FRIDAY, Feb 21 – DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION

MORNING SIDEKICK DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION FOR FRIDAY, February 21, 2025
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COMEDY MP3s POSTED ON OUR PREP SITE FOR TODAY: THE FRIDAY CLUSTERFLICKS

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 – including “holidays” created by the National Day Calendar and Wellcat websites to drive traffic to their websites – or the hundreds of disease awareness listings which occur each year.)

CARD READING DAY
The Cute Calendar website says this:
“Card Reading Day is celebrated on February 21, 2017. The day is a chance for sentimental people to get their saved cards out for reading them.”

NATIONAL CAREGIVERS DAY

NATIONAL GRAIN FREE DAY
The Days of the Year website says this:
“National Grain Free Day is a day dedicated to celebrating and supporting those who must avoid grains due to health issues. It’s a day to explore grain-free meals, ensuring everyone can enjoy eating without feeling left out. The focus is on inclusivity and enjoying meals together with friends and family, regardless of dietary restrictions.”

NATIONAL STICKY BUN DAY

February is:

Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month
African American History Month
Celebration of Chocolate Month
International Boost Self Esteem Month
International Friendship Month
National Bird Feeding Month
National Snack Food Month
National Sweet Potato Month
Spunky Old Broads Month
Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month

ENTERTAINMENT & CELEBRITIES

AUDIO: AMAZON NOW OWNS JAMES BOND

Amazon MGM Studios is now in creative control of the James Bond franchise. The shock announcement was made Thursday. Long-time producers and custodians of 007, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, say they are stepping back from the franchise. In 2022, Amazon acquired MGM, including a vast catalog with more than 4,000 films and 17,000 TV shows. Since the MGM acquisition, Amazon has held rights to distribute all of the James Bond films, and as a result of this transaction will have creative control over future productions.
* The name is Bond. Amazon Bond.
* How ironic – the Bond franchise is now owned by Jeff Bezos, a real-life Bond villain.
* Bond’s gadgets will include a package scanner that doubles as a bullet deflector, and an Amazon delivery van with an ejector seat.
* Look for these upcoming Bond movies:
– Dr. No-I-Didn’t-Order-That
– From Russia, With Love, Delivered Next Day
– Prime TV For Your Eyes Only, No Sharing Passwords
– Buy Another Day
– No Time To Bathroom Break
– The Spy Who Loved Exclusive Shipping Benefits
– Goldvendor
– And… Sorry, Temporarily Out Of Stocktopussy
CLIP: The James Bond theme
CLIP URL: morningsidekick(dot)com/prep/wp-content/uploads/BondTheme(dot)mp3

THE BUZZ

THE RUDEST U.S. CITIES OF 2025

A website called Preply has done a little investigation and come up with a list of the Rudest U.S. Cities for 2025. Their criteria includes people committing rude acts, lack of awareness in public, loudness in shared places, and rudeness to service staff. They created a rudeness score to rank cities from most to least rude. The Top 10 Rudest Cities:
1. Miami, Florida
2. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
3. Tampa, Florida
4. Louisville, Kentucky
5. Oakland, California
6. Boston, Massachusetts
7. Memphis, Tennessee
8. Las Vegas, Nevada
9. Long Beach, California
10. Charlotte, North Carolina
* Charlotte, North Carolina? What the hell do they have to be cranky about?
* Boy, those jerks in Baltimore really dodged a bullet.
* We have this many rude cities? Eat your heart out, France.
* I can only imagine what everybody in Miami will do when they find out they’re so rude.

The Five Least Rude Cities:
42. Kansas City, Missouri
43. Columbus, Ohio
44. San Diego, California
45. Minneapolis, Minnesota
46. Omaha, Nebraska
* Minneapolis is so polite, they actually gave up their Least Rudest spot to Omaha.

STUDY: FISH KNOW YOU BY WHAT YOU WEAR

According to a new study published in the journal Biology Letters, fish can tell people apart based on their outfits. Researchers say sea bream in the Mediterranean Sea could tell divers apart from subtle differences in their diving gear and followed the one that would reward them with food. But when divers wore identical dive gear, correct identification of divers was greatly diminished, suggesting that discrimination was based predominantly on visual cues. Researcher Katinka Soller from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior initially fed the fish while wearing a bright red outfit. But the fish still followed her instead of fellow researcher Maelan Tomasek when she switched to plainer dive gear, with Tomasek also wearing slightly different gear.
* Interesting. So fish follow the one with the food, no matter how they’re dressed. Do I have that right?
* Maybe the fish didn’t want to follow Maelan ’cause he’s kind of a jerk. That’s the word around the institute, anyway.
* They not only study what you wear, they trash talk it to their mean fish friends back in the school. Of fish. The school of fish.
* Are there a lot of situations where I would want fish to think I’m somebody else? ‘Cause I’ve been in the ocean a lot and so far it hasn’t come up.
* In any case, Katinka Soller from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior said the broiled bream dinner that night was delicious.

