Sheda Vasseghi: Profiles in Courage From the Streets of Iran for Hollywood’s Gutless Wonders

Sheda Vasseghi in today’s World Tribune:

“The mainstream Hollywood crowd, an apologist group that enjoys traveling to Taliban-run countries such as Iran spreading their holier-than-thou “cultural understanding” of rogue regimes, has been effectively censored by Moslem clerics. Filmmaker Roland Emmerich chose not to blow up the Kaaba at Mecca in his film 2012 for fear of a fatwa (death sentence issued by Moslem clerics) being placed on his head.

“Yet, in 2005, actor Sean Penn went to cover a so-called Islamic Republic “election” wanting Americans to visit Iran and become familiar with its culture. In March 2009, director Phil Alden Robinson found that Iranians were not very different; and actress Annette Bening (surely with a headscarf given Iran’s brutal enforcement of hijab) hoped her trip to Iran would jump start a bridge between the U.S. and the mullahs in Tehran. (more…)

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Tags: Annette Bening, hollywood, iran, Islam, Muslim
Posted Nov 6th 2009 at 8:30 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 25917056 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/11/06/sheda-vasseghi-profiles-in-courage-from-the-streets-of-iran-for-hollywoods-gutless-wonders/Sheda+Vasseghi%3A+Profiles+in+Courage+From+the+Streets+of+Iran+for+Hollywood%27s+Gutless+Wonders+2009-11-06+16%3A30%3A25Big+Hollywood

Matt Damon, State Dept. Create Global Warming Propaganda PSA

Recently, actor Matt Damon narrated a video for the State Department, addressing the problem of chronic  worldwide hunger. The video is extremely well made; those who watch it can’t help but be touched by it.

This first minute of the three-minute video revolves around one problem: Hunger. Poor children are seen dying of starvation, others are lying on the streets of third-world countries, not able to walk. Damon explains that six million children die of hunger every year – needless to say, a shocking statistic.

Even the most egotistical viewer cannot help but get angry at and upset by so much suffering, most of which is needless.

But then, one minute into the video, the subject suddenly changes. We move from dying children to tornadoes and tsunamis. Damon forgets about the children for a while to focus on … you knew it was coming … global warming. (more…)

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Tags: children, climate change, Copenhagen, europe, Global warming
Posted Nov 6th 2009 at 6:51 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 25505090 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mvandergalien/2009/11/06/matt-damon-teams-up-with-state-dept-for-climate-change-psa/Matt+Damon%2C+State+Dept.+Create+Global+Warming+Propaganda+PSA2009-11-06+14%3A51%3A56Michael+van+der+Galien

Stand Up Notes From Flyover Country: Facebook Comment to Folks in the News

Like millions of other Americans I have been caught up in the Facebook/social networking craze. I believe that Facebook is like a near-death experience except your life passes before your eyes one friend request at a time. I have  been trying to “friend” a lot of people in the news, without much success. There’s been no acceptance of my friend requests from President Obama, Dede Scozzafava, Jeremiah Wright and a host of others. So in order to reach them with some timely advice I am posting some comments here. If you are on their Facebook friend list maybe you could pass them along. 

@ Dede Scozzafava – When you try to stand in the middle of the road you get run over. Thanks for showing where you stand when the heat was on. Go stand in the “has-been” line behind Arlen Specter.

@ Barack Obama - Mr. President, if the trip to Dover wasn’t a photo-op or political why take a photographer along? (more…)

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Tags: David Axelrod, Dede Scozzafava, facebook, Fred Thompson, Jeremiah Wright
Posted Nov 4th 2009 at 6:05 pm in Celebrity News, Political Humor, Religion | 25766259 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjena/2009/11/04/stand-up-notes-from-flyover-country-facebook-comment-to-folks-in-the-news/Stand+Up+Notes+From+Flyover+Country%3A+Facebook+Comment+to+Folks+in+the+News2009-11-05+02%3A05%3A08Jeffrey+Jena

Ted Danson Trashes Limbaugh, Religious Right

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UPDATE: My friend the Anchoress tweets on Ted Danson: “ …and he’s wearing his “smart” glasses, so we’d better listen.”

With his tired “wonderful entertainer” swipe, Ted Danson tries mightily to laugh off all-things Rush Limbaugh, but the bitterness is just too deep to keep the charade going for long; and let’s face it, Danson’s just not that good of an actor.

Longtime Limbaugh listeners know where Danson’s anger comes from. Who could ever forget this: (more…)

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Tags: Oceans, Religious Right, Rush Limbaugh, Ted Danson
Posted Nov 3rd 2009 at 9:53 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 257138137 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/11/03/ted-danson-trashes-limbaugh-religious-right/Ted+Danson+Trashes+Limbaugh%2C+Religious+Right2009-11-03+17%3A53%3A13Big+Hollywood

Hollywood Receives Government Help — Why No Salary Caps?

