TheTrend

RIP Gregg Jevin, Steve Jobs' Birthday and a Dancing Baby

Good morning!

The world is mourning the loss of Gregg Jevin this morning.   Tweets have been pouring in to remember this man among imaginary men.  "Devastated by the loss of Gregg Jevin," tweeted @CharltonBrooker.  "Just heard about Gregg Jevin. He was the first comic I ever saw live. And now he's dead. Weird," added @SarahMillican75.   Some are wondering what will become of his 'Just Giving' page to save the giraffes, but there's no word yet.  Friends say a tribute is even being planned for April 1st, which would be appropriate.   Word of his death has been traced back to a single tweet using the hashtag #RIPGreggJevin.  Michael Legge, a comedian and consummate tweeter, broke the news overnight - "Sad to say that Gregg Jevin, a man I just made up, has died #RIPGreggJevin."  

Many are wishing a happy birthday to Steve Jobs.  The man who taught us to use an Apple a day would have turned 57 years old today.

Doctors at Houston's Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital made social medical history by live tweeting an open heart surgery.  Dr. Michael Macris performed a double coronary artery bypass on a 57-year-old patient while his colleague, Dr. Paresh Patel, provided updates to @houstonhospital's 5,100 Twitter followers.   The tweets, photos and videos are compiled on a Storify page created by the Hospital. Some of it is very graphic.  Also good to note that the patient made it through surgery successfully. 

 

Call it the Ryan Braun loophole.   The National League's reigning most valuable player won his appeal of a 50-game suspension triggers by a positive drug test last October.   Braun, 28, is the first big league player to successfully win such an appeal.  "It is the first step in restoring my good name and reputation," the Brewers leftfielder said in a statement.  ESPN, citing two anonymous sources, reported in December that Braun tested positive for synthetic testosterone during the playoffs, but the three panel appeals board voted 2 to 1 in favor of Braun.  Sources told the AP that Braun's case revolved around the chain of custody from the time the urine sample was collected until when it went to the lab.   According to the report, the collector took the sample on a Saturday, but waited to send it until Monday, thinking it would be more secure at home.   Baseball's drug agreement states "absent unusual circumstances" the sample should be sent by FedEx the same day.   Hence, we have the Ryan Braun loophole.  I suspect MLB will be quickly closing it.

Kathy Ireland has gone from super model to super rich.   A new article in Forbes labels her the richest model on the planet, although these days her focus is not on the runway, but a $2 Billion business empire.  She sells more stuff than Martha Stewart!   The bulk of her revenue comes not from a fashion line sold at K-Mart, but from thousands of home furnishings - ceiling fans, flooring, mattresses, desk, end tables, beds, even bookcases.   You can read the article in Forbes here.   Kathy Ireland is scheduled to appear on The View next week.

Harry Potter fans are excited to learn that author J.K. Rowling is writing a new book, but this time the story will be for adults. Rowling provided few details about the book.  She sent out a rare tweet this morning, "As you may have heard, I have a new book out later this year. Very different to Harry, although I’ve enjoyed writing it every bit as much."  Stay tuned.

A trip to Amsterdam's Artis Royal Zoo turned out to be a real lesson in nature when a Heron picked the wrong place to land for a break - the lion's den.

 

Danica Patrick's first Duel at Daytona ended with a huge crash on the backstretch.  She was okay.  The Daytona 500 is Sunday.

 

Zac Efron had one of those "I wish I was somewhere else" moments when he apparently dropped a condom on the red carpet premiere of The Lorax.

 

Disney has rolled out a new trailer for the latest offering from Pixar, Brave.  It's due in theaters on June 21.

 

Finally… well, I can't say anything about this one… just watch.

 

That's the trend!

Have a fantastic weekend,

Bob

 

 

 

 

Whitney's Coffin Photo, Kate Walsh and Have You Ever Flashed Anyone?

 

The National Enquirer has sparked outrage after using a photo that appears to show Whitney Houston in a gold casket on its cover.   The tabloid claims the photo was taken at Whigham Funeral Home in New Jersey.   Several websites and blogs republished the photo without any warning to visitors.   It's not known how the Enquirer obtained the photo, but it's not a first.   The tabloid published a cover photo of Elvis in his casket, and that issue sold 6.5 million copies.  We will not publish the photo here nor provide a link.   On Twitter, the decision to publish the photo drew condemnation and calls for the Enquirer to be shut down.

