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Reply #150 posted 11/23/15 8:06am

JoeBala

Jennifer Lopez speaks onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Host Jennifer Lopez speaks onstage during the 2015

(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Host Jennifer Lopez speaks onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015 in Los Angeles.

Luke Hemmings performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Musician Luke Hemmings performs during the 2015 American

(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Musician Luke Hemmings performs during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Model Hannah Davis, left, and rapper Wiz Khalifa speak onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Model Hannah Davis, left, and rapper Wiz Khalifa

(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Model Hannah Davis, left, and rapper Wiz Khalifa speak onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Selena Gomez performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Singer Selena Gomez performs onstage during the 2015

(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Singer Selena Gomez performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Jennifer Lopez performs at the 2015 American Music Awards

Host Jennifer Lopez performs at the 2015 American

(Credit: AP/ Matt Sayles)

Host Jennifer Lopez performs at the 2015 American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Prince speaks onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Musician Prince speaks onstage during the 2015 American
(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)


Musician Prince speaks onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

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Reply #151 posted 11/23/15 8:30am

JoeBala

Jennifer Lopez performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Host Jennifer Lopez performs onstage during the 2015
(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Host Jennifer Lopez performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Jennifer Lopez performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards

Host Jennifer Lopez, center, performs onstage during the
(Credit: Getty Images/ Kevin Winter)

Host Jennifer Lopez, center, performs onstage during the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Jenny McCarthy attends the 2015 American Music Awards

Jenny McCarthy at the American Music Awards at
(Credit: AP/ Jordan Strauss)

Jenny McCarthy at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Justin Bieber attends the 2015 American Music Awards

Recording artist Justin Bieber attends the 2015 American
(Credit: Getty Images/ Jason Merritt)

Recording artist Justin Bieber attends the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Gigi Hadid arrives at the 2015 American Music Awards

Gigi Hadid at the American Music Awards at
(Credit: AP/ Jordan Strauss)

Gigi Hadid at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Carrie Underwood arrives at the 2015 American Music Awards

Carrie Underwood at the American Music Awards at
(Credit: AP/ Jordan Strauss)

Carrie Underwood at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Demi Lovato arrives at the 2015 American Music Awards

Demi Lovato at the American Music Awards at
(Credit: AP/ Jordan Strauss)

Demi Lovato at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Fifth Harmony attends the 2015 American Music Awards

From left, recording artists Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke,
(Credit: Getty Images/ Jason Merritt)

From left, recording artists Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, Normani Hamilton, Camila Cabello and Dinah-Jane Hansen of Fifth Harmony attend the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Los Angeles.

Terry Crews attends the 2015 American Music Awards

Actor Terry Crews jumps at the 2015 American
(Credit: Getty Images/ Mark Davis)

Actor Terry Crews jumps at the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015 in Los Angeles.

Joe Jonas attends the 2015 American Music Awards

Recording artist Joe Jonas attends the 2015 American
(Credit: Getty Images/ Jason Merritt)

Recording artist Joe Jonas attends the 2015 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on Nov. 22, 2015 in Los Angeles, California.

Forever In Your Mind attend the 2015 American Music Awards

Recording artists Forever In Your Mind attend the
(Credit: Getty Images/ VALERIE MACON)

Recording artists Forever In Your Mind attend the 2015 American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater at L.A. Live in Los Angeles, California, Nov. 22, 2015. Forever In Your Mind is comprised of Ricky Garcia, Emery Kelly and Liam Attridge.

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Reply #152 posted 11/23/15 2:52pm

Identity

[img:$uid]http://s12.postimg.org/6c1mkirp9/700.jpg[/img:$uid]

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Reply #153 posted 11/23/15 3:23pm

Identity




The CW's Legends of Tomorrow gets a new trailer and premiere date.

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Reply #154 posted 11/24/15 8:04am

Identity

[img:$uid]http://i.imgur.com/OQORsm2.png?3[/img:$uid]



.



Watch the full pilot for Syfy’s new space opera The Expanse right now.

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Reply #155 posted 11/24/15 12:42pm

Identity




Rocksteady has released a new trailer for the November DLC content for Batman: Arkham Knight, featuring the Batmobile and Batsuit from nexy year's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

The DLC also includes two new missions - one featuring Catwoman taking on the Riddler, and one in which Robin goes after Two-Face.

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Reply #156 posted 11/25/15 10:59am

JoeBala

‘Hee Haw’ Fiddler Ramona Jones Dies at 91

Celebrated vocalist, fiddle player and renowned country music entertainer Ramona Jones has passed away.

The acclaimed fiddler and longtime Hee Haw performer died at the age of 91 in Goodlettsville, Tenn. In 1924, Jones was born in Van Buren, Ind. Years later, she met her first husband, future Country Music Hall of Fame member Grandpa Jones, while working on the Boone County Jamboree at Cincinnati radio station WLW.

The married couple performed alongside each other for many years before signing as performers on the now-classic television series Hee Haw in 1969. Although the series only produced new episodes for three years, the series aired in syndication for the next 25 years.

After Hee Haw, the Jones’ continued to perform together and recorded a long list of duets before Grandpa Jones’ death in 1998. As a solo artist, Ramona released many successful singles over the years and was celebrated for her incredible skills on the mandolin and fiddle, and her music which consistently featured an old-school, hillbilly country sound.

Jones is survived by her second husband, Reverend W. Eugene Gober, three children, two grandchildren and four step-grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are currently pending.

Cynthia Robinson, Trumpeter and Co-Founder of Sly and the Family Stone, Dies at 69

Robinson’s role in Sly and the Family Stone was legendary, and her music will live on.

Posted: Nov. 24 2015 9:01 AM
Cynthia Robinson

FACEBOOK

When Cynthia Robinson tooted her own horn, the world stood in awe. And Monday, the world lost one of its greatest trumpet players. Robinson died at the age of 69 after a battle with cancer, according to a post on her Facebook page.

For nine years, Robinson was considered Sly Stone’s “hype woman,” but she was more than that, especially when it came to being a trailblazer. Robinson was one of the first black women to play the trumpet in a major band. And the fact that she played and sang with one of the greatest bands ever adds even more weight to her name.

In an interview from the early ’90s, Robinson spoke about how it wasn’t easy picking up the trumpet as a kid.

“Well, in school, um, kids didn’t, uh, uh, favor it, I guess, because the guys played the saxophones and the trumpets and the drums. And the girls and guys would play other reed instruments and so forth, but usually they get, they just gave me a hard time about playing trumpet,” Robinson stated.

But that didn’t deter Robinson, and she said she sensed that some of the guys she played with when she was younger had issues because she was better than they were.

“And I think one of the main reasons really wasn’t a guy thing, it was a friend thing. Maybe if we had a challenge, a horn challenge, and his friend who didn’t practice as well, as often, I might beat him out, so I’m sitting in between them, and that kinda upset them because then they couldn’t chit-chat and so forth. But it left me with the impression that, you know, no guy in the world would let a girl play the trumpet in his group. So I just decided, well, I’ll just go to Sax City and take some music courses because I still wanted to play, you know,” Robinson continued.

In a 2013 interview, Robinson said she became better acquainted with Stone after her mother noticed a guitar in his car.

One day he was driving down our street with some friends and he pulled over. I walked over to talk to him, and my mom came out of the house. She saw a guitar in the backseat. She played guitar, but I didn’t know that for a number of years! She asked, “Whose guitar is that?” and Sly said it was his. She asked him to come in and play, but he couldn’t because his cable was broken.

She said, “Wait right here,” walked to Tower Records, and bought a cable on the spot! She gave it to him and said, “Now you better be able to play.” Sly and his friends came in—a tall fellow named Daryl, a singer named Jimmy Terrell, and Sly on guitar—and played a song. My mom wanted me to get my mellophone, but I didn’t feel like I could play with them because I didn’t know the latest songs. I joined the band about five years later.

Robinson was picked to join Stone’s band in 1967, and that musical relationship birthed not only six albums but also a daughter, Phunne Stone.

Robinson’s loyalty to Stone and the band was evident after the band broke up in 1975. Robinson was one of the few original members who continued to play with Stone. Robinson also played with former Family Stone member Larry Graham’s band, Graham Central Station.

As recently as this summer, Robinson was on tour with the Family Stone, and Sly Stone made an appearance.

Fans have shown an outpouring of support for Robinson on social media, from tweets from journalists who’d interviewed her to memories shared by George Clinton.

Robinson is survived by her two daughters, Phunne and Laura Marie, as well as the remaining members of the Family Stone. It’s safe to say that Robinson will be missed and her dynamic music will live on.

David Canary dies at 77

Award-winning actor and Wilton resident

David Canary

David Canary

Emmy Award-winning actor and Wilton resident David Hoyt Canary died of natural causes at the age of 77 on Nov. 16 at The Greens at Cannondale.

He was as well known here for his generosity to the community as for his acting career.


Canary and his wife, Maureen, raised two children, Christopher and Kathryn, in Wilton and became very involved in the community after realizing “how much local organizations could benefit from their talents,” and participated in many fund-raisers involving music and acting, according to a March 2005 Wilton Bulletin article. That year, the couple were named Distinguished Citizens of the Year by the Wilton YMCA.

His volunteer efforts included performing in a production of Love Letters to benefit A Better Chance (ABC) of Wilton and emceeing and singing in the Wilton Kiwanis Club’s annual holiday concert. He was also an active volunteer with the Friends of Wilton Library.


Canary participated in Middlebrook School’s first-ever Career Day in 1997, when he told students his work was “wonderful but tough.”

The couple opened the Wilton Education Foundation’s 1997 spelling bee, served as celebrity hosts of the Domestic Violence Crisis Center’s annual Safe & Sound Race/Walk in 2000 and 2001, and narrated Wilton’s Bicentennial in 2002.


Canary regularly participated in Wilton’s annual CROP walks and was also a spokesperson for NRFTD, formerly the Wilton Task Force on Lyme Disease. He was the NRFTD’s guest of honor in 2002.

He also sang with the Wilton Singers and was a fan of the Wilton Children’s Theater, crediting the theater and its alumni during a 2001 speech for “accolades bestowed upon the high school’s drama department” the previous year, when the department was recognized as having one of the top acting programs in the country.


Canary performed Clarence Darrow: A One-Man Show at the Wilton High School Little Theater in 2001 to raise money for Wilton Library and served as master of ceremonies of ABC of Wilton’s 2006 Food for the Soul benefit concert.


Professional career

Canary starred in soap operas like All My Children and One Life to Live, and was well known for his role as the ranch foreman Candy Canaday on Bonanza, which he played from 1967 to 1970 and 1972 to 1973.

He also made guest appearances on two of the longest running prime time dramas in U.S. television history, Gunsmoke and Law & Order.

Canary was born in Elwood, Ind., on Aug. 25, 1938, and grew up in Massillon, Ohio, where he attended Washington High School.


He earned a football scholarship to the University of Cincinnati, which is where he developed a passion for the performing arts. According to IMDB.com, Canary trained as a singer at the school and graduated with a degree in music.

Canary turned down an offer to play professional football for the Denver Broncos and instead decided to head to New York City to become an actor.


There he performed in summer stock, regional theater, and in on- and off-Broadway productions before being drafted into the U.S. Army. During his two years of service, Canary entered and won the All-Army Entertainment Contest in 1963.


After being honorably discharged, Canary moved to Los Angeles to continue his acting career. He landed a role in the musical The Fantasticks in San Francisco.

According to Jean M. Peck’s “Interview with an ‘All My Children’ star” article in the University of Cincinnati’s UC Magazine, Canary’s experience in The Fantasticks “led to his first break in television” — playing Russ Gehring on Peyton Place in 1965 and 1966.


During that time, Canary’s film roles included Lamar Dean in Hombre (1967) and Frank Gusenberg in The Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre (1967).

In addition to his roles on Bonanza and Peyton Place, some of Canary’s television roles included George McClaney in Gunsmoke (1967) and Charlie Montana on Dundee and the Culhane (1967).


Canary returned to New York City in 1975 and met his second wife, Maureen, with whom he moved to Wilton in 1983. That same year, Canary started his 27-year run on All My Children as Stuart and Adam Chandler — roles that would earn him 16 daytime Emmy nominations and five wins.


Canary is survived by his wife; his son Christopher and his wife, Amy, of Philadelphia; his daughter Kathryn and her fiancé, John Rotheimer, of New York City; his grandson, Donovan Canary, of Philadelphia; and his brother John and wife Paula of New York City.


Funeral services will be privately held for immediate family at Bouton Funeral Home in Georgetown, and a memorial tribute is being planned, with a date to be determined.

David Canary, daughter Katie and wife Maureen

Memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, ALZ.org.

Click here to read the ob...is family.

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Reply #157 posted 11/25/15 11:36am

JoeBala

Country-Pop Star CARRIE UNDERWOOD Really Wants To Sing With AXL ROSE

Country-Pop Star CARRIE UNDERWOOD Really Wants To Sing With AXL ROSE

Country-pop star Carrie Underwood has told E! in a new interview with she really wants to sing with GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose at some point in her life. She said: "I've covered enough GUNS N' ROSES stuff, and it was people like him who taught me how to sing."

"I look at people like him and Freddie Mercury, those people who were doing all these crazy runs. It was so different," Underwood added.

In 2013, Underwood delivered a faithful cover of GUNS N' ROSES' "Paradise City" at the CMA Music Festival in Nashville. Check out video footage of the performance below.

Underwood said in a 2014 interview that late QUEEN frontman Freddie Mercury was high on her list of first loves.

"I've always been a huge fan and lover of Freddie Mercury," she said. "I would listen to him when I was a kid. He could do so many amazing things with his voice. People like that — who had incredible voices — I was always drawn to. I would want to try to do what they do. They were my teachers."

She also said that if you scrolled through her iPod, you’d find some really hard rock music, like MUDVAYNE.

"When I work out, I like to listen to things that are really angry," she said. "I couldn't do it on a daily basis or driving in my car. I think that would be kind of weird."

The Man And The Mistakes That 'Invented Rock 'n' Roll'

Sam Phillips, the founder of the label Sun Records, poses with Elvis Presley.

Sam Phillips, the founder of the label Sun Records, poses with Elvis Presley.

Courtesy of Tom Salva/Little Brown & Co

Sam Phillips, founder of the label Sun Records, didn't care much about making flawless recordings. Instead, the man who discovered Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash,Howlin' Wolf, Charlie Rich, Roy Orbison and a host of others rejected perfection in favor of spontaneity and individuality.

Peter Guralnick is also the author of a two-volume biography of Elvis Presley, a biography of Sam Cooke, and other books about soul, blues and country music.

Little Brown & Co.

"Sam would say, 'I hate that word, perfection. It should be banned from the English language,'" music writer Peter Guralnick tells Fresh Air's Terry Gross. "He didn't care about the mistakes; he cared about the feel."

In his new book, Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock 'n' Roll, Guralnick chronicles Phillips' work at Sun and his lasting impact on the music industry.

Guralnick describes Phillips as "a visionary" who worked to introduce the African-American music of his day to a broader white audience: "His vision from the very beginning was that music, and specifically African-American music, could conquer all of the prejudice, all of the race prejudice, the class prejudice, the divisions, the categories into which music — like everything else in American life — was divided.

"I think he's as original and as strikingly individuated and as determinedly motivated an artist really as anybody I've ever written about," Guralnick adds.


Interview Highlights

Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips

The Man Who Invented Rock 'n' Roll

by Peter Guralnick

Hardcover, 763 pages

purchase

On recording Howlin' Wolf

What Sam said when he first heard Howlin' Wolf, a friend of his, an engineer over at KWEM in West Memphis, said, "We got this guy on the air every day at noon, around noon, selling farm implements, farm tools, and he plays the kind of music I think you'd be interested in," which I don't think was intended as a compliment by this friend of Sam's ... but Sam always said he tuned into the program on KWEM. It was a weak signal, it came through crackling, it was a terrible connection, and he said from the first moment he heard Howlin' Wolf's voice, he said, "This is it for me. This is where the soul of man never dies."

The first time Sam invited Wolf into the studio, he tried to make it as low-key as possible; he didn't want to put any pressure on the singer. He didn't want Wolf to feel that he was making a command performance, or that some little white guy was trying to twist him in some direction. When Wolf came in with the guitarist Willie Johnson and the drummer Willie Steele, Sam said he was so overwhelmed, he was just so overcome by the sound of the music, that for one of the few times in his life, he had no idea what to do. He prided himself on everything to do with recording, and he said he was out there in the studio moving the mics around, but, really, he wasn't doing anything. He was just completely mesmerized by the sound of Howlin' Wolf's voice.

On mistakes in the studio

[Sam] was looking for was something far beyond perfection: It was spontaneity, individuality. When Carl [Perkins] said, "But Mr. Philips, I made a mistake," and Sam said, "Nobody's going to notice that mistake, you had the feel on that." And Carl would say, "But it's a mistake," and Sam said, "That's what we are at Sun Records. That's what Sun Records is: We're one, big, inspired mistake," and he believed that. That was his artistic credo.

On how Elvis gave Sun Records the crossover R&B hit Phillips had been looking for

From the very beginning, from before he had opened up his studio in January of 1950, [Phillips] believed that the greatness of his music that so moved him, this African-American music, couldn't help but win over the general public, the mainstream audience. [But] the charts were totally segregated, like every other aspect of American life at that time.

When Sam started Sun Records in 1953, he had one hit after another. They were big hits by R&B standards. One of them was The Prisonaires' "Just Walkin' In The Rain." He had a couple of hits with Little Junior Parker. He had a big hit with Rufus Thomas with Bear Cat. A big hit in R&B meant that it sold 35,000, maybe 50,000. That was the ceiling. Sam Phillips was on the verge of going out of business. When Elvis came into his studio in July of '54 and he made "That's Alright," Sam was on the edge of bankruptcy, but he was determined to present the music in a way that was absolutely true to itself, not to present imitation music, not to present music that tried to ape the sound or the feeling of the great blues singers, the great R&B singers. And in Elvis he found that.

On the last recording Elvis did with Sun Records

I always thought that "Trying To Get To You" was one of the greatest — if not the greatest — of all the songs that Elvis recorded for Sam and Sun. But, in fact, it's the version that we're about to hear that reaches its pinnacle. It's the next take, which was never done, that would've been the transcendent version. But it's an astonishing performance, and there's so much conviction and so much belief in it, and it's really a spiritual performance. I think that one of the things that's most extraordinary about it is it's a song that stayed with Elvis all his life, and even at the very end of his life — in his last or next-to-last concert — he's singing it with the same conviction and the same desperation. It always had a freshness and a spontaneity that some of his hits didn't always bring out of him at the end.

I think they were on the verge of refining the song, of simplifying the song, of creating the same kind of take that Elvis had on "Mystery Train." But Elvis' career at Sun was just then coming to an end, and he never came back into the studio to do another take.

Yet Another Reason to Watch FargoTonight: Rachel Keller


Meet the FX series' dreamy femme fatale.


It’s hard to stand out on a show like Fargo, where the cast is huge and the plot is thick. But Rachel Keller has managed to catch everybody’s eye. Keller plays Simone Gerhardt, Fargo’s dreamy, complicated femme fatale. Simone’s ill-advised relationship with Kansas City thug Mike Milligan continues to develop, so watch tonight’s episode of Fargo at 10 p.m.

We chatted with Keller about her native land (Minnesota), the ‘70s (pro), and Joaquin Phoenix (very pro.)


GQ: Where are you from?
Rachel Keller: I grew up in Minnesota, actually!

You don’t really have an accent. Is there a spectrum for Minnesota accents?
There’s definitely a spectrum. I think that going to drama school bangs it out of you. I can turn it on and off now, but I used to be able to not turn it off. But I remember thinking, when I got the audition, I’ve got the accent in my back pocket.

What is the other end of the spectrum?
I think the further you get away from the city center, you hear lotsa oh-you-betchyas. Yah know?

What’s your favorite Minnesota-ism?
I think my favorite -ism is how I say “mom,” because I grew up saying “mahm.” That’s how I grew up, I was just like maaaaahm. And dayyyyud. I don’t say “mom” a lot on the show.

Mahm.
Mahhhm.


