Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
In 1997, Kimberla Lawson Roby couldn’t get an agent or a publishing house interested in her first novel. Today she’s a New York Times best-selling author who writes a book every year for a major distributor. Her latest juicy work of fiction is “Sin No More,” which revisits her most popular character, the Rev. Curtis Black.
Fairy tales often end happily ever after the couple vows to each other, “I do.” Anastasia Royal knows better. With her debut novel “Undoing I Do,” the Wilmette-based author paints a funny, poignant and realistic portrait of what happens when a golden couple’s marriage unravels.
Since winning the Academy Award for her breakthrough performance in “Children of a Lesser God,” Marlee Matlin has been renowned for her acting. But Matlin also is an accomplished author of children’s books.
When Karen Underhill entered his office 18 years ago, psychiatrist Richard Baer had no idea that his troubled patient would become the subject of his debut book, “Switching Time.”
“It’s an amazing time for me,” says Courtney Thorne-Smith. Besides starring in the popular ABC sitcom “According to Jim,” the 39-year-old actress is happily married, pregnant with her first child and has just made her debut as an author with the juicy novel Outside In.
When Beth Kohl was working on her M.F.A. at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, she didn’t want to be known as “that IVF” woman. By then, she had already gained a reputation for writing eloquent class assignments about her reproductive journey — which would become the seed for her debut as an author. But she didn’t want to be pigeonholed.
With her first novel, “Free Food for Millionaires,” Min Jin Lee has won the praise of literary critics. Though 562 pages, the book is a true page-turner, with a Korean-American protagonist and a compelling plot involving the universal clash of cultures, adultery and class distinction.
When entrepreneur Irving “Bud” Levin started the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1957, his intention was to compete with the prestigious festivals already thriving in Berlin, Cannes, Edinburgh and Venice and to establish the U.S. as a viable member of the international film-festival circuit. Today, as its 50th anniversary edition begins (the event runs through May 10), it’s clear that America’s oldest film festival, which features 25 juried awards and is presented by the San Francisco Film Society, has established a venerable presence on the North American circuit — even though it might not necessarily have eclipsed, say, the Sundance Film Festival just yet.
For almost everyone in the entertainment business, awards season culminated with the Oscar ceremony late last month. But for J. Wayne Anderson and Mary Ann Anderson, 2007’s ShoWesters of the Year, the festivities are only just beginning.
More than two decades ago, an Israeli rock star affectionately known to his fans as Poogy decided to create his own film festival. An avid lover of the arts and an actor himself, Poogy invested $35,000 of his own money into the venture and formed a fest designed to showcase the work of Israeli filmmakers. He was unsure of how film fans would react to his project, but he was certain that it was something he had to try.
During her recent three-week trip to Vietnam, actress Jordana Spiro made do with just one backpack. “Really, there’s almost nothing you can’t buy there if you need it,” she says. “It’s a completely amazing place and I’d go back in a second.”
Slamdance Film Festival co-founder and president Peter Baxter knows all too well what goes into making a movie and trying to find an audience for it. Baxter currently is working with James Zalcman on “Wild in the Streets,” a documentary about a rough English sport that was the precursor to soccer.
A crop of outstanding documentaries bravely examines some of the modern world’s most pressing issues — from global warming to free speech.
Penelope Cruz is an anomaly. As talented as she is gorgeous, the 32-year-old thesp has defied categorization. At a time when actresses complain about a lack of juicy roles for women, Cruz balances a career that includes Hollywood blockbusters and foreign films in which she speaks fluent Italian, French and her native Spanish. She’s a red-carpet favorite, and during her off-time, she’s not above punking her good friend Salma Hayek.
The “It” factor isn’t something actors can learn, hustle or buy. Either they have it or they don’t. And every year, television produces a break out star or two that has it. Last year, it was Wentworth Miller (“Prison Break”). Never mind that he wore a prison uniform and a buzz cut for the entire season.
Back then, Hollywood was respectable, much like the rest of America. A secret was a secret to be kept, and the studio moguls made sure they were kept.
In both the book “Memoirs of a Geisha” and its film adaptation, women fall into two categories: sexy geisha and conniving dragon ladies, two stereotypes about Asian women that linger today. Already some members of the Asian-American community are worried that the film, which opens locally Friday, may reinforce unflattering images of Asian women as being submissive, sexual objects.
We live in a time when the media tell us who we are. What “Lost” has done is tell the world what Asians aren’t. We aren’t all martial arts experts. We aren’t all college educated and over-employed. We’re not always the model minority. We don’t all own dry-cleaning businesses. And just as importantly, we’re not all nice.
Minnie Driver knew that when she released her debut album, “Everything I’ve Got in My Pocket,” some would be quick to dismiss her as just another actor-turned-wannabe-singer.
By Jae-Ha Kim Chicago Sun-Times November 25, 2004 When his manager called to ask if he wanted to co-host television coverage of the 71st annual State Street Thanksgiving Parade, Ricardo Chavira said no. “I love […]