Glee
Puck, Sue Slyvester or a Cherrio from Walmart
True Blood
Sookie Stackhouse: Merlotte's waitress uniform from hbo.com
Jason Stackhouse: Bon Temps football t-shirt from hbo.com
Eastbound & Down
Kenny Powers: mullet hat from hbo.com
The Hunger Games bellasugar gives advice on creating your Katniss Everdeen costume. And Hunger Games fansite The Hob suggests possibilities for Katniss' "girl on fire" outfit. The Hob also includes posts on costumes for other characters, including the Tributes, Effie Trinket, and President Snow.
The Office
Dunder Mifflin warehouse employee costume and more at nbc.com.
Friday Night Lights
Panther Football or East Dillon Lions apparel from nbc.com.
Drive Steady Clothing Inc. is producing replicas of the awesome scorpion jacket worn by Driver (Ryan Gosling) in the film, but they will not be available until November 11. You can always make your own... don't forget leather driving gloves and a toothpick for the corner of your mouth to complete your costume!
These are just a few fun costume ideas I found on the web. What are you dressing up as for Halloween?
New Directions members get their glee on in the stacks.
In honor of National Library Week, I compiled more library scenes to add to last year's list. I think my favorite fictional library enthusiasts are Rory Gilmore (Gilmore Girls), Brick Heck (The Middle), Jesse St. James (Glee), and the characters on Community.
Beauty and the Beast (1991) Find it in the catalog!
Belle is imprisoned in the Beast's castle after offering herself to be held captive in place of her ailing father. Seeing the way Belle misses her home and how lonely she is, the Beast shows her his lavish library, and tells her that she has her pick from the thousands of volumes.
Before search boxes, you had to search card catalog drawers.
Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) Find it in the catalog!
After Paul (George Peppard) and Holly (Audrey Hepburn) enter the library she asks him, "What is this place?" Yes, Holly Golightly has never been inside a library. Paul explains how each card is either a book or an author (what about subjects, Paul?). They look under his last name, Varjack, to find the card with his book, Nine Lives. They have to bring the card to one librarian and then wait until their number is called at a different desk. The librarian helping them at that desk is uninterested in the fact that Paul wrote the book. Holly informs her, "It's Varjack, Paul in person!" The librarian is quite annoyed with them, tells them to be quiet, and becomes upset when Holly encourages Paul to sign the library's copy of his book. That provides Holly's cue to go: "I don't think this place is half as nice as Tiffany's."
Community (2009-present) Season 1: Find it in the catalog!
Jeff (Joel McHale), Britta (Gillian Jacobs), Annie (Alison Brie), Shirley (Yvette Nicole Brown), Troy (Donald Glover), Abed (Danny Pudi) and Pierce (Chevy Chase) form a Spanish study group and every episode is set at least partially in the library, since that is their meeting place. I wanted to highlight a recent season 2 episode, because it demonstrates why Abed and Troy are among my favorite characters on TV and also have one of the best friendships on TV, in addition to the fact that the episode involves a librarian-centric plotline.
If only the librarian would notice them...
Season 2, episode 15: "Early 21st Century Romanticism"
Best friends Troy and Abed both want to ask the same librarian to the Valentine's Dance. They watch her from their study room and hope that if they're too loud she'll shush them, so they yell, "BOOKS!" and then pretend to sleep when she actually does look in their direction. When they finally do approach her, they suggest that she hang out at the dance with both of them, so she can get to know them before she makes her choice.
Troy: Why does being a librarian make her even hotter? Abed: They're keepers of knowledge. She holds the answers to all of our questions, like "Will you marry me?" and "Why are there still libraries?"
Eastbound & Down (2009-present) Season 1: Find it in the catalog!
Former baseball pitcher Kenny Powers (Danny McBride) now teaches gym at a junior high school, where his high school girlfriend April (Katy Mixon) also teaches. In a season 1 episode, he goes to talk to her in the library, where two girls get into a fight. Powers breaks them apart and yells, "If you're gonna fight, do it in a parking lot somewhere, not in a library, surrounded by books!"
Gilmore Girls (2000-2007) Season 2: Find it in the catalog!
