When was the last time you heard good news about a show on NBC? As previously rumored, Friday Night Lights has just been picked up for a mind-exploding two additional seasons, thanks to the Peacock's deal to share it with DirecTV. So it'll be back this fall (and next!) on DTV with thirteen new episodes, which will air on NBC next January (and January 2010!) for the rest of us. [Ausiello Files/EW]
Trek Two: The primary players behind the Star Trek reboot won’t have to sweat out the box-office returns come May 8: A sequel, bringing back screenwriters Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof (who just co-produced the first one), and producer J.J. Abrams (who directed the first) has already been confirmed. The film is tentatively scheduled for a summer 2011 release. According to Kurtzman, storylines have been discussed but “we are waiting to see how audiences respond next month.” We have a feeling that means Jar Jar Binks won’t be coming back. [Variety]
Reunited:Drew Barrymore has signed on for the romantic comedy Going the Distance opposite Justin Long. The two play a young couple in a long-distance relationship who find out that, you guessed it, long-distance relationships are hard. As suggested by some unfortunate part of our hippocampus, and confirmed by the Internet, yes, these two used to date in real life. [Variety]
Yo, Dre, I Got Something to Say:Ice Cube is all set for the action-comedy Ride Along. Cube stars as a police officer who takes his sister’s upper-crust, white psychiatrist fiancé on an attempted relationship-sabotaging ride along. Ah, another lovely anti-interracial-dating comedy! Also, as far as we can tell, this is the first time O’Shea Jackson has played a cop, so we’d just like to remind him that, once upon a time, Ice Cube would have swarmed on any muthafucka in the blue uniform. [Variety]
Bettany, Man of the Cloth:Paul Bettany is following up the supernatural thriller Legion with horror-Western Priest, which, like Legion, will be directed by Scott Stewart. It sounds like The Searchers but with more bloodsucking: Set in a world where the battle between man and vampire has been raging for centuries, it features Bettany as a warrior priest tracking down a crew of vampires who have kidnapped his niece. Warrior priest?! Can this please be a real thing now? [HR]
I Am Lucy:Lucy Lawless is going back to basics: she’s all set for fantasy series Spartacus: Blood and Sand, from Xena creators Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi. Lawless played Xena from 1995 to 2001, so it’s cool she’s going back to the genre now, because she got to spend all the time in between doing, uh, all those other things she was doing. [Variety]
Make Sure to Pick Them Up Afterward: Rancid has wrapped up its seventh studio album (and first in six years), Let the Dominoes Fall, and will release it June 2 on Hellcat/Epithath. Dominoes was recorded at George Lucas's Skywalker Sound Studio in San Francisco with the band’s latest lineup, featuring relatively new drummer Brandon Steineckert and longtime bounty hunter Boba Fett. [Billboard]
STARTING TODAY
• Elie Tahari samples are up to 85 percent off — handbags are $79 to $249 (originally $498 to $995), shoes are $69 to $79 (originally $228 to $525), and dresses are $79 to $129 (originally $398 to $898). Through 4/4. 510 Fifth Ave., nr. 42nd St. (212-398-2622); T–F (8:30–7:30), S (10–5).
• At Scoop's one-day sale, women's and men's fall merchandise is up to 70 percent at the uptown location only. One day only. 1275 Third Ave., nr. 73rd St. (212-535-5577); 9–9.
• The funky, feminine clothes by Alice + Olivia are over 60 percent off. Party dresses are $139 (originally $295 to $484), skinny pants are $99 (originally $264 to $298), boyfriend blazers are $149 (originally $385 to $440), and shorts are $69 (originally $187 to $231). Through 4/3. 80 W. 40th St., nr. Sixth Ave. (212-840-0887); daily (8–7).
ENDING TODAY
• Save 50 percent on the casual clothing at Skunkfunk. 181 Orchard St., nr. Stanton St. (646-478-7785); T, W, Th, Su (10–8), F, S (10–9).
• Get $20 off your $150 purchase at Msg when you shop the stock of local and international designers like Enshallah, Isola, Mimi Golzer, and Face Too. Msg, 66 Kenmare St., nr. Mott St. (212-334-4032); daily (12–7).
• SophieRoan is closing down shop and putting most of her stock on sale; clothes by Secrets of Charm, Chandi, and more are up to 70 percent off. 117 E. 7th St., nr. First Ave. (212-529-0085); M–S (noon–7), Su (noon–6).
• The Sapphire3 Photo Abrasion Therapy Facial is $180 per session (originally $300) at Sava Spa. Get skin-tone and texture results with just one session. 211 Pinehurst Ave., nr. 187th St. (212-543-0008); M, Th (10–10), T, W (11–8), F (10–7), S (9–5), Su (11–6).
• Get a free manicure (originally $32) or lip waxing (originally $19) when you get a cut-and-color package at Frédéric Fekkai . Receive a complimentary pedicure upgrade (originally $23) when you get a manicure-and-pedicure package. Through 3/31. 712 Fifth Ave., nr. 56th St., fourth fl. (212-753-9500); M–F (8–8), S (8–7), Su (12–7). 394 W. Broadway, nr. Spring St., second fl. (212-888-2600); T, W (10–8), Th, F (10–9), S (9–8).
• Soho's Haven Spa offers discounts on two 60-minute tailored facials; the Remedy Facial is now $85 (originally $110) and the Boot Camp Facial is $110 (originally $175). The latter includes a personalized acid peel. 150 Mercer St., nr. Prince St. (212-343-3515); M–F only (11–7).
STARTING TOMORROW
• The sample sale for Brooklyn duo Hayden-Harnett has current and past collections for 40 to 80 percent off — the Bleecker backpack is $74 (originally $148). Through 4/3. Hayden-Harnett Showroom, 16 W. 36th St., nr. Sixth Ave., Ste. 501 (718-383-4450); daily (11–7).
ENDING TOMORROW
• J. Mendel dresses are 75 to 90 percent off and Tracy Matthews pieces are 50 to 90 percent off. Hudson Hotel, 356 W. 58th St., nr. Eighth Ave., third fl., Hudson Room (212-247-0769); M (noon–7), T (9–7), W (9–5).
The central theme of the human drama Gossip Girl is identity. Each new episode, these deftly drawn characters tackle the central questions of the human condition: Who are they? What is their purpose in the world? And God help them, will they die alone after shitting themselves in a Duane Reade? Well, maybe not that last one. Anyway. In this week's episode, Serena ran into her undermining friend Poppy, who presented her with a philosophical conundrum: If she isn't on the arm of a designer at the Met one day and lazing around the Maldives on a yacht the next, is she really living life? Similarly, we were later given to wonder: If a woman has thousands of dollars worth of hair extensions and doesn't make an effort to groom them, do they really exist? Meanwhile, Jenny struggled to remain true to her Humphrey-ness in the face of peer and adult pressure, and Blair continued to be torn between the happy-go-lucky golden retriever that is Nate and her animal attraction to Chuck, the fun but dangerous pit bull. "He would almost be scary if he wasn't wearing plaid," Dan remarks, of the latter. Wouldn't we all.
And now, how much of this angsting was realistic, and how much was fake? We put it to the sniff test, in our weekly reality index.
Realer Than a Doorman and a Maid's Secret, Forbidden, Eastern European Fling:
• Serena and Blair end up shopping at Via Quodronno on the same morning. We'll buy it. And the chocolate-filled croissant that Jenny's not eating, too, please. Plus 2.
