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'Smallville' star Alaina Huffman (Black Canary) flies higher than ever on '
2010-05-14 20:50:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Alaina Huffman is a double-dipper. When it comes to commanding the hearts and minds of fanboys?and, no doubt, fangirls?the world over, Huffman holds not one but two roles of substantial interest in the TV sci-fi/comic book universe. On The CW?s long-running ?Smallville ? series?you know, where Clark Kent is no longer a Superboy, but not quite a Superman?she is the Black Canary?the fishnet, leather-clad blonde Green Arrow has stashed on his balcony. And now on SyFy?s new series, ?Star gate Universe,? she plays 1st Lt. Tamara Johansen?T.J., the ship?s medical officer. SGU, which also stars Robert Carlyle, Ming-Na, Louis Ferreira, Elyse Levesque, Alaina Huffman, Lou Diamond Phillips and David Blue, follows a band of men and women who must fend for themselves as they are attacked and forced to retreat through a Stargate. The survivors emerge aboard an ancient ship that is locked on an unknown course and unable to return to Earth. It combines many elements of the ...
More About: Flies , Tom Welling

Invading the privacy of Vimeo general manager Dae Mellencamp? Not me!
2010-05-13 13:57:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Everybody knows what YouTube is. Viral videos, 10 minutes or less in length, uploaded by everyone from the broadcast networks to your neighbor?s cell phone. But, contrary to popular belief, it?s not the only treasure chest of video entertainment and wonder. Take, for example, Vimeo. It?s a Youtube alternative with a cleaner user interface, easy to follow instructions and can even accept user-made, high definition videos. I don?t know everything that differentiates Vimeo from its competition, which is why I?ve invited Dae Mellencamp on the show today. She is the senior vice president and general manager of Vimeo and I?m hoping she can give us all a much clearer idea of Vimeo?s potential and how we can all put it to work for us. Vimeo Website ? Twitter DAE MELLENCAMP AUDIO EXCERPT: "Vimeo doesn't have any limits on length so people can upload something that's a lot longer. If a parent wants to upload something it can be private or they can have a private...
More About: Mobile Phone , General , Manager , Arts

Private eye Steven Gore puts all that spying to use in debut novel, 'Final
2010-05-12 19:18:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Steven Gore already had a pretty good career going for himself when he sidestepped into the world of mystery novelist. Let me quote from Gore?s own description of his life pre-novelist as a globetrotting private eye: ?It was a career that took me, among so many other places, to a smuggling port on the North China Sea, to a gambling den in Bangkok, to a prison in Lugansk, to an underground bank in Hong Kong , and into courtrooms in a dozen countries. It also put me in meetings with drug syndicates in the Golden Triangle, corrupt police officers in Mexico , sex traffickers in India, snakeheads in Taipei and San Francisco , and fraudsters from Ahmadabad to Zurich.? Sounds pretty cool to an armchair adventure-seeker like me. But at some point, Gore decided to slow down and let his mind do all the work. From his active imagination came San Francisco-based P.I. Graham Gage and the debut thriller, Final Target. Although it weighs in at nearly 500 pages in paperbac...

'17 Rules' for attracting talent... and Mr. Media!
2010-05-12 19:01:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Business leaders today are looking for every possible advantage to grow their business. Of course, that?s not a whole lot different from years past, except that instead of wanting to enhance their operations, many need this knowledge just to stay in business. For that reason, a solid book of business lessons, taught by someone who has been in the trenches and led?and studied, himself?is always a hotly sought-after commodity. Enter David Russo, author of 17 Rules Successful Companies Use to Attract and Keep Top Talent: Why Engaged Employees Are Your Greatest Sustainable Advantage. Russo spent 19 years as VP of huma resources for SAS Institute, which won numerous quality-of-work and quality-of-life awards during his tenure. More recently, he founded Eno River Associates to consult on best practices and workforce strategies with companies of all sizes. DAVID RUSSO AUDIO EXCERPT: "Telling the truth?my feeling is it's never too late. Maybe you have a lot of rege...
More About: Media

