Before he was a polarizing U.S. president hated by most of Hollywood, Donald Trump was in the entertainment business. He had his own TV show and everything. He was even in some movies, always as himself, and he’s worked with some big time directors. One was, amazingly, Taika Waititi.
Per Insider, the Next Goal Wins filmmaker recently went on the podcast SmartLess, where he reflected on directing a Super Bowl commercial back in 2012. It was called “Brotherhood of Man,” and it included characters from some of NBC’s biggest shows, including 30 Rock and SNL. It also included the then-star of The Apprentice, and it doesn’t sound like he was easy to work with.
“I directed Trumpy,” Waititi bragged. “There was a piece of paper with a list of demands. The height of the camera had to be a certain height to make him look a little thinner.”
Waititi then joked about Trump’s curious skin, saying, “I think it had whatever the Pantone for orange was that he had to appear as on screen.”
But seriously, folks, Trump was just as enamored with yes men than as now. “He had a makeup person who was also his ego booster and she would touch him up and say, ‘Oh, Mr. Trump, oh Mr. Trump,’” said Waititi.
Back when he was directing the Home Alone 2 guy, Waititi’s star was still ascending. He’d already helmed some features, including Eagle vs. Shark and Boy, and he was about to do the What We Do in the Shadows movie, as well as the Sam Neill-starring Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Then came Thor: Ragnarok, which he admitted he only did because he needed money. And now look at him.
There are two frontcourt battles that will take center stage during Monday night’s game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers. One is obvious: Anthony Davis will lead the Lakers into Philly, where he’ll be greeted by Joel Embiid. Two of the best big men in the league, Davis and Embiid won’t be matched up on one another for 48 minutes, but any time they are, all eyes will be on how Davis does against the reigning league MVP.
The other is a bit less obvious, but it also includes Davis. During his pregame media availability on Monday, Sixers reserve big man Paul Reed got asked about how he’s going to handle this assignment, and he made clear that he thinks Davis is prone to embellishing contact.
“He’s a big flopper, so make sure that I don’t get in foul trouble early. Can’t be too aggressive with him. You know, he’s gonna be flailing. So, gotta make sure that I stay out of foul trouble.” – Paul Reed on the keys to matching up with Anthony Davis pic.twitter.com/NzTXQsePix
Reed has endeared himself to Philly fans by being the exact sort of player who will say a star on the other team is a “big flopper,” so this isn’t an especially big surprise. Still, word of this got back to both coaches, and while Lakers coach Darvin Ham decided to wish Reed good luck in going up against Davis, Sixers coach Nick Nurse made clear that he had no clue Reed said this — just look at his reaction when he learns of the quote.
Darvin Ham on Paul Reed calling Anthony Davis a “big flopper” this morning: “He’s got to go guard him, I guess. … Best of luck, Paul”
Usually when celebrities do a video revealing what’s in their bag, you can almost guarantee that there will be zero traces of any half eaten candy bars, wads of crumpled receipts and other junk items most people carry around everyday.
Instead, viewers can expect a rather aspirational fare—luxury skin products (that said celebrity is a brand ambassador for, no doubt)…top-of-the-line health foods…at least one New York Times Bestseller.
But not Jennifer Garner. No no no. When Jennifer Garner does a purse contents reveal, you can expect something messy, hilarious and oh-so relatable.
“What’s in my bag? I’m embarrassed to even show you,” the actress wrote in a TikTok video caption. But truly, her embarrassment is making everyone feel seen.
In the clip, she dives into her backpack—that’s right, a backpack, not even a purse—and pulls out a notebook, an iPad, a datebook, a pouch of pens (because “pens are life”) plus a two-sided glasses case, which she notes anyone “over 50” will understand why they’re necessary.
And because she’s a mom, she of course carries around items for kids, including two books— “The Whalebone Theatre,” which she’s reading with her 14-year-old, and “The Giver,” which she’s reading with her 11-year-old.
And then come the snacks. The copious, profuse, abundant amount of snacks.
