Ben Stiller with parents Anne Meara and Jerry Stiller in 1996/Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images
Ben Stiller is facing social media backlash for defending the growing trend of children following in the footsteps of their Hollywood A-list parents.
Stiller, the son of legendary comedians Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, took issue with producer Franklin Leonard sarcastically tweeting, “Hollywood’s a meritocracy, right?” in response to a report that an upcoming project titled The Rightway, that’s set to be directed by Steven Spielberg’s daughter, Destry, and was written by Stephen King’s son, Owen. Sean Penn’s son, Hopper is also set to star in the short film, according to Deadline.
“Too easy @franklinleonard. People, working, creating. Everyone has their path. Wish them all the best,” Stiller tweeted in response.
“Just speaking from experience, and I don’t know any of them, I would bet they all have faced challenges,” Stiller later added in a follow-up tweet. “Different than those with no access to the industry. Show biz as we all know is pretty rough, and ultimately is a meritocracy.”
That prompted a barrage of comments implying the 55-year-old actor was denying the role of nepotism in Hollywood.
“I know Ben *Stiller* is not on this bird app calling Hollywood a meritocracy lmaoooooooo,” tweeted author Preeti Chhibber, while another follower added, “WRONG. Show business works off nepotism & access. It has NOTHING to do with merit.”
“Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara’s son would like you to know that Hollywood ‘ultimately is a meritocracy.’” wrote yet another.
July 17 was the second drop of Record Store Day 2021, and Foo Fighters and Pearl Jam came out on top.
Billboard reports that according to MRC Data, the event resulted in 1.14 million U.S. vinyl album sales overall, and the top-selling RSD release was Foo Fighters’Hail Satin, released under the name The Dee Gees. The project sold 12,000 vinyl LPs, plus another 3,000 downloads when it was made available digitally on July 19.
The 10-song album features covers of four number-one Bee Gees hits, a cover of “Shadow Dancing” by the Bee Gees’ little brother, Andy Gibb, and live versions of songs from the Foos’ latest, Medicine at Midnight.
The top-selling RSD single release was Pearl Jam’s “Alive,” which was issued on both 12-inch vinyl and cassette, along with the rare B-sides “Wash,” “Dirty Frank” and a cover of The Beatles’ “I’ve Got a Feeling.”
Here are the top-selling RSD 2021 July 17 drop albums at independent record stores, according to MRC Data:
1. Dee Gees/Foo Fighters, Hail Satin
2. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Deja Vu: Alternates
3. Beastie Boys, Aglio e Olio
4. Amy Winehouse, Remixes
5. Miles Davis, Champions: Rare Miles From the Complete Jack Johnson Sessions
6. Cat Stevens, Harold & Maude: The Songs From the Original Movie (Soundtrack)
7. The Rolling Stones, Hot Rocks 1964-1971
8. Allman Brothers Band, The Final Note: Painters Mill Music Fair, Owings Mills, MD 10-17-71
9. John Prine, Live: At the Other End, Dec. 1975
10. The Ramones, Triple J Live at the Wireless: Capital Theatre, Sydney, Australia, July 8, 1980
And here are the top-selling singles:
1. Pearl Jam, “Alive”
2. Fleet Foxes featuring Resistance Revival Chorus, “Can I Believe You ” / “Wading in Waist-High Water”
3. St. Vincent, “Piggy ” / “Sad But True “
4. Bob Dylan, “Jokerman” / “I and I ” (Remixes)
5. Karen O & Willie Nelson, “Under Pressure “
6. Dio, “God Hates Heavy Metal “
7. Denzel Curry & Robert Glasper, “So Incredible ” / “This Changes Everything ” (Live from Leimert Park)
8. ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic, “Beat on the Brat “
9. Jxdn, “Angels & Demons ” / “Drivers License”
10. The Dirty Knobs, “Humdinger “/ “Feelin’ High “
(LONDON) — Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, has spent most of her adult life in the public spotlight, first as the wife of Prince Andrew and then as a favorite target of the British tabloid media.
Several decades later, another new royal bride, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, became the target of the tabloid media when she wed Ferguson’s nephew, Prince Harry, in 2018.
“I believe that everybody has a right to their own voice and there should be no judgment on race, creed, color or any other denomination,” Ferguson told Good Morning America about the press’ treatment of Meghan, who joined Harry in stepping down from their senior royal roles last year and moving to California.
