Month: September 2023

The ladies of The View got the week off to a raucous start. The table tackled the notorious U.K. dating show, Naked Attraction, which just made its jump to Max where U.S. viewers can experience the series in all of its full-frontal glory.

Right out of the gate, co-host Sunny Hostin sheepishly revealed that she and her husband were immediately hooked on the saucy dating game and finished it in one sitting.

“I have to admit — and I’m very embarrassed to admit — that Manny and I got so obsessed with this show that we binged it yesterday and we watched all eight episodes,” Hostin said. “I learned things I had never heard of in my life. Have you heard of a Prince Albert piercing? I didn’t know about that!”

After Ana Navarro joked that the show should be called Naked and Well Lit, Whoopi Goldberg set the conversation flying off the rails.

“Naked and Well-Hung,” Goldberg joked as the audience lost it.

However, Goldberg’s joke would turn out to be pretty tame compared after Sara Haines’ remarks. The co-host said she’d never go on the show because she doesn’t like being naked, nor does she like looking at certain body parts, male or female.

“The human body, there are parts that are beautiful,” Haines said. “A penis is not one of them. And I would say the vagina is barely above that. You guys, be honest with yourselves. Not are you sexually attracted to them — when you look at them, are they pretty?”

Hostin jumped by saying there have been some “pretty penises” on the show, which prompted Whoopi to shut the conversation down by ringing her bell.

“I just want to say, you were worried about me?” Whoopi joked to the off-camera crew.

(Via Decider)

Like the Pyramids of Giza, the Lost City of Atlantis, and the exact recipe for the TikTok Pink Sauce, the origins of the Kevin James meme currently holding our timelines hostage is a mystery worth solving.

The photo of James, dressed in drab plaid, shoulders raised in a half-hearted shrug with a sly smirk directed to camera, has become the internet’s go-to translator. It’s littering our feeds with users personifying the actor’s “kid-caught-in-the-cookie-jar” pose to set up situational comedy bits that feel both relatable and designed to earn clicks. The meme itself isn’t extraordinary — it hails from a still of James in character from his beloved 90s sitcom King of Queens — but the fact that this man, a D-list celebrity who built his empire on laugh-tracked reruns and Adam Sandler sidekick gigs, has become the unlikely face branding the next hot form of pop culture currency is. It’s so extraordinary in fact that, we’ve done a bit of investigating into exactly why the guy who gave us not one but two Paul Blart: Mall Cop movies would be trending on social media on the same day that the Taylor Swift/Travis Kelce dating rumors proved true.

According to Know Your Meme, the first usage of the Getty photo was via this tweet by a podcaster sent on September 21st, 2023:

A fairly innocuous bit of clickbait that just happened to go live on the 25th anniversary of the show itself, which James celebrated with an Instagram post shouting out his co-stars Leah Remini and Jerry Stiller. Was it a coordinated push or do King of Queens stans really exist in the wild? We just don’t know, but here our some of our favorite tweets using the now-iconic meme:

And, lest one doubt James’ meme mojo, yet another image is now being circulated of the actor, this time from his Netflix movie Home Team. You’d likely have to be a regular on Football Twitter to get the joke, but it has something to do with Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton (who James played in the film) and his team’s embarrassing 70-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins this weekend.

There really is a Kevin James meme for every occasion it seems.

(Via Yahoo)

As the seasons change, there are certainties that come with it. The air gets colder, the leaves change colors, and your favorite streaming service will try some new in order to squeeze just a few more bucks out of you in the coming year. It’s the American way.

The latest culprit is Amazon Prime, which is joining Disney+, Netflix, and Max in bringing in commercials to their formerly ad-free shows. Streaming sounds more and more like cable these days, yes? Amazon is gearing up to include “meaningfully fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers” on Prime Video, though the main difference is that the ad-supported tier will now be the default, and if you want no ads, you’ll have to pay a little more.

