Winnipeg provides cold set for "New In Town"

Renee Zellweger and Harry Connick, Jr.'s 2009 film, New In Town, is a cute romantic comedy filmed on location in good old Winnipeg, Manitoba.

I recall hearing that Renee and Harry were filming a movie in our city a couple of winters ago, and I had wondered how they were handling our frigid temperatures.

A classmate of mine at The University of Winnipeg had told me that a friend of hers met Renee in a line outside while waiting to get into the Winnipeg Art Gallery. The actress was wearing a warm North Face jacket, and wasn't afraid to strike up a conversation with a local Winnipegger. It seemed as though the Oscar winner was getting along just fine in our cold climate.

I must say that it was interesting to watch parts of my city in a mainstream film. New In Town was filmed in Winnipeg, Selkirk, and Los Angeles. The Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport posed as an airport in Minnesota (where the film is supposed to be set), my hair salon in the Exchange District posed as a small salon, a scene was shot in Portage Place, and I recognized Bishop Grandin during one of the driving scenes.

Not one to consistently watch a DVD's bonus feature, I knew I had to watch "Making New In Town in Winnipeg, Canada". This special feature included comments from the main characters - all of which included how bitterly freezing Winnipeg is, and how it must be the coldest place in the world.

All outdoor scenes were filmed outside, to which temperatures had at times dropped below 40 degrees Celsius. This allowed the actors to genuinely act cold while filming outdoor scenes, as well as a reason to re-shoot a scene as the camera had froze. I smirked hearing that both actors and crew named the frost that accumulates on a person's facial hair as "nostricles", and that Winnipeggers are pretty much insane to want to "ice fish in huts".

However, before I offend anyone, I must add that both actors and crew commenting on the special feature were anything but rude - they spoke very fondly of Winnipeggers and our kindness, and courage!

Below is the film's trailer. Rent the film, or buy it, make some hot chocolate, grab your Snuggie, and enjoy the film. It's a good one for the holiday season.

Premiere of the SATC2 trailer!

The Sex and the City 2 trailer has arrived!

With updates from the fabulous lives of both the ladies and gents from New York City, it's sure to be another few hours of fun escapism with loads of fashion since the first Sex and the City movie (2008).

I'm sure I'll be at one of the first showings when the film opens in Winnipeg. Are you looking forward to it?

Sex and the City 2 in HD

Trailer Park | MySpace Video

Hot New Movie Alert!

Robert Pattinson + Pierce Brosnan = "Remember Me"... a must-see :)

View the trailer on YouTube.

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show turns into Reality TV

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is all about sex, fun, and being flirty, oh, and maybe selling millions of bras and panties around the world. This year, however, the world’s biggest fashion show became a reality TV show. Airing this evening on CBS but filmed November 19 at The Armory in New York City, Victoria’s Secret was offering one girl the chance to become a VS Angel by walking down the v-shaped runway with the likes of Marisa Miller and Heidi Klum.

Ten women were chosen out of thousands that came out for auditions held in Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles and New York City. Their first challenge was to get a great photo taken by world-renowned photographer Russell James within four minutes – while wearing lingerie in New York City’s Grand Central Station. Americans voted, and 10 women were cut down to five.

Eventually there were only two women left, Kylie and Jamie Lee. Americans have had the opportunity to vote for their favourite at vsallaccess.com. With five minutes left in the show, we find out that Kylie has won. The girl has a great walk – she’s cute and flirty – but I can’t stand her pouty, deer-caught-in-the-headlights look. Ugh. Either it will become her signature, or I’m hoping she’ll drop the act.

Now, back to the deets on the show: The Black Eyed Peas performed two songs. Their first performance had a space-age theme while they belted out their hit single, “Boom Boom Pow” and interacted with the Angels while they strutted their stuff on the runway. During their second performance, Fergie wore a gorgeous green dress that completely showed off her legs. The unfortunate part of this was that girl needed to wash her hair badly, and to have done several hundred sets on a thigh master. She didn’t have to wear such a revealing outfit, but perhaps she felt the need to compete with the world’s most beautiful women.

