Angie Harmon Squelches Rumors That 'Rizzoli & Isles' Characters Are Lesbian

Well, this story gives me a chance to blog Angie Harmon!

At Los Angeles Times, "'Rizzoli & Isles' — are they or aren't they?":

The first season of TNT's crime drama "Rizzoli & Isles" featured an episode with the title "I Kissed a Girl." Its stars, Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander, played on a softball team, shared some intimate dinners, drank wine over candlelight and hopped into the same bed for girl talk.

But this is not a gay show.

Series creator Janet Tamaro described Harmon's Rizzoli and Alexander's Isles as a "power couple" — the center of a buddy drama, one that broke cable ratings records in its debut run and returns for its second season July 11. But the women are not together, as in together.

Tamaro chalks up the rampant are-they-or-aren't-they discussion to throwing "two gorgeous actresses together who have great, natural chemistry." She contends that Harmon's tomboyish homicide detective and Alexander's stylish medical examiner "are straight women who don't fear the interest in or the speculation about their relationship."

That hasn't stopped gay pop culture blog AfterEllen from dubbing the show, "totally gay, it just doesn't know it yet." Or another lesbian blog, CherryGrrl, from creating a "Rizzoli & Isles" drinking game, advising viewers to take a shot for interaction between the title characters that includes "stares lasting longer than three seconds," "sleeping in the same bed/couch/squad car," "adorable bickering which generally relates to sexual tension," or "complaining to each other about their inability to find a compatible mate, all while being completely compatible mates." The Washington Post even pointed to a hunky visiting FBI agent as a short-lived distraction from the "faintly lesbian undertones that the show keeps trying to establish."

Harmon, a veteran of "Law & Order," said she's familiar with the online chatter and that it's "super fun" to play a role that has some same-sex romantic vibes. She's relishing a character who's gruff and aggressive, the polar opposite of her own girlie personality, she said.

But as close as they are, Rizzoli and Isles are just best friends, she said. Really.

"I hate to disappoint, but these characters are straight," Harmon insisted. "If we lose viewers because of it — sorry!"

And that's amazing, that Harmon would note the possibility of LOSING viewers if the characters weren't gay. Reminds me of my post the other day, on the anti-hetero bigotry of Dan Savage. It's hard out there if you're straight. See: "Gay Sexual Abandon and the Perverse Inversion of Values by Same-Sex Extremists."

The Rizzoli & Isles page is here, on TNT.

Peter Falk, 1927-2011

My parents let me and my sisters stay up to watch "Columbo" back in the day.

But I'll never forget seeing Falk in "Wings of Desire," in 1987:

An obituary is at Los Angeles Times, "Peter Falk dies at 83; actor found acclaim as 'Columbo'." And at New York Times, "Peter Falk, Rumpled and Crafty Actor on ‘Columbo,’ Dies at 83."

'Super 8'

My mom's visiting. We're heading out right now to take the boys to "Super 8."

Reviewed at the Los Angeles Times. And New York Times.

BONUS: At Pajamas Media, "Super 8: A Return to Vintage Spielberg?"

Summer Movies, Male Bodies

Interesting piece, and funny.

At Los Angeles Times, "Ripped Ideals: Muscular Summer Action Heroes Have Swaggered Back Into Style, But What Do They Say to Male Audiences?" It's long. This quote goes with the video, and I'm looking forward to Captain America, so what the heck?

In the World War II-era comic book Captain America, a weak and sickly young man named Steve Rogers is injected with an experimental serum designed to build a super-soldier. In the movie “Captain America: The First Avenger,” directed by Joe Johnston and due in theaters July 22, dozens of tiny needles inject the serum into Rogers’ major muscle groups, and then he enters a pod where “vita rays” stimulate his growth. On paper and on screen, the result is the same: Rogers emerges as a picture of physical perfection, a gleaming, rippling, flag-wearing, Nazi-killing machine.

“The transformation is absolutely key to understanding Steve Rogers as a character,” said Johnston. “He is essentially Everyman, a 98-pound weakling who is chosen for the rebirth program not for his physical attributes but because of who he is as a human being, with his sense of justice and compassion. It’s crucial that we know and love Steve as the kid who’s been bullied and rejected all his life so we’ll appreciate and relate to who he is as Captain America.”