U.S. NEWS

WOMAN DIVORCES HUSBAND FOR BOOING TAYLOR SWIFT

A 28-year-old woman is divorcing her husband because he participated in the booing of Taylor Swift at the Super Bowl. Taylor was booed by Philadelphia fans as cameras zoomed in on her while supporting her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, who was playing against the Philadelphia Eagles. The woman, Louisa Melcher, said in the viral video, “I’m divorcing my husband because he booed Taylor Swift at the Super Bowl, and I still don’t think he believes me. I’m not just doing this because of the action of booing; I am doing this because of everything that it represents in our relationship.” Melcher says she had been a fan of Swift since she was 12 years old, and that her husband, whom she married two years ago, also came to enjoy the singer’s music. But when it came to the booing: “It just tells me everything I need to know about that man because he didn’t care that that would hurt my feelings. He just wanted to fit in with his boys. He didn’t even care that that’s not even how he actually feels. He just, like, wanted to look cool, I guess. And that’s not a man, that’s a boy, and when you see that, you can’t really unsee it, so I’m divorcing him.”
* What … a … MONSTER!!!
* It’s just as well. The list of things she wouldn’t be able to unsee being married was just gonna get worse and worse.
* The husband doesn’t care, he’s says he’s actually more of a Korean Boy Band fan.
* How could this happen? Did he skip the Taylor Swift section of the pre-engagement questionnaire?
* It’s not the first time a relationship has ended because of boos.

U.S. IS NOW IMPORTING EGGS

America, currently in the throes of an egg shortage, has a plan. The U.S. and Turkey have reached a deal in which Turkey will send 15,000 tons of eggs to the U.S. between now and July. Did you know: Turkey ranks among the world’s top 10 egg exporters.
* Just in time! We’ve been really scrambling. Or NOT scrambling.
* The Number One egg exporter? M-eggs-ico. It’s right there in the name.
* Number Two: Kazegghstan.
* Number Three: The Czhich Republic.
* Number Four: Montenegg-ro. Don’t stop me, I’m on a roll. Nicareggua. Senegg-al. Uzbeggistan. Poachugal.
* When it comes to eggs, Turkey really saved our bacon.

IDITAROD RACE MOVES STARTING POINT DUE TO LACK OF SNOW

The 2025 Iditarod race, which normally begins in Anchorage, Alaska, will be moved due to a lack of snow. The new starting point will be 360 miles north, in Fairbanks. Organizers say the Southern portion of the race would no longer be passable, because there is a lack of snowpack around the middle portion of the trail. Due to the new starting location, the race will begin a day later on March 3. The Iditarod has moved to Fairbanks three times in recent history because of similar issues – in 2004, 2015 and 2017.
* And you know the dogs are disappointed that they won’t be able to pull those heavy sleds as far as they always like to.
* There was a time there a few weeks ago when they could have held the race in northern Florida.
* Maybe instead of dogs pulling sleds it’s time to make it horses pulling wagons?
* By the way, do you know where they train sled dogs? In the mush room.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

CHINESE STUDENT SETS DORM ON FIRE WITH INFLATABLE SEX DOLL

A student in China set his dorm on fire when he burned an inflatable doll in panic when his roommate returned early. It happened at Hefei University of Technology (* Home of the Fightin’ Gigabyters!). The unnamed student was using an inflatable doll in his dormitory when his roommate returned. Initially, he tried to burn the doll in the dormitory hallway, but the fire quickly spread, triggering the campus fire alarm. The fire was quickly extinguished. The college issued a stern statement, advising students to not use flames to deal with silicone items.
* How about advising them to get locks for their doors?
* When I first saw the headline, I thought it was going to be a story about friction.
* Not the kind of hot night he was hoping for.
* This is like the old joke about smoking after sex. (“I don’t know, I never checked” or “No, I don’t go that fast”)
* At least it wasn’t blown up with hydrogen. Oh, the humanity!!!
* For a college based on science, the boys and girls must not have any chemistry.

ALMANACNOTABLE DATES, UPCOMING U.S. OBSERVANCES

March 4, Tuesday – Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras
March 9, Sunday – Daylight Saving Time Begins
March 17, Monday – St. Patrick’s Day
March 20, Thursday – Spring begins, Spring Equinox is 5:01 a.m. EDT
April 1, Tuesday – April Fools Day
April 15, Tuesday – U.S. Tax Day
May 11, Sunday – Mother’s Day
May 26, Monday – Memorial Day

BIRTHDAYS

Sophie Turner (actress, Sansa Stark on “Game of Thrones”) … 29
Elliot Page (actor, “The Umbrella Academy,” “Inception,” “Juno”) … 38
Jordan Peele (filmmaker, actor, comedian, “Nope,” “Us,” “Get Out”) … 46
Jennifer Love Hewitt (actress, “Criminal Minds”) … 46
Tituss Burgess (actor, “Central Park,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) … 46
William Baldwin (actor) … 62
Kelsey Grammer (actor) … 70
William Petersen (actor, “C.S.I.”) … 72
Tyne Daley (actress, “Judging Amy,” “Cagney and Lacey”) … 79
Anthony Daniels (actor, C3P0 in “Star Wars” films) … 79
David Geffen (entertainment mogul) … 82
Gary Lockwood (actor, “2001: A Space Odyssey”) … 88

Today’s Birthdays grade: Seriously? Actors from classics including “2001,” the first “Star Wars,” “Cheers,” and “C.S.I.” plus contemporary award winners like Jordan Peele who’s creeped us out with the hat trick of “Nope,” “Us,” and “Get Out.” Grade: A.

