WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8
NATIONAL HEADLINES:
POLAR VORTEX FREEZES U.S. FOR 2ND DAY
The “polar vortex” continued to freeze most of the country yesterday, bringing record-low temperatures to areas of the Northeast and South. The average temperature in the United States was 29.4 degrees. Wind chill advisories and warnings were in effect for 32 states from Montana to southern Florida. Washington, D.C.was forecasting its coldest morning in 18 years with 5 degrees, and Central Park in New York City broke a 118-year old record yesterday when the temperature dropped to 4 degrees. Meanwhile, hundreds of Amtrak passengers stranded overnight finally arrived in Chicago yesterday. About 300 passengers on two trains got stuck in snow and ice near Mendota, about 80 miles from Chicago. A third train loaded with 217 people spent the night at a BNSF rail yard in Galesburg. Passengers were boarded onto buses for the final leg of their trip. Thankfully, the freezing temperatures are expected to gradually climb through the end of the week.
OBAMA URGES REPUBLICANS TO PASS JOBLESS AID EXTENSION
President Obama pushed Republicans yesterday to support the extension of jobless aid. "Voting for unemployment insurance helps people and creates jobs and voting against it does not," Obama said during remarks at the White House. His speech came shortly after the Senate voted 60-37 to advance a bill to extend unemployment aid for three months. Those jobless benefits were halted on December 28 when Congress failed to reach a deal to continue the program. The president also responded to the argument that extending benefits for the unemployed “saps their motivation to get a new job.” “That really sells the American people short,” Obama said. “I can’t name a time where I met an American who would rather have an unemployment check than the pride of having a job.”
JPMORGAN CHASE AGREES TO PAY $1.7 BILLION TO MADOFF VICTIMS
JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay $1.7 billion to settle criminal charges accusing the bank of blatantly ignoring warning signs of Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. The money will go to victims of Madoff’s fraud. The bank will also be required to admit its failures and reform its anti-money laundering policies. Federal authorities said the settlement represented the largest ever bank forfeiture and the largest Department of Justice penalty for a Bank Secrecy Act violation. Madoff’s scheme was exposed in 2008 and the 75-year-old is currently serving a 150-year prison term.
MORE THAN 100 UNIFORMED PERSONNEL IN NYC CHARGED WITH DISABILITY FRAUD
New York prosecutors announced yesterday that more than 100 retired New York City cops, firefighters and correction officers have been charged with making false disability claims. The officials allegedly claimed to be suffering from depression and anxiety as a result of the 9/11 attacks. Their claims won awards up to $500,000 for the uniformed personnel and cost taxpayers millions of dollars. The arrests capped a two year investigation. Evidence includes recorded phone calls of the suspects being coached on how to behave in front of a medical board and photos of the suspects doing strenuous activity and going on cruises, despite telling doctors they were unable to leave their homes.
MENTALLY ILL TEEN ALLEGEDLY KILLED BY POLICE IN COLD BLOOD
The family of a North Carolina mentally ill teenager is looking for answers after they say the teen was shot and killed by police in cold blood. The family of 18-year-old Keith Vidal called for police assistance Sunday afternoon, saying Vidal was in the midst of a schizophrenic episode. Vidal was holding a small screwdriver and threatening to fight his mother. Two officers arrived on the scene and subdued the 90-pound Vidal, seemingly getting the situation under control. But then the family alleges a third officer arrived and shot Vidal point-blank. He was reportedly heard saying, “I don’t have time for this,” before shooting the teen. That officer has been put on administrative leave while prosecutors investigate.
ROCK NEWS:
METALLICA JOINS LIST OF GRAMMY PERFORMERS
The latest artists added to the ever-expanding long list of acts scheduled to perform at the 56thannual Grammy Awards includes eight-time Grammy winners Metallica. This will be the band’s first performance on the Grammy Awards since 1991. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group will perform with concert pianist and Grammy Cultural Ambassador to China Lang Lang, who last performed on the Grammy stage in 2008. The 56th annual Grammy Awards will air on CBS at 8p on Sunday, January 26.
