0 Comments · Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Ohio CEOs are making more than 160 times more than the
average Ohioan, according to a new report from the AFL-CIO. In 2012, the
average CEO salary was about $6.2 million; the rest of us teeter around
$39,000. CINCINNATI -1
by Jac Kern
02.20.2013
118 days ago
Jac's roundup of pop culture news and Internet findings
Beardwatch 2013
Survivor: Caramoan
– Fans vs. Favorites premiered last week and Cincinnati’s Matt Bischoff (whom
we interviewed here) made it through the first episode, officially making it
further than Cincinnati’s last castaway.
Despite my wide-ranging TV prowess, I haven’t watched Survivor in about 20
seasons. But having an interesting local character like Matt actually makes the
show pretty watchable. Survivor, like
every reality show, follows a set of standard rules in editing, and if you read between the lines it appears Matt could be on the show for a substantial amount of
time: He got enough airtime to intrigue viewers, but not
so much that it seems like they’re gearing up for his departure. Elsewhere,
Matt pulled his weight. He stood up to the cocky Marine barking orders but not
actually doing anything, but soon after paved things over, showing that he’ll put a dude in his place, but not be a dick about it. He helped construct the
tribe’s shelter and brought them to victory in the immunity challenge.
But Matt isn’t the
only hometown boy kickin’ it in the Caramoan — Sharonville native and Ken Doll
lookalike Reynold Toepfer, now a San Francisco resident, joins Matt in the Gota
Tribe. Reynold is a Princeton High School and Miami University grad, but he’s
moved away from the Queen City so he’s DEAD TO US. Just kidding, but seriously,
he’s kind of a d-bag. He formed an alliance with Laura because she flew
under the radar by not being “the cutest, not anything.” Gag. Then, no sooner
than night one, dude was getting into some straight-up heavy petting with Alli
during sleepytime. Matt, looking like an island ninja, checking out the "sleeping" situation going on with two of his tribe-mates.Isn’t this
supposed to be a family show? Not that I’m worried about “the children,” it’s
just my feeling that if you’re going to be kind of a sleazy reality show, you
should just be a really sleazy, self-aware reality show.
Predictably, the
show has portrayed Matt as something of an outsider. In one particular scene,
four of the young, attractive, conventional Survivor
types (Reynold being one of them) dubbed themselves the “cool kids lunch
table” (gag again) and then the
camera panned out to Matt, looking alone in the ocean. In the show’s defense,
Survivor’s core audience probably relies on this type of blatant stereotyping to
understand what’s going on. More Beardwatch to come!
The Internet acts
as a platform for feedback for companies. So when a TV show gets or cancelled
or a product is removed from shelves, many consumers can share their critiques
online. Now, usually this quickly turns into a bullshit sounding board — just
read a Yelp review from a bitter customer — but sometimes the public can harness
the power of technology and allow its collective voice to be heard. Case in
point: Maker's Mark made news last week when the company announced that
the bourbon would henceforth have a reduced alcohol content in order to keep up
with demand. If the bourbon was diluted just a bit, they could produce
enough booze to meet sales demands, but that shortcut would affect the alcohol
volume by about 3 percent (from 45 percent ABV/90 proof to 42 percent/84 proof).
Bourbon drinkers weren’t havin’ none of that. So guess what? Maker's changed
their minds! The bourbon recipe will remain untouched. Long live Maker's Mark!
For a couple of
Grammy-winning musicians, the Black Keys sure have a lot of time for
extracurriculars! When they’re not making completely random, ponytailed cameos
on Workaholics,
they’re trolling Beliebers. Well, drummer Patrick Carney is. Justin Bieber tweeted that Carney (“the black keys drummer”) needed to “be
slapped around” in response to a comment Carney made to a reporter about Beiber’s
Grammy “snub.” Carney went on to change his Twitter name and profile picture to
Justin Bieber and JB fans were pissed. He’s back to assuming his own identity
but you can read the hilarious trolling tweets here. And because I look up any topic on the always-reliable Wikipedia before
writing about it, I discovered that Carney was married to (and later divorced)
writer Denise Grollmus in a ceremony officiated by Will Forte. Yes, MacGruber. WTF
CARNEY.
Beyonce’s
documentary debuted on HBO Saturday, drawing in more viewers (1.8 million) than
any HBO doc in nearly a decade. A little self-serving and definitely over-the-top,
fans and critics alike had a field day with Life
Is But A Dream. Basically, Beyonce records her every waking moment, which,
according to this doc, includes lots of traveling, dance rehearsals and iMac
confessionals. We finally got a good look at mini-Jay, Blue Ivy: “We’re not
worthy!” Beyonce even tried to convince us she was down-to-earth by
rocking some crazy braids in the interview portions, filmed inside her childhood
home. Here
are some quick and dirty deets from NY
Mag including number of manicure close-ups and number of Destiny’s Child
mentions (ZERO!). We got a couple peeks at her preggo belly, but there were not
enough shots of her eating French fries and too many shots of private helicopter
rides to convince me she’s 100 percent human and not an Illuminati alien
goddess. Three stars.
