Monday, August 24, 2015

What You Don't Know About 'The Walking Dead's' Chandler Riggs

Courtesy of AMC

Last night the much anticipated spin-off Fear the Walking Dead premiered and the series young male star, Nick Clark, is a drug-addled, paranoid, albeit entertaining mess. A far cry from the mother show's Carl Grimes, who has always shown grace under pressure and has grown to be quiet the warrior on the zomified FX series. Sixteen-year-old Chandler Riggs will no doubt continue to take down Walkers like his older compatriots when The Walking Dead returns on October 15 on AMC. Here are a few things you may not know about the actor.


1. He Started Acting at Age 4

As a young four-year-old boy in Atlanta, Riggs started doing community theater. Soon after he landed an agent and acted in a few films before being cast as Carl on The Walking Dead.

2. He Played a Zombie in His First Movie 

Ironically before playing a killer of the walking dead, Riggs was part of the zombie ensemble in a 2006 indie film called Jesus H. Zombie. But it was his next movie, Get Low starring Robert Duvall that really got the young actor noticed.

Friday, August 21, 2015

Ten Things You Don't Know About Daniel Day-Lewis


Earlier this week, the highly private actor Daniel Day-Lewis scored a victory in his ongoing pursuit to keep his private life to himself. Family photographs and documents belonging to the Lincoln star were due to go up for bidding at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on September 4. But after Day-Lewis complained, the items were pulled off the block. This albeit evasive opportunity for fans to learn a little bit more about their favorite movie star leaves devotees still hungry for info. So here are ten thing you may not know about Daniel Day-Lewis.

1. Day-Lewis Was 14 in His First Film
Day-Lewis was just 14 years old when he made his feature film debut in 1971's Sunday Bloody Sunday. He played a very small role as a child vandal in the British film starring Peter Finch and Glenda Jackson. It would be another decade before more movie work came his way.

2. Day-Lewis' Dad Was a Poet Laureate
His dad, Cecil Day-Lewis was the U.K. poet laureate from 1968 to his death in 1972. The actor recently donated all of his father's papers to Oxford University. Included in the 54 boxes were drafts of Cecil's works, letters from John Gielgud and numerous literary figures.

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Fun Facts About Alan Cumming

Courtesy of CBS

Scottish actor Alan Cumming was a comedian and Shakespearean actor in the U.K. before he rose to fame in the States on Broadway (Cabaret) and in films (Romy and Michele's High School Reunion). He now stars as Eli Gold on the highly acclaimed TV drama The Good Wife on CBS, which returns to CBS this fall. If you go with the "third time's the charm" theory, he may even win an Emmy for the role in September. Here a few things you may not know about the actor.

Cumming Got His Start as a Comedian
After graduating from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Scotland, Cumming took to the stage. While performing in various Shakespearean plays, he also began to make a name for himself in the comedy clubs performing as the duo Vic and Barry with his writing partner Forbes Masson. His honors ranged from Olivier Awards for his classical theater work to recognition in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Cumming Is a Photographer
While most are familiar with his talents as an actor and singer, Cumming also has another artistic passion, photography. On his website he states, "My photographs are all about how I see the world, the incredible experiences I am exposed to and the parts of those experiences I think are worth recording or strike me as beautiful or provocative or weird." His first collection Alan Cumming Snaps! was shown at the Paul Smith Shop in Los Angeles in the fall of 2012. It features cherries, knees, Liz Taylor, Liza Minnelli and lots of self-portraits all filtered through an app that makes them look like old Polaroids.

Cumming Is an Author
In 2003 Cumming published a novel called Tommy's Tale about a drug addict in London suddenly thinking about getting clean and settling down. And in October of 2012 Cumming published a second book called Foreskin Be With You: Why Circumcision Makes No Sense and What You Can Do About It. He takes his public activism against circumcision to the written page. The book includes a history of the procedure, a discussion of what can go wrong and interviews with experts on the topic.

Cumming Is a Fragrance Designer
2011 was a big year for celebrity perfumes. Cumming joined the ranks of other celebrities to brand fragrances that year including Beyonce, Jennifer Aniston, Rihanna, Katy Perry and Britney Spears. His men's cologne, aptly named 2nd (Alan) Cumming, was a follow-up to his first bottled scent released in 2004, the aptly named Cumming.

