By Jon

It’s no secret, I think the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are one of the greatest bands ever. I went to the Red Lion Tavern in Silverlake to show my brother a good time during his first visit to LA and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs walked in. I couldn’t believe it. I was torn between my LA-ish recognition of the fact that celebrities want to be left alone and the fact that I could not leave the Red Lion without at least trying to get a photo with the band. It’s the first time I’ve been a fanboy since 1986ish when I got Ricky “the dragon” Steamboat’s autograph outside the Providence Civic Center.

Apologies to drummer Brian for calling him Nick when I met him, I know all of your names very well, getting up the nerve to take the pic apparently jumbled me enough to confuse obvious facts.

Nick and Karen were beyond friendly and I thank them SO MUCH for the photo and I promise to never, ever miss a Yeah Yeah Yeahs show again in my lifetime.

Tomorrow, Weezer will shoot the video for their new Red Album’s lead-off track ‘Troublemaker’. The band has put out the call to hundreds and hundreds of extras and the concept will be record breaking. The video is said to break records for the biggest hootenanny, cream pie fight, dodgeball game, and air guitar performance among other things. LA Snark will be there alllll day. Anyone else going?

Reports are swirling through the 90210sphere that Tori Spelling will not reprise her role of Donna Martin on the new 90210 spinoff due to a salary dispute. Kelly, uhh.. Jennie Garth is urging fans to start a “Bring Back Donna Martin” campaign, and here it is. Voice your thoughts below and we’ll make sure CW execs hear your cries for Donna!

By Greg Oguss

In the age of YouTube, Gawker and TMZ, the life of a Hollywood actor is no bed of roses. I’m unaware of any famous action star who’s actually been held hostage by a gang of Southeast Asian heroin farmers after being sent on a suicide mission with four other prima donna actors by a power-mad British director in desperate pursuit of verisimilitude during the making of a massively over-budget Vietnam war film. That’s the plot of Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder and the fate of his character, Tugg Speedman, a star with a no-longer profitable franchise whose future as an A-Lister is in doubt. The poppy field that the actors turned ersatz Vietnam grunts encounter when they cross the border into Laos or perhaps Mynnamar is also an analogy for the temptations which all actors’ face when they reach mega-stardom. Every character in this brilliantly funny satire rings a variation on theme of the kinds of extreme behavior which Hollywood demands from its successes if they want to hold the public’s attention.

read_more

read_more