THURSDAY, Dec 14 – DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION

MORNING SIDEKICK DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION FOR THURSDAY, December 14, 2023
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COMEDY MP3s POSTED ON OUR PREP SITE FOR TODAY: NO WET KISSES FROM GRANDMA; PROMOS-TO-GO

TODAY IS …
(All days repeat annually on today’s date unless otherwise noted; days may or may not be called “National”/”International”/”World” depending on source; sources listed often have additional info. We generally do not list special days which were created by commercial companies for the purpose of marketing, or the hundreds of disease awareness listings which occur each year.)

MONKEY DAY
The Monkey Day website says this:
“Monkey Day is an annual celebration of all things simian, a festival of primates, a chance to scream like a monkey and throw feces at whomever you choose. Or perhaps just a reason to hang out with your friends while grunting and picking fleas off each other.”

NATIONAL BOUILLABAISSE DAY
The Holiday Insights website says this:
“I think that you will agree with me that this is a somewhat fishy day. It’s National Bouillabaisse Day, a day to celebrate a tasty Mediterranean fish stew or soup. Bouillabaisse is believed to have originated in Marseilles, France. It is extremely popular all around the Mediterranean, and is a specialty in ports across the region. Bouillabaisse is a fish stew or soup. All agree the fish should be white fillets. Recipes call for variety of fish, including cod, snapper, flounder, halibut, sea bass, monk fish, and more. Celebrate National Bouillabaisse Day with a cup or bowl or this tasty stew.”

ROAST CHESTNUTS DAY
The Holiday Insights website says this:
“Every Christmas holiday we all sing about ‘Chestnuts roasting on an open fire …’ But have you ever roasted chestnuts? It may surprise you to know, that some people have never even tasted a chestnut (how unfortunate for them!). It’s time we changed that, by simply roasting some chestnuts today. Roast them in early evening, so they will be done in time for an evening snack. They go great with a cup of hot chocolate. With the holidays rapidly approaching, take a few minutes to roast chestnuts. Make sure to roast enough to share with family, co-workers, and friends. You can even wrap some up and include them in gift baskets.”

December is:

Exotic/Tropical Fruits Month
National Egg Nog Month
National Fruit Cake Month
National Stress-Free Family Holiday Month
National Write a Business Plan Month
Safe Toys and Gifts Month
Tomato Month
Winter Squash Month

ENTERTAINMENT & CELEBRITIES

WHAT TO WATCH – New and Returning Shows and Movies
Premiering Thursday through Sunday
Listings sourced from the TV Guide and EW websites.

THURSDAY, Dec 14

Season Premiere:
Netflix – “The Crown”

FRIDAY, Dec 15

“Barbie”
Max – The theatrical hit comes to streaming.

“Carol & the End of the World”
Netflix – New Animated Series
Synopsis: As a planetary apocalypse looms, a woman struggling to embrace end-times chaos searches for meaning in her last months on Earth.

“Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget”
Netflix – New Stop-motion Movie
Synopsis: Having escaped from the farm, Ginger and Rocky welcome a new little adventurer into their lives. Back on the mainland, the whole of chicken-kind faces a terrible new threat.

“Finestkind”
Paramount+ – New Movie
Synopsis: Two brothers from opposite sides of the tracks are reunited as adults. Desperate circumstances force them into a deal with an organized crime syndicate in Boston, and a young women gets caught in the middle.

“Such Brave Girls”
Hulu – New British Series
Synopsis: A young woman lives with her sister and single mother in what could be described as a dysfunctional relationship where bad decisions and disaster wait around each corner while depression, threats of suicide, and taking advantage of abandonment are embraced. It’s a comedy.

“The Family Plan”
Apple TV+ – New Movie
Synopsis: When enemies from his past track him down, former elite government assassin Dan packs his wife, teen daughter, teen son, and 10-month-old baby into their minivan and takes off on an impromptu cross-country road trip to Las Vegas. With Mark Wahlberg.

Season Premiere:
Prime Video – “Reacher”

SATURDAY, Dec 16

“Leo Reich: Literally Who Cares?!”
HBO – Comedy Special
Synopsis: British GenZ comedian Leo Reich takes aim at his generation of loafing, victimized phone zombies as well as the decrepit, apocalypse-creating, election-rigging oldies who made his life so hard.

