When Pat Sajak announced his retirement from Wheel of Fortune, suddenly the spotlight was on Vanna White and whether she would stay. Vanna wants to stay, and she was already negotiating her new contract with her new ballbuster lawyer when Sajak announced his retirement. As it turned out, Vanna hired the lawyer because she hasn’t gotten a raise in 18 years, and she’s asking for half of what Pat Sajak made – he made about $15 million per year, so she probably wants about $7.5 million a year, as opposed to the $3 million she’s made annually for the past 18 years. When Ryan Seacrest was announced as Sajak’s replacement, I had a really bad feeling that Seacrest would find some way to oust Vanna. Well, guess what? Vanna’s getting the vibe that producers believe she’s “replaceable.”

Vanna White feels like Wheel Of Fortune bosses think she is ‘replaceable’ and have a ‘lack of respect for her’ after they hired Ryan Seacrest as longtime host Pat Sajak’s successor without offering her a chance to take on the role. A source close to White, 66, told DailyMail.com exclusively that she was ‘disappointed’ that they made a decision about Seacrest, 48, so quickly – with show executives announcing Seacrest as the new host less than two weeks after Sajak, 76, publicly revealed he was retiring.

‘She was disappointed that they didn’t give her more of a chance to take over Pat’s job, or that she wasn’t able to give her two cents on the replacement,’ the insider said. ‘She didn’t assume they would be making the announcement of his replacement so soon.’

The source was quick to emphasize White had ‘nothing but respect for Ryan and will be happy to work with him, but it just shows a lack of respect in her eyes that they have for her. She wants to be with the show for as long as she wants to be on the show, on her terms. She believes she deserves it,’ the insider added.

‘It is a major uphill battle, especially when money is involved and she sees the writing on the wall that they think she is replaceable. There will be lots of negotiations, but if she gets replaced and is not given a new contract, she will be beyond heartbroken. This has been her life, it would be just as powerful as a death if she doesn’t continue with the show.’

The insider further elaborated the transition that the retirement of Wheel’s longtime executive producer Harry Friedman, 76, in August 2019 was what initially seemed to set in motion a new era for the game show.

‘Things got a little bit different with the show for Pat and Vanna during COVID, as the atmosphere changed on set once [Harry] left the show and retired,’ they said. ‘It just wasn’t the same vibe… Nobody dislikes anyone, it is just different, and the leverage that Pat and Vanna once had is not there anymore. Pat saw the writing on the wall and thought if there was ever a time to leave, now would be that time.’

As for Vanna, the source added: ‘She usually… keeps to herself, comes to work, does her thing, and leaves. She is friendly with everyone, but with the new regime, she doesn’t have the clout she once had, is no longer bulletproof, and is unfortunately made to feel replaceable. She doesn’t want to retire and leave the show, so she really hopes she doesn’t get pushed out. That is the last thing on her list to happen, she wants to stay, but she also wants it to be fair and is going to fight for what she believes in and what she deserves.’

[From The Daily Mail]

Who knew that Wheel of Fortune had all of these backroom politics and in-fighting to the point where Sajak and White would need “leverage” with one particular producer? I guess the corporate perspective was “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” – Vanna and Pat provided an ocean of stability for the game show, but now that Sajak is out, the business believes that it’s worth exploring all kinds of other options. Which I sort of understand from a cold, business perspective. But I think the WoF bosses are really underestimating Vanna’s popularity, and her ability to do reputational damage to the show if she’s treated poorly or fired outright.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.

After his “Scottish coronation,” King Charles returned to London and Windsor, where he’s still working and doing events ahead of his first “summer” as monarch. QEII tended to do the same – she would go to Scotland in the first week of July for Holyrood Week, then she would return to London for business, then by mid-to-late July, she was off for Balmoral. Sometimes it was earlier than that, especially in her later years – she couldn’t wait to get to Balmoral and start her summer holiday, and she would often not return to London until October. Charles will do things differently – after all, he owns multiple homes in Scotland, and he prefers to spend time at Castle of Mey and Birkhall rather than the “big house” at Balmoral. As such, he’s extended the summer calendar for when tourists can visit Balmoral, because he’s not going to be using it. This is being framed as some kind of snub to Prince Andrew.

