Thursday 11 September 2008

Masterpiece

September 7, 2008

AfterElton.com - first annual poll of the best gay male movies of all time:

1. Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Ferragamos or Birkenstocks? Mojitos or good ol’ beer? Gay men don’t seem to agree on much. But by a wide margin of nearly two-to-one, you chose Brokeback Mountain as the greatest gay movie of all time. And how could it be otherwise? “It’s not ‘gay,’” said some, trying to broaden the film’s appeal, “it’s a ‘universal love story’!”

But is it really? Plenty of heterosexuals have had the experience of hiding a love affair, but how many of them know what it’s like to be forced by society to deny themselves the very possibility of love? This is the daring and fundamentally “gay” question at the heart of Ang Lee’s 2005 masterpiece: can two men simply allow themselves to love each other? And though the movie is set in the past, it is, ultimately, the very choice that every gay man still must make.

Jake Gyllenhaal is flawless as Jack Twist in arguably the movie’s most difficult role. But Heath Ledger’s heartbreaking portrayal of Ennis Del Mar, a walking cautionary tale of homophobia’s logical end result, is a revelation — a total acting transformation made all the more tragic by Ledger’s death earlier this year. But the indignities and injustices that Jack and Ennis faced did not end at Brokeback Mountain’s closing credits. Upon the film’s release, the movie’s makers and fans were subjected to a six-month orgy of tasteless jokes from clueless comedians and bile-filed commentary from right-wing pundits. All of this negativity culminated when the movie, long considered the Oscar front-runner, lost Best Picture to a fine but unremarkable movie called Crash, perhaps the most egregious upset in Oscar history and almost certainly the result of lingering homophobia in Hollywood’s old guard.

But that fusillade of ridicule and outrage is already fading into the gloom of a bigoted past while the movie’s artistry and quiet power shines brighter than ever. Let’s face it: this isn’t just the greatest gay movie of all time, it’s one of the greatest movies ever.

Source: AfterElton.com, The Fifty Greatest Gay Movies!

516 comments:

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Jackie said...

@
@ Previous post's comments
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Anonymous said...

Mike and Matt to Play Swish Hitters

If you thought Mamma Mia was the campiest piece of cinema ever, the musical movie is gonna get some heavy competition in a few years. Steven Soderbergh is developing a biopic about Wladziu Valentino Liberace, and he’s handpicked Michael Douglas to play the pianist. This is big news for Mikey D., who hasn’t had a real hit as a leading man since S2’s Traffic eight years ago. Wife Cathy obvs pushed him to take the daring, flamboyant part, no doubt assuring her slightly older hubby she’d school him thoroughly on all things diva, entitled and uniformed.

But even more clever casting is Steve’s Ocean’s franchise power player Matt Damon to play Scott Thorson, the fella who sued Liberace in 1982 for palimony—$113 million worth. (He only ended up with $95 thou, but still...) Thorson claimed he was the dandy dude’s companion for five years, tho Lib-hon vehemently denied being a homosexual throughout his 67 years. So Toothy Tile of him, doncha think? Guess being cramped in the interior of a closet never goes out of style for some celebs, so sad. So predictable. So pathetic.

Interesting that Damon is doin’ the gay thang—the first time since 1999’s The Talented Mr. Ripley. Guess the homo-tones in Ripley were too subtle for Academy members to notice and award him a golden, taut-assed guy, poor baby. But this time, he’ll be playing it loud and queer, and we all know how goin’ way gay in a flick is a surefire way to get noticed by Oscar voters. As we’ve said repeatedly, the babes do the hookers and sluts to get their Oscars on; boys pull out the pooftah and handicapped roles. Works like a charm every damn time. Sean Penn will be able to back that up at the Kodak Theatre come February for Milk, that’s fer sure.

So we get why Douglas and Damon are on board, clearly. But why did S.S. choose them? Stay tuned. We’ll tell ya.

The Awful Truth

Anonymous said...

Liberace didn't have much choice - he couldn't do that (come out) to his public.

Anonymous said...

Director Jim Sheridan eyes "Claudius"

Irish filmmaker Jim Sheridan will direct an adaptation of the classic novel "I, Claudius," which is best known as the basis for the 1976 BBC miniseries that starred Derek Jacobi as the stuttering Roman emperor. Robert Graves' 1934 novel recounts the internecine plots and counterplots surrounding Claudius, who ruled from 41-54 A.D. Born into a murderous, imperial family, he used his cunning mind and rivals' misjudgment to not only survive but eventually become one of Rome's greatest emperors.

It went on to be adapted into a 1937 film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Charles Laughton. Sheridan will write the screenplay with longtime collaborator Nye Heron. It will be produced by indie financier Relativity Media.

The tale of Claudius has long intrigued Hollywood, and rights to the book were won last year in a heated bidding war by producer Scott Rudin, with Leonardo DiCaprio and "The Departed" writer William Monahan attached. That deal ultimately fell through.

Sheridan, known for dramas such as "In America" and "My Left Foot," worked with Relativity on his latest movie, the upcoming "Brothers" starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Tobey Maguire and Natalie Portman.

http://www.reuters.com/article/filmNews/idUSN1235080020080912

Anonymous said...

"Has anyone changed their mind about Baby Tile?"
No because I never made my mind up in the first place. I think its a real possibility but seems implausible at the same time.


Same here.

Anonymous said...

Anybody here see Good Night and Good Look? It includes an old interview (a real one) with Liberace talking about his lovely new home, and how he hasn't "met the right girl yet" but he's sure he will. The words are still the same years later.

Anonymous said...

Here's the link to the new blog discussing Heath etc.

link

(I hope it's ok I posted this. I'm not the owner of the blog btw.)

See you here and maybe there too. ;)

Anonymous said...

Sure doesnt sound promising when Ted compares Ted to Liberace. A queen who never came out. I wonder how Ted thinks they can keep a baby under wrap forever. Ted can say all he wants about Toothy cause either Toothy doesn't exist, Toothy could be half the men in Hollywood, or Toothy never comes out. That gets Ted of the hook and we keep reading like fools.

Anonymous said...

The words are still the same years later.

Some things never change.

Anonymous said...

Toothy could be half the men in Hollywood
No, not really.

...or Toothy never comes out..
We can't blame Ted for that.

Anonymous said...

Ed Westwick Says He and Chace Crawford are 'Straight as They Come'

Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick douses ongoing rumors that he and co-star/roommate Chace Crawford are dating. He tells People magazine: "It's very comical. We're two lads who are very close friends, but we're straight as they come."

Besides, Crawford has a crush on McCain running mate Sarah Palin. Said Chace at the Stand Up For A Cure Concert Series at Madison Square Garden in NYC on Wednesday: "I’m not gonna lie. Sarah Palin is quite attractive."

Full Q&A AFTER THE JUMP...

Straight, straight, straight

Anonymous said...

"I’m not gonna lie. Sarah Palin is quite attractive."

Sorry Chace, that doesn't make you look straight.

Anonymous said...

But even more clever casting is Steve’s Ocean’s franchise power player Matt Damon to play Scott Thorson, the fella who sued Liberace in 1982 for palimony—$113 million worth. (He only ended up with $95 thou, but still...) Thorson claimed he was the dandy dude’s companion for five years...

"Liberace also successfully sued the Daily Mirror newspaper for suggesting he was gay in 1957. Veteran columnist Cassandra (William Connor) had described him as "the summit of sex - the pinnacle of masculine, feminine, and neuter. Everything that he, she, and it can ever want ... a deadly, winking, sniggering, snuggling, chromium-plated, scent-impregnated, luminous, quivering, giggling, fruit-flavoured, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love". Apparently Liberace took particular offence to the term "fruit-flavoured", which he took to mean he was gay."

Anonymous said...

1957? No wonder Liberace wanted to stay in the closet.

Jake, that was 50 years ago :)

Anonymous said...

Heath Ledger captured in Joker portrait by Dave White

Up-and-coming painter Dave White's latest exhibition features a four foot high oil painting of Ledger who died earlier this year. Stephen Adams reports. Heath Ledger has received an arresting tribute from one of Britain's most feted up-and-coming painters. Dave White said he was moved to paint the image after seeing Ledger as The Joker in the latest Batman film, The Dark Knight.

The four foot high oil painting is part of an exhibition of White's new works, that opens on Friday at the Opus Art gallery in Newcastle. Explaining why he decided to paint it, Mr White, 36, said: "I was just putting the finishing touches to my show when I saw Batman.

"I was totally and utterly blown away. I saw the movie and just came into the studio straight away. I just had to make this image, to the best performance I had ever seen. It was teetering on insanity." He added: "It was a real tragedy to hear of his death."

The picture is based on a publicity shot used by Warner Bros which shows The Joker confronting Batman in the street. White, a classically trained artist with a degree in fine art painting, whose work has been exhibited alongside that of Picasso and David Hockney at Sotheby's, often basis his work on images from popular culture.

