Entertainment Archive (198)
A group of teens go head-to-head with space aliens who crash land in their South London council housing estate in the new sci-fi film Attack the Block. /Courtesy photoThe press screening invitation for Attack the Block touted the film as a British sci-fi / comedy from the directors of Shaun of the Dead and Scott Pilgrim. Having fallen for the science fiction genre through clever and well-written productions like Doctor Who and Torchwood, the move to sci-fi / comedy seemed doable. But I wasn't exactly sold on the theme: inner city versus outer space. While I was initially doubtful, Attack the Block is by far the most impressive film of the summer.
What Attack the Block offers is a clever, funny, and action packed film that pits band of space aliens against some of South London's rough and tumble youth. Set in South London, the film opens with a group of teens attempting to rob a young woman on the outskirts of their council housing estate. The robbery is interrupted by the crash landing of an alien just inches from them. Instead of running for their lives, the "hoodies" decide to kick some alien butt. The kids win the initial battle, but soon find themselves being pursued by a host of bigger, badder, aliens.
"I wanted to make a film about characters I really cared about," Writer-director Joe Cornish said. "I find a lot of the humor in contemporary movies a little bit sort of macho and obnoxious and cynical. You know, my gang, they do a bad thing in the beginning, but they don't argue with each other. They're not jostling to be the leader. It doesn't go with that conflict-is-drama thing. Actually, this film is about the unity of the gang and how they're loyal to each other."
Conrad's attorneys will argue that Jackson gave himself lethal dose of propofol./AP PhotoLOS ANGELES - The trial of Michael Jackson's doctor, accused of involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's death, will begin Sept. 26 in Los Angeles.
Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor said jury selection will begin September 8 with the distribution of a questionnaire to pre-selected jurors.
"That is still the go-date," he said of the late September start date. "I want to keep a short leash on this case."
Conrad Murray, the last doctor to treat Jackson, is on trial for involuntary homicide in the "King of Pop's" death on June 25, 2009 at the age of 50 after an overdose of the anesthesia propofol, which the singer used as a sleeping aid.
In late July, Pastor barred the use of a video in court that showed the star rehearsing days before his death and his anticipated return to the global music scene.
One of Murray's lawyers, J. Michael Flanagan, said Jackson was "very talented... even on his bad days," and said the footage would not be a fair representation of his condition in the days preceding his death.
The trial was originally scheduled to begin May 9, but was pushed back at the defense's request after they asked for time to develop cross-examinations for new witnesses from the prosecution.
Prosecutors say Jackson died from an overdose of the powerful sedative propofol, which Murray was in charge of administering to help alleviate the star's insomnia.
Murray's defense is expected to argue that Jackson gave himself an excessive dose of the drug while the doctor was out of the room at the singer's mansion in the affluent Holmby Hills neighborhood west of Los Angeles.
If found guilty, Murray could face up to four years in prison.
It's been a long time since a movie as emotionally-charged as The Help has hit the big screen, forcing its way into the social consciousness of America.
Viola Davis (left) and Octavia Spencer are best friends, Aibileen and Minny, in "The Help."/Courtesy Photo
For one thing, the two-hour and 18-minute fictional film that's skillfully directed by Tate Taylor, boasts a well-selected cast – several whose performances are laced with Oscar nominations. Particularly the roles played by Viola Davis (Aibileen Clark), Octavia Spencer (scene-stealing Minny Jackson) – who tells her daughter, "You cooking white food? You taste it with a different spoon," and the film's central character, Emma Stone (Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan).
Occuring in the Jim Crow South of the 1960s, the movie is set against a lush backdrop of dirt roads, dilapidated wood frame houses, plantations, and tree-lined upper class neighborhoods. It is an excellent adaptation of the best seller by the same title written by debut novelist Kathryn Stockett, and from beginning to end, the movie keeps close to her exceptionally descriptive storytelling (even though some pertinent incidents and details emphasized in the book are omitted).
Along the way, the movie unfolds the friendships and eventual union of rebellion among a contingent of black maids -- all born and raised in Jackson, Miss. While some of the maids are actually loved by the white families they serve, most are taken for granted and exploited.
However, in joining forces with an aspiring white journalist (Skeeter) fresh out of college during the Civil Rights Movement, they go against the grain of Southern laws giving her a series of probing interviews of what it's like working for white folks. In the process, the maids begin to become their own heroines.
