Internet Gossip Blogger Extraordinaire Perez Hilton aka Mario Lavandeira aka the Gossip Gangstar is a well-known pop fixture on the Hollywood socialite/drag queen scene. He’s not only accrued notereity through his blog and the legions of people (myself included) who visit each day to catch a glimpse of “The Hills” Heidi Montag’s breast and mouth augmentation, but he’s even relatively respected in media circles. He’ll be playing guest host over at “The View” later this month and made a special appearance at this year’s Canadian Much Music Video Awards (think MTV Movie Awards minus the Paris Hilton purgatory of paparazzi) earlier this month.
So it’s with a heavy heart that I say that Perez Hilton’s copyright infringement violations have finally caught up with him - at least for the short-term. Hilton has been accused of stealing photos in four separate lawsuits initiated by eight different photo agencies. It was reported earlier today by Variety that the site’s webhost Crucial Paradigm stated that if they received one more notice of copyright violation against PerezHilton.com they would take the site down immediately.
It looks like Crucial stayed true to their word because today they took official action and pulled the site down. And unfortunately for those of us gossip mongers, as of 9 PM tonight, you still can’t access the site’s archive nor are any of the links to the actual posts functioning properly. There is a skeleton in place but not too many photos, unless you could the one that likens the wrestler Chyna to former star of “The Practice” and on-and-off Jack Nicholson flame Lara Flynn Boyle. Quite honestly, the similarities are a bit disturbing. But I suppose with enough plastic surgery, Neil Patrick Harris might actually appear straight on “How I Met Your Mother.”
I guess Yoko Ono find it hard to stay away from the spotlight for too long. John Lennon’s widow said she might still write her autobiography.
“I want to one day do that probably, but still don’t have the time, There are things that I can’t write because it may hurt someone. I think about how it might hurt (their) children and I don’t want to do that.” Ono spoke at a forum in New York. Reuters also reports that when asked about her own art she defined it as Asian and not as part of the Fluxus.
Many believe that Ono is the one who caused the Beatles break up, and most of the bands fans will hate her for ever. Do you think it’s a little bit of a coincidence that Yoko chooses to speak just a couple of days after Paul McCartney’s 65th. birthday, and just after he recently released his new album Memory Almost Full?
Ms. O’Donnell has made it clear that her top dream gig (post-”View”) would be as host of the “Price Is Right” now that the geriatric Bob Barker has grown too old or too tired to make sexual advances on his female cohorts. So Barker has retired and Rosie wants in, but is the rest of America ready to embrace a gay female host? Considering the roster of male hosts being considered, Rosie would be in the minority as far as testosterone quotient (she has more) and sexuality (ok, maybe not), but Bob Barker has made it known he wants Rosie.
Rosie’s professional move would also require a possible personal move from Nyack, NY where she lives with her partner and kids to LA where “Price Is Right” is filmed. S
Hillary Clinton rocks the vote in this clever parody of “The Sopranos” series finale. Chelsea may be MIA but a some Billing and a little Journey go a long way.
Picking up on the weakest kid always make a great bully comedy. It is quick and easy to find the disadvantage and your bully friends will admire your witty punch line . All though I don’t find George Bush jokes funny anymore, I understand why they are there, same thing goes for the Clintons. I can’t remember when was the last time Jay Leno or Conan O’Brien’s monologue did not include George Bush or the Clintons, and that’s OK. Not funny but OK. What I really can’t stand is all the shit Paris Hilton gets. I have nothing good to say about this stupid woman, I think you eat what you cooked, but come on, give her a break. Going to prison is a low point in life. When someone is being sent to jail, even for a short time, it is devastating. It’s natural that someone as provocative and out spoken as Hilton will get some from the media, in a way she deserve this, but it’s time to let go. And besides, you know the old saying about what goes around and how it will come around.
Tired of seeing Julia Robert’s tweenie niece strewn across every vacant billboard in America as she makes her debut as a film star in the film “Nancy Drew”? Well aside from the gross-out factor involved in thinking actor Eric Roberts could actually spawn a human not to mention shiny and perky one at that, auntie Julia just gave birth to baby #3, a boy named Henry Daniel.
Looks like it doesn’t take too much sleuthing to figure out the Moders are extremely happy to have another youngin’ added to the clan. And so are we. Just no more twins named Phinnaeus. The world is full of moms competing for more apples. And Lord knows, we don’t need another Moses.