“I personally would never be able to judge another, so I just am not like that,” she said. “I wish Harry and Meghan so much happiness and I know that [the late Princess] Diana would be so proud of her sons and their wives.”
Ferguson — whose latest chapter in life is as author of a new novel, Her Heart for a Compass — was a close friend of Princess Diana’s, her sister-in-law in Britain’s royal family. Though the two were pitted against each other in the British press, she calls Diana her best friend.
Diana, the mother of Princes William and Harry, died in 1997 after a car crash in Paris, but Ferguson said she keeps her friend’s memory alive to this day.
“She’s in my heart,” Ferguson said of the late princess, whom she calls her “laughing friend.”
“I always say it doesn’t matter whether you get the love back or you don’t get love back or she’s here or she’s not here, you can love anyway and keep the kindness,” she said
“I loved Diana and I will always love her even if she isn’t here in person. It’s a really lovely thing to have,” she said.
Ferguson, now 61 and a grandmother of one with another on the way, said she also imagines what life would be like now with Diana, whose two sons have five children between them.
“If she was here, we’d be racing to the bouncy castle with our grandchildren,” said Ferguson. “The funny thing is we’d be with our grandchildren running in the egg and spoon race. She was always a better, faster runner than me.”
Finding her voice through writing
Ferguson drew on her own journey in the spotlight to write her first novel, which is set in the Victorian era and is based on her distant relative, Lady Margaret.
“Lady Margaret is an extremely wonderful, strong, very resilient redhead who fights for her heart … against extraordinary confines of what is seen as noble and duty,” she said. “I think I couldn’t write that and I couldn’t explain it if I hadn’t had a hint of fighting my own journey through my own compass of my own heart.”
“She didn’t have a voice,” Ferguson added. “So it’s about literacy, empowerment, empowerment of a woman’s voice that has been shut away.”
Ferguson said she is just now learning in her own life to speak up and not be a self-described “people pleaser,” saying, “I don’t believe I’ve really spoken out until now, properly.”
In the novel, Margaret is portrayed as having a complicated but honest relationship with her mother, a relationship Ferguson said she never got to have with her own mom.
“When she left me, I was so young,” said Ferguson. “And then my sister went to Australia, so I became the head of the house around 13, 14 years old, and I think that that’s possibly why I still have the rebel in me.”
Ferguson spoke with GMA while doing one of her favorite activities, horseback riding, which she said she relied on as a child for stability in her life.
“My ponies really helped me so much when my mother went to live in Argentina because they were my friends,” she said, describing them as “consistent” and “steadfast.” “They don’t go anywhere and they didn’t answer back. They are just so special.”
Taking life ‘one step at a time’
Though she had a complicated time as a member of Britain’s royal family, Ferguson remains an ardent supporter of the monarchy.
“I am a number one fan of the monarchy,” she said. “And I stand very strongly for the extraordinary steadfastness of the queen.”
She also speaks fondly of Prince Andrew, whom she married in 1986 and divorced a decade later, though the two remain very close.
“He is a great man and [our wedding day] was the best day of my life,” she said. “I would do it all over again because he was a very good-looking sailor, but I fell in love with him and I think love conquers all.”
Andrew, who shares two daughters with Ferguson, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, has faced intense scrutiny over his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.
Andrew, the third child of Queen Elizabeth, spoke out in a 2019 BBC interview and categorically denied allegations he had sex on multiple occasions with an American teenager who’s claimed she was trafficked to the prince at the direction of Epstein. Shortly after the interview, Andrew announced that he would step back from public duties, “for the foreseeable future” amid heavy criticism.
When asked how she has found resilience in the face of personal drama and tabloid scandal, Ferguson said she has learned to “take one step at a time.”
“You just look at it. What do I need to learn from this? How do I feel? [You] apologize profusely to yourself, to others, mostly to yourself for letting yourself down, perhaps, and you move forward and you get on and you take one step at a time,” she said. “I have destroyed myself many times, but the most important thing is to get up and get going.”
Ferguson also gives credit to the American public for helping her regain her footing after she and Andrew divorced. She credits Americans with welcoming her and supporting her through different ventures, including working with WW, formerly Weight Watchers.
“That’s why I want to say thanks to the American people, because they have given me a life,” she said. “And they’ve given me a chance to be able to have a platform to talk and to be able to say, ‘Be yourself.'”
Speaking of her ability to continually evolve both personally and professionally, Ferguson added, “I’m 61. I’m just starting my life. “
(TOKYO) — The U.S. faced off against the Netherlands Friday in soccer at the Olympics and won.
