Charles Burnett's New Project...

Saw this on Tambay's blog--tho Sergio sent me an email about it too:

Charles Burnett Directs Eriq La Salle And Cicely Tyson

With his Namibia epic behind him - a film that still is without an American distributor, and which I've heard mixed reviews about - Killer of Sheep director, Charles Burnett, has signed on to direct a film for the Hallmark cable TV channel, titled Relative Stranger.

The film stars former ER star Eriq La Salle, the timeless Cicely Tyson, and the usually dependable, Michael Beach.

In the Hallmark Channel original movie, La Salle plays an angry man who abandoned his wife, children and extended family six years ago. When his father dies, he returns to get what his dad left to him and reunites with his family in the process.

Tyson plays La Salle's mom, and Beach plays his brother.

Charles Burnett is directing from a script by Eric Haywood. Principal photography began this week and is targeted to premiere around the Christmas holidays.

From IW: I love Charles Burnett, but I hope this plays less depressing than it sounds...

Terrence Watch! Number Sixteen

'Man, the more I hear myself talking, the more I think I might be certifiable.'

-Terrence Howard*

From IW: Ya think?

*thanks nic for the info; to read more from this "certified" interview, click HERE

Old School Music Friday...

Hey all...sorry to be late, but the Cali weather has a Negress twisted. Three days ago we had a record breaking heatwave, and yesterday there were tornadoes, mudslides, fires, and snow, hail and thunder storms all in the same day. I mean, what the eff?

But I seriously digress...this week's meme is Best Guitar/Bass Solos. To tell the truth, my favorite guitar solos are by Nirvana, but that would be another digression. This one is a bit cliche, but he is really one of the best guitarists that ever lived. Fans of his weren't surprised by all of the talent that came out in this film, but I believe it was singlehandedly responsible for making the great masses aware of him for the first time. Here he is performing the song that made him an international star at Coachella last month.

Update: Ok, Danielle let me know that the video has been taken down, as is almost anything that has to do with Prince, so here is Maroon 5 covering it (sorry) :-)



Old School Music Friday fam: Electronic Village Funky Finga Productions Mrs Grapevine Quick Cassandra Danielle Lisa C Chocl8t DP Kreative Talk MarvalusOne Regina LaShonda AJ Sharon Dee SJP sHaE-sHae songs in the key of life Hagar's Daughter There...Already Dallas South If I missed anybody, please let me know!

Random Movie News--Pimp Chronicles Edition

As I've stated before, I love movies about pimps. Yes, I may have a problem. There has been some random pimp related movie news that I've been meaning to post, but have been slacking. You may have read this stuff on other blogs, but that's what I get for procrastinating.

First up--Rihanna pimpin' or getting pimped? Sergio sent this over:

ICEBERG SLIM'S 'BLACK WIDOW' HEADED TO BIG SCREEN: Rihanna to make film debut opposite Mos Def, Macy Gray and Anthony Anderson.

"Mama Black Widow," the 1969 novel from "Iceberg Slim" writer Robert Beck, is being adapted into a movie with rapper Mos Def in the starring role and pop star Rihanna in her feature film debut.

With the backdrop of a black family's migration from Southern Mississippi to Chicago in the 1930s, the story follows Otis Tilson's struggle to keep his family together as they navigate through a world of alcoholism, pimping, homosexuality and racial degradation.

Other members of the cast include Brian J. White and Kerry Washington.

The movie is currently in pre-production under director Darren Grant for a 2009 release.

From IW: Mos Def can sometimes be very interesting as an actor. At the very least, he's watchable. I've enjoyed every Macy Gray in everything I've seen her in. It will be interesting to see Rihanna emote, as she is the only singer I've ever seen that performs with expression in her voice, but absolutely none on her face. Ever.

I just wonder how Kerry Washington fits into all this.

Speaking of Iceberg Slim, Ice-T announced that he is supposed to play the man himself in an upcoming biopic. I have a few problems with this. One, dude at 50 is way too old to be going there. Two, he is way too corny to be going there. And three, tho he has declared himself a pimp loudly to anyone who will listen, have we seen any evidence of said pimping except whatever airhead he is currently in a relationship with (I only know of two, and they were one at a time, including boobage challenged Coco).

Anyway, wasn't Ice Cube supposed to play Iceberg Slim in a film directed by Bill Duke? What happened to that? I guess the same thing that happened with Cube playing Mr. T in the A-Team big screen adaptation...he's going to be played by Tyrese (?!!)



