T LOunge for September 25th 2024

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Pin3 Merchants Restaurant – Vientiane, Laos

Let’s get swanky today, darlings. It’s WEDNESDAY and the skies outside T Lo Manor are dreary and gray. Best to sit in flattering lighting sipping colorful drinks and eating tiny delicious things, wouldn’t you say? Join us.

The Untold Story of Disney Channel’s Rise and Fall
Author Ashley Spencer takes us inside a kids TV empire, sharing how Miley Cyrus became the only star to get bigger than the brand and how the network avoided Nickelodeon-esque scandal: “I don’t think you could have had a Dan Schneider at Disney Channel.”
When I was eight years old, I thrust my hands in the air at a Hilary Duff concert, belting along to “So Yesterday.” At 10, I huddled near the TV at a sleepover celebrating the premiere of High School Musical 2, which bled into the episode of Hannah Montana featuring the Jonas brothers. Like most, I phased out of the viewing demographic around middle school, but not before memorizing every episode of That’s So Raven or making Halloweentown mandatory annual viewing.
Ashley Spencer’s new book, Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel’s Tween Empire, invites us all to reminisce this way. It also served as a nostalgic opportunity for Spencer, an entertainment journalist who has written on topics like Lizzie McGuire for outlets including Vice, Vanity Fair, and—perhaps most importantly, given the book’s subject—teen magazine J-14. While writing her debut, “I would watch the pilots, the finales, any bigger episodes, D-Coms [Disney Channel Original Movies] as well,” she tells VF over Zoom. “My Disney+ thinks I’m probably 13.”

Halle Berry on Movies, Menopause and Manifesting Love
As the first Black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress, Halle Berry is used to blazing trails. Now, alongside releasing two new films – the psychological thriller, Never Let Go, and action comedy, The Union – Berry is working on a personal, more political project: destigmatising the menopause. Here, she tells Lola Ogunnaike why her fifth decade has been the most empowering yet.

Where is The Great British Bake Off filmed and can you visit?
The iconic white tent is back to see contestants through the inevitable cake chaos and bread week breakdowns.
The Great British Bake Off returns to our screens as of September 24, with twelve of the UK’s best bakers battling it out to secure the title of star baker each week in hopes of taking home that highly-coveted GBBO cake stand.
But with the show’s return, we can’t help but wonder: where is Great British Bake Off filmed? Now a well established staple in British TV, Bake Off’s white tent has become altogether iconic. So where exactly does one find this state-of-the-art tent equipped with rustic worktops, futuristic ovens and bright bunting? And perhaps more importantly, can you visit it for yourself?

Kim Kardashian and Monsters star Cooper Koch visited the Menendez brothers in prison
Their visit comes days after Erik Menendez blasted Ryan Murphy over his Netflix show about the brothers’ lives.
In a beautiful expression of compassion and savvy PR, Kim Kardashian has paid Erik and Lyle Menendez — both serving life sentences for the first-degree murder of their parents — a visit in prison. And she brought actor Cooper Koch along.
Kardashian and Koch, who plays Erik Menendez in the recent Netflix series, dropped by the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego to talk about the Green Space project — “a reform strategy about beautifying prison yards to help inmates rehabilitate,” per TMZ — with a group of roughly 40 inmates that included the Menendez brothers, who have apparently spearheaded the project. An unnamed source also tipped off TMZ about the visit, adding that Khloé Kardashian, Kris Jenner, and movie producer and prison reform activist Scott Budnick joined her.

So Charming! How Bag Charms Became Fashion’s Favourite New Hobby
Less a by-product of our day-to-day lives, adding, piling, clipping on charms has become the season’s must-do decree. How charming, says Naomi Pike.
Last October, Miuccia Prada sent out a collection of handbags in her Miu Miu AW24 collection that were tied and tethered with lengths of ropes and keychains that spoke of a life well-lived. By contrast to what we usually see on the catwalk (the prim and the pristine) these bags were styled with all things spilling out and over in a way that was relatable to how the majority of us exist in our day-to-day lives. In doing this, Mrs Prada essentially said: it’s okay to not be perfect, to relax into your life and its wardrobe.
Nearly a year on and the dressing-up of our handbags in such a fashion has become less a by-product of life and instead an intentional design detail. Piling on keycharms, characters, beads and ribbons is the new crafting and we’re all captivated.

