It's two royal baby covers in a row, and this one includes the lovely picture of the Queen and Doria Ragland with the new parents and the new baby. (I still don't love the name Archie.) No sign of Howard Stern and his new book, which surprises me. In other royal news, Sunday is Harry and Meghan's first wedding anniversary.
What will be on the cover of People this week? I'm back in the guessing game routine this week, here are my guesses:
Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor: The newly arrived royal baby. Last week's cover was finalized before Harry and Meghan's photocall on Wednesday, will People do two royal covers in a row? It's possible. Another possibility is Doria Ragland, Meghan's mother, or a "Fab Four" cover about William, Kate, Harry and Meghan's new mental health initiative Trevor Engelson: Meghan's ex-husband got married yesterday Taron Egerton: Plays Elton John in the new movie "Rocketman," which opens May 31 Avengers: Endgame: $2 billion plus at the box office James Holzhauer: He's killing it on Jeopardy, with more than $1.5 million in winnings Kim Kardashian: Baby #4 was born via surrogate Constance Wu: The Fresh Off The Boat star was not thrilled when her series was renewed; she eventually walked back her comments Peggy Lipton: A star of the original Mod Squad and mother of actress Rashida Jones, Lipton died at 72 Prince Jackson: Michael Jackson's son graduated from college Hannah Brown: The 15th Bachelorette. Her season starts tomorrow night Kennedys: There are several milestone anniversaries happening this summer: July 18 is the 50th anniversary of the Chappaquiddick incident; it's been 25 years since Jackie Onassis died on May 19, 1994, 20 years since John Jr. and Carolyn died in the plane crash on July 16, 1999, and 10 years since Ted Kennedy died of cancer on August 25, 2009. Expect retrospective coverage of all of these events in the next few months, especially the death of John and Carolyn Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss: The twins who did battle with Mark Zuckerberg over the invention of Facebook are featured in a book coming out May 21:
Chris Hughes and/or Mark Zuckerberg: In other Facebook news, founding partner Chris Hughes said that Facebook should be broken up Howard Stern: His new autobiography comes out May 14
Stories that appear on the new issue will be highlighted in green.
Monday morning update. Game of Thrones: Last night was the second-to-last episode; the series finale is this Sunday night. Confession: I've never watched it (I don't have HBO,) but I sure read about it on my Twitter feed last night. Doris Day: She died early this morning at the age of 97. Will she get the full Dead Celebrity treatment? CNN's headline calls her a "Hollywood Legend," but at 97, she's been out of the limelight for decades. My guess? People won't feature her as the main cover story (right now Howard Stern is my bet) but she'll probably get a sidebar headline. Here's some of what I'm seeing on Twitter:
If all dogs go to heaven, surely they’ll be greeting Doris Day right about now. Doris spent a lifetime advocating for animals, long before it was popular. She put her time AND her money where her mouth was. pic.twitter.com/EHNp6aW3jg
Doris Day, the singer and actress whose film dramas, musicals and innocent sex comedies made her a top star in the 1950s and ’60s, has died. She was 97. https://t.co/TQBNDw1CBF
Update #2 on Tuesday morning. Angelina Jolie and/or Michelle Pfeiffer: Their movie, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, doesn't open until October but the trailer has just been released. James Charles and/or Tati Westbrook: An online feud of some kind, and note, for the record, I had never heard of these people until I saw a segment about it on Good Morning, America this morning. Canadian website Flare explains it like this:
Oh how the mighty have fallen. Just a week after walking the carpet at the Met Gala (and making waves for his Insta caption about “influencer representation” *eye roll*), 19-year-old beauty YouTuber James Charles is having a *very* different second Monday in May.
On May 10, fellow YouTuber Tati Westbrook, who *also* happens to be Charles’s former BFF/mentor, posted a 43-minute video explaining her decision to cut ties with the young star. While the duo has been feuding since April, when Charles posted an ad for Sugar Bear Hair Supplements, a direct competitor to Westbrook’s supplement brand, the new video accused Charles of spreading lies about her, being rude AF to other people in the beauty community and making inappropriate comments about hooking up with people who identify as straight. (Read the article here.)
It's hilarious that the stellar product known as Sugar Bear Hair appears to have started it all. Many, many former Bachelor and Bachelorette contestants make Instagram money shilling for Sugar Bear Hair.
Update #3 on Friday morning. See the new cover, featuring Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, here.
I'm still gagging over the name Archie and I'll be curious to see if there's ever an explanation for it, e.g., Meghan's beloved great-grandfather was named Archie. (To be clear, I made that up.) No title either, apparently. Presumably Her Majesty is OK with all this (and FWIW, she looks very chill in the picture) or it wouldn't have happened, so wow. The royal family really is changing.
