TUESDAY, Apr 13 – DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION

MORNING SIDEKICK DAILY PREP TEXT VERSION FOR TUESDAY, April 13, 2021
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COMEDY MP3s POSTED ON OUR PREP SITE FOR TODAY: CONTEST – MIXED-UP MOVIE

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.)

INTERNATIONAL CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION DAY

NATIONAL PEACH COBBLER DAY

PLANT APPRECIATION DAY

SCRABBLE DAY
The Holiday Insights website says this:
“Scrabble Day celebrates the popular board game. Sold by Hasbro, Inc., it’s been popular around the world ever since it was created in 1938 by Alfred Mosher Butts. People young and old enjoy this game. It’s very easy to celebrate Scrabble Day. Just get out the old board game, dust it off, and play a few rounds with family or friends.

THOMAS JEFFERSON DAY
National Thomas Jefferson Day each year on April 13th honors the birth of the third President of The United States, Thomas Jefferson, who was born April 13, 1743.

April is:

Car Care Month
Celebrate Diversity Month
D.E.A.R Drop Everything and Read Month
International Guitar Month
Jazz Appreciation Month
Keep America Beautiful Month
National Card and Letter Writing Month
National Garden Month
National Greyhound Adoption Month
National Humor Month
National Poetry Month

ENTERTAINMENT & CELEBRITIES

DWAYNE JOHNSON WOULD RUN FOR PRESIDENT, IF WE ASK HIM

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, asked by Today show reporter Willie Geist about rumors he’s interested in a political career, said that he’s open to running for president. Johnson said, “I do have the goal to unite our country. I also feel that, if this is what the people want, then I will do that.” The former wrestler-turned-actor notes that he is “passionate about making sure our country is united. A united country, as we know, is its strongest.” he says.
* Which isn’t actually a sentence, but who’s gonna tell him?
* Pretty controversial stuff there, Dwayne.
* Notice how none of these guys ever want to start on, say, the local school board?
* But wouldn’t you like to see his animatron in Disney’s Hall of Presidents, eh?
* He’s got a new movie or something coming out, right? Something political? That’s why all the political questions lately? (Actually, he’s about to film a movie called “The King”, about Hawaii’s King Kamehameha. So there you have it.)
* Who’s gonna be President The Rock’s vice-president – The Edge from U2?
* Wait, what am I thinking? It would be Jason Statham, of course.

RON HOWARD AND BROTHER CLINT TO RELEASE MEMOIR

Actor-Director Ron Howard and his weird-looking brother, actor Clint Howard, will tell their family story in a new memoir. “The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family,” is slated for an October release. In the upcoming memoir, the brothers will detail their family story of navigating and surviving life as sibling child actors. A press release says The Boys is “a dual narrative that lifts the lid on the Howard brothers’ closely held lives. It’s the journey of a tight four-person family unit that held fast in an unforgiving business and of two brothers who survived ‘child-actor syndrome’ to become fulfilled adults.”
* They’ve already released some of the chapter titles:
– “Why We Hate Jeff & Beau Bridges”
– “Bald at 16”
– “The Gassiest Cast Member on The Andy Griffith Show”
– Clint Howard’s chapter: “My Parents Made Me Act Next To A Bear When I Was 5.”
– Ron Howard’s chapter: “What the Hell Happened To Me After I Made Apollo 13?”
– …and, “Thanks for the Cameo In Your Book, Ron. Love, Clint.”