Another cover photo causing an internet sensation features Private Practice star Kate Walsh in her birthday suit.   Walsh appears on the cover of Shape magazine's March issue.   Walsh says she decided to pose nude for the cover because she feels good about herself - healthy, confident and sexy, "I’m enjoying my 40s and wanted to share that. Is it a mid-life crisis? I do drive a Porsche, so maybe it is!" she told HuffPost.  Shape hits the newsstands on February 27.

The Bridge to Nowhere is back in the news after last night's Republican debate. Mitt Romney tried to cool off the Santorum surge by going on the attack. "While I was fighting to save the Olympics, you were fighting to save the Bridge to Nowhere," he said, trying to drive home the point of government excess and attach Rick Santorum to it.   Santorum came under fire from both Romney and Ron Paul, but for the most part held his own.   The debate is the last one scheduled, but more could wind up on the calendar if a likely nominee does not emerge after Super Tuesday.

Star Jones returned to The View for the first time in six years on Wednesday.   Jones left the show in 2006 in a bitter separation over contracts and gastric bypass surgery, but that's water under the bridge to nowhere.   Her return was amicable as she made an appearance to raise awareness of heart disease.

Former Seinfeld actor Daniel von Bargen critically wounded himself in a suicide attempt.  Von Bargen played Mr. Kruger in Seinfeld. 

(Zuma)

The 61-year-old actor called 911 on Monday and told the operator that he shot himself in the head, but it didn't work.    On the 911 call, he is heard telling the operator that he was supposed to go to the hospital to have a few toes amputated (he's diabetic), and he didn't want to go.

Qnexa became as trending topic after Vivus Inc. won the backing of a US advisory panel as the company seeks to gain approval for the first new obesity drug in 13 years.   The drug was previously rejected over safety concerns.  The panel backed the drug this time due to its impressive weight loss results, with most patients reporting nearly 10 percent weight loss. A final FDA decision is expected in April.

The Daytona 500 is starting to trend ahead of this Sunday's big race.  Twin 150-mile qualifying races will be held today.   Most of the drivers in the races are already guaranteed a spot, but a small group will be trying to gain a position in the 500.

President Obama has a trending video on YouTube after joining in on "Sweet Home Chicago"at In Performance at the White House: Red, White & Blues - a tribute to the Blues influence on modern American music from soul to rock'n'roll.

 

Jimmy Kimmel has yet another viral video, asking women on the street if they ever flashed anyone.

 

Guyism.com went around New York City asking kids to predict this Sunday night's Academy Award winners.

 

Finally, Germany's Dergin Tokmak, a Cirque Du Soleil performer, uses crutches in ways you cannot imagine.

 

That's the trend!

Have a great day,

Bob

 

 

 

 

Where the celebrities live in New York City

Gotta thank the folks at Huffington Post for pointing us to this blog. Rentenna is a search tool for New York apartments, but they've rolled out a "where do the celebrities live?" map of New York City (below).

On its blog, the company writes Rentenna's first-ever New York City Star Map features the buildings of over 100 celebrities across Manhattan and Brooklyn, so everyone can look up their famous neighbors, gloat to friends elsewhere in the country, then quickly go back to pretending they never cared in the first place.

When we posted the story on Facebook, it drew an angry response from some users who believe the map promotes stalking.   You can voioce your opinion by clicking on comment below.

 

NYC Celebrity Star Map by apartment ratings and reviews site Rentenna.com

Kabul, Marie Colvin and Ash Wednesday

 

Violent clashes in Kabul have been a very hot topic on Twitter this morning.   NATO troops burned copies of the Quran. 

According to U.S. officials, the Qurans were "inadvertently" put in an incinerator at Bagram airbase after being confiscated from Taliban prisoners, who they said may have been using the books to pass messages to each other.   Local laborers found the charred remains of the books, setting off a furious display of anger and outrage.   The U.S. Embassy in Kabul was placed under lockdown as police and protesters clashed.   Twitter users there tweeted updates and photos from the scene.

Journalist Marie Colvin, a Long Island native reporting for The Sunday Times of London, and French photographer Rémi Ochlik have been killed in Syria. 

(AP Photos)

Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad bombed the building where they were staying.  Colvin, 55, won numerous awards for her writing covering conflicts in the Middle East, the Balkans and Chechnya.   She wore a distinctive black eye patch after losing an eye covering the civil war inn Sri Lanka.   Colvin appeared on Britain's Channel 4 News on Tuesday night, hours before her death.  Anchor Jon Snow called her "the most courageous journalist I ever knew and a wonderful reporter and writer."

