BuzzSugar

Weekend Reading: Alec Baldwin's Insecurities

BuzzSugar — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 08:00:08 -0700

It's funny, isn't it, how and when actors' personal lives begin to sabotage their professional lives? Lindsay Lohan, once a promising young talent, is in the process of rebuilding her career after issues with drugs, alcohol, and bar fights. Then there's Tom Cruise, who has been in career rehab ever since he jumped the couch. Major celebs are more than just talent, they're entire brands, and going off brand is usually career suicide - unless, of course, you're Alec Baldwin.

This guy is known to be, well, a little odd and even a loose cannon. But no matter what terrible, weird thing comes out about his private life, he's such a great addition to any cast (30 Rock is the most recent perfect example) on TV or in movies that I for one tend to ignore that other stuff. I mean, look at him. I can't even type this post without looking at his picture and cracking up.

In this way, he is totally fascinating to me. Which is why I for one will be curling up with this giant, illuminating profile on Baldwin in The New Yorker this weekend. To see some of the tidbits that got me hooked, just read more.

Baldwin's "rhetoric" brings to mind for the reporter a scene where his character on 30 Rock looks at an "equestrian painting" and says, "I wish I were a horse - strong, free, my chestnut haunches glistening in the sun.”
Even though he is enjoying a career rejuvenation right now (a career many actors would kill for), he is still "very conscious of what is lacking in his life - a spouse, for example, and a film career something like Jack Nicholson’s, and the governorship of New York."
Of Tina Fey, he says, "She’s so bright you’re always wondering if you’re boring her" and says that his 30 Rock character, Jack Donaghy, is based on SNL creator Lorne Michaels: "Jack Donaghy is Lorne, first and foremost. 'What am I, a farmer?' That is Lorne. I think he said that. Lorne’s got a tuxedo in the glove compartment of his car. Lorne is a big-ticket A-list New York water buffalo. He’s big on the Serengeti. Lorne is a person who seduces you into thinking that if you take his advice and play your cards right you're going to end up with his life."
And then there's stuff like this:

"In East Hampton, I’m a nudist and I eat meat," Baldwin - a vegetarian - had said before my visit, expanding on the idea that he lived a quite different life on Long Island than he did in New York. "I shoot deer with a bow and arrow. I smoke the deer meat and eat it every morning with my eggs and toast. I am a homosexual. I listen to rock music, loud."

Interesting guy, right? What do you think? Will we ever truly understand the mind of Alec Baldwin?

Source

NBC's Thursday Comedy Stars Bring the Funny

BuzzSugar — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 09:29:12 -0700

Frankly, it would have been sad if a panel full of stars and producers from NBC's four acclaimed Thursday comedies hadn't gotten laughs during the TCA press tour on Monday. So I'm pleased to report that the panel, which included Zach Braff, Jason Lee, John Krasinski, Tina Fey, and the executive producers of their shows, was appropriately hilarious. A few favorite moments:

Bill Lawrence, "Scrubs" executive producer, on his show's ratings:
"I think this is the year that "Scrubs" really becomes a big hit. We always kind of geared our plan towards peaking in the seventh year."

Tina Fey, on whether she had to convince Alec Baldwin to come back to the show:
"I've never even met Alec."

Greg Daniels, executive producer of "The Office," on those Jim-and-Pam-heavy promos:
"I always felt jealous on these Thursday-night promos because everybody else had these really funny clips on, and then, you know, ours was like, 'Do I still love you?'"

Fey on the differences between herself and her character, Liz Lemon:
"The biggest difference is that my character is not married. And also, apparently her jugs were bigger."

Lorne Michaels, "30 Rock" executive producer, on DVD commentaries:
"I was thinking it might be time to buy a DVD player."

John Krasinski on DVD commentaries:
"Tell you what, when I was doing a comment about DVD commentaries, what I was really thinking about was ..."

Source

Link Time! Soupy Sales Passes Away

BuzzSugar — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:30:25 -0700

Comedian Soupy Sales dies at 83 - Movieline
Fargo Rock City, Chuck Klosterman's novel, is being turned into a movie - The A.V. Club
Sylvester Stallone is working on Rocky 7 - Worst Previews
Here's a schedule for upcoming Halloween episodes and specials - TV.com
Melrose Place's Colin Egglesfield reveals how he feels about losing his role on the show - Watch With Kristin
Justin Theroux is producing a comedy called Air Guitar - Coming Soon
Tracey Morgan has some really sweet words about Lorne Michaels (but don't worry, there's still swearing) - Vulture
Amelia director Mira Nair says Amelia Earhart was modern and would be considered an iconoclast now - TrèsSugar
HBO series In Treatment is getting a third season - HitFix
Joss Whedon talks about Dollhouse's absence from November sweeps - MTV Movies Blog

SNL News: Jenny Slate Swears Herself In, Darrell Hammond May Be Out

BuzzSugar — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:30:40 -0700

New cast member Jenny Slate went from virtual unknown to Internet phenomenon on her first-ever episode of Saturday Night Live over the weekend. She dropped a now infamous "F-Bomb" during a biker-chick sketch that had her saying "freaking" about 50 times - you can barely blame her, it's a pretty easy slip, especially for someone new to live TV. Blogs immediately jumped to Slate's defense, but apparently the alarm was unnecessary. She's not getting fired, there won't be a fine since it was after 10 p.m., and Lorne Michaels supposedly isn't upset. Plus, I'd be willing to bet Miss Slate won't be making that mistake again.

In other SNL news, the show's longest running cast member's name - Darrell Hammond - was missing from the opening credits Saturday night. As recently as last week a rep for the show said he would be back in some capacity, but despite his appearance on Thursday's Weekend Update, he wasn't in any of the skits on Saturday. He's been on the show for 14 seasons and accounts for some of the cornerstone imitations - Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, and my personal favorite, Sean Connery. Between the loss of Hammond and no more Tina Fey as Sarah Palin or Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton, there's a bit of a gaping hole in SNL's political satire.

So, what did you think of the season opener? There are some exciting hosts coming our way, but the premiere was a bit lackluster for me. Do you think Jenny Slate should face any sort of punishment for her slip up, or is it all much ado about nothing?

In case you missed it, check out the Jenny Slate clip below (language NSFW, obviously) when you read more.