Last night Real Madrid won the Spanish Soccer championship for the 30th time in the club history, and the first in 4 years. This would not interest many people in the US if it wasn’t for the pop culture angle of it. As a huge Soccer fan I set to watch the game on GOLTV, and to my surprise I saw Tom Cruise in the crowd standing next to two Victoria\Posh\ Spice Beckham(s). They all came of course to support David Beckham in his last game in Spain before the big move to California, where he will play for the LA Galaxy. But oh my god! One of the two was Katie Holmes, and to that I have to say: If you wanna be a wannabe, don’t be a wannabe’s wannabe, Capiche?
I went to see Director Judd Apatow’s latest flic, “Knocked Up” last night. I’d been looking forward to this film since about the time of “Freaks & Geeks” so you can imagine the level of anticipation built up in the past eight years or so. Ok, so that’s an exaggeration but since “The 40 Year-Old Virgin,” I’d taken note of this Apatow guy and when I finally imdb’d him and realized he was behind such creations as “Fun With Dick & Jane” (which i absolutely loved), “Freaks & Geeks,” “Anchorman” and even a guest spot on “The Critic” (Jon Lovitz at his finest), I declared that quite possibly he was one of the most pop culturally unheard of comedians-to-date, considering his level of contribution and accomplishments.
But back to “Knocked Up”…
I like Seth Rogen as still-makes-love-to-his-bong-at-the-ripe-age-of-23 slacker Ben Stone. He’s likable enough and seems to balance out Katherine Heigl’s more restrained and uptight/conservative Alison Scott who realizes she’s preggers eight weeks after having unprotected sex with Ben. “Just Do It” isn’t apparently just a Nike slogan after all.
Did I mention Heigl’s Alison also lands a cushy job as a Ryan Seacrest-esque interviewer on an E! show? You’d have thunk the pregnancy might throw a wrench into all this, but don’t worry it doesn’t. That’s Hollywood for you. Not the actual Hollywood. The real Hollywood would have yanked Alison off air at about month 2, not waited till her eighth month of pregnancy to tell her how much her pregnancy will boost ratings and they don’t mind her not disclosing to them the fact she’s due in another month or so.
Both Heigl and Rogen perform well, but it’s the film’s ensemble supporting cast - Paul Rudd as Alison’s brother-in-law Pete, Leslie Mann (Apatow’s wife) as Alison’s sister Debbie, and about every SNL and “Freaks & Geeks” regular including the very funny Kristen Wiig as Alison’s bitchy co-worker Jill, that round out the cast and truly make this film float.
The dialogue is genuinely poignant, funny, bright (and pithy at times) and Apatow clearly has a strong grasp on how people actually communicate with each other in a way that evades a lot of other writers and directors of his generation. So I can appreciate this deeper level of insight that Apatow brings to his films, but not so much the situational comedic aspect.
This is where I have my major beef with comedies and “Knocked Up” in particular - the bridge between remaining relatively grounded in depicting life’s ironies (of course following the “exaggeration” motif of most comedies) and opting for these ridiculous and almost absurdist backdrops within which to do so.
David Edelstein of New York Magazine pointed out in his review that he’s happy to see the triumph of the fat druggie nice guy (I’m paraphrasing a bit here) winning the hand of the voluptuous fair blond maiden of his dreams, but when are we gonna see the fat girl with the hot guy in a serious romantic comedy of sorts of the caliber of “Knocked Up”? And don’t even get me started on “Phat Girlz”…
Apart from this, what are the odds that Pete and his wife Debbie make enough money to support their very pampered, but unhappy lifestyles? Why is money never really an issue for any of these people? Apart from Ben being a broke, unemployed guy who bums a crib off Alison’s sister and finally decides to get a job as a web designer in an office in an effort to “grow up” the issue of money never really is a critical matter within the movie. And how long did it take Ben to get a job and a nicely furnished apt? Oh, about the time it took Alison to deliver the baby and for him to assume more of an alpha male role in the critical delivery moment at the hospital where Ben tells Debbie to bugger off. Finally.
Oh, don’t get me wrong here. I’m not totally dissing/panning the movie. It’s just money is an issue for any couple starting out and especially one with a new baby so why can’t we deal with that in a more realistic way? Why must we skirt the issue by hiding behind creatively convenient family members with guest houses and pools and bourgeois lifestyles who can afford to spend all the time in the world talking about how marriage is like an unhappy, tense version of “Everybody Loves Raymond” but it lasts forever.
I get that rich people have their issues too and even the point that they are “real” people too whose feelings can/should be validated. Call me a party pooper (I’ve been known to live up to this), but sometimes I just don’t feel like indulging in their pity parties.
Fresh off filming the role of slain journalist Daniel Pearl’s widow in “A Mighty Heart,” Angelina Jolie finds herself in a press snafu of hypocritical proportions. While some of us drool over the Lara Croft portrayer, I find myself constantly stuck in this conundrum of realizing that despite her humanitarian missions and “good” intentions, Jolie has roughly about the same intellectual acumen of Paris Hilton on a face-battered-in-tears car chase day.
