Who, What, When, Where?!: Miscellaneous Celebrity News 2.0

[Bastet]

12 minutes ago, aghst said:

Supposedly Denzel, Will and one other guy

Tyler Perry.

12 minutes ago, aghst said:

They don't come across as especially religious.

One of the few things I know about Denzel Washington off-screen is he's quite Christian.  Same with Tyler Perry.  I have no idea about Will Smith.

[Zella]

I've seen a lot of fellow comedians complain that Leno was a much more experimental and funnier standup comedian before he was on TV than he ever was on TV and essentially called him a sellout for that. I've never seen any of his material from his pre-TV career.

As a teenager back in the day, I used to watch a bit of Leno and Letterman with my dad, and our joint opinion was that Letterman was funnier but he was also a colossal asshole, which sometimes was amusing and often was not. Leno came across as more of a suck-up to his guests, which I've never cared for an interviewer. But Letterman could be downright hostile for no reason sometimes, and that's not appealing either to me. 

[katie9918]

Letterman and Conan, along with Leno and my personal all time favorite Craig Ferguson, were much better than the trolls currently polluting light night tv.

[Ms Blue Jay]

Ahhh, the light night.  Always good for kids.  

I don't know, I watched Letterman when I was a kid and I never got that asshole vibe.  If a guest was giving him absolutely NOTHING, then yeah, he gave it back to them a bit by being silly or sarcastic or making the audience laugh.  Remember, this was the 90s.  A lot of guests were absolutely strung out and acted like they didn't want to be there.  I don't even know why they were.

It was a far cry from today when people go on to excitedly pimp their projects and introduce clips.  That never happened back in the day.  The guests would always act as if they had no idea what the hosts were talking about when they would bring up the clip.  It was like they were forced to attend by the studio.  And it was always this awkward game.

Edited April 3, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[Zella]

13 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Remember, this was the 90s. 

I was watching around 2002 to 2007, and I'd say it got worse/more noticeable toward the later period toward guests who didn't seem to deserve the bile. Not sure if he was tired of having the show or what the deal was. I did see him occasionally dish out to people who deserved the snark, and that was glorious. 

Edited April 3, 2022 by Zella

[Vermicious Knid]

Craig Ferguson also kept a little TARDIS on his desk.

Steven Wright doesn't seem to do much standup these days but his humor was wonderfully surreal and absurdist.

Glad to hear people are putting Will Smith's projects on hold. It probably won't last long but that will be more of a consequence that whatever the Academy does. And it hits him where it hurts, right in the money. Also lost a lot of respect for Denzel here. He didn't bother to check on Chris did he?

[Anduin]

5 hours ago, GaT said:

Will Smith Projects Reportedly Paused, Hit Back Burner Post-Oscars Slap

Also, Denzel Washington Explains His 'Devil' Quote After Will Smith Slap

Soooo, the devil made him do it?

Typical Hollywood hypocrisy. They all like to act like they're so perfect, they always keep themselves under control, how dare someone have a bad moment. If I were a producer, I'd drop the offensive Chris Rock in a heartbeat. Will Smith was provoked.

[MsTree]

4 minutes ago, Anduin said:

Typical Hollywood hypocrisy. They all like to act like they're so perfect, they always keep themselves under control, how dare someone have a bad moment. If I were a producer, I'd drop the offensive Chris Rock in a heartbeat. Will Smith was provoked.

WS being provoked is debatable...but regardless of one's opinion on that, it's NEVER an excuse to get physically violent on anyone!  

[aradia22]

Quote

He adds, "Conversely, when the devil comes at you, maybe it's because you're trying to do something right. And for whatever reason, the devil got ahold of him that night."

I don't know. I'm not even religious and this makes perfect sense to me. Not as an ideology I personally subscribe to but I feel like people were making a big deal out of pretending they didn't get it. Even if you haven't heard very religious people talk, Western culture is steeped in Biblical allegory. Money is the devil. Pride is the devil. Lust is the devil. Greed/avarice is the devil. All these temptations to sin and abandon your principles and your faith and what you know is right. I'm sure some people think there's a literal devil putting a bad joke in Chris Rock's ear the way some people think God is sitting around handing out blessings and miracles. But it doesn't mean they think they're actually bargaining with Mephistopheles. 