What does Fargo get right about Minnesota in the show's portrayal of Luverne?
The downtown feel. I know streets like that now. I mean, of course it’s in 1979, so it looks different, but I know little streets like that. Where Bud’s Meats is, and the hair salon. You kind of do all your shopping in one day, and everything is around there. We still do that in Minnesota. That small-town, friendly feel—there are really great, nice, kind people in Minnesota.

FARGO_205_0330_CL_d_hires2.jpg
CHRIS LARGE/FX

And murderous crime families.
Syndicates, if you can find them.

What did you do to make the winters survivable?
Lots of snow suits—you get so cold. If your skin is in the air for more than five minutes you’re gonna get frostbite. I walked to school everyday so I was battling it, truly. My sister and her friends would never walk with me so I’d walk behind them and think of warm things. I thought of deserts and hot chocolate. On the show, Simone is far too cool to ever button her jacket or zip her coat, so I remember everyone was kind of bundled up in their character’s gear and mine was open to the world. I was freezing. I was like come on guys, I’m freezing.

Were you the quiet reading teenager or the Simone Gerhardt kind of teenager?
I was the “no one understands me” teenager. But I think truly I’ve realized now that I didn’t understand a thing myself. So I just had some livin’ to do.

Do you think Simone is a bad guy or a good guy?
That’s a good question. What do you think?

I oscillate. She’s so young, but also so cruel.
When I watched the last episode, I felt like—because they are pretty genius about how they’ve been editing the show—they made her look so young. And I think with her and Charlie there’s an element of ‘They’re just children.’ They’ve seen too much too soon. I don’t think she’s making her decisions from a place of malice. But she’s been abused by her family, so that’s definitely part of it for her.

Have you been watching Fargo on Monday nights with the rest of us?
I have. I live with my grandmother, so when she’s in town—she’s a sailor, so she’s sailing in Tahiti for the entire month—when she’s in town we watch it together. Otherwise I rally my friends and enjoy it every Monday night.

Tell me more about your sailor grandmother.
I know, I have powerful women behind me. She’s a captain! She has a sailboat, and she’s part of a women’s sailing association here. It’s amazing.

How hard is it to keep the plot a secret from your friends and family?
I did warn them about things. “You might be seeing my backside at some point...” There were some conversations about that.

"All I want is Joaquin Phoenix in high-waisted pants."

Have you ever had to watch your own sex scenes with your parents?
I haven’t watched them with my parents, but my parents are quite open and critical, and I think they’d be looking at it with an artistic eyes. My extended family in Minnesota, though... that’ll be awkward.

I love the Farrah Fawcett hair.


We put all these extensions in, which I loved because it made me feel like a different kind of thing. In part, extensions were to cover up my front side during that other scene. I had hair taped to my boobs and I was trying not to let them go anywhere. It was a sight to see.

What’s a look from the ‘70s that you hope never returns?
The big lapels on the guys. That’s a little much.

What’s a ‘70s look for men that you hope does make a comeback?
High-waisted flares. Have you seen Her when Joaquin Phoenix is walking around with those high-waisted pants? I want that. All I want is Joaquin Phoenix in high-waisted pants.

Haley Reinhart's 'Can't Help Falling in Love' Gets Intimate New Video: Exclusive Premiere

By Michele Amabile Angermiller | November 23, 2015 5:36 PM EST

Haley Reinhart

Haley Reinhart from Scott Bradlee and Postmodern Jukebox performs at L'Alhambra on March 12, 2015 in Paris, France.

David Wolff - Patrick/Redferns via Getty Images
The video, for the song made popular in an Extra gum ad, features fellow "American Idol" alum Casey Abrams on piano.

American Idol singer Haley Reinhart's intimate rendition of Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love” is featured in the popular Extra gum commercial "The Story of Sarah and Juan," and now Billboard is exclusively premiering the song's official music video, which features fellow season 10 alum Casey Abrams.

The video offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse of Reinhart and Abrams, on piano, creating magic in the studio as they record the song together.

"It brings me so much joy in knowing I can be the voice that helps bring this breathtaking love story to life," Reinhart tells Billboard. "This video captures raw emotion and intimacy that I hope people can connect with. Happy to have my musical soulmate, Casey Abrams, playing alongside of me on keys as well."

Director Daniel Ryan from Energy BBDO says he aimed to capture that connection as he filmed the Wheeling, Ill., singer. "The moment she started singing in the studio, it was clear that she had immense talent. Since we only had a short time together, I wanted to capture a few moments that conveyed her charismatic personality, then shift into a simple, elegant performance of the timeless ballad," he says. "I think the finished film gives the viewer a look at Haley's genuine charm and talent, helping them feel connected to her as an artist."

Since the commercial debuted last month, the song has already sold 46,000 units, amassed 3.2 million streams on Spotify, and is No. 1 on Spotify’s Global viral chart. The campaign is still growing, with 86 million views via Facebook and more than 12 million views on YouTube.

The ad tells the love story of two young adults who experience small yet meaningful moments through sharing Extra gum, leading to a big point in their relationship. This brings to life “Give Extra, get extra,” the idea that small moments lead to something meaningful. Reinhart says that is why the spot is connecting in a huge way. “Once I saw [the commercial] it had me in tears like a lot of the public right now,” she says. “There is not a dry eye.”

To create the tear-jerking moment, the 25-year-old vocalist immediately called on Abrams. “I had just found out about this amazing ad, and the people at Wrigley were very excited, which is pretty neat, because I’m a Chicago girl myself, so we have that hometown connection,” she says. “I was eager to get to it. And I told Casey that I needed to find a pianist by tomorrow and he is like, ‘Well when do we start?’ He is always down for everything and he plays just about everything."

With Abrams committed, the process moved quickly. The two met the next day at Son of Man Recording Studio and Mixing in Los Angeles.

“It was very organic,” she says. “We were in an intimate setting in the room, and we had candles and he was playing and we really had to make sure that we were in sync, timing-wise, so we had to be able to look at each other and kind of feed off each other’s energy and rhythm, so it was nice.”

Overall, she is happy with how the song meshed with the love story of Sarah and Juan. “It was a nice, pleasant surprise, because you have to really get an intimate vibe, and Extra is all about the small moments that lead up to the big finale and one journey of life and love,” she says. “I wanted to make it sound as if I was talking to or whispering to a loved one next to me, that kind of vibe.”

As for Reinhart’s own journey, that path leads to her current touring schedule with Postmodern Jukebox and animated voice work with the Netflix series F Is For Family, debuting Dec. 18. In addition, Reinhart is putting the finishing touches on her new EP of original material, available early spring 2016 via red dot.

“I am really excited to put new music out. It has been kind of a labor of love. I took a lot of the demos I have had over a span of three years, and some of these songs were written back then,” she says. “I took the original productions and had a live band cut it, and I now fused the two styles and production together so they have a powerful, meaty foundation.

“I just want to put out things that people will relate to,” she continues. “It’s all very sultry where it’s coming from.”

With American Idol kicking off its farewell season in January, there is always the possibility that the popular alum will return to her roots. “Idol has been really good to me,” she says. “Hopefully we will have some of my songs in the next season, even just in the episodes for contestants. That would be wonderful, and I would love to get back. I heard a few things circulating, but nothing set in stone yet.”

There is still hope for fans of season 10, she says. “I know our season -- we are all a pretty close group and I just would love to do something,” she says. “Our experience was incredible.”

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NBC To Premiere 'Vlad', First-Ever Dominican Family Comedy Starring Vladimir Caamaño

NBC network orders pilot for first ever Dominican family comedy starring Vladimir Caamaño.YouTube/@LaughingVlad

Popular TV shows such as "The George Lopez Show" and "Que Pasa USA?" have invited us to enjoy the lives of Mexican-American and Cuban-American families via the small screen. However, not all Latino families are Mexicans or Cubans, and that's why NBC is looking for a new diverse family comedy.Dominicanos stand up!

The network is teaming up with "Undateable's" Bill Lawrence and Adam Sztykiel for the upcoming "Vlad," a multi-camera comedy based on the true life of Dominican comedian Vladimir Caamaño. Caamaño is a regular performer at New York's The Stand Comedy Club. He was a finalist on NBC's Stand Up for Diversity program and has been featured on AXS' Gotham Comedy Live.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the show, which was picked up with a put-pilot commitment, "is inspired by the stand-up comedian's life and explores his family dynamics while living with his Dominican father and older brother in the Bronx."

Lawrence and Jeff Ingold will executive produce the show; whereas, Sztykiel and Caamaño will write the script. Caamaño will also co-executive produce. If all goes well with the the pilot, "Vlad" ---the latest family comedy to be put in development this season--- will become a series on NBC. Check him out below and keep your finger crossed!

'Sesame Street' Adds Hispanic Bilingual Cast Member, Nina, Before Its HBO Debut

Sesame Street is getting ready to move to HBO for its 46th season with many new changes including new cast members! YouTube

It was quite a shock that one of the most popular kids’ show of our time “Sesame Street” was moving to HBO, but once that passed we’re learning more and more details of its 46th season, which is set to debut on the premium cable network next January 16 at 9 am. With the move, the show is reportedly getting lots of “bold changes” including the fact that each episode will be 30 minutes long instead of its usual 60.

The set has also been updated to give our beloved characters such as Big Bird, Cookie Monster and Elmo new homes. This season will also introduce a new human cast member, Nina (played by Suki López), who is a Hispanic bilingual woman who works at a laundromat and bike store. In addition, all episodes will be aired simultaneously on HBO Latino dubbed in Spanish.

Executive Producer of Sesame Street Carol-Lynn Parente said she is extremely excited for kids to discover the show’s new neighborhood and where their beloved characters live. “Sesame Street has always been the ideal play date for preschoolers. Now, that play date is focused on topics and themes that are very engaging to kids, with our signature educational messages embedded into laughter and music,” she continued.

The list of guests for the season is very exciting as it includes Gina Rodriguez, Alan Cumming, Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams.

'Creed' Star Michael B. Jordan Talks Working With Sylvester Stallone, Taking Real Punches, Extreme Dieting And More [EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW]

IN PHOTO: Actor Carl Weathers (L) poses with cast members Sylvester Stallone (C) and Michael B. Jordan during the premiere of the film "Creed." REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian

The critics have spoken and "Creed" is a hit! The film scheduled for release Nov. 25 reunites Ryan Coogler with Michael B. Jordan for another cinematic masterpiece.

Jordan, 28, takes the lead as Adonis Johnson, the son of boxing legend Apollo Creed. We also seeSylvester Stallone step back into the role of the former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa but this time he will be serving as trainer and mentor to the son of his late friend and former rival.

"Creed" is an emotional, funny, compelling and uplifting film that is full of strong performances and it definitely lives up to the expectation of its predecessors while forging its own unique path.

Johnson chatted with Latin Times about all things "Creed," detailing his extreme dieting and prep work to get in boxing shape. Working alongside Sylvester Stallone and being awed by his talent, exploring a different side of Philadelphia, forgoing a body double and much more. Check out the full interview below:

We’re sure you had to train hard but how tough was the workout regimine and diet to prepare for the role?

"There was no way I was walking around looking like that before I did this movie. Honestly it started with the diet. I completely changed my diet. I went down to eating every two and a half to three hours. Strip away all the sugar, cheese, dairy and pasta and bread and stuff like that and get down to protein like grilled chicken, steak or fish and brown rice. I had lots of brown rice and water [laugh]. The diet really sets the tone and then consistently working out. I worked out two to three times a day, six days a week. I boxed and lifted weights and it was really consistent for about 10 or 11 months and eventually your body will change."

Elaborating on how tough it was to commit to such a strict diet Jordan said "It’s Brutal! Half the time you’re eating you’re not even hungry. You don’t even wanna eat, you just know you have to put food in your body just to keep going. And you’re pretty antisocial because that’s your life. Your alarm goes off and you’re shoving food in your face and then you have to hit the gym. It’s definitely a process."

Were you a fan of the Rocky films before taking the role as Adonis?

"Yeah I was. The first 'Rocky' came out 40 years ago so I missed that train [laugh], but I was familiar with them. My favorite 'Rocky’s' are one, two and four and I seen them when I was in high school. Then I had the opportunity to fall in love with the 'Rocky' franchise all over again. Not to prepare for the role but to mentally check it out. You want to pay attention and soak up the world you’re going to step into. When I think of 'Rocky' I think of inspiration and an underdog. This guy who just will not quit. He relies on his friends and family to push him through any obstacle and to that next level. And I think that's super important."

How was it working alongside Sylvester Stallone in his legendary role as Rocky Balboa?

"It was amazing man. He is a really, really talented actor. Smart guy, very knowledgable and to see him transform from Sly the person to Rocky is pretty incredible to see. He’s so talented and he literally changes right before your eyes. They yell cut and he’s walking around like Sly again, telling jokes, very personable and then he goes into Rocky and he’s very shy and his vernacular isn’t as advanced and it’s definitely a testament to his talent for sure."

Creed explored a different part of Philadelphia that wasn’t shown in previous Rocky films. How was it exploring that?

"I’m from North New Jersey so it was cool [laugh]. I think it was interesting to see a familiar Philly in the world of Rocky. You know you tell the story through a different pair of eyes you get a totally different perspective of a city that everybody knows. It’s kind of similar to 'Friday Night Lights.' From seasons four to five we go from Dillon to East Dillon. East Dillon was always there, it was right across the tracks but we didn’t get a chance to see Vince Howard or all these other wonderful characters that lived over in that side but it was just as interesting of a world. I think that’s really cool to kind of blend these two sides of Philly that always coexisted but was never really shown together and I think that’s what you get when you watch ‘Creed.’"

Is it true you really went without a body double and took these punches yourself?

"Yep. 100 percent. You don’t workout for a year and a half, learn how to box, take those punches when sparring and training and then have somebody else go in and do the work for you. I like to be as hands on. And I’m super competitive so anything that’s a challenge especially on set or physically I have to step up. They would have to force me sit down and not do my own stuff [laugh]."

I love the way “Creed” played out in terms of its story. It definitely left it open for you to come back as Adonis. Is that something you’d be interested in?

"Oh yeah 110 percent. Something that we are already talking about and something I’d definitely be interested in doing."

What would you say to people who say “oh this is just another Rocky movie?”

"Go watch the movie. Thats what I would say. From first glance you could think it’s another ‘Rocky’ film but after watching the film people will understand it’s an origin story for a new character and we’ve been gracious enough and lucky enough to have Sly on screen passing the torch to a new generation."

New Singer Avery Wilson Talks Changing The World, Migos-Assisted Single 'Change My Mind' and Tenure On The Voice

KEYONA BUTLER THU, NOV 12, 2015 INTERVIEWS0 COMMENTS

New Singer Avery Wilson Talks Changing The World, Migos-Assisted Single 'Change My Mind' and Tenure On The Voice

Following his stint on “The Voice” (Season 3), Avery Wilson is making waves on his own! The 20-year-old is finding success as an RCA-signee with the new single, ““Change My Mind,” featuring Migos, which follows his first single, “If I Have To.” Not only can he sing, but he’s also fluent on the guitar, piano, and keyboard.

Avery participated in a quick Q&A with Singersroom, telling us a bit about his upbringing and his road to the music big leagues.

Peep it below.

When did you know you wanted to become a singer?

When I was younger, I wasn't focused on singing. I was more into sports and dancing, really just being a kid. My dad heard me singing in the back of the car one day and said, "you're gonna stop all that extra-curricular stuff you’re doing and focus on your singing, because you don't know the gift you have." That was around 8 or 9 years old.

Who are your inspirations?

My inspirations range from Usher, Chris Brown, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion - they are the reason my sound is the way it is!

What made you audition for "The Voice"?

At 16 years old (junior year in high school), I wanted my voice to be noticed around the world so I thought to myself, what better way to achieve that goal then to maximize on a TV Show?! I had three auditions lined up – “The Voice”, “X Factor” and “American Idol.” It just so happened I auditioned for “The Voice” first and made it.

Was there anyone on "The Voice" that you got really close to or encouraged you the most?

I got close with all of the cast members. We became a family the longer we stayed on the show. As far as coaches, I got to experience interaction with them all; they were real, incredibly amazing people and artists! CeeLo Green and I were the closest because he was my coach. He really cared about the human being in a singer and what made them go to that place that brings out the emotion when you sing. That's why I chose him as my coach.

What are your future goals?

I want to inspire my generation to go down the paths that haven’t been traveled before! We, "the millennials," are blessed with so many gifts that we can't be afraid to use them. My ultimate goal is that I want to change the world/culture musically and have an effect on people like Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston did.

Is there anyone you would like to work with in the music field?

There are so many! Beyonce, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Ed Sheeran, Adele, Arianna Grande, Sam Smith, to name just a few.

Is there anything from you we can look forward to?

Great music. I have been working hard on my debut album on RCA which should be ready by some point in 2016. And I’m currently touring with Sevyn Streeter, which has been a blast. But you can definitely expect to catch me on more tours throughout the end of this year and in 2016. If you haven’t heard my latest single, check it out – it’s called “Change My Mind” featuring Migos. It gives you an idea of how versatile the new album is going to be.

Rihanna Preps 'ANTI' World Tour (Dates)

ELLE BREEZY MON, NOV 23, 2015 NEWS, R&B NEWS
Rihanna Preps 'ANTI' World Tour (Dates)

Shortly after dropping the first video entry in her ANTIDiary, Rihanna reveals she plans on going on a world tour in conjunction with the release of her eighth studio album ANTI (which, according to Teen Vogue, will arrive on TIDAL on Black Friday, Nov. 2, and to the public a week later on December 4th).

The rollout out this next album is officially underway with this news, which is scheduled for over 60 dates in North America and Europe combined!

Sponsored by Samsung, the tour will kick off in late February 2016 in San Diego before hitting up arenas across the country and heading to Europe (Amsterdam, Holland) for twenty-four dates beginning in June 2016. Travis Scott and Big Sean will join RiRi on the road.

The Navy can get their tickets beginning on Thursday, Dec 3. TIDAL subscribers will have early access to purchase tickets on Monday, November 30.

Peep the dates below:

ANTI WORLD TOUR NORTH AMERICAN DATES

Feb. 26 – San Diego, CA – Viejas Arena
Feb. 28 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center
March 1 – Phoenix, AZ. – Talking Stick Resort Arena
March 4 – Austin, TX – Frank Erwin Center
March 5 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
March 6 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
March 8 – New Orleans, LA- Smoothie King Center
March 9 – Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
March 12 – Jacksonville, FL – Jacksonville Arena
March 13 – Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena
March 15 – Miami, FL – American Airlines Arena
March 18 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
March 19 – Cincinnati, OH – U.S. Bank Arena
March 20 – Charlotte, NC – The Time Warner Cable Arena
March 22 – Washington, D.C. – Verizon Center
March 23 – Buffalo, NY – First Niagara Center
March 24 – Auburn Hills, MI – Palace of Auburn Hills
March 26 – Hartford, CO – XL Center
March 27 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
April 2 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center
April 3 – Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo
April 5 – Quebec City, QC – Centre Videotron
April 6 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
April 9 – Baltimore, MD – Royal Farms Arena
April 10 – Boston, MS – TD Garden
April 13 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Center
April 15 – Chicago, IL – United Center
April 18 – Winnipeg, MS – MTS Centre
April 20 – Edmonton, AB – Rexall Place
April 21 – Calgary, AB – Scotiabank Saddledome
April 23 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
April 24 – Seattle, WA – KeyArena
April 27 – Salt Lake City, UT. – Vivint Smart Home Arena
April 29 – Las Vegas, NV – Mandalay Bay
May 3 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum
May 7 – Oakland, CA – Oracle Arena

EUROPEAN DATES

June 11 – Amsterdam, Holland – Amsterdam Arena
June 14 – Coventry, United Kingdom – Ricoh Arena
June 16 – Cardiff, United Kingdom – Cardiff Stadium
June 18 – Sunderland, United Kingdom – Stadium Of Light
June 21 – Dublin, Ireland – Aviva Stadium
June 24 – London, United Kingdom – Wembley Stadium
June 27 – Glasgow, United Kingdom – Hampden Park
June 29 – Manchester, United Kingdom – Emirates Old Park
July 4 – Stockholm, Sweden – Tele2 Arena
July 7 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Refshale Island
July 9 – Hamburg, Germany – Volkspark Stadion
July 13 – Milan, Italy – San Siro
July 15 – Nice, France – Allianz Stadium
July 17 – Frankfurt, Germany – Commerzbank Arena
July 19 – Lyon, France – Grande Stade
July 23 – Lille, France – Stade Lille
July 26 – Prague, Czech Republic – Synotip Arena
July 28 – Cologne, Germany – Rhein Energie Stadio
July 30 – Paris, France – Stade de France
Aug. 2 – Berlin, Germany -Olympiastadion
Aug. 5 – Warsaw, Poland – PGE Narodowy
Aug. 7 – Munich, Germany – Olympiastadion
Aug. 10 – Vienna, Austria – Ernst Happel Stadium
Aug. 12 – Zurich, Switzerland – Letzigrund Stadion



Adele Preps 2016 European Tour (Dates)

ELLE BREEZY THU, NOV 26, 2015 NEWS, R&B NEW

Adele Preps 2016 European Tour (Dates)

After the release of her latest album 25 (which sold 3 million in the U.S alone in a week since its release), it’s been announced on her Instagram the singer will set out on a U.K. tour next spring called “Adele Live 2016,” hitting up arenas in the United Kingdom.

