Thomas Mann on his role in "Hansel and Gretel - Witch Hunters"
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Garrett Hedlund Covers Details Feb 2013 Issue
Garrett Hedlund is the latest actor to cover Details magazine’s February 2013 issue that hits newsstands on January 14.
Here’s what the On The Road actor had to share with the mag:
On how he wooed girlfriend Kirsten Dunst: “I took her out on a 3am canoe ride. It was not a stable canoe. We fell out and had to swim back in mucky, shitty water, like golf-pond water.”
On choosing roles: “I just really wanted to do things that could make me proud or be emotional.”
On journaling his thoughts: “I spill it out as fast as I can. I don’t really edit. In Brazil, recently, I wrote 70 pages. In London, 80 pages.”
A little trivia for you: he’s also a poet. Here’s a poem he wrote: “Everything you ever knew seems so slowly be forgotten. All the good nights are just nights, all the good mornings are just mornings, all the dots in the sky are the same dots you’ve been looking at all your life”
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mods, the cover wasn't posted tho
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Carrie Fisher Bids Farewell to Princess Leia
No one, not even actor and writer Carrie Fisher, could have predicted that bagel earmuffs and a metal “slave” costume would come together, all the way back in 1977, to create one of history’s most beloved heroines, StarWars’ Princess Leia. Over three decades, $4 billion in box office earnings, and countless Jedi disciples later, the empire remains as powerful as ever, with a seventh film already in the works. But Fisher is ready to move on.
Dear Princess Leia,
I don’t wish to be presumptuous and call you “Leia,” as it implies a familiarity I don’t wish to presume. And though some might say we resemble one another to the extent that we could be easily mistaken for one another—if we were to inexplicably agree to dress in similar, if unremarkable clothing, and you were to finally, sanely, refuse to submit to the rigors of that foolish focus-pulling hairstyle—simply (and now belatedly) put, I could pass for you with minor adjustments as you might pass for me with ever so slightly more. But would my insides match your outsides?
I’ve spent almost two-thirds of my life walking galaxies in those fucking white leather boots. I’ve even attempted to answer for your actions, to explain your possible motives for choices one of us failed to make. But while you will forever be remembered loitering in star-infested landscapes, existing endlessly in imaginations and onscreen, I putter noisily in that infamous closet of celebrity—expanding, wrinkling, stooping, and far too often, stupid with age. Here we are enacting our very own Dorian Gray configuration. You: smooth, certain, and straight-backed, forever condemned to the vast, enviable prison of intergalactic adventure. Me: struggling more and more with post-galactic stress disorder, bearing your scars, graying your eternally dark, ridiculous hair.
You always act the heroine; I snort the stuff in the feeble attempt to dim the glare of your intense, intergalactic antics. You take the glory; I give way to age. You: so physically well and well-meaning it makes me mentally ill—well, something does, anyway. While you fight the dark side with your light, white ways, I’m in the sarlacc pit, covered in Jabba’s vile body fluids. Will it ever end? It probably won’t, but I will. I’m pretty sure I will. My sequels will finally, blessedly stop, while yours will define and absorb an age.
Though you are condemed to reenact the same seven hours of adventures over a span of now almost four rowdy decades, at least you look good fighting evil. I look lived in. My amused and envious eyes peer out of a face bloated and evil with age. Wasn’t I supposed to remain happily captured in the amber of our projected image, fending off water-retention, weight, and wrinkles in the same way you fight for the glory of whatever the fuck all that was about—a universe glowing with peace and fairness, Ewoks cavorting in their force-filled fields? Wasn’t I? C’mon—wasn’t I?
Of our all-but-shared fate (if shared, it’s in an unsanitary way)—whatever Leia’s has been or will be, Carrie’s will be, at least periodically, dwarfed and disappointing, riddled with self-pity, old and over-exposed, rendered sad and irrelevant in comparison with her counterparts’ rich and uninterrupted adventures. Play it again, Han! Leia plays while I continue to pay and pay and pay. I’m Carrie Fisher from Star Wars—the south side of Star Wars, near the Vaders’ former condemned place.
I fade as you blaze. I stoop while you shoot straight and defend right. Oh, well. There are worse things, I know. Those worse things gather at my back and haunt my fun-packed future days. But worse gives way to better—Dorian Organa gives way to Carrie Gray. We all win in the end, don’t we? If not utterly, then in a number of cozy, inevitable, and limited days. She’s Leia Organa, from the center of so many humans’ best memories. Shining with the warm glow of sci-fi nostalgia. Our Alderaan, fly us, but wherever you go—over the hill or fucking Cloud City, Jabba’s palace or the emergency room, up, down, or over—do your best to do what I do: make sure you largely enjoy the ride. Skip the hairstyle, but enjoy the ride.
Love, Carrie
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Flawless queen continues to shine.
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The 9 Most Ridiculous Moments in Golden Globe Awards History
This Sunday, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association will present th 70th Annual Golden Globe Award on NBC, and it will probably be a ridiculous production. How can we make this assumption? Well, empirically, of course. Whether it's stars drunkenly storming the stage or getting groped by network correspondents on the red carpet, here are nine of the most outrageous, absurd and downright hilarious moments in the history of the Golden Globes. Why should this year's be any different?
Ricky Gervais Sums It Up
Ricky Gervais summed it up when he joked the Globes are a louder, trashier and drunker version of the Oscars. When Gervais said they're more easily bought, George Clooney seemed to like the joke until the camera cut to him.
The Beginning of a Time-Honored Tradition
Until 1958, it was the journalists of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association who presented the awards. That was until Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martin got so bored the only thing that could keep them awake was crashing the stage and hosting the show themselves, cigarettes and whiskey in hand. Since then, the awards shows have been traditionally hosted by entertainers. They leave the cigarettes and whiskey backstage.
