Saturday, February 28, 2009
Kanye West disses Radiohead
Kanye West has criticised Radiohead for supposedly snubbing him backstage at the Grammy Awards.
During the making of a new documentary, the rapper, singer and producer told filmmakers that he considers the Oxford band one of the groups who rival him creatively.
However, according to Reuters, he was hurt when the band 'snubbed' him backstage.
West explained: "So when he performed at the Grammys, I sat the fuck down."
His comments have reportedly been cut from the edition of VH1's 'Storytellers'.
The Grammy Awards, which took place on February 8 2009, saw Radiohead perform 'In Rainbows'' '15 Step' with the University of Southern California Trojan Marching Band.
West teamed up with Estelle to perform her Number One single 'American Boy'.
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Vincent Cassel wins Best Actor in France...
Vincent Cassel, one of the stars of the Oceans 12 and 13 movies, scooped the best actor prize at France's top Cesar film awards Friday for a role playing a notorious French gangster.
But his movie, "Mesrine", which went into the Cesars ceremony with nominations for 10 prizes, was brushed aside by "Seraphine", the story of a dowdy cleaning woman who has a secret life as an artist, which took seven awards including best French movie.
"Seraphine", directed by Martin Provost, also won the best actress Cesar for its Belgian star Yolande Moreau, best screenplay, best photography, best music, best decor and for its costumes.
Provost got the best film award from Hollywood actor-director Sean Penn.
The movie is the story of how a German art collector in France discovers that his cleaning lady, Seraphine, is a secret artist.
Cassel, now a leading bad boy in Hollywood as well in French movies, was the star of a violent film based on the life of infamous underworld figure of the 1970s Jacques Mesrine.
The movie also earned the best director award for Jean-Francois Richet.
"Waltz With Bashir", Ari Folman's animated documentary on the horrors of the 1982 Lebanon war, was named best foreign film, adding to its Golden Globe prize earlier this year.
American star Dustin Hoffman was given a special award for his life's work at the 34th Cesars ceremony.
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Friday, February 27, 2009
Eastwood thinks political correctness has made society humourless
Acting legend Clint Eastwood , 79, apparently believes that political correctness has rendered modern society humourless, for he accuses younger generations of spending too much time trying to avoid being offensive.
The Dirty Harry star insists that he should be able to tell harmless jokes about nationality without fearing that people may brand him "a racist".
"People have lost their sense of humour. In former times we constantly made jokes about different races. You can only tell them today with one hand over your mouth or you will be insulted as a racist," the Daily Express quoted him as saying.
"I find that ridiculous. In those earlier days every friendly clique had a 'Sam the Jew' or 'Jose the Mexican' - but we didn't think anything of it or have a racist thought. It was just normal that we made jokes based on our nationality or ethnicity. That was never a problem. I don't want to be politically correct.
We're all spending too much time and energy trying to be politically correct about everything," he added.
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Chyler Leigh and Husband Are Naming Their Third Child "Aniston"
Grey’s Anatomy star Chyler Leigh has chosen a name for the baby girl she and husband Nathan West are expecting this May - Aniston.
“We’re going with Aniston,” the Grey’s Anatomy star tells The Insider.
The new baby will join siblings Noah, 5, and Taelyn, 2 1/2.
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Eliza Dushku talks about DOLLHOUSE, ratings, Buffy and Joss Whedon
Eliza Dushku was in her early teens when she started appearing in movies like 1993’s This Boy’s Life and 1994’s True Lies, but her nascent Hollywood career took off when Joss Whedon cast her as brash bad-girl Faith in his cult TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer. In the years since, Dushku took prominent roles in Bring It On, City By The Sea, and the horror vehicle Wrong Turn, and she appeared for two seasons in the title role in the Fox science-fiction show Tru Calling. Now, Dushku has reunited with Whedon for the new Fox series Dollhouse, about an underground operation where “actives” can be imprinted with personalities and abilities that suit a client’s needs. Dushku plays an “active” named Echo who’s ostensibly a blank slate, but who’s haunted by stray memories and impulses that didn’t get erased. (It’s sort of a cross between Alias and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind.) Two weeks into the show’s run, Dushku talked to The A.V. Club about the challenge of playing dozens of personalities, the cult of Whedon, Fox’s tinkering, and why viewers should wait for the show to hit its stride.
The A.V. Club: Dollhouse arose from a four-hour lunch you had with Joss Whedon. How did that conversation evolve? Where did the concept of the show come from?
Eliza Dushku: Joss and I have been friends since we worked together back in the Buffy days. I moved here at 17, and he was a big-brother figure, a mentor, and an unbelievable ally. And we would get together after the show ended and just sort of talk about life and choices and careers. We sat down initially to sort of do that again, and it just so happened that four hours into our lunch, we ended up with a show.
AVC: So going into that lunch, you actually did not even have an idea for the show?
ED: No. I had just made a deal with Fox, a film and television deal, and had thought about what it would be like to come back to TV. And I can’t lie, there was one person on my mind that I wanted to do that with, and it was Joss. And so a week later, when I took him to lunch, I didn’t have anything in mind, but I knew that I wanted his input and ideas, because he’s one of the most relevant and unbelievable writers and storytellers of our time.
AVC: So was the concept his or yours? Where did the idea for Dollhouse come from?
ED: Ours? I’m not a creator, so I can’t take that kind of extreme credit. But the show is sort of, Joss has said, biographical in the sense that it has so many parallels and identifications with my own life. And as we sat there talking about my career, my life as an actress, life in this business, life in this society today, and people having the Internet, and having so much control and wants and needs and sexuality and desires, the show sort of came up from him looking at my life and going, “You know, you really do wear so many different masks on a day-to-day basis.” And that’s fascinating to me, as a woman and as an actress, that we could put together a concept to showcase all of that. There’s a lot going on!
