TV newsman Cooper acknowledges he’s gay
Anderson Cooper has made it official: He’s gay.
The host of “AC360” and “Anderson” has never publicly confirmed that detail about his private life before, but he’s never denied it, either. Cooper’s sexual orientation has long been an open secret, but it took an Entertainment Weekly cover story about gay celebrities to prompt the newsman to finally come out.
Daily Beast blogger Andrew Sullivan, another openly gay newsman, wrote to Cooper asking for his reaction to the story and published the response on his blog, The Dish, on Monday.
In the email, Cooper states, “The fact is, I’m gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud.”
Cooper acknowledged that by keeping facts about his personal life private, he has inadvertently created a public perception that he’s “uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid.”
Paisley, Obamas to celebrate troops
Country star Brad Paisley will be joining the president and first lady in saluting the military on the Fourth of July at the White House.
Paisley will play the fourth annual “Salute the Military” USO concert for President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and about 1,200 troops and military families Wednesday night. The performance will be streamed live on the White House website.
Alaska Wal-Mart may capture Pitbull
Miami rapper Pitbull might soon be chilling out in Alaska.
In a marketing deal, Wal-Mart will send Pitbull, aka Armando Christian Perez, to the store that gets the most “likes” on its Facebook page.
Right now, the leading candidate is Kodiak, Alaska. And there might be a reason.
A writer for the Boston Phoenix newspaper thought it’d be funny to send Pitbull to the most remote Wal-Mart possible, and is encouraging people to “like” the Wal-Mart in Kodiak.
The Kodiak Wal-Mart had more than 35,000 “likes” Monday, more than five times the town’s population.
Wal-Mart shoppers have until July 16 to like their local stores and pull ahead of Kodiak.
The birthday bunch
Playwright Tom Stoppard is 75. Attorney Gloria Allred is 71. Humorist Dave Barry is 65. Actress Jan Smithers is 63. Former Haitian President Jean-Claude Duvalier is 61. Talk show host Montel Williams is 56. Country singer Aaron Tippin is 54. Actor Tom Cruise is 50. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is 41. Actor Ian Anthony Dale is 34. Country singer-songwriter Sarah Buxton is 32. Actress Shoshannah Stern is 32.