Facial Yoga Sweeps Manhattan
Facial Exerciese: Yoga instead of Botox® ?
We at NIPPIES have been doing facial exercises for years - ever since we read that a beauty mogul (was it Estee Lauder? Helena Rubenstein? Not sure!) had been faithfully performing facial exercises, as well as applying her beauty creams, to maintain a youthful visage.
This particular beauty maven failed to illustrate what she did to keep her face so tight. So, even though we were only in our twenties or thirties at the time, we devised a routine of facial exercises. Some we made up, and some we remembered from the days when our grandmother had to fight her way back from the ravaging effects of a stroke which had left her face drooping on one side.
When Mr. Nippies was concerned about his double chin, we at NIPPIES suggested he do the same. He's been preforming "chin lifts" ever since, and his chin is tight and toned!
We truly believe these exercises help maintain a more toned and, therefore, youthful appearance.
So we weren's surprised when we read that a book had been written on the subject, and classes were being offered on the subject of facial Yoga. It't about time! Here is an excerpt from the REUTERS article on the subject:
"At a recent class in Manhattan�s wealthy Upper East Side, yoga instructor Annelise Hagen teaches several facial exercises designed to stretch and tone facial muscles."
For those of you who don't have time to fly, ride or drive into New York City to attend one of these classes, here's some advice: purchase her book:
�The Yoga Face: Eliminate Wrinkles with the Ultimate Natural Facelift.�
Hilary: Health Care a Right and Not a Privilege
Hilary Clinton was an advocate of universal health care back in 1992 when her husband, William Jefferson Clinton, ran for office. It was great for everyone who was burdened with the high cost of supplying their own health care. Why? Because doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, everyone who had been profiting from the high health care premiums suddenly decided to "cool it".
Health care premiums stabilized. Everyone was cost conscious. It was beautiful while it lasted. And then, after a few years of feeling "safe", the health care industry went wild once again. Premiums are now more than 2 1/2 times what they were in 1997 - at least in my family. And to make matters worse, loess is covered and what IS covered comes with a higher deductible AND a larger co-payment. Considering all that, it is safe to say that health care premiums and costs to "consumers" has risen astronomically.
Will Hilary's interest in making sure that all Americans are covered, in seeing health care as a "right and not a privilege", mean that, once again, health care premium costs will stabilize as they did back in the early ninties during the Hilary & Bill Clinton years?
Daer God, we hope so. It is the prayer of EVERYONE who is self-employed, unemployed, without health insurance, etc., that someone will HELP them to achieve security in this part of their life.
Here is what Hilary Clinton had to say about her health care proposal:
"It is long past time that Americans and the richest of all countries realize that health care is a right and not a privilege," Clinton said at a labor forum in Chicago. "And that goes especially for people who work hard every single day."
Here is the link the AP (Associated Press) article by Beth Fouhy:
Hilary Clinton to Offer Health Care Plan
Tammy Faye Never Looked More Beautiful...
We at NIPPIES were sad to see Tammy Faye Messner as she appeared for the final time on Larry King Live on Thursday, July 19th. The hour-long interview had been taped the day before in Missouri. Larry, visibly moved at how shockingly thin and gaunt his old friend had become, was more tender and kind than we've seen him in years.
Tammy looked awful, and yet we at NIPPIES think she never looked more beautiful. What a lady of courage! For those of us who judged her as vain because of her heavy makeup and eyelashes, we were shamed to see how she put aside vanity to appear one last time to say good-bye and wish us all "peace and joy". It was remarkable that despite "constant" terrible pain in her spine and "tummy", Tammy retained her marvelous sense of humor. We at NIPPIES loved it when she kiddingly said she wanted to be remembered for her "eyelashes".
Right alongside Tammy was her husband, Roe Messner. The love shared by those two was obvious. We are happy Tammy had the love and support of such a wonderful man in her final days.
By Friday Tammy had passed on to her reward in Heaven. What a lady. God Bless You, Tammy. We at NIPPIES hope you are finally chomping down on that heavenly hamburger and french fries you talked about on your last visit into our homes.
Should a married man and/or woman meet another for dinner...alone?
A friend of NIPPIES recently cried on our shoulder. Her husband, an entertainer, has cultivated a bevy of female "fans". He calls them regularly and now refers to them as "friends".
This entertainer travels a great deal. His wife, tied to the home with children and pets, cannot. So he has decided to allow himself the luxury of female "friends". Recently the comple came to verbal blows when the wife found out he'd dined, yet again, with a female "friend".
This may sound innocent, but you must remember that this man and his "friend" met because of her obsession with the one of the celebrities he impersonates in his act. She fed his ego and he rewarded her feedings with phone calls. Soon they were calling themselves "friends" and meeting and calling whenever the chance arose - never with the wife present.
The wife began to protest against these "friendships". There were several. The husband denied any wrongdoing, despite the fact that the wife uncovered photos of hugs, phone records of lengthy, late-night conversations (after the Mrs. had gone to bed), and gifts received and sent. Mor importantly, every time this man is away and returns home he is verbally abusive to his wife.