AVC: The show has gone through its share of delays and retooling. What was going on with it before, and what was done to work it out?
ED: We shot the first pilot, Joss did, in sort of a noir style, and I think first and foremost,Fox didn’t like that feel. So there were a few things they wanted different, and they wanted the story to unfold in different ways. It was a big deal for Fox, and they have a lot invested in the show, so absolutely their opinion matters. So we retooled it, and instead of doing a cut-and-paste job with the pilot and doing reshoots, Joss just sort of went, “I have an idea that I think that you’re looking for, so let me just reshoot a new pilot.”
AVC: It isn’t like Joss is some new kid on the block, though. He has a lot of shows under his belt, and he’s got this large cult following. Is it frustrating when you get that kind of feedback?
ED: Honestly, yes. I understand it from a business perspective, and from Fox’s view, but at the same time, we’ve now done 13 episodes, and people have said that the show took off once they finally realized that Joss is best off left alone to do his thing. That happens around episode six—six through 13 are just extraordinary. I love one, two, three, four, and five, but Joss’ first script that he did after the pilot is number six, which is called “Man On The Street,” and it is just unbelievable. From that point on, the world unfolds in Joss’ way, with Joss’ speed, and it’s really remarkable.
AVC: Are you biting your nails in the interim? There are still a few more weeks before that episode airs.
ED: I think it’s going to be important for Fox and for us to really push that message. Every show needs time to grow, and it’s really difficult to set up a show, especially one with such a complicated, complex premise, that’s so multi-dimensional. We wanted—and Fox also wanted—the first six episodes to be episodes people could pick up and understand what was going on even if they were late getting to the party, which I agree with. So the first six episodes are more self-contained. But once we sort of hit that place where the show takes off, I think it’s going to be important to send some screener copies back out there to some of the reviewers that maybe didn’t jump on board the first time around, or some of the diehard Joss fans that felt they were missing his voice in some of the first shows. Because his voice is back, and it’s loud, and it’s as exciting as ever once we get rolling.
AVC: How are you feeling about the network? Have you been given any assurances from them about allowing the show time to develop and cultivate its audience?
ED: I have a great relationship with the network. They’ve been straightforward and honest and communicative through this whole process. Every time something has happened with the show that was surprising or confusing, I’ve gotten phone calls where I heard it straight from them, and they gave me a why and a reason. And from everything they’ve told me, they believe in the show, they want the show to grow, they believe the show is a crossover that will grow past Joss’s firm fan base. But it’s a tricky time right now. It’s a tricky time in all the entertainment business, and they absolutely just keep reiterating their investment and their confidence in Joss and myself and the show as a whole.
AVC: What do you take away from the first week’s performance, and being on Friday nights in general?
ED: I think that people have to get used to Friday-night television, because it hasn’t been around for some time. Which I find sort of strange myself. I truly am not just saying this because my show’s on Friday nights, but I can just remember being in on Friday nights, because let’s be honest, you can’t go out and rage necessarily both nights every weekend. [Laughs.] I like to have one night on the weekend where I can just cuddle up at my house. But I think it’s going to be interesting to see how that happens. And with our economy right now, and where we are in our country, and with Obama saying we need to scale back and cut down with this inordinate amount of consuming we do, we need to take responsibility, and I think this is a nice reason to give people to stay home on Friday nights. [Laughs.]
AVC: In a promotional interview you did for the show, you talked about how it would show a side of you that Joss has seen, but that maybe other people haven’t. What did you mean by that?
ED: Well, when I moved to L.A. at 17, I had just come out of high school. I grew up and went to public school in Boston. I was a tomboy and had three big brothers. I had created an entire survival mechanism, just “Kill or be killed.” Basically, protect yourself at all costs. I was definitely that tough tomboy. And as I got to know Joss, and every year that I sort of recovered from middle school, I have developed a lot of other colors. I have a lot of vulnerability, I think I have a pretty fair sense of humor at all times—which you can see a little bit in Bring It On, a little bit in Jay And Silent Bob—but really, I think Joss just wanted to give me an opportunity to showcase some of the other parts of my personality. There’s a softie, there’s a love in me. [Laughs.]
AVC: Echo seems like the opposite of Faith, at least when she’s in the Dollhouse. She does have a certain curiosity, but she’s also blank and subservient, for the time being, anyway. Was that a conscious decision for you and Joss? To have her so far removed from the character that you had established so strongly in the previous series?
ED: It’s important for the formula of the show. It’s important that in order to be imprinted to be anyone, she has to start as no one. She has to start as a blank slate.
AVC: Is it a challenge to convey that?
ED: It is, but it’s also strangely peaceful, in a way, because you’re just completely void of fear or inhibition or self-consciousness, and that’s actually, especially in this day and age, kind of liberating, and a lovely place to escape to.
AVC: It’s very childlike.
ED: I always channel the 6-year-old me when I’m doing my Echo. Well, at least for the first part of the season.
AVC: As Echo becomes more self-aware and perhaps less childlike, the dynamics of the show stand to change pretty dramatically. How do you pull that off without losing a grip on the basic idea of the show?
ED: I think that’s what makes the show fascinating. I think the main question has been “How are people going to come back every week with a heroine that they don’t recognize?” And I think that the point is that as Echo becomes self-aware and starts to evolve past this giant system that’s objectified her, people will be rooting for her strength and her evolution as a woman and human being.
AVC: You’ve done several personalities over the course of 13 episodes. Do any stand out as particularly fun to do?
ED: I did love playing the blind cultist in an episode from Tim Minear, who is one of my favorite writers, who has been with us since the Buffy days, and Angel as well. They implant cameras into my eyeballs and send me into a cult compound as a true believer to get intel on what’s happening inside. And yet, because we’re not spies, because we’re not in the loop, so to speak, I just go in there as a pure true believer. And that was very interesting.
