Swifties are still furious with comedian Jo Koy over a joke he made about Taylor Swift during his hosting gig at the 2024 Golden Globes ceremony that took place last weekend.
Alluding to Swift’s frequent appearances on-screen during Kansas City Chiefs games, where she is often seen supporting her boyfriend Travis Kelce, Koy said “The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL? At the Golden Globes, we have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift.”
Though Swift has not commented directly on the matter, she appeared visibly frustrated as she took a swig from her champagne flute in reaction to the joke. In an interview with Los Angeles Times published today (January 11), Koy clarified that he did not mean any harm by the joke.
“I didn’t understand the Taylor tiff,” Koy said. “Mind you, that one was just getting rewritten 50 million times, never ran it through, all the way up until we had to walk out. It’s just weird, where do you place it, and we kept hammering it and cutting it down. But the whole intention of that joke was to make fun of the NFL.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Koy noted that he is a big fan of Swift’s, and doubled down that the joke was merely making fun of the NFL — and not her.
“It’s like, the cool thing about the Globes is we don’t need to do cutaways for ratings,” said Koy. “What hurts the most is me just supporting Taylor, I support her, I love her work. I got nieces that I bought tickets for. There’s no ill intent in that joke. The joke is about the NFL and how they keep using cutaways to [her]. And it’s an obvious reason why. I’m not saying anything that no one’s saying, and it’s obvious what that joke was. It’s about the NFL.”
VH1’s Love And Hip-Hop franchise has spawned many stars, including Cardi B, K. Michelle, and more. However, one Love And Hip-Hop alum is looking to forget that her appearance on the show happened.
Rapper Baby Tate, who appeared on Love And Hip-Hop: Atlanta joked that the show simply used her likeness, and that she, herself, was never actually on the show.
A fan on Twitter asked “why tf was yung baby tate on love n hip hop,” to which Tate responded “That did not happen,” with a gif of Will Smith from Men In Black.
Bay area rapper Drebae responded to the post doubling down, saying “Exactly. You would never. They getting too good with the A.I chile.”
Tate then replied, saying “No literally this AI is getting SCARY like yall need to protect ur selves cuz if they can just put u on a show u was never on imagine what else they can do!?!”
No literally this AI is getting SCARY like yall need to protect ur selves cuz if they can just put u on a show u was never on imagine what else they can do!?! https://t.co/4n8AHlIcx2
Jokes aside, Tate only appeared on Love And Hip-Hop for one season, back in 2021. But now, it seems like she’s solely focusing on her music. She will kick off her Sexploration Tour next Wednesday (January 17) at The Echo in Los Angeles.
iHeartRadio’s ALTer EGO Festival returns this Saturday (January 13) at The Honda Center in Anaheim, California. With several of the biggest acts in rock and alternative music — both newcomers and veterans — the line-up for this year’s ALTer EGO festival looks promising.
Fans can expect an evening filled with performances by Yellowcard, Lovelytheband, Bush, The Last Dinner Party, Fall Out Boy, and more. And thankfully, since all of these bands will be in the same venue, ticketholders won’t have to wander around various parts of the space.
Those who won’t be able to attend the festival are able to stream through the iHeart app, or through Veeps.com, or through the Veeps App on Apple TV, Roku, iOS, and Android. Fans in the Los Angeles are can tune into ALT 98.7 and hear the live performances in real-time.
Festivities kick off at 7 p.m. and continue all throughout the night. You can see a full schedule of performers below.
7 p.m.: The Black Keys 7:35 p.m.: Yellowcard 8 p.m.: Lovelytheband 8:25 p.m.: Sum 41 8:50 p.m.: The 1975 9:25 p.m.: Bush 10 p.m.: The Last Dinner Party 10:20 p.m.: 30 Seconds To Mars 10:50 p.m.: Fall Out Boy
Some of the artists mentioned here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
First things first. You might be asking yourself, “What the hell is a knödel?” And, to be fair, I didn’t know either until this past fall. Not until I entered the world of knödel — the Austrian version of a dumpling, traditionally characterized by its round shape and doughy texture — at last year’s Knödelfest in St. Johann.