• Blair likens her situation with Nate and Vanessa to the love triangle between Brad, Angelina, and Jennifer Aniston. Plus 1, because every woman in that situation makes that analogy. It's like being a Carrie or a Charlotte. And Plus 4 more for the fact that Blair misidentifies as Angelina when she is clearly Jen, and for the reason why: "On the first trip to Africa, Brad and Angelina's lovemaking was so intense they thought they were being attacked."
• Jenny: "Do you know how many types of jam they have [at Lily's]?" She mentions the jams again, later. We love how Jenny is pretending so hard to be an eater. Later, she waves around a gooey pastry for an entire scene without touching it. Plus 2.
• Rufus: "Look at us — you going to Yale. Jenny might actually make it to 16." Plus 3. Maybe Rufus is paying attention to the jam thing.
• Everyone acts really awkward when Jenny says she doesn't want a big birthday party. Plus 1.
• Poppy changed her hair and it is awful. Plus 3. Her undermining is wonderful, though: "So everything's just the same as when I left then," she says. "Have fun with your little party." Plus 2.
• ERIC IS BACK HOORAY!! Plus 2, because he comes with Jonathan, his hair is improved, and seriously, where have they been hiding him? Not in the closet, certainly.
• Plus 5 for the amazing News at Eleven teaser that said, "Tune in later to find out about the gross thing we found in the ladies' room." Who would tune in for that? Did anyone?
• Dan: "What does Chuck Bass do at 8 in the morning? It's not like you work out."
Chuck: "I do my cardio in the evenings." Plus 1.
• Nate's password has been "soccer" since the fifth grade. Plus 1 for Nate not even adding "09" at the end.
• So, let's get into this Nate thing a little. It's kind of crazy how he turned into a douche in the last episode, just over the course of an afternoon. Let's review: He accepted the internship from his grandfather before telling Vanessa, with whom he had planned a vacation. He then acted like it was her fault she was upset, and like she was trying to hold him back from his family or something, even though it was Vanessa who made him get in touch with them in the first place. Then he maybe sorta cheated on her, didn't call her for a week, and showed up at their breakup meeting with a look on his face like, "Let's get this over with so I can go off and bang someone of my caste." Plus 10. TOTALLY realistic teenage-boy behavior.
• Dorota: "Maybe girl from Brooklyn cry, Mr. Nate nice boy, he wipe tears, he touch her hair, she touch his … not that this ever happen to me." Plus 5. Also, plus 5 for the weird implied flirtation between the maid and Vanya the Russian doorman in the van der Woodsen building that also somehow involves product placement for Ann Coulter's newest book. We don't quite get why Dorota would be a right-wing fanatic, but something about it feels right, and we like that they're developing her character.
• '96 Dom Perignon is fantastic. We've heard. Nice. Plus 2.
• We were going to subtract points for Dan knowing the theme song to The Jeffersons, but upon inspection, episodes are indeed on Hulu. And thank God. Plus 2.
• Penelope: "In the last twenty minutes I've been hit on by two Bronfmans and a gay designer." Plus 2.
• Leigh Lezark and Patrick McMullan would totally be at that party. And Patrick, bless him, would also have no idea what it was for. Plus 4.
• Vanessa: "I came to you because I wanted to do something besides feel sorry for myself, but all it's been has been sleazy platitudes and you staring at my boobs."
Chuck: "I came up with several excellent ideas. You just shot most of them down."
Vanessa: "Yeah, because most of them involved leaking the Chuck-Vanessa sex tape on the Internet."
Chuck: "We don't have to leak the tape if you don't want to." Plus 1 for dialogue (her boobs did look good in that purple halter dress), but minus 1 because, yeah, as if he wouldn't leak the tape.
• Vanessa: "We're not a couple, it's just physical." Plus 2 because who knew V actually knows how to punch guys where it hurts?
• Did anyone else notice that later, Nate did touch Blair's hair, as Dorota predicted he would in an intense situation? Plus 1.
• "All I did was carry the chili and stop a few teenagers from having unprotected sex." Plus 1.
• The extras who played the lame high-schoolers in the party scene really outdid themselves, especially the blonde one working the whitest-ever booty dance. Plus 3. (Though did they bring their own Solo cups?)
• Jenny's text to Gossip Girl reads: "Rager at the VDW!" Plus 1 for the use of rager.
• Serena: "I'm embarrassed to say this, but I think I might be grounded."
Poppy: "Oh, Serena ... no." Plus 1, because as much as we hate her stupid mini-bangs, this actress's delivery is quite good.
• Dorota's face during the conversation about Blair having fun with Nate, and then her subsequent glee at setting up their first kiss, is simply perfect. Plus 3.
• Of course, the gays are loving Hungry Hungry Hippos. Plus 2.
Total: 67
Faker Than An Almost Entirely Need-Blind Admissions University Denying a Prize-Winning Student Author Entrance Over Money
• Wait, the Humphreys came from Brooklyn, had a family breakfast at Lily's, and got to school on time? What time did they have to wake up? Not Brooklyn time, certainly. Minus 3.
• We realize this is a necessary plot device, but Serena would have warned Jenny more than a day in advance about her party. Minus 3.
• You don't get a financial aid "DENIED" letter from Yale. You'd get offers for Stafford loans and other government assistance, at the very least. Minus 2.
• Chuck has a curved spread collar for the first time ever on the show. It's not cute. Minus 3.
• Poppy: "A girl like you should be on the arm of a designer at the Costume Institute ball one night and yachting around the Maldives next." Minus 1, because aw, bless. Like Serena knows what the Maldives are.
•l The Waldorfs repainted their stairwell, and it's not quite right. Minus 2.
• Chuck is always hanging around in Lily's living room in his smoking jacket drinking booze in front of the fire. Don't other people, like, an entire family, live in that apartment? Minus 3, because what if someone wanted to play Hungry Hungry Hippos? And doesn't Lily basically live on that couch, in her enormous pregnant-ness?
• What happened to Serena's hair in this episode? Has she started using Pantene Pro-V Shampoo Plus Conditioner in One or something? Minus 3.
• Why would Blair and Nate look shocked to see Vanessa and Chuck at Jenny's party? Vanessa is a family friend, and Chuck lives there. Also, why would Vanessa and Chuck be shocked to see Nate and Blair? Haven't they noticed that those two are at every party they go to? Minus 5.
• Why do the police come into the building after dispelling the crowd outside? Minus 1.
• It's totally unrealistic that Lily would say that she thought the party Serena put together for Jenny was "delightful" and act like Jenny was at fault for being ungrateful when Jenny had clearly, strenuously objected to having such a party the day before and it was beyond evident that Serena was being a pouty egomaniac. It is, however, realistic that Rufus would sit there like a lump while that conversation was going on, so: Even.
• Gossip Girl: "Cuidado España, here comes el problema." Minus 1, because the website's anonymous author would have made the obvious gender agreement error in her haste.
• It's kind of annoying that Blair has lost all her control in this episode. Minus 1. Someone give her back her headband of power!
• As fun as the setup was, Nate and Blair feel all wrong. And though a drunken hookup between Chuck and Vanessa seems right, the sober morning liaison seems wrong, too. Minus only 1, because at least something new and remotely plausible is going on.
• When Dan calls his superfan we find out that "Scott" is actually Rufus and Lily's adopted son, which means he must have figured that out somehow, despite the fact that his adopted parents told Rufus and Lily he was dead. But wait: Why do Scott's parents pick up his cell phone? Does Scott still live at home? Wouldn't he have been conceived way before Dan and Jenny and therefore be too old? OR: Did all of the drugs Lilly consumed in the eighties mean he was born with flippers and therefore lives in a special pressurized tank upstairs? We can only hope. Until then, Minus 5.
