Where Desi Loved Lucy
“Lucy, I’m home!” You can almost hear that iconic television phrase wafting through the entry hall of this most classic of Beverly Hills mansions, which recently came on the market for a very reasonable (for the area) $6.985 million. It was the temporary love nest of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnez back in the 1950’s, while they awaited another regal…
Review: The Judge
Will someone please explain to me how such a stellar cast can wind up in such a miscarriage of movie justice? I mean, it’s Robert Downey Jr., for heavens sake, along with Robert Duvall, Vera Farmiga and Billy Bob Thornton. You need a really bad script and an inept director to show some of the greatest actors…
Hollywood Hound Must Have: Healthy Paws Pet Insurance
Most of the “Must Haves” I write about are not absolute essentials — they’re more like “Really Wants.” But when it comes to pet health insurance, unless you want to go into debt or feel tremendously guilty, it really is an imperative that you keep your pet covered. I don’t mean to sound like an ad,…
Review: The Book of Life
I’m always up for a major studio movie that focuses on Mexican lore and culture, a segment of North American society that I think is shamelessly underrepresented in the media. I’m also enthusiastic about anything that flows from the original and creative genius of Guillermo del Toro, who backed an produced The Book of Life, while Jorge…
Review: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Since there are so many words in the title, I sum up Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day in one word: Cute. But since you’re expecting a little more out of this review, I’ll add a few more. It’s fast, it’s fun, it’s frolicsome, it’s family friendly. Add it to your current…
Notch's New House: Jay Z and Beyonce Almost Bought It
Update: This is now Notch’s new house. Minecraft founder Markus “Notch” Persson, made the winning bid for this outrageously luxurious Beverly Hills spec home. The asking price may have been $85 million, but Persson got it for a steal(?) at only $70 million. That’s pocket change for Persson who was recently bought out by Microsoft for $2.5…
A GOOD MARRIAGE Review — A Troubled Relationship With the Script
Let me qualify this review of Stephen King’s A Good Marriage by telling you that I’m a huge Stephen King fan. I think he is an important, uniquely American literary voice, and, as a writer, I can’t help but admire his prolific output. So I’m always eager to see any film he touches. All his stories aren’t perfect cinematic translations,…
A Pretty Fabulous Pre-Fab Home
Sometimes the home I write about does not belong to a celebrity, it is the celebrity, as is the case with the new Blu Home model that was recently “placed” on a hillside lot on Kanan Road in Aguora Hills. It will cause you to rethink all the preconceptions you’ve ever had about pre-fab homes,…
Can't Wait to Get 'Younger'
Sex and the City fans rejoice! Creator Darren Star is coming back with a flirty new, female-oriented comedy called Younger, and it stars some of my TV favorites. With original programming like Hot in Cleveland and The Exes, TV Land is known for it’s appreciation for and accommodation of what I like to call more “savvy”…
Review: Meet the Mormons
NEWS FLASH: It’s always nice to have your positive reviews backed up by box office success, but this weekend’s relative blockbuster performance of Meet the Mormons is both unexpected and overwhelming. Take that Hollywood titans who believe a film has to have sex and violence to be a success. Just how well did it do?…
