For the first time, MARIAH CAREY’s holiday song “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is #1 on the Hot 100 . . . 25 years after it came out. Mariah celebrated on Instagram, saying, “We did it!” Meanwhile, the “New York Post” says Mariah’s team DIDN’T leave a tip after picking up $500 worth of takeout, which included lobster tail, steak, chicken, salmon, crab cakes, and pasta dishes. Mariah isn’t directly to blame. An unnamed production assistant picked up the food.
GARY SINISE and his charitable foundation teamed up with American Airlines to treat more than 1,700 Gold Star children to an all-expenses-paid trip to Disney World. Gold Star children are kids who’ve had someone in their immediate family die while serving in a time of conflict. They got to spend four days at Disney. He says, “I’ve gotten to know a lot of these families. I love them and I want to just do something to help them through. The important ingredient is that these kids meet each other and they know they’re not alone. They make friendships that last a lifetime.”
CHARLIZE THERON’s dad was an abusive drunk, and one night he came home completely wasted, with a gun. Charlize and her mom fled to a bedroom and stood against the door, while he tried to push his way through it. Then he stepped back and fired three shots through it. Somehow, Charlize and her mom weren’t hit, but mom grabbed her own gun and shot her husband dead. It was self-defense, so she was never charged. Charlize says, “[It’s] something that I share with a lot of people. I do think that the more we talk about these things, the more we realize we are not alone in any of it. I think, for me, it’s just always been that this story really is about growing up with addicts and what that does to a person.”
MACAULAY CULKIN guest stars in the latest video from the YouTuber who makes smelly glitter bombs to thwart porch pirates. Last night it was the #1 trending video on YouTube, and had more than 11 million views.
MADONNA may have found a new man. His name is Ahlamalik Williams and he’s one of her backup dancers. He’s 25. Madonna is 61. They were spotted cuddling on a hotel balcony in Miami on Saturday, she’s playing the Fillmore in Miami Beach through Sunday. Williams has also made several appearances on Madonna’s Instagram over the past several months.
BRAD PITT went to JENNIFER ANISTON’s Christmas party on Saturday. Other attendees included Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, and Jimmy Kimmel. Brad was there for about 4 hours. He showed up around 7:00 p.m., and stayed until the end. First Jennifer’s birthday party, now her Christmas party. A source says, “They have been in touch a few times since her birthday and are keeping it friendly.”
CHARLIE DANIELS announced that next year’s Volunteer Jam will be going down September 15th in Nashville. The lineup won’t be unveiled February. Tickets go on sale Friday.
It must be pretty cool to “up and write a song” about anything going on in your life at that moment. Especially if it mocks a good friend – and that friend loves it so much they post it online. RILEY GREEN came up with an impromptu song about THOMAS RHETT’s lack of hunting skills, so Thomas featured it in his Instagram story. He starts it off by saying, “I’m in Arkansas duck hunting with Riley Green. And he’s going to play you a song that he’s writing right now. And you’re the first one to hear it.” Then he points the phone at Riley, and he sings, “I’m here with Thomas Rhett just hanging at the lodge. Hope tomorrow he doesn’t wear orange camouflage. He doesn’t realize that deer aren’t color blind. Think we’ll leave him back in the duck blind.” Riley also posted a couple of photos of the trip and they seem to prove his point. The first one is him holding a few trophies. In the second one, he’s posing with Thomas who’s just standing there with his hands in his pockets.
KIP MOORE must have been in a reflective mood on Sunday because he wrote a very long post on Instagram that covered tons of stuff – from his early career struggles to his current state of mind. He also opened up about a lifelong health issue. “I’ve struggled with ear problems my whole life. Lots of surgeries as a kid and it’s a problem I deal with nightly that’s always changing.” He thanked his team, his friends and fans. Then he said, “I appreciate you all because I know what this thing takes, and because I know my time is most likely ticking faster due to something out of my control with my ears. I love you all. Cheers to 2019.” Kip has battled depression, he even touched on it in Sunday’s post.
Liam Hemsworth has starred in a few box office hits this year, officially ended his decade long relationship with Miley Cyrus and now he’s unfortunately closing out the year with a lawsuit on his hands. The Hunger Games star is being sued for unauthorized use of a picture posted on his Instagram. Splash News and Picture Agency are suing Liam for copyright infringement. The suit alleges that photographer Janet Mayer took a “series of photos depicting defendant Hemsworth performing an outdoor scene on location for production of the film Isn’t It Romantic.” Liam’s being accused of posting one of the photos to his Instagram account and tagging the film’s promotional page. Liam could end up paying up to $150,000 in damages. It’s not all bad news for Liam these days. He sparked romance rumors recently, and word on the street is there may be a new lucky lady in his life.
DREW BREES broke PEYTON MANNING’s record for career passing touchdowns.
MICHAEL RAY and CARLY PEARCE got married in October, and went on their Jamaica honeymoon NOW. It was always in the plans because of scheduling. Michael posted an update yesterday on Twitter: “Two days into the honeymoon and I’ve realized that day drinking and hanging by the ocean just come natural to me.”
A beloved cast member of Fuller House has passed away. Cosmo the dog died after complications from surgery. The show tweeted, “We’re sad to share that Fullers’ faithful dog Cosmo, who grew up on our set, passed away after complications from surgery. There will never be another quite like our boy. We’ll miss him forever.”
In 1989, Tom Hanks played neat-freak detective Scott Turner in Turner & Hooch. Now, Disney+ is working on a TV series based on the movie. It’s in the early stages and no actors or dogs have been attached as of yet.
LUKE COMBS will be singing “Even Though I’m Leaving” on tonight’s two-hour finale of “The Voice”. Other performers include Lady Antebellum, Black Eyed Peas, Jennifer Hudson.
Taste Of Country has a list of ORIGINAL country Christmas songs. Songs that were either written by, or first-record by country artists. And here’s the Top Five, in order:
. . . “Let It Be Christmas”, Alan Jackson
. . . “Where Are You Christmas?”, Faith Hill
. . . “If We Make It Through December”, Merle Haggard
. . . “All I Want for Christmas Is a Real Good Tan”, Kenny Chesney
. . . and “Redneck 12 Days of Christmas”, Jeff Foxworthy.
“The Voice: Live Cutdown Show” at 8:00 p.m. on NBC. A lead-in to tonight’s finale.
The 17th season finale of “The Voice” at 9:00 p.m. on NBC.
Tracy Byrd is 53.
Pope Francis is 83.
