Happy New Year's from the S.S. Poseidon

Western Union telegram dated December 31, 1972:

"Having a wonderful time on the cruise [stop] Tonight there is supposed to be a big party in the grand ballroom [stop] Looking forward to it, but seas are a bit choppy [stop] Did meet a nice lady who promised to teach me how to swim tomorrow [stop] Says she won a medal or something [stop] Boy, the final voyage of the Poseidon has been a real adventure [stop]"

For more dolls inspired by the classic disaster movie, click here.
Link via HandbagProductions.org.

Memo from Movie Dearest: Resolutions

Well, Movie Dearest is all dolled-up for New Year's Eve (you better back up though, I feel a belch coming on -- this Pepsi has a kick to it, if you know what I mean), so it's time for some New Year's resolutions.

To wit, MD hereby resolves to:
- Not succumb to the recent blogging trend of obsessively recapping reality shows or soap operas. (Hello, we do not need to know all the minute details of the latest bisexual shenanigans on Big Brother or how long down to the second Nuke kissed on As the World Turns, thank you very much.)
- Not ever mention the words "Britney Spears" and "shaved head" in the same sentence. Or even the words "Britney Spears", for that matter. (And don't get me started on her sister.)
- Not declare the latest starlet who has been around for ten minutes a "gay icon" or to say that the current hunk du jour has a "huge gay following", both terms that have been tossed about way too cavalierly of late.
- Not take the Writers Guild name in vain just because their little strike is ruining everything we hold dear, from the current TV season to the awards shows to the delay of the movie version of Nine. (Really, I support the writers, but let's get this mess over with quick, OK guys?)
- Not post anything copied verbatim from Towleroad. com. (Now who does that?)
- Not go anywhere near American Idol if I can help it at all costs so help me god I swear.
- Not carp on and on (and on) about the dearth of gay-themed films in theaters these days like some people do. (Sure, there should be more, but really -- what else is new?)
- Not ever think "How bad could it be?" again before watching an internet video. (Two Girls, One Cup, I'm talking to you.)
- Not post any more pictures of hot, bare-chested men. (Yeah right, like that would happen.)

And finally, to continue to respect my MD readers by giving them well-written, informative and entertaining articles about the past, present and future of film, television and the theater. (Come on, I had to throw in one serious one.)

Potent Quotables: New Year's Eve Edition

Harry (Billy Crystal) to Sally (Meg Ryan): "I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible."

When Harry Met Sally ... will be re-released on DVD as a new Collector's Edition January 15. Click here to pre-orderit from Amazon.com.

Cinematic Crush: Bobby Cannavale

Crush object: Bobby Cannavale, actor/paisano.
- Why we like him: For his affable adorableness and his goofily endearing persona, not to mention his willingness to play gay so often.
- When did we first notice him: As the "funky spunk" guy on Sex and the City.
- Awards on his mantel: Emmy Award for his role as Vince D'Angelo, Will's first real boyfriend, on Will and Grace (click here for a video tribute).
- More gay for pay: Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart and Paul Rudnick’s The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told onstage; a drug dealer on Oz; closeted characters in both The Guru and Shall We Dance?; Robin Williams' estranged boyfriend in The Night Listener.
- Other choice roles: Paramedic Bobby Caffey on Third Watch; Joe the snack truck guy in The Station Agent; his acclaimed Broadway debut in the recent play Mauritius.
- Bet you didn't know: Has had no formal acting training, although he knew he wanted to be an actor at age 8; has appeared on all three Law & Order series -- as different characters;
- Yes, it's true: He was in Snakes on a Plane.
- Can we quote you on that: (Regarding his Sex and the City stint) "I probably get razzed more for that till this day than for anything I’ve ever done -- especially by women."
- You go boy: "If you’re raising kids today and you don’t explain to them from the very beginning that there’s nothing unnatural about being gay and that we’re all God’s children, then there’s something wrong with you."
- Where we can see him next: In the horror film 100 Feet, the comedy Diminished Capacity and Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (we assume he's not one of the title characters), all due next year.
- Family ties: His ex-wife is Sidney Lumet's daughter and Lena Horne's granddaughter.
- Where you can see more of him right now: Shaking his moneymaker in this outtake from Romance & Cigarettes.

Links via Imdb.com and YouTube.com.

The Latest on TV: Jerry's Girls

Although not as prolific as some of his contemporaries, Jerry Herman is widely regarded as one of the best composers of American musical theater. Winner of ten Tony Awards, his Hello, Dolly! is easily one of the greatest musicals ever written, and his Mame and La Cage aux Folles are pretty darn good too.

Herman is the subject of a new documentary, fittingly titled Words and Music by Jerry Herman, that will air on PBS tomorrow night. Chronicling his rise to Broadway fame, the program also features interviews with original Dolly stars Carol Channing and Charles Nelson Reilly, original Mame Angela Lansbury and original Albin/Zaza George Hearn, among others.

And don't worry if the PBS station in your area isn't showing it or you miss it tomorrow, because it will be released on DVD ... the same day. And with such bonus features as Channing and the original Broadway cast performing "Hello, Dolly!" and Ethel Merman singing "Before the Parade Passes By", that may be your best bet after all.

Click here to buy Words and Music by Jerry Hermanon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via BroadwayWorld.com and Playbill.com.

Introducing: The MD Awards

Here we are at the end of 2007, and Movie Dearest celebrates its first calendar year with the first of what will be an annual tradition here: the Movie Dearest Awards!

Honoring the best in film, television and the stage as covered here on MD, the awards are like the Oscars, the Emmys and the Tonys all rolled into one. Now all the MD Awards need is a nifty nickname like them; how about ... the "Emdies"? The "Dearies"? Or (dare I suggest it) the "Kirbys"???

Cast your vote on this all-important decision in the special MD Poll below, and enjoy this year's winners in six categories in the posts that follow.

Opinion Polls & Market Research

MD Awards: Stage Show of the Year

When even a character in it describes Xanadu as "children's theater for 40 year-old gay men", what other choice do we have then to name it the Movie Dearest Stage Show of the Year?

Based on the notoriously-awful-but-we-love-it-anyway movie musical starring Olivia Newton John, the unexpected hit has been packing in the "Fanadus" since it opened on Broadway this past summer. Directed by Christopher Ashley from a book by Douglas Carter Beane, an Aussie-fied Kerry Butler channels ONJ, while the hunkalicious Cheyenne Jackson skates his way to stardom. Tony Roberts takes over for Gene Kelly, and the fab scene-stealers Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa appear as the evil muses.

Yup, turning one of the biggest bombs in movie history into a critically acclaimed stage musical sure takes a lot of balls ... disco balls, that is.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Xanadu, including pictures and videos, click here.

Click here to pre-order the Xanaducast album from Amazon.com.
Link via XanaduOnBroadway.com.

MD Awards: Television Show of the Year

With a cast of characters that include an über diva, her flamboyant assistant, his fabulously bitchy "hag", a transgender hottie and a precocious QIT ("Queen in Training"), it is no wonder that Ugly Betty is often called the gayest show in primetime. Sure, it is; but it also one of the best hours of network programming to come along in a long time, which made it easy to name it the Movie Dearest Television Show of the Year.

With its rich scripts that deftly combine satire with the art of the telenovela, an insanely talented cast and consistently clever direction, Ugly Betty would be nothing without its leading lady, a perky underdog we all (male or female, gay or straight, young or old) can relate to; it is no wonder America Ferrera, in the guise of the spectacled, brace-faced Betty Suarez, has won every award on the map.

Alas, it seems the dreaded writers strike has derailed most if not all of the remaining second season, which has avoided the sophomore slump so many other popular shows have suffered from. Here's to a quick resolution to the ongoing conflict so we can all get back in Mode as soon as possible.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Ugly Betty, including more pictures and videos, click here.

Click here to buy the first season of Ugly Bettyon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via ABC.go.com.

MD Awards: New Star of the Year

It has been awhile since we have seen a debut performance as winning, charming and confident as that of the 19 year-old Nikki Blonsky, the Movie Dearest New Star of the Year.

As the plucky and determined Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray, Nikki had big dancing shoes to fill, following in the beloved footsteps of Ricki Lake (the original movie Tracy) and Marissa Jaret Winokur (the Tony Award-winning Broadway Tracy). But she took the challenge head on, making the character all her own and, in the process, ensuring her stardom for years to come, not to mention a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actress.

Next year she'll star in the Lifetime original movie Queen Sized and co-star in the big screen comedy Harold, and may even make her Broadway debut in (what else) Hairspray. And we'll be with her every step of the way, cheering her on.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Hairspray, including more pictures and videos of Nikki, click here.

Links via Imbd.com.

MD Awards: Woman of the Year

One would never expect to hear Oscar talk concerning a Disney Princess, but then, one has never been as effortlessly and joyfully portrayed as Enchanted's Giselle. Credit goes to our Movie Dearest Woman of the Year, Amy Adams, for bringing a fairy tale ideal into the real world (literally), and making us believe every minute of it.

Mixing wide-eyed wonderment with subtle degrees of melancholy, Amy creates a character that progresses from a pen and ink girl to a flesh and blood woman, with real emotions and desires. Of course, the latter isn't too hard when you have both James Marsden and Patrick Dempsey to play off of (talk about your Sophie's choice). And, let's not forget, she sings and dances ... and makes her own dresses to boot.

In addition to the recent Charlie Wilson's War, Amy has a slew of high-profile projects on the horizon, including the black comedy Sunshine Cleaning and not one, but two projects with Meryl Streep: the film adaptations of the Tony Award-winning play Doubt and the best-selling memoir Julie & Julia. No doubt, we'll be enchanted with her all over again.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Enchanted, including Amy's Women We Love profile, click here.

Click here to buy the Enchanted soundtrackfrom Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com.

MD Awards: Man of the Year

In year's past, he played Elvis onstage and 9/11 hero Mark Bingham on film, but 2007 was the breakout year for Cheyenne Jackson. So naturally, he has to be the Movie Dearest Man of the Year.

Stepping into the roller skates of his injured predecessor, Cheyenne took over the central role of Sonny Malone during previews of our Stage Show of the Year, Xanadu, and rolled away with the hearts of everyone who has had the pleasure of seeing him. He'll next be heard on the show's eagerly awaited cast album and, fingers crossed, could net his first Tony Award nomination. He will also star in the horror film Hysteria and the Lifetime TV drama Family Practice next year.

By all accounts, the man who has been dubbed "Broadway's sexiest man" (amen to that) is as refreshingly approachable and swoon inducing in person as one could hope. Now, if only Hollywood would come a callin' with a big screen movie musical for him to star in; after all, I think we can all agree that we can never get to much Cheyenne.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Xanadu, including Cheyenne's Out in Film profile, click here.

Click here to pre-order the Xanaducast album from Amazon.com.
Link via CheyenneJackson.com.

