2/3/2023: Masks are for Uggos
2/3/2023: Masks are for Uggos
PLUS: The Oldest Dog Ever, Jessica Simpson’s Mystery Flame, and the Church of Kris
Today is Friday, February 3, 2023.
It is the 34th day of the year.
331 days remain.
WHAT’S ON TAP
The Chinese appear to be openly spying on the United States from the air and Guinness has found the oldest-ever recorded dog. More in HIT LIST.
More creepy texts from HUNTER BIDEN and an obscure former mayor enters the 2024 presidential fray. More in THE SWAMP.
ALISON BRIE is proud of her body and RUPERT GRINT wants to raise a Potterhead. More in SHOWBIZ.
KRIS JENNER officiates a surprise vow renewal. More in KARDASH.
Australia takes another step to distance itself from the British Monarchy. More in ROYALS.
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HIT LIST
A Chinese spy balloon has been reportedly floating over the northern United States for a few days this week.
The Wall Street Journal reports it was first spotted two days ago by the US military. President JOE BIDEN has proposed shooting it down but the Pentagon has opposed doing so over fear of civilian casualties.
Expect this story to continue to develop. [via WSJ]
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A new effort to analyze DNA found in soil samples from northern Greenland shed some light on what the area was like two million years ago.
Their findings suggest a lush Arctic landscape full of plants and animals, including the now-extinct Mastodon living alongside various types of reindeer and caribou, geese, hares, and lemmings, and likely horseshoe crabs and green algae. It’s believed average temperatures were 20 to 34 degrees warmer than they are now in the area.
HOWEVER: The samples can’t determine whether these animals all lived concurrently. [via Fox News]
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Here’s one reason to keep up 24/7 mask-wearing: You’re ugly.
A study out of Seoul National University in South Korea found that people who do not view themselves as particularly attractive believe that surgical masks enhance their looks.
“Our findings suggest that mask-wearing can shift from being a self-protection measure during the COVID-19 pandemic to a self-presentation tactic in the post-pandemic era,” the study concludes. [via Frontiers in Psychology]
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Three different men have reported getting knocked unconscious and robbed after visiting the same gay bar in New York City.
The separate incidents happened in October and November, and each time the men were out between $1,000 and $5,000.
HERE’S THE THING: They believe that after getting drugged and passing out, the perpetrator used their phone’s Face ID technology to login and use apps like Venmo or PayPal to drain their digital wallets.
Two other people who stayed at a hotel near the bar, but did not patronize it, report similar robbery schemes. Investigators believe the same group of criminals are running the con. [via NBC News]
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Bobi the Dog is not just the oldest living dog, he’s the oldest dog ever recorded.
As of today he’s 30 years, 268 days old, beating the last record of 29 years, 5 months, set by an Australian cattle dog that died in 1939.
Bobi has spent his life in a rural village in Portugal, much of it with the same family. Veterinary records confirm he was born on May 11, 1992. Bobi’s owners say he’s never been attached to a leash and has been free to roam through forests and farmlands. [via Guinness World Records]
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CHARTS
What’s Streaming This Weekend
New to Netflix:
“Bad Boys” & “Bad Boys II”
“Call Me by Your Name”
“Enough”
“It”
“Julie & Julia”
“La La Land”
“Lord of the Rings” trilogy
“Spanglish”
“Stepmom”
New to HBO:
A bunch of James Bond flicks
“Scary Movie” 1-3
“Superbad”
“Taxi Driver”
“Tommy Boy”
“Wayne’s World” 1-2
New to Hulu:
“The Green Mile”
“The Help”
“Something’s Gotta Give”
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DEATHS
Pro-wrestling star “Leaping” LANNY POFFO has died.
“Hacksaw” JIM DUGGAN made the announcement on Instagram Thursday but shared no cause of death.
Poffo was 68.
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BREAKUPS
NE-YO has finalized his divorce from CRYSTAL RENAY.
She’ll get a $1.6 million lump sum and $20,000 for moving expenses, and hold on to one of their houses in Georgia.
Ne-Yo will also shell out $150,000 so Renay can buy a new car, since he gets to keep their 2022 Bentley Bentayga.