I’m here to report that finding out about knödels proved delicious. And capering around with other lederhosen-clad men and dirndl-donning women while testing an abundance of savory and sweet knödels and sipping steins of beer might just give Germany’s Oktoberfest a run for its money.
“In older days, there was nothing special about the knödel, it was seen as a basic dish,” Martina Foidl of St. Johann Tourism told me. “Now, with over eighteen varieties offered, this [town] is a knödel heaven.”
MIKE SCHIBEL
From the moment you step through the festival gate, your senses are serenaded by the enticing aromas of knödels baking, frying, and boiling. The sight of the world’s longest dumpling table stretches an impressive 595 meters, creating excitement for any foodie festival-goer. The festivities kick off at 10 am with a marching band leading a procession as the crowd grows.
After a bit more pomp and circumstance, it’s time to allow our taste buds to run wild with blissful knödel overload. I started sweet with the mixed berry knödel. It had a scent of fresh berries and tasted of sweet, slightly tart vanilla cream sauce, with bursts of jammy goodness in every bite. A nice beginning if ever there was one.
MIKE SCHIBEL
The apple knödel was a delightful combination of apple pie and apple strudel, with a harmonious blend of sweet and tart apple — complemented by the comforting embrace of cinnamon, sugar dressed warm buttery cream sauce.
MIKE SCHIBEL
After two sweet entries, I was ready for some umami. The smoked beef knödel with sauerkraut offered an experience reminiscent of a reuben sandwich, minus the rye bread. The smoky beef mirrored the savory corned beef and the sauerkraut added a tangy, acidic note, with the absence of rye bread allowing other flavors to shine more prominently.
The raclette cheese knödel drew a long line of eager knödelheads, all lined to watch melting cheese drizzled over the plump dumplings. The flavor was a luxurious, creamy, and savory experience — akin to cheese fondue but heartier. The rich cheese combines with a slightly salty tang, creating perfect harmony on the palate.
MIKE SCHIBEL
One of the fest’s most innovative offerings was the pulled beef knödel — a meal in itself. The pulled beef knödel is an imaginative fusion of flavors, slow-cooked to juicy perfection, enveloped in polenta, pan-fried in panko meal, and served with BBQ sauce and coleslaw. The result? A knödel that tastes like a BBQ sandwich.
MIKE SCHIBEL
I could go 0n — I tasted a lot of knödel varieties– but the festival is not just about food. It’s a sensory symphony with eight bands performing throughout the day. The music ranges from traditional German songs to Tyrolean themes and even unexpected tunes like Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” and the catchy “Achy Breaky Heart,” uniting the crowd in joyful chorus.
Visiting from Los Angeles, we raised more than a few eyebrows. The common assumption was that we were in Europe for Oktoberfest, not Knödelfest. But we assured festival goers of our choice, coining it “Knödelfest, the new Oktoberfest!” This good-natured confusion led to hearty laughs, clinking beer mugs, and friendly “prost” (cheers).
St. Johann’s Knödelfest may be the oldest knödel-based festival, celebrating its 41st year in 2023, but the locals prefer not to claim the title of “original,” as it acknowledges other knödelfests. They take great pride in what they have built and have changed some since the COVID era. The festival, which was growing rapidly with over eighteen thousand tickets sold before the pandemic, now limits attendance to twelve thousand five hundred, ensuring a higher level of quality. And more knödel for everyone.
If you’re a comfort food fan and knödel-curious, a pilgrimage to St. Johann is well worth the adventure. If you go, please report back as to whether my knödel-testing record still stands!
Each week our staff of film and TV experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
Everything is being revived or rebooted, so Seth MacFarlane is taking another swing with this profane teddy bear. This series will act as a prequel film to the films starring Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, and Amanda Seyfried, but don’t worry, MacFarlane’s voice will return to drop all of those F-bombs because the franchise demands it.