He said: "Comic books are a very very glib, flat representation of a character. What my work is about is totally flipping that on its head. "What I'm trying to express is making these into real images, seeing through to the real human emotion and trying to freeze that." Don Smith of Opus Art commented: "Dave White is nothing less than exceptional. His work is celebrated internationally and the interest around him is phenomenal. We are delighted to be exhibiting his latest solo show."

After being shown in Newcastle the exhibition will travel to London in October to be shown at the new Kounter Kulture art fair in the Truman Brewery.

Telegraph UK

Anonymous said...

September 11, 2008

"Here are some pics of Heath and Christian that were taken for The Dark Knight movie posters…prior to post-production.'

Heath Ledger ‘Joker’ Pics Surface

Anonymous said...

Posted on OMG

EW.Com's 25 Best Romantic Movies of the Past 25 Years.

1. Titanic
2. Moulin Rouge
3. Once
4. Brokeback Mountain
5. Room with a View
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
7. When Harry met Sally...
8. Jerry Maguire
9. Pretty Woman
10. There's Something about Mary

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005)
The cool move here would be to ignore the fact that Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal enacted a truly groundbreaking love story — and simply concentrate on what a gorgeous, nuanced, heartbreaking movie Brokeback is for people of any sexual orientation. But Ang Lee's undeniably romantic movie did break ground. It reached, and moved, mainstream audiences in ways that no ''gay'' movie ever had before.

EW BBM

Anonymous said...

^^^^ Except for Brockeback and When Harry met Sally, that list totally Sucks!!

Anonymous said...

My No 1 is No 4 - not bad :)

I wouldn never expect to see 'There's Something about Mary' on the best romantic movies list.

Anonymous said...

Breakfast at Tiffany's, when Holly throws her cat out into the pouring rain ... I cried like a baby.

Anonymous said...

Liberace -

"The piano-playing, candelabra-loving entertainer, who favored ruffled, lace shirts and jewel-encrusted capes, died of AIDS in 1987, having denied for decades he was gay."

Anonymous said...

The Abyss, Aliens, The Terminator, Titanic - I love James Cameron's romantic plots but The Terminator is my favorite.

Anonymous said...

"The best for last". Finally buzz for Brothers. :)

Brothers

I think this film will be good.

Anonymous said...

^^^
HOLLYWOOD GETS SERIOUS
Studios save the best for last, unleashing in autumn a torrent of serious-minded films. It's quality time, the theory goes.

DEC. 25

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (Fantasy): Brad Pitt starts aging backwards. With Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton.

Brothers (Drama): Tobey Maguire comforts sister-in-law (Natalie Portman) after his brother (Jake Gyllenhaal) goes missing in Afghanistan.

The Spirit (Action): Cop Gabriel Macht returns from the beyond. With Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson.

The Time Traveler's Wife (Romantic drama): Eric Bana time-travels involuntarily, much to the chagrin of his wife Rachel McAdams. Filmed in Hamilton.

Bedtime Stories (Comedy): Adam Sandler's bedtime stories start coming true.

Marley & Me (Comedy): A family learns important lessons from their neurotic dog. Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson star

Shanghai (Mystery): '40s period piece with John Cusack returning to Shanghai before Pearl Harbor.

The Other Man (Drama): Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas and Laura Linney in the story of a husband who suspects his wife of adultery.

Hurricane Season (Drama): Forest Whitaker assembles a basketball team in post-Katrina New Orleans.

Anonymous said...

That Brothers blurb is incorrect. Tobey is playing the brother missing in action.

Anonymous said...

Why did they change release date?

DEC. 5

Milk (Drama): Sean Penn as real-life assassinated gay California official.
Punisher: War Zone (Action): The Punisher faces Jigsaw.
Frost/Nixon (Drama): Retelling of the post-Watergate television interviews between David Frost (Michael Sheen) and Richard Nixon (Frank Langella).
Extreme Movie (Comedy): Teen sex flick with Michael Cera and Frankie Muniz.
Delgo (Animated): A teen must rally his friends to protect their world from conflict.

Anonymous said...

That Brothers blurb is incorrect. Tobey is playing the brother missing in action.

They must look more alike than I thought for people to confuse them.

Anonymous said...

Brothers and 8 other movies will be release on Dec 25. Can't imagine good BO with so strong competitors.

Anonymous said...

They must look more alike than I thought for people to confuse them.

LOL!

Anonymous said...

Why did they change release date?

Was the movie supposed to come out earlier? If so, then I don't know why they changed it.

Anonymous said...

11:22, you mean for Milk? I don't know. Maybe they think releasing it after Thanksgiving rather than during that week is better in terms of maximizing its BO potential and more important (for Milk) its award consideration. Interesting how it's going against Frost/Nixon--which will also be up there for awards. (Great play and both actors were wonderful).

Anonymous said...

"Brothers and 8 other movies will be release on Dec 25. Can't imagine good BO with so strong competitors."

It'll be a limited release for Oscar consideration. The wide release will likely be in January.

Anonymous said...

Was the movie supposed to come out earlier?

Yes, December 4 (IMDb).

Anonymous said...

Yes, December 4 (IMDb).

TY.

Anonymous said...

I think the film's gonna be good, too, and don't understand the lack of buzz.

& what kind of promotion Jake/Natalie/Tobey will be doing.

Anonymous said...

Milk

USA 26 November 2008 (limited)
USA 5 December 2008

Anonymous said...

I think the film's gonna be good, too, and don't understand the lack of buzz.

I don't understand why studio doesn't create some buzz. Family dramas are hard to sell.

Anonymous said...

Anne & John McCain

Picture This: John McCain Visits Criminal's Yacht

My oh my, look what has "surfaced," as they say: A photo of populist war hero presidential candidate John McCain lumbering his way onto Raffaello Follieri's yacht in Montenegro! And on the day after Follieri pleads guilty to multimillion-dollar fraud! How highly enjoyable. It was already known that McCain spent his 70th birthday, in 2006, aboard the yacht with Follieri and glamorous actress Anne Hathaway. But this is the first photo of the meeting, which drives home the unmissable point: John McCain spends his birthday on foreign yachts with criminals and Hollywood types. There's not enough lipstick in the world to cover this pig. Big version of the photo (found by The Nation)—and the upshot of the meeting—after the jump:

In the photograph, taken in Montenegro at the end of August, McCain is shown boarding the yacht ramp towards the smiling Follieri and Hathaway. Just ahead of McCain and shaking hands with Follieri appears to be Rick Davis—McCain's top aide and now co-manager of his campaign, who accompanied him on the trip and advised the government of Montenegro. A few months after McCain's yacht party, Follieri strengthened his ties to McCain's orbit by retaining Rick Davis's well-connected Washington lobbying firm, Davis Manafort, and offering Davis both an investment deal and help in securing the Catholic vote for McCain's presidential bid.

Anne & John McCain

Anonymous said...

No disrespect, but I can't believe this girl, Anne, didn't know what was going on with the dude all this time.
I think his money was one big reason she was drawn to him before she had success as an actress beginning with BBM then Devil and so on.

Anonymous said...

John Lennon wanted to sleep with Paul McCartney (AND his mother)????

n this new book Phillip Norman accuses Lennon of further lust with his bandmate Paul McCartney and his own mother. Now, that’s just taking things a bit too far. Here’s a description of the book, John Lennon: The Life, by Philip Norman.

For more than a quarter century, Philip Norman’s internationally bestselling Shout! has been unchallenged as the definitive biography of the Beatles. Now, at last, Norman turns his formidable talent to the Beatle for whom belonging to the world’s most beloved pop group was never enough. Drawing on previously untapped sources, and with unprecedented access to all the major characters, here is the comprehensive and most revealing portrait of John Lennon that is ever likely to be published.

This masterly biography takes a fresh and penetrating look at every aspect of Lennon’s much-chronicled life, including the songs that have turned him, posthumously, into a near-secular saint. In three years of research, Norman has turned up an extraordinary amount of new information about even the best-known episodes of Lennon folklore—his upbringing by his strict Aunt Mimi; his allegedly wasted school and student days; the evolution of his peerless creative partnership with Paul McCartney; his Beatle-busting love affair with a Japanese performance artist; his forays into painting and literature; his experiments with Transcendental Meditation, primal scream therapy, and drugs. The book’s numerous key informants and interviewees include Sir Paul McCartney, Sir George Martin, Sean Lennon—whose moving reminiscence reveals his father as never before—and Yoko Ono, who speaks with sometimes shocking candor about the inner workings of her marriage to John.

Honest and unflinching, as John himself would wish, Norman gives us the whole man in all his endless contradictions—tough and cynical, hilariously funny but also naive, vulnerable and insecure—and reveals how the mother who gave him away as a toddler haunted his mind and his music for the rest of his days.source:http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/latest/2008/09/12/exclusive-paul-mccartney-and-yoko-furious-over-john-lennon-s-gay-lust-book-115875-20733770/

Anonymous said...

