fro's blog

‘Smash’ Review: The Making of a Musical Sensation

Fro — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 04:00:13 +0000

If you’ve ever wondered how a Broadway musical gets made, from soup to nuts, Smash
is the show for you. NBC’s dazzling new musical drama (premiering Monday at 10pm) effortlessly
achieves a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at a Broadway musical
based on Marilyn Monroe. The large ensemble, breathtaking musical
numbers and attention to detail help make it one of the best new shows
of 2012.

Tim Allen
Greg Norman
Lil Wayne
Stevie Wonder

‘The Vampire Diaries’ Episode 3.15 Photos: Family Time with ‘All My Children’

Fro — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 01:00:15 +0000

Now that the Originals have taken up residence in Mystic Falls, we have even more dysfunctional, undead families to keep track of. Get a glimpse of Original home life in “All My Children,” airing on Thursday, February 16 at 8pm on The CW.

Eminem
Betty White
Paris Hilton
Obama

Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller Reach Custody Agreement

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:00:13 +0000

After several weeks of back-and-forth and tentative agreements, it appears that actor Charlie Sheen and his latest ex-wife Brooke Mueller have worked out their differences and hammered out a custody agreement regarding their twin toddlers, Bob and Max. At one point, Mueller filed a temporary restraining order to have the boys removed from Sheen’s home [...]

Jana Kramer
Elizabeth Taylor
Reese Witherspoon
Sir Paul McCartney

Bon Jovi recaps 2011 and talks 2012 future plans

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 19:00:11 +0000

January 11, 2012-Singer Jon Bon Jovi took some time to post an updated fan letter on January 10, 2012 via Facebook just to keep fans in 'The Circle' of all of the latest band and members pesonal…

Tim Allen
Greg Norman
Lil Wayne
Stevie Wonder

‘Sister Wives’ Family Sues State Over Bigamy

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:00:11 +0000

SALT LAKE CITY — A federal judge has ruled there’s sufficient evidence to allow a polygamous family made famous by a reality TV show to pursue a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Utah’s bigamy law.U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups on Friday dismissed Utah’s governor and attorney general from the case, but allowed the suit to proceed against Utah County Attorney Jeffrey Buhman, the Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune report.Buhman threatened to prosecute Kody Brown and his four wives – Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn – after the TLC show “Sister Wives” debuted in September 2010, but his office has not filed charges.The family sued Buhman, Gov. Gary Herbert and Attorney General Mark Shurtleff in July 2011, claiming Utah’s bigamy statute violates its constitutional rights to due process, equal protection, free exercise of religion, free speech and freedom of association.Waddoups, in his 21-page ruling, wrote that he dismissed Herbert and Shurtleff from the case because Shurtleff assured the Browns that they wouldn’t be prosecuted. Shurtleff has a policy of not prosecuting consenting adult polygamists as long as they’re not committing other crimes.But the judge wrote that Buhman conducted interviews with the news media that made it clear he intended to investigate and prosecute the Browns. The fact that no charges have been filed does not matter, he added.”The entirety of actions by the Utah County prosecutors tend to show either an ill-conceived public-relations campaign to showboat their own authority and/or harass the Browns and the polygamist community at large, or to assure the public that they intended to carry out their public obligations and prosecute violations of the law,” Waddoups wrote.There’s reason for the Browns to believe they could face prosecution in Utah County, the judge continued, and that could have a “chilling effect” on their ability to practice their First Amendment rights in the state.But the Browns must show that there’s a real and viable threat to their constitutional rights for the lawsuit to hold up in court, Waddoups wrote.Brown moved his wives and 16 children from Lehi to the Las Vegas area in January 2001.Buhman said he had not yet reviewed the ruling and was not prepared to comment.

Lil Wayne
Stevie Wonder
Donald Faison
Herbie Hancock

Pandora Boxx: Fag? Homo? Queer? Yes, I Am!