I love that Meghan's mom Doria Ragland is included in the picture. Imagine what her life has been like recently. Three years ago she was a private yoga teacher and social worker in Los Angeles, with a daughter who was an actress. Now she's at Windsor Castle, not just standing next to The Queen, but related to her, in a my-daughter-is-married-to-your-grandson-and-we-have-a-mutual-descendant kind of way. It's a great story and I love it, even if that descendant has to go through life named Archie.
And one more thing. I've seen reporting that says that when Charles becomes King, Archie will automatically be upgraded to the rank and title of Prince. We'll see.
No need to guess what this week's People cover story will be. I love that Meghan's mom Doria is right there with her; based on the wording of the announcement below it appears that Meghan gave birth at home. It's sweet that Diana's siblings (Jane Fellowes, Sarah McCorquodale and Earl Spencer) were included in the announcement too.
Update: Meghan's father, Thomas Markle, appears to have learned from past mistakes, or maybe he hired a savvy publicist and agreed to follow their guidance, because today he issued a very gracious statement about Meghan's new baby. Note the British spelling of "honour," and he even throws in a God save the Queen, with GOD in all-caps no less. That part's a bit much, but still. He's trying:
In a statement Thomas, 74, who lives 5,500 miles away from Windsor Castle, told The Sun: “I'm delighted to hear that mother and child are doing well.
“I am proud that my new grandson is born into the British royal family and I am sure that he will grow up to serve the crown and the people of Britain with grace, dignity, and honour.
“GOD bless the child and I wish him health and happiness, and my congratulations to my lovely daughter Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry, and GOD save the Queen.” (From a story at British tabloid The Sun; read it here.) Update #2 on Tuesday morning. People published the new cover early, featuring, no surprise, Meghan and her new baby. One nitpick with the headline: why is it "Meghan's Baby Joy"? We saw Harry on camera and he was as joyful as anyone can be. Issue dated May 20, 2019: The Royal Baby Ever since my vacation a couple of weeks ago I've been out of my usual pattern of posting Guessing Game posts and each new cover. To catch us up, here are the two most recent covers: Issue dated May 6, 2019: Jennifer Garner Issue dated May 13, 2019: Hoda Kotb
When I saw this cover pop up at People.com this morning I briefly wondered if someone had posted an old issue by mistake. Joanna Gaines? Again? Really? Blog readers know I just don't get People's obsession with HGTV stars, and Mr. and Mrs. Gaines in particular, but here she is again, front and center. Obviously I didn't anticipate this cover and in fact it was a total strikeout this week, nothing on the Guessing Game list made the cover. Last year's cover had a "Royal Baby Mania" headline and we'll only see more of that when Meghan and Harry's baby arrives in a few weeks.
I'm delighted to see Jamie Lee Curtis in the main cover slot this morning and yes, I had her, along with Meghan and Jackie, on the guessing game list. (I'm a little surprised the Karlie Kloss/Joshua Kushner wedding didn't make it to the cover.) It's rare for People to spotlight 50-something (or older) women, and when they do, they usually use either a picture from decades ago (see Aretha Franklin's tribute cover here,) or some serious photoshopping. This time, as demonstrated by comparing the picture below, which I cut-and-pasted from People.com's home page, with the picture featured on the magazine cover, above, it's photoshopping.
The headline doesn't make clear that Curtis's addiction issue was from decades ago and in fact she's now been sober for nearly 20 years. It also doesn't mention that her new movie, Halloween, had a $77.5 million domestic opening week-end, the biggest ever for a movie starring a woman over the age of 55. (It is mentioned in the teaser article, read it here.)
Curtis was featured once before, in August 1994:
Issue dated August 22, 1994
Last year at this time: Issue dated November 6, 2017
What will be on the cover of People this week? My guesses:
Karlie Kloss: The supermodel married Jared Kushner's brother Harry and Meghan: They're taking Australia by storm, Meghan has cut back on some of her appearances in order to rest, apparently Harry let it slip that he's hoping for a girl Michelle Obama: Her book comes out November 13, I'll probably put her on the list every week until then Selma Blair: Reveals that she has Multiple Sclerosis Chris Carmack and/or Camille Grammer: The Nashville star and the Real Housewives star both got married over the week-end (not to each other) Kennedys: Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of Jackie's marriage to Aristotle Onassis; People frequently runs some kind of Kennedy story in the weeks leading up to November 22 Tiffany Haddish: Her movie Nobody's Fool comes out November 2 Freddie Mercury and Queen: The Queen movie Bohemian Rhapsody also comes out on November 2 Pippa Middleton: Her new baby was born last week Jamie Lee Curtis: Starring in a new Halloween Kim Kardashian: Today, Sunday 10/21, is her 38th birthday Prince Charles: Turning 70 on November 14. Thirty years ago People ran a cover story noting the prince's 40th birthday, and at the time the trouble between Charles and Diana had begun to appear...