When Uncle Sam fought WWII, Hollywood backed him with patriotic movies and war bond drives and moral boosting celebrity appearances. When Uncle Sam fought Communists, Hollywood was a mixed bag. His GIs in Korea got support. His GIs in Vietnam, not so much, as some damned his war with movies of faint praise that depicted Imperialist aggression by ugly Americans against peoples who just wanted be free from capitalist exploitation.

Hollywood on Uncle Sam’s terrorism fight? Don’t even ask.

But now that it’s Uncle Obama on the warpath against the most diabolical villain in the populist panoply, Hollywood is back to showing its anti-Axis resolve against this most indefensible of enemies.

That enemy (for now anyway) is the army of the overpaid — those individuals who represent an unholy axis of unsupervised greed with incomes that evoke envy in the psyche of the ordinary workin’ mench at the mercy of The Man. And why not? According to human resources expert Patrick R. Dailey, top corporate salaries are now 411 times the amount of  the lowest paid worker. In 1980, that ratio was 42 to one. By comparison, star actors are often paid more than 1,000 times the amount of the lowest salary on the set.  No matter. (more…)

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Tags: Capitlaism, hollywood, Lawrence O'Donnell, michael moore, Obama
Posted Nov 3rd 2009 at 6:44 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 25414649 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dgifford/2009/11/03/national-public-hollywood/Hollywood+Receives+Government+Help+--+Why+No+Salary+Caps%3F2009-11-03+14%3A44%3A15Dan+Gifford

Read Between The Lines of: The Hollywood Green Message of Importance.

A message from Hollywood -

(Not the people who really work hard here like the drivers, grips, electricians, greensman, editors, carpenters, etc. – just us so very important ‘Stars’)

- on what YOU the World – can do to save our planet: (Listen up you nasty smelly little flyover stalker freaks.)

1.  Conserve Water!

(Don’t you dare water your 40′ x 100′ lawn. Let it go brown. We’ll keep swimming in our 3 pools, The infinity one in Malibu, and the two at the compound in Palm Springs.)

2. Airplanes are the grossest polluters. Fight Climate Change, take the bus, or ride your bike!

(All you little people, not us right now – we’re too busy with our awesome important star stuff, and we have a very important film festival to attend in a foreign country that mostly hates the U.S. and we just don’t want to miss out on this opportunity to knock America and Americans. P.S. the film is about Climate change, so it is very important we get there fast with our very snobby entourage.) (more…)

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Tags: conservation, Global warming, hollywood, Hypocrisy
Posted Nov 2nd 2009 at 4:48 pm in Celebrity News, Politics | 23475075 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/emannix/2009/11/02/read-between-the-lines-of-the-hollywood-green-message-of-importance/Read+Between+The+Lines+of%3A+The+Hollywood+Green+Message+of+Importance.+2009-11-03+00%3A48%3A24Ernie+Mannix

Elvis Disease: Bill Maher Needs an Intervention

A friend of mine once called it Elvis Disease. Occasionally an individual will become so powerful, that he forgets he is mortal. (It’s what happened to Marlon Brando’s character in “Apocalypse Now.“)  Because when a human becomes so important that people confuse him with a god, he might start believing it himself.

When Elvis came out of the dressing room for the first time in that sequined white jumpsuit with elephant bells, high collar, and a matching cape, he asked the people he thought were friends, “Ahh , what d’yall think? Ahh picked it for my Hawaii show…”

But everyone lied, and told him that he looked great. He didn’t really have any friends. Just a handful of people making an incredible amount of money working at Elvis Inc. So nobody stood up to him. When a man gets surrounded by a phalanx of assistants, groomers, managers, agents and other members of the entourage whose job it is to tell him how great he is –these things happen.

Michael Jackson suffered from the same affliction. Nobody had the nerve to tell Michael that he shouldn’t be sleeping with little boys, so it continued. If you remember the Martin Bashir documentary, he was very adamant about his proclivities with those beautiful little boys: “Why can’t you share your bed? That’s the most loving thing to do, to share your bed with someone…” (more…)

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Tags: Bill Maher, David Letterman, Elvis Disease, H1N1
Posted Nov 2nd 2009 at 1:13 pm in Celebrity News, Politics | 253294189 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/tslagle/2009/11/02/elvis-disease-bill-maher-needs-an-intervention/Elvis+Disease%3A+Bill+Maher+Needs+an+Intervention2009-11-02+21%3A13%3A55Tim+Slagle

Larry David’s God-Given American Right to Be a Jerk

What in the world is wrong with people in the entertainment industry who come from humble beginnings, have a few years of real struggle and then with their uniqueness and by the grace of God (which you could interpret as luck), they make it big, as in rich and famous big. The chances of becoming as famous as Lindsay Lohan are 1 in 1,574,638 as tracked by E-Poll Market Research, but really, wouldn’t you rather be you?