In short, she might be the type to advocate on behalf of Reporters Without Borders, but by golly, she sure isn’t equipped with the skills to realize the difference between contractually obligating the press to ask her only certain questions (a little censorship, anyone?) while on her press tour for “A Mighty Heart” and the fact that she’s advocating for freedom of speech on and off camera.
So how does she combat the bad buzz? Jolie made an appearance on The Daily Show last week to proclaim her outrage at her schmuck of a lawyer who drafted the contract and comes out smelling like roses.
In my opinion, karma is a b*tch though. And if anything, bedding someone else’s husband and going on to nab the very role that Wife A worked so hard to secure the rights to produce the film for, has a way of coming to bite you in the arse. If I were Jolie, I’d best beware.
Eh. Everything being equal, I think I’ll skip this film. “Ratatouille” holds more appeal for me. Less agenda, more substance.
What’s up with Amy Winehouse lately? From being one of our blog’s favorite songstresses (together with Regina Spector) to showing up drunk to interviews and concerts, and smacking her bitch, er husband, up, Amy seems to be moving a bit too fast. Take it easy Amy. You’re still young, and not a superstar yet, and remember, what goes up high, inevitably hits the ground with a thud. And a loud one at that.
In Hollywood, like in politics, you sometimes wonder if there is a big plan lurking behind everything. And while in politics it’s a good thing to have a big plan, in Hollywood, which in my opinion should always represent the liberated opposition, you should always expect variety. Those deep (…) thoughts have nothing to do with anything really important that goes on in the world right now, just the fact that when I came to write my weekly gig about the weekend’s movies I found that most of the movies have one common denominator.
Eagle Vs. Shark: New Zealand brings us some interesting stuff lately. This movie is the one who is different in this Adventure\Superhero\Zombie bunch. It’s a love story between a fast food waitress and a store clerk.
This week’s peak is from the movie Eagle Vs. Shark:
LeBron James is not yet ready to be a champion, and tonight’s game proved it. He, together with Cavs head coach Mike Brown are to blame for the loss. LeBron, as talented as he may be, needs to be at the end of the Cavs offense and not the starter. He can’t pass the ball to himself, right?
In the last time-out with 5.5 seconds left in the game, you could see why the Cavs aren’t capable of beating the Spurs simply by how LeBron interacted with Coach Brown. Here Brown was trying to explain the set-up for the pivotal shot and LeBron was entirely dismissive and unattentive. Of course in the end he can go home and cry himself to sleep over his showhorse antics. The “star” player was so concerned with being the team’s savior that he neglected his team and forgot he’s only as strong as the sum of their support.
In a way Lebron reminds me of a young Michael Jordan who could score a lot, but wasn’t effective until he played with Scottie Pippen. So maybe that’s what LeBron’s lacking.
As far as the Spurs go, they just did what they always do: Showed up. Good thing Hausfrau Eva Longoria was courtside to watch her fiance do what he does best: Win Championships.
Denis Leary is back with the fourth season of the drama\comedy Rescue me. In the show Leary (who also writes the show together with director Peter Tolan) plays Tommy Gavin, a New York Firefighter who has a hard time recovering from the loss of his cousin and friend on 9/11.
In tonight’s season opener, Babyface, Tommy finds himself under suspicion after he finds it hard to explain the events that led to the fire at the beach house that incidentally, nearly caused his death.
The up-until-recent-outing sexually ambiguous David Hyde Pierce (the lovably neurotic Niles from Frasier) accepted a Tony for his performance in “Curtains” on Sunday night and remembered to thank his longtime partner. I first began to suspect Pierce might be pitching for the other team when I saw him on a segment of “CBS Sunday Morning” and witnessed his piano-playing abilities and his impeccable taste. I’ve yet to come across a straight actor so artistically versatile. I doubt I ever will for that matter.
“The Sopranos” ended with a whimper I’m sorry to say, with a series finale that hardly did justice to the caliber of show it started out as. For 59 minutes, nothing of note happened and the show driveled on building up to the final slow-mo climactic scene in which Tony and his family meet for dinner. Each members arrives separately so you’re held in suspense as to whom will be killed and whom will be spared. In the end, Meadow walks into the diner late to meet up with Tony, AJ, and Carmela and it’s “understood” that there’s a hit out on Tony and the assassins are at the restaurant setting up their mark.
