By Wonderwall.com Editors
8:25am PST, Feb 3, 2022
Katie Couric touched on network exec Jeff Zucker's 'undisclosed relationship' with coworker in 2021 memoir
One more media bombshell from Katie Couric's 2021 memoir, "Going There," just caught fire — and the veteran journalist is doubling down on the observations she made in her book. On Feb. 2, longtime CNN Worldwide President Jeff Zucker announced to staff that he's retiring because he failed to disclose a "consensual relationship" with the company's chief marketing officer, Allison Gollust. Katie addressed Jeff's resignation the next morning in her newsletter, where she restated much of what she shared in her memoir. "I worked with Jeff Zucker for many years at NBC and later on my talk show. He was a talented and energetic producer. His resignation took me by surprise," Katie told subscribers on Feb. 3. "I've also known Allison Gollust since my days at the 'Today Show.' I've wondered about the nature of their relationship, but I do know, as I wrote in my memoir 'Going There,' that it made me uncomfortable. It seems their colleagues and the media at large turned a blind eye to inappropriate behavior." In "Going There," Katie shares observations about Jeff and Allison from the time Katie says Jeff "made a huge push to bring [Allison] on" board, according to People. "They were joined at the hip," writes Katie, who hosted the "Today" show from 1991 until 2006. "There wasn't a role for Allison. Jeff asked me to meet with her anyway." She goes on to recall that at one point in Allison's tenure at the network alongside Jeff, Allison "and her husband and kids had moved into the apartment above" the one where Jeff and his then-wife, Caryn Nathanson, lived. "Everyone who heard about the cozy arrangement thought it was super strange," Katie writes, adding, that "it made me really uncomfortable" because of her friendship with Jeff's wife. In his resignation memo, Jeff wrote, in part: "As part of the investigation into Chris Cuomo's tenure at CNN, I was asked about a consensual relationship with my closest colleague, someone I have worked with for more than 20 years. I acknowledged the relationship evolved in recent years. I was required to disclose it when it began but I didn't. I was wrong. As a result, I am resigning today." Allison will reportedly continue working at CNN.
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The craziest details on 'Pam & Tommy' stars Lily James and Sebastian Stan's transformation into Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee
From the prosthetic face and chest pieces to the dental additions to the custom, hand knotted wigs, transforming into Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee was beyond intense for "Pam & Tommy" stars Lily James and Sebastian Stan. The eight-part dramedy offers a look at one of Hollywood's most famous '90s love stories while tackling issues like the unequal fallout Pam faced after the couple's private sex tape was stolen and leaked. When it came to turning actors born in England (Lily) and Romania (Sebastian) into American pop culture icons, "nobody wanted to take the shortcut or compromise on anything," Jason Collins, the special makeup effects designer for the new Hulu limited series, tells USA Today. To transform into Pam, Lily spent four hours a day in makeup, where she was given a prosthetic forehead to widen her natural one. Super-thin lace eyebrows were then attached to the forehead, while dental pieces "pushed [Lily's] top lip out" so her smile would better match Pam's. "Highlights, shadows, contours that enhance the prosthetic, that change structure," were then used, Jason said. Lily also wore blue contact lenses, four different wigs (Pam famously kept her hair blonde with box dye in those days) and "a prosthetic chest made of medical-grade silicone," according to the outlet. Sebastian's prep time was closer to three hours, Jason said, noting that most of that time was spent getting the Motley Crue drummer's tattoos right on the actor. (But not too right. According to the makeup pro, there were legal reasons he couldn't exactly replicate Tommy's ink.) Sebastian also wore brown contacts, dyed his hair and soul patch black and wore prosthetic nipples, complete with jewelry that needed to stay put when Lily put her teeth on them. A prosthetic piece of the male anatomy was also involved. Finally, the stars wanted to nail Pam and Tommy's signature raspy voices. To achieve that effect, Sebastian told Jimmy Kimmel this week that he and Lily "would actually scream into pillows in between the scenes." "Pam & Tommy" premiered on Hulu and Disney+ on Feb. 2.
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Taylor Swift gets her own version of Wordle
As Taylor Swift keeps churning out new "Taylor's Version" recordings of her back catalog, a group of the singer's Worlde-loving superfans have introduced a Taylor-tailored version of the viral online word game. Sadly, they opted to call it Taylordle instead of riffing on their pop hero's re-recorded album series — we're guessing both "Wordle" and "Taylor's Version" are rights-protected — but Taylordle.com launched via The Holy Swift podcast on Jan. 28, according to Billboard. The internet's Wordle fascination kicked into high gear over the past month, with fans flooding social media with their answers to the game, in which players have six tries to guess a five-letter word. According to Verge, most of the Worlde clones and adaptations that briefly appeared on the Apple app store last month have been taken down since the New York Times bought Wordle for seven figures. As of Feb. 2, however, Taylordle was still up and running.