Issue dated October 31, 1988
... but staying together and eventually becoming the King and Queen was still considered to be the couple's only possible option. The article discusses the various aspects of Charles's life up to that point, and carefully implies that he might have been unfaithful, but the words "Camilla Parker Bowles" do not appear: [Charles] is deeply attached, for example to Bona Frescobaldi, 47, a wealthy and cultured Italian marchesa, and to Dale ("Kanga") Tryon, 40, the wife of his close friend, banker Anthony, Lord Tryon. Kanga, he once said plaintively, is "the only woman who has ever understood me." Such remarks have provoked torrid speculations--all misleading. "Both the Frescobaldi and Tryon stories are red herrings," says a well-placed observer. If Charles has strayed, say insiders, it's not in those directions. In royal circles, they note, there are many beautiful women who would be available to the prince and who would know how to be discreet. Is Diana aware of such possibilities? "Almost certainly," says a source close to the royal couple, and the situation has caused "strain." ... Has divorce been contemplated? Absolutely not. "Anybody who imagines that it was," writes biographer [Alan] Hamilton, "fails to understand the mores and lifestyle of the English aristocracy."
The article also features a truly ridiculous quote and to this day I wonder if the reporters really believed it, or frankly, if there really was a "friend" who said it. We now know that by October, 1988 not only had Charles resumed his relationship with Camilla, but Diana was passionately entwined with James Hewitt and had almost certainly had a few other boyfriends as well. It was still considered important, however, that she be perceived as the pure, innocent victim:
"Her position as Princess of Wales means more to her than anything else in the world," says a friend. "There's no way she would risk this for a silly fling." (Read the article here.) Monday afternoon update: Amy Schumer. Announces she's pregnant. She is also declining to participate in any Super Bowl ads, in support of Colin Kaepernick. Mena Suvari: Married. Rae Carruth: The former pro football player is released from prison after serving 19 years for arranging the murder of his pregnant girlfriend.
Stories that appear on the cover of the new issue will be highlighted in green.
Wednesday morning update: See the new cover, featuring Jamie Lee Curtis, here.
A post shared by Simon Perry (@sperrypeoplemag) on
No surprise about the cover this week and I even called the headline: Baby Joy! (See the Guessing Game post here.) Also as expected, princess bride Eugenie is downgraded to a sidebar; on the other hand, no sign of new mom Pippa, possibly because no pictures of her with the baby are out yet. So far People.com hasn't posted the large version of the new cover, so for now we'll go with reporter Simon Perry's Instagram post.
Last year at this time: Issue dated October 30, 2017
And one more thing. I just had an intriguing thought. As I mentioned last week, the annual Sexiest Man Alive cover should come out in November. Could new husband/dad-to-be Prince Harry get the title this year? The more I think about it the more I think it's a pretty good possibility. Stay tuned...
What will be on the cover of People this week? My guesses:
Eugenie's wedding: This will almost certainly be the main cover story. Eugenie by herself isn't that important but Harry and Meghan, Will and Kate, George and Charlotte, not to mention the bride's grandmother the Queen, were all in attendance. One request for the editors: Feature George and Charlotte if you must, but please, please come up with something more original than "stole the show." It's been done, done, done. Pippa Middleton: Kate's sister was at the wedding on Friday and she's due to give birth any minute Hope Hicks: At age 29, the former White House staffer has a new, very high level job as the head of PR for Fox Joe Giudice: Will he be deported to Italy when he gets out of prison
next year? Selena Gomez: Some kind of a breakdown Melania: The big 20/20 interview Kanye West: A strange visit to the Oval Office Jamal Khashoggi: The Saudi journalist, who had been living in the U.S. and working for the Washington Post, is now believed to have been killed by the Saudi government at their embassy in Turkey. A strange and disturbing story. Ryan Gosling: His new movie about Neil Armstrong opened yesterday, could he possibly be the sexiest man of 2018? Khloé Kardashian: Is her relationship with Tristan Thompson falling apart? Kane Brown: The country singer got married last night
Sunday morning update: Bristol Palin & Dakota Meyer, and/or Jordan Kimball & Jenna Cooper. Two reality TV couples are in the news right now, at least for people who care about such things. Palin and Meyer finalized their divorce a few weeks ago, but in the delayed reality of Reality TV, their break-up is now being shown on the MTV show Teen Mom OG and they've taken to sniping at each other in real time.
