May 12, 2012

Fashion Spotlight: Elizabeth Banks



The blonde starlet at the Vanity Fair Oscars after party, Feb. 26, in a long-sleeve green chiffon Chadwick Bell fall 2012 gown with navy blue polka dots. It is one of many fashionable looks Elizabeth has recently sported on the red carpet.

Photo credit: Getty Images


Elizabeth Banks made waves at May 7's Met Gala in a cutting-edge design by Mary Katrantzou, who herself has been making waves in the fashion world recently. It was just the latest red carpet of many in which Elizabeth has dominated. In March, Elizabeth hit red carpets around the world promoting "The Hunger Games," which spent four weeks atop the box office. Jennifer Lawrence is the star of the film, but you wouldn't know it with how hard her co-star hit red carpet. It brought the actress the spotlight as a fashionable force, but Elizabeth has long been fashion forward and has since continued to command the spotlight on the red carpet. Here are her 10 best looks from this year:

May 4, 2012

Lingering Questions from Last Night's "Community" Answered



The cast of "Community."
Photo credit: NBC


This week saw the "Community" study group dealing with the aftermath of last week's "Law & Order" parody episode. The episode not only followed up last week's cliff-hanger, but it also introduced a new storyline that involved one character meeting his look-alike. Here are the answers to two lingering questions:

Apr 13, 2012

Fashion Spotlight: Michelle Williams



Michelle Williams in white-trimmed sleeveless black Fall 2012 Givenchy dress with ruffle detailing, paired with black YSL TribToo pumps, at Feb. 23's 7th Annual Oscar Wilde: Honoring The Irish In Film Pre-Academy Awards Event in Santa Monica, Calif.

Photo credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez | Getty Images North America


Michelle Williams spent the better part of the fall and winter promoting her film "My Week with Marilyn," in which she stars as 1950s' style icon Marilyn Monroe, walking red carpets at premieres and awards shows. She did so clad in designer gowns paired with complementary accessories and a perfectly styled pixie cut. These are her 10 best looks of this awards season:

Mar 26, 2012

My Top Five - Actors Playing Themselves




Photo credit: 20th Century Fox Television


James Van Der Beek is taking up residence in the ABC midseason series, "Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23," and despite not premiering until April 11, the network posted the pilot episode today. The series stars Dreama Walker as a wide-eyed Midwesterner who moves to the city and becomes roommates with the title character, played by Krysten Ritter. This isn't the first time the former "Dawson's Creek" namesake has parodied himself. Last year, he played himself as Ke$ha's arch nemesis in her video for "Blow" and appeared as himself in a Funny Or Die skit. And, earlier this year, he played himself on an episode of E!'s "After Lately."

Plenty of notable examples of actors portraying themselves exist on film—John Malkovich in "Being John Malkovich," Bruce Campbell in "My Name is Bruce" and Neil Patrick Harris in the "Harold & Kumar" films, etc.—and there have been plenty of actors who have guest-starred on an episode or two of series (namely "Entourage"), but we're talking about those in it for the long haul. These are My Top Five actors playing themselves as series regulars:


Mar 22, 2012

Hollywood Honors The Muppets With Walk of Fame Star



Muppets characters Animal, Pepe the Prawn, Miss Piggy, Fozzie the Bear, Gonzo, Kermit the Frog, Walter and Sweetums were on hand to accept the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce's highest honor.

Photo credit: Maggie Hasbun

The famed stretch of Hollywood Boulevard, known as The Walk of Fame, is adorned with stars dedicated to such legendary, respected entertainers as Bob Hope, Mae West and Charlie Chaplin. And now, The Muppets have joined their ranks.

Although Kermit the Frog has had a star since 2002—and Muppets creator Jim Henson also has one—the new star includes all of Henson and Co.’s Muppets, comprising more than 800 characters.

“Now, The Muppets have truly arrived with their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” said Lisa Henson, daughter of Jim Henson. “They call this the street of dreams, and that is so appropriate for The Muppets.”