AVC: Do you have a sense of what you can and can’t pull off? Is this show testing where your limits are as an actress?
ED: I think that remains to be seen, and Joss has a lot of confidence in me. He’s said on a few occasions that at the end of the day, he wants to take me out of my comfort zone as much as possible. And he’s done that quite a bit. For the first 13 shows, I asked for every single bit of it. So I’m game for it all.
AVC: Would you be game for, say, a musical episode of Dollhouse if such a thing were conceived?
ED: I’m game for whatever he’s bringing.
AVC: What’s it like being a part of Joss Whedon’s cult? What are the upsides and downsides of that kind of intensity?
ED: Well, on a personal level, I have one of the best friends in the world in Joss, and from a fan standpoint, a lot of love, but also a lot of scrutiny. Based on having this show [Buffy] that came seemingly out of nowhere and was a hit, despite the network not necessarily supporting it, fans really feel like they discovered something that people weren’t on to yet. So I think they feel very protective, and with that comes some insecurity. Like a child, they don’t want it to fail. And then comes a certain level of expectation. They’re very involved, but at the same time, I can’t think of anything more flattering and admirable than that kind of passion, and that kind of devotion and loyalty.
AVC: Do you remember what the fan reaction was like when you first appeared as Faith on Buffy?Were you braced for whatever that was going to be?
ED: Kind of. I didn’t expect it, but at the same I could feel, as we continued, that something magical was going on. So I definitely knew that we were making something special, and I think it was satisfying to have it received so well, and to have it end up being such an important piece of that puzzle.
AVC: Do you ever get interested in how a character like that ends up taking off in the subculture? Have you followed Faith or Echo in other realms? Comic books and fan fiction—do they interest you at all?
ED: Sure, it absolutely does. Because my friends do it, my friends are involved in it. I mean, Joss does so many of those comics, and it’s just fascinating to me. It’s a world that I really didn’t know before I knew him. It’s fantasy, and yet you can exaggerate everyday, universal themes and use metaphors to really drive the message home.
AVC: Are you done shooting the 13 episodes?
ED: We finished the 13th episode about two weeks ago, and since then, I’ve been on a full-blown press tour. I actually just got back to L.A. two days ago, and every morning, I’ve been doing radio and talk shows and shock jocks. It’s been really fun, but I’m just glad that it’s finally here. We had that lunch two Augusts ago, and it’s nice that it’s here. And again, we want people to come and show up on our first Friday night, but we want people to stick around and see the show evolve. Especially for some of our diehard fans, take it through episodes six through 13, because that’s where I feel Joss got to take the reins back a little bit. And the show really gets pretty remarkable at that point. The first six episodes are sort of tailored and monitored for the network and for people that are late to the party, and every episode is more or less self-contained, and people can come into the show and get the premise. But that being said, there were some things we had to sacrifice.
AVC: And then it’s more novelistic toward the back half?
ED: Yeah, Joss is a novelist. He’s best when he has his chapters to roll out the stories and the personalities of the people and the places.
AVC: With the shooting done for now, what are your plans in the interim? What are you working on next?
ED: I’m producing a biopic, and I’m producing a couple other things, and also acting in them. The work will be hard, especially since we just finished such an arduous shoot, but I’m ready for the next challenge. I have a new outlook on my career at this point, because this is a career I tripped and fell into, and it took me a few years to realize that I have such an opportunity. I’ve been redefining who I want to be in this business in the past few years, and with the added producer element, it’s just a whole new level of excitement.
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Thursday, February 26, 2009
The US doesn't appreciate anything original, even if it has Heath Ledger's name attached to it
Backstage at the Oscars on Sunday night, where her brother was awarded a posthumous supporting actor's award, Kate Ledger told reporters that her family is very much in the loop on his final movie.
"We've seen a little bit of the footage," she said of Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus," Heath Ledger's last film. "I think it's going to be amazing."
But the comments only highlighted a larger question: When will U.S. audiences get to see it?
The head-trippy "Parnassus," about a traveling magician who gives customers more than they bargained for, is a joint production of financial entity Grosvenor Park and sales mogul Samuel Hadida of Davis Films. It was gliding along as just another independently financed production -- and product of Gilliam's funhouse imagination -- when Ledger died early last year, in the middle of production.
The project's fate was thrown into question until Jude Law, Colin Farrell and Johnny Depp stepped in, with all three part of an elaborate work-around that has the actors playing different parts of Ledger's role.
That saved the production. But the sales process since then has been nearly as complicated.
A number of U.S. buyers during the summer and early fall were said to be interested in acquiring stateside rights -- Lionsgate and Overture reportedly were among the potential suitors -- but word of a potential deal quickly quieted down.
That has fueled speculation concerning such matters as dissent among producers over finances. Rumors aside, the film, whose budget is thought to be upward of $20 million, does present challenges.
Even with the Ledger hook, a distributor would face marketing difficulties. Gilliam has grown more experimental in recent years, with such fare as "Tideland" and "The Brothers Grimm," and marketing experts say that retailing "Parnassus" as a Ledger film risks a backlash among general audiences unaccustomed to artier material.
A U.S. deal is expected shortly, with a mini-major or larger indie expected to make the play. (The movie already has a deal for Mandate International to release it in the United Kingdom, where former Monty Python member Gilliam tends to fare better. It is expected to open there in the summer.)
Still, the absence of a U.S. distribution deal nearly six months after talks began speaks to the difficulty of selling art-house films to the domestic market.
"This movie stars Heath Ledger in his final performance -- it will get a deal and come out in the U.S.," said one indie film veteran. "But it's no accident that it's taking this long."
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Traffic Rises at Employment Sites
With more Americans out of work, career development Web sites have seen a surge in traffic, according to new data from Nielsen Online.