Season 2, episode 15: "Lost and Found"
Rory's (Alexis Bledel) boyfriend, Dean (Jared Padelecki), can hardly hide his boredom as he sits next to two piles of books she has already selected to buy from the library's Buy a Book! fundraiser. After over two hours of perusing the sale, Rory is still going strong and has yet to look at the astronomy section.
Glee. Volume 4 includes songs performed by McKinley High glee club New Directions from the first part of season 2, with the exception of songs from the Rocky Horror and Christmas episodes. On this CD you'll find three Britney Spears covers from the "Britney/Brittany" episode: "Me Against The Music," "Stronger," and my favorite, "Toxic." Although I was quite excited for Glee to cover Britney, I thought their versions (and the performances in the episode itself) stuck too close to the originals. I thought that only "Stronger," featuring Kevin McHale on lead vocals, and "Toxic," which utilized the entire cast, did something fun with her songs. The cast also takes on three Bruno Mars songs: "Billionaire," "Marry You," and "Just the Way You Are." Both "Marry You and "Just the Way You Are" are taken from the episode entitled "Furt," where Kurt's father and Finn's mother get married. "Marry You" is one of my favorite Bruno Mars songs, and although I prefer his version, I love the way the song is performed by New Directions as the walk down the aisle at the beginning of the wedding ceremony. Corey Monteith's cover of "Just the Way You Are" had me crying as I watched his character, Finn, sing to his new brother, Kurt. After the past issues between the two characters and Kurt being the target of bullies at school, I thought the performance of "Just the Way You Are" was quite heartfelt and beautiful. I don't know, Glee is often deemed a comedy, but more often than not I'm breaking out the tissues as I watch each week.
But back to the music. More highlights off this CD:
Chris Colfer's heartbreaking version of the Beatles' "I Want To Hold Your Hand"
Gwyneth Paltrow covering Cee Lo Green's "Forget You"
Darren Criss singing Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" -- I've already raved about this performance in my "Great performances in 2010 post".
Lea Michele's cover of "The Only Exception" by Paramore -- which also was the only non-Britney Spears song covered in the "Britney/Brittany" episode.
Joan Osbourne's "One of Us" performed by the entire cast in the "Grilled Cheesus" episode.
Missing: Jenna Ushkowitz and Amber Riley's awesome take on Florence + the Machine's "Dog Days Are Over;" Corey Monteith's cover of REM's "Losing My Religion" from the "Grilled Cheesus" episode.
I tried to write about my favorites in movies and TV this year to the tune of "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music. After my first stanza,
Leo in Shutter Island and Inception
"Does the top stop spinning?" everyone questions
Tom Hardy so good as Eames in disguise
Will be nominated for Best Picture in the critics' eyes
things quickly went downhill with my rhyming attempts to fit all my ideas into a certain number of syllables per line. So instead I made a regular list, mostly limited to what is now out on DVD.What were your favorite things on TV and in the movies in 2010?
◊◊ "Teenage Dream" performed a cappella by Blaine (Darren Criss) and the Dalton Academy Warblers on Glee
I have no idea how many times I rewound my recording of the "Never Been Kissed" episode to watch this performance. I do know that "Teenage Dream" became the most downloaded Glee cover ever and that in his first guest appearance on the show, Darren Criss, known mostly for playing Harry Potter in "A Very Harry Potter Musical," became an instant heartthrob. I also think it made many people forget Katy Perry ever sang the song in the first place. The song was arranged, with background vocals performed by, Tuft University's male a cappella group The Beelzebubs (although they did not actually appear in the episode). Click here to read about their involvement on Glee. Watch the video:
◊◊ The comedies She’s Out of My League and Going the Distance both had hilarious casts with wonderful chemistry. In She's Out of My League Jay Baruchel, T.J. Miller, Nate Torrence, and Mike Vogel have a very tight friendship. The other supporting actors are just as funny: Lindsay Sloane as Kirk's ex-girlfriend Marnie, Hayes MacArthur as Marnie's new boyfriend, Kyle Bornheimer as Kirk's brother Dylan, and Jessica St. Clair as Dylan's fiance. See my full review here.
I'm guessing many people did not go see Going the Distance due to how quickly it disappeared from theaters. Well, I recommend you check out a copy from the library. The chemistry between Justin Long and Drew Barrymore shouldn't be too much of a surprise, since they are a couple in real life, but I loved how director Nanette Burstein (American Teen) captured the moments between them. This is one of Drew Barrymore's best roles and the movie also made me a fan of Justin Long. Romantic comedies often feel so contrived and plastic, and this movie, about a couple trying to make their long distance relationship work, just felt real. Christina Applegate heads up a great supporting cast, including Jim Gaffigan, Jason Sudeikis, and Charlie Day.
◊◊ Michael Shannon in The Runaways: Shannon steals the movie from Dakota Fanning and Kristen Stewart as Runaways manager Kim Fowley. I didn't even realize it was him until I read the closing credits.
◊◊ Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, directed by Edgar Wright, was one of the most entertaining, creative, and fun movies of the year. As Pilgrim, Michael Cera is quite soft-spoken and non-confrontational but turns into a different person playing bass as part of the band Sex Bob-Omb. Kieran Culkin, as Pilgrim's roommate, Wallace, steals all his scenes. Did I mention the awesome soundtrack?
◊◊ Troy and Abed's friendship on Community. The show, which features one of the strongest casts on TV, is currently in its second season on NBC. Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) are usually featured in the scene that plays while the credits roll at the end of each episode. My favorite one is the following "Anthropology Rap" featuring Betty White:
◊◊ Toy Story 3 and How to Train Your Dragon. I know I wasn't alone when I became emotional watching Andy drive away to college after having one last round of playtime with his beloved toys. And paying extra to see Dragon in 3D was definitely worth the money-- I felt like I was soaring through the air!
◊◊ The Kids are All Right features award-worthy performances from not only Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, and Mark Ruffalo, but the actors who play the teenage kids, Josh Hutcherson as Laser and Mia Wasikowska as Joni.
◊◊ Jimmy Fallon's opening number at the Emmys. This combined so many of my favorite things (Glee! Lost! Choreography! Jon Hamm!) I came close to spontaneously combusting:
◊◊ I thoroughly enjoyed watching Chloe Grace Moretz Kick Ass. Hollywood seems reluctant to allow anyone except handsome young men to don superhero tights, but here is a 13-year-old girl taking care of business.
◊◊ The funny and smart Easy A and its luminous star, Emma Stone, who even displays her singing talent in the film.
◊◊ Harry Shum, Jr. in Glee and Step Up 3. On Glee, Shum plays Mike Chang (jokingly referred to as "Other Asian"), who is usually in the background if he isn't dancing. Since he doesn't have that many lines, I always tend to watch his facial expressions and reactions in the group scenes, because I think he is quite a talented physical comedian. And though he doesn't have a lead role, you can't miss him when he dances toward the screen leading his crew in one of the battles in Step Up 3. Glee: Season 1 on DVD: Find it in the catalog!
◊◊ The engrossing film The Town. Directed by and starring Ben Affleck, with another standout performance from Jeremy Renner, seen in last year's The Hurt Locker.
◊◊ The sixth and final season of Lost. I loved how the show ended and think it did the characters justice. Months after the airing of the finale, I'll still get teary-eyed thinking about Jack in that final scene. If you never caught the show, now's the perfect time to watch all the seasons back-to-back (and get your Lost on).
Glee: The Music: The Christmas Album
NEW CD-HOLIDAY VARIOUS GLEE Find it in the catalog!
The cast from TV's Glee perform Christmas standards such as "O Christmas Tree," "Angels We Have Heard on High," and "O Holy Night" that were featured on the December 7 Christmas episode. The girls do their version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and the guys do their unique take of "Jingle Bells." I love the fun and energetic "Deck the Rooftop" and also Lea Michelle's version of The Carpenters' "Merry Christmas Darling." Lea Michelle and Corey Monteith's performance of George Michael's "Last Christmas" is one of my favorite songs on the CD. My other favorite is the duet between Chris Colfer and Darren Criss on "Baby, It's Cold Outside."
Merry Christmas II You by Mariah Carey
NEW CD-HOLIDAY CAREY MERRY Find it in the catalog!
