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Morgan Freeman stars in new COVID-19 vaccine PSA: "If you trust me, you’ll get the vaccine"

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ABC(LOS ANGELES) — Morgan Freeman is using his signature voice in a powerful new PSA promoting the COVID-19 vaccine.

The actor teamed with the Creative Coalition on Monday in hopes of easing people’s concerns about the vaccine.  In addition, Morgan, 83, furthers that getting vaccine is the right thing to do because it will make the world safer.

And who could argue with the voice of God (at least in the movies Bruce Almighty and its sequel Evan Almighty)?

Morgan, who’s seated in his library as gentle music swells in the background, starts by declaring that he is not a scientist, but expresses why he strongly supports getting the vaccine.

“I’m not a doctor, but I trust science. And I’m told that, for some reason, people trust me,” the Oscar winner declares. “So here I am to say I trust science and I got the vaccine. If you trust me, you’ll get the vaccine.”

Morgan takes his PSA a step further by encouraging others to think about protecting others against the infectious COVID-19 virus.

“In math, it’s called the distributive property. In people, it’s called taking care of one another,” he implores. “Get the vaccine. Help make our world a safe place for us to enjoy ourselves again. Please.”

The PSA ends by reminding viewers that “This is your shot.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID Data Tracker, nearly 170,000,000 vaccine doses have been administered across the U.S.

As of Monday, nearly 20 percent of the entire U.S. population — or roughly 62 million people — has been fully vaccinated while a little over 32 percent of the nation has obtained at least one dose.

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Aaron Rodgers salutes Alex Trebek during 'Jeopardy!' guest hosting debut

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Jeopardy! Productions/©2021 Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.(LOS ANGELES) — NFL star Aaron Rodgers kicked off his first week of guest hosting Jeopardy! and, before he could challenge the contestants to start answering questions, took a moment to honor his hero, Alex Trebek.

The 37-year-old Green Bay Packers quarterback introduced himself on the show “As a lifelong fan of Jeopardy!” and expressed “it is an incredible honor to guest host.”

Rodgers not only is a dedicated fan of the game show, he also won Celebrity Jeopardy! in 2015 — an experience he says he will cherish forever.

“Now, I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of amazing things, but winning Celebrity Jeopardy! and getting to share the stage with the legend Alex Trebek is something I will never forget,” the athlete continued. “Alex was such a gentleman. So smart, so precise, I was in awe.”

Rodgers promised he will “work hard to honor his legacy.”

His debut episode also ended on a memorable note when one contestant opted to tease the quarterback instead of jotting down the correct response in Final Jeopardy.

Scott, the two-day reigning champion, referenced the controversial decision made by Packers coach Matt LaFleur that fans say handed the NFC Championship to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

LaFleur directed the team to score a late-game field goal from the 8-yard line and, consequentially, Tom Brady regained the ball.

When Rodgers called upon Scott to see if he had the correct response, the poker-faced contestant instead wrote, “Who wanted to kick that field goal?

“That is a great question,” Rodgers chuckled. “It should be correct, but for this game today, that’s incorrect.”

Trebek died November 8 from pancreatic cancer.  Until the game show selects a permanent replacement, celebrity guest hosts will be manning the podium.

Jeopardy! airs at 7 p.m. ET on ABC.

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

"American Idol" recap: Tori Kelly, Jason Aldean, and more join for duets and solos

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ABC/Eric McCandless(LOS ANGELES) — Let the All-star duets and solos continue!

The journey to become the next American Idol continued on Monday night with the second group of 12 from the Top 24 contestants giving their best shot at both a solo and duet performance.

For the duet round, each singer was paired up with an A-list mentor. The mentors on Monday night’s episode were powerhouse singer Tori Kelly, country superstar Jason Aldean, Incubus frontman Brandon Boyd, multi-platinum artist Josh Groban, and Grammy-award winning musicians Jewel and PJ Morton.

While judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan were there to give their expert advise following each performance, only eight of the contestants from each group will move forward in the competition and into the Top 16 — and that decision will be determined by America’s votes. 

Here’s are the performances from Monday night. 

