Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
Best known as one of the most famous supermodels of the ’90s, Christy Turlington Burns is the founder of the nonprofit organization Every Mother Counts, which is dedicated to making pregnancy and childbirth safe for mothers. After experiencing childbirth complications herself, she directed the documentary, “No Woman, No Cry.”
As we were walking home from school, I listened as some of the children voiced their opinions as to who should (and should not) have been elected to student council. According to my chatty informants, one little girl’s older sister wrote her speech for her. Another boy’s father re-wrote his. Gleefully, they named names. “How do you know this?” I asked. And the kids said that the winners told them so. (You have to love children’s honesty!)
The combination of slapstick humor and witty banter makes “Running Man” a fun viewing experience, even for those who don’t understand Korean. For instance, there is a recurring game where participants will stand in front of mike stands that are rigged to blast air in their faces if they answer incorrectly. My son, now 8, has no comprehension of what’s being asked, but he will search these episodes out to laugh at the slo-motion expressions on the cast members faces when they are “punished.”
“Doctor Crush” is full of bad characters full of bad intentions: the money-hungry father-son duo trying to take over the hospital; Ji-Hong’s uncle, who steals his inheritance and then dumps him off at an orphanage; Hye-Jung’s father, who abandons her; and even Hye-Jung’s raison d’etre for much of the series: revenge.
An avid traveler, Piper Perabo credits her trips for getting her involved with the International Rescue Committee. “I was working in Istanbul and there were so many Syrian refugees there,” she says. “Until then, it hadn’t hit me how far many of them had walked with their families to try to find safety and work. That was an awakening for me.”
Though Sterling K. Brown has been acting for 15 years, he earned “overnight sensation” status with his Emmy-winning performance as Chris Darden in the FX miniseries, “The People v. O.J. Simpson.” He returns to television in the new NBC series “This Is Us,” which premieres on Sept. 20. The actor also will appear in the films “Marshall” later this year, and, in 2017, M. Night Shyamalan’s “Split.”
This is the time of year many people start planning their winter vacations. If you want to travel out of the country, it’s important to have a valid passport. But, what many people don’t realize is that depending on which country you’d like to visit, your passport may not be “valid.” Confused? I hear you.
Traveling the world is an incredible experience, but San Francisco-based musician Frances England says that there’s also adventure to be found in your own backyard. On her latest CD “Explorer of the World,” the songwriter features songs that include snippets of sounds she recorded when she took walks around her local neighborhoods.
After playing a lycanthrope on “True Blood,” Kelly Overton gets to hunt vampires in the title role of the new Syfy series, “Van Helsing” (which premiers on September 23). Based out of Pasadena, Calif., the actress has also started a jewelry brand called Benevolence LA, where the proceeds go toward charitable causes worldwide.
After spending much of her teenage years working on radio, La La Anthony, in her early 20s, became one of MTV’s veejays, interviewing celebrities such as Brad Pitt, Will Smith and Angelina Jolie. She would go on to write a best-selling book (“The Power Playbook”) and have roles in films (“Two Can Play That Game,” “Baggage Claim,” “You Got Served”). Her latest role is on the Starz series, “Power.”
My husband and kiddo had never visited Abraham Lincoln’s home. The last time I was there was for my 8th grade school field trip. So, we took a road trip to Springfield, Ill., and had a lot of fun exploring and finding great places to eat. We could’ve driven back home, but that would’ve made for a loooongggg and not as fun trip.
George Foreman has many impressive achievements on his resume — world heavyweight boxing champion, gold medalist at the 1968 Olympic Games and entrepreneur (more than 100 million units of his George Foreman grills have sold worldwide). Now the fan favorite is starring in NBC’s new reality series, “Better Late Than Never,” which is a remake of the Korean series, “Grandpas Over Flowers.” Along with Henry Winkler, William Shatner, Terry Bradshaw and Jeff Dye, Foreman travels the world in the fish-out-of-water concept.
Too many people have brushed off Lochte-Gate with, “Boys will be boys.” Which makes me question, just what kind of boys are we raising?
After college, “The Devil Wears Prada” author Lauren Weisberger backpacked around various parts of the world, including Europe, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Thailand, India, Nepal and Hong Kong.
Actor, writer and comedian Marc Maron loves to travel, which is fortunate since he is on the road so much for work. “I don’t get to clubs to hear music as much as I’d like,” says Maron, 52. “But if I have time, I go, because I really do enjoy it. I once got to Ireland a day early and Richard Thompson was playing. I had just had him on my podcast, so it was a fun coincidence. It was pretty exciting to watch him perform, even though I was getting just through my jet-lag.”
The son of a nuclear engineer and a nurse, swimming champion Nathan Adrian grew up in the Seattle area. At five, he began swimming to keep up with his older siblings. Rio marks the third Olympic Games for the 27-year-old champ. Having already won four Olympic medals (three gold and a silver), he is looking forward to helping the United States win a few more.
Becky Sauerbrunn is the co-captain of the U.S. Women’s National Soccer team, which will be competing next month at the Olympics. Asked if she would squeeze in any sightseeing, she said, “There won’t be a lot of time! We play in stadiums all around Brazil and won’t be in Rio until the end of the tournament, if all goes well. If I have some time, however, I would like to see the National Library of Brazil. It’s one of the largest libraries in the world.”
Tyler Hoechlin has played a lycanthrope (“Teen Wolf”) and will portray an author in the upcoming “Fifty Shades of Grey” sequels (“Fifty Shades Darker,” “Fifty Shades Freed”). And later this year, he will appear as Superman in the series, “Supergirl.” But in his latest film, “Everybody Wants Some!!” (now available on DVD and Blu-ray), Hoechlin played a part he knows well: a college baseball player. He played infield at the University of California at Irvine.
Born in Lake Forest, Ill., to Dutch parents, 6-foot-8 inch Matt Grevers swam for Northwestern University and went on to win gold medals at the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing (2008) and London (2012).
Olympic medalist Steve Furniss competed for the United States at the 1972 Olympics in Munich and also in Montreal four years later. A resident of Huntington Beach, California, he is a co-founder of the swimwear line TYR, which earned a place in pop culture by designing the iconic red swimsuits worn by the cast of “Baywatch.” At the Munich Games, Furniss was 19 and excited to be competing in Germany, but horrified to learn about the massacre of the members of the Israeli wrestling team. Now 63, he shares some of his memories of those Games and more.