Mr. David has been blessed beyond any struggling writer, producer, actor or stand-up comedian’s wildest dreams. His total cash receipts have still not been tallied since the funds continue to pour in from “Seinfeld,” but it’s accurate to say that with what he has earned to date, he could have paid for a lot of Nancy Pelosi’s botox.

Years after helping make television history, David jumped back into the small screen with the blessing of HBO and created “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” which — in line with him marching to the beat of his own drum — is done unscripted. The show has a very solid following as it is in its seventh season, which is three television lifetimes these days. Great Larry, Mazal Tov. Isn’t America grand? Bet you would only have had the career of Heidi from the Hills if you lived in Cuba.  (more…)

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Tags: Curb Your Enthusiasm, hbo, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Larry David
Posted Oct 30th 2009 at 11:44 am in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics, Religion | 255638288 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ekaris/2009/10/30/larry-davids-god-given-american-right-to-be-a-jerk/Larry+David%27s+God-Given+American+Right+to+Be+a+Jerk2009-10-30+18%3A44%3A14Ellen+Karis

Ian McKellen: Secret Gay Life Like Being a Jew in Hitler’s Europe

Sir Ian:

“It was illegal for me to do (things) as a private person. Outside London, where I lived, there was no gay pub or bar you could go to. And even if you found one, it was, ‘Knock three times and ask for Louis’. It was horrible living this secret life. You could feel a little bit what it was like to be a Jew in central Europe during a certain period. It was horrible.”

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Tags: europe, Gay, gay life, Hitler, Ian McKellen
Posted Oct 30th 2009 at 8:11 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 255486157 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/30/ian-mckellen-secret-gay-life-like-being-a-jew-in-hitlers-europe/Ian+McKellen%3A+Secret+Gay+Life+Like+Being+a+Jew+in+Hitler%27s+Europe2009-10-30+15%3A11%3A27Big+Hollywood

Let’s Not Offend Hollywood’s Delicate Geniuses

In 2006, while accepting the Academy Award for playing a husky, grizzled version of himself, George Clooney famously gushed, “…this Academy, this group of people gave Hattie McDaniel an Oscar in 1939 when blacks were still sitting in the backs of theaters. I’m proud to be a part of this Academy. I’m proud to be part of this community. I’m proud to be out of touch.”

My apologies for bringing up old crap, but Clooney’s statement, especially the part about how he’s so proud to be out of touch, is one of the most bafflingly odd things I’ve ever heard coming from Clooney, who’s also famous for telling anyone who’ll listen that everybody tells him all the time how brave he was for making a black and white movie about the red scare. It’s very revealing that Clooney would say this, to cheers, a mere three years after a child-rapist was handed an award by that same Academy. (more…)

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Tags: "Next Karate Kid", "The Sting", academy awards, Arrested Development, Atheism
Posted Oct 30th 2009 at 6:54 am in Celebrity News, Culture, Entertainment | 253134105 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ccannon/2009/10/30/lets-not-offend-hollywoods-delicate-geniuses/Let%27s+Not+Offend+Hollywood%27s+Delicate+Geniuses2009-10-30+13%3A54%3A17Cam+Cannon

Pissing on Jesus: Hollywood Hates Us Exhibit 11,567

“Larry David would never do this to Muslims. He doesn’t have the guts.”

That’s missing the point.

Hypocrisy or a fear of how some wacko extremist might react has nothing to do with this. Hollywood constantly singles out Christians for cruel ridicule and the worst kind of stereotyping for one simple reason…

They hate us.

They hate our guts.

There’s nothing more complicated to this question than that.

I promise you that if every Muslim on the planet was as gentle as a kitten, it would still be Christians singled out by the entertainment industry at every opportunity. (more…)

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Tags: Christ, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Islam, Jesus, Jesus Christ
Posted Oct 29th 2009 at 5:54 pm in Celebrity News, Culture, Religion, Television | 255366310 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2009/10/29/pissing-on-jesus-hollywood-hates-us-exhibit-11567/Pissing+on+Jesus%3A+Hollywood+Hates+Us+Exhibit+11%2C567+2009-10-30+00%3A54%3A43John+Nolte

Natalie Portman: From Vegetarian to Vegan Activist

Natalie Portman in The Huffington Post:

“Jonathan Safran Foer’s book Eating Animals changed me from a twenty-year vegetarian to a vegan activist. I’ve always been shy about being critical of others’ choices because I hate when people do that to me. I’m often interrogated about being vegetarian (e.g., “What if you find out that carrots feel pain, too? Then what’ll you eat?”).