Jason Warrior – 25, Chicago, IL, Music Teacher
Mentor: PJ Morton
Solo: “Call Out My Name” The Weeknd
Duet: “How Deep Is Your Love” Bee Gees

Madison Watkins – 26, Fayetteville, AR, Hair Model
Mentor: Tori Kelly
Solo: “Holy” Justin Bieber
Duet: “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing” Stevie Wonder

Beane – 23, Brighton, MA, Wedding Singer
Mentor: Josh Groban
Solo: “Don’t Start Now” Dua Lipa
Duet: “Angels” Robbie Williams

Hannah Everhart – 17, Canton, MI, High School Student
Mentor: Jason Aldean
Solo: “I Was Wrong” Chris Stapleton
Duet: “She’s Country” Jason Aldean

Mary Jo Young – 19, Cleveland, OH, Real Estate Sales Associate 
Mentor: Jewel
Solo: “Castle On The Hill” Ed Sheeran
Duet: “Foolish Games” Jewel

Chayce Beckham – 24, Apple Valley, CA, Heavy Machine Operator
Mentor: Brandon Boyd
Solo: “Afterglow” Ed Sheeran
Duet: “Drive” Incubus

Colin Jamieson – 22, Boxford, MA, Wedding Singer
Mentor: Tori Kelly
Solo: “Locked Out Of Heaven” Bruno Mars
Duet: “Hollow” Tori Kelly

Liahona Olayan – 17, Wahiawa, HI, High School Student
Mentor: PJ Morton
Solo: “Just Friends” Audrey Mika
Duet: “Say So” PJ Morton featuring JoJo

Ava August – 15, Laguna Niguel, CA, High School Student
Mentor: Josh Groban
Solo: “drivers license” Olivia Rodrigo
Duet: “Both Sides Now” Joni Mitchell

Caleb Kennedy – 16, Roebuck, SC, High School Student
Mentor: Jason Aldean
Solo: “Midnight Rider” The Allman Brothers Band
Duet: “Fly Over States” Jason Aldean

Hunter Metts – 22, Franklin, TN, Software Developer
Mentor: Jewel
Solo: “Chandelier” Sia
Duet: “Who Will Save Your Soul” Jewel

Casey Bishop – 16, Estero, FL, High School Student
Mentor: Brandon Boyd
Solo: “Decode” Paramore
Duet: “Wish You Were Here” Incubus

Find out who America voted into the Top 16 when American Idol returns Sunday, April 11 at 8 p.m. ET.

By Danielle Long
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Report: Pete Davidson and 'Bridgerton' star Phoebe Dynevor are "officially dating"

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LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX © 2020 — NBC/Will Heath(NEW YORK) — The latest piece of Bridgerton-related gossip doesn’t come from the quill of the show’s resident tea-spiller Lady Whistledown, but from the pages of Us magazine: Pete Davidson and the show’s 25-year-old lead Phoebe Dynevor are “officially dating.”

A source tells the magazine, “Pete and Phoebe are still going strong despite not being able to physically spend time together.” 

The 27-year-old SNL star is of course, working and living in New York City, while Dynevor, who plays Daphne Bridgerton, shoots the Netflix show across The Pond. “They keep in touch over text and FaceTime,” the source says. “Right now, they’re just focused on work. …They’re not looking to rush things.”

At least he now has some privacy to FaceTime: Davidson recently revealed during a Zoom call uploaded to TikTok that he finally moved out of the basement of his mother’s Staten Island, New York home and got his own apartment.

Davidson has famously been romantically linked to a slew of famous women, from his former fiancee Ariana Grande to Kate Beckinsale, to Cindy Crawford’s lookalike daughter Kaia Gerber, and Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood‘s Margaret Qualley.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Chrissy Teigen bids goodbye to the word "diet"

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ABC/Tyler Golden(LOS ANGELES) — In another cover feature for the magazine, Chrissy Teigen tells People she’s done with diets. Having been through the “ups and downs” with what she calls “dieting and diet culture,” the 35-year-old former model, mom, and cookbook author has declared her independence.

Chrissy explains, “I’ve spent way too many years counting calories, scheduling way too many workouts and trying to figure out what my term for wellness was for myself.” 

“I’ve thrown all of that out of the window,” she says. “I think now at this point in my life it’s more important for me to enjoy things as they come.”

Now, the wife of John Legend and mom of daughter Luna, 4, and 2-year-old son Miles admits her “workout routine is a little different than in years past. “I know that it’s on the ground playing with my kids, getting out there, going to a park, going to an aquarium, being able to drive around with my kids in the car. That is activity for me and I enjoy doing things like that.”

She adds, “I do love yoga and pilates now but the balance in it is really nice because it’s nice to be able to kill two birds by playing with my kids and getting that activity in, honestly. To me that’s more fun.” She says of her multi-platinum-selling recording artist husband, “John is different, he’s the kind of guy who can go to the gym at like 6, 7 in the morning every single day no matter what but me, no, I try to have fun with it.”

As for eating habits, Chrissy now says she’s equally free. “I eat things when I want them,” she explains. “Because if I don’t my mind personally goes crazy.”  

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.