No disrespect, but I can't believe this girl, Anne, didn't know what was going on with the dude all this time.

I still don't know what to think. If she did know then she also knew that the man can't be trusted and that she might have to deal with the police because of him. Why risk it? Maybe she was very much in love with the scumbag.

Anonymous said...

Phillip Norman accuses Lennon of further lust with his bandmate Paul McCartney and his own mother.

OMG! (for the own mother part)

Anonymous said...

John Lennon wanted to sleep with Paul McCartney (AND his mother)????

"Yoko Ono and McCartney are pissed: McCartney and Yoko Ono are furious after a new book they helped with accuses John Lennon of wanting a gay relationship with Macca.

Yoko, 75, agreed to be interviewed for John Lennon: The Life, written by respected Beatles author Philip Norman. Paul McCartney also co-operated. But she and Macca are now distancing themselves from it and Yoko has withdrawn her endorsement.

A friend said: "Both Sir Paul and Yoko are extremely angry and upset."

Anonymous said...

Maybe she was very much in love with the scumbag.

She probably was.

Anonymous said...

In that case she's forgiven :)

Anonymous said...

LINDSAY'S GAL PAL SAYS THEY'LL GET MARRIED THIS YEAR

First there were the matching tattoos, then the public declarations of love and now it seems Lindsay Lohan will marry her lesbian lover.

Just days after DJ Samantha Ronson announced at a gig that Lindsay would be her wife by the end of year, the Mean Girls star is sporting this sparkler on her wedding finger.

And while dad Michael thinks the pair are just seeking fame and attention – which getting married after dating for only a few months obviously proves wrong – mum Dina approves. She was by Lindsay's side as the actress showed off the heart-shaped jewel at a Marie Claire party.

Lindsay & Samantha

Anonymous said...

In that case she's forgiven :)

It's not a drama in her case to overlook certain things her partner did. He didn't molest or kill anyone. It was "just" stealing. But if women/wifes and men/husbands choose not to see the other things I mentioned, that's criminal.

Anonymous said...

^^wives.

Anonymous said...

Queen Anne
...
Hathaway declines to discuss specifics about Follieri, the scandal, what she knew or when she knew it—there have been reports that investigators have approached her for information, and she could be called as a trial witness—but she is candid about what it feels like to have your personal life abruptly implode. She’s been staying at a friend’s downtown since moving out of the midtown apartment she shared with Follieri, which was searched by the authorities. “I have to find a place to live,” she says numbly. But then her voice catches with emotion and pools form at the corners of her eyes as she struggles to articulate her messy mix of feelings. “It’s a situation where the rug was pulled out from under me all of a sudden,” she says. “But just as suddenly, my friends threw another rug back under me. One said, ‘Go stay at my house.’ And Steve Carell [her Get Smart costar] stepped up for me during an interview when someone asked a question [about it]. He said, ‘At some point you’re going to have to talk about this time in your life. You don’t have to do it this week. I’ll take care of anything that comes your way.’

“I’ve been shown such kindness,” she continues, wiping at an errant tear. “Not everyone gets that. A lot of people go through tough times alone.”

Hathaway has less to say about the beating she’s taking in the press. “What’s going on is so much bigger than all that,” she says. “Though it’s crazy that things like that Newsweek article have become small stuff.” One eyebrow arches with ironic resignation. She declares that she has no desire to correct any of the misinformation that’s padded much of the scandal coverage, though a week later she sends an e-mail addressing a recent Page Six item: “I did not abandon my dog, Esmeralda, and no one had to ask me to go and get her. In fact, the day before that particular news item broke I had arranged to have her picked up and taken to my parents’ apartment.” (Hathaway’s mother, a former stage actress, and her father, a lawyer, also live in Manhattan.) “My dad likes telling the story,” the e-mail continues, “in a funny/sad sort of way, that Esmeralda was at [their] house watching herself on Access Hollywood as Nancy O’Dell or someone asked, ‘Where in the world is Esmeralda?’”
...

W interview

Anonymous said...

The buzz for Informers is so great that they don't even know which actor is playing which role. lol!

Anonymous said...

For Brothers.

Anonymous said...

That's because they were so excited about the movie :)

Anonymous said...

Out in Hollywood

Neil Patrick Harris defends Anderson Cooper's right not to be public...

Sometimes it;s just fun to post a shirtless picture of Neil Patrick Harris because he is so darned cute. He's hosting the Creative Arts Emmys this weekend so I hope to have a moment or two with him on the red carpet.

But Michael Jensen, editor of AfterElton.com, had a lot more than that with NHP recently and posted a terrific, wide-ranging interview today. I'm excerpting a line of questioning that stemmed from Neil's comment in his recent OUT Magazine cover story that one of his role models as far as being comfortable with his sexuality was Danny Roberts from the New Orleans season of "The Real World."

He talks with Michael about what he thinks is the difference between Danny Roberts and someone like Anderson Cooper who does not discuss his private life:

NPH: "...The difference between those two to me is that Danny Roberts was on a reality show, so I was watching him exist in his world and so that was what was empowering was to see him interacting socially and admiring the way he behaved in any given situation. With someone who's sole job it is to relay information, I think the more you know about them, the more things can get muddled when you're trying to pay attention to a story.

AE: I agree with you up until the point where if that person, whether it be Anderson Cooper or anybody else, if they draw a clear line and say this is what I talk about and this is what I don't, then that's completely fine. But if you do things such as write an autobiography and do talk about other personal stuff, don't you sort of open the door to those types of questions?

NPH: I don't think so. I think writing a biography is subjective and you write about what you find important in your own life at that time. I think it's separate from inviting Barbara Walters into your bedroom. They're different situations. I find the community very interesting in who it opts to criticize. Because I think the people that take the most heat often don't deserve it.

So I think those two examples are actually kind of radically different. I'm a big fan of respecting someone's skill set. Of course, if anyone wants to stand tall, I think they would be impressing upon lots of people to stand tall as well, but I don't think that one is required for the other. I mean with Danny Roberts, he was inviting cameras into his actual life to film him. And when you're dealing with Anderson Cooper, who is really recounting the news stories, he's doing quite the opposite.

Neil Patrick Harris

Anonymous said...

You're thinking too much about Austin 1:27. ;)

Anonymous said...

"The buzz for Informers is so great that they don't even know which actor is playing which role. lol!"

Lol troll's getting all mixed up. You can ridicule The Informers another time.

Anonymous said...

Not everything's a Freudian slip. Some things are intentional.

Anonymous said...

Bitch-Back! Toothy Tile Forever!

Dear Ted:
Is Toothy Tile Chad Michael Murray? Would you even tell us if we guessed correctly?
—cjpulvini

Dear Murray Mistake:
It ain't Murray—we'd have no problem giving Chad's bedroom habits away. Toothy's much juicier than some One Tree Hill chump.


Dear Ted:
You've kept the toothpaste cap on Toothy Tile's identity for too long! Toothy is like your "Who Shot J.R." of the digital age.
—Flicky

Dear Mystery Man:
We promise we won't pull a Dallas and make it all just a dream at the end of the A.T.'s run. Which ain't happening anytime soon, kiddos, worry not.


Dear Ted:
I love that you print all those nasty letters. I don't know anyone who wouldn't be just a little insulted, yet you go and publish them to the world. Nice. So, is Tobey M. our boy Toothy?
—niliyolin

Dear Blinded By the Bisexuality:
Thanks and no. Think prettier. Kinda right on the rest, though!

Anonymous said...

Not everything's a Freudian slip. Some things are intentional.

I'm so nice it never occurred to me" :)

Anonymous said...

Wow, this was a Toothy Tile week!

Anonymous said...

We promise we won't pull a Dallas and make it all just a dream at the end of the A.T.'s run.

"Who shot J.R.? was an advertising catch phrase that American network CBS created in 1980 to promote the television show Dallas. In the final scene of the 1979-1980 season, the character J.R. Ewing, played by Larry Hagman, was shot by an unknown assailant. The episode, titled A House Divided, was broadcast on March 21, 1980. Viewers had to wait all summer, and most of the autumn because of a Hollywood actors' strike, to learn whether J.R. would survive, and which of his many enemies was responsible."

Anonymous said...

Huh? Wasn't the dream thing in Dallas, when they killed of Bobby (forgot the name of the actor) then he wanted to come back and the writers made the death all a dream Pam (his wife) had. Basically it was all a dream = not real what happened after he supposedly died.

Anonymous said...

You are right, it was Bobby (Patrick Duffy):

"Dallas was a great show until they killed off Bobby Ewing. That throw the show out of balance. Then in desperation because of falling rating they convinced Patrick Duffy to return. The problem was how to bring him back. The only way is to make it all a dream and Dallas lost its credibility."

Anonymous said...

So, is Tobey M. our boy Toothy?
Think prettier.