Already fighting moves to evict him from his Windsor home, Royal Lodge, Prince Andrew now faces losing his summer holiday venue as well. I can disclose that King Charles has decided to keep Balmoral open to the public for an extra two weeks, during the time when his younger brother would usually stay at the private Scottish retreat with Sarah, Duchess of York and their daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

‘This will bring significant new revenue into the estate,’ says my man in the kilt and sporran. ‘It may, however, have the effect of annoying the Duke of York, who has treasured his time in Royal Deeside ever since he was a little boy.’

Queen Elizabeth would always begin her summer holidays at her beloved Balmoral on the last weekend of July. However, the estate, which was bought by Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, in 1852, will now be open to the public daily until August 16.

It’s understood that the King will continue his own tradition of spending the first week of August at the Castle of Mey, in Caithness, the former home of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. He may then head to Birkhall, his home on the Balmoral Estate, while he waits for the castle to close to tourists.

Andrew could, in theory, visit the Aberdeenshire estate later in the summer, but he would need to be invited by the King. Queen Elizabeth invited Andrew to stay with his daughters and their families each summer.

Although Fergie was thought to have exchanged not a single word with her former father-in-law, Prince Philip, for many years after she divorced Andrew in 1996, she remained on good terms with the Queen. Sarah stayed several times at Balmoral, although she always left before Philip arrived. Fergie underwent a gruelling, eight-hour operation last month as she battles breast cancer.

‘The Duchess is in recovery from a major operation so she has made no travel plans at this stage,’ her spokesman tells me. ‘Summer holiday/travel will be guided by how she is feeling at the time.’

[From The Daily Mail]

I find it interesting that they’re making this all about Andrew, when really, it affects the whole family? Maybe Charles doesn’t have the same expectations as his mother, who basically demanded everyone in the family to trot up to Balmoral for at least four or five days every summer. Charles doesn’t even want to live in the big house, he wants to just use it for family dinners and such. But surely, by extending the tourism, he knows that most of the family will avoid going to Balmoral this summer? It’s funny because Andrew was probably the only one who genuinely enjoyed spending time there. Most of the family would just do the obligatory drop-by for a few days and then they were off to enjoy their real summer holiday.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Last year, Wimbledon banned Russians and Belarusians from playing at the Slam. The ITF – the governing body for the majors – wouldn’t let Wimbledon do that again this year without serious repercussions. So Wimbledon allowed those players in, but on the condition that the Russian and Belarusian sign a neutrality contract, wherein those players cannot speak about the war in Ukraine or align themselves politically to Vladimir Putin or Aleksandr Lukashenko. It’s not a big deal for the Russian players, who have been very careful about how they speak about the war and Putin. It’s more difficult for the Belarusians though, especially Aryna Sabalenka, who has done photo-ops with Lukashenko and Lukashenko name-checks her in public statements.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian player has made it into the Wimbledon semifinals. Elina Svitolina gave birth to her first child last October, then came back to the tour after what was barely a five-month maternity leave. She picked up her first WTA title as a mom just before the French Open, then she reached French quarterfinals (where she was beaten by Sabalenka), and now she’s one match away from the Wimbledon final. So it’s high time that the British papers make this sensitive situation involving international politics and war all about the Princess of Wales, right?

The Princess of Wales faces the awkward prospect of handing the Wimbledon trophy to a Belarusian – but she could be saved by the last Ukrainian still in the tournament.

Athletes from aggressor nations Russia and its ally Belarus are among the favourites to win as the competition reaches its final stages. Presenting a trophy to one of them would prove a potentially uncomfortable moment for the Palace.

But last night Ukrainian wildcard Elina Svitolina knocked out the world number one Pole Iga Swiatek to set herself on course to wrestle the title off the Belarusian top seed Aryna Sabalenka. Svitolina, who has seen off another Belarusian en route, said the prospect of facing an athlete from that country in the final is a ‘big motivation’.

