Archive: February 2009 (141-150 of 448)

Feb 20 2009 01:00 PM ET

Fred on YouTube: Could someone please explain to me WHAT THIS IS?!

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Filed under: Those Crazy Kids! and tagged: , , , , , , , ,

I’ve resisted writing about "Fred" for several months now, but I can put it off no longer. For those of you (blissfully) unaware, "Fred" is (1) a wildly hyperactive 6 year old with an absent, alcoholic mother; (2) the fictional creation of now 15-year-old Lucas Cruikshank, a Nebraska kid with a camcorder and apparently a lot of free time; and (3) for the last nine months or so, the most popular web series on YouTube ever. Seriously. Several of his videos have been viewed over 9 million times (thems better ratings than pretty much the entire CW network), and his "channel" on YouTube has registered over 28 million total views. "Fred" posted his most recent episode last night. Here it is. See how far you can get through it before you have to stop.

On the one hand, Fred is a perfect encapsulation of what is possible now with the Internet: A kid, barely in high school, living in a rural part of the country that’s geographically and culturally pretty much as far from media hubs Los Angeles and New York City as you could imagine, posts videos to YouTube that win him near-overnight fame and a massive fan base. On the other hand, I have no freaking clue what this is. What makes this character, as opposed to so many other Internet personalities, so off-the-charts popular? The "Fred" channel has more than 843,000 subscribers — that’s almost five times as many as Barack Obama’s YouTube channel boasts, and nearly twice as many as the Jonas Brothers‘ channel has. So does that mean, like, "Fred" should be hosting Saturday Night Live? What do his fans understand that so utterly escapes me? I mean, I know I’m late to the party in asking this question, but what…what…IS…this?!

I’m serious: Tell me, please!

Feb 20 2009 12:30 PM ET

'Privileged': Five reasons to save the show

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Filed under: Television and tagged:

Privileged_lThe CW is giving Privileged a very early season finale on Feb. 24, making us worry for its future. Here’s why the freshman critical fave deserves to graduate to a second season. 

1. Joanna Garcia
As tutor-to-the-rich Megan Smith (pictured, left), Garcia plays cynical and sunny, pretty and goofy, dark and funny. Think Lorelai and Rory Gilmore in one, with a little Veronica Mars on top.

2. The Gilmore vibe
Nothing can replace the Girls, but Privileged comes close, with heartfelt family stories, endearing side characters (Allan Louis’ chef Marco — pictured, right — has his own series’ worth of drama!), and sparkling banter.

3. The Twins
Megan’s wealthy charges, Rose (Lucy Kate Hale) and Sage (Ashley Newbrough), struggle with Paris Hilton urges, date dorks and the help, and might even want to be a little smart.

4. Its Dark Side
Megan’s mom, who ditched her when she was a kid, suddenly reappeared. She then stole $25,000 from Megan’s boyfriend. Who was planning to use it as bail money for Megan’s sister. Who was accused of running drugs.

5. Underrated Actors
Anne Archer as matriarch Laurel, Sharon Lawrence as Megan’s mom, and cougar bait Robert Buckley (Lipstick Jungle) as her editor…they’ve earned their job security!  –Jennifer Armstrong

More Privileged:
More reasons why we love Privileged and want to save it

Feb 20 2009 12:17 PM ET

Kathy Griffin: Live from Madison Square Garden

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Filed under: About Last Night and tagged: , ,

What do Jessica Simpson, Sarah Palin and an 88-year-old who loves a box of wine have in common? They were all fodder for Kathy Griffin last night, who performed at the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden to a full-capacity crowd that included financial rockstar Suze Orman (sixth row center, natch—after all, she appeared on Griffin’s show, My Life on the D-List, last season). Among her best material:

On her New Year’s Eve brouhaha with Anderson Cooper: “What happened was as the night got longer, we got slaphappy.… We were cold and I was just trying to make him laugh. So someone said we had gone to commercial and I said, [to Anderson] ‘I don’t go to your job and knock the d—s out of your mouth’… It’s the second standard old comedy club line to hecklers.”

On Jessica Simpson: "If she doesn’t get the gastric bypass SHE COULD DIE… Jessica Simpson is twice the size of Ruby from The Style Network."

On Miley Cyrus’ Vanity Fair photo shoot with her dad: “If I had a picture of me [like that] with my dad, may he rest in peace, we’d both be vomiting.”

On Sarah Palin: “I miss Palin, because, as a comedian, it would almost be like having Vice President Paula Abdul.”

On winning her second trophy at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards: “It’s me against the guy who puts out the carrots for Two and a Half Men”

On her mom: “I got her to vote for Obama and there may or may not have been a box of wine involved.”