It's Ash Wednesday, so don't tell anyone they "have dirt on their forehead" today.  Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Christian season of Lent.  It is a season of penance, reflection and fasting ahead of Easter Sunday.  The ashes are made from the blessed palms used in the Palm Sunday celebration from last year.   They symbolize penance and contrition.  Foreheads marked with ashes also remind us that life passes away on Earth.

Space.com reports that scientists have discovered a new type of alien planet.   Observations from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope suggest the planet is a steamy water world that is larger than Earth but smaller than Uranus.   To date, astronomers have discovered more than 700 planets beyond our solar system and another 2,300 candidates as possible planets. This one is located about 40 light years from Earth.

Today's Google Doodle looks more like a heart monitor in an operating room than the company's logo.  It celebrates the 155th birthday of Heinrich Rudolf Hertz.  

If you own a computer, smart phone or tablet, the processors have a heartbeat expressed in hertz, megahertz or gigahertz.

The last version of Edvard Munch's masterpiece The Scream still in public hands is headed for the auction block this spring in New York.   Sotheby's estimates the work will sell for $80-million.  

The drawing is one of four versions created by the Norwegian artist in 1895.   The image of a man holding his head and screaming under a streaked, blood-red sky has become a modern icon for human anxiety.

You have to wonder if Denver will resign quarterback Brady Quinn after some comments attributed to him in Sports Illustrated.  Tim Tebow leapfrogged him to replace Kyle Orton as the Broncos quarterback after a 1-4 start.  "I felt like the fans had a lot to do with that," Quinn said in the article. "Just ‘cause they were chanting his name. There was a big calling for him. No, I don’t have any billboards. That would have been nice."   Quinn also said in the article that the way Tebow expresses his faith doesn’t "seem very humble to me."   After the article was published on Tuesday, Quinn took to Twitter to set the record straight, writing, "deserves a lot of credit for our success and I'm happy for him and what he accomplished. Most importantly, he is a great teammate."

Adele had another big night, this time at the U.K.'s Brit Music Awards.  The soulful songstress took home prizes for album of the year and best British female solo artists.   She also flipped the bird after the show's cut off her acceptance speech.  Afterward, she stressed that the obscene gesture was not intended for the audience.  "I'm sorry if I offended anyone but it was the suits that offended me," Adele said. "Thank you all very much and thanks to my fans. I don't want them to think I was swearing at them."

With the Oscars on Sunday, the Academy has rolled out a refresher course on Oscar etiquette with Academy Award winner Kevin Kline and Mike Myers.

 

If you like watching stuff blow up, here's a view of the Fort Steuben Bridge blowing up.  The bridge once provided an essential path to and from Steubenville, Ohio and Weirton, West Virginia.

 

A guy with a dashcam is showing off its value.   The video shows another driver stopping in the middle of a highway, and then backing into his vehicle in what the poster says was an attempted scam.

 

Then there's this guy in England (we think) who tried to cross a frozen canal that wasn't quite frozen.

 

And that's the trend!

Have a great day,

 

Bob

Fat Tuesday, Lava Falls and A Flying Baby

 

It's Fat Tuesday!  The culmination of Mardi Gras is a feast of indulgence ahead of Ash Wednesday on the Christian calendar and a 40-day period of sacrifice better known as Lent.   New Orleans, the city that sits below sea level, is the pinnacle of this hedonistic celebration of food, booze, parades and decadence inappropriate to describe in a blog for all ages. 

(AP Photo)

The tradition of Mardi Gras is said to date back to a time before refrigeration.   All the food had to be eaten because none of it would survive the 40 days.   Nowadays, it's all about indulgence… or over-indulgence… and eating pancakes, doughnuts and other carbo-loaded delights so you need the next 40 days to work off the pounds that you pack on during this single frenzied day.

People on Twitter are having fun with the Fat Tuesday celebration using the hashtag #ReplaceBandNamesWithPancake.  Some of the top choices:

30 Pancakes to Mars

Selena Gomez and the Pancakes

Pancake Girls (Wonder Girls)

Red Hot Chili Pancakes

Pancake Brothers

Guns N' Pancakes

Pancake Day (Green Day)

My own offering is The Rolling Pancakes.