“I’ve also been afraid to feel as if I know better than someone else — a historically dangerous stance (I’m often reminded that “Hitler was a vegetarian, too, you know”). But this book reminded me that some things are just wrong. Perhaps others disagree with me that animals have personalities, but the highly documented torture of animals is unacceptable, and the human cost Foer describes in his book, of which I was previously unaware, is universally compelling. (more…)

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Tags: Huffington Post, natalie portman, Vegan, Vegan activist
Posted Oct 29th 2009 at 1:49 pm in Celebrity News, Politics | 255170275 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/29/natalie-portman-from-vegetarian-to-vegan-activist/Natalie+Portman%3A+From+Vegetarian+to+Vegan+Activist2009-10-29+20%3A49%3A47Big+Hollywood

Hilary Swank: I Allow a Six Year-Old to See Me Nude

One day a few years ago, back in Scotland, my brother and his friend Kenny were reminiscing about the knocks and scrapes of growing up. It was all fairly normal stuff until Kenny suddenly blurted out: 

‘Yeah, it’s like the first time you win a square go with your dad!’ 

Now for those among you who did not grow up in West Fife let me explain the meaning of ‘a square go.’ This is a game that requires you to take turns punching your opponent in the face as hard as you can, until one of you passes out or begs the other to stop. 

Naturally my brother looked at Kenny in shock. And for the first time in his life Kenny began to suspect that smacking your dad really hard in the face and vice versa was not necessarily a universal bonding experience.  (more…)

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Tags: Hilary Swank, Joanna Coles, Marie Claire, nude, six year-old
Posted Oct 28th 2009 at 4:41 pm in Celebrity News, Culture | 254230190 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dkalder/2009/10/28/hilary-swank-i-allow-a-six-year-old-to-see-me-nude/Hilary+Swank%3A+I+Allow+a+Six+Year-Old+to+See+Me+Nude2009-10-28+23%3A41%3A43Daniel+Kalder

Kidman Worries About Treatment of Women While Representing the…UN?

Nicole Kidman is a fine actress. I’ve enjoyed her work over the years, and heartily congratulate her for her long and storied career. I also congratulate her for getting out of her marriage to Tom Cruise, but that’s another story.

Now Kidman, like many Hollywood stars who want to prove that they’re more than just pretty faces, is involved in A Cause. Like Meryl Streep’s concern about healthy produce and Heather Graham for ObamaCare, Kidman wants to Save Something. To that end, she is the goodwill ambassador for the UN Development Fund for Women, known as UNIFEM and in that capacity, recently testified before Congress to plead for more support for the program (read: cold, hard cash).

The big story that came out of that appearance was Kidman’s concession that the film industry might play a role in violence toward women by portraying them as weak. That may be true, but it’s a topic for another day.

 Kidman’s desire to help women in need is admirable. But she might want to consider an outlet other than the UN to do this good work. (more…)

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Tags: Congress, nicole kidman, UNIFEM, United Nations
Posted Oct 28th 2009 at 5:07 am in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 25141469 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/pmeister/2009/10/28/kidman-worries-about-treatment-of-women-while-representing-the-un/Kidman+Worries+About+Treatment+of+Women+While+Representing+the...UN%3F2009-10-28+12%3A07%3A34Pam+Meister

Exclusive Excerpt: ‘Without Fidel’ — Hollywood’s Useful Idiots Go to Cuba

Today, Scribner sent along this timely excerpt from “Without Fidel: A Death Foretold in Miami, Havana and Washington,” a new book by award-winning journalist Ann Louise Bardach. For those of you who don’t know, today, on behalf of Vanity Fair, Sean Penn’s in Cuba hoping to secure an interview with Fidel Castro. As you’ll read below, this is not Penn’s first trip and he’s pretty chummy with the Castro brothers. And don’t miss the short excerpt at the very end — an amusing anecdote revealing how visiting stars like Leo and Jack Nicholson are put under constant surveillance in Uncle Fidel’s Cuba. As long as it’s not Dick Cheney, right?

Without Fidel
by Ann Louise Bardach

Chapter 12 – Raul’s Reign: The Grave Yard Shift

In October 2008, Raul Castro granted his first interview as president of Cuba – and one of the very few he has ever given. The lucky recipient was not one of the dozen accredited reporters based in Havana. Nor was it a journalist who has covered the Miami/Havana beat, nor one of the hundreds of requests from representatives from media organizations and academia who have filed requests with the Foreign Ministry. Rather, Raul Castro’s first interlocutor would be the actor/director, Sean Penn, who periodically weighs in on politics.

