By Wonderwall.com Editors
10:45am PDT, Sep 22, 2021
Elvira actress Cassandra Peterson reveals she's in a longterm relationship with a woman
Cassandra Peterson, the actress who popularized her iconic Elvira character some 40 years ago, is speaking out for the first time about her sexuality, which she says is fluid. In her new memoir, "Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark," published Sept. 21, Cassandra reveals she's in a happy relationship with a woman but has been keeping the romance a secret for most of that time. "Keeping a secret doesn't feel good," the 70-year-old star recently told the Daily News. "I'm glad to have it out there. I mean, it does worry me. I have moments where I go, 'Maybe people won't like me anymore' and 'Maybe I won't get work anymore,'" she admitted. "It's ridiculous to think that, but I have friends who are gay and have come out of the closet and it affected their work, relationships and their life. So it's not so far-fetched to be worried. But on the other side of that, it's so draining keeping it a secret. It's not good for you, it's not good for us. It sucks the energy out of you." Cassandra says that while she's attracted to men as well, "I just met this particular person, and I fell in love."
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Will and Jada Smith are reportedly 'fine' after a fire broke out in their home
A fire broke out in Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith's $42 million mansion in Calabasas, Calif., on Sept. 20, while the stars were at home. According to a Page Six source who's close to the Smiths, the fire started in the basement, but fire trucks apparently arrived in time to keep the flames at bay. "They are all fine and in the home. A fire broke out in the basement, and a fireman was treated, but everyone is fine," said the insider, adding, "There were a lot of fire trucks and police, so it caught everyone's attention, but they're all fine." The huge estate is the same one where Jada shoots her Facebook Watch show, "Red Table Talk," with her daughter, Willow Smith, and mother, Adrienne Banfield-Norris.
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Has Morgan Wallen followed through $500k Black charities pledge?
Back in July, Morgan Wallen sat down with Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America" to discuss the fallout from a leaked video that showed the country star using the "N-word." In the interview, Morgan said he was being "playful" in his use of the racial slur and that he meant nothing "derogatory" by it. He then pledged to donate "around $500,000" to Black-led charitable organizations, telling the anchor that the BMAC [the Black Music Action Coalition] was "the first one." Nearly two months later, a Sept. 20 report from Rolling Stone suggests BMAC may have been the only group to receive a donation — and it was reportedly much less than the half a million dollar figure Morgan gave. The publication says it contacted "56 Tennessee, regional and national Black-led or Black-founded charities," including well-known groups such as the United Negro College Fund and the NAACP, local chapters of "popular organizations" like Black Lives Matter Nashville, and music-driven groups like the National Museum of African American Music. According to Rolling Stone, not one group other than BMAC said it's seen a dime from the singer. BMAC confirmed it got $165,000 in April after multiple meetings with Morgan and members of his management where their reps aimed "to help him understand how deeply harmful, offensive, and unacceptable his use of the n-word was," hey told the outlet. They also stressed the importance of going beyond a rote apology "to strongly condemn racism and to support anti-racism efforts and initiatives." Reps for the country star "declined to make him available" to comment on the situation, according to the magazine.
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Chrissy Teigen predicts an 'awkward' 'Voice' season for John Legend
Ariana Grande made her debut on "The Voice" on Sept. 20 as the newest addition to the coaching panel. She could also turn out to be a new thorn in the side of her co-star, John Legend, though. Ahead of the season premiere, John's wife, Chrissy Teigen, admitted she's kind of an Ari superfan. "Today is a bit of a funny day because it's the premiere of The Voice, and John absolutely knows that this house only listens to Ariana Grande," Chrissy said on her Instagram Stories (via ET). "So imagine how awkward it is for John to live in this Ariana Grande household and have to be him," she joked. Later, Chrissy promised to root for John, although she didn't sound too convinced about her allegiance. "I didn't go to any of the tapings. I have no idea who's who and what's what, so I'm going to be watching along with all of you," she began, before turning her chatter into a question: "… And I will be unbiased and also support my husband?" By the end of the night, the answer to that question popped up in a post from Ariana. It was a screenshot of a text from Chrissy that read, "Do u have any assets I can post to be team Ari?" Sorry, John.