THE BUZZ

AMERICANS CAN’T DECIDE WHAT TO EAT

The average American couple spends 132 hours a year – 5 and a half days – deciding what to eat. A mobile app company called Seated surveyed 2,000 people in a committed relationship. The results:
– 37 percent of couples regularly have a hard time agreeing on what to eat.
– The “what do you want to eat?” question is asked 365 times a year, resulting in two hours and 32 minutes a week of negotiating on what type of meal to eat.
– Dinner is the most controversial meal time. 46 percent of survey respondents say that’s the meal they debate about the most.
– When they can’t come to an agreement, men are the more likely to settle for whatever their partner wants.
– 24 percent said they regularly find themselves trapped in food purgatory as their partner seemingly takes forever to decide what they want.
– About a third (31 percent) say their partner frequently claims not to be hungry then takes food from their plate.
* “Food purgatory”? Eat an apple, you whiner.
* I’d imagine these results would be different in, say, Somalia.
* The “what to eat” question is asked 365 times a year? Doesn’t anybody eat leftovers anymore?
* Fortunately, Americans have plenty to snack on while they’re deciding what to eat.
* Dang, now I’m hungry. But I don’t know what I want.

AUDIO: TALKING TO SPIDERS

Scientists at MIT have turned a spider web into music – a technique that could help us communicate with spiders, they say. Despite having eight eyes, spiders have poor eyesight. Spiders are able to feel the vibrations in their webs and can tell the difference between, say, wind and a trapped fly. Professor Markus Buehler, an MIT materials scientist and engineer, wanted to try and “read” these vibrations, so he assigned different frequencies of sound to strands of the web, creating “notes” to generate melodies. His goal is to learn how to communicate with spiders in their own language.
* Interesting. So, how long ago exactly did this guy crack?
* Trouble is, no matter what strands of the spider web he vibrates, all the spider hears is “I’m not a fly. I’m not a fly.”
* Once you get past the screaming and the smooshing, I’m sure spiders can be very interesting.
* You don’t want to get on Professor Buehler’s bad side. Trust me. It would be like the rat attack scene from “Willard”.
* (When you’re playing the audio clip below) Doesn’t this sound like the music they play in Space Mountain at Disneyland?
* A spider is hearing this music and going, “Hey, party at Professor Buehler’s house! Let’s all go!”
CLIP: If a spider web could be heard by humans, this is how it would sound.
CLIP URL: morningsidekick(dot)(com)/prep/wp-content/uploads/04-13-SpiderWebMusic.mp3

U.S. NEWS

WOMEN TRY TO SPEND MILLION-DOLLAR BILL AT DOLLAR GENERAL

Two woman tried to buy several gift cards with a counterfeit $1 million bill last week at a Dollar General store in Maryville, Tennessee. One of the women said she received the $1 million bill in the mail from a church and that she was going to buy items for care packages for homeless people. The other woman said she was unaware of the bill. The United States has never issued a million dollar bill. Both women were told to never return to the store.
* That’s some eagle-eye work from the cashier, huh?
* One clue – the million dollar bill featured a picture of Scrooge McDuck.
* They should have known better. What church ever gives up a million dollars?
* And it was a mistake to go to a Dollar General store. They’d never be able to give them change. They should have gone to a Hundred Thousand Dollar store.
* Looking on the internet, it’s amazing how many people have actually tried to pass a million dollar bill, and by ‘amazing’ I mean ‘more than one.’

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

GUY WHO RODE JET SKI TO GIRLFRIEND BREAKS UP

That Scottish guy who last December rode a jet ski across the Irish Sea to get around quarantine so he could meet up with a new gal he had recently met? They broke up. Dale McLaughlan, 28, risked his life when he spent four and a half hours on his jet ski to reach Jessica Radcliffe, who lives on the Isle of Man. He had set off thinking it was a forty-minute trip. McLaughlan ended up being thrown in jail for breaking coronavirus lockdown rules by entering the island without permission. Last week, Radcliffe herself was in court to face charges of attacking another woman on the island. The Mirror newspaper reports that McLaughlan failed to get residency status and was sent back to Scotland, and Radcliffe has deleted photos of him from her Facebook page.
* But what happened to the jet ski?
* Why did Jessica attack the other woman? Was Dale’s jet ski parked outside?
* I guess the moral of the story is: shop local.
* Maybe he found out she actually lives on the Isle of She’s A Man, Baby.
* I’ve never risked my life to get a girl, but I have risked several dinners at Outback Steakhouse.
* See how easy it is to enforce residency rules? What’s Biden’s problem?

