Hollywood Highlights

Monday, April 6, 2009

Singer Chris Brown pleads not guilty to two felonies

Photo 03/05/09: Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times Singer Chris Brown was greeted by a horde of photographers, reporters, and some screaming fans when he arrived in a black SUV at a Los Angeles County criminal courthouse in Downtown L.A. today. Shortly after 3:30 p.m., Brown was arraigned and pleaded not guilty to a couple of felonies; assault likely to cause great bodily harm and making criminal […]
Monday, April 6, 2009

A TV deal for popular vampire hunter Anita Blake

  Vampire Hunter Anita Blake is about to take her extraordinary skills and adventures to the small screen. New York Times Best selling author Laurell K. Hamilton has made a deal for her sexy paranormal series, featuring the Anita Blake character, with Independent Film Channel. The series is already the basis for a hugely popular graphic novel from Marvel Comics.  Hamilton’s series began with the […]
Sunday, April 5, 2009

New “Fast & Furious” movie a record breaker at the Box Office

   Talking about putting the pedal to the metal, the new “Fast & Furious” film burned serious rubber to the top of the Box Office this weekend. “Fast & Furious (New Model … Original Parts)” debuted with a spectacular $72.5 million — the biggest April movie opening ever.  Eight years after the original “Fast & Furious” launched a franchise and several careers, this reunion retread is the fourth installment in the action […]
Friday, April 3, 2009

Singer Gladys Knight to co-star in Tyler Perry’s new movie

Entertainer Gladys Knight has one of the most distinctive voices in the music industry today. Knight is lending her voice and acting talent to the new Tyler Perry flick, “I Can Do Bad All by Myself.” According to The Hollywood Reporter website, Knight will play a neighborhood matriarch who also sings at a local church where Perry’s Madea character attends. Knight is […]
Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Movie ticket sales soar during the recession

FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove  — Burbank  If you haven’t caught a flick at a movie theater recently, then you are one of the few. While other industries are being slammed by the recession, the Hollywood Box Office is being stoked by it. In an article over on the Variety website, Motion Picture Association of America Chairman/CEO Dan Glickman explained: “Movies have become an […]
Monday, March 30, 2009

Queen Latifah attached to new romantic comedy movie deal

   Singer/actress Queen Latifah has signed on to play the lead in the romantic comedy, “Just Wright.” The story is a so-called Cinderella tale involving a physical therapist who falls in love with a basketball player she is helping recover from a career-threatening injury. The rom-com had been in development for the past six years at Disney. Recently, Fox Searchlight picked up […]
Sunday, March 29, 2009

“Monsters vs. Aliens” rumble to number one at the Box Office

 “Monsters vs. Aliens” had a smashing debut earning a gigantic $58 million to easily crush the competition and grab the top spot at the Box Office this weekend. That’s the third best March opening ever. The 3-D animated flick is about a misfit group of home-grown monsters who must go to battle to protect planet Earth from space aliens. The DreamWorks animation is one […]
Thursday, March 26, 2009

Phil Spector’s defense team sums up its case for the jury

  The fate of legendary rock producer Phil Spector will soon be in the hands of a Los Angeles County jury. Today the prosecution is expected to complete its rebuttal to the defense team’s closing arguments, which began on Tuesday. Spector’s attorneys urged the jury to acquit their client on the grounds that the alleged victim, actress Lana Clarkson, probably […]
Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Closing arguments underway in the Phil Spector murder retrial

After nearly five months of testimony, the murder retrial of rock legend Phil Spector is about to wrap up. Yesterday, the prosecution presented its closing arguments in an attempt to convince the jury to convict Spector of murdering 40-year-old actress Lana Clarkson. The actress was found shot to death in Spector’s Alhambra mansion back in 2003. Clarkson starred in “Barbarian Queen” (1985) and the movie spoof “Amazon Women on the […]