At first it’s just three protein bars and a nearly empty bag of chocolates with one last piece remaining. “Lucky day! It’s my lucky day!” Garner exclaims as she grabs the last piece. Followed by another, definitely empty candy bag. Oh how quickly purses become glorified trash cans.
Garner then sends herself into a giggle fit as she pulls out not one, not two but eight different bags of nuts…quite literally squirreled away in various hidden pockets. Plus more candy.
“I’m so scared,” she struggles to say while cry-laughing on the floor. “I’m not going to have any nuts!”
At 1:30 am on a Monday morning in February, an AMBER Alert went out in southern Louisiana about a missing 10-year-old girl from New Iberia. It was believed she had been kidnapped and driven away in a 2012 silver Nissan Altima.
A few hours later at 7 am, Dion Merrick and Brandon Antoine, sanitation workers for Pelican Waste, were on their daily route when they noticed a vehicle that fit the description in the alert.
The sanitation workers thought it was suspicious that a silver sedan was parked alone in a field in St. Martin Parish.
“Something told me, like just look, I said what is that car doing in that field like that? What the car doing? Guess what, that’s the dude with the little girl,” Merrick said in a Facebook Live video. “That’s God.”
The video has been seen over 1.5 million times since it was posted on Monday morning.
To prevent the possible kidnapper from escaping, they parked the large sanitation truck the wrong way on the highway to “Make sure they couldn’t get out,” Merrick said. Then, they called 911.
When police arrived they arrested Michael R. Sereal, the man whose car was mentioned in the AMBER Alert. The police were also able to safely recover the girl who appeared unharmed. She was later taken to the hospital to be evaluated by medical personnel.
The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Department’s online sex offender registry has a Michael Roy Sereal but authorities wouldn’t confirm it’s the same man.
The young girls’ family got in touch with the two men who saved her and have shown amazing gratitude. “I’m just so happy and blessed that I have actually seen the car and we actually responded like we were supposed to respond,” Merrick told KHOU.
Merrick hopes that his actions will inspire others to be proactive as well. “Don’t be scared if you see something. If you know something is wrong, report it,” Merrick said. “Call authorities because it could save someone’s life.”
The two men were applauded by the St. John Parish’s Sheriff, who offered to buy them lunch.
“I was just doing my job man. I was just doing my job and actually came across somebody who needed help,” Merrick said. “Got me tearing up.”
The AMBER Alert system was created in 1996 after nine-year-old Amber Hagerman was abducted and murdered while riding her bike in Texas. Since its inception, nearly seven in 10 AMBER alert cases have resulted in children being successfully reunited with their parents.
In 17% of the cases, the child’s recovery is a direct result of the alert.
As of December 2020, 1,029 children rescued specifically because of the system.
It would appear that Lauren Boebert is a rootin’ tootin’ Dallas Cowboys fan? Or at least, perhaps she enjoys the cheerleader getups, yet Boebert did not clarify the reason for her enthusiasm when she tweeted her brief thoughts about Dolly’s NFL Thanksgiving halftime show over the holiday weekend. The frequently incendiary congresswoman simply tossed out a “Yass Queen!!” while tagging Dolly without further comment.
Boebert’s choice of words is, of course, a bit surprising. Does she realize where that slang term originates, and does she mind that Dolly is an advocate for transgender rights? This might seem like an out-of-context question, but Boebert has expressed very anti-drag show perspectives, which was one of the reasons why people were so surprised that she had dated a certain bar guy because his establishment had hosted a drag show and regularly participates within Aspen Pride Week.
Then again, almost everything that Boebert says lately is interpreted in a way that’s unflattering to her, so perhaps the MAGA cheerleader was simply feeling super enthusiastic about Dolly’s onstage energy. Maybe she simply likes “Jolene”? No one knows because, again, she didn’t explain herself.
What is a bit clearer, however, is that Dolly Parton is no MAGA fan and rejected the presidential medal of freedom as offered by Trump. So it seems unlikely that she would want to be Boebert’s “Queen.” And as one Twitter user summed that point up, “Dear Republicans / Dolly Parton will never be your Queen #HappyThanksgiving.”