Sorry Tobey. Next time I'll let you have a personal make-up artist.

Anonymous said...

"The only way is to make it all a dream and Dallas lost its credibility. . . "

Jake G was a great show until they brought in Reeke. That threw the show out of (optic) balance. Then in desperation because of falling ratings they convinced the gay Jake to return. The problem was how to bring him back. . . .

Anonymous said...

"Next time I'll let you have a personal make-up artist. . "

FUCK YOU Jake fuckin' so-called "lead", next time I hope YOU be the one that gets the shit beat out of him by the fuckin' terr'ists in fuckin' New Mexico. . .

Anonymous said...

Jan 9, 2008

Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal’s diva competition on set

Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal are co-starring in the drama Brothers together, which is currently filming. There have been several stories about how they’re not exactly fighting, but not exactly getting along on set either. These two are said to be competing for resources in an alpha-dog type situation while they work together. Star Magazine had them fighting over their makeup artists last month, with each holding out for their own person, and producers trying to cut costs by getting them to share, but they weren’t having it.

“[Tobey and Jake] each want their own retoucher, but the producers don’t think it’s necessary and don’t see why they can’t share,” a source tells Star. “Tobey is holding out for his own person, while Jake said he needs his artist so badly he’ll let her stay with him during the shoot.”

[From Star Magazine, print edition, December 10, 2007]

And this week’s edition has some more insider news from on set. Tobey and Jake are said to be making everyone they work with uncomfortable with their competition, but at least cast and crew are benefiting from it. They each gave expensive gifts to cast members and sound like they were trying to outdo each other. It doesn’t sound like there’s much harm in that:

“[Tobey and Jake] are competing over who gets along better with castmates and crew!” an insider tells Star. The actors are also showering them with gifts! While Tobey gave crewmembers new 8GB iPod Nanos, Jake gave out gift certificates to tony Koi restaurant! Adds the source, “It’s getting uncomfortable.”

[From Star Magazine, print edition, January 14, 2008]

They’re undoubtedly spinning it to make it out to be much worse than it is, but something must be going on to prompt Maguire to give out expensive gifts like that. He’s notoriously tight-fisted and careful with his money, having come from humble beginnings. Maybe his wife Jennifer Meyer is influencing him to change his ways.

You can imagine Maguire and Gyllenhaal quietly trying to outdo each other, each acting overly gracious while trying to be more professional than the other. That would make a great comedy - two actors treating each other with quiet disdain with one changing his normally grumpy and self-important personality with great effort, the other naturally nice but just a bit goofy. Did I just violate the writer’s strike by coming up with that concept?

Tobey and Jake ran into each other accidentally in Brentwood this weekend when they were both out. Jake was seen smiling and chatting with Tobey, his wife, and Tobey’s father in law, the head of Universal studios. The story is that Jake saw Tobey with his family outside and pulled his car over for a chat. Does this encounter reveal that their competition on who can act the friendliest extends even to each other? Were they straining themselves trying to act nice or does this show that there’s no bad blood between them?

Tobey Maguire is shown looking grumpy out at Mr. Chow on 12/20. Jake Gyllenhaal is shown out at lunch on 1/4. Thanks to Splash News.

Celebitchy

Anonymous said...

FUCK YOU Jake fuckin' so-called "lead", next time I hope YOU be the one that gets the shit beat out of him by the fuckin' terr'ists in fuckin' New Mexico. . .

LOL!

Anonymous said...

Don't listen to him, he didn't mind beating. He's pissed because they didn't let him use hair stylist for Afganistan military prison scenes. No mascara either.

Anonymous said...

Jake and Natalie

Anonymous said...

Jake and Natalie

I think they'll have good chemisty in Brothers.

Anonymous said...

I agree. Jake and Natalie always look like they have a great time together.

Anonymous said...

"don't listen to him, he didnt mind the beating. . . "

Hey, bud, who's the fuckin' self-confessed (or according to yr so-called "therapist") Hollywood Hills "masochist"? Huh? Huh?

Anonymous said...

And which Hollywood actor with initials TM sleeps in Spiderman pijamas?

Anonymous said...

While Tobey gave crewmembers new 8GB iPod Nanos, Jake gave out gift certificates to tony Koi restaurant! Adds the source, “It’s getting uncomfortable.”

iPod and free food? I would love to be made uncomfortable like that.

Anonymous said...

I'd rather get the IPod.

Anonymous said...

tr from OMG:

US has a blurb about Jake using an accent in POP. Even a note that he uses it when not in a scene and how seriously he is taking his role. Word for word from the Babblers source.

Anonymous said...

". . . sleeps in Spiderman pijamas. . . ?"

YOU BET!

Anonymous said...

And a certain A-lister got exactly the same pijamas as a present from TM.

Anonymous said...

seems to me any competition between Jake and Tobey on Brothers set would serve the script very well.

Anonymous said...

seems to me any competition between Jake and Tobey on Brothers set would serve the script very well.

True.

Anonymous said...

Word for word from the Babblers source.

Babblers are trowing a party as we speak! Oh, wait, that isn't exactly a good thing from their perspective.

Anonymous said...

It's good Jake is taking his role in PoP so seriously. I don't remember who, Mark Rufallo or Fincher alluded Jake wasn't always prepared for Zodiac.

Anonymous said...

6:12 PM

Please read that post again.

Anonymous said...

I dont recall any comments that Jake was unprepared on Zodiac set.

Anonymous said...

Christian Bale wearing spider socks (in public)

Anonymous said...

I dont recall any comments that Jake was unprepared on Zodiac set.

That's a reference to this article:

Lights, Bogeyman, Action

Anonymous said...

Christian Bale wearing spider socks (in public)

Did he know he'd be papped? LOL.

Anonymous said...

6:29, see no (even) implication that Jake was unprepared.

earnest - annoyed -

unprepared?

Anonymous said...

It was Bale's laundry day.

Anonymous said...

6:29, see no (even) implication that Jake was unprepared.

Wrong article. This one:

Mark Ruffalo Not Offering Jake Gyllenhaal A Shoulder To Cry On

Anonymous said...

6:36 PM, I thought I read it somewhere. Perhaps I'm wrong.

Anonymous said...

Ah. So that whole thing last week with Jake Gyllenhaal's thinly-veiled Fincher critiques ("So there came a point where I would say, well, what do I do? Where's the risk?") last week in The New York Times — was that blown out of proportion?

"Like I said," Ruffalo replied, "Fincher only has a problem with people if they're not prepared — if they're not ready to work when they show up. Whatever form that takes — whether it's a prop person, an actor or whatever. I thought there were a lot of weird sour grapes in that New York Times article. We're actors, man; we get paid way too much. It's like 'Wah, wah, wah' to me to hear an actor bitching and moaning when they get paid as much as they do and we have a pretty great life. I don't have much sympathy for it."


LOL, I knew I read it somewhere.

Anonymous said...

still see no direct implication that Jake was "unprepared" - rather that he was unwilling to deal with DF's method - -

directors genereally say that JG is very professional and prepared no matter his shenanigans otherwise. . .

I think interviewer was kinda spinning Mark's words. . .

Im not persuaded, but that's just my take. . .

Anonymous said...

Shit, you'll make him cry again. Jakey, honey, don't listen to them, you were spectacular in Zodiac.

Anonymous said...

Don't cry Jakey, the movie turned out great.

Anonymous said...

See, they still love you.

Anonymous said...

"At least Tobey Maguire was nice about the fan taking a photo. Kanye would have kicked the crap out of him and thrown him in front of that bus."

Tobey, Ent Lawyer

Anonymous said...

Tobey wasn't so nice when another fan tried to snap him at a Spiderman premiere.

Anonymous said...

What did Tobey do?

Anonymous said...

He pushed the guy away. LMAO.

Anonymous said...

Tobey attacking fan

Bet he's not a fan anymore.

Anonymous said...

Geez. Tobey, lighten up.

Jul. 15, 2008

Dear Ted:
It’s the paparazzi you should be pissed at, not Tobey Maguire. If you watched the video you can see that their camera flashes were blinding him as he was trying to drive, and they were blocking his way—making it a very dangerous situation. There’s a difference between “being photographed” as you call it and what he and other celebrities have to endure. By the way, with your new unshaven look, you look just like the poster of Kevin Costner for Swing Vote.
R.H.
Glendale, Calif.

Dear Pique Fuzz:
Cry me a $20 million (or however much green that shrimp gets paid) river. Tobey could hire a limo if he’s so delicate on the road. But thanks for the compliment! It was a compliment, wasn’t’ it?

Anonymous said...

"he was unwilling to deal with DF's method"

ITA. Fincher thrives on dissension and divisiveness. He goads people and then sits back and watches them tear each other apart, all for the sake of 'creative chaos'. Remember when he said that people on the set should 'watch out because Jake will hug you'? Talk about homophobic panic. God knows what else he said about Jake privately.