On her mother part  2: “My mother moved out. You know why? Because she finds me annoying”

What do you think? Do you agree with Kathy’s mom? Or do you totally dig her like the crowd did last night? And most importantly, are you psyched for Life on the D-List, which Griffin says will premiere on Bravo this summer?

Feb 20 2009 12:00 PM ET

Hugh Jackman getting Oscar jokes from Ricky Gervais? Okay, now we're excited!

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Gervaishughjackmanoscars_lRicky Gervais has revealed on his blog that Hugh Jackman called him a couple times to brainstorm jokes for Jackman’s hosting duties at the Oscars. I don’t know about you, but this news comes as a huge relief. After all the hullabaloo about remaking the Oscars into a lean, mean entertainment machine, I was a little worried when Jackman announced he was concocting "the nightclub of your dreams" — it’s hard not to imagine the cheesiest of Vegas cabarets. But with Ricky Gervais feeding him jokes, I’m reassured that Jackman is ready to dust off the tired old one-liners and really shake things up. Heck, anything is better than the stiff and sanitized material Bruce Vilanch has been cooking up all these years. Now I know they mean business when the producers promise that they’re giving the show a serious makeover. How about you, PopWatchers?

addCredit(“Ricky Gervais: Jim Spellman/WireImage.com; Hugh Jackman: Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic.com”)

Feb 20 2009 11:30 AM ET

Bravo's 'The Fashion Show': You, sir, are no 'Project Runway'

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Filed under: Television and tagged: , ,

Kellyrowlandisaacm_lAll this Fashion Week talk has me singing the Project Runway blues. I know Bravo’s trying to cheer me up by releasing details about its new fashion-contest series, but it’s not really working.

Isaac Mizrahi and Kelly Rowland will be cohosting and judging The Fashion Show, whose title could use a little work. It’s…pretty on the nose, guys. Fern Mallis, "fashion luminary" and senior vice president of IMG Fashion (and occasional guest judge on PR), will be the other judge. To quote Bravo’s release: "The Fashion Show follows professional designers as they strive to make their mark in the dog-eat-dog world of fashion and compete for a chance to have their designs sold for the mass retail market. The designers will face off in challenges and have their fate determined not only by the professional judges, but also by a studio audience. In the end, the winner will have their designs available for sale by a major retail outlet." Ooooh, involving the studio audience. I can only assume this will be either America’s Funniest Home Video–style (vote with a gizmo at your seat) or Showtime at the Apollo–style (vote by applause). Given that Isaac Mizrahi apparently thinks peanut M&Ms are vegan, maybe the judges can use all the help they can get.

Part of me wants to say, "Yay, bring on the clothing contests — the more the merrier!" This sounds totally acceptable, and Bravo is the Play-Doh Fun Factory of creative-type reality shows. But I am profoundly unable to get psyched about this. I just want to scream, "You’re not my mommy fashion competition!" and run away. Give it to me straight, snapcracklePopWatchers: Is The Fashion Show going to make it work? Or are we looking at next season’s glaring Don’t?

Feb 20 2009 11:00 AM ET

Quote of the Day: 'The Goonies' edition

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"Okay, I’ll talk! In third grade I cheated on my history exam. In fourth grade I stole my uncle Max’s toupee and I glued it on my face when I played Moses in my Hebrew School play…." –Chunk (Jeff Cohen) in The Goonies

Feb 20 2009 01:48 AM ET

Exclusive: U2's new album 'No Line on the Horizon' will premiere on MySpace Music on Friday

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U2bonoedge_lIn a move that’s becoming commonplace in the current fractured musiclandscape, U2 will premiere their highly anticipated new album, No Line on the Horizon, on MySpace Music starting tomorrow morning, the website revealed toEW.com exclusively. At 5 a.m. EST (2 a.m. PST) on Feb. 20, listeners canstream the entire album for free on U2′s MySpace page (www.myspace.com/u2), meaning fans will be able to catch No Line on the Horizon well over a week before its official U.S release on March 3.

MySpace has increasinglyserved as a go-to portal for A-list artists — including Beyonce, KanyeWest, Fall Out Boy, Keith Urban, and Franz Ferdinand — hoping togenerate some pre-release buzz for their albums, and U2 is definitely pulling out all the promotional stops for No Line on the Horizon. Along with the MySpace release and their recent appearance opening the Grammy Awards, the band will play five consecutive nights on Late Night With David Letterman starting March 2.

So, PopWatchers, are you excited to get an early look at what Bono, The Edge, Larry Mullen Jr., and Adam Clayton have in store? Once the album goes live on MySpace, ahem, get on your boots (metaphorically speaking), hop on over there to give it a listen, and then hop on back here to tell us whatcha think!

Feb 20 2009 12:47 AM ET

Mel Gibson: Is he on the verge of an acting comeback?