Yes, the replies got a little bit messy, worse than these, even.
I don’t think that Lauren Boebert knows that Dolly Parton highly dislikes her
Yes, Dolly Parton is a national treasure. She’s certainly everything you’ll never be. She’s kind, generous, compassionate, talented, beautiful, advocates for LGBTQ and gives free books to children 5 and under (especially children of immigrants).
Does the Marvel Cinematic Universe need a hug? It sure seems like it. If you said, even six months ago, that the once indestructible franchise was going to be in serious trouble, few would have believed you. And yet here we are. They just had their first legit box office bomb. Some of their shows go underwatched and underdiscussed. Then there’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which both lost its original director and has problems with its titular baddie. But now there’s some good news, at least.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, Marvel has tapped Michael Waldron to write The Kang Dynasty, the first a planned Avengers two-fer. A Rick and Morty alum (he wrote the dating app-centered “The Old Man and the Seat), Waldron’s already in deep with the MCU. He’s credited on Doctor Strange 2, and he created Loki, one of their more successful shows. The previous draft of Kang Dynasty was written by Ant-Man 3 scribe Jeff Loveness.
All Kang Dynasty needs now is a new director, having recently lost Shang-Chi‘s Dustin Daniel Cretton. This may or may not have to do something about the actor playing Kang, too. Jonathan Majors is in the midst of a court battle concerning an alleged altercation involving an ex-girlfriend — accusations he’s vehemently denied. Majors’ trial is set to begin later this month, and it may affect whether his role will be recast or not.
In the meantime, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is (currently) scheduled for release on May 1, 2026.
In a year full of cinematic magic tricks, one of the most memorable comes from an unexpected source. It takes place relatively early in Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé, just as the electric performances from her 2022 album are swinging into full gear. As “Alien Superstar” (among the album’s best and most acclaimed songs) is getting started, the audio and visual elements that the audience is witnessing fail. For a brief moment, there is uncertainty in the air as to whether the film projection is having issues or if this is just a part of the movie. Quickly, the latter proves true, as we see the behind-the-scenes scramble of the Renaissance World Tour crew to get the show back on track.
The film takes this time to go back into the dressing room as we hear radio updates estimating how long until the concert audience will be left waiting for Beyoncé. There, the realization is made: Beyoncé needs to change her costume. Someone in her camp leaps on this idea, noting that it would be amazing if Beyoncé emerged from this momentary delay in a new outfit. So, they hustle to get her changed, and minutes later the crowd loses it as she is raised from a hole in the stage to pick up right where she left off, the pulse of “Alien Superstar” lifting the concert to a level that wouldn’t have been possible if something hadn’t gone wrong.
As an artist, Beyoncé has made the idea of turning lemons into lemonade a sort of mission statement, a phrase that’s repeated in the movie and, obviously, the titular idea behind what many consider her greatest recorded achievement. But it’s one thing to say it and another thing to witness the practice in action. It’s also a brave and affecting bit of filmmaking when presented in Renaissance. When we look back at 2023 in cinema, we’ll remember Oppenheimer’s dream-like imagining of the effects of his bomb and Ethan Hunt’s motorcycle freefall and Gloria’s thesis-like speech at the center of Barbie as the kind of individual moments that get people to continue returning to movie theaters. But by taking this huge technical malfunction from her Phoenix tour stop and making it a centerpiece of her own film, Beyoncé delivered the kind of tension and euphoric release that people like Christopher Nolan and Greta Gerwig strive for. In short, it’s masterful.
Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé is written and directed by the star musician, which would typically mean a particularly polished and sanitized version of herself at the movie’s center. Beyoncé rarely gives interviews, barely uses social media as more than a dumping ground for her best looks, and hardly allows people outside of her world to tell her story. So, this type of film is the closest many fans have to access. But as an artist now in her 40s, Beyoncé emphasizes that she’s at the point in her life where she feels free, and that allows for the film to still be revealing and go beyond the perfection pedestal that the Bey Hive places her on. The “Alien Superstar” malfunction captures the idea that maybe the moments where things don’t go right are as essential to the whole story as the moments that they do. Elsewhere, the film is full of similar sentiments.
