The Al Smith dinner is famously held in October to raise funds for Catholic charities. It’s a Catholic event, named after the first Catholic presidential candidate. Every four years, they invite the presidential candidates to make speeches and the event is extremely politicized, especially as it comes so close to the election. This year, VP Kamala Harris decided to skip. I don’t blame her. Instead of hammering the Church, VP Harris merely begged off because of a “scheduling conflict.” But she sent in a video, featuring Molly Shannon doing her famous Mary Catherine Gallagher character.

I adore Kamala Harris, but I found this a bit cringe. Like, the wrong tone? Maybe the disrespect was the point – she doesn’t take this event seriously, nor should she. Just hours before the Al Smith dinner, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles “agreed to pay $880 million to 1,353 people who say they were sexually abused as children by Catholic clergy.” This was the largest single payout in the years since the Church’s widespread child abuse crime ring was outed. In just the Archdiocese of LA alone, the settlements from lawsuits have crossed the $1.5 billion threshold. Why would a former prosecutor and advocate for women and children cozy up to these people? Why would she toast them?

All of which to say, Donald Trump did go to the event and he cozied up with Cardinal Dolan. Cardinal Dolan blasted VP Harris’s absence from the event, saying: “This year will be imbalanced because, sadly, Kamala Harris isn’t coming. It’s a shame because the nature of the evening is to bring people together. The nature of the evening is civility, patriotism, humor. It’s not a campaign speech. It’s not a campaign stop.” It is a campaign stop, be for real.

A photo that should bring shame to @CardinalDolan & the @USCCB. Dolan yucking it up with a man who has terrorized Haitian immigrants, many of them Catholic. And who has lied about so many other things, including hurricane relief. Shame on Timothy Dolan.https://t.co/w5lGQnwBNJ

— David Darmofal (@david_darmofal) October 18, 2024

The L.A. Archdiocese paying out nearly a billion (with a b) for sexual abuse on the same day Cardinal Dolan yucks it up sitting next to Trump is really the American Catholic heirarchy in a nutshell these days

— Patrick Dillon (@mpdillon) October 18, 2024

Kamala Harris made the right call by skipping tonight’s annual Al Smith dinner.

You don’t joke around with and normalize a deranged madman who wants to annihilate the Constitution. The DC/NYC elites may not get it, but we do—and we stand with her. pic.twitter.com/hhv5blAxnn

— Shea Jordan Smith (@shea_jordan) October 18, 2024

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Amy Adams looked lovely in Prada at the BFI London festival premiere of Nightbitch. Sigh… I hate that she’s the star of Nightbitch. [RCFA]
The first trailer for Megan Thee Stallion’s Prime documentary. [JustJared]
Kind of think we, as a society, have moved past the need for Victoria’s Secret runway shows. The state of those angel wings was sad. [LaineyGossip]
Is Texas going to tell Ted Cruz to pack it up and go? [Jezebel]
Julianne Moore & Tilda Swinton are such an attractive couple. [Socialite Life]
What industry is more sinister than people realize? [Pajiba]
What are some fun loopholes to exploit? [Buzzfeed]
A little skit about “gay twins.” [OMG Blog]
Happy birthday to Libra king Eminem. [Hollywood Life]
Jensen Ackles cares about his skin. [Seriously OMG]

Drake posted this photo on his socials this week. Just further evidence that Kendrick Lamar really did a number on this dude. The pigtails, the bows, the poutface… it’s like he’s trying to fit in at the playground. Shudder. “And I like to understand ’cause your house was never a home/ 37, but you showing up as a 7-year-old.” Which just reminded me of a popular theory going around – Drake’s 38th birthday is October 24th, next week. There’s a theory that Kendrick will drop his new album on Drake’s birthday. It’s been an open question for months now, ever since Drake and Kendrick’s beef… are we getting a new Kendrick album and when? It would make sense for Kendrick to drop an album before he performs at the Super Bowl Halftime show in February.

As for Drake, he’s still trying to reclaim the narrative or pretend that Kendrick didn’t fundamentally alter Drake’s image and career. One good way for Drake to change the narrative would be a high-profile romance with someone other than a teenage girl. What about newly single Jennifer Lopez? From In Touch:

Drake has been waiting for a second chance with Jennifer Lopez, and now that she’s about to be single again amid her divorce from Ben Affleck, a source exclusively tells In Touch that Drake and J. Lo have been in regular contact, exchanging flirty late-night calls and texts.

“As soon as she filed the papers, Drake reached out,” the insider continues. “He was very sweet and told her what a fool Ben is for letting her get away, and then he quickly let her know he’s ready and willing to step in and satisfy her.”