Spotted this on Tambay's blog from the Cracked site; thank goodness this disaster was averted:

If you've seen the original Dolemite, then you know that it's a completely bug-fuck insane mix of classic blaxploitation, bad kung fu, pimping and some kind of bizarre poetry about monkeys, lions and the Titanic.

If you haven't seen the original Dolemite, feel free to go ahead and do that now. We'll wait.

What Went Wrong?

We could go on all day about the immense bitchslap involved in casting particularly-unlikable plank of wood LL Cool J as the Human Fucking Tornado, but that's not the worst that this project had going for it.

No, the worst was that some clever devil at Dimension Films (possibly screenwriter Buddy Johnson of Scary Movie and several episodes of the Wayans Brothers) decided that Dolemite would be a much better character if he wasn't a pimp, and if he was framed for a crime he didn't commit, and if he had three female sidekicks who most definitely were not hookers. Apparently if he really, really sucked.

What Went Right?
Delays. Fallout Entertainment has picked up the rights to Dolemite (though it seems no amount of money would be sufficient to buy them). LL Cool J is no longer attached to the project, and rumors have the infinitely more appropriate Snoop Dogg in the running for the lead.

What You Can Watch Instead:
The Dolemite Explosion.


And finally, for your daily dose of pimp juice, here is a video I found on youtube of a real-life pimp getting pimp-slapped by a civilian...enjoy!

Reader Comments....

There were some terrific responses to the post I wrote the other day regarding Wesley Morris opinion piece on the state of Black Hollywood called "A Black Hole". The comments were are relevant to many posts I have done on this blog, so I will put up a few of them in the upcoming week. Many were very thoughtful and well written. First up is Tambay Obenson's from The Obenson Report:

Your title to this entry says it all... "So what else is new?"

As I've probably mentioned before, I'm simultaneously attracted to and repelled by articles like this. On one hand, when I read Wesley Morris's piece (and the myriad of others like it), I'm encouraged that there are some of us who do demand and expect better; but then I'm also turned off by what feels like a rather "defeatist" attitude that's unfortunately prevalent amongst us.

I've grown weary of talking about what's wrong with black cinema. I feel like we've already granted it much lip service and should be past that, enough to see a shift towards some real action! So, I'm much more interested in hearing plausible solutions.

Maybe we should borrow from Malcolm X, and adopt a "by any means necessary" kind of stance, and build from there.

I think we all should be challenging ourselves here (myself included, of course)! Do we REALLY want change, and if so, what are we doing individually to see the change that we want? Or rather, what are we WILLING to do? Are we being passive, waiting for someone else to lead? Or should we be unwaveringly aggressive, and start blazing new trails?

Tyler Perry doesn't really give a shit about what we think, and frankly, I'm tired of talking about the man! He is what he is, and will continue down whatever path he chooses, regardless of what any of us says or does! As someone said above, he fills a niche, and that's fine. Just because we aren't members of his niche audience doesn't automatically disqualify what he's been able to accomplish! He's in a comfortable position, and I don't see him doing anything to ruin his treasures! The same goes for the rest of the black Hollywood elite - Will Smith, Denzel, Oprah et al! They each have their own personal agendas - agendas that don't necessarily include the rest of us. So, is there really any point in concerning ourselves with what we think they should or shouldn't be doing, since we have absolutely zero control over the choices they each make, and doing so only leads to further frustration? I say no!

As radical as it might sound, maybe what we should be talking about here is some kind of revolution from the ground up. Instead of waiting for them to foster change, those of us who are aware and "mad as hell" should lead the way... and the rest just might actually follow!I obviously don't have all the answers, and I don't expect any one person to generate the ultimate solution, but let's start hearing some real solutions to the problem, especially those that are within the power of the people, whether individually or collectively!

So What Else Is New?

Reader Janice posted a link in the comments to an article on a subject that many of us have lamented about repeatedly. It was written by Wesley Morris, a Black film critic at the Boston Globe. I have been Brother Morris' number one fan since his days at the San Francisco Chronicle, and a link to him has been on my blogroll since the first day I started my blog.

He is an insightful reviewer with excellent writing skills, and I always read and trust his film reviews before anyone else's; I rarely disagree with him. And I most certainly agree with him on this subject, without a doubt. Check it:

A few weeks ago I got to see Terrence Howard and Anika Noni Rose play Brick and Maggie "the Cat" in Debbie Allen's Broadway production of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." I went home depressed. Not because the show was bad, although, in its clanging way, it is. I was depressed because for all its shortcomings, the show was a big entertainment event that doesn't happen much in the movies: It had premium melodrama and black stars being starry. As a moviegoer, I hurt for that kind of glamour.

