Born on this day!!  Talk show host Phil Donahue is 86. Actor Jane Fonda is 84. Actor Larry Bryggman (TV’s “As the World Turns,” film’s ”Die Hard: With a Vengeance”) is 83. Singer Carla Thomas is 79. Guitarist Albert Lee is 78. Actor Josh Mostel (“Billy Madison,” “Big Daddy”) is 75. Actor Samuel L. Jackson is 73. Singer Nick Gilder is 71. Actor Dennis Boutsikaris (“Better Call Saul”) is 69. Actor Jane Kaczmarek (“Malcolm in the Middle”) is 66. Country singer Lee Roy Parnell is 65. Entertainer Jim Rose of The Jim Rose Circus Sideshow is 65. Former child actor Lisa Gerritsen (“Phyllis,” ″The Mary Tyler Moore Show”) is 64. Actor-comedian Ray Romano (“Everybody Loves Raymond”) is 64. Country singer Christy Forester of the Forester Sisters is 59. Drummer Murph of Dinosaur Jr. is 57. Guitarist Gabrielle Glaser (Luscious Jackson) is 56. Actor-comedian Andy Dick is 56. Actor Michelle Hurd (“Law and Order: Special Victims Unit’) is 55. Actor Kiefer Sutherland is 55. Actor Karri Turner (“JAG”) is 55. Actor Khrystyne Haje (“Head of the Class”) is 53. Country singer Brad Warren of The Warren Brothers is 53. Actor Julie Delpy is 52. Contemporary Christian singer Natalie Grant is 50. Singer-guitarist Brett Scallions (Fuel) is 50. Singer Lukas Rossi of Rock Star Supernova (TV: “Rock Star: Supernova”) is 45. Actor Rutina Wesley (“True Blood”) is 43. Keyboardist Anna Bulbrook of Airborne Toxic Event is 39. Actor Steven Yeun (“The Walking Dead”) is 38. Actor Kaitlyn Dever (“Last Man Standing”) is 25.

THIS DAY IN GENIUS HISTORY

1620 – The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
1891 – The first basketball game, invented at Springfield College in Massachusetts by James E. Naismith, was played.
1898 – Pierre and Marie Curie discovered radium.
1913 – The first crossword puzzle was printed in the New York World.
1937 – Disney’s Snow White, the first feature length color and sound cartoon, premiered.
1970 – Elvis Presley met with President Richard Nixon in the White House.
1988 – A terrorist bomb exploded aboard a Pan Am Boeing 747 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people.
1991 – Eleven of the former Soviet republics form the Commonwealth of Independent States.
1995 – Palestinians took over the control of the city of Bethlehem.

Today Is: Ann & Samantha Day, Celebrate Short Fiction Day, Crossword Puzzle Day, Forefathers Day, Global Orgasm Day, Humbug Day, International Dalek Remembrance Day, Make Music Day in Winter, National Flashlight Day, National Homeless Persons’ Remembrance Day, Phileas Fogg Win A Wager Day, Short Girl Appreciation Day, Shorts Day, World Peace Day/Winter Solstice, Winter (Winter Solstice) 10:59 AM EST, Yalda, Yule

TODAY ON TV!
Primetime TV (All Times Eastern)

CBS – 8:00 – FBI   /  9:00 – Adele One Night Only
NBC – 8:00  – American Auto  /  8:30 – Grand Crew  /  9:00 – SNL
ABC – 8:00 –  The Bachelorette   /  10:00 – The Bachelorette
FOX – 8:00 – NFL Football
CW – 8:00 –  Beebo Saves Christmas  /  9:00 – Greatest Holiday Commercials