In January 2009, there were 49.7 million unique visitors to these sites, up from 41.5 million unique visitors in January 2008, an increase of 20 percent.
CareerBuilder was the top destination with 20.8 million visitors, followed by Yahoo/HotJobs and Monster.com, with 11.7 million and 9.5 million unique visitors, respectively.
Among age groups, the number of unique visitors to career development sites age 65 and older increased 41 percent year-over-year to 3.6 million.
"With the current unstable economy and rising unemployment rate, more people are heading online to search for jobs. While 65 used to be considered the age when most people retired, we are seeing a trend toward later retirement or partial retirement," said Chuck Schilling, research director, agency and media, Nielsen Online.
He added, "There's an opportunity for publishers and advertisers to appeal to this niche by providing content that's relevant to longtime career holders."
Several job sites have launched major campaigns of late, including Monster and CareerBuilder, which bought time on the Super Bowl, and TheLadders.com, which has gained buzz for its commercials that spoof Japanese monster movies.
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Keira Knightley "Lear" Movie Canned
In a correspondence with Keira Knightley's agent today, Keira Web learned a few things about the upcoming schedule of the British actress.
First up she is no longer attached to Ruby Films' new adaptation of Shakespeare's "King Lear" as the entire project has been shelved.
A while back Knightley was attached to a film called "Tulip Fever", also by Ruby Films, that similarly got canned.
Also she will be playing the part of Lillian Palmer the actress in the currently filming "London Boulevard". Previous speculation had her linked to play Colin Farrell's love interest Aisling.
Finally, despite reports, Knightley is still NOT confirmed for the "My Fair Lady" remake.
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Blake Unincarcerated
Amy Winehouse is officially on notice.
The troubled diva's soon-to-be ex-hubby, Blake Fielder-Civil, has been sprung from a British lockup after serving 27 months for assaulting a barkeep.
Per the U.K.'s Sun newspaper, the 26-year-old Fielder-Civil was greeted at the front gates of Edmunds Hill Prison with a hug from his mum, Georgette, at approximately 10 a.m. Wednesday. The two subsequently got into a silver BMW and drove to an undisclosed location.
Fielder-Civil was initially released in November into a rehab program, but after flunking a drug test he was sent back to the clink a month later to complete his sentence.
At that point, Winehouse was quoted by London's News of the World as saying her tumultuous marriage to her so-called Blake Incarcerated was "over." Each has since hired lawyers to hash out a divorce agreement.
The sobriety-seeking Winehouse has been avoiding her native Britain for much of the past few months. She has most recently been spotted in St. Lucia and is reportedly looking to buy a home on the Caribbean island and begin work on a new album. Winehouse is also preparing for U.S. concert dates, including a headlining gig at Southern California's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April.
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Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Study: TV Ads More Effective Than Ever
There has been no shortage of articles questioning the effectiveness of TV ads in the digital age. And more than one expert has proclaimed: "the 30-second spot is dead." However, a massive study conducted by the Advertising Research Foundation begs to differ.
An analysis of 388 case histories from seven different research agencies found that TV is not only as effective as ever, it is possibly even increasing in effectiveness when it comes to building sales.
"Marketers need to be more confident in the fact that there are different ways that their brand messages add value to people's lives. [TV ads] help simplify the [buying] decision. As people's lives become more complicated, there is great value to that, said Joel Rubinson, ARF's chief research officer. "They want to zone out and watch TV and relax and let the communications wash over them. It's an extension of the brand experience."
Data from Point Logic, for example, found that among 25 touch points measured between 2004 and 2007, TV moved from seventh to fourth in terms of people impacted per $1,000 spent.
TV was No. 1 in terms of raising awareness. ARF also reviewed research from IRI, ARS, PM Group, Dratfield, Marketing Evolution and Millward Brown/Dynamic Logic. The case studies spanned from 1990-2008.
Rubinson said the findings show that "units sold numbers increased as a result of increased TV impressions. [When you see it] across 388 case histories, I think you've got to believe it."
-By Kenneth Hein, Brandweek
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Lauren Conrad Covers Seventeen April 2009
Fans of The Hills (and Laguna Beach before that) who’ve witnessed Lauren Conrad have her heart broken over and over again will be happy to know she’s learned from her mistakes.
“I think there was a time when I let a guy, if not several guys, walk all over me — which I would never let happen now,” she tells Seventeen magazine for its April issue. “I’ve grown to realize you can’t allow yourself to be a victim.”
Unlike her past romances with Brody Jenner and Jason Wahler, Conrad has kept her current relationship with actor Kyle Howard away from the cameras. In fact, the fashion designer won’t even officially call him her boyfriend. “He’s a friend,” she tells the magazine. “I’m a fan of labels, but girlfriend doesn’t always look good on me. Ha!”
MTV star is a label she won’t have for much longer: Conrad tells Seventeen the show’s upcoming fifth season (season 4 bonus episodes will premiere in March) will be her last.
“My biggest thing with the show was that I wanted to walk away from it while it’s still a great thing,” she explains. “I always want to remember it that way. I gave MTV a deadline and said, ‘This is as long as I can do it and stay sane.’ ” – Joey Bartolomeo.
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Jade Goody charity walk: Friends and family join fund-raising event
Family and friends are taking part in a massive walk for Jade to raise money to fight cancer.
More than 500 people have so far signed up for Saturday’s event.
Jack will take part if Jade is well enough for him to leave her. His siblings have also pledged support.
Organiser and friend Jerri Lee, 24, said Walk for Jade took off when she posted details on Facebook.
She said: “All of her mates just want to help as much as we can.
“The walk is about her, her family and fighting cancer. I told her about it at the wedding and she was absolutely thrilled.
“It really touched her heart. We are all doing whatever we can to support her and give her a boost.”