Jordan and Jenna got engaged on the final episode of Bachelor In Paradise, which aired the same day Reality Steve released text messages from Jenna to another man, which appeared to indicate that she doesn't really even like Jordan and she only went on the show to build her business/brand. Jordan publicly ended the relationship, Jenna hired a lawyer, Reality Steve snarked about it on Twitter, etc. Normally I wouldn't put an "Inside Bach Nation" story like this on the Guessing Game list but now I see that Jordan is going to be on Dancing With The Stars tomorrow night, dancing as part of a trio with Grocery Joe. There are many (many) Bach Nation men out there who would would jump at the chance to be back in the national TV spotlight on Dancing. The fact that ABC picked Jordan makes me think we might be hearing more about this soon. From Jordan's Instagram:
Update #2: Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson: They've called off their engagement.
Monday morning, update #3: Meghan is pregnant, wow. Here's the text of the official announcement:
Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Sussex is expecting a baby in the Spring of 2019. Their Royal Highnesses have appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public.
I say wow because this announcement comes just as she and Harry have started their first big international tour, a 16-day slog through Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga. If my memory is correct, Charles and Diana cancelled their first big tour when she got pregnant very soon after their wedding. On the other hand, and as I've said here in the blog before, Meghan is now 37. There's no question she and Harry needed to get on with it. I just thought they'd get the trip out of the way first.
Regardless, congratulations to the happy couple. Two big questions now. Will their child get the title of prince or princess, or will he/she have to make do with lord or lady? (My guess? Prince or princess.) And will this news bump Eugenie's wedding from the main cover story? My guess? Yes.
Tuesday morning, update #4: Princess Kate's sister Pippa gave birth yesterday, a nice tie-in to the royal baby narrative that exploded yesterday morning. (Pippa's not royal, but close enough.) Between this new baby and Meghan's pregnancy, I'm almost certain "Baby Joy" will be the main story on the new cover that comes out tomorrow, with Eugenie's wedding downgraded to a sidebar headline and a small picture. Are the Yorks annoyed that Meghan's baby news, in particular, has stomped all over Eugenie's moment in the spotlight? I've seen some stories that say yes, but after watching the royals for all these years, one thing I've learned is that the hierarchy is clear and unchanging. Meghan and Harry will always be more important than Eugenie, and Will and Kate will always be more important than Meghan and Harry. In truth, Eugenie's wedding got more coverage than I would have expected, given her place in that hierarchy, i.e., 9th in line and falling lower every time the Cambridges or the Sussexes have a baby. (Even big sis Princess Beatrice's kids, if she eventually has any, will slide into the line of succession ahead of Eugenie.) She's also outside the absolute top tier, which consists of Prince Charles, his sons and his grandchildren.
Another possibility is Melissa McCarthy, whose new movie, titled Can You Ever Forgive Me?, comes out Friday.
Stories that appear on the cover will be highlighted in green.
Wednesday morning, update #5: See the new cover, with Meghan front and center and Princess Eugenie on the side, here.
The new royal baby gets the main cover story, no surprise, and People even rushes the cover out a day early. There's a nice picture of the Bushes, too, although the story inside may be sadly out-of-date now that we know the former president is hospitalized in critical condition.
What will be on the cover of People this week? I've been mostly off the grid for a few days and haven't been paying too much attention to pop culture. Right now my best guess is the expanding sexual harassment story. Kensington Palace just confirmed that Kate's baby is due in April, but it comes too late for this week's cover:
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are delighted to confirm they are expecting a baby in April 2018. pic.twitter.com/jOzB1TJMof
Madonna gets the cover this week, along with her four adopted children. As expected, People squeezes in a Royal Baby headline, although at this point, "All The Details" will probably be a pretty short article. I had "Countess" Luann and her divorce on the guessing game list three weeks ago; I'm happy to report that the latest Duggar pregnancy is completely ignored on this cover.
The other big royal news, which is that Harry's girlfriend Meghan Markle is the cover story on the October issue of Vanity Fair, along with a "Yes, we're in love" interview, broke too late for this week's issue of People. For now there's a "10 Biggest Revelations" article at people.com. Here's the Vanity Fair cover:
Last year at this time: Issue dated September 19, 2016
Totally predictable. I thought Sandra Lee, and her boyfriend (the Governor of New York,) might be the main cover story, but apparently editors couldn't resist the cute new picture of George.
Update: I didn't notice it when I first posted this cover, but the tiny little headline just to the right of George's mouth says "Plus! The history of royal kneesocks" Why kneesocks? Remember:
