Celebrities, the week before the Ocsars, have a flurry of must-do activities, appointments and parties but amidst their frenzied schedules, many of Hollywood’s hottest made a visit to the WOW! Creations Lifestyle Gift Lounge a priority. Mark Harris of WOW! Creations hosted Oscar nominees, reality stars, power players and hipsters from many of the films nominated this year at the Creations Lifestyle Lounge in the penthouse of the Luxe Hotel on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.

Guests enjoyed tunes spun by No DJ No Party’s DJ Runaway while sipping on Krol Vodka, Revolution Tea, Monster Energy Drinks, Relax Water, Hydrate Water and nibbling on cupcakes by Southern Girl Desserts.

DJ Runaway kept the party rockin! Krol Vodka presented their new flavor, Lemon Rasberry.

While enjoying their treats and cocktails, they were presented with a “Swag-Bag” featuring some the most hip and trendy gifts held during Oscar Week with a value of over $10,000.00.

WOW! Gift Suite Sponsors

The WOW! Creations gift lounge was sponsored in part by Karada 39, Johnny Rocket, and Author K.M. Groshek of  Bugs Adventure Series.

Karada is a deep muscular and joint massage- a combination of seiatsu style and chiropractic massage to correct your alignment and posture.

Vice President Hiromi Shirasaka of Karada Factory says, “We have plans to open up the Karada Factory here in Los Angeles by fall – and 80 salons are expanding around the world.”. www.karada39.com

K.M Groshek partnered with WOW! Creations and just introduced her “Bug’s Adventure” series of children’s books. “Bug’s Trip to the Store” is the first in the series, with books two and three slated for release later this year. “Bug’s Trip to the Store” is great for all ages, reminding us that even in hard times, we can learn important lessons and become stronger. www.kmgroshek.com. Read our article on her K.M. Grosheck.

WOW! Creations Swag Bag

We wanted to give you the details about some of the wonderful 2010 Oscar WOW! Creations gifts were:

Karen London Designs know that women need a cure for the trove of unloved jewelry burning holes in their dresser drawers and jewelry boxes, and that the men in their lives need a reliable source for gifts, so she offers beautiful jewelry at an appropriate price. Her collection of the most gorgeous, quality gemstones are designed into original, show-stopping pieces that are sensational, and at the same time wearable for day or night. www.karenlondon.com or call (323) 461-3000.

Riley Weston, Jane Emery, Karen London and guest.

Pursue Skin Care provides an unprecedented approach to skincare based, in part, on the science of “Quinta-Peptide™” technology. Their extraordinary product line stems from our unique formulations, scientifically designed to elicit enviable results, fast. Years in the making, the results are undeniable. www.pursueskincare.com

Beverly Visty Doman with Leticia Rodriquez for Pursue.

Khanna Institute of LASIK are true innovators in the field of laser vision correction. Dr. Rajesh Khanna is a certified Master of Surgery and an internationally recognized top LASIK and refractive vision care specialist. His treatments cover a variety of eye concerns including blended vision and monovision, and Dr. Khanna also performs reflective lens exchange and cataract surgery. www.khannainstitute.com

The ladies were scooping up the Kymaro® New Body Shaper given by UBuyEz in a hurry so they could look as trim as possible on the red carpet. The Kymaro is the fastest and safest way to take off inches in all the important places where we can’t seem to lose the weight. It also smoothes all those unwanted bulges.

The 3 sisters put their beautiful heads together and come up with an assortment of must-haves for the woman of today. www.ubuyez.com

Relax Water  is a patented formula created by naturalpathic doctors that utilize flower essences to help you relax. This science is based on the discoveries of Dr. Edward Bok, who found 38 flowers that can help balance the motions. It has been widely recognized that natural pathic remedies are highly effective.

Drinking this water can help you achieve a beautifully relaxed state.The flowers in this formula include Chamomile, Elm, Impatiens, Rock Rose, Vervain, White Chestnut. www.mindessential.com

TOCS, Sporty and fashionable watches delighted the stars given by Gem Time Inc. Voted as a favorite in Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine in The O List as a great gift under $100 and featured in People Magazine . as a pick for Guilt-Free Shopping www.gemtimeinc.com

Caribbean Living Magazine gave the stars an opportunity to relax with a Caribbean Villa Vacation. www.caribbeanlivingmagazine.com

CM Fine Chocolates – “Chocolates for all occasions” displayed their to-die-for candied apples, including their delicious and decadent classic caramel apple dipped in chocolate! They have an assortment of delights and do weddings, parties, gift baskets, catering, VIP and Green Room, etc. www.cmfinechocolates.com

Crystal McClendon with her delicious candied and caramel chocolates apples.

The celebs were so excited to get their hands on these little delights. Hand made chocolate dipped candies from Dorothy Candies.  www.fudgeismylife.com

The 500 Home Run Club®, LLC, was onhand. They are the exclusively authorized, internationally recognized organization founded to celebrate the awe inspiring achievements of the greatest home run hitters in baseball history. The club operates with the endorsement and support of both Major League Baseball and the Baseball Hall of Fame. One of the members celebrated by the 500 Home Run Club, Ernie Banks wife, Liz Banks, was onhand to share the legend. www.500hrc.com

Stars kept their pearly whites clean with their new BrytonPick. It is the most innovative product to hit the dental scene in decades. It combines a dentist-approved technology with a thin body and stylish case to ensure both sterility and convenience. BrytonPick is a simple, string-free flossing device that comes in a thin credit card sized case. www.brytonpick.com

Spa products were given by UK’s own Elyon Spas, a skin care product line made using organic chemistry and based on ancient Egyptian beauty wisdom, provided a Gold Plaque good to redeem its Elixir Oil and Tonic Mist. www.elyonspas.com

The original LipStix ReMix™ is a system containing everything you need to Re-Color your lipstick, Recover lipstick in the bottom of the tube and Repair a broken lipstick. Finally, an easy way to mix your lipstick and create a professionally shaped lipstick in just minutes. www.lipstixremix.com

Tanning services were given by Downtown LA Tan. www.downtownlatan.com

Southern Girl Desserts served up more than a dozen southern favorites such as red velvet cake, pineapple obsession, banana pudding and their signature sweet potato pie cupcakes. www.southerngirldesserts.com

Durable yet with maximum comfort, Thorlo socks were a favorite with the men celebs. www.thorlo.com

T-shirts were given by Send a Ball, the company that actually sends a colorful ball in the mail to someone with a catchy message on it. www.sendaball.com

 

VIP Attendees

Here are just a few of the celebrities that turned out to the WOW! Oscar gift suite:

Best Animated Picture Director winner Pete Docter, Kevin Sorbo, Donna Mills, Lee Reherman, Masi Oka from Heroes, Shar Jackson, Chelsea Hightower from “Dancing with the Stars”, Roger Cross of “24″, the producers of “Blind Side” Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove.

The gift bag was provided by Murval, chic bags and home accents at affordable prices from Paris. www.murval.com

Other gifts came from Hairfreeze, Geri G Cosmetics, Rumba cigars, Foxy Tees, Fine Chocolates, and Devils Thumb Ranch.

Masi Oka from Heros with Matt and Mark Harris

WOW! Creations’ Mission

WOW! Creations fosters a business climate where private enterprise can operate efficiently and profitably. It perpetuates the spirit, values and vision that a company must exercise in order to achieve an exemplary lifestyle for its business partners and the common good for all its partners to benefit from.

WOW! Creations is a Los Angeles based gift bag provider who provides innovative event production, gift experiences and promotional marketing for corporate clientele. WOW! Creations is a niche marketing company offering celebrity VIP Gift bags and Celebrity Outreach lounges for Award Shows, Film Festivals, Sporting Events, Charity Events,parties, and individual gifting experiences.

Next up for WOW! Creations will be their presentation of the official gift bags for the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky in May.

www.wowcreationsmedia.com

While the immediate cause of death was unknown, law enforcement sources indicated that Haim’s death had the appearance of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs. No illegal drugs were found at the scene.

According to the latest post on Corey’s Myspace page, Corey Haim died of pulmonary congestion, the actor’s mother confirmed to Access Hollywood’s Maria Menounos.

Judy Haim told Maria that she received an early courtesy call from the LA County Coroner’s Office who told her that an autopsy found her son had an enlarged heart and his lungs were filled with water. His cause of death was due to pulmonary congestion.

According to a variety of sources, Haim struggled with drug addiction throughout his life.

Haim was best known for his roles as a child star in the 1980s, including such films as Murphy’s Romance, Lucas, The Lost Boys, and Dream a Little Dream.

In late 2006, Haim mounted a return to show business, once again partnering with longtime friend and coworker Corey Feldman to produce a reality show entitled The Two Coreys, for The A&E Network.

Despite his off-screen issues, Haim was slated to appear in two films in 2010: The Pick Up and SAD (Standard American Diet).

We at LA’s The Place want to extend our heartfelt sympathy to Corey’s friends and family.

March 11, 2010 – Corey’s funeral will be taking place next week in his hometown of Toronto, Canada. Due to the unexpected expenses of transporting his body to Canada for final resting, a fund has been set up to help his family. If you would like to assist, please send your donations to:

Corey Haim Memorial Fund

c/o Judy Haim

P. O. Box 87655

298 John Street

Thornhill, Ontario

L3T – 7R4 CANADA

LA’s The Place had the chance to speak to both Corey Haim and Corey Feldman on the red carpet at the 2010 Playboy Mansion Super Bowl Party.

Click here to view the embedded video.

"Green Zone" star Matt Damon

Universal Pictures & The Cinema Society,  in conjunction with sponsor Maestro DOBEL Diamond Tequila, hosted the February 25th premiere of Paul Greengrass’s new Iraq War flick, “Green Zone” in New York City.

The film marks the third collaboration between Greengrass and Matt Damon, following in the footsteps of 2004’s “The Bourne Supremacy” and 2007’s “The Bourne Ultimatum”.

The premiere of “Green Zone” was a star studded event, as celebrity attendees included Matt Damon, Julia Stiles, Oscar nominee (Best Director) Darren Aronofsky, actress Amy Ryan, radio personality Howard Stern, and many others.

The after party at Nobu 57 featured Maestro DOBEL Spicy Mango Cocktails.

New Yorker actors Anthony LaPagila and Andrew McCarthy.

Julia Styles, Amy Ryan

Underneath the actual Oscar, there exists another form of lavish appreciation adorned in ribbons and bows and presented in bulk – not just a britannium statue. Distinctive Assets is once again supplying celebrities with Gift Baskets, or a $50,000 purse, so to say.

However, who Distinctive Assets chooses to receive the Oscars Gift Basket is somewhat backwards although noted kindly. Distinctive Assets will hand the $50,000 package of opulence to those that don’t receive the Oscar in the following major event categories : Best Actor/Actress, Best Supporting Actor/Actress and Best Director.

Sandra Bullock, James Cameron, Woody Harrelson, Matt Damon, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeff Bridges, Helen Mirren, Meryl Streep, Penelope Cruz and Mo’Nique may receive the Gift Basket if they do not walk out of the Academy Awards with a gold-plated britannium statue of deceased and nude Emilio “El Indio” Fernandez, an inspiring Mexican film director who was extremely reluctant and weary of having his nude body sculpted, a.k.a the Oscar Statue.

Below is a categorized list of the awaited items :

Beauty and Body
The Oral-B Pulsonic slim & sleek electric toothbrush, DeLeà Signature Perfume Oil,   AG Hair Cosmetics select gift set, Organic Wrinkle Diminishing Serum from La Peau, 10 personal fitness training sessions from Huntley Drive Fitness that attracts Melissa Leo as well as Jason Reitman, one week of fitness bootcamp from Live in Fitness Enterprise that Angela Basset just completed for the red carpet.

Fashion
Ideeli.com special access online shopping cards, hand-made C & C Swedish clogs and other fantastic accessories from The Scandinavian Company, waterproof sport watches from WooLoot, fashion-forward and fanciful jewelry from Millianna Jewelry.

Food
Sumptuous artisan chocolate creations from Chocolatines by Sweet Endeavours, Herbalife Nutritional Sake Mix and a Best Defense Immune Booster supplement, Slimware portion-control plates.

Home Decor
HGTV Green Home Mattress Collection by Serta.

Retreats
A private island retreat to Turks & Caicos Sporting Club at Ambergris Clay, a three night all-inclusive vacation to Winvian Luxury Hotel in the Litchfield Hills of Connecticut (a gift that both Ron Howard and Frank Langella redeemed in 2009) worth $7,000, Acqualina Resort & Spa Miami spa vacation, a five night getaway to the UXUA Casa Hotel valued at $6,000.

Swag for the Stars’ Furry Friends
A “Celebrate the Moment” gift package from Fancy Feast that includes a FlipCam Mino, Tiffany crystal-studded cat collar and a variety of Fancy Feast appetizers for the beloved, lucky fur ball, a professional dog studio photography package from Otis & Lucy that Paris Hilton adores, Petprojekt designer dog toys, leashes, and bowls.