MD Awards: Movie of the Year

Debuting right after Movie Dearest did was a film that perfectly encapsulated the spirit and fun of the movies that inspired this blog in the first place. It was a movie firmly entrenched in the history of its genre, and one that is also connected to the related art forms of television and the theater ... it is, after all, a movie based on a stage musical about a TV show. When it came time to select the Movie Dearest Movie of the Year, there was no question as to what it would be: Hairspray.

With nearly 70 posts related to it, you could say that we were a bit obsessed with the 'Spray this year, but we weren't the only ones. Following a record-breaking opening weekend and rave reviews, the endearingly embraceable Hairspray has gone on to become one of the most successful movie musicals in history, and has gone on to win awards and nominations from the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild and the Grammy Awards, among many others (next up: the Oscars). Not too shabby for a third generation version of a little John Waters movie.

With direction and choreography from Adam Shankman, words and music from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and starring a now all-star cast lead by our New Star of the Year Nikki Blonsky, Hairspray gave us all a heaping helping of joy this year, and I am sure we all look forward to catching "the beat" for years to come.

For all the Movie Dearest coverage of Hairspray, including more pictures and videos, click here.

Click here to buy the Hairspray DVDand soundtrackfrom Amazon.com.
Link via HairsprayMovie.com.

Tune in to TCM: That Dirty Rat

Classic tough guy James Cagney is the Star of the Month on Turner Classic Movies for January, with 37 films airing each Wednesday. In addition to such classic crime dramas as The Public Enemy (with Jean Harlow), White Heat (both on the 2nd) and Angels With Dirty Faces (9), the salute will also include his forays into musicals (Footlight Parade, Yankee Doodle Dandy; 16) and comedies (One, Two, Three; A Midsummer Night's Dream; 30), plus his first color picture (Captains of the Clouds; 23) and the film wherein he came closest to uttering his famous catchphrase "You dirty rat" (he actually says "Come out and take it, you dirty yellow-bellied rat" in Taxi!; 16).

In addition to James Cagney: Top of the World (2), several other movie-themed documentaries will air next month, including Captured on Film: The True Story of Marion Davies (3), Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinémathèque (6), Impressions of Garland (29) and the premiere of Martin Scorsese Presents: Val Lewton - The Man in the Shadows, which heads off a fright-filled night of his films on the 14th in preparation for the January 29 DVD release of The Val Lewton Horror Collection (click hereto pre-order from Amazon.com).

The channel will celebrate Martin Luther King Day (21) with a marathon of films by such renowned African-American filmmakers as Sidney Poitier and legendary director Charles Burnett, including the TCM premieres of his classic Killer of Sheep and four others of his works. And on the 26th, Michael Redgrave will be spotlighted with five films, including the TCM premieres of Thunder Rock and The Way of the Stars.

And finally, for fans of obscure cult fare, TCM Underground will present Skidoo on the 4th. This is the infamous Otto Preminger oddity featuring Jackie Gleason tripping out on acid (seriously, check it out) and Carol Channing (!) seducing Frankie Avalon (!!!). Never released on home video or DVD, the comedy also stars Groucho Marx, Mickey Rooney, John Phillip Law, Peter Lawford, Burgess Meredith, George Raft, Slim Pickens, Richard "Jaws" Kiel and two Bat-villains, Cesar Romero and Frank Gorshin. For more notable films not yet on DVD on TCM in January, see the comments section below.

Numbers in parenthesis are the airdates; for more information and showtimes in your area, see TCM's online schedule.

Links via TCM.com and YouTube.com.

Film Art: Academy Award-Winning Edition

This year's Honorary Academy Award will be given to Robert Boyle, the first time the honor has been bestowed upon a production designer. He will be presented the award during the Oscar telecast on February 24.

Boyle, who was previously honored with the lifetime achievement award from the Art Directors Guild, is best known for his many collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock, including Saboteur, Shadow of a Doubt, The Birds and his most renowned work, North by Northwest. That film not only netted him his first of four Oscar nominations (he was also nominated for Gaily, Gaily; Fiddler on the Roof and The Shootist), it also inspired the title of the Oscar nominated documentary short about him, The Man on Lincoln’s Nose.

The above concept art for the film Foreign Correspondent is from Boyle's early days as a sketch artist.

Click here to buy Foreign Correspondenton DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Oscars.org and Imdb.com.

Monthly Wallpaper - January 2008: 2007: The Year in Film

As 2007 comes to a close, it is time to look back on the year in film, and what better way then with the Movie Dearest calendar wallpaper for next month!

29 of 2007's most popular movies make up the collage, so you can spend all of January gazing at the likes of Anton, Bob, Edith, Giselle, Harry, Jason, Jesse, Juno, Lars, Leonidas, Marji, Michael, Nikolai, Remy, Sweeney, Tracy and all the rest. What a way to start off a new year -- which reminds me, don't forget to vote in this week's poll of the most eagerly awaited films of 2008!

Just click on the picture above to enlarge it to its 1024 x 768 size, then right click your mouse and select "Set as Background", and you're all set. If you want, you can also save it to your computer and set it up from there, or modify the size in your own photo-editing program if needed.

And a virtual Academy Award to the first MD reader who can correctly name in the comments section below all 29 movies pictured in the collage.

Hello, Hollywood

Well, I always said I wouldn't believe it until I saw it, and now here it is: Disney's Hollywood Studios.

By this time next week, the Disney-MGM Studios at Walt Disney World in Florida will be no more -- in name only, of course; in fact, the "MGMs" have been slowly disappearing from around the park for the past couple of weeks now.

And would you believe the rumors of name changes for the park still haven't stopped? Internet scuttlebutt has it that it will eventually drop the "Studios" (since it hasn't really been one for years now) sometime in the future to be simply "Disney's Hollywood". Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it.

Links via LaughingPlace.com and JimHillMedia.com.

Out in Film: Candis Cayne

Idol worship: Candis Cayne, actress/cabaret cutie.
- What she's known for: In her groundbreaking role as William Baldwin's sultry mistress Carmelita on the ABC hit Dirty Sexy Money, she is the first transgender actress to play a regular transgender role on a primetime network series.
- Film debut: In the documentary Wigstock: The Movie.
- Other choice roles: Appeared in To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar; Stonewall and Starrbooty.
- What else has she done: Made her name in the New York gay club scene as a popular cabaret performer.
- Awards on her mantel: The 2001 winner of the Miss Gay Continental USA Pageant.
- Bet you didn't know: Is a twin and a classically trained dancer.
- Yes, it's true: Her fiancé, Marco McDermott, is also the DJ for her club acts.
- Can we quote you on that: "When I told my parents that I was starting my transition, my Dad said, "Well that makes so much more sense, 'cause I never saw you any other way and now it totally works". It was unbelievable. The second I told them, they flew to New York and wanted to make sure I was OK. And they found out I was happier."
- Where we can see her next: More Dirty Sexy scenes like this with a total Baldwin (literally).
- Where you can learn more: At her official website.

Links via Imdb.com, ABC.go.com, YouTube.com and CandisCayne.com.

MD Poll: What Will Be Great in '08?

2008 is shaping up to be a great year for movie fans, with many new movies already garnering loads of buzz even before 2007 is over. But the question is, which one are you looking forward to the most?

Can't wait for the next adventures of Batman, James Bond or Indiana Jones? Excited to return to Hogwarts or Narnia or to "where no man has gone before"? Does Speed Racer get your motor racing, or does WALL·E turn your crank? Or can you just not wait another minute to see Carrie Bradshaw on the big screen or to watch Meryl Streep belt an ABBA tune?

Well, you can let your voices be heard in this week's special "super-sized" MD Poll (located in the sidebar to your right, underneath my profile): not only will the poll run for a whole two weeks, but, considering all the exciting movies coming out next year, you can vote for up to three different movies. So get a clickin', and be sure to come back on January 11 to see the results.

UPDATE: This poll is now closed. Click here for the results, and click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.

Links via SlashFilm.com and Imdb.com.

MD Poll: Atone the Tale ...

"Gee, and I thought Jack Sparrow looked weird ... "

Ouch ... I think I sprained my "punny" bone with that post title ...

In the double feature polls last week that asked you to predict what Golden Globe nominated Best Pictures will triumph come January 13, Movie Dearest readers selected Sweeney Todd as the clear victor of the Comedy or Musical category, with over 40% of the total 140 votes. Things were a bit closer for the Dramatic contenders though, with Atonement narrowly edging past No Country for Old Men; even with seven nominees, these two films combined netted 80% of the total 155 votes.

And I agree. With the most nominations, Atonement will likely end up with the top prize, while the Coen brothers will get the Best Director trophy. And being the only nominee with a corresponding director nod, Sweeney should slay the competition in his category.

For the full rundown of this week's results, see the comments section below. And be sure to vote in this week's MD Poll, a look ahead at 2008.

Click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.
Link via GoldenGlobes.org.

Calendar Boy

If you didn't get a 2008 calendar for the holidays, here's a great deal for you fans of cool caricature art and pop culture icons.

"G-Man" artist Glen Hanson has collected twelve (duh) of his best pieces together in a new calendar, not to mention cover boy Cheyenne Jackson in his Xanadu duds. Inside, you'll find faves from stage (Altar Boyz) and screen, both little (Golden Girls, Designing Women) and big (Mommie Dearest, thank you very much). Plus, Lucy, Roseanne, the Sex and the City gals and more.

And best of all, it's free. Click here to find out how you can get your own autographed copy of the G-Man 2008 Caricature Calendar.

Links via GlenHanson.com.

Awards Watch: National Film Registry 2007

Annually since 1989, the National Film Preservation Board and the Librarian of Congress name 25 classic American films to be inducted into the National Film Registry. Prints of each movie, chosen for their cultural and historical significance, will now be "preserved for all time". With this year's selections, announced today, the number of films in the registry now totals 475.

The 2007 inductees run the gamut of film history, from the 1921 silent drama Tol'able David to 1990's Dances With Wolves, and range from blockbusters like Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Back to the Future to little-known avant-garde, experimental, and even student films, such as Randal Kleiser's Peege.

Also included among this year's honorees are Steve McQueen's Bullitt; Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven; the all-star Grand Hotel; Nicholas Ray's In a Lonely Place; John Ford's The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance; the seminal crime drama The Naked City; Bette Davis' Now, Voyager; Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!; Robert Benchley’s The Sex Life of the Polyp; Harry Langdon's The Strong Man; Walt Disney's Three Little Pigs; Sidney Lumet's 12 Angry Men; George Cukor's The Women and William Wyler's Wuthering Heights.

For a quick look at this year's NFR selections, see the comments section below.

Links via Loc.gov/film.

Put On Your Ritzy Best

Fans of GLBT films should be looking forward to January 8, when two very different classic movies finally make their debuts on DVD.

The Ritz is a retro throwback to the swinging gay New York of the 70's. Based on Terrence McNally's stage farce (which recently enjoyed a hit Broadway revival), the Golden Globe nominated comedy reunited most of the original production's cast, including Jack Weston, Jerry Stiller, F. Murray Abraham and Rita Moreno (reprising her Tony Award-winning role of bathhouse chanteuse Googie Gomez), plus hunky Treat Williams in his film debut.

On the other end of the spectrum, Personal Best was one of the first mainstream films to deal openly with lesbianism. Written and directed by Robert Towne, the sports drama stars Mariel Hemingway as a runner playing both sides of the track, bedding both her male coach (Scott Glenn!) and a female competitor (Patrice Donnelly).

Click here to pre-order The Ritzand Personal Beston DVD from Amazon.com.

Links via Imdb.com.

The Latest on TV: AFI 10th Anniversary

Bravo will be re-airing the three-hour television special AFI's 100 Years, 100 Movies - 10th Anniversary Edition twice on Friday.

Since the American Film Institute no longer releases these programs on DVD, this will likely be your last chance to see it; they tend not to repeat them after the year they originally air.

And as a special treat, here is a video slideshow of this year's list.

Links via BravoTV.com, AFI.com and YouTube.com.

Golly, Wall-E

Pixar once again seems to have a winner on its hands, as seen in this latest trailer for WALL·E, next year's animated offering from the toon giant.

There has been lots of chatter about how the little bot resembles a certain cinematic extra-terrestrial, and this trailer appears to reinforce that idea a bit. However, considering their track record, it is safe to assume that Pixar will yet again deliver an original story that stands on its own merits. Although I do have a feeling the exploits of WALL·E will have us reaching for the tissues just as much as the adventures of E.T. did 25 years ago.

For another look at the film, there is also this commercial-like teaser that describes what the WALL·E robots were built for, and you can also take a look at the "official website" for the Buy N Large corporation, the fictional company that mass-produces them.

Links via YouTube.com and BuyNLarge.com.

Women We Love: Doris Day

Object of our affection: Doris Day, actress/song bird.
- Why we love her: For her vivacious, bubbly personality and wholesome, all-American woman image as seen in a highly popular string of musicals and romantic comedies.
- A star is born: Her debut in Romance on the High Seas, wherein she performed the hit song "It's Magic", was so popular, that it was released in the UK under the title It's Magic.
- Awards on her mantel: Oscar nomination for Pillow Talk; various lifetime achievement awards, most recently from the Grammy Awards; oh yeah, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
- She was robbed: Snubbed by the Academy for her dramatic turn as Ruth Etting in Love Me or Leave Me.
- Other choice roles: The sharp-shootin' title character in Calamity Jane (her personal favorite among her films); the frantic mother of a kidnapped boy in The Man Who Knew Too Much; a sassy pro-union factory worker in The Pajama Game.
- What else has she done: Five seasons of the beloved The Doris Day Show on television.
- Golden voice: Six songs that she sung onscreen were nominated for Oscars, including two winners -- "Secret Love" (which she recorded in one take) and her signature tune, "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Será, Será)".
- Musical legacy: She has been name-dropped in several songs over the years, including "Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee" from Grease, Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" and Wham!'s "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go".
- Bet you didn't know: Was in a car accident at age 14 that derailed a career as a ballerina; she was born on the same day as Marlon Brando.
- Yes, it's true: Is a vegetarian and a Republican; turned down the role of Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate.
- Nickname: Do-do; frequent co-star and longtime friend Rock Hudson always called her "Eunice", because he said that whenever he thought of her as a "Eunice", it made him laugh. On the other hand, she called him "Ernie", because "he's certainly no Rock".
- Can we quote you on that: "I like joy; I want to be joyous; I want to have fun on the set; I want to wear beautiful clothes and look pretty. I want to smile and I want to make people laugh. And that's all I want. I like it. I like being happy. I want to make others happy."
- What is she up to now: Founder of the Doris Day Animal League, which advocates homes and proper care of household pets; co-owner (with her son) of the Cypress Inn in Carmel-By-The-Sea.
- Video tribute: A salute to Rock and Doris' biggest hit, Pillow Talk.

Links via Imdb.com, LATimes.com, DDAL.org, DorisDay.com and YouTube.com.

The Latest on DVD: Holiday Left-Overs

It's the post-holiday doldrums as far as most entertainment goes, but there are a few new DVD releases hitting stores this week:

• Eastern Promises- Viggo Mortensen and his already legendary nude fight scene are featured in the Golden Globe nominated crime drama from director David Cronenberg.
• Men in the Nude- A middle-aged writer finds an unlikely muse in the form of a young male prostitute in this Hungarian import.
• Galactica 1980: The Complete Series- Lorne Greene, Kent McCord and Barry Van Dyke star in this ill-advised sequel series to the original Battlestar Galactica.
• The Kingdom- Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner and Chris Cooper make up an elite FBI team seeking answers in the Middle East in this war torn action flick directed by Peter Berg.
• Ballroom- A reclusive gay artist is haunted by "two spooky clowns" in this French drama.
• Pan's Labyrinth- Guillermo del Toro's modern masterpiece, now on Blu-ray and HD-DVD.

Click on the above links for more information or to purchase from Amazon.com.

The Latest on TV: Kennedy Center Honors

The 30th Annual Kennedy Center Honors ceremony will be broadcast on CBS tomorrow night as a two-hour primetime special.

As previously reported, this year's honorees include pianist Leon Fleisher, actor Steve Martin, singer Diana Ross, director Martin Scorsese and musician Brian Wilson.

Something tells me though that none of them will look quite as good in the rainbow-colored sash as the recipient from last year seen here.

Links via Kennedy-Center.org and CBS.com.

Michael Kidd: 1915-2007

Michael Kidd, the Tony and Academy Award-winning choreographer known for his athletic and acrobatic dances on both stage and screen, has died at the age of 92.

Kidd began as a ballet dancer, but quickly gained fame and accolades once he started choreographing with the original Broadway production of Finian's Rainbow, which won him his first of five Tony Awards. He would go on to win for Guys and Dolls, Can-Can, Li'l Abner and Destry Rides Again.

Onscreen, Kidd was seen in It's Always Fair Weather and Smile, but it was his show stopping production numbers in The Band Wagon and, most especially, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, that brought him the most notice. His other film credits include the film version of Guys and Dolls, plus Hello, Dolly! and Star! In 1997, he received an Honorary Oscar for "his services in the art of the dance in the art of the screen".

Links via Imdb.com and LATimes.com.

Christmas Greetings from Movie Dearest!

Isn't it nice to see gay and lesbian couples getting together to celebrate the holidays?

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

-- from Movie Dearest

Happy Life Day, or: May the Farce Be With You

Here's a special Christmas Eve treat for all you Movie Dearest readers out there, something only slightly better then a lump of coal in your stocking: yup, it's the infamous, the legendary, The Star Wars Holiday Special.

And thanks to the KinderTrauma blog, you too can recall fond childhood memories of this black sheep chapter of the Star Wars saga, such as the inexplicable Solid Gold-esque dance numbers and the unlikely presence of Bea Arthur in the Mos Eisley Cantina.

What, you say you've never seen this shameless attempt to cash in on the blockbuster's success (gee, never would have thought ol' George had that in him)? Well, thanks to the miracle of YouTube, you too can catch the entire thing at your leisure.

What, you say you'd rather not waste 97 minutes of your life on this galactic embarrassment? No problem; here's a convenient five minute version, where you can catch all the highlights, such as Bea's groovy finger dance with Greedo, Diahann Carroll as the "Mermeia Holographic Wow" and, thankfully, none of Harvey Korman's scenes. There's even a Wilhelm Scream thrown in for good measure. Marvel at Mark Hamill's make-up job, wince at Harrison Ford's obvious discomfort as he is forced to say "have a nice Life Day", wonder how this thing ever got on the air.

Oh yeah, here's how: it was the 70's.

Links via Imdb.com, KinderTrauma.com and YouTube.com.

The Latest in Theaters: Christmas Gifts

Moviegoers must have been awful nice this year -- Santa will be delivering several new releases throughout this holiday week:

Opening Christmas Day:
- Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman are two terminally ill oldsters who break out of a cancer ward to span the globe in search of last hurrahs in Rob Reiner's The Bucket List, co-starring Sean Hayes and Rob Morrow.
- Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem promises another big showdown between the space nasties from the two popular sci fi franchises.
- The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (starring Ben Chaplin, Emily Watson and Brian Cox) should satisfy the family friendly crowd with the hijinks of a baby Loch Ness Monster.

Opening Tuesday:
-Paul Thomas Anderson's eagerly awaited There Will Be Blood, adapted from Upton Sinclair's novel Oil!, has been raking in the critical praises and should net Daniel Day Lewis another Oscar nod, if not the actual award.

Opening Friday:
- Another award magnate, the starkly animated French film Persepolis, takes a look at the Islamic Revolution through the eyes of a precocious young Iranian girl; Catherine Deneuve headlines the original voice cast, while Sean Penn, Gena Rowlands and Iggy Pop are among the English dubbers (no thanks, I'll take the original).
- Denzel Washington directs and stars in The Great Debaters, the true story of an underdog debate team, the first African-American one to take on Harvard's; co-stars Forest Whitaker and Kimberly Elise.
- And finally, the creepy kid fright fest The Orphanage (produced by Guillermo del Toro) hopes to scare up as much dinero stateside as it has in Spain, where it has ruled the box office and was nominated for five Goya Awards, including Best Film.

Visit Fandango - Search movie showtimes and buy tickets.
Links via Imdb.com, NYTimes.com and Academiadecine.com.

Hop on the Band Wagon

The classic MGM tuner The Band Wagon is one of the few big screen musicals from the golden age yet to make its way to the stage (even though, technically, it is based on a stage musical -- only the title and a handful of songs were carried over to the screen), but that is about to change.

Now one of the most-beloved movie musicals of all time will be brought to life onstage by Douglas Carter Beane, the librettist of the current Broadway hit Xanadu (one of the most-reviled movie musicals of all time) under the title of one of its most memorable dance numbers, Dancing in the Dark. With a blessing from the original film's legendary screenwriter, Betty Comden, the new stage version will also add more songs from the catalog of songwriters Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz.

Dancing in the Dark will premiere next year in San Diego, with an eye for a Broadway bow in the future.

Click here to buy The Band Wagonon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com, Ibdb.com and Playbill.com.