“I have been bluffing this whole time and I am so relieved to finally tell you that I am, of course coming on tour, and I can't wait to see all of you there. So see you all very very soon!” she said in the short video while standing in front of a map of Europe.

Fans who subscribe to her website will get first dibs on tickets beginning on December 1st. The rest of the fans will have the change to purchase tickets on December 2nd. Sorry, rest of the world, dates have not been announced yet for the rest of the globe…. Yet?

“Adele Live 2016" is her first tour since 2011. For more info, visit Adele.com.

Peep the dates below:

Belfast, SSE Arena (February 29-March 1)
Dublin, 3Arena (March 4-5)
Manchester, Arena (March 7-8)
London, The O2 (March 15-16, 18-19)
Glasgow, SSE Hydro (March 25-26)
Birmingham, Genting Arena (March 29-30)



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Idris Elba is back as tormented genius DCI John Luther.

The London detective, whose brilliant mind is often in conflict with the dangerous violence of his passions, returns in two new one-hour episodes next month which have been given confirmed air dates.

On
BBC One in the UK, the special kicks off December 15, and on BBC America in the States, it will air on December 17.

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ABC has dropped a new teaser for Marvel’s Agent Carter’ Season 2 .

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Identity said:






ABC has dropped a new teaser for Marvel’s Agent Carter’ Season 2 .

cool cool cool Thanks ID

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Soul Train Awards 2015 WATCH FREE: Erykah Badu Hosts With R. Kelly, Tyrese & More Perform

The annual Soul Train Awards airs tonight on BET at 8 p.m. EDT/ 7 p.m. CDT. Here's how you can keep up with all the action online for free.

By Dave Odegard, EnStars on Nov 29, 2015 02:34 PM EST
Erykah Badu
(Photo : Getty Images)

The biggest night in soul music went down earlier this month in Las Vegas and now we're finally going to be able to see it. That's right, the 2015 Soul Train Awards is finally hitting the airwaves on BET tonight, after it as taped on November 7.

But fans who can't be bothered to tune in on their TVs can still find out where to watch a free live stream below.

Honoring this year's best in soul, R&B, gospel and even a bit of hip-hop, this year's award show will be hosted Erykah Badu, AKA the Queen of Neo-Soul.

The show is set to have musical performances and appearances from the likes of R. Kelly, Tyrese, Boyz II Men, Brandy, Jazmine Sullivan, Cameo and more. Categories range from Best NewlArtist and Best R&B/Soul Artist (for both male and female) to Centric Certified and Video of the Year. Jill Scott will be honored with the first ever Lady of Soul Award, while Babyface will get the Legend Award. Click here to check out a full list of this year's nominees.

Watch The 2015 Soul Train Awards Via Mobile Device

The only really way you can see the show without a TV or cable subscription is to watch it on your mobile device, either tablet or smartphone, by downloading the BET NOW app, which allows you to watch BET live. The app is available for both Android and iOS devices AND you can run the former (through Google's Chrome web browser) on you laptop or desktop.

The 2015 Soul Train Awards air at 8 p.m. EDT/ 7 p.m. CDT on November 29.

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Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd Among 2015 Soul Train Award Winners

Here is the full list of winners from the 2015 Soul Train Awards.


The 2015 Soul Train Awards went down this evening, and right from Erykah Badu's opening monologue we knew we were in for a special night. We got two very excellent medley performances from a couple of the best songwriters in the R&B game (Babyface and R. Kelly), which featured the likes of Brandy, Fantasiaand Boyz II Men.

The big winners were The Weeknd (who took home "album of the Year" and "Best R&B/Soul Male Artist," as well as Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars for "Uptown Funk" (earning "Video of the Year" and "Song of the Year"). To the horror of the Bey Hive, Silento beat out Beyonce for best dance performance. Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" won the award for "Rap Song of the Year".

Check out the full list of winners below.

Best New Artist

Jidenna

Best R&B/Soul Male Artist

The Weeknd

Centric Certified Award

Tyrese

Video of the Year

Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars, “Uptown Funk”

Best Gospel and/or Inspirational Song

Lecrae, “All I Need Is You”

Album of the Year

The Weeknd, Beauty Behind the Madness

Best Hip-Hop Song of the Year

Kendrick Lamar, “Alright”

Best R&B/Soul Female Artist

Jill Scott

Song of the Year

Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, “Uptown Funk”

The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter’s Award

“Glory” (from the motion picture Selma) written by Lonnie Rashid Lynn, John Roger Stephens and Che Smith (artists: Common and John Legend)

Best Dance Performance

Silento, “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)”

Best Collaboration

Omarion featuring Chris Brown & Jhené Aiko, “Post to Be”

HE STILL HAS IT: Tevin Campbell Resurfaces To Perform At The 2015 Soul Train Awards

Gossip
- Published: November 2015

photo strain12.jpg

This year’s Soul Train Awards brought one of our fave R&B acts from the '90s to center stage. R&B crooner Tevin Campbell rocked the mic during the show and he still has it! More inside…

If you grew up listening to and loving R&B music in the 90s, then Tevin Campbell was likely one of your fave arists. We were totally crushing on him back in the day.

Last night, the “Can We Talk” crooner serenaded us all with tender love ballads that we couldn’t get enough of at the 2015 Soul Train Awards held at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. It was a special treat since the “I’m Ready” has been keeping a very low profile, but he came out of hiding last night to treat the audience with his vocals on his Babyface-produced track. And we are HERE for it.

Recording artist Jazmine Sullivan (2nd R) performs with After7 onstage during the 2015 Soul Train Music Awards at the Orleans Arena on November 6, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Babyface was honored with the prestigious Legend Award and soon after, he hit the stage with Tevin (and other artists) to belt out the classics he has produced over the years. Tevin hit the stage to take us straight back to the 90s with his classic hit “Can We Talk,” which won him a Soul Train Award back in 1994.

Actor/recording artist Tyrese (L) and recording artist Janelle Monae attend the 2015 Soul Train Music Awards at the Orleans Arena on November 6, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Peep a clip below:

A video posted by Calibay...mrcalibay) on Nov 6, 2015 at 6:25pm PST

Yeah, that's all we have for now. To see his full performance, you'll have to catch the ceremony when it airs later this month.

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Babyface hit the stage to sing some of his hits.

Then....

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Brandy took over the stage to perform hits produced by Babyface such as "Sittin' Up In My Room."

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Boyz II Men serenaded the audience with their classic ballads produced by Babyface such as their mega hit "End of the Road."

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Larry Ernest Blackmon, lead singer for the funk and R&B band Cameo, kept it interesting with his performance.

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R. Kelly closed out the show with a few of his anthems, including “Your Body’s Callin’,” “When A Woman’s Fed Up,” “Ignition,” “Mind’s Tellin’ Me,” “Step In” and his brand new single “Backyard Party,” throwing his own dance party on stage to celebrate.

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Soul Train Awards Red Carpet: Kat Graham, Babyface & More

Mon, November 30, 2015 9:33am EST by Jason BrowAdd

soul train awards red carpet

Getty/ Rex Features

Recording artist Tasha Cobbs performs onstage during the 2015 Soul Train Music Awards at the Orleans Arena on November 6, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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Netflix December 2015 Releases: See What New Movies, TV Shows Are Coming This Holiday Season [FULL LIST]

Netflix December new releases. Shutterstock/Gil C

December is almost upon us and that means all-new content for your favorite streaming services. Netflix is bringing a ton of new movies and series just in time for the holiday season like the Christmas comedy musical ...hristmas."

The Sofia Coppola film features an all-star cast including Bill Murray, George Clooney, Paul Shaffer, Amy Poehler, Julie White, Dimitri Dimitrov, Michael Cera, Chris Rock, David Johansen, Maya Rudolph, Jason Schwartzman, Jenny Lewis, Rashida Jones and Miley Cyrus. Check out the trailer below:

As far as Netflix Originals go viewers will get the stand-up spe...nt Morin," "Trailer Park Boys: Drunk, High And Unemployed Live In Austin" and "Mike Epps: Don’t Take It Personal." As well as Frank Coraci's western comedy "The Ridiculous 6" with Adam Sandler, Will Forte, Taylor Lautner, Steve Buscemi, Danny Trejo, Terry Crews, Luke Wilson, Nick Nolte, Rob Schneider and Jorge Garcia. Plus the animated series "F is for Family" and the first season of "Making a Murderer."

Other highlights include the 2004 hit "Ray" starring Jamie Foxx, Sean Baker's "Tangerine" which tells the story of a young transgender prostitute in Los Angeles. Plus viewers will get the complete series of Showtime's "Nurse Jackie," the fourth season of "Hart of Dixie" and new episodes of "Comedy Bang! Bang!"

Check out the complete list below courtesy of Hollywood Life:

DEC. 1

  • "#DeathToSelfie" (2014)
  • "30 For 30: Chasing Tyson" (2015)
  • "50 Shades Of THEY" Season 1
  • "A Christmas Star" (2015)
  • "A Genius Leaves The Hood: The Unauthorized Story Of Jay Z" (2014)
  • "Amnesiac" (2015)
  • "Broadchurch" Season 2
  • "CBGB" (2013)
  • "Christmas Wedding Baby" (2014)
  • "The Chronicles Of Riddick: Dark Fury" (2004)
  • "Cradle 2 The Grave" (2003)
  • "Darkman" (1990)
  • "Detectorists" Season 1
  • "I'm Brent Morin"
  • "Jenny's Wedding" (2015)
  • "Las Mágicas Historias De Plim Plim" Season 1
  • "Ray" (2004)
  • "Real Rob" Season 1 (2015)
  • "See You In Valhalla" (2015)
  • "Sensitive Skin" Season 1
  • "Starting Over" Season 1
  • "Stir Of Echoes" (1999)
  • "Stir Of Echoes: The Homecoming" (2007)
  • "That Touch Of Mink" (1962)
  • "Tyke: Elephant Outlaw"
  • "Winning Life’s Battles" Season 1

DEC. 2

  • "Stations Of The Cross" (2014)
  • "Tangerine" (2015)

DEC. 3

  • "Matt Shepard Is A Friend Of Mine" (2015)

DEC. 4

  • "A Very Murray Christmas" (2015)
  • "Comedy Bang! Bang!" Season 4 (more episodes)

DEC. 5

  • "A Case Of You" (2013)
  • "Dinosaur 13" (2014)
  • "Inside Man" Season 3

DEC. 7

  • "Vampire Academy" (2014)

DEC. 8

  • "One & Two" (2015)
  • "Phoenix" (2014)
  • "Xenia" (2014)

DEC. 9

  • "Phineas And Ferb" Season 4
  • "Trailer Park Boys: Drunk, High And Unemployed Live In Austin" (2015)

DEC. 11

  • "The Adventures Of Puss In Boots" Season 2
  • "The Ridiculous 6" (2015)

DEC. 14

  • "The Da Vinci Code" (2006)

DEC. 15

  • "Drown" (2014)
  • "Hart Of Dixie" Season 4
  • "High Profits" Season 1
  • "Time Out Of Mind" (2014)

DEC. 16

  • "Fresh Dressed" (2015)
  • "Helix" Season 2

DEC. 18

  • "F Is For Family" Season 1
  • "Glitter Force" Season 1
  • "Making A Murderer" Season 1
  • "Mike Epps: Don’t Take It Personal"

DEC. 19

  • "Chloe And Theo" (2015)

DEC. 20

  • "Leo The Lion" (2013)
  • "Magic Snowflake" (2013)
  • "Santa’s Apprentice" (2010)

DEC. 21

  • "El Señor De Los Cielos" Season 1

DEC. 22

  • "Queen Of Earth" (2015)

DEC. 23

  • "Invisible Sister" (2015)

DEC. 24

  • "Dawn of the Croods" Season 1

DEC. 25

  • "Black Mirror, 'White Christmas'"

DEC. 28

  • "Maron" Season 3
  • "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic" Season 5

DEC. 30

  • "Parenthood" Season 6

DEC. 31

  • "Battle Creek" Season 1
  • "Manhattan Romance" (2014)
  • "Violetta" Season 3
  • "Nurse Jackie" Seasons 1-7

Janis Joplin ‘Little Girl Blue’ Documentary to Air on PBS

Janis: Little Girl Blue, the new Janis Joplin documentary helmed by Oscar-nominated director Amy Berg, has started its limited theatrical run, which will be followed by airings on PBS’ American Masters series.

As previously reported, Berg worked with the support of Joplin’s family on the film, which offers previously unseen glimpses of the singer’s personal life. Speaking with Billboard, Berg underlined her reasons for taking on the project while praising Joplin’s tremendous cultural impact.

“She put women in rock on the map. She literally was the first female rock star and she did it in such a strong way and we’re still reaping the benefits of that today,” Berg argued. “And I think her music is just as relevant today as it was in 1968-69.”

Janis: Little Girl Blue had its theatrical premiere at the Venice Film Festival earlier this year, and begins its official roll-out Friday in New York before spreading to Los Angeles on Dec. 4. A premiere airdate for its American Masters broadcast has yet to be announced, but according to the film’s official site, fans can expect to see it in “early 2016.”

“Joplin’s own words tell much of the film’s story, through a series of letters she wrote to her parents over the years, many of them made public here for the first time (and read by Southern-born indie rock star Cat Power),” reads part of the official synopsis. “This correspondence is only one element of the stunning, previously unseen material Berg discovered during the seven years she has spent working on Janis: Little Girl Blue. New audio and video of Joplin in concert and in the studio … and even footage from her emotional return to Port Arthur for her 10th high school reunion, add depth and texture to this remarkable story.”


Marc Anthony Launches Magnus Sports Management Company, Signs 'Cuban Missile' Aroldis Chapman [PHOTO]

Singer, Marc Anthony, has opened up a sports management company called MAGNUS Sports.REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Marc Anthony is now in the sports business. The Hispanic singer, actor, and record producer has followed in the footsteps of fellow New York native Jay Z, and launched his own Sports Management Company called MAGNUS Sports.

Anthony originally founded a talent management company earlier this year in order to represent musicians and actors as they maneuver their way through the shark-infested waters that is the entertainment industry. Despite Anthony's experience in this realm, he opted to expand into sports management and on Monday he signed his very first client.

"So happy to start the week with amazing news," Anthony wrote on his Instagram account. "Today we celebrate the creation of MAGNUS Sports, the signing of 4-time All-Star Major League Baseball PitcherAroldis Chapman and the association with Praver Shapiro Sports."

Anthony's company will represent Chapman in all of his marketing and sponsorship exploits and the firm of Praver Shapiro will be Chapman's legal representation when the Cincinnati Reds closer becomes a free-agent next year.

"Baseball, like music, is an ingrained, cultural passion for many Latinos throughout the world, and there's no shortage of amazing stars of Hispanic origin," Anthony said in an official statement. "Despite that, until now, there hasn't been an enterprise designed to meet their needs."

Anthony's investment is similar to what rapper Jay Z did with his company Roc Nation Sports and CAA when the hip-hop star first ventured into the sports world. Many naysayers didn't believe that athletes would choose to sign with J-Hova, but Roc Nation Sports has quieted the doubters, signing an impressive list of athletes including Kevin Durant, Robinson Cano, C.C. Sabathia, Ndamakong Suh and Dez Bryant.

Anthony's company will look to market the musician's overwhelming presence in the Latino community in order to sign clients in the heavily saturated Hispanic market of Major League Baseball and boxing.

Currently, more than 30 percent of the league is composed of Hispanic players and some of the best players in the game, including Albert Pujols, David Ortiz, Miguel Cabrera, Felix Hernandez,Yasiel Puig, Jose Abreu and Yadier Molina all hail from Latin American countries.

Anthony has handpicked Michael Vega to head the company after Vega left William Morris Endeavor, where he was the head of Latin Music for nearly 15 years.

Amazon Prime Instant Video December 2015 Releases: See What New TV Shows, Movies Are Coming To Streaming Service [FULL LIST]

Amazon Prime Instant Video December releases. Shutterstock/qoppi

Amazon has revealed its new content for December. The streaming service is bringing more than 30 new TV series and movies with something for everyone.

First up are the Amazon Original series with the award-winning family dramedy "Transparent" returning for its second season. Creator Jill Soloway recently ope...ansparent" described the coming season as a time of transition for the entire family surrounding Jeffrey Tambor’s transgender Maura.

"Season two is wild! Now that the bubble wrap is off, it’s time for the whole family to transition," Soloway said. "Our Pfeffermans realize they must give up their disguises, unspoken arrangements and secrets. By exploring their shared history and legacy, they come to understand that you can’t go forward without knowing where you come from. Ultimately, everyone will open their hearts, advertise their desires, and test those notoriously wobbly boundaries as each Pfefferman tries their hardest to come out — as themselves."

Viewers will also be treated to the classical music dramedy "Mozart in the Jungle," and for the kids, Fig the Fox returns in the second season of Emmy Award winning "Tumble Leaf."

Other highlights include ...otta Give" with Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Keanu Reeves. As well as "Bedazzled" starring Elizabeth Hurley and Brendan Fraser. Plus viewers getChristopher Nolan's award-winning masterpiece film "Interstellar" featuring Matthew McConaughey.

Check out the full list below courtesy of PCMag:

TV

  • "Transparent" Season 2 - 12/11/15
  • "Tumble Leaf" Season 2 - 12/12/15
  • "Mozart in the Jungle" Season 2 - 12/30/15

MOVIES

  • "Something's Gotta Give"* - 12/1/15
  • "Bedazzled" - 12/1/15
  • "Hoffa" - 12/1/15
  • "River Of No Return" - 12/1/15
  • "Monkey Business" - 12/1/15
  • "The Details" - 12/1/15
  • "Meet Me in Montenegro"* - 12/9/15
  • "Interstellar" - 12/12/15
  • "Cutie and the Boxer" - 12/15/15
  • "Selma" - 12/19/15
  • "The Gambler" (2014) - 12/26/15
  • "Pusher" - 12/27/15
  • "Stick Man"* - 12/27/15
  • "Black Beauty" (1994)* - 12/30/15
  • "Curly Sue"* - 12/30/15
  • "Free Willy"* - 12/30/15

Key: * = Prime Video is exclusive streaming home

Also check out the titles available for purchase on Amazon Instant Video below:

TV

  • "PAW Patrol" Season 5 - 12/2/15
  • "Mob Wives" Season 6 - 12/4/15
  • "Pig Goat Banana Cricket" Season 2 - 12/5/15
  • "Miraculous Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir"* Season 1 - 12/7/15
  • "Shimmer and Shine" Season 2 - 12/12/15
  • "Clarence" Season 3 - 12/18/15
  • "Almost Genius"* Season 1 - 12/21/15

Key: * = new series for Amazon streaming

MOVIES

  • "Ted 2" - 12/1/15
  • "The World of Kanako" - 12/4/15
  • "Minions" - 12/8/15
  • "Ant-man" (theatrical) - 12/8/15
  • "Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation" - 12/15/15

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Al Markim, Actor on the 1950s TV Serial 'Tom Corbett, Space Cadet,' Dies at 88

From left: Frankie Thomas, Al Markim and Jack Grimes in 'Tom Corbett, Space Cadet.'
From left: Frankie Thomas, Al Markim and Jack Grimes in 'Tom Corbett, Space Cadet.'
Courtesy of Photofest

He later worked behind the scenes on Sidney Lumet’s 'The Pawnbroker' and was a pioneering executive in the home video industry.