The update will begin early next year, and your normal Prime payment won’t increase, though if you want to go ad-free, the price will jump an extra $2.99 per month, or about $36 per year. Right now, the annual payment is $139 for no ads and an unlimited view of John Krasinski’s face if that’s what you so choose to do. Ads will also be shown during movies, though Amazon claims that there will only be a “limited” number, and hopefully, they won’t interrupt the horror movie jump scare you’ve been waiting for.

The good news is that Freevee, Amazon’s free ad-tiered streaming service is still kicking with no changes, other than the fact that they recently took Mad Men off the service. You can’t win ’em all.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

All dogs go to heaven. But some dogs, like the one that allegedly got kicked by Ron DeSantis at Tucker Carlson‘s house, live in Hell.

In his book, The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty, author Michael Wolff detailed the time that DeSantis and his wife Casey were invited to Carlson’s house. All the Florida governor had to do was act normal, and maybe he would have the then-Fox News hotshot’s blessing as he prepared to run for president. That, however, proved to be too difficult of a task.

“The Carlsons are dog people with four spaniels, the progeny of other spaniels they have had before, who sleep in their bed,” Wolff wrote. “DeSantis pushed the dog under the table. Had he kicked the dog? [Tucker’s wife] Susie Carlson’s judgment was clear: She did not ever want to be anywhere near anybody like that ever again. Her husband agreed. DeSantis, in Carlson’s view, was a ‘fascist.’ Forget Ron DeSantis.” At least he’s used to being forgotten about.

Carlson later denied the incident, telling Insider, “This is absurd. He never touched my dog, obviously.” Which is weird, because Wolff claims the dog-kicking anecdote came from Carlson.

“The source on this is Tucker himself,” the author said on Mediaite‘s The Interview podcast. “I just reflect what he told me.” Wolff continued:

“I don’t know, maybe he exaggerated. Maybe he lied. I don’t know. Maybe he regrets saying that. I have no idea… I think what I am accurately reflecting is his feelings about Ron DeSantis, and at the moment he seemed to have felt that he kicked the dog. I can’t tell you whether that happened or not. I can tell you with the greatest authority that that’s what he said happened.”

The biggest stories in U.S. politics over the past few weeks include Lauren Boebert getting groped while vaping at the Beetlejuice musical, John Fetterman wearing hoodies, and Ron DeSantis possibly kicking Tucker Carlson’s dog. Maybe the government should shut down. Everyone needs to chill out and, like, spend the day at a water park.

(Via Mediaite)

Every Monday, Billboard unveils the top 10 songs on the latest Hot 100 chart. The most recent rankings, for the chart dated September 30, are out now, so let’s run down who had this week’s biggest hits.

10. Dua Lipa — “Dance The Night”

The Barbie movie has come and gone, but Dua Lipa’s soundtrack highlight is sticking around. It previously peaked at No. 6 and is still managing to hang with the rest of the big dogs in the top 10.

9. Gunna — “F*kumean”

After topping out at No. 4, Gunna is still going strong with “F*kumean,” which recently got the cover treatment from Chlöe.

8. Morgan Wallen — “Last Night”

Earlier this summer, “Last Night” became the biggest solo song in Hot 100 history in terms of weeks at No. 1, with 16 total. It’s now tied for second all time, behind just Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road.” This week, though, it finds itself at No. 8.

7. Olivia Rodrigo — “Vampire”

Rodrigo just made some history of her own, as “Vampire” returned to No. 1 after a wild nine weeks away from its previous stint on top. That was short-lived, though, as the track is back down to No. 7 this week.

6. Taylor Swift — “Cruel Summer”

While Swift is currently embracing fall and the football that comes with it, there’s still some summer left for her, as her four-year-old song is No. 6 right now.

5. Zach Bryan — “I Remember Everything” Feat. Kacey Musgraves

Bryan and Kacey recently had their first No. 1 with their collaboration from Bryan’s new self-titled album, and the song’s still doing quite well as it remains in the top 5.