Cinematic Crush: Viggo Mortensen

Crush object: Viggo Mortensen, actor/man of arts.
- Why we like him: For the passion that he brings to each role and for his refreshing, often out-spoken (but always soft-spoken) views of the Hollywood establishment.
- What he's known for: His breakthrough role as Aragorn, the sword-wielding "one true king" of Middle Earth, in The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
- Awards on his mantel: Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations and Golden Satellite Award for Eastern Promises; various ensemble awards for the LOTR series.
- Film debut: As an Amish farmer in Witness; was also on the soap opera Search for Tomorrow early in his career.
- Other choice roles: A violent, antisocial Vietnam vet in The Indian Runner; a sadistic drill sergeant in G.I. Jane; a small town family man with a secret past in A History of Violence.
- Gay for pay: Won a Dramalogue Critics' Award for his performance in a Los Angles production of the play Bent; known to moon over an elf or kiss a hobbit on occasion.
- Bet you didn't know: While growing up, he lived in Venezuela, Argentina and Denmark; will turn 50 next year.
- Yes, it's true: Purchased his horse co-stars after filming was completed on both LOTR and Hidalgo; turned down his invitation to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
- Side jobs: Is a published author and poet and exhibited photographer and painter (those are his actual paintings in A Perfect Murder, wherein he played a painter); founder of the Perceval Press publishing house, which specializes in the works of unknown artists. He is also an accomplished musician with several recordings; he even wrote the music for the song "Aragorn's Coronation" in The Return of the King.
- Ancestry: Is named after his father, who is Danish; is also one-quarter Norwegian. In addition to those two languages and English, he speaks Spanish, French, Italian and Swedish (not to mention Elvish).
- Family ties: His son Henry (who convinced him to play Aragorn) has appeared with him in three films, including Crimson Tide and The Two Towers.
- Can we quote you on that: (On the role of an actor in film) "It comes down to the fact that you supply the blue, and they supply the other colors and mix them with your blue, and maybe there's some blue left in the painting and maybe there isn't. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be any there in the first place. So have some fun and make a good blue and walk away."
- Where you can see him next: Co-stars in Ed Harris' Appaloosa; stars as iconic author Edgar Allen Poe in the biopic Poe.
- Where you can see more of him right now: Witness his chameleonic talents in "The Many Faces of Viggo Mortensen".

Click here to buy Viggo Mortensen's booksand musicfrom Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com, Advocate.com, YouTube.com and PercevalPress.com.

Awards Watch: Grammy Hall of Fame

In addition to their annual award fest, the Grammys also induct various classic albums and songs into their Hall of Fame each year. 2007's inductees include several works tied to the movies and the stage, including:

• Dionne Warwick's version of the Oscar-nominated title track from Alfie
• The original soundtrack recording of Cabaret(old chum)
• The original Broadway cast recordings of Stephen Sondheim's Companyand Lionel Bart's Oliver!
• Two James Bond theme songs: Shirley Bassey's Goldfingerand Dusty Springfield's "The Look of Love" from Casino Royale
• The Jimmy Cliff soundtrack from the midnight movie mainstay The Harder They Come
• The title song from The Beatles movie Help!
• "Indian Love Call", as sung by Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy in Rose-Marie
• Fred Astaire's "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" from Top Hat
• Barbra Streisand's Oscar-winning title song from The Way We Were

Click on the above links to purchase the albums from Amazon.com.

Links via Grammy.com.

Film Art: From Russian With Love

Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts in the Golden Globe nominated Eastern Promises, as depicted by artist Steve Brodner for the New Yorker.

Click here to buy Eastern Promiseson DVD from Amazon.com.

Link via SteveBrodner.com.

Oh Hell

Big red is back: Hellboy II: The Golden Army joins in on next year's onslaught of comic book-based movies, with Guillermo del Toro back in the director's chair and a buff Ron Perlman back in the crimson body make-up.

The sequel doesn't hit theaters until July, but here's the first-look trailer.

Links via Imdb.com and YouTube.com.

Poster Post: Denzel Edition

Denzel Washington is in Sidney Poitier mode again in the Golden Globe nominated The Great Debaters, opening Christmas Day.

Link via Imdb.com.

I Now Pronounce You Jim and Ewan

It's a case of a story so bizarre, that it has to be true: a smalltime conman, married with children, is arrested and thrown into prison. While incarcerated, he falls in love with his cellmate. When said cellmate is released prior to him, he manages to escape and is recaptured ... four times. And, oh yeah -- this all takes place in Texas.

Dorothy, we're not in Oz anymore.

Documented in a book by crime reporter Steve McVicker, I Love You Phillip Morris is now being made into a movie. Helmed by the creators of Bad Santa and starring Jim Carrey, it isn't too hard to figure out that it will be a comedy, albeit a dark one. Let's just hope Carrey doesn't wear a Hawaiian shirt like the one seen on the book cover though ... that would be too much of an Ace Venture flashback for most of us to handle.

Tempering images of another Chuck and Larry fiasco is the recent casting of Ewan McGregor as the title character. McGregor has done gay for pay before, so one would hope he wouldn't sign on for a movie made up solely of lame man-on-man-sex-in-prison jokes. Plus, as we've all seen (and by "seen", I mean "freeze-framed"), he's notorious for going the full monty in just about every movie he's in; now that would certainly provide ample motivation for anyone to break out of prison at least four times ... if not more.

UPDATE: Leslie Mann, who pretty much stole the show in Knocked Up, has been cast as the wife of Jim Carrey's character.

Click here to buy the book I Love You Philip Morrisfrom Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com and Variety.com.

Spend Christmas Eve With the Parkers

What better way to enjoy a nice, quiet Christmas Eve then to hear "Fa-ra-ra-ra-ra" twelve times? Not to mention seeing Flick freeze his tongue to a flagpole, the Old Man receive his "major award", Randy make like "mommy's little piggy" and, of course, Ralphie slide down a Santa slide, get his mouth washed out with soap, beat the crap out of Scut Farkus, don a bunny suit and, oh yeah, get his eye shot out.

That's right, it's time for the annual "24 Hours of A Christmas Story" marathon on TBS. This will be the 11th year for the event (which originally started on TBS's sister station TNT in 1997), which consists of running the comedy classic back to back twelve times starting at 8 PM (7 Central) tomorrow night.

Now that's a lot of Peking Duck.

Link via TBS.com.

Potent Quotables: Nick and Nora Edition

Was there ever a classier onscreen couple then the dashing William Powell and the sophisticated Myrna Loy? The two acting greats starred in an amazing 14 films together, and by far their most lasting pairing was as the equally dashing and sophisticated Nick and Nora Charles in The Thin Man movies.

Throughout the six films in the series, the crime-solving, martini-drinking duo had their fare share of zingers and witty exchanges, such as these from the original Thin Man:

• Nora: (Responding to a reporter's question as to what case Nick was working on) "A case of scotch. Pitch in and help him."
• Nick: (When asked by a reporter if he could tell them anything about the case) "Yes, it's putting me way behind in my drinking."
• Nick: (On the fine art of mixing drinks) "The important thing is the rhythm. Always have rhythm in your shaking. Now a Manhattan you shake to fox-trot time, a Bronx to two-step time, a dry martini you always shake to waltz time."
• Nick: "How'd you like Grant's tomb?" Nora: "It's lovely. I'm having a copy made for you."
• Nora: "Pretty girl." Nick: "Yes. She's a very nice type." Nora: "You got types?" Nick: "Only you, darling. Lanky brunettes with wicked jaws."
• Nick: "Oh, it's all right, Joe. It's all right. It's my dog. And, uh, my wife." Nora: "Well you might have mentioned me first on the billing."
• Nora: "You know, that sounds like an interesting case. Why don't you take it?" Nick: "I haven't the time. I'm much too busy seeing that you don't lose any of the money I married you for."
• Nick: "Hey, would you mind putting that gun away? My wife doesn't care, but I'm a very timid fellow."
• Nora: (Suffering from a hangover) "What hit me?" Nick: "The last martini."
• And finally, my favorite Nick-and-Nora-ism -- Nick: (Referring to how his exploits were written up in the newspapers) "I'm a hero. I was shot twice in the Tribune." Nora: "I read you were shot five times in the tabloids." Nick: "It's not true. He didn't come anywhere near my tabloids."

Click here to buy The Thin Manmovies on DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Force of Hobbit

Now that Peter Jackson and New Line have kissed and made up, the big screen version of The Hobbit seems to be finally moving forward ... or as much as any project can in these strike-torn days.

Unfortunately, Jackson will only produce the film, along with yet another one that will take place between the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings saga (presumably culled from the many other works of J.R.R. Tolkien). Rumors are swirling about possible directors, with Spider-Man's Sam Raimi and Pan's Labyrinth's Guillermo del Toro leading the pack (I vote for the latter, although the former seems to have the edge).

Of course, unlike the Rings trilogy (which easily overshadowed memories of the awful Ralph Bakshi atrocity), The Hobbit has some big furry feet to fill, as anyone with fond memories of the delightful Rankin Bass animated television production from thirty years ago can attest. Say, I wonder if they'll have Enya do a cover of Glenn Yarbrough's haunting ballad, "The Greatest Adventure", or perhaps ... The Chipmunks?

Click here to buy the original The Hobbiton DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via HollywoodReporter.com, EW.com, Variety.com, Imdb.com and YouTube.com.

Number One With a Bullet

Billboard recently released their annual lists of the top-selling albums of 2007, including those for cast albums and soundtracks.

Regarding the latter, if it weren't for Dreamgirlsand Hairsprayyou would think that you stumbled onto the Kid's Music charts. Actually, make that the Disney Music chart, as seven albums from the House of Mouse dominate the top ten, including such Disney Channel favorites as Hannah Montanaand High School Musical(which together claimed the top four slots) and Cars. And the story isn't much different over on the soundtrack singles chart, where six songs from Disney-owned properties placed in the top ten, including ABC's Grey's Anatomy,which claimed the top spot.

As for cast albums, Wickedcontinued its reign over that chart, with other favorites such as Legally Blondeand Hairspray (again) making appearances. However, Disney even took a hold of a couple places here, with The Lion Kingand Mary Poppins. Added all together, that means Disney music made up exactly half of these three charts. And who says that kids today have bad taste in music?

Click on the above links to buy the albums from Amazon.com.
Links via Billboard.biz.

Poster Posts: Go, Speed Racer, Go

Considering that it is the adorable Emile Hirsch donning the helmet of Speed Racer, don't you wish the camera was aimed just a little bit more to the right?

Click here to buy this Speed Racerposter from Amazon.com.
Link via Imdb.com.

Mermaids and Monsters

Whether you're dreaming for your own prince to become a "Part of Your World" or you just want someone to join you as you're "Puttin' on the Ritz", these two new original Broadway cast recordings should fulfill your fondest wishes.

Click here for more information (including complete track lists) and to pre-order The Little Mermaid(available February 26) and/or Young Frankenstein(available December 26) from Amazon.com.

Holy Superlatives, Batman!

If there were one word to describe the newest trailer for The Dark Knight, it would be awesome. No, make that "frikkin' awesome".

If anything, this should shut up all those fanboys who doubted that Heath Ledger could play the Joker (Jack who?); he not only looks different, he sounds different. No, make that "sounds frikkin' insane".

And if the trailer isn't enough to whet your appetite for the time being, here's a shot-by-shot breakdown for all you minutia maniacs out there.

Click here to buy The Dark Knightposters from Amazon.com.
Links via ATasteForTheTheatrical.com and MTV.com.

