Questions for the Zeitgeist, January 28, 2007

1- He denied that he used a homophobic slur to refer to a castmate on ABC's 'Grey's Anatomy', then reiterated the slur (that he reportedly never said) in the press room after the show won a Golden Globe. Given his propensity for saying the wrong damn things lately, shouldn't Isaiah Washington (who incidentally played a same gender-loving man in Spike Lee's film "Get On The Bus"), just apologize and then keep quiet for a few minutes?














2-Serena Williams entered the 2007 Australian Open as the 81st-ranked player in the world and leaves...CHAMPION!!! Becoming only the second unseeded woman to win the Australian title in the Open era, Williams slaughtered number one ranked Maria Sharapova in two sets, 6-1, 6-2. Is Serena setting herself up for another "Serena Slam"? Which was more unlikely, this victory against Sharapova or her incredible comeback at the 2003 Australian Open, when she came from 1-5 and two match points down to beat Kim Clijsters in the semi-finals? Should the critics (many of whom shunned her as a result of an injury-plagued season last year) take a note from Isaiah and just shut up now?

3- When is Peter Hadar going to blow up? (www.peterhadar.com --don't say I didn't tell you way back when...)




4-Speaking of "blowing up"... Naomi Campbell paid the piper this week, pleading guilty to hitting her maid in the back of the head with a cell phone. In exchange for her guilty plea, Campbell must pay the maid's medical expenses of $363.00, do five days of community service and attend a two-day anger management program. If convicted at trial, Campbell, who originally had been charged with second-degree felony assault, could have been sentenced to two to seven years in prison. Is two days of anger management going to help?




5- With Golden Globe awards for best leading actress in a comedy for America Ferrera AND the award for best comedy, 'Ugly Betty' is the season's breakout hit (hate to say I told you so, but check the "Questions for the Zeitgeist" entry on October 15th of last year!!!), making ugly the new pretty. Did anyone watch the (original) Columbian telenovela "Yo Soy Betty, La Fea" back in '99? Does anyone watch the Mexican version "La Fea Mas Bella" -aka Ugly Lety- that comes on Univision at the same time as the American version on ABC?






6-The "Doomsday clock" was moved closer to midnight (extinction) by two minutes by The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists , citing global failures to solve the problems posed by nuclear weapons(27 thousand, of which 2,000 are ready to be fired within minutes) and the climate crisis (an ice shelf the size of 11 football fields breaking off from the Canadian Arctic sounds serious to me). Does North Korea even care?



7-She hails from the Cayman Islands, but was discovered at Six Flags amusement park in New Jersey. She has appeared in campaigns for Hilfiger, Levis, Ralph Lauren, and Clinique. She has grabbed the brass ring, becoming one of the top Victoria's Secret ramp chicks in additon to appearing in Pharell/Kanye West's video for "Number One". Yet, she can still walk the streets of NYC virtually unrecognized. Is Selita Ebanks the hardest working yet most underrated supermodel out there right now?










8- Selita's idol, Tyra Banks, has been dragged across the perverbial coals in print and in the blogosphere lately. Read any celebrity rag this week and you'll come across the big brouhaha regarding the inescapable truth that there's currently lots more of Tyra Banks to love- "figuratively" speaking. When pressed to comment on the fact that she is at least 30 pounds heavier than when she graced the trailblazing '97 cover of Sports Illustrated, the former model said

"You have to be thin to be a model. I don't have to live up to that model standard anymore".










The REAL questions are...

a- Why does anyone care that she has put on a couple?




b- Will she DARE to don a "fat suit" and go "undercover" on her talk show again? Will people be saying the same thing about Beyonce once she squeezes out that first kid?





9- Speaking of there being a "lot more to love", who wants to see the Ray J/Kim Kardashian sex tape?
Has Whitney seen it?


10- He didn't make the cut on 'So You Think You Can Dance', so he tried to convince us that he could sing by auditioning for 'American Idol'. Let's just say he didn't quite impress any of the judges, yet somehow managed to put Simon in his place. With his campy demeanor, sharp witticisms and EXCELLENT comedic timing, wasn't Ian Bernardo the FUNNIEST thing on television this week? Is he the illegitimate love child of Bette Midler and 80's king of deadpan comedian/actor Taylor Negron?