4. Luke Combs — “Fast Car”

Combs’ rendition of the Tracy Chapman classic is yet another country song that has spent time at No. 1 in 2023, and like Wallen’s hit, it was one of Billboard‘s songs of the summer.

3. SZA — “Snooze”

“Snooze” had a major week: It previously peaked at No. 7, and after ranking at No. 8 last week, it vaulted up to a new high at No. 3 in the latest frame.

2. Doja Cat — “Paint The Town Red”

“Paint The Town Red” was No. 1 a couple weeks ago, but it hangs onto the silver medal at the moment as it rests comfortably at No. 2.

1. Drake — “Slime You Out” Feat. SZA

What a week for SZA: “Snooze” is No. 3, and now she has herself another No. 1 by linking up with Drake on “Slime You Out,” which debuts on top. The song is significant for Drake as his sixth No. 1 of the 2020s, tying him with BTS for the most this decade.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

As part of a stop-gap measure to paper over the lack of new shows thanks to the (hopefully resolved) writers’ strike, Paramount Global got creative and decided to see what would happen if CBS just started airing episodes of Yellowstone on Sunday nights.

To the surprise of no one, the gambit worked pretty darn well. The Kevin Costner-starring Western series has been a ratings juggernaut from the jump, and that held true even as CBS aired a more sanitized version of the show that didn’t feature creator Taylor Sheridan‘s more adult fare.

However, the show’s popularity happened after Paramount signed a streaming deal for the series with the NBC-owned Peacock, which is currently the exclusive streaming home for episodes of Yellowstone. More importantly, Peacock would like brand new Yellowstone viewers to be aware of that fact, so it took out not one, but two premium advertisement spots during the first CBS run of the show.

Via Variety:

“Peacock has all episodes of Yellowstone,” the commercial says via graphics that appear over scenes from the program. “Stream every season now.” Peacock has streaming rights to the program, even though it’s produced by CBS parent Paramount Global, which first airs the series on its TV networks. “This is a declaration of war,” says one Yellowstone character at the end of the spot.

While NBC and Paramount are technically rivals, Variety notes that the sneaky move will ultimately benefit Paramount in the end. The more popular Yellowstone becomes, the more valuable the property is when it’s time to negotiate licensing deals.

(Via Variety)

This Is Football host Kevin Clark said at the end of his Week 3 recap episode that we are headed toward “an absolute mania” not felt in the football world since Tim Tebow after Taylor Swift attended the Kansas City Chiefs’ 41-10 drudging of the Chicago Bears on Sunday, September 24. There is already enough evidence to support Clark’s theory.

Swift was not at Arrowhead Stadium because it was an idyllic autumn day in Kansas City, Missouri, nor because she’d suddenly abandoned her formative Philadelphia Eagles fandom for the Chiefs. She was there to support Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce — screaming “let’s f*cking go” when he caught a touchdown — and now we are forced to consider whether they’re actually in a relationship. Or rather, we can’t help ourselves from nosing into a potential celebrity power coupling.

Either way, this started in July. Swift had brought her The Eras Tour to Arrowhead Stadium on July 7 and 8. During the July 26 episode of the New Heights podcast, co-hosted by Travis and his brother, Eagles All-Pro center Jason Kelce, Travis recounted attending one of the shows.

“I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after the shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings,” he said. “So, I was a little butthurt I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her.”

The two-time Super Bowl champion continued, “If you’re up on Taylor Swift concerts, there are friendship bracelets, and I received a bunch of them being there, but I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my number on it.”

August slipped away, and come early September, outlets like Entertainment Tonight and The Messenger reported Kelce and Swift were “hanging out” but not officially dating.

On Thursday, September 14, Jason Kelce’s Eagles defeated the Minnesota Vikings, 34-28, on Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football. After the game, Tony Gonzalez couldn’t help but ask about Travis and Taylor, a question Jason uncomfortably eluded.

