteed to make your mouth happy.

TODAY’S CELEBIRTHDAYS . . .
1948 [75] Cat Stevens (Yusef Islam, Steven Georgiou), London England, folk-pop singer (‘Wild World’, ‘Peace Train’, ‘Morning Has Broken’)/Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2014

1957 [66] Jon Lovitz, Tarzana CA, movie actor (“A League of Their Own”, “Grown Ups 2″)/TV comic (“Saturday Night Live” 1985-90)/voice actor (“The Critic” 1994-95″)

1962 [61] Lee Aaron (Karen Greening), Belleville ON, rock-jazz singer (‘Whatcha Do to My Body’, ‘Metal Queen’)

1970 [53] Alysia Reiner, Gainesville FL, TV actress (‘Natalie Figueroa’ on “Orange Is the New Black” 2013-19)

1972 [51] Paul Brandt (Belobersycky), Calgary AB, country singer (‘Get a Bed’, ‘I Do’)

1978 [45] Josh Hartnett, San Francisco CA, TV actor (“Penny Dreadful” 2014-16)/movie actor (“Pearl Harbor”, “Black Hawk Down”) COMING UP…“Oppenheimer”, opening today

1978 [45] Brad Mates, Grande Prairie AB, country singer (Emerson Drive-‘Who We Are’, ‘Moments’)

1986 [37] Betty Gilpin, New York City NY, TV actress (“GLOW” 2017-19, “Nurse Jackie” 2013-15)

1989 [34] Juno Temple, London England, movie actress (“Atonement”, “Maleficent”, “The Dark Knight Rises”)

SATURDAY- Danny Glover (“Lethal Weapon”) is 77; Albert Brooks (“Finding Nemo”) is 76; Don Henley (Eagles) is 76; Willem Dafoe (“The Grand Budapest Hotel”) is 68; Keith Sweat (‘I’ll Give All My Love to You’) is 62; John Leguizamo (“Moulin Rouge!”) is 59; David Spade (“Joe Dirt”) is 59; Keegan Allen (“Pretty Little Liars”) is 34; Selena Gomez (‘Hands to Myself’) is 31; British royal Prince George is 10

SUNDAY- Woody Harrelson (“Cheers”) is 62; Slash (Guns N’ Roses) is 58; Alison Krauss (w/Robert Plant-‘Gone, Gone, Gone’) is 52; Marlon Wayans (“Scary Movie” franchise) is 51; Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky is 50; Michelle Williams (Destiny’s Child) is 43; Paul Wesley (“The Vampire Diaries”) is 41; Daniel Radcliffe (“Harry Potter” films) is 34; Neil Perry (The Band Perry) is 33

THIS DAY IN SHOW BIZ . . .
2007 [16] “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”, the final book in the series by J. K. Rowling is published, selling 11 million copies in 24 hours

2019 [04] Marvel announces 10 new superhero films at Comic Con, including “Blade” with Mahershala Ali, Natalie Portman as a female ‘Thor’ and the first Asian American superhero film, “Shang-Chi”

TODAY’S MUSIC EVENTS . . .
1987 [36] Guns ‘n Roses release their monster debut album “Appetite For Destruction” (over 30 million sold)

1990 [33] Roger Waters stages a production of “The Wall” at the former site of the Berlin Wall to commemorate its fall 8 months earlier. Van Morrison, The Band, Sinead O’Connor, Bryan Adams, Phil Collins, Cyndi Lauper, German band Scorpions, and others take part

TODAY’S FIRST . . .
2013 [10] Kenyan-born Brit cyclist Chris Froome wins the title in his first time competing in the Tour de France (also wins in 2015, 2016 and 2017)

TODAY’S LAST . . .
2011 [12] NASA’s Space Shuttle program ends with the landing of the shuttle “Atlantis”

TODAY’S RECORD . . .
2012 [11] After 5 years, Turkish adventurer Erden Eruç completes the only solo human-powered circumnavigation of the world (hiking, using rowboats, kayaks, bicycles, etc.)

BULL’S BITS

BS WHACK FACTS:
• The sound from a human yell would take 3½ hours to travel from New York to San Francisco.
• The longest-ever wedding veil was the same length as 63.5 football fields.
• Research shows that earth’s continental plates move at the same rate that fingernails grow.
• Tiramisu translates to “take me to heaven” in Italian.
• A man once survived on pizza alone for 25 years.
• Brunch was invented as a way of curing hangovers.
-WhattheFFacts, Facts

Best of BS . . .
BS THIS WEEKEND, DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, DRINK AND . . .
• Pass out in the sun
• Run with scissors
• Do a eulogy
• Get a tattoo
• Laugh at the same time
• Tell your family what you’ve kept bottled up inside for YEARS!
• Tweet
• Order anything online
• Accept a dare
• Not invite me
-Twitter, first published in BS in 2018

TODAY’S SCOOP OF BS:
➠ Sofía Vergara and Joe Manganiello are divorcing. (In a statement, Vergara said she needs some time alone, with just family, her thoughts, and 200 TV cameras…)
➠ Ariana Grande and her husband have split. (The two are asking that fans and media allow them to handle this very private matter very publicly…)
➠ According to a report, those who are divorced are about 25% more likely to die early than those who are married. (I’ll take those odds.  Wait!  …did I say that out loud??)
➠ Scientists have discovered what they’re calling the “harshest” sound known to man. It’s a sharp knife repetitively scratching an empty glass bottle. (I’m guessing they’ve never heard ‘Old Town Road’, FOUR TIMES on the drive home?!!)
➠ Comic-Con San Diego began yesterday. (Comic-Con is always full of geeks AND nerds. Here’s the difference between a “geek” and a “nerd”:  A geek giggles when he hears the word “boobie.” A nerd snickers…)

BS WEB GOODIE:
What’s a guy gotta do to get some service around here (sound up):   https://tinyurl.com/3cw5jrvr

BS RANDOM JOKE:
Sure, they SAY Barbie is popular, but kids still have to buy friends for her…

BS PHONE STARTER:
What was the last situation in which you wished you could throw down a smoke bomb and disappear?

BS WATER COOLER QUESTION:
Question:  85% of us love the smell of THIS, but the rest of us think it stinks. What is it?
Answer:  The ocean

BS DEEP THOUGHT:
The point is not to pay back kindness — but to pass it on.