Lana Del Rey Gets The Superstar Treatment by Fiat

In his piece in this week’s TIME Magazine, Douglas Wolk weighs in on the Lana Del Rey debate.

If you regularly follow music blogs, or pay attention to new music in general, you’ve probably heard of Del Rey. At the very least, you saw — or read about the backlash against — her languid bordering on narcoleptic Saturday Night Live performance. As Wolk writes, she’s “an online starlet thanks to a couple of low-res YouTube videos.” A rather small but intense debate has raged for several months now about the “authenticity” of Del Rey, who appears to be wholly manufactured in terms of both persona and musical talent, yet is content in passing herself off as some sort of indie musician (whatever that means).

At any rate, Del Rey’s album drops today, so you can now pass judgment yourself. But it’s worth checking out Wolk’s piece for observations such as this one:

The problem is that the entertainment industry has decided that Del Rey is an important artist whether we like it or not. But pop audience are intensely meritocratic — that’s why we love American Idol. If we don’t get to vote on our musicians, we expect them to prove their worth by touring, woodshedding and building a body of work. Del Rey is getting the superstar treatment by fiat; she’s a fledgling talent stuck in a costume that won’t come off.

We suggest you read Wolk’s entire piece. He’s a fantastic critic.

‘X Factor’ Shakeup an Admission of Failure; Enter Mariah?

By Tim Molloy at TheWrap

Tue Jan 31, 2012 10:55am EST

ANALYSIS

"X Factor" judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger may have sealed their fates when they let a 13-year-old go home bawling.

The dismissal of that 13-year-old, Rachel Crow, represented everything that was wrong with the first season of "X Factor": It was jumbled and confusing, with too much happening at once. It didn't break new ground. And worst of all, it sometimes just felt mean-spirited.

Also

To Read The Full Article, Click Here: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/31/idUS407308057120120131

Nicole Scherzinger also leaving ‘X Factor’!

UPDATED: Paula Abdul is leaving Fox’s The X Factor.

So is fellow judge Nicole Scherzinger.

And so is host Steve Jones.

Sources near the show confirm all three stars will not return for X Factor‘s second season next fall, though Fox has only officially acknowledged the departure of Jones and Scherzinger. The stunning X Factor exodus marks a dramatic day of network reality show bloodletting.

The events cap weeks of speculation about whether Scherzinger and Jones will continue on the show. Abdul’s future with the series has been speculated about too, but

To Read The Full Article, Click Here: http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/01/30/nicole-scherzinger/

Edgeman appears on Screen Actors Guild Awards

January 30, 2012

Edgeman appears on Screen Actors Guild Awards

Anonymous


From Staff Reports
The Dalton Daily Citizen

Mon Jan 30, 2012, 10:33 PM EST

—
Award shows by their very nature are full of surprises.

Fans and friends of Lori Beth Edgeman, a Dalton native and actress, had another surprise when they tuned in for the Screen Actors Guild Awards Sunday night.

During the awards ceremony, a clip of Edgeman from the movie “The Conspirator” was shown. Edgeman’s appearance was in a video montage narrated by actress Jessica Chastain, who appeared in “The Help,” as she spoke about the talents of actors in the SAG throughout the country.

“From its birth in the heart of Hollywood 79 years ago, our guild embraces actors who live and work across the nation,” Chastain said.

Robert Redford, an Oscar-winning director who also directed “The Conspirator,” lauded Edgeman and fellow actress Amy Tipton of Wilmington, N.C.

“These two women were local actors from the South and they were right on the money with their characters,” Redford said during the clip.

Edgeman, a 1994 graduate of Dalton High School, still lives in Dalton. She has commented in past stories on how she has looked for roles in films shot in and around the Southeast so she can remain close to home. She has had featured roles in such movies as “Get Low,” where she appeared with Academy Award winners Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek, and “3,” an ESPN movie about NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt.

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Jack White steps out solo with new album

LOS ANGELES |
Mon Jan 30, 2012 5:07pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The White Stripes frontman Jack White said on Monday that he will debut a solo album, "Blunderbuss," on April 24, with entirely new songs written by him and embodying his own sense of self-expression.

"I've put off making records under my own name for a long time but these songs feel like they could only be presented under my name.

