G-Magazine Now

Hooray! Tyra Banks Pulls The Plug On Her Talk Show!

Could the end of Tyra Banks empire be near?  TV's most obnoxious talk show host will throw in the towel in spring 2010.  Banks, who has been known to hire actors to become guests on her show, has exclusively told People magazine that she will end her talk show after the end of its fifth season.

"The Tyra Banks Show" has won two Daytime Emmy awards during its five seasons of girl-power topics and beauty makeovers.  The show has also been lampooned by critics and comics for Tyra's incessant and shallow need to overshadow her guests' stories to make a point that is all about her.  Banks has also been criticized for centering most of her episodes around what she knows best: fashion and beauty.  Also, her moves in the industry has widely criticized to follow the steps of her mentor Oprah Winfrey rather than creating and following her own niche.

Suffice to say, it sounds like the news of her plummeting ratings because of the new and hugely-popular "Wendy Williams Show" is the culprit to Tyra's decision.  Making news of choosing to end the show to "pursue other projects" rather than letting the ratings cause a cancellation is a great way to save face.  Maybe the real details about this will come to light.

At least she has another dramatic-filled season of "America's Next Top Model" to continue.

Ivory Should Have Won "I Want To Work For Diddy 2"

  

Yes, I still watch the second season of "I Want To Work For Diddy."  I am just appalled how another contestant has been dismissed too early once again.  Ivory Tabb, the season's most confrontational contestant, got the axe as the second runner-up.  Get this.  She did not get fired because she was the weakest contestant on the challenges given to her.  She lost because she exuded child-like behavior on her first day in the competition over an object against her house mates.  They forgot that fellow contestant Ebony demonstrated similar behavior by yelling at her competition and threatening to fight.

As their final two, the competition is stuck with Ebony, who is all bark and no bite when it comes to leadership and multi-tasking, and Daniel, the flustered simpleton who freaks out under pressure, doesn't multitask and has no backbone when it comes to confrontation and deal making.

Good luck!  I could beat both of them put together on a team by myself on putting together a fashion they were so dumbstricken about.

Why Does Everybody Hate "Jersey Shore" So Much?

Who knew that a little reality-TV show called "Jersey Shore" on MTV would stir so much controversy?  If you are unfamiliar with the fracas that surrounds the show, here's a quick rundown.  "Jersey" comprises of eight young adults from the New York/New Jersey area spending this past summer at the Jersey Shore.  That sounds innocent and boring, right?  Well, it is not.  The castmates are of Italian-American heritage and proudly avow being so by calling themselves "guidos" and "guidettes."  Every cast member has overly-tanned skin with gel-caked dark hair as has the machismo and bitchy attitudes that might make the "Real World" has-beens seem like punks in the area of self-confidence.  Aside from that, their antics are the same as the cast members of the "Real World," "Road Rules" and "A Shot Of Love With Tila Tequila" franchises.

What makes the show different from the aforementioned is the ire that has been drawn from the Italian-American communities and Jersey Shore-area residents for playing up to demeaning stereotypes of Italians and making the popular touristic spot look bad.  The fuss and negative reviews caused three companies pulling their commercial spots from the show in disassociation.

Really?  "Jersey Shore" is, by far, not the first show where a bunch of attention-seeking, emotionally-disturbed, idiotic low-lifes gather for a season's worth of regrettable shenanigans that embarrasses families, generations, genders and ethnicities.  The companies who pull ads from "Shore" should feel like hypocrites as they keep ads in networks that promotes similar shows.  Why not pull all ads from MTV, VH-1, Oxygen and BET, among other shows that recruits childish, attention whores.

Check out this skit starring veteran actress Alyssa Milano depicting the ugly stereotypes of the show.  She is the first celebrity to speak out publicly against the show.  Unfortunately, her star power has not hurt "Shore's" ratings.  The show's viewership increased by more than 50% last week after the controversy peaked.

Enjoy!

"Precious" & "Invictus" Score Major Golden Globes Nominations

Congratulations to the cast of Precious and Invictus for garnering three nominations apiece in the film categories at the Golden Globes.  As the Globes are one of the elite award ceremonies for films, many critics predicted both films including their actors Mo'Nique, Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon and Gabourney Sibide would be the big nominees.

So far, Precious and its cast, including R&B/pop singer Mariah Carey, has won Sundance Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, San Sebastián International Film Festival, Stockholm Film Festival, ASPEN Film Festival, Mill Valley Film Festival, Milwaukee Film Festival, Deauville American Film Festival, Hawaii International Film Festival, Heartland Film Festival, 45th Chicago International Film Festival, 45th Chicago International Film Festival, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association, Capri Hollywood - International Film Festival and the Independent Spirit Awards.  They have been the favorites to win the Globes and the Academy Awards.

