So now that the summer movie season is in full swing, we're being treated to some tasty cinematic morsels we won't be able to savor until the holidays. First up, Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby, a lavish-looking remake of the 1974 F. Scott Fitzgerald adaptation which starred Robert Redford and Mia Farrow.
The 2012 edition stars Leonardo DiCaprio as the titular Long Island, New York millionaire who befriends Midwesterner Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) and develops an infatuation with the beguiling Daisy (a perfectly cast Carey Mulligan). Romance blossoms, tensions rise, and everyone gets carried away amidst several decadent parties. It's just like watching any given reality show on Bravo -- except it's 1922. Watch:
The modern music juxtaposing the vintage looks is very Lurhmannesque (remember Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge?), and who knows if it's just for the trailer. Doesn't matter. We were sold at the first frame.
*Too bad Baz can't be touted as "the director of Australia" because we sooo loved that 2008 bomb.
If you've been wondering what Matthew Fox has been up to since Lost, then look no further. He plays a murderer and MMA fighter in the latest Alex Cross film. This time Tyler Perry temporarily strips away his fat suit to play the detective/psychologist -- first portrayed by Morgan Freeman in Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider -- as he hunts for his wife's murderer. Lost's Matthew Fox, as you can see above, daringly decided to play the killer role without any signs of body fat -- and without the dramatic crutches of hair or skin (shades of Edward Norton in American History X, anyone?). We can only imagine the countless workout questions the actor will be asked at press junkets when this thing comes out.
XXX and The Fast and the Furious director Rob Cohen helmed the film, so you probably shouldn't expect anything more profound than the Alex Cross commercials from author James Patterson. However, if you're interested in seeing Fox look insane and insanely ripped, or seeing Tyler Perry wear a trenchcoat, here are some production stills from the set. Alex Cross hits theaters in October.
HIH's resident nightlifer, Stephanie Gradski, checked out the opening of Culver City's newest hotspot...
It started out in New York City as a nifty throwback to the Roaring 1920s...back in the summer of 2010. The Blind Barber, co-founded by Jeff Laub, offered gentlemen a haircut (or a shave) and an old-fashioned cocktail while they waited. And when the sun goes down, those gentlemen were invited to bring their lady friends back to the parlor for some nighttime revelry in booze and bass.
And now Los Angeles is getting in on the fun. Being a city known for never shying away from the launch of a new hotspot every month, especially when said venue is disguised as a trendy speakeasy, L.A. has seen its fair share of lounges that have attempted to lure all demographics (hipsters, millennial yuppies, industryites, childless marrieds). You know the places: it's where bartenders are called "mixologists."
The Blind Barber has now taken up residence in Culver City, a few blocks west of the downtown sector, on Washington Boulevard. And talk about being randomly located: the unassuming bar/club/lounge is situated behind a Best Buy and next to a Weight Watchers. Looks can certainly be deceiving. The storefront looks like any other barber shop -- red-and-white striped pole, reclining chairs, displays of grooming products...But as HIH found out last night (Thursday was the official grand opening), there's a whole other side to experience.
Walk through the rear door with the coat rack, and you'll step into a time warp. The drinks and decor may scream 1920s, but the vibe, particularly the music, was very 1980s during last night's visit. All of L.A.'s nocturnal denizens were in attendance: skinny jeans-wearing artists, suited-up execs, chiseled dudes with plunging V-necks, flannel slackers, hip-hop businessmen, and stilettoed starlets. It's where The Cure intersected with Blackstreet (hooray for 90s nostalgia), and where the past blended awkwardly with the present. Who knew the westside could feel so much like the east?
My father drove me to school almost every day between the ages of 5 and 14. He would drive me to Mrs. Wolf's Pre-School and indulge my obsession with the movie Dick Tracy by bringing his wrist watch to his mouth and speaking into it, "Mrs. Wolf... We're on our way." This would typically elicit an embarrassingly giddy response from yours truly. As the years went by, I stopped getting a kick out of such antics, and listening to the radio took over the daily commute. I don't remember exactly when it happened -- maybe 11- or 12-years old -- when I first listened Howard Stern. My dad was very careful. He would typically have Howard, on and if things got a bit racy or turned towards sex, he would turn the dial over to Don Imus or some other less interesting radio personality. I could tell he didn't want to but he knew if my Mom found out, he'd be screwed. That was my first exposure to Howard Stern.
