COUNTRY April 29, 2015

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Audio • Bits & Breaks • Country Prep • Datebook • Datebook Tomorrow • Entertainment • Fun & Games • Image of the Day • Joke of the Day! • Last Minute Items • News & Nuggets • News Attack • Number for the Day • Television • Video of the Day • Wacky-But-True

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DATEBOOK: APRIL 29, 2015

This is day 119 of 2015. There are 246 days remaining.

BIRTHDAYS

• Singer Tommy James is 68

• Nora Dunn (Saturday Night Live) is 63

• Jerry Seinfeld is 61

• Kate Mulgrew (Star Trek: Voyager) is 60

• Daniel Day-Lewis is 58

• Michelle Pfeiffer is 57

• Eve Plumb (The Brady Bunch’s Jan Brady) is 57

• Uma Thurman is 45

• Former tennis pro Andre Agassi 45

• Megan Boone (The Blacklist) is 32

IT HAPPENED TODAY

• 1913: Gideon Sundbach of Hoboken, New Jersey, received a patent for the zipper.

• 1967: After refusing induction into the United States Army the day before (citing religious reasons), Muhammad Ali was stripped of his boxing title.

• 1968: The musical Hair opened on Broadway.

• 1986: Roger Clemens set a major league baseball record with 20 strikeouts in nine innings against the Seattle Mariners.

• 1988: Forrest City, Arkansas, held its first racially integrated high school prom.

• 1988: Burt Reynolds and Loni Anderson were married in Florida. They divorced in 1993.

• 1990: Surgeons in Jacksonville, Florida, removed a benign tumor from the abdomen of a 47-year-old woman, who went to the emergency room fearing she was having a heart attack. The tumor weighed 65 pounds.

• 1990: A wrecking crane began tearing down the Berlin Wall at the historic Brandenberg Gate. The Wall had divided East and West Berlin since August 1961.

• 2004: Oldsmobile built its final car, ending 107 years of production.

• 2006: In Middletown, Ohio, a husband and wife just had to have one of those new big screen flat-panel TVs. And, being tapped out on their credit cards, they decided to steal one from the local electronics store. They loaded it into the back of their vehicle and took off. Just one problem: the 55 inch screen was too big to fit in the back seat of their small car and they were spotted by police going down the road with the back door half open and the TV hanging out.

SPECIAL EVENTS

• Zipper Day, on the anniversary of the patent.

• International Dance Day

• Adopt A Shelter Pet Day

• International Guide Dogs Day

• Shrimp Scampi Day

UPCOMING

• April 29: Six theater chains show the Mega Marvel Movie Marathon, ending with Avengers: Age of Ultron (Wednesday)

• April 30: Start of the NFL Draft (Thursday)

• May 10: Mother’s Day (Sunday)

• May 20: David Letterman’s final show (Wednesday)

• May 25: Memorial Day (Monday)

• June 21: Father’s Day (Sunday)

• More holidays

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NUMBER FOR THE DAY

22.98 trillion: Value of all the land in the United States.

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NEWS ATTACK!

Victoria’s Secret has named ten new angels. [What? Without my final OK?]

A new index shows that Christianity is rapidly losing members to other faiths. [I knew this would happen once they instituted ecclesiastical free agency.]

Two passengers at the Salt Lake City airport got into a physical confrontation. [That’s it. People should just stop trying to rationally argue the upcoming Mayweather-Pacquaio fight.]

Courtney Cox revealed that David Schwimmer is the holdout on having a Friends reunion show. [Too bad he wasn’t also a cast member of Full House.]

A new report finds that the brightest students are no longer going to law school. [They’ve found more lucrative criminal activities.]

Zoos are giving up elephants because they now feel it’s cruel for such huge beasts to have such small spaces. [It finally pays to be fat.]

A shark attacked a small dinghy in New Zealand showing that sharks there are no longer afraid of boats. [Or those round, soft, juicy tourists.]

Two thieves in Alaska stole 80 pizzas then tried to sell them to cops at the local precinct. [Somebody’s crust was a little too thick, if you know what I mean.]

So much good TV on tonight I don’t know what to watch… Survivor? Law & Order: SVU? Extreme Baltimore Mom Boxing?

