Archive: February 2010 (231-240 of 489)

Feb 13 2010 01:51 PM ET

Olympic Stud of the Day: US curler Chris Plys

by
Tagged: , , ,

As we did for the Beijing Olympics, PopWatch will be naming an Olympic Stud of the Day each morning throughout the Vancouver Games. This title celebrates a person — male or female — who captured our attention in the previous 24 hours for any number of reasons. (Not just, as may occasionally be the case, because he or she turned us on.) Day 1′s pick: US curler Chris Plys. Why? He’s an early standout on the athlete Twitter list, tweeting photos of last night’s Opening Ceremony and his experience in the Olympic Village in general (“A night at the mess hall with Shaun White and raccoons ha”), as well a retaliation for a Jimmy Fallon monologue joke about how the US Curling team’s best method of birth control is being on the US Curling team (“@Jimmyfallon isn’t your best contraceptive your tv ratings? Lol”). We have high hopes for your Twitter page, Chris Plys! Oh, and good luck with the curling.

Your nomination for Olympic Stud of Day 1?

More Olympics coverage:
Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremony: Best and Worst
Your Olympics TV schedule through Monday
Olympic Song of the Day from skier Shannon Bahrke
Scott Hamilton: The 5 most memorable Olympic figure skating falls
Scott Hamilton: The 5 times I was a little too excited in the broadcast booth
Scott Hamilton: The 5 programs I would have skated
Scott Hamilton: The 5 moments I’ll be on the edge of my seat in Vancouver

Feb 13 2010 11:49 AM ET

Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremony: Best and Worst

by
Filed under: Television and tagged: , ,

Before we offer our usual playful take on the televised spectacular, we need to acknowledge the serious side of last night’s Olympics Opening Ceremony. It was dedicated to 21-year-old Nodar Kumaritashvili, the luger from Georgia who died Friday after a 90 mph crash at the end of his final training run. When his seven teammates entered BC Place, and the crowd stood to applaud their decision to honor him by competing, it was by far the most moving moment of the evening. For many athletes who have no hope of medaling, walking in the Parade of Nations is their podium, which made the absence of Kumaritashvili, who was ranked 44th in the world, all the more poignant. The Olympics are about nations coming together to celebrate the human spirit; watching 82 of them pay tribute to Kumaritashvili’s and his countrymen’s was reaffirming.

Now, the show must go on… READ FULL STORY »

Feb 13 2010 10:13 AM ET

'Idolatry': Blondes with guitars, Ellen with pancakes, and Kristen Baldwin with a PSA for the men of America

by
Filed under: American Idol, Reality TV and tagged: , , , ,

Congratulations, Idoloonies, we’ve made it through the first two Hollywood Week episodes of American Idol‘s ninth season — which means we’re thisclose to finding out who’s in the top 24! (Unless, of course, you’re into — eek! — spoilers.) And while unfortunately, Idolatry was unsuccessful in its quest to get Fox to send us the names of all 71 singers who survived the “group audition” rounds — we wanted to scroll ‘em up the screen, Star Wars-style, to calm those “did my fave get through?” feelings of panic — my cohost Kristen Baldwin and I have nonetheless attempted to make sense of everything else you experienced on your screens: An onslaught of super-talented blonde guitarists; Ellen as either a lobster or a stack of pancakes; and the inexplicable rage of one Mary Powers. To cap it off, we’ve got a cameo appearance from David Cook, bonus footage from Friday night’s Kradison concert in NYC, and Kristen’s very special PSA — which should be required viewing for every man in America, thank you very much. Press play below, then post your thoughts on the week in Idol in the comments. And to get up-to-the-second updates on all my Idol coverage, follow me on Twitter @EWMichaelSlezak!

Feb 13 2010 09:07 AM ET

This Week on Stage: Annette Bening in L.A.'s 'Female of the Species'

by
Tagged: ,

Annette Bening returned to the stage of L.A.’s Geffen Playhouse for the second time in six months this week, opening in Joanna Murray-Smith’s farcical new play The Female of the Species. In her C+ review of the production, our critic Whitney Pastorek says the playwright “has a breezy way with one-liners…. but plot mechanics aren’t really her thing.”

If you’re looking for some live theater, check out the EW.com Stage hub for up-to-date news and reviews; or consult this handy guide below, which includes links to all of our stage reviews of current shows. (Note: The reviews are typically of the show’s original casts.)

BROADWAY

The Addams Family — Musical; opens 4/8/2010

All About Me — Musical Revue starring Dame Edna and Michael Feinstein; opens 3/18/10

American Idiot — Musical; opens 4/20/2010

A Behanding in Spokane — Comedy starring Christopher Walken; opens 3/4/10

Billy Elliot — Musical; opened 11/13/08; EW grade: B+

La Cage Aux Folles — Musical Revival starring Kelsey Grammer; opens 4/18/10

Chicago — Musical Revival; opened 11/14/1996; EW grade: A+ READ FULL STORY »