The “HYFR” rapper, 37, and “Jenny From the Block” songstress, 55, were first romantically linked in 2016, after sharing cozy photos on Instagram and being spotted kissing in videos at a prom-themed party. Months later, the New York native admitted that they were “hanging out” in February 2017, but did not delve further into the specifics of their relationship.

“They have their own history and a lot of chemistry, so it really did a lot to make her smile,” the source says. “Getting that kind of attention when she was feeling so low was exactly what she needed. Now they’re texting every day and things are getting hot.”

The insider explains that Jennifer’s “guards are up” as she is “well aware” of Drake’s player ways. While J. Lo may “not putting him in the relationship category,” the source adds that Drake “definitely meets her needs for a hook-up. He’s very intelligent and romantic and she can count on him being discreet because he’s always kept her secrets in the past,” the insider continues. “It’s still in the sexting stage but she loves hearing from him and sharing sexy selfies, he’s very quick to compliment her and he lays it on thick.”

When Jennifer’s ready to take things to the next level with Canadian rapper, the source says Drake is prepared to “drop everything and meet her wherever she wants,” adding, “It’s just a matter of her being in the right head space.”

[From In Touch via Yahoo]

I absolutely hope this is false across the board. No, I hope that Drake is trying to woo her and she’s just ignoring him, because if there’s anyone more toxic than Ben Affleck, it’s Drake. I actually believe that Drake would try to use J.Lo to change the narrative. I just hope she’s not playing that game.

Photos courtesy of Instagram, Backgrid.

Here are some photos of Prince William today in Cornwall. He visited the Duchy College Stoke Climsland in Callington, “to learn about how the college is providing opportunities for young people in rural areas.” He is, after all, the Duke of Cornwall. With that title came a vast and profitable real estate portfolio which provides William with an annual income of something like $40-50 million. We don’t know the exact figures because William refuses to disclose his tax information and anything about the current Duchy finances. He also doesn’t see any kind of connection between his inherited guardianship of a vast real estate portfolio and his keenness to “do something” about homelessness.

Speaking of homelessness, William was out last night at the Centrepoint Awards in London. I covered it separately in an earlier post. What I failed to mention was that William asked a couple of his Spencer cousins to come to the event too. Lady Kitty Spencer, Lady Amelia Spencer and Lady Eliza Spencer (the Earl Spencer’s daughters) came to the event and “supported” William. It cannot be underestimated how Prince Harry flipped the script on the Windsors this year – the Windsors thought they were setting Harry up to look desolate and alone at the Invictus service in London, but Charles Spencer and Harry’s aunts came to the service, as did some of the Spencer cousins. Then Harry flew in, undetected, to his uncle’s funeral and reportedly stayed at the Spencer ancestral home, Althorp. Now William is copying Harry on this as well – “I can show off MY connections to the Spencer family too, Harry, look at me!”

Meanwhile, I think it’s interesting that William stepped out for “work events” three days in a row this week. King Charles has already left for Australia today. Usually, when a major royal travels abroad, the left-behinds try not to pull focus from the foreign tour. I wonder if William is going to try to step on his father’s newscycles though. Or will William use the tour as an excuse to hibernate for a fortnight?

Last thing: does William know that the beard had aged him significantly? He already looked older than his age, but the greying, sleazy-looking beard makes him look like a frumpy 55-year-old.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Fox News platformed both of the presidential candidates yesterday. Kamala Harris sat down for a one-on-one with Bret Baier, who was disrespectful to VP Harris and was constantly interrupting her and trying to talk over her. VP Harris held her own, and Baier furiously tried to do damage control on-air after the interview. Meanwhile, Fox News hosted a “town hall” event for Donald Trump, in what was supposed to be a focus on women and women’s issues. This was not a town hall, it was Fox News organizing and platforming a MAGA rally – they brought in Trump supporters, not undecided voters. Trump was allowed to spew lies without fact-checking to his cult members and Fox News decided this was a “town hall.”

Fox News hosted an all-women town hall with former President Donald Trump, billed as an opportunity for female voters to ask the Republican candidate questions that matter to them. The Georgia town hall, where Trump took questions on reproductive laws, transgender rights and other issues, aired Wednesday morning. But Fox News did not disclose that the female audience it selected for the event was packed with local Republican supporters and the network edited its broadcast to remove some of their vocal advocacy of Trump.

The Georgia Federation of Republican Women wrote on its Facebook page Wednesday that the group helped host the event, posting photos from the venue and writing they were “Super excited for the opportunity of hosting this event right here in Georgia!” Shortly after CNN reached out to the group and Fox News about their role, the post was edited to state they were “excited for the opportunity of attending this event right here in Georgia!” The group’s president, Pam Lightsey, later denied that it had hosted the event.