Co-organiser Jane Collins added: “We want to raise awareness of the dangers of cancer.
“Jade has made women more aware of how important it is to get screened for cervical cancer.”
Money raised will go to a cancer charity of Jade’s choice. The event will start at Femme Fatale, Jade’s beauty salon in Loughton, and end in High Beach, Essex.
Meanwhile, the North West Cancer Research Fund yesterday said Jade’s high-profile plight has prompted people to be more generous with their donations despite the recession.
Takings are up 50 per cent – tens of thousands of pounds – compared with this time last year. Chief Anne Jackson said: “Jade’s experiences have touched the hearts of millions. She’s increased public awareness.”
Adriana Lima: "I'm Not Pregnant"
Adriana Lima is not pregnant, her publicist has released an official statement.
"Adriana Lima wants to set the record straight.
"I'm not pregnant," she says through a statement released to Celebuzz through her publicist.
A day after announcing that she Los Angeles Clippers guard Marko Jaric, eloped on Valentine's Day, a MySpace page said to be from Lima hinted that she might be pregnant.
"The MySpace page is a fake," says Adriana's publicist Liza Anderson. The site has been taken down.
"Marko and Aridana are very happy, but not with child. They plan on having a family one day in the future. But not now.""
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Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Rihanna & Chris Brown: Attacked popstar "can't be without" boyfriend
The pretty singer, who suffered a bruised face and split lip after Brown (19) apparently attacked her two weeks ago, is willing to give him a second chance.
And the RnB star has been doing everything he can to get back into Rihanna’s good books – the 'New York Daily News' reported that he bombarded her with expensive gifts for her recent 21st birthday, including a necklace and a diamond bracelet.
He also called her at her Hollywood home to wish her happy birthday.
His charm offensive seems to be working on the singer, who misses her boyfriend despite what happened.
A friend told the paper: “Rihanna so wanted Chris with her on her big day, but obviously realises why they can’t be together right now. But it’s becoming more and more clear that she can’t be without him.”
Rihanna has accused Brown of the attack and continues to help Los Angeles police with their investigation. Brown, who is set to to go to court over the alleged assault, released a recent statement saying was "sorry" about the incident.
Musicians who have suffered domestic abuse include Tina Turner, who was assaulted for years by husband Ike, while Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown famously fought for years.
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Robert Smith Says Mean Things About Radiohead
When we last left Cure frontman Robert Smith he was bitching about iTunes UK overcharging for his band's 2008 EP, Hypnagogic States. And now he's bitching
about Radiohead not charging enough for their 2007 album In Rainbows. Maybe all that hair product is taking its toll somehow.
In a recent interview with Music Radar, the pancake makeup aficionado said he "disagreed violently" with Radiohead's pay what you want scheme: "You can't allow other people to put a price on what you do, otherwise you don't consider what you do to have any value at all and that's nonsense. If I put a value on my music and no one's prepared to pay that, then more fool me, but the idea that the value is created by the consumer is an idiot plan, it can't work."
While Smith's point is hardly ridiculous, it's tough not to imagine hefty dollops of bitterness and jealously going along with those harsh words-- especially since a relative few noticed the release of the Cure's 4:13 Dream last year. The barb reminds me of Coachella 2004, when Radiohead and the Cure headlined on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. When Radiohead hit the stage, everyone stayed and crammed. When the Cure hit the stage the next day, many stayed...but many took the chance to leave early, too. (A similar situation could play out this year when the Cure close Coachella after My Bloody Valentine and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs on Sunday.)
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Who'll protect us from NSF's ad campaign?
Olson in Minneapolis has created new print ads tagged "Live safer" for NSF, a certification company that puts its stamp of approval on various consumer and commercial products and services. (Who certifies NSF? The government? Maybe Ralph Nader. He's got time on his hands.) The ads show miniature, potentially life-saving professionals protecting products—in this case bottled water. See all four ads here. The concept is logical, but I find it kind of creepy and invasive. The security guard standing watch over my jar of multivitamins could nick anything from my medicine cabinet and have a party in there. I also don't appreciate the lifeguard dangling his bare feet inside my bottle of water. And frankly, those of us who grew up in the '70s will equate the tiny boat in the jug of filtered water with the Watergate-era hijinks of the Ty-D-Bol Man.
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Spanish Tourism Taps Havas
The Spanish Tourism Board has consolidated its estimated $55 million global media account with Havas' MPG and sister digital shop Media Contacts after a review.
Media Contacts had been the incumbent on digital. WPP Group's Mediaedge:cia, which defended, had previously handled offline media chores. Aegis Group's Carat also competed for the account.
For the first time, the client has put the entire account, including digital, with one agency. The account will be managed by MPG's Madrid office.
Rafael Urbano, general director of MPG Madrid, said in a statement: "During these uncertain times, it is key to invest in differentiation strategies, just like [the board] has done. It is very satisfactory for us to see how key brands such as Turespaña continue to benefit from our market-leading insight and intelligence."
The client will kick off its 2009 tourist season campaign in March in 34 markets, focusing on those countries with higher tourism figures in Europe, as well as the U.S. and Australia, MPG said. Approximately 75 percent of the total budget is for Europe, 15 percent for the U.S. and 10 percent for Asia-Pacific.
-By Steve McClellan
source
Monday, February 23, 2009
Zappos: More Than Just Shoes
Need a new head-to-toe look? Zappos.com hopes a new TV campaign will drive consumers to the online retailer's Web site for more than just its shoes.
The advertising, from The Ad Store in New York, showcases the range of clothing and accessories that can be found on the site. Spots star men and women who step into Zappos' boxes in their underwear to emerge fully clothed once they lift those boxes over their heads.