Over the last two years, Jon Hamm has dazzled as investigative reporter (of some renown) Irwin M. Fletcher in Confess, Fletch (a movie that gets better with every watch), launched into outer space with Reese Witherspoon on The Morning Show, and tussled with Juno Temple on Fargo. Now he’s set to launch Grimsburg, a new animated series about a master detective who returns to his mystery-filled hometown to patch things up with his family. Hamm has proven his comic sensibilities time and time again, so there’s a lot to look forward to with this foray into the exotic world of FOX animated sitcoms, a place where did his career-best work as a talking toilet on Bob’s Burgers.
20. (tie) Monarch: A Legacy of Monsters (Apple TV+)
APPLE
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters stars Kurt Russell and Godzilla and… are you already sold? You should be. The first live-action TV show in the MonsterVerse — which also includes Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla vs. Kong — makes you care as much about the humans, including Kurt and his son Wyatt, as Godzilla and his “Titan” friends. In an up-and-down year for genre shows, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is a highlight.
There are cringe comedies and then there’s Showtime’s The Curse, a limited series about a married pair of alt-HGTV home flippers gentrifying their New Mexico neighborhood via eco-friendly monstrosities and calling it philanthropy. Created by two masters of squirm – Benny Safdie and Nathan Fielder – the show is a voyeuristic exercise that tests fans’ capacity for second-hand embarrassment as its main characters, the affluent Asher (Fielder) and Whitney (a shockingly unlikable Emma Stone) bulldoze the soul of their small, impoverished community with just a few reality TV cameras and a staggering amount of white privilege. It’s the best, most uncomfortable TV show you’ll watch this year.
Irish national treasures Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan partner for this thought-provoking sci-fi experiment that’s filled with big themes, unanswered questions, and a strangely large amount of bug shots. Mescal and Ronan play Junior and Hen, a couple stranded in their mundane life, living in a future ravaged by climate change. When one of them is offered a chance to escape with the caveat that their robotic replica will stay behind to keep the other company, hard questions about their marriage, their identities, and their purpose threaten to tear them apart. It’s a lo-fi love story with a twist ending you won’t see coming.
Dan Levy has kept busy in the years since Schitt’s Creek concluded, popping up in a few supporting roles (The Happiest Season, The Idol) and fronting an unscripted show (The Big Brunch), but Good Grief is the one fans have been waiting for. Written, directed, and starring Levy, the film focuses on loss, love, and friendship with friends (Ruth Negga and Himesh Patel) joining Levy’s character on a trip to Paris after supporting him for a year following the loss of his husband.
There’s been a debate online on whether May December qualifies as “camp.” We have no idea, but we do know it’s a very good movie, one of the year’s best. The Todd Haynes film stars Natalie Portman as an actress who shadows a one-time tabloid sensation played by Julianne Moore for a role. It’s best to go in without knowing more than that, although fair warning: while May December is very funny, it’s also quietly devastating.
Somehow, Joel Kinnaman has now been physically transformed to barely look like Joel Kinnaman while still starring in this alternate-history space-race series, and in the year 2003, the Earth’s nations are competing like hell to capture and mine asteroids full of precious minerals. That doesn’t sound ominous at all, and of course, there’s still plenty of beefing between nations after Happy Valley has grown in size on Mars’ surface.
This is a series based on the best-selling adventure books by Rick Riordan
For those unfamiliar, Percy is “a 12-year-old modern demigod who’s just coming to terms with his newfound divine powers when the sky god Zeus accuses him of stealing his master lightning bolt”
This is probably a lot more than you had going on when you were 12
Bradley Cooper has been nominated for nine Oscars (including four times for Best Picture as a producer) with zero wins. He’s really going for the gold with Maestro. Cooper not only stars alongside Carey Mulligan in the biopic of American composer Leonard Bernstein, he also co-wrote the script, directed the thing, and produced it. Did he also provide the catering? Maybe! Give the man an Oscar for all his hard work, jeez.