I felt the same hangover leaving an exhilarating concert by Erykah Badu and the Roots earlier this month, and watching both "The Wire," which just said goodbye to us and HBO, and the staggering acting in that production of "A Raisin in the Sun" ABC aired in February: Why isn't black life this interesting, vibrant, or complex at the movies? How is it that Terrence Howard can play a legendary character on the New York stage but is stuck as the sidekick who's jealous of Robert Downey Jr.'s hardware in "Iron Man"?

When it comes to black America, the movies are stagnating. Well, when it comes to any nonwhite male subject matter at the movies, the pickings are slim. But there's such a wealth of black stars, producers, and directors that the scarcity of movies - big-ticket or small, serious or light - focused on the lives of black people, is surreal. There's a gaping entertainment void. It's not just the lack of quantity. It's the lack of variety. Despite the usual death notices posted for hip-hop, black popular music is alive and well.

At the moment, black movies come in two flavors: uplift dramas and Tyler Perry. The first is represented by all those feel-good movies - "Akeelah and the Bee," "Stomp the Yard," "Pride," "The Great Debaters" - that, bless their hearts, wanted to empower us, but that nobody flocked to see. Message movies are a great notion but tricky as entertainment. The makers of these films have this noble but somewhat misguided idea that the average black moviegoer wants to feel like she's in school.

Perry's megaplex successes suggest that the average black moviegoer wants to feel like she's in church. His movies have sermons. His movies have soap opera. And, increasingly, his movies have stars. In the past, I've said only somewhat jestingly that a Tyler Perry movie is where black actors go to get back in touch with their roots. (The prim, post-Nipplegate Janet Jackson who showed up in "Why Did I Get Married?" wasn't just making a movie, she was asking for forgiveness.) But now a Tyler Perry movie is where a black actor goes to act. Angela Bassett is the star of "Meet the Browns." "Daddy's Little Girls" had Gabrielle Union and Idris Elba. And the movie that Perry, who essentially works without Hollywood's help, is currently filming has Alfre Woodard, Sanaa Lathan, and the loveable Taraji P. Henson, that pregnant, hook-belting hooker from "Hustle & Flow."

(to read the rest of the article, click HERE )

Weekend B.O.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (thanks Sergio!)

May 16–18, 2008 Studio Estimates

1) The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian BV $56,573,000

2) Iron Man Par. $31,200,000 Total: $222,485,000

3) What Happens in Vegas Fox $13,850,000 Total: $40,308,000

4) Speed Racer WB $7,645,000 Total: $24,367,000

5) Baby Mama Uni. $4,593,000 Total: $47,256,000

6) Made of Honor Sony $4,500,000 Total: $33,701,000

7) Forgetting Sarah Marshall Uni. $2,538,000 $55,065,000

8) Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay NL $1,800,000 Total: $33,901,000

9) The Forbidden Kingdom LGF $1,000,000 Total: $50,295,000

10) The Visitor Over. $687,000 Total: $3,403,000

11) Nim's Island Fox $580,000 Total: $45,248,000

12) Then She Found Me Think $528,000 Total: $1,578,000

IW: Sheesh. It is really a sad state of affairs when a hardcore movie lover like myself doesn't even pay attention to what came out this week...but I guess barely anything came out anyway.

"Ironman" is doing crazy business, so I guess I'll check it out this week. But seriously, does anyone really want to see "Made Of Honor"? I mean seriously. What the eff is "The Visitor"? "Speed Racer" is not looking good on it's returns; Sergio sent me an email saying that uber-producer Joel Silver might even lose his 20 year production deal over it. I saw a segment on "Then She Found Me" and it looked like a complete downer. Even more of a downer was Helen Hunt, who was never the attractive to me from the get, looks like 5 miles of bad road, as the saying goes. Bette Midler has completely handed herself over to the altar of the LA Plastic Surgery Gods.

Anyhoo, I went on one of my MMM's this weekend (mini movie marathons), but since only one would be considered Black Cinema (and unfortunately, it was the worst one) I won't go into detail. Let me just say "The Queen", "The Parralax View" with Warren Beatty (I adore 70's thrillers, and Warren was looking quite wonderful), and "3:10 To Yuma" (which I rewatched) are all very, very, worthy of first in line in your Netflix que. "Idlewild" (which I didn't pay close attention to the first time), not so much (sorry Andre 3000).

Ten Films You Should See If You Love Black People

FILM 9
from the Ebony/Jet site by Jacquie Jones

Flag Wars

Linda Goode Bryant and Laura Poitras

During the making of this film, the two directors – one black and one not – lived in a community in Columbus, Ohio as it underwent the radical transformation known as “gentrification,” and it shows. This is not a film of easy answers. Flag Wars instead forces us to consider what it means to really get a sweet real estate deal. Yet, as black homeowners fight to hold onto their homes as white gay “pioneers” circle around them, we also learn that no one is innocent here. If you are currently or have ever lived in a community that is in the path of gentrification, you need to see this film.

From IW: I hadn't heard of this film before, but having lived in the super-gentrification cities of Oakland, San Francisco, Brooklyn, and Philly, I can certainly relate. And tho I suspect it contains information we've wearily seen a thousand times before, it's always interesting to hear/see a different perspective.

Interesting....

Sergio sent this email to me today. I love to learn about new Black filmmakers and share them with you. This one seems to be making a bit of a splash, and he has one of the coolest names ever:

IW-

So have you heard that the big new film that's getting all the praise at this year's Cannes Film Festival is Hunger directed by black British filmmaker Steve McQueen? (Of course NOT to be confused with the famous actor with the same name) This McQueen is a highly praised modern visual artist in the U.K. and Europe and Hunger is his first film. (I've attached a photo of him below) I've sent you a link to Variety's review of his film and a comments from Variety's Anne Thompson from her blog about the movie.

The last African-American filmmaker I can think of who got praised at Cannes for his film was Spike Lee and that was some years ago. We being left in the dust.

Sergio

Variety review

http://www.variety.com/article/VE1117937146.html?c=-1

Thompson On Hollywood:

"This is a talented new filmmaker, hugely gifted, visual and daring. The story of an IRA hunger strike in a Belfast prison is rough to sit through. McQueen throws everything in your face. But he does it with style. And Michael Fassbender--who appears to come close to really starving himself-- is a new star. He's going to play Heathcliff in a new version of Wuthering Heights. I doubt that anyone in the states will pick Hunger up. This is about discovering new talent. There was a rousing ovation from the press; Brit McQueen may be a strong candidate for the Camera d'Or, the prize for first-time filmmakers."

From IW: So if this film and the filmmaker are so great, why won't it get picked up in the states? Is it the subject matter--or the fact that the director is black, and not only Black, but has the nerve to be dark complected too?

We get films in America with dark subject matter regularly, and I get the feeling that if this movie were made by someone like Terrence Malick, we would be reading something different. I am so very, very sick of us being regulated into some f**ked up box. This is one of the very films we need to have shown in the U.S., that shows the versatility and diversity of what a Black filmmaker is capable of.

Old School Music Friday...

This week's meme is "Remakes", though this version is a kinda mangled one. It is from the film "A Low Down Dirty Shame" with Keenan Wayans and Jada Pinkett, which might be better off left forgotten, just like this so-called remake and it's $56 dollar video. Some classic songs should just be left alone:



I used to see those two chicks around...they were an unlikely and odd duo. I always wondered if they were friends first, or someone put them together for the group...

Old School Music Friday fam: Electronic Village Funky Finga Productions Mrs Grapevine Quick Cassandra Danielle Lisa C Chocl8t DP Kreative Talk MarvalusOne Regina LaShonda AJ Sharon Dee SJP sHaE-sHae songs in the key of life Hagar's Daughter There...Already If I missed anybody, please let me know!

Interesting...

I've never been much of a Mike Epps fan; something about him just rubs me the wrong way, and this pretty much seals it:

Actor/comedian Mike Epps beat the shit out of a process server who was trying to serve him with paternity court papers. Remember back in March when that chick from Georgia said Mike fathered her baby and she wanted him to take a paternity test but he refused? Well homegirl tried to have Mike served backstage at a Louisville Kentucky comedy club and it did not go well. According to police reports, the server says he tried to hand Mike the papers, but got his ass handed to him instead. Dude says he came out of the skirmish with an abrasion to the right side of his head and his left eye swollen shut.*

From IW: Do we really need Maury Povich or Sherlock Holmes to figure this one out? Hello my brothers--it's called a 3 dollar condom...damn!

*source: rws

Trailor For "Traitor"...

Sergio sent over this trailer for Don Cheadle's new one. He thinks it looks pretty promising, tho he laments the fact that the director isn't black.