TV Talk Shows

Jimmy Kimmel: Jon Bernthal, “Bachelorette” Michelle Young, Parker McCollum (R 11/23/21)
Jimmy Fallon: Nicole Kidman, Úrsula Corberó, Stromae (R 12/8/21)
Stephen Colbert: Lady Gaga, Tony Bennett (R 11/23/21)
Seth Meyers: Kumail Nanjiani, Jonathan Majors, Roy Mayorga (R 11/4/21)
Daily Show: Pre-empted
Watch What Happens Live: Pre-empted
The View: Tamron Hall, Carla Hall, guest co-host Michele Tafoya (R 11/3/21)
The Talk: Deborah Norville (R 11/16/21)
Live with Kelly and Ryan: Fred Savage, Steve Patterson, Dr. Gail Saltz
Ellen DeGeneres: Max Greenfield, Cheyenne Jackson, Amanda Shires, guest host Leslie Jordan
Wendy Williams: Milly Almodovar, guest host Leah Remini (R 10/22/21)
The Real: Ziggy Marley (R 11/2/21)
Kelly Clarkson: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Matt Iseman, Ana Gasteyer, Rachel Dratch, ENHYPEN (R 11/23/21)
Tamron Hall: Jaleel White, Debbie Gibson, Elisha Williams, Laura Kariuki, Dulé Hill, Saycon Sengbloh (R (9/22/21)
Drew Barrymore: Keanu Reeves

WHAT ARE YOU TALKIN’ ABOUT? Here are today’s PPM-Friendly Topics!

QUESTION: Think those waitresses don’t remember your CREEPY COMMENTS?? They can recite every single one! “Are you on the menu?” is a big one!!

 

QUESTION: How did this woman save her pooch from an AGGRESSIVE PIT BULL? A HERO AMAZON DRIVER ran to her rescue!!! Brave woman!!

 

QUESTION: Think YOU’VE got tax problems?? Elon Musk says he’ll pays over $11 BILLION in taxes this year! Bernie Sanders says: “It’s a start!”

 

QUESTION: What happened to CUTTING DOWN POWER CONSUMPTION to save the planet? The Kardashians are LIGHTING UP FOR XMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!

QUESTION: Is she CRAZY??? This unmarried 25-year-old teacher amazed her friends and family by ADOPTING A 6-year-old STUDENT!!! That’s love!!

Harry Potter Anniversary First Look

HBO Max is giving a glimpse of the new special Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts.  The streaming service shared a trailer for the special Monday featuring Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.  The preview shows Radcliffe, Watson, Grint and other cast members reflect and reminisce on the Harry Potter film series and the franchise’s legacy.  “The thing that scared me the most was the implication that the most meaningful thing in our life was done, and there’s something so joyous about seeing everyone and be like, ‘It wasn’t, though,'” Radcliffe says.  “When things get really dark, and times are really hard, there’s something about Harry Potter that makes life richer,” Watson adds. In addition, Grint says he and the cast are “family” that will “always be a part of each other’s life.”  Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltranr, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Imelda Staunton, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Bonnie Wright, Matthew Lewis and Evanna Lynch will also take part in the special.  Return to Hogwarts will premiere Jan. 1, 2022, on HBO Max.  See the trailer HERE.
******They’re a family.. except for JK Rowling, who has been cast into the outer darkness!!!!
*****College nimrods who invented their own game of “Quiddich” have changed the name because JK is such a horrible person!!
******Of course, Rupert Grint changed his name to Ed Sheeran and is having an incredible second career!!

JLo Defends Ben Affleck

Jennifer Lopez is shutting down rumors that she’s upset with boyfriend Ben Affleck over comments he made about his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner.  He made waves last week when he said during an interview with Howard Stern that he felt “trapped” in his marriage to Garner, and that he’d likely still be drinking had they not split up.  Speaking exclusively to People, Lopez denied rumors that the situation left her at odds with Affleck, saying that the story is “simply not true” and that it is “not how I feel.”   “I couldn’t have more respect for Ben as a father, a co-parent, and a person,” she told the outlet.  Affleck, who shares daughters Violet, 16, Seraphina, 12, and son Samuel, 9 with Garner, defended himself and walked back the comments he made during the interview with Howard Stern. Specifically, he noted that he doesn’t want his kids thinking there’s any ill will from him toward their mom.
******It’s always a heartwarming memory: the first time your girlfriend puts out a press release about you!!
*******They’ll be together forever.. unless she drives him to drink!!
****In Hollywood, “forever” has a rather elastic definition!!