Mariah follows up her successful 1994 album Merry Christmas with Merry Christmas II You, which again strikes a nice balance between traditional Christmas songs and originals. Mariah co-wrote the songs "Oh Santa!," "Christmas Time is in the Air Again," When Christmas Comes," and "One Child." The vibrant, R&B flavored dance song "Oh Santa!" is probably my favorite on the CD. Be sure to check out "O Come All Ye Faithful / Hallelujah Chorus," which finds Mariah singing with her mother Patricia Carey. Listening to the song, you'll wonder if they got together because they wanted to see who could hit more consecutive high notes (verdict: Mariah's mom). The CD also includes a live version of "O Holy Night" and an "extra festive version" of "All I Want for Christmas is You." If you enjoyed Mariah's previous Christmas CD you will also like this one.
I stumbled across the blog Diamonds for Dessert as I was researching potential recipes for our Harry Potter Movie Release Party. After checking out the Harry Potter recipes I looked at other posts and discovered some of the coolest, most creative baking ideas I've found in recent memory. College student Susan S. runs the blog, where she shares photos and recipes of recent baking/cooking projects (all of them do not deal with pop culture, but everything looks delicious) .
Anyway, if you are like me and enjoy both baking and pop culture, you will definitely find some fun ideas on the Diamonds for Dessert blog. I'm including a few highlights below-- be sure to click on the links to read the posts in full!
Glee Cookies
Too cool for words and perfect to serve at a Glee Viewing Party! We just need to add Brittany, Santana, Sam, Mike Chang, and Blaine cookies to the group!
Eat Me cookies from the 1951 animated film Alice in Wonderland
View the full menu from Harry Potter party here. The Butterbeer recipe looks very easy to make and serve; I wish I had used that recipe for last Saturday's party instead of my rushed concoction of ice cream, butterscotch syrup, and vanilla cream soda.
All photo screen captures were taken from Diamonds for Dessert blog and were used with permission.
In a previous Dundee Media Corner post I wrote about Glee: The MusicVol. 1 and Vol. 2 and The Power of Madonna. Now here are two more Glee albums that Gleeks can check out. For the first time actor Jonathan Groff (who plays Vocal Adrenaline singer Jesse St. James) makes an appearance on a Glee compilation album!
Glee Volume 3: Showstoppers
NEW CD-MUSICAL/ST VARIOUS GLEE Find it in the catalog!
This CD includes highlights from the second part of Glee's first season. Some awesome duets that deserve several listens: Lea Michelle and Jonathan Groff on "Hello," Kristin Chenoweth and Matthew Morrison on "One Less Bess To Answer / A House Is Not A Home," Jane Lynch joining Olivia Newton-John on "Physical," and Neil Patrick Harris and Matthew Morris on "Dream On" (Harris recently won an Emmy for his guest appearance on the show). My favorites on this CD are Jonathan Groff and Lea Michelle singing "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and the glee club singing Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance."
Glee, the Music. Journey to Regionals
NEW CD-MUSICAL/ST VARIOUS GLEE Find it in the catalog!
This CD includes the songs performed by New Directions at Regionals in the first season's last episode. They sang the Journey songs "Faithfully," "Any Way You Want It/Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin'," and "Don't Stop Believin.'" Other songs performed on the season finale are on the CD as well: "Bohemian Rhapsody" (sang by Groff), "To Sir With Love," and "Over the Rainbow."
This morning the nominations were announced for the 2010 Emmys, which will air August 29th. Visit the official Emmy website to view all the nominations. I'm most happy to see Outstanding Actress/Actor nominations for Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler of Friday Night Lights. Unfortunately, the Popeater.com Facebook campaign to get Zach Gilford an Outstanding Guest Actor-Drama nomination for his work in the powerful episode "The Son" was not successful; at least "The Son" was nominated for its writing. FNL also was nominated for Outstanding Casting. I've shared my love for this show before in a DVD review, and I'll repeat myself here: if you are looking for a show that realistically portrays marriage, friendship, difficulties teenagers face today as they grow up, and teamwork, then watch Friday Night Lights. This is a show that captures human moments from its actors and is definitely one of the best hours of TV you can find today. Season 4 currently airs Friday nights at 7 PM on NBC.
