Since lockdowns and social distancing have taken over the world since spring, we've had to become more creative about vacations.
For some people that means going on a camping trip or renting a cabin in the middle of nowhere to escape the city and pretend the world doesn't exist for a while. But for those of us who aren't up for roughing it, there are some options for a different kind of escape.
If you would rather relax in luxury, pretending to be a celebrity, or a character in your favorite movie or TV show, these vacation rentals may be right for you...
The Villa Sophia - Los Angeles
This 1920s home, built in the style of an Italian Villa, has been featured in numerous TV shows, movies, music videos, and commercials. But perhaps it's most recognizable role was as the paradise where agent Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) and his wife Melissa escape in the finale of HBO's Entourage. And you can rent a slice of that same paradise for just $395 per night.
While the palatial main house is not currently for rent, the luxurious poolside guest house includes access to the pool and beautifully landscaped grounds and offers incredible hilltop views of LA. In 2013 LA Weekly called it "the best place to pretend to be a celebrity for a day," and it's hard to imagine spending time in such a beautiful setting without some stardust rubbing off on you.
The Spice Bus - Isle of Wight
Do you remember 1997's Spice World, wherein Girl Power helps Posh Spice to jump the Spice Girls' massive double-decker tour bus over the gap in London's Tower Bridge? No? How dare you!
Situated on the beautiful Isle of Wight off the southern coast of England, the interior of the spice bus has been renovated into a comfortable living space with an appropriately colorful decor. And while International travel might be a scary prospect right now, at least Americans are allowed in England...
The Avengers Cabin - Fairburn, Georgia
In Avengers: Endgame, Tony Stark gives up the superhero life to live in quiet seclusion with his wife and daughter at a lakeside cabin. Of course, that doesn't last, and after he (spoiler) heroically sacrifices himself in the elaborate effort to save the world, his fellow avengers gather at that cabin to pay their respects. And for $800 a night, you and 5 guests can pay your respects too.
Half an hour outside of Atlanta, this beautiful lakefront retreat is the perfect place to cry over the loss of your good friend Robert Downey Jr.
Okay, this one is a fresh addition to Airbnb's offerings. In fact—as Will Smith's listing puts it—it's "The Freshest Los Angeles Mansion Around." That's right, your host while spending the night at this iconic mansion is none other than the man himself—the eponymous Fresh Prince of Bel-Air—Will Smith.
Is it his house? Nope. Did he want to arrange for it to be rented out to some Fresh Prince fans? Yup. And when you're Will Smith, you can kind of just make things happen.
How many vacation rentals do you know of that come with their own hazmat suits? This home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which was featured in season 5 of Breaking Bad might just be the only one. With a Breaking Bad color scheme, a city guide to the show's various filming locations around the city, and enough room for you and 15 of your partners in crime, the house is a steal at just $126 a night.
Best of all, you don't need to worry about bugs, as the space was recently fumigated by Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul.
In Season 5 of Lena Dunham's Girls Shoshanna escapes New York to an unbelievably adorable Tokyo apartment. But it turns out that colorful, geometric dreamland is a real place that you and a friend can escape to for $229 a night... assuming Japan ever opens its borders to Americans again. In the Mitaka area of Tokyo, the small apartment is in a complex of similarly whimsical architecture.
Fields House - South Wales
Officially listed as a historic building in the UK, the luxurious Fields House in South Wales was built in the 1860s, and has room for up to 10 guests for $516 a night. But if you're a fan of BBC's Sherlock, you'll want to make sure you end up in the master bedroom. If you do, you might just recognize it as the beautifully appointed apartment where Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock had a battle of wits with Irene Adler in Scandal in Belgravia.
The house was also featured in the 2012 Doctor Who Christmas special, which makes sense, as the elegant decor is enough to convince you that you've traveled to a different era.
So if just watching TV and movies isn't enough of an escape anymore, now you have the option of stepping through the screen and into your next vacation.
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson attending the 77th Golden Globe Awards Arrivals at The Beverly Hilton, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Photo by Hahn Lionel/ABACA/Shutterstock
When the coronavirus first began to sweep the world in early 2020, few could imagine that in November we'd still be fully immersed in it, living in a world ravaged by fire, disease, and chronic governmental ineptitude.
