★ You can own a piece of “Breaking Bad” … but you’ll need some big bucks. The quaint Spanish Colonial house that served as the home of assistant meth cook ‘Jesse Pinkman’ in the hit AMC series is up for sale in Albuquerque NM for $1.6 million. The 2-story, 3,500-square-foot house in the upscale Albuquerque Country Club neighborhood has 4 bedrooms, 2 porches, stone-framed doors, fireplaces, and a host of other flourishes. The handsome interior served as the setting for scenes early on in the series, but producers eventually built a replica to be used in later seasons.
★ Opening night jitters are nothing compared to Oprah-night jitters. Jennifer Hudson makes her Broadway debut in “The Color Purple” this Fall, but she’s more worried about pleasing producer Oprah Winfrey than satisfying theater critics. Winfrey scored an Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of ‘Sofia’ in the 1985 film adaptation, so the project is a personal one for the media mogul. 33-year-old Grammy-winning singer and Oscar-winning actress Hudson is playing ‘Shug Avery’ in the revival of the 2005 musical adaptation that opens in November. The musical earned 11 Tony Award nominations in its first run a decade ago.
★ Grief-stricken Bobby Brown will bid a final farewell to his daughter Bobbi Kristina during a private funeral in Georgia this Saturday. The singer’s only child with late ex-wife Whitney Houston died last weekend after spending almost 6 months in a medically-induced coma following a near-drowning incident in a bathtub at her Roswell, Georgia home. A private memorial service for Bobbi Kristina will be held on Saturday morning at St James United Methodist Church in Alpharetta. Her body will then be flown to New Jersey so she can be buried next to her mother at Fairview Cemetery on Monday.
★ And Gwyneth Paltrow has launched a new line of rap-themed clutch bags on her lifestyle website Goop. They’re inscribed with the nicknames ‘Hov’ and ‘Shady’; ‘Pac’ and ‘Biggie’ on either side of each, paying homage to hip-hop stars Jay Z and Eminem; Tupac and Biggie Smalls, respectively. Referencing Biggie and Tupac on the same bag seems strange, considering the 1990s rappers had an infamous feud which many speculate played a part in their untimely deaths. The Edie Parker-designed bags, each with a mirror inside, cost a whopping $1,695 a pop. And you can expect delivery to take up to 8 weeks.
• “Conan” (TBS/CTV) – Awolnation (“Run”). Rerun.
• “Ellen DeGeneres Show” (syndicated/CTV2) – Joshua Radin (“Onward & Sideways”). Rerun.
• “Last Call With Carson Daly” (NBC) – Melvins (“Hold It In”). Rerun.
• “Late Late Show With James Corden” (CBS/M3) – Elle King (“Love Stuff”).
• “Live With Kelly & Michael” (syndicated/CTV) – Leona Lewis (“I Am”, out September 11th).
• “Queen Latifah” (syndicated) – Kellie Pickler (“The Woman I Am”). Rerun.
• “The Talk” (CBS) – R&B legend Aretha Franklin.
• “Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC/CTV2) – Lauryn Hill (“Letters From Exile”).
• “The View” (ABC/CTV) – Vintage Trouble (“1 Hopeful Rd”).
• “Watch What Happens Live” (Bravo) – Joss Stone (“Water For Your Soul”).
• Alan Jackson – A few AJ facts from “Us Weekly”: He always has Blue Plate mayonnaise (a Southern tradition since 1927) with him on tour; he loves turnip greens; he can make cornbread from scratch; and he started wearing a cowboy hat to cover up a scar on his forehead.
• Ariana Grande – Her pet pooch ‘Toulouse Grande’ is the latest celebrity dog to star in ‘Coach Pups’ ads, the fashion brand’s campaign to help protect animals from cruelty and harm.
• Coldplay – A source tells “The Sun” they’ll release their next album, “A Head Full of Dreams”, before the end of the year. 8 tracks have already been recorded, which are said to be more positive and upbeat than those on the last album, 2014’s “Ghost Stories”.
• Jason Isbell – His “Something More Than Free” debuts atop the new ‘Billboard Country Albums’ chart, edging out Alan Jackson’s new release “Angels & Alcohol”.
• Luke Bryan – His new single “Kick the Dust Up” has ended the long reign of Little Big Town atop the ‘Billboard Hot Country Songs’ chart with “Girl Crush”.
• Miranda Lambert – She’s established a new scholarship at Nashville’s Belmont University to help women majoring in songwriting, the music business, or entertainment industry studies. The $40,000 scholarship first becomes available for the 2016-17 school year.
• Rolling Stones – Filmmaker Morgan Neville’s documentary film “Keith Richards: Under the Influence” will premiere via Netflix on September 18th. His 1st solo album in more than 2 decades, “Crosseyed Heart”, is due out September 18th as well.
