Billy Joel opens up about brain disorder diagnosis after cancelling tour dates: ‘My balance sucks'
Speaking to Bill Maher on his Club Random podcast this week, Joel said he felt 'good'.
'They keep referring to what I have as a brain disorder, so it sounds a lot worse than what I'm feeling,' he said. 'I feel fine. My balance sucks. It's like being on a boat.'
Normal pressure hydrocephalus is a condition in which excess cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the brain's ventricles, typically affecting balance and gait, cognitive function and bladder control. It primarily affects people over the age of 60, according to the Hydrocephalus Support Association.
In a statement to his Instagram account in May, Joel said his condition had been 'exacerbated by recent concert performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision and balance'. He said he had cancelled the rest of his tour on medical advice, and was undergoing physical therapy.
Speaking to Maher, the singer said: 'It's not fixed. It's still being worked on.'
Joel said he doesn't know what led to him developing NPH. 'I thought it must be from drinking,' the Piano Man singer said, adding he doesn't drink any more. 'I used to – like a fish.'
Joel hasn't rescheduled his concert dates.
His interview with Maher focused on Billy Joel: And So It Goes, a two-part documentary premiering this week on HBO. Coming in at five hours, the documentary unpacks the Grammy award-winner's extraordinary five-decade career and catalogue of music, which includes the hits Piano Man, Uptown Girl, We Didn't Start the Fire and New York State of Mind.
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The Independent
24 minutes ago
- The Independent
Celebrity birthdays for the week of Aug. 3-9
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Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Melania Trump's fashion favorites: First lady's most and LEAST expensive wardrobe pieces revealed
Long before she became the First Lady, Melania Trump was known around New York for her timeless style - and it's only evolved since she's stepped into the White House. When she first married Donald Trump, she seemed to have a penchant for silky, colorful dresses as she attended some of Manhattan's most exclusive events, like the short, slinky, bright pink dress she Breast Cancer Research Foundation's hot pink party in 2005. But now, times have changed, and Melania seems to be all business, donning elegant dresses and pantsuits, as well as expensive yet elevated accessories. As the First Lady, 55, she's been known to be a fan of certain designers like Dolce & Gabbana, Alexander McQueen and Ralph Lauren. During President Trump's inauguration into his first term in 2017, she donned a powder blue, cashmere dress with a wrap overcoat and matching gloves made by Ralph Lauren. In 2016, she spoke to Elle Magazine about the various challenges of dressing for a campaign, telling the outlet over email that she doesn't find it to be hard at all. 'I don't find it to be challenging,' she said at the time. 'I style myself and choose what to wear based on what I feel good in it.' Now, FEMAIL has rounded up all of Melania's fashion favorites since being in The White House, from most expensive to least expensive. When she first married Donald Trump, she seemed to have a penchant for silky, colorful dresses as she attended some of Manhattan's most exclusive events, like the short, slinky, bright pink dress she Breast Cancer Research Foundation's hot pink party in 2005 MOST EXPENSIVE Hermès Matte Niloticus Crocodile Birkin 25 Black Bag: $50,000 One of, if not the most, expensive pieces in Melania's closet appears to be the Hermès Matte Niloticus Crocodile Birkin 25 in Black. The bag is a rarity, as it's made of one of the brand's most coveted materials: crocodile skin. According to Fashionphile, a high-end consignment boutique, their bags made with crocodile skin typically go for more than three times the traditional leather ones that are for sale. Online, these bags can be priced on secondhand websites for over $100,000. It seems to be a staple in Melania's closet, too, as she has been seen wearing it multiple times over the past few years. She famously sported the purse when she and Trump departed the White House on inauguration day in January 2021, as Joe Biden entered his presidency. Melania paired the bag with a black, knee-length skirt and cropped tweed jacket, along with a pair of black gloves and sky-high black Christian Louboutin heels. It seems to be a staple in Melania's closet, too, as she has been seen wearing it multiple times over the past few years She also wore the bag in 2019, when she and her husband joined then-prime minister Theresa May and her husband Philip for a meeting in London At the time, the couple were headed off to Mar-a-Lago, where they stayed when their days in The White House were over. She also wore the bag in 2019, when she and her husband joined then-prime minister Theresa May and her husband Philip for a meeting in London. She paired it with her favorite Celine trench coat, but it was the bag, which has gold detail on it, that really made a statement. Floral Dolce & Gabbana jacket: $51,500 In 2017, Melania pulled out all the stops as she donned a dramatic coat by Dolce & Gabbana that was covered in silk, 3D floral appliques. Oh, and did we mention that it cost $51,500? According to Business Insider, just purchasing the jacket cost a deposit of $25,750. She wore the