[Want to try something different with the daily birthdays? Try grading them! Some days have “good” celebs, some have “great” celebs, some have “lousy” celebs. For fun, give the group an arbitrary grade: A-plus through F-minus. Sidekick will give you our take on it; you can to take the concept and run with it.]

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

“If we took just five minutes to recognize each other’s beauty instead of attacking each other for our differences – that’s not hard, it’s really an easier and better way to live.”

(A) Stephen Colbert
(B) Jimmy Kimmel
(C) Elliot Page

ANSWER: (C) Elliot Page

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1995 – American Steve Fossett became the first solo pilot to cross the Pacific Ocean via balloon.
* Okay – he manages to cross the ocean slower, less comfortably, with a worse view, and less control, than anybody else. And this is good because why?

1968 – An agreement between baseball players and club owners increased the minimum salary for major-league players to $10,000 a year.
* Which today wouldn’t even pay a ballplayer’s dry cleaning bill.

1947 – Edwin Land demonstrated the Polaroid Land Camera to the Optical Society of America. It was the first camera to take, develop and print a picture on photo paper all in 60 seconds.
* The biggest advance for the naughty picture business until the Internet.

1902 – Dr. Harvey Cushing, America’s first brain surgeon, performed the first brain operation.
* The rest of the medical community thought we needed brain operations like we needed a hole in the head.

1878 – The first telephone book was issued. It was for New Harbor, Connecticut, and contained 50 names.
* And tomorrow is the anniversary of the first telemarketing call, made precisely at dinner time in New Harbor, Connecticut.

1855 – The Washington Monument was officially dedicated in Washington, D.C. The monument, however, was not completed for another 33 years.
* They couldn’t decide if it was phallic enough.

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY

2014 – A statue of a weeping Kurt Cobain was unveiled in Aberdeen, Washington – the hometown of the late Nirvana frontman. The statue, which portrays Cobain crying a single tear, is situated in the Aberdeen Museum of History.

2012 – Five members of the Russian feminist punk rock group Pussy Riot staged a performance in Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Savior where their actions were stopped by church security officials. By that evening, they had turned the performance into a music video entitled “Punk Prayer – Mother of God, Chase Putin Away!” The women said their protest was directed at the Orthodox Church leader’s support for Putin during his election campaign. The following month, three of the group members were arrested and charged with hooliganism and were were held in custody until their trial began in late July when the three members were convicted of “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred,” and each was sentenced to two years imprisonment.

2009 – Rihanna issued a statement thanking fans for their support after an alleged assault by her R&B singer boyfriend Chris Brown, but the singer declined to comment on a leaked photograph which appeared to show her with facial injuries. The Los Angeles Police Department launched an internal investigation and asked for the public’s help in finding the person who leaked the photograph.

2008 – A computer expert was jailed for two years for electronically stalking Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington. Devon Townsend worked at a U.S. national security laboratory in New Mexico, where she used a computer to track Bennington. She admitted to obtaining family photos, accessing e-mail and voicemail, and threatening his wife Talinda.

2008 – Britney Spears failed in a court bid to regain visitation rights to her two children. Spears was banned from monitored visits in January of the year after refusing to hand the children back, resulting in a stand-off with police at her house. The singer’s ex-husband Kevin Federline was awarded primary custody of two-year-old Sean Preston and Jayden James, aged one, in October.

2002 – Elton John accused the music industry of exploiting young singers and dumping talented artists for manufactured groups. He said: “There are too many average and mediocre acts; it damages real talent getting airplay. It’s just fodder.”

1982 – Radio DJ “Murry the K” died. Murray is thought to be the first person to play a Beatles record on radio in the U.S.

1981 – Dolly Parton started a two-week run at No.1 on the U.S. charts with “9 to 5,” the singer’s first No.1.

1981 – REO Speedwagon went to No.1 on the U.S. album chart with “Hi Infidelity.” The album spent a total of 15 weeks at No.1.

1977 – Fleetwood Mac released their album “Rumors.” It sold more than 15 million copies world-wide and spent 31 weeks at No.1 on the U.S. chart.

1964 – New York band The Echoes recruited a new young unknown piano player, named Billy Joel.

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. If you add THIS to your diet, you can burn more calories. What is it?
Hot sauce

2. Doing THIS for 15 minutes burns as many calories as an hour of moderate of exercise. What is it?
Shivering

3. It may be hard to believe but you can burn over 300 calories doing THIS. What is it?
Watching a scary movie

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