Sabalenka, who has been photographed hugging Vladimir Putin’s closest ally, Belarus dictator Alexander Lukashenko, plays American Madison Keys today in her own quarter final. In Paris last month, she said: ‘I don’t support war, which means I don’t support Lukashenko right now.’ If she beats Keys, she faces the victor of last year’s final, Russian-born Kazak Elena Rybakina or Tunisian fan favourite Ons Jabeur.

For fellow Ukrainians the prospect of the Princess of Wales giving the trophy to a Russian or Belarusian in front of the world’s media would be a painful one to bear.

Tasya Leskova, from Dnipro, whose husband is fighting on the front line, said: ‘They should sit at home and think about what their state is doing.’

The All England Club said that the Palace was not involved in the decision to admit Belarusians and Russians this year following their ban in 2022. CEO Sally Bolton said: ‘We talk to the palace about lots of different issues all the time, but it was very much our decision.’

[From The Daily Mail]

The fact that the British papers continue to center Kate in this larger conversation is bonkers to me. It’s bonkers that Kensington Palace doesn’t shut it down too – this is so obviously the place for the palace to step in and say “Kate is apolitical, she will hand the Venus Rosewater Dish to the winner, regardless of nationality.” Last year, Kate handed the dish to a Russian (who plays under a Kazakh flag) and it wasn’t a f–king conversation. So here’s my question – why hasn’t the palace shut this down, and why does Kate want to be part of this conversation? Also: good luck to Svitolina in her semifinal tomorrow! It would be amazing to see this Ukrainian mama break through and make it to the Wimbledon final. Let Elina’s wins be the story, not Kate.

PS… If Kate cared so much, why hasn’t she gone to any of Svitolina’s matches??

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.

When we last checked in on Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner’s divorce, a judge had ordered Christine to vacate their huge Carpinteria mansion by the end of this month. Christine was still living there with the children, despite the fact that she signed a harsh prenup 19 years ago. The terms of the prenup were that all of their properties were solely in Costner’s name, and that she had to vacate all of those properties in 30 days. She didn’t vacate and she was refusing to do so until Costner agreed to a monthly child support figure. She was asking for $248K a month. Well, the judge has now given Costner a number for temporary child support:

Kevin Costner’s one step closer to finding out what he owes his estranged wife for child support … a judge tentatively ruled the actor will be coughing up more than $129k a month.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the judge in their divorce case says Kevin must pay Christine Baumgartner $129,755 per month in child support. The ruling is tentative, subject to another upcoming hearing though the decision rarely changes.

The figure is a little over half of what Kevin’s estranged wife was gunning for … she requested $248k, a figure Kevin’s accountant said included more than $100k for cosmetic procedures.

TMZ broke the story … Kevin initially offered Christine $51,940, in addition to him paying all the children’s expenses, but she scoffed at the figure … saying the offer was “completely inappropriate.”

According to the docs, Kevin and Christine will each be on the hook for 50% of their kids’ health care expenses, plus their extracurricular activities and private school tuition.

Kevin is also being ordered to advance Christine $200k for attorney’s fees and another $100k in forensic costs.

This child support order is temporary … there will be a full hearing in the next few months where Kevin and Christine will present evidence of the proper amount of child support — so it could go up, or down.

[From TMZ]

“Kevin is also being ordered to advance Christine $200k for attorney’s fees and another $100k in forensic costs.” She charged the forensic accountant to his credit card and now the court is telling Costner: you have to pay for that! LMAO. As for the child support number… I think Christine’s original figure was a negotiation tactic, so I’m sure she’s fine with getting $1.557 million a year in child support. I would also assume that she will continue to try to invalidate or nullify the prenup so she can get alimony or perhaps a lump-sum divorce settlement. Those costs add up though – private schools, doctor bills, extracurriculars. On the other side, you know Christine is probably just going to end up raising those kids all by herself… which is what she was doing anyway, because Costner was always on location.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Most big-budget movies try to hire at least one “fashionista” actress. The purpose is not to get the film to pass the Bechdel test (heaven forfend) but rather to give the promotional tour some pizzazz, so it’s not just meaty bros standing around and posing together on a red carpet. See also: Scarlett Johansson in the Marvel movies and Jennifer Connelly in Top Gun: Maverick. For Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, he cast two fashionistas to perk up the promotional tour: Emily Blunt and Florence Pugh. Pugh is a busy bee, so she could not join the cast for the first big premiere event this week in Paris. So Emily had to be the flower among the bros.