*sigh* So what else is new? The storyline is this: The story centers on a CIA operative working undercover with a terrorist group who becomes a terrorist suspect. Cheadle is the undercover agent, while Guy Pearce is an FBI agent investigating terrorist activities.

What do you guys think of the trailer?

Ruh Ro!

Oh, snap!! John Edwards just endorsed Barack Obama....

hillBilly is ready to cut somebody!

Update--btw:

“According to the West Virginia surveys, 95 percent of the Democratic primary voters were white, 70 percent did not graduate from college, and 54 percent had household incomes less than $50,000.”

hillBilly indeed.

Random Movie News--Comix Edition

Bear in mind I know almost nothing about comics, and don't really care that much to find out, to be honest. But I know that lots of you out there love them, so here we go...

From beyondhollywood.com:

'Here’s [a] look at Samuel L. Jackson as The Octopus, the main villain in Frank Miller’s upcoming live-action adaptation of Will Eisner’s “The Spirit” comic books. This is not actually our first look at him, but it is our first look at him in costume, if you will, although I’m not sure if a mink coat and gloves qualifies as a “costume”, but there you have it.'

From IW: Hmmm. Anyway, there is this comic book that I've been seeing in a lot of places for free around Hollywood called "Mercy Man". I picked it up, and it turns out to be promotional material about some Latino undercover cop that they are making into a movie. It is being touted as the "first Hispanic hero to root for". I dunno so much about that, but I do know Andre Royo from "The Wire" is in it, so it might be worth a look.






What happened to Common as The Green Lantern? Maybe someone finally woke up and said "Hey guys! Listen up--ummm...I think this might not be such a great idea."


It could happen. Here is what Common has to say about folks critical about rappers taking roles away from "real actors":

‘I’m not a hip-hop dude who wants to act. I’m an artist,’ Common [said], adding that he has his eyes set on an Oscar Award. ‘The Oscar seems very prestigious,’ Common said. ‘With all due respect to the Grammys, there are more music categories and it’s easier to get a ticket to the show. Also if you look at it as someone coming from Chicago, there are only so many black artists who receive Oscars.’

From IW: An Oscar, eh? Umm, yeah...good luck with that...

Really, Jada?

I promise to have some real movie news later today...but at the moment I am enjoying LA sunshine and Sapporo. In the meantime, here is a clip I've been meaning to post ever since I saw it on Undercover Black Man's blog. It is of Jada Pinkett and her "band" Wicked Wisdom on David Letterman. Just....damn.

She scares me now even more than before. All 4'11 of her.

ok, not really; i'd kick her ass, but she's still scary!

Today In B'Days...

Ving Rhames is 49.

Ving Rhames has come a loooong way since "Pulp Fiction". He is one of the most manly actors around, but here is a clip of him far removed from his Stacy Adams pimp daddy image. It is from a movie me and my best gay laugh about all the time, "Holiday Heart" with Alfre Woodard. Worst. Transvestite. Ever.

Weekend B.O.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE (thanks Sergio!)

May 9–11, 2008 Studio Estimates

1) Iron Man Par. $50,500,000 Total:$177,134,000

2) Speed Racer WB $20,210,000

3) What Happens in Vegas Fox $20,000,000

4) Made of Honor Sony $7,600,000 Total: $26,275,000

5) Baby Mama Uni. $5,766,000 Total: $40,377,000

6) Forgetting Sarah Marshall Uni. $3,778,000 Total: $50,772,000

7) Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay NL $3,155,000 Total: $30,716,000

8) The Forbidden Kingdom LGF $1,900,000 Total:$48,261,000

9) Nim's Island Fox $1,325,000 Total: $44,257,000

10) Redbelt SPC $1,140,000

From IW: That "Iron Man" return is crazy..."Speed Racer" on the other hand, cost $100 million to make, so $20 million opening weekend is not looking good. From the looks of the trailers tho, I can see why it might not work out. Matthew Fox as Racer X? WTF? "What Happens In Vegas?" Kill me now!

Poor Chiwetel Ejiofor. His "Redbelt" made a paltry 1 mil. No wonder Netflix is so popular...who wants to watch the crap they're putting out now? When will Hollywood finally get a f**king clue?

If you want to see a freaking amazing, amazing Chiwetel movie, see "Children Of Men". I saw it yesterday; it was one of the best movies I've seen in a while...Clive Owen is one of the most interesting actors out there (and sexiest), and he killed it in that film. Since it's not Black Cinema, I won't elaborate, but do yourself a big favor and rent this film, stat.