Penn had just winged in on a Venezuelan military jet from Isla Margarita, the picturesque island near Caracas, having had spent two days with a convivial Hugo Chavez. With him were the writer Christopher Hitchens and historian Douglas Brinkley, whom Penn had invited to accompany him, presumably to lend gravitas to his efforts. The three had hoped to reprise their luck with Raul Castro and, according to Penn, seemed to have been promised as much. (more…)

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Tags: Ann Louise Bardach, Fidel Castro, Havana and Washington, Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio
Posted Oct 27th 2009 at 4:55 pm in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 25398661 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/27/exclusive-excerpt-without-fidel-hollywoods-useful-idiots-go-to-cuba/Exclusive+Excerpt%3A+%27Without+Fidel%27+--+Hollywood%27s+Useful+Idiots+Go+to+Cuba2009-10-27+23%3A55%3A29Big+Hollywood

‘Crash’ Director Dumps Scientology Over Prop. 8

Internet hoaxes that look too good to be true usually are. Over the weekend, a leaked resignation letter written by director Paul Haggis spilling all kinds of dirt about the Church of Scientology hit the web and looked way too good to be true. But now that New York Magazine and the Hollywood Reporter have picked it up….

After 35 years as a member of the Church of Scientology, Paul Haggis is calling it quits. In a badass letter to Scientology’s national spokesman Tommy Davis (who hates Martin Bashir), the filmmaker lays out the reasons why.

It all started when a San Diego church publicly supported Prop 8. Haggis asked Davis to denounce its actions but Davis never went through with it. Then the already-pissed Haggis read an interview in which Davis denied Scientology’s practice of “disconnection” (forcing members to cut off communication with loved ones who oppose Scientology). But Haggis knew disconnection first-hand. His wife was forced to cut ties with her parents.

Choice snips from the Haggis letter: (more…)

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Tags: crash, internet, Paul Haggis, resignation letter, Scientology
Posted Oct 26th 2009 at 10:39 am in Celebrity News, Politics, Religion | 252914115 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/26/crash-director-dumps-scientology-over-prop-8/%27Crash%27+Director+Dumps+Scientology+Over+Prop.+82009-10-26+17%3A39%3A30Big+Hollywood

More ‘Stupid Things Celebs Do To Be ‘Green”

-”I take a three-minute shower,” [Jennifer Aniston] told Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas Kostigen, authors of The Green Book. She even brushes her teeth while she’s in there.

-“Entourage” star Adrian Grenier has lived in an apartment insulated with old pants.

-Vegetarian and planetary crusader Tobey Maguire reportedly has banned all leather products from his house. He also “makes everyone take off their leather belts and shoes and leave them by the door!”

-Leonardo DiCaprio “stays green at home, too—with his $3,200 eco-friendly toilet!”

-Bob Dylan sells “renewable grocery bags” at his concerts. (more…)

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Tags: Adrian Grenier, Bob Dylan, disney channel, E! Online, Elizabeth Rogers
Posted Oct 25th 2009 at 1:34 pm in Celebrity News, Politics | 252422156 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/25/more-stupid-things-celebs-do-to-be-green/More+%27Stupid+Things+Celebs+Do+To+Be+%27Green%27%272009-10-25+20%3A34%3A16Big+Hollywood

Guardian: Pretentious Moi? — Suffering With ‘Actor-Speak’

The Guardian’s Hadley Freeman:

“I have always been interested in what I call actor-speak – and when I say “interested”, I mean “intrigued in the way you might be by a man talking to himself, without having any desire to go over and engage him in conversation”. However, while I continue to march past muttering men on park benches, I am, thanks to my job, an unwitting expert on actor-speak, having spent many hours of my life listening to actors bang on about their “love of the craft” and “the thing about [insert name of director] – he takes you on an emotional journey”.

“Some may call this argument prejudicial, but those who do have never spent a morning with Helen Hunt, listening to her expound on her skills. This has nothing to do with lack of respect for actors; just a lack of respect for the language they learn – perhaps at acting school – to describe what they do.

“The New Yorker event sounded promising: its panel of pleasing scene-stealers included John Turturro and Joan Cusack. But when – just 10 minutes in – panel member and actor Richard Kind (you’ll know him, look him up), said actors do theatre “to nourish themselves”, I knew I’d made a grave tactical error. The verb “nourish” should only be used in a culinary context, and even then with restraint. (more…)

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Tags: Actor-Speak, Guardian, Helen Hunt, Joan Cusack, John Turturro
Posted Oct 23rd 2009 at 4:41 pm in Celebrity News | 25114227 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/23/guardian-pretentious-moi-suffering-with-actor-speak/Guardian%3A+Pretentious+Moi%3F+--+Suffering+With+%27Actor-Speak%272009-10-23+23%3A41%3A17Big+Hollywood

Polanski Might Not Fight Extradition

Out of options?

