Celebrity Scoop – 03/30/2020

LADY GAGA’S DAD DELETES TWEET ASKING PEOPLE TO SUPPORT HIS RESTAURANT WORKERS – (03/30/2020)

Lady Gaga’s dad Joe Germanotta, the owner of the New York City restaurant Joanne Trattoria, asked the public to help support his staff amid the current health crisis.

A GoFundMe page was set up to raise $50,000 to support the staff of the restaurant after 30 employees were laid off. Joe tweeted the link to the page and said, “I’m doing the best I can but we had to close Joanne for the month. Our staff needs some help financial. Any help for our employees will be appreciated.”

The ask was immediately met with criticism online. The tweet has since been deleted and the GoFundMe page has been deactivated.

Before being removed, the GoFundMe page read, “As our doors remain closed longer than anticipated, our staff is finding it increasingly difficult to finance the daily necessities to keep them healthy, like groceries and insurance costs – to say nothing of rent, utilities, and other recurring bills.

“Our goal of $50,000 would cover our typical payroll for approximately 2 weeks, and 100% of the profits would go to our hourly workers to provide those necessary items like food, childcare, and medical expenses.”

Critics immediately noted that his Oscar-winning offspring should be the one he should turn to for help. The singer earned $39.5 million in 2019, according to Forbes.

The MTA recently sought to evict Grand Central’s ArtBird and Whiskey Bar – also owned by Germanotta after giving him two weeks from February 27th to pay $260,000 in rent and fees.

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MARK WAHLBERG & KIM KARDASHIAN LATEST TO DONATE BIG BUCKS TO CORONAVIRUS FIGHT – (03/30/2020)

Celebrities are giving back amid the coronavirus crisis. 

On Friday, Mark Wahlberg announced that his restaurant, Wahlburgers Bar & Restaurant chain, will pay for lunch for Beaumont Hospital workers in Michigan on Saturday.

Kim Kardashian, meanwhile, announced that her shapewear brand SKIMS will donate $1 million to families affected by COVID-19. In a statement, she said: “On Monday, we’re restocking the collection we first launched with, and in doing so, are able to help bring relief to those affected by this pandemic. Our six-month anniversary has fallen in the middle of a global crisis so more than ever, it’s our responsibility to give back and do what we can to help others.”

Previously, she announced that 20% of all profits from the SKIMS Cotton Collection would be donated to Baby2Baby’s coronavirus program. When the brand launched in September of 2019, it sold out its collection within 24 hours and had a waitlist of more than 1 million people. 

Other celebrities who have opened their wallets: Bruno Mars has pledged $1 million to the MGM Resorts Foundation to support MGM employees who have lost their jobs; Angelina Jolie has donated $1 million to No Kid Hungry; Arnold Schwarzenegger donated $1 million to Frontline Responders Fund; Bethenny Frankel has donated $250K in masks for NYC hospitals; James Taylor donated $1 million to Massachusetts General Hospital; Jim Gaffigan has teamed up with the Shake Shack to provide healthcare workers at Mount Sinai Health System a free lunch; Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos has donated $1 million to the New York Governor’s Office; Rihanna has donated $5 million to relief efforts. 

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BBC, NETFLIX MAKE $600K DONATION TO CORONAVIRUS RELIEF FUND: The BBC has promised to donate $612,000 to the COVID-19 Film and TV Emergency Relief Fund. Netflix pledged about $1.2 million to the same cause. BBC director of content Charlotte Moore said: “Freelancers are the lifeblood of our industry, keeping our shows creatively brilliant for all audiences. At times like these it is critical we stand by them. We are proud to contribute to The Film and TV Charity, to support our industry’s freelance community during these unprecedented times.”

NBC DEBUTS PSA CAMPAIGN: NBC’s Today show unveiled a new NBC PSA The More You Know, featuring Kelly Clarkson, Andy Cohen, Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen and others on how to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The dozen + spots will roll out over the next few weeks. 

CHINA CLOSES THEATERS AGAIN: China is re-closing all of its cinemas nationwide as it continues to battle coronavirus, Deadline reports. This comes as bad news for the industry, which hoped that the slow re-opening of theaters would continue. Last weekend, 500 were opened again, with the hope of others following suit. 

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