Today the United States has reported more than 250,000 COVID-19 deaths, and that number shows no sign of decreasing. The virus has spared no one and nothing, and Hollywood and the entertainment industries were hard-hit, with even some of the world's largest and wealthiest stars relegated to their beds, forced to turn to Instagram for sympathy and updates.
Here are some of the most famous people to confess that they received a positive COVID-19 test. It's likely that many other famous people had the virus and either were never diagnosed or chose not to share their stories. The list also doesn't begin to cover the tragedy of all those who died from the virus, or the agony felt by those whose lives were torn apart by the pandemic and other crises in 2020.
But even these few stories are testimonials to a virus that proved itself to be far more powerful than mankind's most renowned figures. And, if the fact that Tom Hanks is still isolating is any proof, it's not over yet.
Tom Hanks and his wife Rita were diagnosed with COVID-19 during the early days of the virus. Their revelation, posted on March 11th, shocked the world and made many people realize just how serious the pandemic—then still in its first stages—actually was.
Now, Hanks is isolating in Australia six months after his diagnosis after returning to continue filming an Elvis biopic, directed by Baz Luhrmann. His arrival has prompted a discussion about re-infection rates and whether people need to re-quarantine after they have the virus.
Elba and his wife, Sabrina, both tested positive for "very mild," asymptomatic strains of coronavirus in March and have since fortunately recovered. The pair self-isolated in New Mexico, where Idris had been filming a movie, before returning to London in May.
The Bachelor star and former NFL player was diagnosed with coronavirus in March. "The last few days were rougher than I expected," he wrote of his experiences with the virus. "The most prominent symptoms are my cough, night sweats and shortness of breathe. Breathing is challenging, the best way to describe it is feeling like I only have access to 20% of my lungs."
"I'm hopeful that they are starting to work! This morning was the first time that I've felt any real type of improvement since the beginning of this," he wrote in a post. "I'm hopeful that I've turned the corner and will be back to 100% soon. We are very lucky that all of this was manageable at home after getting the proper medicine."
Underwood isolated on the third floor of his girlfriend Cassie Randolph's house in Huntington Beach. "I'm on the third story of the Randolph's home, isolated from the rest of the family (The Health Department called and spoke to both Cassie's mom and me to make sure we understood timing and what to do)," he said. "When they make food they make an extra plate and drop it off and have been checking on me regularly to make sure I am comfortable and breathing! They have been amazing and have been taking great care of me."
(Underwood has healed from COVID-19, presumably, but he and Randolph soon split and she just filed a restraining order against him, so clearly things went wrong somewhere).
Broadway's Aaron Tveit was starring in a production of Moulin Rouge when he began suffering from flu-like symptoms, but he and the show's cast still took precautions, canceling meet-and-greets and not allowing fans backstage. This was back in early March when confusing reports of COVID-19 were just beginning to flood in. Then Broadway went dark on March 12th, and Tveit received a COVID-19 test that confirmed he had the virus.
"I felt lethargic," Tveit said of his symptoms in April. "I never had the shortness of breath or fever that people were talking about. But then, very interestingly, I completely lost my sense of smell and taste."
"I wanted to put forward that this is such a serious thing. You could not have a fever, you could not have a shortness of breath, you could not have this dry cough, and you could still be positive. I wanted to share my experience and say this is very serious. You have to pay attention to this right now."
Tveit also expressed cautious optimism about Broadway's return, which feels a bit gut-wrenching given that he was interviewed in April and it is now September and Broadway remains closed. "Everything is a question: When? What? How? For the Broadway community specifically, I think everybody just feels unsure. There are shows that have just opened and yet to open that are hanging in the balance. We don't know when we will be going to work. Will people be interested in coming?" he said. Broadway shows are set to reopen in 2021.
Rapper Slim Thug was diagnosed with the coronavirus in March. "I wasn't outside clubbing or doing something extra. Everything I was doing was essential. I did get a haircut. I must have caught the spray," he said. "Outside of that, I went to get something to eat. I stayed in my truck, I never got out of my truck."
He had some choice words for those ignoring pandemic advice: "They sound like people who want the coronavirus," he said. "If you want it, that's how you should move. If you don't want it, you should stay home and stay out the way.
