Our woman on-the-street, Ama Jo Budge, at Hollywood & Highland claims that her personal survey reconfirms Johnny Depp as the hottest actor alive with Christian Bale following in second place of women aged 15 to 60 surveyed during this 2011 Oscar week.
Media warning -- wireless devices are verbotten after February 23, 2011.
Rumblings that 3D -- the new box office panacea -- may have judges inclined to vote for a genre that will keep money flowing in Hollywood could have an impact on the 2011 Academy Awards results.
Today, the Motion Picture Association of America reported that global box office reached $31.8 billion, a global box office record with an 8% increase in 2010 over last year, Daily Variety reports, with a drop 5% drop in actual domestic attendance.
So how does this affect the 2011 Oscars?
Dunno yet, but, I've got a cool $100 on Toy Story 3 and Alice in Wonderland taking home some bacon.
I arrive outside the Beverly Hilton Hotel in my taxi about feeling very glamorous indeed and stroll into the hotel, nodding at the security guard as if I was born there. Once inside I become much shyer, finally finding the woman I’m supposed to speak to and getting my press badge. The entire lobby oozes with the distinct aromas of fame, excitement, and extremely expensive taste.
Finding my place in the red carpet line, I talk to other press members, peruse the ‘tip-list’ (as it sounds literally a list of the big names and faces attending) and await the arrival of the celebrities. Trickle turns to flood and suddenly the room is a-flash with shouting photographers all vying for the attention of the biggest stars. Sex and the City star Kristin Davis is hosting the evening, and appears in a floating black and white polka-dot gown.
In the flesh, and throughout the evening, she is every bit the trotting, beaming, adorable beauty of ‘Charlotte’ the character we have come to know and love her for. In her interviews she talks about the importance of costume for acting as well as for people, down to the importance in every shoe, and the value of the modern woman’s flats in which she feels comfortable and strong.
Praising the work of the designers:
“Tiny details all come together on screen to create what everyone takes for granted…its very intertwined and complicated and amazing, what they do.”
And of HalleBerry:
“Halle is a genius in so many ways and such a generous person, she’s a sweetheart.”
These sentiments were echoed later not only by the president of the Costume Designers Guild, Mary Rose (see below) but also by Samuel L Jackson as he presents Berry with the Lacoste Spotlight Award. This award singles out an actor who has proved consistently committed to achieving excellence in their role and shown a particular awareness to the integral operation of costume design within that role.
A personal favourute of mine, Lisa Edelsein (who plays the character of Cuddy - Dr. House’s love interest and Dean of Medicine in the hit US show House) appears on the red carpet looking stunning in Viviane Westwood and I positively leap on the poor woman for a photograph, who is extremely gracious and agrees.
She will be presenting the Outstanding Contemporary Television Series Award along with Melora Hardin (The Office).
All-American hunk James Bamber arrives lurking on the side lines, somewhat shy out of his Battlestar Galactica uniform.
I meet Bette Midler in the cocktail lounge, a childhood icon of mine and manage to get a photo with her to both mine (and my mother's) delight.
The red carpet is rounded off with HalleBerry’s extraordinary
entrance in her Elie Saab Haute Couture gown.
I step into the cavernous room which is bedecked in classy green and black, alight with the chinking of cocktail glasses, sparkling eyes and glittering chandeliers.
Lou Eyrich begins the evening, taking the
Award for Best Contemporary Television Series
Outstanding Period/Fantasy Television Series goes to
John Dunn and Lisa Padovanni for Empire Boardwalk
Michael Dennison who passed away last September at the premature age of 58 was mourned and respected tonight as he joined the Guild’s Hall of Fame. Known for work such as ‘Almost Famous’, ‘What Women Want’, ‘Basic Instinct’,and ‘Eat Pray Love’,Dennison, or as his colleagues call him ‘Dixie’ showed extraordinary diversity within his work, from the comic-book like caricatures of The Spirit to the raw, true story: ‘World Trade Centre’.