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NEWS & NUGGETS

BALTIMORE “MOTHER-OF-THE-YEAR” IDENTIFIED _ Toya Graham, the mom who was seen angrily reprimanding her son for throwing rocks at the police, said she smacked her son in a video that went viral for one simple reason: He’s her only son and she doesn’t “want him to be a Freddie Gray.” • AUDIO

BALTIMORE ORIOLES WILL PLAY CHICAGO WHITE SOX IN AN EMPTY STADIUM _ After twice postponing Monday night’s game citing security reasons, the Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox have agreed to meet for the first of their planned three-game series this (Wednesday) afternoon, playing for an empty stadium at Camden Yards. The decision came after the Orioles consulted with Major League Baseball and other officials about how to handle moving forward with the games in the midst of violent riots going on in Baltimore.

AMERICANS LOVE THEIR MOMS A LITTLE MORE THIS YEAR _ The National Retail Federation says Americans plan to spend an average of $172.63 each on Mother’ Day festivities this year.

… Shoppers said that they plan to spend about $8 on cards for the holiday, and 80% of them planned to buy at least one card.

… 67% of shoppers plan to buy flowers. While Valentine’s Day is the biggest holiday for giving flowers, Mother’s Day is the biggest holiday for having flowers delivered from afar.

… 44% of participants plan to give their mother figures gift cards for the holiday

… 14% plan to give them some kind of consumer electronics.

SMART GARBAGE CAN BUILDS YOUR SHOPPING LIST _ Someday, we’re told, our refrigerators and food pantries will track our food supplies. As we remove and not return items, like nearly-empty cartons of milk or cans of beans, smart-fridges will add these items to a grocery list. But another company is tackling the nightmare scenario of running out of Oreos by scanning our garbage. GeniCan is a barcode scanner that clips onto a kitchen garbage can or recycling bin and adds disposed items into a shopping list under the assumption the owner would like to order that item again. For products without a barcode, the GeniCan incorporates voice recognition for less automated list building. The device’s inventors are trying to raise money for it on Indiegogo. • LINK

BUD LIGHT APOLOGIZES FOR SLOGAN PROMOTING RAPE CULTURE _ Bud Light debuted its “Up For Whatever” campaign at the Super Bowl in 2014. But now it seems the company might have gone a step too far with the YOLO spirit with the introduction of new bottle labels. A label reads: “The perfect beer for removing ‘no’ from your vocabulary for the night.” A senior director of U.S. marketing communications for Anheuser-Busch, Bud Light’s parent company, responded to critics on Tuesday via Twitter: “We missed the mark on a new Bud Light bottle, and we regret it.”

APPLE IS REJECTING WATCH APPS THAT ONLY TELL THE TIME _ Yesterday (Tuesday, April 28) you heard here that Apple is rejecting farting apps for the Apple Watch. Apparently the tech giant doesn’t like the idea of you planting your iPhone near a co-worker’s desk and firing off an audio fart when they sit down.

… Apple is also rejecting apps that just tell time. Yep, they’re saying “no” to time apps for a watch. You can still tell time with Apple Watch, but you’ll be doing it with what Apple gives you. Currently, Apple Watch offers nine customizable watch faces.

WOMAN EATS A 55-OZ BURGER IN UNDER 3 MINUTES _ Molly Schuyler continues to sweep at eating competitions, this past weekend devouring a 55-ounce burger and a side of fries in two minutes and 12 seconds. She broke the previous record of 3:27. Dubbed the 55 Challenge, Schuyler was up against three-time champion “Gentleman” Joe Menchetti who won the inaugural 55 Challenge in 2008.

… Earlier this month, Schuyler owned her competitors at eating three 72-ounce steak meals. The 120-pound mother of four has been making a name for herself in the world of competitive eating, taking title after title and shattering records in the process.

REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER IN DOGHOUSE OVER FAKE AD _ A real estate developer in China has been fined for an illegal ad that simulated a lost dog notice that promised a free house to whoever could find the animal. The ad in a newspaper read: “My Maltese dog Charlie was lost at the intersection of Moganshan Road and Pingshui Street on April 15. It is part of my life and I’m willing to exchange a house I just bought for it.” The developer showed off the supposed house in the ad, which was really one of the home for sale in the development. The developer was fined $15,000.