This was their first match of the knockout stage of the Tokyo Olympics, and with that, the Americans will advance to the next game.
It was a dramatic finish as the score was tied 2-2 at the end of 120 minutes of game time, which included two additional 15-minute extra time periods. The game came down to penalty kicks.
The kicks started with an epic save by America’s goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher of a kick by Netherlands’ Vivianne Miedema, giving the U.S. an advantage. Penalty kicks were then scored by the U.S. by Rose Lavelle, Alex Morgan, Christen Press and Megan Rapinoe.
Naeher blocked two of the Netherlands’ four penalty kicks, while the Americans scored on each attempt. Legend Rapinoe had the final word, with a right-footed kick pounding into the top back corner of the goal.
It was a generally epic day for Naeher who, in addition to blocking those two penalty kicks at the end of the match, blocked another penalty earlier in the match. Had she missed that attempt by Lieke Martens, which happened within minutes of the end of the second period, the entire trajectory of the match would have changed.
The U.S. team faced some uncharacteristic struggles making it past group play in the early stage of the tournament. They began by losing to Sweden, scoring no goals to Sweden’s three.
The Americans came back to their more typical style in the next game, beating New Zealand 6-1, but then drew a draw against Australia.
Academy Award-winning director Ridley Scott has unveiled the trailer for his much-anticipated new film, House of Gucci.
Adam Driver plays assassinated fashion mogul Maurizio Gucci, while an almost unrecognizable Jared Leto plays his cousin, Paulo, and Lady Gaga plays Maurizio’s ex-wife, Patrizia Reggiani, who was convicted of arranging his murder. Maurizio was the grandson of the iconic label’s founder, Guccio Gucci.
As Blondie‘s “Heart of Glass” floats in the background, Gaga says in an Italian accent, “It was a name that sounded so sweet… Synonymous with wealth, style, power. But that name was a curse, too.”
The trailer shows Patricia and Maurizio’s wedding, the trappings of the fabulous wealth that the House of Gucci accumulated and, ultimately, the family drama.
“You need to take out the trash,” Gaga’s Patrizia tells her husband.
“But they’re my family,” Driver’s character protests.
“So am I,” the ambitious Patrizia replies.
“You picked a real firecracker,” Oscar-winner Leto’s balding, bloated Paulo replies, rolling his R’s in a way that would make any Italian language teacher proud.
As the trailer takes a dark turn, title cards flash on screen reading: “Money,” “Family,” “Power,” “Betrayal,” “Sex,” “Loyalty,” “Scandal,” “Ambition” and, ultimately, “Murder.”
After an assassin raises his pistol, the trailer cuts to Gaga’s Patrizia in a stylish ski outfit, sipping an espresso by the slopes. “I don’t consider myself an ethical person,” she confesses. “But I am fair.”
In the final scene, she makes the sign of the cross, saying “Father, Son, and House of Gucci.”
House of Gucci also stars Salma Hayek, and Oscar winners Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons. It hits theaters November 24.
Director Ridley Scott has unveiled the trailer for his much-anticipated new film, House of Gucci.
Adam Driver plays assassinated fashion mogul Maurizio Gucci, while an almost unrecognizable Jared Leto plays his cousin, Paulo, and Lady Gaga plays Maurizio’s ex-wife, Patrizia Reggiani, who was convicted of arranging his murder. Maurizio was the grandson of the iconic label’s founder, Guccio Gucci.
As Blondie‘s “Heart of Glass” floats in the background, Gaga says in an Italian accent, “It was a name that sounded so sweet… Synonymous with wealth, style, power. But that name was a curse, too.”
The trailer shows Patricia and Maurizio’s wedding, the trappings of the fabulous wealth that the House of Gucci accumulated and, ultimately, the family drama.
“You need to take out the trash,” Gaga’s Patrizia tells her husband.
“But they’re my family,” Driver’s character protests.
“So am I,” the ambitious Patrizia replies.
“You picked a real firecracker,” Oscar-winner Leto’s balding, bloated Paulo replies, rolling his R’s in a way that would make any Italian language teacher proud.
As the trailer takes a dark turn, title cards flash on screen reading: “Money,” “Family,” “Power,” “Betrayal,” “Sex,” “Loyalty,” “Scandal,” “Ambition” and, ultimately, “Murder.”
After an assassin raises his pistol, the trailer cuts to Gaga’s Patrizia in a stylish ski outfit, sipping an espresso by the slopes. “I don’t consider myself an ethical person,” she confesses. “But I am fair.”
In the final scene, she makes the sign of the cross, saying “Father, Son, and House of Gucci.”
House of Gucci also stars Salma Hayek, and Oscar winners Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons. It hits theaters November 24.
(TOKYO) — Each day, ABC News will give you a roundup of key Olympic moments from the day’s events in Tokyo, happening 13 hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Standard Time. After a 12-month delay, the unprecedented 2020 Summer Olympics is taking place without fans or spectators and under a state of emergency due to the coronavirus pandemic.
US swimming brings in pair of silvers, men’s team draws attention out of the pool
U.S. swimmers Lilly King and Annie Lazor finished second and third in the 200m breaststroke, an admirable finish for the swimmers who were bested by a world-record setting effort by South Africa’s Tatjana Schoenmaker.
Team USA’s Ryan Murphy also secured a silver medal in the 200m backstroke.
Murphy’s teammate Michael Andrew was notably without a mask after his fifth place finish, and after the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee said he violated protocol, they later reversed their decision, according to USA Today.
COVID-19 cases at Tokyo Olympics rise to 225, Japan extends state of emergency
There were 27 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 among people at the Tokyo Olympics on Friday, including two athletes staying at the Olympic Village. The total now stands at 225, according to data released by the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee.
The surrounding city of Tokyo reported 3,300 new cases on Friday, a seven-day average increase of 180.5%, according to data released by the Tokyo metropolitan government. Japan has extended its state of emergency to three of Tokyo’s surrounding prefectures.
Track and field events get underway
The 2020 Olympics’ track and field events began with a fast start today; six women finished the 100m qualifying round under 11 seconds. The first medal event, the men’s 10,000m, will be held later this morning.
US women’s basketball extends win streak to 51
Team USA’s women’s basketball team increased their win streak to 51 with an 86-69 win to the host country’s team. The effort was led by A’ja Wilson who scored 20 points and Breanna Stewart who ended with 15. The team has one game left in the group round.
Djokovic loses in semifinals, Golden Slam dream over
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic lost to Alexander Zverev 6-1, 3-6, 1-6 in the semifinals and with the loss also went his hopes of achieving the Golden Slam. A Golden Slam is accomplished by winning all four majors and winning the Olympics all in the same year. The feat has only been achieved by Steffi Graf in 1988.
Silk Sonic, the dynamic duo comprised of Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars, delighted fans by dropping “Skate,” their brand new single on Friday.
The groovy throwback tune, which infuses elements of the funk and soul music that flourished in the ’70s, serves as an invitation for .Paak and Mars’ object of affection that they hail as a “hundred dollars” in a “room full of dimes.”
“Got your hair in the wind and your skin glistening/ I can smell your sweet perfume/ Mmm, you smell better than a barbecue/ Oh, superstar is what you are,” the duo croons over a swell of strings, electric guitars and a rich chorus of drums.
The two then plead over a smooth refrain for the one they have their eye on to “skate to me” and “slide your way on over” because they “want to get to know ya.”
The sensual and charismatic tune, paired with a playful music video featuring the duo serenading a crowd of female skaters, is sure to skate its way up the Billboard charts.
The two previously hailed “Skate” as a “summertime jam” when teasing it on social media and fans are already predicting it could be a late entry to become the biggest song of the summer.
“Skate” follows in the footsteps of the duo’s predecessor, “Leave the Door Open,” which will be featured on their hotly anticipated debut album, An Evening with Silk Sonic.
Taylor Swift shared empowering messages for gymnasts Jade Carey and Suni Lee, who stepped up to represent the United States at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics following Simone Biles‘ decision to withdraw from the women’s all-around competition.
Taylor, speaking over the gentle intro of her song “evermore,” expressed confidence in the USA Women’s Gymnastics Team and commended the athletes for giving their all.
“Life can surprise you. It can humble you. It can test you. It can inspire you,” the Grammy winner stated in a new promo, which aired during NBC’s broadcast of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The promo shared never-before-seen video of Biles, Carey and Lee training hard for the Games. Taylor shifted the message to center on how the team is handling Biles’ absence.
“They didn’t expect this to be the story, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t ready for the spotlight,” she said as the footage shifted to Carey and Lee. “They’ve worked for this. They’ve dreamed about this. They belong here.”