Lost received 13 nominations, including Outstanding Drama, Actor-Drama (Matthew Fox), Supporting Actor-Drama (Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn), Guest Actress-Drama (Elizabeth Mitchell), and Art Direction. The series finale, "The End," received nominations for Directing, Writing, Editing, Music Composition, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing. Confused about what's happening on the Island?
Not surprisingly, Mad Men received 17 nominations in total. The show received recognition for Jon Hamm (Actor-Drama), January Jones (Actress-Drama), John Slattery (Supporting Actor-Drama), Elisabeth Moss (Supporting Actress-Drama), and Robert Morse (Guest Actor-Drama), in addition to nominations for Writing, Directing, Casting, Cinematography, Costumes, Editing, Hairstyling, and Makeup.
True Blood, nominated for Outstanding Drama, didn't receive any acting nominations but did receive nods for Casting, Art Direction, Prosthetic Makeup, and Sound Editing.
Several CDs featuring songs performed on the TV show Glee are available now. The first part of the season (aka The Road to Sectionals) ended in December and Glee: The MusicVolumes 1 and 2 include songs from those episodes. The second half of season 1 is currently airing; the CD Glee: The Music:The Power of Madonna has already been released to go along with an episode that featured solely Madonna songs. Glee, set in a high school in Lima, Ohio, is about the outcast members of the glee club, the teacher (Will Schuester, played by Matthew Morrison) who motivates them, and a cheerleading coach (Sue Sylvester, played by Jane Lynch) who stops at nothing to mock them. Awesome trivia fact: co-creator Ian Brennan developed the idea for the show (which initially was supposed to be a movie) based on his high school years at Prospect High School in the show choir (located in Mount Prospect, IL). Which high school did American Idol finalist Lee DeWyze also attend? Prospect!
On the show the actors cover a variety of song types, from current songs ("Gold Digger," "Smile" by Lily Allen, "My Life Would Suck Without You" by Kelly Clarkson) and guilty pleasure songs ("Crush" by Jennifer Paige or "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice, featured in a recent episode), to karaoke staples ("Alone" by Heart, "Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond) and Broadway songs ("Mr. Cellopane" from Chicago). My favorites are those that include the entire glee club, like "Don't Stop Believin'," "Gold Digger," and "Somebody to Love." I think on the big group numbers the singers and varied arrangements really breathe new life into the songs. I also love anything sung by Matthew Morrison, even his rapping on "Gold Digger" and "Bust a Move." A big stand-out is his performance of the mash-up of "Don't Stand So Close To Me" by the Police and "Young Girl" by Gary Puckett and the Union Gap.
Glee: The Music, Volume 1 Find it in the catalog!
17 songs; includes the Rhianna cover "Take a Bow," sung by Rachel (Lea Michelle), Billy Idol's "Dancing With Myself," sung by Artie (Kevin McHale), Heart's "Alone" sung by April (Kristen Chenoweth) and Will, and "Defying Gravity," from Wicked, sung by Rachel and Kurt (Chris Colfer)
Highlights: Kanye West's "Gold Digger," Queen's "Somebody to Love" covered by the entire club, Finn (Corey Monteith) and Rachel leading the glee club on "Don't Stop Believin'"
Glee: The Music, Volume 2 Find it in the catalog!
17 songs; includes Finn singing "I'll Stand by You" by the Pretenders, Artie and Mercedes singing "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers, Tina (Jenna Ushkowitz) signing Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors"
Highlights: "Don't Stand So Close To Me / Young Girl" performed by Will, "Crush" performed by Rachel
Glee: The Music, The Power of Madonna Find it in the catalog!
7 songs from the"Power of Madonna" episode which aired on April 20. My favorite is "4 Minutes," the Madonna-Justin Timberlake duet, which includes the McKinley marching band backing Mercedes (Amber Riley) and Kurt.
Other highlights include the guys singing "What It Feels Like For A Girl," Sue Sylvester's (Jane Lynch) "Vogue," and the group number "Like A Prayer."
Songs from the show are also available for download from iTunes. The Glee cast performs May 25 and 26 at the Rosemont Theatre!