WOMAN SURPRISED TO LEARN SHE’S ‘DEAD’ _ Don’t you just hate it when you wake up in the morning and find out you’re dead? What a hassle. 25-year-old Sarah Jewell from Sparta, Michigan, filed her tax return in February. However, instead of a refund, the IRS sent her a letter that said she was dead. The letter read that her Social Security number was coming up that she was deceased. The IRS told her to contact the local Social Security office if there’s an error. So she went in person. Jewell said the staff seemed taken aback but very helpful. Three months after her visit to the office, Jewell said her Social Security number still hasn’t been resurrected. And Jewell still hasn’t received her tax refund. And because she’s “deceased” one of her credit cards was cancelled and she can’t renew her driver’s license. The benefit to that last problem is pretty obvious: “Sorry, officer, you can’t give a speeding ticket to a dead person.”

ITALY OPENS MUSEO DELLA MERDA — THE MUSEUM OF POOP _ The latest museum to dump knowledge on Italy is the Museo Della Merda, a facility dedicated to the study of human and animal feces. Museo Della Merda, which roughly translates to “Museum of Poop,” describes itself as an “agency for change” that “houses documents and information on excrement in culture, technology and history.”

TORTOISE, 90, FITTED WITH WHEELS FOLLOWING RAT ATTACK _ A tortoise in England (Pembrokeshire) which had part of its legs chewed off by a rat has been fitted with wheels. The owner of the 90-year-old tortoise, called Mrs. T, ran up a $1,500 vets bill before turning to her mechanical engineer son for help. He used the wheels from a toy plane and designed an axle which he fitted to the tortoise’s shell using resin.

MOM FIRED FROM NEW JOB BEFORE STARTING DUE TO FACEBOOK POST _ A single mom in Texas was fired from her new job at a daycare center after she posted on Facebook that she “hated” it. Kaitlyn Walls, who criticized the position just hours before she started her first shift, was hit by a barrage of insults from other users. She posted: “I start my new job today, but I absolutely hate working at day care.” After her new bosses got wind of the post, they told her not to bother coming in.

BRIDE IN TEARS AFTER CUTTING INTO MOLDY WEDDING CAKE ON HER BIG DAY _ A bride in England was left devastated on her big day after cutting into her wedding cake to find it had gone moldy. Staff at the venue where the wedding reception was taking place saved the day by going out and buying three replacement cakes.

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WACKY-BUT-TRUE

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: LAWNMOWER FIRES 3½” METAL WIRE INTO MAN’S SKULL _ A Mississippi man was mowing his lawn and suddenly felt like a rock or something hit his face, only to find out after visiting the hospital that a 3½ inch metal wire got shot into his nose and into his skill from his lawnmower. Bill Parker took a day off to do some yard work and said he wished he had stayed at work instead. Parker went to the hospital to be checked out because he thought he might have a broken cheekbone from the incident, but he never imagined that a 3½ inch metal wire had been shot into his skull by the lawnmower. Doctors removed the wire in 20 minutes and prescribes antibiotics.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: PEOPLE NEED TO WEAR PANTS AND NOT SET OFF FIREWORKS _ Calgary police are reminding citizens not to set off fireworks, not to walk around in public with open liquor, and not to forget their pants while celebrating when their beloved hockey team wins. After the Flames beat the Canucks at the Saddledome on Saturday evening, securing the hometown heroes a spot in the second round of playoffs, an estimated 10,000 to 12,000 people congregated on the street to celebrate the victory. For the most part, the jubilant crowd was well-behaved. But, police say a total of six people were arrested — including one man who was walking down the street baring everything below the waist, and another person who set off fireworks near a gas station. A Calgary police official said: “”People need to wear pants and not set off fireworks by the gas station.”