Gwyneth Paltrow shows off her in-home wellness spa, $30k shower faucets in Architectural Digest
Gwyneth Paltrow shows off the super-deluxe interiors of her Montecito, California, home, in the new issue of Architectural Digest, saying she designed it to feel like "a Parisian apartment set within an old European barn, something with high ceilings, flooded with light, a place that feels generous yet manageable at the same time." Luckily for Gwyneth, it seems buying shower faucets that retail for nearly $31,000 is "manageable," because that's what the Goop.com creator and her husband, producer Brad Falchuk, chose for the shower they installed in their in-home personal wellness spa. In addition to the minimalist R.W. Atlas "thermostatic shower system," Gwyneth says her spa has a hot tub and plunge pool — "excellent for good circulation," she notes — and gets used on a daily basis. "I can't believe this is our home," she admits. "It's so fun."
Chrishell Stause says she may start a family on her own
"Selling Sunset" star Chrishelle Stause broke off her relationship with Jason Oppenheim in December because she wants kids and he doesn't. But she's not waiting around for the ideal guy to appear before pursuing her dream of starting a family. "We'll see what happens with my future, but I definitely think that I'm keeping all my options open," the real estate agent, 40, tells People. "I would love for that to happen," she says of meeting her proverbial Mr. Right, "… but if it doesn't, I feel like I can do it on my own. That's something that seems scary, but it also seems a little freeing, knowing that I'm not tied down to this idea that I only have this finite amount of time to figure it out." After her split from Jason, Chrishell shared on social media that he remains her "best friend," despite their decision to stop being romantically involved. "I very much hope to one day have a family and decisions I make at this point are with that goal in mind," she wrote at the time. Speaking to People, Chrishell added that in 2022, women are more independent than ever. "My whole life, I had this idea of Cinderella — a guy sweeps you off your feet, you live happily ever after. But it's a new world out there and I've just decided we were all messed up a little bit by Cinderella," she said. "Sometimes you have to be your own fairy godmother."
Chris Noth edited out of 'And Just Like That' finale amid sexual assault allegations
When the Season 1 finale of "And Just Like That…" airs Feb. 3, viewers will not see Mr. Big, despite initial plans for him to appear in one scene. The show's executive producer and director Michael Patrick King recently told Variety he edited Chris Noth's character out because he felt including Big would have distracted from the main characters, after four women alleged in December that Chris sexually assaulted them in separate incidents between 2004 and 2015. Chris has denied all the allegations (and his publicist has said Chris doesn't know one of the women). "I wanted the show to be focused on the stories of these amazing actresses and their efforts in these last 10 episodes, and I didn't want the entire story to be about whether someone was or wasn't in the show," Michael told Variety. "Mr. Big and Chris Noth, they're not the same person — and that would've made them the same person." Asked how he "experienced" learning about the allegations earlier in the interview, Michael said, "I can't comment on it. It really has nothing to do with me." The show's stars, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis, previously shared a joint statement on the allegations, writing on social media: "We are deeply saddened to hear the allegations against Chris Noth. We support the women who have come forward and shared their painful experiences. We know it must be a very difficult thing to do and we commend them for it."
Dolly Parton, Dionne Warwick and Eminem nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
On Feb. 2, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced its new class of nominees, including first-timers Dolly Parton, Beck, A Tribe Called Quest, Duran Duran, Lionel Richie and Carly Simon. Eminem also made the cut, making the rapper the only act nominated in his first year of eligibility. (Artists become eligible 25 years after their first album was released.) Nominees making return appearances include Twitter queen Dionne Warwick, rockers Judas Priest, Rage Against the Machine, the New York Dolls and MC5, and Afrobeat star Fela Kuti. While Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation chairman John Sykes touted the nominees as "a diverse group," it didn't take long for critics and social media users to call out the organization for once again nominating a group that's mostly made up of white male artists. As of 2019, only 7.7 percent of the 888 Rock Hall inductees were women, according to a New York Times report. The Rock Hall is slated to announce who's in and who's out in May, with an induction ceremony to follow later this year.
Channing Tatum says girlfriend Zoe Kravitz is 'a perfectionist in the best possible way'
Channing Tatum has a few more years of Hollywood under his belt than his girlfriend, Zoe Kravitz, so he didn't mind giving her a bit of professional advice when the time came. In an interview with Variety published on Feb. 2, Channing, 41, recalls that Zoe, 33, was thinking of casting herself in her directorial debut, "Pussy Island," which Channing stars in. Having recently tried to star in a movie he was directing, "Dog," he learned the hard way that there are easier approaches to filmmaking. "I was like, 'You'll need double the days,'" he recalls telling her. "She's a perfectionist in the best possible way," he adds. Channing and Zoe were first linked romantically in August 2021, when they were spotted sharing a bike ride — literally, as in, the same bicycle — around New York City. They were photographed together in upstate New York shortly after that, followed by an apparent date night at Alicia Keys' Met Gala afterparty.
