Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
Directing Gary Hobson wasn’t difficult for Kyle Chandler. After all, Chandler has played Hobson on the CBS series “Early Edition” for four years. What did present a challenge for Chandler was shooting scenes that centered on Gary, without being able to view himself in action as it happened.
A brief statement said the prospective parents “are happy to confirm the rumors that they are expecting a child at the end of this year.” “We would be grateful if the media would kindly allow us some privacy at this special time, and we thank you all for your good wishes,” said Ritchie, director of “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.”
Not yet 20, Jonny Lang is a blues veteran. He’s been on the road touring since he was 13, earned fame by 16 and was nominated for a Grammy at 19.
When your name’s Bela Lugosi Jr., sometimes people don’t hear the “junior” part. “I’m not sure if my name is a blessing or a curse,” says Lugosi, 62, son of the late horror movie legend who starred in “Dracula.” “There are some people who assume that because my dad was an actor, that I must’ve wanted to become one, too. Early on, I took my dad’s good advice and stayed out of the talent side of entertainment. Instead, I became a lawyer.”
In “Scream 3,” the movie’s heroine asks a detective what he knows about trilogies. He answers, “In the third one, all bets are off.” All bets are on that the latest entry in the “Scream” franchise will fare as well as its predecessors. After opening last Friday, “Scream 3” went on to gross $34.7 million in its first weekend–more than all the rest of the films in the top 10 combined.
Former Chicagoan Bob Bass lost his chance to become a millionaire. And he wants a second shot at it. As a contestant on last week’s highly popular game show “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” Bass was asked which U.S. president was the youngest at his inauguration. He answered John F. Kennedy. The show maintains that the correct answer is Theodore Roosevelt.
It’s one thing watching a guy play bass on stage. It’s another thing seeing him walk toward you in a club. So when Caroline Ansani saw Ted – the man who would become her husband – venturing toward her, she busted a move.
Collaborating with brothers is nothing new to Patrick Cassidy, whose real-life siblings are former teen idols David and Shaun. But how about the six nephews of Donny Osmond, the singer whom many folks still associate with the starring role in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”?
Remember how you threw out your Partridge Family lunch box when you hit high school? Chances are that if you had held onto it, you’d be up $160. Oops.
Former Luvabull Jody Russell is following in the footsteps of Paula Abdul, who parlayed a cheerleading gig into a singing career.
“Fatty Drives the Bus” sure sounds odd enough to be the followup to the Annoyance Theatre’s best known production, “Co-Ed Prison Sluts.” But the feature – which hits video stores today – actually marks the Chicago-based improv troupe’s first foray into film.
For as long as Justin Roman can remember, he has wanted to be a singer. Even as an all conference pitcher at Roselle’s Lake Park High School, he deejayed in his spare time, and thrilled to the music of his idol, Michael Jackson.
Dr. Drew Pinsky is known to thousands as the guy on MTV’s “Loveline,” but now he’s got a Web site, too.
Love them or hate them. But the four musicians in the English rock band Bush don’t want to invoke indifference. “Most of the bands that I hear don’t generate anything in me,” Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale says. “It’s impossible for everyone to like everyone, so I don’t take any of this personally. There are plenty of people who are regarded as geniuses, and I don’t think they are at all.”
Just when you think that Canadians really aren’t that different from Americans, there’s this little matter of ketchup chips. Len vocalist Sharon Costanzo is munching on a big bag of this treat when she phones from Toronto for an interview.
“I would like to think that it’s my glowing talent that got me cast in `Bluff,’ ” says John Cryer, laughing. “Did I get cast because I’m a `star’? If casting me can get people to come to the theater, that’s great. But I think that Chicagoans support theater regardless of who’s in the cast.”
If you were a Korean-American girl growing up in San Francisco in the 1970s, there weren’t too many Asian celebrity role models to pick from. So Margaret Cho chose pop star Olivia Newton-John: an Australian.
It was a dog on a motorcycle that caught Kathryn Chandler’s eyes. The guy with the dog was Kyle Chandler, star of CBS’ “Early Edition” (which is filmed in Chicago). But back in 1993, there was no “Early Edition.” And Kathryn hadn’t seen Kyle in any of his other roles. All she knew was that any man giving a big dog a ride on his motorcycle was a little eccentric.
At the end of the month, Olivia Newton-John will get out of jail. In a movie role, of course. “I begin shooting `Sordid Lives’ when this tour is over,” Newton-John says, phoning from Atlantic City, N.J. “I play a singer who just got out of jail. So she’s a little tough. I think it’ll be fun for me because it’s so interesting to do different things.” Playing a felon isn’t something that fazes Newton-John. But playing a guitar is.
A good sequel is like money in the bank. But is it also an oxymoron? Not necessarily, as proven by a couple of this summer’s biggest followups. During its first three days of release, “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me” made $1 million more than the original “Powers” grossed during its entire theatrical run.