• Sam Smith – He says he’s going to take a break later this year before he gears up to release his 2nd studio album, the followup to 2014’s “In the Lonely Hour”. He’s already mapped out the new project, with a tentative title, a concept, and several tracks already written.
• “Brain on Fire” – This adaptation of Susannah Cahalan’s memoir stars Chloë Grace Moretz as the “NY Post” journalist as she begins experiencing seizures and hearing voices. Her condition quickly worsens, until one particular doctor steps in. Also in the cast: Carrie-Anne Moss, Richard Armitage, Tyler Perry. Production is underway in Vancouver BC for a 2016 release.
• “The Cartel” – Ridley Scott is directing an adaptation of Don Winslow’s novel that tells the fictional story of a DEA agent and the drug lord he’s obsessed with taking down. Despite only being published last month, the book has received heavy interest from film studios thanks to great reviews and its parallels to the life of recently escaped Mexican drug lord ‘El Chapo’.
• “Doctor Strange” – Benedict Cumberbatch is set to play the title role in this new Marvel production, an arrogant surgeon who’s life is destroyed and then reinvigorated by a sorcerer who trains him to defend the world against evil. Also in the cast: Tilda Swinton, Chiwetel Ejiofor. Rachel McAdams is considering the female lead. The film debuts November 2016.
• “Rampage” – Hollywood star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is set to reunite with “San Andreas” director Brad Peyton on this new project based on the 1986 videogame “Rampage”. The game allowed 3 players to each control one of 3 monsters who destroyed buildings and generally created havoc. The action film is due to hit screens sometime in 2017.
• “Trainspotting 2” – Danny Boyle is returning to direct a follow-up to his classic 1996 movie and 44-year-old actor Ewan McGregor has been signed to reprise his role as heroin addict ‘Renton’. As well as McGregor, original cast members Robert Carlyle and Jonny Lee have also been confirmed for the film, which begins shooting in Scotland in January 2016.
WHICH OIL IS BEST TO COOK WITH?
✓ Olive oil is most recommended for frying as it generates lower levels of toxic compounds, and those that are formed are less threatening. When it comes to cooking, it doesn’t seem to matter whether olive oil is ‘extra virgin’ or not.
✓ Frying in saturate-rich animal fats or butter is surprisingly preferable to sunflower or corn oil as those oils generate very high levels of aldehydes.
✓ Oils should be stored in a cupboard, out of the light, and not reused as this also leads to the accumulation of nasty side-products.
✓ Overall, the research team advises that we try to do less frying, and when we do minimize the amount of oil used.
✓ 1 unwrapped cough drop covered in ‘mysterious purse dust’.
✓ 7 crumpled receipts you will never actually reconcile with your bank account.
✓ 1 business card from someone you will never, ever speak to again.
✓ Your own business card from 2 jobs ago, even though you’ve gotten a new purse since then.
✓ At least 3 pennies.
✓ 1 tampon with the wrapper half torn open.
✓ All the bobby pins you’ve ever used (which will all disappear when you actually need one).
✓ 1 broken hair elastic.
✓ 1 tiny nubbin of lip balm that you still awkwardly scrape across your lips.
✓ 1 rogue tissue which you can’t remember if it’s clean and fell out of the package or used and you couldn’t find a garbage can.
German chocolate cake isn’t German. It’s named for Sam German, an American baker.
1970  Christopher Nolan, London UK, movie director-producer-screenwriter (“Interstellar”, “The Dark Knight” films) UP NEXT: “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” 2016.
• “Cheesecake Day”, a day to indulge yourself in one of the most decadent of all desserts.
• “Chili Dog Day”, an annual observance on the last Thursday of July saluting the pairing of a hot dog with a spicy chili con carne topping. Erp.
• “Father-In-Law Day”, honoring the spousal parent that’s never been all that impressed with you. Try to be nice anyway.
• “Kiss Your Car Day”, observed annually on the 1863 birth date of Henry Ford. It’s a day to show your vehicle how much you really, really love her.
• “Paperback Book Day”, marking the start of the paperback book revolution with publication of Penguin #1, “Ariel, The Life of Shelley” by Andre Maurois in London this date in 1935.
• “Support Public Education Day”, promoting the efforts of administrators, teachers, and parents who aim to maintain a public education system that meets the needs of every student.
✗ When they’re eating something, particularly anything messy.
✗ At the gym, when they’re actually working out and all sweaty.
✗ When they are purchasing something from you.
✗ In front of any and all family members.
✗ On public transportation during rush hour.
✗ In the waiting room of a doctor’s office.
✗ While walking anywhere with purpose.
✗ When ANYONE in the vicinity is crying.
Did you hear? They took the word gullible out of the dictionary.
☎ What’s the best food you’ve recently tried for the first time?
Question: Employees with desk jobs do THIS far more often than manual laborers.
Answer: Go to the bathroom.
Help stamp out, eliminate, and abolish redundancy!
Monthly Planning Calendar in Tomorrow’s ‘BS’ Issue!