Black slavery novel 'Wench' brings out anger, frustration in readers
2010-05-11 17:04:00
By BOB ANDELMAN How many novels have you ever read that actually upset you? Moved you, frustrated you, left you unsure how you felt about the story itself? That?s the way I felt reading Dolen Perkins-Valdez?s first novel, Wench. I read a lot of books?it comes with the territory when they call you Mr. Media. But this novel left me aggravated. And I?m not saying that?s a bad thing; not at all. There?s nothing wrong with a writer pulling a visceral reaction out of a reader. The subject matter is what did it to me?Wench is the story of four black slave women living in the mid-1800s, suffering whippings, beatings, rapes, and the outright sale of their children borne of unions with white slave masters?pretty gruesome, hardcore content. It was not a pretty time, of course, and this is not a pretty book. It should make for an interesting conversation with the author. Dolen Perkins-Valdez Website ? Twitter ? Blog DOLEN PERKINS-VALDEZ AUDIO EXCERPT: "I did not want to romanticize ...
More About: Literature , Books , Slavery , Readers , Arts

Links for 2010-05-09 [Digg]
2010-05-10 09:00:00
Will Eisner's 'The Spirit' makes an appearance on Big Bang Freeze frame of "The Spirit" comic in the show's comic book store
More About: Links , Digg

Director Henry Jaglom's 'It' Girl Tanna Frederick acts out an emotional rol
2010-05-09 18:17:00
By BOB ANDELMAN If you?re a woman in search of someone else?s emotional train wreck to make you feel better about your own life, film director Henry Jaglom has got a movie or two for you. Maybe it?s his latest, Irene in Time, about a young singer with severe daddy abandonment issues. Or maybe you?d like his previous film, 2008?s Hollywood Dreams, about a would-be actress who oozes charisma but gets so nervous in every social situation she makes you nervous. Tanna Frederick is the common thread between these films. She?s the star of both, a big presence on screen. It could be that huge mane of cascading red hair, but I think it?s actually the emotions that pour out from her. The story of how she got to this point is pure Hollywood and I hope to entice her to tell it, but suffice to say that Jaglom already has plans for her to star in a sequel to Hollywood Dreams. And she?s currently appearing live in a Jaglom play, ?Just 45 Minutes from Broadway,? at the Edgemar Center for the...
More About: Film , Girl

VIDEO: 'Friday Night Lights' star Drew Waters previews season four with Mr.
2010-05-08 00:21:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Listen On The Go Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Season , Night , Star , Friday Night Lights

'Friday Night Lights' is back on NBC and 'Coach' Drew Waters is scoring mor
2010-05-07 18:47:00
By BOB ANDELMAN NBC?s ?Friday Night Lights? exists in one of network TV?s most rarified niches. It?s one of those shows that, if seen strictly by the numbers, should long be a memory. But tomorrow night, May 7, 2010, it?ll be back on the Peacock for its season four premiere at 8 p.m. There aren?t many times that NBC has guessed right on quality programming in recent years. This is the network that renewed the hardcore cop show ?Southland? for a second season then canceled it without airing a single episode of that order. And you know which company yanked the ?Tonight Show? away from Conan O?Brien and gave it back to the shark-jumping Jay Leno. But in the case of ?Lights,? NBC guessed right. It took on a partner, DirecTV, went for a shorter season commitment more in tune with a cable drama such as ?Mad Men? or ?Rescue Me,? and gave fresh life to a fan favorite. That, and it?s a show centered around high school football. In Texas. Hard to go wrong there. All of that makes m...
More About: Friday Night Lights , Back , Coach