Scarlett Johansson is Groped On the Red Carpet
During the 2006 Golden Globes, E! decided to pass the mic to designer Isaac Mizrahi for the red carpet interview gig. Mizrahi used the opportunity to evaluate the dresses of the starlets, both verbally and, in the case of Scarlett Johnsson, manually. Watch the clip below to see Mizrahi wrap his mind around Johansson's dress by getting a handle on her boob. Johansson seemed to be a good sport about it: "I was thinking, 'Oh my god. This is happening on live TV.' ...I'd been prepping for two hours with hair and makeup and getting dressed. And the first interview I do, someone who I have never met before fondles me."
A Ridiculously Touching Gesture
When Ving Rhames, the star of "Don King: Only in America," walked onstage to accept the award for Best Actor in a Mini-Series, he tearfully told the other nominees how much he respected the art in their talents. Then he asked, "Is Mr. Jack Lemmon here? Would you please join me on stage, sir?" After Lemmon arrived he swiftly pointed to the award and joked, "Now don't give me that!" That's exactly what Rhames did, which Lemmon called "one of the nicest, sweetest moments I've ever known in my life."
Ridiculously Thankful: Brad Pitt
There are a few people actors are usually expected to thank when accepting their award: their agent, their family, possibly their co-stars, possibly God. All of these entities up to that point helped them get to where they are in their careers. Brad Pitt decided to first and foremost thank the entity that simply got him out of the bathroom and to the theater: Kaopectate. He wanted to know he was grateful to "the makers of Kaopectate" for doing "a great service for their fellow man," later revealing he needed the drug to help sooth his "nervous stomach." We get it. You only have so much time on the stage, so first thing's first.
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The Ten Worst Movies Made by 2012's Oscar Nominees
The Oscars allegedly honor the best in the movie business - that's what they say, anyway, and we'll go with it for now. But very few people start off great out of the gate; in a business that everybody's dying to break into and the next paycheck is never a guarantee, most of the industry's finest make questionable choices at some point. And when they finally hit the pinnacle of their careers, that's when smartasses like me show up to remind them of said choices. Here are ten that we can't necessarily blame them for taking money to make, but we can warn you never, ever to subject yourself to them. Besides, Oscars are all anybody's talking about at the moment, so we might as well have some fun with it.
5. The Ring Two, starring Naomi Watts.
Japanese director Hideo Nakata was considered a master of modern horror when he gave us Ringu and Dark Water, so we were all hoping that his foray into Hollywood would really show them what scary is. In a way, he did: "scary" is how easily that horror franchise was killed in this lackluster sequel, which fails to understand that having a disembodied spirit possess a child with the intent of finding a new mommy makes it inherently less scary than when it's floating around out there on the airwaves and killing people in seven days.
4. The Ladies Man, costarring Reginald Hudlin (producer of Django Unchained).
The Ladies Man may not be the worst Saturday Night Live spinoff movie ever, but it's certainly the most egregiously awful one I've ever actually sat through. From Tim Meadows' offensive caricature of the black man as stupid sex machine to Will Ferrell's mincing closet-case and Julianne Moore's cameo as a horny clown, this is as textbook a case you can get of "wrong choices made." Except maybe for Meadows - one can't really blame him for wanting to be the lead in something, since it's not too likely he'll have the chance again. Especially if casting directors see The Ladies Man.
3. Surviving Christmas, starring Ben Affleck (producer of Best Picture-nominated Argo).
Choosing which Ben Affleck movie to put on this list is like deciding what to put on your plate at Hometown Buffet - you want to mix a little bit of everything, combining mediocre offerings to get that flavor just right. The obvious choice would have been Gigli, but at least the cameo scenes by Al Pacino and Christopher Walken in that one provided momentary amusement. Surviving Christmas was just awful to begin with, starting from the premise, in which Ben Affleck goes to his childhood home, finds another family living there, and pays them to not just put up with him for Christmas, but pretend to be happy about it. Maybe he should have similarly bribed the audience.
2. Alice in Wonderland, directed by Tim Burton (nominated this year for Best Animated Feature Frankenweenie) and costarring Anne Hathaway.
Renaming Wonderland as "Underland" is the cleverest thing this unimaginative cash-grab has going for it, which is a problem when you're trying to capture the spirit of Lewis Carroll. Did I say trying to capture? I meant "spitting on the grave of." The Mad Hatter doing a pop-and-lock dance routine at the end sums up so many of the bad choices made, but giving him an origin for his madness and an accent that leaps back and forth from Scottish to English was already an iffy sign. And are Disney adaptations of Alice always doomed to amalgamate the Duchess, Queen of Hearts and Red Queen into one being? They're different freakin' characters, or should be, just as the White Queen is meant to be elderly and borderline senile. As for the finale involving Alice and the Mad Hatter battling the bad guys with swords, I will give it that it's not the worst iteration of Joan-of-Arc fairytale revamping. That would be our next entry...
1. Snow White and the Huntsman (nominated this year for Costume Design and Visual Effects).
2012 featured a Snow White movie starring Phil Collins' daughter and featuring a Bollywood-style musical number, and it still was not the worst take on the tale to make it to the screen in a 12-month span. Universal's version featured an untested director of commercials who wowed 'em with a concept reel, then numbed us to sleep when he lengthened it out and cast Kristen Stewart, who seems so bored onscreen it feels like she had an affair with the director just to liven things up. It was so bad Bob Hoskins actually retired from acting afterwards, and the central dilemma of the movie - will Snow White choose the prince or the huntsman of the title? - is never, in fact, resolved.