It’s no coincidence that the Renaissance World Tour offered up her 2006 song “Flaws And All” as the second track of her nightly setlist, for which she went viral for her performance as she would point to the “imperfections” of her body to accompany the sentiment in the lyrics. This has long been something that Beyoncé has wrestled with and is regularly underscored by the insistence that she is beyond critique, that she somehow eschews the troubles and insecurities that the rest of us wrestle with. But in the film, we witness her body failing her (she undergoes knee surgery shortly before the tour is to begin), relive a childhood vocal injury, follow her quest to balance work with family, and observe her commitment to fulfilling her vision in all elements of the tour. Of course, she ends up succeeding on all fronts, because she is Beyoncé and she is more exceptional than the rest of us. But that struggle — the element that she says has defined her career to this point — makes her relatable, and all the more impressive as both a creative and a person.
We even see this in the actions of her daughter, Blue Ivy. In what is likely to be the most talked about section of the film, Beyoncé shows the audience what led to her daughter dancing on stage nightly during the performance of “My Power.” According to Beyoncé, it was meant to be a one-time thing that Blue begged for. But once Blue saw social media critiques of the first performance, she went back and practiced that much harder, determined to use her first attempt at professional dancing as a springboard to improve. As the daughter of two of music’s biggest stars, it would be easy to coast, but Blue was determined to prove her work ethic and ability, a lesson most people don’t learn to this extent at 11 years old. The picture painted is impressive in terms of Blue Ivy, but also in the values that Beyoncé is passing on to her family. Flaws can be improved upon. It’s all part of the process.
Mostly, though, the film stands as a testament to the recent achievements of Beyoncé. Existing as part concert film and part tour documentary, Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé focuses on the last year of Beyoncé’s life, as she relishes the freedom that being a 42-year-old woman brings. We see clips from across the US and Europe and focus particularly on her hometown show of Houston, tracing the journey from backyard performances to stadiums. We see the reason she felt the need to highlight queer ballroom culture on this album, how her Uncle Johnny played such an important role in her early career costumes and her lasting musical taste. We meet both her crew and her fans, the two elements that are essential puzzle pieces for the creation and reception of her art. And we see the performances, showing why the last couple of decades have seen her as one of (if not THE) most important musicians of her time. And while viewers should yearn for Beyoncé to allow others access to tell her story, we’re left with a stunning self-portrait that shows Beyoncé embracing her flaws, using them to improve, and passing on her hard-fought wisdom both in her home and on the stage.
December 1, Beyoncé’s Renaissance film hits theaters, along with some special goodies for fans who make it a point to see it opening weekend. AMC Theatres is offering an exclusive Renaissance-themed popcorn bucket and drink cup (which will very likely sell out before the weekend is over).
According to the AMC website, the popcorn bucket will be $22.99, while the cup will be $12.99. (MacGuffins Bar is also selling a Renaissance-themed Paloma with tequila AND gin if you would like to get absolutely sloshed during the movie.)
The film premiered in Los Angeles on Saturday, November 25, in an event that saw the reunion of all five members of Destiny’s Child, as well as a whole galaxy of R&B stars inspired by Beyoncé. Meanwhile, the movie itself is said to be both a concert film and a behind-the-scenes documentary of both the tour and the making of the album that prompted it.
A moment that is already being discussed finds Beyoncé admitting that her daughter Blue Ivy’s appearances on the tour weren’t initially planned as such (the first was supposed to be a one-off) and praising the 11-year-old’s tenacity as she worked hard to improve her own performance after some harsh comments online.
Not every show needs a spinoff, but we haven’t learned that yet and we probably never will. Maybe people have forgotten how the original Jersey Shore flagship series was not well-received, but the show continued for six seasons and spawned multiple spinoffs, so it must have done something right. This is how Frenchie Shore, the French alternative to the series, was born.
