September 15, 2000 Stockwell Day holiday! Edition: #1890
TODAY Olivia Newton-John headlines the Opening Ceremonies for the 27th “Summer Olympics” in Sydney. Have you heard? In this Olympics, ‘Dance Sport’ (better known as ballroom dancing) will be introduced through a series of demonstrations in hope of it becoming an accredited competitive Olympic sport as early as 2008. And here’s some other . . .
BS OLYMPIC DEMONSTRATION SPORTS:
• Blindfold Fencing
• Charades in Pajamas
• Endurance Squatting
• Steroid-Enhanced Armpit Shaving
• Equestrian Synchronized Swimming
• Drunken Yachting
• Apartment Hunting
• Javelin Tag
• Speed-Walking with a Bad Rash
BS SHOW BIZ BUZZ:
TOMORROW the Tragically Hip and Chantal Kreviazuk headline a War Child benefit concert in Winnipeg to coincide with the final weekend of the International Conference on War-Affected Children . . . Starting SUNDAY, CTV will air the original, uncut version of the first 13 episodes of the mob series “The Sopranos” head-to-head against CBC’s Olympic broadcasts (finally we get to see what all the hoopla is about) . . . SUNDAY’S 15th annual “Farm Aid” benefit at Nissan Pavillion near Washington DC includes Alan Jackson, Barenaked Ladies, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and Travis Tritt, along with – get this – Tipper Gore playing drums for Willie Nelson (oh man, can you tell it’s a US election year?).
TODAY’S MOVIE OPENINGS:
Gwyneth Paltrow joins her director dad Bruce in ‘Duets,’ a look at ‘karaoke hustlers’ who sing their way across country hoping to make it to the national championships . . . Jamie Foxx plays an ex-con used by police to lure a criminal out of hiding in the action/comedy “Bait” . . . Monica Keena plays an outwardly perfect and popular teen who decides to take revenge on her abusive stepfather in “Crime and Punishment in Suburbia”.
THE FINE PRINT:
Our Aussie BS contributor Jamie MacDonald has sent along the actual message printed on the back of Sydney Olympic tickets — “You cannot bring the following items into venues: strollers, glass bottles, cans, coolers, ice chests, food and drinks (unless required for medical reasons), weapons, flares, fireworks, explosives, smoke bombs, illegal substances, alcohol, poles, musical instruments, horns, banners, flags of non-participating countries, animals (except guide dogs), signs, balls, frisbees, any political, religious or race-related materials, or any other items SOCOG considers dangerous or inappropriate.” (PS: ‘So sit down, shaddup and enjoy yourself.’)
FOUR-LEGGED HEROES:
According to a new American Animal Hospital Association survey, 53% of pet owners think that their pets would come to their rescue if they were in distress. (Makes you wonder – can gerbils do CPR?)
PUBESCENT PUFFING:
A new study shows that 12- and 13-year-olds can become addicted to nicotine after having as few as 2 cigarettes. (The researchers were promptly arrested.)
THE BULL SHEET 09.15.00
TODAY’S CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS . . .
1946 [54] Oliver Stone, NYC, movie director/screenwriter (“Any Given Sunday”, 3 Oscars-“Platoon”, “Born on the Fourth of July”, “Midnight Express”)
1946 [54] Tommy Lee Jones, San Saba TX, movie actor (“Space Cowboys”, “Rules of Engagement”, Oscar-“The Fugitive”)/Al Gore’s Harvard U roommate
1960 [40] Mitch Dorge, Winnipeg MB, rock drummer (Crash Test Dummies-“Keep a Lid on Things”, “Superman’s Song”)
1984 [16] Prince Harry (Henry Charles Albert David Windsor of Wales), London ENG, Prince Charles & Princess Diana’s #2 son who’s 3rd in line to the British throne
SATURDAY’S BIRTHDAYS . . .
1925 [75] (Riley) BB King, Itta Bena MS, blues legend (“The Thrill is Gone”)
1956 [44] David Copperfield (Kotkin), Metuchen NJ, world’s wealthiest illusionist/started career billed as “Davino, Boy Magician”
1961 [39] Jennifer Tilly, Texada Island BC, movie actress (“Stuart Little”, “Bullets Over Broadway”)
1969 [31] Marc Anthony (Marco Antonio Muniz), NYC, Latin/pop singer (“You Sang to Me”, “I Need to Know”)
BS REASONS TO PARTY . . .
THIS WEEKEND’S “Wizard of Oz Festival” in Chesterton, Indiana includes a ‘Flying Monkey Raffle’.
TODAY an airplane will drop 2,000 plush monkeys on the kick-off party. Those landing closest to a bulls-eye win their raffle-ticket holders cash prizes. (Doesn’t this sound like an old episode of “WKRP in Cincinnati”?)
TOMORROW’s “Egremont Crab Fair” in West Cumbria, England is the home of the “World Gurning Championships”. For the uninitiated, ‘gurning’ is the art of making scary or goofy distorted faces. (Like you used to do in school when the teacher wasn’t looking.)
TODAY’S FIRSTS . . .
1971 [29] 12 members of Vancouver’s ‘Don’t Make a Wave Committee’ found the environmental organization ‘Greenpeace’
1994 [06] 1st episode of Mountie mystery “Due South”, starring Paul Gross, on CTV
TODAY‘S RECORDS . . .
1996 [04] Toronto Blue Jays break MLB record for ‘most hit batsmen in a season’ as John Olerud becomes the 81st (previous record by 1911 Washington Senators)
AND REMEMBER . . .
[Sun] 20th Annual Terry Fox Run
[Thurs] MuchMusic Video Awards
Balance Awareness Week (move your arms in circles and say “whooaaaa . . .”)
National Organic Harvest Month
BULL’S BITS . . .
BS TRIVIA:
Q: Which of the following has at one time been an event in the modern Olympic Games (since 1896) – live pigeon shooting, tug-of-war, croquet, dueling pistols.
A: All of them!
BS TAG LINE: A meeting is an event at which the minutes are kept and the hours are lost.