A once a year site at Yosemite National Park is trending.   It happens at sunset in mid-February, weather-permitting.  The sunset illuminates the Horsetail Fall so precisely that the water resembles molten lava flowing over the sheer granite face. Horsetail Fall drains a small area on the eastern summit of El Capitan and flows only in the winter and spring in years with adequate rain and snow, which is scarce this year. 

(AP Photo)

The fire lights up around dusk and lasts for about two minutes.  Park officials think the last day to possibly see it this year will be February 24th.  Every year, more and more photographers gather hoping to capture the event.   Photographer Galen Rowell first captured it on film in 1973.

A flying baby is making news.   Okay, it's not really a flying baby, but a really cool series of pictures taken by photographer Rachel Hulin.  

(Photo from http://rachelhulin.com)

In an interview with Time magazine, Hulin wouldn’t divulge the exact details of how her baby Henry flies. "I wanted the flights to feel genuine," she said. "These are places we are really in everyday, it’s not a cut-and-paste job on random interiors and landscapes."

Some sports news trending this morning….Major League baseball players are arriving in Florida this week for the start of Spring Training.  One of those players is Manny Ramirez, who has signed a minor league deal with Oakland.   Billy Beane has, of course, become famous for signing castoffs for the Oakland A's, but where the team puts Ramirez after signing Cuban defector and workout video star Yoenis Cespedes last week is anyone's guess.  Ramirez must sit out the first 50 games of the season after testing positive for PED last year, so they have time to think about it.

Deron Williams is trending after putting the kibosh on Jeremy Lin and the Knicks in 100-92 Nets victory last night.   The All-Star guard scored 38 points in the win.

Portland's 7-foot center Greg Oden will miss the rest of the season after yet another setback with his troublesome knees.  He was undergoing a minor procedure Monday to clear out debris in his left knee when the surgeon determined there was additional damage and performed microfracture surgery.  The former No. 1 pick in the 2007 NBA draft has now had two microfracture surgeries on his left knee, and one on his right. He has also undergone surgery for a fractured left kneecap.

High school basketball standout Gabe York from Orange, California has a viral video that displays his well-regarded leaping ability with a slam dunk.   The 6-1 guard will be playing next season at the University of Arizona.

 

A sneak peek of wingsuiter Jeb Corliss crashing into Table Mountain has become a hot video on YouTube.   He did not die in the accident, but he was pretty banged up.

 

Mariah Carey has a viral video with her own tribute to Whitney Houston.

 

Batman had a night out in Toronto captured on video…  The producer says it started out as a "Sh** Batman Says" video, but turned into something much different.

 

Weekend snow at Virginia Tech was just enough to allow for the annual Cadet vs. Civilian snowball fight.

 

And finally, a five-month old apparently learned the art of teething from the family dogs.

 

That’s the trend!

Go easy on the doughnuts,

Bob

 

 

President's Day, John Glenn and Rihanna

Happy President's Day!  

It's a day off for most Americans, but at least some probably don't have a clue why their employer is closed for the day.   We celebrate President's Day today to honor the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, arguably our two most important presidents. 

Washington was born on February 22, 1732 while Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809.  However, the holiday is officially just a celebration of Washington's Birthday.  In 1885, Chester A. Arthur (Yes, he was a president too) signed the bill to make the third Monday in February a federal holiday called George Washington's Birthday.  The snub of Lincoln's birthday did not sit well with many, and the holiday became a celebration of both men's birthdays.   There was an attempt in 1968 to officially change the holiday to President's Day, but it died in committee and so to this day the holiday that we refer to as President's Day is really just George Washington's Birthday.  

Many mark the day by eating cherries.   I can remember as a child, my grandmother giving me candied cherries to mark Washington's Birthday.  The legend goes that a young, rebellious Washington chopped down a cherry tree, but later admitted to his father that he did it.    He could not tell a lie, the story goes.  Of course, the story itself is a lie.  Washington's biographer Mason Weems made up the story for the book The Life of Washington.  He created the myth as a way to show Washington's honesty.

Fifty years ago today one of the original Mercury seven Astronauts, John Glenn, became the first American to orbit the Earth.   Glen trained for three years for his four hour, 55 minute, 23 second three orbit flight in Friendship 7 on February 20, 1962.

Lots of people are searching for King Cake recipes ahead of Fat Tuesday tomorrow, the last day of indulgence before Lent begins.   The cake has origins in the Old World from the French and Spanish.   It's decorated in the traditional colors of Mardi Gras - purple (justice), green (faith) and gold (power).  A token, usually a plastic baby symbolizing the infant Jesus, is hidden inside the cake.  The person who finds the baby is crowned king of the party, or wins a trip to the emergency room for eating it.