BLACK LABEL SOCIETY SETS APRIL 8 RELEASE DATE FOR NINTH ALBUM
Fans of Black Label Society can circle April 8 on their calendar because that’s the day the band’s ninth studio effort, Catacombs of the Black Vatican, will be released. On Monday, the Zakk Wylde-led group teased a “big announcement” on their Facebook page, and yesterday diehards learned what that “big announcement” was when the band issued a video teaser for the forthcoming album.
BLACK SABBATH, CONVERSE PARTNER FOR CUSTOM SHOES
Known as the godfathers of heavy metal, the members of Black Sabbath can now lay claim to being the inventors of sole as well. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group and shoemaker Converse have teamed up to create five Sabbath-branded Chuck Taylor All Stars sneakers featuring cover art from four of the band’s Ozzy Osbourne-era albums, Black Sabbath, Paranoid,Vol. 4 and Never Say Die!, as well as logo treatments and photos of the band. The shoes will sell for between $60 and $70.
THE CRYSTAL METHOD SERVE UP TASTE OF SELF-TITLED ALBUM
Revolutionary EDM pioneers The Crystal Method – Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland – will unleash their self-titled album onto the public this Tuesday, January 14, but fans can take the record for a test drive now hypem.com and Pandora.com. The album’s first single, “Over It,” features vocals by The Voice’s season two contestant Dia Frampton, also a member of the indie rock duo Meg & Dia. Finally, The Crystal Method have DJ sets lined up on January 18 in Denver and on the 23rd in New York City.
BLACK LIPS BACK ALBUM RELEASE WITH NORTH AMERICAN ROAD TRIP
Atlanta-bred four-piece the Black Lips will support the March 18 release of their album Underneath the Rainbow with a long North American tour that gets underway March 20 in Pioneertown, CA, north of Palm Springs. The 30+-date road trip will stop in major cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Washington, DC, New York, Boston, Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago before coming to a close at the Austin Psych Fest in Austin, TX May 2-4.
LP, KODALINE LINE UP WINTER NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
Celebrated singer/songwriter LP, who has just wrapped work on her debut album (due in 2015), and Irish rockers Kodaline will set out on a nineteen-date North American tour, starting February 8 in Toronto. The trek will take the two talented acts to cities such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, Dallas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Kansas City and Minneapolis before finishing the run in Chicago on March 7.
BUZZ BREWING AROUND PAUL AND RINGO REUNITING ON LETTERMAN
Could the surviving members of the Beatles be plotting to reunite in New York City in early February? According to showbiz411.com, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are in talks to perform on the Late Show with David Letterman during the first week of February. As most know by now, the Letterman show is taped at the Ed Sullivan Theatre, where the Fab Four made their American debut on February 9, 1964. Letterman’s people are pushing for McCartney and Starr to perform on Friday, February 7, 50 years to the day since the group arrived in America.
SHOWBIZ NEWS:
HONEY BOO BOO & FAMILY INJURED IN CAR ACCIDENT
TMZ reports that Honey Boo Boo and her family were injured in a bad car crash Monday night. Family patriarch Sugar Bear was driving the vehicle, which was struck by a speeding car that had run a red light. Honey Boo Boo, Mama June, Pumpkin and Jessica were all passengers in the car, and were taken to a local hospital. “As many of you have heard we were in a car accident last night," said Mama June in a statement. "It was really scary for us, since it was the first time any of us had ever been in a wreck. We are definitely really sore today, but our top priority is to celebrate Pumpkin’s birthday. She turned 14 today and no matter how sore we feel we are going to go out and celebrate. As always we want to thank everyone for their support and well wishes.” According to Pumpkin, who suffered severe chest bruises, Sugar Bear and Mama June sustained back injuries, while Honey Boo Boo had a headache.
JAKE GYLLENHAAL SINGLE
Jake Gyllenhaal is back on the market. Us Weekly reports that the Brokeback Mountain star andSports Illustrated model Alyssa Miller have called it quits after six months of dating. "They fizzled out. It happened a while ago — before the holidays," an insider tells Us. "He's back on the scene." Apparently Jake’s career may have gotten in the way of their romance. "Things were really good between Jake and Alyssa right up until he had to leave for L.A. to go shoot a movie [Nightcrawler] in the fall," claims another source. "Then the distance just really got to them.”