Total: 35
A clear win for reality this week, thanks in part to the lame high-school dancing, Nate's sudden onset of Dickhead Syndrome, and our willingness to overlook things like the fact that Bart just died like five minutes ago and Chuck is supposed to be the head of a multi-billion-dollar company, which everyone seems to have already forgotten. Next week! Fingers crossed for flippers.
AP - Madonna has confirmed her attempts to adopt a young Malawian girl and said through a spokeswoman that she is following standard procedures in adopting the child amid criticism by some that she was using her fame to quicken the process.
Reuters - The Sun-Times Media Group, parent of the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper, filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, earning Chicago the distinction of being the first U.S. city served by two insolvent newspapers. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:10 pm
AP - A nerdy American entomologist hunting for a rare butterfly is the central character of a new film offering the Kremlin's version of the August war with Georgia. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:04 pm
With opening night on Wednesday in San Jose, the E Street Band is ready to rock with Bruce Springsteen. And Little Steven Van Zandt anticipates giving the crowds a healthy dose of the new "Working on a Dream" album.
When the series "ER" airs its finale on Thursday, the event will not only mark the completion of one of NBC's most successful shows, but it can also be viewed as the end of an era for the network.
Radiohead, Arctic Monkeys and Kings of Leon have been confirmed as the headline acts at the U.K.'s twinned Reading and Leeds Festivals. The festivals will held at Little Johns Farm, Reading and Bramham Park, Leeds, over England's August Bank Holiday weekend (Aug. 28-Aug. 30).
The late Academy Award-winning composer Maurice Jarre enjoyed a glittering career composing the scores to many classic films. His fellow composer Alexandre Desplat talked with him about his work.
Academy Award-winning composer Maurice Jarre, who scored movies including "Doctor Zhivago" and "Lawrence of Arabia" among others, died Sunday from cancer in Los Angeles, according to French media.
Reuters - Richard Curtis' new comedy "The Boat That Rocked," about the pirate radio stations that sprang up briefly in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, is like a long, slow cruise where all the fun is in the exotic ports of call but life on board is pretty dull. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 31 Mar 2009 | 5:17 am
Losties, Trekkies and Fringe dwellers, unite!
Paramount is keeping it all in the sci-fi family when it comes to its burgeoning new Star Trek franchise. Per Variety, J.J. Abrams, director...
Front Page: Progress slow for billion-dollar partnership -- The Abu Dhabi-Warner Bros. partnership was unveiled with much fanfare in September 2007, but after 18 months, the billion-dollar multimedia production pact has had so little activity that some onlookers are questioning whether the partnership still exists.
Front Page: Paramount hires trio to pen screenplay -- As Paramount Pictures readies the May 8 release of its "Star Trek" franchise relaunch, the studio is moving forward with a sequel, and has hired Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof to pen the screenplay.
Front Page: Actor set for New Line action comedy -- Ice Cube has set as his next star vehicle "Ride Along," an action comedy that New Line Cinema will put into production this summer.
Reuters - For some, love takes time -- and a willingness to overlook faults, like a penchant for karaoke. For others, love is a passionate, instant connection that drives the besotted to do things like change all the light bulbs at the ball drop in Times Square on New Year's Eve. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:54 am
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Twilight" has quickly become the biggest home-video release of the year, selling 5.6 million units during its first eight days, according to trade... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:47 am
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Friday Night Lights" fans can rejoice: NBC has ordered two more seasons of the critically lauded but ratings-challenged drama series. Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:45 am
Heads Into April with Coachella Show and National TV NEW YORK, March 30 /PRNewswire/ -- New York... Get Get Get your dance on - the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are back back... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:24 am
MCDONOUGH, Ga. - Andre 3000 of the hip hop duo Outkast has been charged with driving 175 kilometres an hour on a highway in suburban Atlanta. Henry County Police Capt. Jason Bolton... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:18 am
(In paragraph 6, deletes reference to "Beowulf" as the last big 3-D Hollywood film and replaces with "Bolt") Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 1:07 am
The current off-Broadway revival of "Hamlet" is modern, streamlined and primarily black and white, but there is plenty of color, as always, in the centuries-old richness of Shakespeare's... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 12:46 am
AP - The current off-Broadway revival of "Hamlet" is modern, streamlined and primarily black and white, but there is plenty of color, as always, in the centuries-old richness of Shakespeare's words.
Drew Barrymore and Justin Long are back together—at least for a movie!
A source tells me that Ms. Barrymore has just signed on to star opposite—yup!—her former...
Front Page: Gianopulos encourages more 3-D screens -- DreamWorks Animation/Paramount's 3-D toon "Monsters vs. Aliens" is the talk of the town at this year's ShoWest, the annual gathering of theater owners that got underway Monday.
NEW YORK, March 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- EDCI Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: EDCI) ("EDCI"), the holding company for Entertainment Distribution Company, Inc., the majority... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 31 Mar 2009 | 12:34 am
Rihanna may be avoiding Chris Brown these days, but according to her attorney, she's still in step with the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office.
Attorney Donald Etra tells E!...
Can Chace Crawford sing and dance?
We may find out soon enough.
I just got word that the Gossip Girl star tested this weekend for the Zac Efron-ditched remake of...
Is the Gossip Girl herself finally going to appear on the fave CW series? Sneaky photogs captured Kristen Bell hanging with the Gossip Girl cast this week—are we finally going to meet the...
Front Page: Thesp reteams with Raimi, Tapert for series -- Lucy Lawless is returning to her action-hour roots, signing on to star in the new fantasy-and-fighting series from "Xena: Warrior Princess" masterminds Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi.
Even if he were a nice guy, this picture would be creepy.
Joe Cassano — the Brooklyn-born, London-based head of AIG's financial-products division who made $300 million pushing the CDS that led to the company's ruin — has managed to keep a low profile since the company imploded last fall, but ABC News reports today that FBI and federal prosecutors are "closing in" on Cassano, whom they say "set up some dozens of separate companies, some off-shore, to handle the transactions, effectively keeping them off the books of AIG and out of sight of regulators in the U.S. and the United Kingdom." They note that he was enabled by U.K. regulators. "There was a culture that was called light touch regulation," MP Vince Cable told the network, "which meant that these activities could go on and nobody kept a close eye on it." From his picture, we'd say Cassano's a guy who looks familiar with light touching. [ABC News]
Wes Anderson's hugely anticipated stop-motion film adaptation of Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr. Fox screened for a New Jersey test audience yesterday. How was it? "Very good," says an anonymous message-board critic with a devil-may-care attitude about signed nondisclosure agreements. There is something slightly troubling, though. From the review:
The plot itself doesn't deviate from the book that much. At the moment they've changed the ending slightly from the book, but from the feedback we gave in the discussion at the end, it wasn't particularly popular (although I personally thought it was quite good), so they may do something completely different with it.
What could Anderson have possibly changed? And what makes his new ending so odious? Did he shoehorn in an Anderson-esque scene in which the three farmers are all simultaneously reunited with their fathers? Is there an egregious use of sixties Britpop? We're getting worried!
About a month ago, the Obamas had Stevie Wonder over to the White House to perform, an event so special it prompted the president to break from his streak of red-and-blue neckwear for a tie in gleaming silver. The fashion risk-taker inside of him was emerging, just as the experts predicted! That silver tie paved the way for the finely patterned tie Barack wore today to tell the auto industry what it needs to do if it wants more bailout money. Classy, respectable — a good choice for a huge press conference. And then there's Tim Geithner, who wore an orange-and-lavender striped tie. Orange. And lavender. Interesting how this guy makes his boldest fashion statements at the biggest press conferences. Perhaps he's feeling emboldened now that the markets are reacting positively to him. Perhaps he's getting a jump on Easter. But then, how would we explain the bright-orange tie he wore to that huge press conference a month ago? There's only one answer: He's an attention whore.
We're just as surprised as you are that Warner Bros. is still planning on giving Zack Snyder $100 million to make his "Alice in Wonderland with machine guns" opus, Sucker Punch. According to EW, Snyder will now be filling the film's lead role, once held by Big Love's Amanda Seyfried, with 20-year-old Australian actress Emily Browning (The Unborn Uninvited; that Lemony Snicket film). Unfortunately, though, there's still no word as to how many digital wangs Snyder will be including in this film. [Hollywood Insider/EW]
Murder and justice have always been hallmarks of the "Law & Order" stable of TV shows, but never before have the fictional New York City crimes guided the show's detectives and attorneys to the United Nations -- until now.
Today was a big day, what with the Timescutting its “City” section and HuffPo running around trying to save journalism, and Fox News continuing to do whatever Fox News does. Meanwhile, alternative weeklies in L.A. are shutting down, while the Boston Herald follows the Globe with its own layoffs.
• Alternative weekly Los Angeles CityBeat folded over the weekend. [FishbowlLA/Mediabistro]
• Rodale publication Prevention cut its rate base by 15 percent, using the quantity-over-quality argument we hear from our editors so often. [Folio]
• The Boston Herald cut 24 workers, or 6 percent of its staff, because of the toxic cocktail of slumping sales and advertising revenue mixed in with a dash of deepening recession. [Boston Globe]
• Even the future’s effed. Internet ads were growing in 2008 until the big bad economy showed up and blew the growth down, according to the Internet Advertising Revenue Report. [NYT]
• The latest rumor to sweep the ad trades is that Nielsen titles Adweek, Mediaweek, and Brandweek will compress into one publication to be called Adweek. This follows on the heels of sweeping cutbacks in October. [NYP]
• The Times explains why the well-loved San Francisco Chronicle is dying: Turns out the Bay Area is the leader of the Internet revolution, that web thing that apparently kills newspapers. Other problems: The Bay Area has no center of gravity with its fragmented cities (Palo Alto, Berkeley, Oakland, here’s looking at you). [NYT]
What — this doesn't inspire you to fork over cash?
Naomi Campbell walked in a charity show at Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai on Friday. Designers like Anna Sui and Naeem Khan donated dresses for the event, to be auctioned on eBay to raise money for victims of the Mumbai attacks. At press time, many of the bids amounted to mere pennies.
Multiple sources confirm that Friday Night Lights is officially a go for two more 13-episode seasons, airing first on DirecTV and later on NBC.
Star Connie Britton recently told us about...
The army of Roger Ailes has deployed its latest war machine: the Fox Nation, a Huffington Post knockoff designed to create the kind of contributing and commenting community that the megablog enjoys. Looking it over today, it seems to be mostly self-congratulatory press about the network's stories and anchors — combined with a little hysterical glibness. We never thought we'd say this, but it kind of makes the Drudge Report look, well, subtle. [Fox Nation]
Front Page: Actress to star in Zack Snyder's fantasy-drama -- Warner Bros. has tapped Australian thesp Emily Browning ("The Uninvited") for the lead in Zack Snyder's fantasy-drama "Sucker Punch."
YouTube webpage. Google-owned YouTube and Walt Disney Co. are close to finalizing a deal to distribute videos from Disney properties on the video-sharing website, The Wall Street Journal online reported... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:38 pm
Playbill - Starting March 29, Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Courtyard Theater on Navy Pier will be flooded with 7,000 gallons of water to create the coast of the imaginary world of Illyria, where Twelfth Night's characters are washed ashore at the top of the Shakespeare comedy. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:33 pm
Together Through Life won’t be out for another month, but Bob Dylan obsessives have wasted no time analyzing every crumb of information available so far: The title’s a Walt Whitman reference! Lyrics are borrowed from The Canterbury Tales! It’s all an homage to Larry Brown (the author, unfortunately, not the curmudgeonly basketball coach)! But now there’s actually something to analyze — Dylan’s offering up a new song "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'" for download on his site today and tomorrow only. So, what’s on Bob’s mind? The narrator here is a fellow near the end of his rope. Is it a straight dead-end-town love song? A meditation on impending death? A heavily veiled allusion to his recent port-a-potty troubles? Either way, we’re glad to see him stretching the musical boundaries with the use of Auto-Tune. Just kidding — this sounds like a Bob Dylan song.
At the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday, Barneys creative director Simon Doonan told us he doesn't mind some of the ridiculous portrayals of gay people in the media. So we wondered if he had any desire to see something a little darker, like a gay villain? "Yes, gay serial killers, anything, throw it all on there," he declared. "That’s when you’ve really arrived, when you get equal treatment." View our Party Lines slideshow for more gay fantasies.
We've been wondering for a long time what the hell is up with Jay Manuel's style. The clothes, the hair — it's a lot to take in. So when we caught him at the GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday, we started small and just asked about the hair. Jay acknowledged that Sisqó went silver first, but the real reason for his silver coif? Tyra Banks. "I actually did it on a dare from Tyra,” he explained. “When we were shooting season one of Top Model, we were talking one night while Flash Gordon was on. I saw his white hair and said, ‘I would love to do my hair that color.’ And she goes, ‘Oh, you should do it right now.’ I said, ‘No, we’re in the middle of taping the show, how are we going to explain this? I promise you the day after we wrap I’ll do it.’ So a week later, after we wrapped the show, I colored my hair. I saw Tyra in L.A. and she said, ‘Ya did it, all right, now that’s your trademark.’” The genius behind the Flash Gordon pigment is New York–based stylist Oscar James, who does Tyra’s hair (or weave) as well. His services are very exclusive. “He actually doesn’t work at a salon,” explained Jay. “Because, you know, he works on Tyra, celebrities, blah blah blah.” Exactly.
Jamie Kennedy always said he had stones. He just failed to mention that they were of the kidney variety.
The lucky in Love star met his health match last week when, while vacationing...
New Moon is stocking up on new blood.
Last week we told you that Kristen Stewart is getting some gorgeous competition in Noot Seear, but now Robert Pattinson had better watch out for...
EWWWW GAY PEOPLE: Sacha Baron Cohen'sBruno movie has received an NC-17 rating. That must mean it contains more mutant rape than the R-Rated The Hills Have eyes, right? Crazy. (Film Drunk)
MADOFF IS ON A ROLL: Holy Taco is down to the Final Four in their 2009 National Douchebag Tournament. Wait a minute, I thought WE were the only website to ever think of doing March Madness for something other than basketball? They better not steal our idea of doing top ten lists of things! (Holy Taco)
A BIT ON THE NOSE (OR, LAP): Girls Next Door star Kendra Wilkinson is coming out with her own line of stripper poles. She claims that her poles are "even more a thing that goes from the ground to the ceiling than other poles!" (Us Weekly)
GAME-WINNING SHOT: Once again, CBS' March Madness coverage has been absolutely top-crotch. (SFW, just unexpected - Deadspin)
FAST NEWS DAY: And finally, Halle Berry says she's "mentally ready for another baby." Adjust your lives accordingly. (People)
It's funny what L.A. people think "looking for apartments in New York" means.