SUNDAY, Dec 17

“Archer: Into the Cold”
FX/FXX – New Animated Special

“Willie Nelson’s 90th Birthday Celebration”
CBS – Special

NATIONAL FILM REGISTRY 25 FILMS FOR 2023

The Library of Congress has unveiled its annual list of 25 movies to be added to the National Film Registry. The films selected each year are noted for their cultural, historic or aesthetic importance to preserve the nation’s film heritage. (* Also known as “Name six movies you’ve seen and 19 you’ve never heard of.”)
– A Movie Trip Through Filmland (1921)
– Dinner at Eight (1933)
– Bohulano Family Film Collection (1950s-1970s)
– Helen Keller: In Her Story (1954)
– Lady and the Tramp (1955)
– Edge of the City (1957)
– We’re Alive (1974)
– Cruisin’ J-Town (1975)
– ¡Alambrista! (1977)
– Passing Through (1977)
– Fame (1980)
– Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)
– The Lighted Field (1987)
– Matewan (1987)
– Home Alone (1990)
– Queen of Diamonds (1991)
– Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
– The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
– The Wedding Banquet (1993)
– Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994)
– Apollo 13 (1995)
– Bamboozled (2000)
– Love & Basketball (2000)
– 12 Years a Slave (2013)
– 20 Feet from Stardom (2013)
* Rob Schneider gets screwed again.
* Now don’t all you streaming services fight over these all at once.
* It looks like Fame is gonna live forever.
* So the Golden Age of Pixar is over, huh? Sad.

THE BUZZ

DUMB HEADLINES

Time for another episode of Three Dumb Headlines. These are actual, word-for-word headlines of stories found on the internet. There’s no story, no context, just the actual headline. Discuss them amongst yourselves. Then, encourage listeners to vote for the Dumbest Headline on your station’s social media page. Maybe ask them to leave a comment. Reveal the results in the next break.
Today’s Dumb Headlines:
1. “Iranian Man Balances 88 Spoons On His Body”
2. “How Can I Get My Coworker To Stop Hanging His Wet Speedo On The Doorknob To His Office”
3. “Adele Says ‘No One Else Can Sing My Songs Like Me’”
And here’s a spare, in case you don’t like one of those three: “Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Ketchup”

THE MOST INTELLIGENT THING YOUR PET HAS DONE

Reddit asked, “What’s the most intelligent thing your pet has ever done?” Some examples:
– “My dog ran into the room and started barking at me. Ran to the kitchen then back to me. Barking the whole time. I went to the kitchen to find my cat choking on his food. A few sharp pats on the back and I was able to get him to cough it up.”
– We were teaching the dogs some tricks over a few days, and the cockatoo was watching. One night we were watching TV and hear the cockatoo call the dog by name. “Sit. Stay. Lay down. Roll over. Good Boy.” We heard something hit the floor, and then he called out the next dog’s name. Walked into the kitchen to find the cockatoo in the spot we always stand, giving orders to the dogs (who were obeying!), and then pulling treats out of the cup and dropping them on the floor. This went on for some time.”
– “My Great Dane saw a spider on the floor in the living room, walked calmly over to it and stomped one foot directly on it, looked at it in satisfaction and walked away.”
– “I have two cats. I said to one cat, ‘Where is your sister?’, she perked up, and trotted up the steps, down the hall, into my closet and walked behind the hanging clothes, and that’s where the other one was sleeping.”
– “My African grey parrot uses his peanut shells as cups for his water, dips the shells into the water dish and drinks out of them.”
– “I used to have rats. But one evening, we let them run around the living room. They discovered a pile of envelopes under the coffee table, and spent a good half an hour working together to get as many in their cage as possible, turning the envelopes into bedding and makeshift pouches, which they then filled with food from their food bowl.”
– “My brother’s bird learned to imitate the door bell causing the dog to go crazy and bark. Then he tells the dog to shutup.”
– “If I don’t tell my horse when I’m going away and how long I’m going for, he won’t talk to me when I get back.”
PHONE TOPIC: What very intelligent thing has your pet done?

U.S. NEWS

THIEVES ARGUE THE STUFF THEY STOLE WAS ON SALE

A jury in Denver, Colorado has convicted two men of felony theft for stealing several items from a Kohl’s store. The men tried an unusual legal defense. Prosecutors said the items stolen – a kitchen mixer, shoes, clothing – totaled $2,094. The cutoff line between a misdemeanor theft and a felony theft in Colorado is $2,000. The men tried to claim that the stolen merchandise was on sale, and if you took the sale price, it would fall below the $2,000 threshold for a felony. The judge didn’t buy it. Both men were found guilty of a felony, and will serve jail time along with probation.
* It didn’t help that they tried paying their bail with Kohl’s Cash.
* They also said that if a customer returned the items, the store would have made no money, dropping the value to ZERO dollars.
* In the spirit of the crime, the judge gave them an additional 10% off their sentences.
* Did the judge also fine Kohl’s for marking their items up so much?
* The moral is, when shoplifting at Kohl’s, use the Kohl’s app to keep track of the total, and stop before you hit $2,000.