Al Markim, who portrayed Astro, a young engineer from Venus, on the popular 1950s sci-fi TV serial Tom Corbett, Space Cadet, died Tuesday, his family announced. He was 88.

Tom Corbett, Space Cadet aired from 1950-55, broadcasting live from a New York studio. It was set in the 24th century and featured the adventures of Astro and others from the Space Academy who travel around the solar system on the ship Polaris.
The serial began as 15-minute installments and had the rare distinction of appearing on four networks: CBS, ABC, NBC and the DuMont network, and then NBC again. The show made its way into merchandising, comic strips, books and a radio show.
“I remember sometimes we’d watch something [real-life space-related] and my kids would say, ‘Wow!’ and they’d ooh and aah, and I would say, ‘Aww, I was there. I stood there,” Markim said in Tom Weaver’s 2008 book, I Talked With a Zombie. “I walked on the moon. I walked on Mars. That’s nuthin’!’ Because it felt, in my mind, sort of like I had done it.”
Markim later worked at MGM and served as executive in charge of production on the Sidney Lumet drama The Pawnbroker (1964), starring Rod Steiger, and as an associate producer on The Fool Killer(1965), toplined by Anthony Perkins.
A native of Wilkes Barre, Pa., Markim in 1968 co-founded the video duplication firm Teletronics and entered into a partnership with Sony; the company would later become Video Corp. of America and merge with Technicolor. He was inducted into the Video Hall of Fame in 1996.
Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Sondra; children Nancy, Dan, Gary, Nina and Carla; and 11 grandchildren.

Rob Schneider gets 'Real' with new Netflix series

Real-_s1_007_h

Patricia Azarcoya Arce, Rob Schneider in "Real Rob."

IMAGE: NETFLIX

LOS ANGELES — Rob Schneider is definitely no stranger to the industry. But the 52-year-old comedian has lacked one thing throughout much of his career: creative freedom.

That's part of the reason why he decided to take control with his own show, Real Rob, which debuted on Netflix on Tuesday. The eight episode scripted comedy series — which Schneider starred in, produced and directed — is what he deems a "labor of love."

"I like the freedom of it, there was no timetable," he told Mashable in a phone interview. "We took as long as we wanted to write. We got to cast it the way we wanted and then we shot it the way we want it. Also we didn’t have to worry about language or even the length."

Back in 2012, the actor served as creator and co-executive producer of CBS' Rob, a similar fictional take on his life in Hollywood. Though it garnered high reviews (averaging 12 million viewers and a 3.7 Nielsen rating in the key 18-to-49-year old demographic), the show was canceled after just eight episodes.

With the new series, the Saturday Night Live alum was able to create "an exaggerated yet brutally honest" depiction of his life. He funded it himself for reportedly "seven figures." Much of it was shot in Los Angeles.

"A lot of the stuff actually happened to me," Schneider said of the show. "I think it’s Rob with the boring parts cut out."

Netflix, however, didn't acquire the project until July.

Above: Rob Schneider plays himself, with his actual family playing themselves, in “Real Rob.” Left: Schneider with Patricia Azarcoya Arce. Photo: Netflix

"Netflix was the place I always wanted for the show," Schneider said. "I like the fact that artists can bring their stuff directly to the audience now with the interference of a studio."

But Schneider, who is known for his goofball humor in roles likeDeuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, didn't change his humor just to cater to a digital platform.

"An audience is an audience and what’s funny is funny," he said. "All I can do is trust my instincts...you have to do stuff that comes from that initial burst of excitement...otherwise it’s just kind of guessing. We got to do what we thought was funny which is great."

Rob Schneider, Patricia Azarcoya Arce in “Real Rob”. Photo: Netflix

Another perk? Working with friends and family. His real-life wife, TV producer Patricia Schneider, plays his on-screen wife and helped write the series, alongside co-star Jamie Lissow.

Their daughter Miranda also stars in the series — though because she couldn't talk at the time she doesn't have dialogue. Schneider's celebrity friends George Lopez, Norm MacDonald and David Spade also appear in the series.

"We basically have some really cool home movies now, forever on Netflix," Schneider said. "It was fun."

Rob Schneider with Patricia Azarcoya Arce on “Real Rob.”

If the show's fictionalized autobiography format sounds familiar, that's because it is. Comedian Louis C.K. and more recently Aziz Ansari have seen great success with their similar series. Ansari also incorporated his real life family in the show by casting his parents as his parents.

But so far, reviews for Schneider's show have been mixed.

The New York Times critic wrote: "Mr. Schneider seems to be trying to combine the Sandler-Schneider style of gross-out humor with the minimalist sensibility of current premium-cable and digital comedy, which might be interesting in theory but here has a numbing effect, like the long afterlife of Novocain."

Washington Post's critic wrote the series "is pretty much what you’d expect from Rob Schneider."

Still, Schneider is hopeful the series will attract new audiences as it launches across the globe in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand.

"It's really exciting to get there in front of a new audience," Schneider said. "People can enjoy this if they know who I am or if they don’t know who i am."

Frank Sinatra's Birthplace Commemorates His 100th Its Way

Frank Sinatra photographed in Hollywood, California circa 1963.
UNDERWOOD ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGES

Chicago was his kind of town, L.A. was his lady and he certainly was a big part of New York, New York. But despite a love-hate relationship, the mile-square New Jersey city where Frank Sinatra was born is finding the centennial of his birth to be a very good year.

Throughout 2015, Hoboken has remembered its native son, who died in 1998 at age 82, with outdoor screenings of his movies, a "Sinatra Idol" competition and concerts that will be capped by a centennial birthday bash on Dec. 12 at the Stevens Institute of Technology, which awarded the high school dropout an honorary degree in 1985.

Frank Sinatra's 100th Birthday to be Remembered with 'Sinatra 100 — An All-Star Grammy Concert'

The small-scale event is not generating the same buzz as Sinatra 100 -- An All-Star Grammy Concert on Dec. 2 in Las Vegas, featuring Tony Bennett, Lady Gaga, Celine Dion and other performers.

Even so, the Hoboken Historical Museum has seen a 300 percent jump in visitors since opening a Sinatra exhibit in early August and has hired extra staff, director Robert Foster said.

"Whenever we do something on Sinatra, people come out of the woodwork," Foster said. "We enjoy the fans because they are so loyal and he means so much to them."

Lacking any major items that belonged to Sinatra, the museum tells his story through media displays and visitors receive a map with their $4 admission that features Sinatra sites.

Greta Wilson, who was born and raised in Hoboken, said Sinatra is "always the first thing" people ask her about when they learned where she is from.

"They always wanted to know if I had seen him in a store or a movie theater or some other place in town, and if he was like a regular person or if he acted like a stuck-up movie star," she said.

A plaque marks the former building at 415 Monroe St. where Sinatra was born in 1915 to middle-class parents.

"He had a nice life," said Chuck Granata, who co-produces and engineers the Nancy for Frank satellite radio program with Sinatra's oldest daughter, Nancy. "Frank was not poor and was probably one of the more fortunate kids growing up."

His mother made sure her son had nice clothes and even a car, which helped him gain a spot in 1935 with the singing group the Hoboken Four. They won first prize on a national radio program for amateur entertainers, and Sinatra started along a path that led to big bands, bobby soxers and fame.

However, some Hoboken residents felt Sinatra had forgotten them, reflected in the reception he got when he rode on a float in a 1947 parade and was pelted with tomatoes, according to biographer Ed Shirak. Sinatra later called Hoboken a sewer.

Urban blight plagued the city until the 1970s, when New Yorkers started crossing the Hudson River to renovate brownstones and build condominiums. The icy relationship began to thaw in 1979 when the city changed River Road to Sinatra Drive. A park and the city's main post office would also bear his name.

Hoboken these days reflects Sinatra cool, where fashionable young hipsters roam the city's bars and restaurants after spending the day working in Manhattan.

Wilson, 68, who now lives on Long Beach Island, said she thought Sinatra was a great representative for Hoboken.

"People unfamiliar with Hoboken seem to think of it as a dumpy small Jersey town, filled with people who really want to live in New York City," she said. "Frank helped put Hoboken on the map, and people still come there to this day just see 'his town' and learn more about him. Hoboken owes Sinatra a lot."

Meet Latin Grammy Best New Artist Winner Monsieur Periné

Monsieur Perine
COURTESY

It was anyone's guess who would win Best New Artist at the Latin Grammys last week. If favoritism was to be gauged by performance on the show, there was Puerto Rican singer/songwriter Raquel Sofía, belting it out in a sexy slit skirt, as well as Mexican pop trio Matisse with a sweet, romantic sound.

The winning vote, however, went to Monsieur Periné, a Colombian group whose music is a quirky blend of swing, alt, pop and Colombian rhythms; something like a Colombian Postmodern Jukebox. Although little known in the U.S., Monsieur Periné had Latin Grammy pedigree: Their sophomore album, Caja de Música, was produced by Eduardo Cabra, one-half of Calle 13, the top-winning Latin Grammy act in history.

But prior to that, Monsieur Periné -- which started as an indie and is now signed to Sony Music -- had been steadily performing in Colombia and Europe, patiently building a following that appreciated their alternative sound. Videos of singles from their debut set, 2012’s Hecho a Mano, average about 5 to 6 million views, and the album would become a local hit.

The Latin Grammy comes in the wake of Caja de Música, released this year. Thanks to the buzz, in early 2016, the group will tour the East Coast with dates to be announced soon.

We spoke with singer Catalina García about Monsieur Periné’s indie rise and major label current status, their cool look, and, of course, what the heck their name means.

Your story has been one of very steady, patient growth. Tell us a little about your trajectory to this point.

Our first album was released independently. And we started that way because the kind of music we were making in Colombia was very weird and different and we built our fan base in a very organic manner. Our manager is [string player] Santiago Prieto’s brother. We’ve long worked with the same designer, the same stylist. It’s always been something very personal. Sony approached us from the onset, but we weren’t interested then. We felt very comfortable with what we were doing as an indie. But this time, they approached us with a different proposal. It was an opportunity to team up with a group of experienced people who can help us get to many more people. It’s been a good beginning.

Your music is very eclectic and hard to define. Describe it for me in two sentences:

Experimental music that plays with popular Latin music and swing. It’s like a flirtation with swing from an experimental laboratory.

How about the French touch?

On the one hand, our guitarists took the time to interpret swing in the style [French jazz guitarist] Django Reinhardt popularized. And, I studied in a French school in Colombia so I had the language. We wanted to reinterpret swing from the beginning. Although this second album is more Latin American and brings together other parts of the word. We always wanted to experiment with styles of music that didn’t appear to be so close to each other, like cumbia and swing, or Brazilian music and swing.

How did the group come about?

We met in 2007. We were all college students in Bogota; they studied music, I studied anthropology. They had a group where they played instrumental music together, and one time, I started singing with them.

Were you a serious singer?

Well, I’d sung in the school choir. My grandfather loved to sing. He loved the theater. But I never thought I’d become a musician. I was studying anthropology. I finished all my classes.

So, you’re students with a band. What was your big break?

I went into a music store and found a flyer for a Red Bull contest called “El Ensaladero” (The Salad Bowl). The idea was to play original music. And we won. Part of the prize was to play in Festival Estereo Picnic [Colombia’s rock and alternative music festival]. That was a huge challenge because we’d be playing not for friends and family but for an audience and for the industry. We decided to prepare something special. I was convinced music is totally linked to image, to the experience, to language and styling. We put together our team and recorded our first single, a song in French and Spanish called “La Muerte.” We played really early, so the place was nearly empty. But there was a lot of press, and they opened a lot of doors for us.

I’m sure someone must have told you to stop singing in French…

Of course. They said we had to change the name. That Americans didn’t like the French, that it wasn’t a Latin name. But in the end, everyone has an opinion.

So, who is Monsieur Periné?

He’s a product of our imagination. In fact, the word in Spanish... ["periné" or "perineo" means “perineum.”] We wanted to make fun of language. People think everything French is very refined but as it turns out, in Latin America there’s so much flavor and diversity and life. We also have a very particular sense of humor.

Romeo Santos & Juan Luis Guerra Lead Univision's 'Premio Lo Nuestro' Nominations: See Full List

Romeo Santos photographed on April 14, 2015 at Shangri-La Studio in Brooklyn, New York.
MEREDITH JENKS

Romeo Santos leads the list of nominees for the 28th annual Premios lo Nuestro Awards with 7 nominations, including Artist of the Year, Tropical Artist of the Year, and three nominations under Song of the Year. Dominican icon Juan Luis Guerra follows Santos with six nominations while Maná, Marc Anthony and Nicky Jam gathered five nominations each.

The 28th edition of "Premio Lo Nuestro a la Música Latina" will broadcast live from the American Airlines Arena in Miami on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016 at 8 p.m. ET. The list of nominees for is based on data provided by Mediabase, Big Champagne and Buzz Angle Music, and winners are chosen by popular vote from Dec. 1 until Dec. 20, 2015 on premioslonuestro.com.

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HOLIDAY RED-Y


Demi Lovato heats things up on Tuesday in a red-hot ensemble during a performance in Dallas, Texas, for 106.1 KISS FM's Jingle Ball.


Credit: Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

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‘THE WIRE’S’ MELVIN WILLIAMS DEAD AT 73

Key inspiration for the creation of the hit HBO series...
BY CHARLES ROBINSON

‘The Wire’s’ Melvin Williams Dead at 73


Melvin “Lil Melvin” Williams, 73, the iconic character in “The Wire” known as “The Deacon” died Thursday in Baltimore after a long illness.

Unknown to many of the series’ fans, he was the inspiration for the creation of the HBO series. To Baltimoreans he was a heroin kingpin who consolidated and revolutionized the drug trade following the 1968 riots.

Image result for Melvin Williams the wire

With nearly 200 workers from the 70’s to the 80’s, he used his influence to shutdown other drug dealers during this period. Later, he would use the technology of pagers to move both heroin and cocaine. Federal officials used wiretaps to monitor his activities.

In 1984, Williams was found guilty of trafficking heroin and was sentenced to 24 years in prison and 10 years of parole. Authorities suspected he was still dealing drugs and arrested him on a federal gun charge in 1999 and sentenced him to another 22 years. A judge overturned his conviction in 2003.

Upon his release, Williams vowed to devote his life to serving God.

David Simon, then a Baltimore Sun reporter, would chronicle “Lil Melvin’s” drug trade and the resulting carnage. After leaving the Baltimore Sun, he pitched the idea of a series surrounding the drug trade using pagers which became “The Wire.”

In an iconic twist, Simon would use Williams as a consultant on the series, and as the character “The Deacon” who was a drug counselor.

Melvin Williams Biography

Drug Dealer, Actor
QUICK FACTS
NAME
Melvin Williams
OCCUPATION
Drug Dealer, Actor
BIRTH DATE
1941
PLACE OF BIRTH
Baltimore, Maryland
NICKNAME
Little Melvin

Synopsis

Melvin Williams was born in 1941 in Baltimore, Maryland. Known by the nickname, Little Melvin, Williams started gambling at a young age and transitioned to full time criminal life under the support of the Jewish gangster Juilus Salisbury. He decided to become the most successful drug dealer in Baltimore, which he did for about a decade, until being sent to prison.

Early Life

Known as "Little Melvin," Melvin Williams was born in 1941 in Baltimore, Maryland, and went on to become one of the top drug dealers in Baltimore during the 1970s and '80s. He was a bright child who had no interest in school. Instead, he focused on ways to use his smarts to earn money.

By the age of 15, Williams was a "world-class gambler." He first learned about gambling from his mother, who liked to play the numbers. After much practice, Williams taught himself how to work the dice in a craps game to his benefit. He also was adept at hustling pool games. With lots of money rolling in from his efforts, Williams dropped out of high school his junior year.

Mob Connections

With his skill for outwitting any opponent and any game, Williams was eventually taken under the wing of a local Jewish crime boss Julius "the Lord" Salisbury. The two met after Williams won the two different numbers games in the same week. Salisbury was connected to crime boss Meyer Lansky, and he helped advance Williams's criminal career.

In West Baltimore, Williams established himself as a powerful figure. People went to him for loans and to resolve issues. In March 1967, Williams was arrested for drug possession. He was later convicted, but he claimed that he was framed by the police officer. He was out on bail pending his appeal of the drug case when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in April 1968. Riots broke out in West Baltimore, and the authorities could not quell the violence. They asked Williams for help. He told the crowds to stop, and the people soon left the streets.

Drug Crimes

In 1969, Williams began serving his 12-year sentence at the Maryland Penitentiary for the drug possession charge. He was released in 1974, and he emerged from prison with a new aspiration—"to be the world's best drug dealer."

According to some reports, Williams began selling 40 to 50 kilos of heroin a month, each with a street value of approximately $75,000. He was able to escape criminal prosecution for years by abiding to a set of rules, which included believing that every phone conversation was being listened to and every stranger was working for law enforcement.

After two of his dealers turned on him, Williams ended up being convicted of drug-related conspiracy charges in 1975. He was given a 15-year sentence and served several years before he was released. As soon as he was released in 1979, Williams returned to his life of crime and branched out into selling cocaine.

In 1984, Williams was arrested on conspiracy to distribute cocaine charges. He was convicted the following year and sentenced to 24 years in prison and 10 years of parole.

Paroled in 1996, Williams became a bail bondsman. He was arrested on a gun-possession charge in March 1999 for assaulting a man with a pistol and a stun gun during a dispute over a bail bond debt. After the first trial ended in a hung jury, Williams was convicted on the charge in October 1999.

In 2000, Williams received a 22-year sentence for his crime. The stiff penalty was the result of his status as a career criminal. "Melvin Williams was one of the biggest drug dealers in Baltimore for 20 years and is as responsible for the drug culture that is dragging this city down as anyone. He doesn't deserve a break. He doesn't deserve leniency," assistant U.S. attorney James M. Webster told the Baltimore Sun.

New Direction

Williams was released in January 2003 after a judge reduced his sentence to time served. After 38 months in prison, he claimed that he was going to take his life in a new direction. He had found religion and planned to do good works for the community. "Sometime in my 50s, I became aware that there was a God in charge, and not a Melvin," he told the court.

Serving as the inspiration for the character of Avon Barksdale, some of Williams's criminal exploits were featured in the HBO drama The Wire, which debuted in 2002. He also had a recurring role on the series, playing a church deacon. Former Baltimore police investigator Ed Burns and former Baltimore Sun reporter David Simon, both well acquainted with Williams, served as creators, producers and writers on the criminally acclaimed series.

In 2006, Williams filed incorporation papers for a vocational training organization called Correct Choices Inc. He is also an active member of his church. Despite whatever amends he makes, Williams still helped build Baltimore's heroin and cocaine trade, which has left the city to struggle with the associated problems of drug-related violence and the social costs of addiction.

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Teyonah Parris in “Chi-raq.” CreditParrish Lewis/Amazon Studios, Roadside Attractions

This film is designated as a Critics’ Pick.

The laughs in Spike Lee’s corrosive “Chi-Raq” burn like acid. Urgent, surreal, furious, funny and wildly messy, the movie sounds like an invitation to defeat, but it’s an improbable triumph that finds Mr. Lee doing his best work in years. Set in contemporary Chicago, where sidewalks are washed with blood, and human hearts beat to the rhythm of gunfire, it takes as its inspiration Aristophanes’ “Lysistrata,” the fifth-century B.C. comedy in which women organize a sex strike to stop men from making war or, as Mr. Lee puts it with a vulgar flourish, “No peace, no [expletive]!”

The war in “Chi-Raq” is strictly a domestic affair, waged by black male citizens on other black citizens. The main combatants are rival gangs, the Spartans and the Trojans, who have helped turn Chicago into a war zone — hence the tragic, bleak portmanteau title. The gangs seem to take some of their cues from the real Crips and Bloods, whose blue versus red color coding has been translated into Spartan purple and Trojan orange. Flying their respective colors, the Chi-Raq gangs violently run their hoods, or at least think that they rule. There are, as Mr. Lee hammers in rat-a-tat-tat, other economic and political forces in play that, like shadow armies, are doing their murderous part.