Californians Jessica Alba and Cash Warren were photographed this weekend in New York City shopping for apartments. We don't know how we feel about this. Though Jessica has filmed in the city before, she just seems like such an L.A. type (maybe because her skin always looks so good?). Likewise Warren, who also worked here when he was the director's personal assistant on the Jimmy Fallon–Queen Latifah vehicle Taxi, seems distinctly West Coast. Like, the Wayfarers don't even look ironic. Will Jessica be a low-key downtown mom like Liv Tyler, who blends in so seamlessly with her neighborhood that people don't even notice her when she walks by? Or will she be a party girl at all the newest places, like Kirsten Dunst? We suspect neither.
Then again, Natalie Portman may have recently betrayed everything we stand for, so maybe it's time for some fresh blood up in here. Word to the wise, though, guys. Looking for an apartment at the intersection of 14th Street and Ninth Avenue is going to send you packing back to L.A. faster than you can say "Our half-famous daughter can't get into Spence."
While 2008 could not compare to the banner year for bozacks that was 2007, 2009 might turn out to be the decade's meatiest year for wangs. Not only did Dr. Manhattan's cerulean bell clacker impress everyone who laid eyes on it, but now comes word that Viggo Mortensen and David Cronenberg are teaming up once again on a sequel to Eastern Promises, which you'll no doubt recall featured the Fiercest Wang of 2007. Talk about an MVP! [Movies Blog/MTV]
Front Page: Short-form agreement also involves ESPN -- Just days after word leaked that Disney was in talks to join the Hulu online video service, the conglom's Disney/ABC TV Group and ESPN have sealed a separate deal with YouTube.
There are a lot of ways in which people behave badly on the subway: There are the people who refuse to move all the way into a car. The people who lean on poles so you can't hold on to them. The kids who walk down the platform reeeeeeally sloooooowly. The leg-spreaders and the "my bag needs this seat" people and eaters of strong-smelling cuisine and the woman Jessica saw the other day whose kid smeared actual snot on the window. But the people who refuse to give up their seats for disabled or pregnant people are the worst, especially if they're sitting in the dedicated disability seats. In the past, this behavior has gone unpunished here on earth. But now a guy has dedicated a blog to posting their photos. It's called "People Who Sit in the Disability Seats When I'm Standing on My Crutches." Don't get caught on it!
MAKEUP
• Kids today are beauty-obsessed: "Five-year-olds have spa days and pedicure parties … teens get laser hair removal, the most common cosmetic procedure of that age group … By the time your 10-year-old is 50, she'll have spent nearly $300,000 on just her hair and face." [Newsweek]
• Castanea Partners, the company that owns Betsey Johnson, just bought a majority of the Urban Decay cosmetics brand. They like that it targets young people. [WWD]
HAIR
• Jonas brother Joe likes to wear his hair straight, but he showed up to the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards this weekend with curly hair. Travesty. Whoever lost his CHI iron should get fired. [Stylewatch/People]
• Jennifer Lopez debuted thinner, wispier bangs when she was in Tokyo. We approve. [Beauty Counter/Style.com]
Front Page: NBC, DirecTV pact on football drama -- "Friday Night Lights" fans were handed the equivalent of a Super Bowl victory on Monday as NBC and DirecTV confirmed that the ensembler has been renewed for two seasons.
Fox has greenlit a new dating show for overweight people entitled "More To Love". While we're certainly in favor of anything on television that acknowledges the existence of somewhat normal-looking people, we can't help but immediately picture this show devolving into a series of viral internet clips of fat people doing spastic things and everyone laughing at them while Fox plays innocent and claims "hey, we just wanted to do a show about REAL people, it's not our fault the fat people fell into a vat of chocolate while touring the Hershey's factory during the sweeps week episode!"
That preemptive anger aside, I've come up with 10 titles for an overweight reality dating show that are slightly less ridiculous than the Boardwalk t-shirt caliber "More To Love" -- feel free to leave your own titles in the comments:
10. Chubby Chasers
9. Fat Chance
8. Fugly Betty
7. My Big Fat Eventual Wedding6. Blind Date (They Wish They Were)
5. I Hope That's Love Not A Heart Attack
4. Hungry Hungry Hippos
3. Like Pangea But In Reverse
2. Hey Let's Laugh At These Fat People - They Totally Think They're People!
1. Big Love Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:25 pm
This kind of hurt our head to have to deal with, but here goes: Arianna Huffington, the founder of a website that aggregates digested journalism from across the country, partially stripping news outlets of the precious page views required to sell advertising, has decided that she is "concerned that layoffs at newspapers [are] hurting investigative journalism." So she's teamed up with other donors, including the Atlantic Philanthropies, to create Huffington Post Investigative Fund. The fund, with its $1.75 million initial budget, will employ about ten journalists on investigative projects relating to the economy. While the Huffington Post tilts left, the goal will be for the reporting to be objective, and it will be available for publication anywhere. It's the sort of nonprofit journalism that's been hinted at here and there as traditional media struggles to move forward, but it's a model that's never seemed particularly plausible. But nothing ever succeeds if you don't try it, and if there's anyone who might have a magic touch with this kind of experiment, it's Arianna Huffington. (And yes, if you do the math, those ten reporters are going to make a decent salary.)
There is an old saying: Out of sight, out of mind. With rapper T.I. sentenced to prison for about a year, by the time he gets out he may have to start his career over again. But music experts say that he's in good shape to pick up his success where it left off.
New York artists will play an outsize role in the influential Venice Biennale, set to open in Italy June 6. “There will be a lot of American artists in the exhibition and a lot of them live and work in New York City,” announced Daniel Birnbaum, the show’s director and curator, as he introduced the artists’ roster today at the Italian Cultural Institute on Park Avenue.
The Venice Biennale, one of the grandest stops on the art-world grand tour, is something of a Miss America pageant for art. Nations bring work by a single artist (the U.S. picked Bruce Nauman, in a show curated by the Philadelphia Museum of Art), and a much-debated “best of show” is awarded. On top of that, a huge separate exhibition of 100 or so artists attempts to offer a snapshot of the current contemporary-art world. This year’s Biennale is the largest ever, with 77 nations hosting art pavilions, including first-time exhibitors United Arab Emirates and the Vatican (now in negotiations). “It’s the biggest art show in the world,” notes Birnbaum.
Generally, the Venice Biennale has tremendous impact on the market and on artists’ careers (as Jerry Saltz has noted). Biennale president Paolo Baratta stressed that Birnbaum’s job is “not to give the latest quotation on the market for contemporary art.” But many deals started in Venice are consummated at the huge Art Basel fair that opens in Switzerland later the same week.
Birnbaum’s hometown picks include political artist and peace activist Paul Chan, best known for his “7 Lights” multimedia show at the New Museum; local filmmaker and artist Tony Conrad; Yoko Ono, whose work will include performance and poetry and who will receive a “Golden Lion” for lifetime achievement at the show; and artist duo Guyton\Walker, who will do “very painterly things … big paintings” and will be prominently displayed in the show, said the curator.
Some of the other New York artists who got into the Biennale exhibition are Joan Jonas, Rachel Harrison, Spencer Finch, Rirkrit Tiravanija, and Jorge Ortero-Pailos. (German and L.A. artists also make up large chunks of the show, with a smattering of Italian, Indian, Japanese, Russian, and Latin American artists rounding out the roster.)