Playboy covergirl Kelly Bensimon leaves 'The Real Housewives of New York Ci
2010-05-07 17:56:00
By BOB ANDELMAN Can I be honest with you? The whole ?Real Housewives? phenomenon slipped right past me. Oh, I don?t think they missed me; a middle-aged, bald-headed stooge is probably not their key demographic. And I probably wouldn?t have ever gotten interested in any of it but for the March 2010 issue of Playboy magazine. Smiling sweetly at me?maybe not at you, but definitely at me?was the stunning Kelly Bensimon. That?s how I learned she was one of the stars of Bravo?s ?The Real Housewives of New York City.? Suddenly, I was a lot more interested in this whole ?Housewives? phenomenon. And I?m thinking they need to do the next iteration of the show right here in the new new media capitol of the world. I can think of plenty of Real Housewives of St. Petersburg! But I digress. Kelly Bensimon is a beautiful woman, one who can give the usual barely legal girl of Playboy a run for their money in my book, any day. KELLY BENSIMON AUDIO EXCERPT: "('The Real Housewives of New Yo...

London Review of Books publisher Nicholas Spice believes in his audience, e
2010-05-06 17:49:00
Image via Wikipedia By BOB ANDELMAN There has been a lot of whining in recent years about the fate of the physical book?and, for that matter, magazines and newspapers. We?re in an era of rapidly shifting habits, spending more time, effort and money on the digital word over its print cousin. And yet there are some happy hangers-on to the old ways and old days. Nicholas Spice, the publisher of the London Review of Books , for example, is about to join me to say that his publication?s numbers are up, not just on the web but in the dead trees edition, too. Incidentally, the London Review of Books?which you can preview online @ lrb.co.uk?is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its U.S. edition this month, April 2010. NICHOLAS SPICE AUDIO EXCERPT: "I think there is a tremendous tradition of reading in the States; almost half our readers are in the U.S.?20,000 readers, which is pretty good, really, for a U.K. magazine."  Open in your default playerDetach into a separate wi...
More About: Politics , Magazine

Ramona Singer, one of the 'Real Housewives of New York City,' gives Mr. Med
2010-05-05 18:49:00
By BOB ANDELMAN The rest of the ladies may be ?The Real Housewives of New York ,? but Ramona Singer is the real businesswoman of the Big Apple. Kelly Bensimon may have shown her family jewels in the pages of Playboy, but fellow ?Housewife? Ramona Singer has used her fame to pursue a more traditional route to success. This reality TV star, seen every Thursday at 10 p.m. on Bravo , sells her ?True Faith? jewelry collection on HSN and has a store on Amazon .com called ?Ramona Singer Collections.? Of course, if she tells me in a minute that her Maxim spread is coming up next, this whole intro is out the window, right? Ramona Singer website ? Facebook ? Twitter RAMONA SINGER AUDIO EXCERPT: "I'm trying to appreciate my relationships and be a better person. Of course, I can't be perfect and I do mess up by saying certain things on the show, but never to be malicious."  Open in your default player  Detach into a separate window You can LISTEN to this intervi...
More About: New York City

Author Pete Williams beats another 'Core Performance' out of Mr. Media Radi
2010-05-04 19:06:00
By BOB ANDELMAN If you?re a pro or college football fan and you haven?t yet read Pete Williams? landmark investigation of the NFL draft?simply titled, The Draft?you?re not quite the fan you think you are. Williams went behind the scenes not just of draft day but of the entire process, interviewing pro scouts, coaches and GMs as well as college coaches, highly touted players and their agents to produce an incredibly revealing portrait of how things really work in the land of million-dollar bonus babies. If that?s all Williams ever produced, it would be a pretty good career of which to boast. But he?s also written five Core Performance books with Phoenix-Arizona-based athletic trainer Mark Verstegen, the latest of which is Core Performance Women. Pete Williams Website ? Blog ? Facebook ? The Fitness Buff ? Core Performance PETE WILLIAMS AUDIO EXCERPT: "The NFL draft is a year-long process that begins now; the scouts will be digging in on the 2011 draft in a few wee...
More About: Media , Sport , Football , Author