Julia Roberts, his long time friend, colleague and neighbour held a personal memorial for him in her home last year, and he received a standing ovation in the hall tonight.
The Big Love cast present the Award for Outstanding television movie or miniseries:
Mary Rose, President of the Costume Designers Guild pulls off a funeral-worthy netted black hat, though she is barely seen behind the podium. She thanks Lacoste as the Guild’s Presenting Sponsor and HalleBerry who received the Lacoste Spotlight Award this evening.
Bill Marr begins a heartfelt and fairly hilarious speech in honour of Joel Schumacher, costume designer, writer and director, having worked on pieces such as ‘Carwash’ with Woody Allen, ‘Batman Forever’, ‘Phone Booth’and the adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical ‘The Phantom of the Opera’.
The gorgeous Isaiah Mustafa presents the award for Excellence in Commercial Design, which goes to Aude Bronson-Howard.
British costume designer Jenny Beavan wins the Excellence in Period Film Award for the kings speech which has received political acclaim both here and in the UK, winning six Awards, including Best Film, out of thirteen nominations.
****
Hollywood’s Star-studded couple Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore take the podium to present Julie Weiss with the Disaronno Career Achievement in Film and Television Award.
Weiss’s impressive repertoire includes‘American Beauty’, ‘Frida’, ‘Secretariat’, ‘The Ring’, ‘Steel Magnolias’,and most recently ‘No Strings Attatched’.She is spoken of with love and respect by several directors and actors:
“This eccentric, amazing little woman…(who) finds the music in the wardrobe…”
Which is awarded to Amy Westcott for Black Swan, who is brought nearly to tears when thanking her husband, son and team:
“Any costume designer isn’t worth anything without a fantastic team.”
I get a little star-struck myself as Samuel L Jackson takes the stage in a dashing tux to Pulp Fiction’s timeless Pumpkin and Honey Bunny/Misirlou soundtrack.
He honours Halle Berry with familiarity, admiration and respect, reading the praise of some designers who’ve worked with her, before presenting her with the Lacoste Spotlight Award.
After showing the tribute video of her career, Jackson finishes with (what I think was on everyone’s mind, male and female alike…)
“Nothing beats leather"
After snapping a shot in the ladies with another personal icon of mine - Holland Taylor, I make my way to the cues outside the Beverly Hilton and the valet hails me a cab.
I have much enjoyed reporting for you this evening, stay tuned for the
Perhaps Freshman Kentucky Senator Rand Paul should have paid attention to Senator Al Frankin, who Paul says told him not to go on The Late Show With David Letterman - or for that matter, Paul's own wife. Going on David Letterman's show resulted in a Rand Paul with a reduced image. Regardless of what die-hard Tea Party myopics want to believe, and how much they flood message boards and chat rooms with fantasies about Paul's performance tonight, the total truth is, it was a massive disaster.
As you can see in the video, everything was wrong. It started from the moment Paul came out to the stage at the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York, where Letterman's show is taped. Rather than wave to the crowd and walk out in a relaxed fashion, Senator Paul literally waddled out like a Penguin. He even looked the part in a blue blazer, blue jeans, and white shirt with a red tie: he looked stiff and nervous.
Then, once Senator Paul sat down he made the major mistake of trying to be funny. So, his first three quips that were jokes you'd have to be a Washington insider or politico to get, went over without a laugh. In fact, it wasn't until Paul said that Senator Frankin told him not to come on the show that he actually got a laugh.
It was horrible.
It went further down hill when, in an exchange that's worth listening to over and over again, Letterman made Paul look like the Senator was just out of touch with the working person. When Paul tried to say that America was throwing too much money at education, Letterman countered that we were spending enough on education. When Paul tried to argue for reducing the public sector, Letterman got him to basically say he was trying to take jobs and spending away from the middle class basic worker.