KICK ROCKS!!

The time has come
We don't care how.
But Hillary Rodham Clinton
Will you please GO NOW!

Your campaign is becoming

An endless charade,

So get off the trail,

Burn out now, don't just fade.

You can swim down a river

Of crocodile tears.

You can surf on a wave

Of terrorist fears.

Enough with the red phone!

Enough with the NAFTA!

If you like,

You can go now by White Water Rafta.

Hillary Rodham Clinton,

We don't care how—

HRC,

Will you please GO NOW!

You can leave on McCain's

Straight Talk Express.

You can leave all made up

in a Muslim headdress.

Kucinich will take you

On his UFO

But good God, dear Hillary

Just go go, GO!

You can ride home on coattails

Or in big biz's pocket.

Or maybe you'd like to

Ride NASA's new rocket.

You've raised a gazillion

From execs on Wall Street.

But when it comes to real change,

Barack's got you beat.

You can go by limo

Or lobbyist jet.

You can ride an old donkey

Just get, Hillary, GET!

Your negative ads

Are bringing us down.

You should get off the air,

You should get outta town!

You can go to New York

Or back to The Hill,

But get yourself home….

and don't forget Bill!

Hillary Rodham Clinton,

We don't care how—

HRC

Will you please GO NOW!

From IW: Amen!!

from www.againsthillary.com via Long Live THE MESSAGE

Old School Music Friday-1988

Ironically, this week's theme for Old School Friday was supposed to be movie soundtracks, and I am the only one blogging about something else. 1988 is a year that I remember more for it's art than it's music. Modern artists born out of the graffiti age were coming into notoriety, Basquiat and Keith Haring most notably. I remember feeling a lot of love for the up and coming New York artists.

As far as the music...well, let's just say there was a lot less love. When I looked over the top 100 songs of 1988, I saw a list of songs that either I didn't remember, couldn't care less about, or absolutely hated. Who the f**k was Will To Power? They were in the top 10.

There were songs on there that I really used to loathe, and still do. I did, and will now, change the station when I hear them, especially "Gett Outta My Dreams" by Billy Ocean, "Pink Cadillac" by Aretha Franklin, and "Never Gonna Give You Up" by Rick Astley. The last one I swear they played every 8 minutes in rotation. I also think I was the only Black person in America that didn't think Anita Baker was the second coming.

Songs ranged from the blandly corny; "Fast Cars" by Tracey Chapman, to the blandly poppie "Girlfriend" by Pebbles. Even the reggae was watered down--"Red Red Wine" by UB40. No wonder "Welcome To The Jungle" was so hugely popular; it was the only song that could keep you awake that year. Thank God for the wave of new styled music that came soon afterward.

I did like Keith Sweat's "I Want Her", but who didn't? I also liked this one, which was used once by my old school music fam, but it is a classic, and I still would listen to it all day:

By the way, for those of you that might be interested, I will be on WFMU with Billy Jam and Michael Gonzales about the year 1988 between 3-6pm EST today. You have to check their website to see if it will be streamed. Here is a list of the others that are scheduled to drop in; hope to have you come by and take a listen:

1. Lisa Cortes, former Def Jam ex./current film producer for Lee Daniels Entertainment

2. Todd Craig, writer and teacher/has written a literary hip-hop novel called "tor'ca" (swank books)http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=158723809&MyToken=d34472d0-be10-433b-ae3d-9f337b7c6274

3. Steve Flemming, music blogger :http://auralexamination.wordpress.com/

4. Marcus Reeves, author of Somebody Scream (he might be in the studio with us)http://www.amazon.com/Somebody-Scream-Musics-Prominence-Aftershock/dp/0571211402/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books
&qid=1210090372&sr=1-1

5. Donnell Alexander, author & editor/"Rollin' With Dre"http://www.donnellalexander.com/books

6. Serena Kim/ former Vibe editor, writer

7. Miles Marshall Lewis, writer and editor

8. Bill Adler, hip-hop renaissance man

9. Amy Linden, writer (tentative)

Me And 1988....(Part 2)

1988 was not a banner year for Black Cinema. Incredibly, less than a decade after the Blaxploitation explosion of the 70's, there were only 3 Black films in the top 50 for 1988, and even one of them is being generous calling it Black (Colors) as the leads were non-black. The other two were "Coming To America", a huge reader favorite, and "Action Jackson", which I wrote about once HERE

Here is a clip from "Coming To America" (which was may be the last time I thought Eddie was funny in a movie). It is the Soul Glo commercial; showing that huge embarrassment of the 80's, the Jheri Curl--which an unfortunate minority carried on into the 90's:

Me and 1988....