The Republican Women of Forsyth County also posted a video from the event showing attendees chatting with Trump and Fox News host Harris Faulkner.

A Fox News spokesperson told CNN the event was not hosted by any Republican group and that it was the network’s event alone. But the right-wing outlet did not disclose the makeup of the audience in its press release announcing the town hall or in Faulkner’s introduction, stating only that it was “held with an audience entirely composed of women.”

The first question posed to Trump at the town hall came from a woman identified as Lisa, who asked the former president a question about the economy. The network did not disclose that Lisa is also the president of the Fulton County Republican Women group.

Some of the town hall attendees made it clear they were supporters of the former president, either in their questioning or in their attire. “I want to thank you for coming to a room full of women the current administration would consider domestic terrorists,” a woman named Alicia said to laughter from the audience before a question about foreign policy. But a portion of Alicia’s question was edited by Fox News to remove her admission that she was voting for Trump. “I proudly cast my vote for you today. I hope they count it,” she added, according to an audio recording from a CNN reporter in attendance.

[From CNN]

It’s utterly bizarre to watch Fox News lie about this so blatantly – the jig is up, we know that it’s not a real news network and we know that Fox exists as a Republican propaganda arm. Just be honest about it – “we filled this town hall with local Republican women and we’re going to show you all of the wingnuttery, in all of its Nazi glory.” As for the substance of the event… Trump claimed to be the “father of IVF.” True story, if Trump wins, IVF will be outlawed in at least half the country. That’s part of Project 2025.

Trump: “I’m the father of IVF”

FACT CHECK: IVF is under threat across the country because Trump ended Roe v. Wade and his Project 2025 plan could effectively ban IVF altogether. pic.twitter.com/tEOUiufDjO

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 16, 2024

Fox host: The family of Amber Thurman, who died after not receiving urgent care needed for an infection under Georgia’s abortion ban, is speaking ahead of this town hall

Trump: We’ll get better ratings, I promise pic.twitter.com/LYBWH0RbFW

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 16, 2024

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

One of my favorite Gen Z words is “rizz,” slang for charisma. I think Prince Harry has an abundance of rizz. He is the Rizzler. His brother might have anti-rizz. Prince William might be where rizz goes to die. I was thinking about this as I went through photos of William at last night’s Centrepoint Awards, which was held at the British Museum. Princess Kate did not join him at the ceremony, because she is still taking it easy after all of her health issues this year. That being said, Kate has historically never attended events for Centrepoint. It’s one of William’s things alone, like the Tusk Trust. No Kate allowed!

Kensington Palace did a decent job staging William’s entrance at the museum – you could tell that Huevo thought he looked like a hairy-egg version of James Bond. Things quickly fell apart inside the venue though, as William took pains to avoid touching Black people and he couldn’t help but make some odd faces. It reminded me of his awkwardness at this year’s BAFTAs. William presented some of the awards and he reminded everyone of his keenness, saying: “While homelessness is of course a complex societal issue, I passionately believe that it can, and should, be ended.” He’s like six months away from saying he’s bored of homelessness.

Meanwhile, there’s been a lot of tabloid churning lately over stories which were already reported months, sometimes years ago. Last year, William was apparently obsessed with the fact that the Duchess of Sussex didn’t wear her engagement ring for several months (she did wear her wedding band though). They’ve dusted off that story and claimed that William still wants to know what happened to Meghan’s ring. Which is weird because William’s wife hasn’t been wearing her famously cursed engagement ring throughout the year. It’s also weird because now they’re talking about how odd it is that William has never worn a wedding band either. Everything is always projection with the left-behinds, that’s all I’ll say. If there are stories about Meghan’s jewelry, that means something’s up with Kate’s jewelry.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

The Daily Mail’s Richard Eden has got a scoop! He has an exclusive and he’s blaring it as loudly as he can. No, this is not some exclusive reporting on King Charles and Queen Camilla’s Australian flop tour. It’s also not about the Princess of Wales’s missing engagement ring, or Prince William’s mysterious weight loss. It’s not about poor Duchess Sophie and why royal reporters forget to cover her and her tours. No, Eden’s critical, journalistic eye will never deign to cover any of the left-behind Windsors. Instead, his big scoop is about some real estate purchased by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were evicted from their cottage at Windsor by King Charles, they were left without a home in this country. The California-based couple have, however, ensured that they retain a foothold on this side of the Atlantic.

The Daily Mail understands that Prince Harry and Meghan have bought a home in Portugal.