Shouldn't he get his own show based on bravado ALONE?


AND NOW, THE FLASHBACK...
Before America Ferrera became the latina darling on television's "Ugly Betty", there was a chica that was holding it down on the small screen in music- before the latin explosion and the phenom known as JL0. She was LISA from the block. And she wasn't model size either, Tyra!!
Anyone remember...Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam's "I Wonder If I Take You Home"?...

Questions for the Zeitgeist...January 20, 2007

1- Aren't we just waiting with bated breath to see Alicia Keys' big-screen debut as a pistol-toting lesbian assassin in the action flick "Smokin' Aces"?



2-How funny was Jake Gyllenhaal doing his best Effie White imitation on 'Saturday Night Live'?
2a- Has 'Dreamgirls' finally hit the saturation point? Will there be 'Dreamgirls' "backlash?"



3- Skincare line 'Carol's Daughter' has been the best kept-secret in beauty for years and the little beauty line that could- especially for people of color. Now with getting star investment backing (Jay-Z, Will and Jada, Tommy Motolla, etc.), going from small Brooklyn storefront to Harlem flagship store to now opening their first mall store in Roosevelt Field Mall (with more on the way) as well as being sold in Sephora stores nationwide, founder Lisa Price is said to be starting a cosmetics line as well. Is Carol's daughter poised to give MAC a run for their money with the "blackgirl contingent"?

4- Given all of his troubles since he won the record amount $315 million in the Powerball lottery in Christmas of 2002, would Jack Whittaker do it all again?

5- Speaking of money troubles... Whitney Houston sells off old garments and soon-to-be-ex-husband Bobby Brown's music awards to pay off a warehouse storage debt. Was that out of necessity, or is the divorce getting nasty?

6- In the latest pageant queen scandal...Ashley Harder, Miss New Jersey USA, resigns amid reports that she is pregnant. This is of course after Miss Nevada USA Katie Rees was stripped of her title after racy photos of her appeared on the Internet AND Miss USA Tara Conner, who was caught drinking in New York bars when she was still underage, barely held onto her tiara after she agreed to go into rehab and undergo drug testing. Doesn't this make Vanessa Williams' little "misstep" back in the day seem tame in comparison? 6a- Moreover, isn't Miss Williams getting the last laugh?

7-Courtney Cox, Demi Moore and Nelly Furtado: separated at birth?



8-With all of the flashbulbs capturing her every move, is Prince William's rumored fiance Kate Middleton repeating Princess Diana's life?























9-We know the old saying, "black don't crack", but...with NYC NBC News anchor Sue Simmons looking basically the same now as when she first hit the tube 26years ago, we have to know... Does she sleep in an oxygen chamber?


9a- Additionally, arent' we glad that after 26 years, she is a respected newsanchor yet STILL has a sense of humor?







10- President Barack Obama or President Hillary Clinton?












The FLASHBACK...

In thinking about the hubbub surrounding Kate Middleton specifically (and it could be argued a couple of other people in the above questions- Barack Obama, Whitney Houston, as well as the pageant "queens"), I was thinking about the idea of stalking and living your life in a fishbowl and how that could give rise to paranoia. My first instinct was to post Sting's video for "Every Step You Take", but then I came up with one better.
Do you remember...Rockwell's " (I Always Feel Like) Somebody's Watching Me"?

Golden Globes, 2007 at a glance...

The Golden Globes- or what is commonly referred to as the precursor to the Oscar nominations- went down Monday night at the Beverly Hilton. I think it should be the other way around, as the Hollywood Foreign Press always seem to be more on the ball than the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences anyway

Outside of the obvious question of whether Jennifer Hudson was actually going to win the Globe for Best Supporting Actress in 'Dreamgirls'
(she did), there really wasn't much in the way of suspense at this year's show.