Technology
BlueFox Bluetooth headset with maximum noise canceling technology and Microsoft Bing search functionality, an environmentally friendly, carbon-free, ultra-quiet shredder from GoECOlife.

Two Hollywood film giants, one behind the camera and one in front, reunite for a fourth project in eight years about the investigation of a woman who murdered her children called “Shutter Island”.  “Nightline” co-anchor Cynthia McFadden sits down with legendary director Martin Scorsese and award-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio to talk about the film, how they met, their feelings about each other, their audience and the price of show business.  Here are some excerpts from the fascinating McFadden interview, courtesy of ABC News Nightline…

On the joy of making movies:

Cynthia McFadden: So it’s a lot more fun to make the movies than to talk about the movies, I suspect, yes?

Martin Scorsese: Sometimes.

Leonardo DiCaprio: Sometimes, yeah. And fun is not always the operative word when making a movie. In this case, I don’t know, would you describe this one as fun? I wouldn’t describe it as fun — it was hard work, very rewarding and, you know, for me anyway, it uncovered a lot about the character that wasn’t necessarily on the page on first glance. … I never expected the experience to be, what it was, I really didn’t.

On DiCaprio’s acting methods:

LD: “Rage, no it’s not hard,” the actor said. “I don’t think so. I like that, that kind of stuff. It’s a release, because it allows me to do things that I would absolutely never normally be able to do in real life or wouldn’t allow myself to do. It allows you to go to places that you, that I, for whatever decisions I’ve made in my life, won’t allow myself to go. So it is like embodying somebody else for a period of time, and then you get to walk away from it. And then it becomes burned into celluloid and it’s something that you can look at, like a book on your shelf.”

On the price of playing dark roles:

LD: “Every time I play one of these roles, the loss of control that you have, it’s suffocating, in a way, and it’s something that — it’s so dark — it’s something that you don’t like to dwell on too much. So for me, you know, playing these roles, as much as you don’t want to let any of that stuff penetrate your real life, there was a mood that I had throughout this entire film that was very somber, there was a very somber feeling on set, especially shooting in an abandoned mental ward as well. Literally, you could feel the stories around you.”

On how they met:

MS: He introduced me to him. And he told me when he did “This Boy’s Life,” he says, “There’s this young kid you have to work with sometime, he’s very good, doing this film now, “This Boy’s Life.” I say, “What’s his name?” He told me, so I watched that and I watched “Gilbert Grape,” and I say he’s good, he’s interesting — and you were very young at that the time, what was it?

LD: I was 16.

On the dynamic between DiCaprio and Scorsese:

CM: But I’m interested — it’s so hard to put into words these kinds of things. … What is it between the two of you?

MS: Part of it is having gone through the experience of “Gangs of New York,” and then it was sort of galvanized by “Aviator” I think, because it was such a complex character that we were trying to play with there. But then “Departed” was another one. That really touched upon areas and levels that I hadn’t expected, which was good, which meant he’s maturing…

On their conflicts:

CM: When was the last time you had a fight? Have you?

LD: We don’t really have fights.

MS: No.

LD: That sounds really like an old, married couple in therapy.

On their appreciation of each other:

CM: Liking each other must make it better?

LD: It does, yeah, absolutely. Look, for me it’s very simple, I’m getting to work with a master filmmaker and I am inspired by working with him. And more so than all that, he kind of has this infectious appreciation for cinema as an art form … and when you’re around someone that loves movies that much and has such a commitment to making good movies, you get on that rollercoaster too, and everyone enjoys that process — it’s infectious.

CM: What do you think you give him?

LD: I think you’d have to ask him that — I’d never be so presumptuous as to sit here and say…

On a potential Sinatra film:

MS: We’re trying, we’re trying. There’s a couple…

CM: What do you think?

LD: I don’t know, I have no answers for that, I don’t know. He’s working on it.

CM: Would you like to do it if it’s offered?

LD: If he calls me up for something, it’s hard to say no, it’s hard to say no, but we’ll see.

CM: As a betting man, do you think you’ll be making that picture?

MS: It could be, it very well could be. We just had some meetings on it in Los Angeles and we’re going to the nest step and see what we can do, you know. It’s a matter of timing too.

LD: Timing, money.

On DiCaprio playing Sinatra:

CM: But is Leo who you’d like to see play the character?

MS: I think so, yeah. I feel that. It’s a matter of how do you approach that character? Where do you start, where do you end? It’s a big job.

On audience approval:

CM: Does it matter whether people like it or not?

MS: Of course, you want an audience to, I’d like people to like my work, that’s nice — or responding to it. Respond, right? I mean it’d be nice if they do, touch certain chords in the audience, that sort of thing.

LD: The only one thing I’ve learned in my career … the only thing you know is that you have no control of what people think, you only can go in there with the best intentions, give everything you possibly can, try your best to make the best possible movie you can. Then it’s kind of like giving birth, you give it out to the world and it will either become a juvenile delinquent or the next president of the United States.

Cynthia McFadden’s interview with Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio airs on ABC News “Nightline” Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 11:35pm (ET/PT).  For more excerpts, click HERE.

“Nightline” is anchored by Cynthia McFadden, Terry Moran, and Martin Bashir.  James Goldston is the executive producer.  “Nightline” airs at 11:35 p.m. (ET/PT) weeknights on the ABC Television Network.

Lindsay Proce cut the ribbon and kicked off the event

Lipstick Jungle star Lindsay Price celebrated the grand opening of Laguna Champagne Bar at The Palazzo. The VIP event was hosted by Moet Hennessy. Lindsay was all smiles wearing a black cocktail dress and gorgeous Simon G sapphire and diamond ring as she cut the red ribbon to kick-off the evening.

When asked about the event, Lindsay Price responded, “This is a girlfriends’ weekend. We are having a great time and love The Palazzo. And who doesn’t love champagne? It’s so fresh!” While mingling with guests, Price was seen sipping on glasses of Dom Perignon. She also loved the Laguna Champagne Bar’s Flower Eclipse signature champagne cocktail. This signature drink is a mix of St.Germain Elderflower Liquer, fresh lemon juice, topped with Moet & Chandon champagne, and nectar.

Lindsay Price enjoyed glasses of Dom Perignon

Before the event, Price checked into The Palazzo’s luxurious two-bedroom Lago Suite and enjoyed an amazing selection of fine cheeses at Morels French Steakhouse and Bistro. At The Palazzo’s New York-based SUSHISamba, later that evening, Price dined on Yellowtail tartare taquitos, tuna tataki and a cocktail tree with her friends. Then they headed over to LAVO for some late night dancing and partying. The single and loving it Price plans to spend the rest of the weekend enjoying Spa treatments with the girls at Canyon Ranch SpaClub and then a healthy lunch at Canyon Ranch SpaClub’s café!

As always, defining the good, the bad, and the ugly on the red carpet during award show season will be the talk of the town. Michael O’Rourke, world-renowned hairstylist guru and owner of new tool and styling line Love Your Hair, has the inside scoop on:

•        What’s hot and what’s not?
•        Who rocked it best at the Oscars, Grammys, etc.?
•        Styling trends inspired by the red carpet.
•        How you can re-create red carpet glamour at home.

Highly respected in the beauty industry, O’Rourke left international hair care company, Sexy Hair Concepts (a company he founded) in 2009. In January 2010, he jump-started new Love Your Hair – a pro-beauty product and appliance company that is breaking new ground with avant-garde technology and tool designs.

O’Rourke sets Hollywood trends in exclusive seminars – teaching select celebrity hairstylists his latest styles, and putting his high-quality products directly into their hands to use on their celebrity clients.

He has instructed stylists including, but not limited to: Gwyne Redner (“The O.C.” and “Private Practice”), Jacklin Masteran (“Melrose Place”), Mary Guerrero (“Dancing with the Stars“), Emmy Award Winner Michael Moore (“Angels & Demons“), Mary Ann Valdes (“Ugly Betty” and “Grey’s Anatomy”), Cynthia Romo (“79th Annual Academy Awards”), Pauletta Lewis-Irwin (“Knocked Up“), Lucia Mace (“Mad Men” and “Life As We Know It”) and Linda Arnold (“90210” and “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”).

Upcoming award shows in 2010:
The Screen Actors Guild Awards                  Saturday, January 23rd
The Grammys                                                        Sunday, January 31st
The Academy Awards                                        Sunday, March 7th
The Tony Awards                                                 Sunday, June 13th
The Emmy Awards                                              Sunday, August 29th

O’Rourke is the premier source on hairstyling trends for 2010’s award season.

After the 15th Annual Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, which aired live January 15th, 2010 on VH1, many of Hollywood’s hottest celebrities  joined in on the celebrations at the official after-party held at the trendy Katsuya Restaurant in Hollywood, hosted by Heifer International donors, Susan Sarandon and Eva Amurri.

Star-studded Evening

The Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, which kick off the movie awards season, is generally regarded as a crucial forecaster for the Academy Awards. The awards show was hosted by Emmy and Tony-winning actress Kristin Chenoweth and held at the Hollywood Palladium.

TV Personality Nancy O'Dell, Adam Lambert, American Idol

Nominees  included films such as “Inglorious Bastards,” “Nine,” “Avatar,” “Precious,” “Up” in addition to actors George Clooney, Sandra Bullock, Matt Damon, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard and many more. (See winners below) Renowned actor and philanthropist Kevin Bacon was presented with the third annual Joel Siegel Award by Meryl Streep.

Critic's Choice Awards' Best Picture winner "Avatar"'s actor Matt Gerald.

Party Hollywood-style

The official after-party, brought together A-list talent and more than 100 Broadcast Film Critics for a night of celebration. Put on by VH1, it is considered one of the most intimate events of the season, not to mention one of the most anticipated industry parties of the year.

Allisa Milano, Cuba Gooding, Jr.

This year was no exception, as guests enjoyed a long night of dancing, mingling and enjoying specialty drinks from top spirit sponsors such as Heineken, Grey Goose Vodka, and Champagne Taittinger, while having the opportunity to learn about the good work of CCMA cause partner Heifer International from Susan Sarandon, Eva Amurri and Heifer staff.

E! Entertainment's Kat Sadler; Sarah Silverman mugs for our cameras.

Solving World Hunger with Heifer

For the second year, The Broadcast Film Critics Association has designated Heifer International as its official cause partner for the evening. Susan Sarandon, Eva Amurri and the BFCA are all Heifer donors, and are committed to spreading the word about Heifer’s mission to end world hunger while caring for the earth. Since 1944, Heifer has helped over 60 million people become self reliant through gifts of farm animals and training in sustainable agriculture. Every recipient of an animal from Heifer agrees to pass on the gift, sharing their animal’s offspring and training with another family in need, so that one gift to Heifer ripples outward through an entire community.

Adam Lambert, with Roger Widynowski, Vice President Music / TV Publicity US, 19 Entertainment stops to say hello to our host Scott Harden.

Critics’ Choice Movie Awards

The Critics’ Choice Movie Awards are bestowed annually by the BFCA to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Since its inception in 1995, the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards has been a star-studded event of the awards season and historically, the most accurate predictor of the Academy Award nominations.

Bright little stars Bailee Madison and Jae Head.

And the Winners Are..

Best Picture The Hurt Locker
Best Director Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Best Original Screenplay Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds
Best Adapted Screenplay Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air
Best Acting Ensemble Inglourious Basterds
Best Actor Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
Best Actress (tie) Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia; Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Best Supporting Actor Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
Best Supporting Actress Mo’Nique, Precious
Best Young Actress Saoirse Ronan, The Lovely Bones
Best Documentary The Cove
Best Foreign Language Film Broken Embraces
Best Animated Movie Up
Best Comedy Movie The Hangover
Best Score Michael Giacchino, Up
Best Song “The Weary Kind,” Crazy Heart
Best Costume Design The Young Victoria
Best Make-Up District 9
Best Action Movie Avatar
Best Cinematography Avatar
Best Visual Effects Avatar
Best Art Direction Avatar
Best Editing Avatar
Best Sound Avatar

Molly Shea (Sunset Tan) and LATP host Scott Harden hang with "The Hangover's" Ken Jeong.

Broadcast Film Critics Association

The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) is the largest film critics’ organization in the United States and Canada, representing hundreds of television, radio and online critics. BFCA members are the primary source of information for today’s film going public. The very first opinion a moviegoer hears about new releases at the multiplex or the art house usually comes from one of its members.

VH1’s Stats

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with TV series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 95 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1 Mobile, VH1Games and extensive broadband video on VH1.com. Connect with VH1 at VH1.com.

Sponsors of the After-Party

The sponsors of the event were as follows: Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, Heineken, Grey Goose® Vodka, Lotus, Heys Luggage, Yellow + Blue Wine (Tetra Pak), Champagne Taittinger, Hawaii Partners: Oahu Visitors Bureau, Honolulu Film Office, Turtle Bay Resort & Aston Hotels & Resorts, Montecristo Premium Cigars, Heifer International (Cause Partner) and W Magazine.

To donate to Heifer International, visit: www.heifer.org

Stay tuned for LA’s the Place interviews with many of these stars from the Critics Choice Awards afterparty!

If you’ve watched Sherlock Holmes over the holiday then you’re familiar with the talented and beautiful Rachel McAdams, featured on the January cover of Vogue. In an issue now available on newsstands, Vogue Fashion News/Feature Director Sally Singer interviews the starlet known for her turn as Regina George in Mean Girls and her breakthrough performance as Allie Hamilton in The Notebook.

In an engaging and thoughtful conversation, Singer asks McAdams about everything from musical tastes, “Indie with a current emphasis on neo-bluegrass” to working with Lindsay Lohan on Mean Girls. “I just remember marveling about how much she knew as an actor, how much she understood. She did very few takes and had this naturalness to her,” says McAdams.

Rcahel McAdams poses for Vogue, photographed by Mario Testino Vogue

Singer borrows from the style of Rachel’s own Keel’s Simply Diary (with prompts like multiple choice and fill in the blanks) to chronicle Rachel’s perspectives and uncover a few hidden truths about the often private actress. Here are a few highlights from Singer’s Vogue interview with Rachel McAdams:

“I look at the world through a green lens now. But you can’t make yourself crazy. That feeling of green guilt can be really inhibiting. It’s about a changing mind-set, remembering to turn off the water when you are brushing your teeth.”

Rachel may be a bit modest about her commitment to being Green as Singer learns the young actress has a habit of biking or walking everywhere. She also sets aside the air conditioner, explaining “I can’t live with it. I feel I’m not living in the world.”

McAdams describing her perfect day:

In high school, circa 1995, McAdams would find contentment while sitting on the sofa.

“I grew up watching so much television. I was really into soap operas. I’d begin with Days of our Lives, then Another World, and finish off with General Hospital. And before dinner I’d watch Oprah. I would fake sick all the time to the point where I’d convince myself I was sick. In high school I really didn’t pay attention. I took the bare minimum to get by.”

On her childhood:

As a young girl Rachel contemplated a life as a figure skater. She began early, lacing up the skates and hitting the ice at the age of 4.

Mario Testino/Vogue beautifully captures Rachel in red

“At nine years old I was presented an opportunity to move to Toronto to train for pairs dancing. As soon as I heard that that’s what it entailed, I was out of there. It’s like a past life. I hung up my skates and never looked back.”

On what she finds pleasure in:

“I don’t really desire things. I prefer to spend my money on experiences, on meals or travel.”

On growing up:

“My mother never put an emphasis on looks. She let us grow up on our own time line. She never forced any beauty regimen into my world.”

Rachel McAdams as she appears on the cover of the January 2010 issue of Vogue

Rachel recounts a coming of age story from her high school days about being teased for not shaving her legs. Why didn’t you tell me?’ she asked her mom. According to Singer, Rachel’s mother replied “Once you start, there’s no turning back.”

“Such a brilliant actress—not like Meryl, but she has that kind of intelligence. That brain is substantial, and if you have that along with a face you can’t take your eyes off, it’s so compelling. It’s rare.”

And on Rachel’s search for true love?

For Rachel’s answer to that and other questions, visit the Vogue website and read the entire interview here…

No other details available at the moment.

“In this time of sadness, the family thanks you for your love and support,” Murphy’s publicist, Nicole Perna, said in a statement. “It is their wish that you respect their privacy.”

Murphy starred in several movies, including “Just Married,” “Don’t Say a Word” and “Riding in Cars with Boys.” She also voiced the character Luanne on the animated TV series “King of the Hill.

Read more at CNN.com

To read all about her entire life and career: http://www.answers.com/topic/brittany-murphy

This past weekend in Los Angeles, the cast and crew from one of TV’s legendary classic comedy show,  Rowan and Martin’s “Laugh In”, received a toast from Actors and Others for Animals, a group first founded in 1971. Stars of the comedy series and fellow celebrities joined forces with their fans and many other animal lovers to observe the honorees.

The panel - Lt to Rt Marla Pennington Rowan, Gary Owen, Dolly Martin, Arte Johnson, JoAnne Worley, Bruce Vilanch, Barbara Feldon, George Schlatter, Fred Willard and Rip Taylor.

A&O President Jo Ann Worley was not alone in honoring “Laugh In” at the celebration. Gary Owens, Nancy Sinatra, Fred Willard, Arte Johnson, Rip Taylor, Billy Barnes, Diana Herbert, Dolly Martin, Marla Pennington Rowan, Loretta Swit, Mary Ann Mobley, Gary Collins, and Alice and Leonard Malton also attended the special event that not only celebrated, but fundraised and raised awareness for animals.

“Laugh In” producer George Schlatter was also on hand along with “Get Smart” producer Burt Nodella who accompanied Barbara Feldon to the event.

Laugh-In Producer George Schlatter with show's first guest Barbara Feldon.

Rip Taylor and Fred Willard.

Award for Caring

Receiving the 2009 Award for Caring was Dick Van Patten. Most known for being a favorite TV Dad, Dick Van Patten is a long time animal lover and creator of the very successful Natural Balance Pet Foods. His son James followed the award with a warm welcome showing Dick’s all around nice guy persona. Dick Van Patten had been voted in the past as one of TV’s all-time favorite dads.

Award for Caring recipient Dick Van Patten with son Jimmy and wife Patty.

Board member Lorreta Swit welcomes the audience.

The Event

Comedy guru Bruce Vilanche MC’d the event following an introduction by A&O Executive Director Susan Taylor and A&O President Jo Ann Worley. Guests dined on a delicious gourmet vegetarian meal followed by gourmet cheesecake and chocolate cake only after giving a special mention of “Laugh In” star Henry Gibson who recently passed away.

Host Bruce Vilanch with the classic character's cutouts.

Three blondes: Nancy Sinatra, Bruce Vilanch and Loretta Swit.

A private cocktail reception was held prior to the luncheon where media and celebrities gathered. Ms. Worley took on the job as MC without a microphone to announce each celebrity as they arrived. NBC’s  Deidre Thieman, senior archivist for entertainment assets, assembled a colorful exhibit of several of the unforgettable outfits the “Laugh In” stars wore on the series. There was also a silent auction to raise funds.

Joanne Worley with original Laugh-In costume.

When costume designer, Michael Travis was asked for his favorite “Laugh In,” he laughed and replied, “they were all my favorites.” He also noted the fun he had working on the show and how he was very proud to have been a part of it all.

Arte Johnson and Billy Barnes.

To visit Actors & Others for Animals online, just go to www.actorsandothers.com

Photos by Matthew Fried.

Sheathed in layers of golden fabric of an Oscar de la Renta gown appearing like a mythical Greek goddess, Cate Blanchett is featured on the cover of this December’s issue of VOGUE, appearing on newsstands November 24th, with an interview by VOGUE writer Adam Green about her greatest role to date: A Streetcar Named Desire’s Blanche DuBois.  Green observes that Cate ‘’remains a creature of the stage” and also asks her about the importance of theater, family life and career path.

Here a few highlights from Adam Green’s interview with Cate, the self-proclaimed ‘theater geek’:

On the importance of theater:

“In the wake of everything that’s happened in the world in the last eighteen months, we’re thinking about what we’ve lost. So much of the play is about the death of poetry and idealism and hope—the fine, delicate things in our lives, the intangible, ephemeral things in our lives—which theater actually represents, doesn’t it? It’s ephemeral by its very nature. If you’re not there, you miss it. It’s gone.”

She is so dedicated to preserving theater, she and her husband of twelve years, Andrew Upton, became artistic directors of the Sydney Theatre Company, in Sydney, Australia, beginning in 2008.

On appreciating the sense of stability that staying semi-put and working regular hours has allowed both Blanchett and husband, Andrew Upton, to give their three boys:

“’There are so few experiences in our manicured, nanny-stated existence that have the quality of circus.  Theater still does.’ And so, when the boys aren’t playing with friends, they can usually be found playing backstage.  ‘They’re always engaged in the family business, so to speak.’”

Cate, with her sense of humor intact, on the matter of having children said, “The world is so massively overpopulated, but if you’re halfway decent-looking and you make nice ones, then I think it’s probably your responsibility to make more. That’s why we just have to have more of them!” We just adore Cate at LA’s The Place because she doesn’t take life too seriously!

On career choices:

“I’m not very cautious or careful. It’s always been more about having a variety of experiences than any planned trajectory… I think that in a way, projects choose you.”

From playing the ethereal Elf Queen Galadriel in the “Lord of the Rings” movies to the tough Katherine Hepburn in “Aviator” to the young Queen Elizabeth I in the movie, “Elizabeth”, this certainly demonstrates her immense range of acting abilities and diverse career projects.  Geoffrey Rush makes a insightful comment about her intelligent acting technique.

Actor Geoffrey Rush on Cate Blanchett:

“As an actor, you either work off your own personality, and that’s what you’re peddling, or, like Cate, you draw out from the source material all the many dark, mysterious, and conflicting elements of the character that are going to make it engaging and trilling for the audience.”

To read the entire article from the December VOGUE article, “Truth or Dare” on Cate Blanchett, please click HERE.

Cate Blanchette, photographed for the cover of Vogue, by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz.

Or to see the charming and elegant Cate expose her self-effacing personality as a risk-taking actress under the lens of renowned celebrity photographer, Annie Leibovitz, please click HERE for VOGUE’s December Arts Issue.

The winner receives two round trip airfare tickets to New York City for the premiere of the film, two nights hotel stay in Manhattan, a digital camera, autographed FIX merchandise, including an autographed script of the movie, and press and photo ops on the red carpet.  Since this is a viral video contest, the winner will also have their viral video screened in front of the entire audience during the premiere. To enter contest, click this link.

FIX’s Synopsis

Racing across Los Angeles in one, unwieldy day, documentary filmmakers Bella and Milo must race from Beverly Hills to Watts — and places in between — in order to get Milo’s brother Leo from jail to rehab before 8pm, or Leo goes to prison for three years. A story inspired by true events, the trio documents their trip from a suburban police station in Calabasas through mansions in Beverly Hills, East LA chopshops, rural wastelands, and housing projects in Watts as they attempt to raise the $5,000 required to get Leo into the rehab clinic. Along the way they encounter dozens of colorful characters, each with their own anomalous perspective on Leo’s larger-than-life personality and style, and each with their own excuse for why they cannot help out. In the end, it may take the desperate irony of a drug deal to get the necessary funds to send Leo to rehab. FIX stars Shawn Andrews, Olivia Wilde, Megalyn Echikunwoke, and Dedee Pfeiffer.

Director Tao Ruspoli’s Statement

FIX is inspired by a true story: My brother, a very charming, larger than life character in real life, was struggling with drug addiction. The law caught up with him, and he was offered a deal by the judge: if he didn’t check himself into rehab in 10 days, he would be sent to prison for 3 years. On the 8th day, he was arrested again, for something else. His lawyer called me, while I was working on a documentary in San Francisco, and said, “If someone doesn’t bail him out of jail and get him to rehab by 8pm tomorrow, he is going to prison for 3 years.” So I drove overnight to bail him out and soon found out that the rehab wouldn’t accept him without a nonrefundable $5000 deposit. Since we didn’t have the money, the day turned into a race to get the funds before the 8 o’clock deadline.

Years later, my wife Olivia and I had the idea of turning this premise into my first narrative feature film. I knew it was time for me to move into scripted features and I was also dying to work with Olivia, who was developing into an incredible actress. We always joked that while we had gotten married after only knowing each other for 6 months, the real commitment (and risk) it takes to make a film together required 4 years.

Given my background in guerilla style documentary filmmaking, I wanted to use the language I had developed in that medium and apply it to my first narrative project. In that way, I hoped to get the best of both worlds: the immediacy and realism of documentary and the structure and story arc of scripted, fictional work. Given advances in digital media, I was also excited by the fact that we could do this without sacrificing my love of photography and “cinematic” imagery.

The process and result turned out to be more gratifying than I ever could have imagined. Seeing Shawn bring his own vision and spirit to the Leo character was delightful. Shooting was adventurous and fun, and bringing the film to festivals around the world and seeing how the film touched people from so many walks of life was more than I ever dreamed of. I am excited for the film to now reach an even larger audience with this fall’s release.

FIX stars Shawn Andrews and Olivia Wilde.

Entering the Contest

• Fill out the form and upload your video clip
• We want your video to show us what YOUR fix is – tell us about the one thing that you can’t live without, in a creative, fun and compelling way. Videos should be no longer than 5 minutes long.
• Director Tao Ruspoli will choose the top 5 semi-finalist videos based on creativity, ingenuity, and by how much he is entertained/moved/humored by your FIX.
• The semi-finalists will be notified by phone
• Semi-finalist videos will be uploaded to viral video channels – videos will place 1st, 2nd and 3rd by total number of views

1st Place:

• 2 round-trip airfare tickets to the New York City premier of FIX, November 14th, 2009
• 2 nights hotel stay in New York City
• Red-carpet appearance and photo opportunity with Actor Olivia Wilde and Director Tao Ruspoli
• A digital camera or iPod
• Official autographed copy of the script from the cast
• Official autographed FIX memorabilia

2nd Place:

• A digital camera
• Official autographed copy of the script from the cast
• Official autographed FIX memorabilia

3rd Place:

• A digital camera
• Official autographed FIX memorabilia

To enter contest, click this link. Good luck!

FIX’s homepage: http://fixthemovie.com/

Remember Pee-wee Herman, the goofy gray-suited character with a red bow tie that had a guileless attitude and laugh that begged to be impersonated? He’s making a comeback after a humiliating arrest that sidelined the actor’s career for decades. Pee Wee Herman, played by Paul Reubens who developed this character at The Groundlings, became a cult classic figure with children and adults after the 1985 Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, directed by the then unknown Tim Burton and the 1988 sequel movie, Big Top Pee-wee. This led to a CBS Saturday morning children’s program, Pee-wee’s Playhouse which only secured his fame and recognition even more.

After the 1991 indecent exposure arrest in an adult theater, the bad press dramatically changed the public’s view of Reubens and his once beloved character, Pee Wee. Since then, he appeared in Mystery Men and the blockbuster Blow with a few cameos on Reno 911, Pushing Daisies, 30 Rock and Dirt. But with a new Pee-wee Herman stage show in Los Angeles set to open at the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood running November 19 through December 20.

The November issue of DETAILS Magazine hits stands next week and we discover how Paul Reubens will prove to Hollywood that Pee-wee can still pack a house.

Click HERE to read the full DETAIL Magazine article about Pee-Wee’s big comeback.

Photo Credit: DETAIL Magazine’s Chris McPherson

All-star athletes to heroic astronauts to business leaders along side 1,300 others guests were hosted by NFL Hall of Famer Nick Buoniconti for the 24th Annual Great Sports Dinner to benefit the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis.  Together, uniting their powerful resources, they raised more than $6.3 million to help find a cure for paralysis. An additional $10 million was also pledged by an anonymous donor to fund the human clinical trials initiative at The Miami Project.

Olympic swimmer Dana Torres, Marc Buoniconti, and Mike Piazza.

Sport Legend Honorees
At the 24th Annual Great Sports Dinner, which too place at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City on October 6th, 2009, the 2009 Great Sports Legend honorees were Troy Aikman, Clyde Drexler, Mike Piazza, Ivan Lendl, Rusty Wallace, Brett Hull, Dara Torres, Pat Day and Chris Waddell.   Sports broadcaster Bob Costas returned as Master of Ceremonies and Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin made a special appearance.

Apollo 11's Buzz Aldrin and honoree Chris Waddell.

Other Honorees were President, CEO and sole owner Kinray Stewart Rahr who received the 2009 Outstanding Philanthropist Award; Chairman Emerita of TotalBank, Adrienne Arsht who received The Buoniconti Fund Award;  Managing Director, Allen & Company, Chairman of The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis, Jack Schneider who received The Barth A. Green Spirit Award;  and Writer, African-American activist and educator, Dr. Maya Angelou who received the Buoniconti Fund Humanitarian Award.

“It’s always a thrill to be in the presence of such legends and leaders in the sports and business arena.  The support that we continue to receive year after year is astounding and validates the work we are doing as significant and meaningful.  I look forward to when we can walk side by side with those who are paralyzed by spinal cord injury.  We all know that this can happen to any one of us, which is why we need to stay focused on a finding a cure,” says Nick Buoniconti, founder of The Buoniconti Fund.

Dr. Maya Angelou receiving the Buoniconti Humanitarian Award.

Legendary Fundraising
The Great Sports Legends Dinner honors an All-Star roster of athletes who have been recognized for their outstanding athletic achievements and have helped raise millions of dollars for the spinal cord injury research programs at The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.  The dinner has become known for uniting individuals from the sports, business and entertainment industries and this year’s event was again a sell out with the capacity crowd enjoying a moving and inspirational program. The live auction was an exciting moment of the evening with six-figure bids for several dream packages, including golfing with Jack Nicklaus and a Dream Hawaiian Vacation.

Honoree Troy Aikman, Marc and his dad, Nick Buoniconti.

MVP Guest List

Other notables in attendance included NFL NY Giants Hall of Famer Harry Carson, Sportscaster from CBS Lesley Visser,  Apollo 11 Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, New York Knicks player David Lee, 1968 Olympic Long Jump Medalist Bob Beamon, 10 x Olympic Medalist in Swimming Gary Hall, Jr, Crystal Hunt and Kristen Alderman from ABC’s One Life to Live, Vincent Piazza from HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, Boston Celtics Hall of Famer John Havlicek,  Former Knicks player John Starks, MLB Great Rusty Staub, Captain of the 1980 Miracle on Ice Team Mike Eruzione, Former Miami Dolphin Earl Morrall, NY Giants Great Brian Kelley,  Former Miami Dolphin Nat Moore, Former MLB Player with the Mets and Yankees Phil Linz, Former Miami Dolphin Tommy Vigorito, Former Miami Dolphin Dick Anderson, NYC Sports Commissioner Ken Podziba, NY Jets Linebacker Greg Buttle, Former Race Car Driver Brendan Gaughan, Former Bills player Leo Hart, Former Jets players Richard Caster and Greg Murphy,  and many others.

NASCAR past champion Rusty Wallace signs autographs at the cocktail reception at The 24th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner.

Great Sports Legend History

Over the course of the past twenty-three years, the Great Sports Legends Dinner has honored 253 of the world’s greatest athletes and individuals. They are recognized for their contributions to the world of sports and acknowledged for their commitment to high ethical standards, dedication to their community, worthy causes and achievements as positive role models.

2009's honorees at the 24th Great Sports Legends Dinner.

In 1985, Barth A. Green, M.D. and NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Nick Buoniconti helped found The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis after Nick’s son, Marc, sustained a spinal cord injury during a college football game. Today, The Miami Project is the world’s largest, most comprehensive spinal cord injury research center and is housed in the Lois Pope LIFE Center at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine. The Miami Project’s international team of over 200 scientists and clinicians take innovative approaches to the challenge of spinal cord injury.

Buoniconti’s Vision

Committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again, the Buoniconti family established The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis in 1992, a non-profit organization devoted to assisting The Miami Project achieve its national and international goals.  The Buoniconti Fund serves as the national fundraising arm of The Miami Project. It is designed to complement the scientific accomplishments of The Miami Project by generating funds and high levels of awareness.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Nigel Barker, Alessandra Ambrosio

“One can’t get through MBFW without lots of hydration…so it was especially exciting for us to be introducing all attendees to O.N.E. Water. Offering an eco-chic healthy water to all our fashion industry guests who thankfully are becoming more aware and conscious of sustainable products, will make a lot of fashionistas very happy,” commented Fern Mallis, Senior Vice President of IMG Fashion.

Clean Water for All

Established in 2005, O.N.E. World Enterprises was created to fulfill the growing demand for nutritional products in the U.S. market by providing a line of intelligently packaged and healthier beverage alternatives, including coconut water and other natural juices. The company launched O.N.E. Water nationwide in late May 2009.  Currently, O.N.E. Water is available for purchase in various specialty retailers as well as on Amazon.com.

O.N.E. is dedicated to the belief that access to clean water is a fundamental human right.  Therefore, they donate 100 percent of the profits from O.N.E. Water (after operating expenses) to non-profit organizations.  In fact, O.N.E selects 10 to 15 non-profits annually to receive funds from the sales of O.N.E. Water.  Consumers can select the charity of their choice by casting their vote directly on the O.N.E. Web site.

Sustainability

O.N.E. Water is 100 percent pure, comes from a sustainable source in Canada and is packaged in Tetra Pak cartons made mainly from paper, a renewable resource.

“We are thrilled to offer attendees at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week a new packaged water concept,” said Rodrigo Veloso, Founder & CEO of O.N.E.  “Packaged in BPA-free Tetra Pak cartons, O.N.E. Water is a great alternative to on-the-go water consumption.  In fact, O.N.E. produces all its beverages in carton packaging because of its tremendous benefits.”

Fashionistas Recycle Too

Tetra Pak, the company behind the carton packages utilized by numerous brands for a variety of food products including broth, wine, juice and milk and more, will also be making its debut at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, where they will be facilitating on-site recycling. Tetra Pak is a Swedish company with worldwide presence and has supported different fashion weeks in countries like Brazil and Greece in the recent past. In North America, Tetra Pak has been present since the 1980s and has been leading the industry in promoting carton recycling since 1990. Visit www.recyclecartons.com for more information on recycling.

“We feel this is a great opportunity to present the benefits of carton packaging to some of the most influential trendsetters in the U.S.,” said Carla Fantoni, Director of Marketing, Tetra Pak Inc., U.S. “Consumers across the nation already associate carton packaging with environmental friendliness and this awareness and passion for cartons will only continue to grow. We look forward to seeing how consumer response to using carton packaging evolves.”

Celebrity Fans of O.N.E Water

Current celebrity fans of O.N.E Spring Water include Ed Begley Jr., Josie Maran, Kim Kardashian, Denise Richards, Jordana Brewster, Maria Menounos, Mario Lopez, Jennie Garth, Christina Milian, Adrienne Bailon, No Doubt, Perez Hilton and more.

O.N.E.™ World Enterprises

O.N.E.™ World Enterprises was established in 2005 in order to fulfill the growing demand for nutritional products in the U.S. market by providing a line of packaged, better-for-you beverages that serve as a healthier and natural alternative to sports drinks, energy drinks, sodas, enhanced waters and bottled waters. To learn more about O.N.E. ™ go to www.onedrinks.com.

Tetra Pak

Tetra Pak is the world’s leading food processing and packaging solutions company. Working closely with our customers and suppliers, we provide safe, innovative and environmentally sound products that each day meet the needs of hundreds of millions of people around world. With over 20,000 employees and operations in more than 150 countries, we believe responsible industry leadership and a sustainable approach to business. Our motto, “PROTECTS WHAT’S GOOD,”™ reflects our vision to make food safe and available, everywhere. More information about Tetra Pak is available at www.tetrapakusa.com.

Actor Ray Park who stars in the upcoming action movie “G.I. Joe” as  Snake Eyes, personified evil playing Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace and scared audiences stiff as the headless horseman in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, finally reveals himself to loyal fans for the first time without a mask or costume in the upcoming season of “Heroes“.

Though his moves and martial artistry is certainly recognizable, his face has been curiously obscured in nearly every film in which he’s appeared until now.  Ray Park will come out from ‘behind the mask’ on September 21st, 2009 starring as the character, Edgar, in the first episode of the new season of Heroes.

Training to the Top

Scottish-born Park always set his sights to be in the movies, but his true passion was martial arts. At the tender age of seven, he began practicing martial arts. Park mastered the traditional Chinese Northern Shaolin Kung-fu (in the Chin Woo style) and various other styles, including Wushu. Soon becoming a regular fixture at martial arts exhibitions and tournaments, the now defined and disciplined athlete dominated Great Britain’s martial arts championships before later traveling to Malaysia to refine his skills.

Masked Acting Roles

After he conquered the martial arts world, Park set his sites on acting and became a natural on the set, gaining more roles as he the industry recognized his abilities as both actor and martial artist. He was later contacted by stunt coordinator Nick Gillard to audition for George Lucas’ upcoming Star Wars prequel. Offered the job by producer Rick McCallum, Park was given the creative freedom to develop his choreography by an impressed Lucas, while gaining confidence to develop his role to the best of well trained skill set.

After playing headless horseman in Sleepy Hollow (1999), Park finally saw his face and voice joined on the silver screen (his voice was dubbed in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace) with his role as Toad in Bryan Singer’s X-Men (2000). Park took the lead as the title character in Iron Fist later the same year. Though curious Star Wars fanatics clamored to rumors that Park would return as Darth Maul in the eagerly anticipated Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002), their many speculations were shot down by George Lucas himself with the announcement that although that specific character would not return for the sequel, Park would indeed play a role in Episode II. Currently, Ray is starring as Snake Eyes in G.I. Joe.

LA’s the Place caught up with Ray to find out what his thoughts are about his  current role and his ‘coming out’ role on Heroes.

LA’s The Place: Your costume in G.I. Joe looked really constraining, was it hard for you to move in it during the action sequences?

Ray Park: Yes, it was a challenge and I was a bit freaked out at first. I wasn’t expecting it to be so thick and I couldn’t really move my head or breathe very well. I asked them to give me a practice costume so I could practice moving in it.  I started going to the sauna and wearing hoodies and as much clothes as possible so that I could work through it and overcome it. Eventually it became standard to put the mask on and channel the character.

LATP: Heroes is your first TV role; how is it different from film?

RP: For me, it’s very different the setups are shot quicker and there is not a lot of time for making mistakes. On a movie you spend a lot of time in your trailer but with Heroes you go straight to the set. I’m really enjoying it

LATP: Heroes will be the first time your fans get to see your face.  Are you excited?

RP: Very excited! I hope that it will open up more opportunities for work. I think it’s going to be great.

LATP: How did you prepare to play Edgar?

RP: Circus and carnival are my key words for this role. I really channel them when I’m playing Edgar. I sat down and created my own thoughts on him before I ever met with the writers and producers. This is the first time I have used knifes, aside from cooking so I practiced a lot. I definitely took some tips from the chefs at Benihana’s.

LATP: Do you help to create the action sequences?

RP: That would be really nice if I did but it’s a team effort. I don’t create the action sequences but I know the producers want me to show off the best moves I can do so we work together. The sequences are already mapped out but we have to go over them to find out what works best.

LATP: Can you let us in on any secrets from the season?

RP: You will just have to wait and find out…

Cynthia McFadden’s

Excepts from the Tyra Banks interview are below, courtesy of ABC News’ Nightline…

On Having Children:

CYNTHIA MCFADDEN: Are we going to see little Tyra’s?

TYRA BANKS: I think you will. I think you will. I don’t know when but sooner than later definitely. I have a lot of success and make a good living but after while you start going why? Why are you doing all this, especially because I’m not materialistic so it’s not like “ooh yeah I’m making all this let’s get the jet plane you know! I don’t have that so I need to be able to pass this down. I need to be able to share it with a family and go to “Toys R Us” and buy a lot of toys for my child- you know what I’m saying, like what is the point? Because right now my life…when I was a model it was all about me, like how many covers can I get, how many…me me me …I’m gonna break barriers, I’m gonna do this and then now in my career I’m so excited about discovering stars, making other people stars and creating shows and my talk show has hundreds of people whose livelihood, depends on me showing up every single day, so that excites me more and to me that goes more into having a child because it’s not really all about me, it’s about giving sustenance in life to other people.

On Being a Diva:

CM: How much of a diva are you?

TB: I wish I was more of a diva. I wish I was harder, I wish I didn’t care so much about being the nice girl all the time because a lot of the time people can take kindness for weakness, so I wish I had a little bit more “oomph” in me. When it comes to being in charge, being a boss, being an executive producer because you know a lot of the times they are probably like, “Oh it’s Tyra, she’s cool, she’s not gonna trip” so I could learn maybe from some people, and you know what? It’s not a diva…it’s about being a strong businesswoman and being a better leader I can learn to do that.

On Status:

CM: The New York Times famously called you America’s next top mogul. Do you feel like a mogul?

TB: No I don’t! I think I’m too young to be a mogul. I think I’m too young for that when I think about moguls I think like Donald Trump. He owns NYC practically, that’s a mogul I feel like…I’m a on my way to a lot more but mogul is a really serious thing. I think it’s a word that gets thrown around easily.

CM: There’s been a lot of talk about money and reports that you make upwards of 20 million dollars a year, are they in the ballpark?

TB: I don’t know, I always say it could be a hell of a lot less, and it could be a hell of a lot more. My mother told me don’t talk about your money.

CM: Money doesn’t buy happiness but it does buy some things…

TB: I love being able to go to a store let’s say…a store like Topshop or Zara or maybe even Macy’s depends on what department and not have to look at the price tag.

CM: Well you could go lots of places and not look at the price tag.

TB: Rodeo Drive and all that I’m looking at the price tag and gulping even with success and the, you know…

CM: So you’re not buying $10,000 pocketbooks?

TB: Don’t own one. And when I do, means I didn’t buy it.

CM: Really?

TB: Really.

CM: You don’t have a taste for that?

TB: No, I don’t like expensive things, I buy property, and that has a lot more zeros behind it than a $10,000 bag but to me I like things that appreciate! I don’t want to take something and the minute it leaves the shelf it depreciates!

CM: Sounds like a mogul to me!! A mogul in training here!

TB: I started buying a couple of designer clothes and I put it on and I’m like wow this looks really really good but then I just can’t help looking in a magazine for the splurge and the save….and I go but dang, I just paid all this but look at her.. she paid like 20 bucks ..that is still in me I don’t know what that is.. Some person told me I had like a poor man’s syndrome or something…I never was really poor.

CM: Do you have an extravagance though, is there something that you…

TB: Property, I like to buy property. And my accountant says that I’m like the best blackjack player in Vegas because I bet on the right stuff. I know when something is gonna appreciate. I just have a gift for that!

On Her Future:

CM: So much has gone right in your life, but the man thing has never quite gelled.

TB: Wouldn’t say it hasn’t gelled, I just, because I’m not married is that why?

CM: Maybe it’s because we don’t know!

TB: Exactly.

CM: You’ve been very private about all of it, why?

TB: Because, sharing your relationship does nothing except for share your relationship doesn’t help people, it doesn’t do anything it just creates gossip fodder.

CM: So you don’t look and say, oh well I’m 35, I’m not married. You’ve talked a lot about models trading in their pretty…for rich husbands. That certainly wasn’t your path, have you sort of gone the other way with a vengeance!

TB: I don’t have that OMG I gotta get married thing! If it happens it happens, but it’s never been like oh I need to do that! I don’t know, it’s a little difficult for me to understand actually when women really want to get married. I don’t understand it.

CM: Really?

TB: Not in today’s day and age. When my friends really want to get married I’m like OK I’m gonna help you find a husband, I go and I do it and I set them up on blind dates and all that but I don’t understand that. I think it’s because I’m a product of divorce, my parents divorced so I don’t understand that whole married thing when 70 percent of marriages fail and 50 percent of second marriages fail…so that forever and ever thing and people get divorced…i don’t know, I’m trying to figure it out.

CM: So would you have a baby without getting married?

TB: I don’t know! Not sure.

CM: Is the biological clock ticking?

TB: Child, 50 year olds are having babies now, I think I’m ok!!

“Nightline” is anchored by Cynthia McFadden, Terry Moran, and Martin Bashir. James Goldston is the executive producer. “Nightline” airs at 11:35 p.m. (ET/PT) weeknights on the ABC Television Network.

Most recently, you might have seen Sorbo play the hunky, scantily-clad Captain co-starring with Carmen Electra in the comedic movie, “Meet the Spartans”. But Sorbo has accomplished an almost Herculean feat by having one of the most enduring and bankable careers in Hollywood; Electronics Media Magazine named Sorbo TV’s third most bankable star behind Oprah and Regis!

Minnesota native, Kevin Sorbo, was just another Tinseltown wanna-be when he arrived in LA at age 27 with aspirations of hitting it big. And boy did he. His success was not overnight but grew steadily. He began consistently booking beer, hair care products and clothing commercials while going to acting class with some of Hollywood’s biggest actors like Brad Pitt, Matthew Perry and Sharon Stone.

Sorbo says of his early days in LA,“I was one of the lucky guys. For about a three-year period in the early ‘90’s, I was one of the top three male actors in terms of booking commercials.”

Hercules Is Huge

In 1992, he lost the lead role of Superman in “Lois and Clark” to Dean Cain but was offered the part of Hercules in a new syndicated show. “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys” show evolved into a sweet gig that most actors can only fantasize about. It ran for seven years until 1999 and aired in 140 countries, surpassing “Baywatch” as the most watched TV show in the world.

Art Imitates Life

Fame and fortune was not the only thing the “Hercules” show provided Sorbo. “Talk about art imitating life,” Sorbo says of meeting his real-life leading lady, Sam Jenkins, on the show. She made a guest appearance as one of Hercules’ love interests in 1996. Sam and Kevin married in 1998 and they had their first ‘Hercules Jr.’ in 2002, followed by two more children.

Beam me up, Sorbo

During the last 3 months of shooting the “Hercules” role, he was a hot commodity and simultaneously landed the lead role of Captain Dylan Hunt in the sci-fi action series “Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda”. Seemingly to bestow the golden touch on anything Sorbo got involved with, “Andromeda” held the #1 hour show spot for its entire five year run.

Film Appearances

Sorbo also is a prominent film actor while juggling his busy TV career. In 1997, Sorbo made his feature film debut in “Kull, the Conqueror”, a prequel to “Conan, the Barbarian”. Other films include, “Walking Tall, the Payback”, “Walking Tall, Lone Justice, “The Last Chance Café”, “Something Beneath”, “Clipping Adam”, and most recently, “The Avenging Angel” which aired on Hallmark summer of 2007 and was the third highest rated movie in the history of Hallmark. Another ’08 release for Sci-Fi cable network was “Fire From Below”. “The House Next Door” and “Prairie Fever” were two other 2008 movies he starred in. The year 2009 and 2010 is a flurry of activity for Kevin. Here are a few films he’s working on: “What If…”, “The Illuminati: Out of Chaos Comes Order”, “Sleeping with the Lion”, and “Puzzle Vision”. Read below in LAs the Place’s face to face with Sorbo about more film and TV appearances in 2009 and 2010.

TV Appearances

Since his two big TV hit series, Sorbo has guest starred on numerous other hit shows like “Just Shoot Me”, “According to Jim”, “Hope and Faith”, “Two and a Half Men”, USA networks “Psych”, and had recurring appearances on “Dharma and Greg”, and on Fox’s “The OC” in 2006-2007. In 2005, he signed an unprecedented development deal with ABC/Touchstone Television that resulted in the creation of “Bobby Cannon”, a half-hour comedy pilot written by Barry Kemp of “Coach” and “Newhart” fame.

An Actor with Heart

Despite juggling family and career demands, Sorbo makes being a spokesman for A World Fit for Kids a priority. A World Fit for Kids is a non-profit organization that provides gang, drug and dropout prevention to teens through mentoring programs.

He was also named national spokesperson as successor to Arnold Schwarzenegger for The After School Alliance, a nonprofit organization working to ensure that all children have access to safe, enriching after school programs by the year 2010.

Swinging for Charity

Lately, he has combined his passion to give to others in need and his passion for golfing. He tours around the country playing in charity golf tournaments raising funds to find  cures to cystic fibrosis, kidney disease, melanoma cancer, among others. Read here about his Second Annual  Kevin Sorbo Celebrity Golf Tournament  at Dragon Ridge Country Club in Henderson, NV on October 8th and 9th. The event is held in support of A World Fit For Kids!

LA’s The Place Editor-in-Chief Jane Emery got a chance to chat with actor Kevin Sorbo discovering his views on what it takes to succeed, politics, and his charity work among sharing some insightful words of wisdom.

On Success

KS: I always push myself, I look at successful people and I ask them how they became successful and I learned that failure is a positive thing, not a negative thing. In a town like Hollywood, a political mafia, you have to put up with so much crap and there are so many reasons to fail in this town and there are so few reasons to even get a chance at success. All the doors that slammed for me just fueled the fire and it is perseverance for me more than anything else. I’m a 13-year “overnight success”. It’s just a matter of sticking with it and never ever giving up. Most people are afraid of failure so they just stay where they are and they don’t make that movie role or have anything good happen to them.

On Bettering Our Future

KS: We can’t be sitting still and blaming other people for our losses. It’s like come on, you guys. If you look, for instance, at Bill Cosby - he came off and said this is what we need to do as African Americans and they jumped on him and called him an Uncle Tom. Here is a guy that went through all kinds of racism in his life, and he rose above it, he studied hard and he found a way to get to a successful place in life. Everybody goes through it. It’s all about making things happen for themselves and not pointing fingers.

On Developing Work Ethic

KS: You know, I started a paper route when I was only in the second grade, I was eight years old, and I held it for 7 years. For 7 years, I got up at 3 or 4 in the morning, 6 days a week. I was out there in Minnesota, 25 below zero in winter, and I’d get up to ride my bike through snow covered streets covering my sales route. I worked hard. And in the summers, I worked at my dad’s golf course where he was a manager there.

On Being Resilient

KS: I think the biggest thing happening in our country is people are just giving up, they are just getting lazy and they want the government to take care of them. I’m just scared of what’s going on in this country. For the last 20 years, I’ve just been seeing this weird entitlement thing. It happens every single year, where people just say, “Oh what the heck”. You know? And it’s kind of sad to me in a way. It’s like this country was built on doers, not on people sitting around expecting people to take care of them. JFK said one of the greatest lines ever when he gave his inauguration speech and he said, “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country” and we’re getting away from that, we need to get back to that.

On the Effects of Fame

KS: I never really got to clear my head and deposit the fact that it took me so many years to achieve success so I think I appreciate it a little more. I mean there are young kids that are between 18-25 yrs old and they’ve had success when they were young in their lives and their attitudes are quite different. In the back of my mind, I’m always thinking when the shows over, lets see where you are because it ain’t easy. It’s hard to keep things going and those are the reasons Hollywood decides when and where something is over.

On America’s Public Education

KS: You look at public education and it’s horrendous, we should be embarrassed. And everyone from Obama on down has said that their going to make public education better and they haven’t. Now I’m not a public schoolteacher and I don’t want to get in trouble for this but it’s ridiculous that the only communist business that we have in this country is public education. Now if you’re a teacher for 15 years and you’re a bad teacher, and you don’t do what you need to do to teach children what they need to know and they come out not knowing how to read and write…

On Getting Back What You Put Out

KS: I think teachers should be paid by the jobs that they do and not just because they’ve been teaching 20 years so they get paid the same. It’s ludicrous. If I worked for IBM and I sold 300 billion dollars worth of computers and my other buddy sold 300 million dollars worth of computers and we get paid the same salary, I’d be a little upset like wait a minute, I worked my butt off. If he worked 40 hours a week and I worked 100 hours a week, I want to be paid for that. I don’t begrudge anybody’s success. I just don’t. I have friends who complain about their bosses and I’m like wait a second, your boss took all the chances and was able to raise all the money to accomplish something in this business, and now you’re going to rag on your boss? Go create your own company then. People that do this stuff, it blows my mind that they are able to do these things. I’m a champion for democracy but this country needs to get back to the great country that it was and we’re losing ourselves.

On His Part to Improve LA Public Schools

KS: I decided that I’d always wanted to work with kids that weren’t necessarily unhealthy but lived in very unhealthy environments. So I’ve worked with World Fit For Kids to raise 3 million dollars a year that enables us to work with twelve LA schools and 12,000 kids. There is a 54% dropout rate in LA public schools and we have a 100% of the kids of the 12,000 in our program graduating. We have parents knocking down our doors to work with their child. We received a gold star from Gov. Schwarzenegger for the best after school program this year. We’re kicking off our second annual fund raising golf tournament in October 8th and 9th 2009 in Las Vegas. To get involved, check out: www.worldfitforkids.org.

On His Latest Acting Projects

KS: Right now I’m working on an independent film in Baton Rouge called “Flesh Wounds”. I’ve got a movie called “Fire from Below” in September on the Sci-Fi channel. A feature film called “Paradox” is coming out in theaters in January 2010 and another feature film, “Tales from an Ancient Empire” in January or February. And also “Lighting Strikes” on Sci-Fi channel in December. I’ve been filming a lot of movies, but I’d like to get back on TV and get another series going.

Check out his website to see where Sorbo is in front of the camera and also wielding his golf club for good next. www.kevinsorbo.net

Kevin Sorbo lives in LA with his wife Sam and their three young children.

The Matter of Everything” Extended Trailer from Riverchoir Feed.

Another film, “What the Bleep Do We Know” first aired in 2004, became one of the most successful documentaries of all time. Audiences embraced the combination of quantum physics and spirituality in the neurology of new thought. It was one of those movies that moved your consciousness into new possibilities of manifesting new personal reality.

“The Secret” aired in 2006 and with an amazing effect people around the world as everyone began to explore the power of thought.

If our society continues to develop and evolve as it should we will investigate the matter of everything in the universe by transcending any particular science but as the fundamental nature of our being. As difficult as these times may seem, these documentaries are exhilarating with awe and wonderment to be alive…really alive.

Dramatic actors get all the attention for taking risky roles. A guy puts on a dress or a girl wears a prosthetic nose and somehow it’s instant Oscar nomination. But what Kevin Farley did as leading man in An American Carol showed more daring than all the cross dressers and accent deliverers combined; he dared to spoof director Michael Moore in a satirical look at Moore, Hollywood and America’s politically correct culture.

LAs The Place Daily TV Interview with Kevin

An American Carol

Farley’s warmth and charisma prevents An American Carol from ever coming off as mean spirited. He removes the soapbox as a potential set piece by never taking himself too seriously while portraying Moore’s cinematic doppelganger, “Michael Malone”. What’s striking about Farley is that he always seems at ease in interviews or even when confronted by wandering paparazzi. Perhaps it is this quality of Farley the man that speaks to Farley the actor’s ability to perform without pretense.

From getting slapped in succession by General George S. Patton, President John F. Kennedy, and Bill O’Reilly or firing at ACLU zombies that are attacking a courthouse, Farley delivers an organically hilarious performance. He holds his own while acting with a cast of Hollywood heavyweights like Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voight, Dennis Hopper, James Woods and Leslie Nielsen.

Hollywood & Wine

Farley is surrounded by family and long time friends in his writing and directorial debut, Hollywood & Wine. Joining him in writing the film were his brother John Farley, sister in law Jennifer Farley (as Jennifer Herron) and Matt Berman. Berman also joined as co-director on the project, which stars SNL’s Chris Kattan.

John Farley, Kevin Farley

Starring in the film is Nicky Whelan, the fresh-faced Australian import known for her work as Pepper Steiger on the television drama Neighbours. She appears poised for a sensual takeover of American audiences as Whelan’s undeniably stunning appearance is matched only by an affable and inviting charm.

Whelan plays Diane Blaine, an aspiring actress who can’t land a role because her face is “Too Jamie Stephens”; a Britney Spears/Lindsey Lohan type that has fallen on hard times. When her boyfriend (played by Chris Kattan) becomes indebted to a mobster, Whelan’s Blaine must play the only role ever really meant for her; pretending to be Jamie Stephens as she has dinner with the crush-struck mobster. The film also stars Norm MacDonald, Chazz Palminteri, David Spade, Horatio Sanz, Chris Parnell, Pamela Anderson, Vivica Fox and includes an appearance from Farley himself.

Back in the Saddle

Farley has now turned his attention to starring in Back in the Saddle. A devout fan of the film Blazing Saddles, Farley wrote Back in the Saddle as an homage to the Mel Brooks classic. Back in the Saddle (a western comedy) is the story of a train-robbing cowboy who tries to go straight. He retires to the town of Tumbleweed to live his life happily ever after. Unfortunately, rumors of an impending railroad coming to town have the jealous sheriff and ambitious mayor of Tumbleweed grabbing for gold and looking to neutralize any opposition…to their dismay, our hero comes out of retirement to ride again. “We want to shoot in Wyoming because people care about real characters, and I wanted the locations to be as real as the characters on screen,” said Farley.

American Regal

He’s also partnered with Fay Byrd to develop a clothing line that caters to bigger men. Farley and Byrd are tweeting the progress of American Regal on Twitter at www.twitter.com/americanregalby. Kevin also updates his fans through his personal page, http://twitter.com/kevfarls.

More About Kevin

At first, Farley resisted the call of comedy. Growing up in a family that used humor to deal with life, it was fate that he’d end up sharing that laughter with the world. Once he graduated from Marquette University with a degree in business, he began work for his father’s asphalt company, Scotch Oil. While that road may have been paved by good intentions his love for making people laugh grew too strong to ignore. He would get off work and jump on stage at the local comedy club. Farley studied at the famed Second City in Chicago, and would spend time watching his brother Chris Farley and cast create comedy for Saturday Night Live, which was a tremendous education, before moving to Los Angeles and landing a role in Adam Sandler’s The Waterboy, and never looked back.

Chris Farley and Kevin Farley clown around as kids.

His breakthrough role came as boy band member Doug Linus in the MTV parody 2gether: The Series. The role was distinctly different from anything that Farley had done and attracted high praise from many reviewers.

Farley’s roles include films such as Joe Dirt, Beverly Hills Ninja, The Third Wheel and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star. He lent his voice to Eight Crazy Nights and has had guest appearances on programs like That ’70s Show, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Just Shoot Me and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Many thanks to the beautiful $35 million dollar refurbished LA landmark Hotel Shangri La for hosting our interview with Kevin Farley.

www.shangrila-hotel.com
1301 Ocean Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 394-2791

Whether you get pampered on someone else’s dime and your extravagant lifestyle includes luxury cars, designer handbags and expensive jewelry, or you’re tapping out your resources to do whatever it takes to maintain the image, you could be just the girl they are looking for!  In this new reality show, it’s all about you and your glamorous lifestyle.

The Good Life show is searching for the most outrageous, over-the top ladies who are living large! Maybe you were born with a silver spoon or maybe everyone only thinks you were—either way, you’re A-List, baby! And, it’s time everybody knows.

If you answer yes to any of these questions, you are on your way to being the next star of The Good Life:

•    Is your closet full of designer clothes and shoes that would make Imelda cry?

•    Do you carry your teacup Maltese as an accessory?

•    Do you live in an amazing home with maids, a chef, a personal assistant or a driver?

•    Is your job an intense social calendar and your hobby shopping at Gucci?

•    Are you on the cutting edge of every trend and don’t miss a beat when it comes to Hollywood gossip?

•    Do you live a lifestyle everyone envies?

Your parents or your boyfriend may think you’re over the top- but The Good Life show gets it!  You don’t shop sales, you don’t let rules get in the way of a good time and you love champagne! Your friends want to be you and you want to be famous. And The Good Life wants to help. Attitude is everything–show the world what its like to be you!

For more information, contact: Rachel@thegoodlifecasting.com
818.325.6911

To apply for the show in Los Angeles or Orange County,  go to: www.thegoodlifecasting.com

To be considered, you must be over 21 years of age.

Alec Baldwin, actor, 30 Rock

Playboy:  Setting up this interview was like trying to shoot a moving target. It took months for you to carve out time in your schedule. Not many actors your age are so busy.
Alec Baldwin:  For me to have any career opportunities at the age of 51 is a miracle. But it’s all about 30 Rock. We’ve won every prize they give out, some twice. People need to laugh right now. Tina Fey and her writers are so good, they’ve skewed things for me.

Playboy:  How?
AB:  People send scripts now, and I read them and go [breathes in loudly], “I don’t know. It’s more cute than funny.” I work with people who are really funny. It sets the bar high.

Playboy:  You, Tina Fey and Tracy Morgan are very different. On what level do you connect?
AB:  I love Tracy because he is this sweet kid from the Bronx, a real New Yorker who went from comedy clubs in the outer boroughs into the 212 area code with Caroline’s and then stardom on SNL. But he’s still childlike. When he was told he was going to host SNL, he burst out crying in front of us; he couldn’t believe they’d asked him. He’s among a handful of people in my life who always make me laugh. He’s sick and perverted but in a wonderful way. He’s my favorite pervert.

Playboy:  How about Tina Fey?
AB:  Tina’s a smart and sexy woman who writes with an edge and thinks like a guy. The success of 30 Rock is not how many people watch the show but who’s watching the show. Industry people watch. There are shows far more successful than we’ll ever be that nobody in my business watches. So when NBC chief Jeff Zucker or NBC programming honcho Ben Silverman or SNL and 30 Rock producer Lorne Michaels are having lunch at the Grill and people walk up and say, “My kid downloads that show, and we watch the DVD boxed set,” it’s enormously gratifying.

Playboy:  You’ve had enough classic moments on SNL to fill your own DVD. Which skit do people bring up most often?
AB:  “Schweddy Balls.” It’s going to be on my tombstone: HERE LIES ALEC BALDWIN AND HIS SCHWEDDY BALLS.

Playboy:  Did you turn down any sketches for being too outrageous?
AB:  Probably a few. It’s hard to remember. I’m often asked if I think about going into politics. If I do, these guys will have a field day. I’ve given them so much crap to use against me—Canteen Boy, Schweddy balls. I just did the Wii sketch. Did you see that?

Playboy:  Describe it.
AB: I did this with two SNL guys. I’m their father, and I show them that the best way to shake the Wii wand is to go like this [simulates masturbation], and we’re doing this obscene, horrible thing. Google or YouTube that one; it’s just ridiculous. While I’m doing it, I’m thinking, If I run for political office, they’ll have a forest of material to kill me with.

Playboy:  Can comedy be held against you?
AB:  I always hope people will understand that what I do as an entertainer is totally different from the way I behave. The day you say “I am a candidate,” you have a different responsibility. You hope the American public has the ability to delineate what of your private behavior matters and what doesn’t. If a guy’s a drunk driver, he has shown a lack of judgment that could hurt people. A womanizer? Well, you don’t know what someone’s going through in their marriage. Maybe he or she was miserable and unhappy, and if they were seeking companionship from someone else, that’s none of my business. If they don’t pay their taxes? That I’d worry about. The truth is, you have to assume they’ll slam you for all of it.

Playboy:  Your hosting career spans 14 SNL episodes. Who are the most impressive cast members you’ve worked with?
AB:  Phil Hartman, Will Ferrell and Will Forte. Hartman used to just amaze me. But maybe the most impressive moment I witnessed on the show involved Mike Myers. He hosted a Japanese game show in which Chris Farley is tortured when he doesn’t answer the questions right. Myers took my breath away. He just so nailed it, doing all this phonetic Japanese. We were peeing in our pants.