Grinches and Bad Santas

Not everyone can be as cheerful as good ol' Saint Nick on Christmas ... there's plenty of Scrooges out there to put a little "humbug" into your holidays, as a surprisingly abundant number of lists out there have pointed out recently:

• The Top Ten Christmas TV Villains: Heat Miser and Snow Miser make the cut, as do BurgerMeister MeisterBurger, the Bumble (he bounces, you know) and, courtesy of A Charlie Brown Christmas, commercialism.
• 12 Movie Characters Not To Invite to Your Holiday Party: The title says it all, and one couldn't agree more then to pass up the company of the rotten-toothed Scut Farkus, the snowman rapist named Jack Frost and the title character from Santa's Slay, who, in the opening sequence of the movie, proves that "he’s quite adept at demolishing a room full of D-listers" (hey, James Caan, wasn't Elf bad enough?).
• Top 10 Christmas Villains: Lists not just one "bad Santa", but four of 'em, including Billy Bob Thornton and the Grinch.
• Top 10 Least Loved Rankin and Bass Characters: OK, these aren't exactly scary bad guys here, but you gotta admit it: Ethel Merman as a flying, show tune-belting cowgirl is pretty frightening.

Links via YesButNoButYes.com, KinderTrauma.com, YouTube.com and FHMOnline.com.

Toon Talk: A Duck and a Rabbit Walk Into the Happiest Place on Earth …

Following erroneous reports of their untimely demise, the Walt Disney Treasures line is back with another batch of titles this holiday season -- Disneyland: Secrets, Stories and Magic, The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and The Chronological Donald Volume 3 -- just in time for gift giving for you and/or your favorite Disneyphile. And although two of the three volumes were originally intended as non-Treasure sets, the trio of titles still offers hours of programming to satisfy the hardcore Disneyland and animation buffs out there.

Click here to continue reading my Toon Talk review at LaughingPlace.com.

Click here to buy the Walt Disney TreasuresDVDs from Amazon.com.

Out in Film: Stephen Sondheim

Idol worship: Stephen Sondheim, composer-lyricist/ show tune legend.
- What he's known for: His sophisticated, complex and richly rewarding compositions that revolutionized American musical theater, words and music that continue to inspire fevered devotion among his many and varied aficionados.
- Awards on his mantel: Multiple Tony Awards (including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods); two Grammys (for Sweeney and "Send in the Clowns"); a Pulitzer Prize (for Sunday in the Park With George); an Oscar (for the song "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)" from Dick Tracy); the lifetime achievement award from the Kennedy Center Honors.
- Other choice projects: The lyricist behind West Side Story and Gypsy; co-writer (with Anthony Perkins) of The Last of Sheila; composed the score for Reds and songs for The Birdcage.
- Onscreen appearances: In various Broadway-themed documentaries, as well as appearing as himself in the movie Camp and on The Simpsons.
- Bet you didn't know: Once wrote an unofficial original musical based on Mary Poppins; early in his career, he was a writer on the TV version of Topper; his voice can be heard on the original cast album for Gypsy, as Rose's father during the song "Some People".
- Yes, it's true: He and fellow composer Andrew Lloyd Webber were both born on a March 22; was mentored by Broadway legend Oscar Hammerstein II; loves games and puzzles.
- TV tribute: Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry is a huge Sondheim fan, titling each episode to date after one of his songs.
- Can we quote you on that: "My idea of heaven is not writing."
- Where you can see his work now: Onscreen in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
- Upcoming projects: Broadway revivals of Sunday in the Park With George, Gypsy and West Side Story; the television debut of the recent production of Company on PBS; a possible film version of Follies.
- Where you can learn more: In The Sondheim Review, the only professional magazine devoted exclusively to the work of one composer.

Links via Imdb.com, YouTube.com, BroadwayWorld.com, Playbill.com and SondheimReview.com.

Out of the Celluloid Closet: Can't Stop the Music

Granted, it doesn't take much to detect the barely hidden gay subtext in Can't Stop the Music, the notorious movie musical to end all movie musicals (literally; it and Xanadu pretty much killed the genre for nearly two decades).

First, there's the Village People ... 'nuff said. Then there's Steve Guttenberg and Bruce Jenner in short-shorts. And let's not forget the musical numbers, such as the rainbow-hued finale and the infamous "Y.M.C.A.", featuring a clueless Valerie Perrine surrounded by dozens of hot and humpy gym bunnies, parading around in jock straps and doing synchronized aerobic routines while paying absolutely no attention to her. Oh yeah, and the whole thing was directed by Nancy "The Quicker Picker-Upper" Walker and produced by Alan Carr.

Can't Stop the Music will be screened tomorrow night at the historic Castro Theatre in San Francisco for their special "A Very Merry Disco Christmas" party, with a special appearance by the original "cowboy" from the Village People, Randy Jones. In addition to the interactive screening and live musical performances, there will also be an "It Takes a Village People Look-a-Like Contest". Considering this all takes place in gay ground zero, it shouldn't be too hard to find enough participants for what could turn out to be a fierce competition. Now where did I put my tool belt ...

Click here to buy Can't Stop the Musicon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com, YouTube.com, CastroTheatre.com and RetroCrush.bizznet.com.

MD Poll: Global Warming

This week's MD Poll is a simple one: of the seven nominees for Best Picture - Drama and five nominees for Best Picture - Musical or Comedy, which one do you think will win the Golden Globe?

You can place your vote in both polls in the sidebar to your right, and don't forget that there are two separate polls, so make sure to vote once in each.

Check back next week for the results, and we'll see if our picks are on the mark when the actual Globes are handed out on January 13.

UPDATE: This poll is now closed. Click here for the results, and click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.

Link via GoldenGlobe.org.

MD Poll: Defying Gravity

To paraphrase Gordon Gekko, "Green is good": Wicked was on everyone's minds as the favored choice for the next big screen version of a stage musical hit, earning over one-third of 263 total votes in last week's poll. However, in a bit of catch-22, the show's Broadway success will probably keep Universal from planning any film version for the forseeable future.

Two shows -- Aida and Into the Woods -- tied for second place, with Les Miz and Avenue Q rounding out the top five.

For the full results, see the comments section below. This week's MD Poll, a double feature of sorts, will be posted shortly.

Click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.

The Latest in Theaters: Cox, Todd and Wilson

This weekend in theaters is not just a showdown of new movies, but of Golden Globe nominees as well, including three of the five Best Actor - Musical or Comedy contenders:

And at last, thirty years after its Broadway debut, the movie is here: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. The Tim Burton adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical classic starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman and a reportedly well-packaged Sacha Baron Cohen has received mostly rapturous early reviews and will likely draw in a diverse audience from show queens to Goths to gore hounds. Click here for more Movie Dearest coverage on the movie, and Sweeney week will wrap up here tomorrow with an Out in Film profile of the iconic Sondheim.

With a cast that includes three Oscar-winners (Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman) led by an Oscar-winning director (Mike Nichols) from a script by an Emmy-winner (Aaron Sorkin), it is no wonder that Charlie Wilson's War was earmarked as an awards frontrunner for so long. That is, until people started getting a look at it, and the prospects of more Oscar glory grew dim for this political satire (personally, I had my doubts once I saw the cheeky trailer). Hey, at least the Hollywood Foreign Press liked it enough to give it five nominations (the second most for any film this year), although methinks that if they didn't deem it a comedy, it wouldn't have fared so well there either.

John C. Reilly displays both his musical and comedic chops in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, a mockumentary/send up of all the recent rags-to-riches music biopics of late such as Ray and Walk the Line, subject matter one would think isn't exactly fitting for comedic treatment. The red-hot Judd Apatow co-wrote the script, and Jenna Fischer co-stars in the June Carter role. In addition to a bunch of parody songs, expect to see a bunch of familiar faces in cameos as such stars as Elvis, Buddy Holly, the Beatles and, as themselves, the Temptations.

From the looks of the ads, one would think that the hunky Gerard Butler has a major role in P.S., I Love You, the latest attempt to turn butch Hilary Swank into, well, something less butch. (Possible SPOILER approaching.) Well, don't get too used to him, as the plot hinges around Butler's love letters from beyond the grave to Swank, urging her to go on with her life and find a nice man to fill his suspenders and boxer shorts. James Marsters, Harry Connick Jr. and Jeffrey Dean Morgan line up as her potential suitors, while Lisa Kudrow and Gina Gershon show up as her supportive gal pals.

And finally, Nicolas Cage is back in action mode yet again for National Treasure: Book of Secrets. Joining Cage in this new adventure are fellow Oscar-winners Helen Mirren and John Voight, not to mention past nominees Ed Harris and Harvey Keitel. Yeah, I don't know what they're all doing in this movie either.

UPDATE: Forget to mention that the brand new, Annie Award nominated Goofy cartoon, How To Hook Up Your Home Theater, screens with the National Treasures sequel.

Fandango - Search movie showtimes and buy tickets.
Links via Imdb.com, EdgeBoston.com, CNN.com, NYMag.com, LATimes.com, YouTube.com and Animated-Views.com.

Awards Watch: Screen Actors Guild

With today's nominations for the Screen Actors Guild, this year's award race just keeps getting more and more interesting. Into the Wild, pretty much ignored by the Golden Globes, snagged a field best four nominations (including Outstanding Performance by a Cast), while Atonement (the Globe frontrunner with seven nods), Charlie Wilson's War and Sweeney Todd are nowhere to be found on the SAG ballot.

In addition to Wild, the ensemble category includes American Gangster, Hairspray, No Country for Old Men and, somewhat of a surprise, 3:10 to Yuma. New this year is two awards honoring Outstanding Performances by a Stunt Ensemble for both film and television; now how about a voiceover actor award, SAG? And speaking of television, there was more love for Brothers and Sisters, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy and Ugly Betty. And as previously announced, veteran character actor Charles Durning will receive the SAG's life achievement award.

Thanks to a waiver by the striking Writers Guild, the awards will be handed out January 27 in a live telecast on TNT and TBS. For a quick look at the movie award nominations, see the comments section below.

Links via SAGAwards.org and HollywoodReporter.com.

Women We Love: Helena Bonham Carter

Object of our affection: Helena Bonham Carter, actress/not just an "English rose".
- Why we love her: Her coffee-colored eyes and porcelain skin made her the perfect "corset queen", but her fiery passion always shines through.
- When did we first notice her: As the love struck Lucy Honeychurch in A Room With a View.
- Awards on her mantel: National Board of Review award and Oscar nomination for The Wings of the Dove.
- Other choice roles: Helen Schlegel in Howards End; Marla Singer in Fight Club; Bellatrix Lestrange in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
- Burton's muse: Since meeting while filming his Planet of the Apes, she has appeared in all subsequent films directed by her boyfriend Tim Burton, including this week's Sweeney Todd.
- Domestic bliss: She and Burton live in neighboring houses connected by a hallway; just this past Saturday, she gave birth to their second child, Indiana Rose Burton; Johnny Depp is the godfather of their first child, Billy Ray.
- Bet you didn't know: Speaks fluent French; early in her career, played Don Johnson's girlfriend on Miami Vice.
- Yes, it's true: Is the great-granddaughter of a former British Prime Minister; in the past, was romantically involved with Kenneth Branagh, Rufus Sewell and Steve Martin.
- Can we quote you on that: "I hate this image of me as a prim Edwardian. I want to shock everyone."
- Side jobs: Has her own fashion line called "The Pantaloonies", inspired by Victorian-style swimwear.
- Where we can see her next: As the meat pie baking Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (which recently netted her her fifth Golden Globe nomination), plus the next two Harry Potters.