And Ruffalo turned out to be an ass-kisser with Fincher, criticizing Jake publicly. If Ruffalo, a supposed friend of Jake, had something to say about Jake's work ethic on Zodiac, he should have said it privately instead of airing Jake's laundry on the pages of the gossip rags. You didn't hear anything dismissive from Jake about Ruffalo (and Ruffalo's acting is highly over-rated), and you certainly didn't hear anything bad about Jake from Downey, who has had his share of nasty gossip.

Fincher is a manipulative control freak, and I hope that Jake doesn't work with him again.

Anonymous said...

Who knows how to lose fans and allienate people?

Tobey Maguire knows!

Anonymous said...

You didn't hear anything dismissive from Jake about Ruffalo (and Ruffalo's acting is highly over-rated), and you certainly didn't hear anything bad about Jake from Downey, who has had his share of nasty gossip."

Ruffalo is an excellent actor, not overrated at all--far superior to Jake. Sorry.

Anonymous said...

And unlike Downey who is still using, Ruffalo is dead sober.

Anonymous said...

ITA. Fincher thrives on dissension and divisiveness. He goads people and then sits back and watches them tear each other apart, all for the sake of 'creative chaos'. Remember when he said that people on the set should 'watch out because Jake will hug you'? Talk about homophobic panic. God knows what else he said about Jake privately.

Puhlease! They got along just fine in Cannes. Stop demonizing Fincher. He's a great director. Fight Club, Se7en, Zodiac and I'm looking forward to Benjamin Button.
Whatever issues they had... 1000 takes, not being well prepared so on and so forth, they got over it and moved on. End of story.

Anonymous said...

Remember when Fincher said that people on the set should 'watch out because Jake will hug you'?

No. When? Where?

Anonymous said...

Fincher is a homophobe? Wasn't the script-writer for "Fight Club" a gay man?

Anonymous said...

Finchy fixing Jake's tie

Now, would a homophobe do that? I think not!

Anonymous said...

"Robert Downey Jr., impeccably cast as a crime reporter driven to drink, drugs and dissolution, called Mr. Fincher a disciplinarian and agreed that, as is often said, “he’s always the smartest guy in the room.” But Mr. Downey put this in perspective.

“Sometimes it’s really hard because it might not feel collaborative, but ultimately filmmaking is a director’s medium,” he said. “I just decided, aside from several times I wanted to garrote him, that I was going to give him what he wanted. I think I’m a perfect person to work for him, because I understand gulags.”

Anonymous said...

Finchy fixing Jake's tie

Check out Jake's hands. What is he doing?

Anonymous said...

The difference is HOW you criticize. If you say it like RDJ "jokingly" you get away with it. But with Jake it sounded more like complaining, that made him an easier target. Good thing Jake seems to be friends with Robert now, he might learn something from him.
Mark - well some might say he's an arselicker, others might say he's right. Actors are fucking overpaid for what they do. They should appreciate it.

Anonymous said...

Check out Jake's hands. What is he doing?

Looks like Jake want to button up his jacket.

Anonymous said...

Hey, I'm undone too!

Anonymous said...

If you say it like RDJ "jokingly" you get away with it. ... Good thing Jake seems to be friends with Robert now, he might learn something from him.

I'll teach him. Jake is my star pupil.

Anonymous said...

Jake flirts with directors. Why Fincher wanted him, to begin with. Jake said David wanted him bad. (go find links, both in written and video interviews) Jake couldnt figure out why

Fincher is a sadist. Didnt have a nice tbing to say about Jake in Zodiac commentary. RDJ said some nice things to make Jake feel better.

But our Jake is nobody's fool and he turned on the charm and did all this touchy feely stuff with Fincher, who is very NEEDY and insecure as well as being a sadist. Jake played Fincher like a flute, intimate gestures (see Cannes wherein Jake leans into Fincher's shoulder possessively) and so forth and Fincher turned to butter in his paws.

Son of a film director.

Anonymous said...

Are you saying that Jake's a cock tease? Bad boy!

Anonymous said...

Fincher you silly sadist, watch out for power bottoms, first thing you know they'll be straightening your tie and checking yr fly in public.

Anonymous said...

LOL

Anonymous said...

"first thing you know they'll be straightening your tie and checking yr fly in public."

The tie is such a phallus substitute. Ever straightened a man's in public rolling it between your fingers and then flattening it against his chest mmmmm....

Anonymous said...

It's a power move.

Anonymous said...

"Fight Club" and homoerotica

"As a male, even a gay one, I can tell you that the film's brutality, never angry, always in check, simply masculine, stirs a deep seated emotion within me. This feeling is incomprehensible to females. But males will feel it immediately. When Norton and Pitt begin to beat each other senseless, it frees us as men. It allows us to revel in our most basic personalities. It returns us to the caveman days of being the hunter/gatherer. We cannot help from becoming soaked in our own chemistry. As a man, the feeling is overpowering. It makes us tingle.

The friendship that evolves between Norton's protagonist and Pitt's antagonist is seemingly opposite of brutality, however. Their friendship takes on a air of subtle homoeroticism. The film gets bare in it's physicality between males and this heightened sense of masculinity cannot help but seem more than just male bonding in a way. The film hints subtly at this, but wisely does not delve into it, keeping it subdued and just under the surface of what is happening."

http://www.celebritywonder.com/movie/1999_Fight_Club17.html

Anonymous said...

This feeling is incomprehensible to females. But males will feel it immediately.

True?

Anonymous said...

Interesting. I think I'm going to (finally) watch "Fight Club" and check if "feeling is incomprehensible to females, but males will feel it immediately".

Anonymous said...

September 12, 2008

Ledger's Five Leaves Opens

This summer came news of a Greenpoint bar called Five Leaves opening and being backed by Heath Ledger (and now by his estate).

Urban Daddy has the latest, on the day of the unofficial opening, reporting that "the designer is the man behind Moto, Smith and Mills and Tailor ... The end effect is a bar that Thomas Edison might have built for his buddies. The handmade light fixtures are steel and wire concoctions that seem right out of a lab, and the bathroom door is a massive, '20s-era boiler room door. Even the walls are covered in what the owners call steel wallpaper."

And coffee and spirits won't be all that's served; expect greenmarket goodies as well (like Sliced Radishes on Toast with Evans Farmhouse Butter). Tonight the place will be serving up friends and family only, and expected to be there are both Mary-Kate Olsen and Michelle Williams (awkward)—the rest of us are welcome to come next Wednesday, and the hours will be 8 a.m. to...midnight?

http://gothamist.com/2008/09/12/ledgers_five_leaves_opens.php

Anonymous said...

“It’s all meant to be a super casual California- and Australia-tinged cafe, coffeehouse and oyster bar, with greenmarket snacks,” a critic for UrbanDaddy.com wrote."

Anonymous said...

I hope I'll have a chance to visit NYC and have a drink in Heath's memory in the bar he loved.

Anonymous said...

PoP tidbit

"Gemma Arterton also revealed working on new James Bond movie, 'Quantum of Solace' struck a happy medium between the "screaming girls" on the 'St. Trinians' set and the macho environment of the Guy Ritchie-directed 'RocknRolla'.

She added: "On 'Bond' it was fine. Although I didn't get any time with Olga there were plenty of girls in the crew. In my next project, 'Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time' I'm the only girl in the whole film. It's a boy's world, but I'm quite cool with that."

Anonymous said...

Cruise gives Dunst Scientology handbook

Kirsten Dunst has been presented with a framed Scientology manual from Interview With The Vampire co-star Tom Cruise. According to The Mirror, the actor believes that the group's code of honour handbook will help her through troubled times.

The news follows Will Smith's denial that he has funded a school teaching Scientology.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/a130161/cruise-gives-dunst-scientology-handbook.html

Anonymous said...

Just days after DJ Samantha Ronson announced at a gig that Lindsay would be her wife by the end of year, the Mean Girls star is sporting this sparkler on her wedding finger.

Kiki approves:

"Spider-Man star Kirsten Dunst is in favour of Lindsay Lohan's rumoured romance with Samantha Ronson. The actress told Harper's Bazaar that the relationship will have a positive influence on Lohan's young admirers.

She said such a high-profile romance could inspire confidence in girls unsure of their own sexuality. "I'm sure there are a lot of girls out there who are so much more comfortable because they love Mean Girls and Lindsay's dating a girl," she said.

Anonymous said...

Not So Fast! Lindsay's Ring Ain't All That

Even though E!'s own fab Tina Dirmann got all those feisty fam quotes from the wacko clan known as the Lohans, regarding how SamRo and Linds are not engaged, we have a few more to add, and then a few thoughts of our own: The Awful Truth can also confirm via a source close to Lindsay Lohan, that the troubled starlet is, indeed, not betrothed to Samantha Ronson, at least not now—officially.