The movie is chocked full of history, including the mobilizations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the brutal murder of civil rights leader Medgar Evers. It also lends focus to the death of President John F. Kennedy and the sadness embraced by blacks and whites alike over his assassination.
But the three-way bond of trust that evolves among the fair-minded, frizzy-haired Skeeter (by the way, Cicely Tyson plays the role of Skeeter's maid and nanny), kind and self-efficient Aibileen and can-cook-her-butt-off Minny, turns out to be a sisterhood that's truly endearing. The film is also funny at the right times, making it a warm-hearted, pleasant surprise.
Oceilia Gibson, from Dallas, Texas, was crowned Miss Black USA in ceremonies that took place Aug. 8 in D.C./Photo by Rob Roberts
Washington, D.C --Miss Black Texas, Oceilia Gibson, has been crowned Miss Black USA 2011 in ceremonies that took place Aug. 8 at the historic Lincoln Theatre in Washington, DC.
Fifty of the most beautiful women in the nation competed for more than $20,000 in scholarships and prizes that included a new car.
The theme of this year's event was "Shades of Africa," celebrating the diversity of black women in America.
Gibson, 26, is the first Texan to capture the national title in the pageant's 24-year history. She has a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies and is pursuing a master's degree in divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Having earned numerous awards, Gibson, a Dallas native, was also one of Ebony's magazine Unsung Heroes in 2009.
The four finalists included Miss Black Delaware; Miss Black Pennsylvania ; Miss Black Alabama; and Miss Black New Jersey.
Sugar and sweets are always pleasant to eat and taste so good. On the other hand, consumption of too much sugar is deemed unhealthy and can lead to rotten teeth, cavities and even unwanted weight gain.
Many people also tend to believe eating sugar is the result of diabetes, according to Pam Davis, diabetes educator for Novo Nordisk Inc.
"A lot of times people believe that they ate too much sugar and that is what caused their diabetes," Davis said.
However, many people may not know that sugar plays a vital role in the body and affects its energy levels. After meals, carbohydrates are broken down and turned into sugar, or glucose. During digestion, sugar enters the bloodstream. As a result, sugar from food and carbohydrates causes the body's blood sugar levels to increase. The insulin in your body is then used to open up some of the cells in your body allowing the sugar to exit the bloodstream and enter into the cells for energy. The insulin is also used to balance the sugars out which in turn lowers blood sugar.
But for some, this may become a problem. In Type 1 diabetes, the body produces too little or no insulin. In Type 2 diabetes, the body is insulin resistant sometimes making too much insulin and the body is unable to use it properly. In both cases, Type 1 and Type 2, sugar is not allowed into the cells and stays in the blood stream, causing extremely high blood sugar or hyperglycemia. In Type 1 diabetics, insulin is then injected to regulate blood sugars, and in Type 2 diabetics, exercise and oral medications are taken.
According to http://www.novonordiskcommunitycare.com, one out of 12 Americans has diabetes. Typically doctors test and can tell if you have the disease if you have an A1C of 6.5 percent or higher or your blood sugar levels are higher than 126. The A1C is an average number from your blood glucose levels over the course of two to three months. A healthy A1C should be no higher than seven percent. Symptoms include constant and frequent trips to the restroom, being thirsty and hungry more than often, unusual weight loss, frequent periods of fatigue, irritability, blurry vision, wounds that won't heal and numbness or tingling hands or feet.
"In reality, there's a lot of things that contribute to why people have diabetes and so often times it's multiple factors that kind of gang up on them that cause diabetes to come to be. And certainly what you eat can play a role in those factors presenting themselves. But, for instance, genetics, having a family history of diabetes, age, ethnicity, all of those kinds of things that we cannot change are kind of the underlining things that we always have to look at," Davis explained. In 2010, out of the 3,284,300 people living in the state of Texas with diabetes, 460,700 were African Americans. By the year 2025, the number of African Americans with diabetes is projected to raise to 814,300, pursuant to the Institute for Alternative Futures.
Risk factors include, but are not limited to: being overweight, not being very active, high blood pressure, being over 45 years of age, having a family history of the disease belonging to certain ethnic groups and giving birth to large babies. There is no cure for this chronic disease, but if managed and controlled properly people with diabetics can live long healthy lives. Some ways to manage diabetes are: taking medication properly, eating healthy, exercising and staying active, regular doctor's visits, checking blood sugar levels and avoiding stress.
