ToddleWood Takes a Pint-Sized Look at Hollywood Glamour

Anyway who reads our blog knows we’re far more likely to write about adorable monkeys or pug dogs than we are about kids. But we were struck recently by a rug rat-centric project that really struck a chord with our love of pop culture.

ToddleWood is the brainchild of photographer and former advertising executive Tricia Messeroux. She goes to great lengths to recreate tot-sized versions of some of Hollywood’s most glamorous red carpet moments. 

The whole idea started back in 2008, after Tricia had been told that her three-year-old daughter looked like Diana Ross. She soon turned to friends who knew about styling, make-up and hair to help her make the perfect mini-homages to some of the world’s biggest stars.

This Week’s Inspiring Pop Culture Moment: President Obama

On Wednesday President Obama declared his support for gay marriage. And while the political pundits argue the pros and cons and election fallout from the move, we applaud his willingness to take a risk, make a stand and do what's right. And so we chose Obama's statement calling for equality in our nation as this week's most inspiring moment.

He stated, "At a certain point I concluded that, for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married."

And we are not the only ones proud of the President's statement this week. All of Hollywood is buzzing with approval for the POTUS' announcement that he has shifted his perspective on the topic. Here are some reactions we've seen rallying behind Obama's position.

On her Thursday show Ellen DeGeneres called Obama "brave" and said it was "an amazing day for our country." She and her audience gave the President a standing ovation.

On her blog, Kim Kardashian wrote, "This is such a huge step forward in our country’s fight for civil rights and I hope that today this will give hope to so many young people across the country... Today I am proud to be an American!! I’m so happy that our country is making history and moving forward. No more living in the past!"

And many more stars took to Twitter to show their support for Obama's statement. Here are our favorites:

Justin Timberlake: "@barackobama inspires me once again. True leadership is when you are willing to risk your power and voice so that ALL of ours can be heard.

Jane Lynch: "Obama: Marriage? Gay is okay!" She then followed that up saying, "Pretty darn happy today. Thanks Mr President, for supporting the dignity of my family and so many others!"

Neil Patrick Harris: "@BarackObama: President Obama announces his support for same-sex marriage: http://OFA.BO/CLBAi9” Bravo, Mr. President, and thank you."

Lorne Michaels Says Cast Changes Are Inevitable on SNL

Photo by Frank Ockenfels 

In 1975 when Lorne Michaels had an idea for a late night variety show, no one could have predicted that it would become a multi-decade franchise. But Saturday Night Live has more than stood the test of time. Thirty-seven seasons, over 100 cast members and countless catchphrases later and SNL seems unstoppable.

Sure there have been some iterations of the Not Ready for Prime Time Players that were stronger than others. And clearly no cast will ever be better than the original, which included Chevy Chase at his best and the brilliant Gilda Radner.

But if there’s one thing Lorne knows, it’s how to make sure there are always some solid players, even in a season with an Ellen Cleghorne or a Tim Krasinski. And that’s smart because not every actor is going to be an Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell or Kristen Wiig and those big name stars don’t stick around forever.

The Best Pop Culture Politicians

In honor of Election Day, we are casting our votes for the best pop culture politicians of all time (based solely on kitsch-factor, not on any political views). From a WWF wrestler to a late night comic, actors turned elected officials have become quiet commonplace since Ronnie blazed the trail back in the '60s.

Who is your favorite Pop Culture Politician and who would you like to see run for office next?

10. Ronald Reagan
Ronnie is the granddaddy of actors turned elected officials. The Gipper became Governor of California in 1967 and President of the U.S. in 1981, paving the way for pop culture politicians for decades to come.

9. Arnold Schwarzenegger
The Governator is serving out the end of his second term as the head of the state of California. And since his Austrian origination prevents him from running for President, it looks like it's back to Hollywood for Arnie. Can you say Terminator 5? He'll be back, we're guessing.

8. Al Franken
It took seven months of recounts and lawsuits to become official, but the Saturday Night Live alum finally became Senator of Minnesota in July 2009. He's good enough. He's smart enough. And doggone it, people like him.