EMILY MAYNARD ENGAGED
Former Bachelorette Emily Maynard is engaged again. Us Weekly reports that Emily is marrying boyfriend Tyler Johnson, who she began dating last year. Johnson popped the question January 4th with five diamond-studded bands. "I've had enough engagement rings,” she joked, adding, “He proposed to me at home and gave both (her daughter) Ricki and me rings. It was so sweet! Ricki loves him more than she likes me!" Emily was previously engaged to The Bachelor’s Brad Womack, but they split after less than a year. Then she got engaged to her Bachelorette pick Jef Holm, but they broke up a few months after the show’s finale. She was also engaged to Ricki’s father, race car driver Ricky Hendrick, but he died in a plane crash in 2004.
PREGNANT JWOWW THOUGHT SHE HAD MISCARRIAGE
Jersey Shore star Jenni “JWoww” Farley has opened up about how she found out she was pregnant, and the scare she had early in her pregnancy. In a post on her blog, JWoww said she took a few pregnancy tests but, “I got faint lines but they were barely visible so I still wasn’t sure” and fiancé Roger Matthews was “skeptical.” Jenni and Roger then traveled to Nashville withSnooki for a work trip and before the flight Jenni thought she may have been having a miscarriage. “When I went to the bathroom, I saw blood and panicked. So many thoughts were running through my head,” she explained. “I felt a loss like no other when I thought that I was no longer pregnant. I whispered it to Roger and for that whole ride we just stared straight ahead and didn’t say a word. I went to bed that night in Nashville praying it was just a thing that happens.” When Jenni landed, her manager bought her a “stupid proof test” and she discovered she was indeed pregnant. “I cried and Roger looked like he was going to pass out,” she writes. “That day in Nashville I was on cloud nine.”
ARQUETTE EXPECTING A BOY
David Arquette and girlfriend Christina McLarty are expecting a baby boy, according to David’s ex Courteney Cox. “They're going to have a baby boy," Cox revealed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. "I hope I'm allowed to say that." As for whether her daughter Coco is happy about having a new sibling, the Cougar Town star explained, “Yeah, she's really excited. At first she was nervous because, you know, it's a big deal. At first, I was nervous, I was like woo, heavy.” But, Courteney says, “Now it's great and we actually all had dinner the other night. The whole family. It's a very unique relationship. All of us like literally, me and Christina and David and Coco. It's great though."
JESS PRAISES HUBBY’S NAKED BODY
Jessica Simpson opens up about her relationship with fiancé Eric Johnson in this month’sRedbook magazine. “I’ve learned that sometimes love is not enough,” says the mother-of-two. “You can have a soul mate and be madly in love with that person, but it’s not necessarily enough. I think you have to have personalities that mesh well. You have to be the yin to their yang. You also have to be open to figuring things out together and communicating — even when it’s the last thing you want to do.” Plus, she adds, “I have to admit, it doesn’t hurt that Eric is one of the hottest men I’ve ever seen — and he looks amazing naked!”
LAWRENCE BLAMES FOOD FOR OSCAR FALL
Jennifer Lawrence is on the cover of W magazine and inside she explains what was going through her head when she tripped on the way to accept her Best Actress Oscar last year. “I was at the Oscars, waiting to hear if my name was called, and I kept thinking, Cakewalk, cakewalk, cakewalk. I thought, Why is ‘cakewalk’ stuck in my head?,” she explained. “And then, as I started to walk up the stairs and the fabric from my dress tucked under my feet, I realized my stylist had told me, ‘Kick, walk, kick, walk.’ You are supposed to kick the dress out while you walk, and I totally forgot because I was thinking about cake! And that’s why I fell.”
