Celebritology Archive: Pop Culture
2008: The Year in Celebrity
Tomorrow I'll share with you my biggest surprise in the world of celebrity from 2008 -- and ask for yours, but in the meantime I wanted to get our listy juice flowing by sharing a few lists compiled by others. Agree? Disagree? Add your input to the comment section. Entertainer of the Year Tina Fey. (Paramount Pictures) Entertainer of the Year: Tina Fey (AP) Anyone who wants to question Fey's pick as the most talented human being on TV (and sometimes off) can talk to me. And if I can't change your mind, well, suck it monkeys. It should be noted that Fey edged out the almost equally entertaining Robert Downey Jr. for the title. Person of the Year: Jennifer Aniston (Popeater) I. Just. Don't. Get. It. Top Entertainment Stories of the Year (AP) Nothing to snark about here. Heath Ledger's untimely death last January set a somber tone for...
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Liz
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December 30, 2008; 10:42 AM ET |
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Celeb-Centric Art: The Etch-A-Sketchist
After news broke that Estelle Getty had passed away last week, the Etch-A-Sketchist got to work. (Image courtesy the Etch-A-Sketchist) Since my taste tends to run to the kitschy, some of my favorite art is celebrity inspired. I would be the first to dismiss my tabloid taste as lowbrow, if it weren't for the fact that Andy Warhol, too, found beauty in the faces of the famous -- beauty and something more: social commentary in its most bald (and bold) faced form. And so it is in the finest tradition of Warhol that we should view the work of the shadowy Etch-A-Sketchist, who has been rendering the faces of celebrities in aluminum powder since early 2007. Though, unlike Warhol's iconic works -- which now auction for millions, the Etch-A-Sketchist's works are fleeting -- each one disappearing back into the clouds of silvery dust inside the familiar red-framed toy, only...
By
Liz
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July 29, 2008; 11:15 AM ET |
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When Summer Movies Break the Law
Ladies, you did well at the box office. You can afford those fancy gowns. (New Line) We hold certain truths about summer blockbusters to be self-evident. We presume the movies that generate the most money (and buzz) will: star young, hot actors; feature tons of explosions; appeal primarily to fight-scene-obsessed males in their teens and twenties; and/or attract the attention of little kids who will drag their parents to see said movies again and again and again until Mom and Dad secretly wish that Nemo would just stay lost already and give them some peace. With a few sleeper-hit exceptions, those tenets usually remain steadfastly in tact. But the summer of 2008 has been an unusual one. During its first few weeks, this cinema season has challenged several blockbuster truths in surprising and (in my view) encouraging ways. Here's a look at the lessons we have learned so far:...
By
Jen Chaney
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June 25, 2008; 11:15 AM ET |
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Friday List: Super-Casting?
Super Villain: Burgess Meredith as The Penguin. (AP) Unless you're the Flash or Wonder Woman, there's just no "I" in team. Which is why today I've enlisted "Lost" analysis collaborator and Wonder Twin Jen Chaney to help evaluate Cinematical's list of the Best Ever Superhero and Villain Casting. When Jen isn't busy handicapping the best show on TV with me, her mild-mannered alter ego is that of post.com Movies producer and DVD reviewer, a job that has exposed her to unhealthy levels of superhero flicks. A lesser human might've succumbed to the non-stop onslaught of CGI effects and pithy one-liners, but not our Jen. She was morphed by the experience into Crita-Girl, a woman able to pontificate on the merits of various superheroes -- from the recent (Ed Norton's "Hulk") to the distant glimmerings of heroes past (Christopher Reeve's "Superman"). Without further delay, here's Cinematical's list in abbreviated form...
By
Liz
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June 13, 2008; 10:43 AM ET |
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Books: Studying Steven Seagal
(Titan Books) It's time we put away childish things and talked about a real celebrity. Someone who truly walks on air miles above our tragically un-famous heads; who redefined the very ideal of super-stardom by his mere existence and who makes other pretenders to the highest realms of celebrity (sorry Angelina) resemble Bronson Pinchot or that girl who played the cheesy robot daughter in '80s syndicated sitcom "Small Wonder." That's right. I'm talking about Steven Seagal, a real star. A guy who is so famous and so enlightened that even he is awed by his prowess. A guy who doesn't need hordes of paparazzi following his every move to validate his relevance. A man so dang good at what he does that we are sometimes afraid to look upon his rightness and recognize his preeminence as the star of all stars. Well, all of us except this guy named...
By
Liz
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May 29, 2008; 10:39 AM ET |
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Rant: Leave 'Donnie Darko' Alone
Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone and freaky bunny in 2001's 'Donnie Darko.' (Dale Robinette/Courtesy NewMar) [Begin Rant] Today we take a break from our usual fare of celeb-circumspection to consider (again) Hollywood's annoying addiction to the sequel. Sure, I'm as hesitantly expectant as the next girl about the imminent release of "Indiana Jones's" fourth installment, but from the moment Harrison Ford cracked that whip back in 1981, "Indiana Jones" had franchise practically tattooed on his forehead. And we were okay with that. Despite its setting during World War II, the movie was a lighthearted, vicarious romp through bug-filled caves where daredevil narrow escapes were tempered by pithy dialogue (The grody "om nom shiva" scene not withstanding.) It was "Goonies" for grown-ups. But, never content to let a good thing remain untarnished by the stank of greed, Hollywood has aimed its indiscriminate money-making steamroller at "Donnie Darko," a movie that --...
By
Liz
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May 13, 2008; 10:43 AM ET |
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