I pondered for a few days about how I could write about this, but every idea I came up with seemed stale. So, being the last minute slacker that I am, I decided to just shoot from the hip and write about my perspective of this year free flowing...

That year I was dating a very well known film director, who I have actually written about on this blog. Don't bother to ask who it is, the only reason I mention it at all is because it is so relevant to what was going on with me in 1988.

That year I was the prototype of young and dumb, with a capital Y & D. I was book smart, for sure, as I'd always been, but when it came to real life I was completely clueless, though I left home at 17. When I look back on it now, I know that it was only by God's good graces that I am still alive.

Along with my complete naivete came a huge capacity for useless knowledge. It was around this time that I began realizing that I was quite the pop culture addict, as well as having a love for fairly superficial things--fashion for example. When I met this director, I think he was mildly fascinated with me because I was completely and totally full of fluff. He probably spent half of his time with me wondering if I was for real or not. Unfortunately, I was, haha.

I was mildly fascinated with him because for the first time, he made me see the political aspects in everything. I was, at that time, very reflective of the climate of our nation. It was pre New Jack City, Boys N' The Hood, Menace To Society. It was pre concious rap, even pre hardcore gangsta rap. We were living in a society as we were for a few decades; everyone listened to black and white music equally, and the films that we looked at weren't alarming in any way, shape, or form.

This director would do his best to ask me questions about how I saw things, and try to make me see that there was always danger in complacency. Case in point, one of the biggest songs of that year was "Don't Worry, Be Happy". He made me see how a song as seemingly innocuous as that was really just an opium for the people. I know now, of course, that life is what you make it, and everybody sets the bar for their own realities. His realities were no more real to me then as mine were to him. I was untouched by the roughness of life then, and that was my reality. We would have lengthy conversations about whether Terrence Trent D'arby/Michael Jackson/George Michael were gay, but he would also give me soliloquies about why we should never lay down as a people, and why it was so important to stir thing up again, something that really hadn't happened since the early 70's. He started opening my eyes in a way that set the tone for how I feel about race and politics to this day.

To me this year was probably the last of it's kind in complacency and crossover mentality. In the next couple of years we would get films and music that would challenge the status quo, never to look back again. The top 10 films of that year were pure 100% sugar water, for sure, but they were breakouts for more than a few stars whose careers thrive even brighter today:

1) Rain Man (Tom Cruise)

2) Who Framed Roger Rabbit

3) Coming To America (Eddie Murphy)

4) Big (Tom Hanks)

5) Twins

6) Crocodile Dundee 2

7) Die Hard (Bruce Willis)

8) The Naked Gun: From The Files Of Police Squad!

9) Cocktail (Tom Cruise)

10) Beetlejuice

As you can see, complete complacency and crossover. Even Patrick Swayze had a song hit that year. More on 1988 to come.....

Terrence Watch! Part 15: (Reader Email Edition)

Received these 2 emails about my beloved. The first one is from cdnyc07 aka nic:

First let me say, I really enjoy your site. It's one of the few blogs on the internet that doesn't focus solely on celebrity gossip, but you give us other more important things to discuss and think about. Keep up the good work!!! Now on to the foolishness:

I stumbled across this quote from your beloved Terrence Howard from last night's premiere of 'Iron Man' in L.A. And I thought...who would enjoy this more than The Invisible Woman.

Terrence Howard on gay rumors in Hollyweird:

I remember when I first heard online that Will Smith was gay, I was like, “Oh…that’s possible, I guess.” But then when I read online that I was gay, I was like, “Oh, who the hell came up with that?” The eccentricity of being an individual is always gonna make you separate from the rest of everybody else, and you have to be okay with that. But I set out to see the world through my own eyes, experience it and taste the world for myself, instead of having someone else tell me this is what the world tastes like.I want to know, I need to know just for my own sake of being me at the end of the day. I’m kind of glad I’m eccentric if that is what I am. I just think I’m human. I think I’m an individual human like anybody else.

Let us pray!!!

Nic

The second one is from Sergio:

I was talking to a friend of mine the other about black actors and we realized what is it that these black British actors like Chiiwetel Ejiofor, Eamonn Walker and Idris Elba have that brothers here don't? Oh yeah and don't forget Delroy Lindo. Did you know he's British too born in London? We're talking some real masculinity here. Instead here we're got Terrence Howard and Tyler Perry.