6. Jackson Browne
71-year-old Jackson Browne announced that he had coronavirus on March 24th in an interview with Rolling Stone. Fortunately, despite being in an at-risk age group, Browne's case wasn't too severe. "My symptoms are really pretty mild, so I don't require any kind of medication and certainly not hospitalization or anything like that," he said.
Browne suspected he contracted the virus at March's Love Rocks NYC concert, which featured Cyndi Lauper, Dave Matthews, Warren Haynes, Susan Tedeschi, and Derek Trucks performing at the Beacon Theatre. While crowds weren't invited to the show, Browne still suspects he may have contracted the virus from crew members or other performers.
Alyssa Milano has been suffering from an extremely prolonged version of coronavirus, which has lasted for months months. On April 2 she shared a photo of herself in an oxygen mask with the caption, "This was me on April 2 after being sick for two weeks. I had never been this kind of sick."
"It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest," she added. "I couldn't breathe. I couldn't keep food in me. I lost 9 pounds (4kg) in two weeks. I was confused. Low-grade fever. And the headaches were horrible." Despite her symptoms, Milano apparently tested negative twice for the virus, and she cited this as an example of the US's very flawed testing systems.
In September, she gave fans a long update about her condition, saying she was "starting to physically feel better," though she's still having heart palpitations and some other symptoms.
8. Pink
Singer Pink had a terrifying experience in the early days of COVID-19, which also affected her 3-year-old son, Jameson. "We have been really, really sick. My 3-year-old, Jameson, has had the worst of it. I've had many nights where I've cried and I've never prayed more in my life," she said on Instagram.
"It was terrifying at one point," Pink later told Ellen over video chat. "I've had really, really bad asthma to the point where sometimes I end up in the hospital. I woke up in the middle of the night and I couldn't breathe. I needed my nebulizer for the first time in 30 years. I couldn't function without it. That's when I started to get really scared."
Pink has also donated $1 million to healthcare workers on the frontlines during the pandemic.
The Rock, his wife Lauren, and his two daughters Jasmine and Tiana all contracted the coronavirus in early September. The Rock, who is the world's highest paid actor, confirmed this in a September 3rd Instagram video. The diagnosis was a "a kick in the gut," the actor said, as his family was "disciplined" in following safety protocols.
Fortunately, the actor's daughters only suffered from sore throats for a few days before bouncing back to normal, though Johnson and his wife apparently had a rougher go. "I can tell you that this has been one of the most challenging and difficult things we have ever had to endure as a family," Johnson said. Yes, COVID-19 can level even The Rock.
The singer-songwriter and Waitress creator shared her experience with COVID-19 in an instagram story posted in early April. "I had it, just so you know. I'm fully recovered, just so you know," she wrote. "And I am just thinking about all the people who are walking through this really tricky time and sending a lot of love and just being really grateful for every easy breath and every day that I get to be walking around. I'm really quiet right now and will probably continue to be quiet, just sort of taking all of this in and having a lot of feelings, as I do."
Later, Bareilles shared more details about her experiences. "You really have to listen to your body, rest and pay close attention if you're having any respiratory issues," she told People Magazine. "But it was scary because you're waiting for it to get worse the whole time. So I can understand why it's a really panic-ridden time for so many people."
11. Sturgill Simpson
The musician started experiencing coronavirus symptoms on March 13 but was unable to get tested until a month later. "They pulled the plug on our tour March 12 and I returned home. This photo was taken at 9am on March 13th when my wife took me to our local hospital ER due to chest pains, fever, and pre-stroke blood pressure levels," he said in a caption on a photo he took in a hospital bed.
]"I spent an hour listening to a (highly condescending) Doctor refuse to test me because I 'did not fit testing criteria' and tell me why it was impossible that I had contracted the virus due to its extreme rarity and that it was not in western Europe yet during that same period (which we now know is incorrect) even though I was told by two nurses that I was the first person their hospital had walk in requesting to be tested...," Simpson added.
"Yesterday on Friday April 10th, after almost one month without any symptoms, I received a call from the Nashville CDC stating that my test resulted in a positive detection for Covid-19," he continued. "My wife (who has been by my side since Europe) tested negative."
