By Mark Gray
1:26pm PDT, Sep 5, 2021
Broadway return, Cordero tribute
With Broadway coming back, Amanda Kloots returned to The Great White Way on Sept. 2 to honor her late husband, Tony winner Nick Cordero, who died last year due to COVID-19 complications. Alongside Nick's best friend, actor Zach Braff, Amanda attended the opening night of "Waitress," in which her husband once starred. "A standing ovation before the show even began! What a night! To see a Broadway show again tonight was unbelievable," the "The Talk" co-host wrote on Instagram. "I've actually never seen a show like this one tonight. I'm literally at a loss for words. Thank you @waitressmusical." Amanda came out on stage after the curtain call, telling the cast — including star Sara Bareilles (seen here) — of her husband, "I think he'll be with me every day, but I think he'll be with y'all every night." In closing, the cast of the show sang Nick's song "Live Your Life."
RELATED: The best movie musicals
Beard begone
Matt James is again looking fresh faced after shaving off his "polarizing" beard. The process, though, was far from easy. Earlier in the week, the former "Bachelor" star made a bet with cryptocurrency company BlockFi, and he agreed to shave his bushy beard if the brand could get 50,000 followers in a day. Well, it did, and the reality TV star made good on his end of the bargain. "A bets a bet," he tweeted. On Sept. 2, the told Pop Culture that it took "three hours" to shave. He also acknowledged that not everyone was thrilled when he debuted the beard. "I've never had something so polarizing on me even when I had dreads," he told the outlet. After showing off his clean-shaven look, his girlfriend Rachael Kirkconnell clearly approved, joking, "Do you got a girlfriend…"
RELATED: Bachelor Nation's messiest breakups
Married amid family turmoil
Duane Chapman has married for the sixth time. On Sept. 2, Dog The Bounty Hunter tied the knot with Francie Frane in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The wedding was expected, as the reality TV star had previously revealed the date on a podcast. While friends and family were on hand, two notable faces were not there: his daughters Cecily and Bonnie Chapman, both of whom were not invited. The women believe they were left off the guest list because of their support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Earlier in the week, Dog had denied that that was a reason and claimed he supports BLM. He even said he had a "pass" for using the N-word.
RELATED: Celeb couples who got married in 2021
Staying in style
With age comes comfort… and crankiness. That's the philosophy Brad Pitt is going by these days. The A-lister sat down with Esquire recently to speak about his style, something he apparently doesn't put a lot of thought into. "You get older, you get crankier, and comfort becomes more important. I think it's as simple as that," he said. "If I have a style, it's no style. I like monochrome, without it being a uniform. I like simplicity. I like the details in the stitching, the way it feels. If anything, that's the only divining rod I have." The Oscar winner's closet is "led by comfort," not trends. "I like the feel of a Lecia camera or the way a watch feels. I don't want to look ostentatious, but if you come close, you notice. I like how the lining feels. It's those details that are important to me. It's too exhausting to follow trends. And I despise billboards; I just don't want to be billboard," he said. Cashmere, which is what he was wearing for the interview, is something he's willing to splurge on. "If I make it to 86, I'll be wearing it with moth holes," he said of his jacket. "It's expensive, but if I'm able to wear it for 30 years, it won't be in the long run. It's so simple, so sleek. To me, it's perfect."
Cancer update
Kathy Griffin is still giving fans a glimpse into her life as she recovers from surgery after being diagnosed with lung cancer. She's even joking about the silver lining of it all. "One thing that sucks about cancer, it's hard to focus on anything else when one is experiencing shortness of breath, deep coughing, pain, extreme fatigue & in my case, vocal chord [sic] issues," she tweeted. "One thing that doesn't suck about cancer… how shameless I am when clapping back at people who dare to sass Ms. Kathy about anything with 'Really, d*******??? TRY CANCER!'" The Emmy winner added, "I cannot get enough of it."
Twitter takedown
If you want to come at Erika Jayne, you better be prepared for a comeback. That's what one person found out. This week, the "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star had some choice words for a fan who felt she should leave the show because of her and her estranged husband's legal issues. "God forbid I fight for myself. Stop thinking I'll quit just because you think I should. F– that," she contended. "Thank you to everyone that is supportive and understanding. I will not be stopped." To be fair, the fan isn't the only one with those sentiments, and Erika clapped back at others, too. "Someone just sent me some yummy cannolis so goodnight Twitter. Im going to enjoy myself," she tweeted. "Y'all dumb bi—hes with the conspiracy theories will keep at it alll night. Check back in the AM."
Talk to me
"The Talk" is adding a little more testosterone. On Sept. 3, former NFL player Akbar Gbajabiamila was named as the replacement for Carrie Ann Inaba, who left the show last month. "It is an absolute honor to be joining 'The Talk' as a host. I am so excited for this new generation of such a long-standing establishment," he said. Akbar joins Jerry O'Connell as the other male on the panel, which up until recently had always been all female. To prepare for the role, Akbar told People magazine that she shadowed "GMA" host Michael Strahan. "We played during the same time but I never met him, never knew him," Akbar said. "I just cold-called and said, 'Hey, you know, I love what you're doing. I'm excited about what you're doing. Can I shadow you?'" The news comes just days after co-host Elaine Welteroth announced she was leaving the show. The new season of "The Talk" premieres on Sept. 12.
Family feud continues
Never say never? Not in Lindsie Chrisley's mind. The former "Chrisley Knows Best" star has been in a bitter feud with her estranged father, Todd, and the rest of her family for years, and she claims that there is no end in sight. In fact, she contends that she will "never" reconcile with Todd or her family featured on the USA show. "Through therapy over the last year, I had just been advised by my therapist to not tune in, to not follow along on social media, things that were being posted because it's triggering to me," she told Entertainment Tonight. Last month, Todd said he had no plans to reconcile with his eldest daughter either. Who could blame either of them? In 2019, Todd even accused his daughter of cheating on her husband with several men from "The Bachelorette." Lindsie went on to accuse Todd and her brother Chase of threatening to release a sex tape featuring her, something the two men denied. Lindsie now says she distances herself from her dad. "However, I was told many things that have been said," she claimed. "And it's hard not to want to respond to those things. Because some of the things that have been said either are just categorically false or maybe the intentions I don't feel are pure."
