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'Into the Woods' and the Dumbing Down of the Movie Musical
When I was about seven years old I starred in a community theater production of A Christmas Carol. Or, rather, played a supporting character--Schoolboy, to be exact--because I was too overweight to...
View ArticleA-Sides: My Top 64 Pop Culture Moments of 2014
2014 is always going to be a magical year for me. It was the year my second child was born. In terms of pop culture, it was a mixed bag. On a positive tip (I want to try using that phrase to see if I...
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Listen up! My favorite Americana discoveries of 2014
One of the reasons I attend Americana music festivals is for the opportunity to be exposed to new music and musicians I might never have sampled on my own. Following is a list of some my favorite...
View ArticleBest Movies of 2014: A Subjective View
It's a cliché of the season to list award favorites, but it is also a thrill to be able to recommend so many good films: at this moment the pundit's favorites are Boyhood, Birdman and Selma, with...
View Article5 Songs to Help You Start Your New Year Right
We all aspire to do great things this new year but sometimes we need that extra inspiration. Whether you're starting new, going through a tough time, or are somewhere in between, here are five songs to...
View Article6 Reasons 'Huck Finn' Is Not The Dusty Old Classic You Think It Is
If you read Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn back in high school, you were not alone: A 1992 report showed that 70 of all public school students, and 76 percent of all parochial students,...
View ArticleWild and the Healing Power of Nature
Can a radical immersion in nature heal our deep emotional wounds? That it can is the premise of Wild, the movie version of Cheryl Strayed's memoir about her thousand-mile trek along the Pacific Coast...
View ArticleFor the Record
We have not yet seen the film Selma. Pending this, we are surprised and perplexed as to why there should be any controversy about the respective leadership roles of Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr. and...
View ArticleMad About the '60s ... Goldfinger at 50 and Bond Beyond
(Note: This is one in a series of occasional pieces in the run-up to the series finale of Mad Men with cultural relevance to the period of the show and today.) Mr. Bond, all my life I have been in...
View ArticleHow the Top 10 Songs of 2014 Prepared Us for the New Year
Happy New Year! Now that the champagne is done, the party is over, and the new year begins, it's time to reflect on the new year that lies ahead. 365 days -- what are you going to do with them? Here...
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#MarchOn
March 7, 1965 in Selma, Alabama, Blacks, Whites from all walks of life and age groups joined together with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in solidarity to protest for their constitutional right to vote....
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To Galavant or Not to Galavant? The ABCs of One Actress' Journey to Your Screen
Sometimes, Hollywood makes absolutely no sense. Actually, in all the years I've been in Hollywood, it rarely makes sense. However, the following would seem to make sense: a wonderfully talented actress...
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Ryan Phillippe Has Good Intentions
I interview Ryan Phillippe, director and star of the self-satirizing thriller Catch Hell, about Clint Eastwood, why you should never sleep with a cop's girlfriend, why comedians get away with murder,...
View ArticleIs Chris Rock the New Audrey Hepburn?
Warning: There are spoilers. I was highly anticipating Chris Rock's new movie, Top Five. Rock has been on a press tour de force. He told Vulture that Obama's election was greater proof of white...
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TNA Pro Wrestler Robbie E: Audiences Got to See a Different Side of Me on...
Though he and partner Brooke -- #TheWrestlers -- fell short of the $1 million grand prize, Total Nonstop Action superstar Robbie E certainly won over audiences this year on The Amazing Race. The...
View Article4 Reasons Why I'm Not Watching the HBO Show Girls This Season
A lot of people rave about the HBO show Girls; I read many articles about how good the show is and about the amazing quality of the writing. I tried, I mean really tried to get into the show. I have...
View ArticleHow Kanye's "Only One" Makes Paul McCartney Relevant Again
With the assurance of a man buoyed by world-class marketing, Kanye West set the hearts of music bloggers ablaze with the release of "Only One," a collaboration with former Wings frontman, Paul...
View Article'Selma' Got It Right About Johnson, The FBI and King
The debate is sharp over whether the movie Selma got it right about Lyndon Johnson and his relationship with and to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. A counter argument challenges the film's depiction of...
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20 Reasons Why Downton Abbey's Mr. Carson Wouldn't Last a Day in My House
Photo by Bas Sijpkes I don't employ a lady's maid. I clasp my own necklaces, unzip my own dresses, and do my own hair. My husband doesn't employ a valet. He puts on his own suits, shaves himself, and...
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Best Film Books of 2014
Looking back, 2014 was a banner year for books about the movies. Whether you are into biographies, film history, pictorials, "making of" books, or critical studies, there was something for everyone. In...
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