The daily gossip: April 14, 2020

(Image credit: Presley Ann/Getty Images for TCM)

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1. Alex Trebek is finally writing a memoir
2. Rainn Wilson shares Dwight's advice for how to spend your time in quarantine
3. Bruce Springsteen announces New Jersey coronavirus fundraiser with Jon Bon Jovi, Tony Bennett, and more
4. Rita Wilson describes 'extreme' side effects from COVID-19 drug
5. Billie Eilish adorably failed at fostering a puppy

published 14 April 2020

1. Alex Trebek is finally writing a memoir

Alex Trebek is finally giving us all the answers. After resisting writing a memoir for years, the longtime Jeopardy! host has announced he's working on an autobiography called The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life, set to come out July 21, a day after his 80th birthday. Trebek has been hosting Jeopardy! for more than 30 years, and had batted off the idea of retirement even after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a year ago. The memoir will answer some very pressing questions, including "what prompted him to shave his signature mustache, his insights on legendary players like Ken Jennings and James Holzhauer, and his opinion of Will Ferrell's Saturday Night Live impersonation," Simon & Schuster reports.

In times of great uncertainty, it's only natural to wonder what Dwight from The Office would have advised you to do. Thankfully, actor Rainn Wilson, who last played the assistant regional manager of Dunder Mifflin seven years ago, has some pretty good insight into Dwight's psyche. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Wilson admitted Dwight would have been a huge fan of Netflix's Tiger King (and potentially opened an exotic animal zoo of his own) as well as have "confused the coronavirus with the zombie apocalypse." As such, "Dwight's advice" for what you should do with all your time in quarantine "would all be about working on your self-defense," Wilson said. He added worryingly: "I think there'd be a lot of guns involved."

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Another celebrity fundraiser is on the way, this time headed by the Boss and focused on raising money for — where else? — New Jersey. Bruce Springsteen will be joined by Jon Bon Jovi, Tony Bennett, Jon Stewart, Danny DeVito, Whoopi Goldberg, SZA, Chelsea Handler, Charlie Puth, Kelly Ripa, Chris Rock, and more, with the celebs appearing remotely from their homes on the broadcast, which will air next week on April 22. The event is being referred to as Jersey 4 Jersey. "New Jersey has been hit especially hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and the people of New Jersey have always stepped up during difficult times," Springsteen said on Good Morning America. The Garden State has confirmed more than 60,000 COVID-19 cases so far.

Rita Wilson and her husband, Tom Hanks, are back to feeling "completely normal" after testing positive for COVID-19 more than a month ago. Wilson, though, told CBS This Morning co-host Gayle King on Tuesday that the road to recovery wasn't easy, particularly because of the "extreme" side effects from the experimental COVID-19 drug chloroquine, which is more commonly used as an anti-malarial. "I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo," Wilson recalled. "I could not walk and my muscles felt very weak. I think people have to be very considerate about that drug. We don't know if it's helpful in this case." Thankfully Wilson is doing much better now, and can happily return to her rapping.

Billie Eilish admitted Monday that she has "failed at fostering" and will be adopting the pit bull puppy she'd taken in amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last month, the 18-year-old Grammy winner had shared a photo of herself with two puppies, urging followers that "if you're looking for things to do while we're all stuck at home, foster some babiieesss." On Monday, she joked that "I failed at fostering teehee" and posted a picture of a squishy gray dog, writing, "this little nameless monkey … you are miiiiiiiiiine." Eilish confirmed the other puppy she'd been fostering was also going to a "different forever home" and is "going to live the happiest life." While her new pup remains without a name, might we suggest Bad Guy?

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.