Links for 2010-05-03 [Digg]
2010-05-04 09:00:00
'Penny Arcade' gamer cartoonists turn boredom to lifestyle Oh, and the strip is pretty damn funny, even for a non-gamer, and even if many of the gags are too inside baseball for me. And don’t be fooled by the unicorn on the cover; this is not a comic for little girls or girly men.
More About: Links , Digg

'Penny Arcade' gamer cartoonists turn boredom and slacker 'tude into empire
2010-05-03 20:24:00
Image via Wikipedia By BOB ANDELMAN The closest I ever came to being a gamer was during college when I worked at the Royal Park Cinemas in Gainesville, Florida. Theaters 3 & 4 had one of those sit-down tables with Ms. Pac-Man on it and bored, listless employees played it for hours in between movie start times. That was okay, but I preferred the pinball game in theaters 1 & 2. Our projectionist, David Rocky, figured out how you could hit it just so and play endless free games. That?s the extent of my experience?and desire?to be a gamer. I?ve never had the fascination with video and computer games that is so prevalent these days; never queued up for the release of Myst or anything with the name ?Final? in it that never seemed final at all. Which is why, despite my love of print and web comics, I somehow missed the ?Penny Arcade ? phenomenon. My guests today are Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the creators of the webcomic "Penny Arcade." They are celebrating the r...
More About: Games , Gamer , Video Game , Slacker

Stitcher's Top Picks, April 29, 2010: The Nerdist, Mr. Media, Slate Audio B
2010-05-03 19:52:00
Looks like Mr. Media has a big new fan @ Stitcher! Matty, director of content & community for the hot new mobile device audio app, recommended Mr. Media Radio to everyone on the service last week! How cool is that? Here's what he wrote about all three shows: The Nerdist: Stand up comedian and Web Soup's hosts, Chris Hardwick presents The Nerdist. Chris and his friends, Jonah Ray & Matt Mira geek out with celebrities about everything under sun. Check this out and more of our favorites in Stitchers Picks! Mr Media: Celebrity interviews by Mr. Media, a.k.a., Bob Andelman, with newsmakers in TV, radio, film, movies, music, magazines,newspapers, graphic novels, and comics! Check it out and other new shows in the Recently Added. Slate Audio Book Club: Join Slate's critics for regular discussions of new and important books. Slate is a listener favorite and you can hear why when you check out this and their other great shows in the Slate Source Station. Can't find a show y...
More About: April

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Heather Brewer, author, 'The Chronicles of Vladi
2010-05-02 22:03:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Interview , Dracula , Author

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Heather Brewer, author, 'The Chronicles of Vladi
2010-05-02 21:58:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Interview , Dracula , Author

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Heather Brewer, author, 'The Chronicles of Vladi
2010-05-02 21:52:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Interview , Author , Chronicles

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Jordan Brady, director, 'I Am Comic' 1 of 3
2010-05-01 16:01:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Comic , Arts , Interview

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Jordan Brady, director, 'I Am Comic' 2 of 3
2010-05-01 15:57:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Comic , Arts , Interview

Mr. Media VIDEO Interview: Jordan Brady, director, 'I Am Comic' 3 of 3
2010-05-01 15:54:00
Copyright 2010 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!
More About: Video , Media , Comic , Arts , Interview

VIDEO: Actress Diane Farr chooses Adam Carolla over Denis Leary, Rob Morrow
2010-04-30 13:31:00
Listen On The Go By Bob Andelman It?s got to be the dancing eyes. There?s a lively sense of mischief and glee that I see when I gaze into actress Diane Farr?s big eyes on the TV screen, the kind that makes me think she would be a lot of fun to hang out with?and also the kind of girl who?d get you into a world of trouble without so much as blinking. Or maybe that?s just what the professionals call ?acting.? Either way, from her days as sidekick to Dr. Drew Pinsky on MTV?s late night ?Loveline? show, on through acting roles opposite Denis Leary on ?The Job? and ?Rescue Me,? past working with Rob Morrow for several seasons on ?Numb3rs? and, most recently, getting down and dirty as David Duchovny?s teaching assistant on ?Californication,? Farr has charisma to burn. Maxim magazine once called her ?Rescue Me? character Laura ?the world?s hottest firefighter.? No argument there! And a New York Times headline said, ?Looks like Barbie, Talks Like Ken.? Farr is joining me t...
More About: Video , Actress , Adam