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 13:00:14 +0000

Fag. Homo. Queer. These were the words I grew almost accustomed to hearing as I walked the halls of my school. I hated those words. The truth is that I really didn’t even understand what they meant. To me they just became bad words, words I never wanted to hear, and things I never wanted to be. Why did they call me those things? Why did I have to suffer through that relentless taunting? I remember getting tunnel vision as I walked those halls, trying to blur everything around me like a Van Gogh painting: if I just focused on where I was going, then maybe they would leave me alone, for once. It never happened. Without fail, someone would make some asinine comment about the way I walked or talked or looked.Who the hell are these so-called normal people? It’s really ridiculous when you think about it. There is no such thing as normal. Normal people to one person are complete oddities to someone else. But for some reason, human beings have this subconscious fear of what they don’t know, don’t understand, or deep down are themselves. So we make fun. We verbally jab at people to make ourselves feel better. What other reason would kids have for tormenting other kids for being gay? I hated every time I was picked on, but in hindsight, it made me who I am today. It gave me a thicker skin. It still hurts when someone says something today, and if anyone tells you it doesn’t, that person is a complete liar. Nevertheless, now I feel I’m able to cope with it better.From my earliest memory, I knew I was different from most. I just didn’t know what it was that made me different. My mother used to say that aliens had brought me to Earth to test her. If those aliens were cross-dressers with a passion for pop divas, she might be right. I wasn’t the easiest child. Yes, even then, I was ready to have my diva status. I was also painfully shy. So my mother spoke for me, a lot. Even to this day, I catch her doing it. She thought she was protecting me, but she was really covering me with a security blanket and then throwing me to the wolves. I was totally ill-prepared for the type of mental abuse I would receive on a daily basis. It is abuse. Mental abuse can be just as damaging as physical abuse, just without the visible scars. All the taunts and jeers just told me that I wasn’t good enough, that I wasn’t worthy, that I was nobody. I got it from school, and then I would return home, where my father would either ignore me or scream at me because I hadn’t put the cap on the milk jug or some other miniscule thing.I had friends, I had my mother, and I had my sister (when she was younger, at least; popular teenage girls and older gay brothers do not always mix well), but still there were so many times I felt utterly alone. Invisible. I just wanted someone to notice me or care about me. I just wanted validation. Validation, I’ve learned, is what most people want. We want someone to validate us. We seek it all the time, through our relationships, our jobs, our children. We just want someone to say that we are important and we are valued. We just want simple validation. I wanted it so bad at one point in my life that I tried to take my own life to get it. It was the ultimate cry for help. I needed someone so desperately to love me and make me feel whole. The reality of it was that there were already so many people around me who did, but I couldn’t see it through my pain. I couldn’t see the love around me because I had no love in my heart for myself. I believed I was this horrible person because everyone had made fun of me. I let them take control of my life even when they weren’t in it any longer. I was so damaged that I couldn’t see that all I really needed was myself. I needed the love from myself.Fag. Homo. Queer. To that I say, “Yes I am!” I am all those things that they said I was. I am effeminate. I do like other men. I do walk with a swish. I am proud to be a gay man. I am proud to be who I am, and who I always was deep inside the shell of that scared little boy. I wear those names as badges of honor now. I know that those were the words spoken by ignorant children who were raised by ignorant parents. I know that ignorance is the major downfall of the human race. Maya Angelou says, “When you know better, you do better.” I know better, and I am doing better. It is through sharing our life experiences that we all begin to realize that we are not so different from each other. We all just want to be loved.

Eminem
Betty White
Paris Hilton
Obama

Vanessa Hudgens Hangs Out With Her Little Sis

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:00:11 +0000

I guess that the whole cut-off jean shorts and boots look is all the rage now amongst young Hollywood starlets. Just tonight we?ve seen Miley Cyrus, Ashley Tisdale and Vanessa Hudgens? sister Stella all wearing their own version of this … Continue reading →

Lil Wayne
Stevie Wonder
Donald Faison
Herbie Hancock

Mac Miller Makes His Picks For Next Big Pittsburgh MCs

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 07:00:14 +0000

Miller took MTV News back to the ‘Burgh and introduced us to some of his city’s hottest up-and-coming talent.By Rob Markman

Mac Miller

Photo: MTV News

Yes, the world knows Wiz Khalifa and Mac Miller, but Pittsburgh has a wealth of hip-hop talent. With the Steel City’s two breakout stars already accounted for, MTV News took a trip to the ‘Burgh to see who’s got next.

