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Sandra Bernhard has a few choice words for Barbara Walters and her picks for the “10 Most Fascinating People of 2013” special — specifically the stars of “Duck Dynasty.” She believes Babs’ annual show contributes to the dumbing down of our culture.
“I don’t know how much lower we can go when you see Barbara Walters sitting with those toothless morons,” Bernhard told Confidenti@l in an exclusive interview. “Why should we even know about them? Why should we be intrigued by them? I’m not sure where we are headed.”
The brilliant comedian, whose Joe’s Pub show this Thursday through New Year’s Eve is titled “Sandyland,” says her act will give her fans more than the obvious.
Mireya Acierto/Getty Images for Ralph Lauren
Barbara Walters was roasted by Bernhard for her ‘Most Fascinating’ choices.
“Obviously, life keeps on clipping by and I keep grabbing from it, writing it down, my observations and my one-liners, blending it all in with music and fun songs, keeping it fun and upbeat but leaving people with a bit more,” she says.
And she’ll be discussing her celeb pals (and nonpals) in her usual biting way, even touching on young pop stars like Miley Cyrus and their antics.
PHOTOS: MILEY CYRUS SNAPS SHOWER SELFIE
“There might be (Miley references), but not in the way you would expect,” she tells us. “Any comic can say Miley is a slut, she has tattoos and big teeth and her tongue looks dirty. We couldn’t have observed that ourselves? I always try to approach every topic with a different angle and try to bring not only some true, funny, ironic angle but give it some sort of humanity.”
Bernhard, who says she respects Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin , who have kept going for decades, doesn’t understand people now wanting to be famous just for the sake of fame.
“The idea that basically you can have no talent but if you manipulate it long enough you’ll definitely get the attention you’re looking for — and what is that about?” she asked. “If you ask kids now what do you want to be when you grow up, they say famous. For what?” The Chelsea native also gives herself props for her longevity in Hollywood, saying she’s “sort of an icon and a classic.”
“People appreciate me like a Lily Tomlin, a Bette Midler , like a Phyllis Diller, people who have careers their entire life, they’re great entertainers,” she says. “You never want to say that about yourself, but I think I fall under that category in my generation. Just not a lot of people who stay with it and stay creative and fresh, and I think that’s what people admire about me and why I’ve been able to maintain my audience for all these years.”
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
Is Adam Levine (right) really the Sexiest Man Alive? Blake Shelton (left) has some thoughts on that.
BLAKE SHELTON GOES GREEN
Blake Shelton tells us he wants a bundle of money from his country crooner wife, Miranda Lambert , this year. “Cash, I like cash,” he joked to Confidenti@l when we saw him strumming some holiday tunes in Greeley Square in New York recently. He also told us what his best Christmas gift ever to his wife was. “I got her a miniature horse a few years ago,” he said. “It ended up having a baby a few months later.”
PHOTOS: ACM AWARDS 2013: LUKE BRYAN, MIRANDA LAMBERT WIN BIG
Shelton also weighed in on “Voice” colleague Adam Levine being named People’s Sexiest Man Alive. “I think Adam is the biggest goof in the world,” he said. “If people know him how I know him, they wouldn’t think he was sexy at all. They would put him in the Most Irritating Man in the World issue.” Shelton was in town for a good cause, teaming up with the USO Show Troupe and virtual carolers courtesy of J.C. Penney to spread some cheer.
Via Instagram
Mariah Carey, out for a stroll with the dog in Aspen
WE WISH YOU A MARIAH CHRISTMAS
Nothing beats Mariah Carey doing her Christmas thing in Aspen. This year, her annual trek included braving the snow in a red-hot bikini while walking her dog. She posted the Instagram photo on her winter vacation with her 2-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan .
PHOTOS: MARIAH CAREY BRAVES NOW IN BIKINI: CELEBRITY BEACH BODIES
Debra L. Rothenberg
Gilles Marini will host the Catdance Film Festival.
SUNDANCE GLAMOUR PUSSES
Here, kitty, kitty! The Catdance Film Festival is returning to Sundance for the second year in 2014, and will be hosted by “Sex and the City” actor Gilles Marini . The claws come out Jan. 18 when Fresh Step sponsors a screening dedicated to scripted, cat-inspired shorts. The event comes complete with a furry red carpet and the flicks all screened in 3D. Following the mini-movies, guests can vote for their favorite film, with the grand prizewinner receiving $ 50,000 and a golden litter scoop.
Matthew Roberts
Flaming Saddles co-owner and choreographer Jacqui Squatriglia
SADDLING UP FOR THE NEW YEAR
Flaming Saddles, the country-Western gay bar in Hell’s Kitchen, has released the 2014 edition of its popular calendar just in time for Christmas. The hotspot, frequented by Anderson Cooper, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and the cast of “The Book of Mormon,” is owned by straight couple Chris Barnes and Jacqui Squatriglia , who happens to be the original choreographer for Coyote Ugly and choreographs all the dances for her bartenders “We said, ‘You know what? Let’s just open a saloon we’d like to walk into regardless of sexuality,” Squatriglia told us.
WHAT A JOY TO BE A MOB MOM
Talk about an offer you can’t refuse. Former “View” co-host Joy Behar was spotted at the Meatpacking District’s Old Homestead Steakhouse with a group including producer Marc Fiore. Fiore’s Junior Gotti biopic, “Gotti: In the Shadow of My Father,” has been pushed to a 2015 release due to production setbacks, and the role of Gotti matriarch Philomena (Fannie) is still up for grabs, a source tells us. A spywitness says Behar was amused when someone in the group suggested she’d be perfect for the role of John Gotti’s mom.
HOLMES AND HER ALL-GAL HOMIES
Katie Holmes had a last-minute birthday celebration at Tao Downtown in Chelsea on Friday night. “Even thought the place is booked through the New Year, she was able to score a reservation the same day for 10 people at the private lounge upstairs,” a source tells us. “She wanted to bring more people, but only the table for 10 was available.” Holmes arrived at 9 p.m. and was joined by an all-girl crowd, which roasted her throughout the night.
VARVATOS SWEATIN’ TO OLDIES
Designer John Varvatos is known for his rock-’n’-roll-style menswear, but he tells Confidenti@l he’s attended his fair share of traditional “bad sweater” parties. “We’ve all been there before … whether we knew we were at an Ugly Holiday Sweater Party or not,” he joked at his eponymous Bowery store, where he recently rolled out his new Jimi Hendrix-inspired collection just in time for the holidays. It includes no sweaters.
FROM ‘WALL STREET’ TO BAY AREA
“Hangover” star Jamie Chung ran into Confidenti@l in New York and told us all about her holiday plans. “I’m going to see my family in San Francisco,” she said. “The traditional Korean family meal is dumplings, so we’ll all make dumplings together.” Chung was hanging in the Big Apple after premiere of “The Wolf of Wall Street,” where she posed on the red carpet with Orlando Bloom .