"It's not an engagement ring," our rock-spotter said, noting that Lindsay and Samantha's jewelry choice is often subject to interpretation. In late July the actress and DJ sported matching infinity-lock bracelets by N.Y.-based designer Jules Smith, causing speculation that the wrist adornments were more than mere accessories. "It wasn't a promise [piece]," our source told us then of the bangles, "everyone is running off saying what they think it represents."

While our Lo-and-beholder confirmed Lindsay is "happy," no trip down the aisle is planned, as of yet. Yet being the operative word.

You all do realize what's going on here don't you? It was the same way Ellen teased us with was she/was she not before she eventually came out of the closet. Lindsay wants us all, breathlessly, on the edge of our seats waiting for her to all-out declare her love (including hitching plans) to her BFF and more, Sammy-doll. "Only it won't happen," predicted our tight, inside Lohan campers, who feel quite strongly, as we've said before, that Lindsay's doing all this for the attention and because she's just damn bored over her lack of A-list career work, not much more.

Poor Samantha. Her heart's going to get busted worse than Brad's, we fear.

Anonymous said...

In my next project, 'Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time' I'm the only girl in the whole film. It's a boy's world, but I'm quite cool with that.

I'm hot and bothered all the time.

Anonymous said...

My daddy landed with his butt in a tub of butter, Im doggone thrilled for him.

Anonymous said...

A hug for Liz!

Elizabeth Taylor Goes Out to Her Favorite Gay Bar

Elizabeth Taylor made a low-key return to public life Thursday night with a trip to her favorite watering hole.

In the film legend's first known appearance since she was hospitalized last month, Taylor headed to The Abbey, a popular West Hollywood gay bar. "She was lively. She was laughing and she was smiling," said one onlooker. "Even if she was not as strong as the last time she was here, she was once again the life of her small party." Rumors about Taylor's ill health swirled over this summer, with one tabloid reporting that the 76-year-old was on life support. But her publicist denied the claims, calling them "dramatic, overstated and untrue." (Last month, a friend told PEOPLE that Taylor was out of the hospital and "busier than ever".)

Back at the Abbey, the actress held court in a corner of the bar with a sizable martini in hand and four people at her side (one of whom held Daisy, Taylor's Maltese dog). Before she was wheeled outside, an assistant placed a pair of rhinestone sunglasses on the ever-stylish star.

"She needed help getting into the car," says the witness. "As [they] drove away in this gigantic black sedan, all you could see was those sunglasses and a big smile on her face."

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20225303,00.html

Anonymous said...

Back at the Abbey, the actress held court in a corner of the bar with a sizable martini in hand and four people at her side (one of whom held Daisy, Taylor's Maltese dog).

Got to love Liz!

Anonymous said...

My daddy landed with his butt in a tub of butter, Im doggone thrilled for him.

He sure did! But he can't help being a little sad for leaving you behind .

Anonymous said...

Elizabeth loves gays, gays adore Elizabeth.

Anonymous said...

Gawker Stalker

KiKi Dunst
Broadway & Spring St

Sep 12th, 2008 @ 9pm

is having dinner at Freemans right now, taking smoke breaks every 10 minutes and looking a bit dazed. Her and an entourage of hipster boys seem to prefer the alley outside to the actual restaurant.

Anonymous said...

Tour de Force for Star Wars

THE lines between the movie and gaming worlds are becoming ever more blurred.

Almost every major release movie comes with an accompanying game, increasingly with input from the filmmakers and actors.
Conversely hit video games such as Doom, Hitman and Resident Evil have been made into big-budget action blockbusters. Even respected actors are in on the game: Oscar-nominated hunk Jake Gyllenhaal is filming the movie version of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

Now one of the biggest film franchises in history is further breaking down the barriers, with the next chapter in the Star Wars saga being told through the video game The Force Unleashed which will be released on Wednesday.
...

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24341154-2902,00.html

Anonymous said...

Nicked from DL:

Well, if George was looking at Leo any more longingly, I'm sure the photographer would have caught the saliva drip coming out of George's mouth, on film.

Great pic!

George, Penelope, Leo, and Beyonce

Anonymous said...

You should see the way G looks at me.

Anonymous said...

George, Penelope, Leo, and Beyonce

The expression on Leo's face is priceless! lol

Anonymous said...

" Match Made in Heaven said...

Elizabeth loves gays, gays adore Elizabeth."


This lesbian loves Liz too!

Anonymous said...

In her case love and admiration is well deserved:

19 May, 2000

Dame Liz: Taylor made for charity

"She knows more about suffering than Charles Dickens and Saint Augustine put together," the actor Laurence Harvey once said of Elizabeth Taylor.

During her 63 years, the Hollywood actress has suffered ulcers, amoebic dysentery, acute bronchitis, near-fatal pneumonia, a benign brain tumour, innumerable back problems, arthritis, alcohol addiction, pain-killer addiction, sleeping-pill addiction, enough illnesses, ailments and operations, in fact, to have single-handedly sustained the medical profession and the pharmaceutical industry for years.

It is small wonder that Elizabeth Taylor developed a strong empathy with those who suffer. When, on account of her having twice broken her back in the past three years, she had to be wheeled into Buckingham Palace to be made a Dame, the honour was, in part, a recognition of her outstanding charity work. Although she has generously contributed to several causes, Dame Elizabeth Taylor's worthy efforts have become synonymous with Aids.

She, more than any other celebrity, politician or world activist, was responsible for changing attitudes to the disease. By persuading, coaxing, and, if necessary, bullying her rich and influential friends into supporting her initial fundraising events, she began the process of fighting ignorance of Aids and the prejudice surrounding it. And she has made it a job for life, or at least until a cure is found. Fifteen years after the likes of Sammy Davis and Frank Sinatra attended her first Aids fundraising bash, the Cannes film festival has just staged a $100,000 per table charity dinner co-hosted by Dame Elizabeth and Sir Elton John, with guests that included Prince Albert of Monaco, Gregory Peck, Kenneth Branagh, Elizabeth Hurley and Jeremy Irons.

Throughout her life, Elizabeth Taylor has counted dozens of gay men as friends, most notably Montgomery Clift, James Dean and Rock Hudson. When the Aids virus first struck the US in the early 1980s, it was mainly confined to the gay community. Its first major casualty was Rock Hudson with whom Taylor had co-starred in Giant in 1956 and then again in The Mirror Crack'd in 1980.

"Everyone was talking about Aids but talking behind their hands," Dame Elizabeth says in a BBC Omnibus Special profile to be screened on 26 May. "But nobody was doing anything about it, including myself. And then I got really angry." What angered her even more was the intense homophobia that Aids brought with it. "People were telling me not to get involved, I got death threats, I got angrier and angrier. So I put myself out there."

Kick-started by a cheque for $250,000 from Rock Hudson's estate, in 1985 she formed the Aids Project Los Angeles and hosted a dinner that raised $1m for research. She then discovered a woman in New York, Dr Mathilde Krim, who was attempting to do the same thing. The two joined forces to form The American Foundation for Aids Research (AmFAR). The Foundation's activities soon became international, with Elizabeth Taylor as its chair. She attends all its main meetings to which, ever the star, she is accompanied by her hairdresser. So far, AmFAR has raised more than $166m for various levels of medical research. With her acting career more and more limited by poor health, her charity work has heralded a new lease of life. "That was when I could take the fame that I've tried to get away from and use it to do some good," she said.

Her public feistiness, so familiar to those acquainted with the soap opera of her private life, was well suited to her fund-raising role. She told the eighth International Conference in Amsterdam in 1991: "I don't think President Bush is doing anything at all about Aids. In fact, I'm not sure he even knows how to spell Aids."

In private, Dr Mathilde Krim sees a different side to Dame Elizabeth. She recalls her looking after her former daughter-in-law, Aileen Getty, who had contracted Aids through a blood transfusion.

"In the most tender way, she was holding her in her arms, lying in bed with her to hold her. This is an image the public doesn't see of Elizabeth. She is a very private person".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/754239.stm

Anonymous said...

She recalls her looking after her former daughter-in-law, Aileen Getty, who had contracted Aids through a blood transfusion. "In the most tender way, she was holding her in her arms, lying in bed with her to hold her. This is an image the public doesn't see of Elizabeth. She is a very private person".

:'(

Anonymous said...

Liz is wonderful; I love her too! :)

Anonymous said...

I didn't hear about Will Young before, but this cought my eye:

I would love to settle down and be a parent

WILL YOUNG is planning to find his perfect man, settle down – and start a family. The singer turned actor, about to launch his fourth album Let It Go, is getting a taste for a life away from showbiz. And the gay star, 29, would love nothing more than to bring up adopted children with the man of his dreams at his side.

Speaking exclusively to The Sun, Will told me: “I would love to be a parent one day. Obviously it won’t be happening soon because I am still single. But having a family and bringing up children is something I have thought about a lot recently. “Gay marriage and civil partnership is a great thing. It means more rights for same-sex couples. “It is safer and there are relationships now that provide a perfect set-up for bringing up children.”

