By Mark Gray
1:08pm PDT, Sep 19, 2021
Vaccine hubbub
Nicki Minaj caused quite the stir this week over her position on the COVID-19 vaccine, and it had to do with, among other things, her cousin's friend's testicles and a canceled wedding. Yep, this was a real thing. Nicki first trended after saying she would not be attending the Met Gala on Sept. 13 because it required vaccination. "They want you to get vaccinated for the Met. if I get vaccinated it won't for the Met. It'll be once I feel I've done enough research. I'm working on that now," she tweeted. She then added a tweet that soon because the subject of memes. "My cousin in Trinidad won't get the vaccine cuz his friend got it & became impotent," she wrote. "His testicles became swollen. His friend was weeks away from getting married, now the girl called off the wedding. So just pray on it & make sure you're comfortable with ur decision, not bullied." The inexplicable claim got so much attention that health officials in the United States and Trinidad had to publicly debunk them. As if this wasn't confusing enough, Nicki later encouraged people to get the vaccine if their job required it and said she'd likely get the shot before her next tour.
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Sad farewell
One of the reigning kings of comedy is gone. Norm Macdonald, one of the most beloved cast members of "Saturday Night Live" in the '90s, passed away on Sept. 14 after a secret battle with cancer. Deadline reported that Norm privately fought the disease for nine years. The comic, who thrilled fans with his dry wit and deadpan delivery, kept his health issues hidden from even those closest to him. Following his death, many in the comedy world mourned and paid tribute to Norm. Several late night hosts even wept on the air. Adam Sandler tweeted, "Every one of us loved Norm. Some of the hardest laughs of my life with this man. Most fearless funny original guy we knew. An incredible dad. A great friend. A legend. Love u pal." Dave Letterman called Norm the "lifetime Cy Young winner in comedy."
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Ring thing
She did it again. Britney Spears is engaged, y'all. On Sept. 12, both she and her longtime beau, Sam Asghari, announced that he popped the question. Britney shared the news first, captioning a video of herself and Sam posing together as she showed off her new engagement bling. "I can't f****** believe it," she wrote. The ring was designed by New York City-based jeweler Roman Malayev, CEO of Forever Diamonds NY. After many fans congratulated the two, others started thinking about the business end and encouraged Britney to get a prenuptial agreement, which she is reportedly already working on. The singer "understands that this is necessary," a source told People magazine. As this all happened, Sam — a fitness trainer, model and aspiring actor Britney's been with for nearly five years — joked about the prenup chatter on Sept. 13, writing on his Instagram Story, "Thank you for your concern about the prenup! Of course we're getting iron clad prenup to protect my Jeep and shoe collection in case she dumps me one day." A few days after the engagement, Britney deactivated her Instagram and explained on Twitter that she was taking a social media break so she could enjoy this happy time.
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Prison inmate
Allison Mack is behind bars. On Sept. 13, the former "Smallville" actress — now known as inmate No. 90838-053 — reported to the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California, to begin serving her three-year sentence for her role in recruiting people to NXIVM, which many have described as a sex cult masquerading as a self-help group. (Allison was accused of forcing women to have sex with the leader of the cult, Keith Raniere.) Several women were also branded with Allison and Keith's initials. Allison, who pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering and one count of racketeering conspiracy, actually began her prison stint two weeks ahead of schedule. After her release, Allison will be on supervised release for three more years. Last year, Keith was sentenced to 120 years in prison. At a court hearing in 2020, Allison said her loyalty to Keith was "the biggest mistake and regret of my life."
Election loss
Caitlyn Jenner will continue reside in Southern California, not the Governor's mansion in Sacramento. Earlier this year, the former reality TV star entered California's gubernatorial recall election, hoping that name recognition would help her take over the state's top job. On Sept. 14, California spoke both loudly for Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who won easily, and against Caitlyn, a Republican who, to put it lightly, didn't perform well at the ballot box. The former Olympian got just over 1% of the vote. After Californians decided to keep Newsom, Caitlyn expressed disbelief. "I can't believe that this many people actually voted to keep him in office," she said. "It's a shame, honestly, it's a shame. You kind of get the government you deserve."
Fight night
It was the missed punch seen 'round the world. On Sept. 12, the red carpet at the MTV VMAs suddenly felt more like an MMA fight after UFC superstar Conor McGregor took a swing at Machine Gun Kelly (he missed). Megan Fox, MGK's girlfriend, was between the two. Conor also threw a drink at the couple along the way. There are differing reports about what happened, as several claim Conor asked MGK for a photo, which was denied by the music star's team. Conor later told "Entertainment Tonight" that he doesn't know MGK at all; he called him a "little vanilla boy rapper." In the days that followed, "Extra" reported the fight was over DMs Conor allegedly sent to Megan. MGK and Megan have remained mum about the scuffle, and Conor later invited MGK to his next UFC fight.
Engaged
Kate Hudson and her boyfriend of nearly five years, musician Danny Fujikawa, are engaged. "Let's go!" she captioned an Instagram announcement — a photo showing her and Danny kissing against an ocean backdrop after his proposal. She included bride, groom and chapel emojis. The actress's news came just hours before she attended the Met Gala and showed off her Lorraine Schwartz engagement ring. Kate and Danny welcomed daughter Rani Rose in 2018.
New "Jeopardy!" hosts revealed
We finally have an answer to the "Jeopardy!" question. Mayim Bialik and former champion Ken Jennings will host the show "through the end of the calendar year," Sony announced on Sept. 16. Mayim is reportedly set to begin hosting next week and will do so solo for three weeks. Afterward, she and Ken will trade off as their schedules allow. Neither, as of now, will be the permanent host of the syndicated run.
