Sarah Silverman Calls Out Hollywood for Non-Jews Playing Jewish Roles

Sarah Silverman visited Howard Stern for an in-depth interview, and she drew attention to one of my long-standing issues with Hollywood. In the clip below, Silverman points out that Jews either play sidekicks or annoying girlfriends. But when the role is self-realized and courageous, they are played by non-Jews. Her examples include Felicity Jones playing Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Rachel Brosnahan as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, the latter of which I’ve long complained is an inaccurate, borderline offensive portrayal of Jewish culture. She also cites Jojo Rabbit saying, “The Jew in the wall isn’t even Jewish.” And don’t get her started on Woody Allen. Watch below.

Howard Stern Interviews Eddie Vedder — Magic Ensues

Eddie Vedder visited Howard Stern for one of the best interviews in Howard history, and one particular performance caught my attention. Watch below as the Pearl Jam frontman covers Warren Zevon’s song, “Keep Me in Your Heart for You While.” Vedder originally performed the tune at the request of David Letterman and Stern asked him to perform his rendition from the comfort of his studio. The result is magical.

Matthew McConaughey Relives the Fast Times Table Read

Matthew McConaughey — (Photo by: Bravo)

McConaughey visited Watch What Happens Live to promote his new memoir, Greenlights, and when a fan asked him about Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt’s sexual chemistry during the Fast Times at Ridgemont High table read, he answered the question directly— avoiding the typical worm-your-way-out-of-uncomfortable questions approach so often utilized by celebrities.

McConaughey had some fun with it but admitted he didn’t notice the hot tension. He was also asked about Shia LaBeouf’s very funny, in-character hot boxing of his car to emulate Spicoli, and he admitted something interesting. While Shia’s performance was quite enjoyable for all of us, the end result was edited down and Shia might have been more annoyingly in character than we originally suspected (I’d like to see the uncut version).

It is difficult to articulate how Matthew McConaughey can live in a different world and be so down-to-earth at the same time, but he definitely achieves it.

VMAs Recap: Lady Gaga, The Weeknd, BTS and Other Standouts

I’d never have guessed that MTV would fare better with two hands tied behind their back than they would with complete freedom, but their Covid-19 shackles actually set them free from the routine that has plagued them for the last decade. With the universally beloved Keke Palmer as its emcee sporting a digitally generated backdrop of New York City, the show featured outstanding outdoor performances, dancers donning masks, a drive-in audience, virtual and in-person acceptance speeches, and much more. In short, MTV hit it out of the park. Enjoy the highlights below.

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Quote of the Day: Annabelle Wallis Talks Tom Cruise

He’s on a different level, and, you know, I ticked a box. I got to run on-screen with him, but he told me no at first. He said, “Nobody runs on-screen [with me],” and I said, “But I’m a really good runner.” So, I would time my treadmill so that he’d walk in and see me run. And then he added all these running scenes. So, that was it. It was, like, better than an Oscar. I was so happy! (Laughs.) I was so happy that I got to run on-screen with Tom Cruise. But I don’t think it ever goes away and I hope it never does. It’s so wonderful to be excited by someone and in awe of what they’ve achieved in their lives. Yeah, good on him. And I hope the questions never stop. I love talking about him. It’s really cool.

Annabelle Wallis on working with Tom Cruise in The Mummy

Are Celebrities Ignorant or Antisemitic? A Deep Dive Into Nick Cannon’s Comments

When Nick Cannon took to his podcast to spout anti-Semitic conspiracy theories alongside a known anti-Semite — former Public Enemy member Richard Griffin (“Prof. Griff”)— outrage followed. ViacomCBS dropped him and his upcoming television show was shelved.

Cannon’s first reaction included a lengthy non-apology, claiming that people “misused an important moment for us to all grow closer together and learn more about one another.” Instead, he furthered, ” the moment was stolen and hijacked to make an example of an outspoken black man. [He] will not be bullied, silenced, or continuously oppressed by any organization, group, or corporation. [He is] disappointed that Viacom does not understand or respect the power of the black community.” When Cannon finally seemed to take some level of responsibility, he claimed that doing so turned his own community against him. If his community includes Richard Griffin — then I’d say he’s better off.