“A lot of people are talented. There are just a million talented people out there,” Miller told MTV News when he took us on a tour through his hometown in December.
Acts like Boaz, Chevy Woods, B White and Mayo of the 58′s, Jabari X and Varsity Squad have been repping Pittsburgh locally for some time now, and while Mac supports all the city’s homegrown talent, if he had to pick one act to break out nationwide, it would be the Come Up, a.k.a. the duo of Vinny Radio and Franchise.
“I brought them on tour and I plan on bringing them out on tour, so if it’s up to me, they’re gonna be the next people that come out the ‘Burgh,” Miller said. “But there’s definitely a lot more people who could; it’s not just Vinny and Fran.”
Mac Miller introduces Pittsburgh’s hottest producers.
The Come Up exist as a part of a larger hip-hop collective called the 58′s, along with rappers B White and Mayo. That union exemplifies the type of unity that exists in Pittsburgh’s rap scene.
“It’s a small city … so pretty much we’ve all been familiar with each other for a long time,” Franchise said. “Everybody in this city who’s pretty much doing it legit, we’ve all been trying to get it and put the city on.”
Taylor Gang’s Chevy Woods echoed a similar sentiment. “Everybody’s hardworking, and it’s not like a big music scene out there, so when you got somethin’, you just go with it,” he said. “Everybody sees the light that shines on [Wiz Khalifa] and Mac [Miller] and now it’s trickling down to everybody else.”
Wiz Khalifa motivates Pittsburgh’s up-and-coming artists.
There is a pretty diverse group of rap characters that come out of Pittsburgh. Wiz is a hitmaker who dedicates a lot of his catalog to partying and getting high, while Mac embodies a youthful spirit. Boaz is street, and female MC Kellee Maize spits sociopolitical bars. “To be honest, I do think Boaz is right there on the cusp. I think I’m maybe close to the cusp too,” Maize said, laughing.
“I just bring that underground feel,” Boaz said, describing his deeply rooted street sound. “I embrace the culture of that poverty line that I’m speaking about.”

For years, Time Bomb has been an epicenter for Pittsburgh hip-hop. More than just a clothing store, Time Bomb has become a place for local ‘Burgh MCs to congregate and sling their mixtapes to hungry fans. The shop’s owner, Brick, has seen many young artists walk through his doors, including Miller and Khalifa. When it comes to the future of Pittsburgh hip-hop, Brick is a wide-eyed optimist.
“I think Mac and Wiz opened the door, but there’s gonna be an army of producers, an army of rappers, and they’re gonna be all different. People know: Pittsburgh, it is what it is, it’s a hardworking town,” he said. “I can name 100 people, because I want everyone to make it from here, you understand? This is Pittsburgh.”
Who do you believe will be the next rap act to emerge from Pittsburgh? Tell us in the comments!
Take a look back at MTV News’ Back to the ‘Burgh with Mac Miller and see how we spotlighted the city’s vibrant hip-hop scene.

Jessica Alba Channels Her Inner Golden Girl With Her Blanche Devereaux Outfit

Fro — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 04:00:12 +0000

My friend Chris gave me the head’s up of a startling discovery that was made by his BFF Ragni. It turns out that Jessica Alba was caught channeling her inner Golden Girl … duplicating a look made famous by Rue McClanahan, who played Blanche Deveraux on The Golden Girls. Now, I have no idea when [...]

Tiger Woods
Tiger woods divorce
Steven Spielberg
Michael Douglas

Celebrity Couple Splits in 2011

Fro — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:00:15 +0000

Divorce happens a lot?to the famous, the less famous, and even that family next door. But headlines and tweets are reserved for the household names, Maria and Tom, Jennifer and Marc, Eva and Tony are…

Donald Faison
Herbie Hancock
Jason Maxiell
Chris Duhon