By Mark Gray
11:00am PDT, May 8, 2023
Hot-button topic
KISS legend Paul Stanley believes that teaching children about gender reassignment and gender identity is a dangerous business. "There is a BIG difference between teaching acceptance and normalizing and even encouraging participation in a lifestyle that confuses young children into questioning their sexual identification as though some sort of game and then parents in some cases allow it," he wrote in Instagram on April 30. "There ARE individuals who as adults may decide reassignment is their needed choice but turning this into a game or parents normalizing it as some sort of natural alternative or believing that because a little boy likes to play dress up in his sister's clothes or a girl in her brother's, we should lead them steps further down a path that's far from the innocence of what they are doing."
What prompted the KISS co-founder and guitarist to weigh in on the hot-button issue isn't known. He added, "With many children who have no real sense of sexuality or sexual experiences caught up in the 'fun' of using pronouns and saying what they identify as, some adults mistakenly confuse teaching acceptance with normalizing and encouraging a situation that has been a struggle for those truly affected and have turned it into a sad and dangerous fad." Twister Sister frontman Dee Snider agreed with Paul, which led to him being pulled from San Francisco's upcoming Pride festivities because of it.
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Another wedding
The man who once eloped with Britney Spears in Las Vegas has remarried. Jason Alexander, who was famously wed to the pop star for 55 hours before the union was annulled, tied the knot with Rebecca Bell on March 27, Page Six reported on May 2, citing marriage records. Still, despite having a new bride, Jason seems to be publicly focused on his ex, as his Instagram page is still littered with Britney-centric posts. Days before the news broke he shared a photo of a tabloid article from 2010 with the headline "Britney's Cry For Help." "The perfect situation on the outside could be the most abusive on the inside," he wrote. "How long does it take for someone to get out of abuse? It's not worth it. The money. The status. Pleasing people." He added the hashtags "#domesticviolence" "#love" and "#courage." Jason was arrested and sentenced to jail time after crashing Britney's wedding to Sam Asghari last year.
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Splitsville
A stunner. On May 2, it emerged that Kevin Costner's wife of 18 years, Christine Baumgartner, had filed for divorce one day earlier, leading the Oscar winner's rep to issue a cryptic statement: "It is with great sadness that circumstances beyond his control have transpired which have resulted in Mr. Costner having to participate in a dissolution of marriage action," it read in part. Christine cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for their split; both she and Kevin asked for joint custody of their three kids. The couple has a prenup, which requires Christine to vacate any homes owned by Kevin (he has three, but none are jointly owned). The "Yellowstone" actor was reportedly "blindsided" by the news.
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Strike 2
A bevy of TV shows have been put on pause after the Writers Guild of America ceased all scriptwriting and went on strike at 12:01 a.m. on May 2. The strike is affecting late night TV more than anything, as many programs were immediately forced to air reruns. "Saturday Night Live," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," "The Daily Show" and "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" are all now airing repeats. Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon said they wouldn't air new episodes either. After the strike began, stars like Rob Lowe, Jon Cryer, Natasha Lyonne, Susan Sarandon, Wanda Sykes and Tony Kushner joined picket lines in Los Angeles and New York to support the first TV and movie writers strike in 15 years. Jay Leno delivered donuts to writers as well. John Mulaney canceled a chat with Jon Stewart to show solidarity. "I'm a writer first and foremost. I stand with my Guild – the @WGAWest and @WGAEast during this strike," he tweeted. "A great deal of money is made off of their work and they deserve to see some of it. Their demands are fair and reasonable and I support them." On May 4, Drew Barrymore also pulled out of her MTV Movie & TV Awards hosting gig to support the writers, who are pushing to revamp how they're compensated in the age of streaming services, artificial intelligence and more technological developments.
Court win
On May 4, a New York jury concluded that Ed Sheeran did not steal one of Marvin Gaye's classic songs, and the "Shivers" singer was found not liable in his copyright trial. The estate of Ed Townsend, co-writer of "Let's Get it On," alleged that Ed's 2014 hit "Thinking Out Loud" was decidedly similar to Marvin's 1973 track. A jury did not agree. In a statement after his court win, Ed said he was happy with the verdict, especially considering he'd vowed to retire from music if the decision was not in his favor. "It's devastating to be accused of stealing someone else's song when we've put so much work into our livelihoods," he said. "I'm just a guy with a guitar who loves writing music for people to enjoy. I am not and never will allow myself to be a piggy bank for anyone to shake."
Met mania
Death, taxes and the Met Gala on the first Monday of May. On May 1, many of Hollywood's biggest names attended the annual Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit in New York City. This year's theme honored the museum's "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty" exhibit and saw Jared Leto and Doja Cat dressed as cats. Meanwhile, some women dropped big news as they arrived, with Serena Williams and Karlie Kloss announcing their second pregnancies. It was also Paris Hilton's Met Gala debut (she stunned in a dramatic black leather off-the-shoulder Marc Jacobs dress with built-in gloves). Met Mania.
Health update
Jamie Foxx has finally broken his silence. Ever since the Oscar winning actor was hospitalized on April 11, mystery has surrounded his health. Although little is known about his "medical complication," Jamie finally, albeit briefly, addressed his fans more than three weeks later. "Appreciate all the love!!! Feeling blessed," he wrote on Instagram on May 3. Jamie also gave a shoutout to Nick Cannon for filing in for him on his game show, "Beat Shazam." "Appreciate ya my boy @nickcannon," he wrote on his Instagram Story. He added, "See u all soon." The messages came the same day TMZ reported that the actor's family was asking for prayers, writing that the Oscar winner "needs all the prayers and well-wishes his fans can muster."
Morbid thinking
Michael J. Fox knows that he has more days behind him than in front of him. In an interview with "CBS Sunday Morning" to celebrate the release of "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie" — a documentary about his life out May 12 — the star was incredibly frank. "I'm not gonna lie, it's getting harder. It's getting tougher. Every day gets tougher," he said of living with Parkinson's disease. "But that's the way it is. I mean, who do I see about that?" Michael, 61, also spoke about the realities of the disease, explaining that falling "is a big killer with Parkinson's. Falling and aspirating food and getting pneumonia — all these subtle ways that get you," he said, adding, "You don't die from Parkinson's; you die with Parkinson's. So I've been thinking of the mortality of it. I'm not going to be 80. I'm not going to 80."
