Hollywood Highlights

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Tyler Perry’s “Madea” kills the competition at the Box Office

Critics slammed it, but movie fans packed the theaters this weekend to see, “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail.”  The new over-the-top comedy racked up a huge $41 million to easily become the number one film in the country.  Variety reports that this is the seventh Perry film distributed by Lionsgate. So far those films have grossed $300 million at the domestic Box Office. Perry is a writer/producer/director/actor. The […]
Saturday, February 21, 2009

Rihanna finally speaks out after alleged assault

  Google Image    Pop star/model and suspected domestic violence victim, Rihanna, is speaking out. Rihanna’s P.R. firm released a statement yesterday. It was the first from Rihanna and her representatives since the February 8th street fight incident in Los Angeles. A story on the People website includes part of the statement: “At the request of the authorities, Rihanna is not […]
Saturday, February 21, 2009

Schwarzenegger, the new state budget, and Hollywood

  photo from http://gov.ca.gov/  02/20/09  — Governor Schwarzenegger holds news conference yesterday to sign the new state budget into law.   After a painful three months of bitter debate, the state legislature finally approved a budget on Thursday and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed it into law yesterday. The budget reportedly solves a $42 billion deficit by raising taxes and cutting spending. The […]
Friday, February 20, 2009

LAPD reacts to photo of a battered Rihanna

Google Image   Pop star/model Rihanna remains in seclusion, but a photo allegedly showing her battered face is all over the Internet today. The photo first appeared on the celebrity gossip website TMZ last night. Newsradio KNX 1070  has the photo on its site. Ironically, today is Rihanna’s 21st birthday.  Last night, the LAPD put up a statement questioning the source of the photo […]
Monday, February 16, 2009

Singer Chris Brown says he’s “sorry” for alleged attack

Google Image   Damage control is underway by the handlers of singer and suspected girlfriend batterer, Chris Brown. Yesterday, the pop singer released a statement to the media through a spokesperson claiming he was “.. sorry and saddened by what transpired.” The statement goes on to say: “I am seeking the counseling of my pastor, my mother and other loved ones and I […]
Sunday, February 15, 2009

Horror trumps romance at the holiday Box Office

On this Valentine’s Day weekend most of the moviegoers were not looking for hearts, flowers, and romance. Surprisingly, the biggest crowds opted for a good fright by packing the theaters to see the new version of  “Friday the 13th.” This horror re-make of the bloody adventures of the machete wielding killer, Jason Voorhees, pulled in an estimated $42 million over the weekend to become […]
Friday, February 13, 2009

Jennifer Hudson wins big at the 40th Annual NAACP Image Awards

Academy Award winning actress/singer Jennifer Hudson has to find a place to display some more trophies today. Last night, Hudson won the outstanding new artist, best album for “Jennifer Hudson,” and shared the win with Fantasia for outstanding duo, group collaboration for “I’m His Only Woman” at the 40th Annual NAACP Image Awards. Also, Hudson stars in the 2008 drama, “The Secret Life of […]
Wednesday, February 11, 2009

SAG and AMPTP talks back on again

      The Screen Actors Guild and the representatives from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers are heading back to the bargaining table, according to a joint statement that appeared on the SAG website yesterday. The brief statement is below.  “Screen Actors Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have agreed to meet on February 17 and 18, […]
Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Grammy surprises, Chris Brown and that domestic violence investigation

 Two days after the 51st Grammy Awards ceremony the talk is not about who won, but about two stars  who skipped out on the affair Sunday night at Staples Center. In a surprise to a lot of folks ( me included), Robert Plant, the veteran rocker from “Led Zeppelin,” and bluegrass singer Alison Krauss won five Grammys including the top prize of album […]