Entertaining Posts

Friday, March 4, 2011

"For Colored Girls", Perry win big at Image Awards

LOS ANGELES | Fri Mar 4, 2011 11:54pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Director and writer Tyler Perry was the big winner at the NAACP's Image Awards on Friday, winning top awards for his movie "For Colored Girls" and best TV comedy series trophy for "Tyler Perry's House of Payne."

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the oldest U.S. civil rights organization and has given out Image awards for 42 years to honor people of color in film, television, music and literature.

Perry, 41, one of the most prolific African-Americans in the U.S. entertainment industry, was the man behind wins for comedy actor David Mann in the TV show "Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns," and Kimberly Elise for her supporting role in "For Colored Girls."

"For Colored Girls" brought a best movie and best director statue for Perry, who is also a producer, actor and playwright. The movie, based on the play by Ntozake Shange "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuf" is based on poems about the lives of women.

"I wanted to take this iconic work and introduce it to people who had never heard of it. ... There is nothing like having nine strong black women holding you up," Perry said, referring to a cast that included Whoopi Goldberg and Janet Jackson.

Oscar-winner Halle Berry added another trophy to her collection, this time for her best actress performance as a woman with a multiple personalities in "Frankie & Alice."

"If it were not for the NAACP, a little girl like me would not have had wind beneath her wings in a small town in Ohio," she said. "I have never been more proud to be a black woman."

Denzel Washington won the best actor Image Award for the action movie "The Book of Eli."

Willow Smith, the 10 year-old daughter of actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, won the best new music artist award, beating out popular rivals Bruno Mars and rapper Nicki Minaj.

Smith's first single, "Whip My Hair," reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in late 2010.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell received the NAACP President's Award for special achievement in public service, earning a standing ovation.

Powell, the first African-American chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, paid tribute to the work of the NAACP in advancing civil rights since its foundation in 1909, but said there was more to be done.

"We still have youngsters who are in desperate straits, who need education, who need health care. ... (They) have to be given a sense of expectation," he said.

"Even though we have come so far, we will need the NAACP for another 100 years, or until the work is done."

The TV category saw honors for medical drama "Grey's Anatomy," while Vanessa Williams won the best actress Image Award for "Desperate Housewives" and "Modern Family" star Sofia Vergara took home the best supporting comedy actress award.

(Editing by Todd Eastham)

Charlie Sheen to get animated special on Spike TV

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Dior hits the Paris catwalk without John Galliano

By Astrid Wendlandt

PARIS | Fri Mar 4, 2011 11:09am EST

PARIS (Reuters) - Christian Dior will on Friday become the biggest fashion brand in recent history to present a catwalk collection at Paris Fashion Week without a star designer to applaud.

Dior -- the jewel in the couture crown of the world's biggest luxury group LVMH -- fired chief designer John Galliano three days ago for making anti-Semitic comments in a video where he expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler.

Cancelling the runway presentation would have meant the loss of an entire collection in which the company had invested heavily as well as the loss of a season's worth of orders from buyers sent by retail outlets from around the world.

While Dior was quick to part ways with Galliano after 15 years at the top of one of the world's best known fashion labels, industry experts did not expect the couture house to announce the British designer's replacement on Friday.

Possible successors at Dior that have been mooted include Riccardo Tisci, designer at Givenchy, Dior's sister brand within the LVMH group.

For an analysis, see

In Galliano's absence, Dior's design team is expected to bow at the end of the show to whomever it is that turns up.

Fashionistas said they would pay close attention to whether the event would be attended by the usual group of celebrities such as French actress Marion Cotillard, who has been the face of Dior, or LVMH head Bernard Arnault.

Arnault, who founded LVMH, usually attends the Dior show.

The show for John Galliano's own label on Sunday afternoon in the gardens of the Rodin museum will also go forward but it has been downsized to a presentation, a spokesman said.

It was not clear what will happen to the John Galliano brand as it cannot survive without Dior's financial backing. Dior owns 92 percent of the brand whose wares are sold mainly in department stores and multi-brand stores.

It has only one directly operated boutique in Paris.

Some fashion editors and buyers this week said they planned to boycott the John Galliano show.

Galliano also faces trial over accusations he made racist remarks in public last week and in October. He has apologized and left Paris.

"He is no longer in Paris and he is being looked after," a spokesman for his John Galliano label said on Friday.

(Editing by Paul Casciato)

Britney's single "leaks," some predict a club hit

LONDON | Fri Mar 4, 2011 6:53am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - The second single from Britney Spears' upcoming album "Femme Fatale" was posted on the internet on Thursday, and the upbeat dance anthem "Till the World Ends" has some pundits predicting a club hit.

Tracks leaking online has long been a problem for musicians seeking to control the release of their records, although Spears quickly took to Twitter to promote the "formal premiere" of the track on Ryan Seacrest's radio show on Friday.

She also announced the full track listing for Femme Fatale, which goes on sale on March 29 and will test the public's appetite for the latest Spears comeback.

The new album will feature 12 tracks, with four extra songs available on the deluxe edition.

"I think 'Femme Fatale' speaks for itself ... I wanted to make a fierce dance record where each song makes you want to get up and move," Spears said.

Early reaction to Till the World Ends, written by fellow popster Ke$ha and produced by Dr. Luke and Max Martin, suggests that the 29-year-old's rollercoaster career is on the up again.