Unfortunately Meadow running into the diner last minute is where the clip abruptly ends and credits start rolling. Huh? Disappointed? We sure were…
First off, my deepest appreciation to Mr. James Gandolfini. One of my favorite actors, who took many years of hard work of being typecast in small roles as a gangster, including one memorable performance facing off Patricia Arquette in True Romance. It took him a lot of hard work, but at the end it paid off, and he got the part for which he will be remembered for the rest of his life as Tony Soprano. And now, 85 episodes since The Sopranos premiered in 99′, its time to say goodbye. So don’t forget, The Sopranos last episode, airs tonight at 9PM on HBO.
In case you didn’t have the time to watch, here’s a recap of the last season.
It’s Saturday night and I’m watching the 80s teen flick “Loverboy” on TBS with Patrick Dempsey. I’m also arguing with my husband that the scrawny dweeb that once wooed current Weight Watchers spokesgal (before she was on WW of course) Kirstie Alley in the movie is in fact the one and only Dr. McDreamy. He doesn’t buy it and keeps trying to convince me Dempsey is Sean Penn. This got me thinking that Dempsey and Penn might have started out on similar 80s film role paths, but their careers definitely diverged. Somehow Dempsey became McDreamy and Penn opted for more er, um socially consciouswork?
Moving right along, I heard today Isaiah Washington’s character Dr. Burke will not be returning to “Grey’s Anatomy” next season. I guess one botched up season of slurs was one too many. No doubt the cast is pleased, especially T.R. Wright. But from where I stand it was a lame character/plot development write-in for the producers to dispose of Burke the way they did on the show’s season finale. Just cause Washington may or may not be a jerk in real life doesn’t give the writers license to downgrade a formerly upstanding character and have him suffer the same fate as his portrayer.
After this long and tiring week, and I’m not talking about Paris Hilton’s week, here is something old that will make the weekend much better. Mama Cass from 1968.
Internet Gossip Blogger Extraordinaire Perez Hilton aka Mario Lavandeira aka the Gossip Gangstar is a well-known pop fixture on the Hollywood socialite/drag queen scene. He’s not only accrued notereity through his blog and the legions of people (myself included) who visit each day to catch a glimpse of “The Hills” Heidi Montag’s breast and mouth augmentation, but he’s even relatively respected in media circles. He’ll be playing guest host over at “The View” later this month and made a special appearance at this year’s Canadian Much Music Video Awards (think MTV Movie Awards minus the Paris Hilton purgatory of paparazzi) earlier this month.
I guess 
Ms. O’Donnell has made it clear that her top dream gig (post-”View”) would be as host of the “Price Is Right” now that the geriatric Bob Barker has grown too old or too tired to make sexual advances on his female cohorts. So Barker has retired and Rosie wants in, but is the rest of America ready to embrace a gay female host? Considering the roster of male hosts being considered, Rosie would be in the minority as far as testosterone quotient (she has more) and sexuality (ok, maybe not), but Bob Barker has made it known he wants Rosie.
Last night Real Madrid won the Spanish Soccer championship for the 30th time in the club history, and the first in 4 years. This would not interest many people in the US if it wasn’t for the pop culture angle of it. As a huge Soccer fan I set to watch the game on 
Fresh off filming the role of slain journalist Daniel Pearl’s widow in “A Mighty Heart,” Angelina Jolie finds herself in a press snafu of hypocritical proportions. While some of us 
In Hollywood, like in politics, you sometimes wonder if there is a big plan lurking behind everything. And while in politics it’s a good thing to have a big plan, in Hollywood, which in my opinion should always represent the liberated opposition, you should always expect variety. Those deep (…) thoughts have nothing to do with anything really important that goes on in the world right now, just the fact that when I came to write my weekly gig about the weekend’s movies I found that most of the movies have one common denominator. 
The up-until-recent-
In this week’s 
“The Sopranos” ended with a whimper I’m sorry to say, with a series finale that hardly did justice to the caliber of show it started out as. For 59 minutes, nothing of note happened and the show driveled on building up to the final slow-mo climactic scene in which Tony and his family meet for dinner. Each members arrives separately so you’re held in suspense as to whom will be killed and whom will be spared. In the end, Meadow walks into the diner late to meet up with Tony, AJ, and Carmela and it’s “understood” that there’s a hit out on Tony and the assassins are at the restaurant setting up their mark.
It’s Saturday night and I’m watching the 80s teen flick “Loverboy” on TBS with Patrick Dempsey. I’m also arguing with my husband that the scrawny dweeb that once wooed current Weight Watchers spokesgal (before she was on WW of course) Kirstie Alley in the movie is in fact the one and only Dr. McDreamy. He doesn’t buy it and keeps trying to convince me Dempsey is Sean Penn. This got me thinking that Dempsey and Penn might have started out on similar 80s film role paths, but their careers definitely diverged. Somehow Dempsey became McDreamy and Penn opted for more er, um socially conscious 