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Richard Armitage Talks 'Hobbit' And Thorin Oakenshield, Takes A Phone Call From Sauron
Standing well over 6' tall, with an athletic frame and impeccably coiffed hair, Richard Armitage the silhouette screams matinee idol, which makes it all the more impressive that Richard Armitage the person screams "Dwarf!"
But, then, this isn't your older brother's axe wielding, pipe smoking, occasionally tossed comic relief.
As Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of a band of not so merry dwarves looking to reclaim their ancestral homeland from the ravages of the dragon Smaug in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Armitage takes his first bold, steely-eyed, heroic steps into the world of Middle Earth, embodying with method exactness the badass anti-hero of J.R.R. Tolkien's original.
Before that, though… a little bit of fun. Armitage recently sat down with Movieline in New York City where he revealed the physicality of being a dwarf, his facility for speaking in tongues, his hard fought battle scars, and the number one reason you should always answer an interrupting telephone.
Movieline: Here's what we can do. We can do the entire interview in Khuzdul [the fictional language created by J.R.R. Tolkien for the dwarves of Middle Earth].
Khuzdul!
Do you speak dwarvish?
I speak some dwarvish.
Do you speak it fluently?
There isn't really that much [in The Hobbit].
Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!
No. You can't fool me. That's from Lord of the Rings.*
Do you know dwarf sign language?
[Huge laughter from Armitage as he crosses one forearm perpendicularly over the other, giving an especially vigorous non-dwarf signal.]
Yes, any dwarf could understand that. But, no, this is a real thing. Tolkien made dwarf sign language because, you know, it's too loud to talk in the mines.
Actually, we did work with Terry Notary and we did work on a kind of sign language. That scene in Bag End where Dwalin head butts Balin as a dwarf greeting — it's a visceral, physical greeting. The language implies [physicality] as well. Physical sort of found its way into the vocal for me.
Physical as in changing your body? Is there a physical choreography to being a dwarf? A way to walk?
It's sort of informed by the skeleton of these creatures because they're not really human. Their center of gravity is much lower, their torsos longer — which was really tough for me because I'm the other way around. I've got really long legs and a short body. So all of my belts were down here on my hips, and slowly they work their way up to where your waist is. I was constantly having to pull them down.
There were other things we worked on — chewing up the ground as you walk. You know, when a dwarf starts running it takes a long time to stop. They're very heavy, very stooped trains. They can't stop immediately. Like, they'll crash through a wall. Their bone structure is heavy and solid. And those huge boots, which I think are going to be a big fashion statement next year.
Why not a trend following all these hot dwarves?
[Laughs] Oh yeah, we were baking!
Dwarves baking wasn't what I think these websites that listed 'hot dwarves' were thinking. Was there ever advice or conversation with John Rhys Davies [who played Gimli the dwarf in Lord of the Rings]?
No.
Was there something in his performance that you ever looked at?
No. He came to visit and said hello. But we started from scratch.
With this dwarf physicality, were you able to escape unscathed from all these battle scenes?
I put my tooth through my lip when we were shooting the Battle of Azanulbizar. You see Thorin fighting six orcs. And we choreographed it on the ground and then filmed it on platforms so everything gets higher by about two feet. I actually smacked myself in the face with the shield and had this huge swollen lip that was bleeding down my neck. I was so angry at myself. You know when you hit yourself? I was so bloody angry. And then Andy [Serkis] came and showed me a mirror. I was like, 'Oh God.' He said, 'Do you want to carry on?' I said, 'Yeah, cause it looks good.' It looked really good. It looked really kind of real.
In the original film, both Elijah [Wood] and Andy [Serkis] were able to take props home. If I go to your house will I see Orcrist above the mantle?
You have Orcrist in the umbrella stand. Cause I want to be able to pick it up. You also have the shield in the kitchen drawer. And on the wall you have the map and key. I've got the full kit. The only thing I wanted was the key. But I was very kindly —
[Armitage is cut off when the phone in the hotel room where we are conducting the interview rings, interrupting us.]
Do you need to answer that?
Maybe I should. It's Sauron. You can tell by his ring.
Where were we? Orcrist!
But not the Arkenstone?
I don't think I ever even saw the Arkenstone. Yes I did! I saw it at a distance being held up to me mockingly. But because it's a special effect — it glows — there's nothing there.
Not even a physical prop?
Well, yes. It looks like a bath soap.
Not very romantic.
No.
I almost thought at one point in the movie that Thorin was going to do the "We few, we happy few" speech from [Shakespeare's] Henry V—
Balin says that in the flashback — we few that survived! It's very Shakespearean isn't it? It's interesting because when I was doing preparation I was doing a lot of vocal work, and in order to do this workout I was picking out soliloquies to use. A little Henry V, a little Richard III, a little bit Macbeth. And then I thought, ok, why have I picked these speeches? It's like turning over tarot cards. There's a reason why I was instinctively drawn — I had like 5 pages I was working on every night — and it's almost like there's a little bit of everything in there. The Henry V is that sort of battle rallying idea, and there's a little bit of self-hatred in Richard III, and there's a good amount of taking the wrong path in Macbeth. I suddenly thought, 'All of this stuff is relevant.' I didn't deliberately weave it through the character but it was just there, like a tone.
In regards to Richard III and Macbeth, you could also say there's a lot of greed in Thorin.
Yes! Absolutely!
Do you see that as his over-arching narrative throughout the film? [The renunciation of] greed? Or revenge?
It's more about — yes, he was bequeathed a revenge upon Azog for his grandfather's beheading. He also has to take his people back to the mountain to reclaim the gold that was taken from them in this horrific Holocaust whereby the dragon came and decimated his people. It's not altruistic. It has to be personal and he wants to be King Under the Mountain. That means taking back the gold. The greed aspect is something that — as he gets closer to the mountain, it's like the greed draws him and the gold corrupts him.