All this on top of $5,000 a month in alimony for Renay for the next three years and $12,000 a month for childcare.
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WEDDINGS
“The Bachelor” Season 18 contestant CLARE CRAWLEY has married Mascot Sports CEO RYAN DAWKINS. She’s 41, he’s 47.
The pair got hitched on Wednesday at a small ceremony in Sacramento, California.
Crawley said earlier in the week that her wedding dress had been stolen from her car, but word is she still got her hands on a dress for her “dream” wedding look in time for the nuptials.
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THE SWAMP
As reported yesterday, HUNTER BIDEN’s lawyers are pursuing federal lawsuits against the people involved with sharing the data found on his laptop, accusing them of privacy violations.
WORTH NOTING: This is a tacit acknowledgement that the laptop is real.
WORTH ASKING: When will the “intelligence community” doorknobs who said in October 2020 the laptop story was a Russian misinformation hoax apologize for lying? And will they be held accountable.
MEANWHILE: Now that the laptop data has been validated, the Daily Mail reports that Hunter withheld one of his assistant’s salaried pay unless she stripped naked on a video chat.
“If we [FaceTime] the rule has to be no talk of anything but sex and we must be naked and we have to do whatever the other person asks within reason,” he wrote, as he sent her $1,250.
By the Mail’s tally, this is the fourth staffer Hunter had sexual interaction with. [via Daily Mail]
ALSO: Not only was Hunter shtupping his dead brother’s wife, but her sister, too, according to text messages.
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The former mayor of Cranson, Rhode Island has announced his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.
STEVE LAFFEY released a video outlining his platform of facing the country’s financial problems head on, including reforming social security. He now lives in Colorado.
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BY THE NUMBERS
📈 The DOW lost 39 points (0.11%) to close at 34,053 on Thursday. The S&P added 60 points (1.47%) to close at 4,179 and the NASDAQ added 384 points (3.25%) to close at 12,200; it was buoyed in large part by a 23% stock surge for META.
🛢 WEST TEXAS INTERMEDIATE closed at $76; BRENT CRUDE at $82.
⛽ The average price of a GALLON OF GAS was $3.49 on Thursday.
₿ BITCOIN slipped on Thursday, trading around $23,500.
🛩 There were more than 3,080 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Thursday and more than 770 such cancellations.
💰Thursday night’s MEGA MILLIONS was for $20 million or a $10.6 million cash payout. Saturday night’s POWERBALL is for $700 million or a $375.7 million cash payout.
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SHOWBIZ NEWS
These albums drop this week:
John Frusciante, “I” and “II”
RAYE, “My 21st Century Blues”
Shania Twain, “Queen of Me”
Sunny War, “Anarchist Gospel”
The Go! Team, “Get Up Sequences Part Two”
Young Fathers, “Heavy Heavy”
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ALISON BRIE says she wrote a scene for her character in the upcoming flick “Somebody I Used to Know” to go streaking because she has an affinity for running around naked in real-life.
“At CalArts I was a big streaker. And even in my adult life, I find it to be quite hilarious. I'm a very comfortable naked person,” she tells People Magazine. Brie co-wrote the film with husband DAVE FRANCO. [via People]
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RUPERT GRINT tells GQ Hype his 2-year-daughter has a pair of her own “Harry Potter”-style robes – and that they’ve got the Gryffindor house emblem.
Grint added that he’s shown his daughter clips from the movies but that she doesn’t quite understand it’s a younger version of her dad on screen – though he says he looks forward to watching the series with her when she’s older. [via GQ]
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ASHTON KUTCHER tells Esquire he recently attended a house party with wife MILA KUNIS and was blown away by a party guest singing Karaoke. After the performance, Kutcher complimented the singer, who he says was gracious and appreciative.
TURNS OUT: That singer was HARRY STYLES – and Kunis had to point out that Harry’s actually a pretty big deal.
Kutcher, for his part, used the interview with Esquire to humbly apologize: “I just really want to say I'm sorry, Harry Styles. But you're really good at karaoke, man. Seriously, like really good.” [via Esquire]
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In a new essay, JESSICA SIMPSON reveals she was pursued by an A-List actor – but is keeping mum on who it was.