Considering the shocking ineptitude and counterintuitive moves by the White House lately, I was starting to wonder if they might add to their woes, cave to their Leftist Hollywood friends and quietly let the deadline pass to request Roman Polanski’s extradition — effectively letting him off the hook. Thankfully, word comes today that the U.S. has made a formal request to the Swiss to hand the child-rapist over. Better yet, Polanski’s lawyers are floating the idea that Polanski is considering a voluntary surrender to U.S. authorities:

Polanski’s legal team has sent out mixed messages on its strategy. Temime has insisted the Oscar-winning director will fight extradition. But earlier this week, Georges Kiejman, another of Polanski’s lawyers, told French radio that, instead of spending years in a Swiss jail, Polanski might voluntarily decide to face justice in the U.S.

The 76 year old child-rapist is pretty much out of options. The court battle over extradition could take years, and with no hope of bail that means those years would be spent in prison. If he then loses that fight he’ll still have to face whatever penalty awaits him here in the States. At his age, there aren’t many years to waste. Taking his chances here is probably the wise move. (more…)

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Tags: extradition, Obama, Polanski, prison, Swiss
Posted Oct 23rd 2009 at 7:50 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 25139812 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2009/10/23/polanski-might-not-fight-extradition/Polanski+Might+Not+Fight+Extradition2009-10-23+14%3A50%3A39John+Nolte

Heather Graham: MoveOn Fembot for ObamaCare

Heather Graham’s latest starring role is playing “Public Option” in Obama’s health care epic (uh-oh, time to reconsider your agent).  You may remember Graham as Felicity Shagwell from Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me… or perhaps Roller Girl in Boogie Nights.  Here, she gets physical in “Track Meet,” a new ad produced by leftist group MoveOn.org.  The philosophy: if you can’t pass the public option on its’ merits in policy and debate, why not try selling it through sex and cheap laughs?

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So, what’s a nice Catholic girl from Milwaukee doing in an ad like this? Graham admits, “My friends really wanted Obama to be elected so we all did a spell and then he got elected.”  Thanks for sharing.  Graham is a long way from that seemingly squeaky upbringing, having joined a coven of witches. But she becomes just the latest conjurer in a string of celebrity activists pushing ObamaCare. (more…)

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Tags: George Soros, Heather Graham, MoveOn.org, ObamaCare, will ferrell
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 at 1:49 pm in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 25074621 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jmeath/2009/10/22/heather-graham-moveon-fembot-for-obamacare/Heather+Graham%3A+MoveOn+Fembot+for+ObamaCare2009-10-22+20%3A49%3A33Jason+Killian+Meath

Close Gitmo!: Musicians Angry Their Music Used For ‘Torture’

From the “Truth is Stranger Than Fiction” files:

Rock bands including Pearl Jam and REM have joined a coalition of musicians to support the US president’s efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay prison.

The National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, which also includes former military officers, launched on Tuesday.

Many of the artists who have signed up are angry that their music was used as an interrogation tool in the jail.

But CIA spokesman George Little said music was used only for security, rather than “punitive purposes”. (more…)

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Tags: Billy Bragg, Bonnie Raitt, gitmo, interrogation, Jackson Browne
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 at 10:22 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 2508184 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/22/close-gitmo-musicians-angry-their-music-used-for-torture/Close+Gitmo%21%3A+Musicians+Angry+Their+Music+Used+For+%27Torture%272009-10-22+17%3A22%3A08Big+Hollywood

ObamaVision: Europe Doesn’t Mind Leftist American Cultural Imperialism

Last week, Big Hollywood broke the news that the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) has proved eager to obey the orders of President Obama. Instead of following the American president’s Serve.gov initiative critically, 60 network television programs (including news programs) have decided to embrace it and shove it down your throats.

As BH’s editor-in-chief John Nolte explained:

…tens, if not hundreds of millions of Americans, will be urged through the (ab)use of public airwaves to log on to the EIF iParticipate site and volunteer” this week.

