This is not the actual guy, just a cool picture.

Looking to meet one of your favorite country stars?  Probably not a good idea to follow in this Illinois guy’s footsteps.  It seems he saw Reba McEntire getting into her tour bus after a show, and decided it would be a good idea to jump off the second level of a parking structure in order to get to her.  This caused quite a commotion, as you can imagine, even though the guy only sustained minor injuries.  Authorities treated it as a suicide attempt, until the guy told them he was just trying to get to Reba so he could say hi!  Please note that this strategy did NOT work.  I’m not sure how he thought it would play out, but he certainly did not get a meet and greet with Reba out of the deal.

This picture has nothing to do with the story, but I like it because it has a pomeranian in it.

Whoa, really?  You guessed it already?  Wow!  you’re good!  Yes, it’s Reba, whose sit-com (coincidentally called “Reba”…imagine if she didn’t get that part!) had a successful 6 season run.  Reba’s new show will be called “Malibu Country”, and it will be about a rock star wife who is going through a divorce and moves her kids from Nashville to Malibu (not sure why.)  So country girl has to get used to the crazy ways of LA.  Perfect for Reba, who had to do the same thing when she moved her family out to Hollywood for “Reba.”  The pilot for the show will be taped in April for ABC, which means it will probably debut in the fall.

Blake Shelton had a tough choice last night on “The Voice” when he pitted Tyler, the white soul guy with glasses, against Patrick, the hunky country boy, in a “battle round.”  Reba came to his rescue to coach the singers and bring out their best.  Patrick geeked out on her in a really cute way, saying he normally doesn’t get starstruck, then adding under his breath in a line that almost got buried “you’re so pretty!”  When the guys sang Elvis’ “Burning Love”, they were both really great, and while the other judges thought Blake should pick Tyler, he went with the country boy Patrick, below:

A bunch of stuff all wrapped up together:

REBA’S WITH BLAKE:  She’ll be helping him out on upcoming episodes of the already very popular singing show “The Voice.”  Not tonight (9PM, ch during auditions, but in a few weeks when they get to the “battle” part of the show.  Each coach gets to pick a pal to help out, so Blake picked Reba.

SHANIA’S ON OPRAH:  Shania’s got a book out today (“From This Moment On”) and a new TV series that starts on Oprah’s network this Sunday.  So Today she’ll join Oprah (4PM, Ch to give us titillating tidbits that will make us want to read and watch  more.

SARA’S ON TOP:  YAY for Sara Evans.  Her great song “Stronger” has just topped both country music charts.  The comeback is now official. 

KENNY’S ON TOP OF GAGA:  Lady Gaga’s “Little Monsters” tour has been HUGE.  Who could top it?  How ’bout Kenny Chesney?  His “Goin’ Coastal” tour just beat out Gag’s (oops! I meant “Gaga’s”!  that was an honest typo, but I just had to leave it in) tour, grossing $6.5 million in one week.  That’s the highest grossing tour out there, and it’s about a million more than Gaga made.

Seriously!  This is such great news for Reba McEntire.  You might remember that right around the time Reba heard she made it into the Country Music Hall of Fame, she also had to rush to the bedside of her dad, who had a serious stroke.  At the time, she was worried he might never fully understand that she’d made it in, something he’d always wanted for her.  So in the past month or so, Reba says she and her family have literally planned their dad’s funeral about three times, but those plans are now off, because Clark McEntire has made huge strides toward recovery. 

Reba had a great surprise last week when she called her mom to tell her that they were headed to a Grand Am race to watch their son Shelby race.  Reba’s mom put her dad on the phone and he said, ‘Well, does it look like he’s got a chance?’ I almost dropped the phone, and I thought, ‘Well, that’s lucid. He knows what I’m talking about.’ He asked me the question and I said, ‘Well, yeah, daddy. He might have a chance. Yeah. He said, ‘Well, alright, tell him to drive fast but safe, you know, stay safe.’ I said, ‘OK.’ He said, ‘Thanks for calling.’ And mom got on the phone, and she said, ‘What’d you think about that?’ I said, ‘Oh my gosh! Can’t believe it!’  Shelby didn’t fare so well, it turns out…he was in third place but he spun out, so he couldn’t finish the race.  But yay for dad, right?

Congrats to Reba McEntire, who just found out she’s headed to the Country Music Hall of Fame!  It’s a huge honor, and one she deserves, of course, as she’s the biggest female hit-maker in country music.  So this would make it a great week for Reba, if not for the fact that her dad just had a stroke and is now in a coma.  So instead of celebrating, she’s at her dad’s hospital bedside.  She says the timing was rough, but she feels pretty sure that when she told her dad the news, he was still coherent enough to understand it.  So sad!  Like something in one of her songs.

She’s played a single mom, a race car driver, Annie Oakley, and a cow (“Charlotte’s Web”).  So what will Reba do for the video of her fabulous new song, “If I Were a Boy”?  The whole point of the song is that she’s imagining herself as a man, and saying how much better she would treat women.  So will Reba go for it and become a “boy” for the video? I wouldn’t put it past her.  And she says she’s working on it right now, so we’ll know soon enough…

Blake Shelton is going to co-host the ACMs with Reba McEntire this year! Now we all know what to expect from Reba: she shows up, looks great, tells a few jokes and pulls the whole thing off without a hitch. Blake, on the other hand? A little less predictable, to say the least. Will he have been drinking, and if so, what and how much? Will he actually say the lines he’s supposed to say? (I kind of hope not, actually!) Will he keep all of his bodily functions under control? This is why I am now extra excited for the ACMs. Plus, Reba and Blake are super good pals, and so they’ll have great banter. The show airs April 3rd,on CBS (6) by the way.

So here’s a story that only Blake would tell, a story about how he ended up being so close with Reba’s family. Reba’s husband, Narvel Blackstock, is her manager, and his son Brandon is Blake’s manager. How did that happen? When Blake was opening for Rascal Flatts a few years back, Brandon was their tour manager. One of his reponsibilities was to help the guys do their “business” in between the last song in the show and the encore. You know how it is, they play the last song, we all cheer for a minute and then they come back to do more. And if they have to relieve themselves at that point, Brandon is standing by with these milk jugs that they fill up.

So Blake’s backstage, and this guy comes walking up to him with milk jugs full of pee in each hand, saying, “Hey Blake! I want to be your manager!” Blake says he thought he was an idiot, but Brandon was persistent, so he talked Blake into hiring him, even after such a bizarre first impression. And now, Blake is up there at the CMAs thanking Reba and thanking Brandon for all the #1s….songs, that is.

“Turn On The Radio” is Reba’s 59th top ten hit.  Good Lord!  That is quite an accomplishment.  In fact, that keeps her on the top of the heap in that respect.  The closest challenge is from Dolly Parton, who has had 55.  And if you’re assuming that George Strait is the guy with the most top tens, think again.  It’s Eddie Arnold, with 92.  George is creeping up on Eddie, though, with 82 of his own.