Pop Culture Mondays/8.5.24
The ‘SUMMER OLYMPICS” Edition
Happy Monday, my darling pop culture junkies. It’s August, and I am at that end-of-summer phase where everything is moving more slowly, including my brain. It took a LOT for me to find the discipline to sit down and write this morning. Can’t we all just stay in our PJs and watch the Olympics all day? For those of you who are, bless you. YOU ARE THE CHOSEN ONES.
There are some fun things going on and some trends that have come and gone that I am choosing to ignore because they bore me. Oh, by the way, something that did not bore me and was an unexpected surprise was the new documentary on Elizabeth Taylor on HBO or whatever it is called now:
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes
I will say that this got me. I was riveted and in tears, and it is such a fascinating look into this woman, the time, and the creation of super fame, if you will. It was really incredible. Oh, and a sidenote: For you Grey’s Anatomy fans? Did you know that Ellis Grey, Meredith Grey’s mom, is Richard Burton’s daughter???
Or perhaps you remember her as the VP on Scandal?
YEP. She is the daughter of Richard Burton…my mind was blown:
Also, Burton died at 58, which is wild. There was so much sadness in that documentary but SO much insight, and I loved it.
Let’s get to it, you guys. In case you missed my pod last week, here you are…PLEASE do listen!
Grab some headphones and some candy, and enjoy!
GIFTS FROM PARIS:
It’s been an exciting, non-stop Olympics. Not just from the competitions themselves, which have been amazing but there is a lot going on in the stands as well! And just all the Paris Vibes…so let’s check it out. There are a lot of memes and viral moments and I will not get to ALL of them but here are some of my fave.
My Friend Steve:
Stephen Nedoroscik has become America’s nerdy, cat-loving, Clark Kent-like boyfriend. The US Gymnast has won two bronze medals thanks to his skills on the pommel horse. Oh, btw, I was curious where the pommel horse came from, and apparently, it was in the ANCIENT Olympics. According to Wikipedia, “the apparatus originates from the Romans, who used wooden horses to teach mounting and dismounting.” FASCINATING.
Anyway…back to Stephen:
But he was not the only one experiencing viral sensation this past week. OMG there are so many. You have seen a lot of them I am sure…
This will be a story passed down in this French Olympian’s family for generations to come.
Look, what can I say…it is better in France.
Have you heard of the Chocolate Muffin situation that unfolded in the Olympic Village?
Henrik Christiansen, a Norwegian swimmer who is now known as the MUFFIN MAN, has brought attention to this incredible Chocco muffin, which tastes just like cake. Apparently, after his videos went viral, they were selling 2,000 Chocco muffins a day. He posted this video reviewing the food in the Olympic Village, and the muffin was what people zoned in immediately:
People lost their minds over it:
And the MUFFIN MAN really leaned in:
I am not going to lie…I may Uber Eats some chocco muffins immediately.
But omg…so many more viral moments from the Olympics. I mean, this is OLD news by now, and I talk about it on my pod, but let’s just give a round of applause for THIS video from Tahiti of Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina:
So many people thought this was photoshopped, but it isn't, and it is just one of those one-in-a-billion shots.
And then we have Simone Biles giving her feelings on the Presidential election:
Oh, but wait… there was also some girl drama this past week. Former Olympian MyKayla Skinner spoke on a video podcast about how the US Gymnastics team, other than Simone, didn't have the work ethic or work as hard as previous teams.
OK, girl. That shit is never ever ever going to fly. And Simone let her know that by posting this to Insta after they won the gold:
IN case you cannot read her caption for her photo:
And some of the comments were gems:
SO good.
We also have another viral sensation on the US Olympic team and that is US Rugby team member Ilona Maher who is not a stranger to social media fans as she has been an online sensation for a while. But she really took it to another level in Paris:
She is killing it:
Moving on.
OF course, we had the Olympic Shooters. What a thing:
Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikec, hand in pocket, looking like he’s at his local pub playing darts with the lads. HILARIOUS. And the memes were even funnier. Oh and he won the SILVER btw.
And thank GOD, Olivia Benson was working the Olympics:
Don't worry:
If you are not a Law & Order: SVU fan, then I am sorry for you.
US Gymnastics ladies are for sure are:
There is SO much more we can cover, but let’s close this out with some Snoop/Martha. These two:
In order to celebrate Martha’s birthday in Paris, the two of them got really into the EQUESTRIAN vibe.
Look, the thing is…SNOOP IS the Olympics this year. Whatever NBC was paying him (rumor is $500K a day), it was NOT enough.
But the memes…
What a time we live in.
As I mentioned, there is a lot more…but that should get you somewhat up to speed.
