By Mark Gray
9:24am PST, Mar 6, 2021
Vaccine queen
The headline read: "Dolly Parton got a dose of her own medicine." That was actually true in every way. On March 2, the country music icon got her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna. Nearly a year ago, Dolly pledged $1 million to vaccine research, and her donation helped fund that very Moderna vaccine. In an Instagram video that showed her being vaccinated, Dolly implored others to follow suit. "I'm old enough to get it, and I'm smart enough to get it," she said. For those people against getting the shot, Dolly had some choice words: "To all you cowards out there, don't be such a chicken squat! Get out there and get your shot!" she said.
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Coming back
Chris Harrison is not planning to permanently step down from his duties from "The Bachelor" franchise. In an interview with "Good Morning America," the longtime host apologized (again) for defending current "The Bachelor" contestant Rachael Kirkconnell for her past racially insensitive behavior. "I made a mistake," Chris said. "I am an imperfect man. I made a mistake and I own that." Last month, in the midst of the backlash, Chris temporarily stepped down from the show. His hiatus will likely be short-lived. "I plan to be back and I want to be back," he said. "This interview is not the finish line. There is much more work to be done and I am excited to be part of that change." He added, "I am not a victim here. I made a mistake and I own that. Racism, oppression, these are big, dynamic problems and they take serious work. And I am committed to that work."
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Royal drama
Duchess Meghan has been accused of bullying the staff at Kensington Palace, a claim she vehemently denies. On March 3 — just a few days before CBS planned to air a much-hyped interview with the Duchess of Sussex and husband Prince Harry — a source told London's The Times newspaper that Meghan was so disrespectful to two senior aids that they left their jobs. Another staffer was supposedly "humiliated" by her two and a half years ago. A different ex-staffer said it was "more like emotional cruelty and manipulation, which I guess could also be called bullying." The palace later announced it would launch a probe into the allegations. A spokesman for Harry and Meghan told the paper, "Let's just call this what it is — a calculated smear campaign based on misleading and harmful misinformation. It's no coincidence that distorted several-year-old accusations aimed at undermining the duchess are being briefed to the British media shortly before she and the duke are due to speak openly and honestly about their experience of recent years." One day after the newspaper's allegations were published, a snippet of Meghan's Oprah chat was released by CBS. In it, Meghan is asked if she's nervous about the Palace hearing "her truth." She replied, "I don't know how they could expect that after all of this time, we would still just be silent if there is an active role that the Firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us." In the wake of the bullying claim, Meghan's famous friends, colleagues and critics made headlines as they publicly defended or attacked her.
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Surprise baby
Hilaria and Alec Baldwin have welcomed a sixth child… five months after welcoming their fifth child together, Eduardo. Hilaria shared the news on Instagram on March 1, posting a family picture that included two babies — Edu and a new bundle of joy. A day later, Hilaria posted a close-up pic of the newest little one, writing, "We are so in love with our daughter, Lucia. Just like your brothers and sisters, you are a dream come true." While the couple's rep won't dish any details about the surprising family addition, reports form multiple credible outlets have confirmed that the baby was born via a surrogate. Additionally, Hilaria follows a surrogacy company on Instagram. In other Baldwin news, Alec deleted his Twitter account (again) after posting about actress Gillian Anderson's changing English-to-American accent following her Golden Globes win — a thinly veiled reference to Hilaria's Spanish-heritage debacle. He caught backlash for his tweet.
Not so golden numbers
It was a big, big night for "Borat" and "The Crown" at the Golden Globes on Feb. 28… if only people watched it! Ratings revealed that just 6.9 million viewers tuned in — barely a third of the 2020 show's viewership (which also didn't have stellar numbers). Deadline further reported that it was the least watched ceremony in modern Globes history (except for 2008 — the year there was a writers strike; 6.03 million tuned in for a press conference announcing the winners). The ratings likely didn't take the happiness away from "The Crown," which won awards in all four categories in which the series or its actors were nominated. Sacha Baron Cohen was also a massive winner: He claimed the prize for best actor in a musical or comedy for his performance in "Borat Subsequent Moviefilm," which won best comedic picture. Sacha thanked the "all-white [Hollywood Foreign Press]" and poked fun at Rudy Giuliani, who appears in the film, in his acceptance speech.
Love lines
Vanessa Hudgen's boyfriend is a real catch. The actress and Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Cole Tucker have been linked since November 2020, and they went Instagram official on Valentine's Day. During a spring training media session this week, Cole was asked about his burgeoning romance. "I got a girlfriend and she's cool," he said. "She's awesome — I love her." Because of his love for the actress, Cole doesn't want his relationship to overshadow what he does on the baseball field. "I don't want it to be, 'Oh, Cole's dating Vanessa…,' I don't want it to be treated any differently than Mitch [Keller] having his wife down or Ke'Bryan [Hayes] having his girlfriend come down. She's great," he said. "She'll be around. You will see her but you saw the headline, it is what it is."
Hospitalization continues
It seems that the royal family was downplaying just how serious Prince Philip's condition was. On Feb. 17, the palace said Queen Elizabeth II's 99-year-old husband was admitted to a London hospital "as a precautionary measure." However, on March 4, the palace said Philip was recovering from a "successful" operation for a pre-existing heart condition. This after he was transferred to another hospital. The Duke of Edinburgh will continue to be hospitalized "for a number of days" as he recovers, the palace also said. Get well soon.
Past regrets
The Nickelodeon show "iCarly" was the biggest project of Jennette McCurdy's life, but she now says she's "ashamed" of her work on the series. On the Feb. 24 episode of her "Empty Inside" podcast, which started making headlines on March 2, the former "Sam & Cat" star dished on why she quit acting. "I resent my career in a lot of ways. I feel so unfulfilled by the roles that I played and felt like it was the most just cheesy, embarrassing [experience]," she said. While Jennette is over acting, she doesn't necessarily want to be out of entertainment. She wrote a one-woman show called "I'm Glad My Mom Died." She also directed the play.
Overdue apology
Sarah Silverman is sorry… 14 years later. Back at the 2007 MTV Movie Awards, the comedian cracked phallic prison jokes at the expense of Paris Hilton — quips that came as the heiress was about to begin her 45-day jail sentence for a probation violation. On her new "This Is Paris" podcast on March 1, Paris said she recalled "sitting there wanting to die" while everyone laughed. On "The Sarah Silverman Podcast," the funnywoman said she "would never do those jokes today" while also remembering how bad she felt immediately after telling the joke on stage. She then issued a mea culpa. "Here I am, 14 years later, telling you, Paris, that I am really sorry. I was then, and I am much more completely and with far more understanding now," Sarah said. "I can't imagine what you were going through at that time. My understanding of humanity through the lens of my work as a comedian had not yet merged. I'm sorry I hurt you. Comedy is not evergreen. We can't change the past. What's crucial is that we change with the times."
