entertainmentdissected

Just a quick note to say I’ve been away the last few days, with less time to post. But there always is some entertainment buzz to ponder…

Like, will Kara DioGuardi be back on American Idol next year? She says she only came on for one season, but she hopes to be back. Mixed feelings abound on Ms. DioGuardi, and they will be examined here soon.

And how big will the box office take for Fox’s X Men Origins: Wolverine be this weekend? The Marvel comic book tale grossed $35 million in its first day alone, from a record 4,099 theaters- so we’re looking at a pretty sizable debut for Hugh Jackman’s pumped-up superhero.

The television season is winding down, with a flurry of season finales (of most interest to this blogger, ones airing on ABC) hitting over the next few weeks. How will Desperate Housewives conclude this season, without resident bitch Edie Britt in the equation? What will happen to Izzie on Grey’s Anatomy? How much more drams can the Walkers of Brothers and Sisters handle?

Finally, American Idol and Dancing With the Stars will crown their eighth champions by the end of the month. Will Paula Abdul be able to rest easy and revel in a Danny Gokey-Adam Lambert finale? Or will she suffer a meltdown if one of them fails to make it? And, will early dancing favorite Gilles Marini make it all the way to the finals, or find himself shut out by the ladies?

Keep alert of the action…

The big entertainment news today comes from actor Ashton Kutcher’s reaching 1 million followers on the social networking site, Twitter. Yes, that is the big news.

For days, the media and has hyped the race between Mr. Demi Moore and CNN. When all was said and done, Kutcher hit the mark late last night, becoming the first registered Twitter-er (?) to boast 1 million followers.

For those Twitter-ignorant folk out there, the premise is rather basic- in 140 words or less, members post updates on what they’re doing, thinking, contemplating, whatever musings they wish. More limited than Facebook and lacking the flash and multi-media barrage that MySpace offers, somehow Twitter has found a niche as the third-most-popular social networking site of the moment, behind No. 1 Facebook (probably the best site for finding old classmates and people with whom you’ve lost touch) and No. 2 MySpace. (Oprah Winfrey even posted her first “tweet” on her talk show today.)

On the surface, this Kutcher-CNN contest looked ridiculous, with Kutcher virtually campaigning all week after discovering his followers count rivaled that of the cable news channel. So, now he has 1 million followers- what does it give him, other than bragging rights to Mr. TwitPopular? It may be a cool way to communicate with fans, keep them up to date on goings-on- but the idea of having 1 million followers is just as silly as having 1 million “friends” on MySpace.

Then again, why set a limit, when even having 500 or more “friends” on any social networking site borders on excessive- as if we intimately know most of the people on our friends list. But, that’s not what it’s about- it’s either used as a networking tool (which isnt’ such a bad idea) or, “Oohh, look how many ‘friends’ he has, let me get him on my list, too, I wanna have as many friends as I can!” Uh huh- may as well be back in high school if we’re looking at it from that point of view.

That’s not to say Twitter use yields no meaningful impact. Kutcher pledged to buy 10,000 mosquito nets if he got to 1 million followers before any other person or entity- a promise he intends to honor by writing a $100,000 check to the Malaria No More Fund.

Maybe Kutcher’s generosity will signal a trend of positive and meaningful happenings resulting from social networking site usage. As trivial as Twitter may be, hopefully the site stays in the headlines for reasons like the followers contest and charity, and not for the notorious online-communicators-meeting-in-person disasters that have plagued sites like MySpace and Facebook.

So be careful, have at it and tweet away.

JR’s Favorite Musical Females list concluded yesterday, and I hope those who stopped by and checked it out enjoyed my musings.

At the moment, I’m contemplating a Favorite Musical Males list, in addition to a Favorite Musical Groups list. I can’t promise that my posts will contain the same level of passion as some of my female postings, but I will try my darnedest.

My apologies for “slacking” on the blog this month- it’s the end of the year and that usually brings some chaos and such (plus, losing someone this year who was most dear to me has made this time of year especially difficult). So don’t fear that lack of entertainment goings-on is to blame for the non-entries.

This past week, Eartha Kitt passed away- perhaps best known as one of the ladies who purred her way to havoc as Catwoman on the campy Batmanseries of the 60’s (Julie Newmar also portrayed the villainess in the series, while Lee Meriwether pulled duty in the big screen spin-off), she also appeared in numerous films and on stage. Aside from Batman, another of Kitt’s signature works was her 1953 recording of “Santa Baby,” which Madonna brought to modern prominence on 1987’s Special Olympics charity album, A Very Special Christmas. After expressing anti-war sentiments in 1968, Kitt experienced a U.S. backlash and concentrated on working overseas.