Happy birthday Rihanna!   She turns 24, and she received a birthday wish tweet from Chris Brown, adding even more fuel to rumors that the couple is back together.   

Rihanna's birthday is also trending as "Robyn."  Her real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty.

Kurt Cobain once said "We're so trendy, we can't even escape ourselves."  Twenty years later, he is a trend on Twitter.  Cobain, who inspired a generation and influenced the music industry, would have turned 45 years old today.   His band Nirvana has sold over 25 million album in the U.S. and more than 50 million around the globe.  Cobain, a musical genius, fans and critics will tell you, but he struggled with the glare of the spotlight and lifelong personal pressures during his rise to fame.   His short life, that seemed to never recover from his parent's divorce, ended in suicide in 1994.  Much has been written about his heroin addiction and rebellious behavior, but I always thought of Cobain as a guy with a big heart so broken that he could not figure out how to fix it.  "If you die, you're completely happy and your soul somewhere lives on," he said.  "I'm not afraid of dying.  Total peace after death, becoming someone else is the best hope I've got."

Carlos Pena Jr., one of the members of Big Time Rush, has a music video gone viral on YouTube.   He put together the video featuring some of his friends, including Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez and Ashley Tisdale.

 

This next video stinks, but it's gone viral anyway.   A guy was rolling at sewage plant when a scum pot valve failed as someone was working on it.   Yes, the scum goes everywhere.  (Note: Foul language in addition to the foul smell.)

 

We may not have had much snow this winter, but they got a pile of it in Poland.  So when one man went outside to snow blow the street, his neighbor was rolling and posted the video as a "fail."   At first, I didn't realize why the snow blowing failed, but if you look closely you will figure it out.   The poster says the guy kept going for an hour and a half, frustrated that the snow did not seem to be going away.

 

And finally, a video upload in December is suddenly viral.   It shows a bird feeding a dog, beak to mouth.

 

That's the trend!

Have a great Monday,

Bob

President's Day, John Glenn and Rihanna

Happy President's Day!  

It's a day off for most Americans, but at least some probably don't have a clue why they're employer is closed for the day.   We celebrate President's Day today to honor the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, arguably our two most important presidents. 

Washington was born on February 22, 1732 while Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809.  However, the holiday is officially just a celebration of Washington's Birthday.  In 1885, Chester A. Arthur (Yes, he was a president too) signed the bill to make the third Monday in February a federal holiday called George Washington's Birthday.  The snub of Lincoln's birthday did not sit well with many, and the holiday became a celebration of both men's birthdays.   There was an attempt in 1968 to officially change the holiday to President's Day, but it died in committee and so to this day the holiday that we refer to as President's Day is really just George Washington's Birthday.  

Many mark the day by eating cherries.   I can remember as a child, my grandmother giving me candied cherries to mark Washington's Birthday.  The legend goes that a young, rebellious Washington chopped down a cherry tree, but later admitted to his father that he did it.    He could not tell a lie, the story goes.  Of course, the story itself is a lie.  Washington's biographer Mason Weems made up the story for the book The Life of Washington.  He created the myth as a way to show Washington's honesty.

Fifty years ago today one of the original Mercury seven Astronauts, John Glenn, became the first American to orbit the Earth.   Glen trained for three years for his four hour, 55 minute, 23 second three orbit flight in Friendship 7 on February 20, 1962.

Lots of people are searching for King Cake recipes ahead of Fat Tuesday tomorrow, the last day of indulgence before Lent begins.   The cake has origins in the Old World from the French and Spanish.   It's decorated in the traditional colors of Mardi Gras - purple (justice), green (faith) and gold (power).  A token, usually a plastic baby symbolizing the infant Jesus, is hidden inside the cake.  The person who finds the baby is crowned king of the party, or wins a trip to the emergency room for eating it.

Happy birthday Rihanna!   She turns 24, and she received a birthday wish tweet from Chris Brown, adding even more fuel to rumors that the couple is back together.   

Rihanna's birthday is also trending as "Robyn."  Her real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty.