A memo published by Big Hollywood, Big Government and others, clearly shows the propaganda week was orchestrated by the White House and ‘fits into a broader White House plan, including the push to politicize the NEA, to redefine “art” as “service” and engage an all too compliant news, entertainment, and artistic community to start a volunteer army through these online portals.’ (more…)

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Tags: EIF, europe, Obama, socialism, Television
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 at 8:31 am in Celebrity News, Politics, Television | 2496423 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mvandergalien/2009/10/22/europes-upcoming-reaction-to-obamas-big-government-agenda/ObamaVision%3A+Europe+Doesn%27t+Mind+Leftist+American+Cultural+Imperialism2009-10-22+15%3A31%3A10Michael+van+der+Galien

Shepard Fairey’s Piracy: Rank Hypocrisy in the Art Community

Ever wonder why ushers on Broadway become “Camera Nazis” whenever they spot a still camera or video camera in the house?

Ever wonder why you can’t just skip over those FBI warnings at the start of every DVD?

Ever wonder why “piracy” is always such a big issue for Hollywood when discussing our economic relationship with China?

It’s because writers, actors, directors and producers all live and die from royalties and residuals (payments for the repeated use of a copyright protected piece of intellectual property).  I know most people don’t want to hear this, but being a writer, director or actor is usually not a great life.  Until (or unless) you are lucky enough to make it big, it is fiscally challenging to say the least.  So many actors who are not stars are lucky if they get one or two weeks’ worth of work in Hollywood per year.  How does an actor survive on only two weeks’ pay?  They don’t.  But, one thing that helps them is they get paid for every subsequent use of the show they were on.  Same with the writer and the other creative folks working on the show. (more…)

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Tags: "Fair Use" AP, hollywood, hope, Shepard Fairey
Posted Oct 21st 2009 at 1:57 pm in Art, Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 24992236 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/sright/2009/10/21/shepard-faireys-piracy-rank-hypocrisy-in-the-art-community/Shepard+Fairey%E2%80%99s+Piracy%3A+Rank+Hypocrisy+in+the+Art+Community2009-10-21+20%3A57%3A10Stage+Right

Real Life Hero–Sergeant First Class Jared Monti

Boots on the Ground Report

As I watch Hollywood’s inexcusable defense of Roman Polanski and the White House’s indecision in Afghanistan, I’m wondering what I’ve missed. For example, if the President’s going to break a campaign promise, why would he pick one that will endanger not only the mission and the lives of so many great Americans in Afghanistan, but the security of our nation? At the same time, how come everyone knows Polanski’s name but you hear little mention of a tough guy named Sergeant First Class Jared Monti?

Sergeant First Class Jared Monti in Afghanistan

Is it possible we don’t have our priorities straight? For those that are interested, let me tell you about Jared Monti.

This spring Secretary of Defense Robert Gates made a routine visit to Fort Drum, NY, home of the 10th Mountain Division. During his circulation of the post, he chatted with several members of the rear detachment of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team whose headquarters and 4500 troops are presently serving south of Kabul, Afghanistan. (more…)

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Tags: Afghanistan, Defense Robert Gates, Iraq, Jared Monti, Obama
Posted Oct 21st 2009 at 8:31 am in Celebrity News, Military, Politics | 24909438 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ajtata/2009/10/21/real-life-hero-sergeant-first-class-jared-monti/Real+Life+Hero--Sergeant+First+Class+Jared+Monti2009-10-21+15%3A31%3A57Brigadier+General+%28R%29+Anthony+J.+Tata

I Wish Russell Simmons Were an Atheist

Russell Simmons confuses me. He’s one of the finest examples we have of an American kid from the most difficult circumstances imaginable hustling and struggling and pulling himself up by his own bootstraps to create a life for himself that is, in a word, extraordinary. Yet instead of inspiring other poor African American kids who are in the position he once was with his story of hard work and perseverance, Simmons spreads religious silliness and tells those kids to put their hope in government. And last week, he did both at the same time. I wish Simmons were an atheist.

As many of you who frequent this blog know (and often condemn me for), I believe there is no god. That’s quite different from saying “I don’t believe in God.” When I say I believe there is no god, I mean that in this vast universe (or maybe multiverse) I don’t choose to not believe in a god, but that there is no god to not believe in. There’s a distinction, and I’m very certain where I stand. It’s deeply personal to me, and I don’t really begrudge those who choose to believe that an invisible man lives in the sky. Sometimes people need to believe in something more, I suppose, even if it’s not real. And while I recognize I’m in the minority, and I’m happy to argue religion and god with you, I won’t push my thoughts on you unless you ask. But I wish that Russell Simmons could put aside the idea of God or Allah for a while. It would be more honest and it would certainly help a lot more people. (more…)

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Tags: Allah, God, Louis Farrakhan, Russell Simmons
Posted Oct 21st 2009 at 5:04 am in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 248098188 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mwilson/2009/10/21/i-wish-russell-simmons-were-an-atheist/I+Wish+Russell+Simmons+Were+an+Atheist2009-10-21+12%3A04%3A51Michael+Wilson

Alec Baldwin’s Race Card Game

After enduring another self immolating Bill Maher monologue on “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Alec Baldwin was asked if Rush Limbaugh is a racist. To which Alec fell into that trap so many of his peers have in recent days:

“I think you need to always distinguish the rank and file of the Republican Party and conservatives and voters from their media representation and media stars and I believe that the people who are in the media and prominent in the media in the conservative community, speaking on behalf of the Republican Party, have a very clear racist stripe through their commentary, consistently. Not just Limbaugh but all of those people. But I don’t think that their rank and file Republicans are like that.”