Billie Eilish teams up with Nike on two new vegan Air Jordan designs
After turning heads on the 2021 Met Gala red carpet in a cruelty-free, pale pink Oscar de la Renta gown, Billie Eilish is taking her sustainable style obsession over to Nike. On Sept. 21, the singer and longtime Air Jordan fan announced she's collaborating with the brand on two new Jordan Brand designs. The sleek yet comfy-looking Air Jordan 1 KO comes in a low-slung a monochromatic "ghost green" and features the 19-year-old's stick figure logo on the tongue and her name on the inside sole. The fighter jet-inspired Jordan 15s, meanwhile, are a soothing shade of tan. As Billie told followers on Instagram in her announcement, both designs are 100 percent vegan and made from more than 20 percent recycled material. (Earlier this month, she revealed she agreed to wear Oscar de la Renta to the Met Gala only if they agreed to become "completely fur-free.") In a behind-the-scenes clip about the making of the shoes on Nike's website, Billie recalls "begging" for a pair of the futuristic-looking Air Jordan 15s when they first came out in 1999. She also gushes that her KO style kicks are "the best shape with everything with pants, with shorts, with dresses, with skirts … I love the way they make your legs look." The new sneakers land on Billie's website on Sept. 27 and on Nike's app on Sept. 30.
Tarek El Moussa contracts breakthrough COVID-19 case
Production of Tarek El Moussa's HGTV show, "Flipping 101" has been put on hold this week after the reality star tested positive for COVID-19. Tarek, who is fully vaccinated, has no symptoms and his fiance, Heather Rae Young, who is also fully vaccinated, has continued to test negative while the couple remains in quarantine, his rep told E! News in a report published Sept. 21. "While they are tested multiple times a week for filming purposes, Tarek had many negative tests last week and one positive. Heather Rae's tests all came back negative," the rep explained. Although Tarek's one positive test result may have been a "false positive," production of Tarek's show won't resume until he's completed the quarantine and tested negative. His diagnosis comes amid news Tarek's ex-wife, Christina Haack, is engaged to Josh Hall. Speaking to People earlier this week, Tarek and Heather both offered their congratulations to Christina and Josh. "We just want nothing but happiness for [them] and nothing but happiness for the kids," Heather added. "We're looking forward to the next chapter of everyone's lives." Tarek shares a son and a daughter with Christina, who also has a son with her second ex-husband, Ant Anstead.
Eva Longoria, more stars pen open letter about COVID-19 vaccines to world leaders
Hollywood is raising its collective voice to world leaders with a plea to bring the COVID-19 pandemic to a close. In an open letter created by the nonprofit CARE and published on Sept. 21, Eva Longoria, Iman, Richard Gere and dozens more stars urge leaders meeting this week at the United Nations General Assembly Session to work together "to fully vaccinate 70 percent of the world by next summer." The letter goes on to propose that the "world community" has to "invest in last-mile delivery systems, public education, and frontline healthcare workers to get vaccines from tarmacs into arms" in order to achieve the goal and end the pandemic. "We can save millions of lives — and trillions in further economic damage — by meeting this moment with the resources and political will needed to end COVID-19 for everyone, everywhere," the letter continues. It closes with, "Because none of us are safe until all of us are safe." Other stars who've signed on include Anne Hathaway, Russell Wilson, Sarah Silverman, Rachel Zoe and more.
Daniel Craig sounds off on whether a woman should play James Bond next
Daniel Craig has said "No Time To Die" will be his final turn as James Bond, but until now the actor had stayed mum on whether 007 could — or should — be played by a woman. Speaking to Radio Times in a new interview this week, Daniel, 53, weighed in on the representation issue. "The answer to that is very simple. There should simply be better parts for women and actors of color," Daniel said. "Why should a woman play James Bond when there should be a part just as good as James Bond, but for a woman?" His response is in line with the one Bond franchise producer Barbara Broccoli gave Variety last year. "James Bond can be of any color, but he is male," she said at the time. "I believe we should be creating new characters for women – strong female characters," she explained. "I'm not particularly interested in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I think women are far more interesting than that." After multiple delays due to the coronavirus pandemic, "No Time To Die" is slated to hit theaters Oct. 8.