Meanwhile, Oscar ballots are in the mail. Nominations will be announced January 22- will The Dark Knighttakes its rightful place as a Best Picture contender? The on-screen reunion of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet likely will land their Revolutionary Road in that category. Frost/Nixon and Brad Pitt’s The Curious Case of Benajmin Buttonappear as likely nominees, with no clear favorites for the remaining two spots left open, which could leave room for Batman and Company. But, don’t gasp if Oscar leaves the super-hero dazzler out of the running, given it hasn’t shown too much past love for the genre.

On the music charts, Taylor Swift’s Fearlessis holding tight to the top of the Billboard 200, selling around 330,000 units in the pre-Christmas-week frame. The album should sail past the 2 million mark this week, making it one of just three 2008 releases to scan more than 2 million copies in the USA (the other two being Lil’ Wayne and Coldplay). On the Hot 100 singles chart, Beyonce’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” continues to hold the top spot; her “If I Were a Boy” also occupies the No. 10 position. In fact, Beyonce, T.I. and Britney Spears each have two tracks in the top 10- so no doubt you’re seeing a lot of double when scrolling the top 10 this week.

The big television event coming in the new year undoubtedly is the start of American Idol’s eighth season. Despite recent comments chastising Idol producers for allowing a crazed, now-deceased fan (thanks to a suicide) access to her during fifth-season tryouts, Paula Abdul will remain as one of four judges this season (the original three now joined by Karo DioGuardi, who producers insist is not an Abdul replacement).

Adding a fourth judge is just one change producers are making to Idolthis season. Other changes include: decreasing the number of audition episodes (thereby lessening the exposure on the vocally challenged) while increasing the number of pre-semifinal Hollywood-round showings; having 36 contestants for the semifinal round (up from 24); reinstituting the wild card round, allowing eliminated contestants the opportunity to snare a spot in the top 12; and, axing charity telethon “Idol Gives Back,” which saw a major ratings decline this year.

On that note, much thanks for the patience, and check back more often for some in-depth dissections, interspersed with some notable entertainment buzz and news. Hope you had a nice holiday and have an even better new year.- JR

Rather than blog on one topic today, I’m taking a few items from the entertainment world and offering a few anecdotes (which could become a weekend-type alternative to one-topic blogging). So much entertainment, so little time, after all.

* Janet Jackson: Now, I just wrote about her the other day, and how she’s postponed a few Rock Witchu shows within the last week. Doctors haven’t commented on Jackson’s illness, but brother Randy claims she suffers from vertigo, a condition which disturbs the equilibrium and causes dizziness and the sensation of falling. Jackson was set to resume her tour in North Carolina tonight, but, alas, following doctor’s orders, this show has been postponed as well. And rumor is that tomorrow’s a no-go for the Atlanta show. Are fans starting to get annoyed at all these changes in itinerary? Of course, Jackson’s health comes first, but the woman hasn’t toured in seven years, and if the postponement trend continues, many fans may opt just to skip the engagement altogether.

* Howard Stern: The self-proclaimed King of All Media tied his second knot this weekend- to longtime gal pal Beth Ostrosky. Stern- who’s enjoyed a three-decade career as radio’s favorite shock jock- previously spent 23 years married to college sweetheart Alison Berns, with whom he has three daughters. Fifty-four-year-old Stern always prided himself in his fidelity to Berns, passing up opportunities to tango (off the air) with strippers and porn stars who appeared on his show. I imagine it takes a confident woman to barely bat an eyelash at Stern’s on-air cavorting, not to mention his impeccable and tasteful humor that tackles all things scatological, racial and sexual- after all, it’s all about the art, right? In any event, will his daughters call Beth Mommy No. 2? Probably not, as 36-year-old Ostrosky is just 11 years or so older than Stern’s eldest daughter, Emily. Congrats to the newlyweds, who have been an item since 2000.

* The VP Debate: Thursday evening’s vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Tina Fey- oops, make that Sarah Palin- drew an estimated 70 million viewers, making it the second-most-watched political debate ever, according to Nielsen Media Research. The champ? The sole 1980 debate between President Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, which drew an estimated 80.6 million. The Biden-Palin discussion attracted much more interest than the first Barack Obama-John McCain debate. Imagine the possibilities if Hillary Clinton had been involved in either? She probably would be a more formidable opponent to McCain, and people would have loved to see a Clinton-Palin match up You know how heated it can get with two strong females engaged in verbal combat; when Clinton debated Obama, she kept things on the non-confrontational side, but I can’t help think that she would have upped her debating game even more if she were Obama’s VP choice, and wouldn’t have hesitated to show Palin who the stronger (not to mention more experienced and knowledgeable) politician was- that’s not to take anything away from Palin, though, who after some less successful television interviews, handled herself quite well against Biden.

Ah well- if for some unfathomable reason, the Republican party takes the White House again, maybe in 2012 Clinton again will attempt to become the first female president. However, as much as I admire and respect Clinton and would like to see her give it another go, I’m hoping there isn’t a McCain presidency for her to combat in four years. George W. Bush: The Sequel, we do not need.