They are not the only royals who have a Portuguese property, with Harry’s cousin Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, owning a home in the CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club, a luxury development of 300 properties by the sea in Melides, south of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon. Mr Brooksbank, 38, works in marketing and sales for CostaTerra. He, Eugenie, 34, and their two sons, August, three, and Ernest, 16 months, split their time between Portugal and London.

The purchase of the home in Portugal may have allowed the Sussexes to acquire a so-called Golden Visa, under which they would have visa-free access to the European Union’s Schengen area. This could have been a major attraction to Meghan, who is a US citizen. When the couple got engaged in November 2017, Kensington Palace said Meghan would apply for British citizenship in due course, with a spokesman confirming that ‘she will go through the process [which] takes a number of years’.

Last year, it was reported that the Sussexes enjoyed a ‘romantic three-night break’ in Portugal after attending the Invictus Games in Germany. The couple are said to have flown from Dusseldorf to Lisbon before travelling an hour south to Melides in a ‘mega-secret’ operation. A source close to the Sussexes confirmed that they had been to Portugal. At the time, it was thought that they stayed with Eugenie and Mr Brooksbank, who have visited them at their home in Montecito, California.

[From The Daily Mail]

You can get an EU visa just by buying property in Portugal? I thought that was only for Monaco – as in, if you can afford an apartment in Monte Carlo, bam, you get citizenship in Monaco and an EU passport. I just looked it up though… Portugal’s Golden Visa program was phased out last year. So… I don’t know. When did H&M buy property in Europe? The “Schengen area” is basically all of continental EU countries. Which… doesn’t mean anything for the UK, because of Brexit. It would be hilarious if Harry and Meghan intentionally bought real estate in Portugal just so they could acquire EU passports and they would still not bother visiting England whatsoever.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Backgrid.

Filmmaker Paul Schrader on Joker: Folie a Deux: “I saw about 10 or 15 minutes of it. I left, bought something, came back, saw another 10 minutes. That was enough. It’s a really bad musical. I don’t like either of those people. I don’t like them as actors. I don’t like them as characters. I don’t like the whole thing. I mean, those are people who, if they came to your house, you’d slip out the back door.” [Pajiba]
Doutzen Kroes made her comeback appearance at the Victoria’s Secret show. Doutzen probably hopes people have forgotten that she’s an anti-vaxxer. [Just Jared]
Cher performed at the Victoria’s Secret show. [Socialite Life]
Margot Robbie’s Chanel ambassadorship has been so blah. [LaineyGossip]
Lupita Nyong’o wore an interesting dress. [Go Fug Yourself]
SZA “bugs out” on Hot Ones. [OMG Blog]
Cardi B at the Victoria’s Secret show. [RCFA]
Redband trailer for The Monkey. [Seriously OMG]
Jinger Vuolo is pregnant again. [Starcasm]
Cooper Koch is in a relationship. [Hollywood Life]
Andrew Garfield did Buzzfeed’s “puppy interview.” [Buzzfeed]

Charlamagne Tha God hosts The Breakfast Club, one of the biggest radio shows in the country, and he’s sort of fashioned himself as one of the go-to interviewers for Black artists and Black political and cultural figures. There had been some back-and-forth about whether Kamala Harris would sit down with Charlamagne, then it all came together quickly. She did the interview on Tuesday. While she didn’t make any major news – she called Trump a fascist and pushed back on some of Charlamagne’s bizarrely Republican-flavored narratives – this was considered yet another late stage push for the Harris-Walz campaign to turn out Black voters, specifically Black men. There’s been a lot of talk in the past week about “Black men aren’t supporting Kamala Harris.” I think that’s a Republican narrative, but whatever, it’s been a larger conversation, especially after Barack Obama “scolded” Black men for not supporting Harris enough. Some highlights of the interview, via the NY Times:

Vice President Kamala Harris agreed on Tuesday with the radio host Charlamagne Tha God that former President Donald J. Trump was a fascist, going a step further than she had before in casting her Republican rival as a dangerous authoritarian leader. During a free-flowing interview that often spoke to the concerns of Black Americans, Ms. Harris was contrasting her vision for the nation with Mr. Trump’s when Charlamagne jumped in to say: “The other is about fascism. Why can’t we just say it?” “Yes, we can say that,” Ms. Harris replied.

Harris also agreed with Charlamagne that Mr. Trump has embraced fascism and said that his plans would make “it more difficult for working people to get by and to destroy our democracy.” Republicans have accused Democrats of fomenting political violence, including the assassination attempts on Mr. Trump, by labeling him a threat to democracy. She also attacked him for admiring dictators, citing a report that he sent President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia valuable Covid-19-testing equipment “when Black people were dying every day” from the pandemic. “The man is really quite weak,” Ms. Harris said. “He’s weak. It’s a sign of weakness that you want to please dictators and seek their flattery and favor.”