Certainly in the novel, as you speak of getting close to the mountain in physical distance, he also gets closer somehow to the character of Smaug.
I think he is probably corrupted by the gold as Smaug was fattened by it. But that's the aspect of Thorin's character that he's ashamed of. He knows it exists. It's like a line that runs through his family of greed. And when they come in contact with gold it corrupts them. It happened to his grandfather. I always imagined that Thorin was probably closer to [his grandfather] Thror than he was to [his father] Thrain. I think that Thror hid himself away when he got the dragon sickness, and Thorin kind of kept him behind closed doors and would nurse him through his sickness. Kept the door closed so no one ever saw the king. I think he witnessed the physical effects of that. So when we get into film III, you'll see the manifestation of what that is.
Physically?
A physical sense. It's not just the desire for greed. I saw it as a physical ailment. If [director] Pete [Jackson] decides to use that.
Are you done filming?
No. We still have to shoot the Battle of the Five Armies.
Oh, so nothing big then.
Yeah.
Is there a scene you have shot that from movies II or III that you can't wait to show the world?
When they enter the mountain. That was a really special scene because of what it means. It's the monumental moment.
You've mentioned Christian themes as something that drew you to the project —
It wasn't important to me, no, but I can feel it bubbling through Tolkien's words. I don't think he ever intended that. You can just feel his beliefs underneath his work. He hated allegory. Unlike C.S. Lewis, he did not want a kind of allegorical story. He wasn't talking about the second world war. Sauron is not Hitler. He absolutely didn't want that. But the Christianity is just something I can sense. He's not giving a religious message.
* It means "Axes of the Dwarves! The Dwarves are upon you!" As Mr. Armitage correctly points out, it is in fact from The Two Towers.
Source
Really great article! Read it if you can. But other than that...
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Rush Limbaugh: Pedophilia and Homosexuality Are One And The Same
Blowhard Rush Limbaugh dedicated a lengthy diatribe on his radio show yesterday to the idea that there is a movement underway to try to “normalize pedophilia” by classifying it as a sexual orientation like heterosexuality and homosexuality. Limbaugh based his claims on an article in The Guardian that addresses questions science still has about the nature of pedophilia, but then he drew his own conclusions that normalizing same-sex marriage is similarly going to lead to normalizing the sexual abuse of children:
LIMBAUGH: There is a movement on to normalize pedophilia, and I guarantee you your reaction to that is probably much the same as your reaction when you first heard about gay marriage. What has happened to gay marriage? It’s become normal — and in fact, with certain people in certain demographics it’s the most important issue in terms of who they vote for. So don’t pooh-pooh. There’s a movement to normalize pedophilia. Don’t pooh-pooh it. The people behind it are serious, and you know the left as well as I do. They glom onto something and they don’t let go. [...]
What is their objective? They want us to all think that pedophilia is just another sexual orientation. You know who’s gonna fall right in line is college kids, just like they have on gay marriage, just like they do on all other revolutionary social issues. Their own definition of the cutting edge, civil rights, freedom, understanding, tolerance. So I’m just warning you here. You think it can’t happen. “Impossible! Don’t be nutso and wacko on us, Rush.”
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Adam Lambert and 19 Recordings Part Ways, Still Signed to RCA
Adam Lambert is getting ready to take the next step in his "evolution" as an artist.
Although the American Idol season eight runner-up had split with 19 Management in August 2011, he remained signed to the recording arm of 19 Entertainment (now owned by CORE Media Group) for another 18 months.
According to sources, January marked the expiration for that contract, although he is still on the roster at RCA Records. “It’s good for both sides,” says an insider. “Adam can move forward with his plans and 19 isn’t stuck in the middle.”
A rep for Lambert says the two parties leave “amicably and with the utmost respect for each other,” adding that the decision is but one part of the singer’s “evolution,” which began when he joined Direct Management Group, home to Katy Perry among other clients.
Since first signing to 19 in 2009, when he advanced to the finals on Idol, the company has seen profits from his six RCA Records releases, which include two studio albums as well as collections of live recordings and remixes, along with merchandising revenue and other ancillary products.
Although Lambert saw little radio play in the U.S. for his latest offering, Trespassing, his success overseas has cemented his status as a global artist. Aside from appearances at massive events like the MNet Asian Music Awards and The Voice China, the latter of which was watched by some 500 million people, he hosted December's VH1 Divas 2012 special and there are plans for Lambert to tour Japan, Southeast Asia and Europe in 2013.
As for his third album, conversations with the label about direction have already begun, says DMG.
19 Entertainment still represents a slew of Idol alums, including season 10's James Durbin, season 11's Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhart and season 12's Colton Dixon, Jessica Sanchez and winner Phillip Phillips, among others.
Freedom from the Idol overlord.
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A teenie tiny "People Magazine" interview.
The World According to Ke$ha
![kesha]( "kesha")
I never leave home without
My passport. I almost ran off to Mexico the other day, but I stopped myself.
At 3 AM I am
Either playing with Mr.Peeps, my cat, or playing strip poker. It's always different.
The celeb I'd like to make out with most is
Will Smith. To fulfill my deep childhood longing. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air did it for me. He was just so fresh!
The last person I kissed was
A very friendly, happy stranger at this amazing strip club in Atlanta.
You know you've had too much to drink when
You read your text messages, and you're not actually texting words
The best invention is
The boombox. It's a portable dance party.
The song that always makes me cry is
"Strawberry Wine" by Deana Carter. It's a country song about young love and growing up. I'm from the south so it reminds me of home.
I would come back in my next life as
A baby lion. Ferocious and adorable at the same time.
Source: People Magazine January 21, 2013 issue p50 by Jessica Herndon
ONTD what song always makes you cry?
mine is "Some Gave All" by Billy Rae Cyrus
I never leave home without
My passport. I almost ran off to Mexico the other day, but I stopped myself.