CARNIVAL CRUISE BOAT RESCUES SIX MEN IN A LIFE RAFT

A Carnival cruise ship out of Florida rescued six men who were stranded at sea off the coast of the Dominican Republic on Wednesday morning, after their boat capsized overnight. The Carnival Vista cruise ship received an emergency alert and the captain changed course to make the rescue. They found six men clinging to a life raft. The cruise ship brought them aboard and alerted the Dominican Republic Coast Guard.
* Of course, the Carnival passengers were all charged a mandatory Rescue Excursion fee.
* You know what the Dominicans said when they got on board the cruise ship? What’s Spanish for “You’ve got to be kidding me”?
* I hope there was enough food on the cruise ship for them.
* From the six men rescued, three are now cabin boys, two are deckhands and one did very well in the casino.
* Any day you can visit a cruise ship without contracting a stomach flu is a good day.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

JAPANESE MAN BLOWS UP APARTMENT TRYING TO KILL COCKROACH

A Japanese man trying to kill a single cockroach with bug spray blew up his own apartment. It happened early Sunday in the city of Kumamoto on the island of Kyushu. The 54-year-old man said he spotted a solitary cockroach inside his apartment and sprayed a massive amount of insecticide on it. A minute later, the fumes exploded, blowing out a balcony window. The man’s kotatsu – a Japanese heating table – likely set off the blast. The man suffered a minor injury.
* The cockroach? A scratch, most likely.
* And suddenly, all of his sushi was medium-rare.
* Bet he was mad as a hornet.
* He had his New Year’s Eve blowout early.
* On the bright side, the explosion killed the spiders in the corners of the window.

TRENDING

EMMY AWARDS IN JANUARY

As you no doubt remember, the Emmy Awards were postponed from last September because of the writers and actors strike. The Emmys have now been rescheduled. The 75th Primetime Emmy Awards will take place on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024 on Fox. Anthony Anderson will host.

LUKE COMBS COMES TO AID OF FAN HE IS SUING

Country star Luke Combs is trying to make things right with a woman his merchandise team is suing without his knowledge. The fan, Nicol Harness of Pinellas, Florida, was sued for copyright infringement after selling glass tumblers online featuring a picture of Combs. She had purchased the artwork at a Luke Combs concert and made $380 after selling 18 tumblers for $20 apiece. The people responsible for Combs’ t-shirts, posters and other merchandise found out and filed a $250,000 lawsuit against the fan. Combs found out about the lawsuit in the media and immediately put a halt to it. Combs noted that he has a “company that goes after the large corporations that make millions of dollars making counterfeit t-shirts, things of that nature.” He said the lawsuit against a lone fan “makes me sick to my stomach. No fan should have to be involved in anything like this.” Combs has spoken with Harness, who lives with congestive heart failure, and then announced he’d be releasing his own tumbler line, with the proceeds going to Harness and her family, as well as her medical bills. Combs added, “This is not something I would ever do. This is not the person I am. I’m not greedy in any way, shape, or form. Money is the last thing on my mind. I promise you guys that.”
* Remember that the next time you buy a ticket to his concert. According to the internet, an average ticket price for the 2023-2024 tour is $315.

OPRAH IS ON THE WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS NOW

A skinny Oprah Winfrey has admitted that she is using a weight-loss drug. She tells People magazine, “The fact that there’s a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for. I now use it as I feel I need it, as a tool to manage not yo-yoing.” She would not reveal which of the weight loss drugs it is. Oprah says that it’s not just the drug; she says she remains very active, hiking several miles a day. “I eat my last meal at 4 o’clock, drink a gallon of water a day, and use the WeightWatchers principles of counting points.”

OPRAH GETS PORTRAIT IN NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

In other Oprah news, Oprah managed to get her portrait into the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery. The painting was unveiled Wednesday. It measures 6 feet, 10 inches by 5 feet, 8 inches. It shows Oprah – not quite heavy Oprah, not quite skinny Oprah – in a long purple dress standing under a large tree branch. The portrait will be on display in the Smithsonian’s portrait gallery.