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: WOMAN BEAT UP BOYFRIEND OVER HOW TO FRY CHICKEN _ Florida cops say Bahunti Williams battered her live-in boyfriend during an argument over how she was frying chicken. Williams was busted for misdemeanor domestic battery.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: WOMAN HOSPITALIZED AFTER EXERCISING TOO HARD _ A 31-year-old woman in China suffered  kidney failure after squatting 700 times while exercising.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: MAN CHARGED FOR DRIVING WITHOUT DOORS, WINDOWS, LICENSE PLATES, INSURANCE _ An Ontario, Canada, man in his 60s is facing several charges after being pulled over while driving a van without doors, windows and license plates. The driver was pulled over on the side of a street when an officer noticed the man’s 2000 Dodge Caravan had no license plates. Then the officer noticed the minivan had no sliding side doors, the rear windows were missing, and several items were sticking out of the open doors. A wooden stool was strapped to the van’s roof, and a triangular slow moving vehicle sign was tied across the back of the van where the license plate should have been.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: WOMAN WEARING “WON’T BE CAUGHT” T-SHIRT BEING SOUGHT IN THEFT _ Yesterday (Tuesday, April 28) I told you about the Florida guy busted for burglary while wearing a T-shirt which read: “Warning: I Do Dumb Things.” Today I have a story of a Florida woman who’s suspected of shoplifting while wearing a T-shirt which read: “Won’t Be Caught.” So far the woman, accused of swiping close to $1,500 worth of cologne and perfume from a Tampa beauty supply store, has not been caught.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: ALLEGED PIZZA THIEVES TRY TO SELL THEM TO POLICE OFFICERS _ Of 80 frozen pizzas stolen Sunday in the village of Gambell, Alaska, 75 have been recovered. Police officers received a very strong lead in the case when two men called the Gambell Police Department and tried to sell the pizzas to on-duty officers.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: SALAMI STUFFER STUFFED IN SLAMMER _ Shoplifting suspect Andrew Ramos is in the slammer after he was caught trying to leave the Price Rite supermarket in Reading, Pennsylvania, without paying for the four salamis he had stuffed in his pants.

WACKY-BUT-TRUE: MAN ACCUSED OF BREAKING INTO HOUSE, SNOOZING ON COUCH _ Yesterday (Tuesday, April 28) I shared the story of the guy who broke into a home, made some tater tots and fell asleep. Here’s another one. A 20-year-old and a 16-year-old are accused of breaking into an abandoned house and falling asleep on a couch, where deputies found them. When they arrived, they found the man and teen asleep with marijuana and a bong in plain view near the two.

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ON TELEVISION

SURVIVOR (8p ET, CBS) – Shirin and Mike are going to have to do some fancy tap work to survive.

AMERICAN IDOL (8p ET, FOX) – The top 5 will sing songs from the judges and their own picks.

CRIMINAL MINDS (9p ET, CBS) – The BAU search for a vigilante in Los Angeles when shooting victims in the area are linked to possible criminal activity.

CHICAGO PD (9p ET, NBC) – SVU’s Benson, Fin and Amaro help with the investigation of a rape-murder that’s similar to a decade-old case in New York as part of a cross-over episode.

MODERN FAMILY (9p ET, ABC) – Jay and Phil pick up Lily’s hand-me-down princess castle for Joe.

CSI: CYBER (10p ET, CBS) – Nine planes that departed from the same airport face a coordinated Wi-Fi attack while in flight.

HOT IN CLEVELAND (10p ET, TV LAND) – The gang buys Stormi’s, but Melanie has her hands full with a temperamental chef.

THROUGH THE WORMHOLE WITH MORGAN FREEMAN (10p ET, DISCOVERY SCIENCE) – Sixth season premiere. Are we all bigots?

LAW & ORDER: SVU (10p ET, NBC) – A Chicago crime resembles a decade-old New York City case, so police from Chicago arrive and team up with the squad to track down a suspect they had to release earlier.

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ENTERTAINMENT

JEFF DANIELS JOINS FINAL ‘DIVERGENT’ MOVIES _ Jeff Daniels is in final negotiations to join the last movies in the “Divergent” franchise. The actor would appear in “Allegiant Part 1″ and “Allegiant Part 2″ in the role of the leader of the Bureau of Genetic Welfare.