Frenchie Shore follows 10 housemates vacationing in Southern France, where they party and presumably do French things like eat baguettes. But not everyone is happy with it. Actually, it seems like everyone besides the 10 people who are on vacation are pretty mad about it.
The series, which debuted on November 11th, was described as “borderline porno” by French Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malal, who spoke to a French newspaper about the series and also called it “the trashiest reality show ever produced in France.” Frenchie Shore is currently the top program on Paramount+ in France, and it’s getting even more popular due to clips going viral online.
Abdul Malak says that the show can be taken without context and hurt the youths of today. “Anyone can come across it on social networks,” she explained, worrying that teens “will think it realistically depicts human interactions and sexual relationships.” Surely things on TikTok are much scarier than a bunch of Parisian partiers, but that’s a problem for another day.
For now, Frenchie is still going strong, and will hopefully hit Paramount+ in the US soon, so all of us Americans can be on board with the “trashiest reality show” ever. We love that kind of stuff here.
Michter’s just released their first 25-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon since 2020. This whiskey is a representation of Master Distiller Dan McKee and Master of Maturation Andrea Wilson, who have done the work to assure that this very limited release isn’t just special it’s iconic. A true once-in-a-lifetime pour for those lucky enough to taste it.
The Michter’s team has accomplished this by sourcing amazingly unique bourbon (made with an unknown but distinct mash bill). Those whiskey barrels were then stored in their climate-controlled warehouses at the Shivley (West Louisville) distillery until they were just right. That means that the youngest barrels in this small-batch bourbon blend are 25 years old (with some much older).
Bourbon rarely makes it to 20 years old much less 25 years old or older. It just gets too tannic, bitter, and over-oaked. So getting a batch of 25+ year-old Kentucky bourbon is a miracle in and of itself. If you’re a bourbon head, that should excite you. We really don’t know when we’ll get another 25-year-old Michter’s bourbon. And one thing is assured, nothing will be this exact release again.
The whiskey in the bottle was distilled in or before 1998 at an undisclosed Kentucky distillery from a unique mash bill. That whiskey went into new American white oak barrels and was basically left alone until they were moved over to the Shively, Kentucky campus where they were monitored for excellence. When the barrels hit the right mark — that’s where the Michter’s team’s prowess comes in — they were batched for this very small limited release and bottled 100% as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a deep sense of old molasses vats that held prunes, dates, and raisins with a sense of winter spice barks, berries, and buds next to brown buttery Christmas sugar cookies dipped in dark chocolate and dusted with ground vanilla pods before this light sense of smoked walnut shells and fire-roasted chestnuts arrives.
Palate: That molasses leans toward thick hot chocolate just kissed with red chili before a deep sense of candied almonds takes the taste toward rich and moist sticky toffee pudding flaked with sea salt and fresh orange zest with a hint of vanilla buttercream.
Finish: The end leans into dried sweetgrass and old fall leaves in an apple orchard with a hint of pear-brandy-soaked marzipan dipped in dark-as-night chocolate and kissed with a mix of woody brown winter spices wrapped up in old tobacco leaves and stored in a very old whiskey barrel in a musty old brick rickhouse on a cold fall day.
Bottom Line:
This is a perfect sipping bourbon. Poured neat it has a deep sense of Christmas holiday spices and dried fruits with dark candies before diving into the dry woods and grasses of an old distillery campus.
Ranking:
100/100 — Perfect. I adore it. Period.
Where To Buy:
Brasstacks, you’re going to have to pay $10,000-$15,000 (or more for this bottle) if you want to outright buy it. There are only 385 bottles in the whole world and those are already spoken for at elite retailers, bars, and restaurants.
My advice is to find the whiskey bar or restaurant that has the bottle and try a pour (expect to pay around $200 per ounce). If it’s something that you fall in love with, then pursue paying that high price tag. If you collect bourbon or are interested in collecting, this is certainly a bottle worth holding. Good luck out there!
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Shawn 
Elliott 
Слава Україні! 