TRENDING

BIDEN’S DOG WILL UNDERGO MORE TRAINING

The younger Biden family dog, Major – the bitey one – will undergo “additional training” as he tries to adjust to life in the White House. First lady Jill Biden’s press secretary Michael LaRosa said that Major would be going “off-site” for his training, somewhere in the Washington, D.C. area, and it is expected to last a few weeks. Major, a German Shepherd, has bitten employees on two occasions: once, Major bit a Secret Service employee, and the second time he “nipped” at an employee on the South Lawn.

MACAULEY CULKIN IS A FATHER

Macaulay Culkin, best known as Kevin McAllister from ‘Home Alone’, announced the birth of his first child with his partner, actress Brenda Song. Macaulay, who is now 40 years old, and Brenda welcomed their son, Dakota Song Culkin, into the world last Monday in Los Angeles. A rep for the couple says he was named after Culkin’s sister who passed away in 2008.

TV TONIGHT

ABC – “Pooch Perfect” – The remaining eight teams groom an animal they are not used to. Hey, just for fun, how about mountain lions?

ABC – “Big Sky” – Jenny gets an alarming call from an old flame. Please, not another drunk dialing.

CBS – “NCIS” – NCIS investigates the murder of a Navy officer who was killed while driving home a recently released inmate. Boy, there’s no end to the places these Navy people get murdered.

CBS – “FBI” – Maggie questions her relationship with Nestor when she learns he hasn’t been completely honest with her. Dude, you’re in the FBI. You should know by now nobody’s completely honest.

NBC – “Young Rock” – Pennsylvania, 1987: When Karen asks to come over to Dwayne’s house for dinner, he panics because he’s been lying to her about being rich. But he’ll eventually take care of that problem, big time.

NBC – “This Is Us” – Kevin visits Randall in Philadelphia. Make sure to check out the cheesesteaks on South Street.

FOX – “The Resident” – A case becomes personal for the staff when Conrad and Bell treat a pregnant woman who is carrying Jake’s future adopted child. WAY too complicated.

FOX – “Prodigal Son” – A world-famous profiler shows up in New York and claims that Maj. Crimes’ current case is connected to the discovery of Endicott’s body overseas. Sounds like he could have just sent an email.

CW – “The Flash” – When a mysterious ice powered enemy frames Frost for a brutal crime, she must find a way to clear her name. So, Frost is on the hot seat, eh?

CW – “Supergirl” – Lena and Lex battle for control of Luthor Corp. How? Thumb wrestling? Rock, Paper, Scissors?

ALMANAC

NOTABLE DATES, UPCOMING U.S. OBSERVANCES

April 15, Thursday – This is NOT the federal tax filing due date for individuals this year – it has been extended to May 17
May 9, Sunday – Mother’s Day
May 17, Monday – U.S. Tax Day – deadline for filing taxes
May 31, Monday – Memorial Day
June 14, Monday – Flag Day
June 20, Sunday – Father’s Day
June 20, Sunday – Summer begins, Solstice is 11:32 p.m. EDT

BIRTHDAYS

Glenn Howerton (actor, “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”) … 45
Rick Schroder (actor, “24”, “NYPD Blue”) … 51
Max Weinberg (drummer, E Street Band) … 70
Ron Perlman (actor, “Sons of Anarchy”, “Hellboy”) … 71

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

“I take my work very seriously, and that’s the only way for it to be fun for me.”

(A) Dr. Anthony Fauci
(B) Borat
(C) Glenn Howerton

ANSWER: (C) Glenn Howerton

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

COVID 19 – ONE YEAR AGO:
– NY Governor Andrew Cuomo said “I believe the worst is over if we continue to be smart,” about the COVID-19 pandemic in New York as the death toll passed 10,000.

2011 – A federal jury in San Francisco convicted baseball player Barry Bonds of obstruction of justice, but failed to reach a verdict on allegations that he’d used steroids and lied to a grand jury about it.
* One strike, one foul.

