Watching The View

Today on The View was an hour of “real life hot topics.” Prior to that, they had the usual hot topics segment. Barbara Walters said that she read that she is offering $2 million, battling with Oprah Winfrey, to get an interview with the parents of Madeline McCann. She said that it is ridiculous and that she doesn’t pay for interviews, certainly not with her own money. There is a new sketch of a man who the parents believe is a possible suspect in their daughter’s disappearance. They interrogated the man. Barbara said that there should be Amber Alerts across countries so that it is not easy to take a child to another country.

They showed some photographs by Annie Leibovitz which are displayed throughout the Disney parks, that feature celebrities as various Disney characters. Whoopi Goldberg is one of the featured photos, as genie from Aladdin. (See above) Elisabeth joked that if they rubbed her they would get their wish. Whoopi said, “I keep trying to get people to rub me, but they won’t.”

Sam Lufti, manager and friend of Britney Spears, got in contact with Barbara and said that Britney is suffering from “mental issues” which are treatable, has not been sleeping, and that she has been seeing a psychiatrist. Britney is in touch with her mother, despite reports to the contrary. Sherri said that she hopes that the psychiatrist tells her to get rid of her boyfriend. Barbara said that she believes that she has separated from him, although she is not the authority on it. Joy said that it always worries her when she reads that people are not sleeping, like Heath Ledger and Richard Jeni. As they went to commercial, Whoopi joked that she had to go in the back and wipe her eyes because she was so emotional about Britney. (video here)

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Former View host Lisa Ling has partnered with Uber.com to create a website where she will share with the public all of the people and organizations that she has encountered in her travels that are “doing good work.”

The site includes photos and reports from her worldwide work with the National Geographic Channel and the Oxygen network. The site is described as “part resource, part news source, part travelogue, part blog and part call to action.”

Lisa will also be giving the keynote address at the Leadership Symposium in Burns Backcourt at Loyola Marymount University on Monday January 28th.

Ling will be discussing her own experiences as an investigative journalist while addressing leadership as it relates to social justice - central concepts of the newly founded Leadership Institute created by the Division of Student Affairs last year.

source

Sherri Shepherd attended opening night of the Broadway show Come Back, Little Sheba on Thursday. The show stars S. Epatha Merkerson, who will be on The View on Tuesday. Here is a description of the play from Broadway.com:

Lola is a faded beauty queen trapped in a lonely marriage to Doc, a recovering alcoholic on the brink of relapse. When a pretty young woman becomes a boarder in their cluttered Midwest home, their lives are unsettled as unspoken passions rise to the surface. As the emptiness of their marriage is laid bare, can they find their way back to each other or will they be undone?

Come Back, Little Sheba first premiered at the Booth Theatre in 1950, winning Tony Awards for both Shirley Booth and Sidney Blackmer. Booth went on to win an Oscar for her portrayal of Lola in the 1952 film version. The play was revived off-Broadway in 1984 starring Shirley Knight and Philip Bosco.

Here are some photos of Sherri Shepherd from the premiere:

As you may have noticed, at some point last night, the comment problem was fixed. Now if you comment it should post immediately. That means, of course, that I will not be screening the comments before they post. As a result, comments of an insulting nature may start appearing again. I recommend you just ignore such comments and encourage you all to focus on the show and not insulting one another.

Today was another View “special edition” episode, this one about dieting. Whoopi Goldberg introduced it as “Fat Friday.” She said that she gained 22 pounds back of the over 40 she lost. Sherri Shepherd said it was coincidental because she lost 22 pounds. She is a little upset because she lost some in her booty. Whoopi asserted that she still has the booty. Joy said that she gained back 10 pounds of the 30 she lost on Jenny Craig, but is working to get it back off.

Whoopi said that she never gets hungry and doesn’t emotionally eat either. Both Elisabeth and Sherri said that they are emotional eaters. Sherri said that she eats healthier now, though, because she has diabetes. Joy said that she eats more after drinking two glasses of wine and it also gives her more hot flashes. She said that alcohol makes you say yes to sex, so of course it makes you say yes to food, too.
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The Spoof, an online satire website, has an article that pokes fun at the hosts of The View. Only Joy Behar was left out of their “article” about Barbara Walters literally being a fossil. You can read it here and let me know what you think. Funny? Or goes a bit too far? I love how the site has disclaimers everywhere about it being a satire. I wonder how often people mistakenly take their articles as true and not humor?

Sherri Shepherd’s dad was in the audience of The View today. She said that he is really loud, funny, and crazy, and that is where she gets her sense of humor. Her step-mom and sister were also there. Sherri said that he calls her and tells her he saw the show when they talk about sex.

Joy Behar read an article about how a woman’s age and how old she looks will influence whether she gets a job interview. She said that ageism is mixed in with sexism. Elisabeth said that a younger person may garner a lower salary which may come into factor in hiring. Whoopi said that she is not buying into the theory that older woman are not needed. Joy said that you have to be armed with the information about the possibility.

Joy said that older men get younger women in the movies and in real life. Whoopi said that you would think that they would realize that they have nothing to talk about.

John McCain and Mitt Romney are getting into fights now. McCain said “Never get in wrestling match with a pig,” possibly referring to Romney. Elisabeth said that McCain is never one to hold back and the candidates are all trying so hard to get the nomination. One of Huckabee’s campaign people said that he wants to knock Romney’s teeth out because he can’t stand him. Elisabeth said that it is funny that Joy is saying that McCain and Romney hate each other, but the other day, the argument between Barack and Hillary was just them playing the political game.
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Here is the schedule for The View for next week, subject to change:

MONDAY, JAN. 28 – “Day of Real Life Hot Topics” with guests Al Sharpton, Bob Berkowitz (author, “He’s Just Not Up For It Anymore”), two women from “Super Skinny Me.”

