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Archive: June 2011 (191-200 of 401)

Jun 15 2011 11:35 AM ET

Pandora goes public, stock prices instantly surge

Categories: This Could Be Interesting...

If you’re a classicist, you could say that Pandora has officially opened her box. If you’re a music snob, you could say that Pandora has officially sold out (in which case: Get a job, hippie). Either way, the fact remains that Pandora Media Inc., one of the leading online radio companies — which runs off a system called the Music Genome Project — has gone public. And, according to Bloomberg, stock prices are soaring: The company rose from $7.26 to $23.26 as of 10:01 ET. Pause for a moment to picture Pandora founder Tim Westergren taking a break from being influential to dive around in his money like a porpoise, burrow through his money like a gopher, and then toss his money up and let it hit him in the head.

Follow Darren on Twitter: @EWDarrenFranich

Jun 15 2011 11:10 AM ET

Lady Gaga's meat dress gets new expiration date at Hall of Fame

by Jeff Labrecque

Categories: Fa-fa-fa-fa-fashion, Lady Gaga, Music

Image Credit: David Gabber/PR Photos

When I heard that Lady Gaga’s most famous dress was going to be showcased at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for its Women Who Rock exhibit, I had a slight beef. Didn’t the designer promise that the dress was destined to become jerky? More importantly, how has her meat dress possibly been preserved? She wore it to the MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 12, 2010. It didn’t exactly seem fresh then — and that was nine months ago! Has it been in the freezer since then? (I assume Gaga has a walk-in freezer closet, don’t you? The meat dress hangs right next to her Klondike Bar pajamas.)

I can’t imagine the Hall of Fame will keep the dress under glass for too long. The U.S.D.A. might take an interest after a few days. Where do you think the dress ultimately ends up? Back in Gaga’s cooler? EBay? Oooo, what if Meat Loaf purchased it? Would that kill irony once and for all?

Jun 15 2011 10:45 AM ET

Burning Questions! 'Super 8': So where is Lillian, Ohio anyway?

by Mike Bruno

Categories: Burning Questions

Image Credit: Francois Duhamel

Where is Lillian, Ohio?
Lillian does not exist. Abrams named the steel town setting of his movie after his grandmother.

So where did they actually shoot the movie?
Weirton, W.V., small town way up north in the state’s panhandle. The town was previously used as one of the locations in The Deer Hunter and the primary location in the 1984 movie Reckless, which starred Darryl Hannah and Aidan Quinn. READ FULL STORY »

Jun 15 2011 12:00 AM ET

'Pretty Little Liars' season 2 premiere: 'How is 'A' always one step ahead of us?'

by Tanner Stransky

Categories: About Last Night, Guilty Pleasure, Pretty Little Liars, Television, TV Recap

Image Credit: Danny Feld/ABC

ABC Family’s charming teen soap Pretty Little Liars is nothing if not a guilty pleasure. And last night’s season 2 premiere, which found the show back with new episodes for the first time since March, certainly delivered on that deliciously guilty front. One of my favorite, delightful moments was a quick exchange between two of the show’s main BFFs Aria (Lucy Hale) and Hanna (Ashley Benson), after the gal’s secret-wielding nemesis “A” had struck yet again, while the foursome was at one of their newly mandated therapy sessions. “How is ‘A’ always one step ahead of us?” Aria asked her group of pals in disgust, after they stormed from the shrink’s office. But it was the biting response from the always-fiesty Hanna that got me: “I’m starting to think that b—- has super powers!” Bam! And that’s exactly the way I like my Pretty Little Liars: sharp and sassy.

But also, the dialogue got me thinking: Hanna, you can’t seriously be just now realizing the power that “A” has, can you? “A,” as we’ve all learned, is craftier than MacGyver, slicker than James Bond, and less traceable than Lisbeth Salander. And that’s exactly why we all watch this show. But regardless of that tiny detail, it was yet another great episode of the teen sudser. I’ll dash off a few of my overall thoughts from the episode below, but mostly I want to hear what you thought in the comments section at the end of this post. So read on — but note: there are SPOILERS below — and then sound off. Please!

READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 08:37 PM ET

Even Sesame Street is poking fun at 'Spider-Man' musical. Has this show suffered enough?

by Adam B. Vary

Categories: Muppets, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Stage/Theater, Things That Make Me Die Inside

After months upon months of preparation, rehearsal, previews, and epically bad press, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is finally opening on Broadway tonight. Reviews (including EW’s — read it here) appear to be roughly 50 percent less scalding than the acid-tipped notices of the incomplete version of the show that hit last February, but you’ll still be hard-pressed to find anything close to a rave not penned by Glenn Beck. Still, the show is finally, officially finished, and finally, officially open for business. So can we just cool it with the Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark jokes for a while?