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Nick Cannon in “Chi-raq.”CreditParrish Lewis/Amazon Studios, Roadside Attractions

Subtlety isn’t in Mr. Lee’s dictionary, which makes him a fine fit for a bawdy comedy that tosses out an orgiastic aside in its first sentence. Gleefully blunt, “Lysistrata” is thought to have been first performed in Athens at a festival of Dionysus, the god of wine. It opens with its title character fretting that the women she’s asked to meet haven’t materialized. Lysistrata’s brilliant, daft idea is that together they can end the bloodshed with a full-body shutdown, which, after much scheming and whining, they do, leaving the men incredulous, desperate and tumescent. Some of the men end up delivering their lines erect, which the ancient Athenian players expressed by wearing artificial phalluses. (Somehow I don’t remember that detail from school.)

Mr. Lee doesn’t go that far, alas, but he does go cinematically all out with exuberant set pieces, musical numbers, bursts of phantasmagoric color, oceans of tears and blunt-force rhetoric. Written in verse, sometimes rhymed and sometimes not, “Chi-Raq” is at once old and new, from its polymorphous narrative strategies to its musical forms (hip-hop, jazz, gospel,R&B), and by turns fiercely funny and deadly sincere. It rolls along smoothly and fitfully, carried by the boldness of Mr. Lee’s conceit, his love of the form and the largely excellent company of artists he’s gathered, including Samuel L. Jackson as Dolmedes, a loquacious Greek chorus of one who pops in and out with a cane and in a series of lusciously colored suits.

There’s no such character in “Lysistrata,” but Dolmedes’s name and sartorial flamboyance evoke Dolemite, the titular pimp played by the comic Rudy Ray Moore in the 1975 blaxploitation flick. Among the routines that Mr. Moore (1927-2008) was known for is the Signifying Monkey toast, a boasting, humorously raw recitation and linguistic practice (like the Dozens), involving a sly, agitating monkey that provokes a fight between a lion and an elephant. To an extent, Dolmedes registers as a trickster, a wily figure who always shows up at the right time to deliver exposition with a wink and some showy wordsmithing. At the same time, Lysistrata — a magnificent Teyonah Parris— is stirring up trouble, angling to dethrone kings like her guy, a gang leader, Chi-Raq (Nick Cannon).

“Chi-Raq” can be read as an illustration of signifyin(g), to borrow the spelling of Henry Louis Gates Jr., in how it rewrites “the received textual tradition,” as he puts it in his book “The Signifying Monkey.” There are limits to every rewriting, of course, to how far a revision riffs on the idioms, ideas and forms of its influences. Mr. Lee’s most radical move in “Chi-Raq,” which he wrote with Kevin Willmott, is to transport a classical Greek play to a Chicago that is highly fictional and painfully real, geographically specific and unmistakably metaphoric. That this is a movie about the United States is as obvious as the Stars and Stripes that late in the movie looms (as in “Patton”) behind Dolmedes, even as it is also a showbiz showcase for the likes of Dave Chappelle and Wesley Snipes.

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Samuel L. Jackson in "Chi-raq."CreditParrish Lewis, Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions

The movie opens with a series of shocks, including a red, white and blue graphic of the United States made entirely of guns. This illustration, which creates a visual bookend with Dolmedes’s flag, forms part of the overture, which features a succession of blood-red lyrics blown up on the screen (from the song “Pray 4 My City”), each word reverberating like a shout:

Police sirens, Everyday
People dyin’, Everyday
Mamas cryin’, Everyday
Fathers tryin’, Everyday.

Mr. Lee then raises the stakes with a series of chilling statistics that juxtapose American deaths in the Iraq war from 2003 to 2011 (the movie puts the number at 4,424) with homicides in Chicago from 2001 to 2015 (a staggering 7,356, according to the movie).

These numbers are followed by the voice of the Rev. Michael Pfleger, a real Roman Catholic priest who preaches and agitates in Chicago and is an outspoken critic of gun culture and the National Rifle Association. Father Pfleger, after saying that it’s young black men killing young black men, closes the overture with a prayer: “Heaven help us all.” The flag, the statistics, the guns make for a powerful, unsettling opener, perhaps especially because the movie opens in a week of high-profile mass shootings — and not in Chicago. By virtue of the heaviness of their documentary truth, though, which grows weightier with each number and word, these elements almost torpedo the movie before it begins. Like many filmmakers who draw on the historical record to shore up their fictions, Mr. Lee has to work hard to rise to the challenge of the real world.

That he pulls off “Chi-Raq” is a testament to his cinematic imagination, which he cuts loose with split screens, direct address, surreal fillips and outsize performances. With the composer Terence Blanchard, who wrote the wall-to-wall score, and the cinematographer Matthew Libatique, Mr. Lee creates a “Lysistrata” that entertains, engages and, at times, enrages as it takes on violence, ogles lady parts and expounds on greed and democracy. He stumbles plenty, including in an awkward, didactic scene in which John Cusack, as a priest, delivers a sermon for a dead child. (Jennifer Hudson plays the mother.) Yet while you can argue with Mr. Lee’s ideas, cinematic and political, few directors shake you up this hard, creating laughter that is as bitter as tears.

“Chi-Raq” is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). Gun violence and expletives. Running time: 1 hour 58 minutes.


Dolly Parton Talks ‘Coat of Many Colors’ Movie: ‘It Really Shows Family’

Dolly Parton Coat of Many Colors movieMatt Winkelmeyer, Getty Images

Coat of Many Colors, Dolly Parton‘s first TV movie for NBC, is set to premiere on Dec. 10, and the country icon says that the film, based on her 1971 single of the same name, will give viewers a wholesome and revealing glimpse into her own life.

“It really kind of evolves and details a lot of my whole life in bits and pieces. And it really shows family,” Parton told The Boot and other reporters at a media event. “I don’t know if people, besides me, miss having shows like Little House on the Prairie or The Waltons, but it’s kind of like that. It just shows the simple life of back then, back when.

“[It’s] a show about people who made me who and what I am,” she continues. “It shows that I love music, and I love my folks … It’s really got a lot of great elements.”

Coat of Many Colors is only the first in a series of TV movies that the award-winning singer will produce for NBC based on her life, stories and songs.

“We might do a few pieces like [Coat of Many Colors] … We might do bits and pieces of my life story,” she explains. “But I’m still very involved in my musical on Broadway, my story. So that’s separate and different. But there’s also the possibility that we might do a feature film.”

Parton has revealed that her second made-for-TV film for NBC will be based on her song “Jolene.” John Sacret Young, who worked on The West Wing, is writing the script.

“Lord, I’ve lived so long. I’ve got a lot of stories to tell,” Parton says. “I can’t tell them all at once, so I’ll just scatter them all out, but I’ll still work on the musical.”

Coat of Many Colors stars Jennifer Nettles, Gerald McRaney and Ricky Schroder, as well as Alyvia Lind as young Parton. The film is set to air on Dec. 10 at 9PM ET on NBC.

Billboard Cover: Woman of the Year Lady Gaga's Raw, Revealing Interview

Lady Gaga photographed on Nov. 21, 2015 at Pier 59 Studios in New York City.
INEZ AND VINOODH

Lady Gaga is sitting in her “sanctuary” -- the sprawling, olive tree-dotted backyard of her Malibu home -- when a silent, tie-clad man arrives with cocktails on a tray. “Thank you,” she says, with the sort of silver-screen elegance that it’s surprising a “dahhhling” doesn’t follow. “I might have busted my ass on the Lower East Side, but there is something nice about a good dirty martini.”

There’s a chill in the air, and while she’s wearing only a tattered

Springsteen tee tucked into high-waisted denim shorts, Gaga is intent on watching the sunset. These days, the woman born Stefani Germanotta seeks out serene moments -- although her admission that she “craves normalcy” is almost a revolutionary statement from someone who proudly declares that she deals in “the theater of the absurd.” As recently as 2014, the Grammy- and Guinness Record-stacking megastar, who has sold 10.4 million albums in the United States, according to Nielsen Music, considered quitting music altogether. She had parted ways with her longtime manager, Troy Carter, citing overwork, not long after 2013’s Artpop failed to resonate on the order of her earlier albums. She felt her image was threatening to eclipse her artistry.

This year, though, the 29-year-old not only recommitted herself to her career, she reinvented it. The unlikely set of jazz standards she recorded with Tony Bennett, Cheek to Cheek, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in the fall of 2014, then won her a sixth Grammy (for best traditional pop vocal album) and spawned an international tour racking up rave reviews for much of 2015. “The audience goes crazy for the way she sings,” says Bennett, 89. “She has one of the great voices of all time, and it’s amazing how musically intelligent she is.” Pop fans the world over voiced a similar sentiment after Gaga’s masterful The Sound of Musicmedley at the Academy Awards in February, which earned her a warm congratulatory hug from Julie Andrews.

Days later, Gaga revealed that she would take a lead part inAmerican Horror Story: Hotel, the TV show’s fifth season. She won her role as vampire matriarch The Countess after cold-calling series creator Ryan Murphy. “I told him I wanted a place to put all of my anguish and rage and that I was excited to play a killer,” she recalls with relish. “We relate to each other because we’re both transformers,” says Murphy. “We do something trying to work out shit in our personal life. And then the next year we put on a different costume and we’re somebody else.” AHS, the highest-rated series in FX’s history, has had its strongest season this year, with Gaga’s debut in the first episode drawing 12.2 million viewers.

Gaga’s biggest role this year, though, may have been that of the crusader. She released the song “Til It Happens to You,” co-written with Diane Warren, aimed at fostering empathy with victims of sexual assault; authored a Billboard op-ed with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo about ending campus rape; and initiated a partnership between Her Born This Way Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. In October, after seeing Gaga receive an award from the nonprofit Americans for the Arts,The New York Times’ David Brooks was inspired to write a column on the nature of passion and how Gaga’s “amplified life” embodies it.

More than ever, Gaga’s efforts to end bullying and win support for gay and transgender people -- as well as those who have suffered abuse, depression or anxiety as a result of prejudice -- seem emblematic of millennials’ embrace of “outsiders” like Gaga herself. “Til It Happens to You,” says Warren, “speaks to her fans. That’s why it was so right to go to her.”

Gaga even managed to devote some attention to her personal life, getting engaged to actor Taylor Kinney on Valentine’s Day. (The 6-carat heart-shaped diamond flashes as she rubs the belly of her French bulldog, Asia.) In March, Billboard’s 2014 Woman of the Year Taylor Swift tweeted, “Is it just me or is Lady Gaga, like, fully LIVING right now?!?”

Says Matt Bomer, Gaga’s American Horror Story co-star: “She possesses the art spirit. I know that sounds esoteric, but it’s a distinct thing and very few people have it. Typically if they do, it comes with demons. She’s blessed enough to also have the help system and love in her life to be the beautiful soul she is.” Or as Warren says, “Because of the meat dresses or whatever, you forget that underneath is a super, ridiculously talented person.”

“It speaks volumes to me that I’m being recognized as Woman of the Year in 2015,” says Gaga. “This is the year I did what I wanted instead of trying to keep up with what I thought everyone else wanted from me.” Below, she explains in her own words just what following her instinct entails -- and how she hopes to show women and men, artists and industry executives alike how a “hard-core chick” can set about dismantling the status quo.

‘I WANT TO EXPLODE INTO MY 30s’

“My birthday is in March, so these are the last moments of my 20s. I already mourned that in a way, and now I’m really excited about showing girls, and even men, what it can mean to be a woman in her 30s. Why is it that we’re disposing of people once they pass that mark? It’s suddenly, ‘You’re an old woman.’ I’m not f---ing old. I’m more sexual and powerful and intelligent and on my shit than I’ve ever been. I’ve come a long way through a lot of heartache and pain, but none of it made me damaged goods. It made me a fighter. I want to show women they don’t need to try to keep up with the 19-year-olds and the 21-year-olds in order to have a hit. Women in music, they feel like they need to f---ing sell everything to be a star. It’s so sad. I want to explode as I go into my 30s.

“Once you start being mindful and really going, ‘Do I actually want that?,’ you start to feel empowered and you find your value. I love being the annoying girl. I was a theater kid. I was in jazz band. I went to the Renaissance Faire. I was that girl who got made fun of, that nerdy girl. I believe in that girl. I believe in the integrity, intelligence and power of people like her, and I want to ignite it.”

‘I TOOK A GAMBLE BECAUSE EVERYONE HAD WRITTEN ME OFF’

“As soon as the Oscars were over, [former chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M] Jimmy Iovine emailed me something like, ‘That was so f---ing fantastic, and it could’ve been such a disaster.’ He’s Italian and from Brooklyn, so we speak the same comedic language, but I knew he was right. The truth is you can either nail a performance like that or butcher some of the most classic songs sung by an all-time great. I took the gamble because everyone had written me off. It took me a long time to get those notes. I told my manager, ‘I need two months working with my vocal coach every day and to be sober, which means I can’t do other work at all.’ When I work I need to drink and smoke, and I have body pain [due to hip surgery]. But I’m just like any other girl -- there’s a human being in there, and if you can keep the human intact, that’s what you’re going to hear in the music.

“At the end of 2014, my stylist asked, ‘Do you even want to be a pop star anymore?’ I looked at him and I go, ‘You know, if I could just stop this train right now, today, I would. I just can’t. [But] I need to get off now because I’m going to die.’ When you’re going so fast you don’t feel safe anymore, you feel like you’re being slapped around and you can’t think straight. But then I felt hands lifting me. It was like everybody came together to try and put a star back in the sky, and they weren’t going to let me down.”

‘I WAS BORN TO SING WITH TONY’

“There is nobody more badass than Tony Bennett. That man is a part of the history of music in a way that is extremely powerful, and he taught me to stay true to who I am, to not let anybody exploit me. He is responsible in so many ways for making me happy, and I can say the same for Elton [John]. When the whole industry turned their back on me during Artpop, they were the ones who said, ‘Hey, this is a blip. It’s going to go away.’ On tour, I had people give me war medals and memorabilia just to thank me for exposing a younger generation to Tony Bennett because he changed their lives in such significant ways. I want to be a part of curating a culture where we don’t give credence to anyone who is rude or crass or not good for the world.

“After Cheek to Cheek, everybody was like, ‘Oh, you’re Rod Stewart now.’ I love Rod Stewart, but I would also argue that I’m not doing an adult contemporary jazz album later in my career and I’m not just doing it because I like standards. I am an Italian-American girl from New York who won state jazz competitions in high school for my abilities. I was born to sing with Tony and for him to be like, ‘Yes, you were.’ And so was Ella [Fitzgerald] and so was Judy [Garland] -- we could go on and on listing the amazing women he sang with. It’s a party I’m thrilled to be invited to.”

‘I PUT ALL MY RAGE INTO THAT DARK ART’

“I’m not the type of girl who fits most molds. That’s why working on American Horror Story with Ryan [Murphy] is a destiny. I wanted to create something extremely meaningful by exploring the art of darkness. The reason I love watching horror films, mysteries and documentaries about crime is that it somehow numbs me from the pain I experience in my own life. You are watching something worse than whatever you think you’re going through. The terror of that suspends you, and you are able to forget about your own pain for a moment. It’s like a safe, psychological form of masochism.

“Ryan and I have both experienced the same sort of criticism over the intention of our work. My whole career has been built on this perception that I’m trying to evoke attention because of the things I’m interested in, when it’s not that way at all. If you don’t like to be disturbed, [American Horror Story] probably isn’t for you. If you don’t like absurdity, I’m probably not for you. I hung upside down for 45 minutes for [video artist] Robert Wilson and drained all the blood in my body, and I’ve stood in a freezing cold river naked for two hours with magnets on my head for Marina Abramovic. I’m a hard-core chick. I go there. I can put all my rage into that dark art, and then the rest of my life can be spent clearheaded, doing the things I know to be right, like philanthropy and sticking to my guns musically.”

‘WHEN DID YOU BECOME THE FASHIONABLE ROBOT?’

“You can’t sell your soul once you make it. It’s a big mistake to just go after the money to try to stay on top. I think that’s what everyone wanted me to do. But I’m a different kind of girl, and when being different is not in style it’s hard for me to function. People think, ‘You can just sit down at a piano whenever you want and write,’ but I couldn’t write for two f---ing years. ForArtpop, I was doing beats instead. I didn’t want to be near that damn [piano]. It was too emotional. I would start to play and sing, and my mind would go, ‘You are way too talented for this shit. F---, your voice sounds good. F---, that’s a beautiful chord. F---, that’s an amazing lyric. Why are you letting these people run you into the ground? When did you become the fashionable robot?’ Can’t being an artist be enough? Is talent ever the thing? I think for Adele it is. I think for Bruno Mars it is. But that’s what I learned from working with Tony: If talent isn’t the thing, then you are way off-base.

“That’s why every up and down of my career was worth it -- it has led me to epiphanies. We can’t create without epiphanies. You could have one and not even know it because you’re so high or there are seven models sucking your dick or you’re so intoxicated by the lifestyle. I’m grateful for what I have, but that doesn’t mean I don’t value the gift of life. Because while this house is beautiful, once I cross my property line I’m no longer free; it’s legal to stalk me all over the world. The thing that makes me happy is that piano.”

‘LET US PURIFY THIS INDUSTRY’

“I call on every artist to be kind to one another, and compassionate. Let us purify this industry again and put our finger in the face of every executive and say, ‘If you are spending money, is it on someone who can really sing? Is it on someone who has a perspective?’ It’s almost funny to see the look on Tony’s face, the way he shakes his head, when I tell him how the industry has become. This whole thing of remixes for the radio, I have to say: When it doesn’t feel like the two artists were in the room together, it really hurts me because it’s such an injustice to what it means for two artists to meet. It’s clever. But are we putting too many limits on the way things need to be on the radio for artists to feel free enough to create genuinely?

“We can blame the digital era forever, but music is a natural right of humankind. We’ve been singing in caves since the beginning and learning about reverb because of our voices echoing off mountainsides. That’s the thing that scares people the most about me -- of all of my contemporaries, I’m probably just the most romantic. Especially in a world where music education is not the biggest thing. Kids become depressed when they are born with a creative instinct but are not taught how to express it. Can you imagine having to come and someone says, ‘I’m so sorry, but you can never ejaculate in this life’? If you don’t teach someone how to release that energy, it gets blocked up, and it’s painful. Kids need to learn how to express who they are and seek value in it.”

HOW THE WOTY WAS WON 2015
From her jaw-dropping Julie Andrews tribute at the Oscars to her bloody (and convincing) American Horror Story role, how Lady Gaga redefined herself this year

2015 Billboard Women in Music

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Scott Weiland, frontman for Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver, dies at 48

Scott Weiland, 1967-2015

Scott Weiland, the charismatic rock vocalist who first gained fame with 1990s rock band Stone Temple Pilots, has died, according to his wife.

The Grammy-winning singer, 48, who struggled with addiction, earned post-Pilots success with the platinum-selling supergroup Velvet Revolver. His cause of death was not immediately available.

His wife, Jamie Weiland, a photographer, confirmed his death to The Times in a brief conversation.

"I can't deal with this right now," she said, sobbing. "It's true.”

With a range that thrived in both high and low registers, Weiland was an archetypal rock singer.

He met Jamie in 2011, when she photographed one of his music video shoots. They married in June 2013.

A statement on Weiland's Facebook pageposted around 10 p.m. said Weiland had "passed away in his sleep while on a tour stop in Bloomington, Minn."

"At this time we ask that the privacy of Scott's family be respected," the statement said.

Reports of Weiland's death began to circulate after fellow rocker Dave Navarro tweeted: "Just learned our friend Scott Weiland has died. So gutted, I am thinking of his family tonight."

That tweet later appeared to have been removed.

Tom Vitorino, Weiland's manager, also confirmed that the singer died Thursday. He did not provide further details.

Weiland's latest band, Scott Weiland and the Wildabouts, had been scheduled to perform Thursday evening in Minnesota. According to Medina Entertainment Center, the concert was canceled and refunds were to be issued. No reason was given for the cancellation.