Martha Stewart Selling Nativity Set She Made In Prison

Martha Stewart has a last-minute holiday gift idea for you: the ceramic nativity set she made while serving time in prison.  She spent five months behind bars at the Federal Prison Camp in Alderson, West Virginia in 2004 and 2005 for lying about her sale of ImClone shares.  Stewart took pottery classes while incarcerated, creating 14 figurines of religious idols, including Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.  “I still have my [inmate] number on the bottom!” the lifestyle guru — who is Catholic — explained in the TikTok clip, which has wracked up more than 370,000 views.  She is now capitalizing on her favorite prison pastime, selling replicas of the nativity scene on her website.  Advertising the products in the TikTok video, the convicted felon humorously said that the ceramic set would make the perfect gift because it had “a little street cred.”  “These are exact replicas of the nativity scene I made in pottery class when I was away at ‘camp,’” Stewart joked, as she displayed the new products for sale.
*****Jesus DID say he came to “free the prisoners!!!”

Leonardo DiCaprio Saves Dogs From Frozen Water

Leonardo DiCaprio jumped into frozen waters to save his two rescue Huskies while filming “Don’t Look Up,” he revealed during Entertainment Weekly’s “Around the Table” sit-down with his cast members.  “Basically, they both fell in a frozen lake,” DiCaprio said of his two dogs, named Jack and Jill. “I didn’t understand what you do in a frozen lake.” Co-star Jennifer Lawrence then interrupted DiCaprio to help him tell the story, saying, “One of the dogs fell in, and he jumped into the frozen lake to save the dog.”  She added, “As soon as he pushed the one dog out of the pond, the other one jumped in.”  DiCaprio explained, “Well, the other one started licking the one that was drowning, and then we all were in the frozen lake together.”  He said that his dogs “did not understand the concept of a frozen lake” due to the fact that they live in California.  Lawrence then joked about what happened next, saying, “I’m sure you guys are all wondering, I was too, he immediately got naked in the car.”
********Then the dogs licked HIM!!! What a family!!!
*****Was J Law there?? She could’ve done some licking!!!
*****It takes a lot of guts to get naked after you’ve been in freezing water!! “Shrinkage!!”

 

Ripping The Tabloids (Throughout the week, we’ll give you the stories from that weeks tabs!)
**Please Credit Publication!

Dua & Anwar Hit a Sour Note!-(National Enquirer)

Songbird Dua Lipa’s two-year romance with model Anwar Hadid has fallen out of fashion, sources dished.  The “Don’t Break My Heart” singer, 26, and the 22-year-old son of “RHOBH” alum Yolanda Hadid reportedly shelved their relationship after their busy work schedules kept them apart.  Their rumored bust-up comes on the heels of his sis Gigi splitting with baby daddy Zayn Malik.

Adele Suffers Wedding Blues-(Globe)

Divorced for less than two years, “Hello” singer Adele says she’s ready to tie the knot again.  “I miss being married,” the 33-year-old songbird, who shares nine-year-old son Angelo with ex Simon Konecki, blurted when asked about a sparkling crystal band she was sporting on her wedding finger.  The “Easy on Me” singer, who’s worth an estimated $190 million, admits she’s open to marriage” saying it was the “safest feeling I’ve ever had in my life.”  Sounds like a hint to current beau Rich Paul, a 39-year-old sports agent.