Links via Imdb.com and MTV.com.

Awards Watch: Golden Satellites

The International Press Academy handed out their Golden Satellite Awards earlier this week and, despite their usually eclectic list of nominees, their final picks fell in line with the general consensus of late: No Country for Old Men, Juno, Sicko and Ratatouille won their respective Best Picture prizes. The only somewhat surprising win was Ang Lee's Lust, Caution in the foreign language race.

More familiar names popped up in the acting categories, as least as far as the women are concerned, with Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page and Amy Ryan collecting more gold. It was another story for the men though, with Viggo Mortensen, Ryan Gosling and (in a tie for supporting actor with Casey Affleck) Tom Wilkinson netting their first awards this year.

In the group's television awards, Grey’s Anatomy's Ellen Pompeo and Ugly Betty's America Ferrera and Vanessa Williams won in the acting fields, while newcomer Pushing Daisies triumphed as Best Comedy Series.

For a quick view of the movie award winners, see the comments section below.

Link via PressAcademy.com.

Poster Post: Graphic Designs

As you can see by the trailer and this striking poster art, Persepolis (based on the autobiographical graphic novels by Marjane Satrapi) is not your typical animated film ... in fact, it could be the first animated film nominated for Oscar's Foreign Language Film award.

Links via YouTube.com and Imdb.com.

Awards Watch: AFI Awards 2007

Every year, the American Film Institute selects ten films to receive their AFI Awards. The honors are unique in that they, recognizing the collaborative medium of film, are awarded to "the individuals and creative ensembles who have created the year's outstanding achievements". In other words, the award goes to not only the film's producer and/or director, but everyone involved in creating it. Now, I don't believe everyone gets an actual trophy; perhaps they hand out little embossed certificates to the caterers, best boys, script girls, et al (and if they don't, I think they should, don't you?).

This year's selections are a refreshingly mixed lot, ranging from the animated adventures of a culinary rodent (Ratatouille) and two comedies about unwed mothers (Knocked Up, Juno) to more obvious Oscar baiters like No Country for Old Men, Michael Clayton, Into the Wild and There Will Be Blood. Philip Seymour Hoffman stars in two of their picks, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead and The Savages, while the winner of this year's AFI Fest, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, was somewhat of a surprise considering it is from France (it is actually a US/French co-production, therefore eligible as an "American" film).

In past years, most if not all of the eventual Oscar Best Picture nominees made the AFI cut, although it is notable that last year's winner, The Departed, did not. And don't count out the British -- and thus absent -- Atonement. What these awards do mean in this year's race concerns the ever-more prominent Diving Bell; it just may ride a wave of early recognition and stellar reviews into Oscar's final five.

The AFI Awards are also given to television productions, with such Movie Dearest favorites as Pushing Daisies and Ugly Betty among this year's worthy honorees.

Links via AFI.com.

The Latest on DVD: Now That's Entertainment

This week's DVD releases offer a wide variety of options for your entertainment needs:

• Classic musicals in high definition: That's Entertainment: The Complete Collection
• Animated shenanigans of a certain yellow-skinned TV family: The Simpsons Movie
• Retro adventures of a hip trio: The Mod Squad - Season 1, Volume 1
• Fantasy fun with Michelle Pfeiffer as a wicked witch and Robert De Niro as a cross-dressing pirate: Stardust
• Neon-lit sci fi greatness courtesy of Ridley Scott: Blade Runner: The Final Cut
• Modern musical romance: Once
• The high adventure early days of a certain classic hero: The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles: Volume Two
• Sword and sandal epic-ness with Colin Firth: The Last Legion
• Reimagined trick or treat terror: Halloween
• Simply cheertastic: Bring It On: Cheerbook Collection,which includes the brand new sequel Bring It On: In It to Win It

Click on the above links for more information or to purchase from Amazon.com.

Link via Wired.com.

Cinematic Crush: Johnny Depp

Crush object: Johnny Depp, actor/demon talent.
- Why we like him: While bypassing teen idol status, he turned the art of the character actor into super stardom, continually surprising us with his quirky yet expertly crafted performances.
- When did we first notice him: Getting sucked into a bed in the original A Nightmare on Elm Street (his film debut); a baby-faced cop undercover as a high school student in the early Fox TV hit 21 Jump Street.
- Awards on his mantel: Won the Screen Actors Guild Award for his one-of-a-kind Captain Jack Sparrow in the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, which also nabbed him his first Oscar nom. Also Oscar nominated as Peter Pan author James M. Barrie in Finding Neverland.
- Other choice roles: Cry-Baby Walker, Edward Scissorhands, Gilbert Grape, Ed Wood, Don Juan, Donnie Brasco, Ichabod Crane, Willy Wonka ...
- Gay for pay: As Bon Bon, the talented smuggler in Before Night Falls.
- Bet you didn't know: He dropped out of school at age 15 in the hopes of becoming a rock musician; once supported himself as a ballpoint pen salesman.
- Yes, it's true: Nicolas Cage turned him onto acting; has had four celebrity fiancées: Sherilyn Fenn, Jennifer Grey, Winona Ryder and Kate Moss.
- Constant collaborator: Has teamed with director Tim Burton six times, including the animated Corpse Bride and this week's Sweeney Todd.
- Can we quote you on that: "The term 'serious actor' is kind of an oxymoron, isn't it? Like 'Republican party' or 'airplane food'."
- And another thing: "I'm an old-fashioned guy ... I want to be an old man with a beer belly sitting on a porch, looking at a lake or something."
- Nickname: Mr. Stench.
- Where we can see him next: As the title character in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (which just netted him his eighth Golden Globe nomination); as John Dillinger in Public Enemies; possibly more Pirate adventures and a visit or two to Sin City.
- Where you can see more of him right now: In this fan video, to the tune of, appropriately, the song "Johnny Depp" by Amy Anne.

Links via Imdb.com, MTV.com and YouTube.com.

Memo from Movie Dearest: A Short Christmas Break

Just a quick note to let you all know that Movie Dearest is taking a short break to visit brother Frodo and the little ones up in the Shire for the holidays over the weekend.

I should be back and posting by Tuesday, so the next Cinematic Crush may be a bit delayed if I don't get a chance to do it on Monday (being that it is Sweeney Todd week, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out who it will be).

Until then, be sure to vote in this week's MD Poll and TTFN ... ta-ta for now!

Happy Birthday, Patty Duke!

The Academy Award-winning actress turns 61 today. To celebrate, here's a little blast from the past.

Links via Imdb.com and YouTube.com.

Out in Film: David Hyde Pierce

Idol worship: David Hyde Pierce, actor/former Crane.
- What he's known for: As the theater-going, opera-loving, French-spouting, are-you-sure-he's-straight psychiatrist, Dr. Niles Crane, on the long-running TV comedy classic Frasier.
- When did we first notice him: As a suicidal Congressman on the short-lived but well-remembered political sitcom The Powers That Be.
- Awards on his mantel: Four Emmys (out of 11 consecutive nominations, an Emmy record) for Frasier; Tony Award for Kander and Ebb's Curtains.
- Other choice roles: The "Tony Randall" role in Down With Love; brave Sir Robin on Broadway in Monty Python's Spamalot; notable voiceover roles in A Bug's Life, Treasure Planet, Hellboy and The Simpsons.
- Good works: Is active in the fight to find a cure for Alzheimer's disease, which his father and grandfather suffered from; he is also a regular supporter of HIV/AIDS charities and GLBT causes.
- Bet you didn't know: He played the piano often on Frasier, but he also plays the organ and initially studied classical piano at Yale; he graduated with a double major in English and Theatre Arts. While at Yale, he met Jodie Foster, who would later cast him in one of his first films, Little Man Tate.
- Yes, it's true: As a struggling actor in New York in the early days of his career, he took such jobs as selling ties at Bloomingdale's and working as a security guard.
- Butch hobby: Kickboxing.
- Can we quote you on that: "I can vividly recall telling a joke in, like, second grade and realizing it was funnier if I didn't laugh. I've been deadpan ever since."
- Domestic bliss: He and his partner, television writer/producer Brian Hargrove, reside in Los Angeles with their two Wheaton Terriers, Maude and Mabel.
- Latest project: Still knockin' 'em dead nightly in Curtains (through next summer). Here's a clip of him performing the showstopper, "Show People", with the original Broadway cast.

Links via Imdb.com, Playbill.com and YouTube.com.

MD Poll: From Broadway to Hollywood

As you can see by the gruesome header above, a certain demon barber has paid a little visit to Movie Dearest. That's right, today marks the beginning of the weeklong countdown to Sweeney Todd, opening next Friday. Therefore, to kick things off in bloody-good fashion, this newest movie musical has inspired this week's MD Poll.

With the Golden Globe nominated success of this year's Hairspray and Sweeney, movie musicals are back in vogue, and what better place for inspiration is there then the Broadway stage. Already we have Mamma Mia! and Nine (eventually) on the horizon, but what is the next big stage-to-screen musical that you would like to see most?

Do you dream of seeing Elphaba soaring on the silver screen in Wicked: The Movie? Does Sweeney get you in the mood for more gothic musical mayhem (Jekyll & Hyde) or Sondheim musical genius (Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park With George)? Long to see Hugh Jackman as The Boy from Oz or Heather Headley as Aida? Itching for Cats or miserable for Les Miserables? Want to take a trip to Avenue Q? Or, if the Naked Boys can do it, how about the Altar Boyz, fresh from Off-Broadway?

So sing out, Louise, and let your voice be heard by casting your vote in this week's poll, located in the sidebar at right. As usual, the poll will run for one week, so be sure to check back next Friday for the results. We'll save you an aisle seat.

And here's a bonus treat for those of you who can't wait 'til next week to see a little Sweeney.

UPDATE: This poll is now closed. Click here for the results, and click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.


Link via YouTube.com.

MD Poll: Christmas Story Gets an A+!

A+! A+! A+! ...

If that reference doesn't immediately bring to mind one of the schoolroom scenes in A Christmas Story, then you probably didn't vote for it as your favorite Christmas movie in last week's MD Poll. But over 30% of you did, enough to make it your #1 pick.

Perennial favorites It's a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street placed second and third, followed by The Nightmare Before Christmas and White Christmas to round out the top five.

See the comments section below for the full results, and this week's show-stopping poll will be posted shortly.