As for any trend shifts the show might signal, in general, the works with which Birnbaum illustrated his introduction were “painterly,” by his own description, and featured themes of lightness and floating, along with architectural elements.
So far the economy hasn’t impacted the Biennale much, said Birnbaum, except that perhaps artists are leaning toward “things that are very difficult to package, buy, and sell — but that’s not really new.” Baratta said the financial situation had meant “more night flights and one star less in our choice of hotels.”
Madonna has been jetting around trying to adopt a toddler from Malawi named Mercy. The tracksuit she wore for this activity is by Chanel. Similar styles currently in stores cost $2,800 ($1,600 for the pants and $1,200 for the top).The fedora she wore appears to be the same one she wore in 2006 when she went to Malawi to adopt David Banda. Because at least part of her outfit should alert her adoring public she's in Africa without us having to read the article. [HP]
Bankers in London, the site of this week's G20 summit, are brushing off suggestions from city officials to dress down in order to escape the wrath of protesters. “We’re not all pansies,” one told Bloomberg, which also relates this story: “Alan Cornelius, 81, who was wearing a red tie and blue-striped shirt, vowed campaigners wouldn’t make him change the sartorial habit of a lifetime in a city where Savile Row tailors hand stitch bespoke suits for princes and financial royalty. ‘I’ll be wearing a suit all next week,’ said Cornelius. ‘All I’ve got otherwise is my gardening clothes.’” [Bloomberg]
This episode focused on the unraveling of both Walt and Jesse’s personal connections, and boy, was it a depressing hour. Since the pair still isn’t selling drugs, the balance between crime story and personal tragedy was skewed toward the latter, which made for an adventureless, dark episode. We never thought we’d say this, but, come on, guys, get back to the meth!
Jesse and His Family
Walt needs time to “mend fences” before he returns to cooking meth, and instructs Jesse not to contact him at all. The next day, Jesse’s parents call him into a lawyer’s office and tell him he has to vacate his house — Jesse’s mom found his meth lab in the basement, and his parents say they’ll call the police if he doesn’t get out within three days. “We can’t stop you from ruining your own life, but you won’t drag us down with you,” his dad tells him. Jesse’s broke and can’t find anywhere else to stay, so he tries to crash with an old high-school buddy, but the buddy’s wife negs this arrangement after she glimpses Jesse’s hood-rat outfit. Of course, we see Jesse’s stunted, directionless life juxtaposed with that of his friend, who has a family and stable job. Jesse has to resort to breaking into his RV for a place to sleep, but first falls into a port-a-potty and gets covered in shit: a not-so-veiled metaphor about the direction his life is heading without Walt (and the ability to sell drugs).
Walt and His Family
Skylar continues to pull away from Walt in the wake of his disappearance. He tells her that what Hank thought was a second cell phone was really just his cell-phone alarm, but she knows he’s lying. In an effort to get closer to his son (who’s shed the name Walt Jr. and is now going by “Flynn”), Walt takes him driving, an unsuccessful, sad attempt at closeness. In an amusing scene, Walt Jr. knocks over an orange cone and Walt dutifully gets out of the car and picks it up — a law-abiding citizen who just happens to also cook meth.
“I dreamt that I owned an antique-bicycle repair shop in Ireland,” Walt says to Skylar. We’re not sure about the significance of this dream, other than as an escapist fantasy. Any ideas? “Say something that isn’t complete bullshit!,” Skylar screams at him, but he can’t tell her about the drugs, and she storms off again.
What Next?
At the end of the episode Jesse crawls back to Walt, looking for money and a friendly face; he stole the RV and drove it to Walt’s house. They end up in a fist fight before Walt invites Jesse in and gives him more money (though less than his half). Walt ends up asking Jesse to stay for breakfast, after his wife and son decline the offer. Each of these men is becoming more and more estranged from his family, and thus more dependent on the other for companionship. Meanwhile, we see very-pregnant Skylar light up a cigarette in the final scene, an indication that she, too, is becoming a loose cannon.
Today, an unidentified buyer paid $62,500 for an amazing 1848 daguerreotype of a New York "country estate" on old Bloomingdale Road, a.k.a. Broadway, on the Upper West Side. This might seem like a lot, but we'd venture to say that it's worth it, as we've personally found that looking at it and thinking, "God, there used to be cows up there — cows," never really gets old. [CNN]
The 2009 King's Cup Elephant Polo Tournament concluded in Thailand yesterday, and I don't think I need to add any more information to that sentence. Check out the pics from the championship game - you can practically smell the action:
After the jump, the intensity HEATS UP (and by "heats up" we mean "is an elephant polo match"):
Excitement just doesn't get any more elephant-involving than this:
Push 'em back, push 'em back, waaaaaaay back! The elephants!
A promo poster for the EPL, which is sure to be the next MLS:
Congratulations to Audemars Piguet, winners of the coveted "Beat The Other Four Dudes Who Play This Sh*t" Trophy:
French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld's daughter Julia Restoin-Roitfeld is everywhere these days. In ads for Mango, in a spread for British Harper's Bazaar, getting her photo taken at countless swanky parties. Somewhere in there she fits in the day job she professes to have of freelance art director. And somehow she's become what Marc Jacobs was to fashion media in 2008 — no publication is complete without a profile of her, even if she doesn't say anything she hasn't said before a hundred million times. But the recent profile in the Times of London is more about her mom than her. And it turns out growing up with Carine at the head of the table is just as much pressure as you'd expect.
Heels are mandatory in the house of Carine.
"My mum told me always to wear heels. If I’m not wearing heels, she says, ‘What? You’re in flats?’ So whenever I see her, I make sure I have heels with me.”
Carine used her kids as props.
“We didn’t have a full-time babysitter,” Julia recalls, “so on the weekends [my mum] would take me to the shows — which I hated — and she would use us in the shoots she was styling for French Elle or Vogue Bambini. But I wasn’t into it at all and I used to fall asleep on set all the time."
Julia didn't choose fashion, fashion chose her.
“I don’t want to sound spoilt, and it was an exciting time, but I don’t think it was the fashion that made it like that. It was more the travelling with my parents that I enjoyed; they were open-minded and fun. But they were very pushy — my mum would force me to do internships at different magazines in the holidays. I was 15 and I didn’t want to work, although now I am grateful for it — she transmitted her work ethic to us.”
Maybe Carine took her on photo shoots so she'd absorb a sense of style.
“I went through different periods when I was younger. The worst was when I went a bit grungy, with red and purple hair and Doc Martens, but I wasn’t very interested in fashion until I moved to the States six years ago.”
Noticing a trend here? Whereas we were at least able to figure out a few reasons why Universal would want to reunite the original cast of The Fast and the Furious, we've been wracking our brains trying to figure out what exactly it was that convinced ABC that the time was right to resurrect the failed 1998 rom-com Cupid. The first thing we checked was to see if Ben Silverman had made the leap from NBC to the American Broadcasting Company, but that wasn't it. And so we plugged away, eventually coming across an interview that the AP's David Bauder conducted with both Kim Rozenfeld, ABC's senior vice-president of current programming, and Rob Thomas, the show's creator. But now, after hearing the way these two bickered about the show before an ABC publicist cut the interview short (!), we're not really sure that even ABC knows why they're back in the Cupid business.
Although the AP typically (and understandably) treats its stories in a vanilla manner, we give huge props to David Bauder for pressing Thomas and Rozenfeld for details on their working relationship and how the show, which stars Bobby Cannavale and the delightful Sarah Paulson, would need to change to survive this time around. From the sound of things, there were definitely some tensions between the show's creatives and the network execs steering the program:
The first series "would have three-and-a-half page scenes of Trevor and Claire bickering," Rob Thomas said. "Now you never have that. I think there's a belief that people don't have the patience for that. I'm not sure I subscribe to that belief."