She said that she and the mystery man first connected in 2001 while she and NICK LACHEY were on a break, and then they reconnected after their divorce in 2006. They reconnected at the Beverly Hills Hotel and they had a torrid romance, but she ultimately felt like an on-demand booty call for the high profile Hollywood stud, and she shut things down. [via E!]
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MALIA OBAMA is reportedly thriving in the writers’ room for the Amazon show “Swarm.”
In an interview with Vanity Fair, the show’s co-creator, JANINE NABERS, says the former First Daughter is “an incredible writer and artist. We really wanted to give her the opportunity to get her feet wet in TV and see if this is something she wants to continue doing.”
“Swarm” tells the story of a young pop music fan obsessed with a pop star who’s a fictional version of BEYONCÉ. [via Vanity Fair]
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CASTING CALL
“The Terminal List” starring CHRIS PRATT is getting both a second season on Amazon Prime and a spinoff prequel series.
Pratt bought the rights to the 2018 novel of the same name on the recommendation of a Navy SEAL buddy he first met while training for his role in “Zero Dark Thirty.” The show’s first season was a big win for Amazon Prime, reaching the number two slot in Nielsen’s weekly Top 10 streaming charts after it debuted in July.
No word yet on premiere dates or plots. [via Deadline]
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SYLVESTER STALLONE and family are officially getting a reality series on Paramount+.
The eight-part first season will follow Stallone, wife JENNIFER FLAVIN, and their three daughters. They’ve all hinted at the show for a few weeks now, but Paramount has officially made the announcement. They’re also appearing in a Super Bowl ad to promote the show. [via DailyMail]
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In the upcoming MARVEL flick “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” main character Scott Lang, played by PAUL RUDD, writes a book. That book, titled “Look Out for the Little Guy!” is now available for pre-order on Amazon as a real memoir.
The book reportedly follows stories from Lang’s perspective about joining The Avengers and fighting in the battles depicted in the movies. [via Variety]
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COURT CASES
NICK CARTER has filed a countersuit against the woman who accused him of sexual battery in the early-2000s. Carter’s suit wants $2.35 million in damages, mainly for the destruction caused to the reputation of the BACKSTREET BOYS and canceled gigs and endorsement deals stemming from the allegations.
He maintains his innocence and says the accuser has changed her story multiple times. [via TMZ]
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A civil lawsuit against KYLE RITTENHOUSE can move forward. The suit was filed by the father of Anthony Huber, one of the men Rittenhouse killed in self defense during the 2020 Kenosha riots, and accuses Rittenhouse of conspiring with law enforcement to harm protestors.
Rittenhouse was found not guilty of all charges in November 2021.
WORTH REMEMBERING: Huber tried to beat Rittenhouse with a skateboard. He was previously convicted on domestic abuse charges for assaulting his brother and sister.
WORTH NOTING: Rittenhouse’s lawyers wanted to dismiss the suit on the grounds he was not properly served. A process server eventually handed papers to Rittenhouse’s sister in Florida after logging more than 100 hours trying to track him down. Wisconsin far-left federal judge Lynn Adelman has allowed the suit to proceed anyway. [via AP]
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THE DAILY KARDASHOPUS
KRIS JENNER officiated a vow renewal ceremony for ELLEN DEGENERES and PORTIA DE ROSSI on Tuesday.
The event was a surprise for Ellen, who apparently thought she was walking into Portia’s birthday party. De Rossi wore the same dress from the first wedding in 2008.
BRANDI CARLILE was on hand to sing for the couple. The whole thing was filmed for Ellen’s Youtube channel, which you can watch here >
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WE’LL NEVER BE ROYALS
Australia remains a member of the British Commonwealth, but it’s getting rid of the British Monarch from its currency.
The current portrait of QUEEN ELIZABETH II has appeared only on the $5 dollar Aussie note since 1992. With Her Majesty’s passing, Australia will instead use a design honoring indigenous culture. Australia stopped using the British monarch on all paper notes in 1953. [via AFP]
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A new book by British journalist VALENTINE LOW – he’s the same guy who broke the story about MEGAN MARKLE bullying palace staff – says that PRINCE HARRY was so paranoid he would subject palace staff to “loyalty tests.”
