MONDAY, Mar 31 – DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION

MORNING SIDEKICK DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION FOR MONDAY, March 31, 2025
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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. We present only those specially designated days we feel your listeners would find most interesting or significant.)

BUNSEN BURNER DAY
From various sources:
Found in every high-school laboratory, the Bunsen Burner is a staple of our scientific education, as well as essential in professional laboratories, too. Robert Bunsen, born in Germany on March 31, 1811 (some sources say March 30), a university professor, determined to develop a more effective gas burner when builders decided to install gas lighting in his new lab, improving on a design by Michael Faraday. When the building opened in 1855, Bunsen had created 50 of his burners and, in 1857, he published a description of them so that his colleagues could adopt the design. He never patented the idea, as he believed that science should be for the benefit of all and not the profit of one. His design grew in popularity and is still used around the world today in schools and professional laboratories.

NATIONAL CLAMS ON THE HALF SHELL DAY
The National Day Calendar website says this:
“Clams on the half shell can be raw, steamed, grilled or even smoked. One popular recipe often served as an appetizer, Clams Casino is a dish with toasted breadcrumbs and bacon and dates back to 1917 and the Little Casino restaurant in Narragansett, Rhode Island. Hotel maître d’ Julius Keller and Mrs. Paran Stevens developed clams casino for her guests, as she wanted to serve up something special and named it after the hotel. The dish soon became so successful, word spread, and it began appearing on menus across the nation.”

EIFFEL TOWER DAY
Opened on March 31, 1889

WORLD BACKUP DAY
The Days of the Year website says this:
“Have you backed up your data recently? Every day people and businesses lose huge amounts of valuable data because they fail to follow this one basic procedure. World Backup Day is set aside as a reminder to back up your files, even if it’s once a year. This event takes place the day before April Fool’s Day, offering a special reminder to back everything up before becoming a fool!”

March is:

Adopt a Rescued Guinea Pig Month
American Red Cross Month
Employee Spirit Month
Expanding Girls’ Horizons in Science and Engineering Month
Gender Equality Month
Irish-American Heritage Month
National Craft Month
National Women Inventors Month
National Women’s History Month
Read an E-Book Month

ENTERTAINMENT & CELEBRITIES

WHAT TO WATCH – New and Returning Shows and Movies
Premiering Monday through Wednesday
Listings sourced from the TV Guide, EW and other websites

MONDAY, Mar 31

“An Oprah Winfrey Special: The Menopause Revolution”
ABC – Special
Synopsis: Winfrey brings together a panel of renowned medical experts and celebrities (of course) to discuss menopause before a live studio audience.

“Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer”
Netflix – New True Crime Series
Synopsis: Examines the hunt for the Long Island serial killer through the perspective of his victims, their loved ones and the police.

“Promised Hearts”
Netflix – New Movie from Indonesia
Synopsis: After graduating and becoming a doctor, a woman’s life falls apart when her father arranges for her to be married to the son of the wealthiest businessman in their village, to pay off the family’s debt. At the same time, she also has to accept that the man she has loved since childhood has already found someone to marry.

“The Divorce Insurance”
Amazon – New Series from Korea)
Synopsis: In this office rom-com, an insurance team including an underwriter, quant, risk surveyor, loss adjuster, and a former top insurance agent sets out to develop a divorce insurance policy. They also begin a journey of newfound relationships and love.

Season Premieres:
Netflix – “Rhythm + Flow Italy”
TUESDAY, Apr 1

“Nimesh Patel: Instant Karma”
Netflix – Stand-Up Comedy Special
Synopsis: The first-generation Indian American comedian talks about the mischief he caused as a kid, and whether or not he’s become a better person now that he’s an adult (he hasn’t).

Season Premieres:
Discovery Channel – “Street Outlaws: Locals Only”
Prime Video – “America’s Test Kitchen: The Next Generation”

WEDNESDAY, Apr 2

“Banger”
Netflix – New Movie from France
Synopsis: When cops recruit a has-been DJ to bust a quirky criminal gang with ties to his rival, he spots a chance to mix his way back to the top with a banger.