Scott Weiland: Life in pictures

This death is the second to hit the band this year. Guitarist Jeremy Brown died of multiple-drug intoxication March 30, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office. Brown's death came the day before the band released its debut album. He was 34.

Weiland was born Scott Kline in Santa Cruz on Oct. 27, 1967. At the age of 2, his parents divorced. He adopted the last name Weiland when his mother remarried and the family moved to a suburb of Cleveland. His biological father, a soda truck driver, remained in California.

"My childhood was green pastures and bee stings, learning to play baseball and football, living in a nice house, waiting -- always waiting -- for the start of summer so I could go to California and see my dad," he wrote in his 2011 memoir, "Not Dead & Not for Sale."

In a 1998 interview coinciding with the release of Weiland's solo album "12 Bar Blues," he told The Times that he had grown accustomed to the trappings of fame brought by Stone Temple Pilots.

"I used to feel guilty about my success, but I'm over that now," Weiland said. "It's like, hey, some people cook for a living and some people milk cows. I write songs."

Notable Deaths

He got his start as a rocker in Southern California -- and met future Stone Temple Pilots bassist Robert DeLeo at a punk show in Long Beach. Their 1992 debut album, "Core," has sold over 8 million copies. Over the next four years the band became one of the biggest hard-rock bands in the world.

After Weiland left the band, he teamed with former Guns N' Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum to form Velvet Revolver. With a core band that knew hard rock, Weiland became an '00s icon. He struggled to keep his addictions at bay, though, and was in and out of rehab. He and Velvet Revolver parted ways in 2008.

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FOR THE RECORD

Dec. 4, 12:08 a.m.: An earlier version of this article misspelled Duff McKagan's last name as McKagen.

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He soon reunited with Stone Temple Pilots, but his bandmates ousted him in 2013.

In 2008, days before serving a brief jail sentence for a drunk driving charge, Weiland was unapologetic about his arrests, overdoses and relapses.

"I live my life the way I live my life," he told The Times.

Weiland publicly acknowledged battles with heroin addiction.

"The opiate took me to where I'd always dreamed of going," he told Spin Magazine in 2011. "I can't name the place, but I can say that I was undisturbed and unafraid, a free-floating man in a space without demons and doubts."

Weiland had two children, Lucy and Noah, with his former wife, Mary Forsberg Weiland.

Staff writer Matt Hamilton contributed to this report.

Scott Weiland: tributes paid to rock star following death at 48

Scott WeilandImage copyrightEPAImage captionWeiland was touring with his current band, Scott Weiland & the Wildabouts

Tributes have been paid to US singer Scott Weiland, former frontman with Stone Temple Pilots, following his death while on tour in Minnesota.

Slash, with whom Weiland performed in rock supergroup Velvet Revolver, wrote on Twitter that it was "a sad day".

"RIP Scott Weiland," said Dave Kushner, another Velvet Revolver member.

Tom Vitorino, Weiland's manager, confirmed the singer's death at the age of 48 on Thursday night, saying he had "passed away in his sleep".

A statement on Instagram said Weiland had died "while on a tour stop in Bloomington, Minnesota, with his band The Wildabouts".

TMZ reported the singer's body was discovered on his tour bus outside a motel, near the venue where the band was due to play.

Actress Juliette Lewis was one of the first to pay tribute to the singer following news of his death: "Sad to hear about Scott Weiland passing. He was a once of a kind epic force onstage. Thoughts are w[ith] his family," she tweeted.

Rock band Wheatus, best known for the hit single Teenage Dirtbag, tweeted: "We opened for @STPBand in 2000. I watched them side stage and Scott Weiland destroyed me, he was the real thing. Seeing him changed me forever."

Grammy organisers the Recording Academy of America hailed Weiland as "a grunge icon" adding his "extraordinary talent and captivating performances will forever live on and inspire legions of rock fans worldwide".

Former Radio 1, now Beats 1 DJ Zane Lowe tweeted he was "very sad", adding: "So many moments sent listening to him sing in my headphones."

Aerosmith's Joe Perry also praised Weiland as "such a gifted performer", while Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic said he was "really sorry to hear" the news.

Additional tributes came from Travis Barker of Blink-182, who said it was "very sad news", and Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx, who expressed the hope that "it wasn't drugs" that caused his demise.

Scott WeilandImage copyrightReutersImage captionThe Californian native had a history of drug abuse problemsline break

Analysis - Mark Savage, BBC Music reporter

Stone Temple Pilots had a messy origin - Scott Weiland and bassist Robert DeLeo met at a Black Flag concert, and realised they were both dating the same woman.

They put their differences aside to form a band - initially called Mighty Joe Young - and became so close they wrote their debut hit, Plush, while sharing a hot tub.

Powered by Weiland's distinctive lower register snarl, Stone Temple Pilots went on to sell 13.5 million albums in the US - but their stadium-ready anthems became a target for grunge purists, who accused them of being sell-outs.

Success set Weiland on a dangerous path. The musician, who struggled with bipolar disorder, turned to heroin, and addiction made it impossible for the band to continue.

Set adrift, he recorded a well-received solo album, 12 Bar Blues, and joined the rock supergroup Velvet Revolver - later admitting he did it for the money. "I can't call it the music of my soul," he told Spin magazine.

In later years, he rejoined Stone Temple Pilots, and claimed to have kicked his bad habits.

"I haven't had a needle in my arm in thirteen years," he told Blabbermouth earlier this year.

"Overcoming my addiction to heroin was the hardest thing I've ever done, and I'm damn proud of the fact that the time in my life when drugs were stronger than my commitment to my health is so far behind me, and always will be."

line break

Born in California, Weiland formed the band Stone Temple Pilots with brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo in the late 1980s and went on to enjoy early critical and commercial success.

But the success of tracks such as Big Empty, Vasoline and Interstate Love Song, which propelled the 1994 album Purple to the top of the US charts, was marred by in-fighting among band members.

The band took a number of breaks, with Weiland eventually leaving and co-forming the supergroup Velvet Revolver - with former Guns N' Roses members Slash (guitars), Duff McKagan (bass) and Matt Sorum (drums) - in 2002.

However, the singer's drug addiction issues were becoming increasingly problematic.

Velvet Revolver lead singer Scott Weiland, left, and Slash perform Fall to PiecesImage copyrightAPImage captionVelvet Revolver saw Weiland team up with former Guns N' Roses members including guitar legend Slash

In 1995, the singer was convicted of buying crack cocaine and sentenced to probation.

He was jailed in 1999 for violating his probation after being convicted of heroin possession in 1998, and four years later, in 2003, sentenced to three years' probation for drug possession.

In 2008, he was sentenced to eight days in jail after pleading no contest to a drink driving charge.

Velvet Revolver frequently had alter its schedules to accommodate Weiland's court appearances and spells in rehab and the band's 2007 release, Libertad, was the last to feature Weiland on vocals.

They parted ways with Weiland the following year, blaming the singer's "erratic behaviour".

He later returned to the reformed Stone Temple Pilots - but in 2013 they, too, ejected him from the band, claiming he had been "misappropriating" their name to further his solo career.

Reports of Weiland's death began to circulate after musician Dave Navarro reportedly tweeted: "Just learned our friend Scott Weiland has died. So gutted, I am thinking of his family tonight." That tweet later appeared to have been removed.

No immediate cause of death was given in the official statement. The statement asked for "the privacy of Scott's family be respected".

Weiland's current band, Scott Weiland & the Wildabouts, were scheduled to play at a Medina, Minnesota, concert venue, on Thursday. The event was cancelled.

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Reply #174 posted 12/04/15 1:08pm

JoeBala

Syfy’s new “Childhood’s End” could be the perfect show for our quasi-populist, government-hating times

Sure, it's no "Sharknado" — the Arthur C. Clarke novel is one of the genre's classics

TOPICS: SCIENCE FICTION, SYFY, TV, CHILDHOOD'S END, ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

Syfy's new "Childhood's End" could be the perfect show for our quasi-populist, government-hating times(Credit: Syfy)

For a lot of people, the Syfy network peaked back when it was still called the Sci-Fi network. That was about a decade ago, when the channel took up a failed, one-season ‘70s project and made it into the smart and elaborately plotted “Battlestar Galactica” we’re more likely to remember now. These days, in some circles Syfy is more likely to be namechecked for its absurdly meta “Sharknado” series of films (“Sharknado 4” is already in the works).

But the network (however we spell it) has done some good work over the years, and I’m hoping the network can regain some of that old glory with the upcoming adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke’s “Childhood’s End.”

A teaser went around in the spring, but the date – now mid-December – was only announced Wednesday.

Clarke’s book, which came out in 1953, is a reasonably thin, chiseled novel about an advanced alien race – the Overlords — that comes to earth to fix our problems and leads to both a Golden Age and a strong sense of loss.

Its ambiguity appealed to Stanley Kubrick, who played with the idea of filming it. (The British-born Clarke, perhaps the most elegant of the ‘50s science-fiction authors, wrote the novel, “2001: A Space Odyssey,” that Kubrick ended up adapting instead.) The lead Overlord, Karellen, will be played by Charles Dance of “Game of Thrones.” Variety reports:

“Childhood’s End” is a six-hour event series based on Arthur C. Clarke’s sci-fi novel and deals with what happens after alien Overlords take over and promise to eliminate poverty, war and sickness — but what do they ultimately want from Earth? It has a cast that includes Charles Dance, Mike Vogel, Daisy Betts, Yael Stone, Julian McMahon, Osy Ikhile and Colm Meaney.

It’s written and adapted by Matthew Graham, who exec produces along with Akiva Goldsman. Alissa Phillips is co-executive producer. It’s directed by Nick Hurran. The Universal Cable Productions series will air from 8 to 10 p.m. on Dec. 14, 15 and 16.

At ComicCon, screenwriter Matthew Graham (of “Life on Mars”) put it this way;

It’s a book of ideas, and it’s not hide-bound by events. Global events, political events. And the ideas are timeless: mortality, morality, destiny, responsibilty for our happiness … someone could make it again in another 60 years, and it would be just as reflective of that time.

In a sign of the way our thinking has changed since the novel’s publication, the character who served as emissary to the overlords (Rikki in the novel, Ricky on television) is no longer a UN Secretary-General. This was the ‘50s after all – before Barry Goldwater, Ronald Reagan, and the Tea Party destroyed the notion that the politician was a benevolent figure. Here’s Graham again:

The book was written at a time when we just assumed politicians were the best of us, and I don’t think we feel like that anymore … making Rikki the head of the United Nations, it’s almost not realistic or credible … I think it’s better that [Karellen] picks a farm boy to be his emissary, rather than picking the person you would automatically assume it to be. It just felt very natural, and even Rikki doesn’t know why he’s picked. It’s almost unknowable, the reasons why he’s chosen.

(It’s a framing perfect for our quasi-populist, government-hating times.)

It doesn’t hurt, by the way, that Syfy has also announced its adaptation of Frederik Pohl’s “Gateway,” another classic novel about an encounter with a sophisticated alien race, as a one-hour series. David Eick, who served as a writer and executive producer for “Battlestar Galactica,” will be one of the lead writers. And the 2016 launch of “The Magicians,” based on Lev Grossman’s enchanted novel, is good news as well.

Back to “Childhood’s End,” though. Gracefully written, philosophical, sweeping, this is just the right size and scope for a strong miniseries. A great novel – even a great literary science-fiction novel like “Childhood’s End” – doesn’t necessarily become great television or a great film: Think of the mixed success of novels like Frank Herbert’s “Dune” or Ursula Le Guin’s “Earthsea” books.

But in the right hands, Clarke’s classic could be a knockout.

Scott Timberg is a staff writer for Salon, focusing on culture. A longtime arts reporter in Los Angeles who has contributed to the New York Times, he runs the blog Culture Crash.He's the author of the new book, "Culture Crash: The Killing of the Creative Class."
Childhood’s End premieres on Monday, December 14th, at 8pm on Syfy.

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Reply #175 posted 12/04/15 1:17pm

Identity

[img:$uid]http://i.imgur.com/6rMZvEU.jpg?2[/img:$uid]



The CW has released a new poster for DC’s Legends of Tomorrow which shows the heroes ready for battle.

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Reply #176 posted 12/04/15 7:07pm

JoeBala

‘Supergirl’ Casts ‘Chasing Life’ Star Italia Ricci in Recurring Role

ABC Family actress will play Siobhan Smythe, aka Silver Banshee, opposite Melissa Benoist

“Supergirl” has cast “Chasing Life” star Italia Ricci in a recurring role, TheWrap has learned.

The ABC Family actress will play the part of Siobhan Smythe, known to DC comic book readers as the supervillain Silver Banshee. She will make her debut in episode 114.

On the show, Siobhan will be introduced as Cat Grant’s (Calista Flockart) latest hire who at first becomes a work nemesis for Kara (Melissa Benoist). But she later proves a more deadly foe for Supergirl when she takes on the mantle of her comic book alter-ego.

“We are so excited to be working with Italia,” executive producer Andrew Kreisberg said. “We’ve been a fan of her work for years and we cannot wait to see her take on this iconic comic book role.”

Ricci is best known for her lead role as April on ABC Family’s “Chasing Life,” which ran for two seasons. She is represented by ICM, Protégé Entertainment, Coast to Coast, and Felker, Toczek, Suddleson LLP.

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Reply #177 posted 12/05/15 8:15am

JoeBala

Little Richard Celebrates 83rd Birthday on December 5

Little Richard Celebrates 83rd Birthday on December 5

Born Richard Wayne Penniman in Macon, Ga., Little Richard had his first major hit with “Tutti Frutti” in 1955. He was honored by the National Museum of African American History and Culture in 2015.

Born Richard Wayne Penniman on December 5, 1932, in Macon, Georgia, Little Richard helped define the early rock ‘n’ roll era of the 1950s with his driving, flamboyant sound. With his croons, wails and screams, he turned songs like “Tutti-Frutti” and “Long Tall Sally” into huge hits and influenced such bands as the Beatles.

Born Richard Wayne Penniman on December 5, 1932, in Macon, Georgia, Little Richard was the third of 12 children. His father, Bud, was a stern man who made his living selling moonshine and didn’t do much to hide his disdain for his son’s early signs of homosexuality. At the age of 13 Richard was ordered to move out of the family home, and his relationship with his father was never repaired. When Richard was 19, his father was shot dead outside a local bar.

The childhood that Richard did manage to have was largely shaped by the church. Two of his uncles as well as his grandfather were preachers, and Richard was involved with the church as much as anyone in his family, singing gospel and eventually learning to play the piano.

Upon moving out of his family’s home, Richard was taken in by a white family who owned a club in Macon, where Richard eventually began performing and honing his talent.

In 1951 Richard caught his first major break when a performance at an Atlanta radio station yielded a record contract with RCA. But with a repertoire of mainly mild blues numbers that masked the searing vocals and piano that would come to define his rock music, Richard’s career failed to take off as he’d hoped it would.
In 1955 Richard hooked up with Specialty Records producer Art Rupe, who’d been hunting for a piano-pounding frontman to lead a group of musicians in New Orleans. In September, Richard stepped into the recording studio and pumped out “Tutti-Frutti,” an instant Billboard hit that reached No. 17.

Over the next year and a half, the musician churned out several more rock hits, including “Long Tall Sally,” “Good Golly Miss Molly” and “Send Me Some Lovin’.” With his blood-pumping piano playing and suggestive lyrics, Little Richard, along with the likes of Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis, established rock as a real musical form and inspired others, most notably the Beatles, to make a go of it. In addition to his records, Little Richard appeared in several early rock films, such as Don’t Knock the Rock (1956), The Girl Can’t Help It (1957) and Mister Rock ‘n’ Roll (1957).

But as his success soared, Little Richard, fueled by his earlier connections to the church, saw his doubts about rock deepen. In 1957 he abruptly and publicly quit performing rock and committed himself to the ministry and recording gospel songs. He recorded his debut religious album, God Is Real, in 1959.

In 1964, following the Beatles’ recording of “Long Tall Sally,” Little Richard plunged back into rock music. Over the ensuing decades Little Richard would continue to perform and record, but the public response failed to match the enthusiasm that greeted his earlier success.

Still, his importance in the development of rock music has never been questioned. In 1986 Little Richard was one of the 10 original inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences in 1993, and a year later the Rhythm & Blues Foundation honored him with its prestigious Pioneer Award.

In recent years, the once-dynamic performer has taken a break from the concert stage. He fell ill during a show in Washington, D.C., during the summer of 2012. The following September, Little Richard suffered a heart attack. He described the incident to Cee Lo Green during an interview in Atlanta: “The other night, I didn’t know I was having a heart attack. I was coughing, and my right arm was aching.’

The singer took a baby aspirin, which his doctor credited with saving his life. The deeply religious music icon attributed his survival to a higher power: “Jesus had something for me. He brought me through.”

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Reply #178 posted 12/07/15 5:29pm

JoeBala

Entertainment | Fri Dec 4, 2015 9:02pm EST

Robert Loggia, 'Scarface' and 'Big' actor, dies at 85

Robert Loggia, the gravelly voiced character actor who danced with Tom Hanks on a giant floor keyboard in "Big," fought aliens in "Independence Day" and trafficked in drugs in "Scarface," died on Friday at age 85, his widow said.

Loggia, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in the 1985 thriller "Jagged Edge," died at his home in Los Angeles after battling Alzheimer's disease for five years, Audrey O'Brien Loggia told Reuters.

"He loved being an actor - he was a wonderful actor - and loved his profession and his life," she said, adding that he died with her and their two daughters at his side. "We've been together 41 years. He is going be terribly missed."

Loggia had been a journeyman actor on stage, TV and films until he made an impression playing Richard Gere's abusive and alcoholic father in the 1982 blockbuster "An Officer and a Gentleman." That performance led to meaty roles in other box-office hits.

In director Brian De Palma's hit 1983 crime drama "Scarface," Loggia played drug lord Frank Lopez alongside Al Pacino in the violent tale of Miami mobsters.

Two years later, Loggia was a seedy private detective in "Jagged Edge," starring Jeff Bridges and Glenn Close. He lost the best supporting actor Oscar to Don Ameche of "Cocoon."

Also in 1985, he starred alongside Jack Nicholson in director John Huston's black comedy "Prizzi's Honor," which was nominated for a best picture Oscar.

His most famous role was in director Penny Marshall's bittersweet comedy "Big" (1988) starring Hanks as a boy whose wish to become an adult magically comes true. Hanks' character -a boy in an adult body - ends up working for a toy company headed by Loggia.

Together they danced to the songs "Heart and Soul" and "Chopsticks" on the jumbo floor keyboard at New York's fabled FAO Schwarz toy store in what was one of the famous cinematic scenes of the 1980s.

Loggia said Marshall allowed him and Hanks a lot of freedom in deciding how the scene would unfold, giving them a cardboard mock-up of the keyboard a few weeks before the scene was shot.

"She very cleverly said, 'I don't want you to look like trained dancers, but you do the melody and you ... and Tom, you work it out for yourself. There will be no rehearsal and we'll be at FAO Schwarz about a month down the line and we're going to do it, and let's see what happens,'" Loggia told the Miami Herald in 2006.

"And that's why it's a movie-magic scene," Loggia said.

"Big" became one of the year's top-grossing films, earned Hanks his first Oscar nomination, and was the first movie directed by a woman to top $100 million at the box office.

Loggia also had a key supporting role in "Independence Day," the top-grossing film of 1996. He played a general who advises the president of the United States, played by Bill Pullman, as tentacled aliens in huge spaceships devastate cities worldwide.

The Italian-American actor was born as Salvatore Loggia on Jan. 3, 1930, in New York City. He set aside his plans for a journalism career to go into acting.

(Reporting by Will Dunham in Washington; Additional reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by Bill Trott and Lisa Shumaker)

Colts owner picks up Ringo Starr's drum set at auction

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For $1.75 million, Colts owner Jim Irsay bought Ringo Starr's Beatles drum kit.

Vincent Sandoval

INDIANAPOLIS -- Jim Irsay is reuniting the Beatles piece by piece.

The Indianapolis Colts owner made his latest pricey purchase Friday, picking up Ringo Starr's first Ludwig drum set at auction for $1.75 million, a team official confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday.