At 3 AM I am
Either playing with Mr.Peeps, my cat, or playing strip poker. It's always different.
The celeb I'd like to make out with most is
Will Smith. To fulfill my deep childhood longing. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air did it for me. He was just so fresh!
The last person I kissed was
A very friendly, happy stranger at this amazing strip club in Atlanta.
You know you've had too much to drink when
You read your text messages, and you're not actually texting words
The best invention is
The boombox. It's a portable dance party.
The song that always makes me cry is
"Strawberry Wine" by Deana Carter. It's a country song about young love and growing up. I'm from the south so it reminds me of home.
I would come back in my next life as
A baby lion. Ferocious and adorable at the same time.
Source: People Magazine January 21, 2013 issue p50 by Jessica Herndon
ONTD what song always makes you cry?
mine is "Some Gave All" by Billy Rae Cyrus
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Real-life Disney princess ❀ Amy Adams ❀ on the cover of Citizen K + photoshoot
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Just watched 'Leap year' and only Amy could make that movie somehow cute. Crying @ this angel most likely losing the Oscar to Mrs Starvation Hathaway.
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Interview with 'HDU' author India Lee
New Adult Contemporary is a vastly expanding genre every day. Picking through the chaos is a hard task, but with India Lee’s HDU we find a new story – a gossip website moderator who ends up becoming the fake girlfriend to a Hollywood celebrity. India Lee is no stranger to celebrity fiction – she’s also the author of the Hidden Gem series, about a pop star trying to fit in at a new school without getting found out. Today we’re super excited to have her for an interview and share her new book! Thanks so much to India for stopping by! Enjoy the interview.
Amanda Nathan just lost everything – her first real boyfriend to her lifelong best friend, her half of their shared apartment in St. Louis and her first post-grad job as a receptionist. Forced back under her parents’ roof in Merit, Missouri, the gossipy town she’d spent her life trying to escape, Amanda has but one saving grace – being an anonymous moderator on HDU, the Internet’s largest celebrity gossip community. Unemployed and alone, Amanda relishes in the one thing she has control over – Hollywood gossip. Now, her idea of fun is getting lost in the glamorous lives of others and posting nasty rumors about her former bestie’s favorite actor, Liam Brody, a playboy notorious for dumping his model girlfriends on a monthly basis.
So who would’ve thought that Liam Brody would be Amanda’s answer to escaping Merit? When the controversial womanizer needs an image boost to land a new role, he turns to none other than HDU for some good press. As it turns out, Liam is as eager to shed his playboy image as Amanda is desperate to move out of Merit. The solution to both problems? Fake a romance in which Hollywood’s biggest playboy falls for an unknown, sweet and shockingly plain Jane.
With the help of Ian, a fellow HDU moderator and self-developed expert on stardom, Amanda packs her bags for her new life in New York, where the overnight fame and glamour of being a celebrity girlfriend awaits. But Amanda soon discovers that their little ploy is a lot more emotionally complicated than she imagined. And while she finds that life works a thousand times better in her Hollywood circle, so does manipulation.
Was Oh No They Didn’t (ONTD) an inspiration for your fictional How Dare You (HDU)?
ONTD was definitely an inspiration. I think it’s interesting how gossip sites like ONTD are the types of places that can help make or break an image. The comments are bigger than the actual stories because the draw is more so the community response than the actual news.
Did any real life celebrities inspire any of the colorful characters in HDU or the Hidden Gem series?
There were a lot of real life celebrities and incidents that inspired the characters in HDU, though no one celebrity for any individual character. They’re all kind of a blend of things that stuck out to me in pop culture over the past few years. But as I was writing, there were definitely times when I started seeing someone’s face in my head (more often actors but sometimes friends), and then that person just becomes the character to me. There is definitely an actress I imagine as Amanda and an actor I imagine for Liam — though none of my friends who have read the book agree with me on that pick (lol). I might have weird taste.
Why did you decide to self-publish your books instead of going the traditional route?
I never really made a choice of self-publishing over traditional, I just kind of fell into self-publishing. I didn’t know it was a thing that existed until two years ago when one of my friends revealed that she had a book she wanted me to buy because she’d actually written it and had been dabbling for awhile in this thing called self-pub. At the time, it sounded like a really foreign and strange concept to me but I was intrigued by the immediacy of it. And I had a completed novel that I had written for fun in high school. So I figured if anyone can do this, why not give it a try with what I’ve got?
I had friends help me handle all the logistics for Suburban Girl’s Rebellion under a pen name to avoid conflicts with my job at the time. Because I was keeping it all a secret, I didn’t have the option of asking my friends and family to buy so there were almost no sales in the first week. So I forgot about the book and figured it would die a quiet death on Amazon and I’d have a laugh every few months when it sold a random copy. But then a couple months later, I found out that it sold a few hundred and I had readers who were interested in the excerpt I had put in the back, which was from the first book of Hidden Gem. Because of that, I finished up Hidden Gem and published it, and that became a series that gave me more readers than I had ever imagined from this experience. And since I was working in entertainment at the time and my fans seemed to like the entertainment aspect, I decided to write more involving the topic. Which was how HDU came about.
What is your marketing strategy like for your various books?
I contacted bloggers who accept and review independently published books. I posted about the book in appropriate forums. I have a Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads page where I make announcements about new books. I occasionally blog about the things in my life that I think my readers might enjoy or find relevant to my writing. And occasionally, I’ll gift new books to old fans and randomly picked readers directly.
Do you have any peculiar writing quirks or habits?
I catch myself making facial expressions that I’m describing. If I’m home while writing, I’m usually standing at my kitchen counter instead of sitting down somewhere. And for background noise, I go back and forth between playing Adele radio on Pandora or streaming Archer on Netflix.