Hey. Hey. Are you guys missing Slow Horses a little bit? Are you getting that itch for another extremely British spy show, maybe one starring Peter Capaldi? One that you can stumble across without even closing the Apple TV app that’s been open on your devices sapping battery power for a week because you just straight up forgot to close it? Well, good news. Look at this.
An anonymous phone call draws two brilliant detectives into a confrontation over an old murder case; one is a young woman in the early stages of her career, and the other is a well-connected man determined to protect his legacy.
— A new Prime Video series described as folllows: “A young married couple’s life turns upside down after secrets are revealed about each other’s past.”
— Stars Kaley Cuoco, who rules, and David Oyelowo, who also rules and has seen his star rise big time in the last year
— Maybe don’t watch this with the spouse you just married?
— The official description of the Netflix Kevin Hart movie — “A master thief is wooed by his ex-girlfriend and the FBI to pull off an impossible heist with his international crew on a 777 passenger flight from London to Zurich” — sounds awesome
— It’s directed by F. Gary Gray, whose résumé includes Friday and Set It Off and The Italian Job, which is a fascinating collection of films for one man to direct
— Also stars Billy Magnussen and Jean Reno, which is cool
From the mind of New Girl and Minx (RIP) star Jake Johnson comes a wild movie about a guy trying to win a million bucks by constantly being near other people whilst being hunted. Apologies for the old-assed references, but Self Reliance is what would happen if you took the Richard Pryor classic Brewster’s Millions and crossed it with Schwarzenegger’s Running Man and then turned it into a rom-com. Plus it’s got Anna Kendrick, Andy Samberg, and Biff Wiff. You in?
Netflix continues its run of ultra-high profile specials from super polarizing comedy giants with this check-in on Pete Davidson’s standup comedy stylings. From the soiled underthings of his alleged stalker to ruminations on the lengths he’d go to get his mom laid and the hidden benefit of Make-A-Wish kids, Davidson is as shocking and on point comedically as ever. He’s also in black and white. We do not know why.
You want a psychological thriller? Cool. Check out this premise: “A family’s getaway to a luxurious rental home takes an ominous turn when a cyberattack knocks out their devices, and two strangers appear at their door.”
You want a solid creative pedigree? Cool. This movie comes from the brain of Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail (who knows a little something about psychological thrillers ), who writes and directs based on a book of the same name.
You want star power? Cool. This sucker stars Mahershala Ali and Ethan Hawke and Julia Freaking Roberts, and features rising star Myha’la Herrold in a major role and Kevin Bacon in a smaller one.
Everything Everywhere All At Once star Michelle Yeoh is seemingly, you know, everywhere… all at once, and there are no complaints there, except possibly from this piano player from the awards circuit. Creators Brad Falchuk (Glee, American Horror Story) and Byron Wu (The Getaway) bring us the story of Bruce (Sam Song Li), who begins to realize that his mom, Eileen (Yeoh), hasn’t exactly been forthcoming about her past. Soon enough, it becomes obvious that a family business exists and has already been joined by older brother Charles (Justin Chien), a powerful assassin. Expect both comedy and action as roundhouse kicks collide.
GOOD: Fargo is back, finally, for a fifth installment that features Juno Temple in Home Alone mode and Jon Hamm in a cowboy hat and a murderous little secret that ties them together. Joe Keery from Stranger Things plays a failson named Gator. There’s a lawyer named Danish Graves who has an eyepatch. There are homemade blowtorches and nipple rings and it’s all just extremely Fargo in all the ways you’ve come to expect.
BAD: Hmm. There’s really not any bad news here. But we already committed to this format so… let’s go with “it shouldn’t have taken until season five for them to cast Jon Hamm in Fargo.”
Greta Gerwig’s massive summer blockbuster hits streaming. There’s not much to say that hasn’t been said. It’s wickedly smart and funny and sly. It’s much weirder than people expected, in the best ways possible. Margot Robbie is incredible as Barbie, providing layers of depth to a character who has rarely before had more than one. Ryan Gosling is a delight as the deeply confused Ken who is watching his simple little world crumble around him. There are cameos galore and touching moments and belly laughs. If you haven’t seen it yet, now’s the time. If you have, well, now’s the time to watch it again. This one is worth a rewatch. Or two. Or five. How you spend your time is your business.