Rozenfeld said he disagreed with a conclusion that the series now emphasizes the romance of the week instead of the lead characters. "I think there is equal focus," he said.
Thomas declined to discuss whether creative differences with ABC executives were a major impediment in making the second Cupid. ABC cut short an interview with Rozenfeld before questions about its relationship with Thomas could be fully discussed.
Way to press 'em, Bauder! While none of this bodes well for the new series, we doubt that this behind-the-scenes squabbling will have any significant effect on people's desire to see the show. However, if you believe Rob Thomas, the bickering certainly had some effect on how the show turned out.
"All first-year shows, it's tough," Thomas said. "It's tough for everybody to get on the same page. But at the end of the year, I think we found a sweet spot."
Only one question remains: Will viewers be patient enough to stick it out through the first few awkward weeks to get to the episodes where the creative team finally found their "sweet spot"? We'll find out soon enough!
We can probably all agree that hockey player Sean Avery has been out of the non-sports-sections of the news for too long. Leave it to the New York Times' "Sunday Styles" section to fill that void. What's new with our favorite — and possibly the wealthiest and oldest — ex-Vogue-intern of all time? He's taken up meditating to manage his anger. (In 2007 he was voted "most hated" player on the ice; his antics during game play inspired a new rule; and you probably remember when he called ex-girlfriend Elisha Cuthbert "sloppy seconds," which resulted in his suspension.)* He took his ex-co-workers from Vogue to an American Museum of Natural History benefit last Thursday. And the movie based on him inspired by his internship at Vogue now has a working title: Puckface.
And now that his suspension is over and he's back playing for the New York Rangers after a stint with the Dallas Stars, he's getting fashion people into hockey. He sits front row at fashion shows, they sit, well, somewhere at the ice rink. “He’s made me a big fan of hockey now,” Narciso Rodriguez told the Times. Guests at last Sunday's game included Narciso, Kirsten Dunst, Marie Claire editor Joanna Coles, and Beatrice Inn owner Matt Abramcyk. Interesting! The Vogue pack was absent. Not that we can blame them — we avoid sports at all costs, too (with the rare exception made based on hotness of the players, but even so that's usually at the gym when we can't change the channel and have no choice but to either stare at soccer or Rachel Ray).
Avery says he wants to launch a line of designer athleticwear one day. “'There’s a few that do it like Y-3 and obviously Stella McCartney,” he said, “but I think there’s maybe a gap in there I could get into.'” Of course there's always room for Seany in the fashion world! Anything to keep Kanye West's ego in check.
Clay Aiken appeared at the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards this weekend. And, is it just me, or did someone smash his face open with a hammer and then put it back together in Thailand. Check out this side-by-side comparison of Old Clay vs New Clay:
Seriously, for a second we thought we were looking at a promotional poster for our favorite movie of all time...Peter Bogdanovich's Mask. Here is Rocky Dennis handing Clay Aiken an award for being Maskier Than The Mask:
And then I was like "Wait, is Tom Brady gay?"
And then I was like...
UPDATE: Is Clay Aiken Julianne Moore? I will be thinking of other comparisons for the rest of the day. Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:27 pm
(1) “The assumption is that my eccentricity is not who I really am, but it is. I have lost my mind.” (2) “I wasn’t a lazy drug addict." (3) “What am I supposed to do [in L.A.], canoodle with celebrities at a nightclub, with a lemon-drop Midori in my hand? It’s not the same as being in a bar that smells like urine with all your really smart New York friends.” There's more where that came from in this week's issue of New York. [NYM]
Voting for Bracket C and Bracket D of 90s Movie Madness have concluded, and it's on to Round Two - vote for Round 2, Brackets C & D after the jump:
And if you haven't voted on Round 2 of Brackets A & B yet, go make your voice heard -- it's your duty as an American with a lot of time to kill and internet access.
Remember, the question isn't "Which movie is better," it's "Which movie is more 90s?" - voting will be open until Wednesday morning, so you only have until tomorrow night to argue away in the comments:
If you haven't voted for Round 2 of Bracket A & B yet, you have until Tuesday!
(poll embeds via xversusy.com) Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:10 pm
Round 1 of 90s Movie Madness is finally behind us, and despite only three upsets by lower-seeded movies (Silence of the Lambs, Home Alone, and House Party), Round 2 is already shaping up to be far less predictable.
Blowouts
Tournament favorite Clueless is already looking somewhat unstoppable after a 97% victory over Showgirls, by far the largest margin of any Round 1 contest. Wayne's World made a statement with their 91% victory over My Cousin Vinny, the only other contest decided by more than a 90% margin -- American Pie, Encino Man, She's All That, Clerks, and Empire Records each won their contests with more than 80% of the voting margin.
Close Calls
Some of the contests came down to the wire; Friday rallied on the last day of Round 1 voting to edge Point Break, 51-49%, and Dangerous Minds held off Free Willy, in its own 51-49% contest. Austin Powers (52%) and Singles (53%) and Cruel Intentions (54%) barely escaped first-round upsets. #2 seed (and really frickin' 90s movie) Airborne looked vulnerable in a 59% win over Dunston Checks In, and a bevvy of The Craft fans gave #1 seed Billy Madison a scare in an eventual 60-40% win.
After the jump, looking ahead at Round 2 and beyond:Still, the question remains -- is Clueless simply unbeatable? #1 seed Encino Man is already trailing in its Round 2 matchup with She's All That (perhaps people are confusing Encino Man with, I don't know, a Bergman film?), and the struggles of #2 seeds Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead and Airborne have dimmed the prospects of a worthy Clueless challenger emerging from the field. Reality Bites, perhaps? Are Clerks, Empire Records, and White Men Can't Jump Final Four material? How about an upstart like Home Alone or Wayne's World? Or will Billy Madison and Encino Man overcome their early hiccups and return to dominate?
Feel free to leave your tournament predictions in the comments, and remember to vote on Round 2 Brackets A & B and Round 2 Brackets C & D before Wednesday morning!The Updated Brackets: Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:00 pm
Behold, the magnificent sketches Gwyneth Paltrow surely did all by herself in a fit of passion and inspiration for her first clothing line. More details emerge in WWD today about her seven-look capsule collection for French premium-jersey-maker ZOEtee's, called ZOEtee's Loves Gwyneth Paltrow. It will include styles for day and night that WWD calls a "mélange of Seventies glamour, rock inspiration and men’s casual suiting." Also included, from the looks of it: bike shorts and Gwynny's favorite step-up-the-curb-at-your-own-risk hemline length. The line has already been renewed for spring 2010. We hope taking on this new project won't cause GOOP to suffer.
"Yep, that's my husband. His name's is Nigel. Nigel Barker -- he's British. Well, you know how those photographers are, always 'travellin' the globe' and whatnot so yeah, I think he's in London today? Somewhere overseas for sure. He'll call later to see how me and the baby are doing (begins suggestively massaging bloated stomach full of Indian food) so that'll be sweet. Hmm? We met on a modeling shoot, yeah. I was looking for coins on the beach with my metal detector and -- boom -- next thing you know it's our wedding day. (laughing and nodding) Oh thank you! Our dog is our pride and joy. He... (pause, look down, purse lips) he passed away last month. Hit... by a car. Yeah, Nigel was really torn up about it. But you know what they say! Mark 10:25, 'It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.' (10 second pause) Anyway, would you look at the time? I've got to get back to the bikram yoga studio that I own. How much will it be for the footlong? Five dollars? That's it?! Wait until I tell Nigel about the all the deals he is missing out on."