I will say that I was surprised that Eddie Murphy beat out all of his competition to emerge victorious for the Best Supporting Actor award for his heartfelt performance in 'Dreamgirls'. The longshot of the night (which in my opinion really wasn't a longshot at all) was Forest Whitaker's win for Best Actor in 'Last King of Scotland'.
However, if you look at my review of 'Dreamgirls' and my prediction that Forest Whittaker would take home a couple of awards in my "Questions for the Zeitgeist" entry on October 23rd, you wouldn't be surprised either. Okay, enough at patting myself on the back. The rest of the show went pretty much as planned, though high marks go to Sacha Baron Cohen for his thoroughly hilarious acceptance speech for "Borat", wherein he spoke in INTIMATE detail of his costar's testicles and um...anus, and Meryl Streep's thoughtful and intelligent monologue of an acceptance speech that urged the average moviegoer to urge their local multiplex to show a wider range of movies.


Of couse, the only thing I was really interested in was what EVERYONE is interested in. No, not the show itself, but what everyone was wearing. What follows are my brief opinions on who wore what, and who committed the requisite fashion crimes.

Enjoy...




I watched the "Countdown to the Red Carpet" show on E!, which if you really think about it is the countdown to the countdown", as The Red Carpet is supposed to be the countdown to the show. Anyway, here's MY synopsis:


Sienna Miller- Proof positive that there is a right way to do Marchesa, and a wrong way. Sienna chose the wrong way, as well as the wrong hair. That braided crown didn't work for Mary J. Blige on the cover of her "The Breakthrough" Album, and it damn sure ain't working for Sienna.






















Jennifer Lopez- Proving that there is a RIGHT way to do Marchesa, La Lopez reigned once again as one of the best dressed of the night. STUNNING!




















Not all Jennifers were fashion plates tonight though. I did NOT love Jennifer Love Hewitt's bronze dud. She's a tiny girl, and this prom dress made her look HUGE on the bottom. Back to the drawing board with that one, Jen






Chloe Sevigny, one of my favorite fashionistas, showed up in a beautiful Yves Saint Laurent black print dress. While the choice of shoe may have been questionable, she definitely upstages the other women she arrived with. I mean, does Chloe even OWN an ugly dress?



Eva Longoria- Unbelievable in Ungaro!!!

Ellen Pompeo in Versace- Great choice for her. It was form fitting and for once she didn't look anorexic!













Ellen's "Grey's Anatomy" co-star Katherine Heigl doing her best Charlize Theron (from the 2006 Oscars)- and being successful at it!!!! BEAUTIFUL!!



















The belle of the ball, Jennifer Hudson, in a gorgeously draped gown that compliments her full figure. Word is she is getting help from Andre Leon Talley for a future Vogue shoot. You go, Ms. Hudson!

The night's cutest goes to America Ferrera, in a gown that is both classic hollywood and still manages to not age her.







Drew Barrymore- Completely dreamy in Dior. Somebody upped their fashionista cred with this one.

Helen Mirren showed the young starlets that she can hang with the best of them, looking absolutely regal AND sexy in this dress.















Angelina Jolie is a beauty MUTANT!! What else can I say?






















Hillary Swank- Not really that swank, as that diamond hairclip pulling one side of her hair back made her look more bucktoothed than usual. I wasn't feeling it.

Sharon Stone is becoming a fashion NIGHTMARE!! I mean, really, Cruella DeVille has already been cast, hasn't she?




Cate Blanchett was the best dressed woman of the night in McQueen










While a boring Sarah Jessica Parker and inappropriate Beyonce proved to be the biggest disappointments of the night...









Vanessa Williams managed to forego a stylist and dress herself for the evening. WRONG!!! She looks dull, ragged and washed out, and that ridiculous "mop" of a fall she attached to the back of her head doesn't do this beauty any justice...I'm giving her worst dressed of the night.




On the men's side, Diddy pulled me into his corner as best dressed male, sporting a midnight blue brocade tuxedo jacket- PLUSH!!!....


While Jeremy Irons reverted back to form in this "Zorro meets Revenge of the Sith" number. He looks like he could use a shave as well. Jeeesh!!!Worst Dressed of the men, EASILY!!!!









If I didn't mention it, that means it didn't affect me one way or another. In the words of Meryl Streep's character in "The Devil Wears Prada"- That's all...