Elton John is allegedly retiring and ready to start a family
Two days ago it was Hugh Hefner, today it is Elton John who catches me by surprise. Apparently, Elton is ready to start a family now that he is retiring from the road. People Magazine reports:
The singer, 62, and husband David Furnish, 48, welcomed son Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John on Dec. 25, John’s rep confirms to PEOPLE.
The 7 lb., 15 oz., baby was delivered via surrogate in California.
“We are overwhelmed with happiness and joy at this very special moment,” the couple, who exchanged vows in a civil ceremony in 2005, said in a statement. “Zachary is healthy and doing really well, and we are very proud and happy parents.”
Just last year, Furish told PEOPLE they were going to wait to start a family until John was ready to come off the road.
“We don’t want to put the raising of children into the hands of nannies and housekeepers,” said Furnish. “We want to be active parents. We have godchildren [and] kids that we support in Africa, so we’re fine.”
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Hugh Heffner, 84, marries Chrystal Harris, 24
I have long believed that similarity in interests rather than similarity in age is much more important for a good relationship. This, of course, raises the important question: Just what are the common interests of Hugh and Crystal. I am not a big fan of reality TV shows, but now I am eager for Chrystal to become the main attraction of the reality TV show (which I just learned about) The Girls Next Door. I want to see how the 60 years in age difference works out when they are not going into the bedroom. What the news story below does not mention is that Playboy Entprises has fallen on very hard times lately. On the assumption that Chrystal believes that Hugh has big dough left, I can understand why Chrystal would want to marry Hugh given that Hugh in all likelihood will not be around that long. But why would Hugh want to marry Chrystal. Because she will not be his bunny unless he marries her? Will Hugh’s daughter, Christie, who ran Playboy Enterprises until 2008, offer her services as bridesmade? I am beginning to think this is all a big publicity stunt and this announced mariage is not what the Pople has in mind for the institution. What a story. I need to start watching The Girls Next Door.
What I will take with me onto a deserted island
You dog lovers out there can appreciate the conundrum of having to answer the following question honestly: “If you had to live the rest of your life on deserted island, who would you take with you?” The idea behind this question is that you would have to make the tough choice of picking your favorite human being—the proverbial one and only one. Answering, “I would actually like to take Max, my lovely Chihuahua dog, onto the deserted island because he is the center of my emotional life,” is not going to win you brownie points with most interlocutors, your spouse, your partner, or even your mother if she happens to standing next to you. When I get asked this question (and I am alone), this is my favorite answer: “I would like to take a DVD with every single edition of the New Yorker since 1925 with me. ” With this answer I am sure to startle my interlocutors. Yes, I honestly believe one human being could never amount to the collective intelligence and humanity of the entire ensemble of writers for the New Yorkers since 1925. Today the New Yorker launched its iPad application. After seeing this introductory commercial with Jason Schwartzman, I decided to change my answer to the Robinson Crusoe question. Henceforth I shall say: “If Apple soon allows the New Yorker to put its entire archive on the Ipad, it will definitely be an iPad.”
John Stoppard on the meaning of his early play
From Writer’s Almanac: Stoppard was a drama critic, and while watching a performance of Hamlet he began thinking about the minor characters Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who are hired by King Claudius to spy on Hamlet.
Stoppard decided to write a play that would tell Hamlet from the point of view of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. In Stoppard’s version, they spend the play worrying that their lives have no meaning, and it’s only by participating in Hamlet’s story that they find any purpose. The play was called Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1967), and it made Stoppard the youngest playwright ever to have a play staged by the National Theatre in London. He was just 29 years old. When it had its premiere in New York, Stoppard was asked what the play was about. He said, “It’s about to make me rich.”
Barney Frank’s Career Advice
From Time.com: With his shaggy white hair, Frank joked that his mastery of the conference is simply a function of his inability to focus. “There’s one piece of advice I give young people—generally they don’t want us pontificating to ‘em—try to find a line of work where a central characteristic of your personality is an advantage rather than a disadvantage,” the Harvard Law School dropout told Politico last week. “For me, that’s a short attention span. A short attention span is a helluva handicap if you’re trying to write a Ph.D. thesis, but it is essential if you’re going to preside over a legislative conference with 17 issues coming up in a day.”
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