Whenever British media published a story that made him look bad, he would question the loyalty of aides and staff who weren’t committed to fighting back as hard as he wanted them to. The unending frustration with his staff led to their exhaustion over all the mistrust and paranoia.
HERE’S ONE WAY TO AVOID HAVING NEGATIVE STORIES PUBLISHED ABOUT YOU: Don’t wear a Nazi uniform as a Halloween costume.
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LIST OF THE WEEK
A graphic about more insane language policing has been making the rounds on Twitter this week. Here’s some highlights from the document about “Evolving From Violent Language”:
Instead of “pull the trigger,” say, “going to launch”
It’s not “jump the gun,” it’s “start to soon.”
Don’t assign a “deadline,” give a “due date.”
Overworked managers will no longer “pick battles,” but instead “choose opportunities.”
Don’t “shoot” a message to a friend, “send” it instead.
Language policing like this is not “overkill,” it’s “excessive.”
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DAY OF THE YEAR
National Give Kids a Smile Day
The Day the Music Died
National Women Physicians Day
National Carrot Cake Day
National Golden Retriever Day
National Bubble Gum Day
World Read Aloud Day
National Working Naked Day
National Wear Red Day
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ON THIS DATE
1781 – American troops under Nathanael Green cross the Yadkin River using flat-bottomed skiffs designed by a Polish engineer and military advisor.
The retreat came after demoralizing defeats against British troops at the Catawba River and Tarrant's Tavern.
Many of the highways were packed with citizens trying to escape the wrath of infamous British Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton.
The river crossing made a swift escape possible.
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1865 – Terms of ending the Civil War are discussed at the Hampton Roads conference.
It marked the meeting of Abraham Lincoln and a Confederate delegation. Lincoln refused to negotiate or concede anything to the splintered confederate states, and the meeting ended in just a few hours.
The Confederates did not think Lincoln would actually hold his ground on ending slavery.
The meeting followed two similar encounters between a Union delegate and Confederate President Jefferson Davis. In those meetings, the Union delegate suggested combining forces to beat French troops in Mexico, both countries united behind a common enemy.
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1959 – The day the music died.
American rock stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. Richardson died when their chartered plane crashed in Iowa just a couple minutes after taking off from Mason City enroute to Minnesota.
An investigation concluded that bad weather and pilot error were responsible for the crash.
The crash was later memorialized by Don McLean in his song, “American Pie.”
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1966 – The Soviets put a probe on the moon in a controlled landing. Previously they had rocketed probes into the Moon that crashed into the lunar surface.
When the spacecraft, named Lunik 9, landed it transmitted photos and television images back to Earth.
The whole capsule weighed only 220 pounds.
The U.S. actually trailed the Soviets in moon exploration until finally putting a man on the moon in 1969.
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1993 - The federal trial of the four police officers charged with civil rights violations in the beating of Rodney King begins in Los Angeles.
The officers had been acquitted of excessive force charges the year prior. The decision sparked massive riots in the city.
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2002 – The New England Patriots win their first Super Bowl.
They defeated the St. Louis Rams 20-17.
Over the next 16 years, the team won five more titles, tying them for the sixth-most all-time Super Bowl wins with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The team also won nine AFC championships over that stretch.
2019 - The Patriots win their most recent Super Bowl victory, against the (now Los Angeles) Rams, 13-3.
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BIRTHDAYS
Sean Kingston - singer - 33
Elizabeth Holmes - Theranos founder and fraudster - 39
Bridget Regan - actress - 41
Amal Clooney - activist, married to George - 45
Daddy Yankee - singer - 46
Isla Fisher - actress - 47
Warwick Davis - actor - 53
Nathan Lane - actor - 67
Born on This Date
Beau Biden - son of Joe - 1969 (d. 2015)
Norman Rockwell - artist - 1894 (d. 1978)
Ferdinand Magellan - explorer - 1480 (d. 1521)
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