0 Comments · Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Fresh off the premiere of Lifetime’s unintentionally hilarious monstrosity, Liz and Dick, comes
a new chapter of a love story that defines a generation. This week, Liz
Lemon and Criss Chross will be joined in holy hotdog matrimony on 30 Rock (8 p.m. Thursday, NBC).
by Jac Kern
10.10.2012
Jac's roundup of pop culture news and Internet findings
Even the most
plugged-in, pop culture-obsessed Facebook addicts miss out on Internet crazes
every once in a while; thus, Koren performer Psy’s viral music video for “Gangnam
Style” somehow escaped me. I’d seen
the term mentioned on blogs and even watched a (ridiculously high quality) wedding
video based on
confusing sensation before I was able to find a reference the original video. (Isn’t
it funny how that happens?) I found myself Googling “What the hell is Gangnam
Style?!” not knowing if it was a dance craze or song or fashion trend. The song
actually mocks the lifestyle of rich residents of the Seoul suburb, though most
attention surrounds Psy, a middle aged man singing angrily whilst doing a PG
version of “the pony.” I guess some
of the humor is lost on me because I’m secretly bitter I didn’t discover it
early on.
Gangnam’s latest
incarnation? Mitt Romney Style!
Who’s down for a
rousing game of “Steak House or Gay Bar?”
Twitter poet
and Kardashian-humper
Kanye West stripped us all of our daily
affirmation source by deleting all of his previous tweets last week. He has since returned to Twitter, but just to mourn the one-year since Steve
Jobs’ death. Riveting stuff.
Vomiting onstage
is the new black. Lately, high-profile performers across the globe have
proverbially sniffed the milk carton, shrugged and took a sip anyway, all
ending up tossing their cookies on stage. Now, if you’re like music editor Mike
Breen,
watching people experience a retaliating
digestive system is disturbing and you'd rather not see that shit. Otherwise, here’s Lady Gaga
and Justin Beiber barfing at their
recent respective gigs. Thank goodness for HuffPo, who compiled a gallery of “Stars Who’ve Puked During Concerts.”
When Heidi Klum
and Seal broke up,
I was crushed (mostly because it meant no I’d really never be invited to one of their epic
Halloween parties or themed vow renewals).
When Amy Poehler and Will Arnett split,
I was angry and confused. (Can’t they just laugh it off?!) Well, now I know there’s
no such thing as love because after more than 30 years together, Danny DeVito
and Rhea Perlman have separated. Maybe people grow apart after decades
together. Perhaps DeVito’s role as Frank on Always Sunny began rubbing off on
him. I don’t care — Matilda’s parents were supposed to stay together forever.
Thankfully, Amber Tamblyn
and David Cross got hitched this week, giving us all a final shred of hope for
humanity. Check out Questlove’s Instagram (the coolest way to peep wedding pics, ever) for photos of the Esty-fied Tommy Hilfiger
ad starring Joan of Arcadia and Tobias Fünke.
0 Comments · Tuesday, July 19, 2011
It was announced that Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber and Lil Wayne have been nominated for possible induction into the International Bowling Hall of Fame. (Kim Kardashian, Michael Jordan and the only people who make logical sense, Jeff Bridges and Bill Murray, are also up for the esteemed honor.)
0 Comments · Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Having your likeness used as the basis for an American icon like the Barbie doll could be taken a few ways. On one level, it could be a compliment on your style and its effect on popular culture. But if your ability to effect popular culture is relatively nonexistent, then maybe it could be taken as an insult to your style.
0 Comments · Tuesday, August 24, 2010
That one random kid Kanye West was following on Twitter has been replaced ... by Justin Bieber. The two tweeted about working on a song together and, not long after, the duo turned into a trio with the addition of Wu-Tang Clan's Raekwon. While little Bieber referred to the collaboration as "EPIC," we're all sitting back with our "Huh?" faces on.
0 Comments · Wednesday, May 26, 2010
According to a recent story in The New York Times, the latest craze in making money on the road for musicians is the "VIP Package," a pricey gouging of concertgoers that offers questionable "perks." Take the VIP route for a Bon Jovi concert and you'll get a Jovi metal folding chair, a leather bag and a meal ... all for only $1,750 a pop!
0 Comments · Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Having legendary singer/songwriter Alex Chilton die during the weekend of Austin's massive music showcase/conference South By Southwest is kind of like if Stan Lee died on the first day of Comic-Con. You'd be hard pressed to find an event where Chilton would be more understood, appreciated and instantly missed.