By Wonderwall.com Editors
6:00pm PDT, Jun 4, 2023
Beginning of the end?
Whoopi Goldberg's pretty sure "American Idol" set the "downfall of society" in motion. "The View" host shared her theory during a conversation about why Netflix decided to rehash Anna Nicole Smith's final days in a new documentary. "People like to be judgy," she said, per The New York Post. "You have 'Basketball Wives,' you have the 'Housewives' of whatever, all the Bravo shows, giving you the impression that you're doing something wrong because you're living your life. People watch these shows because they make them feel better. … I think that we, as a society, love to watch stuff to judge folks. You know, I've always thought that the beginning of the downfall of society was with, um…," she continued, turning to face executive producer Brian Teta, "What's the name of that show? I always tell you that."
Brian replied, "ABC's 'American Idol,'" emphasizing the network — on which "The View" also airs. Whoopi then elaborated on her "Idol" theory. "Once we gave people the ability to judge other people, I think we ran amuck with it. And it's gone out of control," she said. "They invited the public to decide who their person was. And I feel once we did that, it began us in a cycle which we have not [broken]." Brian replied by reminding Whoopi that she's said "American Idol" has "gotten better" and that she "[likes] it now." Whoopi conceded things have changed on "American Idol" since it moved to ABC from Fox. "The judges are different," she said. "When it first began, It was a very different … and ABC knows that I feel like this. I've told them, it's got nothing to do with them." Before moving on, she looked at Brian again and joked, "See you starting stuff, man!"
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Secret crush
In the weeks before her death on Wednesday, May 24, at age 83, Tina Turner was asked to name her celebrity crush — and her answer says a lot about the sparks that always flew when the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll shared a stage with a certain rock superstar. "I always had a crush on Mick Jagger," Tina told the Guardian in an interview published in April 2023. "I loved when we toured with the Rolling Stones." Tina's history with Mick, 79, dates back to the '60s, when she and her then-husband and bandleader, Ike Turner, opened for the Stones on tours in 1966 and 1969. After Tina escaped he abusive marriage to Ike and staged her historic comeback as a solo artist, she joined the Stones on the road again in 1981. A few years later, she and Mick teamed up at Live Aid in Philadelphia for a famously sizzling set during which Mick tore off Tina's leather skirt. ("Mick and I could never just stand there and sing — that wasn't us," Tina wrote of the incident in her 2018 memoir, "Tina Turner: My Love Story.") When she died, the music icon was happily married to Erwin Bach and living in Switzerland.
Following her death on Wednesday, Mick honored Tina on Twitter, writing: "I'm so saddened by the passing of my wonderful friend Tina Turner. She was truly an enormously talented performer and singer. She was inspiring, warm, funny and generous. She helped me so much when I was young and I will never forget her." Despite having suffered a stroke, kidney disease and other health issues in recent years, Tina told the Guardian last month that "nothing" scared her about getting older. "This is life's full adventure and I embrace and accept every day with what it brings," she said.
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Calling out Kanye
In the bombshell season 3 premiere of "The Kardashians," Kim Kardashian opened up for the first time about how Kanye West's barrage of online attacks, erratic behavior and other antics impacted her life and mental health. Filmed in 2022, long after their 2021 split, the first episode sees Kim reveal to her mom, Kris Jenner, that Kanye slammed her publicly so often that "at this point, I just assume everything I text Kanye is gonna be put on the internet." Telling Kris she's overwhelmed with anxiety, Kim expresses frustration that Kanye continually "brings up" her infamous 2007 sex tape "all over the media," that he "started a rumor" she had an affair with Drake, and that he "made up" an "insane narrative" about Kris. "We stay silent through all the lies," says the exasperated star. She adds that her ex's "shenanigans" will be "far more damaging … than my tape will ever be" to the four children they share, "… and I have to sit here and not say anything, ever, because I know one day my kids will appreciate that." Before breaking down in tears, Kim says, "It's just always so intense. I don't want to engage in a public feud with him."
The Skims creator also shares new details about her split from Pete Davidson, whom Kanye insulted and harassed for months when the comic was dating Kim. Referencing her breakup, Kim says she and Pete were "communicating really well about" the split, but she still felt terrible about what he endured, presumably as Kanye's target. "It's obviously sad," she says, adding that the nine month-long romance was serious but she had "a lot of guilt" about the fact that Pete "went through a lot because of my relationship."