And scene. Above, celebrity photographer Nigel Barker and Marley. Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:56 pm
AP - "La Famiglia Dimitri," a circus that just began a three-week run at the New Victory Theater, bounces along at a sweet, acoustic pace, as calm and bright-eyed as a toddler rising from a long, refreshing nap.
Average Joes and Janes will get to pursue their shot at love with the launch of the new dating-competition series developed by FOX called More to Love. Source: FOXNews.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:42 pm
Madonna is in Malawi this week attempting to adopt a second child from the African nation. A judge ruled Monday that she will have to wait until Friday to learn a decision.
Reuters - Andre Techine's many admirers will not be disappointed by his latest offering, "The Girl on the Train," but they might be hard-pressed to define it. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:34 pm
"Videos of cats puking?" you say? "How many of those could possibly exist?" Allow us to answer on behalf of the entire internet by saying "Thousands." That's right. Literally dozens of brilliant film auteurs had the luck of being in the right place at the right time... the right place being "in front of their cat", the right time being "when that cat is throwing up." Here are the 11 Best Cat Puking Videos on the Internet:
11. The Classic. This is your typical cat vom scenare: Adorable cat gets a case of the ol' stomach convulsions, and in a mere 20 seconds, delivers the world a small mouthful of feline puke, only to go on about his day.
10. The NSFW. We're not sure what this chubby orange tabby's owner was expecting to happen... but it's safe to say the results are a bit of a let down. Was this recorded in a Cat Frat House? Yes.
9. The Dramatic. This little guy is like the Benjamin Button of cat pukers, in that you have to wait an exorbitantly long time (approx. 26 seconds) for any sort of action.
8. The Ass-Dragger. Nice technique.
7. The Slow Mo. If you close your eyes, it almost sounds like diving into a pool. Of C.V. (cat vom).
6. The Self-Aware. Note this feline's on pointe post-vom reaction.
5. The NSFL. If this list is any indication, we've seen our fair share of cat throw-up clips. Out of this entire list, though, this is the one that we could not bring ourselves to watch again...
4. The Tease. This cat never actually voms, however you wouldn't know it judging by his reaction to these common household human foods.
3. The Grande. Here is a lion throwing up at the zoo.
2. The Crazy Eyes. Self-explan.
1. The Viral Vom. One could argue this was the cat puking video that started it all. It's kittens, it's vomit, it's over 7 million views, and it is just so damn adorable.
Keith Urban says that his new album, "Defying Gravity," represents a prolific period that followed his last release, 2006's double-platinum "Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing."
The private viewing followed Thursday night's tribute when Broadway theaters dimmed their lights to mark her death Source: FOXNews.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 4:39 pm
The new John Cena film 12 Rounds grossed just $5.3 million in its opening weekend, placing seventh in the weekend box office behind a third-week Race to Witch Mountain and its better-acting former wrestler.
Personally, I'm just baffled that audiences didn't automatically flock to see the newest project by the one and only DIRECTOR OF DIE HARD 2:
Don't you remember Die Hard 2? The movie that came out NINETEEN YEARS AGO and was a completely ok sequel to a great action movie from the 80s? This man directed it!!! How are you not immediately interested in all future projects by this seminal artiste, as this poster appears to believe that you are? And don't even get me started on the legendary producer of Speed...
This 12 Rounds poster officially becomes the ballsiest "From the Director of..." promo in really-reaching movie promotional history, supplanting the previous champion (after the jump):
AP - Noise, noise, noise. Crunched metal and shattered glass. More noise. Revving engines. Vin Diesel's giant head. Hot chicks in tight miniskirts. Even more noise. The end. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 30 Mar 2009 | 3:22 pm
New York City is full of unwritten rules. It is also full of written ones. Such as the ones spotted on designated subway seats, instructing able-bodied passengers to stand up for their disabled brethren.
But seeing as this is New York (city motto: "Go F*ck Yourself or Die"), there are always folks willing to break most any rule... even the most basic of common decency ones. Which brings us to our new favorite website, People Who Sit In The Disability Seats When I’m Standing On My Crutches. The author, who chooses to remain nameless so as not to get his crippled ass kicked, has been on crutches for the past few months following an unfortunate injury. One would think that the site of this poor creature all Tiny Timmed out would have folks jumping out of their seat to give the guy a break. One would be wrong.
So what did this guy decide to do about it? Photograph these lazies and post them on a website. To wit:
I had the opportunity to speak with the author, to which I wondered: "What if someone has a disability that you can't see? Like a deaf person?" He claimed that he would begin thinking of legal arguments. Might we suggest hiring a sign-language lawyer? (Also the title of our upcoming sitcom.) Source: Best Week Ever | 30 Mar 2009 | 3:19 pm
Green Day's "American Idiot" is headed from disc to stage. Michael Mayer, the Tony Award-winning director of "Spring Awakening," is adapting the trio's 2004 concept album -- which sold 12 million copies worldwide and won Grammy Awards for Best Rock Album and Record of the Year -- for the Berkeley Repertory Theatre on Green Day's home turf in California.
Starting in November, comedian George Lopez will enter the late-night talk show fray, kicking off a new show on TBS. Now more than ever, he feels diverse audiences need and want diverse representation on their TV screens.
Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” (Interscope/Universal) started a second week at No. 1 on the U.K. singles chart yesterday, ahead of a strong debut by London indie band the Noisettes with “Don’t Upset The Rhythm” (Vertigo/Universal).
Peter Gabriel met with Mexican President Felipe Calderón on Friday (March 27), urging him to increase his efforts to end the violence against women and murders in Ciudad Juárez and Chihuahua. Gabriel was in Mexico City for a concert as part of a brief Mexican tour.
An actor wears the costume for 'Napoleon the Pig' during rehearsals for a version of George Orwell's 'Animal Farm' at a Beijing theater in 2002. US-born poet T.S. Eliot refused to publish Orwell's Animal... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:55 am
Losties, Trekkies and Fringe dwellers, unite!
Paramount is keeping it all in the sci-fi family when it comes to its burgeoning new Star Trek franchise. Per Variety, J.J. Abrams, director...
Drew Barrymore and Justin Long are back together—at least for a movie!
A source tells me that Ms. Barrymore has just signed on to star opposite—yup!—her former...
Rihanna may be avoiding Chris Brown these days, but according to her attorney, she's still in step with the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office.
Attorney Donald Etra tells E!...
Can Chace Crawford sing and dance?
We may find out soon enough.
I just got word that the Gossip Girl star tested this weekend for the Zac Efron-ditched remake of...
Is the Gossip Girl herself finally going to appear on the fave CW series? Sneaky photogs captured Kristen Bell hanging with the Gossip Girl cast this week—are we finally going to meet the...
Multiple sources confirm that Friday Night Lights is officially a go for two more 13-episode seasons, airing first on DirecTV and later on NBC.
Star Connie Britton recently told us about...
Jamie Kennedy always said he had stones. He just failed to mention that they were of the kidney variety.
The lucky in Love star met his health match last week when, while vacationing...
New Moon is stocking up on new blood.
Last week we told you that Kristen Stewart is getting some gorgeous competition in Noot Seear, but now Robert Pattinson had better watch out for...
Fox has greenlit a new dating show for overweight people entitled 
Round 1 of 
