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August 2010
On My Radar is a monthly kitchen-sink list of what’s captured my attention in pop culture….
 Undercovers—Sept 23! I’m counting the days until NBC adds this to its Wednesday night schedule this fall. It stars the *gaw-jus* Boris Kodjoe and Gugu Mbatha-Raw. They play Steven and Samantha Bloom, former spies, who have settled into domestic life running their mega successful catering business when they fall back into their old gun-totin’-butt-kicking-skydiving-for-espionage ways. It has been described as a cross between Mr. & Mrs. Smith and the Jason Bourne series. Are they a blindingly dazzling pair or what? The Blooms crackle with chemistry in the clips I’ve seen so far. Similar couples and storylines are plentiful in African-American romance novels, but few have carried a series on broadcast television. Industry insiders are calling the casting of Boris and Gugu as the leads in this action-adventure drama a “bold move.” Translation? Do I really need to spell it out? The buzz and pedigree for this show are fantastic. It’s produced by J.J. Abrams who was also the man behind two of my favorite shows --Lost and Felicity. Alias is also among his credits. Fingers are crossed that Undercovers scores in the ratings. Check out this link for more photos and video snippets. www.nbc.com/undercovers/
 Jennifer Lopez – No official announcement has been made as of this post (August 6), but word has it she’s been tapped to be one of the new American Idol judges. (Another update August 12--I've read conflicting reports. She's in. She's out. Again, no *official* word from the Fox camp.) But I think she will work as a judge. When she was a guest coach on the show she appeared to have a genuine rapport with the contestants. She wasn’t too soft or too harsh. Her advice was pretty solid. I consider her a quadruple threat. (Is that you snickering?) Like one of my other faves Beyonce, Jennifer can dance, act, sing and handle multiple successful side hustles (perfume, clothing, jewelry lines). She's no Aretha, Patti, Celine, Whitney or Mariah, but she can carry a tune about as well as former Idol judge Paula Abdul so we can check that box. If you think she lacks the acting chops, that means you haven’t seen her in Selena or Out of Sight. And business savvy? Hey it wasn't easy to parlay a Flyy Girl-on-In Living Color gig into the-highest-paid Latina-in-the-entertainment- industry designation. I didn’t watch much of AI last season because I found most of the contestants pretty …um..what’s the word I’m searching for? ZZZZZ. There were some decent singers, but nobody had the X-factor or that extra oomph in my opinion. (The cycle before last I was a speed-dialing fool for Adam Lambert.) And while I really like Ellen, she made a lame AI judge. (Sorry, Ellen.) Her comments usually left me scratching my head. With Simon gone I wasn’t sure I’d tune in to see who made next cycle’s top ten, but now that Jenny is on the block, I just might.
 Goody Simple Styles Collection: Goody says these new accessories ( the Spin Pin, Pony Pouf Clip, The Volume Boost Comb and Modern Updo Pin--$6.49 each) are designed to help women create intricate Red Carpet hairstyles without the hassle of visiting a salon. I’ve only tested two of the four. The Spin Pin promises to do the work of 20 regular bobby pins. My hair is so fine I’ve never had any use for that many bobby pins for one style. I might not be the best judge for this one. However, two Spin Pins did provide hold without the tugging and snagging that I’ve occasionally experienced while removing regular crimped bobby pins. The helix design is cute and novel. Just make sure you insert the pronged ends FIRST. I was jabbing the opposite end in my hair a few times and not getting anywhere before I finally got a clue. Pony Pouf Clip earned two thumbs-up because I’m always looking for options –short of a weave —that give the illusion of having more hair. (Not that I have anything against weaves, y’all, they just aren't for me.) The clip promises to create a voluminous ponytail. The effect is similar to what you’d get using a banana clip, but the fullness is horizontal. The banana clip tends to provide more depth, if that makes any sense. The Volume Boost Comb is a smaller version of the Bump-It styling accessory. I don’t think I’ll be going for “the Snooki” ’do anytime soon so I’ll pass on that one. I am looking forward to experimenting with the Modern Updo Pin. Will report back later.
 Liev Schreiber—He’s co-starring in the new Angelina Jolie flick, Salt. He’s been on my radar since 1999’s The Hurricane, starring Denzel Washington. I’ve enjoyed watching him in the remake of The Manchurian Candidate , The Sum of All Fears, The Scream trilogy etc. So far, his movie roles haven’t been A-list -star-making vehicles, but apparently he’s made quite a name for himself on Broadway. The July 30th edition of Entertainment Weekly magazine (Leonardo DiCaprio on the cover) featured a nice profile. The EW reporter asked Liev (pronounced Lee-ev) how he felt about The New York Times referring to him as “the greatest actor of his generation.” I found his response particularly hilarious and endearing:
“Well, how can you argue with The New York Times?” (Liev) says with a sly grin. “Look, I have a different perspective, but I’m glad they have theirs. Really glad. But if you’re going to accept that, you also have to be prepared to accept when someone calls you ‘the somnambulistic Mr. Schreiber with a head the size of a watermelon,’ which someone actually wrote once. I had to look up somnambulistic. It means someone who puts you to sleep. So if you’re okay with being the best stage actor of your generation, you also have to be okay with being the boring guy with the watermelon head.”
 AfricanExport—She’s star of one of my favorite YouTube channels. (I have several, but she’s definitely in the top five.) She does videos on styling natural hair, cooking, fashion (with an emphasis on thrift store finds), and makeup, but it’s really her humorous down-to-earth delivery that won me over. AfricanExport has uploaded about 300 videos so far and adds two or three per day so she keeps it fresh. Here’s a link to check her out. www.youtube.com/AfricanExport
 The Passage—Okay, so I bought into the hype and picked up The Passage by Justin Cronin. This is the work that was sold as an outline and a half-finished manuscript. It’s the first in a proposed trilogy that fetched a $3.75 million book advance and spurred a bidding war among several major studios for the movie rights. Fox 2000 won that battle, ponying up $1.75 million for the privilege. While I’ve enjoyed several vampire flicks (Fright Night, Near Dark, Blade I, Lost Boys etc.) I haven’t read many vampire novels. The Passage grabbed me at page one and hasn’t let go…yet. I’m still reading so the final verdict is not in. It’s a whopping 766 pages of dense type and I have a ways to go, but so far so good. Don’t know if I buy Justin’s story about plotting this one with his daughter, who was 8 years old at the time, but I guess it makes a good human interest tidbit for press interviews. Like he needs a plug from little ol’ me after a enjoying a major media blitz and glowing reviews in People, Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times etc.) But here’s a link to his site www.justincronin.com where you can find an excerpt.
Until next time...
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