Well, at least he didn’t accuse all Republicans. I guess he wanted them to keep some of them watching his show.

If there’s a sure fire way to look old and busted in today’s media world it’s to make the sweeping generalization that people who disagree with your politics are racist. It’s such a 20th Century argument. Calling someone a racist with no proof is hack. It’s like calling someone evil just because they don’t agree with you. Oh, wait–the race card hustlers do that too! They look for any evidence they can, no matter how vague or slight, to blow up into an incident. And if they can’t find one, well, they just make it up. (more…)

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Tags: Al Sharpton, alec baldwin, Limbaugh, Obama, race
Posted Oct 20th 2009 at 10:05 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 24941487 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jhudnall/2009/10/20/alec-baldwins-race-card-game/Alec+Baldwin%27s+Race+Card+Game2009-10-20+17%3A05%3A57James+Hudnall

If I Were A Guest on the New Joy Behar Show

(Applause. The air is titillating.  The mood rambunctious.  The atmosphere tense.  Over the loud speaker we hear, “3, 2, 1 and …”) 

Joy:  Hello, Victoria.  So, I hear you’re a Tea Partier!  (Sarcastic smile.  Eyes roll.)

Victoria:  Oh, well… 

Joy:  I suppose you like Sarah Palin!  (Sarcastic smile.  Eyes roll.) 

Victoria:  Oh, well, I love her, she is so… 

Joy:  She is so dumb!  (Sarcastic smile.  Eyes roll.) 

Victoria:  No, I don’t think that… 

Joy:  Just like George Bush.  He was an idiot!  (Sarcastic smile.  Eyes roll.)  (more…)

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Tags: Barack Obama, george bush, healthcare, Joy Behar, Obama
Posted Oct 20th 2009 at 8:21 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 249298132 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/vjackson/2009/10/20/if-i-were-a-guest-on-the-new-joy-behar-show/If+I+Were+A+Guest+on+the+New+Joy+Behar+Show2009-10-20+15%3A21%3A10Victoria+Jackson

Roman Polanski, Child Rape, and the Shifting Sands of Cultural Morality

When I first started contributing to Big Hollywood, one of the rules I set for myself was to never discuss non-political figures, specifically folks in Hollywood.  There is plenty to write about without insulting members of the industry you are trying to work in.  So, in writing today about Roman Polanski, my purpose is not to malign the child-raping son-of-a-bitch himself, but to discuss the broader cultural ramifications of Hollywood’s support for his vile, child-raping son-of-a-bitchery.

The Founders of this nation understood full-well that a nation of liberty could not long survive without a strong moral foundation.  If government exists to control people, then limited government naturally would control them very little.  The potential upside was tremendous.  If allowed to live free, a human being might pursue their own interests to the betterment of all of society.  Freedom means a man might strive, risk, and fail, but it also meant that he might strive, risk, and succeed.  As this process played out over time, it might well become the single greatest engine for innovation and wealth creation in all of human history.  (more…)

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Tags: consent, Declaration of Independence, Evil, Founders, Freedom
Posted Oct 20th 2009 at 5:04 am in Celebrity News, Culture, Featured Story, Politics, Religion | 24448685 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jdboreing/2009/10/20/roman-polanski-child-rape-and-the-shifting-sands-of-cultural-morality/Roman+Polanski%2C+Child+Rape%2C+and+the+Shifting+Sands+of+Cultural+Morality2009-10-20+12%3A04%3A45Jeremy+D.+Boreing

The Bill Maher Meltdown

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We’ll let others debate the medical aspects of this, but Maher’s obviously not used to not being adored by the New York Times or leftist guests like Alec Baldwin and Chris Matthews, and seeing the smug/cocky knocked out him as he plays defense, rambling on as his guests squirm uncomfortably makes for an interesting five minutes.

(more…)

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Tags: alec baldwin, Bill Maher, Chris Matthews, swine flu, vaccine
Posted Oct 19th 2009 at 8:58 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 249190176 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/10/19/the-bill-maher-meltdown/The+Bill+Maher+Meltdown2009-10-19+15%3A58%3A50Big+Hollywood