Kurt Cobain once said "We're so trendy, we can't even escape ourselves."  Twenty years later, he is a trend on Twitter.  Cobain, who inspired a generation and influenced the music industry, would have turned 45 years old today.   His band Nirvana has sold over 25 million album in the U.S. and more than 50 million around the globe.  Cobain, a musical genius, fans and critics will tell you, but he struggled with the glare of the spotlight and lifelong personal pressures during his rise to fame.   His short life, that seemed to never recover from his parent's divorce, ended in suicide in 1994.  Much has been written about his heroin addiction and rebellious behavior, but I always thought of Cobain as a guy with a big heart so broken that he could not figure out how to fix it.  "If you die, you're completely happy and your soul somewhere lives on," he said.  "I'm not afraid of dying.  Total peace after death, becoming someone else is the best hope I've got."

Carlos Pena Jr., one of the members of Big Time Rush, has a music video gone viral on YouTube.   He put together the video featuring some of his friends, including Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez and Ashley Tisdale.

 

This next video stinks, but it's gone viral anyway.   A guy was rolling at sewage plant when a scum pot valve failed as someone was working on it.   Yes, the scum goes everywhere.  (Note: Foul language in addition to the foul smell.)

 

We may not have had much snow this winter, but they got a pile of it in Poland.  So when one man went outside to snow blow the street, his neighbor was rolling and posted the video as a "fail."   At first, I didn't realize why the snow blowing failed, but if you look closely you will figure it out.   The poster says the guy kept going for an hour and a half, frustrated that the snow did not seem to be going away.

 

And finally, a video upload in December is suddenly viral.   It shows a bird feeding a dog, beak to mouth.

 

That's the trend!

Have a great Monday,

Bob

Gary Carter, Anthony Shadid and how to go viral

Good morning!

The Kid is being remembered this morning.   The great Mets and Montreal Expos catcher Gary Carter died less than a year after being diagnosed with brain cancer.  

(AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Mets fans, of course, remember Carter as the spark plug of the 1986 season.   In the famous game six comeback against Boston, Carter came up with two outs and nobody on base in the bottom of the tenth.  He punched a single to left to keep the Mets alive, and the rest, as they say, is history.   Wally Backman, who played second base on that team, is the new manager of the Buffalo Bisons.  Backman announced to the 300 or so baseball fans gathered for the team's hot stove meetings at a hotel in Buffalo that he will switch his uniform to No. 8 this season in honor of Carter.  "It's for Gary…. Gary was ... if I had an idol as a player I played with, Gary would definitely be one of them. Without question. In remembering Gary, I'm going to wear 8 until somebody tells me I can't wear it," he said.  "He was a great teammate, a great player. I never heard this man say anything bad about another teammate ever. It was always positives."  Gary Carter was 57.

Anthony Shadid is also being remembered.   He was arguably the best Middle East reporter of his generation, writing for the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe and others.   Shadid, 43, was working in Syria, covering the opposition forces, when he suffered a fatal asthma attack.   He never shied away from danger, even after getting shot in Ramallah in 2002 or getting arrested in Libya last year.   Shadid won two Pulitzers, most recently in 2010 for his writing in the Washington Post from Iraq.    The Pulitzer Board said he received the honor “for his rich, beautifully written series on Iraq as the United States departs and its people and leaders struggle to deal with the legacy of war and to shape the nation’s future.” You can read a collection of stories that Shadid authored by clicking here.

Stephen Colbert is MIA from Comedy Central because his 91-year-old mother is seriously ill, according to reports.   The speculation about the fate of the show ran wild on social sites after the tv network issued a cryptic email:  “Due to unforeseen circumstances, the show will air repeat episodes on Wednesday, February 15 and Thursday, February 16.”

Video of country singer Randy Travis' arrest for public intoxication has been released and gone viral.  It's really not terribly compelling, except for the line "Are you kidding me?"

 

Lost fans will be happy to hear Terry O'Quinn (John Locke) has signed on to star in an ABC pilot for 666 Park Avenue.   According to Deadline.com, it's a potential serious about a historic building in New York City that's haunted.  

Happy birthday Michael Jordan.  "Air Jordan" turns 49 years old today.

Some trending videos today demonstrate how to become famous, or at least go viral….  Check out what a guy name Jack did to get on ESPN.

 

An entertainer named Spandy Andy is hoping to get famous wearing spandex.  He has gone viral with a video that he uploaded last month… It shows him dancing around a beach in a sparkly speedo.

 

This young woman is becoming famous for a texting while walking fail that happened during a reporter's live shot.

 

This guy is going viral because he looks like someone famous - Ryan Gosling.

 

A few other trending videos worth noting… First, the world's largest rope swing.