Two 30-second and six 15-second spots encourage consumers to "Put a little Zappos in your day!" The theme originated last year in a TV spot, where a cheery, back-flipping mailman brightens people's days with the delivery of their Zappos purchases.
"Last year the campaign was all about the box," said Paul Capelli, founder of The Ad Store. "This year we are talking about the fact that Zappos is about more than shoes and we use the box as the springboard" to show that Zappos has "all this other stuff that brings happiness to your life." (Click here to read a Q&A with Zappos' CEO.)
The new ads continue the celebratory theme with a similar graphic treatment that also highlights the brand's core values such as "create fun and a little weirdness" and "be adventurous, creative and open-minded."
The campaign is designed to not only feature Zappos' products and represent the joyful experience of shopping on the site but the company culture as well. "The performance, the graphics and the music are a good representation of the culture and what goes on there on a daily basis," said Brian Flatow, president of the agency and creative director on Zappos.
While Zappos has built its brand predominately through word of mouth, the Henderson, Nev.-based company has used TV advertising in the last couple of years to grow its customer base. "These guys are the epitome of Web 2.0. They certainly grew to where they are through superior customer service and the word of mouth that has generated," added Capelli. "The last couple of years they've looked to generate trial and find ways to expose this cool culture and experience to a larger group of people."
Zappos spent about $13 million on ads last year, down from more than $20 million in 2007, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.
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Microsoft Forms Coalition of Ad Publishers
Microsoft has formed a coalition of prominent online publishers to consult on the development of PubCenter, its still-in-beta ad management tool.
The new Publisher Leadership Council includes Viacom, The New York Times Co., Dow Jones Online, Time Inc. and IAC. According to officials, the group’s members -- most of whom typically compete with Microsoft for online ad dollars -- will be provided with an opportunity to help shape the functionality and design of the PubCenter platform.
PubCenter ultimately promises to streamline the laborious process of selling online advertising by simplifying inventory management, forecasting, pricing and reporting. “It’s for anything a publisher has to worry about beyond creating content and sales,” said Scott Howe, corporate vp of Microsoft’s advertiser and publisher solutions group. “What we’re really focused on is the nuts and bolts of a publisher’s daily grind.”
According to Howe, most Web sites employ multiple vendors to assist with these various processes -- ranging from companies like Salesforce.com to Adify to Microsoft’s own Rapt -- which hinders their ability to sell ads in a timely fashion and often leads to executional errors.
“It’s still too hard for publishers,” he said. “Stuff slips through the cracks. Many publishers can’t even manage inventory in real time.”
The hope is that the council can provide actionable suggestions that will help publishers across the interactive spectrum, and that Microsoft can become an industry leader on this issue. “We’ve invited them into the laboratory,” Howe said. “If some of our blueprints sort of leak out to the market, then so be it.”
Of course, Microsoft is not the only major industry player out to tackle the growing complexity of online advertising. Yahoo last year introduced APT, an ambitious platform that aimed at curing many of the industry’s processing ills by bringing more efficiency to buying and selling.
In addition, Publicis Groupe’s VivaKi was established last year with the goal of creating tools and solutions that address similar issues that plague the agency side of the business.
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Mickey Rourke is getting an Oscar after all!
The Academy Award-nominated star, who recently lost his beloved dog Loki, says he's getting a new Chihuahua this week and he's going to name it Oscar.
"The Wrestler" star may have lost to Sean Penn last night for the Big Award but he's telling friends that he'll have his Oscar regardless.
"Mickey has other dogs but he misses Loki terribly," a friend of the star tells RadarOnline.com. "He doesn't want to wait long either - he wants to get his new pooch this week."
On Saturday night Mickey took home the Independent Spirit Award and in his colorful acceptance speech he dedicated his win to Loki, saying, "This is for you, baby!"
"The new dog won't replace Loki but by naming it Oscar Mickey says he'll make his comeback year even more special," added the friend.
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Hilary Duff to Star With Toby Keith in "Provinces of Night"
The local film community was in a hushed buzz last week about a new feature film possibly coming to town. Now, it's confirmed.
Production offices for "Provinces of Night" were open Monday at EUE/Screen Gems studios. Wilmington campus.
"We're excited to have them," said Aaron Syrett, director of the North Carolina Film Office, which is based in Raleigh. "They've been working on this for a while."
The movie, directed by Shane Taylor and produced by Jay McPhaul, is based on a book of the same title by William Gay. The trade magazine "Production Weekly" earlier this month announced that Hilary Duff, Toby Keith, Pell James and Bruce McGill would star in the project.
Details of the movie's plot are unavailable, but the book is about a teenager in 1950s rural Tennessee who finds himself home alone after his father runs off to find and kill his wife's lover. About this same time, the teen's grandfather returns home after 20 years away to discover his remaining two sons are an alcoholic womanizer and a Bible quoter who has a habit of putting curses on his enemies.
Most, if not all, of the filming will take place on-location, said Bill Vassar, executive vice president of EUE/Screen Gems in Wilmington.
Vassar said local crews will be working on the film for five weeks.
This is the first commercial feature to be shot in the Port City since "Nights In Rodanthe," which recently was released on DVD, filmed here in the spring of 2007.
Most industry activity lately has been for television productions, including The CW's "One Tree Hill," HBO's "Little Britain USA" and "Eastbound & Down," which debuted Feb. 15.
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First flight for Slumdog actors before the red carpet
The child actors of Slumdog Millionaire will take their first plane to Hollywood to see if the movie wins any of the 10 Oscars for which it is nominated.
Walking the red carpet tomorrow will be 40 cast and crew members from the film, nominated for 10 Academy awards including best picture and best director.
Among them will be Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, 10, and Rubina Ali Qureshi, nine, who were picked from Mumbai's slums to appear in the movie.
"I'm not scared," said Rubina. "I'm going to take a lot of pictures and show them to people over here."