Evans, the actor playing Captain America, has the kind of square-jawed good looks that lend themselves to roles as prom kings and superheroes — he’s best known for playing the football star in the spoof “Not Another Teen Movie” and the Human Torch in the “Fantastic Four” films.

To achieve the dramatic transformation “Captain America” required, Johnston relied on a combination of techniques, including shrinking Evans’ body with CGI and using a smaller actor as a body double for the “weakling” stage. For the “after” scenes, Evans did push-ups in between takes to pump up the broad new chest he’d built for the role.

For any real-life 98-pound weaklings — or even for the average 5-foot-9, 194.7-pound American male — all this physical perfection can potentially create the kind of body insecurity that was once considered the exclusive province of women.

“Men are increasingly getting the message that their muscles are important, that appearance matters too,” said Katharine Phillips, co-author of “The Adonis Complex: The Secret Crisis of Male Body Obsession” and professor of psychiatry and human behavior of the Alpert Medical School at Brown University. “Men want to be bigger and want on average 15 more pounds of muscle than they have.”

Oh brother. Overthink that much?

Poliwood: 2011 Cannes Film Festival — Anti-Semitic or Simply Boring?

With Roger L. Simon and Lionel Chetwynd:

Also, a Steven Crowder clip at Barking Moonbat.

'The Best Part of Easy Rider is the Last 20 Seconds'

See Kathy Shaidle, "Leftists strangely silent about Peter Fonda’s death threat against Obama."

Well, actually Joe Gandelman sees an opening to slam the "fringe" right-wing: "Further Proof that Not All Nuts are in Stores or on the Right."

Full story at Telegraph UK, "Cannes 2011: Peter Fonda encourages his grandchildren to take up arms against President Barack Obama" (via Memeorandum). Says Fonda: "I’m training my grandchildren to use long-range rifles," with Barack Obama in mind.

Well, at 1:30 minutes, Fonda (Wyatt) gets trained from a short-range scattergun:

BONUS: An amazing flashback. Exactly two years ago, I attended a 40th anniversary screening. Hey, great flick, "'Easy Rider' in 40th Anniversary Screening at L.A.'s Nuart Theatre."

Penélope Cruz in 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'

I caught a brief preview of the new "Pirates" while watching television with my little guy the other day. I had no idea another version was coming out, and I think I skipped seeing the last one in theaters; but Penélope Cruz is fabulous, so perhaps the franchise is worth another look. The film preview is at the Disney page. And at Los Angeles Times, "'Pirates of the Caribbean' the latest film franchise to go for a four-peat":

When "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" debuted in May 2007, many critics derided the third installment in the Disney franchise, calling its plot incomprehensible and 169-minute running time torturous. Newsweek prayed it was the final movie in the series; the New Yorker said a monkey delivered the best performance in the film; and Time suggested an alternative title for the picture: "Pirates of the Caribbean: At Wit's End."

Yet rather than sheath their swords, Johnny Depp and Co. restocked the eyeliner supply and relaced the corsets, signing on a little more than one year later for a fourth go-round. The copious haul of doubloons that Capt. Jack Sparrow pocketed worldwide suggested that with a little freshening of the franchise, audiences might be lured back aboard for yet another film.

"Even though the reviewers weren't crazy about the third one, it did almost a billion dollars. That's a big movie," says "Pirates" producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who, along with Disney, a new director ("Chicago" helmer Rob Marshall) and a new supporting cast, including Penélope Cruz, will bring another adventure in the eye-patch saga to theaters this week. "If we do a little less [money] on the fourth one, we'd be happy."

The return of "Pirates of the Caribbean" on Friday (this one is titled "On Stranger Tides") is part of a major shift in Hollywood, with studios now routinely pursuing a fourth picture in a series, often after an extended layoff — or even a fifth, in the case of Universal's current hit "Fast Five."

That "Fast Five" is of the "Fast and Furious" series, which has already made a cool $140 million and could get a sixth installment.

More examples at the link up top.

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver to Separate!

She's moved out.

At Los Angeles Times, "Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver announce separation":

Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, have separated, with Shriver moving out of their Brentwood mansion while the two determine the next step in their 25-year marriage.

Shriver has been residing apart from the actor-turned-politician for the last few weeks. The former first couple confirmed the separation in a joint statement released Monday after questions were raised by The Times.

More at the link.

She's losing faith:

Her transitions video, mentioned at the article, is here.