WHICH CAST MEMBER IS HOLDING UP A FRIENDS REUNION? _ A Friends reunion hasn’t happened and won’t ever happen because one of the original six cast members never comes through when it’s time to get together, according to one of the stars. In an interview with Yahoo!, Courteney Cox said that all six “friends” — David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, and herself — haven’t been in the same room together since the show ended in 2004. Fans’ hopes for a reunion movie won’t be realized, because, “We’ve gotten about 80 percent there, but there’s always one person who flakes at the end.” And who might this “flake” be? When asked, Cox said, “I’m not going to name names, but it may not be [David] Schwimmer.”

COMMON JOINS ICE CUBE IN BARBERSHOP 3 _ Common has joined the cast of Barbershop 3. He will star alongside of Ice Cube, who starred in the previous installments as Calvin, who is working to build up a struggling barber shop.

CBS REALITY SHOW TESTS GENEROSITY _ If somebody gave you $100,000, would you keep all the money for yourself, or share it with another needy family? That’s the setup for The Briefcase, a new reality show from the producer of The Biggest Loser. In each episode, a family with financial struggles is given a briefcase of $101,000. The first $1,000 is money they can immediately spend. They then decide whether to keep the rest of the cash, or to give some — or all of it — to another family in need. At the end of the episode comes a twist: The other family has a briefcase too — and is also deciding whether to share money with the first family. The Briefcase debuts May 27 on CBS.

FURIOUS 7 STUNT CREW VICTORY _ The overlooked stunt crew from Furious 7 can finally hold their heads high and revel in the success of their billion dollar movie because the studio will be adding their names to the ending credits. As previously reported 25 people who performed the death-defying stunts for the movie — including the driving scenes — were mysteriously nixed from the ending credits. The crew was irate, and even stars like Michelle Rodriguez spoke out in support. Now sources close to the production say Universal has decided to include the entire 2nd Unit team to the DVD and future releases of the movie. The studio claimed there was a “clerical mix up”.

BATMAN IN SUICIDE SQUAD? _ Ben Affleck’s Batman will appear in Suicide Squad after the actor was caught on-set in Toronto wearing one of Bruce Wayne’s infamous suits. At first, Ben Affleck was snapped landing at Toronto airport, the same city where Suicide Squad is filming. Suicide Squad is the follow-up to next spring’s Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice. Then the image of Affleck in costume as Bruce Wayne being guided onto a set trailer was posted online.

JONI MITCHELL IS NOT IN A COMA _ Joni Mitchell is not unconscious, contrary to previous reports. A statement on JoniMitchell.com reads: “Contrary to rumors circulating on the Internet, Joni is not in a coma. Joni is still in the hospital — but she comprehends, she’s alert, and she has her full senses. A full recovery is expected.”

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AUDIO

Visit the Pro Audio page for the most recent audio cuts as well as thousands of archived cuts.

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BITS & BREAKS

FACEBOOK-TO-PHONER

Start it on Facebook, take it to the phones: What one thing do you miss most about being a kid? What do you miss least?

HOW TO GET THE WORST NIGHT’S SLEEP OF YOUR LIFE

If you’re searching for the elusive good night’s sleep, you’ve probably already tried a few old standbys. Maybe you swear by a warm bath or regular exercise or a calming cup of chamomile tea. But you can try all the natural sleep aids in the world without much success if you’re still making any of these classic sleep mistakes.

Chug some coffee. It might seem like a good way to power through the next few hours of your 12-hour workday, but because it takes eight to 10 hours for your body to process the majority of that caffeine, your late-afternoon java is likely to do more harm than good.

Load up on the protein. Sure, it’s important for exercise recovery, but be wary of postponing dinner too long, or your body is likely to still be digesting your meal when it’s supposed to be asleep. Protein is particularly tough to break down, and may therefore keep you up even later.

Get totally stressed. As you’re cleaning up after dinner, whatever you do, don’t freak out when you catch a glimpse of the clock. It’s tempting to stress about how to get enough sleep, but it won’t get you to the Land of Nod any faster. In fact, the more you stress about sleep, the harder it will become to eventually drift off.

