Pop Culture Odds and Ends – The End of Justified

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Last night I said goodbye to another show that I loved when FX’s Justified ended its six season run. Justified was a wonderful little show with great writing and acting that never really got the big audience that it deserved. It created truly memorable characters, plus it proved that no one looks better than Timothy Olyphant in a cowboy hat. I’m sad to see it go, but I’m glad that it went out on its own terms and told the story that it wanted to tell. It seems like this year marks something of a cosmic shift as many shows that I enjoy are ending their run and I haven’t found many new programs to replace them. Don’t worry – I still watch WAY too much TV, but it’s been a real bummer to see so many of my favorite series leave the airways. I’m barely coping with the fact that there are only a handful of new Mad Men episodes left. I’m not good with change.

One thing that you don’t have to worry about is saying goodbye to the pop culture roundup. I was back at it this week, culling the interwebs to find you the latest and greatest from the world of pop culture. Hopefully you’ll find something in this menagerie to entertain or enlighten you.

• Good thing I saw him when I did – Jack White is planning a “final” surprise acoustic tour before a long hiatus.

• HBO has renewed Veep and Silicon Valley. Hooray!

• Less hooray – Veep’s showrunner and creator Armando Iannucci is leaving the show after the 4^th season.

• Uproxx investigates who killed more people on Justified: Boyd Crowder or Raylan Givens?

• Olivia Munn will play Psylocke in X-Men: Apocalypse.

• Cary Fukunaga will direct the event series The Alienist, based on the bestselling novel.

• Get ready for people to lose their minds – Fox is remaking Rocky Horror Picture Show as a two hour TV special.

• Brad Bird has begun writing The Incredibles 2.

• Ian McKellen will play Cogsworth in the live-action Beauty and the Beast.

• Eddie Redmayne is in talks for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

• The new Spider-Man movie won’t be an origin story. #Hallelujah

• Guardians of the Galaxy 2 will be about fatherhood.

• The Avengers play Family Feud:

 

• David Chase breaks down the final scene from The Sopranos.

• Ryan Gosling may star in Guillermo del Toro’s Haunted Mansion.

• James Wan (Furious 7) is in talks to direct Aquaman.

• Emma Stone may star in the film musical La La Land.

• Bill Paxton has joined the cast of BBC’s Grand Theft Auto TV movie.

• Chris Pratt has made up his own lyrics for the Jurassic Park theme song:

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• J.J. Abrams is developing a project about the final year of Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Billy Murray, Tina Fey and Steve Martin will be among Letterman’s last guests.

• The cast of AMC’s Preacher is beginning to take shape.

• HBO’s The Leftovers will relocate to Austin in the new season.

• Michelle MacLaren will no longer direct Wonder Woman. Bummer – she’s awesome.

• Chris Hansen wants to bring back To Catch a Predator with crowdsourcing.

• Passion Pit’s new album is currently streaming on-line.

• MTV is bringing back Celebrity Deathmatch.

• Despite the episode leaking early, the Game of Thrones 5^th season premiere set a new ratings record.

• Jake Gyllenhaal will play Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors at the City Center in New York. I already have tickets.

• Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood will be a TV event series.

• A British college is planning a course on Doctor Who.

• Jimmy Fallon has lip syncing, James Corden has car karaoke:

 

• Corden also pulled this off, which makes me think I need to consider watching this show:

 

• Mumford & Sons are taking their show out on the road.

• A neurological explanation for Game of Throne’s Hodor and his “Hodoring.”

• Some renovations are coming to Sesame Street.

• Christopher Eccleston reveals why he left Doctor Who.

• Katee Sackhoff will star in a new show that she’s creating.

• Inside the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s archaic nominating process.

• Ad-Rock wants a role on The Walking Dead.

• The quest to adapt Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series continues.

• Scarlett Johansson will host SNL on May 2^nd.

• Madonna, Jimmy Fallon and The Roots play “Holiday” on classroom instruments:

 

• Madonna continues her trend of making out with younger performers. This time it was Drake.

• Ice-T and wife Coco are getting a daytime talk show.

• Baz Luhrmann’s new series for Netflix has its cast.

• Amy Poehler’s hair is now red. This is not a drill.

• Wired explores Lord of the Ring’s Legolas and his apparent immunity to gravity.

• The tips for avoiding wiretaps on The Wire were so on point that law enforcement complained.

• Jon Bon Jovi is making a reality show.

• Mama Mia! will close after 14 years on Broadway.

• Battlebots will return June 21^st.

• The Captain Marvel movie will have two female writers.

• McG will direct ABC Family’s Mortal Instruments series.

• The Eric Andre Show has been renewed on Adult Swim.

Time for some trailers……

• Ant Man:

 

• True Detective, season 2:

 

• The Rock’s new HBO series, Ballers:

 

• Joe Dirt 2:

 

• Netflix’s series based on How To Train Your Dragon:

 

• Nerd Prom, a documentary about the White House Correspondents’ Dinner:

 

• George Clooney in Tomorrowland:

 

• MTV’s Scream TV series:

 

• Terminator Genisys:

 

• Jack Black and Tim Robbins in HBO’s The Brink:

 

• The documentary Live From New York!

 

• A new Entourage trailer:

 

• Grace and Frankie:

 

• A new season of Orange is the New Black:

 

• Scream Queens:

 

• Netflix will add audio description tracks for the visually impaired.

• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is getting a spinoff.

• The new Power Rangers movie has found its director.

• The Grateful Dead have added two Bay Area concerts to their grand farewell.

• Boston isn’t necessarily thrilled with Mark Wahlberg’s planned movie about the Boston bombings.

• Cyrus Arnold will play Ben Stiller’s son in Zoolander 2.

• A guy went on Divorce Court and accused his girl of sleeping with the entire Wu-Tang Clan.

• The full list of winners at the MTV Movie Awards.

• This Game of Thrones superfan turned his toilet into the iron throne:

 

• A new Metallica album is “25% done.”

• Boy George is getting into the reality show game.

• The Magic Mike stage musical is still in the works.

• The Simpsons will no longer be released on DVD.

• Chris Harrison will replace Terry Crews as host of Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

• Better Call Saul is the highest rated new cable series.

• Eddie Murphy will receive the 2015 Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

• The Stanley Cup….made out of bacon:

https://instagram.com/p/1bSi5xj3r5/

 

• Alan Turing’s notebook sold for $1 million at auction.

• Burt Reynold’s personal Smokey and the Bandit car is for sale.

• Justin Bieber may (or may not) have been kicked out of Coachella.

• Actress Rita Wilson (wife of Tom Hanks) announced she has breast cancer.

• Tori Spelling reportedly hospitalized after suffering severe burns.

• R.I.P. soul singer Percy Sledge.

• David Arquette got married.

• Beyoncé’s mom also got hitched.

• Nelly was arrested on felony drug charges.

• Taylor Swift’s mother has been diagnosed with cancer.

• Bobby Flay and his wife are separating after ten years.

• Billy Joel is going to be a father again.

• Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen became parents for the third time.

• Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel welcomed baby Silas.

As always, we end with the supercuts and mashups

• A supercut of Mortal Kombat X fatalities:

 

• Game of Thrones characters imagined as Avengers:

 

• This parody imagines if Girls took place in the world of Silicon Valley:

 

• Computer hard drives play “Smells Like Teen Spiri”

 

• George R.R. Martin and Conan present” Lil Thrones”:

 

• And finally, Game of Thrones meets….Goodnight Moon?