I guess Emily’s goal here was to provide the kind of fashion moment designed to go viral, either good or bad. Because this is hideous!! A mint-green satin Balmain with giant shoulder pads and a prissy color and neckline. Egads!!! I’m sure the idea here was that Oppenheimer is a period piece and maybe Emily wanted to evoke the 1930s/1940s. But I swear, most women didn’t wear sh-t like this during WWII.

Meanwhile, Cillian Murphy looks like he just asked me if I want to know how I’m going to die. He can’t wait to tell me. Either that or someone showed him a plate of cupcakes and he just froze like that dog Stains. His suit is actually nice, but the flesh-colored button-down and tie is very… unsettling.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

The Emmy nominations come out today. As I get older, I care less about the Emmys, honestly – there’s so much good TV and so much great “niche” content, it feels like the Emmys are such a throwback to a different time, a time when network television and mainstream, water-cooler programming were the center of everything. Anyway, I expect that Netflix’s Harry & Meghan docu-series will get nominated for an Emmy in some “Outstanding Docuseries” category or something. Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Netflix series is already nominated for a Hollywood Critics Association Award. The 2023 HCA TV Awards just announced their nominations for the Creative Arts. Here’s H&M’s category:

Best Streaming Nonfiction Series:
Harry & Meghan (Netflix)
Prehistoric Planet 2 (Apple TV+)
Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss (Peacock)
Rennervations (Disney+)
The 1619 Project (Hulu)
The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy (Apple TV+)

[From The Hollywood Critics Association]

They’re up against The 1619 Project? Hm. Honestly though, this category is kind of chaotic and it just shows how the “docuseries” and “nonfiction series” category has been expanded. Anyway, I’m happy for the Sussexes and their Netflix series really was good. I wish they would do another docuseries, honestly. I wish Meghan would do a cooking show too.

Photos courtesy of Netflix.

In January 2022 Elizabeth Holmes was convicted on 4 counts of defrauding investors in Theranos, her biotech startup that was only lacking in the bio and tech factors. It wasn’t until November of last year that Holmes had her sentencing–11 years and 3 months–but she didn’t have to report to prison until after she had given birth to her second child (with hotel heir Billy Evans). Invicta Evans arrived at the beginning of this year, and Holmes lost a bid to remain home on bail until the appeals process played out (a bid that wasn’t helped by her buying a one-way ticket to Mexico). So finally, on May 30 Holmes turned herself in at Federal Prison Camp Bryan in Southern Texas. That was exactly 6 weeks ago, and yesterday it emerged that her sentence has already been reduced by 2 years, per online records from the Federal Bureau of Prisons:

Convicted ex-Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes is now scheduled for early release, online records show.

In November 2022, the California former biotechnology entrepreneur was sentenced to 11 years and three months for defrauding investors in the failed Silicon Valley startup that sought to revolutionize blood testing.

On Tuesday, Federal Bureau of Prisons records showed Holmes sentence was reduced to nine years with a scheduled release date of Dec. 23, 2032–meaning she will be released two years early.

Holmes, 39, reported to a minimum-security, federal women’s prison camp located in Bryan, Texas, on May 30.

A spokesperson for the federal agency confirmed the reduction to USA TODAY on Tuesday but said they could not provide additional details about Holmes’ slated early release citing “privacy, safety, and security reasons.”

According to a statement from the federal agency, some inmates are eligible for release early via court orders such as a compassionate release due to old age and medical conditions or clemency.

Inmates can also have their sentences reduced for good conduct, including completing job assignments and completing substance abuse program courses, the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement.