Decide a nightcap is the only way to relax. You’d figure it might take the edge off, and alcohol can indeed make falling asleep easier. But as it wears off throughout the night, it’s likely to disrupt your sleep later.

Turn on the TV. You’ll want to find something with plenty of sirens and gunshots, to trigger your own natural stress response to the fictional drama. And make sure to bask in the boob tube’s blue glow — all that light late at night will tell your brain it’s not bedtime yet.

Turn up the heat. Nobody likes stepping into chilly clothes in the morning, but cranking up the thermostat before you climb into bed isn’t the solution. That’s because a cooler bedroom is actually more conducive to sleep. Experts believe the sweet spot is between about 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit.

When you can’t seem to fall asleep, continue to lie there and stress. Experts say staying put and willing yourself to drift off only builds more anxiety associated to being in bed. It sounds counterproductive, but your best bet is to get out of bed to do something more relaxing. Just make sure it’s not too stimulating and doesn’t involve any bright lights.

TOP TV SHOWS

Week of April 20-26

1. 20/20, ABC, 17.10 million

2. The Big Bang Theory, CBS, 14.63 million

3. Dancing With the Stars, ABC, 13.42 million

4. The Voice (Tuesday), NBC, 11.25 million

5. Scorpion, CBS, 10.71 million

6. The Voice (Monday), NBC, 10.60 million

7. Madam Secretary, CBS, 10.50 million

8. 60 Minutes, CBS, 10.39 million

9. NCIS, CBS, 10.194 million

10. Survivor, CBS, 10.192 million

11. Criminal Minds, CBS, 10.06 million

12. Blue Bloods, CBS, 9.99 million

13. NCIS: New Orleans, CBS, 9.96 million

14. Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 9.55 million

15. The Odd Couple, CBS, 9.37 million

16. Mom, CBS, 9.01 million

17. Modern Family, ABC, 8.85 million

18. NCIS: Los Angeles, CBS, 8.83 million

19. The Good Wife, CBS, 8.74 million

20. CSI: Cyber, CBS, 8.42 million

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FUN & GAMES

TRIVIA: To cure this in Russia they drink pickle juice. People in the UK cure it with a full English breakfast. Bolivians have pork stew. What are they curing? (Hangover)

DERBY HORSE OR NOT!

The Kentucky Derby is Saturday. I give you some names, you tell me if each is a Derby Horse or Not.

• Mr. Z

• Keen Ice

• Just An Every Day Joe (NOT)

• Clip-clop, Clip-clop, Clip-clop (NOT)

• Carpe Diem

• War Story

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JOKE OF THE DAY

A married couple in their early 60s were out celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary in a quiet, romantic little restaurant. Suddenly, a tiny yet beautiful fairy appeared on their table and said, “For being such an exemplary married couple and for being faithful to each other for all this time, I will grant you each one wish.” “Ooh, I want to travel around the world with my darling husband,” said the wife. The fairy moved her magic wand and, in a flash of blinding light, two first class tickets for the Queen Mary II luxury liner appeared in her hands. Now it was the husband’s turn. He thought for a moment and said: “Well, this is all very romantic, but an opportunity like this only occurs once in a lifetime, so, I’m sorry, my love, but my wish is to have a wife 30 years younger than me.” The wife and the fairy were deeply disappointed, but a deal is a deal, so the fairy made a circle with her magic wand and, in a flash of blinding light, the husband became 92 years old. The moral: Men might be ungrateful idiots, but fairies are female.

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VIDEO OF THE DAY

Watch Stan Lee teach celebrities the art of the cameo.

https://youtu.be/N8m-NxpUIP0

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IMAGE OF THE DAY

Check out the guy with the big butt.

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LAST MINUTE ITEMS

• For those who own vinyl but no longer own a turntable.

• Head massager out of Japan.

• Do the latest Mad Max trailer justice: put on your headphones and turn it up.

• The Slate Reincarnation Machine.

• Is it Christmas?

• The Ultimate List of All the Converters You’ll Ever Need.

• Twisted Wave is a great audio recorder and editor for iOS devices. It also runs in a web browser.

• Hiking from Mexico to Canada: before and after.

• Where the bombs fell on London.

