Category Archives: Dazzler of the Day

‘The Katie Phang Show’ moves to its new time slot – Saturdays at 12 PM EST on MSNBC starting January 13, and now feels like a fine time to crown Katie Phang as Dazzler of the Day. As a successful trial lawyer, she comes armed with more knowledge than the majority of news hosts these days, and offers a refreshingly honest take on news items, backed by facts and law – something many in the media seem to be dismissing as we teeter on the edge of destroying our democracy. We need voices like hers more than ever. 

What if all this time we’ve been mistaken and the true star of ‘NSync isn’t the currently-problematic Justin Timberlake but actually JC Chasez? It’s worth consideration, especially as Chasez’s under-appreciated 2004 solo effort ‘Schizophrenic’ remains far more interesting and compelling than anything Mr. Timberlake has released in the last five years. For many of us, Chasez was always the heart-throb of the group anyway, and his vocal prowess easily matched (and some might rightfully say surpassed) that of better-known co-singers. In honor of that, and an appreciation post proving that it’s better late than never, JC Chasez earns his first Dazzler of the Day crowning here, and the last one of the year.

Fresh off the fabulous seasonal finale of ‘The Gilded Age’, Ashlie Atkinson earns this Dazzler of the Day for her marvelous portrayal of the maddening Mrs. Fish. Atkinson has somehow taken this charmless character and made her an icon of the current season, especially that glorious ending in the Academy, where her literally pointing out of people leaving was the final crushing blow to Mrs. Astor and all that she represented.

The first few times we glimpsed Mrs. Fish in season one, I found her entirely abhorrent – and to see her odious comments turned on Mrs. Astor was the culmination of two years watching and rooting for Bertha. Credit must go to Atkinson’s dismissive smirks and scintillating side-eye for crafting a character audiences have loved to loathe, then come to enjoy for all her transparent poses. A woman who said the silent parts out loud at such an age was often maligned, and perhaps that’s why she resonates so strongly now. Atkinson has won a rabid and loyal fandom not only for her work on ‘The Gilded Age’ but also films as varied as ‘Another Gay Movie’, ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’, ‘Juanita’, and ‘BlacKkKlansman’, in addition to appearances on ‘Happy!’, ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’, and ‘Impeachment: American Crime Story’. 

Figure skating season is upon us, and one of the rising superstars of the sport is Ilia Malinin, who just made figure skating history when he landed the first quadruple axe in competition and handy won the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. As such, Ilia earns his first Dazzler of the Day, setting the stage for a history-making season to come. 

The Jonas Brothers recently performed in Albany, NY, but I had to miss it, so here’s the next best thing: Joe Jonas as Dazzler of the Day. It comes well after a year following the crowning of his brother Nick as Dazzler of the Day, so I hope that didn’t cause any friction among brothers. Joe has been here before, notably in this scorching underwear post and some of his junk in motion here. Here he merely dazzles, and it’s more than enough.