What books are currently on your nightstand?
I have Peace, They Say on my nightstand, which is a history of the Nobel Peace Prize. I bought it for $1 at The Strand and I haven’t read a single page yet. But it looks good on my nightstand.
Is there any advice that you might give to writers looking at self-publishing?
If you have something ready to go, just go for it. The experience is tons of fun and incredibly rewarding. If you’re not sure where to start, ask for help or research — there are plenty of resources online to help people with self-publishing. If you love writing but have qualms over the stigma that’s attached to self-publishing, then maybe test the waters under a pen name with a novel that isn’t The Novel in your life (but do respect your readers and do your best editing, formatting, and writing of a story that people will enjoy). There’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. You don’t know where your project might go or what its readership might end up being. When I started this, I had no idea that Hidden Gem would be what allowed me to quit my job, write fulltime, and still live in Manhattan.
And the absolute best thing about self-pub is having total creative control of what you put out and when. That schedule can allow for whatever other projects you may have going on. Choosing self-publishing now doesn’t mean you’re closing the door on everything else.
Just throwing this one out there, but is there any chance that maybe HDU was autobiographical (*wink*)?
I’ve never been a website moderator and I’ve never dated a womanizing movie star, so unfortunately, no!
SOURCE
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Portrait of Duchess Is Unveiled, and the Criticism Is Withering
LONDON — They did not necessarily know much about art, but they knew they did not like the way the Duchess of Cambridge looked in her new portrait.
“She looks like the head bouncer in a security firm,” one commenter posted on The Daily Telegraph’s Web site.
The painting, by Paul Emsley, was unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery on Friday, and if nothing else, it successfully brought out the inner art critic in even non-art critics.
“I hate to be negative,” someone posted on The Guardian’s Web site, “but it’s really tragically awful.”
Mr. Emsley, who was commissioned by the gallery to produce the work, won the BP Portrait Award in 2007 for a painting of Michael Simpson, a fellow artist. The duchess, the former Kate Middleton, sat for him twice, and he continued painting from photographs he took.
The biggest complaint about the work, a head-and-shoulders portrait, is that it puts about 20 years, and possibly 20 pounds, on the duchess, who is 31 and as slender as they come (despite being pregnant). It is somewhat hazy, as if it were a photograph that had been heavily airbrushed to disguise the subject’s age wrinkles.
Alastair Adams, the president of the Royal Society of Portrait Painters, told the BBC that the painting was admirably “straightforward and very pure.”
Unfortunately for Mr. Emsley, who is unlikely to produce work that generates this degree of interest anytime soon, most art critics begged to differ.
“It looks as if the painter asked the subject to ‘say cheese!’ and then told her to scram and buy some clothes while he painted the photograph,” David Lee, former editor of Art Review magazine, said in The Daily Mail. “It is perfectly adequate for the boardroom of a supermarket but entirely inadequate for a national collection.”
Waldemar Januszczak, the art critic for The Times of London, said it was the boring type of royal painting “we’ve been really churning out for the last few hundred years in Britain.”
In The Guardian, Charlotte Higgins said the painting made the duchess look undead, like a character in one of the “Twilight” movies. And the Daily Telegraph critic Mark Hudson compared the work to a “mawkish book illustration” that could have happily been used on the cover of a romance novel.
“If Kim Jong-un, supreme leader of North Korea, had a portrait painted of himself in a similar idiom, we’d all be crowing from the rafters about the pitiful taste of foreign despots,” he wrote.
The general feeling was that although the painting did not reach the same level of badness as the fresco of Jesus Christ that was disastrously restored by a churchgoer in Spain, it was no Mona Lisa. On the other hand, it provided a fine opportunity for the public to engage in one of its favorite activities: finding novel ways to ridicule things connected to the royal family.
“Sneering at royal portraits is part of British culture,” Mr. Hudson said, “and it might almost be that Mr. Emsley has sacrificed himself to allow that tradition to continue.”
Source
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A prenup? Must be true love then
Exclusive: Crystal Harris Signed "Ironclad" Prenup Before Marrying Hugh Hefner
![article-2260402-16B7CDB7000005DC-557_634x414]( "article-2260402-16B7CDB7000005DC-557_634x414")
Hugh Hefner and fiancee Crystal Harris arrive at the 55th Annual Thalians Gala at the Playboy Mansion on April 30, 2011 in Holmby Hills, California.
![article-2260402-16DCC380000005DC-264_634x634]( "article-2260402-16DCC380000005DC-264_634x634")
The bunny isn't after his money!
In the Jan. 21 issue of Us Weekly (on stands Friday), a source reveals Playboy mogul Hugh Hefner, 86, and nude model Crystal Harris, 26, signed an "ironclad" prenup before tying the knot Dec. 31.
Harris, December 2009's Playmate of the Month, has not been added to the editor's pre-existing will. Hefner's estimated $43 million fortune is promised to "his children, the University of Southern California film school and a variety of charities," the source says.
![article-2260402-16B48C00000005DC-991_634x756]( "article-2260402-16B48C00000005DC-991_634x756")
But Harris -- who unexpectedly broke things off with the twice-married father of four in June 2011, five days before their first planned wedding -- has made peace with Hefner's plan.
Just days before their winter wedding, the lingerie store owner told Us, "Our relationship is better than ever. Things are perfect."
Before their big day, Harris explained why she got cold feet in 2011. "Last time it turned into a a big ordeal and then it all fell apart," she told Us. "This time around is amazing. . . I'm very happy and Hef's very happy and we're excited."
Us Weekly
only 43 millions?
Hugh Hefner and fiancee Crystal Harris arrive at the 55th Annual Thalians Gala at the Playboy Mansion on April 30, 2011 in Holmby Hills, California.