Good news for dads and possibly you, too. Lee Child’s bestselling novels continue to come to hulking life (starring the 6’2″ Alan Ritchson) as opposed to the Tom Cruise movie. Season 3 is already filming, but the second round is now available and should satisfy those pie-and-vending-machine cravings in the meantime. This batch of episodes doubles down on the brilliant simplicity of both Jack Reacher and this show when he teams up members of his former Army unit to stop some murder business. Together, they continue to dive into a high-stakes mystery full of betrayal and revelations, and lest you think that Reacher is all brains and no brain, well, think again.
Can Season 4 recapture the magic of Season 1? At the very least, this new story seems to be hitting some of the same atmospheric and tonal notes as the original story starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, who shall not be seen but are executive producing. There will be plenty of literal and figurative chills while Jodie Foster’s detective teams up with an old colleague portrayed by Evangeline Navarro. Together, they will attempt to unearth frozen truths involving horrors that took place during a Polar Night when an entire research died under mysterious circumstances. Are your teeth chattering already? Same.
Disney+’s first street-level entry into the MCU is as kickass as its Netflix predecessors with a magnetic anti-hero in Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox) and the kind of gritty, neck-breaking fights that more than earn its TV-MA rating. Picking up after the events of Hawkeye, Maya has cut ties with the Tracksuit Mafia and her adoptive dad, Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio), fleeing to Oklahoma to connect with her roots. The show plays up its connection to Netflix’s Daredevil – Fisk is in every episode and Charlie Cox returns as Hell’s Kitchen’s most pious vigilante for a vicious fight sequence that sets the tone for the rest of the season. But the draw here is Cox, and the character-driven storytelling Marvel is committing itself to with these more grounded entries into its universe.
Every couple of years, folks on the internet collectively remember that T-Pain can actually sing, and every time, they go absolutely bananas. Usually, this is prompted by a video of the Tallahassee native performing that goes viral, reminding everyone that the man is still around and still very, very talented.
The latest example comes by way of a concert recording of his latest album, On Top Of The Covers, which he performed at The Sun Rose in Los Angeles last march. As usual, people are freaking out, but one of the artists he covers, Ozzy Osbourne, had a question:
“Why didn’t you guys call me?” he wrote on Twitter, after calling a video of the performance “the best cover of ‘War Pigs’ ever.”
This is the best cover of “War Pigs” ever. Why didn’t you guys call me? https://t.co/yf0IjUninA
Pain, who naturally saw the compliment, expressed his amazement and gratitude at receiving such high praise. “First thing I said was ‘wow,’” he wrote alongside a screenshot of the rock legend’s tweet. “This is an honor and the greatest form of validation. Thank you brother.”
Meanwhile, as one group of internet users is having their minds blown by the discovery that T-Pain can sing without his signature Autotune (something for which he once received such harsh criticism from Usher, he almost quit music entirely), another group of fans is getting their kicks being super smug about it. The life cycle of the internet in a nutshell. For funsies, you can check out the full show below.
Wait T-Pain can SING? And he’s actually really ducking good?
Twice a year people figure out T-Pain can actually sing. Y’all should’ve gotten tickets to that acoustic tour he did with Smino. He’s great live! https://t.co/MvFHrGY3YL
Ok here’s the thing. If in 2024 you’re like “holy shit T-Pain can sing?!?” you’ve just been willfully ignoring it. He’s been showing off his voice for a while now. https://t.co/gudj3891Jj
Samaria’s music presents a layer of vulnerability that, though thick, allows listeners to see and feel all the pain, joy, and everything in between that exists in her life. For the pain, look no further than her 2022 EP Didn’t Start With You. Her struggles in love are showcased with raw emotion through the project’s six songs as she details how failed love rocked her world. “I was purposely isolating myself from everyone so that I wouldn’t accidentally take my pain out on the wrong people,” she said at the time. “I didn’t even want to make music.”