My high school years consisted of me waking up to the same sound every weekday morning at 6am sharp. I would listen to Howard up until first-period English class at 7:25. I went off to college, and my affair with the Stern Show continued. I'd listen to him in between classes and in the morning. During the summer, I would listen to him while I mowed lawns, landscaped, and performed carpentry duties for a nearby restaurant. Like Stern, I graduated from Boston University, and my first broadcast experience was over the air of the campus radio station WTBU. We even shared the same whimsical philosophy professor, Jim Wilcox. In December 2005, two things happened that would change my life: my girlfriend broke up with me, and Howard left terrestrial radio and moved on to Sirius Satellite. As a 19-year-old, I definitely didn't take the break up well. We've all been there; you listen to sad music, thinking life can never go on, and you detach yourself from anything that remotely resembles fun. I would go to work and listen to Howard's replacement, David Lee Roth, and that would generally last about fifteen minutes before I had to turn it off. I went seven months without Howard in my life. I was depressed over the break up. I felt alone. Finally in July of 2006, I listened to Howard for the first time on Sirius. In a split second, I found my smile. It wasn't the novelty of being able to curse without fear of FCC fines that made me smile but rather the freedom the crew had to converse freely without regulation. On regular radio, Howard would be on a roll and have to stop for commercials after ten minutes. Sirius was the promised land. Howard would chat with Robin, Fred, and at the time, Artie about the most mundane subjects for hours on end making me laugh harder at their banter than any Hollywood screenwriter ever has. Since July of 2006, I have never missed a show.
Is it an obsession? Probably. I wake up and listen to the show because the cast of characters have become my family. This past week, Robin showed up wearing a catheter because she's being screened for possible cancer. Instead of throwing a pity party, Howard cracked, "I really resent you for making me feel bad for you on the same week as my big debut on America's Got Talent." That's the Howard Stern Show in a nutshell. It is an intimate room where secrets are told, laughs are had, and arguments are made while millions of fans hang on every word. In the past few years, Howard has transformed from a rebel "shock jock" into an elder statesman of broadcasting whose true impact will likely not be appreciated by the masses until long after he is gone. He changed radio. He is undoubtedly one of the best interviewers of his generation as the only person who can sit down and talk with Barbara Walters for an hour, and without missing a beat, follow it up with an interview with three porn stars willing to give a desperate virgin the night of his life.
Pixar's film Ratatouille has a very profound line spoken by Peter O'Toole. He states, "Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere." Howard based his career on finding talent everywhere no matter what the circumstance or affliction so long as the person is entertaining. Celebrity super fan Natalie Maines flew across the country just to catch a glimpse of Eric the Midget. His limo driver/security guard Ronnie The Limo Driver became a fixture on the show because of his angry outbursts. Sal "The Stockbroker" Governale used to call the show with prank calls; now he gets paid to do it for a living. Sal's allure is the constant examining of his seemingly awful marriage that sometimes result in disturbing song parodies about his wife. Howard loves reality. He loves honesty. Some of the greatest and funniest occasions on the show have ironically come from raw emotional moments. Not one moment on his show for 35 years has been disingenuous, and on Monday night, Howard brought his brand of honest entertainment to NBC's America's Got Talent.
As a longtime fan of the "King of All Media", I have been looking forward to this night since he announced it in December. I watched with two lady friends who fall under the female 18-24 demographic (hardly Howard's core audience). When the two hours ended, one turned to me and said with a surprised tone, "Wow. Howard is really funny." I responded, "Welcome to the club." That's what Howard joining AGT means to hardcore Stern fans. It validates our years of dedication. It softens the instant stigma that comes with telling somebody, "Yes, I am a Stern fan." We want people to know that we were ahead of the curve. We appreciated Howard for the brilliant comedic mind that he is and saw past the surface of strippers, the wack pack, and the misunderstood notion that he is a filthy misogynist.
The Stern show is a place where misfits gather to feel like they belong. The show embraces people's differences, neuroses, and handicaps that make us all unique. Instead of being ostracized from the "cool table", these people feel like they belong to a community. Nothing said or done is meant out of malice, but rather in the name of entertainment. If you're being goofed on, you're part of the family. With Howard back on network television, one of the misfits has been welcomed to the mainstream. I had never watched an episode of AGT until Monday night. I tuned in and found myself laughing out loud, applauding and tearing up at times. Unlike shows like American Idol and The Voice, AGT celebrates entertainment in any form: dancers, singers, comedians, instrumentalists, painters, etc. The task is to look for a unique talent. Who would be better to find it than the most unique talent in broadcasting history? AGT was never on my radar. With the brilliant addition of Howard Stern, it has become appointment television.
America's got Howard. But I've had him all along, and I'm glad the masses now get to enjoy him as well. Instead of smugly saying "I told ya so," I want to say, "Hey now!" and gladly welcome you to the party. Baba Booey!
Writer-director Casper Andreas' award-winning sixth film, Going Down in La-La Land, opens here in Los Angeles tomorrow, May 18, at the Chinese Theatres in Hollywood (for tickets to Friday's Hollywood premiere and VIP afterparty, go HERE). An uncensored, sexy, and funny Boogie Nights-esque look at what an actor can -- and will -- do to survive in Hollywood, Going Down in La-La Land is based on the popular Andy Zeffer novel and stars a few friends of ours, including Matthew Ludwinski, Bruce Vilanch, Judy Tenuta, Alec Mapa and Perez Hilton.
