The 85th Academy Awards – Part 1

It seems only fitting that my last two Pop Culture blogs for Families will be about the Oscars.  If you’ve ever read any of my blogs around this time of year, you know how much I love this ceremony.  Yesterday, I turned E! on at 12:30 to begin my pre-Red Carpet coverage and finally turned the television off at 11:30 – 11 hours later. There were a lot of beautiful dresses.  Although Jessica Chastain didn’t win Best Actress, she was beautiful from head to toe.  Perhaps the Best Actress winner, Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook, should take a cue … Continue reading

The 84th Academy Awards

The 84th Academy Awards is over and it was record setting. For the first time since 1929 (when Wings won), a silent film, The Artist has taken the Best Picture statue. It was also the first movie filmed in the 4:3 aspect ratio to win Best Picture since 1955. It was the first non R-rated film to get Best Picture since 2004 (when Million Dollar Baby won). Jean Dujardin because the first Frenchman to win a Best Actor award. Was his acceptance speech charming or what? Michel Hazanavicius becomes only the second Frenchman to win Best Director (Roman Polanski, who … Continue reading

Nora Ephron Dead at 71

Did you ever use the phrase “I’ll have what she’s having?” I know I have and I haven’t even see all of the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally. But, I have certainly seen the famous scene over and over in clips through the years. Well, if you’ve ever used that phrase, you have Nora Ephron to thank for it. Ephron, an author, director, producer, filmmaker, novelist, and screenwriter, died this week from pneumonia brought on by acute myeloid leukemia. She was 71. Ephon because her career as a reporter for the New York Post, but also wrote for Esquire, … Continue reading

Angelina Jolie Pregnant Again?

I didn’t talk about it in my 84th Academy Awards blog, but if you saw the show, you will know what I am talking about when I say “The Leg.” As expected, the arrival of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt caused a big stir on the Red Carpet. I didn’t watch them, but I did notice the she was presenting an award that night. She handed out the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar, but it wasn’t the presentation that caused all the media attention, it was “The Leg.” (The copyright holder of this work, Georges Biard, allows anyone to use it … Continue reading