Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
You can’t talk about progressive rock without mentioning the band Yes. Yes is progressive rock. The band, formed in 1968, and known for hits such as “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” “Roundabout” and “I’ve Seen All Good People,” has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide and enjoys touring and meeting their fans. Chris Squire, who founded the group with Jon Anderson, says it never ceases to amaze him how many fans show up to support them.
Best known as Ari Gold’s much maligned assistant Lloyd on “Entourage,” Rex Lee has become a fan favorite on the hit HBO series. With just a stare and a well-placed word, Lee is a scene-stealer, especially when he spars with his cantankerous boss Ari (Jeremy Piven). “I found out after I got the role that they didn’t have an Asian American actor in mind for the part originally,” says Lee, 39. “Women auditioned, African Americans, everyone. I was told they didn’t quite know what they wanted until I walked through the door and showed them what they wanted.” Laughing, he adds, “And I choose to believe that!”
Having music legends as parents can be daunting. But Benjamin Taylor takes it all in stride. The son of James Taylor and Carly Simon, the 31-year-old singer-songwriter has his own successful career. Currently promoting his latest album “The Legend of Kung Folk Part 1,” Taylor’s eclectic musical style actually pays homage to David Bowie and the Roots than to his own lineage.
Best known for playing Marcia on “The Brady Bunch,” Maureen McCormick has a new generation of fans, thanks to her spunky appearances on reality shows such as “Celebrity Fit Club” and “Gone Country.” But reality TV has nothing on the actress’s drama-filled early years. In her page-turning memoir “Here’s the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice” (William Morrow, $25.95), McCormick — now 52 — reveals that life wasn’t as perfect as it seemed on “The Brady Bunch.”
Comedian Jamie Kennedy is used to getting laughs in the United States, thanks to his work in the “Scream” films and his TV show “The Jamie Kennedy Experiment.” But making foreign audiences laugh wasn’t something he felt confident he could accomplish.
Juliana Hatfield had a knack for penning clever songs with her group the Blake Babies. She was an indie sensation. What her fans didn’t know was that Hatfield was battling an eating disorder and depression. With her telling memoir “When I Grow Up” (Wiley, $24.95), Hatfield describes her life as a rock star. She also writes about being filled with self-doubt. Hatfield, who also has a new CD out called “How to Walk Away,” is an avid traveler who got the bug to get up and go at a young age.
Even Rick Springfield is surprised that his latest album — “Venus in Overdrive” — has charted higher than his 1982 breakthrough record “Working Class Dog.” The latter spawned the hit singles “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Love is Alright Tonite” and, of course, “Jessie’s Girl.” As well known for his singing as his tall, angular good looks, Springfield is back on the road to promote “Venus.”
Born in the United States to Korean parents and raised in Canada — where she calls Vancouver home — Grace Park got the travel bug early. Though concurrent roles on “The Cleaner” and “Battlestar Galactica” — as well as the Canadian series “The Border” — preclude her from taking as many vacations as she’d like, Park says visiting new countries is one of the joys in life she shares with her husband, Phil Kim. India and Brazil hold special places in Park’s heart, but her favorite destination thus far is Italy’s quaint Vernazza.
Margaret Cho knows a thing or two about traveling. After beginning her standup career at 16, she toured the United States nonstop, bringing her unique brand of comedy to venues across the country. At 26, she broke barriers with her short-lived ABC sitcom “All-American Girl,” where she played a fictionalized version of herself. It was the first American television series where all the lead actors were Asian-American. In her standup routines, Cho talks frankly about how producers asked her at times to try to be more — and less — Asian. Now 39, Cho is ready to debut her new VH1 series “The Cho Show.”
Janis Ian is back in the news thanks to her provocative memoir “Society’s Child” (Tarcher/Penguin, $26.95). Ian, 57, recounts her life as a teenage prodigy and lets readers get a glimpse of how she came up with her hit songs (“At Seventeen,” “Society’s Child”), the sexual abuse she suffered as a child and her friendship with Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.