Will, who last year split up with his long-term boyfriend — known only as Conor and in his early twenties — says: “I have just had the most amazing holiday at (pop Svengali) SIMON FULLER'S place in France and I was in a reflective mood. “I was thinking about the future and the idea of bringing up a child and helping them through life is something that appeals to me hugely. “I took my niece and my nephew on an open-top tour bus recently and I absolutely love their company.
...

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/article1677337.ece

Anonymous said...

And the gay star, 29, would love nothing more than to bring up adopted children with the man of his dreams at his side.

Who knows, maybe in 2010 Jake will talk about husband and kids too.

Anonymous said...

Tobey wasn't so nice when another fan tried to snap him at a Spiderman premiere.

Nicole Richie is worse!

CELEB HISSY FITS ARE IN FASHION

FASHION Week always brings out the worst in people - even violence. Nicole Richie kicked off the diva fits at an after-party for Charlotte Ronson by grabbing a fan's camera and smashing it to the ground. While Lindsay Lohan and Sam Ronson were celebrating at Country Club on West 14th Street with host Alan Philips of Sky Group, Richie left early at 11 p.m.

As she walked out, "a young, Swedish tourist was trying to take her photo," said one witness. Richie shouted, "I'm not an animal" then "jumped over the velvet rope, ripped the camera out of the girl's hand, and smashed it to the ground." Reps for Richie didn't reply to Page Six.

Anonymous said...

Posted on OMG

First Look: Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Teaser Trailer

The folks over at Quick Stop Entertainment have gotten their hands on a teaser trailer of sorts for Terry Gilliam’s upcoming film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. As you will remember, this is the film that the late Heath Ledger was working on prior to his death earlier this year. Ledger has been replaced by a trio of actors, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law. As well, Tom Waits, Verne Troyer, Chistopher Plummer and Lily Cole will also star.

The trailer you will see below is more of a behind the scenes featurette guided by Gilliam, but there is some footage from the film mixed in. Have a look for yourself below. For more details, be sure to visit doctorparnassus.com.

Doctor Parnassus Teaser Trailer

Anonymous said...

Nice teaser, love the music.

Anonymous said...

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Preview!

ONTD

Anonymous said...

ONTD reaction is very positive. I'm not a Gilliam fan but I love the teaser trailer.

Anonymous said...

Perez too supports "New Eyes for the Needy":

A Worthwhile Cause

CLICK HERE to read up on and donate to a very worthwhile cause. "New Eyes for the Needy purchases new eyeglasses for poor children and adults in the United States and recycles donated glasses for distribution to indigent people in developing nations worldwide."

Perez

Anonymous said...

September 12, 2008

Ryan Seacrest: Fix Me Up With Eva Mendes!

Ellen DeGeneres -- matchmaker?

In an interview to air Monday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, she agreed to fix up Ryan Seacrest after he lamented about his lackluster love life. He said he has been "so busy" he hasn't had time to look for love. "Yes, but you're going to wait too long and get in a rut being single," said DeGeneres, who wed Portia de Rossi this past summer.

DeGeneres then held up photos of famous women -- Pam Anderson, Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, Eva Mendes and Jennifer Aniston -- and asked Seacrest to pick one. He chose Mendes first.

"She's gorgeous," he said. "Yeah, I kind of went there first. I like Carrie, but then I kind of feel like she is part of the Idol thing, so I don’t know if that's the right thing to do." Spears, he said, "is young and obviously there's enough going on and that's not for me." But Mendes, he went on, "is great."

"Would you like me to set you up with her?" DeGeneres asked. "Yeah," said Seacrest.

For now, Seacrest has one famous lady in his life: Paris Hilton. On Friday, he announced that they will develop a new scripted series together.

http://www.usmagazine.com/news/ryan-seacrest-fix-me-up-with-eva-mendes

Anonymous said...

Pathetic. I really don't see how being out would hurt Ryan Gaycrest. And I don't think Ellen should be playing along with such games.

Anonymous said...

05/02/2006

Teri Hatcher says 'American Idol' host Ryan Seacrest dumped her

"Desperate Housewives" star Teri Hatcher says "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest ended their budding relationship after only three dates.

Hatcher, a guest on Tuesday's "Oprah Winfrey Show," told the talk host the last time she saw him was in March -- the day a widely published photograph was taken of the couple sharing a smooch, People magazine reported.

"I haven't seen him since that day," Hatcher said. "So all the stuff about everything else is just made up."

After that date -- their third, but the first alone -- Seacrest phoned her and said: "I don't think I can do this with you," Hatcher related. The actress said to this day, she has no idea why Seacrest decided to bow out.

"I don't know ... I ate too much lobster? ... You'd have to ask him."

Anonymous said...

In an interview to air Monday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, she agreed to fix up Ryan Seacrest after he lamented about his lackluster love life. He said he has been "so busy" he hasn't had time to look for love.

Is Ellen going to help Wentworth too?

Anonymous said...

Ellen Wants To Set Up Seacrest

E! Online video - Ellen and Ryan Seacrest

Anonymous said...

Lindsay Lohan: Sarah Palin Sucks!

Celebrities are continuing to speak out publicly over their disapproval of Republican vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin. You can tack on Lindsay Lohan and her gal pal DJ Samantha Ronson to that list now! The pair just published this same entry on their respective MySpace blogs:

“I really cannot bite my tongue anymore when it comes to Sarah Palin.

I couldn’t be more supportive of a woman in office, but let’s face it, it comes down to the person, and their beliefs, male or female.

Is it a sin to be gay? Should it be a sin to be straight? Or to use birth control? Or to have sex before marriage? Or even to have a child out of wedlock?

I find it quite interesting that a woman who now is running to be second in command of the United States, only 4 years ago had aspirations to be a television anchor. Which is probably all she is qualified to be… Also interesting that she got her passport in 2006.. And that she is not fond of environmental protection considering she’s FOR drilling for oil in some of our protected land…. Well hey, if she wants to drill for oil, she should DO IT IN HER OWN backyard. This really shows me her complete lack of real preparation to become the second most powerful person in this country.

Hmmmm-All of this gets me going-Fear, Anxiety, Concern, Disappointment, and Stress come into play…

Is our country so divided that the Republicans best hope is a narrow minded, media obsessed homophobe?

I know that the most important thing about this election is that people need to exercise their right to vote, regardless of their choice… I would have liked to have remained impartial, however I am afraid that the “lipstick on a pig” comments will overshadow the issues and the fact that I believe Barack Obama is the best choice, in this election, for president…

Palin’s desire to “save and convert the gays”-really??

According to this Associated Press story, the church of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is hosting a kind of conference devoted to the “conversion of Gays” — no kidding.
...
xoxo
Lindsay and Samantha

JJared

Anonymous said...

I really don't see how being out would hurt Ryan Gaycrest. And I don't think Ellen should be playing along with such games.

I would really love to know if Ellen is provoking Ryan.

Anonymous said...

Lindsay Lohan: Sarah Palin Sucks!

"According to this Associated Press story, the church of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is hosting a kind of conference devoted to the “conversion of Gays” — no kidding.

Here’s the AP text: ‘Gov. Sarah Palin’s church is promoting a conference that promises to convert gays into heterosexuals through the power of prayer. You’ll be encouraged by the power of God’s love and His desire to transform the lives of those impacted by homosexuality,” according to the insert in the bulletin of the Wasilla Bible Church, where Palin has prayed since she was a child. Palin’s conservative Christian views have energized that part of the GOP electorate, which was lukewarm to John McCain’s candidacy before he named her as his vice presidential choice. She is staunchly anti-abortion, opposing exceptions for rape and incest, and opposes gay marriage and spousal rights for gay couples.’"

Anonymous said...

Variety

Portman to direct Israeli film
'Professional' actress to adapt 'A Tale of Love'


Natalie Portman might be the poster child for the current wave of international filmmaking. The Jerusalem-born thesp first came to prominence with her turn at age 14 in Gallic helmer Luc Besson's debut English-language feature "Leon" (aka "The Professional").

Since then, she's worked with a kaleidoscope of international helmers from American George Lucas' "Star Wars" parts I-III to Israel's Amos Gitai on "Free Zone," Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai on "My Blueberry Nights" and Irish director Jim Sheridan on the forthcoming "Brothers," a remake of Danish director Susanne Bier's original.

Portman is readying her own directorial feature debut with an adaptation of Israeli author Amos Oz's memoir "A Tale of Love and Darkness," set in Jerusalem's war-torn streets of the 1950s and 1960s. Rather than adapt the screenplay into English -- a more commercial proposition -- Portman is planning to film in its original Hebrew. While admitting that the next step into directing her first feature is daunting, the 27-year-old Portman is relishing the chance to tell the story of venerated author Oz's childhood in his native tongue.