Now, dear NIPPIES readers, we ask you. Is it right for a married man, an entertainer, to meet with, call and dine with "fans" who turn into "friends"?
In the meantime, here are the wise words (from an interview in "Christianity Today") of the Reverend Billy Graham, whose beloved wife Ruth passed away recently...
Interviewer: What safeguards have you taken over the years to protect yourself and maintain personal spiritual purity?
Billy Graham: I decided there were three areas that Satan could attack in--pride, morals, and finances. Over the years I tried to set up safeguards against the dangers of each...
Concerning morals: I'm sure I've been tempted, especially in my younger years. But there has never been anything close to an incident. I took precautions. From the earliest days I've never had a meal alone with a woman other than Ruth, not even in a restaurant. I've never ridden in an automobile alone with a woman. Those kinds of precautions can lead to some misunderstandings. There was a time when Ruth thought I was too cold to women. But I always had this in the back of my mind. There is always the chance of misunderstanding.
(Billy Graham as quoted in an interview published in Christianity Today, Vol. 32, No. 17, Nov. 18, 1988, pp.21-23.)
With Michael Moore's SICKO ripping the cover off the U.S. healthcare industry's dirty little secrets, get ready for the scare tactics...
Michael Moore's expose-documentary on the U.S. healthcare industry is out in theatres, and already the damage-control is well under way by those who feel threatened. Scare tactics are being spun all through the land. The most popular right now? That universal health care will cause our country to import TERRORIST DOCTORS!
Yes, you heard it right. Because of the 9 M.D.s who were involved in the car bombings in Scotland and England, we are being told that the same will occur here if we have universal health care. That those doctors were in the U.K. to cover a shortage of doctors caused by universal health care.
Hasn't anyone ever visited a Veterans' Hospital in the past 30 years?? All you see are foreign doctors!
Come on, guys, come up with something better than that.
The ABC reality show seeks to find out who is the most realistic impostor!
Another new summer replacement show has hit the airwaves!
Every Wednesday you can tune and watch celebrity impersonators compete for a $100,000.00 grand prize. Bring on the expected Elvis Presleys, Madonnas and Chers. But there are quite a few unexpected, and very talented, impersonators on the show, as well.
The show debuted on May 30th, 2007 at 8PM Eastern Standard Time. Our favorite, hands down, was Suzanne LaRusch, the Lucille Ball impersonator who owns, by her own admission, at least $30,000.00 in Lucy costumes. Now that is devotion.
But there is also talent. Watch Suzanne for just a few seconds and you really think you are seeing a reborn I Love Lucy Lucille Ball. Even the hard-boiled judges (comediens Lisa Ann Walter, Elon Gold and Jeffrey Ross) were very impressed with the look, voice and physicality of Ms. LaRusch. The cry, the laugh, the eye movements, and everything that made us love Lucy is all there. "Lucille Ball", who auditioned in Los Angeles, will move into the semi-finals.
The show is fun, but one has to wonder about the qualifications of the judges, who are comediens. Are they really experts on all the celebrities they are judging? One has to wonder... At the very least, they are inconsistent. The criteria for passing into the finals is LOOK, SOUND and ACT. One very talented impressionist did three impressions very well, but didn't look like any of them. Yet others with talent were passed over for an insufficient look. By the way, Jeffrey Ross admittedly wants to be compared to Simon Cowell, but he wants to be mean and funny, not just mean.
The show will run for 10 episodes on Wednesday evenings at 8PM. Tune in for light summer fun. The next few weeks will show the auditions from New York City, Orlando and Las Vegas. Then, we expect, the competition will heat up and the audience will be allowed to vote for their favorites, a la American Idol.
Week One of The Next Best Thing: Who is the Greatest Celebrity Impersonator?
Highlights - Winners - Hollywood - Week #1
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Little Richard - Garry Moore
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Britney Spears
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Captain Jack Sparrow
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George W. Bush - Jim Neeb
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Fonzie
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Celine Dion - Brigitte Valquez
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Marilyn Monroe
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Adam Sandler
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Billy Crystal
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Whoopie Goldberg
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Robin Williams
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Sean Connery
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Angelina Jolie
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Jennifer Aniston
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Sonny Bono
Simon Cowell - Mike Wilson
Dr. Phil McGraw
Cher
Johnny Depp
Frank Sinatra
Bono - U2 - Pavel Sfera
Lucy - Lucille Ball - Suzanne LaRusch
Michael Jackson
Ann Margret
Jack Black
Trace Adkins
Sam Kinnison *
Tom Arnold *
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Al Pacino *
Dolly Parton
David Letterman
Jack Nicholson
Jackie Gleason - Joe Heintzelman
Art Carney - Curtis Buttenheim
Donald Trump
Janet Jackson
Jerry Lewis
Johnny Carson
George Michael
Bill Cosby
Martha Stewart
Tim McGraw - Buck McCoy
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* - Impressions performed by same man - Craig Gass |
If you read this on NIPPIES at a later time and wish to see how the contest turned out, please visit:
THE NEXT BEST THING: WHO IS THE GREATEST CELEBRITY IMPERSONATOR?
August 20, 2007 - Interesting update!
Nothing is sacred here at Nippies, except the sacred.