On September 20, Jason Kelce briefly caused an uproar when he was again asked about the rumors while appearing on Philadelphia’s SportsRadio 94 WIP.

“It’s hard to answer because I don’t really know a lot about what’s happening in Travis’ love life, and I try to keep his business his business and stay out of that world,” Jason said. “But having said that, man, I think he’s doing great, and I think it’s all 100 percent true.”

Conveniently, SportsRadio 94 WIP’s social clips cut off before Jason added, “No, I’m joking. I don’t know what’s happening” (as relayed by People).

On September 21, Travis addressed the speculation with ESPN’s Pat McAfee.

“I threw it out there,” he said. “I threw the ball in her court, and you know, I told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead, and see which one’s a little more lit,’ so we’ll see what happens in the near future.”

That was all well and cute, and still vague enough to remain skeptical of any Kelce-Swift (or “Swelce”) rumors. And then, we finally got visual proof. Fox’s broadcast of the Chiefs-Bears game began with a shot of Swift in Kelce’s suite, next to his nationally beloved mother, Donna Kelce.

As the game progressed, cameras cut to Swift often, especially after Kelce caught a touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes midway through the third quarter to make it 41-0, Chiefs. Swift chest-bumped and joyously yelled, “Let’s f*cking go!” while Donna Kelce golf-clapped — she’s seen hundreds of Travis Kelce touchdowns — and presumably thought to herself, Act like you’ve been here before, Taylor.

The Chiefs pulled their starters after that touchdown, and Kelce wasn’t made available to the media after the game, so we didn’t see Kelce again until Jarrett Payton posted a video of Kelce and Swift walking out of Arrowhead. Blurry photos of Kelce and Swift in his convertible quickly followed.

According to Entertainment Tonight on Monday morning, September 25, Kelce and Swift were driving to Prime Social Rooftop in Kansas City’s Country Club Plaza.

“Travis bought out the restaurant for his family and team,” an unnamed eyewitness told ET. “Taylor arrived, wearing a denim dress, and was seen snacking, having some cocktails and dancing alongside Travis. The two were very affectionate with one another but kept things fun and lighthearted. Travis’ teammates also showed up to the after-party, as well as his mom and dad, Donna and Ed. The party lasted until 2 a.m.”

With the same ET report, another said clarified, “Travis and Taylor are taking things slowly, and not rushing into anything serious. Both are very career-focused, so the focus is on that for now, but that’s not going to stop them from enjoying life when it’s the right moment.”

To that source’s point, Swift is due to resume her The Eras Tour on November 9 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and will be touring internationally clear through next summer. She will then stage a second North American leg in October and November 2024.

In the immediate future, Swift might attend a second-straight Chiefs game next Sunday, October 1, as the Chiefs play the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on Sunday Night Football. Welcome (back) to New York, Taylor?

It is pretty wild to consider that Millennials are now entering their 40s and no longer hold the mantle of the young and up-and-coming generation. According to Pew Research, Millennials were born between 1981 and 1996, so these days they range between the ages of 29 and 42.

These are the years when people begin to settle down, start families and experience the first uncomfortable signs of aging.

The Holderness Family is headed by a Gen X couple, Kim and Penn Holderness, who are best known for their viral comedy songs. Their latest video is about welcoming Millennials to their next phase in life, one that’s less about spending all night in the club and more about embracing a quieter, more practical life.

In this case, “the club” isn’t a loud place to get a Long Island iced tea but a state of mind where you’re more likely to appreciate a good walk for your mental health.

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Holderness Family Music has over 797,000 subscribers on YouTube and over 230 million views since they started their page in 2011. They “create original music, song parodies, and skits to poke fun of ourselves, the world we live in, and (hopefully) make you laugh.”