12 YEARS A SLAVE DIRECTOR HECKLED
12 Years a Slave director Steve McQueen was heckled Monday night at the 79th Annual Film Critics Circle Awards in New York City. As McQueen was accepting the Best Director prize, controversial CityArts editor Armond White reportedly shouted from his table, “You’re an embarrassing doorman and garbage man,” adding. “F—you. Kiss my ass.” McQueen didn’t acknowledge the comments (some say he likely didn’t even hear them), and went on to thank the critics’ group. Armond infamously panned 12 Years A Slave earlier this year, calling it “torture porn.” And this isn’t the first time he’s thrown a fit at the annual gala. In 2012 he heckled Robert DeNiro and Viola Davis as they were speaking, and reportedly made Annette Bening cry during the 2011 show.
LILY TOMLIN WEDS
Lily Tomlin is a married woman. A rep for the comedienne confirms Tomlin married Jane Wagner, her partner of 42 years, on New Year’s Eve. The news was first broken by columnist Liz Smithwho wrote, “Lily Tomlin and her love, the writer Jane Wagner, got married on the eve of 2014. My wish is that their happiness will be as great as their combined talents." The couple began dating while working on Tomlin’s Grammy-winning comedy album This is a Recording.
SHEEN BASHES KUTCHER AGAIN
Charlie Sheen continues to take potshots at Ashton Kutcher on Twitter. Over the weekend, Charlie called him Jon Cryer’s “lame sidekick” and on Monday, Charlie continued the assault on his Two and a Half Men replacement. “Hey Ashton,” he tweeted. “Sorry bro all good now quit barfing on my brilliant show.” He then added, “Remember Punk’d? how duz it feel?” (Punk’d was the MTV hidden camera show produced by Kutcher.)
FALLON SWEARS BY MICHAELS
Jimmy Fallon says as a teenager he was obsessed with the idea of being on Saturday Night Liveand would watch the show completely alone so he could study it. “No small talk. I wanted to see the sketches, the new characters, what the angle was,” he told Vanity Fair. Once he got on the show, producer Lorne Michaels, who will also produce Fallon’s Tonight Show, became more than just a mentor. “Lorne helped me with everything — with relationships, with me getting famous. I was going through certain steps, and there were certain things I couldn’t talk to my dad about, because he wouldn’t know,” said Jimmy. “Like ‘I have money now. Do I still rent? Do I buy an apartment?’ Or ‘I’m in L.A., and I have to rent a car’….Or ‘Should I date this actress?’” Adds Jimmy, “And he’d be totally right.” The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon premieres February 17th.
SOAP ACTOR’S CO-STAR THREATENED TO GO TO COPS IF HE WASN’T FIRED
It was revealed earlier this week that The Young & the Restless fan favorite Michael Muhney, who played Adam Newman for four years, was fired from the CBS soap opera last month after he allegedly groped co-star Hunter King’s breasts on two occasions. Reports now claim that after the second incident, Hunter, who plays Adam’s niece Summer, actually went to network bosses and gave them an ultimatum, telling them she’d go to the police if Muhney wasn’t fired. Muhney, who also had disagreements with longtime Y&R star Eric Braeden, was promptly axed. The network reportedly encouraged Hunter to go to the cops anyway but she has yet to file a police report. Meanwhile, fans are still upset over Muhney’s firing. In fact, a Facebook page is trying to raise money to fly a banner over CBS headquarters in LA demanding his return.
ELLE GETS FLACK FOR KALING COVER
Elle magazine has come under fire for its recent cover featuring comedienne Mindy Kaling. Mindy,Amy Poehler, Zooey Deschanel and Allison Williams each received their own covers for Elle’sWomen in TV issue. The problem? Kaling, the only woman of color, is featured in a close-up, black and white shot, whereas the other three women have full-color, full-body photos. Critics suggest the magazine purposely cropped Mindy’s image because she has a fuller figure. But Elle defended the cover, writing, “Mindy looks sexy, beautiful and chic. We think it is a striking and sophisticated cover and are thrilled to celebrate her in our Women in TV Issue." Mindy seemed to take the whole thing in stride, tweeting yesterday, “Wishing for more skin on my @ELLEmagazine cover? [Costar] Chris Messina & I are naked on a brand new #themindyproject tonight, ya pervs! 930/830 FOX." She later added, “I love my @ELLEmagazine cover. It made me feel glamorous & cool. And if anyone wants to see more of my body, go on thirteen dates with me.”