Thankfully, the Bay Area-born singer chose to press onward, and with that comes the optimism for the future that healing from the past provides. The departure from pain and the subsequent journey towards joy live on Samaria’s new EP, Even Paradise Rains. The project marks her first release since signing a deal with RCA Records, and it grants Samaria the opportunity to start a new chapter — her brightest yet. Even Paradise Rains glimmers with the promise of better days while Samaria’s voice provides lush, velvet-like comfort as she lets go of the past in pursuit of finding the best version of herself in the future. “Best Thing For Me” details this entire process while “Forever More” highlights the search for better and “Serial Recluse” captures the departure from what once was.
Together with the upcoming release of Even Paradise Rains, Uproxx caught up with Samaria to chat about her first job at In-N-Out, her biggest fear, and her love for SZA and Euphoria in our debut Uproxx Music 20 Q&A.
What is your earliest memory of music?
Being in the car with my dad when I was a kid, he turned on “Where I Wanna Be” by Donell Jones. It was my first time hearing it and I really wanted to impress him, so I started singing along with the hook. He looked back at me from the driver’s seat with a proud look on his face, turned the music down, and told me to sing it louder. That was the first time I think my dad realized I actually had a voice. It’s a cool memory that stuck with me.
Who inspired you to take music seriously?
My grandma, nobody’s ever pushed me to be great like she did.
Do you know how to play an instrument? If so, which one? If not, which instrument do you want to learn how to play?
The piano & the basics of guitar. I’m super rusty. The goal this year is to pick the guitar back up.
What was your first job?
In-N-Out Burger in San Francisco when I was 16. They’re super strict about not having tattoos, so I hid my finger tattoo, but a coworker saw it a few weeks later and ratted on me to the manager. Shortest job I’ve ever had.
What is your most prized possession?
My grandmother’s ring. I’ve kept it with me since she passed.
What is your biggest fear?
It used to be failing and having everyone laugh at me. Life taught me that failure is inevitable, and I’ve had people laugh at me, it’s actually not so bad. Now, my biggest fear is dying before I get the chance to see my dreams come to fruition.
Who is on your R&B Mt. Rushmore?
Lauryn Hill, Frank Ocean, SZA, and Shiloh Dynasty.
You are throwing a music festival. Give us the dream lineup of 5 artists that will perform with you and the location where it would be held.
Frank Ocean, SZA, Shiloh Dynasty, Lauryn Hill, and Labrinth. I’d hold it in Hawaii and make it a secret location on the island. You’d have to be formally invited and flown out like in the Scooby Doo movie.
You get 24 hours to yourself to do anything you want, with unlimited resources: What are you doing? And spare no details!
I’m throwing the biggest beach bonfire/surf party with unlimited BBQ. I’m hiring ocean waiters to bring food out to those of us waiting on set waves – to hand feed us so we don’t have to get out of the water.
What are your three most used emojis?
What’s a feature you need to secure before you die?
SZA. For sure. I can retire a happy camper. That pen is just… vicious. The only artist that makes me push myself to write better.
If you could appear in a future season of a current TV show, which one would it be and why?
Euphoria, obviously. It’s just shot so beautifully, and I think I could match the energy of the show. It would feel natural.
Which celebrity do you admire or respect for their personality and why?
Beyoncé. She does her job with love and care then she lives her life in privacy to protect her peace and the things that she worked hard to build.
Share your opinion on something no one could ever change your mind about.
The fact that nobody on this earth is responsible for your happiness, no matter how much you may love each other, nobody can give you that satisfaction but you.
What is the best song you’ve ever heard in your life and what do you love about it?
The answer to this question is constantly ever-changing… Right now it’s “Bleed” by Kid Laroi. Next week it’ll be something different.
What’s your favorite city in the world to perform, and what’s a city you’re excited to perform in for the first time?
