The Year in Entertainment and Celebrities
A record-breaking box office...the Jonas Brothers packing venues worldwide...Hollywood taking part in the presidential election...celebrities unexpectedly going au naturel and raising eyebrows...scandals involving two governors...and the comeback of all comebacks after last year's false start...we kissed it all in 2008 and we liked it!
The 80th Annual Academy Awards drew the lowest ratings ever, not because of the aftermath of the writer's strike, but because of all four acting awards going to Europe: Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis, Ireland), Best Actress (Marion Cotillard, France), Supporting Actor (Javier Bardem, Spain), and Supporting Actress (Tilda Swinton, United Kingdom). Despite all that, "No Country for Old Men" did pick up three more Oscars including Best Picture of 2007. In response to the European sweep, the Americans have been fighting back hard this year with stellar performances by Anne Hathaway ("Rachel Getting Married"), Angelina Jolie ("Changeling"), Brad Pitt ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"), and Amy Adams ("Doubt").
2008 was Tina Fey's year to shine, largely thanks to her dead-on Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live" as well as her "30 Rock" claiming Comedy Series and Comedy Actress at the 60th Primetime Emmys. AMC's "Mad Men" became the first basic cable program to receive a top honor (Drama Series), while their winning streaks at 6-0 continued for "The Daily Show" and "The Amazing Race."
Also on the TV front this year: The "Battle of the Davids" on "American Idol" between Cook and Archuleta in which the former won it all; Kristy Yamaguchi, Kim Kardashian, and Brooke Burke displaying their fancy footwork on "Dancing With The Stars"; Showtime gaining some ground thanks in part to the theft of "Inside The NFL" from HBO...which, on the other hand, had a new hit in "True Blood; "Gossip Girl" and the new "90210" providing glimmers of hope for the ailing CW; and of course...NBC still buried in fourth place dropping shows left and right, but that could change next year when Jay Leno moves his gig to primetime.
Not even a dying economy couldn't slow down the box office, with "The Dark Knight" and the late Heath Ledger's last performance earned a record-breaking $158 million in its opening weekend. "Twilight", "High School Musical 3", and "Mamma Mia!" all had great moments worth seeing over and over again on DVD (or Blu-Ray), while "Meet Dave", "The Love Guru", "Leatherheads", and "Bangkok Dangerous" had moments worth seeing only once.
In music, we've had catchy tunes from newcomers Leona Lewis ("Bleeding Love") and Katy Perry ("I Kissed A Girl") to go along with the newest from Alicia Keys, Rihanna, and Coldplay, while Taylor Swift started climbing up the charts after getting a little publicity from the Jonas Brothers...who sold out venues all over and had us whipping out our earplugs because of the non-stop screams from fans.
Unexpected celebrities got naked or almost naked this year, and we haven't seen those coming. Lindsay Lohan did a titillating re-creation of Marilyn Monroe's "Last Sitting" photoshoot for "New York" magazine, which had many men blowing their loads like there was no tomorrow. There was also Eva Mendes, whose Calvin Klein commercial was banned in the United States (and a few other countries) because she showed a little extra. And in between those, we've got Miley Cyrus backless in "Vanity Fair." That photo got her in hot water for a while, but it as well as racy photos of her in a bra leaked onto the Internet didn't diminish her fanbase one bit as she was about to hit the Sweet 16.
Scandals aplenty also dominated the headlines in '08. The first big one was New York governor Eliot Spitzer, who was caught on a wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute. He was forced to step down, handing the reins to David Paterson, while Ashley Alexandra Dupre (the woman at the epicenter) became a household name. We also had TV legend Barbara Walters admitting in her memoirs that she had an affair with a Congressman decades ago, Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's public service ended with a text-message affair, and ex-presidential candidate John Edwards also admitting to -- yep! -- having an affair.
In celebrity couples, John Mayer and Jennifer Aniston had everyone talking this year. Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds were one of the few who tied the knot, while Madonna and Guy Ritchie headed to divorce court...not before rumors of a fling between her and Alex Rodriguez began to surface.