Case closed.

Sergio

From IW: Let me say this: if you go walking around in bare feet while wearing a 3-piece suit (as one blogger told me he saw him do), or you go around showing people your "rainbow colored" notebooks of you "writing backwards, to show how you think different about things" (which this blogger also told me he said), or you say your very successful acting career is a "curse" cause you really wanted to sing (which he said, "bitterly" the reporter wrote), you might be toeing the line from "eccentric" to "downright weird". Call me crazy.

Also, if you say men should start showing and stating their love to one another and not be afraid, and you go around encouraging men in a film to go commando while personally sporting your one inch ding ding for the world to see, and you say you feel "unclean" after having sex, and you constantly wear a murse *man-purse* at all times, you might be venturing from "eccentric" to "hella zesty". Not that there's anything wrong with that, haha.

In other words, agreed Nic and Sergio.

By the way guys; I am dedicating my blog tomorrow to the year 1988. I am doing a radio show with Michael Gonzales and some others about the year, and we are all writing about it as well. Full details tomorrow...

This N That

Hello all. I really missed you guys. I'm sorry I haven't been posting, but yours truly has been really busy. Unfortunately, it isn't spending lottery winnings. *sigh*. But I will tell you I am glad to be home, and have never been so happy to see palm trees in my whole life...

I'll put up a post tonight, but probably won't be able to answer your comments till tomorrow. And to my Old School Friday fam, I'm back in action this week.


I haven't been on the blogs, but how can you not hear about that Mimi/Nick Cannon debacle? And I thought he was lucky playing Arthur Ashe. That mofo has hit the lotto! All I can say is good luck to both of them. And oh, Nick's ding ding must be made of gold and diamonds.


While traveling I was watching CNN in an airport, and lo and behold there was an interview with Sidney Poitier by Larry King. Only Larry King can make a conversation with one of the most historic black actors ever seem like a calculus class. So freakin' boring!

There was one interesting tidbit, tho. Sidney told a story about how he came upon his first audition cause he saw an ad in a newspaper. He thought it was just a regular job, cause it was posted next to the dishwasher jobs he was looking at. Anyhoo, he goes to the audition, and he doesn't even know how to read! It is hard to believe, as one would think Sidney came out of the womb reading a book. The audition guy basically kicked him out and told him he was an idiot.

Sidney left, but the more he thought about it, the more pissed he became until he was enraged. He was angry that this man would treat him that way, and vowed that he wouldn't let the experience define who he was. He was not going to let this man think he was justified in saying he was a horrible actor, and a horrible person, and set out to prove him wrong. I think that mission was definitely accomplished.


For my Philly folkses:


Reelblack’s BEST IN PHILLY SHORT FILM SHOWCASE

Reelblack concludes it’s Fifth Season with a special program showcasing some of the best new work by filmmakers of color in the Tri-state area.

Come for an exciting night of narrative, documentary, PSA, music video and animation by filmmakers Shannon Newby, Fantz T. Excellent, Nadine Patterson, Patrick Pierre Belinda M. Wilson, Rick Morris, Bryan Green, Roz Fulton, Akbar Azziz & Mamie Young, Tim Greene, Mike D. Ben Foster and Joseph H. Lewis III & Eugene Haynes. Discover the next wave of visual storytellers raised on cheesesteaks, pretzels and Schuylkill punch.

Tuesday May 13 at 7pm (doors 6:30) INTERNATIONAL HOUSE 3701 Chestnut Street Philadelphia, PA 19104 215-387-5125 Admission $5 students & members/ $7.00 Adults. Visit http://www.reelblack.com/ for details.



For the ladies (and some men); click HERE to read my beloved Sergio's interview with my fifth husband Chiwetel Ejiofor.



And finally, can someone please, please, please tell Hillary to go the f**k away? You know your campaign is in trouble if there are Barak Obama signs posted all over Texas (like I saw earlier this week). Texas for chrissakes!

Her arrogance is maddening...basically in my eyes it boils down to her thinking "I know they are never gonna make this ni**er president, not in this lifetime. So I'm gonna keep going until everyone else sees it too! I could give a sh*t if it completely implodes the Democratic party."

The problem is, some very important people are starting to make rumbles that it is time for her to kick rocks. Even ol' Bill looked like he was chewing on crushed glass during her Indiana victory speech. And if they keep allowing her to hang around, and if she or that mummy that is McCain wins the presidency, then this country deserves everything it gets, straight up.

Today In B'Days

My second, third, and fourth husband, Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock is 36.