7. Clint Eastwood
Clint made a lot of people's days when he was elected Mayor of Carmel, California in 1986. He only had a few items on his agenda in his two-year term as head of the Oceanside town—change regulations for renovating properties, open a children's library annex, save the Mission Ranch from destruction, and overturn an old law to make public ice-cream eating legal again.

6. Fred Thompson
There's sort of a chicken and egg thing going on with Fred Thompson and politics. He did not become an elected official until he won the Tennessee Senate seat in '94, but his political career goes as far back as the days of Tricky Dick. In 1973 Fred was appointed minority counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee. Somewhere in between, Thompson got the acting bug making appearances in films like No Way Out. In the last few months of his second U.S. Senate term, he joined the cast of Law & Order, but quit the show to make an unsuccessful run for President in 2008.

5. Shirley Temple
After her "Goodship Lollipop" washed ashore and her child star faded, the banana-curled actress/singer turned to a life in politics. She was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Ghana by President Gerald Ford in 1974 and U.S. Ambassador to Czechoslovakia by George Bush Senior in 1989.

4. Jerry Springer
Jerry's political career as Democratic Mayor of Cincinnati in 1971, almost came to an abrupt end after he admitted to hiring a hooker. But even then his fans loved a good controversy and he won re-election in 1975. He was not as lucky in his bid for Governor in '82. And so, his journalism career took front and center.

3. Jesse Ventura
WWF wrestler Jesse "The Body" Ventura became Governor of Minnesota in 1998 running as an Independent and member of the Reform party. He served just one term, not choosing to run for re-election. Apparently his wrestling motto, "Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat!" did not translate too well to politics.

2. Sonny Bono
Half of the popular '70s act Sonny and Cher gave up show business and entered the political arena in 1988 when he became Mayor of Palm Springs. The story goes he ran for office because he couldn’t get his restaurant opened in the dessert town. A few years later he became California's Representative in Congress until his political life was cut short by a tragic skiing accident in 1998.

1. Fred Grandy
As the ship's purser, Gopher from the Love Boat was in charge of the vessel's finances. So it only makes sense the next logical step for Fred Grandy would be to run as the Republican Representative from Iowa. Grandy served four terms in Congress from 1987 to 1995 winning eight "Watchdog of the Treasury" awards. Coincidence? We think not.

For other political pop culture stories check out:
A Celebrity Reminder to Vote: It Only Takes Ten Minutes
The Saturday Night Live Presidents Return


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This Week's Inspirational Pop Culture Moments

Funny or Die takes on the very serious issue of voting, a Fairy Jobmother helps families get back on their feet, and Major League Baseball stands up to Cancer —here are this week's most inspirational pop culture moments.

A Celebrity Reminder to Vote: It Only Takes Ten Minutes 

Voting in next week's elections is no joke. But the masterminds at Funny or Die have gathered a group of actors to remind people that they shouldn't let the day slip by without dropping their pick in the local ballot box.

Among the socially conscientious stars are Aziz Ansari and his Parks and Recreation co-star Adam Scott, Ron Livingston from Office Space, and Donald Glover from Community. Their message—it takes ten minutes to vote and there are worse ways to spend that time.

They're even kind enough to suggest some alternatives.
 
Harold and Kumar star and former Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement, Kal Penn, suggests that you could, "Stay on hold with your insurance company to dispute a denied claim."

Or, perhaps, like Mary Lynn Rajskub from 24 recommends you could, "Try to sell raw meat to people stuck in traffic" or "drink your espresso in a thousand tiny sips."

We think we'll just go to our local polling place next Tuesday. And we hope you do, too.
For more of this week's inspirational pop culture moments visit Beliefnet.com.

The Real Housewives of D.C. on the White House Party Crashers

Photo by: Stephen Boitano/Bravo

Let’s see. Who’s more likely to get a groundswell of support in a throw-down? Whoopi Goldberg, one of the most beloved actor-comedians of our generation, frequently sighted as a mentor and inspiration by those who know her, or Michaele Salahi, aka the “White House Party Crasher”? It seems like Michaele and her husband, Tareq, might be the only two coming down on the Salahi side on this one.