I mean, even Sesame Street debuted a parody of the Spidey musical this week, in which Grover, playing the lead role of SpiderMonster, repeatedly falls upon a poor, mustachioed patron. READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 07:50 PM ET

Rob Lowe to play alleged killer Drew Peterson in Lifetime movie. Can this work?

by Mandi Bierly

Categories: Casting, Strange Bedfellows, Television, The Bad Man Scares Me!

Image Credit: FRED DUFOUR/AFP/Getty Images

Rob Lowe will star as accused wife-killer Drew Peterson in the tentatively titled Drew Peterson Story, Lifetime confirms. As initially reported by Deadline, The Big Bang Theory‘s Kaley Cuoco will costar as former Illinois police sergeant Peterson’s fourth wife, Stacy, who disappeared in 2007 when she was 23 and Peterson was 53. While Peterson enjoyed the media attention while professing his innocence (her body has never been found), authorities did arrest him in 2009 — for allegedly murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio, whose 2004 death had initially been ruled an accidental drowning.

Forget for a moment that Lowe is way more attractive than the Peterson, who is 10 years his senior, with gray hair and a mustache. (Please let Rob Lowe have gray hair and a mustache!) I think this will be an interesting role for him on his Parks and Recreation hiatus. READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 07:20 PM ET

Matthew Fox in talks to join 'World War Z.' Is this the start of his post-'Lost' big screen career?

by Darren Franich

Categories: Casting, Lost, Made Us Think

Image Credit: Andreas Rentz/Getty Images

In the year since Lost, Matthew Fox has understandably opted mostly to take a break from any big projects. He starred in a London production of Neil LaBute’s new play In a Forest, Dark and Deep opposite Olivia Williams. To judge by the picture on the left, he apparently decided to grow himself a Brad Pitt leisure-beard. But now the actor is kick-starting the next phase of his career. Along with signing onto the Tyler Perry-starring reboot of the Alex Cross franchise (in which he’ll play a villain), EW has confirmed that Fox is currently in talks to take a role in World War Z, the adaptation of the Max Brooks zombie-novel sensation (which is set to star Brad Pitt, thus proving the existence of the Hollywood Beard Mafia). READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 06:50 PM ET

Tom Cruise as Lee Child's rugged Jack Reacher? Count us in!

by Thom Geier

Categories: Books, Movies, Tom Cruise

Image Credit: Michael Tran/FilmMagic.com

Tom Cruise is in talks to star as rugged former U.S. Army cop Jack Reacher in writer-director Christopher McQuarrie’s adaptation of Lee Child’s 2005 novel One Shot for Paramount, EW has confirmed. (Deadline first reported the news.) Cruise has apparently been circling Reacher for some time, which may come as a surprise to fans of Child’s best-selling thriller series. But even though Cruise doesn’t fit the physical description of Jack Reacher in the books (6’5″, 250 pounds, not particularly attractive), I think the now-middle-aged star would be terrific in the role. READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 06:25 PM ET

Superman has a new costume. Do you miss the red underwear?

by Darren Franich

Categories: Comic Books, Fa-fa-fa-fa-fashion, Superman

Image Credit: DC Comics

Superheroes need to get their costumes redesigned occasionally, if only so fans can gather together to complain and then feel validated when the original costume is reinstated. Still, give DC Comics some credit: Just in time for a company-wide renumbering, the publisher has debuted a new outfit for the iconic superhero, and especially compared to last summer’s redesigned Wonder Woman outfit, the new look is blessedly not all that different. Sure, they added in a few armor-lines that make it look as if Supes is wearing kevlar — or maybe it’s muscle-molded armor? — and yes, they’ve swapped out the iconic red underwear for a blue non-codpiece. But diehard fans can at least comfort themselves that this isn’t Electro-Superman. (Which, by the way, does anyone else think Electro-Superman gets a bad rap?) Take a look at a full-sized photo of the new outfit and vote your feelings in the poll below: READ FULL STORY »

Jun 14 2011 05:50 PM ET

Jennifer Lopez is 'on the fence' about an 'Idol' return. Three reasons she should stay -- and three reasons she should go.

by Kate Ward

Categories: American Idol, Jennifer Lopez, Reality TV, Television

Seems Jennifer Lopez might not stay on American Idol‘s block for an additional season: During an interview with Scott Mills of BBC Radio 1 (embedded below), the singer/actress/dancer/reality show judge/most beautiful woman in the world said her future with the reality juggernaut is not clear-cut: “I don’t know,” she told Mills. “I haven’t been forced to make a decision and I’m glad about that because honestly I’m very kind of on the fence about it.” According to Lopez, the star has “a lot of other things happening” — including a new reality project, Q’Viva — and “it’s going to come down to making a choice.”

Well, I’ll admit: I’m on the fence too, Jennifer. Though I enjoyed the singer’s antics throughout the course of the season, the last year has proven that Idol can revolve its panel of judges successfully. So let’s help Lopez out: Here are three reasons why she should stay on Idol, and three reasons why she should exit the Idoldome: READ FULL STORY »