Check out all the nominations below. G-Magazine Now picks for nominations are highlighted in orange.

1. BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

* AVATAR
Lightstorm Entertainment; Twentieth Century Fox
* THE HURT LOCKER
Voltage Pictures C/O 42West; Summit Entertainment
* INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company
* PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE
A Lee Daniels Entertainment / Smokewood Entertainment Group Production; Lionsgate
* UP IN THE AIR
Paramount Pictures; Paramount Pictures

2. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

* EMILY BLUNT THE YOUNG VICTORIA
* SANDRA BULLOCK THE BLIND SIDE
* HELEN MIRREN THE LAST STATION
* CAREY MULLIGAN AN EDUCATION
* GABOUREY SIDIBE PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

3. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

* JEFF BRIDGES CRAZY HEART
* GEORGE CLOONEY UP IN THE AIR
* COLIN FIRTH A SINGLE MAN
* MORGAN FREEMAN INVICTUS
* TOBEY MAGUIRE BROTHERS

4. BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

* (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Watermark Pictures; Fox Searchlight Pictures
* THE HANGOVER
Warner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Pictures
* IT’S COMPLICATED
Relativity Media, Scott Rudin Productions; Universal Pictures
* JULIE & JULIA
Columbia Pictures; Sony Pictures Releasing
* NINE
The Weinstein Company; The Weinstein Company

5. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

* SANDRA BULLOCK THE PROPOSAL
* MARION COTILLARD NINE
* JULIA ROBERTS DUPLICITY
* MERYL STREEP IT’S COMPLICATED
* MERYL STREEP JULIE & JULIA

6. BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

* MATT DAMON THE INFORMANT!
* DANIEL DAY-LEWIS NINE
* ROBERT DOWNEY JR. SHERLOCK HOLMES
* JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT (500) DAYS OF SUMMER
* MICHAEL STUHLBARG A SERIOUS MAN

7. BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

* CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS
Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation; Sony Pictures Releasing
* CORALINE
Laika, In* ; Focus Features
* FANTASTIC MR. FOX
American Empirical Picture; Twentieth Century Fox
* THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG
Walt Disney Pictures/Walt Disney Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
* UP
Walt Disney Pictures/PIXAR Animation Studios; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Russell Simmons Debuts New Reality Show On Oxygen Network

 

Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons has joined forced with the Oxygen network to debut a new reality show, "The Russell Simmons Project." The series will give a behind-the-scenes look at the women who assist Simmons with his professional and everyday life.

"Russell Simmons is a fascinating man and seeing his world through the eyes of his dream team, comprised of strong, passionate women, provides a unique experience for our viewers," said Amy Introcaso-Davis, Senior Vice President of Original Programming and Development for Oxygen Media. "We are excited to team up with Russell on this project and shine the spotlight on his core group that are living the dream alongside him."

While the show is being developed and produced by Simmons Lathan Media Group and Picture This Television, the Def Jam co-founder says his role on the show will be kept to a minimum. "Throughout my career I have surrounded myself with people smarter than me,' Simmons said. 'This show will let them shine and provide insight into how we build our empire from the inside out."

A premiere date for "The Russell Simmons Project" has not been released.

Monica's "Still Standing" TV Is A Must-See; Album Is A Must-Have

R&B starlet Monica gave cable network BET one of its best original programming shows ever.  Monica's reality-TV "Still Standing" chronicles the life of this one-time top-charting diva making a comeback in the R&B/pop game.  Along with her quest to return to urban music dominance, she juggles life as a mother and a partner to popular Atlanta rapper Rocko.  

What sets "Standing" against other BET reality shows such as [fellow singer] Keyshia Cole's "The Way It Is" and "College Hill" is that the other shows exploit the negative characteristics of the cast members rather than addressing and solving them as responsible adults who care about their reputations would.  As viewers see that Monica tackles health problems within her immediate family, relationship issues within her inner circle and the pressures of making a great comeback album, they notice a young woman who owns her life and handles her pressure with sophistication while keeping things real with her fans as she performs her hits and tells stories about her journeys.

Watch this recent episode below.  Monica adds the finishing touches to her upcoming album Still Standing.  Hopefully, the song "Betcha," which heavily samples Evelyn King's 1982 R&B classic "Betcha She Don't Love You," becomes the album's first single.  Produced by rapper Missy Elliott, the song has the potentially to become Monica's first crossover hit since 1998's "Angel Of Mine."  Other songs played in the episode, "One In A Lifetime" and "Stay Or Go," may suggest that Ms. Arnold may engage in one of the greatest comeback in R&B music history. 

Are you anticipating the Still Standing album?