Wednesday 3 September 2008

Steve Coogan Gets British Foot in U.S. Door


To be or not to be far-famed in America? That is the question for Steve Coogan.
(Cathy Kanavy/Focus)


In his native land, the British funnyman is as revered as Jerry Seinfeld was in his TV heyday.


His status is mostly the result of his grievous comic invention, the small-of-brain, massive-of-ego talk show host Alan Partridge, whose incompetence is outdone only by his insensitive gaffes. "My worst nightmare of what I might be" is how the worker refers to him. Born as a mock wireless broadcaster in 1992, his unctuous universe went on to engender two TV series, "Knowing Me, Knowing You � With Alan Partridge" (1994) and "I'm Alan Partridge" (1997, 2002), plus videos and specials.


Over here, however, Coogan is best known, if known at all, as the tiny Roman emperor wHO feuds with Owen Wilson's cowpoke in 2006's "Night at the Museum," which starred Ben Stiller. "Years ago, I was a toy soldier come to life in 'The Indian in the Cupboard,'" Coogan recalls. "Yes, I only play small people."





Not anymore. His stateside profile is on the rise thanks to two R-rated comedies. In "Tropic Thunder," Coogan, 42, makes a brief yet colorful appearance as Damien, a frantic director of an out-of-control warfare epic.


Stiller, wHO directed and stars in "Thunder," insisted that he take the part. "Ben and I are pretty good buddies, along with Owen," says Coogan, wHO obviously is an ace networker. "They invited me into their comedy fraternity."


Then there is "Hamlet 2," which just expanded to 1,five hundred screens. The object of a bidding war at this year's Sundance went to Focus Features for a goodly $10 million.


Coogan adopts an American dialect as Dana Marschz, an inept actor turned self-loathing high school drama teacher in Tucson who concocts an vacuous musical continuation to the Bard's catastrophe. A time machine and a moonwalking "Sexy Jesus" figure heavily.


That Dana from time to time dons a caftan (the better to bolster his sperm count) and roller skates like a wobbly newborn calf (it's his only musical mode of transfer) adds to the ofttimes bizarre antics that come back "Waiting for Guffman" and "Rushmore."







More info

Sunday 24 August 2008

Arctic Monkeys to record with Queens Of The Stone Age

Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme has told NME.COM that he is determine to enter the studio with Arctic Monkeys in the USA next calendar month to produce new songs for them.

Homme explained that the Sheffield band will fly to Joshua Tree, California adjacent month to record new tracks.


He said that it had not still been determined whether the songs would be released as an album or a single, as they were just experimenting at this early stage.


"I think it's expiration to shape out majuscule," Homme told NME.COM. "They want to submerge themselves in a place that's the opposite of where they're from and what they're used to.


"I reckon we're just going to start by doing a couple of tracks. No pressure. The goal is to make up something that they dig out so much that everyone else john too."


For more on the Arctic Monkeys and Queens Of The Stone Age collaboration see NME shortly.



More information

Wednesday 6 August 2008

Trial Into The Link Between Prenatal Vitamin D Levels And Schizophrenia Prevalence

�Researchers from UQ's Queensland Brain Institute are set to deport a world-first trial into the connexion between antepartum vitamin D levels and schizophrenia prevalence.




Funded by the NHMRC and lED by QBI's Dr Darryl Eyles, a team of four researchers will study blood floater taken from newborn babies who hold gone on to develop schizophrenia in early maturity.




"Undeniably, dispirited maternal vitamin D affects the way the brain develops," Dr Eyles aforesaid.




"Over the past four years we've been able to point that low vitamin D intake in animals during pregnancy results in issue with mind abnormalities alike to those seen in patients with schizophrenia."




The next step of the research process involves testing the theory on human samples.




By analysing the blood spots of newborns the team will suffer a good indication of the baby's vitamin D status at the time of nativity.





This type of study is possible thanks to a biobank located at the Statens Serum Institute in Copenhagen where the Danish government have not only stored newborn blood spots since 1981, but kept ongoing medical records which come with each sampling.




"This is a straight test of the

Thursday 19 June 2008

Gershon: I Did Not Have Sexual Relations ...

TMZ has obtained a copy of a demand letter from Gina Gershon to Vanity Fair. Make no mistake - she's pissssed.
Read ths letter
Vanity Fair just published a pretty scandalous story about Prez Bill Clinton. The demand letter claims the article "outrageously insinuates that Ms. Gershon has had an inappropriate sexual relationship with President Clinton. This is absolutely false."

The letter demands "a retraction and correction."

Gershon's lawyers from the bulldog firm Lavely & Singer noted that "Gershon has only been in the same room as President Clinton on three occasions," all with many others present. The lawyers take a shot at Vanity Fair, claiming, "Rumor-mongering was substituted for fact-checking."



See Also

Friday 13 June 2008

Dreams Of Freedom

Dreams Of Freedom   
Artist: Dreams Of Freedom

   Genre(s): 
Ambient
   



Discography:


Ambient Translations of Bob Marley   
 Ambient Translations of Bob Marley

   Year:    
Tracks: 11




 





Lily Allen is Glamour Woman of the year

Friday 6 June 2008

Judge denies Hulk Hogan's son's bid to end jail isolation

TAMPA, Fla. — Hulk Hogan's 17-year-old son will stay in solitary confinement for now.



A judge on Tuesday denied Nick Bollea's request to change the conditions of his jail sentence because solitary confinement is causing him "unbearable anxiety."



Bollea is serving eight months in jail after pleading no contest to causing a crash that seriously injured his friend.



Officials say he is segregated from other inmates in the county jail in Clearwater, Fla., because he is a minor, even though he was convicted in adult court.



On Monday, his attorneys sued the Pinellas County sheriff, accusing jail officials of violating his privacy.



The lawsuit says jailers improperly released to the media recordings of telephone calls between him and his parents and allowed a news crew to film them.








See Also

Friday 30 May 2008

Lily Allen - Allen Delighted With Topless Photos

British pop star LILY ALLEN is delighted topless shots of her partying in Cannes, France made the front pages of many British newspapers last week (ends18May08) - because the pictures were a dream come true.

The Smile singer was snapped relaxing in only a pair of blue bikini bottoms at a French resort during the Cannes Film Festival - and her semi-naked form made headlines.

Several British tabloids, including The Sun, have topless women on page three of their newspaper every day - and the star admits she was very pleased to officially become a Page Three girl.

She says, "I didn't know they were on the front pages of newspapers! I thought I was a Page Three girl. It's like: 'Lily, 23, from London.' Finally!

"My new manager left a message on my assistant's phone, saying, 'Uh, I don't know if you know, but Lily's boobs are all over the newspapers.' It's only taking a bikini top off. I've got nothing to be ashamed of about my body. We've all got them."

And Allen admits she's only at the French film festival to support her father Keith, who is showcasing his documentary There Are Dark Forces, which is about late British royal Diana, Princess of Wales.

She adds, "To be honest, I'm not here for Cannes, I'm here for this party, to see my dad's film and then go back home again."




See Also