Results tagged “entertainment”

Many a Hollywood hopeful or star has come and gone from the headlines in the past five decades, but one name always remained rooted in his by-line at Daily Variety. Army Archerd, the industry rag's longtime columnist died yesterday at 87. "Archerd collapsed at home in Westwood on Monday afternoon and died Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center," notes his LA Times obit. Five years ago Archerd was diagnosed with a rare form of mesothelioma, "which doctors ascribed to his exposure to shipyard asbestos when he was in the Navy during World War II."

World-renown acrobatic entertainers Cirque du Soleil have been dangling a 2011 permanent stay here in Los Angeles for several months now. Talks to have the troupe set up their act at Hollywood & Highland's Kodak Theatre for a ten-year residency at the venue have been in the works for sometime, but now it falls to the City Council to decide if Los Angeles can afford to have them here, according to the Daily News.

No, she won't just go away: Nadya Suleman, aka OctoMom, is keeping her name in the press thanks to a pair of lawsuits going on in Orange County regarding her children and their being filmed. "A child-labor activist has filed suit against Suleman in Orange County Superior Court, alleging that video shot of her children violates a law aimed at protecting child entertainers from overwork. The suit seeks to create an independent trust for the children," LA Now reports.

For the second time this summer, traveling troupe Cirque Berzerk has extended their run, this time through the end of August. This just confirms to us that Los Angeles is indeed ready for permanent high quality acts. Soon Cirque du Soleil will be arriving for a 10 year show at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, but what else? Can this city support a Blue Man Group theatre? Would it go on the revived Broadway? Can we give Vegas a little run for their money? Let's hope so, L.A.

Following his well-received gig as host of the Tony Awards in New York earlier this year, actor Neil Patrick Harris has been booked as the host of the upcoming 61st Primetime Emmy Awards. The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences made the official announcement today, confirming speculation that the onetime Doogie Howser, MD wunderkind and current How I Met Your Mother star, will be the telecast's emcee. Viewers and attendees can expect the unexpected from the versatile performer. Said Harris of the impending hosting duties: "I'm looking forward to the challenge of the show — adding my own voice to it, while honoring the nominees and the entire year in television. But which voice to choose? I'm torn between gangsta, foppish Brit, and robot. Really proud of my robot. We'll see what happens on the night." Emmy noms will be announced Thursday; the show is September 20th at the Nokia Theatre.

It's the 75th Anniversary of LA's historic Farmers Market (you know, the really big one at Third & Fairfax) and as part of the celebration, they're having an event on Tuesday night where guests can pay a single price to taste the best of the market and enjoy live entertainment.

Remember the classic Griffith Observatory show when "the audience sat in dentist-like chairs so they could watch whirling laser beams dance on the domed ceiling to the classic rock tunes of Pink Floyd's 'Dark Side of the Moon,' Led Zeppelin and the Beatles"? Well, it's back, reports the Daily News in a feature today. But there are some changes, most notably with new technology and its new pedestrian friendly location at the Historic Vine Theater at Hollywood and Vine. And apparently, the popcorn glows in the dark.

Get your cyber punk, Blade Runner and SciFi geekery from 1982 out of your closet because starship Twiistup 5 is getting ready to touch down at Santa Monica airport next Thursday.

The 61st annual Directors Guild of America Awards were held here last night at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza. The DGA named Brit import Danny Boyle as Best Director for his inspiring film Slumdog Millionaire; Boyle is up for the Oscar in the same category, and many believe these awards are "one of the most reliable indicators for the Academy Awards," which take place at the Kodak Theatre on February 22 this year, explains the LA Times. "The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the guild have disagreed only six times in their selections in the last 60 years."

Figuring union members would vote down any authorization to strike, Screen Actors Guild officials have suspended plans to protest contract offers from movie studios and producers. "The declaration represents an about-face and follows months of preparations for a strike vote that would have given the guild the power to shut down production of major studio movies and prime-time TV shows," reported the Associated Press. SAG's contract with AMPTP expired last June.