McCARTHY DEBUTS NEW ‘DO
Jenny McCarthy has a new look for the new year. After asking her Twitter followers on Sunday, “should I go short or short short or short short short?,” she posted a picture of her new look and asked fans to let her know “if you like my haircut.” Then on Monday’s The View Jenny explained her reason for chopping off her locks. "I did this hairdo, by the way, because I was so tired of the extensions," she said. "I'm like, 'I just want to feel a little bit more authentic this year, more real." She then joked that she may be ready for some more changes. "The boobs might go next, I'm not sure," she said. "The nails are gone, the extensions are gone—I'm slowly working my way to being [more natural]."
FIRE BREAKS OUT AT HAWAII FIVE-O’S STAR’S HOME
A fire broke out at the Oahu home of Hawaii Five-O star Alex O’Loughlin Monday. The fire was caused by an explosion in his garage. Fifty firefighters responded to the blaze which was extinguished in less than 30 minutes. O’Loughlin was not home at the time. There was reportedly over $100,000 worth of damage, but only to the garage, not the house.
SCHWARZENEGGER ONCE FLASHED INTERN
Top wardrobe designer Warden Neil tells the New York Post that Arnold Schwarzenegger once flashed one of his interns during the making of the 1980 TV movie The Jayne Mansfield Story. “I got a young intern . . . Her parents even flew to meet me to make sure everything was good . . . We’re heading towards Arnold’s trailer for a wardrobe fitting, and she knocks on the door and goes,‘Hi, Arnold. Are you decent?’ And he goes, ‘Yes, come in,’” said Neil. “He’s standing there stark naked and she bursts into tears and runs from the trailer. He burst out laughing, thinking it was the funniest thing.” A rep for Arnold says the story is “100% false.”
GRAMMER GETS PERMANENT RESTRAINING ORDER AGAINST EX
Camille Grammer has been given a permanent restraining order against ex-boyfriend Dimitri Charalambopoulos. Camille claims Dimitri assaulted her last October at a hotel in Houston. The restraining order prevents Dimitri from contacting or coming within 100 yards of Camille or her family for the next three years. Dimitri has been charged with assault of a family member and impeding breath, which are both felonies in Texas. He has denied the charges and claims he was acting in self-defense.
TV TIDBITS
● NBC has given a six-episode order to Mr. Robinson, a new comedy starring The Office’s Craig Robinson. He’ll play a musician-turned-middle-school-teacher.
● ABC Family is moving forward with a new series starring 90210 co-stars Tori Spelling andJennie Garth. The show, Mystery Girls, has the two actresses playing starlets from a 90s detective series who come together to solve real-life mysteries. The series is expected to premiere later this year.
MISCELLANEOUS MOVIE NEWS
● Angelina Jolie is reportedly being courted to play TV chef Nigella Lawson on the big screen. Producers are said to be keen on nabbing the 38-year-old Oscar winner to play the Taste judge, who divorced her husband Charles Saatchi last year after he was seen choking her in public. The film is expected to include the recent fraud trial that saw two of Nigella’s former assistants accuse her of cocaine abuse.
● Mo’Nique has signed on for her first film since winning the Best Supporting Actress Oscar forPrecious back in 2009. The comedienne will star in Blackbird, playing an unsupportive mom to a young gay son in a conservative Mississippi town.
● William Hurt will play an older Gregg Allman in Midnight Rider, an adaptation of Allman’s memoir My Cross to Bear. All American Rejects frontman Tyson Ritter is already on board to play a young Allman, with Wyatt Russell (Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell’s son) playing Duane Allman. Production is set to begin in February.
● Nominees for the Directors Guild of America Awards were announced yesterday. Nominees include: Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity; Paul Greengrass for Captain Phillips; Steve McQueen for12 Years A Slave; David O. Russell for American Hustle and Martin Scorsese for The Wolf of Wall Street. The winner will be announced Saturday, January 25th.