Simpson blamed the delay in results on the U.S. government's ineptitude and Trump's refusal to believe in science. "At least our Government appointed task force headed by a man who does not believe in science is against mass testing and we now have a second task force in the works to 'open America back up for business'!" he finished.
The Breaking Bad star was apparently diagnosed with COVID-19 the very first weeks when the virus hit the USA. "We were very fortunate," he said of his and his wife's "mild symptoms." He and his wife, Robin Deaden, only experienced a "couple days of feeling achy" and "a week of severe lethargy."
But he chose to remain quiet because "I didn't think that the world needed another celebrity saying, 'Hey, I had it!' so I just didn't say anything and went about my way," he said.
The world's fastest man, Usain Bolt, announced that he is self-quarantining for COVID-19 on August 24th. Bolt celebrated his 34th birthday in Jamaica with a mask-free party, and though he did not confirm that he had the virus, an official Jamaica's health ministry confirmed that he tested positive.
"Just to be safe I quarantined myself and just taking it easy," the legendary Olympian wrote in a social media post. Confirmed cases in Jamaica have reached 3511, with 40 deaths, and 73 new cases were confirmed on Thursday September 10.
Robert Pattinson was diagnosed with COVID-19 in late August on the set of The Batman. Pattinson, who plays the film's title character, reportedly caught the virus during filming in the UK and is now self-isolating while some production continues on the film.
Everything else is a lie. Yeah. That's right. You most likely believed at least two absurd things without any evidence because I lied to you in a clickbait headline. Be honest with yourself. Did you, for even a second, believe that any of those "facts" were real? If you did, you don't need to feel bad. The goal here isn't to make you feel stupid.
But take a moment to reflect. What if one of the "facts" I stated was so incendiary that it would make any rational person angry? What if I believed it was true, too, and instead of stating it as part of a dumb Internet article, I spread it around on social media demanding action. If you believed anything I said was true, then congratulations, you're BS detector is bad enough that you're susceptible to social media mob mentality, quite possibly targeting people who didn't actually do anything wrong.
Your opinion isn't a fact, and facts aren't up for debate. Triple-factcheck everything you read online, and make sure those sources are reliable; that's why reliable articles provide links and give accurate sources. Don't believe random accounts on Twitter or Instagram, don't believe every YouTuber, and don't believe every talking head, either. Stop being a sheep.
New York City (the superior city) beat out Hollywood last night—proving theater is superior entertainment. Rachel Chavkin, the only female director on Broadway right now, won Best Direction for Hadestown and made sure no one will forget it. She proclaimed that the lack of diversity in the industry is "not a pipeline issue. It is a failure of imagination by a field whose job is to imagine the way the world could be. So let's do it." Brava.
Rachel Chavkin Wins Best Direction Of A Musical At The 2019 Tony Awardswww.youtube.com
Hadestown Awareness
Speaking of Hadestown, the show's 14 nominations resulted in 5 wins and exposure for those who had yet to hear about the phenomenal show. The performance of "Wait for Me" piqued the interest of many who had never seen something like it before. Let's just say ticket sales are now booming.
The Cast Of Hadestown Performs "Wait For Me" At The 2019 Tony Awardswww.youtube.com
A Taylor Mac Appearance
His outfit alone was delightful enough to be a marvelous moment, but Mac outdid himself. Mac introduced his play, Gary, A Sequel to Titus Andronicus, lighting up the room with a smile while explaining the horrifying premise.
Playwright Taylor Mac Shines As He Describes Gary: A Sequel To Titus Andronicus At The 2019 Tony …www.youtube.com
Elaine May is Marvelous
The six decade career-actress spoke humbly, noting, "I've never won a nomination for acting before." The 87-year-old not only gave away her character's ending in The Waverly Gallery, but cracked a few jokes along the way. The short and sweet speech was a perfect moment for the icon. Bless her.
Elaine May Wins Best Leading Actress In A Play At The 2019 Tony Awardswww.youtube.com
Being Reminded Oklahoma! Is a Great Musical
Oklahoma! is definitely benefitting from the comeback of yeehaw culture. Between Ali Stoker's heartfelt speech and the fun, catchy performance, the cast proved Oklahoma! earned its Best Revival Tony.