At Last, A Serious Fashion Industry Drama! But Just How Accurate Is La Maison
La Maison is a show born out of what executive producer Alex Berger has described as a desire to depict environments that are “fantasised about but people [don’t] understand how they work”. With his new Apple TV+ series in particular, he wanted to show that for all its glamour, the fashion industry runs like any other: bottom lines, not hemlines, are what spirit us from one season to the next.

Could Kim Cattrall Star In Season Five Of ‘Emily In Paris’?
The cast of the hit Netflix series have been manifesting for it to happen for ‘Emily in Paris’ season five, and now so are we.
Finally, the fifth season of Emily In Paris has been confirmed. And while we’re missing being completely hooked on the last goings-on of the titular character’s messy sphere in the French capital, following recent interviews with stars of the show, we’re turning our attention to what’s planned for the upcoming fifth series.
In an interview with IMDb, Lucas Bravo, who plays a French cook Gabriel (and makes up one third of the series’ love triangle alongside Emily and Alfie) admitted that he and several of his fellow cast members have been ‘manifesting’ for Sex And The City’s Kim Cattrall to join the rom-com series.

From ‘The Royal Tenenbaums To ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel Wes Andersons Best Onscreen Interiors
Famed for his precise cinematography and whimsical scripts, Wes Anderson has created some of the most sumptuous onscreen interiors of all time – from the palatial suites of The Grand Budapest Hotel to a maximalist New York brownstone in The Royal Tenenbaums. Following the news that the Design Museum is set to host a first-of-its-kind exhibition celebrating the idiosyncratic American director’s cinematic world, we look back at his most eccentric sets, crammed full of interiors inspiration.

Ryan Murphy Responds to Erik Menendez’s Criticism of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story creator Ryan Murphy shared his reaction in an exclusive interview with E! News to Erik Menendez’s scathing criticism of the true crime series.
Ryan Murphy is standing by his work. Despite the backlash his new true crime series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story has received from one of the show’s subjects, Erik Menendez—who alongside his brother Lyle Menendez was convicted of murdering their parents Kitty Menendez and Jose Menendez—the American Horror Story creator believes in what his series has achieved.
“I know he hasn’t watched the show, so I find that curious,” Ryan told E! News at the Sept. 23 premiere of Grotesquerie of Erik’s criticism. “I know this for a fact. I hope he does watch it. I think if he did watch it, he would be incredibly proud of Cooper Koch, who plays him.”

8 Best Candle Advent Calendars for Fragrance Fanatics
The countdown to Christmas has never smelled better.
The holiday season may be months away, but advent calendar season is back again in full force. This year, there are options for every recipient on your list: beauty obsessives, luxury lovers, tea drinkers, wine connoisseurs, and even fragrance fanatics. The best candle advent calendars of 2024 are chockfull of seasonal scents to burn at home when the weather outside turns frightful, along with diffusers, hand creams, body care products, perfumes, and other heavenly fragrances guaranteed to have your giftee smelling their best. Ahead, here are the candle advent calendars that’ll make the countdown to Christmas extra special this year.

Everybody Wants More Adam Brody
The 44-year-old’s boyish charm has made him a cross-generational fan favorite. And lucky for audiences, his next role—Rabbi Noah in Netflix’s hilarious new show ‘Nobody Wants This’—gives the people what they’ve been craving.
After rising to fame on The O.C., the actor continued to appear in a number of other iconic projects and cult classics, such as Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Jennifer’s Body, and Scream 4 to name a few. Lately, his IMDb has included Oscar-nominated films, such as Promising Young Woman and American Fiction, and FX’s seven-time Emmy-nominated series, Fleishman Is in Trouble, in which he played Toby Fleishman’s (Jesse Eisenberg) finance-bro friend, Seth Morris.
Brody’s newest project, the Netflix series Nobody Wants This—which also stars Kristen Bell—has all the makings of a subscriber’s latest obsession and the potential to become a rewatchable classic the way The O.C. has. If its star-studded cast and famous creator—the show is written by podcaster, writer, actress, and entrepreneur extraordinaire Erin Foster—don’t draw big numbers, then its heart-warming take on modern dating and irreverent, laugh-out-loud humor certainly will. The show, which premieres on September 26, follows a budding romance between Jewish rabbi, Noah (Brody), and “shiksa” sex podcaster, Joanne (Bell), as the two navigate their unlikely relationship and many differences.