Heidi Klum hosted the reality show that was occurring behind the scenes, and walked the runway near the end of the show. What is so amazing about Klum’s performance in this year’s show is that she gave birth to her and Seal’s third child just six weeks prior. She still looked incredible.

Another runway highlight was the $3 million VS Fantasy bra Marisa Miller wore. Earlier today, Miller brought the bra to the Ellen DeGeneres Show. The bra is made up of 150 carats of stones, including a 16-carat heart-shaped stone. Unfortunately for Marisa, she doesn’t get to keep it. However, I hope the lucky woman who ends up with the bra deserves it – but she’ll probably be a spoiled brat.

Anyways, enough with the jealousy! The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is an exciting experience for not only the models and audience members, but also for the viewers at home. Each year, the show is broadcasted with the voices of the director and floor directors being aired so that us at home are able to hear what they’re saying. It makes the show interactive and as if we’re right there backstage with the models and crew.

So, because not everyone is lucky enough to be Jay-Z, who had a front row seat, doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the latest collections and garments from Victoria’s Secret. I can’t wait to see what next year’s show will bring.

Now excuse me while I go do a thousand crunches and a two-hour ride on my bike.

Tweet, tweet... tweet, tweet

Oh, Twitter. Many people have a Twitter account (more than five million, according to twitdir.com). I've had one since September, but before today, I had only used it four times. I assumed it was like updating my Facebook status, so I rarely used it because I'm on Facebook a lot.

However, thanks to Melanie Lee Lockhart, Red River College public relations teacher and freelance communications specialist, my pr class has learned that Twitter is a lot more than informing your friends on what you're eating for dinner, or what movie you just watched, or whether you're on Team Jacob or Team Edward. lol.

It's a great way to share information with your friends, or strangers, or to learn something new about anything really. I, for example, follow Melanie because she often has links to great information about public relations, and because she's my teacher. :p

I recently added Leighton Meester because I'm a huge fan of Gossip Girl, and I think it's neat that I'll now be able to see what her thoughts are and what she's up to (K, I'm so not a stalker...)

Anyways, if you don't yet have a Twitter account, I recommend you sign up for one.

Tweet me later!

Bad Move, Adam

The only reason I watched American Idol this year was because of Adam Lambert. This glam rocker had a voice that rocked my world. His vocals are truly sick.

His first album, "For Your Entertainment", hits stores tomorrow, but I have a feeling his performance tonight at the 2009 American Music Awards may change some people's minds about buying it. His performance was one of the most anticipated of the evening, and was even saved for last, but with the little clapping that occured once he had finished, you wouldn't have known it.

Lambert performed the first single, which shares the same name as the album, that more than anything had a weird, sexual cabaret-feel. Within the first 15 seconds of the song, he pulled one of his male dancer's heads into his crotch. His dancers were decked out in dominatrix wear and he continued to bump and grind all over them.

It was so hard to concentrate on what mattered the most - his new single - when he was acting so sexual and way too campy throughout. He even stuck his tongue down the throat of a (male?) keyboard player.

I am so disappointed in his performance, and even the new single. He didn't stick to the rock that he showed us week after week on Idol. I shook my head in disapproval and my jaw even dropped a few times (obviously during the head to crotch and tongue-down-the-throat moments.)

So, my questions is, what on earth were his management and PR teams thinking? Are they nuts? Perhaps once Lambert gained a following could he move forward with some outrageous performances, but I really do think he just screwed himself over. That was such a turnoff.

What did you think of his performance? Do you think it was a stupid move? If he wanted to go mainstream, I really do think it was a bad move.

Dancing for your votes?

Prime Minister Stephen Harper joined Bollywood dancers on stage Monday in Mumbai on the set of the Indian reality show "Dance Premier League". Harper made his way onto the stage for the last dance segment to which he joined in by clapping along with traditional Bollywood dancers.

Upon seeing footage of Harper's visit to the Indian reality show, I can't help but reminisce about Harper's surprise performance at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa last month. Once the footage of him singing a Beatles' song and playing the piano hit mainstream media, there was a considerable amount of hype in the blogging and social media world. Many people expressed annoyance with Mr. Harper's strategic way of illustrating that he isn't the stiff person many people perceive him as.