Gained time can also be revoked over disciplinary concerns or other infractions, the agency said.

[From USA Today]

How on earth did she finagle this? What possible “good conduct” could she have performed in just 6 weeks that merited already shaving off 2 years? I understand the Bureau citing security concerns for why they can’t comment further, at least right now. But I can’t imagine that will stand for long, not with the high profile of her case. The only other Holmes news I’m aware of since she reported to prison was about a month ago her lawyers argued that she couldn’t afford the other part of her sentence–to pay $250 a month to the victims she scammed. It’s a tasteless argument from someone whose partner is the heir to a 70-year-old, multiple property hotel business in Southern California, and besides I don’t see how that could relate to the reduced time. But what do I know? All I can do is report (and judge and cast aspersions on) what I see, and between this and NXIVM’s Allison Mack being released a year early from her sentence just last week, I think we can all see clearly that justice is not (color) blind in this country.

Lastly, for my fellow nerds who remember by heart their fourth grade multiplication tables: 6 weeks is 42 days. Elizabeth Holmes got her sentence reduced by 2 years after serving in prison for less time than Liz Truss was Prime Minister of the UK.

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Photos are screenshots from YouTube, credit Getty and Glamour

The WGA strike is still happening in Hollywood, and other unions are refusing to cross the picket line. It’s likely that a SAG-Aftra strike will happen in the next few days. It’s also looking like the Emmy Awards will be postponed, especially if the actors go on strike and the writers are still on strike in September. Speaking of, the studios and the streamers are trying to drag out the writers’ strike until all of the writers go broke.

Regardless of whether SAG-AFTRA goes on strike this week, the studios have no intention of sitting down with the Writers Guild for several more months.

“I think we’re in for a long strike, and they’re going to let it bleed out,” said one industry veteran intimate with the POV of studio CEOs. With the scribes’ strike now finishing its 71st day and the actors’ union just 30 hours from a possible labor action of its own, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers are planning to dig in hard this fall before even entertaining the idea of more talks with the WGA, I’ve learned. “Not Halloween precisely, but late October, for sure, is the intention,” says a top-tier producer close to the Carol Lombardini-run AMPTP.

While some dismiss this as just “cynical strike talk,” studio and streamer sources around town confirm the strategy. They also confirm that the plan to grind down the guild has long been in the works for a labor cycle that all sides agree is a game-changer one way or another for Hollywood.

“It’s been agreed to for months, even before the WGA went out,” one executive said. “Nobody wanted a strike, but everybody knew this was make or break.”

Receiving positive feedback from Wall Street since the WGA went on strike May 2, Warner Bros Discovery, Apple, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Paramount and others have become determined to “break the WGA,” as one studio exec blatantly put it. To do so, the studios and the AMPTP believe that by October most writers will be running out of money after five months on the picket lines and no work.

“The endgame is to allow things to drag on until union members start losing their apartments and losing their houses,” a studio executive told Deadline. Acknowledging the cold-as-ice approach, several other sources reiterated the statement. One insider called it “a cruel but necessary evil.”

The studios and streamers’ next think financially strapped writers would go to WGA leadership and demand they restart talks before what could be a very cold Christmas. In that context, the studios and streamers feel they would be in a position to dictate most of the terms of any possible deal.

[From Deadline]

This drag-out-the-strike approach is not just “cold as ice,” it’s stupid as hell. The writers are not asking for anything crazy, they’re not demanding seven-figure paychecks or top billing. They’re asking to be paid fairly for their work and for better working conditions – the studios and streamers broke the system and systematically devalued and marginalized writers. The WGA has even publicly offered to come to the negotiation table, but AMPTP has shrugged… because the streamers are just buying foreign content and studios are just shuttering projects, so they’re “saving money.” The studios and streamers are the ones without any longterm plans.