It all started yesterday when Michaele appeared on The View with her Real Housewives of D.C.cast members to promote the series premiere tonight on Bravo. The seemingly delusional Michaele, later claimed that Whoopi hit her during the middle of the interview. And an argument ensued backstage following the taping.

Today on The View the uncut footage was shown. Whoopi, who was off-stage for most of yesterday’s segment, had walked up behind Michaele and CLEARLY touched her on the back to get her attention before saying, “Excuse me, could you get back to the White House, please?”

After the show, Goldberg caught wind of the fact that Michaele was saying the chat show house hit her. Whoopi being Whoopi, she admitted today that she used “choice words” when confronting Michaele backstage and even “more choicer words” when Tareq got mixed up in the verbal sparring and started taking her picture with his Blackberry.

And, of course, it’s all coming to a head on the day of the Real Housewives of D.C. premiere. Sounds like a ratings booster to us.

We spoke recently to two of the other housewives Stacie Scott Turner and Mary Schmidt Amons. They answered questions about Michaele and Tareq and their opinions about whether or not the Salahis did in fact crash the White House party.

Read the interview and see the uncut View footage after the jump.

The "Saturday Night Live" Presidents Return

Funny or Die's Presidential Reunion from Will Ferrell

The sketch comedy stars have aligned. The best "Saturday Night Live" Presidents have teamed up with Ron Howard in a "Funny or Die" video targeted at the always hilarious issue of financial reform.

In case your knowledge of "SNL" or American history is weak. Here's the cast list:

Fred Arminsen is Barack Obama with Maya Rudolph as his first lady, Michelle Obama; Will Ferrell plays George W. Bush; Darrell Hammond impersonates Bill Clinton; Dana Carvey stays the course as George H.W. Bush; Dan Aykroyd looks surprisingly different as Jimmy Carter; and Chevy Chase prat falls his way through the Commander-in-Chief who started it all, Gerald Ford.

Sadly, Phil Hartman who best portrayed Ronald Reagan on "SNL" was murdered in 1998. So, in a bit of stunt casting, Howard cast Jim Carrey in the part.

The end result is pretty funny. Now we'll just have to see what Congress does next before we decide if we feel like laughing or not.

Join the “Draft John Mellencamp for Senate” Debate

 
If a select number of his Facebook friends get their way, the artist formerly known as Cougar (aka John Mellencamp) will be making a run for Evan Bayh’s soon-to-be-available Indiana Senate seat.

Over 3,500 fans have raised their voices in support of the “Draft John Mellencamp for Senate!” page. Apparently these fans feel, and we quote, that the musician “established his political creds long ago with performances for ‘Farm Aid’ and many other political events.” Interesting. We thought that holding public office took a little more experience than singing a few rousing rock tunes. Maybe an outsider will bring a new and refreshing perspective to the stodgy old ways in Washington, D.C. At least we’ve been told before that this concept would work.

Still, Mellencamp wouldn’t be the first seemingly under-experienced celebrity to successfully wage a political campaign. There are the obvious movie star politicians like Ronald Reagan, Clint Eastwood, and Arnold Schwarzenegger who have morphed their high profiles into positions of power. And there were the once famous but now forgotten trailblazers like Fred “Gopher” Grandy from “The Love Boat” and wrestling great Jesse “The Body” Ventura.

Maybe it’s that old sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll adage that has prevented more musicians from becoming politicians. Besides Sonny Bono (who served as the Republican Representative for California’s 44th District from 1994-1998) there haven’t been many singers who have landed high-level government gigs. Although Kinky Friedman ran as the Independent Candidate for Governor of Texas in 2006 (and may repeat the effort in 2010) and Nirvana’s Krist Novoselic mulled over a run for Lieutenant Governor of Washington state in 2004 after a long standing interest in politics including the creation of JAMPAC (Joint Artists and Musicians Political Action Committee) in 1995.

So it looks like Al Franken might have to scooch on over to give Mellencamp some space. There could be a fresh famous face in the Senate sometime soon.