Click here to vote in the latest MD Poll.
Click here to buy A Christmas Storyon DVD from Amazon.com.

The Latest in Theaters: A Boy and His Dog

Will Smith is the one to beat in this weekend's new releases with I Am Legend, another "one man (and his dog) against the post apocalyptic zombie hordes" adventure, previously played out onscreen by the likes of Vincent Price and Charlton Heston.

The Kite Runner, an incendiary drama about child rape from director Marc Forster, has received a lot of press regarding the deadly situation that the film's plot put its young stars in in their own country of Afghanistan. The film's release date was pushed back until now, and the boys have since been safely relocated by Paramount.

Francis Ford Coppola's attempted comeback picture, Youth Without Youth, stars Tim Roth as a timid professor who discovers a formula for immortality, attracting the attention of the Nazis. I hate it when that happens.

And last, and certainly least: Alvin and the Chipmunks make the leap to the big screen in this latest CGI-ed bastardization of beloved childhood cartoon characters.

Fandango - Search movie showtimes and buy tickets.
Links via EdgeBoston.com, Imdb.com, NYTimes.com, NPR.org and TheReeler.com.

ABBAlicious

My, my, the brand new trailer for the Mamma Mia! movie sure makes you ask yourself, "how could I resist you?"

A confession: although I love ABBA as much as the next gay, the stage musical (that mixes their classic tunes with the story of a bride-to-be who -- unbeknownst to her mother -- invites the three men who may be her father to her wedding) left me cold. In other words, when it comes to the Mamma Mia! musical, I tend to paraphrase Bernadette in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: "No more effin' ABBA".

However, with a cast headlined by Meryl Streep, the movie version (which will open July 18) is looking to be a lot of fun. Add faves Julie Walters and Christine Baranski as Streep's former girl group pals, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård (nice that they got an actual Swede in there) as the daddies in question, plus Mean Girls' Amanda Seyfried and History Boy hottie Dominic Cooper as the young couple, and you got quite the talented -- and attractive -- cast that, with just one look, can make me hear that bell ring. Oh-oh-oh-oh ...

UPDATE: Here's more footage in the international trailer, including a great comic bit with Meryl Streep and the three dads.

Links via AOL.com, Imdb.com, YouTube.com and Yahoo.com.

Xanadu Rocks

Could this be a trend? First Wicked "guest-starred" on Ugly Betty, now the gang from 30 Rock visits Xanadu.

Although it is not clear if any of the actual show will be seen on the Emmy Award-winning comedy series, tonight's Christmas-themed episode (airing on NBC) will involve Tiny Fey's character getting tickets to Xanadu for her visiting parents. Guest stars listed for the episode include Buck Henry, Andy Richter and Elaine Stritch (who won an Emmy for appearing on the series last season), so if Kerry and Cheyenne do appear, I guess it will be a surprise.

As all Xanadu-ites know, 30 Rock co-star Jane Krakowski played the Olivia Newton John role in the show's early workshops, but couldn't do the show on Broadway because she was cast on ... 30 Rock. Which just goes to show that what goes around comes around ... especially if you're wearing roller skates.

UPDATE: Uh, make that "Jersey Boys Rocks" ...

Links via Playbill.com and NBC.com.

Awards Watch: Global Awareness

Those of us who were hoping that today's Golden Globe nominations would clarify the 2007 award races were dealt a mixed hand by the always fickle Hollywood Foreign Press Association: no less then seven films are up for Best Picture - Drama. Add in the five nominated for Best Picture - Comedy or Musical, and one thing is certain this year: nothing is certain this year. Which means it should be a fun (albeit possibly frustrating) next couple of months for movie fans and award pundits alike.

Atonement leads the pack with seven nominations, with Charlie Wilson's War following with five. This is good news for these two films, as they were pretty much left out of the last round of critics' kudos, who instead went for grittier fare like No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood, both of which join Atonement in the Best Picture - Drama category here. Also nominated in the big race is American Gangster, Eastern Promises, Michael Clayton and The Great Debaters, which, in typical Globe fashion, received no other nominations. The same is true of Across the Universe, nominated for Best Picture - Comedy or Musical, along with Hairspray, Juno, Sweeney Todd and Charlie Wilson.

In the acting categories, both Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman netted two nominations each, with Blanchett joining John Travolta in the supporting categories for their gender-bending performances. And then there's Marion Cotillard, sticking out like a misplaced thumb in the nominees for Best Actress- Comedy or Musical.

On the TV side, a special shout out to Pushing Daisies, up for three awards (Best Comedy Series and acting nods for Lee Pace and Anna Friel), plus nominations for other favorites such as Brothers and Sisters, Grey's Anatomy and Ugly Betty, which, although it won last year, is not nominated for Best Comedy; again, those fickle HFPA-ers.

The Golden Globes will be handed out in a live telecast on NBC on Sunday, January 13 ... that is, if the writers strike doesn't derail it. For a quick look at all the film nominees, see the comments section below.

Links via GoldenGlobes.org and LATimes.com.

Poster Post: The Killing Joke

Although you would have thought that we would have got this before all those other various viral marketing efforts, here it is after all: the first official poster art for next year's The Dark Knight.

In more Bat-news: Six whole minutes of the film's opening IMAX scenes were recently screened in New York, revealing a "radical new take on the Joker", according to director Christopher Nolan. For the rest of us outside of the Big Apple, the footage will be attached to IMAX screenings of I Am Legend, the Will Smith futuristic actioner starting tomorrow.

And for even more appetizers before the main course is served, an animated series of shorts titled Batman: Gotham Knight (which will serve as a "bridge" between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) is planned to hit DVD shortly before the film premieres on July 18. Do you think it will show how Rachel Dawes morphed from Katie Holmes into Maggie Gyllenhaal?

Click here to buy this The Dark Knightposter from Amazon.com.
Links via MTV.com and JustPressPlay.net.

Smithers' Swan Song

The subject of the one-sided, unlikely romance between Montgomery Burns and Waylon Smithers on The Simpsons TV show was not really broached in this summer's hit Simpsons Movie, but as you can see by this charming little wind-up toy,the unrequited affections for his decrepit boss are never too far from Smithers' mind.

And although the new Simpsons-themed ride at Universal Studios Florida will, alas, not include a Tunnel of Love, there is a nearby Kwik-E-Mart already open for business, where guests can stock up on all the Duff and Squishee drinks they can handle.

Click here to pre-order The Simpsons Movieon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via OrlandoSentinel.com.

Grey's Matrimony

A few years ago, I was asked by a female friend to be one of her "bridesmaids" at her wedding. Obviously, I wasn't too keen on that title, so we came up with the more gender-specific moniker "bride guy".

And now, none other then Grey's Anatomy's "Dr. McDreamy" himself is going to be a "bride guy". Patrick Dempsey will star in the upcoming Made of Honor (opening May 2), a blatantly role-reversed My Best Friend's Wedding; seriously, in the trailer they don't even try to hide the fact that we've seen Julia Roberts do this all before, pratfalls and all. And is it just me, or does the dimpled dreamboat Dempsey seem a bit miscast as a callous, sleep around "man whore"?

And while we're on the subject of "bride guys" and Grey's Anatomy stars, T.R. Knight recently revealed that he will be one in real-life BFF Katherine Heigl's nuptials later this month. Ironically (or not, this is Hollywood), Heigl is starring in her own matrimonial movie next month, 27 Dresses. In it, Heigl plays the proverbial "always a bridesmaid, never a bride", hence the title (at least, unlike Dempsey as a slut, it is believable that Heigl would be friends with 27 women). James Marsden (Dempsey's Enchanted co-star) also stars in the rom com, and for once he appears to get the girl in the end. For more on 27 Dresses, which opens January 11, you can see the trailer here, or visit Televisionista to see more of Heigl's titular fashion disasters.

Links via Imdb.com, AOL.com, InsideSoCal.com and Televisionista.blogspot.com.

Awards Watch: The Songs

The Academy has just announced the 59 songs that are in the running for this year's Best Original Song Oscar, and among the expected tunes (such as "That's How You Know" from Enchanted) are quite a few head-scratchers and one notable omission: "Ladies' Choice" from Hairspray.

But don't blame the music branch of the Academy, blame New Line. As you can see by their "For Your Consideration" ads, the studio chose to pin all their hopes on "Come So Far (Got So Far to Go)". Is this a mistake, or a wise decision to secure a nomination and, eventually, the award? Especially considering that such films as August Rush, Dan in Real Life and something called 56 Drops of Blood (?) submitted three or even four songs for consideration, it is surprising that a very high-profile, actual musical number from one of the biggest hits of the year was deliberately left out of the running. So much for seeing Zac Efron rockin' out on the Oscar telecast solo, although if "Come So Far" is nominated, he will likely join Queen Latifah, Nikki Blonsky and Elijah Kelley for the live performance.

Looking through the song list, there are an awful lot of unheard of songs from some pretty random movies. "I Was Zapped by the Lucky Super Rainbow" from Good Luck Chuck, anyone? How about "The Tale of the Horny Frog" from The Heartbreak Kid or "First Amendment Blues" from Larry Flynt: The Right To Be Left Alone? And who knew that Transformers had a love song?

Links via Oscars.org and AwardsDaily.com.

Women We Love: Judy Holliday

Object of our affection: Judy Holliday, actress/scene stealer extraordinaire.
- Why we love her: A comedienne unparalleled, she made her many "dumb blonde" roles smart.
- Awards on her mantel: Famously beat out All About Eve's Bette Davis and Sunset Boulevard's Gloria Swanson for the Oscar for her star-making role as Billie Dawn in Born Yesterday, which also won her a Golden Globe.
- Other choice roles: A woman scorned in Adam's Rib; a spunky stockholder in The Solid Gold Cadillac; a lovesick telephone answering service operator in Bells Are Ringing, recreating her Tony Award-winning Broadway performance as Ella Peterson.
- First big break: In the cabaret group The Revuers with future Bells writers Betty Comden and Adolph Green.
- Bet you didn't know: Predicting her later life, her mother went into labor with her while attending a play; predicting her Bells role, her first job was as an assistant switchboard operator at Orson Welles' Mercury Theater;
- Yes, it's true: Was rejected by the Yale Drama School; during the infamous Hollywood "witch hunts", was unsuccessfully investigated for involvement in the Communist Party.
- What's in a name: Her given name was Judith Tuvim -- "Tuvim" is Hebrew for "Holiday".
- So much for "dumb blonde": Her IQ was 172, well above the genius level.
- Can we quote you on that: "You have to be smart to play a dumb blonde over and over and keep the audience's attention without extraordinary physical equipment."
- Gone too soon: She died of breast cancer in 1965, a few weeks shy of her 44th birthday.
- Family ties: Her son, Jonathan Oppenheim, is a film editor whose work includes Paris is Burning.
- Idol worship: Madonna names her as one of her biggest influences.

Link via Imdb.com.