Phish biographer Parke Puterbaugh drops in on Mr. Media Radio
2010-04-29 12:56:00
Cover of Phish : The Biography By BOB ANDELMAN Must be my lifelong resistance to getting stoned, but I?ve never been a huge fan of jamband music. Dave Matthews is okay in small does, as is the Grateful Dead, and to be perfectly honest, I?ve had little exposure to the music of the band Phish?and that?s spelled P-H-I-S-H for those of you who listen regularly but may be musically clueless. But what I do recognize is a good story, and that?s what Phish?s official biographer?and former Rolling Stone magazine staff writer?Parke Puterbaugh has in his new book Phish: The Biography. Even though I?m not a Phish-head, I thought by reading the book and talking to Parke, maybe I?ll see the light. Let?s see what happens. Parke Puterbaugh on Facebook Phish Website PARKE PUTERBAUGH AUDIO EXCERPT: "I don't know what struck them about me, but I do know what struck me about them. First, before I ever heard a note of their music, at their insistence, I flew up to Burlington, Vermont, which is t...
More About: Radio , Media , Music , Arts

Legendary cartoonist Gahan Wilson draws a picture of his 50 years with Play
2010-04-28 11:03:00
Gahan Wilson by Getty ImagesDaylife By BOB ANDELMAN In my mind, I?ve been associated with Playboy for roughly 40 years?I was roughly 10 when I discovered my dad?s box of old magazines in a cardboard box on top of the standup cedar wardrobe in the attic. ?Discovered? may not be the right word?at 10, I was finally mischievous enough to devise a way of getting up high enough to see what was in the box. Hello, Miss May, 1966! Anyway, cartoonist Gahan Wilson still has me beat. He?s been connected with Hugh Hefner?s monthly treehouse for boys for 50 years! He?s joining us today to talk about about his phenomenal longevity and production, work that resulted in the publication of the three-volume collection, Gahan Wilson: Fifty Years of Playboy Cartoon s, now available from Fantagraphics. Gahan Wilson: Website GAHAN WILSON AUDIO EXCERPT: "I said, I'll see Mr. Kurtzman?' 'Oh, no,' the receptionist said. 'Trump is out of New York.' The art director came up behind me and said, 'H...
More About: Politics , Literature , Shopping , Amazon

'Shark Tank' big fish Daymond John returns to brand Mr. Media!
2010-04-27 14:08:00
By BOB ANDELMAN You know you?re in for a fun read when the author opens his book by quoting both Nolan Bushnell?the creator of the ?Pong? videogame and ?Chuck E. Cheese? Pizza restaurants?and Jay-Z. And Daymond John does not disappoint after that. The founder of FUBU The Collection and host of ABC?s ?Shark Tank ? writes like he talks?straight-forward, down-to-earth, no bull. But don?t take my word for it?pick up his new book, The Brand Within: The Power of Branding from Birth to the Boardroom, and see for yourself. This is John?s second book?and his second time on Mr. Media Radio. Daymond John Website ? Twitter  DAYMOND JOHN AUDIO EXCERPT: "I think that the Tiger Woods brand was built on one thing?the best golf game in the world. If we look at two other brands that faced a lot of criticism?Muhammad Ali, at a turbulent time in our country, and Kobe Bryant, not only accused of infidelity but accused of a crime at the same time?when they came back and became the brands th...
More About: Barack Obama , Fish