The entire exchange made for the most cringe-inducing segment since the one where Actor Joaquin Phoenix came on Letterman's show and acted like he was on acid. The problem was Senator Paul wasn't on acid or anything. Maybe he should have been; it would have given him some kind of excuse for what happened.
David Letterman made Senator Paul look like a common city councilman from a small Kentucky town, instead of a major political player in America. Paul had better go back and re-think his platform and his message to America, because after tonight it's obvious he's out of touch with what's happening. People don't want to hear rhetoric about the size of government, they just want jobs. Period.
I just - about 30 minutes ago from this writing - met KRON TV Channel 4's Jonathan Bloom, and as he was standing outside the San Francisco Muni Light Rail Line entry / exit area with his Sony betacam on a tripod.
As I did, with KPIX TV Channel Five's Mike Sugarman last June, here:
I said to Mr. Bloom that a Flip Video Camera worked better. He asked if I could hold it steady at a distance and still get a great shot. I explained that I do regularly and took time to demonstrate my technique of holding the camcorder to eye level and keeping it there throughout my scene creations, even panning. I then asked Mr. Bloom what he was doing out at a BART station at this time of night.
It was at that point, Bloom mentioned his work on a story involving San Francisco MUNI and claims thaat MUNI is not properly maintaining its light rail lines. Bloom says that SF MUNI is also "bypassing" inquiries by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. He's going to have more on the story at 11 PM on KRON TV 4, San Francisco.
As for the camera talk, Bloom loves Flips, he just wishes they had a better telephoto capability.
BREAKING - According to CNN Television and NASA, a video shows foam to be falling from Space Shuttle Discovery as it speeds into orbit after a successful launch today. To be clear, the foam that covers much of the Shuttle's exterior did not start falling while the spacecraft was in the process of liftoff, but afterward.
That's important, because it was falling material from the Space Shuttle Challenger that led to a series of engineering processes leading to its eventual explosion in 1985.
Foam Was Replaced Last November
Foam was replaced on Space Shuttle Discovery last November, and along the external tank where cracked support beams were replaced.
The damage was reported after a cancelled November 5th launch because of a gas leak. Eventually, it was repaired, tests were conducted, and the launch date that was today was authorized.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences just issued a press release announcing the extension of their TV agreement with the ABC Television Network . Here's the AMPAS release, in full:
The ABC Television Network's contract to carry the annual Academy Awards presentations has been extended for six more years, though 2020, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ President Tom Sherak and Anne Sweeney, President of the Disney/ABC Television Group, announced today.
"This contract ensures that the Oscar show will be an ABC tradition for 45 consecutive years," said Sherak. "ABC is absolutely the very best place for the Academy Awards, a television event that is beloved and watched by millions of movie lovers all over the world."
"ABC has been home to the Oscars for many years, having aired a total of 46 of the annual telecasts, so we’re thrilled to announce that this tradition will continue," said Sweeney. "During that time, we’ve enjoyed a tremendous partnership with the Academy, pairing the best in movies with the best in television, and look forward to a long and successful collaboration in the years to come."
Academy Executive Director Bruce Davis added, "The Oscars remain the most-watched non-sports program in America, and we’re delighted that ABC will continue to be the setting for that jewel. The network has consistently demonstrated an understanding of what makes us unique, and has energetically supported those qualities."
The new agreement for the domestic broadcasts of the Academy Awards adds six years to the existing contract, which was scheduled to expire in 2014. International rights are covered by a separate agreement with Walt Disney International which runs through 2014.
The 83rd Academy Awards, which will air live on Sunday, February 27, will be the 36th consecutive ceremony to air on ABC.
Be sure to catch full Oscars coverage at Zennie62.com, ramping up on Friday!
Parking lots, batches of grass on the side of the road and parks with a view of the Kennedy Space Center are filled with people hoping to witness a spectacular launch. More than 60,000 people are expected at the Kennedy Space Center said NASA to witness the launch and that doesn't include the tens of thousands of spectators along the Indian River.