Dev Patel, the 18-year-old Londoner who plays the film's main character, and his co-star, Frieda Pinto, 24, from Mumbai, are also going to Los Angeles.
Some reports claimed the child actors had been exploited by the film-makers and paid pitiful wages. The film's director, Danny Boyle, released a statement denying the accusations, pointing out the children had been put into school for the first time, and that a fund had been set up to cover their costs.
Anil Kapoor, who plays the gameshow host in the movie, told the Guardian: "These things get kicked up easily in India."
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ANTM Cycle 13: The Midget Cycle
Many of the contestants who recently strutted down the runway at the Golden East Crossing mall to try and become “America’s Next Top Model” may have been too tall to qualify for the upcoming cycle of the show even if they had won the local event, according to new rules announced after the local contest.
A Greenville CW television network affiliate initiated an open-casting call for the show at the mall on Feb. 7 before the national CW network released eligibility requirements for the upcoming 13th cycle of the show.
The new rules, which were released Feb. 13, could have disqualified many of the contestants more than 5 feet, 7 inches tall who participated in the open casting call at the mall. Eighty-two contestants competed to move on to the next phase of the modeling competition.
The rules for the upcoming show cycle stated that contestants must now be 5 feet 7 inches or shorter in height. This is a change from the previous 12 cycles of the show when contestants were supposed to be taller than this height.
The Greenville television affiliates promoted the show using the eligibility rules for the show’s last 12th cycle, which required that the contestants be 5 feet 7 inches or taller.
“According to the rules for this current cycle, they (contestants) must be 5’7” and under. Anyone over 5’7” would not be considered to be a contestant on this cycle,” said Jeff Tobler, the publicist for the national CW network in a telephone interview from Los Angeles.
But the new eligibility requirements also say that “producers reserve the right to make case-by-case exceptions.”
Vickie Jones, vice president and general manager for WNCT-TV, which broadcasts the CW network, said in a telephone message that the 12th cycle’s eligibility requirements were used for the Rocky Mount event. She said this was done with the “CW network’s cooperation and approval.”
“It’s called a pre-casting call, and we did understand and know the rules may change, which actually is on the form,” she said in the message.
She added that the station is in the process of contacting the 82 contestants from the Golden East Crossing event so they can update their application information to the show’s cycle 13 form.
“Because of the change in height (requirement), we are giving them the opportunity to come to a Greenville casting call,” she said. “We were aware the rules could change because they weren’t announced yet. But we do have a plan for contacting each contestant and getting them to put in an application on the cycle 13 form.”
She was not able to be reached for a live comment despite numerous calls to her office on Thursday and Friday, so it is unclear when and where the Greenville contest is being held. It is also unclear whether the pictures and biographies of women in the mall competition will be forwarded to the show’s producers.
The Greenville station’s Web page promoted the Golden East Crossing casting call this way: “The CW tells WNCT that you can use Cycle 12 applications as they’re still waiting on (supermodel) Tyra (Banks) to provide new ones! Hope to see YOU at the casting call!”
It’s unclear how many of the women that participated in the casting call at the mall were above or below 5 feet, 7 inches tall. Contestants were given the rules, but their height was not measured. Several who strutted out onto the runway were clearly shorter than 5 feet, 7 inches. The eventual winner was 5-foot, 4-inch Yessenia Anita Rodriguez. The 22-year-old bested nine other finalists chosen from the 82 participants.
The votes were tallied on the Rocky Mount Telegram Web page. Rodriguez, whose height falls within the new contest guidelines, will now be able to move on to a regional competition in Florida for a more in-depth meeting with casting officials. She received more than 37,000 votes on the Telegram’s Web page.
Tobler said the winners of affiliate-sponsored casting calls are guaranteed to meet with casting officials from the show. But beyond that, they are given no advantage over other contestants, he said.
Neal Davis, general manager of the CW 22 affiliate in Raleigh, said it is unclear to him why the Greenville CW affiliate went ahead with the open casting call before the cycle 13 rules were released. He also said the affiliate intruded upon that affiliate’s territory by holding the event in Rocky Mount.
“Someone referred me to your paper’s Web site and said, ‘Look what they are doing in Rocky Mount,’” he said. “It confused me.”
The Greenville CW affiliate was not the only one in the country to hold recent casting calls before the new rules came out.
For example, KGNS-TV/CW studios in Laredo, Texas, held a casting call for the show on Jan. 29 that also called for contestants who were 5’7” or taller.
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Ron Artest Loves Animals, Appears In New PETA Ad
When Ron Artest isn't sticking it to his opponents on the basketball court, he's sticking up for animals. That's why the Houston Rockets forward teamed up with us and the Houston Humane Society to star in an ad urging people to get their dogs "fixed."
"These animals are literally dying for a good home," says Artest, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the 2003-2004 season. "Millions of dogs and cats in shelters across the country are euthanized every year because there simply aren't enough good homes for them. Spaying and neutering your [animal companion] will help control the overpopulation problem."
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2009 Academy Awards winners - Oscar gold for Slumdog Millionaire, Kate Winslet & Sean Penn!
WOW! We were almost so right on the money. With the exception of Penelope Cruz beating The Curious Case of Benjamin Button's Taraji P. Henson for Best Supporting Actress, our Oscar predictions nailed it.
Then again, we all know that the Oscars can be a bit yesterday but who would have though a lyric from Styx's 1983 hit "Mr. Roboto" was to show up? But that's exactly what happened when Kuni Kato said "Domo arigato Mr. Roboto" when accepting his Oscar for Best Short Film, Animated.
And who knew that two time Director of Photography Oscar winner Janusz Kaminiski, who joined the often under appreciated James Franco and Seth Rogen in the funniest portion of the entire ceremony, was the true comedian of this year's Academy Awards?