"Someone made a good point once about how would you feel if Mexicans came and made a movie about George Washington in Spanish? It would be absurd but we do it all the time," she tells Variety. "I think people are much more open to reading subtitles now and prefer the authenticity of seeing the true language of that culture. It's becoming unacceptable to make films in places and in a language they're not supposed to be in.

"It's always best to make things as cheaply as possible because then you can take a lot more risk, like doing something in an original language that is not widely spoken," Portman said moments before receiving the San Pellegrino Movie for Humanity Award at the recent Venice film fest, feting her humanitarian works with children in Africa.

"When I am acting, I have so much free time I can read a book a day," says Portman. "Directing is so different. Twenty-four hours a day I was always doing something and staying busy. In acting I want to try things that are completely different to who I am, whereas when directing I want it to be much more an expression of who I am."

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117992117.html?categoryid=2520&cs=1

Anonymous said...

Little Natalie really likes to be busy. Too bad that Jake doesn't speak Hebrew.

Anonymous said...

^^I think that is a wonderful idea and look forward to it. :)

Anonymous said...

My comment at 9:52 s about Natalie's ale of Love and Darkness.

Anonymous said...

Jake could do a small part or a cameo. A little promotion can't hurt.

Anonymous said...

First Look: Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus Teaser Trailer

Just checked Brothers IMDb page - no trailer, no poster, no stills.

Still, there is one good thing - Sam Shepard is on the cast list. (I'm probably the last person to notice that.)

Anonymous said...

Just checked Brothers IMDb page - no trailer, no poster, no stills.

Still, there is one good thing - Sam Shepard is on the cast list. (I'm probably the last person to notice that.)


I may be in the minority but I have a good feeling for this movie. I think the trailer, posters will show up in the next weeks.

Anonymous said...

I expect Brothers to be at least very good.

Anonymous said...

Sam Shepard was mentioned in Hollywood Elsewhere review:

"Jake and Portman were sweet; Sam Shepard adds a small but interesting motivation that i don't remember from the other version; Tobey is the revelation."

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2008/08/owned_by_maguir.php

Anonymous said...

Tobey is the revelation.

Good for Tobey. Maybe he'll be nominated for some awards?

Anonymous said...

Brothers - IMDb review update

Posted by tkdukelow:

I just saw a test screening of this film and I must say... this is a very poor adaptation. It has none of the gritty feel of the original film, it never addresses the political issues at hand now that the Iraq war is in play, and basically comes off as a hollow imitation. All three of the lead actors give passable if not good performances (Tobey actually surprised me toward the end) but the film is just not hard hitting enough when it needs to be. Anyone interested in seeing this, just rent the original.
---

In the second half of the film Tobey becomes very emaciated and very intense, he clearly went to a darker place than we are used to seeing from him. I think that if he had matched that with a strong first half this would be a standout performance.
---

The lack of political engagement in the original Brothers only worked because the film took place before the controversy of the Iraq war. Now, after the war has been going for five years, not addressing the issues is making a political statement in favor of the war. I find that even more irresponsible than supporting the war.
---

You completely misunderstood my post, and maybe that was my fault for mixing my points. I felt the film failed in several ways. One of these was that the violence and brutality of the film were softened from the original, specifically referring to the beating and later the trashing of the house. These are the gritty moments I was referring to. The emotionality was also dampened by the classical approach to the film and the family crisis became detached for me.

As for my political concerns with the movie, which seems to be a hot topic on this board, I never said that the original film was political. All that I felt was that the film raised and never addressed political issues (specifically the rightness of training people to kill) and completely ignored specific political issues at hand. The film takes place in 2007 and never discusses the Iraq war, plus it has a group of soldiers being sent into Afghanistan, and then another larger group rescuing them, even though the American military presence is incredibly low there currently.

I agree that the original film, like all of Bier's films, is a story of patriarchal replacement and the toll that it takes on the family involved. This does not mean that the remake (6 years later) must be about the same thing. Jim Sheridan has made politically charged films in the past, In the Name of the Father for one, and I had hoped he would take this film to a greater level than a straight forward remake without so much as a nod to the political issues surrounding it.

Honestly, most of all, I would have liked to see something new and different. Instead, I saw the same movie set in the mid-west with big name actors, bland camera work, and an overall watered down feeling. Compare it to The Departed and Infernal Affairs where everything was taken up a notch, the story was expanded upon, characters were better realized, the location was reinvented, social and cultural elements were exchanged/maneuvered to take the same basic storyline and create an entirely new film from it.

To the previous poster, yes the Iraq war is not a big money maker right now, as people look to the movies to escape from the failing economy and dismal politics and not to be reminded of it. However, the popularity of a subject does not alleviate the filmmakers of their social responsibility.

Anonymous said...

10:14 AM early promotional stuff doesn't mean a film is going to be good. Sometimes a movie with no buzz at all turns out to be a winner. You can never know.

Anonymous said...

10:33, where were you when Rendition came out?

Anonymous said...

Honestly, most of all, I would have liked to see something new and different. Instead, I saw the same movie set in the mid-west with big name actors, bland camera work, and an overall watered down feeling.

The difference is that most of the American audience didn't see the original. Therefore there won't be comparisons. The Departed was almost a copy of Infernal Affairs. It still was a popular movie and got a BP Oscar.

Anonymous said...

10:33, where were you when Rendition came out?

10:33 AM post is Brothers review posted on IMDb (post is copy/paste from IMDb board).

Anonymous said...

10:14 AM early promotional stuff doesn't mean a film is going to be good.

You are right. I'm impatient to see or hear anything about the movie - few movie stills will do!

Anonymous said...

As for my political concerns with the movie, which seems to be a hot topic on this board, I never said that the original film was political. All that I felt was that the film raised and never addressed political issues (specifically the rightness of training people to kill) and completely ignored specific political issues at hand.

I see coments like this all the time; and I just have to say it is very naive. Human beings are violent creatures. Every culture and every society demonstrates it in their inhumanity to each other, and not necessarily with phisical violence, ignorance and indifference has the same effect. You read about it in the papers every day. Even religions are guility of it. It isn't going to change, unless someone develops an entirely new blueprint for humanity. I don't like to think of what could happen if we didn't have defense. I don't agree with it, but that's the reality. The only time it is ever justified in in defense, and to protect groups of people are being victimized, IMO.

Anonymous said...

I'm impatient to see or hear anything about the movie - few movie stills will do!

I'm expecting something soon.

Anonymous said...

All that I felt was that the film raised and never addressed political issues (specifically the rightness of training people to kill) and completely ignored specific political issues at hand.

Concentrating more on the family drama might be a good thing. I think that public will prefer it that way (BO).

Anonymous said...

I think so too, and I think that may be the point. Ya just can't win with some people. :)

Anonymous said...

I don't like to think of what could happen if we didn't have defense. I don't agree with it, but that's the reality.

It is a sad reality. Turning the other cheek doesn't work.

Anonymous said...

The difference is that most of the American audience didn't see the original. Therefore there won't be comparisons.

And most of the American audience doesn't care about politics. People are sick and tired of the war and harsh reality.

Anonymous said...

Turning the other cheek doesn't work.

Some small countries are forced to turn the other cheek because it's in the interest of bigger countries who'd support some countries against others for their interests only. We live in an unfair world.

Anonymous said...

And most of the American audience doesn't care about politics. People are sick and tired of the war and harsh reality.

True. That's why the film will probably work. I also have a good feeling for Maguire.

Anonymous said...

We live in an unfair world.

You can say that again. I live in one of those small countries.

Anonymous said...

I also have a good feeling for Maguire.

If the performance is award worthy, I heard he'll be placed in the supporting category.

Anonymous said...

Are you saying that Jake has more screen time than Tobey?

Anonymous said...

Some weeks ago someone posted a link to an Oscar buzz site and Jake was placed in lead, Tobey in supporting.

Anonymous said...

^^According to the site Tobey was more likely to get a nom then Jake though.

Anonymous said...

11:43 AM

I see. I'm not complaining :)

Anonymous said...

I don't know. I think the Dec release of Brothers will be buried by Bejamin Button and Time Traveler's Wife. Isn't January when they release films they have no faith in? Wasn't Rendition released in Jan/Feb?

Anonymous said...

Oscar buzz site - did they see the movie?

Anonymous said...

Rendition release date

USA 19 October 2007

Anonymous said...

Wasn't Rendition released in Jan/Feb?

No, it was released on 19th October 2007.

Anonymous said...

I stand corrected. I hope the 2009 release date works out for Brothers

Anonymous said...

Oscar buzz site - did they see the movie?

IDK. Probably some of them has.

Anonymous said...

I think the Dec release of Brothers will be buried by Bejamin Button and Time Traveler's Wife...

... and

Bedtime Stories (Comedy): Adam Sandler's bedtime stories start coming true.

Marley & Me (Comedy): A family learns important lessons from their neurotic dog. Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson star

The Other Man (Drama): Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas and Laura Linney in the story of a husband who suspects his wife of adultery.

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