The marquee of The El Capitan Theatre twinkles
over the audience at the Muppets' Walk of Fame
induction ceremony.


Photo credit: Richard Razavi

Tuesday’s dedication of the star—the Walk of Fame’s 2,466th—coincided with the DVD and Blu-ray combo-pack release of “The Muppets” feature film, the seventh in the franchise, which also counts two TV series, numerous books and albums, and a short-lived comic strip and magazine among its myriad of projects.

Classic Muppets in attendance included Kermit, Miss Piggy, Pepe the Prawn, Animal, Fozzie Bear and Gonzo. They were joined by Walter, a Muppet introduced in the new film who was the storyline’s catalyst. The Muppets bantered over which one would take home the plaque presented to them before Sweetums emerged to help unveil the star.

The unveiling of the star outside the Disney-owned El Capitan Theatre drew more than 100 people. The theater appears in the film as the old Muppets Theatre and was also the location of its world premiere in November.

The film was a resurrection for the famous puppets who remained quiet since 1999’s “Muppets in Space,” which flopped at the box office, failing to recoup its $24-million budget. The recent “Muppets” film, however, was a success, debuting at No. 2 and grossing more than $158 million.

Disney secured the rights to The Muppets in 2004 and in 2008, green-lit a script from “How I Met Your Mother” actor and puppet enthusiast Jason Segel on the heels of his star-making turn in 2008’s “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” which he starred in and wrote. Segel pulled double duty in this film, too, co-writing it with Nicholas Stoller and starring in it alongside Amy Adams, Chris Cooper and Rashida Jones.

“I, like most of you, have grown up with The Muppets and am thrilled to see them rise to international stardom again,” said Walt Disney Studios Chairman Rich Ross.

As music has always been an integral part of The Muppets, the August release of Muppets: The Green Album—a tribute record by contemporary artists of varying genres, including Sondre Lerche, Matt Nathanson and Weezer, from whom the album borrows its name—boosted the film’s popularity. The album reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200. A 30-song soundtrack was also released the day before the film hit theaters. The track “Man or Muppet” won the Best Song Oscar at last month’s Academy Awards.

The Muppets enjoy a rich history. Having first emerged on “Sam and Friends” in 1955, Kermit became the show’s break-out star. After creating puppets for “Sesame Street” in 1969, Henson gave Kermit his own spin-off in 1976; and “The Muppets” most Americans know and love was born.

Every year, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce chooses approximately 20 entertainers to award with stars from hundreds of nominations. Upcoming inductees include Tina Fey, Oprah Winfrey and Adam West.


The Muppets were joined by Hollywood Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Leron Gubler, The Walt
Disney Company Chairman Rich Ross and Jim Henson's children, Henson Productions CEO Lisa Henson and Chairman Brian Henson.


Photo credit: Maggie Hasbun



Feb 24, 2012

Highlights of 2012's Pilot Season


Photo credit: Getty

Every January brings with it not only a new year but also the turning point in a new TV season. While most new shows premiere in the fall, January is when names begin being attached to projects. Show creators pitched their ideas to the networks last summer, the networks optioned their favorites in the fall, some of those have made it to the phase where they've been green-lit for production, actors are being cast right now, pilots will be filmed over spring, network upfronts will occur in May, and for the few that make it on the fall schedule, they will film their first few episodes over summer, and just a lucky handful will make it to TV come September. In a season that could see former "Roseanne" co-stars Roseanne Barr and John Goodman rejoining for a sit-com, "Tangled" co-stars landing their own projects, a "Full House" alumnus returning to TV, film actors such as Kevin Bacon, Bill Pullman and Dennis Quaid making their foray into TV and beloved characters like Sherlock Holmes, Carrie Bradshaw and Green Arrow jumping from the page to small screen, these are the 25 most promising series in this stage of the game:

Jan 18, 2012

50 Things to Look Forward to in 2012


Photo credit: Lisi Niesner / Reuters

If your year so far isn't going as well as you had hoped and you're left thinking 2012 has nothing to offer you, fret not. Here are 10 things in five categories to look forward to in 2012:

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