“Bateau Mouche: Sinking Justice”
Max – New Docuseries
Synopsis: As crowds enjoyed New Year’s fireworks in Rio de Janeiro, 55 people met a tragic fate onboard the Bateau Mouche IV. Decades later, families still fight for justice in a landmark case of impunity and corporate fraud in Brazil.

“Garnachas: Glorious Street Food!”
Netflix – New Food Docuseries
Synopsis: Explores Mexico’s street food scene, where the beloved garnacha takes center stage and sparks debates and unites fans with every bite.

Season Premieres:
HGTV – “Fix My Frankenhouse”
Netflix – “Love on the Spectrum”
Netflix – “The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties”

THE BUZZ

KIDS TODAY ARE OUT OF TOUCH

Reddit asked, “What’s the most out of touch thing a young person has said to you?” Some of the responses:
– “A 15 year old told me she wanted to join the army when she was older because she didn’t like being told what to do.”
– “There was a girl on Caleb Hammer’s YouTube show who thought that the numbers getting bigger on her credit card bill was a good thing.
– “Told me he wanted to become a farmer because that seemed like a ‘chill easy job.'”
– “I caught my stepson stealing money from us, I got his dad to take his phone away. He flipped out before going to school one day and said ‘What am I supposed to do in class??’”
– “My 16-year-old niece saw my CD collection and asked why I had so many vintage music discs.”
– “I had a classmate when I was 17 whose father came to collect her from school, she said,’Oh god he’s come in the Porsche instead of the Range Rover, that’s so embarrassing.'”
– “I told a couple of 18-year-olds that I don’t have Instagram. They called me a liar and said if I didn’t want to be friends, I should just say so.”
– “Overheard from 19 y/o coworkers, ‘I think I’m going to wait to get Botox until I’m old, like 25.’”
– “A cousin thought fast food jobs were easy. Then he got one to make his own money. He quit in a week.”
– “I once showed a kid an old wall phone I that I still have, he asked me how do I take pictures with it?”
– “I had to stop using cursive at the last place I worked because most of the staff who were all under the age of 25 didn’t know how to read it.”
– “I need to browse Instagram to know what is happening in the world.”
– “I can’t work my shift tonight, I got a concert to go to.”
– “They make you work during summer?!?”
* PHONE TOPIC: Has a young person surprised you with a statement that is out of touch with reality?

HOW’S YOUR HEALTH? THERE WILL BE MATH INVOLVED

How’s you health? Researchers at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University have come up with a new way to determine how well your heart is working: Divide your average daily heart rate by your daily average number of steps. The resulting ratio – the daily heart rate per step – shows how efficiently the heart is working. The study found that people whose hearts work less efficiently are more prone to various diseases, like diabetes, hypertension, heart failure, stroke and worse. Here’s how it works:
– If you take 10,000 steps a day, and have an average resting heart rate of 80, your ratio is 0.008.
– If you take 10,000 steps a day and have an average heart rate of 120, your ratio is 0.012. The higher the ratio, the worse off you are.
* If your average heart rate is 120, you need to stop drinking 40 cups of coffee a day.
* It sounds like somebody wants to sell me yet another $200 watch with a calculator.
* My heart rate divided by my daily number of steps. What’s 12 divided by 8?
* About 15 people are going to do this exactly once and then never do it again. What did this study cost again?

U.S. NEWS

SUSPECTS STOP TO PUT AIR IN TIRES DURING CHASE

Police in Nashville, Tennessee, arrested two suspects who stopped to put air into their tires during a police chase. Officers tried to pull over the car for a traffic violation, but it sped off. The car was later spotted at a gas station where the driver and passenger stopped to put air in the tires. Police smelled marijuana coming from the vehicle and found a large baggie of it in the center console, along with some drug paraphernalia (marijuana is not legal in Tennessee). Officers took the driver and his passenger into custody without incident.
* Not every police chase can be Fast & Furious, I guess.
* They didn’t want to be caught flat-busted.
* “Hey, if we fill the tires, we’ll get .5% better gas mileage running from the cops!”
* That would make a great cop show — Crime Scene: PSI. “Look out, he’s over-inflating!”
* Inflation is a problem everywhere today.