colorful jacket while visiting Sicily, Italy, during the 2017 G7 Summit, which convenes leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. She wore the colorful jacket while visiting Sicily, Italy, during the 2017 G7 Summit, which convenes leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States Melania sported the fancy coat, which featured bold red, purple, green, white and blue florals when sightseeing around the city with the other spouses of world leaders. The jacket also featured bedazzled, embroidered flowers on it. She paired the coat with a matching clutch bag that had the same exact florals sewn onto it. At the time, the expensive jacket sparked a lot of controversy, as many pointed out that it was worth more than the monthly salary of many Americans. J. Mendel gown she wore to a 2018 visit to Great Britain: $6,990 During husband Donald Trump's official visit to Britain in 2018, Melania donned a Grecian-style, lemon yellow $6,990 gown by designer to a state dinner at Blenheim Palace. The whimsical gown featured a long, off-the-shoulder cape, and knotted detailing at the waist. It appeared to be made of chiffon, and Melania matched the look with a pair of yellow Manolo Blahnik heels. Per Today, she chose the color yellow in honor of Queen Elizabeth, whose favorite color was reportedly yellow. Of course, she accessorized with her $4 million engagement ring and a pair of sparkling diamond studs in her ears. LEAST EXPENSIVE Controversial 'I really don't care, do u?' jacket from Zara: $39.99 In 2018, Melania made headlines and sparked outrage across the world as she donned a $39 jacket from Zara that read, 'I really don't care, do u?' on its back while on her way to visit children separated from their families at the Mexico border. The jacket was a military-green, army-style jacket, and the crass words were spray painted on the back in white. The first lady's surprise visit to a children's shelter - where a handful of the 55 children it houses had been taken from their parents - was intended to underline her compassion for children, and came after she lobbied Trump to end separations. But instead, it was overshadowed by the former model's choice of jacket. At the time, her husband claimed that the message was really one that was for the 'fake news media.' In 2018, Melania made headlines and sparked outrage across the world as she donned a $39 jacket from Zara that read, 'I really don't care, do u?' on its back while on her way to visit children separated from their families at the Mexico border ''I REALLY DON'T CARE, DO YOU?' written on the back of Melania's jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares,' he tweeted at the time. However, in her 2024 self-titled memoir, Melania, claimed it that the jacket was meant to protest against 'anonymously sourced reporting.' 'I was determined… not to let the media's false narratives affect my mission to help the children and families at the border,' she wrote. 'In fact, I decided to let them know that their criticism would never stop me from doing what I feel is right. To make the point, I wore a particular jacket as I boarded the plane, a jacket that quickly became famous,' she added. Melania recounts how when the plane door closed, her press secretary's inbox was 'flooded with urgent emails from top-tier media outlets regarding the jacket.' 'It's a message for the media,' I said, 'to let them know I was unconcerned with their opinions of me' [but] she told me I couldn't say that. 'Why not? It is the truth.'' Melania wrote about their exchange. 'I disagreed with her insistence that I couldn't say that,' the First Lady wrote. 'Ignoring my comments, she told a CNN reporter she was friendly with that it was simply a jacket, a fashion choice with no underlying message.' The mom-of-one wrote that the frenzy over the jacket 'overshadowed the importance of the children, the border, and the policy change.' She called it 'just another example of the media's irresponsible behavior.' Converse Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers: $50 Although Melania owns her fair share of designer heels, when it's time to get comfy, she's been proven to be a fan of Converse shoes, which typically range from around $50 to $100, depending on the style. She's been known to wear low-top Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars, which typically are priced anywhere from $50 to $60. The First Lady appears to own the sneakers in all different colors, too - white, gray and black. Most recently, she sported a pair of gray Chuck Taylors when she accompanied her husband to Texas to visit devastation from the flash floods. She matched the shoes with a pair of army-green pants and light khaki coat by Dolce and Gabbana. In 2017, she wore her white pair of low-top Converse as she visited those who had been impacted by Hurricane Irma. She paired the shoes with a casual, green button-up shirt and white skinny jeans. FLOTUS hat: $20 In 2017, Melania stepped out in perhaps the least expensive item she's ever worn - a black baseball cap that simply read, 'FLOTUS' on it, short for First Lady of the United States, of course. At the time, she was stepping off of Air Force One with her husband, and paired the hat with a pair of aviator sunglasses and crisp white button down. It's unclear exactly where she bought her hat, but there are now tons of websites that sell extremely similar versions, some for even less than $20. You could even customize your own for $12 on Amazon.