1999 – Jack Kervorkian was sentenced in Pontiac, Mich., to 10 to 25 years in prison for the second-degree murder of Thomas Youk, whose assisted suicide in 1998 was videotaped and shown on ”60 Minutes.”
* So much for hiding the evidence.

1997 – Tiger Woods, 21, became the youngest person to win the Masters Tournament and the first person of African heritage to claim a major golf title.
* His success was very inspiring to young people everywhere. Unfortunately, it was also inspiring to the writers of that lousy “Legend of Bagger Vance” movie.

1992 – Crystal Pepsi began test marketing in Providence, Denver and Dallas.
* It was Pepsi’s version of the “New Coke” disaster.

1963 – Pete Rose got his first major-league hit for the Cincinnati Reds.
* He would have been happier about it, but he dropped a bundle on the game.

1960 – France became the fourth nuclear nation, exploding an A-Bomb in the Sahara.
* Just to prove they could do something other than cook food with sauce.

1956 – Ampex Corporation demonstrated the world’s first commercial videotape recorder.
* Hastening a revolution in the porn industry.

1954 – Hank Aaron debuted for the Milwaukee Braves. He would go on to break Babe Ruth’s home run record.
* But not basketball legend Wilt Chamberlain’s home run record, if you know what I mean.

1894 – Thomas Edison showed the public his latest invention – the kinetoscope, the first motion picture machine.
* Hastening an even earlier revolution in the porn industry.

1828 – Noah Webster published his first edition of the ‘American Dictionary’ of the English language.
* The part that always confused me is, if you have to put out the first dictionary without using a dictionary, how do you know you’ve got all the words?

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY

2012 – Five of Tom Petty’s guitars were stolen from a soundstage in Culver City, California, where Petty and his band, the Heartbreakers, were rehearsing for their upcoming worldwide tour. The stolen gear included a 1967 Blonde Rickenbacker, a 1967 Epiphone Sheridan, a 1965 Gibson SG TV Jr., a Fender Broadcaster and a Dusenberg Mike Campbell Model, which belonged to Campbell himself. Petty was offering a “no questions asked” reward bounty of $7,500 to anyone with information leading to the guitars’ recovery. Within days, the guitars were recovered and 51-year-old private security guard Daryl Washington of Los Angeles was arrested and booked for grand theft.

2011 – A portrait of Pink Floyd founder Syd Barrett was returned to the London art gallery it had been stolen from the previous week. The late singer’s former girlfriend, Libby Gausden, pleaded for its safe return and offered a reward. The portrait was returned undamaged and intact to the gallery by mail.

2009 – 68-year-old US music producer Phil Spector was convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson, after a five-month retrial.

2003 – The Beatles Apple Corp company was listed as Britain’s fastest profit-growth firm with an annual profit growth of 194%.

1997 – The Notorious B.I.G. was at No.1 on the U.S. album charts with “Life After Death”.

1993 – The first “Aerosmith Day” was observed in Massachusetts after the band was given their very own holiday.

1985 – USA for Africa started a four-week run at No.1 on the U.S. singles chart with “We Are The World”.

1982 – David Crosby was arrested when police found him preparing cocaine backstage in his dressing room before a show in Dallas.

1980 – The musical Grease closed after 3883 performances in New York, having grossed over $8 million.

1979 – Five days into a Van Halen tour, David Lee Roth collapsed from exhaustion on stage in Spokane, Washington.

1974 – Elton John went to No.1 on the U.S. singles chart with “Bennie And The Jets”, his second U.S. No.1.

1974 – Paul McCartney’s “Band On The Run” went to No.1 on the U.S. album charts, McCartney’s third U.S. No.1.

1971 – The Rolling Stones released “Brown Sugar”, the first record on their own label, Rolling Stones Records, which introduced the infamous licking-tongue and lips logo.

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. About half of the population believes THIS is their most attractive feature. What is it?
Their hair

2. According to research, people who have THIS physical characteristic are considered more trustworthy than people who don’t. What is it?
Brown eyes

3. Studies show that if you’re good-looking, THIS will happen to you more often. What is it?
People will lie to you

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