Meanwhile, the thing that really scares the studios is a SAG-Aftra strike alongside all of the other guilds and unions striking in solidarity. The SAG strike is looming, which is why AMPTP requested federal mediation to come in and take their side. SAG “agreed to the AMPTP’s last-minute request for federal mediation and has reaffirmed the negotiating committee’s dedication to securing a fair deal by the expiration of the extended contract at 11:59 p.m. PT on Wednesday, July 12.” SAG’s statement also pointed out that AMPTP is leaking like a sieve, especially given this Variety exclusive on AMPTP’s request to bring in the feds.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

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While I haven’t yet watched The Office, I enjoy Rainn Wilson’s quirky, Dennis-the-Menace vibe, and he’s in one of my all-time favorite movies, Galaxy Quest, as one of the aliens. I’m really intrigued by his latest Peacock series Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss. It’s based on a book of the same name (minus the Rainn Wilson intro, of course) and follows him around the world trying out local practices of happiness. So as part of promoting the show, Rainn sat down with Bill Maher on Maher’s Club Random podcast and discussed his personal journey with satisfaction over the years:

‘Why am I not the next Jack Black?’: “When I was in ‘The Office,’ I spent several years really mostly unhappy because it wasn’t enough,” Wilson admitted. “I’m realizing now, like, I’m on a hit show, Emmy nominated every year, making lots of money, working with Steve Carell and Jenna Fischer and John Krasinski and these amazing writers and incredible directors like Paul Feig. I’m on one of the great TV shows. People love it. I wasn’t enjoying it. I was thinking about, ‘Why am I not a movie star? Why am I not the next Jack Black or the next Will Ferrell? How come I can’t have a movie career? Why don’t I have a development deal?’”

It’s never enough: “When I was on ‘The Office,’ I was clutching and grasping at, okay, I was making hundreds of thousands. I wanted millions, and I was a TV star, but I wanted to be a movie star. It was never enough. Humans have lived for hundreds of thousands of years, and ‘never enough’ has helped us as a species.”

The Office–Pandemic edition: “It would’ve been so much fun to film ‘The Office’ during the pandemic,” Wilson said. “If we had pandemic episodes, that would’ve been amazing. ‘The Office’ writers were so great–they would’ve been able to spin that in some beautiful ways.”

He has an episode pitch ready: “I think it would be: [Dwight] gets the call from corporate to get everyone back in the office and everyone is resistant,” Wilson said. “So, one at a time, Dwight has to kidnap every ‘Office’ cast member and bring them into Dunder Mifflin in some kind of obscure and somewhat inappropriate way.”

[From Yahoo! Entertainment]

If you take Wilson’s comments just from the excerpts in this article, he sounds whiny and petulant. But when you put it in the context of the show he’s promoting and, as a result, the searching, contemplative side of himself that he’s opening up in the process, then the comments make more sense. He’s clear now on the fact that his thinking back then was distorted, and he’s worked to figure out how his head got stuck in that place at that particular time. I have empathy with him for that. But of course, I’m the girl who took a summer course on existentialism in lieu of having a bat mitzvah at age 13, so I’m already a fan of breaking down these philosophical thoughts. And I’m just plain nerdy. Aside from that, all I have to say is I hope some producers were listening cause he offered up a great Office reunion/reboot scenario.

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I actually forgot that Joaquin Phoenix was cast in this Napoleon movie, so imagine my surprise at the first trailer. It looks… um… interesting? [Pajiba]
Drake wore nail polish & people got toxic about it. [LaineyGossip]
The Christian Dior Fall ‘23 collection is so beautiful. [Tom & Lorenzo]
Elon Musk & Mark Zuckerberg are beefing & it’s just… sad. [Jezebel]
SAG-Aftra president Fran Drescher criticized for flying to Italy to mingle with Kim Kardashian and other celebs as SAG will likely go on strike soon. [JustJared]
Emma Corrin went to Wimbledon! [GFY]
Before the 90 Days star’s mother is a Texas mayor. [Starcasm]
Why is Barbie co-screenwriter Noah Baumbach skipping the premieres? [Buzzfeed]
Madonna is out and about after her hospitalization. [Towleroad]
Pom Klementieff wore Armani to the New York MI premiere. [RCFA]