His appearance on stage in Mumbai screams something I'd like to call, the anti-stiff strategy ha ha ha - I'm tired... I do, however, think it's a good thing that he's trying to loosen up and have some fun. It's unfortunate that it's rubbing people the wrong way, but I look forward to seeing what else our prime minister will do to soften his image.

Watch his appearance below:

Interested in human rights? Join Red River College's first human rights group

I know, I know, this is supposed to be a blog about celebrities and entertainment news, but why not use it for self-promotion?

As part of our Independent Professional Project (IPP) for the Creative Communications program, my project partner, Erica, and I have created Red River College's first human rights group. We've had two meetings thus far, and the third will take place Monday, November 16 at 4:00 in room P319 at the Princess Street Campus (160 Princess St. in the Exchange District).

We are creating a forum for both RRC students and staff interested in human rights and who wish to share their thoughts on related issues, as well as a place for those who have always wanted to learn about human rights but haven’t yet had the opportunity to do so. The bi-weekly meetings provide a casual learning and networking environment, with occasional guest speakers and a different human rights-related topic at each meeting.

Our next meeting's topic will be Aboriginal Rights and our guest speaker is freelance journalist/writer Shaneen Robinson, proud member of the Cree and Gitxsan Nations. She has worked as a television news reporter for APTN National News and CTV News Winnipeg.

Our guest speaker for the Monday, November 30 meeting will be Dr. Marilou McPhedran. Dr. Marilou is a human rights lawyer and the Dean of Global College at The University of Winnipeg. She has been awarded the Order of Canada for her work with respect for human rights, as well as for her work with the United Nations' human rights division, focusing on women's and children's rights.

If you have any questions about our group, please feel free to contact Erica and I at rrchumanrights@hotmail.com

Hope to see you Monday, November 16 at 4:00 in room P319!

U2 and YouTube to take over the world in t minus 2.5 hours

In just two and a half hours, YouTube will air its first global concert webcast. U2, arguably one of the world's biggest rock bands, will perform live from The Rose Bowl Stadium in Los Angeles at 10:30 p.m. Winnipeg time.

Enjoy the show from the comfort of your own home. I know I will, because I doubt they'll be performing in Winnipeg anytime soon.

"Balloon Boy Hoax" - A lesson in publicity

I stayed home from school Thursday due to this horrible cold that I'm still fighting. I turned on the TV at one point in the afternoon to see many stations covering some sort of balloon that was flying over Colorado. Reports were coming in that this balloon belonged to a meteorologist, Richard Heene, and that his young son, Falcon, snuck into the balloon before it was released into the air.

Two hours later, the balloon landed back on the ground. There had been special helicopters following the balloon for fear of Falcon's life. However, when the police checked the grounded balloon, Falcon wasn't inside. So, some reports surfaced that he had fallen out. Oh no. Scary, right? Definitely. However, it turns out the boy had been hiding in a box in the family's garage the entire time.

This story caught the attention of millions of people, and used up many resources at an apparent cost of $14,000.

Later that night, this family, who has appeared on the reality show Wife Swap twice, was interviewed on CNN. Watch the video below up until around the first minute.



When I saw this, I was disgusted. It doesn't take someone who studies visual representation to see that the mother and father were trying to egg their son on to what they had obviously rehearsed. The young child says, "We did this for the show," in response to why he never responded to people calling his name while he hid in the garage.

It's easy to see that the parents are nervous about their son's response, and are trying to think about ways to cover it up.

I decided to YouTube this story because I heard that this family had appeared on more news outlets. This is when I found the following video of the family on the Today Show. I just laughed so hard. Start the video around the :30 mark, and enjoy.



Wasn't that fantastic?! It's too bad the boy didn't vomit ALL over his dad.

I'm not sure if this interview was filmed before or after the CNN interview, but I had some real negative thoughts take over me after I laughed out loud. I thought, wow, I wonder if these fame-whoring, sketchy people actually tried drugging their son so he wouldn't "give them away" again during an interview. I'm sure they couldn't be that horrible of people, could they? Hmmm.