Back to the Matrix-(Us Weekly)

Eighteen years after The Matrix Revolutions was released, Keanu Reeves returns for the highly anticipated fourth installment of the hit sci-fi film series (the trilogy has raked in over $590 million).  So what brought him back?  “We had filmmakers who you wanted to say ‘yes’ to,” explained Reeves, who poured blood, sweat and tears into the reprisal.  “This role means a ton to Keanu,” adds an insider.  “He’s thrown himself into it and was determined from the get-go to make it a success.”

Kim’s Nye Hell-(Star)

No date for New Year’s!  Kim Kardashian’s new guy Pete Davidson will be ringing in 2022 with Miley Cyrus for their NBC special in Miami-and sources say the reality vet is a little jelly.  “Kim is well aware that on paper Miley and Pete have a lot in common,” says an insider.  For starters, at 29, the “Party in the U.S.A.” singer is just a year older than the SNL star versus the mom of four’s 13 years.  It doesn’t help that wild child Miley has been sending fellow tattoo enthusiast Pete “flirty” texts and calling at all hours with ideas for the show, adds the insider.  “Kim is trying not to act insecure, but deep down it’s irking her.  She’s threatening to put Miley in her place!”

Muppet Christmas-(Life & Style)

NYC, Dec. 2

All Michael Buble wanted for Christmas was to sing a duet with Kermit the Frog on his Christmas in the City special.  “Him and I hit it off,” the crooner said.  “I’m telling you now, I see road movies in the future.”

Nicole & Javier on I Love Lucy-(People)

Nicole Kidman, 54, and Javier Barden, 52, talked about their passion for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz-whom they portray in the new movie Being the Ricardo.

Javier, is it true you binge-watched all of I Love Lucy to prep for this role?

Bardem:

Yes, that’s what you do when you’re trying to inhabit someone.  [My wife and I] were going to bed, and the last thing we would do was watch the show, and we woke up watching that show.

Nicole: 

You cannot believe the bar they hit over and over and over again [on the series].  And the film explores why they do.

How would you describe Lucy and Desi’s relationship?

Kidman:

He sees what she’s capable of, and he’s actually willing to commit a huge amount of his life to creating that path for her.

Winner of the Week-(In Touch)

Khloe Kardashian

After yet another cheating scandal involving beau Tristan Thompson, she gets some good news and wins the People’s Choice Award for reality TV star of 2021.

 

STUPID NEWS

Stranded Barge Gets A Laugh

Parks officials Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, unveiled a “holiday gift” to the city: a sign dubbing the beach at which a barge has been stranded for more than a month “Barge Chilling Beach.”  The Vancouver Park Board installed the sign at Sunset Beach, where a barge has been stranded since crashing into the seawall during storms Nov. 15. “Our little holiday gift to you, Vancouver,” the park board tweeted with a photo of the sign. “No matter what storms life may send our way, we’ll always be here for you.”  The barge has been in place for over a month despite multiple attempts to move it. The stranded vessel has now become a tourist attraction at the beach.  “We’ve been seeing people kind of having fun, taking pictures, all the messaging out there and we thought let’s add to the fun and let’s bring a little more joy to the season, if you will,” Donnie Rosa, general manager of the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, told CBC News.  The name “Barge Chilling Beach” is a reference to “Dude Chilling Park,” a joke sign installed at Guelph Park in 2014 after members of the public noticed a sculpture at the park called Reclining Figure resembled a lounging man.  See pics HERE.
*******It’s been a slow year in Vancouver!!
*******This is government work at its best!! When you can’t do the job, make it a “bit!!”

Spider Interrupts News Conference

A health official in Queensland, Australia, had her COVID-19 news conference interrupted by a large huntsman spider.  Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath was conducting an outdoor news conference to discuss the need for businesses to comply with recent vaccination policies when someone point out there was a large spider on her podium.  “Okay, can somebody please get that spider off?” D’Ath asked.  Chief Health Officer John Gerrard attempted to shoo the huntsman spider away with some papers, but the officials soon lost track of the arachnid.  “This shows how controlled I can be,” D’Ath joked. “I don’t like huntsmans, but I’m going to keep going. If he comes anywhere near my face, let me know.”  The spider was spotted by D’Ath’s feet, but eventually wandered away.  See the video HERE.
********Ever notice that public health officials look very… unhealthy???
******The huntsman spider is as big as Volkswagen!!
******She was ASKING businesses to comply?? Don’t they just beat you with nightsticks in Australia??