 

Then there’s this cat that is determined to dig out from a snow storm somewhere in Europe.

 

Finally, watch what happens when this guy tries to get a photo with a monkey at the Memphis Zoo.  

 

That’s the trend!

Have a great weekend,

Bob

 

 

Nancy Grace, Heart Attack Grill and How to Lure a Gorilla

 

A nasty exchange between Nancy Grace and Dan Abrams has become all the buzz on Twitter this morning.  The exchange was over Grace's speculation on her program that Whitney Houston might have been murdered.   She has already come under fire for suggesting that someone might have pushed Houston under water -- police say no evidence of foul play in this case. 

ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams pressed her on the issue this morning.

"Nancy, can't you just say, you know what, 'I was wildly speculating and I'm sorry? I shouldn't have said it. It was inappropriate,'" he said.

 "That is not speculation," Grace responded.

 "It's not speculation that she may have been pushed under the water?" he asked.

Grace then ripped into Abrams by saying he probably had never tried a murder case or been in a morgue or attended an autopsy.

"Did anyone associated with this investigation say they were looking into who pushed her under the water?" Abrams asked.

 "You are arguing with me over semantics," Grace said.

"No, I'm not, I'm arguing with you going on television and making a comment that I think was rightfully viewed as inappropriate," Abrams said. "Sometimes, there's a time to say, you know what, 'I shouldn't have said that in retrospect.' "

Grace refused to say that she was wrong, firing back that "It would have been true to say that they were looking for the cause of death, but what that means in the 'real world' - not just the Ivory tower of Harvard Law School, not just reading documents and talking about it, but in the 'real world' of an autopsy… (it means) to determine the cause of death, whether it be overdose, natural causes, accident or homicide.  It's not a homicide, and I'm thankful for that, but I still want the truth."

 

A horrific prison fire in Honduras is also a top trend online this morning.  Nearly 500 people escaped from the prison, but more than 350 are missing and presumed dead.  An inmate at the prison in Comayagua set fire to his bedding (reasons unknown) and the flames spread rapidly.  Many inmates died trapped in their cells, while others rushed for exits, but guards did not have keys, according to a spokesman.   The fire has renewed focus on prison overcrowding in Latin America.   The Comayagua prison was designed for 250 inmates.  It's a situation seen across Latin American countries where they have more criminals than jails and no resources to build new ones or improve the ones that exist.

Things appear to be looking up in Detroit where General Motors is reporting a record $7.6 billion NET profit for 2011.  It's the first time since 2004 that all Big Three automakers are profitable.

A customer had a heart attack at The Heart Attack Grill in Las Vegas.  Not a P-R stunt.   The restaurant that promises to clog arteries and expand waistlines with menu items like 8,000-calorie "quadruple bypass" burger, with four half-pound patties, eight slices of cheese and a lard-doused bun delivered on that promise over the weekend. 

A man eating a "triple bypass burger" began having chest pains, sweating and shaking on Saturday night, according to one server at the restaurant.   A video on YouTube showed the man being wheeled out on a stretcher by medical responders.   The man's name and condition have not been released.

Fat Tuesday and Mardi Gras have jumped into the trends as New Orleans gets ready for its big celebration.   Fat Tuesday is next week.

Teyana Taylor may not be well known, but the R&B singer is a hot trend on Twitter after nude photos apparently of her showed up online and spread like wildfire.  One photo shows her wearing a bra and panties, while another shows her topless sitting on a bench taking the picture of herself on a mirror.  While it's not confirmed that the pictures are hers, speculation is that the Christmas in Harlem singer has been hacked or had her phone stolen.

Lil Kim, who released a new song this week, is also a hot topic on Twitter after an interview on Bravo in which she did not have nice things to say about Nicki Minaj, who also released a new song this week.   She was asked about Nicki's single Stupid Hoe.  "If you have to make a song called 'Stupid Hoe,' you must be a 'Stupid Hoe,'" Kim responded.  The song is thought to have been a direct insult to Kim after she released an EP called Black Friday last year ridiculing the 'Super Bass' star.  

Super Saiyan is trending on Twitter, worldwide, after a kid posted a video on YouTube in which he explains that he believes he is from Dragonball Z and then demonstrates his transformation into a super hero at 3:30 into the video.   However, his hair did not turn yellow and his eyes did not turn green, as the legend states, so I'm not sure it really worked.

 

It must be Super Hero day on YouTube, because an American Ninja Warrior is also trending.