To Read The Full Article, Click Here: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/30/us-jackwhite-newalbum-idUSTRE80T1VR20120130

See David Beckham Nearly Naked in New Super Bowl Commercial

Alasdair McLellan/HM

As if a Patriots and Giants rematch and a Madonna half-time show weren't enough reasons to watch the Super Bowl this weekend, along comes David Beckham.

Make that a nearly naked Mr. Beckham...

READ: David Beckham Sure Loves Posing in His Underwear

 

 

 

 

 

HM will premiere its first commercial for the David Beckham Bodywear collection during the second quarter of the big game.

And boy, does it deliver.

The black-and-white spot features Beckham shirtless and only wearing a pair of white trunks or briefs. The camera pans over almost every inch of the soccer stud's bod. That's a whole lotta muscle and tattoo action.

The Animals' 1965 hit, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," plays as Beckham poses and flexes. He does his best sexy-face and eyes and doesn't crack a smile until the very last seconds.

"Like every fan, I'm looking forward to Super Bowl Sunday," Beckham said in a statement.

So are we—especially the second quarter.

PHOTOS: Sexy Celeb Six-Packs

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SAG Awards 2012: Mary Tyler Moore presented with lifetime achievement award

LOS ANGELES — Mary Tyler Moore made it after all.

The 75-year-old actress, who as Mary Richards “turned the world on with her smile” in her groundbreaking 1970s sitcom “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” received the lifetime achievement award at Sunday night’s 18th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

“MTM. There’s probably not a person in the civilized world who doesn’t know what that means,” said Dick Van Dyke, her former co-star in the equally appealing 1960s sit-com “The Dick Van Dyke show,” as he introduced her.

SAG AWARDS: BEST AND WORST DRESSED STARS

He noted Moore’s achievements as an Oscar-nominated actress, a dancer and a Hollywood executive whose MTM Enterprises has produced several other hit TV shows.

As she accepted her award, Moore revealed how the civilized world almost never did hear of MTM, who was told in the opening theme song of her show each week, “You’re gonna make it after all.”

When she entered show business at age 18 in 1955, Moore said, there were already six others Mary Moores in the Screen Actors Guild.

Told to change her name, she quickly added Tyler, the middle name of both her and her father, George.

“I was Mary Tyler Moore. I spoke it out loud. Mary Tyler Moore. It sounded right so I wrote it down on the form, and it looked right,” she said. “It was right. SAG was happy, my father was happy, and tonight, after having the privilege of working in this business among the most creative and talented people imaginable, I too am happy, after all.”

Before the awards show Van Dyke had stopped on the red carpet to remember working with Moore on his show.

“She was 23 and had never done comedy. I never saw somebody pick it up so fast. I still have a crush on her,” he said.

The show’s audience, including Moore’s former co-star Betty White, showered both her and Van Dyke with standing ovations, leading Van Dyke to remind them, “I’m just a presenter.”

Van Dyke and Moore were so believable as husband and wife Rob and Laura Petrie on “The Dick Van Dyke Show” that many viewers thought they were married in real life.

As Laura Petrie, Moore also turned Capri pants into a fashion trend during the show’s run.

Van Dyke noted they fit her so well, which created such a concern during that more conservative era, that she was limited to wearing them in only one scene per show.

Alec Baldwin sheds weight after pre-diabetic diagnosis

Did you notice that a slimmer Alec Baldwin took the stage at the Screen Actors Guild awards on Sunday night?

Photos:  2012 Awards Season

The actor, who won for male actor in a comedy, has dropped 30 pounds. He told Entertainment Tonight that he got a diagnosis in May that he was pre-diabetic, so he changed his eating habits. Nancy O'Dell gets more details from the actor in an interview airing tonight.

Backstage, Baldwin addressed his infamous plane incident from November. "I am still playing Words with

To Read The Full Article, Click Here: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2012/01/alec-baldwin-sheds-weight-after-pre-diabetic-diagnosis-/1

"The Grey" Proves Weekend Box Office’s Top Thriller

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Beware the Liam in Winter.

Liam Neeson's "The Grey" topped the weekend box office with $20 million, according to studio estimates Sunday, continuing the actor's success as an action star in the winter months.

The Alaskan survivalist thriller opened above expectations with a performance on par with previous Neeson thrillers "Taken" and "Unknown." Those films, both January-February releases, opened with $24.7 million and $21.9 million, respectively.