Right now, it’s Philly and Toronto! I’ve never had that type of love shown they have my heart forever. I really want to perform in the UK. Anywhere in the UK would be sick, sick.
What would you be doing now if it weren’t for music?
Definitely starting a family and raising my kids in Hawaii, surfing every day. Also, would be acting, that’s a big dream of mine.
If you could see five years into the future or go five years into the past, which one would you pick and why?
Five years into the future. I’m a super impatient person so I need to make sure all this work I’m putting in is going to pay off.
What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?
Stop trippin’. Everything’s gonna be aight kid.
It’s 2050. The world hasn’t ended, and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?
I’d like to be remembered as the artist who healed all the broken hearts when the world needed her most. I’d also hope that the young producers in 2050 sample me like crazy.
Even Paradise Rains is out 1/12 via RCA Records. Find out more information here.
There’s no shortage of stories of celebrities whose family members are wholly unimpressed by their fame.
“When I see myself up on a billboard, I have this complete dissociation with it … I’m like, ‘Who’s that?’” actress Emily Blunt told InStyle. “And I can see my children doing the same […] it’s not exciting for them. What’s exciting for them is when I can pick them up from school and take them swimming.”
Meanwhile, Matt Damon told Seth Meyers that his daughter goes out of her way to watch his flops. “She is very clear about not wanting to see anything that I’m in if she thinks it might be good,” Damon told the TV host. “If I get bad reviews in something, that’s the one she wants to see.”
These stories are common and admittedly amusing. Who doesn’t enjoy finding out that even A-listers are treated like mere regular people sometimes? But what about tales of stars’ family members who are just as impressed by the glitz and glamour as we might be?
These stories are far fewer.
Maybe for this reason, everyone is going absolutely bonkers over James Marsden’s mom’s sweet and uncynical reaction to his Golden Globes nomination.
The “Dead to Me” actor, who was nominated for his role as himself in the genre-bending mockumentary “Jury Duty,” posted a message from his mom to his Instagram, and it’s unbelievably sweet and maternal.
“My favorite moment of tonight was when they had your picture up with the other five nominees,” Kathleen Marsden wrote. “Just like I’ve seen all my life of different nominee pics all together like that. “And I [was] saying to myself — my son is one of the 6 chosen and there he is up on the tv screen next to the other nominees. MY son did that. I can’t quit smiling.”
“We need more wholesome things like this on the internet,” said allthatBaz (quick: someone send her a link to Upworthy!)
Multiple fans made a note of crying from the poignancy of the exchange.
“I just applied lash serum. I’m trying not to cry,” wrote AziaraNaskshatra. “Crying in the club,” lovekatebray added.
One fan took it as an opportunity to reflect, in a pretty relatable way, about how their own mom might not have offered the same unvarnished support. “I love this because my mom would be like “you looked shiny I don’t care for that lipstick color congrats on just being nominated there’s no shame in losing,” said AKCooper315832.
This is not the first time Marsden has featured his mom on social media.
A few years ago, on Mother’s Day, he posted a photo of himself with his mother and wrote, “To my loving Mom and to every mother out there, guiding our ways, filling our hearts, and teaching us what love is, we owe you everything. Happy Mother’s Day!”
If there’s a takeaway here, it’s that we all want to feel the people closest to us support us. We also all want James Marsden’s mom to be our mom.
A few years ago, on Mother’s Day, he posted a photo of himself with his mother and wrote, “To my loving Mom and to every mother out there, guiding our ways, filling our hearts, and teaching us what love is, we owe you everything.
Happy Mother’s Day!”
If there’s a takeaway here, it’s that we all want to feel the people closest to us support us. We also all want James Marsden’s mom to be our mom.
For those of us who grew up in the United States eating lunch in a cafeteria, the idea of looking at a bunch of trays of school food may be less than compelling. But what’s surprisingly interesting, however, is what children from the rest of the world are eating instead. Check out these common lunch dishes from around the globe and let us know they seem accurate.