Quote

If I was Denzel I'd be pissed at Will immediately airing out my advice for the whole world to hear.  

I do think Will bringing it up in the speech was awkward (Denzel didn't need to be part of that rambling mess) because for all that people thank God in their speeches, we're not really used to entertainment types being so openly religious.

[andromeda331]

27 minutes ago, aradia22 said:

I don't know. I'm not even religious and this makes perfect sense to me. Not as an ideology I personally subscribe to but I feel like people were making a big deal out of pretending they didn't get it. Even if you haven't heard very religious people talk, Western culture is steeped in Biblical allegory. Money is the devil. Pride is the devil. Lust is the devil. Greed/avarice is the devil. All these temptations to sin and abandon your principles and your faith and what you know is right. I'm sure some people think there's a literal devil putting a bad joke in Chris Rock's ear the way some people think God is sitting around handing out blessings and miracles. But it doesn't mean they think they're actually bargaining with Mephistopheles. 

I do think Will bringing it up in the speech was awkward (Denzel didn't need to be part of that rambling mess) because for all that people thank God in their speeches, we're not really used to entertainment types being so openly religious.

I'm a Christian and while I do believe in the devil.  I'm skeptical whenever it's brought up because I'm more use to people using blaming the devil as a way to excuse their own actions or not take responsibility for things they do. The exact well it wasn't Chris Rock's fault it was the devil. It's not Will Smith's fault for smacking him. It was the devil. 

[Anduin]

1 hour ago, MsTree said:

WS being provoked is debatable...but regardless of one's opinion on that, it's NEVER an excuse to get physically violent on anyone!  

You've never been pushed too far, have you? How fortunate.

Actually, I realised that all those Hollywood bigwigs are scared. They've all trodden on a few toes on their way up. All told a few offensive jokes. If the victims ever sought revenge for their wrongs, all the powerful types would really be up the creek. If they can punish Will Smith for their own behaviour, they can hold back the day of reckoning just that little bit longer.

[merylinkid]

Chris Rock's joke was in poor taste.  If Will Smith hadn't  slapped him we would all be criticizing Rock for it.  Which should have been the appropriate  response.  Instead Smith chose violence which then made the discussion about him.  

[Blergh]

I'm sorry I didn't post this at the time but I think we all could use some GOOD news so here it is:

On Thursday, March 31,2022, the very prolific performer (in radio, theater, movies and television from the 1930s to 2020) William Daniels celebrated his 95th Birthday alongside his wife of 70 years, the 92-year-old performer Bonnie Bartlett and together they reflected on how they worked through some tough times and had worked hard on their careers but are now enjoying their twilight years with each other and their family. Thankfully, they evidently are in good health, have their faculties and  seem to be comfortably living off their performing nest eggs and occasionally participating in meets-and-greets with  colleagues and fans of their respective shows. However, thanks to his Boy Meets World costar Will Friedel keeping them up with the times, Mr. Daniels is currently performing in a new media via making Cameo vids for fans  that  Miss Bartlett says they use the resulting windfalls  to happily fund the people and causes close to their hearts! 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffconway/2022/03/31/mr-feeny-actor-william-daniels-turns-95-beside-his-wife-bonnie-of-70-years-i-am-really-a-very-lucky-guy/?sh=686f0bb67d2c

Edited April 3, 2022 by Blergh

[praeceptrix]

9 minutes ago, Blergh said:

I'm sorry I didn't post this at the time but I think we all use some GOOD news so here it is:

On Thursday, March 31,2022, the very prolific performer (in radio, theater, movies and television from the 1930s to 2020) William Daniels celebrated his 95th Birthday alongside his wife of 70 years, the 92-year-old performer Bonnie Bartlett and together they reflected on how they worked through some tough times and had worked hard on their careers but are now enjoying their twilight years with each other and their family. Thankfully, they seem to be comfortably living off their performing nest eggs and occasionally participating in meets-and-greets with  colleagues and fans of their respective shows. However, thanks to his Boy Meets World costar Will Friedel keeping them up with the times, Mr. Daniels is currently performing in a new media via making Cameo vids for fans  that  Miss Bartlett says they use the resulting windfalls  to happily fund the people and causes close to their hearts! 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffconway/2022/03/31/mr-feeny-actor-william-daniels-turns-95-beside-his-wife-bonnie-of-70-years-i-am-really-a-very-lucky-guy/?sh=686f0bb67d2c

It's good to hear (read?) that they are doing well. I didn't watch Boy Meets World but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing them together and separately over the decades. I particularly liked them in St. Elsewhere and thinking about Mr. Daniels' John Adams in 1776 always makes me smile.

[SuprSuprElevated]

7 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

It probably won't last long but that will be more of a consequence that whatever the Academy does

Far more of a consequence to the support employees on these projects, than to WS.  IMO, this is hardly more than damage control and image polishing for the studios/networks.

[SusanM]

16 minutes ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

IMO, this is hardly more than damage control and image polishing for the studios/networks.

Probably true - but the outcry that would have resulted had the studios not at least temporarily halted these productions wouldn't have been pretty.

I'm not sure what people are expecting at this point.  

[Guest]

10 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I don't know, I watched Letterman when I was a kid and I never got that asshole vibe.  If a guest was giving him absolutely NOTHING, then yeah, he gave it back to them a bit by being silly or sarcastic or making the audience laugh.  Remember, this was the 90s.  A lot of guests were absolutely strung out and acted like they didn't want to be there.  I don't even know why they were.

This was also the 90’s and there is no justification I can imagine.

The number of clips of on YouTube if him being creepy with women is astounding. It wasn’t generally viewed as creepy at the time because most people didn’t think about how the woman felt. 

[Mabinogia]

9 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Craig Ferguson also kept a little TARDIS on his desk.

Like I didn't already have enough reasons to love the guy. lol

I don't watch late night talk shows, but of the clips I've seen, Craig Ferguson is my favorite. He comes across as very fun and personable and not like he's trying too hard to be the funniest person in the room.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, SusanM said:

Probably true - but the outcry that would have resulted had the studios not at least temporarily halted these productions wouldn't have been pretty.

I'm not sure what people are expecting at this point.

It think the problem is that there has been enough a delay in everything happening that none of it comes off a genuine. Everything done now is going to feel hollow for that reason. It’a not that halting production wasn’t the right choice but that it took them the better part of a week to do it. 

 

2 hours ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

Far more of a consequence to the support employees on these projects, than to WS.

Neither of the movies were far enough it production for the impact to be that large. Bad Boys 4 was only recently announced. I don’t think there is even a script yet. Fast and Loose was announced around the same time and it lost it’s director a week before the Oscars. 

Edited April 3, 2022 by Guest

[SusanM]

4 minutes ago, Dani said:

It think the problem is that there has been enough a delay in everything happening that none of it comes off a genuine. Everything done now is going to feel hollow for that reason. It’a not that halting production wasn’t the right choice but that it took them the better part of a week to do it. 

I feel like I am defending the rich and powerful here but I do feel that we, as a society, expect instant actions and reactions when things happen.  I don't know if I can really be surprised that it takes a few days, even a few weeks to figure out what the best course of action might be when something so completely unexpected happens.  

It truly does feel like a damned if they do, damned if they don't kind of thing.  No matter what is said, no matter what decisions are taken they are going to be criticized.  Which is fair enough but also makes it even more likely that they are going to consult lawyers, PR people, the oracle at Delphi to try and make sure they offend the least number of people and lose the least amount of prestige and, probably more importantly to them, money.

[Ms Blue Jay]

40 minutes ago, Dani said:

This was also the 90’s and there is no justification I can imagine.

The number of clips of on YouTube if him being creepy with women is astounding. It wasn’t generally viewed as creepy at the time because most people didn’t think about how the woman felt. 

You're right about that!

Selfishly, I do want Bad Boys 4.  So that kind of sucks.  BB3 wasn't amazing but it was one of the last good times I had at the theatre before COVID.

Edited April 3, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, SusanM said:

I feel like I am defending the rich and powerful here but I do feel that we, as a society, expect instant actions and reactions when things happen.  I don't know if I can really be surprised that it takes a few days, even a few weeks to figure out what the best course of action might be when something so completely unexpected happens.  

I agree that it can take a few weeks to determine the best course of action. It should not take a few weeks for them to issue a broad statement on what happened. Let’s say that Netflix or Sony issues a statement a day or two later denouncing what happened, stating that violence is unacceptable and that they are deciding how to proceed. I haven’t seen any criticism of the Screen Actor’s Guild who did exactly that. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing in the immediate aftermath. This is particularly bad for Netflix who has a relationship with Chris Rock. That’s just PR 101. 

[Zella]

I think the biggest problem with the delay is the tepid response the night of. And that ranges from Smith being allowed to stay to Smith getting a standing ovation to that dismissive tweet the Academy sent out where they said violence was not okay but then immediately pivoted to talking about the winners.

I realize there was a lot of confusion in the moment and people were probably genuinely stunned and even unclear in exactly what had transpired, but everything made it seem like they were all okay with it. It was like people only started to rethink that when morning dawned and there were all sorts of people being outspoken about how bad it looked that anyone seemed to think "Hmm maybe this does look bad." 

It makes everything that follows look like a bald-faced attempt to CYA rather than a sincere attempt to address the issue since they failed to do that the night of, even if what is following is sincere and not just about optics.  

Edited April 3, 2022 by Zella

[GiveMeSpace]

9 hours ago, Anduin said:

Will Smith was provoked.

Isn't this from page one in the abuser's handbook? Look what you made me do!

[Zella]

7 minutes ago, GiveMeSpace said:

Isn't this from page one in the abuser's handbook? Look what you made me do!

Also, by all rights, wasn't Jada more provoked than Will Smith? She still didn't stomp up there to deck Chris Rock. 

[Crs97]

1 hour ago, Dani said:

The number of clips of on YouTube if him being creepy with women is astounding. It wasn’t generally viewed as creepy at the time because most people didn’t think about how the woman felt. 

And it wasn't just on camera either:  https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/david-letterman-apologizes-comedy-writer-who-accused-him-sexual-favoritism-1251291/

[SuprSuprElevated]

1 hour ago, Zella said:

I think the biggest problem with the delay is the tepid response the night of. And that ranges from Smith being allowed to stay to Smith getting a standing ovation to that dismissive tweet the Academy sent out where they said violence was not okay but then immediately pivoted to talking about the winners.

I realize there was a lot of confusion in the moment and people were probably genuinely stunned and even unclear in exactly what had transpired, but everything made it seem like they were all okay with it. It was like people only started to rethink that when morning dawned and there were all sorts of people being outspoken about how bad it looked that anyone seemed to think "Hmm maybe this does look bad." 

It makes everything that follows look like a bald-faced attempt to CYA rather than a sincere attempt to address the issue since they failed to do that the night of, even if what is following is sincere and not just about optics.  

Yes

1 hour ago, GiveMeSpace said:

Isn't this from page one in the abuser's handbook? Look what you made me do!

Yes

[aradia22]

Quote

I'm a Christian and while I do believe in the devil.  I'm skeptical whenever it's brought up because I'm more use to people using blaming the devil as a way to excuse their own actions or not take responsibility for things they do. The exact well it wasn't Chris Rock's fault it was the devil. It's not Will Smith's fault for smacking him. It was the devil. 

I'm not up on my Christian denominations but for some of them, I gather that the point is that you have free will. The devil comes for you and you're supposed to be able to turn away. Maybe I'm wrong, but I truly don't think Denzel was saying "Chris Rock is the devil, and it's not your fault, Will." He had a choice to react after the joke and a choice of how to react after the slap. Denzel just sounded like he was giving him that perspective. 

[DkNNy79]

For late night hosts I would say Conan and Craig Ferguson were my favorites.  I probably love Conan’s remotes/skits that he did rather than his interviewing style.    Not really feeling any of the current hosts.

[bluphoenix451]

2 hours ago, aradia22 said:

I'm not up on my Christian denominations but for some of them, I gather that the point is that you have free will. The devil comes for you and you're supposed to be able to turn away. Maybe I'm wrong, but I truly don't think Denzel was saying "Chris Rock is the devil, and it's not your fault, Will." He had a choice to react after the joke and a choice of how to react after the slap. Denzel just sounded like he was giving him that perspective. 