Poster Post: Coming Up Roses

Regardless of the fact that, for Francis Ford Coppola's so-called "comeback", Youth Without Youth is receiving next to no advance buzz (it opens this Friday), you have to admit that the poster art is very evocative and quite stunning in with its rose-tinted imagery.

Link via Imdb.com.

Toon Talk: All for "2"

No one could have foreseen the overwhelming response that a little Disney Channel Original Movie called High School Musical would receive just under two years ago. But of course, you know that; the sleeper hit and all its various and sundry franchise incarnations (on albums, on stage, on ice) have been documented ad nauseam. With all that HSM money flowing into the House of Mouse, the question was not so much if there would be a sequel, but how soon it would come to pass. And so what if it was just cashing in on an already established brand name?

However, instead of resting on their laurels, the makers of High School Musical 2 (on DVD today) actually did something rare, even though they didn’t really have to: they made a sequel that is better then the original. The first HSM may be this generation’s Grease (although this summer’s Hairspray may have something to say about that now), but HSM2 is far from the next Grease 2.

To continue reading my full Toon Talk review of the HSM2 DVD, visit LaughingPlace.com.

Click here to buy High School Musical 2on DVD from Amazon.com.

Awards Watch: Critics' Choice

Spreading the wealth a bit with their Critics' Choice Award nominations this morning, the Broadcast Film Critics Association has singled out Into the Wild with the most nominations (seven), followed by Juno with six. Five other films -- Atonement, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, Sweeney Todd and Hairspray -- received five nominations each; all but Hairspray are nominated for the group's Best Picture award (don't worry, the 'Spray is up for both Best Comedy Movie and Best Family Film), joined by American Gangster, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The Kite Runner and There Will Be Blood. It's a safe bet that somewhere in these ten is the five BP slots for the Oscars; since the BFCA has been naming ten nominees starting in 1996, only three times have the Oscar top five not also been completely represented ... and even then, each time they were just one film shy. Them's good odds.

From there, their track record is just about as good as any other award groups, but there are some categories that stick out for their prescience: I could see all five of their Supporting Actors making it to the Oscars, and even their Best Song line-up is none to shabby. Unfortunately, six nominations in some categories and the existence of others (Young Actor/Actress) make some of the other races a little murkier. Combine these with the Globe noms (which will be announced Thursday) and you'll have a pretty good idea who will be invited to the big show next February.

The Critics' Choice Awards will be presented live on VH1 on January 7. See the comments section below for a quick look at the full list of nominations.

Links via VH1.com and BFCA.org.

Where Angels Feared to Tread

As part of their POV series, PBS takes a look at the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of Angels in America in Wrestling With Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner. The program (divided into three "acts", one amusingly titled "Mama, I'm a Homosexual, Mama"), will also include appearances by such familiar names as Meryl Streep, Larry Kramer and Kushner's Caroline, or Change stars Tonya Pinkins and Anika Noni Rose.

The two-hour program, directed by Academy Award-winning documentarian Freida Lee Mock (Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision) will begin airing on PBS stations nationwide starting tomorrow.

Link via PBS.org.

Putting Away the Ritz

The hit Broadway revival of Terrence McNally's gay bathhouse farce The Ritz closed this past weekend, and co-star Seth Rudetsky has all the scoop on the show for those of us who never got to see it, including Rosie Perez's big number (combining songs from Superstar and Fiddler? Genius) and his own cheeky homage to Barbra Streisand.

Let's hope the show gets some Tony love and they let Rosie perform her show tune-laden showstopper on live television. Now that should scare some Baptists.

If not, at least we can take in the joys of the original Googie, Rita Moreno, now that the movie is finally coming out on DVD next month. Click here to pre-order The Ritzfrom Amazon.com.

Link via Playbill.com.

The Latest on DVD: Two for One

Looking for a DVD double feature? This week's new releases offer a variety of choices:

• Heroes to the Rescue: Sexiest man alive Matt Damon in The Bourne Ultimatumand scream queen Debbie Rochon in Bikini Bloodbath
• Desert Island Adventures: The gang from Flight 815 in Lost: The Complete Third Seasonand HSM's Corbin Bleu in Flight 29 Down: Volume 3
• Vacation Planning: Walt Disney Treasures - Disneyland: Secrets, Stories & Magicand Gay Getaways: Volume 1
• Starring Daniel Radcliffe: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenixand December Boys
• Classic Toons: Walt Disney Treasures - The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbitand Walt Disney Treasures - The Chronological Donald, Volume 3
• Musical Youth: High School Musical 2and Rent [Blu-ray]
• TV Favorites: Frasier: The Tenth Seasonand Beverly Hills 90210: The Third Season
• And finally, for the Movie Addict: The movie music documentary Lights! Action! Music!and the 110-disc/90 movie (!) United Artists 90th Anniversary Prestige Collection

Click on the above links for more information or to purchase from Amazon.com.

Awards Watch: New York Critics

Things are starting to look awfully familiar in the awards race this week.

The New York Film Critics Circle has announced their picks for the best of 2007, and Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men tops their list as Best Picture. The brothers also won Best Director and Best Screenplay, while Javier Bardem picked up his first prize for the film as Supporting Actor. There Will Be Blood's Daniel Day-Lewis, Away from Her's Julie Christie and Gone Baby Gone's Amy Ryan round out the acting honors; if you're keeping score with the three major prercursors announced in the past few days, that's two out of three for the first two and three in a row for Ryan, rapidly overtaking early favorite Cate Blanchett (I'm Not There). This year's Oscar-winner for Foreign Language Film, The Lives of Others, nabbed another prize, while No End in Sight, Persepolis and Away from Her's first-time director Sarah Polley earned their second trophies in as many days.

Still to come this week: nominations from the Broadcast Film Critics Association's Critics' Choice Awards (tomorrow) and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's Golden Globe Awards (Thursday); then we'll see if these early critics' darlings continue their domination on their road to the Oscars.

See the comments section below for a quick look at the full list of winners.

Link via NYFCC.com.

Poster Post: The Man With the Whip is Back

The first official poster art for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Link via IndianaJones.com.

Cinematic Crush: Steve Sandvoss

Crush object: Steve Sandvoss, actor/not a Mormon, but he played one on film.
- Why we like him: We know he was playing a character in a movie, but it is mostly because of his sensitive, heartbreaking debut (debut!) performance as the conflicted Mormon missionary in love with the boy next door in Latter Days. Oh, and he's a total hottie.
- Other choice roles: Co-starred in the romantic comedy Rumor Has It, the horror film Buried Alive and C. Jay Cox's follow-up to Latter Days, Kiss the Bride.
- What else has he done: Guest spots on American Dreams, Cold Case, Nip/Tuck and, most recently, Grey's Anatomy.
- Side jobs: Various modeling gigs.
- Bet you didn't know: He and his brother Peter have their own production company, called Beep Box Productions, which specializes in finding new screenwriting talent on college campuses.
- Yes, it's true: Is a Harvard grad, where he studied drama and poetry; speaks Chinese.
- Can we quote you on that: "Two months after graduation, I moved out to Los Angeles, and three weeks later -- it was my first audition and I was totally wide-eyed -- I was cast in Latter Days."
- Where we can see him next: Will play a successful author struggling to navigate an open relationship in the independent film Lie to Me, due out next year.
- Where you can see more of him right now: At his own website, as well as in this tribute video to his best-known role, Elder Aaron Davis.

Links via Imdb.com, DNAMagazine.com, SteveSandvoss.com and YouTube.com.

Trivial Pursuits: Christmas Carols

Charles Dickens' classic short story A Christmas Carol has been, by my count, adapted for the screen 16,542 times. OK, not really, but it sure seems that way, doesn't it?

Every year when the holidays roll around, it seems like there's yet another variation on the oft-told tale of Mr. Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim, et al. From the 1901 silent short Scrooge; or Marley's Ghost to Robert Zemeckis' in-the-works mo-cap version (wherein Jim Carrey will play not only Scrooge, but all three ghosts of Christmas), it's amazing how many famous actors (and quite a few actresses) have played the crotchety old miser and the other beloved characters, either on film or on television:

• Ebenezer Scrooge: Francis X. Bushman, Seymour Hicks, Reginald Owen, John Carradine, Alastair Sim, Ralph Richardson, Fredric March, Vic Damone, Basil Rathbone, Mr. Magoo, Ondine, Sterling Hayden, Albert Finney, Walter Matthau, Robert Morse, Henry Winkler, Hoyt Axton, Scrooge McDuck (naturally), George C. Scott, Jack Elam, James Whitmore, Cosmo Spacely, Robert Guillaume, Rowan Atkinson, Bill Murray, Buddy Hackett, Michael Caine, James Earl Jones, Susan Lucci, Jack Palance, Tim Curry, Cicely Tyson, Ernest Borgnine, Patrick Stewart, Vanessa Williams, Derek Jacobi, Simon Callow, Dean Jones, Tori Spelling, Kelsey Grammar, Tom Everett Scott, Wallace Shawn and Larry the Cable Guy.
• Bob Cratchit: Jack Cassidy, Mel Tillis, Mickey Mouse, David Warner, George Jetson, Alfre Woodard, Kermit the Frog, Martin Sheen, Michael York, Richard E. Grant and Rhys Ifans.
• Jacob Marley: Leo G. Carroll, Patrick MacNee, Basil Rathbone, Royal Dano, Alec Guinness, Theodore Bikel, Tom T. Hall, Goofy, Jamie Farr, Statler and Waldorf, Martin Sheen, Edward Asner, Katherine Helmond, Nicolas Cage, Dinah Manoff, Jason Alexander and Christopher Lloyd.
• The Ghost of Christmas Past: Arthur Treacher, Steve Lawrence, Edith Evans, Patricia "Magenta" Quinn, Paul Frees, Jiminy Cricket, Roscoe Lee Browne, Robbie Coltrane, David "Buster Poindexter" Johansen, Martin Sheen, Joel Grey, Kathy Griffin, Jane Horrocks, Gary Coleman, Jane Krakowski, Lisa Kudrow and Jamie Kennedy.
• The Ghost of Christmas Present: Pat Hingle, Bernard Lee, Paul Frees, Willie the Giant, Edward Woodward, Ted "Isaac" Lange, Carol Kane, Pat McCormick, Martin Sheen, Whoopi Goldberg, Michael Gambon, William Shatner, Jesse L. Martin and Penn Jillette.
• The Ghost of Christmas Future: Robert Shaw, Pegleg Pete, Geoffrey Holder, Kevin McDonald, Geraldine Chaplin and Scott "Carrot Top" Thompson.
• Mrs. Cratchit: Hermione Baddeley, Minnie Mouse, Susannah York, Jane Jetson, Miss Piggy, Martin Sheen and Juliet Stevenson.
• Tiny Tim: Morty Mouse, Astro the Dog, Robin the Frog, Martin Sheen and Michael J. Fox.

Link via Imdb.com.

In a World ...

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