The bunny isn't after his money!
In the Jan. 21 issue of Us Weekly (on stands Friday), a source reveals Playboy mogul Hugh Hefner, 86, and nude model Crystal Harris, 26, signed an "ironclad" prenup before tying the knot Dec. 31.
Harris, December 2009's Playmate of the Month, has not been added to the editor's pre-existing will. Hefner's estimated $43 million fortune is promised to "his children, the University of Southern California film school and a variety of charities," the source says.
But Harris -- who unexpectedly broke things off with the twice-married father of four in June 2011, five days before their first planned wedding -- has made peace with Hefner's plan.
Just days before their winter wedding, the lingerie store owner told Us, "Our relationship is better than ever. Things are perfect."
Before their big day, Harris explained why she got cold feet in 2011. "Last time it turned into a a big ordeal and then it all fell apart," she told Us. "This time around is amazing. . . I'm very happy and Hef's very happy and we're excited."
Us Weekly
only 43 millions?
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Is Hayden Panettiere back with that tall dude?
Has Hayden Panettiere rekindled her relationship with ex-boyfriend Wladimir Klitschko? Boxer 'takes actress to airport after getaway'
![article-2261026-16E2167C000005DC-619_634x896]( "article-2261026-16E2167C000005DC-619_634x896")
She just recently split from her boyfriend of a year and a half, Scott McKnight, last month.
And it seems that Nashville star Hayden Panettiere has sought comfort in the arms of another ex.
![article-2261026-16E2168B000005DC-779_634x743]( "article-2261026-16E2168B000005DC-779_634x743")
The 23-year-old returned to Los Angeles from a getaway in Florida on Friday, and according to TMZ she was dropped off at the airport ahead of her flight by her ex-boyfriend, boxer Wladamir Klitschko.
When approached by TMZ after touching down at LAX, the pint-sized blonde insisted that the former couple were just good friends, but her giggly demeanour somewhat spelled otherwise.
'We've been friends for five years now, so we're just good buddies,' she told the website.
'I knew that was going to be the question! I was lassoed in.
'You're making me uncomfortable,' she added with a laugh. '(We're) just good friends, good friends.'
Her reunion in Florida with Wladimir comes after the newly single star split with former New York Jets star McKnight last month.
The actress and footballer had been dating since June 2011.
But despite the break-up, the pair have also remained ‘really good friends’, according to TMZ.
The website claimed that multiple sources confirmed the couple went their separate ways.
One insider allegedly said: ‘They will probably be back together sometime down the road.’
Scotty and Hayden began dating just one month after the actress split from fellow pro-athlete Klitschko.
![article-2261026-16E2157E000005DC-410_634x938]( "article-2261026-16E2157E000005DC-410_634x938")
She had been dating the Ukrainian sports star since 2009, but the pair ended their romance in 2011.
In a statement obtained by German magazine Bunte, Klitschko said they called time on their 18-month romance because it was difficult coping with having a long-distance relationship.
Scream 4 actress Hayden's statement read: 'While we decided to split, we feel great sympathy and respect for each other and will surely stay close friends.'
Wladimir added: 'We have had a great time together. But more and more we realised how difficult it is to maintain a relationship when living on two continents.
'I cherish Hayden as a person and woman and I'm sure we will stay friends.'
The pair were seen as the odd couple as Klitschko towered over the 5ft 2in star at a whopping 6ft 6in.
The hot blonde has previously dated Welsh hunk Steve Jones, Entourage’s Kevin Connolly, One Tree Hill actor Stephen Colletti and her Heroes co-star Milo Ventimiglia.
Meanwhile, Hayden is up for a Golden Globe Award this Sunday after being nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film for her role in the hit TV series, Nashville.
DailyMail
According to a blind item, is he the one who left because she's into hardcore stuff and he was afraid he would hurt her?
She just recently split from her boyfriend of a year and a half, Scott McKnight, last month.
And it seems that Nashville star Hayden Panettiere has sought comfort in the arms of another ex.
The 23-year-old returned to Los Angeles from a getaway in Florida on Friday, and according to TMZ she was dropped off at the airport ahead of her flight by her ex-boyfriend, boxer Wladamir Klitschko.
When approached by TMZ after touching down at LAX, the pint-sized blonde insisted that the former couple were just good friends, but her giggly demeanour somewhat spelled otherwise.
'We've been friends for five years now, so we're just good buddies,' she told the website.
'I knew that was going to be the question! I was lassoed in.
'You're making me uncomfortable,' she added with a laugh. '(We're) just good friends, good friends.'
Her reunion in Florida with Wladimir comes after the newly single star split with former New York Jets star McKnight last month.
The actress and footballer had been dating since June 2011.
But despite the break-up, the pair have also remained ‘really good friends’, according to TMZ.
The website claimed that multiple sources confirmed the couple went their separate ways.
One insider allegedly said: ‘They will probably be back together sometime down the road.’
Scotty and Hayden began dating just one month after the actress split from fellow pro-athlete Klitschko.
She had been dating the Ukrainian sports star since 2009, but the pair ended their romance in 2011.
In a statement obtained by German magazine Bunte, Klitschko said they called time on their 18-month romance because it was difficult coping with having a long-distance relationship.
Scream 4 actress Hayden's statement read: 'While we decided to split, we feel great sympathy and respect for each other and will surely stay close friends.'
Wladimir added: 'We have had a great time together. But more and more we realised how difficult it is to maintain a relationship when living on two continents.
'I cherish Hayden as a person and woman and I'm sure we will stay friends.'
The pair were seen as the odd couple as Klitschko towered over the 5ft 2in star at a whopping 6ft 6in.