Chronicling the journey of NYC transplant Adam (Ludwinski), the film takes the fish-out-of-water format, thrusts it into the world of adult entertainment, drowns it in vodka, and ultimately paints an ugly portrait of the seedy side of showbiz. In other words, if you're a fresh-off-the-plane actor looking to make it in Tinseltown, take this cautionary tale to heart:
Disco legend Donna Summer died earlier today at the age of 63, reportedly after a battle with breast cancer.
TMZ was the first to report the singer's death, and the site reports that she was recording an album at the time of her death. Her last CD, Crayons, came out in 2008, as we included "Stamp Your Feet," in one of our summer soundtracks:
The Grammy-winning singer, nicknamed the Queen of Disco, had numerous hits in both the 1970s and 1980s, including "Last Dance," "She Works Hard for the Money" and "Bad Girls."
Summer won five Grammy Awards and six American Music Awards, and charted three multi-platinum albums.
She is survived by her husband, three daughters, and four grandchildren. Source
If you didn't catch Chronicle in theaters last February, then you missed out on one hell of thrill ride that brought the tired "found footage" format to another level (and it happens to be one of our favorite films of 2012 - so far). Utilizing hand-held filmmaking techniques to create a realistic and exciting viewing experience, the film cleverly blends genres, mashing up dark elements from X-Men and (believe it or not) Carrie.
And now, you can take the extraordinary journey with three teens who uncover a power greater than anything they've ever imagined. Dane DeHaan (True Blood), Alex Russell(Almost Kings) and Michael B. Jordan (Friday Night Lights) star in the innovative action thriller, which makes its debut on Blu-ray and DVD this week.
Three high school dudes make a life-changing discovery, leading to their developing uncanny telekinetic powers beyond their understanding. As they learn to control their abilities and use them to their advantage, their lives start to spin out of control as their darker sides begin to take over. What starts out as fun and games quickly becomes dangerous, and they must face the inevitable question of whether they can handle the responsibility that comes with their remarkable powers.
The Chronicle Blu-ray boast a director's cut of the film and unseen footage that offer a deeper glimpse into the events that took place.
Summer hasn't officially kicked off yet, and we're already gearing up for the 2012 Fall TV season. This is what we've previewed (and liked) thus far...
First up is NBC's Revolution. The trailer for this thing's got everything we love: an obligatory J.J. Abrams title card, some epic shots of shit going down (very reminiscent of the History Channel's Life After People), and an ambitious plot that's looks to rival Lost in the what-the-hell-is-going-on department:
Then there's The New Normal, a sitcom from Glee mastermind Ryan Murphy that's basically based on the idea of "What if Cam and Mitch from Modern Family had their own spin-off?" The Hangover's Justin Bartha plays one-half of a gay couple that uses a surrogate to have a child...and we can already sense a rumbling from the conservative American Family Association...
In what is sure to be a dramatic shift in public opinion, today Barack Obama became the first sitting president to announce his support for same-sex marriage.
In a sit-down interview with ABC's Robin Roberts, Obama completed what has been a markedly long and oft-mocked evolution on the matter.
"I've always been adamant that gay and lesbian Americans should be treated fairly," Obama told Roberts, in an interview that will air in full on ABC's "Good Morning America" Thursday.
"I have to tell you that over the course of several years as I have talked to friends and family and neighbors when I think about members of my own staff who are in incredibly committed monogamous relationships, same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together, when I think about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there fighting on my behalf and yet feel constrained, even now that Don't Ask Don't Tell is gone, because they are not able to commit themselves in a marriage, at a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married," he said.
The statement constitutes an act of political bravery on the president's behalf, as well as a major victory for the gay rights community, which has been pushing him to declare his support for marriage equality for several years. With the issue back in the news this week, the pressure intensified.
On Sunday, Vice President Joseph Biden told NBC's "Meet The Press" that he was personally comfortable with same-sex marriage, which was followed the next day by Education Secretary Arne Duncan saying the same.
The White House insisted that there was no daylight between the vice president's position and the president's, noting that Biden clarified his statement as being in reference to civil rights for gay couples. But the explanation was largely dismissed by both supporters and critics as a convenient way for the president to signal support for marriage equality without having to declare it himself.
On Tuesday evening, the state of North Carolina passed an amendment that defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman. The president expressed his disappointment with the measure, but it remained difficult to square his opposition to a measure outlawing same-sex marriage with his opposition to same-sex marriage itself.
As the political pressure continued to mount, the president finally chose to speak out Wednesday, with the White House hastily scheduling a sit-down interview.
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