Cirque du Soleil OVO: A Smashing Success in Santa Monica
Jan23

Cirque du Soleil OVO: A Smashing Success in Santa Monica

Cirque du Soleil is known for its artistic, visual and acrobatic extravaganzas, and its latest tent show, called “OVO,” adds a vivid new entry to the repertoire of the Québec-based performing arts company. Opening night on January 20 under the yellow and blue big tent, or Grand Chapiteau, at the Santa Monica Pier was star-studded. Josh Brolin, Diane Lane, Hilary Swank, Heather Graham, Neil Patrick Harris and Ali Landry were among the...

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Gervais Gets Neutered, Silence is Golden for The Artist
Jan17

Gervais Gets Neutered, Silence is Golden for The Artist

It was the second coming of Ricky Gervais to the emcee podium of the Golden Globe Awards, or actually, the third. After last year’s controversial performance, people forget that the British comedian also hosted the 2010 edition of the kudocast.   The hyped-up fascination of who he would offend this year paid off again in the ratings, with Nielsen estimating that about 16.8 million viewers tuned in to Sunday night’s...

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Awards Season Comes into Focus with Critics Choice Pix
Jan13

Awards Season Comes into Focus with Critics Choice Pix

The first major televised award show of the season has suddenly clarified the rest of the campaign leading up to its grand finale, the Academy Awards.   The 17th Annual Critics Choice Movie Awards, presented by the influential Broadcast Film Critics Association and aired on VH1, anointed some surprise winners during the two-hour telecast live last night from the Hollywood Palladium.   “The Help,” released last...

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Tough Times for Newspaper Subscribers
Jan05

Tough Times for Newspaper Subscribers

In this era of newspapers bleeding red ink, cutting staff and losing subscribers, one would think these old media entities would do all they could to keep what they have.   That was why it was a particularly rude awakening as a longtime Los Angeles Times subscriber to come back from vacation – a rather lengthy one at that – to find out some really bad news over my morning coffee.  (The good news was that they had caught the...

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Shame: Michael Fassbender’s NC-17 Sex in the City Thrill Ride
Dec02

Shame: Michael Fassbender’s NC-17 Sex in the City Thrill Ride

Deep, dark, gloomy and, dare we say, penetrating. That’s the feeling you get from the very beginning of the new thriller, “Shame.”   If you missed seeing the Irish born actor Michael Fassbender in “X-Men: First Class,” “Jane Eyre,” “Hunger,” or this season’s “A Dangerous Method,” you’ll never forget him as Brandon in the Steve McQueen directed...

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