It's Been 11 Years Since 'Scream 3'

And the Weinstein Company says that's not a problem.

At LAT, "Word of Mouth: 'Scream 4' takes a stab at relaunching the franchise":

Following a bloody scene near the conclusion of "Scream 4," the character played by the horror franchise veteran Neve Campbell turns to series newcomer Emma Roberts and self-referentially cautions her to not mess with the original, though she uses cruder language to express her displeasure.

The question this weekend is whether fans of the first three films also might feel that the new thriller tramples on the "Scream" legacy.

It's been 11 years since "Scream 3" arrived in theaters, and franchises don't normally relaunch themselves after such a long hiatus. Audience tracking surveys suggest that "Scream 4" will be eviscerated at the box office by the animated comedy "Rio," but there are precedents that make "Scream 4" maker Weinstein Co. optimistic about its long-term prospects.

Paramount's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" in 2008 followed the previous Harrison Ford treasure-hunt tale by 19 years with poor reviews but a global gross of more than $786 million, and last year's "A Nightmare on Elm Street" from New Line, which trailed the previous Freddy Krueger movie by seven years, grossed a respectable $63.1 million domestically.

"Audiences like it a lot," Bob Weinstein says of the new horror film, which so far is attracting fair but not great reviews. "'Scream' is an icon of a franchise."

Hmm. We'll see, but Weinstein might have a point. When kids think of slasher flicks nowadays the "Scream" movies get first mention. And I remember when my oldest kid first asked if he could watch slashers he mentioned "Scream." My wife wouldn't let him watch it. That was years ago, so I've lost track, but my youngest is 9 years-old, and it's no way Jose. That said, I liked the first "Scream" a lot. In fact, I might even be heading out to the movies this weekend for some scary slasher thrills. You're only young once!

'Atlas Shrugged': New Film Takes Sorta Randian Road to Big Screen

I'm surprised.

A decent and fair report on the front page of today's Los Angeles Times, "'Atlas Shrugged' finally comes to the screen, albeit in chunks."

It has taken businessman John Aglialoro nearly 20 years to realize his ambition of making a movie out of "Atlas Shrugged," the 1957 novel by Ayn Rand that has sold more than 7 million copies and has as passionate a following among many political conservatives and libertarians as "Twilight" has among teen girls.

But the version of the book coming to theaters Friday is decidedly independent, low-cost and even makeshift. Shot for a modest $10 million by a first-time director with a cast of little-known actors, "Atlas Shrugged: Part I," the first in an expected trilogy, will play on about 300 screens in 80 markets. It's being marketed with the help of conservative media and "tea party" organizing groups and put into theaters by a small, Salt Lake City-based booking service.

The fact that one of the 20th century's most influential books is coming to movie screens in such a fashion is — depending on whom you ask — a reflection of liberal Hollywood's aversion to Rand's ideas, a symptom of Aglialoro's rigid adherence to them, or a testament to the challenges inherent in adapting the complex tome.

Aglialoro ultimately made a movie that hews more to Rand's ideology than the conventions of cinematic storytelling, at the risk that far fewer people will see it. Taking a page from the independent blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ," however, he is paying for his own theater bookings and marketing his film to an audience Hollywood often overlooks.

Keep reading at the link. The piece notes that the producers "showed footage at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington..." Also mentioned there is Freedomworks, where bloggers at the CPAC blog-bash saw a preview screening of the film's trailers.

The movie comes out next Friday, April 15th. There's a couple of local tea parties that day, so I might see it on Saturday --- and then I'll update with my own review.

Rough Language, Gay Sex Restored to James Jones' From Here to Eternity in New E-Book Edition

No doubt Scott Eric Kaufman will be thrilled.

At Los Angeles Times, "Profanity and more to be found in uncensored 'From Here to Eternity' e-book":

When James Jones published "From Here to Eternity" in 1951, his editors had pulled back some of the frank language and description in his original draft. The resulting novel, which chronicled the drinking, brawling and illicit affairs of soldiers stationed in Hawaii in the months before Pearl Harbor -- was a titillating, critically acclaimed bestseller. The 1953 movie, which starred Frank Sinatra, Montgomery Clift, Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr, got a similar reception, winning eight Oscars, including best picture.

Now, a new e-book edition of the novel will include the profanity and mentions of gay sex that were left out of the 1951 version. The uncensored "From Here to Eternity" is being published by Open Road Media and Jones' heirs, including daughter Kaylie Jones.