 

A PETA ad has gone viral.  It's called Boyfriend Went Vegan, but a lot of the comments complain that it portrays women getting physically injured by their boyfriends. 

 

Check out this guy from India - no legs, but a GREAT dancer!

 

Finally, how to lure a gorilla with an iPhone.   Don't try this in the wild.

 

That's the trend!

Have a great day,

Bob

 

Lin the Legend, Kate Upton and the Best in Show

 

Jeremy Lin is the Tim Tebow of New York City.   His legend continues to grow with every passing Knicks game.  The latest chapter in the narrative is a game-winning three-point shot with less than a second left over Toronto.   The Knicks point guard had led his team to six consecutive victories. 

He has not only boosted Knicks fortunes, but because most games have been blacked out in the City because of the contract dispute between MSG and Time Warner Cable, bars are booming with Lin fans wanting to see their legendary hero.   Besides producing amazing, head-scratching victories like Tebow, Lin is also deeply religious and refers to his faith in post-game interviews.  His Twitter account's description is, "to know Him is to want to know Him more." His account's profile photo shows Jesus telling a young man, "No, I'm not just talking about Twitter. I literally want you to follow me." His Facebook page quotes Colossians 3:23 "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."    Tebow, of course, has his signature “Tebow-ing” gesture, so there are differences between the two. If it’s not a trend, it is certainly two athletes cast in a similar mold who are inspiring their team's fans to dream big.

We may know why Mark Sanchez threw so many interceptions this past season.   Rumors spreading like wildfire and sort of, kind of confirmed by Kate Upton that the Jets quarterback and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover girl are an item… maybe. 

Upton told TMZ when asked if Sanchez is the mystery man in her life, "I don't know!"  And when pressed a little harder, she said, "It's whatever you think."   So that's a little too coy for confirmation, but if Sanchez needed an excuse for a bad season on the field, a distraction off the field like Kate Upton seems like a good one.

Chris Brown is the celebrity death hoax of the week as R.I.P. Chris Brown is a top trending topic on Twitter.   That trend produced a second one - #FavouriteChrisBrownSongs.

Is this the funniest YouTube video of all-time (warning - it's LOUD)? 

 

You may not agree, but according to a new Google algorithm, it is.  The algorithm ranks the funniest videos based upon certain elements of the video, user comments and votes. Google engineer Sanketh Shetty wrote that they focused on videos in YouTube's comedy category.   You can see the full results at https://www.youtube.com/slam/comedy.

A Pekingese is America's new top dog. The Peke named Malachy earned Best in Show at the Westminster Dog Show.   Malachy, a 4-year-old, has won 115th best in show titles overall.  He is the first Peke to win at Westminster since 1990. 

The champion at Westminster wins a coveted silver bowl, but not a cent. Instead, the honor of this title lasts a lifetime for any owner, and brings a wealth of opportunity in breeding potential.   Malachy's owners say the dog is headed back to East Berlin, Pa. for a life in retirement.  Winning Westminster is probably as good as it gets, so why not.

Sea Lions apparently do not like Shakira.  The Colombian singer-songwriter went on a nature tour in Cape Town, South Africa over the weekend.  They came upon some seals and sea lions, so Shakira tried to get a bit closer to take some pictures.  "Suddenly, one of them jumped out of the water so fast and impetuously that it got about one foot away from me, looked me in the eye, roared in fury and tried to bite me," she wrote on her Facebook page.  "Everyone there screamed, including me. I was paralysed by fear and couldn't move, I just kept eye contact with it while my brother "Super Tony" (her brother) jumped over me and literally saved my life, taking me away from the beast."  Shakira says she and her brother suffered some bumps and scratches, but nothing major.  "Now I'm off to see some penguins! I hope they are a bit more friendly!" she wrote.

A sleight of hand trick has gone viral.  Can you figure it out?

 

This video features two classmates going on a magic carpet ride.  Funny?  You decide.  If nothing else, it's gone viral.

 

Irish adventurer Mark Pollock, who became blind at the age of 22 and was the first blind person to reach the South Pole, has taken huge steps towards regaining his mobility after breaking his back in three places after an accident. In the video above, Pollock is seen surfing in La Jolla, California.

 

Finally, we end where we began… with a bit of basketball, and an amazing if not legendary shot by Wabash College senior guard Aaron Zinnerman, who beats the shot clock by tossing the basketball over his shoulder.

 

That's the trend!

Have a great day,

Bob