Other entertainment newsworthy events include: The writer's strike ending but fears that the actors' may be next; Christina Applegate's breast cancer ordeal; videos of Bill O'Reilly during his "Inside Edition" days and New York newscaster Sue Simmons cussing up a storm making the YouTube rounds; a Paula Abdul fan bitter for not making "American Idol" taking her own life nearby Paula's house; O.J. Simpson being sentenced to up to 15 years in prison for his involvement in a robbery attempt in Las Vegas; and a very happy ending for "America's Most Wanted's" John Walsh when the case was finally closed as to who killed Adam Walsh: It was Otis Toole all along.
2008's instant celebrity was Alaska governor Sarah Palin, who was in the worldwide spotlight as John McCain's running mate in the election. Even though they lost to Barack Obama and Joe Biden, we have never seen this kind of craze since Geraldine Ferraro when she ran alongside Walter Mondale in 1984. But of course, she got skewered along the way, not just by Fey, but Katie Couric when she grilled her about reading any newspapers. Also, Palin decided to make Anchorage her home base for her gubernatorial duties instead of the usual Juneau because of her home in nearby Wasilla. And just a couple weeks after the election, while Palin was interviewed at a turkey farm, a turkey behind her...well, let's just say it was Butterball-bound.
And thanks to the almighty YouTube, Tricia Walsh Smith also became an instant celebrity this year when she used the site to lash out against her soon-to-be ex-husband.
Without any doubt, the biggest entertainment story of 2008 belonged to a person who has always delighted and surprised us with every move she's made over the last decade: Britney Spears!
After a botched start last year, she was indeed back in a big way with winning her first MTV Video Music Awards in September, followed by her new album "Circus" immediately reaching #1 all over the world. And coming in 2009, she'll be coming to a city near you during her latest tour starting in New Orleans (where I saw her back in 2000; I had a special report on it) and ending in London, where six shows at the O2 Arena have been booked.
Also in 2009: Will the Americans bring Oscar back to the homeland? Who will be the next celebrity couple that'll be the talk of the world? And will NBC's gamble finally pay off with Leno every night at 10:00? We'll find out then.
A record-breaking box office...the Jonas Brothers packing venues worldwide...Hollywood taking part in the presidential election...celebrities unexpectedly going au naturel and raising eyebrows...scandals involving two governors...and the comeback of all comebacks after last year's false start...we kissed it all in 2008 and we liked it!
The 80th Annual Academy Awards drew the lowest ratings ever, not because of the aftermath of the writer's strike, but because of all four acting awards going to Europe: Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis, Ireland), Best Actress (Marion Cotillard, France), Supporting Actor (Javier Bardem, Spain), and Supporting Actress (Tilda Swinton, United Kingdom). Despite all that, "No Country for Old Men" did pick up three more Oscars including Best Picture of 2007. In response to the European sweep, the Americans have been fighting back hard this year with stellar performances by Anne Hathaway ("Rachel Getting Married"), Angelina Jolie ("Changeling"), Brad Pitt ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"), and Amy Adams ("Doubt").
2008 was Tina Fey's year to shine, largely thanks to her dead-on Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live" as well as her "30 Rock" claiming Comedy Series and Comedy Actress at the 60th Primetime Emmys. AMC's "Mad Men" became the first basic cable program to receive a top honor (Drama Series), while their winning streaks at 6-0 continued for "The Daily Show" and "The Amazing Race."
Also on the TV front this year: The "Battle of the Davids" on "American Idol" between Cook and Archuleta in which the former won it all; Kristy Yamaguchi, Kim Kardashian, and Brooke Burke displaying their fancy footwork on "Dancing With The Stars"; Showtime gaining some ground thanks in part to the theft of "Inside The NFL" from HBO...which, on the other hand, had a new hit in "True Blood; "Gossip Girl" and the new "90210" providing glimmers of hope for the ailing CW; and of course...NBC still buried in fourth place dropping shows left and right, but that could change next year when Jay Leno moves his gig to primetime.
Not even a dying economy couldn't slow down the box office, with "The Dark Knight" and the late Heath Ledger's last performance earned a record-breaking $158 million in its opening weekend. "Twilight", "High School Musical 3", and "Mamma Mia!" all had great moments worth seeing over and over again on DVD (or Blu-Ray), while "Meet Dave", "The Love Guru", "Leatherheads", and "Bangkok Dangerous" had moments worth seeing only once.