"It's been on my mind for quite a few years, and the right moment just hadn't come up yet," Kaylie Jones told the New York Times. “My father fought bitterly to hold on to every four-letter word in the manuscript. The publisher was concerned about getting through the censors."

More at the link. James Jones was one of the greatest American novelists, homosexual sex scenes or not.

Hollywood Stars

Hollywood Stars

Hollywood stars past and present

Hollywood Stars

Hollywood Stars

Kirstie Alley on 'Dancing With the Stars'!

I meant to post this earlier but couldn't find a YouTube clip. And since Robert Stacy McCain isn't warming up to David Weigel, perhaps the lovely former Cheers star will generate some linkage!

And the hat tip goes to American Perspective!

RELATED: At E! Online, "Feud Alert! Kirstie Alley Smites "Big Bad Drunk Wolf" George Lopez After Piggy Comment." And "Oh, Snap! Kirstie Alley Rejects George Lopez's Pig-Headed Apology."

Mike Huckabee Walks Back Natalie Portman Criticism

Huckabee screwed up.



The Other McCain has the story, "Huckabee: ‘Hey, Maybe I Shouldn’t Have Trash-Talked Luke Skywalker’s Mom’" (at Memeorandum and Politico):

We have no reason to believe that Natalie Portman became pregnant with any intention of “making a statement” or “pushing the envelope.” If Huckabee, the former Baptist minister, wishes to condemn fornication and bastardy, or to talk about the societal impact of our nation’s epidemic of fatherlessness, OK. But why drag the Star Wars star into this argument? Portman was already catching grief from the feminist ax-grinders for having declared motherhood “the most important role of my life.”

Good rule of thumb in politics: Find out what side of the issue feminists are on, and get on the other side. (If feminists ever bothered to denounce Islam’s brutal oppression of women, I might have to consider joining the Taliban. But feminists are too busy whining about “pay equity” to notice that Muslims are still stoning women to death under sharia law and forcing girls into arranged marriages.)

More at the link.

And for the "feminist ax-grinders," check Mary Elizabeth Williams, at Salon, "Is Motherhood Natalie Portman's 'Greatest Role'?"

Natalie Portman Wins Best Actress at Oscars 2011

Commentary from Betsy Sharkey, at Los Angeles Times, "'Black Swan's' Natalie Portman made worthy sacrifice for her art."

RELATED: "Oscars: Natalie Portman and the anatomy of a dress." And some coverage at New York Times, "Oscar Coronation for ‘The King’s Speech’."

Wally Pfister's Union Call Out at Academy Awards

More Oscar coverage later, but the Wally Pfister call-out captured the imagination of the neo-communist left, "Oscar Winners Celebrate Union Crews That Are ‘A Very Important Part Of The Middle Class’" (via Memeorandum):

Notice the part about supporting "any other country." Hey, there's some neo-communist international solidarity for ya!

RELATED: At PuffHo, "Charles Ferguson's Oscar Speech Rips Wall Street: 'Inside Job' Director Levels Criticism During Acceptance."

Also, from Jammie, "Shocker: Obama Makes Oscars Cameo": "I'd have probably thrown up if I'd bothered to watch this dreck."

Atlas Shrugged

Freedom Works showed a couple of clips from Atlas Shrugged, Part I, at the "Blog Bash" last Thursday. The movie's website is here. Some will say a film can't do justice to an epic of this scale, but considering that War and Peace is probably faster reading, perhaps a movie version will be a welcomed diversion. Besides, the cinematography looks fabulous:

Pregnant Natalie Portman on the Red Carpet at SAG Awards

We temporarily interrupt our Egypt reporting to bring you the fabulous Natalie Portman at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. Can't pass that up:

And from LAT, "'The King's Speech' continues its reign at SAG Awards," and "SAG Awards red carpet."

Rule 5 Related: POWIP, "Christina Hendricks’ Ethical Body."

Until Later: The Other McCain has a morning roundup in Egypt, "Massive New Protests in Egypt." And at Maggie's Notebook, "Gauntlet Thrown in Egypt? ElBaradei to Represent Protesters to US?"

Michael Douglas at Golden Globes

Nice slideshow at Chicago Tribune.

I'm happy for Michael Douglas:

RELATED: At Weekly Standard, "Ricky Gervais and the Golden Globes Roast."