Anyways, the good news is that the parents are now facing criminal charges. They wasted many state resources and tax dollars on what was supposed to be, according to a source close to the father, a publicity stunt illustrating this man's balloon's similarities to the Roswell UFO incident in 1947.

So, what I would say to this man if I ever met him is this: stay out of the limelight, buddy. Or better yet, maybe now you'll realize that you should have hired a public relations specialist to garner yourself some publicity. Why don't you stick with building some useless balloons that look like chef hats.

Speaking of employee communications…

During my trip to Grand Forks this weekend, I noticed this “Reserved for Super Star of the Month” sign located in the Kohl’s parking lot.

I asked a sales associate what these spots were used for, and she said that each month, all of the store’s associates vote for two associates of the month. These two “employees of the month” get to park in the stalls next to those reserved for the handicapped (i.e. very close to the storefront entrance.)

Harper + foster kittens = very funny

Attached are some photos of Prime Minister Stephen Harper posing with foster kittens. I brought these photos in to "Rhetorics of Visual Representation" back in September 2007 at the University of Winnipeg. I laughed when I saw them on the Internet.

Clearly, Harper's surprise performance with Yo Yo Ma over the weekend did a better job of making him seem genuinely less stiff. The kittens sure are cute though. Enjoy the pics! lol

He just wants somebody to love

I think this is fantastic!

Over the weekend, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a surprise performance at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa by taking the stage with Yo Yo Ma. Mr. Harper played the piano and sang the lyrics to the Beatles' "A Little Help From my Friends". Who knew he had musical talent? Apparently, he also plays the guitar.

Mr. Harper, who is known as being a stiff man, had a little fun on that stage. I think this will help his image - good PR move.

By the way, I've now watched the video five times.

The video is posted below. What do you think of the performance?

Keeping up with who? Seriously, who are you people?

I have a bone to pick tonight.

The past couple of weeks while I've sat at my desk thinking about the true meaning of life (okay, and surfing some gossip and news websites at the same time), I have continuously come across a headline featuring one of the Kardashian girls. What I'd like to know is, what have these women done in their lives to deserve so much attention? I mean, seriously. So what if their mother remarried Olympic decathlete Bruce Jenner, and bravo for their father, Robert Kardashian, for defending OJ Simpson during his murder trial in the mid-1990s. So what?

Khloe Kardashian, 25, the youngest sister of Kim and Kourtney, married L.A Laker Lamar Odom this weekend. OK! Magazine reportedly paid $270, 000 for the couple's wedding photos. What brought on a few chuckles was the cover of the magazine with a photo taken at Kardashian and Odom's wedding. If you take a look at it, it's not difficult to notice that Odom is not sharing the centre of attention with his bride - as one would assume in a situation like this. Instead, its focus is on all three sisters with Odom in the background. This cover screams "look at me! Look at me!" - and I'm annoyed - if you haven't yet noticed.

I'm just asking, why should we care about these three women when in reality, they haven't done anything to improve society, nor have they contributed any sort of talent to the entertainment industry. However, some people obviously do care about these ladies because their reality series, Keeping Up with the Kardashians is in its third season. I can guarantee you though that I will never waste my time watching useless people doing useless things when there are so many more important things in life to accomplish.

The world loses another wonderful talent to cancer

Patrick Swayze, 57, lost his battle with cancer today. The actor, singer and dancer who starred in such favourites as Dirty Dancing and Ghost had been battling pancreatic cancer for two years.

Rest in peace, Patrick. Your smile and talent will be a great loss to the many lives you've touched over the years.

Kanye West shows lack of respect for Taylor Swift at 2009 MTV VMAs

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) haven't even been broadcast in my time zone for 15 minutes, yet there has already been a fair share of dramatic occurrences. I have to begin by saying I am so disappointed in Kanye West. This hip hop artist and fashion designer is known for saying how he feels, but he went too far tonight at the VMAs in New York City.