The Good Wife returns to CBS on October, 4. 

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

All Wolfgang Puck Wants Is a Perfect Egg


Photo by Isabella Vosmikova/Bravo 

Wolfgang Puck is not only one of the world’s most famous chefs but he’s a frequent judge and guest on cooking shows like Top Chef and Hell’s Kitchen. While Gordon Ramsay may clamor for his competitors to nail his Beef Wellington recipe, for Puck the secret to being a great cook boils down to a simple task — cooking the perfect egg.

Born in Austria, Puck started cooking when he was just 14 years old. After working at some of the best restaurants in the world, including the renowned Ma Maison, he settled in Los Angeles. There, he revolutionized Tinseltown cuisine at the legendary eatery Spago with his designer pizzas that drew the likes of Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Oprah Winfrey. The man who's fed the elite and tasted great delicacies said the secret to being a great cook boils down to a simple task — cooking the perfect egg.

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Ten Things You Don't Know About Danny DeVito

Photo by Patrick McElhenney/FX

Danny DeVito became a household name when he starred in Taxi as cab dispatcher Louie De Palma. He found a new generation of fans when he took the part of Frank Reynolds on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. While the actor has been around for over forty years, there are a few things you may not know about him.

1. Danny DeVito Started Out as a Hairdresser
As a kid DeVito was a fan of movies but had no intention of being an actor. In fact, after high school his sister sent him to beauty school and he became a hairdresser in her salon. He didn't make his ultimate career choice until she sent him to school to study make-up at the Academy of Dramatic Arts and he was forced to take acting classes in order to enroll in the cosmetic courses.

2. Danny DeVito Met Michael Douglas in the '60s
In the late 1960s DeVito got a summer job at the Eugene O'Neill Foundation in Waterford, Connecticut. One of his co-workers was the future Hollywood leading man Michael Douglas. The two became roommates in New York and remain friends and business associates to this day.

3. Danny DeVito Dated Rhea Perlman for Over a Decade Before They Married
DeVito met his future wife Rhea Perlman when she saw him perform in the off-Broadway show The Shrinking Bride in the early 1970s. The two moved in together two weeks later, but did not marry until 1982.

4. Danny DeVito Got His Break in Cuckoo's Nest
DeVito's first successful movies was One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest starring Jack Nicholson. Four years earlier DeVito had played Anthony Martini in the off-Broadway production of the play. When his friend Michael Douglas began to produce the movie version, he approached DeVito about reprising his role on film.

5. Danny DeVito Did Not Want to Be on TV
When DeVito got the call from his agent in 1978 about a new TV sitcom called Taxi he said he wanted to be a movie star and was not interested in television. But after reading the script, falling in love with Louie De Palma and discovering the creators also produced The Mary Tyler Moore Show, he was in.

6. He Won An Emmy for Louie De Palma
DeVito was nominated for the Emmy Award four times for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on Taxi. He won the statue in 1981. He also took home a Golden Globe the year before.

7. His Girlfriend Rhea Perlman Played Louie's Squeeze on Taxi
Before being cast as Carla Tortelli on Cheers, Rhea Perlman made six guest appearances on Taxi. She played Zena Sherman, Louie's girlfriend-turned-ex-girlfriend on the show.

8. Danny DeVito Was Almost George Costanza
DeVito was considered for the part of George Costanza on the hit series Seinfeld. Fortunately for Jason Alexander, DeVito did not get the role. He was also up for Mario in Super Marios Bros. and John Kimble in Kindergarten Cop, a role which went to his good friend Arnold Schwarzenegger.

9. Danny DeVito Produced a Film About His Taxi Co-Star Andy Kaufman
In 1999 DeVito's production company, Jersey Films, made a movie about Taxi actor Andy Kaufman called Man on the Moon. Jim Carrey starred as the off-the-wall comic and DeVito played his manager George Shapiro. DeVito was reunited with his Cuckoo's Nest director Milos Forman for this film. All of his surviving Taxi castmates reprised their sitcom roles for the biopic.

10. He Was Nominated for an Oscar
Although DeVito has had numerous award worthy film performances like Cuckoo's Nest, HoffaBatman Returns and Tin Men, it was not his acting that got him an Oscar nod. Instead his Academy Award nomination was for Best Picture when he produced the 2000 hit Erin Brockovich.