The bolded emphasis is mine, but my thinking went here as well. I didn't think Denzel was saying implying Chris was the devil, but that the devil/devilishness was in Will's reaction/behavior which call it the devil or temper or immaturity sounds correct to me. I'm not Christian, but having been raised as one I also didn't take it as excusing the behavior or implying the devil did it and Will had no control. I took it as you were tested by "the devil" or less religiously "the circumstances" and you let your base impulses get the best of you and that is on you. 

[Irlandesa]

6 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Selfishly, I do want Bad Boys 4.  So that kind of sucks.  BB3 wasn't amazing but it was one of the last good times I had at the theatre before COVID.

You'll get Bad Boys 3. I have little doubt about that. If anything Bad Boys 3 exposed that this franchise can go a long time between installments and still be successful.  In fact, I just looked it up and I didn't even realize there were so many years in between I and II.  I came out in 1995.  II came out in 2003.  III came out in 2020.

6 hours ago, Zella said:

I think the biggest problem with the delay is the tepid response the night of.

Yep.  Had they removed him,  he wouldn't have given the speech.  It would have been his punishment. He could have issued an apology the next day and IMO, I think this would have been over.

4 hours ago, DkNNy79 said:

I probably love Conan’s remotes/skits that he did rather than his interviewing style.

I loved Craig's interviews.  I loved Conan's travels and I hope those continue on HBO Max.  I like Seth Meyers of the current crop of hosts. (Of those who have guests...etc.)

Edited April 3, 2022 by Irlandesa

[Annber03]

Add me to those who liked Craig :). His show was so entertaining. 

Of the current round of late night hosts, I like Stephen, Seth, and John Oliver. I know my parents watched Letterman back in the day, and I remember seeing some of his show from time to time, but I only ever really watched him when someone I liked was on there (plus, when I was a kid, I wasn't able to be up late to see him or any other late night host anyway on school nights :p). 

[DearEvette]

Ok, this low key made me laugh.  This cycled in on my screensaver for my Amazon fire tv.  They know they wrong.... 😅

 

[Ohiopirate02]

I can't see Will Smith's movie career drying up when I keep on seeing commercials for a new Mark Walhburg movie with Mel Gibson in a supporting role.  

[Guest]

26 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I can't see Will Smith's movie career drying up when I keep on seeing commercials for a new Mark Walhburg movie with Mel Gibson in a supporting role.  

It depends on what standard you are using. Mel Gibson is still working but his career was clearly damaged. It’s easy to look at his film credits and think the backlash is pointless but how many people are actually watching his movies. And his scandals happened before social media could exert a lot of pressure. I can’t see Father Stu being a blockbuster. 

 

Edited April 3, 2022 by Guest

[Ohiopirate02]

59 minutes ago, Dani said:

It depends on what standard you are using. Mel Gibson is still working but his career was clearly damaged. It’s easy to look at his film credits and think the backlash is pointless but how many people are actually watching his movies. And his scandals happened before social media could exert a lot of pressure. I can’t see Father Stu being a blockbuster. 

 

It's not going to be a blockbuster.  An inspirational flick with a R rating is going to be a hard sell, but Mel still has a core group of supporters who overlook his bad behavior like Jodie Foster.  He may not be starring in anything noteworthy, but he still got his invite to this year's Oscars.

[Guest]

47 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

It's not going to be a blockbuster.  An inspirational flick with a R rating is going to be a hard sell, but Mel still has a core group of supporters who overlook his bad behavior like Jodie Foster.  He may not be starring in anything noteworthy, but he still got his invite to this year's Oscars.

Mel Gibson wasn’t at this year’s Oscars. 

[Ohiopirate02]

31 minutes ago, Dani said:

Mel Gibson wasn’t at this year’s Oscars. 

I remember seeing his bearded mug in the audience. 

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I remember seeing his bearded mug in the audience. 