WAD OF GUM CAUSES $3,000 DAMAGE TO A TESLA

A Florida woman has been charged with a felony after allegedly sticking a wad of chewing gum onto a Tesla. Yamaris Marrero, 45, was captured on the car’s built-in cameras sticking the gum on the car’s door handle back on March 22 while it was parked at Aventura Mall in Miami. The owner said the gum caused $2,623.66 in damage to the mechanism of the electric car’s door handle.
* Look out, she’s got a Chiclet!
* Will they get the charges to stick?
* She forgot to have a second wad of gum ready for the car’s camera.
* Seems to me if your car can be damaged by a wad of gum, you’re an idiot for even taking it out of the garage.
* Seriously, who’s the bigger criminal here? The lady with the gum, or the guy who sells $80,000 cars that can be disabled by a wad of Bazooka?

AIRLINER COLLIDES WITH A KITE

A United Airlines jet collided with a kite as it tried to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia. This is the same airport where the army helicopter collided with a landing American Airlines airplane back in January. United flight 654 from Houston was landing when pilots noticed a nearby kite flew “right into the flightpath,” about 100 feet over the ground. Despite the potential carnage from hitting a piece of paper, the plane landed safely and there were no reported injuries or damages to the aircraft. A witness said 10 or more kites were flying from the park space known as Gravelly Point, located just north of Reagan National’s main runway. The witness noted that there were hundreds of other people out enjoying the first warm weekend of spring.
* Are we building our planes out of aluminum foil now? Is that what the problem is?
* Thank god there wasn’t a wad of bubble gum on the kite, or it could have turned into a Tesla-level disaster. (See the Tesla bubble gum story)
* The fun part of taking your kids kite-flying at a park where gigantic aircraft are coming in for a landing 100 feet over their heads is the nightmares the whole next week.
* All I know is, I would not want my dog jumping up in the air to catch a Frisbee anywhere near Reagan Airport.

TRENDING

PAT SAJAK RETURNS TO “WHEEL OF FORTUNE”

Pat Sajak is returning for an appearance on “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.” Sajak, who stepped down from his hosting duties in June 2024, will make one last appearance (*yeah, right) on the spinoff series beginning on April 30. A star-studded lineup is gearing up to join Sajak, including Josh Gad, Regina Hall, Ellie Kemper, Justin Long, Joe Manganiello, Katharine McPhee and more. It’s not clear if he’s hosting or playing or just standing next to Vanna.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (March 28-30)

1. A Working Man – $15.2 million
2. Snow White – $14.2 million
3. The Chosen – Last Supper Part 1: Salad Course with Breadsticks – $11 million
4. Woman in the Yard – $9.4 million
5. Death of a Unicorn – $5.8 million

ALMANAC

NOTABLE DATES, UPCOMING U.S. OBSERVANCES

TOMORROW – April Fools Day
April 15, Tuesday – U.S. Tax Day
May 11, Sunday – Mother’s Day
May 26, Monday – Memorial Day
June 14, Saturday – Flag Day
June 15, Sunday – Father’s Day
June 20, Friday – Summer begins (The June solstice occurs at 10:42 P.M. EDT)

BIRTHDAYS

Jack Antonoff (pop musician with Bleachers and fun., record producer) … 41
Ewan McGregor (actor, “Obi-Wan Kenobi”) … 54
Angus Young (guitar player with AD/DC) … 70
Rhea Perlman (actress, “Cheers”) … 77
Gabe Kaplan (comedian, comic actor, “Welcome Back Kotter”) … 81
Christopher Walken (actor) … 82
Shirley Jones (actress, singer, “The Partridge Family”) … 91

Today’s Birthdays grade: One-of-a-kind (and dare we say “beloved”) actor Christopher Walken turns 82, still crushing it as one of the costars of Apple TV’s Severance. Plus we’ve got alums from Cheers, Star Wars, The Partridge Family and more. But hey – Christopher Walken! 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!