Hey, vampire scribe Heather Brewer! Is book five the end for Vladimir Tod?
2010-04-27 01:09:00
By BOB ANDELMAN The whole vampire chic thing passed me by. Not just the Twilight movies and the HBO series ?True Blood,? either?I never got hooked on Joss Whedon ?s ?Buffy the Vampire Series,? either. Vampires? Yuck? I think the last vampire movie I enjoyed was the Dracula remake starring Frank Langella back in 1980. And I only liked that because I worked at a movie theater in college, the Royal Park Cinemas 4 in Gainesville, Florida, and during opening weekend, many of the guys taking tickets were dressed as vampires and could get away with breathing heavily and biting pretty girls gently on the neck. So I was surprised how quickly I devoured the first four books in Heather Brewer?s five-book young adult series, The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod. Heather and I share a literary agent, Michael Bourret, and he recommended the series. I trust him with my career so trusting his suggestions for my free time seemed reasonable. And, as usual, Michael was right. We meet Vladimir T...
More About: Book

Hollywood legend Bette Davis was 'Larger Than Life,' says Richard Schickel
2010-04-26 15:10:00
Bette Davis in All About Eve, image via Wikipedia By BOB ANDELMAN Is Meryl Streep a different breed of Hollywood actress than Bette Davis? Is ?new? Hollywood? all that different from ?classic? Hollywood? What is it that made stars such as Bette Davis stand out? Was it really her eyes, as the pop song by Kim Carnes would have us believe? Or was it something else? I?ve got the questions; I?m assuming my guest today, Richard Schickel, has the answers. He?s the author of a massive new coffee table biography/filmography titled, Bette Davis: Larger Than Life , written with George Perry. He?s also a familiar name to anyone who read a Time magazine film review over the last 40-plus years. RICHARD SCHICKEL AUDIO EXCERPT: "They usually presented Bette Davis as a person with some kind of problem that was very melodramatically stated and often led to her being found at the end of the picture in a rather tragic situation. They just don't make pictures like that and we don't expect to see ...
More About: Clint Eastwood , Author

Step aside, Gwyneth and Scarlett! Iron Man Robert Downey Jr. is checking ou
2010-04-25 16:24:00
Anya Monzikova, image via Wikipedia By BOB ANDELMAN No disrespect to Howie Mandel, but in moving on from ?Deal or No Deal? to share a pivotal scene in Iron Man 2 next month with Robert Downey Jr ., former #10 suitcase model Anya Monzikova has most definitely traded up. Anya, a classic Hollywood beauty who was born in Russia and raised in Plantation, Florida?of course?is a stunning young blonde whose eyes tease you into thinking she knows a whole lot more than you do. And if even if she doesn?t, you?ll believe she does. Iron Man 2 wasn?t her first memorable film gig, by the way. She was also ?The Face? of the beautiful women in Jonathan Mostow?s thriller Surrogates, starring Bruce Willis. I suspect it?s an exciting time to be Anya and I certainly plan to find out if I?m right. Anya Monzikova Facebook ANYA MONZIKOVA AUDIO EXCERPT: "When I was on set, (Iron Man 2 director) Jon Favreau asked me to translate a little Russian for Scarlett Johansson's character?she plays the Bl...

Former E! news anchor Steve Kmetko pimps MyQMUNITY.com for gays, lesbians a
2010-04-24 16:57:00
Steve Kmetko, image by Getty Images via Daylife By BOB ANDELMAN We all want to be part of a community. A place where we belong, a place where people are like us?and like us. In the online world, of course, nobody can see what color you are, what sex you are, how old you are, or smell whether you?ve taken a bath in the last week. And yet we still migrate to places where there are people like us. That?s what Steve Kmetko and the founders of a new online site, MyQmunity.com are hoping. They just launched the first local version of MyQmunity here in the Tampa Bay area and plan to take it nationwide in the months ahead. Kmetko, the long-time E! Channel news anchor, is the public face of MyQmunity.com, but he?s hardly alone. Joining us will also be the creator of the site, Mariruth Kennedy. Oh, I almost forgot: MyQmunity.com is an online resource connecting the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community to local events. And why is Kmetko here to promote it? News flash: he?s ...
More About: Steve , Ireland , Gays