Playboy:  Do you watch a lot of television?
AB:  No. I’ve watched 60 Minutes and The Sopranos on Sunday nights, and I cried when The Sopranos ended. I don’t watch anything else.

Playboy:  Why did you say yes to 30 Rock?
AB:  It’s shot in New York. Lorne Michaels made a provision in my contract that says I would never miss my visitation with my daughter. I work a limited number of days a week, and then I’m on a plane. That was the biggest consideration. The pilot was funny, the show got funnier, and by the end of the first season people were saying glowing things.

Playboy:  You’ve clashed with studio heads and producers. What bothers you about the way Hollywood works?
AB:  I worked for Warner Bros. on The Departed, and I just did My Sister’s Keeper with Cameron Diaz. My problem with Warner Bros. is that it’s part of the same company as TMZ, and it’s like that with all these companies—Extra, Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight. I would be so happy if those shows went off the air. It is a huge problem in our business—this microcosmic analysis and elevation of people who are just witless and talentless, or people with talent, like Lindsay Lohan, who struggle. Who gives a shit about their personal trivialities? It hurts the business.

Playboy:  TMZ’s Harvey Levin ran the audio of the biting voice-mail message you left your daughter. How mad were you?
AB:  I thought about suing Warner Bros. My attorneys told me digital or electronic property of a minor is the intellectual property of the parent or legal guardian. TMZ was not allowed to release that tape without my approval. I don’t think they did anybody any favors. Everybody knows Levin is a human tumor, a graceless character who lives in that weird netherworld. I don’t blame those pathetic people; they are what they are. This is about the company. Warner Bros. wants me to do a movie and then shoves it up my ass with another company down the hall. You work for Paramount, and they say, “We want you to promote the movie you’ve done for us by going on a TV show we own. We’re going to double dip and make money on you both way”. They’re not paying me serious appearance fees, and as a union member I have a big problem with that. You want me to do appearances now on Entertainment Tonight? Pay me. Are you making a profit on Access Hollywood and Entertainment Tonight? Everybody says, “Do it for free because you’re promoting your movie”. Pay me.

Playboy:  We take it you’re not winning this one.
AB:  It’s the stance my union should take. Promotional activities for films and television shows have replaced talented marketing and publicity departments. These division heads want to walk into a meeting and say, “We ran this star up the flagpole, nobody saluted, and the movie bombed. So the movie bombed because nobody liked so-and-so.” They’ve relieved themselves of any responsibility by tying the marketing to the star’s name. They psychologically abuse talent by going, “Hey, if the movie bombs, it’s bad for you.” They’ve psyched you into thinking you’ve got to run around the country for four weeks, telling the same anecdotes over and over until you want to drop dead. You miss your child’s volleyball game because if the movie doesn’t do well, it reflects on you. They’ve conspired to wash their hands of any responsibility.

Playboy:  Would you be reluctant to work with Warner Bros. again?
AB:  Well, I did My Sister’s Keeper after that. The publicity I do now is modest because I don’t think it makes a difference. Why am I even here with you? Do you think this is something I enjoy?

Playboy:  It’s not?
AB:  I want to assure you of something. Four out of five actors I know wouldn’t do this if their life depended on it—unless they felt pressure to promote a film. That’s exactly how I feel. I wouldn’t be sitting here with you, talking about this crap and my opinions of the business. I wouldn’t bother. I like you personally. I wouldn’t talk to somebody who was a shit heel. If Harvey Levin wanted to interview me, I would tell him to go drown. But if this wasn’t about promoting My Sister’s Keeper and maybe 30 Rock and the movie I’m now doing with Meryl Streep, I wouldn’t waste fucking five minutes on it.

Playboy:  Did you always feel this way?
AB:  When you’re younger you get sold that it’s vital. Bit by bit you see through that. Like the Today show. I’m on an NBC show, and Today was considered vital. But when that voice-mail tape thing happened, Matt Lauer interviewed Levin before he even called me. Lauer put Levin on Today, and they never phoned me. When it’s in their interest to reach me, they know how. I saw that and said, “My relationship with the Today show is over.” I’ll never do Today again, ever. Life’s too short.
P:  But media everywhere focus on TMZ.
B:  NBC will periodically give you that NBC-family spiel. I expected that, since I was starring on an NBC show, I would have gotten a phone call and they would’ve said, “Would you like an opportunity to come in and talk about it?”

Playboy:  Would you have accepted?
AB:  I probably would have done that before I did The View. I raced in to do that show. Whoopi Goldberg is a friend. I called her and said, “Do you think I can get a fair shake?” Because when you talk about family law and parental alienation, there is this unfortunate gender-based dynamic. Could I walk into a show with a strong female audience? Would they understand my point of view? I trusted Whoopi and Barbara Walters. Whoopi is an impeccably decent person, and I am grateful she gave me a forum.

Playboy:  When you hit back at Levin, reports say you outed him as a homosexual. Was that fair?
AB:  No, I don’t think I outed him. I thought Levin had been candid about that. But for a long time he wasn’t. I have nothing against people who are homosexual, but I find it funny that people in that tabloid world keep their own secrets. They want the world at large to respect that but spend their lives outing the secrets of others. I find Levin peculiar and hypocritical.

Playboy:  You’ve had a front-row seat at intrusive celebrity coverage—helicopters at your wedding, photographers trying to snap pictures of your newborn. Is it still this bad for you?
AB:  No. Those magazines focus on people who are younger and newer. I’m 51 and have moved into another world, where they’re done with you—unless you do something. The three quickest ways to get back into that loop are: Don’t pay your federal income taxes, get drunk and try to bolt through airport security with a gun in your suitcase, and last but not least, get a DUI and be arrested in Malibu. A series of events could heat up that pot again, but the benefit of being older is they don’t care about me.

Playboy:  Why is there such an insatiable appetite to see stars in unflattering moments?
AB:  This society is very wired together, and it’s the most neurotic a society has ever been. Twitter, all this stuff, I don’t view as anything good. Everyone is so hyperaware of what everybody else is doing. Everybody has been convinced their opinion should count. We all need to be spouting opinions. I’m now giving you an opinion about opinions.

Playboy:  You are.
AB:  Another element is how distant government has become for the average person. People want their opinion to count somewhere, so they’ve transferred the desires and expectations of their democratic voice over to entertainment. They don’t have any input into what the government does. There is a chasm thousands of miles wide between Washington and the people. That’s why shows like American Idol are so important: People want to think they can affect something in that Roman gladiatorial way—thumbs up or thumbs down. I’m not saying public officials are exempt, because every time the people can gang up and condemn a public official, they do.

Playboy:  When you hosted SNL recently, you jokingly thanked Christian Bale. Whose audio tirade was worse?
AB: Mine was worse by far because it involved parenting. Christian Bale’s was a skirmish with a colleague on set, and the only odd thing was how long it went on. Probably on half the films I’ve done I’ve seen someone lose it. You’re shooting and someone gets in your eye line, or a light blows when you’re really onto something as a performer. A phone goes off or a walkie-talkie. I’ve seen people lose it on behalf of their creative expedition. It’s frustration, nothing personal. Mine was so much different.

Playboy:  What reaction hit you hardest?
AB:  The most harrowing for me was negative mail I got from people who were critical but not hating or condemning. What hurt was that it was heartfelt. They’d say, “My father or my mother did this to me one time, and I’ve never forgotten it, never gotten over it.” Wow. I still believe the people who released the tape only made it worse, but the worst part for me was the way it touched the people who parent their kids. I’m thinking of my next book being about this.

Playboy:  After all that, you’ll write a book about parenting?
AB:  It will be ironic for some people, but I’m going to write a parenting book. We’re at, not a crisis, but an awful place right now in terms of parenting. People are raising their children with the belief that we need to be friends with our children. Kids have too much power and call too many of the shots, telling their parents what they will and won’t do.

Playboy:  Why has this happened?
AB:  In my gut I feel it’s another manifestation of how hard life has become. People are working hard to make money and manage their feelings about what the country’s going through. We live in stressful times. People come home, walk up the driveway, put the key in the door, and they just can’t do another hard job. Parenting your children effectively is a tough job.

Playboy:  You write in your book that after the tape leaked you offered to leave 30 Rock and even thought of jumping out a window. How serious were you?
AB:  Very serious.

Playboy:  What did you learn from all this?
AB:  Don’t lose your temper and act out in that way. I spoke to a lot of professionals, who helped me. If I hadn’t left that message, I wouldn’t have left myself open for that. On the other hand, I left the message with the presumption of privacy. I never dreamed they would do that. I was mortified, stunned. And not for me, because if I blew my brains out, a cadre of people on the other side would be elated. If I committed suicide, they would have considered that a victory. Destroying me was their avowed goal.

Playboy:  This is your ex’s legal team?
AB:  Oh, it’s a whole them. But the important thing is, when they released that, I was devastated for my daughter, who goes to school with other showbusiness kids. When parents are doing their job, these kids admire their moms and dads as entertainment professionals. When you go the opposite way, and this happens—I couldn’t imagine anything more overwhelming for my daughter.

Playboy:  How did you repair your relationship with her?
AB:  All I will say is, I met a therapist, one of the few smart therapists in the court-appointed family-law business. Most of them are racketeers who turn you upside down and shake your pockets out onto the table. But this guy said, “This is hard for you to believe right now, but you are the child’s father, and a child has only one father. Your child will come back to you. Her nature is to come back to you.” And over time that’s indeed what happened.

Playboy:  Ironically, in your new film, My Sister’s Keeper, you play a lawyer in a child-custody battle.
AB:  [Laughs] I tried so hard to put just a little sheen of oil on him.

Playboy:  Did your experiences shape your character?
AB:  No, because if I had put in the things I might have wanted to, it would kill the movie. My character is very sympathetic, an epileptic who has a seizure in the middle of the trial. My guy’s on the right side of the issue, representing a young girl in a medical-emancipation case. He’s not a divorce lawyer, but I tried to give him the requisite oily sheen of most lawyers I know.

Playboy:  Do you really have it in for lawyers?
AB:  I’ve met women since I’ve been single, and the minute I find out one is a lawyer, I’m like, “Check, please.”

Playboy:  Compared with the controversial things you’ve said in the past, your words seem more measured now.
AB:  I think it just doesn’t help anybody. I’ve watched people go at it, like Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump. All the negativity in my ugly assessments of Harvey Levin or my ex-wife’s divorce lawyers, all the negativity that has been in my life—I don’t want that. Let’s say there are 10 people I’ve had real tension and conflict with in the past. I never think about them anymore; none of them live in my life now. I did The Marrying Man with my ex-wife at Disney. A lot went wrong. Almost 20 years ago I did things I would do differently now. Yet 15 years later Michael Eisner called and asked me to do his interview show on CNBC, and he was a delight to talk to. Did I enjoy doing the movie when he ran Disney? No. I set that aside. Jeffrey Katzenberg ran the studio back then, and many of the frictions I had on The Marrying Man were with him. He called and said, “Would you come and do Madagascar with us?” I had a great time; he was an absolute gentleman. You’ve got to set those things aside.

Playboy:  When did you come to this realization?
AB:  For me, everything changed when I turned 50.

Playboy:  How?
AB:  Suddenly life is too short. 30 Rock has spoiled me in terms of realizing there’s nothing like having an audience for what you do. You realize you have plenty of time left but none to waste. And you don’t want to do anything you don’t want to do anymore.

Playboy:  What’s the biggest downside of being 51? What do you miss about the guy who starred in The Marrying Man and The Hunt for Red October?
AB:  About being younger? Having dark hair. When you get older, you look older, and there’s nothing you can do.

Playboy:  At least you have plenty of hair, even if it’s gray.
AB:  I’ve got hair for five guys. That’s one thing I am proud of. I don’t miss much else. I still throw a football with people at work all the time. I play tennis. But now, at 51, boy, my arm hurts the next day. You don’t recover as well, and you don’t want to get hurt. I ski, but if visibility is low, I don’t want to go out. I get a little scared. I don’t have time to lie in bed and recover for four or six weeks from a broken back or collarbone. But I’ll answer that question in a different context, in terms of what I went through in divorce. My only regret in life is that my daughter had to go through what she went through. I wonder how she’ll feel years from now, how it will affect her relationships. That is one of the greatest tragedies of the system, the reason I wrote the book. The most important thing is what is in the best interest of the child, but the system treats parents like mules. They just beat you with this incessant metronome of what’s best for your child. Who cares how much you suffer or how much you spend financially or emotionally? It’s not about you. That is a lie and a huge mistake. It should be that both parents deserve to have a life as well, with some dignity, decency and privacy, without the intrusion of these judges and lawyers, who are just the worst people you’ve met in your life.