As we predicted, Heath Ledger posthumously won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight. What none of us could have ever predicted was that the acceptance of the award by Ledger's parents and sister would have brought tears to our eyes and brought us, like everyone in the Kodak Theatre, to out feet.
As our almost perfect predictions guesstimated Slumdog Millionaire did win the Oscar for Best Picture and Danny Boyle, the man behind its camera, did win Best Director. The shock was that the rags to riches tales set in Mumbai, India won one Academy Award after another. From Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Cinematography, a few more and then to Best Song and Best Score and the big ones, Slumdog Millionaire, like in the movie itself, just wouldn't stop winning.
As for the show itself ... well, the judge is trying to get into the Vanity Fair party, the jury is partying at the Chateau Marmont on the Sunset Strip and both are still out about the actual show itself - at least until they met up at Prince's party at LA's Avalon. Host Hugh Jackman and the Oscar producers threw everything - literally if you include all the former Oscar winners like Whoopi Goldberg in that leopard skin outfit and that Oscar song routine that included Beyonce, a very sexy Vanessa Hudgens, Zac Efron, and Jackman himself - and the kitchen sink into the show. Some stuff, like the sheer scale of the sets and the innovative use of video and film footage, were fantastic. Some stuff, like the Jerry Lewis tribute, was neither here nor there. And some stuff, like that low budget low rent musical opening number where Jackman sang about "human excrement" to Kate Winslet and told us it was "OK to be gay" totally floundered. The jokes about the Academy's snub of The Dark Knight and the awkward Frost/Nixon with Anne Hathaway really looked and sounded like a bad glad handling Australian variety show a week away from cancellation.
For me, with all the winners, losers, nominees and presenters, the Oscars were all about someone who wasn't even there. It was all about Loki, Mickey Rourke's recently deceased Chihuahua. That dog was what got Mickey through the tough times and, as pet lovers ourselves, we know the little girl was looking down from Dog Heaven cheering her guy on - and it took unconditional love to get through these Oscars ... like Jennifer Aniston and Jack Black's so-called banter when giving the animation awards. In the end, Mickey may have lost, but Best Actor winner Sean Penn spoke for us all when he praised him. You're back Mickey, and you'll be back at the Oscars again soon.
by Dominic Patten
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Sunday, February 22, 2009
Michael Jackson plans 'greatest comeback in history' at London's O2
Reclusive and beleaguered singer Michael Jackson is in talks to launch the 'greatest comeback in history' with a 30-date performance run at London's O2 arena in July.
Michael Jackson, aiming to cash in on his popularity in Europe, is on the verge of securing a £1.5million-a-night deal at the 20,000-seat arena.
The deal with organizers AEGLive is weeks from being announced, sources tell the Daily Mail.
The 30-date performance will be the longest ever after 21 shows by U.S. singer Prince in 2007 and ticket prices are expected to top the record £500 set by Barbara Streisand's comeback concerts in 2007.
"It will be the greatest comeback in the history of pop and there would be no problem selling out the O2 every night," says a source.
Alluding to reports that the 50-year-old singer is suffering from a lung disease, the source added:
"There have been rumors about his health but that is not an issue. He is capable of doing all the shows."
Jackson's spokesman earlier in January dismissed the allegations as "total fabrication."
"Mr Jackson is in fine health and finalizing negotiations with a major entertainment company and television network for both a world tour and a series of specials and appearances," he added.
Jackson is believed to have started work on a new album in early 2008, setting himself the unenviable task of outdoing Thriller, his sixth studio album released in 1982 which sold over 15 million copies worldwide.
Jackson has been one of the most successful performers in history having sold 750 million records, won 13 Grammy awards and achieved 13 number one singles.
Though he is rumored to be under debt, in January he leased a Bel Air mansion for one year paying a whopping $100,000 a month.
Jackson's manager-spokesperson Tohme Tohme told The Los Angeles Times that the lease would enable the reclusive King of Pop to be "where all the action is."
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Saturday, February 21, 2009
Food and beverage stocks draw buy-write strategy
A number of food and beverage stocks appeared to be the subject of buy-write or covered call strategies on Friday as option players looked for opportunities in a weak market environment to earn income, one analyst said.
A buy-write strategy entails the purchase of a company's shares and a simultaneous selling of the equity's call options, which give buying rights to the company's stock. It is often viewed as a bullish strategy.
"The interest in buy-writes on food and beverage names might be based on the view that even if the economy continues to deteriorate, consumer demand for food and beverages will remain," said Frederic Ruffy, options strategist at WhatsTrading.com.
During Friday's session, Ruffy said blocks of stock and short call options were traded in Coca-Cola Co (KO.N), Pepsico Inc (PEP.N), HJ Heinz Co (HNZ.N), Kraft Foods Inc (KFT.N), and Kellogg Co (K.N).
In Coca-Cola, a block of shares changed hands along with January 2010 $47.50 calls, and in Pepsico, a block of shares traded with January 2010 $60 calls.
Heinz, which attracted a second day of increasing options activity, also had possible buy-writes. Its January $40 calls turned active as 9,000 of these strikes were sold for a $1 premium and not long after, a block of 230,000 Heinz shares traded for $32.10, Ruffy said.
Similar action was seen in Kraft involving its January call options at the strike price of $27.50 as a block of stock was acquired. And in Kellogg, the January 2010 $45 strike calls were sold with another block of shares, Ruffy said.
Ruffy said traders who have a bullish longer-term view on these companies, through January 2010, appeared to be offsetting some of the cost of buying shares by selling call options.Under a buy-write strategy, in a sideways market, the call options expire worthless and would bring in income.
In a rising market, the covered calls establish a selling price above the current stock price, and in a declining market, the call premium received, provides a limited amount of downside protection for the acquired shares.
By Doris Frankel
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