Taylor Swift is a 19-year-old country-pop singer and songwriter who has won over millions of fans all over the world with her music and sweet personality. Her music is easy to relate to and her down-to-earth personality shines through during interviews and her performances. This young lady won the first award of the night - best female video - and began her acceptance speech by saying how shocked she was at winning her first VMA. However, she was rudely and abruptly interrupted by Kanye West who jumped on stage and grabbed the mic out from her hands. He looked at her and said "he's really happy for her" and that he'll "let her finish" once he's done speaking. Uhh excuse me?

Kanye continued by turning to the audience and saying that Beyonce (a fellow nominee) "had one of the best videos of all time". Okay, let's back track here. Kanye has the nerve to interrupt Taylor and then tells a crowd of millions all over the world that she doesn't deserve to win because apparently Beyonce's video was better than hers? Wow.

As Kanye spoke his mind, the camera got a reaction shot from Beyonce who looked shocked. The director goes back to Kanye, and a completely surprised and sad Taylor can be seen standing defeated behind him. Kanye turns back to Taylor and hands her the mic. She stands there looking down at the stage as if thinking "what just happened?" The crowd began to stand up and cheer her name. It was, however, too late. The singer was disrupted, defeated and the director rightly chose to cut to a video clip.

At first I thought maybe it was some sort of joke made by MTV, but no, it wasn't. My heart goes out to Taylor, and I am very anxious to see if Kanye will apologize to Taylor later on in the show or on his blog.

Back to some lighter news, Janet Jackson made a heartfelt performance in the Michael Jackson dance medley tribute that opened the awards ceremony. She lip synched to 1995's "Scream" - the duet she sang with her brother Michael - and danced at centre stage while the video screen behind her had Michael dancing the same moves.

Apparently I'm writing slowly, because the VMAs are almost over. However, as Diddy and Jamie Sigler presented an award, Diddy mentioned Kanye's name and the crowd immediately began to boo and chant Taylor's name. I'm looking forward to seeing and reading the backlash for Kanye online and in both print and TV media tomorrow.

The VMAs began over two hours ago, and Beyonce just won an award. Demonstrating what a world-class artist should act like, she received her award and recalled how exciting it felt to win an award at 17-years-old while being apart of Destiny's Child. She therefore called Taylor out on stage to have her own special moment. Taylor walked on stage, hugged Beyonce, and asked the audience if she could "try this again".

Check out the video of Kanye making a fool out of himself at the 2009 MTV VMAs:

I officially welcome myself to the mysterious world of blogging...

Today, Tuesday, September 8, 2009, is the day I'm doing something different. I'm creating a blog. I'm not going to lie to anyone, especially to myself, so I'll admit I'm a little nervous, albeit kind of excited.

Besides Perez Hilton's blog, I've never visited nor have ever read a person's or an organization's blog. I assumed they were sites on the Internet where people could rant about issues that interested them or made them upset, and to which these people had barely any credit to do so.

However, during this past September long weekend when I wasn't soaking up our much-anticipated sunshine at Winnipeg Beach, I perused some blogs. A few belonging to Creative Communications' instructors, some belonging to celebrities, and others to people I just didn't know.

It was while I read these blogs that I began to understand that I would need to blog about something I know. This is true for most writing - it's easier writing about something you know and about something that interests you.

I have therefore decided to blog about what I am passionate about: entertainment. Some people may think I should have a more important interest in life, and that I may be shallow in caring about the film, television, music and fashion industries, and the celebrities that work in them. However, I've always been interested in entertainment and it was this that lead me to study communications and major in public relations.

Since I was a young girl, I've read each People magazine my mom brought home from the grocery store. This is where I first began learning about the fascinating and glamorous world of those in the entertainment biz. My mom, dad, sister and I have also always shared a love of film. I have probably watched The Parent Trap over 100 times and will never grow tired of it; and, The Sound of Music comes in at a close second on my list of favorite films.

It will be in this blog that I comment on and analyze the people and issues that encompass today's entertainment industry. Even though I'm a 23-year-old woman living in the Canadian prairies, it doesn't mean I'm out of touch with the never-boring, always interesting entertainment industry.