Ali Stroker Wins Best Featured Actress In A Musical At The 2019 Tony Awardswww.youtube.com
The Cast Of Oklahoma! Performs "I Cain't Say No/ Oklahoma" At The 2019 Tony Awardswww.youtube.com
Bryan Cranston attends the 'Isle of Dogs' press conference during the 68th Berlinale International Film Festival
Photo by Denis Makarenko (Shutterstock)
Despite being able-bodied, Bryan Cranston was cast as a paralyzed man in The Upside, opposite Kevin Hart.
In the painstakingly cliche film, the 62-year-old portrays a quadriplegic billionaire who hires a comically unqualified ex-con as his caretaker (Hart). It's the Weinstein Company's adaptation of the 2011 French comedy-drama gold mine The Intouchables, which banked on the disparities between two men's race, class, and physical ability to inject humor and moralize with the trite message, "Despite everything, aren't we all the same?"
In fact, we're not. Backlash against Cranston's casting has ranged from decrying Hollywood's ableism to accusing the film of exploiting disabilities as a lazy plot point. While The Upside as a whole has been widely panned by critics as a "cliche-ridden, exploitative mess," Cranston has defended his right to portray a quadriplegic.
"As actors we're asked to play other people," Cranston told the British Press Association. "If I, as a straight, older person, and I'm wealthy, I'm very fortunate, does that mean I can't play a person who is not wealthy? Does that mean I can't play a homosexual?" He added that he's "very aware of the need to expand the opportunities for people with disabilities." But when it comes down to meeting those needs in the entertainment industry versus good business decisions, he said, "I don't know, where does the restriction apply, where is the line for that? I think it is worthy for debate to discuss those issues."
Kevin Hart, who's faced an ongoing backlash against homophobic Tweets from 2011, said that the film's producers were looking for "box office success" when casting the lead roles. Similarly, Cranston simplified his right to play the part as good publicity, saying, "I think being cast in this role as a quadriplegic really came down to a business decision."
That infuriated some members of the disabled community on Twitter. Dominick Evans, a filmmaker, and activist, posted, "So, as a wealthy person he could take economic opportunities away from disabled actors who work an average five days a year?" He also criticized, "[A]s a wheelchair user I could never play Bryan Cranston, so why the hell can he play someone like me?!"
— (@)
Of course, the problem lies in that exact dearth of differently-abled actors. Among Hollywood's general paucity of inclusive representation, casting can't come down to who's actually shared the character's experience as opposed to who's the most talented actor. As one Twitter user responded, "I'd support this if you could find a disabled person with the acting chops of Bryan Cranston." Filmmaker and writer Ryan O'Connell responded, "That's part of the issue. There are disabled actors but no disabled stars and studios don't want to bet on an unknown…"
But the greater problem underlying the poor quality of The Upside and movies like it is the one-note narrative that Hollywood perpetuates for all disabled people. While the film and its French original are "based on a true story," they both employ the identical formula that major studios use in every movie featuring a disabled character. For instance, 2014's You're Not You stars Academy Award Winner Hilary Swank as a sophisticated pianist in advanced stages of ALS who hires an irresponsible and unqualified college student as her caretaker, played by Emmy Rossum (Shameless). Like Cranston and Hart's characters, the two form an unlikely bond; in both films, the rebellious, young caretakers learn how to take responsibility and appreciate their lives while they work to show their disabled employers that life can still be worth living. If you want a version of that same story but with a romantic twist, there's 2016's Me Before You, with Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) filling in the role of an unqualified caretaker learning to love a disabled millionaire (Sam Claflin of The Hunger Games), who prefers to die rather than live a paralyzed life (yes, disabled communities were enraged at this one, as well).
Before taking issue with Bryan Cranston not being paralyzed and yet portraying a paralyzed man, the first order of concern should be with the flat, victimizing stories told about those with disabilities. The Theory of Everything gave a laudable depiction, albeit with a cultural icon to give it story. So did Still Alice, with Julianne Moore portraying a "shockingly accurate" battle with a neurological disease. With The Upside, America shouldn't be mad about Bryan Cranston not being disabled; they should want a better reason for formulaic, one-dimensional plots than "business decisions."
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