TUESDAY, JAN. 29 - Epatha Merkerson (“Law & Order”) two time Chili cook-off champion and owner of Cin Chili, Cindy Reed Wilkins prepares her award-winning dish.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 30 - Jonny Lee Miller (ABC’s “Eli Stone”); musical guest Sarah Brightman.

THURSDAY, JAN. 31 – Dr. Phil McGraw (“Dr. Phil”); Elizabeth Mitchell (ABC’s “Lost”).

FRIDAY, FEB. 1 – Julianne Moore; Toni Braxton; a musical performance from the cast of Broadway’s “The Little Mermaid.”

Here is a video of Colin Powell’s appearance on The View yesterday.

Whoopi Goldberg started The View today by congratulating the New York Giants on making it to the Super Bowl, something they forgot to do yesterday. Sherri Shepherd showed off her Green Bay Packers earrings, which an old man made for her out of chestnuts, but said that she will be rooting for the New York Giants in the Super Bowl.

The first major topic was last night’s Democratic debate where Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton got into several squabbles. Joy Behar said that the candidates agree on everything and it comes down to personality and who has more experience. She noted that the media outlets are talking about the fights, but that the debate did include discussions about health care and other issues. Elisabeth Hasselbeck said that after they were fighting, people question more whether they could be on the same ticket. Joy said that it is politics and she wants to hear the fights. Whoopi feel asleep during the debate, but she felt bad for John Edwards who felt left out. They showed the clip where Barack was asked if he thought that Bill Clinton was the first Black president and he joked that he would have to see him dance. Whoopi said that if he ever saw Bill Clinton suck a neck bone, he would know that he was a brother. Elisabeth said that she is confused by it because Clinton allowed confederate flag day in Arkansas and gave a medal of freedom to Fulbright who was a segregationist.

Elisabeth said that there is a strong force behind McCain now and thinks that he will be the candidate, agreeing with what John Edwards said in the debate. They showed a clip of Mitt Romney posing for a picture with a group of Black people and saying “Who let the dogs out, woo woo.” Elisabeth said that it qualifies as the awkward moment of the week. Joy said that they should just be themselves. They also showed a clip of Bill Clinton falling asleep at a church service on Sunday. Sherri pointed out it was a three hour service and we have all been guilty of falling asleep at church.
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Last summer I tried to take a page from Rosie’s book and start an “Ask Winnie” feature. The idea was to have the readers ask questions and I would answer a select few. This was back when I did podcasts. If you missed all of that, you can check out the podcasts here (although the material is a bit outdated now).

I would like to try to get this feature going again, although I am not sure if I will answer the questions in text or start doing the podcasts again. Maybe if you have a preference you can let me know when you submit your questions.

Send your questions to askwinnie(at)gmail.com, but replace the (at) with @.

Today on The View, Whoopi Goldberg started the show by acknowledging that it was Martin Luther King, Jr. day. She welcomed all the men who were watching because they have the day off. Barbara Walters pointed out that a lot of women have the day off, too. Whoopi said that they watch even when they are at work. Joy Behar joked that there may be children watching today so they would have to watch their language.

Barbara received an e-mail from Colin Powell ahead of his appearance on today’s show who said that he has been TiVoing the show and said that enjoyed the episode where Elisabeth Hasselbeck pretending to pump her breasts and serve it to audience members in a mug. He also said that it was great to share the show with The Moldy Peaches.

Barbara showed off an invitation for Ivana Trump’s upcoming wedding. Ladies have to wear solid pastel long gowns, but not pink or yellow, and the men have to wear white tie. Elisabeth asked her jokingly if she was in the wedding party. Whoopi thinks it is okay for a couple to dictate what people should wear to the wedding. Elisabeth and Joy thought it was too much to tell the guests what to wear.
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Last week on The View, Elisabeth Hasselbeck showed off some photos of her and daughter Grace at the Broadway version of The Little Mermaid. The photo to the left is of Grace and Elisabeth with Trevor Braun, who played Flounder. Elisabeth said on The View that Grace loved him and followed him around backstage after the show. Additional photos are posted at Broadway.com. Thanks to reader Sarah for the tip!

Broadway, The Little Mermaid, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Trevor Braun, Grace Hasselbeck, The View

According to the NY Post, Rosie O’Donnell will be starring in a one-woman show based on her life. The show is expected to focus on her life after leaving the Rosie O’Donnell Show. The article states that she hopes to try the show out outside of New York City in the summer. Michael Mayer of “Spring Awakening” is expected to direct.

All five hosts were on again today on The View. Whoopi Goldberg started the “hot topics” by wishing a happy birthday to the Smurfs, who turned 50. Whoopi wanted to know why there was only one female Smurf and where the baby Smurf came from. She also doesn’t know who is the father of Sweet Pea from the Popeye cartoon.

Whoopi then asked the women whether they liked risky sex, joking to her “risky” means doing it at all. She later added that sometimes she falls asleep. There was a study in Maxim magazine about how women like risky sex. Elisabeth said that she thinks a man made up that study. An ABC poll said that 56% of people had sex in public. Joy said that people liked the danger, which is the same reason why people commit adultery. Sherri said that having sex in public might spice up a marriage. Barbara said that she doesn’t like it when people kiss and hug in public. Sherri said that she does not mind it. Joy said that they are probably doing it for the benefit of others so people think they do it at a lot at home.
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