Deer Crashes Into CBD Store

Security cameras at a CBD store in Massachusetts were recording when a deer crashed through a window and ran through the business before crashing back out through the front door.  Kirby Mastrangelo, owner of the Hempire CBD health and wellness store in Amesbury, said she received a call from the Amesbury Police Department on Wednesday informing her that a deer had run through a back window of the business and broke out through the glass front door.  “I thought it was a prank call,” Mastrangelo told the Newburyport News. “I thought maybe that it was a radio show or something.  “You know, it’s Christmas, and there is a deer coming into my store to go shopping. But then the officer said, ‘Ma’am, this really happened and we will have some people on standby there until you get down here.'”  Mastrangelo reviewed security camera footage and discovered a doe indeed had dashed through the store.
******We’ve got something for the deer’s aching muscles!!
*********The word for female deer was popularized by Homer Simpson!!
*******We don’t want to say that deer was cheap… but she spent the rest of the night under a buck!!

Wild Chase With A Backhoe

New Jersey police shot and killed a man who allegedly hijacked a backhoe and was filmed flipping a police car in an incident that left three officers with minor injuries, according to a local report.  The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office said it is investigating the fatal police-involved shooting that happened just before 6 a.m. Saturday during an encounter in the Penn Lincoln Mobile Home Park in Vineland, located about 40 miles west of Atlantic City.  Neighbor Aida Morales shared video she recorded with FOX29 Philadelphia that shows the backhoe driving toward a police cruiser and flipping it over onto its side before chasing after another patrol car. Morales told the station it “looked like something out of a movie.”  “I’ve never seen anything like that,” Morales said. “And you wonder why that person, what made that person snap. It’s sad.”  The backhoe also crashed into several other vehicles and flipped an ambulance over.  During the encounter with police, one officer fired his service weapon and fatally wounded the man driving the backhoe, the attorney general’s office said in a news release. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.  Authorities said the identity of the man killed would not be immediately released.  See the video HERE.
TOPIC: Have seen anyone SNAP this holiday season?????

 

STUFF THAT’S COOL AND VIRAL

VIDEO: TESLA TESTED ON VERY CURVY ROAD.

 

A LIST FOR TUESDAY

6 Money Moves to Make Before the End of the Year

THE PENNY HOARDER

 

1. Set Your Financial Goals for the Coming Year

When you think ahead to the end of 2022, what would make you feel accomplished? What if you cut your credit card debt by half? What if you were able to boost your savings account to four — or even five — figures? Or build up that emergency fund you may have had to dip into this year?

Think about what you want to celebrate at the end of 2022, and then set some goals to help you get there.

We’re fans of the SMART method of goal-setting. A SMART goal is:

• Specific
• Measureable
• Attainable
• Realistic
• Timely

For instance, “become financially secure” isn’t a SMART goal because it’s ambiguous.

On the other hand, “save $5,000 in my emergency fund by the end of 2022” would be considered SMART because it’s specific, measurable and timely.

By thinking through your financial goals in this way, you’ll have more clarity about what you’re trying to do, and that will give you a better sense of how to allocate your resources and energy in the year to come.

 

2. Review Your Spending Over the Past Year (and Be Honest About It)

We know this isn’t going to be fun. In fact, it’s probably going to be pretty tedious.

Here’s a shortcut: If you use online banking or an app like You Need a Budget or Mint, you likely have access to graphs that show how much of your income went to specific spending categories, like food, entertainment and household expenses.

However, you can reconcile your spending without digital tools.