Tense moment, explained
Nothing to see here! Rita Wilson defended her husband Tom Hanks this week after photos of what looked like an angry exchange between Tom and a Cannes Film Festival staffer went viral. The pics, taken at the premiere of Wes Anderson's "Asteroid City" on Tuesday, May 24, show Tom very close to the staffer's face while engaged in what looks like an intense talk as he raises one hand and points in different directions. Fans sharing the images on Twitter quickly surmised the exchange had been some kind of blow-up, with some taking guesses about what may have gone down prior to the shots. When Tom failed to appear alongside his "Asteroid City" castmates the next day at a photo-call, the rumors intensified — until Rita stepped in to clarify what was happening during the tense-looking moment. "This is called 'I can't hear you.' People are screaming," she wrote on her Instagram Story, according to CNN. "What did you say? Where are we supposed to go? But that doesn't sell stories!" she continued. "Nice try. We had a great time." The staffer, red carpet manager Vincent Chapalain, backed up Rita's claim in a statement to DailyMail.com and on Twitter. "Nothing happened at all," he told the Mail, "the photo is totally misleading."
Prison pic investigation
Is someone spying on Jen Shah as she serves her prison sentence? Photos of "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" star walking the yard at FPC-Bryan in Bryan, Texas, surfaced online earlier this month. Now, Jen's concerned because she thinks the image she saw was taken from inside the federal prison. "When I saw the photo and recognized the angle and location of where that photo was captured, I became immediately frightened," she tells TMZ through her rep this week. "I strongly believe the photo was not taken from the outside near the exterior gates, but rather deep inside the compound at FPC- Bryan. I am so worried that the next photo secretly taken of me could be in the shower, using the bathroom, or possibly changing my clothes." The reality star's husband is reportedly now writing a letter to the Bureau of Prisons requesting an investigation into how the photo was procured. According to TMZ, a fellow inmate was speaking to loved ones via video near Jen when someone on the outside end of the call showed Jen at least one of the pics. The reality star began serving her six-and-a-half-year prison sentence for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in February.
Glitches galore
After a delayed start on Twitter Spaces, Ron DeSantis announced he's running for president of the United States on Wednesday, May 24, during an audio interview with Twitter CEO Elon Musk. Unfortunately for the Republican Florida governor, however, technical glitches and a repeatedly crashing app seemed to steal the show, sparking a wave of mixed reactions across Hollywood and beyond. While stars like Whoopi Goldberg encouraged the public to give Ron a break, given that thousands of people had initially logged on to hear the interview and ended up overwhelming the app, others, including Ron's opponent, Donald Trump, and his amily, were less forgiving. "Wow! The DeSanctus TWITTER launch is a DISASTER!" former president Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "His whole campaign will be a disaster. WATCH!" His son, Donald Trump Jr., chimed in to call the Twitter Spaces event, "A #DeSaster of epic proportions," writing, "Ron's robotic rollout is just another reason why we don't have time to roll the dice on a swamp-controlled RINO." Comic Jon Stewart and actor John Cusack were equally unimpressed, with "The Daily Show" alum joking, "It'd be like if the escalator had just stopped halfway down…" On Wednesday, though, Elon remained confident in the face of widespread criticism. "I call it 'massive attention,'" tweeted the Tesla exec. "Top story on Earth today."
Mother-daughter reunion
Britney Spears and her long-estranged mother, Lynne Spears, could be on their way to a reconciliation. On Wednesday, May 25, Lynne was spotted arriving atLos Angeles International Airport before traveling to the home Britney shares with her husband, Sam Asghari. According to TMZ, the mother-daughter pair visited for about half an hour inside Britney's house before Lynne went on her way. After she left, Britney and Sam reportedly stepped out for a drive together. The singer has been open on social media about her anger with her immediate family, including her mother, whom she's blamed for coming up with the idea of the conservatorship that stripped Britney of the ability to control her own life for more than a decade. She's also gone into detail with other allegations of mistreatment by both of her parents and her sister, among others. Now, though, Lynne is "committed to making it right with her daughter," according to a TMZ source.