Irsay owns prominent guitars from the group's other three members -- Paul McCartney, the late George Harrison and the late John Lennon. Earlier this year, Irsay also purchased a drumhead that will fit the set he just bought.

''Finally, after 45 years, the Beatles are together again,'' Irsay said in a text message to the AP.

Irsay is a huge music fan and an avid collector. He owns roughly 30 famous guitars, including instruments used by Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia and Eric Clapton.

50 Years of 'Rubber Soul': How the Beatles Invented the Future of Pop

A look back at the glorious moment when the Fab Four grew up

BY ROB SHEFFIELD December 3, 2015
Beatles; Rubber Soul
"Finally we took over the studio," said John Lennon of the significance of 'Rubber Soul,' released 50 years ago today. DAVID MCENERY/REX Shutterstock

Happy 50th birthday to Rubber Soul, the album where the Beatles became the Beatles. It was the most out-there music they'd ever made, but also their warmest, friendliest and most emotionally direct. As soon as it dropped in December 1965, Rubber Soul cut the story of pop music in half — we're all living in the future this album invented. Now as then, every pop artist wants to make a Rubber Soul of their own. "Finally we took over the studio," John Lennon told Rolling Stone's Jann S. Wenner in 1970. "In the early days, we had to take what we were given, we didn't know how you could get more bass. We were learning the technique on Rubber Soul. We were more precise about making the album, that's all, and we took over the cover and everything."

Rubber Soul was the album where the moptops grew up. It was also where they were smoking loads of weed, so all through these songs, wild humor and deep emotion go hand in hand, like George Harrison and cowboy hats. (No rock star has ever looked less stupid in a cowboy hat than George on the back cover.) In addition to everything else it is,Rubber Soul is their bestsung album. You can have a great time just focusing on the background vocals: Paul McCartney's harmonies on "Norwegian Wood" are as rugged as John ever sounded, while John's backup vocals to "Drive My Car" and "You Won't See Me" prove he could come on as cute as Paul. It will always be my favorite Beatle record — even if Revolver is actually a little better. (I've made my peace with that contradiction.)

If there's a theme, it's curiosity, the most Beatlesque of emotions, and specifically it's curiosity about women, the most Beatlesque of mysteries to be curious about. Rubber Soul has the coolest girls of any Beatles record. "Girl," "I'm Looking Through You," "If I Needed Someone" — these are complex and baffling females, much like the ones the Beatles ended up with in real life. No happy romantic endings here, with the notable exception of "In My Life" — but even when the girls are way ahead of them, the boys spend the album straining to keep up. Baby, you've changed.

Did anyone before Rubber Soul sing about female characters like this? No, they didn't. For one thing, these women have jobs, and this is 1965. The L.A. scenester who hires Paul as her driver, the independent woman too busy with her career to return his phone calls, the Chelsea girl who gets up early for work in the morning, even though she's got John sleeping in her bathtub. (You'd think she could call in sick for that.) In late 1965, my mom, an eighth-grade public-school teacher in Massachusetts, got fired for getting pregnant (with me), because that's how things worked back then. The very idea of women having careers was a social controversy. But for the world's biggest pop stars, it was nothing to get hung about.

Rubber Soul; Heatles

The Rubber Soul woman stays up late drinking wine on her rug after midnight, until it's time for bed. She speaks languages he can't translate. ("I love you" in French is just "je t'aime." It's not that hard.) She's not impressed by the Beatle charm — when you say she's looking good, she acts as if it's understood. She's cool. She makes the Rubber Soul man feel like a real nowhere boy. Yet even the sad songs here are funny. (Including the self-parodic machismo of "Run for Your Life," a song Nancy Sinatra turned into a gangsta classic.) I love the moment in "Wait" when Paul's girl asks point blank if he's been faithful on the road. "I've been good/As good as I can be" — riiiiiight. "Wait" is the song that totally explains why Paul was Bill Clinton's favorite Beatle.

Even the American version is a classic — this is the only Beatles album where the shamefully butchered U.S. LP might top the U.K. original, if only because it opens with the magnificent acoustic one-two punch of "I've Just Seen A Face" and "Norwegian Wood." I still can't decide which Rubber Soulis my favorite, having had a mere lifetime to make up my mind.

Given the album's impact over the past 50 years, it's startling to note how fast and frantic the sessions were. The Beatles didn't go into the studio with a mystic crystal vision to express — they went in with a deadline. They had to supply product for the 1965 Christmas season, which meant crunching it out in four frenzied weeks, from October 12th to November 12th. So they holed up in Abbey Road around the clock, pouring out music as fast as they could, holding nothing back. They were willing to try any idea, whether it turned out brilliantly (the sitar, the harmonium) or not (the six-minute R&B instrumental jam, which they wisely axed). They wrote seven of the songs in one week.

But with their backs against the wall, working under this pressure, the Beatles produced an album that was way ahead of what anyone had done before. Since these guys were riding new levels of musical fluidity and inspiration, firing on so many more cylinders than anybody else had, they stumbled onto discoveries that changed the way music has been made ever since. It was an accidental masterpiece — but one that stunned the Beatles into realizing how far they could go. After that, they went full-time into the masterpiece-making business.

Yet unlike some of their later artistic statements, this one was fun to make, and it shows. As Paul recalled, "Part of the secret collaboration was that we liked each other. We liked singing at each other. He'd sing something and I'd say, 'Yeah,' and trade off on that. He'd say, 'Nowhere land,' and I'd say, 'For nobody.' It was a two-way thing."

Just as George had never explored the sitar before, Ringo Starr had never played so fiercely — "Drive My Car" looms large in his legend, up there with "Rain." (Listen to him in the last bar before the chorus — every time it rolls around, Ringo slays with something different.) His drumming on "In My Life" is pure brotherly empathy — it sounds like he's giving John the courage to push on to the next line. It's impossible to imagine "In My Life" without Ringo in it, which is just one of the reasons every cover version falls flat. Ringo even scored his first songwriting credit for the throwaway "What Goes On." Asked in 1966 what he contributed, he said, "about five words."

You can hear the team spirit behind the album in the studio banter from the late-night "Think For Yourself" sessions of November 8th. John, Paul and George stand around the microphone, rehearsing three-part harmonies, but laughing too hard to get it right. John, holding a guitar, stumbles on the words. "OK, I think I might have it now," he announces. "I get something in me head, you know, and all the walls of Rome couldn't stop me!" All three keep up a nonstop stream of chatter. John slips into a mock-preacher voice. "It's Jesus, our Lord and Savior, who gave his only begotten bread to live and die on!" Paul and George get in his face, yelling "Why such fury? What is this wrath that beholds you?" They gasp with laughter until John mutters, "I can't go on, I really can't. Come on, let's do this bleedin' record." They try another take. They don't get this one right either.

George Martin's ready for another try. John looks around and asks, "Paul?" Where is Paul? He's ducked into the bathroom to sneak a quick puff of weed — still playing the naughty schoolboys, the Beatles don't dare light up in front of Mr. Martin, though they're not fooling him for a minute. When Paul comes back, his voice sounds a little giddier. "I just got in from Olympia. I lit the torch!"

You can hear it in the Beatles' voices tonight — they thrive on each other's company, tuning into some wavelength nobody else can get. The street date is less than a month away — yet they don't sound worried. In fact, you might even suspect they're having fun. When John heads off to the loo, he sings one of the band's earliest ditties, the one George sang on their first album, "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" Though that song was barely three years ago, its coy innocence seems a lifetime away.

But John has changed the words a little, snapping his fingers as he sings out loud. "Do you want to hold a penis? Doo-wah-ooo!"

The Beatles went down to the wire with one final all-nighter — a marathon session from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m., on November 11th. They rose to the occasion by showing up with two of their greatest disenchanted love songs: Paul's "You Won't See Me" and John's "Girl." Their voices sound weary, yet that just adds the rough Dylan-esque tone they were hoping for. By dawn, it was all over but the mixing.

Those four faces were peering out from record racks a few weeks later, in Robert Freeman's classic distorted cover photo. For the first time, the band name was nowhere to be seen—only those cocky mugs. The four scared kids who looked so miserable a year earlier, on the cover of Beatles for Sale? Now brimming with arrogance. On fire with belief in their new music. Using instruments nobody can pronounce. Not really caring if you liked the old songs better. Full grown men, full of emotion and on top of the world. Meet the Beatles.

MATT SAYLES

ENTERTAINMENT

Meet Susie Abromeit of Netflix’s “Jessica Jones”!

By Brianne Nemiroff | November 18, 2015

This Friday. November 20th, one of this season’s most buzzed about series, Marvel’s “Jessica Jones”, is joining the Netflix roster. This is the second female-driven superhero series to premiere this year and we couldn’t be more excited about it.

sexy tee fashion shoot with susie Abromeit

Surrounded by a stellar cast including Krysten Ritter, David Tennant, and Carrie-Anne Moss, up-and-coming actress Susie Abromeit joins them as Pam, the secretary to Moss’s character.

Besides being an actress, Abromeit was a nationally-ranked tennis player by the age of 16, which led her to a full tennis scholarship to Duke. But soon after starting school, she began to pursue her creative interests. Abromeit pursued her acting dream with the same intensity which is why her career is in this position now.

Before the show premieres, find out what Abromeit says about her character Pam, why she calls Carrie-Anne Moss “Mother Earth”, and how she learned not to apologize for her femininity.

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Q&A WITH SUSIE ABROMEIT

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ABOUT JESSICA JONES

“Jessica Jones” is the first female-driven Marvel series. Do you think it’s going to be different in any way for that reason? Do you think viewers might expect it to be?

From what I’ve heard, I think the tone is a bit darker. It’s a bit edgier. I think there’s violence. I just heard from one of the cast members and she was floored with how amazing it was. When you hear that from your co-star, you know this is an honest-to-God truth. It was such an awesome thing to dive into, dealing with a lot of stuff.

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You play the character of Pam, the secretary to Carrie-Anne Moss’s character. Tell me more about Pam. What can we expect from her in terms of her personality, morals, and her passions?

What I can say is I feel I rooted for Pam. I, like all of us, like every human, we all have flaws and our obstacles and challenges to face. For the most part, she really wants to do the right thing. She was really interesting to play. She’s a sensual, dynamic, intelligent young woman. Some of the material I had to face, the nature of the content of what I’m told, is really gripping and it’s really intense.

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You are surrounded by an amazing cast. I saw your Instagram post where you called Carrie-Anne “Mother Earth”. How has it been on set? Has anyone in particular inspired you or surprised you with their talent, performance, or personalities?

[Carrie-Anne] is amazing. If I could go on about how amazing Mother Earth is, she’s the best! She’s one of the best humans I’ve worked with, just in terms of who she is, how she lives her life, she is the kind of person anyone will want to emulate. She has a beautiful marriage with wonderful kids. I [admire] how she speaks to her kids, or on set with how she deals with her character. She’s just so on point with every aspect of her life. It’s not just ‘I’m an actor and I can do one thing and that’s it.’ She is a full, incredibly intelligent and multi-faceted human being.

[Also] David Tennant…we were at the table read and just watching him and Kyrsten [Ritter] go back and forth; it was electric. David is just a force to be reckoned with.

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Fifteen years ago, “Alias” debuted on TV. Do you think now we’re finally ready for another female-driven Marvel series?

Absolutely! “Orange is the New Black” is a huge sensation that is female-driven. I think we’re in new territory where we’re exploring all different themes and I think we want more authenticity. We want to be able to experience the truth that people really talk about or deal with. All of the amazing shows they have on Netflix, they’re really going there. But I think we’re in a really beautiful place in terms of female-driven superhero shows.

“Supergirl” is getting rave reviews. We’re in a new world right now, more of an even playing field, [with] more and more opportunities.

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ABOUT SUSIE

You used to be a pro tennis player and you love to surf. Why the switch from athletics to the arts professionally?

I was always an artistic kid who played sports. I was the kid in art class that would do elaborate paintings. I would write 60-page stories when I was 9-years-old. This is something that I think ultimately that I knew I was going to do. But at the time, tennis was more important. My energy shifted when I got older. I was pulled in both directions constantly and it wasn’t until college that I realized that I could make it my career. It wasn’t just some Hollywood dream. Going to Duke opened up my eyes. One of the kids [in my program] is one of the writers on “Drunk History”, one’s a writer for “Broad City.” A friend of mine who is dating my roommate is one of the producers of “The Hunger Games.”

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Did anything from your training or lifestyle as an athlete translate over to your acting lifestyle? Your dedication? How you move on stage?

Absolutely. The discipline, the focus, the way I approach things is probably very different than most people. I know what it takes to be the best at something.

[Walking on stage], I can feel my athletic walk. I was watching a playback of me walking in heels and I looked like Bambi. It’s slightly embarrassing but I need to embrace my femininity more. I learned that about myself. I took a pole dancing class and that really helped. I wasn’t so wobbly [afterwards]. It was a really beautiful way to reconnect with that part of myself [and] it was great for me not to be in my own head and not feel ashamed of my own sexuality. There’s so much repression in America. You go to Europe and everyone takes their top off at the beach. Here, everyone says no but watches porn. We want to repress it instead of accepting it.

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As someone who’s used to wearing little to no makeup, has it been a hard transition to working primarily in the arts, always having on a lot of makeup? Or do you feel like it’s fun to also get to be that side of you?

For me, I really think it’s being true to who you are and not going against that. I think that everyone’s own femininity is different, how they define it. One woman will say I feel more beautiful without makeup, others say I don’t leave home without it. For them, it’s a really interesting conversation. For me, it doesn’t matter if I’m wearing makeup or not. It gives me that extra umph and I feel kinda pretty. You feel that you have that extra little pop to your eye so it’s more eye-catching but I understand both schools of thought. I know a lot of men prefer their women without makeup, but it’s whatever makes you feel more beautiful about your feminine power. For me, I think it’s about being true to who I am, allowing all of those parts to be seen, all of my darkness and light, not shying away from it and not apologizing for it, letting that go to be free in a healthy sense.

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Holly Woodlawn, Inspiration for 'Walk on the Wild Side,' Dead at 69

Actress in Andy Warhol's Factory passes away after cancer battle

BY DANIEL KREPS December 7, 2015
Holly WoodlawnHolly Woodlawn, a transgender actress who inspired the opening verse of Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side," passed away at 69 Jack Mitchell/Getty

Holly Woodlawn, a transgender actress in Andy Warhol's Factory and the inspiration behind the opening verse of Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side," passed away Sunday following a battle with cancer. She was 69. Woodlawn first discovered she had cancer in August and was since transferred to an assisted-living facility in Los Angeles, where she died, the BBC reports.

Born Haroldo Santiago Francesch Rodriguez Danhakl in Puerto Rico in 1946, Woodlawn adopted her name from Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's main character Holly Golightly as well as an I Love Lucyepisode where Lucille Ball takes a subway to Woodlawn, New York.

According to Woodlawn's biography, she left her home in Miami Beach when she was still in her teens and hitchhiked to New York.

The 16-year-old's journey from Florida to New York was immortalized in song when Reed sang in 1972, "Holly came from Miami F-L-A / Hitchhiked her way across the U.S.A. / Plucked her eyebrows on the way / Shaved her legs and then he was a she / She says, 'Hey, babe, take a walk on the wild side.'"

As a member of Warhol's Factory, Woodlawn also appeared in a pair of the artist's films – 1970's Trash and 1972's Women in Revolt – alongside fellow Factory stars Joe Dallesandro, Jackie Curtis and Candy Darling, who also served as inspiration for "Walk on the Wild Side." (Darling was also the basis of Velvet Underground's "Candy Says.")

"I arrived to the hospice and went to Holly's room, #403. I was next to her talking and telling her all the love that was being sent her way from everyone. It was like she knew I was there," Dallesandro wrote on Facebook after Woodlawn passed away.

Recently, Woodlawn appeared in the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning series Transparent, the story of a patriarch of a Los Angeles family who transitions to female.

'Telenovela' Special Premiere: Eva Longoria Talks Comedy TV Show Starring Jencarlos Canela, Amaury Nolasco

We hung out with the cast of "Telenovela" and it was the best thing ever! LatinTimes

Eva Longoria returns as a leading lady in the small screen with her upcoming comedy show "Telenovela." The NBC comedy show will air early January 2016, but the cast can't wait any longer! On December 7th, Longoria ---who also executive produces the show--- and the rest of the cast, includingJencarlos Canela, Amaury Nolasco, Diana Maria Riva, Jose Moreno Brooks and more, will shine in a special 1-hour preview.

In the show, the Mexican-American actress portrays Ana Sofia, a Latina soap opera star who doesn't speak a word of Spanish. She's joined by her ex husband Xavier Castillo (Jencarlos Canela), who portrays her "on-screen" love interest in the soap. Think a novela within a show. Longoria admits that "Telenovela" (formerly called "Hot & Bothered") is a comedy series that's even "funnier than 'Desperate Housewives.'" Sounds promising already!

Check out our one-on-one interview, where the actress says what we can expect in the new NBC "Telenovela" comedy. She even sang a jingle with Jencarlos and Amaury to make sure we don't forget the preview episode airing Monday, Dec. 7 after "The Voice" on NBC!

Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett and Six More Top Actresses on Pay Gap, Sex Scenes and the Price of Speaking Frankly: "There Is Always a Backlash"

8:55am PT | November 18, 2015

Kate Winslet, Jane Fonda, Carey Mulligan, Brie Larson, Helen Mirren and Charlotte Rampling join for THR's annual fun, frank and uncensored Actress Roundtable.

This story first appeared in the Nov. 27 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.

When eight of the world's most accomplished performers gathered in one place on Nov. 14 for THR's annual Actress Roundtable, you might have expected some backstage drama. Sure, there was a slight kerfuffle over whether their stylists should be allowed on-set, and then there was a major case of hunger pangs when new mom Carey Mulligan, 30, and newly-in-from-China Jennifer Lawrence, 25, both had to wolf down bananas before the shoot. But other than that, it was a lovefest as the two actresses joined Cate Blanchett (Carol,Truth), 46; Jane Fonda (Youth), 77; Brie Larson (Room), 26; Helen Mirren (Trumbo, Woman in Gold), 70; Charlotte Rampling (45 Years), 69; and Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs), 40, in a discussion that ranged from the pay gap between men and women to the other careers these actresses might have chosen to — yes — how to pee on film.

READ MOREWhy Every Actress on The Hollywood Reporter Roundtable Cover Is White

I'll start with a simple question. Why do you act?

LARSON: That's not a simple question. (Laughter.)

LAWRENCE: Because I have to.

RAMPLING: It's all I can do, I think.

MIRREN: I became an actress because I discovered the world of the imagination when I was about 14 or so and the concept that you could engage in this amazing world of storytelling. I saw a production of Hamlet, and I didn't know Hamlet died in the end.

BLANCHETT: He does? Shit.

LAWRENCE: Who's Hamlet?

BLANCHETT: It's a bit like asking why you love somebody. But for me, it's a vocation, and in the end, I feel like I didn't choose it. It chose me. All those out-of-work actors will probably tell me to shut up — and I'll have to commit ritual suicide — but I'm always trying to not do it, to be honest. And then you get a call from Martin Scorsese or Todd Haynes, and you get drawn back into it.

WINSLET: It can be lonely, actually, especially when you're younger. I remember those moments of going, "Wow, I'm doing this by myself." And what's interesting is: Who do you act for? I remember being asked that in a room with lots of really scary people, like Kenneth Branagh and Derek Jacobi. And everyone said a parent. Every single person.

BLANCHETT: As a way of seeking approval? It's that whole thing, isn't it, that actors want to be liked? And that doesn't interest me at all. What I love about the theater is that you know who you're acting for: your audience. And the thing I find really hard in film is, you don't. The audience is invisible. And we're sitting there, hoping there's other people out there.

READ MOREWhy Jennifer Lawrence Walked Away From Sony's 'Rosie Project'

Jennifer, who do you act for?

LAWRENCE: My agent. (Laughter.) If I hadn't found [acting], I would have never been able to make sense of all of these bizarre things we all had when we were kids. Why, if I think something, do I feel it? Before you're acting, that just makes you feel crazy.

BLANCHETT: All those voices.

