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Does Forever Have a Fact Checker?
I'm a big fan of crime shows because I write a mystery series and I used to be the crime fiction reviewer for The Detroit Free Press. I've also taught crime fiction at Michigan State University....
View ArticleRosie O'Donnell Takes on Brian Williams at the Athena Film Festival
The irrepressible Rosie O'Donnell could not help herself. Coaxed to do stand up on the not funny subject of her heart attack by HBO's Sheila Nevins, the television star created a routine that is more...
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I On Exceptional -- Living Cindy Crawford: Charity Ambassador
Photography by Andrew Macpherson At 49 this month, Cindy Crawford is not only strikingly beautiful but a strikingly savvy businesswoman. And though great genes may have won her a place in front of the...
View ArticleBest Picture Nominees: Selma, American Sniper and the Distortion of History
I've seen all eight of the nominees for the Best Picture Academy Award and if I was voting, I'd vote for Selma. I was a student at San Francisco State College when Martin Luther King Jr. was...
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The 2015 Grammys: Robbing (Cradles) and Stealing (Spotlights)
Hi, and welcome to my real-time blog on the 2015 Grammy Awards! This year, instead of preceding the Super Bowl by a week, the Grammys are airing seven days after the big game, which means that we get...
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The State of the Oscar Race: Post-DGAs and BAFTAs
This was a major weekend for Oscar predictors, starting with the Directors Guild of America (DGA) Awards and wrapping up with the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards. Lots of...
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NCIS New Orleans Pledges to get the Food RIGHT!
Jeffrey Lieber (Showrunner and Executive Producer NCIS New Orleans) pledged to give as much attention to the Food and culture, as the Forensics beginning in Episode 18 of NCIS New Orleans. From L to R...
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Sweet Ophelia: An Interview With Musician Zella Day
(Photo: Janell Shirtcliff) If you aren't already listening to Zella Day, now is the moment to do yourself a favor and make things right in your world by putting on headphones and diving in. You can...
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For 'Ultimate Survival Alaska' star James Sweeney, mixed feelings about...
If you've watched the reality TV show "Ultimate Survival Alaska," you know James Sweeney. In a field of mild, mostly upbeat competitors, he stands out as a hot-blooded mountaineer curmudgeon,...
View ArticleWhy Fresh Off the Boat Matters
Last Wednesday, Asian America had a nationwide house party/orgasm after the two-episode debut of ABC's new sit-com Fresh Off the Boat, which is based on chef and author Eddie Huang's childhood move to...
View ArticleOscars for The Imitation Game?
Morten Tyldum's Oscar-nominated movie The Imitation Game certainly packs an emotional punch. The first time I watched it, a woman broke down as the movie ended. She sat sobbing while the credits...
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2015 Grammy Awards, as Tweeted
I held my annual Twitter party during the Grammy Awards this week...we talked about the marketing for the most part, but we also got in lots of commentary on the celebs, and fashion, and in this case...
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My Best Grammy Moments -- Meeting The Beatles & Beach Boys!
John Lennon glowed like a saint with a luminous aura, as I watched him step out of the long, stretch black limousine. The year was 1975. He looked like a delicate aristocrat with a Medici type fedora...
View ArticleMovie Review: Seventh Son, Fore Shame Jeff Bridges
Spectacular costumes, sets and super-duper special effects, but where were you, Jeff Bridges? Jeff Bridges, as Master Gregory, for some unknown reason, was allowed to get away with a voice that is so...
View ArticleSix Great Netflix Movies That'll Make Sure Your V-Day Has a Happy Ending
There's a lot of pressure on you to make V-Day special -- going out for a fancy dinner, going ice skating, laying rose petals on beds, finding a unique Valentine's Day gift. But the reality is often...
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Thought and Vision: A Conversation with Roots Vocalist Tariq Trotter
Source: Douglas Gorenstein About halfway through our interview, Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter pauses: "Sorry, I'm in the middle of cooking dinner." On this particular day, dinner is lobster bisque,...
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Sundance 2015: 7 Brilliant Performances From TV Favorites
In Park City, freezing temperatures make for hot performances. You might know them as Charlie from Girls or Robin from How I Met Your Mother, but the following actors we know from the boxes in our...
View ArticleOut of the 'Boat', And Into the Frying Pan
When I was young, friends would always excitedly tell me that I look just like Lucy Liu. Though absolutely complimentary, these occurrences were mildly confusing as I eventually came to realize that I...
View ArticleZaki's Review: Jupiter Ascending
Just over 16 years ago, I sat in a packed screening room on opening night for The Matrix, not knowing a thing about it beyond Laurence Fishburne's portentous intonation/command from the trailers that...
View ArticleGreat Quotes From the Classic Film 'Thelma and Louise'
Last week, Geena Davis revealed to the Associated Press that she and Susan Sarandon, her Thelma and Louise co-star, are figuring out how to celebrate the film's 25th anniversary next year. Davis noted...
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