“One of the hardest things about being an actor is to stick around. To stay viable.”

(A) Ian Zierling
(B) Lindsay Lohan
(C) Christopher Walken

ANSWER: (C) Christopher Walken

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

1995 – Baseball players agreed to end a 232-day strike after a judge granted a preliminary injunction against club owners.
* 232 days? That strike was almost as old as the hot dogs in those stadium vending carts.

1977 – The world’s fastest mental mathematician (a woman named Shakuntala Devi) raced a UNIVAC computer in deriving the 23rd root of a 201-digit number. The UNIVAC took 65 seconds, but Devi, who sat with her eyes closed, did the same calculation in her head in just 50 seconds.
* Yeah, thanks. I still count with my fingers when I balance my checkbook.

1923 – The first dance marathon in America was held. Alma Cummings set a world record by spending 27 hours on her feet.
* She then set a world’s record for the most corns.

1918 – Daylight Saving Time went into effect for the first time in the U.S.
* The idea is to give us more light in the evenings to do stuff. Great – like I’m not fried enough when I get home from work.

1889 – France’s Eiffel Tower was officially opened. It was denounced as a monstrosity by local artists and writers.
* Think of what a hit it would have been if they had attached a giant sliding board.

1880 – Wabash, Indiana became the first town in America to be completely illuminated by electric lighting.
* Their joy was short-lived, when a few weeks later they became the first town in America to completely receive electric bills.

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY

2021 – Paul Simon sold his entire songwriting catalog of over 400 songs to Sony Music Publishing for an undisclosed sum said to be approximately $250 million.

2015 – Joni Mitchell was rushed to a hospital after being found unconscious at her Los Angeles home. She had suffered a brain aneurysm rupture. She recovered substantially with physical therapy and daily rehabilitation.

2011 – Australian band Men at Work lost an appeal against a ruling which found their 1983 hit single “Down Under” was partly copied from a folk song. Australia’s Federal Court upheld the decision which stated part of the song’s melody came from the tune Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree. Record label EMI had argued the writers did not plagiarize because the inclusion of two bars from the tune was a “tribute.”

2005 – Rap record company boss Marion “Suge” Knight was ordered to pay $107 million to a woman who claimed she helped found the Death Row music label in 1989, one of hip-hop’s top labels with artists including Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. Lydia Harris said she invested in Death Row but was pushed out by Knight.

2001 – Whitney Houston and husband Bobby Brown were banned for life from Hollywood’s Bel Air hotel after wrecking their room. Hotel workers said a TV was smashed, two doors were ripped of their hinges and the walls and carpets were stained by alcohol. It was reported that Whitney called in her lawyers to plead with the hotel management not to call the police. The suite was so badly damaged it had to be shut for five days for repairs.

1995 – Jimmy Page escaped being knifed when a fan rushed the stage at a “Page and Plant” gig in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The fan was stopped by two security guards, who he knifed instead. After his arrest, he told police that he wanted to kill Jimmy Page because of the Satanic music he was playing.

1985 – Jeanine Deckers, “The Singing Nun,” died after taking a overdose of sleeping pills in a suicide pact with a friend. In 1963, her “Dominique” hit No. 1 in the U.S.

1984 – Kenny Loggins started a three-week run at No.1 on the U.S. singles chart with “Footloose,” the theme from the film with the same name.

1967 – Jimi Hendrix set fire to his guitar live on stage for the first time while appearing in London. It was the first night of a 24-date tour with The Walker Brothers, Cat Stevens and Engelbert Humperdink.

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. 40% of working Americans say they take off at least 5 days a year to do THIS. What is it?
Catch up on sleep

2. 10% of workers do THIS at least once a week during lunch. What is it?
Drink an alcoholic beverage

3. 18% of people say they have been late for work because of THIS. What is it?
Forgetting their cell phone

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