In music, we've had catchy tunes from newcomers Leona Lewis ("Bleeding Love") and Katy Perry ("I Kissed A Girl") to go along with the newest from Alicia Keys, Rihanna, and Coldplay, while Taylor Swift started climbing up the charts after getting a little publicity from the Jonas Brothers...who sold out venues all over and had us whipping out our earplugs because of the non-stop screams from fans.
Unexpected celebrities got naked or almost naked this year, and we haven't seen those coming. Lindsay Lohan did a titillating re-creation of Marilyn Monroe's "Last Sitting" photoshoot for "New York" magazine, which had many men blowing their loads like there was no tomorrow. There was also Eva Mendes, whose Calvin Klein commercial was banned in the United States (and a few other countries) because she showed a little extra. And in between those, we've got Miley Cyrus backless in "Vanity Fair." That photo got her in hot water for a while, but it as well as racy photos of her in a bra leaked onto the Internet didn't diminish her fanbase one bit as she was about to hit the Sweet 16.
Scandals aplenty also dominated the headlines in '08. The first big one was New York governor Eliot Spitzer, who was caught on a wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute. He was forced to step down, handing the reins to David Paterson, while Ashley Alexandra Dupre (the woman at the epicenter) became a household name. We also had TV legend Barbara Walters admitting in her memoirs that she had an affair with a Congressman decades ago, Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's public service ended with a text-message affair, and ex-presidential candidate John Edwards also admitting to -- yep! -- having an affair.
In celebrity couples, John Mayer and Jennifer Aniston had everyone talking this year. Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds were one of the few who tied the knot, while Madonna and Guy Ritchie headed to divorce court...not before rumors of a fling between her and Alex Rodriguez began to surface.
Other entertainment newsworthy events include: The writer's strike ending but fears that the actors' may be next; Christina Applegate's breast cancer ordeal; videos of Bill O'Reilly during his "Inside Edition" days and New York newscaster Sue Simmons cussing up a storm making the YouTube rounds; a Paula Abdul fan bitter for not making "American Idol" taking her own life nearby Paula's house; O.J. Simpson being sentenced to up to 15 years in prison for his involvement in a robbery attempt in Las Vegas; and a very happy ending for "America's Most Wanted's" John Walsh when the case was finally closed as to who killed Adam Walsh: It was Otis Toole all along.
2008's instant celebrity was Alaska governor Sarah Palin, who was in the worldwide spotlight as John McCain's running mate in the election. Even though they lost to Barack Obama and Joe Biden, we have never seen this kind of craze since Geraldine Ferraro when she ran alongside Walter Mondale in 1984. But of course, she got skewered along the way, not just by Fey, but Katie Couric when she grilled her about reading any newspapers. Also, Palin decided to make Anchorage her home base for her gubernatorial duties instead of the usual Juneau because of her home in nearby Wasilla. And just a couple weeks after the election, while Palin was interviewed at a turkey farm, a turkey behind her...well, let's just say it was Butterball-bound.
And thanks to the almighty YouTube, Tricia Walsh Smith also became an instant celebrity this year when she used the site to lash out against her soon-to-be ex-husband.
Without any doubt, the biggest entertainment story of 2008 belonged to a person who has always delighted and surprised us with every move she's made over the last decade: Britney Spears!
After a botched start last year, she was indeed back in a big way with winning her first MTV Video Music Awards in September, followed by her new album "Circus" immediately reaching #1 all over the world. And coming in 2009, she'll be coming to a city near you during her latest tour starting in New Orleans (where I saw her back in 2000; I had a special report on it) and ending in London, where six shows at the O2 Arena have been booked.
Also in 2009: Will the Americans bring Oscar back to the homeland? Who will be the next celebrity couple that'll be the talk of the world? And will NBC's gamble finally pay off with Leno every night at 10:00? We'll find out then.
Next time when the Year in Review continues: My annual list of the Top 20 Things That Had the Whole World Talking in 2008!
