Tiger and Charlie in 'Rehab'? Really?
April, 07, 2010 4:04 pm | Comments On #Charlie Sheen, rehab, tiger woodsThere’s no denying the inescapable pull of celebrity gossip. Of course, there are many people who claim to be above it all. I call them liars.
We always want to know what’s going on in the spheres of the famous, wealthy and beautiful. I’m sure that some of the cave art depicts the story of a chief cheating on his wife or a buffalo thief who got caught – a kind of US Weekly, but with higher journalistic standards. Today, we get breaking celebrity news that carries the same weight as wars breaking out or natural disasters.
It’s hard to get worked up over things happening halfway around the world to strangers but somehow we all feel like we know our celebrities and have in depth, detailed opinions about their life choices. After all, haven’t we paid money to see their movies or can quote endlessly...
Read MoreThe Fantastic in 'Mr. Fox'
December, 17, 2009 6:15 pm | Comments On #George Clooney, Mali Perl, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Wes AndersonI think that Wes Anderson, and in particular Wes Anderson movies, are a love-it-or-hate-it kind of thing.
Either you find his point of view unique and charming or irritatingly precious. There’s really no in-between.
While I’m firmly on Team Anderson (the shirts are artistically rendered and the cheers are quite literate), I can see the other point of view.
"Bottle Rocket," his first movie, stands alone in look but has the same tone and topics as his other movies. "Rushmore" was the opening act, a taste of things to come.
"The Royal Tenenbaums" is probably the best known, and its themes of estranged (and strange) families and sensitive and misunderstood sons, along with a perfectly edited soundtrack of 1960s and 1970s music (not Foreigner) and almost obsessively curated looks are echoed, revived and revisited in...
Read MoreNot so Much 'Mad' Men as Miserable
November, 01, 2009 2:34 pm | Comments On #Mad MenMy Do-It-Yourself TV Season
September, 29, 2009 1:04 pm | Comments On #Damages, Life, Mad Men, Project Runway, Rachel Zoe ProjectThe Legacy of John Hughes: Lost Youth
August, 09, 2009 11:59 am | Comments On #John HughesThere are certain elements that exist in every John Hughes movie: someone lives on the wrong side of the tracks (and there are actual tracks); money is a big part of people’s lives, whether they have it or they don’t; the music is perfect; and the beautiful agony of being a teenager is treated, for once, with respect and kindness.
My parents were strict about age-appropriate entertainment, so my early John Hughes exposure occurred only after the movies were available on video and were in rotation as the Sunday afternoon movie. My elementary school best friend, through a combination of benignly negligent parents and her own VCR, was the main supplier.
I can’t remember in what order I saw them or exactly how old I was but for me, there are five main films that constitute what it means to be a John Hughes fan: "Sixteen Candles,"...
Read MoreMemo to You Crybaby WME Assistants ...
July, 31, 2009 12:30 pm | Comments On #Ari Emanuel, Ari Gold, assistants pay, Patrick Whitesell, William Morris Endeavor, WMEWilliam Morris Endeavor, the new powerhouse agency, announced to its New York assistants that their pay will be reduced to between $10 to $14 hours.
Being an assistant at an agency is a training program that can best be described as a mix of boot camp, Abu Ghraib and the worst fraternity on campus. For these Ivy league overachievers, the immediate goal is usually to get on a "good desk," become a junior agent and then wake up 10 years later as Ari Gold, hopefully without remembering everything you did to get there.
This isn't for wimps or crybabies -- yet I imagine that being reduced to NYC dogwalker wages (babysitters get paid more) would unleash (so to speak) a rebellion. Is it possible that the coming weeks will bring guerilla warfare to WME? What if …
From: WME HR
To: All NY Assistants
It's been two hours...
Read MoreOscars: A Look Back At Coulda-Been Contenders
July, 01, 2009 11:53 am | Comments On #The public was caught off-guard by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s announcement that the best picture category would now allow for 10 nominations.
Which prompted me to whip up this made-up memo. The Academy likes memos.
To: All Academy Members
After much consideration and extensive deliberations, the Academy has decided to broaden the nominees for the six major categories to 10 nominees.
As this may come as a shock to our members, I thought it best to give some insight into the decision-making behind such a momentous change. Our rigorous due diligence process required that we screen all movies released within a calendar year that would have been eligible for nomination.
Upon thorough review, we found many examples of fine movies and...
Read MoreIt's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Sheen
December, 31, 1969 4:00 pm | Comments On #Charlie Sheen, Television, Two and a Half MenI know that we’re expected to shake our heads at poor Chuckles. We read about his exploits and listen to his radio rants, watching in real time as a talented guy blows up his career. We’re supposed to pity him as a cautionary tale, a deluded and delusional example of celebrity ego run rampant, the guy who Mel Gibson’s grateful to, the living reminder that keeps Robert Downey Jr on the straight and narrow.
I’m not arguing that Sheen isn’t all of these things, along with being the poster boy for substance abuse with a history of violence towards women thrown in for good measure. But there is one thing I do appreciate about Sheen, something that sets him apart from today’s...
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Description
Mali Perl lives on the East Coast but her mind is always on Hollywood time. She enjoys A-listers, G6 travel, VIP treatment, Us Weekly and having a security detail. Her pet peeves include actors with two first names, waiting in lines, "just being nominated" and unflattering videos on TMZ.