The “Welcome to the Club, Millennials” video is a bit of a departure from the usual intergenerational bickering we’re accustomed to seeing on social media. Instead, Gen Xers open their doors to the Millennials entering the next phase in their lives. “Well, Gen X is here to say ‘don’t be bummed, come on in, welcome to the club,’” Penn raps.

According to the song, if you’re a Millennial and have done any of the following, you’re officially in “the club,” whether you know it or not:

​Hung a calendar on your fridge

Have strong opinions on who’s the best “Jeopardy!” host

Play Wordle

Wore reader glasses

Drink seltzers

Had Gen Z call your clothes “vintage”

Gone Christmas shopping in October

Had a three-day hangover

Gone to a movie theater because it serves food

Took a mental health walks

Bought a chair for your back

Grooved to supermarket music

Own plastic houseplants

Taken supplements

Saved money for a Disney vacation

Have zero f**cks to give

Still love Blink-182

Millennials who are a little leery of aging should be happy to learn that they may be in the happiest times of their lives. According to developmental psychologists, the period of life between ages 30 to 45 is known as “established adulthood” and is a time of life when people are happiest.

Even though people in this age group are stuck in the “career and care crunch,” where they are likely to juggle a job while caring for children or older relatives, this developmental stage is also very fulfilling.

“Yes, people were feeling overwhelmed and talked about having too much to do in too little time,” Clare Mehta, Professor of Psychology at Emmanuel College, wrote in The Conversation. “But they also talked about feeling profoundly satisfied. All of these things that were bringing them stress were also bringing them joy.”

This article originally appeared on 5.01.23

Mike Flanagan devotees are an enthused bunch, so thankfully, The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass showrunner is preparing to launch The Fall Of The House Of Usher on Netflix. The series takes its title and heavy inspiration from an 1839 Edgar Allen Poe short story, but do expect significant differences between the series and the original source material. Mark Hamill will also be doing god knows what while Carla Gugino terrorizes the Usher family, who will be pharmaceutical giants apparently due for a reckoning.

When will see this all go down? October 12.

On that day, plenty of people will watch Gugino as a figure from the Usher past, and siblings Roderick and Madeleine (along with the rest of the fam) are sure to have a terrible time. Given that the family appears to be the Roy family but reflective of another current event, this will likely feel like a parable, but the series aims to retain the soul of Poe’s work, and there’s no coincidence to Flanagan’s work often arriving in conjunction with the spooky season.

The cast also includes Bruce Greenwood, Mary McDonnell, Kate Siegel, Annabeth Gish, Carl Lumbly, Michael Trucco, Paola Nuñez, Henry Thomas, Kyleigh Curran, Samantha Sloyan, Rahul Kohli, Sauriyan Sapkota, Zach Gilford, Willa Fitzgerald, Katie Parker, and Malcolm Goodwin.

The Fall Of The House Of Usher debuts on October 12.

Drake’s new album, For All The Dogs, finally has a release date after months of speculation. Drake pushed the album back ahead of its planned release so he would have more time to finish his tour and the album itself, but also made up for the delay by dropping its single, “Slime You Out.”

With the album just two weeks away from release, fans might be wondering whether he’s planning on putting it on vinyl, as many of his contemporaries have been prone to doing with their own highly anticipated releases. Unfortunately, that seems unlikely, since he says the album isn’t quite done and the lead time needed to manufacture and ship records probably wouldn’t allow for enough time to do so before October 6. Drake’s notorious for finishing up his albums at the last minute, so don’t expect to see For All The Dogs 12″ on sale at Target anytime soon.

The last Drake project to be released on vinyl was Dark Lane Demo Tapes in 2020. Her Loss and Honestly, Nevermind were only released on CDs and those were released nine months and four months, respectively, after the albums hit streaming (CDs for both were released on March 17, 2023). On the bright side, Drake’s dad Dennis Graham says it’s the best music he’s heard from Drake while Lil Yachty promises some controversial topics. We’ve only got two weeks to wait to find out if they’re right; For All The Dogs is due 10/6 on OVO/Republic.