The hot blonde has previously dated Welsh hunk Steve Jones, Entourage’s Kevin Connolly, One Tree Hill actor Stephen Colletti and her Heroes co-star Milo Ventimiglia.
Meanwhile, Hayden is up for a Golden Globe Award this Sunday after being nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film for her role in the hit TV series, Nashville.
DailyMail
According to a blind item, is he the one who left because she's into hardcore stuff and he was afraid he would hurt her?
↧
Facebook Starts Charging Lots of Money to Send Messages
Want to message Mark Zuckerberg on Facebook? For $100, your note will land in his inbox.
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Traditionally, if a Facebook user messages someone outside his or her network, the missive gets sent to the "Other" mailbox -- a rarely checked purgatory most users don't even know exists. It's a practice intended to protect users from a spam deluge.
Facebook said in December that it would begin testing out paid messages, allowing users to contact people with whom they have no direct connection in return for a fee. Facebook didn't say at the time how much it would cost, but the answer turns out to be "a lot."
Mashable discovered on Thursday that sending a message to Facebook founder Zuckerberg carries a $100 price tag. That's also what it costs to message Facebook COO Sheryl Sandburg , CFO David Ebersman, and several other Facebook members CNNMoney tried, such as Digg founder Kevin Rose.
"We are testing some extreme price points to see what works to filter spam," a Facebook representative told CNNMoney.
The messaging fee is one of several new revenue streams Facebook is testing out. The company has traditionally drawn most of its revenue from advertising sales, but its latest experiments explore generating cash directly from its 1 billion members.
source
Traditionally, if a Facebook user messages someone outside his or her network, the missive gets sent to the "Other" mailbox -- a rarely checked purgatory most users don't even know exists. It's a practice intended to protect users from a spam deluge.
Facebook said in December that it would begin testing out paid messages, allowing users to contact people with whom they have no direct connection in return for a fee. Facebook didn't say at the time how much it would cost, but the answer turns out to be "a lot."
Mashable discovered on Thursday that sending a message to Facebook founder Zuckerberg carries a $100 price tag. That's also what it costs to message Facebook COO Sheryl Sandburg , CFO David Ebersman, and several other Facebook members CNNMoney tried, such as Digg founder Kevin Rose.
"We are testing some extreme price points to see what works to filter spam," a Facebook representative told CNNMoney.
The messaging fee is one of several new revenue streams Facebook is testing out. The company has traditionally drawn most of its revenue from advertising sales, but its latest experiments explore generating cash directly from its 1 billion members.
source
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Willam's Beatdown: Episode 4
Tune in next Friday for a new episode of Willam's Beatdown!
Source
I feel like all of these YouTube girls have the same damn bedroom. Someone needs to give Willam a show. Don't forget you can send suggestions to @willambelli for videos!
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Tina Fey is here to tell you what she really thinks of Twitter
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Dom Perignon And W Magazine Celebrate The Golden Globes At Chateau Marmout
Jennifer Lawrence
Amy Adams
Eddie Redmayne
Minnie Driver
Lana Del Rey
Angela Lindvall
Freida Pinto and Dev Patel
Marion Cotillard
Dreama Walker
Amber Valletta
Lady Victoria Hervey
Whitney Cummings
Carmen Electra
Hayden Panettiere
Rachel Zoe
Olga Kurylenko
Roberta Armani
Connie Britton
Miranda Kerr
Marg Helgenberger
Camilla Belle
Ashley Madekwe
Jessie Joffe
Jena Malone
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Zoe Lister Jones
John Hawkes
Rosemarie Dewitt
Kerry Washington
Kelly Rutherford
Bradley Cooper
John Legend and Chrissy Teigen
Sienna Miller
Morena Baccarin
Melissa Leo
Estella Warren
Matt Bomer
Casey La Bow
Julie White
Gelila Assefa
Amanda de Cadenet
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Breaking News: Beyonce Knowles look-a-like Kenya Moore to release her first single tomorrow!!!!
Look out world! Another Real Housewives star is getting into the music business!
It’s former Miss USA turned Beyonce look-a-like turned Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kenya Moore. Andy Cohen debuted her new track titled “Gone with the Wind Fabulous” last night on Watch What Happens Live, and according to him, it’s a drag queen’s dream!
It goes a little somethin’ like this: “I say ‘I’m fabulous,’ you say, ‘I’m crazy,’ I say, ‘I’m fabulous,’ I’m gone with the wind fabulous, I’m gone with the wind fabulous, I’m gone with the wind fabulous, I’m gone with the wind fabulous. Now twirl, twirl, twirl, twirl, twirl..”
As the song was playing, it got some questionable looks from guests T-Boz and Tatyana Ali at first but then, they came around. “It’s not bad, I can see people gettin’ it at the club,” T-Boz said. Andy, on the other hand, saw a different picture. “I feel that I see an army of drag queens performing this song,” he explained.
On her Twitter account Thursday, the beautiful housewife promoted the single, writing, “#Twirl #GoneWiththeWindFabulous #GWTWF iTunes in Sunday and a ringtone.”
Kenya has also started selling merchandise featuring some of her most memorable sayings.
Starcasm
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2013 is the year of the Statement Mustache: Leighton Meester & Ed Westwick in Thailand
Leighton Meester and Ed Westwick rightfully capitalize on playing one of the shittiest couple on television, ever, by making an appearance at the grand re-opening of Bangkok's Siam Center.
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this dress is prettty
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Guess who Leighton hung out with over the holidays?
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Adam Brody! They went bowling w/ a group together.
And this is what Leighton looks like without makeup. Sigh.
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sources: 1234
this dress is prettty
Guess who Leighton hung out with over the holidays?
Adam Brody! They went bowling w/ a group together.
And this is what Leighton looks like without makeup. Sigh.
sources: 1234
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