HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today/LBN) 6/3/09 - California voters may have struck down the same-sex marriage proposal, yet New Hampshire’s governor, John Lynch, has signed legislation that makes the state the sixth to allow same-sex marriage. The law will take effect in January. New Hampshire joins Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, Vermont and Iowa in recognizing same-sex marriages. We all at Hollywood Today are mostly for same-sex marriages, just cause it will be a hoot when they start learning about same-sex divorces. And you thought opposite-sex divorces could get spiteful …
MONTREAL (RPRN/Hollywood Today) 5/30/2009–Montreal’s world premiere of “Others”, presented this week at Sala Rosa, the newest creation from choreographer Genevieve Bolla and her fledgling company Evolucidanse, was anything but novice. In fact, the work – only the third creation by the 23 year-old Bolla and Evolucidanse – heralds the fully realized execution of a remarkably mature creative vision.
Bolla shows her wisdom not only in the all-important movement vocabulary and judgment of an audience’s attention span, but equally in her innovative use of an actor – a comic, really – to provide a needed counterpoint, foil, and some comic relief to a medium that is often given to dramatic over-indulgence.
“Others” - ostensibly exploring the image we project versus the reality of ourselves that we hide – seems to grapple just as much with the relationship between the sexes as any more intimate inter-personal relationship.
With a cast of five excellent female dancers - and one lone, baggy-panted, ball cap-sporting (and woefully boyish) male actor – the group explores first the difficulties inherent in true interconnection between (in particular) young men and women, and then delves into the equally fraught relationship between women themselves. Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
Angelina Jolie, Amy Poehler, Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Garner, Ashlee Simpson, Jamie-Lynn Spears, Jessica Alba, Lisa Marie Presley, Nicole Richie, Rebecca Romijn, and Tori Spelling will be celebrating their Mother’s Day this year with a basket full of green goodies.
By Janine Theriault
Los Angeles (Hollywood Today/RushPRnews) 5/9/09 - In keeping with spring’s promise of renewal, a broader sense of the nurturing of motherhood, and building on the momentum of Earth Day, many celebrity moms are continuing to go green for this Mothers Day. Moms such as Angelina Jolie, Amy Poehler, Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Garner, Ashlee Simpson, Jamie-Lynn Spears, Jessica Alba, Lisa Marie Presley, Nicole Richie, Rebecca Romijn, and Tori Spelling Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
Fitness Centers Around the DC Area Tackle Obesity Just In Time for May, the National Physical Fitness and Sports Month
By Janine Theriault
WASHINGTON,(HT/RPRN) 5/08/09 - The old maxim “there is no time like the present” is particularly applicable to the epidemic of childhood obesity this month, as new studies highlight yet more concerns for the health of the nation’s children and we enter into May – otherwise known as National Physical Fitness and Sports Month.
The topic should be of general interest (and particular concern) to residents of Washington D.C. now, as the area appears to be the epicenter of the modern endemic, and the current month affords even more opportunity, resources, and motivation for tackling the problem of childhood obesity head on. Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
BURBANK, CA (Hollywood Today/RPRN) 5/04/2009–Be a part of the only dedicated Expo for Animation Talent in the USA—located in the #1 market, Burbank California, this event fills a substantial void by providing highly focused conference programming, workshops, presentations and networking opportunities designed to connect animation artists, studio executives and industry leaders both locally and internationally.
Kirschner and environment win Battle Of The Best Eco LA -Chefs By Karen Ostlund
A medal for making joy from soy
HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 4/25/09 — Chef Andrew Kirschner from Wilshire Restaurant in Santa Monica took home Grand Prize and $15,000 at Gen Art’s & Soyjoy culinary combat on “Earth Day” at Boulevard 3.
One member of the audience commented “It must have been the soybean and soy ice cream that forced the judges’ final bet.”
The three eco-chefs, Robert Danhi from Danhi & Co, Chef C.C.-owner of Clean Plate Meals and Andrew
Kirschner, presented a live cooking competition to demonstrate the tastiest way to use earth-friendly foods like soy into our diets.
The soy-based dishes that each had to prepare was a soy beverage, a savory dish and a dessert. The judges had to decide on the best taste, presentation and creativity.
The trio had five to 15 minutes to prepare each dish in front of a live audience and a panel of celebrity judges including actress Julianne Moore, celebrity chef Akasha Richmond, dietitian and author Kate Geagan, chef Joanne Weir and PHD nutrition instructor Connie Guttersen.
Author of “Go Green, Get Lean” Kate Geagan explains:
“Eating plant based proteins can be a less expensive way to eat and help you reduce your carbon footprint”
The evenings host was Food Network’s TV host and Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
Environmentalist Mom & Advocate Out to Save the Earth One Family at a Time with Gift Bags and the Help of Eco-Conscious Celebs
CHICAGO IL (Hollywood Today/RPRN) 04/14/09-”I Count for My Earth”, is Lynn Hasselberger’s mantra, the environmental advocate behind myEARTH360.com and icountformyEARTH.com, one feisty and passionate mom fighting for our earth, one family at a time through her advocacy programs, including her newest earth-friendly endeavor: Earth Day in Hollywood ‘09 Gift Bags by Distinctive Assets. The gift bags are filled with products that help to reduce, reuse and/or recycle.
A committed environmentalist, DiCaprio has received praise from environmental groups
Celebs and Entrepreneur Join Force To Save the Earth
By Janine Theriault
HOLLYWOOD (Hollywood Today/RushPRnews) 03/28/09 - With Earth Day ’09 fast approaching, many people find their minds wandering to thoughts tinged with green. In the face of what may seem to be a daily deluge of bad environmental news, a certain sense of helpless blues edging out the agreeable green in one’s mind can be expected. It can be hard to see what effect any one person can have on the problem.
Fortunately, it appears that a new breed of entrepreneurs is taking up the challenge presented by the environment’s degradation. Thanks to these individuals, consumers now have an ever-broadening choice, especially on-line, of shops providing green products - allowing instant-activism with a click of the mouse.
Small business myEARTH360.com founder Lynn Hasselberger is one such person who decided to get over the malaise and get to work on making her world better.
Ecko, Hardy, Valentino and Coca-Cola still refreshing By Karen Ostlund
Decades
Hollywood CA (Hollywood Today) 3/24/09 - Streetwear Marc Ecko,Affliction and Ed Hardy Jewelry concluded California Market Center fashion shows after ten days of daily shows around town.
“Coca-Cola’s own two day Fashion W eek (COLAfw) at the Lady Liberty Building became the first one in the country” explained executive producer Shannon Leggett and continues:
“There is plans for COLA fashion week in Hollywood and also other cities for the next season”
Joyrich and Brian Lichtenberg from the Tricot showroom became final headliners at their show.
Fashion & art went hand in hand this season at the “outshows” at various locations.
Fashion model turned designer,Valerg Pobega from Italy’s Sardenia, put on art-fashion installation show in Culver City together
with her husband artist Mattia Biagi.Their exhibition benefits non- profit organization Planet Aid-that donate used and new clothes to needy in different part of the world.
They met eight years ago when Valerg was still modeling in Milan, Italy and now they live together in Los Angeles.
Valerg Pobega’s style is long cocktail dresses of classic cut and layers.
Mattias’s art is very influenced by Italian lifestyle and his new exhibition is about the art of “Hanging laundry”
-”Only people that lived in Italy understand my philosophy at first glance,” he says.
His exhibition will run through March 31st at the Brick Building, Culver City.
MOCA Geffen contemporary fashion show “Decades” and Louis Verdad’s Louver fashion installation became a history lesson in time of fashion.
The Vault Dweller combats a mutated human remnant of the nuclear holocaust
First-person shooter a triumph of open-ended gameplay
By Matthew B. Zeidman
NEW YORK (Hollywood Today) 3/21/08 – Considering a noted element of “Fallout 3” is the ability to become hooked on faux drugs and soft drinks, it’s fitting that one of the most talked-about games of 2008 is also the most addictive RPG and first-person shooter to ever grace a console.