Hundreds have been packing into Space View Park in Titusville, Florida, where memorials to previous space programs are displayed.
NASA's web site gives the specific schedule in technical terms:
"Date: Feb. 24
Mission: STS-133
Launch Vehicle: Space Shuttle Discovery
Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center - Launch Pad 39A
Launch Time: 4:50 p.m. EST
Landing Date and Time: March 7, 12:44 p.m. EST
Landing Site: Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
STS-133 Description: Space shuttle Discovery will deliver the Express Logistics Carrier-4 (ELC-4), a Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) and critical spare components to the International Space Station on an 11 day mission. "
There are sure to be more updates.
Ways in which you can watch it live include Citizen-Times.com.
This horrible news comes from New York City. There are reports of now up to 61 people hurt in a massive accident in the Lincoln Tunnel that involved two buses and a motorcyclist.
According to NJ.com, two buses crashed into a motorcycle in the tunnel earlier this morning. The motorcyclist was between the buses when the front one stopped for traffic and the bus behind rammed into the cycle.
The rider was severely injured and taken to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan with a fractured femur and shoulder.
A total of at first 52 reported, and now 61 people were injured; 13 of them taken to Roosevelt Hospital in New York.
NJ transit added seven trains from Secaucus to New York to help stranded passengers.
According to the Associated Press, the legislators in the "Wisconsin Assembly have agreed to a deal that will limit further debate on a bill taking away collective bargaining rights for public workers and lead to a vote on the measure later Thursday," possibly as early as noon.
Meanwhile, the Chief of Police in Madison is asking the governor to explain "troubling" and "unsettling" statements the loose-lipped rookie Governor made while he thought he was on the phone with billionaire David Koch.
"I find it very unsettling and troubling that anyone would consider creating safety risks for our citizens and law enforcement officers. Our department works hard dialoging with those who are exercising their First Amendment right, those from both sides of the issue, to make sure we are doing everything we can to ensure they can demonstrate safely."
"There are a lot of folks out there who say, ‘It doesn't impact me, I'm not a union guy, I'm not a teacher, I'm not a civil servant.' Let me tell you how it does matter to you. Wages are going down in this country for everybody. When you destroy unions there will be no standard at all, nobody left to negotiate decent jobs for the middle class..."
"I would like to hear more of an explanation from Governor Walker as to what exactly was being considered, and to what degree it was discussed by his cabinet members."
The Chief has some legitimate questions, and the rest of the cheeseheads are coming up with some really great signs at the Madison protests, don't you think?
Political Correspondent Thomas Hayes is a former Congressional Campaign Manager; he's a journalist, photo/videographer, entrepreneur, and communications consultant who contributes regularly on topics ranging from economics and politics to culture and community, who incidentally stands in solidarity with the citizens and workers in Wisconsin refusing to let their Governor's self-created budget "crisis" and new spending priorities be re-cast as a reason to undermine contractual obligations and collective bargaining agreements.
"Yahoo! MyBlogLog To Be Discontinued May 24, 2011." That's the message of a note that just popped up in my email inbox. This one:
Dear MyBlogLog Customer,
You have been identified as a customer of Yahoo! MyBlogLog. We will officially discontinue Yahoo! MyBlogLog effective May 24, 2011. Your agreement with Yahoo!, to the extent that it applies to the Yahoo! MyBlogLog, will terminate on May 24, 2011.
After May 24, 2011 your credit card will no longer be charged for premium services on MyBlogLog. We will refund you the unused portion of your subscription, if any. The refund will appear as a credit via the billing method we have on file for you. To make sure that your billing information is correct and up to date, visit https://billing.yahoo.com.
Questions?
If you have questions about these changes, please visit the Yahoo! MyBlogLog help pages.
We thank you for being a customer on Yahoo! MyBlogLog.