But I do want to thank the Olympics for so many gifts:
A LITTLE OF THIS & A LITTLE OF THAT:
Was anything else happening other than the Olympics?? I mean sure, we could talk Trump all day long…but we are NOT because we are TRUMP FREE! But there are some other things we can take a look at…
We are NOT politics-free, so let’s take a look at this young man who went viral at the Kamala Harris rally in Atlanta with the help of Kendrick Lamar:
It turns out that this is probably a future political leader by the name of Parker Short, who is the president of Georgia Young Democrats. And Kamla HQ went RIGHT in:
The kid is impressive:
While we are on politics….did you hear about RFK Jr and THE BEAR. I mean, we were talking about him eating a dog the other week, and now we are talking about this. So, THIS New Yorker piece came out today (it’s a doozy, but let’s stop giving this man attention!)
And he knew the bear story was in there, so he and his team thought they would take the wind out of the New Yorker’s sails by posting this video of him explaining the situation to…ROSEANNE BARR. Yeah, geniuses, that worked, lol. 🫣
This is art. Roseanne and her coffee and those huge ribs and his voice.
BUT the story.
I remember this story as if it were yesterday in NY. A dead baby bear in Central Park by a dogwalker.
But nope, the bear was not killed in Central Park but along the highway, for which RFK Jr decided he was going to scoop it up and skin it and get all manly and get meat from this baby bear (OKAY), but then he got tied up at things in NYC and had to go to the airport so what was he to do? Dump the carcass in the park and make it look like it was killed there. What a total and complete idiot:
Yeah, this guy is Looney Tunes.
MOVING on.
LOLLAPALOOZA. Never ever ever in my life have I had such FOMO than from this year’s Lolla. I mean, good for them. The line-up was insane but let’s talk Chappell Roan. She wasn’t a headliner, but shew became the star of the festival. In the middle of the day, more than 80,000 people showed up and knew every word and were dressed to impress:
Everyone singing “HOT TO GO” is a vibe:
Including Noah Kahan:
And just remember, never to give up. A look at Chappell from a few years ago to today:
Also, every girl’s fantasy is actually played out by Chappell:
But that was NOT the only MUSIC MOMENT from this week. We were given the gift of a Charli XCX/Billie Eilish collab with Charlie’s new video for her single “GUESS,” and please…PLEASE close your eyes, my little Gen Xers, and imagine you're back in our club days; it is hot and sweaty and even sweatier because you just took a hit of Ecstasy, and you are drinking your REDBULL & vodka, and you're ABSOLUTELY losing your fucking mind. You’re welcome:
The kids are alright.
In case you won;t watch the whole thing (you should)…it is this for me:
If you want to know what is going on in my brain 24/7 at the moment, it is this:
Try it, bite it, lick it, spit it
Pull it to the side and get all up in it
Wear ’em, post ’em, might remix it
Send them to The Dare, yeah, I think he’s with it
Try it, bite it, lick it, spit it
Pull it to the side and get all up in it
Wear ’em, post ’em, might remix it
Send them to The Dare, yeah, I think he’s with it
We also had Charli’s bday this past weekend and ALL the cool kids came out for it in LA. And how do I know the ‘90’s are back? Because this is the bouquet that Rosalia brought for Charli:
A PARLI (Parliament) Bouquet my little ones. I would have killed for this at one point.
BTW, in case you were not aware, the new addiction are these nicotine pouches you put on your gums (sort of like dip, but they are in pouches.)
Yeah no.
Let’s move on to other trends.
Did you see the latest Quiet Place movie? A Quiet Place: Day One?
I did. And I was frankly upset by this movie not just because it was way more emotional and sad than I anticipated but also because the CAT was the star of the movie and did not get top billing. The cat was actually played by TWO cats played by Nico & Schnitzel (BTW I might name my next animal Schnitzel…) but I digress.
This cat literally deserves an Oscar.
The cat was in almost every scene. It didn't seem real. Cat was cool being carried and totally quiet and chill while they ran for their lives. Cat SWAM and was chill. The whole thing was bananas. But the idea of the movie is, if you make any sound, the monsters WILL get you. And now, it’s a trend on TikTok.
AND ONE more TikTok trend to cover…this one actually had me finally cave and buy a freaking mandolin slicer which my friend Brandee told me I would likely end up in the ER while trying to use. Um…guys, I also bought a bag of MSG off Amazon, which probably was a bad idea on every level. But here is why I did:
Thanks, Logan…we are moving away from the cottage cheese era and into our cucumber era.
There are so many more. I am going to make it this week AND I will report back.
THAT IS IT, my darlings…
There was a lot more, but we got to a lot of it.
We are switching off of Medium SOON….so expect an update there. NOT SUBSTACK, so do NOT worry. IT IS COMING…
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Have an amazing week!!
Xx,
Brooke