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Take the near-impossible quiz that was used to determine if applicants at Vogue were fit for the job
Vogue magazine is the cream of the crop in the fashion world, and many dream of working at elite publication - but could you have hacked working at Vogue during its prime? Luckily for the fashion forward amongst us there's a way to see how you'd fare working the fashion bible. The New York Times recently released an interactive quiz to determine where your strengths - and weaknesses - lie. As per the Times, to work for famed Vogue editor Anna Wintour in Vogue's glory days, you had to know a little bit of everything. The quiz, which was created by Wintour's top editors, is based on a real exam that was given to those applying for an assistant position at the publication in the '90s. It would test the applicants elite cultural literacy and quiz them on a 'declaration of what mattered to Vogue.' The original '90s exam consisted of a whopping four pages full of 178 notable people, places, books and films - all of which had to be identified on the spot by the applicant. However, The Times' quiz - which you can take here - made it a tad easier than the original, with a multiple-choice format instead. The interactive quiz uses names and cultural references on the original exam - although the publication noted that applicants in the '90s didn't have the luxury of multiple-choice. It consists of eight different sections, with each section focusing on a different area of knowledge - and the results have been mixed. Questions in the quiz are mainly New York focused, for example, you're asked to name a 'Seventh Avenue Fashion House' (DKNY) or a 'See-and-to-be seen disco popular with the fashion crowd' (Studio 54). Eager quiz-takers flocked to the comments section to share their results - with many claiming despite the quiz deeming them a great fit, they still wouldn't have stood a chance in the illustrious Vogue offices of the '90s. '32/32 but as a somewhat short person of color who won't wear heels and will never fit into a size four dress, it could have been 1000/1000 and I still would not have gotten the job,' one user commented. '32/32 so passed the test but I would not have fit in during the '90s - overweight, pimply, leftist, who wore plaid and jeans,' wrote someone else. 'In the early 2000s I was the subject of an article in Vogue for my profession. They used my words and not my picture. I think if Wintour saw what I looked like she would have cancelled the article. '32/32. I had a career In fashion. At my first interview at 23, my soon to be boss asked, "Can you lie and be deceitful?" to which I promptly answered 'yes' and got the job,' recalled someone else, jokingly adding: 'Ah the '80s.' The original '90s exam consisted of four pages full of 178 notable people, places, books and films - all of which had to be identified on the spot by the applicant. Wintour is seen in 2019 Others found the quiz difficult, admitting they 'could not have done it without multiple choice.' The results either informed the quiz taker they didn't pass if they didn't do well, their resume would be kept on file if they scored somewhere in the middle, or, for those who score high enough, they passed. Then '90s era of Vogue has long been a fascination by fashion lovers and culture critics alike, with former British editor-in-chief Edward Enninful declaring that the '90s turned the fashion industry 'upside down.' In 2024, Hulu released a six-part series titled In Vogue: The 90s, which delved into the decade's most defining moments. In 2023, a former assistant of famous editor Wintour, Lily Stav Gildor, 31, shared what it was really like to work for her. Gildor worked as one of three assistants to the Editor-in-Chief of US Vogue from January 2014 to May 2015 and has gone viral on TikTok sharing her experiences at the magazine - and what she learned. Gildor revealed London-born Wintour taught her 'connections are the most important thing.' 'I learned, so so much from her. I learned about business I learned about fashion I learned about media. And in the last year I started my own business as a textile designer and it's still use the information today,' she gushed. Questions in the quiz are mainly New York focused, for example, you have to name a 'See-and-to-be seen disco popular with the fashion crowd' (Studio 54) In her book, Anna: The Biography, author Amy Odel interviewed several of Wintour's former assistants to get the rundown on how a typical day of Wintours' looked Anna's staff reportedly started preparing for her arrival at the officer at 7:30am. One of the interns begins to respond to Anna's emails, listens to her voicemails, writes out messages for her, sets out the daily newspapers, and get Anna's coffee and breakfast, according to Back Row. One of her former assistants, who chose to remain anonymous, compared some of their actual work moments to the movie The Devil Wears Prada. 'Whenever she wasn't in the office, was when you were able to get those things done. Then she'd come into the office. It was very much like in The Devil Wears Prada when they're all like, "She's coming!" the ex-assistant said. 'I was always scrambling to get ready. You're literally putting things away, making sure everything looks great.' The book also claimed that just like in the movie, one former assistant was advised to not go to the restroom until another was present. Wintour first became editor in chief of Vogue in 1988 and is credited with completely transforming the famed fashion magazine. She is also behind making the Met Gala what it is today - a red carpet event attended by the fashion elite, as she handpicks the celebrities and makes sure to greet them personally. In June, Wintour told staffers that she will be stepping down from her role as Vogue's editor-in-chief. She will continue to hold her position as Condé Nast's global chief content officer and global editorial director at Vogue, and the new head of editorial content will report directly to her. As chief content officer, Wintour oversees every brand globally, including Wired, Vanity Fair, GQ, AD, Condé Nast Traveler, Glamour, Bon Appetit, Tatler, World of Interiors and Allure.