Sincerely,
The Yahoo! My BlogLog Team
Yep. Come May, it's toast.
Yahoo acquired MyBlogLog, the blog list social network system, in 2007 for $10 million. Acquiring it was reportedly the idea of Bradley Horowitz, who was a Yahoo exec in charge of strategy. But then, Horowitz smartly bolted Yahoo for Google, where he's over Blogger.com, Google Buzz, and other product initiatives.
But Yahoo killing My BlogLog is just plainly a dumb idea. In the Internet space, real estate is king. My BlogLog offered Yahoo a way to partner with blogs and share Yahoo-produced content. Well, all that's over now, it seems.
I have always liked MyBlogLog's concept of linking blogs and readers. It was ahead of its time, and Yahoo buying it was a smart play in 2007. The trouble is Yahoo never built off of it. Yahoo just owned it. Now, it's getting rid of it.
I'm just waiting to see what Yahoo's next error's going to be.
Ongo, with Alex Kazim as its CEO, was started with a $12 million first tranche of funding (not bad) from Gannett Company, The New York Times Company, and The Washington Post Company (not VC firms at all), it combines the following established news print media brands: The Associated Press, The Guardian, Slate, The Boston Globe The Miami Herald, USA TODAY, Financial Times, New York Times Picks, The Washington Post, The Indy Star, The Kansas City Star, The Miami Herald, Charlotte Observer, Detroit Free Press, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and other print titles. (not The San Francisco Chronicle as of this writing.)
You have to subscribe to get its information, which is news content from those publications. Ongo is an "inny" or what's called a "closed loop." A system, (1) the existence of which you have to know about as a brand, and then (2) information's sent out to you and (3) only after you pay for it.
As of this writing (in case they fix it), I go to the Ongo website, and right at the top I see three links: "Ongo Is.., How Ongo Works, and in large letters, SUBSCRIBE.
Ok, so I click on SUBSCRIBE expecting to know what the cost to do so is, right? Makes sense. When I click on the link, I'm taken to a page that's just a bunch of simple HTML entry fields, and nothing - not a thing - telling me how much the subscription is, and for how long. According to The Examiner's Romona Paden, it's $6.99 per month, but that must have come from the PR folks, because guess what...it's not listed on the dog-on Ongo website!
Well, since then, Ongo's staff, led by content director Kevin Skaggs, fixed the problem. As of this writing, a visit to the Ongo site reveals a right-side panel that briefly explains what Ongo is about, what it costs to sign up, and an email list subscription field.
That's great.
But since Kevin's obviously in the mode of responding to my observations, here's another: the Ongo site doesn't tease you with content samples right on the front page. You have to click on "available titles" to see what content is offered. Even then, the content is not designed such that it contributes to the overall search optimization for the site. If Ongo represents the "top news sites," it should compete for search placement in the news of the day.
As I've stated, Ongo's major problem is that it's an "inny," which, to reiterate, is what's called a "closed loop." A system, (1) the existence of which you have to know about as a brand, and then (2) information's sent out to you and (3) only after you pay for it.
Ongo's brands aren't strong enough to warrant this approach. Take a page from The Huffington Post: SEO is king. (And I offered the example of The Huff Post deliberately. Let's see who takes the bait.)
According to the Associated Press, the legislators in the "Wisconsin Assembly have agreed to a deal that will limit further debate on a bill taking away collective bargaining rights for public workers and lead to a vote on the measure later Thursday," possibly as early as noon.
Thomas Hayes is a former Congressional Campaign Manager; he's a journalist, photo/videographer, entrepreneur, and communications consultant who contributes regularly on topics ranging from economics and politics to culture and community, who incidentally stands in solidarity with the citizens and workers in Wisconsin refusing to let their Governor's self-created budget "crisis" and new spending priorities be re-cast as a reason to undermine contractual obligations and collective bargaining agreements.