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Filed under: Movies and tagged: , ,

Melgibson_lMel Gibson isn’t always a model citizen, but he’s reportedly headed back to the big screen in the thriller Edge of Darkness (which just sold to Warner Bros., according to Variety), his first big role in seven years.

And you know what? I kind of missed him. I mean, this is Mad Max we’re talking about. Martin Riggs. William Wallace. Before pouring his heart and soul into directing The Passion of the Christ and Apocalypto, the Aussie Oscar winner was a dependable, bankable, likable actor. And while there’s absolutely no excuse for bad behavior, there’s also no substitute for a real movie star — and they’re in short supply these days.

So how about it, PopWatchers? Does Mel deserve another shot? Or would you rather send him back Down Under for good?

Feb 19 2009 10:48 PM ET

Conan O'Brien: Five memorable moments from 'Late Night'

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Filed under: Television and tagged:

When Conan O’Brien leaves for Los Angeles after this Friday’s show, he’ll be ending a 16-year-run on Late Night that produced some of the funniest moments in recent TV history. To mark the occasion, we put together a list of five of Conan’s greatest hits. Check them out, and be sure to give us your picks!

5. December 1998. An impromptu game of “Suck and Blow” results in a quick kiss betweenConan and supermodel Rebecca Romijn. Realizing what he’s just done,Conan gives a triumphant fist-pump, throws his chair into the air,and then falls to the floor. Wouldn’t you?

4. January 2008. With the writers strike in full swing, a bearded O’Brien dons a glittery jacket and a cowboy hat for a full-band rendition of “Blue Moon” — all to prove that he can still put on a show without his usual staff of jokesters. As if we ever doubted him.

3. April 2002. Conan’s visit to Martha Stewart’s Westport, Conn., compound (whichhe described as “something a Bond villain would have inside avolcano”) gives a chance for the comedian to run havoc in Martha’sperfectly organized studio. Who else could get the domestic diva to eatcheese whiz off her own hand?

2. March 2006. After joking about his uncanny resemblance to Finnishpresident Tarja Halonen, O’Brien finally travels to the Scandinaviancountry to come face to face with his doppelganger. The resulting show is one of the greatest — and weirdest — moments in the history of late-night TV.

1. October 2000. An apple-picking trip in upstate New York with Mr. T provides a solidfive minutes of mind-bending hilarity. One highlight: Conan points outan apple with a bee in it, and Mr. T immediately swings into action,smashing it with his elbow and growling, “T one, bee zero.” We pity thebee that messes with Mr. T.

Your turn, PopWatchers: What are your favorite Conan moments?

Feb 19 2009 10:22 PM ET

Virgin Megastore Times Square closing: On the scene at 'the biggest sale in music retail history'

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Filed under: To Care or Not to Care and tagged: , ,

Virginmegastore_lCan you spare a tear this afternoon for the long, slow death of the American record store? Virgin Megastore’s flagship Times Square location will become the latest casualty in this sad story in April, when employees have been told that a Forever 21 will replace the music emporium. I know some might find more pathos in the closing of a mom-and-pop indie shop — and hey, we’ve got plenty of those happening in New York at the moment, too! — but as someone who’s spent many an hour wandering Virgin’s endless aisles, I’m pretty crushed about this. The Times Square Virgin kicked off its store-closing funeral today with what they’re calling "the biggest sale in music retail history," so I dropped by for one last browse.

Overblown press releases aside, the quality of any sale comes down to dollars and cents. So? The huge "EVERYTHING MUST GO" banners adorning every wall and rack at Virgin today were accompanied by smaller signs indicating that most CDs were on a mere 20 percent off list price. The two new releases I picked up wound up costing $15.19 each — not bad, I guess, but not exactly historic. Still, the sale was enough to draw in dozens of eager bargain-hunters on a sleepy Thursday. "It’s been kind of boring the last few weeks, but today they’re going wild," cashier Shane Hansontold me. "People love discounts!"

We sure do. I’d like to think that some of the people at Virgin today were like me, though — motivated as much by their nostalgia for a disappearing part of modern commerce as much as by the thrill of the slashed price. Look, I download and stream tons of music on my laptop, too; I go record shopping in person every few weeks anyway. The Times Square Virgin was one of the last places in Manhattan I could still enjoy that little indulgence, and in a couple months it’ll be gone. I know this is far from the most serious loss to result from our current recession. But am I the only one who will miss it?

More on pop culture in a recession:
Cam’ron’s "I Hate My Job" is 2009′s first recession-rap banger
Office Space celebrates 10th annniversary (in perfect economy to watch Office Space again)
Jon Stewart’s beautiful (stimulus) package
"I’m Broke and Proud": The time is right for recession rap

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