Unfortunately, Cannon is not the only offender. Chelsea Handler landed in hot water when she shared a video on Instagram, which quoted Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation Of Islam and a widely known anti-Semite. Both the Anti-Defamation League and Southern Poverty Law Center have identified Farrakhan as anti-Semitic, and the Nation Of Islam as a hate group. Handler’s influence proved dangerous, as many celebrities with large platforms also shared the video. When confronted, Handler double down, insisting his message Farrakhan’s message was powerful and that she didn’t even consider the fact that he was anti-Semitic when she posted it — thus illustrating the recklessness of her actions. After unending uproar, she finally relented — but the damage was done.

There are many other offenders as of late, and I have held an extensive discussion on my podcast diving deeper into anti-Semitism and many of the conspiracy theories being spouted.

Listen below (the conversation begins at minute 30 if you’d like to skip the pop-culture portion of my podcast).

Quibi Creates Quarantine Version of The Princess Bride With A-Listers

After many A-list celebrities have tried and failed to bring us joy during these difficult times, Quibi is showing everyone how it’s done, with a homemade version of The Princess Bride — all proceeds going to charity. For those wondering about the intimate scenes, existing couples were used, such as Sam Rockwell and Leslie Bibb — which is pretty genius if you ask me. Watch a clip below.

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Now on @quibi @wckitchen #homemade

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New Podcast Episode With Special Guest Star

Hi, friends! For this week’s podcast I asked my very kind, informed friend to join me as we discussed some of today’s most relevant topics.

Listen below for our take on the Lea Michele controversy, that Drew Brees apology, Vanderpump Rules’ cast members Stassi Schroeder and Kristen Doute dangerously calling the police on fellow black cast member Faith Stowers, Alicia Silverstone’s latest antics, and more!

Lea Michele Apologizes As More Co-Stars Come Forward About Her Bad Behavior

The hits just keep on coming for former Glee star Lea Michele. In response to a Michele’s tweet in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, Michele’s former costar Samantha Marie Ware said:

And in case you were going to chalk this up to two people who just don’t get along, other costars quickly doubled down on Michele’s bad behavior. Since there are now so many individual stories, I’ve compiled them in a list for ease of read.

  • Spring Awakening‘s Gerard Canonico: “You were nothing but a nightmare to me and fellow understudy cast members. You made us feel like we didn’t belong there. I tried for years to be nice to you to no avail. Maybe actually apologize instead of placing the blame on how others ‘perceive’ you. You’ll probably just delete this though.”
  • Glee actor Dabier Snell: “GIRL YOU WOULDNT LET ME SIT AT THE TABLE WITH THE OTHER CAST MEMBERS CAUSE ‘I DIDNT BELONG THERE’ F— YOU LEA.”
  • Glee actor Jeanté Godlock: “did somebody say cockroaches? because that’s what she used to refer to the background as on the set of glee. but we grow up and we don’t stay background forever sooooo…”
  • Glee star Heather Morris:

There is a great joy in holding others accountable, especially when their misbehavior has gone unchecked for so long. It should be noted that Lea Michele issued an apology, but it felt as if it was written by her publicist and not Lea herself. Furthermore, she used the objectionable word “perceived,” saying, “Whether it was my privileged position and perspective that caused me to be perceived as insensitive or inappropriate at times or whether it was just my immaturity and me just being unnecessarily difficult, I apologize for my behavior and for any pain which I have caused. We all can grow and change and I have definitely used these past several months to reflect on my own shortcomings.”

Is it possible that this will be the wake-up call that Lea Michele needs? Can people who have a history of treating others like crap with zero accountability, ownership, or responsibility actually change? I don’t have the answer to those aforementioned questions — but I do know one thing — if you’re going to be a disrespectful hypocrite that has made the lives of others “a living hell,” then you’re going to have to do better than that halfhearted apology.