She again condemned Mr. Trump for his role in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, even as she shut down questions about whether the Justice Department had moved too slowly to prosecute him and whether he should be in jail in November. “The court should handle that, and I’m going to handle November,” she said.

Ms. Harris adopted a far different strategy to appeal to Black voters, specifically Black men, than former President Barack Obama used when he campaigned for her last week in Pittsburgh. Responding to the wavering enthusiasm among some Black men that has caused panic in the Democratic Party, Mr. Obama scolded them and accused them of not “feeling the idea of having a woman as president.” On Tuesday, Charlamagne said Mr. Obama had been “finger-waving at Black men” and questioned when anti-Harris white voters would be admonished.

“What is happening is that we are all working on reminding people of what is at stake,” Ms. Harris replied. But she also acknowledged that she was not owed anyone’s support. “I need to earn every vote, which is why I’m here having this candid conversation with you and your listeners,” she said.

[From The NY Times]

It’s funny/sad to me that Obama’s comments were seen and felt as “scolding” when really, I thought he was a Black man speaking truth to other Black men. As in: get yourself together, another Trump presidency will make our lives so much worse. Obama was calling out the misogynoir which exists within the Black community, for goodness sake. And he did so while visiting a field office, it wasn’t part of his surrogate stump speech. Now, that being said, Charlamagne brings up a good point, which is whether white voters would be “scolded” in the same way by a national figure. Who is that white guy who could do it though? President Biden? Bill Clinton? I do think they’re doing their part to scold white voters, but sure, bring them out to do it louder.

.@cthagod: What do you say to people who say you use talking points?

Vice President Harris: I would say you’re welcome. My opponent belittles people. I love having conversations, which is why I’m so happy to be with you this afternoon pic.twitter.com/LqdFs3izpr

— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) October 15, 2024

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

Last week, we learned that the Duchess of Sussex did an event with Girls Inc in Santa Barbara. The event was a celebration of International Day of the Girl AND Meghan was highlights Mental Health Awareness. Plus, Archewell has a new partnership with Melinda Gates and Oprah’s foundations to provide resources to Girls Inc. The biggest headline from the whole event didn’t even come from Meghan though. Larissa May spoke to Vanity Fair about some of the activities Meghan participated in with the girls, and May said: “We did an activity where we talked through a bunch of scenarios, and Meghan talked about being one of the most bullied people in the world.” A secondhand story about Meghan using her personal narrative and experiences to relate to girls who feel under siege by social media and cultural sexism. That’s how I reacted to the story – Meghan is relating to these girls, some of whom have probably been bullied. Obviously, that was not the reaction of a lot of royal commentators, who are still throwing sh-tfits about it.

Meghan Markle reportedly told a group of girls she was “one of the most bullied people in the world,” and it has caused several royal experts to scratch their heads.

Christopher Andersen, author of “The King,” claimed to Fox News Digital that the 43-year-old is likely to be labeled a hypocrite after she faced her own bullying accusations following her royal exit in 2020.

“In fairness, since marrying Prince Harry, she has been on the receiving end of some pretty scalding criticism – some of it legitimate, but much of it not,” Andersen claimed. “The amount of visceral anger aimed at Meghan online is quite remarkable. If Meghan feels unfairly targeted, she probably has every right to. But is it wise for someone who has been described as a workplace bully – whether it’s true or not – to complain that she is a victim of bullying? It may come off as just more egocentric whining. We’ve heard it all before.”

“There’s nothing wrong with Meghan empathizing with young girls who must deal with online bullying,” he pointed out. “She just has to resist the temptation to make it all about her.”

Andersen also warned that the mother of two continuing to speak out about bullying claims will make it less likely for the royal family to extend an olive branch.

“The royal family washed its hands of Meghan some time ago,” he claimed. “If the royals are paying any attention to Meghan at all, this bullying complaint will only shore up the image they already have of her as a self-absorbed narcissist.”

[From Fox News]

Yes, Meghan is unfairly targeted for bullying, harassment and threats, but how dare she TALK about it or acknowledge our abuse in any way! Who does she think she is? What a narcissist, to use her personal narrative to relate to girls about mental health! The royal family has washed their hands of Meghan, who they never speak of or brief about, except for when they feel the need to describe their all-consuming hatred for her on a weekly, if not daily basis! In summary, Meghan is the real bully for forcing us to pay attention to her constantly and make up lies about her so we can scream and cry about how she’s a narcissist!

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.