ALMANAC

NOTABLE DATES, UPCOMING U.S. OBSERVANCES

Dec. 21, Thursday – Winter begins, winter solstice occurs at 10:27 P.M. EST
Dec. 25, Monday – Christmas
Dec. 31, Sunday – New Year’s Eve
Jan. 1, Monday – New Year’s Day 2024

BIRTHDAYS

Tori Kelly (singer, songwriter) … 31
Vanessa Hudgens (singer, actress, “Grease: Live,” “High School Musical” movies) … 35
Jackson Rathbone (actor, “Twilight” movies) … 39
Cliff Williams (bass player with AC/DC) … 74

BIRTHDAY QUOTE QUIZ – Ask your listeners “Who said it?” HINT: Today’s their birthday!

“You have to be able to love yourself because that’s when things fall into place.”

(A) Donald Trump
(B) Kanye West
(C) Vanessa Hudgens

ANSWER: (C) Vanessa Hudgens

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

2016 – Amazon announced its first delivery by drone, 2 km from their warehouse in the UK.
* Let the delivery driver layoffs begin!

2012 – 28 people, including 20 children, were shot to death at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Prior to driving to the school, shooter Adam Lanza, 20, shot and killed his mother at their Newtown home. As first responders arrived at the scene, Lanza committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.

2008 – Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi threw his shoes at President George W. Bush – an act of extreme disrespect in the Arab culture – during a news conference in Baghdad while yelling “This is a farewell kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog.” Bush was not hit.
* Sadly, we were nowhere near leaving Iraq in 2008.

1992 – Mitsubishi claimed to have invented the world’s fastest elevator, which could run at about 28 mph.
* Or even faster if you cut the cable.

1967 – DNA was first developed in a test-tube.
* This is a day President Clinton wished had never happened.

1946 – The United Nations General Assembly voted to establish the U.N.’s headquarters in New York City.
* Officials were impressed by the nice neighborhood, good schools and the proximity to great shopping.

1911 – Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen became the first man to reach the South Pole.
* He never did explain why.

1901 – The first table tennis tournament was held at the London Royal Aquarium.
* Actually, it was held in their cool basement rec room.

1900 – Professor Max Plank of Berlin University unveiled his revolutionary Quantum Theory. The theory concerns the behavior of physical systems based on the idea that they can only contain certain properties such as energy and angular momentum.
* More importantly, it laid the groundwork for most of what happens in “Star Trek.”

1793 – America’s first state road was authorized, running between Frankfort, Kentucky and Cincinnati.
* It would have happened a lot sooner, but, of course, one guy actually built the road while the other 5 watched.

1656 – Artificial pearls, made of gypsum pellets covered with fish scales, were manufactured for the first time.
* And two years later, when inventor’s girlfriend learned they were fake, WOW was there a fight!

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY

2015 – Adele was at No.1 on both the US and UK charts with her third album “25.” The album was a massive commercial success, and had sold 20 million copies as of June 2016, making it one of the best selling albums worldwide.

2003 – Alicia Keys was at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with “The Diary Of Alicia Keys,” the singer’s second U.S. No.1.

2000 – Rapper Eminem and his wife Kim Mathers claimed that they had reconciled after filing for divorce. The couple, high school sweethearts who married in 1999, asked the judge to dismiss their divorce complaint, claiming that they wanted what is best for their 5-year-old daughter.

1999 – Sir Paul McCartney appeared at The Cavern Club in Liverpool, his first gig at the venue since 1963. The show was filmed for TV and also went out live on the Internet.

1997 – Garth Brooks was at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with “Sevens,” his fourth U.S. No. 1 album.

1991 – Michael Jackson started a four-week run at No. 1 on the U.S. album chart with “Dangerous.”

1977 – The film “Saturday Night Fever” starring John Travolta premiered in New York.

1969 – The Jackson Five made their first network television appearance when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.

1968 – Marvin Gaye scored his first U.S. No. 1 single when “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” started a five-week run at the top. It was Marvin’s 15th solo hit.

X-TREME TRIVIA CHALLENGE

Every installment of X-Treme Trivia Challenge includes three mystery factoids. Create your own “Impossible Question” contest – great for listener giveaways and phone interaction starters! Also a perfect sponsorship opportunity!

1. 31% of married women surveyed believe their husband has done THIS behind their back. What is it?
Skipped out on work to play golf

2. 13% of married people surveyed have done THIS without their spouse knowing. What is it?
Checked their spouse’s browser history

3. 12% of married people surveyed have done THIS without their spouse knowing. What is it?
Checked out dating websites

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