10 Memorable Monica Geller Outfits on ‘Friends’
Although her pal Rachel Green gets plenty of attention, Monica Geller is the show’s true style icon. Played by the gorgeous Courtney Cox and styled by costume designer Debra McGuire, the hard-working chef’s wardrobe reflects her more mature demeanor. Despite being Ross’ younger sister, Monica is the de facto mom friend of the group as she is the most level-headed out of the six.
While Phoebe is the free-spirited hippie and Joey is the good-looking, but empty-headed actor, Monica is definitely the serious one. Fittingly, Monica’s style is the perfect example of the decade’s effortlessly chic mood.

How Sweet Tea Became the Signature Drink of the South
It’s impossible to mention sweet tea without talking about the South. But how did one sugared drink become synonymous with an entire regional identity?
Where I come from on the coastal plains of Georgia, we drink tea. The sweet and the iced are implied. You trust that your neighbor, the local meat and three, and the ladies at church know just how much sugar to add. Packets of sugar are for coffee.
At home, mama did not make sweet tea, and she only let us swirl in anemic packets of Sweet’N Low. To get my fix, I walked barefoot atop crunchy, parched grass to my neighbors’ house. There, Mrs. Denise, a second mother whose name my sister and I abbreviated to “Nise,” had the good stuff in a gallon pitcher in her fridge. She brewed it in a teamaker permanently enshrined on her kitchen counter. I remember watching and waiting as hot tea drip-dropped onto a mound of cane sugar, which transformed into a concentrated, viscous syrup.

Volkswagen’s Cult-Favorite Ketchup Is Coming to America for the Very First Time — Here’s How to Snag a Bottle
Here’s hoping the VW curry sauce makes it way stateside too.
Today, Volkswagen is bringing something a little different to the U.S. No, it’s not a new car model. It’s… ketchup. Yep, the same company that gave us the Beetle and the VW Bus also makes ketchup. But not just any ketchup — a ketchup with a cult following. Because why stop at cars when you can also dominate the condiment aisle?
In honor of its 75th anniversary in America, VW is rolling out its famous Gewürz Ketchup for a limited time. This is the same sauce that graces the legendary VW currywurst in Germany, and for the first time, Americans will get to experience what VW fans across the pond have been raving about. We know you were thinking about adding a Jetta to your garage, but how about adding this ketchup to your fridge instead?

Emerald Fennell’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ Movie Sparks Backlash Over Casting of Jacob Elordi As “Dark-Skinned” Heathcliff
Emerald Fennell‘s decision to cast Jacob Elordi in Wuthering Heights has raised eyebrows in the UK.
Deadline revealed on Monday that Elordi and Margot Robbie will star in the Emily Brontë adaptation as Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw. Saltburn director Fennell is set to write, direct, and produce, with filming taking place in the UK next year.
Heathcliff’s ethnicity is famously ambiguous in Brontë’s 1847 novel, but there is some consensus that his description as a “dark-skinned gipsy” — as well as his abandonment as a baby at the slave port of Liverpool — likely means he was not white. […]
Commenting on Elordi’s casting, Michael Stewart, director of the Brontë Writing Centre, told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: “With Wuthering Heights, you’ve had many years of white actors playing the more ambiguous ethnic character… But things are different now, the way we represent certain people in art and culture comes with a responsibility now that wasn’t there 20 years ago.”

Anna Delvey Said She’s Taking “Nothing” from ‘DWTS’ and Ezra Sosa Had the Funniest Reaction
Anna revealed her favorite part of DWTS was “getting eliminated.”
In an elimination that will surely send shockwaves through the professional dancing community, fake heiress (sorry, make that “fashionista and entrepreneur”) Anna Delvey has been voted off Dancing With the Stars. But don’t despair, we’ll always have THIS:
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During her elimination (which was actually a double elimination—Tori Spelling and Pasha Pashkov also went home), host Julianne Hough asked Anna what she was taking away from her time on the show. Her response? An iconic, I fear, “nothing.”