But the R-rated "The Grey," which has received good reviews, drove home the strong appeal of Neeson, action star. It's an unlikely turn for the 59-year-old Neeson, previously better known for his dramatic performances, like those in "Schindler's List" and "Kinsey."

"Liam is a true movie star, period," said Tom Ortenberg, CEO of Open Road Films. It's the second release for the newly formed distributor, created by theater chains AMC and Regal.

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"My guess is that Liam Neeson in action thrillers would work just about any time of year."

January is often a dumping ground for less-stellar releases, a tradition held up by two badly reviewed new wide releases: "Man on a Ledge," with Sam Worthington, and "One for the Money" with Katherine Heigl.

"One for the Money" fared better, earning $11.8 million, while "Man on a Ledge" opened with $8.3 million.

Those were reasonably solid returns, and, in an unusual twist, were both ultimately for Lions Gate Entertainment. Its film studio, Lionsgate, released the romantic comedy "One for the Money." The action thriller "Man on a Ledge" was released by Summit Entertainment, which Lions Gate bought for $412.5 million earlier this month.

"One for the Money" was helped by a promotion with Groupon, the Internet discount site, with which Lionsgate previously partnered for "The Lincoln Lawyer." David Spitz, head of distribution for Lionsgate, said the large number of older, female subscribers of Groupon matched well with the audience of "One for the Money."

Groupon email blasts, he said, had a significant promotional effect.

Last week's box-office leader, "Underworld: Awakenings," Sony's Screen Gem's latest installment in its vampire series, came in second with $12.5 million, bringing its cumulative total to $45.1 million.

The unexpectedly large haul for "The Grey," strong holdovers (such as the George Lucas-produced World War II action film "Red Tails," which earned $10.4 million in its second week) and the bump for Oscar contending films following Tuesday's nominations added up to a good weekend for Hollywood. The box office was up about 15 percent on the corresponding weekend last year.

So far, every weekend this year has been an "up" weekend, after a somewhat dismal fourth quarter in 2011.

"'Mission: Impossible,' I think, really helped reinvigorate the marketplace, and that's carried over into the first part of the year," said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. "That's good news for Hollywood after the down-trending box office of 2011."

Oscar favorites "The Descendants," ''Hugo" and "The Artist" sought to capitalize on their recent Academy Awards nominations. Each expanded to more theaters and saw an uptick in business.

Fox Searchlight's "The Descendants," which is nominated for five Oscars including best picture, added 1,441 screens in its 11th week of release. It added $6.6 million and has now made $58.8 million, making it one of Fox Searchlight's most successful releases.

Sheila DeLoach, senior vice president of distribution for Fox Searchlight, said the film's nominations and its recent Golden Globes wins (for best drama and best actor, George Clooney) "played a big role" in its weekend box office.

Paramount's "Hugo," which led Oscar nominations with 11 including best picture, saw a 143 percent jump in business over its last weekend. In its tenth week of release, it earned $2.3 million, bringing its total to $58.7 million.

The Weinstein Co.'s "The Artist," with 10 Oscar nominations including best picture, expanded a modest 235 screens to bring it to a total of 897 screens in its 10th week of release. It earned $3.3 million, with a total of $16.7 million.

The Weinstein Co. is being careful with the black-and-white, largely silent film. Thus far, it has appealed particularly to older audiences.

"It's not the same type of picture as any other picture in the marketplace," said Erik Loomis, head of distribution for the Weinstein Co. "Now that the nominations are out, we're going to look to capitalize on it as best we can. ... We're being very, very meticulous with it. We're not throwing it out there and grabbing every theater we can. At some point, we'll open the floodgates on the movie, maybe closer to the awards."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Grey," $20 million.

2. "Underworld: Awakening," $12.5 million.

3. "One for the Money," $11.8 million.

4. "Red Tails," $10.4 million.

5. "Man on a Ledge," $8.3 million.

6. "Extremely Loud Incredibly Close," $7.1 million.

7. "The Descendants," $6.6 million.

8. "Contraband," $6.5 million.

9. "Beauty and the Beast," $5.3 million.

10. "Haywire," $4 million.

Copyright Associated Press

2012 SAG Awards: Red carpet

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