LAWRENCE: [Once] I con­vinced my entire bus that we were being held up for ransom because I was reading about it and I was like, "This is real." I have an outlet, and now I understand what it is, otherwise I would have felt mentally insane. I really act for myself. I really love it. I don't think there's a way that you could handle these schedules, all of the actual work that goes into it, if you don't really, really love it.

FONDA: I never wanted to be an actor. My dad was an actor, and he never brought joy home, so I didn't view it as something that I would want to do. But I got fired as a secretary, and then I started studying, and Lee Strasberg said I was talented, so I started doing it just to earn money. And it took me a long time to learn to love it. And what I loved was telling a story. I tried to avoid making plays or films that weren't telling a story that I felt was important. And what I discovered in the process is, it makes you more empathic because you have to enter someone else's reality and you learn to see through many other people's eyes.

LAWRENCE: That is what acting is.

FONDA: What's totally terrifying is that, unlike a musician who has a musical instrument, or a painter that's got a canvas and a brush, this is us. Our energy, our soul, our spirits. And it's so hard because it's so vul­nerable. You're exposing everything.

Says Lawrence: “I really act for myself. I really love it. I don’t think there’s a way that you could handle these schedules, all of the actual work that goes into it, if you don’t really, really love it.”

Jane, if Strasberg hadn't liked you, what would you have done?

FONDA: I probably would have become a landscape architect.

LARSON: Oh, I quit many times. It was too hard. So I went back to college a couple of times to be a photographer, and then an interior designer, and then, at the real depths of it, I wanted to be an animal trainer. That was like a real low point —

BLANCHETT :— for all you animal trainers out there.

LARSON: I had started acting when I was 7, and I was always wrong. I would always get to the very end [of the audition process], but I wasn't a perfect package of one thing. I wasn't a cliche, and it always worked against me. I wasn't pretty enough to play the popular girl, I wasn't mousy enough to be the mousy girl, so I never fit in. And so I'd get close, but I never got anywhere, and it was really painful. And then there was a TV show that Toni Collette was starring in, and Toni Collette was my absolute hero. And when this role came, to play a girl who was struggling with identity and who was a little bit of everything, I thought: "Oh, this is what I was supposed to do. Everything's leading up to this moment." I was 18. I was like, "This is it." And I tested for it, and I didn't get it. And I was devastated.

MULLIGAN: I remember when I did The Seagull, there's a line Nina says: "I'm a proper actress now, and when I think about my vocation, I'm not afraid of life." It's a way of dealing with life.

Are you ever afraid of acting?

MULLIGAN: All the time. (Laughter.)

FONDA: Totally!

MIRREN: Of course, absolutely. It never stops. Younger actors say, "As you get older, as you've done it more, does the fear go?" Noooo. Sorry. It gets worse, actually.

LAWRENCE: I'm always terrified before every movie because I haven't found her [the character], and I don't get it. [Without acting, I'd have] become a nurse.

LARSON: I think you'd be a great nurse.

LAWRENCE: Well, thank you.

LARSON: I don't know if I'd let you put me under, but —

LAWRENCE: No, no. I'm not good with math. You don't want me to deal with your Propofol.

WINSLET: My dad was an actor, and my older sister is an actress, and so I very much remember thinking, "Well, of course I'll do that as well." But I never imagined myself as an actor who would be in films. I always only thought of myself being in a play or a musical and maybe the odd episode of [U.K. '80s TV drama] Casualty. My backup plan was to do something with children, to start a nursery school or work with underprivileged kids. And I still dream of maybe doing that in some way. I've always got children in my house, always.

Cate, you have four children. Does that make acting less important?

BLANCHETT: No. It just makes you really economical. All of the stuff that I frankly loved and enjoyed, all of the researching — you just don't have time to do it. But it's also made me more fearless because a lot of the research one does is really just a process to stave off the anxiety of doing it. It's, "Well, I'm just going to do this shit and it's either going to be really embarrassing or it's going in the right direction." You've got no time to be frightened.

Says Blanchett on why she became an actress: “It’s a bit like asking why you love somebody. … I feel like I didn’t choose it. It chose me.”

READ MORECate Blanchett on 'Truth': "I Never See Film as Being an Absolute Version of the Truth" — Actress Oscar Roundtable

Is it hard to find good roles?

MIRREN: Yes, of course.

FONDA: If you're older.

RAMPLING: Ah, the eternal question.

FONDA: A woman who's older? It's very difficult.

Older means over what age?

LAWRENCE: In Hollywood or in real life? (Laughter.)

FONDA: I'm told over 40, although what I did when I was in my 40s was I simply produced my own movies because no one offered me anything. But certainly after 50 it's hard for a woman, which is why television is such a welcoming thing.

READ MOREHelen Mirren: "Every Single Person on This Planet Has the Most Incredible Story Behind Them" — Actress Oscar Roundtable

MIRREN: It's hard for young women, too. It's very interesting, Brie saying, "I wasn't pretty enough to be the pretty girl and I wasn't unattract­ive enough to be the dorky girl."

LARSON: That's what we're all doing: paving the way, finding the roles that have the complication instead of the one that's always got it together or the dedicated housewife or the wild one who smokes cigarettes and sleeps with anybody.

WINSLET: So much is made of good, strong roles for women. Actually, it's really interesting playing vul­nerable people as well.

MULLIGAN: People always say, "You played such a strong character." I remember someone said that to me when I played a role in Shame, and she was a suicidal mess. I said, "She's not strong at all; she's incredibly weak." But "strong" to people means "real." It means you believe that's a person who exists, as opposed to some two-dimensional depiction of women.

READ MORE'Awards Chatter' Podcast — Brie Larson ('Room')

Jennifer, you've written about the pay gap between men and women, and you're taking a stance on issues. Has there been a backlash?

LAWRENCE: There's always a backlash in everything that you do, but it's not going to stop or change anything. And it's not only an issue in Hollywood. When you're asking about roles for men and women, men certainly have a longer shelf life. Men can play the sexy lead for 20 years longer than we can —

LARSON: But that's just because it's mostly dudes in charge.

BLANCHETT: It's lazy thinking across all industries. We're at the pointy and probably the most public end, but in what industry do women receive equal pay for equal work? I can't think of any.

LAWRENCE: Across all fields, women are generally paid 21 percent less than men.

MIRREN: I love the way you wrote about it because you wrote about it very simply and personally. I so recognized that thing you said about, "I didn't want to be an asshole," you know? I want to be polite. We've got to stop being polite. If I ever had children, which I don't, the first thing I'd teach a girl of mine is the words "f— off."

FONDA: Have you [all] gotten braver? When Kate was in [Holy Smoke], it's nighttime, and she walks out of this building stark naked and urinates on herself, you know?

WINSLET: One of my finer moments. (Laughter.)

LAWRENCE: Was it real pee?

READ MORECannes: Cate Blanchett Says "We're Still Living in Deeply Conservative Times"

WINSLET: No, it wasn't real. 'Cause you can't piss on cue. We did actually do a pee test because I did want to do the pissing part if I could. But when you stand up and pee, it doesn't go in a nice stream right down the center, which is what they wanted. It just races for sanctuary down one side of your leg. That didn't work when we did the pee test, and I really did pee down my leg. So what we did is, we hung a bag of saline-drip fluid and dyed it slightly yellow. It was tied to the back of my hair on a small thread, and it just sat happily in the base of my back. And some­one activated it.

LARSON: Did you wedge it or did someone else wedge it?

WINSLET: I wedged it.

BLANCHETT: Who did that? Was that credited? (Laughter.)

Is there anything you wouldn't do as an actress?

WINSLET: I wouldn't be a part of anything that had acts of violence toward children. I don't think I would do a horror film, either. That just doesn't sit well on my soul.

BLANCHETT: Oh, I love horror films.

WINSLET: Do you find them funny?

BLANCHETT: No, I find them scary.

LAWRENCE: I get nervous.

BLANCHETT: There's [also] plenty of girlfriend roles out there. They've come my way, and many people have turned them down, and I think, "Oh maybe I could do something with this." It's interesting when you get those roles, which seem like nothing on the page, and you kind of subvert them. It's hard to say no.

READ MOREKate Winslet on 'Steve Jobs': "I Knew it Was Going to Be a Very Very Unique Experience" - Actress Oscar Roundtable

“I’m always inspired by actresses who are older than me,” says Winslet. “Because I know that person has lived so much more life than I have. There’s a whole other toolbox.”

Have you said no to doing something onscreen?

LAWRENCE: I don't think so. I mean, I've skinned a squirrel.

Not a real squirrel?

LAWRENCE: Of course it was a real squirrel. I didn't kill it. But no, not yet. I had my first real sex scene a couple weeks ago [while shooting Passengers with Chris Pratt], and it was really bizarre. It was really weird.

BLANCHETT: When you say "real" sex scene, do you mean penetration or …? (Laughter.)

READ MORE'Truth': TIFF Review

LAWRENCE: No, no. Thank you for clarifying. It was weird. And everything was done right; nobody did anything wrong. It's just a bizarre experience.

How do you prepare for that?

LAWRENCE: You drink.

I got really, really drunk. But then that led to more anxiety when I got home because I was like, "What have I done? I don't know." And he was married. And it was going to be my first time kissing a married man, and guilt is the worst feeling in your stomach. And I knew it was my job, but I couldn't tell my stomach that. So I called my mom, and I was like, "Will you just tell me it's OK?" It was just very vulnerable. And you don't know what's too much. You want to do it real, you want everything to be real, but then … That was the most vulnerable I've ever been.

MULLIGAN: There's always the things that you think are going to be tough. I've been nude once, and I was like, "Oh, that's going to be a nightmare," and actually that was fine. It's kind of, "F— it, now I'm naked and everyone else isn't. This is hilarious." But [the toughest part of acting] is never a single thing. It's more like a whole character. I find film really difficult — trying to make it feel like a consistent character when you're filming everything out of order.

READ MOREHow 'Room' Landed Brie Larson and Its Young Breakout Star

You had one scene with Meryl Streep in Suffragette. What did you talk about off-camera?

MULLIGAN: They didn't have any shoes in her size. So she brought her Out of Africa shoes, so we were drilling her [about that].

Brie, with Room, did you speak to women who'd been held captive in real life?

LARSON: I'm a big believer in privacy, and I didn't feel it was my place to invade their space and ask them about that. Because ultimately the story is universal, and I didn't want to get into some sort of invasive crime tale. But I had been given some videos of the very rare times these girls had done public interviews, and they just broke my heart and made me so angry.

Is it different when you play a real-life character?

MIRREN: Yes, of course, because you have a responsibility to look like them and sound like them and maybe walk like them. But the essential journey is exactly the same, really, as with a fictional character, which is a journey of imagination. And the great thing about playing a real-life character is you don't have to make up all that backstory stuff. And truth is always so much more interesting than fiction, isn't it?

READ MOREJennifer Lawrence Talks "Submissiveness," How She "Would Love to See Change" in Pay Gap

“[Women] have got to stop being polite,” says Mirren. “If I ever had children, which I don’t, the first thing I’d teach a girl of mine is the words ‘f— off.’ ”

Speaking of truth, Cate, some people have questioned the truth of Truth, the Dan Rather story.

BLANCHETT: There's many versions, depending on whom you speak to. Someone's viewpoint has to take you through the story. A film is not a documentary. And what's wonderful about film is that it's a real provocation for people. I never, ever see film as being an absolute version of the truth.

In creating the truth, do you borrow from other actresses' performances?

LAWRENCE: I take from people all the time. I didn't ever go to acting classes or anything. You can just watch people.

MIRREN: Onscreen, babies and animals are my inspiration. They're so alive and there and not messed up in the head the way I am, you know. (Laughter.)

READ MORE'Trumbo' Actress Helen Mirren on Hedda Hopper: "She Saw Herself as a Patriot"

Are you?

MIRREN: Yes, all the time on the set, oh god, absolutely.

BLANCHETT: All you need is one moment of flow, and then you're back. You're constantly reaching for that moment. One of my favorite moments is onstage, when you see a dancer leap, and you think they're flying, and then they fall. It's that moment of suspension that you look for, and sometimes you get it and sometimes you don't.

WINSLET: I'm always inspired by actresses who are older than me. Because I know that person has lived so much more life than I have. There's a whole other toolbox.

RAMPLING: You become more and more charged with your life and with a life that you're observing. When I was younger, I was actually looking forward to getting older, to have more insight, more understanding. I'm much more tolerant with others and with myself. I'm not in rebellion all the time, I'm not angry so much. But all those feelings are really useful [when you're young] because they fire us, as long as they don't get out of control.

READ MORECharlotte Rampling: "I Was Looking Forward to Getting Older to Have More Understanding" — Actress Oscar Roundtable

“When I was younger, I was actually looking forward to getting older, to have more insight, more understanding,” says Rampling. “I’m much more tolerant with others and with myself. I’m not in rebellion all the time; I’m not angry so much.”

Jane, you had very strong feelings as a young woman. Have they mellowed?

FONDA: They are still strong, but they're tempered in a way. I mean, they're strong to where they keep me up at night, but it has nothing to do with acting. I left acting for 15 years, and I think it's really nice to have another life. I took too much for granted when I was younger. I didn't

really want to be an actor. I didn't really love it. And so I made a lot of mistakes. Oddly, I care much more about it now. I feel like a complete novice.

WINSLET: God, how lovely. What a fantastic feeling.

READ MOREJane Fonda Remembers Michael Jackson: "I Went Skinny Dipping With Him"

Do you like to watch your own work?

FONDA: I watch dailies.

LARSON: Playback? Is that what you mean?

FONDA: I learn so much by watching it.

LAWRENCE: I do, too. It's hard to do, but I think it's really important to go back and watch yourself.

MULLIGANL: I can't watch any­thing. Nothing.

LAWRENCE: I can't hear myself. I can stare at my double chin all I want, but hearing this androgynous voice, you can't even tell what sex I am.

FONDA: I produced On Golden Pond, and I was curious that Katharine Hepburn never went to dailies because she was a complete control freak. And I said, "How come you're not coming to dailies, Miss Hepburn?" And she said, "A point came with The Lion in Winter where all I could see were the wrinkles, and I realized that I had lost the ability to see what was right for the movie, and I've never gone to dailies since."

READ MOREKate Winslet on 'Steve Jobs': "It Reveals Sides to This Machine That Was Actually a Man"

Notes Mulligan: “There’s always the things that you think are going to be tough. I’ve been nude once, and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s going to be a nightmare,’ and actually that was fine. It’s kind of, ‘F— it, now I’m naked and everyone else isn’t. This is hilarious.’ ”

Have you ever acted onstage?

LAWRENCE: I never have. I'm scared of it. I don't know if it's a different animal, I don't know if it's the same animal. I don't know.

BLANCHETT: The audience gives you so much, the other actors give you so much, and what it [has] is the rehearsal process. You know that moment in week three? You f—ing lose it and everything falls apart and you go, "Oh, this is shit! It's the week three moment." On film, that might be take three — and then what you do is you rebuild it, but you're rebuilding it together.

LAWRENCE: When I watch you onscreen, it's your eyes and it's your soul.

BLANCHETT: And doing that:

(rolls her eyes).

LAWRENCE: Yeah! (Laughter.) You have crazy eyes.

BLANCHETT: Thank you. That's my bag of tricks. Both mediums feed

each other. I know more now how to use a wide shot because of working in a frame on the stage. And I know much better how to be present and immediate and intimate with a thousand-seat house because of doing a close-up. They're connected.

READ MOREJennifer Lawrence Explains Gender Pay Gap Remarks

How else are film and theater different?

BLANCHETT: I wonder if we take for granted that

there is a certain way to make a film. You start on day one, and you finish on day 30 or whatever. But I wonder if you did shoot a bit, rethink and go back, if there'd be more female directors. With preproduction, the shooting, the postproduction — that's two years of your life. And a lot of women, particularly with families, think, "How am I going to manage this?"

LAWRENCE: I'm going to ask this because I don't have children: What is the difference between men who direct [and] have families, too?

BLANCHETT: There's still an expectation that someone's going to be keeping the home fires burning.

WINSLET: My husband is a very present husband, and that has made going to work feel easier. I don't feel guilty. I definitely feel less guilt because I know he's there during breakfast, lunch and supper if I'm not.

LAWRENCE: I do want to be a mother. But I don't need to think about it right now. I really only think about work. But it's interesting that there's so many different sides of this: Women get frustrated that we don't get paid enough; and then the Republicans or the CEOs that are men say, "Well, it's because women take off time for maternity leave."

READ MORE'Suffragette': Telluride Review

LARSON: It's our fault, obviously.

MULLIGAN: We're continuing the human race for you. You're welcome! (Laughter.)

FONDA: More women have to be in charge of studios, so that they can greenlight films with women.

MIRREN: I don't think that works though, does it?

LAWRENCE: I think women can be just as sexist. Women can be misogynistic, too — more so, they have more freedom to do it.

MIRREN: The economics have to change.

LAWRENCE: Why would people have confidence in a female director when there are so few? What is it, 3 percent or something?

MULLIGAN: Ava DuVernay was saying so interestingly about the year that she was offered Selma. She was in the Sundance Institute with another guy, and they spent the whole year doing all these festivals together, and the films were equally successful and equally well reviewed — and at the end of the year, she was like, "Oh, I've been given this money to make this film, Selma." And her friend was like, "Yeah, me too. I'm makingJurassic [World]." (Laughter.)

READ MOREJane Fonda of 'Youth' on Returning to Acting in Her 60s: "I Feel Like a Complete Novice" — Actress Oscar Roundtable

Says Fonda: “I left acting for 15 years, and it’s really nice to have another life. I took too much for granted when I was younger. I didn’t really want to be an actor. I didn’t really love it. … Oddly, I care much more about it now. I feel like a complete novice.”

Charlotte, you did 1974's The Night Porter with a pioneering female director, Liliana Cavani. Did you expect more women to follow in her footsteps?

RAMPLING: For me, it's a question of choice. Liliana Cavani, she wanted more than anything to work and to be directing pictures — and that's what she did, and she carried on all her life doing that because that's what she wanted. And she made it happen. So if a woman is determined, she will get what she wants because we are very determined creatures.

BLANCHETT: You want to exercise different muscles, and it's that opportunity which is not always afforded.

READ MORETelluride: '45 Years' Thrusts Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay Into Oscar Race

Speaking of exercising different muscles, Cate once played Bob Dylan. Is there a male role the rest of you wish you could have played?

WINSLET: I'd love to play Hamlet.

MIRREN: I did do Prospero. Oh, there's always male roles I want to play. I'm so annoyed when I watch movies and go, "That could have been played by a woman." And it's driven me crazy to watch wonderful, brilliant actresses — my contemporaries when I was younger — diminish and disappear and mediocre actors carry on, male actors. It's so annoying. Just change the name is all you need to do.

BLANCHETT: I had that opportunity with a director, and I was saying: "This is a really interesting script, and it would stop being formulaic if you had a woman playing one of their team." And they're thinking, "Yeah, we have to rewrite it." I was like, "You don't have to change the dialogue."

READ MOREBrie Larson on Researching 'Room': "I Didn't Want to Get Into Some Sort of Invasive Crime Tale"

“I wasn’t a perfect package of one thing,” says Larson. “I wasn’t pretty enough to play the popular girl, I wasn’t mousy enough to be the mousy girl, so I never fit in.”

Is there any great actress you've learned from or wish you had worked with?

FONDA: The two people I would have said, I did work with: Vanessa Redgrave and Meryl Streep.

BLANCHETT: Gena Rowlands.

LARSON: I was just going to say that.

MIRREN: Anna Magnani, the goddess of film acting for me.

RAMPLING: Monica Vitti.

WINSLET: I'd love to work with Toni Collette, to be honest.

LARSON: I'd see that movie. Do that!

BLANCHETT: And Lucille Ball. We are doing something with Lucille Ball, one of my all-time favorites.

FONDA: Are you playing Lucille Ball?

BLANCHETT: That's the plan. (Groans.) Unless they change their mind.

MULLIGAN: Marion Cotillard. But I also feel like I don't want to be on the same screen as her because you would see through whatever I was doing.

The full Actress Roundtable will air on Close Up With The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday, Jan 10, at 11 a.m. ET on Sundance TV.


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