Tia Mowry Says She And Twin Sister Tamera Are Aren’t As Close Anymore
Mowry’s new reality series on We TV, ‘Tia Mowry: My Next Act,’ delves into her relationships, including family dynamics.
Tia Mowry is back on reality television, giving fans a deep dive into this current chapter of her life. A clip from her new reality series on We TV, Tia Mowry: My Next Act, is now circulating on social media. While Mowry was emotional about her divorce from Cory Hardrict in April 2023, she mentioned that she’s no longer close with her sister, Tamera Mowry.
“Being alone has been the most challenging part of my divorce,” Tia said in the first-look teaser released Sept. 20. “It’s times like this when I feel and wish that my sister and I were still close and I could pick up the phone and call her.”

Every ‘Batman’ Movie Ranked, from ‘Batman & Robin’ to ‘The Dark Knight’
The Caped Crusader has been a TV stalwart, but the big screen is the home of his most legendary adventures.
Superhero movies have ebbed and flowed in terms of popularity since Christopher Reeve first took flight in 1978’s “Superman.” But if there’s a character that will always be welcome by the filmgoing public, it’s Batman. Since Tim Burton brought the iconic DC comics character into the modern blockbuster age with his 1989 take on Gotham City, the Caped Crusader and his gallery of iconic rogues — from the devilish Joker to the seductive Catwoman — have been constant fixtures of cineplexes everywhere. Every film starring the character seems destined to do decent (if not exceptional) business: “Batman & Robin,” considered a financial disappointment that briefly killed the franchise off, still made over $200 million. It’s not a surprise that Batman is the hero we most love to see on our movie screens.

Why do we say “like,” like, all the time?
In defense of the supremely useful and unfairly maligned word.
There is a word that is the bane of existence for English teachers, parents, and podcast listeners everywhere: “like.” This week on Explain It to Me, we answer a pressing question for our listener, Allison: “Why do I use the word ‘like’ so much?”
Allison is a college junior, and with graduation on the horizon, she wants to sound more mature before she enters the workforce. “When I’ve been in internship interviews or job interviews, I do my best to speak more eloquently,” she said. “Why do I say “like’ so often?”

What Are People Saying About the New Sally Rooney Book?
“Intermezzo,” the Irish novelist’s fourth novel, is one of this fall’s most anticipated books.
Seven years into her writing career, a new book by Sally Rooney is all but guaranteed to be an event.
Rooney, an Irish novelist, has been hailed as a voice of the millennial generation, a writer who can marshal the economic uncertainty and emotional precarity that haunt young adults into moving, thorny romances that question intimacy and the value of art. Her 2017 debut, “Conversations With Friends,” was followed by “Normal People” in 2019 and “Beautiful World, Where Are You” in 2021.

Orange! Red! Yellow! 5 Colorful Fall Trips to Inspire Your Own
Among our favorite leaf-peeping road trips: A New Hampshire drive that avoids the state’s most crowded spots and a journey on the Blue Ridge Parkway, complete with ideas on where to get out of the car.
The leaves are turning, which means it’s time to get in the car and enjoy one of nature’s greatest shows. One thing that can quickly sap the serenity is inching along in traffic, as several thousand people pick the same leaf-peeping spot that you do.
To inspire you to explore somewhere new this autumn, we’ve rounded up five of our favorite fall adventures from recent years, all with suggestions on some less-visited spots.

Independent Bookstore Owners Share Favorite Banned Books, From The Bluest Eye to The Giver
Local independent bookstores across the U.S. are standing up against book bans by encouraging curiosity (and reading, of course).
In recent years, book bans and challenges have reached unprecedented levels, intensifying the battle for freedom of expression. This year’s Banned Books Week theme, chosen by the American Library Association, is “Freed Between the Lines,” and aims to highlight the crucial role literature plays in preserving rights and resisting censorship.
The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom reported a staggering 65% increase in targeted titles from 2022 to 2023, with 4,240 unique book titles challenged last year alone. Nearly half of these titles represent the experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals, further complicating efforts for readers to connect with these essential and diverse narratives.

