I loved the follow-up article, where graphic designer Katherine Young created a better version of the Girls’ Life Magazine cover, featuring, instead of a model, the real-life Google Science Fair Grand Prize Winner Olivia Hallisey, with article tiles like: “Girls Doing Good,” “Your Dream Career,” and “My First Miss” (about overcoming mistakes and setbacks).
I know magazine revenues come from advertisers, but surely there are some companies out there who want to sell girls technology, books, and sporting equipment, not just makeup and clothes. Our girls deserve better.
From “Scarface,” “Midnight Express,” Natural Born Killers,” “Wall Street,” “JFK,” “Nixon,” “W,” and “Platoon” to this month’s release, “Snowden.” Oliver Stone has been one of the most provocative writers and directors in movie history. Also one of its most lauded, with awards and nominations that include three Oscars in two separate categories: Best Adapted Screenplay (“Midnight Express”), and Best Director (“Born on the Fourth of July” and “Platoon”).
A new book, The Oliver Stone Experience, is part memoir, part critical assessment of Stone’s work over three decades. Working with critic Matt Zoller Seitz, Stone shares memories of serving in the Vietnam war, his childhood, his struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder, and his continual struggle to reinvent himself as an artist. The book includes never-before-seen material that dates back to Stone’s childhood in the 1950s, personal snapshots, private correspondence, annotated script pages and storyboards, and behind-the-scenes photography.
DESCENDANTS 2 – Disney Channel’s original movie “Descendants 2” stars Cameron Boyce as Carlos, Sofia Carson as Evie, Dove Cameron as Mal, Booboo Stewart as Jay and Mitchell Hope as Ben. (Disney Channel/Bob D’Amico/Craig Sjodin)
The story deepens in the music-driven sequel to the global smash hit “Descendants,” as the teenage sons and daughters of Disney’s most infamous villains — Mal, Evie, Carlos and Jay (also known as Villain Kids or VKs) — try to find their place in idyllic Auradon. When the pressure to be royally perfect becomes too much for Mal, she returns to her rotten roots on the Isle of the Lost where her archenemy Uma, the daughter of Ursula, has taken her spot as self-proclaimed queen of the run-down town. Uma, still resentful over not being selected by Ben to go to Auradon Prep with the other Villain Kids, stirs her pirate gang including Captain Hook’s son Harry and Gaston’s son Gil, to break the barrier between the Isle of the Lost and Auradon, and unleash all the villains imprisoned on the Isle, once and for all.
To keep up with the latest on the sequel, follow this hashtag: #D2Deets
“If your show doesn’t have a white Bronco or a dragon in it, go home now.” Jimmy Kimmel was joking in his opening monologue at this year’s Emmy Awards, but it was funny because it was true. Once again, the Emmys were awarded to past recipients, including two record-breakers. “Veep” star Julia Louis-Dreyfus with her sixth for lead actress in a comedy, and her eighth Emmy overall broke the record for most lead actress wins, breaking the three-way tie she held with Candice Bergen and Mary Tyler Moore. And “Game of Thrones” is now the most awarded scripted series in Emmy history with 38 wins. So, Kimmel was right about the dragons, and he was also right about the Bronco. The O.J. Simpson miniseries collected a several awards, including two actors who gave two of the evening’s best acceptance speeches, Sarah Paulson and Sterling K. Brown (whose sweet shout-out to the wife who “rocks chain” was picked up by some of the other winners. Paulson also prompted some of the evening’s most passionate applause.
The nicest surprises at the Emmys were the awards to first-time winners “Orphan Black’s” Tatiana Maslany, “Bloodline’s” Ben Mendelsohn, and “Mr. Robot’s” Rami Malek. Kate McKinnon was awarded the first Emmy for a “Saturday Night Live” performer since Gilda Radner in the original cast (and was congratulated via tweet by Hillary Clinton, who she portrays in satirical sketches on the show). And, as last year, with the nominees, presenters, and award winners, the Emmys provided a sharp and explicit counter to the #oscarssowhite failure of diversity at the Academy Awards. Slate explains one of the reasons — a change to the voting system. Jeffrey Tambor, who won for “Transparent” and presenter Laverne Cox both called for more casting of trans performers.
And it was great to see the enthusiasm for the kids from “Stranger Things.”
The in memoriam segment began with a touching tribute from Henry Winkler to Garry Marshall, and paid graceful tribute to those who died in the past year. Kimmel’s weakest moment of the night was in the joke he made about working hard to make next year’s even better. His mother is adorable, but I think the passing-food-around-at-award-shows bit is played out and then some. Kimmel was just okay as a host, but I loved his getting-to-the-Emmys opening, with rides from “Modern Family’s” Dunphys, the “Veep” Presidential motorcade (driven by Jeb Bush!!), James Corden, the Bronco, and, yes, a dragon.