The early 1900s were a time of great social upheaval in our country. During the years leading up to the Ludlow Massacre, miners all around the country looking to make a better life for themselves and their families set up picket lines, organized massive parades and rallies, and even took up arms. Some died.
It’s always worth considering why history like this was never taught in school before. Could it be that the powers that be would rather keep this kind of thing under wraps?
Here is Woody Guthrie’s tribute to the good people who fought in the battles of Ludlow to help make a better tomorrow for everyone — you can just start the video and then start reading, if you wish:
Coal Country, Colorado
100 years ago, the Rocky Mountains were the source of a vast supply of coal. At its peak, it employed 16,000 people and accounted for 10% of all employed workers in the state of Colorado. It was dangerous work; in just 1913 alone, the mines claimed the lives of over 100 people. There were laws in place that were supposed to protect workers, but largely, management ignored those, which led to Colorado having double the on-the-job fatality rate of any other mining state.
It was a time of company towns, when all real estate, housing, doctors, and grocery stores were owned by the coal companies themselves, which led to the suppression of dissent as well as overinflated prices and an extreme dependence on the coal companies for everything that made life livable. In some of these, workers couldn’t even leave town, and armed guards made sure they didn’t. Also, if any miner or his family began to air grievances, they might find themselves evicted and run out of town.
The Union
The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) had been organizing for many years in the area, and this particular company, Colorado Fuel and Iron, was one of the biggest in the West — and was owned by the Rockefeller family, notoriously anti-union.
Put all this together, and it was a powder keg.
Strike!
When a strike was called in 1913, the coal company evicted all the miners from their company homes, and they moved to tent villages on leased land set up by the UMWA. Company-hired guards (aka “goons”) and members of the Colorado National Guard would drive by the tent villages and randomly shoot into the tents, leading the strikers to dig holes under their tents and the wooden beams that supported them.
Why did the union call for a strike? The workers wanted:
(equivalent to a 10% wage increase),
Enforcement of the eight-hour work day,
Payment for “dead work” that usually wasn’t compensated, such as laying coal car tracks,
The job known as “Weight-checkmen” to be elected by workers. This was to keep company weightmen honest so the workers got paid for their true work,
The right to use any store rather than just the company store, and choose their own houses and doctors,
Strict enforcement of Colorado’s laws, especially mine safety laws.
The Powder Keg Explodes
The attacks from the goons continued, as did the battles between scabs (strikebreakers) and the miners. It culminated in an attack on April 20, 1914, by company goons and Colorado National Guard soldiers who kidnapped and later killed the main camp leader and some of his fellow miners, and then set the tents in the main camp ablaze with kerosene. As they were engulfed, people inside the tents tried to flee the inferno; many were shot down as they tried to escape. Some also died in the dugouts below the burning tents. In the first photograph below, two women and 11 children died in the fire directly above them. A day that started off with Orthodox Easter celebrations for the families became known as the Ludlow Massacre.
The 10-Day War
The miners, fresh off the murders of their friends and family members, tried to get President Woodrow Wilson to put a stop to the madness, but he deferred to the governor, who was pretty much in the pocket of the mine companies.
So the miners and those at other tent colonies quickly armed themselves, knowing that many other confrontations were coming. And they went to the mines that were being operated by scabs and forced many of them to close, sometimes setting fire to the buildings. After 10 days of pitched battle and at least 50 dead, the president finally sent in the National Guard, which promptly disarmed both sides.
Union Victory
While close to 200 people died over the course of about 18 months before and after the battles at Ludlow and the union ultimately lost the election, the Ludlow Massacre brought a congressional investigation that led to the beginnings of child-labor laws and an eight-hour workday, among other things.
But it also brought national attention to the plight of these miners and their families, and it showed the resilience and strength that union people could display when they remained united, even in the face of extreme corporate and government violence. Historian Howard Zinn called it “the culminating act of perhaps the most violent struggle between corporate power and laboring men in American history.” And the primary mine owner, John D. Rockefeller Jr., received a lot of negative attention and blame for what happened here.
This article was written by Brandon Weber and originally appeared on 08.14.14
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