The key to keeping diabetes in control is first having a good team. A good team usually consists of support from family and friends, a doctor, a nurse, an ophthalmologist, a podiatrist, a nutritionist and an endocrinologist. Your team will help with creating meal plans, planning workouts or physical activities, scheduling when to check sugar and take medications, planning blood sugar goals and providing emotional support.
"There's no reason why someone with diabetes can't live a long healthy life, but they do have to do something about it to make it stay that way," Davis stated. "One of the things that we teach people is that diabetes is a progressive disease meaning that it does tend to get worse unless we do things to combat it. So, any complications that can result from diabetes is preventable ... and so we prevent that by keeping our blood sugar in good control and making sure that it's as close to normal as possible."
LOS ANGELES - Organizers of a Michael Jackson tribute concert dropped Kiss from the lineup after receiving widespread criticism for booking the band despite critical comments toward the late pop singer by bassist Gene Simmons.
The Aug. 16 announcement came a day after Global Live Events announced Kiss would join the show planned for Oct. 8 in Cardiff, Wales. Fans, media and the singer's estate quickly noted that Simmons has said in recent years that he was convinced Jackson molested children. Some of the critical comments came within days of Jackson's June 2009 death.
Jackson was acquitted of molestation charges after a 2005 trial in California.
Some of Simmons' harshest comments came last year in an interview with Classic Rock magazine.
"Well, you know, where there's smoke there's fire," Simmons said regarding accusations that Jackson abused young boys. "There's no question in my mind he molested those kids. Not a doubt."
Gene Simmons of Kiss band
Sell or stay? Stay or sell?
In times like these, when the market resembles a cheap yo-yo, you don't know which to do. Should you sell your stocks before they drop further, or sit tight? Should you buy now that prices are down, or is that just throwing money away?
The market's a bear these days, which makes you madder than a bull. But when you read "Beating the Odds" by Eddie Brown (with Blair Walker), you'll be reminded that it's always best to keep your sight on the light.
Life for Eddie Brown did not start out well.
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jamaica's first national hero, was born in St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica on August 17, 1887. The publisher, orator, journalist and businessman was an unavowed black nationalist and Pan African who built the largest mass movement of black people – the United Negro Improvement Association -- in history. He called for black unity globally and an end to colonialism. Garvey was jailed in 1925 after being convicted of mail fraud (related to the sale of stock in the Black Star Line), but his sentence was reduced and he was deported to Jamaica two years later. Garvey eventually moved to London, England, where he died in 1940.
The Informer talked with Geoffrey Philp, a Jamaican writer, poet and publisher last week. He started a petition earlier this year which he intends to send to President Barack Obama. The petition seeks Garvey's exoneration for the false charges leveled against him.
On a cold-ish early spring evening, the sound of people's voices, laughter, sports on the television and a warm glow emanated from a plate glass window opposite the Big Chair on MLK Avenue. Inside, the tables were packed with couples, groups, singles and bar hangers. There were locals, obvious visitors, young people, seniors and somewhere in-between-ers. Everyone was laughing, or at least smiling if they weren't totally engrossed in the food.
It was a place called Uniontown, and in those nascent days after opening at the end of January, the small but well appointed eatery already had a following. The seasons have changed from spring to summer, now heading into fall and Uniontown has become an integral part of the neighborhood, a comfortable gathering spot for the worker coming home after a long day at the office, a convenient meeting place for the newer residents of Ward 8—the young, professional homeowners who have been snatching up what seems to be the last affordable housing in the city, and those who have heard about this spot via "word-of mouth" and just wanted to check it out.
The Library of Congress' first-ever two-day National Book Festival, Sept. 24-25 on the National Mall, Washington, D.C.
"Waiting to Exhale" author Terry McMillan to participate in national book fest./Courtesy Photo
Co-chaired by President Obama and Mrs. Obama, this year's event draws an impressive lineup of authors, including Toni Morrison, Terry McMillan, Dave Eggers, Hoda Kotb, Julianne Moore and a host of other well-known writers. Visit www.loc.gov/bookfest to view the complete author lineup.
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