Lady Gaga Announces ‘Joker 2’ Album ‘Harlequin’ With 13 Songs
It looks like there will be two Lady Gaga albums in the coming months.
The singer, who announced that she will be dropping the first single from her forthcoming seventh studio album next month, just announced “Harlequin,” a soundtrack album titled to the forthcoming film “Joker :Folie et Deux,” in which she stars with Joaquin Phoenix.
“Harlequin” will be released on Sept. 27 and feature 13 songs. In the lead up to the announcement, Gaga teased fans with posts to Instagram “I’m ready for my interview,” read one post, while another said: “Don’t tell me what to wear.” A third post, which was accompanied by the lone plucking of an acoustic guitar, read: “No duct tape. No mission.” She also teased the album earlier this week with billboards including the number “6.5,” which presumably means that she does not consider this a full Lady Gaga studio album, unlike the forthcoming one that has been written in shorthand “LG7.”

Nicholas Alexander Chavez Tells Javier Bardem How He Became a Monster
25-year-old actor Nicholas Alexander Chavez had never heard of the Menendez murders before his agent him sent him an open call for the role of Lyle Menendez in the new season of Ryan Murphy’s anthology series, Monsters. Lyle is the elder of the two Beverly Hills brothers who brutally murdered their parents with shotguns in their living room, resulting in a messy and sensationalized trial that gripped the country in the ’90s. Living only a mile or so from the real-life Menendez home, Chavez would sit on the front steps during the audition process, hoping the family’s fraught energy would “pour into” him. Evidently, it worked: Chavez got the part and—with his co-star and on-screen brother Cooper Koch—inhabits the family’s generational trauma with chilling command. To mark the series release, he got on a call with Javier Bardem, who plays his on-screen father, Jose. In conversation, the two dissected the explosive and twisted relationship between father and son and how they managed to keep things grounded and playful on set.

What Do Dryer Sheets Do—and Do You Really Need Them?
The what, why, and when of adding dryer sheets to your laundry day routine.
A streamlined laundry routine might not require dryer sheets tossed into the dryer with damp clothes—but just like your favorite conditioner can leave your hair soft, smooth, and smelling fragrant, dryer sheets can offer your clean clothes the same benefits.
Ahead, we spoke to a laundry care expert about how dryer sheets work, what problems they solve, and what types of laundry you should never use them with. We also share some alternatives that do a great job as well.

How to Eat a Pomegranate—Including the Best Way to Open This Magical Fruit
Learn how to enjoy the juicy goodness of this Middle Eastern delight.
Pomegranate season is in full swing. It runs from September through December, so right now it’s important to know how to eat a pomegranate so you can get in on the fun and savor every tangy kernel. For pom novices, this globe-shaped fruit can be intimidating, but once you get past its thick red exterior, juicy pleasures await. To learn more, we caught up with a cookbook author and a fruit expert who shared their deep pomegranate knowledge.

9 Best Mountain Destinations to Live in the U.S. — From Small Towns to Big Cities
In these breathtaking mountain destinations across the U.S., residents can enjoy fresh air, lush views, and endless recreation.
While living by the beach has its pros, our country’s mountains are notoriously scenic, too. The U.S. is home to more than a hundred mountain ranges varying in size and elevation. From the rugged Rocky Mountains dominating the West to the vast Appalachians in the East, the mountainous landscapes offer an exciting lifestyle characterized by natural beauty, culture, a long history, and outdoor recreation year-round.
In recent years, a greater number of Americans have opted to relocate to the mountains for more space and easy access to nature. As a result, certain high-altitude communities like Chattanooga and Colorado Springs, for example, are turning into bustling urban areas with big-city amenities like top-notch dining, excellent schools, and diverse employment opportunities.
So, after chatting with real estate experts across the nation, we rounded up nine of the most attractive mountain destinations to live in the U.S.

[Photo Credit: vientiane.crowneplaza.com]

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