Feb 13 2010 09:00 AM ET

The 2010 Guinness Book of World Records is a great gift for your dog Valentine

by
Tagged: , , , , , , ,

I always recoil in horror when emails I open unexpectedly contain large, pictorial attachments. But the assault on my eyes was really something special the other day, when Kristen Baldwin forwarded me a message containing huge images of the Largest Dog Wedding (178 dog pairs “sealed their marriage with a bark” at a 2007 Bow Wow Vows event in Colorado) (VIDEO!), Tallest and Shortest Married Couples, the Couple With the Most Marriage Vow Renewals (83?!) and Most Couples Hugging Simultaneously (I refuse to provide the number because it’s the most ridiculous category I’ve ever heard of…fine, it was 3,009 at a promotional event in China and I wish I was there). “Somehow, this has ‘Annie’ and ‘PopWatch’ written all over it,” Kristen had encouragingly suggested, and before I knew it, in the name of research, I was clicking my chocolate-rimmed paws all over one of the weirdest websites I’ve ever seen. Auntie Jen will marry YOUR dogs: Click here! The only element of this situation that was at all surprising was that the assaulting email was a press release for a book that’s been out since September instead of an upcoming look-at-the-freak reality series on TLC. So, buy the 2010 Guinness World Records for your weirdo valentine this weekend and marvel at how normal you are, I guess. And by all means, tell me if you had already been aware of dog weddings, and why.

Image credit: Guinness World Records

Feb 12 2010 06:44 PM ET

Rip your heart out: 14 chest-bursting scenes for V-Day

by
Filed under: Movies and tagged: , , , ,

And you thought Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was the only one! Extra special for Valentine’s Day, Sci Fi Wire has compiled 14 scenes of cinematic heart-ripping. From the aforementioned Mola Ram clip (and the Family Guy take-off) to Lloyd’s samurai daydream in Dumb and Dumber, there’s about every permutation you can think of. As a bonus, they even include an instructional video of how to create a heart-ripping scene by yourself (step 1: Get an old shirt you can ruin.) I can’t help thinking they’re missing some scenes, but all the possibilities that sprung to mind were false leads. Kill Bill: Vol. 2! But no, you never actually see David Carradine’s heart explode. Roadhouse! But no, Patrick Swayze only rips the guy’s throat out. There’s got to be others though. What am I forgetting?

Feb 12 2010 04:45 PM ET

Olympics TV schedule today through Monday: Speed skating and Lindsay Vonn

by
Tagged: , ,

Dah! Dah! Dah-duh-duh-dah-dah! It’s time for the Winter Olympics, PopWatchers, so strap on those skis, zip up that spandex, and grab your majestic torches. Tonight’s Opening Ceremonies start at 7:30 ET, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Just kidding, there’s no iceberg — it hasn’t snowed enough in Vancouver. Anyway, the days ahead are jam-packed with events, so here’s a guide for your viewing pleasure that’ll take you through the three-day weekend:

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 13

NBC
2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Men’s Speed Skating – 5000m Gold Medal Final Keep an eye out for the Colbert Nation’s Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick. I mean speed skaters Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick. READ FULL STORY »

Feb 12 2010 03:57 PM ET

First trailer for 'Centurion': Blood, axes, and screaming Romans

by
Filed under: Movies and tagged: ,

The first line of dialogue in the just-released trailer for Centurion, Neil Marshall’s upcoming movie about a stranded Roman legion, is an Ackbarian “It’s a trap!” and what follows isn’t that much less clichéd. And yet, it still looks pretty darn awesome. It’s got all the requisite material for a kick-ass period action movie: swooping landscape shots, desaturated color palette, people jumping off cliffs into water, and more limb-hacking than a Civil War medic tent.

The principal players are all pretty solid, too. Marshall’s resume has high-quality horror fare on it like The Descent and Dog Soldiers, and star Michael Fassbender has proven himself a powerful acting force in films like Hunger and Inglourious Basterds. And, most importantly, it’s got McNulty!

It’s definitely got an undeniable 300 feel to it, and not just because both movies have Fassbender and West. There’s the few-against-many narrative, and I can totally see “I am a soldier of Rome! I will not yield!” becoming the new “This is Sparta!” Side note: Why is everybody always yelling in ancient Rome? Does this take place before they invented voice modulation?  I always imagine these guys screaming their heads off about the smallest things: “I. AM. GOING. TO. USE. THE RESTROOM!” or “I’M A ROMAN WARRIOR AND I’M ALLERGIC TO NUTS!”

What do you think, PopWatchers? Excited for Centurion?

Feb 12 2010 03:43 PM ET

Stephen Colbert knows it's about more than medals

by
Tagged: , , ,

If you live in Vancouver, Stephen Colbert would like you to paper the city in copies of the commemorative Olympics poster he created with Shepard Fairey. If you live anywhere else, PopWatch would like you to put it up all over your house. We like how his Olympic torch totally looks like a pom pon. Yes! Go Valentine’s Day!

You can download a hi-res image at ColbertNation.com, and watch all of his Vancouver-walkup stunts/segments at Skate Expectations ’010. Colbert will be in Vancouver next week to attend speed skating races and tape four episodes of The Report, which will run the week of February 22. TRUE statement or THE TRUEST statement: Colbert is already the best part of the Olympics.

Feb 12 2010 03:36 PM ET

Robert Pattinson is bothered by Valentine's Day

by
Filed under: Television and tagged: , ,

Jimmy Fallon put in another appearance as Robert Pattinson last night. This time, he’s bothered by Valentine’s Day. Not the movie. The actual holiday. The video takes its sweet time getting to the funny, but when he dissects the box of chocolates, I laughed. And the sexy look at the end always gets me.

The real Pattinson will be a guest on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on March 1, to help celebrate the show’s one-year anniversary. What do you hope Fallon asks Pattinson to do? A video about being bothered by the “Robert is Bothered” series seems like a given. Beer pong doesn’t feel special enough. Pattinson is a musician, so perhaps a celebrity jam band?

Advertisement

TV Recaps

Powered by WordPress.com VIP