• Dashcams of live storm chasers.

• How to get free Dropbox space.

• There are 320 million people in the United States. How many have your name?

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COUNTRY DATEBOOK: APRIL 29, 2015

• 1992: GARTH BROOKS was named Entertainer of the Year and Top Male Vocalist at the 27th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

• 1992: DOUG STONE underwent quadruple bypass surgery in Nashville just three days after experiencing chest pains at a show in Oregon.

• 1996: KENNY ROGERS underwent gallbladder surgery in Athens, Georgia.

• 1998: LEANN RIMES kicked off a three day guest appearance on the NBC daytime series Days Of Our Lives, playing a teenage runaway.

• 2005: SARA EVANS was among those featured in People magazine’s 50 Most Beautiful People issue.

• 2005: TIM MCGRAW and FAITH HILL appeared among the Most Beautiful Couples in People Magazine’s 50 Most People issue.

• 2011: GARTH BROOKS sang Friends In Low Places at a Las Vegas wedding party for casino owner Steve Wynn. Also attending: Clint Eastwood, Sylvester Stallone, Steven Spielberg and Donald Trump.

• 2011: TOBY KEITH was forced to take cover in a bunker when four mortars explode nearby just before he is to go on stage to perform for American soldiers in the Middle East.

OAK RIDGE BOYS member Duane Allen is 72

Bassist Wayne Secrest of CONFEDERATE RAILROAD is 65

STEPHANIE BENTLEY (Who’s That Girl) is 52

JAMES BONAMY (I Don’t Think i Will) is 43

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COUNTRY AUDIO

Visit the country audio archive for over 2,000 audio cuts.

ZAC BROWN on the recording process for Jekyll + Hyde. » go to download page

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COUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

KENNY CHESNEY will headline the first concert at Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco, the new home of the 49ers football team, this Saturday (May 2). The show will be the first stadium date on his Big Revival Tour and the first of a dozen co-headlining shows with JASON ALDEAN. Other special guests for the concert will be JAKE OWEN and COLE SWINDELL.

High wind and rain couldn’t stop RANDY HOUSER from performing as part of the Toadlick Festival in Dothan, Alabama, April 24. Randy rigged a small PA system so he could do an acoustic set for the fans braving the weather. CRAIG CAMPBELL was the only artist able to perform before the weather got so bad the festival was canceled, preventing SAM HUNT, RONNIE MILSAP and ALABAMA from taking the stage.

HILLARY SCOTT (LADY ANTEBELLUM) says the fire that destroyed her bus hasn’t caused her to live in fear or change how she travels. Hillary says it’s like falling off a horse and she intentionally got back up and started riding again as soon as she could. Hillary believes the fire that destroyed many personal belongings on her bus was a fluke, though she and her bandmates are now more focused on safety.

TRISHA YEARWOOD’s hope for Mother’s Day is the chance to spend time with her three stepdaughters — Taylor, August and Allie. She and GARTH BROOKS will be playing in Omaha, Nebraska that night, but Trisha hopes the five of them can spend some quality time together that afternoon.

SAM HUNT says while some pop stations are playing his songs, he has no plans to leave country music. Sam thinks its great that his music can reach so many through various outlets, but country music is where he wants to be.

On April 25, MERLE HAGGARD received his high school diploma from California’s Bakersfield High School prior to his concert at the Fox Theater in his hometown. Merle was expelled from school near the end of his eighth grade year and never could stay focused from the ninth grade on. He did complete a high school equivalency program while serving time at San Quentin prison between 1957 and 1960 for burglary.

Rapper Nelly is ready to go country. No, not more music with FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE — an actual country project. Nelly’s manager says: “He’s a free agent on the label side now and is working on a country-based EP called Heartland, which should be really interesting … we think he has an opportunity to grow that base even more.”

The ZAC BROWN BAND has released a fan-made video for Homegrown, the first single from their new Jekyll + Hyde album. The video shows snapshots of ZBB fans’ lives, including backyard barbecues, beach trips, a wedding, mountain ranges and even a couple shots of family dogs. The group invited fans, via social media, to upload their own hometown experiences for a chance to be included in the video.