During the live show? Someone posted what they claimed was reactions to the slap that made people think he was there but all the pictures were from the Moonlight/La La Land fiasco. I didn’t seem him during the pre show or the broadcast and multiple sources have said he wasn’t there. 
WAS MEL GIBSON AT THE OSCARS? STUNNED REACTION AMID WILL SMITH’S SLAP EXPLAINED

[Ohiopirate02]

2 minutes ago, Dani said:

During the live show? Someone posted what they claimed was reactions to the slap that made people think he was there but all the pictures were from the Moonlight/La La Land fiasco. I didn’t seem him during the pre show or the broadcast and multiple sources have said he wasn’t there. 
WAS MEL GIBSON AT THE OSCARS? STUNNED REACTION AMID WILL SMITH’S SLAP EXPLAINED

I could have sworn I saw him last week.  Not during that part of the broadcast.

[SVNBob]

12 hours ago, Zella said:

Also, by all rights, wasn't Jada more provoked than Will Smith? She still didn't stomp up there to deck Chris Rock. 

But if she had, Chris wouldn't have been able to no-sell the hit as much as he did the one from Will.  She'd've knocked him out.

[MsTree]

21 hours ago, Anduin said:

You've never been pushed too far, have you? How fortunate.

No, not to the point of violence. My sense of decorum would keep me from assaulting another human being every time. Never mind on national television!

Edited April 4, 2022 by MsTree

[MsTree]

19 hours ago, merylinkid said:

If Will Smith hadn't  slapped him we would all be criticizing Rock for it. 

I, for one, would not have criticized Rock. It was a joke that even Smith initially realized.

[BetterButter]

 

[Anduin]

2 hours ago, MsTree said:

No, not to the point of violence. My sense of decorum would keep me from assaulting another human being every time. Never mind on national television!

Lucky you. Hopefully you never will. But it happens. It isn't even a conscious thought, but it does happen.

[MaggieG]

Oh Tyrese 🤣

https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/morius-tyrese-gibson-fake-martin-scorsese-quote/

[Trini]

9 hours ago, MsTree said:

It was a joke that even Smith initially realized.

Nah. It was that 'Oh, you think you funny?' laugh that happens before someone goes off:

[SuprSuprElevated]

Oh Madge. 

madonnas-unsettling-pre-grammy-tiktok-sparks-fan-concern

A face only the next surgeon could love.

[aradia22]

Quote

Martha Stewart was in mourning after her four dogs tragically killed her “defenseless” cat, which they mistook for an intruder.

“burying the beautiful and unusual Princess Peony,” the lifestyle guru wrote in a post to Instagram Sunday. “the four dogs mistook her for an interloper and killed her defenseless little self.”

She added, “i will miss her very badly . RIP beauty.”

https://pagesix.com/2022/04/04/martha-stewarts-four-dogs-mistakenly-kill-her-defenseless-cat/

[proserpina65]

On 4/3/2022 at 3:23 AM, Anduin said:

Typical Hollywood hypocrisy. They all like to act like they're so perfect, they always keep themselves under control, how dare someone have a bad moment. If I were a producer, I'd drop the offensive Chris Rock in a heartbeat. Will Smith was provoked.

If Chris Rock's joke was so provoking, maybe Will Smith shouldn't have laughed at it first.

Hitting someone onstage during an awards show because you (or in this case, your wife) didn't like a joke is never excusable.

On 4/3/2022 at 4:12 AM, aradia22 said:

I don't know. I'm not even religious and this makes perfect sense to me. Not as an ideology I personally subscribe to but I feel like people were making a big deal out of pretending they didn't get it. Even if you haven't heard very religious people talk, Western culture is steeped in Biblical allegory. Money is the devil. Pride is the devil. Lust is the devil. Greed/avarice is the devil. All these temptations to sin and abandon your principles and your faith and what you know is right. I'm sure some people think there's a literal devil putting a bad joke in Chris Rock's ear the way some people think God is sitting around handing out blessings and miracles. But it doesn't mean they think they're actually bargaining with Mephistopheles. 

I do think Will bringing it up in the speech was awkward (Denzel didn't need to be part of that rambling mess) because for all that people thank God in their speeches, we're not really used to entertainment types being so openly religious.

I don't get it because Will Smith was definitely not trying to do something right.