Released in October by Bethesda Game Studios for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and PC, the game follows a fully customizable character after he (or she) escapes from a self-contained fallout shelter in nuke-addled Washington, D.C. to seek his missing father.
The fun here isn’t in the central storyline, which can be completed fairly quickly, but in the hundreds of hours of gameplay involved in completing side missions and interacting with the residents roaming the urban wastes.
Dozens of reachable and explorable destinations big and small, many of them actual Washington landmarks, ensure that players who enjoy looking under every rock and notching off achievements will not get bored.
Unlike a game like “Resident Evil 4,” which allows its protagonist to look around, but essentially shuttles him from point A to point B, “Fallout 3” is truly open-ended. The player can visit points of interest in any order he pleases.
The game also balances fantasy and reality in a highly engaging way. Unlike an RPG, such as “Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas,” where feeding and exercising a character becomes a chore, physical attributes can be increased through leveling up, and providing a character with food and water is only necessary to improve health lost through combat or other injury.
“Fallout 3’s” karmic system, which includes constant and flexible moral decisions and speech choices, makes character customization more than just what sex and haircut the player prefers. Players who consistently act good, bad or indifferent will find themselves faced with unique interactions, situations and unlockables.
Further, moral decisions aren’t cut and dry. A player acting with the best (or worst) of intentions might learn later that he shot himself in the foot through no fault of his own.
Style is not sacrificed for substance, with a blending of both futuristic and 1950s technology, clothing and décor that complements the ironic dynamic between the game’s humor and graphic violence.
With the recently released “Operation Anchorage” expansion pack for the Xbox and PC editions and the newest expansion pack, “The Pitt,” set for release Tuesday, “Fallout 3” veterans and newcomers alike can look forward to many late nights living vicariously through their chosen vault dwellers.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Rihanna (left) has accused boyfriend Chris Brown (right) of threatening and attacking her in Los Angeles Sunday before the two were expected to attend the Grammy Awards. She has since returned to Brown and is rumored to have married him.
By Janine Theriault
Blaming The Victim - And Letting Of Easy the Aggressor
HOLLYWOOD (Hollywood Today/RPRN) 03/20/09 - One of the latest and most disturbing revelations to come out of the sordid Rihanna and Chris Brown affair is a recent study done of 200 Boston area 12-19 year-old in which nearly half of them put the blame for the savage beating on the female part of the equation (52 per cent said “they were both to blame”). Just to clarify, that’s the victim of the beating, the one allegedly strangled to the point of unconsciousness. Somehow, many people are dismayed to realize, these kids believe the woman must be the root of male aggression - that he can’t really be held responsible for his own actions.
Should people be truly surprised by these results when the kids being interviewed are raised on ultra-violent images and inundated with misogynist lyrics? Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
HOLLYWOOD, CA(RushPRnews/Hollywood Today/) 02/27/09 - Academy Award Winning directors Joel and Ethan Coen have become the most recent participants in the on-going war of words concerning so-called clean coal, lending their talents and repute to the media debate with a TV spot which aired Thursday.
The brothers, who won three Oscars in 2007 for “No Country for Old Men” and one in 1996 for writing ”Fargo”, have directed a searingly satirical TV spot for the Reality Coalition, a group whose yellow canary add campaigns have been gaining recognition since their “This is Reality” campaign began last year.
The add, entitled “Air Freshener”, features a modern take on a 50’s-esk suburbia, directing aim at the use of the word “clean” itself in relation to coal. States the aid’s air freshener salesman, “ ‘Clean Coal’ harnesses the awesome power of the word ‘clean’”. The add ends with the Reality Coalition’s tag line, “In reality, there’s no such thing as clean coal.” Read the rest of this Hollywood Today story »
By Janine Theriault 
