Latest news with #HarrietTubman:LiveinConcert
CBC
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Bob the Drag Queen says if he wrote a memoir, 'it would be a bad book'
Social Sharing When Bob the Drag Queen landed his debut book deal, his publisher asked him if he wanted to write a memoir. After all, most celebrities choose to write about themselves for their first foray into publishing. But Bob had something different in mind. Instead of writing a memoir, he wanted to write a novel about Harriet Tubman. "People think that my life is way more interesting than it is, but I'm not doing anything crazy," he tells Q 's Tom Power in an interview. "I'm a very indoor-type person. And I know people are like, 'No, it'd be great!' I'm telling you, it would be a bad book. Just trust me, I know my life better than anyone else knows my life. The book would not be interesting. It would be a very boring book — it'd be a book about writing this book." WATCH | Bob the Drag Queen's full interview with Tom Power: Bob's debut novel, Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert, imagines the famed abolitionist in the present day as she sets out to make a hip-hop album and live show about her life. He originally conceived the idea as a play before turning it into a novel. Last month, he also released a song called Queen of the Underground, which accompanies the book. "When I announced the title, a lot of people thought it was a bit — that I was lying, it was a joke," he says. "The title does sound quite absurd and it is intentionally absurd, but people just didn't believe that I was actually writing a book about this specific storyline." While no one in Bob's close circle thought the project was a joke, online critics and people who only know him from RuPaul's Drag Race told him he should stay in his lane and "stick to wearing dresses," as he recalls. "I think a lot of people don't really imagine people with multitudes, and I do have multitudes," Bob says. "I am a comedian, I am a drag queen, but I also am, apparently, a New York Times bestselling author, too." WATCH | Official lyric video for Queen of the Underground: The full interview with Bob the Drag Queen is available on our YouTube channel and on . He also talks about how he knew he'd win Drag Race and why he wants you to stop asking him to read you. Listen and follow wherever you get your podcasts. Interview with Bob the Drag Queen produced by Vanessa Nigro.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gayle King's journey into space aboard Bezos' Blue Origin won't help ‘CBS Mornings' ratings —as they sink to record lows: sources
'CBS Mornings' anchor Gayle King will blast off into space Monday – as the show's ratings sink to record lows. The ratings stunt — in which King will take an 11-minute ride into orbit along with pop star Katy Perry and Lauren Sanchez, aboard her fiance Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin vessel — will do little to boost viewership because the show needs a major overhaul of its woke programming and lackluster anchors, industry experts told The Post. 'CBS Mornings' drew fewer than 2 million total viewers in each of the last two weeks of March, according to the most recent Nielsen ratings – falling farther behind rivals 'GMA' and 'Today.' Those shows pulled in 2.8 million and 2.6 million total viewers, respectively. In 2017, when King co-hosted the show alongside anchors Charlie Rose and Norah O'Donnell, the perennially last-place program racked up an average of 3.6 million total viewers per week and was narrowing the gap on its rivals. Ratings have fallen across the board over the past decade, but industry insiders pin part of the blame for the dramatic decline at 'CBS Mornings' on the show's 'light' and 'alienating' programming. One of the sources pointed to a March 26 interview with 'RuPaul's Drag Race' winner Bob the Drag Queen, who was publicizing his first novel, 'Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert,' which the morning show's website described as a 'gender-bending story where the historic icon appears in modern-day America to tell her story through a hip-hop album.' 'That's not what people want to watch. I don't think if you're programming for your audience you do things like that,' the person said. 'It's become a niche New York show.' Just as problematic is the lack of chemistry between King — who signed a one-year contract extension last year — and current co-anchors Nate Burleson and Tony Dokoupil, sources said. Burleson, a former NFL player, 'doesn't have gravitas in news reporting' and Dokoupil comes off as 'smug,' said a former morning show producer, likening them to 'sidekicks.' 'CBS needs someone who's an equal to Gayle. Neither of those two do that,' the source added. A second source called Dokoupil 'bland as a piece of white bread,' despite his fiery interview with Ta-Nehisi Coates in October, in which he grilled the author over his pro-Palestinian framing of Hamas' war with Israel. The source said the exchange showed Dokoupil's passion and personality – which he rarely reveals on air. A CBS insider refuted the criticism, saying: 'Our team has the best chemistry in the mornings – on and off the air, period.' CBS News did not respond to requests for comment. Last month, CBS brass took a step in trying to remedy the ratings freefall, naming veteran morning show producer Tom Cibrowski as president of CBS News. The former ABC News exec, who oversaw 'GMA' during one of its most successful eras, has already made an impression on 'CBS Mornings' staffers, a source with knowledge told The Post. During his first week, Cibrowski came to the set at 6 a.m. and introduced himself to the crew, holding meetings with producers, including Thomas, who was said to be 'ecstatic' about working with 'someone who knows what he is doing,' the source said. Still, he has his work cut out for him amid budget cuts at the network as CBS parent Paramount looks to close its stalled merger with Skydance Media. 'They have no money to hire new, good people, but Tom can change the quality of the work and the story selection,' the source said. In the meantime, the show will turn its attention to live coverage of King's foray into space, though execs shouldn't expect earth-shattering ratings, another media observer told The Post. 'It's a stunt. Why tune into the show? What are you going to miss?' the source said. A second source quipped: 'Lauren Sánchez's best assets will be covered up in a spacesuit.'