Why is this so important? It’s how to find out where you’re actually spending your money. You might think you don’t have a single penny to spare and that’s why tumbleweeds are rolling through your savings account, but tracking your expenses can reveal a different reality, one where you’ve actually spent quite a bit of money on, say, scented candles rescued from the clearance end caps at Target.

If you’re having trouble achieving your financial goals and can’t figure out why, knowing exactly where your money goes is the first step to bringing your actions in line with your goals.

Once you’ve tracked your expenses, you’re ready to move on to the next step.

 

3. Make a Budget That Works — Finally

Listen, we know a lot of people don’t bother with a budget. We surveyed 1,500 Penny Hoarder readers in April 2019 and found that 40% of them didn’t have a budget.

But you really, really do need a budget. This post outlines five good reasons you should have a budget, including finally breaking the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle and identifying where you’re overspending.

If you’ve never set up a budget before, read this step-by-step guide to budgeting for beginners.

We’ve also outlined eight of the most popular budgeting styles. Look for one that best matches your needs and personality.

You can try out one of these budgeting apps we love, or go old-school with a pen and paper and set up a bullet journal, a budget binder or an envelope system.

Our motto: If it works for you, then it works.

 

4. Pull Your Credit Reports and Examine Them for Errors

When you go over your credit reports with a magnifying glass, here’s what you might find:

• Accounts that aren’t yours.It’s possible you have accounts on your credit report that actually belong to someone with a similar name. Do you, Karen Smith, really want to have the overdue Dillards’ charge card belonging to Karen Smythe on your credit report?
• Accounts you didn’t realize were delinquent.Maybe your dentist’s office repeatedly sent the bill to the wrong address until the unpaid bill wound up in collections, leaving a giant black mark on your credit report, and you weren’t aware of any of this until your application for a car loan or mortgage was turned down.
• Outdated or incorrect information about your accounts. Perhaps you paid off a loan last year that’s still showing up as unpaid, or your credit card balance is listed as being much higher than it’s ever been. These could significantly ding your credit score, and those three little numbers hold a lot of power over your ability to access credit in the future.

All of these errors can be disputed by contacting the appropriate credit bureau. Here’s how to do it.

 

5. Make a Plan for Retirement and Stick to It

We don’t have to tell you that a lot of people have not saved up much for retirement.

Instead of becoming yet another statistic, why not make 2022 the year you finally take retirement seriously?

We broke down the process of retirement planning into a five-step guide that’ll help you get started.

The first thing you’ll need to decide is which kind of retirement account you want to set up. If your employer offers a 401(k), make sure you’ve signed up for it. And if your employer offers a 401(k) match, contribute at least enough to take full advantage of it. After all, that match is part of your compensation. You’re entitled to it!

And if you’ve left previous jobs with 401(k)s, roll them over to your new retirement account.

If you don’t have access to a 401(k), you’ve still got options, including IRAs and Roth IRAs. This post has a list of questions you should ask yourself when trying to decide among them.

Once you’ve got your retirement account set up, contribute to it on a regular basis. It doesn’t matter if you can only put in $25 a month — it all adds up.

 

6. Celebrate Your Wins!

While we’ve been talking about how to do better going forward, we also know you probably accomplished some things to be proud of in 2021.

Maybe you started a side hustle that helped you make ends meet. Maybe you managed to save quite a bit of money? Or maybe you started educating yourself about personal finance — after all, you’re here, aren’t you?

Take a few minutes to think about what you’ve done in the past year that you’re proud of, and let it sink in.

And now remember that feeling throughout the coming year, especially when you encounter setbacks (because you inevitably will). Trust that if you stick to your plan, you’ll experience that sense of satisfaction again this time next year.

 

The preceding material was compiled and edited by Brandon Castillo.  The Editor-In-Chief is Gary Bryan.  The Radio Genius Show Prep Service is licensed for use on-air only by subscribing radio stations.  Other means of redistribution is forbidden.
© 2021 – Radio Genius Show Prep