Expressing confidence that Team USA will make America proud, Swift exclaimed, “So don’t be surprised as the story takes flight from here in the women’s all around in Tokyo!”
Taylor’s message rang true on Thursday night, with Lee making history by claiming the gold medal for the gymnastics all-around event. She is now the fifth consecutive gymnastics all-around gold medalist, following in the footsteps of Carly Patterson, Nastia Liukin, Gabby Douglas and teammate Biles, who was last to take home the gold in 2016.
Lee, who is 18, is also the first Hmong American Olympian. As for Carey, she finished in eighth place, losing points for taking a fall on the balance beam.
(TAMPA, Fla.) — A jarring reality check is taking place in intensive care units across the country as thousands of COVID-19 positive patients, nearly all of them unvaccinated, are streaming into hospitals in need of care.
This is particularly true in Florida, where virus-related hospitalizations have skyrocketed in recent weeks. The situation has escalated rapidly, now nearing peak levels, with nearly 7,900 patients hospitalized with the virus across the state, up by more than 320% in the last month, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“It feels like it’s an impending storm … there’s no off ramp to this getting worse,” Dr. David Wein, an emergency room physician at Tampa General Hospital in Florida, told ABC News on Wednesday.
On Tuesday this week, more than 1,450 patients with COVID-19 were admitted to hospitals across the state, marking the highest number of patients seeking care within a 24-hour period in Florida since the onset of the pandemic.
“Right now, at Tampa General Hospital, we are really feeling the crush of this increase incidence of COVID-19, and so the delta area has really brought many patients to our emergency room, requiring treatment and admission,” Peggy Dugan, the executive vice president and chief medical officer at the hospital, told ABC News in an exclusive interview.
It was just six weeks ago that some of the team thought they may be out of the woods, with metrics steadily trending down across the country.
“It felt like we were ready to move in the right direction and start seeing it plateau. And it was a surprise to see it trend up like it did,” said Erika Mergl, nurse manager for the Tampa General Hospital’s Global Emerging Diseases Institute.
However, virus-related hospitalization levels are now nearing peak levels.
“We’re getting to numbers that were as high as last summer. In early July, we were down to 12 COVID-19 patients in the hospital, and today we have 80. So we’re really just seeing an escalation over a short span of time,” Duggan said.
The situation in Tampa is not an anomaly. Nearly every state in the country is now experiencing case, and COVID-19 hospitalization increases. Virus-related hospitalizations levels are now at their highest point since April, with nearly 33,700 patients receiving care — about 10,000 more patients than a week ago.
Many of the patients at Tampa General are younger, Dugan said, some as young as 22 or 23 years old, and “almost” all of them have been unvaccinated, the hospital said.
One of the hospital’s unvaccinated patients is 64-year-old patient Gerard Considine, who spent nine days intubated after he tested positive for the virus.
“I’m not used to being scared of anything, but this scared the hell out of me,” Considine told ABC News.
Considine said he didn’t get the COVID-19 vaccine because he had experienced adverse reactions to other vaccines, but despite his ordeal, he does not think he will choose to be vaccinated, believing that he has developed some antibodies, at this point.
However, said Duggan, “we’re seeing people who are recovering now very regretful that they didn’t get the vaccination in the first place.”
Many of the patients coming to the hospital are already quite ill when they arrive, said Wein.
“Unfortunately, we’re seeing people who are coming in days, or several days, into their disease and sicker, with difficulty breathing, needing to be admitted to the hospital. So it feels more like that winter surge that we had,” Wein said, adding that a number of these patients end up on ventilators.
“This is heartbreaking because all this could have been avoided, this is unnecessary human suffering that we are witnessing right now,” Dr. Seetha Lakshmi, the medical director of the Global Emerging Diseases Institute at Tampa General Hospital, told ABC News.
Several front-line workers at Tampa General Hospital expressed to ABC News their deep concern and fear about the next several weeks for their teams, given the state’s and the hospital’s exponential increase in infections and virus-related hospitalizations, stressing that their message to Americans is that vaccinations are key to controlling the pandemic and ending the suffering.
The difference in getting vaccinated, or not getting vaccinated is ultimately akin to “the difference between having a cold and dying,” said Wein. “If a vaccinated patient gets this, they’re most likely going to be just fine, and not going to end up in the hospital. Unfortunately, the unvaccinated person has a really high likelihood that he will end up hospitalized on a ventilator.”