He might be needing to move on from his fantasy-driven life on his legendary Santa Barbara estate, but Michael Jackson still knows how to do things in style. The onetime "King of Pop" recently moved into a Bel Air home for the totally reasonable price of $100k a month rent. The home, according to the LA Times, is "a French chateau estate built in 2002" and "has seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, 12 fireplaces and a theater" but, there is "nary a Ferris wheel or exotic animal in sight."

The Screen Actors Guild announced last night that they will put off having their members vote on a possible strike. Rather than send the ballots out on January 2nd, they have opted to wait until January 14th to mail them, cbs2.com is reporting. Many people in and out of the entertainment industry believe this is the wrong time for SAG to strike because of the obvious and immediate impact it will have on the many people who are employed in connection to television and film production. Further, the New York branch of SAG recently voiced their objection to the strike--a move SAG has been talking openly about for some time now, and particularly after negotiations with Hollywood studios failed.

        

You don't have to roll like Jesus Quintana to take advantage of the latest 18 pine lanes now thundering at 800 Olympic Boulevard in Downtown LA. Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge opened its newest location in the upscale chain of bowling alleys and cocktail lounges in the LA Live! entertainment campus in downtown LA last night.

Following an unsuccessful period of meetings between the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) at the request of federal mediator Juan Carlos Gonzalez, according to the AMPTP, "the parties were unable to reach an agreement and the mediator has adjourned the mediation process."

Wanna buy a historic Hollywood theatre? Well, the El Capitan is rumored to have been put on the market today, with a price tag of $31 million. The purchaser will have a ready-made tenant, namely Walt Disney Co., and can boast they own a key piece of the entertainment industry, old and new.

Now that the U.S. is catching up with the rest of the world's mobile phone addiction, we can use our nimble thumbs to engage in some quality worldchanging. We've learned a lot about what's possible with mobile from Google, Apple, and Nokia in the past year alone. Now is the time take the baton and move forward.

So when LAist agreed to review the Swamp Thing DVD that was released on Tuesday, we thought we were going to review an old-school, cheesy, black-and-white B movie. But we were wrong. What we got was 25, half-hour episodes of a not-that-old school, cheesy, colorized B TV series. And we immediately thought two things:

The votes came in and were counted: members of AFTRA--the nation’s second largest performers’ union--overwhelmingly voted to ratify a contract with the AMPTP, who represents movie studios and producers, by a 62.4% margin.

Today, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers took out an ad (to the left) in both Variety and Hollywood Reporter stating their concerns over another strike.

Movie studios are preparing for the worst, an actors strike, which could begin in July if contract talks go sour, according to the LA Times:

Presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama will be in town this afternoon. And while the man has a plan to move people (not just cars), his visit does come with traffic impacts, however minor:

Studio Reps: "'Frustrated and discouraged' at the guild's attitude."

       

Although the Screen Actors Guild said today was a "solidarity" rally, Variety plainly headlines the event: "SAG rallies against AFTRA, Guild member encourage to vote down deal."

UPDATE: About 500 people showed for the rally. See photos here.

Say Aloha to the the 50th state with a taste of the food and fun of Hawaii. Lots of Hawaiian shirts and grass skirts, vendors with all sorts of goods, fresh floral leis, loads of food (shaved ice!!!!), and beer. Luckily it won't be a grillion degrees out in Northridge, but put on your Hawaiian Tropic just in case--that California sun still burns through the fog.

If the rain doesn't deter you from heading out today, there are some weekend-long festivals that might make it worth your time... Or you can hedge your bets and hang tight today and wait for Sunday--or in some cases Monday--to get in on the fun.

I've always thought it was a shame that Jason Statham got stuck in the ghetto of glossy, empty action flicks. You'd never guess it by watching looks to be a winner.

Only a few more years of this before the Oscars moves out of Hollywood and Cirque de Soleil moves into the Kodak Theatre for a permanent show in 2010. Luckily, six days until the big event and impacts particular to tonight are minimal.