Playboy:  Could even a perfect legal system mitigate the bitterness that obviously existed between you and your ex?
AB:  They have to ignore the emotionalized part of it. Judges should sit down and say, “If either of you alienates the child from the other, I will give primary and sole custody to the other person. Don’t do it.” But they don’t want to get in the way of the gamesmanship. Once one alienates the other, it’s more lawyer fees. If you get divorced, if your wife keeps your kids from you, you’re going to spend money to get them. The courts don’t want to get in the way of that commerce. A woman walks in, takes all your behavior as a father, puts it in the blender with the lawyer and paints you as a bad father for the purposes of alienating your child. That has to change.

Playboy:  How did growing up with five siblings in the Long Island town of Massapequa shape you?
AB:  You discover as years go by how much that determines who you become as a person. There are times I love living alone and other times I really miss a house filled with a big family. My dad was a teacher. He didn’t have money, and his six kids had to entertain themselves. My friends had money, boats, country houses, finished basements with pool tables. We had none of that. So it was my brothers and I, playing football, baseball, softball in a field adjacent to a golf course near our house. We lived there. At home everybody told jokes, finding a way to be funny. That led to what we’re all doing.

Playboy:  Were you surprised they followed you into acting?
AB:  My brothers had been putting one another on and entertaining one another out of necessity since they were five years old. I realize ending up in this business was natural for them. I was formed in my home, with my family, living a very simple life. I’m not some bling kind of person, no privatejet guy with big gold-encrusted jewelry. I linger on this because when I think about what the average American is, I think of my dad—the average American who wakes up every morning, puts in the hours trying to hold on to his job and do it well. If I run for office, my goal is to recognize that government doesn’t need to have lower taxes, a smaller budget. It’ll be smaller than now because we are undergoing a correction. But government needs to spend money more responsibly. It’s the only entity in this country authorized to stick its hand in your pocket and take your money, and if you don’t pay, you go to jail. It’s a disgrace, the way they just piss it away. Government needs to build roads, put satellites in the air, have bombs, ships and planes for the defense department, and schools. We need basically everything we have now. We just need to do it better. Let’s say I want you to build a highway. I’d have people come in from all around the world and explain how they built one in Germany, Italy or Riyadh, and I would turn to people in my country and say, “You’ve got six months to build the highway, and if you don’t, you’re fired.” It becomes a reservoir a certain group of politically connected people drinks from. That has to stop.

Playboy:  How?
AB:  Make everyone understand that when you steal on a government contract, it’s almost like treason. If I were president, I would make defense fraud treason. I would make it a treasonous act to play on the security fears of the American people, to have them authorize the building of all these things to defend and protect us, and then have you steal money inside the life of that contract. I’d send you to prison for treason.

Playboy:  What about bailed-out companies like AIG cutting bonus checks?
AB:  That’s a complicated question I don’t even think experts can answer now. People have contracts; it would be illegal to void them. These things were rushed by the former administration. What we need is an SEC that matters. The reason I think I would want to run for office and be good at it is, the way all this should be done is overwhelmingly obvious to me.

Playboy:  Explain.
AB:  You want business, but you’ve got to stand up to business. If a company says, “Hey, you break our chops about exhaust, about our factories…,” you turn to them and say, “Go. Leave. Because the jobs and tax base we’ll lose are less than what it would cost to clean up your mess, what we’ll pay later in hospitals for the people who get cancer from what you’re going to do.” I think our society is evolving that way now. This is the thing that excites me about Barack Obama: He gets that you’ll pay now or later. Tell that corporation to drop dead, get out of your state and move someplace where they need jobs so bad they’ll sell their souls for short-end money.

Playboy:  Every article written about you cites your decision to do A Streetcar Named Desire on Broadway—which cost you Patriot Games—as the reason you dropped off the superstar track. Would you do it differently now?
AB:  I don’t know if I’m so certain and self-assured about the choices I’ve made. Sometimes I think, What if I had done it their way? Where would it have led? You are asked to be a part of a system in which the bulk of the films you make will be forgettable but will give you an opportunity to do certain things creatively. I look at Tom Cruise, who made films that called for him to be young, fit and charming, and that appeal made him a star. When Tom wanted to give a real performance, he made Magnolia. It was like watching some alien that looked like Tom Cruise, because it was nothing you’d ever seen Tom do. That he was not given the Oscar that year for Magnolia was devastating to me. I thought he was breathtaking. Julia Roberts in Erin Brockovich—like Tom, she’s beautiful, charming, smart, funny and winning, yet she plays a self-serving woman, a little coarse and willing to go to considerable lengths to get her way. She won the Oscar. Could I have done that?

Playboy:  How might that system have worked for you?
AB:  You can get into that rhythm of “I’ll do one for them, one for me.” I didn’t do that. I wanted independence. I thought, You want me to do these movies, and they suck. Only later do you realize that if you do the one that sucks, you could do the one you wanted to do and have an audience for it. In spite of the reversals he has had over the past several years, the person who has done the most with that is Mel Gibson. He has made great films in all genres. Mel is everything you want in a movie star, but there’s a layer underneath him. I don’t know if the word is danger or pathos, but there’s a complexity to Mel. Apocalypto is one of the most overwhelming, exhilarating but hideously violent films I’ve ever seen.

Playboy:  You mentioned to me after our first session that you had never made a truly great film. The Departed won an Oscar. You made Glengarry Glen Ross, The Hunt for Red October, The Good Shepherd, Married to the Mob. How can you say that?
AB:  What I meant was, it’s one thing to make a small contribution to a great film. The goal of a film actor is for your name to be above the title in a film that is a soaring commercial success or wins an Oscar. Not you, necessarily, but the film wins something significant.

Playboy:  Is that still your goal?
AB:  I had to let go of that. Whatever dreams of glory I had, so to speak, I no longer have. I’m doing the TV show. When that is over, my eye is looking toward doing something else.

Playboy:  Won’t TV momentum help your future in movies?
AB:  I’ll be too old by then.

Playboy:  Is there a performance you are most proud of?
AB:  No. I don’t have the feeling for anything I’ve done in movies that equals anything in the plays I’ve done. I liked them, but take every supporting role and throw it out the window. You just come in and play your scene. I remember being around Leo DiCaprio in The Aviator and thinking, God, how gifted this guy is, how he’s taking advantage of his opportunities. I love to watch the young actor transition into the grown man on film. There was always something boyish and puckish about Johnny Depp, but I’ll never forget watching Sweeney Todd and feeling profoundly impressed by his performance.

Playboy:  You say you have no regrets, but it sounds as if you wish you had trusted the system more.
AB:  Yes, not that I should have but rather what might have resulted if I had? A lot depends on who sponsors you in that club. If you’re a young De Niro and you forge into a unit with Martin Scorsese or Woody Allen and the company of actors that included his former wife, or Leo with Scorsese—I didn’t have that. It’s like they’re asking you to walk down a dark alley. If it’s the right people, a door at the end leads to a fabulous wonderland. But the people who asked me to come down the alleyway? I was like, “Eh…let me get back to you.”

Playboy:  Should you have gone down the alleyway anyway?
B:  From time to time I wonder. Maybe I say this to myself just to medicate whatever anxiety I have, but had it worked out, I might have been seduced into doing that the rest of my life. I do not want to do this for the rest of my life. There are other things I want to do. I do what I do on a case-by-case basis, and I see that this is going to end, probably very soon.

Playboy:  By your choice?
AB:  It doesn’t really matter. More my choice, since I want to do other things. This is the jail with golden bars, but it would be so horrible for me to read this article and not have said there is a lot of wonderful in this business, a lot I’m going to miss. God knows, to walk away will be hard, but I’m trying to have the discipline to understand that I want to have other experiences. Maybe a private life.

Playboy:  Is that realistic?
AB:  I have this silly fantasy. I get married again, I have a kid. I’d love another shot at that, with everything I’ve learned. My kid’s like eight, comes home and says, “Dad, Jimmy’s mom says you were a famous actor on TV and in the movies. Is that true?” And I go, “Yes, Johnny, Dad was famous.” I whip out my scrapbooks and my DVDs and say, “Believe it or not, that’s your dad.” And my kid’s like, “You used to be on TV and everything? And now you stay home and just clean the house all day while Mom works?” “That’s right, son.” It’s a dream, that the kid doesn’t know anything about that part of my life. Our normal life is uncontaminated by it.

Playboy:  How long are you committed to 30 Rock?
AB: I’ve got three more years to go.

Playboy:  Will you run for office?
AB:  I’ll put it this way. The desire is there; that’s one component. The other component is opportunity. A law firm in a liberal Democratic bastion in Ohio state politics sent me a binder with a cover letter that read, “Mr. Baldwin, here’s who we represent, the kinds of cases we handle, our credentials in Ohio state politics. We want you to move to Ohio and run for governor. We will launch your career.”

Playboy:  Could you live in Ohio?
AB:  I have sometimes thought I could move to New Jersey or Connecticut and run. I’d love to run against Joe Lieberman. I have no use for him. But it’s all fantasy. I’m a carry-me-out-in-a-box New Yorker. Here, anything can happen. Who thought Eliot Spitzer would go down the way he did? Senator Hillary Clinton left to serve as secretary of state. Two of the biggest forces gone. Maybe Andrew Cuomo will run for one of their old seats. How much longer will Chuck Schumer stay as senator? After 2013 Bloomberg will be gone. What happens then? Do I run for Congress on Long Island? What’s Tim Bishop going to do? He represents my district. People get sick, die. They’re offered lucrative deals and want to cash in and make money for their retirement. People misstep. Unfortunately, an opportunity for me may mean bad things for someone else. I don’t wish that.

Playboy:  How does all this factor into your career?
AB:  I’m done in 2012. In March 2012 I’ll wake up and say, “What am I going to do now? Am I done?” I think I will be done. I may finish a play or something, but I’m retiring at the wrap party.

Interview courtesy of Playboy. To view the interview as it originally appears, click here.

But don’t fear! There is a call to action! True horror aficionados have taken up a Facebook Petition to reinstate FEARnet on Time Warner and BrightHouse.

If 50,000 Fearnet fans sign the Facebook petition by the May 15, 2009 deadline, Time Warner will consider the number of members in this group and decide if FEARnet will return, or they may extend the deadline to recruit more signups needed to get FEARnet back on the air!

Go here to sign the petition…

The deadline for signups is fast approaching…save quality horror programming on Time Warner and Bright House Cable!

To  find out about FEARnet availability in your area, call (877) FEAR-247 to connect you to your local cable company to request FEARnet to be added to your service.

The contest is limited just to six cities, and your local NBC affiliate is sponsoring the event. The LA deadline for entry is May 15, 2009.

A special “magic word” will be aired, beginning May 4, during the NBC programs “The Bonnie Hunt Show”, “Ellen” and “Extra”. To enter, visit the following link and enter your Zip code, then follow the on-screen instructions for the specific show you watched: Click here…

Daily prizes will also be available including Harry Potter movies on Blu ray and DVD, video games, toys and more. The prize packs from NBC include various apparel and memorabilia from these shows, as well as an exclusive Harry Potter pendant: Check it out here…

Also, LA’s The Place has been presented with the opportunity to give our readers the chance to win a Harry Potter Blu-ray movie, DVD movie or video game as an Amazon gift for the winner of our own contest. Just subscribe to LA’s The Place here, and several lucky winners will be chosen!

Shows to watch for your chance to enter:

New York, WNBC   5/4 – 5/22                     
Los Angeles, KNBC  4/20 – 5/8                                 
Chicago, WMAQ    5/4 – 5/22                                 
San Francisco, KNTV  4/20 – 5/8                     
Dallas, KXAS  4/20 – 5/8                                 
Miami, WTVJ  4/27 – 5/15                                
*1st week is pre-promotion
 
Show Tune-in Info by Market and Affiliate URL

•         NY WNBC: Bonnie: 2 pm, Ellen: 3 pm, Extra: 7 pm – www.NBCnewyork.com
•         LA KNBC:  Bonnie: 12 pm, Ellen: 4 pm, Extra: 7 pm – www.NBCLA.com
•         CH WMAQ:  Bonnie: 2P, Ellen: 3P, Extra: 4 pm – www.NBCchicago.com
•         DL KXAS:  Bonnie: 11 am, Ellen 3 pm, Extra 6:30 pm – www.NBCbayarea.com
•         SF KNTV:  Bonnie: 2 pm, Ellen: 4 pm, Extra: 7 pm – www.NBCdfw.com
•         MI WTVJ:   Bonnie: 3 pm, Extra 4:30 pm, Ellen: 5 pm – www.NBCmiami.com
 
Prizes being given away daily:

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on BluRay
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Videogame—Wii (available to public on 6/30)
HP20Q (Electronic Trivia Game)  
Harry Potter Clue Games
Harry Potter Soundtrack
Chicago Only:  Harry Party Exhibit Family 4-packs 
Harry Potter Jibbitz
Harry Potter Tshirts