"Like its predecessor 'Hold It Against Me', Spears's main intention with her new single seems to be keeping the dance floor pulsating with sweaty bodies," wrote Gerrick D. Kennedy on the L.A. Times music blog "Pop & Hiss."

"And we don't blame her, as the catchy song does make you want to grab some glow sticks and hit the clubs."

Music channel MTV opined: "Britney Spears' new single ... sounds poised to be a club smash."

The electro-pop song's message is predictably simple, summed up in the refrain: "Keep on dancin' till the world ends."

And while critics agree that it could be the work of any number of pop stars, some say Spears, whose torrid personal life has often overshadowed her musical success, has the confidence and "breathy" vocals to pull it off.

The first track from the album, "Hold It Against Me," debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January, breaking digital download records on the way.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Sheen's legal case against studios not so crazy

By Matthew Belloni and Eriq Gardner

Thu Mar 3, 2011 8:47pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Charlie Sheen might consider himself a "winner," but it's far from clear whether the "Two and a Half Men" star would prevail in what seems like an inevitable legal showdown over who is to blame for the implosion of America's most-watched sitcom.

After the CBS network and producer Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) canceled the show's eighth season last week, the 45-year-old actor launched a nonstop media blitz demanding that the cast and crew be paid for the remaining eight episodes (WBTV will pay the crew for four) and possibly for the ninth season.

Sheen's lawyer Marty Singer argued in a terse February 28 letter to the network and studio that his client is "ready, willing and able" to resume work and that he's been locked out "in retaliation for" criticisms of "Men" co-creator Chuck Lorre.

While showbiz legal experts say that referring to Lorre as a "clown" and a "retarded zombie" on television doesn't help Sheen's cause, many believe he has a decent case, especially if reports are true that his deal with WBTV includes no morals clause. The controversy, say the lawyers consulted by The Hollywood Reporter, will hinge on which side breached the heavily negotiated contract that pays Sheen more than $1.2 million an episode.

Sheen's lawyers believe that Warner Bros. and CBS violated their obligations by allowing Lorre to dictate that the show be shut down in the wake of Sheen's outrageous statements and partying with porn stars. Sheen maintains he's clean and sober and there's nothing in his private life that would trigger a "default" under his contract. The legal arguments mirror a path that has proved successful for other entertainers who have been terminated for offensive comments.

Martin Gold, a litigator at SNR Denton in New York, says the situation reminds him of when CBS fired shock jock Don Imus after he made derogatory statements about the Rutgers women's basketball team. CBS tried to avoid paying Imus on his contract, but it couldn't get around the argument that the conglomerate got exactly what it had bargained for, signing extension after extension even though it knew Imus' reputation.

Similarly, if the deal between WBTV and Sheen is "pay or play" -- as Singer's letter says it is -- then Sheen will argue that bragging that he's survived "banging seven-gram rocks" can't be held against him. Indeed, Warners knew for years about Sheen's behavior -- including stints in rehab and an arrest on charges of attacking then-wife Brooke Mueller -- but only acted after Sheen insulted Lorre, perhaps the studio's top producer.

Gold says, "This was going on for a long time, so it can hardly be called a surprise."

However, experts say CBS and Warner Bros. could have equally strong arguments that Sheen, not the network or studio, violated the contract. And if Sheen is found to have materially breached his deal, he could forfeit his rich deal and even be forced to reimburse CBS/WBTV for lost revenue, which could reach as much as $250 million if the show shuts down permanently.

Such a case would likely be premised on the notion that Sheen, despite his willingness to show up on set, has become such a high risk and has damaged so many relationships that continuing the show would not be possible. It's no coincidence that the statement released by CBS and WBTV on February 24 blamed the shutdown on "the totality of Charlie Sheen's statements, conduct and condition."

Ellyn Garofalo, a partner at Los Angeles' Liner Grode Stein firm, believes the studio and network would focus on Sheen's public statements about Lorre and take depositions from those who work on the Men set to "show Sheen had become impossible to work with," she says.

CBS/WBTV also could argue that Sheen is damaging the show and network with his media rampage, possibly violating a "disparagement" clause in his contract, and that his presence would cost TV's top comedy advertisers and viewers (though "Men" ratings have remained steady during the fiasco).

But Hollywood litigation expert Aaron Moss at Greenberg Glusker thinks an argument based on Sheen's outrageous behavior alone would be hurt by the absence of a morals clause. Instead, Moss believes that CBS/WBTV could target the actor's physical condition.

"The best argument that Warners would have would be to not focus on conduct and statements per se but only as evidence of his condition, tied to his inability to do his job," Moss says.

Which means that a judge would likely scrutinize Sheen's contract to determine whether he was actually fulfilling his job responsibilities. If, for instance, he was employed not just to deliver lines but also to promote the show, then CBS/WBTV could argue that Sheen had already shirked these duties by placing the show in a negative light. And, of course, Sheen's employers now have a week's worth of public tirades to use as evidence that perhaps he wasn't showing up to the set in top condition. Moss points to one statement made by Sheen on 'The Dan Patrick Show' that could come back to haunt the actor.

"(I've) never been drunk, never been high on the set once," Sheen told the syndicated sports show host on February 15. "But I would show up not having slept much. Doing a network run-through and asking the director, Jamie, to move my mark a little bit so I could be next to a piece of furniture or a table so I wouldn't fall over."