It’s not easy for the child of any celebrity to come out of their parent’s shadow. But Simone — the daughter of the legendary Nina Simone — makes it look effortless. A talented singer in her own right who performed on Broadway in “Rent” and “Aida,” the 46-year-old beauty is nonplussed by the comparisons some critics have made between the songs on her debut album “Simone on Simone” and her mother’s classic recordings.
It has been three decades since Henry Winkler became a pop culture icon, thanks to his scene-stealing portrayal of the Fonz on “Happy Days.” These days, the actor has a whole new generation of fans, thanks to his Hank Zipzer: The World’s Greatest Underachiever series of children’s books. Hank, an irrepressible fourth-grader, deals with dyslexia, bullies and a potential love interest in the latest installment — “The Life of Me: Enter at Your Own Risk” ($5.99, Gosset & Dunlap).
Singer KT Tunstall has always been environmentally conscious. When she began touring to promote her quadruple platinum debut album “Eye to the Telescope,” Tunstall traveled on a biodiesel-powered bus. “It’s unacceptable to tour using non-environmentally friendly fuel when there are alternatives,” says the outspoken Scot whose London home benefits from the use of reclaimed wood, Thermafleece wool insulation and solvent-free paint.
Clay Aiken is in the news a lot these days. Besides getting good reviews for his performance in the Broadway musical “Spamalot,” the former “American Idol” contestant is busy promoting his latest album “On My Way Here.” But the congenial redhead is keeping mum about the juicy tidbit that has the tabloids drooling: becoming a baby daddy with his good friend Jaymes Foster, who also executive produced his CD. Aiken is more vocal about his love of music and traveling.
Pattie Boyd is one of rock ‘n’ roll’s most famous muses. Married first to George Harrison and later to his best friend Eric Clapton, Boyd was the inspiration for such songs as “Something,” “Layla” and “Wonderful Tonight.” In her New York Times bestselling memoir “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me” (Three Rivers Press, $14.95) – just released in paperback – Boyd talks not only about her life with the musicians, but also her early love of travel and exploration. Based in her native Great Britain, the former model prefers being behind the camera these days. Though Boyd cites India, Africa and Thailand as a few of her favorite destinations, she says there’s nothing quite like Venezuela.
With their telegenic good looks and lush music videos, which were filmed in such exotic locations as Sri Lanka, Antigua and France, Duran Duran helped put MTV on the map in the ’80s. More than two decades after the success of “Hungry Like the Wolf,” the British quartet is back with its new album “Red Carpet Massacre.”
It has been a busy year for John Cho. He has been cast as Sulu in the upcoming “Star Trek” film to be released in 2009 and he reprised his role as the stoner Harold in “Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay” – the sequel to the 2004 hit comedy “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle.” But the 35-year-old actor — who was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in Los Angeles — is about to tackle his most important role: that of dad. Cho and his wife, actress Kerri Higuchi, are expecting their first child – a son – at the end of May. “I’m taking a maternity leave with my wife,” Cho says, laughing. “We’re really anxious to meet this baby. I can’t wait.”
With several New York Times bestseller books already under her slim belt, actress Marilu Henner (“Taxi”) is excited about her latest self-help book: Wear Your Life Well: Use What You Have to Get What You Want (Collins, $24.95). Co-written with her brother Lorin Henner, the book is easy to read and full of tips that range from common sense (“mascara needs to be tossed out after three or four months”) to just a tad more esoteric (“fall in love with your stress or it will kill you”).
Phil Collen doesn’t need a chauffeur. After finishing an interview at a Los Angeles radio station, he jumps behind the wheel of his own car, gets directions and heads onto I-405. “I love living in California,” says the guitarist for the British band Def Leppard. “The weather is beautiful every single day. Sure the traffic can be spotty, but it’s a small price to pay for the lifestyle.”
It’s all about love with Lenny Kravitz. He released his debut album “Let Love Rule” almost two decades ago. His latest CD is “It is Time for a Love Revolution.” “I believe in love and that is a theme I like to address in my songs,” the sexy rock star says. “But I never repeat a particular sound on my albums. People know it’s me by my voice and musical sensibilities, but hopefully what they’re hearing is unlike what they heard (on my last record).”